Friday, 25 September 2026 · IST · Uttarakhand + National · 11 items · 2 MCQs
Uttarakhand hosted the 18th India–Mongolia joint military exercise Nomadic Elephant at Pithoragarh, while the state's UCC (Amendment) framework tightened marriage, divorce and live-in registration rules. Nationally, the India–New Zealand FTA was set to come into force on 20 October 2026, Make in India completed 12 years, and the RBI absorbed nearly ₹72,000 crore of surplus liquidity through a VRRR auction.
Today at a glance — things to remember
18th India–Mongolia exercise Nomadic Elephant begins at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand
UCC (Amendment) 2026 tightens live-in, marriage & divorce registration in Uttarakhand
Char Dham Yatra 2026 autumn phase resumes; homestay scheme revised for community tourism
Uttarakhand remains India's first state to launch Gross Environment Product (GEP)
Nanda Devi Raj Jat — the 12-yearly 'Himalayan Mahakumbh' — in focus for 2026
India–New Zealand FTA to come into force on 20 October 2026
Make in India completes 12 years; non-petroleum exports up to $388.3 bn
RBI absorbs ₹71,971 crore via VRRR auction at 5.24% cut-off
MoD signs ₹810.79 crore deal for 160 SAT-SAAW weapons for the IAF
Great Indian Bustard: fewer than 150 birds left in the wild
Detailed notes
1. Exercise Nomadic Elephant begins at Pithoragarh
UTTARAKHANDUKPSC: Prelims + Mains (Defence & IR — Uttarakhand)
The 18th edition of the India–Mongolia joint military exercise Nomadic Elephant commenced at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand, deepening counter-insurgency cooperation between the two armies.
Key facts
Venue: Pithoragarh, a strategic border district of Uttarakhand adjoining Nepal and Tibet (China).
About 45 personnel from each side; focus on counter-insurgency & counter-terrorism under a UN mandate.
Drills cover drone operations, cybersecurity and cordon-and-search.
Nomadic Elephant is an annual exercise; complements naval Exercise Varuna (with France) also in the news.
Way forward
Hosting such drills in the hills builds high-altitude readiness and India–Mongolia strategic ties in the Indo-Pacific.
Concept
Uttarakhand shares international borders with Nepal and China (Tibet); Pithoragarh, Chamoli and Uttarkashi are border districts. Other India exercises: Yudh Abhyas (US), Garuda Shakti (Indonesia), Maitree (Thailand).
2. UCC (Amendment) 2026 tightens marriage & live-in rules
Polity, governance & social justice; Uttarakhand as India's first UCC state; personal-law reform (Prelims + Mains GS-II).
Context
Uttarakhand's Uniform Civil Code (UCC) framework was further tightened through a 2026 amendment, sharpening the registration and penalty regime for marriage, divorce and live-in relationships.
Key facts
Uttarakhand is India's first state to implement a UCC (rules notified 2025).
Misrepresentation of identity made a ground for marriage annulment.
Registrar General empowered to cancel registrations of marriage, divorce, live-in & succession.
Aligned with Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
Way forward
A tighter code aims at uniformity and gender justice; states like Gujarat are studying the Uttarakhand model.
Concept
Article 44 (DPSP) urges the State to secure a Uniform Civil Code. UCC applies one set of personal laws (marriage, divorce, succession) across communities; tribal areas are exempted in Uttarakhand's law.
Uttarakhand art, culture, fairs & festivals; folk traditions; GI heritage (Prelims static + Mains GS-I).
Context
Uttarakhand's grandest religious pilgrimage, the Nanda Devi Raj Jat, remained a focus for 2026 as preparations and its cultural significance drew attention.
Key facts
Held roughly once every 12 years; called the 'Himalayan Mahakumbh'.
Dedicated to goddess Nanda Devi, patron deity of the Garhwal–Kumaon hills.
A long trek culminating near Roopkund/Homkund in Chamoli district.
A four-horned ram (chau-singhya khadu) traditionally leads the procession.
Way forward
Documenting and safeguarding such intangible heritage supports cultural tourism and identity in the hills.
Concept
Uttarakhand folk culture spans Kumaoni, Garhwali and Jaunsari traditions; other fairs: Kumbh (Haridwar), Nanda Devi Mela (Almora), Uttarayani.
With the monsoon easing, the post-monsoon (autumn) phase of the Char Dham Yatra 2026 drew fresh pilgrim footfall, keeping crowd-management and hill-road safety in focus.
Yatra runs in phases, pausing at monsoon peak and resuming in Sep–Nov before winter closure.
Homestay scheme revised to promote community-based tourism with capital subsidy.
Tourism is pitched as a tool against 'palayan' (out-migration) from hill villages.
Way forward
Balancing high pilgrim volumes with fragile Himalayan carrying capacity needs registration caps and green infrastructure.
Concept
The four shrines lie in Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag and Chamoli districts; Kedarnath (Mandakini) & Badrinath (Alaknanda) sit in the upper Ganga basin, an eco-sensitive, disaster-prone zone.
Stat-tile row on Char Dham Yatra and hill tourism: 4 Dhams, 2 yatra phases, Sep–Nov autumn window, revised homestay scheme, and anti-palayan tourism jobs. — StudyForGS
5. Gross Environment Product (GEP): the 'Green GDP'
Uttarakhand's status as the first Indian state to launch a Gross Environment Product (GEP) index stayed relevant as the state pushed green-accounting and ecosystem valuation.
Often called a 'Green GDP' metric for measuring ecological health.
Uttarakhand's forest cover is among the highest in India (over 45% of geographical area).
Complements the idea of payment for ecosystem services for hill states.
Way forward
Linking GEP to central finance/green bonds could reward Himalayan states for conserving natural capital.
Concept
Related ideas: Green GDP, Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES), Natural Capital Accounting, and India's target of net-zero by 2070.
Mind-map with GEP at the centre (Uttarakhand, India's first state) branching to Air, Water, Forest and Soil, illustrating the Green GDP concept for Himalayan ecology. — StudyForGS
6. Disaster management & GLOF preparedness in the hills
Recurring landslides, cloudbursts and flash floods in the 2026 monsoon kept Uttarakhand's disaster preparedness — including GLOF (glacial lake outburst flood) risk — high on the agenda.
Key facts
Uttarakhand lies in seismic zones IV & V — highly earthquake-prone.
GLOF occurs when a glacial lake bursts, sending sudden downstream floods.
Response chain: NDMA – SDMA – DDMA, with SDRF/NDRF rescue.
Lessons from the 2013 Kedarnath and 2021 Chamoli disasters drive early-warning systems.
Way forward
Glacial-lake monitoring, slope stabilisation and strict eco-sensitive-zone rules can cut Himalayan disaster losses.
Concept
Framework: Disaster Management Act, 2005 created NDMA (PM-chaired) and state/district authorities; India follows the Sendai Framework for disaster risk reduction.
Flowchart of Uttarakhand's disaster-management chain: Early Warning → State Command (SDMA/SEOC) → District Response (DDMA) → Rescue (SDRF/NDRF/IAF) → Relief & Rebuild, anchored on the Disaster Management Act 2005. — StudyForGS
7. India–New Zealand FTA to take effect 20 Oct 2026
IRUKPSC: Prelims + Mains (International Relations & Economy)
India and New Zealand finalised a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) set to come into force on 20 October 2026, opening market access on both sides.
Key facts
India secured 100% duty-free access for its exports to New Zealand.
Bilateral trade target: double to ₹35,000 crore within five years.
Follows the first Indian PM visit to New Zealand in 40 years.
Adds to India's FTA network (UAE, Australia, EFTA, UK).
Way forward
FTAs must balance market access with safeguards for farmers, dairy and MSMEs.
Concept
An FTA cuts tariffs/quotas between partners; deeper forms include CEPA/CECA. Trade terms link to WTO rules and India's export-diversification goals.
Vertical stat tiles for the India–New Zealand FTA: 100% duty-free access for Indian exports, ₹35,000 crore trade target in 5 years, and entry into force on 20 October 2026. — StudyForGS
8. Make in India completes 12 years
ECONOMYUKPSC: Prelims + Mains (Indian Economy)
Syllabus linkage
Indian economy, manufacturing, PLI & industrial policy (Prelims + Mains GS-III).
Context
The Make in India initiative, launched in September 2014, marked 12 years, prompting a review of its manufacturing and export record.
Key facts
Original target: raise manufacturing to 25% of GDP.
Non-petroleum exports rose from $253.5 bn (2014-15) to $388.3 bn (2025-26).
Manufacturing GVA share (new series): 14.6% → 15.6%.
PLI investment reached about ₹2.4 lakh crore by March 2026.
Way forward
Deeper gains need job-rich, export-oriented manufacturing and higher global export share.
Concept
Linked schemes: PLI, PM Gati Shakti, National Logistics Policy, Startup India; measures like GVA and FDI track industrial health.
Bar chart of India's non-petroleum exports rising from $253.5 billion in 2014-15 to $388.3 billion in 2025-26, with manufacturing GVA share up from 14.6% to 15.6%. — StudyForGS
To mop up excess cash in the banking system, the RBI conducted a Variable Rate Reverse Repo (VRRR) auction, absorbing nearly ₹72,000 crore.
Key facts
VRRR absorbed ₹71,971 crore (notified ₹75,000 crore) at a 5.24% cut-off.
System surplus liquidity stood around ₹4.92 lakh crore.
Also planned OMO sales totalling about ₹1 lakh crore in September.
Aim: keep short-term rates aligned with the repo rate.
Way forward
Fine-tuning liquidity helps the RBI anchor inflation while supporting growth.
Concept
VRRR withdraws liquidity; VRR injects it. Key tools: repo, reverse repo, CRR, SLR, OMO; the MPC sets the policy repo rate.
Bar chart of RBI liquidity operations in ₹ lakh crore: system surplus ₹4.92, VRRR absorbed ₹0.72, and OMO sales ₹1.00, at a VRRR cut-off of 5.24%. — StudyForGS
Science & tech, biotechnology & neuroscience; health research (Prelims + Mains GS-III).
Context
An international consortium published a detailed human brain-cell atlas, mapping how gene activity in the brain changes across the human lifespan.
Key facts
Focus: the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, key to reasoning and decision-making.
Analysed nuclei from over 6.3 million brain cells.
Insights into neurodevelopment, ageing and neuropsychiatric conditions.
Indian researchers were part of the global effort.
Way forward
Such atlases can guide new treatments for Alzheimer's, schizophrenia and other disorders.
Concept
Builds on Human Genome Project and single-cell genomics; relates to India's schemes like the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems.
The Ministry of Defence signed a contract worth ₹810.79 crore for precision-strike weapons for the Indian Air Force, boosting indigenous defence production.
Key facts
Deal for 160 SAT-SAAW (Satellite-guided Smart Anti-Airfield Weapons).
Contract value: ₹810.79 crore, signed 23 September 2026.
Strengthens the IAF's precision-strike capability.
Part of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat defence push.
Way forward
Indigenous munitions cut import dependence and build a domestic defence base.
Concept
Related: DRDO, DAP-2020, defence corridors (UP & Tamil Nadu), positive indigenisation lists; India remains a major arms importer.
Data point of the day
₹1.11 lakh crore
Uttarakhand State Budget FY 2026–27 The state cabinet cleared a budget of about ₹1.11 lakh crore for FY 2026-27, alongside 28 proposals, with capital spending on roads, power and disaster resilience, and a hill focus on migration, tourism and horticulture.
Prelims rapid-fire
Great Indian Bustard: fewer than 150 individuals left in the wild (critically endangered).
INS Trishul at Toulon, France for the 24th Exercise Varuna with the French Navy.
Asian Games 2026 (Aichi-Nagoya, Japan): India's women's cricket team won gold, beating Sri Lanka.
Ayushman Bharat (PM-JAY) completed 8 years (launched 23 Sept 2018).
Uttarakhand = India's first state to launch Gross Environment Product (GEP).
BIS (est. 1 April 1987) expanded its mandatory quality-mark list for electronics.
Practice MCQs — UKPSC Prelims pattern
Q1. The India–Mongolia joint military exercise 'Nomadic Elephant', in the news recently, was held at which location in Uttarakhand?
Auli, Chamoli
Pithoragarh
Ranikhet, Almora
Chakrata, Dehradun
Show answer
Answer: B The 18th edition of Exercise Nomadic Elephant between India and Mongolia commenced at Pithoragarh, a strategic border district of Uttarakhand.
Q2. Consider the following about Uttarakhand:
1. It is India's first state to implement a Uniform Civil Code.
2. It is India's first state to launch a Gross Environment Product (GEP) index.
Which of the statements is/are correct?
1 only
2 only
Both 1 and 2
Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Answer: C Uttarakhand is both the first Indian state to implement a UCC (rules notified 2025) and the first to launch a GEP (Green GDP) index. Hence both statements are correct.
Mains practice question
Q. Uttarakhand's Himalayan geography makes it highly vulnerable to disasters such as landslides, cloudbursts and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). Examine the causes of this vulnerability and suggest measures to strengthen disaster preparedness in the state. (150 words)
Hint / approach
Cover fragile young-fold geology, seismic zones IV–V, unplanned construction & tourism, climate change and glacial retreat; then NDMA–SDMA–DDMA framework, GLOF monitoring, early-warning systems, eco-sensitive-zone rules and carrying-capacity limits.
📌 One-line revision: Remember today: Nomadic Elephant @ Pithoragarh • UCC Amendment 2026 • India–NZ FTA (20 Oct 2026) • GEP = Uttarakhand's Green GDP • RBI VRRR ₹71,971 cr.
