CURRENT AFFAIRS

The Union Government has initiated nationwide consultations with States, Union Territories, and key stakeholders to prepare a roadmap for Samagra Shiksha 3.0, scheduled to be rolled out from the 2026–27 academic cycle.

India has notified a new taxation regime for tobacco and related sin goods, effective 1 February, following legislative changes approved by Parliament. The reform restructures GST slabs, excise duties, and cess mechanisms for tobacco products, marking a significant shift in India’s approach to public health-oriented taxation.

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 came into force on 20 July 2020, replacing the Consumer Protection Act, 1986. The new law aims to empower consumers, strengthen grievance redressal mechanisms, and address emerging challenges such as e-commerce, misleading advertisements, and product liability, making consumer justice faster and more effective.

At the 5th Chief Secretaries’ Conference, the Prime Minister urged States to replicate the Centre’s PRAGATI system to strengthen technology-driven governance, improve project monitoring, and accelerate the implementation of key reforms.

India’s Malaria Elimination Technical Report, 2025 has flagged the growing threat of urban malaria, driven by the spread of the invasive mosquito Anopheles stephensi, which could undermine India’s goal of eliminating malaria by 2030, with an interim target of zero indigenous cases by 2027, aligned with the World Health Organisation (WHO) strategy.

NITI Aayog has released a report titled “Internationalisation of Higher Education in India: Prospects, Potential, and Policy Recommendations”, aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The report comes soon after the introduction of the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, aimed at reforming higher education regulation, and seeks to correct the sharp imbalance between outbound and inbound student mobility, positioning India as a global education and research hub.

As Maoist influence recedes across large parts of central and eastern India, policy discussions are shifting from counter-insurgency to post-Maoist governance.

The proposed Viksit Bharat–Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission Gramin (VB-G RAM G) Bill seeks to replace the MGNREGS and introduces a 60-day suspension of rural employment works during peak sowing and harvesting seasons, to be notified in advance by States.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, the Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development informed that 222 educational institutions are currently participating in the Sanchar Mitra Scheme, a youth-centric digital awareness initiative of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

Recent data presented by the Union Health Ministry (2020–2024) shows a worsening organ transplant crisis in India, marked