Current Affairs January 2026 – Monthly Compilation

January 2026 was dominated by two set-pieces examiners return to every year: the 77th Republic Day, which for the first time had European Union leaders as chief guests, and the Padma Awards, of which 131 were announced. This compilation is arranged under the headings objective papers actually use.

Awards and Honours

The Government announced 131 Padma Awards for 2026 — 5 Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri. 19 awardees are women and 16 honours were conferred posthumously.

Persons in News

• Dharmendra, veteran actor — Padma Vibhushan, awarded posthumously.
• V. S. Achuthanandan, former Chief Minister of Kerala — Padma Vibhushan, posthumously.
• Shibu Soren, founder of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and former Chief Minister of Jharkhand — Padma Bhushan, posthumously.
• Alka Yagnik, playback singer, and Mammootty, actor — Padma Bhushan.
• Jual Oram, Minister of Tribal Affairs, hosted 90 distinguished tribal guests invited to the Republic Day celebrations.

Places in News

Kartavya Path, New Delhi — venue of the 77th Republic Day parade on 26 January 2026, with European Union leaders as chief guests, the first time the EU has been so honoured. The ordinal is arithmetic worth fixing once: the Constitution came into force on 26 January 1950, which was the first Republic Day, so 2026 is the 77th. Counting from 1947 is the usual mistake.

Economy

The Budget Session of Parliament began on 28 January 2026, its first phase running to 13 February. The President addressed both Houses on 28 January, the Economic Survey 2025-26 was presented on 29 January, and the Union Budget 2026-27 followed on 1 February 2026. That order — address, Survey, Budget — is fixed and is often set as a sequencing question.

The HSBC Flash Composite PMI for January came in at 59.5, a sharply expansionary reading. The threshold matters more than the number: above 50 is expansion, below 50 contraction. The RBI and the IMF both projected headline inflation rising gradually through 2026-27 while staying inside the target band of 4% (±2%).

Sports

Three sportspersons received the Padma Shri: Harmanpreet Kaur and Savita Punia, and Rohit Sharma. Sporting Padma awards are asked far more often than the sporting results of the same month, so learn the names with the class of award attached.

Abbreviations

Quick revision

1. 77th Republic Day, 26 January 2026, Kartavya Path. Chief guests: European Union leaders, a first.
2. 131 Padma Awards — 5 Vibhushan, 13 Bhushan, 113 Shri; 19 women, 16 posthumous.
3. Dharmendra and V. S. Achuthanandan — Padma Vibhushan, both posthumous.
4. Budget Session opened 28 January; Economic Survey 29 January; Union Budget 2026-27 1 February.
5. Composite PMI 59.5; 50 is the line between expansion and contraction.