UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025
Kartavya Desk Staff
UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025 covers important current affairs of the day, their backward linkages, their relevance for Prelims exam and MCQs on main articles
InstaLinks : Insta Links help you think beyond the current affairs issue and help you think multidimensionally to develop depth in your understanding of these issues. These linkages provided in this ‘hint’ format help you frame possible questions in your mind that might arise(or an examiner might imagine) from each current event. InstaLinks also connect every issue to their static or theoretical background.
Table of Contents
GS Paper 2 : (UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October (2025)
• Reversing the Brain Drain
Reversing the Brain Drain
GS Paper 4:
• Code of Ethics
Code of Ethics
Content for Mains Enrichment (CME):
• Project Arunank
Project Arunank
Facts for Prelims (FFP):
• Forex Reserves
Forex Reserves
• Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
• PM-ABHIM
PM-ABHIM
• Children’s Booker Prize
Children’s Booker Prize
• ICG Fast Patrol Vessels: ICGS Ajit & ICGS Aparajit
ICG Fast Patrol Vessels: ICGS Ajit & ICGS Aparajit
Mapping:
• The Western Ghats
The Western Ghats
UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025
#### GS Paper 2:
Reversing the Brain Drain
Syllabus: India Diaspora
Source: IE
Context: The Government of India is planning a new scheme to attract Indian-origin researchers and scientists in STEM fields back from the United States amid tightening research policies under the Trump administration.
About Reversing the Brain Drain:
• What is Brain Drain? “Brain drain” refers to the migration of skilled professionals, scientists, and researchers from developing countries to advanced economies seeking better opportunities, funding, and research freedom. India has long been one of the largest exporters of talent, particularly in STEM, medicine, and IT sectors.
• “Brain drain” refers to the migration of skilled professionals, scientists, and researchers from developing countries to advanced economies seeking better opportunities, funding, and research freedom.
• India has long been one of the largest exporters of talent, particularly in STEM, medicine, and IT sectors.
• Data and Statistics: According to MEA (2024), over 13 lakh Indians renounced citizenship between 2015–2024, many in high-skilled sectors. Nearly 1.6 lakh Indian students are pursuing research or doctoral studies in the U.S. alone (IIE, 2024). India spends only 0.65% of GDP on R&D, compared to 2.7% in China and 3.5% in the U.S., driving talent outflow.
• According to MEA (2024), over 13 lakh Indians renounced citizenship between 2015–2024, many in high-skilled sectors.
• Nearly 1.6 lakh Indian students are pursuing research or doctoral studies in the U.S. alone (IIE, 2024).
• India spends only 0.65% of GDP on R&D, compared to 2.7% in China and 3.5% in the U.S., driving talent outflow.
Factors Contributing to Reverse Brain Drain:
• Policy Uncertainty in the U.S.: Tightened immigration rules, funding cuts, and anti-science policies under the Trump administration are pushing Indian researchers to seek stability elsewhere.
• Growing Indian Research Ecosystem: Expansion of AI Centres of Excellence, supercomputing infrastructure (PARAM Siddhi), and digital research platforms signal domestic readiness.
• Governmental Incentives: Attractive repatriation packages, research grants, and startup support are emerging as strong pull factors.
• Emotional and Ideological Pull: A renewed sense of national contribution and belonging motivates many to return and strengthen India’s global scientific standing.
• State-Level Models: Tamil Nadu’s “Tamil Talents Plan” offers competitive pay, relocation allowance, and co-research collaborations, setting a model for other states.
Initiatives Taken by India:
• National-Level Measures: Proposed NRI Scientist Repatriation Scheme offering substantial set-up grants and placements in IITs and national labs. Startup India and Digital India providing platforms for returnee entrepreneurs to establish deep-tech startups. MeitY’s INDIAai Mission and AI Ethics Frameworks fostering an inclusive AI ecosystem.
• Proposed NRI Scientist Repatriation Scheme offering substantial set-up grants and placements in IITs and national labs.
• Startup India and Digital India providing platforms for returnee entrepreneurs to establish deep-tech startups.
• MeitY’s INDIAai Mission and AI Ethics Frameworks fostering an inclusive AI ecosystem.
• Institutional Collaboration: CSIR and ICSSR to co-host Reverse Migration Roundtables on global campuses. Creation of AI Research Liaison Offices to coordinate onboarding, intellectual property, and institutional fit.
• CSIR and ICSSR to co-host Reverse Migration Roundtables on global campuses.
• Creation of AI Research Liaison Offices to coordinate onboarding, intellectual property, and institutional fit.
• State-Level Efforts: Tamil Nadu’s “Tamil Talents Plan”: Rs 100 crore budget for new research centres with IISc & TIFR collaboration; co-supervised PhDs and AI-focused labs.
• Tamil Nadu’s “Tamil Talents Plan”: Rs 100 crore budget for new research centres with IISc & TIFR collaboration; co-supervised PhDs and AI-focused labs.
• Research & Innovation Reforms: Establishment of AI Startup Landing Pads in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Pune for repatriated founders. Simplification of ethics clearances and funding mechanisms for high-impact science.
• Establishment of AI Startup Landing Pads in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Pune for repatriated founders.
• Simplification of ethics clearances and funding mechanisms for high-impact science.
Challenges Associated:
• Bureaucratic Red Tape: Complex procurement rules, multi-layered file approvals, and tendering delays make researchers spend more time on paperwork than on innovation, stalling project timelines and dampening morale.
• Institutional Resistance: Preferential grants and privileges for returnee scientists often breed discontent among existing faculty, leading to friction, hierarchy issues, and a loss of institutional cohesion.
• Cultural and Systemic Barriers: Returnees face difficulty adjusting to rigid hierarchies, limited autonomy, and an administrative culture resistant to experimentation, which contrasts sharply with the flexible systems abroad.
• Infrastructure Deficits: With India’s R&D spending at only 0.65% of GDP, access to world-class labs, data systems, and technical manpower remains limited, constraining advanced research capabilities.
• Quality of Life Concerns: Air pollution, lack of adequate housing, schooling difficulties, and inefficient civic services in metros make long-term relocation unattractive for scientists with families.
Way Ahead:
• Ease of Doing Research: Establish a single-window digital portal for procurement, fund release, and hiring approvals to minimize bureaucratic lag and enable faster project execution.
• Autonomous Research Clusters: Create independent, performance-based research centres with flexible governance, global hiring, and direct funding autonomy to attract world-class talent.
• Institutional Reforms: Implement transparent evaluation, merit-based promotions, and flexible tenure systems to encourage accountability and reduce gatekeeping in academia.
• Global Mobility Frameworks: Introduce spouse work visas, fast-track research clearances, and tax-neutral startup repatriation policies to make India globally competitive for scientific talent.
• Increased R&D Spending: Raise national R&D investment to 1.5% of GDP by 2030, ensuring stable funding for universities, innovation hubs, and collaborative industry–academia ecosystems.
Conclusion:
Reversing India’s brain drain demands more than symbolic incentives—it requires systemic reforms in research governance and funding autonomy. With bold state-led models like Tamil Nadu’s and national missions like INDIAai, India can become a true destination for innovation and scientific excellence. Only when scale, self-respect, and scientific freedom converge will the diaspora’s best minds call India home again.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025 GS Paper 4:
Code of Ethics
Syllabus: Code of Ethics
Source: PTI
Context: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is revising its Code of Ethics to permit advertising and firm websites, marking a progressive step toward ethical modernization and professional autonomy.
About Code of Ethics:
Definition:
• A Code of Ethics is a codified moral framework that governs conduct, ensuring professionals act with honesty, integrity, and accountability as custodians of public trust.
Purpose: It provides ethical direction during dilemmas, balancing legal compliance with moral discernment, thereby sustaining institutional credibility and social legitimacy.
Features:
• Defines Mission and Values: It articulates the organization’s ethical DNA—its core mission, values, and standards that translate purpose into principled practice.
• Outlines Conduct Norms: By specifying acceptable and prohibited behavior, it sets moral boundaries that distinguish professionalism from opportunism.
• Guides Decision-Making: It provides an ethical compass to resolve conflicts where law is silent, promoting conscience-based judgment in complex situations.
• Promotes Ethical Compliance: By embedding fairness, transparency, and responsibility, it transforms compliance into character-driven integrity.
• Ensures Accountability: It acts as a moral benchmark for disciplinary and legal evaluation, ensuring ethics are enforceable, not ornamental.
Types of Code of Ethics:
• Compliance-Based Code: Rooted in legal enforceability, it establishes strict procedural norms to deter malpractice through defined penalties, ensuring ethical behaviour is maintained even under external compulsion. It reinforces that discipline sustains morality, making rule-based compliance a necessary foundation for professional integrity.
• It reinforces that discipline sustains morality, making rule-based compliance a necessary foundation for professional integrity.
• Value-Based Code: This code transcends legal boundaries, emphasizing self-governance and moral introspection as the guiding principles of conduct. Here, ethics emerge not from fear of punishment but from inner conviction, where virtue becomes the silent regulator of professional choices.
• Here, ethics emerge not from fear of punishment but from inner conviction, where virtue becomes the silent regulator of professional choices.
• Professional Code: Designed for specialized domains like accountancy, law, and medicine, it integrates technical excellence with moral conscience. It ensures that competence without character never substitutes genuine professionalism, preserving the dignity and trust of the vocation.
• It ensures that competence without character never substitutes genuine professionalism, preserving the dignity and trust of the vocation.
Importance of Code of Ethics in Office:
• Integrity in Decision-Making: Ethical codes inject conscience into administrative choices, ensuring that means remain as pure as ends.
• Public Trust and Legitimacy: They convert authority into service, ensuring citizens trust institutions for credibility, not coercion.
Eg: The Supreme Court’s verdict on Electoral Bonds (2024) reaffirmed that ethical governance is the true source of institutional legitimacy.
• Conflict Prevention: By drawing moral boundaries, ethical codes pre-empt corruption camouflaged as procedural convenience.
• Cultural Standardization: A unified ethical framework harmonizes departmental cultures, making virtue the invisible constitution of governance.
Eg: The Mission Karmayogi institutionalised ethics modules across ministries, creating uniform administrative culture.
• Accountability Reinforcement: It embeds responsibility as a personal value rather than an imposed rule.
Challenges to Code of Ethics:
• Interpretational Ambiguity: Vague moral clauses leave room for subjective enforcement, creating unequal ethical expectations.
• Commercial Temptations: Market competition often blurs ethical clarity—profit overshadows principle.
Eg: The Pharmaceutical marketing scandals exposed how incentives distorted doctors’ ethical duties to patients.
• Lack of Moral Training: Without ethical education, compliance becomes mechanical, devoid of conviction.
• Regulatory Fragmentation: Overlapping oversight bodies create accountability diffusion rather than ethical cohesion.
• Weak Enforcement: Delayed redressal dilutes deterrence, turning moral norms into ceremonial codes.
2nd ARC Recommendations on Code of Ethics:
• Comprehensive Public Service Code: Integrate integrity, empathy, and impartiality as operational virtues.
• Ethics Committees: Institutional ethics cells must assist officers in real-time dilemmas.
• Mandatory Ethics Training: Regular modules convert moral theory into habit and instinct.
Eg: LBSNAA’s Learning Management System (LMS) called GYAN trains probationers through scenario-based moral simulations.
• Ethical Appraisal System: Performance reviews should reward integrity equally with efficiency. Eg: The CVC “Integrity Index Rating” ties promotions to ethical evaluations alongside output metrics.
• Legal Empowerment: Codified ethics strengthen deterrence by linking moral failure to legal consequence.
Conclusion:
The ICAI’s reform reflects India’s shift from rule-based compliance to virtue-based professionalism, aligning ethics with enterprise. By institutionalising conscience through law, policy, and education, India can nurture a culture where trust becomes the new currency of governance—reminding us that integrity is not an act, but a habit of national character.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025 Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)
Project Arunank
Context: Project Arunank of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) celebrated its 18th Raising Day at Naharlagun, marking 17 years of transformative infrastructure growth in Arunachal Pradesh’s.
About Project Arunank:
What it is?
• Project Arunank is one of the key Border Roads Organisation (BRO) projects dedicated to building and maintaining strategic road infrastructure in Arunachal Pradesh, particularly in remote, high-altitude, and border regions.
• It serves both civilian developmental and defence logistical purposes.
Implemented by: the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
Key Features:
• Established: 2008
• Roads Built: Over 696 km of motorable roads and 1.18 km of major bridges constructed and maintained.
• Landmark Project: 278 km Hapoli–Sarli–Huri Road, blacktopped for the first time since Independence, connecting one of the remotest areas in Kurung Kumey district.
• Environmental Initiative: Under “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam”, 23,850 trees planted across project sites to offset ecological impact.
• Human Welfare: Welfare measures for Casual Paid Labourers (CPLs) including housing, health camps, and protective gear.
Relevance in UPSC Exam Syllabus:
• GS Paper II – Governance: Demonstrates effective Centre–State coordination and institutional synergy in implementing development projects in border and remote areas.
• GS Paper III – Infrastructure: Illustrates India’s strategic road and bridge development in border regions, aligning with “Infrastructure – energy, ports, roads, airports, railways”.
• GS Paper IV – Ethics: Acts as a real-world case of public service ethics, labour welfare, and environmental responsibility under government-led projects.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025 Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: NIE
Context: India has been placed on high alert after a rise in polio cases in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the only two remaining endemic countries.
About Polio:
What it is?
• Polio (Poliomyelitis) is a highly infectious viral disease that primarily affects the nervous system, leading to paralysis or even death in severe cases.
• The disease mainly targets children under 5 years of age, but unvaccinated individuals of any age remain at risk.
Vector and Transmission:
• The poliovirus spreads mainly through the faecal-oral route, i.e., via contaminated food or water, and multiplies in the intestine.
• It can also spread person-to-person, particularly in areas with poor sanitation and hygiene.
Symptoms:
• Early symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness of the neck, and pain in the limbs.
• 1 in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis (often in the legs), and 5–10% of those paralysed die due to immobilisation of breathing muscles.
Treatment and Prevention:
• There is no cure for polio — it can only be prevented through vaccination.
• Two types of vaccines are used: Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV): Easy to administer; provides intestinal immunity. Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV): Injectable form; provides systemic protection.
• Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV): Easy to administer; provides intestinal immunity.
• Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV): Injectable form; provides systemic protection.
• Multiple doses ensure lifelong immunity.
India and Polio Eradication:
• Last case reported: January 13, 2011 (West Bengal).
• Polio-free certification: Granted by WHO in 2014, after three years without any new cases.
• Achieved through Pulse Polio Immunisation Programme, Mission Indradhanush, and Intensified Mission Indradhanush, supported by strong surveillance systems.
WHO and Global Initiatives:
• The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was launched in 1988, reducing cases by over 99%, from 350,000 cases in 125 countries to fewer than 50 today.
• Polio-free regions: Americas (1994), Western Pacific (2000), Europe (2002), South-East Asia (2014), and Africa (2020).
• Ongoing WHO surveillance and emergency response continue to target Afghanistan and Pakistan, the only countries with endemic wild poliovirus.
Forex Reserves
Source: BS
Context: India’s foreign exchange reserves surged by $4.5 billion, crossing the $702 billion mark for the first time, mainly due to a sharp rise in gold reserves valued at over $108.5 billion.
• The rise was driven by RBI’s gold purchases and an increase in global gold prices, while foreign currency assets slightly declined by $1.7 billion amid exchange rate fluctuations.
About Forex Reserves:
• What it is? Foreign Exchange Reserves (Forex Reserves) are external assets held by a country’s central bank in foreign currencies, gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), and reserve positions in the IMF. They act as a financial buffer to manage external shocks, maintain currency stability, and support international trade obligations.
• Foreign Exchange Reserves (Forex Reserves) are external assets held by a country’s central bank in foreign currencies, gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), and reserve positions in the IMF.
• They act as a financial buffer to manage external shocks, maintain currency stability, and support international trade obligations.
• Organisation Involved: In India, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the custodian and manager of the country’s forex reserves.
• Aims / Objectives: Monetary Stability: To stabilise the value of the Indian Rupee (INR) in case of currency fluctuations. Crisis Buffer: To ensure sufficient liquidity during balance of payments crises or external shocks. Investor Confidence: To strengthen India’s image as a creditworthy and stable economy in global markets. Payment Assurance: To meet import and debt servicing needs smoothly even during capital outflows.
• Monetary Stability: To stabilise the value of the Indian Rupee (INR) in case of currency fluctuations.
• Crisis Buffer: To ensure sufficient liquidity during balance of payments crises or external shocks.
• Investor Confidence: To strengthen India’s image as a creditworthy and stable economy in global markets.
• Payment Assurance: To meet import and debt servicing needs smoothly even during capital outflows.
• Key Features: India’s forex reserves comprise: Foreign Currency Assets (FCA) – the largest component Gold Reserves Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) – allocated by the IMF. Reserve Position in IMF The reserves are valued weekly based on New York closing exchange rates and global gold prices. India’s data dissemination follows IMF standards, ensuring transparency and international comparability.
• India’s forex reserves comprise: Foreign Currency Assets (FCA) – the largest component Gold Reserves Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) – allocated by the IMF. Reserve Position in IMF
• Foreign Currency Assets (FCA) – the largest component
• Gold Reserves
• Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) – allocated by the IMF.
• Reserve Position in IMF
• The reserves are valued weekly based on New York closing exchange rates and global gold prices.
• India’s data dissemination follows IMF standards, ensuring transparency and international comparability.
• Significance: Economic Stability: Acts as an insurance mechanism against external vulnerabilities like currency depreciation or capital flight. Policy Flexibility: Enables RBI to intervene in forex markets to curb volatility. Global Credibility: Enhances India’s credit rating and investor confidence, signalling macroeconomic strength.
• Economic Stability: Acts as an insurance mechanism against external vulnerabilities like currency depreciation or capital flight.
• Policy Flexibility: Enables RBI to intervene in forex markets to curb volatility.
• Global Credibility: Enhances India’s credit rating and investor confidence, signalling macroeconomic strength.
Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
Source: DD News
Context: Prime Minister of India extended greetings to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on its 64th Raising Day, lauding its courage, discipline, and humanitarian service in guarding India’s Himalayan frontiers.
About Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP):
What it is?
• The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) is a specialised Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) under the Ministry of Home Affairs, primarily tasked with guarding the India-China border and maintaining internal security.
• It is popularly known as the ‘Himveers’ for its service in the icy Himalayan frontiers.
Established in:
• The ITBP was raised on October 24, 1962, following the India-China war, to strengthen border intelligence and security along the Indo-Tibetan frontier.
• Initially formed under the CRPF Act, it gained independent status through the ITBPF Act, 1992, and operational rules framed in 1994.
History and Expansion:
• The force began with four battalions and gradually expanded to meet emerging security needs.
• In 2004, under the Government’s “One Border, One Force” policy, ITBP was assigned the entire 3,488 km-long India-China border, replacing the Assam Rifles in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
Aims and Motto:
• Motto: “Shaurya – Dridhata – Karma Nishtha” (Valour – Determination – Devotion to Duty).
• To ensure border security, maintain vigilance along high-altitude regions, and act as a first line of defence in the Himalayas.
• To conduct mountaineering, rescue, and relief operations, and contribute to internal security and counter-insurgency duties.
Functions:
• Border Guarding: Secures the India-China border from Karakoram Pass (Ladakh) to Jachep La (Arunachal Pradesh), at altitudes ranging between 9,000–18,800 feet.
• Disaster Relief: Provides humanitarian aid and rescue operations during natural disasters such as earthquakes and flash floods.
• Training and Specialisation: Trains personnel in mountaineering, skiing, tactical warfare, and survival in sub-zero conditions.
• Internal Security: Deployed in anti-Naxal operations, elections, and VIP protection duties when required.
• Civic and Cultural Engagement: Conducts medical camps, awareness drives, and promotes civil-military harmony in border villages.
PM-ABHIM
Source: PIB
Context: The Pradhan Mantri–Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) was highlighted by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for its significant progress in building pandemic-ready healthcare infrastructure across India.
About PM-ABHIM:
What it is?
• The Pradhan Mantri–Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) is a pan-India health infrastructure programme aimed at creating a resilient, accessible, and self-reliant public health system.
• It focuses on pandemic preparedness, disease surveillance, and comprehensive healthcare delivery from primary to tertiary levels.
Launched in: October 25, 2021 by the Prime Minister of India under the broader Ayushman Bharat initiative.
Implemented by: The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).
Objectives:
• To build robust public health infrastructure capable of managing pandemics and health emergencies.
• To develop an IT-enabled disease surveillance system integrated across national, regional, and local levels.
• To contribute to Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and Sustainable Development Goal-3 (SDG-3).
Key Features:
• Financial Outlay: ₹64,180 crore for 2021–26. It has both Centrally Sponsored and Central Sector components (Hybrid model).
• It has both Centrally Sponsored and Central Sector components (Hybrid model).
• Surveillance Network: A real-time, IT-enabled National Disease Surveillance Platform linking local, state, and central labs.
• Integration with National Health Frameworks: Builds upon the National Health Policy 2017, National Health Mission (NHM), and Ayushman Bharat Scheme for a unified healthcare model.
• Focus Areas: Rural and urban health centres, research on infectious diseases, and community health capacity building.
Significance:
• Pandemic Preparedness: Equips India to tackle future epidemics with decentralised and rapid response systems.
• Healthcare Access: Ensures affordable and equitable health services for both rural and urban populations.
Children’s Booker Prize
Source: TH
Context: The Booker Prize Foundation announced the launch of the Children’s Booker Prize, a new global award for fiction written for children aged 8 to 12, to debut in 2027 with a prize.
About Children’s Booker Prize:
What it is?
• The Children’s Booker Prize is a new global literary award recognising fiction written for children aged 8–12 years, either in English or translated into English.
• It marks the first time children’s fiction will be recognised under the Booker brand.
Organisation Involved:
• Established by the Booker Prize Foundation (UK) and funded by the AKO Foundation, a non-profit supporting arts, education, and environment.
• To inspire reading among children and nurture a new generation of lifelong readers and writers.
• To expand the global influence of literary excellence beyond adult fiction and encourage storytelling for younger audiences.
Key Features:
• Eligibility: Open to fiction from any country, written for ages 8–12, published in the UK or Ireland.
• Languages: Both original English works and translations are eligible.
• Prize Money: (same as the adult Booker), funded by the AKO Foundation.
Difference Between Booker Prize and International Booker Prize:
Parameter | Booker Prize | International Booker Prize
Established | 1969 | 2005 (revamped in 2016)
Scope | Awarded for the best original novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. | Awarded for the best translated fiction (novel or short story collection) published in the UK or Ireland.
Eligibility | Authors of any nationality, but the book must be written in English. | Authors and translators of works written in other languages and translated into English.
Prize Money | awarded solely to the author; to each shortlisted author. | shared equally between author and translator; to each shortlisted pair.
Objective | To celebrate the finest in English-language fiction. | To promote cross-cultural literary exchange and honour translation as an art form.
Indian Winners | 1. Salman Rushdie (1981) – Midnight’s Children 2. Arundhati Roy (1997) – The God of Small Things 3. Kiran Desai (2006) – The Inheritance of Loss 4. Aravind Adiga (2008) – The White Tiger. | 1. Geetanjali Shree (2022) – Tomb of Sand (Hindi, tr. Daisy Rockwell); 2. Banu Mushtaq (2025) – Heart Lamp (Kannada, tr. Deepa Bhasthi).
- 1.Arundhati Roy (1997) – The God of Small Things
3. Kiran Desai (2006) – The Inheritance of Loss
- 1.Aravind Adiga (2008) – The White Tiger.
- 1.Banu Mushtaq (2025) – Heart Lamp (Kannada, tr. Deepa Bhasthi).
ICG Fast Patrol Vessels: ICGS Ajit & ICGS Aparajit
Source: PIB
Context: The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) achieved a major milestone with the launch of two new Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) — ICGS Ajit and ICGS Aparajit — at Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL).
About ICG Fast Patrol Vessels: ICGS Ajit & ICGS Aparajit
• Name and Builder: Vessels: ICGS Ajit and ICGS Aparajit Built by: Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), under the Make in India initiative. Series: Part of the eight FPVs being constructed indigenously for the Indian Coast Guard.
• Vessels: ICGS Ajit and ICGS Aparajit
• Built by: Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), under the Make in India initiative.
• Series: Part of the eight FPVs being constructed indigenously for the Indian Coast Guard.
• Dimensions and Design: Length: 52 metres Displacement: 320 tonnes Hull and superstructure: Designed and built entirely in India, showcasing indigenous shipbuilding expertise.
• Length: 52 metres
• Displacement: 320 tonnes
• Hull and superstructure: Designed and built entirely in India, showcasing indigenous shipbuilding expertise.
• Propulsion System: Equipped with Controllable Pitch Propellers (CPP) — the first of their kind in this class in India — ensuring superior manoeuvrability, speed, and fuel efficiency. Designed for multi-mission flexibility in diverse maritime conditions.
• Equipped with Controllable Pitch Propellers (CPP) — the first of their kind in this class in India — ensuring superior manoeuvrability, speed, and fuel efficiency.
• Designed for multi-mission flexibility in diverse maritime conditions.
• Operational Roles: Primary Missions: Coastal patrol, fisheries protection, anti-smuggling, anti-piracy, and search & rescue (SAR) operations. Operational Area: Particularly effective around India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and island territories, ensuring round-the-clock maritime security.
• Primary Missions: Coastal patrol, fisheries protection, anti-smuggling, anti-piracy, and search & rescue (SAR) operations.
• Operational Area: Particularly effective around India’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and island territories, ensuring round-the-clock maritime security.
• Significance: Strengthens India’s blue-water surveillance and enhances response readiness against maritime threats. Demonstrates India’s self-reliance in naval defence production under Atmanirbhar Bharat. Contributes to the ICG’s mission of ensuring safe, secure, and clean seas for national and regional stability.
• Strengthens India’s blue-water surveillance and enhances response readiness against maritime threats.
• Demonstrates India’s self-reliance in naval defence production under Atmanirbhar Bharat.
• Contributes to the ICG’s mission of ensuring safe, secure, and clean seas for national and regional stability.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 25 October 2025 Mapping:
The Western Ghats
Source: TH
Context: The IUCN World Heritage Outlook 4 has placed India’s Western Ghats, under the “significant concern” category due to threats like climate change, unregulated tourism, and invasive species.
About the Western Ghats:
• What it is: The Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri Hills, are a north–south mountain range forming the crest of the western edge of the Deccan Plateau. They are recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the eight hottest biodiversity hotspots in the world.
• The Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri Hills, are a north–south mountain range forming the crest of the western edge of the Deccan Plateau.
• They are recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the eight hottest biodiversity hotspots in the world.
• Location: They run parallel to the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, covering about 1,600 km from the Tapti River in Gujarat to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. The range traverses six states — Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu — covering an area of around 1,64,280 sq km. The chain is interrupted only by the 30 km wide Palghat Gap near 11°N latitude.
• They run parallel to the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, covering about 1,600 km from the Tapti River in Gujarat to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu.
• The range traverses six states — Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu — covering an area of around 1,64,280 sq km.
• The chain is interrupted only by the 30 km wide Palghat Gap near 11°N latitude.
• Formation: Older than the Himalayas, the Western Ghats were formed during the breakup of Gondwanaland in the Jurassic period (around 150 million years ago). They are composed mainly of basaltic lava flows and residual plateaus, acting as a geomorphic and climatic barrier that influences India’s monsoon system. The Ghats are considered an “Evolutionary Ecotone”, demonstrating speciation due to India’s geological isolation and later collision with Eurasia.
• Older than the Himalayas, the Western Ghats were formed during the breakup of Gondwanaland in the Jurassic period (around 150 million years ago).
• They are composed mainly of basaltic lava flows and residual plateaus, acting as a geomorphic and climatic barrier that influences India’s monsoon system.
• The Ghats are considered an “Evolutionary Ecotone”, demonstrating speciation due to India’s geological isolation and later collision with Eurasia.
• Key Features: Highest Peak: Anamudi (Anai Mudi) in Kerala — 2,695 m (8,842 ft). Other notable peaks include Doda Betta (Nilgiris) and Mahabaleshwar Plateau (Maharashtra). Major Rivers Originating: Godavari, Krishna, and Kaveri (Cauvery) — forming peninsular India’s principal watershed. The western slopes rise sharply from the Arabian Sea, while the eastern slopes gently descend toward the Deccan Plateau. The Ghats create a rain-shadow effect, resulting in lush tropical evergreen forests on the western side and dry deciduous forests on the eastern side.
• Highest Peak: Anamudi (Anai Mudi) in Kerala — 2,695 m (8,842 ft). Other notable peaks include Doda Betta (Nilgiris) and Mahabaleshwar Plateau (Maharashtra).
• Major Rivers Originating: Godavari, Krishna, and Kaveri (Cauvery) — forming peninsular India’s principal watershed.
• The western slopes rise sharply from the Arabian Sea, while the eastern slopes gently descend toward the Deccan Plateau.
• The Ghats create a rain-shadow effect, resulting in lush tropical evergreen forests on the western side and dry deciduous forests on the eastern side.
• Flora: The region hosts over 7,400 plant species, of which many are endemic. It contains some of the best non-equatorial tropical evergreen forests in the world.
• The region hosts over 7,400 plant species, of which many are endemic.
• It contains some of the best non-equatorial tropical evergreen forests in the world.
• Fauna: The Ghats are home to 325 globally threatened species. The region shelters about 30% of the world’s Asian elephants and 17% of global tiger population (Panthera tigris).
• The Ghats are home to 325 globally threatened species.
• The region shelters about 30% of the world’s Asian elephants and 17% of global tiger population (Panthera tigris).
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