Engineering Drawing — Basics & Technical Representation

Why This Chapter Matters

Current affairs typically carries the largest single share of marks in the General Awareness section of RRB ALP and Technician papers, often more than history, geography, and polity combined. The catch is that this topic has a shelf life. A static fact like "Bharatanatyam is from Tamil Nadu" stays true forever. A current affairs fact like "who holds this post right now" can change between the day you read it and the day you sit for the exam. That is the single biggest trap in this entire chapter: treating a current affairs fact as permanently fixed the way you would treat a history date.

This chapter gives you the foundation layer, the events, appointments, and developments that were confirmed and settled heading into 2026, chosen specifically because they are the kind of milestone facts exam setters return to again and again (a first, a record, a landmark launch) rather than fast-moving day-to-day news. Use this as your base layer of current affairs, not your final layer. In the four to six weeks before your actual exam date, supplement this chapter with a fresh monthly current affairs digest or a reliable news app, because new appointments, new scheme launches, and new sporting results will keep happening between now and your exam. Think of this chapter as the frame of a house; you still need to move in the furniture closer to moving day. With that mindset set correctly, let's build your base.

1. National Governance and Policy Highlights

Union Budget 2025-26

The Union Budget for financial year 2025-26 was presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February 2025, her eighth consecutive budget presentation, a record for any Finance Minister in India's history in terms of consecutive presentations. A headline feature of this budget was the revision of income tax slabs under the new tax regime, raising the effective tax-free income threshold so that individuals earning up to ₹12 lakh annually would pay no income tax after accounting for rebate provisions, a change widely covered because it directly affected the middle-class salaried taxpayer base. The budget also continued the government's emphasis on capital expenditure for infrastructure, including allocations for railways, highways, and rural infrastructure, and it introduced measures aimed at boosting manufacturing and support for small and medium enterprises.

Exam trap: Do not confuse the Union Budget (presented by the Finance Minister, covering the entire central government) with the separate concept of a Rail Budget. Since 2017, the Rail Budget has been merged into the Union Budget, so railway allocations now appear as part of the single consolidated Union Budget rather than a standalone presentation. This merger itself is a frequently asked one-liner: the practice of a separate Rail Budget, which had continued since 1924, ended starting with the 2017-18 budget.

Economic Survey

The Economic Survey, prepared under the Chief Economic Adviser, is presented in Parliament a day before the Union Budget each year and gives an official assessment of the state of the economy, growth projections, and policy recommendations. It is a useful document to skim for growth-rate figures that often appear in exam questions, though exact percentage figures change every year, so always check the latest survey closer to your exam rather than memorizing a fixed number from this chapter.

Republic Day 2025

Republic Day 2025, marking 76 years since the Constitution came into force, was celebrated with President Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia as the chief guest, continuing India's tradition of inviting a head of state or government from a partner nation to the Republic Day parade each year. This detail, the chief guest's name and country for the most recent Republic Day, is a very commonly tested one-liner, so always note it as soon as each year's parade takes place.

G20 and India's Global Engagements

India held the G20 presidency in 2023, hosting the New Delhi Summit and handing over the presidency to Brazil for 2024, with South Africa taking over as the G20 host for 2025, marking the first time an African nation hosted the summit. India's own G20 year remains a heavily tested fact even after the fact, since it produced the landmark New Delhi Leaders' Declaration and saw the African Union admitted as a permanent G20 member during India's presidency, a genuinely significant and frequently asked development.

2. Key Appointments to Track

Appointments are the most time-sensitive category in this entire chapter, so treat every name below as "confirmed as of the time of writing" rather than a permanent fact, and always verify against a current source close to your exam date.

Reserve Bank of India Governor: Sanjay Malhotra took charge as the 26th Governor of the RBI in December 2024, succeeding Shaktikanta Das. The RBI Governor is one of the most frequently asked "current officeholder" questions in every banking and SSC-adjacent exam, so this handover is worth remembering clearly, including the fact that it happened at the end of 2024 heading into 2025.

Chief Justice of India: Justice Sanjiv Khanna took over as the 51st Chief Justice of India in November 2024. Track the CJI's tenure carefully, since this post rotates based on seniority and retirement age, meaning a new CJI can take charge with limited advance notice; always check who currently holds this post shortly before your exam.

President and Vice-President of India: Droupadi Murmu has served as President of India since July 2022, the first person from a tribal community to hold the office. Jagdeep Dhankhar was sworn in as Vice-President in August 2022. Both these offices carry fixed five-year terms unless changed earlier, so confirm the current officeholders as your exam approaches, particularly since Vice-Presidential terms can end earlier than expected in unusual circumstances.

Exam trap: Students frequently confuse the roles of President, Vice-President, and Prime Minister. Remember this fixed hierarchy for constitutional questions: the President is the head of state and the first citizen of India; the Vice-President is ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha; the Prime Minister is the head of government and holds actual executive power in the parliamentary system.

3. Railway Sector Developments (Extra-Important for ALP/Technician Aspirants)

This section deserves your closest attention because railway-specific current affairs appear disproportionately often in RRB papers compared to general SSC papers, and interviewers in later stages may also probe your awareness of your own sector.

Kavach — Automatic Train Protection Rollout

Kavach, India's indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection system, continued its phased expansion across high-density and high-speed routes through 2024 and into 2025, with Indian Railways targeting coverage of thousands of route kilometers under successive expansion plans. Kavach works by continuously monitoring train speed and automatically applying brakes if a driver fails to respond to a danger signal or exceeds the permitted speed limit, functioning as a safety layer that does not depend solely on human reaction time. For an ALP or Technician aspirant, Kavach is not just a current affairs fact, it is a system you may work alongside directly in your career, so understanding its basic working principle (continuous speed supervision plus automatic braking) is worth more than just memorizing the name.

Vande Bharat, Amrit Bharat, and Namo Bharat Expansion

The Vande Bharat Express network, India's semi-high-speed indigenous train series, continued expanding its route coverage across states through 2024 and 2025, with new routes being flagged off connecting a growing number of state capitals and major cities. Alongside Vande Bharat, the Amrit Bharat Express, a push-pull configuration train aimed at providing modern, affordable long-distance travel for general and sleeper-class passengers, also expanded its routes. Namo Bharat (the RRTS, Regional Rapid Transit System, corridor connecting Delhi and Meerut through Ghaziabad) continued phase-wise commissioning, representing a distinct category from Vande Bharat since it functions as a regional rapid transit corridor rather than a long-distance train.

Exam trap: Do not mix up these three: Vande Bharat is a semi-high-speed intercity train (chair-car style), Amrit Bharat is a long-distance train for general/sleeper passengers with push-pull technology, and Namo Bharat (RRTS) is a regional rapid transit system, a different category altogether connecting satellite cities to Delhi, not a long-distance train.

Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail corridor, India's first bullet train project, based on Japanese Shinkansen technology, continued construction progress through 2024 and 2025, with sections of the viaduct and key structures like river bridges nearing or reaching completion in Gujarat, while the more complex underground and coastal sections in Maharashtra, including the tunnel under Thane creek, remained under construction. This project remains a strong current-affairs and general-knowledge fixture because of its scale and its status as India's first true high-speed rail line.

Amrit Bharat Station Scheme

The Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, launched in 2023, continued redeveloping and modernizing railway stations across the country through 2024 and 2025, upgrading facilities like circulating areas, waiting halls, signage, and accessibility features at hundreds of stations in phases, aimed at bringing airport-style amenities to mid-size and major railway stations across India.

Railway Recruitment and Zone-Level Updates

Indian Railways periodically restructures administrative zones and divisions to improve efficiency; aspirants preparing for ALP and Technician roles should stay aware of the current total number of railway zones and any newly created divisions, since this is a favorite one-line question in RRB papers, and this figure has changed in the past as new zones were carved out from older ones. Always verify the latest confirmed zone count from an official RRB or Ministry of Railways source close to your exam date, since this is precisely the kind of structural fact that can shift and deserves a fresh check rather than reliance on a fixed number memorized months earlier.

4. Sports Achievements

Cricket — ICC Champions Trophy 2025

India won the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, played in a hybrid format across Pakistan and the UAE, with India playing all its matches in the UAE due to the hybrid arrangement. India, captained by Rohit Sharma, defeated New Zealand in the final held in Dubai in March 2025, adding another ICC trophy to India's cabinet and marking a significant moment for Indian cricket in the post-2023 World Cup cycle. This kind of tournament-winner fact, team, captain, opponent, venue, is exactly the shape exam setters like to test, so lock in all four details together rather than just remembering "India won."

Other Sporting Milestones

Indian athletes and teams continued to build on the momentum from recent Olympic and Asian Games cycles through 2024 and 2025, with continued strong performances in badminton, shooting, wrestling, and athletics at various international meets. Exam trap: always distinguish between the Olympic Games (once every four years, next edition after Paris 2024 being Los Angeles 2028), the Asian Games (once every four years, hosted by Hangzhou, China in 2023, with the next edition scheduled for Nagoya, Japan in 2026), and the Commonwealth Games, three separate multi-sport events that students frequently conflate when a question describes an event without naming it directly.

Because individual medal counts, records, and tournament winners change constantly and are exactly the kind of fast-moving fact this chapter's introduction warned you about, treat the sports section of your current affairs prep as the one requiring the most frequent refresh, ideally updated within the final month before your exam using a dedicated monthly current affairs source.

5. Science and Technology Developments

ISRO Milestones

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) crossed a landmark 100th launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in January 2025, a milestone widely reported as a marker of the maturity of India's space launch program since its early Rohini-series missions decades earlier. ISRO continued preparatory work through 2024 and 2025 toward the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, India's first crewed space mission, including uncrewed test flights and astronaut training milestones, while also progressing on the Chandrayaan and Aditya-L1 solar mission follow-up work, building on the historic success of Chandrayaan-3, which achieved a soft landing near the Moon's south polar region in August 2023, making India the first country to land near the lunar south pole and the fourth country overall to achieve a soft lunar landing.

Exam trap: Chandrayaan-3's landing site is specifically described as being near the Moon's south polar region, not exactly at the south pole itself; exam questions sometimes test this precise phrasing, so avoid the imprecise shorthand of "landed on the south pole."

Artificial Intelligence and Digital Governance

The government continued expanding its IndiaAI Mission, focused on building domestic AI compute capacity, datasets, and skilling programs, reflecting a broader global and national push toward AI infrastructure and regulation through 2024 and 2025. Digital public infrastructure built around Aadhaar, UPI (Unified Payments Interface), and the broader India Stack continued to be referenced internationally as a model for digital public goods, with UPI transaction volumes and international UPI acceptance (in countries adopting UPI-linked payment systems) continuing to expand through this period.

6. Awards and Honours

Padma Awards

The Padma Awards, India's civilian honors announced around Republic Day each year in the order Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri, continued to recognize achievement across fields including arts, social work, public affairs, science, and sports for the 2025 announcement cycle. Since the specific list of recipients changes every year, treat the exact names as a fact you must refresh annually rather than memorize permanently from this chapter; what stays constant, and what you should lock in permanently, is the three-tier order of precedence and the fact that these are announced close to Republic Day.

Nobel Prizes

The Nobel Prizes, awarded annually in categories including Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, Peace, and Economic Sciences, are announced each October by the respective Nobel committees based in Sweden and Norway (the Peace Prize alone is awarded in Oslo, Norway, while the rest are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden). This is a permanently useful structural fact worth locking in regardless of which specific individuals won in any given year: six categories, Peace Prize decided in Norway, the rest decided in Sweden.

Exam trap: The Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences is technically not one of the original five prizes established by Alfred Nobel's will; it was instituted later by Sveriges Riksbank (Sweden's central bank) in his memory, and is formally called the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. This distinction is a favorite trap in general knowledge papers.

7. Important Static-Meets-Current Reminders

Some facts sit at the boundary between static and current knowledge, structural facts that rarely change but are worth a quick refresh:

The Reserve Bank of India was established in 1935 and nationalized in 1949; its Governor changes periodically, so while the founding year is permanent, the current Governor's name (Sanjay Malhotra, as noted above) needs periodic refreshing. Similarly, the Election Commission of India, headed by the Chief Election Commissioner, oversees national and state elections; the number of Election Commissioners and the current Chief Election Commissioner's name should be verified close to your exam, since this office also rotates.

India's states and union territories count has remained stable at 28 states and 8 union territories following the reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories in 2019, a structural fact worth locking in firmly since it does not change often, though it is exactly the kind of number that can shift with future legislative changes, so a quick verification before a major exam costs you little and protects you from an outdated assumption.

8. How to Keep This Chapter Alive Until Your Exam

Treat this chapter as your permanent skeleton and build a habit of updating it in three simple steps as your exam date approaches. First, in the final month before your exam, read one reliable monthly current affairs digest covering the months since this chapter was written, focusing specifically on new appointments (RBI Governor, CJI, Army/Navy/Air Force Chiefs, state Governors), new scheme launches, and any major railway sector announcement. Second, specifically check for the most recent Republic Day chief guest, the most recent Union Budget's headline numbers, and the most recent major sporting tournament winners, since these three categories refresh on a predictable annual or near-annual cycle and are exactly what exam setters draw fresh questions from. Third, keep a small personal notebook, physical or digital, where you log any "new officeholder" or "new scheme" fact the moment you read it in a newspaper or news app, so your own knowledge stays current without needing to reread an entire new digest from scratch every time.

Memory hook: think of current affairs as milk, not rice. Rice (static GK) keeps for years in a sealed container. Milk (current affairs) needs a fresh top-up regularly, or it turns and works against you in the exam hall. This chapter gives you a full container of rice with a fresh carton of milk stamped with today's date; check the expiry date on the milk before you rely on it.

Quick Revision — One-Line Facts

• Union Budget 2025-26 was presented by Nirmala Sitharaman on 1 February 2025, her eighth consecutive budget.
• Income up to ₹12 lakh became effectively tax-free under the revised new tax regime slabs announced in the 2025-26 budget.
• The separate Rail Budget was merged into the Union Budget starting 2017-18, ending a practice that ran since 1924.
• Republic Day 2025 chief guest was President Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia.
• India held the G20 presidency in 2023; Brazil hosted in 2024; South Africa hosted in 2025, the first African G20 host.
• Sanjay Malhotra became the 26th RBI Governor in December 2024, succeeding Shaktikanta Das.
• Justice Sanjiv Khanna became the 51st Chief Justice of India in November 2024.
• Droupadi Murmu is President of India since July 2022; Jagdeep Dhankhar became Vice-President in August 2022.
• Kavach is India's indigenous Automatic Train Protection system, expanding across high-density railway routes.
• Vande Bharat = semi-high-speed chair-car intercity train; Amrit Bharat = long-distance push-pull train for general/sleeper passengers; Namo Bharat = RRTS regional rapid transit (Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut).
• Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train is India's first high-speed rail project, based on Japanese Shinkansen technology.
• Amrit Bharat Station Scheme (launched 2023) modernizes railway stations in phases.
• India won the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, beating New Zealand in the final at Dubai, captained by Rohit Sharma.
• The Asian Games 2023 were hosted by Hangzhou, China; the next edition is planned for Nagoya, Japan (2026).
• ISRO completed its 100th launch from Sriharikota in January 2025.
• Chandrayaan-3 achieved a soft landing near the Moon's south polar region in August 2023.
• India is the first country to land near the lunar south pole and the fourth country overall to achieve any soft lunar landing.
• IndiaAI Mission focuses on building domestic AI compute, datasets, and skilling capacity.
• Padma Awards order of precedence: Padma Vibhushan > Padma Bhushan > Padma Shri, announced around Republic Day.
• Nobel Prizes (except Peace) are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden; the Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo, Norway.
• The Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences was instituted later by Sveriges Riksbank, not by Alfred Nobel's original will.
• The Reserve Bank of India was established in 1935 and nationalized in 1949.
• India currently has 28 states and 8 union territories following the 2019 reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir.
• Always verify officeholder names (RBI Governor, CJI, President, Vice-President, service chiefs) close to your actual exam date.
• Current affairs facts should be refreshed monthly in the final stretch before any competitive exam.
• The Election Commission of India is headed by the Chief Election Commissioner.
• India's G20 presidency year produced the New Delhi Leaders' Declaration and saw the African Union join as a permanent member.
• The Economic Survey is presented in Parliament a day before the Union Budget each year.

Memory Tables

Table 1 — Key Appointments to Verify Before Your Exam

Post	Officeholder (as of writing)	Since
RBI Governor	Sanjay Malhotra	December 2024
Chief Justice of India	Justice Sanjiv Khanna	November 2024
President of India	Droupadi Murmu	July 2022
Vice-President of India	Jagdeep Dhankhar	August 2022

Note: Verify each of these against a current source close to your exam date; this table is a starting point, not a guarantee.

Table 2 — Railway Terms You Must Not Mix Up

Term	What It Actually Is
Vande Bharat Express	Semi-high-speed chair-car intercity train
Amrit Bharat Express	Long-distance push-pull train, general/sleeper class
Namo Bharat (RRTS)	Regional rapid transit corridor (Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut)
Kavach	Automatic Train Protection (collision avoidance) system
Amrit Bharat Station Scheme	Railway station redevelopment and modernization program

Table 3 — Major 2025 Milestones at a Glance

Event	Detail
Union Budget 2025-26	Presented 1 February 2025, income up to ₹12 lakh tax-free
Republic Day 2025	Chief guest: President Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia
ICC Champions Trophy 2025	India won, beat New Zealand in Dubai final
ISRO 100th launch	January 2025, from Sriharikota
G20 host 2025	South Africa, first African G20 host

Practice MCQs

Q1. Who presented the Union Budget for financial year 2025-26? (a) Piyush Goyal (b) Nirmala Sitharaman (c) Ashwini Vaishnaw (d) Amit Shah

Q2. Under the revised new tax regime announced in the 2025-26 budget, income up to what amount became effectively tax-free? (a) ₹7 lakh (b) ₹10 lakh (c) ₹12 lakh (d) ₹15 lakh

Q3. Since which budget year was the separate Rail Budget merged into the Union Budget? (a) 2014-15 (b) 2016-17 (c) 2017-18 (d) 2019-20

Q4. Who was the chief guest at India's Republic Day parade in 2025? (a) President of France (b) President of Indonesia (c) Prime Minister of Japan (d) President of Brazil

Q5. Sanjay Malhotra took charge in December 2024 as the Governor of which institution? (a) SEBI (b) NITI Aayog (c) Reserve Bank of India (d) Election Commission of India

Q6. Justice Sanjiv Khanna took charge in November 2024 as which official? (a) Attorney General of India (b) Chief Justice of India (c) Chief Election Commissioner (d) Cabinet Secretary

Q7. Which of these is an Automatic Train Protection system developed indigenously by India? (a) Vande Bharat (b) Kavach (c) Namo Bharat (d) Amrit Bharat

Q8. Which train category best describes the Namo Bharat (RRTS) corridor connecting Delhi and Meerut? (a) Semi-high-speed intercity train (b) Long-distance sleeper train (c) Regional rapid transit system (d) Freight-only corridor

Q9. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project is based on which country's high-speed rail technology? (a) France (b) China (c) Japan (d) Germany

Q10. India won the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 by defeating which team in the final? (a) Australia (b) Pakistan (c) New Zealand (d) South Africa

Q11. ISRO completed its 100th launch from Sriharikota in which month and year? (a) August 2023 (b) December 2024 (c) January 2025 (d) June 2025

Q12. Chandrayaan-3 achieved its historic soft landing near which lunar region? (a) The equator (b) The north polar region (c) The south polar region (d) The far side center

Q13. In which city is the Nobel Peace Prize awarded, unlike the other five Nobel Prize categories? (a) Stockholm, Sweden (b) Geneva, Switzerland (c) Oslo, Norway (d) Copenhagen, Denmark

Q14. Which country hosted the G20 presidency for 2025, becoming the first African nation to do so? (a) Nigeria (b) Egypt (c) South Africa (d) Kenya

Q15. As of the 2019 reorganization, how many states and union territories does India currently have? (a) 29 states, 7 union territories (b) 28 states, 8 union territories (c) 28 states, 9 union territories (d) 27 states, 8 union territories

Answer Key

Q	Answer	Reason
1	(b)	Nirmala Sitharaman presented her eighth consecutive Union Budget for 2025-26 on 1 February 2025.
2	(c)	The revised new regime made income up to ₹12 lakh effectively tax-free after rebate.
3	(c)	The Rail Budget merger with the Union Budget began with the 2017-18 budget, ending the practice started in 1924.
4	(b)	President Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia was the Republic Day 2025 chief guest.
5	(c)	Sanjay Malhotra became the 26th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, succeeding Shaktikanta Das.
6	(b)	Justice Sanjiv Khanna became the 51st Chief Justice of India in November 2024.
7	(b)	Kavach is India's indigenous Automatic Train Protection system, distinct from Vande Bharat and Amrit Bharat, which are trains.
8	(c)	Namo Bharat is a Regional Rapid Transit System corridor, a different category from long-distance or intercity trains.
9	(c)	The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train uses Japanese Shinkansen high-speed rail technology.
10	(c)	India defeated New Zealand in the Champions Trophy 2025 final held in Dubai, captained by Rohit Sharma.
11	(c)	ISRO's 100th launch from Sriharikota took place in January 2025.
12	(c)	Chandrayaan-3 landed near the Moon's south polar region in August 2023, a first for any country.
13	(c)	The Nobel Peace Prize alone is awarded in Oslo, Norway; the other five categories are awarded in Stockholm, Sweden.
14	(c)	South Africa hosted the G20 presidency for 2025, the first time an African nation held the role.
15	(b)	India has had 28 states and 8 union territories since the 2019 reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir.