Shivraj Singh Chouhan Launches the Nationwide 'Khet Bachao Abhiyan - Rabi 2026' from Karnal

22 October 2026National

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the nationwide 'Khet Bachao Abhiyan - Rabi 2026' at Karnal, Haryana, on 22 October 2026, to run until 30 November 2026. The campaign promotes soil health, balanced fertiliser use, crop diversification and sustainable farming, with outreach at state, district, block and Gram Panchayat levels through awareness programmes, farmers' conferences, training and field demonstrations. It targets nearly 1 crore participants and will deploy about 4,150 teams of Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and ATMA functionaries, involving over 12,000 scientists and ATMA officials. It is implemented by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare with states and ICAR institutions.

Static GK

ATMA stands for Agricultural Technology Management Agency, a district-level extension body under the Support to State Extension Programmes for Extension Reforms scheme | ICAR was set up in 1929 as the Imperial Council of Agricultural Research and is headquartered in New Delhi | Krishi Vigyan Kendras are ICAR's district-level farm science centres; the first was set up at Puducherry in 1974

ShareWhatsApp Telegram

More Polity Current Affairs

Department of Financial Services Launches a Financial Inclusion Saturation Campaign Across 2.70 Lakh Local Bodies

The Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance, launched a nationwide Financial Inclusion Saturation Campaign running from 21 October to 31 December 2026 across 2.70 lakh Gram Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies. Banks will open PMJDY accounts, complete pending re-KYC, generate pending 14-digit CKYC identifiers through CERSAI, and push enrolment under PMJJBY, PMSBY, PMFBY and the Atal Pension Yojana. They will also help PM-KISAN beneficiaries apply for Kisan Credit Cards. Bank camps will carry digital fraud-prevention messaging under the theme 'Aapki Poonji, Aapka Adhikar', with progress monitored after a preparatory meeting with State Level Bankers' Committees.

GK BytePMJDY was launched on 28 August 2014; PMJJBY, PMSBY and the Atal Pension Yojana were launched on 9 May 2015 at Kolkata | CERSAI, set up in 2011 under the SARFAESI Act, 2002, maintains the Central KYC Records Registry | State Level Bankers' Committees are state-level coordination forums of banks convened by a designated lead bank

📅 21 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

CEA Pegs India's Pumped Storage Potential at 345.38 GW as the Country Ranks Fourth Globally

The Ministry of Power and the Central Electricity Authority highlighted pumped storage projects (PSPs) in October 2026 as India works from the 300 GW of non-fossil capacity crossed in August 2026 towards 500 GW by 2030. India is fourth in installed pumped storage behind China (66 GW), Japan (22 GW) and the United States (19 GW), with 7.43 GW operational across 10 projects and 15.87 GW under implementation. CEA has identified 320 sites with 345.38 GW of potential and projects a need for 73.93 GW of storage by 2031-32, rising to 105.56 GW of PSPs by 2035-36.

GK ByteThe Central Electricity Authority is a statutory body under the Electricity Act 2003 and advises the Ministry of Power on technical and economic matters | Pumped storage works by pumping water to an upper reservoir in off-peak hours and releasing it through reversible turbines at peak demand, with a round-trip efficiency of about 70-80% | India's 500 GW non-fossil capacity target by 2030 was announced as part of the Panchamrit commitments at COP26 in Glasgow

📅 21 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

UDAN Regional Connectivity Scheme Completes Ten Years with 687 Routes and 1.72 Crore Passengers

The Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) regional connectivity scheme completed ten years on 21 October 2026, having been launched on 21 October 2016 under the National Civil Aviation Policy 2016 and run by the Airports Authority of India for the Ministry of Civil Aviation. It has operationalised 687 regional routes and 95 aerodromes, including 17 heliports and 2 water aerodromes, carrying 1.72 crore passengers. The modified UDAN phase launched in July 2026 runs from FY27 to FY36 with an outlay of ₹28,840 crore, targeting 100 new airports and 200 helipads, and feeds the PM GatiShakti multimodal push that marked five years in October 2026.

GK ByteUDAN expands to Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik and caps fares on about half the seats on subsidised regional routes | The scheme is funded through a Regional Air Connectivity Fund built from a levy on major scheduled flight routes | The Airports Authority of India was constituted in 1995 under the AAI Act 1994 and is headquartered in New Delhi

📅 21 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

Shivraj Singh Chouhan Launches the Upgraded Agri Welfare Portal as a Single Window for Farm Schemes

Union Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the upgraded Agri Welfare Portal on 19 October 2026, a single-window digital platform routing farmers to PM-KISAN, AgriStack and the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, alongside subsidy eligibility, weather, scientific practices, seed and fertiliser availability and prevailing market prices. Built to MeitY's Digital Brand Identity Manual 3.0 and the Guidelines for Indian Government Websites 3.0, it runs on basic smartphones and low-bandwidth connections and carries accessibility features for persons with disabilities. A Krishi Vigyan Kendra campaign will build digital awareness, with a shared space for FPOs, PACS, scientists and startups.

GK BytePM-KISAN, launched in February 2019, pays Rs 6,000 a year in three equal instalments to eligible landholding farmer families and is a 100% centrally funded scheme | The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana was launched in 2016 under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare | Krishi Vigyan Kendras are farm science centres under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, the first having been set up at Puducherry in 1974

📅 19 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

See all Govt Initiatives →All Current Affairs