Daily Current Affairs and GK | 23 January 2026

Topic: Reports and Indices

1. Abu Dhabi has been named the world’s safest city in the 2026 Numbeo Global Safety Index.

• This marks the 10th consecutive year the city has topped the global safety rankings.
• The 2026 index evaluated around 400 cities worldwide spread across more than 150 countries.
• Abu Dhabi secured the highest overall safety score in the 2026 safety report.
• Abu Dhabi ranked first for overall public safety, including walking alone safely during the daytime and at night as well.
• The ranking consolidates the city’s status as leader in urban security and quality of life.
• Abu Dhabi relies on advanced technologies to enhance public safety and on proactive and well-coordinated policing.
• Community engagement initiatives further strengthen safety across the city.
• Abu Dhabi has held the top safety rank continuously since 2017.
• Numbeo is a crowdsourced database. It is widely used in global cost of living and quality-of-life comparisons.
• Abu Dhabi is the capital of the United Arab Emirates.

Topic: Miscellaneous

2. A 233-year-old manuscript of the Valmiki Ramayana handed over for display at the Ayodhya Ram Temple.

• A rare 233-year-old manuscript of the Valmiki Ramayana was formally handed over by the Vice Chancellor of the Central Sanskrit University, Professor Shrinivasa Varakhedi, to Nripendra Misra for public display at Ayodhya.
• Mr Misra is Chairman of the Executive Council of the Prime Ministers Museum and Library and Chairman of the Ram Mandir Construction Committee.
• It has been stated that, after due authentication, the manuscript will be placed within the Ram Temple premises for viewing by devotees.
• The Ram Mandir Construction Committee has planned to curate authenticated versions of the Ramayana in different languages at a designated level near the Garbha Griha (sanctum sanctorum).
• Individuals possessing rare and authentic Ramayana manuscripts are to be invited soon to contribute to this growing collection at Ayodhya.
• The donated manuscript, sent to Ayodhya, was described as a landmark acquisition for the Ram Katha Sangrahalaya.
• The manuscript was originally composed by Adi Kavi Valmiki, with a classical Sanskrit commentary by Maheshvara Tirtha, and is written in the Devanagari script.
• It dates back to Vikrama Samvat 1849 (1792 CE) and represents a rare preserved textual tradition of the Ramayana.
• The collection comprises five principal kaṇḍas (chapters) of the epic: Balakaṇḍa (Childhood), Araṇyakaṇḍa (Ram’s exile in the forest), Kiṣkindhakaṇḍa (Ram’s alliance with Sugriva), Sundarakaṇḍa (the journey of Lord Hanuman to Lanka to find Sita), and Yuddhakaṇḍa (the war with Ravana).
• According to the Ministry of Culture, the manuscript, earlier loaned to Rashtrapati Bhavan, has now been permanently gifted to the Antarrashtriya Ram Katha Sangrahalaya (International Ram Katha Museum), Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.
• In 1988, the museum was originally established to collect and preserve artefacts related to Ram Katha (the story of Lord Ram).