UPSC current affairs, 26 October 2026

• Searches covered Aizawl, Champhai and Zokhawthar in Mizoram, Churachandpur in Manipur and the Cachar region of Assam.
• In Churachandpur, one mini-ATM counter code-named 'Nuniang' handled 2,947 transfers worth ₹175.03 crore between 2024 and June 2026.
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed the goal of eradicating drug networks by 31 December 2029.

Illustrates the nexus of cross-border drug trafficking from Myanmar, hawala and the formal banking system, and the need for joint NCB, ED and State police action.

2018 · GS3 · 15 marks India's proximity to two of the world's biggest illicit opium-growing states has enhanced her internal security concerns. Explain the linkages between drug trafficking and other illicit activities such as gunrunning…

How to use it: The Myanmar-linked network used hawala and mini-ATM counters to launder drug money, showing the link between drug trafficking and money laundering near India's border.

• The DPDP Rules were notified on 13 November 2025.
• Failure to take reasonable security safeguards under the DPDP Act can attract penalties of up to ₹250 crore.
• The Act separates consent to treatment from consent to use of data; hospitals must appoint a Data Protection Officer.

Useful for the gap between data protection law and capacity on the ground, and the cost of compliance for health providers.

2024 · GS3 · 10 marks Describe the context and salient features of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

How to use it: Explains features of the DPDP Act, 2023 as applied to hospitals: data fiduciaries, separate data consent, Data Protection Officers, phased timelines and penalties up to ₹250 crore.

• The H-1B is a US non-immigrant visa for temporary hiring of foreign workers in specialty occupations.
• PERM is the first step for US employers seeking labour certification from the Department of Labor for foreign workers.

Shows how US domestic politics on skilled migration creates friction in India-US relations and risks for India's IT services exports.

• Poland is the EU's sixth-largest economy, with nominal GDP above $1 trillion.
• India and Poland agreed to set up a Defence Industry Dialogue.

An example of India deepening ties with Central European EU members ahead of the India-EU FTA, in technology, defence and critical minerals.

• Article 19(1)(b) guarantees the right to assemble peaceably and without arms.
• In Himmat Lal vs Commissioner of Police (1972), the Supreme Court distinguished reasonable regulation of assembly from arbitrary exclusion.
• Section 163 of the BNSS, 2023 empowers the executive to issue orders to prevent public disturbance.

Feeds the debate on the balance between public order and the right to dissent, and the chilling effect of blanket restrictions.

• The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 defines a 'working journalist' as one whose principal avocation is journalism and who is employed in the media.
• The Press Club of India had drafted a Media Transparency (and Accountability) Bill calling for such a council.

Raises the question of who counts as a journalist, and whether licensing protects press freedom or restricts it.

• The Restatement of Values of Judicial Life, adopted by the Supreme Court in 1997, advises judges against public debate on political or pending matters.
• In ADR v Election Commission of India (May 2026), the Supreme Court held that due process is required before a voter is deleted.
• The Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct are an international standard on judicial conduct.

Useful for GS4 and GS2 on judicial ethics: the line between judges' public engagement and comment on sub judice matters.

• PHP is an open-source server-side scripting language widely used for web development.
• Remote code execution is a vulnerability that lets an attacker run arbitrary code on a remote computer or server.

Shows why patch management and software supply chain security matter for cyber security of websites and their users.

• The Integrated Fertiliser Management System (iFMS) is a government platform to monitor fertiliser sales and distribution.
• El Nino is projected to remain strong through January to March 2027, which could affect the rabi season.

Shows how monsoon failure transmits to input demand and rural distress, relevant to agricultural risk and drought management.

• NHPC Limited is a Navratna public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Power.
• The Siang Upper Multipurpose Project is meant for hydropower, flood control and water security, partly to offset Chinese dams upstream on the Yarlung Tsangpo.
• Section 163 of the BNSS replaced Section 144 of the CrPC.

Captures the trade-off between strategic hydropower and water security on the Brahmaputra and the rights of indigenous communities facing displacement.

• The Kotia panchayat dispute is between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
• In November 2021 the Chief Ministers of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh agreed to set up a joint mechanism on bilateral issues.
• Odisha has formed a 16-member committee under its Revenue and Disaster Management Minister to plan Kotia's development.

An example of inter-State boundary disputes and the role of the Supreme Court and bilateral mechanisms in resolving them.

2020 · GS2 · 10 marks How far do you think cooperation, competition and confrontation have shaped the nature of federation in India? Cite some recent examples to validate your answer.

How to use it: Odisha's contempt petition against Andhra Pradesh over elections in disputed Kotia villages is a current example of confrontation between States within the federation.

• Article 316 deals with the appointment and term of office of Public Service Commission members.
• Under Article 317, the President can remove a PSC chairperson or member for misbehaviour after an inquiry by the Supreme Court.

Raises questions on the independence of constitutional bodies and the Governor's role in State affairs.

• The proposed theatre commands are a Northern Theatre Command at Lucknow, a Western Theatre Command at Jaipur and a Maritime Theatre Command at Thiruvananthapuram.
• The theaterisation plan to integrate the three services was announced in 2019.

Useful for the debate on jointness and integration in defence reforms, and how scarce air assets should be organised.

• The Telecommunications Act, 2023 permits administrative allocation of satellite spectrum, unlike auctions for terrestrial mobile services.
• The Sherman Act of 1890 was the first US federal law to curb monopolies.

Feeds questions on competition policy, regulatory capture and national security conditions such as lawful interception in telecom.

• COP31 begins on 9 November in Antalya, Turkey.
• The 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976 made environmental protection a Directive Principle and a Fundamental Duty.
• The Greening Education Partnership is a UNESCO-led platform for climate-ready education.

Shows education as a tool for climate action and behavioural change, linked to Mission LiFE.

• The Nutrient-Based Subsidy policy, introduced in 2010, subsidises phosphatic and potassic fertilisers by nutrient content while urea stays under fixed pricing.
• Soil Health Card data for 2025-26 showed 72% of samples low in nitrogen and 52% low in organic carbon.
• PM-PRANAM incentivises States to promote balanced use and reduce use of chemical fertilisers.

Shows how input price subsidies distort nutrient use and harm soil and groundwater, and the case for reform toward DBT.

2015 · GS3 · 12.5 marks In what way could the replacement of price subsidy with direct benefit Transfer (DBT) change the scenario of subsidies in India? Discuss.

How to use it: Proposes replacing fertiliser price subsidies with per-hectare DBT using AgriStack, since fixed urea prices have skewed the N:P:K ratio to 10.5:4.1:1.

• The FRLD was established in 2022 and operationalised in 2023.
• Nepal's share of historical global greenhouse gas emissions is 0.01%.
• India has submitted three FRLD requests totalling over $52 million.

Illustrates climate justice and the gap between climate finance needs and pledges for vulnerable developing countries.

• Agrivoltaic panels are typically mounted 3.5 to 4 metres high so farming and machinery can continue beneath.
• PM-KUSUM was launched in 2019 to solarise irrigation and raise farmers' incomes.

Shows a way to ease land conflicts for solar expansion while protecting small and marginal farmers' land and crop output.

• Chilika Lake and Keoladeo National Park were India's first Ramsar Sites, designated in 1981; India became a Party on 1 February 1982.
• Sundarban Wetland in West Bengal is India's largest Ramsar Site, at 4,23,000 hectares.
• Indore and Udaipur became India's first Ramsar-accredited Wetland Cities in January 2025.

Useful for wetland conservation as nature-based climate adaptation and the role of international designation in protection.

• The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act provides for Urban Local Bodies and lists 18 functions for them.
• A ₹1 lakh crore Urban Challenge Fund has been announced.

Directly feeds the theme that States have not empowered ULBs functionally and financially, with concrete reform proposals.

2023 · GS2 · 10 marks "The states in India seem reluctant to empower urban local bodies both functionally as well as financially." Comment.

How to use it: Gauba's call to devolve all 18 functions under the 74th Amendment, hold timely elections and constitute State Finance Commissions regularly shows the functional and financial gaps in ULB empowerment.