Daily Current Affairs 16 July 2026

The Union Cabinet, chaired by PM Narendra Modi, has approved the Mobile Phone Manufacturing Scheme (MPMS) with a budgetary outlay of Rs 62,500 crore. The scheme will be implemented over 5 years, from FY27 to FY31.

The MPMS aims to scale up production, deepen domestic value addition, strengthen supply chain resilience, and enhance global competitiveness in the mobile phone manufacturing sector. The scheme offers incentive support on eligible sales for manufacturing mobile phones in India at rates ranging from 2.25% to 5%.

Additional incentives include up to 1.5% for domestic sourcing of key components or sub-assemblies, and an extra 3% for product design and Research and Development (R&D) to build Indian brands. Cumulative mobile phone production in India is expected to reach Rs 39 lakh crore during the scheme's tenure, alongside a projected increase in exports.

The Union Cabinet has approved 'Semicon 2.0' with a total outlay of ₹1.27 lakh crore to holistically develop the semiconductor design and manufacturing ecosystem in India.

The scheme is structured around 6 key pillars: Design, Machines and materials, setting up more fabs, strengthening the Assembly, Testing, Marking, and Packaging (ATMP) and Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test (OSAT) industry, Research & Development (R&D), and Talent development.

To date, the government has approved 12 semiconductor manufacturing units with a cumulative investment of over ₹1.64 lakh crore. Additionally, 24 semiconductor design projects from start-ups and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) have been approved for financial support, and 105 entities have been granted access to industry-standard Electronic Design Automation (EDA) tools.

The Department of Posts (DoP) have signed an MoU with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in to conduct the largest village-level telecom network performance survey in India.

The one-year initiative aims to assess the network performance of major telecom operators including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea (Vi), and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). The survey will cover over 5.68 lakh villages across the country using an Android-based mobile application developed by TRAI.

The National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the regulation and quality assurance of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

The National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB) under the Ministry of Ayush has signed an MoU with the University of Delhi, through the Bhaskaracharya College of Applied Sciences (BCAS).

The collaboration aims to promote the sustainable utilization and conservation of medicinal plant resources in India.

The Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) has signed an MoU with the Punjab National Bank (PNB) to collaborate on advancing multilingual AI solutions.

The partnership aims to enhance inclusive banking and citizen-centric financial services through the 'BHASHINI for Seva/Sanchalan' initiative.

UK-based Aviva Plc has acquired the remaining 26% stake in Aviva Life Insurance Company India Ltd (Aviva India) from its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Dabur Invest Corp. (DIC).

With this, Aviva Plc has become the first foreign insurer to fully own its life insurance business in India.

The Government of India (GoI) has approved a Joint Venture (JV) between Dixon Technologies (India) Ltd and Vivo Mobile India Ltd (VMI) for the manufacturing of electronic devices and smartphones in India.

Dixon Technologies will hold a 51% stake, while Vivo Mobile India will hold the remaining 49% stake. The entity will be established with an initial paid-up capital of ₹5 crore, contributed by both entities in proportion to their shareholdings.

Instamart, a quick commerce platform, has partnered with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) to launch an on-demand Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) cylinder delivery service.

This marks the debut of the next-generation 10 kg composite LPG cylinder named 'HP Navya' from HPCL on the platform. Initially available in Bengaluru, the 'HP Navya' cylinder is designed to be lighter and corrosion-resistant.

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (CSIR-IICT) in Hyderabad has developed India's first indigenous process technology for Hydrofluoroolefin-1234yf (HFO-1234yf).

This technology, now ready for industry transfer, is designed to replace Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in refrigeration and air-conditioning (AC) systems.

Assam Finance Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah has presented the State Budget for the FY27 in the Assam Legislative Assembly in Dispur. The budget has a total outlay of ₹2.85 lakh crore.

Karnataka government is set to establish India's first government-driven AI University in Bengaluru.

The initiative was announced by CM DK Shivakumar at the 'Google I/O Connect India 2026' event.

The university will feature a 100-acre main campus in Bengaluru, with provisions to establish satellite campuses in other cities.

Nita Ambani, the Founder and Chairperson of Reliance Foundation, has been honoured with the 'Fortune India Most Powerful Women (MPW)' award at an event held in Mumbai. Roshni Nadar, the CEO of HCL Technologies, has been ranked second in the list.

Charles Leclerc, a Monacan national racing for Ferrari, has won the Formula One (F1) British Grand Prix (GP) 2026.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has inducted former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly into the ICC Hall of Fame during its Annual Conference held in Edinburgh, Scotland. He becomes the 12th Indian overall and the 10th Indian male cricketer to be inducted.

Kevin Pietersen (England) and Anjum Chopra were also inducted into the Hall of Fame. Anjum Chopra, the former captain of the women cricket team of India, is the first female player from India to play 100 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and score 1,000 runs in the format. It is to be noted that the total count of ICC Hall of Fame members has reached 125.

Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan has released a book titled "The Voice of Justice: Justice Gavai Speaks" at Uprashtrapati Bhavan.

The volume, edited by Prof. S Sivakumar, compiles the speeches, lectures, and reflections of Justice BR Gavai. It is published by Thomson Reuters in association with the Commonwealth Legal Education Association (CLEA).