Current Affairs 14 August 2025

We are here for you to provide the important Recent and Latest Current Affairs 14 August 2025, which have unique updates of Latest Current Affairs 2025 events from all newspapers such as The Hindu, The Economic Times, PIB, Times of India, PTI, Indian Express, Business Standard and all Government official websites.

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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Cabinet Approvals on August 12, 2025On August 12, 2025, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi approved the following proposals:
Lucknow Metro Rail Project of Phase-1B:
Approval: The Union Cabinet approved Phase-1B of the Lucknow Metro Rail Project in Lucknow, UP, covering 11.165 kilometres(km) with 12 stations of 7 underground and 5 elevated.
Outlay: The total project outlay is Rs. 5,801 crores. Upon completion, the city will have an active metro rail network of 34 km.
700 MW Tato-II Hydro Electric Project in Shi Yomi District of AR:
Approval:The CCEA approved an investment of Rs. 8,146.21 crore for the Tato-II Hydro Electric Project (HEP) in Shi Yomi district, AR.

• The project is expected to be completed in 72 months.

Project Specifications:
Installed Capacity: 700 MW (4 x 175 MW)
Annual Energy Generation: 2,738.06 million Units (MU)
Implementing Agency: Joint Venture(JV) between North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO) and the Government of AR.
>>Read Full News

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan Releases Rs.3,200 Crores To Farmers under PMFBYIn August 2025, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (MoAFW) announced the digital transfer of insurance payout worth Rs.3,200 crores directly through Digital Benefit Transfer (DBT) to the bank accounts of approximately 35 lakh farmers at an event held in Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan, marking 9 years of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).

• It is the first installment, transferred under the PMFBY, with approximately Rs.8,000 crores to be released in next installments.

Event Highlights:
Disbursal of Insurance: Under the state-wise claim distribution, Farmers in Madhya Pradesh (MP) received Rs. 1,156 crores, farmers in Rajasthan received Rs.1,121 crores, Chhattisgarh received Rs.150 crores and farmers in other states ,and farmers in other states received Rs.773 crore.
Penalty: From Kharif 2025, any delay by states or insurers will incur a 12% penalty.
About Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY):
Aim: PMFBY, a flagship initiative by the Government of India(GoI), was launched on February 18, 2016, with an aim to protect the farmers from financial loss due to crop failure by natural calamities such as droughts, floods cyclones, pests, and diseases.

• In January 2025, the Union Cabinet approved the continuation of PMFBY and Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS) till 2025-26, with a total budget of  Rs.69, 515.71 Crores.
  >>Read Full News

Union Health Secretary Launches ‘SHRESTH’ Initiative to Boost Drug Quality and SafetyIn August 2025, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare(MoHFW),  launched the ‘State Health Regulatory Excellence Index (SHRESTH)’, a first-of-its-kind national initiative aims to benchmark and enhance state drug regulatory systems using a transparent, data-driven framework.

Key Highlights:
Launched by: Punya Salila Srivastava, Secretary of MoHFW, virtually launched the ‘SHRESTH’, in the presence of Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, Drug Controller General of India (DCGI), Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), in New Delhi, Delhi.
Key People: Vijay Nehra, Joint Secretary, MoHFW; Nikhil Gajraj, Joint Secretary, MoHFW and senior officials of the MoHFW and CDSCO were also present on the occasion.
About SHRESTH Index:
About: It is a virtual gap assessment tool for states to assess their current position and help towards maturity certification.

• It is a roadmap for states for ensuring safe and effective drugs and medical devices.

Objective: This initiative, proposed by the CDSCO aims to improve the performance of state drug regulatory authorities nationwide, guaranteeing that drug safety and quality standards are consistently met.
Indices: For this assessment purpose, the states will be divided into two categories – Manufacturing states and Primarily Distribution States (PDS)/Union Territories (UTs).

• SHRESTH will have 27 indices for Manufacturing States across 5 key themes: Human Resources, Infrastructure, Licensing Activities, Surveillance Activities and Responsiveness and 23 indices for PDS.

Timeline: States will submit the data on predefined metrics to CDSCO by 25th every month and these metrics will be scored on the 1st of next month and shared with all states and UTs.
Impact: The index will enable targeted improvements in human resources, infrastructure, and digitization across states, ensuring drug safety is guaranteed for every Indian.

About Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO):
The CDSCO was established under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and operates under the MoHFW.
Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) –  Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

UIDAI Signs Agreement with ISI for Joint R&D to Enhance Aadhar OperationsOn August 12, 2025, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), signed a five-year umbrella agreement with the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), to collaborate on Research and Development (R&D), with an aim to bolster security, reliability, and robustness of Aadhaar.

About UIDAI-ISI Collaboration:
Signatories: The agreement was signed by Tanusree Deb Barma, Deputy Director General(DG) (Technology Centre) at UIDAI and Professor B.S. Daya Sagar, head of ISI in the presence of Bhuvnesh Kumar, Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of  UIDAI and Puja Singh Mandol, Additional Secretary, MoSPI.
Objective: This initiative aims to leverage ISI’s expertise in statistical analysis and data science to bolster Aadhaar’s infrastructure, ensuring a more secure and efficient biometric identity system.
Focus: The agreement focuses on areas such as fraud and anomaly detection, development of biometric liveness detection tools, identification of high-risk enrolment and update categories, improvements in biometric matching algorithms, and other priority areas mutually decided by UIDAI and ISI.
About Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI):
Launch: It was launched in January 2009 by the Government of India (GoI). It was granted statutory status through the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.

• Operating under the MeitY, UIDAI’s primary mandate is to issue a unique 12-digit identification number, known as “Aadhaar,” to all residents of India.

About Indian Statistical Institute (ISI): 

ISI has been declared an Institute of National Importance by an Act of Parliament in 1959. It is a premier academic and research institution under MoSPI.

• It was founded by Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis (also known as Father of Modern Statistics in India).

President – Sankar Kumar Pal
Headquarters – Kolkata (West Bengal, WB)
Established- 1931.

MHA Tightens Rules Governing OCI Card Holders Registration
In August 2025, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a gazette notification in exercise of powers given by the clause (da) of Section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955 (57 of 1955), aimed to tightens the rules governing Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cardholders.

About New OCI Rules:
Revocation Criteria for OCI Registration: According to the notification, OCI card registrations may now be canceled if

• The cardholder is sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more, or
• They are named in a chargesheet for an offence punishable with seven years or more of imprisonment.

Applicability: This rule applies regardless of whether the conviction or charge occurs in India or abroad, as long as the offence is recognized under Indian law.
Key Provisions: The official notification of MHA was issued under the provisions of the Citizenship Act, 1955 and the Citizenship Rules, 2009, which authorizes the Government of India (GoI) to revoke OCI registrations under specified conditions.
OCI Scheme:The scheme was introduced by the GoI in August 2005. The scheme enables registrations for persons of Indian origin who were citizens of India on or after January 26, 1950, or were eligible for citizenship on that date.

Govt of Rajasthan Launches India’s First AI enabled Drone-Based Cloud Seeding Experiment
On August 12, 2025, Kirodi Lal Meena, Minister of Agriculture, Government of Rajasthan, launched India’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled drone-based cloud seeding experiment at the Jamwa Ramgarh Dam in Jamwa Ramgarh, Rajasthan, to rejuvenate Ramgarh lake and address the water crisis in the region.

Platform: The initiative will deploy 60 AI-powered drones, developed by GenX AI, in “Hydro Trace”, an AI platform, to identify optimal clouds using real-time data, satellite imagery, and sensor networks.
Stimulate: The drones are programmed to spray chemicals such as Sodium Chloride (Na Cl) into clouds to stimulate the formation of water droplets, which encourages formation of raindrops.
Approvals: The project has been approved by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the India Meteorological Department (IMD), district authorities, and the Department of Agriculture.

Western Railway Successfully Commissioned India’s 1st 2×25 kV Traction Substation under ‘Mission Raftaar’
In August 2025, Western Railway (WR) commissioned India’s first 2×25 kilo Volt (kV) electric traction substation under the ‘Mission Raftaar’ initiative at the Nagda–Khachrod section of the Ratlam Division in Madhya Pradesh (MP).

About 2×25 kV Electric Substation Project:
Power Transformers: This new system features two Scott-connected 100 Mega-Volt-Ampere (MVA) Power Transformer for efficient feeding of electrical load to the Overhead Equipment (OHE).
Execution: This project is executed jointly by the Divisional Electrical Engineering team, Ratlam, Construction Department of WR; Traction Distribution (TRD) team, and M/s BNC Power Projects Limited.
Significance: This modern system will significantly enhance energy efficiency, traction power availability, and train operating speeds across the railway network.
Mission Raftaar: It was introduced in the Railway Budget of 2016-17. It is an ambitious initiative by Indian Railways(IR) aimed at increasing the average speed of freight trains.

BANKING & FINANCE

PPSL Received RBI’s Approval to Operate as Online PA
In August 2025, Paytm Payments Services Limited (PPSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of One 97 Communications, has received ‘In-Principle’ approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) operates as an Online Payment Aggregator (PA) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act (PSS Act, 2007).

• The approval is subject to adherence to the Guidelines on Regulation of Payment Aggregators and Payment Gateways dated March 17, 2020 and related clarifications released on March 31, 2021.

Key Directions:
Merchant Onboarding Resumes: This approval allows PPSL to restart onboarding new merchants, a process that had been on hold for over a year.
System Audit: RBI has mandated PPSL to conduct a thorough system audit, which includes a cyber security audit.
Deadline: PPSL must file the system audit report within 6 months, otherwise the RBI will withdraw its in-principle approval.

• Additionally, PPSL is required to seek prior approval for any changes in its shareholding or ownership structure.

RBI Allowed NRIs to Invest Surplus Rupee SRVAs in G-Secs & T-Bills
In August 2025, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) holding Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) to invest their surplus rupee balances in central Government Securities (G-Secs) including Treasury Bills (T-Bills). This new measure came into immediate effect.

• The directions were issued under the sections 10(4) and 11 (1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 and are without prejudice to permissions/approval, if any, required under any other law.

Key Changes:
Updated Master Direction: In order to incorporate new guidelines, RBI has revised its Master Direction i.e. RBI (Non-Resident Investment in Debt Instruments) Directions, 2025 issued in January 2025.
Directions to AD Cat-I: RBI has directed the Authorised Dealer Category (AD Cat-I) banks to inform their constituents and concerned customers about the new provisions.
Important Term:
SRVAs: It is a special arrangement, introduced in July 2022, for the settlement of international trade through Indian Rupee (INR). It helps to reduce dependence on hard (convertible) currency and improves financial stability.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

India’s Retail Inflation Declines to 8-Year Low of 1.55% in July 2025
On August 12, 2025, the National Statistics Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), released the “Consumer Price Index (CPI)  for Rural, Urban and Combined for the month of July 2025”. As per the official data, India’s retail inflation, measured by CPI, declined to a 95-month low (8 years) to 1.55% in July 2025, down from 2.10% in June 2025.

Low: This is the lowest Year-on-Year inflation (Y-o-Y) registered since June 2017. It also marks the 6th consecutive month that inflation has stayed below the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s medium-target of 4%.
Factors: Food inflation has dropped to 1.76%, lowest registered since January 2019, with food inflation rates in urban (1.74%) and rural (1.90%) in July 2025.

• The headline inflation in rural areas is 1.18% in July 2025, while the urban sector has witnessed a drop in headline inflation to 2.05%.

Tata Power Joins Hands with Suzlon for 700 MW Wind Project in AP
In August 2025, Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited(TPREL)  signed an agreement worth Rs 6,000 Crore with Suzlon Energy Limited, one of the leading global Renewable Energy (RE) solution provider for the development of 700 MegaWatt (MW) wind energy project in Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh (AP).

• This newly announced project is part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited (TPREL) and AP government in March 2025.
• The MoU aims to build Renewable Energy (RE) capacities up to a capacity of 7 Giga Watt (GW).

Key Details:
Annual Energy Capacity: The project is expected to generate 1840 million units of power annually.
Investment: The 7 GW of RE which includes solar, wind, and hybrid projects with or without storage solutions, is projected to attract investments worth Rs 49,000 crore, making it one of the largest RE investments in the state.

Hindustan Zinc becomes 1st Indian firm to join the International Council on Mining and MetalsIn August 2025, the Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL), India’s only and the world’s largest integrated zinc producer, has become the 1st Indian company to join the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM).

• This marks ICMM’s first new member since Boliden, Swedish company joined in 2021.

Key Highlights:
ICMM: The United Kingdom (UK) based leadership body is a collaborative group of 25 top global mining and metal companies committed to advancing sustainable development, transparency and ethical practices across the mining value chain.
Assessment: Hindustan Zinc’s induction followed a comprehensive independent review by ICMM’s Independent Expert Review Panel (IERP).

• It was later approved by the organisation’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Council.

Commitment: By joining ICMM, HZL will follow 40 performance expectations covering Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) areas.
About Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL):
The HZL operates underground mines, smelters, and related infrastructure across northwest India. In 2024, HZL was ranked the world’s most sustainable mining company by S&P Global for the second year in a row.
Chairperson – Priya Agarwal Hebbar
Headquarters – Udaipur, Rajasthan
About International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM):
President – Rohitesh Dhawan
Headquarters –  London, United Kingdom

ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

ADSTL, Prime Aero Signed Agreement to Acquire 100% Stake in ITPL
In August 2025, Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Limited (ADSTL), in collaboration with Prime Aero Services LLP, has signed a binding agreement for the acquisition of 100% stake in Indamer Technics Private Limited (ITPL), a private sector Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) company.

ADSTL-Prime Aero ITPL Acquisition:
Acquisition Structure: This acquisition will be executed through Horizon Solutions Limited, a 50:50 Joint Venture (JV) between ADSTL and Prime Aero.
Integration Plan: After completing the acquisition of Air Works, ADSTL will integrate ITPL’s capabilities to enhance and expand services for both commercial and defence aircraft.

About MRO Facility: The acquired MRO facility spans 30 acres and is situated within the Multi Modal International Cargo Hub & Airport at Nagpur (MIHAN) Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Maharashtra.

• The facility is equipped to handle 15 aircraft bays spread across 10 hangars.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

IN-SPACe Selects Pixxel-Led Consortium for India’s First Indigenous EO Satellite ConstellationIn August 2025, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) which works under the Department of Space (DoS), announced that PixxelSpace India (PSI)-led consortium which comprises: Piersight Space Private Limited, Satsure Analytics India Pvt. Ltd. and Dhruva Space Pvt. Ltd., has been selected to design, build, and operate India’s 1st fully indigenous commercial Earth Observation (EO) satellite constellation under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.

• This announcement is historically significant, marking the first time in the Indian space sector that a private consortium will invest more than Rs.1,200 crore over five years to launch a constellation of 12 advanced EO satellites.
• As per IN-SPACe, the deployment of EO constellation will be done in a phased-manner to ensure continuous service upgrades and expanded coverage.

Key Details:
PPP Framework: As per the PPP model of IN-SPACe, the Government of India (GoI) will provide strategic, technical, and policy support.

• While, the consortium will own and operate the EO system, including satellite manufacturing, ground infrastructure, and commercialization of data services.

Key Components: The constellation will feature panchromatic, multi-spectral, hyperspectral, and microwave Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) sensors.

Applications: The components of the constellation will provide Analysis Ready Data (ARD) and Value-Added Services (VAS) which will be used in climate change monitoring, disaster management, agriculture, infrastructure, marine surveillance, national security, urban planning, among others.
Significance: The constellation will generate high-resolution, indigenous satellite data that will help in reducing India’s dependence on foreign sources, ensures data sovereignty and position India among the global leaders in space-based data solutions.
Target: The GoI has set the target to boost India’s space economy from USD 8.4 billion (in 2022) to USD 44 billion (in 2033).
About Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation (IN-SPACe):
Chairman– Pawan Kumar Goenka
Headquarters– Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Established- 2020

Arianespace’s Ariane 6 successfully launches Metop-SGA1 weather satelliteIn August 2025, the second commercial Ariane 6 mission has been successfully carried out from the Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

• This was the 2nd commercial mission for the Ariane 6 rocket, after the 1st mission with France’s CSO-3 satellite.

Key Highlights:
Ariane 6: The Ariane 6 rocket is the successor to the recently retired Ariane 5 and is operated by the French company Arianespace on behalf of the European Space Agency (ESA).
Satellite launched: A weather and climate monitoring satellite called Metop-SGA1, owned by EUMETSAT (European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) has been launched by the rocket.

• This satellite was deployed to Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO) at an altitude of around 800 kilometre (km).

About the satellite:
Metop-SGA1: The satellite will take global observation of weather and climate from a polar orbit to a new level, providing high resolution observations of temperature, precipitation, clouds, winds, sea ice, aerosols, pollution and a multitude of other parameters.

• Airbus Defence and Space built Metop-SGA1, which hosts a total of six atmospheric sounding and imaging instrument missions that will provide optical, infrared, and microwave observations essential data for weather forecasting and climate monitoring.
• The Metop-SGA1 will carry the new Sentinel-5 atmospheric monitoring mission, part of the European Commission’s Copernicus programme.

Sentinel-5 mission: It is a European Space Agency (ESA) mission focussed on monitoring air quality and greenhouse gas concentrations in the Earth’s atmosphere.

About Arianespace:
Arianespace designs and deploys space transportation services for all types of satellites, to all orbits, with the capacity to transport any mass, at any time.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – David Cavailloles

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Organ Donation Day 2025 – August 13World Organ Donation Day is annually observed across the globe on August 13 to commemorate the first successful organ transplant in 1954.

• The day also observed to raise awareness about the importance of organ donation, encourage people to become organ donors, and promote organ donation to save lives.
• 2025 Theme: “Answering the Call”

Background:
First Transplant: The world’s first successful living donor kidney transplant was performed in 1954 by American Surgeon Dr. Joseph E. Murray and his associates at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital (currently Brigham and Women’s Hospital) at Boston in Massachusetts, the United states of America (USA).

• The transplant took place between identical twins, Ronald and Richard Lee Herrick, with Ronald donating a key to Richard, who suffered chronic kidney failure.

Noble Prize: Joseph E. Murray and American physician E. Donnall Thomas were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1990 for their discoveries concerning organ and cell transplantation in the treatment of human disease.
>>Read Full News

International Left Handers Day 2025 – August 13International Left Handers Day is annually observed across the globe on August 13 to celebrate the uniqueness, advantages and disadvantages of being left-handers, who account for approximately 10% of the world’s population.

• The day also aims to raise awareness about the challenges faced by the left-handed people in the world dominated by the right-handed individuals and encourage more inclusive product design, education tools, and workspaces.

Background:
First Observance: The International Left Handers Day was first observed on August 13, 1976, initiated by Dean R. Campbell, founder of Left Handers International.
Global Recognition: The day was globally recognized when Left Handers International launched International Left Handers Day on August 13, 1992.
Biological Insights:
Heritability: Several studies show that left-handedness is moderately heritable, with genetics accounting for approximately 25% of the variation. The other factors are such as prenatal conditions, birth complications, etc.
Genes: Large Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) have identified multiple genes which influence left handedness.

• A rare gene variant, TUBB4B, is linked to cell structure which influences hand dominance.
• It is 2.7 times more common in left-handed people, although it accounts for only 0.1% cases.

Hemispheres: Brain Hemispheres have different dominant functions; right hemisphere controls the dominant hand for the left handers. In right handers, left hemisphere controls the dominant function.
Traits: Left-Handed people are more likely to have certain psychiatric traits, such as schizophrenia or autism.
Note: Sinistrophobia is the fear of left-handedness or anything positioned on the left side of the body.

STATE NEWS

TN CM Stalin launches ‘Thayumanavar scheme’ in to deliver ration products at doorstepsIn August 2025, the Tamil Nadu (TN) Chief Minister (CM) Muthuvel karunanidhi(M.K) Stalin launched “Thayumanavar Thittam”,a scheme designed to deliver essential ration items directly to the doorsteps of eligible beneficiaries, in Chepauk-Triplicane constituency, Chennai, TN.

• During the event, he also flagged off vehicles to deliver commodities to a certain number of beneficiaries.

About Thayumanavar Thittam:
Purpose: The purpose of the scheme is to deliver essential ration commodities like rice, sugar, wheat, palmolein oil and toor dal at the doorsteps of over 21.7 lakh elderly citizens aged above 70 years and disabled persons across the State.
Implementation: The scheme will be implemented in 34,809 Fair Price Shops (FPS) to benefit 20,42,657 citizens above 70 years of age and 1,27,797 disabled persons under the public distribution system (PDS).
Delivery Frequency: The essential commodities from ration shops would be delivered at the doorsteps of the beneficiaries on the second Saturday and Sunday of every month, following Aadhar authentication.

• The delivery staff will be provided with an electronic weighing machine and electronic – Point of Sale (e-POS) machines.

Expenditure: This will result in an additional expenditure of Rs 30.16 crore annually for the Cooperation Department.
About Tamil Nadu (TN):
Chief Minister (CM) – Muthuvel karunanidhi(M.K) Stalin
Governor – Ravindra Narayana(R.N) Ravi
Capital – Chennai
Tiger Reserves – Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Anamalai Tiger Reserve

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