Friday, 2 October 2026 · IST · Uttar Pradesh + National · 10 items · 2 MCQs
On Gandhi Jayanti, UP announced a 25% Khadi rebate till 30 January 2027 as special Gram Sabhas opened the People's Plan Campaign for GPDP 2027-28. UPITS 4.0 closed with a record 4,400 MoUs worth ₹6,500 crore, the CM inducted 87 police interceptor vehicles, and nationally rabi MSPs were raised and September GST grew 14.7% (UP +18%).
Today at a glance — things to remember
UP gives a 25% Khadi rebate till 30 Jan 2027 on Gandhi (157th) & Shastri (122nd) Jayanti.
Special Gram Sabhas launch the People's Plan Campaign for GPDP 2027-28; VB-G RAM G offers 125 days of work.
Meerut's Parul Chaudhary won two bronzes (5000 m, 3000 m steeplechase) at the 2026 Asian Games.
UPITS 4.0 closed with 4,400 MoUs worth ₹6,500 crore and 6 partner countries.
UP Cabinet: free lifetime bus travel for women 60+ and 25 lakh tablets for youth.
CM inducted 87 police interceptor vehicles and released Prakash Singh's book 'Sangharsh'.
Ayodhya begins preparations for Deepotsav 2026 (November) on the Saryu ghats.
GS-I (Modern History, personalities) | GS-III (rural industry) | UP-special GS-V (UP's role in the freedom struggle)
Context
On 2 October the CM paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri in Lucknow and urged citizens to make Khadi part of daily life.
Key facts
UP government offers a 25% discount on Khadi products from 2 October 2026 to 30 January 2027 (Gandhi's death anniversary / Martyrs' Day).
CM linked Gandhi's Swadeshi and self-reliance to the goal of a developed India; Tricolour hoisted on all government buildings on Chief Secretary's orders.
Lal Bahadur Shastri was born on 2 Oct 1904 at Mughalsarai (now Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Nagar, Chandauli); earned the 'Shastri' degree from Kashi Vidyapith (1925).
UP links to Gandhi: BHU speech (Feb 1916), founding of Kashi Vidyapith (1921), and Chauri Chaura, Gorakhpur (4 Feb 1922) which led to withdrawal of the Non-Cooperation Movement.
Way forward
Khadi rebates support UP's large artisan and village-industry base (Khadi & Village Industries Board). Shastri's UP roots and Chauri Chaura are recurring UPPSC Prelims facts.
Concept
Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-22) was called off by Gandhi after the Chauri Chaura incident in Gorakhpur, where a police station was set on fire on 4 February 1922.
Mind map linking 2 October to Uttar Pradesh: Chauri Chaura 1922, Kashi Vidyapith 1921, BHU speech 1916, Shastri's birth at Mughalsarai 1904, Jai Jawan Jai Kisan 1965, and the 25% Khadi rebate till 30 January 2027. — StudyForGS
2. Special Gram Sabhas across UP's villages launch People's Plan Campaign for GPDP 2027-28
GS-II (Panchayati Raj, 73rd Amendment) | GS-III (rural development) | UP-special GS-VI (rural development in UP)
Context
Special Gram Sabhas are being held today in gram panchayats across UP and the country under the campaign 'Sabki Yojana, Sabka Vikas'.
Key facts
Gram Sabhas begin the People's Plan Campaign 2026-27 to prepare the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) for 2027-28.
Agenda: VB-G RAM G (125 days of guaranteed wage employment per rural household), Jal Jeevan Mission, Swachh Bharat (Grameen), SVAMITVA and the Panchayat Advancement Index.
Also on the agenda: e-GramSwaraj & AuditOnline, One Nation One Ration Card, new criminal laws (BNS, BNSS, BSA) and ending child marriage.
The day doubles as Swachh Bharat Diwas; the Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 fortnight (17 Sept – 17 Oct) has the theme 'Swachhata Mein Sahbhag, Swachh Bharat, Viksit Bharat'.
Way forward
UP has the largest number of gram panchayats in India, so bottom-up planning here shapes rural spending on jobs, water and sanitation. It is a direct application of Article 243A (Gram Sabha) and the 11th Schedule.
Concept
Article 243A empowers the Gram Sabha; the 11th Schedule lists 29 subjects for Panchayats under the 73rd Constitutional Amendment (1992).
Flowchart from the 2 October Special Gram Sabha to review of schemes, People's Plan Campaign 2026-27, drafting of GPDP 2027-28 and upload on e-GramSwaraj, with agenda items VB-G RAM G, Jal Jeevan Mission, Swachh Bharat, SVAMITVA and Panchayat Advancement Index. — StudyForGS
3. Meerut's Parul Chaudhary returns home with two Asian Games 2026 bronze medals
GS-I/Prelims (sports & awards) | UP-special GS-V (sports in UP)
Context
Athlete Parul Chaudhary of Iklota village (Meerut) received a grand welcome today after the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
Key facts
Won bronze in the women's 5000 m and bronze in the 3000 m steeplechase at the 2026 Asian Games (Aichi-Nagoya, Japan).
She is a back-to-back Asian Games medallist: at the 2022 Games (Hangzhou) she won 5000 m gold.
India's tally as of 2 October: 70 medals — 12 gold, 24 silver, 34 bronze.
Meerut is UP's leading athletics nursery; it also hosts the Major Dhyan Chand Sports University project.
Way forward
UP sportspersons and their districts are a standard UPPSC Prelims area; Meerut's athletics culture also ties into the state's sports-infrastructure push.
4. UPITS 4.0 ends with record 4,400 MoUs worth ₹6,500 crore
The fourth UP International Trade Show (25–29 Sept 2026, India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida) closed with the state government reporting record business numbers.
Key facts
4,400 MoUs worth about ₹6,500 crore (up 142.5% in value over 2025) and potential business of ₹15,500 crore.
41,500 B2B meetings (+31%) and nearly 6 lakh visitors, including about 1.75 lakh business buyers.
Showcased ODOP products from all 75 districts along with the new 'One District, One Cuisine (ODOC)' initiative.
Way forward
UPITS is the export window for UP's MSMEs and ODOP clusters and supports the state's US$1 trillion economy target.
Concept
ODOP (launched 24 January 2018, UP Diwas) picks one signature product per district for branding, credit, skilling and marketing support.
Grouped bar charts comparing UPITS 2025 and 2026: MoU value rose from ₹2,680 crore to ₹6,500 crore, business inquiries from ₹12,500 crore to ₹15,500 crore, MoUs from 3,900 to 4,400, and B2B meetings from 31,650 to 41,500. — StudyForGS
5. Yogi Cabinet: free lifetime bus travel for women 60+ and 25 lakh tablets for youth
The UP Cabinet (15 Sept 2026) cleared a large package of proposals on social security, youth, transport and industry.
Key facts
Lokmata Ahilyabai Matrushakti Yojana: free lifetime travel in state buses for women aged 60+, which could benefit about 1 crore women.
Swami Vivekananda Yuva Sashaktikaran Yojana: 25 lakh tablets over five years, with ₹2,374.60 crore set aside for 2026-27.
Ganga Expressway to be extended towards Haridwar (Uttarakhand), adding to the 594 km Meerut–Prayagraj corridor opened in April 2026.
₹200 crore ethanol plant at Chhata (Mathura) with 3.96 crore litres/year capacity, reviving a sugar mill shut for 19 years; a new Toy Manufacturing Incentive Policy also cleared.
Way forward
The package combines welfare for women and the elderly, digital access for youth and investment-led jobs, the main levers of UP's development model.
Five stat tiles: about 1 crore women aged 60 and above get free bus travel; 25 lakh tablets for youth over five years; ₹2,374.60 crore tablet budget for 2026-27; 3.96 crore litres of ethanol a year from a ₹200 crore plant at Chhata, Mathura; 5,000 homebuyers helped by LDA taking over a stalled Lucknow township. — StudyForGS
6. Police modernisation: 87 interceptor vehicles, gallantry medals and the book 'Sangharsh'
GS-II (police reforms, governance) | GS-IV (integrity in public service) | UP-special GS-V (law & order in UP)
Context
At a Lucknow event on 1 October 2026 the CM flagged off new police vehicles, presented gallantry medals and released a book on police reform.
Key facts
87 tech-equipped interceptor vehicles (four- and two-wheelers) inducted to strengthen highway and city patrolling.
Gallantry medals for 26 personnel (16 announced on Republic Day 2025, 10 on Republic Day 2026), from constables to IPS officers.
Widow of STF Inspector Sunil Kumar (posthumous Kirti Chakra, 2026; killed in the Jhinjhana, Shamli encounter) honoured.
CM released 'Sangharsh', a book on police reform by former UP DGP Prakash Singh, the petitioner in the landmark 2006 Supreme Court case.
Way forward
Implementing the Prakash Singh directives (tenure security, independent complaints bodies) is central to professional, accountable policing, a frequent Mains theme.
Concept
Prakash Singh v. Union of India (2006): the Supreme Court issued 7 directives, including a State Security Commission, a minimum 2-year tenure for the DGP and field officers, separation of investigation from law and order, a Police Establishment Board and Police Complaints Authorities.
Pillar diagram of the seven Prakash Singh (2006) Supreme Court directives on police reform, with a footer noting that the CM released Prakash Singh's book Sangharsh on 1 October 2026. — StudyForGS
7. Ayodhya begins preparations for Deepotsav 2026; Ram ki Paidi works to be finished first
MSP is fixed at at least 1.5× the cost of production, based on CACP recommendations and approved by the CCEA.
Way forward
UP is India's largest wheat producer, so MSP and procurement directly shape farm incomes across the state.
Horizontal bar chart of rabi MSP increases for 2027-28: safflower ₹675 to ₹7,215; rapeseed and mustard ₹413 to ₹6,613; lentil ₹390 to ₹7,390; barley ₹136 to ₹2,286; gram ₹83 to ₹5,958; wheat ₹25 to ₹2,610 per quintal. — StudyForGS
9. September GST collections up 14.7% to ₹2.04 lakh crore; UP's growth fastest among big states
New UP food-branding initiative: One District, One Cuisine (ODOC), alongside ODOP
UP Startup Policy 2026: New UP Startup Mission; ₹1,000 crore Startup Fund
Kirti Chakra (posthumous), 2026: STF Inspector Sunil Kumar (Shamli encounter)
Swachhata Hi Seva 2026 theme: Swachhata Mein Sahbhag, Swachh Bharat, Viksit Bharat
Shastri's birthplace (UP): Mughalsarai (Pt. DDU Nagar), Chandauli; born 2 Oct 1904
Practice MCQs — UPPSC Prelims pattern
Q1. Consider the following statements about events linked to Uttar Pradesh:
1. The Chauri Chaura incident took place in Gorakhpur district in 1922.
2. Lal Bahadur Shastri was born in Mughalsarai, now in Chandauli district.
3. Kashi Vidyapith was founded after the Non-Cooperation Movement was withdrawn.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
1 only
1 and 2 only
2 and 3 only
1, 2 and 3
Show answer
Answer: b Chauri Chaura (Gorakhpur) took place on 4 Feb 1922 and Shastri was born at Mughalsarai (Chandauli) on 2 Oct 1904. Kashi Vidyapith was founded on 10 Feb 1921, during the movement, a year before it was withdrawn, so statement 3 is wrong.
Q2. With reference to the Minimum Support Prices for Rabi Marketing Season 2027-28, which crop received the highest absolute increase?
Wheat
Rapeseed & Mustard
Lentil (Masur)
Safflower
Show answer
Answer: d Safflower rose by ₹675 to ₹7,215 per quintal; mustard (+₹413) and lentil (+₹390) followed, while wheat rose only ₹25 to ₹2,610.
Mains practice question
Q. "Police reform in India remains a story of judicial directives awaiting full implementation." Examine this with reference to the Prakash Singh judgment and recent modernisation steps in Uttar Pradesh. (200 words)
Hint / approach
Intro: the 2006 case and its 7 directives. Body: status of the State Security Commission, DGP tenure and Police Complaints Authority; UP steps such as interceptor fleets, UP-112, technology and the 20% quota for ex-Agniveers; gaps such as vacancies, investigation–law-order split and political interference. Conclude: a Model Police Act approach and community policing.
