National Affairs (India)
Union Government Reviews FY 2025–26 Fiscal Position
Gross tax collections crossed ₹23.8 lakh crore by December 2025, reflecting a year-on-year growth of approximately 13%.
Direct tax collections contributed over 55% of total tax revenue, indicating improved compliance and widening of the tax base.
Fiscal deficit stood close to 58% of the Budget Estimate by the end of December, remaining within the projected glide path.
RBI Strengthens Digital Payment Security Framework
The Reserve Bank of India introduced enhanced guidelines for digital lending platforms, mandating stricter KYC norms and real-time grievance redressal mechanisms.
UPI transactions crossed 15 billion transactions in November 2025, with a total value exceeding ₹21 lakh crore.
RBI reiterated its commitment to roll out advanced fraud risk management tools across all regulated entities by mid-2026.
National Infrastructure Pipeline Update
Over ₹68 lakh crore worth of infrastructure projects were either completed or under active execution as of December 2025.
Railways and Road Transport sectors together accounted for nearly 45% of total capital expenditure.
The government emphasized asset monetisation through the National Monetisation Pipeline to fund future infrastructure growth.
Education and Skill Development Initiatives
The Ministry of Education reported enrolment of over 1.2 crore learners on the DIKSHA digital platform during 2025.
Skill India programmes trained more than 95 lakh candidates in FY 2025, with a placement rate of approximately 72%.
International Affairs
Global Economic Outlook
The International Monetary Fund projected global growth at 3.1% for 2026, citing easing inflation and stabilised commodity prices.
Emerging economies, including India, were expected to grow above the global average due to strong domestic demand.
India–Japan Strategic Engagement
India and Japan reviewed progress on the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Project, with civil works crossing 80% completion.
Bilateral trade between the two nations exceeded USD 23 billion in calendar year 2025.
UN Climate Action Developments
The United Nations highlighted that global renewable energy capacity additions crossed 510 GW in 2025, the highest ever recorded.
India ranked among the top three countries globally in annual renewable energy capacity additions.
Banking and Financial Sector
Public Sector Bank Performance
Gross NPAs of Public Sector Banks declined below 4% for the first time in over a decade.
Net profits of PSBs collectively exceeded ₹1.5 lakh crore during FY 2024–25, reflecting improved asset quality and capital adequacy.
Insurance Sector Growth
India’s insurance penetration reached 4.2% of GDP, with life insurance contributing the larger share.
Digital policy issuance accounted for over 35% of new policies sold in 2025.
Economy and Business
Startup Ecosystem Milestones
India crossed 1.35 lakh registered startups, with over 115 unicorns operational by the end of 2025.
Total startup funding during 2025 stood at approximately USD 32 billion.
Exports and Trade
Merchandise exports for April–November 2025 crossed USD 290 billion.
Engineering goods and pharmaceuticals remained the top-performing export categories.
Science, Technology and Environment
Space Sector Achievements
ISRO successfully completed multiple commercial satellite launches in 2025, generating foreign exchange earnings exceeding USD 430 million.
The Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme completed key crew module tests during the year.
Environmental Conservation
India increased its forest and tree cover to over 25% of total geographical area, as per the latest national assessment.
Over 1.2 lakh electric buses were operational across Indian cities under clean mobility initiatives.
Sports
Cricket
India concluded the 2025 international cricket calendar with 28 Test wins, maintaining a top-two position in ICC rankings.
Key performers included Virat Kohli crossing 27,000 international runs and Jasprit Bumrah completing 350 international wickets.
Hockey
The Indian men’s hockey team won the 2025 Asia Cup, defeating Japan in the final with a scoreline of 4–2.
This victory secured India’s qualification for the 2026 World Cup.
Badminton
PV Sindhu won the Indonesia Open 2025, marking her first BWF Super 1000 title since 2019.
Awards and Appointments
National Awards
The Rashtriya Khel Ratna Award 2025 was conferred on Neeraj Chopra for his continued excellence in javelin throw.
The Dadasaheb Phalke Award recognised veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan for lifetime contribution to Indian cinema.
Key Appointments
Ajay Seth assumed charge as the new Finance Secretary of India, bringing extensive experience in economic affairs.
The World Bank appointed Indermit Gill as its Chief Economist for a renewed term, focusing on emerging market resilience.
Important Days Observed
30 December
Observed as the final working day of the calendar year for most financial institutions, marking year-end account closures and reconciliations.
Widely associated with fiscal reviews and policy assessments across ministries and regulators.
