Daily Current Affairs

In June 2026, NITI Aayog released the 8th edition of the Trade Watch Quarterly (TWQ) for Q4 (January–March 2026) of FY 2025-26 in New Delhi, in the presence of Nidhi Chhibber, Interim CEO, NITI Aayog. The report places special emphasis on the pharmaceutical sector, particularly Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs).

• Focus Area: Pharmaceutical sector with special emphasis on Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs); global pharma market demand estimated at USD 1.3 trillion in 2025.
• Trade Growth: India’s total merchandise and services trade expanded by 5.4% during FY26 to reach USD 1.84 trillion.
• NITI Aayog: National Institution for Transforming India; apex public policy think tank of India; established 1 January 2015, replacing the Planning Commission.

In June 2026, Union Minister K. Ram Mohan Naidu (Ministry of Civil Aviation) inaugurated India’s first hub-and-spoke flight — Air India flight 1111 — from Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, enabling direct connectivity to 17 international destinations via a New Delhi hub.

• International Destinations (sample): Rome (Italy), Singapore, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Phuket (Thailand) — all via New Delhi hub.
• Easy Connect Initiative: Launched under Air India’s ‘Easy Connect’ initiative; designed to extend international connectivity to tier-2 and tier-3 Indian cities at scale.
• Key Benefit: Passengers complete immigration formalities and baggage checks at home airport (Varanasi) — eliminating the need to re-book or re-check baggage at large metro hubs.
• Civil Aviation Minister: K. Ram Mohan Naidu.

In June 2026, the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) — premier R&D centre under the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications — signed an MoU with IIT Hyderabad (IITH), Telangana to accelerate research in next-generation communication technologies. The MoU was signed by B. S. Murty (Director, IITH) and Rajkumar Upadhyay (CEO, C-DOT).

• Key Focus Areas: Wireless communications, quantum technologies, cybersecurity, and AI-driven applications.
• Key Interventions: 5G Advanced/6G technologies, massive MIMO systems, integrated sensing and communication, AI-enabled networks, quantum & post-quantum communications.
• Startup Link: C-DOT has collaborated with WiSig Networks (WISIG) — a startup incubated at IITH — for disaggregated 5G Open RAN (O-RAN) solutions.
• C-DOT: Premier R&D centre under Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Communications.

In June 2026, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) signed an MoU with the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI) in New Delhi during a visit by an Afghan business delegation. The MoU was signed by Nirmal Kumar Minda (President, ASSOCHAM) and Sayed Mohammad Karim Hashemi (Chairman, ACCI).

• Focus Areas: Trade facilitation, business networking, delegation exchanges; key sectors — Mining, Food Processing, Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare, Oil & Gas, Sugar Manufacturing.
• Target: Facilitate a 15–20 member Indian business delegation to Afghanistan; bilateral trade currently at USD 1 billion.
• Strategy: Digital auction platforms, B2B engagements, annual work plans, and sector-specific initiatives.

In June 2026, BharathCloud — India’s sovereign AI cloud provider — signed an MoU with the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) in Pune, Maharashtra. The MoU was signed by Padma Reddy Sama (Co-Founder, BharathCloud) and CS Pawan G. Chandak (President, ICSI).

• Objective: Accelerate digital transformation of ICSI members; secure transition from on-premise IT systems to India-hosted cloud platforms.
• Benefits for ICSI Members: BharathCloud services at special pricing for 2 years; features include encrypted storage, automated backups, disaster recovery, 24×7 support.
• BharathCloud: India’s sovereign AI cloud provider.
• ICSI: Institute of Company Secretaries of India; President: CS Pawan G. Chandak.

In June 2026, the 67th edition of the TOP500 Supercomputer Rankings was released at the ISC High Performance 2026 conference in Hamburg, Germany. China’s LineShine (National Supercomputing Center, Shenzhen) emerged as the world’s most powerful supercomputer, replacing the USA’s El Capitan.

• LineShine vs India’s Shakti Cloud: LineShine is nearly 26 times faster than India’s most powerful supercomputer Shakti Cloud (32nd globally, 84.31 petaflops).
• New Entry: Italy’s Eni S.p.A.’s HPC7 debuted at 6th spot with 571.5 petaflop/s.
• Country Rankings (by number of systems): USA — 161, Japan — 44, Germany — 41, China — 31.
• India’s Position: Ranks 16th with 7 supercomputers — PARAM Siddhi-AI, Pratyush, Mihir, Aditya, SahasraT, Arka, and Param Bramha.
• About TOP500: Biannual ranking released twice a year — at ISC (June) and SC (November) conferences.

In June 2026, Bangladesh officially joined India’s International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) as its 27th member country, strengthening transboundary conservation strategies and habitat protection for the Bengal tiger and leopard in the Sundarbans.

• Membership Process: Bangladesh Cabinet approved membership on 22 May 2026 following India’s invitation during discussions between Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma and Bangladesh Environment Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo in April 2026.
• Conservation Focus: Transboundary conservation of Bengal tiger and leopard in the Sundarbans; coordinated monitoring, data sharing, and anti-poaching.
• About IBCA: India’s International Big Cat Alliance; a multi-nation alliance initiated by India to protect seven big cat species — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma.

In June 2026, the USA’s Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified a proposed sale of sustainment support services for India’s AH-64E Apache helicopters and M777A2 Ultra-Light Howitzers, estimated at a combined USD 482.2 million.

• M777A2 Howitzer background: In 2017, a USD 542 million contract was awarded to BAE Systems for 145 M777 howitzers for the Indian Army under FMS (Foreign Military Sales); 155mm lightweight towed artillery.
• Apache background: In December 2025, the Indian Army received the final batch of 3 Apache helicopters from Boeing.
• DSCA: Defence Security Cooperation Agency; administers the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme of the USA.

In June 2026, Skydo secured an international payment licence in Canada, marking the company’s first regulatory approval outside India and making it the 1st Indian cross-border company to receive regulatory approval overseas.

• Regulatory Framework: Licence granted under Canada’s Retail Payment Activities Act (RPAA); monitored by the Bank of Canada.
• Significance: Enables two-day payment flows between India and Canada; supports local collections and payouts in the India-Canada corridor (trade, education, tourism, business).
• India Approval: Also holds approval from Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).
• About Skydo: Founded in 2022 in Bengaluru, Karnataka by Movin Jain and Srivatsan Sridhar; global B2B cross-border payments platform.

In June 2026, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Global Ratings, in its report ‘Economic Outlook Asia-Pacific Q3 2026’ (titled ‘AI-Exposed Markets To Outperform’), cut India’s GDP growth forecast to 6.6% for FY 2026-27, driven by energy stress, sub-par monsoon, and slowing global growth.

• Reasons for Downgrade: Energy stress (West Asia conflict disruptions), sub-par monsoon, slowing global growth.
• Inflation Outlook: Retail inflation expected to be 0.5–0.6% higher in Q3 FY27 (October–December 2026); rising to 5.1% in FY27 overall.
• Report: S&P Global Ratings; report titled ‘Economic Outlook Asia-Pacific Q3 2026’ / ‘AI-Exposed Markets To Outperform’.

In June 2026, the Competition Commission of India (CCI), under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), approved a series of major corporate transactions, including Honda Motor Co. Limited’s (Japan) proposal to acquire an additional 21% stake in Astemo Limited from Hitachi.

• Astemo Deal: Post-acquisition — Honda: 61% (consolidated subsidiary); Hitachi: 19%; JIC Capital: 20%.
• Nxtra Data Deal: Alpha Wave Global proposed stake in Nxtra Data Limited (Bharti Airtel’s data centre arm); valued at ~USD 3.1 billion; co-funded by Alpha Wave Global, Carlyle, Anchorage Capital, and Airtel.
• Airtel Africa Deal: Bharti Airtel acquired 16.3% stake in Airtel Africa from ICIL for ~Rs 28,200 crore, raising its total shareholding to ~79%.
• CCI: Competition Commission of India; under Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA).

In June 2026, Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party (PP) secured a landslide victory in Ethiopia’s general election held on 1 June 2026, paving the way for Abiy Ahmed’s second consecutive five-year term as Prime Minister of Ethiopia.

• Nobel Peace Prize: Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for resolving the long-standing Ethiopia–Eritrea conflict.
• Party: Prosperity Party (PP) won 438 of 501 contested seats in the House of Peoples’ Representatives (lower house of Ethiopia’s Parliament).
• Swearing-in: Expected in October 2026.

In June 2026, the International Fencing Federation (FIE) signed an MoU with the Fencing Association of India (FAI) on the sidelines of the Asian Fencing Championships 2026 held in New Delhi, to strengthen cooperation and promote fencing in India ahead of the LA 2028 Olympic Games.

• Signatories: Abdelmoniem EL Husseiny (Interim President, FIE) and Rajeev Mehta (Secretary General, FAI and FCA — Fencing Confederation of Asia).
• Areas of Collaboration: Athlete promotion, fan engagement, communications, stakeholder outreach, visibility of fencing.
• Significance: Supports Indian athletes, engages new audiences, and contributes to long-term development of fencing in India for LA 2028.
• Context: Asian Fencing Championships 2026 held in New Delhi.

In June 2026, scientists from Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) discovered two new microscopic snail species — Georissa meghalayaensis and Acmella bensoni — in Krem Puri and Arwah limestone caves, Meghalaya. The findings were published in the European Journal of Taxonomy.

• Habitat: Both species are adapted to limestone cave habitats; require microscopic examination for identification.
• Biodiversity Context: Meghalaya is part of the Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot with ~1,200 limestone caves.
• Threats: Heavy tourist footfall, artificial lighting, cave stairway construction, limestone mining, and habitat alteration.
• Publication: European Journal of Taxonomy.

In June 2026, the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Pune, in collaboration with the Natural History Museum, London, discovered two new moth species from the Western Ghats of India.

• Antaram idukki: Tiger moth (subfamily Arctiinae, family Erebidae); discovered in Idukki, Kerala; unique forewing waved fasciae; ecological roles — night pollinator, prey for birds/bats, bio-indicator.
• Mimeusemia kali: Forester moth (genus Mimeusemia, family Noctuidae); discovered in Kali Tiger Reserve, Karnataka; day-active; first addition to Mimeusemia genus in ~30 years; genus now includes 30 taxa worldwide.
• ZSI: Zoological Survey of India; Director: Dhriti Banerjee; HQ: Kolkata, West Bengal; established 1916.

In 2026, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and UN Women released the 2026 Women in Politics map (rankings as of 1 January 2026), providing a global snapshot of women’s representation in parliaments and cabinet ministries worldwide — a key metric observed on the International Day of Women in Diplomacy (24 June).

• IPU: Inter-Parliamentary Union — global organisation of national parliaments.
• Report: 2026 Women in Politics map by IPU and UN Women (rankings as of 1 January 2026).
• Context: Released to mark the International Day of Women in Diplomacy (IDWID) observed on 24 June; proclaimed by UNGA on 20 June 2022 (76th session, Resolution A/RES/76/269); first observed 24 June 2023.

Passport Seva Divas is observed annually on 24 June across India to mark the enactment of the Passports Act, 1967, which came into force on 24 June 1967. 2026 marks the 14th observance of Passport Seva Divas.

• Launch: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) designated 24 June as Passport Seva Divas in 2013.
• 2026 Event: MEA organised the Annual Regional Passport Officers’ (RPO) Conference from 17–19 June 2026 at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi.
• Passports Act, 1967: The governing law for issue of passports and travel documents in India; came into force 24 June 1967.

The Day of the Seafarer (DotS) is observed annually on 25 June to recognise seafarers’ vital contribution to international maritime trade and the global economy. 2026 marks the 16th edition.

• Purpose: Recognise seafarers’ essential role in moving ~90% of world trade by sea.
• Establishment: Through Resolution 2 adopted at the Manila diplomatic conference (21–25 June 2010); Manila Amendments entered into force globally on 1 January 2012.
• First observed: 25 June 2011.
• Organising body: International Maritime Organization (IMO).