Current Affairs

An IIT Gandhinagar–Illinois study finds herbal cigarettes are no safer than tobacco, emitting comparable or higher harmful particles and oxidative compounds. Combustion releases carbon monoxide, tar and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Tested herbal mixes included basil, clove, cinnamon, mint, green tea, chamomile and water lily; emissions showed ~20% more ultrafine particles. Tendu leaf-wrapped products showed ~49% higher oxidative potential. Tendu (Diospyros melanoxylon) is an NTFP (“Green Gold”) used to wrap beedis; regulation often falls under broader smoking/public health laws.

Department of Youth Affairs (Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports), via Mera Yuva Bharat (MY Bharat), began Phase-I of Viksit Vibrant Village Program (VVVP) 2026: 7-day immersion in border villages of Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, with Ministry of Home Affairs and ITBP. 500 volunteers (selected via online quiz; >3 lakh participants; all States/UTs) cover 43 villages (250) and 50 villages (250), engaging PRIs/administration/security for surveys, Gram Sabha, cleanliness, socio-economic assessment, development planning, and Nation First Challenge aligned to Viksit Bharat @2047.

Arjun Modhwadia reported 8 Asiatic lions, including cubs, dead in Gir from suspected Babesiosis (Babesia). Livestock and ungulates like chital and nilgai are reservoirs; stress/co-infections can cause mortality. Forest Department containment includes isolation/quarantine, anti-protozoan drugs at Jasadhar Centre, and tick-control via cattle deworming, shed disinfection and burning grass near watering holes. Gir is the only habitat for Asiatic lions.

The North Eastern Council (NEC) held its 73rd Plenary Session on 4 June 2026 in Shillong, Meghalaya, discussing flagship initiatives (Bamboo, Agarwood, Ashtalakshmi Darshan), reviewing CM High-Level Task Forces, and deliberating the North East Vision Plan 2047. NEC is a statutory advisory body under the NEC Act, 1971; established 7 November 1972; under DoNER; covers 8 states (Sikkim added in 2002).

In 2025, India added over 37 GW solar capacity, surpassing the USA’s 34 GW and ranking second globally for annual solar additions. Total installed solar capacity crossed 155 GW; non-fossil sources formed 51.93% of total installed power capacity (Dec 2025). Renewable Energy Statistics 2026 ranks installed renewables: China first, US second, India third. Initiatives include PM Surya Ghar (40 lakh households), 55 solar parks (40 GW), Green Energy Corridor Phase-II, ALMM enforcement, ISA leadership, and Paris Agreement NDCs achieved ahead of schedule.

Andhra Pradesh’s community-led Andhra Pradesh Community-managed Natural Farming (APCNF) programme won the 2026 Food Planet Prize. The Food Planet Prize, established in 2019 by Swedish entrepreneur-philanthropist Curt Bergfors through the Curt Bergfors Foundation, is the world’s largest environmental award for transforming food systems, offering $1.5 million to scale solutions within 10 years. APCNF, launched in 2016 by Rythu Sadhikara Samstha under the state agriculture department, helps farmers shift to natural farming, cutting synthetic inputs, improving soil health, biodiversity and resilience, and reducing input costs.

A pre-monsoon convective dust storm (Andhi) hit Churu, reducing visibility; dust spread across western/northern Rajasthan (Churu, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Sri Ganganagar) into Haryana, Punjab and NCR. Driven by intense heating over the Thar creating low pressure and convective updrafts, it highlights Aravallis: Proterozoic fold, SW-NE, across Gujarat-Rajasthan-Haryana-Delhi; Guru Shikhar (Mount Abu); Luni-Sabarmati-Banas; quartzite-marble-schist-gneiss; barrier and climatic divide; fragmented (28 gaps), degraded by illegal mining, hill flattening, deforestation and urbanisation, worsening desertification and food security.

NSO (MoSPI) released a revised Index of Industrial Production (IIP) series with base year shifted from 2011–12 to 2022–23 (index=100), aligning with updated GDP/GVA series. Industrial output grew 4.9% in April 2026 (5.8% a year earlier). Basket expanded to 1,042 products (463 groups) and sectoral indices to four: Mining, Manufacturing, Electricity, and a composite gas/water/sewerage/waste division, with a linking formula for continuity.

35th WMCC reviewed India–China border situation. Dispute arises from differing perceptions of the LAC along the 3,488‑km boundary. 1865 WH Johnson’s Johnson Line placed Aksai Chin in J&K; 1914 Simla proposed McMahon Line; China opposed; 1962 war. Disputed sectors: western Ladakh–Aksai Chin, middle (HP/UK), eastern Arunachal/Tawang (‘South Tibet’), Sikkim’s Doklam tri-junction. 2005 framework: political parameters, settlement framework, final delineation/demarcation; peace on LAC, no unilateral change/buffer zones, comprehensive talks.

India successfully flight-tested the indigenous RudraM-II missile. RudraM-II is an air-to-surface missile designed for launch from an airborne platform. It has been developed by Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad, along with other organisations. RCI, Hyderabad functions as a nodal laboratory under the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

India’s seafood exports hit an all-time high in FY 2025–26 at 19,72,018 MT valued at USD 8.46 billion. Frozen shrimp led exports, contributing 40.19% of quantity and 66.52% of earnings; the US and China were top destinations. MPEDA (Ministry of Commerce and Industry) supports exports via PMMSY, FIDF, higher duty-free input limits, and SHAPHARI certification, alongside proposals on indigenous broodstock, global standards, export facilitation, and an SSGC.

Khet Bachao Abhiyan is a nationwide one-month campaign launched by the Union Agriculture Minister at Ramsia village, Raisen district, Madhya Pradesh. Implemented through district- and village-level activities, it is monitored via dashboards and field demonstrations. Led by IIVR, Varanasi, with Ministry of Agriculture and ICAR guidance, it promotes soil health, sustainable farming, balanced fertiliser/natural farming, soil testing/Soil Health Cards, checks fake inputs, mandates scientist field visits during June 1–30, and links KCC, PM-Kisan, crop insurance, mini seed kits, pulses & oilseeds mission and mechanisation programmes.

Synthetic biology involves redesigning organisms for useful purposes by engineering new abilities, enabled by advances in understanding genes/cells and AI, allowing genome-wide engineering with desired properties. Uses include bioremediation and modifying rice to produce beta-carotene to prevent Vitamin A deficiency. Unlike genome editing’s small DNA changes, it stitches long/novel DNA segments into genomes. Key concerns: affordability of personalised therapies, biosafety, biosecurity, cyberbiosecurity, and ethical issues on equity and risk-benefit distribution.

The Delhi High Court in ‘Laksh Vir Singh Yadav v. Union of India & Ors’ recognised the ‘Right to Be Forgotten’ as an integral facet of the fundamental right to privacy under Article 21. It laid principles for de-indexing or masking names in court records. De-indexing removes name-based searchability without deleting records, operates globally, applies to acquittal/discharge cases, and excludes cases involving women, children, or breach of public trust; masking replaces identifiers with neutral labels (e.g., XYZ).

India’s Prime Minister and Myanmar’s President reviewed bilateral ties and regional/global issues, including AI and space. Both welcomed growth of the Rupee-Kyat settlement mechanism, operationalized in 2024, to ease trade. Myanmar links India’s Neighbourhood First, Act East and MAHASAGAR policies. Key connectivity projects are the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway and Kaladan Multi-Modal Project. The 1,643 km border drives security cooperation against cross-border insurgencies and arms/narcotics from the Golden Triangle; ties also rest on shared Theravada Buddhist heritage.

Analysis flags ground-level ozone (O₃) as a growing air-pollution challenge in Delhi. It is a secondary pollutant in the troposphere, formed when Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) react with Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in sunlight (NOx + VOCs + sunlight → O₃). Major sources include vehicles, industries and thermal power plants; levels peak in summer. Impacts: respiratory ailments, crop damage and photochemical smog. Safe limits: 100 µg/m³ (8-hour) and 180 µg/m³ (1-hour) under WHO standards and NAAQS, 2009.

Kshipra (Shipra) riverine system in Madhya Pradesh faces a crisis as drying tributaries undermine its perennial flow. A tributary of the Chambal, it originates in the Vindhya Range near Ujjain, flows across the Malwa Plateau, and is about 195 km long; major tributaries are Khan and Gambhir. Considered sacred like the Ganga, Ujjain lies on its right bank; it is cited in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain texts, hosts Sandipani’s ashram, and the Ujjain Kumbha Mela every 12 years.

Prime Minister paid tribute on the birth anniversary of Lokmata Ahilyabai Holkar (1725–1795), “Philosopher Queen” of the Holkar dynasty who ruled Malwa in the 18th century. Born at Chondi, Ahmednagar (Maharashtra), she married Malhar Rao Holkar and assumed charge in 1767 after family deaths; Indore was a major city. She promoted trade, textiles, education and welfare; developed Maheshwar textiles (Maheshwari sarees), restored Kashi Vishwanath and Somnath temples, and built Maheshwar (Ahilya) Fort on the Narmada.

India signed a deal to sell BrahMos missiles to Vietnam; a similar deal with Indonesia is in the final stage, per the Defence Secretary. BrahMos (Brahmaputra–Moskva) is a DRDO (50.5%)-NPO Mashinostroyenia (49.5%) joint-venture supersonic cruise missile, two-stage (solid booster, liquid ramjet), ~Mach 3, range 290 km (350 km under test), land/ship/air/sub variants, low radar signature, altitude up to 15 km (terminal ~10 m), 200–300 kg conventional warhead; first foreign buyer: Philippines ($375 million, 2022).

Scientists from Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP), Lucknow reconstructed ~4,000 years of Majuli Island (Assam) climate-vegetation history using multi-proxy palynology (fossilised pollen) and sediment grain-size, plus coexistence approach for MAT/MAP. Majuli, between Brahmaputra and Subansiri, is the world’s largest inhabited river island, Neo-Vaishnavite centre, home to Misings, Deoris and Sonowal Kacharis; Assam bans land sale to non-residents (3 generations). Phases: 4040–2260 cal yrs BP warm-humid; 1100–500 BP monsoon-flood variability (MCA); last 500 years cooler-drier (LIA) with rising anthropogenic pressure; Brahmaputra hydrodynamics became increasingly high-energy.

Nepal PM Balendra Shah’s parliamentary remarks revived India-Nepal boundary disputes. The open 1,850-km border spans Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim; most is demarcated. Treaty of Sugauli (1816) uses Kali/Mahakali River, but its source is contested, affecting Kalapani (tri-junction; India’s Uttarakhand; Nepal’s Darchula), Lipulekh Pass (Tibet link; yatra/trade) and Limpiyadhura. Nepal’s 2020 map included these; India rejected unilateralism. Nepal sent a note (incl. Lipulekh); both prefer bilateral dialogue/joint surveys; India opposes third-party role. Nearly 97% issues are resolved; damaged pillars/farming isn’t state encroachment. Nepal objected to Lipulekh route resumption; India rejected.

Government notified changes in Immigration and Foreigners Rules, 2025 under Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, empowering Central Government to regulate foreigners’ entry, transit, stay, movement and exit, and notify designated immigration posts. Bureau of Immigration oversees visas and regulates movement. Mandatory registration continues, but visas up to 180 days require registration only if stay exceeds 180 days (earlier within 14 days after 180 days). Carriers, educational and medical institutions must share prescribed information; medical reporting norms updated. Entry without valid documents may invite up to 5 years’ imprisonment and/or ₹5 lakh fine; Head Constable+ can arrest without warrant; authorities may restrict/close premises frequented by foreigners. Newborn intimation within 30 days eased if one parent is Indian; report within 30 days if child later acquires foreign citizenship in India.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister, approved the SARTHAK Public Distribution System (Scheme for Assistance in Ration Transport and Handling-Income with Automation in PDS) as an umbrella scheme. It integrates intra-state foodgrain movement and FPS dealers’ margin under NFSA with PDS technology reforms, to strengthen National Food Security Act, 2013 implementation. Valid till March 2031, it uses AI/ML/NLP/Blockchain, unified databases, real-time monitoring, grievance redressal, State Command Control Centres, and ISO-certified processes.

PM SVANidhi (PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi), a Central Sector scheme launched in 2020, is jointly run by MoHUA and DFS to provide affordable working capital, financial inclusion and social protection to street vendors/hawkers (mobile/stall daily goods/services). It offers collateral-free loans in tranches of ₹15,000/₹25,000/₹50,000 with interest subsidy and credit guarantee; UPI-linked RuPay credit card up to ₹30,000 after 2nd tranche repayment; digital cashback up to ₹1,600; SSS profiles families to link 8 Central schemes; training with FSSAI. Reported: 1.05 crore+ sanctions, ₹17,800 crore+ disbursals, 34.81 lakh women; ~46% women, ~70% marginalised; 50 lakh+ families profiled; 1.52 crore+ welfare sanctions.

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft, launched in October 2023, executed a Mars gravity-assist flyby on 15 May 2025, passing within 4,609 km. Mars’ pull boosted speed by nearly 1,000 mph and shifted its heliocentric path by ~1°. Using a multispectral imager, it captured thousands of images, including a crescent view (high phase angle), showing the Huygens double-ring crater and southern highlands. Psyche targets metal-rich asteroid 16 Psyche (main belt between Mars and Jupiter), possibly iron-nickel and an exposed planetesimal core; it will travel >3.6 billion km, arrive in 2029, orbit 2 years, and study imaging, mapping, composition, magnetism, and internal structure.