APPOINTMENTS
Mandeep K. Bhandari Named New CBSE Chairperson
• Mandeep K. Bhandari, a 2001-batch IAS officer of the AGMUT cadre, was appointed CBSE Chairperson on 25 September 2026.
• The appointment was cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), with the post temporarily upgraded to Additional Secretary-level rank and pay.
• Before joining CBSE, Bhandari served as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
• His earlier administrative assignments include serving as Deputy Commissioner of Leh and Jammu and Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
• Bhandari is an MBBS gold medallist and has held several senior administrative positions during his career.
• The CBSE is a national school education board responsible for examinations and school-affiliation norms across India.
• The AGMUT cadre covers Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram and various Union Territories, allowing officers to serve across multiple regions.
• Bhandari succeeded Lokhande Prashant Sitaram, who had held additional charge from 2 July 2026, making Bhandari the third person to head CBSE in less than four months.
Abhiram Singh Yadav Joins ICC Chief Executives’ Committee
• Abhiram Singh Yadav, Chairman of Persatuan Cricket Indonesia, was elected to the ICC Chief Executives’ Committee on 24 September 2026.
• He secured one of the three seats allocated to Associate Member representatives on the committee.
• Yadav won the three-way election with 30 votes, ahead of Jersey’s Sarah Gomersall with 9 and Germany’s Viganesh Sankaran with 3 votes.
• His term will continue until the next ICC elections at the Annual Conference in June 2027.
• The vacancy emerged after Gurumurthy Palani of France moved to the ICC Board following his election at the July 2026 Annual Conference in Edinburgh.
• The ICC Chief Executives’ Committee includes representatives from Full and Associate Members and handles administrative and governance matters in international cricket.
• Yadav’s tenure coincides with growing international exposure for Indonesian cricket, including the women’s team’s debut at the 2026 Women’s Asia Cup.
• His election provides Indonesia with representation in ICC-level committee discussions and marks its participation in the governance of international cricket.
NATIONAL NEWS
Make in India Marks 12 Years of Promoting Domestic Manufacturing
• Make in India completed 12 years on 25 September 2026, having been launched on the same date in 2014 to strengthen manufacturing, investment, exports and industrial competitiveness.
• The initiative covers 27 sectors, comprising 15 manufacturing and 12 services sectors, with emphasis on domestic value addition and global market access.
• India recorded its highest-ever annual FDI inflow of USD 94.53 billion in FY 2025–26, taking cumulative FDI since FY 2014–15 to USD 843 billion.
• Electronics production increased from around ₹1.9 lakh crore in FY 2014–15 to an estimated ₹13.11 lakh crore in FY 2025–26.
• Mobile phone manufacturing grew from ₹18,000 crore to ₹6.27 lakh crore over the same period, making India the world’s second-largest mobile phone manufacturer by volume.
• By 31 March 2026, PLI schemes had generated ₹2.40 lakh crore in investment, ₹23.8 lakh crore in production and sales, ₹15.2 lakh crore in exports, and over 14.6 lakh direct and indirect jobs.
• Indigenous defence production rose from ₹46,429 crore in 2014–15 to ₹1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025–26, while India’s pharmaceutical sector ranked third globally by volume and 11th by value in 2024–25.
• The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) framework supports manufacturing-linked investment, production, exports and employment across selected sectors as part of India’s broader industrial policy.
Viksit Tech 47 Introduced to Promote Indian Technology Companies
• Viksit Tech 47 was launched on 25 September 2026 as part of the 10th edition of the India Mobile Congress.
• The initiative aims to identify promising Indian technology companies and industry leaders and support their growth.
• Its focus areas include AI and deep tech, connected mobility, consumer devices, wearables, smart homes, IoT, components, manufacturing and SaaS.
• Viksit Tech 47 seeks to help Indian technology firms develop globally competitive brands and participate more strongly in international technology markets.
• Techarc has been appointed as the initiative’s research partner, while KPMG India is the knowledge partner for IMC 2026.
• Mivi has joined the programme as a Viksit Tech 47 Partner.
• A flagship report will evaluate more than 200 Indian technology companies, supported by consultations with industry experts.
• The report is scheduled for release during India Mobile Congress 2026, taking place from 7–10 October at Yashobhoomi Convention Centre, New Delhi.
AWARDS
Sarah Peluse Named SASTRA-Ramanujan Award 2026 Recipient
• Sarah Peluse, Associate Professor of Mathematics at Stanford University, was announced as the recipient of the SASTRA-Ramanujan Award 2026 on 25 September 2026.
• The award recognises mathematicians aged 32 years or below for outstanding work in areas connected with the mathematical legacy of Srinivasa Ramanujan.
• Instituted in 2005, the award carries a cash prize of $10,000 along with a citation and is presented annually by SASTRA.
• Peluse was recognised for her contributions to analytic number theory, additive combinatorics, combinatorial geometry and group theory.
• The 2026 award ceremony will be held on 22 December 2026 at the SASTRA Campus in Thanjavur, coinciding with Ramanujan’s birthday.
• Kannan Soundararajan, Peluse’s Ph.D. advisor at Stanford, was among the joint recipients of the inaugural award in 2005.
• Srinivasa Ramanujan was born on 22 December 1887 in Erode, Tamil Nadu, and made major contributions to number theory, infinite series and continued fractions.
• Notably, seven of the first 21 SASTRA-Ramanujan Award recipients later received the Fields Medal, an honour awarded every four years by the International Mathematical Union to mathematicians under 40.
ZT Lalrithangi Honoured Among FAO 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems
• ZT Lalrithangi, popularly known as Pi Mari-i, a 35-year-old farmer from Mizoram, has been selected among the FAO 100 Women Heroes in Agrifood Systems and Rural Development.
• She is one of 100 women chosen from more than 600 nominations across 131 countries and is among two Indian recipients of the 2026 recognition.
• Lalrithangi began strawberry farming in 2024 in Sangau village, Lawngtlai district, and expanded cultivation to over 10,000 plants across two hectares.
• Along with fresh strawberries, her enterprise produces strawberry wine and other value-added products, creating additional sources of income.
• Her farming venture earned approximately ₹1.5 lakh in 2024, rising to more than ₹10 lakh in 2025.
• The recognition is associated with the International Year of Women Farmers 2026, highlighting women’s contributions to agriculture and rural economies.
• The award ceremony is scheduled during the World Food Forum at FAO headquarters in Rome from 12–16 October 2026.
• Lalrithangi is reported to be the first person from the Mizo community to receive this international honour, while the FAO itself was established in 1945 and is headquartered in Rome.
SPORTS
Rishabh Das Breaks Indian Record in 200m Backstroke
• Rishabh Das set a new Indian national record in the men’s 200m backstroke at the Asian Games 2026 on 25 September.
• The 19-year-old swimmer clocked 1:58.77 in the final at Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, finishing sixth in the event.
• His performance surpassed his earlier national record of 1:59.84, set in May 2026.
• Das first entered the national record books in June 2025, recording 2:00.65 at the Senior National Aquatic Championships in Bhubaneswar.
• He lowered the mark to 2:00.14 in March 2026 at the NSW State Open Championships in Sydney.
• In May 2026, he became the first Indian swimmer to break the two-minute barrier in the long-course 200m backstroke.
• The 200m backstroke is contested in a 50-metre pool over four lengths, with swimmers remaining on their backs throughout the race.
• Swimming has been part of the Asian Games programme since 1951, featuring disciplines such as freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, medley and relay events.
Baranica Elangovan Makes History in Asian Games Pole Vault
• Baranica Elangovan won bronze in the women’s pole vault at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya on 25 September 2026.
• She cleared 4.15 metres, finishing level with Kazakhstan’s Polina Ivanova, who secured bronze on countback.
• The medal marked India’s first-ever Asian Games medal in pole vault, across both men’s and women’s events.
• Japan’s Misaki Morota won gold with a clearance of 4.55 metres, while China’s Chunge Niu took silver at 4.50 metres.
• Elangovan had improved the Indian national record twice in 2026, first clearing 4.22 metres in March and then raising it to 4.23 metres in May.
• She returned to competitive athletics after recovering from an ACL injury sustained in 2020.
• Before the Asian Games, Elangovan trained at the Reliance Foundation High Performance Centre under coach Milber Bertrand Russell.
• Her coach helped arrange the timely transportation of her specialised pole-vault equipment to Nagoya, allowing her to compete at the Games.
Pune Secures Hosting Rights for 2032 UCI Road World Championships
• Pune, Maharashtra, has been selected to host the 2032 UCI Road World Championships, marking the first time India will stage the prestigious event.
• The hosting decision was announced at the UCI Congress in Montreal, Canada, in September 2026.
• Pune’s bid prevailed over Groningen and the Drenthe region of the Netherlands, with the latter set to host the 2034 edition.
• The championships are organised by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the global governing body for cycling.
• The competition features major road-cycling disciplines, including elite road races, individual time trials and team events.
• India’s growing cycling profile was highlighted by the Bajaj Pune Grand Tour, a UCI-sanctioned multi-stage race held in January 2026.
• The Grand Tour covered 437 km over four stages and attracted around 170 cyclists from 35 countries, with New Zealand’s Luke Mudgway emerging as the winner.
• Although the championships are generally conducted in September, Pune’s climatic conditions could result in the 2032 event being held in mid-October.
RANKING AND INDEX
India Moves Up to 31st in Global Travel & Tourism Development Index
• India ranked 31st in the Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2026, released by the World Economic Forum on 25 September 2026.
• The index covered 110 economies, with India improving by nine positions from its 39th rank in the 2024 edition.
• Japan topped the 2026 rankings, followed by the United States, Spain, Australia and France.
• India’s progress was supported by factors such as affordable travel, cultural resources, tourism infrastructure and business-travel facilities.
• The TTDI evaluates the overall environment for sustainable and resilient tourism development, rather than simply counting tourist arrivals or spending.
• Cultural heritage, festivals, museums and traditions contribute to India’s tourism competitiveness under the index framework.
• Despite the improvement, India continues to face gaps in tourist services, infrastructure, environmental sustainability and workforce skills.
• Globally, 92% of the economies assessed improved their TTDI scores between 2024 and 2026, with tourism-development conditions reaching their strongest level since 2019.
SUMMIT AND CONFERENCE
India Highlights Sarvodaya Approach at G7 Development Ministers Meeting
• India presented its development approach based on Sarvodaya at the second G7 Development Ministers meeting held in New York on 24 September 2026.
• Sibi George, Secretary (West), Ministry of External Affairs, represented India at the meeting conducted alongside the 81st UN General Assembly.
• Sarvodaya, meaning the welfare or upliftment of all, is associated with the ideas of Mahatma Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave and is linked to inclusive development.
• India emphasised that development should combine financing, domestic capacity-building and resilience, while highlighting its development partnerships with other countries.
• The G7 comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, with France holding the 2026 presidency.
• The 81st session of the UN General Assembly took place in 2026, during which India highlighted the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development.
• The Declaration on the Right to Development was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1986; India also called for early adoption of the Covenant on the Right to Development.
• India’s development partnership model focuses on capacity-building, technical cooperation and project-based assistance, forming part of its wider South-South cooperation and Global South engagement.
