Current Affairs | National | International | SSC | UPSC 3rd May 2025

 National News 

1. The central government has proposed releasing 4,500 cusecs of additional water from the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) dams 

• This release is aimed at easing water shortages in Haryana and parts of Rajasthan. 
• The extra water will be provided over a period of eight days. 
• A meeting to discuss the proposal was held in New Delhi. 
• The Union Home Secretary chaired the meeting. 
• Senior officials from the central government attended it. 
• Representatives from Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan also participated. 
• These states are partners in the BBMB. 
• During the meeting, it was also agreed that Punjab would receive extra water if needed during the dam-filling period. 
• The BBMB will soon convene a meeting. This meeting will decide the exact process for supplying the additional water to Haryana. 

 Bhakra Beas Management Board: 

• Since 1976, it is engaged in regulation of the supply of Water & Power from Bhakra Nangal and Beas Projects to the states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pardesh, Delhi and Chandigarh. Its functions are: 
• Administration, Operation & Maintenance of Bhakra-Nangal Project, Beas Project Unit-I (Beas Satluj Link Project) and Beas Project Unit- II (Pong Dam) in Northern India. 
• The regulation of supply of water from Satluj, Ravi and Beas to the States of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. 
• The regulation and supply of power generated from Bhakra-Nangal and Beas Projects.
•  Providing and performing engineering & related technical and consultancy services in the various fields 

2. The First National Mediation Conference inaugurated by President Droupadi Murmu to promote dispute resolution 

• On 3 May, the first National Mediation Conference inaugurated in New Delhi by President Droupadi Murmu to promote mediation as a key tool for dispute resolution. 
• The conference is being jointly organized by the Office of the Attorney General of India and the Ministry of Law and Justice. 
• The conference will also be addressed by Chief Justice of India Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Union Minister for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal. 
• A large number of mediation and arbitration institutions are participating in the event to exchange knowledge and share best practices. 
• The objective of organizing this program is to encourage litigants to adopt the mediation process for resolution of cases, so that the number of pending cases in the courts can be reduced. 

3. The sacred relics of Lord Buddha have arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 

• They are part of the Vesak celebration events. 
• The relics were flown in on a special Indian aircraft. 
• They were accompanied by Indian Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and Andhra Pradesh Minister Kandula Durgesh. 
• Monks and officials also joined the delegation. 
• The visit aligns with Vietnam’s observance of the United Nations Day of Vesak from May 6 to 8.
• Vietnamese leaders and monks received the relics with great reverence. 
• The relics were enshrined at Thanh Tam Monastery after ceremonial prayers. 
• A Bodhi tree sapling from India was planted at the Vietnam Buddhist University. 
• The relics were brought from Sarnath. 
• The initiative was supported by the Mahabodhi Society, the National Museum of India, and the International Buddha Confederation. 
• The relics will be displayed in Ho Chi Minh City until May 7. 
• They will then be taken to Tay Ninh, Ha Noi, and Ha Nam for display until May 21. 
• An exhibition and cultural events will highlight the Buddhist connection between India and Vietnam. 
• A special dance-drama will portray the life of Gautama Buddha. 
• Vesak is the Day of the Full Moon in the month of May. 
• Buddha was born on the Day of Vesak two and a half millennia ago, in the year 623 B.C. 

United Nations Day of Vesak: 

•  United Nations Day of Vesak is celebrated annually on the full moon of May. 
•  This day acknowledges the contributions of Buddhism to human spirituality.

 International News 

4. India and Denmark extended a green energy deal to accelerate net-zero goals 

• On 2 May, a renewed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between India and Denmark to reinforce their cooperation in advancing clean energy initiatives.
• The agreement aims to support India’s net-zero emissions target set for 2070 by expanding collaboration on sustainable power technologies and infrastructure. 
• The MoU was signed by Pankaj Agarwal, Secretary of the Ministry of Power, and Denmark’s Ambassador Rasmus Abildgaard Kristensen, in the presence of Union Minister Manohar Lal. 
• Originally signed on June 5, 2020, the agreement was set to expire in June 2025, and the new MoU now ensures the continuation of this successful partnership. 
• New focus areas have been added under the renewed pact, including power system modeling, renewable energy integration, cross-border electricity trade, and EV charging networks. 
• Under the enhanced framework, knowledge transfer will be deepened through joint training sessions, exchange of experts and collaborative study visits. 
• Building on five years of fruitful collaboration, this agreement ensures seamless dialogue and technical exchange, and positions India and Denmark as key partners in the global transition to clean energy. 

5. PM Modi and the President of Angola held high-level talks to deepen strategic ties 

• On 3 May, PM Narendra Modi held delegation-level discussions with Angolan President Joao Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço in New Delhi to strengthen bilateral cooperation. 
• Following the talks, several agreements were signed in various sectors aimed at enhancing cooperation between India and Angola. 
• On 2 May, President Lourenço arrived in New Delhi for a three-day State Visit, marking the first presidential visit from Angola to India in 38 years. 
• On 4 May, President Lourenço will participate in a business event in New Delhi, intended to foster trade, investment, and commercial linkages between the two nations. 
• The visit comes at a time when India and Angola are celebrating the 40th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations this year. 
• Bilateral trade between the two countries is growing and reached over four billion dollars during 2023-2024. 

State News 

6. Modi restarts Amaravati projects worth ₹58,000 cr 

•  Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone and inaugurated about 58,000-crore worth works in Andhra Pradesh at a venue near Secretariat in Guntur district on Friday.
•  The Prime Minister virtually restarted the unfinished works at Amaravati, and said the Centre would extend full support to the State to realise its vision. These projects include capital city institutions, national highways, railway upgrades, defence related installations. and 
•  In fact, Mr. Modi had laid the foundation stone for capital city Amaravati in 2015, during the earlier regime of the Telugu Desam Party government. However, works could not be completed within the previous TDP rule. And later the successive YSR Congress Party government decided to go for three capitals and halted works at Amaravati. 
•  Sharing dais with Governor Abdul S. Nazeer, Chief Mr. Bhupathi Raju B 2025 
•  Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and oth-ers, Mr. Modi addressed a huge gathering of farmers, leaders and public on Friday. 
• He said, "As we know, Amaravati is the name of Indra's capital and now it is the capital of Andhra Pradesh. It has the peace of Buddhist heritage and the strength to ensure Viksit Bharat. The city will lead in fields of IT, AI, green energy, clean industries, education and healthcare in the days to come." 
• The Prime Minister, projecting the potential of the capital city, tried a couple of lines in Telugu and said, "Amaravati oka nagaram kaadu, oka Shakti (Amaravati is not a city, it's a force)." 
• Mr. Modi also said that he had laid the foundation for the city in 2015. All ob-stacles for Amaravati are gone now and development was the focus. 
•  "NTR dreamt of Viksit Andhra. We, [Naidu, Pawan Kalyan and me] need to do it. Only we will do it," he stressed. 
• Andhra Pradesh was a major beneficiary of Cen-tral infrastructure projects, both roads and railway lines, Mr. Modi said. The State was allocated over ₹9,000 crore for Railway projects. These Railways and numerous infrastructure projects would open a new chapter in providing better connectivity for employees, businessmen and farmers in Andhra Pradesh and to other States, he said. 
•  The socio-economic empowerment of farmers, women, youth and the poor was crucial for realising the Viksit Bharat vision, Mr. Modi said, while pointing out that substantial funding was being given to the welfare schemes meant for uplifting those sections in Andhra Pradesh. 
• The Prime Minister further said the Central government laid due focus on the linking of rivers, as part of which it was helping the Andhra Pradesh Government in achieving speedy completion of the Polavaram project that would harness the Godavari and Krishna River waters. 
•  Mr. Modi made a mention of the Missile Testing Range at Nagayalanka in Krishna district, which was one of the major projects for which he laid the foundation virtually, and said it would give a fillip to the country's defence ecosystem. 

Defence News 

7. ITBP team scales Mt. Makalu, fifth highest peak in the world 

• The Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has successfully scaled Mt. Makalu is the world's fifth highest peak, at an altitude of 8,485 metres above sea level the China-border guarding force said on Friday. 
• The ascent to the Himalayan peak in Nepal was made on April 19, it said. The International Mountaineering Expedition to Mt. Makalu and Mt. Annapurna (8,091 m) was flagged off from Delhi on March 21. 
• "It was a historic twin summit attempt, the first of its kind in ITBP history. 
• Both peaks were being attempted for the first time by the force, adding to the challenge and legacy of this mission. 
• Both peaks are in Nepal," the ITBP said. Led by Deputy Commandant Anoop Kumar Negi and Nihas Suresh as deputy leader, the 12-member team was divided into two groups of six climbers each. 

8. The IAF conducted the first night landing on an Indian highway on the Ganga Motorway 

• On 2 May, the Indian Air Force (IAF) demonstrated its air power with a historic exercise on the 3.5-km airstrip of the Ganga Motorway in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur district. 
• This marked the first instance in India where night landing of fighter jets was carried out on a highway, showcasing a significant leap in military preparedness. 
• The display featured advanced aircraft, including Rafale, Jaguar, Mirage 2000, SU-30 MKI, and MiG-29, alongside transport aircraft such as the C-130J Super Hercules and AN-32, as well as the versatile MI-17 V5 helicopter. 
• The air exercise was executed in two phases— daytime and nighttime—intended to evaluate the airstrip’s functionality for emergency operations such as wartime landings or disaster relief. 
• As stated by Uttar Pradesh Minister of State Danish Azad Ansari, Uttar Pradesh became the first Indian state to facilitate night landings of fighter jets on a motorway. 
• The 594-km-long Ganga Expressway, which will connect Meerut to Prayagraj, is nearing completion. 
• Scheduled to be inaugurated by November 2025, it is projected to drive economic growth in western and eastern Uttar Pradesh. 
• India's first expressway-integrated airstrip is now ready to operate fighter jets round the clock. 

Economy News 

9. India’s total exports for the financial year 2024-25 reached an all-time high of 824.9 billion dollars 

• This is as per the latest data released by RBI. This includes the services trade for March 2025. 
• This marks a 6.01% increase compared to the previous year’s total of 778.1 billion dollars. 
• Services exports rose sharply by 13.6%. It reached an all-time high of 387.5 billion dollars. 
• In March 2025 alone, services exports increased by 18.6% year-on-year. 
• They amounted to 35.6 billion dollars for the month. 
• Merchandise exports during the year totaled 437.4 billion dollars. 
• Non-petroleum goods exports reached 374.08 billion dollars. 
• This represents a 6% rise over the previous year. 
• The final export numbers exceeded the earlier estimate of 820.93 billion dollars by the Commerce Ministry. 

Important Day News 

10. World Press Freedom Day 2025: 3 May 

• Every year on May 3, World Press Freedom Day is celebrated. 
• It is celebrated to recognize the contribution of the media personnel in upholding the values of fair journalism. 
• The day aims to create awareness regarding the importance of freedom of the press, which is part of Right to freedom of expression under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948. 
• The day also marks the anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration. 
• World Press Freedom Day this year will highlight the significant impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on journalism and media. 
• The theme for 2025 is “Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media.”