India Current Affairs [Nation & States] MCQs

Notes:
The Supreme Court is re-examining the long-standing dispute over Scheduled Tribe (ST) status of the Lambada community in Telangana. Lambadas are also known as Sugalis or Banjaras and are recognised as a Scheduled Tribe. They are mainly spread across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The community is believed to have originated from the Marwar region of Rajasthan. Traditionally, they were semi-nomadic traders transporting goods, but this declined during British rule. They speak “Gor Boli”, also called Lambadi language.

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India celebrated its 77th Republic Day on January 26, 2026, at Kartavya Path, New Delhi. The day commemorates the adoption of the Constitution of India in 1950, replacing the Government of India Act, 1935, and establishing India as a sovereign republic. Republic Day is marked by ceremonial parades, military displays, and cultural showcases in the national capital. Chief guests for 2026 were António Costa, head of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, highlighting India-EU engagement. The theme for Republic Day 2026 was “150 Years of Vande Mataram”.

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The Ministry of Labour and Employment launched the e-Shram portal (eshram.gov.in) on 26 August 2021 to create a National Database of Unorganised Workers (NDUW) including platform and migrant workers. The portal registers unorganised workers and issues a Universal Account Number (UAN) on a self-declaration basis. NITI Aayog estimated 7.7 million workers in 2020-21, rising to 23.5 million by 2029-30. Budget 2025-26 includes identity cards and Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) healthcare coverage. This information was provided by Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje, in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha

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The Union Finance Minister announced the Biopharma SHAKTI initiative in the Union Budget 2026–27 initiative to strengthen India’s biopharmaceutical sector. Biopharma SHAKTI stands for Strategy for Healthcare Advancement through Knowledge, Technology and Innovation. It aims to make India a global hub for biopharmaceutical manufacturing. The initiative will support domestic production of biologics and biosimilars. It will build a biopharma-focused network with three new National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER).

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Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi launched the ‘Samikshya’ portal for real-time monitoring of projects funded under State Finance Commission (SFC) and Central Finance Commission (CFC) grants. State Finance Commission (SFC) emphasized equity, regional disparities, and differing needs of rural and urban local bodies, offering financial and non-financial development measures. The portal aims to improve transparency, accountability, timely execution, and better service delivery of SFC- and CFC-funded works at the grassroots level.

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The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) seized over four kilograms of Mephedrone (MD), a synthetic stimulant drug, from Sanchore in Rajasthan. The operation was conducted jointly with the Anti Narcotics Task Force (ANTF), Rajasthan, and Jalore Police. Laboratory and industrial equipment used for manufacturing synthetic drugs were recovered. The crackdown was carried out under Operation PRAYOGSHALA. The seizure highlights intensified efforts to dismantle illegal synthetic drug manufacturing networks.

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Eight members of Karnataka’s Hakki Pikki tribal community are stranded in Central Africa after their visas expired during travel for selling herbal products. Hakki Pikki is a major tribal community of Karnataka with a population of 11,892 as per the Census 2011. In Kannada, “Hakki” means bird and “Pikki” means to catch, reflecting their traditional bird-catching occupation. They believe they descended from Ranapratap Singh and have a Kshatriya or warrior origin, migrating south after Mughal conflicts. They are officially recognized as a Scheduled Tribe in India.

Notes:
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister objected to Karnataka’s proposal to raise the height of Almatti Dam on Upper Krishna River. Almatti Dam is built on Krishna River in Karnataka for irrigation, hydroelectric power, and flood control. It is 52.5 meters high and about 3.5 kilometers long. It has annual power generation capacity of about 713 million kilowatts. It is main reservoir of Upper Krishna Irrigation Project.

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Mumbai’s Coastal Road has introduced India’s first musical road, showcasing an innovative blend of infrastructure and technology to enhance public experience. A 500-metre stretch between Nariman Point and Worli, named Sangeet Marg, plays the Oscar-winning song “Jai Ho” when vehicles travel at a speed of 60–80 km per hour. The musical effect is created using specially engineered rumble strips carved into the asphalt at precise intervals. The concept is based on Hungarian technology and has already been implemented in countries such as Hungary, Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.

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The Finance Minister announced Bharat-VISTAAR, a multilingual AI tool to integrate AgriStack portals and ICAR’s agricultural practice package with AI systems. AgriStack is a Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for the farm sector under the Digital Agriculture Mission (DAM), approved by the Union Cabinet in September 2024. AgriStack has three foundational registries: Farmer Registry, Crop Sown Registry, and Geo-referenced Village Maps, maintained by State Governments and Union Territories. Farmer Registry gives farmers a digital Farmer ID, linked to land records, livestock, crops, family, demographics, schemes, and benefits; target is 11 crore farmers.