Read below the latest current affairs dated 22nd February, 2025 covered from The Hindu newspaper, PIB and other sources mainly for UPSC CSE and other government competitive exams.

Indian Army contingent departed for DHARMA GUARDIAN

According to PIB, the Indian Army contingent departed for 6th edition of Dharma Guardian: The India- Japan Joint Military Exercise. The exercise is scheduled to be conducted in East Fuji Manoeuvre Training area of Japan from 24th February to 9th March 2025.

Artistes rehearsing for a mega Jhumoir Binandini dance event

Artistes rehearsing for a mega Jhumoir Binandini dance event in Guwahati, in an attempt to set a world record. Read in detail about this dance.

Senate confirms Kash Patel as FBI director

• New FBI director – Kash Patel
• Becomes the first Indian-American to lead the country’s premier law enforcement agency.

Army to strengthen its air defence

Amid the exponential growth in disruptive technologies such as drones, loitering munitions, and counter-drone systems, the Army’s Air Defence is gearing up to induct new fragmentation ammunition for its air defence guns — approximately 1,300 in service — while also pushing for new systems to tackle the evolving aerial threat.

• Army is also set to finalise a contract for the indigenously developed Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile (QRSAM) system within the next four to five months with a range of 30 km.
  • QRSAM is being developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
• In addition, an enhanced version of the Akash missile, is set for high-altitude trials in the next 45 days.
• While high-end air defence systems were being upgraded, equipping existing L-70 and Zu-23 air defence guns with air burst ammunition was a priority.
• A Request For Proposal for a successor gun to replace the L70 and Zu-23 was already out for 220 guns along with smart ammunition.

Five more cheetahs released into Kuno National Park

Five more cheetahs were released into the wild from their enclosures at Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park (KNP), taking the total number of big cats set free to 12. According to an officials, Namibian cheetah Jwala and her four 13-month-old cubs — two males and two females — were released in the Khajuri forest area of the National Park. There are now five adult cheetahs and seven cubs roaming freely at Kuno, while a total of 14 remain in their enclosures. On February 5, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav had released five cheetahs — two adult females, Asha and Dheera, and three cubs — into the wild.

Indian languages have always accepted and enriched each other without hostility: Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi while inaugurating the 98^th Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan said the shared cultural heritage of Indian languages would give a befitting reply to those making efforts to create divisions in the country in the name of languages. He said that “language embraced every idea and every development. Marathi has borrowed literature from all Indian languages and has in return enriched them as well. Indian languages have always enriched each other. That is why we are looking at every language in the country as a mainstream language. We are encouraging education in all languages, including Marathi.”

The Prime Minister’s remarks come amid a war of words between the Tamil Nadu government and the Centre over the implementation of the National Education Policy and the three-language formula.

Uttarakhand to tell HC why it sought personal details to register live-in ties

Uttarakhand government told the High Court that it would soon file an affidavit explaining why it sought details such as Aadhaar and information on previous relationships for registration of live-in couples under the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), which was rolled out recently in the State. The UCC came into effect on January 27 and couples had been given one month for registration.

The government submission came in a petition filed in the HC by a person named Samarth Aniruddha Bhagwat challenging the mandatory registration of live-in relationships under the UCC. The petition also challenged Form 3 of the UCC that sought information on the couple’s previous relationships/live-in partners, decree of divorce, etc., as well as their Aadhaar-based details.

The court also issued a notice on another plea filed by Razia Baig, a member of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, who challenged the UCC on the grounds that it was against the Sharia law.

Speaking in the court of Chief Justice G. Narendar and Justice Ashish Naithani, Solicitor-General Tushar Mehta, appearing for both Uttarakhand and the Union government, said he would file an affidavit explaining why such details were sought.

U.S. election aid allegations ‘deeply troubling’, says MEA

Centre said it was investigating “very deeply troubling” allegations made by the U.S. government that the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) planned to spend $21 million on funding “voter turnout” in India. This expenditure has been cancelled by the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) run by billionaire Elon Musk, in a decision shared in a post on X.

In the Indian government’s first reaction to the DOGE post, the Ministry of External Affairs said that different departments are “looking into” the information shared, but declined to comment on whether India would cancel a number of MoUs and agreements on USAID funding made with various Ministries over the past few years, many of which are still current.

India, China worked hard to protect G-20: Jaishankar

India and China have “worked hard to preserve” the G-20 organisation, said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the sidelines of the G-20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa.

In the half-hour-long meeting where they discussed bilateral developments, including the situation on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Mr. Jaishankar pointed out that both countries are “members of the G-20, SCO and BRICS”, and had discussed “regional and global” issues.

Sources: The Hindu, PIB, and other.