Glaw Lake has been designated as Arunachal Pradesh’s first Ramsar Site, making it the state’s first Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention.
What is the Ramsar Convention?
International treaty: An intergovernmental treaty for the conservation and wise use of wetlands.
Adopted:2 February 1971 at Ramsar, Iran.
Came into force:1975.
Objective: Promote the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands through national action and international cooperation.
India: A Contracting Party to the Convention.
What is a Ramsar Site?
A wetland designated under the Ramsar Convention for its international ecological importance.
Selected based on criteria such as:
Unique wetland ecosystems.
Biodiversity significance.
Habitat for threatened species.
Importance for migratory waterbirds.
Why is Glaw Lake Significant?
Location: Arunachal Pradesh.
First Ramsar Site: It is the first Wetland of International Importance from the state.
Recognition: Enhances conservation of the Eastern Himalayan wetland ecosystem.
Implementation: Designated under the Ramsar Convention with the involvement of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the Wetlands Division.
[2019] With reference to Wetlands, consider the following statements: 1. Under Ramsar Convention, it is mandatory on the part of the Government of India to protect and conserve all the wetlands in the territory of India. 2. They are covered with hydric soils. 3. Wetlands are often referred to as Kidneys of the Earth. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
For the first time, private industry has overtaken the government as the largest source of Research and Development (R&D) spending in India, marking a significant shift in the country’s innovation ecosystem. However, India’s overall R&D investment remains low compared to major economies.
What does the R&D data show?
Private sector leads: Private industry contributed 51.8% of India’s total R&D expenditure in 2023 to 2024.
Low R&D intensity: India’s Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD) is only 0.84% of GDP.
Global comparison: China: 2.58%, United States: 3.45%, South Korea: 4.94%
Limited research workforce: India has only 354 researchers per million population, much lower than leading innovation economies.
Why should R&D focus on manufacturing?
Higher value addition: Promotes movement from low-end assembly to high-technology manufacturing.
Import substitution: Reduces dependence on imported technologies and critical components.
Employment generation: Encourages advanced manufacturing, creating skilled jobs and strengthening industrial competitiveness.
Global competitiveness: Supports initiatives such as Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat.
What institutional support exists?
Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF)
Established under: ANRF Act, 2023.
Corpus:₹50,000 crore over five years.
Objective: Promote research, innovation and collaboration among academia, industry and government.
Key role:
Mobilise private sector investment in research.
Coordinate research funding across institutions.
Strengthen India’s innovation ecosystem.
Prelims Pointers
GERD (Gross Expenditure on Research and Development): Total national expenditure on R&D as a percentage of GDP.
Private industry is now India’s largest R&D spender.
ANRF replaced the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) as the apex research funding body.
India spends less than 1% of GDP on R&D.
[2015]Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding National Innovation Foundation-India (NIF)? 1. NIF is an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology under the Central Government 2.NIF is an initiative to strengthen the highly advanced scientific research in India’s premier scientific institutions in collaboration with highly advanced foreign scientific institutions. Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Scientists have achieved the first high precision measurement of the neutrino signature from spent nuclear fuel, enabling remote monitoring of nuclear material and strengthening global nuclear non proliferation efforts.
What is a neutrino?
Ghost particle: A neutrino is a nearly massless, electrically neutral subatomic particle that interacts only through the weak nuclear force and gravity.
Produced in nuclear reactions: They are emitted in large numbers during nuclear fission, radioactive decay, and reactions inside stars.
Highly penetrating: Since neutrinos rarely interact with matter, they can pass through the Earth almost unaffected, making them extremely difficult to detect.
What did the study achieve?
First precise measurement: Researchers in France made the first high precision measurement of the neutrino emissions from spent nuclear fuel.
Remote monitoring: The neutrino signal can be measured without physically opening or handling the spent fuel.
Scientific validation: The findings were published in a leading peer reviewed physics journal.
Why is this important for nuclear non proliferation?
Supports IAEA safeguards: Enables the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to verify spent nuclear fuel remotely.
Detects diversion: Changes in the neutrino signal can indicate diversion of plutonium or other fissile material for weapons.
Strengthens nuclear safeguards: Provides a non intrusive and tamper resistant method to improve verification of nuclear material.
Enhances transparency: Builds confidence in peaceful civilian nuclear programmes.
Prelims Pointers
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is the UN agency responsible for promoting peaceful uses of nuclear energy and implementing nuclear safeguards.
Neutrinos are electrically neutral, nearly massless particles that interact via the weak nuclear force.
Nuclear reactors and spent nuclear fuel continuously emit neutrinos.
Spent nuclear fuel contains plutonium that can potentially be separated for nuclear weapons, making its monitoring important.
“[2020] In India, why are some nuclear reactors kept ‘IAEA Safeguards’ while others are not? (a) Some use uranium and others use thorium (b) Some use imported uranium and others use domestic supplies (c) Some are operated by foreign enterprises and others are operated by domestic (d) Some are State-owned and others are privately-owned
Recurrent severe flooding in Kerala is traced to how the land and rivers have been altered, not rainfall alone. The tension is between treating floods as a natural disaster and recognising them as a man made outcome.
What is driving the flood intensity?
River siltation: Sediment build up reduces the carrying capacity of rivers.
Dam storage loss: The extremely heavy rains have increased the water level in all dams, run by both the state electricity board and the irrigation department. A Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audit found major storage loss at reservoirs due to sedimentation, including 47% at Kallarkutty.
Wetland shrinkage: Paddy and wetland area fell from 7.93 lakh hectares in 1979 to 1980 to 1.80 lakh in 2023 to 2024.
Concretisation: Hard surfaces from urbanisation alter natural drainage. During heavy rains, these impervious surfaces channel stormwater rapidly into nearby rivers and streams, causing water levels to rise within hours.
Why do these factors worsen floods?
Reduced buffer: Lost wetlands and paddy no longer absorb excess water. Paddy fields, marshlands and wetlands, are known for absorbing a huge volume of rainfall
Faster runoff: Concrete surfaces speed runoff into swollen rivers.
Lower channel capacity: Silted rivers overflow at lower volumes.
What is the state’s response?
Desilting: The government plans desilting of rivers and reservoirs.
Asset register: An asset register will be prepared for rivers, streams and lakes and land auditing is proposed to prevent encroachment of rivers
Land use: Restoration of paddy and wetland is under consideration.
Conclusion
Kerala’s floods are the product of altered hydrology as much as heavy rain. The unresolved task is reversing decades of wetland loss and unplanned construction.
Back2Basics
Manufactured sand
Manufactured sand, or M-sand, is an artificial fine aggregate made by crushing hard rocks like granite, basalt, or gneiss into small, sharp grains. It serves as a strong, eco-friendly replacement for natural river sand in modern construction.
How It Is Made
Quarrying and Blasting: Hard rock is pulled out from quarries.
Primary and Secondary Crushing: Large rocks go through jaw or cone crushers to break down into smaller pieces.
Shaping and Sizing: Vertical Shaft Impact (VSI) crushers smash and shape the particles into angular, cubical forms.
Screening and Washing: Sieves sort the grain sizes, and water washes away excess rock dust and micro-fines.
Benefits of Manufactured Sand
No Impurities: Free of clay, silt, and organic trash found in riverbeds.
High Strength: Sharp, angular edges interlock tightly, giving concrete better bonding and compression strength.
Eco-Friendly: Stops harmful river dredging that ruins water life and river banks.
Consistent Quality: Made in factories with strict size controls instead of relying on nature.
PYQ Relevance
[UPSC 2024] Flooding in urban areas is an emerging climate-induced disaster. Discuss the causes of this disaster. Mention the features of two such major floods in the last two decades in India. Describe the policies and frameworks in India that aim at tackling such floods.
Linkage: The PYQ examines the causes of urban flooding and India’s policy response to flood disasters. Kerala shows how wetland loss, river siltation, concretisation and altered land use intensify floods despite heavy rainfall, highlighting the need for ecosystem-based flood management.
The Asiatic lion population has recovered strongly but is increasingly living outside protected areas. The tension is between a conservation success in numbers and the rising conflict and risk that dispersal brings.
What is the Asiatic lion?
Endemic species: The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) survives only in and around the Gir landscape of Gujarat.
Status change: The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) moved it from Critically Endangered to Endangered.
Single population: The entire wild population is concentrated in one region, making it vulnerable to a single event.
How has the population and range changed?
Recovery: Numbers grew from about 100 to 150 six decades ago to over 1,000 today.
Dispersal: Nearly half the lions now live outside protected areas.
Satellite groups: For the first time, data shows that more than half—497 lions—now live outside the core Gir protected areas in nine distinct satellite populations spread across 11 districts, spanning a territory of 35,000 square kilometers.
Why does the spread create new risks?
Habitat threat: A proposed limestone mine in the Babarkot corridor threatens a dispersal route.
Disease risk: Past outbreaks of Canine Distemper Virus and babesiosis killed many lions.
Green Status: The species remains assessed as “largely depleted” despite the numeric recovery.
Back2Basics: Asiatic Lion (Gir)
IUCN status: Endangered.
Legal protection: Listed in Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
Habitat: Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary and surrounding landscape in Gujarat.
Significance:Gir is the only natural home of the wild Asiatic lion.
“[2024] Consider the following statements: 1. Lions do not have a particular breeding season. 2. Unlike most other big cats, cheetahs do not roar. 3. Unlike male lions, male leopards do not proclaim their territory by scent marking. Which of the statements given above are correct? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
An analysis examines how crowd control weapons meant to be non lethal cause serious injury during protests. The tension is between the state’s duty to maintain order and its obligation to protect the right to protest safely.
What are less lethal weapons?
Non lethal intent:Less lethal weapons are meant to disperse crowds without killing, but can cause serious harm.
Common types: They include tear gas, pepper and PAVA spray, lathis, pellet guns, and shock batons.
Chemical agents: Tear gas is a riot control agent that irritates the eyes and respiratory tract.
Which are the types of less lethal weapons?
Tear Gas: A chemical riot-control agent that causes intense eye irritation, tearing, coughing, breathing difficulty, and temporary disorientation. Its main chemical compounds include CS Gas (2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile), CN Gas (Chloroacetophenone), OC Gas (Oleoresin Capsicum), CR Gas (Dibenzoxazepine) and Chloropicrin (PS).
Pepper Spray: An oleoresin capsicum (OC)-based spray that causes severe burning of the eyes, skin, and respiratory tract, leading to temporary incapacitation.
PAVA Spray: A synthetic pepper spray (Pelargonic Acid Vanillylamide) that causes intense eye irritation and pain with a more controlled and consistent effect than natural pepper spray.
Lathi: A wooden or polycarbonate baton used by police for crowd control through physical force.
Pellet Guns: Firearms that discharge multiple small pellets to disperse crowds; they can cause serious injuries, particularly to the eyes. They are loaded with cartridges containing hundreds of small metal sub-projectiles.
Shock Batons (Stun Batons): Handheld electroshock devices that deliver a brief electric shock to temporarily immobilise a person through pain and muscle disruption.
Why do these weapons cause medical crises?
Misuse at range: Pellet guns fired at close range or at the head cause blinding injuries.
Enclosed spaces: Tear gas used in confined areas raises the risk of asphyxiation.
Vulnerable groups: Children and people with respiratory illness face higher harm.
What do international and domestic norms say?
Chemical Weapons Convention: Under the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons rules, the Chemical Weapons Convention bans tear gas in warfare while permitting it for domestic policing.
UN guidance: The United Nations Guidance on Less Lethal Weapons sets limits on their use.
Precedent: The 2016 pellet gun injuries in Jammu and Kashmir left many with permanent vision loss.
Conclusion
The weapons are lawful for policing yet routinely cause disproportionate harm in practice. The unresolved gap is enforceable standards on how and when they are deployed.
Back2Basics
The United Nations Guidance on Less Lethal Weapons
The United Nations Human Rights Guidance on the Use of Less-Lethal Weapons in Law Enforcement, released by the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR), provides international standards for the lawful design, testing, training, and deployment of less-lethal equipment to prevent unnecessary harm, abuse, and human rights violations during policing and assemblies.
Core Principles
Legality: Use must be strictly authorized by domestic and international law.
Necessity: Force is applied only when strictly necessary to achieve a legitimate law enforcement objective.
Proportionality: Harm caused must not outweigh the objective; excessive force is prohibited.
Accountability: States and agencies must track, record, and review every deployment of less-lethal systems.
Scope and Covered Equipment
Chemical Irritants: Regulations on tear gas and pepper spray deployment parameters.
Kinetic Impact Projectiles: Standards for rubber bullets and beanbag rounds to avoid lethal head or torso strikes.
Electric-Shock Weapons: Protocols for Tasers and other projectile stun systems.
Area-Effect Tools: Oversight on water cannons and acoustic disruption gear.
PYQ Relevance
[UPSC 2021] Though the Human Rights Commissions have contributed immensely to the protection of human rights in India, yet they have failed to assert themselves against the mighty and powerful. Analyzing their structural and practical limitations, suggest remedial measures.
Linkage: The PYQ examines India’s human rights protection framework and institutional accountability. The article highlights excessive use of less-lethal weapons and the need for stronger human rights safeguards and accountability.
A high level visit produced concrete movement across trade, finance, energy, and connectivity between India and Sri Lanka. The development adds to the standing bilateral dossier rather than resolving a single dispute.
What is the 13th Amendment context?
Devolution law: The 13th Amendment to Sri Lanka’s Constitution created Provincial Councils to devolve power, including to Tamil majority areas.
India’s interest: India has consistently pressed for its full implementation and Provincial Council elections.
Pending status: Implementation has remained incomplete for decades.
What was agreed on this visit?
Trade and social security: Both sides agreed to advance the free trade agreement update and a social security pact.
Rupee credit: Agreements were exchanged on Indian Rupee denominated Lines of Credit worth $350 million within a $450 million Cyclone Ditwah reconstruction package.
Energy and connectivity: Talks covered grid interconnection, the Sampur solar project, the Trincomalee energy hub, and Kankesanthurai harbour.
Digital identity: A Unique Digital Identity project modelled on India’s system was discussed.
Why does the relationship matter for India?
Neighbourhood first: Sri Lanka is central to India’s regional policy.
Strategic location: Its position astride Indian Ocean sea lanes shapes maritime security.
China factor: Deeper Indian engagement counters competing external influence.
Conclusion
The visit deepens a multi sector partnership without a single headline pact. The next milestone is the finalisation of the free trade agreement update and the social security pact.
[2022, GS2, 10 marks] India is an age-old friend of Sri Lanka.’ Discuss India’s role in the recent crisis in Sri Lanka the light of the preceding statement.”
PYQ Relevance [UPSC 2024] The West is fostering India as an alternative to reduce dependence on China’s supply chain and as a strategic ally to counter China’s political and economic dominance.’ Explain this statement with examples. Linkage: The PYQ examines India-China strategic competition and the scope for selective cooperation amid geopolitical rivalry. The article shows how climate resilience and disaster management can provide a limited, low-risk avenue for India–China engagement despite strategic distrust.
Mentor’s Comment
El Niño delayed India’s monsoon, followed by intense rainfall that caused severe flooding in Mumbai, Surat, Assam, and Odisha. Similar extreme weather also affected Guangxi, Shaanxi, and Gansu in China, highlighting the increasing frequency of climate-related disasters. Shared exposure to extreme climate events is proposed as a low risk avenue for India China cooperation. The tension is between deep strategic rivalry and a narrow band of mutual interest in disaster resilience.
How do India and China face similar climate challenges?
Urbanisation: Wetlands, forests and permeable land are replaced by concrete, reducing natural water absorption.
Drainage Deficit: Outdated drainage systems and poor waste management aggravate urban flooding.
Loss of Green Spaces: Shrinking green cover increases runoff and weakens climate resilience.
Coastal Risks: Coastal megacities face extreme rainfall, storm surges and sea-level rise.
Economic Costs: Climate disasters disrupt supply chains, reduce productivity and cause economic losses.
Health Impacts: Frequent floods and heat events increase disease burden and public health risks.
Past Engagement: How have India and China cooperated on climate resilience?
Climate Frameworks: Since the early 1990s, summit-level joint statements, MoUs and agreements have promoted practical climate cooperation.
Disaster & Data Cooperation: Collaboration covered floods, earthquakes, droughts, extreme weather, along with hydrological, oceanic and seismic data sharing, joint R&D and governance exchange.
Strategic Economic Dialogues: Six dialogues focused on sustainable urban planning, waste management, sewage treatment, water efficiency and capacity building.
Sister City Agreements:Delhi-Beijing, Mumbai-Shanghai and Chennai-Chongqing were created to implement joint urban resilience projects, but diplomatic tensions limited execution.
Mutual Learning:China offers data-driven planning (transport, housing, drainage), while India contributes early warning systems, Heat Action Plans, cool roofs, nature-based solutions and community-led adaptation.
Future Cooperation: Scope exists for sponge cities, resilient agriculture, hydrological modelling, Himalayan glacier monitoring and revival of shared water agreements (which ceased in 2022).
What is the proposed cooperation pathway?
In April 2026, the visit by a Chinese delegation led by China’s Special Envoy for Climate Change to New Delhi suggests that climate cooperation remains a priority.
Shared exposure: Both countries face recurring monsoon floods and urban flooding disasters.
Low risk domain: Disaster mitigation and urban resilience avoid the sensitivities of border and trade disputes.
Existing channels: An April 2026 visit by a Chinese Special Envoy and past sister city agreements offer a base.
What models could underpin it?
Sponge cities: China’s urban water absorption model is cited as a resilience approach.
Glacier concerns: Shared Himalayan glacier risks link both countries’ water security.
City linkages: Past agreements between major cities offer a template for exchange.
Asymmetry: Cooperation must manage a large power imbalance.
Narrow scope: Resilience cooperation cannot resolve the core rivalry.
How can India and China bridge the climate finance gap?
Public Funding Dependence: Climate adaptation is financed mainly through public funds in both countries.
Private Capital: Expand blended finance, municipal bonds and credit enhancement to mobilise private investment.
Ecosystem Gaps: Climate finance markets remain nascent, constrained by weak local capacity and regulatory gaps.
Knowledge Exchange: Share evidence-based practices on innovative climate finance models.
Global South Leadership: Develop common standards, metrics and fiscal frameworks for climate resilience financing.
Win-Win Cooperation: Climate finance collaboration offers a low-risk pathway to strengthen India–China engagement and resilience.
Conclusion
Climate resilience offers a contained space for engagement without touching the strategic core. The unresolved question is whether either side will invest political capital in so narrow a domain.
A large intensive revision of electoral rolls has removed millions of names across States, with objection windows now open. The tension is between cleaning the rolls of ineligible entries and the risk of wrongful deletion of genuine voters.
What is the Special Intensive Revision (SIR)?
Roll revision: The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is a house to house re verification of electoral rolls by the Election Commission of India.
ASDD categories: Names are marked under absent, shifted, duplicate, and dead (ASDD) categories for deletion.
Claims window: Deletions are provisional until the claims and objections period closes.
What is the scale of deletion?
Jharkhand: About 43.6 lakh names, or 16.5%, were removed from the draft roll.
Karnataka: The State projects deletions of about 20% of electors.
Correction route: Voters can seek restoration through Booth Level Officers and Form 6.
Why is the revision contested?
Wrongful removal: Genuine voters risk deletion through data errors.
Compressed timeline: The claims and objections window runs only to 4 September 2026.
Legal challenge: The revision faces litigation over its process and scale.
“[2017] Consider the following statements: 1. The Election Commission of India is a ‘ five-member body. 2. Union Ministry of Home Affairs decides the election schedule for the conduct of both general elections and bye-elections. 3. Election Commission resolves the disputes relating to splits/mergers of recognized political parties. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 3 only
A parliamentary panel warned a large social media company that its legal immunity could be withdrawn after a content takedown and content safety failures. The tension is between platform safe harbour and the state’s demand for accountability.
What is intermediary immunity under Section 79 of the IT Act, 2000?
Definition of intermediary: An intermediary is any person or entity that receives, stores, or transmits an electronic record on behalf of another person, or provides any service with respect to that record. It includes, Internet and telecom providers, Web-hosting and cloud service providers, Search engines, Online marketplaces and e-commerce websites, Social media and messaging platforms, Online payment and auction sites and Cyber cafes.
Safe harbour:Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 shields an intermediary from liability for third party content it hosts.
Conditions: This protection applies only if their function is limited to providing access to communication, and they do not initiate, select, or modify the content, and they comply with due diligence requirements (such as removing unlawful content upon receiving actual knowledge or a court order).
Intermediary test: The immunity depends on the platform qualifying as an intermediary rather than a content publisher.
What triggered the summons?
Video takedown: The platform briefly removed a video of the Prime Minister and later apologised.
Harmful content: The government flagged child sexual abuse material and deepfake content on its platforms.
Panel ultimatum: The Standing Committee on Information Technology sought testimony from the platform’s global head.
Why is the immunity in question?
Compliance failures: Officials argue the platform did not act on directives and grievances.
Definition dispute: Officials contended it may not fall within the intermediary definition.
Withdrawal threat: Loss of Section 79 cover would expose it to liability for user content.
Conclusion
The episode tests how far platform immunity survives repeated compliance failures. The next milestone is the platform’s response to the committee’s summons.
Back2Basics
Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology
It is a department-related parliamentary committee in India tasked with overseeing specific ministries, examining legislation, reviewing budget demands, and ensuring executive accountability. It was renamed from the Standing Committee on Information Technology in November 2021.
Structure and Composition
Total Members: 31 members (21 from Lok Sabha nominated by the Speaker and 10 from Rajya Sabha nominated by the Chairperson).
Leadership: The Chairperson is appointed by the Lok Sabha Speaker.
Tenure: The term of office for members does not exceed one year.
Ministers: Sitting ministers are barred from holding membership on this committee
Ministries under its Jurisdiction
Ministry of Communications (including the Department of Telecommunications and Department of Posts)
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB)
Core Functions
Scrutinizing the annual Demands for Grants of the designated ministries.
Examining Bills referred to it by the Lok Sabha Speaker or Rajya Sabha Chairperson.
Considering national policy documents, performance reports, and long-term trends related to digital infrastructure, telecommunications, media regulations, and cyber security.
PYQ Relevance
[UPSC 2024] Social media and encrypting messaging services pose a serious security challenge. What measures have been adopted at various levels to address the security implications of social media? Also suggest any other remedies to address the problem.
Linkage: The PYQ examines the regulatory and legal measures to address the security and accountability challenges posed by social media platforms. The article highlights the limits of intermediary immunity under Section 79 and the need for greater platform accountability for harmful content.
