Current affairs — 12 August 2026

Prelims pointers

• The PACS computerisation outlay was increased from ₹2,516 crore to ₹2,925.39 crore.
• By 15 July 2026, 63,686 PACS were onboarded and 54,707 had been declared e-PACS.
• The common e-PACS software has 22 ERP modules and is available in 20 languages.
• The National Cooperative Database contains around 8.6 lakh cooperatives from 30 sectors and about 32 crore members.
• The upgraded NCD portal 3.0 and the NCD GeoTag mobile application were launched on 6 July 2026.

Prelims pointers

• The CBDC-based PMGKAY transfer is scheduled for launch on 14 August 2026.
• The rollout covers the Union Territories of Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli.
• Eligible beneficiaries will receive programmable Digital Rupee tokens directly in their CBDC wallets.
• The subsidy tokens can purchase foodgrains from empanelled merchants through a real-time payment mechanism.
• The nationwide proof of concept builds on earlier pilot implementations in Puducherry and Gujarat.

Prelims pointers

• BBSSL was established under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002 as an apex seed organisation.
• The Bharat Beej brand has introduced 124 seed varieties covering 18 crops.
• Associated farmers produced 75,535 metric tonnes of seed during financial year 2025–26.
• BBSSL is developing production and quality-testing requirements for vegetable seeds under prescribed standards.
• Its Uttarakhand programme covers identification, conservation, multiplication and documentation of indigenous varieties.

Prelims pointers

• The Cooperative Ranking Framework was launched on 24 January 2025.
• The framework operates through the National Cooperative Database portal.
• State and Union Territory Registrars can generate rankings for primary societies in 12 sectors.
• Assessment categories include audit compliance, operations, finance, infrastructure and basic identity information.
• The category weightages together carry an overall total of 100 marks.

Prelims pointers

• NCOL markets its certified organic products under the Bharat Organics brand.
• The National Programme for Organic Production is notified by APEDA and serves as India's organic-production benchmark.
• NCOL sources produce from certified farmer groups, Internal Control Systems or other certified operators.
• Mandatory laboratory testing covers pesticide residues and other quality parameters before marketing.
• NCOL has signed MoUs with 28 States and Union Territories to promote the organic cooperative ecosystem.

Prelims pointers

• Bharat Taxi is run by Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Limited, a multi-state cooperative society.
• STCL is registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002.
• The operating framework includes zero commission for drivers and transparent, predictable fares.
• Subscription participation and insurance or welfare linkages are intended to support driver-members.
• The release states that no Government financial support was provided for expansion of Bharat Taxi.

Prelims pointers

• PCIM&H and IPC renewed their MoU for implementing the One Herb, One Standard initiative.
• The renewed inter-ministerial cooperation will continue for a further period of three years.
• It covers single plant-origin drugs used in Ayurveda, Siddha, Sowa-Rigpa, Unani and Homoeopathy.
• The collaboration was initiated in 2022, and its first phase produced 50 medicinal-plant monographs.
• Future monographs will consider Indian standards alongside international quality requirements.

Prelims pointers

• Around 440 space-technology startups are registered in India on the DPIIT Start-up India Portal.
• IN-SPACe has granted 113 authorisations to 52 Non-Government Entities, of which 18 are startups.
• NSIL has signed 118 agreements for transferring 83 ISRO or Department of Space technologies to Indian industry.
• The support package includes a ₹1,000 crore Venture Capital Fund and a ₹500 crore Technology Adoption Fund.
• Cumulative investment in Indian space startups was approximately USD 618.5 million as on 31 March 2026.

Prelims pointers

• The Prime Minister issued the conservation message on the occasion of World Elephant Day.
• He described the elephant as an integral part of India’s ecological heritage.
• India is home to over 60% of the world’s wild Asian elephants, according to the release.
• India has 33 Elephant Reserves that provide habitats and support long-term elephant conservation.
• Forest personnel, scientists, veterinarians, mahouts and local communities were identified as integral to conservation efforts.

Prelims pointers

• The PPP framework allows Non-Government Entities to design, build, own and operate Earth Observation constellations end to end.
• The envisaged mix contains five ultra-high-resolution, three multispectral, two hyperspectral and two X-band SAR satellites.
• Allied Orbits Private Limited is led by PixxelSpace India with Dhruva Space, PierSight Space and Satsure Analytics India.
• The consortium is to invest more than ₹1,200 crore and operationalise its 12-satellite constellation by 2029.
• Technology Adoption Fund support can reach 60% for startups or MSMEs and 40% for larger industries, capped at ₹25 crore per project.

Prelims pointers

• Satellite-derived crop-yield assessment at insurance-unit level covered 10 states in support of PMFBY during 2026.
• Disaster products for floods, landslides, cyclones, fires, GLOFs and droughts are uploaded to BHUVAN and NDEM.
• Indian Earth Observation data coarser than five-metre Ground Sampling Distance are openly and freely available to all users.
• Planned communication technologies include direct-to-device links, 5G or 6G non-terrestrial networks and satellite-based NB-IoT.
• The NavIC roadmap includes Precise Point Positioning, Real-Time Kinematics and indigenous GNSS baseband ASIC development.

Prelims pointers

• The Nuclear Energy Mission seeks to raise India's nuclear-energy capacity to 100 GWe by 2047.
• At least five indigenous Small Modular Reactors are targeted for development and operationalisation by 2033.
• BARC is developing the 220 MWe BSMR-200, the 55 MWe SMR-55 and a gas-cooled reactor of up to five MWth.
• Thorium must first be converted into fissile uranium-233 in a reactor before it can support energy generation.
• The SHANTI Act, 2025 enables wider public and private participation and gives statutory status to AERB.

Prelims pointers

• Security assessments occur internally, through AERB and through external government agencies at all nuclear-power-plant sites.
• Operating plants use perimeter-intrusion detection, access control, X-ray baggage inspection and CCTV monitoring systems.
• CERT-In issues cyber-threat alerts and advisories, coordinates incident response and operates the National Cyber Coordination Centre.
• Off-site table-top exercises occur once in two years and ICCR exercises once in three years.
• Kalpakkam conducted an ICCR-mode off-site emergency exercise on 17 July 2026 with an initiating event from PFBR.

Prelims pointers

• The Pudupuram-Cuddalore deposit contains 1.912 million tonnes of Total Heavy Minerals in coastal Tamil Nadu.
• Its reported constituents include 0.005 million tonnes of monazite, 0.926 million tonnes of ilmenite and 0.063 million tonnes of zircon.
• A 2019 notification set the monazite threshold in beach-sand or placer deposits at 0.00% of Total Heavy Minerals.
• Beach-sand-mineral exports are canalised through IREL under a State Trading Enterprise arrangement notified in 2018.
• Coastal mining lease execution requires environmental clearance supported by an EIA and a BARC radiological survey.

Prelims pointers

• BARC developed 72 crop varieties using radiation-induced mutagenesis together with cross-breeding.
• The portfolio contains 17 groundnut varieties, 10 rice varieties and nine each of mungbean and mustard.
• Candidate varieties undergo multi-location evaluation over years and are released after showing superiority to existing cultivars.
• Radiation-based preservation protocols cover agricultural products including vegetables, fruits, pulses and spices.
• Three private-sector food-irradiation facilities have been commissioned in Uttar Pradesh.

Prelims pointers

• Mo-99, I-131 and Lu-177 together account for nearly 90% of all nuclear-medicine applications.
• Their short half-lives require production at weekly or fortnightly intervals in BARC's Dhruva reactor.
• During normal operations, BRIT can supply about 90% of confirmed medical-radioisotope orders.
• Lu-177 production and supply rose to 976 curies in 2025-26 from 473 curies in 2021-22.
• The planned Isotope Production Reactor is expected to start around 2035 with 0.5 million-curie capacity.

Prelims pointers

• India and SACU signed Terms of Reference at Vanijya Bhawan for negotiations toward a Preferential Trade Agreement.
• The ToR itself does not lower tariffs; preferential treatment depends on concluding a final agreement.
• The proposed negotiations cover eight chapters, including goods, rules of origin, customs, safeguards and dispute settlement.
• SACU emphasised the development needs of its Least Developed Countries and Small and Vulnerable Economies.
• The Commerce Secretary described this as India's first Terms of Reference signing with the African region.