Daily Current Affairs- 16th June 2026

Daily Current Affairs- 16th June 2026

Centre Blocks Telegram Access Till June 22

In the News: The Central Government temporarily restricted access to Telegram in India till 22 June 2026, ahead of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination scheduled on 21 June 2026. The action was taken on the recommendation of the National Testing Agency to prevent the misuse of Telegram by organised cheating networks and to protect the integrity of the re-examination.

Key Points:

• The restriction was imposed through directions issued under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, 2000, and it applied to access to the Telegram platform in India for a limited period ending on 22 June 2026. The time period was designed to cover the day of the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination and its immediate aftermath.
• A separate feature-specific direction was also issued against Telegram’s message-editing function, requiring the platform to disable, in India, the editing of already-posted messages till 30 June 2026. This was meant to prevent the later modification of old messages in a manner that could falsely create the appearance of a pre-examination paper leak.
• The National Testing Agency stated that the measure was linked to public-order concerns and examination security, as cheating rackets were allegedly using Telegram channels, groups and bots to target NEET (UG) 2026 candidates. The agency clarified that there was no examination paper available outside the secured examination chain and that any claim of such access was fraudulent.
• The Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre served as the main nodal agency for the operational response, working under the Ministry of Home Affairs and coordinating with NTA, MeitY and State law-enforcement agencies. The response included action against Telegram channels, groups and bots that were allegedly being used for misleading or fraudulent claims related to the re-examination.
• State-level enforcement actions were also cited as part of the wider security response, including a public advisory by the Bihar Police Economic Offences Unit and action by the Ahmedabad City Cyber Crime Branch against an inter-State cyber-fraud gang allegedly operating Telegram channels. These developments showed that the restriction was part of a broader anti-cheating and cyber-fraud response before the examination.
• NTA reassured candidates that the NEET (UG) 2026 re-examination would be held as scheduled on 21 June 2026, and advised candidates to ignore unverified claims circulating on any platform. Candidates were also asked to rely only on the official NTA website and verified NTA handles for examination-related information.

India Launches New Wholesale Price Index Series with Base Year 2022-23

In the News: India released a new Wholesale Price Index series with 2022–23 as the base year on 15 June 2026, replacing the earlier WPI series based on 2011–12. The revised series was launched by the Office of Economic Adviser, DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, along with new Producer Price Indices to modernise India’s price-measurement system.

Key Points:

• The base year of the Wholesale Price Index has been revised from 2011–12 to 2022–23, making the index more representative of the present structure of the Indian economy. A base-year revision is important because older price baskets may not fully capture changes in production patterns, energy sources, consumption behaviour and industrial composition.
• The revised WPI series has been released by the Office of Economic Adviser under DPIIT, which functions under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The new series became effective in June 2026 with the release of provisional WPI data for May 2026, and back-series data has also been made available from April 2023 to May 2026.
• The commodity basket under the new WPI series has expanded from 697 items to 957 items, which gives the index wider coverage and improves its ability to reflect current wholesale price movements. The revised basket also removes outdated items and includes newer items that are more relevant to the present economy.
• The new WPI series includes renewable and nuclear energy within the electricity group, with solar, wind and nuclear electricity added to the basket. This is significant because it reflects India’s changing energy mix and gives better statistical recognition to non-conventional sources of energy in price measurement.
• Crude petroleum and natural gas have been shifted from the Primary Articles group to the Fuel and Power group, so that major energy-related commodities are placed under a more coherent structure. This change improves the tracking of energy prices because the Fuel and Power group already includes coal, electricity and petroleum products.
• The revised series uses Gross Value of Output for deriving weights instead of Net Traded Value, which was used in the earlier 2011–12 series. This methodological change is important because Gross Value of Output better reflects the domestic production importance of commodities, rather than being influenced by import and export flows.
• India also released new Producer Price Indices along with the revised WPI series, including Output PPI, Trial Input PPI and Service PPI for seven service sectors. The government has indicated that WPI will run along with PPI for five years before being discontinued, giving users time to shift gradually from WPI to PPI.

PM Modi’s Historic Slovakia Visit

In the News: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a historic State Visit to Slovakia on 15 June 2026, marking the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Slovakia. During the visit, India and Slovakia elevated their bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Partnership, making it an important development in India’s engagement with Central Europe.

Key Points:

• The visit was historic because it was the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Slovakia, and it came at a time when India has been expanding its diplomatic and economic engagement with European countries beyond its traditional partners.
• India and Slovakia elevated their bilateral relations to the level of a Comprehensive Partnership, which indicates a broader and more structured relationship covering political dialogue, trade, technology, defence, education, mobility, culture and people-to-people cooperation.
• Prime Minister Modi held talks with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico in Bratislava, and the discussions focused on giving a new direction to bilateral cooperation, especially in areas such as automobiles, railways, advanced manufacturing, green technologies, digital technology and trade.
• Technology and innovation emerged as major areas of cooperation during the visit, as both sides signed an MoU on digital technologies and also announced the establishment of the first-ever ICCR Chair in Artificial Intelligence at the Technical University of Košice in Slovakia.
• Defence cooperation received special emphasis during the visit, with both countries signing a Letter of Intent in the defence field, which is expected to support cooperation between the defence industries of India and Slovakia, including joint development and joint production.
• The visit also produced important outcomes in labour mobility, higher education, research, tourism, audiovisual cooperation, quantum communication, critical infrastructure protection, and traditional medicine, reflecting the wide scope of the new Comprehensive Partnership between the two countries.
• Prime Minister Modi was conferred Slovakia’s highest State honour, the Order of the White Double Cross, First Class, by Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, making the visit significant not only for bilateral diplomacy but also for symbolic recognition of India-Slovakia friendship.

World’s Most Beautiful Airports 2026

In the News: Two Indian airport projects, Navi Mumbai International Airport Terminal 1 and Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport Terminal 2, Guwahati, were included in the Prix Versailles World’s Most Beautiful Airports List 2026. The list recognised seven airports and airport terminals across the world for architectural quality, regional identity, sustainability and passenger experience.

Key Pointers:

• The World’s Most Beautiful Airports List 2026 was released by Prix Versailles, an international architecture and design award initiative that is announced every year at UNESCO and recognises contemporary projects in categories such as airports, campuses, passenger stations, sports, museums, hotels and restaurants.
• India secured two places in the 2026 airport list, with Navi Mumbai International Airport Terminal 1 and Terminal 2 of Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport, Guwahati, being selected among the seven recognised global airport projects. This makes the recognition important for India’s airport infrastructure and design profile.
• Navi Mumbai International Airport Terminal 1 was recognised for its lotus-inspired architectural design, including lotus-like columns and a petal-shaped roof. The design is important because it connects modern airport infrastructure with Indian cultural symbolism while also focusing on functional airport operations.
• Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport Terminal 2 in Guwahati was recognised for its bamboo-orchid-inspired design, flowing ceiling patterns and strong connection with the cultural identity of Northeast India. The terminal’s design highlights how airport architecture can reflect local geography, materials and regional heritage.
• The seven airports recognised in the 2026 list are located in China, Germany, India, Cambodia and the United States, showing that the list is global in character and not limited to one region. The other selected airports include Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminal 3, Frankfurt Airport Terminal 3, Techo International Airport, Pittsburgh International Airport and San Diego International Airport Terminal 1.
• The selection criteria of Prix Versailles give importance to innovation, creativity, local heritage, ecological efficiency and social value, rather than treating airports only as transport facilities. This makes the list relevant for competitive exams because it links infrastructure development with sustainability, design, tourism and cultural representation.
• Three of the seven selected airport projects will later receive additional World Titles, such as Prix Versailles, Interior or Exterior awards, later in 2026. Therefore, the 2026 list should be understood as a shortlist of globally recognised airport projects, not as a simple numerical ranking of airports.

Smriti Mandhana  in TIME100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026

In the News:  Smriti Mandhana was included in TIME100: The 100 Most Influential People in Sports 2026, becoming the only Indian to feature in the global list of influential sports personalities. Her inclusion is significant because it recognises her growing stature in international women’s cricket and her role in strengthening India’s presence in global sport.

Key Points:

• Smriti Mandhana is an Indian women’s cricketer and a left-handed opening batter, who has become one of the most prominent faces of Indian women’s cricket due to her consistent performances across formats and her leadership role in franchise cricket.
• TIME100 Sports 2026 recognises influential figures connected with the world of sport, including athletes, coaches, advocates and investors who have shaped the sporting landscape through performance, leadership, commercial impact or wider public influence.
• Mandhana was placed in the ‘Titans’ category of the TIME100 Sports 2026 list, alongside several globally recognised sporting figures, which highlights the international recognition she has gained beyond Indian cricket.
• She became the first Indian woman to score a double century in a domestic one-day match, and this achievement remains an important milestone in the development of women’s cricket in India because it demonstrated her ability to dominate long-format limited-overs batting.
• She also became the first Indian woman to score a century in all three international formats, namely Tests, One Day Internationals and T20 Internationals, making her one of India’s most complete batters across formats.
• Mandhana is a joint holder of the record for most international centuries in women’s cricket, with 17 centuries, which reflects her long-term consistency and her importance as a top-order batter for India in major international matches.
• She became the first woman to score more than 1,000 ODI runs in a calendar year, finishing 2025 with 1,362 ODI runs, which set a new benchmark for batting consistency in women’s One Day International cricket.