Banking, Markets & Regulation
1. SEBI changes how brokers must handle unpaid securities
Sometimes an investor buys shares but doesn't pay the full amount immediately. Until now, brokers could hold onto those unpaid shares and use them however they liked — which left room for misuse. SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has now closed that loophole with a new "Auto-Pledge" system.
| Old System | New System (Auto-Pledge) |
| Broker could keep and use unpaid shares as they pleased | Shares are credited to the client's own Demat account immediately, but shown as "locked" (auto-pledged) |
| No fixed payment deadline | Client gets exactly 5 trading days to pay the full amount |
| Risk of misuse by brokers | If paid in time, shares are unlocked; if not, the broker can sell them in the market to recover dues |
2. RBI penalises Bank of Baroda and GIC Housing Finance
Banks and financial companies are regularly checked for whether they're following the rules properly, and when they slip up, the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) can fine them. This time, two institutions were caught on the wrong side of the rules.
- RBI imposed a combined penalty of ₹66.7 lakh on Bank of Baroda and GIC Housing Finance.
- Reason: non-compliance with KYC (Know Your Customer) norms and fair practice codes.
3. NPCI's Dilip Asbe joins SWIFT's Global Supervisory Board
India's digital payments story keeps growing on the global stage, and this appointment is being seen as a recognition of that. Dilip Asbe, MD & CEO of NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India), has become the first Indian to sit directly on SWIFT's top supervisory body.
| Point | Detail |
| NPCI runs | UPI, IMPS, NETC (FASTag), NACH, AePS |
| SWIFT full form | Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication |
| What SWIFT does | Sends secure cross-border payment messages between banks (it does NOT move the actual money) |
| SWIFT founded | 1973, headquartered in La Hulpe, Belgium |
| SWIFT code | 8 or 11 characters — Bank Code (4) + Country Code (2) + Location Code (2) + Branch Code (3, optional) |
Government Schemes & Infrastructure
1. PM Modi launches 'Viksit UDAN' (UDAN 2.0)
Regional air travel — especially to small towns and hilly areas — has always struggled because airlines don't find these routes profitable enough. Viksit UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) is the government's upgraded 10-year plan to fix exactly that.
| Component | Detail |
| Total outlay | ₹28,840 crore |
| Duration | 2026-27 to 2035-36 (10 years) |
| New airports | 100 in 8 years, ₹12,159 crore outlay |
| Maintenance support | 441 aerodromes covered for 3 years; ₹2,577 crore total |
| New heliports | 200 (₹15 crore each) for hilly/remote/island areas; ₹361 crore total |
| Viability Gap Funding (VGF) | ₹10,043 crore over 10 years, to help airlines run low-footfall routes |
| New aircraft | 2 HAL Dhruv Helicopters (Pawan Hans) + 2 HAL Dornier Aircraft (Alliance Air) |
The original UDAN scheme was launched in 2016 by the Ministry of Civil Aviation and is run by the AAI (Airports Authority of India). PM Modi announced this update in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, where he also inaugurated a new airport terminal building.
2. PM Modi inaugurates ₹1.06 lakh crore worth of projects in Rajasthan & Gujarat
Along with the UDAN 2.0 announcement, PM Modi opened two other major projects the same week — one in energy, one in electronics manufacturing. Both are meant to reduce India's dependence on imports.
| Project | Location | Key Detail |
| HRRL Refinery | Pachpadra, Rajasthan | India's first Greenfield Integrated Refinery-cum-Petrochemical Complex; ₹79,450 crore (HPCL + Rajasthan Government JV); capacity: 9 MMTPA refining, 2.4 MMTPA petrochemicals |
| CG Semi OSAT facility | Sanand, Gujarat | Semiconductor assembly & test unit; ₹7,500 crore investment; OSAT = Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test |
3. SAMARTH: A new semiconductor training hub in Gujarat
India currently depends heavily on countries like Taiwan, China, and the US for semiconductor chips. To build homegrown talent for this industry, Gujarat is setting up a dedicated research and training centre.
| Point | Detail |
| Full form | Silicon and Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Research and Training Hub |
| Location | IIT Gandhinagar |
| Investment | ₹190 crore |
| Funded by | MeitY (Ministry of Electronics & IT), Gujarat Dept. of Science & Technology, IIT Gandhinagar |
| Target | Train 10,000+ people in 5 years to make them "fab-ready" |
4. ADB approves $230 million loan to upgrade Chennai's water system
Clean water supply and proper sewage systems are basic needs that many Indian cities still struggle with, and Chennai is getting international funding to fix this. The Asian Development Bank (ADB), headquartered in Manila, Philippines, will support the upgrade.
- Will benefit around 4.5 million people in Greater Chennai.
- Involves laying 170 km of water supply and sewer pipelines.
- Will modernise 38 sewer pumping stations.
- Aligned with India's AMRUT 2.0 (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) scheme.
5. Government launches E-OCI (Electronic OCI) card
Overseas Citizens of India (foreign citizens of Indian origin) earlier had to carry a physical OCI booklet everywhere, which was easy to lose or damage. The government has now made this fully digital.
- OCI cardholders can keep their card on their smartphone — no physical booklet needed.
- Enables faster, real-time identity checks at airports and border crossings.
- Part of the broader digital governance push.
Defence
1. Adani Group to set up a defence manufacturing plant in Madhya Pradesh
- Location: Pali village, Shivpuri district, Madhya Pradesh (along National Highway 27).
- Investment: ₹2,500 crore.
- Foundation stone laid jointly by Jyotiraditya Scindia (Union Minister of Communications) and Mohan Yadav (Chief Minister, Madhya Pradesh).
International Relations
1. Keiko Fujimori wins Peru's presidential election
Peru has just elected its first-ever woman president after a long and closely fought race. Keiko Fujimori won on her fourth attempt at the presidency, defeating her rival by a razor-thin margin.
| Static Fact | Detail |
| Country | Peru (western South America) |
| Capital | Lima |
| Currency | Sol |
2. India-Israel Bilateral Investment Agreement (BIA) comes into force
India and Israel first signed this agreement back in September 2025, and it has now been officially enforced. The goal is to make it safer and more predictable for companies from both countries to invest in each other.
- Officially enforced from 4 July 2026.
- Signed originally in New Delhi, in the presence of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
- Both countries will now settle bilateral trade in their own currencies (Rupee and Shekel) — reducing reliance on the US Dollar.
- Both nations will contribute $1.5 million each towards joint research.
- A Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two is also under discussion.
3. Indian business leaders join the 'AI for Good Global Commission'
A new global group of over 40 top founders, company heads, and government officials has been formed to guide responsible AI development, and three Indians are part of it.
| Indian Leader | Position |
| Mukesh Ambani | Chairman, Reliance Industries |
| Sunil Bharti Mittal | Founder & Chairman, Bharti Enterprises |
| Lakshmi Mittal | Executive Chairman, ArcelorMittal |
This Commission held its first meeting alongside the UN AI for Good Global Summit 2026 in Geneva, Switzerland, organised by the ITU (International Telecommunication Union). India's Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, represented the country at the summit's UN Global Dialogue on AI Governance — a forum set up by the United Nations General Assembly.
Sports
1. Australia wins the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026
Australia continued their dominance in women's cricket by beating hosts England in a high-scoring final at the historic Lord's ground in London.
| Point | Detail |
| Result | Australia beat England (host nation) at Lord's |
| Title count | Australia's 7th T20 World Cup, 14th Women's World Cup overall |
| Player of the Match (Final) & Tournament | Beth Mooney (Australia) |
| Most Runs | Danni Wyatt (302 runs) |
| Most Wickets | Shree Charani (14) |
| Total teams | 12 |
2. Charles Leclerc wins the 2026 British Grand Prix
Formula 1's British Grand Prix produced a landmark result for one of the sport's most storied teams.
- Monaco's Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) won the race in the UK.
- This was his 9th F1 career victory.
- It marked Ferrari's 250th Grand Prix win in Formula 1 history — a historic milestone for the team.
Obituary
1. Teejan Bai, legendary Pandavani singer, passes away
India lost one of its most iconic folk artists this week — a woman who took a centuries-old storytelling tradition to the world stage.
- Hailed from Durg district, Chhattisgarh.
- Pandavani is a folk art form that combines storytelling and music, primarily narrating tales of the Pandavas from the Mahabharata.
- She was among the first women to perform the traditionally male-only 'Kapalik' style of Pandavani.
- Awards: Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan (India's 2nd-highest civilian honour), Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, and the Fukuoka Prize.
Important Day
World Rural Development Day — 6 July. Observed every year to highlight the importance of rural growth. The 2026 theme is "Financing the First Mile of Food Systems."
Book in News
'Better Never Stop: Leadership Insights from Life's Unscripted Moments': A new book authored by Shyam Srinivasan, a well-known banking leader, has been released.