01 January 2026

• Union Labour Ministry released draft Rules to operationalise the four Labour Codes and invited public comments for 45 days.
• Rules consolidate multiple legacy labour regulations into a simplified framework.
• Focus areas include 48-hour work week, minimum wages, social security expansion, women’s night-shift safety, and industrial relations reforms.

Key Points

• Code on Wages
  • Merges 18 earlier wage-related rules
  • Minimum wages based on standard working class family:
    • Spouse + two children; 3 consumption units
    • 2,700 calories/day per unit  
    • 66 metres cloth/year
    • Housing: 10%, fuel & misc.: 20%, contingencies: 25%
  • Wage fixation to consider geography, skill level, and experience.
  • Technical Committee for skill categorisation; Central Advisory Board for floor wage.
• Code on Social Security
  • Replaces 12 earlier rules (EPF, ESI, gratuity, unorganised workers).
  • National Social Security Board with representation of unorganised, gig, and platform workers.
  • Creche mandatory in establishments with 50+ employees.

• Women & Night Shifts
  • Mandatory written consent, transport, and CCTV surveillance.
• Industrial Relations Code
  • Provides for secret ballot for trade union verification.
  • Recognises Fixed Term Employment through written contracts.
  • Worker categories clearly defined (permanent, temporary, apprentices, etc.).

Static Linkages

• Living wage and humane working conditions.
• Codification of labour laws for ease of compliance.
• Tripartite labour governance.
• Extension of social security beyond organised sector.

Critical Analysis

• Pros
  • Simplifies fragmented labour laws.
  • Objective, consumption-based wage fixation.
  • Formal recognition of gig/platform workers.
  • Improves women’s workplace safety.  
  • Transparent trade union recognition.
• Cons
  • Uneven State-level implementation capacity.
  • Higher compliance burden for MSMEs.
  • Effectiveness for gig workers depends on registration and funding.
  • Centre–State coordination issues in floor wage fixation.

Way Forward

• Strengthen digital databases for unorganised and gig workers.
• Capacity-building support for MSMEs.  
• Regular revision of wage norms.
• Technology-driven inspections and grievance redressal.

INDIA’S SPACE PEOPLE’S JOURNEY

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• India’s space sector is transitioning from mission-based success to human spaceflight, deep-space exploration, and commercial expansion.
• Chandrayaan-3 (2023) achieved the first soft landing near the lunar south pole.
• Gaganyaan marks India’s entry into indigenous human spaceflight, targeted around 2027.
• Increased private participation, global collaborations, and higher budgetary support signal long-term strategic intent. pasted

Key Points

• Human Spaceflight: Gaganyaan approved outlay ₹20,000+ crore; uncrewed → crewed mission sequence.
• Major Missions:
  • Chandrayaan series: water discovery → lunar mapping → south pole landing.
  • Aditya-L1: solar corona and space weather.
  • SpaDeX: successful in-orbit docking demonstration.
• Global Standing: 400+ foreign satellites launched; Mars mission succeeded on first attempt.
• Economy & Budget: Space budget nearly tripled since 2013; space economy projected $44 bn.
• Governance Uses: Disaster warning, agriculture, fisheries, infrastructure planning.
• Ecosystem: 350+ startups; push for space manufacturing and launch services.

Static Linkages

• Strategic autonomy through indigenous technology.
• Role of space assets in disaster management and resource mapping.
• State-led innovation enabling private sector growth.

Critical Analysis

• Pros
  • Cost-effective missions enhance global credibility.
  • Boosts STEM education and high- tech employment.
  • Strengthens national security and governance capacity.
• Concerns
  • Space debris and orbital congestion.
  • High costs and long gestation of human missions.
  • Need for skilled manpower and clear regulation.

Way Forward

• Strengthen space regulatory and debris mitigation frameworks.
• Expand astronaut training and R&D investment.
• Deepen private sector integration and global data-sharing.

U.S. TARIFF SHOCK, PHARMA FUTURE

• In September 2025, the U.S. announced a 100% tariff on branded and patented pharmaceutical imports.
• The objective is to encourage domestic drug manufacturing in the U.S.
• Generic medicines are currently exempt, but the policy signals future uncertainty.

Why is this important for India?

• India is the largest supplier of generic medicines globally.
• It supplies around 40% of generic drugs used in the U.S.
• The U.S. accounts for nearly 35% of India’s pharma exports, making it India’s most critical market.
• India’s pharma sector:
  • Size: ~$50 billion
  • Contribution to GDP: ~1.72%
  • Major source of export earnings and skilled employment

What is the likely impact?

• Short term
  • Limited direct impact because generics are exempt.
  • Stock market volatility reflects policy uncertainty.
• If tariffs extend to generics
  • 10–15% decline in pharma export revenues.  
  • 0.2–0.3% reduction in India’s GDP growth.
  • Increase in drug prices in the U.S., reducing affordability.

What structural issues are highlighted?

• High export concentration: Excessive dependence on the U.S. market.
• API dependence: About 72% of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients are imported from China.
• Regulatory and IP risks: Patent disputes and compliance costs affect competitiveness.

What works in India’s favour?

• Strong comparative advantage in low-cost generics.
• GST reduction on medicines (12% → 5%) has boosted domestic consumption.
• Government-backed generic medicine distribution improves internal demand stability.
• Increasing outreach to Africa, ASEAN, and Latin America.

Static concept linkage

• Comparative Advantage → specialization in generics
• TRIPS Flexibilities → balancing patents and public health
• Supply-chain resilience → reducing critical import dependence
• Health economics → generics lower out-of-pocket expenditure

What should be the way forward?

• Expand domestic API manufacturing through incentives and bulk drug parks.
• Diversify export markets to reduce U.S. overdependence.
• Strengthen trade diplomacy and multilateral engagement.
• Move up the value chain via biosimilars and complex generics.
• Balance industrial growth with affordable healthcare goals.

• The Election Commission of India undertook a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in 12 States/UTs ahead of Assembly elections.
• Reports from West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat flagged large-scale deletions and procedural confusion.
• Public backlash led to home verification for elderly voters and partial halting of hearings for “unmapped” voters.
• The exercise has raised concerns about timing, transparency, and voter disenfranchisement, prompting calls for judicial scrutiny by the Supreme Court of India.

Key Points

• Over 6.5 crore deletions nationwide (provisional).
• Uttar Pradesh: ~2.89 crore deletions; draft roll publication postponed.
• Tamil Nadu (~97 lakh) and Gujarat (~73.7 lakh) deletions despite net in-migration.
• Software-driven notices and “unmapped” voter flags used inconsistently across States.
• Allegations of bypassing Electoral Registration Officers (EROs).
• Conducted close to elections, heightening exclusion risks.
• Perception of SIR turning into indirect citizenship screening.

Static Linkages

• Universal adult franchise as a democratic principle.
• Article 324: Superintendence of elections.  
• Representation of the People Act, 1950: Electoral rolls.
• Principles of natural justice in administration.
• Role of statutory authorities in federal governance.

Critical Analysis

• Positives
  • Helps remove duplicates and update rolls.
  • Technology can improve efficiency if regulated.
• Concerns
  • Mass deletions threaten universal franchise.
  • Inconsistent software use reduces transparency.
  • Weakens statutory role of EROs.
  • Timing before elections undermines trust.
  • Disproportionate impact on elderly, migrants, urban poor.

Way Forward

• Pause SIR in poll-bound States.
• Standardise software protocols with audits.
• Ensure ERO-led verification and reasoned orders.
• Doorstep verification for vulnerable voters.
• Transparent publication of deletion/addition data.
• Judicial vetting for constitutionality.

HOLD THE CENTRE

Incident-Specific

• Death of Khaleda Zia (Dec 30) ends an era of personality-centric politics.
• Rivalry with Sheikh Hasina (“Battle of the Begums”) shaped Bangladesh’s post-1990 democracy.
• Sheikh Hasina deposed in 2024 uprising; currently in exile in India.
• General elections scheduled for 12 February 2026 amid instability.
• Tarique Rahman returns from 17-year exile to lead Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).

Key Points

• Interim government led by Muhammad Yunus faces governance and law-and-order crisis.
• Mob violence, minority lynching and attacks on media reported.
• Signs of revival of Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh increase internal security risks.
• Awami League banned from political activity → credibility of elections questioned.
• BNP remains main electoral force but has allegations of extortion and cadre violence.
• National Citizen Party (from 2024 student movement) allies with Jamaat-e-Islami, raising concerns over secularism.

Static Linkages

• Democratic transitions after authoritarian rule.
• Role of political parties in representative democracy.
• Secularism and minority protection in constitutional frameworks.
• Internal security threats from non-state actors.
• Importance of neutral interim governments in elections.

Critical Analysis

• Opportunities
  • Generational change may reduce personalised politics.
  • BNP’s rhetoric of inclusivity signals possible moderation.
•  Challenges
  • Ban on Awami League undermines political pluralism.
  • Weak law enforcement fuels mob rule and extremism.
  • Islamist political resurgence threatens secular constitutional order.
  • Minority insecurity erodes democratic legitimacy.

Way Forward

• Ensure inclusive elections with participation of all major parties.
• Restore rule of law; curb mob violence and political vigilantism.
• Strengthen counter-terror mechanisms against extremist groups.
• Internal reforms within BNP to institutionalise leadership.
• Reaffirm secularism, minority rights and media freedom.