3 October 2026
The proposed All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Kerala could come up at Velloor in Vaikom, according to MLA K. Binimon, as Mathrubhumi reported on 2 October 2026.
He cited information from Health Minister K. Muraleedharan's office that it is likely to be set up on land owned by Kerala Paper Products Limited (KPPL).
Velloor and Koratty in Thrissur district are among the four locations in the final list the State submitted to the Centre.
Of the 692 acres KPPL owns at Velloor, 227.18 acres can be made available free of cost; an AIIMS needs around 200 acres.
The site has enough space without evicting anyone, and its location in central Kerala counts in its favour.
Malayala Manorama had reported in July that 200 acres could be acquired from KPPL's land at Velloor without difficulty.
Proposed site:
Velloor, Vaikom
KPPL land at Velloor:
692 acres
Available free of cost:
227.18 acres
Land an AIIMS needs:
around 200 acres
Why it matters for exams: Health infrastructure, institutions of national importance and Centre-State project planning are common in Kerala PSC and UPSC questions.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
AIIMS All India Institute of Medical Sciences — A central institute of national importance for medical education, research and tertiary care.
KPPL Kerala Paper Products Limited — The company that owns 692 acres at Velloor, from which land is proposed for the AIIMS.
Background
Article 9 of Serbia's Constitution says the capital city of the Republic of Serbia is Belgrade.
Article 10 says the Serbian language and Cyrillic script are in official use.
The official use of other languages and scripts is regulated by law based on the Constitution.
Article 11 declares Serbia a secular state: churches and religious communities are separated from the state.
No religion may be established as a state or mandatory religion.
Capital:
Belgrade (Article 9)
Official language and script:
Serbian, Cyrillic (Article 10)
State character:
Secular (Article 11)
Why it matters for exams: Capital, official language and script are staple basic-fact questions for any country in the country-focus section.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
Cyrillic Cyrillic script — The alphabet Serbia's Constitution names for official use alongside the Serbian language.
Background
UN Security Council resolution 1244 (1999) was adopted by 14 votes to none, with China abstaining.
It authorised international civil and security presences in Kosovo under United Nations auspices and an interim administration.
It reaffirmed the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and called for substantial autonomy for Kosovo.
Serbia's Constitution says Kosovo and Metohija is an integral part of Serbia's territory with the status of substantial autonomy.
Article 182 names two autonomous provinces: Vojvodina, and Kosovo and Metohija.
Resolution:
1244 (1999)
Vote in the Security Council:
14 in favour, none against, 1 abstention (China)
Autonomous provinces in Serbia's Constitution:
2: Vojvodina, and Kosovo and Metohija
Why it matters for exams: Kosovo's status is a recurring question in Balkan affairs; the exact wording of the UN resolution and of Serbia's Constitution is what is asked.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
UNSC United Nations Security Council — The UN body with primary responsibility for international peace and security.
Metohija Metohija — The Serbian name used with Kosovo for the region, as in 'Kosovo and Metohija'.
3 October 2026
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung threatened unspecified 'further action' if Ukraine does not publicly apologise for revealing that two North Korean prisoners of war had been sent to the South.
Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky disclosed the transfer at the UN General Assembly last week.
Seoul says Ukraine had asked for the move to be kept secret; Zelensky's office says the two countries had no such agreement.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the row a 'diplomatic misunderstanding', which Lee rejected on X.
The two soldiers were among thousands of North Koreans supporting Russia in the war, and South Korea does not provide lethal weapons to countries in active war.
Prisoners of war sent to South Korea:
two North Korean soldiers
Where Zelensky disclosed it:
UN General Assembly
South Korea's demand:
a public apology from Ukraine
Why it matters for exams: Diplomatic rows linked to the Russia-Ukraine war and the Korean peninsula are recurring international-affairs topics.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
POW Prisoner of war — A combatant captured by the enemy during an armed conflict.
3 October 2026
Brazilians vote in the presidential election on Sunday 4 October.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, seeking re-election, faces Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a 27-year sentence for attempting a coup.
If neither candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff will be held on 25 October.
The US suspended consular services in Brazil from Friday 2 October citing security concerns, and Australia closed its embassy in Brasilia.
Brazil's federal police carried out search warrants in Sao Paulo and the Federal District but found no evidence corroborating the initially reported threat.
First-round vote:
4 October
Runoff, if no one passes 50 percent:
25 October
Candidates:
Lula da Silva and Flavio Bolsonaro
Jair Bolsonaro's sentence:
27 years
Why it matters for exams: Brazil is Latin America's largest country; runoff rules and election-day developments there are likely exam material.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Runoff Second-round election — A second vote held when no candidate passes the required share, here more than 50 percent.
3 October 2026
Thousands of students protesting over education standards have disrupted more than 700 schools across France.
Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said 735 of France's 3,700 schools were affected, and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said 1,747 people were arrested on Friday 2 October.
The protests began the previous week in Paris and spread to cities including Montpellier, Nantes and Marseille.
Pupils object to a lack of teachers, overcrowded classrooms and run-down buildings.
The education ministry said at least 65 staff members were injured; Education Minister Édouard Geffray said the movement had been hijacked by non-students.
Schools affected:
735 of 3,700
Arrests on Friday:
1,747
Staff injured:
at least 65
Why it matters for exams: Youth protests and public-order responses in France are a standard current-affairs topic on European politics.
Kerala PSCUPSC
3 October 2026
Spain's Congress on Friday 2 October rejected two decree-laws that the government had presented to tackle the housing crisis.
The first decree was defeated by 178 votes to 172 and the second by 184 to 166.
The decrees introduced initiatives to protect tenants in the rental market and needed parliamentary approval to remain in place.
They were a response to nationwide protests after 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal was evicted from her flat when she could not pay a sharp rent increase.
The defeat raises pressure on Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who has no congressional majority, to call a snap election not due until next summer.
First decree:
rejected 178 to 172
Second decree:
rejected 184 to 166
Eviction that sparked protests:
Maricarmen Abascal, 87
Election due:
next summer
Why it matters for exams: Decree-laws, parliamentary majorities and snap elections are core polity concepts, and housing is a live issue across Europe.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
Decree-law Royal decree-law — An emergency government measure that needs parliamentary approval to remain in place.
Snap election Early general election — An election called before the scheduled date.
3 October 2026
On 2 October 2026, at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, 662 aids and assistive devices costing over ₹10 lakh were distributed to 114 senior citizens living in Senior Citizen Homes across Delhi-NCR.
Union Minister Dr Virendra Kumar and Minister of State B. L. Verma distributed them under the Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana (RVY).
Dr Kumar said devices were given to 904 senior citizens at Bhavnagar, Gujarat on 1 October 2026, the International Day of Older Persons.
The Ministry plans to increase PM-Divya Asha Kendras from 109 to 300.
RVY was launched on 1 April 2017; ALIMCO is its implementing agency.
Devices distributed in Delhi-NCR:
662
Beneficiaries:
114 senior citizens
RVY launched:
1 April 2017
PM-Divya Asha Kendras planned:
From 109 to 300
Why it matters for exams: Welfare schemes for senior citizens and their implementing agencies are regular polity and social-justice questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
ALIMCO Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India — The public sector corporation that makes and supplies aids and assistive devices; it implements RVY.
RVY Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana — A scheme that provides aids and assistive devices to senior citizens in need.
3 October 2026
On Gandhi Jayanti, 2 October 2026, more than 2.42 lakh Special Gram Sabhas were scheduled on the GPDP Portal and the Panchayat NIRNAY Portal.
They marked the start of the People's Plan Campaign 2026-27, 'Sabki Yojana, Sabka Vikas', under which Panchayats prepare Panchayat Development Plans for 2027-28.
Discussions covered devolution of Central Finance Commission grants to Panchayats, Own Source Revenue, secure property and land rights, drinking water, sanitation, food security and women's economic empowerment.
The campaign is led by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj in collaboration with 21 Ministries and Departments of the Government of India.
Special Gram Sabhas:
More than 2.42 lakh
Campaign:
People's Plan Campaign 2026-27
Plans prepared for:
2027-28
Partner Ministries and Departments:
21
Why it matters for exams: Gram Sabha, Panchayat Development Plans and fiscal devolution to local bodies are core local-governance topics.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
GPDP Gram Panchayat Development Plan — The annual plan a Gram Panchayat prepares for local development.
Gram Sabha — The body of all registered voters of a village, which discusses local plans and priorities.
3 October 2026
The 140th meeting of the Enforcement Task Force (ETF) of the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) was held on 1 October 2026.
For the 17-day period from 8 to 24 September 2026, 197 inspections were reported: 10 at construction and demolition sites, 111 in the industrial sector and 76 on diesel generator sets.
Violations were reported in 85 cases; proposed actions include closure of 4 C&D projects and 1 industrial unit and sealing of 28 DG sets.
The Commission's Flying Squads have so far inspected 28,744 units, projects or entities across NCR; 1,831 closure directions have been issued and 1,488 resumption orders issued after verification.
A special drive in Loni, Ghaziabad on 29 September 2026 found all 21 inspected units non-compliant.
ETF meeting:
140th, held on 1 October 2026
Inspections in 17 days:
197
Violation cases:
85
Cumulative inspections:
28,744
Closure directions issued:
1,831
Why it matters for exams: Institutions that enforce air-quality norms in Delhi-NCR are a common environment and governance topic.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
CAQM Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas — The commission that coordinates air-quality enforcement in the National Capital Region and adjoining areas.
ETF Enforcement Task Force — The CAQM body that reviews enforcement actions, inspections and compliance.
3 October 2026
Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced on 3 October 2026 that Navpreet Singh was deported from Türkiye and brought back to India.
In his post on X, Mr Shah described him as a hardened narco-trafficking kingpin and said he had obtained Turkish citizenship under the fake identity 'Navab Virk' and continued to smuggle heroin and methamphetamine into India from Afghanistan.
Mr Shah said he had been brought back to India and put behind bars in connection with cases involving drug trafficking and other crimes.
The PIB release states that 288 fugitives from 36 countries were brought back to India between 2019 and August 2026.
It also notes that BHARATPOL, launched in January 2025, connects more than 1,400 units of State and Central agencies.
Deported from:
Türkiye
Fugitives brought back (2019 to August 2026):
288 from 36 countries
BHARATPOL launched:
January 2025
Assets of fugitives attached under PMLA (2019 to 2026):
₹17,874 crore
Why it matters for exams: India's efforts to bring back fugitives, BHARATPOL and international law-enforcement cooperation are recurring internal-security topics.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
BHARATPOL — A portal that links the CBI, State police headquarters and district police on one platform for information-sharing.
PMLA Prevention of Money Laundering Act — The law under which assets linked to money laundering can be attached.
Background
This matters now because on Tuesday, 29 September the Kerala High Court appointed former judge Justice V G Arun as observer for the selection of Melsanthies (head priests) of the Sabarimala and Malikappuram temples.
A Division Bench of Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V and Justice K V Jayakumar acted in a suo motu case arising from the Sabarimala Special Commissioner's report.
The Travancore Devaswom Board received 78 applications, 48 for Sabarimala and 30 for Malikappuram; after a vigilance enquiry five candidates were recommended for Sabarimala and three for Malikappuram.
Interviews are set for October 5 at the Board's headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, and the observer is to be present at Sabarimala for the draw of lots.
The Court ordered marks to be entered with a ball point pen, mark sheets countersigned by the observer and the whole proceedings videographed.
Applications received:
78 (48 Sabarimala, 30 Malikappuram)
Candidates recommended for interview:
5 Sabarimala, 3 Malikappuram
Observer:
Justice V G Arun
Interview venue:
Travancore Devaswom Board headquarters, Thiruvananthapuram
Why it matters for exams: The Travancore Devaswom Board, Sabarimala customs and the High Court's supervisory role are frequent Kerala PSC topics.
Kerala PSC
In plain words
Melsanthi — The head priest of a temple such as Sabarimala, chosen by a draw of lots from a shortlist.
Suo motu — Action taken by a court on its own, without a petition.
3 October 2026
Kerala's decision on arranging its share of the Angamaly-Erumeli Sabari rail project cost is still pending.
The State had told the Centre that half the cost would be raised through the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), but the plan is in doubt after the change in government and the appointment of a committee to examine KIIFB's functioning.
Kerala must provide around Rs 1,900 crore, of which around Rs 1,300 crore is needed for land acquisition.
The proposed plan envisages Rs 300 crore each in the first two years, with further allocations in 2028-29.
The Railways is examining whether land acquisition can be completed at least up to Thodupuzha in the first phase; the line is to add 14 new railway stations.
Kerala's share:
around Rs 1,900 crore
Needed for land acquisition:
around Rs 1,300 crore
New railway stations:
14
Planned yearly release (first two years):
Rs 300 crore
Why it matters for exams: Centre-State cost sharing and KIIFB financing are frequent Kerala PSC topics on infrastructure and State finance.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
KIIFB Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board — The State body that raises money for infrastructure projects.
Background
Kudumbashree is the poverty eradication and women empowerment programme implemented by the State Poverty Eradication Mission (SPEM) of the Government of Kerala.
The name Kudumbashree in Malayalam language means 'prosperity of the family'.
Kudumbashree has a three-tier structure for its women community network, with Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs) at the lowest level, Area Development Societies (ADS) at the ward level, and Community Development Societies (CDS) at the local government level.
The community structure that Kudumbashree adopted evolved from the experiments in Alappuzha Municipality and Malappuram in early 1990s, and the network was extended to cover the entire State in three phases during 2000-2002.
Membership is open to all women, limited to one member per family.
The Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Government of India recognised Kudumbashree as the State Rural Livelihoods Mission (SRLM) under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM).
2.23 lakh Neighbourhood Groups have live bank linkage loans worth Rs.8948 crores and are engaged in income-generating livelihood activities.
Kudumbashree has onboarded products on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) platform, and its National Resource Organisation has entered into MOU with over 16 states to support livelihoods and the panchayat-community interface.
Mission that implements Kudumbashree:
State Poverty Eradication Mission (SPEM)
Shape of the women community network:
three-tier structure
Unit at the lowest level:
Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs) at the lowest level
Unit at the ward level:
Area Development Societies (ADS) at the ward level
Unit at the local government level:
Community Development Societies (CDS) at the local government level
Bank linkage loans live with Neighbourhood Groups:
Rs.8948 crores
Why it matters for exams: Kudumbashree is in the news continuously through ONDC listings, janakeeya hotels and its resource teams working in other States, and the fact that decides a mark is which tier sits at which level of government.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
NHG Neighbourhood Group — The base unit of Kudumbashree, a group of women from neighbouring households.
Bank linkage Bank linkage loan — A loan a bank gives directly to a self-help group on the strength of its savings and repayment record.
Background
The High Court of Kerala came into being on November 1, 1956, the day the State of Kerala itself was formed, as the immediate successor of the Travancore-Cochin High Court.
Its line runs back to the High Court of Travancore, established in 1887, to the Court of Appeal in Cochin, and to the Madras High Court, under whose jurisdiction the Malabar region then lay.
The court was inaugurated at Kochi on November 5, 1956 at Ram Mohan Palace, and Justice KT Koshi, the last Chief Justice of the High Court of Thiru-Kochi, became the first Chief Justice of Kerala.
It sat at Ram Mohan Palace for 50 years, until it was moved to its current home in 2006.
Its authority does not stop at the State border. The district court and courts subordinate to it in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep are under the supervision of the High Court of Kerala.
The court has held that, by virtue of Article 235 of the Constitution, the High Court of Kerala has got the power to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the presiding officers of those courts in the Lakshadweep Islands.
Justice Anna Chandy of this court was the first woman judge to a High Court, and Justice M.Fathima Beevi, who also served here, became the first woman judge in the Supreme Court.
Day the High Court of Kerala came into being:
November 1, 1956
Court it immediately succeeded:
Travancore-Cochin High Court
Year the High Court of Travancore was established:
1887
Date of its inauguration at Kochi:
November 5, 1956
Building it was inaugurated in:
Ram Mohan Palace
Why it matters for exams: This court delivers a reportable judgment most weeks, and the two facts examiners keep returning to are which court it succeeded and which Union Territory sits under it.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Thiru-Kochi Travancore-Cochin — The State formed by uniting the princely states of Travancore and Cochin, before Kerala was created.
Presiding officer Presiding officer of a court — The judge or magistrate who heads a particular court.
Background
The Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016 inserted Article 279A, under which the GST Council is a constitutional body and a joint forum of the Centre and the States.
Article 279A(1) required the GST Council to be constituted by the President within 60 days of the commencement of Article 279A; the notification bringing Article 279A into force took effect from 12th September, 2016 and the Council was constituted on 15.09.2016.
Its members are the Union Finance Minister as Chairperson, the Union Minister of State in charge of Revenue or Finance, and the Minister in charge of finance or taxation or any other Minister nominated by each State Government.
Under Article 279A(4) the Council makes recommendations to the Union and the States on the goods and services that may be subjected to or exempted from GST, model GST laws, the principles that govern place of supply, threshold limits, and GST rates including floor rates with bands, as well as special rates for raising additional resources during natural calamities or disasters and special provisions for certain States.
Every decision of the Council is taken by a majority of not less than three-fourths of the weighted votes of the members present and voting.
Within that weighting, one-third of the total votes cast belongs to the Centre and two-thirds of the total votes cast to the States taken together.
The Secretary (Revenue) is the ex-officio Secretary to the GST Council, and the Council Secretariat has its office at New Delhi, manned by officers taken on deputation from both the Central and State Governments.
Because neither side alone commands three-fourths of the weighted votes, the design forces the Centre and the States to build agreement before a recommendation can carry.
Voting threshold for a decision of the Council:
three-fourths of the weighted votes of the members present and voting
Weight of the Centre's vote:
weightage of one-third of the total votes cast to the Centre
Weight of the States' votes:
weightage of two-thirds of the total votes cast to the States
Time limit for constituting the Council:
within 60 days of the commencement of Article 279A
Chairperson of the Council:
Union Finance Minister - Chairperson
Why it matters for exams: The weighted-voting arithmetic is the one question on the Council that cannot be answered by memory alone, and the composition and the 60-day limit are standard recall.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
GST Goods and Services Tax — A single indirect tax on the supply of goods and services, shared between the Union and the States.
weighted vote weighted vote — A vote counted not as one head but as a fixed share of the total, fixed here at one-third for the Centre and two-thirds for the States.
place of supply place of supply — The rule that decides which State a transaction is taxed in.
Background
Article 280 of the Constitution requires the President, within two years from the commencement of the Constitution and thereafter at the expiration of every fifth year, or at such earlier time as the President considers necessary, to constitute a Finance Commission by order.
The Commission consists of a Chairman and four other members, all appointed by the President.
Its duty is to recommend the distribution between the Union and the States of the net proceeds of taxes that are to be, or may be, divided between them, and the allocation between the States of their respective shares.
It also recommends the principles which should govern the grants-in-aid of the revenues of the States out of the Consolidated Fund of India.
Article 280 further asks it to recommend the measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of a State so as to supplement the resources of the Panchayats and of the Municipalities in that State, on the basis of the recommendations made by the Finance Commission of the State.
Any other matter referred to the Commission by the President in the interests of sound finance also falls within its terms of reference, and the Commission determines its own procedure.
Under Article 281 the President must cause every recommendation of the Commission, together with an explanatory memorandum on the action taken on it, to be laid before each House of Parliament.
The Finance Commission (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1951 fixes the qualifications: the Chairman is selected from persons who have had experience in public affairs, and the four other members from persons who are, have been or are qualified to be appointed as Judges of a High Court, or have special knowledge of the finances and accounts of Government, or have had wide experience in financial matters and in administration, or have special knowledge of economics.
Membership Article 280 provides for:
a Chairman and four other members
Interval at which a Commission is to be constituted:
at the expiration of every fifth year
Outer limit for the first Commission after the Constitution commenced:
within two years from the commencement
Principles the Commission recommends on Union grants:
the principles which should govern the grants-in-aid
Residuary head in the terms of reference:
any other matter referred to the Commission by the President
Why it matters for exams: The Commission's membership, its five-yearly cycle, the five heads in its terms of reference and the Article 281 laying requirement are the standard objective questions on Centre-State fiscal relations.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSCBank
In plain words
Consolidated Fund of India Consolidated Fund of India — The main government account into which all revenues flow and out of which spending needs legislative authorisation.
grants-in-aid grants-in-aid of the revenues of the States — Money the Union gives a State out of the Consolidated Fund of India over and above its share of taxes.
net proceeds net proceeds of a tax or duty — The collection from a tax after the cost of collecting it has been deducted.
Background
The Council of Europe's Venice Commission records that Serbia is a parliamentary republic, with the government divided into legislative, executive, and judiciary branches. The country's parliament, the National Assembly, is a single chamber. Asked whether Serbia ever had a bicameral system, the Venice Commission's record answers "Always unicameralism", so the country has never worked with a second chamber. That single house has 250 seats. Serbia had one of the first modern constitutions in Europe, the 1835 Constitution, known as the Sretenje Constitution, and has since adopted 10 different constitutions. The current constitution was adopted in 2006. The European Committee of the Regions' division-of-powers profile describes the same arrangement: the Parliament (National Assembly) is unicameral, the Government is led by a Prime Minister and the Head of State is the President.
Seats in Serbia's National Assembly:
250 seats
Form of state and government:
Serbia is a parliamentary republic, with the government divided into legislative, executive, and judiciary branches
Number of chambers the legislature has ever had:
Always unicameralism
Adoption of the present constitution:
The current constitution was adopted in 2006
Why it matters for exams: Comparative-polity questions set a one-chamber legislature against India's two-House Parliament, and the seat strength of a foreign national legislature is a standard one-mark fact.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Unicameral Single-chamber legislature — A legislature with only one house, so a bill is never sent on to a second chamber.
Venice Commission European Commission for Democracy through Law — The Council of Europe's advisory body on constitutional questions.
Background
Mexico's official name is the United Mexican States (Estados Unidos Mexicanos). Its national legislature, the Congress of the Union, is bicameral. The lower chamber, the Chamber of Deputies, has 500 members: 300 deputies are elected by plurality in single-member districts and 200 deputies are elected by proportional representation, through a closed regional list system, in five multiple-member electoral districts of 40 members each. Deputies serve a term of 3 years. The upper chamber, the Senate of the Republic, has 128 members. Two senators are elected by plurality in each state, one additional senator per state is awarded to the first minority party, and the remaining 32 seats are allocated by a closed-list proportional representation system. Senators serve a term of 6 years. A Permanent Commission made up of senators and deputies functions when the Congress is in recess.
Members of the Chamber of Deputies:
500
Members of the Senate:
128
Deputies elected by plurality in single-member districts:
300
Deputies elected by proportional representation:
200
Why it matters for exams: Comparative-government questions regularly set another federation's two chambers against the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, and Mexico is the standard example of a legislature that fills both of its houses by a mixture of plurality voting and proportional representation.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Bicameral Two-chamber legislature — A legislature divided into two separate chambers that both take part in making law.
Plurality First-past-the-post voting — The candidate with the most votes wins, even without an absolute majority.
Closed list Closed party list — Voters choose a party and the party's own ranking decides which of its candidates take the seats.
Background
The United Nations lists Serbia among its Member States with a date of admission of 01-11-2000. The UN's own account of the growth in its membership records that the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was added in 2000, and that it was part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, an original member which was removed from the official roster of UN members in 2000 following its dissolution. Serbia is a party to the Central European Free Trade Agreement: the enlarged and modern CEFTA was signed in December 2006, its signatories including Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania and Serbia, and Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia have withdrawn from CEFTA on their accession to the EU. NATO's own member-countries page states that at present, NATO has 32 member countries, and its alphabetical list of Allies does not include Serbia. The European Commission's enlargement page gives Serbia's membership status as candidate country, which is not the same as being a member state of the European Union.
Serbia's date of admission to the United Nations:
Date of Admission: 01-11-2000
Signing of the enlarged CEFTA:
signed in December 2006 by Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia
CEFTA parties that left on joining the EU:
Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia have withdrawn from CEFTA on their accession to the EU
Size of NATO, which does not include Serbia:
At present, NATO has 32 member countries
Serbia's standing with the European Union:
Membership status: candidate country
Why it matters for exams: Examiners prefer the negative form of membership questions, because knowing that a country is not in NATO or the European Union is harder to guess than knowing that it is in the UN.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
CEFTA Central European Free Trade Agreement — A regional free-trade arrangement whose parties leave it when they join the European Union.
Candidate country EU enlargement status — A state whose application to join the European Union has been accepted for negotiation but which is not yet a member.