12 February 2026

• Economy: January WPI (Wholesale Price Index) data released; vegetable prices drive the headline number; CPI release due next week.
• Polity: New CPI base year (2024) discussion continues; the revised index better captures service-price inflation for RBI decisions.
• Bangladesh: BNP leader Tarique Rahman's swearing-in as Prime Minister is scheduled for 17 February; India sends Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla as representative.
• Defence: The 16th edition of the India-Bangladesh Joint River Commission meeting is held; Teesta water-sharing remains unresolved.

GS area: Economy (Inflation measurement, Statistics)

The government launched a new Consumer Price Index (CPI) series with base year 2024, replacing the 2011-12 base year series. This is the first base-year revision since 2011.

• Why base-year revision matters: Consumption patterns change over time. The 2011-12 basket over-represented food and under-represented services in the Indian household budget. The revised basket captures what households actually spend today.
• COICOP 2018 alignment: The new basket aligns with the UN's Classification of Individual Consumption According to Purpose (2018), enabling international comparisons.
• Category expansion: The 6-category structure becomes 12 categories. Housing and services receive higher weights. Food's share in the basket is reduced.
• Southern state implications: Southern states with higher service-sector consumption show higher inflation under the new index. This matters for RBI's monetary policy, which targets national CPI.
• Who releases CPI: The National Statistical Office (NSO) under MoSPI releases CPI. The RBI targets it but does not produce it. This is a standard exam trap.
• The 4 per cent target: The statutory inflation target under the RBI Act is 4 per cent with a tolerance band of plus or minus 2 percentage points. The Monetary Policy Committee is accountable for keeping inflation within this band.

Static linkage: Inflation indices, NSO, MoSPI, monetary policy (Economy).

GS area: International Relations (South Asia, India's neighbourhood)

The Bangladesh Nationalist Party's Tarique Rahman is scheduled to be sworn in as Prime Minister on 17 February 2026. India will send Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla as its representative.

• Context: Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League fled Bangladesh in August 2024 following student-led protests. She is currently in India. An interim government under Muhammad Yunus governed through late 2025.
• BNP landslide: The BNP and its Jatiyo Ekota (Bangladesh Jatiyo Party and Jamaat alliance) won 209 of 297 seats in the January 2026 elections. Voter turnout exceeded 60 per cent.
• Tarique Rahman: General Secretary of the BNP and son of its founder Ziaur Rahman. He ran the party from exile in London after being convicted of corruption in 2008. The BNP government is expected to review these convictions.
• India's stakes:
  • Teesta water treaty: The existing Ganga Waters Treaty expires in 2026. A Teesta river-sharing treaty has been pending since 2011.
  • Sheikh Hasina's extradition: Bangladesh has raised her extradition. India has not committed to handing her over.
  • Connectivity: India-Bangladesh connectivity projects (road, rail, power) are major infrastructure investments.
• India's approach: Sending the Speaker (rather than an executive official) signals protocol engagement without full political endorsement. The BNP historically had closer ties to Pakistan and China, making the India relationship a calibration exercise.

Static linkage: India-Bangladesh relations, Ganga Waters Treaty, neighbourhood policy (IR).

GS area: International Relations (Water disputes), Geography

The 16th meeting of the India-Bangladesh Joint River Commission was held. The Teesta remained the focal point.

• Joint River Commission (JRC): Established in 1972. It is a bilateral body for flood forecasting, river data sharing and water allocation discussions. Both countries share 54 rivers.
• Teesta dispute: Bangladesh receives about 10 per cent of Teesta's flow in the dry season (October-April) because upstream Indian dams divert the water. Bangladesh wants a formal sharing formula. India offered 37.5 per cent to Bangladesh and 42.5 per cent to West Bengal. West Bengal blocked the deal in 2011.
• Ganga Waters Treaty (1996): A 30-year treaty allocating Ganga flows at Farakka. It expires in 2026. Renewal is under discussion. This is distinct from the Teesta dispute.
• 54 shared rivers: The count covers rivers that cross the India-Bangladesh border in both directions. Data sharing for flood warnings is the one area of consistent cooperation.

Static linkage: India-Bangladesh rivers, Farakka, transboundary water (IR/Geography).

GS area: Economy (Inflation)

The Office of the Economic Adviser (OEA) under the Ministry of Commerce released January 2026 Wholesale Price Index data.

• WPI vs CPI: WPI measures price changes at the wholesale level (producer and intermediary). CPI measures retail-level prices paid by households. The RBI targets CPI, not WPI.
• WPI release authority: The Office of the Economic Adviser under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry releases WPI. CPI is released by MoSPI. The two data streams have different release authorities. This is a frequent exam trap.
• Vegetable prices: Seasonal vegetable price spikes (onion, tomato) drove the January WPI headline number upward. These are volatile components.
• Primary articles, fuel, and manufactured products: WPI is decomposed into these three broad categories. Primary articles (including food) have the largest weight in the Indian WPI basket.

Static linkage: WPI, CPI, price indices, monetary policy (Economy).

GS area: Security (Defence indigenisation, Naval)

INS Anjadip, the fourth Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW SWC), was commissioned from Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) at the Kattupalli yard.

• What ASW SWC does: Shallow water anti-submarine craft detect and neutralise submarines in coastal and littoral waters. They use sonar, torpedoes and depth charges.
• Indigenous sonar - Abhay: The vessel carries the Hull-Mounted Sonar Abhay, a domestically developed sonar system. Indigenous sonar reduces dependence on foreign supply chains for this most sensitive sensor.
• GRSE: A defence PSU under the Ministry of Defence. The Kattupalli yard is operated under a PPP arrangement with L&T Shipyard.
• Project scale: Eight ASW SWC vessels are planned under the project. INS Anjadip is the fourth.
• Specifications: 77 metres length; water-jet propulsion (reduces acoustic signature vs conventional screws); lightweight torpedoes; combat management system.

Static linkage: Naval indigenisation, GRSE, anti-submarine warfare (Security).

• Adani Group nuclear entry: The SHANTI Act 2025 enables private operators in nuclear energy. Adani Group expressed interest in entering the sector. This would be the first private Indian operator in civil nuclear power if the bid progresses.
• Good Samaritan Rules (Karnataka): Karnataka notified Good Samaritan Rules under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The rules protect bystanders who provide aid at accident sites from police harassment and mandatory court attendance.