Daily Current Affairs and GK | 19 April 2025

Topic: Indian Economy

1. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has projected 6.5% growth rate for Indian economy in 2025.

• As per latest UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, India will be the fastest-growing major economy with 6.5% growth rate in 2025.
• As per the report, China’s growth rate is projected at 4.4%. US economy is projected to grow at 1%.
• European Union is also projected to grow at 1%. France, Germany and Italy will record less than 1% growth.
• Japan’s economic growth rate will come to a 0.5 per cent.
• In the report ‘Trade and Development Foresights 2025’, India is in the list of countries propelling growth through increased government expenditure and monetary policy stimulus.

Topic: Banking/Finance

2. RBI has imposed fines on three major banks. 

• These include Kotak Mahindra Bank, IDFC First Bank, and Punjab National Bank. 
• The penalties were imposed due to failures in meeting regulatory standards. 
• Kotak Mahindra Bank was fined Rs 61.4 lakh. 
• The penalty was for violations related to the loan delivery system and restrictions on loans and advances. 
• IDFC First Bank was fined Rs 38.6 lakh. 
• This was due to non-compliance with Know Your Customer (KYC) norms. 
• Punjab National Bank received a penalty of Rs 29.6 lakh. 
• The reason was failure to follow RBI guidelines on customer service in banks. 
• RBI stated that the fines are based on compliance issues. 
• These actions do not affect the legality of transactions or agreements between the banks and their customers.

Topic: National Appointments

3. Centre appoints new secretaries in different Ministries and departments.

• Arvind Shrivastava is appointed Secretary of Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance.
• Anuradha Thakur will assume charge as Officer on Special Duty in Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.
• Samir Kumar Sinha has been appointed as Secretary in Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• Santosh Kumar Sarangi, who is currently serving as Director General of Foreign Trade, has been appointed as Secretary in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
• Nikunja Bihari Dhal has been appointed as Secretary in Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.
• Vandana Gurnana will take over as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.
• Secretary to the Government of India:
  • It is a post and a rank and serves as the administrative head of a ministry or department.
  • A secretary acts as the chief adviser to the minister on all aspects of policy and administrative affairs.

Topic: Books and Authors

4. ‘Sanskriti Ka Paanchva Adhyay’ – a compilation of PM Modi’s Speeches on Culture was launched in New Delhi.

• Acharya Mahamandaleshwar Swami Avdheshanand Giri, head of the Juna Akhara, launched the book titled “Sanskriti Ka Paanchva Adhyay”.
• Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha Harivansh, while presiding over the event, applauded PM Modi’s efforts in preserving the country’s culture, traditions, spiritual values, and cultural heritage.
• The foreword of the book is written by Shri Ram Bahadur Rai, and has been compiled by Dr. Prabhat Ojha.
• The book has been published by Prabhat Prakashan.

(Source: News on AIR)

Topic: National News

5. Centre has introduced new rules for measuring radar speed to increase road safety.

• Under the Legal Metrology (General) Rules 2011, the central government has notified new rules for “Radar equipment for the measurement of speed of vehicles”.
• These rules make it mandatory for all radar-based speed measurement equipment to be verified and stamped by Legal Metrology authorities.
• This will ensure that such devices are accurate, calibrated and legally compliant, thereby enhancing transparency, public trust and enforcement integrity.
• The rules will take effect from 1 July 2025.
• The rules aim at increasing road safety and fairness in traffic enforcement.
• The new rules establish a clear technical and regulatory framework aligned with international standards such as OIML R 91 for industries.
• Radar devices operate using technologies like Doppler radar, measuring vehicle speed with high precision.

Topic: Art and Culture

6. Global recognition of Gita and Natyashastra in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.

• This year, the manuscripts of the Bhagavad Gita and Natyashastra are among the 74 new additions to UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.
• UNESCO launched the Memory of the World Programme in 1992.
• The central project of the MoW Programme was to create a compendium of documents including manuscripts, oral traditions, audio-visual materials, and library and archive holdings — which are of “world significance and outstanding universal value”.
• With the latest additions, the Register now contains 570 entries.
• Two Indian submissions- the collective works of the Shaivite philosopher Abhinavagupta and the archives of the first summit meeting of the Non Aligned Movement in Belgrade in 1961 were added to the register in 2023.
• Natyashastra is an ancient Sanskrit treatise on performing arts by Sage Bharata. It consists a comprehensive set of rules that define natya (drama), abhinaya (performance), rasa (aesthetic experience), bhava (emotion), sangita (music). It was compiled around between 500 BCE to 500 CE.
• Bhagavad Gita by Sage Vyasa is a Sanskrit scripture comprising 700 verses organised in 18 chapters, embedded in the sixth book (Bhishma Parva) of the epic poem Mahabharata. It is essentially a dialogue between Arjuna and Krishna, which takes place just before the beginning of the Mahabharata.

Topic: National News

7. The Central Reserve Police Force is setting up its 11th CoBRA battalion for anti-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir. 

• This unit will focus on missions in forested and remote areas. 
• The Jammu region has seen a spike in militant activity recently. 
• CoBRA is an elite Central Reserve Police Force force trained in jungle and guerrilla warfare. 
• It was originally formed to fight Naxalite insurgents. 
• Central Reserve Police Force Director General Gyanendra Pratap Singh made the announcement during the 86th Raising Day event in Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh. 
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed the formation of the new battalion. 
• In 2023, some CoBRA units were sent to Kashmir for training exercises. 
• However, they were not involved in any real operations. 
• Currently, regular Central Reserve Police Force units handle anti-terror duties in the valley. 
• They are supported by the Central Reserve Police Force’s Kashmir valley Quick Action Team.

Topic: State News/ Maharashtra

8. Maharashtra has introduced a new language policy for schools.

• Hindi will now be a compulsory third language from Classes I to V.
• This applies to both Marathi and English medium schools.
• The move is in line with the National Education Policy 2020. 
• Until now, only Marathi and English were mandatory from Classes I to IV.
• The new policy aims to promote multilingual learning from an early stage.

Topic: Infrastructure and Energy

9. The United States informed the World Trade Organisation that its steel and aluminum tariffs are based on national security concerns. 

• It said these are not safeguard measures, as claimed by India. 
• India had recently asked the World Trade Organisation for consultations regarding the tariffs. 
• India argued that the U.S. measures should be treated as safeguards under World Trade Organisation rules. 
• In its response, the U.S. said the tariffs were imposed under Section 232 of its domestic law. 
• It stated the purpose was to address risks to national security. 
• The U.S. also referred to the national security exception in the GATT 1994 agreement. 
• It maintained that safeguard rules do not apply in this case. 
• Therefore, it believes there is no basis for consultations under the World Trade Organisation’s Safeguards Agreement. 
• India, however, accused the U.S. of failing to notify the World Trade Organisation’s Safeguards Committee as required.
• World Trade Organisation’s Safeguards Committee oversees the implementation of the Agreement on Safeguards.

Topic: Corporates/Companies

10. South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL) will become the first coal PSU in India to use paste fill technology for underground mining. 

• SECL has signed a ₹7040 crore agreement with TMC Mineral Resources Private Limited to implement the technology. 
• The project will be carried out in the Singhali underground coal mine in SECL’s Korba region. 
• The mine is expected to produce around 8.4 million tonnes of coal over 25 years using this method. 
• Paste fill technology involves filling mined-out voids with a paste made from fly ash, crushed overburden, cement, water, and binding agents. 
• This technique prevents land subsidence and enhances the structural stability of underground mines. 
• The method eliminates the need for surface land acquisition and uses industrial waste materials, promoting environmental sustainability. 
• The Singhali mine, Chhattisgarh, began operations in 1993. 
• It has an estimated 8.45 million tonnes of extractable G-7 grade non-coking coal remaining. 
• Mining in Singhali was previously carried out using the Bord and Pillar method with Load Haul Dumpers and Universal Drilling Machines. 
• Traditional caving methods are not feasible at Singhali due to surface infrastructure such as villages, power lines, and a Public Works Department road. 
• Paste fill technology allows mining to continue without disrupting the dense infrastructure above the mine.