1. India asks Pakistan to free prisoners, says ready to solve humanitarian matters. India is committed to addressing “all humanitarian matters, including those pertaining to prisoners” with Pakistan, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement after New Delhi and Islamabad exchanged lists of prisoners on Sunday. The exchange takes place in accordance with the […]
1. Core sector output rises 5.4% in uneven recovery Overall production levels in November remain the same as in the previous month; cement,coal, steel, electricity output surged, but petroleum refinery products hit a 21-month low The output growth of India’s eight core sectors rebounded to 5.4% in November from a revised estimate of a 0.9% […]
1. Remote EVM ready to help migrants vote outside States: EC The machines can handle multiple constituencies from a single remote polling booth; panel to demonstrate prototype’s functioning on Jan. 16 The Election Commission (EC) on Thursday announced the development of a prototype of a multi-constituency remote electronic voting machine (RVM) to enable remote voting by […]
1. A failed attempt at decriminalisation What is the Jan Vishwas Bill tabled by the Union government in Parliament and what are its objectives? Is it the solution to the problem of overcriminalisation? What are the shortcomings of the Bill and how can it be overcome? Last week, the Union Government tabled the Jan Vishwas […]
1. Centre yet to make its stand clear on Ram Setu petition The statement by the Union government in Parliament that satellite imagery cannot provide “direct information” about the origin and age of the structure in the Ram Setu region comes even as a prolonged litigation initiated by former Rajya Sabha member Subramanian Swamy to […]
1. President inaugurates ‘PRASAD’ project to create a slew of facilities at Srisailam President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the ‘PRASAD’ project at the tourism facilitation centre in the pilgrim town of Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh on Monday. She was accompanied by Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan. The hill town will get a pilgrim complex, amenities centres at […]
1. The emerging Omicron sublineages What led to the recent outbreak of COVID-19 cases in China? What are the SARS-CoV-2 lineages circulating in the country? Which Omicron sublineages has the WHO put under the ‘Omicron subvariants under monitoring’ category? Since the initial outbreak in 2019 in Wuhan, China, the world has seen multiple repeated waves […]
1. Scientists freeze Great Barrier Reef coral in world-first trial Scientists working on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef have successfully trialled a new method for freezing and storing coral larvae they say could eventually help rewild reefs threatened by climate change. Scientists are scrambling to protect coral reefs as rising ocean temperatures destabilise delicate ecosystems. The […]
1. 81 cr. people to get free foodgrains for one year Those covered under National Food Security Act will benefit; Centre to bear the entire expenses estimated at ₹2 lakh crore; Food Minister terms it ‘another remarkable decision of government’ The Union Cabinet on Friday decided to provide free foodgrains to all 81 crore beneficiaries […]
1. India and China to keep dialogue channels open The 17th round of senior-level military talks was held on December 20 ‘in an open, constructive manner’, 10 days after the two Armies clashed in the Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh India and China held the 17th round of Corps Commander-level talks on December 20, at the […]
1. Pause could prove costly, said Das; growth fragile, argued MPC’s Varma Economic growth not robust enough to withstand excessive monetary tightening, held Varma in voting against the 35 basis points repo rate increase at the Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee’s December meeting, the minutes show The Reserve Bank of India could ill afford […]
1. Three more sites added to tentative list of UNESCO Gujarat’s Vadnagar town, the iconic Sun Temple at Modhera, and the rock cut sculptures of Unakoti in Tripura have been added to the tentative list of UNCESO World Heritage Sites. The UNESCO tentative list is an “inventory of those properties which each State Party intends […]
1. COP-15 summit adopts historic biodiversity deal Kunming-Montreal Agreement is aimed at saving the lands, oceans and species from pollution, degradation and climate change, and is being compared to the landmark Paris Agreement After four years of fractious talks, nearly 200 countries, including India, approved a historic Paris-style deal on Monday to protect and reverse dangerous […]
1. Citizenship path to be eased for 6 minority groups from 3 nations Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians, Buddhists, Jains from Pak., Afghanistan and Bangladesh will be allowed to produce expired passports, visas The Union government is all set to ease grant of citizenship to members of six minority communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh whose passports […]
1. Rajasthan sanctuary gets protection against ESZ shrinking The famous Tal Chhapar blackbuck sanctuary in Churu district of Rajasthan has received a protective cover against a proposed move of the State government to reduce the size of its eco-sensitive zone. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) has also taken up a major project for […]
1. Crude oil imports rose 52.6% to $147 bn in April-November Commerce Ministry data shows coal and coke imports almost doubled in the period to $37.25 bn; in exports, shipments of petroleum grew by 58.9% to $62.65 bn, gems & jewellery increased by 2% India’s imports of crude oil rose by 52.6% to $146.57 billion during […]
1. States can enact laws on uniform civil code, Law Minister tells Rajya Sabha The States are empowered to enact personal laws that decide issues such as succession, marriage and divorce, in their endeavour to secure a uniform civil code (UCC), Law Minister Kiren Rijiju informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. The Minister made these […]
1. Specific date will be given for pleas on Article 370, says SC The removal of special status deprived Jammu and Kashmir of privileges; the petitions have challenged a Presidential Order of August 5, 2019 Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud on Wednesday said a specific date will be given for hearing a series of […]
1. Analysing U.S.-China bilateral ties What events led to the unprecedented downturn of relations between the two countries? Is there a growing effort from both sides to reset the relationship to the pre-trade war level? Is the complex relationship between the two powers set on an irreversible trajectory of rivalry? U.S.-China relations have witnessed an […]
1. Why is there friction between the government and the judiciary? What is the trigger for the current conflict? Why did the Supreme Court strike down the law on National Judicial Appointments? What is the government’s grouse against the Collegium system? What was the Constitution (99th Amendment) Act? What is the new CJI planning? A […]
Current affairs decide a large share of marks in UPSC Prelims, Mains and the Interview, and in TNPSC exams. Every morning our faculty publish the day’s important news from The Hindu, PIB, Indian Express and other sources — explained, organised by GS paper, and linked to the syllabus.
What each daily post includes
The key news of the day, grouped by GS Paper 1, 2, 3 and 4
Background and the static syllabus topic each story connects to
