Current affairs — 1 July 2026

Prelims pointers

• China’s dam-building on the upper reaches in Tibet has prompted India to propose an 11,000-megawatt dam on the Siang River.
• The Siang Upper Multipurpose Project consolidates two 2013 MoU proposals of 6,000 MW Stage-I and 3,750 MW Stage-II.
• The proposed project near Geku village has a tentative investment of ₹1,13,000 crore and a height of 280-300 metres.
• The river is known in Tibet as the Yarlung Tsangpo, enters India near Gelling, and later joins the Dibang and Lohit to form the Brahmaputra.
• Local protests have blocked NHPC pre-feasibility studies, while estimates of displaced or affected villages range from 27 to up to 300.

Prelims pointers

• India’s Index of Industrial Production grew 5.1% in May 2026, a five-month high, after 4.9% growth in April.
• The manufacturing sector grew 5.5% in May, though this was slower than its growth in April.
• Consumer durables and non-durables grew at multi-month highs, with consumer durables doing well in April and May.
• MoSPI changed the deflator for some sectors from the Wholesale Price Index to the new Producer Price Index.
• The Index of Eight Core Sectors grew at its second-lowest rate in 21 months in May, despite strong IIP growth.

Prelims pointers

• The invasive giant African snail, Lissachatina fulica, is spreading across Tirunavaya panchayat and has entered school campuses.
• Health experts warned that the snail can carry Angiostrongylus cantonensis, the rat lungworm parasite that can cause eosinophilic meningitis.
• Keerthy Vijayan led a KFRI study with researchers from the University of Nottingham, the Natural History Museum in London and an UAE agency.
• The giant African snail is native to East Africa and is listed by the IUCN among the world’s 100 worst invasive species.
• The snail was found in all 14 Kerala districts by 2022 and in more than 270 locations across the State by 2023.

Prelims pointers

• The Faizabad Bar passed a resolution to deny legal representation to accused persons in the Ram Temple embezzlement case.
• The article cites the 2010 Supreme Court judgment in A.S. Mohammed Rafi versus State of Tamil Nadu.
• Justices Markandey Katju and Gyan Sudha Misra declared such Bar resolutions wholly illegal and against professional ethics.
• The judgment referred to Article 22(1), which protects an arrested person’s right to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of choice.
• The Bar Council of India Rules require an advocate to accept a brief unless special circumstances justify refusal.

Prelims pointers

• Twenty-three Opposition parties sent a joint memorandum to Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant alleging biased conduct by the Election Commission.
• The memorandum highlighted Special Intensive Revision exercises in States such as West Bengal and Bihar and the ongoing exercise in other States.
• The DMK and Aam Aadmi Party signed the letter, though AAP is not part of the INDIA bloc and DMK had skipped the bloc meeting.
• The decision to send the joint letter was taken during an INDIA bloc meeting held in Delhi on June 8.
• On May 27, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the SIR in Bihar under Article 324 and Section 21(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.

Prelims pointers

• Citizenship is defined in the article as full and equal membership of a country.
• Hannah Arendt is quoted as describing citizenship as the ‘right to have rights’.
• Jus soli means ‘right of soil’, where citizenship is determined by place of birth irrespective of parents’ citizenship.
• The article lists Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina among countries following jus soli for children born within their territory.
• Jus sanguinis means ‘right of blood’, where a child’s citizenship is determined by the citizenship of the parents.

Prelims pointers

• Anthropic said the U.S. Department of Commerce lifted export controls on Claude Fable 5 and Mythos 5.
• U.S. authorities had earlier blocked access to the models on national-security grounds.
• The government forced Anthropic to cut off access on June 12 after finding vulnerabilities in safeguards against misuse.
• Four days before the announcement, Anthropic had received authorization for a small group of American cybersecurity firms to access Mythos 5.
• CIA Director John Ratcliffe compared the capabilities of advanced AI models to digital nuclear weapons at an AWS summit in Washington.

Prelims pointers

• The Bengal fox is identified in the article by the scientific name Vulpes bengalensis.
• Bengal foxes are known for monogamous behaviour, according to the article’s opening note.
• Traditional Sangam literature referred to Bengal foxes as common in the dry, arid grasslands of south India.
• Forest officials said the species is now known only in pockets of Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, Salem, Madurai and Villupuram.
• The article cites expanding agriculture, urbanisation into traditional strongholds and hunting as reasons for sparse sightings.

Prelims pointers

• The Democratic Republic of Congo reported 1,333 confirmed Ebola cases in the latest outbreak.
• Cases were recorded in the eastern provinces of Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu.
• The outbreak was declared on May 15, according to the article’s government-data account.
• A pregnant woman’s body was transported about 300 km from Ituri’s Niania health zone to Kisangani in Tshopo province before testing positive.
• Haut-Uele neighbours Ituri and also shares borders with South Sudan and the Central African Republic.

Prelims pointers

• The HSBC India Manufacturing PMI slowed to 54.2 in June 2026, its second-lowest level in four years.
• A PMI reading above 50 denotes expansion in activity, while a reading below 50 implies contraction.
• The only lower manufacturing PMI reading in the four-year period was in March 2026.
• The report said the capital goods sector was the primary driver of the June slowdown.
• International demand improved in June, but the pace of growth was the weakest in 39 months.

Prelims pointers

• An AP count cited over 50 reported Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries, depots, terminals and other oil infrastructure since late March.
• Russia processed 3.95 million barrels per day of crude oil into fuel in June, down 25% from a year earlier, according to Gary Peach.
• Gasoline production fell 17% to 850,000 barrels a day from 1.03 million barrels a day a year earlier.
• Chris Weafer estimated that about one-third of Russia’s oil refining capacity was offline.
• By late June, some form of gas rationing was reported in over half of Russia’s regions.

Prelims pointers

• Pokkhi currently features 372 resident and migratory bird species recorded in Assam, with Assamese and English common names.
• Each species entry on Pokkhi includes a brief description and its IUCN conservation status.
• The platform lists 321 species as least concern or having stable populations, out of 372 species featured.
• Pokkhi records eight critically endangered species, including the Bengal florican and Yellow-breasted bunting.
• Its identification guide explains field marks such as supercilium, lore, tarsus and vent for birdwatchers.

Prelims pointers

• Spain recorded at least 1,028 heat-related deaths during the recent heatwave, according to the public Carlos III Health Institute.
• June 2025 had 407 heat-attributed deaths in Spain and was described by Aemet as Spain’s hottest June since records began.
• The first six months of 2026 were Spain’s hottest first semester on record, with temperatures 1.6°C above normal on average.
• June 2026 was Spain’s second-hottest June, with temperatures on average 3.2°C above the norm, according to Aemet.
• World Weather Attribution said the late-June European heatwave would have been virtually impossible in June without climate change.

Prelims pointers

• The delisting was from OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List.
• The four Indian firms were RRG Engineering Technologies, Lokesh Machines, Galaxy Bearings and Shaurya Aeronautics.
• Galaxy Bearings had been sanctioned in October 2024 over alleged exports of roller bearings and roller assemblies to Russian entities.
• Shaurya Aeronautics had been accused of sending radar apparatus, radio navigational aid apparatus and radio remote control apparatus to Russia.
• RRG Engineering Technologies had been accused of over 100 shipments of microelectronics to SDN-listed Russia-based Arteks Limited Company.

Prelims pointers

• The study compared rutile oxides, which share the same crystal structure although titanium dioxide is an insulator and ruthenium dioxide is a good conductor.
• The research was driven partly by debate over whether ruthenium dioxide has altermagnetism, described as a rare and unconventional type of magnetism.
• The IIT-Delhi team used Raman scattering, measuring changes in laser light after it bounced off vibrating atoms in the material.
• Samples were cooled from room temperature down to –262.15°C using an indigenously developed low-temperature Raman scattering facility at IIT-Delhi.
• The metallic rutile oxides stiffened more on cooling than the Klemens model predicted, pointing to electron-phonon interactions in the lattice.

Prelims pointers

• The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Arabian Sea through the Gulf of Oman.
• Iran asserted control over the waterway after the U.S. joined Israel in launching war against Iran on February 28, 2026.
• Article 5 of the June 17 U.S.-Iran MoU promises safe commercial passage with no charges for only 60 days.
• The MoU says Iran will remove mines and other technical impediments within 30 days of signing the memorandum.
• Iran wants vessels to use its designated route and coordinate with the newly created Persian Gulf Strait Authority.

Prelims pointers

• State deficits arise when expenditure exceeds tax and other receipts, and the gap is usually financed through market borrowings.
• The article states that tax-raising power in India rests largely with the Union government.
• Most State expenditure is on social sectors like health and education and economic sectors like agriculture and irrigation.
• For 2020-23, per capita State social expenditure was 30% higher in Kerala and 20% higher in Tamil Nadu than the all-State average.
• For 2020-23, per capita State social expenditure was 35% lower in Bihar and 40% lower in Uttar Pradesh than the all-State average.

Prelims pointers

• GST revenue grew 13.9% to ₹1.95 lakh crore in June 2026, the highest growth rate in 13 months.
• GST revenue from domestic transactions grew 6.5% to about ₹1.35 lakh crore in June 2026.
• Domestic transactions formed 69% of total GST revenue in June 2026, down from 74% in June last year.
• Import revenue growth was in double digits for the 16th consecutive month and exceeded domestic growth for the 10th straight month.
• Tax experts flagged input tax credits, dispute resolution, multiple registrations and inverted duty structure as issues still needing reform.

Prelims pointers

• MeitY sent the notice to WhatsApp’s chief compliance officer in India over the planned username feature.
• The notice sought a detailed explanation on the username feature within three days.
• The government cited risks of online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams and impersonation attacks.
• WhatsApp said high-profile names and lookalike derivatives of known names are being held to prevent impersonation.
• The article says WhatsApp has over 800 million users in India, more than a fourth of its global 3 billion user base.

Prelims pointers

• The HLCDC will seek State-wise details of population changes and increases in settlements since the 2011 Census.
• Population Census 2027 is being conducted after a 16-year gap from the last Census conducted in 2011.
• The House Listing and Housing Operations phase is set to conclude on September 30 this year.
• The SIR has been completed in 13 States and UTs, with 6.5 crore names deleted from electoral rolls.
• The committee is headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Prakash Prabhakar Navlekar.

Prelims pointers

• The suo motu PIL concerns about 296 acres of cardamom title land at Gudanpara Estate in Idukki.
• Gudanpara Estate falls under the Ponmudi Forest Section of the Devikulam Range.
• Three Forest department cases have been registered over the alleged felling of rare tree species.
• The estate is described as containing more than 600 varieties of trees and wildlife habitat.
• A separate CHR case last year involved over 1,000 indigenous trees felled on 40 acres at Uchilukuth in Santhanpara.

Prelims pointers

• The 12th India-Malaysia SCMC was held in New Delhi on 1 July 2026.
• The meeting was co-chaired by India’s Joint Secretary Amitabh Prasad and Malaysian Armed Forces Maj Gen Amer Mahmud Bin Abdul Rahman.
• The discussions included military exchanges, bilateral exercises, training, staff talks, capacity building and maritime cooperation.
• Both sides discussed cooperation in defence industry, defence technology, cyber security and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
• The SCMC is described as the principal military-to-military consultative mechanism and precursor to the Defence Cooperation Meeting.

Prelims pointers

• India’s first private Point-in-Space Instrument Approach Procedure for helicopter operations was approved for Undavalli Heliport.
• The PinS procedure was developed by the Airports Authority of India and approved by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
• PinS procedures use satellite-based navigation for precise instrument approaches to heliports without conventional instrument landing infrastructure.
• The procedure was designed in accordance with DGCA regulations and ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices.
• The release says similar PinS procedures can benefit emergency medical services, disaster relief, tourism, offshore activities and regional connectivity.

Prelims pointers

• The MoU was signed between ICAR, Government of India, and the Agriculture Department of Seychelles’ Ministry of Fisheries, Agriculture and Blue Economy.
• The agreement seeks cooperation in agricultural research, education, capacity building and technology transfer between India and Seychelles.
• A five-year Work Plan for 2026–2031 was signed to operationalise the ICAR-Seychelles agricultural cooperation MoU.
• The Work Plan covers climate-smart agriculture, horticulture, post-harvest management, livestock development and food and nutritional security.
• The release states that ICAR has signed more than 100 Memoranda of Understanding with partner institutions across the world.

Prelims pointers

• The NH-148AE tunnel project will connect Dwarka Expressway (NH 248 BB) with Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj in Delhi.
• The project length is 8.100 km, including 3.140 km of tunnel, 0.980 km of tunnel approach ramp and elevated and at-grade stretches.
• The approved total capital cost is Rs.6969.67 crore, with implementation on Hybrid Annuity Mode under the NH (O) scheme.
• A 1.98 km tunnel section passes beneath the Southern Ridge Forest to minimise surface disruption.
• The tunnel is designed as a twin-tube tunnel to be constructed through TBM, taking off from Shivmurti Interchange.

Prelims pointers

• The approved Kanpur–Kabrai corridor is 117.7 km long and is planned as a four-lane access-controlled greenfield highway.
• The project is part of the Bhopal–Kanpur Economic Corridor under the National Highways (O) Programme.
• NHAI will implement the Rs.7145.14 crore project on BOT (Toll) mode, along with operation and maintenance of the existing NH-34 section.
• The corridor is designed for 80–100 kmph operating speeds and is expected to cut Kanpur–Kabrai travel time from 3.5 hours to 1.5 hours.
• The project is aligned with the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan and is expected to improve connectivity to economic, social and logistics nodes.

Prelims pointers

• The Finance Minister’s visit to France is described as an official four-day visit.
• She will co-chair the India–France Economic & Financial Dialogue with Roland Lescure at Aix-en-Provence.
• The visit includes one-to-one meetings with select global CEOs and a roundtable interaction with business executives.
• The Finance Minister will visit ITER at Cadarache, described as a major international collaboration on nuclear fusion energy.
• Campus Cyber is described as France’s national hub for cybersecurity innovation, research, skill development and collaboration.

Prelims pointers

• Digital India was launched on 1 July 2015, and the PIB release marks 11 years of the initiative.
• UPI was launched in 2016–17 and enables instant, interoperable person-to-person and person-to-merchant transactions across banks.
• The release says UPI accounts for nearly 49 per cent of the world’s real-time payment transaction volume.
• Poshan Tracker is under Saksham Anganwadi & Mission Poshan 2.0 and is developed by the Ministry of Women & Child Development.
• Indiahandmade is a Ministry of Textiles initiative developed by Digital India Corporation and lists over 21,000 handcrafted and handloom products.

Prelims pointers

• The World Bank Group said in a June 29 statement that it would retire the 45% climate co-benefits target and the 35% CCAP target.
• The Climate Change Action Plan was launched in 2020 for a five-year period ending 2026.
• The CCAP initially mandated 35% of total WBG financing for emissions-reduction or climate-adaptation projects, and the goal rose to 45% in 2023.
• In April, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent criticised the 45% climate finance target as moving the Bank away from its core mission.
• The World Bank said it would continue to support countries’ national plans and Nationally Determined Contributions.

Prelims pointers

• The Strait of Hormuz designation as a warlike operations area was retained until at least July 9, 2026.
• The decision was announced by the International Transport Workers’ Federation and the Joint Negotiating Group.
• The Strait of Hormuz was first designated a warlike operations area on March 5 after ship attacks.
• The status covers ships under International Bargaining Forum labour agreements, around 15,000 vessels worldwide.
• At least 14 seafarers have been killed and more than 40 ships attacked during the conflict.

Prelims pointers

• Myanmar’s military ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021.
• ACLED recorded 100,114 conflict-related fatalities in Myanmar since the coup.
• The United Nations says more than 3.7 million people are internally displaced in Myanmar.
• ACLED registered more than 1,200 distinct armed groups in Myanmar’s civil war.
• The report links the war to refugees in Thailand and Bangladesh, drugs and online scam centres.

Prelims pointers

• Amnesty alleged RSF crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing in El-Fasher between 2024 and 2025.
• Sudan’s war between the army and RSF has continued since April 2023.
• Amnesty interviewed 247 victims or witnesses between early 2024 and October 2025 in North Darfur.
• The report said RSF attacked settlements around El-Fasher that housed the Zaghawa people.
• A UN independent fact-finding mission in February said the 2025 assault bore the hallmarks of genocide.

Prelims pointers

• China’s Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress came into effect on July 1, 2026.
• The law aims to forge a shared national identity and strengthen Mandarin as the official language.
• Campaigners warn the law may affect minority groups such as Uyghurs and Tibetans.
• The report notes a clause allowing people outside China to be held liable for violating the law.
• UN rights chief Volker Turk called for the law to be repealed, citing risks to multiple freedoms.

Prelims pointers

• The U.S. and Iran held technical talks in Doha on July 1, 2026, over Hormuz shipping and a ceasefire.
• Qatar mediated the talks alongside Pakistan, according to the source cited in the report.
• The talks were based on a 14-point interim accord signed the previous month.
• The interim accord set up 60 days of negotiations for a permanent peace deal.
• Before the war, the Strait of Hormuz handled one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade.

Prelims pointers

• The preliminary report was by the UN’s Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence.
• Yoshua Bengio, co-chair of the 40-member cross-regional panel, said AI capabilities are outpacing science and governments.
• The report says AI task complexity is doubling every four to seven months.
• The panel flagged risks including misinformation, fraud, cyberattacks and biological threats.
• The AI for Good Global Commission will be co-chaired by Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff.