Answer: (a) Resilience Starts at Home

1. The 2026 theme is Resilience Starts at Home, drawing attention to safe and hazard-resistant housing.
2. The observance falls on 13 October and was established by the United Nations in 1989 to promote disaster risk reduction.
3. Risk reduction focuses on preventing exposure and vulnerability before disasters occur, rather than relying only on emergency response.
4. Building standards, affordable resilient homes and early-warning systems help protect people and assets.
5. The Sendai Framework covers 2015-2030. Remember the theme, date and framework period together for examination revision.

Answer: (d) 0.4%

1. The proposed Merchant Discount Rate is 0.4% on eligible person-to-merchant UPI transactions exceeding ₹2,000.
2. Implementation was initially scheduled for 15 October 2026; NPCI deferred it until after Diwali, with the new date to be notified separately.
3. MDR is a charge borne by merchants for payment acceptance and processing. It should not be confused with a fee automatically charged to every consumer.
4. The reported proposal excludes person-to-person transfers and merchant payments up to ₹2,000. Eligibility conditions remain essential when interpreting the charge.
5. A deferral changes the implementation timing; it does not mean cancellation. NPCI operates the UPI ecosystem, while banks and other participants provide payment services.

Answer: (b) 7.0%

1. The IMF raised India’s FY 2026-27 growth forecast to 7.0% from 6.4%.
2. The revision is 60 basis points: a 0.6 percentage-point increase. One percentage point equals 100 basis points.
3. Resilient domestic demand and robust services activity support the forecast, alongside demographic and structural factors.
4. The October World Economic Outlook also projects global growth of 3.1% in 2026 and 3.4% in 2027.
5. Distinguish a forecast from realised GDP growth, and fiscal-year estimates from calendar-year estimates. The question specifically concerns India’s FY 2026-27 projection.

Answer: (c) 5.54%

1. India’s retail inflation was 5.54% in September 2026, compared with 4.83% in August.
2. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the data on 12 October. CPI tracks changes in consumer prices.
3. Reported food inflation reached 7.74%, while rural and urban inflation were 6.08% and 4.88% respectively.
4. Onion inflation was reported at 108.09% year-on-year, illustrating how individual food items can contribute to price pressures.
5. Do not confuse the headline rate with food inflation or rural inflation. The monetary-policy inflation target is 4%, with a tolerance band of 2-6%.

Answer: (a) Geographic Information System

1. PM GatiShakti uses a Geographic Information System, or GIS, to combine infrastructure and spatial information for integrated planning.
2. The National Master Plan was launched on 13 October 2021 and completed five years in 2026.
3. Its platform covers 58 Central Ministries and Departments and all 36 States and Union Territories.
4. Seven infrastructure engines guide the plan: roads, railways, ports, waterways, airports, mass transport and logistics infrastructure.
5. Coordinated planning helps identify missing links, improve multimodal connectivity and reduce avoidable project delays and logistics costs. GIS supports location-based decisions; it is not a separate transport mode.

Answer: (d) 100

1. PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana targets 100 districts with low productivity, cropping intensity and institutional agricultural credit.
2. Launched in 2025, the programme completed its first year on 11 October 2026.
3. It brings together 36 Central schemes across 11 ministries and departments, along with relevant state programmes.
4. The priorities are higher productivity, crop diversification, irrigation, post-harvest storage and better access to agricultural credit.
5. Progress is tracked through 121 indicators. Gaya, Nagaur and Umaria were recognised among top performers; convergence means coordinating existing programmes around shared district-level needs.

Answer: (b) Lakshadweep

1. Lakshadweep was declared a 100% literate Union Territory on 11 October 2026 under the ULLAS programme.
2. Administrator Praful Patel announced the achievement after eligible learners passed the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT).
3. An initial survey identified 1,113 adult non-literate learners. Special teaching, home-based assessment and follow-up tests supported the effort.
4. ULLAS stands for Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society.
5. Its adult-education approach combines foundational literacy and numeracy with critical life skills, vocational skills and continuing education. Remember the programme’s full form and the assessment test.

Answer: (c) Vijayawada

1. The mela is at Punnami Ghat, Vijayawada, in Andhra Pradesh, from 13-31 October 2026.
2. The Ministry of Rural Development and Andhra Pradesh’s Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty jointly organise the 19-day event.
3. Participation is expected from more than 1,500 women entrepreneurs representing Self-Help Groups across over 30 States and Union Territories.
4. Over 600 stalls provide market access for rural products. President Droupadi Murmu is scheduled to inaugurate the mela on 15 October.
5. The initiative supports DAY-NRLM and women’s livelihoods. Exhibitions help SHGs connect with buyers, while the Lakhpati Didi programme focuses on sustained annual household income.

Answer: (a) Seven

1. The International Big Cat Alliance focuses on seven species: tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar and puma.
2. Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav inaugurated its headquarters at 55 Lodhi Estate, New Delhi, on 12 October 2026.
3. IBCA is a treaty-based intergovernmental organisation promoting international conservation cooperation, scientific research and habitat protection.
4. The Union Cabinet approved establishment on 29 February 2024 with ₹150 crore support for the five-year period 2023-24 to 2027-28.
5. The report records 29 members, including India. For exams, learn the complete seven-species list and distinguish the alliance from a single-species conservation project.

Answer: (d) Mongla Port

1. The loan finances expansion and modernisation of Mongla Port, Bangladesh’s second-largest seaport after Chattogram.
2. The US$335.78 million agreement was signed on 10 October 2026 through Bangladesh’s Economic Relations Division and China’s Export-Import Bank.
3. The reported terms include 2% interest, a 20-year repayment period and a five-year grace period.
4. The project includes two container terminals and dedicated handling yards to improve maritime logistics and trade capacity.
5. Mongla is on the Pasur River in southwestern Bangladesh, approximately 80 km from the Indian border. A concessional loan offers relatively favourable terms; it is not a grant.

Answer: (b) Karnataka

1. Dr Sudha Yadav was appointed Governor of Karnataka in the reshuffle announced on 12 October 2026.
2. Other appointments included Braj Mohan Ram to Odisha, Dr Dhal Singh Bisen to Uttarakhand and Dushyant Gautam to Sikkim.
3. Om Prakash Mathur was transferred from Sikkim to Kerala, and Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar was appointed to Tamil Nadu.
4. The appointments take effect when the respective appointees assume charge; an announcement date is not necessarily the assumption-of-office date.
5. Article 155 provides for appointment of governors by the President. Article 156 deals with their term and holding office during the President’s pleasure.

Answer: (c) New Delhi

1. India hosted the first BIMSTEC Home Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi on 13 October 2026.
2. Security cooperation covers terrorism, organised crime, narcotics, human trafficking, cybercrime and illicit financial flows.
3. BIMSTEC was established on 6 June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
4. Its seven members are Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Five are from South Asia and two from Southeast Asia.
5. The full form is Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. Learn the member list and distinguish BIMSTEC from SAARC and ASEAN.

Answer: (a) United Kingdom

1. The centre is an India-United Kingdom collaboration, inaugurated in New Delhi on 12 October 2026.
2. The inauguration occurred during the eighth India-UK Science and Innovation Council meeting.
3. Dr Jitendra Singh and Jonathan Reynolds inaugurated the initiative linking the Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) with Oxford Nanopore Technologies.
4. Research priorities include rare diseases, cancer, infectious-disease surveillance, newborn screening and oral cancer.
5. Genomics studies the genome, helping researchers identify variation and disease-related patterns. The centre seeks to translate research into practical biomedical applications.

Answer: (d) Breaking Bad

1. RJ Mitte was known for playing Walter White Jr., also called Flynn, in Breaking Bad.
2. His death on 12 October 2026, at age 34, was confirmed through his representatives in reports from major news organisations.
3. His full name was Roy Frank Mitte III; he was born on 21 August 1992 in Jackson, Mississippi.
4. Mitte lived with cerebral palsy and advocated for disability inclusion and authentic representation in entertainment.
5. His other credits included Switched at Birth, Dixieland, The Recall and Triumph. For exams, connect the person with the profession, notable role and advocacy work.

Answer: (b) Mount Mukut

1. The team scaled Mount Mukut, at an elevation of 7,045 metres, on 7 October 2026.
2. The expedition comprised 17 Indian Coast Guard personnel and began on 15 September, with Base Camp-I established on 1 October.
3. The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling, guided the expedition.
4. The climb was Phase V of an 18-month training programme building mountaineering skills and preparedness.
5. The planned objective is Mount Everest in 2027. High-altitude training requires acclimatisation, teamwork and logistical preparation; remember the climbed mountain separately from the future objective.

Answer: (c) INS Tarkash

1. INS Tarkash, a guided-missile stealth frigate, represented India at IBSAMAR IX.
2. The ninth exercise began on 12 October 2026 at Simon’s Town, South Africa; Tarkash arrived on 11 October.
3. The three participants are India, Brazil and South Africa, corresponding to the IBSA Dialogue Forum.
4. Activities span surface, anti-air and anti-submarine warfare, maritime interdiction, anti-piracy, search and rescue and damage control.
5. The exercise improves interoperability and coordinated naval operations. Distinguish IBSAMAR’s three-country format from bilateral exercises such as INDRA or KONKAN.

Answer: (a) Mahe class

1. INS Mangrol (P82) is the third Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft.
2. The Indian Navy commissioned the vessel at the Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, on 12 October 2026.
3. Cochin Shipyard Limited built it in Kochi with more than 80% indigenous content.
4. Its missions include coastal surveillance, detection of underwater threats, anti-submarine warfare and low-intensity maritime operations.
5. Three diesel engine-driven waterjet propulsion units support manoeuvrability in shallow waters. The craft strengthens coastal security while supporting indigenous shipbuilding under Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

Answer: (d) NAFED

1. NAFED handles rice supply under the Army’s Bharat Rice initiative, launched in New Delhi on 12 October 2026.
2. The Directorate General of Supplies and Transport leads the programme to improve rice quality and delivery during FY 2026-27.
3. Rice undergoes quality checks and is packed in 10 kg and 30 kg bags before delivery.
4. Direct supplies reach Army Supply Depots, including depots serving Ladakh and the Northeast.
5. The Army also signed a five-year MoU with FCI for contingency logistics. Distinguish NAFED’s supply role from FCI’s separate logistical-support arrangement.

Answer: (b) Shafali Verma

1. Shafali Verma won the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for September 2026.
2. She scored 360 runs in seven T20 internationals, averaging 72 with a strike rate of 184.61, and took six wickets.
3. Her performances supported India’s Women’s Asia Cup victory in the UAE and Asian Games cricket gold in Nagoya, Japan.
4. The report credits her with 236 runs in five Asia Cup innings, including 68 in the final, and a century against Bangladesh at the Asian Games.
5. This was her second monthly award after November 2025. An award for September may be announced in October; distinguish performance month from announcement month.

Answer: (c) Five

1. Shubman Gill won his fifth ICC Player of the Month award following strong ODI performances against West Indies.
2. The report records a 110-run innings in the first ODI at Thiruvananthapuram, helping India win by eight wickets.
3. It also records 223 runs off 133 balls during a successful chase of 406, highlighting his contribution with the bat.
4. The fifth award reportedly matched West Indies women’s captain Hayley Matthews in the overall number of monthly awards.
5. For examination revision, connect Gill with cricket, the ICC award and the tally of five; do not confuse this monthly recognition with ICC annual player awards.