Daily Current Affairs and GK | 22 January 2026

Topic: Personality in News

1. Sunita Williams has retired from NASA after a 27-year career.

• She is one of the most accomplished astronauts in human spaceflight.
• Her retirement followed an unexpected nine-month mission on the International Space Station.
• As per NASA, her retirement became effective on December 27, 2025.
• NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called her a pioneer in space exploration.
• Sunita Williams was born in Euclid, Ohio. She considers Needham, Massachusetts, her hometown.
• Her father was a a neuroanatomist. He was born in Jhulasan in Gujarat’s Mehsana district. He later migrated to the United States.
• Her mother, Bonnie Pandya, is of Slovenian origin. Sunita Williams' first spaceflight began on December 9, 2006.
• She launched aboard Space Shuttle Discovery on the STS-116 mission.
• She returned to Earth on Space Shuttle Atlantis with the STS-117 crew.
• During Expeditions 14 and 15, she served as a flight engineer. She completed four spacewalks during this period. This was a record at the time.
• She spent 127 days in space during Expeditions 32 and 33. She was among the few women to lead the ISS.
• Her third mission began in June 2024. She launched aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
• The mission was originally planned to be short but was extended to nine months.
• She joined Expeditions 71 and 72. She returned safely to Earth in March 2025.
• She spent a total of 608 days in space across three missions.
• She ranks sixth among Americans for longest single spaceflight.
• She has completed nine spacewalks in her career.
• The total duration of her spacewalks is 62 hours and 6 minutes.
• This is the highest for any female astronaut. It ranks fourth overall in NASA history.
• She was the first person to run a marathon in space.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

2. A 10-year liquefied natural gas sales and purchase agreement has been signed by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company Gas (ADNOC Gas) and its subsidiaries with HPCL.

• The agreement signed with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited is valued between $2.5 billion and $3 billion.
• The agreement was announced during UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan's visit to India.
• Dr Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and managing director and group chief executive of ADNOC, and Vikas Kaushal, chairman and managing director of HPCL exchanged the contract.
• Under the agreement, ADNOC Gas will supply 0.5 million tonnes per annum LNG to HPCL.
• The source of supply will be ADNOC Gas’ Das Island liquefaction facility. This facility has a production capacity of up to 6 mtpa.
• The deal supports India aims to raise the share of natural gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030.

Topic: Reports and Indices

3. The Responsible Nations Index launched by India to promote ethical and responsible governance.

• On 19 January, the Responsible Nations Index (RNI) was launched by India as a global framework to assess countries beyond traditional measures of power and economic strength.
• The index has been designed to evaluate ethical governance, social well-being, environmental stewardship and global responsibility.
• The launch event was held at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi under the aegis of the World Intellectual Foundation.
• Former President Ram Nath Kovind attended the programme as the chief guest and emphasised ethical governance and inclusive development.
• The index is the outcome of a three-year academic and policy research initiative led by the World Intellectual Foundation.
• Scholarly contributions were provided by Jawaharlal Nehru University and the Indian Institute of Management Mumbai.
• An expert panel discussion on responsibility-led development and global stewardship was organised during the event.
• The panel was chaired by N K Singh, Chairman of the 15th Finance Commission of India.
• The index seeks to redefine national success in an interconnected global environment.
• The programme concluded with the release of the Responsible Nations Index report, initiating a broader global dialogue.
• India has been ranked 16th among 154 countries in the Responsible Nations Index.
• The ranking reflects how responsibly nations use power for citizens, the environment and the global community.
• Singapore was ranked first in the index, followed by Switzerland and Denmark.
• India was placed ahead of major global powers such as the United States and China.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

4. India and UAE signed Strategic Defence Partnership and Energy Cooperation Agreements.

• On January 19, 2026, a Letter of Intent for a bilateral Strategic Defence Partnership was signed between India and the United Arab Emirates.
• The agreement was finalised during the brief visit of UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to India.
• The signing was undertaken amid growing geopolitical tensions in the Gulf region.
• A target was set to double bilateral trade between the two countries to 200 billion dollars by 2032.
• Discussions were held on regional issues including Gaza, Yemen and wider Gulf security developments.
• The defence partnership was described as a natural evolution of existing cooperation between the two nations.
• An LNG supply agreement was signed between HPCL (Hindustan Petroleum Company Ltd) and ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company Gas) for 0.5 MMPTA over ten years starting 2028.
• A Letter of Intent was also signed for cooperation in space industry development.
• Both sides welcomed enhanced civil nuclear cooperation and digital embassy initiatives.

Topic: State News/Maharashtra

5. The Bembla River Irrigation Project approved by Maharashtra Cabinet to address agrarian distress.

• The Bembla River irrigation project was approved by the Maharashtra Cabinet at a cost of ₹4,775 crore.
• The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
• The project aims to bring over 52,000 hectares of land under irrigation in Yavatmal district.
• The project had remained pending for more than five decades due to delays and cost escalations.
• Originally conceived in 1983, the project underwent multiple cost revisions over the years.
• The scheme falls under the Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation and the Godavari basin.
• Completion of the project is expected to benefit five talukas of Yavatmal district.
• Additional allocations were approved for rehabilitation of affected villages.
• The project will also support drinking water supply and fisheries development.
• The approval is seen as a major step towards resolving long-standing irrigation challenges in Vidarbha.

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

6. The continuation of Atal Pension Yojana approved by Union Cabinet Till 2030-31.

• On 21 January, the continuation of the Atal Pension Yojana till the financial year 2030-31 was approved by the Union Cabinet.
• The decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• Government funding support for promotional and developmental activities was also extended.
• The move aims to strengthen the sustainability and outreach of the pension scheme.
• Continued support will be provided for awareness generation and capacity building.
• Gap funding will be extended to meet the long-term viability of the scheme.
• The scheme is targeted at workers in the unorganised sector.
• Launched in 2015, APY provides a guaranteed pension of ₹1,000 to ₹5,000 after the age of 60, depending on the subscriber’s contribution.
• Over 8.66 crore subscribers have been enrolled under the scheme as of January 2026.
• The decision supports financial inclusion and aligns with the Viksit Bharat @2047 vision.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

7. A memorandum of understanding has been signed between National Highways Authority of India and Konkan Railway Corporation Limited.

• The MoU was signed on 21 January 2026 in New Delhi to strengthen integrated infrastructure development.
• The MoU aims to enhance coordination in road and rail planning.
• The MoU includes development of rail-cum-road bridges, tunnels, multi-modal logistics parks and inter-modal hubs, especially in challenging terrains.
• The MoU makes it possible for sharing technical expertise, safety audits, training and use of advanced technologies to be done.
• The validity of MoU is five years. It is expected to boost connectivity and logistics efficiency.

Topic: National News

8. New Draft National Electricity Policy 2026 has been released by government. 

• The policy released by Ministry of Power provides roadmap for sustainable Power sector.
• It aims to transform the power sector for realising Viksit Bharat @2047 vision.
• The policy sets target of achieving per capita electricity consumption of two thousand kilowatt hours by 2030.
• It also aims to achieve over four thousand kilowatt hours by 2047.
• In 2024-25, the per capita electricity consumption reached one thousand 460 kilowatt hours .
• The new draft policy is aligned with India’s climate commitments, which include the reduction of emissions intensity by 45 per cent by 2030.
• The policy will replace the current National Electricity Policy, which was notified in 2005.

Topic: State News/Telangana

9. A new life sciences policy covering the period from 2026 to 2030 was unveiled by Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

• A dedicated Life Sciences Innovation Fund will be established under the policy with an initial allocation of ₹100 crore.
• The initial corpus of the fund is scalable up to ₹1,000 crore in the future.
• Under the policy, the fund will be set up through a public–private partnership model.
• It will co-invest alongside venture capital and private equity funds.
• The investments will assist start-ups, scale-ups, and translational research initiatives in the life sciences sector.
• As per the policy, Telangana aims to rank among the top five global life sciences hubs by 2030.
• The state government is targeting an additional $25 billion in investments to create 5 lakh jobs over the next five years.

Topic: Indian Economy

10. The Union Cabinet has approved a ₹5,000 crore equity infusion into SIDBI.

• The objective is to improve the flow of credit to micro, small and medium enterprises.
• The equity support will be provided by the Department of Financial Services in three separate tranches.
• An amount of ₹3,000 crore will be infused during the financial year 2025–26, based on SIDBI’s book value as of March 31, 2025.
• The remaining ₹2,000 crore will be infused at a later stage in two equal tranches of ₹1,000 crore each.
• These tranches will be released in the financial years 2026–27 and 2027–28.
• The number of MSMEs supported by SIDBI is projected to rise significantly from about 76 lakh in 2025 to nearly 102 lakh by 2028.
• The additional MSME support will generate large-scale employment.