Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

Kerala

♦ The Kerala government has officially renamed the Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary the Aralam Butterfly Sanctuary, making it the first butterfly sanctuary in the State. The decision was taken under section 18(1) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. ♦ The renaming amends the original 1984 notification that declared the Aralam Farm area as a wildlife sanctuary. The change follows a recommendation made by the State Board for Wildlife, citing the area’s exceptional butterfly diversity and abundance.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

Arunachal Pradesh

♦ Indian scientists have found two new slender-armed frogs from their secretive habitats in Arunachal Pradesh. One of the species has been named after Kerala journalist E Somanath, who passed away in 2022. The new species, ‘Soman’s Slender Arm Frog’ (Leptobrachium soman), was discovered from Tiwarigaon in Arunachal Pradesh. ♦ The other species, ‘Mechuka Slender Arm Frog’ (Leptobrachium mechuka), was also found in the evergreen forests and adjacent grassland. This species is named after Mechuka, a small town in Arunachal Pradesh, where it was first collected. ♦ The two new species were discovered by a Delhi University team led by Professor Biju as part of the PhD research of his student, Akalabya. ♦ Leptobrachium somani is a small-sized frog, measuring approximately 55 mm in length, with a uniformly greyish-brown body marked by irregular light-grey patterns and distinctive silver-grey to light-blue eyes. ♦ The second new species, Mechuka Slender Arm Frog (Leptobrachium mechuka), is a small-sized frog measuring about 60 mm in length. ♦ Brahmaputra river acted as the biogeographical barrier for these frogs aiding species diversification. ♦ Arunachal Pradesh is a part of the Himalaya biodiversity hotspot, one of the world’s most biologically rich regions, harbouring exceptional plant and animal diversity found nowhere else on Earth, including a wide variety of amphibians. ♦ Among these amphibians are members of the family Megophryidae, one of the most diverse frog families globally with 366 recognised species, including the Asian horned frogs.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

Bailey Bridge

♦ The first Bailey Bridge, built with India's assistance package to cyclone-hit Sri Lanka Sri Lanka was opened on 11 January 2026. The 100-foot bridge was constructed by the Indian Army, restoring a vital road link between the Central Province and Uva Province. ♦ It was built under a $450 million reconstruction package by India to Sri Lanka, which was hit by Cyclone Ditwah in November, causing widespread flooding and landslides, resulting in over 600 deaths. India launched ’Operation Sagar Bandhu on 28 November 2025 to provide relief and recovery assistance to Sri Lanka.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

Nalini Joshi

♦ Indian-origin mathematician Nalini Joshi was named New South Wales’ Scientist of the Year, becoming the first mathematician to receive the state’s top science honour in Australia. The recognition highlights her pioneering work in applied mathematics and its growing importance in addressing complex scientific and technological challenges, from climate modelling to secure digital communications. ♦ Nalini Joshi is a world-leading applied mathematician and a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Sydney, where she currently serves as Chair of Applied Mathematics. She made history as the first woman appointed Professor of Mathematics at the university, a milestone widely seen as a breakthrough for gender representation in Australian academia. Her research is internationally recognised in the field of integrable systems, a branch of mathematics that studies complex nonlinear equations. ♦ Joshi served as the first Australian Vice-President of the International Mathematical Union from 2019 to 2022 and is an honorary member of the London Mathematical Society. She is also a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2016 for her services to mathematics.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

World Hindi Day

♦ World Hindi Day is observed annually on January 10, commemorates Hindi as a prominent language spoken in India. The Indian government's decision aimed to strengthen the linguistic identity of Hindi-speaking communities and promote unity among diverse linguistic groups across the nation. ♦ The word 'Hindi' originated from the Persian word 'Hind,' signifying the land of the Indus River. World Hindi Day was officially observed for the first time on January 10, 2006, during the tenure of former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. The date commemorates January 10, 1949, when Hindi was used for the first time at the United Nations General Assembly.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

PARAM SHAKTI

♦ The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has launched ‘PARAM SHAKTI’ at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras). The facility was inaugurated by MeitY Secretary Shri S. Krishnan. ♦ PARAM SHAKTI was developed and implemented by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) under the National Supercomputing Mission (NSM), which is jointly led by MeitY and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). ♦ PARAM SHAKTI is powered by the PARAM RUDRA supercomputing cluster, built using C-DAC’s indigenous RUDRA series of servers. The system delivers a peak computing capacity of 3.1 petaflops, meaning it can perform over 3.1 quadrillion calculations per second.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

The Public Investment Board (PIB)

♦ The Public Investment Board (PIB) has recently approved the Rs.26,070-crore Kamala Hydroelectric Project with an installed capacity of 1,720 MW in Arunachal Pradesh. The project represents a major step in India’s push to harness hydropower potential in the North-Eastern region, while simultaneously addressing flood moderation challenges in the Brahmaputra valley. ♦ Arunachal Pradesh possesses nearly one-third of India’s untapped hydropower potential, owing to its mountainous terrain and perennial rivers originating in the Eastern Himalayas. ♦ The Kamala Hydroelectric Project is a large storage-based hydropower scheme proposed on the Kamala River, a major tributary of the Subansiri River, in Kamle district of Arunachal Pradesh.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

C. P. Radhakrishnan

♦ The Vice-President of India, C. P. Radhakrishnan inaugurated the Third International Conference on Indian Languages in New Delhi. The Conference was organised by Vaishvik Hindi Parivaar, Antarashtriya Sahyog Parishad, Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, and the Department of Bharatiya Bhasha, University of Delhi. ♦ The event brought together scholars, language experts, and international delegates to discuss the protection, study, and global promotion of Indian languages.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

India’s agricultural growth during 2015-24 stood

♦ India’s agricultural growth during 2015-24 stood at 4.42 percent, surpassing that of China’s at 4.10 percent, said NITI Aayog. During 2014–15 to 2023–24, income of agricultural producers grew at 10.11 percent annually, higher than manufacturing and total economy. The income of farmers too increased by 126 percent in ten years while producers’ income rose by 108 percent between 2015–16 and 2022–23. ♦ This acceleration in income of the agricultural sector raised annual growth during 2015-16 to 2024-25 to the historically highest level of 4.45 per cent. India’s agriculture sector did not achieve this level of growth in any decadal period since 1950-51. ♦ According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, data on country-wise GDP, the agriculture sector in India achieved an average growth rate of 3 per cent during 2006-2015, which was the same as growth in world agriculture.

Jan 12, 2026 Current Affairs

శ్రీలంకలో భారత్‌ నిర్మించిన బెయిలీ వంతెన ప్రారంభం

భారత సహకారంతో శ్రీలంకలో నిర్మించిన మొదటి బెయిలీ వంతెన (తాత్కాలిక వంతెన)ను 2026, జనవరి 11న ప్రారంభించారు. సెంట్రల్‌ ప్రావిన్స్‌-ఉవా ప్రావిన్స్‌ మధ్య రాకపోకలకు కీలకంగా ఉన్న రహదారి అనుసంధానం 2025, నవంబరులో వచ్చిన దిత్వా తుపానుతో ధ్వంసమైంది. అనంతర కాలంలో శ్రీలంకలో పర్యటించిన భారత విదేశీ వ్యవహారాల శాఖ మంత్రి జైశంకర్‌ అక్కడ దెబ్బతిన్న రోడ్లు, రైల్వే లైన్ల పునరుద్ధరణకు ‘ఆపరేషన్‌ సాగర బంధు’ పేరుతో రూ.45 కోట్లు ఆర్థిక సహాయాన్ని అందించనున్నట్లు ప్రకటించారు. దీని కింద భారత సైన్యం ఈ బెయిలీ వంతెనను నిర్మించింది.

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