Daily Current Affairs- 8th March 2025

Daily Current Affairs 8th March 2025

National 

PM Modi Receives Honorary Award From Barbados

In the News: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been conferred with the 'Honorary Order of Freedom of Barbados' award.

• Award Presentation: The award was presented by Barbados President Dame Sandra Mason at a ceremony in Bridgetown. Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Textiles, Pabitra Margherita, accepted the award on behalf of Prime Minister Modi.
• Recognition: This honour acknowledges Prime Minister Modi's strategic leadership and significant assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Announcement: The award was announced by Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley during her meeting with Prime Minister Modi on November 20, 2024, at the 2nd India-CARICOM Leaders’ Summit in Georgetown, Guyana.
• Diplomatic Relations: India and Barbados have maintained diplomatic relations since 1966, characterized by continuous engagement and development initiatives.

International 

Tahawwur Rana’s extradition to India from US

In the News: The United States Supreme Court recently denied Tahawwur Rana's plea to stay his extradition to India, where he faces charges related to the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

• Identity: Tahawwur Hussain Rana is a Pakistani-Canadian citizen and former military doctor in the Pakistan Army.
• 2008 Mumbai Attacks: Rana is accused of assisting his childhood friend, David Coleman Headley, in conducting reconnaissance missions for the attacks that resulted in 166 fatalities.
• Prior Convictions: In 2011, a U.S. court convicted Rana for supporting the terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba and for involvement in a plot against a Danish newspaper, leading to a 14-year prison sentence.  

Extradition Proceedings:

• Approval: In February 2025, S. President Donald Trump announced the approval of Rana's extradition to India.
• Legal Challenges: Rana filed an emergency application to stay the extradition, citing potential risks due to his Pakistani origin. However, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected this plea in March 2025.  

Current Status:

• Extradition Process: Following the Supreme Court's decision, India is collaborating with U.S. authorities to finalize the extradition formalities.
• Anticipated Transfer: Rana is expected to be extradited to India by the end of March 2025 to face trial for his alleged involvement in the Mumbai attacks.

 Why Trump may be planning to shut down the US Dept of Education

In the News: President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, transferring its responsibilities to individual states.

Reasons for the Proposed Shutdown:

• Perception of Ideological Bias: Trump asserts that the Department has been overtaken by "radicals, zealots, and Marxists," promoting liberal ideologies in schools.
• Federal Overreach: He argues that federal involvement in education undermines local control, advocating for state and parental authority over educational decisions.
• Bureaucratic Inefficiency: The administration believes that eliminating the Department would reduce wasteful spending and streamline government functions.

 Implementation Strategy:

• Executive Order: The anticipated order will direct Education Secretary Linda McMahon to initiate the Department's closure and reallocate its functions to states.
• Congressional Approval: While the executive order can begin the process, formally abolishing the Department requires legislative action from Congress.

 Economics 

World Bank Report: "Becoming a High-Income Economy in a Generation"

In the News:  The World Bank has released a report titled "Becoming a High-Income Economy in a Generation," analysing strategies for countries to transition from middle-income to high-income status within a generation.

• According to the World Bank, a high-income economy is defined as a country with a gross national income (GNI) per capita of $14,005 or more in 2023.
• Many countries achieve middle-income status but struggle to progress to high-income levels, a phenomenon known as the "middle-income trap."

Case Studies:

• South Korea and Taiwan: Successfully transitioned to high-income status through industrialization, education, and innovation.
• Vietnam: Implementing reforms and attracting foreign investment, positioning itself to potentially escape the middle-income trap.
• Malaysia: Transitioned from an agriculture-based economy to a diversified one, emphasizing manufacturing and services, and established the World Bank Group Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Finance Hub in Kuala Lumpur to promote knowledge sharing and sustainable development.

 India's Economic Status (World Bank Report)

• Current Classification: Lower-middle-income country.
• Economic Growth: Average GDP growth of 5.8% over two decades, 6.1% in 2011–12.
• GDP & PPP (2024):
• Nominal GDP: $3.94 trillion (5th largest).
• PPP GDP: $15.0 trillion (3rd largest).
• Per Capita Income: 136th (nominal), 125th (PPP) globally.
• Sectoral Composition:
• Services:6% of GDP.
• Industry:3% of GDP.
• Agriculture:1% of GDP.
• Labor Force: 2nd largest globally (522 million, as of 2017).

 Science and Tech 

Aditya-L1 Captures First-Ever Solar Flare 'Kernel'

In the News: India's Aditya-L1 mission has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by capturing the first-ever image of a solar flare 'kernel' in the lower solar atmosphere, specifically in the photosphere and chromosphere.

• Solar Flare Classification:3-class, indicating one of the most intense categories of solar eruptions.
• Instrument Used: Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) onboard Aditya-L1, which captures high-resolution images in the Near Ultraviolet (NUV) band (200-400 nm) across 11 different wavelengths.
• This marks the first instance of imaging a solar flare 'kernel' in the NUV spectrum, providing unprecedented insights into the Sun's explosive activities.
• The observation enhances understanding of how flare energy propagates through different layers of the solar atmosphere, particularly the relationship between energy release in the lower atmosphere and temperature changes in the corona.

 Mission Overview:

• Aditya-L1 is India's first dedicated solar observatory mission, launched on September 2, 2023, and positioned at the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1), approximately 5 million kilometers from Earth.
• The mission aims to provide continuous observations of the Sun without interruptions from eclipses or occultations, facilitating real-time monitoring of solar activities.

India Signs Deal for T-72 Tank Engines Upgrade

In the News: On March 7, 2025, India signed a $248 million contract with Russia's Rosoboronexport to procure advanced 1,000 horsepower (HP) engines for its T-72 main battle tanks.

• Objective: Enhance the mobility and offensive capabilities of approximately 2,500 T-72 tanks in the Indian Army by replacing the existing 780 HP engines with more powerful 1,000 HP units.
• Technology Transfer: The deal includes the transfer of technology to India's state-owned Armoured Vehicles Nigam Ltd (AVNL), facilitating licensed production and integration of these engines domestically.

Background on T-72 Tanks in India:

• Induction: Introduced in the 1970s, the T-72 has been a mainstay of India's armored forces, with around 2,418 units currently in service.
• Upgrades: Prior modernization efforts include the "Ajeya" and "Combat Improved Ajeya" programs, which enhanced fire control systems, armor protection, and night-fighting capabilities.

500kg space debris crashed in kenya and Space Debris Crisis

In the News: A 500-kilogram metal ring, believed to be space debris, crashed into a Kenyan village, underscoring the escalating issue of space junk.

• Object Description: The debris measured approximately 5 meters in diameter and weighed around 500 kilograms.
• Location: The crash occurred in a village in Kenya.
• Response: The Kenyan Space Agency secured the area and initiated an investigation into the object's origin.

 Space Debris Crisis:

• Space debris, or "space junk," refers to defunct human-made objects in Earth's orbit, including non-functional satellites and fragments from disintegrated spacecraft.
• Over 14,000 satellites are currently in orbit, accompanied by approximately 120 million pieces of debris, with only a fraction large enough to be tracked.
• The increasing volume of debris heightens the risk of collisions with operational satellites and spacecraft, potentially leading to further fragmentation—a scenario known as the Kessler Syndrome.
• Uncontrolled re-entries of space debris pose threats to both aviation safety and ground infrastructure.
• Recent Incidents: In March 2025, the explosion of SpaceX's Starship resulted in debris falling near South Florida and the Bahamas, leading to the disruption of approximately 240 flights.

 Important Days 

The woman behind ‘Women’s Day’: Story of socialist leader Clara Zetkin

In the News: As International Women's Day is observed on March 8, attention turns to Clara Zetkin, the socialist leader who proposed the establishment of this day to promote women's rights and suffrage.

Early Life: Born on July 5, 1857, in Wiederau, Germany, Clara Zetkin was a teacher who became actively involved in the socialist movement.

Advocacy for Women's Rights:

• Played a pivotal role in developing the Social Democratic women's movement in Germany.
• Edited the SPD women's newspaper, Die Gleichheit ("Equality"), from 1891 to 1917, focusing on issues like women's suffrage and labor rights.

Proposal of International Women's Day:

• At the International Socialist Women's Conference in Copenhagen in 1910, Zetkin proposed the idea of an annual Women's Day to advocate for women's rights and suffrage.
• The first International Women's Day was celebrated on March 19, 1911, in several European countries.
• In 1921, the date was changed to March 8, which has remained the global date for International Women's Day.
• She also co-founded the Spartacist League and the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (USPD) in 1916, opposing World War I.
• Joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) in 1919 and served as a member of the Reichstag from 1920 to 1933.