News In Short – 23 September, 2025

Rosh Hashanah

Syllabus:GS1/Culture

In News

• The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has greeted the warmest Rosh Hashanah to the Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu.

Rosh Hashanah

• Rosh Hashanah is a Jewish holiday celebrating the creation of the world and the start of a new year. 
• It is a holy which  focuses on reflection, forgiveness, and setting priorities for the year ahead. 
• Jewish people believe that during this time, God judges their actions from the past year to determine their fate for the next.

Source :PIB

India-ADB Sign $125 million Loan to Assam

Syllabus: GS1/ Urbanization, challenges and remedies, GS2/ Governance

Context

• The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a 125 million dollar loan agreement to enhance urban livability and bolster climate resilience in six district headquarters and Guwahati, in the State of Assam.

About Asian Development Bank

• ADB is a regional development bank established in 1966 for Social and Economic Development. It has 69 members. India is a founding member of ADB. 
• Modeled on the World Bank, ADB uses a weighted voting system based on members’ capital subscriptions.
  • India is the fourth-largest shareholder in the bank (Japan (15.6%), United States (15.6%), People’s Republic of China  (6.4%) & India (6.3%). 
• It is a multilateral development bank, which seeks to help its developing member countries to reduce poverty and improve their people’s quality of life through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth and regional integration.
• ADB supports India in robust, climate-resilient, and inclusive growth through alignment with ADB’s Strategy 2030 and the India Country Partnership Strategy (2023–2027).
• Headquarters: Manila, Philippines.

Source: AIR

Maitri 2.0 Cross-Incubation Programme

Syllabus :GS2/IR/GS3/Economy

In News

• The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) launched the second edition of the Brazil–India Cross-Incubation Programme in Agritech (Maitri 2.0) in New Delhi. 

Maitri 2.0

• It is a two-way learning platform for co-creation between Indian and Brazilian innovators to build a stronger, innovative, and inclusive agri-food ecosystem for global food security.
• It aims to connect incubators, promote co-incubation, and foster collaboration in sustainable agriculture, digital tech, and value chains, helping build resilient food systems and empowering farmers through Indo-Brazilian innovation.

Importance 

• Maitri  2.0  is a strategic step aligned with both nations’ goals in agriculture, technology, and food security.

Source :PIB

India and Morocco Sign Defence Cooperation

Syllabus: GS2/IR

About

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Morocco’s Defence Minister signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defence cooperation.

Morocco

• Morocco is a mountainous country of western North Africa that lies directly across the Strait of Gibraltar from Spain.

• Morocco borders Algeria to the east and southeast, Western Sahara to the south, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. 
• It is the only African country with coastal exposure to both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Source: AIR

National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) 2025.

Syllabus: GS2/Governance

Context

• Gram Panchayats were conferred with the National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) 2025.

About

• NAeG are under a newly instituted category dedicated to grassroots-level initiatives in digital service delivery. 
• Each award includes a trophy, certificate, and financial incentives of Rs.10 lakh (Gold) and Rs.5 lakh (Silver), to be reinvested in strengthening citizen-centric initiatives.
• Ministry: Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions (MoPPGP)  in collaboration with the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR).
• This first-of-its-kind recognition highlights the Government’s vision that Good Governance is best delivered through Digital Governance. 
• Rohini Gram Panchayat, Maharashtra has become the first Gram Panchayat in the State to adopt a fully paperless e-Office system.

Source: PIB

25 Lakh Additional LPG Connections Under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

Syllabus: GS3/ Energy

Context

• The Government has decided to provide 25 lakh additional LPG connections under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana during the current Financial Year.
  • With this expansion, the total number of PMUY connections will rise to 10.58 crore.

About Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana

• The scheme was launched by the Government of India on 1st May 2016 and is implemented by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas.
• The objective of the scheme is to replace harmful cooking fuels such as coal and firewood with clean LPG to protect women & children’s health by reducing indoor smoke pollution. 
• The scheme provides a completely free LPG connection, including the first refill and a stove.
  • The scheme also offers a targeted subsidy of ₹300 per 14.2 kg cylinder for up to 12 refills per year (pro-rated for 5 kg connections) to all PMUY consumers.
• PMUY initially aimed to provide 8 crore free LPG connections to poor households, achieving this target in September 2019. 
  • To reach more families, PMUY 2.0 was launched in August 2021, distributing an additional 1.6 crore connections by January 2022. 

Source: AIR

SPARSH

Syllabus: GS2/ Governance, GS3/ Defence

Context

• The System for Pension Administration – Raksha (SPARSH) has resolved 5.60 lakh out of 6.43 lakh legacy discrepancy cases (87%), safeguarding the entitlements of defence pensioners.

About

• SPARSH is the world’s largest pension system for defence personnel. 
• The System for Pension Administration (Raksha) – SPARSH is an initiative of the Ministry of Defence aimed at providing a comprehensive digital solution for the administration of defence pensions.
• The system seeks to replace fragmented pension management with a centralized, transparent, and interactive platform, thereby reducing grievances and ensuring dignity for defence pensioners.
• At present, 202 Defence Accounts Department (DAD) offices, 4.63 lakh Common Service Centers, 5200+ bank branches functioning as SPARSH Service Centers.

SPARSH Seva Kendras

• The SPARSH Seva Kendras are points of contacts for the pensioners to avail the services that are available through the portal. 
• These centres will provide interface and assistance to the Pensioner in the event of non-availability to portal access.

Source: PIB

HQ IDS organises the Combined Operational Review and Evaluation (CORE) Programme

Syllabus: GS3/ Defence

Context

• The Combined Operational Review and Evaluation (CORE) Programme is being organised by Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (HQ IDS) at the United Service Institution of India, New Delhi.

About

• The initiative serves as a unique platform for civil-military engagement on national security, bringing together senior officers of the Indian Armed Forces along with officers from the ministries of Defence, External Affairs, and Home Affairs.
• The programme is designed to enhance strategic awareness and equip participating officers with fresh perspectives, enabling them to make pragmatic, well-informed, and balanced decisions in their future leadership roles.
• The Themes of CORE include:
  • Evolving regional and global security challenges, 
  • the impact of technological transformation on the nature of warfare, 
  • the importance of strategic communication, and 
  • the growing need for enhanced synergy between civil and military stakeholders in addressing complex and multidimensional threats.

Source: PIB

51st Foundation Day of Central Pollution Control Board

Syllabus: GS3/Environment

In News

• The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) celebrated its 51st Foundation Day.

About Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)

• It is a statutory organization established in September 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and later empowered under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. 
• It also supports the Ministry of Environment under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• CPCB’s primary functions include promoting the cleanliness of water bodies and improving air quality by preventing and controlling pollution. 
• To manage air quality, CPCB runs the National Air Monitoring Programme (NAMP) to track pollution trends and support planning and industrial regulation.
• It also operates an automated air quality monitoring station at ITO, New Delhi, regularly measuring pollutants 

Source :PIB

International Day of Sign Languages

Syllabus: Miscellaneous

Context

• The International Day of Sign Languages is observed on 23rd September every year to highlight the importance of sign language in ensuring the human rights of Deaf people worldwide.
• 23rd September marks the International Day of Sign Languages for promoting Deaf rights.
  • The UN defines sign languages as full natural languages, different from spoken ones. In India, Indian Sign Language (ISL) is used by both Deaf and hearing communities.

About International Day of Sign Languages

• The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), adopted in 2006, recognizes sign languages as equal to spoken languages and requires states to promote the linguistic identity of the Deaf community.
• India ratified this Convention in 2007, showing its commitment to upholding Deaf people’s rights and promoting Indian Sign Language.
• The day was first celebrated in 2018 as part of the International Week of the Deaf. The date also commemorates the establishment of the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) in 1951.
• This year’s theme, “No Human Rights Without Sign Language Rights,” emphasizes that the recognition and use of sign languages are essential for ensuring human rights for Deaf people.

Do you know?

• According to the WFD, there are over 70 million Deaf people worldwide, and more than 80% of them live in developing countries.
• In India, the 2011 Census recorded about 50 lakh Deaf persons.

Source: AIR