Daily Current Affairs and GK | 3 February 2026

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

1. The Union Budget 2026–27 has introduced two schemes for empowerment of Divyangjan.

• These schemes are aimed at enhancing access to assistive technologies and skill development for  persons with disabilities (Divyangjan).
• Divyangjan Kaushal Yojana has been announced to provide industry-relevant, customised training to Divyangjan.
• The training will be provided in sectors such as Information Technology (IT), Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC), hospitality, and food and beverage services.
• The objective is to enable dignified and sustainable livelihood opportunities to Divyangjan.
• Another scheme is Divyang Sahara Yojana. This scheme is focused on improving access to high-quality assistive devices for eligible Divyangjan and senior citizens.
• Under the scheme, Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO) will be supported by the government to expand the production of assistive devices.
• ALIMCO will ve supported by the government to invest in R&D, and integrate advanced technologies, including AI, into product design.
• PM Divyasha Kendras will be further strengthened under this initiative.
• Assistive Technology Marts will be set up as modern retail-style centres.
• These centres will allow persons with disabilities and senior citizens to view, test, and purchase assistive products.

Topic: National News

2. President Droupadi Murmu is on a six-day visit to Odisha from 2nd February.

• President will attend official, academic and cultural programmes across Khordha, Jajpur, Balasore, Puri and Mayurbhanj districts.
• She will offer prayers at the Maa Biraja Temple in Jajpur. She will perform rituals at Navi Gaya.
• She will attend 12th Convocation Ceremony of Fakir Mohan University in Balasore as the Chief Guest.
• She will visit Puri for darshan at the Shree Jagannath Temple.
• On 4 February, she will visit her home district, Mayurbhanj.
• In Mayurbhanj, she will inaugurate a holiday home at Rairangpur and unveil the statue of tribal leader Bhanjbir Sunaram Soren.
• On 5 February, she will attend a special programme at the Rairangpur Jagannath Temple. She will visit Simlipal National Park.
• She will return to Bhubaneswar to attend the Black Swan Summit India.
• As per schedule, she will leave Bhubaneswar for Chhattisgarh on the 7th February.
• Black Swan Summit India will be held in Bhubaneswar, Odisha on 5-6 February 2026.

Topic: Indian Economy

3. Budget 2026–27 presented with strong push to manufacturing and jobs.

• The Union Budget 2026–27 was presented with a strong emphasis on manufacturing, infrastructure, and job creation.
• A multi-pronged growth strategy was outlined to sustain momentum amid global economic uncertainty.
• The outlay for electronics component manufacturing was increased sharply to ₹40,000 crore to boost domestic capacity.
• New schemes for rare earth magnets, chemical parks, container manufacturing, and capital goods were announced to reduce import dependence.
• Infrastructure investment was strengthened through higher capital expenditure and risk guarantee mechanisms for private developers.
• Fiscal discipline was maintained, with the fiscal deficit projected at 4.3% of GDP for 2026–27, lower than 4.4% projected for the current financial year.
• Tier-II and Tier-III cities were prioritised through City Economic Regions backed by reform-linked funding.
• The services sector was emphasised as a major employment engine through education-to-employment alignment initiatives.
• Artificial Intelligence was positioned as a force multiplier across governance, agriculture, education, and skilling.
• A major structural reform will come with the Income Tax Act, 2025, which will be effective from April 1, 2026, and will include simplified rules and newly designed forms.
• The process of rationalizing customs duties continued with a clear focus on domestic manufacturing, energy transition, and ease of living.
• Reducing the duty on personal use items from 20% to 10% will make personal imports cheaper.
• Seventeen cancer drugs and treatments for some rare diseases have been exempted from customs duty.

Topic: Indian Economy

4. Three Chemical Parks proposed to boost domestic production.

• The Union Budget 2026–27 proposed the establishment of three dedicated Chemical Parks to strengthen domestic chemical production.
• The proposal aims to reduce import dependency and enhance competitiveness in the chemicals and petrochemicals sector.
• Provision was made for Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) technologies across five industrial sectors including chemicals.
• An allocation of ₹20,000 crore was proposed over five years to support CCUS technology adoption.
• CCUS was described as a method to reduce carbon emissions by storing or reusing captured carbon dioxide.
• A scheme to revive 200 legacy industrial clusters was announced in the Budget.
• This will improve cost competitiveness and efficiency in the chemicals and petrochemicals sector through infrastructure and technology upgradation.

Topic: Indian Economy

5. Seven High-Speed Rail Corridors announced in Union Budget 2026–27.

• The Union Budget 2026–27 was welcomed by Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw as a roadmap for Viksit Bharat.
• Budgetary support of ₹2.78 lakh crore was announced for the Railways sector.
• Total capital expenditure for Railways was provided at ₹2.93 lakh crore in the Budget.
• An allocation of ₹1.20 lakh crore was earmarked for passenger services and railway safety.
• The development of seven high-speed rail corridors was announced across key routes in the country.
• The corridors include Mumbai–Pune, Pune–Hyderabad, Hyderabad–Bangalore, Hyderabad–Chennai, Chennai–Bangalore, Delhi–Varanasi, and Varanasi–Siliguri.
• The total length of these corridors was estimated at around 4,000 kilometres.
• Investment potential of approximately ₹16 lakh crore was highlighted for these projects.
• Mr Vaishnav said the government has offered assistance to the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies, Mumbai, to set up AVGC content creator labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges.
• Additionally, regarding the electronics and IT sector, Mr. Ashwini Vaishnav stated that four major announcements have been made in this sector.
• The Minister stated that the outlay for the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme has been increased from ₹22,000 crore to ₹40,000 crore.
• Mr. Vaishnav stated that India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 will be launched, which aims to boost the country's semiconductor ecosystem.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

6. The Dalai Lama honoured with his first Grammy Award at 90.

• The spiritual leader of Tibet, the Dalai Lama, was honoured with his first Grammy Award at the age of 90.
• The recognition was received at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards.
• His spoken-word album Meditations: The Reflections of His Holiness the Dalai Lama won in the category of Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording.
• The award highlighted his expansion into creative and narrative mediums beyond spiritual teachings.
• The album focuses on his reflections, teachings, and meditative practices delivered through narration.
• The Grammy Award is considered one of the most prestigious honours in the global music industry.
• This is not the first time that a person outside the entertainment industry has received a Grammy Award.
• Earlier, former US President Barack Obama won two Grammys for Best Spoken Word Album for Dreams from My Father (2006) and The Audacity of Hope (2008).
• His wife Michelle Obama also won Grammys for Best Spoken Word Album for her memoirs Becoming (2020) and The Light We Carry (2024).
• In 2012, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was awarded a posthumous Trustees’ Grammy for his contribution to music through the iPod.

Topic: Personality in News

7. Kabak Yano has successfully climbed Mount Aconcagua in Argentina.

• She is an Indian mountaineer from Arunachal Pradesh. She is only 27 years old.
• Mount Aconcagua is the highest mountain in South America as well as the tallest peak in the Western Hemisphere.
• Mount Aconcagua is towered at 22,831 feet above sea level.
• This climb is part of Yano’s ambitious Seven Summits mountaineering expedition.
• Her achievement reflects exceptional endurance, courage, and discipline.
• Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lt Gen K.T. Parnaik (Retd.) congratulated her on achievement.
• He described her success as an inspiration for young people.
• The Governor had earlier flagged off her Seven Summits expedition at Lok Bhavan in Itanagar on 28 July last year.

Topic: Art and Culture

8. India will take part in the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia.

• The event will be held in Venice, Italy. India’s participation in the exhibition has been confirmed the Ministry of Culture.
• India’s National Pavilion will return to the Venice Biennale after a gap of seven years.
• The pavilion will present a group exhibition titled "Geographies of Distance: Remembering Home."
• Return of India's National Pavilion has been described by Union Culture and Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat as a proud moment.
• As per the Minister, it is reflection of India’s growing cultural confidence.
• The pavilion will showcase a contemporary image of India which remains rooted in India’s civilizational heritage.
• The exhibition will highlight India’s cultural diversity on an international platform.
• The pavilion will feature works by five Indian artists.
• The artists include Alwar Balasubramaniam, Sumakshi Singh, Ranjani Shettar, Asim Waqif and Skarma Sonam Tashi.
• The artists draw inspiration from India’s material culture traditions.
• Their works explore the idea of home and memory and use materials such as clay, thread, recycled elements and handmade paper.
• The artworks reflect themes of mobility and belonging.
• The exhibition will be held at the Arsenale in Venice. It will be held from 9 May to 22 November this year.
• Preview events are scheduled for 6th, 7th and 8th of May.

Topic: Indian Economy

9. In the Union Budget 2026-27, 2 lakh 78 crore rupees have been allotted for Railways.

• This is a record allocation for Railways, said Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
• The Minister shared state-wise allocation details of the budget.
• Assam and the northeastern states have received an allocation of ₹11,486 crore.
• West Bengal has been allotted over ₹14,000 crore. Maharashtra will receive around ₹24,000 crore.
• Uttar Pradesh has been granted over ₹20,000 crore and Delhi has been allocated ₹2,711 crore under the railway budget.
• Tamil Nadu has received a record railway allocation of ₹7,611 crore.
• The Centre plans to start two new bullet train corridors in Tamil Nadu.
• Kerala has been allotted ₹3,795 crore for railway development.
• The government is planning underground railway tracks.
• These tracks will cover a 40-kilometre strategic corridor connecting the Northeast with the rest of India.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

10. The 68^th Annual Grammy Awards started on 2 February 2026 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

• Comedian Trevor Noah hosted the awards show. It was his sixth time hosting the Grammys and marked his final appearance as host.
• Kendrick Lamar led all artists with nine nominations and Lady Gaga followed with seven nominations.
• Bad Bunny achieved a milestone at the ceremony. He won the Album of the Year award.
• The event also featured a landmark moment for K-pop. A K-pop act won a Grammy for the first time.
• The music film award was given to the documentary "Music by John Williams". It focuses on the life and work of composer John Williams.
• Director Steven Spielberg won his first Grammy through this project.
• This win completed Spielberg’s EGOT status, an artist with an Emmy, Grammy, Tony and Oscar.
• The Dalai Lama also won his first Grammy. Musician Rufus Wainwright accepted the award on his behalf.
• Yungblud won his first Grammy for a rock performance. The award recognized his live cover of Black Sabbath’s song "Changes."
• Hardcore band Turnstile earned their first Grammy for best rock album. They later also won the metal performance category.
• Experimental dance-pop artist FKA twigs won her first Grammy for best dance or electronic album.
• The winning album was titled "EUSEXUA." She became only the second Black woman to win in that category.