News In Short 09-12-2025

Hornbill Festival at Kisama Village

Syllabus: GS1/ Culture

Context

• The eighth day of the 26th Edition of the Hornbill Festival 2025 commenced with a vibrant ‘Cultural Connect’, in Nagaland.

About Hornbill Festival

• Overview: It is held annually in the first week of December at Kisama near Kohima, and is a vibrant cultural showcase of all Naga tribes. It is often cited as “festival of all festivals”.
  • It was conceived in 2000 to promote unity and preserve ethnic heritage.
• Traditional Performances: Akoina Lin, Kha Kiaklak Rhimo, Tainang Jong Paihi Ai, Akikiti, sang lolong pe, Gando Makkal Pala, Tholi Keva etc.
• Participating communities: Sangtam, Rengma, Tseminyu, Pochury, Phom, Lotha, Kuki, Angami, Kachari, Garo, Chang, Chakhesang, Ao and Konyak.

Source: TH

Serendipity Arts Festival

Syllabus: GS1/Culture

In News

• The Old GMC Complex in Panjim, Goa, a heritage building dating back to the 1800s and formerly one of Asia’s oldest medical institutions, now serves as a key cultural venue for the Serendipity Arts Festival (SAF).

Serendipity Arts Festival (SAF)

• Serendipity Arts Festival is a multidisciplinary Festival that brings together performative, visual and culinary practices from India and beyond in ways unseen before. It aims to energise arts production, awareness and practice across South Asia.
• It also highlights local culture through performances and culinary experiences, such as percussion music celebrating Goan ghumat, immersive tavern-inspired dining, and tastings showcasing Goan culinary traditions from diverse communities.
• Serendipity Arts Festival (SAF) emphasizes dialogue across art forms, connecting local history, contemporary voices, and global perspectives.

Source :IE

Parliament Passes Central Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2025 to Raise Tobacco Duties

Syllabus: GS2/ Polity and Governance

Context

• The Parliament passed the Central Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2025 with the Rajya Sabha approving and returning it to the Lok Sabha.

About

• The Bill seeks to amend the Central Excise Act, 1944. The Act provides for the levy and collection of central excise duties on goods manufactured or produced in India.  
• Central excise duties on many items were repealed with the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017, except for certain items such as tobacco and tobacco products.
• Tobacco and tobacco products continue to face a three-layered taxation structure comprising GST, GST compensation cess, and central excise duty.

Key Provisions of the Bill

• The Bill increases central excise duty on unmanufactured tobacco, manufactured tobacco, tobacco products, and tobacco substitutes.
  • Unmanufactured tobacco (such as sun-cured tobacco leaves) from 64% to 70%.
  • Chewing tobacco: From 25% to 100%.
  • Hookah or gudaku tobacco: From 25% to 40%.
  • Smoking mixtures for pipes and cigarettes: From 60% to 325%.
• Cigarettes: Current duty under the Act ranges from ₹200 to ₹735 per 1,000 cigarettes.
  • The Bill proposes a significant increase to ₹2,700 to ₹11,000 per 1,000 cigarettes.

Source: AIR

Thailand-Cambodia Conflict

Syllabus: GS2/IR

In News

• Recently, Thailand launched airstrikes on Cambodian military targets.

Background 

• The conflict centers on a long-standing territorial dispute dating back to colonial-era border demarcations made by France in 1907. 
• At the heart of the dispute is the Preah Vihear temple, a culturally significant 11th–12th century Khmer shrine claimed by both countries. 
• Though the International Court of Justice affirmed Cambodian sovereignty in 1962 and again in 2013, Thailand has rejected the rulings, and the area remains heavily militarized.

Source:IE

UPI Recognized as World’s Largest Real-Time Payment System by IMF

Syllabus: GS3/Economy

In News

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) report on ‘Growing Retail Digital Payments (The Value of Interoperability)’ dated June 2025 had recognized Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as the world’s largest retail fast-payment system (FPS) by transaction volume.

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) 

• It is a system that empowers users to add multiple bank and other allowed accounts (of any participating bank) into a UPI App, merging several banking features, seamless fund routing & merchant payments under one hood.
• The pilot launch on UPI was done on 11th April 2016 by Dr. Raghuram G Rajan, Governor, RBI at Mumbai.

Progress and Steps

• UPI accounts for about 49% of global real-time payment transactions, far surpassing other international platforms.
• Digital transactions through RuPay and UPI are being expanded nationwide across multiple sectors, including public services, transportation, and e-commerce.
  • Countries with operational or planned interoperability include: Singapore (PayNow), UAE, France, Nepal, Bhutan, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and others.

Source :PIB

EU Fine on X

Syllabus: GS3/Cybersecurity

Context

• Elon Musk-owned X was fined 120 million euro ($140 million) by the European Union for violating its transparency rules under the Digital Services Act (DSA).
• It is the first time that the EU has used its toughest enforcement power under the law.

About the DSA

• The Digital Services Act is a comprehensive European Union regulatory framework that fundamentally transforms how online platforms and digital intermediaries operate. 
• It entered into force in 2022 and became fully applicable and enforceable in 2024. 
• The DSA aims to create a safer, fairer, and more transparent online environment across the European Union.
• The most stringent obligations apply to Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs).
  • They are defined as services with more than 45 million monthly active users in the EU. 
  • The European Commission has designated 19 such services as of 2025, including Amazon Store, Apple AppStore, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Google Search, Microsoft Bing, Wikipedia, and others.
• Penalties: The maximum financial penalty for violations is 6% of the platform’s global annual turnover in the previous year.
  • For serious and repeated infringements, regulators may temporarily restrict platform access within the EU or suspend operations entirely.

Source: IE

International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA)

Syllabus: GS3/ Environment

In News

• The Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change addressed a high-level meeting of the Collaborative Initiative for Big Cat Conservation under the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) in New Delhi.

About International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA)

• Launched by India in 2023 to facilitate global cooperation for conservation of seven big cat species:
  • Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Cheetah, Jaguar, and Puma.
  • Out of the seven big cats under IBCA, five are found in India: Tiger, Lion, Leopard, Snow Leopard & Cheetah (reintroduced from Namibia, South Africa & Botswana since 2022).
• Open to 97 “range countries” where these big cats are found.
• Aims to mobilise global knowledge, resources, and best practices to protect big cats and their ecosystems.
• India has committed ₹2,000 crore (approx.) for initial funding over 5 years.

Source: AIR