Current Affairs 31 August 2026

EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Two Przewalski's Horse Foals Born in Kazakhstan After Two Centuries

•Two Przewalski's horse foals were born in the grasslands of central Kazakhstan in August 2026, the first of the species born there in more than 200 years.
•The first, a male, was born on 22 August 2026 to a seven-year-old mare named Tessa at the Alibi Reintroduction Centre in the Altyn Dala State Nature Reserve; a second male followed on 31 August to a mare named Umbra.
•Both foals were sired by the same stallion, Zorro, which has since died.

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NationalMediumquizQuiz

Vaishnaw Outlines Delhi-Patna Bullet Train Corridor With 4.5-Hour Journey

•Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw outlined a proposed Delhi-Patna high-speed rail corridor on 31 August 2026, while inaugurating the electrified broad-gauge line on the Nepalganj Road-Nanpara-Bahraich section.
•The roughly 1,170 km corridor would run Delhi-Agra-Kanpur-Lucknow-Prayagraj-Varanasi-Patna across Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
•Delhi to Patna would take about 4 hours 30 minutes against 12 hours or more by existing trains, at a design speed of 350 km/h and operating speed of 320 km/h.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Copyright Office Rejects AI System DABUS as Author, but Finds the Artwork Original

•The Copyright Office of India rejected an application naming the AI system DABUS as the author of an artwork, in an order passed on 31 August 2026.
•The application, by US computer scientist Stephen L. Thaler, sought registration of the work 'A Recent Entrance to Paradise'.
•The Registrar of Copyrights, Unnat P. Pandit, held that DABUS is neither a natural nor a juristic person and so cannot be an author.

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Ranks & ReportsMediumquizQuiz

Ladakh Snow Leopard Trek Ranks 4th on the Wildlife Experience Index

•Snow leopard tracking in Ladakh has been ranked fourth in the world on the Wildlife Experience Index released by the travel company Bailey Robinson, scoring 85.5 out of 100.
•The index assessed 30 wildlife experiences on six criteria: rarity, remoteness, conservation importance, exclusivity, accessibility and encounter potential.
•Mountain gorilla trekking in Rwanda and Uganda topped the list with 90 points, followed by emperor penguin expeditions in Antarctica and saiga antelope trips in Kazakhstan.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Himachal to Install First Glacial Lake Early Warning System at Ghepan Lake

•The Lahaul-Spiti district administration announced on 31 August 2026 that an early warning system will be installed at the Ghepan Ghat glacial lake in September, the first such system for a glacial lake in Himachal Pradesh.
•Deputy Commissioner Kiran Bhadana said the system will be set up through C-DAC Thiruvananthapuram and will monitor lake level and other parameters with real-time transmission of data; it was tested successfully at Sissu Lake first.
•A Geological Survey of India team was to begin a 14-day study of glacial lake outburst flood risk at the site from 1 September.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

GCRMN Report Finds Global Coral Cover Down 9.5%, Recovery Window Shrinking

•The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network released Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2025, its seventh and most comprehensive edition, on 31 August 2026.
•Average global hard coral cover has fallen from about 30.2% in the 1980-2009 reference period to about 27.3% in 2020-2024, a relative decline of roughly 9.5%.
•The report's central warning is about timing rather than totals: the gap between mass bleaching events has narrowed to about five to six years, from decades earlier, leaving reefs too little time to recover.

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InternationalHighquizQuiz

Hague Court Says Indus Waters Treaty Fully in Force; India Rejects Award

•On 31 August 2026 the Court of Arbitration hearing the Indus Waters dispute at The Hague issued two decisions holding that the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty remains fully in force and that India continues to be bound by it.
•The Court held that the Treaty contains no provision for unilateral suspension or termination, and that India's April 2025 decision to hold it in abeyance cannot suspend its operation.
•It also imposed interim measures on the Ratle Hydroelectric Plant on the Chenab, directing India to refrain for now from concreting the dam wall and power-intake structure above specified levels.

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

Exercise Super Garuda Shield 2026 Begins in Indonesia with 14 Participating Nations

•Exercise Super Garuda Shield 2026, the annual joint military drill hosted by Indonesia and co-led by the United States, began on 31 August 2026 and runs to 11 September.
•The exercise is spread across multiple Indonesian locations including Bandung, Baturaja in Lampung, and North Kalimantan, with about 4,700 to 5,000 personnel taking part.
•Indonesia and the United States are joined by 13 other participating nations, among them Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Singapore, with further countries attending as observers.

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Science & TechLowquizQuiz

India Holds BHASHINI Shilpi Language AI Developer Session in Kathmandu

•The Digital India BHASHINI Division held the BHASHINI Shilpi developer session at the Embassy of India in Kathmandu, Nepal, on 31 August 2026.
•Local developers, students and innovators were introduced to BHASHINI APIs through a Develop, Solve, Scale and Innovate framework, with live demonstrations and an open question session.
•Amitabh Nag, Chief Executive Officer of the Digital India BHASHINI Division, addressed the session, which ran alongside the international BHASHINI SANGAM Workshop at the Embassy auditorium.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

Turkiye Signs Artemis Accords, Becoming the 71st Signatory Nation

•The Republic of Turkiye signed the Artemis Accords on 31 August 2026 at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., becoming the 71st signatory nation.
•Turkiye's Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacir signed on behalf of the republic, with NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman hosting and Turkish Space Agency President Yusuf Kirac present.
•Turkiye is the seventh country from the Middle East to join, after the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan and Israel.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

DGFT Automates Issuance of Free Sale and Commerce Certificates for Exporters

•The Directorate General of Foreign Trade issued Trade Notice No. 24/2026-27 on 31 August 2026, enabling automated issuance of Free Sale and Commerce Certificates on its online portal.
•The facility covers applications filed under Paragraph 2.34 of the Handbook of Procedures for products that are not regulated under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
•Eligible online applications that satisfy all prescribed system parameters now receive an auto-generated certificate without manual scrutiny by a Regional Authority.

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Agreements & MoUsMediumquizQuiz

MoSPI Signs MoU With Thapar Institute on Monthly Consumption Expenditure Study

•MoSPI signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala, Punjab, on 31 August 2026.
•The MoU covers a joint research study on a Predictive and Analytical Framework for Monthly Consumption Expenditures in India.
•The study will use Household Consumption Expenditure Survey data to estimate Monthly Per Capita Consumption Expenditure at national and state levels.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

MoSPI Releases National Accounts Statistics 2026 With Revised GDP Estimates

•The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released National Accounts Statistics 2026 on 31 August 2026.
•The publication carries 60 statements, with updated Final Estimates for FY 2022-23 and FY 2023-24, First Revised Estimates for FY 2024-25 and revised macro indicators for FY 2025-26.
•Real GDP growth was revised up for FY 2023-24 (7.2% to 7.3%), FY 2024-25 (7.1% to 7.2%) and FY 2025-26 (7.7% to 7.8%).

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SportsMediumquizQuiz

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Becomes Youngest Duleep Trophy Half-Centurion at 15

•Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, a 15-year-old East Zone batter, became the youngest player to score a half-century in Duleep Trophy history on 31 August 2026.
•He was 15 years and 157 days old, breaking a 57-year-old record set by Laxman Singh in January 1969 at 16 years and 23 days.
•He reached the fifty in 42 balls in the semi-final against Central Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence, Bengaluru, and was dismissed for 92 off 81 balls with seven fours and seven sixes.

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Banking & FinanceMediumquizQuiz

NCDEX Launches RAINCHNNAI Weather Futures for Chennai's Northeast Monsoon

•NCDEX launched RAINCHNNAI, a weather futures contract on Chennai's Northeast monsoon rainfall, reported on 31 August 2026 after SEBI approval.
•The contract is cash-settled and references official India Meteorological Department rainfall data from the Meenambakkam and Nungambakkam stations.
•Settlement uses a Cumulative Deviation Rainfall model that measures deviation of actual rainfall from the Long Period Average.

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BusinessMediumquizQuiz

Airbus Awards Mahindra Aerostructures Contract for A320neo Fuselage Skins

•Airbus awarded Mahindra Aerostructures Pvt Ltd a multi-year contract on 31 August 2026 to manufacture and supply fuselage skins for the A320neo and A321XLR.
•The agreement covers 11 fuselage skins - eight for Section 18 (rear fuselage) and three for Section 19 (tail section).
•The panels will be made at Mahindra's Bengaluru facility and shipped to Airbus Aerostructures' plant at Augsburg, Germany.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

India's First Green Forge Complex Inaugurated at BRIC-NABI, Mohali

•India's first-of-its-kind Green Forge Complex was inaugurated at BRIC-NABI, Mohali, Punjab, on 31 August 2026 by Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh.
•The facility uses controlled simulation chambers that vary light, humidity and temperature to test genetically modified crops before field cultivation.
•It supports genome and trait engineering research and was opened during the National Conclave on BioE3.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031 for Ornamental Fisheries Released in Lakshadweep

•Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan released the Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031 Strategic Action Plan for Ornamental Fisheries Development at Agatti, Lakshadweep, on 31 August 2026.
•The plan sets nationwide standards for broodstock management, captive breeding, hatchery operations, quarantine, traceability and export of decorative fish.
•It is anchored in the Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and aligned with the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana.

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ObituariesLowquizQuiz

American Agrarian Writer Wendell Berry Dies at 92 in Kentucky

•Wendell Berry, the American poet, novelist, essayist, farmer and environmental activist, died at his home in Port Royal, Kentucky, on 31 August 2026, aged 92.
•Born on 5 August 1934 in Louisville, Kentucky, he wrote more than 50 books over six decades.
•His best-known work of non-fiction, The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture (1977), attacked industrial agriculture and defended small farming communities.

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EconomyHighquizQuiz

India's GDP Grows 7.8% in Q1 FY27, Beats RBI's 7% Estimate

•India's real GDP grew 7.8% in Q1 of FY 2026-27 (April-June 2026), ahead of the RBI's 7% projection and of private forecasts of 7.1-7.3%.
•Real GDP rose to Rs 81.36 lakh crore from Rs 75.46 lakh crore in the same quarter of FY26; nominal GDP grew 10.3% to Rs 88.27 lakh crore.
•Real Gross Value Added grew faster than GDP, at 8.2%, against 7% a year earlier.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Veligonda Project Phase-I Opens in Andhra 30 Years After Foundation Stone

•Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated Phase-I of the Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Project at Gottipadiya on 31 August 2026.
•Naidu had performed the project's bhoomi puja at the same site on 5 March 1996, making this a 30-year wait from foundation stone to first phase.
•The scheme diverts surplus Krishna floodwater from the foreshore of the Srisailam reservoir through two tunnels under the Nallamala hills, entirely by gravity.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Centre's FY27 Fiscal Deficit at 26.8% of Target by End-July 2026

•The Controller General of Accounts released the Union Government's monthly accounts for April-July 2026 on 31 August 2026.
•Total receipts reached Rs 13,06,709 crore, or 35.8% of the FY27 Budget Estimate, while total expenditure was Rs 17,61,853 crore, or 32.9% of BE.
•The resulting fiscal deficit of Rs 4,55,144 crore is 26.8% of the full-year target of Rs 16.96 lakh crore, itself pegged at 4.3% of GDP.

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Awards & HonoursMediumquizQuiz

Ramon Magsaysay Awards 2026 Go to Tommy Koh, Bo Kyi and Runa Khan

•The Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation announced the 2026 awardees on 31 August 2026: Tommy Koh of Singapore, Bo Kyi of Myanmar and Runa Khan of Bangladesh.
•Tommy Koh, 88, a diplomat and lawyer, was recognised for his role in the negotiations that produced the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
•Bo Kyi, 61, a former political prisoner from Myanmar's 1988 pro-democracy movement, co-founded the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners in 2000.

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SportsHighquizQuiz

Lionel Messi Retires From International Football After 207 Caps, 125 Goals

•Lionel Messi announced his retirement from the Argentina national team on 31 August 2026, through a statement on social media.
•He leaves as Argentina's most-capped player and all-time top scorer with 207 appearances and 125 goals across a career that began in 2005.
•The decision followed Argentina's 1-0 defeat to Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final at MetLife Stadium on 19 July 2026, lost in extra time.

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State NewsMediumquizQuiz

Vikramshila Setu Shut for Three Months to Rebuild Collapsed Ganga Span

•Vehicular movement on the Vikramshila Setu, the road bridge of about 4.4 km over the Ganga at Bhagalpur in Bihar, was stopped from the night of 31 August 2026, with a complete closure running from 1 September to 30 November 2026.
•The shutdown is needed to dismantle the temporary Bailey bridges and cast a permanent slab on the span that collapsed on 4 May 2026, when roughly 34 metres of the structure fell into the Ganga and split the bridge in two.
•The permanent restoration contract, worth about Rs 98 crore, was awarded by the Bihar State Bridge Construction Corporation Limited to SP Singla Constructions, with 30 November 2026 as the deadline.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Kamlang Tiger Reserve Frontline Staff Get Field Gear for Anti-Poaching Patrols

•The Wildlife Trust of India, with The Serenity Trust and the Arunachal Pradesh Department of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, handed essential field gear to frontline staff of Kamlang Tiger Reserve.
•The equipment is meant to improve daily patrolling and surveillance, protect forest guards working in difficult terrain and weather, and strengthen anti-poaching and anti-hunting operations.
•Kamlang was notified on 6 March 2017 as India's fiftieth tiger reserve and covers 783 sq km in the south-eastern part of Lohit district, Arunachal Pradesh.

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EconomyHighquizQuiz

India Weighs Qualified MFN Clause in Overhaul of Investment Treaty Model

•The Union government is reported to be considering a Qualified Most Favoured Nation provision as part of a broader restructuring of India's bilateral investment treaty framework.
•Rather than restoring the open-ended MFN clause dropped from the 2015 Model BIT, a qualified version would keep non-discrimination but limit which third-country treaty provisions an investor may import.
•The draft also proposes cutting the period for which an investor must pursue domestic remedies before international arbitration from five years to as little as one, and doubling post-treaty protection from five years to ten.

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InternationalHighquizQuiz

US Strikes Larak Island in Hormuz; Iran Hits Jordan and UAE Bases

•United States forces struck two Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz on 30 August 2026, their first military action against Iran in about a month.
•Washington said the launchers were being prepared to fire rockets carrying sea mines into the strait, and that the strike was meant to stop Iranian forces from mining the waterway.
•Hours later the IRGC launched a combined missile and drone operation named Punishment of the Aggressor against the King Hussein and Al Azraq bases in Jordan; Jordan said it intercepted eight missiles at dawn with no injuries, and Iran also struck US military assets in the United Arab Emirates.

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History & CultureMediumquizQuiz

Haldwani 'Shuddhikaran' Row Revives Debate on the Shuddhi Practice

•A row over an alleged 'shuddhikaran' or purification ritual at the Ramlila Maidan in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, intensified on 31 August 2026, with Congress workers protesting outside the circle officer's office to demand the registration of an FIR.
•Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, who is a Dalit leader, had addressed a rally at the ground on 8 August 2026; members of a right-wing group are reported to have performed a havan and sprinkled Ganga water at the venue two days later.
•Congress leaders and AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi described the act as untouchability and sought action; the BJP distanced itself from the ceremony, and Union Minister J. P. Nadda told Parliament that the incident was unfortunate and would be investigated.

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Schemes & CommitteesHighquizQuiz

Government Notifies Rs 1.27 Lakh Crore Semicon 2.0 Scheme Across Six Pillars

•The Government of India notified the Semicon 2.0 scheme on 31 August 2026, the second phase of the Semicon India Programme, with a fiscal outlay of Rs 1,27,500 crore.
•The scheme is built around six pillars - design, machines and materials, fabrication units, ATMP and OSAT facilities, research and development, and talent development - spread across ten categories.
•Silicon wafer fabs with a minimum investment of Rs 20,000 crore get central fiscal support of 40 per cent of eligible capital expenditure; compound, display and other specialised fabs get 35 per cent.

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AppointmentsMediumquizQuiz

Tim Cook Ends 15-Year Run as Apple CEO; John Ternus Takes Over

•31 August 2026 was Tim Cook's last day as Chief Executive Officer of Apple Inc., ending a tenure that began on 24 August 2011.
•John Ternus, until then Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, became Apple's Chief Executive Officer with effect from 1 September 2026 and also joined the company's board of directors.
•Cook has moved to the post of Executive Chairman of Apple's board; Arthur Levinson, the company's non-executive chairman for the previous 15 years, becomes lead independent director from the same date.

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EnvironmentMediumquizQuiz

Neelakurinji-Like Blue-Violet Bloom Draws Trekkers to Kudremukh Hills

•A rare blue-violet flower resembling the Neelakurinji has bloomed along trekking trails in the Kudremukh region of Chikkamagaluru district, Karnataka, drawing trekkers and nature tourists to the Western Ghats.
•Observers describe this year's flowering as scattered and limited compared with the much larger blooms recorded in the same landscape in 2022 and 2023.
•The Tourism Department has asked visitors not to pluck the flowers, damage the plants or leave waste behind, as the shola-grassland habitat is fragile.

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Agreements & MoUsHighquizQuiz

Bihar and Jharkhand Sign Sone River Water-Sharing Pact, Ending 25-Year Dispute

•Bihar and Jharkhand signed a memorandum of understanding on sharing the waters of the Sone river on 31 August 2026 at Kartavya Bhavan, New Delhi, settling a dispute that had run since Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in November 2000.
•The pact divides 7.75 million acre-feet (MAF) of Sone water between the two states, giving Bihar 5.75 MAF and Jharkhand 2.0 MAF.
•That 7.75 MAF is exactly the quantum undivided Bihar had been allotted under the Bansagar Agreement of 1973, so the new pact splits an old share rather than creating a new one.

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

IAF Builds Indigenous Maintenance Network of 930 Firms, Indigenises 62,300 Spares

•The Indian Air Force has built a maintenance ecosystem of about 930 Indian companies working on mechanical, electrical, electronic and rubber spares for its fighter fleet.
•Roughly 62,300 spare parts have been indigenised, covering 97 per cent of frequently used operational spares and 93 per cent of mandatory overhaul spares.
•The indigenisation drive has saved about Rs 582 crore in foreign exchange over five years.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

Raipur Roadshow on 8th Tranche: 20 Critical Mineral Blocks Offered, Five in Chhattisgarh

•The Ministry of Mines held a roadshow in Raipur on the 8th Tranche of the auction of Critical and Strategic Mineral Blocks, with Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai as chief guest and Minister of State for Coal and Mines Satish Chandra Dubey in attendance.
•Mines Secretary Keshav Chandra said 56 of the 88 critical and strategic mineral blocks offered so far have been successfully auctioned.
•The 8th Tranche comprises 20 blocks across nine states - 17 Composite Licences and 3 Mining Leases - of which five are in Chhattisgarh.

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Polity & GovernanceMediumquizQuiz

DoT Warns IMEI Tampering Draws Up to 3 Years Jail and Rs 50 Lakh Fine

•The Department of Telecommunications issued a public advisory that tampering with the IMEI number of a mobile device, or using a device with a tampered telecommunication identifier, is a punishable offence.
•The governing law is the Telecommunications Act, 2023: Section 42(3)(c) bars tampering with telecommunication identifiers and Section 42(3)(e) bars obtaining SIMs or identifiers by fraud, cheating or impersonation.
•Punishment extends to three years' imprisonment, a fine up to Rs 50 lakh, or both; under Section 42(7) the offences are cognizable and non-bailable, and under Section 42(6) abettors face the same punishment.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

C-DOT Unveils 14 Indigenous Quantum Products on Its 43rd Foundation Day

•The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), the telecom R&D arm of the Department of Telecommunications, unveiled 14 indigenous quantum products in New Delhi on its 43rd Foundation Day.
•The Quantum Product Series spans two distinct technology families: Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) systems and components, and Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) encryptors built on NIST's PQC algorithms.
•Throughput ranges from 80 Mbps (Q-SETU, Layer 3) to 200 Gbps (Q-AMOGH, Layer 1 optical), with the defence-grade encryptors Q-VIKRAM and Q-PARAKRAM at up to 1 Gbps.

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EconomyLowquizQuiz

Kharif sowing to 28 August 2026: rice area down 14.36 lakh ha, pulses up

•All-India kharif sowing as on 28 August 2026 stood at 1,071.10 lakh hectares, against 1,090.01 lakh hectares in the corresponding period of 2025-26 - a fall of 18.91 lakh hectares - and against a normal area of 1,104.25 lakh hectares.
•Rice accounted for almost the entire decline: 414.10 lakh ha against 428.46 lakh ha a year earlier, down 14.36 lakh ha, with the biggest reductions in Karnataka, Telangana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
•Pulses were the one major group to gain, rising 1.39 lakh ha to 115.05 lakh ha on the back of Uttar Pradesh (+3.97 lakh ha), Jharkhand, Telangana, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, offsetting declines in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Odisha.

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NationalLowquizQuiz

Nepalganj Road-Nanpara-Bahraich line converted to broad gauge and electrified

•Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw inaugurated the gauge conversion and electrification of the 56.15-km Nepalganj Road-Nanpara-Bahraich rail section, completed at a cost of about Rs 730 crore.
•The section, originally built as a metre-gauge line in 1886, is now part of the broad-gauge network, serving Bahraich, Risiya, Matera, Nanpara, Babaganj and Nepalganj Road stations.
•Four existing train services have been extended up to Nepalganj Road: the 14213/14214 Varanasi-Bahraich Express, the 15132/15131 Varanasi City-Gorakhpur Express and two pairs of Gonda-Bahraich services (75109/75110 and 75111/75112).

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Polity & GovernanceHighquizQuiz

Bihar and Jharkhand sign Sone river water-sharing MoU, ending 25-year dispute

•Bihar and Jharkhand signed a Memorandum of Understanding on sharing the waters of the Sone river, in the presence of Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah, resolving a dispute the release describes as nearly 25 years old.
•Also present were Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil, the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar and the Union Home Secretary.
•The agreement is expected to secure irrigation and drinking water for the Bihar districts of Bhojpur, Buxar, Rohtas, Kaimur, Aurangabad, Arwal, Gaya and Patna, and for Palamu, Garhwa and adjoining areas of Jharkhand.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

Green Forge simulation complex inaugurated at BRIC-NABI Mohali under BioE3 push

•Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology Dr. Jitendra Singh inaugurated the 'Green Forge' complex at the BRIC-National Agri-Food Biomanufacturing Institute (BRIC-NABI), Mohali, describing it as a milestone for genetically modified crop research.
•Green Forge provides controlled simulation chambers in which the quantity and quality of light, humidity and temperature can be varied, letting researchers grow and test GM crops under recreated environmental conditions and judge which locations a new variety suits before it goes to the field.
•The inauguration took place alongside the National Conclave on BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment and Employment) held at BRIC-NABI.

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EconomyLowquizQuiz

Union Government accounts to July 2026: receipts at 35.8% of Budget Estimates

•The Union Government's monthly accounts up to July 2026, covering the first four months of FY 2026-27, have been consolidated and published: total receipts of Rs 13,06,709 crore, or 35.8% of the corresponding Budget Estimates for 2026-27.
•Total expenditure over the same period was Rs 17,61,853 crore, or 32.9% of the corresponding Budget Estimates, of which Rs 13,11,218 crore was on revenue account and Rs 4,50,635 crore on capital account.
•Devolution of the share of taxes to State Governments came to Rs 3,72,354 crore - Rs 56,190 crore LOWER than in the corresponding period of the previous year. FY 2026-27 is the first year of the 16th Finance Commission's award period.

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Science & TechMediumquizQuiz

JNCASR team breaks textbook Seebeck limit in scandium nitride films

•A team led by Prof. Bivas Saha at JNCASR, Bengaluru, working with the University of Sydney and IISc Bengaluru, has reported a thermoelectric voltage in a crystalline solid nearly a thousand times larger than the accepted ceiling for such materials.
•The material is scandium nitride (ScN), grown as epitaxial thin films on magnesium oxide substrates by ultrahigh-vacuum magnetron sputtering and deliberately doped with magnesium to produce a heavily doped, highly compensated (HDHC) semiconductor.
•The measured Seebeck coefficient exceeded -124.6 millivolts per kelvin near room temperature in a roughly 200-nanometre-thick film - a range previously seen only in liquid electrolytes and ionic gels, never in single-crystalline solids.

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DefenceMediumquizQuiz

INS Nipun, Second Nistar-Class Diving Support Vessel, Commissioned at Mumbai

•The Indian Navy commissioned INS Nipun, the second Diving Support Vessel of the Nistar class, at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai, on 31 August 2026.
•The ceremony was presided over by Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, Chief of the Naval Staff, in the presence of Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command.
•The ship was indigenously designed and built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam, and supports saturation, air and heliox diving, remotely operated underwater systems, dynamic positioning, and an onboard life-support and medical complex.

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Banking & FinanceMediumquizQuiz

NIPL and Uzbekistan's NIPC Agree to Enable UPI Payments on the UZQR Network

•NPCI International Payments Ltd. (NIPL), the international arm of the National Payments Corporation of India, signed a commercial agreement on 30 August 2026 with the National Interbank Processing Centre JSC (NIPC), which operates Uzbekistan's national payment system HUMO.
•The agreement lets Indian travellers scan Uzbekistan's national interoperable QR code, UZQR, using their existing UPI apps to make instant person-to-merchant payments across the country.
•It was announced during the Prime Minister of India's bilateral visit to Uzbekistan, and follows formal approvals from the Reserve Bank of India and the Central Bank of Uzbekistan, which designated HUMO as NIPL's authorised partner for cross-border merchant acceptance.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

Notifications Issued for All Six Pillars of the Semicon 2.0 Scheme

•Notifications for all six pillars of the Semicon 2.0 Scheme were issued, with Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw setting out the government's plan for the next phase of India's semiconductor ecosystem.
•The six pillars — Design; Machines and Materials; Setting up more Fabs; Strengthening the ATMP/OSAT industry; Research and Development; and Talent Development — cover 10 categories in all and extend fiscal and infrastructure support across the whole value chain.
•The India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) is the nodal agency: it will invite applications, carry out technical and financial appraisal, recommend applicants and oversee implementation, with C-DAC assisting on the design and deployment categories.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

1,338 Panch Sammelans Orient 5.26 Lakh Panchayat Representatives on the VB-G RAM G Act

•The Ministry of Rural Development reported that 1,338 district-level Panch Sammelans have been organised across the country to orient Panchayati Raj representatives and functionaries on the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB-G RAM G, Act, 2025.
•More than 5.26 lakh Panchayati Raj representatives, functionaries and officials have taken part, covering all three tiers of the Panchayati Raj system.
•Twenty-three States and Union Territories have completed their scheduled Sammelans; Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir and West Bengal went beyond the district level and held them at other administrative levels as well.

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Polity & GovernanceLowquizQuiz

DARPG Releases 51st Central and 48th States CPGRAMS Reports for July 2026

•The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) released its 51st monthly CPGRAMS report for Central Ministries and Departments and its 48th monthly report for States and UTs, both for July 2026.
•Central Ministries and Departments received 2,20,909 grievances and redressed 2,16,827 in July 2026, leaving a pendency of 83,866; States and UTs received 1,01,047 and redressed 83,324, with pendency of 2,33,714 as on 31 July 2026.
•In the GRAI rankings for July 2026, the Department of Posts, the Department of Telecommunications and the Department of Financial Services (Insurance Division) topped Group A, while the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region, the Department of Official Language and the Ministry of Textiles topped Group B.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

MoSPI Releases Sub-Sectoral Trial Index of Services Production for June 2026

•The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the sub-sectoral trial Index of Services Production (ISP) for June 2026, covering 19 broad service sub-sectors on the 2024-25 base year.
•Eighteen of the 19 sub-sectors grew over June 2025 and eight recorded double-digit growth; Real Estate led at 24.7 per cent, followed by Retail Trade (18.0 per cent), Wholesale Trade (15.1 per cent), Administrative and Support Services (14.4 per cent) and IT and Computer Related Services (13.5 per cent).
•Air Transport was the only sub-sector to contract, falling 6.0 per cent with an index level of 91.2 — below its 2024-25 base of 100.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

PM Holds Bilaterals with Iran, Russia, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan on the Margins of the 26th SCO Summit

•On the margins of the 26th SCO Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, the Prime Minister held bilateral meetings with the Presidents of Iran, the Kyrgyz Republic and the Russian Federation, and with the Prime Minister of Armenia.
•With Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, the discussion covered the West Asia conflict, with India stressing freedom of navigation and commerce and the protection of civilian shipping and seafarers.
•With President Vladimir Putin — their first meeting this year, after the 23rd Annual Summit in Delhi in December 2025 — the leaders welcomed the outcome of the 27th India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission held in Moscow on 24 August 2026.

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EconomyHighquizQuiz

India's Real GDP Grows 7.8% in Q1 FY 2026-27; Nominal Growth at 10.3%

•MoSPI released the Quarterly Estimates of GDP for Q1 (April-June) of FY 2026-27, the first quarterly release compiled fully on the new base year 2022-23.
•Real GDP is estimated at Rs 81.36 lakh crore against Rs 75.46 lakh crore a year earlier — growth of 7.8%; nominal GDP is Rs 88.27 lakh crore against Rs 80.00 lakh crore, growth of 10.3%.
•Real Gross Value Added grew faster than GDP, at 8.2%, reaching Rs 73.82 lakh crore; nominal GVA grew 11.5% to Rs 80.53 lakh crore.

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EconomyMediumquizQuiz

MoSPI Releases National Accounts Statistics 2026 on the New 2022-23 Base, Revising GDP Back to 2022-23

•The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the 'National Accounts Statistics - 2026' publication, compiled on the new base year 2022-23.
•It presents a set of sixty statements covering updated Final Estimates for 2022-23 and 2023-24, First Revised Estimates for 2024-25, and updated Provisional Estimates and quarterly estimates for 2025-26.
•The estimates now use the new series of output Producer Price Index, Index of Industrial Production and Banking Services Price Index, all with base year 2022-23, released in June 2026.

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Schemes & CommitteesMediumquizQuiz

Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031 Released at Lakshadweep Fisheries Outreach; Tuna and Seaweed Push Announced

•The Department of Fisheries held a Fisheries Outreach Programme at Agatti, Lakshadweep, on 31 August 2026, where the Vice-President released 'Mission Rangeen Machhli 2031', a Strategic Action Plan for Ornamental Fisheries Development.
•Lakshadweep has an estimated fisheries potential of over 1 lakh tonnes including about 94,000 tonnes of tuna and tuna-like species, but current harvest stands at only about 15,000 metric tonnes.
•Fisheries development projects worth over Rs 62 crore have been approved for Lakshadweep under PMMSY; 16 deep-sea fishing vessels costing about Rs 1.2 crore each have been sanctioned with full financial assistance.

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InternationalMediumquizQuiz

India and Brazil Target USD 30 Billion Trade by 2030 at 8th Trade Monitoring Mechanism Meeting

•The 8th meeting of the India-Brazil Trade Monitoring Mechanism was held in Brasília, co-chaired by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and Brazil's Secretary of Foreign Trade Tatiana Lacerda Prazeres of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (MDIC).
•Bilateral trade reached USD 15.07 billion in 2025-26, and both sides reaffirmed the target of USD 30 billion by 2030, focusing on pharmaceuticals, chemicals, engineering goods and machinery.
•Progress was reviewed on the India-MERCOSUR Terms of Reference for expanding and modernising the existing Preferential Trade Agreement; India-MERCOSUR trade stood at USD 20.84 billion in 2025.

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Science & TechHighquizQuiz

NM-ICPS: 25 Innovation Hubs and 4 Translation Research Parks Power India's Cyber-Physical Systems Push

•A PIB Backgrounder set out the status of India's Cyber-Physical Systems ecosystem, built around the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS), implemented by the Department of Science and Technology.
•The Union Cabinet approved NM-ICPS in 2018 with an outlay of Rs 3,660 crore; 25 Technology Innovation Hubs have been set up as Section 8 companies inside premier academic institutions.
•In 2025 four high-performing hubs were upgraded to Technology Translation Research Parks — IIT Kanpur (cybersecurity), IISc Bengaluru (robotics and AI systems), IIT (ISM) Dhanbad (mining technologies) and IIT Indore (digital healthcare).

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