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We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs July 18 2026, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2026 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.

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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

PLFS Monthly Bulletin – June 2026: UR Remains Unchanged at 5.5%
In July 2026, the National Statistical Office (NSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Monthly Bulletin: June 2026, 15th in the series covering both rural and urban areas.

• As per this report, India’s overall Unemployment Rate (UR) for people aged 15 years and above remained unchanged at 5.5% in June 2026.

Key Findings:
Unemployment Rate (UR): The rural UR for persons of age 15 years and above decreased marginally from 5.1% in May 2026 to 5.0% in June 2026, while urban UR increased slightly from 6.4% to 6.6%.
Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR): The LFPR for persons of age 15 years and above in the country stood at 54.4% in June 2026.
Worker Population Ratio (WPR): In June 2026, the WPR based on the CWS for persons aged 15 years and above was 51.4% at the all-India level, with 53.8% in rural areas and 46.8% in urban areas.

India launches Rs 1,500cr Biomedical Research Career With Wellcome Trust support 
In July 2026, Union Minister of State (MoS), Independent Charge (IC), Dr. Jitendra Singh, Ministry of Science & Technology (MoS&T) launched Phase-III of the Biomedical Research Career Programme (BRCP) with a total outlay of Rs. 1,500 crore, including Rs. 1,000 crore from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India (GoI) and Rs. 500 crore from Wellcome Trust (WT), London, United Kingdom (UK).
About Phase III of BRCP:
Implementation: The programme is jointly implemented by DBT in partnership with WT through the DBT-WT India Alliance, administered by a dedicated Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
Objective: The programme aims to nurture a globally competitive biomedical research workforce, including basic scientists, clinician-researchers, public health experts, science communicators, and research managers.

India hosted the 12th BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers’ Meeting in  Hyderabad, Telangana
In July 2026, India hosted the 12th BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) Labour and Employment Ministers’ Meeting in  Hyderabad, Telangana under its BRICS Chairship 2026, which is themed “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.”

• The meeting concluded successfully with the adoption of the BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers’ Declaration, and the launch of BRICS CONNECT, an initiative proposed by India to strengthen technical cooperation, knowledge exchange, and capacity building among BRICS nations,

Key Engagements: 
BRICS CCI: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge, IC)  Dr. Jitendra Singh, Ministry of Science & Technology (MoST) met a delegation of the BRICS Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BRICS CCI) in New Delhi (Delhi) where, they discussed ways to bolster industry-led global engagement and collaboration across the BRICS and BRICS Plus ecosystem through innovation, StartUps, emerging technologies, research collaboration and entrepreneurship.
BRICS Women Ministerial Meeting: The BRICS Women Ministerial Meeting (WMM) held from July 08 to July 09, 2026 in Kochi (Kerala) under India’s BRICS Chairship 2026,  which brought together ministers and heads of delegation from member countries to deliberate on key issues relating to women’s empowerment and advance the agenda of women-led development.

• Key Outcome: The key highlight of the meeting was the adoption of the Joint Statement of the 4th BRICS WMM, aimed at strengthening long-term collaboration under the BRICS Women Track.
• Key Initiatives: During the meeting, BRICS member nations agreed on two initiatives proposed by India: The BRICS Digital Repository of Best Practices and the BRICS Digital Capacity Building.

BRICS Heads of Anti-Drug Agencies Meeting: India hosted the BRICS Heads of Anti-Drug Agencies Meeting held from July 06, to July 07, 2026 in Guwahati, Assam.

• Organiser: The two-day long meeting was organised by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
• Priority Areas: The meeting was mainly focused on three key priority areas: curbing synthetic drugs and the diversion of precursor chemicals, bolstering intelligence sharing and operational coordination among member countries, and enhancing institutional cooperation and capacity building.
• Key Outcomes: During the meeting, the BRICS member nations unanimously adopted the Guwahati Declaration. Also, India proposed the establishment of a dedicated BRICS Virtual Working Group (VWG) to systematically address the evolving trends in drug trafficking and enhanced cross-border training initiatives.

3rd BRICS Transport Ministers’ Meeting: India hosted the 3rd BRICS Transport Ministers’ Meeting (TMM) held from July 11 to July 12, 2026 in Nagpur, Maharashtra, under the chairmanship of  Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).

• Key Outcome: The meeting concluded successfully with the unanimous adoption of the Ministerial Declaration, providing a comprehensive framework for collaboration on circularity in infrastructure, Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), transport decarbonisation, urban mobility hub, logistics supply chain cooperation and BRICS Railway Research Network.

Other Key Engagements: In addition, India organised GO-BRICS India-Russia Energy-o-thon 2026, considered as the world’s 1st BRICS nations hackathon in Bengaluru, Karnataka.  

• The BRICS Academic Thematic Conference on “Strengthening BRICS Connectivity: Fostering Cooperation”, organised jointly by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and the BRICS Expert Council Russia in Moscow, Russia.

MoPSW Approves Greenfield Shipbuilding Cluster in Porbandar & Ship Repair Facility at Vadinar under SbDS 
On 15 July 2026, the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) accorded in-principle approval to a Greenfield Shipbuilding Cluster in Porbandar district and a state-of-the-art Ship Repair Facility at Vadinar in the Gulf of Kutch, Gujarat, under the Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS).

• The projects aim to strengthen India’s indigenous shipbuilding and ship repair capabilities under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047, supporting the country’s ambition to emerge as a global shipbuilding hub.

Highlights of Greenfield Shipbuilding Cluster in Porbandar:
Location: The project will be developed at Kuchhadi in Porbandar district, Gujarat, over nearly 2,000 acres. 
Implementing Agency: It will be developed through the National Shipbuilding and Heavy Industries Park-Gujarat (NSHIP-Gujarat), a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) jointly promoted by MoPSW and the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB).
Highlights of Ship Repair Facility at Vadinar:
Project Cost: The Rs. 1,570 crore facility will be jointly developed by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) and the Deendayal Port Authority (DPA).
Scheme Support: The project has secured 25% financial assistance on eligible capital infrastructure under the Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS).

President Murmu Inaugurates ‘Saushrutam 2026’ at AIIA in New Delhi
In July 2026, the President of India Droupadi Murmu inaugurated ‘Saushrutam 2026’, a three-day international seminar focused on Ayurvedic surgery, at the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) in New Delhi (Delhi) on the occasion of Sushruta Jayanti, celebrated in honour of Sushruta, known as the Father of Surgery.
About Saushrutam 2026:
Hosted by: The 3-day long seminar held from July 15 to 17, 2026, was hosted by AIIA, which brought together prominent surgeons, academicians and researchers from India and abroad to deliberate on advances in Ayurvedic surgery and integrative healthcare. 
Participants: The seminar featured sessions on Shalya Tantra, Kshara Sutra, Agnikarma and integrative oncology and witnessed the participation of experts from 9 countries, including Thailand, Israel, Austria and the United Kingdom (UK).
Key Launches: During the event, President Murmu inaugurated an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled 3 Tesla High Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) at AIIA.

• She also released a National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) study on the professional careers of women Ayurveda graduates.

Union MoS Arjun Ram Meghwal Launches ‘e-VSP Portal’ for Digital Access to Legal Publications
In July 2026, Union Minister of State (MoS), Independent charge (IC)  Arjun Ram Meghwal, Ministry of Law and Justice (MoL&J) launched the electronic – Vidhi Sahitya Prakashan (e-VSP) portal, a digital platform that provides easy access to legal books, publications, and educational resources, at Kartavya Bhawan-2 in New Delhi, Delhi.
About e-VSP Portal:
Development: The e-VSP portal has been developed to provide seamless digital access to publications of Vidhi Sahitya Prakashan (VSP).

• The e-VSP portal is hosted at www.vsp.gov.in.

Collaboration: These legal publications were developed in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and the Official Languages Wing to provide content in Hindi.
Purpose: It enables law students, teachers, advocates, members of the judiciary, researchers, and other legal professionals to access and download legal books, journals, and reference materials from a single digital platform.
VSP: It is a wing of the Legislative Department, MoL&J established in 1968 following the Hindi Advisory Committee (1960) recommendations to promote the use of Hindi in legal matters.

India’s First AI-Integrated Vertical University Campus Inaugurates in Chennai TN
In July  2026, Padma Shri Sridhar Vembu, Chief Scientist and Co-founder of Zoho Corporation Pvt. Ltd.,  inaugurated VELS Institute of Science, Technology, & Advanced Studies (VISTAS)’s Thiruvanmiyur campus in Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN), regarded as India’s 1st Artificial Intelligence (AI)-integrated vertical university campus.

• Dr. Ishari K. Ganesh, founder and Chancellor of VISTAS, along with Dr. Preetha Ganesh, Vice-President (VP) of VELS Group of Institutions,  presided over the launch event.

Key Details:
About Campus: The newly inaugurated campus features Industry-Academia Centres of Excellence (CoEs), established in partnership with Intel Unnati, Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) iON, Microsoft, Oracle Academy.

• These CoEs will enable the students to have experience in Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and other emerging technologies.

Signing of MoU: During the event, VELS Institute of Science, Technology, & Advanced Studies (VISTAS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Aspin Holding LLC Group, and MH Cockpit, to establish a flying school in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

• This strategic partnership will foster collaboration in aviation education, pilot training, faculty exchange, internships, skill development, research and international career opportunities for students.

Pi-labs Partners with Google Cloud to Deliver Mission-Ready AI Solutions for India
In July 2026, pi-labs, an Indian Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deepfake detection company focused on regional security operations and digital governance, entered into a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to advance the delivery of secure, scalable and mission-ready AI solutions for India.
Key Details of Collaboration:
Focus: pi-labs will use its indigenous AI capabilities, alongside premise Google Distributed Cloud Tactical Appliance to support the evolving requirements of public sector organisations, critical enterprise infrastructure, and government institutions.
Key Roles: Under the collaboration, Google Cloud will provide the secure, scalable, and resilient infrastructure needed to host robust AI workloads, while pi-labs will provide localised AI models and capabilities purpose-built to align with governance ecosystem of India.
Significance: The strategic partnership is expected to help organisations address evolving challenges like secure threat detection, regional language processing, and assistive security analytics.
About pi-labs: pi-labs is an Indian cyber forensics, cybersecurity and intelligence company that develops Sovereign Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions for security, digital governance and critical infrastructure. It is recognised under the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) DeepTech League and supported by the NVIDIA Inception programme.

BANKING & FINANCE

DIBD and PNB Sign MoU to Advance Multilingual AI for Inclusive Banking 
In July 2026, the Digital India BHASHINI(BHASha INterface for India) Division (DIBD), under the Digital India Corporation (DIC), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and Punjab National Bank (PNB) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on multilingual Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions for inclusive banking and citizen-centric financial services through the BHASHINI for Seva/Sanchalan initiative.

• The MoU was signed by Amitabh Nag, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), DIBD, and Atish Kumar Rout, Chief General Manager (CGM) (Digital), Digital Banking Transformation Division, PNB.

Key Details of MoU:
Objective: The collaboration will use BHASHINI’s language translation Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and reference applications to integrate language-inclusive services into PNB’s digital banking platform.
Integration: Under the MoU, PNB will integrate BHASHINI’s multilingual AI tools, translation APIs, and platforms (including Udyat, Mitra, AppMitra, Pravakta, and Bhashadaan) into its digital banking services.
Significance: This will enable customers to access banking information and services in their preferred Indian languages, promoting inclusive banking, AI-driven innovation, improved customer experience, and greater financial inclusion.
BHASHINI: It is the Government of India(GoI’s) AI-powered language translation platform developed under the National Language Translation Mission (NLTM).

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

Social Activist Dr. Nandini Azad Receives Bharat Samman 2026 for Women’s Empowerment  
In July 2026, Dr. Nandini Azad, President of the Working Women’s Forum (India) (WWF-I) and the Indian Cooperative Network for Women (ICNW), received the Bharat Samman 2026, in recognition of her lifelong contributions to women’s empowerment, financial inclusion, and grassroots social development.

• The award was presented at an event held in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, by the International Institute of Education and Management (IIEM) in association with the Economic Growth Foundation (EGF).

About Bharat Samman 2026:
Award: The Bharat Samman is a national honour presented to individuals for their exceptional contribution to nation-building, social development, public service, education, healthcare, culture, and women’s empowerment.
Recognition: It honours Dr. Nandini Azad for her lifelong contributions to women’s empowerment, financial inclusion, grassroots social development, and gender equality, social justice, and sustainable community development, through transformative grassroots institutions.
Leadership: Dr. Azad has led one of India’s largest and most influential women-led grassroots cooperative movements, expanding the organisations to more than 615,000 women members across four southern states and providing them with access to microcredit, livelihood opportunities, leadership training, and social support.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Mindaugas Sinkevicius Sworn in as Lithuania’s New PM
In July 2026, Mindaugas Sinkevicius, leader of Lithuanian Social Democratic Party(LSDP) was sworn in as 20th Prime Minister (PM) of Lithuania after the Lithuanian Parliament (Seimas) approved his party’s government Manifesto.

• He succeeds Inga Ruginienė, who stepped down on 14 July 2026.

Background:
Election Outcome: Out of the 141-member Seimas, 72 lawmakers voted in favor of the manifesto, 29 voted against it, and 4 abstained.

• The opposition Nemunas Dawn Party(NDP) was ousted from the government amid legal controversies.

Coalition: Mindaugas Sinkevičius formed a centre-left three-party coalition comprising the LSDP, For Lithuania (DLV), and the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union (LFGU).

Policybazaar Appointed Amitabh Bachchan as Brand Ambassador for Insurance Awareness Campaign 
In July 2026, Policybazaar, India’s online insurance marketplace, appointed veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan as its Brand Ambassador to spearhead a nationwide awareness campaign “Parivaar Sabse Pehle” (Family Comes First), developed by MagicCircleon Communications.

• The campaign, aims to raise awareness of health and term insurance, promote timely financial protection for families, and support  the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) vision 2047 of expanding insurance coverage across India.

Highlights of the Appointment:
Focus:   The initiative aims to encourage Indian families to purchase health and term insurance without delaying financial protection decisions.
Campaign Reach: The integrated campaign is being rolled out across television, digital platforms, Over-the-Top (OTT) services, social media, and other digital channels, targeting audiences in urban, semi-urban, and rural India..
About Policybazaar: Founded in 2008, Policybazaar, a PB Fintech Limited company headquartered in Gurugram, Haryana, is one of India’s leading online insurance marketplaces, with Sarbvir Singh serving as the Joint Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Executive Director (ED) of PB Fintech Ltd.

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

Fairfax Financial Holdings to Acquire 60.72% Stake in IDBI Bank 
In July 2026, Canada-based Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (Fairfax) emerged as the preferred bidder to acquire a 60.72% stake in Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) Bank Limited from the Government of India (GoI) and Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) in a Rs. 52,932 crore (USD 5.5 billion) deal.

• If approved, the acquisition will become the largest foreign investment in an Indian bank, subject to approvals from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the Competition Commission of India (CCI), and a mandatory Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)-mandated open offer to public shareholders.

Highlights of the Acquisition: 
Stake Divestment: GoI and LIC, which hold 45.48% and 49.24% of IDBI Bank, respectively, will divest 30.48% and 30.24% stakes, amounting to a combined 60.72% stake sale.
Preferred Bidder: Fairfax emerged as the preferred bidder after revising its offer to Rs. 81 per share.
Significance: The proposed acquisition is expected to strengthen foreign investor confidence in India’s financial sector while supporting the Government’s asset monetisation and banking sector reform agenda.
About IDBI Bank: Established in 1964, IDBI Bank Limited is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Rakesh Sharma serves as its Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and its tagline is “Bank Aisa Dost Jaisa.”

SPORTS

Asian U-19 & U-23 Boxing Championships 2026: Uzbekistan Tops; India Wins 29 Medals Including 5 Gold 
The Asian Under-19 (U-19) & U-23 Boxing Championships 2026, inaugural edition of the combined boxing tournament, held in Jakarta, Indonesia on 3-16 July 2026, where India’s boxers secured 29-medal haul with 5 gold, 13 silver, and 11 bronze medals, to finish third in the overall medal standings.

• Uzbekistan topped the medal table with 33 medals (21 gold, 6 silver, and 6 bronze and Kazakhstan finished second with 30 medals (11 gold, 11 silver and 8 bronze).

Highlights:
Women’s Gold: India won three gold medals through Chandrika Bhoresh Pujari (U-19, 51 kilogram, kg), who defeated Nazokat Mardonova (Uzbekistan) 5–0, Prachi (U-19, 57kg), who beat Dira Artika (Indonesia) 5–0, and Nisha (U-23, 54kg), who defeated Koiin Kokufu (Japan) in the final.
Men’s Gold: India’s two gold medals in the men’s competition were won by Vishvanath Suresh in the U-23 50 kg category and Ganga in the U-23 55 kg category.

ICC Approves New Formats for Men’s ODI and T20 World Cups to Enhance Competitiveness 
In July 2026, the International Cricket Council (ICC) approved major format changes to the ICC Men’s One Day International (ODI) World Cup and the ICC Men’s Twenty20 (T20) World Cup, introducing a Super 7 round-robin stage in the 14-team ODI World Cup and a Super 10 stage with Eliminators in the 20-team T20 World Cup, during its annual Board meetings held in Edinburgh, Scotland..
ICC World Cup Format Changes:
ODI Format: From 2027 onwards, ICC Men’s ODI World Cup will follow a four-stage format comprising a Preliminary Round (featuring the 12th- to 14th-ranked teams), two groups of six teams, a Super 7 replacing the Super Six, and the knockout stage, with the top three teams from each group and the best fourth-placed team advancing, increasing the total matches from 48 to 57.
T20 Format: ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will begin with five groups of four teams, followed by a Super 10 replacing the Super 8, with the top two teams from each group advancing, Eliminators determining the remaining semi-finalists, and the second stage expanding from 8 to 10 teams to enhance competitiveness and reduce dead-rubber matches.

OBITUARY

Padma Shri Awardee & Nokkuvidya Puppetry Exponent Moozhikkal Pankajakshi Passed Away 
On 15 July 2026, renowned Nokkuvidya Pavakkali exponent Moozhikkal Pankajakshi passed away in Koothattukulam, Kerala, at the age of 90. She was born on 14 March 1936 at Urulikunnath, Pala in Kottayam district, Kerala

• She was honoured with the Padma Shri, India’s 4th -highest civilian award, in 2020 for her outstanding contribution to the field of Arts.

About Moozhikkal Pankajakshi:  
Profile:  She was a renowned Nokkuvidya Pavakkali exponent who began learning the traditional puppetry art from her mother, Paappiyamma, at the age of 11.
Recognition:  Took the traditional art form from rural Kerala to international platforms, including performances at cultural festivals in Paris, France.
Honours:  She received the Kerala Folklore Academy Fellowship in 2012 in recognition of her contribution to Nokkuvidya Pavakkali.

IMPORTANT DAYS

AI Appreciation Day 2026 – July 16 
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Appreciation Day is annually observed across the world on 16 July worldwide to recognise the transformative role of AI in driving innovation and shaping society and the economy.
Background:
Origin: AI Appreciation Day was established in May 2021 by the United States of America (USA)-based A.I. Heart LLC.
Evolution of AI: AI research traces its roots to the 1943 artificial neuron model by McCulloch & Pitts, while the term “Artificial Intelligence” was coined at the Dartmouth Workshop in 1956.

• Early AI ethics debates were shaped by Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Alan Turing’s Church–Turing Thesis, which proposed that machines could perform logical operations using binary code.

Development in India: India’s AI journey began in the 1960s, with the Knowledge-Based Computer Systems (KBCS) Project launched in 1986 as a major milestone.

World Snake Day 2026 – July 16 
World Snake Day is observed annually on 16 July across the world to raise awareness about the ecological importance of snakes, promote their conservation, dispel myths associated with them, and highlight the diversity of over 3,900 snake species that play a vital role in maintaining ecological balance.
Highlights of the day: 
History: World Snake Day was first observed in 2009 to improve public understanding of snakes and support their conservation.
Snake Diversity: There are about 3,900 snake species worldwide, of which nearly 600 are venomous, while only around 200 species pose a significant threat to humans.
About Snakes in India: India is home to around 300 snake species, which are protected under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
Scientific Classification: Snakes belong to the suborder Serpentes under the order Squamata.
Record Holders: The Reticulated Python is the world’s longest snake, while the Green Anaconda is the world’s heaviest snake.
India Event (2026): The Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment (KSCSTE) observed World Snake Day 2026 by organising an awareness programme on snakebite prevention, biodiversity conservation, and the One Health approach under the “Zero Snakebite Deaths Kerala” initiative.

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