Current Affairs One - Liner : 24th April 2026

National:

• South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s state visit to India (Apr 19–21, 2026): First in 8 years; met PM Modi, President Murmu, EAM Jaishankar; focus on trade, semiconductors, AI, shipbuilding; CEPA upgrade; target $50B trade by 2030; tribute at Rajghat; strengthened Special Strategic Partnership.

• On April 22, 2026, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) declared Shekha Jheel Bird Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh as a Ramsar Site. This recognition places the wetland under the international Ramsar Convention, highlighting its ecological importance and ensuring stronger conservation measures.
• Eveready Industries India Limited commissioned India’s only operational alkaline battery manufacturing facility in Samba, Jammu, on April 22, 2026. The plant was inaugurated by Lt. Governor of J&K Manoj Sinha along with Eveready promoter Mohit Burman, marking the company’s first major manufacturing expansion in over a decade.

International:

• China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced on April 22, 2026, that two Pakistani Air Force officers—Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud—have been selected as the first foreign astronauts to train for missions aboard the Tiangong Space Station. They arrived in Beijing on April 24, 2026, to begin training at the Astronaut Center of China.
• Pakistan Navy successfully test-fired its indigenously developed Taimoor air-launched anti-ship cruise missile on April 21, 2026, demonstrating a strike range of up to 600 km against land and sea targets. The test is being hailed as a major boost to Pakistan’s maritime strike capability and conventional deterrence.

Banking:

• Punjab National Bank (PNB) has partnered with fintech Kiwi to launch the PNB Kiwi RuPay Credit Card on the UPI platform (April 23, 2026). This co-branded card allows customers to make UPI payments directly using their credit line, with digital onboarding, no joining/annual fees, and cashback benefits (0.5–1.5%).
• Pay Point India Network has become the first private-sector fintech to secure direct membership in the Reserve Bank of India’s Centralised Payment System (CPS), which includes RTGS and NEFT. The announcement came on April 22, 2026.

Govt.Schemes:

• Meghalaya has launched the CM-INSPIRE Scheme (April 21–22, 2026) to support UPSC aspirants from the state. Candidates qualifying the UPSC Prelims will receive ₹50,000, while those clearing the Mains will get ₹1,00,000 as direct financial assistance.
• The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has expanded eligibility for the Prime Minister’s Internship Scheme (PMIS) to include final-year graduate and postgraduate students, effective April 22, 2026. This marks a significant step in widening opportunities for youth to gain exposure to corporate governance and policy-making.

Important Days:

• World Book and Copyright Day 2026 was observed globally on April 23, a UNESCO-declared day since 1995 to celebrate books, reading, authors, and copyright protection. The 2026 theme was “Read Your World – Books as Bridges to Peace”, emphasizing the role of literature in dialogue and harmony.
• UN English Language Day 2026 was observed on April 23, honoring William Shakespeare’s birth and death anniversary. The theme for 2026 was “AI Fluency”, focusing on AI-powered communication and digital literacy. English, one of the six official UN languages, is also a primary working language of the UN Secretariat.

Appointments:

• Justice Lisa Gill has officially assumed office as the first woman Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court on April 25, 2026. Her appointment was notified by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice on April 22, 2026, and she succeeded Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur, who retired on April 24, 2026.
• On April 23, 2026, the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) officially named Srikanth Velamakanni, Co-founder & Group CEO of Fractal, as its Chairperson for 2026–27. His appointment marks a strategic pivot for NASSCOM toward AI-first innovation and autonomous systems.
• On April 23, 2026, Reliance Enterprise Intelligence Limited (REIL) announced the appointment of Parminder Singh as its founding Chief Executive Officer. REIL is a heavyweight joint venture between Reliance Intelligence Limited (70%) and Meta’s Facebook Overseas Inc. (30%), created to spearhead India’s enterprise AI revolution.
• On April 23, 2026, Dabur India Ltd. officially appointed Herjit S. Bhalla as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for its India Business. This marks a significant leadership restructuring aimed at splitting domestic and international operations for sharper strategic focus.
• HDFC Life Insurance Company’s Board of Directors officially approved the reappointment of Vibha Padalkar as Managing Director & CEO during its meeting on April 21, 2026. Her new tenure will run for five years (Sep 12, 2026 – Sep 11, 2031), subject to shareholder and IRDAI approval.
• On April 24, 2026, Noida International Airport (NIA) appointed Nitu Samra as its interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Samra has been serving as the airport’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) since October 2021 and now steps into the top role at a crucial stage as the project nears its commercial launch.

Awards & Honours:

• On April 22, 2026, the Guntur Municipal Corporation (GMC) won the 4th Gender Equality Mobilisation (GEM) Award, presented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The award was officially received in Vienna, Austria, during the celebrations of the International Day of Women in Industry.
• On April 23, 2026, Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi was inducted into the International Hall of Fame of the US Army War College (USAWC), Pennsylvania. This honour is reserved for alumni who rise to the highest military positions in their countries—Dwivedi is an alumnus of the 2012 class and a USAWC Distinguished Fellow.

Obituaries:

• Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nadendla Bhaskara Rao passed away on April 22, 2026, in Hyderabad at the age of 90 after a prolonged illness. He was best known for his brief 31-day tenure as CM in 1984 following a political coup against N.T. Rama Rao, and his long career spanning Congress, TDP, and later BJP.

Questions:

Q.1 Meghalaya launched which scheme to support UPSC aspirants from the state?
a) CM Scholar Scheme
b) CM-INSPIRE Scheme
c) Megha UPSC Yojana
d) Civil Services Mission Scheme

Answer: b) The CM-INSPIRE Scheme provides financial assistance to UPSC aspirants, with ₹50,000 for clearing Prelims and ₹1,00,000 for clearing Mains.

Q.2 Eveready Industries India Limited commissioned India’s only operational alkaline battery manufacturing facility in:
a) Pune, Maharashtra
b) Samba, Jammu
c) Noida, Uttar Pradesh
d) Hosur, Tamil Nadu

Answer: b) Eveready commissioned the country’s only operational alkaline battery manufacturing plant in Samba, Jammu, marking a major industrial expansion.