Current Affairs Capsule PDF (8th August, 2026)
The Union government has told the Supreme Court that the creamy layer principle should not be extended to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The Centre argued that reservation for SCs and STs is based on historical and social disadvantage, caste, tribal identity and representation, rather than economic status alone. It said any income-based exclusion would require a holistic review and detailed empirical study. The issue follows the Supreme Court’s 2024 6:1 majority judgment permitting evidence-based sub-classification within SCs and STs. The Court stressed quantifiable data, greater disadvantage and inadequate representation. The creamy layer principle originated in the 1992 Indra Sawhney judgment for OBCs. Articles 14, 15(4), 16, 16(4A), 335 and 341 remain central to the debate.
The Lok Sabha passed the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (Amendment) Bill, 2026 on August 7 without debate amid opposition protests. The Rajya Sabha had already passed the Bill on August 3. The legislation seeks to address delayed payments to MSMEs by establishing timelines for faster dispute adjudication, enabling recovery of settlement agreements and improving liquidity. Courts may also order payment of at least 50% of the awarded amount to an MSME supplier when an application to set aside an order remains pending for more than six months. MSMEs contribute around 31% of India’s GDP, 36% of manufacturing and 41% of exports. Outstanding MSME credit has increased from ₹10 trillion in 2014-15 to over ₹38.35 trillion.
The Scan and Register Service under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) has crossed 25 crore OPD registrations, marking a major milestone in India’s digital healthcare transformation. Launched in October 2022, the service enables patients to register for hospital OPD services through a simple QR-code scan, reducing waiting times and improving hospital efficiency. It operates across 30,800 healthcare facilities in 36 States and Union Territories and 756 districts, including 24,323 public and 6,481 private facilities. Nearly 4 lakh patients use the service daily, with patient details automatically fetched through their ABHA accounts. Bihar leads with over 7.30 crore transactions, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. AIIMS New Delhi has the highest registrations among government facilities.
India completed its first-ever sea shipment of GI-tagged Mithila Makhana from Bihar to Australia in August 2026. The consignment originated from farmers in Darbhanga district, was packed in seven containers and transported from Bihta near Patna to Kolkata by rail before being shipped by sea. The product underwent scientific testing, irradiation and international-standard packaging. APEDA, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, supported the export process. The sea route is expected to reduce transportation costs compared with air freight and improve export viability. The shipment reportedly provided local cultivators with around 18% higher profit margins than prevailing local market rates. Mithila Makhana is also known as fox nut or lotus seed. Bihar is India’s leading Makhana-producing state, with Darbhanga an important cultivation centre.
Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains said Punjab has secured the top position in the NITI Aayog School Education Quality Index 2026, overtaking Kerala. He highlighted major improvements in government schools since 2022, including better infrastructure, timely textbook distribution and extensive school inspections. The state’s Mission Samarth foundational learning programme covers nearly 12 lakh students and over 70,000 teachers annually, grouping students according to learning levels rather than classes. Punjab has also become the first state to introduce Artificial Intelligence as a core subject from Class 1 to Class 12. Government-school NEET qualifiers increased from 80 in 2021 to 882 in 2026, supported by the Punjab Academic Coaching for Excellence (PACE) initiative.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) plans to commission an X-Band Doppler Weather Radar at Pulpally in Kerala’s Wayanad district by December 2026. The radar will provide high-resolution weather monitoring within a 100-km radius, improving surveillance of rainfall, cloudbursts and severe weather. X-Band radars operate at higher frequencies than S-Band and C-Band systems and are particularly useful for short-range, high-resolution observations. The installation is important for Wayanad, located in the Western Ghats, a region vulnerable to heavy rainfall and landslides. Land has been provided by Pazhassi Raja College, while the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority has coordinated support. IMD personnel will operate and maintain the radar under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
Andhra Pradesh notified the Pedestrian Safety and Universal Accessibility Policy, 2026 on August 7 after Cabinet approval a day earlier. The statewide framework covers urban areas, rural stretches, satellite towns and urban fringes, requiring authorities to create safer and obstruction-free pedestrian infrastructure. The policy follows directions linked to the Supreme Court’s S. Rajaseekaran vs Union of India judgment of October 7, 2025, which recognised safe and obstruction-free footpaths as part of the Right to Life under Article 21. Infrastructure must provide a minimum two-metre clear walking zone, slip-resistant surfaces, tactile indicators, wheelchair ramps, Braille and audible signals. The state will prioritise 15–20 high-fatality blackspots and conduct road-safety audits covering at least 20% of roads in the first year.
HAL Airport in Bengaluru became India’s first airport to operationalise the Required Navigation Performance–Category H (RNP CAT H) satellite-guided helicopter approach procedure on August 7, 2026. The precision navigation system was developed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and validated through flight trials by HAL test pilots before approval by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). RNP uses satellite guidance and onboard avionics to maintain a specified flight path, while CAT H refers specifically to helicopter operations. The procedure improves navigation accuracy in adverse weather, urban areas and terrain-constrained locations. It reduces helicopter approach time from about 12 minutes to four minutes and supports nearly 50 daily helicopter movements at Bengaluru.
The Bengaluru City Police launched Operation Mukta on August 8, 2026, to identify and verify suspected illegal immigrants, particularly suspected Bangladeshi nationals. The operation involved early-morning raids beginning around 5 AM across multiple locations. More than 500 police personnel were deployed in the Whitefield division, covering over 30 locations under six police station limits. Police teams searched migrant settlements and checked identity documents, including Aadhaar and Voter ID cards, in Whitefield, Kadugodi, Marathahalli, Bellandur, Varthur, Mahadevapura and Electronic City. Around 40 suspicious individuals were detained in Whitefield for verification, with four identified as Bangladeshi nationals allegedly staying illegally after foreign documents were recovered. Police planned coordination with the FRRO for further legal action and deportation under applicable immigration laws.
The FAO Food Price Index rose to 131.1 points in July 2026, up from 130.3 in June and reaching its highest level since January 2023. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization attributed the increase to adverse weather conditions and escalating conflicts affecting major agricultural markets. The cereal price index increased 3.4%, led by a 5.8% rise in wheat prices amid concerns over Black Sea export disruptions and heat damage. Vegetable oil prices climbed 2%, reaching their highest level since June 2022, while sugar prices increased 5.6% due to weather concerns and stronger ethanol demand expectations. Meat prices declined 2.8%, while dairy prices fell 0.7%. The July index remained 18.2% below its March 2022 peak.
Abelardo de la Espriella was sworn in as the 36th President of Colombia on August 7, 2026, beginning his 2026–2030 term after succeeding Gustavo Petro, Colombia’s first left-wing president. De la Espriella won the June 21 runoff with 12,960,166 votes (49.66%), defeating Iván Cepeda, who secured 48.70%. The inauguration was held at Santiago de Cali University in Cali, rather than Bogotá. Senate President Honorio Henríquez administered the oath. In his address, De la Espriella adopted a hardline stance against drug trafficking and said peace talks with armed groups were exhausted. King Felipe VI, Javier Milei, Daniel Noboa and FIFA President Gianni Infantino attended. The US announced $1 billion security assistance for Colombia.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued nine circulars on August 6, 2026, introducing a unified framework for loan recovery practices. The revised directions will take effect from January 1, 2027, after the implementation date was deferred from October 1, 2026. Recovery-related calls and physical visits will be permitted only between 8 AM and 7 PM, and borrowers must receive at least one day’s notice before a recovery agent’s first physical visit. Lenders must record recovery calls and retain recordings for at least six months. The framework also regulates remote locking of financed devices such as phones and tablets. Locking cannot begin before an account is 30 days overdue, while complete locking is permitted only after 60 days, with emergency and communication services preserved.
India’s foreign exchange reserves increased by $10.51 billion to $692.87 billion in the week ended July 31, 2026, according to RBI data. The reserves reached their highest level in more than two months, following a $6.1 billion increase in the previous reporting week. Foreign Currency Assets (FCAs), the largest component, rose by $8.75 billion to $564.68 billion. Gold reserves increased by $1.69 billion to $104.74 billion. India’s Special Drawing Rights with the IMF rose by $48 million to $18.67 billion, while its reserve position with the IMF increased by $28 million to $4.78 billion. India’s record forex reserves stood at $728.494 billion in February 2026, before declining amid geopolitical tensions and pressure on the rupee.
Anand Prakash, a 2009-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, has been appointed as India’s next High Commissioner to the Kingdom of Eswatini. He is currently serving as a Director in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). In his new diplomatic assignment, Prakash will represent India in Eswatini and work to strengthen bilateral relations across political, economic, development, education, capacity-building and people-to-people cooperation. Eswatini is a landlocked country in southern Africa, bordered by South Africa and Mozambique. Formerly known as Swaziland, the country officially adopted the name Eswatini in 2018. The appointment is significant for India’s continued diplomatic and development engagement with African nations.
President Droupadi Murmu graced the 12th National Handloom Day celebrations in New Delhi and presented the Sant Kabir Handloom Awards and National Handloom Awards 2025. Four commemorative postage stamps celebrating India’s diverse handloom traditions were also released. The President highlighted handloom’s contribution to employment, women’s empowerment, culture, self-reliance and environmental sustainability. She recalled that the Swadeshi Movement began on August 7, 1905, following the Partition of Bengal, and the government has observed August 7 as National Handloom Day since 2015. Murmu stressed that new technologies, e-commerce and modern training are essential for sustainable growth. She also encouraged young entrepreneurs, designers and startups to connect traditional crafts with modern brands and global value chains.
IIT Guwahati has developed E-Eye, a low-cost portable optical sensing device designed for rapid detection of toxicants and cancer-causing heavy metals in water and biological samples. Announced on August 6, 2026, the device uses the Beer-Lambert law to convert chemical colour intensity into digital readings. It costs approximately ₹3,500, while each test costs around ₹2. Laboratory validation covered more than 2,700 samples, with the device detecting arsenic, lead, iron, chromium, fluoride and Escherichia coli. The research was led by Prof. Tapas K. Mandal and Prof. Harshal B. Nemade, with researchers from KIIT Bhubaneswar and Ramakrishna Mission Residential College, Kolkata. The work was published in the IEEE Sensors Journal and supported by MeitY-linked funding.
IIT Madras Global Research Foundation (IITM Global) and Indonesia’s Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology signed a landmark MoU to strengthen cooperation in higher education, research, innovation, deep technology, entrepreneurship and talent development. The agreement seeks to build collaborative research ecosystems, accelerate deep-tech commercialisation and strengthen the India-Indonesia South-South Strategic Partnership. The MoU was signed in the presence of Indonesian Minister Prof Brian Yuliarto, IIT Madras Director Prof V. Kamakoti, Indian Ambassador Sandeep Chakravorty and other officials. The partnership aims to help Indonesian universities participate in joint research, technology commercialisation, talent development and innovation programmes. It follows recent bilateral discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Param Pragya, an AI-powered high-performance supercomputing facility, at IIT Delhi’s Sonipat Campus on August 8, 2026. The inauguration took place during IIT Delhi’s 57th Convocation Ceremony, where Modi served as chief guest. Param Pragya is designed to support artificial intelligence, data science, advanced computing and interdisciplinary research. More than 3,000 students graduated during the convocation, including 587 doctoral scholars. The institute also awarded its major academic honours, including the President’s Gold Medal and Director’s Gold Medal. The graduating batches included the first students of B.Des., Executive MBA, M.Sc. Biological Sciences and MA in Culture, Society, Thought. IIT Delhi operates under the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961.
Indian squash player Suraj Kumar Chand created history by becoming the first Indian to win the FISU World University Squash Championship title. Chand defeated Hungary’s Takács Benedek 3-2 in a thrilling final to secure the historic gold medal for India. His victory marks a significant milestone for Indian university-level squash and adds to the country’s growing international presence in the sport. The achievement also highlights Chand’s competitive resilience, as he successfully negotiated a closely contested championship match against a strong opponent. His gold medal represents a breakthrough at the FISU World University Squash Championships and provides an important moment for Indian squash. The victory is expected to inspire greater participation and recognition of university-level squash in India.
Indian athlete Ashish Yadav won silver in the men’s javelin throw at the World Athletics U20 Championships 2026 in Eugene, Oregon. His best throw measured 74.09 metres, achieved during his third attempt in the final on August 7. South Africa’s Jan-Hendrik Heymans won gold with 80.50 metres, while Dominica’s Addison James secured bronze with 73.89 metres, a national record. India’s other finalist, T. Dharanidharan, finished sixth with 72.35 metres. Ashish became India’s second medallist in the men’s U20 javelin and the country’s first silver medallist in the event. He was 19 years old and competed despite a recent knee injury. Neeraj Chopra won India’s previous U20 javelin gold in 2016.
Indian gymnast Ariha Pangambam of Imphal, Manipur, created history by winning India’s first senior gold medal in the individual women’s category at the Aerobic Gymnastics Asian Championships. The competition was held in Tagaytay City, Philippines, from August 4 to 7, 2026, under the Asian Gymnastics Union. Pangambam won the final with a score of 19.100, comprising 8.650 in artistry, 7.600 in execution and 2.850 in difficulty. More than 400 athletes and officials from 11 countries participated. Ariha trains under coach Yumnam Ranjan Singh and studies sports leadership at AISTS India. She had finished fourth in the 2022 and 2024 Asian Championships, making her historic 2026 victory a major milestone for Indian aerobic gymnastics.
World Brain Tumour Day is observed annually on June 8 to raise awareness about brain tumours, early detection, diagnosis, treatment and patient support. The observance was initiated by Germany’s Deutsche Hirntumorhilfe e.V., or German Brain Tumour Association, and has been marked globally since 2000. A brain tumour is an abnormal tissue growth in the brain or its surrounding structures and may be benign or malignant, with effects depending on location and size. Possible warning signs include persistent headaches, seizures, speech difficulties, behavioural changes, weakness, balance problems, blurred vision, hearing loss, facial numbness, vomiting and confusion. Risk-reduction measures include avoiding unnecessary ionising radiation, smoking, harmful chemical exposure and preventable head injuries.
World Oceans Day is observed annually on June 8 to raise awareness about oceans and promote their conservation and sustainable use. Its origins date to June 8, 1992, when Oceans Day was declared at the Global Forum in Rio de Janeiro during the UN Conference on Environment and Development. In 2008, the UN General Assembly officially designated June 8 as World Oceans Day through Resolution 63/111, and the first UN observance was held in 2009 with the theme “Our Oceans, Our Responsibility.” The 2026 theme is “Reimagine: Beyond the world we know, a new relationship with our ocean.” Oceans cover over 70% of Earth, produce at least 50% of its oxygen and support biodiversity, food security and livelihoods. SDG 14 focuses on ocean conservation.
Nagasaki Day 2026 will be observed on August 9 to remember victims of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. The United States dropped the plutonium-based Fat Man bomb from the B-29 Bockscar after poor weather prevented the original target, Kokura, from being attacked. The approximately 21-kiloton explosion caused massive destruction and tens of thousands of deaths, while radiation produced long-term health consequences. Survivors, known as Hibakusha, continue advocating for nuclear disarmament. Nagasaki Day promotes peace, diplomacy and awareness of nuclear warfare’s humanitarian consequences. Global disarmament efforts include the NPT, CTBT, TPNW, IAEA safeguards and arms-control agreements. Japan announced surrender on August 15, 1945, ending World War II.
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