GK January 2025

 

 

Important Days of January

World Braille Day: 04 January 2025

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First Observed in: 2019

International Day of Education: 24 January 2025

Designated by : United Nations General Assembly

Theme: AI and education: Preserving human agency in a world of automation

First Observed in: 2019

International Day of Clean Energy: 26 January 2025

Designated by : United Nations General Assembly

First Observed in: 2024

International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust: 27 January 2025

Designated by : United Nations General Assembly

First Observed in: 2006

World Leprosy Day: 26 January 2025 (Last Sunday of January)

Designated by : World Health Organisation

Theme: Beat Leprosy, End Stigma, and Advocate for Mental Well-Being

Note: India, it is observed on 30 January coinciding with the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

Awards

The Hyderabad based autonomous organization of the Government of India, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, which has been selected for the Subhash Chandra Bose Aapda Prabandhan Puraskar-2025, in the Institutional Category, for its excellent work in Disaster Management – INCOIS

 

Defence

The joint operation involving the Army's elite airborne troops and the Air Force conducted from January 16 to 19 at strategic training areas and firing ranges was named – Exercise Devil Strike

The three frontline naval stealth guided missile frigates which were dedicated to the nation on their commissioning at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi – INS Surat, INS Nilgiri and INS Vaghsheer

 

Persons

The new Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation who has taken over from 13 January 2025 – Dr. V Narayanan

The Chief Minister who has announced 1 million dollar prize for deciphering the script of Indus Valley civilisation – Shri MK Stalin (CM of Tamil Nadu)

The Governor of Kerala who has been appointed as the new Governor of Bihar succeeding Shri Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar who has been appointed as the Governor of Kerala – Shri Arif Mohammad Khan

The former principal scientific adviser to the Government of India, Director of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission of India, known for his integral role in India's nuclear weapons program, who passed away on 04 January 2025 – Shri Rajagopala Chidambaram

The Indian botany scholar and taxonomist, known for devoting over 35 years of his life to research, translation and annotation work of the Latin botanical treatise Hortus Malabaricus, who passed away on 01 January 2025 – Shri KS Manilal

 

 

Places

The place in Maharashtra where several passengers of Pushpak Express were killed by Karnataka Express coming in the opposite direction when they deboarded the train in panic due to suspected fire alarm – Jalgaon

The city of Sri Lanka in which the cultural centre has been renamed as Thiruvalluvar Culture Centre in honour of Tamil poet-philosopher Thiruvalluvar – Jaffna

The place in Odisha at which the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi with H.E. Christine Carla Kangaloo, President of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago as the Chief Guest – Bhubaneshwar

The place in Tamil Nadu where India's first glass over bridge was inaugurated by Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister MK Stalin – Kanya Kumari

 

Sports

The team which has topped the medals tally in the first edition of Khelo India Winter Games 2025 held from 23 to 27 January 2025 in Ladakh – Ladakh

The team which has won the 2022–2025 ICC Women's Championship for the third time, a One Day International (ODI) cricket competition – Australia

The place in Uttarakhand where the 38th National Games were inaugurated by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 28 January 2025 – Dehradun

The team which has won the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy defeating Vidarbha in the finals played at Kodambi Stadium, Vadodara – Karnataka (5th title)

The Indian cricketer who has set a new record for the fastest century by an Indian woman cricketer by scoring 100 runs in 70 balls while playing against Ireland in Rajkot – Smriti Mandhana

The former first class cricketer who has been appointed as the new Secretary of BCCI replacing Shri Jay Shah who has taken over as the Chairman of ICC – Devajit Saikia

The Argentine footballer who has been chosen to be awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom by Mr Joe Biden, the President of United States of America – Lionel Messi

The team which has won the 2024-25 Santosh Trophy football tournament defeating Kerala in the finals at GMC Balayogi Stadium in Hyderabad – West Bengal

The former Indian squash player, winner of six straight National Squash Championships from 1977 to 1982 who passed away on 01 December 2024 – Shri Raj Manchanda

 

Miscellaneous

The two Indian cities which have become the first Indian cities which have been approved to be included in the global list of accredited wetland cities under Ramsar Convention on Wetlands – Indore and Udaipur

The international organisation from which the United States of America has announced its withdrawal due its mishandling of COVID-19 pandemic – World Health Organisation

The newly opened 6.5 km Sonamarg Tunnel, previously known as Z-Morh Tunnel, connects Sonamarg in the Ganderbal district to – Gagangair

All India Radio’s special channels dedicated to Mahakumbh 2025 inaugurated by Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Shri Yogi Adityanath is named – Kumbhvani and Kumbh Mangal Dhwani

The theme of Grameen Bharat Mahotsav 2025 held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi from 04 to 09 January 2025 – Building a Resilient Rural India for a Viksit Bharat 2024

The year 2025 has been declared by the Ministry of Defence to be the Year of – Reforms

 

Republic Day Awards 2025

• Best Marching Contingent among Services - Jammu & Kashmir Rifles Contingent
• Best Marching Contingent among CAPFs/other auxiliary forces - Delhi Police Marching Contingent

Top three tableaux (States/UTs)

• 1st - Uttar Pradesh (Mahakumbh 2025 - Swarnim Bharat: Virasat aur Vikas)
• 2nd - Tripura (Eternal Reverence: The worship of 14 Deities in Tripura - Kharchi Puja)
• 3rd - Andhra Pradesh (Etikoppaka Bommalu - Eco-Friendly Wooden Toys)

 

Best Tableau from Central Ministries/Departments: Ministry of Tribal Affairs (Janjatiya Gaurav Varsh)

Special Prize:

• Central Public Works Department (75 years of Constitution of India)
• ‘Jayati Jai Mamah Bharatam’ Dance Group

 

Popular Choice Awards based on online poll

• Best Marching Contingent among Services - Signals Contingent
• Best Marching Contingent among CAPFs/other auxiliary Forces - CRPF Marching Contingent

 

Top three tableau (States/UTs)

• 1st – Gujarat (Swarnim Bharat: Virasat Aur Vikas)
• 2nd – Uttar Pradesh (Mahakumbh 2025 - Swarnim Bharat: Virasat aur Vikas)
• 3rd – Uttarakhand (Uttarakhand: Cultural Heritage and Adventure Sports)

 

Best tableau from Central Ministries/Departments - Ministry of Women & Child Development (Multifaceted journey of women and children nurtured under the Ministry's comprehensive schemes)

 

Australian Open 2025

Title	Winner	Runner-up
Men’s Singles	Jannik Sinner (Italy)	Alexander Zverev (Germany)
Women’s Singles	Madison Keys (USA)	Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus)
Men’s Doubles	Harri Heliovaara (Finland) and Hanry Patten (UK)	Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori (Italy)
Women’s Doubles	Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic) and Taylor Townsend (USA)	Hsieh Su-wei (Chinese Taipei) and Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia)
Mixed Doubles	Olivia Gadecki (Australia) and John Peers (Australia)	Kimberly Birrell and John-Patrick Smith (Australia)

 

Sports and Adventure Awards 2024

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, 2024

1. Shri Gukesh D (Chess)

2. Shri Harmanpreet Singh (Hockey)

3. Shri Praveen Kumar (Para-Athletes)

4. Ms. Manu Bhaker (Shooting)

 

Dronacharya Award, 2024

A. Regular Category

1. Shri Subhash Rana (Para-Shooting)

2. Ms. Deepali Deshpande (Shooting)

3. Shri Sandeep Sangwan (Hockey)

B. Lifetime Category

1. Shri S. Muralidharan (Badminton)

2. Shri Armando Agnelo Colaco (Football)

 

Arjuna Award, 2024

1. Ms. Jyothi Yarraji (Athletics)

2. Ms. Annu Rani (Athletics)

3. Ms. Nitu (Boxing)

4. Ms. Saweety (Boxing)

5. Ms. Vantika Agrawal (Chess)

6. Ms. Salima Tete (Hockey)

7. Shri Abhishek (Hockey)

8. Shri Sanjay (Hockey)

9. Shri Jarmanpreet Singh (Hockey)

10. Shri Sukhjeet Singh (Hockey)

11. Shri Rakesh Kumar (Para-Archery)

12. Ms. Preeti Pal (Para-Athletics)

13. Ms. Jeevanji Deepthi (Para-Athletics)

14. Shri Ajeet Singh (Para-Athletics)

15. Shri Sachin Sarjerao Khilari (Para-Athletics)

16. Shri Dharambir (Para-Athletics)

17. Shri Pranav Soorma (Para-Athletics)

18. Shri H Hokato Sema (Para-Athletics)

19. Shri Navdeep (Squash)

20. Shri Nitesh Kumar (Para-Badminton)

21. Ms. Thulasimathi Murugesan (Para-Badminton)

22. Ms. Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan (Para-Badminton)

23. Ms. Manisha Ramadass (Para-Badminton)

24. Shri Kapil Parmar (Para-Judo)

25. Ms. Mona Agarwal (Para-Shooting)

26. Ms. Rubina Francis (Para-Shooting)

27. Shri Swapnil Suresh Kusale (Shooting)

28. Shri Sarabjot Singh (Shooting)

29. Shri Abhay Singh (Squash)

30. Shri Sajan Prakash (Swimming)

31. Shri Aman (Wrestling)

 

Arjuna Awards (Lifetime) for outstanding performance in Sports and Games 2024

1. Shri Sucha Singh (Athletics)

2. Shri Murlikant Rajaram Petkar (Para-Swimming)

 

Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar, 2024

1. Physical Education Foundation of India

 

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy, 2024

• Chandigarh University, Amritsar (Overall winner University)
• Lovely Professional University (PB) (1st runner-up)
• Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar (2nd runner-up)

 

Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award, 2023

1. Shri Uday Kumar (Mountaineering)

2. Ms Sayani Das (Water Adventure)

3. Shri Jithin Malayilakathutt Vijayan (Air Adventure)

4. Shri Umesh Mallikarjun Zirpe (Lifetime Achievement)

 

Launch of NV-02 Satellite

• Launched on: 299 January 2025
• Launched from: Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota
• Launch vehicle: GSLV-Mk2 F15
• Note: This the 100th satellite launch of Indian Space Research Organisation from Sriharikota since its first launch of Rohini satellite in 1979.

 

ICC Awards 2024

• Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year 2024: Jasprit Bumrah (India)
• ICC Men's Test Cricketer of the Year 2024: Jasprit Bumrah (India)
• ICC Men's ODI Cricketer of the Year 2024: Azmatullah Omarzai (Afghanistan)
• ICC Men's T20I Cricketer of the Year 2024: Arshdeep Singh (India)
• ICC Emerging Men's Cricketer of the Year 2024: Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka)
• Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy for ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year 2024: Amelia Kerr (New Zealand)
• ICC Women's ODI Cricketer of the Year 2024: Smriti Mandhana (India)
• ICC Women's T20I Cricketer of the Year 2024: Amelia Kerr (New Zealand)
• ICC Emerging Women's Cricketer of the Year 2024: Annerie Dercksen (South Africa)
• ICC Umpire of the Year 2024: Richard Illingworth (England)

 

Kho Kho World Cup 2025

• Venue: Indira Gandhi Arena, New Delhi
• Held from: January 13 to 19, 2025
• Teams: 20 men's and 19 women's
• Countries participating: 23 from 6 continents
• Winners : India both Men's and Women's
• Runners-up: Nepal both Men's and Women's
• Next games to be held: Birmingham, England
• Motto: The World Goes Kho

 

Henley Global Passport Ranking 2025

Ranking	Country	Ranking	Country
1.	Singapore	60.	China
2.	Japan	85.	India
3.	Finland	90.	Bhutan
3.	France	96.	Sri Lanka
3.	Germany	103.	Pakistan

 

82nd Golden Globe Awards

Awarded by: Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA).

Ceremony held on: January 5, 2025

• Best Motion Picture (Drama): The Brutalist directed by Brady Corbet
• Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy): Emilia Perez directed by Jacques Audiard
• Best Motion Picture (Animated): Flow directed by Gints Zilbalodis
• Best Motion Picture (Non-English): Emelia Perez (France) directed by Jacques Audiard
• Best Actor (Drama): Adrien Brody for The Brutalist
• Best Actress (Drama): Fernanda Torres for I'm Still Here
• Best Director: Brady Corbet for The Brutalist
• Cecil B. DeMille Award (Honorary Award for outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment): Viola Davis
• Carol Burnett Award (Honorary Award for outstanding contributions to television on or off the screen): Ted Danson
• Multiple Wins: Emelia Perez 4 awards
• Most nominations were received for: Emelia Perez (10 nominations)

 

Padma Awards 2025

Padma Vibhushan

1. Medicine: Shri Duvvur Nageshwar Reddy

2. Public Affairs: Justice (Retd.) Shri Jagdish Singh Khehar

3. Art: Smt. Kumudini Rajnikant Lakhia

4. Art: Shri Lakshminaryana Subramaniam

5. Literature and Education: Shri M.T. Vasudevan Nair (Posthumous)

6. Trade and Industry: Shri Osamu Suzuki (Posthumous)

7. Art: Smt. Sharda Sinha (Posthumous)

 

Padma Bhushan

1. Literature & Education (Journalism): Shri A Surya Prakash

2. Art: Shri Anant Nag

3. Literature and Education: Shri Bibek Debroy (Posthumous)

4. Art: Shri Jatin Goswami

5. Medicine: Shri Jose Chacko Periappuram

6. Others (Archaeology): Shri Kailash Nath Dikshit

7. Public Affairs: Shri Manohar Joshi (Posthumous)

8. Trade and Industry: Shri Nalli Kuppuswami Chetti

9. Art: Shri Nandamuri Balakrishna

10. Sports: Shri PR Sreejesh

11. Trade and Industry: Shri Pankaj Patel

12. Art: Shri Pankaj Udhas (Posthumous)

13. Literature and Education (Journalism): Shri Rambahadur Rai

14. Social Work: Shri Sadhvi Ritambhara

15. Art: S Ajith Kumar

16. Art: Shri Shekhar Kapur

17. Art: Ms. Shobana Chandrakumar

18. Public Affairs: Shri Sushil Kumar Modi (Posthumous)

19. Science and Engineering: Shri Vinod Dham

 

Padma Shri

Art

1. Shri Adwaita Charan Gadanayak

2. Shri Achyut Ramchandra Palav

3. Shri Arijit Singh

4. Shri Ashok Laxman Saraf

5. Smt. Ashwini Bhide Deshpande

6. Shri Barry Godfray John

7. Smt. Begam Batool

8. Shri Bharat Gupt

9. Shri Bheru Singh Chouhan

10. Shri Bhimavva Doddabalappa Shillekyathara

11. Shri Durga Charan Ranbir

12. Shri Farooq Ahmad Mir

13. Shri Gokul Chandra Das

14. Shri Guruvayur Dorai

15. Shri Harchandan Singh Bhatty

16. Shri Harjinder Singh Srinagar Wale

17. Shri Hassan Raghu

18. Smt. Jaspinder Narula

19. Shri Joynacharan Bathari

20. Smt. Omanakutty Amma

21. Shri Madugula Nagaphani Sarma

22. Shri Mahabir Nayak

23. Smt Mamata Shankar

24. Shri Miriyala Apparao (Posthumous)

25. Shri Naren Gurung

26. Smt. Nirmala Devi

27. ShriP Datchanamoorthy

28. Shri Pandi Ram Mandavi

29. Shri Parmar Lavjibhai Nagjibhai

30. Shri Purisai Kannappa Sambandan

31. Shri Radhakrishnan Devasenapathy

32. Shri Ranendra Bhanu Majumdar

33. Shri Ratan Kumar Parimoo

34. Shri Reba Kanta Mahanta

35. Shri Ricky Gyan Kej

36. Shri Shyam Bihari Agrawal

37. Shri Tejendra Narayan Majumdar

38. Smt. Thiyam Suryamukhi Devi

39. Shri Vasudeo Kamath

40. Shri Velu Aasaan

41. Shri Venkappa Ambaji Sugatekar

Literature & Education

1. Shri Anil Kumar Boro

2. Shri Arunoday Saha

3. Shri Arvind Sharma

4. Shri Chandrakant Sheth (Posthumous)

5. Shri David R Syiemlieh

6. Shri Ganeshwar Shastri Dravid

7. Smt Gita Upadhyay

8. Shri Hriday Narayan Dixit

9. Shri Hugh and Colleen Gantzer (Posthumous) (Duo)

10. Shri Jagadish Joshila

11. Shri KL Krishna

12. Shri Lakshmipathy Ramasubbaiyer (Journalism)

13. Shri Lalit Kumar Mangotra

14. Shri Maruti Bhujangrao Chitampalli

15. Shri Nagendra Nath Roy

16. Shri Nitin Nohria

17. Smt. Pratibha Satpathy

18. Shri Ramdarash Mishra

19. Shri Renthlei Lalrawna

20. Shri Sant Ram Deswal

21. Shri Seeni Viswanathan

22. Shri Sheen Kaaf Nizam (Shiv Kishan Bissa)

23. Shri Stephen Knapp

24. Shri Syed Ainul Hasan

25. Shri Tushar Durgeshbhai Shukla

26. Shri Vadiraj Raghawendracharya Panchamukh

 

Medicine

1. Shri Ashok Kumar Mahapatra

2. Shri Budhendra Kumar Jain

3. Shri Hemant Kumar

4. Smt. Neerja Bhatla

5. Smt. Sheikha Shaikha Ali Al-Jaber Al-Sabah

6. Smt. Soniya Nityanand

7. Smt. Vijayalakshmi Deshamane

8. Shri Vilas Dangre

Others

1. Shri Baijnath Maharaj (Spiritualism)

2. Shri Chandrakant Sompura (Architecture)

3. Shri Hariman Sharma (Agriculture)

4. Shri Jonas Masetti (Spiritualism)

5. Shri K. Damodaran (Culinary)

6. Shri L Hangthing (Agriculture)

7. Shri Lama Lobzang (Posthumous)(Spiritualism)

8. Shri Subhash Khetulal Sharma (Agriculture)

9. Shri Swami Pradiptananda (Kartik Maharaj)(Spiritualism)

10. Shri Vijay Nityanand Surishwar Ji Maharaj

 

Public Affairs

1. Shri C S Vaidyanathan

2. Shri Manda Krishna Madiga

3. Shri Narayan (Bhulai Bhai)(Posthumous)

 

Science and Engineering

1. Shri Ajay V Bhatt

2. Shri Ashutosh Sharma

3. Shri Chetan E. Chitnis

4. Shri MD Srinivas

5. Shri Sethuraman Panchanathan

6. Shri Surinder Kumar Vasal

 

Social Work

1. Shri Bhim Singh Bhavesh

2. Shri Chaitram Deochand Pawar

3. Smt. Jumde Yomgam Gamlin

4. Smt. Libia Lobo Sardesai

5. Smt. Radha Bahin Bhatt

6. Shri Suresh Harilal Soni

7. Shri Vinayak Lohani

 

Sports

1. Shri Harvinder Singh

2. Shri Inivalappil Mani Vijayan

3. Shri R Ashwin

4. Shri Satyapal Singh

 

Trade and Industry

1. Smt. Arundhati Bhattacharya

2. Shri Onkar Singh Pahwa

3. Shri Pawan Goenka

4. Shri Prashanth Prakash

5. Shri R G Chandramogan

6. Shri Sajjan Bhajanka

7. Smt. Sally Holkar

 

Civil Service

1. Shri Kishore Kunal (Posthumous)