♦ Conservative party leader Karol Nawrocki was elected Poland's new president, the state electoral commission (PKW) said.
♦ Nawrocki won 50.9% percent of the votes – ahead of Warsaw's liberal mayor Rafal Trzaskowski on 49.1% percent.
Posted Date: June 2, 2025International
♦ According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), India has achieved a remarkable milestone in social security, expanding coverage from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025, bringing over 94 crore people under at least one social protection benefit.
♦ This unprecedented 45-percentage-point increase over a decade, acknowledged by the ILO on its ILOSTAT database, positions India as a global leader in social protection, second only to China in the number of beneficiaries.
♦ Social security, as defined by the ILO, ensures access to healthcare and income security during times of old age, sickness, unemployment, disability, maternity, work injury, or loss of a breadwinner.
♦ India’s comprehensive system includes social insurance, welfare payments, and in-kind benefits like food and shelter security.
Posted Date: June 28, 2025♦ The World Meteorological Organisation’s (WMO) State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report states that, the year 2024 was the warmest year on record in Asia, with widespread and prolonged heatwaves.
♦ In 2024, heatwaves gripped a record area of the ocean.
♦ The global mean temperature in 2024 was the highest on record for the period 1850-2024, according to all six datasets that the WMO uses to monitor global mean temperature, beating the previous record of 1.45 °C set in 2023.
♦ Each of the years from 2015 to 2024 was one of the 10 warmest years on record.
♦ Sea surface temperatures were the highest on record, with Asia’s sea surface decadal warming rate nearly double the global average.
♦ Sea level rise on the Pacific and Indian Ocean sides of Asia exceeded the global average, heightening risks for low-lying coastal areas, according to the report.
♦ Out of the 24 glaciers in the central Himalayas and Tian Shan, 23 suffered mass loss, leading to an increase in hazards, including glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF), and landslides, and long-term risks to water security.
Posted Date: June 26, 2025♦ The 13th Political Consultation and the 10th Strategic Dialogue between India and Vietnam were co-chaired by the Ministry of External Affairs (East), P. Kumaran, and Deputy Foreign Minister of Vietnam, Nguyen Manh Cuong, in New Delhi.
♦ The two sides discussed the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including cooperation in areas such as politics, defense and security, maritime, trade and investment, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, energy, science, and technology.
♦ Both sides also expressed satisfaction with the ongoing development cooperation between India and Vietnam through heritage conservation and restoration projects, Quick Impact Projects, ITEC and e-ITEC initiatives and scholarships.
♦ During the Strategic Dialogue, the two sides exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual interest.
♦ Both sides unequivocally condemned terrorism in all forms and manifestations, including cross-border terrorism.
♦ The Indian side appreciated Vietnam’s expression of solidarity and support to India in the fight against terrorism.
Posted Date: June 25, 2025♦ According to the latest report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), India has emerged as a country with the third-largest growth in power generation capacity globally over the past five years.
♦ Only China and the United States surpassed India in power generation growth during this period.
♦ The report highlighted that India’s electricity demand has been rising sharply due to several factors.
♦ These include the expansion of commercial and residential spaces, increased ownership of air conditioners and other household appliances, and growing demand from industries.
♦ India was also the largest recipient of development finance institution (DFI) funding for clean energy in 2024.
♦ The country received around USD 2.4 billion in project-specific funding aimed at boosting clean energy generation.
Posted Date: June 19, 2025♦ The 8th edition of the India-France joint military exercise 'Exercise Shakti-2025' commenced at La Cavalerie in France on 18 June 2025.
♦ The aim of the exercise is to enhance the joint military capability of both sides to undertake multi-domain operations in a sub-conventional scenario.
♦ The exercise concludes on 1 July 2025.
♦ The Indian contingent comprising of 90 personnel is being represented primarily by a Battalion of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles besides personnel from other arms and services.
♦ The French contingent comprising of 90 personnel will be represented by personnel from the 13th Foreign Legion Half- Brigade (13th DBLE).
Posted Date: June 18, 2025♦ Blaise Metreweli Britain was appointed as the Chief of the Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6.
♦ This is the first time in the agency's 115-year history that a woman will lead it.
♦ Metreweli will take over from Sir Richard Moore this autumn.
♦ Known by the codename 'C', the MI6 chief is the only publicly named officer in the service and holds full operational responsibility, reporting directly to the Foreign Secretary.
♦ She currently serves as Director General 'Q', overseeing technology and innovation at MI6, a nod to the fictional gadget expert in the James Bond films. She has previously held a senior position in MI5.
♦ While the domestic intelligence agency MI5 has previously had two female chiefs, Stella Rimington and Eliza Manningham-Buller, Ms Metreweli becomes the first woman to helm MI6.
What Is MI6?
♦ MI6, or the Secret Intelligence Service, is the UK's foreign intelligence agency, responsible for gathering overseas intelligence to protect national security and support foreign policy.
♦ Founded in 1909, it operates covertly around the world and reports to the Foreign Secretary.
♦ The agency focuses on threats like terrorism, cyberattacks, and hostile states.
♦ Its chief ('C') is the only publicly named officer. Unlike MI5, which handles domestic intelligence, MI6 works exclusively abroad.
Posted Date: June 16, 2025♦ The 17th edition of the India-Mongolia Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant in Ulaanbaatar concluded at Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia on 13 June 2025.
♦ The Indian contingent, comprising 45 personnel, was represented mainly by troops from a battalion of the Arunachal Scouts.
♦ The exercise was conducted in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, from May 31 to June 13.
♦ Exercise Nomadic Elephant is an annual event conducted alternately in India and Mongolia.
♦ The last edition of the exercise was conducted at Umroi, Meghalaya, in July 2024.
♦ The exercise aimed to enhance interoperability between the two forces while employing a joint task force in semi-conventional operations in semi-urban/mountainous terrain under a United Nations mandate.
Posted Date: June 13, 2025♦ The Indian Government has extended financial assistance for another year to support the passenger India-Sri Lanka ferry service between Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai.
♦ The move is in line with India’s continued commitment to strengthening regional connectivity and people-to-people ties with Sri Lanka.
♦ The assistance will continue under the Viability Gap Funding mechanism, with over 300 million Sri Lankan Rupees earmarked annually.
♦ This support helps ensure affordable fares and uninterrupted service by covering critical logistical and operational expenses.
♦ Since its relaunch in August 2024, the ferry has been utilised by over 15,000 passengers, boosting cultural, economic, and social exchanges.
♦ It marks a significant step in revitalizing maritime links between the two countries.
Posted Date: June 13, 2025♦ Researchers in Japan have developed a plastic that dissolves in seawater within hours, offering up a potential solution for a modern-day scourge polluting oceans and harming wildlife.
♦ While scientists have long experimented with biodegradable plastics, researchers from the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science and the University of Tokyo say their new material breaks down much more quickly and leaves no residual trace.
♦ At a lab in Wako city near Tokyo, the team demonstrated a small piece of plastic vanishing in a container of salt water after it was stirred up for about an hour.
♦ Plastic pollution is set to triple by 2040, the UN Environment Programme has predicted, adding 23-37 million metric tons of waste into the world’s oceans each year.
Posted Date: June 3, 2025♦ South Korea’s liberal opposition candidate Lee Jae-myung was elected President on 3 June 2025.
♦ According to the National Election Commission, Lee Jae-myung won 49.42 percent of the nearly 35 million votes cast while conservative rival Kim Moon-soo took 41.15 percent in the polls that brought the highest turnout for a presidential election since 1997.
♦ His election came in the wake of former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s ousting, just three years into his presidency, following widespread backlash over a failed bid to impose military rule.
Posted Date: June 3, 2025♦ Germany’s former foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock elected as the next president of the United Nations General Assembly.
♦ She got 167 votes out of 193 in a secret ballot.
♦ Baerbock replaces Cameroon’s Philemon Yang and will begin her one-year term in September, leading the assembly during key events, including the annual world leaders’ meeting and the UN’s 80th anniversary.
♦ She also becomes the first woman from the Western European group to hold the post and the fifth woman overall to lead the General Assembly.
♦ The presidency rotates among the world body’s five regional groups.
♦ Germany had originally nominated diplomat Helga Schmid but switched to Baerbock after she lost her ministerial role in Germany’s recent election.
Posted Date: June 2, 2025