News of The Day: 29th December 2025

News of The Day – 29th December 2025

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

(with Syllabus Relevance)

(GS 1: Geography)

• About Mount Etna
• Volcanic activity at Europe’s most active volcano.
• Impacts on local aviation and communities.

(GS2: Polity and Governance)

• Details not widely reported on this date
• Likely focuses on developing skilled workforce and education reforms essential for achieving ‘Viksit Bharat’ vision by 2047.

(GS 2: Polity and Governance)

• SC observation in a case related to privacy and surveillance
• Reinforces that lawful surveillance does not infringe on the rights of innocent citizens.

• SC Role: qui vive (watchful) of fundamental rights 

(GS 3: Economy)

• Analysis urging RBI to avoid past mistakes in managing rupee volatility amid global pressures.
• About Rupee Valuation Mechanism.
  • Recent Trends and its impacts.

(GS-3: Internal Security)

• India’s first comprehensive National Counter Terrorism Policy;
• addresses emerging threats like digital radicalisation, cross-border vulnerabilities, and terror financing;

• About Anti-Terror Conference 2025.

(GS-3: Disaster Management)

• India is set to become the first country in the Indian Ocean region with over 100 UNESCO-IOC certified ‘Tsunami Ready’ villages.
  • About ‘Tsunami Ready’ villages.
• involves community preparedness, evacuation maps, mock drills, and early warning systems; pilot expansions in multiple coastal states.

(GS 3: Science and tech)

• New study links paternal microplastic exposure to increased diabetes risk in offspring.
• Highlighting intergenerational health impacts.

• About Microplastic Exposure
  • Sources and Health Impact.

(GS-3: Science & Technology)

• Rare Earth Permanent Magnets (REPM) scheme
• Aims to create a self-reliant supply chain for critical magnets used in EVs, defence, and renewables
• Reduces import dependence.

(GS-3: Science & Technology)

• About optical frequency comb
• Technology for precise measurements
• Applications in clocks, spectroscopy, and navigation.

(GS-3: Science & Technology)

• Editorial highlights India’s ambition to become a global power is hindered by chronic low R&D investment
• Compares India’s total R&D spend unfavorably to single companies like Huawei
• Calls for increased funding, better environment to attract researchers, and structural reforms to boost innovation.

(GS-3: Environment)

• NTCA confirms resident tiger in Ratanmahal Wildlife Sanctuary (Dahod);
• Gujarat reinstated as tiger-present state for 2026 census after decades
• Plans to strengthen habitat and potentially declare it a tiger reserve.