Current Affairs 2025-26

Note: Current affairs change frequently. The summary below reflects events through early 2026. Cross-check details before the exam.

Heads of major institutions (mid-2026):

• President of India: Droupadi Murmu (since July 2022).
• Vice-President: Jagdeep Dhankhar (since August 2022).
• Prime Minister: Narendra Modi (since 2014; 3rd term began June 2024).
• Chief Justice of India: D. Y. Chandrachud (until Nov 2024); succeeded by Sanjiv Khanna (Nov 2024 – May 2025), then B. R. Gavai (May 2025 onwards).
• Lok Sabha Speaker: Om Birla (re-elected June 2024).
• RBI Governor: Sanjay Malhotra (from December 2024).
• Chief Election Commissioner: Rajiv Kumar (until early 2025), then Gyanesh Kumar.
• Foreign Minister: Dr. S. Jaishankar (continuing).
• Finance Minister: Nirmala Sitharaman (continuing).
• Defence Minister: Rajnath Singh (continuing).

Global leaders (2026):

• USA: Donald Trump (47th President, sworn in Jan 2025; second non-consecutive term).
• UK: Keir Starmer (PM since July 2024, Labour).
• Russia: Vladimir Putin (re-elected 2024).
• China: Xi Jinping.
• Pakistan: PM Shehbaz Sharif; President Asif Ali Zardari.
• Bangladesh: interim government led by Muhammad Yunus (after Sheikh Hasina ousted, Aug 2024).
• UN Secretary-General: António Guterres.

India's space milestones:

• Chandrayaan-3 (Aug 2023): India became 4th nation to land on Moon, 1st to land near south pole.
• Aditya-L1 (Sept 2023): first solar mission, parked at L1 Lagrange point in Jan 2024.
• Gaganyaan: India's human spaceflight programme; uncrewed test missions ongoing 2025–26; first crewed flight planned 2026.
• Mission Mars / Mangalyaan-2 (planned).
• SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle): operational.

Other notable:

• India became most populous nation in 2023 (overtook China).
• India's GDP crossed $4 trillion nominal (5th largest).
• India presided over G20 (Sep 2023) — "One Earth, One Family, One Future". African Union admitted permanently.
• India joined IMEC (India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor).
• New Parliament building inaugurated May 2023.
• Vande Bharat trains expanded to 50+ routes by 2026.
• 5G rollout completed in all districts.

Sports milestones (2024–25):

• Paris Olympics 2024: India won 6 medals (1 silver, 5 bronze). Neeraj Chopra silver (javelin). Manu Bhaker — first Indian shooter to win 2 medals in a single Olympics (both bronze).
• Cricket: India won T20 World Cup 2024 (vs South Africa, Barbados final).
• Chess: D. Gukesh became youngest World Chess Champion (age 18, Dec 2024).
• Tennis: Sania Mirza retired 2023.

Awards (2024–2025):

• Bharat Ratna 2024: Lal Krishna Advani, M.S. Swaminathan (posthumous), Karpoori Thakur (posthumous), Choudhary Charan Singh (posthumous), P.V. Narasimha Rao (posthumous).
• Nobel Prize 2024:
  • Physics: John Hopfield & Geoffrey Hinton (machine learning).
  • Chemistry: David Baker, Demis Hassabis, John Jumper (protein structure).
  • Literature: Han Kang (South Korea).
  • Peace: Nihon Hidankyo (Japanese atomic-bomb-survivor org).
  • Economics: Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson, James A. Robinson (institutions and prosperity).

Recent flagship schemes:

• PM Vishwakarma Yojana (launched Sep 17, 2023): financial support and training for traditional artisans (18 crafts: carpenters, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, potters, sculptors, cobblers, masons, weavers, etc.).
• PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (Feb 2024): rooftop solar for 1 crore households; free electricity up to 300 units/month.
• PM-JANMAN (Jan 2024): development for Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).
• Mission Karmayogi: civil service capacity building.
• Aspirational Districts Programme: 112 backward districts under focused development.
• Digital India Stack: UPI (Unified Payments Interface), Aadhaar, DigiLocker, e-KYC.
• Cooperative Sector Reforms under Amit Shah's Ministry of Cooperation.

Important Acts/Bills (2023–2025):

• Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023: replace IPC, CrPC, and Indian Evidence Act respectively (effective July 1, 2024).
• Women's Reservation Bill (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023): 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. Will take effect after delimitation post-2026 census.
• Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023.
• Telecommunications Act 2023.
• Anusandhan National Research Foundation Act 2023.

International developments:

• Russia-Ukraine war: continuing since Feb 2022. Negotiations and ceasefire attempts under Trump administration in 2025.
• Israel-Hamas conflict: started Oct 7, 2023. Phased ceasefire deal Jan 2025.
• BRICS expansion: Iran, UAE, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia joined in 2024–25 (Saudi Arabia tentatively).
• IMEC (India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor): announced at G20 2023.
• India-Canada diplomatic strain over Nijjar case.
• India-Maldives tensions early 2024 over "Lakshadweep tweets" — Maldives moved closer to China then thawed.
• Pakistan elections Feb 2024: coalition govt led by PML-N + PPP; Shehbaz Sharif PM.
• Sheikh Hasina ousted in Bangladesh (Aug 5, 2024); Muhammad Yunus heads interim government.

Economic developments (2024–26):

• Repo rate: kept at 6.5% through 2024; first cut to 6.25% in Feb 2025; further cuts to 6.0% by mid-2025.
• GST collections crossed ₹2 lakh crore monthly milestone repeatedly.
• UPI crossed 16 billion transactions in a month (early 2025).
• GDP growth: 7.2% (FY 24-25, advance estimates).

Tech & science milestones:

• OpenAI GPT-4, GPT-5 released 2024–25.
• NVIDIA becomes world's most valuable company by market cap (early 2025).
• First crewed Gaganyaan test flights planned 2025–26.
• JWST (James Webb Space Telescope) continues to release deep-space imagery.
• CRISPR gene therapy Casgevy approved for sickle-cell disease (2023).

Climate:

• 2024 was the warmest year on record globally; first year to cross +1.5°C above pre-industrial average.
• COP29 in Baku (Nov 2024): new climate finance goal of $300 billion/year by 2035.

For RRB exams: focus on the positions (who holds which post), schemes (what each does), and major events of the past 6–12 months. Read a daily current-affairs digest in the run-up to the exam.