Daily Current Affairs Quiz
25&26 December, 2025
National Affairs
1. PM Inaugurates Rashtra Prerna Sthal in Lucknow
Source: TH
Context:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Rashtra Prerna Sthal in Lucknow, a grand memorial dedicated to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Hindutva ideologues Deen Dayal Upadhyay and Shyama Prasad Mookerjee.
About Rashtra Prerna Sthal
- Location: Hardoi Road, near the banks of the Gomti river, Lucknow
- Area: Spread across 65 acres
- Design: Lotus-shaped, symbolising the BJP’s election emblem
- Key Feature: Three towering bronze statues of Vajpayee, Upadhyay and Mookerjee
- Additional Attraction: A state-of-the-art lotus-shaped museum showcasing ideals of leadership, service and good governance
2. India Reclaims 3rd Spot in Global Wind Market
Source: BS
Context:
India has reclaimed the third position in the global wind energy market in 2025, recording its highest-ever annual wind capacity additions after a gap of four years, according to a report by BloombergNEF (BNEF).
India now trails only China and the United States in annual wind installations.
Record Capacity Additions
- Wind capacity addition in 2025 (forecast): 6.2 GW
- Capacity added till November 2025:5.8 GW
- Higher than the previous record of 4.2 GW in 2017
- The surge will allow India to overtake Brazil and Germany, which ranked above it in recent years
India has climbed back to the third position for the first time since 2019, after ranking fifth for four consecutive years (2021–2024).
3. SWAMIH-2 Fund
Source: TOI
Context:
The Union government is set to soon operationalise the ₹15,000 crore SWAMIH-2 Fund, aimed at providing last-mile financing to complete stalled housing projects, according to official sources. The move is expected to bring relief to nearly 1,00,000 middle-class homebuyers, whose investments remain stuck despite continuing to pay EMIs on housing loans.
What is SWAMIH-2?
- SWAMIH-2 stands for Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing – 2
- It is a government-backed fund to give last-mile money to housing projects that are stuck near completion
How will it help?
- Restores trust in the housing market
- Gives money only to viable but stuck projects
- Ensures money is used only for construction
- Helps projects get completed and homes delivered
4. Bhoramdeo Temple
Context:
The Chhattisgarh government has announced plans to develop the ancient Bhoramdeo Temple complex on the lines of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor, under the Centre’s Swadesh Darshan Yojana 2.0.
About Bhoramdeo
- Located in Kabirdham district, about 125 km from Raipur
- Ancient Shiva temple complex, dating from the 7th to 11th century
- Architectural style comparable to Khajuraho temples (Madhya Pradesh) and the Konark Sun Temple (Odisha)
- Often referred to as the “Khajuraho of Chhattisgarh”
Kashi Vishwanath Corridor
The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor is a major redevelopment project in Varanasi that connects the Kashi Vishwanath Temple directly to the Ganga river ghats.
5. PESA Mahotsav: Utsav Lok Sanskriti Ka (2025)
Source: PIB
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) celebrated “PESA Mahotsav: Utsav Lok Sanskriti Ka” from 23–24 December 2025 at the Visakhapatnam Port Authority Stadium, Andhra Pradesh.
The event marked the anniversary of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, commonly known as the PESA Act.
PESA Day is observed every year on 24 December.
What is PESA?
- Social and cultural practices
- PESA extends self-governance through Gram Sabhas to Scheduled (tribal) Areas
- It empowers tribal communities to manage:
- Natural resources
- Local development
Key Initiatives Launched
On the concluding day, Vivek Bharadwaj and Shashi Bhushan Kumar unveiled several important initiatives:
- PESA Portal
- For sharing information
- For tracking and monitoring PESA implementation
- PESA Indicators
- To measure how well different states are implementing PESA
- Training Modules in Tribal Languages
- To improve awareness
- To strengthen grassroots capacity
- E-book on Kinnaur District (Himachal Pradesh)
- Documents local traditions, culture, and traditional knowledge
6. India’s First PPP-Model Medical Colleges
Source: TNIE
In December 2025, Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, along with Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, laid the foundation stones of India’s first medical colleges under the Public–Private Partnership (PPP) model in Dhar and Betul districts of Madhya Pradesh.
These districts are tribal-dominated areas, where access to quality medical education and healthcare has been limited.
Key Highlights:
- First-of-its-kind initiative: These are India’s first medical colleges developed under PPP mode
- Locations:
- Dhar (MP)
- Betul (MP)
- Focus: Improve medical education, local healthcare, and availability of doctors in tribal and underserved regions
About the PPP Medical Colleges
- Total planned colleges in MP: 4
- Dhar
- Betul
- Katni
- Panna
- These colleges are linked to existing district hospitals, which will:
- Strengthen hospital services
- Provide hands-on clinical training to medical students
PPP Model Explained (DBFOT)
The colleges will be developed under the Design–Build–Finance–Operate–Transfer (DBFOT) model:
- State Government role:
- Provides land
- Gives administrative support and oversight
- Private partner role:
- Builds medical college infrastructure
- Manages academic and clinical facilities
This model helps reduce the financial burden on the government while ensuring faster and quality infrastructure development.
7. ‘Samudra Pratap’, India’s First Indigenous Pollution Control Vessel
Source: PIB
The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) has inducted Samudra Pratap, India’s first indigenously designed and built Pollution Control Vessel (PCV), significantly strengthening the country’s ability to tackle marine pollution and maritime emergencies.
The vessel was commissioned on December 23, 2025, under a two-ship PCV project built by Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL).
Why Samudra Pratap Matters
- It has over 60% indigenous content, supporting Aatmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India
- It is the largest ship in the Indian Coast Guard fleet
- Enhances India’s ability to detect, control and clean oil spills at sea
Key Features
- Armament:
- 30mm CRN-91 gun
- Two 12.7mm remote-controlled guns
- Advanced Systems:
- Integrated Bridge System
- Integrated Platform & Power Management Systems
- High-capacity firefighting system
Samudra Pratap is also the first ICG ship with Dynamic Positioning (DP-1), allowing it to stay steady at one spot even in rough seas.
8. 2,000-Year-Old Stone Labyrinth Found in Maharashtra
Source: TOI
Context:
Archaeologists have discovered a 2,000-year-old circular stone labyrinth in Solapur district, Maharashtra. It is the largest circular labyrinth ever found in India and gives new clues about ancient trade routes and culture.
What Was Found
- A large circular labyrinth made of stone
- Built with carefully arranged concentric (circular) paths
- Dated to about 2,000 years ago
- Linked to the Satavahana dynasty (1st–3rd century CE)
Where It Was Found
- Boramani grasslands, Solapur district, Maharashtra
- The dry grassland climate helped preserve the structure for centuries
- Located away from temples, forts, or settlements, which makes it unusual
Key Features
- Setting: Open grassland, not a religious or residential site
- Size: About 50 feet × 50 feet
- Design: 15 circular stone rings — the highest number seen in India so far
- Shape: Completely circular
- Different from the square labyrinth at Gedimedu, Tamil Nadu
9. India’s First AI That Can Run Real Lab Experiments
Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) have developed AILA (Artificially Intelligent Lab Assistant) — an advanced AI system that can independently conduct real scientific experiments, a first-of-its-kind achievement in India.
What is AILA?
- AILA is an autonomous AI-powered laboratory assistant
- It can design experiments, operate lab machines, analyse data, and interpret results without constant human help
- Unlike normal AI tools that only study data, AILA performs actual experiments
Who Developed It?
- In collaboration with research teams from Denmark and Germany
- Developed by IIT Delhi
Banking/Finance
1. RBI Defers Faster Cheque Clearance (CCSR Phase-2)
Source: BS
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has postponed the January 3, 2026 deadline for rolling out Phase-2 of faster cheque clearing under the Continuous Clearing and Settlement on Realisation (CCSR) system in the Cheque Truncation System (CTS).
The move has been made under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, which gives RBI the legal power to regulate payment systems and protect financial stability.
What Is CCSR?
- CCSR is RBI’s plan to speed up cheque clearing
- It replaces the older T+1 / T+2 settlement with faster processing
- It works within the existing CTS framework, where cheque images are exchanged digitally
What Was Planned in Phase-2?
- Cheque settlement within 3 hours
- Much faster than the current system
- Automatic clearance if banks fail to respond within the time limit
What Has Changed Now?
- Phase-2 has been deferred “until further notice”
- RBI wants banks to get more time to prepare
- Many banks are still adjusting old systems to meet faster settlement needs
Phase-1 Continues
- Phase-1 started on October 4, 2025
- Cheques are still cleared faster than before, but not within 3 hours
Revised CTS Timings
RBI has also changed cheque processing timings:
- Presentation session: 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
- Confirmation session: 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM
These changes give banks more operational flexibility.
What Does This Mean for Customers?
- No immediate impact
- Cheque clearance will continue under existing timelines
- Once Phase-2 starts, customers can expect:
- Faster fund availability
- Better cash flow for businesses
- Less waiting time for cheque payments
2. Securities Markets Code, 2025 (SMC 2025)
Source: BS
Context:
The Securities Markets Code, 2025 (SMC 2025) is a major consolidation and simplification exercise in India’s securities regulation framework. The Code has been referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance for detailed scrutiny.
What the SMC 2025 Replaces
The Code subsumes three existing laws:
- Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956
- Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992
- Depositories Act, 1996
Together, these laws regulate securities markets, exchanges, depositories, and establish Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT).
Key Changes and Provisions
1. Composition & Governance of SEBI
- SEBI’s board strength increased from 9 to 15 members
- Provision for up to six independent, part-time members, aimed at bringing external expertise
- Expanded conflict-of-interest definition, covering direct and indirect interests, including those of family members
- Central government empowered to remove SEBI members if conflicts adversely affect SEBI’s functioning
2. Investigation & Adjudication
- Investigating and adjudicating officers must be:
- Whole-time SEBI members (including Chairperson), or
- SEBI officers
- Adjudicators cannot be involved in prior investigations of the same case
- Eight-year limitation period introduced for initiating investigations from the date of alleged offence
- Exception: cases with systemic market impact or those referred by investigating agencies
3. Penalties & Criminal Provisions
- Shift towards monetary penalties for several contraventions
- Imprisonment retained for serious offences, including:
- Non-compliance with SEBI or adjudicating officer orders
- Market abuse such as insider trading, fraud, price manipulation, and dealing in securities using unpublished price-sensitive information (UPSI)
4. Linkage with PMLA
- Market abuse offences may be brought under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)
- This enables investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED)
5. Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs)
The Code formally recognises Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs), including:
- Stock exchanges
- Clearing corporations
- Depositories
- Any new category notified by the Centre
MIIs may:
- Frame bye-laws to ensure non-discriminatory access, interoperability, and prevention of market abuse
- Be delegated powers by SEBI for registration of intermediaries or specific investor classes
6. Investor Protection
- Mandatory investor grievance redress mechanisms
- SEBI empowered to appoint an ombudsperson
- Provision for an Investor Charter to strengthen investor rights and transparency
Assessment
- Positives:
- Streamlined and unified legal framework
- Broader conflict-of-interest safeguards
- Clearer timelines for investigations
- Stronger investor protection architecture
- Concerns:
- Significant concentration of powers with SEBI
- Need for clearer checks and balances to ensure regulatory accountability
3. RBI to Infuse ₹3 Trillion Liquidity After Rupee Defence
Source: News on Air
Context:
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is set to inject around ₹3 trillion of durable liquidity into the banking system to offset the tightening impact of its recent foreign-exchange intervention aimed at supporting the rupee.
Why Liquidity Tightened
- RBI intervention strengthened the rupee from ₹91/$ to ₹89/$
- While stabilising the currency, this sucked rupee liquidity out of the banking system
- As a result, system liquidity conditions tightened despite a recent 25 basis point repo rate cut
What RBI Has Done So Far
- Open Market Operations (OMOs)
- Forex buy-sell swaps
This shifted liquidity from a persistent deficit (since mid-December 2024) to a surplus by end-March 2025.
Open Market Operations (OMOs)
OMOs are when the RBI buys or sells government bonds in the market.
Why RBI does this
- To control money (liquidity) in the banking system
- To influence interest rates
How it works
- RBI buys bonds → money goes into banks → liquidity increases
- RBI sells bonds → money goes out of banks → liquidity decreases
Simple example
If banks don’t have enough money to lend, RBI buys bonds from them and gives them cash.
Forex Buy–Sell Swaps
RBI exchanges dollars and rupees with banks, with an agreement to reverse the deal later.
Why RBI uses swaps
- To manage rupee liquidity
- To control pressure on the rupee
- To avoid sudden shocks in the forex market
How it works
- RBI buys dollars and gives rupees → rupee liquidity increases
- Later, RBI returns dollars and takes back rupees
Simple example
Think of it as RBI giving banks rupees temporarily, while holding dollars as security.
4. Gold is the most stable asset during global tensions: RBI study
Source: BS
A study published in the monthly bulletin of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) says gold is the safest asset during geopolitical stress, while crude oil is the most affected.
The study was written by RBI staff with guidance from Poonam Gupta. RBI clarified that these are the authors’ views, not the official RBI position.
What the study found
- Crude oil
- Most sensitive to geopolitical tensions
- Prices swing sharply due to supply disruptions, wars, and sanctions
- Gold
- Most stable asset
- Acts as a safe haven during uncertainty
- Investors move money to gold in crises, which keeps it stable
- Silver
- Falls between gold and oil
- More volatile than gold because of industrial demand, but less risky than oil
- US Treasury bonds
- Show moderate volatility
- Investors buy them during stress (“flight to safety”), lowering yields but causing some market movement
Why gold stays strong
- Gold is seen as:
- A hedge against inflation
- A store of value
- Central banks, especially in emerging markets like India, are increasing gold in their forex reserves.
India’s forex reserves (latest data)
- Total reserves rose to $688.95 billion
- Gold reserves increased by $758 million to $107.74 billion
- Foreign currency assets (FCAs) rose to $557.79 billion
ETF (Exchange Traded Fund)
An ETF is an investment product that tracks something and is bought and sold like a share on the stock market.
What does an ETF track?
An ETF can track:
- A stock index (like Nifty 50 or Sensex)
- Gold (Gold ETF)
- Bonds
- A sector (banking, IT, pharma)
- Even foreign markets
Facts To Remember
1. Indian Army Relaxes Social Media Policy, Allows ‘Passive Participation’
The Indian Army has revised its long-standing restrictions on social media usage, permitting personnel to engage in “passive participation” on select platforms, while continuing to enforce strict safeguards to protect operational and national security.
2. Constitution of India Released in Santhali Language
President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday released the Constitution of India in the Santhali language at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
- The Constitution has been translated into Santhali, a language spoken by a large tribal population across Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, and Bihar.
- The text is published in the Ol Chiki script, the traditional script of the Santhali language.
3. FSSAI Warns Food Firms Against Labelling Herbal Infusions as ‘Tea’
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued a stern warning to food business operators (FBOs) against labelling herbal infusions and plant-based blends as ‘tea’, stating that such practices amount to misbranding and misleading consumers under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
What Prompted the Warning
FSSAI found several products being marketed as:
- Herbal tea
- Rooibos tea
- Flower tea
According to FSSAI rules, the term ‘tea’ can be used only for beverages derived from Camellia sinensis, including:
- Green tea
- Instant tea
- Regional varieties such as Kangra tea
4. Unit-2 of Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project Becomes Operational
On 23 December 2025, Union Minister Manohar Lal virtually inaugurated the commercial operation of Unit-2 (250 MW) of the Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project.
About the Project
- Annual power generation: About 7,422 million units of clean electricity
- It is a run-of-the-river hydropower project with small pondage
- Uses 8 Head Race Tunnels (HRTs)
5. Alpine SG Pipers Wins Tech Mahindra Global Chess League 2025
- Alpine SG Pipers won the 3rd edition of the Global Chess League (GCL) 2025.
- They defeated Triveni Continental Kings in the final.
- The final was held at the Royal Opera House, Mumbai.
- The league is officially called the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League.
- The event was organised by FIDE in partnership with Tech Mahindra.
6. VP C. P. Radhakrishnan Releases Book on India’s Economy
- Vice President C. P. Radhakrishnan released a book titled
“Economic Empowerment of Bharat in the Modi Era”. - The book is written by Dr. Sikander Kumar, MP.
- The event was held at the Vice President’s Enclave, New Delhi.
- The book explains economic reforms, welfare schemes and growth during the Modi government.
7. East Bengal FC Wins SAFF Women’s Club Championship 2025
- East Bengal Football Club won the first SAFF Women’s Club Championship
- Beat APF (Nepal) 3–0 in the final
- Final held at Dasrath Stadium, Kathmandu
- A proud moment for Indian women’s football
8. INS Sindhughosh Decommissioned
- Indian Navy decommissioned INS Sindhughosh
- Served for 40 years
- Lead submarine of its class
- Strengthened India’s conventional submarine force
9. IIT Delhi Develops AILAS
- Indian Institute of Technology Delhi developed AILAS
- Full form: Artificially Intelligent Laboratory Agent
- Can conduct lab experiments on its own
- Works like a human researcher
- Big step for AI-driven science
10. Oman Launches Polymer Banknote
- Central Bank of Oman unveiled polymer one-rial note
- To circulate from January 11, 2026
- Has advanced security features
- Will run alongside paper notes
11. Trump Announces “Trump-Class” Battleships
- Donald Trump announced a new class of US battleships
- Name: Trump-class battleships
- Announcement made in Florida, USA
12. Wildlife-Sensitive ‘Red Road’ Unveiled in Madhya Pradesh: NHAI
In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has introduced India’s first wildlife-sensitive ‘red road’ on a forested stretch of NH-45 passing through the Veerangana Durgavati Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh.
13. ADB Signs $730 Million Pacts with Pakistan for Infrastructure, Reforms
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has signed agreements worth $730 million with Pakistan to support energy infrastructure strengthening and institutional reforms, according to a statement issued by Pakistan’s Economic Affairs Division.
14. Important Days
1. National Consumer Rights Day – 24 December
- Observed across India on 24 December
- Focus: consumer rights and protection
- Theme 2025: Efficient and Speedy Disposal through Digital Justice
2. DMRC Foundation Day – 24 December
- Marks the formation of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation
- Celebrates India’s modern urban transport journey
