Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet (SFDR) Technology

• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully demonstrated Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet (SFDR) technology from Integrated Test Range, Chandipur.

Solid Fuel Ducted Ramjet (SFDR) Technology:

• SFDR is an air-breathing propulsion system for missiles that uses atmospheric oxygen for combustion and solid fuel burned in a controlled manner to provide sustained thrust at supersonic speeds.
• Unlike conventional rockets, it maintains high energy throughout flight—especially in the terminal phase.
• Developed by:  Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

How it works?

• Initial acceleration: A nozzle-less ground booster propels the missile to the required Mach number.
• Ramjet takeover: Once sufficient speed is reached, atmospheric air is ingested and compressed by forward motion (no rotating compressors).
• Controlled combustion: Solid fuel burns steadily inside the duct as air flows through, regulated by a fuel flow controller.
• Sustained thrust: Continuous thrust keeps the missile fast and manoeuvrable till impact.

Key features

• Air-breathing propulsion: Uses atmospheric oxygen instead of carrying an onboard oxidiser, allowing more space for fuel and extending missile range.
• Sustained high-speed flight: Unlike rocket motors that burn out quickly, SFDR provides continuous thrust, maintaining supersonic speed throughout flight.
• High terminal energy: Retains high velocity in the final phase, increasing impact force and the probability of successfully destroying fast, manoeuvring targets.
• Greater manoeuvrability in end-game: Continuous thrust enables sharp evasive turns near the target, making interception by enemy countermeasures difficult.
• Reduced drag losses and improved range: Optimised airflow and sustained propulsion minimise energy loss, allowing engagement at longer distances.
• Indigenous combustion control at supersonic speeds: Stable fuel-air combustion at high Mach numbers has been successfully mastered domestically, a major technological breakthrough.

Applications

• Long-range air-to-air missiles (BVRAAMs): Enables fighter aircraft to engage enemy jets from extended ranges while maintaining high kill effectiveness.
• Air superiority and BVR combat advantage: Allows pilots to strike first and disengage safely, shifting the balance in beyond-visual-range aerial warfare.
• Indigenisation of advanced propulsion: Reduces reliance on foreign missile technologies and strengthens India’s self-reliant defence ecosystem under Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

Waste-pickers enumeration under NAMASTE scheme

• The Union government released nationwide enumeration data of waste-pickers for the first time under the NAMASTE scheme.
• The data revealed that 84.5% of waste-pickers belong to SC, ST and OBC communities, highlighting deep social stratification in informal urban labour.

Waste-pickers enumeration under NAMASTE scheme:

Key trends:

• Total waste-pickers enumerated: 52 lakh across 35 States/UTs

Regional outliers:

• General category majority in Delhi and Goa
• West Bengal: 42.4% from General category

Linked sanitation data:

• 91.95% of sewer/septic tank workers belong to SC/ST/OBC groups

Significance

• Social justice lens: Confirms the caste-based concentration of hazardous informal labour, reinforcing concerns of occupational segregation.
• Policy targeting: Enables formal recognition by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and access to safety gear, insurance and welfare schemes.
• Human rights perspective: Supports India’s constitutional mandate to eliminate manual scavenging and hazardous sanitation work.

India’s First Evidence-Based Guidelines on Lung Cancer Treatment Released

• The Union Health Minister released the ‘Lung Cancer Treatment and Palliation Guidelines’ to standardise cancer care protocols nationwide.
• National Framework: This document is India’s first evidence-based framework on lung cancer, designed to reduce variations in clinical practice.
• Core Objective: It aims to provide a standardised framework for diagnosis and treatment across both the public and private healthcare sectors.
• Coverage Scope: The framework comprises 15 recommendations spanning the entire spectrum of care, from early diagnosis to palliation.
• Indigenous Focus: The protocols are tailored to India’s disease burden and resource settings rather than replicating Western models.
• Palliative Emphasis: It prioritises palliative care to address pain management and psychological support, alongside curative treatments.
• Collaborative Development: The Department of Health Research (DHR) and the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) jointly developed these guidelines.

Lung Cancer Landscape in India

• Projected Incidence: The ICMR estimates that India recorded approximately 1.11 lakh new cases of lung cancer in 2025.
• Global Incidence: India ranks 4th globally in the absolute number of new cases, behind China, the US, and Japan.
• Mortality: The country also ranks 4th in total lung cancer-related deaths worldwide.
• Non-Smoker Surge: Recent clinical data indicate that 30% to 50% of Indian lung cancer patients are non-smokers.
• Morphological Shift: The rising dominance of Adenocarcinoma in cities links the disease more strongly to air pollution than to tobacco alone.
• Geographic Outlier: Aizawl (Mizoram) records the highest age-adjusted incidence rate of lung cancer globally, driven by high tobacco use.
• Diagnostic Challenge: Nearly 29% of lung cancer patients are initially misdiagnosed with tuberculosis due to overlapping symptoms.
• Survival Metrics: The five-year survival rate in India remains critically low at 3.7%, compared with the global average of 17%.
• Domestic Prevalence: Lung cancer is the second most common cancer among Indian men, after oral/mouth cancer.
• Gender Disparity: It has emerged as the sixth most common cancer among Indian women, with incidence rates rising faster than in men.

Atal Innovation Mission Hosts AIM SUMVAAD

• Context (PIB): The Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) organised AIM SUMVAAD, its annual incubator conclave in New Delhi.

AIM SUMVAAD

• It serves as a national platform to align policy intent, institutional capacity, and partnerships to build a high-quality incubation ecosystem.
• The conclave brought together over 100 incubators, industry leaders, and senior government officials.
• It marked the launch of the National Incubator Assessment Framework, a digital repository for benchmarking incubator performance across India.
• It celebrated establishing 100+ incubators supporting 5,000+ startups and creating over 50,000 jobs.

About Atal Innovation Mission (AIM)

• NITI Aayog launched the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) in 2016 as India’s flagship initiative to promote an ecosystem of innovation and entrepreneurship.
• Objective: To create a culture of innovation at all levels—schools, universities, industries, and MSMEs.
• AIM 2.0: The government launched it in 2024 to expand infrastructure, address ecosystem gaps, and extend the initiative until 2028.

Key Pillars & Initiatives

• ATLs: Atal Tinkering Labs are dedicated workspaces in schools (Grades 6–12) to teach STEM concepts.
• AICs: Atal Incubation Centres are established in universities and corporates to provide infrastructure, mentorship, and funding to startups.
• ACICs: Atal Community Innovation Centres focus on underserved areas to promote local innovation.
• ANIC: Atal New India Challenges provides grants of up to ₹1 crore to startups for commercialising solutions to national problems.
• ARISE-ANIC: It promotes research and innovation in MSMEs in collaboration with central ministries.
• LIPI: The Language Inclusive Program for Innovation builds ecosystems across all 22 scheduled languages to break the English-language barrier.

India-Tanzania 4th Joint Defence Cooperation Committee Meeting

• India and Tanzania held the 4th Joint Defence Cooperation Committee (JDCC) meeting in Zanzibar to strengthen bilateral security ties.

Key Highlights of the Meeting

• Air Force: Both nations agreed to initiate cooperation between their Air Forces, expanding upon existing naval and army collaborations.
• Emerging Technologies: Discussions prioritised capacity building in advanced fields like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cyber Security, and Electronic Warfare.
• New Avenues: The delegations identified military medicine as a new engagement area and explored deeper ties in counter-terrorism training.
• Strategic Cooperation: The meeting reviewed maritime security while seeking to enhance defence industry collaboration and service-to-service partnerships.

India-Tanzania Bilateral Relations

• The relationship was elevated from traditional development aid to a strategic partnership in 2023.
• SAGAR Vision: Tanzania is a key partner in India’s Security and Growth for All in the Region initiative, acting as a gateway to East and Central Africa.
• Trade: India is Tanzania’s second-largest trading partner with USD 8.6 billion in bilateral trade in 2024-25; both countries trade in local currencies through Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVA).
• Investment: India is among the top five investors in Tanzania, with about USD 4.08 billion in investments.
• Defence: A five-year defence roadmap (2023–2027) guides partnership; cooperation, includes joint EEZ surveillance and the India-Tanzania-Mozambique (IMT-TRILAT) exercise.
• Development: India established the first overseas IIT campus (IIT Madras Zanzibar) in 2023 and has extended over $1.1 billion in Lines of Credit (LoCs) for large-scale water supply projects.

Arunachal Pradesh Failed to Comply with Compensatory Afforestation for Subansiri LHE Project

• The MoEFCC has flagged Arunachal Pradesh’s continued non-compliance with compensatory afforestation conditions for the 2,000 MW Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project (SLHEP).
• Implementation Lag: The state government has not yet undertaken plantations on the mandated 31.83 sq km of land despite receiving forest clearance in 2004.
• The Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project is a 2,000 MW run-of-the-river power project on the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border at Gerukamukh. It will be India’s largest hydropower plant.

Compensatory Afforestation (CA)

• Statutory Mandate: Compensatory Afforestation is a statutory mechanism under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, to offset forest land diversion.
• Financial Framework: The funds are managed under the provisions of the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF) Act, 2016.
• Economic Valuation: The “Net Present Value” (NPV) quantifies the economic loss of intangible ecological services (e.g., carbon sequestration, water recharge) over 50 years.
• Payment Liability: The User Agency must deposit the calculated NPV and the cost of new plantations into the CAMPA fund prior to project execution.
• Non-Forest Norm: The primary rule requires afforestation on an equivalent area of non-forest land to maintain the total area under vegetation.
• Exception: For Central PSUs, or where non-forest land is unavailable, afforestation is permitted on degraded forest land covering twice the area of the diverted land.
• Fund Sharing: The collected funds are divided between the State and National CAMPA authorities in a fixed 90:10 ratio.
• Digital Monitoring: The e-Green Watch portal is an integrated web-based platform that monitors the real-time progress of plantations and fund utilisation.
• Accredited Afforestation: The Forest (Conservation) Rules, 2022, introduced Accredited Compensatory Afforestation (ACA) to enable developers to use pre-existing private plantations for compliance.
• Land Inventory: State governments are required to establish land banks to expedite the identification of suitable non-forest land for future diversions.
• Rights Settlement: The process aligns with the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006, which mandates that the State Government settle forest dwellers’ claims before the land handover to the User Agency.
• Ecological Restoration: The guidelines emphasise planting native species to restore biodiversity rather than establishing monocultures of commercial timber.

Maharashtra Grants Clearance for an Iron Mine in a Critical Wildlife Corridor

• The Maharashtra State Board for Wildlife (SBWL) granted wildlife clearance for an open-cast iron-ore mining project in Lohardongri, Chandrapur district.
• Critical Location: The site covers 35.94 hectares of reserved forest in a wildlife corridor connecting the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) with the Brahmapuri-Gadchiroli landscape.
• Advisory Override: The Board approved the proposal despite its expert committee’s recommendation to reject it, citing “irreversible damage” to the environment.

Regulatory Framework for Mining in Ecologically Sensitive Areas

• Zero-Mining: Commercial mining is legally prohibited in National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
• Safety Buffer: The Supreme Court mandates a pan-India ban on mining activities within a 1-km radius of the boundary of any National Park or Wildlife Sanctuary.
• Public Consultation: The EIA Notification (2006) mandates a public hearing for major mining projects to record objections from affected local communities.
• Strategic Exemption: Projects for ‘critical and strategic’ minerals (e.g., lithium, uranium) are exempt from mandatory public hearings.
• Clearance Protocol: Mining proposals near protected areas require two clearances, first from the State Board for Wildlife (SBWL) and then from the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL).
• Cluster Assessment: In regions with multiple mines, regulators mandate a “Cluster EIA” to measure cumulative environmental load rather than assessing each mine in isolation.
• Democratic Consent: Under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, diverting forest land for non-forest purposes (like mining) is invalid without the prior informed consent of the local Gram Sabha.
• Procedural Dilution: The Forest Conservation Rules, 2022, allow the Centre to grant preliminary forest clearance (Stage-I) before obtaining the mandatory Gram Sabha consent.
• Financial Restitution: The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act (CAMPA) mandates that miners pay the “Net Present Value” (NPV) of diverted forest land to finance restoration efforts.
• Financial Liability: Mining without valid clearances attracts a mandatory penalty of 100% of the market value of the illegally extracted ore.
• Benefit Sharing: The District Mineral Foundation (DMF) collects a mandatory share of royalties to fund welfare projects for communities displaced or affected by mining activities.

Devnimori Relics of Lord Buddha

• Context (PIB): India is exhibiting the sacred Devnimori Relics of Lord Buddha in Sri Lanka at Gangaramaya Temple from 4–10 February 2026 as part of cultural diplomacy outreach.

About Devnimori Relics of Lord Buddha

• Origin Site: The relics were discovered at the Devnimori archaeological site near Shamlaji in Gujarat’s Aravalli district, an important ancient Buddhist centre.
• Excavation History: The site was first scientifically explored in 1957 by Prof. S. N. Chowdhry.
• Historical Significance: The findings indicate the strong presence and spread of Buddhism in western India during the early Common Era.
• Spiritual Value: The relics symbolise Lord Buddha’s teachings of peace, compassion and harmony.

Key Archaeological Discoveries at Devnimori

• Relic Casket: A carefully crafted stone casket made of green schist was discovered inside the Devnimori Stupa at around 24 feet from the base level.
• Sacred Inscription: The casket carries inscriptions in Brahmi script and Sanskrit reading “Dashabala Sharira Nilaya”, signifying the abode of Lord Buddha’s bodily relics.
• Copper Container: The copper box featured a flat base and a slip-on lid fitted onto a rim ledge, ensuring safe preservation of sacred deposits.
• Inner Offerings: Inside the container were silk cloth fragments, holy ashes, black clay covering and a gold-coated silver-copper bottle.
• Amphora Bottle: The miniature gold-coated bottle had a cylindrical body, narrow neck and screw-type lid, resembling ancient amphora-style vessels.
• Desiccator Storage: The relics are now preserved in an air-tight glass desiccator to prevent moisture exposure and material deterioration.

Transforming Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) into Multipurpose Rural Growth Engines

• The Government aims to establish new multipurpose PACS/dairy/fisheries cooperatives to cover all panchayats and villages over the next 5 years.

About PACS

• PACS are the grass-root level institutions of the short-term co-operative credit structure and it acts as a last-mile link between borrowers and higher financing institutions such as Scheduled Commercial Banks and RBI/NABARD.
• Status: PACS sanctioned: 79,630, New PACS registered: 32,802, PACS digitised: 61,478

Regulation:

• Multi State PACS: Entry 44 of Union List of the Constitution and are centrally administered by Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies (CRCS) under provisions of Multi-State Co-operative Societies Act, 2002.
• Single State PACS: Entry 32 of State List of the Constitution and are administered by the concerned State Registrar of Cooperative Societies (RCS) under respective State Cooperative Societies Act.

Potential & Significance of PACS

• Agriculture: Enhanced infrastructure and post-harvest support through the World’s Largest Decentralized Grain Storage Plan (which establishes godowns and custom hiring centres).
• Dairy Sector: Enhance milk procurement by 50%  over 5 years through registration of >21,000 new Dairy Cooperative Societies.
• Fisheries sector: Improve market linkages and value addition through converting 1,000 fisheries cooperative societies into Fish Farmer Producer Organisations (FFPOs).

Initiatives taken for PACS Promotion

• PACS Computerization Project: Computerization of PACS under a common ERP-based national software.
• National Cooperation Policy (NCP) 2025: Membership expansion and leadership roles for women and weaker sections.
• Adoption of Model Bye-laws: Enabling PACS to function as multipurpose service centres (PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras, Common Service Centres, warehousing, custom hiring centres, primary processing).

Inclusive Governance:

• Mandatory representation of women and SC/ST members in cooperative boards under Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Act, 2023.
• Inclusion of SHGs, small & marginal farmers and tribal communities.

Project Vault

• The United States has launched Project Vault, a $12 billion critical minerals stockpiling initiative, announced by Donald Trump to protect American industries from global supply disruptions.

What is Project Vault?

• Project Vault is a public–private stockpiling programme designed to purchase, store, and manage critical minerals and rare earth elements required for strategic civilian and defence industries in the United States, similar in concept to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Launched by:

• US Government, announced by Donald Trump
• Funded through a mix of private capital and the US Export–Import Bank

Aim:

1. To secure uninterrupted access to critical minerals during global supply shocks.
2. To reduce strategic dependence on China, which dominates mineral processing.
3. To strengthen national security, advanced manufacturing, and clean energy supply chains.

Key features:

• Minerals covered: Rare earths and critical minerals such as cobalt, gallium, and other strategic metals
• Advance purchase commitments: Companies commit upfront to buy minerals later at fixed inventory prices.

Stockpile access model:

• Firms can withdraw minerals if they replace equivalent quantities
• Full access allowed during major supply disruptions
• Price stabilisation mechanism: Mandatory repurchase at the same price to reduce market volatility.
• Private-sector execution: Commodity traders (e.g., Mercuria, Traxys) handle sourcing and storage.
• Industry participation: Companies like GM, Boeing, Google, Stellantis are already onboard.

Significance:

• Strategic autonomy: Reduces US vulnerability to geopolitical coercion and export controls.
• Industrial resilience: Protects automotive, aerospace, defence, EV, and tech sectors.
• National security: Ensures availability of minerals critical for jet engines, batteries, missiles, and electronics.
• Market stability: Dampens extreme price swings in rare earth markets.

Peacocks in Manali

• A pair of peacocks were spotted at an altitude of over 6,000 ft near Manali in Himachal Pradesh, an unusual sight for a species typically found in warmer lowland regions.

About Peacocks:

• Peacocks are large, colourful birds of the pheasant family (Phasianidae), collectively called peafowl—the male is a peacock, the female a peahen, and the young are peachicks.
• India’s national bird is the Indian or Blue Peacock (Pavo cristatus).

Habitat and distribution:

• Naturally found in warm, semi-arid to moist deciduous forests, grasslands, and agricultural landscapes.
• In India, usually inhabit plains and low hills.
• Typical altitude: up to ~1,000 m, occasionally 1,500 m.
• Recent sightings at ~1,800 m (6,000 ft) in Himachal Pradesh are ecologically unusual.

IUCN conservation status:

1. Indian (Blue) Peacock – Least Concern
2. Green (Javanese) Peacock – Endangered
3. Congo Peacock – Vulnerable

Characteristics:

Physical:

• Males possess a long iridescent train with eye-shaped spots used in courtship displays.
• Strong legs, short rounded wings; capable of short flights and roosting on trees.

Social and behavioural:

• Generally ground-dwelling but roost in trees at night.
• Males form harems during the breeding season.
• Omnivorous: feed on seeds, insects, small reptiles, aiding pest control.

Other ecological traits:

• Sensitive to temperature and habitat changes.
• Known for adaptability, but extreme altitudinal shifts are rare.

Implications of high-altitude sightings:

• Indicator of climate change: Warming temperatures are making higher altitudes more habitable.
• Ecosystem stress signal: Suggests shifts in species distribution in the Himalayas.
• Human–wildlife interaction risks: New habitats may increase conflict and competition.

VOPPA Order, 2025

• Government issues show-cause notices to edible oil firms over VOPPA non-compliance.

About VOPPA Order, 2025 (amendment to VOPAA Order, 2011)

• It stands for Vegetable Oil Products, Production and Availability (Regulation) Amendment Order, 2025 passed.
• Enactment: under Essential Commodities Act, 1955 and incorporates Collection of Statistics Act, 2008.
• Aim: regulate production and ensure availability of vegetable oil products in India.

Characteristics of New Order

• Mandatory registration: All edible oil manufacturers, processors, blenders and re-packers must register on the National Single Window System (NSWS) and the VOPPA portal.
• Monthly returns: Compulsory reporting of production, stocks, imports, sales and availability.
• Coverage: Applies to crude, refined, blended oils, vanaspati and margarine.

Turtle Trails

• The Union Budget 2026–27 proposed developing ‘turtle trails’ along key Olive Ridley nesting sites in Odisha, Karnataka and Kerala to promote eco-tourism.

About Turtle Trails:

• ‘Turtle trails’ refer to regulated eco-tourism pathways and guided experiences near sea turtle nesting beaches, aimed at promoting conservation awareness, community livelihoods and nature-based tourism.

States involved:

• Odisha – Rushikulya (Ganjam) and vicinity of Gahirmatha (Kendrapara)
• Karnataka – Coastal turtle nesting beaches
• Kerala – Key nesting stretches along the Arabian Sea coast

Key features:

• Guided and regulated access to turtle nesting areas, usually during breeding season
• Public awareness and education on marine biodiversity and conservation
• Community participation, involving local fishers, volunteers and NGOs
• Low-impact infrastructure, potentially temporary walkways or observation zones (as proposed)
• Integration with eco-tourism policy, aligned with livelihood generation and sustainable tourism goals

Significance:

• Helps sensitise the public to endangered species like the Olive Ridley sea turtle.
• Can generate alternative income for coastal communities through guided tourism.
• If well-designed, may replace unregulated tourism with scientifically managed access.

Seychelles

• Patrick Herminie, President of Seychelles, will pay a state visit to India at the invitation of Prime Minister of India.

Seychelles:

• Seychelles is a sovereign island country and archipelagic state comprising 115 islands, known for its high human development, blue economy focus, and strategic maritime location in the Indian Ocean.

Located in:

• Western Indian Ocean, about 1,500 km east of mainland Africa
• Neighbours: Maldives, Mauritius, Madagascar, Comoros, Réunion (France)
• Capital: Victoria (on Mahé Island)

Key geographical features:

• Archipelagic composition: 115 islands grouped into Inner (granitic) and Outer (coralline) islands.
• Granitic islands (Mahé, Praslin, La Digue): among the oldest oceanic granite formations in the world.
• Coral atolls and reef systems: support rich marine biodiversity and the blue economy.
• Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): ~1.35 million km², one of the largest relative to country size.
• High marine conservation: commitment to protect 30% of marine waters through Marine Protected Areas.