Current affairs relevant to GS2.
The e-Shram portal, launched on 26 August 2021, completes five years on 26 August 2026 with 31.89 crore registrations. It is India's first Aadhaar-seeded National Database of Unorganised Workers, giving each worker a 12-digit Universal Account Number. Women make up 54.28 per cent of registrants, and Uttar Pradesh leads the states.
25 Aug 2026
On 24 August 2026 the Health Ministry announced amendments to the Medical Devices Rules, 2017. Under Rule 44, makers who outsource sterilisation to a licensed facility no longer need a separate loan licence. Under Rule 63, the European Union joins the US, UK, Australia, Canada and Japan as a recognised jurisdiction for waiving clinical investigation.
24 Aug 2026
The third meeting of the India-Cambodia Joint Working Group on Trade and Investment was held in Phnom Penh on 24 August 2026. Bilateral trade grew over 36 per cent to $406.78 million in 2025-26, from $299 million a year earlier. Both sides discussed a customs MoU, the Bilateral Investment Treaty and UPI links.
24 Aug 2026
On 22 August 2026 the 14th BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial Meeting, chaired by India, unanimously adopted the Chennai Declaration. It puts a people-centred, humanity-first approach at the heart of BRICS STI cooperation. It backs shared research infrastructure through BRICS GRAIN, a BRICS Science and Research Repository and a BRICS Youth Startup Platform.
22 Aug 2026
On 22 August 2026 the Government restricted the manufacture, sale and distribution of all fixed dose combinations containing chlorpheniramine maleate and phenylephrine hydrochloride, common in cold medicines. Labels must warn that they shall not be used in children below four years. The order, under Section 26A of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, follows Expert Committee and DTAB advice.
22 Aug 2026
On 21 August 2026 the BRICS Tourism Ministers' Meeting in Jaipur, under India's Chairship, adopted the BRICS Tourism Ministers' Communique 2026, called the Jaipur Declaration. Nine member states took part. It sets out cooperation on four themes: AI and tourism, sustainable tourism, tourism skilling, and tourism exchanges and travel facilitation.
21 Aug 2026
A PIB Backgrounder of 20 August 2026 explains the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Vikas Mission, launched in 2021-22 to raise tribal income from minor forest produce. It buys MFP at MSP for 87 items and organises gatherers into Van Dhan Vikas Kendras. So far 4,172 kendras have been sanctioned, linking 12.48 lakh tribal members, with sales of about ₹168 crore.
20 Aug 2026
On 20 August 2026 the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation issued a Policy on Data Sharing, Interoperability and Stakeholder Access under the Sujalam Bharat Digital Public Infrastructure. It sets a secure, federated framework to share rural drinking water data among the Centre, States, Gram Panchayats and approved stakeholders, with a tiered access model that protects privacy and infrastructure.
20 Aug 2026
On 20 August 2026 the defence ministers of India and Japan met in New Delhi and signed a Memorandum of Arrangement on Maritime Security Cooperation. They agreed to hold the fourth 2+2 ministerial meeting in Tokyo this year, set up a joint Working Group and push the UNICORN antenna, the first defence equipment transfer project between the two countries.
20 Aug 2026
On 18 August 2026 Digital Bharat Nidhi signed an agreement with Chhattisgarh, CSBIL, BSNL and CHiPS to roll out the Amended BharatNet Program in the state. The Centre approved ₹3,942 crore. It will cover 11,682 Gram Panchayats and give on-demand connectivity to 8,328 villages, with over three lakh rural home fibre connections expected.
18 Aug 2026