Japan Plans to Mine Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REE)

• Japan plans a pilot project to extract rare-earth-rich mud from the deep seabed near Minamitorishima Island.
• Depth Milestone: It targets mud at 6,000-metre depth, marking the world’s first sustained deep-seabed extraction attempt.
• Resource Scale: The surrounding region is estimated to hold over 16 million tonnes of rare earth oxides rich in dysprosium and terbium.
• Strategic Aim: Japan seeks to reduce reliance on China, which dominates global rare earth supply and recently tightened export controls.
• Rare earth elements are a group of 17 metallic elements found in low concentrations with unique magnetic, luminescent, and electrochemical properties.

Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REE)

• Seabed Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are a group of 17 rare earth elements found in high concentrations within deep-sea mineral deposits.
• Key Sources: They occur in pelagic clay sediments, polymetallic nodules, and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts on seamounts.
• Hosting Medium: Unlike land ores locked in silicate or phosphate crystal lattices, seabed REEs remain adsorbed on iron and manganese oxide surfaces.
• Sediment Nature: Rare-earth-rich marine mud remains unconsolidated, allowing extraction without blasting, drilling, or crushing.
• Depth Gradient: REE concentrations increase with sediment depth, making deeper mud layers more valuable than surface sediments.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Seabed REEs

• Advantages: These deposits show negligible radioactivity and allow leaching at room temperature.
• Basket Value: They have higher basket prices due to greater proportions of heavy REEs.
• Disadvantages: Seabed mining risks disrupting deep-sea ecosystems and their associated food webs.
• Viability: Industrial-scale viability remains unproven, and the ISA has not finalised its mining code.

Institutional Deliveries Reduced India’s Maternal Mortality Rate

• The Union Health Minister recently stated that increasing institutional deliveries has significantly reduced India’s Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR).

About Institutional Deliveries

• Institutional delivery refers to childbirth in a medical institution under trained health personnel, with facilities to manage complications.
• India’s institutional delivery rate has risen to 89%, with public health facilities handling 62% of cases.
• Regional Disparities: Kerala and Tamil Nadu have achieved nearly 100% institutional delivery, while Nagaland (46%) and Bihar (76%) still lag.

Key Government Initiatives for Institutional Delivery

• JSY: Janani Suraksha Yojana, a centrally sponsored scheme, provides conditional cash transfers to promote institutional deliveries, especially in low-performing states.
• JSSK: Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakram guarantees free and cashless deliveries, including caesarean sections, covering drugs, diagnostics, diet, and transport.
• PMMVY: Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, a Direct Benefit Transfer scheme, provides ₹5,000 for the first child and ₹6,000 for a second girl child.
• PMSMA: Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan ensures fixed-day, free, specialist-led antenatal care every month to detect high-risk pregnancies.
• LaQshya: Labour Room Quality Improvement Initiative improves labour room and maternity operation theatre quality through standardised protocols and certification.

Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR)

• MMR is the number of maternal deaths per 100,000 live births during a given time period.
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 3.1 aims to reduce global MMR below 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030.

Current Trends of MMR in India

• As per the Sample Registration System (SRS), MMR fell from 130 in 2014–16 to 88 in 2020–22.
• Rate of Reduction: India’s annual rate of reduction in MMR averages about 6.36%, nearly three times higher than the global rate.
• State Variation: Kerala (19), Maharashtra (33), and Telangana (43) have surpassed SDG targets, while Assam, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh record high MMRs.

Enforcement Directorate Moves to Fast-Track Investigations

• Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated steps to fast-track its backlog of money laundering investigations.
• The actual conviction rates under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) remain much below the 94% figure cited by ED.

Enforcement Directorate (ED)

• ED is a multi-disciplinary agency responsible for investigating financial crimes and enforcing economic laws.
• It was established in 1956 as an ‘Enforcement Unit’ under the Department of Economic Affairs.
• It was renamed in 1957 and placed under the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance in 1960.
• The agency is headed by a Director of Enforcement and is headquartered in New Delhi.
• ED functions through five regional offices and multiple zonal and sub-zonal offices nationwide.

About Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002

• The PMLA, 2002, is a comprehensive law to combat money laundering, and provides for the confiscation of property derived from illicit means.
• It was enacted primarily to honour India’s international obligations under the Vienna and Palermo Conventions and to comply with Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations.

Key Provision

• Offence Definition: Section 3 defines money laundering as involvement with proceeds of crime and projecting it as untainted property.
• Penal Provision: Section 4 prescribes imprisonment and fines, with stricter punishment for offences linked to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
• Proof Burden: Section 24 places the burden of proof on the accused once a case is established.
• Reporting Obligations: Section 12 mandates banks and financial institutions to verify client identity, maintain records, and report suspicious transactions.
• Special Courts: Section 43 provides for the establishment of Special Courts to handle PMLA cases.

Government Links NATGRID to National Population Register

• The Union Home Ministry has linked the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID) to the National Population Register (NPR).

More About the News

• Union Home Ministry has linked NATGRID with the NPR, enabling authorised agencies to access family-wise and identity-linked data of nearly 119 crore residents through a secure system.
• The integration allows investigators to trace relationships, household details and identity linkages, strengthening probes into terrorism, organised crime and interstate criminal networks.
• Advanced tools like “Gandiva” enable entity resolution and facial recognition, matching suspects across telecom KYC, driving licences, vehicle registrations & travel records, reducing investigation time.
• Requests are classified as non-sensitive, sensitive and highly sensitive (including financial and banking data), with purpose-bound access, logging and senior-level oversight to ensure accountability.

About NATGRID

• It is an integrated digital intelligence platform under the Union Home Ministry (MHA) linking multiple government and private databases to enable easy access for authorised investigation agencies.
• It was conceptualised in 2009 after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks (2008) to fix gaps in inter-agency intelligence sharing, and it became operational in 2020.
• It operates on a query-based access model, where authorised agencies submit targeted searches (no bulk data download), with technical safeguards under MHA oversight.
• The central investigation agencies are core authorised users of NATGRID with full access, while the State Police forces have case-specific access approved by the MHA.

Significance for Internal Security

• Integrated Intelligence: NATGRID-NPR linkage enables real-time convergence of verified identity with 21+ databases, improving detection of terror and organised crime.
• Terror Financing Control: Strengthens tracking of hawala, benami assets and crypto-based funding through identity-financial data correlation (Source: FATF MER India 2024).
• Centre–State Coordination: Reduces intelligence silos and enables intelligence-led policing in Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), narcotics and interstate crimes.

Way Forward

• Legal Backing: Enact a dedicated NATGRID law defining access, oversight and penalties, aligning with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), 2023, to reduce legal ambiguity.
• State Integration: Expand case-specific access to State Police through Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and training, building on MHA’s push for intelligence-led policing.
• Privacy Safeguard: Anchor NATGRID–NPR use to the Right to Privacy (Puttaswamy Judgement) via statutory limits, audits, and purpose-bound access under the DPDPA, 2023.
• Tech Upgrades: Scale advanced analytics and entity-resolution tools to improve cross-database matching, cutting investigation time and improving conviction quality.

Scientific Study on Keezhadi

• A recent scientific study on the archaeological site of Keezhadi (also called Keeladi), suggests a massive Vaigai River flood buried parts of the urban settlements.

About Keezhadi

• It is located in the Sivaganga district near Madurai in Tamil Nadu, along the Vaigai River basin.
• Archaeological evidence dates Keezhadi to the Sangam Age; Sangam Tamil poems describe bustling towns and trade networks there.
• Urban Features: Excavations reveal brick structures, open channels, terracotta drainage pipelines, ring wells, and evidence of weaving, dyeing, bead making, and pottery industries.

Key Findings of the Study

• Sediment Evidence: Archaeologists identified sediment layers over brick structures, the composition of which indicates a high-energy flood event.
• Timeline: Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating shows these urban structures were buried about 1,155 years ago, around the 9th century CE.
• Burial Impact: Major floods of the Vaigai River deposited enough sediment to cover homes, drains, and industrial zones, forcing abandonment or relocation.
• Climatic Context: The flood formed part of late-Holocene wet–dry fluctuations, when frequent river channel shifts destroyed river-dependent settlements in South India.
• OSL dating determines the time elapsed since mineral grains, such as quartz or feldspar, were last exposed to sunlight, thereby dating their burial under water.

Tsunami Ready Recognition Programme (TRRP)

• India is making rapid progress toward becoming the first nation in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) to have 100 coastal villages officially recognised as “Tsunami Ready“.
• This goal is part of India’s commitment to the Tsunami Ready Recognition Programme (TRRP) by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO.
• TRRP is an international, community-based recognition programme to build tsunami-resilient communities through awareness and preparedness training.
• It is a voluntary, performance-based programme, where certification requires meeting 12 indicators across three pillars: Assessment, Preparedness, and Response.
• Global Target: Under the UN Ocean Decade (2021–2030), UNESCO-IOC aims to make 100% of at-risk coastal communities tsunami-ready by 2030.
• India’s Implementation: National Tsunami Ready Board under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) implements it while INCOIS, Hyderabad, coordinates execution.
• India’s Milestones: India became the first in the IOR to receive the recognition, with two Odisha villages certified in 2020; 26 villages in Odisha have received the tag.
• Significance: The programme contributes to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030) and SDG-11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).

Hyper-Polluting Private Transport of the Super-Rich

• Growing public outrage and new studies have highlighted the disproportionate carbon footprint of private jets, super-yachts and space tourism used by the world’s super-rich.

Hyper-Polluting Private Transport :

• Hyper-polluting private transport refers to the use of private jets, fossil-fuelled super-yachts, luxury SUVs and private rockets by ultra-high-net-worth individuals, generating emissions far beyond essential mobility needs.

Key features

• Extreme carbon intensity: A single private jet trip or yacht holiday can equal an average person’s annual emissions.
• Low passenger efficiency: Massive fuel consumption to transport very few people, often with long idling times.
• Rapid expansion: Global private jet and super-yacht fleets have expanded sharply with rising inequality and wealth concentration.
• Regulatory gaps: Weak taxation, limited reporting and no caps on emissions from luxury transport and space tourism.

Implications

• Climate injustice: A tiny elite emits as much carbon as entire countries, undermining equity in climate responsibility.
• Policy credibility crisis: Public climate sacrifices lose legitimacy when elite excesses remain unchecked.
• Social cohesion risks: Visible luxury pollution fuels resentment and weakens collective climate action.
• Mitigation challenge: Luxury emissions offset gains from recycling, renewables and efficiency by the wider population.

25th Anniversary of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)

• Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) completed 25 years in December 2025, marking a major milestone in India’s rural infrastructure journey.

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY):

• Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) is a centrally sponsored scheme aimed at providing all-weather road connectivity to eligible, previously unconnected rural habitations, thereby integrating villages with markets, schools, and healthcare facilities.

Launched in

• Year: 25 December 2000
• Occasion: Birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
• Implementing ministry: Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Government of India

Key features

1. Phased implementation:

• PMGSY-I: Universal rural connectivity to unconnected habitations.
• PMGSY-II: Upgradation and consolidation of existing rural road networks.
• PMGSY-III: Strengthening through routes and major rural links connecting markets, schools, and health facilities.
• PMGSY-IV (2024–29): Connectivity to 25,000 habitations via 62,500 km of roads.

2. Large-scale coverage: Over 8.25 lakh km of roads sanctioned, with nearly 95% completed by December 2025.

3. Technology-driven monitoring: Use of OMMAS, e-MARG, GPS-based tracking, and geo-tagged inspections for real-time monitoring and transparency.

4. Quality assurance: Institutionalised three-tier quality monitoring system involving executing agencies, State Quality Monitors, and National Quality Monitors.

5. Sustainability focus: Adoption of eco-friendly materials like waste plastic, fly ash, bio-bitumen, and climate-resilient construction techniques.

Significance

• Improves market access, farm-to-market linkages, and price realisation for farmers.
• Enhances access to education, healthcare, and welfare services in remote areas.

Central Consumer Protection Authority imposed  penalty on UPSC coaching institute

• The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed an ₹11 lakh penalty on coaching institute for publishing misleading advertisements related to UPSC CSE results.
• The action was taken under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, highlighting strict enforcement against deceptive coaching claims.

About Consumer Protection Act, 2019:

• The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 is a comprehensive law enacted to protect consumer rights, curb unfair trade practices, and provide speedy grievance redressal in an increasingly digital and service-driven economy. It replaced the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

Aim:

1. To safeguard consumers from misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices, and defective goods/services.
2. To establish strong enforcement mechanisms and ensure accountability of manufacturers, service providers, and advertisers.

Key features

• Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA): Empowers the government to investigate, penalise, and order discontinuation of misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices.
• Definition of misleading advertisement (Section 2(28)): Covers false claims, concealment of material facts, and exaggerated promises likely to mislead consumers.
• Product liability provisions: Fixes liability on manufacturers, service providers, and sellers for harm caused by defective goods or deficient services.
• Enhanced consumer rights: Explicitly recognises six consumer rights including the right to information, choice, redressal, and consumer awareness.
• E-commerce regulation: Brings online platforms and digital advertisements under the consumer protection framework.
• Simplified dispute redressal: Introduces e-filing of complaints, mediation cells, and clearer jurisdiction of consumer commissions.

Significance

• Protects aspirants and parents from exploitative practices in high-stakes sectors like education and coaching.
• Promotes truthful advertising and transparency, especially in the digital space.

Initial Public Offering (IPO) market has touched record highs

• India’s IPO market has touched record highs, raising about ₹3.8 lakh crore through 701 IPOs in the last two years (2024–25), surpassing the previous four-year total.

Initial Public Offering (IPO):

• An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is the process through which a private company offers its shares to the public for the first time to raise equity capital, thereby becoming a publicly listed company on stock exchanges like NSE and BSE.

Types of IPO

1. Fixed price issue: The company sets a single, pre-determined price for its shares in consultation with merchant bankers, giving investors certainty about the issue price.
2. Book building issue: Shares are offered within a price band (floor price to cap price), and the final price is discovered based on investor demand during bidding. This is the most common method in India.

Stages of IPO allotment

• Preparation and due diligence: Company appoints investment banks; financial, legal, and regulatory checks are conducted.
• DRHP filing: Draft Red Herring Prospectus is filed with SEBI, disclosing business, risks, and financials.
• Pricing and bidding: Price or price band is announced; investors place bids during the subscription period.
• Basis of allotment: Registrar finalises allocation based on demand and SEBI norms.
• Listing: Shares are listed on stock exchanges and trading begins in the secondary market.

How IPO allotment works?

• IPO shares are allotted category-wise to Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs), Non-Institutional Investors (NIIs), and Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) as per SEBI regulations.
• If the issue is undersubscribed, all valid applicants receive shares.
• If oversubscribed, allotment is done proportionately or through a lottery system (especially for retail investors).
• Allotted shares are credited to Demat accounts, while unallotted funds are refunded.

Village Defence Guards (VDGs)

• The Indian Army’s Sabre Brigade conducted an intensive training programme for Village Defence Guards (VDGs) in Jammu to enhance their operational readiness and coordination with security forces.

Village Defence Guards (VDGs):

• Village Defence Guards (VDGs) are armed civilian defence groups constituted in vulnerable areas of Jammu & Kashmir to assist security forces in counter-terrorism, village protection, and intelligence gathering.

Launched in

• March 2022, approved by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
• Replaced and restructured the earlier Village Defence Committees (VDCs) (1995).

Aim

1. To provide localised, immediate defence against militant threats.
2. To act as a force multiplier for police and armed forces in remote and border villages.
3. To enhance community participation in internal security.

Key features

• Composition: Mainly ex-servicemen and trained civilians, identified at the panchayat level; group strength up to 15 members.
• Training & weapons: Trained by CRPF/Army; equipped with Self-Loading Rifles (SLRs) instead of older .303 rifles.
• Operational control: Function under the District SSP/SP, ensuring integration with the formal security grid.
• Remuneration: Group heads receive ₹4,500/month; members receive ₹4,000/month, unlike earlier VDCs where only SPOs were paid.
• Roles: Conduct day-night patrols, protect villages, religious places, and public infrastructure, and assist in search and cordon operations.

Significance

1. Acts as a second line of defence in areas with delayed security-force access.
2. Residents’ familiarity with terrain improves early warning and intelligence inputs.

Nanobots

•  An IISc Bengaluru–led breakthrough on magnetic nanobots for targeted cancer therapy has gained global attention after Dr Ambarish Ghosh won the 2025 New York Academy of Sciences–Tata Sons Transformation Prize.

About Nanobots:

• Nanobots (nanorobots) are microscopic machines at the nanometre scale designed to operate inside the human body for targeted drug delivery, diagnosis, imaging, and therapy, especially in hard-to-reach tissues like deep tumours.

How they work?

• IISc’s nanobots are helical, bacteria-inspired nanoswimmers that move like a corkscrew or propeller.
• A magnetic component (iron) allows external magnetic fields to guide and steer them precisely through blood, dense tissue, and even cells.
• Drugs are coated on the surface or tip, enabling direct delivery to cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue.
• They can also generate localized heat (>42°C) under magnetic fields to destroy cancer cells (magnetic hyperthermia).

Key features

• Targeted precision: Preferentially bind to cancer cells, reducing collateral damage to healthy tissues.
• Deep tissue penetration: Can access dense and poorly vascularised tumours invisible to conventional scans.
• Multifunctionality: Act as drug carriers, therapeutic agents, and imaging beacons (visible under MRI).
• Biocompatible materials: Made of silica and iron, materials already used safely in medical applications.
• Broad applicability: Proven effective against ovarian and breast cancer cells, bacteria, and dental infections; potential use in dentistry and regenerative medicine.

Limitations

• Currently validated mainly on cell cultures and animal models; human clinical trials pending.
• Requires extensive safety validation and approvals.
• Market adoption depends on mass production, affordability, and clinician acceptance.