Daily Current Affairs – 25-04-2026

National News

Opposition Notice in Rajya Sabha on CEC Removal

Opposition parties submitted a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha seeking a resolution for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. The notice was submitted to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat by Jairam Ramesh of the Congress and Sagarika Ghose of the Trinamool Congress. A total of 73 Rajya Sabha Members of Parliament (MPs) from parties including Congress, DMK, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, Left parties, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray faction), Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction), RJD, and Indian Union Muslim League signed the notice. The notice alleges partiality by Gyanesh Kumar in implementing the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and refers to complaints regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address on April 18, 2026 during the enforcement of the MCC. The opposition also requested the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha to admit the notice and to constitute a three-member committee to inquire into the allegations.

Bihar NDA Government Wins Confidence Vote

National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government led by Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary won the confidence motion in the Bihar Legislative Assembly. Samrat Choudhary became the 24th Chief Minister of Bihar on April 15, 2026, after Nitish Kumar, leader of Janata Dal (United) (JD-U), resigned from the Chief Minister post on April 14, 2026, following his election as a Rajya Sabha MP in March 2026. Along with him, Vijay Kumar Choudhary and Bijendra Prasad Yadav took oath as Deputy Chief Ministers. The confidence motion was passed by a voice vote in the 243-member Bihar Legislative Assembly, where the ruling NDA holds 202 members. The alliance comprises Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), JD-U, Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha.

Cargo Handling at Major Ports Surpasses Target

Union Minister for Shipping Sarbananda Sonowal announced that 12 major ports in India handled 915.17 metric tonnes of cargo in the 2025–26 financial year, exceeding the target of 904 metric tonnes and recording a 7.06% growth over 2024–25. These ports, including V.O. Chidambaranar Port (Thoothukudi), Chennai Port, and Kamarajar Port, are governed under the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021. In the shipping sector, 45 Indian-flagged ships were added in 2024–25 with a capacity of 7.72 lakh metric tonnes, while 94 Indian-flagged ships were added in 2025–26, increasing capacity to 25.67 lakh metric tonnes. The total capital expenditure of the sector rose from ₹9,708 crore in 2024–25 to ₹14,953 crore in 2025–26. Over the last 12 years, the number of Indian seafarers has tripled, and India ranks third globally, contributing 12% of global seafarers, with a target of 20% by 2030. India has a coastline of 11,098 km and 111 National Waterways, and development goals are guided by Maritime India Vision 2030 and Viksit Bharat 2047.

IIT-Ropar Launches India’s First Integrated Agri Intelligence System

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar has launched India’s first fully integrated agricultural intelligence system, developed by the Centre of Excellence in AI for Agriculture (ANNAM.AI) under the leadership of Project Director Pushpendra P. Singh. The system includes ‘Swan’ advanced weather stations, Krishi intelligence call centres, and the ‘Annam’ Chat Engine (ACE). It integrates Internet of Things (IoT), climate science, and multilingual advisory systems into a single platform to support the agricultural value chain. The AI architecture has three layers: an Infrastructure Layer with micro-climate units recording temperature, humidity, wind, and rainfall; an Intelligence Layer (‘Krishi AI’) using computer vision for crop identification, pest detection, and damage assessment; and an Engagement Layer where the Annam Chat Engine provides expert-validated multilingual advisories to farmers. The system is currently operational in Punjab and is planned for expansion across India, with expected outcomes including 20–30% reduction in water usage and prevention of 9–12% crop loss due to weather changes.

Agro-forestry to be Renamed Tree-Based Farming

The Union Minister of Agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that the term ‘Agro-forestry’ will be renamed as ‘Tree-Based Farming’ to promote integrated farming and increase the income of small and marginal farmers. The announcement was made at a regional agriculture conference for northern states held in Lucknow. The policy aims to diversify agriculture beyond cereal production by including allied activities such as dairy, beekeeping, and fisheries. The government also highlighted the importance of balanced fertilizer usage and soil conservation, noting that fertilizer consumption in Uttar Pradesh has reached about 20 lakh tonnes annually. A new policy approach from 2026 includes conducting zonal agricultural conferences across five regions (East, West, North, South, North-East) instead of only national-level meetings. The initiative also emphasizes the use of quality seeds and climate-adaptive practices to address changing weather conditions, with states encouraged to prepare comprehensive agricultural roadmaps.

El Niño Likely by Mid-2026 – WMO Forecast

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has indicated that an El Niño event is likely to occur by mid-2026, with conditions expected to develop between May and July 2026 due to rising sea surface temperatures (SSTs). The forecast states that global land surface temperatures will remain above normal in the coming months and rainfall patterns will be irregular. In India, El Niño events are associated with delayed or deficient South-West Monsoon, and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has projected below-normal monsoon rainfall at 92% of the long-period average for the year. The previous El Niño (June 2023) lasted 11 months and contributed to 2024 being the warmest year on record, affecting crops such as paddy and pulses. Regionally, higher rainfall is expected in southern South America, southern United States, Horn of Africa, and Central Asia, while lower rainfall is expected in Australia, Indonesia, and parts of South Asia.

AAP Rajya Sabha MPs Join BJP

In April 2026, seven out of ten Rajya Sabha Members of Parliament (MPs) of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The members who shifted are Raghav Chadha, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Harbhajan Singh, Rajinder Gupta, Vikramjeet Sahney, and Swati Maliwal. Following this, only three AAP MPs remain in the Rajya Sabha: Sanjay Singh, Narain Dass Gupta, and Sant Balbir Singh. As per the Constitutional provision related to the Anti-Defection Law, when two-thirds of the total members of a party merge with another party, they are not subject to disqualification. Since the seven members constitute more than two-thirds of AAP’s strength in the Rajya Sabha, the provision applies. A formal communication regarding this merger has been submitted to the Rajya Sabha Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan.

Supreme Court Allows Minor to Terminate Pregnancy

Supreme Court of India allowed a 15-year-old minor to terminate her seven-month pregnancy, despite exceeding the limit under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act. The case was heard by a bench comprising Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan. The Court held that the reproductive autonomy of a woman takes precedence and that no woman can be forced to continue an unwanted pregnancy. It stated that the right to make decisions about one’s body is part of personal liberty and privacy under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The Court also observed that compelling a minor to continue pregnancy may affect her physical and mental well-being, and permitted the termination.

Climate Change Threat to Wildlife Habitats by 2085

A study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution by researchers from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Germany, states that by 2085, about 36% of terrestrial wildlife habitats could be affected by extreme weather events such as heatwaves, wildfires, floods, and droughts under a medium to high emission scenario. The study analysed the impact on 33,936 terrestrial vertebrate species across 794 ecoregions. It highlights that by 2050, around 74% of land animal habitats will be exposed to heatwaves, while by the latter half of the century, about 16% habitats may face wildfires, 8% droughts, and 3% floods. Major biodiversity regions such as the Amazon, tropical Africa, and Southeast Asia are expected to face increased frequency of extreme events. The study also notes that achieving Net Zero emissions can reduce these impacts.

NMBA 2.0 App Launched under NAPDDR

The Government of India launched the Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA) 2.0 App under the National Action Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR) to strengthen monitoring and coordination. The NMBA was initially launched on August 15, 2020 by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in 272 districts and expanded to all districts from August 15, 2023. The upgraded app was launched on April 24, 2026, at Chandigarh during the Chintan Shivir by Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria and Union Minister Dr. Virendra Kumar. The app functions as a centralised digital platform for real-time reporting, monitoring, and coordination among stakeholders. It also enables citizen services such as e-Pledge, awareness materials, and helpline access, provides real-time grant (Anudan) tracking, supports de-addiction centre identification, and includes a feedback mechanism. The campaign has reached over 26 crore people, including 9.5 crore youth and 6.47 crore women.

Sports News

Junior Shooting World Cup 2026 – India Wins Gold with Record

At the Junior World Cup Shooting competition held in Cairo, the Indian pair of Sambhavi Shravan Sheersagar and Divyansh Devaunghan won the gold medal in the 10m Air Rifle Junior Mixed Team event with a score of 499.9 points, setting a Junior World Record. Sambhavi scored 252.4 points and Divyansh scored 247.5 points. The Chinese Taipei pair won the silver medal (498.3 points) and the France pair secured the bronze medal (434.4 points). In the 25m Rapid Fire Junior Men’s event, Sameer of India finished 7th with 7 points, while other Indian shooters including Pransh Suryavanshi, Saknik Banerjee, Bhanu Pratap Singh, Abhinav Chaudhary, and Sahil Chaudhary exited at the qualification stage. At the end of the fourth day, India led the medal tally with 12 medals (4 gold, 5 silver, 3 bronze), followed by Russia (7 medals) and France (5 medals).

International News

IGC Reduces Global Grain Production Forecast (2026–27)

The International Grains Council (IGC) has reduced its global foodgrain production estimate for 2026–27 by 3 million tonnes, revising it from 2,417 million tonnes to 2,414 million tonnes, due to supply chain disruptions caused by the West Asia conflict and concerns over fertilizer prices. The decline is expected across major crops including wheat and maize. Despite the reduction, 2,414 million tonnes remains the second highest global grain production on record. The global consumption estimate has also been lowered by 3 million tonnes to 2,437 million tonnes. For 2025–26, total grain production is projected to reach a record 2,474 million tonnes, which is 6% higher than the previous year. Global grain stocks are expected to increase by 9%, marking the fastest growth in nine years, while grain trade is projected at 451 million tonnes, showing a 6% increase over the previous season.

General Upendra Dwivedi Inducted into US Army War College Hall of Fame

Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi has been inducted into the International Hall of Fame of the US Army War College located in Pennsylvania, USA. He became the third Indian Army Chief to receive this honour after General V. K. Singh and General Bikram Singh. The induction took place during his visit to the Army War College (AWC) at Carlisle Barracks.

Economy News

RBI Penalties on Bandhan Bank and Muthoot Housing Finance

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a penalty of ₹41.8 lakh on Bandhan Bank for non-compliance with regulatory norms, including violations of Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines. The bank failed to conduct periodic review of risk categorisation of accounts and had sanctioned director-related loans. The RBI also imposed a penalty of ₹80,000 on Muthoot Housing Finance Company for non-compliance with directions related to the Fair Practice Code.

Important Days

World Penguin Day – April 25

World Penguin Day is observed every year on April 25 to create awareness about penguins, their ecological importance, and the threats they face. Penguins are found in the Southern Hemisphere, especially in Antarctica, and not in the Arctic, with the Galapagos penguin being the only species found above the equator. There are 18 species of penguins, including the Emperor penguin (largest) and the Little penguin (smallest). Penguins are adapted for swimming and can reach speeds of up to 15 miles per hour in water. Major threats to penguins include climate change, which affects sea ice habitats, and commercial fishing, which reduces food availability and leads to accidental capture in fishing nets.

International Delegate’s Day – April 25

International Delegate’s Day is observed on April 25, as proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) through Resolution 73/286 (2019) to recognize the role of delegates of UN Member States. Delegates represent their countries in forums such as the UN General Assembly and UN Security Council, where they speak, vote, and negotiate agreements on behalf of their governments, contributing to international peace, human rights, and multilateralism. The day marks the anniversary of the San Francisco Conference (United Nations Conference on International Organization), which began on April 25, 1945, where representatives from 50 countries participated. The conference led to the signing of the UN Charter on June 26, 1945, resulting in the formation of the United Nations, which now has 193 Member States, with Poland later joining as the 51st founding member.