Welcome to the Ujiyari Rajasthan Current Affairs notes for 15 August 2026, prepared for RPSC and other State PCS aspirants. Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma hoisted the national flag at the state’s main 80th Independence Day ceremony at Dr Karni Singh Stadium, Bikaner, and used his address to announce the Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026, drafted by a committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai. In the same Bikaner visit, the CM inaugurated a Rs 807 crore development package and visited a Partition Horrors Remembrance exhibition, while the forest department fined 14 SUV owners for illegal off-roading inside Ranthambore’s Tiger Zone 8. Jaipur separately marked Hariyali Teej with its traditional royal procession. Each item below carries a Prelims fact table and a Mains angle, followed by five practice MCQs.

1. CM Bhajanlal Sharma Hoists Flag at Bikaner for 80th Independence Day

Why in News: CM Bhajan Lal Sharma hoisted the national flag and took the salute at the state’s main 80th Independence Day ceremony at Dr Karni Singh Stadium, Bikaner, on 15 August 2026.

What happened: The ceremonial parade featured 15 platoons in the march-past. The CM paid tribute to martyrs, freedom fighters and border-guarding soldiers, then visited Shaheed Smarak, Public Park, Bikaner, to lay a wreath.

Rajasthan Relevance:

  • Prelims: 80th Independence Day, 15 August 2026, state ceremony venue Dr Karni Singh Stadium, Bikaner; 15 platoons march-past; CM visits Shaheed Smarak, Public Park, Bikaner.
  • Mains: Discuss the significance of rotating the state-level Independence Day ceremony venue across different districts, and its role in reinforcing state government presence in border and peripheral regions.

2. CM Announces Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026 in Independence Day Address

Why in News: CM Bhajan Lal Sharma announced the Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026, invoking the spirit of Article 44, in his Independence Day address at Bikaner on 15 August 2026.

What happened: The Code covers marriage, divorce, prohibition of polygamy, mandatory live-in relationship registration, and equal inheritance rights, with tribal communities excluded under Articles 244/342. A five-member drafting committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai was constituted on 22 June 2026.

Rajasthan Relevance:

  • Prelims: Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026, announced 15 August 2026; invokes Article 44 (DPSP, Uniform Civil Code); drafting committee headed by Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, constituted 22 June 2026; Scheduled Tribes excluded under Articles 244/342.
  • Mains: Examine the constitutional basis for state-level Uniform Civil Code legislation under Article 44, and discuss the significance of excluding tribal communities under Articles 244 and 342 from such codification.

3. Forest Department Fines 14 SUV Owners for Illegal Off-Roading in Ranthambore Tiger Zone 8

Why in News: Rajasthan’s forest department fined 14 SUV owners Rs 1 lakh each for an illegal off-roading rally that entered restricted Tiger Zone 8 of Ranthambore National Park, reported 15 August 2026.

What happened: The rally, mostly Mahindra Thar and Scorpio-N vehicles from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Maharashtra, entered the zone during its monsoon safari-closure period. 12 vehicles were released after payment while 2 belonging to organisers were confiscated; a forest ranger and a forest guard were suspended over the lapse.

Rajasthan Relevance:

  • Prelims: Ranthambore, Tiger Zone 8; 14 SUV owners fined Rs 1 lakh each; 12 vehicles released, 2 confiscated; forest ranger and guard suspended.
  • Mains: Discuss the ecological risks of unauthorised vehicular activity in tiger reserve core zones during monsoon closure, and examine enforcement accountability mechanisms when forest department personnel fail to prevent such violations.

4. CM Inaugurates Rs 807 Crore Development Package in Bikaner District

Why in News: As part of the same Bikaner visit, CM Bhajan Lal Sharma inaugurated or announced 90 development projects worth Rs 807 crore on 15 August 2026.

What happened: The package includes a sub-district hospital with trauma centre in Sridungargarh (Rs 25 crore), a 527-bed medicine wing at PBM Hospital (funded via the Mundhra Charitable Trust), a new overbridge at Museum Circle Bikaner, road-widening on the Palna-Khajuwala/Bhursar-Ballar/Pugal-Makeri routes (Rs 105 crore), 47 PM-KUSUM solar plants (Rs 371 crore), and new 220kV/132kV grid sub-stations at Sheruna and Haddan.

Rajasthan Relevance:

  • Prelims: 90 development projects, Rs 807 crore, Bikaner district; PBM Hospital, 527-bed medicine wing; 47 PM-KUSUM solar plants, Rs 371 crore; new 220kV/132kV grid sub-stations at Sheruna and Haddan.
  • Mains: Discuss the role of the PM-KUSUM scheme in expanding decentralised solar power generation in arid regions like Bikaner, and examine public-private partnership models (such as charitable-trust hospital funding) in strengthening district-level healthcare infrastructure.

5. Hariyali Teej Royal Procession Held in Jaipur

Why in News: Jaipur celebrated Hariyali Teej with its traditional Teej Mata royal procession on 15 August 2026, coinciding with Independence Day.

What happened: The procession emerged from City Palace through Tripolia Gate, moving through Tripolia Bazaar, Chhoti Chaupar and Gangauri Bazaar to Chaugan Stadium, featuring decorated elephants, camels, and folk dancers performing Ghoomar, Kalbeliya and Bhavai.

Rajasthan Relevance:

  • Prelims: Hariyali Teej, Shukla Paksha Tritiya, Shravan month; Jaipur’s Teej Mata royal procession, route: City Palace, Tripolia Gate, Chaugan Stadium; folk dances: Ghoomar, Kalbeliya, Bhavai.
  • Mains: Discuss the significance of Rajasthan’s royal-heritage festival processions as instruments of cultural tourism and living heritage preservation.

Practice MCQs

1. CM Bhajanlal Sharma’s Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026, announced on 15 August 2026, is drafted by a committee headed by which former judge?

a) Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai b) Justice D.Y. Chandrachud c) Justice Indu Malhotra d) Justice B.V. Nagarathna

Answer: a Explanation: CM Bhajan Lal Sharma announced the Rajasthan Civil Code (RUCC) 2026 in his Independence Day address, invoking Article 44, with the drafting committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, constituted on 22 June 2026.

2. The 14 SUV owners fined Rs 1 lakh each on 15 August 2026 had entered which restricted zone of Ranthambore National Park?

a) Tiger Zone 3 b) Tiger Zone 8 c) Tiger Zone 5 d) Tiger Zone 1

Answer: b Explanation: An illegal off-roading rally, mostly Mahindra Thar and Scorpio-N SUVs, entered restricted Tiger Zone 8 of Ranthambore during its monsoon safari-closure period; the forest department fined 14 owners Rs 1 lakh each, releasing 12 vehicles after payment while confiscating 2 belonging to organisers.

3. The Rs 807 crore Bikaner development package inaugurated on 15 August 2026 included a 527-bed medicine wing funded via which charitable trust, at which hospital?

a) Mundhra Charitable Trust, PBM Hospital b) Birla Trust, SMS Hospital c) Piramal Foundation, Sawai Man Singh Hospital d) Tata Trust, AIIMS Jodhpur

Answer: a Explanation: The Rs 807 crore, 90-project Bikaner development package included a 527-bed medicine wing at PBM Hospital, funded via the Mundhra Charitable Trust, alongside a new sub-district hospital in Sridungargarh and 47 PM-KUSUM solar plants worth Rs 371 crore.

4. CM Bhajanlal Sharma’s Independence Day state ceremony venue on 15 August 2026 was Dr Karni Singh Stadium, located in which district?

a) Jaisalmer b) Bikaner c) Jodhpur d) Sri Ganganagar

Answer: b Explanation: The state’s main 80th Independence Day ceremony was held at Dr Karni Singh Stadium in Bikaner, where CM Bhajan Lal Sharma hoisted the flag, took the salute at a 15-platoon march-past, and later visited the Shaheed Smarak and a Partition Horrors Remembrance exhibition in the same city.

5. Jaipur’s Hariyali Teej royal procession on 15 August 2026 followed a route from City Palace through which gate to Chaugan Stadium?

a) Tripolia Gate b) Ajmeri Gate c) Chandpol Gate d) Sanganeri Gate

Answer: a Explanation: The traditional Teej Mata royal procession emerged from City Palace through Tripolia Gate, moving through Tripolia Bazaar, Chhoti Chaupar and Gangauri Bazaar to Chaugan Stadium, featuring decorated elephants, camels and folk dancers performing Ghoomar, Kalbeliya and Bhavai.