Current Affairs for Competitive Exams: 21 August 2026, Daily Roundup

Current Affairs – 21 August 2026

National Affairs

1. PM Modi Addresses Economic Times World Leaders Forum 2026:

• Theme: “Shared Futures”.
• PM highlighted the impact of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme:
  • ₹2.5 lakh crore actual investment
  • ₹22 lakh crore production/sales
  • ₹15 lakh crore exports
  • Over 14 lakh jobs

2. CCEA Approves ₹13,041 Crore Infrastructure Projects

• Five major infrastructure projects were approved.
• Four railway multi-tracking projects worth ₹9,450 crore cover eight districts in West Bengal, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
• Also includes four-laning of NH-22 in Bihar.

3. Delhi Master Plan 2047

• Government unveiled the Delhi Master Plan 2047, providing a long-term spatial, economic and institutional framework.
• Objectives: make Delhi globally competitive, environmentally resilient and inclusive.

4. Jharkhand High Court Stays Cancellation of Appointments: The Jharkhand High Court stayed, until further orders, the government’s decision to cancel appointments made through the 11th–13th JPSC Civil Services examinations and Food Safety Officer recruitment.

5. Cabinet Approves Permanent High Court Bench in Ladakh: The Union Cabinet approved the establishment of a High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Bench in Ladakh.

International Current Affairs

1. India–Japan Defence Ministers’ Meeting: Defence Ministers Rajnath Singh and Shinjiro Koizumi co-chaired the meeting in New Delhi.

• Focus areas:
  • Maritime security
  • Make in India defence technology
  • Strategic trust

2. India–Singapore Ministerial Roundtable: The 4th India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR) was held in Singapore. Participating Indian ministers included Nirmala Sitharaman, S. Jaishankar, Piyush Goyal and Jitin Prasada.

3. India–Nepal Border Management Talks: The 14th India-Nepal Joint Working Group on Border Management began in Dehradun.

4. BRICS Communications Ministers Meeting: The 12th BRICS Communications Ministers Meeting was scheduled for 21 August 2026 under India’s BRICS Presidency.

Global Geopolitical Developments

1. Hijacking of Merchant Vessels: Two separate incidents off the coasts of Yemen and Somalia involved armed groups taking control of commercial vessels.nA total of 22 Indian nationals were reportedly among those affected.

2. US Economic Pressure on Iran: US President Donald Trump announced new economic measures against Iran.

3. Zambia: Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Hakainde Hichilema on his re-election as President of Zambia.

Defence Update

1. India–Japan Defence Cooperation: India and Japan discussed enhanced maritime-security cooperation and defence-technology collaboration. Particular emphasis was placed on Make in India and strengthening strategic trust.

2. Nepal–Gorkha Recruitment Issue: Calls have increased for Nepal to permit its citizens to join the Indian Army under the Agnipath scheme.

Science & Technology

1. PhonePe–PM GatiShakti Integration: PhonePe signed an MoU with MeitY to integrate its enterprise data-intelligence platform PulsePro with the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan portal. Coordination involves the Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N).

2. Grasslands & Open Natural Ecosystems: India launched its first Guide to Grasslands and Other Open Natural Ecosystems (ONEs) at UNCCD COP17, Ulaanbaatar.

Sports Update

1. Satwik–Chirag Reach BWF World Championship Quarterfinal Stage : India’s fifth-seeded men’s doubles pair Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty defeated Malaysia’s Junaidi Arif and Roy King Yap in the pre-quarterfinals at New Delhi.

2. Indian Women’s Hockey Team Advances: India drew 0–0 with England in the final Pool D match at the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup. India advanced to the second round.

3. Subroto Cup 2026: The 65th Subroto Cup began in New Delhi.108 teams are participating across three age categories.

Important Observance

World Senior Citizens’ Day – 21 August: Promotes awareness of the social, economic and healthcare concerns of elderly people. Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007. Important schemes include Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana, SACRED and PM Vaya Vandana Yojana.

Miscellaneous One-Liners Current Affairs

• South Zone Council: The 31st South Zonal Council Meeting concluded at Mahabalipuram, chaired by Home Minister Amit Shah. It discussed shared development and regional priorities.
• Chhattisgarh Fisheries: Chhattisgarh became the first inland state to export value-added Tilapia products to the US—382 tonnes.
• Sugar Imports: Government permitted duty-free import of up to 10 lakh metric tonnes of raw sugar under a Tariff Rate Quota until 31 October 2026.
• PhonePe: PulsePro integration with PM GatiShakti aims to strengthen data-driven infrastructure planning.
• Andhra Pradesh: Formal groundwork began for elections to 100 urban local bodies.
• Meghalaya–Assam: CM Conrad Sangma discussed violence against Assam-registered vehicles and tourists during a Shillong black-flag bike rally.
• Manipuri Language Day: The 35th Manipuri Language Day commemorated its inclusion in the Eighth Schedule in 1992.
• Delhi: Master Plan 2047 aims at an inclusive, resilient and globally competitive capital.
• Gujarat Hooch Tragedy: Death toll in the Bhavnagar hooch tragedy rose to eight, with others reportedly critical.
• Sajjan Kumar: Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar died at 80; he had been serving a life sentence in cases related to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
• Nagaland Police Busts Drug Network: Mon Police seized approximately 800 grams of heroin, locally known as ‘Shan Flower’, in an interstate drug-trafficking operation