12 October 2026
Kerala announced the G.V. Raja Awards for 2025-26, given in 14 fields covering lifetime contribution, the best athletes and coaches.
Triple jumper Eldhose Paul won in the men's section for performances that include a Commonwealth Games gold, and badminton player Treesa Jolly won in the women's section for an Asian Women's Championship gold, a Commonwealth Games team silver, a women's doubles bronze and an Asian mixed team bronze.
The award for the best athletes carries ₹3 lakh with a plaque and a certificate.
The Olympian Suresh Babu Memorial Lifetime Achievement Award, carrying ₹2 lakh with a plaque and certificate, went to Dr. P.T. Joseph, and Anoop Joseph was chosen the best sports coach, an award of ₹1 lakh with a plaque and certificate.
Other winners are Dr. C.S. Sadanandan as the best college sports teacher, Edwin Paul Sibi and P. Anamika as sports hostel athletes, Ajay Ben of Malayala Manorama as the best sports journalist, Sravan Krishna of Asianet News for a visual media programme, K.K. Santhosh of Mathrubhumi for photography and B.T. Sijin for the sports book 'Unaru Aradhakare Unaru'.
Para powerlifter Jobi Mathew and former India footballer Victor Manjila received special recognition.
The winners were chosen by a committee of Olympians Anju Bobby George, P.R. Sreejesh, Dr. Binu George Varghese and Sanil P. Thomas with the Sports Department's Special Secretary and Director.
Best athlete, men:
Eldhose Paul, triple jump
Best athlete, women:
Treesa Jolly, badminton
Best athlete award:
₹3 lakh with a plaque and certificate
Fields covered:
14
Lifetime Achievement Award:
Dr. P.T. Joseph, ₹2 lakh
Best coach:
Anoop Joseph, ₹1 lakh
Why it matters for exams: Kerala's highest sports honour and its current winners are a standard awards question for Kerala PSC.
Kerala PSC
In plain words
G.V. Raja Award — Kerala's State sports award, named after G.V. Raja, who built up organised sport in Travancore.
Triple jump — An athletics event in which the competitor makes a hop, a step and a jump in one run.
Para powerlifting — Competitive bench press for athletes with physical impairments.
12 October 2026
The 2026 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel goes to Robert E. Hall of Stanford University and Michael Woodford of Columbia University. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced it on 12 October 2026. Their research shows how to keep economies stable and avoid damaging swings in inflation, growth and employment. The prize committee says the work generated a paradigm shift in stabilisation policy. The prize is 12 million Swedish kronor, shared.
Laureates:
Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford
Prize amount:
12 million Swedish kronor
Announced by:
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
Why it matters for exams: Nobel laureates and the fields they are honoured for are a standing question in UPSC, Kerala PSC and bank exams.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
Sveriges Riksbank Prize Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel — The full name of the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences, as used in the 2026 announcement.
11 October 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 11 October 2026 remembered Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan and paid homage to Nanaji Deshmukh on their birth anniversaries. He said JP's appeal transcended generations and highlighted his fearless voice during the Emergency. He also recalled JP's commitment to good governance and to reaching the marginalised sections of society. Describing Nanaji Deshmukh as a remarkable nation-builder, he said Nanaji showed that true transformation begins at the grassroots. Nanaji combined political conviction with constructive social action and devoted himself to rural development and community participation.
Date:
11 October
Leaders remembered:
Jayaprakash Narayan, Nanaji Deshmukh
Why it matters for exams: Both leaders were born on 11 October; JP and Nanaji Deshmukh are frequent modern-history and personality questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Emergency National Emergency of 1975-77 — The internal Emergency proclaimed under Article 352 in June 1975, which JP opposed.
11 October 2026
UNICEF India named Smriti Mandhana, captain of the Indian women's cricket team, as its Celebrity Advocate on 11 October 2026, the International Day of the Girl. Mandhana, an Arjuna Award recipient, will support UNICEF India's work to promote equal opportunities, health and well-being for adolescent girls. She was appointed captain earlier that week after Harmanpreet Kaur stepped down. Sachin Tendulkar, UNICEF Regional Ambassador for South Asia, welcomed her appointment. Cynthia McCaffrey is the Representative of UNICEF India.
Role:
Celebrity Advocate, UNICEF India
Occasion:
International Day of the Girl
Why it matters for exams: Links a sports personality, a UN agency and the International Day of the Girl (11 October).
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
UNICEF United Nations Children's Fund — The UN agency for children's rights and welfare, headquartered in New York.
11 October 2026
Canada's Gabriela Dabrowski and her Brazilian partner Luisa Stefani won the women's doubles final at the China Open in Beijing on 11 October 2026.
The second-seeded pair beat top seeds Katerina Siniakova of Czechia and Zhang Shuai of China 6-1, 6-2.
They needed just 59 minutes to complete the win.
Dabrowski, from Ottawa, earned her 25th career WTA Tour title and fifth of the season.
In the singles final the same day, Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen beat Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-4.
Final score:
6-1, 6-2
Dabrowski's career WTA Tour titles:
25
Match duration:
59 minutes
Why it matters for exams: Sports achievements by Canadian athletes are a common source of country-focus recall questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
WTA Women's Tennis Association — The body that runs the professional women's tennis tour.
11 October 2026
Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge won the Melbourne Marathon in Australia on 11 October 2026 in 2 hours, 9 minutes and 10 seconds, a course record.
It was the 41-year-old's first marathon win in three years; his previous win came at the Berlin Marathon in 2023.
It was his 17th marathon win.
Australia's Thomas Do Canto was second in 2:10:35 and Reece Edwards third in 2:14:33.
Camille French of New Zealand won the women's race in 2:28:25.
Kipchoge, a two-time Olympic champion, is attempting to run a marathon on all seven continents over two years, starting in Cape Town in May.
Winning time:
2 hours, 9 minutes and 10 seconds (course record)
Kipchoge's age:
41
Previous marathon win:
Berlin, 2023
Women's winner:
Camille French (New Zealand), 2:28:25
Why it matters for exams: Kipchoge is the best-known marathoner of the era; his records, Olympic titles and nationality are common sports questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
10 October 2026
The Portuguese Football Federation on 10 October 2026 announced disciplinary proceedings against Cristiano Ronaldo and provisionally suspended him from the national team. The decision was taken by the federation's non-professional section on 9 October 2026. Ronaldo, 41, left the squad during the international break after a dispute with coach Jorge Jesus over playing time in the Nations League match against Norway. He had warmed up from half-time against Norway but was not brought on. Ronaldo, Portugal's captain and all-time leading scorer, has 234 caps and 146 goals. Portugal next play Denmark and Wales in November.
Caps and goals:
234 caps, 146 goals
Coach:
Jorge Jesus
Why it matters for exams: Record-holding athletes and major football competitions such as the Nations League are common GK questions.
Kerala PSCSSC
In plain words
Nations League UEFA Nations League — A competition for European national teams run by UEFA.
10 October 2026
Chief Minister V D Satheesan released 'A Life in Struggle', the autobiography of former MP and national trade union leader Thampan Thomas, at the Sahodara Soudham auditorium in Ernakulam. The Chief Minister said the book would serve as a reference work and guide for students of politics. He described Thampan Thomas as the founding leader in Kerala of the HMS (Hind Mazdoor Sabha) trade union. The State's Information and Public Relations Department noted that Thampan Thomas has stood by socialist ideas for half a century as a political leader, trade union leader and parliamentarian. Dr Cyriac Thomas presided over the function.
Book:
A Life in Struggle
Author:
Thampan Thomas
Venue:
Sahodara Soudham, Ernakulam
Why it matters for exams: New books by public figures and their authors are a recurring Kerala PSC question type.
Kerala PSC
In plain words
HMS Hind Mazdoor Sabha — A national trade union centre; Thampan Thomas is its founding leader in Kerala.
10 October 2026
Dr Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo and Dr Amaresh Chandra Panda of the BRIC-Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, feature in the world's Top 2% scientists list for 2026.
The list is compiled by Stanford University and published by Elsevier.
Both scientists have appeared on the list every year from 2019 to 2026, eight consecutive years.
Dr Sahoo, in Clinical Medicine with the sub-field Pharmacology and Pharmacy, is ranked 302 of 166,116 authors in his sub-field and 51,868 globally.
Dr Panda, in Biomedical Research with the sub-field Developmental Biology, is ranked 908 of 167,121 authors in his sub-field and 41,810 globally.
The 2026 edition of the list includes 6,954 Indian researchers.
Rankings use a composite score built from total citations, the h-index and the hm-index, and exclude self-citations.
The underlying data is the August 2026 update prepared by John P. A. Ioannidis and published in the Elsevier Data Repository.
Institute:
BRIC-Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar
Scientists named:
Dr Sanjeeb Kumar Sahoo and Dr Amaresh Chandra Panda
List compiled and published by:
Stanford University; published by Elsevier
Indian researchers in the 2026 list:
6,954
Consecutive years listed:
2019 to 2026, eight years
Why it matters for exams: The Stanford-Elsevier Top 2% scientists list and the institutes whose researchers appear on it are common questions on research recognition.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
h-index Hirsch index — A number that is high only when a researcher has many papers that are each cited many times.
BRIC Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council — The council under which several central biotechnology research institutes were brought together.
10 October 2026
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced the Nobel Prize in Physics 2026 on 6 October 2026.
It goes to Francis Halzen of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, USA, "for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin".
Halzen first presented his vision for capturing neutrinos at the South Pole in 1988. IceCube covers a cubic kilometre of ice and was finished in 2011.
When a neutrino collides with an atomic nucleus it produces a flash of light, which sensors in the clear glacial ice can track.
Halzen was born in 1944 in Tienen, Belgium. The prize amount is 12 million Swedish kronor.
Laureate:
Francis Halzen
Announced:
6 October 2026
Prize amount:
12 million Swedish kronor
Observatory:
IceCube Neutrino Observatory
Why it matters for exams: Nobel laureates, their fields and prize amounts are staple awards questions; neutrino astronomy links physics to Antarctica.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Neutrino Neutrino — An elusive particle that passes through the Earth and our bodies without being noticed.
IceCube IceCube Neutrino Observatory — A cubic kilometre of South Pole ice equipped with light sensors.
10 October 2026
The Animal Husbandry Department of Kerala invited applications on 9 October 2026 for its awards to outstanding farmers for the 2025 season.
Three state-level awards carry ₹1,00,000 each: Best Dairy Farmer, Best Commercial Dairy Farm and Best Mixed Farmer.
Three more state-level awards carry ₹50,000 each: Best Poultry Farmer, Best Young Farmer and Best Woman Farmer or Entrepreneur.
At the district level, the Best Dairy Farmer award carries ₹20,000 and the Best Mixed Farmer award ₹10,000.
Applications in the prescribed format must be submitted to the relevant government veterinary hospital by 22 October 2026.
The detailed criteria and the application form are available on the Animal Husbandry Department's website and at government veterinary hospitals.
Top state-level prize:
₹1,00,000
State-level awards at ₹50,000:
3
District-level dairy award:
₹20,000
Last date:
22 October 2026
Why it matters for exams: Award names and prize amounts in Kerala's farm sector schemes are a common Kerala PSC objective question.
Kerala PSC
9 October 2026
UNESCO awarded its 2026 Prize for Girls' and Women's Education at a ceremony at its headquarters in Paris on 9 October 2026.
The two laureates are Project Soar of Morocco, for its Project Soar in a Bag initiative, and CARE Peru, for its Girls with Opportunities project.
Each laureate receives US$50,000.
The prizes were presented by UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany and the Vice-Minister of Education of China, Ren Youqun.
The Director-General selects the laureates on the recommendation of an international jury.
The prize was established in 2015, is funded by the Government of China, is awarded to two laureates every year and supports Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 5.
Project Soar reports that in 2025, 97.5 per cent of participating girls passed their school year and 99 per cent remained free from child marriage.
CARE Peru reports that secondary completion among participants rose from about 65 per cent to about 82 per cent and that the project has reached more than 37,000 rural adolescent girls aged 14 to 19 since 2016.
Prize money:
US$50,000 to each laureate
Laureates:
Project Soar, Morocco and CARE Peru
Established:
2015
Funded by:
Government of the People's Republic of China
Why it matters for exams: International awards, their prize money and their donors are asked directly in awards questions in both Kerala PSC and UPSC papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
SDG Sustainable Development Goal — One of the 17 goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015 for the year 2030.
9 October 2026
The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2026 to Navanethem "Navi" Pillay.
The committee cited her efforts to promote peace and international law.
Pillay is a South African jurist of Indian Tamil origin and a former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.
She has served as a judge of South Africa's High Court, of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and of the International Criminal Court.
She also chaired the UN Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
The committee chair, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, announced the decision in Oslo. It is the 125th Nobel Peace Prize.
The prize is 12 million Swedish crowns and will be presented in Oslo on 10 December.
Prize amount:
12 million Swedish crowns
Edition:
125th Nobel Peace Prize
Ceremony:
Oslo, 10 December
Why it matters for exams: The Nobel Peace Prize laureate of the year is a standard one-mark question, and Pillay's offices link the prize to the UN human rights machinery and the international criminal courts.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
OHCHR Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights — The UN office in Geneva that leads the organisation's human rights work.
9 October 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with the members of Team India from the 48th WorldSkills Competition at his residence, 7 Lok Kalyan Marg.
The competition, WorldSkills Shanghai 2026, was held from 22 to 27 September 2026 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai.
India won 6 silver medals and 20 Medals for Excellence and finished 10th.
India fielded its largest-ever contingent, with 70 competitors taking part in 63 skills.
The Prime Minister said practical skills matter as much as academic degrees, that skill training institutes are no less important than the IITs and IIMs, and urged the team to become ambassadors of skill development.
Shri Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship with Independent Charge and Minister of State for Education, and senior officials were present.
Competition:
48th WorldSkills Competition, WorldSkills Shanghai 2026
Dates:
22 to 27 September 2026
India's medals:
6 silver medals and 20 Medals for Excellence
India's position:
10th
Indian contingent:
70 competitors in 63 skills
Why it matters for exams: India's medal tally and rank at the 48th WorldSkills Competition is a direct factual question on skills and competitive events.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Medal for Excellence WorldSkills award below a medal — Given to competitors who reach a high standard of performance without winning gold, silver or bronze.
9 October 2026
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet has decided to award the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel.
The citation is "for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics".
Deisseroth works at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Stanford University, USA; Hegemann at Humboldt University of Berlin and Nagel at the University of Wurzburg, Germany.
Hegemann and Nagel discovered channelrhodopsin, a protein on the surface of the single-celled alga Chlamydomonas that opens an ion channel when lit by blue light.
Deisseroth introduced the channelrhodopsin gene into nerve cells from rats and triggered a nerve signal with blue light, publishing the breakthrough in 2005.
Per Svenningsson, Chair of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine, said optogenetics allows brain mapping in a way researchers could once only dream of.
Laureates:
Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, Georg Nagel
Field:
Light-gated ion channels and optogenetics
Awarding body:
Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet
Breakthrough published:
2005
Why it matters for exams: Nobel laureates and the substance of the discovery are a standing question in PSC and UPSC papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Optogenetics Optogenetics — A method that uses light to switch specific nerve cells on or off in a living brain.
Channelrhodopsin Channelrhodopsin — An algal protein that opens an ion channel when illuminated by blue light.
8 October 2026
Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked Kazakhstan's President Qasym-Jomart Toqayev for his warm wishes.
The wishes marked Modi completing 25 years of service as head of government.
Modi said he deeply values the close friendship and strategic partnership with Kazakhstan.
He said he looks forward to working together to strengthen and deepen bilateral ties.
The message was posted on X on 8 October 2026.
Counterpart:
President Qasym-Jomart Toqayev
Occasion:
25 years of service as head of government
Relationship:
Strategic partnership
Why it matters for exams: India's strategic partnerships in Central Asia are routine questions in international relations sections.
Kerala PSCUPSC
Background
The Jharkhand government portal says the 28th state of the Indian Union was brought into existence by the Bihar Reorganisation Act on 15 November 2000.
The date is the birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda.
Most of the state lies on the Chota Nagpur Plateau, the source of the Koel, Damodar, Brahmani, Kharkai and Subarnarekha rivers.
Forests and woodlands cover more than 29% of the state.
The portal says coal accounts for 32% and copper for 25% of India's total.
Formed:
15 November 2000
Order among states:
28th
Coal share of India:
32%
Copper share of India:
25%
Why it matters for exams: Formation date, parent state and the Act are standard state-profile questions; the Birsa Munda link is a favourite.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Chota Nagpur Plateau Chota Nagpur Plateau — The plateau covering most of Jharkhand, source of several rivers.
8 October 2026
The Swedish Academy announced on 8 October 2026 that Canadian writer Anne Carson is the Nobel laureate in Literature.
She was born in Toronto in 1950 and is 76.
Her works include Autobiography of Red (1998), The Beauty of the Husband (2001), Nox (2010), Antigonick (2012) and Wrong Norma (2024).
Her writing blends classical scholarship with contemporary literary forms.
The 2025 laureate was the Hungarian novelist Laszlo Krasznahorkai.
Laureate:
Anne Carson
Country:
Canada
Awarding body:
Swedish Academy
Why it matters for exams: Nobel laureates, their countries and the awarding bodies are a fixed question area every October.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Swedish Academy Swedish Academy — The Stockholm body that selects the Nobel laureate in Literature.
8 October 2026
The Social Justice Department has invited nominations for the State Disability Award 2026.
There are 30 awards across 16 categories.
The categories include outstanding employees, employers, non-governmental organisations and rehabilitation centres, role models, creative children, achievers in art, literature and sport, disability friendly institutions and local self government bodies.
Each award carries a cash prize, a memento and a certificate.
Individuals and institutions cannot apply directly; official authorities or heads of institutions must nominate eligible persons in the prescribed proforma with supporting documents.
Nominations from local self government bodies need the recommendation of their controlling officer.
Completed nominations must reach the District Social Justice Office by 25 October.
Awards:
30
Categories:
16
Last date:
25 October
Where to submit:
District Social Justice Office
Why it matters for exams: State awards, their administering department and their last dates are routine Kerala PSC current affairs material.
Kerala PSC
In plain words
Social Justice Department Social Justice Department, Government of Kerala — The Kerala department that handles welfare of persons with disabilities, the elderly, women and children.
Background
The Ministry of Defence runs an online portal dedicated to the gallantry award winners bestowed since Independence, with the domain name gallantryawards.gov.in. The website gives details of the Chakra Series awardees, that is, Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra, Vir Chakra, Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra. The portal contains information such as name, unit, year, citations and photographs of awardees till date. The Param Vir Chakra is India's highest military decoration, awarded for displaying the most exceptional acts of valour, courage, and self-sacrifice during war. At Rashtrapati Bhavan, a gallery called the Param Vir Dirgha was created in corridors that earlier displayed portraits of British ADCs; the Gallery has the portraits of all 21 Param Vir Chakra awardees on display, and it was opened on the occasion of Vijay Diwas.
Chakra Series decorations:
Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra, Vir Chakra, Ashok Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra
Highest military decoration:
Param Vir Chakra
Param Vir Chakra criterion:
The most exceptional acts of valour, courage, and self-sacrifice during war
Official portal:
gallantryawards.gov.in, run by the Ministry of Defence
Details on the portal:
Name, unit, year, citations and photographs of awardees till date
Param Vir Dirgha:
A gallery at Rashtrapati Bhavan with the portraits of all 21 Param Vir Chakra awardees
Why it matters for exams: The six Chakra Series decorations are a standard list question, and the wording of the Param Vir Chakra criterion — valour during war — is what separates it from the peacetime decorations in the same series.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Chakra Series Chakra Series of gallantry awards — The group of six Indian gallantry decorations whose names end in Chakra.
Citation Citation of a gallantry award — The official account of the act for which a decoration was conferred.