Recently, UN Resident Coordinator in India highlighted that building lasting partnerships is essential for Blue Helmets to effectively tackle global threats.

• "Blue Helmets" refers to United Nations (UN) peacekeepers as they use blue helmets while carrying out peacekeeping missions around the world. 

About UN Peacekeepers

• Origin: Began in 1948 when the UN deployed military observers to West Asia to observe the Armistice Agreement.
• Deployment Mechanism: UN Security Council by adopting a resolution.
  • Budget and resources are subject to General Assembly approval.
• Principles of Peacekeeping are based on Consent of the parties, Impartiality, Non-use of force except in self-defence and defence of the mandate
• Department of Peace Operations (DPO) of UN provides political and executive direction to peacekeeping operations.

Supreme Court has relaxed a condition pertaining to appointment of ad-hoc judges to High Courts  that was laid in the case of Lok Prahari vs Union of India (2021)

• One of the conditions in Lok Prahari versus Union of India case, 2021, states that ad hoc judges can be appointed to High Courts only if their judicial vacancies crossed 20% of the sanctioned strength.

Present Status: 

• Now, each High Court can appoint around 2-5 ad-hoc judges, provided the number does not exceed 10% of the sanctioned strength of the concerned High Court.

Recently, RBI published the Reserve Bank of India–Digital Payments Index (RBI-DPI).

About RBI-DPI

• Objective: capture the extent of digitisation of payments systems & measure the adoption of online transactions
• Released frequency: Semi-annual (March & September).
• Base Period: March 2018.
• Parameters involved: 
  • Payment Enablers
  • Payment Infrastructure (demand-side factors)
  • Payment Infrastructure (supply-side factors)
  • Payment Performance and 
  • Consumer Centricity.

Recently, the INSV Tarini under Navika Sagar Parikrama-II, successfully passed through Point Nemo. 

• Point Nemo is the location in the South Pacific Ocean that is farthest from land.

About Navika Sagar Parikrama-II

• It is an ambitious circumnavigation of the globe undertaken by two female officers of the Indian Navy. 
• This expedition, aboard the Indian Naval Sailing Vessel (INSV) Tarini, aims to cover over 21,600 nautical miles. 
• First edition of Navika Sagar Parikrama concluded in 2018.

The SEBI issues guidelines for the evaluation of the performance of statutory committees of market infrastructure institutions (MIIs).

• Under the guidelines, MIIs are required to appoint an independent external agency to evaluate their performance and the functioning of their statutory committees. 
• This needs to be done once every three years.

About Market Infrastructure Institutions (MIIs)

• These are organizations that provide the infrastructure for trading securities & are regulated by SEBI.
• It includes stock exchanges, depositories, and clearing corporations.
• Purpose: Enabling trading, securing investor holding, transaction settlement etc.

The Philippines offered to remove the Typhon mid-range missile system, a  U.S. missile system if China ceases its aggressive actions in the South China Sea.

Typhon mid-range missile system

• The US army's Strategic Mid-Range Fires (SMRF) System is also known as the “Typhon” missile system.
• Missiles: can launch both SM-6 missiles and Tomahawk cruise missiles.
  • Standard Missile 6 (SM-6), is United States military extended-range anti-air warfare (ER-AAW) missile.
• Aim: addresses  the need for a flexible, mobile solution capable of neutralizing high-value enemy targets, such as air defense systems.

Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) stayed the penalties imposed by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Telecom companies for not being able to curb spam.

About TDSAT

• It is a statutory body set up by an amendment to the TRAI Act, 1997 in 2000.
• Function: To adjudicate disputes, dispose of appeals and protect interests of service providers and consumers
• Composition: Chairperson and two Members appointed by the Central Government.
• Powers and Jurisdiction: 
  • Original and appellate jurisdiction in regard to Telecom, Broadcasting and Airport tariff matters. 
  • Only appellate jurisdiction in Cyber (IT) matters.
  • It is guided by the Principles of Natural Justice and has  power to regulate its own procedure. 

Recently, a Russian Nuclear-powered vessel ‘50 Let Pobedy’ collided with a cargo vessel in the Kara Sea.

About Kara Sea 

• It is a shallow marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean located to the north of Siberia, Russia formed due to melting of glaciers in the last Ice Age.
• The Barents Sea lies to the west and the Laptev Sea to the East.
• It is regarded as one of the coldest seas in the world.
• Rivers draining into Kara Sea: Kara, Ob, Pyasina, Yenisei. 
• Important Islands: Bely, Dikson, Kamennyye, Oleni, and Taymyr Islands.