Desalination Plants

• Recent military strikes in the escalating US–Israel–Iran conflict in West Asia have targeted desalination plants, raising concerns over water security and humanitarian crises in the region.

About Desalination Plants:

• A desalination plant is a facility that converts saline seawater or brackish water into potable freshwater by removing dissolved salts and minerals.
• The most common technology used is Reverse Osmosis (RO), where high pressure pushes seawater through semi-permeable membranes to separate salt from water.

Where they are located:

• Desalination plants are primarily concentrated in arid and water-scarce coastal regions, especially:

1. West Asia / Gulf Region – Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain
2. North Africa – Libya, Algeria
3. Other regions – Israel, Spain, Australia, United States, and China

• West Asia alone accounts for nearly 70% of global desalination capacity, making it the global hub of desalinated water production.

Aim:

The primary objectives of desalination plants are:

• Ensure freshwater supply in regions with scarce natural water resources.
• Support urban populations and industrial development in arid coastal countries.
• Provide water security during droughts and climate variability.
• Reduce dependence on groundwater and rivers in water-stressed regions.

Key Features:

• Reverse Osmosis Technology – Uses semi-permeable membranes to remove salts and impurities from seawater.
• Energy Intensive Process – Requires significant electricity, often integrated with thermal or gas-based power plants.
• Large-scale Infrastructure – Many plants are co-located with power plants to share energy and reduce costs.
• Brine Discharge – Produces concentrated saltwater (brine) that is typically released back into the ocean.
• Growing Global Sector – Over 21,000 desalination plants operate worldwide, with capacity growing 6–12% annually.

Significance:

• Provides drinking water where natural freshwater sources are scarce.
• In Gulf countries, desalination supplies 40–90% of drinking water, making it critical for survival.
• Supports megacities and industrial zones in desert regions.

Cold Response Drill

• NATO has begun the 2026 edition of the Cold Response military exercise in the Arctic, with a stronger focus on civilian preparedness and total defence.

About Cold Response Drill:

• Cold Response is a large-scale biennial NATO military exercise conducted in the European Arctic, primarily in northern Norway and surrounding regions, designed to test the alliance’s ability to defend NATO territory under extreme Arctic conditions.
• The exercise simulates collective defence scenarios under Article 5 of NATO, including amphibious operations, air support, logistics, and coordination between allied forces.
• Nations Involved: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Aim:

• Strengthen NATO’s collective defence capability in the Arctic region.
• Enhance interoperability among allied forces operating in harsh Arctic environments.
• Demonstrate NATO’s deterrence posture against potential adversaries near Arctic borders.

Key Features

• Arctic Warfare Simulation – Conducted in snow-covered mountainous terrain and freezing temperatures to test combat readiness.
• Large Multinational Participation – About 25,000 troops from 14 NATO and partner countries take part.
• Integration with Arctic Sentry Mission – Supports NATO’s broader effort to strengthen presence in the Arctic region.
• Civilian Preparedness Component – Hospitals, businesses, and public institutions participate to support military operations.
• Total Defence Strategy – Norway has declared 2026 as the Year of Total Defence, emphasizing society-wide resilience.
• Medical and Logistics Exercises – Includes scenarios like treating mass casualties transported from a simulated frontline in Finland.

Significance

• Strengthening Arctic Security – The Arctic is emerging as a strategic theatre due to melting ice, new sea routes, and resource competition.
• Deterrence Against Russia – Conducted near the Russia–Finland border, reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank after Finland joined NATO.

Early Summer and Heat-Wave Conditions in North India

• North and west India are experiencing unusually early summer and heatwave conditions, as the cool winter days of February were suddenly replaced by unusually warm days in March.

Current Heatwave Conditions in North India

• High Temperatures: Several regions in north and west India are recording temperatures 8–13°C above normal, leading to heat-wave conditions.
• Hill Regions: Even Himalayan areas like Shimla have recorded temperatures above 25°C, which is uncommon in March.
• Heatwave Alerts: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of early heatwave conditions and above-normal heatwave days across several parts of the country.

Causes of Early Summer and Heatwaves

• Deficient Winter Rainfall: Winter rainfall during January–February was about 60% below normal, reducing soil moisture and accelerating heating.
• Weak Western Disturbances: Fewer winter disturbances reduced cloud cover, snowfall, and rainfall in north India.
• Dry Soil: Lack of moisture limits evaporative cooling, causing a faster rise in surface temperatures.
• Clear Skies: Reduced cloud cover allows more sunlight to heat the land surface.
• Poor Wind Convergence: Weak interaction between westerly and easterly winds limited moisture transport from nearby seas.

Impact on Agriculture

• Stress on Rabi Crops: High temperatures during the grain-filling stage can reduce yields of crops like wheat, mustard, and gram.
• Higher Irrigation Demand: Increased evapotranspiration forces farmers to irrigate more frequently, putting pressure on groundwater and water resources.
• Horticulture Crops: Crops like potatoes and apples may face reduced quality and productivity due to temperature stress.

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Heatwave Management

• Heat Action Plans (HAPs): Implement early warning systems, public advisories, cooling centres, and emergency health services to reduce heat-related mortality.
• Climate-Resilient Agriculture: Promote heat-tolerant crop varieties, adjust sowing dates, and adopt efficient irrigation methods like drip and sprinkler systems.
• National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) promote sustainable agriculture and water management
• Urban Heat Mitigation: Increase urban green cover, cool roofs, reflective materials, and improved city planning to reduce the urban heat island effect.
• Ahmedabad’s Cool Roof Programme lowered indoor temperatures by up to 5°C and Telangana has introduced Cool Roof Policies (2023) for buildings.
• Water Resource Management: Strengthen rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge, and efficient irrigation practices to cope with rising water demand.
• Public Awareness: Educate citizens on hydration, avoiding peak heat hours, and protecting vulnerable groups such as the elderly and outdoor workers.

Heatwaves

• A heatwave is a period of abnormally high temperatures over a region for several consecutive days, significantly higher than the normal climatic conditions.
• Criterion for Declaring Heat Wave: According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD),
• A heatwave is declared when the maximum temperature reaches at least 40°C in plains, 37°C in coastal areas, and 30°C in hilly regions and is 4.5–6.4°C above the normal temperature.
• If the temperature is more than 6.4°C above normal, it is classified as a severe heatwave.
• A heatwave may also be declared when the maximum temperature reaches 45°C or more, regardless of the normal temperature.

Women-Led Development in India

• International Women’s Day is observed every year on 8 March to celebrate women’s achievements and accelerate progress towards gender equality.
• The first observances took place in Europe in 1911, and the UN officially recognised the day in 1977.
• The 2026 theme, ‘Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls,’ emphasises dismantling structural barriers to ensure equal justice.
• India shifted its policy from “development for women” to “Women-Led Development”, making Nari Shakti the driver of Viksit Bharat @2047.

India’s Key Initiatives for Women-Led Development

• Gender Budgeting: Union Budget FY 2026-27 allocated ₹5.01 lakh crore (9.37%) to advance women’s equality and empowerment.
• Women’s Rights: The 106th Constitutional Amendment reserves 33% seats in legislatures, complementing the Triple Talaq ban to ensure dignity.
• Rural Empowerment: DAY-NRLM mobilised 10 crore women into SHGs and helped over 3 crore women in becoming “Lakhpati Didi”.
• Tech Integration: NaMo Drone Didi Scheme provides 15,000 SHGs with agricultural drones with 80% subsidy to modernise rural livelihoods.
• Financial Inclusion: PM MUDRA allocated 68% micro-loans to women, while Stand-Up India supported 2 lakh greenfield women entrepreneurs.
• Education Support: Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana mobilised ₹3.33 lakh crore savings for girls’ education.

India’s Key Achievements in Women’s Empowerment

• Grassroots Leadership: Women now constitute nearly 50% of Panchayati Raj representatives.
• Educational Development: Female tertiary enrolment reached 2.18 crore (GER 30.2) with women forming 53% of UGC NET-JRF scholars in STEM.
• Maternal Health: Schemes such as Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) and PMMVY reduced India’s Maternal Mortality Ratio from 130 to 88.
• Financial & Skill Inclusion: Women hold 56% of PMJDY accounts and constitute 45% of the beneficiaries of PMKVY training.
• Leadership Milestone: The first women cadets from the National Defence Academy graduated in 2025 alongside rising female leaders in ISRO research roles.

Government Invokes Emergency Powers to Ensure LPG Availability

• Government has issued an order to oil refineries for higher LPG production and to use such extra production for domestic use.
• This move came amid current geopolitical disruptions to fuel supply & constraints on the supply of LPG.

Impact of West Asia Conflict on Energy Supply

• Energy Routes: Conflict has affected shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the route of around 40% of India’s crude oil imports and over 80% of LPG imports.
• Rising Prices: Crude oil prices have increased by about $20 per barrel (~30%), which increases import bills and inflationary pressures.
• LNG Import: LNG imports are also affected as Qatar supplies nearly half of India’s LNG imports.
• Strait of Hormuz: Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway between Iran & Oman connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea, through which nearly 20% of global oil trade passes.
• About 40% of India’s crude oil imports and over 80% of its LPG imports pass through this strait.

Emergency Order Under the Essential Commodities Act

• Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas invoked emergency powers under Essential Commodities Act, 1955.
• Refiners were directed to maximise LPG production from available propane and butane streams.
• The order is issued under the Petroleum Products (Maintenance of Production, Storage and Supply) Order, 1999.

Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)

• LPG mainly consists of propane and butane, with small quantities of higher hydrocarbons.
• It is produced during crude oil refining and natural gas processing.
• Growth in LPG Usage: Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) expanded LPG access across India from about 62% of households in 2016 to nearly 100% today.
• Imports: Around 60% of India’s LPG requirement is imported mainly from Saudi Arabia and Qatar in Persian Gulf.

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

• LNG is natural gas (mainly methane) cooled to about –160°C to convert it into liquid form for easier transport.
• It is transported by special LNG carrier ships and later regasified at terminals before entering pipelines.
• India’s LNG Supply: Around 50% of India’s natural gas demand is produced domestically; the remaining 50% is imported mainly from Qatar.

Essential Commodities Act, 1955

• Objective: Enacted to ensure the availability of essential commodities to consumers at fair prices and to prevent hoarding, black marketing, and profiteering.
• Powers to the Government: Central Government can regulate production, supply, distribution, storage, and pricing of essential commodities in the public interest.
• Control Measures: The government can impose stock limits, licensing requirements, movement restrictions, and price controls during shortages or emergencies.
• Amendment (2020): Deregulated certain agricultural commodities (like cereals, pulses, onions, potatoes) except under extraordinary circumstances such as war, famine, or price surge.

Balendra Shah’s RSP Wins Nepal’s First General Election After Gen Z Protests

• Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), led by Balendra Shah, secured a landslide victory in Nepal’s general elections.
• Political Backdrop: This was the first general election since the 2025 “Gen Z” protests that toppled the government of then-Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli.
• Historic First: At 35 years old, Balen Shah is set to become Nepal’s youngest Prime Minister and the first from the Madhesh descent to hold the post.
• Madhesh is a fertile plain in the Terai belt of southeastern Nepal, bordering Bihar along its entire southern boundary. It is popularly known as the “Granary of Nepal.”

Potential Challenges for India

• Boundary Dispute: Balen Shah’s assertive nationalism on Kalapani–Limpiyadhura may harden Nepal’s bargaining position in bilateral boundary negotiations.
• Treaty Leverage: RSP’s push to revisit the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship may reduce India’s traditional diplomatic leverage in Kathmandu.
• Connectivity Risk: Nepal’s efforts to reduce historical dependence on India could divert key connectivity and trade projects toward extra-regional partners.
• Channel Rebuild: The decline of traditional parties forces New Delhi to rebuild diplomatic networks beyond established back channels.

Potential Gains for India

• Political Stability: A single-party majority government provides a stable environment for implementing long-term bilateral agreements, free from the uncertainty of coalition politics.
• Policy Alignment: The new leadership’s technocratic focus aligns with India’s Neighbourhood First initiative through cross-border cooperation on rail and energy grids.
• China Counterbalance: Rising pragmatic political forces may counterbalance communist factions that have been more receptive to Beijing.
• Partnership Basis: RSP’s preference for a “balanced” and “neutral” foreign policy opens space for a rules-based, interest-driven partnership over personality-led diplomacy.

Overview of India-Nepal Bilateral Relations

• Nepal serves as a crucial Himalayan buffer state between India and China and remains a central pillar of India’s “Neighbourhood First” policy.
• Friendship Treaty: The 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship underpin India–Nepal ties by –
• Granting reciprocal rights to work, own property, and reside.
• Allowing unrestricted movement across the 1,751 km porous border spanning five Indian states.
• Obligating both countries to inform each other of external security threats.
• Trade: India is Nepal’s largest trading partner, accounting for over 64% of Nepal’s total trade.
• Volume: Bilateral trade reached $8.5 billion in FY 2024-25, with a strong surplus in India’s favour.
• Export Basket: Petroleum products, iron and steel, food grains, machinery, etc.
• Import Basket: Hydroelectric power, edible oils, cardamom, tea, etc.
• Energy Agreement: A long-term power trade agreement commits India to importing 10,000 MW of hydropower over the next decade.
• Defence Links: Security cooperation exemplified by the annual ‘Surya Kiran’ joint military exercise and the recruitment of around 32,000 Nepali Gorkhas in the Indian Army.
• Diaspora: Over 6 million Nepalis in India and about 600,000 Indians in Nepal uphold the deep civilisational bond of “Roti-Beti ka Rishta”.
• Connectivity Projects: South Asia’s first cross-border petroleum pipeline, the Motihari-Amlekhgunj pipeline, and the Jayanagar-Kurtha rail links.
• Key Divergences: Boundary disputes, Nepal’s engagement with China’s BRI, its view of the 1950 Treaty as “unequal,” open-border smuggling, and “Big Brother” perception of India.

Mojtaba Khamenei Chosen as Iran’s Supreme Leader

• Mojtaba Khamenei was officially chosen as Iran’s third Supreme Leader following the assassination of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
• This marks the first hereditary transfer of supreme leadership since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
• State Role: The Supreme Leader is Iran’s de jure constitutional head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
• Ideological Basis: The office derives authority from Velayat-e-Faqih, the doctrine holding that a senior Islamic jurist exercises ultimate state authority.
• Appointing Body: Majles-e Khobregan-e Rahbari (Assembly of Experts), an 88-member clerical body, elects, supervises, and can dismiss the Supreme Leader.
• Tenure: The Supreme Leader generally serves for life, though the Assembly of Experts monitors the leader’s continued qualification.
• Qualification: The leader must be an Islamic jurist (Faqih) with religious authority to interpret Islamic law and issue fatwas.
• A 1989 constitutional amendment removed the requirement that the Supreme Leader be a Marja (the highest-ranking Shia cleric), allowing Ali Khamenei to take office.

Formalising India’s ‘Voluntary’ Frontline Care Workers

• With rising dependence on frontline caregivers for welfare delivery, India needs to shift care work from ‘volunteer’ status to formal employment.

Overview of India’s Care Economy

• Scale: Over 5 million women sustain India’s frontline welfare systems, including 1 million ASHA workers and 2.5 million Anganwadi workers and helpers.
• Gender Gap: 41% of females aged 15-59 spend 140 minutes daily on unpaid caregiving, compared to 21.4% of males spending 74 minutes.
• GDP Share: Unpaid care work is estimated to account for 15-17% of India’s GDP when valued at minimum wage rates.
• Growth: The care sector is projected to reach $300 billion by 2030, generating over 60 million jobs.

Challenges with India’s Care Economy

• Legal Status: Statutory classification of frontline workers as ‘honorary volunteers’ deprives them of formal labour rights, minimum wages, and social security benefits.
• Income Insecurity: Workers receive performance-linked incentives or state-specific honoraria as low as ₹2,000–₹3,500 per month.
• Underfunding: Public expenditure on care infrastructure remains below 1% of national GDP.
• Care Penalty: Entrenched patriarchal norms create a care penalty, disproportionately burdening women and reducing female labour-force participation.
• Planning Gap: Excluding care work from GDP calculations creates a blind spot in macroeconomic policy-making.

Government Initiatives for Care Workers

• Social Security: Code on Social Security, 2020, creates a unified framework to extend health, maternity, and life insurance benefits to unorganised workers.
• Pension Support: Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan Yojana (PM-SYM) offers a voluntary, contributory pension that guarantees a fixed monthly retirement income to informal workers.
• Skill Training: Union Budget 2026-27 announces to formally train and certify 1.5 lakh multiskilled caregivers under the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF).
• Worker Registry: e-Shram portal enables registration of informal workers, ensuring direct access to state welfare programmes.

Government Buys Back G-secs in RBI’s Switch Auction

• The Government bought back Government Securities (G-Secs) through a switch auction conducted by the RBI to ease redemption pressures.
• Switch Auction is a debt management tool used by the RBI to repurchase bonds nearing maturity and issue new long-term bonds, postponing immediate repayment.

About Government Securities (G-Secs)

• G-Secs are tradable financial instruments issued by Central or State Governments to borrow money for financing expenditures and fiscal deficits.
• Sovereign Guarantee: G-Secs are called “gilt-edged securities,” as they have almost zero default risk.
• Liquidity Tool: RBI conducts Open Market Operations (OMOs) using G-Secs, buying them to inject liquidity, and selling them to absorb excess liquidity.
• Role in Banking: Commercial banks must hold a percentage of their deposits in G-Secs to meet the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) requirements.
• Retail Participation: The RBI Retail Direct Scheme (2021) lets individual investors buy G-Secs directly through Retail Direct Gilt (RDG) Accounts.

Key Classification of G-Secs

Short-term: They do not pay interest; they are issued at a discount and redeemed at face value.

• Treasury Bills (T-Bills): Central Government issues them with maturities of 91, 182, or 364 days.
• Cash Management Bills (CMBs): Introduced in 2010 to address temporary cash mismatches; maturities stay under 91 days.

Long-term:

• Dated G-Secs: Central Government issues these with 5–50 year tenors; they pay periodic coupon interest, usually semi-annually.
• State Development Loans (SDLs): State Governments issue them to raise funds from the market.

War of Attrition

• As tensions between the US, Israel and Iran continue, experts warn that this is becoming a war of attrition.
• Definition: A military strategy aimed at gradually exhausting the enemy’s manpower, resources, and morale until its capacity to fight collapses.
• Origin: Word attrition comes from the Latin “attritionem”, meaning wearing down or rubbing away.
• Objective: Victory is achieved not through quick, decisive battles but by outlasting the opponent and draining its military and economic capacity.
• Nature of Warfare: Involves prolonged conflict, heavy casualties, and sustained use of troops, equipment, and supplies.
• Historical Association: Commonly linked with trench warfare during World War I, where stalemate forced both sides into resource-draining battles.
• Example: War of Attrition between Egypt & Israel over the Sinai Peninsula after the Six-Day War.

National Highways – Green Cover Index (NH-GCI)

• National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) released the first National Highways – Green Cover Index (NH-GCI) Annual Report for 2025–26.
• This first assessment evaluated about 30,000 km of National Highways across 24 states, utilising data from July to December 2024.
• State Ranking: Assam recorded the highest highway green cover (53.16%), followed by Gujarat and Telangana, while Himachal Pradesh and Delhi have the lowest.

About National Highways – Green Cover Index (NH-GCI)

• The NH-GCI provides a scientific and quantitative assessment of plantations and vegetation cover along India’s National Highway network.
• NHAI developed it under a three-year MoU with ISRO’s National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC).
• It uses high-resolution satellite imagery from Resourcesat-2 and Resourcesat-2A to detect chlorophyll for measuring vegetation density.
• Significance: The index helps monitor the Green Highways Policy, 2015, which mandates allocating 1% of a project’s cost for plantation.

ISRO–ESA Agreement on Earth Observation Missions

• Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the European Space Agency (ESA) signed a new agreement to collaborate on Earth observation (EO) Missions.
• Earth observation missions launch satellites to monitor Earth’s physical, chemical, and biological systems for climate studies and disaster management.
• Focus Areas: The agreement includes joint calibration of sensor data accuracy and research on environmental monitoring.
• Mission Support: They will collaborate on the ESA’s upcoming Fluorescence Explorer (FLEX) mission that aims to observe photosynthesis.
• Broader Partnership: Both agencies also cooperate on satellite navigation, ground station support for Chandrayaan Aditya-L1, and human spaceflight.

Exercise Lamitiye 2026

• An Indian Armed Forces contingent has arrived in Seychelles to participate in the 11th edition of the joint military exercise Lamitiye 2026.

About Exercise Lamitiye 2026:

• Exercise Lamitiye is a biennial joint military training exercise conducted between India and Seychelles to enhance operational coordination, tactical skills, and military cooperation.
• The term Lamitiye means Friendship in the Creole language, reflecting the close strategic and defence partnership between the two nations.
• Host Country: Seychelles
• Nations Involved: India and Seychelles

Aim:

• Enhance interoperability and coordination between Indian and Seychellois forces during joint military operations and peacekeeping missions.
• Improve tactical capabilities in handling sub-conventional threats in semi-urban environments.

Key Features:

• Tri-service participation – Involves the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force, highlighting integrated joint operations.
• Tactical training drills – Includes field exercises, combat discussions, demonstrations, and case studies.
• Semi-urban warfare focus – Troops train to neutralize threats in semi-urban and coastal environments.
• Technology showcase – Demonstration of new-generation military equipment and technologies.
• Validation phase – The exercise concludes with a two-day validation drill to test operational readiness.
• Capacity building – Facilitates exchange of skills, best practices, and operational experiences.

Significance:

• The exercise reinforces India’s strategic partnership with Seychelles, an important Indian Ocean maritime partner.
• Cooperation helps counter threats like piracy, illegal fishing, and maritime crime in the region.
• Supports India’s policy of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) by promoting regional stability.

Removal of the Chief Election Commissioner

• The INDIA bloc parties, led by the Trinamool Congress, are set to move an impeachment motion against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.

About Removal of the Chief Election Commissioner:

• The removal of the CEC is a formal, quasi-judicial process designed to ensure the independence of the Election Commission of India (ECI) from executive interference. To protect the sanctity of the democratic process, the CEC is granted security of tenure similar to that of a judge of the Supreme Court of India.

Constitutional Article:

• Article 324(5): This article explicitly states that the Chief Election Commissioner shall not be removed from his office except in like manner and on the like grounds as a Judge of the Supreme Court.

Criteria for Removal:

• A CEC can only be removed on two specific grounds:
• Proved Misbehavior: Acts that violate the code of conduct or involve corruption/partiality.
• Incapacity: Physical or mental inability to perform the duties of the office.

Procedure for Removal:

• The process is rigorous and requires a Special Majority in Parliament:
• Initiation: A motion must be signed by at least 100 members in the Lok Sabha or 50 members in the Rajya Sabha and submitted to the Speaker/Chairman.
• Investigation: If the motion is admitted, the Chair constitutes a three-member committee to investigate the charges.
• Parliamentary Vote: If the committee finds the CEC guilty, the motion is taken up for voting. It must be passed by:
• A majority of the total membership of that House.
• A majority of not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting.
• Presidential Order: Once both Houses pass the motion in the same session, an address is presented to the President of India, who then issues the formal order of removal.
• Note: Unlike the CEC, other Election Commissioners or Regional Commissioners can be removed by the President simply on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner.

Significance:

• By making the removal process difficult, the Constitution ensures the CEC can function without fear of being sacked by the ruling government for unfavorable decisions.
• The involvement of the Judiciary (via the investigation committee) and the Legislature (via voting) prevents arbitrary executive action.

Proba-3 mission

• The European Space Agency (ESA) has lost contact with the Coronagraph spacecraft, one of the two satellites in the Proba-3 mission, after an anomaly caused a power failure and sent the craft into a silent survival mode.

About Proba-3 mission:

• Proba-3 is the world’s first precision formation-flying mission, designed to study the Sun’s atmosphere with unprecedented clarity.
• Launched By: European Space Agency (ESA) in December 2024 (aboard ISRO’s PSLV-C59).
• Aim: To create an artificial solar eclipse in space to observe the Sun’s faint outer atmosphere—the corona—which is usually obscured by the intense light of the solar disk.

Key Features:

• Twin Spacecraft System: The mission consists of two independent satellites: the Coronagraph (carrying the camera) and the Occulter (the disk that blocks the Sun).
• Precision Formation Flying: The two satellites must maintain a fixed distance of approximately 150 meters with millimeter-level accuracy, acting as a single, giant virtual instrument.
• Artificial Eclipse: The Occulter blocks the Sun’s bright disk, casting a precise shadow onto the Coronagraph’s lens, mimicking a natural total solar eclipse.
• Autonomous Maneuvering: The satellites use advanced sensors (lasers and cameras) and cold-gas thrusters to coordinate their relative positions without constant ground control intervention.
• High-Cadence Data: Before the anomaly, the mission completed over 60 orbits, providing hours of continuous solar data that is impossible to capture during short-lived Earth-based eclipses.

Significance:

• By studying the corona, scientists can better understand Solar Winds and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs), which can disrupt satellite communications and power grids on Earth.
• If successful, the formation-flying technology proven by Proba-3 will pave the way for future distributed space telescopes that are too large to be launched as a single piece.

Malawi

• India has dispatched 1,000 metric tonnes of rice as humanitarian assistance to Malawi after a severe drought triggered by the El Niño caused a major food crisis.

About Malawi:

• Malawi is a landlocked country in southeastern Africa known for its agriculture-based economy and large freshwater lake system.
• The country is heavily dependent on subsistence farming, making it vulnerable to climate shocks such as droughts and floods.
• Location: Malawi is located in southeastern Africa along the East African Rift Valley.
• Capital City: Lilongwe
• Neighbouring Nations: Tanzania, Mozambique, and Zambia.

Key Geographical Features

• East African Rift Valley – The country lies along the Great Rift Valley, shaping much of its topography.
• Lake Malawi (Lake Nyasa) – One of Africa’s largest lakes, covering over one-fifth of Malawi’s total area and forming part of its eastern boundary.
• Shire River Valley – The Shire River, the only outlet of Lake Malawi, flows southward into the Zambezi River.
• Highlands and Plateaus – Includes regions such as the Nyika Highlands and Shire Highlands, with elevations above 2,000 metres.
• Mulanje Mountain Massif – The highest point in Malawi (3,002 m) located in southeastern Malawi.
• Lake Chilwa Basin – A shallow inland lake system important for local fisheries and wetlands.

Significance:

• A large share of the population depends on subsistence agriculture and cash crops such as tea and tobacco.
• Lake Malawi is one of the largest and most biodiverse freshwater lakes in the world, supporting fisheries and livelihoods.