NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Madhya Pradesh Missile Manufacturing Plant Launched in Shivpuri: Adani Defence & Aerospace laid the foundation stone for a ₹2,500 crore missile manufacturing facility in Pali, Shivpuri district, Madhya Pradesh, on 5 July 2026. The project is planned as a private-sector missile ecosystem for medium and long-range missile systems. The facility is designed to integrate the missile manufacturing value chain. It will produce composite propellants, TNT, and explosive-grade materials, which are critical inputs in missile production. The project is described as South Asia’s largest private-sector missile ecosystem. The project is expected to generate about 5,000 direct and indirect skilled jobs over three years. It is also planned to integrate more than 50 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises into its supply chain. The facility is expected to be completed within three years.
2. West Bengal Implements PMCSPY for Tea Garden Workers: West Bengal approved the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Cha Shramik Protsahan Yojana (PMCSPY) on 5 July 2026 for tea garden workers in North Bengal. The state sanctioned ₹313.30 crore for education, healthcare, and welfare infrastructure under the scheme. The PMCSPY includes three major components for tea garden labour welfare. The Cha Shramik Shiksha Yojana (CSSY) has an allocation of ₹177 crore for educational infrastructure and learning facilities. The Cha Shramik Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (CSSSY) has ₹72 crore for healthcare facilities and medical services. The State Level Committee finalised the implementation plan on 4 July 2026. The North Bengal Development Department will act as the nodal implementing agency and will coordinate with the Health Department, Paschim Banga Samagra Siksha Mission, and district administrations.
3. Railway Minister Flags Off New Express Train Services: Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw flagged off two new express train services on 6 July 2026. The services are the Nanded-Mumbai Express and the Tanakpur-Nanded Express. He also inaugurated the extension of the Tanakpur-Pilibhit train service up to Shahjahanpur through video conferencing from Rail Sadan in Bhubaneswar. The Nanded-Mumbai Express is linked with rail connectivity for passengers in Vidarbha and Marathwada in Maharashtra. Washim, Hingoli and Basmat are among the places connected by this service. The Tanakpur-Nanded Express connects Uttarakhand with Maharashtra and provides direct rail access to Hazur Sahib Nanded. The Tanakpur-Pilibhit train service was extended up to Shahjahanpur on 6 July 2026. The Tanakpur-Agra train, which earlier ran as a special service, was converted into a regular train on the same day. These changes add to the network of passenger services in northern India.
4. Union Home Minister Launches Cooperative Insurance Initiative: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah announced a plan to establish a cooperative life insurance company on 6 July 2026 in New Delhi during the 5th Foundation Day celebration of the Ministry of Cooperation. The initiative is linked to the cooperative sector, insurance distribution, and the expansion of cooperative institutions in India. Cooperative insurance refers to insurance services organised through cooperative institutions, which are member-owned and member-controlled entities under the cooperative movement. The proposed model includes life insurance, while earlier plans for “Sahkari Insurance Services” covered health, life, agriculture, and accident insurance on a cooperative basis.
5. Andhra Pradesh Introduces Millet Chikki in Schools: Andhra Pradesh introduced peanut millet jaggery chikki in government schools under the Dokka Seethamma Mid-Day Meal Scheme on 6 July 2026. The new snack replaces conventional peanut chikki and is prepared with peanuts, blended millets and jaggery syrup. The Dokka Seethamma Mid-Day Meal Scheme is the school nutrition programme of Andhra Pradesh for students in government schools. The scheme covers food distribution in schools and junior colleges through procurement and supply arrangements for the academic year 2026-27. The Akshaya Patra Foundation supplied millet chikkis to students three days a week alongside the government menu as of 31 March 2026. The foundation launched a Morning Nutrition programme in Visakhapatnam on 3 December 2025 and provided millet-based snacks to 49,000 children in 321 government schools on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
6. AICTE Closes 58 Engineering Colleges: The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) closed 58 engineering and technical colleges during the 2025-26 academic year through a progressive closure process. Under this process, existing students can complete their degrees, while no new first-year admissions are permitted in the affected institutions. Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra recorded 12 closures each as of 5-6 July 2026. Madhya Pradesh recorded eight closures, while Telangana and Punjab recorded four closures each during the same academic year. Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan recorded three closures each. Gujarat, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu recorded two closures each, while Haryana, Odisha, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, and Puducherry recorded one closure each.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. India Joins UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance: India is participating in the inaugural United Nations Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva, Switzerland, on 6-7 July 2026. The Indian delegation is led by Minister of State for External Affairs and Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh. The dialogue is the first universal, multi-stakeholder forum on AI governance under the United Nations system. The Global Dialogue on AI Governance was established under United Nations General Assembly Resolution 79/325. The framework follows the Global Digital Compact adopted in September 2024. The dialogue is designed to support international cooperation on AI governance alongside national, regional, and multilateral efforts. The Geneva meeting covers four clusters of issues related to artificial intelligence. These clusters are AI’s social and economic implications, bridging the global AI divide, promoting safe and trustworthy AI, and safeguarding human rights in the context of AI.
2. India Restores Hindu Temples Across Southeast Asia: India, through the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), is involved in heritage conservation projects at several ancient temple and monastery sites in Southeast Asia. These sites include Hindu, Buddhist, and mixed religious monuments in Laos, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Myanmar. Wat Phou is a 5th-century Hindu temple complex in southern Laos and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The ASI is continuing its restoration work there, and the second phase of the project is scheduled to conclude in 2028 at an estimated cost of Rs 24 crore. Wat Phou is associated with pre-Angkorian Khmer architecture and with Shaivite religious traditions. The site lies near the Mekong River and forms part of the Champasak cultural landscape. The Archaeological Survey of India is the central agency under the Ministry of Culture for archaeological research and conservation in India. The ASI also undertakes international heritage conservation projects through technical assistance, documentation, structural repair, and site management support.
3. India Hosts BRICS Anti-Drugs Meeting in Guwahati: India is hosting the two-day BRICS Heads of Anti-Drug Agencies Meeting in Guwahati, Assam, on 6-7 July 2026. The meeting is organised by the Narcotics Control Bureau under the Union Home Ministry and brings together anti-drug agencies from the expanded BRICS grouping. BRICS is an intergovernmental grouping that originally comprised Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The expanded BRICS grouping includes Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. The BRICS Heads of Anti-Drug Agencies Meeting is a platform for cooperation among national drug-control institutions. The agenda includes intelligence sharing, operational coordination, capacity building and institutional cooperation among member states.
4. OPEC+ Approves 188,000 Bpd Oil Output Hike: OPEC+ agreed on 5 July 2026 to raise its collective oil production ceiling by 188,000 barrels per day for August. The decision was taken by seven core members of the alliance during an online ministerial meeting. OPEC+ is a grouping of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allied producers that coordinates oil output policy. The seven core members involved in the August decision were Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman. The August increase forms part of a phased rollback of a 1.65 million barrels per day supply cut agreed in 2023. After the August hike, about 379,000 barrels per day of the original 2023 cuts will still remain to be restored to the market. Crude oil traded near 72 US dollars per barrel on 3 July 2026. The next OPEC+ ministerial review is fixed for 2 August 2026.
5. INS Sudarshini Reaches New York for Sail4th 250: INS Sudarshini, the Indian Naval Sail Training Ship, arrived in New York Harbor on 4 July 2026 for the United States International Naval Review 250 and Sail4th 250 celebrations. The three-masted barque is berthed at Brooklyn and is part of a 10-month transoceanic expedition named Lokayan 2026. INS Sudarshini is a sail training ship of the Indian Navy. A barque is a sailing vessel with three or more masts, with square sails on the foremast and mainmast and fore-and-aft sails on the mizzenmast. Sail4th 250 marks the 250th anniversary of the United States’ independence. The events in New York are scheduled from 4 July to 8 July 2026, and public viewing of tall ships is planned from 5 July to 8 July 2026. INS Sudarshini participated in SAIL 250 events in Norfolk and Baltimore before reaching New York. The ship sailed along the Hudson River during the Parade of Sail and flew the Indian Tricolour.
6. Bihar Banyan Tree Named World’s Oldest Accurately Dated: A banyan tree (Ficus benghalensis) in Munger, Bihar, has been identified as the world’s oldest accurately dated banyan tree. Scientists estimated its age at about 700 years through high-precision radiocarbon dating of alpha-cellulose from wood samples. The tree stands on the Indian Tobacco Company campus in Munger and has been linked to the historic Burra Bunglow area. The study used radiocarbon dating, a method that measures the decay of carbon-14 in organic material and is used in archaeology, geology, and palaeosciences. Tropical broadleaf trees such as banyans usually do not form distinct annual growth rings, which makes conventional dendrochronology difficult. The use of alpha-cellulose from wood samples provides a more precise material for radiocarbon analysis in long-lived trees.
OTHER UPDATES:
DEFENCE
1. CWGC Recognises 9,909 Indian World War I Soldiers: On 6 July 2026, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission recognised 9,909 previously uncommemorated British Indian Army servicemen from World War I. The revision is the largest change to the CWGC casualty database in more than 80 years. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is an intergovernmental organisation that maintains war graves and memorials for Commonwealth war dead. It was established in 1917 as the Imperial War Graves Commission and later adopted its present name. The British Indian Army recruited men from the Indian subcontinent during World War I, and about 1.4 million men served in its ranks. Many of the newly recognised names belonged to Punjabis from undivided Punjab, which was a major recruiting region for the army.
2. China Conducts Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile Test: China conducted a submarine-launched ballistic missile test in the South Pacific on Monday, 6 July 2026. The missile carried a dummy warhead and was launched at 12:01 p.m. local time, or 0401 GMT, from one of China’s nuclear-powered submarines. A submarine-launched ballistic missile is a ballistic missile fired from a submarine platform. Such missiles are part of sea-based nuclear deterrence systems and are associated with strategic forces in several nuclear-armed states. The South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone was established under the Treaty of Rarotonga in 1985. It covers the South Pacific region and restricts the stationing, testing, and acquisition of nuclear explosive devices in the zone. This was China’s second strategic missile test in the Pacific since September 2024, when it fired an intercontinental ballistic missile. It was also the first known submarine-based missile test from a nuclear-powered submarine since 1982.
3. Armed Forces Review Higher Agniveer Retention: The Department of Military Affairs, headed by Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, is reviewing a proposal to raise the retention rate of Agniveers under the Agnipath scheme. The scheme was launched in June 2022 and allows 25% of Agniveer recruits to enter permanent service after a four-year tenure. Agnipath is a recruitment scheme for the Indian Armed Forces that inducts personnel as Agniveers for four years. Under the existing framework, 75% of each batch is released after the tenure, while 25% is retained for regular service. The Indian Navy is seeking retention of about 75% of its Agniveers, especially in technical branches where training costs are high. The Indian Army and the Indian Air Force are expected to seek retention of about 50% each.
SPORTS
1. International Day of Cooperatives 2026 Observed on 5 July - First Saturday of July: The UN International Day of Cooperatives (IDoC) was observed globally on 5 July 2026 (first Saturday of July) under the 2026 theme "Cooperatives Serve People: Building a Sustainable Future for All." Exam importance: IDoC was established in 1923 by the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) and was officially proclaimed by UNGA through Resolution A/RES/47/90 in December 1992; first UN-recognised observance: July 1993; ICA was established in 1895, HQ: Brussels, Belgium; India has the world's largest cooperative movement with over 8.5 lakh cooperatives and 29 crore members; AMUL (Anand Milk Union Limited) is India's iconic dairy cooperative; Union Ministry of Cooperation was established in 2021 under Amit Shah; India's Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023 reformed the governance of cooperatives.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
1. Scientists Discover Earth-Like Exoplanet GJ 3378b: GJ 3378b is an exoplanet orbiting the red dwarf star Gliese 3378, which lies about 25 light-years from the Solar System in the northern constellation Camelopardalis. The planet was first identified in 2024 and later re-analysed by astronomers at the University of California, Irvine, with revised measurements published on 1 July 2026. The revised mass of GJ 3378b is about 2.3 times the mass of Earth, compared with an earlier estimate of about 5.26 to 5.3 Earth masses. Its orbital period is 21.45 days, compared with an earlier estimate of 25 days, and this orbit places it within the star’s habitable zone. The habitable zone is the region around a star where liquid water can exist on a planet’s surface if the planet has a suitable atmosphere. GJ 3378b receives about 90% of the radiation that Earth receives from the Sun, which places it near the inner part of the star’s habitable zone.
2. Hayabusa2 Performs Torifune Asteroid Flyby: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft performed a high-speed flyby of asteroid Torifune, also called 2001 CC21, on 5 July 2026. The spacecraft passed at about 800 metres from the asteroid’s centre and moved at around 5 kilometres per second relative to the asteroid. Hayabusa2 is a Japanese sample-return spacecraft developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The probe completed its primary mission in 2020 by returning samples from asteroid Ryugu to Earth. It is now operating on an extended mission with additional asteroid encounters. Asteroid Torifune has the designation 2001 CC21. Its estimated diameter is about 450 to 500 metres. The flyby enabled observations of the asteroid’s surface, structure, and temperature. JAXA confirmed that the spacecraft remained in normal condition at 6:35 p.m. Japan Standard Time on 5 July 2026.
3. ISRO Conducts First SOLVE Ground Test for Gaganyaan: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) conducted the first ground test of the solid motor for the Sub-Orbital Launch Vehicle for Experiments (SOLVE) on 3 July 2026 at the Static Test Facility, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. SOLVE is a compact test vehicle developed for integrated parachute tests for the deceleration system of the Gaganyaan Crew Module. SOLVE stands for Sub-Orbital Launch Vehicle for Experiments. It is designed to carry the crew module to an altitude of 10 to 17 km, after which the module separates and a sequence of 10 parachutes deploys for descent before splashdown in the sea. The solid stage of SOLVE is derived from the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle Strap-on Motor. The modified configuration includes a slow burn-rate propellant and a straight nozzle with secondary injection thrust vector control.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. Uttar Pradesh Expands Free Residential Education Under JPNSV Scheme: Jai Prakash Narayan Sarvodaya Vidyalaya (JPNSV) schools are a network of free residential schools in Uttar Pradesh managed by the Uttar Pradesh Social Welfare Department. The scheme provides hostel accommodation, meals, uniforms, books, stationery, and residential schooling for eligible students from economically weaker and socially disadvantaged families. Seat allocation in JPNSV schools follows a fixed reservation pattern. Scheduled Castes receive 60% of seats, Other Backward Classes receive 25% of seats, and 15% of seats are reserved for General Category students from economically weaker families. Students in Classes 11 and 12 also receive free coaching for NEET, JEE, and CUET.
2. VB-GRAM G Scheme Gets First Instalment of ₹25,863 Crore: The Union Ministry of Rural Development released the first instalment of ₹25,863 crore for the rural employment programme under the Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025. The release took place on 5 July 2026 through video conferencing from Bhopal, and the Act came into effect across rural India on 1 July 2026. The revised wage structure under VB-GRAM G fixed an interim base wage rate of ₹300 per day from 1 July 2026. The national average daily wage increased by ₹28.6 to ₹327.4 per day, compared with ₹298.8 under MGNREGA. The funding pattern under the scheme follows a 60:40 Centre-State ratio for most States and a 90:10 ratio for North-Eastern and Himalayan States. An interim allocation of ₹95,692.31 crore has been made for States and Union Territories for wage payments and works under the new framework.
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