UPSC Daily Current Affairs| One Liners 16-09-2025

One Liners 16-09-2025

History, Art and Culture

Engineer’s Day

• Celebrated annually on – 15^th September

• Commemorates to – The birth anniversary of Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya.

• Aim – To acknowledge engineer’s contributions in shaping the nation’s infrastructure and leading knowledge-driven innovation.

Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya

• He was India’s greatest engineers who is renowned for his pioneering contributions.

• Birth – 1861.

• Contributions

  • Innovative Flood Management Systems

    • Reservoirs like Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar.

    • Took measures to protect Visakhapatnam port from sea erosion.

  • Pioneering Dam Construction and Irrigation

    • Built the Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) Dam in 1932,

    • His automatic sluice gates improved water regulation at multiple dams.

• Awards

  • Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE) by King George V in 1915.

  • Bharat Ratna in 1955.

Polity & Governance

Aadhaar

Supreme Court(SC) clarifies that Aadhaar is a statutory document, and can be used by voters.

• Statutory Basis – Representation of the People Act, 1950.

• Section 23(4) RPA, 1950 – Permits Election Commission (EC) officials to use Aadhaar to authenticate entries on electoral rolls.

• 12^th Document – SC had previously declared Aadhaar as the "12^th document" for voters to attach in claims/objections for voter list inclusion/exclusion.

Economy

Public Financial Asset Management (PFAM) Program

EPFO Officer Selected for Prestigious PFAM Program 2025–26.

• PFAM – It is a globally recognised leadership initiative.

• Organised by – World Bank and the Milken Institute.

• Collaboration with – Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya National Academy of Social Security (PDUNASS).

• Aim – To equipping senior professionals with cutting-edge expertise in capital markets, governance frameworks, and strategic asset management.

Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya National Academy of Social Security (PDUNASS)

• It is a premier institution involved in training, research and consultancy in social security sector.

• Set up in – 1990.

• Administrative control over – 4 Zonal Training Institutes & 1 Sub-Zonal Training Institute.

Switch Facility Option

• Executed under – Central Civil Services (Unified Pension Scheme under National Pension Scheme) Rules 2025.

• Features – UPS can switch to NPS only once, and cannot switch back to UPS.

• Exercised at least one year before superannuation or three months before VRS.

• It will not be allowed in case of removal, dismissal or compulsory retirement.

• Not opt for the switch within the stipulated time will continue under UPS.

• Subscriber on opting NPS will get NPS benefits and differential 4% contribution amount.

Agriculture

Rabi Abhiyan 2025

• It is a 2-days national agriculture conference.

• Organised by – Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.

• Theme – ‘One Nation, One Agriculture, One Team’

• Aim – To provide an opportunity for policymakers, scientists, and state representatives to deliberate on preparations, production targets, and strategies for the Rabi 2025-26 season.

National Makhana Board

• Announced in – Budget 2025.

• Nodal ministry – Ministry of commerce.

• Objectives – To promote production and new technology development, strengthen post-harvest management.

• To promote value addition and processing and facilitate market, export and brand development in Makhana.

Makhana

• It is a type of dried edible seed of the prickly water lily (Euryale ferox).

• It is also known as a gorgon nut or fox nut, ‘Black Diamond’ due to its small, round black/brown seeds, which turn white when processed.

• Native – Southeast Asia and China but distributed to almost every part of the world.

• GI tag – ‘Mithila Makhana’ in 2022.

• Grown in – stagnant perennial water bodies like ponds, oxbow lakes, swamps and ditches in tropical and subtropical climates.

  • Temperature – 20-35 degrees Celsius

  • Annual rainfall – 100-250 cm

  • Relative humidity – 50%-90%

  • Soil type – Smooth loamy soil.

Security

INS TRIKAND

INS Trikand will participate in the maiden bilateral maritime exercise between India and Greece.

• It is a Talwar-class guided-missile frigate of the Indian Navy.

• Built by – Yantar shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia.

• Part of – Indian Navy’s Western Fleet.

• Operates under – Western Naval Command, Mumbai.

• Features

  • Combat Management System – ‘Trebovanie-M’, which enables the ship to simultaneously neutralise multiple surface, sub-surface, and air threats.

  • Powered by – 4 gas turbines.