PIB News Today for UPSC: 12 November 2026 (Stand-Up India, Visa Reform, Black Mass)

1. Cabinet Extends Stand-Up India and the Credit Guarantee Fund for Micro Units till 2031

Stand-Up India

• The scheme supports women, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe entrepreneurs who set up new or greenfield enterprises.
• Bank loans range from above ₹10 lakh up to ₹1 crore, covering up to 85% of the project cost, as a composite loan or a term loan.
• Manufacturing, services, trading and agri-allied activities are eligible sectors.
• The credit guarantee covers 85% of the loan amount at a standard guarantee fee of 0.50%.
• Since its launch in April 2016, the scheme has facilitated loans to more than 2.75 lakh entrepreneurs, and the new phase targets at least 2.5 lakh more.

CGFMU

• CGFMU, launched in January 2016, guarantees lending institutions against default on loans under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY).
• It covers PMMY loans up to ₹20 lakh, overdrafts of up to ₹10,000 in PM Jan Dhan Yojana accounts, and SHG loans where the portfolio is between ₹10 lakh and ₹20 lakh.
• The guarantee fee falls from 1% to 0.75% a year, while SHG loans keep paying 0.25% in the first year and 0.50% after that.
• The guarantees are given through the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC).
• By September 2026, more than 60.36 crore Mudra loans worth ₹43.34 lakh crore had been sanctioned, and the extension is expected to enable ₹12.6 lakh crore of loans over five years.

Why it matters

• Small borrowers often lack collateral, so a government-backed guarantee makes banks more willing to lend to them.
• Both schemes now run for the Sixteenth Finance Commission cycle, FY 2026-27 to FY 2030-31, which gives lenders policy certainty.
• A lower guarantee fee reduces the cost of collateral-free lending, but loan quality still needs careful monitoring.

Source: PIB release 2334978 · PIB release 2334976

2. Government Rationalises the Indian Visa Regime: Categories Cut to 9, Sub-Categories to 23

What has changed

• The change was made on 27 August 2026 and follows an October 2025 round that had cut the main categories from 22 to 13 and sub-categories from 63 to 49.
• The Visitor Visa has two types: V-1 for 30 days with multiple entries, and V-2 for longer stays of 1, 5 or 10 years, which also covers mountaineering.
• Medical Visas (M-1 for conventional treatment and M-3 for AYUSH treatment) will be given for one year with multiple entries by default, with M-2 and M-4 for attendants.
• Student Visas are now S-1 for school, graduate and post-graduate study and S-2 for PhD, research and exchange programmes.
• Students admitted through the Study in India portal can get an e-S1 visa for up to five years or the course duration, whichever is less.
• Business Visas are now B-1 for long-term licence-based ventures and B-2 for short-term contract-based work, including the Production Investment Business Visa for technical specialists, earlier called e-B4.

Why it matters

• Fewer and clearer categories reduce overlap, so travellers can pick the right visa more easily.
• Multiple-entry medical visas support medical value travel under the ‘Heal in India’ vision.
• Quick visas for foreign engineers and technicians help new factories install machinery and transfer technology on time.
• The e-Visa facility is now available to nationals of 172 countries.

Source: PIB release 2335182

3. DGFT Prohibits Export of Lithium-Ion Battery Black Mass

What black mass is

• Black mass is the powder produced by shredding end-of-life lithium-ion batteries and battery manufacturing waste.
• It contains recoverable lithium, cobalt, nickel and manganese, which are critical minerals for electric vehicles, energy storage and electronics.
• The ITC(HS) code covers unsorted waste and spent cells and batteries that do not contain lead, cadmium or mercury.

Why the ban

• India’s battery recycling and refining capacity has grown, but it is underused because recyclers do not get enough feedstock.
• Exports were sending this secondary resource abroad, while some domestic recyclers had to import material.
• Keeping black mass at home should raise plant utilisation, attract investment and reduce imports of critical minerals.
• The step supports the ₹1,500 crore incentive scheme for critical mineral recycling, approved in September 2025 under the National Critical Mineral Mission.

Points to note

• Transitional arrangements under Para 1.05 of the Foreign Trade Policy, 2023 apply to shipments already in the pipeline.
• Black mass is hazardous, so domestic recycling must follow environmental rules to avoid pollution.
• Several major economies have adopted similar curbs to keep battery waste for domestic processing.
• Recovering minerals from waste also reduces the need for new primary mining, with its land and water costs.

Source: PIB release 2335019

4. Cabinet Approves Yuge Yugeen Bharat Museum at North and South Block

Key points

• The museum will cover a built-up area of about 1,78,509 square metres and present India’s civilisational journey through thematic galleries.
• It will be built in phases from FY 2026-27 to FY 2030-31, and the first gallery, on the theme of Adornment, is expected to open in North Block in late 2027.
• Around 1.8 million objects have been identified from the National Museum, other Ministry of Culture museums, 52 ASI site museums and other collections.
• Planned galleries include Architecture and Cityscapes, Mathematics and Astronomy, Languages and Scripts, Faith and Spirituality, and Bharat Connects.
• The Prime Minister announced the museum on 18 May 2023, and the Public Investment Board appraised it on 27 July 2026.

Source: PIB release 2334961

5. NBS Rates for Rabi 2026-27 Approved with a Budget of About ₹62,370 Crore

Key points

• The amount is about ₹24,417.73 crore more than the Rabi 2025-26 budget of ₹37,952.29 crore.
• The higher outlay responds to recent increases in international prices of fertilisers and inputs such as DAP, MOP and sulphur.
• The subsidy covers 28 grades of P&K fertilisers, including DAP and NPKS grades, and is paid to companies at notified rates.
• The NBS scheme has governed the subsidy on P&K fertilisers since 1 April 2010.

Why it matters

• Fixed per-nutrient subsidies keep DAP and complex fertilisers affordable for farmers during the Rabi sowing season.
• A rising subsidy bill shows how exposed India is to global fertiliser prices, since much of the phosphate and potash is imported.

Source: PIB release 2334974

6. First BIMSTEC Health Ministers’ Meeting in Colombo Adopts Joint Statement

Key points

• The ministerial mechanism was set up following a decision at the Sixth BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok in April 2025.
• The Plan of Action covers disease surveillance, pandemic preparedness, digital health, traditional medicine, One Health and the health workforce.
• The statement also proposes exploring a BIMSTEC Digital Health Framework for telemedicine and interoperable health records.
• It welcomed a Centre of Excellence for Public Health in Sri Lanka, one on Tropical Medicine in Thailand, and Bangladesh’s proposal for a Regional Zoonotic Disease Observatory.
• India and Sri Lanka exchanged an MoU for 100 more ambulances under Indian grant assistance of about USD 5.28 million, and India announced support for 50 Health ATMs.

Source: PIB release 2335080

7. Swachh Survekshan 2025-26 Awards: New Categories and Swachh Shehar Jodi

Key points

• Ahmedabad-Sanand, Indore-Depalpur and Tirupati-Kuppam were the top three pairs in the new Swachh Shehar Jodi category, where a mentor city guides a mentee city.
• Awards for a Swachh River Front Town, Swachh Coastal Town and Clean Himalayan City were given for the first time.
• The survey grew from 73 cities in 2016 to 4,751 cities in 2025-26, and 2.70 crore citizens gave feedback this year.
• Under the Jodi initiative, 70 mentor cities have been paired with 191 mentee cities.
• The Minister said urban waste processing rose from 16% to 80% and door-to-door collection from 44% to over 96% since 2014.

Source: PIB release 2335207

8. PIB Backgrounder: Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan Completes Six Years

Key points

• The campaign began on 15 August 2020 in 272 districts, grew to 372 districts in August 2022 and covered all districts from 15 August 2023.
• It is run by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as the flagship awareness part of the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR).
• People seeking treatment and counselling rose from 2.08 lakh in 2020-21 to over 9.11 lakh in 2025-26, and over 2 lakh citizens have enrolled as Nasha Mukti Mitr.
• The 2018 national survey by NDDTC, AIIMS found about 16 crore alcohol users, 3.1 crore cannabis users and 2.26 crore opioid users.
• A three-tier mechanism of State, district and block committees has been suggested to monitor drug demand reduction.

Source: PIB release 2334910