Indian Navy and United Kingdom’s Royal Navy bilateral Exercise KONKAN-25 commenced off India’s western coast.

• This is first joint exercise between both countries involving UK carrier strike group – HMS Prince of Wales, and India’s aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.

The first commercial coal mine in Arunachal Pradesh was inaugurated at Namchik-Namphuk coal block.

• Government opened up the commercial coal mining for private sector in 2018, ending the monopoly of state-owned Coal India Limited.
  • Earlier, private sector was allowed coal mining for captive use only. 
• Commercial mining by private sector aims to encourage transparent pricing of coal and to create a marketplace for coal with multiple producers to drive competition.

Project Himank of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has constructed the world’s highest motorable road at Mig La Pass, 19,400 feet above sea level in Ladakh. 

• Road forms a critical link in the Likaru-Mig La-Fukche axis, connecting to the Fukche airfield near Line of Actual Control with China. 
• Mig La Pass is located on the Changthang Plateau in Ladakh. 

About Project Himank

• The Project was raised in 1985 at Leh for the development of road communication in Ladakh region.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) begins the 10^th edition of the National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-X).

• NATPOLREX is a biennial flagship exercise which aims to evaluate and enhance India’s national preparedness to respond to marine oil spill incidents.

Overflowing Koshi River has raised the risks of floods and landslides in Bihar and Nepal.

About Koshi (or Kosi) River

• Origin: It is a Transboundary river which originates in Tibet (China) and forms at the confluence of three streams Sun Kosi, Arun Kosi and Tamur Kosi. 
  • It then passes through Nepal and India.
• It is one of the major tributaries of the Ganga, joining it in Bihar. 
• It is also known as the ‘Sorrow of Bihar’ as it brings huge floods and destruction.
• Mt. Everest and the Kanchanjunga fall in the Kosi catchment.
• Major Tributaries: Kamla and Bagmati.

Philippines have launched coral larvae cryobank to preserve reef biodiversity by freezing coral ‘seeds’ for future restoration and research.

• The project is part of a wider regional initiative to create a network of cryobanks across the Coral Triangle.

About Coral Triangle (Amazon of the Seas)

• Location: It is a 5.7 million sq. km marine region across Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.
• It is the world’s richest marine biodiversity hotspot.
  • Contains over 75% of the world’s coral species, one-third of all reef fish species, vast mangrove forests, etc.