UPSC current affairs · Friday

Current Affairs, 15 May 2026

4 issues picked from 36 PIB releases · about 2 minutes each · written by UPSC Grade, each fact checked against its PIB release or by a second model

How to readRead “Why in news” and “What it is” for every issue. Open For Prelims or For Mains for the exam you’re preparing for, then Test yourself at the foot of each card. Half the news questions in Prelims are answered from background, not the news itself.

In 60 seconds

Kimberley Process Certification Scheme. India chairs Kimberley Process in 2026; Mumbai intersessional ends, New Delhi plenary due.
Dam Safety Act, 2021 and National Committee on Dam Safety. PIB reviews India's ageing dams, the Dam Safety Act framework, DRIP rehabilitation and DHARMA monitoring.
Supply and Use Tables (National Accounts). MoSPI released first Supply and Use Tables on the 2022-23 base, covering 155 products and 67 industries.
Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) and CAQM. CAQM approved three new directions: stubble burning plan, EV-only 3-wheeler registration, and no fuel without PUCC.

International relations

Kimberley Process Certification Scheme

GS2 International organisations and groupingsGS3 EconomyPrelims and Mains

Why in news: The Kimberley Process Intersessional Meeting 2026 ended in Mumbai on 15 May 2026 under India's chairship. Its discussions will go to the KP Plenary in New Delhi later this year.
What it is: The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is a tripartite body of governments, industry and civil society. It aims to keep conflict diamonds out of the legitimate rough diamond trade through a certification system. It decides by consensus and has a rotating annual chair.

Legal origin: The scheme was set up under UN General Assembly Resolution 55/56 of 2000.
Structure: It brings together governments, industry and civil society, and works by consensus.
Industry participant: The World Diamond Council represents industry in the process.
Next step: The KP Plenary is due in New Delhi later in 2026.
Not a UN body: The KP is not a formal international organisation; it has no permanent secretariat and is run by a rotating chair.
Membership: It has 60 Participants representing 86 countries; the EU and its Member States count as one bloc.
Stakeholders: Participants, Observers, the World Diamond Council (industry) and the Civil Society Coalition take part in the meetings.
Nature: The KP is not a formal international organisation. It has no permanent secretariat and the chair rotates annually.
Launch: The scheme started operating in 2003.

Don’t confuse with Kimberley Process vs Financial Action Task Force: The KP certifies rough diamonds to block conflict diamonds. The FATF sets standards against money laundering and terror financing.

Don’t confuse with Intersessional vs Plenary: The intersessional is a mid-year working meeting. The plenary is the annual decision-making meeting.

Don’t confuse with KP vs UN Security Council sanctions: The KP is a certification scheme backed by a UNGA resolution. UNSC sanctions on conflict diamonds from specific countries are separate measures.

International bodies and relations: the largest group of news questions in Prelims (61 since 2013), often about background, members and location. In Mains, 27 news-triggered questions, mostly on India's interests.

Test yourself

Source: PIB, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, 15 May, 11:53 IST · Release 288875

Issue page →

Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.

Law and statutory body

Dam Safety Act, 2021 and National Committee on Dam Safety

GS3 Infrastructure - Water resourcesGS2 Statutory bodiesPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 15 May 2026, PIB published a note on dam rehabilitation. It reviews the Dam Safety Act, 2021, the DRIP programme and the DHARMA digital platform, and gives the current status of India's 6,628 specified dams.
What it is: The Dam Safety Act, 2021 provides for surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of specified dams to prevent dam failure disasters. It sets up the National Committee on Dam Safety and the National Dam Safety Authority at the Centre, and State Committees and State Dam Safety Organisations in States.

Who chaired the meeting: The 12th NCDS meeting was chaired by the Chairman of the Central Water Commission.
New regulation planned: The Committee agreed to work on a new regulation on surveillance and security of specified dams, given emerging threats.
Dam failures reviewed: Owners presented on recent failures including Luti Tank, Rajadera, Teesta Stage-III and Madhopur barrage.
Legal basis: The Dam Safety Act, 2021 is a Central law that creates the NCDS and the National Dam Safety Authority.
Specified dam: The Act covers dams above 15 m in height, or 10-15 m if they meet prescribed technical criteria.
Four-tier structure: NCDS is the apex body, NDSA the regulatory and implementing arm, with SCDS and SDSO in States.
Commencement: The Act came into force on 30 December 2021.
Penalties: Chapter X deals with offences. Obstruction or refusal to comply with directions can bring up to one year's imprisonment, a fine, or both. If it causes loss of life or imminent danger, imprisonment can go up to two years.
Dam ownership: State Governments own about 98.5% of specified dams (6,448).
NETRA: NDSA Engine for Tracking and Review using AI, built with WESEE, an Indian Navy R&D laboratory. It gives a conversational interface to NDSA documents.
DHARMA: National repository of dam safety data, covering more than 6,600 specified dams and thousands of inspection reports. NETRA is integrated with it.
Rashtriya Bandh Suraksha Darpan: Visualisation platform developed by C-DAC to present Dam Break Analysis results.
Inspections: More than 13,000 inspection reports are generated each year from pre-monsoon and post-monsoon dam inspections.
Old dams in the register: The National Register of Specified Dams 2025, compiled by the National Dam Safety Authority, lists 1,681 specified dams over fifty years old.
Owner's duty: Under the Act, each owner of a specified dam must inspect it every year before and after the monsoon.
Three categories: Inspections sort dams by urgency of repair. Category-III needs minor remedial work, Category-II major deficiencies needing prompt action, and Category-I the most serious deficiencies that may lead to failure.

Don’t confuse with NCDS vs NDSA: The National Committee on Dam Safety evolves policies and recommends regulations. The National Dam Safety Authority implements policy, resolves inter-State issues and acts as the regulator.

Don’t confuse with State Committee vs State Dam Safety Organisation: The State Dam Safety Organisation does the field work of surveillance and inspection, while the State Committee on Dam Safety reviews it at State level.

Don’t confuse with DRIP Phase I vs Phases II and III: Phase I (2012-2021) was World Bank supported and covered 223 dams in seven states. Phases II and III began in October 2021, are co-financed by the World Bank and AIIB, and cover 736 dams.

Don’t confuse with NDSA vs CWC: The Central Water Commission is the older technical body under the Jal Shakti Ministry. The NDSA is a separate statutory authority under the 2021 Act.

Don’t confuse with National Committee on Dam Safety vs National Dam Safety Authority: The Committee oversees dam safety policies and recommends regulations. The Authority implements policy, maintains the national register and resolves disputes between State bodies, among other tasks.

Don’t confuse with DRIP vs the Dam Safety Act: DRIP is a funded rehabilitation scheme with external financing. The Act is the legal framework for surveillance and safety of specified dams.

Laws, judgments and statutory bodies: 30 Prelims questions since 2013 (what the law says, who chairs, legal basis). In Mains, 44 news-triggered questions, most in GS2, asking for provisions and challenges.

Why it matters

Ageing dams and recent failures make uniform safety standards across States important for protecting lives and downstream property.
Gives dam safety a statutory basis with fixed owner duties and timelines. Earlier, safety depended on State practice.
Uniform standards across States address dam failure risk as 26% of dams are over 50 years old.
Digital tools help track many dams and inspection reports, making safety oversight more data-driven.
Dam break visualisation supports risk assessment and emergency planning for downstream areas.
Annual inspections and categorisation let repairs be prioritised before failures occur.
Ageing dams pose risks to life, property and water security, so a statutory framework matters.

Problems

Many State Dam Safety Organisations are weak, and compliance with evaluations, emergency plans and risk studies lags.
Reservoir sedimentation and security threats are emerging issues without clear regulation.
State ownership of about 98.5% of dams means safety depends on State capacity and funds.
Ageing and sedimentation reduce safety and storage; CWC data on 439 reservoirs show an average 19% loss of storage.
Many dams are owned by States, so consistent compliance and data entry vary.
Ageing dams and extreme rainfall raise failure risk beyond what digital tools alone can fix.
Owners hold primary responsibility, and capacity and funds vary across States and agencies.
Rehabilitation is slow: Rs 2,029 crore had been spent under DRIP-II by 31 December 2025, against Rs 5,107 crore outlay for the phase.

Way forward

Build State capacity through training with institutions like IITs and NITs, and enforce statutory deadlines.
Frame regulations on dam surveillance, security and sedimentation management.
Ensure owners earmark funds for maintenance, and use DHARMA data for risk-based prioritisation.
Complete rehabilitation under DRIP and build expertise through the Centres of Excellence.
Ensure States keep DHARMA data updated and act on inspection findings.
Link dam break analysis to Emergency Action Plans and local disaster management.
Speed up approved DRIP-II works and follow up on Category-I and II dams, including Medigadda.
Strengthen State dam safety organisations and publish inspection findings and Emergency Action Plans.

Put in your answer

Dam Safety Act, 2021 compliance push: The NCDS asked States to complete evaluations, emergency action plans and risk assessments for all specified dams by December 2026.

Scale of oversight: DHARMA covers more than 6,600 specified dams.

Inspection volume: Over 13,000 inspection reports are generated each year.

Old dams: 1,681 specified dams are over fifty years old (NRSD 2025), showing the scale of ageing infrastructure.

Test yourself

Source: PIB Headquarters, 15 May, 13:32 IST · Release 288880

Issue page →

Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.

Economy

Supply and Use Tables (National Accounts)

GS3 Indian economy: national income accountingPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 15 May 2026, MoSPI's National Statistics Office released the Supply and Use Tables for 2022-23 and 2023-24, the first compiled on the new 2022-23 base year.
What it is: Supply and Use Tables (SUTs) are two linked product-by-industry matrices in the national accounts. The Supply Table shows the supply of each product from domestic output and imports. The Use Table shows how each product is used: as inputs, in final consumption, in capital formation and in exports. They bring the production, income and expenditure approaches to GDP into one consistent frame.

Base year: These are the first SUTs compiled on the revised 2022-23 base year, which replaced the 2011-12 series.
Product identity: Total supply of each product (domestic production plus imports) must equal its total use (intermediate consumption plus all final uses). This makes the three GDP approaches consistent.
Valuation: The Supply Table moves from basic prices to purchasers' prices by adding trade and transport margins and net product taxes.
Statistical discrepancy: Annual estimates are integrated with the SUT framework, so final current-price estimates carry no statistical discrepancy between the production/income and expenditure estimates.
Sector shares: Services made up about 51-52% of total supply at basic prices, manufactured goods 35-36%, agriculture 11% and mining 2%.

Don’t confuse with Basic prices vs purchasers' prices: Basic prices are what producers receive for output. Purchasers' prices are what buyers pay, after adding trade and transport margins and net product taxes.

Don’t confuse with GVA vs GVO: Gross Value of Output is total output. GVA is output minus intermediate consumption. A low GVA-to-GVO ratio means material-heavy production.

Economy terms and data: 42 Prelims questions since 2013, rising in recent years; they test what a term or instrument means. In Mains, 12 news-triggered questions.

No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: First SUTs under the 2022-23 base year. Economy terms make up 13% of news-linked Prelims questions, but this is a niche data release, so a card without a question.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation, 15 May, 16:00 IST · Release 288884

Issue page →

Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.

Environment

Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) and CAQM

GS3 EnvironmentGS2 Statutory bodiesPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 15 May 2026, CAQM's 28th Full Commission meeting approved Draft Directions 99, 100 and 101 on paddy stubble, electric 3-wheelers and fuel only against a valid PUCC, and reviewed GRAP orders and monitoring stations.
What it is: The Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) is a statutory body set up under the CAQM Act, 2021. It coordinates, researches and tackles air pollution in Delhi-NCR and adjoining areas, and issues binding directions. It also oversees the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), a set of staged emergency steps tied to air quality.

Direction 99 (stubble): CAQM approved a draft direction under Section 12 of the CAQM Act, 2021 on the 2026 paddy stubble burning action plan. The target is complete elimination of paddy stubble burning in NCR States.
Direction 100 (EV 3-wheelers): Only electric L5 category 3-wheelers will be registered. The dates are phased: 2027 in Delhi, 2028 in the high vehicle density districts, 2029 in the rest of NCR.
Sub-Committee: The Commission ratified reconstitution of the Sub-Committee on 'Monitoring and Identification' under Section 11(2) of the CAQM Act, 2021.
Who decided: The CAQM Sub-Committee on GRAP unanimously decided to revoke Stage-I across the entire NCR.
Forecast inputs: Decisions rely on IMD and IITM forecasts along with the AQI, and the Sub-Committee will keep reviewing.
Legal basis of CAQM: CAQM is a statutory body set up under the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act, 2021.

Don’t confuse with CAQM vs CPCB: CAQM is a statutory commission under the CAQM Act, 2021, with power to issue binding directions in NCR. CPCB is the national pollution board under the Water and Air Acts.

Don’t confuse with PUCC vs BS standards: PUCC certifies that a vehicle's tailpipe emissions are within limits. BS norms set emission standards for new vehicles.

Don’t confuse with GRAP vs long-term policy: GRAP is a short-term emergency response triggered by AQI levels. The Commission's comprehensive policy sets longer-term actions and timelines, such as dust mitigation.

Environment: Prelims tests bodies, programmes and the law behind them; Mains asks why plans fall short.

No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: CAQM directions on stubble burning and electric three-wheelers. The issue is already on file, so this is an update to that card.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change., 15 May, 16:55 IST · Release 288892

Issue page →

Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.

Quick facts

PM Modi visited the UAE on 15 May 2026, backed unimpeded navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and agreed to new energy initiatives, including strategic petroleum reserve storage.
Sahasra Semiconductors' ATMP/OSAT facility at Bhiwadi, Rajasthan, was inaugurated, billed as India's first SME-led semiconductor facility and Rajasthan's first semiconductor plant.
NFSU's Uganda campus at Jinja is India's first overseas public academic campus; its first batch enrolled in October 2025.

Source: PIB, 15 May

What we left out: 29 of 36 releases

Reviews and routine MoUs (2)
Visit schedules (1)
Same issue as another release (8)
Speeches without a decision (2)
Ceremonies and campaigns (8)
Routine data releases (2)
Routine port calls (2)
Seminars and conclaves (2)
Company results (1)
Visit schedules and reviews (1)

Practise the day’s news

In UPSC’s formats, inside each issue. The answer and why come after you choose.

1Kimberley Process Certification SchemeMCQ · 8 true or false
2Dam Safety Act, 2021 and National Committee on Dam SafetyMCQ · 7 true or false

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