PLACES IN NEWS - UPSC Current Affairs 2025

The elusive Marbled cats have been spotted using camera traps at Dehing Patkai National Park in Assam’s Tinsukia district.
The Indian marbled cat (Pardofelis marmorata), also called the marbled cat, is a small wild cat native to South and Southeast Asia. It is closely related to the clouded leopard and the bay cat.
The species is listed as ‘Near Threatened’ on the IUCN Red List.
Dehing Patkai National Park is also referred to as the ‘Amazon of the East’ and derives its name from the Dehing River and the Patkai Mountain range.
It is located in the Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts of Assam and was declared as Assam’s 7^th National Park in June 2021.

India’s Prime Minister has been awarded the “Honorary Order of Freedom of Barbados” for his strategic leadership and support during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Barbados is a Caribbean island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Venezuela.
Barbados gained independence from Britain in 1966. It became a republic in 2021.
India and Barbados established diplomatic ties in 1966.

The US has increased airstrikes on Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen to counter their missile and drone attacks in the Red Sea, citing threats to global shipping routes.
Yemen is situated in the Middle East at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the east.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, located between Djibouti and Yemen, is a crucial maritime chokepoint connecting the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea through the Red Sea and Suez Canal, vital for global trade.

Recently, warships from Russia, Iran, and China participated in the Maritime Security Belt 2025 naval exercise in the Gulf of Oman.
This is their fifth joint military exercise since 2019.
The Gulf of Oman connects the Arabian Sea to the Strait of Hormuz, which leads into the Persian Gulf.
The Gulf of Oman is bordered by Pakistan and Iran to the north, the United Arab Emirates to the west, and Oman to the south.

Ethiopia’s Tigray region is once again at the heart of a looming conflict between longtime foes Ethiopia and Eritrea.
The Tigray Region (officially the Tigray National Regional State) is the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia, sharing borders with Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, the Amhara Region to the south, and the Afar Region to the east.
It is predominantly inhabited by the Tigrayan people, along with minority groups such as the Irob and Kunama communities.
The capital and largest city of Tigray is Mekelle.

Nayara Energy signed two MoUs with the Gujarat government for the conservation and restoration of the Khijadiya Bird Sanctuary in the Jamnagar district.
Khijadiya Bird Sanctuary is a popular destination for bird watchers and nature enthusiasts located about 10 km northeast of Jamnagar on the south coast of the Gulf of Kutch.
The sanctuary is home to more than 220 species of birds, including pelicans, flamingos, spoonbills, ducks, egrets, and herons.
On 2nd February 2022, which marks World Wetlands Day, Khijadiya was recognized as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention.

Kanger Valley National Park (KVNP) in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar region was recently added to UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage Sites under the Natural Heritage category.
It is situated in Jagdalpur within the Bastar District of Chhattisgarh, and derives its name from the Kanger River, which flows through the park.
It was declared a national park in 1982.
It is home to three famous limestone caves—Kutumbasar, Kailash, and Dandak—known for their stalactites and stalagmites.

The Supreme Court recently directed the Rajasthan government to demolish the Seven Wonders Park near Ana Sagar Lake, Ajmer, within six months due to environmental concerns and violations of wetland laws.
Ana Sagar Lake, an artificial (man-made) lake, is located in the Ajmer district, Rajasthan.
It was built between 1135 and 1150 AD by King Arnoraja (also called Anaji), grandfather of Prithviraj Chauhan.
Mughal emperor Jahangir built the famous Daulat Bagh garden adjacent to the lake.
Shah Jahan added five marble pavilions (Baradaris) along the lake, enhancing its status as a popular tourist and heritage site.

The Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano in south-central Indonesia has erupted multiple times, sending ash clouds high into the sky and prompting evacuations and flight cancellations.
The volcano is situated on the remote island of Flores in the East Nusa Tenggara province of Indonesia.
It is a twin-volcano system comprising Lewotobi Laki-Laki and Lewotobi Perempuan, with local residents seeing the mountains as male and female.
Indonesia lies along the ‘Ring of Fire,’ a region in the Pacific known for active volcanoes and frequent seismic activity.

Vanuatu Prime Minister Jotham Napat revoked fugitive billionaire Lalit Modi’s citizenship, stating that acquiring Vanuatu’s passport should not be a means to avoid extradition.
Vanuatu is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. It is an archipelago made up of 83 islands, of which only 65 are inhabited.
Vanuatu lies midway between Australia and Fiji. Its capital and largest city is Port Vila, located on Efate Island.
Formerly administered jointly by Britain and France, Vanuatu gained independence in 1980.