GK One-Liners

What: SEHAT — Science Excellence for Health through Agricultural Transformation — was jointly launched on 11 May 2026 by Union Health Minister J P Nadda (MoHFW) and Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan (MoA&FW). It is a joint initiative of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), built on the framework “Healthy Food, Healthy Farms, Healthy India”.

How: The mission converges agricultural research and medical research to address India’s dual burden of undernutrition and overnutrition (obesity, lifestyle disease). It marks a strategic shift from a curative/treatment-based model to a preventive approach centred on nutrition, early detection, and continuous care. ICMR is currently headed by Director-General Dr Rajiv Bahl.

Why: A textbook GS-II (Health policy, Government Schemes) and GS-III (Agriculture, Food Security) overlap topic. Expect Prelims items on the full form of SEHAT, the two councils involved, the launching ministers, and the “Healthy Food–Healthy Farms–Healthy India” tagline.

Key MCQ anchors: SEHAT full form • ICAR + ICMR • 11 May 2026 • Nadda (MoHFW) + Chouhan (MoA&FW) • preventive shift • Dr Rajiv Bahl (ICMR DG).

What: The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Quarterly Bulletin for January–March 2026 was released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI). Urban Unemployment Rate (UR) for the 15+ age group eased to 6.6% from 6.7% in the previous quarter; this is the fourth Q4 bulletin of FY25-26.

How: Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for the 15+ population stood at 55.5% overall, with Rural LFPR at 58.2% and Urban LFPR at 50.2%. PLFS uses Current Weekly Status (CWS) for quarterly bulletins (urban) and provides annual estimates on both Usual Status and CWS bases. Reference period: a 7-day recall preceding the survey date.

Why: Employment data is high-yield for UPSC GS-III (Economy, Employment), RBI Grade B, and SEBI Grade A. The classic Prelims trap is mixing up Rural vs Urban LFPR and confusing UR with LFPR. Remember: UR ≠ LFPR.

Key MCQ anchors: Urban UR 6.6% • LFPR 55.5% • Rural LFPR 58.2% • Urban LFPR 50.2% • NSO under MoSPI • CWS methodology.

What: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) released a consultation paper on 11 May 2026 proposing the GARUDA Mechanism — Green-Channel: AIF Rollout Upon Document Acknowledgement — for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs). Public comments are open till 1 June 2026.

How: GARUDA cuts the scheme-launch timeline for regular AIF schemes from 30 days to 10 working days. Angel Funds and Accredited-Investor-only (AI-only) schemes get immediate launch on acknowledgement. As of March 2026, registered AIFs stand at 1,849 (vs 732 five years ago); cumulative commitments are Rs 15.74 lakh crore, with net investments of Rs 6.45 lakh crore (Dec 2025) and 2,773 Accredited Investors (April 2026).

Why: Critical for SEBI Grade A, RBI Grade B, and UPSC GS-III (Capital Markets). Expect questions on the GARUDA full form, the 30→10-day cut, and what the AIF industry size is. Don’t confuse GARUDA (AIFs) with other green-channel schemes.

Key MCQ anchors: GARUDA full form • 30 days → 10 working days • Angel Funds: immediate • AIFs 1,849 • Rs 15.74 lakh crore commitments • Accredited Investors 2,773.

What: Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant launched a twin initiative in May 2026 — the ‘One Case One Data’ programme and an Artificial Intelligence (AI) chatbot named ‘Su Sahay’ — to modernise India’s case-data architecture.

How: ‘One Case One Data’ integrates case records from the Supreme Court, High Courts, district courts, and taluka courts into a single unified system, with a unique digital ID assigned per case. The ‘Su Sahay’ chatbot was developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) under the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) in collaboration with the Supreme Court Registry, to provide litigant-facing answers in natural language.

Why: Sits at the intersection of GS-II (Polity – Judiciary, e-Governance) and GS-III (Science & Tech – AI applications). Likely Prelims hooks: who developed Su Sahay (NIC + SC Registry), under which ministry (MeitY), and the unified ID per case feature.

Key MCQ anchors: CJI Surya Kant • ‘One Case One Data’ • Su Sahay chatbot • NIC under MeitY • Supreme Court Registry • one digital ID per case.

What: In May 2026, the Indian Army inducted two indigenous combat systems from Adani Defence & Aerospace, Hyderabad — the ULPGM (UAV-Launched Precision Guided Munition) and the AGNIKAA VTOL-1, a First-Person-View (FPV) kamikaze drone. The ULPGM is India’s first indigenous loitering munition.

How: Both systems were procured under Emergency Procurement-6 (EP-6) and fall in the IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured) category — the highest-priority DAP-2020 category. AGNIKAA VTOL-1 has a range of up to 5 km, endurance of 30 minutes, max speed 60 km/h, and a lethality radius of 5 m, designed for urban warfare, confined spaces, and open battlefields.

Why: Hot topic for UPSC GS-III (Defence, Indigenisation), CDS, NDA, and AFCAT. The “first indigenous loitering munition” tag, the IDDM category, and the EP-6 route are all classic Prelims hooks. Don’t confuse ULPGM (UAV-launched) with conventional precision-guided munitions.

Key MCQ anchors: ULPGM = first indigenous loitering munition • AGNIKAA VTOL-1 specs (5 km / 30 min / 60 km/h / 5 m) • Adani Defence & Aerospace • EP-6 • IDDM category.

What: The International Day of Plant Health (IDPH) is observed annually on 12 May. The 2026 theme is ‘Plant Biosecurity for Food Security’. The day is led globally by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).

How: IDPH was established via United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution A/RES/76/256, adopted in March 2022, with the first observance on 12 May 2022. The IPPC is an intergovernmental treaty hosted at FAO that protects global plant resources from pests and diseases — directly linked to food, trade, and biodiversity.

Why: A common UPSC Prelims pattern: days + themes + founding resolutions. Strong overlap with GS-III (Environment, Agriculture, Biodiversity) and SSC/Banking general-awareness sections. Watch for date traps (11 vs 12 May), and don’t confuse IPPC (plant) with similar acronyms like IPCC (climate).

Key MCQ anchors: 12 May • Theme 2026: Plant Biosecurity for Food Security • FAO + IPPC • UNGA A/RES/76/256 • First observed 2022 • IPPC ≠ IPCC.