Current Context: Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended centenary celebrations marking the 1925 dialogue between Sree Narayana Guru and Mahatma Gandhi at Vigyan Bhawan, Delhi.

ABOUT SREE NARAYANA GURU

• Born: 20 August 1856 – 20 September 1928; a saint, philosopher, social reformer from Kerala’s Ezhava community.
• Beliefs: Championed social equality with motto – “One Caste, One Religion, One God for Mankind.”
• Reforms: Led the Aruvippuram Movement (1888); consecrated a Shiva idol to protest casteism.
• Institutions: Founded over 40 temples, ashrams, schools, and the Sri Narayana Guru Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) in 1903, advancing education and caste equality.
• Legacy: Key leader in Vaikom Satyagraha, promoted spiritual and social upliftment, established Sivagiri Mutt (1904), and authored philosophical works like Daiva Dasakam.

Current Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), with public and private banks, began developing a real‑time Digital Payment Intelligence Platform (DPIP) under its Innovation Hub to combat rising digital payment fraud.

 ABOUT DIGITAL PAYMENT INTELLIGENCE PLATFORM

• Purpose: Strengthen fraud detection by enabling real-time sharing of threat intelligence across banks.
• Framework: Proposal supported by a committee led by A.  Hota and built by RBI Innovation Hub alongside 5–10 partner banks.
• Functionality: Collects and analyses data to flag and prevent suspicious transactions.
• Need: Over 5 lakh digital fraud cases reported in six months to March 2024, and bank fraud losses reaching ₹36,014 crore in FY25.
• Significance: This platform aims to halt scams at their source and build secure Digital Public Infrastructure akin to UPI.

Current Context: India strongly criticised the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for making “unwarranted and factually incorrect” statements during its Foreign Ministers’ meeting, accusing Pakistan of hijacking the OIC agenda with terrorism rhetoric.

ABOUT ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION

• Founded: 25 September 1969 in Rabat, Morocco, now the world’s second-largest intergovernmental organisation after the UN, with 57 member states.
• Aim: Promote Islamic values, protect sovereignty, and foster economic, social, and political cooperation; contributes to international peace and security.
• Official Languages: Arabic, English, and French.
• Main Bodies:
  • Islamic Summit Conference: Supreme authority meeting every 3 years.
  • Council of Foreign Ministers: Meets annually to review and guide OIC policies.
  • General Secretariat: Executes decisions from ISC and CFM.
  • Headquarters: Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
• Partnerships: Works with UN agencies, governments, and civil society organisations to address global Muslim concerns.

Current Context: The central government launched NAVYA (Nurturing Aspirations through Vocational Training for Young Adolescent Girls) in Sonbhadra, UP, as a joint pilot by MWCD & MSDE aimed at skill-building in [16‑18]-year-old girls.

 ABOUT NAVYA INITIATIVE

• Target Group: Girls aged 16–18 with Class 10 qualification; focus on aspirational and North-Eastern districts.
• Ministries: Collaborative effort of Ministry of Women & Child Development and Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship.
• Training Focus: Vocational training in non-traditional sectors—graphic design, telecom, drone tech, solar PV, CCTV, smartphone assembly.
• Coverage: Pilot phase in 27 districts across 19 states, including aspirational regions.
• Objectives: Empower girls with skills, build confidence and self-reliance, support economic independence, promote gender parity in emerging fields.

Current Context: Maharashtra Cabinet approved ₹20,787 crore for land acquisition to expedite the 802 km Nagpur–Goa Shaktipeeth Expressway, though farmer opposition continues.

ABOUT SHAKTIPEETH EXPRESSWAY

• Length & Route:6 km access-controlled highway from Pavnar (Wardha) to Patradevi (Sindhudurg) linking 12 districts.
• Purpose: Connects Shakti Peethas and pilgrimage sites (e.g., Mahur, Tuljapur, Pandharpur); reduces travel time from ~18 hrs to ~8
• Budget: ₹20,787 crore for land acquisition, with ₹12,000 crore HUDCO loan; project cost estimated around ₹84,000 crore.
• Implementing Agency: Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC); designed like the Samruddhi Corridor.

Current Context: Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced Centre’s approval to establish Bihar’s first nuclear power plant under India’s new Small Modular Reactor (SMR)-based Nuclear Energy Mission.

ABOUT SMR-BASED NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

• Mission: Part of ₹20,000 crore Nuclear Energy Mission initiated in Union Budget 2025‑26.
• Technology: SMRs are compact, modular reactors offering safety, cost-effectiveness, and scalable deployment.
• Site: Bihar among six states selected; specific location and capacity being finalised; plant will use Phulwaria Dam waters.
• Significance: Addresses regional power deficits, energy security, and clean energy transition; supports Centre’s “power-for-all” goals.
• Support: Centre committed to full support; follows Bihar’s formal request.

Current Context: Gujarat became the first state to implement the Amended BharatNet Program under a state-led model, with ₹5,631 crore approved for rollout and ten-year O&M.

ABOUT AMENDED BHARATNET PROGRAM

• Genesis: Original BharatNet scheme for rural broadband; ABP approved in 2023 to improve delivery.
• Gujarat Pilot: Quadripartite MoU with central, state govt, BSNL & GFGNL; covers 14,287 GP hubs & 3,895 villages.
• Network Design: Ring topology optical-fibre network using IP-MPLS; routers at block and GP levels.
• Service Standards: ≥25 Mbps FTTH; 98% uptime; rural Wi‑Fi & institutional connections.
• O&M: 10-year operations and maintenance commitment under BharatNet Udyami model.
• Significance: Enables digital governance, rural connectivity, and inclusion across states.

Current Context: June 2025 marks 75 years since the Committee on Estimates was formed in 1950, celebrated by a national conference in Mumbai presided over by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

ABOUT COMMITTEE ON ESTIMATES

• Established: 1950 under Lok Sabha’s Rules of Procedure.
• Composition: 30 Lok Sabha members elected annually via proportional representation; ministers ineligible.
• Chairperson: Appointed by the Lok Sabha Speaker for a one-year term.
• Functions:
  •  Review budget estimates for economy and efficiency
  • Suggest alternative policies and improvements
  • Recommend format of parliamentary estimates
  • Submit reports to Lok Sabha; ministries must respond within 6 months.
• Significance: Largest financial oversight committee; has submitted over 1,000 reports influencing public policy in sectors like EVs, health, and defence.

India achieved milestone by securing a position among the top 100 countries in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Index.

• This ranking is part of the Sustainable Development Report, which evaluates the progress of nations in achieving the 17 SDGs established in 2015.
• India ranks 99^th out of 193 countries, scoring 67 points.

Relevant data of SDR  2025

• India’s Rank:99th out of 167 countries on the SDGi with a score of 67, marking India’s first entry into the top 100 (up from 109th in 2024).
• Comparisons:China 49th (74.4); USA 44th (75.2).
• Global Leaders:Finland (1st), Sweden (2nd), Denmark (3rd)—19 of the top 20 are European.
• Regional Movers:East & South Asia exhibit the fastest SDG advance since 2015, driven by socioeconomic gains (e.g., poverty reduction, education).
• Service Access Gains:Strong improvements in mobile broadband (SDG 9), electricity access (SDG 7), internet use (SDG 9), underfive mortality (SDG 3), and neonatal mortality (SDG 3).
• Setbacks:Five targets have regressed since 2015—obesity rate (SDG 2), press freedom (SDG 16), sustainable nitrogen management (SDG 2), biodiversity (Red List Index, SDG 15), and corruption perception (SDG 16).
• Multilateralism Ranking:Barbados (1), Jamaica (2), Trinidad & Tobago (3) top the list of countries most committed to UN multilateralism; among G20, Brazil leads at 25th, and among OECD Chile ranks highest at 7^th.

About the Sustainable Development Report 2025

• Publisher: UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
• Scope:Tracks 17 goals via 106 indicators; leverages over 200,000 datapoints.
• Innovations:
  • SDG Index (SDGi):One composite score per country.
  • Spillover Index:Measures how national policies affect other nations’ SDG progress.
• Purpose:Complements official UN indicators and Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) by offering independent rankings, timeseries analyses (2000–2025), and policy recommendations on financing and institutional reforms.

Commemorated every year on 26 June

• Objective : this day is dedicated to the eradication of torture and the support of victims
• Proclaimed by the UN General Assembly on 12 December 1997.
• Focuses on the effective functioning of the Convention Against Torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.