Monthly current affairs for July 2026

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has participated in the 45th edition of the biennial multinational air combat exercise 'Pitch Black 2026', hosted by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) at RAAF Base Darwin in northern Australia. The exercise witnessed the participation of air forces from 20 nations.

The 16th BRICS Health Ministers' Meeting was held in Chandigarh under the BRICS Chairship of India for 2026. The meeting was held under the theme 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability' to strengthen cooperation in public health priorities and global health architecture.

Additionally, under the BRICS Presidency of India for 2026, the Ministry of Education convened the International Governing Board (IGB) meeting of the BRICS Network University (BRICS NU) in a virtual format.

India secured 29 medals including 5 gold, 13 silver, and 11 bronze at the inaugural Asian Under-19 (U-19) & U-23 Boxing Championships 2026 held in Jakarta, Indonesia. India finished third in the medal tally, while Uzbekistan topped the table with 33 medals (21 gold), followed by Kazakhstan.

The gold medalists for India include Chandrika Bhoresh Pujari (U-19, 51 kg), Prachi (U-19, 57 kg), Nisha (U-23, 54 kg), Vishvanath Suresh (U-23, 50 kg), and Ganga (U-23, 55 kg).

VK Saxena, the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, has commissioned India's first and deepest two 1,000-metre geothermal wells at Puga Valley, Ladakh. These wells, executed by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC) Energy Centre, are critical for the 1 Megawatt (MW) Pilot Geothermal Power Plant.

This project is India's first demonstration-scale geothermal power project situated at an altitude of over 14,000 feet. It is to be noted that the wells reached a maximum temperature of 135°C at a depth of 400m.

INS Malvan, the second indigenously designed and built Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC), has been commissioned at Karwar, Karnataka.

It is the 2nd of 8 Mahe-class ASW-SWCs being constructed by Cochin Shipyard Ltd and the 6th of 16 ASW-SWCs to be commissioned into the Indian Navy (IN). The ship features over 80% indigenous content.

Named after the coastal town of Malvan in Maharashtra, it honours the maritime heritage of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and carries the legacy of its predecessor, an inshore Indian Naval Minesweeper that remained in service until 2003.

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) of NASA have discovered a new giant exoplanet named 'Beta Pictoris d'. Located 63 light-years from the Earth, the planet is estimated to be 23 million years old.

With a mass of at least 2 times that of Jupiter, it is the smallest among the 3 known giant planets in the Beta Pictoris system. It is to be noted that this makes the Beta Pictoris system the second known planetary system to feature at least 3 directly imaged planets.

According to the 15th edition of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Monthly Bulletin released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the overall unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 and above remained unchanged at 5.5% in June 2026.

The unemployment rate in rural areas decreased from 5.1% in May 2026 to 5% in June 2026, while the rate in urban areas increased from 6.4% to 6.6%. The Labour Force Participation Rate for persons aged 15 and above stood at 54.4% in June 2026, and the Worker Population Ratio at the all-India level was 51.4%.

Joseph Kevin Keegan, a former professional footballer and manager from England, passed away at the age of 75. He remains the only English player to have won the Ballon d'Or award twice.

Union Minister Rajnath Singh has flagged-in 'Samudra Pradakshina', the inaugural Tri-service all-women circumnavigation sailing expedition, via video conferencing.

The team, comprising nine women officers from the three Services, sailed aboard the Indian Army Sailing Vessel (IASV) Triveni. They returned to Mumbai after completing a 314-day voyage, covering nearly 25,500 nautical miles across four oceans.

RBI has released the composite Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) for FY26, which increased to 70 in March 2026 from 67 in March 2025.

RBI has also issued new "Prudential Norms on Specified Non-Financial Asset (SNFA) acquired by Regulated Entities" to tighten regulations governing the resolution of distressed loans. This framework will come into effect on October 1, 2026.

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan unveiled the roadmap for 'Viksit Krishi and Samruddh Kisan' as a key pillar of 'Viksit Bharat 2047' during the 98th Foundation Day of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in New Delhi.

During the event, 43 new crop varieties, 17 technologies/products, and 14 publications were released, and over 70 MoUs were signed.

ICAR aims to establish 100 'Climate Smart Villages' before its centenary. Under 'Mission ICAR-100', Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) will be transformed, with each KVK mandated to cover at least 100 villages. Additionally, under the 'One Institute-One Grand Innovation' initiative, every ICAR institute is tasked to develop at least one transformational innovation within 2 years.

The Telangana government has signed an MoU with Microsoft to establish a Green Skills Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Hyderabad.

The initiative aims to equip students and professionals with industry-relevant green skills to support sustainable workforce development.

The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) has announced the winners of the 72nd National Film Awards 2024. The Hindi film 'Article 370' won the Best Feature Film award, and Yami Gautam was honoured with the Best Actress (Leading Role) award for her performance in the same film.

The Best Actor award was jointly conferred upon Mammootty for 'Bramayugam' and Kartik Aaryan for 'Chandu Champion'. Rajkumar Periasamy won the Best Direction award for the Tamil film 'Amaran', and Randeep Hooda was recognised as the Best Debut Director.

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Arjun Ram Meghwal has launched the electronic - Vidhi Sahitya Prakashan (e-VSP) portal. It is a digital platform designed to provide seamless access to legal books, publications, and educational resources.

Developed in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and the Official Languages Wing, the portal facilitates access to legal publications in Hindi.

Akasa Air has signed an MoU with Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) to promote the adoption of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). The partnership aims to reduce carbon emissions from the aviation sector in India.

According to the 'Brand Finance India 100 Report 2026', Tata Group is ranked as the most valuable brand in India for the 10th consecutive year, with a brand value of $33.6 billion. It is followed by Infosys and LIC Group.

Adani Group is ranked 8th in the list, becoming the fastest company to enter India's 'Top 10 Most Valuable Brands'. Suzlon Energy is the fastest-growing Indian brand in 2026, while Taj Hotels is ranked as India's strongest brand for the 5th consecutive year.

Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and Badminton Association of India (BAI) President and Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma have unveiled the official mascot 'Peacko' and the championship anthem for the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Championships 2026 in New Delhi.

The mascot 'Peacko' is inspired by the Indian Peafowl. The 30th edition of the BWF World Championships will be hosted at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed an MoU with Nalanda University (NU) to foster institutional collaboration.

The partnership aims to promote initiatives in technology deployment, sustainability, rural development, skill enhancement, and scientific outreach. It seeks to integrate the indigenous technological capabilities of CSIR with the international academic ecosystem of NU.

Harjit Singh Grewal has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) for a tenure of 3 years. He succeeds Iqbal Singh Lalpura. S Munawari has been appointed as the Vice-Chairperson of the NCM.

The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) has launched the pilot phase of the 'Gems of India' Challenge to identify, nurture, and promote grassroots digital creators across the country.

The initiative is built upon MyWAVES, the citizen creator platform under WAVES OTT, which was launched by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to enable citizens to create, upload, and share original content and strengthen the digital creator ecosystem of India. The ministry is collaborating with YouTube and Meta to mobilize creator communities and extend the outreach of the challenge.