Daily Current Affairs тАФ September 24, 2026

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#1ECONOMY & BANKING
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OECD Growth Forecast Upgrade for India

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has raised its GDP growth forecast for India, predicting that the Indian economy will expand by 7.1% in the financial year 2026-27, an upward revision from its earlier projection of 6.3%.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Headquartered in Paris, France, the OECD currently comprises 38 member countries, predominantly democratic nations supporting free-market economies. It succeeded the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC) established post-World War II. Lacking enforcement powers, it operates through moral suasion, peer reviews, and economic publications like the OECD Economic Outlook. India has been an OECD Key Partner since 2007.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Upward revisions by international financial bodies bolster foreign investor confidence and validate India's macroeconomic resilience amid global uncertainties. The OECD's focus on structural reforms, trade, and sustainable development provides critical benchmarking for India's ongoing fiscal and industrial policies.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency / Implementing Body**: OECD Secretariat, Paris, France
тАв- **Statutory / International Status**: International consultative economic organization (38 Member States; India is a Key Partner since 2007)
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: 2026-27 GDP growth projection for India upgraded to 7.1%
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Frequently asked questions focus on OECD membership, headquarters, and India's status (non-member but Key Partner)
#2DEFENCE & MISSILE TECH
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Procurement of Satellite Smart Anti Airfield Weapons (SAT-SAAW)

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

The Ministry of Defence has inked a crucial contract with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for the procurement of 160 Satellite Smart Anti Airfield Weapons (SAT-SAAW) along with associated equipment for the Indian Air Force (IAF).

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Indigenously designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), SAT-SAAW is an air-to-ground precision-guided glide bomb deployable from platforms like Jaguar, Hawk, and Su-30 MKI. It features an indigenous content of 60%, integrating subsystems like the Initial Measurement Unit, Long Impact Delay Fuse, and Twin Store Carrier. The SAT variant uses satellite navigation (GPS/NavIC) combined with an Inertial Navigation System (INS) to achieve high accuracy within 7 meters against runways, hangars, and bunkers.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

This procurement significantly enhances the IAF's tactical strike capabilities by neutralising enemy airfields from long stand-off ranges under all weather conditions. It marks a major milestone in advancing Aatmanirbharta in defence manufacturing and indigenous aerospace technology.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Ministry of Defence / Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) / DRDO
тАв- **Statutory / Technical Status**: Indigenous defence procurement with 60% domestic content
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: Procurement of 160 units; strike accuracy within 7 meters via GPS/NavIC and INS
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Direct questions on indigenous weapon systems, development agencies, and platform compatibility
#3INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
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India-CELAC Foreign Ministers' Meeting & Regional Integration

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

The India-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Foreign Ministers' Meeting was recently convened on the sidelines of the high-level UN General Assembly session, strengthening plurilateral diplomatic engagement between India and the Latin American region.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Created on December 3, 2011, via the Declaration of Caracas in Venezuela, CELAC is a regional bloc comprising 33 member countries. It serves as a successor to the Rio Group and the 2nd Latin American and Caribbean Summit on Integration and Development (CALC). Notably, CELAC is not a treaty-based organization; it has no permanent secretariat, no headquarters, and no binding decision-making powers. It functions through a rotating pro tempore presidency held for one year, adopting decisions exclusively by consensus.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Engaging CELAC provides India with a unified platform to deepen South-South cooperation, secure critical mineral supply chains, expand bilateral trade, and coordinate positions on multilateral reforms within global governance bodies.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Ministry of External Affairs, India / CELAC Pro Tempore Presidency
тАв- **Statutory / International Status**: Non-treaty regional integration bloc (33 member states; established by the 2011 Caracas Declaration)
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: Operates without a permanent secretariat or headquarters through consensus-based political declarations
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Questions target regional groupings, institutional structures, and India's multilateral diplomacy
#4UTTAR PRADESH SPECIAL
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Maharashtra Women Farmers Empowerment Bill, 2026

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

Maharashtra has made legislative history by becoming the first Indian state to pass the Women Farmers Empowerment Bill, 2026, which grants women independent legal recognition as farmers through a statutory 'Woman Farmer Certificate' regardless of land ownership status.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

The legislation directly responds to the 'Ownership Paradox' highlighted in the Agricultural Census (2015-16), where women held only 14% of operational holdings and 12.8% of legal land rights. Because standard agricultural schemes use land records as sole eligibility metrics, female farmers have faced severe exclusionтАФconstituting only 23% of PM-KISAN beneficiaries nationally. The new certificate bridges this database gap, integrating women into Agri Stack and institutional credit frameworks.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

By delinking farmer recognition from land titles, the law addresses the systemic feminisation of agriculture, where over 76.95% of rural working women are engaged in farming (PLFS 2023-24). It empowers female agricultural producers with direct access to credit, subsidies, and welfare schemes, promoting gender equality and food security.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency / Implementing Body**: Government of Maharashtra / State Department of Agriculture
тАв- **Statutory / International Status**: Groundbreaking state legislation aligning with the United Nations International Year of the Woman Farmer (2026)
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: 76.95% of rural working women in agriculture (PLFS 2023-24); only 12.8% female land ownership
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims & Mains Relevance**: Highly significant for gender empowerment, rural governance, and agrarian policy questions in UPPCS Mains and Prelims
#5GOVERNANCE & SCHEMES
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Feminisation of Agriculture and Socio-Economic Realities

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

Recent policy discourse highlights the structural transformation of the Indian rural economy, marked by the deepening feminisation of agriculture driven by male out-migration, economic distress, and shifting workforce participation patterns.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24, agriculture remains the largest employer of rural women, engaging over 76.95% of the female rural workforce. However, a stark recognition gap persists: over 41% of female agricultural workers function as unpaid helpers in family enterprises (compared to 20% of men), while only 39% are own-account workers (compared to 63% of men). Structural drivers include male migration to urban non-farm sectors, patriarchal wage disparities (paying women 20-30% less), and dual care burdens.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Addressing the recognition gap through gender-disaggregated agricultural databases, activity-based farmer registration, and women-centric Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) is vital for transforming subsistence farming into a profitable, inclusive enterprise.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare / National Statistical Office (NSO)
тАв- **Statutory / Data Source**: Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24 & Agricultural Census
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: 76.95% female workforce participation in agriculture; 41% unpaid female labor vs 20% male
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims & Mains Trend**: Core syllabus area for Indian Society, women's empowerment, and rural development essay topics
#6ECONOMY & BANKING
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Multilateral Cooperation in International Taxation and Transfer Pricing

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

The Union Finance Minister recently called upon BRICS member nations to actively share national experiences and best practices regarding treaty interpretation and multilateral negotiations in international taxation and transfer pricing.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Transfer pricing refers to the rules and methods for pricing transactions between enterprises under common ownership or control (such as multinational corporate subsidiaries). Developing economies frequently face challenges regarding base erosion, profit shifting (BEPS), and complex cross-border tax avoidance. Harmonising negotiating stances within plurilateral forums like BRICS strengthens emerging economies' bargaining power against aggressive tax planning by multinational enterprises.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Enhanced technical cooperation in international taxation ensures equitable revenue mobilization, protects domestic tax bases, and fosters transparent, predictable cross-border trade and investment regimes across the Global South.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue / Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)
тАв- **Statutory Framework**: Income Tax Act provisions and international double taxation avoidance agreements (DTAAs)
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: Multilateral frameworks involving BRICS economies addressing corporate tax avoidance
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Economic questions covering fiscal policy, international financial institutions, and taxation concepts
#7ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY
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Global Action for the International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

The designation of 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer by the United Nations has triggered intensive global and national policy reviews aimed at dismantling structural barriers and systemic exclusions faced by women in agrarian economies.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Spearheaded by agencies like the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the initiative emphasizes that closing the gender gap in agricultural inputs, land rights, and technology access could significantly boost global food production and alleviate rural poverty. International frameworks stress the integration of gender-responsive budgeting, climate-resilient agricultural training, and digital land-mapping tools.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Aligning national legislation (such as state-level farmer certification models) with UN thematic years accelerates sustainable development goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) and Goal 5 (Gender Equality), ensuring resilient rural futures.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) / United Nations General Assembly
тАв- **Statutory Status**: UN International Observance Year (2026)
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: Global policy target to bridge the agricultural gender productivity gap
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Questions regarding United Nations designated years and global developmental initiatives
#8GOVERNANCE & SCHEMES
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Integration of Agri Stack and Digital Public Infrastructure in Agriculture

ЁЯФ╣ Why in News & Recent Development

With recent policy initiatives granting independent legal recognition to women farmers, the integration of digital public infrastructure such as Agri Stack has become central to overhauling agricultural welfare delivery in India.

ЁЯФ╣ Key Conceptual & Analytical Details

Agri Stack is a digital public infrastructure built to create a unified farmers' registry linked with land records, crop sown data, and livestock details. By expanding identity databases beyond traditional patriarchal land ownership records to include certified non-landholding cultivators and tenant farmers, digital stacks enable seamless targeting for direct benefit transfers, institutional credit, and crop insurance.

ЁЯФ╣ Strategic Importance & Future Impact

Digital transformation of agrarian databases eliminates leakages, reduces intermediary exploitation, and ensures financial inclusion for marginalized farming demographics, particularly women and smallholders.

ЁЯФ╣ UP PCS / STATE PCS HIGH-YIELD VALUE ADDITION

тАв- **Nodal Agency**: Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India
тАв- **Statutory Framework**: Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiative for agriculture
тАв- **Core Factual Metrics**: Comprehensive digital farmer registry linked with Aadhaar and land/cultivation data
тАв- **UPPCS Prelims Trend & PYQ Relevance**: Emerging focus on e-governance initiatives, digital stack projects, and agricultural technology
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