Lakshadweep administration is considering acquisition of Bitra for defence purposes.

About Bitra Island

• It is the smallest inhabited island in the territory of Lakshadweep having a land area of 0.105 sq km.
• Location: Near the Agatti Island, Arabian Sea. 
• Climate: Categorised as 'Aw' i.e., tropical savannah according to the Köppen-Geiger system of climate classification.
  • The average rainfall received is ~1600 mm a year.

About Lakshadweep

• It is India’s smallest Union Territory.
• Lakshadweep Island consists of 36 coral islands, located in the Arabian Sea. Atoll, lagoon and reefs are the three main geographical features.

Chinese researchers have developed an in vitro biotransformation (ivBT) system that synthesizes sucrose from methanol.

• While Methanol was derived from industrial waste or carbon dioxide.
• This Artificial conversion of CO2 into food and chemicals can address environmental and population related challenges

About ivBT system

• Biotransformation is  process by which a substance is chemically altered by metabolic activity of biological agents, mainly enzymes. 
• When this process is carried out outside the body (in vitro) using isolated cells or enzymes, it is termed in vitro biotransformation (ivBT).

A new deep learning system, BioEmu-1, has been developed to accurately predict protein structures and their dynamic conformations.

About BioEmu

• Developed by Microsoft and researchers at Rice University in the US and Freie Universität in Germany.
• Predicts the full range of shapes a protein naturally explores under biological conditions. 
• Allows high-resolution protein flexibility modelling. 
  • Database of AlphaFold (an AI Model developed by Google DeepMind to predict protein's structure) has been used for its training. 
• Benefits: It is faster and cheaper, enabling large-scale predictions.
  • It can generate thousands of protein structures per hour on a single graphics processing unit (GPU).
  • Also, it is an open-source model

Tribal communities from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra gathered at Mangarh Dham to reiterate their demand for a separate Bhil Pradesh.

• Mangarh Dham is the site of the Mangarh massacre of 1913, also called Jallianwala Bagh of Rajasthan.
• It is located in Banswara district of Rajasthan.

About Mangarh Massacre

• Under the leadership of Guru Govindgiri,  Bhils assembled to demand higher wages from their landlords at Mangarh hill.
• Rumors spread that the tribals were planning to revolt against rulers and the British government.
• Thus, British forces used bombs and fired directly into the crowds of assembled tribals
• Approximately 1,000-1,500 tribals were killed in the incident.

Recently, a traditional polyandrous marriage known as ‘Jajda’ was performed among the Hatti tribe (Scheduled Tribes (ST)) in Himachal Pradesh.

• Revenue laws recognize this practice as ‘Jodidara’.
• Polyandry is a form of polygamy where a woman marries more than one man at the same time. 
• Reasons for polyandry: ensuring ancestral land is not divided, promoting brotherhood and joint family, etc. 

About Hatti Tribe

• It is a close-knit community in Trans-Giri region (near Giri and Tons rivers) of HP and Uttarakhand.
• The tribe is named after their traditional occupation - selling homegrown produce, meat, etc. at small markets (called Haats).

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels have committed to a permanent ceasefire in eastern Congo.

About M23 rebels

• M23, or March 23 Movement primarily consists of ethnic Tutsis is a major armed group fighting Congolese forces  in  mineral-rich eastern DRC. 
• It is named after date in 2009 of the signing of an accord between CNDP, a Tutsi-led rebel group, and the Congolese government to end a revolt led by the Tutsi people.
• CNDP members formed the M23 movement in 2012 to protest the failed implementation of the 2009 accord, for protecting minorities and distributing resources evenly.

India’s leadership in standards development for Millets gained recognition at the 88th Session of the Executive Committee of the CAC at Food and Agriculture organization (FAO) Headquarters in Rome, Italy.

About CAC

• It an international food standards body established jointly by the FAO and the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1963.
• It is responsible for the implementation of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme.
• Codex Alimentarius are international food standards and codes of practice that contribute to the safety, quality and fairness of this international food trade.
• Members: 189  (188 Member Countries and 1 Organization (EU))

Five powerful earthquakes struck offshore in Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. 

About Kamchatka Peninsula

• Located in the Russian Far East.
  • It is surrounded by the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean (east) and the Sea of Okhotsk (west).
• Lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire. 
• Often known as a land of fire and ice.
• Kuril Archipelago extends from the southern tip of Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula to the northeastern coast of Japan’s Hokkaido Island.
  • The Kuril Islands are a group of territories disputed between Russia and Japan.