Daily Current Affairs and GK | 21, 22 and 23 October 2025

Topic: Space and IT

1. ISRO’s Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter has made the first-ever observation of how solar Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) affect the Moon.

• This marks a major scientific milestone in understanding the interaction between solar activity and the lunar environment.
• The discovery was made using the onboard instrument CHACE-2.
• CHACE-2 is part of Chandrayaan-2’s scientific payload. Its full name is ‘Chandra’s Atmospheric Compositional Explorer-2’.
• It studies the composition and variations of the Moon’s thin exosphere.
• During a rare solar event on 10 May 2024, multiple CMEs struck the Moon’s surface.
• These impacts caused a sharp rise in the total pressure of the lunar exosphere on the dayside.
• ISRO scientists found that the number of neutral atoms and molecules in the exosphere increased more than tenfold.
• This confirmed long-standing theoretical models about CME influence.
• These models had never been verified through direct measurement before.
• The Moon’s exosphere is a surface boundary type. It reacts strongly to solar events because the Moon lacks a protective magnetic field.
• The CME event caused an enhanced release of atoms from the lunar surface.
• This temporarily changed the Moon’s atmospheric conditions.
• The observation provides valuable insights into lunar space weather.
• Chandrayaan-2 was launched on 22 July 2019 from Sriharikota aboard the GSLV Mk-III M1 rocket.
• Although communication with the Vikram lander was lost during its descent on 7 September 2019, the Orbiter continues to function in a 100 x 100 km lunar orbit.

Topic: Biotechnology and Diseases

2. India has developed its first indigenously discovered antibiotic, Nafithromycin.

• Nafithromycin is effective against drug-resistant respiratory infections.
• The antibiotic is particularly beneficial for cancer patients and individuals with uncontrolled diabetes.
• Nafithromycin is the first molecule fully conceived, developed, and clinically tested within India.
• The drug was created through a collaboration between the Department of Biotechnology and private pharma company Wockhardt.
• Dr. Jitendra Singh cited this as a model example of successful industry-academia partnership driving India’s biopharma growth.
• The Minister inaugurated a three-day workshop on “Harnessing Artificial Intelligence for Multi-Omics Data Integration and Analysis.”
• Dr. Singh also announced India’s first indigenous clinical trial success in gene therapy for Hemophilia.
• This trial was supported by the Department of Biotechnology and conducted at Christian Medical College, Vellore.
• The gene therapy achieved a 60–70% correction rate with no bleeding episodes.
• India has already completed sequencing over 10,000 human genomes and plans to expand this to one million.
• The Minister underlined that Artificial Intelligence is transforming healthcare, governance, and decision-making in India.
• AI-based hybrid mobile clinics are now providing healthcare access in rural and remote parts of the country.

Topic: Personality in News

3. Neeraj Chopra has been bestowed the honorary title of Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army.

• Neeraj Chopra is a two-time Olympic medallist in javelin throw. 
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi officially conferred his new rank insignia.
• Chopra first entered the Indian Army in August 2016 as a Naib Subedar. This marked the beginning of his military journey.
• He received the Arjuna Award in 2018 for his outstanding sporting achievements.
• In 2021, he was honored with the Khel Ratna Award and promoted to the rank of Subedar.
• After his gold medal win at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Chopra was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2022.
• This is the Indian Army’s highest peacetime honor.
• In 2022, he was elevated to the position of Subedar Major.
• He is also a recipient of the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian award.

Topic: Summits/ Conferences/ Meetings

4. The Election Commission of India organised two-day Conference of Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs).

• The conference was organised at  India International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Management in New Delhi.
• Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar chaired the conference.
• He was joined by Election Commissioners Dr. Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Dr. Vivek Joshi.
• The discussions focused on evaluating the performance of State and Union Territory CEO offices.
• The evaluation centered on how they executed the nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
• The Commission also reviewed how effectively the CEOs have mapped the current electorate data with data from the previous SIR exercise.

Topic: MoUs/Agreements

5. Coal India Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras to establish a Centre for Sustainable Energy.

• CIL Director Achyut Ghatak and IIT Madras Director V. Kamakoti signed the MoU.
• The new centre will promote research in sustainable and low-carbon technologies.
• The new centre aims to support India’s transition toward clean energy.
• It will also focus on repurposing coal mines and developing innovative green energy solutions.
• These efforts will be supported through Coal India’s financial support.
• IIT Madras Director V. Kamakoti highlighted that partnerships between academia and industry are vital for achieving India’s low-carbon goals.
• The Centre will also train skilled professionals. It will offer Ph.D., postdoctoral, and internship opportunities in sustainable energy research.

Topic: Art and Culture

6. Manipur celebrated Ningol Chakouba.

• It is a traditional festival that strengthens the bond between married women and their brothers.
• The festival is observed every year on the second day of the Hiyangei month in the Meitei calendar.
• On this day, married women return to their paternal homes.
• They share a festive meal with their brothers and other family members.
• After the meal, brothers give gifts to their sisters as a symbol of love and appreciation.
• The term “Ningol Chakouba” combines two words — “Ningol,” meaning married women, and “Chakouba,” meaning a grand communal feast.
• Women dressed in traditional attire visit their parental homes with fruits, vegetables, and food items.
• They share these items with their families as part of the celebration.
• A highlight of the festival is the grand feast featuring traditional dishes. Fish curry is considered an essential part of the meal.

Topic: Indian Economy

7. India’s core sector output growth slowed to 3 per cent in September 2025.

• This was a decline from the 6.5 per cent growth recorded in August.
• According to the Commerce and Industry Ministry, production of steel, cement, electricity, and fertilizers showed positive growth during September 2025.
• The combined output of eight major infrastructure industries had grown by 2.4 per cent in September 2024.
• These eight sectors together contribute 40.27 per cent to the Index of Industrial Production.
• The slowdown marked the weakest expansion in three months.
• It was mainly due to reduced production of coal, crude oil, refinery products, and natural gas.
• Fertilizer output growth eased to 1.6 per cent.
• Cement production rose by 5.3 per cent. This was lower than its growth rate in the same month last year.
• Steel production grew by 14.1 per cent year-on-year.
• Electricity generation increased by 2.1 per cent in September.
• During the April–September 2025 period, the core industries expanded by 2.9 per cent.
• This was lower than the 4.3 per cent growth recorded in the corresponding half of the previous fiscal year.

Topic: Indian Economy

8. Retail inflation for agricultural labourers dropped to -0.07 per cent in September 2025.

• This was down from 1.07 per cent in August.
• Rural workers also experienced a decrease in retail inflation. It fell to 0.31 per cent in September from 1.26 per cent in August.
• Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Agricultural Labourers fell by 0.11 points to 136.23 in September. For Rural Labourers, it declined by 0.18 points to 136.42.
• In August 2025, the CPI was 136.34 for Agricultural Labourers. For Rural Labourers, it stood at 136.60 in August.
• The Food Index saw a reduction of 0.47 points for Agricultural Labourers. It dropped by 0.58 points for Rural Labourers during the same period.
• Food inflation in September was negative at -2.35 per cent for agricultural labourers. For rural labourers, food inflation was -1.81 per cent.
• These figures come from data collected from 787 sample villages. These villages span 34 States and Union Territories.

Topic: International Appointments

9. Justice Prathiba M. Singh of the Delhi High Court has been named chairperson of the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Advisory Board of Judges for the 2025–2027 term.

• India’s United Nations Mission in Geneva called her appointment a significant achievement for the country.
• As chair, Justice Singh will lead a panel of international judges. This panel advises World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on judicial matters related to intellectual property.
• She also co-chairs the WHO’s Working Group on Regulatory Considerations on Artificial Intelligence in Health.
• The Advisory Board has ten members, including Justice Singh.
• Justice Singh previously chaired the first Intellectual Property Division of the Delhi High Court during 2021-2022.
• She was recognized among the top 50 most influential intellectual property figures worldwide in 2021 and 2022.

Topic: National Appointments

10. Nirmal Kumar Minda has become the President of Assocham.

• Nirmal Kumar Minda is the Executive Chairman of Uno Minda Group.
• Amitabh Chaudhry, Managing Director and CEO of Axis Bank, is set to join Minda’s team as Senior Vice-President.
• This appointment is pending RBI approval.
• Minda is known for his pivotal role in shaping the auto industry’s supply chain over the past five decades.
• He has been instrumental in promoting self-reliance in the auto component sector.
• Before his tenure at Axis Bank, Amitabh Chaudhry served as MD & CEO of HDFC Life.