Daily Current Affairs for WBCS

1. AWARDS AND HONOURS

• Nobel Peace Prize 2026: South African jurist and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay (of Indian Tamil origin) has been named the recipient of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
• SKOCH Gold Award 2026 (Coal Sector): The Coal Controller Organisation (CCO), under the Ministry of Coal, won the SKOCH Gold Award 2026 for its ‘SUVIKALP’ Mine Repurposing Tool.
• Global Finance World’s Best Consumer Bank 2026: State Bank of India (SBI) has been honoured with the ‘World’s Best Consumer Bank 2026’ (for the second consecutive year) and ‘Best Bank in India 2026’ awards by Global Finance magazine during the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings.
• Hillary Rodham Clinton Award 2026: Padma Shri awardee Reema Nanavaty, Director of the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), was conferred the 2026 Hillary Rodham Clinton Award at Georgetown University.

2. APPOINTMENTS & PERSONS IN NEWS

• Deputy Election Commissioner of India: Senior IAS officer Prakash Rajpurohit has been appointed as Deputy Election Commissioner in the Election Commission of India with a tenure extending up to April 2030.
• Development-cum-Production Partners (DcPPs) of DRDO: DRDO’s Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) shortlisted Indian firms SSS Defence and Kalyani Group as DcPPs for indigenous small arms and weapon systems manufacturing.
• Principal Investigator of NASA’s PUFFINS Mission: Indian astronomer Dr. Ramya Manjunath Anche (University of Arizona) was selected by NASA as the Principal Investigator of the USD 20 million (Rs. 168 crore) ‘PUFFINS’ space mission.
• Obituary — Vummidi Ethiraj: Renowned master jeweller and craftsman Vummidi Ethiraj, patriarch of the 125-year-old Vummidi Bangaru Jewellers (associated with the historic Sengol crafted in 1947), passed away in Chennai at the age of 99.

3. GOVT SCHEMES, POLICIES AND WELFARE INITIATIVES

• WWF-India EIACP ‘Green Diwali Campaign 2026’: Supported by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), WWF-India’s EIACP centre launched the nationwide Green Diwali Campaign 2026 to promote eco-friendly, cracker-free celebrations.
• Nationwide Financial Inclusion (FI) Saturation Campaign: The Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, launched a nationwide FI Saturation Campaign (21 October – 31 December 2026) across 2.70 lakh Gram Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies to expand Jan Dhan, Suraksha Bima, and digital fraud awareness (‘Aapki Poonji, Aapka Adhikar’).

4. SPORTS AND GAMES

• Sheetal Devi Wins Double Gold at Asian Para Games 2026: Indian para-archer Sheetal Devi clinched two gold medals on a single day at the Asian Para Games 2026.
• Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup 2027 Schedule: The ICC announced that the Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup 2027 will be co-hosted by Bangladesh and Nepal starting on 21 January 2027.
• New Indian Women’s Cricket Captain: Star batter Smriti Mandhana has been appointed as the new all-format Captain of the Indian Women’s National Cricket Team following Harmanpreet Kaur’s decision to step down.

5. SCIENCE, SPACE AND TECHNOLOGY

• NASA’s ‘PUFFINS’ Astrophysics Pioneers Mission: NASA approved the ‘Polarimetry in the Ultraviolet to Find Features in Interstellar Dust’ (PUFFINS) mission under its Astrophysics Pioneers programme, led by Indian scientist Dr. Ramya Manjunath Anche, to map interstellar dust properties.
• BHASHINI & IISc Develop ‘Sourashtra’ TTS Models: The Digital India BHASHINI Division (MeitY), in collaboration with IISc Bengaluru, developed AI-based Text-to-Speech (TTS) models for the Sourashtra language to preserve linguistic heritage and boost digital inclusion.

6. SUMMITS, BILLS AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

• 33rd SIMBEX-2026 Commences in Visakhapatnam: The 33rd edition of the Singapore-India Maritime Bilateral Exercise (SIMBEX-2026) between the Indian Navy (featuring INS Nilgiri and INS Kamorta) and the Republic of Singapore Navy began at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
• Joint Military Exercise AUSTRAHIND 2026: India and Australia commenced the joint military exercise ‘AUSTRAHIND 2026’ in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, focusing on coastal/island operations and interoperability under UN mandates.
• 25th SCO Council of Heads of Government (CHG) Meeting: The 25th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) CHG Summit was held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, focusing on regional trade connectivity, security cooperation, and multilateral economic corridors.
• UNEP Emissions Gap Report 2026 & UNESCO GEM Gender Report: UNEP released the ‘Emissions Gap Report 2026: The Point of Return’ warning on the 1.5°C climate threshold, while UNESCO released the 2026 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Gender Report on equal education access.

7. BOOKS, AUTHORS AND IMPORTANT DAYS

• 23 October — International Snow Leopard Day 2026: Observed annually on 23 October to commemorate the 2013 Bishkek Declaration signed by 12 snow leopard range countries (including India) under the Global Snow Leopard & Ecosystem Protection Program (GSLEP) to protect the ‘Ghost of the Mountains’ (Panthera uncia).
• 23 October — National Mole Day (Chemistry): Celebrated globally by chemists and science students on 23 October between 6:02 AM and 6:02 PM to commemorate Avogadro’s Number (6.022 × 10²³), defining the basic measuring unit ‘Mole’ in chemistry.
• Book Release — ‘The Evolution of TV News in India’: Former Prasar Bharati Chairman A. Surya Prakash released veteran broadcaster and former Doordarshan Producer Harsaran Bir Kaur Pandey’s book ‘The Evolution of TV News in India: From Doordarshan to Digital Disruption – An Insider’s Account’ at IIC, New Delhi.

8. MISCELLANEOUS

• Asiatic Lions Reclaim Barda Wildlife Sanctuary: A landmark scientific study published in PLOS One confirmed that Asiatic lions (Panthera leo persica) have permanently established a breeding population in Gujarat’s Barda Wildlife Sanctuary after 144 years.

9. WEST BENGAL CURRENT AFFAIRS

• NDMA & State Audit After North Kolkata Pandal Crowd Surge: Following the tragic crowd crush at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata caused by sudden heavy rainfall and bottlenecked exits, disaster management authorities initiated strict crowd-density and separate entry-exit corridor protocols for upcoming festive congregations (Lakshmi Puja & Kali Puja) in West Bengal.
• UIDAI ‘Aadhaar Samvaad’ Initiatives Implemented in Kolkata: Following the landmark UIDAI ‘Aadhaar Samvaad’ conference held in Kolkata, contactless Face Authentication for ePDS (ration distribution) and the SWIK Portal 2.0 are being scaled up across West Bengal’s Public Distribution System.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Which organisation was awarded the SKOCH Gold Award 2026 for its ‘SUVIKALP’ Mine Repurposing Tool?

1. A) National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC)
2. B) Coal Controller Organisation (CCO)
3. C) Geological Survey of India (GSI)
4. D) Ministry of Mines

Answer: B) Coal Controller Organisation (CCO)

Q2. Which bank was honoured with the ‘World’s Best Consumer Bank 2026’ award by Global Finance magazine?

1. A) HDFC Bank
2. B) State Bank of India (SBI)
3. C) ICICI Bank
4. D) Axis Bank

Answer: B) State Bank of India (SBI)

Q3. Who has been selected by NASA as the Principal Investigator for the ‘PUFFINS’ space mission?

1. A) Dr. Ramya Manjunath Anche
2. B) Dr. K. Sivan
3. C) Dr. Ritu Karidhal
4. D) Dr. Muthayya Vanitha

Answer: A) Dr. Ramya Manjunath Anche

Q4. International Snow Leopard Day is observed annually across the globe on which date?

1. A) 21 October
2. B) 22 October
3. C) 23 October
4. D) 24 October

Answer: C) 23 October

Q5. Who has been named the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize 2026?

1. A) Reema Nanavaty
2. B) Navanethem “Navi” Pillay
3. C) Dr. Ramya Manjunath Anche
4. D) Sheetal Devi

Answer: B) Navanethem “Navi” Pillay