13 current affairs MCQs for 09 August 2026, framed UPSC-style from the day's reporting, each verified against its source and explained. Click a question to reveal the answer, or take the quiz interactively.
Answer: (a) Over 60%
India reached 300.50 GW of non-fossil capacity (solar 164.59 GW, wind 58.14 GW, hydro 57.24 GW, bio-energy 11.75 GW, nuclear 8.78 GW), over 60% of the way to the 500 GW 2030 target and more than 54% of India's total 552 GW generation capacity. A record 55.29 GW of clean capacity was added in 2025-26 alone, with solar contributing 44.6 GW of that.
Answer: (a) Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007
The amendment to the Payment and Settlement Systems (PSS) Act, 2007 lets a UPI and Service Operations Committee headed by NPCI decide if and when nominal MDR charges apply to select high-value merchant transactions, to help fund cybersecurity and system resilience as UPI volumes surge. Ordinary consumer and peer-to-peer UPI payments remain free, as the government reiterated in its announcement.
Answer: (a) Nagoya Protocol
The Nagoya Protocol, under the Convention on Biological Diversity, requires equitable sharing of benefits when companies commercially access a country's biological resources — here, seed and livestock germplasm varieties used by firms like Bayer and Advanta. Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha received the largest shares based on their cultivation of the relevant crops.
Answer: (a) 1942
The All India Congress Committee passed the Quit India Resolution on August 8, 1942, and Mahatma Gandhi gave his 'Do or Die' call the next day, launching the movement demanding an end to British rule. The Prime Minister and other leaders paid tribute to the movement's participants on its anniversary this year.
Answer: (a) 1943
Netaji hoisted the flag at Port Blair (now Sri Vijaya Puram) on December 30, 1943, after the Azad Hind Government took nominal control of the Japanese-occupied islands. The Vice President chose the site to launch this year's Har Ghar Tiranga drive, calling it sacred ground linked to independence fighters held in the Cellular Jail.
Answer: (a) Sahkar Navi-Kranti
Under the Sahkar Navi-Kranti initiative, NUCFDC — now covering 650 of India's roughly 1,400 urban cooperative banks holding about ₹6 lakh crore in deposits — launched a Security Operations Center and a 'Bank in a Box' service bundling core banking, digital payments and compliance tools. The umbrella body aims to modernise the sector rather than function as a profit-making entity.
Answer: (a) 15 days
CPGRAMS, the government's centralised online grievance portal, has cut average resolution time to about 15 days and now targets a 21-day ceiling, down from 30 days set in August 2024. The system also launched 'Samadhan Didi', an AI voice chatbot supporting complaint filing in 22 scheduled languages.
Answer: (a) Puducherry
Puducherry Police, whose Commissioner post was created on October 1, 1963, received the President's Colours in recognition of its service across the territory's four geographically separated regions, including its frontline role during the COVID-19 pandemic. The President's Colours are awarded to a police force or military unit for sustained, distinguished service.
Answer: (a) Environment
The BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Employment and Environment) policy aims to position India among a select group of nations with a comprehensive national biotechnology framework. Singh also cited India's space economy, which has grown to about $9 billion and is projected to reach $40-45 billion within the next 8-9 years.
Answer: (a) 385
The payments cleared a pending backlog under the Dr. Ambedkar Scheme for Social Integration through Inter-Caste Marriages, which the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment merged in 2023 with the Foundation's relief scheme for SC/ST victims of atrocities. Both schemes support implementation of the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Answer: (a) October 27, 2026
The Election Commission of India extended the BLO verification window in Karnataka, citing a higher-than-usual number of voters flagged under the ASDDO category, and correspondingly moved the final electoral roll publication to October 27, 2026. SIR verification happens door-to-door before draft and final rolls are published.
Answer: (a) Mangaluru
The holiday covered Puttur, Beltangadi, Kadaba and Sulya taluks after the IMD forecast 64.5-115.4 mm of rainfall with gusty winds across coastal Karnataka; Subramanya in the district had already recorded 7 cm of rain in the preceding 24 hours. Mangaluru, the district headquarters, was not among the four taluks where the holiday was declared.
Answer: (a) Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
The Post-Matric Scholarship Scheme for SC students, run by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment via Direct Benefit Transfer since 2021-22, releases the central share only after states upload verified student data to the National Scholarship Portal. The funding formula follows the NITI Aayog's 2017 Development Action Plan for Scheduled Castes.