Economic Survey and Budget 2026 were presented this week in the Parliament. (PTI)
UPSC Current Affairs Pointers brings you essential current affairs from the past week, every Monday, to aid your Prelims and Mains preparation for UPSC, State PCS, and other competitive examinations.
If you missed the UPSC Current Affairs Pointers of the past week | January 19 to 25, 2026, from the Indian Express, read it here.
— The Supreme Court has delivered a landmark verdict recognising the access to menstrual hygiene as not just a health issue but as a constitutional right.
— The court issued a continuing mandamus directing the Centre and states to ensure free sanitary napkins and functional toilets in all schools.
— The judgment went on to place menstrual health within the right to life and personal liberty guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution. It held that the right to life includes the right to live with dignity.
“A period should end a sentence – not a girl’s education.” – quote from American educator Melissa Berton
— From the outset, India’s Republic Day parades have been a grand affair and a splendid spectacle, displaying the nation’s achievements, military might and cultural diversity.
— On January 26, 1950, the first-ever Republic Day parade was performed at the Irwin Amphitheater (now Major Dhyan Chand Stadium).
Winners of the Best tableau for Republic Day 2026
— In the States and Union Territories category, Maharashtra secured first place for its tableau on “Ganeshotsav: A Symbol of Aatmanirbharta.”
— Jammu and Kashmir was awarded second place for showcasing its rich handicrafts and folk dances, while Kerala stood third with its tableau highlighting the Water Metro project and achievement of 100 per cent digital literacy under the theme of Aatmanirbhar Kerala for Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
— The Ministry of Culture was declared the winner in the Central Ministries and Departments category for its tableau titled “Vande Mataram, The Soul Cry of a Nation.”
— Among the three Services, the Indian Navy was adjudged the Best Marching Contingent, while Delhi Police won the top honour among the Central Armed Police Forces and other auxiliary forces.
President Droupadi Murmu addresses joint sitting of both Houses (Screengrab)
— The Budget session 2026-27 of the Parliament began with the address of the President of India to the joint sitting of the Parliament.
— The Constitution gives the President the power to address either House or a joint sitting of the two Houses of Parliament. Article 87 provides two special occasions on which the President addresses a joint sitting.
— The first is to address the opening session of a new legislature after a general election. The second is to address the first sitting of Parliament each year.
— The Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1951, limited the requirement of an address to the first session of each year and the first session after a general election.
— Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Economic Survey for 2025-26 in Parliament on January 30. The Survey is prepared by the Economic Division of the Finance Ministry, under the chief economic adviser V. Anantha Nageswaran. Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Sunday (February 1, 2026).
— The survey projected the country will grow by 6.8-7.2 per cent in the next financial year. The forecast in the annual economic survey represents a slowdown from this fiscal year’s 7.4% projection.
— It said that India has the potential to achieve 7.5% GDP growth in FY27, driven by improved manufacturing and land reforms.
— The Survey detailed three possible scenarios of global crises — ‘business as in 2025’, disorderly multipolar breakdown, and a systemic shock cascade in which financial, technological, and geopolitical stresses amplify one another rather than unfolding independently.
— Swadeshi is a disciplined strategy rather than a blanket doctrine: The survey noted that not all import substitution is desirable, while stressing that though the concept of Swadeshi is inevitable, it is a disciplined strategy rather than a blanket doctrine.
— The survey flagged concerns about fiscal populism, the crowding out of capital expenditure by cash transfers, and the rise of revenue deficits in states, with revenue surplus states reducing in number from 19 in FY19 to 11 in FY25.
— Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2026 on 1st February. With this, Sitharaman delivered her record ninth Budget.
— It is a ‘Yuva Shakti Driven Budget’ and the government’s sankalp is to focus on poor, underpriviliged and disadvantaged.
— The Finance Minister laid down three Kartavyas or duties of the government that were considered while preparing the Budget.
1. First is to accelerate and sustain economic growth by enhancing competitiveness and building resilience to volatile global dynamics.
2. Second is to fulfil the aspirations of people and build their capacity and make them strong partners in India’s path to prosperity
3. Third is to ensure ‘sab ka saath, sab ka vikas’. It is to ensure that every family, community, region has access to resources, ammenities opportunities for meaningful participation.
— Biopharma SHAKTI (Strategic for Healthcare Advancement through Knowledge, Technology and Innovation): Budget proposed to develop India as a global bio-pharma manufacturing hub by establishing Bio Pharma Shakti with an outlay of Rs 10,000 crore over the next 5 years.
— Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu to establish dedicated rare-earth mineral corridors.
— Orange Economy: FM announces content creator labs to boost India’s Animation, Visual effects, Gaming, and Comic (ABGC) sector in 15,000 secondary schools across India and 500 colleges.
— Bharat-VISTAAR (Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources)-a multilingual AI tool is proposed. It shall integrate the AgriStack portals and the ICAR package on agricultural practices with AI systems.
— Budget estimates for FY 2026-2027
— Recently the Union Jal Shakti Minister informed the states that they would receive funds under the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) only after signing of separate MoUs, with each scheme mapped through a Sujal Gaon ID and future releases linked to the demonstration of 15 days of continuous water supply.
— This comes amid concerns over irregularities in the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission which is waiting for the center’s approval for extension till 2028.
— Sujal Gaon ID is a digital module that records comprehensive details of all village water supply schemes, including geo-tagged pipelines, overhead tanks, and drinking water quality.
— The Centre launched JJM in 2019 to provide tap connections to every rural household by 2024. While the mission ended in 2024, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced its continuation in her Budget speech on February 1, 2025, with enhanced financial support till 2028.
European Council President Antonio Costa shows his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Card during a joint press statement after a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Hyderabad House, in New Delhi. (PTI Photo)
— European Council President António Costa, who was the Chief Guest at the 77th Republic Day, has Goan roots. In January 2017, Costa visited his ancestral home in Goa and was honoured with the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman and conferred an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card.
— The OCI scheme was introduced in August 2005 to provide for registration of all Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) who were citizens of India on January 26, 1950, or thereafter, or were eligible to become citizens of India on the said date.
— It was introduced by amending the Citizenship Act, 1955, in August 2005. The Scheme was launched during the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention 2006 at Hyderabad.
— In a significant order, the Supreme Court stayed the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations.
— The University Grants Commission (UGC), the regulatory body for higher education in the country, has notified the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026 on January 13.
— The regulation deals with discrimination, including on the basis of caste, in higher education institutions. It will be applicable to all higher education institutions, laying down a structure and method for discrimination-related complaints to be made and addressed.
— To implement the objective of these regulations, every higher education institution is mandated to have an Equal Opportunity Centre, an Equity Committee and Equity Squads.
— Equal Opportunity Centre: The Equal Opportunity Centre (EOC) will oversee the implementation of policies related to disadvantaged groups, coordinate with the district administration and police, and help provide legal aid when necessary.
— These EOCs will have five faculty members from the institution and there is no reservation for any category for these five members.
— Equity Committee: The EOC will have a ten-member Equity Committee chaired by the head of the institution. Five of its members must be from reserved categories — Other Backward Classes, Persons with Disabilities, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women.
— Equity Squads: These are to be constituted to “maintain vigil and prevent discrimination on campus”. They are to “remain mobile and visit vulnerable spots frequently.”
How the 2012 UGC equity guidelines vary from 2026 regulations
| 2012 regulation | 2026 regulation | |
| Definitions Of Discrimination Vs Caste-Based Discrimination | Defines ‘discrimination’ more broadly across religion, caste, gender, disability along with language and ethnicity | Defines ‘discrimination’ under two sections: section 3(1)(e) and ‘caste-based discrimination’ (section 3(1)(c)) separately. |
| Caste discrimination | No separate definition of caste-based discrimination | Discrimination only on the basis of caste or tribe against the members of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward classes. |
| Specific Forms Of Discrimination | Listed specific forms of discrimination, harassment, or victimisation. This included breaching the reservation policy in admissions; discrimination in accepting and processing applications for admissions, and more | These specific forms of discrimination have been left out, which task the ‘equal opportunity centre’ within institutions to prepare and disseminate an illustrative list of acts that shall be construed as discrimination. |
| Punitive action | Didn’t provide for any such action | Non-compliant institutions can be debarred from participating in UGC schemes |
| Equal opportunity centres | Provided for ‘Equal Opportunity Cells’ but did not specify the composition and functions of these cells, or the procedure to be followed in an instance of discrimination | Mandates ‘Equal Opportunity Centres’, with ‘equity committees’ which must be represented by OBCs, Persons with Disabilities, SCs, STs, and women. |
— At the invitation of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, President of the European Council, H.E. Mr. Antonio Costa, and President of the European Commission, H.E. Ms. Ursula von der Leyen, paid a State Visit to India on 25–27 January 2026 as the Chief Guests for the 77th Republic Day of India.
— At the 16th India-EU Annual summit held on 27th January, leaders finalised 13 key outcomes, that include FTA, security and defence partnership, a mobility framework, and a joint India–European Union Comprehensive Strategic Agenda for 2026–2030.
— India-EU FTA: India-EU Free Trade Agreement, dubbed as “mother of all deals”, took a graded approach to contentious issues such as automobiles and spirits, and has left out agriculture products altogether. For India, zero duty on labour-intensive goods brings it at par with competing countries, particularly with Vietnam, which signed a trade agreement with the EU in 2019.
— Comprehensive Framework of Cooperation on Mobility: It aimed at easing the movement of Indian students, workers and professionals across 27 EU member countries. The EU has committed to “an uncapped mobility for Indian students”.
— Towards 2030: India–EU Joint Comprehensive Strategic Agenda: It is aimed at accelerating progress across five key pillars: prosperity and sustainability, technology and innovation, security and defence, connectivity and global challenges, as well as enabling factors such as skills, mobility, business and people‑to‑people ties.
— Security and Defence Partnership: It aims to deepen ties in maritime security, defence industry and technology, cyber and hybrid threats, space and counter terrorism, among others.
— India hosted the 2nd India-Arab Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (IAFMM) on 31 January 2026. The meeting was co-chaired by India and the UAE.
— Foreign Ministers of other Arab League Member States and the Arab League Secretary General participated in the meeting.
— The Foreign Ministers’ meeting happened after a gap of 10 years, the first meeting being held in 2016 in Bahrain.
— India Arab Foreign Ministers’ Meeting is the highest institutional mechanism driving this partnership, which was formalised in March 2002 when India and League of Arab States (LAS) signed an MoU institutionalizing the process of dialogue.
— The Arab League, formally known as the League of Arab States, was established in 1945 with initially just six nations: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Currently, it has 22 member states, who have pledged to cooperate on economic and military affairs, among other issues.
— The European Union has listed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on the bloc’s list of terrorist organisations, putting the IRGC in a category similar to that of Islamic State and al Qaeda and marking a symbolic shift in Europe’s approach to Iran’s leadership.
— The IRGC, set up after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution to protect the Shi’ite clerical ruling system, has great sway in the country, controlling swathes of the economy and armed forces, and it was also put in charge of Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programmes.
— The 4th edition of India ENergy Week 2026 was held in Goa from 27-30 January 2026. It was held under the patronage of India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
— It is the country’s flagship global energy platform, which brings together government leaders, industry executives, and innovators to accelerate progress toward a secure, sustainable, and affordable energy future.
— India, while being among the largest consumers of crude, has an oil import dependency level of over 88%, and has been looking to increase domestic oil and gas production by intensifying exploration efforts.
— The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has notified the Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2026, to give effect to the new framework.
— Four streams of mandatory segregation at source – wet waste, dry waste, sanitary waste and special care waste – have been defined. This will cover waste from paper and kitchen waste to sanitary towels and diapers to tube lights, waste batteries.
— The focus of the new framework is on a ‘waste hierarchy’ which prioritizes prevention and reduction, followed by reuse, recycling, recovery and disposal, with prevention being the most preferred option.
— The new Rules broadens the scope of responsibilities, increases linkages for reuse of waste as fuel in boilers, cement kilns, to promote circular economy, and introduces clear penalties for non-compliance.
— It places stringent onus on bulk generators – which account for 30 per cent of waste – to process solid waste at source.
— Bulk generators have been defined as entities which fulfill either of these criterion – buildings with floor area of 20,000 square metres or more, water consumption of 40,000 litres per day or more, generation of 100 kg/day waste or more.
— These bulk generators must ensure that the waste is collected, transported, and processed in an environmentally sound manner.
— About 1.85 lakh tonnes/day solid waste is generated in the country, of which 1.79 lakh tonnes/day is collected, 1.14 lakh tonnes/day is processed or treated and 39,629 tonnes/day is landfilled, as per Central Pollution Control Board’s 2023-24 data.
Image created by AI
— Patna Bird Sanctuary in Etah district of Uttar Pradesh and Chhari-Dhand in Kutch district of Gujarat have been included as wetlands of international importance in Ramsar sites list, under the global Ramsar convention.
— The Patna bird sanctuary wetland consists of freshwater marshes, woodlands and grasslands, and is surrounded by agricultural landscapes, as per the note.
— Chhari-Dhand is a seasonal saline wetland located between the famous Banni grasslands and salt flats of Kutch, as per a note issued by the Ramsar Convention secretariat.
— The designation of these two sites under the Ramsar Convention takes the total number of such wetlands in India to 98.
— The government is planning to launch Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) safety technology to prevent road accident deaths and reduce traffic.
— V2V or vehicle-to-vehicle communication is a wireless technology that will enable the vehicles to communicate or talk with one another to share real-time information like speed, location, acceleration, braking, etc.
— It is the sub-category of Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) and comes under the umbrella of the Intelligent Transport System.
— For the V2V system, an On Board Unit (OBU) will be installed in cars so that nearby vehicles can exchange information among vehicles wirelessly. It will alert the driver about the black spots, obstacles, parked vehicles on roadsides, fog or any potential threat.
— Usually, V2V systems have a range of 300 metres and can detect vehicles in this range.
(Just FYI: UPSC has consistently included questions on health and diseases in its examinations over the years. For instance, in 2014, a question about the Ebola virus appeared in the Prelims, and in 2017, a question about the Zika virus was featured. Therefore, it is crucial to stay updated on diseases that are currently in the news.)
— Airports in Thailand, Taiwan and Nepal have reintroduced Covid-style health checks following reports of Nipah cases in India.
— Nipah is a viral infection that mainly affects animals such as bats, pigs, dogs, and horses. Being zoonotic, it can jump to humans who come in contact with the infected animals and cause serious disease.
— Nipah can spread to humans after close contact with infected animals or secretions containing the virus on fruit trees, fruits, date palm sap, juice or toddy. It can spread from human to human through close contact at home or in hospitals. It can spread from handling dead bodies of those with Nipah.
— There are no antivirals and there is only symptomatic management.
(Just FYI: Noting historical personalities’ anniversaries aids UPSC prep. UPSC often includes such personalities in questions, so revisiting their lives refreshes your static syllabus.)
Tully at a political rally in New Delhi, 1991. Photo credit: Parthiv Shah
— Sir Mark Tully, the broadcaster whose warm voice that once travelled through crackling shortwave radios to become, for millions, the most trusted interpreter of India, passed away in New Delhi at the age of 90.
— Raised partly in India and later educated in Britain, Tully returned in 1965 with the BBC, initially in an administrative role, before growing into one of the most influential foreign correspondents the country has known.
— During the Emergency, when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi imposed censorship and threw out all foreign correspondents who were unwilling to sign an undertaking that they were agreeable to pre-censorship, Tully was but naturally the first non-Indian journalist to be targeted.
— Tully’s gripping accounts of other epoch-making events such as Operation Blue Star, the Bhopal gas tragedy and Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination are etched in a generation of Indians in the 70s, 80s and 90s.
Mathrubhumi Group Managing Director M V Shreyamskumar handing over the Mathrubhumi Book of year award 2026 to Arundhati Roy. (Express Photo)
— Celebrated author and activist Arundhati Roy has won the Mathrubhumi Book of the Year Award 2026 for her novel, Mother Mary Comes to Me.
— The award, now in its seventh edition, carries a cash prize of ₹200,000 and a sculpture.
— It honours an English-language book published in India that has made a lasting contribution to contemporary literature, whether originally written in English or translated from an Indian language.
— Father Kunnunkal, a Jesuit priest, a Padma Shri awardee and one of the most influential figures in India’s post-Independence education system, died at the age of 99.
— He is best known for reshaping the Central Board of Secondary Education into a national benchmark. He has served as the CBSE chairman from 1980 to 1987.
(Just FYI: With the unpredictability of the UPSC examinations and questions like the ICC World Test Championship question 2021, you can’t be sure of anything. It is wise to know what it is and not go into too much detail.)
Carlos Alcaraz becomes the youngest player to complete career Slam after beating Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open 2026 final. (PHOTO: AP)
— Australia Open, Wimbledon, French Open and US Open are the most prestigious events on the annual tennis calendar, bestowed with the moniker of “Grand Slam”, a term that has been in use for almost a century.
Winners of the Australian Open
| Category | Winners | Runner up |
| Women’s Singles | Elena Rybakina
(Kazakhstan) |
Aryna Sabalenka
(Belarusian) |
| Men’s Singles | Carlos Alcaraz
(Spanish) |
Novak Djokovic
(Serbian) |
| Women’s Double | Elise Mertens and Zhang Shuai | Anna Danilina and Aleksandra Krunić |
| Men’s Double | Christian Harrison and Neal Skupski | Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans |
| Mixed Double | Olivia Gadecki and John Peers | Kristina Mladenovic and Manuel Guinard |
— President Donald Trump said that American forces had used a weapon called “the discombobulator” during the military strike on Venezuela on January 3.
— Experts told the Indian Express that the discombobulator may or may not be a single weapon and could comprise more than one capability. It could also have included systems that produce high-pitched sounds and blinding effects to temporarily deafen, blind, or disorient people during an operation.
— Systems that disorient people: Active denial system, Vortex ring generator, Acoustic hailing devices (or long-range acoustic device), and Visual dazzlers.
(Note: The best way to remember facts for UPSC and other competitive exams is to recall them through MCQs. Try to solve the following questions on your own.)
(1) Who is the winner of the Mathrubhumi Book of the Year Award 2026?
(a) Anita Desai
(b) Arundhati Roy
(c) Banu Mushtaq
(d) Jhumpa Lahiri
(2) Consider the following statements:
1. It is mandatory for the President to addresses the start of “every session” in the Parliament.
2. Article 87 provides two special occasions on which the President addresses a joint sitting.
Which of the statements mentioned above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
(3) Consider the following pairs:
Wetland/Lake: Location
1. Patna Bird Sanctuary : Bihar
2. Renuka Wetland : Himachal Pradesh
3. Rudrasagar Lake : Tripura
4. Chhari-Dhand : Gujarat
How many pairs given above are correctly matched?
| Prelims Answer Key |
| 1. (b) 2. (b) 3. (c) |
Topic: India’s Union Budget 2026–27 has set ambitious targets but what do they really signal for the economy, markets, and investors?
Express Explained.Live, where we decode the big themes and critical questions emerging from the Budget:
Register now: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/8417700282116/WN_a0KekEOLQyyL2oyhMTDL4g
February 4, 2026 | 6:00 PM | Zoom
For your suggestions and feedback, write to khushboo.kumari@indianexpress.com
Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X.
🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for January 2026. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at manas.srivastava@indianexpress.com🚨
Read UPSC Magazine
