Daily Current Affairs

The RCS-UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) scheme — launched on October 21, 2016 under the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) — completed 9 years of making aviation accessible and affordable for all. The 1st RCS-UDAN flight was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi on April 27, 2017, connecting Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) to New Delhi.

• Policy Framework: UDAN is a key component of India’s National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016 with a 10-year vision to connect Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities through a market-driven yet financially supported model — airlines assess demand and submit proposals during bidding rounds.
• Cumulative Achievement: 625 routes operationalised, connecting 90 airports (including 15 heliports and 2 water aerodromes) across the country.

In April 2025, Madhya Pradesh (MP) officially received approval from the Ministry of Textiles (MoT) for a Rs 2,100 crore PM-MITRA (PM Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel) Park — India’s first state-of-the-art integrated textile park. Investment proposals worth Rs 10,000 crore have already been received.

• Location: Bhainsola village, Badnawar tehsil, Dhar district, MP (~110 km from Indore, 85 km from Pithampur, 50 km from Delhi–Mumbai Expressway via Ratlam). Area: 21,000 acres.
• Infrastructure: 20 MLD Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) plant, solar-powered energy, plug-and-play Built-To-Suit (BTS) units, residential complexes. Construction to complete in 14 months.
• Scheme: Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) announced in Union Budget FY22 by FM Nirmala Sitharaman; GoI allocated Rs 4,445 crore for 7 years (till FY28).

In April 2025, MoS (IC) Jitendra Singh (Ministry of Science & Technology) launched India’s first Made-in-India HPV (Human Papillomavirus) test kits for cervical cancer screening — addressing the second most common cancer among Indian women.

• Developed under DBT’s Grand Challenges India (GCI) initiative, coordinated by BIRAC.
• Target 7–8 high-risk HPV strains; use RT-PCR (Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction) technology; offer rapid, cost-effective point-of-care testing (vs traditional Pap smears / VIA methods).
• Validated under the i-HPV study by AIIMS New Delhi, NICPR Noida, NIRRCH Mumbai, and WHO IARC (Lyon, France).

In April 2025, CSIR-IMMT (Bhubaneswar, Odisha; under Ministry of Science & Technology) signed two Joint Declarations of Intent (JDIs) with Russian institutions to collaborate on critical mineral processing and process metallurgy.

• Signed by Dr. Ramanuj Narayan (Director, CSIR-IMMT).
• Focus areas: critical mineral processing, extracting and processing critical minerals, and sustainable resource development.
• Coordinated in the presence of Anoop Kumar Srivastava, Counsellor (Space), Embassy of India in Moscow.

On April 25, 2025, Sri Madhusudhan Sai — Indian spiritual and humanitarian leader (Karnataka-based) — was conferred the ‘Companion of the Order of Fiji’ — Fiji’s highest civilian award — by President Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu at the State House of Fiji in Suva.

• Recognised for contributions to healthcare and social welfare in Fiji, including the Sri Satya Sai Sanjeevani Children’s Hospital — the first fully free, state-of-the-art Children’s Hospital in the South Pacific.
• He also founded ‘One World One Family’ — a global humanitarian mission operating in 80+ countries to improve access to healthcare, nutrition, and education.

In April 2025, ‘Beyond the Courtroom: Reflections on Law, Constitution, and Nationhood’ by the late Fali Sam Nariman was released. A curated collection of his speeches, articles, and lectures across five sections: Nation, Judiciary, Constitution, Law, and Arbitration. Published by Hay House Publishers India (New Delhi).

• Fali S. Nariman (born January 10, 1929): Senior advocate, Supreme Court of India; nominated member of Rajya Sabha (1999–2005).
• Chairman, Executive Committee of International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Geneva (1995–97); Vice-President, ICC International Court of Arbitration, Paris (1998–2005); President, ICCA (1994–2002).

In April 2025, the RBI cancelled the licence of Imperial Urban Co-operative Bank (Jalandhar, Punjab) under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (Section 5(b) read with Section 56), citing inadequate capital and poor earning prospects.

• The Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Punjab was requested to issue a winding-up order.
• DICGC coverage: Depositors are entitled to up to Rs 5 lakh per account (under DICGC Act, 1961).
• As per data submitted to RBI: 97.79% of depositors are entitled to receive the full amount.
• As of January 31, 2025, DICGC had paid Rs 541 crore of total insured deposits.

In April 2025, the World Bank released the ‘India Poverty and Equity Brief: April 2025’, showing that India’s extreme poverty (defined as living on less than USD 2.15/day) dropped significantly from 16.2% (2011–12) to 2.3% (2022–23).

• 17.1 crore people lifted out of extreme poverty; 37.8 crore moved above the broader poverty line.
• Employment growth has outpaced the working-age population since 2021–22; women’s employment rates are rising.
• Rural–urban poverty gap narrowed from 7.7% to 1.7% (~16% YoY decrease).

India, through ISRO (Bengaluru), assumed the lead role of the ‘International Charter: Space and Major Disasters’ for 6 months from April 2025. The leadership commenced during the 53rd Charter meeting organised by ISRO’s NRSC (National Remote Sensing Centre) (April 14–17, 2025, Hyderabad), with 22 foreign delegates.

• Charter Overview: Collaborative framework of 17 member space agencies voluntarily providing Earth Observation (EO) satellite data for global disaster management; services extended to 120+ countries; celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025. Founded: 2000.
• ISRO’s Charter contributions since 2021: Responded to 153 Charter activations; contributed ~700 Earth observation products (flood extent mapping, landslide delineation, infrastructure damage assessments, post-disaster recovery planning).
• Lead Responsibilities: Managing activation requests, strategic planning, coordinating satellite imagery delivery from member agencies, facilitating training and capacity-building.

World Veterinary Day (WVD) is observed on the last Saturday of April to recognise veterinarians’ contributions to animal health, welfare, and public safety. Led by the World Veterinary Association (WVA). In 2025, it fell on April 26; in 2026, it will be April 25.

• Theme for WVD 2025: ‘Animal Health Takes a Team’
• WVA initiated WVD in 2000.

The UN’s International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day is observed on April 26 to commemorate the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster, honouring its victims and raising awareness about long-lasting impacts. April 26, 2025 = 39th anniversary.

• Established by UNGA Resolution A/RES/71/125 (December 8, 2016).
• First observed on April 26, 2017.

World IP Day is observed on April 26 — the date the WIPO Convention came into force in 1970 — to raise awareness about patents, copyrights, trademarks, and designs. Officially established in 2000 by WIPO; first observed: April 26, 2001.

• Theme for 2025: ‘Music and IP: Feel the Beat of IP’