CDS / OTA Current Affairs · Topic

CDS Schemes & Social Welfare Current Affairs 2026

Government schemes are the single largest current-affairs share in recent CDS papers — about a fifth of the questions in our analysis of eight papers. The paper asks for the ministry, the launch year, the beneficiaries and the components. These explainers set out each scheme's design, its lineage and its numbers. Every article carries ten practice MCQs and a note on how the topic is asked.

34 articles · updated 20 October 2026 · page 1 of 2

Latest articles

• 20 October 2026 Denotified in 1952, Still Waiting for a Category

  An 8-day Shilp Samagam Mela opened in Guwahati with 75 artisans from SC, OBC, Safai Mitra and Denotified Tribe communities. An explainer on the Criminal Tribes Act, the Idate Commission, the…

• 14 October 2026 5 Schemes Renamed, and 1 Rate Actually Changed

  The Cabinet has continued the National Social Assistance Programme to 2030-31 with ₹53,428 crore, renamed it Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana, and widened the disability pension. An ex…

• 13 October 2026 21% Against a Target of 80%

  India has cut TB incidence 21% since 2015 against a global 12%, and launched JOSH Teams across 11 states. An explainer on the national target India missed, why it carries a quarter of global…

• 12 October 2026 The Largest Producer, and Also the Largest Importer

  The Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses completes a year, with imports down 31.52% and production at 274 lakh tonnes. An explainer on the ₹11,440 crore mission, why pulse yields are low, an…

• 12 October 2026 The Rates Must Be Displayed, and the Centre Can Only Ask

  The Union Health Secretary has written to all States urging display of healthcare rates under the Clinical Establishments Act. An explainer on Article 252, Rule 9, the pending Supreme Court …

• 10 October 2026 47 Lakh Calls to 14416, and What Happens After the Call

  World Mental Health Day 2026 marks four years of Tele-MANAS and 47.75 lakh calls. An explainer on the helpline's data, MANN Jaagriti, the District Mental Health Programme, and how the law on…

• 10 October 2026 36 Schemes, 11 Ministries, and One Collector Who Has to Sequence Them

  PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana completes a year across 100 aspirational agricultural districts. An explainer on the three selection indicators, the convergence of 36 schemes, the three-tier s…

• 9 October 2026 10 Years of Sugamya Bharat, and Still No Yardstick

  DEPwD's Sugamyata Ka Sankalp consultation asked how accessibility should be measured. An explainer on the Sugamya Bharat Abhiyan, the RPwD Act 2016, and why the Supreme Court's Rajive Raturi…

• 8 October 2026 170% Mark-Up, Capped at 30%, and the List Nobody Has Published Yet

  The Government approved a 30% cap on trade margins for non-scheduled anti-cancer drugs, with expected savings of ₹2,500 crore a year. An explainer on ceiling prices versus trade margin ratio…

• 4 October 2026 ₹3,600 Crore for 3 Lakh Houses, and 177 That Will Be Printed

  The Centre handed Andhra Pradesh 3 lakh PMAY-G houses worth ₹3,600 crore on 4 October 2026 and broke ground on India's first 3D concrete-printed housing project. An explainer on the unit-ass…

• 3 October 2026 1,000 ITIs, and the ₹10,000 Crore Industry Is Asked to Put In

  PM-SETU completes one year on 4 October 2026, with 850 ITIs identified and 14 clusters approved. An explainer on the hub-and-spoke model, the ₹60,000 crore three-way split, and why industry …

• 2 October 2026 ₹1.87 Lakh Crore, 2.04 Crore Workers, and What That Ratio Means

  KVIC launched a nationwide khadi discount campaign on Gandhi Jayanti 2026, reporting sector turnover above ₹1.87 lakh crore and employment above 2.04 crore. An explainer on what khadi is, an…

• 1 October 2026 3,92,006 Cases Pending, and 217 Courts to Hear Them

  The Ministry of Social Justice set out implementation of the PCR Act 1955 and SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 on 1 October 2026. An explainer on Exclusive Special Courts, SAMBAL, a…

• 29 September 2026 10 Fully Literate States, and the 5% the Definition Allows

  A PIB backgrounder of 29 September 2026 sets out India's literacy journey from 14% in 1947 to 81.1% today. An explainer on ULLAS, why full literacy is defined as 95%, and the retention cliff…

• 27 September 2026 Tenth From Thirteenth, and Six Silvers

  India finished tenth at WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 with six silver medals and twenty Medallions for Excellence. An explainer on what the competition tests, why a Medallion for Excellence is n…

• 20 September 2026 From 39 Per Cent to ODF Plus Model: What Rural Sanitation Counts Now

  A PIB backgrounder on 20 September 2026 set out rural sanitation's trajectory: coverage of 39 per cent in 2014, 10.28 crore toilets by 2019, and 5.69 lakh ODF Plus villages as of 17 Septembe…

• 19 September 2026 1,164 Batches in October: Rural Skilling Restarts on a Two-Year Clock

  The Ministry of Rural Development will commence DDU-GKY 2.0 training batches across most States and UTs from October 2026, with 34,920 rural youth in 1,164 batches. A CDS/OTA explainer on pl…

• 18 September 2026 Shelter, Sticks and a Helpline: The Scheme Behind India's Ageing Policy

  The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment released ₹1,089.58 crore under IPSrC and SAPSrC, supporting over 10.76 lakh senior citizens since FY 2014-15. A CDS/OTA explainer on Atal Vayo …

• 17 September 2026 A Share of Every Tonne: How ₹1.09 Lakh Crore Reached India's Mining Districts

  The Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana completed 11 years on 17 September 2026, with 4.70 lakh projects worth ₹1,09,938 crore sanctioned through District Mineral Foundations in 656 …

• 15 September 2026 Pension Sakhis: Sending the Self-Help Group After the Retirement Problem

  The Department of Rural Development and PFRDA signed an MoU to create 'Pension Sakhis', using the DAY-NRLM self-help group network to take pension awareness and NPS enrolment to rural househ…