Current Affairs - Awards and Honours

Dinesh Sharma has been appointed as the Lieutenant Governor of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands by President Droupadi Murmu. The appointment was announced through a Rashtrapati Bhavan notification issued on September 5, 2026. Sharma, a senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP, previously served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. He will replace Admiral D K Joshi (retd.), who had served as the Lieutenant Governor since October 8, 2017. Sharma’s new role involves overseeing the administration of the strategically important Union Territory.

Vinaya Prakash Singh was re-elected unopposed as the Secretary-General of the Asian-Pacific Postal Union (APPU) on September 4, 2026. The election was held during the 14th APPU Congress in Bangkok, Thailand. A 1988-batch Indian Postal Service officer, Singh, secured a second consecutive four-year term, which will begin in January 2027 and conclude in December 2030. He first assumed the position in January 2023 after being elected at the 13th APPU Congress in 2022. The APPU is headquartered in Bangkok and has 32 member countries across the Asia-Pacific region.

Sanjay Jaiswal was appointed chairman of the 31-member joint parliamentary committee constituted to examine the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026. The committee was formed on September 3, 2026, and includes 21 members from the Lok Sabha and 10 from the Rajya Sabha. The panel includes representatives from several political parties, with 14 BJP members and 5 Congress members. It is required to submit its report by the last day of the first week of Parliament’s Winter session. The Bill proposes tighter government oversight of NGOs and foreign funding and provisions for managing assets when an organisation’s FCRA licence is cancelled.

Shah Rukh Khan was appointed as the brand ambassador for Vodafone Idea (Vi) on September 3, 2026, as part of the company’s new rebranding initiative. The campaign marked the transition of the official logo from “V!” to “Vi” and introduced the new brand campaign titled “Vi badal raha hai... tayaar rahiye”. Vodafone Idea Limited was formed through the merger of Vodafone India and Idea Cellular and operates as a joint venture between the Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group. The company is headquartered in Mumbai and Gandhinagar and is one of India’s major telecommunications service providers.

Sudhansh Pant was assigned the additional charge of Secretary for both the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) and the National Commission for Backwards Classes (NCBC) on September 2, 2026. He is a 1991-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre and currently serves as Secretary of the Department of Social Justice & Empowerment. Earlier, he served as Chief Secretary of Rajasthan and as Union Health Secretary during the COVID-19 pandemic. His additional charge will remain effective until a regular incumbent is appointed or further orders are issued. The NCSC is a constitutional body under Article 338, while the NCBC functions under Article 338B.