- Recently, the Governor of Andhra Pradesh emphasized a critical gap in the nation’s political landscape at the first national conference on parliamentary and legislative committees on the empowerment of women.
- According to UN Women, only 27.2% of parliamentarians in single or lower houses are women, up from 11% in 1995.
- In India, women hold 14.7% of seats in Lok Sabha, but still far below the global average of 26.5% and ministerial representation is even lower, hovering around 10–11%.
- In State Assemblies, women’s representation varies widely, often falling below 10%.
- Chhattisgarh leads with 19 women MLAs, while Himachal Pradesh has just one, and Mizoram has none. Read More
Home / Daily Current Affairs / 16-09-2025
Daily Current Affairs – 16 September, 2025
PDF 
- The Supreme Court has upheld the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025 while striking down few provisions and balancing state regulation with minority rights.
- Practicing Islam: The Court’s most significant intervention concerns Section 3(r), which requires anyone creating a waqf to demonstrate they have been practising Islam for at least five years.
- The court stayed the provision until the government frames rules for determining religious practice.
- Collector’s Power Over Waqf Properties: Section 3C empowers the district collectors to determine whether properties claimed as waqf actually belong to the government. Read More
SC Upheld Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025
Context
Key changes SC has incorporated into the Act
- The Supreme Court declined to take into consideration a plea seeking to extend the ambit of the Protection of Women from Sexual Harassment at Workplace (POSH) Act to include political parties, observing that such organisations cannot be classified as workplaces under the law.
- In Centre for Constitutional Rights Research and Advocacy v State of Kerala & Ors (2022) the Kerala High Court ruled that political parties do not have a conventional employer-employee relationship and cannot be mandated to set up Internal Complaints Committees (ICCs).
- This ambiguity, combined with the decentralised and informal nature of political party structures, has often been cited as a reason for non-compliance. Read More
SC Rejects Plea to Bring Political Parties Under POSH Act
Context
Background
- The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has unveiled a proposed National Framework for Global Capability Centres (GCCs).
- Global In-house Centres or Captives (GICs) or Global Capability Centres (GCCs), are mainly offshore centres established by global level firms/MNCs to provide various services to their parent organisations.
- These centres operate as internal organisations within the global corporate structure, providing specialised solutions such as IT services, Research and Development (R&D), customer support and other business tasks.
- GCCs have evolved from being cost-saving centres that were largely set up to gain from lower labour costs to becoming strategic hubs that encourage innovation and lead to value creation, over the past couple of decades. Read More
CII Suggested Framework For a National Global Capability Centres (GCC) Policy
Context
What are Global Capability Centres?
- India has secured its first-ever global exploration contract from the International Seabed Authority (ISA) to explore polymetallic sulphide nodules in the Carlsberg Ridge.
- It is a 3,00,000-sq km stretch that lies in the Indian Ocean, specifically in the Arabian Sea and northwest Indian Ocean.
- It forms the boundary between the Indian and Arabian tectonic plates, extending from near Rodrigues Island to the Owen fracture zone. Read More
India Signed Contract with International Seabed Authority (ISA) for Polymetallic Sulphides (PMS)
In News
Carlsberg Ridge
- According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the country’s trade deficit contracted by more than 54% to $9.9 billion, compared to $21.7 billion in August 2024, due to a sharp rise in merchandise exports.
- If a country imports more goods and services from other countries than it exports to them, it is said to have a trade deficit.
- Trade Deficit weakens the domestic currency. Read More
Surging Exports Narrow India’s Trade Deficit
Context
What is Trade Deficit?
- The Defence Minister has approved the Defence Procurement Manual (DPM) 2025.
- It is a revised document aimed at expediting revenue procurements for the armed forces, simplifying processes for domestic industry and supporting innovation in defence manufacturing.
- It was last updated in 2009 and lays down principles and provisions for all revenue procurements in the Defence Ministry.
- The revised manual aligns with Finance Ministry guidelines and modern warfare needs, covering procurements worth nearly ₹1 lakh crore this year.
- It introduces a new chapter on indigenisation and innovation, encouraging collaboration among private firms, DPSUs, and institutions like IITs and IISc. Read More
Defence Procurement Manual 2025
In News
Defence Procurement Manual 2025
- The first India-Iran-Uzbekistan trilateral meeting was held in Tehran focusing on enhancing cooperation against extremism and terrorism and promoting the use of Chabahar Port by Uzbekistan for trade with India.
- They also emphasized deeper connectivity via the International North-South Transit Corridor (INSTC).
- India-Iran-Armenia also held a trilateral focusing on INSTC and Chabahar use. Kazakhstan and Tajikistan have shown interest in using Chabahar, while India is pursuing an early harvest FTA with the Eurasian Economic Union to boost trade and access rare earth minerals from the region. Read More
