Current Affairs: 8th October 2025

• SC tells EC to be open onnames in final Bihar rolls

Context: It says there is confusion about whether names added in final list are those deleted from draft roll; it asks if the poll panel individually informed the excluded voters, to facilitate their right to appeal

• The Supreme Court reminded the Election Commission that “the degree of transparency and access to information form the hallmarks of an open democracy”.
• It also questioned the top poll body about the individual details of voters added to the final list of voters in Bihar after the special intensive revision (SIR) of the State’s electoral roll.
• Over 21.5 lakh voters have been added in the final roll, and 3.66 lakh removed.
• “There is a confusion about the names added on in the final list… What is the identity of the people added on? Is it an add-on of names taken from the 65 lakh voters deleted in the draft roll or are they new and independent names? The final list shows an appreciation of the number of voters… This exercise we want you to do is in aid of the electoral process, to maintain intact the faith in the electoral process,” Justice Joymalya Bagchi, who was part of the Bench headed by Justice Surya Kant, asked the poll body.

Final list

• The final list shows that there are 7.42 crore eligible voters in the State. This was higher than the 7.24 crore voters listed in the draft electoral roll published after the first phase of the SIR, which had seen the removal of 65 lakh names, given that Bihar had 7.89 crore voters on June 24, the date of notification of the SIR exercise.
• The court asked the EC whether the 3.66 lakh voters deleted from the final list were individually informed through a formal order of deletion to facilitate the filing of appeals against their exclusion. “They have a right to appeal,” Justice Kant told the poll body.
• The Bench also asked whether a separate list of the names and details of the 3.66 lakh excluded voters had been published and made easily accessible at the grass roots level.
• Justice Bagchi referred to Rule 21A of the Registration of Electors’ Rules, 1960, which requires poll authorities to display the names and details of deleted voters on the notice boards of district electoral offices.
• Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, for the EC, said the disaggregated data was still being collected from ground-level officers and processed. However, there has not been a single complaint against any exclusion of names in the final list, he said, noting that the final electoral roll has already been shared with political parties.
• “Who is deleted and who is not requires only a basic comparison between the draft roll and the final list,” Mr. Dwivedi argued.
• Justice Kant, at one point in the hearing, threw the EC’s line of argument at the petitioners’ lawyers, advocates Prashant Bhushan and Neha Rathi.
• “Mr. Bhushan, but where are the aggrieved people? The draft voter list is available on the EC website, the final voter list is also available. You could compare and identify the excluded names. Show us specific cases in the 3.66 lakh deleted voters whose names were deleted without any communication… This cannot be a roving enquiry… For whom are you doing this? They may be illegals who were deleted from the voter list, would they come out and complain?” Justice Kant asked them.

‘Population estimate mismatch’

• Mr. Bhushan said the SIR, instead of cleaning up the electoral process, has only compounded the problems due to the EC’s opacity.
• The court asked the EC to address the issues raised in Mr. Bhushan’s written submissions on Thursday.
• These submissions contended that though the official estimate of the adult population in Bihar for September 2025 was 8.22 crore, the number of electors in the final rolls was only 7.42 crore.
• “Thus, 80 lakh, that is, approximately 10% of the total adult population of Bihar has been denied their right to vote. Such a sharp fall in the adult population to electors’ ratio is a record for India and for Bihar,” the written submissions said.

Missing women, Muslims

• In no State of the country previously have as much as 10% of the electorate been excluded from the electoral roll, Mr. Bhushan said. He added that lakhs of women were ‘missing’ from Bihar’s electoral rolls.
• “After SIR, while Bihar’s gender ratio is 934 in September 2025, the gender ratio in the final electoral rolls has fallen sharply to 892. This translates into 17 lakh missing women… SIR has wiped out a whole decade’s gains in the gender ratio of electoral rolls,” said the submissions presented in court.
• The SIR exercise has also resulted in the disproportionate exclusion of Muslims, Mr. Bhushan claimed.
• “Our analysis based on name recognition software, shows that Muslims were 25% among the 65 lakh voters excluded from the draft rolls and 34% among the 3.66 lakh deleted electors from the final rolls… This disproportionate exclusion accounts for the reduction of about six lakh Muslim voters,” he submitted.

‘Respond to analysis’

• The court asked the EC to respond to Mr. Bhushan’s analysis that at least 5.17 lakh names on the final rolls appear to be duplicates. “There are over 2.5 lakh cases of blank or junk households numbers, over 25,000 electors with gibberish names and nearly 60,000 entries with invalid gender or relation or gender relations mismatch,” the written submissions alleged.

• Bigg Boss Kannada 12 gets KSPCB notice for violation of norms

Context: KSPCB order says Vels Studio and Entertainment Limited, the amusement park where the reality show is being shot, was operating without obtaining valid consent from the pollution control board.

• The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has ordered the closure of M/s. Vels Studio and Entertainment Limited located in Bidadi Industrial Area, Bengaluru South district, for non-compliance of environmental norms.
• M/s. Vels Studio and Entertainment Limited (M/s. Jolly Wood Studios and Adventures) is where the current edition of the Bigg Boss Kannada reality television show is being shot.
• According to a KSPCB order issued on October 6, 2025, M/s. Vels Studio and Entertainment Limited is an amusement park established and operating without obtaining valid consent from the board which falls under Green Category.

Waste water

• It added that during inspection it was found that waste water generated from different domains of the amusement park was discharged outside the premises without any treatment and causing pollution to the surrounding environment.
• It further said that the park authorities have provided a Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP) of 250 kilo liters per day (KLD). “However, no sewer, no inflow of sewerage to STP was observed, all STP units installed were empty and discharging the waste water outside the premises without any treatment,” it said.
• During inspection it was also found that the housekeeping near STP is very poor and there is no flowchart displayed.
• Diesel Generating sets of capacity 625 KVA and 500 KVA were also installed and operating in the premises.
• “The park authorities have disposed of the solid waste generated viz., disposable paper plates, cups, and plastic waste near STP area without any segregation in an unscientific manner,” it added.

• KSPCB has issued closure orders under Section 33(A) of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, read with Rule 34 of Karnataka Board for the Prevention and Control of Water Pollution (Procedure for Transaction of Business), and the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Rules, 1976.

In 2024

• Environment Minister Eshwar Khandre said the KSPCB Regional Office in Ramanagara had issued notices to the studio twice in 2024, which its ​promoters did not comply with. He said that the studio was operating without obtaining permission under the Water Act and Air Act.

• SWR begins phased rollout of Kavach train protection system

Context: The South Western Railway (SWR) has initiated the process of implementing the indigenously developed Kavach, an electronic rail safety mechanism system, across its network, covering a total of 3,692 route km (RKM). Developed by the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) in collaboration with the Indian industry, Kavach is an Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system designed to significantly enhance safety of the railways.

In two stages

• According to SWR officials, the project will be executed in two stages. The first phase will cover 1,568 RKM at an estimated cost of ₹628.63 crore, while the second phase will extend the system to the remaining 2,124 RKM.
• Officials explained that Kavach is a state-of-the-art electronic safety mechanism built to Safety Integrity Level-4 (SIL-4) standards, the highest benchmark in railway safety.
• “Its primary function is to prevent trains from passing signals set at danger (red) and to avert collisions. If a loco pilot fails to slow down as per prescribed speed restrictions, Kavach automatically triggers the braking system. It also ensures that two locomotives fitted with functional Kavach systems do not collide. Another crucial feature is the ​automatic relay of SoS messages during emergencies, along with live centralised monitoring of train movements via the Network Monitor System,” the official said.
• The system functions as a Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), using on-board equipment and transmission towers at stations linked through Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags.
• “This facilitates two-way communication between the station master and the loco pilot during emergencies. Inside the locomotive cabin, an instrument panel provides advance signal information, permissible speed limits, and warnings. In cases where a red signal is ignored, or trains are on a collision course, the system intervenes instantly by applying emergency brakes. Kavach also automatically activates a hooter while approaching level crossings, aiding loco-pilots in low-visibility conditions such as fog,” official added.
• Meanwhile, the Railways has sanctioned work to equip 299 locomotives under SWR with Loco Kavach. Officials said the detailed project estimate is currently under vetting by the accounts department.

• PRADA delegation meets Kolhapuri chappal artisans

Context: A delegation from PRADA, the European fashion house that faced allegations of copying the design of the Kolhapuri chappal, visited Athani in Belagavi district recently and interacted with artisans.

• The team led by Gautam Mehra, PRADA’s Indian representative, visited the houses of some artisans and spoke to them. It also visited the Kolhapuri chappal cluster in Athani and documented the working styles of the artisans and took pictures of their portfolio. “They told us that they are willing to work with the government and cooperate with the artisans. They offered to train batches of five to 10 artisans in their design centres in India,” Shivaraj Soudagar, cluster coordinator, told The Hindu.
• “We asked the officers to give us some orders so that we could access a bigger market and get better prices for our product. They agreed to consider our demand,” Mr. Soudagar said.
• Another round of meeting between artisans, LIDKAR officers, and PRADA designers has been scheduled in Bengaluru this week.
• ZP CEO Rahul Shinde said that the district administration had planned a series of actions for the Athani artisans.
• “We want to organise a series of workshops for artisans, in association with agencies like EXIM bank and National Institute of Design. They will not only be aimed at training them in understanding market trends, but also in new designs and use of diverse materials. We will also train them in using e-commerce portals for boosting their sales, standard methods and processes of packing and logistics management. Another set of resource persons will provide soft skills training, and consumer relations. We will also tie up with legal experts to help our artisans better understand the implications of the Geographical Indication and other laws,” Mr Shinde said.
• MP for Chikkodi Priyanka Jarkiholi said that she would urge the State government and LIDKAR to work with PRADA and find a solution in which the artisans get assured orders and remunerative wages. She said she would speak to LIDKAR officers and artisans in Karnataka and Maharashtra to find a common solution.

• India edges closer to recognising Taliban as Muttaqi to arrive in Delhi for a five-day visit

Context: Two days before the visit of Amir Khan Muttaqi, Acting Foreign Minister of the Taliban regime ruling Afghanistan, the Indian government came one step closer to formally recognising the Taliban, as a regional grouping that India is a part of admitted Mr. Muttaqi as a “member” for the first time.

• Mr. Muttaqi, who is on the UN Security Council’s list of banned terrorists, was given special permission to travel to India, and officials said he would arrive in for a five-day visit.
• According to sources, Mr. Muttaqi will be accorded full protocol as a visiting Foreign Minister, including being hosted by the government. He will be received at the official venue, Hyderabad House, by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar for talks on October 10.
• India’s Ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar attended the 10-nation Moscow Format Consultations hosted by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Others in attendance were Pakistan’s special envoy on Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq and other representatives from China, Iran and Central Asian countries.
• Apart from Russia, no country has recognised the Taliban government thus far, and since the Taliban takeover of Kabul in August 2021, representatives of the ‘Acting government’ in Afghanistan have attended the meeting as observers only. However, a photograph released after the meeting on Tuesday showed Mr. Muttaqi amongst the delegates.
• “For the first time the Afghan delegation headed by Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi participated in the meeting as a member,” said a joint statement issued by all the participants at the meeting, calling for more economic exchanges, provision of humanitarian assistance, and regional connectivity initiatives with Afghanistan, as well as steps to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation.
• Mr. Muttaqi is expected to travel next to India, arriving on October 9. It is unclear whether Mr. Muttaqi would also call on Mr. Modi later in the visit, the first such official visit by a senior Taliban Minister since 2021. During the five-day visit, Mr. Muttaqi, who received special permission to travel from the UN Sanctions committee on September 30, is expected to meet a number of officials and interact with business groups and Afghan nationals living in India.
• Former diplomats said that inviting Mr. Muttaqi to India was a pragmatic move, given India’s interests in Afghanistan, but warned against giving the Taliban regime full recognition until the United Nations decides to do so.
• “India should await international consensus,” said Vivek Katju, who has managed Afghanistan relations at the MEA in the past. However, he added that India should post a more senior Charge d’Affaires at its Embassy in Kabul, which currently runs as a “technical mission”.
• Former Ambassador to Afghanistan Gautam Mukhopadhyay said that the move to invite Mr. Muttaqi reflects a “convergence of security interests at the expense of certain values and internal security concerns that held the relationship in check”.
• However, Afghanistan’s former Foreign Minister and National Security Adviser Rangin Dadfar Spanta said, “India’s current policy towards Afghanistan is mainly determined by an anti-Pakistan approach. Both Pakistan and the government in Delhi are looking for proxies. This is not about good neighbourliness or peace in our region. Unfortunately, the opposite is true.”

• Trio wins Physics Nobel for building device showing ‘quantum tunnelling’

Context: The Nobel Prize for Physics this year will be awarded to three scientists — John Clarke, Michel Devoret and John Martinis, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

• The scientists worked together and devised experiments to tease greater insight into the workings of the quantum world: the realm of the ultra-small when objects, broken down to single, constituent particles, cease to behave in the way we ordinarily expect them to.
• One of the mind-boggling behaviours that particles are capable of here is “tunnelling”, literally, the ability of particles to pass through physical walls.
• It is as if a cricket ball hitting the pitch will surely bounce up, but the odd cricket-ball particle will simply burrow into the ground. Such behaviour cannot be observed at the macroscopic level but the scientists showed that it was possible to organise a multitude of single particles and coerce them to exhibit “tunnelling” properties in a system, big enough to be held in the hand.

Electrical circuit

• Much like early insight into quantum mechanics paved the way for transistors and silicon chips in the 1950s, the three scientists devised an electrical circuit with two superconductors, components that can conduct a current without any electrical resistance.
• They separated these with a thin layer of material — called a Josephson junction — that did not conduct any current at all.
• In this experiment, they showed that they could control and investigate a phenomenon in which all the charged particles in the superconductor behave in unison, as if they are a single ‘particle’ that fills the entire circuit.
• Following this, they were able to demonstrate that such a particle could be made to behave simulating the flow of electricity even without voltage, a prerequisite for the flow of current.
• These were akin to the first ‘super-conducting circuits’ that could potentially realise practical, useful quantum computers and quantum sensors.
• Quantum computers, unlike contemporary computers, deal in ‘qubits’, rather than binary bits. This allows them to perform calculations exponentially faster but also threaten all kinds of encryption systems that are premised on bit-based computers.

• ‘No State has fully complied with key drug quality norms’

Context: While 18 State drug control authorities across the country have adopted the Online National Drugs Licensing System (ONDLS) for processing drug-related licences, no State has yet fully complied with the Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) guidelines, confirmed a source in the Union Health Ministry.

• Both the ONDLS and CAPA are provisions under the Central government’s revised Schedule M, which is a critical update to India’s pharmaceutical manufacturing regulations.

Safety standards

• “CAPA is crucial for ensuring safety and maintaining high standards in regulated industries such as pharmaceuticals.  It is a universal quality management methodology for process improvement,’’ the official said.
• Voluntary compliance [with CAPA] is crucial for quality maintenance, he said, while speaking about the recent deaths of children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan due to consumption of adulterated cough syrup.
• CAPA also focuses on systematically investigating and resolving problems in managment issues.  “Compliance with CAPA will ensure that drug violation is registered and corrective action is taken,’’ the official said.
• The ONDLS is a digital, single-window platform for processing various drug-related licences in India and has been developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing in coordination with the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO).
• “The system is designed to create a uniform, transparent, and accountable process for drug licensing across all States and Union Territories. It handles applications for manufacturing and sales licences, blood banks, and various certificates, such as WHO-GMP,’’ said the official.
• Data shared show that of the total 5,308 MSME pharma companiesin India, 3,838 have already complied with the revised Schedule M GMP.

• Waiting for other countries to unveil digital currency: RBI

Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is waiting for other countries to launch digital currency and is in no hurry to roll out Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) nation wide for retail, said Deputy Governor Rabi Sankar.

• “We’re in no hurry because, you see, for this system to launch, you also have to have other countries launching it simultaneously,” Mr. Sankar said on the sidelines of Global Fintech Fest on Tuesday. He said the most appropriate use-case for a CBDC was cross border payments, although he did not rule out a retail unveiling.

Use UPI with biometrics

• Mr. Sankar’s comments assume significance in light of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s recent observation that it was time for nations to prepare for adoption of stable coins.
• The Global Fintech Fest saw the unveiling of biometric authentication for UPI payments by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). The biometric authentication on-device can be used in place of the PIN that has been in use since UPI was launched in 2016.
• Secretary to the Department of Financial Services at the Ministry of Finance M. Nagaraju unveiled the feature. The facility will be made available to customers who choose to opt, giving them control over their preferred mode of authentication, the announcement said. “Each transaction is independently verified by the issuing bank using robust cryptographic checks, ensuring the highest level of safety while keeping the experience simple and seamless,” the NPCI said.
• The biometric system is expected to widely benefit senior citizens and first-time users.

• World Bank raises India’s FY26 growth outlook to 6.5%

Context: The World Bank has upgraded its growth outlook for India to 6.5% in 2025-26, from the earlier 6.3%, citing stronger domestic conditions and also the impact of the GST rate cuts. However, it has revised downward its forecast for 2026-27 to 6.3%, saying the impact of the U.S. tariffs will dampen growth.

• In its South Asia Development Update released, the World Bank said India’s real GDP growth “exceeded expectations” in the April-June 2025 quarter, accelerating to 7.8%. It noted that growth was bolstered by strong private consumption and investment and boosted by lower-than-expected prices.
• For the current financial year, the World Bank said India’s growth has been revised upwards to 6.5% from the earlier prediction of 6.3%.
• “India is expected to remain the world’s fastest growing major economy, underpinned by continued strength in consumption growth,” the report said. “Domestic conditions, particularly agricultural output and rural wage growth, have been better than expected.”
• “The government’s reforms to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) — reducing the number of tax brackets and simplifying compliance — are expected to support activity,” it added.
• However, it said that the forecast for 2026-27 has been downgraded from 6.5% to 6.3% as a result of the imposition of the 50% tariff on about three-quarters of India’s goods exports to the U.S.

• Modernisation of financial architecture: how India is adopting stablecoins

Context: Stablecoins are blockchain-based digital assets designed to maintain a consistent value over time. Until recently, India’s approach to stablecoins was cautious. But now Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has stated that India needs to be ready to engage with crypto assets such as stablecoins

• Stablecoins are a category of crypto assets that aim to maintain a stable value relative to a specified asset, or basket of assets, providing perceived stability. Various definitions of stablecoins exist, with different countries; standard-setting bodies such as the Financial Stability Board, Bank for International Settlements and International Monetary Fund; and many central banks contributing to these definitions.
• Largely, stablecoins are blockchain-based digital assets designed to maintain a consistent value over time. They achieve this by being backed by reserves such as fiat currencies, commodities, or other crypto assets. They are a distinct class of Virtual Digital Assets (VDAs) backed by fiat currencies, commodities, or other assets. They aim to maintain a stable value, thereby distinguishing them from other VDAs.

Broadly, there are three types of stablecoins:

• Fiat-backed stablecoins — these are backed by reserves of traditional currencies such as the U.S. dollar or Euro, held in banks or regulated institutions. Examples include the USDT and USDC.
• Crypto-backed stablecoins — these are collateralised by other crypto assets. DAI, backed by Ethereum, is a leading example.
• Algorithmic stablecoins — these maintain stability through automated algorithms that adjust supply and demand, without relying on reserves. They are more experimental and risk-prone, as seen with projects like TerraUSD.

New financial plumbing

• In the traditional financial world, cross-border payments are expensive, slow, and fragmented. Stablecoins are digital tokens backed by fiat reserves and powered by blockchain rails which are rewriting that equation.
• According to Visa’s 2025 report Making Crypto Real, over $220 billion worth of stablecoins are already in circulation, with transactions settling in seconds rather than days, and at a fraction of traditional costs. The average remittance via stablecoin costs as little as $0.01, compared to $44 through conventional banking routes.
• This efficiency is not just a technical feat; it’s economic evolution. In the same way that HTTP allowed information to flow seamlessly across the web, stablecoins could enable value to flow over digital rails in real time. The emerging vision, often described as “agentic payments,” imagines a world where AI systems autonomously initiate transactions paying cloud providers, renewing subscriptions, or even reallocating treasury funds over stablecoin protocols.

A maturing global order

• Stablecoins have outgrown their niche origins. Institutional finance has taken notice. BlackRock, Fidelity, and Bank of America have each announced or launched stablecoin initiatives, while Societe Generale became the first major European bank to issue a dollar-pegged coin in 2025.
• Regulators, once sceptical, are now codifying legitimacy. The EU’s MiCA framework and the U.S. GENIUS Act provide clear definitions, reserve standards, and consumer protections, transforming stablecoins into regulated financial instruments.
• In effect, what we are witnessing is not the replacement of traditional money but its modernisation. A new three-layered structure is emerging— the blockchain base layer which is decentralised, auditable, and interoperable; the reserve layer which includes regulated institutions backing stablecoins with transparent fiat or treasury reserves; and the interface layer where payment cards, APIs, and digital wallets are making stablecoins usable in everyday commerce.
• Visa and Mastercard’s moves to support stablecoin settlement on Ethereum and Solana are not experiments; they are strategic recalibrations.
• Stablecoins are fast emerging as a new settlement layer for global finance. Value can now move as seamlessly as information flows online. By bypassing legacy rails like SWIFT, they transform cross-border transfers from days to seconds, creating a real-time, programmable foundation for the internet economy.

India’s evolving stance

• Until recently, India’s approach to stablecoins was cautious. But the global tide is shifting, and so is New Delhi’s calculus. Recently, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has stated that India needs to be ready to engage with crypto assets, like stablecoins.
• The maturation of stablecoins mirrors the path the Internet itself once took: from anarchic experimentation to institutional adoption. What was once a tool for traders is now morphing into a universal payment backbone. In emerging markets, stablecoins are filling gaps that banks find tough to reach; in developed markets, they are cutting inefficiencies that banks long tolerated.
• In Visa’s language, stablecoins are “crypto’s superpower.” Their functional advantages, that is, speed, low cost, and transparency are undeniable. But their real promise lies in what they can enable. In an AI-driven, hyper-connected economy, money must move at machine speed.

The road ahead

• India’s digital infrastructure built on UPI, Aadhaar, and account aggregators has already redefined inclusion. The next leap is interoperability: not just between banks, but between blockchains, currencies, and algorithms. Stablecoins, with clear regulation and institutional backing, could provide that bridge.
• The debate, then, is no longer whether stablecoins will shape the future of finance but how India chooses to shape stablecoins. As the world’s financial plumbing gets rewired, nations that embrace stable, programmable, and globally interoperable money will define the rules of the new digital economy. Stablecoins will not replace fiat but they will redefine what fiat feels like in an Internet-operated world.