Why in News?

The Government has approved higher Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for all mandated Rabi crops for the Rabi Marketing Season (RMS) 2027-28, with about ₹90,962 crore to be paid to farmers for 324 lakh tonnes of produce.

Key Points

• Biggest price rise: Safflower (₹675 a quintal), then rapeseed and mustard (₹413), lentil (₹390) and barley (₹136).
• Best return over cost: Wheat (106%), then rapeseed and mustard (96%), lentil (92%) and gram (59%).
• Why: To give farmers fair prices and push them towards oilseeds and pulses instead of only wheat.
• Who buys: The Food Corporation of India and State agencies buy cereals. NAFED and NCCF buy pulses, oilseeds and copra when market prices fall below MSP, under PM-AASHA.
• Pulses: Tur, urad and masur are bought from registered farmers under the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses till 2030-31.
• Online system: Farmers register on e-Samriddhi or e-Samyukti, and money goes straight to their bank accounts. Biometric checks are compulsory from 2025-26.
• Growth: Buying of six Rabi crops rose from 2,302 lakh tonnes (2004-05 to 2013-14) to 3,921 lakh tonnes (2014-15 to 2025-26), and payments from ₹2.65 lakh crore to ₹8.36 lakh crore.
• Last season: In 2026-27, 357.57 lakh tonnes of wheat were bought for ₹92,432.51 crore, benefiting over 34 lakh farmers.

Background

• MSP: The price at which the government buys eligible produce from farmers. It is announced each year for 22 mandated crops on the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). Toria and de-husked coconut are set from the MSPs of rapeseed and mustard and copra.
• Rabi crops: Sown in October to December and harvested in March to April. The six are wheat, barley, gram, lentil, rapeseed and mustard, and safflower.
• CACP factors: Cost of production, demand and supply, domestic and world prices, inter-crop price parity, the terms of trade between agriculture and other sectors and the effect on the wider economy.
• Cost of production: Includes paid-out costs (labour, seeds, fertiliser, irrigation, fuel, interest) and the imputed value of family labour, with the same formula for all crops and States.
• 50% margin: MSP carries at least a 50% margin over the cost of production.
• PM-AASHA: Launched in September 2018 to ensure remunerative prices, through the Price Support Scheme and other components.

Why in News?

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), with the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies (CENJOWS), is holding VISV-2026 on 30 October 2026 at the Manekshaw Centre, New Delhi, to showcase India’s indigenous defence technology and strengthen defence partnerships with friendly countries.

Key Points

• Name: VISV stands for Vision, Innovation, Synergy, Values.
• Theme: “Showcasing Defence Capabilities, Strengthening Global Partnerships”.
• Aim: To advance technological self-reliance and international defence partnerships through innovation and dialogue.

Background

• DRDO: India’s defence research body under the Ministry of Defence, in existence since 1958.
• CENJOWS: The Centre for Joint Warfare Studies, India’s first tri-service think tank, set up on 27 August 2007 under the Ministry of Defence and registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. It works under Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff as a referral and support think tank.
• Manekshaw Centre: A defence venue in New Delhi, named after Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw.

Why in News?

The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has extended the New Amnesty Scheme, 2025 by three months, to 31 December 2026, on the same terms, giving employers and insured persons more time to resolve pending cases.

About the Scheme

• Ministry: Ministry of Labour and Employment. The scheme is run by ESIC.
• What it is: A one-time dispute resolution scheme to settle disputes with ESIC out of court, cut the backlog of court cases and promote voluntary compliance.
• Period: 1 October 2025 to 30 September 2026, now extended to 31 December 2026 on the same terms. The circular was issued on 27 June 2025.
• Who can use it: Employers and insured persons with court cases filed up to 31 March 2025.
• Aim: Fewer cases, better compliance and ease of doing business.

Key Facts: ESIC and the ESI Scheme

• ESIC: An autonomous statutory body under the Ministry of Labour and Employment, headquartered in New Delhi.
• Law: The ESI Act, 1948, repealed on 21 November 2025 and now in Chapter IV of the Code on Social Security, 2020.
• Launch: At Kanpur on 24 February 1952 (ESIC Day), along with Delhi.
• Composition: The Union Labour Minister is Chairman, and the Director General is the executive head. The Standing Committee is the chief executive body.
• Coverage: Workers earning up to ₹21,000 a month (₹25,000 for persons with disabilities).
• Contribution: 3.25% by the employer and 0.75% by the employee.
• Benefits: Medical, sickness, maternity, disability and dependants’ benefits, funeral expenses and the Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana (50% of wages for up to 90 days if unemployed).

Why in News?

A success story from Rajasthan shows how a sewer worker received a PPE kit and safety kit under the NAMASTE Scheme in 2025, improving workplace safety and livelihood security for sanitation workers.

About the Scheme

• Ministry: A joint initiative of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• Full form: National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem.
• Nature and period: A Central Sector Scheme from 2023-24 to 2025-26, launched in July 2023, with an outlay of about ₹349.70 crore.
• Coverage: All 4,800+ Urban Local Bodies.
• Replaced: The Self-Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS).
• Implementing agency: National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC).
• Target group: Sewer and septic tank workers (SSWs), with waste pickers added in 2024.
• Objectives: Zero deaths in hazardous cleaning, all sanitation work done by trained and skilled workers, and no worker in direct contact with human faecal matter.
• Components: Profiling of workers, occupational safety training, PPE and safety device kits, health insurance under Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY for workers and families, and Emergency Response Sanitation Units (ERSUs) with modern equipment.