Daily Current Affairs – 17-10-2025
Important Days
World Trauma Day (October 17)
World Trauma Day is observed globally on October 17 every year to raise awareness about the importance of preventing trauma and providing timely medical care to those affected by accidents, injuries, and disasters. The day was first observed in 2011 in New Delhi, India, after a series of road accidents highlighted the urgent need for effective trauma management systems.
The theme for 2025 focuses on “Saving lives and properly attending to emergency cases,” underscoring the importance of early intervention and life-saving response during the critical “golden hour” following traumatic injuries.
The day is celebrated to promote public education, awareness, and preparedness on how to respond to injuries and accidents. It also encourages governments and healthcare systems to improve emergency care facilities, train first responders, and ensure quick access to trauma centers. Beyond physical injury, World Trauma Day also reminds society of the need to address psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress among survivors.
International Day for the Eradication of Poverty (October 17)
The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, observed every year on October 17, highlights the urgent need to eliminate poverty in all its forms around the world. The day was officially recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993, following years of advocacy by activists who sought to bring global attention to the suffering of people living in extreme poverty.
The theme for 2025 is “Ending social and institutional maltreatment: Ensuring respect and effective support for families living in poverty.” This year’s focus emphasizes that poverty is not just about lack of money — it includes the absence of dignity, access, and equality. The observance aims to promote social justice, reduce discrimination, and ensure that governments respect and protect the rights of people struggling with poverty.
The day is celebrated to remind the world that poverty eradication is not charity but a global responsibility. It provides a platform for people living in poverty to share their experiences and influence decisions that affect their lives. It also supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 1 (No Poverty), which aims to end poverty in all its forms everywhere by 2030.
Reports and Indices
India’s Pension System Rated ‘D’ in Global Index
India’s pension system has received a ‘D’ grade in the latest Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index 2025, which assessed 52 retirement income systems representing nearly 65% of the global population. The evaluation was based on three key pillars — Adequacy (40%), Sustainability (35%), and Integrity (25%).
India scored 43.8 points, significantly below the global average of 64.5, placing it in the ‘D’ category. In contrast, the world’s top performers — The Netherlands (85.4), Iceland (84.0), Denmark (82.3), Singapore (80.8), and Israel (80.3) — earned ‘A’ grades for having strong and sustainable pension frameworks.
According to the report, India’s fragmented pension structure— which includes the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), the Employees’ Pension Scheme, and limited social protection measures for informal workers — continues to face major design gaps that compromise retirement security for millions.
Under the Adequacy pillar, India scored only 34.7 (‘E’ grade), highlighting low income replacement for retirees and inadequate social support for the elderly poor. On Sustainability, the score of 43.8 (‘D’ grade) reflects concerns over long-term financial resilience, given India’s demographic transition, limited savings, and low pension participation among informal workers. However, India performed relatively better on Integrity, earning a ‘C’ grade (58.4), though the report called for stronger regulation, oversight, and transparency in private and occupational pension schemes.
The findings emphasize the urgent need for pension reform as India’s working-age population begins to age. The report recommends the government to establish a minimum income floor for elderly citizens, expand pension coverage across the vast unorganised sector, introduce a minimum access age to safeguard retirement savings, and strengthen regulatory frameworks for private and voluntary pension plans.
Sports News
Nepal and Oman Qualify for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026
In a historic moment for Associate cricket, Nepal and Oman have officially secured their places in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, after finishing among the top three teams in the Asia/East Asia-Pacific Qualifier ahead of their Super Six encounter on Wednesday.
Their qualification was confirmed after the UAE defeated Samoa, ensuring that both sides could not be displaced from the top spots, regardless of the outcome of their own match. In the subsequent clash, Nepal registered a 38-run victory over Oman, further cementing their dominance in the qualifying campaign.
The Super Six stage of the tournament witnessed thrilling cricket, with five of the first six matches going down to the final over. Nepal displayed remarkable composure under pressure, pulling off two nerve-wracking wins to seal their berth in next year’s marquee event.
The 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is set to feature 20 teams, and Nepal’s qualification marks a significant achievement for the Himalayan nation, reflecting its rapid rise in world cricket. Oman, too, continues its consistent performance at the Associate level, earning another shot at the global stage.
Kane Williamson Joins Lucknow Super Giants as Strategic Advisor Ahead of IPL 2026
New Zealand’s cricketing legend Kane Williamson has been appointed as the strategic advisor of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of the next edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The announcement was officially confirmed by LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka.
Williamson, known for his calm leadership and analytical cricketing mind, is expected to play a crucial role in mentoring players, shaping match strategies, and providing tactical insights to strengthen the team’s campaign for the upcoming IPL season.
The Kiwi star already shares a connection with the LSG franchise through his involvement with its Durban Super Giants team in the SA20 League, which forms part of the global Super Giants family owned by the RPSG Group.
International News
Ceasefire Brings Temporary Calm to Deadly Afghanistan–Pakistan Border Clashes
A fragile calm has returned along the Afghanistan–Pakistan frontier after a 48-hour ceasefire came into effect, halting several days of intense cross-border clashes that left dozens of soldiers and civilians dead. Officials from both countries confirmed on Thursday that no fresh violence had been reported overnight.
In Spin Boldak, a key flashpoint on the Afghan side, local shops reopened and residents began returning to their homes. Many had fled earlier in the week as heavy shelling and gunfire erupted between border forces.
According to Pakistan’s statement, the short-term truce was intended to “allow time to find a positive solution through constructive dialogue.” Islamabad has been facing a surge in militant attacks along its western border, many of which it attributes to the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) and allied groups operating from Afghan soil.
Just hours before the ceasefire announcement, explosions rocked Kabul and Kandahar, the province where the Taliban’s reclusive supreme leader reportedly resides. The blasts killed at least five people and injured 35 others, heightening regional tensions.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk welcomed the ceasefire, urging both sides to protect civilians and commit to a lasting peace. “This truce must be an opportunity to end cycles of violence and rebuild dialogue,” he stated.
Google’s AI Uncovers New Pathway for Cancer Treatment
In a landmark development in the field of drug discovery, Google has unveiled a new family of artificial intelligence tools capable of identifying potential cancer treatments that were previously unknown to human researchers. This advancement marks a significant leap in the application of AI for real-world scientific innovation.
The AI system, known as Cell2Sentence-Scale 27B (C2S-Scale), is a 27-billion parameter foundation model developed to interpret the “language” of individual cells. According to Google DeepMind and Google Research scientists Shekoofeh Azizi and Brian Perozzi, the model successfully generated a novel hypothesis on cancer cell behaviour, which was later validated through live cell experiments.
Their study, published on the open-access preprint server bioRxiv, revealed how the AI discovered a drug combination capable of enhancing immune system detection of hidden tumours—a challenge that conventional approaches have long struggled with.
Researchers tasked the model with finding a drug that boosts immune signals when interferon levels are low, a condition that allows tumours to grow unnoticed by the immune system. By training the model on two large datasets—real patient samples showing tumour-immune interactions and cell-line data lacking immune context—the AI was able to simulate the effects of over 4,000 drugs.
Remarkably, the model identified several drug candidates, including Silmitasertib, which appeared to stimulate the immune system only when a tumour was present. While 10–30% of these findings were already known in scientific literature, the rest were entirely new and unexpected insights.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai hailed the discovery as a “promising new pathway” for developing cancer therapies, emphasizing that further pre-clinical and clinical trials could pave the way for AI-assisted breakthroughs in oncology.
National News
HAL Opens Third Tejas Line, Marks Milestone with Maiden Mk 1A Flight
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to inaugurate Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s (HAL) third production line for the Tejas Mark 1A light combat aircraft today at HAL’s Nashik facility. This new line will raise HAL’s capacity to manufacture eight Tejas jets annually.
In addition, the minister will open the second production line for the HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft. HAL officials say the event will also commemorate the first flight of the Tejas Mk 1A produced at HAL Nashik’s Aircraft Manufacturing Division — a landmark moment for India’s indigenous fighter program.