The Hindu Editorial Analysis : 27th January 2026

The Hindu Editorial Analysis

We understand the significance of reading The Hindu newspaper for enhancing reading skills, improving comprehension of passages, staying informed about current events, enhancing essay writing, and more, especially for banking aspirants who need to focus on editorials for vocabulary building. This article will explore today’s editorial points, along with practice questions and key vocabulary.

Nation honours 131 distinguished personalities with Padma Awards

• The Centre announced the Padma honours for 2026 on Sunday. A total of 131 people have been selected for the awards. This includes five Padma Vibhushan awards, 13 Padma Bhushan awards, and 113 Padma Shri awards.
• The list of award winners includes eight people from Kerala, 11 from West Bengal, and 13 from Tamil Nadu. These three States are going to polls soon.
• Former Kerala Chief Minister and senior Communist leader V.S. Achuthanandan (late) and veteran film actor Dharmendra (late) have been chosen for the Padma Vibhushan after their death. The Padma Vibhushan is the country’s second-highest civilian award.
• Former Supreme Court judge K.T. Thomas and educationist P. Narayanan, both from Kerala, have also been selected for the Padma Vibhushan. Well-known classical violinist N. Rajam is another recipient of this award.
• Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and tribal leader Shibu Soren (late) has been named for the Padma Bhushan award after his death.
• Among the 13 Padma Bhushan awardees are actor Mammootty, singer Alka Yagnik, banker Uday Kotak, and former tennis player Vijay Amritraj. The list shows representation from many different fields.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated all the award winners for their work in different areas.
• In a post on X, Mr. Modi said, “Congratulations to all the Padma Awardees for their outstanding contributions to our nation. Their excellence, dedication, and service enrich the fabric of our society.”
• The Padma awards are given in areas such as social work, public service, science and engineering, business and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil services, and other fields.
• The Padma Vibhushan is given for very exceptional service, the Padma Bhushan for service of a high level, and the Padma Shri for good service in any field.

Neolithic Relics Unearthed at Lakkundi Strengthen Bid for UNESCO World Heritage Status

• Excavation work that started on January 16 at the Kote Veerabhadreshwar temple premises in Lakkundi village of Gadag district has uncovered relics from the Neolithic period. This discovery has strongly supported efforts to get Lakkundi included in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.
• The discovery of these ancient relics came soon after a family in the village found what they believed to be a “treasure” while digging the ground to build the foundation of a house.
• The excavation site is around 12 kilometres from Gadag, the district headquarters. Lakkundi was once known as the “village of hundred wells and temples.” These excavations are part of ongoing efforts to bring back the village’s historical importance.
• Experts believe that many old buildings in Lakkundi are still hidden under houses and other structures or buried beneath the ground.
• Earlier known as Lokkigundi, the village is mentioned in inscriptions from the 11th and 12th centuries. These inscriptions describe the village as being as rich and grand as Amaravati, the capital of Lord Indra.
• Lakkundi was also the “Karmabhoomi” of Queen Attimabbe, a strong follower of Jainism, who was famous for her charitable work.
• It is believed that the queen, who lived in the 11th century, built several temples and Jain basadis and also constructed wells for public use.
• Although Jainism flourished in Lakkundi, the village also gave shelter to 12th-century sharanas such as Shivasharana Ajaganna and Sharane Muktayakka, who spread the teachings of Basaveshwara.
• Many of Lakkundi’s old architectural structures no longer exist. The Mumbai State Gazetteer mentions only 13 temples in the village that show the architectural style of the Kalyana Chalukyas.
• The project to uncover buried temples and wells in the village has been pending for many years. It has now been restarted under the leadership of H.K. Patil, Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs and Tourism.
• Before starting the excavation, the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC), along with the Archaeology, Museums and Heritage Department, began an initiative in November 2024 to collect historical items from villagers.
• As part of this effort, residents handed over 1,050 historical objects, and 13 inscriptions were identified.
• Many of these items are now displayed in an open museum at Lakkundi. This museum was set up with the support of villagers who gave up their land for the Lakkundi Heritage Area Development Authority.
• The Tourism Department is also working actively to include a group of monuments in Lakkundi, along with nearby temples, in UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites.
• This move follows an announcement made in the State Budget to work towards getting a UNESCO tag for Lakkundi.
• The State government has partnered with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) to improve and finalise the proposal.
• According to Sharanu Gogeri, Commissioner of the Lakkundi Heritage Area Development Authority, two meetings have already been held. INTACH is now finalising the proposal.
• There are seven monuments in Lakkundi that are protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
• The State government has also declared 16 temple structures in the village as protected monuments and plans to add eight more by the end of this month.
• The authority has been asked to conduct a detailed study and submit a report on protecting 20 more temples and structures. This process is expected to take place in February.
• There is also a plan to shift the village to allow proper restoration of ancient monuments. However, any decision on relocation will be taken only after the excavation work and surveys of ancient structures are completed.

Five bodies recovered after fire at Hyderabad furniture shop

• More than 20 hours after a fire broke out at a furniture shop in Nampally, Hyderabad, the bodies of five people were found on Sunday. The bodies were recovered from the first-level cellar of the shop.
• The fire started on Saturday afternoon.
• According to the Fire Department, the victims were identified as Akhil (7) and Praneeth (11), sons of the shop’s watchman Yadaiah; Bibi Amma (60), a housekeeping worker from Karnataka; Mohammed Imtiyaz (31), a sales agent from Nampally; and Syed Habeeb (30), an auto driver living in Shastripuram.
• Telangana Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy announced that the families of the deceased would receive an ex gratia payment of ₹5 lakh each.
• The bodies of Mohammed Imtiyaz and Syed Habeeb, who had entered the shop to rescue people trapped inside, were found completely burnt.
• Officials said the other three victims were found inside a room and may have died due to suffocation, as there were no burn injuries on their bodies.
• Station House Officer K. Parashuram said that Bibi Amma and the watchman’s family were living in rooms provided to them in the cellar.
• He also said that the watchman Yadaiah and his wife Lakshmi were not present at the shop when the fire broke out.
• Hyderabad District Fire Officer-I T. Venkanna said firefighters faced major difficulty in reaching the two-level cellar because it had very few entry points.
• He added that both cellar levels were filled with stored goods, which made rescue work very hard.
• Four fire engines are still stationed at the location as the fire has not been fully put out.
• The police have arrested Satish Batchas, the owner of Batchas Furniture Castle.
• A case has been registered against him.

Important Questions

1. How many Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri awards were announced for 2026 by the Centre?
2. Which former Kerala Chief Minister and which veteran actor were named posthumously for the Padma Vibhushan?
3. What Neolithic relics were unearthed during the excavation that began on January 16 at the Kote Veerabhadreshwar temple premises in Lakkundi village of Gadag district?
4. Which organisation is working with the State government to finalise the proposal to include Lakkundi in UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites?
5. From which first-level cellar of the furniture shop in Nampally, Hyderabad, were five bodies recovered more than 20 hours after the fire broke out on Saturday afternoon?
6. What difficulty did firefighters face while accessing the two-level cellar packed with stored goods during the rescue operation at Batchas Furniture Castle?

Important Vocabulary

1. Distinguished – very respected because of great achievements
2. Posthumously – given after a person’s death
3. Stalwart – a loyal and long-serving supporter of a cause
4. Disciplines – different fields or areas of work
5. Neolithic – related to the early Stone Age period
6. Excavation – digging to find objects from the past
7. Inscriptions – words carved on stone or metal
8. Tentative – not final and open to change
9. Cellar – an underground room below a building
10. Asphyxiation – death caused by lack of air
11. Ex gratia – money given as help, not as a legal duty
12. Charred – badly burned by fire

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