The Supreme Court stayed Himachal Pradesh High Court’s direction which declared power to appoint chief parliamentary secretaries and parliamentary secretaries in the state as unconstitutional.

About Parliamentary Secretaries in State

• They are appointed to assist ministers with parliamentary work 
• They often hold the rank of Minister of State and have the same entitlements and are assigned to a government department. 
• Various high courts have deemed appointment of Parliamentary Secretaries as unconstitutional 
• Issues in Appointment:-
  • Appointment of Parliamentary Secretaries goes against 91st Amendment of the Indian Constitution, which introduced Article 164(1A).
    • Article 164(1A) limits the total number of ministers, including the Chief Minister, to 15% of the state’s legislative assembly members.

A NITI Aayog research report suggests that India must include Coking Coal in the list of critical minerals for enhancing competitiveness of India’s steel sector.

• While India is a net steel exporter, it is also the second largest importer of metallurgical coal in the World.

About Coking Coal

• Coking coal is high-grade bituminous coal with a quality that allows production of metallurgical coal.  
• High-temperature heating of coking coal in the absence of oxygen produces Coke.
  • Coke is used in iron & steel industry as energy source and chemical agent (carbon source) in blast furnaces. 

Recently, the fourth edition of Sea Vigil 24, a major Pan-India coastal defense exercise, was concluded.

About SEA VIGIL 24

• Conducted by: Indian Navy
• Objective: maritime security, air defense, naval cooperation, and community engagement.
• Coverage: India’s 11,098 km coastline and 2.4 million sq. km Exclusive Economic Zone.
• Focus Areas: Enhancing Security of vital maritime assets such as Oil Rigs, Cable Landing Stations, and Non-Major Ports and Nuclear installations along the coast, strengthening Inter-Agency Coordination

The Karnataka king cobra locally known as 'Kaalinga Sarpa' will officially be named Ophiophagus Kaalinga.

About King Cobra

• Habitat: Thick forests and plains of India, China and Southeast Asia.
• Characteristics
  • It is the longest venomous snake, reaching up to 18ft.
  • Lifespan: About 20 years in the wild.
  • Diet: Cold-blooded animals, particularly other snakes. 
  • Threat display: Raises their body about three to four feet (1 to 1.2 meters) off the ground and are able to follow their enemy in this position over considerable distances.

Government of Odisha and ICRISAT launched a ‘Compendium of Regenerative Agriculture’, for scaling regenerative agriculture practices.

About Regenerative agriculture (RA) 

• Regenerative agriculture is a way of farming that focuses on soil health. 
• Key Principles include: 
  • Minimizing soil disturbance (minimum ploughing) keeping CO₂ in soil, and improving its water absorbency, 
  • Maximizing crop diversity improving biodiversity, 
  • Maintaining soil cover, keeping living roots year-round, and integrating livestock.
• Significance: Improved crop yields, water retention, reduction in soil erosion and greenhouse gas emissions. 

India's first modern, self-sufficient gaushala with a state-of-the-art Compressed Biogas (CBG) plant launched in Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh. 

• Here, biogas will be prepared from cattle dung and garbage. 

About CBG

• Composition: Methane (CH₄) (>90%)
• Source:  Derived from organic waste materials through anaerobic decomposition.
• Green Fuel: It has calorific value and other properties similar to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and hence can be utilized as green renewable automotive fuel.
• Estimated Potential: 62 million metric tons in India.
• Policy Support:   SATAT (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation) Scheme on CBG, Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBAR-DHAN) scheme etc. 

Researchers have used Artificial Intelligence (AI) to design new DNA Switches (also called Cis-Regulatory Elements (CREs)) that can precisely control expression of a gene in different cell types. 

• It opens the possibility of controlling when and where genes are expressed in human body, for human health and research. 

About CREs

• CREs themselves are not part of genes, but are separate, regulatory DNA sequences.
• Although every cell in an organism contains the same genes, not all the genes are needed in every cell, or at all times. This gene expression is regulated by CREs.  
• These play a crucial role in cellular identity, developmental processes, and stimulus responses. 

Astronomers have used the MeerKAT radio telescope to investigate giant radio galaxies in the field of  Cosmological Evolution Survey (COSMOS).

About MeerKAT radio telescope

• Location: Northern Cape province of South Africa
• Features:
  • It consists of a connected array of radio telescopes.
  • It consists of 64 interlinked receptors, including the main reflector, sub-reflector, receivers, and other electronics.
  • Benefits: Extremely high sensitivity, wide field of view, and unprecedented imaging capabilities
• It is a precursor instrument to mid-frequency component of Square Kilometer Array (SKA) telescope