NATIONAL AFFAIRS
Government Policies and Schemes
Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana Approved – Union Cabinet approved PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana (PMDDKY) with outlay of Rs 24,000 crores to boost agriculture in 100 districts over six years starting FY 2025-26
National Cooperative Policy 2025 – Union Home Minister Amit Shah to unveil National Cooperative Policy 2025 on July 24 in New Delhi, aimed at reviving and modernizing cooperative sector for next two decades (2025-45)
LIC and DoRD MoU – Life Insurance Corporation of India signed MoU with Department of Rural Development to promote Bima Sakhi Yojana in rural areas
RRB Consolidation Drive – Government’s consolidation initiative reduces Regional Rural Banks from 196 to 28 under ‘One State-One RRB’ policy
Transportation and Infrastructure
Indian Railways Updates – New train chart preparation system effective from July 15, 2025, charts now prepared 8 hours before departure instead of previous timing
Air India Fleet Expansion – Air India seeks $200 million loan to purchase Boeing 777 aircraft fleet and completed precautionary inspection of fuel control switches on Boeing 787 and 737 aircraft with no issues found
Geothermal Power Development – Arunachal Pradesh to get India’s first fully indigenous 50-kw geothermal power plant at cost of over Rs 10 crore, funded by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
Parliamentary Sessions
Monsoon Session Day 2 – Both Houses of Parliament adjourned amid opposition protests, Prime Minister Modi opened session with call for unity and hailed Operation Sindoor as symbol of national pride
Vice President Position – Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation as Vice President accepted by President Droupadi Murmu, position currently vacant
Digital Initiatives
Meri Panchayat App – Won WSIS Champion Award 2025 for Digital Governance Excellence in Geneva, Switzerland
Digital India Milestone – Digital India programme completed 10 years on July 1, 2025, envisioning technology-enabled access to services in education, healthcare, and agriculture
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Major Diplomatic Developments
PM Modi’s International Visits – Prime Minister Modi embarks on official visit to United Kingdom (July 23-24) for discussions with PM Keir Starmer, followed by state visit to Maldives (July 25-26) as guest of honor for 60th independence anniversary
US-Japan Trade Deal – President Trump announced major trade agreement with Japan involving 15% tariff on Japanese goods and $550 billion Japanese investment in US
Ukraine-Russia Peace Talks – Ukrainian President Zelensky announced Russia and Ukraine expected to hold peace talks, renewing offer to meet with Putin to negotiate end to war
Qatar Olympic Bid – Qatar confirms discussions with IOC for hosting 2036 Olympic and Paralympic Games, would be first Middle Eastern nation to host Olympics
Global Security Issues
Gaza Humanitarian Crisis – Israeli strikes killed at least 20 people in Gaza according to Palestinian health officials, as conflict continues
Syrian Situation – United States criticized recent Israeli airstrikes in Syria and expressed support for Syrian government led by Ahmad al-Sharra
Bangladesh Air Force Incident – Chinese-built FT-7BGI fighter jet crashed in Dhaka killing pilot and injuring 29 students on ground
International Organizations
UNESCO US Withdrawal – United States announced withdrawal from UN’s educational, scientific and cultural agency again citing anti-Israel bias, only two years after rejoining
IMF Leadership Change – Gita Gopinath resigned as IMF First Deputy Managing Director to return to Harvard University as economics professor
SPORTS NEWS
Cricket Updates
India Women’s ODI Series – Harmanpreet Kaur’s century and Kranti Goud’s six-wicket haul led India to thrilling 14-run victory over England in Durham decider, sealing ODI series 2-1
India vs England Test Series – Fourth Test at Old Trafford, Manchester set to begin with India trailing 1-2 in Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Sai Sudharsan likely to return while Karun Nair might be dropped
Chess Championships – World champion Gukesh D finished 18th in rare Titled Tuesday appearance, losing 3 out of 11 games including defeats to Nakamura and Maghsoodloo
Other Sports
Olympic Day 2025 – International Olympic Day celebrated on June 23 with theme ‘Let’s Move?’, promoted by IOC in collaboration with WHO to encourage physical activity
BCCI Governance – BCCI will come under purview of National Sports Governance Bill to be introduced in Parliament, requiring recognition from proposed National Sports Board
Delhi Olympic Rewards – Delhi government increased cash awards for Olympic and Paralympic medallists from national capital
ECONOMY AND BUSINESS
Stock Market Updates
Market Performance – BSE Sensex closed at 82,186.81 (down 13.53 points), Nifty 50 ended at 25,060.90 (down 29.80 points), Gift Nifty futures indicating positive opening for July 23
Corporate Earnings – Q1 FY26 results from major companies including Paytm (first quarterly profit of Rs 122.5 crore), Dixon Technologies (95% revenue growth), and IRFC (11% profit growth)
IPO Updates – IndiQube Spaces launches IPO with price range of Rs 225-237 per share, marking Rs 700-crore public offering
Banking and Finance
RBI Monetary Policy – RBI reduced repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.50% in June 2025 meeting, shifted policy stance to neutral from accommodative, next MPC meeting rescheduled to August 4-6
Banking Operations – Banks remain open on Sawan Shivratri (July 23) as no bank holiday declared by RBI, upcoming closures include fourth Saturday (July 26) and Sunday (July 27)
GST Collections – Report highlights growth in GST revenue and increasing women’s inclusion in formal economy after eight years of implementation
New Financial Rules
Aadhaar-PAN Linking – Mandatory Aadhaar verification for new PAN card applications from July 1, 2025, existing PAN-Aadhaar linking deadline extended to December 31, 2025
ITR Filing Extension – Income Tax Return filing deadline extended to September 15, 2025 from previous July 31 deadline
Credit Card Changes – Major banks including SBI, HDFC, ICICI revised credit card charges and policies effective July 2025
APPOINTMENTS AND PERSONNEL CHANGES
Key Government Appointments
State Governors – Ashim Kumar Ghosh appointed as new Governor of Haryana replacing Bandaru Dattatreya in July 2025
LIC Leadership – R Doraiswamy appointed as new MD & CEO of Life Insurance Corporation of India
Other Appointments – Poonapati Ashok Gajapati Raju appointed as new Governor of Goa, Kavinder Gupta as new Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh
Corporate Leadership
Renault India – Stephane Deblaise appointed as CEO of Renault Group India
Mission Director AIM – Deepak Bagla assumes charge as Mission Director of Atal Innovation Mission
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Defense Technology
Indian Army Equipment – Received three AH-64E Apache attack helicopters from USA after 16-month delay, marking significant enhancement to combat capabilities
MiG-21 Retirement – Indian Air Force to retire MiG-21 fighter jets by September 2025 after over 60 years of service, ceremonial farewell scheduled for September 19
Indigenous Defense Production – India advancing Arjun Mark III main battle tank expected to enter service by 2030 with AI capabilities for automatic target detection
Space and Research
ISRO-NASA Collaboration – NISAR satellite mission scheduled for launch on July 30, 2025 by ISRO’s GSLV-F16, marking first joint satellite between ISRO and NASA
Space Achievements – Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla returned from successful space mission aboard Axiom-4 to International Space Station
ICMR Malaria Vaccine – Indian Council of Medical Research invites Expression of Interest to produce India’s first malaria vaccine candidate ‘AdFalciVax’
ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE
Weather Updates
Monsoon Forecast – IMD predicts above-normal monsoon rainfall for July 2025, exceeding 106% of Long Period Average, beneficial for crop-producing states
Climate Impact – Over 150,000 hectares of crop area affected due to monsoon rains according to government data presented in Parliament
Environment Report – State of India’s Environment in Figures 2025 warns of worsening climate, health and development indicators across states
Agricultural Impact
Crop Conditions – Erratic monsoon patterns affecting sowing in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu with 15% rainfall deviation from historical averages
Climate Resilient Agriculture – 15% increase in climate-resilient crop adoption in July 2025 compared to previous year
AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS
National Honors
Padma Awards 2026 – Nominations open till July 31, 2025 for prestigious national civilian honors
Handloom Awards 2024 – Ministry of Textiles announced awards honoring excellence in handloom sector
International Recognition
World Police Games – India designated as host country for prestigious 2029 World Police and Fire Games
Digital Governance – Multiple Indian digital initiatives receive international recognition for innovation and implementation
CULTURAL AND SOCIAL EVENTS
Religious Observances
Sawan Shivratri – Celebrated on July 23, 2025 with devotees observing fasts and offering prayers to Lord Shiva, Kanwar Yatra reaches culmination
School Closures – Multiple states declared school holidays due to Kanwar Yatra celebrations, Telangana bandh, and Kerala mourning for former CM V.S. Achuthanandan
Educational Updates
Competitive Exam Schedule – SSC CHSL correction window postponed to July 25-26, IBPS PO registration extended till July 28, various government exam dates announced
University Developments – Shri Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated India campus of University of Southampton in Gurugram
This comprehensive update covers all major developments across various sectors relevant for competitive examinations and general awareness. The information is presented in point-wise format for easy understanding and retention by aspirants preparing for banking, SSC, UPSC, and other competitive exams.
