NATIONAL NEWS

IMEC Conclave 2025

• India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) Conclave 2025 was held in New Delhi.
• The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor was launched at the G20 Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi.

IMEC

120th anniversary PHDCCI

• 120th anniversary of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry was celebrated in New Delhi.
• Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Delhi CM Rekha Gupta and other dignitaries addressed the event.

172nd anniversary of India’s 1st train journey

• Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw commemorated the 172nd anniversary of India’s first train journey, recalling the historic moment when the inaugural train departed from Bori Bunder to Thane in Maharashtra on the 16th of April in 1853.
• This train was hauled by three engines named Sindh, Sultan, and Saheb and covered a distance of 34 kilometers in 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Indian Railway

ATM on Mumbai-Manmad Panchavati Express

• In a first-of-its-kind move, the Central Railway has introduced an automated teller machine (ATM) inside the Mumbai-Manmad Panchavati Express.

9th busiest globally in 2024

• Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi has been ranked ninth among the world’s busiest airports in 2024, handling 77.8 million passengers.
• Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the United States claimed the top spot on the Airports Council International (ACI) World list, having served over 108 million passengers last year.

Major Airports in India

FSSAI’s National Stakeholder Consultation

• Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Shri Prataprao Ganpatrao Jadhav, inaugurated a National Stakeholder Consultation on “Sustainable Packaging for Food Business: Emerging Global Trends and Regulatory Framework” organized by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) at Mumbai.

FSSAI

STATE SPECIAL NEWS

T-8 and T-8-M Tunnels

• The T-8 and T-8-M tunnels between Janasu in Pauri Garhwal under the Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project have been completed in Uttarakhand.
• The 14.57-km-long tunnel no 8 between Devprayag and Janasu is part of the ambitious 125-km Rishikesh-Karnaprayag Broad Gauge Rail Link Project in Uttarakhand.

Uttarakhand

Haryana Vidhan Sabha

• For the first time, the Haryana Vidhan Sabha is hosting a study tour for a 27-member delegation from 13 countries.
• The delegation includes members from Côte d’Ivoire, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Haryana

e-SEHAT App

• In Jammu and Kashmir, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today launched the e-SEHAT App, a comprehensive one-stop digital solution designed to cater for the healthcare needs of the people of the Union Territory.

Jammu and Kashmir

Southeast Asia’s Largest Pilot Training Institute

• Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis while inaugurating the Amravati airport said that, the Flying Training Organisation (FTO) to be established in the Amravati City of Vidarbha, will train 180 pilots each year, through its fleet of 34 training planes. It will be the biggest pilot training institute in Southeast Asia.
• He also flagged off a flight between Amravati and Mumbai under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)- UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik).

Maharashtra

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Tariffs of up to 245% on Chinese imports

• US President Donald Trump’s administration has announced a sweeping new retaliatory tariffs of up to 245 per cent on imports of Chinese goods, sharply escalating the trade conflict between the two countries.

United States of America:

ECONOMY & BANKING

Pandemic Agreement

• Member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) finalized a historic agreement to prepare the world for future pandemics, following negotiations that spanned over three years.
• The Pandemic Agreement maps out measures to thwart pandemics and bolster global collaboration, following the chaos seen during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Trade Forecast for 2025 and 2026

• The World Trade Organization (WTO) has released its Trade Forecast for 2025 and 2026.
• The report has predicted that global trade will fall this year as a result of tariffs by United States President Donald Trump.

WTO

National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM)

• The Ministry of Mines has issued guidelines for the setting up of Centres of Excellence (CoE) under the National Critical Mineral Mission (NCMM).
• CoEs will aim at undertaking cutting edge research and promoting inter and multi-disciplinary approaches to problem-solving in critical minerals domain.

Innovative Firefighting Suit

• National Technical Textile Mission in association with M/s SYSTEM 5S Pvt. Ltd is developing an innovative Firefighting Suit using aluminised coated glass fabrics.

National Technical Textile Mission

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Haemophilia Day

• World Hemophilia Day is celebrated annually on April 17th to raise awareness about hemophilia and other inherited bleeding disorders, as well as to support individuals and families affected by these conditions.
• The theme for World Hemophilia Day 2025 is "Access for All: Women and Girls Bleed Too".

PERSON IN NEWS

Former PM Shri Chandrashekhar

• Birth anniversary of Former PM Shri Chandrashekhar also known as ‘Jananayak’ & ‘Young Turk’ was observed on 17 April and tributes were paid.

Shri Chandrashekhar

ART & CULTURE

Free website for Sanskrit literary texts

• Antariksh Bothale, a software engineer from Jodhpur in Rajasthan, launched SanskritSahitya.org, a free website for anyone desiring quick access to Sanskrit literary texts.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

The Chief Minister and the Spy

• Book with title “The Chief Minister and the Spy” authored by former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief A.S. Dulat was released.

DEFENCE

DUSTLIK-6

• The 6th edition of India-Uzbekistan Joint Military Exercise DUSTLIK-6 commenced at the Foreign Training Node at Aundh in Pune, Maharashtra.

Important Military Exercises

Indian Navy Hosts Meghayan-25

• The 3rd edition of the Indian Navy’s Meteorological and Oceanological Symposium - Meghayan 25 – was held on 14 Apr 25, to commemorate the formation of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and celebrating WMO Day 2025.

Indian Navy

APPOINTMENTS

Justice BR Gavai

• Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna recommended the name of Justice B R Gavai as 52nd Chief Justice of India.
• He will be the second Dalit to hold the Chief Justice post after Justice KG Balakrishnan.

Supreme Court

Arun Palli

• Justice Arun Palli today took oath as the Chief Justice of the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court.

Sanjay Parihar and Shahzad Azeem

• The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India Justice Sanjiv Khanna has recommended the elevation of two Senior Judicial Officers, Sanjay Parihar and Shahzad Azeem as Judges of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

SPORTS

Building Together a Clean Sport Ecosystem

• The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) India successfully organized a conference on “Building Together a Clean Sport Ecosystem” at the India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi.
• The event, held as part of Play True Week 2025, brought together a wide spectrum of stakeholders committed to fostering a clean, fair, and values-based sporting environment in India.

NADA

ISSF World Cup 2025

• In Shooting, the Indian pair of Inder Singh Suruchi and Saurabh Chaudhary clinched a gold medal beating Chinese duo of Qianxun Yao and Kai Hu by 17-9 in the finals of 10 metre Air Pistol Mixed Team event at ISSF World Cup 2025 in Lima, Peru.

40th National youth basketball championships

• Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra bagged the boys’ and girls’ titles respectively in the 40th National youth basketball championships in Puducherry.