Daily Current Affairs

World Theatre Day (WTD) is an international observance celebrated annually on 27 March by International Theatre Institute (ITI) Centres and the global theatre community.

• Origin: Initiated at the 9th World Congress of the ITI held in Helsinki and Vienna in June 1961; first WTD celebrated on 27 March 1962, coinciding with the opening of the Theatre of Nations season in Paris.
• 2026 International Message: Written by actor Willem Dafoe, currently Artistic Director of the Theatre Department at La Biennale di Venezia (Venice) and a founding member of US theatre troupe The Wooster Group. The message is read in theatres, schools, libraries, and cultural spaces worldwide.
• ITI: International Theatre Institute — founded in 1948 under the auspices of UNESCO; non-governmental organisation; headquartered in Paris, France; celebrated in 90+ countries.
• International Message Tradition: Since 1962, a globally renowned theatre figure is invited each year to reflect on ‘Theatre and a Culture of Peace’. The first message was written by French poet and playwright Jean Cocteau in 1962.
• Significance: Promotes dialogue, peace, creativity, cultural exchange, and empathy; advocates for arts funding, performing arts accessibility, and preservation of live theatre.

World Bipolar Day is observed on 30 March every year — chosen to coincide with the birthday of Dutch Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (30 March 1853), who is believed to have suffered from bipolar disorder.

• Organised by: Asian Network of Bipolar Disorder (ANBD), International Bipolar Foundation (IBPF), and International Society for Bipolar Disorders (ISBD).
• Objective: Raise awareness, eliminate stigma, and promote understanding of bipolar disorder globally.

On 24 March 2026, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the formation of seven empowered groups to address the long-term strategic and economic impacts of the escalating West Asia (US–Iran) conflict on India’s energy supplies, trade routes, and global supply chains, following a review by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).

On 24 March 2026, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw (Ministry of Railways) announced five new reforms under the ‘Reform Express’ (52 Reforms in 52 Weeks) initiative in New Delhi, raising total approved railway reforms in 2026 to nine.

• Salt Cargo Reform: Stainless Steel Containers (SSC) with top-loading and side-discharge mechanisms; improves efficiency; targets 9.2 MT of the total 35 MT salt market.
• Automobile Cargo Reform: Specialised Wagon Design (SWD) with Schedule of Dimensions (SOD) flexibility for high-capacity, route-specific wagons; targets ~24% of ~31 million units automobile market.
• Construction Quality: Stricter Contractor Eligibility Criteria (CEC), Bid Security (BS), Bid Capacity Assessment (BCA), and reduced Subcontracting Limit — ensuring quality and timely execution.
• Ticketing Reform: Revised Cancellation and Refund Rules (CRR) with 72/24/8-hour slabs; automatic refunds; removal of Ticket Deposit Receipt (TDR); Aadhaar-based OTP for transparency.
• Boarding Flexibility: Digital Boarding Change (DBC) and Travel Class Upgrade (TCU) allowed up to 30 minutes before departure.

The Gujarat Legislative Assembly passed the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill titled ‘Gujarat Uniform Civil Code, 2026’ by a majority voice vote on 24 March 2026, after a debate of over seven hours. Gujarat became the second state in India after Uttarakhand to pass the UCC Bill.

• Introduced by: Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, after a state-appointed expert committee chaired by retired Supreme Court Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai submitted its final report.
• Scope: Common legal framework for marriage, divorce, succession, and live-in relationships for all residents irrespective of religion; applies to Gujarat residents including those living outside the state.
• Exclusions: Scheduled Tribes (STs) and groups with constitutionally protected customary rights.
• Key Provisions:
  • Mandatory registration of live-in relationships; failure within 1 month attracts up to 3 months imprisonment or Rs 10,000 fine
  • Prohibition of bigamy
  • Forced/fraudulent marriages: up to 7 years imprisonment
  • Equal inheritance rights for sons and daughters
• Constitutional Basis: Article 44 of Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP).
• Background: Uttarakhand = first state; UCC notified January 2025 (bill passed February 2024). Goa follows the Portuguese Civil Code of 1867 (retained post-integration 1961).

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry (MoC&I), signed an MoU with Blue Star Limited, India’s leading Air Conditioning (AC) company, to promote innovation and support startups in India.

• Signatories: T. L. K. Singh (Deputy Secretary, DPIIT) and B. Thiagarajan (Managing Director, Blue Star Limited), in New Delhi.
• Focus Areas: Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) technologies, digital solutions, advanced manufacturing, and supply chain innovation.
• Support Offered: Mentorship from industry experts; access to R&D laboratories and testing facilities; product validation; Proof-of-Concept (PoC) development; integration into industry value chains.

On 24 March 2026, the Ministry of Railways (MoR) approved two major rail infrastructure projects worth a total of Rs 647.58 crore.

• Kosamba RoR: Rail Over Rail (RoR) flyover on the Mumbai–Vadodara main line; overcomes Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) barriers.
• Bhagalpur Bypass: Connects Gonudham Halt and Sabour stations.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed Official Development Assistance (ODA) loan agreements worth Rs 16,420 crore with the Government of India (GoI) to fund four major projects across Punjab, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.

• JICA: Japan’s primary agency for bilateral ODA; established 2003; headquartered in Tokyo.

HDFC Securities Limited, a subsidiary of HDFC Bank, launched ‘NxtOption’, a next-generation trading platform designed to help retail investors examine, build, and execute Futures & Options (F&O) strategies through a single integrated interface.

• Core Feature: Converts market view (bullish, bearish, neutral) into strategy ideas with risk-reward profiles; supports strategies including Straddles, Strangles, and Iron Condors.
• Analytics: Real-time insights into Delta, Gamma, Theta, Vega, Implied Volatility (IV), Open Interest (OI) trends; market movers; rollover insights; F&O ban list tracking.
• HDFC Securities: Subsidiary of HDFC Bank; one of India’s largest stockbroking firms.

The Government of India appointed Kompella Venkata (K.V.) Ramana Murty as a Whole-Time Member (WTM) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for a tenure of three years from the date of assuming charge (or until further orders, whichever is earlier).

• Profile: Retired 1991-batch Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS) officer; previously served as Additional Controller General of Defence Accounts under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
• Full WTM Complement: SEBI now has its complete set of four Whole-Time Members:
  • K.V. Ramana Murty
  • Amarjeet Singh
  • Kamlesh Chandra Varshney
  • Sandip Pradhan
• SEBI: Securities and Exchange Board of India; established 1988; statutory powers under SEBI Act, 1992; regulates India’s securities markets; HQ: Mumbai.

Chennai-based private space startup Agnikul Cosmos Private Limited successfully test-fired ‘Agnite’, its booster rocket engine, at its in-house facility (Agnikul Launchpad, ALP-01, IIT Madras Research Park) in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, on 25 March 2026. Agnite is confirmed as the world’s largest single-piece 3D-printed rocket engine.

• Engine Specs: 1 metre long; made entirely of Inconel (high-performance nickel-based superalloy used in extreme-temperature aerospace applications); fully 3D-printed as a single piece — no welds, joints, or fasteners.
• Manufacturing Advantage: Can be 3D-printed in just 7 days, vs. 6–7 months for traditional engines — a 90–97% reduction in turnaround time; costs one-tenth of traditional engine manufacturing.
• First of Its Kind: First engine of its scale tested with electric motor-driven pumps (instead of conventional turbomachinery).
• Purpose: Powers the booster stage of Agnibaan — Agnikul’s upcoming orbital launch vehicle designed to deploy micro and nano satellites into 700 km orbits.
• Agnikul Cosmos: Founded by Srinath Ravichandran (CEO) and Moin SPM (COO); incubated at IIT Madras Research Park; backed by ISRO and IN-SPACe; previously conducted India’s first flight from a private launchpad (2024) with the world’s first single-piece 3D-printed semi-cryogenic engine (Agnibaan SOrTeD mission); valued at over $500 million.