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10/01/2026

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CA-10/01/2026

• Location: Kamle, Kra Daadi, and Kurung Kumey districts of Arunachal Pradesh
• River: Kamala River, a major tributary of the Subansiri River
• Capacity: 1,720 MW
• Annual Generation: 6,869.92 million units (MU) of renewable energy
• Investment: ₹26,069.50 crore approved by the Public Investment Board (PIB)
• Ownership: NHPC (74% equity) and Arunachal Pradesh Government (26%)
• Completion Timeline: 8 years
• Infrastructure:
  • 216-metre high concrete gravity dam
  • Underground powerhouse
• Implementation Model: Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis

• Energy Transition: Supports India’s Net Zero target by 2070 by adding large-scale renewable capacity.
• Flood Moderation: Designed to reduce flood risks in the Brahmaputra Valley, enhancing climate resilience.
• Regional Development: Expected to boost infrastructure, employment, and energy security in Arunachal Pradesh.

• Environmental Concerns: Large dams in Arunachal often face opposition due to ecological sensitivity and seismic risks.
• Displacement Issues: Potential resettlement of local communities.
• Execution Risks: 8-year timeline may face delays due to terrain, weather, and logistical challenges.
• Geopolitical Sensitivity: Arunachal Pradesh borders China, making infrastructure projects strategically significant.

• Inaugural Address by VP Radhakrishnan
  • Stressed that climate action is India’s growth engine, not a limitation.
  • Linked India’s sustainability ethos to civilisational traditions like Prakriti (harmony with nature) and Aparigraha (ethical restraint).
• India’s Climate Strategy
  • Commitment to net-zero emissions by 2070 under the Panchamrit framework.
  • Focus on clean technology manufacturing, resilience, and adaptation as pillars of growth.
  • Expansion of the “Make in India” climate solutions strategy to embed sustainability into industrial competitiveness.
• Global Collaboration
  • India’s approach emphasizes partnerships without dependence, showcasing leadership in initiatives like the International Solar Alliance.
  • The forum convened policymakers, industry leaders, financiers, and civil society to mobilize long-term climate capital.

• Balancing Growth vs. Responsibility: India must sustain rapid development while meeting climate targets.
• Financing & Technology Access: Mobilizing long-term capital and indigenizing clean tech remain hurdles.
• Equity Concerns: Ensuring climate action benefits vulnerable communities is critical.
• Global Expectations: As India positions itself as a leader, international scrutiny of delivery will intensify.

• Type: Hypersonic boost-glide anti-ship missile
• Range: More than 1,500 km (930 miles)
• Speed: Mach 8–10, making it extremely difficult to intercept
• Warhead: Conventional (with potential for nuclear capability)
• Guidance:
  • Mid-course: Inertial Navigation System (INS) + multi-GNSS
  • Terminal: Active Radar Homing (ARH)
• Launch Platforms: Truck-based Transporter Erector Launcher (TEL); future integration with naval platforms
• Engine: Solid booster (first stage) + scramjet sustainer (second stage)

• Maritime Security: Extends India’s strike reach deep into the Indian Ocean, countering large naval assets like aircraft carriers.
• Deterrence: Hypersonic speed makes interception nearly impossible, enhancing deterrence against adversaries.
• Indigenous Capability: Showcases India’s Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliance) in defense technology.
• Global Context: While the US focuses on stealthy subsonic missiles (LRASM), India’s LRAShM emphasizes speed and range, positioning it as one of the fastest operational anti-ship missiles globally.

• Technological Complexity: Scramjet propulsion and hypersonic glide vehicles are difficult to perfect.
• Countermeasures: Adversaries may invest in directed-energy weapons or advanced electronic warfare to counter hypersonic threats.
• Deployment Readiness: Currently in limited production; full naval integration may take time.

• Members: France, Germany, Poland
• Founded: 28–29 August 1991 in Weimar, Germany
• Purpose: Strengthen dialogue, foster reconciliation (especially Franco-German and German-Polish), promote cooperation on European and cross-border issues.
• Format: Primarily summit meetings of leaders and foreign ministers.

• Reconciliation: Involve France in German-Polish reconciliation, building on the Franco-German partnership.
• Political Cooperation: Strengthen dialogue among the three countries to influence EU policy.
• European Integration: Support Poland’s integration into European structures after the Cold War.

• Informal Nature: The Triangle is not a formal institution, so its influence depends on political will.
• Diverging Interests: France, Germany, and Poland sometimes differ on EU policy, security, and relations with Russia.
• Visibility: Compared to larger EU forums, the Triangle has limited visibility and impact.

• Scramjet (Supersonic Combustion Ramjet) is an air-breathing engine that compresses incoming air at hypersonic speeds without moving parts like turbines.
• Unlike rockets, scramjets don’t carry oxidizers; they use atmospheric oxygen, making them lighter and more efficient.
• Operates effectively at speeds above Mach 5 (≈6,100 km/h), enabling sustained hypersonic flight.

• Test Conducted by DRDL (Hyderabad) at the Scramjet Connect Pipe Test (SCPT) Facility.
• Achieved 12+ minutes of sustained combustion, a record for India’s hypersonic research.
• Builds on earlier subscale scramjet tests in April 2025, now scaled to full engine.
• Positions India among leading nations (US, Russia, China) in hypersonic propulsion technology.

• Hypersonic Cruise Missiles powered by scramjets can:
  • Travel at Mach 6–7 with long-range endurance.
  • Penetrate advanced air defense systems due to speed and maneuverability.
  • Deliver precision strikes with reduced reaction time for adversaries.
• Enhances India’s deterrence capability and strengthens its role in next-gen aerospace defense.

Feature	Rocket Engine	Ramjet Engine	Scramjet Engine (India’s Test)
Speed Range	Up to Mach 3–4	Mach 3–6	Mach 5+ (hypersonic)
Oxidizer Requirement	Carries onboard	Uses atmospheric oxygen	Uses atmospheric oxygen
Efficiency	Lower (heavy fuel load)	Moderate	High (lighter, sustained burn)
India’s Achievement	Established capability	Tested earlier	12+ min sustained scramjet run

• Thermal management: Hypersonic speeds generate extreme heat; India’s test used active cooling to counter this.
• Material science: Requires advanced alloys and composites to withstand stress.
• Integration: Transitioning from ground tests to flight trials will be the next big hurdle.

• Integrated Education Scheme: Builds on earlier phases (2018–2026) to unify pre-primary, primary, secondary, and senior secondary education under one umbrella.
• Launch Timeline: Samagra Shiksha 2.0 ends on 31 March 2026; 3.0 begins from April 2026.
• Vision: Aligned with Viksit Bharat 2047, focusing on equitable, inclusive, and technology-enabled education.

• Community Ownership of Schools: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan emphasized that schools should be “entrusted back to society” rather than run only through bureaucratic files.
• Technology Integration: Stronger use of digital boards, ICT, AI-based learning tools, and smart classrooms.
• Teacher Training: Expanded central support for professional development and capacity building.
• Foundational Learning Reset: States like Tamil Nadu, Punjab, and Maharashtra are pushing for deeper focus on early literacy and numeracy.
• Nutrition & Well-being: Integration of mid-day meals, health, and wellness initiatives with schooling.
• Governance & Infrastructure: Priority interventions for better school management, infrastructure upgrades, and student entitlements (uniforms, textbooks, transport, scholarships).

• Implementation Gap: Translating community ownership into practice may face resistance from bureaucratic systems.
• Digital Divide: Technology integration risks excluding rural/underserved students without access to devices or internet.
• Teacher Preparedness: Large-scale training must overcome uneven state capacities.
• Funding & Monitoring: Ensuring adequate resources and accountability across diverse states.

• Platform: A dedicated 30-minute programme on DD News.
• Content: Features short reels and videos (2–10 minutes) made by independent digital creators.
• Schedule: Telecast daily during prime time.
• Objective: Promote the creator economy by giving visibility to new-generation digital storytellers.

• Empowering Creators: First time a national broadcaster is partnering directly with digital creators.
• Revenue Sharing: Creators reportedly receive up to 90% of the revenue generated from their content.
• Themes Covered: News, current affairs, culture, travel, comedy, lifestyle, and more.
• Reforms Context: Part of broader restructuring of Prasar Bharati and the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting to align with technology-driven processes.

Aspect	Impact
Visibility	Gives independent creators national exposure via DD News.
Economy	Strengthens India’s digital economy and creator ecosystem.
Innovation	Encourages diverse storytelling formats beyond traditional news.
Youth Engagement	Targets younger audiences who consume short-form content.

• Opportunities:
  • Creators gain mainstream recognition and monetization.
  • Builds bridges between traditional media and digital platforms.
  • Supports employment and youth participation in media.
• Challenges:
  • Maintaining editorial standards while showcasing diverse creator content.
  • Balancing entertainment with credibility in a news environment.
  • Ensuring inclusivity so creators from smaller towns and rural areas also benefit.

• Full Form: Monitoring System for Tigers – Intensive Protection and Ecological Status.
• Purpose: To assist tiger reserve managers in effective patrolling, monitoring ecological conditions, and ensuring adaptive management of tiger habitats.
• Developer: National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), Government of India.

• Mobile Application (Android-based):
  • Uses real-time GPS to record patrol routes, sightings, and ecological observations.
  • Helps forest guards and frontline staff document field data efficiently.
• Analytical Engine (Desktop & Web-based):
  • Creates a centralized database using IT tools.
  • Employs GIS (Geographic Information Systems) and statistical analysis to evaluate ecological status.
  • Provides insights for adaptive management of tiger reserves.

• Enhanced Patrolling: Tracks forest guards’ movements to ensure coverage of vulnerable areas.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Helps managers identify poaching hotspots, habitat degradation, and human-wildlife conflict zones.
• Ecological Monitoring: Assesses prey density, vegetation, and overall habitat health.
• Transparency & Accountability: Digital records reduce manual errors and improve reliability.
• Village Relocation Monitoring: Supports NTCA’s efforts in monitoring relocation programs for reducing human pressure on tiger habitats.

• Training Needs: Forest staff must be trained in using smartphones and software.
• Connectivity Issues: Remote forest areas may face poor network coverage.
• Resource Constraints: Requires investment in devices, servers, and maintenance.
• Data Security: Sensitive ecological data must be protected from misuse.

• Location: Elqui Province, Coquimbo Region, Chile, at an altitude of 2,672 meters.
• Main Instrument: The Simonyi Survey Telescope, with an 8.4-meter primary mirror and the world’s largest digital camera (3.2 gigapixels).
• Mission: Conduct the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) — a 10-year project to create an ultra-high-definition time-lapse movie of the night sky.
• Data Scale: In its first year alone, Rubin will collect more data than all other optical observatories combined.
• Scientific Goals:

• Map billions of galaxies to study dark matter and dark energy.
• Track near-Earth asteroids and comets for planetary defense.
• Discover transient events like supernovae and gamma-ray bursts.
• Build an unprecedented catalog of the dynamic universe.

• Help answer fundamental questions about cosmic evolution.
• Provide critical insights into dark energy, one of the biggest mysteries in physics.
• Strengthen planetary defense by cataloging hazardous asteroids.
• Democratize astronomy by making its massive datasets publicly available to scientists worldwide.

• District-Centric Approach: Moves away from a one-size-fits-all national policy to tailor strategies for each district’s textile ecosystem.
• Two Categories of Districts:
  • Champion Districts: High-potential areas targeted for advanced upgrades and global competitiveness.
  • Aspirational Districts: Emerging regions where foundational ecosystem building (skills, MSMEs, infrastructure) is prioritized.
• Data-Driven Selection: Districts were evaluated on three parameters:
  • Export performance
  • MSME ecosystem strength
  • Workforce availability
• Regional Emphasis: Special focus on eastern and northeastern states, which have untapped textile potential.

• Boost Exports: Position India as a global textile leader by leveraging district-specific strengths.
• Job Creation: Expand employment opportunities, especially in rural and semi-urban areas.
• Inclusive Growth: Ensure aspirational districts gain self-reliance and reduce regional disparities.
• Sustainability: Encourage eco-friendly practices and modern technology adoption in textile clusters.

• Implementation Complexity: District-level tailoring requires strong coordination between central, state, and local bodies.
• Infrastructure Gaps: Many aspirational districts lack basic logistics and power supply.
• Global Competition: Competing with established textile hubs like Bangladesh and Vietnam will demand aggressive innovation.
• Sustainability Trade-offs: Balancing rapid growth with eco-friendly practices may be difficult.

• Taxonomic Tribe: Hominini, part of the primate family Hominidae.
• Extant Genera:
  • Homo → humans
  • Pan → chimpanzees and bonobos
• Excludes: Gorillas, which belong to a separate group.
• Extinct Members: Australopithecus, Paranthropus, Ardipithecus, Kenyanthropus, Orrorin, Sahelanthropus, and early Homo species like H. habilis, H. erectus, and H. neanderthalensis.

• Bipedalism: Upright walking, supported by skeletal adaptations:
  • Forward-positioned foramen magnum (skull opening for spinal cord).
  • Bowl-shaped pelvis.
  • Angled femur for balance.
• Tool Use & Culture: Many hominins developed stone tools, symbolic behavior, and social structures.
• Brain Expansion: Progressive increase in cranial capacity, especially in genus Homo.

Period (approx.)	Key Hominins	Notable Traits
7–6 million years ago	Sahelanthropus tchadensis	Possible earliest hominin, small brain, upright posture debated
6 million years ago	Orrorin tugenensis	Evidence of bipedalism in femur
4.4 million years ago	Ardipithecus ramidus	Transitional features between apes and humans
4–2 million years ago	Australopithecus spp.	Clear bipedalism, small brains
2.5–1.2 million years ago	Paranthropus spp.	Robust jaws, specialized diet
2 million–100,000 years ago	Homo erectus	Larger brain, widespread migration
400,000–40,000 years ago	Homo neanderthalensis	Advanced tools, symbolic culture
300,000 years ago–present	Homo sapiens	Complex language, art, global expansion

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