Daily News Wrap 1 Nov 2026: NVS-03, COP17, IAF Chief, Cotton Duty, Vande Bharat

DAILY NEWS WRAP | 1 NOVEMBER 2026

Ten stories from 30 and 31 October 2026 that a CLAT, UPSC or SSC aspirant can revise from: an ISRO navigation launch, a UN biodiversity summit, a new Air Force chief, trade and railway decisions, an AI data policy, a record crypto hack, fuel export levies, National Unity Day and a pollution-control order.

1. ISRO launches the NVS-03 navigation satellite for NavIC

On 30 October 2026 ISRO’s GSLV-F18 lifted off from the second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, and placed the NVS-03 navigation satellite in its intended orbit. The satellite carries an indigenous atomic clock and adds an L1 signal to the existing L5 and S signals, with coverage over India and about 1,500 km around its geopolitical boundary. It strengthens NavIC, India’s regional navigation system. The Hindu reported the ISRO Chairman saying the launch restores NavIC to four satellites.

2. COP17 in Yerevan: nearly 200 nations approve texts to revive nature goals

On 30 October 2026 nearly 200 nations approved agreements at COP17, the UN biodiversity summit in Yerevan, Armenia. The summit sought to revive the commitment to halt and reverse the destruction of nature by 2030, including protecting 30% of the world’s land and oceans. BBC reported that the 2022 Global Biodiversity Framework has 24 targets, that the UN says the world is on track for just one, and that more than $1bn was pledged at this meeting.

3. Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit takes over as the 29th Chief of Air Staff

On 31 October 2026 Air Chief Marshal Ashutosh Dixit took over as the 29th Chief of Air Staff of the Indian Air Force. He succeeded Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, who retired after 42 years of service. Dixit, 59, was commissioned into the fighter stream on 6 December 1986, is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and was earlier Vice Chief of Air Staff.

4. Customs duty exemption on cotton imports extended to 31 December 2026

The Finance Ministry, through a notification issued on 30 October 2026, extended the customs duty exemption on cotton imports until 31 December 2026; the earlier deadline was 31 October. The measure supports the textile industry, the largest consumer of cotton. Daily arrivals remain low although the new marketing season began on 1 October. BusinessLine reported that the exempted customs duty was 11 per cent.

5. Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper flagged off

On 31 October 2026 the Varanasi-New Delhi Vande Bharat Sleeper, a semi-high-speed train, was flagged off. It halts at Prayagraj, Kanpur Central, Aligarh and Ghaziabad. Hindustan Times reported 16 coaches in three classes (Third AC, Second AC and First AC), a 760 km run in nine hours 30 minutes, train number 27421 and service six days a week.

6. MeitY launches the DEPA for AI Training Handbook

On 31 October 2026 the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) launched the DEPA for AI Training Handbook at a roundtable in Bengaluru. DEPA stands for Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture. It lets institutions share datasets for AI training while keeping control, using contractual permissions, controlled computing environments and data provenance tracking. Hindustan Times reported the launch was supported by the iSPIRT Foundation.

7. Binance hack: $6.3bn accessed, North Korean link reported by analytics firms

BBC reported on 30 October 2026 that Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, had $6.3bn accessed in what is believed to be a record heist, and said it had frozen about $3bn. The theft eclipses the $1.5bn Bybit heist of 2025. Several analytics firms have linked the hack to a North Korean hacking unit; this link is reported by firms and is not confirmed by any government.

8. Export levy: petrol cut to nil, diesel raised to Rs 11.5 a litre

On 31 October 2026 the government cut the export duty on petrol to nil and raised the levy on diesel exports by Rs 3 to Rs 11.5 a litre, from Rs 8.5. The levy on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) rose by 50 paise to Rs 11 a litre. The rates apply for the next 15-day period, and there was no change in domestic excise duty on petrol and diesel. This is a single-source item (The Hindu).

9. Rashtriya Ekta Diwas: 151st birth anniversary of Sardar Patel

Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National Unity Day) was observed on 31 October 2026, marking the 151st birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Speakers highlighted his role in integrating numerous princely states into the Indian Union after Independence.

10. CPCB orders action against Delhi-NCR industries without pollution control devices

In an order dated 30 October 2026 the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) directed state pollution control boards and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee to act against Delhi-NCR industrial units in 17 highly polluting categories that have neither installed air pollution control devices nor ordered them. The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) set a particulate matter limit of 50 micrograms per cubic metre; its deadline had been deferred to 1 October. This is a single-source item (The Indian Express).

Sources

The Hindu, The Hindu BusinessLine, The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, Business Standard, BBC News and the Press Information Bureau. Single-source items are attributed in the text.