Current Affairs 28 April 2026

NITI Aayog Publishes Report on Strengthening City Governance.

• Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs released a NITI Aayog report (25 April 2026) on urban governance reforms.
• Goal: Strong city governance for Viksit Bharat 2047 and $30 trillion economy.
• Governance Reforms:
• Directly elected Mayor with fixed tenure
• Mayor-in-Council system
• Financial Reforms:
• Boost own revenue
• Stable funds via State Finance Commissions
• Use of municipal bonds
• Service Delivery:
• Integrate water, sanitation, transport under city control
• Legal Changes:
• Amend state Municipal Acts
• Update Model Municipal Law
• Background:
• ULBs strengthened by 74th Constitutional Amendment Act

BharatGen and Larsen & Toubro Develop India’s Sovereign AI Platform.

• BharatGen Technology Foundation + Larsen & Toubro to build India’s sovereign AI platform.
• 5-year pact with 3-year implementation roadmap.
• Custom AI chips (ASIC, xPU) by L&T Semiconductor Technologies Ltd.
• Hyperscale data center (30 MW, Kanchipuram) by Larsen & Toubro-Vyoma.
• Focus on LLMs, LMMs, SLMs.
• Under IndiaAI Mission via Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

ISRO and Ministry of Panchayati Raj Finalize Nationwide Land Mapping.

• Indian Space Research Organisation and Ministry of Panchayati Raj completed nationwide high-resolution land mapping.
• 1:10,000 scale land use & land cover dataset for entire India.
• Integrated into Grammanchitra portal for local governance.
• Supports Gram Panchayat Development Plans (GPDPs).
• Reduces need for manual surveys; enables data-driven decentralized planning.

UNIDO Honors Guntur Municipal Corporation with Gender Equality Award.

• Guntur Municipal Corporation won 4th GEM (Gender Equality Mobilisation) Award from United Nations Industrial Development Organization.
• Key Initiative:.
• 200+ women deployed as electric auto drivers for waste collection.
• Integration of informal workers into formal green economy.
• Implemented under SCIAP (Sustainable Cities Integrated Approach Pilot).
• Also received state award for property tax collection (2025–26).

CCIC Unveils "Soul Threads" Heritage Designer Collection.

• Central Cottage Industries Corporation of India launched Soul Threads heritage designer collection.
• Exhibition: April 24 – May 10, 2026, New Delhi.
• Venue: CCIC flagship showroom, Janpath.
• Focus:
• Handloom sarees & designer wear.
• Artisanal jewellery & home furnishings.
• Features: Fashion show + cultural performances.