National Current Affairs August 2026

Jindal Steel Limited signed an MoU with the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IITH) to set up a first-of-its-kind Jindal Steel Centre of Excellence at the IITH campus at Kandi, Sangareddy district, Telangana, focused on high-strength, value-added and value-engineered steel products. The Centre will run application development, technical demonstrations and training, and work with government and EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) stakeholders to widen adoption of stronger, lighter and more efficient steel. It aims to cut material usage and improve efficiency across infrastructure, engineering and strategic industrial sectors, aligning with the indigenous manufacturing goals of Viksit Bharat 2047.

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal (Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways) chaired the inaugural edition of Sagar Samvad, organised by the National Shipping Board (NSB) at the Civil Services Officers Institute, New Delhi. The day-long event carried the theme "Charting the Roadmap Towards Maritime India Vision 2030 and Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047". Sonowal launched the NSB's first official website and outlined a five-point roadmap covering fiscal reforms, assured cargo support, competitive financing, regulatory simplification and ease of doing business, alongside a target to add 100 new vessels to India's merchant fleet over five years.

The Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC), chaired by Anuradha Thakur, Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, gave in-principle approval in August 2026 to the third round of airport privatisation, covering 11 airports grouped into five bundles. The airports are Amritsar and Kangra; Varanasi, Gaya and Kushinagar; Bhubaneswar and Hubballi; Raipur and Aurangabad; and Tiruchirappalli and Tirupati. Private concessionaires are expected to invest about Rs 8,622 crore, and the airports will be leased under the Public Private Partnership model for a 50-year concession period. Concessionaires must retain 60% of Airports Authority of India (AAI) employees for a maximum of three years.