Alok Joshi

♦ Former R&AW Chief Alok Joshi was appointed as National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) Chairman on 30 April 2025.

♦ The NSAB is a seven-member apex body that provides expert and strategic input on security-related matters to the government.

♦ The other six newly inducted members of the board are former Western Air Commander Air Marshal PM Sinha, former Southern Army Commander Lieutenant General AK Singh, former Admiral Monty Khanna, Rajiv Ranjan Verma, Manmohan Singh, and B Venkatesh Varma.

♦ Joshi is a 1976 batch IPS officer of Haryana Cadre, was earlier Special Secretary in RAW under the Cabinet Secretariat, before being appointed as Secretary RAW in 2012.

♦ Joshi has previously served in Intelligence Bureau and Haryana Police.

♦ He has been a part of key operations in Nepal and Pakistan in the past.

Kamla Persad-Bissessar

♦ Kamla Persad-Bissessar (73) will be the next Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago.

♦ Her party United National Congress has won the parliamentary election of the twin-island Caribbean nation.

♦ Persad-Bissesar previously served as Prime Minister from 2010-2015. She is the only woman ever to have led the Caribbean country.

Gavai

♦ Supreme Court judge, Justice B.R. Gavai, was appointed as the next Chief Justice of India (CJI) on 29 April 2025.

♦ He succeeded incumbent CJI Sanjiv Khanna, who will retire on May 13.

♦ Justice Gavai, in line to be the 52nd CJI, will have a tenure of over 6 months, and he will demit office on November 23, 2025.

♦ Justice Gavai was elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court on May 29, 2019.

♦ Appointed as Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court in November 2003, he became a permanent Judge in November 2005.

♦ He was appointed as Assistant Government Pleader and Additional Public Prosecutor in the Bombay High Court, Nagpur Bench in August 1992 and served till July 1993.

♦ He was appointed as Government Pleader and Public Prosecutor for the Nagpur Bench on January 17, 2000.

Gunjan Soni

♦ Gunjan Soni was appointed as the Country Managing Director for YouTube India on 28 April 2025.

♦ She succeeded Ishan Chatterjee, who exited the firm last year (2024) to become the Chief revenue officer (CRO) at JioCinema.

♦ Soni joins YouTube from ZALORA, where she served as Group CEO for six years based in Singapore

Ramakrishna Rao

♦ Senior bureaucrat K. Ramakrishna Rao was appointed Chief Secretary of Telangana on 27 April 2025.

♦ Presently he is special chief secretary os finance. He is a IAS officer of the 1991 batch.

♦ Ramakrishna will replace A Santhi Kumari who will retire from service on April 30, 2025.

Narayanan

♦ Renowned historian M.G.S. Narayanan passed away at 93 in Malaparamba, Kozhikode on 26 April 2025.

♦ He headed the Department of History at Calicut University from 1976 to 1990.

♦ He had a stint as Member Secretary of the ICHR from 1990-1992 and later became its Chairman from 2001-03.

♦ He was born in Ponnani on August 20, 1932.

♦ He authored several books in Malayalam, including India Charitra Parichayam (1969), Sahitya Aparadhangal (1970), Kerala Charitrathinte Atisthanasilak (1971), Kozhikodinte Katha (2001), and Janadhipatyavum Communissavim (2004).

♦ He also conducted research studies that shed light on various aspects of South Indian culture, such as Cultural Symbiosis in Kerala (1972), Aspects of Aryanisation in Kerala bi (1973), and Calicut the City of Truth Revisited (2006).

♦ His perspective on history is outlined in Charitrakarante Darsanam (2011).

K. Kasturirangan

♦ Former ISRO Chairman Dr. K. Kasturirangan passed away in Bengaluru on 25 April 2025. He was 84. He served as the fifth chairman of ISRO between 1994-2003, and also as the Secretary, Department of Space for over nine years.

♦ He was born on October 24, 1940 at Ernakulam in Kerala.

♦ As Chairman of ISRO, Dr. Kasturirangan played a pivotal role in the development of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which went on to become India’s most reliable satellite launcher.

♦ He led the Indian Space Programme for over nine years before stepping down on August 27, 2003.

♦ Before becoming the chairman of ISRO, Kasturirangan served as Director of the ISRO Satellite Centre, playing a pivotal role in advancing India’s space capabilities.

♦ Under his leadership, the centre developed cutting-edge spacecraft, including the INSAT-2 series and the IRS-1A and IRS-1B remote sensing satellites. He also oversaw the development of BHASKARA-I and II, India’s pioneering experimental Earth observation missions.

♦ He also served as the Director of the National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore from April 2004 to 2009.

♦ He also held leadership positions in the International Astronomical Union and the International Academy of Astronautics.

♦ He was also a Rajya Sabha member from 2003 to 2009.

♦ Chairperson of drafting committee on New National Edutation Policy (NEP), Kasturirangan had also served as chancellor of the Jawaharlal Nehru University and chairman of the Karnataka Knowledge Commission.

♦ Kasturirangan was awarded all three of India’s top civilian honours — Padma Shri (1982), Padma Bhushan (1992), and Padma Vibhushan (2000). 

T Rabi Sankar

♦ The government has extended the term of RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar for another one year till May 2026.

♦ This is the second one-year extension granted to him.

♦ Sankar is in charge of foreign exchange, currency management and government accounts department in the RBI.

♦ He was appointed as the Deputy Governor in May 2021. He was the Executive Director of RBI prior to that.

Ajay Bhushan Pandey

♦ Former Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey was appointed as Vice President of Investment Solutions for the Beijing-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), in which India is the second largest shareholder after China.

♦ He will handle investment solutions and oversee three departments: the Sectors, Themes, and Finance Solutions Department; the Sustainability and Fiduciary Solutions Department; and the Portfolio Management Department.

♦ Pandey had headed the National Financial Reporting Authority for three years through March 2025 after his retirement as the finance secretary.

♦ A 1984-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, he had also served as the chief executive officer of the Unique Identification Authority of India where he led the development and implementation of Aadhaar.

♦ Jin Liqun of China is the AIIB's president and chair of the board of directors.

Pope Francis

♦ Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died at the age of 88 on 21 April 2025.

♦ He was elected as the 266th Pope in 2013 after the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.  

♦ He was the first non-European pope in 1,300 years, the first from Latin America and the first Jesuit to hold the post.

♦ He was born on 17 December 1936, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

♦ His original name was Jorge Mario Bergoglio. 

♦ He was ordained a priest in the Jesuit order in 1969.

♦ From 1973-79 he was the order's top leader in Argentina.

♦ He became an auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires in 1992 and the city's archbishop in 1998.

♦ He was made a cardinal in 2001 by Pope John Paul II.

Arvind Shrivastava

♦ Senior IAS officer Arvind Shrivastava was appointed as Secretary, Department of Revenue, in the Ministry of Finance on 18 April 2025.

♦ He is a 1994 batch Karnataka cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, is currently working as Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office. 

♦ Civil Aviation Secretary Vumlunmang Vualnam was named as Secretary, Department of Expenditure.

♦ He succeeds Manoj Govil, who has been appointed as Secretary (Coordination), Cabinet Secretariat.

♦ Additionally, the committee has appointed IAS officer Anuradha Thakur as Officer on Special Duty, Department of Economic

♦ Vivek Aggarwal, a 1994 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Culture. A

♦ ggarwal is currently Additional Secretary in the Department of Revenue. He is also holding the charge of Director, Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND).

B.R. Gavai

♦ Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna recommended Justice B.R. Gavai, the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, as his successor on 16 April 2025.

♦ Justice Gavai is expected to be sworn in as the 52nd Chief Justice of India on May 14.

♦ Justice Khanna was appointed as CJI on November 11, 2024, succeeding former CJI D Y Chandrachud, who retired on November 10. Khanna is due to retire on May 13, having served a tenure of six months.

♦ The retirement age of Supreme Court judges is 65 years. 

♦ Justice Gavai’s tenure as CJI will span over six months, concluding on 2025 November 23.

♦ Justice Gavai was elevated to the Supreme Court on May 29, 2019. He was first appointed as an Additional Judge of the Bombay High Court in November 2003 and became a permanent judge in November 2005.

♦ He served as Standing Counsel for the Municipal Corporation of Nagpur, Amravati Municipal Corporation, and Amravati University.

♦ He was appointed Assistant Government Pleader and Additional Public Prosecutor at the Bombay High Court (Nagpur Bench) in August 1992, serving until July 1993.

♦ He later became Government Pleader and Public Prosecutor for the Nagpur Bench on January 17, 2000.

Dinesh Maheshwari

♦ Former Supreme Court judge Dinesh Maheshwari was appointed Chairperson of the 23rd Law Commission on 15 April 2025.

♦ The 23rd law panel was set up on 2024 September 3 for a period of three years.

♦ Advocate Hitesh Jain and Professor D P Verma have been appointed full-time members.

♦ Verma was part of the previous law commission too.

♦ According to its terms of reference, the commission is also tasked with examining whether a uniform civil code can be introduced in the country.

♦ Justice Maheshwari retired from the Supreme Court in May 2023.

♦ He took oath as judge of Rajasthan High Court in September 2004 and was transferred to Allahabad High Court in July 2014.

♦ He became the chief justice of the Meghalaya High Court in February 2016 and then the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court in February 2018.

♦ He took oath as a judge of the Supreme Court in January 2019 and demitted office on May 14, 2023.

Daniel Noboa

♦ Incumbent Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa has secured a second four-year term in the country’s presidential elections.

♦ He won 55.85 percent of the vote against his left-wing challenger, Luisa González. 

♦ Ecuador has one of the highest homicide rates in South America. 

♦ Noboa was in power since November 2023 after winning a snap election. 

University Grants Commission (UGC)

♦ The Ministry of Education has given an additional charge to Vineet Joshi as the chairperson of the University Grants Commission (UGC) on 11 April 2025.

♦ Currently, he is Secretary of the Department of Higher Education.

♦ This decision has been taken following the retirement of the previous UGC chairman, Prof Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar.

♦ Joshi will discharge his duties as UGC chairperson till a full-time appointment is made or until further orders are issued.

♦ Prof Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar had taken charge as UGC Chairman in February 2022.

♦ His tenure in the UGC was marked by landmark initiatives, including the introduction of the Central University Entrance Test (CUET) for both undergraduate and postgraduate admissions.

♦ He was also at the helm of implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, helping integrate its key recommendations into university functioning and structure.

Ratanmohini

♦ Rajyogini Dadi Ratanmohini, the head of Prajapita Brahma Kumaris Ishwariya Vishwavidyalaya, died in Ahmedabad on 8 April 2025.

♦ She was 101 years old. She was the chief administrator of Brahma Kumaris since 2021.

♦ Born on March 25, 1925 in Hyderabad Sindh, now in Pakistan, Dadi Ratan Mohini was originally named Lakshmi, and was raised in a prosperous and devout family.

♦ She migrated to India after the Partition and represented the Brahma Kumaris at the World Peace Conference in Japan in 1954.

♦ She later travelled to Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia.

♦ In 1985, Dadi Ratan Mohini embarked on a series of spiritual pilgrimages to promote cultural and moral values. She undertook a 31,000-km-long journey in 2006 to spread her message.

Manoj Kumar

♦ Renowned bollywood actor and director Manoj Kumar passed away at the age of 87 in Mumbai on 4 APril 2025.

♦ Manoj Kumar’s birth name is Harikrishan Giri Goswami. He was born on 24 July 1937.

♦ He was best known for his patriotic films including Shaheed (1965), Upkar (1967), and Purab Aur Paschim (1970). 

♦ He received the Padma Shri in 1992 for his contributions to Bollywood and was later honoured with the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2015.

Mohsin Naqvi

♦ Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi assumed charge as president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) on 3 April 2025.

♦ He took charge from Sri Lanka's Shammi Silva. Naqvi, who was elected PCB chairman in February 2024.

♦ The ACC presidency is rotated among the member nations and it was turn of Pakistan to take charge. Naqvi will remain president till 2027.

Sivasubramanian Ramann

♦ Sivasubramanian Ramann was appointmented as Chairperson of Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) on 2 April 2025.

♦ He would replace incumbent Deepak Mohanty whose term comes to an end in May 2025.

♦ The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved his appointment for a tenure of five years or till he attains age of 65 years.

♦ Ramann, presently serving as Deputy CAG, belongs to 1991 batch of Indian Audit & Accounts Service (IA&AS).

♦ He has also served as Chairman & Managing Director, Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), for 3 years between 2021 and 2024.

♦ Before joining SIDBI, he was MD & CEO of National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL).

H.Shankar

♦ H.Shankar assumed charge as Managing Director of the Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL) on 2 April 2025.

♦ He was inducted into the Board of CPCL as Director (Technical) in October 2020, and was holding additional charge as Managing Director since July 16, 2024.

Poonam Gupta

♦ Poonam Gupta was appointed as the new Deputy Governor (DG) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), for a period of three years on 2 April 2025.

♦ She succeed former DG Michael Patra,  who demitted office in January 2025. 

♦ Currently, Gupta serves as the Director General of the New Delhi based National Council of Applied Economic Research, which is India’s largest economic policy think tank.

♦ She is also a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister and Convener of the Advisory Council to the 16th Finance Commission.

Vandana Katariya

♦ Indian women’s hockey stalwart Vandana Katariya announced her retirement from international hockey on 1 April 2025.

♦ She scored 158 goals in 320 international matches after making her debut for India in 2009. Vandana departs as the most-capped player in the history of Indian women’s hockey. 

♦ At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she became the first and only Indian woman to score a hat-trick at the Games.

♦ She also represented India at the Rio 2016 Olympics, two FIH Hockey Women’s World Cups in 2018 and 2022, three consecutive Commonwealth Games from 2014 to 2022 as well as three successive Asian Games from 2014 to 2022.

♦ Vandana Katariya also won silver medals at the Asian Games 2018, Women's Asian Champions Trophy Japan 2013 and Women's Asian Champions Trophy Donghae 2018.

♦ Vandana was honoured with some of India’s most prestigious awards, including the Arjuna Award (2021) and the Padma Shri (2022).

♦ She also received the Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr. Award for Player of the Year (Women) in 2014, the Hockey India President’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in 2021, and the Hockey India Dhanraj Pillay Award for Forward of the Year in 2021 and 2022, cementing her status as one of India’s finest forwards.