Current Affairs – June 20, 2026

{GS – IS} Parliamentary Standing Committee Report on Women & Child Development

• Context (PIB): Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports presented the 379^th, 380^th, and 381^st reports to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

Key Findings of the 379^th Report on Women & Child Development

• Day-Care Gap: The current 7.5-hour day-care provision at Anganwadi cum Crèches (AWCCs) is inadequate for women working in full-time, informal, or shift-based roles.
• Disbursement Stall: Technical hurdles with the Single Nodal Agency (SNA) and SNA-SPARSH modules, plus delayed Utilisation Certificates, are stalling Centrally Sponsored Scheme fund disbursements.
• Welfare Neglect: Low contractual remuneration, staffing deficits, and irregular salary disbursements by State Governments remain unaddressed by the Ministry.
• Skilling Dropout: Out of 6,263 adolescent girls mobilised for vocational training across 27 districts, just 368 have completed the program.
• Insurance Shortfall: The Ministry failed to increase insurance coverage through PMJJBY and PMSBY for frontline Anganwadi Workers and Helpers.

{GS2 – IR} U.S.–Iran Peace Agreement *

• Context (TH I IE I ET): The U.S. and Iran have signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at reducing tensions and promoting stability in West Asia.

• The MoU signed by the U.S. President and Iranian President seeks to address long-standing disputes, enhance regional security, and create conditions for future diplomatic engagement.

Key Provisions of the Agreement

• Permanent Ceasefire: The U.S. and Iran have agreed to immediately and permanently end military operations on all fronts including Lebanon and refrain from the use or threat of force.
• Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz: The US will lift its naval blockade on Iran in phases, while Iran will facilitate free passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
• Sanctions Relief: The U.S. has committed to a phased removal of sanctions, including waivers for Iranian oil exports and related financial transactions.
• Economic Reconstruction: The US has committed to mobilising at least USD 300 billion for Iran’s reconstruction and economic development.
• Nuclear Commitments: Iran has pledged not to develop nuclear weapons and agreed to place its enriched uranium stockpiles under IAEA supervision as part of future nuclear negotiations.
• Monitoring Mechanism: A joint implementation mechanism will be established to oversee compliance with the agreement.
• UNSC Endorsement: The final agreement is proposed to be backed by a binding United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution.
• Final Peace Deal: Both sides have agreed to negotiate a comprehensive final agreement within 60 days.

Challenges to the US–Iran Peace Agreement

• Lebanon–Hezbollah Issue: Israel has refused to withdraw its forces from Lebanon until the threat posed by Hezbollah is eliminated, while Hezbollah continues its attacks.
• Tight Negotiation Timeline: Reaching a comprehensive nuclear agreement within the proposed 60-day deadline may prove difficult. E.g., the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCOPA) took over 18 months to negotiate.
  • The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCOPA) was endorsed by UNSC resolution, whose binding nature was affirmed in the text through Article 25 of the UN Charter.
• Unresolved Uranium Enrichment Issue: The agreement does not clearly specify the permissible level of uranium enrichment or the final disposition of Iran’s existing enriched uranium stockpile, leaving a key source of disagreement unresolved.
• Funding Uncertainty: The agreement envisages a $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran, but uncertainty over funding commitments from the US and regional partners could hinder its implementation.
• Missile and Proxy Network Concerns: The agreement remains silent on Iran’s ballistic missile programme and its support for regional militant groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, which remain key sources of regional instability.

Read More> Iran-USA Conflict

{GS2 – Social Sector} Parliamentary Standing Committee Report on Higher Education

• Context (PIB): Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports presented the 379^th, 380^th, and 381^st reports to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

Key Findings of the 381st Report on Higher Education

• Spending Gap: Expenditure on education remained at 4.12% of GDP in 2021-22, below the NEP target of 6%. Higher Education’s budget growth for 2025-26 was lower than in previous cycles.
• Format Mismatch: CUET’s one-size-fits-all design, relying on Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs), proves inadequate for humanities and social science disciplines.
• Idle Surplus: National Testing Agency (NTA) accumulated an underutilised revenue surplus of ₹448 crore over six years, instead of investing it in exam security infrastructure.
• Eligibility Lock: PM-Vidyalaxmi offers a 3% interest subvention (on loan amounts up to ₹10 lakh) for families earning up to ₹8 lakh, but it is limited to Quality Higher Education Institutions (QHEIs).
• Data Backlog: Delays in publishing the All-India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) have stalled evidence-based policymaking, leaving three years’ data unpublished.
• IoE Notification: Eight years after its launch to boost global rankings, only 12 of the 20 promised Institutions of Eminence (IoE) have been notified.

{GS3 – IE} Monetising India’s Sovereign Assets **

• Context (NDTV): Amid rising global competition for capital, increasing infrastructure needs, and persistent fiscal constraints, there is a growing debate on whether India should monetise its vast public assets through a sovereign wealth fund-like mechanism to unlock capital for future growth.

• Asset monetisation refers to unlocking the economic value of public assets by transferring their management rights, listing them on stock exchanges, corporatising them, or attracting private investment, while retaining public ownership.

Why Does India Need Public Asset Monetisation?

India’s Untapped Public Assets

• India possesses valuable sovereign assets that generate returns below their economic potential. Several public entities possess significant commercial value but remain underutilised.
• The current model of state asset management suffers from fragmented government shareholdings, bureaucratic red tape, lack of commercial parity, and heavy cross-subsidization.

Proposed Reform: Amrit Kaal Fund

• Amrit Kaal Fund is a proposed sovereign wealth fund modelled on Singapore’s GIC/Temasek and Norway’s Norges Bank, aimed at unlocking the value of India’s public assets.
• It would consolidate government shareholdings beyond the 51% control threshold in major PSUs, potentially unlocking assets worth ~₹15 lakh crore, attract long-term global capital through instruments such as ADRs, and mobilise stable funding for infrastructure and development.
• The model seeks to monetise public assets without privatisation, while retaining government ownership and strategic control.

Potential Benefits

• Asset monetisation can generate resources without increasing taxation or public debt.
• Funds can support roads, railways, energy networks, ports, and digital infrastructure.
• Additional revenues can help reduce fiscal deficits and public debt.
• Corporatisation and professional governance can enhance productivity and service delivery.
• Listing large public assets can attract sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and institutional investors.

{Prelims – Agri} Methamidophos and Acephate Pesticides

• Context (TH): Chillies Exporters Association urged the Andhra Pradesh government to ban or restrict the use of Methamidophos and Acephate in export-oriented chilli cultivation.

• Other pesticides of concern: Monocrotophos, Profenofos, Triazophos, Ethion, Chlorpyrifos, and Fipronil.
• Methamidophos is a highly toxic organophosphate insecticide and acaricide used against chewing and sucking pests. WHO classifies it as a Class Ib (Highly Hazardous) chemical. Methamidophos is not approved for agricultural use in India, but it appears in crop testing as a metabolite of Acephate.
• Acephate is a broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide used against chewing and sucking insects. It is far less acutely toxic to mammals than Methamidophos, despite their close chemical similarity.

{Prelims – Infra} Bitumen *

• Context (IE): The West Asian conflict has disrupted bitumen supply and threatened India’s major road infrastructure projects.

• Bitumen is a black, highly viscous, dense, and sticky organic mixture, rich in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, known as black gold in the pavement industry. It is derived as a dense residue from crude oil fractional distillation. Natural deposits occur in Alberta oil sands, Canada.
• Properties: Waterproof, highly adhesive, chemically resistant, and viscoelastic—acts as an elastic solid at low temperatures and a viscous liquid at high temperatures.
• Use: As a binder in road construction, it binds sand, gravel, and crushed stone into asphalt, helping roads withstand traffic loads and weather conditions.
• India imports 30–40% of its requirement, with over 99% coming from Iraq, UAE, Iran, Oman, and Bahrain.

{Prelims – S&T} TRISHNA Satellite *

• Context (DDN): India and France will jointly launch the TRISHNA (Thermal Infra-Red Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural Resource Assessment) satellite in 2027.

• TRISHNA is a collaborative Earth observation mission between the ISRO and the Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES, French Space Agency).
• Major Payloads:
  • Thermal Infrared (TIR) Payload – CNES: Thermal Infrared sensors to measure land surface temperature and evapotranspiration.
  • Visible–Near Infrared–Short Wave Infrared (VNIR-SWIR) Payload – ISRO: Measures vegetation, surface reflectance, and biophysical parameters.
• It will operate in a Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO) at an altitude of 761 km, with a planned 5-year mission life.
• Spatial Resolution: 57 m resolution over land/coastal regions & 1 km over oceans & polar regions.
• It will support monitoring of droughts, urban heat islands, glacier dynamics, snowmelt, permafrost changes, and ecosystem health.

{Prelims – Infra} Energy Transition Index 2026

• Context (BS): The World Economic Forum (WEF) published the 2026 Energy Transition Index (ETI) to benchmark global progress towards sustainable, secure, and equitable energy systems.

Findings

• Advanced economies held 14 of the top 20 positions, with Sweden retaining the top spot for the third consecutive year, followed by Finland and Denmark.
• Only 24% of the 120 assessed countries improved simultaneously across all three core dimensions of security, equity, and sustainability.
• Despite a record $2.3 trillion in global clean-energy investment, overall transition readiness declined for the first time in more than a decade, driven by surging geopolitical risks.
• Global energy investment reached $3.3 trillion in 2025, with renewables and nuclear generating 42% of electricity and adding nearly 800 GW of capacity.
• India recorded one of the largest gains in transition readiness, moving up two places to 70^th in the ETI 2026, improving its score by 1.9%. Its low-carbon jobs rose by 24% in 2024, with hydropower leading.

{Prelims – Misc} One-Liners

• IR – Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) (DDN): Independent judicial body established under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to settle disputes on its interpretation and application. It is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany.
  • Indian jurist Bimal N. Patel was elected a judge of the ITLOS for a nine-year term from 2026 to 2035. Of the 21 judges on the ITLOS bench, no two may be nationals of the same country. One-third of the bench (7 judges) is elected every 3 years.
• IS – National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) (PIB): India’s premier think tank and capacity-building institution for the urban sector, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
  • Established in 1976 and headquartered in New Delhi, NIUA bridges theoretical urban research and practical planning solutions to manage India’s rapid urbanisation. It is celebrating its Golden Jubilee (50 years) under the theme ‘Resilient Urban India @2047’.