Exam-focused current affairs for BPSC and UPSC Prelims, with Bihar linkage, static concepts, key facts, exam traps and interactive MCQs.
22 SEPTEMBER 2026 • BPSC / UPSC PRELIMS
01
Defence • India–Japan • Air Exercise
Exercise Veer Guardian 2026
The lecture begins with Exercise Veer Guardian 2026, a bilateral air exercise between the Indian Air Force and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, held at Air Force Station Jodhpur.
India + JapanBilateral air exercise
JodhpurAir Force Station venue
9–22 SepDuration stated in lecture
14 daysExercise period stated
Participating forces & aircraft
India: LCA Tejas, Su-30MKI and Rafale, as stated in the lecture.
Japan: Japan Air Self-Defense Force with F-2A fighter aircraft.
The lecture highlights this as the first time Japanese fighter aircraft were operating from Indian soil in this bilateral exercise.
Tejas: designed by ADA and manufactured by HAL, as revised in the lecture.
Objectives
Enhance interoperability.
Improve tactical proficiency and joint mission planning.
Strengthen operational coordination.
Deepen India–Japan defence diplomacy and Indo-Pacific cooperation.
Showcase indigenous capability through platforms such as LCA Tejas.
Question 1: With reference to Exercise Veer Guardian 2026, consider the following statements.
02
Energy • Assam • Thermal Power
Chapar Ultra-Supercritical Thermal Power Project, Assam
The lecture describes a proposed 3,200 MW ultra-supercritical thermal power project at Chapar in Dhubri district, Assam, calling it the largest power project initiated in the Northeast.
The lecture expands SHAKTI as the coal-allocation framework for transparent linkage to the power sector.
Pumped storage add-on
A separate 2,700 MW pumped-storage proposal with about ₹15,000 crore investment is also discussed.
Total investment cited
The lecture combines the thermal and pumped-storage proposals to cite about ₹63,000 crore.
Question 2: With reference to the Chapar power project in Assam, consider the following statements.
03
Environment • Western Ghats • ESA
Kasturirangan Report & Western Ghats Ecologically Sensitive Area
The lecture revises the long-running Western Ghats conservation debate through the Gadgil Committee, the Kasturirangan Committee and the fresh 2026 draft notification on ecologically sensitive areas.
Gadgil Committee — broader approach
Constituted in the context of Western Ghats ecological protection.
The lecture explains that it treated the entire Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive.
It proposed a graded approach using ESZ / ESA categories 1, 2 and 3 with different levels of restriction.
The approach was broader and stricter, according to the lecture.
Kasturirangan Committee — selective approach
Constituted in 2012 under K. Kasturirangan.
Report submitted on 15 April 2013, as stated.
Distinguished natural landscape from cultural landscape.
Recommended about 37% of the Western Ghats, roughly 60,000 sq km in the lecture, for ESA treatment.
Focused restrictions on high-impact activities rather than a blanket approach.
Committee comparison
Feature
Gadgil
Kasturirangan
Spatial approach
Entire Western Ghats treated as ecologically sensitive
About 37% of Western Ghats proposed as ESA
Method
Graded ESZ / ESA categories
Natural vs cultural landscape distinction
Regulatory character
Broader / stricter
More targeted / selective
Development concern
Strong ecological regulation
Balance conservation with livelihoods / development
Activities cited for restriction
Mining, sand mining, red-category industries, quarrying, thermal power plants and large building projects.
State concern
Karnataka and other states argue that geospatial mapping needs ground-level verification to distinguish settlements, plantations and natural areas.
2026 draft
The lecture cites a fresh draft notification proposing roughly 56,000 sq km of Western Ghats ESA and seeking public feedback up to 25 September 2026.
Question 3: With reference to the Kasturirangan Committee report, consider the following statements.
The lecture highlights Madhubani’s Rank 7 among the 100 selected districts under the PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana, with special focus on the district’s makhana–fish integrated farming model.
100Districts selected under the scheme
7thMadhubani rank stated
23Active FPOs stated
427.5 acresMakhana area developed, as stated
Scheme focus
District-focused agricultural development initiative covering 100 districts.
Targets districts with low productivity but high potential.
Promotes crop diversification and sustainable / natural farming.
Improves irrigation, storage, credit access and market support.
Goal: higher agricultural productivity and stronger farmer incomes.
Madhubani model
Makhana + fish cultivated in the same water bodies / chaurs.
One water body gives multiple income streams to farmers.
Fish waste can act as a nutrient source for makhana plants, as explained in the lecture.
FPOs support inputs, processing, market linkage and bargaining power.
The lecture also mentions identifying 11 chaurs for the integrated model.
Wetland / Chaur→Makhana cultivation+Fish farming→Multiple income streams
GI reminder
The lecture reminds students that Mithila Makhana received a GI tag in 2022.
Natural farming
The lecture states that the number of natural-farming farmers increased substantially in the district.
Water hyacinth idea
Invasive water hyacinth is being explored as a raw material for biocompost.
Question 4: With reference to Madhubani under the PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana, consider the following statements.
05
Bihar • Renewable Energy • Rural Development
Bihar Solar Village Initiative
The Bihar Solar Village initiative uses a ranking-based approach in which villages are assessed by the number of functioning solar systems across homes and institutions, with leading villages receiving recognition and incentives.
How the initiative works
Villages are ranked by the number of working solar systems.
Coverage can include homes, schools, health centres and other village institutions.
Top-performing villages may be recognised as Solar Villages / Saur Gram.
Electricity companies provide incentives / encouragement to leading villages, as stated in the lecture.
The lecture connects the push with rural rooftop solar and PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.
Bihar examples in the lecture
Dharanai, Jehanabad: developed as an early solar-village experiment in 2014 with a solar micro-grid.
The lecture notes that the Dharanai experiment later weakened / closed because of maintenance problems.
Doya village, Nalanda: in Noorsarai block, being developed as a solar model village.
Key lesson: installation alone is not enough; maintenance matters.
Rooftop solar→Inverter→Local consumption→Battery / grid for surplus
National example
The lecture identifies Modhera, Gujarat as India’s first solar village with 24×7 solar-supported electricity.
Technology mix
Ground-mounted solar, rooftop solar and battery storage are cited for the Modhera model.
Policy logic
Decentralised renewable energy can reduce rural dependence on conventional grid supply and reward functioning assets, not just installations.
Question 5: With reference to solar villages, consider the following statements.
06
Health • Vaccine • Dengue
Qdenga (TAK-003) — Dengue Vaccine for India
The final topic covers Qdenga / TAK-003, described in the lecture as India’s first dengue vaccine expected to enter the private market in the first half of 2027.
