1.
NATIONAL TEXTILE
MINISTERS’ CONFERENCE
·
The National
Textiles Ministers’ Conference 2026 was in Guwahati, Assam, under the theme “India’s
Textiles: Weaving Growth, Heritage & Innovation”.
·
During the event, a report
titled “India’s Textile Atlas: State Compendium 2025” was
officially released.
·
During the conference, MoT
unveiled the District-Led Textiles
Transformation (DLTT) Plan, a strategic
initiative designed to accelerate inclusive and sustainable growth across
India’s textile landscape.
·
It aims to transform 100
high-potentional districts into Global Export Champions and
elevate 100 Aspirational Districts into
self-reliant hubs.
2. INDIAN ARMY LAUNCHES NEW DIGITAL PLATFORM ‘DIME’
·
The Indian Army (IA) launched
‘Depot Integration Management Edition (DIME)’, a
new digital platform, aimed at transforming
logistics management and helping commanders make faster, more informed, and
data-driven decisions.
·
The platform has been developed jointly by IA and the
Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-Informatics (BISAG-N), under
the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
·
It is designed to provide real-time visibility and
efficient management of spares and equipment by integrating inventory
control, maintenance planning, and demand forecasting into one digital
platform.
·
It delivers end-to-end real-time logistics visibility
from the frontline to Headquarters (HQ), supported by integrated dashboards
for rapid stock assessment, along with alerts and predictive analytics to
identify anomalies and anticipate requirements.
·
It reduces around 70% of manual paperwork and
streamlines workflows to make supply operations about one-third faster.
3. USA
WITHDRAWS FROM 66 INTERNATIONAL BODIES
·
USA President Donald
Trump issued an executive order and presidential memorandum announcing
the withdrawal of the USA from 66 international
organizations, treaties, and commissions, including the India-led International Solar Alliance (ISA) and several United Nations (UN)’s–affiliated
entities.
·
The withdrawal covers a total of 66 entities, comprising 35 non–UN
organizations and 31 UN-affiliated
bodies.
·
Non-UN Bodies: Key
non-UN organizations exited include the ISA, International Renewable Energy
Agency (IRENA), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), and the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
·
UN Entities: Major
UN-affiliated bodies affected include the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC), UN Population Fund (UNFPA), UN Water, UN Department
of Economic and Social Affairs, and the Peacebuilding Commission.
4.
UNGA DECLARES 2026 AS
INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR RANGELANDS AND PASTORALISTS
·
The United Nations General
Assembly (UNGA) declared 2026 as the
International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP), at
its 76th session held in New York,
USA.
·
IYRP 2026 aims to raise
awareness about rangelands and
pastoralists and promote policies for their sustainable management and livelihoods.
·
The
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has
been declared the leading agency to
celebrate the Year in collaboration with other relevant stakeholders.
5. PORTABLE WATER PURIFICATION SYSTEM ‘SWADES’ FOR SOLDIERS
·
The Defence Laboratory Jodhpur (DLJ) under the Defence
Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO), developed a portable water purification system ‘SeaWater Desalination System (SWaDeS)’,
available in manual-operated and engine-driven variants, to supply safe drinking water to soldiers
deployed in remote, coastal, and water-scarce regions.
·
The engine-operated variant
can desalinate seawater with Total
Dissolved Solids(TDS) up to ~35,000 milligrams per litre (mg/L) to below
500 mg/L for 20–25 soldiers, while the manual
unit is portable for 10–12 personnel.
6. IA CREATES MODERN WARFARE FORCE ‘BHAIRAV’
·
The Indian Army (IA) announced
the creation of a modern warfare force named ‘Bhairav’, aimed
at enhancing India’s combat capabilities
by integrating drone technology and establishing a pool of over 1
lakh trained drone operatives.
·
The Bhairav battalions, raised by IA, have been specifically created to provide a dedicated force for high-speed, offensive
operations, carrying out Special Forces tasking at various levels as per
requirements.
·
Aim is to bridge the gap between the Para Special
Forces(SF) and regular Infantry battalions, carrying out special operations at
tactical to operational depth.
·
So far, the IA has raised approximately 15 Bhairav
battalions, which
have been deployed across various formations along both borders.
·
In addition to that, IA is already planning to raise around
25 such battalions in the near future.
·
Army
Day Parade: The new battalions will make their 1st appearance at Indian Army Day
Parade at Jaipur, Rajasthan on January 15, 2026.
·
IA has also created ‘Rudra Brigades’ which
are all-arms formations that combine
infantry, mechanised units, tanks, artillery, special forces and Unmanned
Aerial Systems (UASs).
7.
USMAN KHAWAJA ANNOUNCED
RETIREMENT
·
Renowned Pakistan-born Australian
cricketer Usman Tariq Khawaja announced his retirement from
international cricket
·
He,
Australia’s first Muslim Test cricketer,
started his international cricket career debuting against England in the final
Test Match of 2010-11 series.
·
He scored 6206 runs in 87 test
matches and 157 innings at an average of 43.39, including 16 hundreds (100s)
and 28 fifties (50s) in the longest format.
8. 72ND NATIONAL VOLLEYBALL TOURNAMENT
·
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi inaugurated the 72nd edition of
the National Volleyball Tournament (Senior National
Championship) in Varanasi, Uttar
Pradesh (UP)
·
For the 72nd Senior National
Volleyball Championship, the organizers unveiled two mascots: ‘Nandu’, inspired
by the Nandi bull for strength, and ‘Neera’, the Ganga
River Dolphin symbolizing environmental awareness.
9.
UTTARAKHAND POLICE RANKS
FIRST IN ICJS 2.0 NATIONAL RANKINGS
·
Uttarakhand Police ranked
first with a score of 93.46 in the second edition of the national Inter-Operable Criminal Justice
System (ICJS) 2.0 rankings,
released by the National Crime Records
Bureau (NCRB), under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
·
Haryana Police (93.41) secured
second place, followed by Assam 93.16.
·
ICJS is
a digital platform connecting all
pillars of the criminal justice ecosystem, including police, courts,
prosecution, prisons, forensic labs, and fingerprint and crime databases.
10.
FIVE INDIAN
FILMS QUALIFY FOR 98TH ACADEMY AWARDS
·
Five Indian films, Kantara:
A Legend – Chapter 1, Tanvi The Great, Mahavatar Narsimha, Tourist
Family and Sister Midnight were included in the list of 201 feature films eligible for the Best
Picture category at the 98th Academy Awards (Oscars 2026), released by the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).
·
Kantara A Legend –
Chapter 1: Written and directed by
Rishab Shetty, produced by Vijay Kiragandur and Chaluve Gowda
·
Mahavatar Narasimha: It is an animated film
directed by Ashwin Kumar, produced by Shilpaa Dhawan, Kushal Desai,
and Chaitanya Desai
·
Tanvi The Great: Directed by veteran actor
Anupam Kher
·
Tourist Family: It marks the directorial debut of
Abishan Jeevinth and is produced by Nazerath Pasilian, Magesh Raj
Pasilian, and Yuvaraj Ganesan
·
Sister Midnight: A dark comedy written and directed
by Karan Kandhari, produced by Alastair Clark and Anna Griffin
