PM Modi Inaugurates Rs 3,350 Crore Development Projects in Ladakh

15 October 2026National

Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated five development projects worth about Rs 3,350 crore in the Union Territory of Ladakh on 15 October 2026. The centrepiece is the new terminal at Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport, Leh, built for about Rs 640 crore, lifting annual passenger capacity from 10 lakh to 35 lakh. Also dedicated were the 298-km Nimmu-Padum-Darcha road built by the Border Roads Organisation through the Zanskar Valley and Shinkun La pass, the 9 MW Hanu small hydro project, the Petroglyph Conservation Park at Sindhu Ghat first announced in April 2026, and Project Him Sarovar covering 40 water bodies.

Static GK

Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport at Leh, named after the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche, sits at about 3,256 m and is among the world's highest commercial airports | The Border Roads Organisation was raised on 7 May 1960 under the Ministry of Defence; its motto is 'Shramena Sarvam Sadhyam' | The Shinkun La tunnel on the Nimmu-Padum-Darcha axis is being built to give all-weather road access to Ladakh via Himachal Pradesh

ShareWhatsApp Telegram

More Polity Current Affairs

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 →

NITI Aayog's Frontier Tech Hub Releases Data Centre Evaluation Framework for States

NITI Aayog's Frontier Tech Hub has released a Data Centre Evaluation Framework to help States appraise data-centre proposals and gauge their own infrastructure readiness, so capacity is added sustainably rather than wherever land and power are merely cheapest. It rests on five pillars: Power and Energy; Water and Cooling; Environmental Protection; Economic Value Creation; and Policy, Governance and Implementation. India's installed data-centre capacity has grown from about 375 MW in 2020 to 1.5 GW in 2026. The Frontier Tech Hub, set up in March 2025 under Programme Director Yugal Kishore Joshi, follows State-level moves such as Maharashtra's green data-centre park.

GK ByteNITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) replaced the Planning Commission on 1 January 2015; the Prime Minister is its ex-officio Chairperson | India's data governance rests on the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 | One gigawatt (GW) equals 1,000 megawatts (MW)

📅 17 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

BIS Launches Silver Refinery Scheme and Digital Standard Reader on World Standards Day

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) launched a Silver Refinery Scheme at the national celebration of World Standards Day in New Delhi on 14 October 2026, with Union Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi presiding. Modelled on the existing Gold Refinery Scheme, it licenses refineries and mints after assessing their refining processes and testing infrastructure. Marked silver bullion and coins will carry the BIS Standard Mark, the word SILVER, a purity grade of 999.9, 999.5 or 999.0, the manufacturer's mark and a unique batch serial number. BIS also unveiled a Digital Standard Reader turning XML standards into interactive SMART standards, plus seven new Indian Standards.

GK ByteThe Bureau of Indian Standards is India's national standards body, now governed by the BIS Act, 2016, and functions under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, with headquarters in New Delhi | World Standards Day is observed on 14 October, marking the 1946 meeting of delegates that led to the founding of the ISO | Hallmarking of gold jewellery in India is carried out by BIS using a six-digit alphanumeric HUID

📅 14 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

Cabinet Renames the National Social Assistance Programme as Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana

The Union Cabinet approved on 14 October the continuation of the National Social Assistance Programme for five years, from 2026-27 to 2030-31, with a Rs 53,428 crore outlay as 100% central assistance, and renamed it the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana. It covers 3.20 crore beneficiaries across all 36 States and Union Territories. Its four components were renamed the Vridhavastha, Vidhawa, Divyangjan and Parivar Labh schemes. Disability pension rises from Rs 300 to Rs 375 a month up to age 79 and Rs 500 to Rs 625 at 80-plus, with the benchmark disability threshold cut from 80% to 40% and the minimum age bar removed.

GK ByteThe National Social Assistance Programme was launched on 15 August 1995 and is administered by the Ministry of Rural Development | NSAP gives effect to Article 41 of the Constitution, a Directive Principle under which the State is to provide public assistance in old age, sickness and disablement | The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act was enacted in 2016 and recognises 21 disabilities

📅 14 Oct 2026PolityRead complete →

See all Govt Initiatives →All Current Affairs