Daily Current Affairs (DCA) 07 October, 2026

Context of the News

India presented its progress on forest cover, restoration and climate action at the 28th Session of the FAO Committee on Forestry (COFO 28), held from 28 September to 2 October 2026 in Rome, Italy. India’s forest and tree cover now stands at 82.74 million hectares, or 25.17 per cent of its geographical area.

Key Highlights

What Is COFO?

• A biennial session — held every two years
• Brings together 128 member countries, including ministers, heads of forest services, senior officials and partner organisations
• Discusses global forestry issues
• COFO 28 was chaired by Pierre Taty of the Republic of the Congo

What Was the Theme?

• Held alongside the 10th World Forest Week
• Theme: “Forests for food, resilience and prosperity”

How Did India Participate?

• Through the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
• India presented its national statement on forest and landscape restoration
• Reported forest and tree cover of 82.74 million hectares — 25.17 per cent of geographical area

What Did the FAO Report Say?

The FAO released “The State of the World’s Forests 2026: Restoring Forests and Landscapes – The Way Forward for a Sustainable Future”

• A global assessment of land degradation
• With practical strategies for scaling up high-quality Forest and Landscape Restoration (FLR)
• Key finding: nearly 1.56 billion hectares of land is degraded globally
• That is 10 per cent of the world’s total land area
• And about 5.2 times the size of India

Important Facts for Exams

• India’s forest and tree cover: 82.74 mn ha, 25.17 per cent of geographical area
• India ranks 9th globally in total forest area and 3rd in net annual forest area gain (FRA 2025)
• Bonn Challenge: India pledged 26 mn ha by 2030; 21.76 mn ha already under restoration
• India’s carbon sink: additional 2.29 billion tonnes CO₂e by 2021; target 3.5–4.0 billion tonnes by 2035
• FAO — headquartered at Rome, founded 1945; also publishes SOFI (food security) and SOFA (agriculture)
• The Global Forest Resources Assessment (FRA) is published every five years

• The PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) Scheme completed two years on 29 September 2026.
• About 26.59 lakh electric vehicles (EVs) were sold under the scheme as of June 2026.
• The scheme was launched in October 2024 and has been extended up to 31 March 2028.
• It supports e-2Ws, e-3Ws, e-ambulances, e-trucks, e-buses and EV charging infrastructure.

Context
The World Bank raised India’s FY27 growth projection to 7.1 per cent from 6.6 per cent, citing robust domestic demand and strong exports despite global headwinds — in the October edition of its India Development Update.

The Revised Forecast Table

What Is Driving Growth

• “Growth has held up better than expected despite trade and geopolitical uncertainties”
• Private consumption is expected to remain the main driver
• A rainfall deficit through August is likely to weigh modestly on rural demand
• Government consumption will stay subdued

Context of the News

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Francis Halzen, a Belgian-American scientist, for his pioneering work on detecting high-energy neutrinos using the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole in Antarctica.

Key Highlights

What are Neutrinos?

• Neutrinos are extremely tiny subatomic particles produced mainly during nuclear reactions, such as those occurring inside the Sun.
• They are among the most abundant particles in the universe, after photons.
• They are electrically neutral and interact very weakly with matter, earning them the nickname “ghost particles.”
• Billions of neutrinos pass through our bodies every second without noticeable effects.

Why are Neutrinos Important?

• Because neutrinos interact very weakly with matter, they can travel through very dense regions of space without being absorbed or scattered.
• This allows scientists to study cosmic events that cannot be observed clearly through ordinary light.
• Neutrinos therefore provide a new window into the universe.

What did Francis Halzen do?

• Francis Halzen developed the idea of using the deep Antarctic ice itself as a huge neutrino detector.
• This led to the development of the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole.
• IceCube covers about 1 cubic kilometre of ice and contains more than 5,000 light sensors installed deep inside the Antarctic ice.

How does IceCube detect neutrinos?

1. A neutrino occasionally collides with an atomic nucleus in the ice.
2. The collision produces a charged particle.
3. The charged particle travels through the ice and produces a faint blue light/glow called Cherenkov light.
4. IceCube’s light sensors detect this glow.
5. Scientists use the direction and energy of the light to determine the direction and energy of the original neutrino.

Why Antarctica?

• The South Pole provides a large volume of extremely clear and stable ice.
• Deep ice is naturally dark and isolated, reducing interference from other sources.
• This makes it suitable for detecting the extremely rare interactions of neutrinos.

Context of the News

India has deployed 40 indigenous supercomputers with a combined capacity of 68 Petaflops under the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM) — strengthening self-reliance in high-performance computing (HPC) ahead of ESTIC-2026.

Key Highlights

What Is the National Supercomputing Mission?

• Launched in April 2015 with an outlay of ₹4,500 crore
• Jointly run by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)
• Implemented by C-DAC, Pune and IISc, Bengaluru
• Its aim is to build an indigenous high-performance computing system, so India does not depend on other countries for computing power

How Did Indian Supercomputing Develop?

• PARAM 8000 (1991) — India’s first indigenous supercomputer, built by C-DAC, with a speed of 1 Gigaflop. It was made after Western countries refused to sell India the Cray X-MP machine
• PARAM Yuva series (2008–2013) — raised Indian computing to the Teraflop level (54 TF), used for fluid dynamics, weather modelling and bioinformatics
• NSM launched (2015) — shifted from building one-off machines to a connected national grid
• PARAM Shivay and Pravega (2019–2022) — the first multi-petaflop systems. PARAM Shivay at IIT BHU was the first built under NSM, followed by PARAM Pravega (3.3 PF) at IISc Bengaluru
• PARAM Rudra (2024 onwards) — uses Indian-designed Rudra servers, Indian high-speed interconnects and Indian liquid-cooling parts

Context of the News

The National Statistics Office (NSO) released the findings of India’s first-ever National Household Travel Survey (NHTS), conducted from July 2025 to June 2026.

Key Highlights

What Is the Survey?

• India’s first all-India household travel survey
• It records why people travel, how they travel, how far, for how long and how much they spend
• Covered 4.92 lakh households and over 20.34 lakh persons
• Conducted by the NSO under MoSPI
• Important note: in this survey, “travel” means a trip of 1 km or more. Shorter trips are not counted

Important Facts for Exams

• NHTS — India’s first household travel survey; July 2025 to June 2026; 4.92 lakh households, 20.34 lakh persons; by the NSO under MoSPI
• “Travel” means trips of 1 km or more
• Students: 66.4 per cent travel 1 km+; walking 37, bus 29.5, bicycle 15.8 per cent
• Workers: 57.6 per cent travel 1 km+; urban 64.1, rural 54.5 per cent
• Two-wheelers: 42.6 per cent overall; 52.3 urban, 37.1 rural
• Gender gap: 61.9 per cent men against 41.9 per cent women
• Average travel time: 23 minutes (students), 25 minutes (workers)
• Monthly commute cost: ₹785 average; ₹1,044 urban, ₹612 rural
• Overnight travel: buses 55.8, railways 17.7 per cent; 70.2 per cent for social and religious reasons
• The female work-travel gap connects to India’s low female labour force participation of 41.7 per cent (PLFS 2023-24)

Context of the News

Nearly 200 people were quarantined and monitored in Irkutsk, Siberia, after a researcher at an anti-plague institute died of severe pneumonia suspected to be pneumonic plague.

Key Highlights

What Is Pneumonic Plague?

• The rarest, most severe and most deadly form of plague
• It is an infection of the lungs
• Caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis
• It is the only form of plague that spreads directly from person to person

Important Facts for Exams

• Pneumonic plague — the deadliest form and the only one spreading person to person
• Caused by Yersinia pestis; carried by rodents, spread by the rat flea (Xenopsylla cheopis)
• Incubation: 24 hours to 3 days
• Three forms: bubonic (lymph nodes), septicaemic (blood), pneumonic (lungs)
• Treated with gentamicin, doxycycline, ciprofloxacin
• Yersinia pestis is named after Alexandre Yersin, who identified it in Hong Kong, 1894
• Plague caused three historic pandemics — the Plague of Justinian (6th century), the Black Death (14th century) and the Third Pandemic (19th century), which reached Bombay in 1896
• India’s last major outbreak was in Surat, 1994
• The Haffkine Institute, Mumbai was founded after the 1896 plague; Waldemar Haffkine developed the first plague vaccine there

Context of the News

India and Japan jointly launched the Operational Manual for the India-Japan Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) in New Delhi — moving the arrangement from design to actual project execution.

Key Highlights

What Is the JCM?

• A bilateral project-based mechanism started by Japan with partner developing countries
• Japan supplies advanced low-carbon technology, infrastructure and services
• The emission reductions achieved are counted as credits and shared between the two countries

What Is the Legal Basis?

• Governed by Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement, which allows two countries to cooperate voluntarily and transfer emission reductions between them
• These transferred reductions are called ITMOs — Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes
• Built on a Memorandum of Cooperation signed 7 August 2025
• And Rules of Implementation adopted 8 June 2026

• India and Japan launched the Operational Manual for the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) in New Delhi.
• It operationalises cooperation under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement.
• The JCM promotes low-carbon technologies, climate finance and emission reduction projects.
• The manual covers the complete project cycle, from project idea submission to credit issuance and authorisation.

• Odisha launched India’s first dedicated digital portal for MICE — Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions tourism.
• The portal will simplify incentive applications and approvals for large business events.
• Eligible events can receive incentives of ₹1,000 per room per day, subject to specified conditions.
• The initiative aims to strengthen business tourism and corporate event infrastructure in Odisha.

• World Habitat Day is observed on the first Monday of October to promote adequate housing and better human settlements.
• The 2026 theme was “Adequate Housing for All.”
• The global observance was held in Muscat, Oman, from 5–8 October 2026.
• In India, the focus included progress under PMAY-U and PMAY-U 2.0.

• World Teachers’ Day is observed every year on 5 October.
• The 2026 theme was “Standing with teachers: 60 years of protecting the profession, advancing its status and shaping our futures.”
• It marked the 60th anniversary of the 1966 ILO-UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Teachers.
• The day was first observed globally in 1994.

• World Cerebral Palsy Day is observed on 6 October to promote awareness, inclusion and accessibility.
• The 2026 theme was “Unique and united.”
• Cerebral Palsy is a group of neurological disorders affecting movement, posture and muscle coordination.
• The day was designated in 2012 by the Cerebral Palsy Alliance.

• India is among seven countries that expressed interest in hosting the 2036 Summer Olympics.
• Other interested countries include Qatar, South Africa, South Korea, Germany, Hungary and Turkey.
• The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is expected to decide the host through its members in 2029.
• The IOC is also discussing potential hosting for 2040 and 2044.

• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) delivered its 2,000th aero-engine from its Koraput division in Odisha.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stressed the need for indigenous capabilities in aero-engine design, development, manufacturing and maintenance.
• Around ₹5,000 crore of proposed investment will support the aerospace ecosystem.
• India is also developing its first indigenous high-thrust engine testing facility, important for the AMCA programme.

• The Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha Chairman reconstituted 24 Departmentally-Related Standing Committees (DRSCs) for 2026–27.
• Bhartruhari Mahtab was appointed Chairperson of the Finance Committee.
• Shashi Tharoor will head the Committee on External Affairs.
• Radha Mohan Singh was appointed Chairperson of the Defence Committee.

• MeitY launched the Centre for AI in Keralam (CAIK) in Thiruvananthapuram under the IndiaAI Mission.
• Digital University Kerala will be the implementing agency.
• Focus areas include healthcare, agriculture, climate resilience, sustainability and e-governance.
• Its first cohort includes 15 AI startups across healthcare, AgriTech, legal technology, Edge AI and other fields.

• Justice Sunita Agarwal, Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh were appointed as Supreme Court judges.
• The appointments were made under Article 124(2) of the Constitution.
• New Acting Chief Justices were also appointed for the Gujarat, Delhi and Telangana High Courts.
• Gurvinder Pal Singh was appointed as an Additional Judge of the Delhi High Court under Article 224(1).

• Indian trap shooter Rajeshwari Kumari was elected to the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) Athletes Commission for 2026–2030.
• She will represent South Asia.
• She becomes the second Indian on the Commission after Shiva Keshavan.
• She won a silver medal in the Women’s Trap Team event at the 2022 Asian Games.

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched Fleet Support Ship-1 (FSS-1) ‘Surya’ at Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam.
• It is the first of five indigenously designed Fleet Support Ships for the Indian Navy.
• The 43,500-tonne ships will carry fuel, water, ammunition and other supplies for naval vessels.
• The ship also has a helicopter deck, maintenance facilities and self-defence systems.

• Max Verstappen won the 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix for Oracle Red Bull Racing.
• Kimi Antonelli finished second, while Lewis Hamilton finished third.
• It was the 16th round of the 2026 Formula One World Championship.
• The race was held at Sepang International Circuit, Malaysia, marking Formula One’s return to the circuit since 2017.

• India won four gold medals and one silver medal at the 19th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) 2026.
• All five members of India’s team won medals.
• The achievement highlights India’s performance in astronomy and astrophysics education.

• The 10th edition of India Mobile Congress (IMC) began at Yashobhoomi, New Delhi.
• The 2026 theme is “Scale Without Boundaries.”
• The event focuses on telecommunications, digital connectivity and emerging technologies.
• It provides a platform for global collaboration in India’s digital ecosystem.

• Novak Djokovic won the China Open men’s singles title in Beijing.
• It was his seventh China Open title.
• The victory also gave him his 102nd Tour-level trophy.
• Australia’s Alex de Minaur retired during the final.