Current affairs 21 Oct 2026

Wednesday

Tamil Test

Friendliest Cities Index 2026: Mérida Tops, Delhi Among Ten Lowest-Scoring Cities

Mérida in Mexico has been rated the friendliest city on the planet in the Friendliest Cities Index 2026, a ranking commissioned by travel platform Fernwayer, with a score of 95 out of 100. Second and…

India's First Leopard Immunocontraception Study Launched in Junnar, Maharashtra

India's first scientific trial on curbing leopard breeding through immunocontraception has started in the Junnar forest division of Pune district, Maharashtra, where two vaccinated female leopards were released into the wild. This non-lethal method uses…

CBD COP17 Global Biodiversity Summit Begins in Yerevan, Armenia

The 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has got under way in Yerevan, Armenia. The meeting will take stock of global efforts to implement the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity…

Kufri Jamunia: ICAR-CPRI's Biofortified Purple Potato to Tackle Hidden Hunger

To fight hidden hunger, India has developed Kufri Jamunia, a biofortified, purple-coloured potato variety. The Indian Council of Agricultural Research–Central Potato Research Institute (ICAR-CPRI) bred it and released it in 2024. Every 100 g of…

Vice-President Inaugurates KAUMARACON-2026, 3rd International Conference on Kaumarabhritya

KAUMARACON-2026, the third International Conference on Kaumarabhritya, was opened by the Vice-President. The All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) hosted the event under the theme "Shaping the Future of Child Health: Global Perspectives, Research Innovations…

World Osteoporosis Day 2026 Observed on October 20

World Osteoporosis Day is marked every year on October 20. The day seeks to build public awareness about osteoporosis, the value of detecting the condition early, and the importance of keeping bones healthy.

INCOIS Director Dr. T. M. Balakrishnan Nair Elected Chair of UNESCO-IOC's IOCINDIO

The Sub-Commission for the Indian Ocean (IOCINDIO), which functions under UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), has elected Dr. T. M. Balakrishnan Nair as its Chair. Dr. Nair heads the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information…

Bengaluru-born Astronomer Dr. Ramya Anche Selected to Lead NASA's PUFFINS Telescope Mission

NASA has picked Bengaluru-born astronomer Dr. Ramya Anche as Principal Investigator for PUFFINS, a space telescope mission worth $20 million. The acronym PUFFINS expands to Polarimetry in the Ultraviolet to Find Features in Interstellar dust…

IG Defence Tests Rocket Motors of Indigenous Anti-Drone Missile JWALA-MK1

IG Defence is building JWALA-MK1, an indigenously designed short-range surface-to-air missile (SAM). The missile is based on a hard-kill approach, meaning it is meant to physically destroy hostile drones. The company has successfully carried out…

Fifth Edition of India–Australia Joint Military Exercise AUSTRAHIND Begins in Thiruvananthapuram

The fifth edition of AUSTRAHIND, the joint military exercise conducted between India and Australia, got under way in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. The exercise series is a regular bilateral defence engagement that brings the military forces of…