Current Affairs Quiz - February 2025

Notes:
The first Raisina Middle East Conference was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on 28-29 January 2025. External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar was the Chief Guest. Dr. Jaishankar visited the UAE from 27-29 January 2025. This was his third visit to the UAE since his reappointment in June 2024. The Raisina Dialogue is India’s top conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics. The event was organised by the Observer Research Foundation, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and India’s Ministry of External Affairs. The conference brought together policymakers, academics, media, and business leaders to discuss regional and global integration.

Notes:
World Economic Forum has published “Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution Network 2023-2024 Impact Report”. The report highlights key innovations tackling global challenges. It focuses on seven core areas, including AI, agriculture, health, biotechnology, and energy transition. Drones are being used to deliver healthcare in India. Autonomous mobility in Saudi Arabia has improved transport efficiency and safety. Alternative proteins, including plant-based and cultivated sources, are being developed for food security. The Saagu Baagu pilot in Telangana helped 7,000 chili farmers increase incomes and reduce agriculture’s environmental impact through agritech.

Notes:
Bharat Parv has been organized annually since 2016 at Red Fort, New Delhi from January 26-31 as part of Republic Day celebrations. Organized by the Ministry of Tourism, it takes place at Lawns and Gyan Path in front of the Red Fort. Bharat Parv 2025 features Republic Day tableaux, Armed Force Band performances, cultural shows, regional cuisines, crafts bazaar, and government pavilions. The theme for 2025 is ‘Dekho Apna Desh’, encouraging citizen participation through People’s Choice Voting.

Notes:
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurated Project Abhay, an initiative to boost truck drivers’ health and safety. The project, developed by IIT Delhi’s Centre for Rural Development & Technology (CRDT), screens truck drivers’ health. Over 50,000 truck drivers across six states were screened, focusing on health and vision issues. More than half of drivers had vision problems, and the project successfully corrected many. The initiative improved drivers’ social security benefits and quality of life.

Notes:
The Indian women’s U19 cricket team won the 2nd ICC Women’s U19 T20 World Cup, defeating South Africa by nine wickets. The final was played on 2 February 2025 at Bayuemas Cricket Oval, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The team, led by Niki Prasad, had earlier won the inaugural ACC Women’s U19 Asia Cup 2024 in Malaysia. The tournament, organised by the ICC, took place in Malaysia from 18 January to 2 February 2025.

Notes:
Assam government has denotified three proposed reserve forests in Tinsukia district—Talpathar, Mohongpathar, and Duarmarah. This will provide land rights to over 20,000 residents, converting these areas into revenue villages. The state also announced a Rs 600 crore grant for 25,000 places of worship. New policies were introduced to support startups and defence manufacturing. The decision aims to balance environmental conservation with social and economic development.

Notes:
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) restrained the Andhra Pradesh Government from proceeding with six infrastructure projects in Kolleru wetland. Kolleru Lake is a large, shallow freshwater lake in northeastern Andhra Pradesh. It lies between the Krishna and Godavari deltas near Eluru. It is Asia’s largest shallow freshwater lake, covering 308 sq. km. It acts as a flood-balancing reservoir and drains into the Bay of Bengal via the Upputeru River. It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1999 and a Ramsar Site in 2002. It is an Important Bird Area (IBA) on the Central Asian Flyway, hosting species like Siberian cranes, pelicans, and painted storks.

Notes:
NASA is set to launch SPHEREx, a revolutionary space telescope, to explore the universe’s origins. It will cost 488 million, far less than the 10 billion James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Unlike JWST, which zooms in on deep-space objects, SPHEREx will survey the entire sky in 102 infrared colors. The telescope will take 600 images daily, completing four full sky scans in 27 months. SPHEREx will map 450 million galaxies, revealing how the universe evolved after the Big Bang. It will also study 100 million Milky Way stars, tracing life’s building blocks in space.

Notes:
Sankara Eye Hospital and CII Young Indians (Yi) Bengaluru launched a Braille-enabled Indian Constitution. Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot unveiled it in the city. The initiative empowers blind and visually impaired individuals to read and understand their rights. It promotes inclusivity by ensuring equal access to constitutional knowledge. Kaushik Murali from Sankara Eye Foundation called it a major step toward accessibility. The Braille version will be distributed to key institutions for wider reach.

Notes:
Panama has formally withdrawn from China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) under US pressure. The Panamanian Embassy in Beijing gave a 90-day notice of its decision. President Jose Raul Mulino rejected US claims about the Panama Canal, calling them “intolerable.” The US alleged Panama agreed to free passage for US government vessels, but the Panama Canal Authority denied any tariff changes. Trump and US officials raised concerns over Chinese investments in the canal. Panama is the first Latin American country to exit the BRI, which operates in over 100 countries.