Republic Day 2026

• India celebrated its 77th Republic Day on 26 January 2026, marking the enforcement of the Indian Constitution on this date in 1950.
• Chief Guests: For the first time, two European Union leaders attended as chief guests—Antonio Costa (European Council President) and Ursula von der Leyen (European Commission President).
• Central Theme: “150 Years of Vande Mataram” commemorating 150th anniversary of the national song.
• The poem Vande Mataram (“I bow to thee, Mother”) was composed in Bengali script by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in 1875 and adopted as India’s National Song on January 24, 1950.
• Other Themes Tableaux and events highlighted “Viksit Bharat” and “Bharat – Loktantra ki Matruka”.
• Gallantry Award: Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the International Space Station (ISS), received the Ashok Chakra, India’s highest peacetime gallantry award.
• Public Participation: The “Jan Bhagidari” initiative continued, with around 10,000 guests invited, including PM Shram Yogi Maandhan scheme beneficiaries.

Notable Tableaux and Displays

• Ministry of I&B: Presented “Bharat Gatha,” tracing India’s storytelling from ancient oral traditions (Shruti) to Lord Ganesha’s writing of the Mahabharata (Kriti) and modern cinema (Drishti).
• Ministry of Home Affairs: Featured two tableaux—one on “Jan Kendrit Nyay Pranali” and the other on “Aatmanirbhar Bharat.”
• Uttar Pradesh: Highlighted Bundelkhand’s cultural and industrial heritage, featuring Kalinjar Fort, Neelkanth Mahadev Temple, and “One District One Product” (ODOP) crafts.
• Kerala: Showcased modernisation through India’s first Water Metro and the achievement of 100% digital literacy.
• Nari Shakti: Female personnel from CRPF and SSB performed a motorcycle display with high-skill formations like the “Desh Rakshak” pyramid.

Key Military Innovations and Displays

Several indigenous systems made their first appearance —

• Suryastra: India’s first indigenous, universal, multi-calibre, long-range rocket launcher system for surface-to-surface strikes.
• Bhairav Light Commando Battalion: A unit of around 250 personnel, for rapid-response and high-intensity missions, bridging the gap between infantry and Para Special Forces.
• Shaktibaan Regiment: A drone warfare unit under the Regiment of Artillery, specialising in unmanned aerial combat using swarm drones and loitering munitions.
• EU Military Presence: An EU military contingent joined the parade, marking its first participation outside Europe and signalling deeper India–EU strategic ties.
• Battle Array Format: The Indian Army showcased its first-ever “Phased Battle Array Format,” demonstrating real-time coordination between ground reconnaissance and aerial combat assets.
• Animal Contingent: The parade featured Bactrian camels, Zanskar ponies, and black kites, highlighting their operational roles in high-altitude and modern warfare.
• Indigenisation Displays: Included T-90 Bhishma, Arjun MBT, BrahMos missiles, and the Navy tableau featuring INSV Kaundinya.
• Operational Tribute: Several tableaux and aerial formations honoured Operation Sindoor 2025.

Polar Vortex induced Winter storm

• A polar vortex–driven winter storm swept across the United States in January 2026, bringing heavy snow, freezing rain and sub-zero temperatures to nearly 17 states, causing deaths and severe travel disruptions.

What it is?

• The polar vortex is a large, persistent area of low pressure and extremely cold air that circulates around the Earth’s polar regions.
• Polar vortex is a large persistent low-pressure zone having a mass of extremely cold air, contained within the Polar Regions by the polar-front jet stream.
• Polar-front jet stream is an eastward-moving belt of strong stratospheric winds that separates warm tropical air from cold polar air in the mid-latitudes.
• Direction of Rotation: It rotates counter-clockwise at the North Pole and clockwise at the South Pole.
• Factors responsible for its formation: Temperature Gradients (between cold Polar regions and warm tropical regions), Earth’s Rotation (Coriolis Force), Pressure Gradient Force and Jet Stream Interaction.
• Stability: When the vortex is strong and stable, it keeps the jet stream traveling in a tight, circular path, trapping cold air north and keeping warm air south.
• When weakened, it becomes wavy (see image), thus, bringing extreme cold to south.

It exists in two forms: Types of Polar Vortex

1. Tropospheric polar vortex (10 km to 15 km), where most weather phenomena occur.
2. Stratospheric polar vortex (15-50 Km), it is strongest in winter season.

Impacts of Polar Vortex

• Cold weather: It is believed that due to rapid warming of the Arctic (Arctic amplification) the temperature contrast between poles and mid-latitudes is reducing, which may make the vortex more unstable, increasing the frequency of severe winter outbreaks.
• Ozone depletion: The trapped cold air in the vortex accelerates ozone depletion, particularly over Antarctica, leading to the ozone hole.
• Impact on India: There is no direct relation between the Polar Vortex and Indian weather but the Arctic winds are pushing various weather systems, including the western disturbance.

Digital Content Age-Based Classification System

• The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting proposed the Draft IT (Digital Code) Rules, 2026, to regulate online obscenity and classify digital content.
• Legal Basis: The draft rules are proposed under Section 87(1) of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
• Constitutional Balance: The framework follows Supreme Court directives to balance the freedom of speech under Article 19(1)(a) with the reasonable restrictions under Article 19(2).
• Broadcast Alignment: The draft draws heavily on the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994, and extends similar content standards to digital platforms.

Key Provisions of the Draft Rules

• Age Classification: The draft proposes a five-tier classification system for online content, comprising U (Universal), U/A 7+, U/A 13+, U/A 16+, and A (Adult).
• Mandatory Labels: Platforms must clearly display age ratings and content warnings regarding violence or nudity before each programme begins.
• Professional Content: Exemptions apply to content meant exclusively for professional audiences, medical, scientific, or academic users.
• Content Restrictions: Digital platforms are barred from hosting material that attacks religions, promotes communal disharmony, or glorifies violence, crime, or substance abuse.
• Parental Safeguards: Platforms must provide parental controls for 13+ content and verified access systems for adult-only material.
• Intermediary Liability: Non-compliance with obscenity laws attracts civil consequences for Online Curated Content Providers (OCCPs).
• Obscenity Definition: Content is considered obscene if it is lascivious, prurient, corrupting to viewers’ minds, or offensive to good taste or decency.

Concerns Regarding the Draft Rules

• Digital Fit: Applying broadcast-era standards to on-demand platforms may conflict with the flexibility of digital content consumption.
• Vagueness Risk: Subjective terms like “decency” create uncertainty and raise concerns about selective or arbitrary enforcement.
• Speech Impact: Strict liability provisions could deter content creators, resulting in a chilling effect on free expression and creative freedom.
• OTT Distinction: Eliminating the distinction between push-based television and pull-based OTT content remains a key industry objection.

India Recorded 19.6% Tax-to-GDP Ratio in FY2024

• A recent report from Bank of Baroda estimated India’s overall tax-to-GDP ratio, including both central and state taxes, at 19.6%.
• Central Taxes: At the central government level, gross tax revenue was recorded at 11.2% of GDP in FY24 and is projected to increase to 11.7% in FY25.
• Direct Taxes: The direct tax-to-GDP ratio hit a 15-year high of 6.64% in FY24 and is expected to rise to 6.7% in FY25.
• Tax Buoyancy: Long-term tax buoyancy stands at 1.1, indicating that tax revenues are growing slightly faster than nominal GDP.
• Global Comparison: India’s 19.6% ratio exceeds emerging economies like Malaysia and Indonesia but remains below the OECD average (34%) and advanced economies.

About Tax-to-GDP Ratio

• The tax-to-GDP ratio measures a country’s total tax revenue as a share of the size of its economy.
• Method: It is calculated by dividing the country’s total annual tax revenue by its nominal GDP for the same fiscal year.
• Fiscal Capacity: The ratio is the key indicator of “Fiscal Capacity”, showing how effectively the state can mobilise domestic resources to finance expenditure.
• Economic Signal: A higher Tax-to-GDP ratio indicates a formal economy with a broad tax base, whereas a lower ratio suggests a large informal sector or tax evasion.
• Global Benchmark: The World Bank recommends a 15% tax-to-GDP ratio as a tipping point for sustainable growth and poverty reduction.

Positive Implications of High Tax-to-GDP Ratio

• Fiscal Stability: A higher tax-to-GDP ratio supports fiscal consolidation by reducing dependence on market borrowing.
• Public Investment: Higher revenues allow greater capital spending on infrastructure, welfare schemes, and social security.
• Redistribution Effect: Growth driven by direct taxes helps reduce income inequality through progressive redistribution of wealth.

Potential Risks of High Tax-to-GDP Ratio

• Consumption Impact: Excessive taxation reduces household disposable income, thereby weakening private consumption demand.
• Inflation: High indirect taxes, like GST or excise duties, raise prices and amplify inflationary pressures.
• Investment Climate: Punitive tax regimes may discourage investment and encourage capital flight to low-tax jurisdictions.

Tax Buoyancy

• Tax buoyancy measures the responsiveness of tax revenue growth to changes in nominal GDP.
• Calculation: It is calculated by dividing the percentage change in tax revenue by the percentage change in nominal GDP.
• High Buoyancy: A value above 1 indicates revenues growing faster than the economy, driven by efficiency or base expansion.
• Low Buoyancy: A value below 1 indicates tax collections are lagging behind economic growth due to tax evasion, exemptions, or a large informal sector.
• Long-term: A consistently high tax buoyancy above 1 automatically increases the tax-to-GDP ratio.

PFRDA Constituted SAARG Committee to Modernise NPS

• PFRDA has constituted the Strategic Asset Allocation and Risk Governance (SAARG) committee to modernise the National Pension System (NPS) investment framework.
• Objective: The committee aims to align NPS investment practices with global best practices for long-term retirement wealth creation.
• Chairperson: The nine-member SAARG committee is chaired by Narayan Ramachandran, former CEO of Morgan Stanley India.
• Key Mandates: The committee serves as a specialised body to review, recommend, and modernise the NPS within a nine-month timeline; specific mandates include:

1. Reassess equity, debt, and money market allocation models to balance risk and return.
2. Examine new investment options to improve diversification and mitigate market risks.
3. Compare NPS guidelines with leading global pension systems to adopt best practices.
4. Develop asset-liability management (ALM) and valuation standards for alternative investments.
5. Integrate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) and climate-transition risks into NPS investment decisions.

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA)

• PFRDA is the statutory regulatory body responsible for the supervision and development of India’s pension sector.
• Legal Status: It was set up as an interim body in 2003 and later became a statutory body under the PFRDA Act of 2013.
• Jurisdiction: The authority functions under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance.
• Schemes: It regulates the National Pension System (NPS), Atal Pension Yojana (APY), Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), and NPS Vatsalya.
• Regulation: PFRDA registers and regulates pension funds, Central Recordkeeping Agencies, custodians, and trustee banks.

Ocean Floor Emerging as the World’s Largest Dump Site

• A 2021 review paper, “The Quest for Seafloor Macrolitter,” warns that the seafloor has become a permanent waste reservoir.
• The study focuses on anthropogenic items larger than 2.5 cm (macrolitter), which constitute most of the mass of ocean-floor debris, unlike microplastics.
• Monitoring Challenge: Most data come from bottom-trawl fishing surveys, which damage seabeds and exclude cliffs and reefs, leaving out nearly half the seafloor.

Key Findings of the Study

• Global Sink: Over 90% of marine plastic ultimately sinks, making the seafloor a cumulative, semi-permanent plastic repository.
• Dominant Materials: Plastics account for about 62% of seafloor litter, followed by metal, glass, processed wood, and abandoned, lost, or discarded fishing gear.
• Geomorphic Hotspots: High-density “patches” occur in submarine canyons and enclosed seas, such as the Mediterranean.
• Persistence: Cold, dark, low-oxygen deep-sea conditions inhibit polymer degradation, enabling litter to persist for centuries.

Ecological Impacts of Seafloor Litter

• Biodiversity Risk: Seafloor macrolitter affects more than 700 marine species; about 17% of these are listed as threatened on the IUCN Red List.
• Ghost Fishing: Abandoned synthetic fishing gear continues to capture and kill marine fauna for decades, depleting stocks and disrupting deep-sea food webs.
• Ecosystem Alteration: Large items like containers and tyres form artificial reefs, allowing invasive species to colonise deep-sea soft sediments, changing local ecology.
• Chemical Leaching: Litter transports toxic chemicals (xenobiotics) and heavy metals, which can enter the food chain and reach humans through seafood.

Key Recommendations

• Non-Invasive Tools: Greater use of ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles) and AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles) for comprehensive, low-impact seafloor monitoring.
• Data Harmonisation: Standardising reporting units is essential for global comparative assessments.
• AI Integration: Machine-learning tools are required to process vast video datasets generated by underwater survey drones.
• Upstream Mitigation: Since deep-sea cleanup is unviable, policy must prioritise source-to-sea waste reduction and circular economy measures.

Eliminating Malaria by 2030

• Under the National Framework for Malaria Elimination (2016–2030), India targets zero indigenous malaria cases by 2030, with nationwide transmission interruption by 2027.

India’s Progress in Eliminating Malaria

• District Milestone: 160 districts across 23 States/UTs reported zero indigenous cases between 2022–2024, indicating widespread transmission interruption progress (MoHFW).
• Case Reduction: Malaria incidence fell by nearly 80% between 2015 and 2023 nationwide.
• Regional Share: India accounted for 73.3% of South-East Asia’s 2.7 million cases in 2024.
• State Example: Tamil Nadu cases declined from 5,587 (2015) to 321 (2025).

Key Strategies Adopted by India

• Surveillance Strengthening: Real-time case detection, digital reporting and rapid outbreak response to interrupt local transmission chains; E.g. Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP).
• Universal Diagnosis: “Test, Treat, Track” ensures early confirmation and complete treatment across public health systems; E.g., National Strategic Plan for Malaria Elimination (2023–2027).
• Vector Control: Large-scale larval management, insecticide spraying and preventive measures reduce mosquito breeding and spread; E.g., National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP).

Major Challenges Ahead

• Migration Risk: Population movement from endemic neighbouring States contributes to reintroduction, with imported cases forming a growing share in low-burden districts.
• API Disparity: In 2023, 34 States/UTs achieved an Annual Parasite Incidence (API) below one, while Tripura (5.69) and Mizoram (14.23) remained high (MoHFW).
• Urban Malaria: Rapid urbanisation increases breeding sites, with urban areas accounting for a rising proportion of reported malaria cases annually.
• Plasmodium Vivax Burden: Plasmodium vivax causes nearly two-thirds of malaria cases in the South-East Asia Region, complicating efforts to eliminate the disease.
• Drug Resistance Threat: Partial resistance to artemisinin derivatives has been confirmed or suspected in at least eight African countries, posing global treatment risks.

Way Forward

• Migrant Monitoring: Active surveillance among migrant workers from endemic regions prevents importation-led outbreaks; E.g., targeted screening under state malaria elimination drives.
• Resistance Tracking: Continuous monitoring of drug and insecticide resistance guides treatment and control strategies; E.g., National Malaria Drug Resistance Monitoring Network.
• Cross-Border Coordination: Institutionalise joint surveillance and response in border and migrant-heavy corridors; E.g., WHO-led Greater Mekong Subregion malaria elimination cooperation model.
• Digital Surveillance: Use integrated digital health platforms for real-time case alerts and outbreak prediction; E.g., Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).

Kerala Declared Bacillus subtilis as State Microbe

• Kerala became India’s first state to officially designate a State Microbe, Bacillus subtilis, to promote microbiome awareness.
• Institution Launch: The announcement coincided with the opening of the Centre of Excellence in Microbiome (CoEM) in Thiruvananthapuram.
• CoEM is India’s first state-level institution dedicated solely to microbiome research.

About Bacillus Subtilis

• Bacillus subtilis, known as hay or grass bacillus, is a rod-shaped, Gram-positive bacterium.
• Natural Habitat: It naturally occurs in soil, vegetation, and the gastrointestinal tracts of humans and ruminant animals.
• Survival Trait: The bacterium forms protective endospores that withstand extreme heat, radiation, and prolonged environmental dryness.
• Metabolic Nature: It is a facultative anaerobe capable of growth in both oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor environments.

Key Applications of Bacillus subtilis

• Probiotic Use: Supports gut health and immunity in humans and animals.
• Fermentation: Used in fermenting traditional foods like Kinema in Sikkim and Akhuni in Nagaland.
• Crop Protection: Acts as a bio-fungicide and plant growth promoter by colonising crop root systems.
• Industrial Use: Produces industrial enzymes like amylases and proteases, and vitamins B2 and K2.
• Bioremediation: Cleans heavy metals and hydrocarbons from contaminated soil and water.
• Research: Serves as a model Gram-positive organism due to its natural ability to take up foreign DNA.

India’s National Microbe

• National Microbe: In 2012, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) declared Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. Bulgaricus as India’s National Microbe.
• Global Event: The declaration was made during the COP-11 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), held in Hyderabad.
• Selection Rationale: It was chosen to highlight the importance of invisible biodiversity and the bacterium’s everyday role in fermenting milk into curd (dahi).

Antarctic Activities and Environmental Protection Law

• China has proposed a draft Antarctic Activities and Environmental Protection Law, submitted for first reading to the National People’s Congress Standing Committee in December 2025.

Antarctic Activities and Environmental Protection Law:

• A comprehensive domestic law to regulate all China-linked activities in Antarctica, aligning national practice with the Antarctic Treaty System.

Proposed by:

• The Government of China, tabled before the National People’s Congress Standing Committee for legislative scrutiny.

Aim:

• To coordinate, manage and legally regulate Antarctic activities;
• Ensure peaceful use and environmental protection;
• Strengthen China’s role in global Antarctic governance.

Key features

• Wide jurisdiction: Applies to Chinese citizens/entities and foreign expeditions organised from China or departing Chinese ports.
• Permitting regime: Expands administrative permissions beyond science to tourism, shipping and fishing.
• Environmental safeguards: Mandatory Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs), waste management rules, marine pollution control, and protection of flora, fauna, and heritage sites.
• Peaceful use: Military activities prohibited, except limited support for peaceful purposes; no weapons testing or combat operations.
• Resource protection: Ban on mineral exploitation, except for scientific research.
• Compliance & penalties: Sanctions for unauthorised activities; requirements for insurance/financial guarantees and emergency response plans.
• Low-carbon conduct: Encourages environmentally friendly operations and incident-response mechanisms.

Significance

• Marks China’s shift from policy-based management to a binding legal framework for Antarctic engagement.
• Helps close regulatory gaps around private tourism and commercial activities amid rising Chinese presence.

Urban Co-operative Banks

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed reopening the licensing window for Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs) after a gap of more than 20 years, seeking stakeholder feedback.

Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs):

• Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs) are member-owned, community-based banks operating mainly in urban and semi-urban areas, providing banking and credit services to small borrowers, traders, salaried employees and MSMEs.
• They function on co-operative principles such as mutual help, democratic control (“one member, one vote”), and local participation.

Launched / Origin:

• The urban co-operative credit movement in India began in the late 19th century, inspired by co-operative experiments in Britain and Germany.
• The first urban co-operative credit society was registered in Kanchipuram (1904) under the Co-operative Credit Societies Act, 1904.

Historical evolution:

• Expanded rapidly in the early 20th century to serve middle- and lower-income urban groups excluded by joint-stock banks.
• Brought partly under RBI regulation in 1966 through the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, leading to dual control (RBI + State Governments).
• Rapid licensing in the 1990s led to governance failures, prompting the RBI to stop new UCB licences in 2004.
• Reforms such as the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Act, 2020 and creation of NUCFDC (2024) strengthened supervision, governance and technology adoption.

Key functions:

• Deposit mobilisation from local communities.
• Credit delivery to small businesses, traders, professionals and households.
• Support to financial inclusion through affordable interest rates and local familiarity.
• Financing of MSMEs and urban informal sector activities.

Significance:

• Act as a bridge between informal finance and formal banking, especially for small borrowers.
• Offer lower interest rates compared to microfinance institutions.
• Bring local trust, proximity and financial literacy into urban banking.
• Renewed licensing could expand RBI-regulated coverage, improving depositor protection—if entry norms are balanced.

Day Zero

• The concept of “Day Zero” has re-entered global focus as the United Nations warned that worsening climate change, groundwater depletion, and weak water governance could push many cities—including in India—towards acute water collapse.

Day Zero:

• “Day Zero” refers to the point at which a city or region’s usable water supply falls below a critical threshold, forcing authorities to shut off regular tap water and supply water only through rationed emergency distribution points.

Origin of the term:

• The term gained global prominence during Cape Town’s near Day Zero crisis in 2018, when reservoir levels dropped to dangerously low levels.
• Since then, UN agencies have adopted the term to describe systemic urban water collapse, not just temporary droughts.

Key features of Day Zero:

• Suspension of normal water supply to households.
• Water prioritised for essential services such as hospitals, sanitation, and firefighting.
• Rationing of water through public collection points with strict per-person limits.
• Triggered by long-term stressors, not a single bad monsoon or drought year.
• Often linked to over-extraction of groundwater, poor planning, and climate variability.

Implications:

• Public health crises due to lack of safe drinking water and sanitation.
• Urban disruption, including power shortages, food supply stress, and economic losses.
• Social unrest and inequality, with women, children, and informal settlements disproportionately affected.
• Agricultural and food security risks, especially in groundwater-dependent regions.

Aralam Butterfly Sanctuary

• The Kerala government has officially renamed Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary as Aralam Butterfly Sanctuary, making it the first butterfly sanctuary in Kerala.

Aralam Butterfly Sanctuary:

• A protected area in the Western Ghats, now exclusively recognised as Kerala’s first butterfly sanctuary, dedicated to the conservation of butterfly species and their habitats.
• Located in: Kannur district, Kerala, on the western slopes of the Western Ghats, bordering Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary (Karnataka) and adjoining Kottiyoor Wildlife Sanctuary.
• Constituted in 1984 under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
• Originally notified as Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary, carved out from vested private forests and reserved forests.
• Renamed in July 2025–January 2026 following a recommendation of the State Board for Wildlife, citing unmatched butterfly richness.

Key geographical features:

• Area: ~55 sq km of evergreen and semi-evergreen forests.
• Hydrology: Drained by the Cheenkanni River, a major tributary system of Kannur district.

Climate:

• High rainfall (~4000–6000 mm annually).
• Temperature range: 11°C–40°C.
• High humidity supporting rich microclimates.

Biodiversity hotspot:

• 266 of Kerala’s 327 butterfly species recorded.
• Noted for mass butterfly migration and mud-puddling.
• Habitat of the Schedule I Slender Loris and other Western Ghats endemics.

Significance:

• Elevates Aralam as a nationally unique conservation model focused on insects, especially pollinators.
• Strengthens protection of butterflies as indicators of ecosystem health.
• Enhances Kerala’s profile in biodiversity conservation and eco-tourism.
• Supports Western Ghats conservation, a UNESCO World Heritage biodiversity hotspot.