Recently, ICAR has commercialised herbicide-tolerant (Ht) basmati rice varieties that can control weeds.

Direct Seeded Rice (DSR):

• It is a modern rice cultivation technique where rice seeds are directly sown into the field, replacing the traditional method of transplanting seedlings from a nursery.
• It is an efficient, and sustainable method of rice cultivation that offers significant benefits for farmers, the environment, and the economy.

Herbicide-Tolerant Basmati Rice:

• ICAR commercialised non-genetically modified (non-GM) Ht basmati rice. These varieties allow direct application of the herbicide Imazethapyr due to a mutated ALS gene.
• Scientific debate: Research indicates that hand weeding at specific intervals (20 and 40 days after sowing) in DSR is more effective and yield-enhancing than the use of Imazethapyr.
• ICAR’s research favours eco-friendly hand weeding over repeated herbicide applications for weed control and higher seed yield.
• Weed diversity and risks: Imazethapyr targets specific broadleaf weeds (BLW), not all weed types.
• Herbicide-resistant weeds may evolve, threatening rice production and food security.
• Similar challenges were seen with Bt-Cotton and pink bollworm resistance.
• Historical context: In the North Western Plains (e.g., Punjab, Haryana), DSR has been long used for growing Basmati rice.
• Green Revolution promoted water-intensive transplanted rice, causing ecological issues.
• Innovations in DSR: From 2014 to 2017, innovations in DSR at IARI Karnal led to the adoption of TAR-VATTAR technology, which uses climatic factors and effective herbicides like Pendimethalin to reduce costs and save water.
• Recent adoption and impact: During COVID-19, the labour shortage saw a spike in DSR adoption in Punjab, proving its viability.
• The Haryana government conserved water (e.g., 31,500 crore litres saved in 2022) by adopting DSR on a large scale.

Pakistan admitted in court that Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) is a "foreign territory".

Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK):

• PoK was illegally occupied by Pakistan in 1947 following an invasion by Pashtun tribesmen and the Pakistani Army.
• Historically part of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which acceded to India in 1947 after Partition.
• Geographical Extent: Covers an area of 13,297 sq km with a population of over 40 lakh. It includes 10 districts, with the capital being Muzaffarabad.
• Comprises two ethnically and linguistically different regions: Mirpur-Muzaffarabad region and Gilgit-Baltistan region.
• In 1963, Pakistan ceded over 5,000 sq km of this land to China in the Shaksgam area.
• Administrative Status: Neither PoK nor GB are listed as part of Pakistan''s four provinces. Both are considered "autonomous territories" ruled directly from Islamabad.
• For India, PoK and GB are part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral part of the country as per the 1994 Parliamentary resolution.

India-Pakistan Territorial Demarcation:

• International Border (IB): Stretches approximately 2,400 km from Gujarat to the north banks of Chenab in Akhnoor in Jammu.
• Line of Control (LoC): A ceasefire line that came into existence after the 1948 and 1971 wars between India and Pakistan, delineated in the Simla Agreement (1972).
• Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL): Divides the current positions of Indian and Pakistani troops in the Siachen region and extends from NJ 9842 to Indira Col in the north.
• Further demarcation challenges include the IB in Sir Creek area and International Maritime Boundary line between India and Pakistan, which have not been demarcated.

The inaugural United Nations Global Supply Chain Forum, organized by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the Government of Barbados, concluded successfully recently.

UN Global Supply Chain Forum:

• It was the inaugural edition of the forum, which was held from May 21 to 24, 2024, in Barbados.
• It was hosted by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in collaboration with the Government of Barbados.
• Over 1,000 participants from around the world convened to tackle the pressing issues of global disruptions, geopolitical tensions, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic and their impact on global trade.
• It gathered key figures, including trade and transport Ministers from several small island developing states (SIDS).
• Representatives from various UN agencies ,major ports like the Port of Seattle, and industry leaders in shipping and logistics were also present.
• The forum underscored the complexities and opportunities in decarbonizing global shipping, with a particular focus on developing countries rich in renewable energy resources.
• Efforts to incentivize low- or zero-carbon fuels, establish safety frameworks for new fuels, and enhance port readiness for handling various fuels were identified as critical steps in driving sustainable freight transport and logistics.
• One of the major outcomes of the forum was the launch of the “Manifesto for Intermodal, Low-Carbon, Efficient and Resilient Freight Transport and Logistics.”.
• This manifesto calls for a significant transformation in freight transport to achieve global climate targets and improve socio-economic resilience, emphasizing the transition to zero-emission fuels, optimized logistics, and sustainable value chains.
• Digital technologies were highlighted as key to enhancing global supply chain resilience.
• Ministers from SIDS advocated for international financial support and investment in green and sustainable technologies to enhance energy efficiency and combat marine pollution.
• A significant achievement of the forum was the launch of the UN Trade and Development Trade-and-Transport Dataset, developed in collaboration with the World Bank.
• This comprehensive repository provides global data on over 100 commodities and various transport modes, offering a holistic view of trade and transport costs.
• The next forum is set to take place in Saudi Arabia in 2026.

Scientists recently unearthed living stromatolites—ancient geological structures made from algae—on Sheybarah Island, nestled on the northeastern shelf of the Red Sea in Saudi Arabia.

Stromatolites:

• Stromatolites, or stromatoliths, are layered accretionary structures formed in shallow water by the trapping, binding, and cementation of sedimentary grains by biofilms of microorganisms, especially cyanobacteria (commonly known as blue-green algae).
• As sediment layered in shallow water, bacteria grew over it, binding the sedimentary particles and building layer upon millimetre layer until the layers became mounds.
• These structures are usually characterized by thin, alternating light and dark layers that may be flat, hummocky, or dome-shaped.
• Stromatolites were common in Precambrian time (i.e., more than 542 million years ago).
• Most stromatolites are marine, but some forms from Proterozoic strata more than 2 ½ billion years old are interpreted as inhabiting intertidal areas and freshwater ponds and lakes.
• Living stromatolites are found in only a few salty lagoons or bays on Earth.
• Western Australia is internationally significant for its variety of stromatolite sites, both living and fossilised.
• Shark Bay in Western Australia is one of only two places in the world where living marine stromatolites exist.

Importance:

• Stromatolites provide some of the most ancient records of life on Earth by fossil remains which date back more than 3.5 billion years ago.
• Further, these biotic structures were instrumental in the Great Oxygenation Event over two billion years ago, introducing oxygen into the atmosphere and transforming the planet''s habitability.
• Being photosynthetic, cyanobacteria produce oxygen as a by-product. Photosynthesis is the only major source of free oxygen gas in the atmosphere.
• As stromatolites became more common 2.5 billion years ago, they gradually changed the Earth''s atmospherefrom a carbon dioxide-rich mixture to the present-day oxygen-rich atmosphere.
• This major change paved the way for the next evolutionary step, the appearance of life based on the eukaryotic cell (cell with a nucleus).