- MoE Released PGI 2.0-S and PGI-D Reports for 2025-26; No States/UTs with highest performance grade
- In July 2026, the Ministry of Education (MoE) released the Report on Performance Grading Index 2.0 for States/Union Territories (UTs) (PGI 2.0-S) and Performance Grading Index for Districts (PGI-D) for 2025-26, with no State or UT securing the highest performance grade for yet another year.
- The PGI 2.0 State/UT structure comprises total weightage of 1000 points across 70 indicators, which are grouped under 2 Categories:
- Outcome
- Governance and Management.
- CSIR-IICT Develops India’s First Indigenous Green Refrigerant Technology for HFO-1234yf
- In July 2026, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (CSIR-IICT), Hyderabad, Telangana, developed India’s first indigenous process technology for Hydrofluoroolefin-1234yf (HFO-1234yf).
- In July 2026, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Institute of Mining and Fuel Research (CSIR-CIMFR) developed Smart Algal Liquid Tree (SALT), a mobile ‘Liquid Tree’ that uses microalgae to purify air in densely populated urban areas.
- Adani Defence Invests Rs 2,500 Crore to Create Missile Manufacturing Complex in MP
- Aim: The facility aims to develop an end-to-end missile ecosystem to enable indigenous production of medium- to long-range missile systems.
- Integration: The proposed Shivpuri facility will be India’s first private-sector complex to integrate composite propellant production, Trinitrotoluene (TNT) manufacturing, and missile system integration at a single location.
- Production: It will manufacture ammunition, advanced weapons, mission-ready missiles, and high-tech defence equipment, while establishing facilities for composite propellants, TNT and explosive-grade material production.
- Technology: The facility will use advanced manufacturing technologies, automated production systems and globally benchmarked safety standards to support multiple missile programmes simultaneously.
- It will meet the requirements of the Indian Armed Forces and trusted international partners, strengthening India’s role as a supplier of precision-guided munitions.
- Overview of PM Narendra Modi’s Visit to Indonesia from July 6 to 8, 2026
- PM Modi held bilateral talks with Indonesian President Prabowo at Istana Merdeka (Presidential Palace) in Jakarta, where both leaders reviewed a wide spectrum of bilateral relations, including political engagement, defence and security cooperation, maritime cooperation, among others.
- PM Modi became the 1st Indian PM to address the Indonesian Parliament (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat, DPR) in Jakarta, Indonesia where he unveiled an ambitious “Ganga-Mahakam Vision”, designed to foster long-term strategic partnership between the two countries.
- CSIR Establishes International Centre for Civilizational Studies ‘Manas and Mahabharata’ in Kyrgyzstan
- The first Hindi translation of the Kyrgyz epic ‘Manas‘, translated by Hem Chandra Pande and Ramakant Dwivedi, was released during the inauguration.
Cooperation: A trilateral agreement was signed between the Manas National Academy, CSIR and seven Kyrgyz universities to strengthen academic collaboration. - The Centre aims to strengthen scientific, educational and cultural cooperation between India and Kyrgyzstan through comparative civilizational and epic studies.
- The first Hindi translation of the Kyrgyz epic ‘Manas‘, translated by Hem Chandra Pande and Ramakant Dwivedi, was released during the inauguration.
- IMF WEO Update – July 2026 : India to Grow at 6.4% in FY27
- The WEO Update, also projects that India will grow at 6.7% in FY28, up from the earlier projection of 6.5%.
- India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 7.7% during the financial year ending March 2026 (FY26).
- Trade Outlook: World trade volume growth is projected to slow sharply from 5.0% in 2025 to 3.5% in 2026, before rebounding to 4.3% in 2027.
Headline Inflation: The global headline inflation is projected to rise from 4.1% in 2025 to 4.7% in 2026 before easing to 3.9% in 2027.
- ADB Lowers India’s FY27 GDP Growth Forecast to 6.6%; Raises Inflation forecast to 5.2%
- ADB (Asian Development Bank) raised India’s inflation forecast for FY2026–27 to 5.2% from 4.5%, citing higher global oil prices, a weaker rupee, and persistent food inflation, while retaining its FY28 inflation forecast at 4.0% on expectations of moderating fuel and food prices.
- Indian Tennis Legend Leander Paes Joins Asian Tennis Federation (ATF) as Player Ambassador
- Leander Paes, one of India’s most successful tennis players, had a professional career spanning over three decades before retiring in 2021.
Achievements: A former World No. 1 in doubles, he won the bronze medal in men’s singles at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games in the United States of America (USA), remaining India’s only tennis player to win an Olympic medal.
- Leander Paes, one of India’s most successful tennis players, had a professional career spanning over three decades before retiring in 2021.
- Aviva Set to Become First Foreign Insurer to Fully Own Indian Life Insurance Business
- In July 2026, United Kingdom (UK’s) insurance giant Aviva Plc announced the acquisition of remaining 26% stake in Aviva Life Insurance Company India limited (Aviva India) from its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Dabur Invest Corp. (DIC), becoming the 1st foreign insurer to fully own its Indian life Insurance business.
Key Details of Acquisition:
100% FDI in Insurance Sector: The announcement of acquisition was made following the Government of India (GoI) allowing 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the insurance sector in May 2026.
Key Change: On the completion of the transaction, the shareholding of Aviva in the company will be raised from existing 74% to 100%.
- In July 2026, United Kingdom (UK’s) insurance giant Aviva Plc announced the acquisition of remaining 26% stake in Aviva Life Insurance Company India limited (Aviva India) from its Joint Venture (JV) partner, Dabur Invest Corp. (DIC), becoming the 1st foreign insurer to fully own its Indian life Insurance business.
- DRDO Successfully Flight-Tests Pinaka Long-Range Guided Rocket with 60-km Minimum Range
- In July 2026, Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted a successful flight test of Pinaka Long Range Guided Rocket (LRGR) with a user-specified minimum range of 60 km (kilometres) at the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, Odisha.
- The flight trial was coordinated by DRDO’s ITR and Proof & Experimental Establishment (PXE), Chandipur.
- The LRGR followed its planned maneuvers and impacted the target with exact precision along the predicted trajectory, with continuous tracking by all range instruments.
- Development: The Pinaka LRGR rocket is designed by Armament Research and Development Establishment, Pune, Maharashtra in association with High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, with support from Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL) and Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, Telangana.
- Launcher: The rocket was launched from an operational Pinaka launcher (Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher (MBRL)), highlighting its versatility and its ability to fire Pinaka variants with multiple ranges from a single launcher.
- ISRO Successfully Conducts Integrated Main Parachute Airdrop Test for Gaganyaan G1 Mission in MP
- On July 7, 2026, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully conducted the Integrated Main Parachute Airdrop Test-05 (IMAT-05) for the Gaganyaan G1 mission at the Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE) drop zone in Sheopur, Madhya Pradesh (MP).
- The test was conducted to validate the Main Parachute System under maximum expected load conditions for the first uncrewed Gaganyaan G1 mission.
- Aswath S Becomes India’s 98th Chess Grandmaster at Pune International GM
- In July 2026, 17-year-old Aswath S from Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu (TN), became India’s 98th Grandmaster (GM) after securing his third and final GM norm by finishing runner-up with 7 points from nine rounds at the Pune International Grandmaster Round Robin Tournament in Mundhwa, Pune, Maharashtra.
- He sealed the historic achievement with a must-win final-round victory over United States of America (USA)’s International Chess Federation (FIDE) Master (FM) Kannan Vaidyanathan with black pieces to secure the norm.
- Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc Wins F1 British Grand Prix 2026
- In July 2026, Monaco’s Charles Leclerc of Ferrari won the British Grand Prix (GP) 2026 (officially known as the Formula One (F1) Pirelli British GP 2026), the ninth round of the 2026 F1 World Championship, held at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England.
- The victory marked Charles Leclerc’s first victory of the 2026 Formula 1 season, his ninth Formula 1 GP career win, and Ferrari’s 250th F1 GP triumph.
- Mercedes’ George Russell secured second place, while Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton finished third. Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli, who started from pole position, was classified 16th after a brake-duct failure and a post-race penalty.
- Telangana to Host 8th Khelo India Youth Games in November 2026
- On July 8 2026, Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS), announced that Telangana will host the 8th Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG).
- KIYG 2026 is scheduled to be held in November 2026 to provide a platform for young athletes to showcase their talent.
