UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October 2025
Kartavya Desk Staff
UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 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 3 : (UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October (2025)
• Powering the Intelligence Revolution: How Small Modular Reactors Can Fuel India’s AI Data Centre Boom
Powering the Intelligence Revolution: How Small Modular Reactors Can Fuel India’s AI Data Centre Boom
• Agriculture in the Age of Inequality
Agriculture in the Age of Inequality
Content for Mains Enrichment (CME):
• AI and Computational Thinking (CT) curriculum
AI and Computational Thinking (CT) curriculum
Facts for Prelims (FFP):
• Rare Defence Traits in Indian Frogs
Rare Defence Traits in Indian Frogs
• Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
• Ayni Air Base in Tajikistan
Ayni Air Base in Tajikistan
• Model Youth Gram Sabha Initiative
Model Youth Gram Sabha Initiative
• India Granted US Sanctions Waiver for Chabahar Port
India Granted US Sanctions Waiver for Chabahar Port
• Pak–Afghan Border Dispute
Pak–Afghan Border Dispute
Mapping:
• Nauradehi Sanctuary to Become 3rd Home for Cheetahs
Nauradehi Sanctuary to Become 3rd Home for Cheetahs
UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October 2025
#### GS Paper 3:
Powering the Intelligence Revolution: How Small Modular Reactors Can Fuel India’s AI Data Centre Boom
Syllabus: Nuclear Energy, AI
Source: TH
Context: AI data centres — the digital engines behind Generative AI and cloud services — are driving massive global power demand, forcing countries to explore low-carbon, 24×7 energy sources like Small Modular Reactors (SMRs).
• India, through its Nuclear Energy Mission (2025), has announced plans to deploy indigenously built SMRs to meet rising AI and data infrastructure energy needs.
About Powering the Intelligence Revolution: How Small Modular Reactors Can Fuel India’s AI Data Centre Boom
India’s Electricity Demand: Data and Trends
• Flat but Rising Curve: India’s electricity demand remained steady at ~5% annual growth for two decades, but is now rising with AI, EVs, and green hydrogen.
• Industrial Shift: Energy-intensive sectors like data centres, 5G, and digital manufacturing are adding new base-load demand layers.
• Capacity Challenge: Despite being the third-largest electricity producer, India’s grid faces localised shortages and transmission stress.
• Decarbonisation Pressure: India targets 500 GW of renewables by 2030, but intermittency remains a hurdle for 24×7 supply to high-load facilities.
Need for AI Data Centres:
• Digital India Push: Policies like data localisation and Digital India require massive domestic storage and processing infrastructure.
• 5G & IoT Explosion: Rollout of 5G and IoT devices generates exponential data, necessitating high-performance computing hubs.
• AI and Cloud Workloads: Generative AI and LLMs require high-density GPUs, transforming data centres into computational power grids.
• Security & Sovereignty: India’s data protection regime demands that sensitive data be processed within national borders.
• Economic Multiplier: The AI data centre ecosystem can generate jobs, attract FDI, and enhance India’s role as a global digital hub.
Global and India Scenario:
• Global Growth: Worldwide electricity use by data centres may rise from 460 TWh (2024) to 1,300 TWh by 2035, led by the U.S. and China.
• S. Leadership: The U.S. holds 51% of global capacity, with hubs in Texas, Virginia, and Phoenix, driving 25% grid demand growth.
• India’s Expansion: India’s current 1.4 GW capacity may reach 7 GW by 2030, with projects by Google, Reliance, AdaniConneX, and Yotta.
• Regional Focus: Key clusters are emerging in Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Jamnagar, and Visakhapatnam under the IndiaAI Mission.
Role of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in Power Supply:
• Baseload Solution: SMRs provide 24×7 low-carbon baseload power, ideal for continuous AI data centre operations.
• Scalable & Modular: With 1–300 MW range, SMRs can be deployed near consumption hubs, reducing transmission losses.
• Safety by Design: Incorporate passive cooling, smaller cores, and accident-tolerant fuels, enhancing reliability.
• Global Investment: Over billion has been committed globally; India plans to commission five SMRs by 2033.
• Policy Backing: India’s ₹20,000 crore Nuclear Energy Mission aims for 100 GW by 2047, with reforms to attract billion private investment.
Limitations and Concerns of SMRs:
• Regulatory Bottlenecks: Current licensing frameworks are tailored to large reactors, delaying SMR approvals.
• Cost Overruns: Despite modularity, initial capital costs remain high without large-scale deployment.
• Waste Disposal Issues: New fuel types (e.g., HALEU) pose challenges for long-term waste management.
• Transportation Risks: Factory-fabricated units require secure logistics and radiation safeguards.
• Public Acceptance: Despite improved safety, social resistance and nuclear liability concerns persist.
Way Ahead:
• Regulatory Reforms: Develop technology-neutral, streamlined licensing aligned with IAEA’s harmonisation frameworks.
• Public-Private Partnerships: Facilitate joint ventures among SMR vendors, AI data centre players, and renewable firms.
• Site Repurposing: Convert retired coal plants and hydrogen hubs into nuclear-ready SMR sites.
• Skilling and Research: Train regulators, re-skill the coal workforce, and promote SMR R&D collaboration with global leaders.
• Integrated Power Strategy: Combine renewables, SMRs, and storage systems to create resilient digital energy ecosystems.
Conclusion:
As AI becomes the new industrial engine, energy will be its oxygen. India’s leap toward Small Modular Reactors and renewable hybrids offers a pathway to power this intelligence responsibly. The future belongs to nations that can balance computation with clean, continuous, and conscience-driven energy.
Agriculture in the Age of Inequality
Syllabus: Agriculture
Source: TF
Context: The article exposes the systemic erosion of India’s farm economy due to corporate capture, predatory commercialization, and decades of neoliberal policies.
About Agriculture in the Age of Inequality:
Data and Statistics on Agriculture:
• Farmer Suicides: Over 4,00,000 farmers have died by suicide since 1995; NCRB (2022) reported 11,290 deaths, indicating that over one farmer dies every hour due to indebtedness and market distress.
• Income Decline: The NSS 77th Round (2018–19) reveals that average farm household income is ₹10,218/month, marking a 10% decline from 2012–13, reflecting stagnation amid rising costs.
• Employment Exodus: Between 1991 and 2011, India lost nearly 15 million full-time cultivators, with 2,000 farmers quitting agriculture every day, signalling a collapse in rural viability.
• Inequality Ratio: The 217 Indian billionaires’ wealth (US trillion) equals 58× the agriculture budget, exposing a stark contrast between rural poverty and elite accumulation.
• Falling Terms of Trade: Cotton’s purchasing power plunged—farmers who once bought 12 gm of gold per quintal in the 1970s can’t buy 1 gm today, showing the widening gap between input inflation and stagnant output prices.
Importance of Agriculture in India:
• Economic Backbone: Agriculture sustains 45% of India’s workforce and contributes ~18% of GDP, serving as the foundation of livelihood and national growth.
• Food Security Anchor: It ensures self-sufficiency in food grains, stabilizes prices, and cushions inflation shocks, making it the cornerstone of nutritional security.
• Social Stability: Acts as a shock absorber during unemployment and pandemics (e.g., COVID-19 reverse migration), highlighting its role as a rural safety net.
• Cultural Identity: Embodies India’s civilizational ethos of dharti-mata, symbolizing harmony between humans, soil, and seasons—a moral rhythm of sustenance.
• Intersectoral Linkages: Fuels MSMEs, transport, and food industries, generating demand chains that stimulate rural-urban economic interdependence.
Inequality and Its Link to Agriculture:
• Policy Bias: Post-1991 liberalization favoured capital-intensive corporates, reducing public investment, subsidies, and credit flow to smallholders.
• Corporate Penetration: Agribusiness giants now dominate seeds, logistics, and markets, eroding farmer autonomy and traditional cooperatives.
Eg: Bayer-Monsanto’s seed-pricing disputes in India show how monopoly control depresses farmer margins.
• Market Distortions: Weak MSP enforcement and mandi deregulation have shifted price control to traders, worsening income asymmetry.
Eg: In 2023-24, paddy farmers in Bihar earned ₹1,850/qtl—₹250 below MSP—while corporate buyers cornered procurement through contract channels.
• Rural Deprivation: Cuts in irrigation, insurance, and research widened regional disparities, trapping farmers in debt cycles and uncertainty.
Eg: Vidarbha and Bundelkhand, with low irrigation coverage (< 15%), account for over a quarter of India’s farm suicides.
• Wealth Concentration: Fiscal “incentives” for corporates and tax leniency transferred vast public resources away from small cultivators.
Eg: By 2024, the top 10 agribusinesses received loans worth ₹1.3 lakh cr—five times more than all small and marginal farmers combined—reflecting a systemic transfer of resources upward.
Implications of Agrarian Inequality:
• Rural Exodus: Widespread distress forces millions to migrate to cities, swelling informal labour and urban poverty belts.
• Nutritional Crisis: Families now sell milk and cereals once meant for home use, worsening child malnutrition and food insecurity.
• Erosion of Democracy: Corporate capture of policy space weakens panchayati raj institutions and grassroots accountability.
• Social Discontent: The Delhi Farmers’ Protest (2020–21) symbolized democratic assertion against policy centralization and inequality.
• Ecological Stress: Monocropping, chemical-intensive farming, and climate shocks are accelerating soil depletion and biodiversity loss.
Way Ahead:
• Reinvest in Public Agriculture: Expand rural infrastructure, irrigation, and R&D while guaranteeing fair MSP and public procurement mechanisms.
• Rebalance Policy Priorities: Redirect subsidies, credit, and insurance toward small farmers, FPOs, and agro-cooperative ecosystems.
• Empower Local Governance: Strengthen panchayats, SHGs, and producer groups to ensure decentralized, participatory planning.
• Diversify Livelihoods: Encourage agro-ecological and allied sectors (dairy, fisheries, food processing) to create rural non-farm employment.
• Social Safety and Ethics: Revitalize MGNREGS, crop insurance, and grievance systems with transparency and ethical oversight to uphold dignity.
Conclusion:
India’s agrarian decline mirrors a deeper moral imbalance between profit and people. The solution lies not in abandoning agriculture but in re-humanizing it through justice, dignity, and sustainability. Reviving the countryside is thus not charity—it is the reclamation of India’s collective conscience.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October 2025 Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)
AI and Computational Thinking (CT) curriculum
Context: The Ministry of Education has announced that an AI and Computational Thinking (CT) curriculum will be introduced in all schools from Class 3 onwards starting the academic year 2026–27.
About AI and Computational Thinking (CT) curriculum:
• What it is? A structured curriculum on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Computational Thinking (CT) to be integrated into the formal school education system from Class 3 onwards, across all boards and schools in India.
• A structured curriculum on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Computational Thinking (CT) to be integrated into the formal school education system from Class 3 onwards, across all boards and schools in India.
• To equip students with 21st-century skills like logical reasoning, problem-solving, data literacy, and responsible use of technology. To promote “AI for Public Good”, fostering innovation linked to social and ethical awareness.
• To equip students with 21st-century skills like logical reasoning, problem-solving, data literacy, and responsible use of technology.
• To promote “AI for Public Good”, fostering innovation linked to social and ethical awareness.
• Key Features:
• Alignment with NEP 2020 & NCF-SE 2023: Focus on flexibility, inclusivity, and contextual learning. Implementation from 2026–27: Phased rollout across all schools in India. Teacher Preparedness: Training through NISHTHA modules and video-based learning tools. Integrated with “The World Around Us” (TWAU): Links AI learning to real-world contexts.
• Alignment with NEP 2020 & NCF-SE 2023: Focus on flexibility, inclusivity, and contextual learning.
• Implementation from 2026–27: Phased rollout across all schools in India.
• Teacher Preparedness: Training through NISHTHA modules and video-based learning tools.
• Integrated with “The World Around Us” (TWAU): Links AI learning to real-world contexts.
• Significance:
• Builds early digital and ethical literacy among students. Positions India to create a digitally competent workforce aligned with global AI trends. Encourages inclusive, responsible innovation suited to national priorities.
• Builds early digital and ethical literacy among students.
• Positions India to create a digitally competent workforce aligned with global AI trends.
• Encourages inclusive, responsible innovation suited to national priorities.
Relevance in UPSC Syllabus:
• GS Paper II – Governance & Education: The initiative aligns with NEP 2020 and reflects the government’s focus on policy implementation in school education through the integration of emerging technologies.
• The initiative aligns with NEP 2020 and reflects the government’s focus on policy implementation in school education through the integration of emerging technologies.
• GS Paper III – Science & Technology: It highlights government efforts to enhance AI literacy, promote computational thinking, and ensure digital empowerment from an early age.
• It highlights government efforts to enhance AI literacy, promote computational thinking, and ensure digital empowerment from an early age.
• GS Paper IV – Ethics: The curriculum emphasizes the ethical and responsible use of technology, cultivating moral reasoning in young minds and encouraging value-based digital behavior—a vital component in an age of AI-driven decision-making.
• The curriculum emphasizes the ethical and responsible use of technology, cultivating moral reasoning in young minds and encouraging value-based digital behavior—a vital component in an age of AI-driven decision-making.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October 2025 Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Rare Defence Traits in Indian Frogs
Source: TH
Context: A team from the University of Delhi’s Systematics Lab, has documented for the first time rare anti-predator defence behaviours in two Indian frog species, published in Herpetological Notes.
About Rare Defence Traits in Indian Frogs:
• The study uncovers unique behavioural adaptations in frogs, including biting, shrieking, and body-raising, to deter predators.
• These are among the first such recorded instances in Indian amphibians, expanding knowledge of their survival strategies.
• Of the 7,800+ known frog species worldwide, only around 650 exhibit such defence responses, making the Indian cases scientifically valuable.
Species and Their Behavioural Features:
• Apatani Horned Toad (Xenophrys apatani) – Arunachal Pradesh: A nocturnal frog with cryptic, leaf-litter camouflage that hides it during the day. When threatened, it inflates its body, emits a sharp distress call, and may bite predators — a first-time observation in India.
• A nocturnal frog with cryptic, leaf-litter camouflage that hides it during the day.
• When threatened, it inflates its body, emits a sharp distress call, and may bite predators — a first-time observation in India.
• Bicoloured Frog (Clinotarsus curtipes) – Western Ghats, Kerala: A diurnal forest species that arches its body by stretching limbs vertically, appearing larger and more menacing. This body-raising posture is believed to intimidate predators and was experimentally verified in the wild.
• A diurnal forest species that arches its body by stretching limbs vertically, appearing larger and more menacing.
• This body-raising posture is believed to intimidate predators and was experimentally verified in the wild.
Implications:
• New Behavioural Records: Adds previously unknown defensive behaviours to the global amphibian database.
• Evolutionary Insight: Suggests adaptive responses evolved to suit diverse Indian ecological niches.
• Biodiversity Awareness: Reinforces how much remains undocumented in India’s rich amphibian fauna.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
Source: TOI
Context: The Ministry of Culture is organizing grand cultural performances on Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (31 October 2025) to commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, with Prime Minister of India as Chief Guest.
About Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel:
• Early Life and Birth: Born on 31 October 1875 in Nadiad, Gujarat, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel began his career as a successful lawyer before dedicating his life to India’s freedom struggle.
• Entry into Public Life: His association with Mahatma Gandhi during the Kheda Satyagraha (1918) transformed him from a lawyer to a nationalist leader advocating for farmers’ rights and social justice.
• Role in Freedom Movement:
• Led the Bardoli Satyagraha (1928), where his leadership earned him the title “Sardar” (leader). Served as President of the Indian National Congress (1931, Karachi Session), where he guided the party during turbulent times following Bhagat Singh’s execution. Worked closely with leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, and Rajendra Prasad in shaping India’s freedom trajectory.
• Led the Bardoli Satyagraha (1928), where his leadership earned him the title “Sardar” (leader).
• Served as President of the Indian National Congress (1931, Karachi Session), where he guided the party during turbulent times following Bhagat Singh’s execution.
• Worked closely with leaders like Gandhi, Nehru, and Rajendra Prasad in shaping India’s freedom trajectory.
• Architect of National Integration:
• As India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister (1947–50), Patel led the integration of 565 princely states into the Indian Union using diplomacy, persuasion, and firmness. Successfully handled complex accessions like Hyderabad (Operation Polo, 1948), Junagadh, Travancore, and Kashmir (Instrument of Accession, 1947). Established the All-India Services, calling them the “Steel Frame of India” to ensure administrative unity and integrity.
• As India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister (1947–50), Patel led the integration of 565 princely states into the Indian Union using diplomacy, persuasion, and firmness.
• Successfully handled complex accessions like Hyderabad (Operation Polo, 1948), Junagadh, Travancore, and Kashmir (Instrument of Accession, 1947).
• Established the All-India Services, calling them the “Steel Frame of India” to ensure administrative unity and integrity.
• Vision and Legacy:
• Advocated for a strong, united, and self-reliant India, rooted in discipline and national integration. His vision culminated in later milestones — merger of Goa (1961), Sikkim’s accession (1975), and the abrogation of Article 370 (2019), fulfilling his dream of complete unity. The ‘Statue of Unity’, inaugurated in 2018 at Kevadia, Gujarat, stands as the world’s tallest statue (182 metres), symbolizing his enduring legacy.
• Advocated for a strong, united, and self-reliant India, rooted in discipline and national integration.
• His vision culminated in later milestones — merger of Goa (1961), Sikkim’s accession (1975), and the abrogation of Article 370 (2019), fulfilling his dream of complete unity.
• The ‘Statue of Unity’, inaugurated in 2018 at Kevadia, Gujarat, stands as the world’s tallest statue (182 metres), symbolizing his enduring legacy.
• Unique Facts:
• Popularly known as the “Iron Man of India” for his grit and administrative strength. Personally led sanitation drives in Ahmedabad as Municipal President (1924), setting an example of ethical leadership.
• Popularly known as the “Iron Man of India” for his grit and administrative strength.
• Personally led sanitation drives in Ahmedabad as Municipal President (1924), setting an example of ethical leadership.
Ayni Air Base in Tajikistan
Source: TP
Context: India withdrew from the Ayni air base in Tajikistan in 2022 after the lease agreement with Tajikistan was not renewed, reportedly due to pressure from Russia and China.
About Ayni Air Base in Tajikistan:
What it is?
• The Ayni air base, also known as the Gissar Military Aerodrome (GMA), is a strategically located airbase in Tajikistan that India helped develop and operate jointly with the Tajik government since 2002. It was India’s first overseas military facility, giving it a strategic presence in Central Asia.
Located in: The base lies just west of Dushanbe, Tajikistan’s capital, and around 20 km from Afghanistan’s Wakhan Corridor, which borders Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and China.
History:
• Originally built during the Soviet era, the base fell into disuse after the USSR’s collapse.
• India redeveloped it in 2001-2002, with key roles played by NSA Ajit Doval, Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa, and the Border Roads Organisation (BRO).
• Funded by the Ministry of External Affairs, India spent about million extending the runway to 3,200 metres, building hangars, refuelling facilities, and maintenance units.
• The base was occasionally used by the Indian Air Force (IAF) for humanitarian and evacuation missions, including during the Afghanistan crisis in 2021.
Strategic Importance:
• Provided India a military foothold in Central Asia—a region of high strategic interest.
• Enabled surveillance and operational reach over Pakistan and Afghanistan.
• Located near the Wakhan Corridor, it offered India leverage in regional security and counter-terror operations.
• Strengthened India’s role as a security partner in Central Asia amid growing China-Pakistan proximity.
Current Status:
• The lease expired in 2021, and Tajikistan declined renewal under Russian and Chinese influence.
• India completed withdrawal in 2022, and by early 2023, Russian forces reportedly took over operations at the base.
• Though the base is no longer Indian-operated, India continues to maintain diplomatic and security engagement in Central Asia.
Model Youth Gram Sabha Initiative
Source: PIB
Context: The Ministry of Panchayati Raj, in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Tribal Affairs, launched the Model Youth Gram Sabha (MYGS) Initiative in New Delhi to foster democratic leadership.
About Model Youth Gram Sabha Initiative:
What it is?
• The Model Youth Gram Sabha (MYGS) is a nationwide initiative aimed at providing students hands-on experience in grassroots democracy by simulating the functioning of real Gram Sabhas. It encourages civic awareness, leadership, and participatory governance among youth.
Organisation:
• Jointly launched by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Ministry of Education (Department of School Education & Literacy), and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
• Supported by Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs), Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs), and State Government Schools.
• To nurture democratic leadership among students through experiential and activity-based learning.
• To align with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in fostering responsible, participative, and community-oriented citizens.
Key Features:
• Implementation across 1,000+ schools nationwide.
• Integration of training modules and a dedicated MYGS digital portal.
• Promotes learning by doing, teamwork, transparency, and decision-making through mock Gram Sabha sessions.
• Plans to extend the model to urban areas through Model Ward Sabhas for city students.
Significance:
• Connects education with governance, making students active participants in democracy.
• Strengthens grassroots awareness and civic responsibility in youth.
India Granted US Sanctions Waiver for Chabahar Port
Source: FPJ
Context: The United States has granted India a six-month sanctions waiver for operating the Chabahar Port in Iran, allowing continued development and trade activity.
About India Granted US Sanctions Waiver for Chabahar Port:
What it is?
• The Chabahar Port is a strategic seaport in southeastern Iran on the Gulf of Oman, developed jointly by India and Iran to facilitate trade with Afghanistan and Central Asia while bypassing Pakistan.
• It consists of two main terminals — Shahid Beheshti and Shahid Kalantari — with multiple berths for cargo handling.
Located in:
• The port is situated in Chabahar city, Sistan and Baluchistan Province, Iran.
• It lies about 170 km west of Pakistan’s Gwadar Port and serves as Iran’s only oceanic port with direct access to the Indian Ocean.
History:
• Originally proposed by Iran’s Shah in 1973, but construction began after the 1979 Iranian Revolution and the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88).
• India and Iran signed an agreement in 2003 to jointly develop the port; however, sanctions delayed progress.
• In 2016, India, Iran, and Afghanistan signed a Trilateral Transit Agreement, giving India rights to develop and operate two berths at Shahid Beheshti Terminal.
• India formally took over operations in December 2018 through India Ports Global Ltd. (IPGL).
Features:
• Equipped with container terminals, cargo-handling cranes, and modern logistics facilities.
• Serves as a key node for the International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC), linking India to Russia and Europe via Iran and Central Asia.
• Offers a strategic alternative to Pakistan’s Karachi and Gwadar ports for India-Afghanistan trade.
Significance to India:
• Bypasses Pakistan to provide India direct land–sea access to Afghanistan and Central Asia for trade and aid.
• Strengthens India’s presence in the Eurasian connectivity network and counters China’s influence via the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Pak–Afghan Border Dispute
Source: BS
Context: Tensions have sharply escalated between Pakistan and Afghanistan after cross-border airstrikes and retaliatory fire along the Durand Line, reviving one of South Asia’s oldest border disputes.
About Pak–Afghan Border Dispute:
What it is?
• The Durand Line is a 2,640 km-long border demarcated in 1893 between British India and Afghanistan by Sir Mortimer Durand and Emir Abdur Rahman Khan.
• Intended as an administrative boundary, it split the Pashtun tribal heartland, dividing families, ethnic communities, and trade routes that had existed for centuries without borders.
Origin of the Clash:
• The line was accepted by Abdur Rahman under British pressure but was never recognised as a permanent international boundary by later Afghan governments.
• When Pakistan was created in 1947, Afghanistan rejected the Durand Line, claiming the right to unify Pashtun regions within Pakistan’s northwest.
• Afghanistan even voted against Pakistan’s admission to the United Nations, marking the start of a long-standing territorial and ethnic dispute.
Historical Timeline:
• 1947–61: Repeated breakdowns of diplomatic ties over the “Pashtunistan” issue.
• 1979–89: The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan turned the border into a Cold War battleground, with Pakistan hosting millions of Afghan refugees and mujahideen.
• 1990s: Pakistan-backed Taliban rise to power, worsening Afghan suspicions of Pakistani interference.
• 2001–2021: post – 9/11, both sides accused each other of harbouring terrorists — Pakistan sheltering the Afghan Taliban, and Afghanistan hosting the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
• 2017 onwards: Pakistan built a border fence, which Kabul protested as a violation of sovereignty.
• 2025: The dispute reignited after Pakistan’s airstrikes on Afghan provinces targeting TTP militants, followed by Afghan retaliation.
Key Features of the Dispute:
• The Durand Line divides Pashtun tribes, creating deep ethnic and cultural fault lines.
• Frequent border skirmishes, refugee influx, and militant movements make the area volatile.
• Both nations use cross-border militancy as leverage, complicating peace efforts.
• The issue symbolizes colonial legacy and mutual mistrust, with no formal border agreement post-1947.
Implications for India:
• Strategic Leverage: India gains diplomatic space as the Pakistan–Afghanistan standoff weakens Islamabad’s influence in the region.
• Regional Stability: Instability along the Durand Line threatens broader South Asian security, affecting India’s outreach to Central Asia via Chabahar Port and INSTC routes.
• Counterterrorism: A destabilized frontier risks spillover of extremist networks, including those hostiles to India.
#### UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 October 2025 Mapping:
Nauradehi Sanctuary to Become 3rd Home for Cheetahs
Source: NDTV
Context: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister announced that Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary will become the third home for cheetahs in the state after Kuno National Park and Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary.
About Nauradehi Sanctuary to Become 3rd Home for Cheetahs:
• What it is? Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary is one of India’s largest sanctuaries, spread over 1,197 sq. km, and serves as a crucial wildlife corridor in the upper Vindhyan range of Madhya Pradesh.
• Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary is one of India’s largest sanctuaries, spread over 1,197 sq. km, and serves as a crucial wildlife corridor in the upper Vindhyan range of Madhya Pradesh.
• Located in: The sanctuary lies across Sagar, Damoh, and Narsinghpur districts of Madhya Pradesh, situated between the Yamuna and Narmada River basins. Major rivers like Bamner, Kopra, and Bearma flow through it.
• The sanctuary lies across Sagar, Damoh, and Narsinghpur districts of Madhya Pradesh, situated between the Yamuna and Narmada River basins.
• Major rivers like Bamner, Kopra, and Bearma flow through it.
• History and Ecology: Declared a sanctuary to conserve central Indian fauna, Nauradehi has mixed deciduous forests, Vindhyan sandstone formations, and diverse soil types (red, black, and alluvial). It supports over 250 animal species, including tiger, leopard, sloth bear, wild dog, chinkara, sambhar, and blackbuck, along with 170+ bird species such as storks, vultures, and pheasants.
• Declared a sanctuary to conserve central Indian fauna, Nauradehi has mixed deciduous forests, Vindhyan sandstone formations, and diverse soil types (red, black, and alluvial).
• It supports over 250 animal species, including tiger, leopard, sloth bear, wild dog, chinkara, sambhar, and blackbuck, along with 170+ bird species such as storks, vultures, and pheasants.
• Features: Altitude: 400–600 metres above sea level. Rainfall: Around 1,200 mm annually. Rich in grasses, herbs, shrubs, and bamboo, making it ideal for herbivores and potential cheetah prey base.
• Altitude: 400–600 metres above sea level.
• Rainfall: Around 1,200 mm annually.
• Rich in grasses, herbs, shrubs, and bamboo, making it ideal for herbivores and potential cheetah prey base.
• Cheetah Conservation in India: The Asiatic cheetah became extinct in India in 1952 due to hunting and habitat loss. The Government of India launched Project Cheetah, reintroducing African cheetahs from Namibia at Kuno National Park (2022) and later at Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary (2024). Nauradehi will now serve as the third site, ensuring species expansion, genetic diversification, and ecosystem restoration in central India.
• The Asiatic cheetah became extinct in India in 1952 due to hunting and habitat loss.
• The Government of India launched Project Cheetah, reintroducing African cheetahs from Namibia at Kuno National Park (2022) and later at Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary (2024).
• Nauradehi will now serve as the third site, ensuring species expansion, genetic diversification, and ecosystem restoration in central India.
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