Daily Current Affairs (DCA) 9 July, 2025

Daily Current Affairs Quiz
9 July, 2025

National Affairs

1. Great Hornbill

Context:

In a rare ecological event, the Great Hornbill (Malamuzhakki Vezhambal)—Kerala’s State Bird and an endangered species—was recently sighted in Kakkampara near Ezhimala, a coastal region of Kannur district, far from its traditional forest habitats.

Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Listed as Endangered.
• Legal Protection: Covered under Schedule I of the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, ensuring maximum protection.
• Habitat Anomaly:
  • Typically found in the evergreen and moist deciduous forests of Kerala—Silent Valley, Nelliampathy, Aralam, Athirappilly, and Parambikulam.
  • The appearance in a coastal zone is highly unusual and ecologically significant.

2. Cabinet Approved Research Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme

Context:

The Union Cabinet has cleared the Research Development and Innovation (RDI) Scheme with a corpus of ₹1 lakh crore, aiming to transform India’s research and innovation ecosystem, especially in sectors of economic and strategic importance.

Key Objectives of the RDI Scheme

• Promote private sector investment in R&D, particularly in strategic and economically critical sectors
• Support projects at higher Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) for faster commercialization
• Facilitate technology acquisition where domestic capacity is lacking
• Establish a Deep-Tech Fund of Funds to nurture startups and frontier innovation

Institutional Framework

• Governing Board (under Anusandhan National Research Foundation, chaired by the PM): Strategic oversight
• Executive Council (ANRF): Identifies projects, finalizes fund managers
• Empowered Group of Secretaries (EGoS): Reviews and implements scheme, chaired by Cabinet Secretary
• Nodal Department: Department of Science and Technology (DST)

Funding Structure: Two-Tier Mechanism

• Corpus: ₹1 lakh crore via 50-year interest-free loan to ANRF
• Special Purpose Fund (SPF): Managed under ANRF; acts as central custodian of funds
• Second-Level Fund Managers:
  • Selected by ANRF
  • Disburse concessional long-term loans or equity to R&D/startup projects
  • Evaluate projects and offer funding through equity or debt

Why It’s Needed

• India’s GERD (Gross Expenditure on R&D) was ₹1.27 lakh crore in 2021 (only 0.64% of GDP)
• Economic Survey 2024–25 highlighted this as insufficient compared to global peers
• Private sector R&D spending remains significantly low due to financial and risk constraints

3. Nutritional Intake in India Report

Context:

The National Statistical Office (NSO) has published its latest report on India’s nutritional intake, derived from data collected in the Household Consumption Expenditure Surveys (HCES) for the periods August 2022–July 2023 and August 2023–July 2024.

Key Highlights:

• Average Calorie Intake (per capita per day):
  • Rural India: 2233 Kcal (2022–23) → 2212 Kcal (2023–24)
  • Urban India: 2250 Kcal → 2240 Kcal
• Average Protein Intake (per capita per day):
  • Rural: 61.9 gm → 61.8 gm
  • Urban: 63.2 gm → 63.4 gm
• Average Fat Intake (per capita per day):
  • Rural: 59.7 gm → 60.4 gm
  • Urban: 70.5 gm → 69.8 gm
• Calorie intake increases with Monthly Per Capita Consumption Expenditure (MPCE) across both rural and urban sectors.
• Inequality Reduced:
  • The gap in calorie intake between the bottom and top fractile classes narrowed in 2023–24.
• Main Sources of Protein (2023–24):
  • Cereals remain the largest source: ~47% in rural and ~39% in urban areas.
  • The share of cereals in protein intake has declined steadily since 2009–10, offset by increases in eggs, fish, meat, and milk products.
• Adjusted Nutrient Intake (Accounts for external meal consumption):
  • Adjusted values are slightly lower than unadjusted.
  • Adjusted Calorie Intake (2023–24):
    • Rural: 2191 Kcal
    • Urban: 2225 Kcal

PIB

4. FATF 2025 Report Flags Digital Tools as Key Enablers in Terror Financing

Context:

The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) released its 2025 comprehensive update on Terrorist Financing Risks, highlighting how emerging digital platforms are increasingly misused to fund terrorism. India features prominently in case studies involving digital tools in the Pulwama and Gorakhnath attacks.

Key Highlights from FATF 2025 Report:

• Digital Terror Financing Tools:
  • Use of e-commerce platforms, cryptocurrencies, VPNs, and third-party payment gateways to anonymously fund and execute terror operations.
  • Example: The Pulwama bomber procured aluminium powder via Amazon; the Gorakhnath attacker used PayPal and VPNs to finance ISIL-linked operations.
• Exploitation of E-Commerce Platforms (EPOMs):
  • Terrorists are using online marketplaces to purchase dual-use goods covertly.
  • Lack of monitoring and due diligence enables misuse.
• Crypto and Anonymous Tools:
  • Unregulated cryptocurrency markets, mixing services, and blockchain wallets aid in untraceable fundraising.
  • Encrypted apps and VPNs help avoid detection and surveillance.
• Lone-Actor Radicalisation:
  • Rise in self-radicalised individuals using crowdfunding, gaming platforms, and social media to mobilise funds and coordinate attacks independently.
• Trade-Based Terror Financing:
  • Use of under- and over-invoicing on digital storefronts to launder and transfer terror funds without raising red flags.
• Geographic Focus:
  • High-risk zones: India, South Asia, West Africa, Sahel, and Middle East.
  • India cited for both domestic radicalisation and cross-border financial threats.
• Regulatory Gaps Identified:
  • Weak KYC norms on digital wallets and fintech platforms.
  • Poor data localisation policies hinder law enforcement’s ability to retrieve digital evidence.

Challenges in Combating Digital Terror Financing:

• Cross-border legal complexity and lack of cooperation.
• Dark web usage and real-time tech adaptability by terror groups.
• Inadequate oversight in jurisdictions with lax AML/CTF frameworks.

FATF Recommendations:

• Strengthen Digital KYC: Mandatory identity verification for e-wallets, fintech apps, and e-commerce platforms.
• Real-Time AI Surveillance: Deploy systems to detect suspicious financial behavior and keyword-triggered purchases.
• Global Data Sharing: Establish treaties and digital evidence exchange protocols with tech-hosting nations.
• Crypto Oversight: Enforce disclosure, monitoring, and suspicious transaction reporting by crypto exchanges.
• Platform Responsibility: Online marketplaces to flag high-risk items, ensure seller verification, and comply with reporting standards.

TH

Banking/Finance

1. RBI Issues New Directions on Pre-Payment Charges for Loans

Context:

To enhance access to affordable credit for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and resolve customer grievances, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued the RBI (Pre-payment Charges on Loans) Directions, 2025, effective January 1, 2026.

Key Highlights:

Applicability

• Effective from: January 1, 2026
• Applies to:
  • Commercial banks (excluding Payments Banks)
  • Co-operative banks
  • NBFCs (including NBFC-UL, NBFC-ML)
  • All India Financial Institutions (AIFIs)

What is Pre-payment Charges?

Prepayment charges on loans, also known as prepayment penalties, are fees that lenders impose on borrowers who repay their loans before the scheduled end date. These charges compensate the lender for the interest income they would have earned had the loan been repaid according to the original terms. 

Pre-Payment Charges Provisions

No Pre-Payment Charges (Floating Rate Loans)

• For personal loans (non-business purposes):
  • No charges for individuals (with/without co-obligants)
• For business loans to individuals and MSEs:
  • No charges if lender is:
    • Commercial Bank (excluding SFBs, RRBs, LABs)
    • Tier-4 Primary (Urban) Co-operative Bank
    • NBFC-UL
    • AIFI
  • No charges up to ₹50 lakh if lender is:
    • Small Finance Bank (SFB)
    • Regional Rural Bank (RRB)
    • Tier-3 Urban Co-operative Bank
    • State & Central Co-operative Banks
    • NBFC-ML

Universal Application

• Applies regardless of the source of pre-payment (borrower’s own funds or loan refinance)
• No minimum lock-in period required

Dual/Special Rate Loans

• Applicability depends on whether the loan is floating at the time of pre-payment

Other Key Provisions

• Cash Credit/Overdraft:
  • No charge if borrower informs in advance of non-renewal and closes on due date
  • If pre-paid early, charges only on sanctioned limit
• Disclosure Mandate:
  • All charges must be clearly disclosed in the sanction letter, loan agreement, and Key Facts Statement (KFS)
• No Retrospective Charges:
  • REs cannot re-impose previously waived charges
• No Charges if Prepayment Initiated by RE
• Charges in Other Cases:
  • As per RE’s approved policy, but based on prepaid amount or sanctioned limit as applicable

RBI

2. SEBI Clampdown Leads to 20% Fall in Retail Participation in F&O Market

Context:

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has reported a sharp 20% decline in individual retail traders in the equity derivatives (Futures & Options) market, following its recent interventions aimed at curbing retail frenzy and mitigating financial risks.

Key Findings from SEBI’s Latest F&O Study

Retail Participation Drops Sharply

• Unique traders fell from 8.43 million to 6.77 million, a 20% decline.
• Turnover by individual traders dropped by 11%, from ₹62,700 crore to ₹56,000 crore.
• Sharpest decline (30%) was observed in traders with less than ₹10,000 turnover.

SEBI’s Regulatory Measures (Since November 2024)

• Raised contract size for weekly and monthly index derivatives.
• Limited weekly index derivative listings.
• Mandated upfront premium collection from options buyers.
• Abolished calendar spread benefit on expiry day.

These reforms were introduced in response to concerns about financial losses among retail participants and rising speculative trading.

BS

3. No Closure of Inactive PMJDY Accounts

Context:

The Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance has refuted media reports claiming that banks have been instructed to close inactive PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) accounts.

Key Highlights:

• Clarification Issued: DFS has not asked any bank to close inactive PMJDY accounts.
• 3-Month Awareness Campaign:
  • Launched on July 1, 2025, across India.
  • Aimed at deepening outreach and awareness of:
    • PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)
    • Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY)
    • Atal Pension Yojana (APY) and other financial inclusion schemes.
• Re-KYC Drive:
  • Banks will conduct re-KYC of all due accounts during this campaign.
• Monitoring of Inactive Accounts:
  • DFS regularly tracks inactive accounts and advises banks to reach out to account holders to help them activate their accounts.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)

• Launch Date:
  • August 28, 2014
• Ministry
  • Ministry of Finance

Objective:
To promote financial inclusion by providing affordable access to:

• Banking/savings accounts
• Remittance services
• Credit
• Insurance
• Pension

Eligibility Criteria

• Must be an Indian citizen
• Age: 18 to 59 years
• Minors above 10 years can open accounts with parental/guardian supervision

Account Features

• Can be opened at any bank branch or Bank Mitr (Business Correspondent) outlet
• Zero balance required to open the account
• Chequebook facility available only if minimum balance is maintained
• Comes with a RuPay debit card for cash withdrawals at ATMs

TH

4. SEBI May Scrap Weekly Index Options Expiry

Context:

SEBI may revise the weekly expiry schedule of index options to fortnightly, limiting it to one expiry per fortnight, if its recent reforms fail to reduce the speculative surge in options trading volumes. This comes in the backdrop of the Jane Street order for alleged manipulation and the regulator’s ongoing effort to cool down over-heated index derivatives markets.

Why the Move is Being Considered

• High index options turnover continues despite prior curbs.
• SEBI’s 3 July interim order against US-based Jane Street for ₹4,844 crore market manipulation on options expiry day raised concerns about market integrity.
• Retail traders dominate index options, but 91% incurred net losses in FY25, similar to FY24, per SEBI’s Equity Derivatives Study (EDS).

Recent Measures by SEBI

• October 2023:
  • Cut multiple weekly expiries to one per exchange.
  • Increased contract size to ₹15–20 lakh (from ₹5–10 lakh).
• May 2025:
  • Changed Open Interest (OI) computation to future-equivalent basis, reducing notional exposure leverage.
  • Tightened position limits to cap risk exposure.

SEBI’s Plan Going Forward

• Monitor whether recent reforms reduce speculative volumes in coming weeks.
• If impact is marginal, may move to a single fortnightly expiry per benchmark index (Sensex, Nifty).
• Final decision to be taken after stakeholder consultations.

Mint

5. ADB Launches UHC PEERS Network to Boost Universal Health Coverage

Context:

At the INSPIRE Health Systems Forum in Manila, the Asian Development Bank (ADB)—led by President Masato Kanda—launched the Universal Health Coverage Practitioners and Experts Knowledge Exchange and Resources (UHC PEERS) network. Health ministers and officials from over 25 countries participated in the event.

Why It’s Important

• Over 1 billion people in Asia and the Pacific lack access to essential health services.
• Many families fall into poverty due to out-of-pocket medical expenses.
• ADB estimates show that every $1 invested in primary healthcare yields $10 in economic returns, underlining the importance of public health investments.

Features of UHC PEERS Network

• Peer-to-peer learning platform for cross-country collaboration and best practices.
• Focus areas include:
  • Health financing reform
  • Primary healthcare innovations
  • Inclusion of underserved communities
  • Private sector engagement
• Complements the UHC Knowledge Hub in Tokyo.

Agriculture

1. CRISPR-Edited Rice Enhances Phosphorus Uptake and Yield: NIPGR

Context:

Researchers at the National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi, have used CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology to improve phosphorus uptake and yield in japonica rice varieties. This development has the potential to reduce India’s reliance on phosphate fertilizers and enhance crop productivity, especially in phosphorus-deficient soils.

Why It Matters

• Phosphorus (P) is vital for plant growth but is often limited in Indian soils, affecting crop yield.
• Even with phosphate fertilizers, only 15–20% is absorbed by plants; the rest is lost due to leaching or runoff.
• India is highly import-dependent for phosphate fertilizers, raising sustainability concerns.

Key Scientific Advancement

Focus on Phosphate Transport

• Rice absorbs phosphate via root transporters and transfers it to shoots through another transporter, OsPHO1;2.
• Researchers targeted the regulation of OsPHO1;2 to improve phosphate translocation from root to shoot.

Identification and Editing Strategy

1. Repressor Gene Identified:
   • OsWRKY6 binds to the promoter of OsPHO1;2 and represses it.
   • Complete knockout of OsWRKY6 using CRISPR improved phosphate uptake but harmed plant development due to loss of other essential functions.
2. Precision Edit:
   • Scientists removed only the 30 base pair binding site on the promoter without removing the repressor itself.
   • This increased OsPHO1;2 expression in roots while preserving other repressor functions.

Results of the Experiment

• Higher Shoot Phosphate Accumulation.
• Increased Panicle and Seed Numbers.
• Yield Boost:
  • 20% increase in yield with recommended P dose.
  • 40% increase with only 10% of recommended P fertilizer.
• Seed Quality: Normal in size, starch, and phosphorus content.

Japonica Rice

Japonica rice, also known as sinica rice, is a variety of Oryza sativa (Asian rice) characterized by its short to medium, round, and sticky grains. It’s a major rice type cultivated and consumed in East Asia, particularly in Japan, Korea, and China, but also grown in other regions like Italy and parts of the United States. Unlike the longer, thinner grains of indica rice, Japonica rice is known for its stickier texture when cooked, making it suitable for dishes like sushi and rice bowls. 

TH

2. National Workshop on DBT Portal 2.0 & NaMo Drone Didi Yojana Held

Context:

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare (Mechanization & Technology Division) organized a one-day national workshop in New Delhi on the implementation of:

• Online Centralized Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) Platform Version 2.0
• NaMo Drone Didi Yojana

Key Highlights:

Major Launches

• Crop-Specific Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for drone-based application of soil and plant nutrients were unveiled
• SOPs aim to standardize drone use in agriculture nationwide

NaMo Drone Didi Yojana

• Flagship women-centric scheme empowering Self-Help Group (SHG) members to use drones for:
  • Spraying fertilizers, pesticides, and other agro-chemicals
• New Drone Portal launched for:
  • Mapping and tracking drone operations
  • Pilot training and certification
  • Real-time dashboard for stakeholders

DBT Platform Version 2.0

• Live demonstrations conducted for Central & State officers
• Features:
  • Improved transparency and digital workflows
  • Faster subsidy disbursal under Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM)
  • End of manual bottlenecks and delays
• States shared feedback and implementation best practices

Significance

• Aimed at small and marginal farmers
• Pushes for digital reforms in agricultural mechanization
• Promotes women’s participation in agri-tech and drone operations
• Facilitates fair access to machinery subsidies and support systems

PIB

Facts To Remember

1. Bihar Cabinet makes domicile must for women’s job quota

The Bihar Cabinet on Tuesday made domicile mandatory for accessing the 35% reservation for women in State government jobs.

2. Bulgaria becomes 21st member to adopt euro after EU green light

EU Ministers gave the final green light for Bulgaria to adopt the euro on January 1, 2026, making it the single currency area’s 21st member. Bulgaria’s switch from the lev to the euro comes nearly 19 years after the country joined the European Union. EU finance ministers officially set the euro at 1.95583 Bulgarian lev. 

3. Public Sector Banks Prioritize Local Language Skills to Improve Customer Service

Amid growing concerns over language barriers in customer interactions, state-owned banks are stepping up efforts to bridge linguistic gaps by mandating local language proficiency for new hires and training existing employees in regional languages.

4. RBI to conduct two day VRRR auction today to soak up ₹ 1 trn

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will conduct a two-day variable rate reverse repo (VRRR) auction for a notified amount of ₹ 1 trillion.

5. BoI Waives Balance Penalty, Cuts Home and Edu Loan Rates

Bank of India has waived non-maintenance of minimum balance penalties across all savings bank account schemes, effective immediately.

6. NPCI Ups RuPay Card Play to Challenge Global Rivals Visa, Mastercard

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is aggressively incentivising banks to push RuPay credit cards, directly challenging global players Visa and Mastercard in India’s booming credit card market.

7. Mustard Oil Identified as Key to India’s Edible Oil Self-Reliance

Industry leaders and data from the 2024–25 crop year indicate that mustard, a vital Rabi oilseed crop, can play a central role in reducing India’s edible oil import dependency. Experts advocate for greater acreage, high-yield seed promotion, and assured price mechanisms.

8. Brazil confers its highest civilian honour ‘Grand Collar of the National Order of the Southern Cross’ on PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s four-day visit to Brazil, which enhanced and enriched South dialogue and deepened strategic ties with Brazil, has concluded.