UPSC current affairs · Tuesday

Current Affairs, 8 September 2026

5 issues picked from 46 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

Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects. Seven firms applied in Round 1 of the ₹37,500 crore coal gasification scheme.
Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FRI). DoT's FRI mobile-number risk tool has stopped over ₹5,000 crore of suspected cyber fraud.
Mission Poshan 2.0 and Rashtriya Poshan Maah. Ninth Poshan Maah from 9 September 2026 puts Anganwadi centres and community ownership at the centre.
Deep Sea Mining and Deep Ocean Mission. India courts industry for deep sea mining of critical minerals, awaiting ISA's Exploitation Code.
Lumpy Skin Disease. DAHD says Lumpy Skin Disease is under control; vaccination, surveillance and State advisories continue.

Scheme

Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects

GS3 Energy · Coal gasificationPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 8 September 2026 the Ministry of Coal said Round 1 of the ₹37,500 crore coal/lignite gasification scheme closed with seven applications. Round 2 opens the same day.
What it is: The Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects is a Ministry of Coal scheme that backs conversion of domestic coal and lignite into syngas, methanol, ammonia, urea and hydrogen. It builds on the National Coal Gasification Mission and the earlier ₹8,500 crore incentive scheme. Projects are picked through rounds of applications under a Request for Proposal.

Outlay and approval: The Union Cabinet approved the scheme on 13 May 2026 with a total outlay of ₹37,500 crore.
Capacity target: The national goal is 100 million tonnes of coal gasification capacity by 2030, of which 75 million tonnes is to come under this scheme.
Import substitution: LNG, urea, ammonia and methanol imports were about ₹2.77 lakh crore in FY 2024-25. The scheme aims to cut this dependence.
Earlier scheme: The ₹8,500 crore scheme approved in January 2024 has eight projects under implementation.
Implementing ministry: The scheme is run by the Ministry of Coal.
Approval and outlay: The Union Cabinet approved the scheme on 13 May 2026 with an outlay of ₹37,500 crore.
Products targeted: The scheme promotes converting coal and lignite into syngas, methanol, ammonia and urea to reduce dependence on imported feedstock.
Rolling rounds: Rounds run on a rolling basis. The next round opens the day after one closes and stays open for two months.
Expected outcomes: The scheme is expected to catalyse about ₹2.5-3 lakh crore of investment across nearly 25 projects and about 50,000 jobs.
National target: The scheme supports the goal of 100 million tonnes of coal gasification capacity by 2030.
Applicants so far: Talcher Fertilisers Limited and NTPC Limited have submitted applications through the online portal.
Incentive rate: Maximum incentive is 20% of the cost of plant and machinery, paid in four equal milestone-linked instalments.
Caps: Rs.5,000 crore per project, Rs.9,000 crore per product (except SNG and urea), Rs.12,000 crore per entity group.
Selection and technology: Projects are chosen by competitive bidding. The scheme is technology-agnostic but encourages indigenous technology.
Linkage reform: Coal linkage tenure goes up to 30 years under the syngas sub-sector of the Non-Regulated Sector linkage auction.

Don’t confuse with ₹37,500 crore scheme vs ₹8,500 crore scheme: The ₹37,500 crore scheme (approved May 2026) is the new, larger one. The ₹8,500 crore Financial Incentive Scheme (January 2024) is the earlier one, with eight projects under implementation.

Don’t confuse with Surface coal gasification vs Underground coal gasification: This scheme covers surface gasification of coal and lignite. Underground gasification converts coal in the seam without mining, and is a different technology.

Don’t confuse with Surface vs underground gasification: This scheme covers surface gasification in plants. Underground coal gasification converts coal in situ in the seam and is a separate effort.

Don’t confuse with New scheme vs 2024 scheme: The 2024 scheme had Rs.8,500 crore; the new one has Rs.37,500 crore and targets about 75 MT.

Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.

Why it matters

Gasification turns domestic coal into syngas, urea, methanol and ammonia, which can reduce import dependence and support energy security.
Investment is estimated at ₹2.5-3 lakh crore, with jobs across the value chain.
Cuts import dependence for feedstock such as methanol, ammonia and urea, helping energy and economic security.
Adds value to domestic coal and lignite and supports investment and jobs.
Cuts import dependence on LNG, urea, ammonia and methanol; the import bill of key substitutable products was about Rs.2.77 lakh crore in FY2025.
Mobilises an expected Rs.2.5-3.0 lakh crore investment and about 50,000 jobs in coal-bearing regions.
Builds indigenous technology capability and supports Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Problems

Projects are capital-intensive and need long preparation: feasibility, technology, environmental and financial planning.
Early reports of 'no takers' show doubts about commercial viability; only seven applications came in Round 1.
Projects are large and complex, needing long preparation: feasibility reports, technology choice and feedstock tie-ups.
Project economics and high capital needs may deter early applicants.
Gasification is capital-intensive and technology-heavy, and high-ash Indian coal complicates it.
Coal use conflicts with climate commitments and net-zero goals; gasification has high emissions and water needs unless paired with carbon capture.
Product cost may not compete with imports without continued subsidy.

Way forward

Evaluate applications transparently under the RFP and move selected projects to commissioning on time.
Keep rounds open at two-month intervals to draw more bidders and technology partners.
Use rolling rounds and outreach to bring in more developers and technology providers.
Assess participation after the full rounds close, and back projects with finance and feedstock linkages.
Pair gasification with carbon capture and use, and track emissions and water use.
Invest in R&D and pilots for indigenous technology suited to high-ash coal.
Ensure assured coal supply, offtake and pricing certainty for downstream products.

Put in your answer

Import bill: Imports of LNG, urea, ammonia and methanol were about ₹2.77 lakh crore in FY 2024-25. Use this to argue the case for gasification.

2030 target: The target is 100 million tonnes of gasification capacity by 2030, with 75 million tonnes under the scheme.

Scheme outlay: ₹37,500 crore scheme to promote coal and lignite gasification, approved on 13 May 2026.

Import dependence: Ammonia is about 100% imported, methanol 80-90%, and LNG over 50%.

Test yourself

True or false?

1 of 13

Statements the way Prelims prints them. Say first, then see the fact.

1.The scheme was approved by the Union Cabinet with a total outlay of ₹37,500 crore.
2.The scheme is implemented by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
3.The scheme promotes conversion of coal and lignite into products such as methanol, ammonia and urea.
4.Under the scheme, application rounds are held once a year, with a fixed single window.
5.Each application round remains open for two months.
6.The scheme is linked to the target of 100 million tonnes of coal gasification capacity by 2030.
7.The scheme provides a financial incentive of up to 20% of the cost of plant and machinery.
8.The incentive is paid as a single upfront grant at project approval.
9.Incentive for any single project under the scheme is capped at Rs.5,000 crore.
10.The scheme mandates the use of indigenous gasification technology only.
11.Incentives under the scheme are in addition to incentives under the commercial coal mining regime.
12.Projects under the scheme are selected through transparent competitive bidding.
13.The National Coal Gasification Mission aims at 100 MT of coal gasification by 2030.

Written by us from the release, not by UPSC; checked by a second model.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Coal, 8 Sep, 11:39 IST · Release 294407

Issue page →

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

Science and technology

Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FRI)

GS3 Internal Security / CyberGS3 EconomyPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 8 September 2026, the Department of Telecommunications said its Financial Fraud Risk Indicator (FRI) has prevented over ₹5,000 crore of suspected cyber fraud losses in fifteen months since its 22 May 2025 launch.
What it is: The Financial Fraud Risk Indicator is a risk-assessment framework built by the Department of Telecommunications. It tells financial institutions in real time how likely a mobile number is to be linked to cyber fraud. It runs on DoT's Digital Intelligence Platform and aims to stop fraud before money leaves the account.

Developer and launch: FRI was developed by DoT and launched on 22 May 2025 under its Digital Intelligence Platform.
Risk categories: DIP classifies mobile numbers into three risk levels: Medium, High and Very High.
Data inputs: Inputs come from Sanchar Saathi citizen reports, the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre's National Cybercrime Reporting Portal, and telecom operators, banks and financial institutions.
Digital Intelligence Platform: DIP was launched in 2024 and has over 1,600 stakeholders. It also shares the Mobile Number Revocation List (MNRL) of disconnected numbers.
Related DoT tools: FRI is part of DoT's citizen-protection suite: Sanchar Saathi, Chakshu, CEIR and ASTR.

Don’t confuse with FRI vs MNRL: FRI grades numbers by fraud-risk level. MNRL is a list of numbers already disconnected, for cybercrime, failed re-verification or breach of connection limits.

Don’t confuse with Sanchar Saathi vs NCRP: Sanchar Saathi is DoT's citizen portal and app for telecom misuse. The National Cybercrime Reporting Portal is run by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) and takes cybercrime complaints; the helpline is 1930.

Science and technology: 57 Prelims questions since 2013; most test the concept behind the news, not the news itself. In Mains, 12 news-triggered questions.

No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting DoT tool against cyber fraud with launch date and figures, but UPSC rarely sets questions on such data.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Communications, 8 Sep, 16:39 IST · Release 294420

Issue page →

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

Scheme

Mission Poshan 2.0 and Rashtriya Poshan Maah

GS2 Welfare schemesPrelims and Mains

Why in news: The 9th Rashtriya Poshan Maah will be launched on 9 September 2026 at Varanasi, with the theme "Hamari Anganwadi Hamari Jimmedari" (PIB, 8 Sept 2026).
What it is: Mission Poshan 2.0 is India's unified National Nutrition Mission, run by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. It merges POSHAN Abhiyaan, Anganwadi Services/ICDS and the Scheme for Adolescent Girls into one framework. Rashtriya Poshan Maah is its annual September awareness campaign.

Formation of Poshan 2.0: Mission Poshan 2.0 was integrated in Union Budget 2021-22 under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Schemes merged: It combines POSHAN Abhiyaan, Anganwadi Services/ICDS and the Scheme for Adolescent Girls.
POSHAN Abhiyaan launch: POSHAN Abhiyaan began in March 2018 as a multi-ministerial convergence mission.
Poshan Tracker: Launched 1 March 2021, it is the digital tool for near real-time monitoring of Anganwadi services.
Beneficiaries: Supplementary Nutrition covers children (6 months to 6 years), pregnant women, lactating mothers and adolescent girls (14-18 years).
Forms of delivery: Supplementary Nutrition is given as Take-Home Ration, Morning Snacks and Hot Cooked Meal.
Legal basis of norms: Nutrition norms come from Schedule-II of the National Food Security Act, 2013, revised in January 2023.
SAM children: Severely Acute Malnourished children aged 6 months to 5 years get additional nutrition as THR.
Dietary Guidelines: The Dietary Guidelines for Indians, 2024 were released by ICMR-NIN; the guidelines urge less edible oil, salt and sugar.
Awareness events: Poshan Maah is in September and Poshan Pakhwada in March-April; Anganwadi workers must hold two Community Based Events a month.
Six services: Supplementary Nutrition, Pre-school Non-formal Education, Nutrition & Health Education, Immunization, Health Check-up and Referral Services are given through Anganwadi Centres.
Health services via NHM: Three of the six services (immunization, health check-up, referral) are health-related and delivered through the National Health Mission and public health infrastructure.
Saksham Anganwadis: Two lakh AWCs in government buildings were sanctioned as Saksham Anganwadis in the 15th Finance Commission cycle.
Worker incentive: Anganwadi Workers get ₹500 and Helpers ₹250 a month for growth monitoring of at least 80% of children aged 0-6 and at least 60% of home visits.
Adolescent girls coverage: Girls aged 14-18 are covered only in Aspirational Districts and all districts of the North Eastern Region.
Honorarium: From 1 October 2018, the honorarium of Anganwadi Workers rose from Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,500 a month. For Helpers it rose from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,250.
Pankhudi Portal: A portal to enable organisations, individuals and corporates to collaborate on activities under Poshan 2.0, Mission Shakti and Mission Vatsalya.

Don’t confuse with Poshan Maah vs Poshan Pakhwada: Poshan Maah is held in September for a month; Poshan Pakhwada is a two-week campaign held in April.

Don’t confuse with POSHAN Abhiyaan vs Mission Poshan 2.0: POSHAN Abhiyaan (2018) is one component; Poshan 2.0 (2021-22) is the wider mission that includes it along with ICDS and the adolescent girls scheme.

Don’t confuse with Supplementary Nutrition vs Mid-Day Meal (PM POSHAN): Supplementary Nutrition is for under-6 children, mothers and adolescent girls via Anganwadis; PM POSHAN serves school children.

Don’t confuse with Poshan Vatika vs Saksham Anganwadi: Poshan Vatika is a nutrition garden at an AWC; Saksham Anganwadi is an upgraded AWC with LED screens, water filters, ECCE material and a Poshan Vatika.

Don’t confuse with Poshan 2.0 vs POSHAN Abhiyaan: POSHAN Abhiyaan was the earlier 2018 nutrition mission; Poshan 2.0 merged it with Anganwadi Services and the adolescent girls scheme.

Don’t confuse with Poshan Tracker vs Pankhudi Portal: Poshan Tracker is a monitoring app for service delivery and beneficiaries. Pankhudi is a collaboration portal for partners and donors across three Missions.

Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.

Why it matters

Targets malnutrition in the first 1,000 days, which shapes child growth and learning.
Treats nutrition as a Jan Andolan, using community mobilisation along with delivery of services.
Revised norms move nutrition policy from calories to diet diversity and micronutrients, addressing hidden hunger.
Local menus improve acceptance and support millets and indigenous foods.
Combines nutrition, early education and health in one platform, targeting stunting and wasting.
Poshan Tracker gives near real time data for monitoring and course correction.
Aadhaar-based tracking and face matching help prevent leakage and ghost entries in nutrition benefits.
Linking Anganwadis with NHM joins nutrition, early education and health in one delivery point.

Problems

Quality, freshness and hygiene of hot cooked meals vary across centres.
Behaviour change and community accountability are hard to sustain beyond annual campaigns.
Quality, hygiene and uniform delivery of THR and hot meals across States is hard to monitor.
Behaviour change on diets needs sustained counselling by overworked Anganwadi workers.
Services depend on health-sector delivery through NHM, which needs coordination.
Data quality and workload on Anganwadi workers, and gaps in infrastructure at AWCs.
Biometric and face authentication can exclude beneficiaries who cannot visit the centre; the nominee module only partly addresses this.
Anganwadi workers remain honorary, with pay varying across States.

Way forward

Make Anganwadi Management Committees and menu boards work for social audit and transparency.
Use Poshan Tracker data and FSSAI quality testing to fix gaps in service delivery.
Use Poshan Tracker data and social audits to check quality and leakages.
Involve local experts and self-help groups to build State-specific recipes and train workers.
Strengthen convergence with health, education and local bodies.
Train and fairly pay workers, and verify Tracker data through audits.
Keep alternatives for beneficiaries who fail authentication and audit exclusion.
Improve worker pay and training, and use the Pankhudi Portal with safeguards.

Put in your answer

Anganwadi network scale: As of 31 July 2026, about 13.99 lakh Anganwadi Centres and 13.30 lakh workers reach nearly 8.94 crore beneficiaries.

Jan Andolan reach: More than 150 crore Jan Andolan activities have been held since 2018 through 16 Jan Andolans.

Community Based Events: About 10.5 crore CBEs were reported on Poshan Tracker from April 2022 to June 2026.

Saksham Anganwadi target: Two lakh AWCs in government buildings sanctioned for upgrade in the 15th FC cycle.

Dietary diversity via Poshan Vatika: Nutrition gardens address the dietary diversity gap and micronutrient deficiencies with local produce.

Poshan Tracker Aadhaar verification: 99.88% of registered beneficiaries on the Poshan Tracker dashboard are Aadhaar verified.

Universal umbrella scheme: The Mission has no entry barriers; any beneficiary willing to undergo eKYC with face recognition is entitled to benefits.

Test yourself

Source: PIB Headquarters, 8 Sep, 17:05 IST · Release 294422

Issue page →

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

Economy

Deep Sea Mining and Deep Ocean Mission

GS3 Economy / Blue EconomyGS3 Science and TechnologyPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 8 September 2026, MoES and NIOT, with EY and NITI Aayog, held an industry outreach workshop on deep sea mining in New Delhi, ahead of a White Paper and policy frameworks.
What it is: Deep sea mining means extracting polymetallic nodules, sulphides and crusts from the seabed. In India it sits under the Deep Ocean Mission, a Blue Economy programme led by MoES, with NIOT building the technology. Mining in international waters is governed by the International Seabed Authority under UNCLOS.

ISA nodule contract area: India holds an ISA exploration contract over 75,000 sq. km in the Central Indian Ocean Basin, estimated at 366 to 380 million tonnes of nodules.
Polymetallic sulphides: India is the first nation to hold two exploration contracts for polymetallic sulphides, including the recent one for the Carlsberg Ridge.
Deep Ocean Mission outlay: The national Deep Ocean Mission has an outlay of ₹4,077 crore. NIOT has demonstrated indigenous mining crawler systems at depths beyond 5,000 metres.
Exploitation Code: Commercial mining of nodules in international waters can begin only after the ISA issues the Exploitation Code.
ISA: The International Seabed Authority is an autonomous body set up under UNCLOS, headquartered in Kingston, Jamaica. It regulates mineral activities in the Area, the seabed beyond national jurisdiction.

Don’t confuse with Polymetallic nodules vs sulphides: Nodules lie on abyssal plains, as in the Central Indian Ocean Basin. Sulphides form at hydrothermal vents on ridges such as the Carlsberg Ridge.

Don’t confuse with EEZ vs the Area: The EEZ is under coastal state jurisdiction. The Area is the seabed beyond national jurisdiction and is regulated by the ISA.

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: Lasting topic on critical minerals with ISA contracts and Deep Ocean Mission figures; related to an on-file mineral item, but a workshop gives little new to test.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Earth Science, 8 Sep, 20:37 IST · Release 294449

Issue page →

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

In the news

Lumpy Skin Disease

GS3 Agriculture / Animal HusbandryPrelims and Mains

Why in news: On 8 September 2026 the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying said it is strengthening surveillance, vaccination and control of Lumpy Skin Disease after sporadic cases since July 2026, mainly in northern States.
What it is: Lumpy Skin Disease is a viral disease of cattle and buffaloes caused by the Capripox virus. It spreads mainly through arthropod vectors and causes fever and skin nodules. In India it first appeared in 2019 and later spread widely, so control relies on vaccination, movement control and vector control.

Cause and spread: LSD is caused by the Capripox virus and spreads mainly through arthropod vectors. It affects cattle and buffaloes.
First reported in India: The first reports in India came from West Bengal and Odisha in September 2019.
Vaccination so far: More than 36.18 crore cattle have been vaccinated or re-vaccinated against LSD.
Diagnostic support: ICAR-NIHSAD, Bhopal, supports testing, along with a network of RDDLs and the CDDL.
Current situation: There are 3,461 active cases, mainly in young, unvaccinated animals and those with co-morbidities.
Control measures advised: States were advised to vaccinate heifers and young cattle, use ring vaccination, control movement, isolate sick animals, control vectors and quarantine new animals.

Don’t confuse with LSD vs Foot-and-Mouth Disease: LSD is caused by a Capripox virus and spreads mainly through vectors. FMD is caused by a different virus (an Aphthovirus) and is a separate livestock disease.

No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting animal-disease topic with vaccination and control measures; UPSC has rarely asked such disease updates in news-linked Prelims.

Source: PIB, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, 8 Sep, 22:28 IST · Release 294452

Issue page →

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

Quick facts

The 72nd National Film Awards (for 2024) will be presented on 22 September 2026 at Ekta Nagar, Gujarat; Article 370 is Best Feature Film.
The 2,800+ km Dedicated Freight Corridor is now complete, as stated by the PM at Vadodara.

Source: PIB, 8 Sep

What we left out: 39 of 46 releases

Speeches without a decision (7)
Ceremonies and campaigns (2)
Same issue as on-file card (1)
Routine progress data (1)
Routine data (1)
Routine MoUs (2)
Events and exercises (4)
Inaugurations with nothing new (3)
Visits and ceremonies (4)
Routine bilateral meetings (2)
Narrow research result (2)
Same issue as another release (2)
Awards and ceremonies (1)
Routine appointments (2)
Workshops and webinars (1)
Routine commission action (1)
Beneficiary stories (3)

Practise the day’s news

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

1Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification ProjectsMCQ · 13 true or false · Mains
2Mission Poshan 2.0 and Rashtriya Poshan MaahMCQ · 6 true or false

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