Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya | India Records Highest-ever Tea Exports in 2025 | Network Readiness Index Report 2025 | Protest Against Ken-Betwa Linking Project

Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya

Personality in News

Context

• The Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay on his death anniversary (11 February).

Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya (1916–1968)

• He was a political thinker, economist, and leader of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
• He was an exceptional scholar and dedicated nationalist.
• Ideology – He was a visionary thinker, known for his doctrine of Integral Humanism (Ekatma Manav Darshan) which emphasized a balance between spiritual and material development and promoted decentralization and self-reliant village-based economy.
• Contributions- He contributed to ideological journalism by starting ‘Rashtra Dharma’ (monthly), ‘Panchajanya’ (weekly), and ‘Swadesh’ (daily).

India Records Highest-ever Tea Exports in 2025

Agriculture

Context

• India recorded its highest-ever tea exports in 2025, touching 280.40 million kg during January–December 2025, marking a significant increase from 256.17 million kg in 2024.

Indian Tea Industry

• India is the 2nd largest tea producer and largest black tea producer.
• Export destinations – Iran, Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Russia e India is the 4th largest tea exporter in the World.
• Employment – The Indian tea Industry is employing 16 million workers directly.
• Note – Assam grows about 55% of the teas produced in India. India’s tea production has increased by 39% in 2022 from 2008.

Geographical Condition for Tea production

• The tea plant grows well in tropical and subtropical climates.
• Soil: It requires deep and fertile well-drained soil, rich in humus and organic matter.
• Temperature: The average annual temperature for tea plants to grow well is in the range of 15-23°C.
• Precipitation: The rainfall needed is between 150-200 cm.
• Frequent showers evenly distributed over the year ensure continuous growth of tender leaves.
• Major tea producing states are Assam, hills of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
• Apart from these, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Andhra Pradesh and Tripura are also tea-producing states in the country.

Asia Tea Alliance

• Member countries – It is a coalition of tea associations from major tea-producing countries in Asia like India, China, Sri Lanka, Japan etc.
• Objective – It aims to promote the collective interests of member nations within the global tea market.

Network Readiness Index Report 2025

Infrastructure

Context

• India is placed at 45th rank (with score 54.43 out of 100) as per the Network Readiness Index 2025 report released in 2026.

Network Readiness Index Report 2025

• Published by – Portulans Institute, an independent, non-profit research and educational institute based in Washington DC.
• Objective – The report maps the network-based readiness landscape of 127 economies based on their performance in four pillars: Technology, People, Governance and Impact, covering a total of 53 indicators.
• Top Three Nations: USA, Finland, Singapore

Protest Against Ken-Betwa Linking Project

Geography; /Environment

Context

• Protests against the Ken–Betwa River Linking Project (KBLP), highlighting tensions over the implementation of the river interlinking project.

Ken-Betwa Link Project

• It is a project proposed to transfer excess water from the River Ken to the Betwa basin through the use of a concrete canal.
• Objective – to provide irrigation to the Bundelkhand region of UP, which is one of the worst drought-affected areas in India.
• Beneficiary states – Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
• Significance – It will meet the irrigation purposes, drinking water, and electricity needs of 6 districts in both states.
• Biodiversity Concerns – Nearly 8,650 hectares of forest land including part of Panna National Park in Madhya Pradesh will be submerged if the project were to become a reality.