DAILY GK 24-25 FEB 2026
1.
ESIC COMMENCED 75TH
FOUNDATION YEAR CELEBRATIONS
·
The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), a
statutorysocial security body under
the Ministry of Labour & Employment(MoL&E), commenced the celebration
of its 75th Foundation Year (Platinum Jubilee) at Bharat
Mandapam in New Delhi.
·
The Government of India(GoI)
issued a Rs.75 commemorative coin to mark the 75th
Foundation Day of ESIC.
·
A book titled “ESIC@75” was launched,
documenting the organization’s legacy and transformative milestones.
·
SwasthyaRath: An outreach initiative launched to bring essential healthcare
services directly to the doorsteps of beneficiaries.
·
The ESIC and the NHA signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to integrate the ESI Scheme with
Ayushman Bharat – Pradhan Mantri Jan ArogyaYojana (AB PM-JAY).
2.
GOI MANDATES SALE OF
E20 PETROL WITH MINIMUM RON 95 NATIONWIDE
·
The Ministry of Petroleum
& Natural Gas (MoPNG) issued notification that
mandated the sale of petrol with
a maximum 20% of ethanol and a minimum Research Octane Number (RON) of
95 across all states and Union Territories (UTs) from April
01, 2026.
·
This move aligns with India’s ambitious
Ethanol Blended Programme (EBP), which aims to reduce reliance on crude oil
imports, lower carbon emissions, and support the agricultural economy.
·
Ethanol, a bio-fuel made from sugarcane, maize, or grain, is renewable, locally produced that can be blended with petrol to create a cleaner
fuel alternative.
·
RON is a measure of a fuel’s resistance to
engine knocking (pre-ignition) that prevents engine damage.
·
As per the MoPNG, ethanol
naturally has high octane value (nearly 108 RON) which means blending 20%
ethanol in petrol will increase knock resistance.
·
The EBP was originally launched in January 2003 by theMoPNG, with an
initial target of 5% ethanol blended petrol.
3. UIDAI TO DISPLAY VERIFIED AADHAAR CENTRES ON GOOGLE MAPS
·
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) under
the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), announced a collaboration with Google to
display authorised Aadhaar Centres on Google Maps to
enhance accessibility and transparency in Aadhaar services.
·
The facility will be rolled out in
phases and will cover more than 60,000 Aadhaar Centres, including
AadhaarSevaKendras (ASKs) across India.
·
Google Maps will display only authorised Aadhaar Centres
along with service details, operating hours, accessibility features, and
parking information to ensure convenience and authenticity.
·
UIDAI was established on 12
January 2009 under the Ministry of Electronics
and Information Technology (MeitY) and headquartered in New Delhi.
·
UIDAI. It is responsible for issuing Aadhaar, a 12-digit unique
identity number, and providing digital identity authentication for
government and private services.
4.
WORLD BANK’S WBL
REPORT 2026
·
The World Bank Group (WBG)released
the 11th edition of Women, Business and the Law
(WBL) report titled ‘Women, Business And the Law 2026:
Benchmarking Laws for Jobs and Inclusive Growth’.
·
The report revealed that, on
average, laws aimed at providing equal economic opportunities for women are only
half-enforced globally, highlighting persistent gaps in gender
equality in the workplace.
·
The report is a global benchmarking project that assesses
how laws, regulations, and policies help in shaping women’s economic
opportunities and private sector development across 190 economies.
·
Global Average Score: Legal frameworks (67 out of 100); Enforcement perceptions (53) and
Supportive frameworks (47).
·
It also showed that the global
average score for enforcement perceptions is 53 which
indicates women’s rights are only partly
held and no economy scores above 90 in this pillar.
·
The global score supportive
frameworks index is 47, the lowest among all the
three pillars.
·
The report noted that even
if laws were fully enforced, women will be able to access just
2/3rd (66.66%) of the legal rights of men.
·
As per the report, only
4% of women globally,
live in economies that provide nearly full legal equality.
5.
GLOBAL MENTAL HEALTH
REPORT
·
American Non-Government
Organisation (NGO)Sapien Labs released its latest global
mind health report titled ‘Global Mind Health in 2025: Mind
Health-The Ability to Navigate Life’s Challenges and Function Productively’.
·
As per the report, youth
adults in India (aged 18 to 34 years) rank 60th out
of 84 countries surveyed, with a Mind Health Quotient (MHQ) score
of 33.
·
In contrast, Indians aged 55 and
above, rank at 49th spot globally, with an overall
MHQ score of 96.
·
The MHQ score for adults aged 55 and above stands at 101
with nearly 10% experiencing clinically major mental health challenges.
·
However, the average MHQ score
for youth (aged 18-34 years) is 36 and 41% experience clinically major
mental health issues.
·
Top 3 Countries in Youth
(18-34): Ghana (1st), Nigeria (2nd),
Kenya and Zimbabwe (3rd).
·
Top 3 Countries For People (55+): Indonesia(1st), El Salvador (2nd) and Ghana and Mexico (3rd).
6.
IA’S KONARK CORPS TESTS
STRELA-10 AIR DEFENCE MISSILES
·
The Indian Army’s (IA)’s Konark
Corps, specifically the Air Defence Warriors of the Blazing Skies
Brigade, successfully conducted a high-intensity test firing of the Strela-10 Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS)
at the Pokhran Field Firing Range in the desert sector of Pokhran,
Rajasthan.
·
The Strela-10 is a very short-range air defence missile system
designed to counter low-altitude
aerial threats such as helicopters,
low-flying aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
·
The
Strela-10 air defence missile system has an
engagement range of approximately 6–10
km.
7.
STATES’ ELECTRICITY TRANSITION REPORT 2026
·
The 3rd edition of the States’ Electricity
Transition (SET) Report was released by the Institute for Energy
Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Ember.
·
The report highlights that India’s electricity
transition at the sub-national level is witnessing broader, though uneven,
progress across States, with Uttar Pradesh (UP), Andhra
Pradesh(AP) and Rajasthan emerging as leaders in electric
vehicle (EV) adoption and green hydrogen development.
·
The report assessed 21 States, which together account
for 95% of India’s total power demand, and analysed their progress in
transitioning towards clean electricity.
·
The report
assesses each State across three main dimensions.
·
Decarbonization: Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, and Kerala led this category due to
high RE procurement and low emission intensity.
·
Power
Ecosystem Readiness and Performance: Delhi and Haryana remained ahead due to robust distributed solar
adoption and reliable DISCOM performance.
·
Market
Enablers: AP, Uttar Pradesh, and
Rajasthan are the strongest performers in this dimension.
8. UNESCO
ASIA-PACIFIC AWARD FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE CONSERVATION
·
The 475-year-old Our
Lady of Grace Cathedral, located in Vasai, Maharashtra, received the Award of Merit at
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Asia-Pacific
Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation 2025, becoming the only religious site from India to receive
recognition.
·
The announcement was made
in Bangkok, Thailand, during the 25th anniversary ceremony of
the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation, where ten
projects from six countries were recognised.
·
The UNESCO Asia-Pacific
Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation are presented under four categories: Award of Distinction, Award of Merit,
Award for New Design in Heritage
Contexts, and Special Recognition for
Sustainable Development.
·
The 2025 edition honoured 10
outstanding projects from six countries: China, India, Japan,
Malaysia, Nepal and Vanuatu.
·
The Award of Distinction, the highest honour in 2025, was jointly
conferred on the Sihang Warehouse
Conservation Project in Shanghai, China, and the IwamiGinzan Library Conservation Project in Oda, Japan.
·
Nepal
secured two Awards of Merit in 2025.
9.
MANIPURI
FILM ‘BOONG’ WINS BAFTA AWARD
·
The Manipuri-language film ‘Boong’, became the first
Indian film to win the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)
Award for Best Children’s & Family Film at the
79th edition of the ceremony held in London.
·
Boong is a
Manipuri-language coming-of-age comedy-drama directed by debutant Lakshmipriya Devi and produced by Farhan Akhtar
and Ritesh Sidhwani.
·
Robert
Aramayo won Best Leading Actor for his role in ‘I Swear’.
·
Jessie
Buckley received
Best Leading Actress for ‘Hamnet’.
·
Hamnetearned
the Outstanding British Film award.
10.
GLOBAL ASQ BEST
ARRIVALS AWARD
·
Mangaluru International
Airport (MIA), Mangaluru, Karnataka, was
honoured with the 2025 Airports Service
Quality (ASQ) Customer Experience Award in the ‘Best
Airport at Arrivals’ category, marking its second consecutive win.
·
ASQ Awards included Best Airports at
Arrivals (6 airports), Best Airports at Departures (88 airports), Most Dedicated
Staff (23 airports), Easiest Airport
Journey (26 airports), Most Enjoyable Airport (23 airports), and Cleanest
Airport (29 airports).
·
At Arrivals category: Out of six global winners in Best Airports at Arrivals,
four were from India: MIA (Mangaluru, Karnataka), Chaudhary Charan Singh
International Airport (Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, UP), Rajiv Gandhi International
Airport (Hyderabad, Telangana), and Kempegowda International Airport
(Bengaluru, Karnataka).
·
At Departures category: In
the over 40 million passenger’s/year category,
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (Mumbai,) and
Indira Gandhi International Airport (New Delhi) were recognized, while
Lucknow’s CCS International Airport topped the 5–15 million passengers/year
segment.
