Daily Current Affairs

Bengaluru-based space startup GalaxEye successfully launched Mission Drishti — the world’s first OptoSAR satellite — aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, at 12:30 PM IST on 3 May 2026. ISRO and PM Modi congratulated the team.

• OptoSAR Technology — Combines Electro-Optical (EO) sensors and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) on a single platform, enabling all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation — a world first.
• GalaxEye — Founded 2021; founded by IIT Madras alumni; headquartered in Bengaluru; partnered with NSIL (NewSpace India Limited), ISRO’s commercial arm, for global data distribution.
• Applications — Defence surveillance, disaster management, agriculture monitoring, maritime tracking, and infrastructure planning.
• PM Modi called it a ‘major achievement in India’s space journey’ and a testament to youth’s passion for innovation and nation-building.
• Dual-use — Civilian and defence applications; India’s largest privately built satellite at 190 kg.

Sikkim became the first state in India to have a fully paperless judiciary. Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice Surya Kant announced this during the ‘Conclave on Technology and Judicial Education’ at Chintan Bhawan, Gangtok, Sikkim — coinciding with the state’s 50th year of statehood (Sikkim joined India in 1975).

• e-Courts System — Includes e-filing, Digital Case Management (DCM), virtual hearings via Video Conferencing (VC), and e-Seva Kendras (eSK) to assist citizens with limited digital literacy.
• Digital processes — Electronic summons via SMS; email through National Service; tracking via NSTEP (National Service and Tracking of Electronic Processes); hybrid virtual hearings for remote areas.
• Impact — Improves access to justice in remote and hilly areas; reduces administrative costs; reduces environmental footprint through paperless operations.
• Statehood milestone — Announcement made during Sikkim’s 50th year of statehood; Sikkim merged with India on 16 May 1975.

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), launched the 4th phase of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY-IV) in Odisha at a special event in Rayagada district, in the presence of Mohan Charan Majhi, Chief Minister of Odisha.

• PMGSY — Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana; launched in 2000; provides all-weather road connectivity to unconnected rural habitations; under Ministry of Rural Development.
• PMGSY-IV — The 4th phase; focuses on connectivity to previously unconnected habitations, tribal and backward areas.
• CM of Odisha — Mohan Charan Majhi.
• Funding — Shared between Centre and State in 60:40 ratio.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the 27th edition of ‘Women and Men in India 2025: Selected Indicators and Data’ at the National Deliberative Summit on ‘Data for Development’ in Bhubaneswar, Odisha in April 2026.

• Sex Ratio — Improved from 904 (2017–19) to 917 (2021–23), indicating improved survival of females at birth.
• TFR (Total Fertility Rate) — Urban: 1.6 (below replacement level of 2.1); Rural: 2.1.
• LFPR (Labour Force Participation Rate) — Rural females aged 15+ saw the highest increase: from 37.5% to 45.9% (2022–2025).
• MoSPI — Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation; publishes Women and Men in India annually since 1995; HQ: New Delhi.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) notified the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2026, introducing key changes to Citizenship Rules, 2009. The rules came into force on 30 April 2026 following official gazette publication.

• Dual Passport restriction — Minor children cannot hold both Indian and foreign passports simultaneously, ensuring compliance with India’s single citizenship policy.
• e-OCI (Digital OCI) — Rules introduce e-OCI along with digital records; allows issuance of physical or electronic OCI cards and maintaining a central database.
• Online process — Entire OCI application process — registration, renunciation, acknowledgments — now conducted online through the official portal.
• OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) — Quasi-citizenship status for foreign nationals of Indian origin; governed by Citizenship Act, 1955.
• Effective date — 30 April 2026; amends Citizenship Rules, 2009.

India Post Payments Bank (IPPB), under the Department of Posts (DoP), Ministry of Communications, launched a dedicated Self Help Group (SHG) Savings Account to advance financial inclusion and empower women-led micro-enterprises across rural India.

• IPPB — India Post Payments Bank; under Department of Posts (DoP), Ministry of Communications.
• Linkage — Aligned with National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) under MoRD; supported by NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development).
• Distribution — Available via Post Offices, Postmen, and Gramin Dak Sevaks (GDS); covers 5.5 lakh+ villages through 1.65 lakh post offices and ~3 lakh postal workers.

NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited (NBBL), a subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), partnered with fintech firm Juspay Technologies Pvt Ltd to launch a unified switch and software development kit (SDK) for its Banking Connect platform across India.

• Banking Connect — Interoperable platform standardising net banking workflows; enables banks and payment aggregators to move beyond fragmented legacy integrations.
• Technology — SDK supports interoperability, scalability, and open architecture for ecosystem innovation; standardised data delivery and workflows.
• NBBL — NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited; subsidiary of NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India); HQ: Mumbai; NPCI established 2008.
• Juspay — Indian fintech company providing payment infrastructure; partner for technical implementation of the Banking Connect SDK.

India’s DRDO successfully conducted the Phase-II flight trial of the Long-Range Anti-Ship Hypersonic Missile (LR-AShM) from Launch Complex-IV of the Integrated Test Range (ITR), APJ Abdul Kalam Island, off the Odisha coast, Bay of Bengal on 1 May 2026.

• Developer — APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, Hyderabad along with other DRDO labs and Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL).
• Test timeline — 1st test: 2023; 2nd test: 16 November 2024 (Abdul Kalam Island); 3rd test (Phase-II): 1 May 2026. Publicly displayed at Republic Day, 26 January 2026.
• Significance — Fills the gap between the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile and longer-range strategic ballistic platforms; India joins USA, Russia, China with hypersonic anti-ship capability.
• ITR (Integrated Test Range) — Located on APJ Abdul Kalam Island (formerly Wheeler Island), off Odisha coast in the Bay of Bengal.

Dr M. Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), inaugurated the Open-Field Observatory of the Coastal Atmospheric Research Testbed (C-ART) — a coastal weather research facility established by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) — at Andhra University (AU), Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

• Mission Mausam — Government of India’s flagship programme for improving weather prediction and early warning systems; C-ART is funded under this mission at Rs 180 crore.
• Significance — First testbed on India’s east coast; in the cyclone-prone Bay of Bengal region; complements existing facilities at Bhopal (MP), Mumbai, and Mahabaleshwar (Maharashtra). Chennai facility planned next.
• Aim — Strengthen observational networks, enhance numerical weather prediction, improve early warning systems for cyclones and extreme weather along India’s east coast.
• IITM — Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology; HQ: Pune; under Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).
• Inaugurated by — Dr M. Ravichandran, Secretary, MoES.

India delivered a dominant performance to defeat Chinese Taipei 3-0 in the quarter-finals of the Thomas Cup 2026, securing a place in the semi-finals and assuring at minimum a bronze medal — a major achievement for Indian badminton.

• Thomas Cup — Biennial international team badminton championship for men; organised by Badminton World Federation (BWF); first held in 1948–49.
• India’s historic best — India won the Thomas Cup for the first time in 2022 by defeating Indonesia 3-0 in the final at Bangkok, Thailand.
• BWF — Headquarters: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; founded 1934.
• Result — India’s 3-0 win over Chinese Taipei in QF guarantees at least a bronze medal at Thomas Cup 2026.

World Press Freedom Day (WPFD) is observed globally on 3 May every year since 1993, under the aegis of UNESCO. The 2026 theme is ‘Shaping a Future at Peace: Promoting Press Freedom for Human Rights, Development, and Security.’ The Global Conference was hosted in Lusaka, Zambia on 4–5 May 2026, co-organised by UNESCO and the Government of Zambia.

• UNESCO — United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation; proclaimed WPFD by UNGA in December 1993.
• Windhoek Declaration (1991) — Adopted by African journalists in Windhoek, Namibia; called for free, independent, and pluralistic press; foundation of WPFD.
• Annual Prize — UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize — awarded each year to an individual, organisation, or institution defending press freedom.
• India 2026 — Ranked 157th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2026 World Press Freedom Index (released 30 April 2026) — down 6 places from 151st in 2025. RSF = Reporters Without Borders / Reporters Sans Frontières.
• Norway — Ranked 1st for the 10th consecutive year; followed by Netherlands (2nd), Estonia (3rd), Denmark (4th), Sweden (5th). Eritrea at the bottom.
• Global trend — Press freedom at its lowest average score in 25 years; 52%+ countries in ‘difficult’ or ‘very serious’ categories per RSF.