Current Affairs – October 25 2025

{GS2 – Polity – IC – FRs} SC Judgement on Preventive Detention

Context (TH): The Supreme Court in Dhanya M. vs State of Kerala (2025) reaffirmed that preventive detention must be used sparingly, not as a substitute for criminal prosecution or to bypass bail.

Yet, its misuse persists through laws such as KAAPA (Kerala) and the NSA (National Security Act).

Article 22 authorises preventive detention, allowing individuals to be held without trial for up to 12 months under certain laws.

Need for Re-examination of Preventive Detention

Judicial Disquiet: Despite repeated SC warnings (Rekha vs Tamil Nadu, Banka Sneha Sheela), preventive detention remains a routine tool of administration.
Colonial Legacy: Traces back to Bengal Regulation III, 1818, retained post-Independence.
Rising Use: Over 24,000+ preventive detentions annually under various state and central laws (NCRB, 2023), with poor conviction or review rates.
Erosion of Liberty: Undermines Articles 14, 19, 21 — the “Golden Triangle” of fundamental rights.
Wide Definitions: Terms like “goonda” or “anti-social element” enable vague and arbitrary detentions.
Global Concern: India ranks lowest among G20 in Rule of Law Index (World Justice Project, 2024).

Way Forward

Constitutional Revisit: Harmonise Article 22 with Article 21’s due process principle post-Maneka Gandhi. (Law Commission 276th Report)
Periodic Review: Mandate quarterly judicial audits of all detentions; ensure public data disclosure. E.g. Periodic Review clause in the UK’s Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures Act, 2011.
Digital Transparency: e-Detention Tracker for tracking detention orders, reasons, and review outcomes. E.g. OECD Open Justice Data Initiative.
Rights Safeguards: Compulsory assignment of state-funded lawyers to all detainees within 48 hours.

Read More > Preventive Detention

{GS2 – Polity – IC – Judiciary} Doctrine of Lis Pendens

Context (LL): The Delhi High Court held that courts have the discretion to exempt property from the Doctrine of Lis Pendens to safeguard genuine owners from vexatious or frivolous litigation.

About the Doctrine of Lis Pendens

Derived from Latin for “pending litigation,” it prevents any party from transferring or altering property rights under dispute to ensure the case outcome remains unaffected.
It is defined under Section 52 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882.

In Jayaram Mudaliar vs Ayyaswami & Ors (1972), the SC held that lis pendens applies even without notice of the pending suit, as it is based on public policy.

{GS2 – Polity – IC – Elections} Conference for the Chief Electoral Officers

Context (TH): The Election Commission of India convened a conference of Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) in New Delhi to assess readiness for the upcoming nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

Other Focus: The conference discussed mapping electors, verifying voter addresses through house-to-house visits, and restricting polling stations to a maximum of 1,200 electors.
First Phase: The nationwide SIR will start in 10 states and one UT, beginning with Assam, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala, and West Bengal.

About the Chief Electoral Officer

The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) is a statutory authority responsible for overseeing elections within a state or union territory.
Institutional Supervision: The CEO functions under the overall supervision, direction, and control of the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Appointment: The ECI nominates or designates the CEO for each state or UT in consultation with the respective government.

Key Roles and Responsibilities

Electoral Management: Preparation and revision of electoral rolls; handling citizens’ objections; ensuring accurate voter lists.
Election Conduct: Arranging polling stations, EVMs, and logistics; maintaining law and order; and ensuring fair and secure voting.
Monitoring & Awareness: Enforcing the Model Code of Conduct; overseeing campaign expenditure; leading voter awareness programmes.
Counting & Reporting: Supervising vote counting; ensuring transparency; communicating results and updates to the ECI.

{GS2 – Governance – Initiatives} Skilling for AI Readiness (SOAR) Programme *

Context (DD | PIB): The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) launched the SOAR programme to equip students and educators with foundational AI literacy for AI-era jobs.

Key Elements of the Programme

It includes school students (classes VI-XII) and educators across government and private schools.
The programme offers three 15-hour modules for students and a 45-hour module for teachers.
Union Budget 2025-26 allocated ₹500 crore to set up a Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence for Education to support research, content and teacher training.
The SOAR initiative complements ongoing programmes under the Skill India Mission, including the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) 4.0, National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS-2), and the Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH).

The CBSE introduced AI as a subject for Class IX in 2019-20 and later extended it to Class XI, aligning with NEP’s vision of skill-based learning and real-world applications.

Read More > AI for Viksit Bharat

{GS3 – IE – Poverty} Kerala’s Extreme Poverty Eradication Programme

Context (TH): Kerala will be officially declared free from extreme poverty on November 1, 2025, becoming the first Indian State to achieve this milestone.

The announcement marks the culmination of a four-year effort under the Extreme Poverty Eradication Programme (2021–2025).

About Extreme Poverty

Definition: The World Bank defines extreme poverty as living on less than $2.15 per day, indicating a level of absolute deprivation where basic needs such as food, shelter, and healthcare cannot be met.
Updated Benchmark (2025): Reflecting inflation and higher living costs, the World Bank revised the threshold to $3 per day (PPP 2021) for low-income nations.
Measurement Method: The metric is based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), which equalises the cost of living across countries and uses Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) data.

Extreme Poverty Eradication Programme (2021–2025)

Initiated in 2021 to make Kerala free from extreme poverty by addressing deprivations in food, health, housing, and livelihood under the support of Kudumbashree (women empowerment program).
Identified 64,006 extremely poor families through door-to-door surveys using multidimensional poverty indicators. By 2025, 59,277 families were uplifted; 3,913 houses were built, 1,338 families were given land, and 21,263 individuals received essential IDs.
Every beneficiary was geo-tagged, and micro-plans were prepared for each household to ensure long-term social and economic rehabilitation.

How Kerala Became India’s First Extreme Poverty-Free State?

Data-Driven Targeting: Smart Panchayat Project and Kerala State Poverty Eradication Mission (Kudumbashree) enabled accurate beneficiary identification via community data validation.
Integration of Welfare Schemes: Converged State and Central welfare schemes into a unified beneficiary support plan. E.g. Life Mission: housing for landless families, Aardram Mission: primary healthcare for poor households, Ashraya Project: targeted welfare for destitute and elderly.
Decentralised Governance Model: People’s Plan Campaign (Janakeeya Aasuthranam) and Nava Kerala Mission ensured community-driven planning and financial autonomy at the local level.
Use of Technology: Kerala State IT Mission developed GIS platforms for tracking assets, e-Sevanam Portal integrated service delivery and houses geo-tagging under Rebuild Kerala Initiative (RKI).
Political Consensus: Idea of “Mission Mode Governance”, aligning political consensus with social welfare targets, and Kerala Institute of Local Administration (KILA) training for local officers.

Read More > Poverty in India

{GS3 – IE – Banking} Payment Systems Report by RBI *

Context (TH): The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its Payment Systems Report, highlighting India’s rapid digital payment growth from 2019 to 2025.

Key Insights from the Report

Surge in Digital Payment: Total payment transactions rose from 3,248 crore (2019) to 20,849 crore (2024), with value increasing from ₹1,775 lakh crore to ₹2,830 lakh crore.
UPI Dominance: UPI transactions grew 16-fold in five years from 1,079 crore (₹18.4 lakh crore) in 2019 to 17,221 crore (₹246.8 lakh crore) in 2024.
Card-Based Payments: Debit Cards Volume fell from 495 crore (₹6.83 lakh crore) in 2019 to 173 crore (₹5.15 lakh crore) in 2024, while Credit Cards Volume doubled to 447 crore (₹20.4 lakh crore) in 2024.
RTGS Leads in Value: Value increased from ₹1,388.7 lakh crore (2019) to ₹1,938.2 lakh crore (2024).
Other Systems Growth:
- NEFT volume tripled to 926.8 crore (₹432.8 lakh crore) by 2024, and IMPS volume doubled to 593.8 crore (₹70.7 lakh crore) by 2024.
- BBPS grew from 12.6 crore to 217.5 crore transactions (value ↑41x), and NACH Transactions doubled to 677.1 crore (₹42.2 lakh crore) by 2024.
- Toll plazas increased from 505 (2019) to 1,782 (2025); FASTags issued rose to 11.11 crore.

Important Payment Systems

RTGS (Real-Time Gross Settlement): High-value interbank fund transfer system that settles transactions instantly on a gross basis, operated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer): Nationwide electronic payment system for one-to-one bank transfers, developed and maintained by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
IMPS (Immediate Payment Service): Real-time, 24×7 interbank electronic fund transfer system, developed and operated by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
BBPS (Bharat Bill Payment System): Integrated and interoperable bill-payment ecosystem for recurring payments, developed and operated by the NPCI.
NACH (National Automated Clearing House): Bulk payment system for crediting subsidies, pensions, and loan repayments, developed and operated by the NPCI.

Read More > Unified Payments Interface

{GS3 – IE – Employment} Emerging Jobs Crisis in Asia

Context (DH): Recent youth-led protests across Asia from Indonesia to China and India highlight growing frustration among young people over unemployment, corruption, and inequality.

Behind this unrest lies a structural jobs crisis, intensified by automation, AI, and trade disruptions.

Scale of the Crisis of Unemployment

Youth Unemployment rate in India – 17.6% and China – 16.5%, compared to 10.5% in the US.
Over 50% of Indonesia’s workforce and ~80% of India’s are in informal jobs (ILO 2025)
India has 84 million new job seekers expected by 2035.
12 million graduating class in China entering a stagnant job market. (Asia Society)

Root Causes for the Unemployment Crisis in Asia

Jobless Growth: Economic growth in India (6–7%) and Indonesia (5%) isn’t translating into employment gains. (World Bank)
Education–Employment Mismatch: weak vocational and skill training. Less than 5% of India’s workforce has formal skill training, vs 75% in Germany and 96% in South Korea. (NSDC data).
Automation Shock: AI and robotics could displace 27% of India’s current jobs by 2030. (WEF, 2025)
Governance Issues: Corruption is deepening youth alienation and political anger 46% of youth in India and Indonesia perceive corruption as the top barrier to job access. (UNDP Youth Survey, 2024)

Way Forward

Job-Centric Growth: Prioritise labour-intensive sectors like textiles, food processing, construction, and tourism. E.g. Vietnam’s “Factory-to-Export” model linking manufacturing with export growth.
Strengthening Skill Ecosystem: Shift from rote academics to vocational and digital skills training. E.g. Singapore’s SkillsFuture programme promotes lifelong learning.
Labour Market Reforms: Simplify hiring/firing, ensure safety nets, and promote gig worker protection. E.g. Labour Codes (2020), E-Shram Portal for informal workers.
Harnessing Technology: Upskill youth in AI, data, robotics, and digital entrepreneurship. IndiaAI Mission (2024), Atal Innovation Mission (AIM).
Education Industry Linkage: Create Industry-Academia councils for real-time curriculum design. Germany’s Dual Vocational Education System aligns training with employer needs.

{GS3 – Envi – Species} Malabar Gliding Frog (Rhacophorus malabaricus) *

Context (TOI): A Malabar Gliding Frog was sighted near Belagavi in Karnataka, marking a rare occurrence outside its typical dense forest habitat.

About Malabar Gliding Frog (Rhacophorus malabaricus)

The Malabar Gliding Frog is an arboreal species native to the Western Ghats. It can glide up to 12 meters through the air using the broad webbing between its toes.
Distinct Appearance: The frog has a bright green back, a pale-yellow belly, and large orange-red webbed feet.
Body Size: With a body length of up to 10 cm, it is among the largest moss frog species; females are bigger than males.
Habitat Preference: Inhabits the lower canopy of tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forests or plantations near streams.
Regional Distribution: Recorded across Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu in the Western Ghats.
Breeding Pattern: Females lay eggs in foam nests on leaves or branches hanging over ponds or streams. Tadpoles drop into the water after hatching.
Major Threats: Habitat loss, pesticide contamination, climate change, hunting, superstition (bad omen), and illegal pet collection.
Conservation Status: IUCN: Least Concern

{GS3 – Envi – Conservation} Central Asian Mammal Initiative *

Context (DTE): The Central Asian Mammals Initiative (CAMI) adopted its six-year work programme (2026-2032) at the 3^rd Range States Meeting in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

About the CAMI Work Programme

Timeframe: The plan spans 2026-2032 and sets conservation goals for 17 Central Asian migratory mammal species.
Critical Regions: Thirteen transboundary regions are designated as crucial for the movement and long-term survival.
Threat Mitigation: The programme addresses poaching, illegal trade, and habitat disruption caused by infrastructure expansion and climate change.
Programme Continuity: It builds on the 2021-2026 plan from CMS COP13 (2020) by including two new species and updating conservation measures.

About the Central Asian Mammals Initiative (CAMI)

CAMI operates under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) as a regional platform for conserving migratory mammals in Central Asia.
Establishment: It was launched in 2014 at the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP11) to the CMS, held in Quito, Ecuador.
Objectives: The initiative aims to restore migratory mammal populations through coordinated policies and cross-border cooperation
Geographical Scope: It covers 14 range states: Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
Species Coverage: CAMI now protects 17 species (up from 15), including the newly added Pallas’s cat and Eurasian lynx.
- Key species include the Snow Leopard, Saiga Antelope, Chiru, Argali, Bukhara Deer, Wild Camel, etc.

Read More> Convention of Migratory Species

{GS3 – S&T – Tech} Quantum Echoes and Quantum Advantage **

Context (TOI): Google’s Quantum AI team (2025) developed a new quantum algorithm called Quantum Echoes, which they ran on their quantum processor “Willow chip”. It is being hailed that the Willow chip has achieved verifiable quantum advantage.

Quantum Advantage

Quantum advantage is the stage where a quantum computer performs a computational task faster or more efficiently than any known classical computer, for a scientifically meaningful problem.
It shows the “practical usefulness” milestone of quantum computing.

Classical computers process bits (0 or 1).
Quantum computers use qubits, which can exist in a superposition of states (0 and 1 simultaneously). This allows quantum systems to explore many possibilities at once, giving them massive parallel processing ability.

Verifiable Quantum Advantage

Verifiable quantum advantage means achieving quantum advantage with results that can be independently verified or checked, proving that the quantum computer’s output is correct & not just faster.

Why Verifiable Quantum Advantage Matters?

Quantum computers are probabilistic; the same input can give slightly different outputs each time. This makes it hard to know whether a result is correct or just a random quantum fluctuation.
This problem is solved by verifiable quantum advantage. When a quantum computer achieves the verifiable quantum advantage stage, scientists can verify the outcome through theory, smaller experiments, or cross-comparison, proving that the machine truly understands the problem, not just produces random data.

Quantum Echoes

Quantum echoes is an algorithmic experiment developed by Google’s Quantum AI team (2025) that measures how information or disturbances spread and evolve within a quantum system by running quantum operations forward and then backwards in time, observing the resulting “echo.”
It is inspired by a concept in physics called “Out-of-Time-Order Correlator (OTOC)”, which tracks how chaos or disturbance evolves in quantum systems (used in quantum thermodynamics, black hole physics, condensed matter, etc.).

How Quantum Echoes Works?

The simplified steps to be carried out for this experiment are:
1. Apply a sequence of operations (quantum gates), i.e., like sending a pulse into the system.
2. Then slightly disturb one qubit (introduce a small change).
3. Now reverse all earlier operations, i.e., “rewind” the system to see if it returns to its original state.
If everything were perfectly isolated (no noise, no entanglement), the reversal would yield a perfect “echo” (like shouting into a canyon and hearing our own voice back).
But in real quantum systems, due to quantum chaos and entanglement, the echo decays and studying how fast the echo decays tells how quantum information spreads in a complex system.

{Prelims – Envi – PAs} Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary *

Context (IE): Chhattisgarh’s Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary has revived its blackbuck population nearly fifty years after local extinction.

About Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary

Location: Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary is a tropical dry deciduous forest situated in the Mahanadi River basin in Chhattisgarh.
Terrain: The landscape comprises rolling plains, small hillocks, and numerous perennial streams.
- The Balamdehi River defines the western boundary, & the Jonk River forms the northeastern border.
Vegetation: Sal and Teak dominate the forest canopy, alongside Bamboo, Mahua, and Tendu.
Faunal Diversity: Key species include gaur, leopard, sloth bear, dhole, chital, sambar, nilgai, chinkara, etc.
- The Balar reservoir inside the sanctuary supports diverse aquatic life and migratory birds.
Blackbuck Programme: Following local extinction in the 1970s, a state-led reintroduction program (2021-2026) successfully revived the blackbuck population in the sanctuary.
Archaeological Site: The sanctuary lies near Sirpur, the ancient capital of the Dakshina Kosala kingdom.

Read About > Blackbuck

{Prelims – Festivals} Ningol Chakouba Festival *

Context (NOA): Manipur celebrates Ningol Chakouba, a traditional festival celebrating the bond between married women and their brothers.

Key Highlights of the Festival

The festival is observed every year on the second day of Hiyangei in the Meitei lunar calendar.
The term ‘Ningol Chakouba’ is derived from the Manipuri words, ‘Ningol’ meaning married women and ‘Chakouba’ meaning a grand feast.
Every year, the Department of Fisheries, Manipur, organises this fair cum competition on the day before the festival to provide fish to the public at a minimum price.