*TODAYS TOP NEWS*
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1. The Union Cabinet has approved the continuation of the National Social Assistance Programme for five years, from 2026-27 to 2030-31, with an outlay of 53 thousand 428 crore rupees. Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw made the announcement.
2. The Ministry of Home Affairs notified the Census (Amendment) Rules, 2026 under the Census Act, 1948. The amendment widens the pool of eligible enumerators to include teachers of government, local authority, aided and unaided private institutions, besides clerks and officials of Central and State Governments, PSUs, banks and statutory bodies.
3. The 6th National Steering Committee of PM-SETU (Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs) approved investment plans worth about ₹1,194 crore for five ITI clusters across Maharashtra, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir. Cumulative approvals under the scheme have crossed ₹3,687 crore.
4. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Friday laid the foundation stones for four projects to improve infrastructure at agricultural markets across the Capital at an event at Azadpur market.
5. The Telangana state government has constituted the Core Urban Region Economy (CURE) apex governance council with the Chief Minister as Chairperson and the municipal administration and urban development (MA&UD) principal secretary or special chief secretary is convener.
6. Sukhna Wetland in Chandigarh and Sauj Jheel in Uttar Pradesh have been added to the Ramsar list, taking India’s Wetlands of International Importance to 103. Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav announced the additions; Sukhna Lake is a man-made, rain-fed lake built in 1958 in the Shivalik foothills.
7. Cargo movement on India’s inland waterways rose from 29 million metric tonnes (MMT) in 2014-15 to 218 MMT in 2025-26, a CAGR of 20.13%, the Ports, Shipping and Waterways Ministry said. This surpasses the 200 MMT target under Maritime India Vision 2030; India has 111 National Waterways spanning 20,187 km.
8. The locality of Kasari-Masari in Prayagraj, once the stronghold of local gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed, has been renamed Sri Krishnapuri. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced the renaming of the area during his visit to the city on Thursday.
The chief minister also laid the foundation stone of a housing colony for 1,200 poor families at Kasari-Masari that will come up on the seized land of Atiq Ahmed.
9. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) holds a commanding edge in Uttar Pradesh with nearly two-thirds of the people saying they will vote for the ruling government, The survey, released on Friday, said that nearly 66.6% of the respondents would vote for BJP if the elections were held today.
10. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report alleging that borewell water in the Dattanagar locality, near the Ambad Industrial Area in Nashik district of Maharashtra.
11. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Friday invited Hyundai Motors to set up a car manufacturing facility in Hyderabad, assuring the company of the state government’s full support.
12. The Department of Consumer Affairs is expanding the distribution of buffer onions under the Price Stabilization Fund (PSF), with the first-ever Kanda Express movement to Agartala, Tripura. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said that the consignment, carrying approximately 440 metric tonnes (MT) of onions, is expected to reach Agartala by 18th of this month.
13. The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) facilitated Export of 1.755 MT of Organic Palmyra Jaggery Powder from Tamil Nadu to Bulgaria. The consignment of National Programme for Organic Production and EU-certified organic Palmyra Jaggery Powder was dispatched yesterday from Erode district of Tamil Nadu to Varna, Bulgaria.
14. The Chennai Corporation held an online awareness program on breast cancer titled “Pink Pulse 2026”. Medical officers, nurses, healthcare workers and Anganwadi workers across all 15 zones of the Greater Chennai Corporation and members of the public attended the event online and in person.
15. Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh Vinai Kumar Saxena has announced the creation of Sankoo District, fulfilling a long-pending demand of the people of the region.
16. Mizoram CM Lalduhoma launches 4 digital financial management initiatives to enhance transparency & accountability.
Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma has launched four major digital financial management initiatives of the state government implemented under the Finance Department, which aim to strengthen transparency, accountability and efficiency in the management of public finances.
17. The centre has assured Punjab that the state would face no shortage of electricity and coal supplies. The assurance was given by Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann.
18. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy rain and thunderstorms in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for the next three to five days due to cyclonic circulation over South Coastal Andhra Pradesh and its neighbouring areas.
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*LEGAL REPORT*
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1. The Supreme Court held that a person converting to Islam cannot claim Backward Class (Muslim) reservation merely on the basis of pre-conversion caste status. A Bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Shree Chandrashekhar upheld the Madras High Court’s quashing of Tamil Nadu’s 2024 G.O., ruling that benefits under Article 16(4) cannot be claimed on antecedent membership alone.
2. A Bench of CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi sought the Centre’s response on a plea for uniform safeguards for all forms of talaq under Muslim personal law. The plea challenges Section 2 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 insofar as it recognises Talaq-e-Hasan, and has been tagged with a pending petition.
3. Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, arrested for allegedly entering the now-denotified Jantar Mantar protest site without permission earlier this week, have been lodged in separate high-security wards in Delhi’s Tihar Jail.
4. An FIR was registered against former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Harish Rawat along with 30 other Congress leaders in connection with the party’s protest against the appointment of Dushyant Gautam as Sikkim Governor over the Ankita Bhandari case.
5. The Gauhati High Court on Friday, October 16, granted bail to suspended Assam Police DSP Sandipon Garg in connection with the death of singer Zubeen Garg. Sandipon, a cousin of the late singer, had been arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the case.
—— *MISHAPS*———-
1. In Mysuru, Karnataka — Four Killed as Lorry Hits Sleeper Bus near Periyapatna
Four people, including the bus driver, were killed and several passengers injured when a lorry collided with a Bengaluru–Kerala private sleeper bus near Kiranal Gate on the outskirts of Periyapatna early on Friday. Most of the passengers were from Kerala.
2. In Ajmer, Rajasthan — Three of a Family Killed as Bus Hits Motorcycle
A woman, her 21-year-old daughter and a relative died on the spot when a speeding passenger bus rammed their motorcycle on a highway in the Kishangarh area late on Thursday night. Police seized the bus and registered a case against the driver.
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*DEFENCE News*
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1. DRDO unveiled the indigenous SHYEN sensor suite for the Indian Navy’s Dornier Do-228 maritime patrol aircraft. At its core is the KSHITIJ AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar with about 600 Gallium Nitride-based transmit/receive modules, which can track sea-surface and airborne targets and offers Synthetic Aperture Radar imaging.
2. The 14th meeting of the India-Mongolia Joint Working Group on defence was held in Ulaanbaatar, co-chaired by Joint Secretary Dr Ishita Ganguli Tripathy and Mongolia’s Deputy State Secretary of Defence Brig Gen Gansukh E. Both sides appreciated the successful conclusion of Exercise Nomadic Elephant.
3. The Indian Coast Guard inducted its first HAL-built Dhruv Mk-III Advanced Light Helicopter (CG 875) in its Western Region at Ratnagiri, Maharashtra. It is the first of five such helicopters allotted to 831 Squadron (CG).
4. The 17th Indian Navy-Royal Navy Executive Steering Group meeting was held in New Delhi on 14-15 October. Co-chaired by RAdm Sachin Sequeira and Maj Gen Paul Maynard, it focused on deepening operational engagement and cooperation in emerging technologies.
5. Bengaluru-based NewSpace Research & Technologies validated an indigenous Rocket-Assisted Take-Off (RATO) booster for its Sheshnag-150 long-range strike drone, enabling runway-independent launches. The one-way attack drone has a range of over 1,000 km and can carry a 25-40 kg warhead.
6. ⚓ Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan commissioned INS Samarthak, the first of four indigenous multi-purpose vessels, at INS Kadamba, Karwar. Built by L&T at Kattupalli with over 75% indigenous content, the 107-metre ship will support surveillance, weapon and sensor trials, and HADR operations.
*FINANCE*
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*INDIAN RUPEE VALUE*
💷 *GBP* ₹127(Approx)
€ *Euro* : ₹107(Approx)
*USD* ₹ 95(Approx)
🇨🇦 *Canada* :CAD ₹67
🇦🇺 *Australia* : ₹ 66
🇦🇪 *UAE Dirham* : ₹ 26
*🇨🇳 China Yuan ¥* : ₹ 14
🇲🇻 *Maldives Rufiya* : ₹ 6.15
🇧🇹 *Bhutan ngultrum* : ₹ 1.00
🇳🇵 *Nepal Rupee* : ₹ 0.63
🇧🇩 *B’desh Taka** : ₹ 0.77
🇵🇰 *Pak Rupee* : ₹ 0.34
🇱🇰 *Sri Lanka Rupee* : ₹ 0.29
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*BSE SENSEX*
74,729.27 +413.66 (0.56%)🔺
*NIFTY*
23,146.15 +148.80 (0.65%)🔺
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*Rates in Financial Capital Mumbai*
*GOLD* : ₹ 14,744/ 01gm (24 krt)
*SILVER* : ₹ 2,30,000/KG
1. India’s foreign exchange reserves fell by over USD 8.5 billion to USD 726 billion in the week ended 9 October, as per RBI data. Foreign currency assets dropped by USD 7.1 billion to USD 597.6 billion, while gold reserves declined by USD 1.3 billion to USD 105 billion.
2. India’s current account deficit (CAD) narrowed to USD 5.2 billion in August 2026 from USD 6.1 billion in August 2025, as per RBI’s provisional data. The merchandise trade deficit eased to USD 26.6 billion, though the cumulative CAD for April-August 2026-27 widened.
3. The Government raised the export duty on petrol to ₹2.5 per litre from 50 paise and cut the duty on diesel exports from ₹16 to ₹8.5 per litre, effective 16 October. The duty on ATF exports stays at ₹10.5 per litre; rates are reviewed every fortnight based on international prices.
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*ENTERTAINMENT NEWS*
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1. *PRAHAAR*
Rajkummar Rao plays public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam in Avinash Arun’s courtroom drama on the 26/11 trial of Ajmal Kasab, which released in theatres on 16 October.
2. *Indian Idol Legends Return*
Sony TV’s new season brings back 24 past Indian Idol singers as 12 duos, with Himesh Reshammiya as judge and Aditya Narayan as host. It premieres today and airs every Saturday and Sunday at 8 PM.
*17 Oct (Saturday)*
*Vedic Ritu/* Sharad
*Drik Ritu* : Sharad (Autumn)
पक्ष :: *Shuklapaksh*
*Samvatsara* : Parabhava Nama
(Purnimanta)
*Vikram Samvat – 2083*
*Month* : Ashvina 22
(In Amanta calendar)
*Shaka Samvat – 1948*
*Month* : Ashvina 7
*Tithi* : Saptami
*Nakshatra*: Mula/
Purva Ashadha
*Rahu* : 09:15 AM – 10:46 AM
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Ms. Pooja, |
