Politics & Governance

• MGNREGA Renaming and Expansion: The Union Cabinet has approved a Bill to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) as 'Pujya Bapu Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Yojana'. The scheme will also see an increase in guaranteed employment days from 100 to 125 per household. The move has drawn criticism, with Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra questioning the necessity and expenditure involved in renaming the established scheme.
• Congress Rally Against 'Vote Chori': The Indian National Congress is scheduled to hold a major rally at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on December 14, 2025, to protest against alleged "vote chori" (vote theft). Top party leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, are expected to address the gathering, aiming to hold the government and the Election Commission accountable for what they claim are efforts to manipulate elections.
• Census 2027 Budget Approved: The Cabinet has approved a budget of Rs 11,718 crore for Census 2027. This will mark India's first fully digital Census, incorporating two phases: house listing (April-September 2026) and population enumeration (February 2027), with options for self-enumeration and caste enumeration.
• Voter List Revision in West Bengal: West Bengal is set to remove over 58 lakh names from its voter list, with more than 31 lakh individuals slated for hearings before the Special Intensive Revision draft list is published on December 16.

Economy & Business

• India-Oman Free Trade Pact: Ahead of Prime Minister Modi's visit, the Union Cabinet has approved a Free Trade Pact with Oman, aiming to boost bilateral trade and strengthen diplomatic ties, marking 70 years of relations.
• Economic Growth Projections: India's economy is projected to slow to 6.5% in 2026 from an estimated 7.5% in 2025, primarily due to punitive US tariffs impacting exports. However, the country is still expected to remain the fastest-growing major economy globally, supported by robust domestic demand, low inflation, and potential for further monetary easing.
• Higher Copra MSP for 2026: The Cabinet has cleared a higher Minimum Support Price (MSP) for copra for the year 2026 to enhance farmer returns and meet increasing demand.
• National Makhana Board Established: The first meeting of the National Makhana Board was held, launching a scheme worth ₹476 crore to develop the makhana (fox nut) sector.

Science & Technology

• Significant Reduction in TB Cases: India has achieved a 21% reduction in tuberculosis (TB) incidence, nearly double the global pace, according to the World Health Organization's Global TB Report 2025. The TB mortality rate has also decreased, attributed to a tenfold increase in government funding for the TB program.
• MahaCrimeOS AI for Cybercrime: Microsoft has unveiled MahaCrimeOS AI, a new AI- and Azure-powered platform designed to accelerate cybercrime investigations in Maharashtra, providing police personnel with advanced tools for faster and more efficient case resolution.
• 'Bharat Gen' LLM Launched: 'Bharat Gen', an indigenously developed artificial intelligence-based multimodal Large Language Model (LLM) for Indian languages, has been launched, marking a step forward in AI development tailored for India.

Social Welfare

• Tamil Nadu's Women's Financial Aid Expansion: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin launched Phase 2 of the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam (Kalaignar Women's Rights Entitlement Scheme), extending monthly financial assistance of Rs 1,000 to an additional 17 lakh women. This expansion aims to benefit over 1.3 crore women heads of families in the state.
• Housing for Tribal Families: More than 30 tribal families in Chennai have received new brick houses with the assistance of NGO Aid India, improving their living conditions and providing better study environments for students.

International Relations

• India-Georgia Foreign Office Consultations: India and Georgia held their 8th Foreign Office Consultations in Tbilisi, where both nations reviewed and strengthened bilateral relations across political, economic, and cultural spheres, and exchanged views on regional and global issues.
• PM Modi's Visit to Jordan: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to undertake a bilateral visit to Jordan from December 15-16, 2025, at the invitation of King Abdullah II bin Al Hussein, to further strengthen bilateral ties.

Awards & Appointments

• National Energy Conservation Awards: President Droupadi Murmu will felicitate the winners of the National Energy Conservation Awards 2025 on December 14, observed annually to raise awareness about energy conservation and highlight India's achievements in energy efficiency.
• IAS Appointments: Five officers from the Nagaland State Civil Service have been appointed to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) against the Select List of 2024, allocated to the Nagaland cadre.
• LIC MD Appointment: Ramakrishnan Chander has been appointed as the Managing Director of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) with effect from December 1, 2025.

Sports (Non-Cricket)

• Junior Hockey World Cup Bronze: Prime Minister Modi congratulated India's Men's Junior Hockey Team for securing the Bronze medal at the FIH Men's Junior World Cup.
• Shooting and Badminton Gold: Raiza Dhillon clinched a double gold in the Women's and Junior Women's Skeet events at the 68th National Shooting Championships. India also assured a gold medal in the Women's Singles at the Odisha Masters 2025 in Badminton.
• Squash World Cup Final: India defeated Egypt 3-0 to reach the Squash World Cup 2025 Final.
• Chess Milestones: R Praggnanandhaa made history by becoming the first Indian to qualify for the Candidates 2026 chess tournament. Arjun Erigaisi also defeated Magnus Carlsen in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Finals.
• Lionel Messi's India Tour: The Kolkata leg of Lionel Messi's GOAT Tour in India experienced chaos due to overcrowding and mismanagement, raising concerns about India's event hosting capabilities. However, the Hyderabad leg of the tour proceeded uneventfully.