Current Affairs Quiz – October 2025

Notes:
Sunil Amrith, Indian-origin historian and Professor of History at Yale University, won the British Academy Book Prize 2025 for his book The Burning Earth: An Environmental History of the Last 500 Years. The prize awards £25,000 for outstanding non-fiction works in humanities and social sciences. Amrith was born in Kenya to South Indian parents, grew up in Singapore, and graduated from the University of Cambridge, England. The book explores 500 years of environmental history, linking human activity, colonisation, industrialisation, and settlement patterns to the current climate crisis.

Notes:
Saudi Arabia has officially ended the Kafala System, giving millions of migrant workers more rights and freedom. The Kafala System was a sponsor system tying migrant workers to a single employer, requiring employer consent to switch jobs or exit the country. Saudi Arabia will replace it with a contractual model under Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Program. The new system allows job mobility, contract-based transfers, and exit/return rights without employer approval. Bahrain abolished Kafala in 2009; UAE partially reformed it in 2015; Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman still have strict Kafala rules.

Notes:
Abhinav Bindra, Olympic gold medallist, has been chosen as a torch-bearer for the 2026 Winter Olympics. The 2026 Winter Olympics will be held in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, from February 6 to February 22, 2026. Bindra won India’s first individual Olympic gold in the 10m air-rifle event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The 2026 Games will feature 116 medal events across 16 disciplines, increasing by seven events and one discipline from Beijing 2022. The Olympic Torch Relay symbolises unity, inspiration, and the Olympic spirit globally.

Notes:
South Korea is set to deploy its ‘monster missile’ Hyunmoo-5 by the end of this year. It marks a major upgrade in South Korea’s conventional arsenal against North Korea. Hyunmoo-5 is a ballistic missile developed by South Korea. It is designed for deep penetration strikes using a large conventional warhead. The missile can destroy heavily fortified underground targets. It is part of the Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR) strategy to deter North Korea without nuclear weapons. It was officially unveiled in October 2024.

Notes:
The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has directed digital monitoring on the Online National Drugs Licensing System (ONDLS). ONDLS is a single-window digital platform for processing drug- and cosmetic-related applications, licences, and certificates. It is developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) with the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO). The portal enables real-time digital tracking of high-risk solvent batches used in drug manufacturing. All state drug regulators and pharmaceutical manufacturers must register on ONDLS.

Notes:
More than 60 people, mostly children, were hospitalized in Bhopal due to injuries from makeshift “calcium carbide guns” during Diwali celebrations. Calcium carbide has the chemical formula CaC2. It appears as grayish-black lumps or crystalline powder with a garlic-like odor. It is made by heating a mixture of lime and carbon to 2000–2100°C in an electric arc furnace. Calcium carbide is used to produce acetylene gas through hydrolysis. Acetylene is a colourless, odourless, highly flammable gas. Calcium carbide is also used in steel manufacturing, metal cutting, and as an artificial ripening agent.

Notes:
Queen Mother Sirikit of Thailand passed away at age 93 on 24 October at Chulalongkorn Hospital, Bangkok. She was the mother of King Maha Vajiralongkorn and wife of the longest-reigning monarch, King Bhumibol Adulyadej. King Vajiralongkorn has ordered a year-long mourning period for the royal family. She had been hospitalised since 2019, recently battling a blood infection. Queen Mother Sirikit was renowned for rural development, preserving traditional crafts, environmental protection, and forest conservation. Her birthday, August 12, is celebrated as Mother’s Day in Thailand.

Notes:
Pradhan Mantri–Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) was launched in October 2021 to strengthen India’s healthcare preparedness for pandemics and emergencies. PM-ABHIM is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) with some Central Sector (CS) components and an outlay of Rs 64,180 crores for 2021-22 to 2025-26. The mission develops resilient, accessible, and self-reliant public health infrastructure from grassroots to district level. It establishes and upgrades Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAMs), Block Public Health Units, Integrated District Public Health Laboratories, and Critical Care Hospital Blocks. PM-ABHIM enhances pandemic and disaster preparedness with an IT-enabled, real-time disease surveillance network

Notes:
Preetismita Bhoi, a young lifter from Dhenkanal, Odisha, won gold in the 44 kg category at the 3rd Asian Youth Games 2025 in Bahrain. She lifted a total of 158 kg, setting Asian and World records in clean and jerk with 92 kg. The 16-year-old, who turns 17 in November, trains at the Weightlifting High Performance Centre, Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar. Earlier, she became the first Indian female lifter to win gold in the 40 kg category at the World Youth Championships 2024 in Peru, also setting a world record.

Notes:
Recently, India achieved a kabaddi double gold at the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Bahrain. Both Under-18 boys’ and girls’ teams remained unbeaten throughout the tournament. The girls’ team defeated Iran 75-21 in the final — the biggest victory margin in a Youth Games kabaddi final since 2013. Raider Neha Patel scored 28 points, and defender Riya Singh led a strong defence. India’s girls scored 312 points and conceded only 89 in five matches. The boys’ team beat Iran 35-32 in a close final at Isa Sports City, Riffa. The clean sweep reaffirmed India’s dominance as Asia’s youth kabaddi powerhouse and boosted its overall medal tally.