UPSC Current Affairs 29 May 2026

• Team Ranking: Finishes 1st in Asia, asserting absolute continental dominance.
• Medal Split: Secured 9 medals total, consisting of 4 gold, 3 silver, and 2 bronze.
• Gold Medalists: Kumar Mohit (65kg), Chandermohan (79kg), Akshay T Dhere (57kg), and Vicky (97kg).

• Medal Split: The women's contingent completely dominated their categories to capture 10 medals total.
• Gold Rush: Six Indian women wrestlers claimed gold medals: Muskan (53kg), Tapasya (57kg), Bhagyashree (62kg), Pulkit (67kg), Mansi (68kg), and Kajal (76kg).
• Other Winners: Neha (59kg) and Sweety (50kg) bagged silvers, while Amruta (72kg) and Ahilya (55kg) secured bronze.

• Medal Split: Reached a historic team high by winning 8 medals total.
• Top Performers: Sumit led the charge by capturing a brilliant gold medal in the 63kg division.
• Other Winners: Suraj (60kg) and Sagar Singh (67kg) fought their way to silvers, while five additional wrestlers claimed bronze medals.

• Governing Body: Conducted under the aegis of United World Wrestling (UWW).
• Host Location: Held at the Tien Son Sport Centre in Da Nang, Vietnam.
• Next Stage: Following the conclusion of the U23 event, the same venue in Vietnam is transitioning immediately to host the sub-junior U17 Asian Wrestling Championships.

• Capital: Ljubljana.
• President: Nataša Pirc Musar.
• Currency: Euro (€).
• Geographic Profile: A Central European nation bordered by Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia.

• Tight Race: In the March national elections, Golob’s Freedom Movement won 29 seats while Janša's SDS secured 28 seats in the 90-member National Assembly.
• Failed Majority: Golob’s liberal bloc failed to forge a working parliamentary majority, leaving the door open for conservative factions to negotiate.
• The New Coalition: Janša successfully engineered a five-party centre-right coalition to command 43 baseline seats, alongside outside backing from smaller nationalist factions.

• Tax Relief: The incoming government has pledged substantial tax relief and cuts for corporate entities and private households to stimulate local commerce.
• Business Initiatives: Explicit policy support has been mapped out to prioritize funding for domestic tech startups and fast-growing firms.
• Pension Restructuring: The coalition intends to establish a dedicated state fund specifically designed to stabilize and finance the national pension system.

• Stance on Israel: Analysts note the new administration marks a swing toward a strongly pro-Israel stance, contrasting with the previous government's approach.
• European Dynamics: Janša's fourth non-consecutive term (previously serving 2004–2008, 2012–2013, and 2020–2022) introduces a heavily conservative voice back into regional European Union policymaking.

• Birth & Roots: Born on May 28, 1883, in Bhagur village, Nashik district, Maharashtra.
• Secret Revolutionary Societies: Founded Mitra Mela in 1899, which expanded into the prominent underground revolutionary network Abhinav Bharat Society in 1904.
• Foreign Base: Travelled to London in 1906, where he joined and led India House and the Free India Society to mobilize Indian students toward armed rebellion.

• Nasik Conspiracy Case (1910): Arrested by the British for allegedly plotting an armed revolt, smuggling Browning handguns, and abetting the assassination of Nashik District Collector A.M.T. Jackson.
• The Marseilles Escape: Achieved legendary status by leaping through a porthole into the sea to escape British custody when his transport ship docked at Marseilles, France, though he was recaptured shortly after.
• Double Life Sentence (Kala Pani): Convicted and sentenced to an unprecedented two consecutive life terms (50 years). He was deported in 1911 to the brutal Cellular Jail in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Release: He was moved out of Cellular Jail in 1921 and released from confinement in 1924 under strict conditions to renounce revolutionary violence, following multiple mercy petitions.

• Originator of "Hindutva": Authored the seminal book Hindutva: Who is a Hindu? while in prison, coining and establishing the core socio-political definition of cultural Hindu nationalism.
• 1857 Rebellion Re-evaluation: Authored The Indian War of Independence, 1857, famously being the first to term the 1857 uprising as India's "First War of Independence" rather than a mere "Sepoy Mutiny".
• Political Leadership: Served as the President of the Hindu Mahasabha from 1937 to 1943, heavily opposing the Partition of India and criticizing the Indian National Congress’s policies.

• Abolition of Untouchability: Strongly advocated against the rigid Hindu caste hierarchy, holding inter-caste community dining programs.
• Patit Pavan Mandir: Established the historic Patit Pavan Temple in Ratnagiri, built specifically to allow entry to all Hindus, including Dalits.

• Atmaarpana (Fast unto Death): Passed away on February 26, 1966, after choosing Prayopaveshana (fasting unto death), declaring that his life's mission for a free nation was accomplished.

• Full Form: National e-Governance Service Delivery Assessment.
• Frequency: It is a biennial study (conducted every two years) initiated originally in August 2018.
• Global Alignment: The baseline methodology is explicitly modelled after the Online Service Index (OSI) used in the United Nations E-Government Survey.
• Purpose: Measures e-governance maturity from a citizen-centric perspective, helping administrations identify digital gaps and adopt nationwide best practices.

1. Core Institutional Portals: State, UT, City, and Central Ministry home domains.
2. Transaction Portals: Specific State, UT, City, and Central Ministry transactional Service Portals.

• State & UT Baseline: Evaluates a total of 59 mandatory services across every participating State and UT.
• Central Ministry Baseline: Assesses a track of 43 digital services managed by Central Ministries and Departments.
• Expanded Focus: Includes Core Government-to-Citizen (G2C) and Government-to-Business (G2B) workflows, adding new service parameters linked to corporate compliance systems.
• Priority Sectors Covered: स्पैंस over 10 critical public sectors, including Finance, Labour & Employment, Education, Local Governance & Utilities, Social Welfare (Health, Agriculture, Home Security), Environment (including Fire), Tourism, Public Grievances, and Transport.

• Accessibility & Ease of Use: Simplicity of interface and access optimization.
• Content Availability: Availability of reliable, updated public information.
• Information Security & Privacy: Protection standards regarding sensitive citizen and financial data.
• End-to-End Service Delivery: Capability to finalize applications online without offline friction.
• Integrated Service Delivery: Use of unified single-window platform models.
• Emerging Technologies: Leveraged use of modern data tools, Open Government Data (OGD), and active e-participation.

• The insect was recently photographed and documented inside the Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve in the state’s Changlang district.

• Scientific Nomenclature: Gynacantha khasiaca Maclachlan, 1896.
• Common Name: Long-tailed Duskhawker.
• Taxonomic Hierarchy: Belongs to the order Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) and the family Aeshnidae.
• Physical Description:
  • Visually striking with prominent, pale blue-green compound eyes.
  • Features a bright green thorax marked with dark stripes.
  • Possesses clear, transparent amber-tinted wings.
  • Characterized by an elongated, long black-tipped abdomen.

• Crepuscular Behaviour: Unlike typical daytime dragonflies, members of the Gynacantha genus are crepuscular, meaning they are most active during dawn and dusk.
• Advanced Visual System: Features massive compound eyes equipped with thousands of microscopic lenses and photoreceptor units. This provides the insect with near-360° vision and extreme sensitivity to motion.
• Flight Dynamics: Capable of rapid territory patrolling, swift maneuvering, and hovering almost motionlessly in mid-air to ambush prey.
• Preferred Habitat: Survives by hiding in shaded forests during peak daylight. It relies heavily on pristine, slow-moving water bodies within dense tropical and sub-tropical riverine rainforests to complete its life cycle.

• Global Footprint: Outside India, the Long-tailed Duskhawker is reported in sparse, scattered pockets across Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Nepal.
• Domestic Distribution: Within India, sporadic records exist outside Arunachal Pradesh across Assam, Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, and Maharashtra.
• Regional Hotspot: India hosts 504 species of Odonata, out of which Arunachal Pradesh alone boasts 110 species, making the state a vital sanctuary for freshwater insect conservation.

• A traditional double-flute woodwind instrument of India and Pakistan, especially associated with Rajasthan and Punjab.
• Also called Alghoza or Beenon.
• Consists of two paired flutes tied together:
  • One flute plays the melody
  • The second serves as a drone/bordun (continuous bass note)
• Crafted from dry seesham and kair wood.

• Known as a true "game of breath".
• Uses circular breathing: player inhales through the nose while continuously expelling air through the mouth to maintain uninterrupted sound.
• Requires simultaneous control of breath and throat, producing hypnotic, layered rhythms.

• Particularly associated with Tejaji ballads (sung in praise of warrior snake deity Tejaji, considered an incarnation of Lord Shiva).
• Traditionally played during monsoon months (from Rakhi till end of September) when air has moisture.
• Represents the rich folk traditions of the Thar Desert/Marudhara.

• Age: 62–66 years (resident of Moolsagar village, Jaisalmer district).
• Career: Over 5 decades of preserving Algoza music.
• Breakthrough: 1981 Independence Day performance at Gopa Chowk, Jaisalmer, mesmerized crowds and attracted state officials' attention.
• Performed before Indian presidents, prime ministers, and foreign dignitaries.
• Toured internationally: France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Japan, Singapore, USA, Europe.
• Crafts Algoza instruments himself; handmade instruments in demand globally.
• Founded Algoza Folk Music Institute to train young musicians.
• Credited with giving new identity to the rare art and introducing Rajasthan's folk traditions to international audiences.

• The art of playing Algoza is fast fading away.
• Players now limited to a few dozen.
• Art not being passed to younger generation due to:
  • Migration
  • Digitization
  • Changing cultural tastes
• Hadoti region may have no Algoza player in next few years if trend continues.

• Seen as a proud moment for Rajasthan and India's folk/tribal musical traditions.
• Places Bheel within the national cultural canon as an "unsung hero".
• Recognizes exceptional contribution to preserving traditional folk music.

• Location: Situated in Khanapur Taluk within the Belagavi (Belgaum) district of Karnataka, nestled along the Western Ghats section near the Goa border.
• Historical Name Origin: Derives its name from the historic Bhimgad Fort, built inside the forest by the Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the 17th century to defend regional trade routes against Portuguese forces expanding from Goa.
• Interstate Boundaries: Shares direct boundaries with multiple major protected areas, including the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary (Karnataka), as well as the Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary, Mollem National Park, Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary (all located in Goa).

• Critically Endangered Habitat: The sanctuary houses the famous Barapede Caves, which serve as the only known breeding ground in the entire world for the critically endangered Wroughton's Free-tailed Bat (Otomops wroughtoni).
• Tiger Corridor: Acts as a vitally important, contiguous ecological corridor for tigers and wild elephants moving between the dense forest habitats of Karnataka, Goa, and Maharashtra.
• Apex Predators: Heavily inhabited by diverse wildlife populations including Bengal tigers, Indian leopards, King cobras, sloth bears, gaur (Indian bison), wild dogs, and chital.

• River Origins: Functions as the major headwater source for several prominent regional rivers, including the Mhadei (which feeds the crucial Mandovi River in Goa), Malaprabha, and Tillari rivers.
• Vajrapoha Waterfalls: Features the spectacular, 150-foot-high Vajrapoha Waterfalls formed along the Mahadayi River catchment deep inside the dense wilderness.
• Forest Type: Dominated by pristine tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, heavily rich in precious Malabar teak and rosewood timber.

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