India Current Affairs [Nation & States] MCQs

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The Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir launched the Zero-Ticket Travel Initiative at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC). This initiative allows women to travel free of cost on Smart City electric buses and Jammu and Kashmir Road Transport Corporation (JKRTC) buses across the Union Territory. It also includes free travel for schoolgirls, ensuring safer and easier commutes for young students. The move is part of a larger set of pro-women and pro-poor policies focused on improving social and economic empowerment. The initiative promotes gender-inclusive mobility and supports access to education and opportunities.

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The Union Cabinet approved the second phase of the Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP) with an outlay of ₹6,839 crore for border villages. Vibrant Villages Programme was launched in 2023 for the all-round development of villages near the International Border. The first phase covered villages in 46 blocks along the northern border in 19 districts of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, and Ladakh. Under the programme, 17 border villages will be developed as tourist destinations. The second phase will cover Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Punjab to boost livelihood, prosperity, and safety. Vibrant Villages Programme is implemented by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.

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In April 2025, strong protests erupted against the Sillahalla Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Project (SPSHEP) in Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, led by farmers, tribal groups, and environmentalists. The project is proposed by Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation Limited (TNGECL) to generate 1,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity for meeting peak power demand and integrating renewable energy. It is located in the Tamil Nadu, specifically within the Nilgiris district. It includes two dams, tunnels of 2.8 km (head race) and 1.56 km (tail race), an underground powerhouse, and surface storage. Around 1,000 acres of farmland and 500 acres of forest may be submerged, affecting nearly 3,000 farmers. Landowners with joint pattas may not receive fair compensation, and earlier compensations for road projects remain pending. People are protesting due to fears of losing land, forests, and livelihoods

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Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways called the breakthrough in the Silkyara Bend-Barkot Tunnel a historic milestone. The tunnel is a 531-kilometre long, two-lane bi-directional tunnel with an escape passage. It is located on the Dharasu-Yamunotri section in Uttarakhand, connecting Silkyara and Barkot. The tunnel is part of National Highway-134 (NH-134), earlier known as NH-94. It is being built under the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) mode.

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Recently, under the Sahyog portal led by the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), the government issued 130 content notices to platforms like Google, YouTube, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft in the past 6 months. The Sahyog portal is an initiative of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and helps manage content removal requests efficiently. These notices are issued under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000. They are different from orders under Section 69(A) of the IT Act, which deals with censorship. If platforms ignore such notices, they may lose safe harbour protection, which shields them from legal action over user content.

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The Supreme Court of India recently directed the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) to assess the impact of nearby glass industries on the Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh. The CSIR-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (CSIR-NEERI) is a premier research body under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Initially, it focused on water supply, sewage disposal, communicable and occupational diseases, and industrial pollution. Its core aim is to support pollution control, environmental management, and sustainable development. NEERI operates under the Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India. Its headquarters is located in Nagpur, Maharashtra.

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The government recently authorised the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) to share and receive information with the Enforcement Directorate under the anti-money laundering law to better detect money trails and combat cyber frauds. Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) is established under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) as the national nodal agency to fight cybercrime. It provides a framework and ecosystem for law enforcement agencies (LEAs) to handle cybercrimes in a coordinated and comprehensive way. It connects academia, industry, public, and government for prevention, detection, investigation, and prosecution of cybercrimes. The headquarters of I4C is located in New Delhi.

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Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Ashwini Vaishnaw launched the Indian Institute of Creative Technology (IICT) in Mumbai during the WAVES 2025 event. IICT is a national-level institute focused on Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comics (AVGC). It has already started functioning from the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) building on Pedder Road, Mumbai. It is established by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting with support from FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry) and CII (Confederation of Indian Industry).

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The Prime Minister of India will officially inaugurate the Vizhinjam International Seaport in Kerala, marking a major milestone in global maritime connectivity for the state. Vizhinjam Port is located in Vizhinjam, a coastal town in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala. It is India’s first dedicated transshipment port and also the country’s first semi-automated port. The port is built at a cost of about ₹8,900 crore under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model and is operated by the Adani Group, while the Kerala government holds the majority stake. It has the deepest breakwater in India, nearly three kilometres long, with a natural draft of about 20 metres. The port features India’s first home-built, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered Vessel Traffic Management System, developed with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras.

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The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has decided to begin repair work on the damaged mihrab structure around the old water tank at Safa Masjid in Ponda, Goa. Safa Masjid, also called Safa Shahouri Masjid, is a historic mosque built in 1560 by Sultan Adil Shah of Bijapur. It is one of the few Islamic monuments in Goa that survived the Portuguese colonial period, during which many religious sites were destroyed. The mosque is known for its architectural and cultural value and is declared a national monument under the protection of ASI. The recent decision by ASI follows months of delay and brings hope for the preservation of this heritage site.