National News

NAKSHA Programme

• The Department of Land Resources (DoLR) under the Ministry of Rural Development launched the second batch of Phase 2 of the capacity-building programme under the NAKSHA initiative at four Centres of Excellence (CoEs) across the country on 16th June 2025.

NAKSHA Programme:

Section 3 of the Census Act, 1948

• The Central Government, exercising its powers under Section 3 of the Census Act, 1948, has formally notified the conduct of the upcoming decennial Census to be held in 2027.
• The new notification issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs replaces the earlier order issued in March 2019, which had specified the timeline for conducting the Census.

Census in India:

Approval for Establishment of FRA Cells

• The Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs has approved the establishment of 324 district-level FRA Cells and 17 state-level FRA Cells under the Dharti Aaba Tribal Village Utkars Abhiyan for the effective and facilitative implementation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA).

India State of Forest Report 2023 :

State Special News

Launch of Mini Bus Scheme: Tamil Nadu

• The Tamil Nadu Government launched its much-awaited Comprehensive Mini Bus Scheme on 16th June 2025.
• The objective of the scheme is to improve last-mile connectivity of public transportation in urban and rural areas.

Tamil Nadu:

First Gaddar Telangana Film Awards Ceremony

• Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy felicitated winners across various categories at the first Gaddar Telangana Film Awards Ceremony held at HITEX, Hyderabad.
• This awards ceremony has been initiated by the State Government in memory of the renowned revolutionary singer Gaddar, and is meant to honour films and artists associated with Telangana that have emerged after the formation of the state in 2014.

Related Facts:

ISRO Conducts First Rocket Launching Test in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh

• For the first time, ISRO successfully conducted a rocket launching test in Kushinagar district, Uttar Pradesh, near Janglipatti village in the Tamkuhi Raj tehsil.
• This historic test was carried out in collaboration with Thrust Tech India Private Limited, where a 15 kg model rocket was launched from a field. The rocket reached an altitude of 1.1 kilometers during the flight.

Uttar Pradesh :

Sports News

WTT Contender Skopje 2025

• Indian table tennis players Manav Thakkar and Manush Shah finished runners-up in the men's doubles final of the WTT Contender Skopje 2025 held in North Macedonia, losing 0-3 to Jonghoon Lim and Junsung Oh of South Korea.

Four Grand Slams of Tennis:

Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) 2025

• The Mumbai-based franchise team U Mumba Table Tennis (U Mumba TT) clinched their first-ever UTT title by defeating Jaipur Patriots with a score of 8–4 in the final of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) 2025, held at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad.

Related Facts:

Honours and Awards

Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi was conferred the Grand Cross of the Order of Makarios III, the highest civilian honour of the Republic of Cyprus.
• The award was presented by President Nikos Christodoulides of Cyprus during the Prime Minister's official visit to the country.

Republic of Cyprus *:

Economy and Banking

Operating Profit Margins of Indian Companies

• According to a report released by credit rating agency ICRA, the operating profit margins of Indian companies are expected to rise by 10 to 40 basis points to reach around 18.2%–18.5% in the first quarter of FY 2026 (April–June).
• This improvement is expected to continue the sequential recovery trend observed over the past few quarters.

Related Facts:

Person In News

Amitabh Kant

• India’s G20 Sherpa, Amitabh Kant, resigned from his position on 16th June 2025.
• He was appointed as India’s G20 Sherpa in July 2022 during the country’s presidency of the G20.

Group of Twenty (G20):

Blaze Metreweli

• Blaze Metreweli has been appointed as the first female Chief of the United Kingdom's intelligence agency, the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6).
• She will succeed the current chief, Richard Moore, who has held the position since 2020.

Related Facts:

Arun Srinivas

• Meta has appointed Arun Srinivas as the new Managing Director and Head for India. He will officially assume charge from 1st July 2025.
• Arun Srinivas has been leading Meta’s advertising business in India since 2020, and in his new role, he will oversee all operations in India, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Meta AI.

Miscellaneous

"The Stars Light the Way"

• Singapore-based life coach Sucheta Raj Khanna presents a beautiful blend of emotion, politics, and spiritual reflection in her debut novel, "The Stars Light the Way."
• The book portrays the inspiring journey of a woman who rediscovers her true self at one of the most challenging turning points of her life.

HelpAge India Report

• On the occasion of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD), HelpAge India released a first-of-its-kind study, which found that traditional values and intergenerational relationships between the youth and the elderly are significantly stronger in non-metro cities (small towns and semi-urban areas) as compared to metropolitan cities.

Statistics on elder abuse: