Week of 19 – 25 Oct 2026
9 articles this week.
Wednesday, 21 October 2026
Japan's MMX Mission Launched: World's First Sample Return from Mars's Moon PhobosJapan's JAXA launched the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) spacecraft on October 19, 2026 (UTC) aboard an H3-24L rocket from Tanegashima Space Center. MMX will arrive at the Martian system in August 2027, collect at least 10 grams of surface material from Phobos — Mars's larger moon — and return samples to Earth in July 2031, marking humanity's first sample return from the Martian system and potentially resolving the mystery of Phobos's origin.Ladakh Bench of J&K High Court Inaugurated: Access to Justice in India's Highest UTChief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant inaugurated the Ladakh Bench of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh at Melongthang, Leh on October 18–19, 2026, ending years of geographic inaccessibility to justice for Ladakh's residents. The bench, approved by the Union Cabinet in August 2026, operates as a fully IT-enabled, paperless court and marks the culmination of judicial reforms triggered by the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019.SEBI MF Lite Framework: 1 Finance Gets First In-Principle Approval for Passive-Only AMC; Closing Auction Rules Revised1 Finance received SEBI's first in-principle approval for an Asset Management Company (AMC) licence under the new MF Lite framework on October 19, 2026 — a lighter regulatory regime designed exclusively for passively managed mutual fund schemes (index funds and ETFs). Separately, SEBI revised the equity market Closing Auction Session (CAS) framework effective December 7, 2026, restructuring the 10-minute closing window while retaining the 30-minute VWAP method for derivatives settlement.PM-AJAY Scheme: 18,093 Villages Declared Adarsh Grams, Rs 1,730 Crore Released for SC DevelopmentThe Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has declared 18,093 villages as Adarsh Grams under the Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY) — a 100% centrally sponsored scheme launched in FY 2021-22 to uplift Scheduled Caste-dominated villages. Separately, Rs 1,730 crore has been released to states under the scheme's Grants-in-Aid component to skill over 2.5 lakh SC beneficiaries. The scheme merges three earlier SC welfare schemes into a unified framework.
Tuesday, 20 October 2026
PLFS September 2026: India's Labour Force Participation Rate Rises to 55.5%, Unemployment Steady at 5%The National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Monthly Bulletin for September 2026 on October 15, 2026. The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) rose by 0.2 percentage points year-on-year to 55.5%, while the overall unemployment rate remained steady at 5.0% — indicating stable labour market conditions ahead of the festive season.SCO Council of Heads of Government Meeting 2026: India at Dushanbe SummitDefence Minister Rajnath Singh represented India at the 25th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government (CHG) held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on October 19–20, 2026. The meeting focused on trade, economic cooperation, investment, connectivity, and innovation among SCO member states.India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement Enters into ForceThe India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (IN-NZ FTA), signed on April 27 2026 and ratified on September 21 2026, entered into force on October 20 2026. It is India's first FTA to grant New Zealand's 100% tariff lines duty-free access from day one, covering 8,284 product lines across textiles, pharmaceuticals, engineering goods, and agriculture. Bilateral trade is targeted to reach Rs 35,000 crore by 2030.NHRC India Faces GANHRI Accreditation Review: Downgrade from 'A' to 'B' StatusThe Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) has postponed its final accreditation review of India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to November 2026. NHRC faces a potential historic downgrade from 'A' (fully compliant) to 'B' (partially compliant) status under the Paris Principles, following concerns about independence, transparency in appointments, and its failure to adequately address serious human rights violations.Global Hunger Index 2026: India Ranks 100th, Remains in 'Serious' CategoryThe Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2026, released on October 14, 2026, by Welthungerhilfe, the Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict (IFHV), and Helvetas, ranked India 100th among 122 countries with a GHI score of 24.1 — still in the 'serious' category despite significant improvement from a score of 37 in 2006. The 2026 report's theme is "No Security Without Food Security."