NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. India and UK Unveil IN-UK-STP Dashboard to Deepen Bilateral Science & Technology Cooperation: Ajay Kumar Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, and Dr David Warren Smith, National Technology Adviser to the UK, jointly unveiled the pilot version of the India–United Kingdom Science and Technology Partnership (IN-UK-STP) Dashboard at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.The dashboard has been jointly developed by the Office of the PSA (India) and the British High Commission in India, reflecting the deepening science and technology collaboration between the two nations.It currently maps 143 bilateral projects jointly supported by Indian and UK stakeholders since 2018, highlighting details like funding value, implementing partners, and funding agencies.
2. Telangana Launches Artificial Intelligence Innovation Hub (TAIH) to Become a Global AI Leader by 2035: The Telangana government has launched the Telangana Artificial Intelligence Innovation Hub (TAIH) in Hyderabad, aimed at positioning the State among the top 20 global AI hubs by 2035 and serving as a center for AI-driven innovation, research, and collaboration across sectors.The State has established strategic partnerships with leading institutions like IIIT Hyderabad, BITS Pilani, ISB, NALSAR, IIT Hyderabad, and C-DAC, as well as global tech giants including Google, Microsoft, Infosys, and Amazon to strengthen AI innovation.
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. 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’. 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.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. UAE to Establish India House in Abu Dhabi: UAE plans to establish an India House in the capital in the next few years to promote cultural ties, art, student exchanges, and shared history.UAE aims to declare yoga as a competitive sport, reflecting its popularity among the four-million-strong Indian community.The second Joint Steering Committee Meeting of the India-UAE Cultural Council (October 8-9) focused on youth engagement, sports, education, tourism, archival collaboration, and arts/academic exchanges.
2. Maldives Becomes World’s First Country to Enforce Generational Tobacco Ban for Those Born After 2007: The Maldives has become the world’s first country to implement a generational tobacco ban, prohibiting the purchase, sale, or use of tobacco products for anyone born on or after January 1, 2007.Under the new law, individuals from the 2007 generation onward will never be legally allowed to buy or use tobacco in the country, marking a permanent generational restriction.This move follows the Maldives’ earlier ban in late 2024 on the import, manufacture, sale, and use of all vaping products, applicable to all age groups.The ban, which came into effect on November 1, 2025, has been hailed by the Ministry of Health as a historic step toward a tobacco-free generation and a major victory for public health protection.
3. Indian-Origin Ghazala Hashmi Becomes First Muslim and South Asian American Elected as Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor: Ghazala Hashmi, an Indian-origin American politician, has been elected as Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor, becoming the first Muslim and South Asian American to hold this top political office in the state.The 61-year-old Democrat won with 1,465,634 votes (54.2%), defeating Republican John Reid, who received 1,232,242 votes, with 79% votes counted.
Elected on November 4, 2025, Hashmi was among 30+ Indian-American and South Asian candidates contesting in the 2025 U.S. elections, and she earlier served as the first Muslim and South Asian in the Virginia Senate.
4. Zohran Mamdani Makes History as New York City’s First Muslim and South Asian Mayor: Zohran Mamdani, a 34-year-old Democratic Socialist and former New York State Assembly member from Queens, created history by becoming New York City’s first Muslim and South Asian Mayor, and its youngest since 1917, after winning the election on November 4, 2025.His grassroots campaign, centered on affordability and equality, successfully challenged New York’s wealthy political elite, marking a shift toward people-powered politics.In his victory speech in Brooklyn, Mamdani quoted Jawaharlal Nehru’s “Tryst with Destiny” speech, symbolizing a new political era; he secured over 50% of votes, defeating Andrew Cuomo (40%) and Republican Curtis Sliwa (7%).
OTHER UPDATES:
DEFENCE
1. HAL Signs Deal with GE for Light Combat Aircrafts Mk1A Engines: In a major milestone for India’s aerospace sector, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has signed a $1-billion (₹8,868 crore) contract with General Electric (GE), USA, for the supply of 113 F404-GE-IN20 engines to power the next batch of 97 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mk1A. The agreement marks a decisive step toward enhancing India’s indigenous fighter production capacity under the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative. The latest contract brings the total number of F404 engines ordered from GE to 212, including 99 engines previously contracted in 2021 for 83 aircraft. The new batch of 113 engines will support production for 97 aircraft, while 32 additional units will cater to testing and operational needs. HAL confirmed that deliveries under this deal will commence in 2027 and continue through 2032, matching the production cycle of the LCA Mk1A fleet.
2. US Test-Fires “Minuteman III” Intercontinental Ballistic Missile: The United States has successfully conducted a test launch of its Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, just days after President Donald Trump called for the resumption of America’s nuclear testing programme. The missile, unarmed during the trial, travelled approximately 7,500 kilometres before striking its designated target near the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site in the Marshall Islands. The US Air Force clarified that the test, code-named GT 254, was planned months in advance as part of routine reliability assessments. According to Lt. Col. Karrie Wray, commander of the 576th Flight Test Squadron, the exercise was designed to “verify and validate the ICBM system’s ability to perform its critical mission.” Data collected from such launches ensure the continued accuracy and reliability of the US strategic deterrent. However, the timing of the test — following President Trump’s renewed call for nuclear readiness — has drawn global attention.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
1. OpenAI Launches ‘IndQA’ Benchmark to Test AI Models on Indian Languages and Cultural Understanding: OpenAI has launched IndQA, a benchmark evaluation designed to test AI models’ linguistic abilities and cultural understanding across 12 Indian languages and 10 domains, developed with inputs from 261 Indian experts, including journalists, linguists, artists, and scholars.The IndQA benchmark contains 2,278 culturally grounded questions spanning topics like architecture, arts, cuisine, history, religion, and sports, written in languages such as Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Marathi, Telugu, Punjabi, and Hinglish, each paired with English translations and expert-reviewed ideal answers.The initiative aims to bridge the gap in local benchmarks for Indic language models, promoting fairness and inclusivity in AI evaluation.
2. Ironwood: The AI Chip That Could Redefine Google’s Future: Google has officially unveiled “Ironwood”, its seventh-generation Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), now available to AI developers worldwide. Designed for training and running massive machine-learning models, Ironwood marks Google’s boldest move yet in the battle for AI infrastructure dominance—directly taking aim at Nvidia’s long-standing GPU supremacy. Initially previewed in April 2025, Ironwood represents a leap in Google’s custom silicon innovation. The chip delivers more than four times the performance of its predecessor and can interconnect up to “9,216 TPUs” in a single pod. This architecture allows for seamless parallel processing, virtually eliminating data bottlenecks and enabling developers to train and scale the world’s largest AI models with unprecedented speed and efficiency.
3. NASA’s ESCAPADE Twins to Probe How Mars Lost Its Air: NASA’s ESCAPADE mission is sending two identical small satellites—nicknamed Blue and Gold—to unravel how the solar wind stripped Mars of its once-thicker atmosphere. Launched aboard Blue Origin’s New Glenn, the low-cost, tandem spacecraft will build a dynamic 3D picture of the Red Planet’s magnetised environment and upper atmosphere, illuminating climate history and future human mission risks. ESCAPADE focuses on the interface where Mars’ patchy, crustal magnetic fields meet the solar wind. By tracking how charged particles erode atmospheric gases, the mission will quantify present-day atmospheric loss and help reconstruct how Mars moved from a wetter past to a cold desert. Continuous, simultaneous measurements from two craft will capture rapid changes that single probes often miss.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. Scapia and Federal Bank Launch Add-on Credit Card Feature: Scapia and Federal Bank introduced an add-on credit card feature, enabling primary cardholders to share credit limits and travel benefits with up to 3 family members (18+), each having independent app access, OTPs, and transaction visibility.Both primary and add-on users can earn/redeem Scapia Coins, enjoy unlimited domestic lounge visits, and no forex fees after meeting spend criteria. The digital onboarding provides instant virtual cards and physical delivery within 5–7 days.The fintech also launched Scapia Store, India’s first travel-focused shopping platform, offering products from brands like Columbia, Daily Objects, Tripole, and Nasher Miles, with 20% back in Scapia Coins and plans to expand to 10,000+ products across 50 subcategories.
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