India’s Anna Chakra selected as finalist for 2026 Franz Edelman Award.

Exam-focused facts from the 26 January 2026 current affairs briefing.

Key facts

Anna Chakra is an operations research–based decision support system developed by the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD), United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) India, and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi to optimise foodgrain logistics under India’s Public Distribution System (PDS).
The initiative has delivered estimated annual savings of ₹250 crore in logistics costs and a 35% reduction in carbon emissions while benefiting over 81 crore PDS beneficiaries.
Anna Chakra was earlier awarded the CDSA–ORSI Excellence in Management Science and Analytics Practice Award 2026 at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
The 2026 Franz Edelman Award winner will be announced at the INFORMS Analytics+ Conference in National Harbor, Maryland, USA, from 12–14 April 2026.