22nd APRIL CURRENT AFFAIRS

1. 18thNational Civil Services Day -21st April

This day commemorates the first time Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the first Home Minister of Independent India, addressed the first batch of administrative officers in 1947.

On April 21, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel addressed IAS probationers at Metcalfe House, Delhi. He quoted civil servants the “Steel Frame of India” and stressed integrity and neutrality

Theme for 2026: "Viksit Bharat: Citizen-Centric Governance and Development at the Last Mile

Formal Declaration in 2006: The Government of India officially declared April 21 as Civil Services Day.

The Mission Karmayogi Capacity Building reform focuses on skill based training for civil servants through digital platforms, making administration more efficient and future ready.

Platforms like CPGRAMS improve grievance redressal and transparency, ensuring faster and more accountable public service delivery

Evolution of Civil Services in India

Lord Cornwallis (1786-93)-Father of Civil Services in India”.

The Civil Service was brought into existence by Lord Cornwallis (1786-93)

The Company's Civil Services actually rose to become the highest-paid profession worldwide.

Introduced merit-based system.

Lord Dalhousie

The Charter Act of 1853introduced competitive exams for ICS entry, theoretically open to Indians.

Indiana civil service act 1961 Satyendranath Tagore (first Indian ICS officer, 1864

Public service commission

First ICS exam held in India 1922

Public Service Commission: It was set up on 1 October 1926.

The first Commission was established with four members and a chairman, with Sir Ross Barker as its first chairman.

The Government of India Act, 1935 led to the creation of a Federal Public Service Commission and provincial commissions, bringing partial administrative autonomy.

Body was later renamed the Federal Public Service Commission in 1937 and finally the Union Public Service Commission on January 26, 1950

Constitutional Status: It was granted status as a constitutional body under Article 378 of the Indian Constitution when it came into force in 1950

Commission related to Public service

Islington Commission’s Report (1917): It recommended that 25% of the higher government posts should go to Indians.

Royal Commission on Superior Civil Service in India (1923): The commission was set up under the chairmanship of Lord Lee.

It recommended the division of main services into 3 classes – All India Services, Central Services and Provincial Services.

After Independence

With independence, ICS transformed into the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). British officers phased out by the 1950s. Indian officers shaped the IAS as a unified, democratic service.

2.. The Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration 2026

The Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration has been designed to acknowledge, recognize and reward exemplary work done by civil servants across the country

Category 1: Holistic Development of Districts under 11 priority sector programmes. Under this category, 5 awards would be conferred

(i) Har Ghar Jal Yojana

(ii) Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin)

(iii) Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban)

(iv) Mission Indradhanush

(v) Pradhan Mantri -Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY)

(vi) PM SVANidhi

(vii) Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana

(viii) Kisan Credit Card Scheme for Farmers, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries

(ix) PM Vishwakarma

(x) Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0

(xi) PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana

Category 2: Aspirational Blocks Program. Under this category, 5 awards would be conferred.

Category 3: Innovations for Central Ministries/Departments States, Districts. Under this category, 6 awards would be conferred

The PM’s Awards portal was launched on 01st October, 2025. The portal was made operational for registration and submission of nomination from 01st October, 2025 to 30th November, 2025.

2035 nominations were received on the PM Awards portal. The category wise break up of nominations received were

(a) Holistic Development of Districts- 513

(b) Aspirational Blocks Program- 464

(c) Innovations- 1058

The PM’s Awards, 2025 will consist of: (i) Trophy, (ii) Scroll and (iii) an incentive of Rs. 20 lakhs to the awarded District/organization.

3 .M.S. Swaminathan Award

Dr. Ch. Srinivasa Rao was conferred the 9th Prof. M.S. Swaminathan Award for his work in climate-resilient farming

M S Swaminathan Award was instituted in 2004 to recognize the lifetime contributions of eminent persons who have made great impacts in the field of Agriculture

Is abiennial award constituted bythe Retired Indian Council of Agricultural Research Employees Association (RICAREA) and Nuziveedu Seeds Limited (NSL).

The awardcarries a Cash prize of Rs.2 lakhs(Rupees Two Lakhs only),a Medal, and a Citation

MS Swaminathan

Monkomb Sambasivan (MS) Swaminathan, hailed as the 'Father of the India’s Green Revolution,

He was deeply influenced by Mahatma Gandhi's principles and India's struggle for independence.

He served as the Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR),

He was widely recognized for his pivotal role in the Green Revolution, a transformative phase in Indian agriculture that significantly increased crop productivity and ensured Food Security for the nation.

One of its recommendations, that Minimum Support Prices (MSP) should at least be 50% more than average production

the Padma Shri (1967), Padma Bhushan (1972) and Padma Vibhushan (1989). Ramon Magsaysay Award (1971) and the Albert Einstein World Science Award (1986)

4.500th Years of Panipat Battle

April 21st marks the 500th anniversary of the First Battle of Panipat (April 21, 1526), a pivotal conflict where the outnumbered forces of Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur defeated the Lodi Sultanate.

Happened In: The battle took place on April 21, 1526, on the plains of Panipat (present-day Haryana, India)

Kingdoms Involved:

The Timurid Forces: Led by Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur, a fugitive prince from Ferghana (Central Asia) with approximately 12,000 men.

The Lodi Sultanate: Led by Ibrahim Lodi, the last Sultan of Delhi, commanding a vast force estimated at nearly 100,000 men and hundreds of war elephants.

Background to the Battle:

Daulat Khan Lodi (Governor of Punjab) and Alam Khan (Ibrahim’s uncle) sought Babur’s help to overthrow Ibrahim Lodi’s perceived tyranny. Babur, having lost his ancestral lands in Central Asia, viewed Hindustan as a site for a new, permanent kingdom.

Ibrahim Lodi was killed on the battlefield, leading to the immediate fall of Delhi and Agra to Babur’s forces.

5.climate resilience through ‘India Cooling Action Plan:

Addressing the Global Heat and Cooling Forum in New Delhi, the Minister Jitendra Singh noted that the Cooling Action Plan has already been implemented in over 250 cities.

6. Rosalind Franklin (ROSA) Mission to Mars

NASA has given approval for the agency’s Rosalind Franklin Support and Augmentation (ROSA) project to begin implementation, underscoring the agency’s continued partnership with ESA’s (European Space Agency) Rosalind Franklin mission.

The mission is led by ESA and that agency is responsible for providing the spacecraft, including the carrier module, the landing platform, as well as the rover and surface operations.

Scheduled to launch in 2028, Rosalind Franklin will be the first Mars rover to search for signs of past or present life under the Red Planet’s surface

NASA has selected SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket to launch the Rosalind Franklin mission from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida

The ExoMars mission is a joint European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA program (formerly with Roscosmos) designed to search for signs of past or present life on Mars

It consists of two missions: the successful 2016 Trace Gas Orbiter and the upcoming Rosalind Franklin rover, now targeting a 2028 launch to drill for subsurface biological signatures.

7. World Earth Day 2026

World Earth Day 2026 is observed globally to promote environmental protection and sustainable living. It was initiated in 1970

175 world leaders signed the Paris Climate Agreement on Earth Day, reinforcing its importance in global environmental governance and climate action.

The theme for World Earth Day 2026 highlights the importance of renewable energy and collective environmental responsibility worldwide. The 2026 theme “Our Power, Our Planet”