Rajasthan

Appearance

Current Affairs - August 2025

International News & Health

  • WHO (World Health Organization) has certified Nepal for Rubella elimination.
    • This certification is granted when a country reports no new cases for three consecutive years.
    • Previously, Timor-Leste and Bhutan also received Rubella-free certification.
    • Rubella is a viral disease caused by the Morbillivirus.
    • India has been declared free of smallpox, polio, and recently, Trachoma.
    • Jordan is free of Leprosy.
    • Suriname has been declared Malaria-free.
  • World Mosquito Day is observed on August 20th.
    • This date commemorates Ronald Ross's discovery in 1897 that malaria is transmitted by female Anopheles mosquitoes.
    • Mosquitoes are vectors for diseases like Dengue (Aedes aegypti, viral agent), Chikungunya, Japanese Encephalitis, and Malaria (Plasmodium protozoa).
  • August 20th is also observed as Sadhbhavana Diwas (birth anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi) and Akshay Urja Diwas (Renewable Energy Day) in India.

Defence & Technology

  • The Central Government approved a deal for 97 Tejas Mark 1A aircraft for the Indian Air Force.
    • The deal is valued at ₹62,000 crore.
    • The aircraft are manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which is India's latest Maharatna company.
    • The Tejas (Light Combat Aircraft - LCA) will replace the aging MiG-21 fleet.
    • The name "Tejas" was suggested by Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2003.
    • "Prachand" refers to Light Combat Helicopters (LCH).
  • The Trojan 155 artillery system is being developed by India with the cooperation of France.
  • India will supply BrahMos missiles to Indonesia, following a previous deal with the Philippines.
  • India's first air taxi prototype, 'Shunya', was launched by the Bengaluru-based aerospace startup, Sarala Aviation.
  • The MeerKAT Telescope in South Africa discovered the "Inkathane" galaxy, which is 32 times larger than the Milky Way.
  • Indian Railways launched the 'Swarel' super app for seamless travel experience.

Government Initiatives & Policy

  • Lok Sabha proceedings now include Konkani, Kashmiri, and Santhali languages, bringing the total to all 22 languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.
    • Constitutional amendments related to languages: 21st Amendment (1967) added Sindhi; 71st Amendment (1992) added Nepali, Manipuri, Konkani; 92nd Amendment (2003) added Bodo, Dogri, Santhali, Maithili.
    • Part 17 of the Constitution (Articles 343-351) deals with Official Languages.
    • Currently, India has 11 Classical Languages, including the 6 original ones (Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Odia, Sanskrit) and 5 newly added in 2024 (Prakrit, Pali, Assamese, Bengali, Marathi).
  • The second Green Hydrogen Plant in India (and first in Uttar Pradesh) will be inaugurated in Khanipur village, Gorakhpur.
    • It will be established by Torrent Power Company and the hydrogen produced will be mixed with CNG and PNG.
    • Hydrogen is considered the cleanest fuel and "fuel of the future."
    • India's first 'Make in India' Green Hydrogen Plant was established in Kandla, Gujarat (now Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Port), which is also India's first Special Economic Zone (SEZ).
  • Karnataka's Shakti Yojana has entered the Golden Book of World Records.
    • The scheme provides free bus travel for women.
    • It has provided over ₹500 crore worth of free travel to women passengers.
  • West Bengal launched the 'Shramshree Yojana'.
    • This scheme provides ₹5000 per month in financial assistance for one year to migrant workers returning to the state.
    • West Bengal also mandated that cinema halls must screen Bengali films.
    • The state has requested the central government to rename it "Bangla."
  • Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the Onto Simaria Project in Gaya, Bihar.
    • This project includes a 6-lane, 2 km long bridge over the Ganga River, connecting Mokama (Patna district) to Begusarai district.
    • Other infrastructure developments in Bihar include a Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) substation in Muzaffarpur and a 660 MW thermal power plant in Buxar. Muzaffarpur is also famous for its Shahi Litchi.
  • Bihar became the first state to launch a Rural Cricket League.
  • As per Budget 2025-26, the estimated fiscal deficit is 4.4% of GDP.
  • The tax-exempt income limit for individuals has been raised to ₹12 lakh in Budget 2025-26.
  • The Digital Tree Aadhaar initiative for Chinar trees was launched in Jammu & Kashmir.

Awards & Recognitions

  • Urvashi Sinha (Raman Research Institute) received the Gates Cambridge Impact Award for her contributions in the Quantum field.
  • The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) was selected for the Subhash Chandra Bose Disaster Management Award 2025.
  • Udaipur and Indore are the first Indian cities to be included in the recognized Wetland Cities list.
  • Seven individuals received the Padma Vibhushan award in 2025, including Sharda Sinha, Lakshminarayan Subramaniam, Kumudini Lakhia, Nageshwar Reddy, Justice Khehar, Osamu Suzuki (Japan), and T. Vasudevan.
  • Jasprit Bumrah received the ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year Award and the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year.

Other News

  • The 85th All India Presiding Officers' Conference was held in Patna.
  • The Flamingo Festival was held in Andhra Pradesh.
  • The FIDE Chess World Cup 2025 will be hosted by India.
  • Michael Martin is the Prime Minister of Ireland.
  • The first private company to receive a Type Certificate for Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft from DGCA is E-plane Company.
  • The National Table Tennis Championship 2025 women's singles title was won by Diya Chitale.
  • ISRO launched its 100th mission, NVH2, using the GSLV F15 rocket.
  • Uttar Pradesh's tableau received the Best Tableau Award at the Republic Day Parade 2025, as per the Defence Ministry.
  • The 'Shramshree Yojana' in West Bengal aims to rehabilitate migrant workers.
  • Research by Banaras Hindu University (BHU) suggests that a high rate of TB in the Sahariya tribe (primarily in Madhya Bharat, including Vidisha district) is due to genetic factors.
    • TB is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, discovered by Robert Koch, and prevented by the BCG vaccine. The Ni-kshay Portal is also related to TB eradication.
    • BHU's founder was Madan Mohan Malaviya.
  • Tilak Varma holds the world record for an unbeaten 318 runs in T20 cricket.
  • Dibrugarh will be Assam's second capital.
  • The Mahakumbh stampede inquiry committee was headed by Harsh Kumar.
  • The Indian Army's Madras Regiment conducted a 13,359 km 'Veer Yatra' bike rally in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.