Current Affairs Quiz 23rd July 2025 Quiz

Exp. Core Industries Growth Slows to 1.7% in June 2025; Coal Sector Contracts Sharply, Steel Leads Gains*

June 2025 saw a modest 1.7% growth in the Index of Eight Core Industries, marking a three-month high but falling sharply from 5% growth in June 2024 and significantly below the FY 2024-25 average of 6.3%; five out of eight sectors reported contraction.

The coal sector witnessed the steepest contraction at -6.8%, followed by declines in natural gas (-2.8%), crude oil (-1.2%), and electricity (-2.8%) in June 2025, as per data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on July 21, 2025.

Steel (9.3%), cement (9.2%), and refinery products (3.4%) were the only sectors to show positive growth in June 2025, with steel posting the highest year-on-year gain among all sectors.

The ICI measures the combined and individual performance of production of eight core industries viz. Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity. The Eight Core Industries comprise 40.27 percent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

Exp. Parliament Passes ‘Bills of Lading, 2025’ to Modernize Maritime Shipping Laws

On the first day of the Monsoon Session, the ‘Bills of Lading, 2025’ bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha, after already being cleared by the Lok Sabha, and now awaits Presidential assent to become law.

The bill seeks to replace the 169-year-old Indian Lading Act, 1856, introducing a modern and globally aligned legal framework for maritime shipping documentation in India.

It aims to simplify legal language, reduce ambiguity, clarify rights and obligations of all parties involved in shipping, and minimize litigation, thus supporting Ease of Doing Business (EODB) and India’s global trade standing.

The bill includes an enabling clause empowering the Central Government for effective implementation and features a repeal and saving clause to ensure legal continuity of actions under the old Act.

Exp. NESTS Signs MoU with Avanti Fellows to Provide JEE & NEET Coaching for Tribal Students from 2025

The National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS) signed a five-year MoU with Avanti Fellows to provide IIT-JEE and NEET coaching to tribal students studying in Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs), effective from the academic year 2025–26.

Under the initiative, a Centre of Excellence (CoE) will be established at EMRS Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) with a batch of 80 selected students, aiming to offer structured, high-quality academic support to tribal youth for national-level entrance exams.

The collaboration seeks to bridge the educational gap, promote inclusive education, and empower tribal students with the tools, mentorship, and confidence needed to excel in competitive exams and realize their full potential.

Exp. “Meri Panchayat” App Wins WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Award for Advancing Digital Rural Governance

The “Meri Panchayat” mobile application received the WSIS Prizes 2025 Champion Award under the category of Cultural Diversity and Identity, Linguistic Diversity, and Local Content at the WSIS+20 High-Level Event held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Developed by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj and NIC, the app empowers over 25 lakh elected representatives and nearly 950 million rural citizens across 2.65 lakh Gram Panchayats, promoting digital inclusion and transparent rural governance.

The app provides real-time access to Panchayat budgets, development plans, public services, weather updates, and grievance redressal in 12+ Indian languages, with geo-tagging and social audit features enhancing accountability.

Exp. Sant Kabir and National Handloom Awards 2024 Announced

The Ministry of Textiles will confer the Sant Kabir Handloom Awards and National Handloom Awards 2024 to honor 24 outstanding contributors to the handloom sector, including weavers, designers, startups, marketers, and producer companies under the National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP)

A total of 5 Sant Kabir Awards and 19 National Handloom Awards will be presented during the 11th National Handloom Day celebrations on August 7, 2025, at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi, in the presence of the Hon’ble President of India and other dignitaries.

The Sant Kabir Handloom Award includes a cash prize of ₹3.5 lakh, a gold coin (mounted), a Tamrapatra (certificate), shawl, and a certificate of recognition, awarded to weavers with exceptional contributions to weaving traditions, innovation, and community development.

The National Handloom Award recognizes excellence in craftsmanship and innovation, offering a cash prize of ₹2 lakh, along with a Tamrapatra, shawl, and certificate, to motivate and inspire handloom artisans across the country.

Exp. First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath to Leave the IMF to Rejoin the Harvard Economics Faculty

International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva announced that Gita Gopinath, First Deputy Managing Director (FDMD), would be leaving the Fund at the end of August to return to Harvard University, where she will be the inaugural Gregory and Ania Coffey Professor of Economics in the Department of Economics.

Ms. Gopinath joined the Fund in January 2019 as Chief Economist and was promoted to First Deputy Managing Director in January 2022.

Exp.  Anup Kumar Saha Resigns as Bajaj Finance MD; Rajeev Jain Reappointed Till 2028

Anup Kumar Saha resigned as Managing Director of Bajaj Finance just four months after his appointment, citing personal reasons.

Rajeev Jain has been reappointed as Managing Director till March 31, 2028; he previously held the same role and will also continue serving as Vice Chairman of the company.

Recent Appointment in Banking & Insurance Sector

• Executive Director of Axis Bank – Neeraj Gambhir (replace Rajiv Anand)
• CEO and MD of LIC- Doraiswamy (replaceS at Pal Bhanoo)
• MD & CEO of Karnataka Bank – Raghavendra S Bhat (replace Srikrishnan Hari Hara Sarma) for 3 months.
• Executive Director of Federal Bank – V. Venkateswaran

Exp. MSDE Launches AI-Powered ‘Skill India Assistant’ Chatbot to Boost Skilling Access via WhatsApp

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has launched the Skill India Assistant (SIA), an AI-powered chatbot developed by Meta and NSDC to provide personalised skilling and employment support through WhatsApp and the Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) platform.

Built on Meta’s open-source LLaMA model, SIA offers multilingual, multimodal support (voice/text in English, Hindi, and Hinglish), and provides services such as course recommendations, job listings, nearby training locators, and doubt-clearing quizzes — all available 24/7, even in low-bandwidth areas.

With a focus on inclusivity and accessibility, SIA is India’s first large-scale public AI deployment in the skilling sector, designed to reach rural and underserved communities through WhatsApp and supported by a national awareness campaign.

Exp. Jharkhand Becomes First State to Launch Mining Tourism

Jharkhand has become the first Indian state to launch mining tourism, an initiative announced by CM Hemant Soren and inspired by his visit to the Gava Museum of Mines in Barcelona, aiming to showcase the state’s rich industrial and mineral heritage.

Home to nearly 40% of India’s mineral wealth, Jharkhand has partnered with Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) through an MoU to open mining sites to tourists, students, and the general public for educational and experiential visits.

The Jharkhand Tourism Development Corporation (JTDC) will manage the project’s operations with the support of CCL and other stakeholders, promoting the state’s mining identity and boosting tourism diversification.

About Jharkhand

• Capital – Ranchi
• Chief Minister – Hemant Soren
• Governor – Santosh Kumar Gangwar

Exp. ADB Sanctions ₹975 Crore for Industrial Infrastructure in Tripura

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has sanctioned a ₹975.26 crore loan to build world-class infrastructure—such as industrial sheds, roads, power substations, and fire stations—across nine industrial zones in Tripura, including Bodhjungnagar, R K Nagar, Dukli, and AN Nagar.

The Tripura Industrial Development Corporation (TIDC) has begun work in newly allotted industrial areas at Santirbazar (127 acres) and Fatikroy (28 acres), while also reclaiming 28 acres from inactive units to promote efficient land use and support emerging entrepreneurs.

Exp. L&T to Build India’s Largest Green Hydrogen Plant at IOCL Panipat Refinery Under 25-Year Agreement

L&T Energy GreenTech (LTEG), a wholly owned subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro, will set up India’s largest green hydrogen plant at IOCL’s Panipat refinery in Haryana, supplying 10,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually for 25 years under a build-own-operate (BOO) model.

The plant will be powered entirely by renewable energy and will use indigenously manufactured high-pressure alkaline electrolysers from L&T Electrolysers Ltd’s Hazira facility, supporting the goals of the National Green Hydrogen Mission and Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

Exp. 23 July – National Broadcasting Day

National Broadcasting Day is observed in India on 23rd July every year.

The day commemorates the first-ever radio broadcast in India, which was aired on July 23, 1927, from the Bombay Station of the Indian Broadcasting Company (IBC).

Later, the IBC was taken over by the government and renamed All India Radio (AIR) in 1936. The day recognizes the vital role broadcasting, especially radio, has played in informing, educating, and entertaining the public, particularly in rural and remote areas.

Exp. Veteran Communist Leader and Former Kerala CM V.S. Achuthanandan Passes Away at 101

V.S. Achuthanandan, veteran Communist leader and former Chief Minister of Kerala, passed away at the age of 101 in Thiruvananthapuram.

A founding leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) after the 1964 party split, he was admired for his populist stance and uncompromising principles, earning respect across political lines.

He served as Leader of the Opposition (2001–2006) and became Chief Minister of Kerala from 2006 to 2011, leading the Left Democratic Front (LDF) to a significant electoral victory.