Daily Current Affairs - 15 August 2026

At the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, India won 39 medals — 13 gold, 17 silver and 9 bronze; the Indian Army contingent won 16 medals (8 gold, 7 silver, 1 bronze) and Defence Forces personnel accounted for 18 of India's 39 medals.

Havildar Harsh won India's first-ever Commonwealth Games gold medal in judo, competing in the men's 60 kg category at Glasgow 2026.

Naib Subedar Sarvesh Kushare won India's first-ever Commonwealth Games silver medal in high jump at Glasgow 2026.

Naib Subedar Gulveer Singh became the first Indian athlete to win two athletics medals in a single Commonwealth Games, securing silver in the 10,000 metres and bronze in the 5,000 metres.

Subedar Soman Rana and Lance Naik Shubham Juyal won India's first-ever Commonwealth Games gold and silver medals in para shot put.

Havildar Ajaya Babu set a Commonwealth Games record in weightlifting 79 kg with a 149 kg snatch and a total lift of 330 kg.

India won seven gold medals in boxing at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, the highest by any nation in a single edition; Indian Army boxers contributed six gold and two silver medals.

Iga Swiatek won the 2026 Canadian Open women's singles title, defeating Elena Rybakina 6-2, 6-3 in Toronto, while Ben Shelton defended the men's singles title by beating Brandon Nakashima 6-3, 7-6(4) in Montreal.

On the eve of India's 80th Independence Day (14 August 2026), President Droupadi Murmu said India is moving towards Viksit Bharat by 2047, the economy is the fastest-growing major economy and expected to grow more than twice the global average, and cited 25 crore people lifted out of poverty, 80 crore free foodgrain beneficiaries, and around 60 crore covered under Ayushman Bharat.

President Droupadi Murmu approved 78 Gallantry awards, including 13 posthumous, for Defence Forces and Central Armed Police Forces on the eve of Independence Day 2026; these include 9 Kirti Chakras (7 posthumous), 1 Bar to Shaurya Chakra, 19 Shaurya Chakras (1 posthumous), 5 Bars to Sena Medal (Gallantry), 36 Sena Medals (Gallantry; 5 posthumous), 3 Nao Sena Medals (Gallantry), and 5 Vayu Sena Medals (Gallantry). Among Kirti Chakra awardees are Lieutenant Colonel Maneo Francis of 21 PARA (Special Forces), Major Jitendra Rathee of 2 PARA (Special Forces), and Havildar Gajendra Singh (posthumous); Major Aditya Pratap Singh was awarded the Bar to Shaurya Chakra, and President Murmu also approved 89 Mention-in-Despatches — 75 Army, 4 Navy, 10 Air Force.

On Independence Day 2026, 1,057 personnel of Police, Fire, Home Guard & Civil Defence and Correctional Services were awarded medals — 301 Gallantry Medals, 92 President's Medals for Distinguished Service and 664 Meritorious Service Medals.

Ministry of Corporate Affairs hosted PMIS Industry Awards in New Delhi on 14 August 2026; Mahindra & Mahindra Limited was named Overall Industry Champion under the Prime Minister Internship Scheme.

Government launched CBDC-based Direct Benefit Transfer under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana in Chandigarh and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, making Chandigarh the first Union Territory to roll out CBDC-based DBT for food subsidy; Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched it and the Centre is spending over ₹2.10 lakh crore on free ration distribution.

India Post carried out its first-ever drone delivery of the Tiranga from Mandi Head Post Office to Rehardhar Branch Post Office in Himachal Pradesh on 14 August 2026; Union Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia inaugurated it virtually.

Jal Jeevan Mission completed seven years on 15 August 2026; rural household tap water coverage rose from 16.72% at launch to 82.24%, and 2.04 lakh villages have been certified Har Ghar Jal.

Under PM Vishwakarma, 30 lakh traditional artisans and craftspeople have been registered; 100 beneficiaries from Delhi-NCR were invited as Special Guests to the 80th Independence Day ceremony at Red Fort.

Ken-Betwa Link Project, India's first major river-linking initiative under the National Perspective Plan, will provide irrigation to 10.62 lakh hectares, drinking water to about 62 lakh people and 103 MW hydropower, at a total cost of ₹44,604.99 crore.

Chips to Start-ups (C2S) Programme aims to generate 85,000 industry-ready semiconductor chip design professionals; over 68,000 students have been trained and 254 chip designs taped out, with 332 academic institutions given access to advanced EDA tools.

FutureSkills PRIME, a MeitY-NASSCOM initiative, has over 34 lakh registered candidates and over 13 lakh certified in emerging technologies; it hosts more than 500 courses, with women accounting for 41% of candidates and over 86% participants from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

Under PRASHAD scheme, 54 pilgrimage/heritage projects have been sanctioned across 28 States/UTs at a total cost of ₹1,726.74 crore, with 32 projects completed; Swadesh Darshan has sanctioned 76 tourism circuit projects worth ₹5,290.33 crore and Swadesh Darshan 2.0 has 53 destination-centric projects worth ₹2,208.31 crore.

Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) has enrolled 5.13 crore beneficiaries and paid ₹20,571 crore to 4.37 crore beneficiaries as on 31 July 2026.

The 5th meeting of the National Council for Senior Citizens, chaired by Social Justice Minister Dr Virendra Kumar, reviewed extension of Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana to all senior citizens aged 60 years and above and launched the e-book SNEHA – Stories of Nurturing, Engagement, Happiness & Active Ageing.

BSNL announced the Re. 1 Freedom 2.0 offer providing 1 GB data/day, 100 SMS/day and unlimited voice calls for 24 days, and Fibre Freedom Plan at ₹1,111/month; it has ordered over 26,300 additional 4G BTS sites.

APEDA and the Government of Tripura organised an International Organic Buyer-Seller Meet in Agartala with over 200 participants and 20+ international buyers, showcasing products like GI-tagged Kalikhasa Rice and Queen Pineapple.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh announced that indigenous defence production reached a record ₹1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26 and defence exports surged to ₹38,424 crore from ₹686 crore in FY 2013-14; India targets ₹3 lakh crore annual defence production and ₹50,000 crore defence exports by 2029.

India's defence budget increased from ₹2.53 lakh crore in FY 2013-14 to ₹7.85 lakh crore in FY 2026-27; capital expenditure rose from ₹94,588 crore to ₹2.19 lakh crore and defence R&D budget rose from ₹15,283 crore in 2014-15 to ₹29,100 crore in 2026-27.

Ministry of Defence signed contracts worth ₹1,577 crore with TATA Advanced Systems Limited and NIBE Private Limited for Loiter Munition Systems for the Indian Army under Buy (Indian) category through the Fast Track Procedure on 14 August 2026.

Squadron Leader Bhawana Kanth became the first woman officer of the Indian Air Force to qualify as a Fighter Combat Leader at the Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment, Gwalior.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh highlighted successful tests of the Advanced Agni Missile with MIRV technology, RudraM-II air-to-surface missile, Naval Anti-Ship Missile-SR and Pinaka Long-Range Guided Rocket.

INS Sudarshini entered Ponta Delgada, Azores, Portugal, on 13 August 2026 during Lokayan 2026 after a 19-day Atlantic crossing from Boston, USA; the voyage has traversed over 15,000 nautical miles.

India's space economy is valued at USD 9 billion as of August 2026 and is projected to reach USD 40–45 billion over the next decade; registered space start-ups rose from 1 in 2014 to about 440 in 2026.

IN-SPACe launched the Earth Observation Public-Private Partnership (EO-PPP) to develop India's first privately owned Earth observation satellite constellation with around ₹1,200 crore in private investment commitments.

NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), ISRO's commercial arm, saw revenue rise from ₹321.77 crore in FY 2021-22 to over ₹3,000 crore in FY 2024-25.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla stated on the eve of India's 80th Independence Day that approximately 65% of the country's population is under the age of 35.

As of 14 August 2026, Satish Kumar is Chairman and CEO of the Railway Board.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta handed appointment letters to 1,368 teachers — 1,015 Trained Graduate Teachers, 236 Post Graduate Teachers, and 117 music teachers — at Bharat Mandapam.

Former Bombay High Court judge Justice Surendra Pandharinath Tavade, former Maharashtra DGP Rashmi Shukla and two others were sworn in as members of the Maharashtra Lokayukta; members hold office for five years or until age 70, whichever is earlier.

The BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting was held in Jaipur on 12–13 August 2026, co-chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra; on the sidelines, Sitharaman held bilateral talks with Indonesia's Vice Finance Minister Juda Agung.

India reiterated that there is no change in its position on the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, which it placed in abeyance after the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians; President Droupadi Murmu said Operation Sindoor demonstrated the precision capability of the Indian Armed Forces. Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif said every drop of water is a red line for Pakistan.

India and Russia are discussing cooperation on the Northern Sea Route (NSR), the Arctic maritime corridor along Russia's northern coast, the Ministry of External Affairs said on 14 August 2026.

CCRAS-NIIMH, Hyderabad, signed an MoU with Sevadhi Museum and Indological Research Institute (SEMIRI), Kottayam, for digitization of over 30,000 medical manuscripts.

The first India-Israel Hackathon, organised on the theme Restorative Healthcare, drew 1,300 students and individuals from both countries to address 14 problem statements.

MSDE convened the India-Japan Stakeholder Consultation on Skill Development in New Delhi on 14 August 2026 to take forward the Action Plan for India-Japan Human Resource Exchange and Cooperation from the 15th India-Japan Annual Summit.

NCB secured the return of fugitive drug kingpin Virender Singh Basoya from UAE under Operation GLOBAL-HUNT on 14 August 2026; the case involved seizure of approximately 1,837 kg of Mephedrone from Pune and Delhi.

India dispatched the first tranche of 20 metric tons of relief supplies, including medicines and medical equipment, to earthquake-hit Colombia.

All India Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation for July 2026 was 9.78% (Base Year 2022-23), down from 9.87% in June 2026; Fuel and Power group inflation was 20.05% and WPI Food Index inflation was 6.65%.

India's balance of payments for June 2026 showed a current account deficit of US$ 6.2 billion; merchandise exports were US$ 41.2 billion against imports of US$ 71.4 billion, and the overall balance was a surplus of US$ 2.9 billion.

India's foreign exchange reserves rose by $14.1 billion to $707 billion in the week ended 7 August 2026, with foreign currency assets at $574.6 billion and gold reserves at $108.7 billion.

The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) was the world's largest derivatives exchange by trading volume (contracts) for calendar year 2025; it began operations in 1994 and was the first exchange in India to implement electronic/screen-based trading.

Software Technology Park units recorded exports worth over ₹7.73 lakh crore in FY 2025-26, up from ₹6.88 lakh crore in FY 2024-25; Karnataka accounted for the largest share at ₹3,50,184.78 crore.

NFHS-5 (2019-21) reported a sex ratio of 1,020 females per 1,000 males, compared with 943 females per 1,000 males in Census 2011.

Logistics Data Bank (LDB) tracked 10 crore EXIM containers since its launch in 2016; it provides 100% EXIM container visibility through RFID across 19 ports and 32 container terminals.

Record rainfall in Chiba, Japan, with 367 mm in 24 hours exceeding the previous record of 309 mm set in October 2013, killed eight people and stranded about 7,000 at Narita airport; over 20,000 homes lost power.

A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck Colombia on 10 August 2026, killing at least 281 people, injuring over 3,900 and leaving 379 missing; Cali and Pereira were the worst affected.

National Commission for Homoeopathy clarified that Regulation 36(y) of its Professional Conduct Regulations, 2022 prohibits homoeopathic practitioners from practising any other system of medicine except under a National Health Programme after prescribed training.

IRDAI's Bima Bharosa is the integrated portal for monitoring policyholder grievances across the insurance industry; grievance toll-free numbers are 155255 and 1800-4254-732, and insurers are required to resolve grievances within 14 days.

India will celebrate its 80th Independence Day on 15 August 2026 with Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading celebrations from the Red Fort; for the first time, Vande Mataram will be rendered during the Independence Day celebrations at Red Fort, with 2,500 NCC cadets and My Bharat volunteers participating; Har Ghar Tiranga 2026 is being observed from 9 to 17 August 2026 along with 150 years of Vande Mataram.

Partition Horrors Remembrance Day was observed on 14 August 2026; Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan addressed a National Seminar on the theme 'The Partition of India - A Saga of Displacement, Separation and Resettlement', and the Partition caused one of the largest migrations affecting about 20 million people.

President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the opening of Amrit Udyan Summer Annuals Edition 2026 on 14 August 2026; the garden will remain open for the public from 16 August to 15 September 2026.

The Supreme Court quashed criminal defamation proceedings against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on V.D. Savarkar, holding that the Uttar Pradesh government had not given the requisite sanction.

The Delhi Government approved a 20% horizontal reservation for ex-Agniveers in direct recruitment to fire operator posts in Delhi Fire Services and warder/matron posts in the Prison Department.

The Supreme Court stayed the Madras High Court order quashing Tamil Nadu's decision to provide government jobs to families of those killed in the September 2025 Karur stampede, and declined to interfere with the Andhra Pradesh High Court order quashing a criminal case against CM N. Chandrababu Naidu and Minister P. Narayana in the Amaravati land pooling case.

The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 was passed by both Houses of Parliament on 13 August 2026 to ensure long-term stability in the major minerals sector.

The Registrar General of India notified the Household Schedule questionnaire for Census 2027 with 40 questions; the last Census was conducted in 2011.