Current Affairs Quiz - April 2025

Notes:
Uttar Pradesh MSME Minister announced India’s first Textile Machine Park near Kanpur on 875 acres in Chaparghata village, Bhongaon. The park will follow the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model to reduce imports and promote Make in India. It aims to manufacture textile machines currently imported from China, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, and Europe. More than 200 large and medium units will be set up for machine production. Machines like circular knitting, flat knitting, printing, and technical textile machines will be manufactured. Local technical experts will be trained for repair and maintenance. Uttar Pradesh’s textile sector is witnessing rapid growth.

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SpaceX recently launched a private astronaut crew on a historic polar-orbiting mission from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. A Polar Orbit (PO) is a type of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) between 200 km and 1,000 km in altitude. Unlike equatorial orbits, satellites in a polar orbit travel from pole to pole. Polar orbits allow satellites to cover the entire Earth’s surface as the planet rotates. These orbits are crucial for Earth observation, climate monitoring, and reconnaissance. The Fram2 mission is the first human spaceflight to use this trajectory, marking a milestone in space exploration.

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The Fiscal Health Index (FHI) by NITI Aayog assesses the fiscal health of Indian states. It covers 18 major states that contribute significantly to India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), public expenditure, revenue, and fiscal stability. Odisha ranks first in the index, followed by Chhattisgarh, Goa, Jharkhand, and Gujarat. As states handle two-thirds of public spending and one-third of total revenue, their fiscal health is crucial for national economic stability. The index uses data from the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) for the financial year 2022-23 to compare and benchmark fiscal performance. It helps policymakers make informed decisions to improve fiscal sustainability and resilience. The index evaluates tax buoyancy, which measures how responsive a state’s tax revenue is to its Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth. It assesses revenue generation, including own tax and non-tax receipts.

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The Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD) announced that all Anganwadi Centres in India are now registered on the POSHAN Tracker mobile application. POSHAN Tracker is a mobile-based tool that tracks real-time attendance, growth, and nutrition services at Anganwadi Centres and replaces manual records with auto-generated monthly reports. It supports 24 languages and improves transparency, efficiency, and accountability in delivering nutrition services. The app is part of Mission Saksham Anganwadi and POSHAN 2.0 (Prime Minister’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nutrition), which merges Anganwadi services, POSHAN Abhiyaan, and the Scheme for Adolescent Girls (14–18 years) to fight malnutrition.

Notes:
Nikhil Singhal, Founder of Vigor Media Worldwide and President of the Noida High Rise Federation, received the Uttar Pradesh Anmol Ratan Award for his outstanding work in public relations and strategic communication. The award was presented by Shri Akhilesh Yadav, former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, during a grand ceremony on March 31, 2025, at the Taj Lucknow, organized by the Tapasya Foundation Trust. The event gathered leading figures from media, corporate communications, and governance, recognizing Singhal’s role in transforming the public relations (PR) industry with innovative and impactful strategies.

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Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Army successfully conducted four flight-tests of the Army version of Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (MRSAM) on April 3 and 4, 2025 from Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha. The tests involved intercepting high-speed aerial targets at long-range, short-range, high altitude, and low altitude, achieving direct hits and proving operational capability. The weapon system was tested in real conditions, and its performance was verified using radars and electro-optical tracking systems from the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur. The trials were conducted under DRDO’s guidance by the Indian Army’s Eastern and Southern Commands. MRSAM is jointly developed by DRDO and Israel Aerospace Industries and includes multi-function radar, command post, mobile launcher, and other vehicles. These trials pave the way for weapon system deployment in two Army Regiments.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the newly built Pamban Bridge, India’s first vertical railway sea bridge, in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu on 6th April 2025. The 2.07-km bridge was built by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) at a cost of ₹531 crore. It features a 72.5-meter vertical lift span that can rise 17 meters, allowing ships to pass safely and improving rail connectivity. The old 2.05-km Pamban Bridge, built in 1913, had a Scherzer rolling lift span and was the only transport link for over 70 years. It survived a 1964 cyclone, was restored quickly, and upgraded to broad gauge in 2007.

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Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) launched a new Microdata Portal during the State Government Ministers’ Conference to improve data access and user experience. The portal, built with help from the World Bank Technology Team, uses a modern and secure technology stack. It stores national survey and economic census data and removes old technical issues. National Statistical System Training Academy (NSSTA) website was also launched to help with training information. MOSPI also showed a Proof of Concept (PoC) for an Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML) based tool to simplify National Industrial Classification (NIC) code search using natural language queries. These steps highlight MOSPI’s efforts to use technology for better data, planning, and achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat (Developed India).

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Padmashree Ram Sahay Pandey, who recently passed away, was a renowned figure associated with the Rai folk dance of the Bundelkhand region. Pandey dedicated his life to promoting and preserving the Rai folk dance, a tradition that was once stigmatized. He is credited with bringing respectability to the art form and taking it from the heart of Bundelkhand to international platforms. The Rai dance is a traditional folk dance from the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2022 for his contributions to the preservation and promotion of Rai dance.

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The Registrar General of India (RGI) has warned government and private hospitals for not reporting births and deaths on time, which is legally required. The Registrar General of India (RGI) is a permanent body under the Ministry of Home Affairs, created in 1949 by the Government of India. It is headed by the Registrar General and Ex-Officio Census Commissioner, usually a Joint Secretary-rank officer. The RGI manages the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, to ensure accurate civil registration. It also conducts the Census of India, providing data on population size, growth, and characteristics. Along with the Census, the RGI handles demographic and language surveys across the country.