23 April 2025

• Security and Diplomacy: India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty following the Pahalgam attack. Cabinet Committee on Security approved a multi-pronged response targeting Pakistan's support for cross-border terrorism.
• Economy: MSME credit gap of 330 billion dollars and digital lending's potential to add 1.5 per cent to GDP entered the economic debate.
• Science: Tardigrades (water bears) selected for the Axiom-4 ISS mission with Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla on board.
• Governance: PM Awards for Excellence in Public Administration recognised Gamharia Block (Jharkhand) for work under the Aspirational Block Programme.

GS area: Internal Security, International Relations

Following the 22 April attack, India's diplomatic response unfolded rapidly on 23 April 2025.

• Indus Waters Treaty suspension: India suspended the 1960 Treaty as a diplomatic signal. Pakistan called it an "act of war."
• SAARC shut-down: India cancelled participation in scheduled SAARC events involving Pakistan.
• Visa restrictions: India announced suspension of Pakistani nationals' visas and reduced diplomatic staffing.
• Trade measures: India's bilateral trade of approximately 3 billion dollars with Pakistan was disrupted.
• Pakistan's parallel suspension: Pakistan suspended the Simla Agreement on 24 April, the day after India's IWT suspension.
• The Line of Control: The LoC is a 740 km military boundary formalised under the Simla Agreement of 1972. Its legal status under international law flows entirely from that agreement.

The strategic logic: making the cost of supporting terrorism tangible through treaty, diplomatic, and economic measures rather than immediate military response.

Static linkage: India-Pakistan relations, internal security, bilateral treaties (GS-2 IR, GS-3 Internal Security).

GS area: Science and Technology

Tardigrades, microscopic animals also called water bears, were chosen as experimental subjects on the Axiom-4 ISS mission.

• Size: 0.3 to 0.5 mm. Microscopic but visible to the naked eye.
• Discovery: First described in 1773 by Johann Goeze.
• Resilience: Tardigrades can survive vacuum, radiation, extreme temperature, and desiccation by entering a state called cryptobiosis (suspended animation).
• Axiom-4 mission: A 14-day crewed mission to the International Space Station. Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is among the crew, marking the first Indian to fly to the ISS.
• Scientific purpose: Testing tardigrade revival and reproduction in microgravity. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of extreme resilience has implications for pharmaceutical and biomedical research.

Static linkage: Space science, biotechnology, India's space programme (GS-3 Science and Technology).

GS area: Economy, Science and Technology

TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute) developed a nano sulphur formulation for crop nutrition in April 2025.

• Problem: Sulphur deficiency affects 41 to 45 per cent of Indian soils. Conventional sulphur fertilisers have only 10 to 15 per cent nutrient availability.
• Nano sulphur: Has 90 to 100 per cent nutrient availability.
• Impact on mustard: Production increased 30 to 40 per cent (up to 3.7 tonnes per hectare). Oil content increased 28 to 30 per cent.
• Farmer revenue: Additional income of up to Rs 12,000 per acre.

Static linkage: Agriculture, fertilisers, food security (GS-3 Economy).

GS area: Environment, Governance

A study published in April 2025 found that all 11 major Indian metropolitan areas exceeded PM10 pollution standards continuously from 2021 to 2024.

• PM10: Particulate matter with diameter of 10 microns or less.
• NAAQS standards: Annual average limit of 60 micrograms per cubic metre. 24-hour average limit of 100 micrograms per cubic metre.
• Metros in violation: All 11 major metros exceeded the annual standard without a single year of compliance.
• Health impact: The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified outdoor air pollution as a carcinogen in 2015.
• Sources: Road dust, vehicular emissions, construction activity, and industrial processes are the primary sources.

Static linkage: Air pollution, environmental governance (GS-3 Environment).

GS area: Governance

The PM Awards for Excellence in Public Administration 2024 recognised Gamharia Block in Jharkhand for its work under the Aspirational Block Programme.

• Aspirational Block Programme: Modelled on the Aspirational Districts Programme. Targets 500 blocks with weak development indicators in health, nutrition, education, and infrastructure.
• Gamharia Block, Jharkhand: Won the 2024 Prime Minister's Award for best performance in the ABP.
• The awards: Instituted to motivate the bureaucracy. Promote citizen-centric governance and healthy competition among government units.
• Focus areas: Health, nutrition, education, agriculture, and infrastructure.

Static linkage: Governance, Aspirational Programmes (GS-2 Governance).

• Vatican City and Pope Francis: Pope Francis passed away in April 2025 at age 88. Vatican City facts: area of 44 hectares in western Rome on the Tiber's west bank. Population: approximately 882. Government: ecclesiastical absolute monarchy headed by the Pope. Formation: Lateran Treaty with Italy in 1929. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984.
• AI in weather forecasting: Mission Mausam has a Rs 2,000 crore outlay. An IIT Delhi ML model showed 61.9 per cent accuracy in monsoon forecasting for 2002-2022, outperforming traditional models.