India Current Affairs [Nation & States] MCQs

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The ₹4,447 crore Mokama–Munger highway project is being developed in Bihar. It is part of the larger Buxar–Bhagalpur High-Speed Corridor. The 82.4 km, 4-lane greenfield highway is approved under the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM). The highway passes through Mokama, Barahiya, Lakhisarai, Jamalpur, and Munger. It enhances connectivity across Eastern Bihar and supports regional industries. The project will reduce freight costs, boost economic growth, create jobs, and strengthen Bihar’s logistics network.

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Recently, Ho tribe adivasis staged a protest in West Singhbhum district, Jharkhand against administration interference in their Manki-Munda system. The Ho or Kolha people are an Austroasiatic Munda ethnic group of India. They call themselves Ho, Hodoko, and Horo, meaning human in their language. They are mainly found in the Kolhan region of Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, and Bihar. In the Manki-Munda system, the Munda (village head) resolves socio-political disputes at the village level. Each village had one hereditary Munda. A Manki headed a pidh of 8–15 villages and handled unresolved cases. Manki and Munda had no role in land or revenue matters. It was a purely internal self-governing system, with no taxation or external sovereign control.

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Recently, the Madhya Pradesh Higher Education Department launched the Misaal Project to foster leadership qualities among tribal youth. Governor Mangubhai Patel inaugurated the project virtually, highlighting its role in creating role models with social responsibility. It is being implemented in collaboration with Gujarat, which has already run similar youth-focused programmes successfully. The initiative will include workshops, training camps, and community engagement activities for tribal students across Madhya Pradesh. Students will be encouraged to identify local challenges and create innovative solutions. The project focuses on values of social responsibility, service, and ethical leadership to shape tribal youth as role models.

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Recently, the Kerala Cabinet approved the draft Wildlife Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2025, giving power to the Chief Wildlife Warden to order the immediate killing of wild animals attacking humans in residential areas. This is the first such amendment by a State in India. The Bill aims to bypass delays in the Central Wildlife (Protection) Act and Union Government’s Standard Operating Procedure. The State Government will get powers to declare animals in Schedule II as vermin, earlier vested only with the Centre. Once declared vermin, anyone can kill them, and their meat consumption is allowed.

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Recently, NITI Aayog launched two initiatives: AI for Viksit Bharat Roadmap and NITI Frontier Tech Repository under the Frontier Tech Hub. The AI Roadmap aims to accelerate AI adoption across industries and transform research & development with generative AI to drive innovation and productivity for a Viksit Bharat. The Frontier Tech Repository showcases 200+ impact stories across Agriculture, Healthcare, Education, and National Security. The focus is on building collaborative ecosystems, fostering tech innovation, and scaling real-world impact at grassroots and national levels.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the National Makhana Board in Purnea, Bihar. A development package of about ₹475 crore has been approved for the makhana sector. Makhana, scientifically called Euryale ferox and also known as fox nut, is an aquatic crop grown in stagnant ponds and wetlands. Its edible seeds are small, round, and black to brown, earning it the name ‘Black Diamond.’ Bihar produces nearly 90% of India’s makhana, especially Mithilanchal and Seemanchal regions. It is also grown in Assam, Manipur, West Bengal, Tripura, Odisha, and countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, China, Japan, and Korea. In 2022, Mithila Makhana received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag.

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The University Grants Commission (UGC) recently mandated all foreign nationals studying in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and universities in India to register on the Study In India (SII) portal. The SII portal is a flagship project of the Ministry of Education (MoE), Government of India to attract international students to Indian universities. It provides a single-window interface for application submission, admission, and student visa processing for regular, short-term, or long-term courses. It provides information on academic facilities, research support, and related services.

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Balod district in Chhattisgarh has become the first child marriage-free district in India. This achievement is under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Child Marriage-Free India’ campaign, launched on August 27, 2024. All 436 gram panchayats and nine urban bodies in Balod received formal certificates from the state government. No cases of child marriage were reported in Balod over the past two years. Collective efforts of administration, public representatives, anganwadi workers, and the community contributed to success.

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The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) has established India’s first Animal Birth Control (ABC) Training Centre in Jarhara, Uttar Pradesh. The centre is a collaboration between LMC, Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), Uttar Pradesh government, and Humane World for Animals India. Its main objective is to strengthen street dog sterilisation programmes and improve animal welfare practices. The centre offers a 15-day training course with theoretical and practical components. The programme targets veterinarians, para-veterinarians, animal handlers, and organisations involved in street dog management.

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The Odisha government announced the creation of a digital library named Gyana Yagnya Mandap to preserve rare records of the Jagannath Temple, Puri. It will be built on the site of the old Raghunandan Library, part of the Emar Mutt, near the temple premises. The original library, established in the early 20th century, housed palm-leaf manuscripts and religious texts in Odia, Sanskrit, and Bengali. The digital library will preserve Madala Panji (historic temple chronicle), ritual manuals, scriptures, and administrative/cultural documents. It will feature a modern e-library system and research centre for scholars, devotees, and the public.