Daily Current Affairs - 12 August 2026

President Droupadi Murmu will confer Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships (Akademi Ratna) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards for 2024 and 2025 to 115 artists on 13 August 2026 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. The seven Akademi Ratna fellows are: Ramlal Bareth, A V Anand, Rita Ganguly, Puru Dadheech, Chittaranjan Jyotishi, Pasumarthi Rattaiah Sarma, and Sudharani Raghupathy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release the autobiography of former President Ram Nath Kovind, titled 'Triumph of the Indian Republic: My Life, My Struggles', on 12 August 2026 at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.

Afghanistan secured direct qualification for the 2027 Men's ODI World Cup, while West Indies will go through qualifiers; the tournament will be hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.

Under the National Green Hydrogen Mission SIGHT Mode-2B, 30 KTPA green hydrogen production capacity has been awarded to four refineries: IOCL Panipat (10 KTPA), BPCL Bina (5 KTPA), HPCL Vizag (5 KTPA), and NRL Numaligarh (10 KTPA).

India's logistics cost is estimated at 7.9% of GDP as per a 2025 assessment by DPIIT and NCAER.

Indian Navy's Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel (NGOPV) 'Shruti' (Yard 3037) was launched at Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata on 11 August 2026.

At the 9th India-US Civil Space Joint Working Group in Bengaluru on 5-6 August 2026, NASA invited ISRO to join its Moon Base programme under the Artemis Accords; both sides advanced cooperation under the US-India TRUST Initiative and noted the 2025 launch of the NISAR mission.

The Fourth India-Namibia Joint Trade Committee was held in New Delhi on 10-11 August 2026; bilateral merchandise trade reached USD 592.94 million in 2025-26, with engineering exports surging 124.06%.

IRS net direct tax collections stood at over ₹8.11 lakh crore for FY2026-27, marking a 23.09% growth over the same period in FY2025-26 (as on 10 August 2026).

Government e-Marketplace (GeM) surpassed ₹20 lakh crore in cumulative procurement through over 3 crore orders as it completed 10 years; a national helpdesk number 14550 was launched, and over 2.25 lakh women-led enterprises won orders worth nearly ₹1 lakh crore.

In July 2026, mutual fund schemes recorded a net inflow of ₹2.35 lakh crore, taking total AUM to ₹85.76 lakh crore; SIP contributions reached ₹31,961 crore.

Fitch Ratings affirmed India’s sovereign rating at 'BBB-' with a stable outlook and projected GDP growth of 6.4% in FY2027; it expects RBI to raise the policy rate to 5.5% later in 2026.

Afghanistan secured direct qualification for the 2027 Men's ODI World Cup, while West Indies will go through qualifiers; the tournament will be hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.

Under PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, 396 infrastructure projects with an estimated cost of ₹18.66 lakh crore have been evaluated by the Network Planning Group.

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched a National Scholarship Portal‑based system for agriculture students on 10 August 2026, releasing ₹21.35 crore to over 6,000 students through Direct Benefit Transfer.

India became the world's leading ship recycling nation in 2025, achieving a 35.4% global market share and recycling 2.99 million gross tons (nearly 60% growth).

Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, rolled out the first rake of 19 LHB broad‑gauge passenger coaches for Bangladesh Railway on 12 August 2026, incorporating crashworthy design compliant with European Standard EN 15227.

The Ministry of MSME and DPIIT signed an MoU on 5 August 2026 to accelerate commercialisation of Geographical Indication (GI) products under the 'Bharat GI' banner, facilitating onboarding on ONDC and GeM.

World Bank's Container Port Performance Index (CPPI) 2025 placed Jawaharlal Nehru Port at rank 22, compared to Hong Kong (9th), Singapore (21st), and Shanghai (23rd).

The Union Budget 2026‑27 announced a Coastal Cargo Promotion Scheme to increase the modal share of coastal shipping and inland waterways from 6% to 12% by 2047, complementing the Jalvahak scheme that provides a 35% incentive on National Waterways 1, 2, and 16.

The Supreme Court directed all states and UTs to immediately register FIRs in all missing person cases; a compliance hearing is scheduled for 5 October 2026.

PM‑Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana has benefited over 50 lakh households with a subsidy of over ₹28,000 crore, adding 14.65 GW solar capacity; the scheme’s budget was increased to ₹22,000 crore in 2026‑27.

Khelo India scheme has approved 349 sports infrastructure projects with an investment of ₹3,176 crore; the revamped scheme (2026‑27 to 2030‑31) has an outlay of ₹36,441 crore, and the Union Budget 2026‑27 allocated ₹4,479.88 crore to the sports ministry.

India's marine product exports reached 19.72 lakh metric tonnes, valued at ₹73,890 crore (USD 8.46 billion) in 2025‑26; the share of value‑added products rose to 11% in 2024‑25.

India's annual milk production reached 247.87 million tonnes in 2024‑25, surpassing the domestic demand of 243 million tonnes; Kisan Credit Card coverage for animal husbandry touched 50.42 lakh beneficiaries in FY 2025‑26.

The Ministry of Health released Anemia Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan Operational Guidelines with a 7×7×7 framework on 29 June 2026, replacing the earlier 6×6×6 strategy.

As on 30 June 2026, the Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme covers 751 districts through 1,856 haemodialysis centres equipped with 13,535 machines.

The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has blocked 3,718 fraudulent mobile apps and saved over ₹11,158 crore through the CFCFRMS portal in more than 32.80 lakh complaints as on 30 June 2026.

Parliament passed the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, with the government clarifying that the digital payment system UPI will remain free for consumers.

President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which gives the national song Vande Mataram the same legal protection as the national anthem.

A mega Tiranga rally featuring a 1,200‑metre‑long National Flag was held in Teetwal, Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir, near the Line of Control on 11 August 2026.

Parliament passed the Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026, proposing a National Tribunals Commission to be chaired by a former Supreme Court judge or a former Chief Justice of a High Court.

India and China held the 36th Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) meeting on border affairs, where India reiterated that Arunachal Pradesh is an inalienable part of India.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval met US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor to discuss the comprehensive global strategic partnership, including trade, defence, energy security, and critical missiles.

Indian High Commissioner Dinesh Trivedi invited Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman for a bilateral visit and for the BRICS outreach session to be held in Delhi.

The BRICS Friendship Cities Conclave 2026 was inaugurated in Mumbai on 11 August 2026 under the theme ‘Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation, and Sustainability’.

Andras Baka, former Supreme Court chief, was elected President of Hungary by the parliament on 11 August 2026.

Syria: A court sentenced former President Bashar al‑Assad to death in absentia on 11 August 2026 for crimes against humanity, premeditated murder, and torture.

Lebanon became the first Arab country to abolish the death penalty on 11 August 2026, replacing it with life imprisonment with aggravated hard labour.

The 17th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, caused by the Bundibugyo strain, has recorded 4,381 cases and 2,011 deaths as of August 2026, making it the second‑largest in history.

A 7.4‑magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on 10 August 2026, killing over 200 people and leaving more than 3,000 missing; it was the strongest quake in the country in decades.

India won 17 medals, including 4 gold, on the opening day of the U‑23 Commonwealth Fencing Championship in Lagos, Nigeria; gold medallists: Nikhil Wagh (men’s Sabre), Jeferlin (women’s Sabre), Joys Ashita (women’s Foil), and Prachi Lohan (women’s Epee).

The 8th Indian Navy‑US Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Exercise commenced at Southern Naval Command, Kochi, on 10 August 2026 and will conclude on 14 August 2026.

As on 30 June 2026, 20,149 Jan Aushadhi Kendras have been opened under PMBJP, with a product basket of 2,110 medicines and 315 surgical devices; PMBJP sales of ₹7,873.85 crore over five years led to savings of approximately ₹37,200 crore for citizens.

Under DAY‑NRLM, 10.08 crore women have been mobilised into 92.30 lakh Self Help Groups as on 30 June 2026.

In the Digital Agriculture Mission, over 10.33 crore farmer IDs have been generated as on August 2026; the Digital Crop Survey (Kharif 2025) was conducted in 604 districts covering more than 28.5 crore plots.

Sagarmala Startup and Innovation Initiative (S2I2) was launched on 19 March 2025, and India's first maritime hackathon, MAR‑a‑THON 2025, was organised on 25 August 2025 at IIT Madras with 330 applications and 36 startups selected.

The Central Jungle Warfare College (CRPF) will be established in Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh, and a Regional Training Centre (CISF) in Kishanganj district, Bihar.

The MSME Development (Amendment) Bill, 2026 was passed, making registration voluntary based on investment and turnover, and mandating settlement of invoices by Central Public Sector Enterprises through TReDS.