Special summary revision of voter lists to begin soon

Amid protests against the special intensive revision and Chief Election Com-missioner Gyanesh Kumar, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday announced the special summary revision (SSR) of electoral rolls in 17 States and Union Territories, including poll-bound Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.

Goods exports jump 23.04% in Sept.; trade deficit narrows

Healthy growth in shipments of petroleum products, electronic goods and chemicals helped India's merchandise exports rise 23.04% in September, while the trade deficit narrowed to $30.21 billion year-on-year due to a dip in imports of precious metals. In September 2025, it was $33 billion.

Chandigarh's Sukhna wetland designated as Ramsar site

Sukhna wetland in Chandigarh has been declared a Ramsar site, which would bring greater international attention to its conservation efforts and global scientific oversight. Ramsar sites are also called Wetlands of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention, an environmental treaty established in 1971. Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Thursday announced Sukhna wetland in Chandigarh and Sauj Jheel in Uttar Pradesh as Ramsar sites. "India's Ramsar site tally reaches 103 with Sukhna Lake and Sauj Jheel becoming the latest additions to the list,".

SC says conversion does not automatically grant benefits of reservation

The Supreme Court on Thursday declared that a Hindu belonging to a Backward order cannot claim the same reservation benefits as a Muslim Backward Class member merely on conversion to Islam or other religions.

"A person who converts from a Hindu social order to a non-Hindu social or-der cannot claim affirmative action under Article 16 (4) of the Constitution merely on the basis of the social backwardness asso-ciated with his pre-conver-sion status," it held.

A contested UNSC seat poses a test for India

Following the conclusion of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), held from September 8 to 28, 2026, the government must double its efforts to secure a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in next year's election. India's bid for the 2028-29 two-year term of the UNSC was launched by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar this year, with voting in the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to take place in June 2027.

'Innovate today, nourish tomorrow' for food security

Over the decades, India has emerged as a food-surplus nation and one of the world's largest producers of foodgrains, milk, pulses, fruits and vegetables. One of the decisive factors in this transformation from scarcity was the 'Green Revolution'. The introduction of high-yielding varieties, backed by expanded irrigation and assured prices, increased cereal production, which became the basis for India's public distribution and nutrition schemes.

The debate over immunity to CEC, ECS

 The Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Terms of Office) Act, 2023 contains Section 16 which grants the CEC and ECs lifelong immunity for actions taken in discharge of official duties

 The provision was not part of the original Bill that was introduced in the Parliament. This clause was added as an amendment on the day the Bill was passed in Rajya Sabha, that was subsequently cleared by Lok Sabha and assented to by the President

MoD signs ₹4,106-cr. deals for IAF satellite, torpedoes

The Ministry of Defence on Thursday signed contracts worth approximately 4,106 crore for a dedicated communication satellite for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Varunastra heavy-weight torpedoes for the Indian Navy, in a push to strengthen indigenous defence capabilities.

Marginal rise in joblessness rate in urban India: NSO

The Unemployment Rate (UR) in the country stood at 5% in September, stable compared to August, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey con-ducted by the National Statistics Office. The Minis-try of Statistics and Programme Implementation said on Thursday that the rural UR remained "broad-ly stable" at 4.2%, against 4.1% in August, while ur-ban UR marginally rose from 6.8% in August to 6.9% in this month. "

Rajnath Singh to represent India at SCO PMs' summit

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will represent India at the upcoming two-day meeting of the Council of Heads of Government (Prime Ministers) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, on October 19 and 20, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to participate virtually, a senior government official said on Thursday.

Two-thirds oil imports from just 3 nations

In a sign of increasing concentration of India's oil supplies and its limited options to source from, latest data shows that more than two-thirds of the country's oil imports came from just three countries Russia, the U.S., and the UAE marking a record high share.

India-U.S. trade deal's first tranche 'finalised'

The first tranche of the In-dia-U.S. trade deal has been "finalised", Com-Minister Piyush merce Goyal said on Thursday at an event in Delhi. He ad-ded what remained were the "final contours" and legal vetting, and that the deal would be implement-ed once there was clarity on India's competitive edge over its peers.

Shifting global focus towards inclusive assessment of threats to health

A major new Lancet Commission has listed 17 interlinked catastrophic threats that could shape global health through 2100. Zooming out to take a bird's eye view of the possible threats, the Commissioners have counted amongst them - pandemics, obesity, antimicrobial resistance, nuclear conflict, and artificial intelligence.