21st-23rd February 2026

1. Ministry of Power sets up oversight panels for the proposed PFC–REC merger
2. Mizoram CM Lalduhoma inaugurates the Lengtekai Bridge over the Tlawng River in Aizawl
3. Uttar Pradesh Government and IOCL sign MoU to develop an international cricket stadium in Gorakhpur
4. India and Israel sign MoU to enhance defence industrial cooperation
5. GIFT City and AJNIFM sign MoU to develop FinTech and international finance talent for IFSC
6. Tata Group partners with OpenAI to establish India’s first large-scale AI data centre
7. Padma awardee Pankaj Advani wins the inaugural Liber Win Champions Cup 2026
8. Shillong MP Ricky Andrew J. Syngkon passes away
9. Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan releases a book on Sree Narayana Guru
10. VP C. P. Radhakrishnan Unveils ‘Atal Bihari Vajpayee: The Eternal Statesman’ in New Delhi
11. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma launches the ‘PMS Portal’ for venture schools
12. 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976
13. World Bank’s MIGA provides a USD 197.67 million guarantee to Citibank for refinancing SBI’s rooftop solar programme
14. NPCI extends ‘UPI One World’ wallet service at the India AI Impact Summit 2026
15. Rajan Bajaj appointed as MD & CEO of Slice Small Finance Bank
16. Indian Army’s Konark Corps tests Strela-10 air defence missiles in Pokhran, Rajasthan
17. Renowned Bengali novelist Mani Shankar Mukhopadhyay passes away
18. International Mother Language Day observed
19. World Pangolin Day observed
20. Waaree Energies announces plan to set up India’s largest battery gigafactory in Andhra Pradesh
21. Bihar Cabinet approves development of a Greenfield International Airport in Sonpur
22. ‘One Battle After Another’ Dominates 2026 BAFTAs with Six Wins
23. World Peace and Understanding Day 2026 – February 23
24. L&T Vyoma to Study 250 MW Green AI Data Centre at Dholera SIR
25. Nadda Launches Indigenous Td Vaccine at Kasauli Centre
26. Railways Goes Smart! AI-Enabled Apps to Fix Grievances & Manage Crowds Before Chaos
27. Harsharan Kaur Trehan Becomes PSPCL’s First Woman Director (Commercial)
28. Norway Breaks Winter Olympics Record! 17th Gold Seals Historic Milestone in Milan
29. Global AI Brain Race 2026: US Takes Crown, India Eyes Faster Growth
30. USA Stuns Canada in Overtime! Hilary Knight & Megan Keller Deliver Olympic Gold in Milan Thriller
31. 8-Year-Old Ranvir Sachdeva Becomes Youngest Speaker at India AI Impact Summit 2026
32. India’s Core Sector Growth Slows to 4% in January 2026 & Steel and Cement Shine
33. Harmanpreet Kaur Creates History: Becomes Most-Capped Player in Women’s Cricket
34. ICICI’s New Swasthya Pension Scheme: A Smart Blend of Retirement Planning and Healthcare Security
35. Trump imposes 15% global tariff
36. International Mother Language Day 2026: Youth Voices on Multilingual Education
37. Legendary Bengali Author Shankar Passes Away at 92, Leaves Behind Timeless Literary Legacy
38. Arunachal Pradesh Foundation Day 2026: Pride, Culture, and Progress
39. 2026 Business Milestone: Amazon Dethrones Walmart in Revenue Race
40. Reliance Announces ₹10 Trillion AI Investment to Build India’s Sovereign Compute Power
41. U.S. Department of State Launches $200 Million Edge AI Package for the Indo-Pacific
42. Mizoram Foundation Day
43. India Joins 100+ Nations in Strong Stand Against Israel’s West Bank Actions
44. Mukul Roy ‘Chanakya of Bengal Politics’ Dies at 73 After Cardiac Arrest
45. PM Modi Inaugurates India’s First Namo Bharat RRTS Launched On This Corridor

National News

2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976

• Bonded labour was abolished in India on February 9, 1976 through the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976, but bonded labour still exists in hidden forms which requires reforms.

Union Health Minister launches indigenous Tetanus and Diphtheria vaccine at CRI Kasauli

• What: Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda launched an indigenous Tetanus and Diphtheria vaccine at Central Research Institute (CRI) Kasauli, strengthening India’s Universal Immunization Programme and supporting Atmanirbhar Bharat in the health sector.
• Tell me more:
  • India’s Universal Immunization Programme is the world’s largest immunization programme.

Eight-year-old coder Ranvir Sachdeva addresses India AI Impact Summit 2026

• What: Eight-year-old coder Ranvir Sachdeva became the youngest keynote speaker at India AI Impact Summit 2026 at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, highlighting India’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) approach and linking ancient Indian philosophy with modern technology.
• Tell me more:
  • He has been coding since age three, became the youngest TEDx speaker at age six, and won a gold medal in the 2022 Global Reading Challenge.
  • He created a prototype rocket ship for Mars exploration recognised by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Prime Minister inaugurates Namo Bharat RRTS and dedicates Delhi-Meerut corridor

• What: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India’s first Namo Bharat Regional Rapid Transit System and dedicated the 82-km Delhi-Meerut Namo Bharat Corridor, marking expansion of integrated urban transport in the National Capital Region.
• Tell me more:
  • India has the world’s third-largest metro network.
  • A ₹10,000 crore fund was announced in the Union Budget for MSME credit support.
  • The Prime Minister noted foundation for Uttar Pradesh’s first semiconductor factory.

State News

Lengtekai ‘Faith Bridge’ Inaugurated in Mizoram to Boost Connectivity

• What: Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma inaugurated the 100-metre Lengtekai ‘Faith Bridge’ over the Tlawng River, improving connectivity between Aizawl, Lengpui airport, and Mamit district bordering Tripura.
• Tell me more:
  • The project received support from Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and the central government.

Uttar Pradesh and Indian Oil Sign MoU for ₹339 Crore International Cricket Stadium in Gorakhpur

• What: The Uttar Pradesh government and Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) signed an MoU to build a ₹339 crore international cricket stadium in Gorakhpur, aimed at boosting sports tourism, investment, and economic growth in eastern Uttar Pradesh.
• Tell me more:
  • Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited contributed ₹30 crore and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited contributed ₹10 crore.
  • The stadium will have a seating capacity of 30,000.
  • Construction of an international cricket stadium is also underway in Varanasi with support from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Assam Launches Provincialisation Management System Portal for Venture Institutions

• What: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma launched the Provincialisation Management System portal to streamline and monitor provincialisation of venture educational institutions and staff under the Assam Education Act, improving transparency and governance.
• Tell me more:
  • It operates under the Assam Education (Provincialisation of Services of Teachers and Re-Organisation of Educational Institutions) Act, 2017, amended in 2025.

WESSPL to set up India’s largest integrated battery gigafactory in Andhra Pradesh

• What: Waree Energy Storage Solution Private Limited (WESSPL) will establish a 16 gigawatt-hour lithium-ion battery gigafactory in Andhra Pradesh, strengthening India’s clean-energy manufacturing capacity and reducing dependence on imported battery components.
• Tell me more:
  • The initiative aligns with the Integrated Clean Energy Policy 2024 of Andhra Pradesh.
  • Andhra Pradesh is part of a developing rare-earth and critical minerals manufacturing corridor.

Bihar Cabinet approves Greenfield international airport at Sonepur

• What: Bihar Cabinet approved construction of a Greenfield international airport at Sonepur in Saran district, aiming to enhance regional connectivity in north Bihar with modern infrastructure and capacity to handle large aircraft.
• Tell me more:
  • It will be the fifth largest airport in India after Delhi, Hyderabad, Navi Mumbai and Noida (Jevar).
  • It will be the 24th Greenfield airport in the country.

L&T Vyoma to set up 250 MW green AI-ready data centre at Dholera

• What: Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) arm Vyoma signed a pact with Gujarat’s Department of Science and Technology to explore a 250 megawatt green AI-ready hyperscale data centre campus at Dholera with proposed ₹25,000 crore investment, strengthening AI infrastructure.
• Tell me more:
  • The MoU was signed at India AI Impact Summit 2026 to set up the campus at Dholera Special Investment Region, supporting AI, cloud and sustainable digital infrastructure, building on Vyoma’s Sovereign Cloud Platform for data sovereignty and secure AI adoption.
    • L&T announced a joint venture with Nvidia to build sovereign, scalable gigawatt-scale AI factory infrastructure, scaling Nvidia GPU clusters to 30 MW capacity in Chennai and executing a new 40 MW data centre in Mumbai.

Foundation Day of seven States and two Union Territories celebrated at Lok Bhavan

• Foundation Day of Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh and Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu was celebrated at Lok Bhavan, highlighting India’s federal structure and unity in diversity.

International News

Trump imposes 15% global tariff

• What: The US Supreme Court ruled that President Donald Trump’s global tariffs were illegal. After this, Trump raised tariffs from 10% to 15%. The European Commission responded by asking the US to follow last year’s EU-US trade agreement and provide full clarity on its actions.
• Why: Last year’s EU-US trade deal had already fixed a 15% tariff on most EU goods, with zero tariffs on some products. The EU says “a deal is a deal” and that the current situation is not conducive to “fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial” trade.
• Tell me more:
  • The Commission said unpredictable tariffs disrupt markets and undermine global confidence.

United States launches $200 million Edge AI Package for Indo-Pacific smartphones

• What: United States Department of State launched a competitive process to award up to $200 million to support secure and affordable smartphone deployment in the Indo-Pacific region under the Edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) Package.
• Tell me more:
  • This plan helps more people in the Indo-Pacific use safe and modern smartphones.
  • It supports trusted software like Android and iOS, so users are part of an open digital system.

Banking and Economy

Government Forms Panels to Oversee Merger of Power Finance Corporation and REC

• What: The government has set up a high-level committee and a working group to study and monitor the merger of Power Finance Corporation (PFC) and REC Limited (REC), aiming to achieve scale and improve efficiency in public sector Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs).
• Tell me more:
  • The Centre holds 55.99% stake in PFC, while PFC owns 52.6% stake in REC.
  • The government formed two teams to handle the merger of Power Finance Corporation and REC Limited. The merger was announced in the Budget and approved by both boards.

Tata Group and OpenAI Partner to Build AI Infrastructure in India

• What: Tata Group and OpenAI signed a strategic partnership to build large-scale artificial intelligence infrastructure in India, supporting training and inference workloads and strengthening India’s position as a global artificial intelligence hub.
• Tell me more:
  • Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) will build 100 MW AI infrastructure, scalable up to 1 gigawatt.
  • The project is part of the global Stargate initiative to develop local, artificial intelligence-ready data centres focused on data residency and security.
  • OpenAI will be the first customer of TCS HyperVault data centre business.
  • TCS recently secured $1 billion from TPG to expand its artificial intelligence data centre strategy.
  • Tata Group will give ChatGPT Enterprise to many employees at TCS.
  • Tata Consultancy Services will use OpenAI Codex to improve software development. OpenAI will start certification programmes in India with TCS.

MIGA provides $197.67 million guarantee to SBI for rooftop solar refinancing

• What: Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) has provided a $197.67 million five-year guarantee to State Bank of India (SBI) to refinance a $500 million World Bank loan, supporting India’s Grid-connected Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic (GRPV) expansion and clean energy transition.
• Tell me more:
  • 2016
    • World Bank (IBRD) gave SBI $500 million to support rooftop solar projects in India. SBI used that money to lend to companies installing solar panels. After some years, SBI started repaying this loan gradually. So the amount left to repay became smaller over time.
  • 2024
    • Instead of keeping the loan on World Bank’s books, private banks (Citibank + others) gave money to SBI and MIGA gave a guarantee to those banks so they felt safe lending.
    • The World Bank is nearing its lending limit for India. By shifting the loan to private banks, the World Bank gets space to fund new projects. SBI may also get better borrowing terms.
  • 2026 (present loan)
    • There was still some remaining unpaid part of the original $500 million loan. Citibank gave a new loan of $197.67 million to SBI to refinance that remaining amount. MIGA again gave a guarantee to protect Citibank.

NPCI extends UPI One World wallet for foreign visitors at India AI Impact Summit 2026

• What: National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) extended UPI One World wallet services to international visitors from over 40 countries attending India AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi, enabling seamless real-time digital payments without Indian bank accounts.
• Tell me more:
  • Foreign visitors can pay easily in India without opening a bank account or buying a local SIM card. They do not need to carry cash or worry about currency exchange.
  • Payments are quick and safe using QR codes. Any leftover money can be refunded, making travel simple and stress-free.

Core sector grows 4% in January 2026 driven by steel and cement

• What: India’s eight core infrastructure sectors grew 4% in January 2026, supported by higher steel and cement output, reflecting trends in construction and industrial activity.
• Tell me more:
  • The Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) covers coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity.
  • These sectors together have 40.27% weight in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

PFRDA launches ICICI PF NPS Swasthya Equity Plus under NPS

• What: Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), with ICICI Pension Fund Management Limited, launched ICICI PF NPS Swasthya Equity Plus under National Pension System (NPS).
• Why: It is done to help people use their own savings when they face medical problems, without waiting until retirement.
• Tell me more:
  • This scheme lets a person use up to 25% of the money they have saved (their own contribution) to pay for medical costs like doctor visits, tests, hospital stays, and medicines through the Apollo network.
  • The rest of the money stays invested and keeps growing for retirement. There is no limit on how many times you can withdraw, but you must have at least ₹50,000 saved before your first withdrawal.
  • In a serious emergency, if medical bills are more than 70% of your total savings, you can withdraw up to 100% of your money. The emergency rule (70% condition) exists so that if someone faces a very big medical crisis, they can access all their savings instead of struggling to arrange money elsewhere.
  • Chairperson, PFRDA – Shri Sivasubramanian Ramann

Amazon becomes world’s largest company by revenue, surpasses Walmart

• What: Amazon.com Inc. became the world’s largest company by revenue in 2025 with $717 billion sales, surpassing Walmart Inc., reflecting the scale of its e-commerce and cloud computing business.
• Tell me more:
  • Amazon was founded in 1994 as an online bookseller by Jeff Bezos.
  • Nvidia Corp. is the world’s most valuable company by market capitalization.

Reliance Industries to invest ₹10 trillion in Artificial Intelligence infrastructure

• What: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Jio will invest ₹10 trillion by 2031 to build Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure in India, aiming to create sovereign compute capacity and reduce the cost of intelligence.
• Tell me more:
  • It is described as the largest private-sector investment in AI globally.
  • Jio will establish gigawatt-scale data centres at Jamnagar, Gujarat.
  • Solar projects in Kutch and Andhra Pradesh will anchor green power supply.

Reports and Indices

India ranks sixth in Global AI Brain Race Report 2026

• What: India ranked sixth in the Global AI Brain Race Report 2026, which ranks countries based on how strong they are in Artificial Intelligence (AI).
• Tell me more:
  • The report was published by essayhumaniser.io.
  • It conducted the study by evaluating more than 100 countries using a framework based on AI research and development, economic integration, infrastructure, talent readiness, governance, responsible AI, public opinion and academic strength.

Defence News

Indian Army tests Strela-10 VSHORADS at Pokhran firing range

• What: Indian Army’s Konark Corps conducted a high-intensity test firing of Strela-10 Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) at Pokhran Field Firing Range.
• Tell me more:
  • Strela-10 is originally a Soviet-designed short-range air defence system.
  • This test shows that the Army can quickly detect and shoot down low-flying aircraft, helicopters and drones, even in tough desert conditions.

Science and Technology

Indian Railways integrates Artificial Intelligence into passenger and operations apps

• What: Indian Railways has integrated Artificial Intelligence (AI) into seven mobile applications, including RailMadad and RailOne, to improve passenger services, grievance handling, ticket prediction, freight operations and train safety.
• Tell me more:
  • The initiative is led by Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS), the technology arm of Indian Railways.

Awards

2026 EE British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA)

Important Days

International Mother Language Day – February 21

• 2026 theme: Youth voices on multilingual education

World Pangolin Day – 3rd Saturday of February every year (February 21, 2026)

• A new CITES report “Conservation Status, Trade and Enforcement Efforts for Pangolins” is released.
• The report says India is an important range country because it is home to two of the eight recognised species — the Indian pangolin and the Chinese pangolin. The Indian pangolin is widely found across many states, while the Chinese pangolin is found mainly in northern and northeastern regions.
• India is not a major global trafficking hub, but it remains a destination for illegal shipments (for example, scales seized in Bhutan were meant for India). Domestic demand for pangolin meat and scales still exists in India.

World Peace and Understanding Day 2026 – February 23

International Day of Peaceful Coexistence – January 28

Sports

Pankaj Advani Wins Inaugural Liber Win Champions Cup 2026

• What: India’s decorated cueist Pankaj Advani won the first Liber Win Champions Cup 2026 in Bengaluru, marking a major title victory and the formal entry of Liber Win Cloth into the Indian cue sports market.
• Tell me more:
  • Advani defeated Kamal Chawla 6-3 in the best-of-11 final at Karnataka State Billiards Association, Bengaluru.
  • Advani joins global ambassadors including Ronnie O’Sullivan, John Higgins, Mark Selby, and Shaun Murphy.
  • Liber Win announced Pankaj Advani as its Indian Brand Ambassador. Liber Win is a Chinese cue sports equipment brand, mainly known for manufacturing professional billiards and snooker cloth used on tables.

Norway sets Winter Olympics record with 17th gold in biathlon

• What: Norway won its 17th gold medal, which is now the highest ever by one country in a single in Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
• Tell me more:
  • Johannes Dale-Skjevdal is a Norwegian athlete who won the gold medal in this race.
  • Sturla Holm Laegreid is also from Norway and won the silver medal.
  • Quentin Fillon Maillet is from France and won the bronze medal.
  • Philipp Horn is from Germany and finished fourth.

United States women’s hockey team wins Olympic gold after overtime victory

• What: United States women’s hockey team defeated Canada 2-1 in 3-on-3 overtime to win Olympic gold in women’s ice hockey in Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
• Tell me more:
  • Hilary Knight (American) broke the U.S. Olympic record with 15 goals and 33 total points in her Olympic career. This was her fifth and last Olympics, and she now has five medals, the most in U.S. women’s hockey history.
  • Since 1998, United States and Canada have won every Olympic gold and silver medal in women’s hockey.

Harmanpreet Kaur becomes most capped women’s international cricketer

• What: India captain Harmanpreet Kaur became the most capped women’s international cricketer during a T20 International match against Australia in Canberra.
• Tell me more:
  • Most capped means the player has played the highest number of international matches for her country.
  • Harmanpreet Kaur has played 356 international matches, which is more than any other woman cricketer in any format in any country.

Memorandum of Understanding

India and Israel Sign MoU to Deepen Defence Cooperation

• What: India and Israel signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation during the 17th India–Israel Joint Working Group meeting in Tel Aviv.
• Tell me more:
  • The meeting was co-chaired by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and Director General of the Israeli Ministry of Defence Maj Gen (Res) Amir Baram.
  • The agreement focuses on regular talks, training, working together in defence industries, and cooperation in science, research, AI, and cyber security to build better defence systems together.

GIFT City and AJNIFM Sign MoU to Strengthen Financial Sector Talent

• What: Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) signed an MoU with Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management (AJNIFM) to build financial sector talent and support India’s International Financial Services Centre ecosystem.
• Tell me more:
  • AJNIFM is an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Finance.
  • The partnership operates under the GIFT International FinTech Institute.

Appointments

Rajan Bajaj appointed CEO and MD of Slice Small Finance Bank

• What: Slice Small Finance Bank has appointed Rajan Bajaj as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD), with approval from shareholders and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
• Tell me more:
  • The bank was formed in 2024 through the merger of Bengaluru-based fintech Slice and the Guwahati-based North East Small Finance Bank.

Harsharan Kaur Trehan appointed Director (Commercial) of PSPCL

• Harsharan Kaur Trehan became the first woman technocrat appointed Director (Commercial) of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL).

Miscellaneous

Shillong MP Ricky AJ Syngkon Passes Away at 54

• Lok Sabha Member of Parliament Ricky AJ Syngkon from Meghalaya’s Voice of the People Party died in Shillong after collapsing while playing futsal, marking the sudden loss of a sitting Member of Parliament representing the Shillong constituency.
• Futsal is a scaled-down variant of association football played between two teams of five players each on a court smaller than a football pitch.

Vice-President Launches Book on Sree Narayana Guru by Shashi Tharoor

• Vice-President Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan launched the book “The Sage who Reimagined Hinduism: The Life, Lessons and Legacy of Sree Narayana Guru” by Dr. Shashi Tharoor in New Delhi, highlighting the Guru’s role in promoting equality and social reform.

Vice-President Releases Coffee Table Book on Atal Bihari Vajpayee

• Vice-President Shri C. P. Radhakrishnan released the coffee table book “Atal Bihari Vajpayee: The Eternal Statesman” by Shri Vijay Goel at Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.

Bengali author Shankar passes away at 93

• What: Acclaimed Bengali author Mani Shankar Mukherjee, known as Shankar, passed away at 93 in Kolkata, marking the end of a seven-decade literary career that shaped Bengali literature and inspired major films.
• Tell me more:
  • Shankar wrote influential novels that inspired films like “Seemabaddha” and “Jana Aranya”. His book “Chowringhee” became a cult classic translated into 18 languages.
  • He won the Sahitya Akademi Award, wrote biographies of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Aurobindo, excelled as a travel writer, and had a long corporate career.

Former Railway Minister Mukul Roy passes away at 71

• Veteran politician and former Railway Minister Mukul Roy died of cardiac arrest. He is referred to as the “Chanakya of Bengal politics”.

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