EduFarming
Your list · 0हिं

Type at least two letters. Press Esc to close.

↑↓ navigate↵ openTAB cycle filter
Current affairs

Current affairs August 10 – August 16, 2026 for CUET

3 stories from the week of August 10 – August 16, 2026, in the order they happened, then a quiz on the week.

August 2026 in current affairs: fifteen stories for CUET

National

Tribunals get a judiciary-led selection body

Parliament passed the Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026 in August, setting up a judiciary-led National Tribunals Commission.

The Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026 was passed by Parliament in August 2026. It repeals the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, provisions of which the Supreme Court struck down in Madras Bar Association v. Union of India. The Court also directed that an independent National Tribunals Commission be set up, and the Bill does that.

The Commission is led by the judiciary. Its Chairperson must have been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court, and it has four Members, two judicial and two technical. The Chief Justice of India is consulted before the Chairperson and the Judicial Members are appointed. For each vacancy the Commission recommends one candidate, plus one for a waiting list, and the Government must make the appointment within three months. The Bill covers 16 tribunals, the National Green Tribunal and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal among them.

Test yourself

Question 1

EasyOriginal question

The Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026, passed by Parliament in August 2026, sets up which body to make selections to the tribunals?

  1. AA judiciary-led National Tribunals Commission
  2. BA tribunals division inside the Ministry of Law and Justice
  3. CA selection committee chaired by the Cabinet Secretary
  4. DThe Union Public Service Commission
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: A

Explanation

  1. The Bill sets up a judiciary-led National Tribunals Commission to make selections to the tribunals.

  2. The Supreme Court had directed that such an independent Commission be set up when it struck down parts of the 2021 law.

  3. For each vacancy the Commission recommends one candidate, plus one more for a waiting list, and the Government must make the appointment within three months.

Concept
The National Tribunals Commission
Typical time
40 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in

Question 2

MediumOriginal question

The Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026 repeals which earlier law, parts of which the Supreme Court struck down in Madras Bar Association v. Union of India?

  1. AThe Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985
  2. BThe National Green Tribunal Act, 2010
  3. CThe Companies Act, 2013
  4. DThe Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: D

Explanation

  1. The Supreme Court struck down provisions of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 in Madras Bar Association v. Union of India.

  2. The 2026 Bill repeals that Act and puts a new selection structure in its place.

  3. The National Green Tribunal and the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal are among the 16 tribunals the Bill covers. It changes how they are staffed, not the laws that set them up.

Worth noting

The Bill's name and the Act it repeals differ by a single letter and five years. Read the year, not the words.

Concept
What the Tribunal Reforms Bill replaces
Typical time
45 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in

Question 3

HardOriginal question

Under the Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026, who may be appointed Chairperson of the National Tribunals Commission?

  1. AA person who has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court
  2. BThe Union Minister of Law and Justice, ex officio
  3. CThe Chief Justice of India, ex officio
  4. DA retired Secretary to the Government of India
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: A

Explanation

  1. The Chairperson must have been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court.

  2. The Chief Justice of India is consulted before the Chairperson and the Judicial Members are appointed. Being consulted is not the same as holding the chair.

  3. Besides the Chairperson the Commission has four Members, two judicial and two technical.

Concept
Who chairs the National Tribunals Commission
Typical time
60 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in
Read the releasePractise this: National

Month →

Awards & Appointments

78 gallantry awards on the eve of the 80th Independence Day

On 14 August 2026 the President approved 78 gallantry awards, 13 posthumous, including 9 Kirti Chakras.

On 14 August 2026 President Droupadi Murmu approved 78 gallantry awards, 13 of them posthumous, for personnel of the Defence Forces and Central Armed Police Forces on the eve of Independence Day: 9 Kirti Chakras (7 posthumous), 1 Bar to Shaurya Chakra, 19 Shaurya Chakras, 36 Sena Medals (Gallantry), 3 Nao Sena Medals and 5 Vayu Sena Medals, besides 89 Mentions-in-Despatches.

Test yourself

Question 1

MediumOriginal question

How many gallantry awards did the President approve on the eve of Independence Day 2026?

  1. A70
  2. B78
  3. C89
  4. D127
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: B

Explanation

  1. She approved 78 gallantry awards, 13 of them posthumous.

  2. 89 is the number of Mentions-in-Despatches; 127 was the Independence Day 2025 figure.

Concept
Gallantry awards, Independence Day 2026
Typical time
50 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in

Question 2

MediumOriginal question

How many Kirti Chakras were among the Independence Day 2026 gallantry awards?

  1. A3
  2. B7
  3. C9
  4. D19
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: C

Explanation

  1. There were 9 Kirti Chakras, 7 of them posthumous.

  2. 19 is the number of Shaurya Chakras.

Concept
Kirti Chakras, 2026
Typical time
50 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in

Question 3

HardOriginal question

The Kirti Chakra is awarded for gallantry of what kind?

  1. AIn the presence of the enemy
  2. BOtherwise than in the face of the enemy
  3. CDistinguished service in peacetime, without risk to life
  4. DOnly by civilians
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: B

Explanation

  1. The Kirti Chakra is the second-highest peacetime gallantry award, for bravery otherwise than in the face of the enemy.

  2. The wartime series, for the presence of the enemy, is the Param Vir, Maha Vir and Vir Chakra.

Concept
Kirti Chakra criterion
Typical time
65 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in
Read the releasePractise this: Awards & Appointments

Month →

National

The 80th Independence Day, and Vande Mataram from the Red Fort

On India's 80th Independence Day, 15 August 2026, Vande Mataram was sung from the Red Fort ramparts for the first time.

India marked its 80th Independence Day on 15 August 2026. In the 150th year of the national song, Vande Mataram was sung from the ramparts of the Red Fort for the first time, on the Prime Minister's arrival, before he hoisted the flag and addressed the nation. The day's second theme was 'Yuva Shakti for Viksit Bharat@2047'.

Test yourself

Question 1

EasyOriginal question

Which Independence Day did India mark on 15 August 2026?

  1. AThe 79th
  2. BThe 75th
  3. CThe 81st
  4. DThe 80th
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: D

Explanation

  1. 15 August 1947 was the first Independence Day, so 2026 — 79 years later — is the 80th.

  2. Count the first year as one: 2026 − 1947 + 1 = 80.

Concept
Numbering Independence Days
Typical time
40 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in

Question 2

MediumOriginal question

What happened at the Red Fort for the first time on Independence Day 2026?

  1. AA woman officer unfurled the flag
  2. BVande Mataram was sung from the ramparts
  3. CThe President gave the address
  4. DA foreign leader was chief guest
Your answer
Show the answer and explanation

Correct answer: B

Explanation

  1. To mark 150 years of the national song, Vande Mataram was sung from the Red Fort ramparts for the first time.

  2. The Prime Minister, as always, hoisted the flag and addressed the nation.

Concept
Independence Day 2026 first
Typical time
50 seconds
Written from
pib.gov.in
Read the releasePractise this: National

Month →

Take the week's quiz

8 questions from this week's stories, untimed, with the answer after each.

Take the week's quiz

Every item on this page, and the document it came from

Sources on this page · Last verified:

  1. PIB Backgrounder: Reforming India's Tribunal System (Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026) — Press Information Bureau
  2. President approves 78 Gallantry awards (13 posthumous) & 89 Mention-in-Despatches on the eve of 80th Independence Day — Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence
  3. Independence Day Celebrations 2026 to honour '150 Years of Vande Mataram' & 'Yuva Shakti for Viksit Bharat@2047' — Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Defence