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Daily Current Affairs – 18 December, 2025

    India-Oman Trade and Investment Ties Deepen

    Context

  • India and Oman have signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
  • This is the first bilateral agreement that Oman has signed with any country since the United States of America in 2006.

    • Major Highlights

  • FTA: Negotiations for the agreement began officially in 2023.
  • In FTAs two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on a maximum number of goods traded between them. 
  • They also ease norms to promote trade in services and attract investments.
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    Supreme Court Clarifies Aravalli Boundaries, Regulates Mining

    Context

  • The Supreme Court, in a recent order, settled on a uniform definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges, and paused the grant of fresh mining leases across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat.

    • Significance of the Aravalli Range

  • The Aravalli Range, stretching over approximately 692 kilometres (430 miles) in a northeastern direction, traverses the Indian states of Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Haryana before culminating in Delhi, is the oldest mountain range in India.
  • Rajasthan accounts for nearly two-thirds of the mountain range.
  • It acts as a critical ecological barrier preventing the eastward expansion of the Thar Desert into Haryana, Rajasthan, and western Uttar Pradesh.
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    India Tops Global Doping Violations: WADA Report 2024

    In News

  • The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Report 2024 has ranked India as the worst doping offender globally for the third consecutive year, recording 260 Adverse Analytical Findings (AAFs) with a positivity rate of 3.6%.

    • About

  • In contrast, countries such as China (0.2%), France (0.8%), Russia (0.7%) and the US (1.1%) recorded far lower positivity rates despite wider testing programs.
  • This comes at a crucial time when India is preparing to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games and bidding for the 2036 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has expressed concerns over India’s doping record, flagging it as a reputational and governance risk.
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    How India’s Science and Technology Ecosystem Strengthened in 2025

    Context

  • India’s science and technology (S&T) landscape witnessed significant momentum in 2025, marked by improved global rankings, large-scale funding for research and innovation, and advances in frontier technologies.

    • Rising global standing in science and innovation

  • It secured the 38th position in the Global Innovation Index 2025, reflecting steady progress among the world’s most innovative economies.
  • The country ranked 6th globally in intellectual property filings, underlining growing innovation output, and improved sharply in the Network Readiness Index, rising from 79th in 2019 to 49th in 2024.
  • India also placed third globally in research publications, reinforcing its expanding academic and scientific footprint.
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    News In Short 18-12-2025

    Context

  • Ice cores from the Pamir Mountains are being studied to understand why its glaciers have resisted melting despite global warming.

    • What is the Pamir–Karakoram Anomaly?

  • It refers to the unusual behaviour of glaciers in parts of the Pamir and Karakoram ranges.
  • Unlike most glaciers worldwide, these glaciers have:
  • Shown resistance to melting, and
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