4 November 2026
In this issue
- 1
A State’s surcharge on its own sales tax, and Entry 54 of List II
Bar & Bench - 2
The US midterms as a verdict on the record, not a swing of the pendulum
The Indian Express - 3
What held the economic rules together, and whether they needed a hegemon
Lowy Institute - 4
The Ganges Treaty at thirty, and why cusec thresholds are not enough
ORF - 5
Doing business with the Myanmar junta, against the peace it cannot deliver
The Hindu
UPSC has asked questions on these themes
- PSIR Paper I · 2026
Evaluate the Centre-State relation with reference to Article 293 and analyze its implications for the Indian federal structure.
- PSIR Paper I · 2026
Discuss the causes and consequences of inter-State water disputes in India.
- PSIR Paper II · 2026
Discuss the main features of the land-boundary agreement between India and Bangladesh.
- GS Paper II · 2026
Examine how the separation of powers is practised in India compared to the rigid presidential model of the United States of America. In this context, compare the actual authority of the Indian Prime Minister with that of the President of the USA.
- GS Paper I · 2026
“Water resources are both an asset and a source of conflict in South Asia.” Examine this statement giving examples.
- PSIR Paper II · 2025
How successful has the ‘ASEAN Plus Three’ been in addressing regional problems? Support your answer with specific examples.
- PSIR Paper II · 2024
“Deglobalisation is displacing globalisation.” Comment.
- PSIR Paper II · 2024
Discuss the implications of the scrapping of the Free Movement Regime with Myanmar by the Indian Government on the complex ethno-political dynamics of the north-eastern region.
Each issue takes five readings from the day’s newspapers and journals and sets them against the PSIR syllabus and the UPSC questions they bear on. All briefs