Human skeletal remains excavated from Rakhigarhi have been formally handed to the Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI).

About Rakhigarhi 

• It is recognized as the largest known settlement of the Indus-Saraswati (Harappan) Civilization.
• Location: Hisar district, Haryana, in the Ghaggar-Hakra river plain.
• Represents continuous habitation from Early to Mature Harappan periods.
• Key discoveries: 
  • Urban features: Planned settlements with mud-brick and burnt-brick houses, drainage systems.  
  • Trade: Cylindrical seal with a symbol of alligator.
  • Industry: Ceramic industry represented by red ware, craft production centres.
  • Ritual system: Animal sacrificial pit, triangular and circular fire alters, burial grounds.

Indian Railways approves Kavach Deployment on East Coast Railway to enhance safety and efficiency.

About Kavach system 

• It is an Automated Train Protection(ATP) system that provides Train Protection and Collision Prevention capabilities for trains.
• Working: Continuous real-time communication between trackside systems and locomotives using secure Ultra High Frequency (UHF) radio antenna and track-mounted Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags.
• Developed by: Research Designs & Standards Organization (RDSO) of Indian Railways.
• Key features: 
  • Detection and prevention of Signal Passing at Danger (SPAD): Automatically stops the train before the signal.
  • Prevention of all types of train collisions: head-on, rear-end, and side-on.
  • Cab signaling with display of movement authority, target distance, speed, and signal aspects.

Based on analysis of data from 29 Indian states (1980–2019), a study found a statistically significant negative relationship between rising temperatures and economic growth.

Key highlights of Study

• Major Economic Impact: A 1°C rise in annual temperature could reduce India's economic growth by 3.89%, nearly double earlier estimates.
• Transmission Channels: Higher temperatures affect growth through:
  • Reduced labour productivity (heat stress).
  • Lower capital productivity (damage to infrastructure and assets).
  • Degradation of ecosystem services supporting economic activity.
• Sector-Wide Effects: Climate risks affect not only agriculture but also industry, construction, and services, making climate change an economy-wide challenge.
• Regional Disparities: Hotter and southern states are likely to face greater economic losses, potentially widening existing regional inequalities.

US notifies $428 million sale of support services for Apache helicopters, M777A2 howitzers to India

About Apache AH-64E helicopters

• It is regarded as among the world's most advanced combat helicopters, for precision strike and battlefield support missions.
• Features: Advanced sensor and targeting suite, Unmanned aircraft control, Digital connectivity, etc.

About M777A2 Ultra-Light Howitzer

• It is a lightweight artillery gun which can be airlifted for rapid deployment in mountainous regions.

Tamil Nadu has witnessed its deadliest industrial ammonia gas leak tragedy at a private seafood processing unit in Tiruvallur district.

About Ammonia (NH3)

• It is composed of nitrogen and hydrogen.
• Key properties: Colorless gas with a pungent smell, highly reactive inorganic, highly soluble in water, etc.
• Formation of Ammonia:
  • Natural Process: Produced during the nitrogen cycle through the decomposition of organic matter, animal waste, and dead plants by nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria.
  • Industrial Synthesis (Haber–Bosch Process): Produced by reacting atmospheric nitrogen (N₂) with hydrogen (H₂), in the presence of an iron catalyst.
• Applications:
  • Serves as the primary raw material for nitrogen-based fertilizers such as urea, ammonium nitrate.
  • Used as a refrigerant in cold storage facilities, ice plants, and food processing industries

The President of India interacted with Cheetah Mitras and members of the Sahariya tribe at Kuno National Park.

• Cheetah Mitras are specially trained local volunteers often drawn from indigenous communities.
• They were established as part of Project Cheetah.

About Sahariya Tribe

• It is one of the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG).
• Other names: Seher, Sair, Savar, Saonar, Sahra, etc.
• They are rimarily concentrated in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
• They are known for their dance, the Saharia Swang, which is performed during the month of Holi.

The four-day Ambubachi Mela begins at Assam’s Kamakhya Temple.

• Kamakhya Temple is situated on Nilachal Hill in Guwahati, Assam.
• It is one of the most revered centres of Tantric practices.
• It is regarded as one of the 51 Shakti Peethas in India.

About Ambubachi Mela:

• It marks the annual menstrual cycle of Goddess Kamakhya, who is revered as the embodiment of divine feminine creative energy.
• It begins with the Pravritti ritual, closes the temple sanctum to the public for a three-day seclusion period, and concludes with the Nivritti ritual and purification before reopening for public darshan.

Chinese AI startup Zhipu AI launched its latest large language model (LLM) called GLM-5.2.

• GLM-5.2 is an open-weight model.

About Open Weight AI Model

• It is an AI model whose trained parameters (weights) are publicly released, allowing anyone to download it. 
• It lets users run the model on their own computers, study how it works, and even modify it for their own specific needs.