February 2026 Current Affairs

The Finance Minister presents the Union Budget 2026-27 on February 1. The Budget continues focus on capital expenditure, infrastructure, agriculture, education, and social welfare. Key emphasis on Viksit Bharat 2047 goals, digital infrastructure, green energy, and Make in India across strategic sectors.

The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme across 14 sectors shows cumulative investment, output, and employment milestones. Sectors including mobile phones, electronics, pharmaceuticals, food processing, and specialty chemicals report significant manufacturing growth.

Jal Jeevan Mission reports progress on providing piped water to every rural household. The mission targets 100% functional household tap connections (FHTC) in rural India, covering 19.3 crore rural households.

PMMY reaches a cumulative disbursement milestone of ₹25+ lakh crore since inception. The scheme provides collateral-free loans under Shishu (up to ₹50,000), Kishor (₹50,001–5 lakh), and Tarun (₹5–10 lakh) categories to micro and small enterprises.

The Finance Minister presents the Union Budget at 11 AM on February 1 in the Lok Sabha. The Budget reflects India's fiscal priorities for FY2026-27, balancing capex-led growth with fiscal consolidation. Key announcements cover income tax relief, infrastructure spending, and social sector allocations.

National Science Day is observed on February 28, commemorating Sir C.V. Raman's announcement of the Raman Effect in 1928. The day promotes scientific temper among citizens and recognises contributions of Indian scientists. The annual theme highlights India's science and technology priorities.

Several Indian states celebrate their Statehood Day / Foundation Day in February. Arunachal Pradesh (February 20) and Mizoram (February 20) celebrate their respective statehood anniversaries. These days reinforce federal unity and cultural heritage.

India actively participates in G20 processes under South Africa's 2025 G20 presidency, building on its own G20 experience. India advocates for reform of multilateral institutions (IMF, WTO, UNSC) and the Global South agenda.

India-UK Free Trade Agreement negotiations continue. The FTA, launched in January 2022, covers goods, services, investments, and IP. Key areas include tariff reductions on whisky, cars, textiles, and services liberalisation for Indian IT and business professionals.

India deepens engagement with African nations through the India-Africa Forum Summit process, focusing on development partnership, capacity building, digital technology transfer, and South-South cooperation. India has provided Lines of Credit for African infrastructure.

The Union Budget 2026-27 maintains India's fiscal consolidation roadmap. Capital expenditure allocation continues to drive infrastructure investment in roads, railways, housing, and digital infrastructure. The fiscal deficit target is maintained under the FRBM glide path.

The RBI Monetary Policy Committee meets in February to review the repo rate and monetary policy stance. The MPC balances inflation control with growth support, assessing CPI inflation trajectory relative to the 4% target and GDP growth prospects.

India and the European Union advance their Trade and Technology Council (TTC) agenda, focusing on technology standards, supply chain resilience, digital governance, and clean energy cooperation. India-EU bilateral trade exceeds $130 billion annually.

The Union Budget allocates funds for public sector bank recapitalisation and continued banking sector reforms. India's PSU banks have significantly improved their health with declining NPAs, improved capital adequacy ratios, and record profits.

IRDAI's Insurance for All by 2047 mission accelerates with simplified products, Bima Sugam digital marketplace, and increased agent penetration. India's insurance penetration remains below the global average, presenting a large untapped market.

India's Account Aggregator (AA) framework sees rapid adoption, enabling consent-based financial data sharing across banks, NBFCs, insurance companies, and other regulated entities. AA empowers individuals to share their financial data securely for loans, investments, and financial planning.

The Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) approves senior government appointments including secretaries, DGs, and heads of statutory bodies. The ACC is chaired by the Prime Minister and is the apex authority for senior appointments to the Government of India.

SEBI continues its market regulation mandate under the appointed chairperson. SEBI regulates India's capital markets — stock exchanges (NSE, BSE), mutual funds, foreign portfolio investors, and alternative investment funds.

The Saraswati Samman, one of India's most prestigious literary awards, is announced for outstanding prose or poetry in any Indian language included in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution. The award is given by the K.K. Birla Foundation.

CSIR awards its annual prizes recognising excellence in Indian scientific research across basic sciences, engineering, and technology. CSIR operates 37 national laboratories across India covering diverse research domains.

ISRO advances preparations for the Shukrayaan-1 Venus orbiter mission, scheduled to study Venus' atmosphere, surface geology, and volcanic activity. India aims to be only the 5th entity (after USSR, USA, ESA, Japan) to send a probe to Venus.

India develops its AI governance framework balancing innovation and regulation. The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) consults stakeholders on AI safety, accountability, and responsible deployment guidelines. India advocates context-sensitive AI governance at international fora.

India's Deep Ocean Mission progresses with the Samudrayaan project's Matsya 6000 submersible development for deep-sea exploration at 6,000 metres depth. The mission also covers seabed mineral exploration and deep-sea biodiversity research.

The Union Budget allocates significant funds for defence modernisation under the Capital Budget, covering procurement of fighter aircraft, submarines, ships, missiles, and electronic warfare systems. The Aatmanirbhar Bharat push includes 75% of defence capital budget reserved for domestic procurement.

INS Vikrant, India's first domestically built aircraft carrier, advances operational readiness with MiG-29K integration and carrier battle group exercises. India is one of very few nations capable of designing and building a conventional aircraft carrier.

DRDO advances development of multiple next-generation defence systems including hypersonic missiles, laser weapons, electronic warfare suites, and AI-enabled autonomous systems as part of India's 2024-2030 technology roadmap.

The Forest Survey of India (FSI) releases its biennial India State of Forest Report (ISFR) assessing forest and tree cover across all states. India aims to create carbon sinks of 2.5-3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2030 through increased forest cover.

India's National Clean Air Programme, targeting 20-30% reduction in PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by 2024 (later extended to 2026) in 131 non-attainment cities, undergoes annual review. Key measures: industrial emission controls, vehicular standards, waste burning restrictions.

India continues adding Ramsar sites to its wetland conservation network. India now has 80+ Ramsar sites — the highest number in Asia and third highest globally. Wetlands provide ecosystem services including flood control, water purification, and biodiversity habitat.

Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) Season continues with franchises from across India competing. PKL has transformed kabaddi into a professional sport with massive fan following and TV viewership. India dominates international kabaddi circuits.

ISL continues its winter season with clubs from major Indian cities competing. Indian football has seen infrastructure development, grassroots programs, and AIFF strategic plan aiming to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.

India's athletes compete in international winter sports events including skiing, skating, and ice hockey. India's high-altitude regions (Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand) support winter sports development infrastructure.

The World Bank's Business Ready (B-READY) index (successor to Ease of Doing Business) assesses regulatory quality for business. India continues improving its business environment through regulatory reforms, single-window clearances, and digitisation of government processes.

The Office of the Economic Adviser (OEA) releases monthly IIP data for November 2025 (released with 6-week lag). IIP measures the short-term changes in the production volume of a basket of industrial products.

The Ministry of Statistics releases Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation data for January 2026. Food inflation remains a key determinant of overall CPI, while core inflation (excluding food and fuel) provides a cleaner measure of underlying price pressures.

India continues its campaign for a permanent seat in the reformed UN Security Council. The G4 group (India, Germany, Japan, Brazil) advocates UNSC reform to make it more representative. India argues its 1.4 billion people, nuclear status, and global contributions warrant a P5 seat.

The WTO conducts its periodic Trade Policy Review (TPR) for India, assessing India's trade and investment policies. India actively participates in WTO negotiations while safeguarding policy space for its development priorities.

India submits nominations to UNESCO for World Heritage Site status and Intangible Cultural Heritage recognition. India has 42+ UNESCO World Heritage Sites and numerous elements on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage.