Current Affairs - February 3, 2026 Current Affairs

Wings India 2026, recognised as Asia’s largest civil aviation event, was organised from January 28 to 31 in Hyderabad. The event highlighted India’s emergence as the world’s fastest-growing civil aviation market and served as a platform to showcase the country’s strengths in aviation connectivity, manufacturing, innovation, and sustainability. Held under the theme “Indian Aviation: Paving the Future,” the event emphasized the critical role of civil aviation in driving economic growth, enhancing global integration, and positioning India as a key player in the international aviation ecosystem.

SAIL entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Rail India Technical and Economic Service to enhance rail logistics operations across its plants and mines. Under this collaboration, RITES will provide technical support for diesel locomotive leasing and maintenance while assisting SAIL in operating its mini rail network using Indian Railways’ facilities, spares, and skilled manpower. The partnership is designed to optimise operational costs, improve efficiency in material movement, and reduce the overall carbon footprint, aligning with sustainable and cost-effective industrial logistics practices.

State Bank of India has launched CHAKRA, a Centre of Excellence aimed at strengthening financial support for sunrise sectors that are crucial for India’s long-term development vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. The initiative focuses on eight key areas, such as renewable energy, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, semiconductors, batteries, decarbonisation, smart infrastructure, and data centres. CHAKRA is designed to enhance risk assessment capabilities, develop innovative financing solutions, encourage research-based insights, and facilitate industry dialogue, thereby enabling effective capital flow into future-ready and technology-driven sectors.

Capt. Ganti Venkateswarlu assumed additional charge as Chairman and Managing Director of Hindustan Shipyard Limited following the superannuation of Cmde Girideep Singh on January 31, 2026. Prior to this appointment, he was serving as Director (Shipbuilding) at HSL and had been closely associated with major shipbuilding and refit initiatives. The leadership transition comes at a significant time, as the shipyard has completed important refit projects and made steady progress on large-scale programmes for the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard, reinforcing HSL’s strategic role in India’s maritime and defence manufacturing ecosystem.

Gujarat has emerged as the leading state in India in terms of renewable energy capacity, contributing 16.5 per cent of the national total as of December 2025. With an installed capacity of 42.583 GW, the state ranks at the top in wind energy, solar power, and rooftop solar installations. Gujarat has achieved 25,529 MW of solar capacity and 14,820 MW of wind capacity, along with more than 11 lakh rooftop solar installations. The state is also home to the world’s largest Khavda Renewable Energy Park, supporting India’s goal of generating 50 percent of electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

Cochin International Airport Ltd is set to become India’s first airport operator to introduce hydrogen-powered buses for passenger transportation, marking a major milestone in sustainable aviation practices. The initiative is being implemented through a Memorandum of Agreement with the Kerala Hydrogen Valley Innovation Cluster Foundation under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. As part of this green mobility project, three hydrogen fuel cell buses will be procured within a period of 12 months, with total funding capped at ₹8.7 crore, reinforcing CIAL’s leadership in clean energy adoption.

The United States and India announced a trade deal in February 2026 that included a significant reduction in tariffs. Under this agreement, the U.S. reciprocal tariff on Indian goods was reduced from 25 percent to 18 percent, with immediate effect. The announcement followed a direct conversation between U.S. President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The deal also highlighted India’s commitment to increasing purchases of American goods, including energy, agriculture, and technology products. While the tariff reduction was welcomed by both sides, questions remain regarding the legal framework, formal documentation, and long-term implications of the agreement.

The NYPS 2.0 portal was launched to encourage wider youth participation in parliamentary practices across the country. The upgraded platform enables institutions, groups, and individuals to take part, including citizens from remote and rural regions, thereby broadening inclusivity. Since its introduction in September 2024, the scheme has witnessed strong engagement, with over 95,000 participants involved through more than 4,400 institutions and multiple youth parliament sittings. The initiative aims to deepen democratic awareness, foster civic responsibility, and strengthen the connection between young citizens and parliamentary processes.

Andhra Pradesh launched Pilloo AI, an innovative voice-based billing and accounting application aimed at simplifying financial management for businesses. The app enables users to create invoices and manage accounts by speaking in five Indian languages, making it accessible to a wide range of users. Pilloo AI automates financial transactions, generates business reports, and extracts relevant data from uploaded bills and bank statements. By allowing real-time actions through natural language input, the initiative supports transparency, efficiency, and digital empowerment for enterprises, especially small and medium businesses across the state.

Harish Duhan has assumed the additional charge of Chairman and Managing Director of Western Coalfields Limited from February 1, 2026, while continuing his role as CMD of South Eastern Coalfields Limited. The responsibility has been assigned for a period of three months or until further orders, whichever is earlier. With over 35 years of experience as a mining engineer, he has held several senior leadership positions across key coal subsidiaries such as Western Coalfields Limited, Central Coalfields Limited, and Northern Coalfields Limited, reflecting his extensive expertise in the coal and mining sector.