NATIONAL NEWS

Government Has Designated 23 September As Ayurveda Day

The government of India has designated 23rd September as Ayurveda Day. Earlier, Ayurveda Day was observed on Dhanvantari Jayanti or Dhanteras Day. The Narendra Modi government started observing Dhanteras Day as Ayurveda Day in 2016.

The government celebrates Ayurveda Day to popularise and mainstream the traditional Indian medicine system. The objective is to promote Ayurveda as an evidence-based, scientific and holistic system of medicine for preventive healthcare and wellness.

The government wants to promote Ayurveda as an alternative holistic medicine in India and the world. To popularise Ayurveda, the government organises a series of events in India and abroad on Ayurveda Day to popularise Ayurveda.

The Dhanvantari Diwas, also celebrated as Dhanteras, is observed in the month of Kartik according to the traditional Hindu calendar. The Hindu calendar is a lunar calendar based on the movement of the Moon.

In Sanskrit, Ayurveda means ‘Knowledge of Life.’ It focuses on achieving balance in the body, mind, and spirit to promote holistic well-being.

23rd September coincides with the autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere. On this day, the Sun is directly overhead on the equator, and days and nights are equal on Earth.

This day signifies the philosophy of Ayurveda, which calls for balance between the body, mind, and spirit. Thus, the government chose the natural event of “balance between day and night,” which occurs on 23rd September, as Ayurveda Day.

It will help the government plan events in India and abroad more systematically to popularise Ayurveda.

 

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

FaceAge: AI Tool to Estimate Biological Age and Cancer Survival

FaceAge is a deep learning AI tool developed by researchers at Harvard Medical School to estimate biological age from a simple face photograph.

Biological age reflects how a person's body is aging due to factors like genetics, lifestyle, disease, and environment, as opposed to chronological age, which is just the number of years since birth.

FaceAge uses face detection and feature extraction techniques to predict how old someone looks biologically, rather than relying on their actual age.

The AI was trained on 58,000 face images of healthy individuals and tested on 6,196 cancer patients across hospitals in the US and Europe.

FaceAge was found to predict cancer survival rates more accurately than doctors in certain patient groups:

Biological age is more useful than chronological age because it reflects internal health. A 65-year-old with a healthy lifestyle may have a lower biological age than a 28-year-old who smokes and eats poorly.

FaceAge was found to be associated with senescence genes, which play a role in aging and cancer development. This was not seen with chronological age.

FaceAge could potentially transform cancer treatment and personalized medicine by offering a consistent measure of patient health, but it requires further validation in diverse populations before widespread clinical adoption.

 

BANKING

India Provides Financial Assistance to Maldives

India has extended financial support to the Maldives through the rollover of a $50 million Treasury Bill for one more year.

This rollover will assist in their ongoing efforts to implement fiscal reforms aimed at strengthening economic resilience.

Treasury Bills are short term (up to one year) borrowing instruments of the Government of India or by a central authority of any country which enable investors to park their short term surplus funds while reducing their market risk.

They are auctioned by the Reserve Bank of India at regular intervals and issued at a discount to face value.

Treasury Bills were first issued in India in

At present, the active T-Bills are 91-days T-Bills, 182-day T-Bills and 364-days T-Bills.

Definition of T-bill Rollover: Treasury Bill rollover refers to the practice of reinvesting the proceeds from a maturing Treasury Bill into a new one, thereby extending the investment period.

At the request of the Maldivian government, the SBI subscribed to the $50 million Government Treasury Bill issued by the Ministry of Finance of the Maldives.

The rollover of the Treasury Bill has been provided as emergency financial assistance to support the Maldives.

RBI Makes Reporting of Digital Lending Apps Mandatory

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued new regulations under the Reserve Bank of India (Digital Lending) Directions, 2025, aimed at increasing transparency and accountability in the digital lending

The new rules aim to clean up the digital lending space by enforcing uniform standards, offering better borrower protection, and addressing concerns over hidden charges and aggressive recovery practices.

All regulated entities (REs) must upload details of their DLAs on the Centralised Information Management System (CIMS) portal by June 15, 2025.

The CIMS portal will go live on May 13, 2025.

The RBI will publish a public directory of DLAs by July 1, 2025, available on its website.

This will help users verify if an app is officially linked with an RBI-regulated lender.

The directory will be updated automatically as REs add or remove apps.

Lending service providers (LSPs) working with multiple REs must display all loan offers available to the borrower, including unmatched lender names.

REs must assess third-party partners for technical capability, data privacy, and storage security before entering into agreements.

LIC Launches WhatsApp Premium Payment Service

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has introduced a WhatsApp-based premium payment facility for policyholders.

This online facility allows registered customers to check policy details and pay premiums via WhatsApp bot.

Payments can be made using UPI, net banking, or cards within the WhatsApp interface.

The full customer journey from identifying policies due for payment to payment and receipt generation takes place within the WhatsApp bot.

The service was launched by CEO and MD Siddhartha Mohanty and other senior officials of LIC.

This service offers convenience, allowing customers to pay LIC premiums from anywhere at any time.

More than 2.2 crore policyholders are registered on LIC’s customer portal, with over 3 lakh customers logging in daily for online services.

International Monetary Fund Approves $1 Billion Loan for Pakistan

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a $1 billion loan to Pakistan as part of its Extended Fund Facility (EFF).

The EFF is designed to support countries with balance of payments issues caused by structural weaknesses, such as inadequate infrastructure, a poorly educated workforce, and excessive government borrowing.

Pakistan’s economy has faced challenges such as GDP stagnation, high inflation (peaking at 29.1% in 2023), and low savings due to high population growth and insufficient investments in infrastructure.

The IMF loan approval followed Pakistan’s policy and administrative reforms, with the government stabilizing the economy.

Key achievements include

Inflation reduction to 0.3% in April 2025.

Improvements in foreign exchange reserves and reduced borrowings.

Implementation of fiscal reforms, including the Agricultural Income Tax, enhancing policy credibility.

India has expressed dissent due to concerns over Pakistan's use of IMF loans for military purposes.

The long-term success of the EFF in addressing Pakistan’s structural issues is still uncertain.

 

AWARDS & PRIZES

World Law Congress Honour

Bhuwan Ribhu was conferred the Medal of Honour by the World Jurist Association at the World Law Congress 2025, held in the Dominican Republic.

He became the first Indian lawyer to receive this prestigious global legal award.

The honour recognises his over two decades of work in child rights advocacy and legal reform.

He is a lawyer and child rights activist with more than 20 years of legal work focused on eradicating child labour, trafficking, child marriage, and sexual abuse.

Founder of Just Rights for Children (JRC) – a global legal intervention network partnering with over 250 organisations across India, Nepal, Kenya, and the USA.

The World Jurist Association Medal of Honour is one of the highest international recognitions for legal professionals.

It was presented by Javier Cremades, President of the World Jurist Association.

The award reflects India’s growing global influence in legal reform and child protection.

 

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Foreign Minister of Canada

The newly sworn-in government of Mark Carney in Canada has appointed Anita Anand of Indian origin as the country’s Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and his 28-member Council of Ministers were sworn in on 13 May 2025 after his Liberal party emerged as the largest party in the recently held Parliamentary election. Four people of Indian origin, including Anita Anand, have been included in Mark Carney’s government.

Mark Carney and his Council of Ministers were sworn in by the Governor General Mary Simon in Ottawa, the capital of Canada.

The term of the House of Commons is five years.

Anita Anand, who was a minister in the earlier Justin Trudeau government, was appointed the Minister for Foreign Affairs. She is the first Hindu woman to be appointed as the country’s foreign minister.

President Appoints Ajay Kumar as UPSC Chairman

Indian President Droupadi Murmu on 14th May 2025 has appointed former Defence Secretary Dr. Ajay Kumar as the new Chairperson of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

He will succeed Preeti Sudan who is the second woman to be appointed as the Chairperson of the UPSC after Mrs. R.M.Bathew (Kharbuli)(1992-96).

Dr Ajay Kumar is a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the Kerala cadre. He retired as the Defence Secretary in October 2022.

Dr Ajay Kumar did his B.Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur.

During his tenure as Defence Secretary, the Agniveer scheme was implemented, and the post of Chief of Defence Staff was instituted by the government of India.

The Chairperson or a member of the UPSC holds office for six years or until they reach the age of 65, whichever is earlier.

 

SPORTS

2025 CCI Billiards Classic Title in Mumbai

Pankaj Advani won the 2025 CCI Billiards Classic title, defeating Dhruv Sitwala 5-2 in the final.

It was the third CCI Billiards title for Pankaj Advani, who has won 28 World Championships in cue sports- billiards, snooker, and pool.

The CCI Billiards Classic 2025 was held at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) in Mumbai from 25 April to 4 May 2025.

The winner of the CCI Billiards title, Pankaj Advani, received Rs 2.5 lakhs, while Dhur Sitwala received Rs 1.5 lakhs.