• It is a joint air exercise of India and Malaysia. 

Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI), issued an advisory to control ‘kole roga’ (fruit rot disease) in arecanut plantations.

About Arecanut

• Location: Parts of Karnataka (largest producer), Kerala, Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Significance: Commercial crop, called betelnut or supari, essential ingredient of tobacco. 
• Altitude: 1000 m from mean sea level.
• Temperature: between 4°C and 40°C. 
• Rainfall: Abundant and well distributed. Can grow in as low as 750 mm rainfall to as high as 4500 mm. 
• Soil: Laterite, red loam and alluvial soils are most suitable with pH range from 5.2 to 7.0. 

Expedition team under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence unfurled the Indian national flag atop Uhuru Summit of Kilimanjaro. 

About Mount Kilimanjaro

• It is the highest peak (5,895 meters) of Africa (Located in Tanzania).
• It is the largest free-standing mountain rise in the world, meaning it is not part of a mountain range.
• It is a stratovolcano (a term for a very large volcano made of ash, lava and rock). 
  • It is made up of 3 cones: Kibo (tallest), Mawenzi, & Shira. 
  • The highest point on Kibo’s crater rim is called Uhuru. 
• It is a part of UNESCO’s World Heritage Site ‘Kilimanjaro National Park’.

Japan issues its first-ever megaquake advisory on the Nankai Trough in Japan’s Southwest Pacific Coast. 

• Megaquakes are Earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 8.
• The Nankai Trough is an underwater subduction zone where the Eurasian Plate collides with the Philippine Sea Plate.

Subduction (or Benioff) Zone

• When two plates converge towards each other along the convergent margin, the plate which is heavier/denser subducts below the lighter plate and is consumed in the mantle. 
• Location where sinking of the heavier plate occurs is called subduction or Benioff Zone. 

It has been included on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) official Red List of threatened species under the Vulnerable category.

Neelakurinji (Strobilanthes kunthiana)

• About: Shrub known for massive blooming every 12 years. Semelparous, i.e., single reproductive episode before death. 
• Location: Shola grasslands of Western Ghats - the Nilgiri hills, Palani hills and the Eravikulam hills of Munnar, also  Shevaroy hills in the Eastern Ghats.
  • The name Nilgiris (blue mountains) was derived from the colors of these flowers.
• Major Threats: tea and softwood plantations, urbanization, invasion of exotic species like eucalyptus, black wattle, etc. 

Reports have claimed that the US wanted to establish a military base in St. Martin’s Island of Bangladesh.

About St. Martin’s Island

• A small coral island, located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal.
  • It is also referred to as 'Narikel Jinjira' or Coconut Island, 'Daruchini Dwip' or Cinnamon Island, etc. 
• Island was once an extension of the Teknaf peninsula but was separated due to the submergence of a portion of the peninsula.
• In 1974, Bangladesh and Myanmar reached an agreement that the island would be a part of Bangladeshi territory.
• Geopolitical significance: Located near to Bangladesh and Myanmar. 

Irrational use of antibiotics is associated with dysbiosis.

About Dysbiosis

• Dysbiosis refers to an imbalance of microbial species and a reduction in microbial diversity within certain bodily microbiomes. 
• As a result, beneficial bacteria are usually minimized, whereas other bacteria that may be harmful increase in number. 
• It disturbs the immune function leading to inflammation and sensitization of the immune system and causing autoimmune diseases.

The Perseid meteor shower started in July and peaked recently. 

• Perseid meteors are debris left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle.

About Meteorite Shower

• It is a celestial event in which several meteors hit Earth's atmosphere over a short period.
  • Meteors are space rocks that enter Earth's atmosphere.
  • The bright streak with the meteors shower is not actually the rock, but rather the glowing hot air.
• Meteor showers are usually named after a star or constellation that is close to where the meteors appear in the sky.