Daily Current Affairs

The first-ever Africa India Key Maritime Engagement exercise — AIKEYME 2025 (meaning ‘Unity’ in Sanskrit) commenced on April 13, 2025 in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, running until April 18, 2025. The 6-day exercise was co-hosted by India and Tanzania.

• Aligns with PM Modi’s vision of MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions)
• Harbour phase jointly inaugurated by MoS Sanjay Seth (Ministry of Defence, India) and Dr. Stergomena Lawrence (Minister of Defence and National Service, Tanzania) onboard INS Chennai at Dar-es-Salaam
• Participating African nations (8): Comoros, Djibouti, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, and South Africa

• Indian Navy Chief: Admiral Dinesh Kumar (DK) Tripathi | HQ: New Delhi | Founded: 1950

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted successful release trials of the indigenously developed Long-Range Glide Bomb (LRGB) ‘Gaurav’ from April 8–10, 2025, using the Su-30 MKI as the launch platform.

• DRDO labs involved: Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad | Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE), Pune | Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, Odisha
• Industry partners: Adani Defence Systems & Technologies (Ahmedabad), Bharat Forge Limited (Pune), and several MSMEs
• DRDO Chairman: Sameer Venkatapathy Kamat | HQ: New Delhi | Established: 1958

The International Day of Human Space Flight is observed on April 12 each year to celebrate the dawn of the space era and highlight the role of space science in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

• On April 7, 2011, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution A/RES/65/271 declaring April 12 as the observance; first celebrated on April 12, 2011
• Commemorates Yuri Gagarin’s historic first human spaceflight on April 12, 1961 aboard Vostok 1
• The UN Postal Administration (UNPA) issued commemorative stamps at New York, Geneva, and Vienna — including one featuring Yuri Gagarin — to mark the inaugural observance
• UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) is the nodal body for promoting peaceful international cooperation in outer space | Director: Aarti Holla-Maini | HQ: Vienna, Austria | Established: 1958

The International Day for Street Children (IDSC) is observed on April 12 each year to raise global awareness about the challenges faced by millions of street-connected children worldwide.

• Led by the Consortium for Street Children (CSC) — a global network of organisations advocating for street-connected children | HQ: London, UK | Founded: 1993
• Marks the anniversary of the first UN General Assembly on Children in 1955; first-ever IDSC was observed on April 12, 2011
• Theme for IDSC 2025: ‘Participation’
• CSC CEO: Pia MacRae

The Indian Army observes Siachen Day on April 13 each year to honour soldiers serving on the world’s highest battlefield. April 13, 2025 marked the 41st year of the Indian Army’s continuous presence on the Siachen Glacier.

• Operation Meghdoot was launched on April 13, 1984, when Indian troops captured key positions at Bilafond La Pass on the Siachen Glacier — denying Pakistan control of this high-altitude strategic terrain
• A joint operation by the Indian Army and Indian Air Force (IAF), with the IAF airlifting troops to the icy peaks; remains the world’s longest active military operation
• Led by: Lt. Gen. Manohar Lal Chibber, Lt. Gen. P.N. Hoon, and Maj. Gen. Shiv Sharma
• The Siachen Glacier sits at approximately 20,000 feet in the Karakoram range, dominating the Shaksgam Valley (ceded to China by Pakistan in 1963), routes from Gilgit-Baltistan to Leh, and the Karakoram Pass

April 13, 2025 marked the 106th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (also: Amritsar Massacre) — one of the most tragic events in India’s freedom struggle.

• On April 13, 1919, thousands of unarmed civilians gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar to peacefully protest the Rowlatt Act and celebrate the Baisakhi festival
• Then acting Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered troops to open fire without warning until ammunition was nearly exhausted; official British death toll: 379 (actual estimates far higher)
• The Rowlatt Act (1919) (formally: Anarchical and Revolutionary Crimes Act) empowered the colonial administration to arrest and detain Indians without trial for up to two years
• The Hunter Commission (Disorders Inquiry Committee), chaired by Lord William Hunter, was set up in 1919 to investigate the massacre
• The memorial at the site — designed by American architect Benjamin Polk — was inaugurated on April 13, 1961 by President Dr. Rajendra Prasad in the presence of PM Jawaharlal Nehru