State PCS - Maharashtra (MPSC)

• 14 Nov 2025

Operation Bullion Blaze

Why in News? 

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) cracked down on a major gold-smuggling and melting syndicate in Mumbai under the code name "Operation Bullion Blaze." 

Key Points 

• About Operation Bullion Blaze: 
  • The operation aims to disrupt black-market gold channels, which are often used for cash conversion and unaccounted political or criminal funding. 
  • The operation focuses on Zaveri Bazaar, Kalbadevi, Opera House, and other high-volume trade clusters in Mumbai, where unregistered bullion activities are suspected. 
• About Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI):  
  • The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is India’s apex anti-smuggling agency, functioning under the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC), Ministry of Finance. 
  • It was established in 1957 and is responsible for preventing smuggling of gold, narcotics, wildlife items, counterfeit currency, and commercial frauds involving customs duty evasion. 
  • DRI has the authority to conduct search, seizure, arrest, and investigation under the Customs Act, 1962. 
  • It works closely with global bodies like WCO, INTERPOL, and foreign customs agencies for intelligence sharing. 

Booker Prize 2025

Why in News? 

Author David Szalay has won the 2025 Booker Prize for his fictional novel Flesh. 

Key Points 

• About the Winner: 
  • David Szalay is a Hungarian-British novelist known for his precise, economical prose and deep exploration of masculinity, identity, and contemporary European life. 
  • With Flesh, he reinforces his reputation as a writer who captures the inner lives of ordinary men with unusual clarity, situating their personal struggles against broader social and economic landscapes. 
• About Booker Prize: 
  • The Booker Prize (formerly the Man Booker Prize) is one of the world’s most prestigious literary awards. It was established in 1969 and is run by the Booker Prize Foundation. 
  • It honours the best original full-length novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland. Writers of any nationality have been eligible to compete since 2014. 
  • The award aims to promote excellence in English-language fiction and encourage wider readership. 
  • Indian winners include Arundhati Roy (1997), Kiran Desai (2006), and Aravind Adiga (2008).

Difference Between Booker Prize & International Booker Prize 

• The Booker Prize was first awarded in 1969 and is for the best single work of fiction originally written in English.  
• The International Booker Prize was established later in 2005 and is for the best single work of fiction translated into English from any other language.   
• It recognizes the achievement of both the author and the translator.