Daily Current Affairs 11 June 2025
Daily Current Affairs 11 June 2025
amithgnair UNFPA State of World Population 2025
India has emerged as the world’s most populous country, with 146.39 crore people as of April 2025, surpassing China’s 141.61 crore, according to the UNFPA’s “State of the World Population 2025” report titled The Real Fertility Crisis. Despite the numbers, India’s fertility rate has declined to 1.9, falling below the replacement level of 2.1. While this points to positive trends in education, health access, and female empowerment, the demographic transformation presents future challenges. States like Bihar (2.98), Meghalaya (2.9), and Uttar Pradesh (2.35) still report higher fertility rates, highlighting regional disparities. The report asserts that the real crisis lies not in population numbers but in the lack of reproductive agency—people’s inability to achieve their family planning goals due to socio-economic and structural barriers. India is approaching population stabilization, a development that may relieve pressure on natural resources, healthcare systems, and infrastructure. However, as the share of the elderly rises, concerns over pensions, healthcare, and intergenerational equity loom large. Experiences from countries like Japan and South Korea—where fertility has fallen dramatically—show that demographic imbalances can adversely affect economic vitality. As India navigates its demographic transition, the need for comprehensive social protection and a rights-based reproductive framework becomes essential to sustain inclusive development.
India’s IBC Framework: Balancing Resolution with Recovery
Over eight years since its introduction, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) of 2016 has restructured India’s corporate debt resolution mechanism, replacing the old debtor-led framework with a creditor-in-control system. Designed to tackle mounting NPAs and sluggish recoveries, the IBC aims to revive businesses, maximize asset value, and improve credit culture. The resolution process involves filing a case with the NCLT, appointment of an Interim Resolution Professional, creditor claims, and formulation of resolution plans approved by 66% of the Committee of Creditors (CoC). If a plan is not approved within 330 days, liquidation begins. Although the IBC contributed to India’s jump in the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing Business’ rankings (Resolving Insolvency: 136 in 2016 to 52 in 2020), challenges remain. Nearly 78% of cases as of March 2025 exceeded the statutory timelines. High judicial interventions and protracted litigations, exemplified by the Bhushan Power case, have shaken investor confidence. Additionally, average creditor recoveries hover around 33%, with significant “haircuts.” Structural issues such as lack of provisions for IP valuation, employee claims, and tech asset continuity in modern businesses persist. To fully realize the IBC’s potential, legal clarity, judicial capacity expansion, and case-specific reforms are crucial.
Rapid Expansion of Gig Workforce in India
The VV Giri National Labour Institute’s projections reveal that gig workers currently form 15% of India’s non-agricultural workforce—a number expected to swell to 62 million by 2047. Platform-based jobs, initially dominated by food delivery and ride-hailing services, are now growing across healthcare, education, content creation, and consulting. While this flexible, app-based work model offers new opportunities, the lack of social protection is stark. Gig workers generally operate without health insurance, pensions, or job security. The report highlights the absence of grievance redressal systems, exploitative algorithmic controls, and legal ambiguities regarding their employment classification. The study recommends formal recognition, unionization rights, and creation of a national registry to ensure better working conditions. Countries like France and the UK have implemented policies that classify gig workers distinctly from independent contractors, granting them limited labor rights and benefits. India’s Code on Social Security, 2020 proposes a contributory fund from aggregators, but enforcement remains weak. Upskilling and training initiatives can improve worker bargaining power and earnings. The rapid expansion of the gig economy offers both opportunity and risk—without a regulatory framework, millions could be left vulnerable in an unregulated labor grey zone.
Blue NDC Challenge
The Blue Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) Challenge, launched by France and Brazil, calls for integrating ocean-centric strategies into national climate commitments. Oceans act as the world’s largest carbon sinks, absorbing 25% of global CO₂ emissions and 90% of excess heat, yet they remain neglected in policy frameworks. The Blue NDC Challenge, supported by global organizations like Ocean Conservancy and the WWF, urges countries to include marine ecosystem protections, blue carbon initiatives, and sustainable fisheries in their COP30 submissions. With 3 billion people depending on marine biodiversity, oceanic health is critical for food security, climate resilience, and economic sustainability. Coastal ecosystems such as mangroves and seagrasses store carbon more efficiently than forests. However, implementing ocean-based solutions in developing countries faces barriers like lack of financing and scientific expertise. Initiatives like Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), High Seas Treaty, and the Ocean Decade (2021–2030) aim to address such gaps, but global alignment and investment remain inconsistent. The Blue NDC Challenge can reframe the climate discourse—moving from land-centric to holistic planetary management.
Ocean Acidification
A new study reveals that ocean acidification has crossed planetary boundaries, threatening marine ecosystems and the global climate. Driven by CO₂ absorption, acidification reduces seawater pH and depletes calcium carbonate, essential for shell-building marine organisms. By 2020, global waters had dropped 20% below pre-industrial calcium carbonate levels, with 60% of the ocean’s upper 200 meters breaching the safe acidification threshold. Consequences are severe: corals, oysters, and plankton suffer structural damage, which undermines entire marine food chains. Fishery-dependent economies face collapses in productivity, while carbon sequestration weakens—creating dangerous feedback loops in global warming. The Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network (GOA-ON) and UNESCO’s Ocean Science Decade aim to counteract this through monitoring and policy integration. However, countries must now prioritize marine resilience in national action plans. This includes expanding MPAs, enhancing marine spatial planning, and adopting climate-smart aquaculture. Ocean acidification represents an invisible but potent crisis—addressing it requires immediate, global, science-driven intervention.
Axiom-4 Mission to the International Space Station (ISS)
The Axiom-4 mission to the ISS has been postponed due to technical issues with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Set to last 14–21 days, the mission includes 60 experiments across biomedical science, Earth observation, and materials research. Notably, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is part of the crew, marking only the second Indian government-backed human spaceflight after Rakesh Sharma. The mission’s outcomes are key to India’s Gaganyaan initiative, expected in 2027. The ISS, orbiting 400 km above Earth, requires precise phasing maneuvers using SpaceX’s Dragon capsule, which autonomously docks after a 28-hour flight. Once onboard, astronauts conduct internationally coordinated research. Axiom’s efforts mark the growing commercialization of low Earth orbit and offer a blueprint for future space station privatization and intergovernmental collaboration.
Sant Kabir Das
The Prime Minister paid tribute to Sant Kabir Das on his birth anniversary. A 15th-century mystic poet born in Kashi, Kabir challenged caste hierarchies, idol worship, and religious orthodoxy through his spiritual and poetic works. Raised in a Muslim weaver family and influenced by saint Ramananda, Kabir’s philosophy synthesized Bhakti, Sufi, and Vedantic traditions. His verses, written in simple dialects, emphasized devotion, ethical living, and inner realization. “Kabir ke Dohe” remain timeless reflections of moral and philosophical clarity. Revered by Hindus, Sikhs, and Sufis alike, Kabir continues to inspire social reform and spiritual inclusivity.
Hodeidah Port
Israel conducted a rare naval strike on Yemen’s Hodeidah Port, targeting strategic infrastructure. Located on the Red Sea, Hodeidah is Yemen’s largest and most vital port, crucial for importing food, fuel, and humanitarian supplies. Its targeting risks exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn country. Historically significant since the Italo-Ottoman War, the port has long been a geopolitical flashpoint. The attack may escalate regional tensions involving Iran-backed Houthi rebels, disrupting Red Sea shipping lanes and humanitarian operations.
Supreme Court Ruling on Narco Test
India’s Supreme Court reaffirmed that narco-analysis tests cannot be conducted without the free and informed consent of the accused. The ruling upholds Article 20(3) (protection against self-incrimination) and Article 21 (right to life and privacy), reinforcing civil liberties amidst technological advances in criminal investigation. Sodium pentothal, used in narco tests, induces a sedative state where individuals may speak freely—but such statements, obtained involuntarily, lack legal sanctity and ethical legitimacy. The Court reiterated its 2010 Selvi v. Karnataka decision, marking a crucial balance between investigative efficacy and constitutional safeguards.
National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIF)
The Finance Minister chaired the 6th Governing Council meeting of the NIIF, a sovereign-linked investment platform launched in 2015 to catalyze infrastructure funding in India. Registered as an Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) under SEBI, NIIF pools domestic and foreign institutional capital, with the government holding a 49% stake. It invests in critical sectors such as transport, energy, and digital infrastructure. Amid increasing infrastructure demands under the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), NIIF plays a pivotal role in de-risking large-scale projects, attracting long-term funds, and accelerating India’s growth trajectory.
Ejiao
Prices of donkeys in Pakistan have surged following China’s rising demand for Ejiao, a gelatin derived from donkey skin. Ejiao is used in traditional Chinese medicine for its claimed health benefits including anti-aging, immune boosting, and fatigue relief. The trade has raised ethical and ecological concerns due to overexploitation, poor animal welfare, and illegal sourcing practices. Countries across Asia and Africa are witnessing pressure on donkey populations, prompting calls for sustainable regulation of traditional medicine supply chains.
Karlsruhe Tritium Neutrino Experiment (KATRIN)
The KATRIN experiment in Germany has refined the upper mass limit of neutrinos—elusive subatomic particles once thought to be massless. Based on data from 36 million electron events, researchers now estimate the combined mass of three neutrino types as less than 8.8 × 10²² times the electron mass. This contradicts the Standard Model and suggests the possibility of new physics. Unlike previous attempts using astrophysical models, KATRIN’s results are direct and model-independent, offering stronger credibility. Neutrino mass measurement could revolutionize particle physics and cosmology, potentially revealing unknown forces or dimensions.
Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC)
The 29th meeting of the apex Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was chaired by the Finance Minister. Formed in 2010, the FSDC ensures coordination among financial regulators like RBI, SEBI, IRDAI, and PFRDA. It addresses systemic risk, market development, financial inclusion, and supervision of large entities. A sub-committee headed by the RBI Governor tackles emerging risks. In the current global climate of monetary tightening, crypto volatility, and banking fragility, FSDC’s role in policy coherence and risk surveillance is more important than ever.
Etalin Hydropower Project
The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) has granted in-principle clearance to the 3,097 MW Etalin Hydropower Project in Arunachal Pradesh despite longstanding ecological concerns. Proposed on the Dri and Talo rivers in the Dibang Valley, the run-of-the-river project is among India’s largest. It involves diversion of 1,175 hectares of forest and felling of nearly 2.78 lakh trees in a biodiversity-rich region that houses tigers, snow leopards, and over 56% of India’s bird species. The project, backed by Jindal Power and the Arunachal government, has faced resistance from the Idu Mishmi community and environmentalists who demand updated assessments. With India’s push for renewable energy, balancing infrastructure needs and ecological sensitivity is critical.