28 October 2026
The Vice-President of India released the Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031 Strategic Action Plan for Ornamental Fisheries Development at an outreach programme at Agatti in Lakshadweep. The plan was brought out by the Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
The plan sets a common framework for management, biosecurity, quality assurance and regulatory compliance across the ornamental fisheries value chain. Ornamental fish are reared and traded for aquariums rather than for food, and the islands' lagoons are the natural base for them.
The release records that Lakshadweep's exclusive economic zone is nearly 4 lakh sq. km, about 17 per cent of India's total exclusive economic zone, and that its lagoon area is over 4,200 sq. km. Lakshadweep has also been notified as a dedicated Seaweed Cluster.
Plan:
Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031
Released by:
Vice-President of India
Place:
Agatti, Lakshadweep
Lakshadweep EEZ:
nearly 4 lakh sq. km
Share of India's EEZ:
about 17%
Lagoon area:
over 4,200 sq. km
Why it matters for exams: Lakshadweep's share of India's exclusive economic zone — about 17 per cent from a land area of only 32 sq km — and the ministry behind Mission Rangeen Machhli are both exam-ready facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone — The sea belt up to 200 nautical miles from the baseline in which a coastal state has rights over resources.
28 October 2026
A five-year perspective plan for Lakshadweep's fisheries sets a target of 50,000 tonnes of tuna and tuna-like fish a year, more than double the present catch. It was framed at a stakeholder consultation at ICAR-CMFRI, Kochi, which has been designated the nodal agency for the plan.
The plan provides for 50 new deep-sea fishing vessels of under 24 metres, seaweed cultivation across 5 sq km, 10 medium-scale ornamental fish rearing units, 50 value addition units and two mother vessels. It is to be taken forward under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana.
The consultation was inaugurated by Raj Tilak IFS, Lakshadweep Fisheries Secretary, and presided over by Dr Grinson George, Director of CMFRI. The Union Fisheries Development Commissioner Dr Mohamed Koya and the National Fisheries Development Board also took part, along with the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology and the Marine Products Export Development Authority.
Tuna target:
50,000 tonnes a year
Nodal agency:
ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI)
New deep-sea vessels:
50, below 24 metres
Seaweed cultivation:
5 sq km
Scheme:
Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY)
Why it matters for exams: CMFRI's full name and its seat at Kochi, and the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana with its ministry, are repeat questions in fisheries and economy sections.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
CMFRI Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute — An ICAR institute at Kochi, India's lead body for marine fisheries research.
PMMSY Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana — The central scheme for the development of the fisheries sector.
28 October 2026
The Union Minister for Earth Sciences, Dr Jitendra Singh, inspected the OTEC-based desalination facility under construction at Kavaratti in Lakshadweep, a project of the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
OTEC is Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion. It uses the temperature difference between warm surface sea water and cold deep-sea water to generate energy, which then powers desalination to produce drinking water. At Kavaratti the Minister reviewed the seawater intake system, the deep-sea cold-water pipeline, the turbine-generator unit and the desalination modules, along with commissioning timelines and environmental safeguards.
Officials also briefed him on an offshore OTEC demonstration project planned under the Deep Ocean Mission, the Ministry of Earth Sciences programme for deep-sea technology and resources.
Technology:
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC)
Location:
Kavaratti, Lakshadweep
Ministry:
Ministry of Earth Sciences
Related mission:
Deep Ocean Mission
Why it matters for exams: OTEC's expansion and the Deep Ocean Mission's parent ministry — Earth Sciences, not Science and Technology — are the facts examiners test here.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
OTEC Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion — A technology that draws energy from the temperature difference between warm surface and cold deep sea water.
28 October 2026
When the President's new tourism trade Regulation for Lakshadweep is tested in court, the court will be in Kochi. Lakshadweep falls within the jurisdiction of the High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam, which is why every writ petition from the islands is heard there and not in a court of their own.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M. has been hearing such a petition — WP(PIL) No. 155 of 2026, Mohammed Muslim Khan P.P. v. Union of India and Ors. The Bench asked orally why a full-time Administrator has not been appointed for Lakshadweep and questioned the use of an ad hoc arrangement, and directed the respondents, including the Advisor to the Administrator, to file affidavits. It held that the President's decision to give the Administrator additional charge cannot itself be questioned in a writ petition. The Additional Solicitor General argued that no rules require a full-time appointment.
Lakshadweep is a single district, with its headquarters at Kavaratti.
High Court with jurisdiction:
High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam
Case:
WP(PIL) No. 155 of 2026
Bench:
Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M.
Districts in Lakshadweep:
One
District headquarters:
Kavaratti
Why it matters for exams: That the High Court of Kerala has jurisdiction over Lakshadweep, and that Lakshadweep is a single district with Kavaratti as headquarters, are both standard Union Territory facts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PIL Public Interest Litigation — A petition filed for the benefit of the public rather than for the petitioner's own right.
Background
Local government in Lakshadweep rests on the Lakshadweep Panchayats Regulation, 1994, which was promulgated by the President of India on 23 April 1994 and brought into force in the Union Territory on 23 May 1995. Under the first schedule of the Regulation there are ten Village (Dweep) Panchayats, one in each inhabited island, and a District Panchayat for the whole of Lakshadweep. The first Village (Dweep) Panchayats were constituted in December 2002 and the District Panchayat in January 2003. The ten Village (Dweep) Panchayats have 79 members in all, of whom 30 are women, and four of their chairpersons are women. The District Panchayat is made up of 22 directly elected members, the ten chairpersons of the Village (Dweep) Panchayats and the Member of Parliament representing Lakshadweep, and 12 of its members are women. Village Panchayats prepare their own annual budgets for schemes entrusted to them by the Administration as well as their own development plans, which are placed before the District Panchayat meeting.
Village (Dweep) Panchayats:
10
District Panchayats:
1
Members of the Village (Dweep) Panchayats:
79
Directly elected members of the District Panchayat:
22
Why it matters for exams: Panchayati Raj in a union territory works by a Presidential regulation rather than a state Act, and the figures for the islands' panchayats are a favourite local-government question.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Regulation — A law made for a union territory by the President of India, which has the force of an Act of Parliament there.
Dweep Panchayat — The island-level village panchayat in Lakshadweep, one for each inhabited island.
Background
The Lakshadweep Lok Sabha constituency is the only parliamentary constituency representing the entire Union Territory, and the seat is reserved for Scheduled Tribes. The Administration's own account records that, as of 2014, it was the smallest Lok Sabha constituency in India by number of voters. Before its first election, held in 1967, the constituency's Member of Parliament was directly appointed by the President of India: the first MP was K. Nalla Koya Thangal, who served two terms from 1957 to 1967. The first election in 1967 was won by the independent candidate P. M. Sayeed. The Member of Parliament representing Lakshadweep is also a member of the District Panchayat constituted for the whole of the islands.
Lok Sabha seats:
1
Reservation:
Scheduled Tribes
First Member of Parliament:
K. Nalla Koya Thangal
First election:
1967
Why it matters for exams: The reservation of the seat and the appointed-MP years before the first election are exactly the kind of detail asked about union territory representation in Parliament.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
ST Scheduled Tribes — Communities listed in the Constitution for whom seats in legislatures and posts in government are reserved.
Background
Minicoy is the southernmost island of Lakshadweep, 398 km (215 nautical miles) south-west of Kochi, with a land area of 4.80 sq km and a lagoon of 30.60 sq km. It lies near the Nine Degree Channel, one of the busiest shipping routes, and about 130 km from the northernmost island of the Maldives; the closest land to it is Thuraakunu island in the Maldives, about 100 km to the south across the Vangaaru Channel. The island is crescent shaped, about 11 km long, and is the second largest in the territory. Its lighthouse, one of the oldest in the islands, was constructed in 1885. Minicoy is set apart from the northern group of islands by its culture: its ten villages, called Avah, each have their own village house and internal organisation, and the languages spoken are Hindi, English, Malayalam and Mahal, the people of Minicoy being the only Mahal-speaking linguistic minority in India.
Land area:
4.80 sq km
Lagoon area:
30.60 sq km
Distance from Kochi:
398 km (215 nautical miles)
Villages:
10, called Avah
Why it matters for exams: Minicoy supplies several one-line answers an examiner likes: the southernmost island, the Mahal-speaking minority, the Nine Degree Channel and the island's distance from the Maldives.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Mahal — The language of Minicoy, closely related to the Dhivehi of the Maldives.
Avah — A village of Minicoy, each with its own village house and internal organisation.
Nautical mile — A unit of distance at sea, about 1.852 km.
Background
The tourism trade Regulation promulgated for Lakshadweep this week follows an earlier change to the islands' liquor law. The Lakshadweep Excise Regulation, 2026, notified in June 2026, replaced the Lakshadweep Prohibition Regulation, 1979.
The new Regulation allows regulated liquor sales across the archipelago under a licensing system covering import, transport, sale, purchase and consumption. Government-owned agencies may take licences to import and retail alcohol. An outlet must be at least 50 metres from a school, hospital, orphanage or place of worship, and sale to anyone under 21 is prohibited.
New Regulation:
The Lakshadweep Excise Regulation, 2026
Law replaced:
The Lakshadweep Prohibition Regulation, 1979
Minimum distance for an outlet:
50 metres
Minimum age:
21
Why it matters for exams: The name and year of the law replaced — the Lakshadweep Prohibition Regulation, 1979 — and the Regulation route for a Union Territory without a legislature are the durable facts here.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Prohibition Prohibition — A legal ban on the manufacture, sale and consumption of liquor in a territory.
Background
The tourism trade Regulation now promulgated for Lakshadweep requires operators to carry safety certification and insurance, which rests on the medical capacity the islands have. The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has placed on record what is being built.
Three 30-bed hospitals are under construction in Minicoy, Androth and Kadmat at a cost of Rs 231.96 crore. The Ministry of Home Affairs has given in-principle approval for a Nursing and Paramedical College worth Rs 127 crore.
The Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry for all Union Territories, which is why approvals for Lakshadweep's institutions come from it rather than from a State government.
Hospitals under construction:
Three 30-bed hospitals
Islands:
Minicoy, Androth and Kadmat
Cost:
Rs 231.96 crore
Nursing and Paramedical College:
Rs 127 crore, in-principle approval by MHA
Why it matters for exams: That the Ministry of Home Affairs is the nodal ministry for Union Territories, and the names of the islands where the hospitals are coming up, are both asked.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MHA Ministry of Home Affairs — The Union ministry that is the nodal ministry for the Union Territories.
Background
The tourism trade Regulation promulgated for Lakshadweep this week leans on the islands' water and power supply, both of which have been rebuilt from central funds.
Desalination plants with a combined capacity of 1.5 lakh litres a day are working across six islands, and Rs 268.81 crore has been allocated under the Jal Jeevan Mission for functional household tap connections across all the islands. On energy, solar plants have been commissioned at Agatti with 0.3 MW and at Kavaratti with 1.4 MW, rooftop solar has been installed in over 450 homes, and a memorandum of understanding has been signed with SECI.
The Jal Jeevan Mission is the central scheme for tap water to every rural household, run by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation under the Ministry of Jal Shakti. SECI is the Solar Energy Corporation of India, the central public sector undertaking under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
Desalination capacity:
1.5 lakh litres/day across six islands
Jal Jeevan Mission allocation:
Rs 268.81 crore
Solar at Agatti:
0.3 MW
Solar at Kavaratti:
1.4 MW
Rooftop solar homes:
over 450
Why it matters for exams: The Jal Jeevan Mission's ministry and SECI's expansion and parent ministry are standard scheme-and-body questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
SECI Solar Energy Corporation of India — A central public sector undertaking under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
Background
The registration and safety rules the President has just made for Lakshadweep's tourism trade will apply to a set of eco-tourism projects already in the pipeline.
Three Water Villa Projects are planned at Minicoy, Kadmat and Suheli with a combined investment of Rs 810 crore, developed in consultation with NITI Aayog. A weekly cruise liner service connects Mumbai, Kochi, Agatti and Thinnakara.
On sea connectivity, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has taken up eastern and western jetties at Kadmat and Kalpeni and new port facilities at Androth worth Rs 1,664.88 crore. Beachfront development proposals — roads and protection walls — for Agatti, Kadmat, Kalpeni, Kavaratti and Minicoy worth Rs 2,128.86 crore are under examination.
Water Villa Projects:
Minicoy, Kadmat and Suheli
Investment:
Rs 810 crore
Developed with:
NITI Aayog
Cruise route:
Mumbai - Kochi - Agatti - Thinnakara
Jetties and port works:
Rs 1,664.88 crore
Beachfront proposals:
Rs 2,128.86 crore
Why it matters for exams: NITI Aayog's role in the island development plans, and the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways as the ministry for jetties and ports, are the durable facts here.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
NITI Aayog National Institution for Transforming India — The Union government's policy think tank, which replaced the Planning Commission in 2015.
Background
The tourism trade Regulation now in force for Lakshadweep requires registered guides and operators, and the islands' schooling record is the base it draws on.
The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has placed on record that Lakshadweep's literacy rate is 91.65 per cent and its school dropout rate is zero. Eleven schools in the Union Territory have been selected under PM SHRI, with high-speed internet, computer laboratories and digital libraries.
PM SHRI stands for PM Schools for Rising India, a centrally sponsored scheme of the Ministry of Education that upgrades selected existing schools to show how the National Education Policy 2020 can be put into practice.
Literacy rate:
91.65%
School dropout rate:
Zero
Schools under PM SHRI:
11
Why it matters for exams: The expansion of PM SHRI and the ministry that runs it are frequent scheme questions, and Lakshadweep's literacy figure is a standard Union Territory statistic.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
PM SHRI PM Schools for Rising India — A centrally sponsored scheme of the Ministry of Education that upgrades selected schools as models of the National Education Policy 2020.