The 2026 Yearbook compiles the most UPSC-relevant developments quarter by quarter, organised subject-wise. Q1 (January–March) covered 269 articles across 90 days — from India becoming the world’s 4th largest economy and hosting BRICS, to the West Asia crisis threatening Hormuz oil routes, the first-ever CEC removal motion, Union Budget 2026-27, and landmark Supreme Court rulings on bulldozer justice and passive euthanasia.

Updated through: Q1 (January–March 2026) · Q2, Q3, Q4 sections will be added as the year progresses.

Quarter 1 — January to March 2026

Polity & Governance

Constitutional & Judicial Landmarks

• Bulldozer Justice — SC Guidelines on Demolitions (Mar) — Justices B.R. Gavai and K.V. Viswanathan established that demolishing property as punishment violates Articles 14, 21, and 300A. Framework mandates 15-day notice, personal hearing, video documentation, and personal liability of erring officials.

• Passive Euthanasia — First Implementation (Harish Rana Case) (Mar) — First implementation of SC’s 2018 Common Cause v. Union of India ruling on passive euthanasia under Article 21’s right to die with dignity. Petitioner sought simplified procedure removing High Court approval requirement.

• OBC Creamy Layer — Status Over Income (Mar) — SC ruled that OBC creamy layer exclusion should be based on occupational status, not just income threshold, widening exclusion criteria for backward class reservations.

• Disability Rights and Judicial Expansion of Article 21 (Jan) — SC expanded Article 21 to include disability rights, building on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.

• SC Expands Article 21 to Include Menstrual Health (Jan) — Landmark expansion of fundamental rights jurisprudence.

Governance & Institutions

• First-Ever CEC Removal Motion (Mar) — 193 MPs filed a removal motion against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar — the first such motion against a CEC in India’s history.

• 16th Finance Commission Report (2026–31) (Mar) — Arvind Panagariya-chaired commission introduced GDP Contribution as a new devolution criterion and recommended restructured fiscal transfers between Centre and states.

• Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill 2025 (Mar) — Proposes replacing UGC (1956), AICTE (1987), and NCTE (1993) with a single apex body for higher education regulation, accreditation, and standards.

• Union Budget 2026-27 — Constitutional Architecture (Feb) — Budget presented under Article 112; major allocations for defence, infrastructure, and social welfare.

• Kerala → Keralam — Article 3 Renaming Process (Feb) — State renaming under Article 3 of the Constitution, requiring Parliamentary legislation.

• Frontier Nagaland Territorial Authority (FNTA) (Feb) — Autonomous governance arrangement for Naga tribal areas.

• IT Amendment Rules 2026 — Deepfakes Regulation (Feb) — New rules for AI governance and deepfake content regulation.

• Telangana Abolishes Two-Child Norm (Jan) — Assembly unanimously abolished the two-child norm for Panchayati Raj elections; rural TFR at 1.7 made the provision counterproductive.

• Republic Day 2026 — 77th Edition (Jan) — Theme: “150 Years of Vande Mataram.” First-ever EU collective chief guest (António Costa + Ursula von der Leyen). Most technologically advanced parade with LR-AShM, swarm drones, Bhairav Light Commando Battalion debut.

• National Voters Day — ECI at 76 (Jan) — ECI launched ECINET digital platform; Delhi Declaration 2026 adopted; voter roll at ~96.8 crore.

• UGC Equity Regulations 2026 (Jan) — Notified and then stayed by courts.

• Community Radio on the LoC — Radio Sangam (Jan) — India’s first community radio station along the Line of Control at Keri village, Rajouri, J&K.

Economy & Development

Macro Economy & Budget

• India Becomes World’s 4th Largest Economy (Jan) — India crossed USD 4.18 trillion GDP, overtaking Japan.

• Union Budget 2026-27 — Macro Framework (Feb) — Key allocations, new missions, fiscal deficit targets, and capex push.

• Economic Survey 2025-26 (Jan–Feb) — Comprehensive macro assessment; GDP growth projections, employment data, and policy recommendations.

• GDP Base Year Revised to 2022-23 (Mar) — MoSPI introduced double deflation methodology aligned with UN’s SNA 2008 framework for more accurate real GDP measurement.

• Fiscal Health Index 2026 (Mar) — NITI Aayog ranked states; Odisha topped major states; West Bengal, Kerala, AP, and Punjab ranked lowest.

Banking, Finance & Trade

• RBI MPC — Repo Rate Hold at 5.25% (Feb) — Monetary policy stance maintained amid inflation concerns.

• India-GCC FTA — Terms of Reference Signed (Feb) — Framework for India’s trade agreement with Gulf Cooperation Council nations.

• India-EU Free Trade Agreement (Jan) — Landmark FTA signed after two decades of negotiations.

• SEBI Tightens Merchant Banker Norms (Jan) — IPO ecosystem reforms for capital market integrity.

• RBI Integrated Ombudsman Scheme 2026 (Jan) — Consumer protection upgrade for banking complaints.

• CBDC-Based PDS — e-Rupee for Food Security (Feb) — Digital currency pilot for public distribution system.

• US Section 301 Probe — India Among 16 Economies (Mar) — USTR investigations against India for alleged structural excess capacity in steel, petrochemicals, and solar modules.

Agriculture, Industry & Infrastructure

• BHAVYA Scheme — 100 Industrial Parks (Mar) — Union Cabinet approved ₹33,660 crore for 100 plug-and-play industrial parks with central grants up to ₹1 crore per acre.

• Farm Loan Waivers — Maharashtra’s ₹35,000 Crore Scheme (Mar) — Cumulative farm waivers crossed ₹3 lakh crore over 35 years; fiscal sustainability debate reignited.

• Kisan Credit Card — 2024-25 Revisions (Mar) — KCC ceiling raised from ₹3 lakh to ₹5 lakh; collateral-free limit from ₹1.6 lakh to ₹2 lakh.

• Kavach 4.0 — Anti-Collision Railway Safety (Jan) — India’s indigenous train collision avoidance system expanded.

• Vande Bharat Sleeper — First Overnight Semi-High Speed Train (Jan) — New addition to India’s semi-high speed rail fleet.

• Namo Bharat RRTS (Feb) — Regional Rapid Transit System connecting Delhi and Meerut.

• India 520 GW Power — Milestone Crossed (Feb) — Total installed power capacity crosses 520 GW.

• Renewable Energy — Crossing 210 GW (Jan) — Progress toward 500 GW renewable target.

• MSME Sector — NITI Aayog Convergence Report (Jan) — Policy framework for MSME growth and formalisation.

• Startup India — 10 Years (Jan) — Decade milestone; ecosystem assessment and future roadmap.

Environment & Ecology

Wildlife Conservation

• Project Cheetah — Third Batch from Botswana (Mar) — 9 cheetahs received; total population at Kuno ~48 animals including 29 Indian-born cubs.

• Great Indian Bustard — Captive Population Crosses 70 (Mar) — Conservation Breeding Centre at Sam, Jaisalmer crossed minimum viable population threshold (50–100 individuals).

• Kaimur Tiger Reserve — Bihar’s First, India’s 54th (Jan) — New tiger reserve notified in Vindhyan landscape.

• Indian Vulture Reintroduction — Melghat Tiger Reserve (Jan) — BNHS-led captive breeding and release programme.

• Sangai Deer — Population Collapse at Keibul Lamjao (Jan) — Critically endangered dancing deer faces habitat crisis at world’s only floating national park.

• White-bellied Heron vs Kalai-II Hydropower (Jan) — Conservation-development conflict over one of the world’s rarest herons.

• Calamaria mizoramensis — New Species Discovery (Jan) — New reed snake species from Northeast India’s biodiversity hotspot.

Wetlands, Climate & Pollution

• India Reaches 98 Ramsar Sites (Feb) — Continued expansion of wetland conservation designations.

• Deepor Beel Wetland Under Threat (Mar) — Assam’s only Ramsar site faces illegal earth extraction defying court orders.

• World Bank UP Clean Air Programme — $299.66 Million (Mar) — Targets 18 non-attainment cities — highest concentration of polluted cities in any Indian state.

• Great Nicobar Project — NGT Conditional Approval (Feb) — Ecology-versus-development debate; Shompen tribal rights concerns.

• CCUS Mission and Carbon Capture Strategy (Feb) — India’s Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage mission.

• Congo Basin Peatlands — Ancient Carbon Release (Feb) — Global significance of tropical peatlands for climate.

Biodiversity Governance

• BBNJ Agreement — High Seas Treaty Enters into Force (Jan) — Landmark treaty for biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction.

• H5N1 Avian Influenza — Kuttanad Outbreak (Jan) — Zoonotic disease risk in India’s below-sea-level agricultural zone.

Science & Technology

Space

• SpaDeX — India’s First Space Docking (Jan) — ISRO achieved autonomous space docking — critical capability for Chandrayaan-4 and future missions.

• PSLV-C62 Failure (Jan) — India’s consecutive launch anomaly raised concerns about PSLV reliability.

• Chandrayaan-4 Landing Site Identified (Feb) — Lunar sample return mission site selection.

• ISRO CE20 Cryogenic Engine — 22-Tonne Test (Mar) — Uprated engine for LVM3/Gaganyaan missions successfully tested.

Defence Technology

• DRDO SFDR Test — India Joins 5-Nation Club (Feb) — Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet technology for beyond-visual-range missiles; only US, Russia, China, France had this capability.

• Missile Defence Architecture — Iron Dome to S-400 (Mar) — West Asia conflict demonstrated layered defence; India operates S-400, Barak-8, Akash, QRSAM, and indigenous PDV.

• NavIC IRNSS-1F Atomic Clock Failure (Mar) — Last rubidium clock on IRNSS-1F ceased after 10-year design life; NVS-01 (2023) carries India’s first indigenous atomic clock.

Digital, Quantum & AI

• National Quantum Mission (Jan) — India’s quantum technology push with ₹6,003 crore outlay.

• India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 and Quantum Valley Amaravati (Feb) — Semiconductor fab and quantum computing infrastructure.

• India AI Impact Summit — New Delhi Declaration (Feb) — Global AI governance framework adopted.

• IndiaAI Mission and Digital Infrastructure (Jan) — Government’s AI capacity building programme.

• IT Amendment Rules 2026 — AI Governance (Feb) — Regulatory framework for deepfakes and AI content.

• Cybersecurity Talent Shortage (Mar) — 3.8 lakh professionals vs demand of 12 lakh by 2027; gap of 8 lakh+ positions.

Other S&T

• Critical Minerals — National Mission (Jan) — Securing energy transition supply chain through NCMM and KABIL.

• Indian Pharmacopoeia 2026 (Jan) — World first in blood product standards.

International Relations

Major Partnerships & Agreements

• India-EU Free Trade Agreement (Jan) — Signed after two decades; first EU collective Republic Day chief guest.

• India-France Special Global Strategic Partnership (Feb) — Elevated during Macron’s state visit; 114 Rafale jets deal ($16+ billion).

• India-GCC FTA — Terms of Reference Signed (Feb) — Framework for comprehensive trade pact with Gulf economies.

• India-Malaysia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (Feb) — Upgraded bilateral ties.

• India-UAE Strategic Partnership — CEPA and Energy (Jan) — Deepening economic and energy ties.

Multilateral & Regional

• India Assumes BRICS Chairmanship 2026 (Jan) — India leads expanded BRICS with new members (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, UAE, Saudi Arabia).

• West Asia Crisis — Iran-Israel-US Conflict (Mar) — Hormuz threatened (20% of global oil trade); 9 million Indians in Gulf at risk; ₹40 billion annual remittances exposed.

• Colombo Security Conclave — Seychelles Joins (Feb) — Indian Ocean security grouping expands.

• Indo-Pacific Architecture — IPOI, QUAD (Jan) — Spain joins Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative.

• IOS SAGAR 2nd Edition — 16 IONS Nations (Mar) — India assumed IONS chairmanship; naval diplomacy in Indian Ocean.

• NITI Aayog — JICA Phase II SDG Partnership (Mar) — Japan-India development cooperation deepened.

Bilateral Challenges

• India-Bangladesh Relations in the Yunus Era (Jan) — Navigating bilateral ties under Bangladesh’s new leadership.

• Indus Waters Treaty Suspension — Sawalkot Project (Feb) — India accelerated hydropower on western rivers.

• India-Russia-US Balancing Act (Feb) — Strategic autonomy amid great power competition.

• Bulgaria Joins Eurozone (Jan) — EU monetary integration dynamics.

History, Art & Culture

• 77th Republic Day — “150 Years of Vande Mataram” (Jan) — Anniversary of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s 1876 composition.

• Parakram Diwas — Netaji’s 129th Birth Anniversary (Jan) — National observance on January 23.

• Piprahwa Relics — Buddhist Heritage Diplomacy (Jan) — Buddhist relics and India’s soft power.

• Makar Sankranti — Solar Calendar and Regional Diversity (Jan) — Pongal, Lohri, Bihu, Uttarayan — regional expressions of harvest celebration.

• Medaram Jatara — Asia’s Largest Tribal Festival (Jan) — Telangana’s Koya tribal festival honouring Sammakka-Saralamma.

• National Youth Day — Swami Vivekananda (Jan) — January 12 observance.

• Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025 (Mar) — Awards across 24 languages; Navtej Sarna (English), Mamta Kalia (Hindi).

• International Mother Language Day 2026 (Feb) — Ekushey observance; linguistic diversity and inclusion.

• Sulawesi Rock Art — World’s Oldest Cave Art (Feb) — 45,500-year-old art predating European cave paintings.

• Göbekli Tepe — Religion Before Farming (Mar) — 9600 BCE temple complex; hunter-gatherer monumental architecture predating Stonehenge.

• Ponduru Khadi — GI Tag and Craft Heritage (Jan) — Andhra Pradesh’s fine-count khadi tradition.

• Chapchar Kut — Mizoram’s Spring Festival (Mar) — Mizo tribal harvest and spring celebration.

Geography

• Strait of Hormuz and India’s Energy Vulnerability (Mar) — 33 km wide; ~20 million bbl/day crude (20% of global trade); India imports 85–88% of crude through maritime routes.

• Brahmaputra Rail-Road Tunnel (Feb) — India’s first underwater transport corridor in Northeast.

• Loktak Lake and Keibul Lamjao (Jan) — Manipur’s floating national park; unique phumdi ecosystem.

• Kuttanad — India’s Below-Sea-Level Agricultural Zone (Jan) — Kerala’s below-MSL farming region in Vembanad backwaters.

• Lohit River — Northeast India’s Strategic Waterway (Jan) — Tributary of Brahmaputra; hydropower and biodiversity corridor.

• Vishwamitri River — Urban River Ecology (Jan) — Vadodara’s urban river; mugger crocodile habitat.

• Kaimur Plateau — Vindhyan Ecosystem (Jan) — Bihar’s tiger landscape in the Vindhyan range.

• Indus River System — Treaty Geographies (Feb) — Western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) and eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej).

• Congo Basin — Tropical Peatlands (Feb) — World’s largest tropical peatland; 30 billion tonnes of carbon.

• Indo-Gangetic Plain — Pollution Trap (Mar) — Natural geographic entrapment by Himalayas and Aravalli/Vindhya ranges; 18 UP cities are non-attainment.

Social Issues

• Denial of Public Spaces to Scheduled Castes (Mar) — NCRB 2023 data: 180 national cases; 173 (96%) from UP alone — extreme geographic concentration of caste-based spatial exclusion.

• Rice Fortification Programme Pause (Mar) — Government halted fortified rice under PDS/ICDS/PM Poshan after IIT Kharagpur study showed micronutrient degradation during FCI’s 2–3 year storage.

• Demographic Dividend Fracturing — North-South Divide (Jan) — Contrasting fertility rates and age structures between northern and southern states.

• Gig Economy and the Social Security Gap (Jan) — ESIC-EPFO SPREE initiative for informal workers; coverage challenges.

• Women’s Empowerment — BBBP, Nari Shakti Vandan (Jan) — National Girl Child Day; Beti Bachao Beti Padhao outcomes.

• AI and Skills Development — Workforce Transition (Jan) — India’s readiness for AI-driven labour market changes.

• Great Nicobar — Shompen Tribal Rights (Feb) — PVTG rights vs mega-infrastructure project.

• Lenacapavir — HIV Prevention Breakthrough (Feb) — Long-acting injectable drug; implications for global health equity.

Security & Defence

Missiles & Defence Systems

• Pralay Missile — Salvo Launch and Army Induction (Jan) — Short-range ballistic missile for precision strikes.

• Long Range Anti-Ship Hypersonic Missile (LR-AShM) (Jan) — Debuted at Republic Day 2026; India’s first operational hypersonic anti-ship weapon.

• DRDO SFDR — BVR Missile Propulsion (Feb) — Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet for Astra Mk3; 5th nation to master the technology.

• Agni-III Ballistic Missile Test (Feb) — Nuclear deterrence; 3,000+ km range IRBM.

• Missile Defence Architecture (Mar) — S-400, Barak-8/MR-SAM, Akash, QRSAM, PDV interceptor — layered defence demonstrated in West Asia context.

Platforms & Exercises

• 114 Rafale Jets — India’s Largest Defence Deal (Feb) — $16+ billion deal signed during Macron visit; largest single defence procurement.

• LCH Prachand — Induction Milestone (Feb) — Indigenous Light Combat Helicopter deployment.

• Exercise MILAN 2026 — 74 Nations (Feb) — Largest-ever multilateral naval exercise hosted by India at Visakhapatnam.

• Bhairav Light Commando Battalion (Jan) — New drone warfare doctrine and specialised unit.

Internal Security

• Operation Megaburu — LWE Endgame in Jharkhand (Jan) — Counter-Naxal operations in Left Wing Extremism-affected zones.

• India-Pakistan Nuclear CBMs — 35th Annual Exchange (Jan) — Continued annual exchange of nuclear installation lists.

• India-EU Security and Defence Partnership (Jan) — New framework for Indo-European defence cooperation.

Reports, Indices & Schemes

• Economic Survey 2025-26 — All Key Data (Feb) — Comprehensive annual economic assessment.

• Fiscal Health Index 2026 (Mar) — NITI Aayog’s state-wise fiscal ranking using CAG-verified data.

• Gold Hallmarking — Phase 6 Expansion (380 Districts) (Mar) — HUID-based hallmarking mandatory; 916 (22K) is most common Indian purity.

• Natural Gas Supply Regulation Order 2026 (Mar) — ECA 1955-based priority framework: 100% for domestic PNG/CNG; min 70% for fertiliser.

• EASE 9.0 — GCC Strategy for PSBs (Mar) — SBI’s first PSB-Global Capability Centre in Karnataka.

• ESIC-EPFO SPREE — Social Security Expansion (Jan) — Expanding coverage to gig and informal workers.

• National Critical Mineral Mission (Jan) — KABIL-led mission for securing lithium, cobalt, rare earth supply chains.

• Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana — Price Deficiency Payments (Feb) — Alternative to MSP procurement; farmer price support.

• Export Promotion Mission for MSMEs (Feb) — NIRYAT-linked export support.

Persons & Awards in News

Padma & National Awards

• Padma Awards 2026 — 131 Honourees (Jan) — Padma Vibhushan (posthumous): Dharmendra, V.S. Achuthanandan. Padma Shri: Harmanpreet Kaur, Rohit Sharma (sports).

• Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025 (Mar) — Navtej Sarna (English, Crimson Spring); former Ambassador to USA. Mamta Kalia (Hindi, Jeete Jee Allahabad).

Key Figures in Q1 2026

Other Notable Events

• Army Day 2026 — Jaipur Hosts for the First Time (Jan) — Decentralisation of national military observances.

• 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas — Bhubaneswar (Jan) — Diaspora engagement; NRI policy.

Q1 covers 269 articles across January (108), February (94), and March (67 as of March 21). Monthly compilations with full articles available at January, February, and March.

Q2 (April–June), Q3 (July–September), and Q4 (October–December) sections will be added as the year progresses.