Current Affairs Quiz – December 2025

Notes:
December 4 is observed as International Cheetah Day to raise awareness and support for the survival of cheetahs. Cheetahs are one of the oldest big cat species, with ancestors dating back over five million years to the Miocene era. Namibia has the world’s largest cheetah population. Cheetahs are the fastest land animals, reaching speeds of 112 km/h in just three seconds. In 1952, India declared the cheetah extinct due to hunting and habitat loss. India’s cheetah translocation programme at Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh brought cheetahs from Namibia, South Africa, and Botswana.

Notes:
A recent study found that the shingles vaccine can reduce the risk of death from dementia. Shingles is a viral infection that causes a painful skin rash. It is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus responsible for chickenpox. After chickenpox, the virus stays dormant in nerve cells and can reactivate when immunity becomes weak. Shingles usually appears as a painful stripe of blisters on one side of the body, face, or neck. It is not directly contagious but can spread chickenpox to unvaccinated people. It mainly affects people over 50 years or those with weak immune systems. The Shingrix vaccine helps prevent shingles and its complications.

Notes:
Fino Payments Bank became the first payments bank to receive in-principle approval from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to convert into a Small Finance Bank (SFB). This approval allows Fino to accept larger deposits and offer loans and credit to individuals and small businesses. Fino applied under RBI’s “on tap” licensing guidelines for private sector SFBs. Payments banks can apply for SFB status after completing five years of operations and meeting regulatory norms. Fino started as a payments bank in 2017 and applied nearly two years ago for conversion. Fino plans to start lending within one year after approval. It serves over 16 million customers through more than 2 million merchants.

Notes:
The Indian Army inaugurated Radio Dirang, 88.4 FM – Apni Mitti, Apni Kahani, marking it as the first Community Radio Station (CRS) in the Eastern Theatre, aimed at enhancing communication in border areas. The station was established by the Gajraj Corps under Operation Sadbhavna, reflecting the Army’s commitment to community engagement and socio-economic development in Arunachal Pradesh. Radio Dirang is designed to promote and preserve local culture, traditions, and social development initiatives, acting as a bridge between the administration and the community. It serves as a vital channel for local administration, enabling the timely dissemination of important information to residents in remote and border areas.

Notes:
Assam’s Majuli hosts the Charaichung Festival for the second time to revive and conserve the historic Royal Bird Sanctuary. Charaichung, Asia’s first protected bird sanctuary, was established in 1633 AD by Ahom king Swargadeu Pratap Singha. The four-day festival (December 7–10) is organised by Majuli Sahitya and local residents to rejuvenate bird habitats and promote the sanctuary globally. A special exhibition showcases forest conservation efforts and ongoing biodiversity protection initiatives in Majuli. The sanctuary is home to around 150 indigenous and migratory bird species and rich aquatic life, making conservation vital.

Notes:
Scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) discovered two new jumping spider species — Asemonea dentis and Colyttus nongwar — in Meghalaya. Both belong to the Salticidae family known for sharp vision, fast reflexes and hunting by stalking instead of web-making. Asemonea dentis is only the third Indian species of its genus, named for a tooth-like projection on the male; males are greenish-brown with a pale-yellow V-shape and females are creamy white with black marks. Colyttus nongwar is the second Indian species of its genus, named after Nongwar village; both sexes have a reddish-brown oval body with creamy bands and chevron patches.

Notes:
Aditya-L1, India’s first solar observatory, helped scientists understand why the May 2024 solar storm — the strongest in 20+ years — behaved unusually. A solar storm is a sudden burst of particles, energy, magnetic fields, and solar material ejected by the Sun. It is caused when the Sun’s twisted magnetic fields become overstretched and snap in a magnetic reconnection, releasing huge energy. Solar storms can produce a solar flare, radiation storm, or a coronal mass ejection (CME).

Notes:
Andrej Babis, a populist billionaire and former Prime Minister (2017–2021), was sworn in again as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic on December 9, 2025, after his party ANO (YES movement) won big in the October 3–4 parliamentary elections. He was sworn in by President Petr Pavel, who invited him to form a new government after ANO formed a majority coalition with two smaller parties: the Freedom and Direct Democracy (anti-migrant) party and the Motorists for Themselves party. The coalition will form a 16-member Cabinet, with ANO holding eight posts, the Motorists holding four, and the Freedom Party three.

Notes:
India inaugurated the world’s highest war memorial in Ladakh to honor the 20 soldiers who died in the Galwan Valley clash with Chinese forces on 15 June 2020. It was built under the Bharat Ranbhoomi Darshan initiative. It is made of red and black granite symbolizing sacrifice and valor, and designed in the shape of a trishul and damru reflecting divine energy and the Himalayas.

Notes:
NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has signed 70 Technology Transfer Agreements with industry. NSIL was incorporated on 6 March 2019 under the Companies Act, 2013, and works under the Department of Space (DOS), Government of India. It helps Indian industries take up high-technology space activities and promotes commercial use of India’s space products and services.