Scientists explain why Uranus and Neptune have different colors

• Neptune and Uranus have much in common — they have similar masses, sizes, and atmospheric compositions — yet their appearances are in different shades of blue.
• At visible wavelengths, Neptune is a rich, deep azure hue, while Uranus is a distinctly pale shade of cyan.
• The reason is that the haze around Uranus is thicker than that around Neptune.
• Uranus’s stagnant, sluggish atmosphere makes it appear a lighter tone than Neptune.
• If there was no haze in the atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus, both would appear almost equally blue as a result of blue light being scattered in their atmospheres.

U.S. defends supplying advanced rocket systems to Ukraine

• The M142 HIMARS, a light multiple rocket launcher, was developed for the US Army in the late 1990s. The High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) is mounted on a truck, and can carry a container with six rockets.
• The HIMARS can launch a medium-range rocket, but is also capable of firing a longer-range missile, the Army Tactical Missile System, which has a range of about 300 km.

Centre to hold sessions on rights of gig workers

• Gig workers are independent contractors, online platform workers, contract firm workers, on-call workers and temporary workers.
• The V.V. Giri Institute, the training arm of the Union Labour Ministry, is organising the programme aimed at sharing information and good experiences on policies and global practices relating to gig and platform workers and their social security.
• Examples such as social security for platform workers in the transport sector of Thailand and Malaysia, where there are online models under which 2% for every ride is deducted for health and accident insurance and for social security will be taken up during the session.
• Another issue that will be taken up is the employer-employee relationship in the context of the gig economy. Workers’ employment relationships are not recognised in law in this case and gig workers are largely excluded from labour and social security rights.
• Though there are certain benefits for youth and migrant workers, such as quick money and flexible work hours in the gig platforms, uncertain working hours and insufficient income are still considered major issues that need governmental address.

HAL to convert civilian aircraft into refuelling tankers

• The IAI has expertise in undertaking such conversion. The overall process is expected to take at least three or four years. The IAF has been looking to procure mid-air refuellers for some time.
• Mid-air refuelling significantly enhances the range and payload of fighter jets.
• It also allows aircraft to stay in the air much beyond their normal limits allowing better exploitation of the platform’s capabilities.

NCW meet recommends helpline for abandoned wives of NRIs

• It also discussed ways to serve a non-bailable warrant against a male offender residing abroad who has abandoned his wife. Often, these men keep changing their address and it gets challenging to track them.
• So, it suggested that a special website be set up, so that summons posted there are deemed as served on a person. Another way to track them would be through their social security number.
• Other matters discussed were ex-parte judgments on divorce obtained by husbands abroad, which are already addressed under Section 13 of the Civil Procedure Code that deals with conditions under which foreign judgments are not conclusive, he said.
• The consultation did not, however, discuss whether India should sign the Hague Convention, which requires that if a parent has run away with a child from one country to another due to a marital dispute, the child has to be returned to the country from where he or she has been removed.

Govt to relax qualification criteria for tribal youth from Chhattisgarh for recruitment to CRPF

• Minimum educational qualification will be relaxed from Class 10 to Class 8 for the recruitment of 400 candidates from the districts. CRPF would impart formal education during the probation period to these newly recruited trainees.
• CRPF during 2016-2017 had raised one Bastariya Battalion by recruiting Scheduled Tribe candidates from four districts namely, Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur and Sukma of Chhattisgarh.
• However, it could not yield optimum results as native youths from interior areas could not compete in the recruitment process due to non- fulfilling of requisite educational qualification i.e. 10th pass.

Centre allows cooperatives to sell products online

• The move will benefit 27 crore people associated with 8.5 lakh cooperatives. The micro and medium small industries will get buyers and it will boost the prospects of “Vocal for local” and Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
• The cooperatives may, however, be charged a transaction fee to cover the incremental costs.
• The validated list of cooperatives to be onboarded on the GeM — for pilot as well as subsequent scale-up — will be decided by the Ministry of Cooperation in consultation with the GeM SPV [Special Purpose Vehicle].
• The GeM started in 2017 is a one-stop portal to facilitate online procurement of commonly used goods and services. The portal is open for all government buyers — Union and State Ministries, departments, public sector enterprises, autonomous institutions, local bodies and so on.
• Private buyers cannot buy on the platform but private people can sell products to government bodies through the portal.

Caste-based census to be held in Bihar

• All parties which have representation in the legislature attended the meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
• It would be a “time-bound exercise and each and every detail of caste, sub-castes, community and religion will be taken care of for the development of all people”.
• Earlier, the Bihar Legislature passed resolutions twice for caste-based census and an 11-member all-party delegation too had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to demand the exercise.
• However, the Central government had rejected their demand saying it would be a “divisive exercise” but said “States can hold caste census on their own”.
• Once this exercise will be over in Bihar, the other States too may follow suit and the whole nation will be covered”, the Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, said.

GST Collections Touch₹ 1,40,885 Crore For May, Rise 44% Year-On-Year

• This is only the fourth time the monthly GST collection crossed ₹1.4 lakh crore mark since the inception of GST and the third month at a stretch since March 2022.
• Revenue growth from domestic transactions, including imports of services, outpaced revenues from goods imports after several months in May.
• Of the total revenue in May, Central GST collections were ₹25,036 crore, State GST ₹32,001 crore, and Integrated GST ₹73,345 crore, which included ₹37,469 crore from import of goods.
• GST Compensation Cess inflows, used to recompense States, amounted to ₹10,502 crore, including ₹931 crore from goods import.
• Revenue growth was buoyant across most States. As many as 20 States and Union Territories saw revenues rise faster than the 44% national average, including the major industrial States of Karnataka (60%), Maharashtra (50%) and Gujarat (46%).