Current Affairs — 13 October 2026

1. India's Retail Inflation Climbs to a 23-Month High

Basic Concept

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the average change in prices paid by households for a fixed basket of goods and services, and is the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) principal yardstick for 'retail inflation'. Under the flexible inflation-targeting framework (introduced through the RBI Act amendment of 2016), the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is mandated to keep CPI inflation at 4%, within a tolerance band of 2% to 6%. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) releases CPI data monthly, and the series was recently rebased to 2024=100.

Core Context

MOSPI's data for September 2026 showed retail inflation rising to 5.54%, its highest reading in 23 months, driven by costlier food and fuel. Food inflation touched 7.74% while rural inflation was recorded at 6.08%, both running ahead of the all-India headline figure.

Latest Developments

• The reading remains within the RBI's 2–6% tolerance band but is well above the 4% target, reducing room for further rate cuts in the near term.

• Vegetables, edible oils and select protein items were flagged as the main contributors to the food-price spike.

• Economists noted the reading marks a reversal after several months of relatively benign inflation earlier in 2026.

• The data feeds directly into the MPC's next policy review and into real-GDP growth estimates, since nominal growth is deflated using CPI-linked measures.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• CPI is compiled by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under MOSPI; Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is compiled by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

• The RBI's inflation target of 4% (+/-2%) was fixed under an agreement with the Government of India, reviewed every five years.

• CPI (Rural), CPI (Urban) and CPI (Combined) are published separately each month.

2. Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences 2026 Announced

Basic Concept

The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences is not one of the original five Nobel Prizes willed by Alfred Nobel; it was instituted in 1968 by Sweden's central bank, Sveriges Riksbank, and is administered by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. It is popularly clubbed with the other Nobel Prizes and is the final prize announced each year.

Core Context

The 2026 prize was jointly awarded to American economists Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford for their contributions to understanding business-cycle fluctuations — the recurring pattern of economic booms and slowdowns — and how monetary policy can respond to them.

Latest Developments

• The laureates share the prize money of 12 million Swedish kronor equally.

• Their work is widely cited in modern macroeconomic models used by central banks, including inflation-targeting frameworks of the kind the RBI itself follows.

• The announcement completed the 2026 Nobel Prize cycle; the Peace Prize this year went to Navi Pillay (already covered in an earlier roundup) and the Chemistry Prize to Henri Kagan and Kenso Soai.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The Economic Sciences prize is formally the 'Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel'.

• It is awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the same body that awards the Physics and Chemistry prizes.

• Unlike the other Nobel Prizes (awarded in Stockholm except Peace, awarded in Oslo), the Economics Prize ceremony is also held in Stockholm.

3. President Approves Gubernatorial Reshuffle Across Six States

Basic Concept

Under Article 153 of the Constitution, every state has a Governor, who under Article 155 is appointed by the President by warrant under hand and seal, and under Article 156 holds office 'during the pleasure of the President'. By convention, a Governor is usually not appointed to their home state, and the Centre consults the Chief Minister concerned before an appointment. The Supreme Court has held in Surya Narain Choudhary v. Union of India (1982) that the President's 'pleasure' is not justiciable, while in B.P. Singhal v. Union of India (2010) it clarified that a Governor cannot be removed arbitrarily or without valid reason.

Core Context

President Droupadi Murmu approved a gubernatorial reshuffle covering Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Odisha, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Sikkim. Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar moves from Kerala to Tamil Nadu, and Om Prakash Mathur moves from Sikkim to Kerala, while Braj Mohan Ram, Dr Sudha Yadav, Dr Dhal Singh Bisen and Dushyant Gautam are appointed fresh as Governors of Odisha, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Sikkim respectively.

Latest Developments

• The changes take effect on the date each appointee assumes charge, per the Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqué.

• A Governor is the constitutional head of the state executive and acts, in most matters, on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister (Article 163), except where the Constitution requires discretion (e.g., reserving a Bill for the President under Article 200).

• Article 157 requires a Governor to be an Indian citizen and at least 35 years old; Article 361 gives Governors immunity from criminal proceedings for official acts while in office.

• In Hargovind Pant v. Dr Raghukul Tilak (1979), the Supreme Court held that a Governor holds an independent constitutional office and is not a Central Government employee.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• A single person may be appointed Governor of two or more states simultaneously (Article 153, after the 7th Amendment, 1956).

• The Chief Justice of the state High Court (or the senior-most judge available) administers the Governor's oath.

• The Governor's office is often described as modelled on the Canadian Governor-General.

4. PM GatiShakti National Master Plan Completes Five Years

Basic Concept

The PM GatiShakti National Master Plan (NMP) is a digital, GIS-based platform that brings over a dozen central ministries and departments onto one map to plan infrastructure projects jointly, so that roads, railways, ports and pipelines are built in a coordinated rather than siloed manner. Its stated aim is to cut India's logistics costs, long estimated at a higher share of GDP than in comparator economies, closer to global benchmarks, by improving multimodal connectivity.

Core Context

Launched by the Prime Minister on 13 October 2021, the NMP completed five years on 13 October 2026. The anniversary comes shortly after the Union Cabinet's approval of a new Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA) — an apex body to appraise large (₹500 crore and above) multimodal infrastructure projects — which PrepCat covered as a dedicated Spotlight piece earlier this month.

Latest Developments

• GatiShakti integrates pre-existing schemes such as Bharatmala (roads), Sagarmala (ports), UDAN (regional air connectivity) and India's inland waterways and dry/land ports programmes onto a single digital layer.

• The nodal ministry/department coordinating the NMP is the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

• Five years in, the government has cited it in reviewing hundreds of major projects for route and alignment efficiency before construction begins.

• ITLA is intended to institutionalise this coordination by giving it permanent appraisal powers rather than relying only on the GatiShakti portal.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• PM GatiShakti was launched on 13 October 2021.

• The GIS platform draws on BISAG-N (Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-Informatics) mapping technology.

• Bharatmala, Sagarmala and UDAN are schemes integrated under, not replaced by, GatiShakti.

5. RBI Tightens Forex Derivative Norms to Curb Speculation

Basic Concept

Foreign exchange (forex) derivatives — such as forward contracts, options and currency swaps — allow businesses to hedge against adverse movements in the rupee's exchange rate. They are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999, through periodic Master Directions on risk management and inter-bank dealings. Excessive use of these instruments for speculation, rather than genuine hedging, can amplify currency volatility.

Core Context

The RBI has revised its forex derivative framework, cutting the contracted exposure limit for certain speculative/unhedged positions from US$100 million to US$5 million and introducing a 20% cash-margin risk reserve requirement for specified contracts, while separately opening a special dollar-liquidity window for oil-importing companies.

Latest Developments

• The stated objective is to curb excessive speculation in the currency derivatives market and reduce rupee volatility.

• Corporates and exporters/importers that genuinely hedge commercial exposure are less affected than those taking larger, speculative positions.

• The move follows periods of rupee volatility through 2026 and complements the RBI's market operations to smoothen exchange-rate swings.

• A separate dollar window for oil companies aims to ease dollar-demand pressure from India's large crude-oil import bill.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Forex derivatives in India are regulated under FEMA, 1999, not the Companies Act.

• The RBI is India's central bank and manages exchange-rate policy under a 'managed float' regime (not a fixed peg).

• A 'hedge' reduces risk exposure; a 'speculative' position seeks to profit from price movement and carries higher risk.

6. Scientists Unveil the World's First Working Nuclear Clocks

Basic Concept

Timekeeping standards have evolved from mechanical and quartz clocks to atomic clocks, which use the extremely regular frequency of electron transitions in atoms such as caesium to define the second (the basis of Coordinated Universal Time, UTC). A 'nuclear clock' goes one step further: instead of an electron transition, it uses a transition inside the atomic nucleus itself — specifically a rare, very low-energy transition in the isotope thorium-229 — which is theoretically far more stable and less disturbed by external interference than electron-based transitions.

Core Context

Research teams based in Vienna (Austria) and Beijing (China) have, independently, built and operated the first working nuclear clocks based on the thorium-229 nuclear transition, demonstrating a technology that physicists have pursued for over a decade.

Latest Developments

• Nuclear clocks could, in principle, be orders of magnitude more precise and stable than today's best atomic clocks.

• Applications under discussion include more precise satellite navigation (GPS-type systems), deep-space navigation, and sensitive tests of whether fundamental constants of physics are truly constant over time.

• The technology remains at an early, laboratory stage; it is not yet ready to replace atomic clocks in everyday systems.

• This builds on earlier 2025–26 breakthroughs in exciting and measuring the thorium-229 nuclear transition precisely enough to build a working clock around it.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• UTC, the current global time standard, is based on caesium atomic clocks.

• Thorium-229 is the isotope at the centre of nuclear-clock research.

• India's national timekeeping and atomic clock standards are maintained by the CSIR–National Physical Laboratory (NPL), New Delhi.

7. Karnataka Rejects Fresh Quarrying Proposals Near Kappatagudda Wildlife Sanctuary

Basic Concept

An Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) is a buffer area notified around a National Park or Wildlife Sanctuary under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), where activities such as mining, large construction and polluting industry are regulated or prohibited to shield the core protected area from external pressure. State Wildlife Boards, constituted under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, examine proposals affecting wildlife habitats, including those within such buffer zones, and can recommend approval or rejection.

Core Context

The Karnataka State Board for Wildlife rejected four fresh stone-quarrying proposals located near the Kappatagudda Wildlife Sanctuary in Gadag district, upholding the existing ban on mining within the sanctuary's 1-km Eco-Sensitive Zone.

Latest Developments

• Kappatagudda is a hill range in the semi-arid Deccan plateau of north Karnataka, home to species such as the blackbuck, and holds cultural and religious significance for local communities.

• The sanctuary has previously seen conflict between mining/quarrying interests and conservation authorities, including earlier closure notices issued to quarries operating within the 1-km ESZ.

• The rejection keeps intact the precedent set by the Supreme Court's T.N. Godavarman line of judgments, which has progressively tightened restrictions on mining in and around protected forests and wildlife habitats.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Eco-Sensitive Zones are notified under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, not the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

• Kappatagudda Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Gadag district, Karnataka.

• State Wildlife Boards are statutory bodies constituted under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, chaired by the Chief Minister or a minister nominated by the state.

8. National Human Rights Commission Marks its 33rd Foundation Day

Basic Concept

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) is a statutory (not constitutional) body established under the Protection of Human Rights Act (PHRA), 1993, functioning as India's apex watchdog for the protection and promotion of human rights. It is a multi-member body typically chaired by a retired Chief Justice of India, with powers to inquire into human-rights violations, visit detention facilities, review safeguards, and recommend (though not directly enforce) remedial action.

Core Context

The NHRC observed its 33rd Foundation Day in mid-October 2026, with the Commission using the occasion to flag emerging challenges to human rights, including digital surveillance, algorithmic bias in AI-driven decision-making, the impact of climate change on vulnerable groups, and persistent social inequality.

Latest Developments

• The NHRC was set up in 1993, in part as a response to international scrutiny of India's human-rights record and the government's own commitment to strengthen institutional safeguards.

• Its recommendations are not binding on the government, which limits its enforcement power even as it carries moral and reputational weight.

• Parallel institutions include State Human Rights Commissions, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes, and the National Commission for Women, each with a narrower mandate.

• Flagging algorithmic bias and surveillance signals the Commission's attempt to extend traditional human-rights oversight into the digital/AI governance space.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• NHRC was established under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

• It is a statutory body, not a constitutional one (unlike, say, the Election Commission of India).

• Its chairperson is conventionally a retired Chief Justice of India.

9. 'Nameri Wild Classroom' Launched for Experiential Environmental Education

Basic Concept

India's Tiger Reserves, notified under Project Tiger (1973) and now governed through the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) framework under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, are divided into core (inviolate) and buffer zones. Besides conservation, many reserves increasingly double as sites for conservation education and eco-tourism, aimed at building public stewardship for wildlife among the next generation.

Core Context

The 'Nameri Wild Classroom' initiative has been launched at Nameri Tiger Reserve in Assam, offering school and college students residential, experiential environmental education inside the reserve rather than classroom-only instruction.

Latest Developments

• Nameri Tiger Reserve lies in the Sonitpur district of Assam, in the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas, along the Jia Bhoroli river, and shares a contiguous forest landscape with Pakke Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh.

• The reserve is known for species such as the tiger, elephant, and the rare white-winged wood duck.

• Experiential, residential programmes of this kind are seen as a practical way to operationalise environmental-education goals under India's biodiversity and conservation education strategies.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Nameri Tiger Reserve is located in Assam, on the Jia Bhoroli river.

• It shares a contiguous landscape with Pakke Tiger Reserve (Arunachal Pradesh).

• Project Tiger was launched in 1973; the NTCA was constituted later, in 2006, under an amendment to the Wildlife (Protection) Act.

10. INS Trishul Reaches UK for Exercise KONKAN 2026

Basic Concept

Bilateral and multilateral naval exercises are a key tool of India's defence diplomacy, used to build interoperability with foreign navies, strengthen maritime security partnerships, and signal strategic intent in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. India conducts a range of such exercises, including Malabar (with the US, Japan and Australia), Varuna (France), INDRA (Russia) and KONKAN (United Kingdom).

Core Context

The Indian Navy's stealth frigate INS Trishul arrived at Plymouth, United Kingdom, to take part in Exercise KONKAN 2026, a bilateral maritime exercise conducted with the Royal Navy.

Latest Developments

• The KONKAN series of exercises, running since the early 2000s, is among the longer-standing bilateral naval engagements India conducts with a European power.

• Such exercises typically involve surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, search-and-rescue, and communication-interoperability drills between the two navies.

• The visit reflects the broader India–UK strategic partnership, which also spans trade (including the recently operationalised India-UK Free Trade Agreement track) and defence-industrial cooperation.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• INS Trishul is a stealth frigate of the Indian Navy.

• Exercise KONKAN is India's bilateral naval exercise series with the United Kingdom's Royal Navy.

• Distinguish: Malabar (India-US-Japan-Australia), Varuna (France), INDRA (Russia), KONKAN (UK) — each named exercise pairs India with a different partner navy.

11. New Deputy Election Commissioner Appointed to the ECI

Basic Concept

The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body under Article 324, comprising the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two Election Commissioners, all of whom enjoy security of tenure. Below this constitutional tier, Deputy Election Commissioners (DECs) are senior civil servants, usually drawn from the IAS, who are appointed departmentally (not under Article 324) to assist the Commission on specific functional areas such as planning, law, and information technology.

Core Context

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has appointed Prakash Rajpurohit, a Rajasthan-cadre IAS officer, as a Deputy Election Commissioner, with his tenure set to run until 8 April 2030.

Latest Developments

• DECs support the three-member Commission in its day-to-day functioning and are often assigned charge of specific states or thematic portfolios.

• The appointment comes against the backdrop of continuing public debate this month over the process for removing or appointing the CEC itself (covered separately in recent current-affairs coverage), which concerns the constitutional posts rather than the DEC-level administrative appointment made here.

• Because DECs are not constitutional functionaries, their appointment and removal procedures are far less rigid than those for the CEC and Election Commissioners.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The CEC and Election Commissioners are appointed under Article 324 and have constitutional status; Deputy Election Commissioners do not.

• Deputy Election Commissioners are typically appointed through the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), as a service matter.

• The CEC and Election Commissioners Act, 2023 governs the process for appointing the CEC and ECs.

12. Tele-MANAS Completes Four Years, Nearing 48 Lakh Calls

Basic Concept

Tele-MANAS (Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States) is India's national tele-mental-health helpline, launched under the National Tele Mental Health Programme by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in October 2022. It operates through a two-tier system — state-level Tele-MANAS cells staffed by trained counsellors, backed by specialists for referral — and is anchored technically by NIMHANS, Bengaluru.

Core Context

Tele-MANAS has completed four years of operation, having received close to 48 lakh calls since launch, even as a new WHO report highlights continuing global gaps in community-based mental-health services.

Latest Developments

• The helpline is toll-free, available 24x7, and accessible in multiple Indian languages to widen reach, including in rural and semi-urban areas.

• Call volumes have grown steadily each year, reflecting both rising demand and improved awareness of the service.

• The WHO's findings reinforce the case for scaling community-based (rather than purely institutional) mental-health care, a direction Tele-MANAS itself represents for India.

• The programme complements the legal framework of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, which recognises a right to mental healthcare and seeks to reduce stigma.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Tele-MANAS was launched in October 2022 under the National Tele Mental Health Programme.

• Its technical/nodal institute is NIMHANS, Bengaluru.

• The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 decriminalised suicide attempts and affirmed a statutory right to mental healthcare in India.

13. NITI Aayog Flags Need for a Trained Caregiving Workforce for India's Elderly

Basic Concept

India is undergoing a demographic transition: while it currently has a relatively young population (the so-called 'demographic dividend'), the share of elderly citizens is rising steadily due to increasing life expectancy and declining fertility. Policy responses to population ageing include the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, and the National Policy for Senior Citizens, both aimed at ensuring care and dignity for the elderly.

Core Context

A NITI Aayog report notes that India's population aged 60 and above, about 149 million in 2022, is projected to reach roughly 347 million by 2050 — about 20.8% of the total population — and argues that India must urgently build a trained, professional caregiving ecosystem to meet this demand.

Latest Developments

• The report calls for standardised caregiver training and certification, akin to skill-development programmes in other sectors, to professionalise what is today a largely informal and unregulated caregiving workforce.

• It frames elder care as an emerging employment opportunity — sometimes described as part of the 'silver economy' — rather than only a welfare burden.

• Urban nuclear families and rising women's workforce participation are cited as structural reasons why informal, family-based elder care is becoming harder to sustain.

• Data for such projections commonly draws on sources like the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) and UN World Population Prospects.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• India's 60+ population was about 149 million in 2022 and is projected to reach about 347 million (20.8% of the population) by 2050, per the cited NITI Aayog analysis.

• The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act was enacted in 2007.

• The Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) is a key data source for research on India's elderly population.

14. Coffee Board Proposes AI-Based Mechanisation for Indian Coffee Farming

Basic Concept

India's coffee is predominantly grown as a shade crop on hilly, often steep terrain in the Western Ghats (Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu) and in smaller non-traditional areas such as Araku Valley (Andhra Pradesh) and parts of the North-East — a sharp contrast to the flatter, highly mechanised plantations of major producers like Brazil and Vietnam. This terrain, combined with rising rural labour shortages, has long made large-scale mechanisation difficult for Indian growers.

Core Context

The Coffee Board of India has proposed working with IIT Roorkee, IIT Dharwad and planters' associations to develop AI-based farm equipment and harvesting technologies specifically suited to Indian hill terrain and shade-grown cultivation, alongside pest-and-disease detection tools such as 'eCrop'.

Latest Developments

• The initiative targets labour-intensive stages such as harvesting and sorting, where Indian coffee has lagged mechanised competitors.

• AI-based pest and disease detection (eCrop and similar tools) aims to help small and marginal growers catch crop stress early, reducing yield losses.

• The Coffee Board functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and is headquartered in Bengaluru.

• India primarily grows Arabica and Robusta varieties, with Karnataka (notably Kodagu/Coorg, Chikmagalur) accounting for the bulk of national production.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The Coffee Board of India is headquartered in Bengaluru and functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

• India grows mainly Arabica and Robusta coffee varieties, largely as a shade crop.

• Karnataka is India's largest coffee-producing state.

15. Navratri and Garba: Living Intangible Heritage in Focus

Basic Concept

Navratri ('nine nights') is a Hindu festival honouring the Goddess Durga/Shakti in her various forms, observed differently across India — as Durga Puja in the east, Ramlila-linked Dussehra celebrations in the north, and through the Garba and Dandiya Raas dance traditions in Gujarat and parts of western India. UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity recognises living traditions — practices, rituals and performing arts — that communities consider part of their cultural heritage, as distinct from physical World Heritage Sites.

Core Context

Garba, the circular folk dance performed through the nine nights of Navratri, remains a prominent part of the ongoing Navratri 2026 celebrations; UNESCO had inscribed Garba on its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in December 2023, recognising it as a living community tradition rather than a historical monument.

Latest Developments

• Garba traditionally involves dancers moving in concentric circles around a lamp or image of the Goddess, symbolising the cyclical nature of life and cosmic energy (Shakti).

• Its UNESCO recognition has also been linked to a boost in Navratri-related tourism and the organised 'garba event' economy in Gujarat and other states.

• India has steadily added to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in recent years, alongside items such as Durga Puja (Kolkata), Yoga, and the Kumbh Mela.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Garba was inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in December 2023.

• Intangible Cultural Heritage differs from World Heritage Sites, which recognise physical/tangible places and monuments.

• Durga Puja (Kolkata) and Yoga are other Indian entries on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

16. Practice MCQs

Practice MCQs

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding India's retail inflation (CPI):
1. The Reserve Bank of India is mandated to keep CPI inflation at 4%, within a tolerance band of 2% to 6%.
2. The Consumer Price Index is compiled by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

• (a) 1 only

• (b) 2 only

• (c) Both 1 and 2

• (d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: (a) 1 only

Explanation: The RBI's inflation target is 4% CPI, with a 2–6% tolerance band, fixed under the RBI Act amendment of 2016. CPI is compiled by the National Statistical Office under MOSPI, not DPIIT (which compiles the Wholesale Price Index).

Q2. The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, awarded in 2026 to Robert E. Hall and Michael Woodford, is administered by which of the following?

• (a) The Norwegian Nobel Committee

• (b) The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

• (c) The Nobel Foundation's Literature Committee

• (d) The Swedish Riksdag

Answer: (b) The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Explanation: The Economic Sciences prize, instituted by Sveriges Riksbank in 1968, is administered by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences — the same body that awards the Physics and Chemistry Nobel Prizes. The Norwegian Nobel Committee awards only the Peace Prize.

Q3. Consider the following statements with respect to the office of Governor:
1. A Governor holds office during the pleasure of the President under Article 156.
2. The same person cannot be appointed Governor of two States simultaneously.
3. The Supreme Court has held that the President's 'pleasure' regarding a Governor's removal is not subject to judicial review.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

• (a) 1 and 2 only

• (b) 1 and 3 only

• (c) 2 and 3 only

• (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b) 1 and 3 only

Explanation: Article 156 provides that a Governor holds office during the President's pleasure. Following the Seventh Constitutional Amendment (1956), one person may indeed be appointed Governor of two or more States, making statement 2 incorrect. In Surya Narain Choudhary v. Union of India (1982), the Court held the President's pleasure is not justiciable, though B.P. Singhal (2010) later clarified that removal cannot be arbitrary.

Q4. A 'nuclear clock', of the kind recently demonstrated by research teams in Vienna and Beijing, achieves its timekeeping precision using which of the following?

• (a) Vibrations of a quartz crystal

• (b) Electron transitions in caesium atoms

• (c) A nuclear transition in the isotope thorium-229

• (d) Oscillations of a pendulum under standard gravity

Answer: (c) A nuclear transition in the isotope thorium-229

Explanation: Conventional atomic clocks (the basis of UTC) rely on electron transitions in atoms such as caesium. Nuclear clocks instead exploit a rare, extremely low-energy transition within the nucleus of thorium-229, which is theoretically more stable against external disturbance.

Q5. Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs), such as the one around Kappatagudda Wildlife Sanctuary, are notified under which legislation?

• (a) Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

• (b) Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

• (c) Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

• (d) Biological Diversity Act, 2002

Answer: (c) Environment (Protection) Act, 1986

Explanation: Eco-Sensitive Zones are declared by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, as buffer areas around protected areas notified under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Q6. Which of the following statements about Tele-MANAS is/are correct?
1. It was launched under the National Tele Mental Health Programme in October 2022.
2. Its technical/nodal institute is NIMHANS, Bengaluru.
3. It replaced the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017.
Select the correct answer using the codes below:

• (a) 1 only

• (b) 1 and 2 only

• (c) 2 and 3 only

• (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b) 1 and 2 only

Explanation: Tele-MANAS, launched in October 2022, is anchored technically by NIMHANS, Bengaluru. It operates alongside, and does not replace, the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, which is a distinct legal framework recognising a right to mental healthcare.