Recently, Supreme Court (SC) observed that power to punish for criminal contempt is not a “personal armour” for judges to stifle criticism.

• SC emphasised that authority to punish necessarily carries the power to forgive. 

About Contempt of Court

• Legislative Framework: Contempt of Courts Act 1971 which classifies it into two types.
  • Civil Contempt: Wilful disobedience of court orders or undertakings.
  • Criminal Contempt: Publishing or doing anything (spoken, written, signs, etc.) that lowers court’s authority, interferes in proceedings, etc. 
• Related Constitutional Provisions: Article 129 (SC, a ‘court of record’ with power to punish for contempt of itself); Article 215 (For High Court). 

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change reconstituted the Delhi Ridge Management Board (DRMB) with statutory powers. 

About Delhi Ridge

• A dry deciduous forestland in the heart of Delhi and an extension of 1,500 million years old Aravalli range.
• Spread over approx. 8,000 hectares, divided into 4 zones (Northern Ridge, Southern Ridge, Central Ridge and South Central Ridge). 
• Significance:Protects Delhi against the hot winds of Rajasthan deserts (hence nicknamed as 'Lungs of Delhi'); home to more than 100 avian species.

Asian Development Bank (ADB) raised India's growth forecast for FY26 to 7.2%, from 6.5%.

About ADB (Hq: Manila, Philippines)

• Genesis: Founded in 1966 as a leading multilateral development bank supporting sustainable, inclusive, and resilient growth across Asia and Pacific.
• Members: 69 members (50 from Asia and Pacific region)
  • India is a founding member 
• ADB’s 5 largest shareholders: Japan and United States (each with 15.6%), China (6.4%), India (6.3%), and Australia (5.8%). [as of May 31, 2025].

The Chandrayaan-3 lander payload, RAMBHA-LP’s data has revealed that the Moon's south polar region has an active plasma environment.

• Plasma is electrically neutral and is often called the 4th state of matter, consisting of a mixture of charged particles, including ions and free electrons.

About RAMBHA-LP (Radio Anatomy of Moon Bound Hypersensitive ionosphere and Atmosphere - Langmuir Probe)

• Design: Uses a hypersensitive Langmuir probe mounted on a boom to avoid lander interference.
• Objective: Measures electron density and electron temperature in the near-surface plasma environment around the Moon’s South Pole.

A new study has found that three-quarters of Goniopora colonies at a site on the Great Barrier Reef were wiped out due to extreme heat stress and a rare coral disease.

About Great Barrier Reef

• Location: Coast of Queensland, Australia, in the Coral Sea.
• Biodiversity: It contains the world’s largest collection of coral reefs (visible from space), with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusc.
• It is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

• Including species such as the dugong (‘sea cow’) and the large green turtle, which are threatened with extinction.

Indian scientists have developed GlowCas9, a CRISPR protein that glows while performing gene editing.

About GlowCas9

• It is a bioluminescent version of Cas9 formed by fusing Cas9 with an enzyme derived from deep-sea shrimp proteins.
• The glowing allows monitoring CRISPR operations in living cells, tissues, etc. without harming them.
  • CRISPR/Cas9 is a gene-editing technology that enables removing, adding or altering sections of the DNA sequence.
  • The Cas9 enzyme acts as a pair of ‘molecular scissors’ to cut strands of DNA.

IIT Madras inaugurated India’s National Hub for Quantum Communication at its campus under the National Quantum Mission (NQM).

About National Hub for Quantum Communication

• AIM: To accelerate national capabilities in quantum secure communication, thereby safeguarding India's digital infrastructure against potential threats from advanced quantum computers. 
• The hub will focus on Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) networks, post-quantum security, quantum memory and repeaters, and satellite-based quantum communication.
• It will also drive co-development programs, large-scale testbeds, and deep-tech startup support. 

The Israeli military chief called the Yellow Line between Israel and Gaza as the new border.

About the Yellow Line

• The Yellow Line marks the zone to which Israeli forces have withdrawn under the 2025 US backed ceasefire.
• It divides Gaza into two parts i.e. Israeli-controlled eastern areas and Palestinian-administered western areas.