GK One-Liners

What: According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, India’s total exports — combining goods and services — reached an all-time high of USD 824.9 billion in Financial Year 2024–25 (FY25), a growth of 6.01% from USD 778.1 billion in FY24. Services exports surged to USD 387.5 billion (up 13.6%), with March 2025 alone recording USD 35.6 billion in services shipments (up 18.6%). Non-petroleum merchandise exports also hit a record at USD 374.1 billion.

How: The services export boom is driven by India’s IT/ITES (Information Technology and IT-enabled Services) sector, Global Capability Centres (GCCs), and growing financial and professional services exports. Non-petroleum merchandise growth reflects diversification away from energy-linked volatility, with engineering goods, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals driving volumes. RBI compiles these figures through its Balance of Payments (BoP) accounting framework.

Why: India’s export milestones are high-frequency Prelims data points tested in UPSC, banking (IBPS/SBI PO), and SSC exams. The USD 824.9 billion all-time high, the services exports figure (USD 387.5 bn), and the growth rates are all exam-ready statistics. For Mains GS-3, this connects to India’s trade policy, Atmanirbhar Bharat’s export push, and the significance of services in India’s current account dynamics.

What: The United States approved a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) worth USD 131 million (approximately ₹1,090 crore) to India under the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) initiative — a Quad programme. The package includes SeaVision software, technical documentation, remote analytics support, and Training, Assistance, Fielding, and Technical (TAFT) training. The deal was notified by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) to the US Congress, with Hawkeye 360 (Virginia) as primary contractor.

How: SeaVision is a US Navy-developed maritime picture-sharing platform that integrates data from multiple sensors — radar, Automatic Identification System (AIS), and satellite feeds — to build a common operational picture of sea lanes. Under IPMDA, Quad partners (USA, India, Japan, Australia) share maritime domain awareness data to counter illegal fishing, smuggling, and grey-zone activity in the Indo-Pacific. India’s status as a Major Defence Partner (MDP) of the USA enables access to such technology.

Why: IPMDA and Quad defence cooperation are active UPSC GS-2 (bilateral relations, Indo-Pacific strategy) and GS-3 (defence, internal security) topics. India’s Major Defence Partner status (conferred 2016) and FMS as a procurement mechanism are Prelims-testable concepts. SeaVision’s role in maritime surveillance connects to India’s blue economy, UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), and Mains questions on India’s maritime security architecture.

What: Kozhikode (Calicut), Kerala, became the second Indian city to join the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities (GNAFCC), after Kochi joined in 2024. It is also the second city in the WHO South-East Asia Region (SEAR) to earn this status, after Wellawaya in Sri Lanka. The GNAFCC was established in 2010 and currently comprises 1,705 cities across 60 countries, coordinated by the WHO Social Determinants of Health (SDH) department in partnership with the International Federation on Ageing (IFA), Toronto.

How: Cities joining GNAFCC commit to an action cycle of assessing, planning, implementing, and evaluating age-friendly improvements across eight domains: outdoor spaces, transportation, housing, social participation, respect and social inclusion, civic participation, communication, and community support. Kozhikode already holds UNESCO Creative City of Literature status (2023), demonstrating its track record in achieving international urban recognition.

Why: WHO designations and city-level international recognitions are standard UPSC Prelims and banking exam current affairs. The sequence — Kochi (2024) → Kozhikode (2025) as India’s 1st and 2nd GNAFCC cities — and GNAFCC’s establishment year (2010) are precise facts. Ageing population policy connects to GS-2 (social sector, welfare schemes) and GS-1 (population dynamics), while Kozhikode’s dual UNESCO + WHO tags make it a versatile Mains illustration point.

What: S&P Global Ratings cut India’s GDP growth forecast for FY26 by 20 basis points (bps) to 6.3% (from 6.5%), and trimmed the FY27 forecast by 30 bps to 6.5%. S&P also projected the INR/USD exchange rate at 88 by end-2025, and forecast global growth at 2.2% for 2025 and 2.4% for 2026 — the weakest pace since the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008–09. S&P Global Ratings was founded in 1860, is headquartered in New York, and is currently headed by President Yann Le Pallec.

How: The downgrade reflects risks from global trade conflicts (particularly US tariff escalations), slower external demand, and currency pressure on emerging markets. Comparing current agency forecasts for India’s FY26 GDP: IMF projects 6.2%, World Bank projects 6.3%, RBI projects 6.5%, and S&P now projects 6.3%. The divergence reflects different weights given to domestic resilience versus global spillover risks.

Why: GDP forecast comparisons across multilateral agencies (IMF, World Bank, RBI, ADB, S&P, Moody’s, Fitch) are among the most frequently tested Prelims data sets in banking exams (IBPS/RBI Grade B) and UPSC. The multi-agency table format — IMF (6.2%), WB (6.3%), RBI (6.5%), S&P (6.3%) — is exam-ready. The GFC reference and global growth projections connect to GS-3 Mains topics on global economic challenges and India’s macroeconomic resilience.

What: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) Annual Awards 2024–25 were held in Bhubaneswar. Subhasish Bose of Mohammedan Sporting Club (MBSG), West Bengal, won the Men’s Footballer of the Year — the first West Bengal player to win since Nabi in 2012. Soumya Guguloth of East Bengal FC (from Odisha, representing Telangana) won the Women’s Footballer of the Year — the first Telangana player to receive the honour. AIFF was founded in 1937 and its current President is Kalyan Chaubey.

How: Additional award winners: Brison Deuben Fernandes (FC Goa) won the Promising Men’s Player award, while Toijam Thoibisana Chanu became the first centre-back in history to win the Promising Women’s Player award — a positional breakthrough in a category historically dominated by forwards and midfielders. The ceremony reflects India’s growing geographic diversity in football talent beyond traditional strongholds.

Why: AIFF award winners are standard sports GK questions tested in banking and SSC exams. The “firsts” — first West Bengal winner since 2012, first Telangana winner, first centre-back Promising Women’s winner — are the kind of superlative facts exams consistently target. AIFF’s founding year (1937), its President (Kalyan Chaubey), and India’s football governance structure are static facts useful for comprehensive sports GK preparation.

What: Professor Sunny Thomas (1941–2025), born in Kottayam, Kerala, passed away at age 83. He served as India’s National Rifle Shooting Coach for 19 years (1993–2012) and was the first shooting coach to receive the Dronacharya Award, India’s highest coaching honour, in 2001. Under his mentorship, Indian shooters won 4 Olympic medals, 6 World Championship medals, 50+ World Cup medals, 6 Asian Games medals, and 5 Commonwealth Games medals.

How: Prof. Thomas’s most celebrated achievement was guiding Abhinav Bindra to India’s first-ever individual Olympic gold medal at the Beijing 2008 Games (10m Air Rifle event). He was also a distinguished shooter himself — a five-time Kerala state champion and the 1976 National Champion. His coaching philosophy combined technical precision with psychological conditioning, producing a generation of world-class Indian rifle shooters.

Why: Dronacharya Award history — particularly “firsts by sport” — is a recurring Prelims category across UPSC, SSC, and banking exams. Abhinav Bindra’s Beijing 2008 gold (India’s only individual Olympic gold until Paris 2024) and its coaching context are foundational sports history facts. Prof. Thomas’s passing makes this a current affairs hook to revise the static facts around India’s shooting achievements, the Dronacharya Award, and Olympic history simultaneously.