Current affairs — 26 July 2026

Prelims pointers

• The address says youth from nearly 250 districts of India were connected with the Viksit Vibrant Village Programme 2026.
• Nearly 300,000 youth participated in the competition and more than 400 were selected for the village visits.
• Selected youth stayed for a week in remote villages to observe local life, culture, livelihoods and challenges.
• The villages mentioned in the address were in border regions of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Ladakh.
• The PM linked the programme with the MY Bharat platform and described it as an example of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat.

Prelims pointers

• More than 5,000 MYBharat volunteers from 245 districts joined the Viksit Vibrant Village Programme 2026 interaction virtually.
• The programme sent selected young volunteers to border villages in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Ladakh.
• The release says 2.86 lakh youth participated in a nationwide quiz and 403 volunteers were selected to visit border villages.
• Participants cited improved roads, electricity, Jan Aushadhi Kendras, hospitals, sports facilities and solar-energy installations in visited villages.
• PM Modi connected the programme with Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat and urged citizens to spend at least five per cent of travel budgets on local products.

Prelims pointers

• The Corporate Mitra Scheme is under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and the webinar was organised by IICA Shillong.
• The scheme aims to empower MSMEs, primarily in Tier-3 and Tier-2 cities, in the larger vision of Viksit Bharat @ 2047.
• Corporate Mitras are envisaged as qualified, accredited and trusted para-professionals for MSME compliance and business support.
• The initial pan-India target is 2,000 participants, including 200 exclusively from the North East Region.
• NER candidates have a 50% fee concession, and registration for the course was live from 15 July to 31 July 2026 on SWAYAM Plus.

Prelims pointers

• The address was the 136th episode of Mann Ki Baat and was released in English on 26 July 2026.
• Shaurya Vijay Yatra began on 14 July from the National War Memorial in Delhi and was to reach the Kargil War Memorial in Dras.
• The address says INS Mahendragiri was designed and built in India, with more than 75% indigenous materials used in it.
• DRDO's Pinaka Long-Range Guided Rocket and Kusha missile tests were mentioned in the defence technology section.
• The Catch the Rain campaign was described as active nationwide since 4 July, covering rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, old water bodies and tree plantation.

Prelims pointers

• Mission Jal Raksha is a Rajnandgaon district initiative in Chhattisgarh highlighted under the nationwide Catch the Rain campaign.
• The initiative uses GIS mapping, remote sensing, aquifer mapping, Digital Elevation Models and ridge-to-valley planning.
• More than 60,000 water conservation and recharge structures have been created across 662 villages.
• Over 500 defunct borewells were converted into recharge shafts, and 600+ injection wells were integrated with 1,700+ mini percolation tanks.
• The release reports over 51 lakh person-days of employment and an average groundwater-level rise of approximately 2.04 metres.

Prelims pointers

• 'Prarambh' was a two-day orientation workshop for newly elected and nominated members of the Rajya Sabha.
• The workshop was meant to familiarise members with House rules, procedures, conventions and traditions.
• The release refers to Starred and Unstarred Questions as tools for ensuring government accountability.
• Department-related Parliamentary Committees were described as 'Mini Parliaments' in the valedictory speech.
• Shri Harivansh said digitisation had made the House increasingly paperless and that members are provided with digital devices.

Prelims pointers

• A high-powered task force on examination reforms has been constituted, according to the PMO release.
• The task force is under the leadership of Shri Nandan Nilekani.
• The announcement was made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi through a post on X.
• The PIB release was issued by the Prime Minister's Office on 26 July 2026 at 7:21 PM.
• The release does not provide the task force's terms of reference, membership list or implementation timeline.