News of The Day: 18th November 2025

News of The Day –  18th November 2025

SOURCES: The Hindu, Indian Express, Live Mint, Business Standard, Economic Times, PIB and AIR, etc

(with Syllabus Relevance)

(GS-1:History)

• About Batukeshwar Dutt
  • Revolutionary who bombed the Central Legislative Assembly with Bhagat Singh.
• Role in Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA)

• About:National Press Day 2025 
• Marks role of Press Council; focus this year on digital reforms. 
• Key themes: Combat misinformation, protect press freedom, balance regulation in digital news.
• Relevance: Important for free speech, democratic accountability.

• About NSS: Backbone of India’s socio-economic data since 1950.
• Current focus: Digital survey tools, real-time data use.
• Importance: Policy planning, labour/poverty/health statistics.

(GS-2: Polity and Governance)

• About e-Jagriti 
• Digital governance/awareness platform (details awaited).
• Likely focus: Citizen digital education, e-governance access.
• Importance: Digital inclusion in public services.

(GS-2: IR)

• About: Bangladesh tribunal sentences ex-PM Sheikh Hasina to death for “crimes against humanity” during 2024 unrest.
• Background: Hasina ousted in 2024 after student protests; currently in exile in India.
• How it undermines political justice: Sets precedent of regime-driven trials.
• Implications for India: Diplomatic sensitivity as Hasina is on Indian soil.
• International Conventions to Counter it.

(GS 2: IR)

• About: Bilateral army exercise in Rajasthan.
• Focus: Counter-terror, semi-urban ops, interoperability.
• Significance: Strengthens defence ties with UK.

(GS-2: IR)

• About Senkaku Islands 
  • CCG ships sail through Japan-administered Senkaku/Diaoyu.
• Background: Long-standing territorial dispute China–Japan.
• Implications: Tensions in East China Sea; risks escalation; affects Indo-Pacific stability.

• Milestone: India overtakes major economies in passenger volume.
• Key Highlights on the Indian Aviation Sector.
• Drivers: UDAN, airport expansion, rising disposable incomes.
• Implications: Boost to jobs, tourism, logistics; need sustainable aviation policies.

(GS-3: S&T)

• About Global Innovation Index
• India’s Patent : 64,000+ patents; >55% from resident innovators.
• Significance: Shift toward domestic R&D capacity.
• Challenges: Commercialisation, IP protection, R&D funding gaps.
• Initiatives to promote scientific research.

(GS-3: Science and tech)

• About: India’s first NO-based dressing for diabetic foot ulcers.
• Benefit: Faster healing, infection control.
• Relevance: Major for diabetic population health burden.

• About:Global Methane Status Report
  • Tracks global methane trends fossil fuels, agriculture, waste. 
• Key concern: Methane accounts for major near-term warming.
• Relevance to India: Need for leak detection, low-emission farming.

• Projects: Glacier monitoring, digital twin of Ganga, riverbed mapping.
• Aim: Scientific river rejuvenation, climate resilience.
• Importance: Better flood management, ecological restoration.

• About Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins (Sousa plumbea)
• Research on cooperative behaviour between dolphins & fishers.
• Significance: Helps sustainable fishing, conservation planning..
• About Ashtamudi Lake.

(GS-3: Environment)

• About Sentinel-6B satellite
  • Successor to Sentinel-6A; tracks sea-level rise, ocean circulation.
• Importance: Climate monitoring, early warning systems.
• Global relevance: Key input for IPCC models.