Current affairs — 14 July 2026

Prelims pointers

• The provisional WPI estimates in the release use base year 2022–23.
• All-India WPI inflation for June 2026 was 9.87 per cent year-on-year, compared with 9.68 per cent in May 2026.
• The all-commodities WPI index stood at 110.2 in June 2026, while it was 109.9 in May 2026.
• June 2026 major-group inflation was 7.0 per cent for Primary Articles, 27.41 per cent for Fuel and Power, and 7.48 per cent for Manufactured Products.
• The WPI Food Index has weight 24.99 per cent and recorded 6.14 per cent year-on-year inflation in June 2026.

Prelims pointers

• UNICEF India, PIB Western Zone and AIIMS Nagpur co-organised the two-day workshop on reporting childhood NCDs.
• More than 30 media persons from Western India participated in the childhood NCD capacity-building workshop at AIIMS Nagpur.
• The workshop highlighted NCD risks among children aged 5 to 9 and adolescents aged 10 to 19.
• The release identifies childhood obesity, diabetes and mental health disorders as urban childhood NCD concerns linked to lifestyle changes.
• Maharashtra signed an MoU with AIIMS Nagpur, supported by UNICEF India, to strengthen childhood NCD prevention and management.

Prelims pointers

• PIB organised the one-day Varta workshop at Chitnavis Centre, Nagpur, on India's creative economy workforce.
• Dr Ashish Kulkarni said India currently contributes around 3 percent to the global Orange Economy.
• The release states that India aims to increase its global Orange Economy share to 12-15 percent over the next decade.
• IICT is described as the National Centre of Excellence for the AVGC-XR sector from the NFDC complex in Mumbai since July 2025.
• A proposal mentioned in the release would establish AVGC Content Creator Labs in 500 colleges and 15,000 schools.

Prelims pointers

• The new OPD Block at ESIC Hospital, Sanathnagar was built at a total cost of Rs. 211.13 crore.
• The Sanathnagar ESIC facility is intended to cater to over 12.3 lakh insured persons and beneficiaries across Telangana.
• The release says ESIC beneficiaries increased from around 7.5 crore a decade ago to over 15 crore at present.
• ILO estimates cited in the release place India's social security coverage at over 64 per cent, covering 94 crore people.
• The four Labour Codes replaced 29 existing labour laws, according to the minister's remarks in the release.

Prelims pointers

• The ammonia sensor was developed by researchers at the Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences in Bengaluru.
• The sensing layer is based on a hybrid vanadium oxide-vanadium sulfide heterostructure.
• The developed sensor detected ammonia concentrations as low as 319 parts per billion.
• The device operates efficiently at room temperature, unlike many gas sensors requiring elevated temperatures or external activation.
• A self-powered ammonia detection device was demonstrated by integrating the sensor with a flexible piezoelectric nanogenerator.

Prelims pointers

• The virtual outreach workshops were held on 13 and 14 July 2026 for participants from seven states.
• The Atmanirbhar Panchayat Program is anchored by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj under Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan.
• The programme aims to promote Panchayat financial self-reliance by strengthening Own Source Revenue.
• Eligible Gram Panchayats need minimum OSR of Rs. 50 lakh, while Block Panchayats need minimum OSR of Rs. 1 crore.
• NABARD and HUDCO are institutional partners for project development and financial facilitation under the programme.

Prelims pointers

• The release says the North East had two weather radars before 2014 and has 13 weather radars at present.
• The number of seismological observatories cited in the release increased from 84 before 2014 to 171 at present.
• Specialised lightning detection stations have been established in Meghalaya and Tripura, according to the release.
• Jitendra Singh inaugurated NECTAR's advanced Geo-Informatics Laboratory in Shillong.
• NECTAR's geospatial laboratory has 17 advanced drones, including LiDAR and hyperspectral-enabled VTOL platforms.

Prelims pointers

• Eight additional structural reforms under Reform Express took the total number of implemented reforms to 17.
• Indian Railways set a target of implementing 52 reforms in 52 weeks to enhance efficiency and strengthen the railway ecosystem.
• The new container train framework creates a unified pan-India licence with a Rs. 25 crore non-refundable registration fee.
• For fertiliser movement, the earlier system of nearly fifty freight slabs is replaced with a per tonne per kilometre basis.
• The release says rail transport generates nearly 90 per cent lower carbon emissions than road transport.

Prelims pointers

• The North Eastern Space Applications Centre is located at Umiam, Meghalaya, and serves the eight Northeastern States.
• NESAC is contributing to geospatial mapping of the India–Myanmar border and inter-State boundaries in the Northeast.
• The release says NESAC is implementing nearly 130 space-application projects across the Northeastern region.
• NESAC’s project areas include agriculture, disaster management, natural resources, water planning, infrastructure, healthcare and education.
• The Minister called for collaboration between NESAC, NECBDC and State Governments for bamboo resource mapping.

Prelims pointers

• The first round of India–Maldives FTA negotiations was held virtually from 29 June to 7 July 2026.
• India’s negotiating team was led by Ujjwal Kumar Ghosh, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce.
• The Maldives delegation was led by Chief Negotiator Yusuf Riza, according to the PIB release.
• Negotiators held text-based discussions across eight technical sessions covering eight policy areas.
• India–Maldives bilateral trade rose to USD 771.76 million in 2025–26 from USD 679.70 million in 2024–25.

Prelims pointers

• Tribhuvan Sahkari University held its first convocation at Anand, Gujarat, with Murlidhar Mohol attending as chief guest.
• The release describes Tribhuvan Sahkari University as the country's first national university dedicated to the cooperative sector.
• At the convocation, 302 students of the first graduating batch received graduate degrees and 2 students received PhD degrees.
• The government states that India has more than 8.5 lakh cooperative societies with over 32 crore members.
• Murlidhar Mohol said the cooperative sector will require more than 17 lakh trained youth in the coming years.

Prelims pointers

• The 49th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission was held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 6 to 10 July 2026.
• CAC49 adopted Codex standards for dried coriander seeds and fresh curry leaves developed under India's chairmanship.
• Five additional Codex texts developed under India's co-chairmanship were adopted, including standards for vanilla and large cardamom.
• CAC49 approved India's proposal to begin work on a Codex standard for cashew kernels under the processed fruits and vegetables committee.
• The Indian delegation to CAC49 was led by Rajit Punhani, Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.

Prelims pointers

• CapaCITIES was launched in 2016 and funded by the Embassy of Switzerland to India and Bhutan.
• The programme is implemented through ICLEI South Asia, South Pole and econcept, with NIUA as knowledge partner.
• Supported cities named in the release include Ahmedabad, Rajkot, Vadodara, Coimbatore, Tiruchirappalli, Tirunelveli, Siliguri and Udaipur.
• The event launched three CapaCITIES knowledge products and a video training series on net-zero climate-resilient city action plans.
• The release says CapaCITIES identified INR 7142 billion in climate investments through Net-Zero Climate Resilient City Action Plans.

Prelims pointers

• DDWS organised the 10th District Collectors' Peyjal Samvad through video conferencing to discuss Jal Jeevan Mission 2.0.
• The meeting focused on moving from infrastructure creation to assured and sustainable rural piped water service delivery.
• The DDWS Secretary called for faster Har Ghar Jal Gram Panchayat certification and annual Jal Arpan events in every Gram Panchayat.
• The release says over 1.17 lakh activities have been executed nationwide under Jal Seva Aankalan.
• Five districts presented best practices: Kinnaur, Haveri, Dumka, South Goa and Unakoti.

Prelims pointers

• Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the 15th BRICS Trade Union Forum Summit 2026 in Hyderabad.
• The release says the Four Labour Codes consolidated 29 labour laws into a simplified framework.
• The Minister said the e-Shram portal has registered more than 317 million unorganised workers.
• The release states that EPFO has over 80 million active members and 8 million pensioners.
• The summit's deliberations include universal social security, responsible AI, future skills and women in the changing world of work.

Prelims pointers

• The Udyam Registration Portal provides official identity to MSMEs through a paperless, self-declaration-based and free online process.
• The Udyam Assist Platform brings informal micro enterprises into the formal economy through authorised Udyam Assist Partners.
• Authorised partners for Udyam Assist include banks, NBFCs and other lending institutions using verified enterprise data.
• Registered MSMEs can access schemes related to finance, technology upgradation, quality certification, skills and market access.
• The release says more than 8.9 crore enterprises are registered on the platforms, providing employment to over 38 crore people.

Prelims pointers

• The eighth tranche of critical and strategic mineral block auctions is scheduled to be launched on 15 July 2026 in New Delhi.
• The eighth tranche comprises 20 critical and strategic mineral blocks spread across nine states.
• Of the 20 blocks, 13 are newly identified blocks and 7 are being offered under the second attempt.
• The mineral list includes rare earth elements, lithium, graphite, gallium, tungsten, vanadium, potash and rubidium.
• Across seven completed tranches, 56 of 88 critical and strategic mineral blocks were successfully auctioned.