Current Affairs 12 August 2026

Banking & FinanceMediumquizQuiz

BRICS Finance Ministers Meet in Jaipur, Push Cheaper Cross-Border Payments

•The first BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' meeting under India's 2026 chairship was held at Jaipur on 12 August 2026, continuing into 13 August.
•Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra co-chaired it, under the theme 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability'.
•Members discussed making cross-border payments faster and cheaper, including linking national fast payment systems and central bank digital currencies, and settling more trade in local currencies.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Dog Waste Is an Ecological Trap for Urban Dung Beetles, Finds New Study

•A study published in Ecology and Evolution on 12 August 2026 finds that dog waste poses a previously unrecognised risk to urban dung beetles.
•Researchers from Clark University, Massachusetts, working with the urban dung beetle Onthophagus orpheus, found about 67% of beetles in field surveys were drawn to dog dung over cow dung.
•Offspring raised on dog dung developed faster and emerged larger, but nearly 60% of brood balls failed on dog dung against about 25% on cow dung.

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Ranks & ReportsMediumquizQuiz

CAG Finds E. coli in Station Water, Amenity Gaps at 89% of Stations Audited

•CAG Report No. 31 of 2026 (Railways), on passenger amenities and sanitation at non-suburban railway stations, was tabled in Parliament on 12 August 2026.
•Of 512 non-suburban stations audited, 458 - more than 89% - fell short on one or more Minimum Essential Amenities; only 54 had them all.
•Water samples from water coolers at eight stations across four railway zones tested positive for E. coli, and tap samples at 49 stations were found contaminated.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

Parliament Passes NCDC (Amendment) Bill, Widening Cooperative Financing Beyond Rural Industry

•Parliament completed passage of the National Co-operative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 when the Rajya Sabha cleared it on 12 August 2026; the Lok Sabha had passed it on 11 August.
•The Bill amends the NCDC Act, 1962 to shift the Corporation's mandate from financing specified commodities to supporting 'co-operative development' generally, directly or through an intermediary.
•'Foodstuffs' is widened to cover processed food and other edible products, letting NCDC finance food processing, packaging and value addition.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

Iran Says It Will Soon Join the BRICS New Development Bank

•Iran's central bank governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said Iran will soon become a member of the New Development Bank, the multilateral lender created by BRICS.
•The statement was carried by Iranian state media on 12 August 2026, as the first BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors' Meeting under India's 2026 Chairship opened in Jaipur.
•The NDB, headquartered in Shanghai, was agreed at the Fortaleza BRICS Summit of July 2014 and became operational in 2015.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

C2S Programme Has Trained Over 68,000 Students; 254 Chip Designs Taped Out

•Replying in the Lok Sabha on 12 August 2026, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said more than 68,000 students have been trained in semiconductor chip design under the Chips to Start-ups (C2S) programme.
•The programme has enabled 254 chip designs to be taken to tape-out — 175 of them at the 180 nm technology node at the Semi-Conductor Laboratory, Mohali, and 79 at overseas foundries.
•332 academic institutions have been given access to advanced Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools under the programme.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

California Study Records 592 Silicosis Cases Among Engineered Stone Countertop Workers

•A study published in NEJM Evidence on 12 August 2026 documented 592 silicosis cases among workers fabricating engineered stone countertops in California between January 2019 and June 2026.
•Of those workers, 65 underwent lung transplantation and 31 died; the median age at diagnosis was 46.
•Engineered or 'quartz' stone is crushed quartz bound with polyester resin, typically more than 90 per cent crystalline silica — far above natural granite or marble.

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EnvironmentLowquizQuiz

Rare Babirusa Piglet Born at Chester Zoo as Swine Fever Pushes 'Pig-Deer' Towards Extinction

•Chester Zoo in the United Kingdom announced on 12 August 2026 the birth of a female babirusa piglet named Rana.
•The babirusa, a wild pig of the genus Babyrousa nicknamed the 'pig-deer', is found only on four Indonesian islands.
•African swine fever reached those islands about five years ago and has collapsed wild populations; a camera-trap survey recorded just two babirusa sightings across 2023 and 2024.

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DefenceLowquizQuiz

US Army AH-64E Apache Crashes in Texas, Killing Both Crew Members

•A US Army AH-64E Apache attack helicopter crashed near Salado, Texas, on 12 August 2026, killing both crew members.
•The helicopter was assigned to nearby Fort Hood and was on a maintenance test flight when the accident occurred.
•The crash sparked a grass fire spreading across more than 100 acres, and an investigation into the cause is under way.

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

India Wins Maiden Commonwealth Fencing Championships Title with 35 Medals

•India won its maiden overall title at the Commonwealth Fencing Championships 2026 in Lagos, Nigeria.
•The final tally was 35 medals - 13 gold, 8 silver and 14 bronze - across the Under-23 and Senior divisions.
•The performance earned India the Wilkinson Sword Trophy, awarded by the Commonwealth Fencing Federation since 1982 for the best overall showing.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

JWST Finds MoM-BH*-1, the Farthest 'Black Hole Star' at Cosmic Dawn

•A study published in Nature on 12 August 2026 describes MoM-BH*-1, an object interpreted as a 'black hole star' in the early universe.
•It was detected by the James Webb Space Telescope during the Mirage or Miracle (MoM) survey and lies in the constellation Cetus.
•The object is seen as it existed less than 660 million years after the Big Bang, at a spectroscopic redshift of about 7.76.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

Ayush and Health Ministries Renew 'One Herb, One Standard' MoU for Three Years

•The Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine and Homoeopathy and the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission renewed their Memorandum of Understanding under the 'One Herb, One Standard' initiative for a further three years on 12 August 2026.
•The MoU was exchanged at Kartavya Bhavan, New Delhi, in the presence of Prataprao Ganpatrao Jadhav, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Ayush and Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare.
•OHOS creates a single harmonised quality and testing standard, called a monograph, for a medicinal plant used across more than one system of medicine.

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Awards & HonoursMediumquizQuiz

Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 Conferred at National World Elephant Day Event in Visakhapatnam

•The Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 were conferred at the national World Elephant Day celebration in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, hosted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
•Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh presented the awards; it was the first time Andhra Pradesh hosted the national event.
•Seven mahouts from Jaldapara in West Bengal were honoured for rescuing captive elephants and displaced rhinoceroses during severe floods.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Army Agrees to Set Up Youth Training Centres Across Telangana Districts

•The Indian Army has agreed to set up youth training centres at district headquarters across Telangana, following a meeting in Hyderabad on 12 August 2026.
•Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy met Lieutenant General C. Rajesh Pushkar, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Command, and offered the state government's collaboration on recruitment drives.
•The centres are meant to prepare local youth for nationwide Army recruitment through physical training, documentation guidance and awareness of recruitment procedures.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

DigiLocker Crosses 72.43 Crore Users, UMANG Reaches 11.66 Crore

•The government told Parliament on 12 August 2026 that DigiLocker had crossed 72.43 crore registered users and UMANG 11.66 crore, as of 31 July 2026.
•DigiLocker recorded about 72.86 crore document-access transactions over the previous three years and hosts 5,437 document types and services - 661 from the Centre and 4,776 from States.
•UMANG recorded about 798 crore transactions over the same three years and offers 2,575 live services - 880 Central and 1,695 State services.

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Summits & ConferencesMediumquizQuiz

8th BRICS Ocean and Polar Science Working Group Meeting Opens in Goa

•The 8th Meeting of the BRICS Working Group on Ocean and Polar Science and Technology (OPST) opened in Goa on 12 August 2026 and runs to 14 August 2026.
•It is hosted by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, as part of India's BRICS Presidency in 2026.
•NCPOR Director Dr Thamban Meloth chaired the meeting as Working Group Chair; Dr M. Rajeevan, Vice Chancellor of Atria University and former Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, delivered a keynote on India's Blue Economy initiatives.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

CSIR-IICT Transfers Plant-Based Diabetic Foot Ulcer Drug to Viridis Biopharma

•CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, announced on 12 August 2026 an IND-ready phytopharmaceutical drug candidate for diabetic foot ulcers, developed from the medicinal plant Gymnema sylvestre.
•The institute signed a technology transfer agreement with Viridis Biopharma Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, which will take the candidate through regulatory submissions to the CDSCO and the US FDA and into clinical evaluation.
•The work was carried out by CSIR-IICT's Department of Applied Biology under Dr Anthony Addlagatta, with Dr Srigiridhar Kotamraju and Dr Aruna Jangam among the key researchers.

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State NewsLowquizQuiz

Gramin Gyan Setu App Launched to Link Rural Libraries in Gujarat

•Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched the Gramin Gyan Setu mobile application through video conferencing on 12 August 2026 to digitally connect libraries in the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency of Gujarat.
•The launch was timed to National Library Day, observed on 12 August as the birth anniversary of Padma Shri S. R. Ranganathan, the father of library science in India.
•The platform follows a hub-and-spoke design, linking 63 village libraries in the Gandhinagar, Kalol and Sanand assembly segments to four central libraries holding 2.80 lakh books; officials said 752 libraries were interconnected within three months.

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DefenceHighquizQuiz

Defence Ministry Issues ₹1 Lakh Crore Tender for 60 Transport Aircraft

•The Ministry of Defence issued a Request for Proposal on 12 August 2026 for 60 multirole transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force, in a programme valued at about ₹1 lakh crore.
•The aircraft sought are in the 18-tonne to 30-tonne cargo category and are meant to replace the Indian Air Force's ageing Soviet-origin Antonov An-32 fleet.
•Indian companies will lead the programme in partnership with foreign original equipment manufacturers; about 20% of the aircraft are to arrive in fly-away condition and the remaining 80% are to be built in India through joint ventures.

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NationalMediumquizQuiz

Railways Sanctions ₹295 Crore Kavach 4.0 Rollout in Izzatnagar Division

•Indian Railways approved the deployment of Kavach Version 4.0 across 660 route kilometres of the Izzatnagar Division of North Eastern Railway on 12 August 2026, at a sanctioned cost of ₹295 crore.
•The work falls under the umbrella project 'Provision of Kavach with communication backbone of Long-Term Evolution (LTE) on balance sections of Indian Railways'.
•The rollout will cover 53 stations on the Kasganj–Izzatnagar, Izzatnagar–Kathgodam and Bhojipura–Tanakpur routes.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Government Charts 100 GWe Nuclear Roadmap With Five SMRs by 2033

•In a written reply in the Lok Sabha on 12 August 2026, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh set out the government's roadmap for a self-reliant nuclear energy ecosystem built around the target of 100 GWe of nuclear capacity by 2047.
•The Nuclear Energy Mission, announced in the Union Budget 2025-26, carries a ₹20,000 crore outlay and a target of at least five indigenously designed Small Modular Reactors operational by 2033.
•The strategy is two-pronged: large indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors of 700 MWe and advanced designs at greenfield sites, plus SMRs at brownfield sites including retiring fossil-fuel plants, captive industrial plants and off-grid remote locations.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

BHASHINI and NITI Aayog Sign Pact for Multilingual AI Governance

•The Digital India BHASHINI Division and NITI Aayog signed a Statement of Intent in New Delhi on 12 August 2026 to embed multilingual, voice-first artificial intelligence in public governance.
•It was signed by Amitabh Nag, Chief Executive Officer of the Digital India BHASHINI Division, and Shoyabahmed Kalal, Director of NITI Aayog.
•BHASHINI's language translation APIs and reference applications will be integrated across NITI Aayog's digital platforms and internal communication workflows.

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Agreements & MoUsMediumquizQuiz

India and SACU Sign Terms of Reference to Begin Preferential Trade Agreement Talks

•India and the five-member Southern African Customs Union signed the Terms of Reference for negotiations on a Preferential Trade Agreement at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi, on 12 August 2026.
•SACU comprises South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini, and is the world's oldest customs union, established in 1910 and headquartered at Windhoek in Namibia.
•The proposed pact will initially cover eight chapters: trade in goods, market access, customs procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, trade remedies, technical barriers to trade, rules of origin and dispute settlement.

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Banking & FinanceHighquizQuiz

Food Subsidy to Move on Programmable Digital Rupee in Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli

•India is set to launch a Central Bank Digital Currency-based Direct Benefit Transfer system for food subsidies under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana on 14 August 2026.
•Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli will be the first Union Territories to fully operationalise food subsidy transfers through programmable Digital Rupee tokens credited straight to beneficiaries' CBDC wallets.
•The tokens carry built-in conditions restricting their use to designated foodgrains bought from empanelled merchants through QR code scans, creating an end-to-end digital record of the subsidy.

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NationalHighquizQuiz

DDA Approves Draft Master Plan for Delhi-2047, Replacing the Stalled MPD-2041

•The Delhi Development Authority approved the draft Master Plan for Delhi-2047 on 12 August 2026, at a meeting chaired by Lieutenant-Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu with DDA Vice-Chairman N Saravana Kumar in attendance.
•The plan replaces the earlier draft Master Plan for Delhi-2041, which the DDA had cleared on 28 February 2023 but which was never notified and missed several central deadlines, and is aligned with the Viksit Bharat @ 2047 vision.
•It permits commercial construction in 70 peripheral villages, relaxes developmental protections on a portion of the Yamuna floodplain, and changes land use for a metro depot for the Rithala-Kundli corridor at Narela.

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Summits & ConferencesMediumquizQuiz

IIHT SUTRA 2026: First National Conclave of Handloom Technology Institutes Held in Delhi

•IIHT SUTRA 2026, the first-ever National Conclave of the Indian Institutes of Handloom Technology, was held on 12 August 2026 at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi.
•It was organised by the Ministry of Textiles through the Office of the Development Commissioner (Handlooms) and inaugurated by Union Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh.
•The theme was 'IIHTs: Weaving the Future of the Indian Handloom Sector - Educate, Innovate, Transform', covering 6 Central and 5 State IIHTs.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

NCLT Launches e-Inspection and e-Certified Copy Services for Digital Case Records

•The National Company Law Tribunal launched e-Inspection and e-Certified Copy services on 12 August 2026, inaugurated by NCLT President Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal through a video conferencing ceremony.
•e-Inspection lets advocates, litigants and other stakeholders view judicial records electronically, while e-Certified Copy issues certified copies through a digital process instead of physical filing and manual collection.
•The two services are part of the tribunal's wider digital push, which includes a revamped website and the e-Courts 2.0 initiative.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Central Zoo Authority Clears Asia's First Desert-Themed Night Safari at Deesa

•On 12 August 2026 the Central Zoo Authority approved Gujarat's proposal for a Desert Zoological Park and Night Safari at Juna Deesa in Banaskantha district, planned as Asia's first desert-themed drive-through night safari.
•The project will come up on about 103 hectares of contiguous government land at an estimated cost of Rs 542.14 crore, to be developed by the Gujarat Forest Department.
•It is designed to house roughly 2,700 animals and birds from about 83 species, with a separate day zoo and five dedicated night safari enclosures for viewing nocturnal animals after sunset.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Andhra Pradesh and CSIR-NGRI Sign Pact to Explore Lithium, Gallium in Kadapa Basin

•On 12 August 2026 the Andhra Pradesh Department of Mines and Geology signed an MoU with CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute to explore lithium and gallium deposits in the Kadapa Basin.
•The agreement was signed at the State Secretariat in Vijayawada in the presence of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Mines Minister Kollu Ravindra.
•Exploration will focus on the Vempalle and Thummalapalle areas, where preliminary surveys indicated lithium up to 1,000 parts per million and gallium up to 250 ppm.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Retail Inflation Edges Up to 4.45% in July 2026 as Food Prices Climb

•Data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on 12 August 2026 showed retail inflation rising to 4.45% in July 2026 from 4.38% in June.
•Food inflation measured by the Consumer Food Price Index rose to 5.52% from 5.32%, the main reason for the increase.
•Rural inflation, at 4.84%, remained well above urban inflation at 3.96%, because food carries a larger weight in rural spending.

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Polity & GovernanceHighquizQuiz

Lok Sabha Refers FCRA Amendment Bill 2026 to 31-Member Joint Committee

•On 12 August 2026 the Lok Sabha adopted a motion referring the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, amid opposition protests demanding the Bill's withdrawal.
•The motion was moved by Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai; the JPC will have 31 members - 21 from the Lok Sabha nominated by Speaker Om Birla and 10 from the Rajya Sabha nominated by Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan.
•The committee must report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the 2026 Winter Session of Parliament.

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Polity & GovernanceHighquizQuiz

Inquiry Report on Justice Varma Tabled; All Three Charges Held Proved

•The report of the Inquiry Committee constituted under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968 into allegations against Justice Yashwant Varma was laid before the Lok Sabha, along with the oral and documentary evidence recorded.
•The committee found all three articles of charge proved - unexplained currency at his official residence, failure to preserve material evidence, and evasive and misleading explanations.
•The three-member committee comprised Supreme Court judge Justice Aravind Kumar, then Bombay High Court Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, and senior advocate B.V. Acharya.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Rare Babirusa Piglet Born as Species Nears Critically Endangered Status

•Chester Zoo in the United Kingdom announced the birth of Rana, a female babirusa piglet, drawing attention to a wild population in steep decline.
•The babirusa or 'pig-deer' (genus Babyrousa) is endemic to just four Indonesian islands - Sulawesi, the Togian islands, the Sula islands and Buru - all lying within Wallacea.
•The animals are currently listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List but are expected to be uplisted to Critically Endangered after a sharp population fall.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

Russia Names Former CJI D.Y. Chandrachud Its Arbitrator in Oschadbank Treaty Dispute

•Russia has appointed former Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud as its party-appointed arbitrator in an investment treaty arbitration brought by Ukraine's state-owned Oschadbank.
•The claim concerns assets and operations Oschadbank says it lost in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia after Russia's 2022 invasion.
•The case proceeds under the 1998 Russia-Ukraine bilateral investment treaty on the encouragement and reciprocal protection of investments.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

Uttarakhand Orders PWD to Fast-Track New High Court Campus at Haldwani

•On 12 August 2026 the Uttarakhand government directed the Public Works Department to expedite construction of the new High Court campus at Haldwani.
•The site is at Lamachaur, on the Haldwani-Rudrapur highway (NH-05), in Nainital district.
•The state cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, cleared the land transfer on 7 August 2026.

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ObituariesMediumquizQuiz

Zhu Rongji, Architect of China's WTO Entry and State Enterprise Reform, Dies at 97

•Zhu Rongji, the fifth Premier of the People's Republic of China, died in Beijing on 12 August 2026 at the age of 97.
•He served as Premier from 17 March 1998 to 16 March 2003, heading the State Council.
•He was Governor of the People's Bank of China from 1993 to 1995 and Vice-Premier from 1993 to 1998.

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Important DaysHighquizQuiz

World Elephant Day 2026: India's DNA-Based Census Puts Wild Elephants at 22,446

•World Elephant Day was observed on 12 August 2026 with the theme 'Bringing the world together to help elephants'.
•The observance was launched in 2012 to draw global attention to threats facing African and Asian elephants.
•India's Synchronous All India Elephant Estimation (SAIEE) 2021-25 puts the wild elephant population at 22,446.

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NationalLowquizQuiz

Kavach 4.0 Cleared for 660 Route km in NER; RailOne Crosses 4.76 Crore Downloads

•Indian Railways has approved Kavach Version 4.0 on 660 route km of the Izzatnagar Division of North Eastern Railway at an estimated Rs 295 crore.
•Kavach is India's indigenous Automatic Train Protection system, designed to prevent Signal Passed at Danger incidents and train collisions.
•The RailOne app, launched on 1 July 2025, has reached 4.76 crore downloads and averages 10 lakh ticket bookings a day.

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Schemes & CommitteesLowquizQuiz

Vibrant Villages Programme-II: Rs 6,839 Crore for 1,954 Villages Along India's Non-Northern Borders

•Vibrant Villages Programme-II was approved on 2 April 2025 as a Central Sector Scheme with an outlay of Rs 6,839 crore till FY 2028-29.
•It covers 1,954 villages in 334 blocks along International Land Borders other than the northern border, across 17 States and UTs.
•VVP-I, approved on 15 February 2023 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, covers villages in 46 blocks along the northern border in five States and UTs.

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NationalLowquizQuiz

Census 2027: Houselisting Done in 31 States, Snow-Bound Areas to Be Enumerated from September 2026

•The first phase of Census 2027, the Houselisting and Housing Census, has been completed in 31 States and UTs, with the rest scheduled by September 2026.
•Population enumeration in Ladakh and the snow-bound non-synchronous areas of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand runs from 1 to 30 September 2026.
•A revisional round follows from 1 to 5 October 2026, with self-enumeration available from 17 to 31 August 2026.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

BRICS Finance Meeting in Jaipur: New Development Bank Seminar on Mobilising Private Capital

•Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman delivered the keynote at a seminar on the New Development Bank's role in mobilising private capital, held in Jaipur on 12 August 2026.
•The seminar was on the sidelines of the BRICS Finance Ministers' and Central Bank Governors meeting in Jaipur.
•Dilma Rousseff, President of the New Development Bank, delivered a special address.

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NationalMediumquizQuiz

UGC Issues 16 Letters of Intent to Foreign Universities; Indian IITs Expand to Zanzibar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai

•UGC has issued 16 Letters of Intent to Foreign Higher Educational Institutions from Australia, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States.
•Six LoIs went to Karnataka, six to Maharashtra, three to Delhi NCR and one to Tamil Nadu.
•University of Southampton has established a campus in Gurugram and University of New South Wales in Bengaluru.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

Skill India Update: PM-SETU's Rs 60,000 Crore ITI Upgrade and 600+ New-Age PMKVY 4.0 Courses

•Skill India Mission delivers training through PMKVY, Jan Shikshan Sansthan, the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme and the Craftsman Training Scheme via ITIs.
•PM-SETU, a Rs 60,000 crore Centrally Sponsored Scheme, will upgrade 1,000 Government ITIs in a hub-and-spoke model of 200 hubs and 800 spokes.
•PMKVY 4.0 has introduced over 600 new-age courses, training more than 5.44 lakh candidates in these sectors as on 30 June 2026.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

WCD's Three Verticals: 991 One Stop Centres, 4,172 Anganwadi-cum-Creches and the POCSO Support Person System

•The Ministry of Women and Child Development runs three Centrally Sponsored verticals: Mission Shakti, Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0, and Mission Vatsalya.
•Mission Shakti has two sub-verticals — Sambal for safety and security, and Samarthya for empowerment.
•991 One Stop Centres are operational and have assisted over 15.20 lakh women since 1 April 2015; Women Helpline 181 has assisted over 1.04 crore women.

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Banking & FinanceMediumquizQuiz

Financial Inclusion Snapshot: FI Index at 70, 58.66 Crore PMSBY Enrolments, UPI at 2,365 Crore Monthly Transactions

•The RBI's Financial Inclusion Index rose from 43.4 in March 2017 to 70.0 in March 2026.
•India has over 1.81 lakh bank branches and 17.36 lakh Business Correspondents, with 99.92% of villages having a banking outlet within 5 km.
•Cumulative Direct Benefit Transfer stands at Rs 52,89,019 crore across 320 schemes and 56 ministries as on 10 August 2026.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

PM-RAHAT: 22,481 Road Accident Victims Covered in Under Six Months of Nationwide Rollout

•PM-RAHAT, the Road Accident Victims' Hospitalisation and Assured Treatment scheme, was launched nationwide on 13 February 2026 under Section 162 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
•It provides treatment cover of up to Rs 1.5 lakh per victim, capped at seven days from the date of the accident, on any category of road.
•As on 31 July 2026, 22,481 victims across 34 States and UTs had been covered, with 18,149 cases approved.

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Banking & FinanceMediumquizQuiz

CBDC-Based Food Subsidy: Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli to Get Programmable Digital Rupee Transfers

•CBDC-based Direct Benefit Transfer under PMGKAY will be launched in Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli on 14 August 2026.
•They become the first Union Territories to deliver food subsidy to all eligible PMGKAY beneficiaries as programmable Digital Rupee tokens in CBDC wallets.
•The rollout builds on earlier pilot implementations in Puducherry and Gujarat and marks complete saturation of eligible beneficiaries in the two UTs.

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Agreements & MoUsMediumquizQuiz

India and SACU Sign Terms of Reference for a Preferential Trade Agreement Covering Eight Chapters

•India and the Southern African Customs Union signed the Terms of Reference for negotiations towards a Preferential Trade Agreement at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi.
•This is India's first Terms of Reference signing with the African region.
•The proposed PTA will cover eight chapters, including trade in goods, rules of origin, customs procedures, trade remedies, SPS measures, technical barriers to trade and dispute settlement.

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NationalMediumquizQuiz

I4C Saves Rs 11,158 Crore from Cyber Fraud; Suspect Registry Blocks Rs 25,698 Crore in Transactions

•The Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System has saved more than Rs 11,158 crore across over 32.80 lakh complaints up to 30 June 2026.
•I4C's Suspect Registry, run with banks and financial institutions, has helped decline transactions worth Rs 25,698 crore.
•The Samanvaya platform and its Pratibimb module have contributed to the arrest of more than 29,837 accused.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

PRAHAAR: India's First National Counter Terrorism Policy Rests on Seven Pillars

•The Ministry of Home Affairs unveiled PRAHAAR as India's first comprehensive National Counter Terrorism Policy and Strategy on 23 February 2026.
•It is built on seven pillars covering prevention, response, internal capacity, rule of law, conditions conducive to terrorism, international alignment, and recovery and resilience.
•The framework formalises real-time intelligence sharing through the Multi Agency Centre and a coordinated chain of command with forces such as the National Security Guard.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

Deep Ocean Mission: Seabed Mining System Trials at 5,270 m in the Central Indian Ocean Basin

•NIOT Chennai has developed a seabed mining system whose mobility and system-powering trials were completed at a depth of 5,270 metres in the Central Indian Ocean Basin.
•The site is allocated to India by the International Seabed Authority; nodule collection and crushing components are being developed under ISA guidelines.
•India holds ISA exploration contracts for both polymetallic nodules and polymetallic sulphides in areas beyond national jurisdiction.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Retail Inflation at 4.45% in July 2026 on the New 2024=100 CPI Series; Food Inflation 5.52%

•All-India CPI inflation for July 2026 was 4.45% provisional, with rural at 4.84% and urban at 3.96%.
•Consumer Food Price Index inflation was 5.52%, higher than headline inflation, with rural food inflation at 5.79%.
•Silver jewellery recorded the steepest price rise at 109.84%, followed by ginger at 83.62% and garlic at 35.36%.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

Sixteenth Finance Commission Recommends Rs 4.35 Lakh Crore in Grants for Rural Local Bodies

•The Sixteenth Finance Commission has recommended Rs 4,35,236 crore in grants to Panchayati Raj Institutions and Rural Local Bodies in all 28 States for the 2026-31 award period.
•Grants are split 80:20 between Basic and Performance Grants; half the Basic Grant is tied to sanitation, solid waste management and water management.
•Untied grants may be used for local needs under the 29 subjects of the Eleventh Schedule.

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Schemes & CommitteesHighquizQuiz

EEZ Access Pass: 9,650 Issued as India Opens Deep-Sea Fishing to Traditional Fishers

•The Access Pass is a free digital pass issued through the ReALCRaft portal allowing fishing in India's Exclusive Economic Zone beyond 12 nautical miles.
•It is issued under the Sustainable Harnessing of Fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone Rules, 2025, notified on 4 November 2025.
•A total of 9,650 Access Passes have been issued as on 5 August 2026, led by Karnataka with 2,563 and Gujarat with 2,524.

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Schemes & CommitteesHighquizQuiz

Tribal Development Update: PM-JUGA Covers 63,843 Villages, 54 Lakh Forest Rights Claims Filed

•PM-JUGA, also called Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, was launched on 2 October 2024 and covers 63,843 villages in 549 districts across 30 States and UTs.
•It runs 25 interventions through 17 line ministries and targets more than 5 crore tribal beneficiaries over five years.
•PM JANMAN targets 75 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group communities in 18 States and one UT through 11 interventions by nine ministries.

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Schemes & CommitteesHighquizQuiz

Cooperative Sector Goes Digital: 63,686 PACS on ERP, NCD Portal 3.0 and Bharat Taxi's 8.48 Lakh Drivers

•The Ministry of Cooperation told the Rajya Sabha that 63,686 PACS are onboarded on the ERP-based national software and 54,707 have been declared e-PACS.
•The PACS computerisation outlay has been raised from Rs 2,516 crore to Rs 2,925.39 crore.
•The National Cooperative Database now covers about 8.6 lakh cooperatives from 30 sectors with roughly 32 crore members; NCD Portal 3.0 was launched on 6 July 2026.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

India's Deep-Tech Mission Map: Rs 1 Lakh Crore RDI Fund, Quantum Mission Hubs and 25 Innovation Hubs

•The Ministry of Science and Technology tabled the outlays of India's six major emerging-technology missions in the Lok Sabha, led by the Rs 1 lakh crore Research, Development and Innovation Fund.
•The National Quantum Mission has four Thematic Hubs operational with 14 Technical Groups, 17 Project Teams and support to 17 quantum startups.
•NM-ICPS has established 25 Technology Innovation Hubs, four of which were upgraded to Technology Translation Research Parks in 2025-26.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Mission Mausam: 50 Doppler Radars, AI Forecasting and a 2026 Monsoon Running 12% Below Normal

•Under Mission Mausam, IMD's observational network now has 50 Doppler Weather Radars, 1,008 Automatic Weather Stations and 6,885 rain gauge stations.
•IMD forecast the 2026 southwest monsoon at 92% of the Long Period Average in April and revised it to 90%; cumulative rainfall was 12% below normal as on 2 August 2026.
•Weak El Nino conditions formed over the equatorial Pacific in June 2026 and strengthened to moderate, suppressing monsoon circulation.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Space Vision 2047: First Private Earth Observation Constellation Cleared, 440 Space Startups Registered

•The Department of Space set out the Space Vision 2047 roadmap in the Lok Sabha, covering Earth observation, satellite communication and NavIC navigation.
•IN-SPACe has signed India's first fully commercial Earth Observation constellation agreement under a PPP model with the Allied Orbits Private Limited consortium, led by PixxelSpace India.
•The 12-satellite constellation, with more than Rs 1,200 crore of consortium investment, is to be operational by 2029, built and launched entirely in India.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Nuclear Roadmap: 100 GWe by 2047, Five Indigenous SMRs by 2033 and the SHANTI Act Framework

•The Department of Atomic Energy told the Lok Sabha that India is targeting 100 GWe of nuclear capacity by 2047 under the Nuclear Energy Mission announced in the Union Budget 2025-26.
•At least five indigenous Small Modular Reactors are to be developed and operationalised by 2033, including the 220 MWe BSMR-200 and the 55 MWe SMR-55.
•The SHANTI Act, 2025 opens the nuclear sector to wider public and private participation and gives statutory status to the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board.

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Polity & GovernanceHighquizQuiz

Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026 Creates Judiciary-Led National Tribunals Commission for 16 Tribunals

•Parliament passed the Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026 in August 2026, repealing the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021.
•The Bill sets up a National Tribunals Commission (NTC) with a judicial majority to select members and oversee the working of 16 tribunals.
•It follows the Supreme Court's Madras Bar Association ruling, which struck down provisions of the 2021 Act and directed the creation of an independent commission.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

India Gifts Five Peafowls to the United Nations Office at Geneva

•India sent five peafowls — four blue males and one white male — to the United Nations Office at Geneva in August 2026.
•Ambassador Arindam Bagchi, India's Permanent Representative, handed them to UN Geneva Director General Tatiana Valovaya.
•It is India's second such gift, after a breeding pair sent from Delhi Zoo in 1981 by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Government Proposes Rs 10,000-Crore Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme

•The Government proposed a Rs 10,000-crore Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme (CMAS) to build domestic production of shipping containers.
•The outlay is spread over five years, with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways as the nodal ministry.
•It targets annual domestic capacity of up to 7.5 lakh Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs).

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

NAVYA Programme: Vocational Training for Adolescent Girls in Aspirational Districts

•The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship informed the Lok Sabha about the NAVYA Programme.
•NAVYA stands for Nurturing Aspirations through Vocational training for Young Adolescent girls and was launched in 2025.
•It targets adolescent girls aged 16 to 18 years in aspirational districts.

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InternationalHighquizQuiz

Colombia Earthquake: 7.4 Magnitude Quake in Chocó Kills 254, Thousands Missing

•A 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on August 10, 2026, with the epicentre near San José del Palmar in Chocó.
•As of August 12, at least 254 people had died, more than 2,600 were injured and nearly 3,900 were reported missing.
•The quake occurred at a depth of about 100 kilometres and damaged around 1,600 buildings and nearly 5,000 homes.

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NationalMediumquizQuiz

Air India Pilot Tests Positive for Marijuana, Spotlighting DGCA Drug Testing Rules

•A confirmatory drug test on the pilot-in-command of an Air India Phuket-Delhi flight returned positive for marijuana.
•The Airbus A320 flight suffered a sudden 300-feet altitude loss that injured 24 people.
•The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is investigating the incident.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

Total Solar Eclipse of August 12, 2026: Path of Totality and Why the Corona Matters

•A total solar eclipse occurs on August 12, 2026, with the path of totality crossing parts of Greenland, Iceland, Spain, Portugal and Russia.
•It is not visible as a total eclipse from India, which lies outside the path of totality.
•It occurs during the declining phase of Solar Cycle 25, which peaked around October 2024.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

India and Namibia Agree to Move Trade Beyond Raw Materials at Fourth JTC Session

•The Fourth Session of the India-Namibia Joint Trade Committee was held in New Delhi.
•The two sides agreed to expand bilateral trade beyond a raw-material framework towards local value addition and processing.
•Namibia holds lithium, cobalt, uranium, graphite and rare earth reserves relevant to India's green supply chains.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Prakriti Gyan Dham: India's First Eco-Educational Hub Opens Near Lucknow

•The Union Minister of State for Science and Technology dedicated Prakriti Gyan Dham, India's first eco-educational hub, to the nation.
•It is located at the Maharishi Parashar Bioresource Centre in Banthra, on the outskirts of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
•It was developed by CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute, Lucknow.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

Parliamentary Panel Proposes National Bus Terminals Authority and All India Passenger Permit

•The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture presented its 392nd Report on bus transport.
•It recommends replacing the All India Tourist Permit with an All India Passenger Permit, integrated with VAHAN, FASTag and vehicle tracking.
•It proposes a National Bus Terminals Authority on the lines of the Airports Authority of India.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

India Maintains Cultural Exchange Programmes with 98 Countries Under Global Engagement Scheme

•The Union Culture and Tourism Minister told the Lok Sabha that India maintains valid Cultural Exchange Programmes with 98 countries.
•These operate under the umbrella Global Engagement Scheme of the Ministry of Culture.
•The GES covers the International Cultural Exchange Programme, Project Mausam, Brihattar Bharat and the Scheme for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage.

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Awards & HonoursHighquizQuiz

Deepak Dhar Awarded 2026 ICTP Dirac Medal, Second Indian to Receive It

•Indian theoretical physicist Prof. Deepak Dhar was awarded the 2026 Dirac Medal by the International Centre for Theoretical Physics.
•He shares it with Bernard Derrida, Marc Mezard and Haim Sompolinsky for work on statistical mechanics and complex physical systems.
•He is only the second Indian to receive the medal, after string theorist Ashoke Sen in 2012.

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EconomyHighquizQuiz

US Now Supplies 67% of India's LPG Imports as Hormuz Risk Redraws Energy Routes

•The Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas stated that 67% of India's LPG imports now originate from the United States.
•India is the world's second-largest LPG importer, consuming over 34 million metric tonnes annually.
•Nearly 90% of India's historical LPG imports passed through the Strait of Hormuz.

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

Sports Ministry Suspends Recognition of Table Tennis Federation of India

•The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports suspended recognition of the Table Tennis Federation of India on August 12, 2026 over governance deficiencies.
•The order cited failure to hold organisational elections within the mandated timeframe and an unsatisfactory reply to a show-cause notice.
•The Indian Olympic Association was directed to form an ad-hoc committee to administer the sport.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

Karnataka Launches Tathyakosh, a Portal Aggregating 1.5 Million Public Datasets

•Karnataka launched the public data portal Tathyakosh.in in Bengaluru on August 12, 2026.
•It aggregates more than 1.5 million datasets from 458 public data repositories.
•It was developed by the ACSEL Technology Forum, a state Centre of Excellence in artificial intelligence, with the IIT Alumni Centre Bengaluru.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Three New Cascade Frog Species Described from Northeast India and West Bengal

•Three new cascade frog species were described from Northeast India and West Bengal, published on August 12, 2026 in the Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology.
•The study was led by Prof. S. D. Biju of the Department of Environmental Studies, Delhi University.
•The species are Amolops ammachi (Tripura), Amolops sendenyu (Nagaland) and Amolops bella (West Bengal).

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

DRDO Opens NETRA-2026 Seminar on Electronic Warfare in Bengaluru

•DRDO opened NETRA-2026, a two-day national seminar on Electronic Warfare, Digital Twin and Mission Critical System Design, in Bengaluru on August 11, 2026.
•Dr. B.K. Das, DRDO's Director General of Electronics and Communication Systems, inaugurated it as chief guest.
•More than 200 participants attended from the Armed Forces, DRDO, ISRO, defence PSUs, academia and industry.

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BusinessMediumquizQuiz

Amgen to Set Up Science and Innovation Centre in Hyderabad's Genome Valley

•Amgen announced a Science and Innovation Centre in Genome Valley, Hyderabad, after signing an MoU with the Government of Telangana on August 11, 2026.
•The facility is planned to become operational in 2027 and is expected to add around 200 highly skilled jobs.
•It will join Amgen's global R&D network, which currently has seven research laboratories worldwide.

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EnvironmentHighquizQuiz

Centre Redefines Ganga Floodplain Norms with Three-Zone Regulatory Regime

•The Union Jal Shakti Ministry issued the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities (Second Amendment) Order, 2026 on August 7, 2026, gazetted on August 10.
•It defines the 'Active Floodplain' for the first time as land inundated by a flood with a one-in-five-year return period.
•A 'Regulatory Zone' covers areas flooded once every 5 to 25 years, where construction needs clearances.

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InternationalHighquizQuiz

Russia Imports Gasoline From India for the First Time Amid Refinery Strikes

•Russia imported gasoline from India in 2026 for the first time in history, amid a domestic fuel shortage.
•The shortage followed repeated Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries.
•The first cargo loaded 42,000 tonnes at the Vadinar refinery in Gujarat on June 18, 2026 and was routed via the Egyptian port of Damietta.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

New York and New Jersey Proclaim August 15 as India Independence Day

•New York and New Jersey issued official proclamations designating August 15, 2026 as India Independence Day and Indian Independence Day respectively.
•New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill signed the proclamations.
•The declarations mark India's 80th Independence Day.

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

Srinagar to Host Irani Cup as Jammu and Kashmir Face Rest of India

•Jammu and Kashmir will host the Irani Cup at Sher-I-Kashmir Stadium, Srinagar, from October 1 to 5, 2026.
•The five-day first-class match will be played between Jammu and Kashmir and the Rest of India.
•J&K qualified by winning its maiden Ranji Trophy title on February 28, 2026, beating Karnataka on first-innings lead.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Rs 335-Crore Internal Flyover Approved for Visakhapatnam Port

•The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways approved a Rs 334.89-crore internal flyover for the Visakhapatnam Port Authority on August 11, 2026.
•The 3.584-km elevated corridor will run between Convent Junction and the Dock Area.
•It will separate road and rail traffic and bypass nine railway level crossings that see about 18 gate closures a day.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

Delhi Revises PM-POSHAN Midday Meal Menu, Adds Idli-Sambar and Millets

•Delhi's Directorate of Education revised the PM-POSHAN menu for government and government-aided schools on August 11, 2026.
•The updated menu adds idli-sambar and replaces vegetable daliya with millet-based jowar and bajra.
•PM-POSHAN stands for Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman and replaced the earlier Mid-Day Meal Scheme.

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

Indigenous Unmanned Systems to Be Showcased for IAF at Pokhran in September 2026

•Indigenous unmanned systems will be showcased for the Indian Air Force at the Pokhran Firing Range, Rajasthan, in September 2026.
•The demonstration will cover long-range UAVs, swarm drones, expendable surveillance drones, logistics drones and one-way attack drones.
•Pokhran lies about 270 kilometres from the Pakistan border and is a long-standing site for weapons trials.

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Polity & GovernanceHighquizQuiz

Tamil Nadu Assembly Resolution Seeks Permanent Freeze on Lok Sabha Strength at 543

•Tamil Nadu moved a government-sponsored resolution in its Legislative Assembly on August 12, 2026 seeking a permanent freeze on Lok Sabha strength at 543 seats.
•The resolution asks that states which implemented population control measures not lose parliamentary weightage in any future delimitation.
•It seeks immediate implementation of 33 per cent women's reservation in the 2029 Lok Sabha election, calculated on the existing 543 constituencies.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Kerala Includes Tribal Representatives in State Wildlife Board for the First Time

•Kerala included two tribal representatives in its State Wildlife Board for the first time on August 11, 2026.
•The two are Raman Raja Mannan of the Mannan community and Vinod, a researcher associated with the Cholanaikkan community of Nilambur.
•The State Wildlife Board in Kerala functions under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister.

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ObituariesMediumquizQuiz

M.P. Parameswaran, Nuclear Scientist and People's Science Pioneer, Dies at 91

•M.P. Parameswaran, nuclear scientist, science communicator and Marxist theorist, died on August 11, 2026 at his home in Thrissur, Kerala.
•He was born on January 18, 1935 and earned a PhD in nuclear engineering from the Moscow Power Institute in 1965.
•He worked at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai from 1957 to 1975 before resigning to work on science popularisation.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Rare Himalayan Bee Colletes bhutanicus Recorded in India for the First Time

•Colletes bhutanicus, a rare solitary Himalayan bee, was recorded in India for the first time in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh.
•The species was documented by scientists of the Zoological Survey of India during surveys in the Eastern Himalayas.
•It was first described from Bhutan in 2003 and later recorded from high-altitude areas of China.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

RCF Kapurthala Rolls Out First LHB Coach Rake for Bangladesh Railway

•The Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala rolled out its first rake of 19 LHB broad gauge coaches for Bangladesh Railway on August 12, 2026.
•The rake is part of a 2024 export contract for 200 broad gauge coaches in seven variants, executed through RITES Ltd.
•The coaches operate at 415 V, unlike the 750 V systems used in Indian Railways passenger coaches.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

SMILE Beggary Scheme: 10,446 Rehabilitated Across 216 Cities Since 2023

•The SMILE-Beggary scheme has rehabilitated 10,446 persons since its launch on October 23, 2023.
•SMILE stands for Support for Marginalised Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise.
•It is implemented by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment across 216 cities and towns.

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

Indian Para-Cyclists Win 12 Medals at UCI Parasport Denmark Grand Prix

•Indian para-cyclists won 12 medals at the UCI Parasport Denmark Grand Prix in Odense.
•The tally was 2 gold, 5 silver and 5 bronze across the three-day meet from August 7 to 10, 2026.
•Arshad Shaikh of Andhra Pradesh won six individual medals in the MC2 category — India's most successful athlete at the event.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Himachal Pradesh Levies Widow and Orphan Cess of Rs 0.60 per Litre on Fuel

•Himachal Pradesh notified a Widow and Orphan Cess on petrol and high-speed diesel on August 11, 2026.
•The initial rate is Rs 0.60 per litre, against a statutory ceiling of Rs 5 per litre.
•It is levied under Section 6-A of the Himachal Pradesh Value Added Tax Act, 2005.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

India Turns to Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria and Georgia for Urea Amid Supply Disruption

•India raised urea imports from Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria and Georgia in 2026.
•Between April and June 2026, 52% of India's 2.5 million tonnes of imported urea came from these non-traditional suppliers.
•The shift responds to supply disruptions linked to the West Asia war.

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EnvironmentHighquizQuiz

World Elephant Day 2026: India Counts 22,446 Wild Elephants Across 33 Reserves and 150 Corridors

•World Elephant Day is observed on 12 August; India holds nearly 60% of the world's wild Asian elephants.
•The DNA-based Synchronous All India Population Estimation of Elephants (SAIEE) 2021-25 puts India's wild elephant population at 22,446.
•India protects elephants through 33 Elephant Reserves covering 80,777 sq km across 14 States and 150 validated corridors.

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Important DaysMediumquizQuiz

International Youth Day 2026 Observed with Theme 'Different Contexts, Common Aspirations'

•International Youth Day is observed every year on August 12, a United Nations observance.
•The 2026 theme is 'Different Contexts, Common Aspirations'.
•It was first celebrated on August 12, 2000.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Uttar Pradesh Remains India's Largest Milk-Producing State with 15.66% Share

•Uttar Pradesh is India's largest milk-producing state, with 15.66% of national output in 2024-25.
•Rajasthan ranks second at 14.82% and Madhya Pradesh third at 9.12%.
•The figures come from the Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics (BAHS) 2025.

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BusinessHighquizQuiz

N Chandrasekaran Will Not Seek Second Term as Tata Sons Chairman

•N Chandrasekaran announced on August 12, 2026 that he will not seek a second term as Tata Sons Chairman.
•He continues in office until his current term ends on February 20, 2027, and has asked the board to begin succession.
•The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust had recommended a five-year extension, but the board did not back it unanimously.

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Awards & HonoursMediumquizQuiz

President to Confer Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards on 115 Artists

•The President of India will confer the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Awards for 2024 and 2025 on August 13, 2026.
•A total of 115 artists have been selected across music, dance, theatre, folk and tribal arts, puppetry and instrument making.
•The ceremony will be held at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

Ten Teams Qualify for ICC ODI World Cup 2027; Co-host Namibia Must Still Earn Its Place

•Ten of the 14 teams for the ICC Men's ODI World Cup 2027 have secured qualification.
•The tournament will be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
•South Africa and Zimbabwe qualified automatically as Full Member hosts; Namibia did not, being an Associate member.

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Books & AuthorsMediumquizQuiz

PM Modi Releases Ram Nath Kovind's Autobiography 'Triumph of the Indian Republic'

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi released former President Ram Nath Kovind's autobiography at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi on August 12, 2026.
•The book is titled 'Triumph of the Indian Republic: My Life, My Struggles'.
•Kovind served as the 14th President of India and was earlier Governor of Bihar.

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

Indian Navy's Second NGOPV 'Shruti' Launched at GRSE Kolkata

•GRSE launched 'Shruti', the second Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel, at its Kolkata shipyard on August 11, 2026.
•The vessel is designated Yard 3037 and was launched by Mrs Manika Sadhu.
•It follows Sanghmitra, launched on May 20, 2026 — under three months apart.

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