Current affairs 22 February 2025

Lancet: Global Suicide Mortality Drops by 40% in Three Decades.

• A Lancet study reveals a global 40% decline in suicide mortality from 15 to 9 deaths per lakh population over 30 years.
• Female suicide mortality declined by over 50%, while male rates fell by nearly 34%, indicating effective intervention strategies.
• Despite progress, around 740,000 suicides occur annually, meaning one person dies by suicide every 43 seconds worldwide.

Lancet: India’s Suicide Death Rate Declines by Over 30% (1990-2021).

• A Lancet study reports a 31.5% decline in India’s suicide death rate from 18.9 per lakh in 1990 to 13 per lakh in 2021, highlighting improved health strategies.
• Female suicide rates dropped from 16.8 to 10.3 per lakh, while male rates fell from 20.9 to 15.7 per lakh during this period.
• The highest suicide rates in 2020 were among educated women, with family problems being most cited cause.

India becomes second country to introduce digital pilot licenses.

• Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu introduced the Electronic Personnel License (EPL) for pilots.
• Replacing traditional physical licenses, the EPL will now be available in a digital format, accessible through the eGCA Mobile Application.
• This transition is expected to streamline the licensing process while enhancing security and transparency.

India extends Chief Economic Adviser term until March 2027.

• India's Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran's term has been extended by 2 years until March 2027.
• Nageswaran was appointed to the position in 2022 and has also served as a part-time member of the economic advisory council to the PM from 2019 to 2021.
• Nageswaran authored India's annual economic survey in January that projected GDP growth at 6.3%-6.8% in the next fiscal year.

India Elected as Vice President of IALA.

• India elected Vice President of the International Organization of Aids to Marine Navigation (IALA) in Singapore.
• T.K. Ramachandran, Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, led the Indian delegation.
• India to host IALA Council Meeting (Dec 2025) and IALA Conference & General Assembly (Sep 2027) in Mumbai.