News of The Day: 13th  November 2025

News of The Day – 13th  November 2025

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

(with Syllabus Relevance)

(GS-1: Art & Culture)

• Sahitya Akademi announced Bal Sahitya Puraskar 2025 for 24 Indian languages.
• Recognizes excellence in children’s literature (poetry, fiction, drama).
• Relevance: Role of literature in cultural preservation & NEP 2020 emphasis on mother tongue education.

(GS-2: Polity and Governance)

• Global TB Report 2025 (WHO): India records 21% annual fall in incidence (vs 2–3% global avg).• Mortality down 18% (2024).
• India’s TB-free target: 2025 (SDG target: 2030).
• Initiatives: Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana, Ni-kshay Mitra, genome sequencing of M. tuberculosis strains.
• Challenges: MDR-TB, stigma, nutrition gaps.
• WHO commends India’s scale-up of digital surveillance (Ni-kshay portal).

(GS-3: Economy)

• India Skill Report 2025 (by Wheebox, AICTE, CII, UNDP, Taggd).
• Overall employability rate in India: 51.3% (↑ from 50.5% last year).
• Top States: Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala (4th).
• Kerala’s edge: strong literacy, tech skills, vocational training.
• Challenges: Migration, limited industrial jobs.
• Relevance: Aligns with National Skill Development Policy & demographic dividend.

(GS-3: Economy)

• New Export Credit Guarantee Scheme (ECGS 2.0) approved to boost MSME exports.
• Provides 90% credit guarantee for exporter loans up to ₹50 crore.
• Managed by ECGC Ltd (under Commerce Ministry).
• Aim: reduce non-payment risk, support new markets, achieve $1 trillion export target by 2030.
• Complements Foreign Trade Policy 2023 focus on trade facilitation.

(GS-3: Economy)

• National Export Promotion Mission (NEPM): 5-year mission (2025–30).
• Focus: logistics modernization, trade infrastructure, export hubs, value-added sectors.
• Targets: raise India’s share in global trade to 5% by 2030.
• Institutional mechanism: Inter-Ministerial Board chaired by the Commerce Minister.
• Supports “Viksit Bharat @2047” roadmap and logistics policy goals.

(GS-3: Economy)

• The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) rationalized royalty rates.
• Purpose: attract private exploration and processing under MMDR Act (Amendment 2023).
• Critical for EVs, nuclear energy, electronics, batteries.
• Boosts India’s Critical Minerals Strategy (2023) and reduces import dependency.

(GS-3: Environment)

• Global Climate Risk Index 2025 by Germanwatch ranks India 9th most affected by extreme weather (2024 data).
• Major events: Cyclone Remal, Himachal floods, Odisha heatwaves.
• India recorded 2,100 deaths and economic losses of USD 12 billion.
• Emphasizes adaptation strategies: resilient infrastructure, early warning systems, State Action Plans on Climate Change (SAPCC).

(GS-3: Environment )

• The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) “Cooling Emissions and Policy Synthesis Report 2025”.
• Cooling currently accounts for ~7% of global GHG emissions; could rise to 20% if unchecked.
• Recommends adopting passive cooling, efficient appliances, green refrigerants.
• (HFOs, natural coolants).
• India-specific concern: Rising demand from urbanization and heat waves; risk to achieving Net Zero 2070.
• Supports India Cooling Action Plan (ICAP, 2019) and Mission LiFE objectives.

(GS-3: Environment)

• Due to AQI “Severe” (>450), Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) enforces Stage-III (Severe) measures under GRAP.
• Measures: Ban on construction/demolition, brick kilns, stone crushers; restrictions on old diesel vehicles.
• Hybrid learning, work-from-home for govt/private offices encouraged.
• Linked to Article 21 (Right to Clean Air) and NCR Air Quality Action Plan.
• Stage-IV (Emergency) next if AQI > 450 for 2+ days.

(GS-3: Environment)

• NGT order: map and rehabilitate residents of Rania and Rakhi Mandi (Kanpur Dehat) due to groundwater contamination by tanneries.
• Heavy metals: Chromium, Mercury, Cadmium above permissible limits.
• NGT cites violation of Water Act (1974), Environment Protection Act (1986).
• Directs State Pollution Control Board to frame remediation plan within 2 months.
• Reflects the link between industrial pollution and public health.

(GS-3: Science & Tech)

• Developed by IISc Bengaluru & DRDO-CAIR, world’s first indigenous Quantum Diamond Microscope (QDM).
• Uses Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) centers in diamonds for ultra-sensitive magnetic field imaging at nanoscale.
• Applications: chip inspection, material science, quantum communication.
• Strengthens National Quantum Mission (NQM 2023–31).
• Milestone in India’s quantum hardware ecosystem.

(GS-3: Science & Tech )

• Explains DNA profiling process: STR (Short Tandem Repeat) markers, Y-chromosome, mitochondrial DNA.
• Applications: forensics, paternity, disaster victim identification.
• Legal framework: DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill, pending.
• Ethical concerns: privacy, consent, data protection.
• Relevance: Evidence Act (Sec. 45A )

(GS-3: Internal Security)

• NIA probing link between recent Delhi IED blast and Faridabad ammonium nitrate seizure.
• Chemical precursor widely used in mining but restricted under Explosives Rules, 2008.
• Focus on illegal diversion networks.
• Relevance: Highlights gaps in precursor chemical tracking and internal security enforcement.

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