Current Affairs – August 05, 2026

{GS1 – Geo} Lab Grown Diamonds *

• Context (TH): With the 40 mines behind 90% of global diamond production set to be exhausted within 50 years, lab-grown diamonds are emerging as a scalable alternative to secure future supply.

• Lab-grown diamonds share identical chemical, physical, and optical properties with mined diamonds, as both are pure carbon arranged in a cubic crystal lattice.
• Methods: Laboratory synthesis condenses billions of years of natural formation into a few weeks, using two primary manufacturing technologies:
  1. Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD): Builds a diamond layer by layer by ionizing methane and hydrogen into a superheated plasma inside a vacuum chamber.
  2. High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT): Crystallizes carbon by subjecting a diamond seed to 1,300–1,600°C and 5–6 GPa of pressure.
  • While CVD mimics how carbon crystallizes in interstellar gas clouds, HPHT replicates the crushing environment deep within Earth’s mantle.
• Application: Hardness and high thermal conductivity make these diamonds essential for high-power electronics, laser diodes, and precision cutting equipment.

Read more> Lab Grown Diamonds

{GS2 – MoAFW} PM-KISAN

• Context (NOA): Union Cabinet extended the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) Scheme to 2030–31, with an outlay of ₹3.15 lakh crore for the period.

• Operational since 2018, it is a Central Sector Scheme under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare providing financial assistance to farmers for inputs and household needs.
• Eligible farmer families receive ₹6,000 annually in three installments of ₹2,000 each, transferred every four months via Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
• Eligibility: All landholding farmer families nationwide with cultivable land in their names, regardless of size (initial 2-hectare cap removed).
  • For this scheme, a “family” is strictly defined as a husband, wife, and minor children.
• Exclusions: Institutional landholders, specified constitutional or political office-holders, most government and PSU employees, pensioners, recent income-tax payers, and practicing registered professionals are ineligible, except Multi-Tasking Staff, Class IV, and Group D employees.
• Beneficiary Identification: State and UT governments identify eligible families.
• Digital Access: Aadhaar-based e-KYC, the PM-KISAN Portal and Mobile App, and the AI chatbot Kisan-eMitra support authentication and grievance redressal.
• Key Achievements: Over 85% of small and marginal farmers are enrolled, and women make up more than 25% of beneficiaries.

Read More > PM-KISAN

{GS3 – DM} Landslides in Western Ghats

• Context (IE): Exceptionally heavy rain triggered fresh landslides, mudslides and flooding in Kerala.

• Key Reason: Intense spell driven by an offshore trough extending from south Gujarat coast to Kerala, strong south-westerly winds across Arabian Sea, and a strong north-south pressure gradient along west coast caused widespread rainfall.

Key Reasons for Frequent Occurrence of Landslides in Western Ghats

• Geography: Region’s steep slopes, geology and changing land use make it inherently susceptible to landslides.
  • Terrain has two distinctive layers, a layer of soil sitting atop hard rocks. Water reaches the rocks and flows between the soil and rock layers weakening the force binding soil to rocks causing landslides.
• Mining: Growing mining activities are resulting in increased vulnerability to landslide along with serious & agriculture & social disruption.
• Hydropower projects: Bigger dam projects in Western Ghats have caused in ecological & social disruption.
• Climate change: The variations in land use & deforestation lead to massive changes in period & amount of rainfalls causing floods due to environmental changes.

Read More> Western Ghats | Landslides

{GS3 – IE} India Achieves Near-Universal Banking Coverage

• Context (PIB): India has achieved near-universal banking coverage, with 99.92% of inhabited villages having access to a banking outlet within a 5 km radius.

Key Achievements of India

• Near-Universal Banking Access: Coverage is ensured through bank branches, Business Correspondents (BCs), and India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) centres.
  • Business Correspondents (BCs) or Bank Saathis, are agents appointed by banks to provide essential banking services in branchless and remote areas.
• Expansion of Banking Infrastructure:
  • 1.81 lakh bank branches across country.
  • 17.36 lakh Business Correspondents (BCs) extending banking services in remote areas.
  • 1.65 lakh IPPB centres supporting last-mile financial inclusion.

• Strengthening Financial Inclusion: 58.77 crore PM Jan Dhan Yojana accounts opened with total deposits in PMJDY accounts reaching ₹3,12,414 crore, indicating increased usage of formal banking services.
• Improved Rural Banking: RBI permits Commercial Banks, Small Finance Banks, Payments Banks, Local Area Banks and Regional Rural Banks, to open branches without prior approval, provided 25% of new branches are established in unbanked rural areas.

Key Initiatives For Promoting Banking Coverage

• Improving Agricultural Credit Delivery: Jan Samarth Portal (single digital platform integrating government-sponsored loan and subsidy schemes), KRISHIKA platform, Kisan Rin Portal (KRP), etc.
• Cyber Security: India Digital Payment Intelligence Corporation (IDPIC) uses Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and Big Data Analytics for real-time fraud intelligence sharing among banks.
• Public Awareness: RBI and banks conduct SMS campaigns, radio awareness programmes, and e-BAAT training to educate customers about cyber fraud prevention.

Read More> Financial Inclusion in India

{GS3 – IE} Zero Defect Zero Effect (ZED) Scheme *

• Context (PIB): Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MoMSME) is promoting quality-driven and environmentally responsible manufacturing through the ZED Certification Scheme.

• Launched in 2016 by the MoMSME as a flagship initiative to promote quality and sustainable manufacturing among MSMEs.
• Objective: To improve the quality, productivity, sustainability, and global competitiveness of MSMEs through adoption of better manufacturing practices and cleaner technologies.
• ZED Is Based on the Principle of:
  • Zero Defect: Ensures defect-free, high-quality products that meet global quality standards.
  • Zero Effect: Ensures manufacturing processes have minimal adverse environmental impact through resource efficiency and pollution reduction.
• Certification Levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold, representing progressively higher standards of quality and sustainability.
• Financial Assistance: Eligible MSME can also avail financial assistance of up to –
  • 75% of the cost of testing/system/product certification (maximum ₹50,000),
  • up to ₹2 lakh for handholding and consultancy support, and
  • up to ₹3 lakh for adopting Zero Effect solutions, pollution-control measures and cleaner technologies.
• 100% Subsidy on ZED Certification for Women-owned MSMEs, which removes the cost barrier and encourages greater participation of women entrepreneurs.
• Implementing Agency: Quality Council of India (QCI) acts as the National Monitoring & Implementing Unit.

{GS3 – IE} Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026

• Context (TH): Union Government introduced Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, in Lok Sabha, amending Income-tax Act, 2025, the Finance Act, 2026, & Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.

• Objective: To reduce global supply-chain risks, attract foreign capital, and strengthen India’s high-tech manufacturing, digital infrastructure, and global trade under the “China Plus One” strategy.

Key Highlights

• Electronics Relief: Extends tax exemption on specified electronics for foreign OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) by 10 years (to 2041).
• Component Warehousing: Provides foreign companies with a 15-year tax exemption on storing components in customs-bonded warehouses for supply to domestic manufacturers.
• Diamond Trading: Grants foreign diamond miners and aggregators a 15-year tax exemption for rough-diamond trading within notified special zones.
• Data Centers: Allows foreign cloud companies to use leased data centers without separate project notifications, boosting investment flexibility and expanding digital infrastructure.

{Prelims – Agri} India’s First T2T Reference Genome of Pigeonpea

• Context (PIB): Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed India’s first fully annotated telomere-to-telomere (T2T) reference genome of pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L. Millsp.) variety ‘Asha’.

• Popularly known as ‘Arhar’ or ‘Tur’, pigeonpea is one of India’s most important pulse crops and a major source of dietary protein significant for country’s food and nutritional security.

Key Highlights of the Development

• Background: In 2011, ICAR–National Institute for Plant Biotechnology published world’s first draft genome of pigeonpea variety ‘Asha’, also the first crop genome to be sequenced entirely in India.
  • Latest achievement represents its complete telomere-to-telomere (T2T) genome sequence, providing the most comprehensive genetic blueprint of the crop to date.

• Significance: Accelerate breeding of climate-resilient, high-yielding and nutritionally enriched pigeonpea varieties contributing to increased productivity, improved farmer livelihoods, etc.

{Prelims – Envi} Catalogue of Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths) of India

• Context (TH): Scientists of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) have come out with a detailed Catalogue of Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths) of India.

• It firmly positions India among a select group of megadiverse nations possessing a fully updated, centralized, and authoritative baseline inventory of its butterfly and moth diversity.

Key Findings

• India is home to 13,703 species of lepidoptera, about 8.25% of total lepidoptera found across the globe.
• Of the 13,703 species of lepidoptera 1,417 species are butterflies, and remaining 12,286 are moths.
• Among 13,703 species of lepidoptera, scientists have identified and catalogued 2,205 species of Geometroidea, nocturnal pollinators taking over the ‘night shift’ when daytime butterflies rest.

Read More> Declining population of Butterflies

{Prelims – Envi} Phoenix Species Project

• Context (IUCN): Phoenix Species Project launched global effort to bring 100 of world’s most threatened species back from brink.

About the Project

• Purpose: It is a global effort to recover 100 of world’s most threatened species by providing sustained support for local champions and offering sustained funding.
• Genesis: Launched in August 2026 with $200 million commitment from Leonardo DiCaprio’s Re:wild and Bezos Earth Fund, with support from Leonardo DiCaprio, Age of Union, and Todd Graves Family Foundation.
• Key Features:
  • Single largest philanthropic initiative dedicated exclusively to recovering Critically Endangered species across taxonomic groups, habitats, and countries.
  • Supports countries to deliver Target 4 of CBD Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, that calls for halting extinctions and improving conservation status of endangered species.

{Prelims – Envi} Pygmy Hog (Porcula salvania)

• Context (TH): The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (SC-NBWL) recommended adding the pygmy hog to the IDWH scheme’s species recovery program.

• The pygmy hog is the world’s smallest and rarest wild pig, living in small maternal family groups.
• They are the only hosts of the critically endangered pygmy hog-sucking louse (Haematopinus oliveri).
• Distribution: Endemic to India, it was once widespread in southern Himalayan foothills but now only survives in Assam’s tall riverine grasslands, including Manas National Park.
• Diet: Omnivorous foragers; eat roots, tubers, shoots and fruits, along with earthworms, insects, small vertebrates, etc.
• IUCN: Endangered; CITES: Appendix I; WPA: Schedule I.
• They are vital indicators of healthy tall subtropical grasslands, as their daily rooting aerates the soil and enhances habitat quality.
• Pygmy Hog Conservation Program (PHCP), launched in 1995, maintains a captive population and reintroduces hogs into Assam’s protected areas.

{Prelims – IR} Appointment of the UN Secretary-General

• Context (IE): United Nations Security Council (UNSC) recently held its first straw poll to select the next UN Secretary-General (UNSG), whose five-year term will begin on 1 January 2027.

• The UNSG is the chief administrator of the United Nations who oversees the United Nations Secretariat.
• The appointment process of UNSG is governed by Article 97 of the UN Charter. It states that the Secretary-General is appointed by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) upon the recommendation of the UNSC.
• The term of a UNSG lasts for 5 years, with the possibility of being re-appointed for a second term.

Straw Poll

• It is an informal and secret voting process conducted by the UNSC to gauge support for candidates. In the poll members indicate one of three options: Encourage, Discourage and No Opinion (blank).
• A candidate is generally considered successful if they receive at least 9 “Encourage” votes in the 15-member UNSC, and No veto (no coloured “Discourage” vote) from any of the P5 members.

{Prelims – PIN World} Maldives

• Context (DDN): Maldives linked its Favara instant payment system with India’s UPI to enable real-time cross-border transfers.

• Maldives (capital: Malé) is a South Asian archipelago in the Indian Ocean, southwest of India and Sri Lanka. It has about 1,190 coral islands forming 26 natural atolls.
• The Eight Degree Channel separates the Maldives from Minicoy Island of India’s Lakshadweep.
• It is the lowest-lying country (1–1.5m above sea level), making it highly vulnerable to climate change.
• It has the highest per-capita income in South Asia, mainly supported by tourism and fisheries.
• Maldives lies on key Sea Lines of Communication (SLOCs) connecting the Gulf of Aden or Strait of Hormuz to the Strait of Malacca.

{Prelims – PIN World} Rwanda

• Context (PIB): India and Rwanda held first Joint Trade Committee Meeting to Deepen Bilateral Trade and Investment Cooperation.

• India is Rwanda’s second largest foreign investor as of 2025.

About Rwanda

• Rwanda, is a landlocked country, lying south of the Equator in east-central Africa. Capital: Kigali
• Bordered by Uganda (north), Tanzania (east), Burundi (south), and Democratic Republic of the Congo (west).
• Highest Peak: Mount Karisimbi (4,507 m). Known as “Land of a Thousand Hills” due to its mountainous terrain.
• Lies within Nile and Congo River basins. Major rivers in Rwanda are Akagera, Nyabarongo, and Akanyaru.
• Lake Kivu: It is one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift.

{Prelims – S&T} Magnetorheological (MR) Fluids

• Context (PIB): Scientists at IIT Patna developed a hybrid magneto-rheometer to advance testing and characterization of nanoscale magnetorheological (MR) fluids.

• MR fluid is a specialized “smart” material whose viscosity changes rapidly from a free-flowing liquid to a viscoelastic solid when exposed to a magnetic field.
• It consists of magnetizable metal particles, a non-magnetic carrier liquid, and stabilizing additives to prevent settling or agglomeration.
• In the absence of a magnetic field, particles remain dispersed; under a magnetic field, they align into rigid chains, increasing viscosity in proportion to the field strength.
• Applications: Used in shock absorbers, motor dampers, clutches, brakes, seismic dampers, prosthetics, and precision polishing.

{Prelims – Social Sector} African Swine Fever (ASF)

• Context (PIB): ICAR-National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (ICAR-NIHSAD), Bhopal, has developed India’s first indigenous African swine fever (ASF) vaccine for pigs.

• It is a MA-104 cell line-based live-attenuated vaccine recommended for healthy pigs over eight weeks of age, given with a booster 14 days after the primary dose.
• Vietnam was the first country to announce commercial production of an ASF vaccine in 2022, in cooperation with the U.S.

About African Swine Fever (ASF)

• It is a highly contagious, haemorrhagic viral disease caused by African swine fever virus (ASFV) that affects domestic and wild pigs.
• World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) classifies ASF as a notifiable disease, requiring mandatory reporting of every outbreak.
• Transmission: Pigs contract the virus through direct contact with infected animals, swill feed, or bites from infected soft ticks. The virus is highly stable in the environment and can survive for many months in pig pens, clothing, and cured or frozen pork products.
  • It cannot be transmitted from animals to humans and poses zero risk to public health.
• Symptoms: High fever, loss of appetite, skin haemorrhages, and respiratory distress, with mortality frequently approaching 100%.

{Prelims – Social Sector} Three Medicines Classified as Carcinogenic

• Context (TH): WHO’s cancer research agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), has classified 3 widely prescribed medications as Group 1 (carcinogenic to humans).

• All three drugs are listed on the WHO Model List of Essential Medicines:

• Implication: IARC classifications indicate hazard (proof that a substance can cause cancer) rather than personal risk (the actual likelihood that a specific dose causes harm).

IARC Carcinogen Classifications

Read More> Global Status Report on Cancer 2026