Current Affairs — 30 September 2026

1. J&K's Evolving Constitutional Status: From Article 370 to Union Territory

Basic Concept

Article 370 of the Constitution, operative from 1950 until 2019, gave Jammu and Kashmir a special autonomous status, limiting Parliament's law-making power over the state to defence, foreign affairs, and communications unless the state concurred. Article 35A, added through a 1954 Presidential Order, further empowered the state legislature to define "permanent residents" and reserve land ownership, public employment, and scholarships for them. In August 2019, Constitutional Order 272 rendered Article 370 substantively inoperative, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 bifurcated the state into two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir (with a legislative assembly) and Ladakh (without one). This is a core GS2 polity topic on Centre-State relations and special constitutional provisions.

Core Context

Continuing debate over J&K's status resurfaced after the elected J&K government's resolution demanding restoration of full statehood, with explainer pieces revisiting the constitutional journey from special autonomy to the present Union Territory arrangement.

Latest Developments

• The current elected J&K assembly has sought restoration of full statehood along with protective domiciliary safeguards for local employment and land rights, concerns that predate but were sharpened by the 2019 changes.

• In its December 2023 verdict upholding the abrogation of Article 370, the Supreme Court directed the Union Government to restore statehood to Jammu and Kashmir "at the earliest" and to hold Assembly elections within a stipulated timeframe.

• Ladakh, carved out as a separate Union Territory without a legislature in 2019, has pursued a distinct track of demands (including Sixth Schedule-type protections), separate from J&K's statehood demand.

• The episode illustrates the layered nature of asymmetric federalism in India, where different regions of the former state now pursue different constitutional remedies.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Article 370 was rendered inoperative by Constitutional Order 272 in August 2019.

• The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 created two Union Territories: J&K (with legislature) and Ladakh (without).

• The Supreme Court's December 2023 verdict directed restoration of J&K's statehood "at the earliest".

2. Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) 2026

Basic Concept

The Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) is a periodic survey-based study published by Lokniti-CSDS in partnership with Common Cause, assessing public perceptions of the police and criminal justice system through large-sample citizen surveys. These reports are widely cited in GS2 (governance, police reforms) and GS3 (internal security, cybercrime) discussions because they supplement official crime statistics with citizen-experience data that official records often miss.

Core Context

SPIR 2026, based on a survey of 8,306 citizens across 16 states, focused this round on the policing of cybercrime, documenting how citizens experience digital fraud and their interactions with police while seeking redress.

Latest Developments

• Cybercrime cases rose 17.9% year-on-year, from 86,420 cases in 2023 to 101,928 in 2024, according to data cited in the report.

• Among those surveyed, 33% had received fraudulent delivery calls and 31% had been targeted with investment scams, pointing to a few dominant fraud patterns.

• Only 49% of victims filed a formal complaint, while 39% abandoned the process altogether, reflecting low trust in the formal cybercrime-reporting machinery.

• Among complainants, 27% reported paying a bribe, and bribe-payers were far likelier to recover their money (41%) than those who did not pay (12%); poorer citizens were about four times more likely to pay a bribe (51%) than affluent ones (12%), showing how informal costs compound existing inequality in access to justice.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• SPIR is published by Lokniti-CSDS in partnership with Common Cause.

• SPIR 2026 surveyed 8,306 citizens across 16 states, focusing on cybercrime policing.

• Cybercrime cases rose 17.9% between 2023 and 2024 per the report's cited data.

3. AFSPA Extended for Another Six Months

Basic Concept

The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA) grants special powers to the armed forces in areas declared "disturbed" under Section 3, including the power to use force (even to the extent of causing death) under Section 4(a), arrest without warrant under Section 4(c), and search premises without warrant under Section 4(d); Section 6 bars prosecution of armed-forces personnel without prior Central Government sanction. It was originally enacted to help security forces tackle insurgency in the North-East and has since been renewed periodically, typically every six months, in specific disturbed areas. This is a recurring GS2/GS3 topic on internal security and the civil-military-rights balance.

Core Context

The Union Government extended AFSPA for another six months, effective from 1 October 2026, in designated disturbed areas of Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh.

Latest Developments

• The extension applies to the whole of Manipur except 13 police station areas in the Imphal valley, nine entire districts of Nagaland, and three border districts of Arunachal Pradesh.

• The periodic six-monthly extension process reflects the continuing, though regionally uneven, security situation in parts of the North-East, even as some areas have been progressively excluded from AFSPA's ambit in recent years.

• Civil society and human-rights groups have long sought AFSPA's repeal or dilution, citing concerns over accountability given the Section 6 sanction requirement, while security agencies argue it remains necessary for counter-insurgency operations in the covered districts.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• AFSPA, 1958 allows a "disturbed area" declaration under Section 3.

• Section 6 of AFSPA requires Central Government sanction before prosecuting armed-forces personnel.

• The current extension (effective 1 October 2026) covers parts of Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh for six months.

4. Supreme Court Flags Steep Mark-ups on Essential and Cancer Drugs

Basic Concept

Drug pricing in India is regulated under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order (DPCO), issued under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, and enforced by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA). The DPCO caps prices only for medicines on the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM); drugs outside this list, including many high-cost cancer therapies, are largely free from price caps, though a Trade Margin Rationalisation policy limits retailer margins on certain categories. This is a GS2 (health policy, governance) and GS3 (regulation, judiciary) topic.

Core Context

The Supreme Court expressed concern over steep mark-ups on essential and cancer drugs, citing an example where a medicine supplied to retailers at around Rs 3,000 was sold to patients for about Rs 27,000 — roughly a nine-fold mark-up.

Latest Developments

• The Court's observation highlighted how many cancer and other high-cost drugs fall outside the NLEM's price-cap protection, leaving patients exposed to large mark-ups between the price charged to retailers and the price charged to consumers.

• Existing Trade Margin Rationalisation rules cap retailer margins at 16% for certain drug categories, but enforcement gaps and the narrow scope of covered medicines limit their effectiveness for costly specialty drugs.

• The episode adds to ongoing debate on whether India's essential-medicines price-control framework needs to be widened to cover a larger basket of life-saving but currently unregulated drugs.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Drug prices in India are regulated through the DPCO under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

• The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) enforces drug price controls; price caps apply mainly to medicines on the NLEM.

• Trade Margin Rationalisation policy caps certain retailer margins at 16%.

5. Centre Cuts Import Duty on Edible Oils Ahead of Festival Season

Basic Concept

India imports more than half of its domestic edible oil requirement, making it highly sensitive to global price movements and a frequent target of tariff adjustments to balance consumer price concerns against the interests of domestic oilseed farmers. Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on edible oils is one of the government's quickest levers to influence retail cooking-oil prices, especially ahead of high-demand periods like the festival season. This is a GS3 topic on agriculture, trade policy, and inflation management.

Core Context

Effective 24 September, the Centre reduced the Basic Customs Duty on crude edible oils — cutting the rate on crude soybean oil from 10% to 5% and on crude palm oil from 32.5% to 27.5%, while eliminating the duty entirely on crude sunflower oil.

Latest Developments

• The move is aimed at moderating cooking-oil retail prices during the festival season, when household consumption and price sensitivity both rise sharply.

• Lower import duties make imported edible oils cheaper relative to domestically produced oilseeds such as soybean, mustard, and groundnut, raising concerns among farmer groups about renewed price pressure on domestic oilseed cultivation.

• The decision reflects the recurring trade-off in Indian edible-oil policy between protecting consumers from price spikes and sustaining incentives for domestic oilseed production and self-reliance (reducing import dependence).

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• India imports a majority of its domestic edible oil requirement.

• Basic Customs Duty on crude soybean oil was cut from 10% to 5%, and on crude palm oil from 32.5% to 27.5%; crude sunflower oil duty was eliminated.

• The change took effect from 24 September 2026.

6. India Moves to Ban the Herbicide Paraquat Dichloride

Basic Concept

Pesticides and herbicides in India are regulated under the Insecticides Act, 1968, which requires registration of any insecticide/pesticide before manufacture, sale, or use; Section 9 lays down the registration process, and the Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC) advises the government on safety and registration matters, including the power to recommend cancellation of registration for products found hazardous. This is a GS3 topic on agriculture, chemical regulation, and public health.

Core Context

The Centre moved to comprehensively ban Paraquat Dichloride, a widely used non-selective herbicide, cancelling all existing registrations after years of poisoning-related deaths linked to the chemical.

Latest Developments

• Paraquat Dichloride has no known antidote; ingestion, even in small quantities, can cause irreversible pulmonary fibrosis and multi-organ damage, making accidental or deliberate ingestion frequently fatal.

• The Indian market for the chemical was estimated at around Rs 1,500 crore, with major domestic agrochemical manufacturers facing significant regulatory disruption from the ban.

• The move follows a broader global and domestic trend of restricting or banning highly hazardous pesticides (Paraquat is already banned or restricted in the European Union and several other jurisdictions) in favour of safer alternatives for weed management.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Pesticide regulation in India falls under the Insecticides Act, 1968; the Central Insecticides Board and Registration Committee (CIBRC) advises on registration and safety.

• Paraquat Dichloride is a non-selective herbicide with no known antidote, causing irreversible pulmonary fibrosis if ingested.

• India's Paraquat market was valued at roughly Rs 1,500 crore before the ban.

7. ECI's New Electoral Roll Systems Amid the SIR Controversy

Basic Concept

The Election Commission of India (ECI) periodically revises electoral rolls to keep them accurate, through mechanisms including a "Special Intensive Revision" (SIR) — a more thorough, door-to-door re-verification exercise distinct from the routine annual "summary revision." Maintaining clean, accurate, and non-discriminatory electoral rolls is foundational to free and fair elections under Article 324, which vests the ECI with superintendence, direction, and control of elections. This is a GS2 topic on electoral governance.

Core Context

Opposition parties stepped up criticism of an ongoing Special Intensive Revision exercise and a related demography panel's data requests, even as the ECI continued rolling out new digital systems — ECINET and ERONET — to modernise electoral roll management nationally.

Latest Developments

• The Congress party called for suspending the SIR exercise, questioning its constitutional validity, while also criticising a demography panel's religion-wise data requests as going beyond legitimate statistical purposes.

• ECINET, launched in January 2026, is a unified platform consolidating more than 40 previously separate electoral portals, with an integrated electoral-roll module featuring automated discrepancy detection and role-based access control across constituency, district, state, and national levels.

• ERONET centralises processing of electoral-roll forms (Forms 6, 6A, 7, and 8) that were earlier handled through 36 separate state-level databases, and acts as a decision-support tool — flagging duplicate entries for field verification rather than deleting records automatically — while also tracking inter-state voter migration.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• Article 324 vests the ECI with superintendence, direction, and control of elections.

• "Special Intensive Revision" (SIR) is a more thorough electoral-roll revision exercise than the routine annual summary revision.

• ECINET (launched January 2026) and ERONET are the ECI's unified digital platforms for electoral-roll management.

8. UIDAI Launches Five New Aadhaar-linked Initiatives

Basic Concept

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), set up under the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016, issues the 12-digit Aadhaar number and manages its authentication ecosystem, which underpins Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and a wide range of e-governance services. Periodic upgrades to Aadhaar's authentication infrastructure are relevant to GS2 (digital governance, welfare delivery) and GS3 (technology in governance).

Core Context

UIDAI rolled out five new initiatives aimed at widening Aadhaar authentication access and improving service delivery for both citizens and authentication-using agencies.

Latest Developments

• Face Authentication for the electronic Public Distribution System (ePDS) offers a contactless alternative for beneficiaries whose fingerprints are worn or who have vision impairment, addressing a long-standing authentication-failure problem in ration distribution.

• SWIK Portal 2.0 streamlines the approval process for new Aadhaar authentication use cases, while a new "Lite" category for Sub-AUA/KUA (sub-Authentication User Agency/e-KYC User Agency) status enables faster, lower-cost onboarding for low-volume entities.

• A new Token Management System improves queue management at UIDAI's physical offices, and UIDAI's website has been revamped to support 23 languages (up from 13) via the BHASHINI translation platform, alongside an integrated careers portal.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• UIDAI functions under the Aadhaar Act, 2016.

• Face Authentication for ePDS offers a contactless alternative where fingerprint or vision-based authentication fails.

• UIDAI's revamped website now supports 23 languages via the BHASHINI platform.

9. India's First PRAMAAN Certificates Under the Forest and Wood Certification Scheme

Basic Concept

Forest certification schemes verify that timber, non-timber forest produce, and agroforestry products are sourced sustainably, giving producers market access and credibility, particularly for export to markets with strict sourcing rules such as the European Union. India's Indian Forest and Wood Certification Scheme (IFWCS) is a domestic third-party certification system aligned with the National Working Plan Code (NWPC), 2023, and benchmarked against the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). This is a GS3 topic on forestry, sustainable development, and trade compliance.

Core Context

The Union Environment Minister handed over India's first PRAMAAN certificates under the IFWCS, marking the scheme's operational launch.

Latest Developments

• PRAMAAN certification covers sustainable forestry, agroforestry, and non-timber forest produce (NTFP), verified through independent third-party audits against the NWPC, 2023 standards.

• The first certificate recipients include the Andhra Pradesh Forest Development Corporation, covering about 33,000 hectares of certified forest area, and an individual farmer, Govind Mohapatra of Odisha, certified for sustainable bamboo cultivation.

• By benchmarking against the EU Deforestation Regulation, the scheme aims to help Indian forest and wood-based exporters meet increasingly strict due-diligence requirements in major export markets.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• PRAMAAN certificates are issued under the Indian Forest and Wood Certification Scheme (IFWCS).

• IFWCS is aligned with the National Working Plan Code (NWPC), 2023, and benchmarked against the EU Deforestation Regulation.

• The first certified entities include the Andhra Pradesh Forest Development Corporation and an Odisha bamboo farmer.

10. PRAGATI-50: A New Push Under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0

Basic Concept

The Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) 2.0, launched in 2021, aims to make Indian cities garbage-free and achieve safe sanitation, building on the first phase's focus on open-defecation-free status. Scaling up sanitation technology and practice from pilot cities to the thousands of smaller urban local bodies is a recurring governance challenge in India's urban sanitation push, relevant to GS2 (governance, urbanisation).

Core Context

The government launched PRAGATI-50 under SBM-U 2.0, a new initiative to develop 50 model cities across 24 states that will demonstrate elevated sanitation benchmarks for replication nationwide.

Latest Developments

• Progress in the 50 model cities will be tracked through Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on the Swachhatam Portal, and a dedicated test bed at CSIR-CMERI (Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute), Durgapur, will trial sanitation technologies before wider rollout.

• The initiative has onboarded 75 sanitation-focused startups so far, including a third cohort of 13 startups brought in through IIT Kanpur's incubation ecosystem, reflecting a push to involve the startup sector in municipal service delivery.

• The stated goal is to create a replicable sanitation blueprint that can eventually be extended to over 4,800 remaining towns that have not yet reached the elevated benchmarks demonstrated in the initial 50 cities.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• PRAGATI-50 is an initiative under the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U) 2.0.

• It covers 50 model cities across 24 states, tracked via the Swachhatam Portal.

• CSIR-CMERI, Durgapur hosts a sanitation-technology test bed under this initiative.

11. Global Sulphur Prices Surge Amid Geopolitical Conflicts

Basic Concept

Sulphur is a key input for producing sulphuric acid, which is in turn essential for manufacturing phosphatic fertilisers such as DAP (di-ammonium phosphate) and SSP (single super phosphate). Roughly 92% of the world's sulphur supply is a by-product of processing "sour" (high-sulphur) crude oil and natural gas, making sulphur prices unusually sensitive to disruptions in oil and gas production and refining, even though sulphur itself is not an energy commodity. This is a GS3 topic on economy, trade, and food/fertiliser security.

Core Context

International sulphur prices have surged nearly four-fold, from about $280 per tonne in July 2025 to around $1,050 per tonne in July 2026, driven by supply disruptions linked to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and tensions in West Asia.

Latest Developments

• India imports around 2.25 million metric tonnes (MMT) of sulphur annually, with West Asia supplying about 90% of this, making India's fertiliser supply chain highly exposed to disruptions in that region.

• Higher sulphur costs feed directly into higher production costs for phosphatic fertilisers, creating fiscal pressure on India's fertiliser subsidy regime or risk of higher retail fertiliser prices for farmers if subsidies are not correspondingly increased.

• The episode illustrates how critical-input vulnerabilities can arise even for non-energy commodities, since their supply is structurally tied to energy-sector production, reinforcing the case for diversifying sulphur and fertiliser input sourcing.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• About 92% of global sulphur supply comes as a by-product of oil and gas processing.

• Sulphur is a key input for producing sulphuric acid, used in manufacturing DAP and SSP fertilisers.

• India imports about 2.25 MMT of sulphur annually, with West Asia supplying around 90%.

12. Centre Moves Supreme Court to Stay Great Nicobar Project Hearings

Basic Concept

The Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 recognises the rights of forest-dwelling communities, including Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs), over forest land and resources, and requires their free, informed consent (through Gram Sabha consultation) before diverting forest land for non-forest use in many cases. The Great Nicobar Island, part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is home to PVTGs such as the Shompen and the Nicobarese, making large infrastructure projects there a recurring flashpoint between development priorities and tribal/environmental safeguards. This is a GS3 topic on environment, forest rights, and infrastructure development.

Core Context

The Centre moved the Supreme Court seeking a stay on hearings related to the roughly Rs 92,000-crore Great Nicobar Island development project, which includes an international container transshipment terminal, a greenfield airport, a township, and a power plant.

Latest Developments

• The government sought dismissal of pending petitions on jurisdictional grounds, while petitioners continue to challenge whether tribal rights under the FRA were genuinely settled before project clearances were granted.

• A key point of contention is whether environmentally sensitive buffer zones around tribal reserve areas were appropriately maintained or inappropriately reduced to accommodate the project's footprint.

• The case is being closely watched as a test of how India balances large strategic/infrastructure projects (the Great Nicobar project has significant maritime and strategic value given its location near international shipping lanes) against constitutionally protected tribal and environmental safeguards.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The Forest Rights Act, 2006 recognises forest-dwelling communities' rights, including those of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).

• The Shompen and Nicobarese are PVTGs inhabiting the Great Nicobar Island.

• The Great Nicobar project is valued at approximately Rs 92,000 crore.

13. Indian Delegation Attends SCO Meeting in Pakistan

Basic Concept

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), founded in 2001 and headquartered in Beijing, is a Eurasian political, economic, and security grouping; India became a full member in 2017. India's engagement with SCO processes held in Pakistan has historically been calibrated carefully given the bilateral relationship, with India typically sending officials rather than top political leadership to Pakistan-hosted SCO events. This is a GS2 topic on India's regional groupings and neighbourhood diplomacy.

Core Context

India sent a Joint Secretary-level delegation to an SCO preparatory meeting in Islamabad — the first official Indian visit to Pakistan since Operation Sindoor.

Latest Developments

• The visit reflects India's practice of engaging with multilateral SCO processes hosted in Pakistan at a working level, while continuing to avoid head-of-state or ministerial-level bilateral engagement.

• This selective engagement approach allows India to remain active within a grouping where it sees strategic value (for connectivity, counter-terrorism cooperation, and Central Asian engagement) without signalling a bilateral thaw with Pakistan.

• The episode is a useful illustration of how multilateral forum participation and bilateral relations can be managed as separate diplomatic tracks.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The SCO was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Beijing.

• India became a full member of the SCO in 2017.

• India typically engages SCO events hosted in Pakistan at an official/working level rather than through top political leadership.

14. Japan Urges India to Fast-Track the UNICORN Naval Radar Pact

Basic Concept

Defence technology-transfer agreements between India and partner countries typically require internal governmental approval processes on both sides before implementation can begin, even after an agreement is formally signed at the political level. India-Japan defence cooperation has deepened in recent years as part of their "Special Strategic and Global Partnership" and shared Indo-Pacific security interests, often discussed alongside the Quad framework (India, Japan, US, Australia). This is a GS2/GS3 topic on bilateral defence relations and defence technology cooperation.

Core Context

Japan urged India to fast-track its internal approval process for the UNICORN (Unified Complex Radar Antenna) naval radar technology-transfer agreement, which was signed during Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's visit to India in July 2026.

Latest Developments

• UNICORN is an advanced naval radar technology; its transfer to India would mark a significant step in India-Japan defence-industrial cooperation, which has historically lagged behind the two countries' broader strategic partnership.

• Japan's push for speedier implementation reflects shared urgency around strengthening maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific amid rising regional security competition.

• The episode highlights a common friction point in India's defence cooperation with multiple partners: political-level agreements can face delays at the implementation stage due to domestic procedural and bureaucratic processes.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• UNICORN stands for Unified Complex Radar Antenna, a naval radar technology.

• The UNICORN agreement was signed during Japanese PM Sanae Takaichi's July 2026 visit to India.

• India-Japan ties are framed under a "Special Strategic and Global Partnership".

15. Study Finds Degraded Grasslands Never Fully Recover Their Original Character

Basic Concept

Grassland ecosystems are often undervalued in conservation policy compared to forests, despite supporting distinctive biodiversity (in India, grasslands are critical habitat for species such as the Great Indian Bustard and blackbuck) and providing grazing resources for pastoral communities. Ecological restoration science studies how degraded ecosystems recover once a disturbance (such as agriculture, overgrazing, or mining) ends, which has direct implications for how much weight restoration pledges should be given relative to preventing degradation in the first place. This is a GS3 topic on environment and ecosystem conservation.

Core Context

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), tracking 742 grassland plant species across India, Australia, and Brazil, found that grasslands destroyed by human disturbance never fully regain their original species composition, even after a century of recovery time.

Latest Developments

• "Secondary" grasslands that regrow after disturbance tend to be dominated by taller, more resource-acquisitive plant species, which outcompete and replace the original, often shorter and more specialised, native flora.

• The findings reinforce a growing scientific consensus that ecosystem restoration cannot be treated as a perfect substitute for preventing the destruction of original, undisturbed ecosystems in the first place.

• For India, the study strengthens the case for stronger legal recognition and protection of grassland ecosystems, which currently receive weaker statutory protection than forests under India's environmental law framework.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• The study tracked 742 grassland plant species across India, Australia, and Brazil.

• It found that destroyed grasslands do not fully recover their original species composition even after a century.

• Indian grasslands are critical habitat for species such as the Great Indian Bustard.

16. NCERT Revises Class 9 History Textbook to Prioritise Indian Resistance Movements

Basic Concept

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) periodically revises school textbooks as part of curriculum reform, with recent revisions drawing both support (for greater emphasis on Indian history and civilisational themes) and criticism (concerns about reduced coverage of certain global historical events) from different quarters. Textbook content is a recurring GS1 (history)/GS2 (education policy) topic, since curriculum choices shape how historical consciousness is formed among students.

Core Context

NCERT's revised Class 9 social science textbook has replaced earlier chapters on European revolutions with new content on Indian medieval history and regional resistance movements spanning roughly 1,000 to 1,700 CE.

Latest Developments

• The new sections cover Mughal-Sikh conflicts, the establishment of the Akal Takht, and various indigenous responses to foreign invasions during the medieval period.

• Supporters of the revision argue it corrects a long-standing colonial-era bias in history curricula that gave disproportionate attention to European historical developments relative to India's own resistance and state-building traditions.

• Critics have raised concerns about the removal of comparative global-history content, arguing that understanding revolutions like the French Revolution remains important for grasping the origins of modern political ideas that also influenced India's own freedom struggle.

UPSC Prelims Pointers

• NCERT develops the national curriculum framework and textbooks for school education in India.

• The revised Class 9 social science textbook now covers Indian medieval resistance movements (c. 1000-1700 CE) in place of European revolutions.

• The Akal Takht, referenced in the new content, is a key Sikh religious and temporal authority institution established in the 17th century.

17. Practice MCQs

Practice MCQs

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding Jammu and Kashmir's constitutional status:
1. Constitutional Order 272 rendered Article 370 inoperative in 2019.
2. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 created Ladakh as a Union Territory with a legislature.
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: Constitutional Order 272 (2019) rendered Article 370 inoperative. Ladakh was created as a Union Territory without a legislature, while Jammu and Kashmir retained a legislative assembly.

Q2. The Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) is published by which of the following?

• (a) The National Crime Records Bureau

• (b) Lokniti-CSDS in partnership with Common Cause

• (c) The Bureau of Police Research and Development

• (d) The Ministry of Home Affairs

Answer: (b) Lokniti-CSDS in partnership with Common Cause

Explanation: SPIR is a survey-based report published by Lokniti-CSDS together with Common Cause, assessing citizen perceptions of policing and criminal justice.

Q3. With reference to the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA), consider the following statements:
1. Section 3 provides for declaring an area "disturbed".
2. Section 6 requires Central Government sanction before prosecuting armed-forces personnel.
3. AFSPA extensions are typically made for a period of six months at a time.
Which of the statements given above are correct?

• (a) 1 and 2 only

• (b) 2 and 3 only

• (c) 1 and 3 only

• (d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (d) 1, 2 and 3

Explanation: All three statements are correct: Section 3 enables a "disturbed area" declaration, Section 6 requires Central Government sanction for prosecution, and AFSPA extensions are conventionally issued for six-month periods.

Q4. Which of the following best describes the primary source of global sulphur supply?

• (a) Mined elemental sulphur deposits

• (b) A by-product of processing sour crude oil and natural gas

• (c) Volcanic extraction

• (d) A by-product of steel manufacturing

Answer: (b) A by-product of processing sour crude oil and natural gas

Explanation: About 92% of global sulphur supply comes as a by-product of processing high-sulphur ("sour") crude oil and natural gas, making it unusually sensitive to oil and gas sector disruptions.

Q5. The Shompen and Nicobarese, mentioned in the context of the Great Nicobar project, are classified as:

• (a) Scheduled Castes

• (b) Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)

• (c) De-notified Tribes

• (d) Other Backward Classes

Answer: (b) Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)

Explanation: The Shompen and Nicobarese are PVTGs inhabiting the Great Nicobar Island, and their rights under the Forest Rights Act, 2006 are central to the ongoing litigation over the island's development project.

Q6. India became a full member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in which year?

• (a) 2001

• (b) 2010

• (c) 2017

• (d) 2022

Answer: (c) 2017

Explanation: The SCO was founded in 2001, but India became a full member only in 2017, having earlier held observer status.

Q7. Consider the following statements about Paraquat Dichloride:
1. It is a selective herbicide used primarily on cereal crops.
2. It has no known antidote and can cause irreversible pulmonary fibrosis.
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: (b) 2 only

Explanation: Paraquat Dichloride is a non-selective herbicide (it kills most plants it contacts, not just specific crops), and it has no known antidote, making ingestion frequently fatal due to irreversible pulmonary fibrosis and multi-organ damage.