CURRENT AFFAIRS 08-09 November, 2025

CURRENT AFFAIRS 08-09 November, 2025

1. DIVERSIFICATION OF INDIA’S EXPORT MARKETS –

• India’s exports are shifting, with non-US markets increasingly helping offset losses to the US, as the country’s trade diversification strategy successfully opens new opportunities in the Middle East, Africa, and Southeast Asia.
• Despite a 12% drop in exports to the US, India’s merchandise exports grew 6.7% to USD 36.38 billion, reflecting resilient diversification.
• Export diversification expands a country’s products and markets to reduce dependence on a few partners, enhancing economic stability, trade resilience, and innovation.

What are the Key Trends in India’s Export Diversification Strategy?

• Decline in US Exports: India’s exports to the US fell due to reduced demand and trade tensions, as tariffs rose from 10% to 50% between April–August 2025, reducing exports from USD 8.8 billion to 5.5 billion.
• Even tariff-free exports dropped 47% to USD 1.8 billion from USD 3.4 billion, though overall exports remain resilient through alternative markets.
• Rise of Non-US Markets: Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East have become key markets for India, importing pharmaceuticals, textiles, engineering products, and machinery.
• Marine exports rose 60% to China, Vietnam, and Thailand, Basmati rice exports to Iran grew six-fold, and tea exports expanded to the UAE, Iraq, and Germany.
• Government and Policy Initiatives: The Indian government has strategically implemented policies aimed at boosting exports to these non-US regions. Programs like the Foreign Trade Policy 2023 and Market Access Initiative (MAI) focus on strengthening trade ties with new partners, offering incentives, and easing logistics barriers.

2. KAZAKHSTAN POISED TO JOIN ABRAHAM ACCORDS –

• US President Donald Trump announced that Kazakhstan will join the Abraham Accords, expanding the framework that normalises relations between Israel and Muslim-majority nations.
• Abraham Accords: The Abraham Accords are US–brokered agreements (2020) that normalised ties between Israel and several Arab/Muslim-majority countries
• The accords are named after the biblical figure Abraham, considered a common ancestor of Jews and Arabs, symbolizing brotherhood.
• Key Signatories: The key signatories to the Abraham Accords include Israel, UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco (all in 2020), and Sudan (2021).
• The UAE was the first to announce full normalisation, followed by Bahrain. Sudan joined after being removed from the US terror list, while Morocco normalised ties in exchange for US recognition of its Western Sahara claim.
• Significance: The Accords shows how the Arab countries are gradually decoupling themselves from the Palestine issue. It enhances regional diplomacy, trade, technology and tourism.
• India’s Interests: India has leveraged the Abraham Accords to strengthen its relationships with both Israel and Arab states at the same time.
• The new strategic platform I2U2 (India, Israel, UAE and the US) grew out of this environment, opening doors for collaboration in energy, water, health, transport, food security and space.

3. GRAP-3 AND THE RED ZONE: DECODING DELHI’S AIR EMERGENCY –

• Delhi’s air quality slid into the ‘red zone’, with several neighbourhoods touching ‘severe’ levels even as the city’s 24-hour average AQI stood at 361 (‘very poor’). GRAP Stage 3 has not been invoked yet, citing comparatively better November air this year versus 2024 and ongoing coordinated controls.

Current Pollution Snapshot

• Central Pollution Control Board data placed Delhi as the second most polluted Indian city on the day, with hotspots including Wazirpur (420), Burari (418) and Vivek Vihar (411) logging ‘severe’ readings. Across NCR, Noida (354), Greater Noida (336) and Ghaziabad (339) remained ‘very poor’. Since Diwali, the capital’s AQI has oscillated between ‘poor’ and ‘very poor’, periodically spiking to ‘severe’.

Forecast and Health Risks

• The early warning system expects air to stay ‘very poor’ for the next few days. Prolonged exposure at these levels aggravates respiratory and cardiac conditions, especially among children, the elderly and outdoor workers. Authorities advise limiting outdoor activity, masking in peak hours, and using indoor air purification where feasible.

4. DRAP, UIWIN TO CLEAR INDIA’S DUMPSITES BY 2026 –

• Union minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched the Dumpsite Remediation Accelerator Programme (DRAP) and the Urban Investment Window (UiWIN) at the National Urban Conclave 2025 in New Delhi, positioning both as pillars for cleaner, investment-ready cities under the ‘Viksit Bharat @2047’ vision. DRAP targets elimination of legacy waste in mission mode by September–October 2026, while UiWIN seeks to mobilise private and multilateral capital for urban infrastructure.

Mission-Mode Dumpsite Remediation

• DRAP will fast-track clearance at 214 high-load legacy landfills across 202 Urban Local Bodies, which together hold about 8.8 crore tonnes—nearly 80% of India’s remaining legacy waste. Overall, 1,428 sites are under remediation nationwide. Cities must prepare micro-action plans for each dumpsite, ensure no fresh tipping post-remediation, and earmark the reclaimed land for community and public uses.

5. UNDERSTANDING THE ‘CHICKEN’S NECK’ –

• India has initiated major strategic moves to reinforce its control over the Siliguri Corridor, also known as the ‘Chicken’s Neck,’ amid growing concerns over Bangladesh’s interim government warming up to Pakistan. The decision to establish new garrisons along the border underscores India’s intent to secure its Northeast connectivity and prevent potential geopolitical vulnerabilities.

Understanding the ‘Chicken’s Neck’

• The ‘Chicken’s Neck’ refers to the Siliguri Corridor — a narrow strip of land in West Bengal that connects mainland India to its northeastern states. At its narrowest, it measures only about 20 to 22 kilometres wide. The corridor is flanked by Nepal on the west, Bangladesh on the east, and Bhutan to the north, making it one of the most strategically sensitive regions in South Asia. Any disruption here could isolate the entire Northeast from the rest of the country, prompting India to treat the region as a high-priority security zone.

MCQ QUIZ

Q1.   Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary is located in which state ?

1. a) Maharashtra
2. b) Tamil Nadu
3. c) Karnataka
4. d) Kerala

Q2.   Which organization released the State of the Climate Update for COP30 ?

1. a) United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
2. b) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
3. c) International Energy Agency (IEA)
4. d) World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

Q3.   The Vaishvik Bhartiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) Fellowship is an initiative of which ministry ?

1. a) Ministry of External Affairs
2. b) Ministry of Education
3. c) Ministry of Skill Development
4. d) Ministry of Science and Technology

Q4.   The ‘Poorvi Prachand Prahar’ exercise, recently conducted by the Indian Armed Forces’ Eastern Command, is significant for which one of the following reasons ?

1. a) It was the first-ever joint exercise held near the Line of Control (LoC) involving a foreign military contingent.
2. b) It exclusively involved the Indian Army’s Special Forces for anti-insurgency operations in the North East region.
3. c) It validated multi-domain operations and joint doctrines specifically for high-altitude terrain near the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
4. d) It focused on maritime security and hydrographic surveys in the Bay of Bengal under the ‘Blue Economy’ mandate.

Explanation-

• ‘Poorvi Prachand Prahar’ is a large-scale tri-service joint exercise conducted by the Eastern Command. Its core aim was to validate and refine interoperability and joint doctrines for multi-domain operations in the challenging, high-altitude terrain near the Line of Actual Control (LAC), specifically at Mechuka, Arunachal Pradesh. This exercise is critical for enhancing combat agility and demonstrating a deterrence posture in the Eastern theatre.
• A notable feature of this exercise was the first-ever deployment of new light combat formations under the “Save and Raise” model, which ensured zero additional fiscal burden.

Q5.   Which of the following member states is the most recent addition to the United Nations (UN), becoming its 193rd member ?

1. a) Timor-Leste
2. b) Montenegro
3. c) South Sudan
4. d) Palestine (as a non-member observer state)

Explanation-

• The United Nations (UN) is the world’s most inclusive global body, with 193 member states. South Sudan is the most recent member, having joined the organization in 2011, becoming the 193rd member state.
• The UN, which was established in 1945 following World War II, operates under the UN Charter that came into force on October 24, 1945. It is essential to distinguish between a full member state, which has voting rights in the General Assembly, and a non-member observer state (such as Palestine), which can participate in proceedings but not vote on resolutions.

Answer Key