2 Minute Series_8 October 2025

08^th October 2025

1. World Bank: Recently, the World Bank raised India’s GDP growth forecast for FY2026 to 6.5%, an increase from its earlier estimate of 6.3% made in June.

• Key Highlights: The upward revision is attributed to strong domestic demand, rural recovery, and the positive impact of GST reforms.

• India is expected to remain the world’s fastest-growing major economy, supported by robust consumption growth.
• The FY27 growth forecast for India has been revised down to 6.3%, mainly due to the 50% tariff imposed by the US.
• For the South Asia region, the World Bank forecasts 6% growth in 2025, but expects it to slow to 5.8% in 2026, marking a 0.6 percentage point downward revision from April.
• The report highlights heightened downside risks for South Asia, including: An uncertain global environment, Socio-political unrest and Labour market disruptions from emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI).

2. Mig La Pass: Recently, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), as part of Project Himank, achieved a significant milestone by building the world’s highest motorable road at Mig La Pass in Ladakh.

• About Mig La Pass: Lies on the Changthang Plateau in the Union Territory of Ladakh.

• World Record Altitude: Standing at 19,400 feet, it now holds the record for the highest motorable road in the world.
• Strategic Importance: The pass forms part of the Likaru–Mig La–Fukche axis, establishing the third critical route from Hanle to Fukche, close to the Indo-China border.
• All-Weather Capability: The road is engineered to endure extreme cold, shifting glaciers, and low oxygen, making it the highest all-weather road globally.

• About Project Himank: Launched on December 4, 1985, in Leh, to enhance road connectivity in the Ladakh region.

• The project operates in high-altitude, rugged terrains with a short construction window each year.
• Strategic Role: It has been pivotal in supporting the Indian Army during several operations and maintaining vital communication lines near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.

3. Stablecoins: Recently, at the Kautilya Economic Conclave, the Union Finance Minister highlighted the importance of preparing for the emergence and regulation of stablecoins within the evolving digital finance ecosystem.

• About Stablecoins: A form of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value by being pegged to an underlying asset such as a fiat currency, basket of currencies, precious metals, or other financial instruments.

• Objective: To bridge the gap between the volatility of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTC) and the stability needed for everyday financial transactions.
• Mechanism: They aim to reduce price fluctuations by tying their value to stable assets, usually fiat currencies.
• Types of Stablecoins: Fiat-collateralized (backed by traditional currencies)
  - Commodity-backed (e.g., gold or silver)
  - Crypto-collateralized (secured by other cryptocurrencies)
  - Algorithmic (stability maintained through programmed supply adjustments)
• Audit and Transparency: Rely on third-party auditors to verify their reserve holdings, though this introduces external trust dependencies in systems designed for decentralization.

4. Postpartum Haemorrhage: Recently, in a landmark initiative, new global guidelines were issued to prevent and treat postpartum haemorrhage (PPH), a leading cause of maternal deaths worldwide.

• Key Highlights: The World Health Organization (WHO), International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), and the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) jointly issued the new PPH prevention, diagnosis, and treatment guidelines.

• Global Concern: Postpartum haemorrhage remains a leading cause of maternal deaths worldwide, responsible for around 45,000 of the 260,000 maternal deaths in 2023.
• The guidelines recommend the E-MOTIVE bundle for immediate action when PPH is detected.
• It includes: E – Evaluate and Massage the uterus, M – Administer Oxytocic drugs, O – Use Tranexamic acid to reduce bleeding, T – Provide IV fluids, I – Conduct Vaginal/genital tract examination & V – Escalate care if bleeding persists
• In severe cases, recommend surgery or blood transfusion to stabilise the patient until further treatment is possible.
• Aims to accelerate progress toward SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-Being), which targets a global maternal mortality ratio below 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.

5. Comprehensive Road Safety Rules: Recently, the Supreme Court directed all States and Union Territories to formulate comprehensive road safety rules within six months.

• Key Highlights: The rules are to be framed under Sections 138(1A) and 210-D of the Motor Vehicles (MV) Act, 1988.

• The court highlighted the dire need for safe pedestrian crossings, citing 35,000 pedestrian deaths and 54,000 two-wheeler fatalities in 2023 due to non-compliance with safety norms.
• The Court ordered authorities to set maximum permissible luminance and beam angles for vehicle headlights, ensuring compliance during PUC and fitness testing.
• A complete ban was directed on unauthorised red-blue strobe lights and hooters, with enforcement through seizures, crackdowns, and penalties.
• The rules must cover: Pedestrian protection
  - Helmet compliance for riders and pillion passengers
  - Wrong-lane driving and unsafe overtaking
  - Use of dazzling LED headlights
  - Unauthorised red-blue strobe lights and hooters

6. MY Bharat-National Service Scheme Awards: Recently, the President of India conferred the MY Bharat–National Service Scheme (NSS) Awards for the year 2022–23 at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

• About the MY Bharat–NSS Awards: The awards were instituted in 1993–94 by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.

• Objective: To honour and celebrate the exemplary efforts of young individuals in social service, community development, and nation-building.
• Scope: Presented annually, the awards acknowledge outstanding voluntary community service by NSS Volunteers, Programme Officers, and NSS Units across the country.

• About NSS: A Central Sector Scheme launched in 1969, marking the birth centenary of Mahatma Gandhi.

• Objective: To develop the personality and character of student youth through voluntary community service.
• Philosophy: The ideological framework of NSS is inspired by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, focusing on selfless service and community engagement.
• Participation: It provides opportunities for students of Classes 11 and 12, as well as those in technical, graduate, and postgraduate institutions, to participate in government-led community service and development activities.

7. Abhidhamma Day: Recently, the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC), in collaboration with Gautam Buddha University (GBU), Antarrashtriya Baudh Shodh Sansthan, and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, celebrated International Abhidhamma Day.

• Key Highlights: Theme: “The Relevance of Abhidhamma in Understanding Buddhist Thought: Text, Tradition and Contemporary Perspectives.”

• An international conference explored philosophical, ethical, and psychological dimensions of the Abhidhamma and its modern relevance.
• Discussions included comparative studies between Abhidhamma and modern sciences such as psychology, artificial intelligence, and cognitive studies.
• Religious Significance: Abhidhamma Day commemorates the event when Lord Buddha preached the Abhidhamma to the gods in Tavatimsa Heaven, led by his mother Mahamaya, later relayed to his disciple Arahant Sariputta.
• The Government of India has declared Pali a Classical Language, recognizing it as the canonical language of Theravada Buddhist texts, including the Abhidhamma Pitaka.

8. Indian Radio Software Architecture: Recently, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), in collaboration with the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) and the Tri-Services, officially released the Indian Radio Software Architecture (IRSA) Standard 1.0.

• About IRSA: The IRSA Standard 1.0 is a comprehensive software specification for Software Defined Radios (SDR).

• It defines standardised interfaces, APIs, execution environments, and waveform portability mechanisms.
• The aim is to enable interoperability, certification, and conformance across India’s military communication systems.
• Core Features: Ensures waveform portability across different radio platforms.
  - Promotes interoperability among SDR systems of the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
  - Supports future technology integration with evolving operational requirements.
  - Designed to be indigenous, inter-operable, and future-ready, aligned with the Aatmanirbhar Bharat
• Strategic Importance: Marks a defining step toward self-reliance in defence communication technologies.

9. Nobel Prizes: Recently, the 2025 Nobel Prizes in Physics and Physiology or Medicine honored two landmark discoveries that have transformed our understanding of the physical universe and the human

• Key Highlights: Nobel Prize in Physics 2025: John Clarke, Michel Devoret, and John Martinis

• Awarded For: Their demonstration that quantum tunnelling, a phenomenon typically confined to subatomic particles—can occur at a macroscopic scale, particularly within superconducting circuits.

• Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2025: Mary E. Brunkow, Frederick J. Ramsdell, and Shimon Sakaguchi

• Awarded For: Their groundbreaking discoveries explaining how the immune system prevents itself from attacking the body it is meant to protect, through the mechanisms of peripheral immune tolerance and regulatory T cells (Tregs).

10. Viridans Streptococci: Recently, researchers at Tampere University, Finland, discovered that Viridans streptococci were the most common bacteria found in coronary arteries, appearing in about 42% of sudden-death autopsy cases.

• About Viridans Streptococci: A group of gram-positive cocci commonly found in the oral cavity, as well as in the gastrointestinal, respiratory, and female genital tracts.

• Role: Normally harmless commensal bacteria, but can cause infective endocarditis (IE) by colonizing damaged heart tissue.
• Biofilm Formation: They form sticky bacterial biofilms within atherosclerotic plaques, allowing them to remain hidden from the immune system until rupture occurs.
• Pathogenic Mechanism: The bacterial biofilm provides protection, enabling persistence in arterial plaques.
  - When fragments of the biofilm break loose, they trigger inflammation in the artery wall.
  - This weakens the fibrous cap covering the fatty plaque, increasing the risk of rupture — the key event leading to clot formation and heart attacks.