An analysis in The Hindu by two former LIC executives argues that India needs a trained elder-care workforce. It cites the Budget 2026-27 caregiver-training target and NITI Aayog's August 2026 Reimagining Care report, which proposes a National Caregiver Council to set standards and certify caregivers.
Pakistan placed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under emergency rule and removed its PTI-led government, citing terrorism. Mass detentions, the reported arrest of Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, internet disruption and opposition protests followed. Pakistan's federal government invoked emergency constitutional provisions to dismiss the opposition-led provincial government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, citing an unprecedented rise in terrorism.…
NSA Ajit Doval held a phone call with his Iranian counterpart a day after two tankers with Indian crew were attacked near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has enforced a blockade there since February 2026 and the MEA separately condemned the attacks. Following attacks on two merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that left two Indian sailors missing, NSA Ajit Doval held a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart to…
Hearing PILs on excessive mark-ups in the pharmaceutical supply chain, the Supreme Court found the Centre's 30% trade-margin cap on cancer drugs insufficient. It directed the government to work out how to cap prices across medicines and devices by the next hearing on 27 October 2026. The Supreme Court criticized the Centre's decision to cap trade margins only on cancer drugs as inadequate, demanding a broader plan by October…
The Karnataka High Court declared unconstitutional the provisions of the State's 2022 Act that raised total reservation to 56%. It held that the increase breached the Indra Sawhney 50% ceiling without any extraordinary situation and violated Articles 14, 15 and 16. The Court also found that the State failed to consult the NCSC and NCST in time.
Delhi Police denotified Jantar Mantar as a protest site and designated three larger grounds instead. The move came days after a Supreme Court bench led by CJI Surya Kant urged the Centre to identify spacious protest sites and amid protests over the SIR and demands for the CEC's resignation. Following a Supreme Court suggestion to find spacious alternative sites, Delhi Police officially denotified Jantar Mantar as a…
INDIA bloc leaders filed a joint petition in the Supreme Court seeking full disclosure of the ECI's internal records on the SIR. The filing came after an Indian Express investigation reported that two Election Commissioners had recorded objections at least 14 times over ten months. It also came after CJI Surya Kant declined to meet the leaders, citing the separation of powers.
A cyberattack on connected refrigeration systems across French supermarket chains caused fires and large-scale food losses. It was traced to a vulnerability in a single supplier's refrigeration-management software and it raises questions about the security of operational technology in supply chains.
The IPCC's 65th plenary session in Addis Ababa is seen as the last chance to agree AR7 publication dates that fall before the November 2028 Global Stocktake. Member states remain divided over whether to finish the reports by 2028 or extend into 2029. The IPCC faces an unprecedented deadlock at its Addis Ababa plenary as developing nations demand more time to finalize the AR7 reports, clashing with efforts to publish them…
Pre-feasibility surveys for the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project have triggered sustained Adi protests. Detentions under APUAPA, clashes in late September and early October and a call by Union Minister Kiren Rijiju for dialogue with Adi elders followed. Massive protests by the indigenous Adi community in Arunachal Pradesh, leading to detentions under the APUAPA, have stalled early surveys for the proposed 11,200 MW Siang…
Following the process reforms approved at the 57th GST Council meeting, GST officers were directed to widen the tax base through data analytics, invoice matching and nudges rather than enforcement-heavy action. B2C e-invoicing is set to begin on 1 April 2027. The 57th GST Council meeting initiated a major shift from coercive tax enforcement to using data analytics and tools like the Invoice Management System to widen the tax…
MoSPI's September 2026 CPI data show inflation at a near two-year high of 5.54%, with price pressure spreading beyond food. The data came days after the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee raised the repo rate to 5.5%. India's retail inflation surged to 5.54% in September 2026, driven by a sharp rise in food prices and a general broadening of price pressures across most consumer categories. This is highly relevant for UPSC…
The MPSC chairman stepped aside as a high-level committee began examining the Commission's functioning after paper-leak allegations and sustained student protests. This raises questions of moral responsibility, conflict of interest and the autonomy of constitutional recruitment bodies. Following severe paper leak allegations and 11 days of student protests in Pune, MPSC Chairman Vivek Bhimanwar proceeded on leave, citing his…
The demolition of tribal homes in Kosmi village drew sharp criticism from Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan against his own party's State government. The Chief Minister ordered an inquiry and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes issued notices to the State's Chief Secretary and DGP. The Madhya Pradesh Forest Department demolished the homes of 12 tribal families in Kosmi village, sparking outrage from Union…
After a beheading in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, a Naga tribal council blocked post-mortems and issued a 48-hour ultimatum for recovery of the head. It also demanded the arrest of named Kuki militant leaders, amid violence that left nine people dead across three districts within 24 hours. Following the beheading of a Naga man in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, tribal groups issued a 48-hour ultimatum, refusing to permit a…
In the October 2026 bypolls, MLAs who had resigned from the AIADMK and joined the ruling TVK in Tamil Nadu were re-elected on the TVK's ticket. With more vacancies pending from further AIADMK resignations, the debate over whether the Tenth Schedule can stop resign-and-recontest defections has returned.
Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have declared drought across most of their territory after a severely deficient monsoon. Karnataka has sought Rs 11,000 crore in NDRF assistance, reviving the Centre-State debate over the speed and conditions of disaster relief. Following a highly deficient monsoon, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh declared severe droughts across hundreds of taluks and mandals, prompting a massive ₹11,000 crore…
An opinion piece by former TRAI chairman R.S. Sharma revives the case for converging BharatNet with PM-WANI. It comes after TRAI's June 2025 tariff order capping broadband prices for Public Data Offices and with PM-WANI hotspots at about 4.27 lakh. Former TRAI Chairman R.S. Sharma argues that the PM-WANI public Wi-Fi scheme has stalled due to exorbitant backhaul costs and incumbent telecom resistance, leaving India with only…
An essay marking the start of the 60th year since Ram Manohar Lohia's death argues that civil service rules on seniority and retirement keep officers from marginalised communities out of apex posts. It proposes equal service length and an end to lifelong batch seniority. An essay in The Hindu marks the 60th year since socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia's death by critiquing civil service rules, arguing that fixed inter-se…
A former Intelligence Bureau Special Director has criticised the scale of Delhi Police's preventive crackdown on the 10 October protests. This has revived debate on police neutrality, proportionality and the unimplemented Prakash Singh reforms. An op-ed by a former Intelligence Bureau Director heavily criticizes the massive police crackdown during the October 2026 Delhi protests, arguing that canceling trains and shutting…