Monthly current affairs for September 2026

PM Narendra Modi has visited Uzbekistan at the invitation of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, marking the 15th anniversary of the India-Uzbekistan strategic partnership and the 35th Independence Day of Uzbekistan.

During the visit, PM Modi was conferred with the highest state honour of Uzbekistan, the Order of “Oliy Darajali Do’stlik” (Order of Highest Friendship), marking his 36th global recognition. Both countries signed 11 MoUs and agreements to strengthen bilateral cooperation.

Both nations have established a target to increase bilateral trade to $5 billion by 2030. It is to be noted that the establishment of a Sanskrit Chair of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) at the Tashkent State University was announced to enhance cultural and educational ties.

PhonePe, a fintech firm based in Bengaluru, has launched its first local operations in the UAE. The company has secured two licenses to offer consumer payment instruments and to provide e-payment acceptance infrastructure for merchants.

Vodafone Idea (Vi), the third-largest telecommunications service provider in India, has appointed Shah Rukh Khan as brand ambassador and introduced a revitalised brand identity.

As part of the revamp, the logo of the company has been redesigned from “V!” to “Vi”. The company also launched a marketing campaign titled “Vi badal raha hai... tayaar rahiye” (Vi is changing... Be ready).

Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) has launched “Sagar Manthan”, the first indigenous advanced Ocean Research Vessel (ORV) of India. The vessel was launched at the Rishi Bankim Shipyard in Kolkata for the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR) under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).

It is to be noted that the project, having a total valuation of ₹840 crore, is being implemented under the “Deep Ocean Mission”. The ORV, which has a gross tonnage of 5,900 tonnes and a maximum speed of 14 knots, is expected to be fully operational by early 2028.

Isar Aerospace, a Germany-based aerospace company, has launched its Spectrum rocket from the Andoya Spaceport in Norway under its second-flight mission titled ‘Onward and Upward’. The rocket is designed to carry payloads of up to 1,000 kg to the Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

The mission successfully deployed 5 CubeSats, namely CyBEEsat (Germany), TriSat-S (Slovenia), Platform 6 (Bulgaria), FramSat-1 (Norway), and SpaceTeamSat1 (Austria).

Punjab government has launched a digital identification portal named ‘Pehchaan’ to trace unidentified and unclaimed deceased persons in government mortuaries.

The portal records photographs, physical traits, and identification marks of the deceased within 48 hours to facilitate online searches and claims. It also features an automated alert system to notify Investigating Officers (IOs) for verification. It is to be noted that Punjab is the first state in India to implement such a system.

The RBI has approved the appointment of Carol Kripanayana Furtado as the interim MD & CEO of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank (SFB) for 3 months. She succeeds Sanjeev Nautiyal.

Cassandra Wilson, a two-time Grammy winner, passed away at the age of 70. She won the Grammy Awards in 1997 and 2009.

She was recognized as the ‘Best Singer of America’ in 2001 and was honored as a Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in 2022.

SR Janakiraman, a renowned Carnatic vocalist, passed away at the age of 98. He was a recipient of the Padma Shri in 2011.

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Francisco P Tiu Laurel of Philippines have co-chaired the 9th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry (9th AIMMAF) in New Delhi. The agenda of the 9th AIMMAF focused on climate-resilient farming, with a specific emphasis on implementing low-emission rice cultivation techniques.

The participants endorsed the “ASEAN 2045: Our Shared Future” roadmap and the “ASEAN Food, Agriculture and Forestry Sectoral Plan 2026-2030” to ensure environmental safeguards and food safety in the region. A symbolic “Friendship Spike for Agriculture and Forestry” was also unveiled to commemorate the cooperation between the nations.

The NITI Aayog has launched the “Platform for Aggregating Clean Transport” (PACT) and a “Zero-Emission Truck” (ZET) marketplace during the 5th “Electric-Freight Accelerator for Sustainable Transport” (e-FAST) India Summit in New Delhi.

The PACT initiative aims to aggregate freight demand, while the ZET marketplace serves as an interactive business-engagement platform to facilitate stakeholder connections.

According to the “National Accounts Statistics (NAS) - 2026” publication released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), FY23 has been adopted as the base year for national account estimates.

The publication consists of 60 statements derived from the updated Final estimates for FY23 and FY24, and the First Revised Estimate for FY25. The revised estimates incorporate new series for the Producer Price Index (PPI), Index of Industrial Production (IIP), and Banking Services Price Index (BkSPI), all of which use the 2022-23 base year.

Bandhan Bank has partnered with Mastercard to launch its first credit card portfolio, featuring four variants: ‘Sparks’, ‘Ignite’, ‘Flare’, and ‘Lumina’.

InsuranceDekho (Girnar Insurance Brokers Pvt Ltd) and RenewBuy (D2C Insurance Broking Pvt Ltd) have merged to create the largest AI enabled insurance distribution platform in India.

The merged entity will operate under the InsuranceDekho brand and will be led by Ankit Agrawal as the CEO. It is to be noted that the scale of the platform is determined by the Point of Sales Person (POSP) driven premium generated in the FY26.

The IIT Madras has partnered with the UNESCO Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (UNESCO MGIEP) to develop AI-based immersive learning technologies.

The collaboration aims to transform global education systems through the integration of advanced technological solutions.

The National Institute of Electronics & Information Technology (NIELIT) has partnered with the USA-based Saylor University to integrate the digital learning resources of the latter into the NIELIT Digital University (NDU) platform to enhance educational offerings.

The SEBI has signed an MoU with the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) to strengthen bilateral cooperation and the exchange of information.

The collaboration specifically focuses on Central Counterparties (CCPs) regulated and supervised by SEBI.

The UN General Assembly (UNGA) has adopted a resolution, led by Sierra Leone and co-sponsored by 70 nations including India, to declare November 27 as the “International Day for the Elimination of Child, Early and Forced Marriage” annually.

The resolution was passed unanimously by all 193 Member States of the UN during the 80th session of the UNGA in New York. The initiative to establish this global day was championed by Fatima Bion, the First Lady of Sierra Leone and President of the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD), along with Bhuwan Ribhu, the founder of Just Rights for Children (JRC).

Union Minister Rajnath Singh has released a document on Defence Diplomacy named ‘RAKSHA’ in New Delhi. The document outlines the vision of India for strengthening international defence ties over the next 10 years.

The ‘RAKSHA’ framework identifies defence diplomacy as a primary driver for fostering international cooperation and increasing defence exports. It is to be noted that the strategy is integrated with the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Agnikawach Safety Solutions Pvt Ltd has launched ‘Agni Kawach’, the first indigenously developed AI powered safety platform of India.

The platform aims to provide protection against 8 major industrial hazards to establish a global industrial safety ecosystem. It is to be noted that the prototype of the platform has reached Technology Readiness Level 5 (TRL-5).