Daily Current Affairs 2025  

14/12/2025

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CA-14/12/2025

• Central PSUs such as NHPC, SJVN and NTPC Green Energy Ltd (NGEL) have started floating state‑specific JV companies with state governments or their nodal renewable agencies to develop utility‑scale solar projects.
• Under this model, PSUs bring capital and project expertise, while states contribute land and facilitate clearances, giving states an equity stake and a direct interest in quick execution.​

• Utility‑scale ground‑mounted solar projects need large contiguous tracts, typically around 4–7 acres per MW, leading to a huge cumulative land requirement for India’s long‑term solar targets.
• Much of the technically suitable land overlaps with fertile agricultural areas or ecologically sensitive zones, and fragmented ownership plus varying compensation norms across states further delay acquisition and trigger disputes.​

• By partnering with states, PSUs can access pre‑identified government land or coordinated private land parcels, reducing litigation and pre‑construction delays flagged in CAG and Parliamentary Standing Committee observations.
• The PSC has noted that such JVs improve coordination on land approvals and has also recommended single‑window mechanisms to resolve land issues in a time‑bound manner.​

• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’s Solar Parks scheme already recognises JV models between central PSUs and state nodal agencies or SECI for park development, with financial support for internal and external infrastructure.
• MNRE has told the Parliamentary panel that identification and allocation of government land by states is the “simplest way” to speed up renewable project implementation, and it has been urging states to create such land banks.​

• Several states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat are separately creating land banks and policies to earmark government land for renewable energy, complementing the PSU–state JV approach.
• Alongside JVs, MNRE has also simplified approval processes for solar parks developed by central PSUs and their JVs by exempting their DPRs from state committee vetting, to accelerate park development.​

• GPS jamming is the intentional blocking of satellite navigation signals so that receivers cannot get a valid position or time, whereas GPS spoofing is the deliberate transmission of fake but plausible signals so that receivers compute a wrong position or time while thinking everything is normal.​

• Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) like GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and BeiDou transmit very weak signals from space, which are easy to overpower or imitate with ground-based radio transmitters.​
• Many civil signals are open and unauthenticated, so anyone who knows the frequencies and codes can generate interfering or counterfeit signals with relatively accessible hardware.
• Jamming transmits strong radio-frequency noise or structured signals on or near the GNSS frequencies, drowning out the genuine satellite signals so the receiver cannot compute a stable position or time solution.​
• Spoofing generates counterfeit GNSS signals that look valid to the receiver, gradually overpowering the real ones and then steering the calculated position, velocity or time away from reality.​The receiver usually still shows “good” status, but the location or time output is false, which can mislead aircraft, ships, drones, vehicles, or time-synchronised infrastructure.​

Aspect	GPS jamming	GPS spoofing
Main goal	Deny GNSS service by blocking signals.​	Deceive by providing false but plausible data.​
Technique	Overwhelm band with RF noise or interference.​	Transmit synchronised counterfeit GNSS signals.​
Effect on receiver	Loss of lock, no/poor position, obvious failure.​	Receiver outputs wrong position/time but appears healthy.​
Complexity	Relatively simple to implement.​	More technically sophisticated and targeted.​
Detectability	Generally easier to detect and locate.​	Harder to detect; needs specific monitoring/cross-checks.​

• The Red Castle Museum, also known as Assaraya Alhamra, is Libya's national archaeological museum housed in the historic Red Castle fortress in Tripoli city.

• Established in 1919 by Italian colonial authorities, it initially housed artifacts from prehistoric times across Libya.​
• During World War II under British control, it expanded to the full castle and was renamed the Libyan Museum in 1948.
• Covers 5,000 years of history, from prehistory through Phoenician, Punic, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, and modern eras up to Libya's 1953 independence.​
• Features four levels with 47 galleries displaying mosaics, sculptures, coins, mummies, jewelry, pottery, and natural history exhibits.​

• The Ratle Hydroelectric Project is an 850 MW run-of-the-river scheme on the Chenab River in Kishtwar district, Jammu and Kashmir.​

• It features a 133-meter-high concrete gravity dam, diversion tunnels, and an underground powerhouse with four 205 MW Francis turbine units plus a 30 MW auxiliary unit.
• The project aims to generate about 3,137 GWh of electricity annually, supporting grid stability and regional power needs.​
• Formed in 2021 as a joint venture, Ratle Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited (RHPCL) involves NHPC (51% stake) and JKSPDC (49%).
• Construction advanced with Chenab River diversion in January 2024, but faced delays; as of May 2025, it was 21% complete with a revised target of 2028.​
• Pakistan has consistently opposed the project on the Chenab by treating it as a violation of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT).
• As of late 2025, the project is under construction with completion pushed to around 2028, despite Pakistan’s continued objections. 

• Developed with support from Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N),
• It aims to create a unified digital identity called Sujal Gaon ID for every rural water scheme, functioning like "Aadhaar for rural water systems" to enhance transparency, community ownership, and accountability.​

• Sujal Gaon ID: Unique digital profile for each village scheme, detailing water sources, infrastructure condition, supply reliability, quality status, and maintenance history.​
• Integrated Database: Centralizes asset inventories, scheme designs, operational records, water quality reports, supply metrics, and community feedback into one platform.​
• Geo-Spatial Mapping: Links with PM Gati Shakti GIS for precise mapping of pipelines, pumps, and networks, aiding efficient maintenance and future development.​

• Often called the "Aadhaar for rural water systems," the app promotes transparency, accountability, and community ownership in water governance.
• It shifts power to citizens and local bodies, ensuring sustainable service delivery and reducing inefficiencies in JJM implementation.
• States must integrate schemes into the app's Sujal Gaon ID module to receive JJM funds, enhancing overall program oversight.
• The platform will soon be available on Google Play Store for widespread adoption.​

• Also known as stony or scleractinian corals, are marine invertebrates in the phylum Cnidaria that build rigid calcium carbonate skeletons.​

• These corals form colonies of polyps, each with a sac-like body, mouth, and tentacles equipped with stinging nematocysts for capturing prey.
• They secrete aragonite, a form of calcium carbonate, creating hard, rock-like structures that accumulate over time into reefs.
• Most species, like elkhorn and brain corals, rely on symbiotic algae called zooxanthellae for energy via photosynthesis.​

• Hard corals thrive primarily in warm, shallow, sunlit tropical waters less than 60 meters deep, though some ahermatypic species endure cold deep-sea conditions up to 6,000 meters.
• Growth rates vary: branching types like Acropora can extend 10 cm yearly, while massive forms grow slower at 0.3-2 cm.
• Colonies expand through asexual budding, forming diverse shapes such as branches, plates, or boulders.​

• As reef-builders, hard corals create foundational habitats supporting vast biodiversity, visible even from space as the planet's largest living structures.
• They reproduce via mass spawning once or twice yearly, releasing eggs and sperm synchronized by full moons.
• Vulnerabilities include bleaching from warm waters expelling zooxanthellae and threats like ocean acidification.

• Hard corals, have faced significant declines recently due to climate-driven threats.
• A major Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network assessment highlights a 48% drop in Caribbean hard coral cover from 1980 to 2024.​
• Mass bleaching events from marine heatwaves in 1998, 2005, and 2023-24 have starved corals by expelling symbiotic algae.
• Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease, spreading across 30 countries since 2014, causes rapid mortality in over 30 species.
• Losses of herbivores like Diadema sea urchins have spurred an 85% macroalgae surge, outcompeting corals.​

• The temple dates to the Pallava era, with later enhancements by Chola and Nayak rulers, carved into one of the world's oldest rocks at 3.8 billion years old.
• The complex includes three shrines: Manikka Vinayagar at the base, Thayumanaswamy (Shiva) midway, and Uchi Pillaiyar at the summit, accessed via 417-437 steep steps.​

• Karthigai Deepam is a prominent Tamil festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu and neighboring states, marking the triumph of light over darkness through the lighting of oil lamps.
• It honors Lord Shiva's appearance as an infinite column of fire and the birth of Lord Muruga. The festival occurred on December 3-4, 2025, ali

• A single-judge bench permitted petitioners to light the Karthigai Deepam at Deepathoon under protection, initiating contempt proceedings when officials lit it at Uchi Pillaiyar instead.
• The state cited historical precedents and land deeds, arguing against changes, while a division bench criticized prohibitory orders as overriding judicial directives.

• The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is a United Nations specialized agency dedicated to transforming agriculture and rural economies in developing countries.
• Established in 1977 following the World Food Conference, it focuses on empowering rural poor, including smallholder farmers, women, and indigenous communities, through low-interest loans and grants.​
• Headquartered in Rome, IFAD has 180 member states and invests about $1 billion annually, reaching millions through over 2,000 projects.

• IFAD's core mandate involves reducing rural poverty, enhancing food security, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices.
• It supports projects that boost productivity, improve market access, and build climate resilience for vulnerable groups.
• Since inception, IFAD has provided over $23 billion in funding, leveraging additional co-financing for initiatives in more than 100 countries.​

• IFAD finances rural infrastructure like irrigation and storage, while emphasizing innovation in farming techniques and value chains.
• It prioritizes marginalized populations, offering favorable lending terms to governments for on-lending to beneficiaries.
• In India, projects target states like Bihar and Rajasthan for smallholder farming and women's empowerment.​

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