Awards and Honours

• France has conferred the Legion of Honour on Sunil Bharti Mittal for strengthening India–France economic ties through telecommunications, digital infrastructure and satellite communications.

Legion of Honour (French Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur) is the highest distinction of France.

Founded on 19 May 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte, who was First Consul at that time, it honours outstanding services rendered to the country. It can be given to both French and non-French people.

• The IIFA DIGITAL (International Indian Film Academy) Awards of 2026 were held as the 26th edition of the event that celebrated achievements in the Indian film industry and digital media.

FILM CATEGORY WINNERS

Best Picture: Baramulla – B62 Studios, Netflix Entertainment Services India LLP and Jio Studios

• Best Direction:Karan Tejpal for Stolen
• Performance in a Leading Role (Female):Sanya Malhotra for Mrs
• Performance in a Leading Role (Male):Abhishek Banerjee for Stolen
• Performance in a Supporting Role (Female):Monika Panwar for Nishaanchi 2
• Performance in a Supporting Role (Male):Avinash Tiwary for The Mehta Boys
• Best Story (Original):Aditya Dhar, Monal Thakkar and Aditya Suhas Jambhale for Baramulla

SERIES CATEGORY WINNERS

• Best Picture:The Ba**ds of Bollywood* – Red Chillies Entertainments Pvt. Ltd. and Netflix Entertainment Services India LLP
• Best Direction:Aryan Khan for The Ba**ds of Bollywood*
• Performance in a Leading Role (Female):Tillotama Shome for Paatal Lok Season 2
• Performance in a Leading Role (Male):Jaideep Ahlawat for Paatal Lok Season 2
• Performance in a Supporting Role (Female): Anya Singh for The Ba**ds of Bollywood*
• Performance in a Supporting Role (Male):Raghav Juyal for The Ba**ds of Bollywood*
• Best Story (Original):Sudip Sharma, Tamal Sen, Rahul Kanojia and Abhishek Banerjee for Paatal Lok Season 2

2. Appointments & Person in News

• Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit has officially taken charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) of the Indian Air Force. He succeeds Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, who superannuated on the afternoon of October 31, 2026.
• Vijay Sankar: Appointed as the President-Elect of FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) for the 2026–27 term.
• Barbara Barrie: The Oscar-nominated American actress, known for her roles in Breaking Away and extensive Broadway career, passed away at the age of 95. Earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the 1980 Oscars for portraying Evelyn Stohler in Breaking Away (1979).

3. Govt Scheme Policies and Welfare Initiatives

• The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment launched a nationwide awareness campaign for senior citizen welfare schemes ahead of winter.
• The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has introduced the ‘UPS Jeewan Setu – Digital Life Certificate (DLC)’ facility for pensioners covered under the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS).

4. Sports and Games

• The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games officially begin today, October 31, 2026, marking the first-ever Olympic event hosted on African soil.
• Dates: October 31 – November 13, 2026
• Host Locations: Dakar, Diamniadio, and Saly, Senegal
• Motto: “Africa Welcomes, Dakar Celebrates” (L’Afrique accueille, Dakar célèbre)
• Participants: Around 2,700 athletes from over 200 delegations (plus a Youth Refugee Olympic Team)
• Sports Program: 25 competition sports (including new additions like Baseball5 and Wushu Taolu) and 10 cultural/engagement sports
• The 43rd running of the Breeders’ Cup World Championships is taking place on October 30–31, 2026 at the historic Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, This marks the fourth time Keeneland has hosted the world championships.
• Manisha Bhanwala won India’s first-ever women’s freestyle gold medal at the World Wrestling Championships 2026 in Astana, Kazakhstan.

5. Science Space and Technology

• New Microscopic Land Snail Species Discovered in Kolhapur’s Tilari Region
  In October 2026, researchers from the Thackeray Wildlife Foundation identified a new species of microscopic land snail, named Dicharax tilariensis, in the Tilari region of Kolhapur district, Maharashtra.
• ISRO’s GSLV-F18 / NVS-03 Launch: ISRO successfully launched the next-generation navigation satellite NVS-03 aboard the GSLV-F18 rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, helping strengthen and restore the indigenous NavIC regional satellite navigation constellation.

6. Summits, Bills and International Affairs

• World Bank Poverty & Equity Report: The World Bank released its October 2026 report showing that India lifted approximately 496 million people out of poverty between 2011 and 2023, dropping the extreme poverty rate from 27.1% to 2.6%.
• Liechtenstein Hereditary Prince Alois Visit: Prince Alois concluded a high-level official visit to India (October 25–28, 2026) focusing on bilateral cooperation.

7. Books, Authors and Important days

• Nationwide celebrations marked National Unity Day (Rashtriya Ekta Diwas) on October 31 to commemorate the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

• World Thrift Day was observed on October 30-31 to promote financial literacy and responsible saving habits.
• Observed annually on October 31, World Cities Day promotes sustainable urban development. The 2026 observance marks its 13th edition, hosted in Fuzhou, China, under the theme “Regenerating the City: Adequate Housing for All.”

8. Miscellaneous

• The government has constituted a High-Level Committee on Banking for Viksit Bharat to review the country’s banking sector and recommend reforms in line with the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047.
• The Finance Ministry said that the Committee will recommend structural, institutional, regulatory and legislative reforms to make the Indian banking sector globally competitive, financially inclusive and resilient. The Committee will be chaired by former Central Vigilance Commissioner Suresh N. Patel.

• Mayon Volcano in Albay, the Philippines, erupted moderately explosively on Friday, 30 October 2026. The eruption began at 11:53 a.m. and lasted nearly six minutes, sending a grey ash plume 3,000 metres above the summit crater.

9. West Bengal Current Affairs

• Migratory birds, including the Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus, locally known as Khayra Kastechera), have returned to wetlands in Paschim Medinipur as the winter season approaches..
• The Glossy Ibis was first documented in West Bengal’s Medinipur district back in 1878 by Irish ornithologist Valentine Ball (published in Allan Octavian Hume’s Stray Feathers journal).
• These flocks travel over 4,000 kilometers from regions like the Caspian Sea, alongside established populations in western/northern India like Gujarat and Rajasthan.
• The West Bengal government has imposed restrictions on the bursting of firecrackers during Kali Puja, Diwali and Chhath Puja to curb air and noise pollution. Announcing the guidelines at Nabanna today, State Home Secretary Sanghamitra Ghosh said only certified green firecrackers would be permitted between 8 PM and 10 PM on Diwali and between 6 AM and 8 AM on Chhath Puja.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Which country conferred its highest distinction, the ‘Legion of Honour’, on Sunil Bharti Mittal?

A) Germany

B) France

C) United Kingdom

D) United States

Answer: B) France

Q2. Who has officially taken charge as the 29th Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) of the Indian Air Force?

A) Air Marshal Amar Preet Singh

B) Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit

C) Air Marshal Vikram Gaur

D) Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari

Answer: B) Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit

Q3. The Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games mark a historic milestone by hosting the first-ever Olympic event on which continent?

A) Asia

B) South America

C) Africa

D) Oceania

Answer: C) Africa

Q4. Manisha Bhanwala made history by winning India’s first-ever women’s freestyle gold medal at which event in 2026?

A) World Wrestling Championships

B) World Boxing Championships

C) Asian Wrestling Championships

D) Commonwealth Wrestling Games

Answer: A) World Wrestling Championships

Q5. Who bestowed the title ‘Sardar’ upon Vallabhbhai Patel following the successful leadership of the Bardoli Satyagraha in 1928?

A) Mahatma Gandhi

B) The women and people of Bardoli

C) Jawaharlal Nehru

D) Subhas Chandra Bose

Answer: B) The women and people of Bardoli