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Science, Space, Technology & Defence 2026

ISRO launches and setbacks, the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, semiconductor plans, and defence leaders, tests and exercises in 2026.

Lessons in this module

Space Missions and ISRO in 2026

Lesson • 5 quiz questions

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AI Impact Summit, Semiconductors and Digital Tech

Lesson • 5 quiz questions

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Defence 2026

Lesson • 5 quiz questions

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Lesson notes

1. Space Missions and ISRO in 2026

2026 began with a setback for ISRO's PSLV but saw progress in other missions and in the private space sector. The Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme continued its preparations.

Launches

12 January 2026: PSLV-C62 carrying EOS-N1 (a DRDO imaging satellite) and about 15 smaller satellites failed to reach orbit.
The problem came near the end of the third stage. It was the second PSLV failure in a row, after PSLV-C61 in May 2025.
A Failure Analysis Committee, including a former ISRO chairman, was set up to find the cause.
4 September 2026: GSLV-F17 successfully launched the EOS-05 (GISAT-1A) geosynchronous earth observation satellite from Sriharikota.

Gaganyaan and future plans

Gaganyaan is India's human spaceflight programme. The first uncrewed test flight (G1) will carry the humanoid robot 'Vyommitra'.
Crewed flights come only after the uncrewed test flights are successful.
ISRO is also preparing the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS), India's planned space station.

Awards and private space sector

21 May 2026: Chandrayaan-3 received the 2026 Goddard Astronautics Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) in Washington, D.C.
May 2026: Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace became India's first space-tech 'unicorn' (valued over 1 billion US dollars).
May 2026: Indian start-up GalaxEye's 'Mission Drishti', described as the world's first OptoSAR satellite (optical plus radar imaging), was launched on a SpaceX rocket.
National Space Day is observed on 23 August, the day Chandrayaan-3 landed on the Moon in 2023.

Quick facts

PSLV-C62: 12 January 2026; failed; payload EOS-N1
GSLV-F17: 4 September 2026; EOS-05 (GISAT-1A)
Vyommitra: Humanoid robot for Gaganyaan G1
Goddard Astronautics Award 2026: Chandrayaan-3
Skyroot Aerospace: First Indian space-tech unicorn (May 2026)
Mission Drishti: GalaxEye; OptoSAR satellite (May 2026)

💡 For failures, exams ask the rocket number and the main satellite. PSLV-C61 (May 2025) and PSLV-C62 (January 2026) both failed.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

2. AI Impact Summit, Semiconductors and Digital Tech

In February 2026 India hosted a major global summit on artificial intelligence. The government also announced the next phase of its semiconductor mission and new rules for AI-made content.

India AI Impact Summit 2026

Held at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, from 16 February 2026 (planned for 16–20 February and extended to 21 February).
Organised under the IndiaAI Mission by the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY).
It was the first summit in this global series hosted by a Global South country.
Its three guiding 'sutras' were People, Planet and Progress.
Earlier summits in the series: Bletchley Park, UK (2023), Seoul (2024) and Paris (2025). The next is planned in Geneva, Switzerland (2027).

Indian AI announcements

Delegations from over 100 countries attended.
Indian models such as BharatGen's 'Param2' and new models from Sarvam AI were showcased.
Plans were announced to add over 20,000 more GPUs to India's shared AI computing capacity.
The IndiaAI Mission (approved in 2024) supports compute, datasets, Indian foundation models and AI skilling.

Semiconductors and electronics

Budget 2026-27 announced India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 (ISM 2.0) to build the chip supply chain further.
The Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme outlay was raised to Rs 40,000 crore.
A tax holiday till 2047 was announced for foreign cloud companies using Indian data centres.
The IT Rules amendment (in force 20 February 2026) requires labels on AI-generated (synthetic) content.

Quick facts

AI Impact Summit: New Delhi, Bharat Mandapam, February 2026
Three sutras: People, Planet, Progress
Earlier summits: Bletchley 2023, Seoul 2024, Paris 2025
Next summit: Geneva, Switzerland (2027)
ISM 2.0: India Semiconductor Mission 2.0 (Budget 2026-27)
ECMS outlay: Rs 40,000 crore

💡 Remember the AI summit chain in order: Bletchley (UK) -> Seoul (South Korea) -> Paris (France) -> New Delhi (India) -> Geneva (Switzerland).

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

3. Defence 2026

India's armed forces got new leaders in 2026, and DRDO and the services carried out several tests and exercises. Here are the key facts.

Leadership

Chief of Defence Staff: General N. S. Raja Subramani (retd.), 3rd CDS, from 31 May 2026.
Chief of the Naval Staff: Admiral Krishna Swaminathan (27th Navy chief), from 31 May 2026.
Chief of the Army Staff: General Dhiraj Seth, from 30 June 2026.
The CDS heads the Department of Military Affairs and is Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. The first CDS was General Bipin Rawat (2020).

Tests and projects

15 May 2026: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh laid the foundation for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) fifth-generation fighter programme facility at Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh.
15 June 2026: DRDO flight-tested the indigenous Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile (LRLACM) off the Odisha coast.
May 2026: DRDO completed final trials of the ULPGM-V3 (UAV-launched precision guided missile).

Exercises

May 2026: the Indian Army hosted the first (maiden) edition of the 'Pragati' multilateral military exercise at Umroi, Meghalaya, with 12 friendly foreign countries.
May 2026: the second edition of CINBAX (India–Cambodia), CINBAX-II, was held in Cambodia.
May 2026: the Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel 'Sanghmitra' was launched at GRSE, Kolkata.

Quick facts

CDS: Gen N. S. Raja Subramani (3rd)
AMCA: Fifth-generation fighter; facility foundation at Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh (15 May 2026)
LRLACM: Long Range Land Attack Cruise Missile; test 15 June 2026
Pragati: First edition, multilateral Army exercise, Umroi, Meghalaya, May 2026
CINBAX: India–Cambodia exercise
First CDS: Gen Bipin Rawat (2020)

💡 Exercise questions usually ask 'which two countries?' and 'where?'. Make a list: exercise name, partner country, place.

📝 5-question quiz on this lesson: enrol free to take it and track your score.

Other modules in Current Affairs 2026: India & World

Polity & Governance 2026FREE PREVIEW → Economy, Budget & Banking 2026FREE PREVIEW → Schemes, Social Sector & Infrastructure 2026FREE PREVIEW → Environment, Geography & Disasters 2026FREE PREVIEW → Sports, Awards, Persons in News & Important Days 2026FREE PREVIEW → World Politics & Leaders 2026FREE PREVIEW → India's Foreign Relations 2026FREE PREVIEW → International Organisations & Summits 2026FREE PREVIEW → Global Economy, Science & Technology 2026FREE PREVIEW → World Sports, Awards & Important Days 2026FREE PREVIEW → Final AssessmentFREE PREVIEW →

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