Current Affairs Quiz - January 2026

Notes:
Government of India launched the Market Access Support (MAS) Intervention under the Export Promotion Mission (EPM). Market Access Support (MAS) is implemented under the NIRYAT DISHA sub-scheme of EPM, approved by the Union Cabinet on 12 November 2025. It aims to strengthen international market access for Indian exporters, especially MSMEs, first-time exporters, and priority sector firms. Export Promotion Mission (EPM) is jointly run by Department of Commerce, Ministry of MSME, Ministry of Finance, Indian Missions abroad, Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), Commodity Boards, and industry associations.

Notes:
SPREE 2025 (Scheme for Promotion of Registration of Employers and Employees) extended from 1 January 2026 to 31 January 2026. SPREE 2025 was launched by Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC). The scheme, approved during the 196th meeting of the ESI Corporation chaired by Union Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, aims to enhance social security coverage under the Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) Act. SPREE 2025 allows unregistered employers and employees to join the ESI framework without undergoing inspections, providing past contribution demands, or submitting prior records.

Notes:
The Foster Parent Scheme (Palak Mata-Pita Yojana) was launched by the Gujarat government in 2009–10 to support orphaned and abandoned children. The scheme provides monthly financial assistance of ₹3,000 to relatives or caregivers of children up to 18 years of age. Its aim is to ensure children grow up in a family environment instead of institutional care. Banaskantha district has emerged as a leading district in effective implementation of the scheme. A total of 2,818 beneficiaries in Banaskantha have received support under the scheme so far. Currently, 1,727 children receive ₹51.81 lakh per month as assistance. The support helps meet education, healthcare, and daily living needs of vulnerable children.

Notes:
The President of India graced a special programme under Skilling for AI Readiness (SOAR) Programme. It is an initiative of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE). The programme aims to integrate Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning into school education and training systems. It prepares students and teachers for a fast-changing digital world and AI-based careers. The government has allocated ₹500 crore to set up a Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence for Education.

Notes:
Recently, Andhra Pradesh emerged as India’s top investment destination, capturing 25.3% of all proposed investments in the first nine months of FY26. It leads other states like Odisha (13.1%) and Maharashtra (12.8%), showing a shift of industrial momentum to eastern and southern corridors. Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Maharashtra together account for 51.2% of India’s total proposed capital investment. Nationwide, investment announcements reached Rs 26.6 lakh crore, up 11.5% year-on-year. Andhra Pradesh’s performance is credited to investor-friendly policies, fast-track approvals, infrastructure development, and sector-focused strategies.

Notes:
The Union Minister directed sediment removal at the Salal Power Project in Jammu and Kashmir to maximise water use amid the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan being kept in abeyance. Salal is a 690 Megawatt (MW) run-of-the-river hydroelectric project on the Chenab River in Reasi district. It is owned by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC). It was India’s first hydropower project under the Indus Waters Treaty regime in Kashmir. The dam is 130 metres high at 1627 feet above mean sea level. Jammu and Kashmir gets 12.5 percent power, while the rest goes to the Northern Grid supplying multiple northern states.

Notes:
National Siddha Day is observed every year in India on January 6 to mark the birth anniversary of Sage Agathiyar, regarded as the father of the Siddha system of medicine. The day coincides with the Ayilyam star in the Tamil month of Margazhi. The first National Siddha Day was observed on 4 January 2018. The 9th National Siddha Day falls on 6 January 2026.

Notes:
Pakistani archaeologists unearthed rare coins and decorative stones at the Bhir Mound, a UNESCO-listed site near Takshashila, revealing insights into ancient urban settlements. The decorative stones date to the 6th century BCE, while the coins are from the 2nd century CE, belonging to the Kushan dynasty. Coins depict Emperor Vasudeva on the obverse and a female religious deity on the reverse, highlighting Kushan-era religious pluralism. Lapis lazuli fragments, a prized semi-precious stone, indicate long-distance trade, likely sourced from Badakhshan (present-day Afghanistan).

Notes:
Researchers discovered three new meadow katydid species in Jammu and Kashmir named Conocephalus usmanii, Conocephalus nagariensis, and Conocephalus ganderbali. Katydids are mainly nocturnal insects found on all continents except Antarctica. More than 8,000 species exist, belonging to the family Tettigoniidae. They are orthopterans, meaning straight-winged insects, related closely to crickets. Katydids are also called long-horned grasshoppers or bush crickets. They have long thread-like antennae and leaf-like bodies for camouflage. Most are herbivores with a lifespan of about one year.

Notes:
The United Nations has declared 2026 as the ‘International Year for Rangelands and Pastoralists’. Rangelands cover around half of the Earth’s land surface, including grasslands, savannas, shrublands, deserts, wetlands, and mountain areas. Key examples of rangelands are the steppes of Central Asia, African savanna, Alps and Pyrenees in Europe, Andes in South America, and the Great Plains of the United States. Rangelands preserve unique flora and fauna and provide essential ecosystem services such as carbon storage and water regulation. Pastoralists raise animals, contribute to food security, and carry diverse cultural heritage and indigenous knowledge.