1. Western Dedicated Freight Corridor Completed
The Ministry of Railways completed the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC) this week, wrapping up a project that has been in the works since 2005. The corridor runs 1,506 km from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Terminal in Maharashtra all the way to Dadri in Uttar Pradesh.
The WDFC is one of two corridors built by the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL). The other one, the Eastern DFC from Ludhiana to Sonnagar, was already operational. Together they cost somewhere between Rs 80,000 and Rs 90,000 crore.
The practical benefit is simple: freight trains on this corridor can run at 100 km/h, compared to 50 to 60 km/h on regular tracks. Separating freight from passenger lines also frees up space on existing routes, which should help with train punctuality. Logistics costs are expected to fall by around 20 to 25 percent. The corridor connects to major ports like JNPT and Mundra, and is integrated with the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.
2. RBI Keeps Repo Rate at 6.25 Percent
Wait, let us get this right from the document: the Monetary Policy Committee kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.25 percent. The Standing Deposit Facility rate stayed at 6 percent and the Marginal Standing Facility rate at 6.5 percent.
The MPC projected GDP growth at 6.5 percent for 2026-27, with inflation expected at 4.0 percent for the full year. The committee is a 6-member statutory body under the RBI Act, 1934. Three members come from the RBI and three are external appointments by the government. India has followed a Flexible Inflation Targeting Framework since 2016, with a 4 percent CPI target and a tolerance band of plus or minus 2 percent.
3. Central Armed Police Forces Get Unified Legal Framework
The Centre notified the Central Armed Police Forces (General Administration) Act, 2026. This creates one unified framework covering recruitment, deputation, promotion, and service conditions across all seven CAPFs.
The seven forces are the Assam Rifles, BSF, CISF, CRPF, ITBP, NSG, and Seema Suraksha Bal, all under the Ministry of Home Affairs. One thing worth noting about the Assam Rifles: it works under dual control. The MHA handles its administration, but operational command sits with the Ministry of Defence.
Preparing for the judiciary exam requires a clear understanding of core legal subjects, consistent study habits, and regular practice. Judiciary exam preparation should focus on building strong concepts, solving previous year questions, and improving answer writing skills for mains. Staying updated with current affairs and following a structured study plan helps enhance accuracy and confidence. With discipline and the right strategy, cracking the exam becomes achievable.
4. India Withdraws COP33 Bid
India pulled back its candidacy to host COP33 in 2028. Two reasons are cited: the administrative and financial burden of hosting such a large event, especially given plans for the 2030 Commonwealth Games in Ahmedabad; and the fact that 2028 is close to the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
For context, COP is the annual decision-making body of the UNFCCC, which was born out of the 1992 Earth Summit alongside two other conventions on biodiversity and desertification. The UNFCCC secretariat is in Bonn, Germany. COP31 is scheduled for Antalya, Turkiye in 2026, COP32 is pending, and COP33 will now go to another country.
5. Islamabad Talks Between US and Iran Collapse
Twenty-one hours of direct negotiations in Islamabad ended without any agreement. The talks were the first direct high-level engagement between the United States and Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Pakistan hosted and mediated. US Vice President JD Vance led the American side; Iran sent senior negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.
The talks were trying to convert a fragile two-week ceasefire from an earlier US-Israeli military operation against Iran into a lasting peace. Four things blocked progress. The US wanted a complete halt to uranium enrichment; Iran refused. The US wanted the Strait of Hormuz reopened immediately; Iran wanted sanctions relief and security guarantees first. Iran demanded Israel stop strikes in Lebanon; Israel said that ceasefire did not apply to its Hezbollah operations. And there was a strange side dispute over a proposed joint toll-collection venture in the Strait, which Iran rejected.
6. Justice Yashwant Varma Resigns
Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma submitted his resignation to the President of India. This is a good moment to recall how High Court judges can leave office. They retire at 62 under Article 217(1). They can resign by writing directly to the President. They can be removed through an impeachment-like process in Parliament that requires a special majority, meaning a majority of total membership and two-thirds of members present and voting.
7. Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 Announced
The government notified the Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 with a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore. The money will be deployed through SEBI-registered Alternative Investment Funds rather than going directly to startups. SIDBI is the implementation agency. A Venture Capital Investment Committee will screen and recommend eligible AIFs.
India is currently the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world, with over 120 unicorns and more than 1,57,000 government-recognised startups. The ecosystem generates over 21 lakh jobs. Startups raised around 10 to 11 billion dollars in 2025.
8. Project HIM SAROVAR Launched in Ladakh
Project HIM SAROVAR aims to tackle water scarcity in Ladakh through scientific snow harvesting and the creation of storage ponds. These ponds will collect melting snow and glacial water to support irrigation and rural water needs. The Indian Army, ITBP, BRO, and local communities are all involved. The project is also meant to build a local model for climate-resilient water management, given that unpredictable weather is increasingly disrupting the water supply that Ladakhi villages depend on.
9. e-NAM Expands to 1,656 Mandis
The National Agriculture Market portal now connects 1,656 mandis across 23 states and 4 Union Territories, up from 1,389 in 2024. The platform is run by the Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium under the Ministry of Agriculture. It allows farmers to sell produce electronically, uses scientific quality assaying for fair pricing, and has a unified trader licence system so traders can operate across multiple mandis without separate registrations.
10. India to Host BRICS and Quad Foreign Ministers
India is set to host both the BRICS Foreign Ministers' meeting and the Quad Foreign Ministers' meeting. The BRICS gathering is notable because it will bring Iranian and UAE officials into the same room for the first time since the Iran conflict began. India currently chairs BRICS, and the leaders' summit is expected in September 2026. BRICS now has 11 full members including Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and the UAE.
The Quad is an informal grouping of India, the US, Japan, and Australia. It started as a disaster relief coordination effort after the 2004 tsunami, was formalised in 2007 by Japan's Shinzo Abe, went dormant, and was revived in 2017. Unlike NATO, it has no secretariat and no mutual defence commitments.
11. Constitution 131st Amendment Bill Proposed
The Union Government has proposed the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill along with a Delimitation Bill. The current freeze on Lok Sabha seat allocation, based on the 1971 Census, will continue until after the first census post-2026. These bills aim to break that freeze.
The proposal would increase the maximum strength of the Lok Sabha from 550 to 850 seats, with 815 going to states and 35 to Union Territories. The Delimitation Commission would reallocate seats based on 2011 Census data. The bills are also directly linked to implementing the 33 percent women's reservation under the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (Constitution 106th Amendment, 2023), which requires both a census and a delimitation exercise before reservation can take effect.
The main concern from southern states is that this rebalancing will increase the seat share of high-population northern states at their expense, since the south has performed better on population control over the decades.
Preparing for the judiciary requires more than just studying—it demands the right strategy, expert guidance, and consistent practice. Our Judiciary Online Coaching program is designed to help aspirants build a strong conceptual foundation while staying flexible with their schedule.
