Welcome to your daily dose of current affairs! Staying updated with national and international events is crucial for competitive exams. Here’s a summary of today’s most important news, presented simply to help you understand and remember key concepts.
National News
Economy & Governance
- IMF Revises India’s Growth Forecast Upward
- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised India’s growth forecast to 6.4% for both FY2025–26 and FY2026–27.
- This projection confirms India’s position as the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
- The upward revision is attributed to factors like lower inflation (especially food prices), a favourable external environment, and continued reform momentum.
- Digital Payments Index (DPI) Sees Significant Rise
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reported that its Digital Payments Index (RBI-DPI) increased to 493.22 in March 2025, a 10.7% increase from March 2024.
- This growth is mainly due to improvements in Payment Infrastructure (supply-side factors) and Payment Performance.
- Digital transactions in India have surged, with over 65,000 crore transactions worth Rs. 12,000 lakh crorerecorded in the last six financial years.
- The DPI, launched in 2021 and published semi-annually, uses March 2018 as its base year (score of 100).
- Formalisation Challenges in India’s Manufacturing Sector
- A recent study highlights that contract labour in India’s formal manufacturing sector has doubled to 40.7% by 2022–23.
- This increase is driven by cost-avoidance (to reduce wages and bypass labour laws) rather than efficiency or skill acquisition.
- Contract workers earn significantly less (14.47% on average) and show 31% lower productivity compared to regular workers.
- High turnover and low investment in training due to short-term contracts lead to long-term productivity losses.
- Policy recommendations include careful implementation of labour codes, incentivising longer tenures, reviving schemes like PMRPY, linking formalisation with skilling, and disincentivising excessive contractualisation.
Defence & Security
- Successful Flight Tests of Pralay Quasi-Ballistic Missile
- The Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted two consecutive flight tests of the indigenously developed ‘Pralay’ missile from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha.
- Pralay is a short-range surface-to-surface solid-propellant quasi-ballistic missile.
- It has a range of 150 to 500 km and can carry 500 to 1,000 kg warheads, including unitary and cluster types.
- Its quasi-ballistic trajectory and in-flight manoeuvrability make it harder to intercept, flying at lower altitudes and reaching terminal speeds of Mach 6.1.
- ISRO to Launch New NavIC Satellites
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) plans to launch three more navigation satellites (NVS-03, NVS-04, and NVS-05) by 2026.
- These satellites will strengthen the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), now known as NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation).
- NavIC provides accurate Position, Velocity, and Timing (PVT) services for civilian (SPS) and military (RS)users, covering India and 1,500 km beyond its borders.
- The NVS series incorporates L1 band communication to improve compatibility and expand NavIC-based applications.
Social & Health
- SOFI 2025 Report Highlights India’s Nutritional Paradox
- The UN’s State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2025 report indicates that global hunger dipped to 673 million in 2024, but India still has the highest number of wasted children under five.
- Around 12% of India’s population (172 million people) is undernourished, ranking 48th globally and 7th highest in Asia.
- India faces a “double burden of malnutrition”, with rising overweight children (4.2 million in 2024) and adult obesity (71.4 million) alongside undernutrition.
- India has the world’s highest child wasting rate (18.7%), affecting over 21 million children, and 37.4 million children are stunted.
- Over 53.7% of Indian women aged 15–49 suffer from anaemia, ranking 4th globally.
- Causes include persistent poverty, inadequate dietary diversity, high food prices, health service gaps, and nutrition transition.
- New Human Blood Group – CRIB Discovered in India
- A new human blood group, CRIB (Cromer India Bengaluru), has been discovered at the Rotary Bangalore TTK Blood Centre.
- This is the first of its kind globally and has been officially recognised by the International Blood Group Reference Laboratory (IBGRL), UK.
- Discovered in a 38-year-old South Indian woman, it’s a new antigen within the Cromer (CR) blood group system.
Environment & Disaster Management
- International Day for Conservation of Mangrove Ecosystem (observed July 26th)
- The International Day for Conservation of Mangrove Ecosystem, observed annually on 26th July, serves as a crucial reminder that these coastal guardians are vanishing 3-5 times faster than global forests.
- UNESCO and IUCN data reveal that global mangrove cover has halved since 1985, with 50% of remaining ecosystems now at risk of collapse.
- Mangroves are salt-tolerant trees and shrubs thriving in tropical and subtropical intertidal zones, vital for coastal protection, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity.
- India’s mangrove cover is about 4,992 sq. km (0.15% of geographical area), with West Bengal having the largest cover.
- The Fish Bone Channel Technique is a restoration method for areas with poor tidal flow, mimicking natural creeks.
- New Study Maps Flash Flood-Prone Hotspots Across India
- A recent IIT Gandhinagar study identified the Himalayas, western coast, and Central India as key flash flood hotspots in the Indian subcontinent.
- Flash floods are short-duration floods with high discharge, occurring within four to six hours of an observable causative event.
- The number of flash flood events in India increased from 132 in 2020 to 184 in 2022, causing over 5,000 deaths annually.
- Key drivers include cloudbursts (25% of incidents), steep topography, narrow river channels, saturated soil, and sudden release of dam water.
- Climate change intensifies risk as a warmer atmosphere retains more moisture, leading to heavier rainfall.
- India Faces Growing Threats of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs)
- GLOFs are sudden releases of water from glacial lakes, as seen in Nepal’s Lende River flash floods and the South Lhonak GLOF in Sikkim in 2023.
- The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) has 11 river basins and 28,000 glacial lakes, with 7,500 lakes above 4,500 meters, making monitoring challenging.
- Triggers include ice avalanches (2/3rd of events), landslides, excessive meltwater pressure on moraine dams, and earthquakes.
- Rising temperatures and glacial melt (due to global warming) are increasing the frequency of GLOF incidents.
- Mitigation strategies involve NDMA guidelines, the National Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) Risk Mitigation Project (NGRMP) in vulnerable states (Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand), and monitoring using satellite imagery and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).
- First Grassland Bird Census in Kaziranga National Park
- Kaziranga National Park in Assam conducted its first-ever grassland bird census, highlighted by PM Modi.
- The survey used innovative acoustic monitoring tools to assess elusive grassland bird species, which are critical indicators of ecosystem health.
- 43 species were recorded, including 1 Critically Endangered, 2 Endangered, and 6 Vulnerable species as per the IUCN Red List.
- A key finding was the discovery of a breeding colony of the endangered Finn’s Weaver, endemic to the Brahmaputra floodplain.
- Grassland habitats face serious threats from overgrazing, conversion to agriculture, ecological succession, and climate change.
International News
Geopolitics
- China’s Mega Dam on Brahmaputra: India’s Concerns
- China is building a 60,000 MW hydropower project on the Yarlung Zangbo River (Brahmaputra in India) in Tibet, near Gelling in Arunachal Pradesh.
- Expected to be three times more powerful than the Three Gorges Dam, the project involves five cascade dams and is due for completion by the 2030s.
- India’s key concerns include ecological and seismic risks in the active Himalayan zone, potential for the dam to act as a “water bomb”, and China’s disregard for riparian rights (as it’s not a signatory to international water-sharing treaties).
- The project could impact agriculture, livelihoods, and water/food security in India’s northeastern states.
- India’s response includes planning the 11.2 GW Siang Upper Multipurpose Project in Arunachal Pradeshto regulate floods and engaging in diplomatic dialogue for hydrological data sharing.
- India Hosts 2nd BIMSTEC Ports Conclave
- India hosted the 2nd BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) Ports Conclave in Visakhapatnam.
- The conclave aimed to strengthen maritime connectivity and sustainable development in the region, aligning with India’s Sagarmala goals and Indo-Pacific role.
- Key outcomes include a push to implement the BIMSTEC Agreement on Maritime Transport Cooperation (AMTC), recognition of the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP), and the launch of the BIMSTEC Sustainable Maritime Transport Centre in Mumbai.
- BIMSTEC was established on June 6, 1997, through the Bangkok Declaration, to promote economic and technical cooperation among Bay of Bengal countries. India leads the Security pillar in BIMSTEC.
Science & Space
- Astronomers Observe Birth of New Solar System Around HOPS-315
- International astronomers have for the first time observed the formation of a new solar system around a baby star named ‘HOPS-315’, located 1,300 light-years away in the constellation Orion.
- This marks the first identification of a planetary system at such an early stage.
- Observations were made using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).
- Researchers identified chemical footprints of hot, crystalline minerals, notably Silicon Monoxide (SiO), solidifying within the disc around the star.
- NISAR Satellite Launch Planned for July 30
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is planning to launch the NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite from Sriharikota on July 30 onboard a GSLV Mk-II Rocket.
- This joint mission of NASA and ISRO aims to study changes on Earth’s surface in fine detail, including earthquakes, volcanoes, ecosystems, ice sheets, and floods.
- NISAR is the first major Earth-observing mission with a dual-band radar (L-band and S-band), allowing for more precise observations through clouds, smoke, and thick vegetation, day and night.
- It will produce annual maps of woody biomass, quarterly maps of cropland, and high-resolution maps of flooded areas, with data freely available to users.
Important Days
- International Tiger Day 2025 – July 29
- International Tiger Day, also known as Global Tiger Day, is observed annually on July 29 to raise awareness about the critical need for tiger conservation worldwide.
- The day was established in 2010 during the Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit in Russia, where 13 Tiger Range Countries (TRCs) adopted the Tx2 goal to double the wild tiger population by 2022.
- The theme for International Tiger Day 2025 is “Securing the future of Tigers with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities at the heart”.
- India supports the world’s largest tiger population, with more than 3,600 tigers, accounting for 75% of the world’s wild tigers.
- World Day Against Trafficking in Persons: 30 July
- July 30 was officially designated as World Day against Trafficking in Persons by the UN General Assembly in 2013.
- Its purpose is to raise awareness and promote the protection of victims of human trafficking.
- The 2025 theme is: “Human Trafficking is Organized Crime – End the Exploitation”.
Quick Updates (Rapid Fire)
- DPIIT and Ather Energy signed an MoU to boost EV manufacturing and the clean mobility ecosystem under the ‘Build in Bharat’ initiative.
- The Ministry of Defence (MoD) signed an MoU with Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Limited (TIDCO) to set up a state-of-the-art testing facility in Tiruchirappali under the Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme (DTIS).
- Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) signed Forward Rate Agreements (FRAs) worth USD 1 billionwith JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corporation (BoA) to hedge against declining interest rates.
- Worldline partnered with Cosmos Co-operative Bank to accelerate digital transformation through advanced payment solutions.
- Indian Hindi novelist Geetanjali Shree won the PEN Translates Award 2025 for her short story collection ‘Once Elephants Lived Here’.
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved Renault’s acquisition of RNAIPL from Nissan and Anantam Highways Trust’s acquisition of road infrastructure assets.
- Divya Deshmukh became the First Indian woman to win the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025, defeating Koneru Humpy in the finals held in Batumi, Georgia.
- The Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN) launched the Underground Atlas, showing over 90% of mycorrhizal fungi hotspots lie outside protected areas.
- Paithani Sarees, handwoven silk sarees from Maharashtra, have been granted a Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2010.
- An 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula triggered a tsunami that impacted Russia, Japan, and issued warnings to Hawaii and New Zealand.
- Union Education Minister issued Letters of Intent (LoIs) to four foreign universities (Western Sydney, Victoria, La Trobe, Bristol) for setting up campuses in India, aligning with NEP 2020’s internationalisation goals.
- Mount Cilo in Turkey has lost nearly 50% of its ice cover in 40 years due to climate change.
- The Indian Army eliminated two terrorists in Operation ShivShakti in Poonch district, following Operation Mahadev.
- The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) launched 14 scientific products and digital services to boost India’s climate resilience on its 19th Foundation Day.
- The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) approved India’s first AI-based Road Safety Pilot Project in Uttar Pradesh.
- Tata Power partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to modernize its digital infrastructure, aiming for a smarter, more sustainable energy ecosystem.
- Madhya Pradesh is set to launch India’s first dedicated Hindi-medium medical college in Jabalpur by 2027–28.
- Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar announced the formation of the Bihar Rajya Safai Karmachari Ayog (Bihar State Sanitation Workers Commission).
- TEMA India Ltd. commissioned India’s first private test facility for the upgradation of depleted heavy water.
- The United States (US) and European Union (EU) reached a trade deal to avoid a 15% tariff on most EU exports, including automobiles.
- The Environment Ministry established a dedicated COP-33 Cell to manage requirements for the 2028 United Nations climate summit (COP 33).
- Syria will hold parliamentary elections in September 2025, the first under new authorities since the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad.
- The Indian Army conducted ‘Exercise Divya Drishti’ in East Sikkim to test advanced military technologies, including AI-enabled sensors.
- Bigha, a traditional unit of land measurement in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, varies in exact measurement from state to state.
- A tragic stampede occurred near Haridwar’s Mansa Devi temple, dedicated to goddess Mansa Devi, a form of Shakti.
- Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain condition from repeated head injuries, was highlighted in a recent news report.
- The Central government has documented cultural heritage of over 4.7 lakh villages under the ‘Mera Gaon Meri Dharohar’ (MGMD) initiative, launched on July 27, 2023.
- The Setubandha Scholar Scheme aims to formally integrate traditional gurukul scholars into IIT research, offering fellowships.
- The drug regulator DCGI has asked manufacturers to monitor the presence of potentially carcinogenic chemical N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) in antacid Ranitidine.
Remember to review these topics regularly to build a strong foundation for your exams!