Current Affairs Quiz – June 2025

Notes:
The Election Commission of India (ECI) recently introduced a technology-driven system to generate Index Cards and statistical reports after elections. Index Cards are a non-statutory, post-election Statistical Reporting Format developed by the ECI as a suo moto initiative. They make election data at the constituency level accessible to researchers, policymakers, journalists, and the public. The Index Cards cover candidates, electors, votes polled and counted, party and candidate vote shares, gender voting patterns, regional variations, and party performance. They form the basis for about 35 reports for Lok Sabha and 14 for State Assembly elections.

Notes:
Recently, security forces encountered Maoists during anti-Naxal operations in Indravati National Park (INP). Indravati National Park is located in Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh. The park is named after the Indravati River, which originates from the Dandakaranya range in Odisha and is a tributary of the Godavari River. The river forms the northern and western boundaries of the park, also marking the border between Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.

Notes:
Himachal Pradesh has launched a Border Tourism initiative to promote sustainable tourism in tribal areas near the Indo-China border. The initiative will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu during his visit to Shipki-La village in Kinnaur district. It is developed with the Union Government to support inclusive growth in remote border areas. Domestic tourists and locals can now access sites in Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti like Shipki-La, Lepcha-La, Gue Monastery, and Chitkul.

Notes:
The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (CSIR-IHBT) recently reported the first flowering and seed set of asafoetida, also known as heeng, at Palampur in Himachal Pradesh. This confirms that asafoetida has successfully adapted and been domesticated in Indian soil for the first time. Asafoetida, scientifically called Ferula assa-foetida, is a perennial herb that takes about five years to flower. The plant grows well in cold and dry climates like those in Iran, Afghanistan, and Central Asia, which are its native regions.

Notes:
The Union Finance Minister recently chaired the 6th meeting of the Governing Council of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) in New Delhi to review fund performance, strategic partnerships, and new fund launches. The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) is a government-anchored investment platform that mobilizes long-term capital for infrastructure and key sectors in India. NIIF was announced in the Union Budget 2015–16 and established in 2015. Its headquarters is in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Notes:
Nicholas Pooran, West Indies’ Twenty20 (T20) record-holder for runs and appearances, retired from international cricket on June 10, 2025, at age 29. He scored 1,983 runs in 61 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 2,275 runs in 106 T20 Internationals. Pooran hit his career-best T20 score of 98 against Afghanistan and surpassed Chris Gayle as West Indies’ top T20 run-scorer. He hit the most sixes (40) in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) while playing for Lucknow Super Giants.

Notes:
A special six-day “Bodhi Yatra” was organised in Uttar Pradesh from June 2 to June 7, 2025, to promote the state’s Buddhist heritage globally. The event was held under the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC) framework by the Uttar Pradesh Tourism Department and the Union Ministry of External Affairs. A 50-member delegation from five Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries—Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam—joined the yatra. The tour covered key Buddhist sites like Shravasti, Kapilvastu, Kushinagar, Sarnath, and cities like Varanasi, Lucknow, and Agra.

Notes:
Russia launched a massive air attack on Ukraine on June 11, 2025, using over 300 drones and missiles. Around 250 of these were Shahed drones, which are Iranian-made Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs). Shahed drones are also loitering munitions made by Shahed Aviation Industries for one-way explosive attacks. Russia calls the Shahed-136 drone “Geran-2”.

Notes:
India’s first underwater museum and artificial coral reef will be created around the decommissioned warship Indian Naval Ship (INS) Guldar near Nivati Rocks in Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra. The project was virtually inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra with strong support from the central government. It aims to promote marine conservation and tourism, offering activities like scuba diving and submarine tours in the future. INS Guldar, a 1,120-ton ship decommissioned in January 2024, has been handed over to Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation.

Notes:
India now ranks second globally in social security coverage, protecting over 94 crore people. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO)’s ILOSTAT database, India’s coverage rose from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025. This 45 percentage point rise is the fastest expansion in the world, achieved through pro-poor and labour welfare schemes. The Ministry of Labour and Employment highlighted this during the International Labour Conference in Geneva. India is the first country to update its 2025 social protection data in the ILOSTAT system.