17.07.25 Current Affairs

ONE-LINER Current Affairs

National

• The Supreme Court, while adjudicating cases of political polarization, observed that regionalism used as a political weapon could be equally divisive as communalism, thereby underlining the importance of constitutional nationalism.
• A set of uniform Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) has been mandated by the Court for the collection, labeling, custody, and transport of DNA evidence to ensure chain-of-custody integrity in criminal proceedings.
• The government introduced the ADEETIE scheme (Accelerated Deployment of Energy Efficient Technologies in MSME Sector), with ₹1,000 crore allocated to support 14 energy-intensive sectors through subsidies and technical aid for efficiency upgradation.
• The Skill India Mission marked its 10-year milestone, having trained over 1.6 crore youth, including significant participation by women (approx. 45%), across 38 economic sectors and in partnership with 300+ industry bodies.
• The MoSPI–UN SIAP Regional Workshop on Data Ethics emphasized the integration of ethical principles like algorithmic fairness, privacy safeguards, transparency, and grievance redressal mechanisms in public statistical systems.

Social Development and Welfare

• The Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) reported a significant reduction in zero-dose children by over 43% between 2023 and 2024, attributed to targeted outreach under Intensified Mission Indradhanush and digital immunization tracking.
• As per the UN SDG 2025 Progress Report, India made significant strides in vaccination access, maternal care, and basic service delivery, though challenges persist in learning outcomes, poverty reduction, and nutrition.
• The CAG audit raised concerns over state-level implementation delays in urban flood planning, despite escalating monsoon vulnerability in regions like Bihar, Assam, and Delhi NCR.

Economic Affairs and Trade

• India’s trade deficit expanded in June due to heightened import bills from crude oil and gold, despite stable performance in pharmaceuticals and electronics.
• GST collections remained buoyant, crossing ₹1.6 lakh crore for the eighth consecutive month, suggesting consistent consumption trends and improved compliance.
• The government is actively working to improve the Ease of Doing Business for exporters, particularly by streamlining Global Capability Centres (GCCs) — with India currently hosting over 1,800 GCCs employing 2.1 million people.
• Discussions are underway to scale up Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, expand the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) programme, and negotiate newer Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to strengthen outbound trade capacity.

Energy, Infrastructure, and Climate Resilience

• India surpassed its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) for non-fossil fuel energy targets by achieving 50% installed electricity capacity from renewable sources, five years ahead of the 2030 commitment under the Paris Agreement.
• Coal India and other PSUs are pushing captive green energy installations in operational mines to decarbonize their supply chain.
• The ADEETIE scheme will also act as a demand aggregator for energy-efficient machinery, creating economies of scale for smaller industrial players.
• Despite progress, a CAG report flagged that many states have not yet operationalised their city-level flood vulnerability mapping, hindering adaptive infrastructure planning.
• The CPCB announced that its real-time air quality monitoring grid will now expand to Tier-2 cities under the National Clean Air Programme.

Science, Technology, and Innovation

• The LIGO–Virgo–KAGRA collaboration detected the heaviest gravitational wave merger (GW231123) yet observed, indicating the coalescence of two intermediate-mass black holes (~100 and ~140 solar masses).
• India’s domestic LIGO-India facility in Maharashtra, being developed with international collaboration, is expected to enhance global gravitational wave detection coverage.
• The DRDO delivered six indigenous Radiation Monitoring Systems (RMS) to the Indian Navy for real-time detection of nuclear and radiological hazards in maritime zones.
• ISRO’s urban heat island mapping mission, developed in collaboration with multiple IITs, will use high-resolution satellite imagery to identify urban thermal hotspots for climate-sensitive planning.

International Relations and Global Reports

• The UN SDG 2025 global snapshot revealed that over 272 million children were out of school in 2023, 8.9% of the global population lives in extreme poverty, and global hunger remains at pre-pandemic levels.
• Climate-induced displacement rose sharply with 123 million people displaced in 2024, reaffirming the humanitarian need for integrated climate–migration–development frameworks.
• India reiterated support for African Union-led efforts in Sudan peace negotiations, reflecting its commitment to multilateral regionalism under the Global South paradigm.

Public Health and Epidemiology

• WHO’s technical bulletin on arboviral diseases urged countries, including India, to integrate vector surveillance, public awareness, and early warning systems for dengue, chikungunya, and Zika-like infections, whose spread is amplified by climate change.
• Kerala intensified surveillance for Nipah virus, following WHO alerts, with integrated hospital and wildlife monitoring.

Geography, Mapping & Environment

• Odisha’s mangrove restoration success contributed to a marginal net gain in India’s total mangrove cover, aided by drone mapping and community replantation drives.
• States have been asked to implement GIS and drone-based forest encroachment tracking systems to combat deforestation around protected areas.
• The CPCB’s pollution load forecasting system, used for air quality planning in NCR, will now be replicated in Ahmedabad, Lucknow, and Patna.

Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY)

Context: To boost agricultural productivity and promote sustainable practices in underperforming districts, the Union Cabinet has approved the Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY) with a six-year plan starting 2025-26. Announced in the Union Budget 2025-26, the scheme consolidates 36 existing schemes from 11 ministries and introduces integrated district-level planning, aiming to support 1.7 crore farmers through targeted interventions like improved irrigation, storage, credit access, and allied agricultural activities.

Key Highlights:

• 36 schemes across 11 ministries merged under one umbrella — PMDDKY.
• Annual outlay: ₹24,000 crore for six years (2025–2031).
• Targets 1.7 crore farmers nationwide.
• Focus on low-productivity, low-cropping intensity, and low-credit disbursement districts.
• At least 100 districts to be covered; each state/UT to have a minimum of one district selected.
• Implementation via district, state, and national-level committees.
• Local planning: District Dhan Dhaanya Samitis to include progressive farmers.
• Emphasis on post-harvest storage, credit availability, irrigation improvement, natural & organic farming, and value addition.
• Monthly monitoring and alignment with national goals like crop diversification, soil & water conservation, and self-reliance.
• Inspired by the Aspirational District Programme.
• Experts call for refining selection metrics, suggesting income per hectare instead of low-credit disbursement.

CERN’s Large Hadron Collider

Context: For the first time, scientists at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider have observed CP violation in baryons—particles that make up most of the visible matter. This breakthrough provides a significant clue to why the universe is made mostly of matter, despite originating with equal amounts of matter and antimatter.

Key Highlights:

• CP violation refers to the difference in behavior between matter and antimatter under certain conditions.
• Previously observed only in mesons, this is the first confirmed instance in baryons (like protons and neutrons).
• The study focused on the decay of the b⁰ baryon, which showed a 2.45% asymmetry compared to its antimatter counterpart.
• The results were based on data collected by the LHCb detector between 2011 and 2018.
• Machine learning and statistical tools helped distinguish real decay signals from background noise.
• The observed CP violation aligns with predictions of the Standard Model of particle physics.
• However, the amount of CP violation observed is still too small to fully explain the matter-antimatter imbalance.
• The discovery opens doors for identifying “new physics” beyond the Standard Model.
• Scientists aim to next determine the complex phase of CP violation in baryons, crucial for deeper understanding.
• The result satisfies one of the Sakharov conditions—criteria needed to explain why matter prevailed over antimatter.
• Further theoretical and experimental work is needed to solve the full puzzle of the universe’s matter dominance.

Israeli Airstrikes

Context: Israel launched rare and direct airstrikes on central Damascus, targeting Syrian military sites, as deadly clashes between Syrian government forces and Druze militias escalated in the city of Sweida. A new ceasefire has been announced after the previous one collapsed.

Key Highlights:

• Israeli Airstrikes:
  • Struck the Syrian Defence Ministry HQ in Damascus.
  • Additional strikes hit near the presidential palace.
  • Followed an earlier drone strike; at least 13 people were injured.
• Sweida Clashes:
  • Clashes between Syrian Army and Druze militias ongoing.
  • Over 300 people killed in recent days; includes civilians and soldiers.
  • Interior Ministry announced a new ceasefire and security checkpoint deployment.
• Israel’s Role:
  • Israel claims to support Druze minorities.
  • Defence Minister Katz warned of more strikes, saying “painful blows have begun.”
  • Troops pulled from Gaza to Golan Heights in preparation for escalation.
• Casualties and Violations:
  • Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports:
    • 250+ killed (including 138 soldiers and 9 civilians).
    • 21 people reportedly executed in the field.
  • Syrian Interim President condemned ceasefire violations.

U.S. to Build Naval Repair Facilities

Context: To bolster the Philippines’ maritime capabilities in the face of rising tensions with China, the U.S. Navy will build two boat repair and maintenance sites in Palawan, a province strategically located near the disputed South China Sea.

Key Highlights:

• Facility Locations:
  • Sites will be established in Oyster Bay and Quezon town, both in western Palawan province.
• Strategic Importance:
  • Palawan directly faces the South China Sea, a region with escalating confrontations involving China and other claimants.
  • It is home to the Western Command of the Philippine military.
• Purpose of Facilities:
  • To support repair and maintenance of Philippine military vessels, enhancing readiness in the region.
  • Aimed at improving maritime defense infrastructure amid growing Chinese assertiveness.
• U.S.-Philippines Defense Ties:
  • Part of a broader 2014 defense pact allowing U.S. troops to rotate through and build infrastructure on Philippine military bases.
  • The U.S. has already built warehouses, barracks, and storage facilities at nine such bases.
• Geopolitical Backdrop:
  • The South China Sea is claimed by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan.
  • It is a major flashpoint in U.S.-China strategic competition in Asia.

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR)

Context:
The Indian government has stepped up efforts to monitor and control the sudden surge in imports and dumping of goods that harm domestic industries. Using various arms of the Commerce Ministry, such as the DGFT and DGTR, India is targeting malpractices by trading partners to safeguard economic interests.

Key Highlights:

• The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) began anti-dumping investigations on 8 product lines from 12 countries or groups in June 2025.
• Countries under investigation include China, Taiwan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Switzerland, EU, Egypt, and Indonesia.
• DGFT restricted imports of palladium, rhodium, and iridium alloys containing >1% gold to prevent disguised gold imports.
• The government is sharing import surge reports across ministries for coordinated monitoring.
• The Commerce Ministry is examining whether surges are due to malpractices or trade diversion, and responding accordingly.
• Products under investigation include industrial chemicals, paperboards, and glass wool.
• Dumping involves exporting goods at unfairly low prices, undercutting domestic producers.