Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
IPCC has begun work on its seventh cycle of assessment reports.
- IPCC assessments provide scientific basis for governments at all levels to develop climate related policies.
IPCC
- About: International body for assessing science related to climate change.
- Genesis: Set up in 1988 by World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
- Members: 195 countries including India.
- Objective: To provide policymakers with regular assessments of scientific basis of climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation.
- Tags :
- World Meteorological Organization
- IPCC
Hantavirus
As per U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Hantavirus severity has drawn attention.
About Hantavirus
- Hantaviruses are a family of viruses carried by certain rodents, such as deer mice, white-footed mice, rice rats, and cotton rats.
- Impact: Causes potentially fatal illnesses, including Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (severe respiratory illness) and Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome (condition characterised by internal bleeding and kidney failure).
- People at risk: who live or work in areas where rodent populations are more prominent including farmers, construction workers
- Treatment: No specific antiviral treatment or cure.
- Tags :
- Hantavirus
- Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
Exercise Khanjar
KHANJAR-XII edition of 2025 is set to take place in Kyrgyzstan.
About Khanjar
- It is an India-Kyrgyzstan Joint Special Forces Exercise.
- It is held annually and conducted alternatively in both the countries.
- Aim: To exchange experiences and best practices in Counter Terrorism and Special Forces Operations
- Tags :
- Military Exercises
- India-Kyrgyzstan
Articles Sources
Insider Trading
SEBI has issued warning to Nestle India for violating insider trading regulations.
About Insider Trading
- Definition: Insider refers to any person (usually senior management and officials) in a company who has access to unpublished price-sensitive information (UPSI).
- Regulation: Under Prohibition of Insider Trading (PIT) Regulations 2015 (as amended in 2024)enables insiders to trade in securities in a compliant manner. Under It:
- insiders have a narrow window to carry out trades to avoid insider trading.
- Insiders have to give a ‘trading plan’ specifying the share price, amount, and transaction
- Tags :
- SEBI
- Insider Trading
- Prohibition of Insider Trading
Giant Goliath beetle
New research has found that the West African cocoa industry and the international trade in dried insects have wiped out one species of a Goliath beetle species.
About Goliath beetles
- Features :
- Among the world’s largest insects (up to 110mm long).
- Five species exist; males have Y-shaped horns, females do not.
- They can fly and are nocturnal (primarily active during the night).
- Adults feed on tree sap in mature rainforests.
- Habitat: primarily found in the Tropical Rainforests of Africa,
- Significance: They are decomposers and scavenge meat and plant debris, recycling nutrients. Their abundance indicates good forest health.
- Tags :
- West Africa
- Giant Goliath beetle
- Tropical Rainforests
Kinship and Community-Based Care Programme (KCBCP)
UNICEF, in collaboration with district authorities and NGOs, is working to address family-based childcare through its KCBCP in places like drought-prone Jalna in Maharashtra.
About KCBCP
- It is part of broader shift in India's child protection system that move away from institutional care toward family-based solutions such as strengthening family to prevent separation of children, foster care, and kinship care.
- It aims to keep children in their villages under the care of relatives or community members for better brain development.
- Other initiatives like Mission Vatsalya also emphasize non-institutional support, enhancing family roles and ensuring no child is left behind.
- Tags :
- Kinship and Community-Based Care Programme
- Mission Vatsalya
Sahitya Akademi Award
Recently, Sahitya Akademi honoured 23 authors with its prestigious ‘Sahitya Akademi Award’ for 2024.
About Sahitya Akademi
- Genesis: Formally inaugurated in 1954 and Registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
- Ministry: An autonomous body under Ministry of Culture.
- Role: Undertakes literary activities in 24 languages (22 scheduled languages, English and Rajasthani).
- Its major awards: Sahitya Akademi Award, Bhasha Samman
- Sahitya Akademi Award is given annually, to the Indian national and the award is given to the author only once in a lifetime in one language in one particular category.
- Tags :
- Sahitya Akademi
- Sahitya Akademi Award
- Ministry of Culture
- Bhasha Samman
e-Toycathon 2025
For the first time, “e-Toycathon 2025” was organized by C-DAC under MeitY’s research initiatives to boost electronic toy sector.
About e-Toycathon 2025
- Announced under MeitY-funded project "Development of Electronics and IT-based Control and Automation Solutions for Consumer Electronic - Toys Industry”.
About India’s Toys Industry
- Status: Expected to reach US$ 3 billion by 2028.
- Initiatives taken:
- DPIIT issued toys Quality Control Order, 2020 under Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016.
- National Action Plan for Toys to promote trade; design and quality; and indigenous toys.
- Directorate General of Foreign Trade mandated sample testing to curb import of sub-standards.
- Tags :
- e-Toycathon 2025
- Toys Industry