Indian naval ships will join maritime patrol and other aircraft to participate in a Passage Exercise or PASSEX with the US Navy’s Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group during its transit through Indian Ocean Region (IOR). A passage exercise is normally undertaken whenever an opportunity arises, in contrast to pre-planned maritime …

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has made use of drones mandatory for video recording of the national highway projects during different stages of development, construction, operation and maintenance. These videos will be saved on NHAI’s portal “Data Lake” to assess the progress made on the projects. Important points: …

Recently, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared that the Ebola outbreak, that started in February 2021 in Guinea, is over now. In its first deadly wave in 2013-2016, the Ebola outbreak killed 11,300 people, mostly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia. The WHO in its list of “Ten threats …

Important points: It includes Corporation Tax collections of Rs. 74,356 crore and Personal Income Tax inflows, which include the Security Transaction Tax of Rs. 1.11 lakh crore. The jump in the direct tax collections reflects healthy exports and a continuation of various industrial and construction activities. It is expected that …

Recently, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced that it will install seven new doppler radars in Maharashtra, including Mumbai in 2021. In January 2021, the Union Minister for Earth Sciences commissioned two of the ten indigenously built X-Band Doppler Weather Radars (DWR) to closely monitor the weather changes over the …

Snow and glaciers are melting rapidly in the Himalayan range due to climate change, altering water supplies in the rivers like Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra in the Himalaya-Karakoram (HK) ranges. The HK region in South Asia, often called the water tower of Asia or the Third Pole is one of …

BRICS Nations have unanimously agreed on an innovation co-operation at the 11th BRICS S&T Steering Committee Meeting. The proposal put forward by India would be considered at the BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Entrepreneurship (STIEP) working group for elaborating the action plan. The concept note and Action Plan for BRICS Innovation …

The abundance of heavy metals in oldest metal-poor stars that are born from the ejecta of first stars has intrigued astronomers for long as already known processes of reaction of chemical elements by nuclear fusion within stars (nucleosynthesis) could not explain it. Scientists have now found a clue to this …

Researchers have developed a non-expensive way to coat carbon on lithium metal oxide electrodes for lithium-ion batteries. The life of the lithium-ion cells prepared using these electrode materials is expected to be doubled due to protective carbon coating. Lithium-ion batteries are the most commonly used power source for electric vehicles. …

An inspiring journey of 100 women scientists who returned to science after a break in career has been documented into a book form. The women scientists featured here had to discontinue their pursuit of career in science due to family responsibilities and social reasons. The book, which chronicles their journey …

Recently, two Supreme Court (SC) judges have recused themselves from hearing cases relating to West Bengal. Important points: It is the act of abstaining from participation in an official action such as a legal proceeding due to a conflict of interest of the presiding court official or administrative officer. When …

Recently, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee has recommended that the Australia’s Great Barrier Reef should be added to a list of “in danger” World Heritage Sites Placement on the ‘‘in-danger list’’ is not considered a sanction. Some nations have their sites added to gain international attention and help to save …

Recently, Shyam Sundar Jyani, a Rajasthan-based climate activist, has won the prestigious United Nations’ Land for Life Award for his environment conservation concept, Familial Forestry. The winner was announced on 17th June 2021 which is the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought Familial Forestry means transferring the care of …

A recent survey has found the presence of antibodies against the Nipah virus (NiV) in some bat species from a cave in Mahabaleshwar, a popular hill station in Maharashtra. The survey was conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) – National Institute of Virology (NIV). Important points: The …

Recently, the Vice-Chief of the Naval Staff has inaugurated the construction of the second frigate of the Krivak or Talwar class. The construction of the first ship was laid in January, 2021. It would be delivered in 2026 and the second ship after six months. Important points: The Krivak class …

A 50 kWp Solar rooftop in Solan, Himachal Pradesh was inaugurated under Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) of the MInistry of Power. The project further reinforces the ‘Go Green’ Initiative of the government envisaged in the Urban Distribution scheme. Important points: December 2014. Power Finance Corporation Ltd. (PFC), a Navratna …

The government proposed changes to the Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules 2020, banning all “flash sales” in order to monitor the deep discounts offered on e-commerce websites. Important points: Conventional flash sales by third party sellers are not banned on e-commerce platforms but only the predatory ones. Small businesses complain of …

The Central Government has asked the States Governments to buy electronic weighing machines for ration shops from electronic Point of Sale devices (ePoS) savings. For this, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs has amended the Food Security (Assistance To State Government Rules) 2015 to encourage the states to generate savings through …

Recently, the Tripura High Court has discovered that an oversight in drafting the 2014 amendments to the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 had unintentionally rendered a key provision (Section 27A) of the Act inoperable. Important points: India is a signatory to the United Nations (UN) Single Convention …

Recently, the delimitation exercise has started in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). The completion of the delimitation exercise will mark the political process in the Union Territory (UT) that has been under Centre’s rule since June 2018. Important points: Delimitation is the act of fixing or redrawing the limits or boundaries …