Daily Current Affairs – 08-01-2026
International News
India’s Wind Energy Capacity Reaches 54.51 GW in 2025
India added 6.34 gigawatts (GW) of wind energy capacity in 2025, taking the country’s total installed wind power capacity to 54.51 GW by the end of the year, according to Pralhad Joshi, the Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, who announced the data on Wednesday. The capacity addition in 2025 represents an increase of about 85.4% compared to the 3.42 GW added in 2024. India had ended 2024 with a total wind energy capacity of 48.16 GW, indicating a significant year-on-year expansion in the country’s renewable energy sector, particularly in wind power generation.
Induction of Indigenous Pollution Control Ship ‘Samudra Pratap’
On January 7, the indigenously designed pollution control vessel Samudra Pratap was commissioned into the Indian Coast Guard at Goa, strengthening India’s goal of self-reliance. The ship has been designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited with over 60% indigenous components, has a length of 114.5 metres, and a displacement of 4,200 tonnes, making it the largest pollution control vessel in its category. The commissioning ceremony was held on Monday, and the ship was formally inducted into service by Rajnath Singh, with the development highlighted by Narendra Modi as an important milestone in strengthening India’s defence capability, maritime safety, and sustainability efforts, reflecting increased domestic capacity in defence manufacturing.
National News
EV Retail Sales Rise 16.37% in Calendar Year 2025
According to data released on Wednesday by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA), electric vehicle (EV) retail sales in India increased by 16.37% year-on-year in calendar year 2025 (CY25), reflecting strong adoption. A total of 22,70,107 EV units were retailed in 2025, compared to 19,50,727 units in 2024. During CY25, 12.80 lakh electric two-wheelers were sold, registering 11.36% YoY growth and accounting for 6.3% of total two-wheeler sales. Electric passenger vehicles recorded sharp growth to 1,76,817 units, a 77.04% YoY increase, raising the EV share in total passenger vehicle sales from 2.4% to 4%. The most significant shift was seen in electric three-wheelers, which achieved 60.9% market share, with retail sales of 7,97,733 units, up 15.39% YoY. In the commercial vehicle segment, electric CV sales rose to 15,606 units, showing 54.2% YoY growth, with EVs accounting for 1.55% of total CV sales.
Supreme Court Disagrees with Justice Varma’s Claim on Lok Sabha Speaker
The Supreme Court of India stated that it prima facie disagreed with the claim made by Justice Yashwant Varma that Om Birla had exceeded the statutory provisions of the Judges (Inquiry) Act by constituting an inquiry committee to examine allegations relating to sacks of half-burnt currency found at the judge’s official residence in Delhi in March 2025. The observation was made by a Bench comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and S.C. Sharma, which also expressed disagreement with the contention that the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha lacked authority to reject a notice of motion submitted in the Upper House. Justice Varma, a sitting judge of the Allahabad High Court, faced a notice of motion for removal submitted by over 140 Lok Sabha MPs in July 2025, following which Om Birla constituted a three-member inquiry committee on August 12, 2025, under the provisions of the Act.
Gold Jewellery Emerges as Preferred Investment Asset in India
According to a survey released by Deloitte India, about 86% of Indian consumers consider gold jewellery as a preferred investment for wealth creation, indicating its role beyond traditional consumption. The study highlights that jewellery in India is increasingly viewed as an asset for wealth protection, with investor preference for gold jewellery growing almost on par with market-linked investments such as mutual funds and equities (87%). The survey also notes that consumers aged above 45 years show a higher inclination towards purchasing gold jewellery for investment purposes. At the same time, the report points out that profit margins of Indian jewellery retailers range only between 5% and 10%, which is lower than the global average of 12%, leading to capital blockage and profitability pressures in the Indian jewellery trade.
Infosys–AWS Agreement to Accelerate Generative AI Adoption
Infosys, a software company headquartered in Bengaluru, entered into an agreement with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to accelerate the adoption of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI). The agreement aims to support large-scale investment by information technology and software companies to shift towards AI technology and speed up sectoral growth. As per the company statement, this collaboration will expand Infosys’s AI-driven transformation, enable cloud-based internal operations, and enhance service delivery to enterprise clients in sectors such as manufacturing, telecommunications, financial services, and consumer goods.
Election Commission Removes 6.5 Crore Voters in Special Summary Revision
Following the second phase of the Special Summary Revision (SSR), the Election Commission of India removed approximately 6.5 crore voters from the electoral rolls across 12 States and Union Territories, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, and others, as per information released on January 7. The SSR exercise was conducted during the previous year in 9 States and 3 Union Territories, while the process is still ongoing only in Assam. Before the revision, the total number of voters in these regions stood at 50.9 crore, which reduced to 44.4 crore after the draft electoral rolls were published. The deleted names were categorized as voters who did not submit forms, had migrated permanently, were deceased, or had duplicate registrations. Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest deletion with 2.89 crore voters, reducing its electorate from 15.44 crore to 12.55 crore, indicating a reduction of 18.70% due to death and permanent migration, while Tamil Nadu saw the removal of 97 lakh voters. The main objective of this SSR drive is to remove illegal immigrants, particularly those from Bangladesh and Myanmar, and to eliminate fraudulent registrations identified through verification of birthplace details, with such large-scale SSR exercises being undertaken in most states for the first time since 2002–2004.
Science and Technology News
ISRO to Launch EOS-N1 Earth Observation Satellite on January 12, 2026
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is scheduled to launch the PSLV-C62/EOS-N1 Mission on January 12, 2026, marking its first launch of 2026. The earth observation satellite EOS-N1, along with other payloads, will be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, in Andhra Pradesh, using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). EOS-N1 is an earth imaging satellite developed for strategic purposes, though further technical details have not been disclosed. The launch is scheduled at 10:17 hrs IST and will be the 105th launch from Sriharikota. This mission is significant as it follows the earlier PSLV-C61/EOS-09 mission failure on May 18, 2025, which was affected by an issue in the third stage of the rocket. The PSLV-C62 mission will also carry payloads developed by start-ups and academic institutions from India and abroad, and comes shortly after ISRO successfully launched the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite of the United States on December 24 using the LVM-3 launch vehicle.
Economy News
Government Estimates India’s GDP Growth at 7.4% for FY 2025–26
The Union Government has estimated that India’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth will be 7.4% in the financial year 2025–26, compared to 6.5% in the previous year, according to the First Advance Estimates (FAE) released on Wednesday by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The estimates also project nominal GDP growth at 8% for the year. The FAE is significant as it forms the basis for calculations used in the preparation of the Union Budget. The Second Advance Estimates will be released on February 27, while the Provisional Estimates for 2025–26 will be published on May 30. With Q1 growth at 7.8% and Q2 growth at 8.2%, the government expects the average growth in the second half of the year to slow to 6.8%. Earlier, the Reserve Bank of India had projected GDP growth of 7.3% for 2025–26, with Q3 at 7% and Q4 at 6.5%. These projections come amid economic challenges, including the 50% tariff imposed by the United States on Indian imports, affecting labour-intensive sectors such as apparel, textiles, and engineering goods, while Private Final Consumption Expenditure is expected to grow at 7% in 2025–26, slightly lower than 7.2% recorded last year.
Sports News
Tamil Nadu Wins Second Medal in Khelo India Beach Games
At the Khelo India Beach Games (2nd Edition) being held at Diu, Tamil Nadu secured its second medal when Venmani won a silver medal in Pencak Silat (Tensing category). Earlier, Gokulnath had won a bronze medal in Taekwondo, which was the first medal for Tamil Nadu in the competition. On the third day (Wednesday) of the Games, Venmani also competed in Taekwondo (Kanto category) and Pencak Silat, contributing to the state’s medal tally. By the second day of the competition, Tamil Nadu had secured 7 additional medals and continued to hold second position overall with a total of 11 medals, comprising 3 gold, 5 silver, and 3 bronze.