Daily Current Affairs and GK | 19 June 2025

Topic: Personality in News

1. Former ISRO scientist Nellai Su Muthu passed away in Madurai.

• He passed away in Thiruvananthapuram on June 16 at the age of 74 after a prolonged illness.
• Muthu had served as a senior scientist at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
• He collaborated with former President Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam during his tenure at ISRO.
• He was well-known as a science communicator, authoring more than 70 books on science and literature.
• His 'Vinveli 2057' (SKY 2057) won the Best Book award in the mathematics, astronomy, physics, and chemistry categories in 2000.
• 'Arivuttum Vigyaana Vilaiyaatu' (Science Tricks that Provide Knowledge) won the Best Book award in the Children's Literature category in 2004.
• 'Einsteinum Andvelliyum' (Einstein and Space) won the Best Book award in the Biography and Personal History categories in 2005.
• He received several awards, including the Kavimamani Award from the World Tamil Poets Association of Malaysia and the Best Book Award from the Tamil Development Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Topic: Important Days

2. World Sickle Cell Day 2025: 19 June

• World Sickle Cell Day is celebrated annually on 19 June to raise awareness about sickle cell disease.
• The theme for this year’s World Sickle Cell Day is "Global Action, Local Impact: Empowering Communities for Effective Self-Advocacy."
• The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on December 22, 2008.
• This resolution recognized sickle cell disease as a public health problem.
• This resolution recognized sickle cell disease as one of the world's most important genetic diseases.
• The resolution urges member states to actively encourage sickle cell disease awareness nationally and internationally on June 19 each year.
• Sickle cell disease is a group of inherited blood cell disorders. It affects a person’s red blood cells. It makes blood cells stiff and sickle-shaped.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

3. India and Ukraine strengthen agricultural ties through the first Joint Working Group meeting.

• On 18 June, the first Joint Working Group (JWG) meeting on agriculture between India and Ukraine was held virtually.
• The meeting was co-chaired by Shri Ajeet Kumar Sahu from India and Ms. Oksana Osmachko from Ukraine.
• Officials of both countries emphasized that this meeting is an important milestone towards expanding bilateral cooperation in agriculture and allied sectors.
• India’s agricultural achievements and government initiatives were presented by Shri Sahu.
• Digital solutions, climate-resilient practices, and schemes like the National Mission on Edible Oils Oilseeds, the National Food Security Mission Pulses, and e-NAM were discussed.
• Their aim is to promote growth in the agricultural sector and rural development.
• He expressed Ukraine's keen interest in deepening cooperation in key areas such as food processing, agricultural mechanization, digital agriculture, genome editing, plant breeding technologies, soil fertility, and soil mapping.
• The two countries discussed cooperation in horticulture, technology transfer, knowledge sharing, capacity building, research collaboration, and market access, among other key issues.

Topic: MoUs and Agreements

4. The Ministry of Panchayati Raj collaborated with Bhashini for multilingual e-governance.

• On June 19, 2025, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Bhashini.
• The collaboration aims to use AI-driven translation tools to promote inclusivity in rural governance.
• The event was attended by Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj and Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Prof. SP Singh Baghel, and other senior officials from MeitY and MoPR.
• This initiative is a strategic collaboration to expand multilingual reach across digital platforms and outreach efforts of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
• It ensures wider public participation in Panchayati Raj initiatives, programs, dialogues, and live events through advanced translation technologies.
• This is a significant step towards making the ministry's platforms seamlessly multilingual.
• This will empower stakeholders, especially elected representatives, officials, and citizens of rural India, to access planning and governance systems in their native languages.
• This partnership will improve language accessibility across major portals and platforms of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
• It will also promote AI-enabled public digital infrastructure to empower Panchayati Raj Institutions and reinforce participatory democracy at the grassroots level.
• In 2022, Bhashini was launched during the Digital India Week in Gujarat, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched "Digital India Bhashini."
• Bhashini is an initiative under the Digital India program for seamless communication and internet accessibility for all citizens in 22 Indian languages.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

5. Padma Bhushan conferred on Ram Bahadur Rai at the IGNCA office.

• Shri Satpal Chauhan, Director General of the Ministry of Home Affairs, presented the ‘Padma Bhushan’ award to eminent journalist and President of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) Trust, Shri Ram Bahadur Rai.
• The honor consisted of a citation bearing the signature and seal of the President of India and an award medal.
• The award was presented at IGNCA as he could not attend the official ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
• Shri Rai was praised as a source of inspiration and a symbol of intellectual leadership.
• Shri Ram Bahadur Rai:
  • Presently, Shri Ram Bahadur Rai is serving as the chairman of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) Trust and chancellor of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Tercentenary University, Gurugram.
  • Inspired by the vision of making an intellectual contribution to the reconstruction of India, he chose journalism as his path and has more than 40 years of experience in this field.
  • Mr. Rai began his formal career as a journalist with the multilingual news agency Hindustan Samachar.
  • Over the years he handled editorial responsibilities with Jansatta and Navbharat Times as well as the Hindi fortnightly Pratham Spokesperson and Yathavat.
• Selected Publications by Padma Bhushan Shri Ram Bahadur Rai:

• Awards and Honours:

Topic: Government Schemes and Initiatives

6. Government launched initiatives for seamless travel and road safety enhancement.

• On 18 June, a FASTag-based Annual Passes for non-commercial vehicles has been announced by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
• The initiative will be implemented from August 15, 2025, to ease travel on national highways.
• The annual pass will cost ₹3,000 and cover up to 200 trips or be valid for one year.
• This policy aims to simplify toll payments and reduce wait times at toll plazas.
• The scheme is applicable to private vehicles such as cars, jeeps, and vans.
• The move addresses public concerns regarding frequent tolls within a 60-km radius.
• Activation and renewal of passes will be facilitated via the Rajmarg Yatra App and official websites of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
• The ministry had earlier announced the upcoming implementation of 'ANPR-FASTag-based Barrier-less Tolling System' at select locations.
• The system combines Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology with the existing FASTag infrastructure, allowing vehicles to pass through toll booths without stopping.
• Under the new system, the toll will be deducted automatically based on vehicle identification through high-performance ANPR cameras and Fastag readers.
• In cases of non-compliance, e-notices will be issued, and repeated violations may result in Fastag suspension and other penalties under vehicle rules.
• Additionally, a high-level review meeting on cashless treatment scheme for road accident victims was held under the chairmanship of Nitin Gadkari.
• It was emphasized that road accident fatalities must be reduced urgently.
• Coordination among states was stressed to ensure smooth rollout of the cashless treatment initiative.
• The success of this initiative is essential to achieve India's resolve to reduce road accident deaths by 50% by 2030, as affirmed in the 2020 Stockholm Declaration.
• The Central Government declared curbing road accidents as the top national priority.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

7. Mizoram has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD).

• The aim is to promote multilingual digital governance and support the Mizo community through native language technology.
• The MoU was signed on June 18, 2025, at the Ministry of Electronics and IT office in New Delhi.
• The partnership will expand access to government services and information in Mizo and other local languages.
• It will help remove language barriers in governance and public administration.
• The initiative promotes transparency, citizen participation, and inclusive governance.
• It ensures that people are not left behind in the digital space due to language differences.
• The collaboration will also focus on building better AI models and datasets for the Mizo language.
• A BHASHINI Rajyam workshop will soon be held in Aizawl.
• The workshop will focus on implementation, training, and the use of language technology in various government departments.
• This move reflects Mizoram’s dedication to preserving its native languages.
• It also shows a joint effort with DIBD and MeitY to create a digitally inclusive and linguistically rich future.

Topic: International News

8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed his first official visit to Croatia.

• This marked a major step forward in strengthening India-Croatia relations.
• During his trip, he held in-depth talks with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.
• The meeting took place at Banski Dvori, the Croatian government headquarters in Zagreb.
• India and Croatia agreed to strengthen trade ties and build secure, reliable supply chains.
• Both sides acknowledged growing collaboration in shipbuilding, cybersecurity, and defence.
• Four key Memoranda of Understanding were signed during the visit.
• The first MoU is for collaboration in agriculture and allied fields.
• The second establishes a cultural exchange programme from 2026 to 2030.
• The third outlines scientific and technological cooperation from 2025 to 2029.
• The fourth MoU creates a Hindi Chair at the University of Zagreb.
• During his visit to Zagreb, Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a special cultural gift from Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.
• The gift was a reprint of the first Sanskrit grammar written in Latin.
• It was originally authored in 1790 by Croatian missionary and scholar Filip Vezdin.
• Ivan Filip Vezdin was a Croatian Indologist who traveled to Malabar, India, in 1774.
• He came as a missionary and later became the Vicar-General on the Malabar Coast.
• Vezdin’s Sanskrit grammar was a pioneering work by a European scholar in the field of Indology.
• A commemorative plaque honoring Vezdin was unveiled in Trivandrum in 1999.
• Prime Minister Plenkovic also gave PM Modi a book titled ‘Croatia and India, Bilateral Navigator for Diplomats and Business’.
• The book was written by Croatian diplomat Sinise Grgica.
• Croatia is a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It is situated on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Zagreb is its capital. Its currency is Euro.
• India-Croatia relations:
  • India and Croatia established diplomatic relations on 9 July 1992.
  • Their partnership spans trade, technology, defence, and education, with growing cooperation in sectors like clean energy and IT.

Topic: Reports and Indices

9. The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances released its 22nd monthly ‘Secretariat Reforms’ report for May 2025.

• The Swachhata campaign generated Rs 3163.97 crore from scrap sales between 2021 and 2025.
• Between December 2024 and May 2025, scrap disposal revenue reached Rs 799.92 crore.
• In May 2025, 66,000 files were weeded out from records across 8,835 government offices.
• Cleanliness drives were conducted at 8,835 locations nationwide.
• These efforts freed up around 350,000 square feet of office space.
• The Ministry of Railways has freed 130,180 square feet.
• The Ministry of Coal has freed 76,231 square feet.
• In May 2025, scrap disposal brought in Rs 284.84 crore.
• Key contributors included the Ministries of Railways, Ports, Shipping and Waterways, and Heavy Industries.
• A total of 104,941 physical files were reviewed.
• From these, 66,186 obsolete files were removed.
• Public grievance redressal resolved 457,081 cases.
• The disposal rate was nearly 90%.
• Additionally, 1,448 parliamentary references and 320 state government references were addressed.
• Ministries and departments have implemented efficient management of office spaces, thereby increasing transparency and public access. For example, e-waste disposal at the Department of Atomic Energy's AMD headquarters in Hyderabad.
• Delayering initiatives reduced the average transactions per active file from 7.19 in 2021 to 4.17 in May 2025.
• In May 2025, 95.47% of created files were electronic.
• Ninety-five percent of receipts received were digital.
• Forty ministries and departments achieved full e-File adoption.
• Fifteen ministries and departments processed 100% digital receipts.
• Inter-ministerial file exchanges totaled 3,892 in May 2025.
• These reforms show the Government of India’s commitment to a digitally enabled, transparent, and efficient administration.
• The goal is to provide excellent public service through administrative excellence.
• 22nd edition of the monthly ‘Secretariat Reforms’ report includes:
  • Best Practices under "E-Waste Disposal"
  • In Focus: Ministry of Coal (Coal)
  • Cabinet Secretariat Directions on e-Office Implementation
  • Replication of Good Governance Practice: State Level Achievement

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

10. A tripartite agreement between DEPwD, NIOS and NCERT was signed in New Delhi.

• The signatories were the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), and the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).
• The goal is to promote inclusive education for persons with disabilities.
• The initiative supports the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
• It also aligns with the objectives of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
• Union Minister Dr. Virendra Kumar and Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan attended the ceremony.
• NIOS will set up Special Accredited Institutions for Education of the Divyangjan (SAIEDs).
• These will include special schools supported by DEPwD under the Deendayal Divyangjan Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS).
• The schools will offer programs such as Open Basic Education, Secondary, Senior Secondary, and vocational courses.
• NIOS will oversee admissions, exam registration, and distribution of learning materials.
• It will also handle ID cards, hall tickets, and certificates for students.
• Examination accommodations and exemptions will be provided for students with disabilities.
• NCERT will revise and adapt textbooks and curricula to meet accessibility standards.
• The changes will follow NEP 2020’s emphasis on inclusive and relevant education.
• Shri Dharmendra Pradhan stressed the transformative power of education.
• He announced that schools lacking accessible toilets will be upgraded.
• This will prevent students with disabilities from dropping out due to infrastructure gaps.
• A Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) will be formed.
• The committee will include representatives from DEPwD, NIOS, and NCERT.
• It will oversee implementation, resolve operational issues, and monitor progress.