1 President Draupadi Murmu presented the Padma Awards at the second civilian award ceremony.
On June 23 , President Draupadi Murmu conferred the Padma Awards at Rashtrapati Bhavan . A total of 65 winners were awarded the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri . This includes 2 Padma Vibhushan and 7 Padma Bhushan . Journalist P. Narayanan was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in the field of literature and education and former judge K.T. Thomas was awarded the Padma Vibhushan for social service . Indian cricketer and former captain of the team Rohit Sharma, tennis icon Vijay Amritraj, veteran actor Mammootty and singer Alka Yagnik were awarded the Padma Bhushan. also honored with . American doctor Dattatreyudu Nori was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the field of medicine. Lyudmila Khokhlova of Russia was awarded the Padma Shri in the field of literature and education. Jharkhand’s first Chief Minister, Shibu Soren, was posthumously awarded the Padma Bhushan. His wife, Rupi Soren, attended to receive the award. The Padma Awards are one of India’s highest civilian honors. The Padma Vibhushan is the second highest civilian honor in the country, after the Bharat Ratna. The Padma Bhushan is the country’s third highest civilian award, and the Padma Shri is the fourth. These awards were announced on the eve of Republic Day, January 26, and this is its second phase. These awards are given for distinguished work in fields such as art, social service, science, industry, medicine, and literature. The government announced a total of 131 Padma Awards this year. These include five Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan, and 113 Padma Shri awards.
The Department of Youth Affairs, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India will be organising Vande Mataram camps across the country through the ‘My India’ campaign . . The first camp is being held in Kolkata, West Bengal, from June 24 to 30, 2026, on the occasion of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s birth anniversary . This is a major youth empowerment initiative aimed at strengthening national unity, constitutional values, and youth leadership. Envisioned as seven-day residential camps, the initiative aims to provide youth with opportunities to develop a deeper understanding of India’s constitutional and democratic traditions, while fostering cultural self-confidence and civic responsibility. These camps are in line with the vision of a developed India@2047 and aim to nurture a generation of informed, responsible, and nation-oriented young leaders. Under this initiative, 20 camps will be organized in identified districts, each with 150 young participants aged 15 to 29. Each camp will have representatives from six states, with mandatory representation from the Northeast. There will be at least 50 percent participation of women and socially disadvantaged sections.
On June 23 , the central government the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) . Under this , religious conversion has been removed from the “faith-based” category . Religious organizations and NGOs will no longer be able to use foreign funds for religious conversion . The government aims to prevent the misuse of foreign funds and strictly monitor foreign funding for religious conversion. Conversion will not be considered a religious activity, especially if it is carried out through foreign funds. Following this rule, strict action will be taken against conversions carried out through coercion, inducement, or undue influence. The government states that the amendment aims to increase transparency and prevent the misuse of foreign funds. The FCRA was first enacted in 1976 to control foreign influence. The new FCRA, 2010, was implemented, repealing the old law in 2010. It added rules for registration, renewal, and monitoring. In 2020, the rule was amended again, further tightening monitoring and control of foreign funding. The administrative expenditure cap was reduced from 50% to 20%.
Indian Professor Jainendra K. Jain , one of the world’s top theoretical physicists , one of , has won the prestigious Wolf Prize in Physics 2025 (awarded in 2026) for his discovery of composite fermions . This is a major landmark breakthrough that has transformed the way scientists understand the quantum world. The award was presented by Israeli President Isaac Herzog at a state ceremony in Jerusalem on June 18, 2026. Professor Jain is the first person of Indian origin to receive this honor since the award was established in 1978. He discovered composite fermions, a new way to understand how electrons behave in strong magnetic fields. This solved a major puzzle in physics, called the fractional quantum Hall effect. His work is a significant contribution to quantum physics. Professor Jainendra K. Jain is an Indian-American theoretical physicist.
The government officially took over Chennai Petroleum Corporation on June 19, 2026. granted a subsidiary of Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) , the 28th Navaratna status CPCL will no longer have to wait for government approval for any major financial move. The Department of Public Enterprises granted this status, and with it, CPCL joins a select group of 28 top government companies in India that enjoy this status.
On June 18, 2026 , Minister of State for Railways and Food Processing Industries, Shri Ravneet Singh Bittu announced the resumption of Punjab ‘s long-pending 39.68 km Qadian-Beas New Railway Line Project. 39.68 km Qadian-Beas New Railway Line project . The project, being implemented by the Northern Railway , was first approved in 1928-29 during the British era and is finally moving forward after nearly 100 years. The railway line connects Qadian (Gurdaspur District) to Beas (Amritsar District) in Punjab. It passes through the Majha region, an important cultural and religious area of Punjab. It will also serve as an alternative rail route to the Amritsar-Pathankot section in case of emergency. It will improve access to religious and spiritual sites, boosting religious tourism.
7 Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah launched NAFED’s e-auction portal NAFEX.in
Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah launched the e-auction portal NAFEX.in of National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited (NAFED) in New Delhi . On this occasion, several dignitaries including Union Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Minister of State for Cooperation Shri Krishan Pal Gurjar, Cooperation Secretary Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani and NAFED Chairman Shri Jethabhai Ahir were present. Addressing the event, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah said that NAFED has launched four major initiatives today, which include NAFEX.in , Drishti , ERP and NAFED Kalyan .
8 Prosperity Party wins big in Ethiopian elections
PM Modi on Tuesday congratulated Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and his Prosperity Party for their landslide victory in the country’s parliamentary elections . The party won 438 of the 486 seats in the House of Peoples’ Representatives in the general election held in June. According to the Ethiopian Constitution, the political party or coalition that wins a majority in the House of Representatives forms the government and nominates the prime minister.
9 Kunal Shah becomes the new global head of Meta
On June 22 , Meta appointed Kunal Shah as the new global head of WhatsApp . Meta is a parent company of Facebook and Instagram . Kunal is the founder of the CRED app and will replace Will Cathcart . Cathcart will now work on new projects related to artificial intelligence (AI) at Meta . Kunal founded the startup PaisaBack in 2009, which worked on consumer loyalty and cashback models. In 2015, Kunal acquired FreeCharge and Snapdeal for approximately ₹2,800 crore ($400 million). Kunal invested in more than 200 startups in India in 2016-2017, including Razorpay, Unacademy, and BharatPe. In June 2026, Meta Platforms invested $900 million in CRED. Meta also recently introduced new subscription plans for Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. Under this plan, “Plus” versions of the apps have been rolled out. Users who subscribe to these plans will get access to special tools and customization options.
10 Lionel Messi becomes the highest goalscorer
On June 22 , Argentina captain Lionel Messi became the leading goal scorer in the World Cup . Messi scored his 17th goal against Austria, breaking Germany’s Miroslav Klose’s record (16 goals) . With another late goal against Austria, Messi reached the World Cup record with 18 goals. Messi made history by scoring a field goal in the 39th minute at Dallas Stadium. He then scored a second goal in injury time (95th minute) to seal Argentina’s 2-0 victory. The 38-year-old Messi had scored a hat-trick against Algeria in the previous match, now leading the tournament with five goals. He is followed by Germany’s Deniz Undav with three. Messi has scored 11 international hat-tricks so far. He has won football’s most prestigious award, the Ballon d’Or, eight times. Messi will receive Spain’s prestigious “Princess of Asturias Award” in 2026. He is the first footballer to receive this award. Messi has been named FIFA Player of the Year eight times.
11 International Olympic Day
International Olympic Day, celebrated annually on June 23rd, is not merely a memorial but a celebration of the ideology that recognizes humanity as members of a shared global family, transcending caste, religion, language, color, and national boundaries. In ancient Greek philosophy, this was called “Arete,” meaning the development of the highest potential of body, mind, and spirit. According to historical records, the first official Olympic Games were held in 776 BC in Olympia, Greece, on the sacred banks of the Alpheus River, in honor of Zeus , the king of the gods . This event was not merely a sporting competition, but a celebration of religious, cultural, and social unity. At that time, Greece was divided into numerous city-states, between which conflicts and wars were constantly raging. However, as soon as the Olympic Games were announced, a “Sacred Truce” was imposed throughout Greece. Wars were stopped, weapons were silenced, and all borders were opened to athletes and spectators. In 393 AD, Roman Emperor Theodosius I banned them, deeming them a pagan tradition. Subsequent earthquakes and natural disasters buried Olympia’s magnificent structures, leaving the Olympics confined to historical memory for centuries. French educator and thinker Baron Pierre de Coubertin resolved to revive this dormant tradition. Coubertin’s tireless efforts culminated on June 23, 1894 , when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was established at a historic conference held at the Sorbonne University in Paris . Two years later , in 1896, the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens. This day marked the foundation of the modern Olympic movement. Later, in 1948, the tradition of celebrating International Olympic Day on this date began annually on June 23.