NATIONAL NEWS

PM Modi chairs High-level meeting

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting with all three service chiefs of Army, Air Force, and Navy in New Delhi amid escalating India-Pakistan tension.

STATE SPECIAL NEWS

‘UP AGREES’ and ‘AI Pragya’

• Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath met World Bank president Ajay Banga in Lucknow and launched two initiatives ‘UP AGREES’ and ‘AI Pragya’ which are related to agricultural innovation and digital transformation in the State.

Uttar Pradesh

Punjab’s ‘farishtey’ scheme

• Cabinet meeting chaired by CM Bhagwant Mann took decision to include People affected by war and terrorism under Punjab’s ‘farishtey’ scheme, which was originally aimed at providing free treatment to accident victims to provide immediate, hassle-free treatment to victims of war and terrorist activities, at government and empanelled private hospitals in the State.

Punjab

72nd Edition of Miss World pageant

• The grand inaugural event of the 72nd edition of the Miss World pageant was held at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• This is for the first time in Miss World’s 73-year history that a country hosts the pageant for two consecutive years, following the 71st edition held in Mumbai in March last year.

Telangana

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

IMF's $1-Billion Bailout For Pakistan

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) cleared a $1-billion tranche for Pakistan as part of its $7-billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) lending program and $1.3 billion tranche under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) in its board meeting.
• India abstained from voting in the meeting as it raised concerns over the efficacy of IMF programmes for Pakistan given its “poor track record” and also on the possibility of “misuse of debt financing funds for state-sponsored cross-border terrorism”.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

France-Poland treaty

• France and Poland signed a new cooperation and friendship treaty with a defence clause committing the parties to mutual support in case of an attack by an aggressor in the eastern French city of Nancy by French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

France

ECONOMY & BANKING

India gets upgraded to ‘BBB’

• The global sovereign credit rating agency, Morningstar DBRS, upgraded India’s Long-Term Foreign and Local Currency – Issuer Ratings from BBB (low) to BBB with a Stable trend.
• India’s Short-Term Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Ratings were also upgraded to R-2 (high) from R-2 (middle) with a Stable trend.

India and New Zealand FTA negotiations

• · The first round of negotiations for the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) concluded in New Delhi.

Major India’s FTAs already signed and operational

India-Chile CEPA

• India and Chile signed the Terms of Reference (ToR) for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), marking a significant advancement in their bilateral trade relations.

Chile

Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS)

• The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry has notified the expansion of the CGSS which increases the ceiling on guarantee cover per borrower under the Scheme from Rs. 10 crore to Rs. 20 crore.
• The extent of guarantee cover provided has also been increased to 85% of the amount in default for loan amount up to Rs. 10 crore and 75% of the amount in default for loan amount exceeding Rs. 10 crore.

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Lupus Day

• World Lupus Day is celebrated every year on May 10 which highlights the global impact of the systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a more severe form of lupus.
• Official theme for World Lupus Day 2025 is “Belonging. Belief. Breakthroughs.”

RANKS, REPORTS & INDICES

23rd Annual South Asia Press Freedom Report 2024-25

• According to the 23rd Annual South Asia Press Freedom Report 2024-25, titled “Frontline Democracy: Media and Political Churn” Indian media “has been shackled and subjected to a systemic strategy to cripple it.

Sample Registration System (SRS) Report 2021

• Sample Registration System (SRS) Report 2021 released by the Registrar General of India (RGI), on 07th May, 2025, India has continued to witness a significant improvement in key maternal and child health indicators.
• Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) of the country has shown a marked reduction, declining by 37 points from 130 per lakh live births in 2014–16 to 93 in 2019–21.

Registrar General of India

ENVIRONMENT + SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

UNFF20

• India participated in the 20th session of the United Nations Forum on Forests (UNFF20), held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
• India also hosted a side event on “Restoring Degraded Forest Landscapes: India’s Approach to Sustainable Forest Management and Climate Resilience.”

United Nations Forum on Forests

Himalayan plastic waste

• According to the Zero Waste Himalaya Alliance, Single-use food and beverage packaging forms more than 84% of the plastic waste in the eco-sensitive Himalayan region.
• Among the nine Himalayan States targeted in 2025, Sikkim generated the most trash items. This was followed by West Bengal’s Darjeeling with 36,180 items audited across 37 sites.

Himalaya

Eco-friendly lubricant

• Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), Guwahati, an autonomous institute of Department of Science and Technology, formulated a lubricant formulation by integrating surface-modified graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) into bio-based castor oil which is an environmentally friendly lubricant formulation that significantly enhances friction reduction, wear resistance, and overall performance.

Zero-Emission Trucking

• Prof. Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India released a report on India’s Priority Corridors for Zero-Emission Trucking which is Developed with the support of Centre of Excellence for Zero Emission Trucking (CoEZET) - IIT Madras, Rocky Mountain Institute, and pManifold as knowledge partners.

BOOKS & AUTHOURS

Janta Ki Kahani Meri Aatmkatha

• Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar released the book 'Janta Ki Kahani - Meri Autobiography' based on the life of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya.

DEFENCE NEWS

Centre empowers Chief of Army Staff

• Centre empowered Chief of Army Staff to call personnel of Territorial Army
• Central Government empowered Chief of the Army Staff Army Chief under Territorial Army Rule 1948 to call out every officer and personnel of the Territorial Army to provide for essential guard or for supporting and supplementing the regular army.

SPORTS

Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 Javelin Throw

• The inaugural edition of Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 javelin throw competition has been postponed until further notice due to escalating military tensions between India and Pakistan.

BCCI suspends IPL 2025

• The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the immediate suspension of the remainder of the ongoing IPL 2025 season for one week.

BCCI

Mohamed Afsal

• Mohamed Afsal broke Jinson Johnson’s 800m National record, clocking 1:45.61s, in the World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze-level athletics meet in Dubai.