Pope Francis dies

1 Pope Francis dies

Pope Francis  died on Monday morning. He died   at his residence in Casa Santa Marta in the  Vatican . He was 88 years old and suffered from many diseases during his 12-year tenure. Francis was constantly suffering from lung disease. In his youth, a part of one of his lungs was removed. The Government of India has announced three days of state mourning in honor of Pope Francis, the supreme pastor of Christians  .

2 Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development awarded Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration (Innovation Category) for Poshan Tracker App

Shri Anil Malik,  Secretary,  Ministry of Women and Child Development received the Prime Minister’s Award for  Excellence in Public Administration  (Innovation Category)  from   the Prime Minister  , Shri Narendra Modi  . The award was presented to him for his groundbreaking Poshan Tracker App that has revolutionised nutrition service delivery across the country. Poshan Tracker is a mobile based application used by Anganwadi workers to provide instant data on delivery of nutrition and child care services.

3 Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh’s Brazil visit was important in many ways

4 WEF 2025 Young Global Leaders: 7 Indians honoured, including Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu and OYO’s Ritesh Agarwal

For the first time,  the famous  Surya Kiran Aerobatic Team  of the Indian Air Force is going to host  an exciting  air show   in Patna, the capital of Bihar . The show  will be held on  22 and 23 April  at Jannayak Ganga Path , an attractive spot located on  the banks of the river Ganga  . The purpose of this event is to promote the spirit of patriotism, showcase the strength of the Air Force and inspire the youth to pursue a career in the Indian Air Force. In this show,  the Surya Kiran team will perform amazing aerial stunts in the sky with its nine Hawk-132 jet aircraft.  The program will begin with the national anthem and flypast. After this, the Surya Kiran team will pay aerial tribute to the heroes of the 1857 revolution. This program is going to be a historic experience for the youth and the general public. On April 22, this program will be dedicated exclusively to school and college students. On April 23, the event will be celebrated as ‘Shaurya Diwas’, which is the birth anniversary of freedom fighter Babu Veer Kunwar Singh.

6 Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal led the launch ceremony of cruise operations from MICT, India’s largest cruise terminal in Mumbai

Union Minister for Ports, Shipping, Shipping and Waterways  Shri Sarbananda Sonowal  flagged  off cruise operations from Mumbai International Cruise Terminal (MICT) ,  India’s largest cruise terminal  in  Mumbai  . The Union Minister also inaugurated the renovated Fire Memorial at Victoria Docks as well as two heritage buildings in Colaba – Fort House Ballard Estate and Evelyn House. Shri Sonowal also inaugurated Sagar Upvan Garden along with Shore to Ship Electric Supply under the Green Port initiative.

Recently,  a new type  of diabetes – Type 5  diabetes  – has been officially recognised . The cause of  this new  type 5 diabetes  is not linked to obesity but to malnutrition.  At the annual meeting of the International Diabetes Federation Congress held in Bangkok, Thailand from 7 to 10 April 2025  , the disease was officially recognised as Type 5 diabetes or maturity-onset diabetes of youth. The official recognition of the disease is expected to pave the way for better treatment of patients suffering from type 5 diabetes. Type 5 diabetes was first identified in Jamaica in 1955. The World Health Organization (WHO) classified the disease as bronchoconstrictor pancreatic diabetes and protein-deficiency pancreatic diabetes. However, the WHO stopped officially recognising this classification in 1999 due to lack of evidence. According to the WHO, it did not find any evidence to prove that malnutrition or protein deficiency causes diabetes. At the Bangkok conference, experts agreed that malnutrition causes diabetes, and they agreed to recognise type 5 diabetes as a non-communicable disease.

8 India will bring  cheetahs from Botswana under Project Cheetah

The Madhya Pradesh government  has announced that India will soon  bring  eight cheetahs from Botswana   under  its Project Cheetah and  relocate them to the forests of  Madhya Pradesh . The Indian government is also planning to bring more cheetahs from  Kenya and South Africa  and relocate them to India. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Dr Mohan Yadav  released  two cheetahs from Kuno National Park to Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary on  20 April 2025.  Cheetahs are found in their natural habitat only in Africa and Iran in the world. The Indian government is relocating cheetahs from African countries to India under its Project Cheetah. The Indian government officially   declared  cheetah as an extinct animal in 1952. According to  the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)  , cheetahs will be brought from Botswana in two phases . In the first phase, four cheetahs will be brought to India in May 2025. In the second phase, four more cheetahs will be brought to India in the next months. NTCA, under the Union Ministry of Forest, Environment and Climate Change, is the implementing agency of Project Cheetah. The cheetahs  will be released in the Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary  located in  Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh  . So far, cheetahs brought from Namibia and South Africa   have been transferred to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.

9 Banarasi Shehnai and other 20 traditional products of UP got GI tag; UP is number 1 in India in GI tagging

In April 2025,  Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi  presented  Geographical Indication (GI) certificates to 21 traditional products of Uttar Pradesh  (UP)  . They  included the Banarasi Shehnai, a traditional musical instrument  that is deeply rooted in the cultural heritage of Varanasi, as well as  the Banarasi Tabla and Banarasi Stuffed Mirchi . PM Narendra Modi handed over the GI certificate for Banarasi Shehnai to  Ramesh Kumar,  a renowned artisan of Banaras or Varanasi (also known as Kashi)  , during a public event in Mehndi Ganj, UP. With this recognition,  UP surpassed Tamil Nadu (TN) and  became the Indian state with the highest number of GI tags, with  77 GI-certified products.  Since the enactment of the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 in 2003, this was the first time in India that  GI certificates for 21 products were distributed by the Prime Minister at a single event  . 9 of the 21 recipients are from Varanasi (UP), highlighting the cultural and artisanal richness of the city. UP, in particular, has 32 GI tags in the Varanasi region alone, making it a global hub for GI-recognised goods.

10 Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis inaugurates Amravati airport, announces South-East Asia’s largest pilot training institute

In April 2025, Maharashtra Chief Minister (CM)  Devendra Fadnavis  inaugurated   the  Amravati Airport  in   Belora , Vidarbha , Maharashtra  . The airport is being operated by Alliance Air  . He  also flagged off the first flight from Amravati to Mumbai under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)- Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN)  . Union Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), Union Minister of State (MoS) Murlidhar Mohol, MoCA and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar were also present at the event.

11 India and 62 other countries agree on world’s first global carbon tax on shipping industry

In April 2025,  India and 62 other countries  have  agreed on the world’s first global carbon tax  by bringing commercial shipping  under its ambit  to tackle  greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the sector  . The landmark decision  was taken after a vote at the  United Nations (UN)-backed  International Maritime Organization (IMO)  headquarters in London, United Kingdom (UK). A total of 63 countries, including India, Brazil, China, European Union (EU), Japan, South Africa, Singapore, voted in favour of the new carbon pricing mechanism on the shipping industry, while major oil-producing countries such as Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Russia and Venezuela voted against it.

12 SBI and HDFC Bank to be among world’s top 100 banks by assets in 2025: S&P Global

In April 2025,  S&P Global Market Intelligence released its latest annual ranking of   the world’s 100 largest banks   by assets to showcase financial powerhouses across the globe . Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based State Bank of India (SBI)  and Mumbai-based  HDFC Bank Ltd.  are the only two Indian banks to  feature in the world’s top 100 largest banks by assets  . SBI climbed 4 spots to 43rd position  , while  HDFC Bank climbed 1 spot to 73rd position  , marking India’s only representation on the prestigious list. The rankings done by S&P Global Market Intelligence evaluate the world’s largest banks by total assets as of the end of the year 2024. The data reflects the impact of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and other restructuring activities on global banking institutions.

13 SBI Card in association with Tata Digital launches ‘Tata New SBI Card’

In April 2025,  Gurugram (Haryana)  -based  SBI Cards and Payment Services Limited  (SBICPSL), a   subsidiary of  State Bank of India (SBI) , in collaboration with Mumbai (Maharashtra)  -based  Tata Digital Private Limited  launched the ‘ Tata New SBI Card ‘, a co-branded credit card. The card is available in two variants: Tata New Infinity SBI Card and Tata New Plus SBI Card, which offer rewards in NewCoins redeemable on the Tata New application (app). Both variants are available on RuPay and Visa networks.

14 Shooting: Simranpreet Kaur Brar of India won silver medal in ISSF World Cup

Simranpreet Kaur Brar  of  India   has won  a silver medal in the International Shooting Sports Federation- ISSF World Cup .  Simranpreet   won her first senior international medal in  the women’s 25 meter pistol event in Lima, Peru . China’s Sun Yuji  won the gold medal in this event. This is Yuji’s second consecutive World Cup gold medal. China’s Yao Qian Sun won the bronze medal.  Manu Bhaker, who won two medals in the Paris Olympics, finished fourth  . This is India’s fourth silver medal in this World Cup. India has so far won two gold and one bronze medal in this competition.