1. India Hosts UNTCC Chiefs’ Conclave 2025

From 14th to 16th October 2025, India hosted the United Nations Troop Contributing Countries’ Chiefs’ Conclave in New Delhi, bringing together senior military leaders from 32 nations to advance global peacekeeping cooperation.

The conclave marked the first time the Indian Army hosted the event, emphasizing India’s leadership in shaping UN peacekeeping strategies and fostering international collaboration.
Discussions focused on modernizing peace operations, including the use of technology to protect personnel, mandates aligned with ground realities, and missions that uphold both sovereignty and human security.
India’s record in peacekeeping is notable, with over 3,00,000 troops deployed across 50 missions, the first all-female police contingent in Liberia, and a “no national caveat” policy prioritizing collective duty over national interest.
A key theme was leveraging technology, including drones for situational awareness, AI-enabled logistics, and indigenous innovations showcased at the Defence Expo, under India’s Aatmanirbharta (self-reliant) initiative.

Key Points

Scale of the Problem: Nearly 887 million out of 1.1 billion people living in multidimensional poverty are directly exposed to climate hazards such as extreme heat, floods, droughts, and air pollution.
Multiple Hazards: 651 million poor people face two or more concurrent hazards, while 309 million endure three or four simultaneously, compounding poverty and vulnerability.
Major Hazards: High heat affects 608 million poor people, air pollution impacts 577 million, flooding threatens 465 million, and drought endangers 207 million.
Regional Hotspots: South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa are the most affected regions, with 380 million and 344 million poor people respectively facing climate hazards.
High Exposure in South Asia: 99.1% of South Asia’s poor population is exposed to at least one climate shock, and 91.6% face two or more.
Economic Impact: Lower-middle-income countries bear the greatest burden, with 548 million poor people exposed to at least one hazard.
Future Projections: Countries with higher current poverty levels are expected to experience the greatest temperature increases by century’s end.

The UDAN scheme, launched on 21st October 2016 under the National Civil Aviation Policy, has been instrumental in making air travel affordable and accessible to the common citizen, revolutionizing regional aviation connectivity.
The first UDAN flight, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27th April 2017 between Shimla and Delhi, marked the beginning of a new era in connecting unserved and underserved airports in India.
Since its inception, a total of 649 routes have been operationalized under UDAN, linking 93 unserved and underserved airports, including 15 heliports and 2 water aerodromes, thereby enhancing connectivity to remote regions.
The scheme has facilitated the transportation of over 1.56 crore passengers through 3.23 lakh UDAN flights, demonstrating its widespread adoption and effectiveness in bridging regional aviation gaps.