An Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent recently arrived at the Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska to participate in the prestigious multi-national exercise, Red Flag 24.

Red Flag 24:

• It is a two-week advanced aerial combat training exercise aimed at integrating aircrew in a multinational environment.
• It is designed to replicate a realistic and challenging environment, bringing together aircrew and equipment from different nations and services.
• Approximately 3100 service members are expected to fly, maintain, and support more than 100 aircraft during the exercise.
• The IAF deployed Rafale fighter jets for the Red Flag 24 exercise.
• The exercises can be adapted to integrate various forces into a realistic threat environment using the more than 77,000 square miles of airspace in the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, which is the largest combat training range in the world.
• Since its inception in 1975, Red Flag exercises are designed to create a comprehensive learning environment by simulating realistic combat scenarios.
• There are two distinct Red Flag exercise locations: Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada and Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska.
• The Nevada exercise is organized by the United States Air Force Warfare Center (USAFWC), while the Alaska exercise is managed by the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), the air component command of the United States’ Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM).

Recently, The Supreme Court Agreed with the Election Commission‘s view that Article 329(b) restricts judicial interference.

• Earlier, Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an NGO, sought directions to the Election Commission (EC) to publish booth-wise voter turnout figures and to make the Form 17C vote tally records available online within 48 hours of polling for each phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
• Therefore, adjourned ADR’s request for the Election Commission to release voter turnout data.
• Article 329(b) invoked by EC in SC that restricts judicial intervention in poll process.

Article 329:

• Enshrined in Part XV of the Constitution (Articles 324-329 specifically discuss elections).
• Article 329, which has two clauses, concerns itself with the role of the judiciary in electoral matters.
• Article 329 (a) says the “Judiciary is not allowed to challenge the constitutionality of laws relating to the boundaries of electoral districts or the allocation of seats”.
• Article 329 (b) says that “Any challenges to the conduct or results of elections to the Houses of Parliament or state legislatures must be made through a designated legal process that is referred to as an “election petition”.
• The 19th Amendment Act of 1966 refined clause (b) of Article 329, stipulating that election-related inquiries are exclusively addressed through election petitions presented to the authority designated by that law.
• The Representation of the People Act, 1951, furthers this clause as it empowers the high courts to hear and decide election petitions.
• A decision in such petitions can be challenged in the Supreme Court.

Several Judicial Pronouncements Outlined the Contours of Article 329(b):

• Ponnuswamy (AIR 1952 SC 64) : In a Ponnuswami v. Returning Officer, Namakkal Constituency, SC has emphasized what is implicit in Art. 329 (b) that once the process of election has started, it should not be interrupted since the tempo may slow down and the early constitution of an elected parliament may be halted.Therefore, think twice before obligating a hearing at a critical stage when a quick repoll is the call.
• Venkatachalam vs A.Swamickan Case (1999) : The Supreme Court in that case determined that Article 329(b) is inapplicable if the matter pertains to Articles 191 and 193, which deal with disqualifications and penalties related to parliamentary and legislative assembly membership, respectively.
• The judgment further held that the word “election” would include every process of proceedings after the issuance of election notification.
• Inderjit Barua vs Election Commission of India (1985) : In that case, the Supreme Court excluded electoral roll preparation from the definition of “election.”
• It further said that no election could be challenged on the grounds of defects in electoral rolls.
• Gujarat High Court judgment in N.C. Patel vs State of Gujarat(2007) : The HC affirmed that election petitions can only be filed under the Representation of People’s Act, 1951, and not by way of a writ petition.
• Allahabad High Court  in Hari Krishna Lal vs Atal Bihari Bajpai(n 2002) : clarified that only candidates officially recognised by the Election Commission are eligible to file election petitions.
• By merely filing a nomination paper, a person does not become a duly nominated candidate.
• A candidate becomes a nominated candidate when the EC recognises him to be a valid candidate fulfilling all the statutory obligations.

Recently, the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight-tested the RudraM-II air-to-surface missile from Su-30 MK-I platform of the Indian Air Force (IAF) off the Odisha coast.

• DRDO Successfully Flight-Tests RudraM-II Air-to-Surface Missile from Su-30 MK-I Platform

RudraM-II:

• RudraM-II is an Air-to-Surface Missile.
• RudraM-II is an indigenously-developed solid-propelled air-launched missile system.
• Task: It is meant for Air-to-Surface role to neutralize many types of enemy assets.
• Rudram, India’s first anti-radiation missile (ARM), is an Air-to-Surface missile developed by DRDO.
• It is developed as part of the Rudram series which includes supersonic and hypersonic ground attack and anti-radiation missiles.
• The name Rudram translates to "remover of sorrows."

Comprises:

• Navigation System: The missile uses a navigation mechanism consisting of a satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) and an inertial navigation system.
• Passive Homing Head: It employs a “passive homing head” for guidance, enabling it to accurately strike targets even if the radiation source switches off during the engagement.
• Mandate: To detect, track, and neutralize the enemy’s radio frequency sources, including radar, communication assets, and other radio frequency sources.

Future Developments and Advanced Versions:

• RudraM-1: It primarily aims at Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD).
• RudraM-2 and RudraM-3: These are under development with ranges of 350 and 550 km, respectively.
• Significance: The development of these missiles began around eight years ago, with plans for future tests and inductions to enhance the IAF’s air superiority tactical capability.

Recently, Srinivas R Kulkarni, an Indian-origin US scientist has been awarded the prestigious Shaw Prize in Astronomy for 2024.

• Scientist Srinivas R Kulkarni Honoured with Prestigious Shaw Prize in Astronomy.
• He has been awarded for his ground-breaking discoveries about millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, & other variable or transient astronomical objects.

Shaw Prize:

• The annual award is given by the Shaw Prize Foundation, which was founded in 2002 by the Hong Kong-based filmmaker, television executive and philanthropist Run Run Shaw (1907–2014).
• It includes a $1.2m cash prize.
• There are also Shaw Prizes for life sciences and medicine; and mathematical sciences.

Astronomical Transients:

• Transients are astrophysical phenomena that change their brightness over a relatively short time.
• These can be caused by a number of different astrophysical sources, and each of these transient events has particular characteristics.
• There are many kinds of astronomical transients, all of them united by phenomena that are violent in some measure.
• Significance : Astronomers study transients to understand where their violence comes from and what that can tell us about non-transient events.

Kinds of Transients:

• Supernovae :  when the outer layers of large stars blow up while their cores implode because the stars have run out of elements to fuse.
• Many a supernova has been known to become so bright that it emits light more intensely than the stars in the rest of its host galaxy combined.
• Active galactic nucleus (AGN) :  The centers of massive galaxies host supermassive black holes. Sometimes, these black holes actively feast on matter in their orbit.
• Interactions between the black holes and the matter in this process cause the latter to acquire energy and glow with a changing brightness.
• Fast radio burst (FRB) : FRBs are very energetic sources 10-times as much energy as the Sun,which usually only last on the order of milliseconds.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has released the Asia-Pacific Employment and Social Outlook 2024, highlighting the region''s recovery from the global pandemic and the challenges posed by a rapidly ageing population.

Key Highlights:

Unemployment Rate:

• Projected to remain at 4.2% in 2024 and 2025.
• This equates to 87.8 million people out of work in 2024.
• Unemployment rates vary significantly across subregions and countries.
• The region''s jobs gap in 2023 was 164 million, including individuals unable to work due to care obligations.

Working Poverty and Informality:

• Persistent issues with low-quality, informal employment.
• Two in three workers were in informal employment in 2023, a slight improvement over the past decade.

Demographic Challenges:

• The ratio of people aged 65 and above is expected to double by 2050.
• This will increase the economic dependency ratio and pose challenges to sustaining economic growth.
• East Asia will experience a demographic drag on growth of 0.3 percentage points per year.
• South Asia will see a significant decline in its demographic dividend.

Opportunities and Policy Needs:

Income Growth and Productivity:

• Potential for continued income growth per capita if productivity growth is maintained.
• Labour productivity in emerging economies is less than a third of that in high-income countries, indicating significant potential for improvement.
• Structural barriers and lack of training opportunities need to be addressed.

Policy Reforms:

• Necessary to reduce inequalities and improve labour market prospects for older workers.
• Equitable pension systems are needed to manage demographic changes.