Current Affairs – December 26, 2025

{GS1 – Geo} Japan Plans to Mine Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REE)

Context (RE): Japan plans a pilot project to extract rare-earth-rich mud from the deep seabed near Minamitorishima Island.

Depth Milestone: It targets mud at 6,000-metre depth, marking the world’s first sustained deep-seabed extraction attempt.
Resource Scale: The surrounding region is estimated to hold over 16 million tonnes of rare earth oxides rich in dysprosium and terbium.
Strategic Aim: Japan seeks to reduce reliance on China, which dominates global rare earth supply and recently tightened export controls.

Rare earth elements are a group of 17 metallic elements found in low concentrations with unique magnetic, luminescent, and electrochemical properties.

About Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REE)

Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are a group of 17 rare earth elements found in high concentrations within deep-sea mineral deposits.
Key Sources: They occur in pelagic clay sediments, polymetallic nodules, and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts on seamounts.
Hosting Medium: Unlike land ores locked in silicate or phosphate crystal lattices, seabed REEs remain adsorbed on iron and manganese oxide surfaces.
Sediment Nature: Rare-earth-rich marine mud remains unconsolidated, allowing extraction without blasting, drilling, or crushing.
Depth Gradient: REE concentrations increase with sediment depth, making deeper mud layers more valuable than surface sediments.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Seabed REEs

Advantages: These deposits show negligible radioactivity and allow leaching at room temperature.
- Basket Value: They have higher basket prices due to greater proportions of heavy REEs.
Disadvantages: Seabed mining risks disrupting deep-sea ecosystems and their associated food webs.
- Viability: Industrial-scale viability remains unproven, and the ISA has not finalised its mining code.

Read More> Rare Earth Elements

Context (TH): The Union Health Minister recently stated that increasing institutional deliveries has significantly reduced India’s Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR).

About Institutional Deliveries

Institutional delivery refers to childbirth in a medical institution under trained health personnel, with facilities to manage complications.
India’s institutional delivery rate has risen to 89%, with public health facilities handling 62% of cases.
Regional Disparities: Kerala and Tamil Nadu have achieved nearly 100% institutional delivery, while Nagaland (46%) and Bihar (76%) still lag.

Key Government Initiatives for Institutional Delivery

JSY: Janani Suraksha Yojana, a centrally sponsored scheme, provides conditional cash transfers to promote institutional deliveries, especially in low-performing states.
JSSK: Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram guarantees free and cashless deliveries, including caesarean sections, covering drugs, diagnostics, diet, and transport.
PMMVY: Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, a Direct Benefit Transfer scheme, provides ₹5,000 for the first child and ₹6,000 for a second girl child.
PMSMA: Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan ensures fixed-day, free, specialist-led antenatal care every month to detect high-risk pregnancies.
LaQshya: Labour Room Quality Improvement Initiative improves labour room and maternity operation theatre quality through standardised protocols and certification.

Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR)

MMR is the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births during a given time period.
Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 3.1 aims to reduce global MMR below 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.

Current Trends of MMR in India

As per the Sample Registration System (SRS), MMR fell from 130 in 2014–16 to 88 in 2020–22.
Rate of Reduction: India’s annual rate of reduction in MMR averages about 6.36%, nearly three times higher than the global rate.
State Variation: Kerala (19), Maharashtra (33), and Telangana (43) have surpassed SDG targets, while Assam, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh record high MMRs.

{GS3 – IE – Development} Growth Convergence Among Indian States **

Context (IE): Indian states with lower per capita income are showing early signs of faster growth and moving toward long-term catch-up with more developed states.

Key Trends in India’s Subnational Growth Rebalancing

Growth Convergence: Laggard states like Bihar (9.2%) and Assam (12%) outpaced national real GDP growth (8.2%) in FY24, reversing the pre-pandemic FY13-FY19 divergence trend.
Growth Spread: High growth momentum moved beyond southern states, with Odisha at 11.2% and Assam at 12% nominal growth in FY25.
Payroll Transition: Formal employment expanded faster in low-income states. Uttar Pradesh contributed over 5% of the net EPFO payroll additions in 2025.
Female Workforce: Catch-up states expanded the female labour force, with rural female LFPR in Bihar rising from 24.8% in FY23 to 33.5% in FY24.
Urban Expansion: Service-sector growth shifted to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, which accounted for 60% of new online shoppers in 2025.

Factors For Growth Convergence in India

Capex Support: Centre allocated a ₹1.5 trillion interest-free loan under Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI), financing 20-25% of capital outlay in low-income states.
Fiscal Incentives: Higher tax devolution is linked with Ease of Doing Business reforms under the 15^th and forthcoming 16^th Finance Commissions.
Digital Leap: India Stack helped low-income states leapfrog development stages and cut fiscal leakages by 10–15%, freeing capital for infrastructure.
Energy Shift: Emerging states like Rajasthan and Odisha are attracting industrial investments through large-scale renewable energy capacity expansion.
Wage Advantage: Rising labour costs in southern and western states have pushed labour-intensive manufacturing toward Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Key Challenges to Sustaining Growth Convergence

Revenue Pressure: Slower growth in the Centre’s divisible tax pool creates immediate revenue stress for developing states.
Spending Trade-off: Pre-election expansion of cash transfer schemes (E.g., Ladli Behna) raises revenue expenditure and risks cuts in capital expenditure.
Debt Burden: High Debt-to-GSDP ratios limit fiscal space for new projects due to elevated debt servicing costs. Bihar’s Debt-to-GSDP ratio remains near 39%, far above the recommended 20%.
Climate Risk: Extreme weather events in highly vulnerable catch-up states like Bihar and Assam can erase nearly 2% of annual GSDP.
Skill Mismatch: Limited mid-tech vocational skills keep emerging states confined to low-value “construction growth” instead of manufacturing.

Way Forward to Sustain Growth Convergence

Predictable Capex: Adopt a 3-5-year multi-year SASCI outlay instead of annual allocations to ensure financial certainty for large projects.
Labour Reforms: Implement the Industrial Relations Code in states and raise the layoff threshold beyond 300 workers to attract global manufacturers.
Municipal Finance: Empower Tier-2 cities in emerging states to raise funds through municipal bonds, reducing pressure on state budgets.
GVC Focus: Align state manufacturing strategies with specific Global Value Chains, such as mobile assembly in Uttar Pradesh or food processing in Bihar.
Regional Corridors: Develop inter-state economic corridors to pool logistics and power infrastructure to attract larger foreign direct investment than individual states.

{GS3 – IS} Enforcement Directorate Moves to Fast-Track Investigations

Context (IE): Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated steps to fast-track its backlog of money laundering investigations.

The actual conviction rates under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) remain much below the 94% figure cited by ED.

About Enforcement Directorate (ED)

ED is a multi-disciplinary agency responsible for investigating financial crimes and enforcing economic laws.
It was established in 1956 as an ‘Enforcement Unit’ under the Department of Economic Affairs.
It was renamed in 1957 and placed under the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance in 1960.
The agency is headed by a Director of Enforcement and is headquartered in New Delhi.
ED functions through five regional offices and multiple zonal and sub-zonal offices nationwide.

About Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002

The PMLA, 2002, is a comprehensive law to combat money laundering, and provides for the confiscation of property derived from illicit means.
It was enacted primarily to honour India’s international obligations under the Vienna and Palermo Conventions and to comply with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations.

Key Provision

Offence Definition: Section 3 defines money laundering as involvement with proceeds of crime and projecting it as untainted property.
Penal Provision: Section 4 prescribes imprisonment and fines, with stricter punishment for offences linked to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
Proof Burden: Section 24 places the burden of proof on the accused once a case is established.
Reporting Obligations: Section 12 mandates banks and financial institutions to verify client identity, maintain records, and report suspicious transactions.
Special Courts: Section 43 provides for the establishment of Special Courts to handle PMLA cases.

Read More > ED | PMLA

{GS3 – S&T} Government Links NATGRID to National Population Register **

Context (TH): The Union Home Ministry has linked the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) to the National Population Register (NPR).

More About the News

Union Home Ministry has linked NATGRID with the NPR, enabling authorised agencies to access family-wise and identity-linked data of nearly 119 crore residents through a secure system.
The integration allows investigators to trace relationships, household details and identity linkages, strengthening probes into terrorism, organised crime and interstate criminal networks.
Advanced tools like “Gandiva” enable entity resolution and facial recognition, matching suspects across telecom KYC, driving licences, vehicle registrations & travel records, reducing investigation time.
Requests are classified as non-sensitive, sensitive and highly sensitive (including financial and banking data), with purpose-bound access, logging and senior-level oversight to ensure accountability.

About NATGRID

It is an integrated digital intelligence platform under the Union Home Ministry (MHA) linking multiple government and private databases to enable easy access for authorised investigation agencies.
It was conceptualised in 2009 after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks (2008) to fix gaps in inter-agency intelligence sharing, and it became operational in 2020.
It operates on a query-based access model, where authorised agencies submit targeted searches (no bulk data download), with technical safeguards under MHA oversight.
The central investigation agencies are core authorised users of NATGRID with full access, while the State Police forces have case-specific access approved by the MHA.

About National Population Register (NPR)

It is a register of usual residents of India (including foreigners), prepared under the Citizenship Act, 1955 and Citizenship Rules, 2003.
A usual resident for NPR is a person who has resided in a place for six months or more and intends to reside there for another six months or more.
It was first prepared in 2010 through house-to-house enumeration of the 2011 Census, and was later updated in 2015.
According to Citizenship Rules 2003, NPR is the first step towards compiling a National Registry of Citizens (NRC).

Significance for Internal Security

Integrated Intelligence: NATGRID-NPR linkage enables real-time convergence of verified identity with 21+ databases, improving detection of terror and organised crime.
Terror Financing Control: Strengthens tracking of hawala, benami assets and crypto-based funding through identity-financial data correlation (Source: FATF MER India 2024).
Centre–State Coordination: Reduces intelligence silos and enables intelligence-led policing in Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), narcotics and interstate crimes.

Way Forward

Legal Backing: Enact a dedicated NATGRID law defining access, oversight and penalties, aligning with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), 2023, to reduce legal ambiguity.
State Integration: Expand case-specific access to State Police through Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and training, building on MHA’s push for intelligence-led policing.
Privacy Safeguard: Anchor NATGRID–NPR use to the Right to Privacy (Puttaswamy Judgement) via statutory limits, audits, and purpose-bound access under the DPDPA, 2023.
Tech Upgrades: Scale advanced analytics and entity-resolution tools to improve cross-database matching, cutting investigation time and improving conviction quality.

Read More > National Security Doctrine

{Prelims – A&C} Scientific Study on Keezhadi

Context (TH): A recent scientific study on the archaeological site of Keezhadi (also called Keeladi), suggests a massive Vaigai River flood buried parts of the urban settlements.

About Keezhadi

It is located in the Sivaganga district near Madurai in Tamil Nadu, along the Vaigai River basin.
Archaeological evidence dates Keezhadi to the Sangam Age; Sangam Tamil poems describe bustling towns and trade networks there.
Urban Features: Excavations reveal brick structures, open channels, terracotta drainage pipelines, ring wells, and evidence of weaving, dyeing, bead making, and pottery industries.

Key Findings of the Study

Sediment Evidence: Archaeologists identified sediment layers over brick structures, the composition of which indicates a high-energy flood event.
Timeline: Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating shows these urban structures were buried about 1,155 years ago, around the 9^th century CE.
Burial Impact: Major floods of the Vaigai River deposited enough sediment to cover homes, drains, and industrial zones, forcing abandonment or relocation.
Climatic Context: The flood formed part of late-Holocene wet–dry fluctuations, when frequent river channel shifts destroyed river-dependent settlements in South India.

OSL dating determines the time elapsed since mineral grains, such as quartz or feldspar, were last exposed to sunlight, thereby dating their burial under water.

{Prelims – Geo} Tsunami Ready Recognition Programme (TRRP)

Context (IE): India is making rapid progress toward becoming the first nation in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) to have 100 coastal villages officially recognised as “Tsunami Ready“.

This goal is part of India’s commitment to the Tsunami Ready Recognition Programme (TRRP) by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO.
TRRP is an international, community-based recognition programme to build tsunami-resilient communities through awareness and preparedness training.
It is a voluntary, performance-based programme, where certification requires meeting 12 indicators across three pillars: Assessment, Preparedness, and Response.
Global Target: Under the UN Ocean Decade (2021–2030), UNESCO-IOC aims to make 100% of at-risk coastal communities tsunami-ready by 2030.

India’s Implementation: National Tsunami Ready Board under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) implements it while INCOIS, Hyderabad, coordinates execution.
India’s Milestones: India became the first in the IOR to receive the recognition, with two Odisha villages certified in 2020; 26 villages in Odisha have received the tag.

Significance: The programme contributes to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030) and SDG-11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).

INCOIS: Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, established in 1999, is an autonomous body under the MoES that provides ocean data, advisory services, and early warning.
Sendai Framework: A 15-year (2015–2030) UN agreement to substantially reduce disaster risk and losses by shifting from disaster response to proactive risk prevention and management.
SDG 11: “Sustainable Cities and Communities,” aims to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable by 2030, reducing disaster-related deaths and economic losses.

{Prelims – Geo} Bezymianny Volcano *

Context (IDR): Bezymianny volcano, which blew apart in a massive volcanic explosion, has nearly reformed its lost peak.

“Bezymianny” means “Unnamed,”; it was presumed extinct for over 1,000 years until it erupted in 1955.
It is a stratovolcano, characterised by a steep, conical shape and composed of alternating layers of viscous lava flows and volcanic debris.
Location: In Central Kamchatka Depression in Russia; it is part of the Klyuchevskoy Volcanic Group, which includes Eurasia’s tallest volcano, Klyuchevskaya Sopka.
Tectonic Setting: It lies near a triple junction of the Pacific, North American, and Eurasian (Okhotsk) plates and is driven by Pacific Plate subduction at the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench.
Eruption Style: It is known for Pelean eruptions involving viscous lava dome growth and collapse, generating high-speed, extremely hot pyroclastic flows.
Peak Reformation: Since the 1956 eruption, near-constant lava dome growth has intermittently refilled the crater through effusive and explosive activity.

Read More > Volcanism | Kamchatka Earthquake & Tsunami

{Prelims – IR} Kimberly Process

Context (PIB): Kimberly Process (KP) Plenary has selected India to assume its chairpersonship for the third time from 1 January 2026.

India will take over as KP vice chair from 25 December 2025 before assuming the chairpersonship on the New Year.

About Kimberly Process

It is a tripartite initiative involving governments, the civil society and the global diamond industry aimed at preventing trade in “conflict diamonds.”
- Conflict diamonds are rough diamonds (natural, uncut and unpolished diamonds) used by rebel groups to fund armed conflicts against legitimate governments.
It currently has 60 members (59 countries and the European Union), and India is a founding member. It has no permanent headquarters or secretariat.
The Kimberly Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) requires the participating countries to set up national laws and institutions to certify diamonds as “conflict-free.”

Read More > World Diamond Council

{Prelims – Species} FSSAI Redefines Legal Use of the Term ‘Tea’

Context (TH): Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) clarified the legal use of the word “tea” to prevent consumer deception.

True Tea: A beverage can be labelled “tea” only if derived from the Camellia sinensis plant. Permitted categories include Green, Black, Oolong, White, Kangra, and Instant Tea.
Scope: The order applies to all Food Business Operators, including manufacturers, packers, importers, and e-commerce platforms.
Legal Consequence: Using “tea” for non-Camellia sinensis products constitutes misbranding under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.

FSSAI is India’s apex statutory body under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, regulating food safety to protect public health.

About Camellia sinensis

Plant Identity: Camellia sinensis is an evergreen shrub or small tree of the Theaceae family whose leaves produce all “true teas”.
Climate Preference: It grows best in humid tropical or subtropical climates with temperatures between 10°C and 30°C.
Soil: The plant requires well-drained acidic soils, with an optimal pH range between 4.5 and 6.5.
Rainfall: It requires high annual rainfall of about 150-300 cm, evenly distributed throughout the year.
Terrain: Tea cultivation commonly occurs on slopes and at altitudes between 600 m and 2,000 m. Higher elevations slow plant growth and increase biochemical complexity.
Biochemical Profile: Tea leaves contain catechins like EGCG, caffeine, and L-theanine, which produce a calming effect.
Economic Life: A tea plant remains commercially productive for nearly 30-50 years, while some wild trees survive centuries.
Distribution: C. sinensis is widely cultivated across Asia, Africa, and South America.
India Range: India is the world’s second-largest tea producer, with Assam being the largest producing state, followed by West Bengal.
Conservation Status: IUCN: Data Deficient.

{Prelims – Defence} India Tests K-4 Ballistic Missile *

Context (TOI): India conducted test fires of the Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) Kalam-4 (K-4) from the nuclear-powered submarine INS Arighaat in the Bay of Bengal.

About K-4 Missile

It is an intermediate-range (3500 km), nuclear-capable, submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
It is 12 meters long with a diameter of 1.3 meters, and weighs about 17-20 tonnes.
It is powered by a two-stage solid fuel rocket motor and can carry a nuclear/conventional payload of up to 2 tonnes.
It is designed to cold launch (missile ejected from the submarine first and motor ignites after surfacing) from Arihant-class nuclear submarines (SSBNs).
It has advanced manoeuvring capabilities and is guided by an advanced inertial navigation system supported by India’s NavIC system and the Global Positioning System (GPS).
It strengthens India’s nuclear triad by extending the range of credible sea-based second-strike capability, which is crucial due to India’s No First Use (NFU) nuclear doctrine.

Read More > Agni 5 with MIRV Technology

Context (TOI): Indian Army issued guidelines revising its blanket ban on social media usage for its personnel, now allowing passive use of select platforms.

Earlier, the Indian Army had instructed all its officers and soldiers to delete their social media accounts along with 89 mobile apps (mostly Chinese-linked) in 2020, citing security reasons.

Key Details

Soldiers are now allowed to use Instagram, YouTube, X (Twitter) and Quora for the purposes of viewing only, while they are still barred from posting or commenting on them.
Skype, Telegram, WhatsApp and Signal are now permitted for the exchange of unclassified information of a general nature, only with known individuals.
The new guidelines also advice against using generic websites and recommends caution while using cloud-based data storage platforms.

Read More > Integration in Armed Forces

{Prelims – Award} Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar

Context (ANI): On Veer Bal Diwas (26 December), President Droupadi Murmu awarded the PM Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (PMRBP) at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Veer Bal Diwas

It is observed annually on 26 December to commemorate the martyrdom of Sahibzada Zorawar Singh and Sahibzada Fateh Singh, the younger sons of Guru Gobind Singh.
They were executed in 1705 by Mughal authorities at Sirhind (present-day Punjab) for refusing to renounce their faith, on the orders of Wazir Khan, the Mughal governor of Sirhind.

Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar

It is India’s highest civilian award for children, recognising exceptional achievements in Bravery, Sports, Environment, Arts & Culture, Social Service, Innovation, Science and Technology.
It was instituted in 2018, subsuming the Bal Shakti Puraskar and the Bal Kalyan Puraskar, and is awarded annually on Veer Bal Diwas by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
The President of India confers the awards, and each awardee receives a medal, a certificate and a citation.
Children must be between 5 and 18 years old and Indian citizens residing in India to qualify. Nominations are usually submitted through the Rashtriya Puraskar Portal.

Read More > Padma Awards

{Prelims – In News} Rashtra Prerna Sthal Inaugurated

Context (DD): PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the Rashtra Prerna Sthal on the 101^st birth anniversary of former PM Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Birth anniversary of Atal Bihari Vajpayee (25 December) is observed as Good Governance Day.

About Rashtra Prerna Sthal

It is a national memorial complex in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, located along the banks of the Gomti River.
It is dedicated to the life and ideals of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Syama Prasad Mookerjee, and Deendayal Upadhyaya, commemorated through three ~65-ft-high bronze statues.
The complex houses a lotus-shaped state-of-the-art museum with a built-up area of ~98,000 sq ft, presenting India’s national journey using digital, immersive and interactive exhibits.