Ethiopia’s Heritage and Horizons

Prime Minister of India extended his congratulations to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali and the ruling Prosperity Party following their decisive victory in the country’s general election.

Ethiopia:

What It Is?

»     Ethiopia is a sovereign, constitutionally governed republic in East Africa and one of the world’s oldest independent nations. It serves as a major diplomatic and economic hub for the African continent, historically maintaining deep-rooted, multifaceted bilateral and trade ties with India.

»     Geographical Region: Situated entirely within the Horn of Africa region in East Africa.

»     Capital City: Addis Ababa.

»     Border Nations: Ethiopia is the most populous landlocked country in the world. It shares its land borders with six neighbouring countries: Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Sudan.

Key Geological Features:

»     The Ethiopian: A massive, rugged mountain complex that dominates the western and eastern sections of the country. Often referred to as the Roof of Africa, it features steep escarpments and high peaks, including Ras Dashen, the highest point in Ethiopia. This highland terrain supports unique Afro-alpine ecosystems.

»     The Great Rift Valley: A massive tectonic fracture that cuts diagonally through the country from the northeast to the southwest. This valley divides the highlands into western and eastern halves, containing a chain of large lakes, active hot springs, and volcanic structures.

»     The Danakil Depression: Located in the Afar Triangle within the northern section of the Rift Valley, it is one of the lowest, hottest, and driest points on Earth. It features vast salt flats, active volcanoes (such as Erta Ale), and hydrothermal fields.

»     The Blue Nile Basin (Abbay): The highlands serve as the primary catchment area for major river networks. Lake Tana, located in the northwest, is the historic source of the Blue Nile (Abbay River), which contributes the vast majority of the water volume carried downstream into the main Nile River.

»     Arid Lowland Plains: The topography drops sharply away from the central highlands into semi-arid and arid peripheral lowlands toward the borders with Somalia and Sudan, characterized by vast savannas and shrublands.

Government Revises Foreign Donation Regulations

The Union Home Ministry has heavily tightened the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) rules by introducing separate, predefined activity lists for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) based on their specific categories and operational regions.

Centre Tightens Norms For Foreign Donations:

What It Is?

»     It is a comprehensive legislative overhaul implemented by the central government to restrict, track, and standardize how domestic associations and NGOs access and spend foreign funds. The new framework moves away from the old system of open-ended registrations by imposing strict, localized boundaries on non-profit activities and operations.

Law Governed:

»     The amendments are applied directly to the Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules, 2011, enacted under the statutory power of the parent Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), 2010.

»     All foreign donations in India are regulated and monitored under this legal authority by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

Aim:

»     The objective of these amendments is to bring structural uniformity to Foreign Contribution (F-C) forms, prevent administrative duplication, and eradicate inactive shell non-profits.

New Rules for Foreign Donations:

Predefined Purpose and State Boundaries:

»     Every NGO seeking foreign funds must select its precise activities from a predefined Schedule list appended to the rules, divided into five categories: social, economic, educational, cultural, and religious.

»     Application forms and final registration certificates must explicitly state the exact purposes and the specific States or Union Territories where the NGO will carry out its work.

»     A new fee structure has been introduced where an additional ₹300 is charged for every extra state or purpose added to the application.

»     All existing registrations approved prior to 2026 are given a strict grandfather window of one year to update their declarations and comply with the changes.

Redefining Key Functionaries and Restrictions on Foreign Nationals:

»     The legal definition of a key functionary has been broadened beyond office-bearers and directors to include trustees, corporate partners, members of the governing body, and the Karta or head of a Hindu Undivided Family.

»     Associations that feature foreign nationals (excluding Persons of Indian Origin – PIO) as key functionaries will ordinarily be deemed ineligible for FCRA registration or prior permission, unless given a specific exemption order by the Centre.

Absolute Exclusion of Proselytisation and Politics:

»     Specific activities under the educational and cultural purposes explicitly exclude political or ideological content, specifying that programs on constitutional rights and civic duties must remain non-political.

»     Faith-based practices under the religious purpose (such as religious education, documentation of faith traditions, and preservation of indigenous or tribal belief systems) are permitted but carry a strict caveat that completely excludes proselytization.

Heightened Financial Spending Accountability:

»     To prevent inactive organizations from holding onto licenses, NGOs must show a minimum spending footprint of at least ₹10 lakh of foreign contributions on their chosen activities over the preceding two financial years to renew registration.

»     For NGOs operating under Prior Permission, the second or any subsequent funding instalment will only be released after the entity verifies that it has utilized at least 75% of the previous instalment, which is subject to a government field inquiry.

Absolute Media and Transparency Disclosures:

»     NGOs must explicitly declare their social media handles, official websites, and any publications produced during the year, including books, magazines, and newspaper articles.

»     Because FCRA-registered non-profits are legally prohibited from producing or broadcasting news or current affairs, they must declare that their publications do not violate this rule.

»     If funding is routed through complex intermediary remittance vehicles or Donor Advised Funds, the NGO is required to disclose the identity of the ultimate original donor.

»     Annual returns must include a comprehensive detailed activity report alongside standard financial statements.

Rigid Scale of Penalties and Fines:

»     Using foreign funds for unapproved purposes, unapproved states, or beyond permitted administrative expense limits will result in a minimum fine of ₹1 lakh.

»     Any direct misuse of funds or operational footprint violations outside the approved terms will attract a penalty of up to 30% of the total amount involved or ₹1 lakh, whichever is higher.

India’sHighestCivilianHonors2026
The President of India conferred the Padma Awards 2026 during the second Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Padma Awards 2026:

What It Is?

»     The Padma Awards constitute the highest civilian honors of India, announced annually on the eve of Republic Day.

»     These awards recognize exceptional and distinguished achievements or service across diverse fields, including Art, Social Work, Public Affairs, Science and Engineering, Trade and Industry, Medicine, Literature and Education, Civil Service, and Sports.

The awards are categorized into three distinct tiers of excellence:

»     Padma Vibhushan: Conferred for exceptional and distinguished service (the highest tier).

»     Padma Bhushan: Conferred for distinguished service of high order (the middle tier).

»     Padma Shri: Conferred for distinguished service in any field (the third tier).

History:

»     Inception: Instituted by the Government of India in 1954 alongside the Bharat Ratna.

»     Evolution: Originally designated as Pahela Varg (Class I), Dusra Varg (Class II), and Tisra Varg (Class III). These classifications were subsequently renamed to Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri via a Presidential Notification issued in January 1955.

»     Suspensions: The awards have been announced consecutively every year except for minor structural interruptions during the years 1978, 1979, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, and 1997.

»     Presented By: The awards are formally presented to the recipients by the President of India during a state ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan, typically around March or April each year.

Process of Selection:

»     The Nominations Pipeline: The nomination process is open to the public, encouraging self-nominations and recommendations from state governments, Union Territory administrations, central ministries, and institutional bodies between May and September each year.

»     The Committee Review: All received recommendations are placed before the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted by the Prime Minister every year. The committee is chaired by the Cabinet Secretary and includes the Home Secretary, the Secretary to the President, and four to six eminent individuals from civil society.

»     Final Approval: The committee screens the nominees, evaluates their structural field impacts, and submits the finalized recommendations to the Prime Minister and the President of India for absolute final executive approval.

Key Features:

»     No Titular Affixation: In accordance with Article 18(1) of the Constitution of India, these awards do not amount to titles. They cannot be used as prefixes or suffixes to the recipient’s name (e.g., on letterheads, invitation cards, or books). Any such misuse results in the forfeiture of the award.

»     No Material Direct Perks: The decoration comprises a Sanad (certificate) personally signed by the President alongside a bronze medallion replica. It does not carry any monetary cash grants, monthly allowances, or travel concessions on national transport networks.

»     Numerical Statutory Limit: The total number of awards distributed in a single calendar year is legally restricted to a maximum cap of 120 awards (excluding posthumous awards and allocations to Non-Resident Indians, Overseas Citizens of India, and foreigners).

»     Five-Year Higher Tier Limitation: A recipient of a lower Padma award can only be considered for an upgrade to a higher tier after a minimum baseline of five years has elapsed since their previous decoration.

»     Posthumous Declarations: The awards are generally not conferred posthumous; however, exceptions can be made by the government in highly deserving cases if the demise occurred recently prior to the Republic Day announcement.

Padma Vibhushan Winners (2026):

»     Shri P. Narayanan (Narayanji) – Literature & Journalism

»     Hon’ble Justice (Retd.) Atul Sharachchandra Chandurkar – Law & Public Jurisprudence

Padma Bhushan Winners (2026):

»     Dr. S.K.M. Maeilanandan – Social Work & Entrepreneurship

»     Shri Mammootty (M.K.P.I. Ismail) – Art (Cinema / Acting)

»     Shri Vellappally Natesan – Social Leadership

»     Dr. Dattatreyudu Nori – Medicine (Oncology)

»     Shri Shibu Soren (Posthumous) – Public Affairs & Social Reform

»     Smt. Alka Yagnik – Art (Playback Singing)

Interlinked Emergencies: Climate and Energy

The Twin Climate and Energy Crises:

What it is?

»     The UN chief described the modern global landscape as a tale of two crises driven entirely by a shared addiction to fossil fuels. The first is an accelerating climate crisis that is pushing global temperatures toward catastrophic, irreversible ecological tipping points.

»     The second is an acute energy crisis triggered by direct conflicts in West Asia, which has exposed the severe economic risks of relying on volatile hydrocarbon networks where a single chokepoint disruption can trigger a massive inflationary shock.

Key Data and Statistics Highlighted by the UN:

»     The Scale of the Twin Shock:

»     Historic Temperature Anomalies: The world has officially experienced its 11 hottest years on record, with average annual temperatures on track to exceed the 1.5°C threshold agreed upon under the Paris Agreement in the near future.

»     The Mother of All Energy Shocks: According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the scale of the current West Asian energy upheaval rivals the oil shocks of the 1970s and the market turmoil of the Ukraine war combined.

»     Windfall Gains Born of Pain: Driven by high oil prices during the Middle East conflict, the world’s eighth largest fossil fuel companies pocketed an additional $6.5 billion in windfall profits in the first quarter of 2026 alone.

Methane Emissions and Flaring Waste:

»     The Warming Driver: Methane accounts for roughly one-third of global warming and is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide (CO2​) over a short-term atmospheric lifespan.

»     Wasted Fuel Potentials: In 2025, oil and gas operations globally flared 167 billion cubic metres of natural gas, a volume equivalent to Africa’s entire annual gas consumption.

»     The Poor Response Rate: While the UNEP’s Methane Alert and Response System issued over 5,000 alerts across 33 nations, the global response rate from governments and industries remains at a low 12 percent.

The Projections for Technological Footprints & AI:

»     Data Center Electricity Surges: By 2030, commercial AI data centers are projected to consume more electricity than all but five countries on Earth.

»     Severe Resource Strain: By 2030, data center cooling loops will consume enough fresh water annually to meet the basic survival needs of the 1.3 billion people living in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Clean Energy Cost Deflation & Finance Gap:

»     Plunging Cost Baselines: Since 2010, structural manufacturing scales have caused solar energy costs to drop by almost 90 percent, onshore wind costs to fall by over 70 percent, and battery storage to plummet by 95 percent.

»     Trillions in Global Savings: The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) notes that existing renewable installations saved the global economy $480 billion in avoided fossil fuel costs in 2025.

»     The African Investment Deficit: Despite holding 60% of the world’s best solar resources and 30% of critical minerals, the continent of Africa receives only 2% of global clean energy investments, leaving over 600 million people without electricity.

Major Tipping Points & Barriers Identified:

»     Critical Climate Tipping Points (UN Scientific Advisory Board)

»     Coral Reef Collapse: Rising ocean temperatures risk pushing vital marine coral systems into total bleaching and structural collapse.

»     Ice Sheet Liquefaction: Warmer baselines threaten to accelerate ice sheet loss in Greenland and West Antarctica, causing sea levels to rise.

»     Systemic Ecosystem Shifts: Weakening major ocean circulation systems could alter global weather patterns, shifting parts of the Amazon rainforest into dry, savanna-like conditions.

Barriers to Clean Energy Deployment:

»     Inadequate Transmission Infrastructure: Outdated distribution grids cannot handle the variable loads generated by large solar and wind farms.

»     Insufficient Storage Capacity: A lack of grid-scale battery storage prevents power networks from saving clean energy for peak demand times.

»     Slow Institutional Permitting: Bureaucratic roadblocks and slow regulatory approvals delay new clean energy projects.

»     Asymmetric Borrowing Costs: Developing nations face borrowing costs for green infrastructure that are two to three times higher than those in advanced economies.

Proposed Policy Responses & Way Forward:

»     Taxing Windfall Corporate Profits: Governments should tax the windfall profits earned by oil and gas companies during energy crises to help protect vulnerable households and fund renewable infrastructure.

»     Enforcing Near-Zero Methane Standards: Establish a new global standard of near-zero methane emissions across the oil and gas value chain, using existing low-cost technologies to eliminate 70% of current emissions.

»     Launching the AI Environmental Transparency Initiative: Force major artificial intelligence companies to disclose the carbon, water, and land footprints of their operations, mandating that all data centers run on 100% renewable energy by 2030.

»     Delivering Pledged Multilateral Climate Finance: Developed nations must fulfill the $300 billion pledged to developing countries, while creating paths to mobilize $1.3 trillion annually by 2035.

»     Expanding Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) Lending: Leverage recent institutional reforms to expand MDB lending capacity by $600 billion to $800 billion, using guarantees, local currency financing, and debt-for-climate swaps to lower project risk.

»     Conveningpre-COP31 Leaders’ Dialogues: Assemble global leaders in September ahead of the COP31 summit in Türkiye to plan a fair energy transition focused on winding down fossil fuels, protecting worker livelihoods, and supporting producer economies.

»     The UN chief described the modern global landscape as a tale of two crises driven entirely by a shared addiction to fossil fuels. The first is an accelerating climate crisis that is pushing global temperatures toward catastrophic, irreversible ecological tipping points.

»     The second is an acute energy crisis triggered by direct conflicts in West Asia, which has exposed the severe economic risks of relying on volatile hydrocarbon networks where a single chokepoint disruption can trigger a massive inflationary shock.

Key Data and Statistics Highlighted by the UN:

The Scale of the Twin Shock:

»     Historic Temperature Anomalies: The world has officially experienced its 11 hottest years on record, with average annual temperatures on track to exceed the 1.5°C threshold agreed upon under the Paris Agreement in the near future.

»     The Mother of All Energy Shocks: According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the scale of the current West Asian energy upheaval rivals the oil shocks of the 1970s and the market turmoil of the Ukraine war combined.

»     Windfall Gains Born of Pain: Driven by high oil prices during the Middle East conflict, the world’s eight largest fossil fuel companies pocketed an additional $6.5 billion in windfall profits in the first quarter of 2026 alone.

Methane Emissions and Flaring Waste:

»     The Warming Driver: Methane accounts for roughly one-third of global warming and is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide (CO2​) over a short-term atmospheric lifespan.

»     Wasted Fuel Potentials: In 2025, oil and gas operations globally flared 167 billion cubic metres of natural gas, a volume equivalent to Africa’s entire annual gas consumption.

»     The Poor Response Rate: While the UNEP’s Methane Alert and Response System issued over 5,000 alerts across 33 nations, the global response rate from governments and industries remains at a low 12 percent.

The Projections for Technological Footprints & AI:

»     Data Center Electricity Surges: By 2030, commercial AI data centers are projected to consume more electricity than all but five countries on Earth.

»     Severe Resource Strain: By 2030, data center cooling loops will consume enough fresh water annually to meet the basic survival needs of the 1.3 billion people living in sub-Saharan Africa.

The Clean Energy Cost Deflation & Finance Gap:

»     Plunging Cost Baselines: Since 2010, structural manufacturing scales have caused solar energy costs to drop by almost 90 percent, onshore wind costs to fall by over 70 percent, and battery storage to plummet by 95 percent.

»     Trillions in Global Savings: The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) notes that existing renewable installations saved the global economy $480 billion in avoided fossil fuel costs in 2025.

»     The African Investment Deficit: Despite holding 60% of the world’s best solar resources and 30% of critical minerals, the continent of Africa receives only 2% of global clean energy investments, leaving over 600 million people without electricity.

Major Tipping Points & Barriers Identified:

Critical Climate Tipping Points (UN Scientific Advisory Board)

»     Coral Reef Collapse: Rising ocean temperatures risk pushing vital marine coral systems into total bleaching and structural collapse.

»     Ice Sheet Liquefaction: Warmer baselines threaten to accelerate ice sheet loss in Greenland and West Antarctica, causing sea levels to rise.

»     Systemic Ecosystem Shifts: Weakening major ocean circulation systems could alter global weather patterns, shifting parts of the Amazon rainforest into dry, savanna-like conditions.

Barriers to Clean Energy Deployment:

»     Inadequate Transmission Infrastructure: Outdated distribution grids cannot handle the variable loads generated by large solar and wind farms.

»     Insufficient Storage Capacity: A lack of grid-scale battery storage prevents power networks from saving clean energy for peak demand times.

»     Slow Institutional Permitting: Bureaucratic roadblocks and slow regulatory approvals delay new clean energy projects.

»     Asymmetric Borrowing Costs: Developing nations face borrowing costs for green infrastructure that are two to three times higher than those in advanced economies.

Proposed Policy Responses & Way Forward:

»     Taxing Windfall Corporate Profits: Governments should tax the windfall profits earned by oil and gas companies during energy crises to help protect vulnerable households and fund renewable infrastructure.

»     Enforcing Near-Zero Methane Standards: Establish a new global standard of near-zero methane emissions across the oil and gas value chain, using existing low-cost technologies to eliminate 70% of current emissions.

»     Launching the AI Environmental Transparency Initiative: Force major artificial intelligence companies to disclose the carbon, water, and land footprints of their operations, mandating that all data centers run on 100% renewable energy by 2030.

»     Delivering Pledged Multilateral Climate Finance: Developed nations must fulfill the $300 billion pledged to developing countries, while creating paths to mobilize $1.3 trillion annually by 2035.

»     Expanding Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) Lending: Leverage recent institutional reforms to expand MDB lending capacity by $600 billion to $800 billion, using guarantees, local currency financing, and debt-for-climate swaps to lower project risk.

International AI Advisory Board

The United Nations has set up its first global scientific body on artificial intelligence, appointing 40 experts to the newly formed Independent International Scientific Panel on AI.

»     Professor B. Ravindran, head of the Centre for Responsible AI at IIT Madras, has been named as the sole Indian representative on the panel for a three-year term.

International Scientific Panel on AI:

What It Is?

»     The Independent International Scientific Panel on AI is a newly established global scientific advisory council. It serves as a non-political, technical backbone designed to evaluate and map out the global state of artificial intelligence technology and its rapidly changing scientific boundaries.

»     Organizations Involved: Established under the aegis of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Members:

»     Total Composition: Consists of 40 globally recognized experts selected from diverse international scientific backgrounds.

»     Term Limit: Members are appointed to serve a fixed three-year term.

»     Indian Representation: Professor B. Ravindran from IIT Madras stands as the lone Indian scientist selected to serve in this inaugural cohort.

Aim: 

»     The objective of the panel is to conduct objective, rigorous, and periodic scientific assessments of artificial intelligence.

»     By decoupling technical facts from international geopolitics, the panel aims to provide a reliable baseline of scientific clarity to help the international community build a fair, balanced, and globally unified AI governance structure.

Key Functions:

»     Periodic Scientific Assessments: Mandated to thoroughly review the global state of science surrounding AI systems and compute architectures.

»     Technical Report Generation: Produces comprehensive scientific reports detailing the capabilities, safety limits, and architectural shifts of new AI models.

»     Separation of Science and Politics: Operates under a strict mandate to analyze only the technical and scientific aspects of AI, leaving political debates and policy-making entirely to the state representatives within the Global Dialogue.

»     Evaluating Dual-Use Risks: Examines the scientific risks of advanced AI tools, such as their potential dual-use capabilities in accelerating the creation of biological or chemical weapons.

»     Supporting Global Resource Benchmarking: Reviews open datasets, testing metrics, and verification protocols to aid international repositories, such as the newly conceptualized Trusted AI Commons.

NAFEX.in – Streamlining Auctions with NAFED

Union Home Minister will launch NAFED’s digital auction portal ‘NAFEX.in’ in New Delhi to modernize agricultural auctions and improve transparency in cooperative marketing.

NAFED’s Auction Portal – NAFEX.in:

What It Is?

»     NAFEX.in is a digital agricultural auction platform developed by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED).

»     It provides an online, transparent, and technology-driven mechanism for conducting auctions of agricultural commodities and cooperative produce.

Aim:

»     To enhance transparency, efficiency, and accountability in agricultural auctions.

»     To strengthen cooperative marketing and provide a seamless digital trading ecosystem for farmers and stakeholders.

Key Functions of NAFEX.in:

»     Conducts online auctions for agricultural commodities, eliminating manual processes and increasing transparency.

»     Enables competitive bidding, helping determine fair market prices through transparent price discovery mechanisms.

»     Connects farmers, cooperatives, traders, processors, and institutional buyers through a common digital platform.

»     Reduces paperwork, speeds up transactions, and facilitates easier monitoring and record management.

Significance:

»     The portal minimizes middlemen intervention and ensures transparent and competitive auctions, benefiting both farmers and buyers.

»     NAFEX aligns with the vision of Shakar Se Samriddhi by integrating technology into cooperative institutions and strengthening farmer-centric reforms.

Thewa Artistry: Stories in Gold and Glass

During Prime Minister of India visit to Slovakia, he gifted Thewa motif cufflinks to Slovak President Peter Pellegrini, bringing global attention to Rajasthan’s centuries-old Thewa craft.

Thewa Art:

What It Is?

»     Thewa is an extraordinary traditional jewelry-making and decorative craft that involves the precise, delicate fusion of hand-carved sheets of pure gold onto vibrant, specially treated molten glass. The final artifact creates an illusion of a gold-rich, heavily ornamented piece while using minimal gold, making it look as though it glows from an internal light source.

Region Associated:

»     Primary Hub: Exclusively practiced and preserved in the Pratapgarh district of Rajasthan, India.

»     Geographical Protection: The craft holds a prestigious Geographical Indication (GI) status (awarded in 2013–2014).

History and Lineage:

»     The Invention: The craft dates back nearly 400 years to the Mughal and Rajput eras. It was invented in 1707 by a master goldsmith named Nathulal Soni.

»     The Royal Title: Impressed by the gold-on-glass filigree work, Maharaja Samant Singh of Pratapgarh patronized the art in the 1760s, granting a jagir (feudal land grant) to the family and bestowing upon them the title Rajsoni (Royal Goldsmith).

»     The Secret Tradition: To protect the craft from commercial imitation, the structural secrets of the fusion process have been passed down strictly from father to son through generations, keeping it exclusively within the male lineage of the Rajsoni family.

Key Features of Thewa Art:

»     Pure Technique, Zero Glue: The core uniqueness of Thewa lies in its secret thermal bonding process; hand-carved 23-carat gold foil is permanently fused onto a base of coloured glass without using any glue, solder, or synthetic pasting materials.

»     Intricate Latticework: Master artisans spread a micro-thin sheet of gold (called Thewa Ki Patti) over a special lac-resin compound. They use a fine chisel to execute free-hand engravings, knocking off excess portions to create an openwork pattern before peeling and fusing it to the glass.

»     Belgian Glass Base: The canvas traditionally utilizes imported, deeply saturated, multi-coloured Belgian glass—predominantly in rich shades of green, red, blue, and maroon—which is treated to heighten its sparkling reflectivity.

»     Silver Framing (Chandi ki Dibiya): Once the gold-on-glass artwork is complete, the delicate piece is framed inside an ornate, solid silver casing or ring mount, backed by an additional sheet of silver foil to maximize its brilliant lustre.

»     Narrative & Symbolic Motifs: The designs act as miniature storytelling canvases. Traditional motifs extensively feature:

• Flora and Fauna: Intricate creepers, lotuses, peacocks, elephants, and running deer.
• Mythology: Vivid scenes from Hindu epics, including depictions of Krishna, Radha, and Ganesha.
• Royal Court Life: Historical hunting expeditions (Shikar), wedding processions (Baraat), and regal Darbar assemblies.

Transforming India’s Public Health Framework

Public health experts has criticized India’s recent public health policies for moving away from empirical, population-based healthcare delivery toward subjective individual wellness models.

The Shift in India’s Public Health Architecture:

What it is?

»     The contemporary shift in India’s public health architecture marks a significant transition from a population-based framework—focused on resolving community-wide unmet needs in preventive, promotive, curative, and rehabilitative care—toward an individualistic wellness narrative. This structural reorientation relies on altering the identities of traditional grassroots facilities and introducing digital data registries.

Key Data and Statistics on the Indian Health Sector:

»     Substantial Digital: The Ayushman Bharat Digital Health Mission (ABDHM) has undergone massive scaling, transitioning from fewer than 1,000 linked records during its initial phases to over 100 crore digital health documents today.

»     Significant Financial Layouts for Digitization: The central government allocates an annual budget of approximately ₹300 crore to fund the operations and infrastructure registries of the ABDHM.

»     Low National Welfare Spends: India allocates a minor fraction of its resources to structural social safety nets, spending barely 0.02% of its GDP on disability welfare and associated public assistance systems.

»     Severe Institutional Budget Gaps: While data management frameworks receive hundreds of crores annually, primary public healthcare institutions continue to experience severe underfunding relative to major national expenditures like food subsidies (₹2.05 lakh crore).

Recent Public Health Initiatives:

»     Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (2018): A policy initiative designed to strengthen local infrastructure by adding Health and Wellness Centre as a mandatory prefix to traditional grassroots health sub-centres (SCs), primary health centres (PHCs), and community health centres (CHCs).

»     Ayushman Bharat Digital Health Mission (ABDHM): A major digital public infrastructure initiative launched in September 2021 to build a nationwide electronic health ecosystem, manage telemedicine networks, and map health professionals.

»     The Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA Card): A central component of the digital mission aimed at creating a unique health ID for every citizen, serving as a digital repository for individual health records.

»     Ayushman Arogya Mandirs Grid Expansion: The physical scaling of primary healthcare access points, resulting in over 1.84 lakh operational centres across the country as of February 2026.

»     Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Global Agenda: The overarching policy goal adopted by national frameworks to ensure that every individual has access to needed health services without suffering financial hardship.

Key Institutional Challenges Associated with India’s Health Sector:

»     Ambiguity Over Grassroots Operational Mandates: Forcing a uniform Health and Wellness prefix onto sub-centres, PHCs, and CHCs has obscured their distinct historical roles and caused confusion among healthcare professionals regarding actual delivery mandates.

»     The Subjective Nature of Wellness Outcome Metrics: Shifting focus toward individual well-being introduces a highly elusive, individualistic, and subjective measure that makes it difficult for administrators to effectively evaluate health systems.

»     Data Repositories Divorced from Actual Care Provisioning: Generating millions of digital ABHA cards creates information portals, but does not address the lack of physical infrastructure or guarantee access to care, leaving facilities operating in disconnected silos.

»     Ignoring Core Structural and Social Determinants: By placing the primary responsibility for wellness on individual choices, current policies risk overlooking critical systemic issues like clean drinking water access, chronic disease management, and maternal-child nutrition.

»     The Neglect of Pressing Curative Requirements: The current framework tends to prioritize wellness messaging on social media over the population’s immediate, felt need for affordable curative medicine, advancing the priorities of providers rather than patients.

Way Forward:

»     Anchoring the Health Policy Core on Concrete Curative Care: Reorient national health strategies to prioritize strengthening public infrastructure for curative medicine, as individuals must have their basic healthcare requirements met before they can engage with preventive interventions.

»     Re-building the Foundations of theThree-Tier Public Health System: Allocate robust capital funds directly to local sub-centres, PHCs, and CHCs to counter their institutional weakening in many parts of the country.

»     Establishing Objective and Measurable Population Health Metrics: Move past subjective well-being markers to design rigorous, quantifiable population health indicators based on clear unmet needs and treatment outcomes.

»     Linking Digital Health Registries to Institutional Delivery Networks: Redesign the ABDHM to ensure that individual ABHA data connects smoothly with actual healthcare provisioning, transforming isolated databases into functional institutional mechanisms.

»     Integrating Traditional Ecological and Local Knowledge: Complement top-down healthcare initiatives by systematically involving local communities and utilizing traditional insights to design more responsive, grassroots-level care.

Voices from Vijayanagara: Epigraphic Legacy

An expert team from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) discovered three rare 16th-century inscriptions deep inside the Seshachalam forest range in Tirupati, Andhra

The Vijayanagara-Era Inscriptions:

What It Is?

»     The discovery consists of three rare epigraphical records carved into stone characters of the 16th century. Copied in the form of estoppages  by the ASI for preservation and linguistic study, these inscriptions are written in a trilingual format using Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada

Discovery and Contents:

»     Location: Uncovered at Sadasivakona, a pristine and mostly under-explored stretch deep within the Seshachalam forest range in the Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh. This project follows similar epigraphical surveys conducted by the team in the nearby Nallamala Hills.

»     Historical Records: The primary inscription meticulously documents the personal visit of King Sadasiva Raya to this sacred spot to take a holy bath. It records his official grant of a royal donation alongside the construction of a Siva temple and a monastery (mutt) at Papavinasa in Sadasivakona.

King Sadashiva Raya:

Who he was?

»     Sadasiva Raya (1542–1570 CE) was the last sovereign monarch of the Tuluva Dynasty of the Vijayanagara Empire, a powerful Southern Indian kingdom dominating the Deccan region.

Background and Rise to Power:

»     Succession Crisis: After the death of Achyuta Raya in 1542 CE, his son Venkata I briefly ruled but was killed during court intrigues.

»     Enthronement: Sadasiva Raya, Achyuta Raya’s nephew, ascended the throne according to the Tuluva dynasty’s succession traditions.

»     Puppet King: Although Sadasiva Raya was the nominal ruler, real power rested with Aliya Rama Raya and his brothers. Rama Raya later imprisoned Sadasiva and ruled in his name.

Legacy in the Vijayanagara Empire:

»     Restoration of Power: Under Rama Raya’s leadership, Vijayanagara regained much of its political and military strength after Krishna Deva Raya’s reign.

»     Religious Patronage: His reign continued support for temples, religious institutions, and pilgrimage activities, as reflected in contemporary inscriptions.

Last Days: Battle of Talikota (1565)

»     The Conflict: Rama Raya led Vijayanagara against the combined forces of Bijapur, Ahmadnagar, Golconda, and Bidar.

»     The Defeat: Vijayanagara suffered a crushing defeat at Talikota. Rama Raya was captured and killed, and the capital city was devastated.

»     End of an Era: After the battle, Tirumala assumed control while Sadasiva Raya soon died. Although the Aravidu dynasty continued, Vijayanagara’s political dominance came to an end.