Monthly current affairs for July 2026

Ethan Vaz from Goa has become India's 96th Chess Grandmaster (GM) after securing his final GM norm at the Sarajevo GM Mix Tournament in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Harshavardhan GB from Chennai has become India's 97th GM after earning his final GM norm at the 2nd Chola Chess GM Norm Round Robin Tournament held in Chennai.

The IIT Madras has officially introduced OmegaBall to India by hosting a grand launch event and an inter-college tournament at its Chennai campus.

OmegaBall is a high-intensity, fast-paced variant of football that redefines traditional gameplay by featuring three teams on the pitch simultaneously.

The Indian women's cricket team has secured direct qualification for the Los Angeles (LA) 2028 Olympic Games, following the group stage of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women's T20 World Cup in England.

Other teams that have qualified for the tournament include Australia (representing Oceania), South Africa (representing Africa), and Great Britain (represented by England in ICC events). The USA is anticipated to receive the host quota for the Olympic tournament.

Puviyarasu, a renowned Tamil poet, passed away at the age of 96. He was a two-time recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award, receiving it for Translation in 2006-07 for "Puratchikaran" and for Original Poetry in 2009-10 for his collection "Kaiyoppam".

Vijaya Mehta, a veteran Marathi filmmaker and actor, passed away at the age of 91. She was a recipient of the Padma Shri award in 1986.

The National Rainfed Area Authority (NRAA), under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, has designated the Borjuli wetland in the Sonitpur district of Assam as a 'Biodiversity Heritage Site'. This initiative aims to conserve India's wild rice genetic resources, specifically the ancestral species Oryza rufipogon.

The conservation is being carried out under the project 'In-situ Conservation and Management of Wild Rice (Oryza rufipogon) of Assam', which has been operational since 2022. The project is executed by scientists from the ICAR–National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (ICAR-NBPGR), New Delhi.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a reform to improve the quality of rice distributed under the PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) and other welfare schemes.

Under the new policy, the permissible limit for broken grains in raw rice has been reduced to 10% from 25%, and for parboiled rice, it has been limited to 5% from 16%. The procurement of this improved-quality rice will be implemented across all states in a phased manner by the Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2027–28.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has successfully completed India's first satellite-based landing system (SLS) approach on a commercial jet aircraft. The demonstration was conducted using an IndiGo Airbus A320 at Maharana Pratap Airport in Udaipur, Rajasthan.

The operation utilized the indigenous GAGAN (Global Positioning System (GPS) Aided GEO (Geostationary Earth Orbit) Augmented Navigation) system to execute a Localiser Performance with Vertical Guidance (LPV) approach.

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has unveiled a development pipeline of 63 projects worth Rs 5,028.17 crore during the 154th foundation day celebrations of the Mumbai Port Authority (MPA). The event was held under the theme "Together We Can".

The Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has kept the interest rates for all Small Savings Schemes (SSS) unchanged for the second quarter (Q2) of FY27. This marks the ninth consecutive quarter without a revision. The interest rates were last revised in December 2024.

Since 2016, the MoF has been reviewing SSS interest rates on a quarterly basis. The methodology for determining these rates was formulated by the Shyamala Gopinath Committee in 2023, under which SSS interest rates are maintained at 25 to 100 basis points (bps) higher than the prevailing government bond yields.

The Kakinada Cooperative Town Bank, an Urban Cooperative Bank (UCB) in Andhra Pradesh, has secured Tier-III status under RBI norms. The bank achieved this status after its deposits crossed the ₹2,000 crore mark while maintaining zero net Non-Performing Assets (NPAs).

It is to be noted that the RBI classifies UCBs into three categories based on deposits: Tier-I (deposits below ₹100 crore), Tier-II (deposits up to ₹1,000 crore), and Tier-III (deposits between ₹1,000 crore and ₹10,000 crore).

Paisabazaar, in partnership with SBM Bank Ltd, has launched the "SBM Paisabazaar Paisa+ Credit Card", a Fixed Deposit (FD)-backed secured credit card.

The card is designed to help consumers build their credit profile while offering cashback on daily expenses.

The SEBI has constituted an Expert Working Group (EWG) to review the regulatory framework for debenture trustees under the SEBI (Debenture Trustees) Regulations, 1993.

The group is chaired by Ananta Barua, a former Whole-Time Member of SEBI, and co-chaired by Rajnish Kumar, the former Chairman of the SBI.

The Gujarat Police has signed an MoU with the multi-state cooperative society Sahakar Taxi Cooperative Ltd (Bharat Taxi) to enhance public safety, traffic management, and urban mobility through digital integration.

IIT Delhi and Sorbonne University of France have expanded their strategic partnership. The institutions are launching joint Master of Science (MSc) in Biological Science and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programmes, scheduled to commence in 2026.

NITI Aayog has released a report titled "Strategic Roadmap for Making Ayurveda Global", prepared in collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The roadmap focuses on shifting from basic product exports to global institution-building, using a three-pillar framework of Availability, Acceptability, and Propagation.

It outlines plans across three horizons: short-term goals up to 2029, medium-term objectives up to 2035, and a vision extending to 2047. The report recommends creating a Global Ayurveda Register (GAR) and establishing a World Federation for Ayurveda and Yoga to facilitate global integration.

The traditional medicine market of India is estimated at $61 billion. Global exports of traditional medicine have increased from $1.09 billion in 2014 to $2.16 billion, currently reaching 150 countries.

According to the 8th edition of the "Sustainability Impact Ratings 2026" released by the Times Higher Education (THE), the University of Manchester (UK) is ranked top in the overall list.

The Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) secured the first rank in the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, which focuses on Gender Equality. It is to be noted that the report evaluated 1,646 universities globally.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal visited London ahead of the official implementation of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and the Double Contribution Convention (DCC), which are scheduled to come into force on July 15, 2026.

During the visit, he held a high-level bilateral meeting with Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade of the UK. Piyush Goyal was conferred with the 'Special award for Exceptional Leadership in Elevating India-UK Relations'.

He also launched the 'UK-India CETA Business Utilisation Manual', a guide for Indian and UK businesses, and announced the deployment of 1,000 advisory personnel across India to assist businesses in maximizing the benefits of the India-UK CETA.

The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has completed the construction of a 180-foot triple-double reinforced Bailey bridge in Kurung Kumey, Arunachal Pradesh.

Situated along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) corridor, this bridge restores vital connectivity along the Hapoli–Sarli–Huri road network. The project was executed under 'Project Arunank' by the 756 Task Force and Team 85 Road Construction Company (RCC).

The iconic Jolbhora (Jalbhara) Sandesh from Chandannagar in West Bengal has been awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.

This tag designates Chandannagar (Hooghly district) as the unique place of origin for the sweet, safeguarding its authentic recipe and cultural heritage.