02nd April 2026

1. GoI Extends National Piped Natural Gas Drive 2.0 Till June 30, 2026
2. VP CP Radhakrishnan Unveils ‘Nyaya Setu’ AI Chatbot and Mascot ‘Dishika’ at DISHA Programme in New Delhi
3. Skytrax World Airport Awards 2026: 5 Indian Airports in Top 100; Singapore’s Changi tops list
4. Air India Signs Codeshare Agreement with Uzbekistan Airways
5. ASF Awards 2025: Anahat Singh, Abhay Singh Secure Top Honours
6. Tripura Panchayats Win Top Honours at DDUPSVP & NDPSVP 2025 Awards
7. Uchral-Nyam-Osor Elected as New PM of Mongolia
8. ACC Appoints Vir Vikram Yadav as Director General of DGCA
9. IndiGo Appoints William Walsh as New CEO
10. GSL Launches INS Shachi for IN; Delivers ICGS Achal to ICG
11. International Transgender Day of Visibility 2026
12. AP Launches Rs. 150 Crore Free Electricity Scheme for Handloom and Powerloom Weavers
13. Lok Sabha Passed Resolution For Amravati The New Capital of Andhra Pradesh
14. India’s First Quantum Computer to be Launch in Amaravati: Chandrababu Naidu Announces
15. International Booker Prize 2026 Shortlist Books
16. India Strengthens Marine Research with Bhavasagara Centre as National Repository
17. NSE to launch natural gas derivatives

National News

National Piped Natural Gas Drive 2.0

• What: Cabinet Committee on Security discussed expansion of National Piped Natural Gas Drive 2.0 as part of measures to ensure continuous gas supply, reduce pressure on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), and maintain energy availability during the ongoing West Asia conflict.
• Tell me more:
  • National Piped Natural Gas Drive 2.0 is a government initiative to expand the supply of natural gas through pipelines directly to households, industries, and commercial users instead of using cylinders.

Nyaya Setu AI Chatbot Unveiled For Legal Access

• What: C. P. Radhakrishnan unveiled Nyaya Setu Artificial Intelligence (AI) Chatbot and mascot “Dishika” at DISHA programme to provide simple, multilingual legal assistance and improve access to justice for citizens.
• Tell me more:
  • Department of Justice organised the DISHA programme at Vigyan Bhawan.
  • Nyaya Setu works as a voice-first, multilingual Artificial Intelligence legal assistant, developed by Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) as a complete end-to-end voice-based system to explain legal processes, rights, and next steps through voice and text.
  • Mascot “Dishika” guides users through legal queries and supports first-time users in understanding the justice system.
  • About BHASHINI:
    • BHASHINI Shrutlekh system was used during the DISHA programme to provide real-time transcription and multilingual translation of speeches and sessions, when Nyaya Setu was unveiled.
      • BHASHINI Shrutlekh is a real-time transcription and multilingual translation system.
    • BHASHINI operates under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and runs National Hub for Language Technology (NHLT) for multilingual AI services. BHASHINI provides services across 23 voice languages.

Bhavasagara Centre Declared National Deep-Sea Repository

• What: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) designated “Bhavasagara Referral Centre” of Centre for Marine Living Resources & Ecology (CMLRE) as “National Repository for Deep-Sea Fauna” under Biological Diversity Act, 2002.
• Tell me more:
  • India selected this centre to safely store and study deep-sea animals and their data, so scientists can learn more about ocean life and protect marine biodiversity.
  • After designation as National Repository, the centre received official authority to store deep-sea samples with DNA data, maintain records of new species, and build expertise in deep-sea research.
  • About the Centre for Marine Living Resources & Ecology (CMLRE):
    • CMLRE is a leading institute under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, in Kochi, Kerala, focused on exploring, managing, and conserving marine living resources in India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and nearby deep seas.
  • 2021–2030 is UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.

State News

Andhra Pradesh Launches Free Power Scheme For Weavers

• What: Andhra Pradesh government launched a free electricity scheme for weavers to reduce input costs, providing up to 200 units for handlooms and 500 units for power looms.
• Tell me more:
  • The scheme aims to reduce electricity cost burden and provide financial relief to weavers while supporting sustainability, productivity, and overall development of the handloom sector.

Amaravati Declared Permanent Capital of Andhra Pradesh by Lok Sabha

• What: Lok Sabha passed Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to recognise Amaravati as sole and permanent capital of Andhra Pradesh, giving legal clarity and preventing future changes in capital status.
• Tell me more:
  • N. Chandrababu Naidu earlier announced Amaravati as capital and invested in its development. Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy later proposed three-capital system with Visakhapatnam, Amaravati, and Kurnool.
  • Hyderabad served as common capital of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for up to ten years.

India’s First Open-Access Quantum Computer at Amaravati

• What: Andhra Pradesh will make India’s first open-access quantum computer available at Amaravati from April 14 for students and researchers to conduct testing and research.
• Tell me more:
  • SRM University and Qubit Force will install the quantum computer on university campus for open research access.
  • Amaravati Quantum Valley (AQV) will support indigenous quantum hardware manufacturing.
  • State launched dedicated quantum computing policy and began State Quantum Computing Mission operations from Medha Towers in Vijayawada. It aims to become one of world’s top five global quantum hubs by 2030.
  • IBM, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and Larsen & Toubro (L&T) are partnering with the state to build quantum computing capabilities.

Banking and Economy

Air India Partners Uzbekistan Airways for Connectivity

• What: Air India partnered with Uzbekistan Airways through a codeshare agreement.
• Tell me more:
  • Air India started placing its “AI” code on Uzbekistan Airways flights on Delhi–Tashkent, Mumbai–Tashkent, and seasonal Goa–Tashkent routes.
  • Under a codeshare agreement two airlines share the same flight. One airline operates the plane, but both airlines can sell tickets for that flight under their own names.

NSE, IGX Launch Natural Gas Derivatives Plan

• What: National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) partnered with Indian Gas Exchange Ltd (IGX) to launch natural gas derivative contracts based on IGX’s price index (GIXI) which is “Gas IndeX of India” (GIXI).
• Tell me more:
  • These derivatives allow buyers and sellers to lock future gas prices today, helping them avoid losses from price fluctuations and making financial planning more predictable and stable.
  • The contracts will be traded on NSE, with prices linked to real transactions on IGX, enabling investors, companies, and traders to participate in a transparent and organised gas market.
  • This is needed because natural gas prices are volatile, and industries require tools to reduce uncertainty, manage costs, and ensure smoother operations across the energy value chain.
  • In the future, this can deepen India’s gas market, improve price discovery, increase investor participation, and support the transition towards a more transparent, competitive, and gas-based economy.

Reports and Indices

India Leads APAC Emerging Markets with Strong GDP Growth

• What:
  • Moody’s Ratings projected India’s GDP growth at 7% in 2025 and 6.4% in 2026, leading Asia-Pacific emerging markets excluding Greater China.
• Why:
  • Strong domestic demand amid global uncertainty supports India’s economic growth prospects.
• Tell me more:
  • Moody’s maintained a stable economic outlook for the APAC region in 2026 with an average GDP growth of 3.4%.
  • Emerging markets in APAC are expected to grow by an average of 5.6%, while advanced markets will grow by 1.3%.
  • Australia is projected to grow by 2.3% in 2026 and 2027.
  • Indian sectors like oil & gas, airlines, and telecom face higher dollar-linked costs due to rupee depreciation but firms have strong financials and risk management.

Source: ET

Defence News

Goa Shipyard Launches INS Shachi, Delivers ICGS Achal

• What: Goa Shipyard Limited launched INS Shachi under Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel (NGOPV) programme and delivered ICGS Achal to Indian Coast Guard to strengthen naval capability, coastal surveillance, and maritime security.
• Tell me more:
  • INS Shachi is an offshore patrol vessel of the Indian Navy used for patrolling sea areas and protecting maritime interests.
  • ICGS Achal is a vessel of the Indian Coast Guard used for coastal surveillance and maintaining maritime security.

Awards

Skytrax World Airport Awards 2026

• What:

• Airport awards were based on surveys completed by travellers from over 100 countries between August 2025 and February 2026, reflecting their experiences and feedback about airport services and facilities.

ASF Squash Awards 2025

• What: Anahat Singh and Abhay Singh won Asian Squash Federation (ASF) Player of the Year 2025 awards in girl’s and men’s categories for strong performances in international squash tournaments.
• Tell me more:
  • Anahat Singh won ASF Girls’ Player of the Year, also called Hassan Musa Award, based on performances in the previous year. Anahat holds 20th rank in senior women’s singles world rankings.
  • Abhay Singh, ranked world No. 25 and Asian Games medallist, won ASF Men’s Player of the Year, also called Dato Alex Lee Award.
  • Japan’s Satomi Watanabe won ASF Women’s Player of the Year award.
  • Squash will debut at Olympic Games in Los Angeles 2028.

Tripura Panchayats Win National Development Awards

• What: Three Panchayats of Tripura won top honours in Deen Dayal Upadhyay and Nanaji Deshmukh Panchayat Satat Vikas Puraskar 2025, with Sepahijala ranked best District Panchayat and others recognised in health and women-focused categories.
• Tell me more:
  • Winners will receive financial assistance ranging from ₹50 lakh to ₹5 crore.
  • Sepahijala district secured first rank as best District Panchayat, while Kanchabari Gram Panchayat topped the Health-Friendly category and Baikunthapur secured third position in the Women-Friendly category.
  • About the National Panchayat Awards:

Note: Right now, only Deen Dayal award is in the news.

International Booker Prize 2026 Shortlist Announced

• What: International Booker Prize 2026 announced shortlist of six translated fiction books, selected by judging panel chaired by Natasha Brown, recognising global literary works published in English in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
• Tell me more:
  • Prize marks 10 years in current format. Winning book will be announced on May 19, 2026 at Tate Modern art gallery in London.
  • International Booker Prize is supported by Bukhman Philanthropies and organised by the Booker Prize Foundation to celebrate books from different languages, recognise translators, and help people worldwide read and share global stories.
  • Winner receives £50,000 shared equally between author and translator. Each shortlisted book receives £5,000 shared equally.
  • Books must be long-form fiction or short story collections translated into English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland between May 1, 2025 and April 30, 2026.
  • Shortlisted Books:

Important Days

International Transgender Day of Visibility – March 31

Appointments

Uchral Nyam-Osor Becomes Mongolia Prime Minister

Vir Vikram Yadav Appointed DGCA Chief

• What: Vir Vikram Yadav was appointed Director General of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
• Tell me more:
  • The Directorate General of Civil Aviation is the regulatory body, operating under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, that controls flight safety in India, makes aviation rules, checks aircraft standards, manages air transport.
  • It also coordinates with International Civil Aviation Organisation for global aviation regulations.

IndiGo Appoints Willie Walsh as CEO

• What: Willie Walsh was appointed Chief Executive Officer of IndiGo and will join after completing tenure as Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) by July 31.
• Tell me more:
  • IndiGo holds about 65% share of India’s aviation market and aims to strengthen global presence.
  • At present, the airline faces higher costs due to longer routes caused by Middle East conflict and Pakistani airspace restrictions.

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