India and the European Union concluded negotiations on 7 November 2026 for India's association with Horizon Europe, the EU's flagship research and innovation programme.
international · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl, rrb-ntpc
India and the European Union successfully completed negotiations for India's association with Horizon Europe, the European Union's flagship research and innovation programme.
The association will let Indian researchers, institutions and industry take part in calls for funding under the programme and gain access to European consortia and research infrastructure.
The thematic clusters of Pillar II of Horizon Europe include health, digital technologies, industry and space, climate, energy and mobility, food and the bioeconomy.
Association with a foreign research programme is a distinct status from a bilateral agreement, and which pillar of Horizon Europe India joins is the detail a question turns on.
Linked static GK: Horizon Europe is the European Union's research and innovation framework programme. Pillar II covers global challenges and industrial competitiveness through thematic clusters. India and the EU already cooperate under the India-EU Agreement on Science and Technology Cooperation and the India-EU Trade and Technology Council.
Revised prices of anti-cancer medicines under the NPPA trade margin cap take effect from 9 November 2026, with estimated annual savings above Rs 3,500 crore.
As on the date of the release, 76 pharmaceutical companies had reported revised maximum retail prices for 1225 anti-cancer formulations, covering 121 drugs.
Price reductions were reported in 1031 formulations, with 600 brands reporting more than 50 per cent reduction and the highest reduction being 96.45 per cent.
This is the same policy as 6 November at a later stage, and the examinable facts have moved: the commencement date and the uptake, not the cap itself.
Linked static GK: The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority capped trade margins on 137 anti-cancer drugs on 17 October 2026, acting on an expert committee constituted by the Directorate General of Health Services. A trade margin cap limits the margin rather than fixing a ceiling price, which is how non-scheduled drugs are reached.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said 893 E20 petrol samples across 27 States and Union Territories met prescribed quality standards, including all 56 tested in Karnataka.
economy · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl, rrb-ntpc
893 samples of E20 petrol across 27 States and Union Territories were found compliant with prescribed quality standards.
The Ministry acted on a press release by the Karnataka Department of Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology claiming that petrol at certain retail outlets in the State contained between 26 per cent and 31 per cent ethanol.
The Indian Standard number for ethanol-blended petrol is directly askable, and this is a rare case of a Union ministry and a State department publicly disagreeing on a measurable technical fact.
Linked static GK: E20 is petrol blended with 20 per cent ethanol. IS 17021 is the Bureau of Indian Standards specification it is tested against. The three public sector oil marketing companies are IOCL, BPCL and HPCL.
A PIB backgrounder on 7 November 2026 placed India as the sixth-largest chemicals producer in the world, with the sector valued at around USD 220 billion.
economy · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl, ibps-po
India is the sixth-largest producer of chemicals in the world and the fourth-largest in Asia.
Rank-in-the-world figures for a sector are among the most reliably asked economy facts, and the world rank and the Asia rank are different numbers that are easy to confuse.
Linked static GK: Chemicals and petrochemicals are a licensed and regulated manufacturing sector under the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
Prof. Suman Chakraborty, Director of IIT Kharagpur, was elected a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences with effect from 1 January 2027.
awards · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl
Prof. Suman Chakraborty, Director of IIT Kharagpur, has been elected a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences, with the fellowship taking effect on 1 January 2027.
The World Academy of Sciences is an international scientific academy dedicated to advancing scientific excellence and strengthening scientific capacity in developing countries.
An Indian scientist elected to an international academy is a standard awards question, and TWAS is distinct from the national academies candidates more often memorise.
Linked static GK: The World Academy of Sciences, founded in 1983 and headquartered in Trieste, Italy, works to build scientific capacity in developing countries. It is separate from the Indian National Science Academy and the Indian Academy of Sciences.
In the first half of FY 2026-27, NTPC's coal-based power stations recorded a Plant Load Factor of 75.11 per cent, against 68.35 per cent for the rest of the country.
Plant Load Factor is the standard measure of a thermal station's utilisation, and a comparison against the national figure is the form in which it is usually asked.
Linked static GK: NTPC Limited was established in 1975 and is India's largest power generating company. Plant Load Factor is the ratio of actual energy generated to the maximum possible over a period.
The Union Home Minister reviewed Gujarat's law and order and internal security at a high-level meeting in Ahmedabad on 7 November 2026.
governance · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl, mpsc-group-c
The review emphasised strengthening surveillance along Gujarat's nearly 2,340 km long coastline and better coordination among the BSF, the State Police, the Coast Guard and central agencies.
Gujarat's implementation of the new criminal laws was described as commendable, with 92 per cent of chargesheets filed within 60 days and 86 per cent within 90 days.
The meeting stressed action against entire drug networks and their kingpins rather than only small-time peddlers, and prioritising financial investigations to seize illicit assets.
Chargesheet timelines under the new criminal laws are a measurable compliance figure and one of the few hard numbers attached to that reform.
Linked static GK: The three new criminal laws replacing the Indian Penal Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Evidence Act set statutory timelines for investigation and filing of chargesheets. Gujarat has a coastline of roughly 2,340 km, the longest of any Indian state.
AIIMS expansion beyond the original institute is a recurring governance and health theme, and the Union Territory framing for Jammu and Kashmir is itself examinable.
Linked static GK: The All India Institute of Medical Sciences network has been expanded under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana. Jammu and Kashmir has been a Union Territory since the reorganisation of 2019.
Special Campaign targets and their achievement are the kind of administrative figure that appears in descriptive papers and in interview questions on governance reform.
Linked static GK: The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation administers provident fund, pension and insurance schemes for organised sector workers. EPFiGMS is its online grievance management system. Special Campaign is an annual government-wide drive on pendency, cleanliness and record management.
A CBDT and CAG memorandum of understanding signed in September 2025 was operationalised through a joint capacity-building programme at NADT Regional Campus, Mumbai.
governance · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl, ibps-po
The National Academy of Direct Taxes Regional Campus, Mumbai, conducted a joint training session for officers of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department and the Income Tax Department on 6 November 2026.
The programme was organised under a memorandum of understanding executed between the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India in September 2025.
The CAG is a constitutional authority and the CBDT a statutory board, so a formal arrangement between them is the kind of institutional relationship a prelims question tests.
Linked static GK: The Comptroller and Auditor General is appointed under Article 148 of the Constitution. The Central Board of Direct Taxes is a statutory authority under the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1963. Profits and Gains of Business or Profession is a head of income under the Income-tax Act.
A DD News Arunachal documentary on Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve was launched at the 9th Namdapha Butterfly Festival 2026 at Miao in Changlang district.
environment · upsc-prelims, ssc-cgl
The Deputy Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh launched the documentary Namdapha: A Story of Life, produced by DD News Arunachal, on 31 October at the 9th Namdapha Butterfly Festival 2026 at Miao in Changlang district.
Namdapha is one of the few protected areas that is both a national park and a tiger reserve, and its district and state are regularly asked.
Linked static GK: Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve lies in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh and is known for having four large cat species. Doordarshan operates regional news services under Prasar Bharati.