Recently Cabinet approved two more semiconductor manufacturing units under ISM. 

• It includes country’s first commercial Mini/Micro-LED display facility based on GaN (Gallium Nitride) Technology in Dholera, Gujrat.
• GaN, a semiconductor, is a core material for blue/green micro-LEDs and is better suited for high power and high-frequency applications.

About ISM 

• Launched: In 2021 with an aim to build a strong semiconductor and display ecosystem, positioning India as a global hub for electronics manufacturing and design.
• Ministry: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
• Four Sub-Schemes: 
  • Semiconductor Fab Scheme
  • Display Fab Scheme
  • Compound semiconductor and ATMP scheme
  • Design Linked Incentive Scheme 

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the development of a state‑of‑the‑art Ship Repair Facility at Vadinar, Gujarat.

• This project will be jointly implemented by Deendayal Port Authority (DPA) and Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL).
• It will be developed as a brownfield facility.
• Reason for Selecting Vadinar: Natural deep draft, proximity to major ports, global connectivity.

• Significance: Enables domestic repair of large vessels up to 300 metres, improves port turnaround times on the West Coast. 

Activists called for inclusion of Ecocide as one of the international crimes under the Rome Statute that governs International Criminal Court.

• Currently, Rome Statute recognises 4 crimes: genocide; crimes against humanity; war crimes; aggression.

About Ecocide

• It refers to harms caused to environment by human actions, usually on a major industrial scale or affecting a huge area.
  • It was coined in 1970 by Prof Arthur W Galston to describe Agent Orange’s (Herbicide) use in the Vietnam War.
• After Vietnam, many countries codified it in its domestic laws.

Clean Core Thorium Energy (CCTE) successfully completed high-burnup irradiation testing for its patented 'ANEEL' fuel at the Idaho National Laboratory’s Advanced Test Reactor.

About ANEEL (Advanced Nuclear Energy for Enriched Life) Fuel

• It is a unique blend of thorium and a small amount of enriched uranium (High Assay Low Enriched Uranium). 
  • The fuel is named to honour Dr. Anil Kakodkar, one of India’s foremost nuclear scientists. 
• Significance of ANEEL Fuel: 
  • Significant reductions in nuclear waste
  • Enhancing India’s energy security using domestically available thorium
  • Saves money by safely generating more power from current reactors while reducing their day-to-day running costs.

Two Indian journalists Anand RK and Suparna Sharma, won the Pulitzer Prize for their work in Illustrated Reporting and Commentary category for exposing cybercrime in India.

About Pulitzer Prize 

• What is it: Prize in journalism, literature and music composition, recognising excellence in reporting and storytelling.
• It is the highest journalism awards in the US, awarded annually in 23 categories.
• Administered by: Columbia University 
• Established:1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, an Hungarian-American newspaper publisher.

Rare caracals (locally called padang) spotted in Thar Desert near India-Pakistan border.

• According to the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), only around 50 caracals remain in India. 

About Caracal (Caracal caracal)

• Characteristics:Secretive, nocturnal animal known for its quickness and ability to catch flying birds.
• Habitat: Dry savannah and woodland areas, scrubland, rugged mountainous regions, deserts.
• Distribution: Africa, Middle East, Central Asia, arid areas of Pakistan and India (Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh).
• Threat: Habitat loss, fragmentation, and retaliatory killings etc. 
• Conservation Status: Least concern (IUCN); Schedule I (WPA, 1972).
• Conservation Efforts: Caracal listed as critically endangered species under Species recovery program.

National Stock Exchange of India launched EGRs, to formalise India’s gold market.

• The Bombay Stock Exchange was the first exchange in India to launch EGRs in 2022.

About EGRs

• They are dematerialised securities that represent ownership of physical gold, which is stored in SEBI’s accredited vaults and held electronically through depositories.
  • Each EGR is fully backed by physical gold with assured quality and can be traded on exchange, integrating gold into financial system.
  • They can be redeemed anytime in exchange of gold, unlike Gold ETF (cash settlement).
• Regulated by: Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
• Asset Class: Securities under the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act (SCRA), 1956
• Market Participants: Retail Investor, Jewellers, Bullion Traders, etc.

MARS will now cover coal mines and waste facilities after analysis identified Kanjurmarg landfill, Mumbai among the world’s top 3 methane emitting sites.

• Until now, MARS focused on oil and gas facilities in countries that are part of UNEP’s Oil and Gas Methane Partnership 2.0.

About MARS

• It is first public global satellite detection and notification system providing data on very large methane emissions (super-emitters) around the world. 
• Nodal Agency: United Nations Environment Programme’s International Methane Emissions Observatory.
• Launched at: COP27 climate summit, Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt (2022).
• Assists implementation of Global Methane Pledge, which aims to cut global methane emissions by at least 30% from 2020 levels by 2030.

A study revealed presence of microplastics and toxic heavy metals across sampled sites in Odisha’s Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary (WLS).

• Microplastics are plastic particles smaller than 5 millimetres.

About Bhitarkanika WLS

• Location: Kendrapara district, Odisha.
• Geography: Formed by the estuarine delta of the Brahmani, Baitarani, and Mahanadi rivers.
• Ecosystem: India’s second-largest mangrove ecosystem, second only to the Sundarbans in West Bengal.
• Designations: National Park and Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.
• Key Fauna: Saltwater Crocodiles, rare white (albino) crocodiles etc.
  • Gahirmatha Beach is largest known rookery (Arribada) for Olive Ridley Sea Turtles.

International Organisation for Migration released the World Migration Report 2026.

Key Highlights

• Global Migration: ~304 million people were living outside their country of birth in 2024, accounting for 3.7% of the global population, up from 2.9% in 1990.
• Top Corridors: Mexico-US (1st), Afghanistan-Iran (2nd), Syria-Turkiye (3rd), Russia-Ukraine (4th), India-UAE (5th) and India-US (6th).
• Migration driving development: Remittances reached an estimated $905 billion globally in 2024, including $685 billion to low- and middle-income countries 
• India related:
  • Indian migrants in UAE wereover 3 million while Indians in US were around 3.2 million (second-largest after Mexicans).
  • India had a higher share of female immigrants than male immigrants.
  • Male Emigration from India: Largely due to labour migration to Gulf etc.