24th-26th October, 2026

1. Ladakh Becomes India’s First Fully Organic Union Territory
2. Nihal Sarin and Koneru Humpy Win Individual Gold at European Chess Club Cup 2026
3. LA 2028 Olympic Cricket Qualifiers
4. Lionel Messi Recognized With 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports
5. Usha Mangeshkar to Receive Inaugural Honour Dr Bhupen Hazarika National Award
6. Ashoke Sen Wins Oskar Klein Medal 2026: First Indian Physicist to Receive the Honour
7. Bodhana Sivanandan Becomes Youngest Female International Master in Chess
8. S Meghana Retires from All Formats After India and WPL Career
9. World Polio Day 2026 – October 24
10. United Nations Day 2026 – October 24
11. Punjab Launches SANGAT Mental Health Clubs in 40 Colleges
12. Greece Approves Social Media Ban for Children Under 15
13. Kochi Student Wins 28th Charles Correa Gold Medal 2026
14. Ameena Nazreen A S Receives US$500 Award at Global Youth Institute 2026
15. NAAS and CAST Sign a 5-Year Agricultural Cooperation Agreement
16. Yashaswini Ghorpade and Harmeet Desai Secure Medal at Asian Table Tennis Championships 2026
17. Harry Brook Scores Fastest Double Century in ODI Cricket History
18. Sunil Kumar Appointed Next ONGC Chairman: Tenure and Key Facts
19. National Geographic Names Jaipur to Its Best of the World 2027 List
20. NSTFDC, NSIC and SAIL Sign Tripartite MoU to Promote Tribal Youth Entrepreneurship in Odisha
21. IICA Signs MoU with Association of ARCs in India to Strengthen Insolvency Education and Industry Collaboration
22. BSE, MMTC-PAMP Signs Agreement to Boost India’s EGR Market
23. Anca-Maria Verma Appointed Ambassador-at-Large of UN IIMSAM for India for Five-Year Term
24. SDAL Delivers Indigenous Anti-Tank ‘Nagastra 2 Loitering Munition System’ to Indian Army
25. Veteran Hollywood Actor Tom Skerritt Passed Away at 93
26. International Stuttering Awareness Day 2026 – October 22
27. International Snow Leopard Day 2026 – October 23
28. Raising Day of Indo-Tibetan Border Police 2026 – October 24
29. National Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2026 – October
30. International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week 2026 – October 18 to 24
31. Vigilance Awareness Week 2026 — October 26 to November 1
32. World Development Information Day 2026 – October 24
33. Global Media and Information Literacy Week 2026 – October 24 to 31
34. MHA and IA to Train 600 Civil Defence Master Trainers Across 12 States/UTs
35. C-DOT and IIT-BHU Signed MoU to Establish 6th CoE for Advance 6G Quantum Technologies
36. C-DAC and BOI Sign MoU to Explore Quantum Technologies for Banking Innovation
37. Goa AI Tech Conclave 2026: Goa Unveils AI Policy, Launches Hackathon, AI CoE and BHASHINI Konkani LLM
38. NLC India Limited Signs MoUs with IPICOL to Invest Rs. 37,000 Crore in Odisha Projects
39. 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum to begin in New Delhi tomorrow
40. India and Sri Lanka strengthen cultural ties through shared Buddhist heritage
41. Singapore: 50 Indian women entrepreneurs participate in Namaste Bharat
42. Yuki Bhambri, Ryan Seggerman clinch Almaty Open doubles title
43. Ahmedabad to host Senior World Weightlifting Championships in 2029
44. PV Sindhu Finishes Runner-up at French Open After Loss to An Se-Young
45. Aditya assures India’s first men’s medal at World Boxing U-19 Championships
46. India aims to quadruple port capacity by 2047: Union Minister Piyush Goyal
47. J&K celebrates 79th Accession Day
48. Odisha: Govt intensifies preparedness in vulnerable districts in view of Cyclone Arnab
49. Telangana govt asks all network hospitals to join PM RAHAT scheme
50. India to expand its space operations with four functional launch pads by 2029, says ISRO Chairman
51. Renowned Indian painter and former Rajya Sabha member Jogen Chowdhury passes away
52. Centre Approves 320 Additional PG Medical Seats in Himachal Pradesh
53. India Emerges as Third-Largest Arms Exporter to Europe: Defence Secretary
54. VP Radhakrishnan releases book ‘Advantage India: Reshaping the Future for an Equitable World’
55. Provisional Index of Core Industries for the Month of September 2026, and Final Index for the Month of August 2026 with Base Year 2022-23

National News

NAAS Represents India at 2026 Borlaug Dialogue

• What: The National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), New Delhi, showcased India’s agricultural research at the 2026 Norman E Borlaug International Dialogue in Des Moines, Iowa (USA).
• Tell me more:
  • About the 2026 Norman E Borlaug International Dialogue: Organised by the World Food Prize Foundation (WFPF), its theme was “Before Hunger Wins”.
  • Indian students at WFPF’s Global Youth Institute (GYI): Seven Indian high school students, selected through the NAAS-YUVA selection drive, presented research papers on food-security challenges.
    • One of them, Ameena Nazreen A S, won the GYI Award with a US $500 cash prize.
  • NAAS–CAST MoU: NAAS signed an MoU with the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST), USA, for cooperation in agricultural research, capacity development and knowledge exchange.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • About NAAS: Established in 1990 and based in New Delhi, it promotes excellence in agricultural science, recognises distinguished scientists and provides scientific input for agricultural policy. Its President is M.L. Jat, who is also Director General of ICAR.
  • About CAST: An independent nonprofit founded in 1972 and based in Ames, Iowa, it provides science-based information on food, agriculture, natural resources and the environment. Its current CEO is Chris Boomsma, and its President is P.V. Vara Prasad.

India Plans to Quadruple Port Capacity by 2047

• What: India plans to increase its port capacity four times by 2047, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
• Tell me more:
  • India sees opportunities to cooperate on maritime infrastructure, green energy, carbon capture, sustainable trade and modernising existing ports. The Port of Rotterdam is one of Europe’s most important ports.
  • Maritime university in Mumbai: India is setting up the country’s largest maritime institute of excellence, a university to train skilled seafarers, in Mumbai.

State News

Ladakh Declared 100% Organic Union Territory

• What: Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena declared Ladakh as a 100% organic Union Territory, calling it India’s first.
• Tell me more:
  • Ladakh has completely banned the procurement, distribution, sale, marketing and use of chemical and synthetic fertilisers and chemical pesticides in agriculture.
  • Mission Organic Development Initiative (MODI):
    • MODI is Ladakh’s organic farming mission. It was launched in 2020 and aims to convert all 666 villages into certified organic hubs.
    • It supports bio-fertiliser production, seed distribution, protected cultivation and marketing of organic produce.
    • Outlay: ₹500 crore
    • Revenue villages certified before the declaration: 207 out of 666 target
  • Correction Note:
    • Lakshadweep was declared India’s first 100% organic UT in 2020 by the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, under the Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) of India through the Centre’s Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana.
    • All the news articles are reporting Ladakh as the “first” 100% organic UT based only on LG Vinai Kumar Saxena’s declaration, which does not mention Lakshadweep or explain how Ladakh is the first.
    • Sikkim is the first 100% organic state, declared in 2016.

Punjab Launches SANGAT Mental Health Clubs

• What: Punjab launched SANGAT mental health clubs in 40 colleges under its anti-drug campaign Yudh Nashean Virudh for promoting mental wellbeing, early help-seeking without stigma, and prevention of substance abuse.
• Tell me more:
  • Partners: Led by Punjab’s Department of Higher Education with the Aditya Birla Education Trust (ABET; chairperson Neerja Birla), and implemented by its subsidiary Mpower, an ABET subsidiary.
  • Launch venue: Plaksha University, Mohali
  • 25 students per college will get 14 hours of Youth Mental Health First Aid training to support peers and guide them to professional help.
  • Yudh Nashean Virudh is Punjab’s campaign against substance abuse, based on prevention, awareness, peer support and collective responsibility.

Jaipur Among National Geographic’s Best Places for 2027

• What: Jaipur was named among National Geographic’s 25 best places to travel worldwide in 2027.
• Tell me more:
  • Jaipur celebrates its 300th anniversary in 2027.
  • Nat Geo highlights Amber Fort and Jaigarh Fort as key stops, along with Hawa Mahal and Jantar Mantar, the Jaipur Literature Festival (one of the world’s largest literature festivals), and Johari and Chandpole Bazaars.
  • Other destinations on the list:

• About National Geographic:
  • National Geographic is a US-based magazine and media brand known for travel, geography, science and nature coverage. It is linked to the National Geographic Society, founded in 1888.
• About Jaipur:
  • Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan which was founded by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II on November 18, 1727. Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II was a Kachwaha Rajput who ruled Jaipur from 1699-1743. Prior to Jaipur, his capital was Amber.

BHASHINI Launches Konkani LLM at Goa AI Conclave

• What: The BHASHINI Konkani Large Language Model (LLM) was launched at the Goa AI Tech Conclave 2026 in Panaji to help AI systems understand and generate Konkani in text and speech.
• Tell me more:
  • Goa AI Tech Conclave 2026: Organised by Goa’s Department of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications at INOX, Panaji, under the theme “AI for People, Planet and Progress”.
  • Scripts of Konkani: Devanagari (official script), Roman and Kannada.
  • BHASHINI initiatives to build Konkani language resources:
    • Bhasha Daan: Public contribution of language data for AI models.
    • Data Daan (proposed Goa pilot): Colleges, language experts, institutions and Konkani speakers creating, digitising and validating content.
    • Granthika: Digitising Konkani books, manuscripts and literary works, and preserving folk tales, local histories and senior citizens’ memories.
  • Centre of Excellence for Indic Knowledge Systems and Heritage Intelligence Proposed: It aims to use AI to preserve history, manuscripts, languages, traditions and cultural identity.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) works under the Digital India Corporation (DIC), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and builds India’s Language-First Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for multilingual access to digital services.
  • BHASHINI Languages supported: 36 Indian languages for text, 23 Indian languages for voice and 35 international languages

NLCIL Signs ₹37,000 Crore MoUs With Odisha’s IPICOL

• What: NLC India Limited (NLCIL) signed MoUs with the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha Limited (IPICOL) for industrial projects in Odisha worth an estimated ₹37,000 crore.
• Tell me more:
  • Odisha Chief Minister: Mohan Charan Majhi
  • NLCIL Chairman-cum-Managing Director: Prasanna Kumar Acharya
  • IPICOL Managing Director: Aboli Sunil Naravane

India Hosts 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum in New Delhi

• What: The Parliament of India is hosting the two-day 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum at the Parliament House Complex, New Delhi, during India’s 2026 BRICS Presidency.
• Tell me more:
  • Theme: “Strengthening Parliaments for People-Centric Development”
  • Chairperson of the Forum: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla
  • Participants: 11 BRICS member countries and 10 partner countries were invited.
  • India–Russia meeting on the sidelines: Om Birla met Vyacheslav Volodin, Chairman of Russia’s State Duma. India and Russia will mark 80 years of diplomatic relations in 2027, and Russia supports India’s permanent membership of the UN Security Council.
    • State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia.

Maharashtra Women Entrepreneurs at Namaste Bharat 2026, Singapore

• What: A delegation of 50 women entrepreneurs from Maharashtra is participating in Namaste Bharat 2026, an exhibition of Indian products in Singapore.
• Tell me more:
  • Namaste Bharat 2026 promotes Indian handicrafts, textiles, jewellery, traditional food and millet-based products, with about 150 exhibitors from India and over 10,000 visitors expected.
  • Indian High Commissioner to Singapore: Shilpak Ambule

Jammu and Kashmir Celebrates 79th Accession Day

• Instrument of Accession: Maharaja Hari Singh, the ruler of the princely state, signed it on 26 October 1947 to join Jammu and Kashmir with India. The accession came into effect on 27 October 1947.

Telangana Asks All Network Hospitals to Join PM RAHAT

• What: The Telangana government asked all its network hospitals to join the PM RAHAT scheme, which provides quick treatment to road accident victims.
• Tell me more:
  • Under PM RAHAT, accident victims who reach a nearby hospital within the “golden hour” get free treatment worth up to ₹1.5 lakh.
  • 469 hospitals have joined PM RAHAT, compared with over 1,000 under the state’s Aarogyasri scheme. Enrolling more hospitals will reduce the burden on Aarogyasri.
  • The Rajiv Aarogyasri Health Insurance Scheme is a free, cashless health program run by the Government of Telangana through the Rajiv Aarogyasri Health Care Trust.

Centre Approves 320 PG Medical Seats in Himachal Pradesh

• What: The Central Government approved 320 new postgraduate medical seats across six government medical colleges in Himachal Pradesh, with financial assistance of ₹415 crore.
• Tell me more:
  • The seats are part of a ₹15,000 crore central initiative to add 10,000 new undergraduate and postgraduate medical seats across India over five years.
  • Locations of the medical colleges: Shimla, Tanda, Hamirpur, Mandi, Nahan and Chamba. Shimla gets the most seats (91).

International News

Greece Bans Social Media for Under-15s

• What: Greece’s parliament passed a bill banning social media use by children under 15. Social media platforms must verify users’ ages while protecting their privacy, and face harsh penalties for not complying. Platforms have 2.5 months to build an age verification system.
• Tell me more:
  • About 20 countries restrict social media for minors. Australia was the first country to pass such a law. Others that have introduced or plan restrictions include France, Brazil, Indonesia, Austria, Denmark and the UK.

India Launches SAMHiTA Manuscript Project in Sri Lanka

• What: The SAMHiTA (South Asian Manuscript Histories and Textual Archive) Project was launched at Gangaramaya Temple, Colombo, to digitise ancient manuscripts reflecting India–Sri Lanka’s shared Buddhist heritage.
• Tell me more:
  • About SAMHiTA: Undertaken by the India International Centre, New Delhi, with a grant from the Government of India, it digitises manuscripts on religious traditions, philosophy, languages and cultural practices.
  • Gangaramaya Temple’s role: The first Sri Lankan institution to partner with SAMHiTA, the temple has 100 ancient manuscripts preserved with it, which are now being digitised.

Banking and Economy

BSE, MMTC-PAMP Partner to Expand Electronic Gold Receipts

• What: BSE Ltd and MMTC-PAMP India Private Ltd signed an agreement to jointly develop and expand India’s Electronic Gold Receipts (EGR) market and formalise gold trading, cut imports, make India a bullion hub.
• Tell me more:
  • About EGRs: SEBI-regulated, exchange-traded securities that let investors hold gold in dematerialised form in demat accounts.
  • Roles of the partners:
    • BSE: Will launch EGR contracts in multiple denominations and enable conversion between physical gold and EGRs. It was the first Indian exchange to introduce EGR trading.
    • MMTC-PAMP: India’s only London Bullion Market Association (LBMA)-accredited gold and silver refiner, it will provide expertise in bullion refining, assaying, and EGR creation and redemption.

Index of Core Industries Grow 7.9% in September 2026

• What: The Index of Core Industries (ICI) grew 7.9% in September 2026 (provisional), compared with September 2025.
• Tell me more:
  • About the Index of Core Industries (ICI): It measures year-on-year growth in the output of India’s core industries.
    • Base year: 2022-23
    • Industries covered (9): Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement, Electricity and Iron Ore
  • How it is released:
    • A provisional index for a month is released on the 20th of the following month (or the next working day).
    • A month later, it is revised and released as the final index.
  • Released by: The Office of the Economic Adviser (OEA), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)

Defence News

SDAL Delivers Nagastra-2 Loitering Munitions to Indian Army

• What: Nagpur-based Solar Defence and Aerospace Limited (SDAL) delivered its Nagastra-2 loitering munition system to the Indian Army after it cleared user trials in tough electronic warfare (EW) conditions.
• Tell me more:
  • About Nagastra-2:
    • Part of SDAL’s Nagastra series of drone-based munitions, Nagastra-2 is an anti-tank weapon that can strike armoured vehicles by day or night, from up to 50 km away.
    • It can keep working even when the enemy jams its communication or GPS signals. This ability is called Electronic Counter-Countermeasures (ECCM). It can also find and hit moving targets on its own without GPS.
  • SDAL had already supplied 450 Nagastra-1R short-range kamikaze drones to the Army. They have reusable launchers, hit within 2 metres of the target and are over 80% indigenous.

MHA, Indian Army to Train 60,000 Civil Defence Volunteers

• What: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), with the Indian Army, will train 600 civil defence master trainers across 12 States and UTs in the first phase of a first-of-its-kind joint initiative, building a network of about 60,000 volunteers.
• Tell me more:
  • Implementing body: The Directorate General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards (DGFSCDHG), under the MHA.
  • How the training works:
    1. Each of the 12 States/UTs nominates 50 master trainers (600 in total).
    2. They undergo three-day training at Indian Army training facilities.
    3. Each master trainer then trains 100 Civil Defence Volunteers in their State/UT, reaching about 60,000 volunteers.
  • States/UTs in the first phase: Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Delhi, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
  • Based on this pilot’s results, the initiative will be extended to the remaining States and UTs in phases.

India Becomes Third-Largest Arms Exporter to Europe

• What: India has become the third-largest arms exporter to Europe, mainly due to demand for ammunition and artillery shells under the European Union’s ‘ReArm Europe’ initiative.
• Tell me more:
  • India’s defence exports: An all-time high of ₹38,424 crore (about €3.6 billion), to more than 80 countries. Exports include ammunition, artillery, small arms, helmets and bulletproof jackets.
  • India’s defence industrial base:
    • Public sector companies: 16
    • Large and medium licensed companies: about 840
    • Small and medium enterprises, including start-ups: about 17,000
  • Domestic spending target: 75% of India’s annual defence capital expenditure (US$20–25 billion) is to be spent within India.
  • India’s defence imports: Russia remains the largest supplier, followed by France and Israel.
  • India–Europe localisation rules: Foreign firms in India must meet a minimum 50% local manufacturing requirement, compared with 25% in Europe. India plans joint ventures with European partners to take part in Europe’s arms procurement.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • About ReArm Europe Initiative:
    • The European Union’s ‘ReArm Europe’ initiative (officially presented as Readiness 2030 or the ReArm Europe Plan) is a historic defense investment strategy proposed by the European Commission in March 2025.
    • It aims to mobilize over €800 billion in defense spending by 2030 to strengthen the EU’s military self-reliance, counter regional security threats, and support Ukraine.

Science and Technology

India to Have Four Launch Pads by 2029: ISRO

• What: India will have four functional launch pads by 2029, ISRO Chairman V Narayanan said.
• Tell me more:
  • India’s four launch pads by 2029:

• ISRO’s operational launch vehicles: PSLV, GSLV, GSLV MkIII and SSLV.
• India aims to grow its space economy to US$44 billion by 2033.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • Upcoming missions:
    • Chandrayaan-4: The major objective of Chandrayaan-4 mission is to successfully land on lunar surface, extract lunar sample through robotic arm, ascent from lunar surface and bring back the collected lunar sample to the Earth. It will be ISRO’s solo project. The planned timeline for Chandrayaan-4 mission is 2027.
    • Chandrayaan-5: AKA Lunar Polar Exploration Mission or LUPEX; a joint lunar mission with Japan’s space agency (JAXA), carrying a 350 kg rover for 100 days of experiments on the Moon’s surface.

Awards

Lionel Messi Wins Princess of Asturias Sports Award

• What: Inter Miami CF and Argentina footballer Lionel Messi won the 2026 Princess of Asturias Award for Sports, in recognition of his sports talent along with his charitable work.
• Tell me more:
  • He has become the first individual football player to receive it. Messi has won the most titles in football history.
  • Messi’s key achievements:

• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • The Princess of Asturias Award recognises individuals and institutions for notable achievements in fields such as Arts, Literature, Social Sciences, Scientific and Technical Research, International Cooperation and Sports.
  • Earlier winners of the Princess of Asturias Award for Sports: Rafael Nadal, Michael Schumacher, Serena Williams and Eliud Kipchoge
  • Messi is the first individual footballer to win it. Footballers Xavi Hernandez and Iker Casillas shared the award in 2012, and the entire Spanish national team won it in 2010.

Usha Mangeshkar to Receive Inaugural Bhupen Hazarika Award

• What: The Assam government will present the inaugural ‘Bharat Ratna Dr. Bhupen Hazarika National Award’ to singer Usha Mangeshkar for her contributions to Indian music and her association with Bhupen Hazarika’s works.
• Tell me more:
  • About the Bharat Ratna Dr. Bhupen Hazarika National Award: Instituted by the Assam cabinet to honour contributions to music and culture and keep Hazarika’s legacy alive, it is given every three years to a nationally or internationally recognised figure in music, arts or cinema.
    • Cash prize: ₹10 lakh, along with a citation
  • Birth centenary celebrations of Bhupen Hazarika: At the start of the celebrations, PM Modi released a ₹100 commemorative coin brought out by the Reserve Bank of India and a biography of Hazarika titled ‘Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika’, written by Sahitya Akademi awardee Anuradha Sarma Pujari.
    • Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s year-long birth centenary celebrations began on 8 September 2025 and will conclude at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi in Nov 2026.
  • About Bhupen Hazarika: A singer, composer and filmmaker popularly called the ‘Bard of the Brahmaputra’, he was born on 8 September 1926 in Sadiya, Tinsukia district, Assam, and died in 2011. He was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2019.
  • 2025 Assam State civilian award recipients:

• Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev Award: This premier national-level civilian honour presented by the Government of Assam will now carry a higher cash prize of ₹15 lakh.

Ashoke Sen Becomes First Indian Oskar Klein Medallist

• What: Indian physicist Ashoke Sen was awarded the 2026 Oskar Klein Medal, becoming the first Indian physicist to receive it.
• Tell me more:
  • About Ashoke Sen: An ICTS-Infosys Madhava Chair Professor at the International Centre for Theoretical Sciences (ICTS)-Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Bengaluru, he is regarded as an architect of modern string theory.
  • Other honours received by Ashoke Sen:

• About the Oskar Klein Medal: Established in 1988 and named after Swedish theoretical physicist Oskar Klein, it is awarded annually by Stockholm University and the Nobel Committee for Physics of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Each year’s recipient is invited to deliver the Oskar Klein Memorial Lecture.

Radhakrishnan M.S. Wins Charles Correa Gold Medal

• What: Radhakrishnan M.S., an architecture student from Kochi, won the 28th Charles Correa Gold Medal in architecture.
• Tell me more:
  • About the winner: A student of Seed APJ Abdul School of Environmental Design, Kochi, he won for his project ‘Energy Commons: Reimagining energy infrastructure as a place for civic engagement’, which turns restricted energy infrastructure into a shared public space.
  • About the Charles Correa Gold Medal: Started in 1998 by the Indian architect and urbanist Charles Correa, it recognises outstanding undergraduate architecture thesis projects that address challenges of the built environment.
  • Theme and venue of the 2026 award: The theme was ‘Equitability through Design’, and the ceremony was held at Tarq Gallery, Mumbai.
  • Book released at the event: ‘The State of Architecture — Practices and Processes in India, A Research Framework’, co-authored by Ranjit Hoskote and Rahul Mehrotra and published by Architecture Foundation India, studies how economic, social, cultural, political and ecological changes affect architecture in the Indian subcontinent.

Important Days

World Polio Day 2026 – October 24

United Nations Day 2026 (81st Anniversary) – October 24

International Stuttering Awareness Day 2026 – October 22

• Theme: “SHADES OF STUTTERING – What’s yours?”

International Snow Leopard Day 2026 – October 23

• The UN General Assembly proclaimed this day in 2024.
• About the snow leopard: Scientific name Panthera uncia, it is called the ‘ghost of the mountains’ because it is rarely seen. It lives in Asia’s high mountains, across 12 countries: Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
• Conservation status of the snow leopard:

Raising Day of Indo-Tibetan Border Police 2026 (65th Anniversary) – October 24

• Indo-Tibetan Border Police was raised on October 24, 1962.
• Motto: “Shaurya, Dridhta, Karmanishtha” — Valour, Steadfastness and Dedication

India’s National Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2026 – October 1 to 31

International Lead Poisoning Prevention Week 2026 – October 18 to 24

• Theme: “From Detection to Prevention”

National Vigilance Awareness Week 2026 – October 26 to November 1

• Theme for 2026: सत्यनिष्ठा से समृद्धि – Probity for Prosperity
• It is observed every year in the week of Bharat Ratna Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s birth anniversary, to raise awareness about the harms of corruption and the need for ethics, integrity and transparency in governance.

World Development Information Day 2026 – October 24

• UN Focus: Mobilization of Public Opinion

Global Media and Information Literacy Week 2026 – October 24-31

• Theme 2026: “We All Play a Part” – Media and Information Literacy for the People.

Sports

Indians Shine at European Chess Club Cup 2026

• What: At the European Chess Club Cup 2026 in Montenegro, Indian Grandmasters Nihal Sarin and Koneru Humpy won individual gold medals in the open and women’s sections, respectively.
• Tell me more:
  • Indian individual medallists:

• Team titles:
  • Open: Bayegan Pendik Sports Club (Turkey) won the title, with Novy Bor Chess Club (Czech Republic) finishing second.
  • Women: Cercle d’Echecs de Monte-Carlo (Monaco) won the European Chess Club Cup for Women 2026, helped by Humpy’s key performance.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) Approves Cricket Qualification System for LA28

• What: The IOC Executive Board (EB) approved the qualification system for cricket at the LA28 Olympic Games, along with updates to the surfing qualification system.
• Tell me more:
  • Cricket at LA28: Cricket returns to the Olympics 128 years after its only previous appearance at Paris 1900, with separate men’s and women’s T20 tournaments.
    • Teams per tournament: 6
    • Athletes per team: up to 15
    • Total matches (men’s and women’s T20 combined): 28
  • Surfing updates: The overall quota is unchanged, but places through the World Surf League (WSL) professional tour rise to eight men and eight women. The International Surfing Association (ISA), the IOC-recognised International Federation for surfing, gets a clearer, more structured qualification pathway.
  • Qualification status:
    • Sports and disciplines approved earlier: 49
    • Remaining to be confirmed: athletics and football
  • About qualification systems: Each International Federation sets its sport’s qualification criteria in line with the Olympic Charter and submits them to the IOC EB for approval. All systems follow the Qualification System Principles (QSP) approved by the IOC EB.

Bodhana Sivanandan Becomes Youngest Female International Master

• What: Bodhana Sivanandan, an 11-year-old English chess player of Indian origin, became the youngest female International Master (IM), breaking Judit Polgar’s record held since 1988.
• Tell me more:
  • Bodhana became the youngest Woman Grandmaster (WGM) less than a month before becoming an IM, and is the seventh-youngest IM overall in history.
  • Other records held by Bodhana:
    • Youngest Woman International Master (WIM)
    • Youngest Woman FIDE Master (WFM)
    • Youngest female to earn a first IM norm
    • Youngest female to cross a 2,300 rating
    • Youngest female to defeat a grandmaster rated over 2,600
    • Youngest British Women’s Champion
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • IM vs WGM title requirements:

S Meghana Retires From All Cricket Formats

• India top-order batter S Meghana, 30, has retired from all formats of cricket after playing 17 T20 Internationals and 3 ODIs for India, last representing the country in 2022. In WPL, she played one season for Gujarat Giants and two for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

Harmeet–Yashaswini Win Historic Asian Championships Bronze

• What: India’s Harmeet Desai and Yashaswini Ghorpade won the mixed doubles bronze at the Asian Table Tennis Championships 2026 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, ending India’s 72-year wait for a mixed doubles medal at the event.
• Tell me more:
  • The Indian pair lost to Japan’s Sora Matsushima and Miwa Harimoto.
  • India’s previous mixed doubles medal (silver) at the Asian Table Tennis Championships was won by Meena Parande and Yatin Vyas in 1954.

Harry Brook Hits Fastest ODI Double Century

• What: England captain Harry Brook scored the fastest double century in ODI history, off 114 balls, against Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi during a tri-series hosted by Pakistan.
• Tell me more:
  • Record broken: Brook surpassed India captain Shubman Gill’s 117-ball ODI double century against the West Indies.
  • Brook’s other records:
    • First England batter to score an ODI double century; the previous highest ODI score by an England batter was Ben Stokes’s 182 against New Zealand.
    • Most runs through boundaries by an England batter in an ODI innings: 144 (21 fours and 10 sixes)
  • Match result: Sri Lanka won by two wickets, completing the second-highest run chase in ODI history.

Yuki Bhambri Wins Almaty Open 2026 Doubles Title

• What: India’s Yuki Bhambri and American partner Ryan Seggerman won the men’s doubles title at the Almaty Open 2026, an ATP 250 tournament, defeating Austria’s Lucas Miedler and Neil Oberleitner in the final.
• Tell me more:
  • Yuki Bhambri’s ATP Tour record: This is his fifth ATP Tour doubles title. He also has 14 ATP Challenger Tour doubles titles.

Ahmedabad to Host World Weightlifting Championships 2029

• What: Ahmedabad won the hosting rights for the World Weightlifting Championships 2029, the first time India will host the event.
• Tell me more:
  • The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), at its Executive Board meeting in Ningbo, China, announced. Ahmedabad will also host the Commonwealth Games 2030.
  • Upcoming hosts:

• About the World Weightlifting Championships: First held in 1891; the women’s championships began in 1987, and the first joint men’s and women’s edition was held in 1991.
• India at the World Championships: 18 medals (3 gold, 10 silver, 5 bronze). Kunjarani Devi won India’s first medal (silver, 1989), Karnam Malleswari won world titles in 1994 and 1995, and Mirabai Chanu became world champion in 2017.

PV Sindhu Finishes Runner-Up at French Open 2026

• What: India’s PV Sindhu finished runner-up in women’s singles at the French Open 2026 badminton tournament in Paris, losing the final to South Korea’s An Se Young.
• Tell me more:
  • An Se Young is the world No. 1 and reigning Olympic and world champion. This was her fourth French Open title.
  • Aparna Popat (1998) is the last Indian woman to win the title. Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty (men’s doubles, 2024) are India’s most recent French Open champions.

Aditya Becomes First Indian Male Medallist at World Boxing U-19

• What: Aditya reached the men’s 55 kg semi-finals at the World Boxing U-19 Championships in Budva, Montenegro, which guarantees him a medal. He is the first Indian male boxer to win a medal at this championship.
• Tell me more:
  • Megha Sheokand (women’s 80 kg) and Prachi Tokas (women’s 57 kg) have also reached the semi-finals, which also ensures a medal for India.

Memorandum of Understanding

Tripartite MoU for Rourkela Tribal Livelihood Incubation Centre

• What: A tripartite MoU was signed between NSTFDC, NSIC and SAIL-Rourkela Steel Plant to support livelihood and entrepreneurship for Scheduled Tribe (ST) youth through the Livelihood Business Incubation Centre at Rourkela, Odisha.
• Tell me more:
  • Partners in the MoU and their ministries:

• About the Livelihood Business Incubation Centre, Rourkela:
  • Set up in 2018 and recognised as a Centre of Excellence by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, it trains local ST youth in skills and entrepreneurship to set up sustainable enterprises.
  • Rourkela Steel Plant provides the site; plant and machinery are installed under MSME’s ASPIRE scheme; and NSTFDC bears recurring expenses through a grant from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

IICA Signs MoU With Association of ARCs

• What: The Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA) signed an MoU with the Association of ARCs in India to strengthen industry links of its Post Graduate Insolvency Programme (PGIP).
• Tell me more:
  • About the MoU partners:
    • IICA: An autonomous body under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs; DG & CEO Gyaneshwar Kumar Singh.
    • Association of ARCs in India: The representative body of Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) registered with the RBI; CEO Hari Hara Mishra.
  • About PGIP: Run by IICA’s Centre for Insolvency and Bankruptcy, it trains Insolvency Professionals and Turnaround Specialists.
  • Under the MoU, ARC experts will teach industry-oriented PGIP modules, and both bodies will share data and conduct joint research on debt restructuring, financial markets, stressed assets and insolvency.
  • IICA and Association of ARCs may hold a joint conference in February 2027 marking IBC@10 and SARFAESI@25; theme and programme are undecided.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • ARCs under the IBC: Following the Sudarshan Sen Committee’s recommendations, the RBI’s framework ‘Review of Regulatory Framework for Asset Reconstruction Companies’ allowed eligible ARCs to act as resolution applicants under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016.

C-DOT Sets Up Sixth Centre of Excellence at IIT (BHU)

• What: The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) signed an MoU with IIT (BHU), Varanasi, to set up its sixth Centre of Excellence (CoE), which was also inaugurated.
• Why: To link academic research with real-world telecom needs, develop indigenous technologies for India’s digital infrastructure and build skilled telecom professionals.
• Tell me more:
  • C-DOT is the premier telecom R&D centre of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications. Its CEO is Dr. Rajkumar Upadhyay.
  • C-DOT’s other Centres of Excellence are located at IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, IIT Roorkee, IIT Hyderabad and IISc Bengaluru (through its Foundation for Science Innovation and Development, FSID).
  • Foundation for Science Innovation and Development (FSID) was set up in 2020 as a Section 8 Company under the Companies Act, 2013 in IISc.

C-DAC, Bank of India Sign Quantum Banking MoU

• What: The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) and Bank of India signed an MoU to explore indigenous quantum technologies and other emerging digital solutions for banking.
• Tell me more:
  • Director General of C-DAC: E. Magesh

Appointments

Sunil Kumar to Become Next ONGC Chairman

• What: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved Sunil Kumar, an executive director at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), as ONGC’s next chairman.
• Tell me more:
  • He will be the first ONGC chairman promoted directly from executive director rank.
  • ONGC accounts for 75% of India’s domestic crude oil and natural gas production.

Anca-Maria Verma Named IIMSAM Ambassador-at-Large in India

• What: Anca-Maria Verma (Romanian) was appointed Ambassador-at-Large of the Inter-Governmental Institution for the Use of Micro-Algae Spirulina Against Malnutrition (IIMSAM) in India for five years. Her role is to support IIMSAM’s humanitarian work in India.
• Tell me more:
  • IIMSAM is an intergovernmental institution with Permanent Observer status at the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
  • It works to combat malnutrition, strengthen food security, improve public health and advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Its Secretary-General is Remigio Martín Maradona (Argentina).

Miscellaneous

Hollywood Actor Tom Skerritt Dies at 93

• Hollywood actor Tom Skerritt, best known for the films Alien and Top Gun, died at the age of 93. Born in Detroit, Michigan, he served in the US Air Force before an acting career.

Cyclone Arnab Formed Over the Bay of Bengal

• What: Cyclone Arnab formed over the Bay of Bengal and is moving towards the Andhra Pradesh and adjoining southern Odisha coasts.
• Tell me more:
  • The IMD’s Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre (RSMC), New Delhi, names cyclones over the North Indian Ocean (Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea). Names are taken in sequence from an agreed list, not based on which country the storm will hit.
  • The name ‘Arnab’ is proposed by Bangladesh and pronounced as “Ornab”; it is commonly linked to the Bengali word for sea or ocean.

Modern Indian Artist Jogen Chowdhury Dies at 87

• Jogen Chowdhury, a leading modern Indian artist known for blending traditional iconography with a modern style, his cross-hatching technique and the painting ‘Tiger in Moonlight’, died in Kolkata at 87.

VP Releases Book ‘Advantage India’ by Anil K. Antony

• Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan released the book ‘Advantage India: Reshaping the Future for an Equitable World’, written by Anil K. Antony, at Uprashtrapati Bhawan, New Delhi.

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