Current Affairs Quiz - April 2026

Notes:
The Allahabad High Court (Lucknow Bench) set aside rejection of Community Forest Rights claims of the Tharu tribe in Lakhimpur Kheri. The Tharu are an indigenous tribe of the Terai plains along the Indo–Nepal border, residing in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Bihar. They are among the oldest and largest ethnic groups of the Terai and were recognized as a Scheduled Tribe in 1967. Their language, Tharu or Tharuhati, belongs to the Indo-Aryan subgroup of the Indo-European language family. Economy is based on agriculture, cattle rearing, fishing, hunting, and forest produce collection.

Notes:
The Government of India has launched the Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool (BMI Pool) to safeguard seaborne trade from global disruptions. It is a Centre-backed domestic maritime insurance mechanism ensuring affordable and uninterrupted coverage for shipping. The scheme covers Indian-flagged vessels, Indian-controlled ships, and vessels carrying cargo to or from India, including high-risk routes. It provides comprehensive risk coverage including hull and machinery, cargo, protection and indemnity, and war risk insurance. The BMI Pool will operate initially for 10 years, with a provision for a five-year extension.

Notes:
Oscar Schmidt, one of basketball’s greatest scorers, has passed away at the age of 68 after battling a brain tumor. He had a remarkable 30-year professional career across Brazil and Europe, retiring in 2003 at the age of 45. Schmidt represented Brazil in five Olympic Games and four World Cups, setting all-time scoring records in both tournaments. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013, recognising his extraordinary contribution to the sport. The record was surpassed in 2024 by LeBron James, marking a new milestone in basketball history.

Notes:
Excavations at Tell el-Farama in northern Sinai revealed a rare round temple in the ancient city of Pelusium. Pelusium was located at the easternmost mouth of the Nile, about 32 km southeast of Port Said in Egypt. It was originally known as Sainu or Per-Amun and served as a key fortress and customs post on Egypt’s eastern frontier. The city was famous for flax production and held strong economic importance.

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Garia Puja is celebrated across Tripura with participation from both tribal and non-tribal communities, promoting harmony and welfare. The festival is dedicated to Baba Garia, a deity associated with prosperity, livestock, and well-being in tribal traditions. Devotees offer bamboo poles decorated with leaves, threads, cloth, along with flowers and fruits as part of rituals. Major celebrations are held in Agartala and at Garjantoli in Teliamura under the initiative of the Jamatia Hoda.

Notes:
The Ministry of Home Affairs received an indigenous satellite imaging system Prajna, developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation through CAIR (Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics), to improve real-time decision-making for security agencies. The AI-enabled Prajna system is designed to monitor sensitive regions and support counter-terrorism operations, thereby strengthening internal security. DRDO and the Indian Navy successfully conducted in-flight trials of ADC-150 (Air Droppable Container with 150 kg capacity) from the P-8I aircraft off the Goa coast.

Notes:
The Para Elan initiative is a three-year India–France collaboration launched by the French Institute in India and the Paralympic Committee of India to promote inclusive education and para sports. A Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Satya Prakash Sangwan (PCI) and Gregor Trumel (IFI) in the presence of Thierry Mathou. The programme aims to reach around 10,000 students through awareness campaigns, workshops, and interactions with para-athletes. It focuses on values like inclusion, equality, resilience, and excellence while strengthening India–France cooperation in adaptive sports.

Notes:
Two Indian waste sites—Secunderabad and Mumbai—are listed among the top global methane emitters. The data comes from University of California, Los Angeles report “Spotlight on the Top 25 Methane Plumes in 2025: Landfills”. The Mumbai facility emits approximately 4.9 tonnes of methane per hour. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and the second-largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide. Though it remains in the atmosphere for a shorter duration than carbon dioxide, methane traps significantly more heat. These emissions highlight the need for improved waste management and methane mitigation strategies in India.

Notes:
The rare, thread-legged assassin bug Myiophanes kempi was recently rediscovered in the limestone caves of the Andaman Islands after nearly a century-long gap. British entomologist William Edward China first described the species in 1924 after finding it in the Siju Cave of Meghalaya. It is a member of the Reduviidae family, a group of insects popularly known as assassin bugs due to their predatory nature. The insect is a specialized cave-dweller that spends its entire lifecycle in complete darkness within subterranean ecosystems. It features a slender body and elongated legs that are specifically adapted for navigating and surviving in cave environments.

Notes:
National Panchayati Raj Day (NPRD) is celebrated on 24 April every year to mark the enactment of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, which gave constitutional status to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). In 2026, it marks 33 years of strengthening grassroots democracy in India. The main event is organized by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj at Vigyan Bhawan. The day highlights the role of the three-tier Panchayati Raj system in achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat.