Current affairs — 6 July 2026

Prelims pointers

• NCRB data cited in the article show 4,24,235 missing people remain untraced, including 2,64,934 women and 13 transgender persons.
• Tamil Nadu alone has 5,524 missing persons yet to be located, according to the report.
• G. Deepak Raj Rao of National Forensic Sciences University, Chennai, said AI can process information at a scale and speed impossible for humans.
• The article says the first 24 to 48 hours are critical in a missing-child case.
• Southern Railway officials said facial-recognition cameras and AI-assisted surveillance tools were expected at railway stations.

Prelims pointers

• MeitY directed Meta to disable Instagram advertisements and content promoting access to child sexual exploitative and abuse material.
• The Ministry demanded a detailed explanation and relevant action-taken information from Meta within seven days.
• The notice followed a BBC Eye investigation alleging paid Instagram ads in India linked users to Telegram channels selling such material.
• The IT Act, 2000 provides punishment for publishing or transmitting obscene and child sexually explicit material in electronic form.
• Under the IT Rules, 2021, intermediaries must remove such content within 24 hours or risk losing safe-harbour protection.

Prelims pointers

• WHO and UNICEF recommend initiating breastfeeding within one hour of birth and continuing exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months.
• NFHS-6 reports institutional deliveries at 90.6%, early initiation of breastfeeding rising from 41.8% to 50.1%, and EBF falling from 63.7% to 55.8%.
• Uttar Pradesh’s exclusive breastfeeding rate fell from 59.7% to 34.6%, while Haryana’s fell from 69.5% to 41.2%.
• Caesarean-section rates rose from 21.5% to 27.2%, accounting for more than half of all births in private hospitals.
• The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, as amended in 2017, gives 26 weeks of paid maternity leave mainly to organised-sector workers.

Prelims pointers

• On May 1, the U.S. FDA approved vepdegestrant for ESR1-mutated, ER-positive and HER2-negative advanced breast cancer.
• Vepdegestrant is described as the world’s first FDA-approved therapy based on PROTAC technology.
• PROTAC stands for proteolysis-targeting chimaera.
• A PROTAC has one end binding the target protein and another binding an E3 ligase involved in cellular protein degradation.
• The first demonstration of targeted protein degradation by Yale and Caltech research groups was in 2001, with a follow-up cellular study in 2003.

Prelims pointers

• ISRO conducted the SOLVE solid motor ground test at the Static Test Facility, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
• SOLVE is intended as a test platform for Integrated Parachute Tests of the Gaganyaan Crew Module deceleration system.
• The SOLVE solid stage is derived from the PSLV strap-on motor but modified for Gaganyaan test requirements.
• During SOLVE test missions, the Crew Module will be carried to an altitude of about 10-17 km before separation.
• Gaganyaan’s Crew Module deceleration system comprises 10 parachutes of four types for safe splashdown in sea waters.

Prelims pointers

• The CJEU dismissed Google’s appeal on July 2, 2026 and confirmed a €4.1 billion Android antitrust penalty.
• The European Commission had originally fined Google €4.34 billion in 2018 over Android-related exclusivity agreements.
• The General Court trimmed the EU fine to €4.1 billion in 2022 before Google appealed to the CJEU.
• India’s Competition Commission imposed a ₹1,337.76 crore penalty on Google in 2022 in the Android ecosystem matter.
• NCLAT upheld the ₹1,337.76 crore penalty in March 2023 but set aside four of the ten non-penalty interventions.

Prelims pointers

• Gujarat’s Snake Research Institute handed over freeze-dried venom from four medically important venomous snakes found in the State.
• India’s polyvalent antivenom targets the Indian cobra, common krait, Russell’s viper and saw-scaled viper.
• The Irula Snake Catchers’ Industrial Co-operative Society in Chengalpattu remains India’s principal venom supplier for licensed manufacturers.
• Research has documented geographical variation in Indian cobra, krait and Russell’s viper venoms across parts of India.
• A new antivenom formulation would need multicentric validation, standardised manufacturing and regulatory evaluation before routine use.

Prelims pointers

• A quasar is the intensely luminous core of a distant galaxy powered by a supermassive black hole.
• Euclid helped an international team discover 31 quasars, including the two oldest observed so far.
• Euclid is at a stable hovering spot around 1.5 million kilometres from Earth.
• The oldest pair’s light comes from when the universe was roughly 670 million years old.
• The newly discovered quasars date back to the epoch of reionisation, when early stars and galaxies formed.

Prelims pointers

• Wildfires across Portugal, Spain, France and Greece devastated more than 19,000 hectares of land, according to the article.
• In southwestern France near Perpignan, more than 10,000 local residents were evacuated because of a large blaze.
• Authorities said wind, intense heat and exceptionally dry air helped the French fire nearly triple in size since early Sunday.
• The article cites World Weather Attribution as saying the recent June heatwave would have been virtually impossible without climate change.
• Portugal’s emergency services said they had controlled 80% of a wildfire that devastated about 13,000 hectares in the north.

Prelims pointers

• Only around 5% of British homes have air conditioning, while half overheat during summer months, according to the cited 2025 report.
• England experienced its warmest June since records began in 1884 for the second successive year.
• The article says all five of Britain’s warmest summers have occurred in the 21st century.
• Rajat Gupta warned that AC increases electricity demand, energy bills and carbon emissions and can worsen urban heat islands.
• Suggested passive measures include exterior and interior shading, better ventilation, greening, reflective materials and natural ventilation.

Prelims pointers

• The project is in the Pichavaram mangrove region straddling the Vellar and Coleroon estuaries in Tamil Nadu.
• NABARD funds the initiative under the TRIBES scheme at an outlay of ₹25.37 lakh.
• As many as 250 bee boxes will be installed across the mangrove ecosystem for sustainable livelihoods.
• The initiative is designed to support 100 Irula tribal households, or about 200 beneficiaries.
• The honey will be marketed as Pichavaram Mangrove Honey through eco-shops, tourism outlets, exhibitions and digital platforms.

Prelims pointers

• Vikram-1 is described as India’s first privately developed orbital-class rocket.
• The rocket is expected to be launched sometime between July 12 and August 4.
• Skyroot Aerospace announced on July 6 that Vikram-1 will carry six payloads onboard.
• Technology demonstration payloads include contributions from Graaha Space, Dcubed and Skyroot’s SCOPE.
• The international payload uD3PP and mD3RN was developed by Dcubed GmbH, Germany.

Prelims pointers

• On July 4, 2026, the government lifted emergency curbs on natural gas supply imposed during the West Asia crisis.
• The government cited ceasefire, negotiations and resumption of sea traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
• The March priority sequence gave domestic piped gas and CNG for vehicles 100% supply without cuts.
• Fertilizer plants were earlier to receive up to 70% supply under the emergency priority sequence.
• LNG is mostly methane cooled to around -160°C, shipped in tankers and re-gasified at port terminals.

Prelims pointers

• The BRICS Heads of Anti-Drug Agencies’ Meeting 2026 was held as a two-day event in Guwahati.
• BRICS expanded beyond Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Indonesia.
• The article says BRICS countries represent almost half the global population and more than 40% of world GDP.
• India hosted heads of anti-drug agencies from BRICS nations for the first time, according to NCB Director General Anurag Garg.
• The meeting agenda included synthetic drugs, precursor chemicals, intelligence sharing, operational coordination and institutional cooperation.

Prelims pointers

• Mr. Modi arrived in Indonesia on July 6, 2026, on the first leg of a tour to Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand.
• The visit is linked to India’s Act East Policy, MAHASAGAR vision and a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific outlook.
• India and Indonesia elevated their ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2018.
• Mr. Modi and President Prabowo Subianto were scheduled to visit the Prambanan Temple complex in Yogyakarta.
• President Prabowo had visited India as chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in January 2025.

Prelims pointers

• TNSCZMA defended CRZ clearance for the proposed Mamallan Reservoir before the NGT’s Southern Bench.
• The challenged CRZ clearance for the Kovalam sub-basin reservoir was issued in December 2025.
• Phase I is proposed over 1,770.5 hectares with storage capacity of 1.655 tmc ft.
• The authority said the project would address drinking water shortage and mitigate floods and seawater intrusion.
• Fishing communities alleged lack of consultation and possible harm to livelihoods, fisheries, mangroves and the estuary.

Prelims pointers

• Amit Shah said a cooperative life insurance company will be set up to boost India’s cooperative sector.
• India has around 8.5 lakh cooperatives with more than 30 crore members, according to the report.
• Bharat Taxi is described as a cooperative-based ride-hailing platform to be expanded to 500 cities in two years.
• The government is establishing Tribhuvan Sahkari University at Anand in Gujarat to augment human resources.
• The programme marked transformation of 50,000 Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies into e-PACS.

Prelims pointers

• A national-level Adivasi conclave at Bhadrachalam adopted a 10-point resolution on July 6.
• The resolution demanded effective Fifth Schedule implementation and PESA-based Gram Sabha self-governance.
• Tribal leaders from Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Maharashtra participated.
• The resolutions sought strict enforcement of the Land Transfer Regulation Act 1 of 1970 and the Forest Rights Act.
• Other demands included a separate religion code for indigenous tribal faiths and Eighth Schedule inclusion of Koyithur language.

Prelims pointers

• The ECI issued notifications on 6 July 2026 for bye-elections in 22-Datia, 145-Manjalpur and 182-Bankipur Assembly constituencies.
• The issue of notifications commenced the nomination-filing process for the three Assembly constituency bye-elections.
• Section 135B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 requires paid holiday for eligible voters employed in specified establishments.
• The paid holiday benefit also applies to casual and daily-wage workers entitled to vote in the constituency going to poll.
• Section 135C bars sale, giving or distribution of liquor and similar intoxicants within the polling area during the specified 48-hour period.

Prelims pointers

• The Department of Consumer Affairs amended the Legal Metrology (General) Rules, 2011 for high-capacity weighing instruments.
• The earlier rule required at least one tonne or 50 per cent of maximum capacity in standard weights, whichever was greater.
• The revised rule reduces the mandatory standard-weight requirement to one-fifth, or 20 per cent, of maximum capacity after repeatability testing.
• The amendment is based on internationally accepted metrological principles using repeatability tests for consistency and stability.
• The release presents the reform as balancing trade facilitation with accuracy, fairness and consumer protection in commercial transactions.

Prelims pointers

• The 134th meeting of CAQM’s Enforcement Task Force was held on 6 July 2026.
• CAQM Flying Squads conducted 173 inspections during the 17-day period from 14 June to 30 June 2026.
• Of the 173 inspections, 15 were at C&D sites, 91 in the industrial sector and 67 related to DG sets.
• The release reported 62 violations, including 7 at C&D sites, 31 in industry and 24 related to DG sets.
• Cumulative data as on 6 July 2026 showed 27,750 inspections and 1,802 closure directions issued.

Prelims pointers

• The study used the e-MERLIN radio array to observe 280 nearby galaxies selected from the Palomar sample.
• An international team including Dr. Aru Beri from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics participated in the study.
• Compact radio emission was detected from the centres of nearly one-quarter of the observed galaxies.
• NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory data complemented the radio observations to strengthen the findings.
• The study was published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Prelims pointers

• MoSPI released the report of the Expert Committee on Energy Statistics through the press note.
• The Expert Committee was chaired by Dr. Rangan Banerjee, Director of IIT Delhi.
• The Committee recommended aligning energy-statistics tabulation with ISIC Rev. 5, NIC-2025 and SIEC.
• The Committee recommended uniform conversion factors across line energy ministries for inter-ministerial consistency.
• The report addressed data gaps including biofuels, captive or off-grid electricity and electricity consumption by EVs.

Prelims pointers

• The Ministry of Tribal Affairs will hold the TRI workshop on July 7-8, 2026 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
• The workshop aims to review TRIs and build a roadmap to make them knowledge and policy support hubs.
• TribeX is described as a first-of-its-kind digital learning platform for tribal heritage and skills.
• Around 200 participants from TRIs, State departments, academia, NGOs and technology organisations will attend.
• The workshop is expected to adopt the Bhubaneswar Declaration on strengthening Tribal Research Institutes.

Prelims pointers

• India was a net importer of finished steel in quantity terms during the April-June 2026 period.
• A Steel Ministry Chintan Shivir on June 24, 2026 highlighted digitalisation in the steel sector.
• MECON Limited received Miniratna Category-I status for financial performance and operational excellence.
• DGTR initiated an anti-dumping investigation into hot-rolled flat steel imports from China, Japan and Russia.
• SAIL supplied 5,700 tonnes of special steel used in INS Dunagiri, INS Agray and INS Sanshodhak.

Prelims pointers

• The Minister asked the leather and footwear industry to target at least USD 15 billion in exports over the next five to six years.
• The source states that the sector is currently exporting goods worth around USD 4-4.5 billion.
• The release says 77 per cent of India’s leather exports currently go to only 15 countries.
• The Minister stated that the sector already employs more than 40 lakh, or over four million, people.
• The release notes that around 40 per cent of those working in the leather and footwear sector are women.

Prelims pointers

• The release says an integrated cooperation database covers 8,58,000 cooperative societies across 30 sectors and 32 crore members.
• The Minister stated that 50 important amendments were made to the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002.
• According to the release, 55,000 PACS are providing more than 300 services to villagers through CSCs.
• The release states that the Government of India spent Rs. 3,000 crore to computerise PACS.
• The event marked the milestone of transforming 50,000 PACS into e-PACS for digital empowerment of grassroots cooperative institutions.

Prelims pointers

• Mahendragiri (F38) is identified as the sixth Project 17A indigenous stealth frigate of the Indian Navy.
• The commissioning of Mahendragiri was scheduled at Visakhapatnam on 11 July 2026.
• The frigate was designed in-house by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited, Mumbai.
• The release states that Mahendragiri has over 75 per cent indigenous content.
• Mahendragiri is powered by a Combined Diesel or Gas propulsion system and includes advanced weapons, sensors and an integrated Combat Management System.

Prelims pointers

• The review meeting was chaired by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi.
• The meeting assessed project-level progress of National Highways Logistics Management Limited initiatives.
• Projects reviewed included Multi Modal Logistics Parks, ropeways, intermodal stations and wayside amenities.
• The release says these projects aim to strengthen multimodal connectivity and improve India’s logistics competitiveness.
• The Minister directed stakeholders to resolve implementation bottlenecks on priority and expedite project execution.

Prelims pointers

• The Chintan Shivir on seafood opportunities under India-EFTA TEPA was held on 3 July 2026 at Chennai Trade Centre.
• EFTA member states named in the release are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
• The release describes TEPA as India’s first operational trade arrangement with a European economic bloc.
• TEPA carries an ambition to facilitate USD 100 billion in investments into India and support one million direct jobs.
• Norway eliminated its 13.16 per cent import duty on feed, including fish and shrimp feed, under the cited concessions.

Prelims pointers

• FPI inflow into India’s bond market crossed ₹55,518 crore in June 2026, according to the article.
• In early June 2026, the Government of India waived Long-Term Capital Gains tax on foreign investment in bonds.
• RBI and the Centre expanded FAR to include 15-year, 30-year and 40-year Government Securities and Sovereign Green Bonds.
• Investments under the Fully Accessible Route recorded an inflow of ₹21,652 crore in June 2026, the highest since September 2024.
• The bond inflows more than compensated for the significant equity outflow of ₹49,340 crore mentioned in the article.

Prelims pointers

• SEBI reportedly aims to nearly double the number of shares eligible for stock lending and borrowing.
• The planned changes also include cutting collateral requirements, according to people cited in the article.
• The National Stock Exchange accounts for about 95% of India’s cash equities market, the article states.
• Of roughly 2,600 NSE-listed companies, only 176 are currently eligible for borrowing and lending.
• One eligibility threshold cited is average monthly trading turnover of at least ₹1 billion over the previous six months.

Prelims pointers

• CREA projects a generation gap of nearly 18 TWh over one year to June 2027 due to weaker wind and hydropower and higher cooling demand.
• India’s total electricity generation was about 1,846 billion units in 2025-26, and non-fossil sources supplied 29.2% of it.
• CREA’s median projected gap is 17.7 TWh, while its most severe scenario is 24 TWh; one TWh equals a billion units.
• IMD forecast below-normal southwest monsoon rainfall at 90% of the long-period average, with a 60% chance of a deficient season.
• As of March 31, India’s non-fossil installed capacity was 283.46 GW, including 150.26 GW solar and 56.09 GW wind.