Daily Current Affairs and GK | 6 January 2026

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

1. Regional AI Impact Conference 2026 to be hosted by Rajasthan.

• Rajasthan is set to host the Regional AI Impact Conference 2026 in Jaipur.
• The conference is scheduled to be held on the 6th of January.
• The event is being organised in collaboration with Rajasthan DigiFest and TiE Global Summit 2026.
• The conference forms part of preparatory engagements for the India AI Impact Summit 2026.
• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology stated that the conference will focus on governance and innovation.
• Sessions will be held on AI in public service delivery, ethical AI and future employment.
• Rajasthan’s emerging AI startup and innovation ecosystem will be showcased.
• Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Minister of State Jitin Prasada will attend the conference.
• Guwahati will host a Human Capital Working Group Meeting alongside these engagements.
• The meeting will deliberate on education, skilling and workforce readiness in the age of Artificial Intelligence.

Topic: Sports

2. The second Khelo India Beach Games is being held in Diu.

• The second edition of the Khelo India Beach Games is being held at Ghoghla Beach in Diu on 5 January.
• The games are being organised by the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
• More than 2,100 athletes are expected to participate in the event.
• The games will be conducted between the 5th and 10th of January.
• Technical supervision is being provided by the Sports Authority of India and national sports federations.
• The six medal sports will be beach soccer, beach volleyball, beach sepak takraw, beach kabaddi, pencak silat, and open water swimming.
• Mallakhamb and tug-of-war will be non-medal events.
• The event aims to promote beach and indigenous sports across the country.
• The initiative aligns with the vision of creating a strong sports culture among youth.

Topic: Defence

3. India’s first Indigenous Pollution Control Vessel commissioned into Indian Coast Guard.

• On 5 January, India’s first indigenously designed Pollution Control Vessel, ICGS Samudra Pratap, was commissioned by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Goa.
• The vessel was constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited as part of India’s drive towards self-reliance in shipbuilding.
• With more than 60% indigenous content, Samudra Pratap was inducted as the largest ship in the Indian Coast Guard fleet.
• The ship was commissioned as the first of two pollution control vessels being built by GSL.
• India’s marine pollution response, fire-fighting, maritime safety and environmental protection capabilities have been significantly strengthened by the vessel.
• Advanced pollution detection systems, pollution response boats, fire-fighting equipment and aviation facilities have been installed on board.
• The ship is capable of operating in rough sea conditions to control pollution incidents and protect marine ecosystems.
• Samudra Pratap has been described as reflecting India’s mature and technology-driven defence industrial ecosystem.
• For the first time, two women officers will be deployed on a frontline Indian Coast Guard ship, marking progress towards gender inclusivity.
• This ship, named Samudra Pratap, means "Majesty of the Seas."
• It has a displacement of 4,170 tons, a length of 114.5 meters, and a maximum speed of over 22 knots.
• Powered by an indigenously developed propulsion system, the ship has an endurance of 6,000 nautical miles.

Topic: National News

4. The 3D-Printed Automatic Weather Stations developed Under Mission Mausam.

• Indigenously manufactured Automatic Weather Stations (AWS) using 3D-printing technology have been developed by Indian scientists.
• This initiative is part of the government's ambitious Mission Monsoon, a ₹2,000 crore program aimed at improving India's weather monitoring and forecasting capabilities.
• The first batch of these next-generation weather stations is scheduled to be installed in Delhi from February.
• The project is being led by the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
• Expansion of weather observation networks is expected to eliminate data gaps and improve local-level forecasts.
• Over the next six months, AWS and radar installations are expected to expand rapidly in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.
• Parameters such as temperature, wind, humidity and rainfall will be recorded at a greater number of locations.
• The new AWS units will be solar-powered and are designed to reduce operational costs.
• Currently, the IMD operates more than 1,008 automatic weather stations, 547 manual surface observatories, and 1,382 automatic rain gauges across the country.
• However, scientists have long pointed out that the density of the existing network is insufficient for highly localized forecasts, especially for urban microclimates and challenging terrains such as remote Himalayan regions.

Topic: Environment and Ecology

5. An Ultra-Rare ‘Sandalwood Leopard’ recorded for the first time in Karnataka.

• An ultra-rare leopard colour morph has been documented for the first time in Karnataka’s Vijayanagara district.
• Conservationists have named this big cat the "Sandalwood Leopard," inspired by its distinctive light reddish-pink fur, which resembles the color of sandalwood and is marked with light brown spots.
• The sighting marks only the second such record in India and the first in the state. It was previously spotted in Rajasthan in November 2021.
• The leopard was recorded during a study conducted by the Holematthi Nature Foundation.
• Globally, this colour morph has been documented only five times across South Africa, Tanzania and India.
• The leopard’s unusual colouring is believed to be caused by genetic traits such as hypomelanism or erythrism.
• Camera trap images confirmed that the leopard is a female, estimated to be around seven years old.
• One photograph also showed the leopard with a cub displaying a normal tawny coat.
• Researchers stated that definitive identification would require molecular analysis using non-invasive DNA samples.
• The discovery highlights Karnataka’s rich leopard diversity, including one of India’s highest populations of melanistic leopards.

Topic: Defence

6. 2026 declared as ‘Year of Networking & Data Centricity’ by Indian Army.

• The year 2026 has been declared as the ‘Year of Networking & Data Centricity’ by the Indian Army to strengthen future combat readiness.
• This initiative has been aimed at enhancing connectivity, real-time decision-making and overall combat effectiveness across the force.
• Greater resilience and agility for a future-ready Army are expected to be achieved through this data-driven transformation.
• The declaration was highlighted in the New Year’s message issued by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi.
• The Indian Army was described as undergoing a decade of transformation, with jointness, self-reliance and innovation identified as its core pillars.
• Indigenous technologies, new ideas and continuous reforms have been emphasised as key drivers in making the Army more capable.
• Networking and data-centricity were stated to be providing fresh momentum to the ongoing transformation process.
• The initiative has been linked to defence modernisation, indigenisation and digital integration under the broader vision of military reform.
• The announcement follows the earlier declaration of 2024–25 as the ‘Year of Technology Absorption’, reflecting a phased modernisation approach.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

7. The Delhi Government and the Reserve Bank of India has signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

• With this, Delhi has come under the RBI’s banking, cash management and debt management framework for the first time.
• The RBI will now function as the banker of the Government of Delhi.
• It will also act as debt manager and financial agent of the Government of Delhi.
• With the signing of this MoU, Delhi can raise funds through State Development Loans.
• The MoU also allows automatic investment of surplus cash, professional cash management, and access to low-cost liquidity facilities.
• The MoU follows the RBI Act and central government guidelines.
• The MoU was signed during a meeting held at the Delhi Secretariat.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

8. National CSR Conclave of NDDB Foundation for Nutrition inaugurated by Union Home Affairs and Cooperation Minister in New Delhi.

• The conclave titled – Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Nutrition Security and Malnutrition Mitigation - is being organised at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
• The main objective of the conclave is to deliberate upon collaborative and sustainable strategies for child nutrition.
• The conclave is being organised by the National Dairy Development Board.
• During the conclave, Amit Shah launched the third phase of the Giftmilk programme.
• The programme comes under the CSR initiative of SAIL-Bhilai Steel Plant in Chhattisgarh.
• Around four thousand children studying in government schools, which are situated in mining-affected areas of Bhilai will benefit.
• Under the initiative, flavoured milk fortified with vitamins A and D will be provided.
• The milk will be supplied through the Chhattisgarh Milk Federation managed by NDDB.
• Amit Shah also launched the Shishu Sanjeevani programme under the CSR programme of IDBI Bank.
• Under the scheme, nutritional support will be provided to about three thousand children, who study at Anganwadi centres in rural areas of Nagpur district in Maharashtra.
• Shishu Sanjeevani is an energy-dense, fortified, ready-to-eat nutritional supplement. Shishu Sanjeevani has been developed by NDDB.

Topic: Art and Culture

9. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan released 41 literary works in New Delhi.

• These works have been developed by Centres of Excellence for classical languages.
• The literary works focus on classical Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, and Odia.
• The literary works were prepared under the Central Institute of Indian Languages.
• During the event, 13 additional books were also released.
• A 45-episode Sign Language interpretation series of the Tirukkural was also released.
• The Ministry of Education said the initiative shows continued support for classical language studies.
• It also aims to preserve India’s literary heritage.
• The initiative also makes classical knowledge more accessible to contemporary learners.
• Tirukkural is a classic Tamil language text. It consists of 1,330 short couplets or kurals.

Topic: Agriculture and Allied Sectors

10. India’s largest integrated inland Rainbow Trout farm was inaugurated by Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh.

• The farm is situated in Ranga Reddy district of Telangana.
• Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh was accompanied by Union Coal Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy during the inauguration.
• The farm has been set up by the startup SmartGreen Aquaculture.
• It focuses on farming Rainbow Trout, which is a cold-water fish species.
• With this project, trout cultivation can be done in the warm climate of the Deccan Plateau using advanced engineering methods to support the species.
• The total investment in the project is about fifty crore rupees.
• Normally, trout farming in India has been limited to Himalayan regions known for their cold-water conditions.
• Rajiv Ranjan Singh assured support for trout fish exports through the National Fisheries Development Board.