Daily Current Affairs - 12 September 2026

India defeated Bangladesh by 40 runs in the first semi-final of the Women's Asia Cup 2026 in Dubai and entered the final; Shafali Verma scored 64 off 40 balls and was Player of the Match.

Indian Junior Men's Hockey Team defeated Malaysia 3-1 in the semi-final of the Junior Asia Cup at Moqi, China and will face South Korea in the final; captain Anmol Ekka scored two goals.

US Open 2026 women's singles final will be played between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina; Rybakina defeated Coco Gauff 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 and Sabalenka defeated Jessica Pegula 7-5, 6-2.

India was honoured with the WHO South-East Asia Region Award at the 79th Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia in Dili, Timor-Leste, for sustaining elimination of maternal and neonatal tetanus and tackling non-communicable diseases.

India crossed 80 lakh HPV vaccine doses as of 11 September 2026 under the National HPV Vaccination Campaign; launched by PM Modi from Ajmer, Rajasthan in February 2026, it provides free, voluntary single-dose HPV vaccine to 14-year-old girls; Uttar Pradesh vaccinated over 22 lakh girls, the highest, while Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram achieved 100% coverage.

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Maandhan Yojana (PM-KMY), launched on 12 September 2019, offers a minimum assured pension of Rs 3,000 per month from age 60; over 24.96 lakh farmers had enrolled by February 2026.

Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 2026 will come into force on 1 October 2026, replacing the Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1891; it received President Droupadi Murmu's assent on 13 August 2026.

Under PMAY-U and PMAY-U 2.0, more than 1.25 crore houses have been sanctioned and over 1 crore houses completed and delivered; the 9th CSMC meeting approved 18.77 lakh houses under PMAY-U 2.0.

PM SHRI scheme, launched on 7 September 2022, has total project cost Rs 27,360 crore (Central share Rs 18,128 crore); as of July 2026, 13,092 schools selected across 36 States/UTs, 725 districts and 8,340 blocks.

Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched Operational Guidelines for DILRMP 3.0 in New Delhi; the programme will be implemented across all States/UTs with 100% central funding.

Nitin Gadkari launched 'One Tag' facility for FASTag portability in Mumbai; vehicle owners can link existing FASTag to a new bank account through Rajmarg Yatra app and target reduced toll waiting time to under 10 seconds this fiscal.

Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), launched in 2020 with outlay Rs 20,750 crore, completed six years on 10 September 2026; Budget 2026-27 allocated Rs 2,500 crore; India's fish production rose to a record 197.75 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 and exports to Rs 73,890 crore in 2025-26.

Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the proposed new Seed Act will create a Seed Security Fund in every state and ensure compensation to farmers within 15 days; existing Seed Act was enacted in 1966 and Seeds Control Order in 1983.

Swachh Sagar Surakshit Sagar campaign will run from 12 to 19 September 2026, with coastal clean-up drives and participation of NGOs.

Delhi Government approved 'Grassroot Training Support Assistance' under Mukhyamantri Khel Protsahan Yojana; eligible athletes in U-14, U-17, U-19 and U-21 categories will get Rs 2,000 per month.

Union Labour and Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the two-day National Conference on Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCW) in Mumbai; India has over 7 crore construction workers and a BOCW cess corpus of Rs 77,000 crore.

Indigenous research vessel ORV Sagar Manthan was recently launched for deep-ocean research under the Deep Ocean Mission.

Goa Shipyard Limited, a Ministry of Defence undertaking, has proposed establishing a major shipyard in Machilipatnam with an investment of Rs 8,000 crore.

Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Krishna Swaminathan met Australian Navy Chief Vice Admiral Matthew Buckley in Canberra; discussions included joint naval exercises planned for 2027.

President of the New Development Bank Dilma Rousseff and President of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Zou Jiayi arrived in New Delhi to attend the 18th BRICS Summit.

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim arrived in New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Summit.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar addressed the fifth regional conference on Electoral Literacy Clubs and ECINET in Ahmedabad; Electoral Literacy Club 2.0 has the tagline 'Learn Democracy. Lead Democracy.'

The 18th BRICS Summit is being held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi on 12-13 September 2026 under India's fourth BRICS Chairship; theme is 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability'.

India assumed the BRICS Chairship on 1 January 2026; this is India's fourth BRICS Chairship after 2012, 2016 and 2021.

As of 2026, BRICS comprises 11 members—Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, UAE—and 10 partner countries: Belarus, Cuba, Bolivia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Vietnam.

BRICS marks 20 years in 2026; formed in 2006 with four countries, it now has a family of 21 countries including partners, representing 50% of the world's population, 40% of global GDP and over 25% of global trade.

The first BRIC Summit was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia on 16 June 2009; South Africa first participated in the Third BRICS Summit in Sanya, China in April 2011; BRICS expanded in January 2024 when Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and UAE became full members.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met UN Secretary-General António Guterres on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi; Guterres congratulated India on assuming the BRICS chairship for the fourth time.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit; this was their second meeting in 2026 after the 26th SCO Summit in Bishkek on 31 August; Putin invited Modi to Russia for the 24th India-Russia Annual Summit and PM Modi accepted.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit; it was Pezeshkian's first visit to India and their second meeting in under two weeks after the SCO Summit in Bishkek on 31 August; they underscored freedom of navigation and safety of seafarers in West Asia.

Russia's International Industrial Exhibition 'INNOPROM India' was held for the first time in India from 9-11 September 2026; PM Modi and President Putin visited the exhibition.

The BRICS Business Forum 2026 held in India is the largest-ever BRICS Business Forum with over 2,000 business delegates; PM Modi said while global GDP has grown around 2.5 times since BRICS was launched, the combined GDP of BRICS countries has grown around 4.5 times.

At the BRICS Business Forum 2026, PM Narendra Modi said India has more than 2 lakh startups and over 120 unicorns; India's UPI accounts for 50% of the world's real-time payments.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal at BRICS Business Forum 2026 said BRICS exports rose from about USD 900 billion in 2003 to USD 6 trillion in 2024; non-tariff measures impose higher export costs than tariffs for 88% of countries; UPI is accepted in 11 countries and over 45% of recognised startups have at least one woman partner or director.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Russian First Deputy PM Denis Manturov agreed to advance negotiations on a Bilateral Investment Treaty on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit.

European Commission formally submitted proposal to European Council to sign and conclude India-EU Free Trade Agreement; the deal will eliminate or reduce tariffs on 96% of EU goods exports to India and save about 4 billion euros annually.

Union Power Minister Manohar Lal will participate in the G20 Energy Ministerial Meeting in Houston, USA from 14-16 September 2026 under the US G20 Presidency.

Cochin Shipyard Ltd and Drydocks World signed a 50:50 joint venture agreement to operate and expand the International Ship Repair Facility (ISRF), Cochin.

National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal, Gujarat achieved 82% physical progress in Phase 1A, with revised completion target 31 October 2026; 13 countries including Portugal, UAE, Vietnam, Thailand, Netherlands, Denmark, Oman, Israel, Germany, Republic of Korea, Italy, New Zealand and Singapore signed MoUs with India for NMHC Lothal.

NMHC Phase 1B and Phase 2 will include a 5D Dome Theatre, a Lighthouse Museum planned with DGLL to potentially become the world's tallest lighthouse museum, a Maritime Research Institute, a Museotel and an Eco Resort.

BRICS Bharat Innovates Exposition opened at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi on 11 September 2026, showcasing 37 Indian deep-tech startups selected from 120 that participated in the maiden Bharat Innovates 2026 in Nice, France from 14-16 June 2026; the Nice event secured funding commitments of USD 254.5 million under India-France Year of Innovation 2026.

India's foreign exchange reserves stood at US$785.706 billion (Rs 74,24,473 crore) as on 4 September 2026, according to the RBI's Weekly Statistical Supplement.

IMF described India as a key engine of global growth after the Indian economy expanded 7.8% in the first quarter of the current fiscal year.

UPI processed about 24,162 crore transactions worth nearly Rs 314 lakh crore in FY 2025-26; UPI accounted for 84% of domestic digital transactions and India accounted for 49% of global real-time digital payment volumes.

India's total domestic coal production stood at 1,039 MT in FY 2025-26, above one billion tonnes for the second consecutive year; captive mine production grew 10.10% to 184 MT.

Tara (Revised) coal block was auctioned under the 15th round of commercial coal mine auction at a revenue share of 37.50%, expected to generate annual revenue of over Rs 1,200 crore and employment for over 8,000 people.

India's 5G rollout, launched in 2022, reached 99.9% of districts and nearly 85% of population within 26 months, supported by over 5 lakh 5G base stations as of September 2026.

ICAR-Central Institute of Coldwater Fisheries Research recorded rare fish Schizopygopsis waddellii for the first time from a natural lake in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh at around 12,800 feet above sea level.

Rainfed agriculture covers about 61.39 million hectares or 43% of India's net sown area and contributes around 40% of food production; under WDC-PMKSY, 7,602 watershed development projects covering about 34 million hectares were implemented over the past 12 years.

The Seventh Gender Samvaad was held on the theme 'Participation to Leadership: Enhancing Women's Agency in Livelihoods' with over 6 lakh stakeholders; over 3.46 crore Lakhpati Didis under DAY-NRLM are earning more than Rs 1 lakh annually.

Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission released Indian Pharmacopoeia Reference Substance (IPRS) for Enoxaparin Sodium for bioassays at a national conference on biosimilars in Bengaluru on 10-11 September 2026.

Dryland Congress 2026 is being held in New Delhi from 10 September with more than 800 participants from over 25 countries; ICAR and ICRISAT celebrated 50 years of partnership on 11 September 2026.

RBI announced Open Market Operation (OMO) sale of Government of India securities for an aggregate amount of Rs 1,00,000 crore in three tranches of Rs 50,000 crore, Rs 25,000 crore and Rs 25,000 crore to be held on 17, 21 and 28 September 2026 respectively.

NSE Indices Limited launched the Nifty AI Catalysts Index on 11 September 2026; base date is 28 June 2024, base value 1000, maximum stock weight 3%, semi-annual reconstitution in June and December, and quarterly rebalancing.

Effective 15 September 2026, NSE increased the real-time dissemination frequency of the Nifty 50 index from 250 milliseconds to 100 milliseconds.

RBI issued the draft Reserve Bank of India (Know Your Customer) Amendment Directions, 2026, proposing banks' Standard Operating Procedure for temporary debit holds on accounts linked to money-mule activity and cyber-enabled financial fraud; public comments invited till 2 October 2026.

National Forest Martyrs Day was observed on 11 September 2026 to honour forest guards, rangers and community members who died protecting forests and wildlife.

The 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States was observed on 11 September 2026, honouring 2,977 people killed; Prime Minister Narendra Modi remembered the victims and reiterated India's resolve to combat terrorism.

Swami Vivekananda delivered his historic address at the World's Parliament of Religions in Chicago on 11 September 1893; Arunachal Pradesh celebrated Universal Brotherhood Day to commemorate it.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Acharya Vinoba Bhave on his Jayanti on 11 September 2026; Bhave gave the call 'Jai Jagat'.

BJP announced Debasish Sharma as candidate for Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election in Assam; polling on 6 October and counting on 9 October; five Assembly bypolls also on 6 October include Madurantakam and Dharapuram in Tamil Nadu, Rejinagar and Nandigram in West Bengal, and Thattanchavady in Puducherry.

Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group reached the strategic island of Perim in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on 11 September 2026, tightening control over a vital global shipping route; Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman sought US military help, and Washington offered intelligence sharing and targeting but not direct military action.

Trump administration proposed ending the up-to-60-day grace period for laid-off H-1B and other employment-based visa holders in the US.

Prime Minister announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured from PMNRF for the Nanded, Maharashtra mishap.