The Telangana Chief Minister, along with several others, has donated to the NDF as a gesture of solidarity with the armed forces.

National Defence Fund (NDF)

• Established in 1962.
• Objective: To take charge of voluntary donations in cash and kind received for promotion of the national defence effort, and to decide on their utilisation.
• Utilization: For the welfare of the members of the Armed Forces (including Para Military Forces) and their dependents.
• Administered by: An Executive Committee, with PM as Chairperson, and Defence, Finance and Home Ministers as Members. 
  • Finance Minister is the Treasurer of the Fund.
• Tax Benefits: All contributions towards NDF are exempt from Income Tax under section 80(G).

India engages China over Germanium export curbs: Embassy.

About Germanium

• Germanium is a silvery-white semi-metal (Metalloid); it has properties of both metals and non-metals.
• Primary Ores: Germanite and Argyrodite. Germanium ores are rare, and most germanium is a by-product of zinc production and from coal fly ash. 
• Other Properties: Brittle; Transparent to infrared radiation; High index of refraction.
• Production: China accounted for 68% of global germanium production in 2023, making it the world's dominant supplier.
  •  India is 100% dependent on germanium imports. 
• Applications: Semiconductors, Fiber Optics, Infrared Optics, solar cells, etc.

The Indian Armed Forces intercepted and neutralised a range of high-tech foreign weapons of Pakistan including PL-15 missiles & Byker YIHA III Kamikaze drones.

About PL-15 

• It is a Chinese-origin air-to-air missile employing active radar guidance, satellite and inertial navigation systems.

About Byker YIHA III

• Turkish Kamikaze-style (single-use missions) loitering drones, capable of carrying high-explosive warheads.

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has served notices to various online platforms over using dark patterns like Basket sneaking & Confirm Shaming.

• Dark patterns are deceptive design techniques that manipulate user interfaces to trick people into making unintended choices, undermining their autonomy & violating consumer rights.

Basket Sneaking

• Sneaking unwanted items/donations into shopping carts during checkout without user consent to increase the final payment amount.

Confirm Shaming

• It means using fear, shame, guilt, or ridicule to pressure users into making purchases or continuing subscriptions.
• Example: “No thanks, I don’t care about saving money” as a button to decline an offer.

Scientists report transmutation of Lead into Gold in CERN's Large Hadron Collider (LHC) albeit for only a fraction of second.

• CERN’s LHC revealed creation of some 86 billion gold nuclei – all from smashing together lead atoms at 99.99% the speed of light.

About CERN’s LHC

• It is the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator.
• LHC consists of a 27-kilometre ring of superconducting magnets with a number of accelerating structures to boost the energy of the particles along the way.
• Inside the accelerator, two high-energy particle beams travel at close to the speed of light before they are made to collide. 

The Kosmos 482 lander probe re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and splashed into the Indian Ocean.

About Kosmos 482

• It was part of Soviet Union’s Venera Program, which sent a fleet of probes to Venus.
  • Venus is the second planet from the Sun, and is the hottest planet in our solar system. 
• It was launched in 1972 but could not leave the Earth’s orbit. 
• It consisted of a carrier bus and lander probe. 

According to Sample Registration System (SRS) Report 2021 released by Registrar General of India, Total Fertility Rate (TFR) remains constant at 2.0 in 2021.

• TFR is the average number of children a woman would have at the end of their reproductive period.
  • A TFR of 2.1 is known as the Replacement Rate, which if sustained over long period, each generation will exactly replace itself in the absence of migration. 
• Bihar has reported the highest TFR at 3.0, while Delhi and West Bengal reported the lowest TFR of 1.4.

Chinese researchers have developed a high-resolution ocean simulation system, named LICOMK++, that offers enhanced capabilities for modelling ocean dynamics and climate patterns.

About LICOMK++

• LICOMK++ is being hailed as an ocean "microscope" owing to its ultra-high-resolution capabilities.
• The system enables scientists to analyze complex processes such as eddies and heat transport with unprecedented clarity.
• It can significantly improve predictions for extreme weather events like typhoons, marine heatwaves, and floods.