Daily Current Affairs – 23-07-2025
Science and Technology News
ISRO-NASA NISAR Satellite
The ISRO-NASA co-developed NISAR satellite is scheduled for launch on July 30 at 5:40 PM from Sriharikota.
This Rs. 12,000 crore satellite aims to explore Earth’s surface and conduct precise studies on environmental changes, glacier movements, and disaster management.
It weighs 2,392 kg and will be placed in a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 743 km.
It has an expected lifespan of 3 to 5 years.
For the first time, this satellite features two frequency band instruments: P-band and S-band.
NISAR will orbit Earth completely once every 12 days, providing data for studies on land surface and crop health.
Tamil Nadu News
Tamil Nadu Ranks Second in Per Capita Income
The Central Government informed the Lok Sabha that Tamil Nadu ranks second nationally in terms of per capita income.
The national average per capita income is ₹1,00,710, while for Tamil Nadu, it is ₹1,96,309.
Since 2021, Tamil Nadu has consistently achieved growth and milestones.
The Tamil Nadu government attributes this to its efforts in demanding funds due to the state even without receiving central government schemes.
National News
Public Lost Rs. 22,845 Crore to Cybercrime Last Year
In 2024, the public lost a total of Rs. 22,845.73 crore due to cybercrime. This represents a 206% increase compared to the previous year, as stated by the central government in Parliament.
The number of cybercrime complaints increased from 10,29,026 in 2022 to 15,96,493 in 2023, and further to 22,68,346 in 2024.
The National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) and Cybercrime Complaint Management System (CICPM), launched in 2021, have received 17.82 lakh complaints so far.
More than ₹5,489 crore has been frozen from fraudsters.
A system to freeze suspicious accounts in coordination with banks and financial institutions was launched on October 10, 2024. Through this initiative, ₹4,631 crore has been protected from cybercriminals.
Number of suspicious bank accounts identified: 2,63,348. 10,599 crimes involving cybercrime methods like ‘malware’ and ‘phishing’ have been registered.
MiG-21 Fighter Jets to Retire After 60 Years of Service
The Russian-made MiG-21 fighter jets, which have served the Indian Air Force for over 60 years, are set to be retired.
Introduced in the 1960s, they played crucial roles in the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak wars, the 1999 Kargil War, and the 2019 Balakot airstrike.
Despite their service, MiG-21s have been criticized as “flying coffins” due to frequent crashes; over 400 MiG-21s have crashed to date.
A MiG-21 squadron at a Punjab Air Force base was officially decommissioned on July 23.
New fighter jets like the Rafale and Tejas will be inducted into the Indian Air Force as replacements.
In 2019, an agreement was signed to acquire 36 Rafale jets from France for ₹48,000 crore.
The government has also approved the purchase of 97 Tejas aircraft at a cost of ₹67,000 crore as additional aircraft.
New ‘Anti-Drone Force’ on Pakistan Border
BSF has decided to create a new ‘Anti-Drone Force’ to counter drone attacks on the India-Pakistan border.
These new units will be deployed along approximately 2,000 km of the India-Pakistan border.
The force will include trained personnel and equipment to counter drones, UAVs, and other offensive drones.
More than 118 drone intrusions from Pakistan have been detected by BSF so far.
International News
US Withdrawal from UNESCO
The United States has announced its re-withdrawal from UNESCO.
Reason cited: Dissatisfaction with UNESCO’s policies and operations.
The withdrawal will be effective from November 15.
The US had previously withdrawn from UNESCO in 2017.
The US has also withdrawn from other UN bodies like the Human Rights Council and announced withdrawal from the WHO.
Economy News
ATI Invests $200 Million in Meril
The Opportunity Investment Commission (ATI) has announced an investment of $200 million in Micro Fined Surgical Limited (Meril), one of India’s leading medical device manufacturing companies.
Approximately 3% of Meril’s shares will be acquired for $200 million through its wholly-owned subsidiary.
SBI Raised Rs. 25,000 Crore
India’s largest bank, State Bank of India (SBI), has raised Rs. 25,000 crore through a Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) by allotting shares to eligible institutional investors.
The decision to accept share applications from eligible institutional investors and allot shares was approved at a meeting of the bank’s board of directors.
Each share was allotted at a price of Rs. 817, including a face value of Re. 1 and a premium of Rs. 816, for a total of 30,59,97,552 shares. Through this, Rs. 25,000 crore was raised.
This is the largest QIP ever conducted in the capital markets. The issue received applications more than 4.5 times the size of the offering. This reflects the strong confidence of investors in SBI, the statement noted.