Asia Current Affairs One-liners — Last 12 months

Mon, 04 May 2026

• The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) revoked Stage-I of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across the NCR on 4 May 2026 after Delhi's average AQI improved from 175 on 3 May to 88 owing to rain, and its Enforcement Task Force reviewed 174 inspections the same day.
• The Union Health Ministry began a nationwide Fire Safety Week from 4 to 10 May 2026 with a pledge on 'Fire Safety in Health Facilities' led by Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava, and unveiled the National Guidelines on Fire and Life Safety in Healthcare Facilities (2026).
• Project Deepak of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), raised in 1961 and responsible for over 1,100 km of roads in Himachal Pradesh including the Hindustan-Tibet Road and stretches of the Manali-Leh axis, celebrated its 66th Raising Day in Shimla on 4 May 2026.
• The Indian Ocean Ship (IOS) Sagar, INS Sunayna, entered Yangon Harbour in Myanmar on 4 May 2026, coinciding with Chief of the Naval Staff Adm Dinesh K Tripathi's visit, in line with India's MAHASAGAR vision and Neighbourhood First policy.
• Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on 4 May 2026 reviewed proposed high-speed and high-density highway corridors in Maharashtra and nine State BOT projects covering 527 km of National Highways.
• The Ministry of Ayush held an Inter-Ministerial Committee meeting in New Delhi on 4 May 2026, chaired by Minister of State (Independent Charge) Prataprao Jadhav, to plan the International Day of Yoga 2026.
• The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT), Mumbai, said on 4 May 2026 that enrolment is open for their national AI skilling programme for the creative sector, offering 15,000 scholarships developed with Google and YouTube.
• The Ministry of Panchayati Raj opened a two-day national workshop on Panchayat Development Plans in New Delhi on 4 May 2026, launching the People's Plan Campaign booklet for 2026-27, a committee report on improving Gram Panchayat Development Plans and the revamped eGramSwaraj planning portal.

Sun, 03 May 2026

• Bengaluru-based startup GalaxEye launched Mission Drishti, the world's first OptoSAR satellite combining optical and synthetic aperture radar imaging and India's largest privately built satellite, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg, California, on 3 May 2026.
• A fire in a four-storey residential building in Vivek Vihar, Shahdara, Delhi, killed nine people early on 3 May 2026, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced ex-gratia of ₹2 lakh from the PMNRF for the next of kin of each deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured.
• The National Testing Agency conducted NEET UG 2026 on 3 May 2026 for nearly 23 lakh registered candidates, and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan visited NTA headquarters to review the arrangements.
• The Petroleum Ministry said on 3 May 2026 that the Marshall Islands-flagged LPG carrier MT Sarv Shakti, carrying 46,313 MT of Indian LPG cargo, had safely crossed the Strait of Hormuz and was expected at Visakhapatnam on 13 May 2026.
• An Indian Army contingent of 120 personnel, mainly from the Maratha Light Infantry, departed on 3 May 2026 for CINBAX-II, the second India–Cambodia bilateral military exercise, to be held at Kampong Speu Province, Cambodia, from 4 to 17 May 2026.
• Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav laid the foundation stone of the first phase of the Indore–Pithampur Economic Corridor at Nainod village, Indore, on 3 May 2026; the corridor, planned over about 1,316 hectares, is expected to generate employment for 6 lakh people.
• Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated a 100-bedded ESIC hospital at Doddaballapur, Karnataka, on 3 May 2026 and virtually laid the foundation stone of another 100-bedded ESIC hospital at Bellary, noting that social security coverage has risen from 19% in 2015 to over 64%.
• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy held a 'Run for Sun' at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, New Delhi, on International Sun Day, 3 May 2026, marking a record 2.7 lakh rooftop solar installations in April 2026 under PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana.
• The Ministry of Electronics and IT clarified on 3 May 2026 that reports claiming Aadhaar would change by the end of the year to show only a photo and a QR code are not correct, and there is no plan for any such change.
• CBIC Member Surjit Bhujabal inaugurated a new GST Bhawan at Niti Vihar, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, on 3 May 2026 as an office complex and taxpayer facilitation centre for the Itanagar Commissionerate.

Sat, 02 May 2026

• Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on 2 May 2026 launched the Cell Broadcast System, an indigenous public-warning technology developed by C-DOT with NDMA and the Home Ministry, and a nationwide test sent emergency alerts to mobile phones across the country.
• The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting on 2 May 2026 appointed lyricist and communications expert Prasoon Joshi, Chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification since August 2017, as Chairman of Prasar Bharati.
• Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on 2 May 2026 launched the ShaktiShree mobile app for girl students in higher education institutions, offering SOS alerts and harassment reporting, and released internship guidelines at a national NEP-2020 workshop in Bhubaneswar.
• The Election Commission of India on 2 May 2026 deployed 165 Additional Counting Observers and 77 Police Observers for vote counting in the West Bengal Assembly election, using its powers under Article 324 and Section 20B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
• Earth Sciences Minister Jitendra Singh, citing the IMD outlook on 2 May 2026, said heatwave conditions are likely mainly in the second (8–14 May) and fourth (22–28 May) weeks of May, with 2–4 extra heatwave days in some regions, and urged people not to panic.
• Dr. R. Balasubramaniam and Dr. Joram Aniya were appointed full-time Members of NITI Aayog, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated them on 2 May 2026.
• Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi began a four-day official visit to Myanmar from 2 to 5 May 2026 to review maritime cooperation with the Myanmar Armed Forces and Myanmar Navy.
• More than 6,000 participants performed Bhujangasana together at Kanha Shanti Vanam, Hyderabad, entering the Asia Book of Records, at the Yoga Mahotsav marking the 50-day countdown to International Day of Yoga 2026, the Ministry of Ayush said on 2 May 2026.
• Indian Railways on 2 May 2026 sanctioned works worth ₹895.30 crore, including ₹671.72 crore to upgrade the power system of Kolkata Metro's North–South Corridor for a 2.5-minute headway and ₹223.58 crore to rebuild the Damodar Bridge (No. 520) in Adra Division.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, addressing 'Shaurya' in New Delhi on 2 May 2026 in the run-up to the first anniversary of Operation Sindoor, called the operation a golden chapter in India's military history.
• The Kerala Cabinet on 2 May 2026 decided to give ₹10 lakh each from the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund to the families of five Valparai ghat-road accident victims who had no insurance cover.
• The Department of Financial Services on 2 May 2026 convened a colloquium of Debts Recovery Appellate Tribunal chairpersons and Debts Recovery Tribunal presiding officers at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi, highlighting mandatory e-filing, hybrid hearings and e-DRT 2.0 to reduce pendency.