UPSC Current Affairs 27 April 2026

• Season: Primarily a Rabi (winter) crop in India, sown in Oct-Nov and harvested in March-April.
• Temperature: Needs a cool growing season (10°C to 15°C) and bright sunshine during ripening (21°C to 26°C).
• Rainfall: Requires moderate, well-distributed rainfall of 50–100 cm.
• Soil: Thrives best in well-drained fertile loamy or clayey loamy soils (common in the Ganga-Satluj plains). 

• Global Rank: India is the world's second-largest producer of wheat, after China.
• Top Producers (Global): China, India, Russia, USA, and Canada.
• Top Producers (India): Uttar Pradesh (highest), followed by Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana.
• Varieties: Nearly 95% of India's wheat is bread wheat, while Durum wheat (used for pasta/macaroni) accounts for about 4–5%. 

• Climate Change: Rising temperatures, especially early heatwaves in February/March, can shorten the "grain-filling" period, reducing yield and grain weight.
• Technological Shift: 67% of India's wheat acreage is now under climate-resilient varieties to withstand erratic weather.
• Economic Support: The government supports farmers through the Minimum Support Price (MSP), which was fixed at ₹2,425 per quintal for the 2025–26 rabi season. 

• Energy: ~327 kcal
• Protein: ~12.6g (High compared to other cereals)
• Fiber: ~12.2g
• Vitamins: Rich in B-complex (Thiamine, Niacin, B6) and Vitamin E.

• Biological Diversity Act, 2002: The primary law implementing the CBD. It was significantly amended in 2023 to encourage investment and simplify research while protecting traditional knowledge.
• Three-Tier Structure:
  • National Level: National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) (Chennai) – Regulates access to biological resources.
  • State Level: State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs) – Manage conservation at the state level.
  • Local Level: Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) – Maintain the People’s Biodiversity Register (PBR) and manage local resources.
• National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP): India updated this plan in 2025 to align with the global 30x30 target (protecting 30% of land and sea by 2030). 

• Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS): Ensures that when companies use biological resources, the benefits (money or technology) are shared with the local communities who protected them.
• People’s Biodiversity Register (PBR): A formal document prepared by local bodies. Over 2.7 lakh PBRs have been prepared in India to document flora, fauna, and traditional knowledge.
• Biodiversity Heritage Sites (BHS): Areas of unique ecological importance declared by state governments (Elathur Lake in Tamil Nadu, declared in late 2025). 

• Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF): Adopted in 2022, it sets 23 global targets for 2030, including restoring 30% of degraded ecosystems.
• Nagoya Protocol: An international agreement that India ratified to ensure the fair sharing of benefits from genetic resources.
• Cali Fund: A new global fund (celebrating its 1st anniversary in February 2026) focused on sharing benefits from the commercial use of genetic data. 

• Implementation Gaps: While thousands of BMCs exist, many lack the funding or training to effectively manage local resources.
• Biopiracy: The illegal use of traditional knowledge or resources without proper credit or payment remains a concern for indigenous communities.
• Conflicting Priorities: Balancing large infrastructure projects (like dams or mining) with the need to protect "Ecologically Sensitive Areas." 

• Definition: Projects with a capacity of 1 MW to 25 MW are classified as Small Hydro Power (SHP).
• Capacity Target: Aims to install approximately 1,500 MW of new capacity.
• Duration: Set for implementation from 2026-27 to 2030-31.
• Nodal Ministry: Managed by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). 

• NE & Border Districts: ₹3.6 crore per MW (or 30% of cost), capped at ₹30 crore per project.
• Other States: ₹2.4 crore per MW (or 20% of cost), capped at ₹20 crore per project.
• DPR Support: ₹30 crore is set aside to help agencies prepare Detailed Project Reports for 200 future projects. 

• Investment: Expected to catalyze private investment worth ₹15,000 crore.
• Employment: Projected to generate 51 lakh person-days of work during construction.
• Technology: Focuses on Run-of-the-River systems that use natural water flow, avoiding large dams and massive deforestation.
• Atmanirbhar Bharat: Mandates 100% indigenous plant and machinery to boost domestic manufacturing. 

• Decentralized Power: Reduces transmission losses by generating power close to consumption centres in remote areas.
• Stable Energy: Unlike solar or wind, small hydro provides a consistent, round-the-clock (RTC) power supply.
• Potential: India has an estimated untapped potential of 21,133 MW across 7,133 sites, with half concentrated in hilly states like Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

• Three-Vehicle Unit: The system operates via three specialized mobile platforms:
  • Swarm-2 Ground Combat Vehicle: The primary launcher.
  • Command Vehicle: The control hub for the operator.
  • Support Vehicle: Handles logistics and technical assistance.
• Developer: Manufactured by the China Electronic Technology Group Corporation (CETC), a state-owned defence giant. 

• High-Speed Launch: Drones are launched at intervals of less than 3 seconds.
• Massive Scale: A single unit can launch 48 drones, while one command vehicle can simultaneously coordinate up to 96 drones in a single swarm.
• Single-Operator Control: A single soldier using a tablet-like interface can guide the entire swarm, similar to "flying 100 kites with a single string."
• Rapid Deployment: The entire 96-drone swarm can be airborne and operational within roughly 5 minutes (300 seconds). 

• Autonomous Coordination: Drones communicate with each other in real-time to adjust formations, avoid mid-air collisions, and share target data.
• Dynamic Role Allocation: The AI can automatically assign specific roles—such as reconnaissance, electronic jamming, or precision strike—based on mission needs.
• Resilience to Jamming: Because they share information and adjust without a central human "brain" for every move, they are much harder to disable with traditional electronic warfare. 

• Saturation Attacks: The swarm can "saturate" Indian air defences, forcing them to waste expensive interceptor missiles on dozens of low-cost drones.
• Logistics Disruption: In high-altitude regions like Tibet, these swarms could target approach roads and isolate forward-deployed Indian army posts.
• Indian Response: India is countered this via the Drone Shakti program (aiming to train soldiers as drone operators by 2027) and the acquisition of MQ-9B Predator drones. 

• Classification: They are marine gastropod mollusks belonging to the class Gastropoda.
• The "Naked Snail": Unlike land snails, most sea slugs have lost their shells through evolution or have a small internal shell.
• Hermaphrodites: Most species possess both male and female reproductive organs, though they still typically need a mate to reproduce.
• Nudibranchs: The most famous type of sea slug, known for their "naked gills" (exposed respiratory organs) on their backs. 

• Toxic Defence: They often lack physical protection, so they use chemical warfare. Many eat toxic sponges or jellyfish and store the toxins (or stinging cells) in their own bodies to deter predators.
• Warning Coloration: Their vibrant, "neon" colours are a form of aposematism, signalling to predators that they are poisonous or foul-tasting.
• Solar Powered: Some species, like the "Leaf Sheep," perform kleptoplasty—they steal chloroplasts from the algae they eat and use them to photosynthesize, essentially living off sunlight.
• Self-Decapitation: Certain species can voluntarily drop their heads from their bodies (autotomy) to escape parasites and then regrow a completely new body, including a heart, within weeks. 

• Bio-Indicators: Their presence or absence is a key indicator of the health of coral reef ecosystems.
• Medical Research: They are being studied for bioactive compounds that may have anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties.
• Neuroscience: Due to their large, simple neurons, they have been the primary model for studying how memories are formed in the brain.

• Global Dominance: India now accounts for nearly half (49%) of all global real-time digital payments.
• Volume Surge: Annual UPI transactions skyrocketed from roughly 92 crores in 2017-18 to over 228 billion in 2025, a growth of over 1.2 million percent since its early days.
• Digital Payment Index (RBI-DPI): The index hit 516.76 (September 2025 update), reflecting deep penetration of digital enablers across both urban and rural India. 

• The Duopoly: The market remains dominated by two major players: PhonePe (~46% share) and Google Pay (~33%).
• Emerging Challengers: Newer apps like Navi and BHIM are gaining ground, with BHIM recently crossing 200 million monthly transactions.
• Decline of Debit Cards: Usage of debit cards for POS (Point of Sale) continues to fall as users prefer UPI for small daily spends. 

• Tier-2 & 3 Growth: Small towns now contribute approximately 45% of total UPI traffic, outperforming metros in growth rate.
• Micro-Payments Economy: The average transaction size for UPI has dropped to roughly ₹1,314, signalling that users are now comfortable using digital payments for tiny daily expenses like "chai" or groceries. 

• Dynamic Authentication: At least one factor in every transaction must now be "dynamic" (generated specifically for that session), making static OTPs alone insufficient for high-security.
• Risk-Based Security: Systems now automatically trigger extra verification for high-value payments or unfamiliar devices, while keeping routine ₹100–200 payments frictionless.
• Shift in Liability: Liability for fraud now rests more clearly with banks and payment providers if they fail to implement these mandatory 2FA standards.

• Established: In 2000, WIPO member states designated April 26 as World IP Day.
• Significance of Date: It marks the day the WIPO Convention came into force in 1970.
• Objective: To increase general understanding of how patents, copyrights, trademarks, and designs impact daily life. 

• Performance Tech: Highlights how patents protect advancements in high-performance footwear, aerodynamic equipment, and smart wearables.
• Digital Experience: Focuses on broadcasting rights and AI-driven performance analytics that enhance fan engagement.
• Brand Value: Emphasizes the role of trademarks in protecting team identities, logos, and global merchandising.
• Inclusion: A push to use IP to make sports more accessible and safer for everyone, everywhere. 

• Primary Laws: Governed by the Indian Patents Act 1970, the Trademarks Act 1999, and the Copyright Act 1957.
• National Policy: The National IPR Policy 2016 ("Creative India; Innovative India") continues to guide the ecosystem toward faster examination and public awareness.
• Economic Impact: Startups in India are increasingly treating IP as a core asset for securing venture capital and global market entry. 

• Patents: Protect new inventions/technical solutions (valid for 20 years).
• Trademarks: Secure brand names, logos, and slogans.
• Copyright: Safeguards original literary, musical, and artistic works.
• Industrial Designs: Protects the unique visual appearance or shape of a product.
• Trade Secrets: Shields confidential business information and algorithms. 

• 2025: IP and Music: Feel the Beat of IP
• 2024: IP and the SDGs: Building our Common Future with Innovation and Creativity
• 2023: Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity 

• Pre-Arrest Protection: It is a direction to release a person on bail before they are even arrested.
• Prevention of Harassment: Its primary goal is to protect individuals from being falsely implicated or humiliated through "politically motivated" or "frivolous" arrests.
• Non-Bailable Offences: It can only be sought for non-bailable offences (serious crimes where bail is not a matter of right). 

• Concurrent Jurisdiction: Only the High Court or the Court of Session has the power to grant anticipatory bail.
• Discretionary Power: It is not a fundamental right; the court uses its discretion based on the facts of each case. 

• Nature of Accusation: The gravity and seriousness of the alleged offence.
• Criminal Antecedents: Whether the applicant has a history of previous convictions or jail time.
• Flight Risk: The likelihood of the accused fleeing the country or evading justice.
• Tampering: The possibility of the accused threatening witnesses or destroying evidence. 

• The person must make themselves available for police interrogation as required.
• The person cannot leave India without the court’s prior permission.
• The person must not induce or threaten any person acquainted with the facts of the case. 

• No Fixed Time Limit: In the landmark Sushila Aggarwal v. State of Delhi (2020) case, the SC ruled that anticipatory bail does not end when the chargesheet is filed.
• Life of the Trial: It can generally continue until the end of the trial unless there are special circumstances to cancel it. 

Feature	Section 438 CrPC (Old)	Section 482 BNSS (New)
Presence in Court	Not always mandatory during hearings.	The court may require the presence of the applicant at the time of final hearing if requested by the Public Prosecutor.
Jurisdiction	Sessions or High Court.	Retains Sessions or High Court jurisdiction.
Interim Orders	Courts often gave "No-Arrest" stay orders.	Courts now prefer passing a formal "Interim Order" with specific conditions.

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