Current Affairs 18 October 2026
36 updates from 18 October 2026, with sources. Everything from this day that matters for SSC, RRB, banking and AP Police general awareness.
- Health
Ministry of Ayush and WHO formalize global standardized terminology and clinical benchmarks for traditional medicine
The Ministry of Ayush and the World Health Organization (WHO) finalized standardized international terminologies and clinical practice benchmarks for traditional medicine systems on Sunday under the auspices of the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) in Jamnagar.
- Governance
National Disaster Management Authority deploys upgraded Flash Flood Guidance System across Himalayan States
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), in operational partnership with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) and Central Water Commission (CWC), commissioned the upgraded Flash Flood Guidance System (FFGS 2.0) across vulnerable Himalayan river basins on Sunday.
- Economy
Ministry of Mines launches fifth tranche auction of 21 critical and strategic mineral blocks across five States
The Ministry of Mines launched the fifth commercial tranche of electronic auctions for 21 critical and strategic mineral blocks on Sunday, accelerating domestic raw material self-reliance for clean energy and high-tech manufacturing.
- Sports
BCCI announces annual player central contracts incorporating dedicated red-ball and fast-bowling incentive schemes
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the annual central player retainership contracts for the 2026–27 international season on Sunday, formalizing dedicated financial incentives to promote Test cricket participation.
- Polity
Supreme Court enforces mandatory 100% solatium and fair market value in public infrastructure land acquisitions
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India delivered a definitive ruling on Sunday reaffirming that the payment of 100% statutory solatium and statutory interest under the RFCTLARR Act 2013 is an absolute, non-derogable right for displaced landholders.
- Governance
TRAI submits recommendations on National Broadband Mission 2.0 proposing 100 Mbps fiber across 250,000 Gram Panchayats
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) submitted comprehensive policy recommendations on Sunday for the roll-out of 'National Broadband Mission 2.0' (NBM 2.0), charting a roadmap to deliver high-speed optical fiber connectivity nationwide.
- Environment
Ministry of Environment announces designation of six new Ramsar wetlands elevating India's tally to 88 sites
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) announced on Sunday that the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands has formally designated six new Indian wetlands as Ramsar Sites of International Importance, taking the national total to 88.
- Economy
Central Board of Direct Taxes reports milestone with over 75 million Income Tax Returns filed for AY 2026-27
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), operating under the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, confirmed on Sunday that cumulative Income Tax Returns (ITR) filed for Assessment Year 2026–27 have crossed the landmark threshold of 75 million (7.5 Crore).
- Space
ISRO and Department of Science & Technology operationalise high-capacity data mirror facility at Byalalu space centre
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology (DST) officially inaugurated the advanced high-throughput mirror facility of the Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC) at Byalalu, Karnataka on Sunday.
- Governance
Ministry of Education publishes Performance Grading Index for Districts (PGI-D) assessing 742 educational jurisdictions
The Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), under the Ministry of Education, released the comprehensive Performance Grading Index for Districts (PGI-D 2026) on Sunday, evaluating sub-national school education delivery across 742 districts.
- Economy
Reserve Bank of India issues binding Master Directions on cyber resilience and IT risk for Urban Co-operative Banks
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued comprehensive binding Master Directions on Cyber Resilience and IT Governance on Sunday for all Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs) nationwide under the Banking Regulation Act 1949.
- Defence
Cabinet Committee on Security clears $3.9 Billion acquisition of 31 MQ-9B armed SkyGuardian drones for Tri-Services
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), chaired by the Prime Minister, accorded final financial approval on Sunday for the government-to-government acquisition of 31 General Atomics MQ-9B High-Altitude Long-Endurance (HALE) armed unmanned aircraft systems for the Indian Armed Forces.
- Economy
Ministry of Commerce reports 6.8% merchandise export expansion as trade deficit narrows to five-month low
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry released comprehensive monthly foreign trade statistics on Sunday showing India’s merchandise exports expanding by 6.8% year-on-year, driven by robust outbound shipments of electronics, engineering goods, and pharmaceuticals.
- Defence
Indian Navy formally commissions fourth indigenous stealth guided-missile destroyer INS Surat at Mumbai
The Indian Navy formally commissioned 'INS Surat', the fourth and final indigenously built Project 15B Visakhapatnam-class stealth guided-missile destroyer, into active service at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on Sunday.
- Recruitment
Staff Selection Commission declares CHSL Tier-1 Examination 2026 results and category-wise cut-off marks
The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) officially declared the results and category-wise qualifying cut-off scores for the Combined Higher Secondary (10+2) Level (CHSL) Tier-1 Examination 2026 on Sunday evening.
- Defence
Indian Air Force and French Air and Space Force conclude bilateral exercise 'Garuda-VIII' at Mont-de-Marsan
The Indian Air Force (IAF) and the French Air and Space Force (FASF) concluded the intensive fortnight-long eighth edition of the bilateral air exercise 'Garuda-VIII' at Mont-de-Marsan Air Base in France on Sunday.
- Economy
Ministry of Heavy Industries notifies guidelines for ₹10,900 Crore PM E-DRIVE scheme to accelerate EV adoption
The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) notified the comprehensive operational guidelines on Sunday for the ₹10,900 Crore flagship 'PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement' (PM E-DRIVE) scheme, accelerating domestic electric vehicle ecosystem growth.
- Governance
Ministry of Tribal Affairs notifies operational roadmap for ₹79,156 Crore Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan
The Ministry of Tribal Affairs finalized the comprehensive operational guidelines on Sunday for the nationwide execution of the ₹79,156 Crore 'Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan' targeting over 63,843 tribal-majority villages across 549 districts.
- Infrastructure
National Highways Authority awards contract for India's first barrierless Multi-Lane Free Flow satellite tolling
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), under the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, awarded commercial contracts on Sunday to implement India’s first barrierless Multi-Lane Free Flow (MLFF) satellite-based tolling system across the Delhi-Gurugram Expressway.
- Governance
Ministry of Health achieves 100% GIS geo-tagging across 173,000 Ayushman Aarogya Mandirs nationwide
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare achieved a milestone in public healthcare infrastructure digitization on Sunday, completing 100% GIS geo-tagging and digital electronic health record linkage across all 1,73,000+ operational Ayushman Aarogya Mandirs (AAMs) nationwide.
- Sports
Bengaluru FC overcomes Mohun Bagan to lift historic 135th Durand Cup title at Salt Lake Stadium
Bengaluru FC triumphed in the grand finale of the 135th edition of the IndianOil Durand Cup on Sunday, defeating defending champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant 2-1 in a high-voltage clash at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium) in Kolkata.
- International Relations
National Security Adviser Ajit Doval chairs 2nd India-Central Asia NSA Dialogue focusing on Chabahar and INSTC connectivity
National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval hosted and chaired the second India-Central Asia NSA Dialogue in New Delhi on Sunday, convening top security council chiefs from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
- Defence
Indian Army deploys fresh regiment of indigenous Dhanush 155mm howitzers across high-altitude border sectors
The Indian Army completed the operational induction and forward deployment of a new regiment of indigenous Dhanush 155mm/45-calibre towed artillery gun systems across strategic high-altitude positions under the Northern Command on Sunday.
- Polity
Supreme Court clarifies PMLA Section 45 twin conditions cannot be weaponised to arbitrarily deny anticipatory bail
A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark constitutional pronouncement on Sunday ruling that the stringent 'twin conditions' for bail under Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002 cannot be invoked to subvert personal liberty where predicate…
- Economy
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy announces PM Surya Ghar scheme crosses 1.5 million rooftop solar installations
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) announced on Sunday that the flagship 'PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana' has surpassed the benchmark milestone of 1.5 million operational residential rooftop solar installations across India.
- Governance
Department of Telecommunications deploys AI-powered kill-switch on Sanchar Saathi 2.0 to immobilise stolen handsets
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT), under the Ministry of Communications, rolled out the upgraded 'Sanchar Saathi 2.0' citizen portal on Sunday, integrating an artificial intelligence-driven instant kill-switch to combat mobile device theft and syndicate-driven cyber fraud.
- Recruitment
Railway Recruitment Boards announce online application scrutiny status for 18,799 Assistant Loco Pilot vacancies
Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs) across all zones released the verified application scrutiny status for over 18,799 Assistant Loco Pilot (ALP) vacancies notified under CEN 01/2026 on Sunday.
- Space
ISRO completes payload integration and thermal tests for Indian Data Relay Satellite System to support Gaganyaan
The U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully concluded full communication payload integration and space-environment thermal vacuum testing for the first dedicated Indian Data Relay Satellite System (IDRSS-1) on Sunday.
- Environment
Ministry of Ports and Shipping operationalises India's first indigenous hydrogen fuel-cell vessel on National Waterway-1
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways alongside the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) launched operational demonstration voyages of India's first indigenous hydrogen fuel-cell inland catamaran passenger vessel on National Waterway-1 (Ganga River) at Varanasi on Sunday.
- Economy
Reserve Bank of India grants authorisations for cross-border Payment Aggregators boosting MSME export remittances
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) granted full regulatory authorisations on Sunday to four premier fintech institutions to operate as online Payment Aggregators (PA) and Payment Aggregators-Cross Border (PA-CB) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007.
- Governance
Ministry of Electronics and IT notifies operational grievance redressal charter under Digital Personal Data Protection Act
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) officially notified the comprehensive operational regulations and grievance redressal charter for the Data Protection Board of India under the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act on Sunday.
- Defence
DRDO successfully flight-tests indigenous Next-Generation Anti-Radiation Missile Rudram-II from Su-30MKI fighter
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully completed a developmental flight test of the indigenous Next-Generation Anti-Radiation Missile 'Rudram-II' launched from a frontline Indian Air Force Su-30MKI fighter off the Odisha coast on Sunday.
- Economy
Ministry of Statistics releases retail inflation metrics as core inflation moderates to 3.4% within RBI target band
The National Statistical Office (NSO), operating under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), released official Consumer Price Index (CPI) metrics on Sunday showing annual headline retail inflation steady at 4.2%, with non-food, non-energy core inflation moderating to 3.4%.
- Defence
Indian Air Force conducts major operational readiness exercise 'Pralay' across Eastern Air Command
The Indian Air Force (IAF) executed a comprehensive operational combat readiness exercise codenamed 'Pralay' across forward sectors of the Eastern Air Command along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on Sunday.
- Recruitment
Union Public Service Commission issues Personality Test interview schedule for Engineering Services Examination 2026
The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) published the official schedule for the Personality Tests (Interviews) for the Engineering Services Examination (ESE) 2026 on Sunday across its official digital platforms.
- 🇮🇳 National
Andhra Pradesh Forest Department notifies State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2026–35
The Department of Environment, Forests, Science and Technology, Government of Andhra Pradesh, has notified the comprehensive 'Andhra Pradesh State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan 2026–2035' (AP-SBSAP), establishing a ten-year conservation roadmap aligned with the Kunming-Montreal Global…