Current Context:Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa wins the run-off round of the presidential election, securing a full four-year term

Current Context: On April 14, 2025, Telangana became the first Indian state to implement Scheduled Castes (SC) sub-categorisation, under the Telangana Scheduled Castes (Rationalisation of Reservations) Act, 2025.

About

• Objective: Ensure targeted benefits to the most disadvantaged groups within SCs.
• Act Passed: Telangana Scheduled Castes (Rationalisation of Reservations) Act, 2025
• Gazette Notification: April 14, 2025 (Ambedkar Jayanti)
• Legal Backing: Aligned with Supreme Court’s August 2024 verdict allowing SC/ST sub-classification for equitable reservation.

 Sub-Categorisation Details

• SCs divided into 3 groups based on backwardness:
• Group I: 15 most backward sub-castes – 1% reservation
• Group II: 18 marginalised sub-castes – 9% reservation
• Group III: 26 relatively better-off sub-castes – 5% reservation

Current Context: The Dharmadam Assembly constituency in Kannur, Kerala has been declared the first extreme poverty-free constituency in Kerala. The Chief Minister of Kerala has pledged to make the entire state extreme poverty-free by November 1, 2025.

About Extreme Poverty:

• World Bank Definition: People living on less than $2.15/day (based on 2017 PPP)
• Indicators: Food availability, Health, Income& Housing
• Kerala Institute of Local Administration prepared the yardstick for identification.

Key Initiatives:

• Right to Swift Assistance: Issuance of Aadhar, ration cards, voter IDs, job cards, and access to welfare schemes
• LIFE scheme: Housing provided
• Support through Kudumbashree & Panchayat: Healthcare, food aid, and income-generation schemes

Current context :Bihar to host the 7th edition of KIYG from May 4–15, 2025,events to be held in Patna, Gaya, Rajgir, Begusarai, and Bhagalpur.

• Mascot: “Gajsimha” – Symbolizing elephant’s power and lion’s heart, inspired by Pala dynasty carvings.

About Khelo India Movement

• Launched: 2017
• Objective: Promote grassroots sports and identify young athletic talent.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports

Highlights of KIYG 2025

• Over 8,500 athletes expected – second only to the National Games in scale.
• 27 sports disciplines, including:
• Popular sports – Volleyball, Football, Boxing, Kabaddi
• Indigenous games – Malkhamb, Sepak Takraw

Current Context: On World Quantum Day (April 14, 2025), QNu Labs, a startup under the National Quantum Mission, launched Q-Shield — the world’s first platform for quantum-safe cybersecurity.

About

• Q-Shield is a quantum-safe platform for enterprises to secure critical infrastructure.
• It supports seamless cryptography management across cloud, on-premise, or hybrid environments.

QNu Labs & National Quantum Mission

• QNu Labs was incubated at IIT Madras Research Park in 2016.
• Selected by Department of Science and Technology (DST) under the National Quantum Mission (NQM).
• Aims to make India a global leader in quantum cryptography.

Current Context: An Indian Air Force transport aircraft carrying relief to earthquake-hit Myanmar in March 2025 experienced a GPS spoofing attack.

About

• A cyberattack where false GPS signals are broadcast to mislead a GPS receiver.
• The aircraft or vehicle is tricked into navigating based on fake location data.

Implications

• Navigation Disruption: May cause aircraft to deviate from course or report incorrect positions.
• Operational Risk: Can compromise humanitarian missions, military operations, and civil aviation.
• Electronic Warfare Threat: Especially in conflict-prone or hostile regions with high reliance on satellite-based systems.

Current context: The Cheetah Project Steering Committee has approved the relocation of cheetahs from Kuno National Park to Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh (~300 km away).

• The aim is to create a metapopulation of 60–70 cheetahs across the Kuno-Gandhi Sagar landscape, including parts of Rajasthan.

About

• Launched: 2022
• Objective: Reintroduce cheetahs in India, extinct since 1952.

Initial Introduction:

• 8 cheetahs from Namibia
• 12 from South Africa
• Casualties so far: 8 adult cheetahs and 5 cubs have died.

Implementing Agencies

• National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) – Statutory body under Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

In collaboration with:

• Madhya Pradesh Forest Department
• Wildlife Institute of India (WII)
• Cheetah experts from Namibia and South Africa

Current Context: Israel announced the complete takeover of the Morag Axis, a new security corridor in southern Gaza.

About

• Location: Cuts across southern Gaza, between Rafah and Khan Yunis.

Strategic Purpose:

• Links the Philadelphi Route (along Egypt-Gaza border) to Morag, a former Israeli settlement.
• Forms part of a wider Israeli-controlled buffer/security zone.

Related Corridors

• Philadelphi Corridor: Narrow land strip along Gaza-Egypt border, Under Israeli control since 2024.
• Netzarim Corridor: Cuts through central Gaza, linking northern and southern Israeli military positions.

• Observed on: April 17 every year, marking the birth anniversary of Frank Schnabel, founder of the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH).
• Established by: WFH in 1989 to raise awareness on hemophilia and other inherited bleeding disorders.
• Theme 2025: “Access for All: Women and Girls Bleed Too” — focusing on gender-inclusive diagnosis and treatment.
• Significance: Highlights the need for early diagnosis, comprehensive care, and equal treatment access, especially in developing countries.

Current Context: The Union Government has allocated Rs 15 crore for the construction of Himachal Pradesh’s longest bridge over the Beas River near Pong Reservoir in the Fatehpur Assembly constituency. The bridge, part of the Setu Bharatam Scheme, is expected to improve interstate connectivity between Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.

Key Details

• Bridge Length: 800 meters
• Project Cost: Rs 104 crore
• Funding Source: Central Roads and Infrastructure Fund (CRIF)
• Location: Downstream of Pong Reservoir, connecting Sthana (Fatehpur) and Sansarpur-Terrace (Jaswan Pragpur constituency)

Implementation Details:

• Construction Timeline: Expected completion within 2 years post commencement.
• Approval Process: No-objection certificate (NOC) needed from the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) for land usage.