Current Affairs Quiz - January 2026

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BHASHINI Samudaye is organised by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) in New Delhi to strengthen India’s language Artificial Intelligence (AI) ecosystem. It is a collaborative platform under BHASHINI that supports co-creation, governance, and scaling of Indian language AI tools, datasets, and services. It is led by the Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) under MeitY as part of the National Language Translation Mission (NLTM). The BHASHINI platform and Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) enable real-time translation, speech-to-text, and text-to-speech in Indian languages.

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The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) issued the National Pension System (NPS) Vatsalya Scheme Guidelines 2025. NPS Vatsalya is a contributory long-term financial security scheme exclusively for minors. It was announced in the Union Budget 2024–25 and launched on 18 September 2024 by the Union Finance Minister. The scheme allows parents or legal guardians to build systematic savings for children, with continuity into NPS on attaining majority. It is open to all Indian citizens, including Non-Resident Indians (NRI) and Overseas Citizen of India (OCI), below 18 years.

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Karnataka Bank won the Best Fintech & DPI (Digital Public Infrastructure) Adoption award at the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) Banking Technology Awards. It was adjudged runner-up in Best Tech Talent category. The bank also received Special Mention for Best Technology Bank, Best Digital Financial Inclusion, and Best Digital Sales. The recognition highlights the bank’s focus on digital innovation, technology talent, and customer-centric banking solutions. Karnataka Bank reaffirmed its commitment to expanding digital capabilities to meet evolving customer needs.

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The Madhya Pradesh Regional AI Impact Conference 2026 held in Bhopal, showcasing practical AI use cases in governance and public service delivery aligned with national AI goals. The conference was part of eight regional events being held nationwide ahead of the India AI Impact Summit 2026 scheduled in New Delhi from 16–20 February 2026. An MoU was signed to expand AI education and skilling, including the establishment of 30 Data and AI Labs in Madhya Pradesh under a national plan for 570 labs in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.

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NITI Aayog released the report “Achieving Efficiencies in MSME Sector through Convergence of Schemes” to strengthen government support for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). It provides a roadmap to improve MSME outcomes by streamlining scheme implementation, enhancing inter-ministerial coordination, and boosting financial, skill, marketing, and innovation support. The report evaluates existing central and state MSME schemes, examines convergence levels, and identifies best practices from India and abroad.

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Huntington’s disease (HD) is a rare hereditary brain disorder where specific neurons break down, leading to emotional problems, loss of thinking ability, and uncontrolled movements. Neuron damage occurs mainly in the basal ganglia (controls movement) and the cerebral cortex (controls thinking, memory, and decision‑making). Huntington’s disease (HD) is caused by a genetic mutation in the HTT (Huntingtin) gene, which produces the huntingtin protein essential for neuron function. Recent research is providing fresh hope by advancing understanding of the disease mechanisms and potential treatments, offering optimism for future therapies.

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Karnataka Department of Women and Child Development has launched Gruha Lakshmi Digital Marketing to promote women entrepreneurs. It is a state-backed e-commerce portal showcasing women-made products to national and global markets. The initiative aims to boost women’s economic independence and digital inclusion. The portal highlights products from urban and rural women, including artisans and small businesses. Only verified women entrepreneurs are onboarded to ensure trust and quality. It offers a simple, customer-friendly digital interface for buyers.

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Scientists have confirmed India’s first case of freshwater pufferfish poisoning, highlighting a new public health concern. Pufferfish belong to the order Tetraodontiformes and are also called toadfish, patkafish, balloonfish, and fugu. They are omnivorous and benthic, meaning they live and feed near the river bottom. In India, they are mainly found in the Western Ghats and river basins like Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Mahanadi. Freshwater pufferfish species in India are often endemic and indicate healthy river ecosystems. According to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), pufferfish are listed as Vulnerable.

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Recently, European Council President Antonio Luis Santos da Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen were invited as Chief Guests at India’s 77th Republic Day celebrations. They will visit India from 25–27 January and co-chair the 16th India–European Union (EU) Summit on 27 January. Both leaders will meet President Droupadi Murmu and hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. An India–EU Business Forum will be held alongside the summit. India and the European Union have been strategic partners since 2004. The last summit was held virtually in July 2020.

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Indian scientists discovered a rare subterranean amphibian species named Gegeneophis valmiki in the northern Western Ghats of Maharashtra. The species is named after Maharshi Valmiki Mandir located near the discovery site. It belongs to the genus Gegeneophis, commonly known as blind caecilians. Caecilians are limbless, worm-like amphibians that live underground with eyes hidden under skin and bone. They do not croak like frogs, making field identification very difficult. The Western Ghats host 26 endemic caecilians, and this is the first Gegeneophis discovery in over a decade.