Background
The Embassy of India in Buenos Aires records in its bilateral relations brief that India opened a Trade Commission in Buenos Aires in 1943, which was later converted into one of the first embassies of India in South America, in 1949.
Argentina had established a Consulate in Kolkata in the 1920s, which was shifted to Delhi as an embassy in 1950, and it has had a Consulate General in Mumbai since April 2009.
India-Argentina diplomatic relations were elevated to the level of Strategic Partnership during the State Visit to India of the then President of Argentina, in February 2019.
Both countries completed 75 years of their diplomatic relationship on 3 February 2024, marked by a commemorative book titled 'India-Argentina: 75 Años de Relaciones Diplomáticas'.
Indo-Argentine trade saw a further resurgence in 2025: from January to November it registered a growth of 36.77%, with total trade valued at USD 6.34 billion, and India is ranked as Argentina's fifth-largest trading partner and export destination.
India's main exports to Argentina are petroleum oils, agro chemicals, yarn-fabric-madeups, organic chemicals, bulk drugs and two-wheelers; its main imports from Argentina are vegetable oils, led by soybean and sunflower oil, with finished leather, cereals and pulses.
Space cooperation runs under the Agreement on Cooperation on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space signed in 2009, whose ISRO-CONAE Joint Committee held its third meeting in October 2024; nuclear cooperation runs under the bilateral Agreement for Cooperation in Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy.
In the first ever acquisition of lithium resources abroad, the state-owned KABIL signed an agreement with CAMYEN, a public sector undertaking of the Province of Catamarca, to lease five lithium blocks for exploration and eventual exploitation.
Level of relations:
Strategic Partnership
Indian embassy opened:
1949
Bilateral trade:
USD 6.34 billion
Growth in trade:
36.77%
India's rank for Argentina:
fifth-largest trading partner
Lithium blocks leased:
five lithium blocks
Why it matters for exams: The name of a bilateral partnership, the year relations began and the shape of the trade are the three things asked about any India-country pair, and Argentina adds the lithium and space tracks.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
CONAE Argentine Space Agency — Argentina's national space agency, the counterpart to ISRO in the two countries' joint space committee.
Strategic Partnership Asociación Estratégica — The level to which the two governments raised their relations, bringing political, economic, defence and scientific cooperation under one framework.
Background
The Dirección Nacional Electoral records that the Congreso de la Nación (Congress of the Nation) is a bicameral assembly made up of the Cámara de Diputados (Chamber of Deputies) with 257 representantes and the Cámara de Senadores (Senate) with 72 representantes.
Freedom House's Argentina country report sets out the same composition in English: the National Congress consists of a lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, and an upper house, the Senate; the Chamber of Deputies has 257 members elected for four-year terms and the Senate has 72 members elected for six-year terms, and half of all deputies and a third of senators are up for election every two years.
Article 45 of the Constitution has deputies elected directly by the people of the provinces, of the city of Buenos Aires and of the Capital in case of transfer, which are treated for this purpose as electoral districts of a single State, by simple plurality of votes.
Article 50 gives deputies a term of four years and makes them re-eligible, but the chamber renews half of its seats every two years.
Article 54 composes the Senate of tres senadores por cada provincia and three for the city of Buenos Aires, elected directly and jointly, with two seats going to the party that wins the most votes and the remaining one to the party next in votes.
Article 56 gives senators a term of six years and allows indefinite re-election, while the Senate renews a third of its electoral districts every two years.
The Senate's own page states that the 1994 constitutional reform introduced the direct election of senators and a third senator for the minority in each district, and cut the senatorial term from nine years to six.
Article 57 makes the Vice-President of the Nation the president of the Senate, with no vote except to break a tie.
Article 52 reserves to the Chamber of Deputies alone the initiative on laws about contributions and the recruitment of troops.
Chamber of Deputies:
257 representantes
Senate:
72 representantes
Senators per district:
tres senadores por cada provincia
Deputies' renewal:
por mitad cada bienio
Senate renewal:
un tercio cada dos años
Why it matters for exams: The size, term and renewal cycle of each chamber is the standard comparative question on any bicameral legislature, and Argentina's Senate is unusual in guaranteeing one seat in each district to the runner-up party.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Bicameral Two-chamber legislature — A legislature with two separate houses, both of which must pass a bill before it becomes law.
Cámara de Diputados Chamber of Deputies — The lower house of Argentina's Congress, whose members represent the provinces and the capital city as electoral districts.
Background
Article 239 of the Constitution provides that, save as otherwise provided by Parliament by law, every union territory shall be administered by the President acting, to such extent as he thinks fit, through an administrator to be appointed by him with such designation as he may specify. Article 239 also allows the President to appoint the Governor of a State as the administrator of an adjoining union territory, and a Governor so appointed exercises those functions independently of his Council of Ministers. The Dadra and Nagar Haveli Act, 1961 defines the Administrator of the territory as the Administrator appointed by the President under article 239 of the Constitution. Section 3 of that Act provided that there shall be allotted one seat to the Union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli in the House of the People. Section 11, headed Extension of the jurisdiction of Bombay High Court to Dadra and Nagar Haveli, provided that from a date notified by the Central Government the jurisdiction of the High Court at Bombay shall extend to Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Under Section 4 the Varishta Panchayat could discuss and make recommendations to the Administrator on general policy and schemes of development, but its functions were advisory only. When the merger of the two union territories was taken up, the Minister of State for Home Affairs told the Lok Sabha that both the Lok Sabha seats would remain intact and that the merged entity would be governed under the jurisdiction of the Bombay High Court.
Constitutional article on the administration of union territories:
Article 239
High Court with jurisdiction over the union territory:
Bombay High Court
Representation given to Dadra and Nagar Haveli by the 1961 Act:
one seat
Nature of the Varishta Panchayat's functions under the 1961 Act:
advisory only
Why it matters for exams: The chain from Article 239 to the Administrator, the Lok Sabha seats and the Bombay High Court is the standard polity question on this union territory.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Administrator Administrator of a union territory — The officer through whom the President administers a union territory, appointed by the President with whatever designation the President specifies.
House of the People House of the People (Lok Sabha) — The lower house of Parliament, whose members are directly elected from territorial constituencies.
Background
The UT administration records that the Marathas signed a treaty with the Portuguese in 1779 allowing them to collect revenue from Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and that the Portuguese occupied the territory between 1783 and 1785 and ruled it until its liberation. About 170 years of Portuguese rule in Dadra and Nagar Haveli was ended on 2nd August 1954 by volunteers of Goa parties acting in close cooperation with the local inhabitants. The Varistha Panchayat then passed a resolution for integration with the Indian Union in June 1961, and the territory was integrated by the Dadra and Nagar Haveli Act, 1961, which is Act 35 of 1961 and is deemed to have come into force on the 11th day of August, 1961. Daman was obtained by the Portuguese in 1559 by means of a treaty with the Shah of Gujarat, and remained under Portuguese rule until its liberation in 1961. Diu was liberated on 19th December 1961 under Operation Vijay and was then made part of the union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu. After statehood of Goa on 30th May 1987, Daman and Diu became a separate union territory. The administration's own introduction page gives two different starting years for the continuous Portuguese hold on Diu: it says Diu was conquered by the Portuguese in 1546, and also that Diu remained in the possession of the Portuguese from 1535 until 1961.
Liberation of Dadra and Nagar Haveli:
2nd August 1954
Act that integrated Dadra and Nagar Haveli:
Act 35 of 1961
Date the Act is deemed to have come into force:
11th day of August, 1961
Liberation of Diu:
19th December 1961
Operation under which Diu was liberated:
Operation Vijay
Statehood of Goa:
30th May 1987
Why it matters for exams: The three parts of this union territory left Portuguese rule at different times and by different instruments, and the order of liberation, Act and statehood is the detail most often got wrong.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Varistha Panchayat Varistha Panchayat of Dadra and Nagar Haveli — The body of local representatives set up after the 1954 liberation, which asked for the territory's integration with India and later advised the Administrator.
Operation Vijay Operation Vijay — The Indian military operation of 1961 in which Goa, Daman and Diu were taken from Portuguese control.
Background
The union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is made up of three districts, named Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu. The UT administration's introduction page records that the territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli became one of the three districts of the new union territory. It gives the area of Dadra and Nagar Haveli as 491.00 sq.kms, landlocked between Gujarat in North and Maharashtra in South. Daman, whose area the administration gives as 72.00 Sq. Km, is divided by the Damanganga river. Diu is described as an island in the Arabian Sea off the southern coast of the Kathiawad peninsula of Gujarat, with an area of 40.00 Sq. Km. A portion of the Diu district is on the mainland and is named Ghoghla. A small part of Diu known as Simbor lies at a distance of 25 km from Diu and is reached through Gujarat. Each district has its own municipal body: the Silvassa Municipal Council, the Daman Municipal Council and the Diu Municipal Council.
Districts:
three districts
Area of Dadra and Nagar Haveli:
491.00 sq.kms
Area of Daman:
72.00 Sq. Km
Area of Diu:
40.00 Sq. Km
Mainland part of the Diu district:
Ghoghla
Municipal body in Dadra and Nagar Haveli:
Silvassa Municipal Council
Why it matters for exams: The union territory's three districts lie in physically separate pieces surrounded by Gujarat and Maharashtra, and examiners regularly ask which state borders which part.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Kathiawad Kathiawad (Saurashtra) peninsula — The large peninsula of western Gujarat, off whose southern coast the island of Diu lies.
Background
Bihar has a bicameral legislature: besides the Legislative Assembly it has a Legislative Council.
Part of the Council is filled from constituencies whose electorate is made up of teachers, and from constituencies whose electorate is made up of graduates.
The Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Bihar prepares the electoral rolls of the teachers' constituencies Patna Teachers, Tirhut Teachers, Darbhanga Teachers and Saran Teachers.
It also prepares the rolls of the graduates' constituencies Patna Graduates', Tirhut Graduates', Darbhanga Graduates' and Kosi Graduates'.
For an election from the Teachers' Constituencies of the Bihar Legislative Council, the State specifies by notification all educational institutions within the State which are not below the level of secondary school, under clause (v) of sub-section (3) of Section 27 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
The rolls of these constituencies are prepared afresh with reference to a stated qualifying date rather than revised continuously.
Notices on the rolls of these constituencies are issued by the officer described as ERO cum Commissioner, and a claim for inclusion of a name is made in the prescribed form.
Teachers' constituencies named on the rolls:
Patna Teachers, Tirhut Teachers, Darbhanga Teachers and Saran Teachers
Graduates' constituencies named on the rolls:
Patna Graduates', Tirhut Graduates', Darbhanga Graduates' and Kosi Graduates'
Statute under which institutions are specified:
Representation of the People Act, 1950
Minimum level of an eligible institution:
not below the level of secondary school
Officer issuing notices on these rolls:
ERO cum Commissioner
Why it matters for exams: The Legislative Council is one of the few state upper houses, and how its teachers' and graduates' members are chosen is asked often.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ERO Electoral Registration Officer — The officer responsible for preparing and correcting the electoral roll of a constituency.
Qualifying date Qualifying date — The date with reference to which a person's eligibility to be enrolled as a voter is judged.
Background
A Proclamation made by the Governor-General of India on the 22nd March, 1912 promoted the territories of Bihar and Orissa, until then included within the limits of the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal, to the status of a separate province.
By Letters Patent, dated the 9th February, 1916 the Patna High Court was ushered into existence, with circuit sittings at Cuttack.
From the 26th February, 1916, the date on which that Letters Patent was published in the Gazette of India, the High Court of Judicature at Fort William in Bengal ceased to exercise civil, criminal, admiralty, matrimonial, testamentary and intestate jurisdiction in all matters in which jurisdiction was given to the High Court of Judicature at Patna.
The High Court commenced work from the 1st March, 1916.
Though a separate province for Orissa was created in 1937, this High Court exercised jurisdiction over the territories of that province till 26th July, 1948, when a separate High Court was constituted for Orissa.
On 15th November, 2000, on the bifurcation of the erstwhile State of Bihar, a new State of Jharkhand came into existence and 13 Judgeships remained with the newly created State of Jharkhand.
Under Article 226 of the Constitution the High Court issues writs, directions or orders, and under Article 235 the control over district courts and courts subordinate to them, including their personnel, is vested in the Court.
Separate province of Bihar and Orissa proclaimed:
22nd March, 1912
Letters Patent creating the Court:
Letters Patent, dated the 9th February, 1916
Court commenced work:
1st March, 1916
Separate High Court constituted for Orissa:
26th July, 1948
Judgeships that went to Jharkhand:
13 Judgeships
Why it matters for exams: The instrument that created a High Court, the year its work began and the territory it once covered are standard judiciary questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Letters Patent Letters Patent — A written instrument issued in the name of the Crown which, in this case, brought the High Court into existence and defined the jurisdiction given to it.
Judgeship Judgeship — A unit of the district judiciary under the control and supervision of the High Court, with its own headquarters.
Background
Colombia and India established diplomatic relations on 19 January 1959 and celebrated 65 years of those ties in 2024.
Colombia opened its Embassy in New Delhi in March 1972, and India opened its Embassy in Colombia in 1973.
The Foreign Office Consultations mechanism was established in 1995, and the tenth round took place on 15 October 2024 in New Delhi.
In 2024-25 bilateral trade stood at USD 4.72 billion, with exports from India to Colombia at USD 1.47 billion and imports from Colombia to India at USD 3.25 billion.
India's imports from Colombia mainly comprise mineral fuels such as oil and coal, gold, precious stones led by emeralds, aluminum, zinc, wood and plastic.
India's main items of exports to Colombia include vehicles such as motorcycles, engineering goods, chemicals, cotton, pharmaceuticals and iron and steel products.
Indian investment in Colombia is estimated at USD 500 million, excluding the investment of ONGC Videsh Ltd, and the Indian Community comprises approximately 1200 members, a majority of them professionals employed with Indian companies based in Colombia.
Diplomatic relations established:
19 January 1959
Colombia's Embassy in New Delhi opened:
March 1972
Bilateral trade, 2024-25:
USD 4.72 billion
India's exports to Colombia, 2024-25:
USD 1.47 billion
Imports from Colombia to India, 2024-25:
USD 3.25 billion
Indian investment in Colombia:
USD 500 million
Size of the Indian Community:
approximately 1200 members
Why it matters for exams: The year relations were established, the direction of the trade balance and the size of the Indian community are the three India-relationship facts asked about every country.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Foreign Office Consultations Foreign Office Consultations — A standing bilateral mechanism in which the foreign ministries of two countries meet in rounds to review their relations.
Background
On 6 December 2001 the Republic of Nicaragua filed an Application instituting proceedings against the Republic of Colombia before the International Court of Justice, over what it described as legal issues concerning title to territory and maritime delimitation.
Colombia filed preliminary objections to jurisdiction on 21 July 2003, which suspended the proceedings on the merits.
In its Judgment on the preliminary objections, rendered on 13 December 2007, the Court found that the treaty signed in 1928 between Colombia and Nicaragua had settled the issue of sovereignty over the islands of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina.
On 4 May 2011 the Court rendered two Judgments, ruling that the applications of Costa Rica and of Honduras for permission to intervene could not be granted.
In its Judgment on the merits, rendered on 19 November 2012, the Court found that Colombia has sovereignty over the maritime features in dispute — the Alburquerque Cays, the East-Southeast Cays, Roncador, Serrana, Quitasueño, Serranilla and Bajo Nuevo — and drew a single maritime boundary.
The Court's record notes that Quitasueño comprises only a single, tiny island, known as QS 32, together with a number of low-tide elevations.
Name of the case:
Territorial and Maritime Dispute (Nicaragua v. Colombia)
Application instituting proceedings filed:
6 December 2001
Judgment on the preliminary objections:
13 December 2007
Judgment on the merits:
19 November 2012
Islands the 1928 treaty settled:
San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina
What the Court drew:
single maritime boundary
Why it matters for exams: An International Court of Justice judgment on an island and maritime boundary dispute is asked both as a case name and as a point of the law of the sea.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
ICJ International Court of Justice — The principal judicial organ of the United Nations, which decides legal disputes submitted to it by States.
Preliminary objections preliminary objections — Objections a respondent State raises to the Court's jurisdiction or to the admissibility of a claim, before the merits are heard.
Background
The National Library's geography article places Chile between the Pacific Ocean and the heights of the Andes at the far south of the American continent, and gives its continental surface as more than 756.626 square kilometres. It gives the continental length as 4.270 kilometres, measured from the border with Peru to Cape Horn, and the average width as 200 kilometres, the figures behind the country's long and narrow shape. Chile's western-most possession is Easter Island, with a surface close to 160 square kilometres, lying 3.780 km from the continental coast. Adding the Antarctic territory of 1.250.000 square kilometres gives a total surface of 2.006.626 square kilometres, which is the basis of what Chile calls its tri-continentality. Chile is bounded to the north by Peru; to the east it meets Bolivia and Argentina along a limit that runs broadly north to south and follows the Andes, watersheds, straight lines and the courses of rivers; to the west lies the Pacific Ocean and to the south the Chilean Antarctic Territory, which extends to the South Pole. Besides the Andes and the coastline, the relief is marked by the intermediate depression, running from the north of the country down to Puerto Montt, and by the coastal range, whose maximum altitude exceeds 2.000 metres in some stretches. Santiago is the capital, and the country is divided into 16 regions, each headed by a Regional Governor elected by direct popular vote, with 56 provinces under Provincial Presidential Delegates appointed by the President and 346 municipalities under an Alcalde and a Municipal Council.
Northern land limit:
Chile limita al norte con Perú
Eastern land limits:
Hacía el este con Bolivia y Argentina
Continental length:
4.270 kilómetros
Average width:
200 kilómetros
Continental surface:
756.626 kilómetros cuadrados
Total surface including the Antarctic territory:
2.006.626 kilómetros cuadrados
Capital:
Santiago, capital de Chile
Provinces:
56 provincias
Municipalities:
346 municipios
Why it matters for exams: The land neighbours, the length-and-width pair and the count of regions are the standing Chile geography questions, and tri-continentality is the phrase the Chilean state itself uses for its extent.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Tri-continentality tri-continentalidad — Chile's own description of itself as a country spread over South America, Oceania and Antarctica.
Intermediate depression depresión intermedia — The lowland corridor between the Andes and the coastal range, running from northern Chile down to Puerto Montt.
Background
The executive in Chile is headed by the President of the Republic, who is elected by popular and direct suffrage. The term of the office is four years, with no right of immediate re-election. Legislative power lies with the National Congress, whose principal seat is in the city of Valparaíso. The Congress is bicameral, with a Senate of 50 members and a Chamber of Deputies of 155 members elected by direct vote. Deputies are elected for a period of four years, at the end of which the whole Chamber of Deputies is renewed, while the Senate is renewed only partially. The Chamber of Deputies records that siting the seat of the National Congress in Valparaíso was meant as a signal of decentralisation. Judicial power is headed by the Supreme Court, composed of 21 members appointed by the President of the Republic with the agreement of the Senate.
Presidential term:
4 años, sin derecho a reelección inmediata
Senate:
Senado de 50 miembros
Chamber of Deputies:
155 integrantes
Seat of the National Congress:
ciudad de Valparaíso
Supreme Court:
Corte Suprema, compuesta de 21 miembros
Why it matters for exams: The four-year term with no immediate re-election, the 155-and-50 split between the two chambers, and the Congress sitting at Valparaíso rather than Santiago are the three Chile polity facts that come up again and again.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Congreso Nacional National Congress of Chile — Chile's two-chamber legislature, made up of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.
Background
Article 90 of the Constitution gives the President and Vice-President a term of cuatro años and allows them to be re-elected or to succeed each other for only one consecutive period. Once they have done so, neither may be elected to either office again except after an interval of one period.
Article 94 has them elected directly by the People, en doble vuelta, and makes the whole national territory a single district for the purpose.
Article 95 requires the election to be held within the two months before the end of the sitting President's mandate.
Article 96 holds the second electoral round, where one is required, between the two most-voted tickets, within treinta días of the first.
Article 97 proclaims the leading first-round ticket elected if it has taken more than cuarenta y cinco por ciento of the valid affirmative votes cast.
Article 98 proclaims it elected on a lower bar as well: at least cuarenta por ciento of the valid affirmative votes, together with a lead of more than diez puntos porcentuales over the ticket next in votes.
Article 91 states that the President leaves power on the very day the four-year period expires, and that no interruption can be a reason to complete the term later.
Article 99 makes the President the supreme head of the Nation, head of the government and politically responsible for the general administration of the country.
Term of office:
cuatro años
Re-election limit:
un solo período consecutivo
First-round win threshold:
cuarenta y cinco por ciento
Lower threshold:
cuarenta por ciento
Lead required with the lower threshold:
diez puntos porcentuales
Second round held within:
treinta días
Why it matters for exams: Term length, the method of election and the re-election bar are the three things asked about any presidency, and Argentina's two numerical thresholds for avoiding a run-off are a favourite comparative question.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Segunda vuelta Second electoral round — The run-off between the two leading tickets, held when neither of the Constitution's first-round thresholds is met.
Valid affirmative votes Votos afirmativos válidamente emitidos — The votes counted towards the thresholds, which leaves out blank and spoilt ballots.
Background
Article 1 of the Constitution states that the Argentine Nation adopts the representative republican federal form for its government.
The federal government's own country page gives the capital as the Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, the official language as español and the monetary unit as the peso.
The country is divided into 24 jurisdictions: 23 provincias and one federal district, which is the Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires.
Article 129 gives the city of Buenos Aires an autonomous regime of government with its own powers of legislation and jurisdiction, and its head of government is elected directly by the people of the city.
Article 35 keeps three names official and interchangeable for the government and the territory of the provinces: Provincias Unidas del Río de la Plata, República Argentina and Confederación Argentina. The same article requires the words 'Nación Argentina' in the formation and sanction of laws.
Article 3 places the federal authorities in the city declared Capital of the Republic by a special law of Congress, after the territory has been ceded by one or more provincial legislatures.
The same government page gives the area as 3.761.274 km² and the population as 46.234.830 at the 2022 national census of population, households and housing.
Capital:
Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
Official language:
español
Monetary unit:
peso
Provinces:
23 provincias
Area:
3.761.274 km²
Population:
46.234.830
Why it matters for exams: Capital, official language, currency and the number of provinces are the first facts asked about any country, and Argentina's structure separates its 23 provinces from an autonomous capital city that is a federal district.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires Autonomous City of Buenos Aires — Argentina's capital, a federal district with its own powers of legislation and jurisdiction and a directly elected head of government.
Federal district Distrito federal — A capital territory held by the national government rather than forming part of any province.
Background
Five Zonal Councils were established in the year 1957 under Section 15-22 of the States Reorganization Act, 1956.
Union Home Minister is the Chairman of these five Zonal Councils.
The Chief Ministers of the States included in the respective Zonal Council and the Administrator or Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territories are its members.
Chief Ministers of the States included in a Zonal Council become its vice-chairman by turn.
Two more ministers from each state are nominated by the Governor as members of the council.
Each Zonal Council has also constituted a Standing Committee at the level of Chief Secretaries.
The Councils take up issues involving the Centre and the States and between one or more States in the region, including infrastructure, mining, environment and forests and food security parameters.
Meetings are organized by the Inter State Council Secretariat under the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Western Zonal Council comprises the states of Gujarat, Goa, Maharashtra and the Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.
Number of Councils:
Five Zonal Councils
Statute:
States Reorganization Act, 1956
Sections:
Section 15-22
Year established:
1957
Chairman:
Union Home Minister
Standing Committee level:
Chief Secretaries
Why it matters for exams: The statutory basis, the chairmanship and the rotating vice-chairmanship of the Zonal Councils are standard Centre-State relations questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Zonal Council Zonal Council — A statutory forum in which the Centre and the States of one region discuss matters of common interest.
Background
The Reserve Bank of India, Act,1934 was amended in 2016 to provide a statutory basis for the implementation of the flexible inflation targeting framework.
Section 45ZB of the amended Act provides for an empowered six-member Monetary Policy Committee to be constituted by the Central Government by notification in the Official Gazette.
Three of the six come from the Reserve Bank: the Governor as ex officio Chairperson, the Deputy Governor in charge of monetary policy, and one officer of the Reserve Bank nominated by the Central Board.
The remaining three are appointed members, who hold office for a period of four years or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
The Committee determines the policy repo rate required to achieve the inflation target.
It is required to meet at least four times in a year, and the quorum for a meeting is four members.
Each member has one vote, and in the event of an equality of votes the Governor has a second or casting vote.
Each member writes a statement specifying the reasons for voting in favour of, or against, the proposed resolution.
Enabling provision:
Section 45ZB
Composition:
six-member Monetary Policy Committee
Quorum for a meeting:
four members
Minimum meetings:
at least four times in a year
Term of appointed members:
four years
Tie-breaker:
casting vote
Why it matters for exams: The size, quorum, term and casting vote of the Monetary Policy Committee are fixed statutory facts that banking and economy papers ask repeatedly.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
MPC Monetary Policy Committee — The statutory committee that fixes the policy repo rate to meet India's inflation target.
Quorum Quorum — The minimum number of members who must be present for a meeting to transact business.
Background
The Kerala High Court has held that Section 100 of the Patents Act, 1970 takes in the Government's entitlement to use a patented invention to manufacture a medicine and sell it on a non-commercial basis to a needy patient; this is the provision that ruling rests on.
Section 100 is headed 'Power of Central Government to use inventions for purposes of Government'.
It allows the Central Government, and any person authorised in writing by it, to use the invention for the purposes of Government at any time after an application for a patent has been filed or a patent has been granted.
Where the invention had already been recorded, tested or tried by or for the Government before the priority date, that use may be made free of any royalty or other remuneration to the patentee.
Otherwise the terms are agreed with the patentee, or in default of agreement are determined by the High Court on a reference under section 103, and the patentee is paid not more than adequate remuneration in the circumstances of each case.
The Government must notify the patentee as soon as practicable, except in case of national emergency or other circumstances of extreme urgency or for noncommercial use.
The same section, in subsection (6), adds the right to sell, on a non-commercial basis, the goods made in exercise of that right.
The Kerala High Court read 'purposes of Government' as taking in the State's duty to improve public health under Article 47 of the Constitution of India.
Provision:
Section 100
Heading of the section:
Power of Central Government to use inventions for purposes of Government
Payment standard:
not more than adequate remuneration
Forum in default of agreement:
High Court
Constitutional provision read in:
Article 47
Why it matters for exams: Government use of a patent under Section 100 is the provision behind a live Kerala High Court ruling on drug prices, and it is regularly set against compulsory licensing in prelims and mains.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
patentee holder of a patent — The person or company in whose name a patent stands on the register.
priority date priority date of a claim — The date from which a claim in a patent application counts, normally the date the first application was filed.
Article 47 Article 47 of the Constitution of India — A Directive Principle under which the State is to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living and improve public health.
3 October 2026
The Prime Minister's Office of Japan published instructions issued by the Prime Minister at 06:40 on 3 October 2026 in response to a suspected ballistic missile launch by North Korea.
The first instruction was to dedicate maximum effort to gather and analyse information, and to provide the public with information in a timely and appropriate manner.
The second was to ensure the safety of aircraft, vessels and other assets.
The third was to take all possible measures for precaution, including readiness for contingencies.
The instructions are published in provisional English translation on the Prime Minister's Office website.
Date and time of instructions:
3 October 2026, 06:40
Number of instructions:
3
Issuing office:
Prime Minister's Office of Japan
Why it matters for exams: Japan's crisis-response machinery and its security environment in North-East Asia are standard Country Focus questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Ballistic missile Ballistic missile — A missile that is powered only in its early flight and then follows a free-falling path to its target.
3 October 2026
Justice Jobin Sebastian of the Kerala High Court partly allowed a petition (Crl.MC No. 5824 of 2026) filed by six accused (accused 1 and 3 to 7) in a case from an Ayurvedic spa.
The women had later disowned the prosecution case through affidavits.
The court held that recantation by witnesses does not mean there is no possibility of a conviction, as these are offences of public interest.
Proceedings against accused 1 and 3 continue on all charges.
For accused 4 to 7, charges under Sections 4 and 6 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 were quashed, but those under Sections 5 and 7 remain.
Judge:
Justice Jobin Sebastian
Case:
Crl.MC No. 5824 of 2026
Charges retained against accused 4 to 7:
Sections 5 and 7, ITPA
Why it matters for exams: Rulings that explain the limits of quashing criminal proceedings and the role of witness recantation are useful for law and polity papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Recantation Withdrawal of an earlier statement — A witness retracts what was said earlier in a statement.
Quash To set aside legal proceedings — The High Court ends a criminal case before trial.
3 October 2026
The Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board (HPSEB) agreed to supply 600 MW to the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) during peak hours from 1 October 2026 to 31 May 2027.
KSEB began receiving the additional power on Thursday, helping the State avoid power cuts for two days.
KSEB chairman M G Rajamanickam said six teams of senior officials had travelled to several North Indian states over two weeks to find surplus power.
Kerala had secured short-term supplies from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, but both states could not continue the arrangements.
KSEB turned down an earlier Himachal offer of 210 MW round-the-clock power at Rs 10 per unit, as surplus power was available in the daytime and could be bought from the exchange at around Rs 2 per unit.
Power from Himachal Pradesh:
600 MW in peak hours
Agreement period:
1 October 2026 to 31 May 2027
Declined offer:
210 MW at Rs 10 per unit
Why it matters for exams: Power procurement by the State electricity board and the Himachal Pradesh agreement show how Kerala manages peak demand; KSEB is a standard Kerala PSC topic.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KSEB Kerala State Electricity Board — The public utility that generates, buys and distributes electricity in Kerala.
Peak hours Peak demand period — The hours of the day when electricity demand is highest.
3 October 2026
Chief Minister Pema Khandu said the ongoing Preliminary Feasibility Report exercise on the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project should not be read as the start of dam construction. The PFR involves only preliminary technical studies, including the collection of rock samples, and no land acquisition or loss of agricultural or forest land. If the project is found feasible, the next stages are a Social Impact Assessment, an Environment Impact Assessment and a Detailed Project Report, with public consultations mandatory. He said peaceful protest was a legitimate democratic right, but violence and destruction of property were criminal acts.
Current stage:
Pre-Feasibility Report
Later stages:
SIA, EIA, DPR
Why it matters for exams: The staged clearance path for a large dam (PFR, SIA, EIA, DPR) is a common polity and environment question.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
SIA Social Impact Assessment — A study of how a project affects the people and communities around it.
DPR Detailed Project Report — The full technical and financial plan prepared once a project is found feasible.