Current Affairs Today, October 1, 2026, Complete News Roundup

🗞️ Why in News Beyond the deep dives on the Rabi MSPs for 2027-28, the Green Energy Corridor Phase III, the CAFE-III fuel-efficiency norms, the close of the 2026 monsoon and UPSC at 100, the 1 October 2026 roundup covers the Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026, which comes into force today, the Annual Survey of Industries 2024-25, the Union accounts to August, the extension of RoDTEP and RoSCTL, the Supreme Court on firecrackers, the National Coastal Mission 2.0, offshore mineral blocks in the Andaman Sea, the National Biodiversity Authority at 23, the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise, the UN Crime Congress, the US withdrawal from Iraq, a hydrogen signal from the early universe, a review of the Rajya Sabha code of conduct and the International Day of Older Persons.

Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026 Comes into Force

The Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026 comes into force today, 1 October 2026, and replaces the Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 1891, a law written when bank records were paper ledgers. As background, we explained the Bill when it was before Parliament in our 5 August deep dive; the new development is its commencement, set out in a PIB backgrounder of 30 September.

What changes.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026: in force 1 October 2026; replaces the 1891 Act.
• Electronic bank records admissible if a true copy and no tampering is detected; bank staff summoned only for “special cause”.
• Trap: the general law of evidence is now the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023; this Act is a special law for banking records.

Annual Survey of Industries 2024-25: Factory Jobs Near 2.1 Crore

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the results of the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) 2024-25 on 30 September 2026. The survey covers the registered manufacturing sector for April 2024 to March 2025; field work ran from October 2025 to June 2026.

Where industry is. Tamil Nadu has the most factories (41,221), followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra. Maharashtra has the largest share of GVA (15.9 per cent), followed by Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh; these five produce more than 54 per cent of manufacturing GVA. In employment, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana lead with about 56 per cent. Five industries (basic metals, motor vehicles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and food products) make up more than 45 per cent of GVA.

The frame. The ASI covers factories registered under Sections 2m(i) and 2m(ii) of the Factories Act, 1948, bidi and cigar units, some electricity undertakings, and units with 100 or more employees in State business registers. Data are collected under the Collection of Statistics Act, 2008.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• ASI 2024-25 (MoSPI, 30 September 2026): 2.67 lakh factories; GVA up 9.59%; employment 2.10 crore (+7.19%).
• Most factories: Tamil Nadu; highest GVA: Maharashtra; top five States in jobs hold about 56%.
• Trap: the ASI is an annual survey of registered factories; the IIP is a monthly production index.

Union Finances to August: Fiscal Deficit at 41.9% of the Year’s Target

The Controller General of Accounts published the Union government’s accounts up to August 2026 on 30 September. The fiscal deficit for April to August reached 41.9 per cent of the Budget Estimate (BE) for 2026-27, against 38.1 per cent at the same point last year, mainly because of higher subsidy spending, especially on fertilisers, The Hindu reported.

Why non-tax revenue is so high. It includes the RBI’s surplus transfer (dividend) to the government, which is booked early in the year.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• Fiscal deficit, April-August 2026: 41.9% of BE (38.1% a year earlier); capex at 41.7% of BE.
• Interest payments Rs 5,14,810 crore, about a third of revenue expenditure to August.
• Trap: fiscal deficit = total expenditure minus receipts other than borrowings; the primary deficit excludes interest payments.

RoDTEP and RoSCTL Extended to 31 December 2026

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry extended the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme, and the Ministry of Textiles extended the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) scheme, for three months, 1 October to 31 December 2026, at existing rates and guidelines, by orders issued on 30 September.

The principle. Both rest on the idea of zero-rating exports: goods should be exported, not domestic taxes. Refunding embedded taxes is permitted under WTO rules; export subsidies contingent on export performance are not.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• RoDTEP (Commerce) and RoSCTL (Textiles) extended to 31 December 2026 at existing rates.
• RoDTEP replaced MEIS from 1 January 2021; RoSCTL operational since 7 March 2019.
• Trap: rebating embedded taxes is WTO-compatible; an export subsidy tied to export performance is prohibited.

Firecrackers: Supreme Court Rules Out a Nationwide Ban, Weighs Time Limits

A Bench headed by Justice M.M. Sundresh said on 30 September 2026 that it would not order a total ban on firecrackers across the country, and accepted suggestions of CSIR-NEERI (National Environmental Engineering Research Institute) for a “limited and conditional relaxation” ahead of Deepavali. “Total ban will hurt certain sentiments,” the Bench remarked orally, adding that it would not allow bursting for 24 hours “as it affects the sick, the elderly, and children”. It said it would consider fixed time windows and gave the Central Pollution Control Board and the Centre more time for tests.

What NEERI proposes. Next-generation joined green crackers made only by licensed manufacturers to approved formulations, without barium, within the noise limit of 125 dB(AI) / 145 dB(C) peak. Tests showed about 30 per cent lower emissions than conventional joined crackers and 4 to 32 per cent less solid waste, The Hindu reported. The court’s order is still to come; this was a hearing.

Background. Winter air quality in Delhi-NCR, and the new Graded Response Action Plan, were in our 30 September deep dive. The Supreme Court first restricted crackers to “green” varieties in Arjun Gopal v. Union of India (2018), a case on the right to clean air under Article 21.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• SC (Bench headed by Justice M.M. Sundresh), 30 September 2026: no nationwide cracker ban; time windows under consideration.
• CSIR-NEERI green crackers: no barium; about 30% lower emissions; noise limit 125 dB(AI)/145 dB(C) peak.
• Trap: the 30 September hearing produced oral remarks and accepted suggestions; a final order is awaited.

National Coastal Mission 2.0: Guidelines Launched

Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav launched the implementation guidelines for the National Coastal Mission (NCM 2.0) on 30 September 2026. It is a Central Sector Scheme with an outlay of Rs 767 crore, to run until 2030-31 across nine coastal States and four Union Territories. Its components: vulnerability assessments, ecosystem restoration (mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass), pollution management, biodiversity conservation, sustainable tourism, coastal spatial planning, research and capacity building, with the aim of resilience and a sustainable blue economy.

Why it matters. India’s coastline, remeasured in 2023-24, is about 11,098 km. The National Centre for Coastal Research has found that about a third of the mainland shoreline is eroding. Coastal planning operates under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, 2019, issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• NCM 2.0: Central Sector Scheme, Rs 767 crore, to 2030-31, 9 coastal States and 4 UTs (MoEFCC).
• India’s coastline: about 11,098 km (2023-24 remeasurement).
• Trap: a Central Sector scheme is fully funded by the Centre; a Centrally Sponsored scheme shares costs with States.

Offshore Mineral Blocks in the Andaman Sea Go to Auction

The Ministry of Mines said on 30 September that it would launch the auction of two offshore mineral blocks in the Andaman Sea on 1 October 2026, for the grant of Composite Licences (exploration followed by production). The auction is held under the Offshore Areas Mineral (Development and Regulation) Act, 2002, amended in 2023 to make auction the mode of allocation, and the Offshore Areas Mineral (Auction) Rules, 2024. The ministry points to cobalt, nickel, manganese, copper and rare earth elements as the strategic prize.

The law of the sea. Offshore minerals within India’s territorial waters, continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) fall under the Union (Article 297 vests them in the Union). Deep-seabed minerals beyond national jurisdiction are governed by the International Seabed Authority under UNCLOS.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• Andaman Sea: two offshore blocks; Composite Licence; launch on 1 October 2026.
• Law: OAMDR Act, 2002 (amended 2023); Offshore Areas Mineral (Auction) Rules, 2024.
• Trap: minerals in India’s EEZ vest in the Union (Article 297); the ISA governs the seabed beyond national jurisdiction.

National Biodiversity Authority at 23: Rs 278 Crore Through Benefit Sharing

The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), set up on 1 October 2003 under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002, marks its 23rd Foundation Day today. It said on 30 September that it has realised more than Rs 278 crore through Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) since 2008, and disbursed more than Rs 200 crore to over 10,500 Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs), State Biodiversity Boards, forest departments and research institutions. Around Rs 100 crore has gone to conserve Red Sanders through Andhra Pradesh. It has received 11,273 ABS applications.

The three-tier structure. NBA (national, headquartered in Chennai), State Biodiversity Boards and UT Biodiversity Councils, and BMCs at the local body level, which maintain People’s Biodiversity Registers. ABS gives effect to the Nagoya Protocol and to Target 13 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. The law was amended in 2023, with new Rules (2024) and ABS Regulations (2025).

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• NBA: statutory body, 1 October 2003, Biological Diversity Act 2002 (amended 2023); HQ Chennai.
• ABS realised over Rs 278 crore since 2008; more than Rs 200 crore disbursed.
• Trap: the Nagoya Protocol (adopted 2010) is under the CBD; the Cartagena Protocol deals with biosafety (GMOs).

ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise 2026 Begins at Subic Bay

The second edition of the ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise (AIME-2026) began at Subic Bay, Philippines, on 28 September 2026, with Indian Navy ships INS Sahyadri and INS Kulish and maritime forces of ASEAN member states, under the theme “Anchored in Trust, United at Sea”. A harbour phase is followed by a sea phase. The Defence Ministry linked it to the Act East Policy and the vision of MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions). As background, the first AIME was held in 2023.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• AIME-2026: 2nd edition, Subic Bay, Philippines, from 28 September 2026; INS Sahyadri and Kulish.
• Theme: “Anchored in Trust, United at Sea”; linked to Act East and MAHASAGAR.
• Trap: Subic Bay faces the South China Sea on the island of Luzon.

15th UN Crime Congress in Abu Dhabi

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal presented India’s justice reforms at the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Abu Dhabi, the Law Ministry said on 30 September 2026. He highlighted the new criminal laws (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam), the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) and the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, and met the UAE Justice Minister and the Executive Director of the UNODC. The Congress runs from 26 September to 1 October 2026 under the theme of accelerating crime prevention, criminal justice and the rule of law “in the digital age”.

About the Congress. The UN Crime Congress meets about every five years; the first was held in Geneva in 1955, and the 14th in Kyoto in 2021 adopted the Kyoto Declaration. Its secretariat is the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Vienna.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• 15th UN Crime Congress: Abu Dhabi, 26 September to 1 October 2026; secretariat UNODC.
• Held about every five years; 14th in Kyoto (2021): Kyoto Declaration.
• Trap: the UN Crime Congress is distinct from the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, an ECOSOC body that meets annually in Vienna.

United States Completes Its Troop Withdrawal from Iraq

US forces withdrew from their last military bases in Iraq on 30 September 2026, more than 23 years after the 2003 invasion, meeting a deadline set under the previous US administration. The last troops had been consolidated at bases around Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan; some Marines remain to guard diplomatic missions, The Hindu reported. As context, the withdrawal comes during the US-Iran war that began on 28 February 2026, in which Iran-backed Popular Mobilisation Units (Hashd al-Shaabi) stepped up attacks on US facilities in Iraq.

Why it matters. Analysts expect Iran’s influence in Iraq to grow, and the autonomy of the Kurdistan Region to come under pressure. For India, Iraq is among its largest crude oil suppliers, and stability along the Gulf matters for energy and the diaspora.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• US withdrawal from Iraq completed 30 September 2026; the last troops left bases around Erbil (Kurdistan).
• Iraq’s capital Baghdad lies on the Tigris; Erbil is the capital of the Kurdistan Region.
• Trap: the Popular Mobilisation Units are Iraqi militias, many Iran-backed; they are not Iranian state forces.

Telescope Detects the Glow of Hydrogen from a Young Universe

The Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME), a radio telescope in Canada, has made its first stand-alone detection of the faint radio glow of neutral hydrogen from when the universe was about five billion years old, in a study published in The Astrophysical Journal on 30 September 2026. Researchers at the Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bengaluru, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology, are part of the collaboration.

The science. Neutral hydrogen emits radio waves at a wavelength of 21 cm (about 1,420 MHz). Instead of cataloguing galaxies one by one, line-intensity mapping measures the combined glow of hydrogen over huge volumes, tracing how matter is distributed and helping measure the expansion of the universe and dark energy. The data suggest about 2 per cent of hydrogen was in neutral atomic form at that time.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• CHIME: radio telescope in Canada; first stand-alone detection of hydrogen glow (universe about 5 billion years old).
• Indian partner: Raman Research Institute, Bengaluru (DST).
• Trap: the 21-cm line comes from neutral atomic hydrogen, not from ionised hydrogen.

Rajya Sabha Ethics Committee Reviews the Members’ Code of Conduct

The Ethics Committee of the Rajya Sabha, chaired by Ghanshyam Tiwari, has circulated a questionnaire to political parties on revising the code of conduct for members, The Hindu reported on 30 September 2026. It asks whether the code should say explicitly that members must not misuse the protection of free speech in parliamentary proceedings to harm the reputation of others, how to curb unparliamentary language, and how to guide debates on sensitive subjects such as national heroes and history. The review follows a direction of March 2025 to update the 1998 report of the Ethics Committee chaired by S.B. Chavan in the light of social media. These are proposals for consultation, not rules.

Context. Freedom of speech in Parliament is protected by Article 105(1), and members cannot be sued for anything said in the House (Article 105(2)). A seven-judge Bench of the Supreme Court begins hearing the related question of legislative privileges on 6 October, as noted in our 30 September roundup.

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• Rajya Sabha Ethics Committee: constituted 1997; questionnaire on revising the members’ code of conduct.
• Free speech in Parliament: Article 105(1); immunity from court proceedings: Article 105(2).
• Trap: a questionnaire seeks views; no change to the code has been adopted.

International Day of Older Persons

The International Day of Older Persons is observed on 1 October. The UN’s theme for 2026 is “The Age of Longevity: Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives”, grounded in the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (2002); the UN’s commemoration at its headquarters is on 8 October. The day was designated by the UN General Assembly in 1990 and first observed in 1991.

India’s framework. The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007 makes maintenance of parents and senior citizens a legal obligation, through Maintenance Tribunals. Other pillars include the National Policy on Older Persons (1999), the Atal Vayo Abhyuday Yojana, and the extension of Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY health cover to all citizens aged 70 and above (from 2024).

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

• 1 October: International Day of Older Persons; 2026 theme: “The Age of Longevity: Rethinking Systems for Longer Lives”.
• Designated by the UNGA in 1990; first observed 1991; Madrid Plan of Action on Ageing 2002.
• Trap: the 2007 Act creates Maintenance Tribunals; it is a central law, not a scheme.

UPSC Relevance

GS Paper 2. Statutes (Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026); Supreme Court and the right to clean air; parliamentary conduct and privileges; welfare of vulnerable sections (older persons); international institutions (UN Crime Congress); India’s neighbourhood and West Asia. GS Paper 3. Industrial statistics (ASI); government budgeting; export promotion and the WTO; coastal and marine resources; biodiversity and ABS; security (ASEAN maritime cooperation); science and technology (radio astronomy). GS Paper 1. Distribution of key natural resources (offshore minerals).

📌 Facts Corner, Knowledgepedia

Prelims, statement-ready facts:

• Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026: in force 1 October 2026; ASI 2024-25: 2.67 lakh factories, 2.10 crore jobs.
• Fiscal deficit to August: 41.9% of BE; RoDTEP and RoSCTL extended to 31 December 2026.
• NCM 2.0: Rs 767 crore to 2030-31; NBA founded 1 October 2003, HQ Chennai.

Prelims, the traps:

• The ASI is not the IIP; RoDTEP replaced MEIS; EEZ minerals vest in the Union (Article 297).

Mains, arguments and keywords:

• Digital evidence; formal manufacturing jobs; fiscal space and subsidies; WTO-compatible export support; coastal resilience; benefit sharing.

Interview, be ready for:

• “Should courts decide when citizens may burst crackers?” Courts step in when regulators fail on Article 21 duties; durable solutions need emission standards enforced by regulators.

Sources: PIB, Bankers’ Books Evidence Act, 2026 (30 September 2026), PIB, ASI 2024-25, PIB, Union accounts to August 2026, PIB, RoSCTL extended, PIB, NCM 2.0, PIB, offshore mineral blocks, PIB, NBA Foundation Day, PIB, AIME-2026, PIB, UN Crime Congress, PIB, CHIME, The Hindu, firecrackers, The Hindu, RoDTEP, The Hindu, fiscal deficit, The Hindu, Iraq, The Hindu, Rajya Sabha Ethics Committee, UN, International Day of Older Persons 2026

Source: Current Affairs Today, October 1, 2026, Complete News Roundup — Ujiyari.com | Free UPSC & State PCS Current Affairs