1 Suhani Shah became the first Indian to win the ‘Best Magic Creator’ award
Indian female magician and mentalist Suhani Shah has created history. She has won the FISM (World Championship of Magic) award, which is called the ‘ Oscar of the world of magic ‘. Suhani Shah is one of India’s most famous mentalists and magicians, who started her career in the field of magic at the age of seven and started doing shows at such a young age. Suhani Shah has given more than 5,000 live performances so far.
2 PM Modi arrives in London on first leg of his visit to UK, Maldives
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in London, United Kingdom . He is on an official visit to the United Kingdom from 23rd to 24th July. During the visit, PM Modi will hold wide-ranging talks with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the entire gamut of India-UK bilateral relations. They will also exchange views on issues of regional and global importance. The two sides will also review the progress of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) with a special focus on trade and economy, technology and innovation, defence and security, climate, health, education and people-to-people ties. This is the Prime Minister’s fourth visit to the United Kingdom since assuming office. He has previously visited the UK in 2015 and 2018, and also visited the UK in 2021 for the COP26 Summit held in Glasgow. In the second leg of the visit, Mr Modi will pay a State visit to Maldives from 25th to 26th July at the invitation of Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu to mark the 60th anniversary of Maldives’ independence .
3 Prasar Bharati invites media to avail free news services from its platform PB-SHABD
Prasar Bharati has invited all newspapers, magazines and TV channels in India to register on its newswire platform, Prasar Bharati Shared Audio Visuals for Broadcast and Dissemination (PB-SHABD) . This will provide them free access to high quality news and multimedia content . The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting gave this information in a statement on Wednesday. PB-SHABD was launched in March 2024. P-SHABD provides more than 800 news stories daily in various Indian languages, covering more than 40 diverse categories. The platform also includes live feeds of major national and international events, a rich collection of visual content and regularly published explanatory and research-based articles. All content is made available in a ready-to-use format, making it easy for media organizations and content creators to access.
4 America announced its withdrawal from UNESCO
The United States has announced its withdrawal from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) . The US has accused UNESCO of supporting divisive cultural and social issues . UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay has described the decision as unfortunate and said that this was bound to happen. This move is the latest in the Trump administration’s efforts to break ties with international organizations. Earlier, the US had withdrawn from the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Agreement and cut the amount given for foreign relief efforts. UNESCO has 194 member countries in the world and is known for listing World Heritage Sites. This decision of the US will be effective from December 2026. The US had also left UNESCO during President Trump’s first term in 2017, but President Joe Biden’s administration later reversed this decision.
5 Election for the post of Vice President – Process started by Election Commission of India
The Ministry of Home Affairs has notified the resignation of Vice President Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar through its Gazette Notification SO3354(E) dated July 22, 2025. The Election Commission of India is empowered to conduct election for the office of Vice President under Article 324. The election for the office of Vice President is governed by the Presidential and Vice Presidential Elections Act, 1952 and the rules made thereunder, namely, the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election Rules, 1974. Accordingly, the Election Commission of India has already started preparations for the Vice Presidential Election, 2025. On completion of the preparatory activities, the schedule for the election for the post of Vice President will be announced as early as possible.
6 Aadi Thiruvathirai Festival to be celebrated from 23rd to 27th July at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, Tamil Nadu
The country’s Culture Ministry is all set to celebrate the birth anniversary of the great Chola emperor Rajendra Chola I with the Aadi Thiruvathirai Festival to be held from 23rd to 27th July 2025 at Gangaikonda Cholapuram in Tamil Nadu . This special festival also commemorates the completion of 1,000 years of Rajendra Chola’s legendary sea voyage to Southeast Asia and the beginning of the construction of the iconic Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple , a magnificent example of Chola architecture . The five-day festival, starting from 23rd July , will feature live cultural performances every evening. Visitors will witness Bharatanatyam performances by artists from the Kalakshetra Foundation and enjoy Devaram Thirumurai chanting by trained students of the South Zone Cultural Centre in Thanjavur—both of which reflect the deep spiritual and artistic traditions that flourished during the Chola rule. The Aadi Thiruvathirai festival also celebrates the rich Tamil Saivite devotional tradition, which was ardently supported by the Cholas and immortalised by the 63 Nayanmars – the saint-poets of Tamil Shaivism. It is noteworthy that Rajendra Chola’s birth nakshatra, Thiruvathirai (Ardra), begins on July 23, making this year’s festival even more significant.
7 Goa Shipyard Limited launched indigenous pollution control vessel ‘Samudra Prachet’
The last of the two indigenous pollution control vessels (PCVs) built by Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), ‘ Samudra Prachet’, was launched for the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in Goa on Wednesday . The vessel project has contributed significantly to national capacity building, employment generation and skill enhancement through active participation of local industry and MSMEs with 72% indigenous content. According to the Ministry of Defence, the ship, measuring 114.5 metres in length, 16.5 metres in width and 4,170 tonnes displacement, will have a complement of 14 officers and 115 sailors. It is fitted with two side-sweeping arms, capable of controlling oil spills while on the move. The vessel also has a modern radar system for detecting oil spills. The vessel is designed to extract oil across the entire viscosity spectrum, pump out contaminated water, analyse and segregate pollutants and store extracted oil in dedicated onboard tanks. At the same time, the first pollution control vessel ‘ Samudra Pratap ‘ was launched on August 29, 2024 and is expected to be handed over soon.
8 Non-performing assets of public sector banks reduced by more than 6.5% in five years
In a significant financial disclosure, the Finance Ministry recently informed the Rajya Sabha that public sector banks (PSBs) have written off non-performing assets (NPAs) worth over ₹12 lakh crore between FY16 and 2025. Though such a large number of loans have been written off, efforts are still on to recover the loans under various legal means. Along with this, a massive recruitment process is underway for 48,570 posts in public sector banks, which is considered to be a major development in the banking sector. This development is particularly relevant for competitive exams related to economy, banking and governance.
9 ADB estimates: India’s economy will grow at 6.5% in 2025, 6.7% in 2026
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Wednesday that India’s GDP could grow at a rate of 6.5 percent in 2025 and 6.7 percent in 2026. This is due to strong domestic demand and easing of monetary policy . ADB said in a statement that inflation could be 3.8 percent this year and 4 percent in 2026, which is in line with the limit set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The statement further said that the decline in food inflation in India has also helped in controlling core inflation. Due to food inflation turning negative, Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation fell to 2.1 percent in June, the lowest in 77 months. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said earlier this month that India’s real GDP growth rate is estimated to be between 6.4-6.7 percent this fiscal year, strengthening the country’s position as the fastest growing major economy in the world.
10 India’s economy will be the third largest globally by 2028: Morgan Stanley
India’s economy will be the third largest globally by 2028 and will more than double to $10.6 trillion by 2035. The Morgan Stanley report says Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka will have economies worth about $1 trillion and will be among the top 20 global economies between 2030 and 2035. The states that have shown significant improvement in rankings in the last five years are Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The report also says India will account for a fifth of global growth in the coming decade and will become essential to the earnings growth of many multinational companies. The role of India’s 28 states and eight union territories is, among other things, crucial to achieving this outcome.
11 Delhi government increased the cash prize money for medal winners
The Delhi government has drastically increased the cash awards for Olympic and Paralympic medal winners , aimed at promoting sporting excellence and empowering the youth. The decision has been taken under the recently launched “ Mukhyamantri Khel Protsahan Yojana ” which aims to recognise and honour sporting talent at the international level. Through this initiative, the government is working towards motivating talented sportspersons and developing Delhi as a sports hub. Earlier, Olympic gold medal winners in Delhi were given an incentive of ₹3 crore, which has now been increased to ₹7 crore. ₹5 crore for silver medal and ₹3 crore for bronze medal . Grade A government jobs to Olympic gold and silver medal winners. ₹3 crore for gold medal in Asian and Para Asian Games, ₹2 crore for silver and ₹1 crore for bronze.
12 National Broadcasting Day 2025
National Broadcasting Day , which is celebrated every year on July 23 , commemorates the beginning of organised radio broadcasting in India. It is the day when the foundation of formal radio service was laid in the country with the establishment of the Indian Broadcasting Company (IBC) in 1927. The day celebrates the historic role of All India Radio, which has contributed significantly to mass communication, education and strengthening national integration. However, the first radio transmission in India was made by the Bombay Radio Club in June 1923 .