UniFocus IAS ( UNIFOCUS UNIVERSAL )

  In line with the Prime Minister’s vision of Viksit Bharat@2047 and Government’s unwavering commitment to women-led development, Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), in convergence with Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), will launch the joint pilot initiative of both the Ministries for Skilling of Adolescent Girls NAVYA – Nurturing Aspirations through Vocational Training for Young Adolescent Girls on 24th June 2025 in Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh . NAVYA is a pilot initiative aimed at equipping adolescent girls aged 16–18 years with a minimum qualification of Class 10, with vocational training mainly in non-traditional job roles. This pilot initiative will be implemented in 27 Districts of the country which include Aspirational districts and districts of North -eastern States spanning across 19 States, reflecting the Government's inclusive and targeted approach to reaching underserved regions and vulnerable populations. As part of the launch, both Mi...

  In furtherance of the commitment made during the high-level dialogue between India and Chile, the Terms of Reference for negotiating the India-Chile Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) were signed on 8th May, 2025.   The next round of negotiations is expected in July/August 2025. Discussions during the round were held across 17 thematic tracks including: Trade in Goods, Trade in Services, Movement of Natural Persons, Rules of Origin, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Technical Barriers to Trade, Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation, Initial Provisions and General Definitions, Core and Institutional Provisions, Final Provisions, Transparency, Dispute Settlement, Economic Cooperation, MSMEs, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Critical and Strategic Minerals Trade & Sustainable Development, Global Value Chains, Investment Promotion & Cooperation, and Intellectual Property Rights. The CEPA aims to unlock the full potential of the trade and commercial r...

  The  Caspian gull  ( Larus cachinnans ) is a large  gull  and a member of the  herring and lesser black-backed gull complex . The scientific name is from  Latin .  Larus  appears to have referred to a gull or other large seabird, and  cachinnans  means 'laughing', from  cachinnare  'to laugh'. [ 2 ] The Caspian gull has a long, slender bill, accentuated by the sloping forehead. The legs, wings, and neck are longer than those of the herring gull and  yellow-legged gull . The eye is small and often dark, and the legs vary from pale pink to a pale yellowish colour. The back and wings are a slightly darker shade of grey than the herring gull, but slightly paler than the yellow-legged gull. The outermost  primary feather  has a large white tip and a white tongue running up the inner web. The Caspian gull breeds around the  Black  and  Caspian Seas , extending eastwards across  Central Asia ...

  In a landmark development poised to transform the global standing of traditional medicine systems, an agreement was signed between the Ministry of Ayush and the World Health Organization (WHO) on May 24, 2025. The agreement marks the beginning of work on a dedicated Traditional Medicine module under the International Classification of Health Interventions (ICHI). Highlighting the significance of this achievement during the 122nd episode of Mann Ki Baat, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said:  "Friends, something has happened in the field of Ayurveda as well, which you will be very happy to know about. Just yesterday, i.e. on 24th May, an MoU was signed in the presence of WHO Director General and my friend Tulsi Bhai. Along with this agreement, work has started on a dedicated traditional medicine module under the International Classification of Health Interventions. This initiative will help in making Ayush reach maximum number of people across the world in a scientific mann...

  The Panchayat Advancement Index (PAI) is a Multi-domain and multi-sectoral index that is intended to be used to assess the overall holistic development, performance & progress of panchayats. The Panchayat Advancement Index takes into account various socio-economic indicators and parameters to gauge the well-being and development status of the local communities within the jurisdiction of a panchayat. The index typically considers factors such as: Infrastructure :  Availability of basic amenities like roads, electricity, water supply, sanitation facilities, etc. Health and Education :  Access to healthcare services, educational institutions, literacy rates, and enrollment in schools. Economic Indicators :  Income levels, employment opportunities, agricultural productivity, and economic activities. Social Indicators :  Poverty rates, gender equality, social inclusion, and overall quality of life. Governance and Administration : ...

  The 2025 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics is awarded to co-authors of publications based on CERN’s Large Hadron Collider Run-2 data released between 2015 and July 15, 2024, at the experimental collaborations ATLAS, CMS, ALICE and LHCb. The $3 million prize is allocated to these four experiments at CERN and will be used by the collaborations to offer grants for doctoral students from member institutes to spend research time at CERN, giving the students experience working at the forefront of science and new expertise to bring back to their home countries and regions. 5,345 researchers were involved in ATLAS; while 4,550 researchers in CMS; 1,869 researchers in ALICE; and 1,744 researchers were involved in LHCb. Indian scientists and researchers have played a significant role in the international collaboration for the ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) and the CMS (Compact Muon Solenoid) experiments. Several Indian institutes, universities, and scientists have contribu...

As per the Sample Registration System (SRS) Report 2021 released by the Registrar General of India (RGI), on 07 th  May, 2025, India has continued to witness a significant improvement in key maternal and child health indicators. Key Indicators: Birth Rate ( It gives the number of live births per thousand population in a given region and year ): The Birth Rate at all India level has declined drastically over the last five decades from 36.9 in 1971 to 19.3 in 2021. The rural-urban differential has also narrowed over these years. However, the Birth Rate has continued to be higher in rural areas compared to urban areas in the last five decades. Birth Rate has declined by about 11% in the last decade, from 21.6 in 2012 to 19.3 in 2021. The corresponding decline in rural areas is 23.1 to 20.9 (about 10% decline) and for urban areas, it is from 17.4 to 15.9 (about 9% decline). In 2021, Bihar reported highest Birth Rate of 25.6 and Andaman & Nicobar Islands reported lowest Birth Rate o...

The collaboration aims to develop drone-based Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) systems using the decoy-based BB84 protocol with polarization encoding, targeting a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 6 or higher. This initiative supports India’s “Atmanirbhar Bharat” vision, fostering indigenous innovation in secure telecom technologies. DD News

  Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi and Hon’ble Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Sir Keir Starmer have announced the successful conclusion of a mutually beneficial India – UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA). This forward-looking Agreement is aligned with India’s vision of Viksit Bharat 2047 and complements the growth aspirations of both the countries. The engagement builds upon the discussions held between the two Prime Ministers on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in November 2024. Following the meeting between the two Prime Ministers, intense FTA negotiations resumed in February 2025 marked by several engagements between the Commerce and Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal and the U.K. Secretary of State Mr. Jonathan Reynolds and their teams. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi stated in his social media post on X (formerly twitter) “In a historic milestone, India and the UK have successfully concluded an ambitious and mutually beneficial ...

  In a major step towards transforming vocational education in India, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the National Scheme for Industrial Training Institute (ITI) Upgradation and the Setting up of five (5) National Centres of Excellence for Skilling as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. National Scheme for Industrial Training Institute (ITI) Upgradation and Setting up of five (5) National Centres of Excellence (NCOE) for Skilling will be implemented as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme as per announcement, made under Budget 2024-25 and Budget 2025-26 with outlay of Rs.60,000 crore (Central Share: Rs.30,000 crore, State Share: Rs.20,000 crore and Industry Share: Rs.10,000 crore), with co-financing to the extent of 50% of Central share by the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, equally. The scheme will focus on upgradation of 1,000 Government ITIs in hub and spoke arrangement with industry aligned revamped trades (courses) and Capacity Augm...

The Sixth Meeting of the Group of Friends of Traditional Medicine (GFTM) was successfully held on May 9, 2025, at the Permanent Mission of India (PMI) in Geneva. The meeting brought together ambassador’s representatives from various countries committed to strengthening the role of traditional medicine in global healthcare systems. Building on the Gujarat Declaration and the success of past meetings, this gathering supports key global initiatives—particularly the WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2025–2034 and the upcoming Second WHO Global Traditional Medicine Summit, to be held in India from 2–4 December 2025. Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha delivered a keynote address virtually that underscored India’s leadership and commitment in promoting evidence-based traditional medicine across the world. In his remarks Secretary, Ministry of Ayush emphasized the growing relevance of traditional medicine in achieving universal health coverage and advancing the goals of One He...

  South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL) is set to become the first coal PSU in India to adopt paste fill technology for coal mining—marking a major step toward sustainable and environmentally friendly mining practices. To implement this innovative underground mining technology, SECL has signed a ₹7040 crore agreement with TMC Mineral Resources Private Limited. Under this agreement, large-scale coal production will be undertaken using paste fill technology in the Singhali underground coal mine located in SECL’s Korba area. Over a period of 25 years, the project is expected to produce approximately 8.4 million tonnes (84.5 lakh tonnes) of coal. What is Paste Fill Technology? Paste filling is a modern underground mining method that eliminates the need to acquire surface land. After coal extraction, the mined-out voids are filled with a specially prepared paste made from fly ash, crushed overburden from opencast mines, cement, water, and binding chemicals. This process prevents land ...