APPOINTMENTS

Air Marshal KAA Sanjeeb Appointed AOM

• Air Marshal KAA Sanjeeb, AVSM, VSM assumed charge as Air Officer-in-Charge Maintenance (AOM) of the Indian Air Force on 1 September 2026.

• He succeeded Air Marshal Sanjiv Ghuratia, who retired on 31 August 2026 after 39 years of service.

• The AOM is a senior appointment at Air Headquarters, responsible for aircraft maintenance, engineering support, system management and maintenance planning.

• Air Marshal Sanjeeb was commissioned into the Aeronautical Engineering (Mechanical Branch) of the IAF on 3 September 1988.

• He has served as Director General (Aircraft), Director General (System) and Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Maintenance Plans) at Air HQ.

• In 2003, he led the Air HQ Project Management Team for the induction of the IAF’s first IL-78 Flight Refueller Aircraft.

• He was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM) in 2015 and the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) in 2026 for distinguished service.

• After assuming office, he visited the National War Memorial, New Delhi, and laid a wreath in honour of Armed Forces personnel who made the supreme sacrifice.

Air Vice Marshal Shakti Sharma

• Air Vice Marshal Shakti Sharma assumed charge as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Education) at Air Headquarters on 1 September 2026.

• She became the first non-medical woman officer in the Indian Armed Forces to attain the two-star rank of Air Vice Marshal or equivalent.

• Air Vice Marshal is a two-star rank in the IAF, equivalent to Major General in the Army and Rear Admiral in the Navy.

• Sharma was commissioned into the Education Branch of the IAF on 18 June 1994, completing more than 32 years of service.

• The Education Branch handles training, academic administration, professional education, curriculum support and personnel development.

• She became the first woman officer from the Tri-Services to command a Sainik School, serving as Principal of Sainik School, Kapurthala.

• During her career, Sharma established IAF Chairs of Excellence at Pune University and IIT Kanpur and became the first woman Group Captain in the IAF outside the medical branch.

• The Ministry of Defence described her promotion on 1 September 2026 as a landmark in the history of women officers in India’s Armed Forces.

Suman Ray Appointed RBI Executive Director

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) appointed Suman Ray as Executive Director with immediate effect from 1 September 2026.

• Before his elevation, Suman Ray was serving as Regional Director for Maharashtra.

• As Executive Director, he will oversee the Premises Department and the Department of Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

• The Premises Department manages the acquisition, maintenance and physical infrastructure of RBI’s office and residential properties.

• DICGC provides deposit insurance of up to ₹5 lakh per depositor per bank and was established under the DICGC Act, 1961.

• Suman Ray is a career central banker with over three decades of RBI service, with experience in currency management, financial inclusion, payments and settlement systems, consumer protection and HR.

• The RBI, established on 1 April 1935 under the RBI Act, 1934, is India’s central bank responsible for monetary policy, currency management and banking regulation.

• The RBI operates through regional offices and advisory boards, including the Western Area Local Board, which supports consultation on regional matters.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Hung Cao Nominated as US Secretary of the Navy

• Hung Cao was nominated by President Donald Trump on 1 September 2026 to become the permanent US Secretary of the Navy.

• He had served as Acting Secretary of the Navy since 22 April 2026.

• Cao was confirmed by the US Senate as the 35th Under Secretary of the Navy on 3 October 2025.

• The Secretary of the Navy is the civilian head of the Department of the Navy, overseeing the US Navy and US Marine Corps under the Department of Defense.

• Hung Cao retired as a US Navy Captain in October 2021 after 25 years of active-duty service.

• His military career included special operations, diving and explosive ordnance disposal, with deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.

• In August 2026, as Acting Secretary, he established the Office of the Defense Industrial Base to strengthen supply chains and improve shipyard infrastructure.

• Before his defence leadership roles, Cao contested US elections in Virginia in 2022 and 2024 as a Republican candidate, but was unsuccessful.

Lahore Named SCO Tourism & Cultural Capital 2026–27

• Lahore, Pakistan was designated the SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital for 2026–27 at the 26th SCO Council of Heads of State meeting in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

• Pakistan assumed SCO chairmanship for 2026–27 and adopted the theme “Turning Vision into Action: Connectivity, Innovation and Shared Prosperity.”

• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) was founded in 2001 and currently has 10 members, including India, China, Russia, Pakistan and Iran; Belarus joined in 2024.

• Lahore, capital of Punjab, is famous for its Mughal, Sufi and colonial heritage, including Lahore Fort, Shalimar Gardens and Badshahi Mosque.

• Lahore Fort and Shalimar Gardens are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

• The designation aims to promote tourism, heritage conservation and cultural exchange among SCO member states.

• A year-long programme of cultural events will showcase Lahore’s heritage and strengthen people-to-people connections.

• The SCO Council of Heads of State is the organisation’s highest decision-making body.

BHASHINI Shilpi Developer Session in Nepal

• The Digital India BHASHINI Division organised the BHASHINI Shilpi developer session at the Embassy of India, Kathmandu, on 31 August 2026.

• The session focused on Language AI and multilingual digital services, bringing together developers, students, technology practitioners and innovators from Nepal.

• BHASHINI is India’s national language technology platform supporting translation, speech recognition, speech synthesis and other language services through APIs.

• The programme introduced participants to BHASHINI APIs and developer resources through “Develop, Solve, Scale and Innovate with BHASHINI”.

• The session was organised under the Digital India Corporation and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

• Amitabh Nag, CEO of the Digital India BHASHINI Division, addressed the Kathmandu session.

• The Division also conducted the BHASHINI SANGAM Workshop in Kathmandu and earlier organised the BHASHINI Rajyam Workshop: Sikkim Chapter in Gangtok on 19 August 2026.

• The Kathmandu engagement strengthened India–Nepal technology cooperation, including collaboration with Kathmandu University’s Centre for Digital Public Infrastructure and Artificial Intelligence.

Türkiye Signs Artemis Accords

• Türkiye became the 71st country to sign the Artemis Accords on 31 August 2026 at NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

• The Artemis Accords, launched in 2020, are non-binding principles promoting peaceful and cooperative space exploration.

• The framework covers transparency, interoperability, astronaut assistance, space-object registration and protection of lunar heritage sites.

• Türkiye signed through Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır and became the 7th Middle Eastern signatory, after UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan and Israel.

• Turkish astronaut Alper Gezeravcı flew to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2024, while researcher Tuva Atasever undertook a Virgin Galactic suborbital flight.

• Türkiye is developing AYAP-1, its first lunar mission, planned for early 2027 using a hybrid-propelled spacecraft.

• Artemis is NASA’s lunar exploration programme supporting future crewed missions to the Moon.

• Türkiye will host the International Astronautical Congress 2026 in Antalya in October 2026.

India–Afghanistan Trade and Commercial Cooperation

• The India–Afghanistan Joint Working Group (JWG) on Trade, Commerce and Investment held a virtual meeting on 1 September 2026.

• Discussions covered trade facilitation, customs cooperation, visa facilities for Afghan traders, banking, energy, tariff concessions and cargo connectivity.

• Bilateral trade during 2025–26 stood at USD 907.85 million, comprising Indian exports of USD 253.63 million and imports of USD 654.22 million.

• The JWG is a bilateral mechanism for addressing sector-specific trade issues and coordinating follow-up actions between the two countries.

• Both sides agreed to strengthen customs data-sharing, trade connectivity and regulatory coordination, particularly in pharmaceuticals and agriculture.

• The meeting also emphasised business-to-business engagement and greater cooperation in trade and investment.

• It followed the 4th India–Afghanistan Joint Committee Meeting, held in New Delhi on 9 July 2026, co-chaired by M. Anand Prakash and Shuaib Baryalai.

• Afghanistan’s Agriculture Minister Mawlawi Ataullah Omari also proposed a separate Joint Working Group on agriculture and livestock, expanding sectoral cooperation.

Apple Maps Labels Lake Ontario as “Lake America”

• Apple Maps changed the US-facing label of Lake Ontario to “Lake America” on 1 September 2026.

• The change followed a federal name update in the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) of the United States.

• GNIS is the federal geographic-names database maintained by the US Geological Survey (USGS).

• Users in Canada continued to see “Lake Ontario”, reflecting region-based naming on digital mapping platforms.

• Users outside the US and Canada reportedly saw “Lake America” in parentheses alongside the traditional name.

• Lake Ontario is one of North America’s five Great Lakes, located between Ontario, Canada, and New York, US, and drains into the Saint Lawrence River.

• It is the smallest Great Lake by surface area; the other four are Superior, Michigan, Huron and Erie.

• Apple Maps and Google Maps use regionalised map labels based on location and national databases; both had earlier adopted “Gulf of America” for the Gulf of Mexico for some US users in 2025.

NATIONAL NEWS

Swachh Sagar, Surakshit Sagar 2026

• The 5th edition of Swachh Sagar, Surakshit Sagar (SSSS v.5.0) was launched on 1 September 2026 for marine litter removal and coastal conservation.

• The week-long campaign will be held from 12–19 September 2026, concluding on International Coastal Cleanup Day.

• The campaign covers India’s 11,098-km coastline and includes cleanup drives at 100+ beaches.

• The initiative focuses on coastal cleanliness, marine litter removal, ocean conservation and shoreline protection.

• It is implemented under the PRITHVI Scheme of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, which supports coastal and ocean-related scientific activities.

• The 2026 edition introduced the first national Ocean Olympiad to encourage youth participation in ocean conservation.

• A dedicated website and ocean conservation pledge portal were launched to promote public participation.

• The Swachh Sagar, Surakshit Sagar initiative began in 2022, making 2026 its fifth edition.