Daily Current Affairs

In May 2026, the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) notified the implementation of the Viksit Bharat — Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) — VB-G RAM G Act, 2025 across the country with effect from 1 July 2026. With the new Act coming into force, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005 will stand repealed from the same date.

• Employment Guarantee – Statutory guarantee of 125 days of work per financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer for unskilled manual work (up from 100 days under MGNREGA, 2005).
• Work Scope – Under the Viksit Bharat@2047 vision; permissible works expanded across four key areas — water security, rural infrastructure, livelihood infrastructure, and climate resilience works.
• Wage Payments – Paid through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into bank/post office accounts; payments processed within 3 days; funds reach accounts within a maximum of 15 days.
• Transition – Existing e-KYC verified MGNREGA Job Cards remain valid until new Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Cards are issued; ongoing projects as of 30 June 2026 continue seamlessly.

In May 2026, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) under the Ministry of Finance (MoF) launched the ‘Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool (BMIP)’ of USD 1.5 billion with a sovereign guarantee of USD 1.4 billion (Rs 12,980 crore) at an event held in New Delhi.

• Dependence on Foreign Insurers – Indian vessels currently rely on foreign International Group (IG) Protection and Indemnity (P&I) Clubs; under sanctions, foreign re/insurers can withdraw cover for cargo or vessels involving sanctioned countries.
• Purpose – Provide risk cover to Indian vessels on international sea routes including war and high-risk zones, amid current West Asia tensions.
• Significance – Reduces dependence on foreign insurers; ensures adequate risk coverage; strengthens sovereign control over India’s maritime trade.

In May 2026, India — which currently holds the chairship of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) for 2025–27 — hosted the 10th edition of the Indian Ocean Dialogue (IOD-10) in New Delhi from 7–8 May 2026 under the theme ‘Indian Ocean Region in a Transforming World’.

• Organisers – Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in collaboration with the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) and the IORA Secretariat.
• Inaugural Session – Addressed by Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal (Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways); Dhananjay Ramful, Minister of Regional Integration and International Trade of Mauritius; and Waleed Mohammed Al Qadimi, Minister of State of Yemen.
• Key Statistic – Sonowal highlighted that women’s participation in India’s maritime sector has surged by 340% since 2020.
• India’s Commitment – Reaffirmed commitment to a peaceful, stable, and prosperous IOR, aligned with the MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) vision and Neighbourhood First policy.

In May 2026, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Ministry of Education (MoE), inaugurated India’s first Integrated Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) field laboratory facility under ‘Bharat Innovates 2026’ at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B), Mumbai, Maharashtra.

• Integrated CCU Facility – India’s first end-to-end pilot-scale platform integrating Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU) with Geological CO₂ Sequestration (GCS) in basalt formations; includes the country’s first pilot-scale scientific drilling initiative to assess CO₂ storage potential in the Deccan Traps.
• Scaled Up By – UrjanovaC, a deep-tech venture incubated at the Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE), IIT-B; recognised among leading start-ups in Bharat Innovates 2026.
• Process – Uses advanced aqueous-based CO₂ capture methods to capture CO₂ from ambient air and industrial emissions, using non-potable water sources like industrial effluents and seawater.
• End Products – Captured CO₂ is converted into high-purity carbonate and bicarbonate salts usable in steel, cement, petrochemicals, and pharmaceuticals.

On 13 May 2026, the Government of India (GoI) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) — a specialised United Nations (UN) agency — officially launched their new 8-year Country Strategic Opportunities Programme (COSOP) for 2026–2033 to strengthen India’s rural economy and promote inclusive, climate-resilient rural development. Announced at the IFAD-India Partnership for Rural Prosperity event at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.

• Strategy Formulation – Developed through a participatory, evidence-based process including the 2023–2024 Country Strategy and Programme Evaluation, portfolio review, and consultations with central/state governments, multilateral institutions, bilateral agencies, UN bodies, private sector, and producer organisations.
• Two Strategic Priorities – (1) Enhancing social, economic, and climate resilience of rural communities; (2) Strengthening knowledge systems to scale successful development models across India and other Global South countries.
• Vision Alignment – Aligned with the Viksit Bharat@2047 vision.
• NABARD Partnership – IFAD and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) signed a strategic partnership agreement to strengthen rural finance systems and innovation in agriculture.

In May 2026, the Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the State Pharmacy Councils of Bihar, Maharashtra, and Mizoram to strengthen medicine safety, rational drug use, and pharmacovigilance activities across India.

• Signatories – Signed at IPC headquarters in Ghaziabad by Dr V Kalaiselvan (Secretary-cum-Scientific Director, IPC) with Dr Prakash Sinha (President, Bihar SPC), Dr M Lalhlenmawia (Vice-President, Mizoram SPC), and Mr Atul Ahire (President, Maharashtra SPC).
• NFI Promotion – Will promote adoption of the National Formulary of India (NFI) and encourage its use as a mandatory reference in hospital pharmacies.
• Pharmacovigilance – Will strengthen the Pharmacovigilance Programme of India (PvPI) through Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR) reporting, establishment of ADR Monitoring Centres, and improved patient safety systems.

On 11 May 2026, the National e-Governance Division (NeGD) under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) felicitated 5 states — Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Nagaland, and Rajasthan — for outstanding DigiLocker integration initiatives, during the National Consultative Workshop on Strengthening Cybersecurity Frameworks for State Data, held in New Delhi.

• Felicitation Conferred By – Nand Kumarum, Joint Secretary (Digital Governance Division), MeitY & President and CEO of NeGD, in presence of K K Singh, Joint Secretary, MeitY.

In May 2026, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) — subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) — signed an MoU in New Delhi to strengthen Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based detection of mule accounts and cyber financial frauds in India.

• Signed By – Roopa M (Inspector General-Administration), I4C, and Sahil Kinni (CEO), RBIH; in presence of Rohit Jain (Deputy Governor), RBI.
• Focus – Cooperation in fraud-risk intelligence sharing, analytical support, and operational coordination for proactive fraud detection and prevention.
• Framework – I4C and RBIH will share mule account intelligence and suspect data from the I4C-MHA Suspect Registry to strengthen AI-based fraud detection systems like MuleHunter.ai implemented across banks; RBIH will use this data to improve AI models for fraud risk assessment.

In May 2026, AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB) launched a new portfolio of four credit cards — AU Ananta, AU Laksya, AU Tejas, and AU Prathama — to strengthen its retail credit card business and cater to customers across different income and lifestyle segments in Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities.

• Industry-First Feature – Complimentary airport lounge access through flight bookings on the AU Rewardz platform.

In May 2026, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cancelled the banking licence of Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based Sarvodaya Co-operative Bank Limited with effect from 12 May 2026 under Sections 22(4) and 56 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.

• Reasons – Inadequate capital, weak earning prospects, inability to fully repay depositors, and non-compliance with capital adequacy and licensing requirements under Sections 11(1) and 22(3) of the Act.
• Winding-Up – RBI directed the Maharashtra Registrar of Co-operative Societies (RCS) to begin winding-up and appoint a liquidator.
• Restrictions – Bank prohibited from accepting/repaying deposits; all banking operations ceased.
• DICGC Insurance – Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) provides insurance coverage of up to Rs 5 lakh per depositor per bank, including principal and interest, on savings, current, fixed, and recurring deposits.

In May 2026, Faustino Oro — the Argentina-born chess prodigy popularly known as the ‘Messi of Chess’ — became the second-youngest Grandmaster (GM) in chess history at the age of 12 years, 6 months, and 26 days. He secured his third and final GM norm at the Sardinia World Chess Festival 2026 in Sardinia, Italy (3–10 May 2026) by drawing against Russian GM Ian Nepomniachtchi.

• Record – Achieved the feat behind Abhimanyu Mishra (USA) — who remains the youngest-ever GM; Oro is the 7th player in history to earn the GM title before age 13.
• Rating Records – Youngest player to achieve a FIDE rating of 2300; first under-12 player to cross the 2500 rating mark; highest-rated 11-year-old in chess history.
• Other Achievements – Youngest International Master (IM) at 10 years, 8 months, 16 days (broken later in 2025); youngest player to win a match at the FIDE World Cup.
• Other Norms – Secured at Legends & Prodigies 2025 (Madrid, Spain) and the Magistral Szmetan-Giardelli 2026 (Buenos Aires, Argentina).

In May 2026, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientist Kuljeet Kaur Marhas became the first Indian woman to be elected as a Fellow of the Meteoritical Society for 2026 — one of the world’s most prestigious honours in meteoritics and planetary science.

• Recognition – Joins an elite group of international scientists recognised for outstanding contributions to planetary materials research and studies on origins of the Solar System; she is the 3rd Indian scientist overall to receive this fellowship.
• Current Role – Professor at the Planetary Science Division, Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) — autonomous unit of the Department of Space (DoS) and a premier research institute of ISRO, located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

On 12 May 2026, Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, BJP leader from Jalukbari constituency, was sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM) of Assam for a second consecutive term — becoming the first non-Congress leader in Assam to serve two successive terms as CM. The ceremony took place at the Veterinary College Ground, Khanapara, Guwahati.

• Oath Administered By – Lakshman Prasad Acharya, Governor of Assam — administered oath of office and secrecy as per the Third Schedule of the Constitution; based on Article 164, the Governor appoints the Chief Minister.
• Election Result – The BJP-led NDA secured 102 of 126 seats in the 2026 Assam Assembly elections; BJP alone won 82 seats (its first outright majority in Assam).
• Cabinet – Four ministers took oath alongside Sarma — Rameswar Teli, Ajanta Neog (BJP); Atul Bora (AGP); Charan Boro (BPF).
• Other Roles – President of the Badminton Association of India (BAI) since 2017 (re-elected for 2022–2026); member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF) Council (2021–2025) and Vice President of Badminton Asia (BA) since 2019.

In May 2026, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) elected R Mukundan as its President for 2026–27, after the newly constituted National Council announced new office-bearers. He succeeded Rajiv Memani.

• Other Appointees – CII elected Suchitra Ella as President-Designate, and Shashwat Goenka as Vice President for the 2026–27 term.
• About R Mukundan – Fellow of the Indian Chemical Society; received an honorary doctorate in Business Administration from XIM University, Odisha.
• Career – Joined the Tata Administrative Service (TAS) in 1990; has over 30 years of experience.
• CII Roles – Chairman, CII Western Region (2013–14); CII Vice President (2024–25); CII President-Designate (2025–26).

In May 2026, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh, Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), launched two advanced weather forecast products — ‘Forecast of Monsoon Advance over Different Parts of the Country’ and a ‘High Spatial Resolution Rainfall Forecast for Uttar Pradesh (UP)’ — as a pilot service, the first-ever Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled systems introduced by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Launched at Mahika Hall, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), New Delhi.

• Aim – Developed under MoES to deliver hyper-local, impact-based, and AI-driven weather services across the country.
• Developers – IMD in partnership with the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune (Maharashtra) and the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF).
• Monsoon Forecast – Provides forecasts of monsoon progression every Wednesday up to four weeks in advance, supporting farmers across 16 States and over 3,000 sub-districts.
• UP Rainfall Forecast – Pilot service generates rainfall forecasts at 1-kilometre spatial resolution, up to 10 days in advance.

The International Nurses Day (IND) is observed globally every year on 12 May to recognise the invaluable contribution of nurses to healthcare systems and society, commemorating the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale (1820–1910), renowned as the founder of modern nursing.

• Proposal – In 1953, Dorothy Sutherland (Department of Health, Education and Welfare, USA) proposed a ‘Nurses Day’ to then US President Dwight D Eisenhower.
• Observation – Since 1965, the International Council of Nurses (ICN) has led the annual observance of IND.
• Adoption – In 1974, ICN officially adopted 12 May as the observance date to honour Florence Nightingale.
• 2026 Event – On 12 May 2026, President of India Droupadi Murmu conferred the National Florence Nightingale Awards 2026 to 15 nursing personnel at Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi.