Current Affairs Quiz 21st and 22nd August 2026 Quiz

Explanation: West Bengal hosted its inaugural Kaushal Mahotsav on August 18, 2026, at Balurghat Stadium in the Dakshin Dinajpur district, marking a significant milestone for the state’s efforts to foster job creation and skill development.

• The event, the 11th edition of Kaushal Mahotsav in India, was organized through collaboration between the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, the National Skill Development Corporation, and the Government of West Bengal.
• Kaushal Mahotsav, a nationwide job fair initiative under the Skill India Mission, is designed to bridge the gap between employers and job seekers, enabling recruitment, screening, and placement opportunities across diverse sectors.

Explanation:

• The 12th BRICS Communications Ministers Meeting took place in Pune, Maharashtra on August 21, 2026. Chaired by India’s Union Minister for Communications, Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, the meeting focused on advancing resilient digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, and information and communication technology (ICT) cooperation.
• ICT Track Theme: “Innovate, Cooperate and Transform (ICT) for a Resilient Future”
• India’s BRICS Chairship Theme: “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”

Explanation:

• India and Japan on 19 August agreed to further deepen defence and maritime security cooperation, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi signing a Memorandum of Arrangement on Maritime Security Cooperation in New Delhi.
• The agreement provides a framework for strengthening cooperation between the Indian Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, including information sharing on Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), Search and Rescue (SAR), and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR).

Explanation:

• PhonePe announced the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to share insights from PhonePe PulsePro, its enterprise data intelligence platform, to support the PM GatiShakti mission for national infrastructure planning, economic analysis, and holistic urban and rural development.
• Under the MoU with MeitY, PhonePe PulsePro metrics will be integrated into the PM GatiShakti National Master Plan portal, managed in collaboration with Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N).
• By sharing granular transactional insights with the PM GatiShakti portal, PhonePe is making hyperlocal PulsePro data accessible for internal government use to enable them to make smarter, data-based decisions for national development planning.

Explanation:

• India and the Asian Development Bank signed a $230 million loan agreement. This project will expand and modernize Chennai’s water supply and sanitation infrastructure. It includes building new pipes and upgrading pumping stations across the city.
• Chennai will also implement a comprehensive ring-main system for improved water reliability. The initiative aims to enhance public health and urban resilience to climate change.

Explanation: Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, a veteran Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader, was elected as Bangladesh’s 23rd President, securing 255 votes in the presidential election.

Explanation:

• Two doctors – a physician and a radiologist – of Mumbai’s Parsi community will receive Pakistan’s highest civilian award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz, for keeping secret Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s terminal illness, according to a federal minister.
• Planning minister Ahsan Iqbal disclosed this in a post on X. “I feel honoured to have had the privilege, as chairman of the awards committee, of nominating for Nishan-e-Imtiaz two remarkable doctors, a physician and a radiologist, both members of Bombay’s Parsi community, who faithfully guarded the secret of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s terminal illness

Explanation:

• Ashutosh Parida, an Odia poet, essayist, and former CSIR-IMMT scientist, has been selected for the 47th Sarala Puraskar for his poetry collection Bishwas De Pruthwi .
• The award carries ₹7 lakh and will be presented on October 25, 2026.

About Sarala Puraskar

• Named after the 15th-century Odia poet Sarala Das, this award is one of the most prestigious in Odia literature. It is administered by the Indian Metals Public Charitable Trust (IMPaCT). It recognises outstanding contributions to Odia literature.

Explanation:

• Astronomers discovered S301, the fastest known securely orbiting star in the Milky Way. It zooms around Sagittarius A*, the galaxy’s central supermassive black hole, at an incredible speed of 25,000 kilometers per second—about 8% the speed of light.

Key Facts About S301

• Speed: Reaches up to 25,000 km/s (15,500 miles per second).
• Orbit Time: Takes just 8.7 years to finish one full loop.
• Close Approach: Skims past the black hole at a distance only 12 times the space between Earth and the Sun.
• Discovery Tool: Found using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer

Explanation: Indian Akshay Urja Day is observed on 20 August. It promotes renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, hydro and biomass and highlights clean energy adoption and sustainable development.  

Explanation: World Mosquito Day is observed annually on 20 August to commemorate Sir Ronald Ross’s 1897 discovery in India proving that female mosquitoes transmit malaria.

Explanation:

• World Senior Citizens Day is observed annually on August 21 to honor older adults, recognize their life achievements, and raise awareness about issues affecting them, such as health decline, financial insecurity, and elder abuse.
• The observance traces back to 1988 when U.S. President Ronald Reagan signed Proclamation 5847 to officially create National Senior Citizens Day on August 21.

Explanation:

• Veteran actress Sowcar Janaki (94) died in hospital. Born Sankaramanchi Janaki in 1931, she was christened Sowcar Janaki when she started acting in films.
• She has worked in over 400 films since her debut in the Telugu film Shavukaru directed by LV Prasad. This film earned her the title ‘Sowcar’ Janaki.

Explanation:

• Former Congress MP Sajjan Kumar, who was serving life sentence for his role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi, died at Safdarjung Hospital on 19 August.
• According to the hospital, Kumar, aged 84 years, was brought to the medical facility by police with altered sensorium. Kumar, a three-time Lok Sabha member, represented the Outer Delhi constituency and had been a prominent Congress leader. He resigned from the party after his 2018 conviction.
• He was serving multiple life sentences after his conviction in cases linked to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in Delhi.

Explanation: India hosted the virtual Eighth BRICS Youth Energy Summit 2026 on August 17, 2026, under its BRICS Chairship. More than 100 participants discussed clean energy, energy security, inclusive access, and youth-led green technology innovation under the theme “सर्वेषां ऊर्जम्” (Energy for All).