DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ – 18 October, 2025

Explanation:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s current diplomatic and military efforts aim to recover the bodies of remaining hostages killed during recent regional conflicts. This reflects the complex humanitarian and political dimensions of the Israel–Palestine issue. The crisis highlights the persistent instability in the Middle East and its implications for global security and energy markets. For UPSC, it ties to India’s foreign policy balancing act in West Asia — maintaining strategic autonomy while supporting peace and humanitarian principles.

Explanation:
The swearing-in of the new Gujarat cabinet, with Harsh Sanghvi appointed as Deputy Chief Minister, reflects a blend of political stability and generational renewal within the BJP. The reshuffle signals consolidation before the 2026 Assembly elections and underscores Gujarat’s role as a political stronghold. From a polity perspective, such state-level reorganizations demonstrate federal dynamics, governance continuity, and party-level leadership strategies — all essential aspects for Indian polity and governance studies.

Explanation:
India reiterated that terrorism is a global challenge requiring coordinated intelligence, policy alignment, and capacity-building efforts. The statement emphasized zero tolerance for terrorism and the need to prevent misuse of technology and social media by terror networks. This aligns with India’s long-standing diplomatic campaign to combat terrorism through global frameworks like FATF and the UN. The issue holds major significance in India’s foreign policy and internal security strategy, both core to UPSC IR and GS Paper 3.

Explanation:
The Ayurveda diet list, released by FSSAI and the Ministry of AYUSH, integrates traditional dietary wisdom with modern nutrition science. It promotes balanced, seasonal, and plant-based food habits for preventive health. This initiative aligns with India’s efforts to revive indigenous knowledge systems, ensure food safety, and promote public health. From a governance perspective, it reflects the synergy of health, culture, and sustainability in policy formulation — an important cross-disciplinary theme in UPSC GS Papers 2 and 3.

Explanation:
The third India–Central Asia Security Council meeting in Bishkek emphasized intelligence sharing, border security, and counter-terrorism cooperation. India’s strategic interest lies in maintaining stability in Afghanistan and curbing extremist influence in Central Asia. This engagement underlines New Delhi’s “extended neighborhood” policy and its intent to balance regional power dynamics involving China and Russia. The initiative is vital for energy security, connectivity, and combating transnational terrorism — all key themes for UPSC GS Paper 2 and IR.