Current Affairs Questions with Answers

The International Day of Older Persons is observed annually on October 1st; it was established by the UN General Assembly in 1990 with the aim of promoting the rights, dignity, and social participation of the elderly. In India, the elderly population is growing due to rising life expectancy and declining fertility rates, leading to an increased need for healthcare, pensions, social security, and long-term care.

On September 28, 2026, Amit Shah launched a new Extradition Portal aimed at enhancing coordination among central agencies, state police, and international bodies for the return of fugitive offenders. The ‘Prahar’ national counter-terrorism policy focuses on terrorism prevention, rapid response, international cooperation, and resilience through seven pillars.

India presented its efforts regarding forest and landscape restoration, sustainable forest management, and climate action at the FAO’s COFO-28 in Rome, setting a target of 3.5–4.0 billion tonnes of CO₂-equivalent additional carbon sinks by 2035. Under the Bonn Challenge, India has pledged to restore 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030, while initiatives like the Aravalli Green Wall focus on land degradation, biodiversity conservation, and climate resilience.

Union Minister Bhupender Yadav awarded ‘Praman’ certificates under the IFWCS, which aims to promote sustainable forest management, responsible sourcing, and the traceability of forest products. IFWCS encompasses Forest Management, Trees Outside Forests, and Chain of Custody; its Forest Management Certification is linked to the National Working Plan Code (NWPC) 2023.

Kerala's Institute of Advanced Virology (IAV) has developed the Dengue Early Warning System (DEWS) based on machine learning, disease surveillance, and meteorological data; it forecasts weekly dengue risk at the district level. Based on rainfall, temperature, humidity, and dengue case data, the system assists health authorities in mosquito control, testing, and healthcare preparedness.

On 28 September 2026, SpaceX's Starship–Super Heavy deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites while entering Earth's orbit for the first time during its 14th test flight. Despite a malfunction in one Raptor engine, the mission's key objectives were achieved, marking progress towards reusable space transportation and future lunar-Martian missions.

Bodhana Sivanandan, an 11-year-old chess player of Indian origin representing England, achieved the record for the youngest player to secure a WGM norm by clinching her third and final norm at the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad. Playing on the top board for England, she scored 8 points across 11 rounds; she had previously become the youngest girl to achieve an IM norm and the youngest female chess champion in Britain.

At the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026, Indian athletes—including Neeru Dhanda, Esha Singh, and Vithya Ramraj—delivered outstanding performances and won multiple medals in shooting and athletics. Vithya Ramraj broke the national record in the 400m hurdles, while Indian athletes also achieved remarkable success in events such as relays and javelin throw.

International Translation Day is observed annually on September 30; the United Nations General Assembly declared it an official day on May 24, 2017, and it is celebrated in honor of Saint Jerome. In a multilingual country like India, translation plays a vital role in linguistic-cultural dialogue, education, administration, and the judiciary, while AI, machine translation, and NLP are enhancing digital linguistic accessibility.

The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying launched the Livestock Insurance Portal on September 28, 2026, making insurance services—such as policy issuance, claims, tracking, monitoring, and reporting—digitally accessible. Under this initiative, linked to the National Livestock Mission, the government bears 85% of the premium while the beneficiary bears 15%; RFID technology will be used for the digital identification of livestock.

An e-methanol plant with a capacity of 150 TPD will be set up at Deendayal Port in Kandla, Gujarat, at a cost of ₹2,300 crore; it will be jointly developed by DPA and APCL. E-methanol is a low-carbon fuel produced from green hydrogen and CO₂ that will help promote green shipping under the National Green Hydrogen Mission.

Awards were presented to 20 artists at the Lalit Kala Akademi's 65th National Exhibition of Art in 2026, while 270 artworks were selected for display out of 6,175 entries submitted by 2,495 artists from 27 states and Union Territories. Established in 1954, the Lalit Kala Akademi promotes Indian visual arts and cultural diversity through painting, sculpture, printmaking, and mixed media.

India achieved its best-ever performance by securing the 10th position at the WorldSkills Competition 2026 held in Shanghai, winning 6 silver medals and 20 Medals of Excellence. India participated in 11 new skill categories for the first time, reflecting a growing focus on digital technology and Industry 4.0-based skills.

Singapore and UAE were honored with the 'Cool Leaders Awards' for the first time at the Global Cooling Pledge Assembly held in Singapore in September 2026; the Cool Coalition promotes sustainable and energy-efficient cooling. Launched at COP28 (2023), the Global Cooling Pledge aims to reduce cooling-related emissions by 68% by 2050 and improve the average energy efficiency of new air conditioners by 50% by 2030.

India won the silver medal with 18 match points in the Open category of the 46th FIDE Chess Olympiad held in Samarkand on September 27, 2026, while Uzbekistan won gold with 20 points and Germany secured the bronze medal. In the final round, the match between India and Hungary ended in a 2-2 draw; Arjun Erigaisi recorded a win, D. Gukesh suffered a defeat, and the matches involving Praggnanandhaa and Nihal Sarin ended in draws.

At the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026, Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh won silver medals in squash singles, while Yash Veer Singh, Gulveer Singh, Murali Sreeshankar, and Rohit Yadav secured medals in athletics. Vithya Ramraj broke P.T. Usha's 42-year-old national record in the 400m hurdles with a time of 54.75 seconds, while Esha Singh won a silver medal in the 25m pistol event.

World Heart Day is celebrated every year on 29 September under the leadership of World Heart Federation to raise awareness about heart diseases and stroke. Unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, tobacco, obesity and high blood pressure are major risk factors, so emphasis is placed on regular exercise, balanced diet and health checkups.

Maharashtra government has declared 265 out of 358 taluks as drought-hit due to inadequate monsoon rainfall, which is about 74% of the taluks in the state. The affected farmers will be given facilities like exemption in land revenue, agricultural loan rescheduling, relief in electricity charges and drinking water. The drought declaration has been made under the Trigger-1 criteria of the Drought Management Code, 2016 and crop damage assessment will be done from Panchnama, GPS coordinates and geotagged photographs.

Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar signed the United Nations Cybercrime Convention on behalf of India on 25 September 2026, which aims to strengthen international cooperation and exchange of electronic evidence to combat cybercrime. This convention was adopted by UNGA resolution 79/243 on 24 December 2024 and will enter into force 90 days after the 40th ratification in accordance with Article 65.

Under Section 73 of the Indian Ports Act, 2025, Deendayal, Jawaharlal Nehru, Paradip and Mundra Ports have been declared Mega Ports, while their original Major or Non-Major Port status will remain. This classification is important for promoting EXIM trade, logistics, coastal shipping, port infrastructure and maritime economy of India.