Current Affairs

UN Secretary-General’s Special Report, “Challenges related to sea-level rise and ways and approaches to address it”, presented at the 55th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Palau (theme: ‘Building Economies: Life. Action. Unity’), records global sea-level rise of 5.9 mm/year in 2024 (highest). About 770 million people live <5 m above high-tide; up to 1.2 billion may be displaced by 2050 without adaptation. Drivers: warming, thermal expansion, glacier/ice-sheet melt; land subsidence worsens relative rise, flooding and saltwater intrusion. High-risk cities include Mumbai, Kolkata and Dhaka; SIDS, Indigenous Peoples and low-lying communities are vulnerable.

A major study warns the Hindu Kush-Himalaya (HKH) spanning eight countries (Afghanistan-Myanmar) nears an ecological tipping point due to accelerated glacial mass loss and a monitoring deficit: only 21 of ~40,000 glaciers are ground-tracked. Retreating glaciers form unstable moraine-dammed lakes, increasing GLOF risk. Himalayas are ~18% of India’s area but ~35% disasters. Peak water is projected ~2050; thereafter non-monsoon flows fall. Cryosphere supports >20% of India’s GDP and >1.3 billion downstream users. It recommends treating the Himalayan ecosystem as critical national infrastructure, expanding research stations, and cross-border real-time hydrological data sharing and joint disaster response.

China is planting trees and other vegetation along the margins of the Taklamakan Desert to curb desertification and shifting sand. The desert lies in southwest Xinjiang (NW China) within the Tarim Basin, China’s largest inland basin. It extends ~960 km W-E, ~420 km wide, area ~320,000 sq km; world’s second-largest shifting-sand desert, 85% crescent dunes, flanked by Tien Shan (N) and Kunlun (S), with the Tarim River on its northern edge.

Third BIMSTEC conference on traditional medicine knowledge, genetic resources and IPR in Goa; organised by Ministry of Ayush, AIIA nodal; alongside 2nd Nodal Group. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand discussed conservation, research/innovation and safeguards (PIC, MAT, benefit-sharing). BIMSTEC formed 6-6-1997 Bangkok (BIST-EC); Myanmar joined 1997 (BIMST-EC); Nepal observer 1998; Nepal and Bhutan members Feb 2004; chair alphabetical; secretariat Dhaka; SAARC-ASEAN bridge.

At the 70th IAEA General Conference, India highlighted readiness to share nuclear expertise, including participation in ATLAS (Atomic Technologies Licensed for Applications at Sea), launched in August 2026 in Washington DC at an IAEA ministerial event, to explore safe small modular reactor solutions for commercial shipping and floating energy plants. India assumed chairmanship of the IAEA-linked Regional Cooperative Agreement (RCA) in May 2026 under “Vishwa Bandhu Bharat.” LIGO-India, a gravitational-wave mega-science project at Hingoli, Maharashtra, reported EPC progress via international collaboration.

DRDO demonstrated indigenous Gallium Nitride (GaN) Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) technology for high-frequency, high-power systems. MMICs operate at 300 MHz-300 GHz; a 3.5 mm×3 mm GaN chip delivers up to 30 W. Developed by SSPL, New Delhi, with pilot production at GAETEC, Hyderabad, it covers S-band components and applications up to X-band (8-12 GHz) using indigenous 4-inch GaN-on-SiC substrates, enabling AESA radars, EW jammers, missiles and SatCom, reducing import dependence and ITAR-type constraints.

Ladakh Lieutenant Governor declared Kumik village in Zanskar as the region’s first designated ‘Heritage Village’, citing preservation of Kanjur manuscripts, Tibetan Buddhist texts and local Zanskar traditions. Kanjur (Kangyur) is the canonical collection of Buddha’s words; Tengyur contains commentaries by Indian and Tibetan scholars; both underpin Tibetan Buddhist literature. Zanskar is a high-altitude Trans-Himalayan Ladakh region. India’s first heritage village is Pragpur (Kangra Valley, Himachal Pradesh), notified in 1997.

Assam Chief Minister stated Assam hosts 3,260 one-horned rhinoceroses, about 80% of the global total; global rhino population is estimated at ~4,075. Kaziranga National Park has over 2,600 rhinos, while Manas National Park supports 40-50. In 2025, Assam recorded zero rhino poaching, only the second such year since the 1970s. The International Rhino Foundation’s State of the Rhino Report 2026 confirmed zero poaching in 2025 across India, Nepal and Indonesia.

The 25th anniversary of the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) as an Institution of National Importance was recently celebrated. Headquartered in New Delhi, ICWA is funded by the Ministry of External Affairs. Established in 1943 by Indian intellectuals, it is registered as a non-profit under the Registration of Societies Act, 1860. An Act of Parliament (2001) declared it an Institution of National Importance; the Vice President is ex-officio President. ICWA focuses on international relations and foreign affairs.

Gucchi mushroom, a rare Himalayan ingredient, is featured on the BRICS Summit 2026 menu. Scientifically Morchella esculenta, it has honeycomb-like caps (pale yellow to dark brown) and pale hollow stems. It occurs in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, growing in mountainous coniferous forests with suitable moisture, temperature fluctuations and snowmelt. It is hard to mass-cultivate, hand-collected, dried for preservation, nutrient-rich and costly.

Defence Accounts Department (DAD) achieved a milestone by normalising discrepant pension cases on SPARSH (System for Pension Administration-Raksha). SPARSH, a Ministry of Defence initiative, is the world’s largest defence pension system, covering Army, Navy, Air Force and Defence Civilians. Administered by DAD through PCDA (Pensions), Prayagraj, it is web-based, enables centralised sanction/claims/disbursal with self-verification, digital identification, transparent account view, direct bank credit without intermediaries, and maintains complete entitlement history till cessation.

ED, at its 36th Quarterly Zonal Officers’ Conference in Bengaluru (Sept 14-15), prioritised detecting fraud in IBC, 2016 proceedings and PMLA linkages. Malpractices flagged: Section 29A circumvention, related-party claim inflation, CoC manipulation, asset stripping, excessive haircuts. IBC Sections 14 (moratorium) and 32A (post-resolution immunity) noted; PMLA enables attachment/confiscation. FY2021-22 to FY2025-26: 1,077 resolutions; ~₹2.47 lakh crore recovered (~29%). Subhash Chandra: NCLT Aug 25 settlement ₹6.25 crore vs ₹22,006.57 crore claims; stayed Sept 1. Alchemist Ltd: alleged ₹1,842-crore scandal; ED intervention led NCLT to terminate CIRP amid CoC-domination and Section 32A misuse concerns.

Ministry of Finance notified a revised Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) framework for UPI, implemented via NPCI guidelines, introducing nominal MDR on select large-value P2M payments from 15 October 2026. P2P remains free. P2M up to ₹2,000 has zero MDR; above ₹2,000, MDR is 0.4%, capped at ₹300 for ≥₹75,000. Utilities pay ₹5; capital markets 0.02% (cap ₹300). Small P2PM vendors (≤₹1 lakh/month) exempt; no consumer surcharge. P2P is ~37% volume, ~70% value; 96% merchant txns are <₹2,000.

BirdLife International released its quadrennial State of the World’s Birds (Flyways Edition) 2026 at the Global Flyways Summit, Nairobi (Kenya). Findings: ~45% migratory species declining; 1 in 9 (11%) threatened; 58% of 1,099 migratory-bird KBAs in poor/very poor condition; seabirds and shorebirds worst. Drivers include agricultural expansion, habitat loss/fragmentation, illegal killing (13-42 million/year in Europe-Mediterranean-Middle East), climate change, invasive alien species and energy-collision risks. The Nairobi Flyways Declaration (100+ signatories) calls for synchronized transboundary flyway action. Finance: ADB $3 billion/decade for 50 priority wetlands (EAAF); CAF $3-5 billion by 2050 for 30+ landscapes; World Bank-BirdLife multi-billion frameworks across Africa-Europe-Asia for 2+ billion migratory birds.

BRIC-National Institute of Plant Genome Research (BRIC-NIPGR), New Delhi, inaugurated the “SpeedSeed Phenotyping and Resource Optimization for Unified Trait Analysis” (SPROUT) facility. It is a season-independent, controlled-environment facility enabling high-throughput phenotyping, precision stress screening, and evaluation of germplasm and breeding populations. It aims to accelerate development and deployment of climate-resilient crop varieties under changing environmental stress conditions, supporting India’s food security goals.

Prime Minister of India greeted people on Nuakhai, a key social and agricultural harvest festival of Western Odisha. “Nuakhai” combines “nua” (new) and “khai” (food), marking the welcome of new rice. It is observed on the fifth day of the lunar fortnight of Bhadrapada (August-September). Rituals include nine sets (“nine colours”), offering newly harvested Nabanha to presiding deities, followed by delicacies and Nuakhai Juhar.

Kerala State Human Rights Commission directed urgent rehabilitation of Paniya tribal families living in tarpaulin shelters at Vaniyampuzha across Chaliyar River in Pothukal panchayat, Kerala. Paniya (Paniyan) are a Scheduled Tribe, Kerala’s largest single ST population, found in Wayanad and parts of Kannur, Kozhikode, Malappuram; also Gudalur-Pandalur (Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu) and south Kodagu (Karnataka). Mostly labourers, historically bonded; now grow rice and ragi. Paniya language is Dravidian, close to Malayalam; bamboo-thatch huts; worship Kali and banyan trees.

India and MERCOSUR signed the First Additional Protocol to the India–MERCOSUR Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) to enable acceptance of electronic Certificates of Origin. MERCOSUR (Southern Common Market) is a South American bloc created by the 1991 Treaty of Asunción, became a customs union in January 1995, headquartered at Montevideo. India-MERCOSUR PTA was signed on 25 January 2004, in force from 1 June 2009, covering 450 and 452 tariff lines.

India installed Steady State Superconducting Tokamak-1 (SST-1) at the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), Gandhinagar, Gujarat (autonomous under Department of Atomic Energy). ‘Artificial Sun’ refers to tokamak fusion reactors replicating solar fusion: deuterium-tritium nuclei fuse into helium, requiring plasma; Indian experiments exceeded 200 million°C. Upgraded gyrotron-based ECRH replaces older 42 GHz systems. ADITYA / ADITYA-U is India’s first air-core copper-coil tokamak; SST-1 is the first superconducting tokamak for long-duration steady-state operation using magnetic confinement in a torus.

India’s 2026 southwest monsoon is erratic and deficient amid strengthening El Niño: cumulative all-India rainfall is 14.7% below LPA (Sep 13); 24 of 36 subdivisions have >10% deficit, worst in southern states, Marathwada and Vidarbha. June had 0 LPS (-38%); July 4 LPS/24 days (+1%); August 6/26 days (-16.3%). Kharif acreage is 1,096.5 lakh ha (Sep 11), 1.4% below 2025; urea sales fell 6.6% and DAP/MOP/complex fertilisers declined. USDA projects rice 147 mt (154) and maize 50 mt (55.1). El Niño SST is ~+1.8°C; NOAA sees >90% chance of very strong El Niño (Sep-Jan). Rabi risk crops include wheat, rapeseed-mustard, chana/masoor/matar, potato/onion/garlic, and jeera/saunf/dhaniya. FAO Food Price Index is 133.3 (Aug; highest since Nov 2022; below 160.2 in Mar 2022; 2014-16=100), with vegetable oil highest since Jun 2022 and cereals at a 27-month high.

CSIR-National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (CSIR-NIScPR) is leveraging SARAL AI to strengthen science communication. SARAL AI, an initiative of the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), New Delhi, converts complex research publications, patents and ANRF journal outputs into multimedia formats (podcasts, short videos, posters, business briefs). Researchers upload papers via arXiv links/LaTeX; content and figures are auto-extracted; scripts are generated using Gemini/GPT; narration supports Hindi and 18 Indian languages; videos can be shared on social media.

India launched the Incentive Scheme for Promotion of Domestic Piped Natural Gas (PNG) Connections to expand clean, affordable piped cooking fuel by converting unbilled domestic PNG connections into active billed ones. Nodal ministry: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. CGD networks are built by entities authorised by PNGRB. Implemented in two tranches over six months, with geographical-area thresholds; each incremental billed connection earns 200 SCM additional gas allocation.

A study of 184 women undergoing mastectomy found low vitamin D levels correlated with more painful recovery after breast cancer surgery. Vitamin D (fat-soluble calciferol) comes from UV sunlight skin synthesis, fortified foods (milk, cereal, yogurt), and egg yolk, saltwater fish, liver; it is stored in fat. It aids calcium absorption, bone/teeth health, inflammation and immune modulation. Deficiency causes rickets / osteomalacia, higher in darker skin / extensive clothing; excess causes kidney stones, failure, arrhythmia, death.

In Assam, captive breeding under the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP) increased the pygmy hog (Porcula salvania)-world’s smallest, rarest wild pig and an indicator of tall, dense grasslands-from 6 founders captured in Manas National Park (1996) to 194. PHCP, formed in 1995, partners Assam Forest Department, Durrell, MoEFCC, IUCN/SSC Wild Pig Specialist Group, Aaranyak and EcoSystems-India; populations occur in Sonai-Rupai, Bornadi, Orang and Manas.

NIMHANS has been designated the Coordinating Centre of Excellence (CoE) for the BRICS Network of Centres of Excellence in Mental Health, giving it a coordinating role in the BRICS framework. NIMHANS is a CoE in mental health and neurosciences with a tripartite mission of patient care, research and training. It is a Deemed University (1994) and an Institute of National Importance (2012), contributes to the National Mental Health Policy and rights-based care, and is the nodal centre for Tele MANAS (Tele mental health Assistance and Nationally Actionable Plan through States).