National Innovation Challenge for Drone Application and Research (NIDAR 2.0, 2026-27) was recently launched under the SwaYaan initiative.
About NIDAR 2.0
- Launched by: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), in collaboration with Drone Federation India.
- It challenges students to build smarter drones powered by an Indian-made chip and offers a prize pool of over 65 lakh rupees
About SwaYaan: Capacity Building for Human Resource Development in Unmanned Aircraft Systems
- Origin: approved in 2022 with an outlay of Rs 89.87 crore over 5 years
- Ministry: MeitY
- Objective: Build the skilled workforce for India's drone sector
- Approach: Hub-and-Spoke model of 30 premier institutions, including IISc, IITs, IIITs, NITs, etc.
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1 sourceCSIR celebrates women researchers in STEM at ASPIRE-SHAKTI
About Special Call for Research Grants for Women Scientists (CSIR-ASPIRE)
- Implementing Agency: CSIR through Council of Scientific & Industrial Research - Human Resource development Group (CSIR-HRDG).
- Launched: International Women's Day, 2023
- Objectives: Provide research grants to women scientists and strengthen the STEM women research pipeline.
- Salient Features
- Eligibility: Women scientists in regular employment as Principal Investigators.
- Tenure:2–3 years.
- Funding: Up to ₹25–30 lakh per project.
- Coverage: Life, Chemical, Physical, Engineering, and Interdisciplinary Sciences.
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1 sourceAround 81% of SO₂ emissions from coal-fired power plants within 300 km of Delhi-NCR come from plants exempted from mandatory Flue Gas Desulphurisation (FGD) installation.
- MoEFCC, in 2015, mandated FGD systems in all coal-fired power plants to meet SO₂ emission norms by 2017, extended four times due to widespread non-compliance.
- Under 2025 Notification:
- Category A plants: Must install FGD systems by 2027.
- Category B plants: Compliance to be decided case-by-case by an Expert Appraisal Committee.
- Category C plants: Exempted from FGD installation; these constitute about 78% of India's coal-fired units.
About Flue Gas Desulphurisation (FGD)
- FGD is a scrubbing technique that uses an alkaline reagent (typically a sodium- or calcium-based alkaline regent) to remove SO2 from flue gas.
- Flue gas is emitted as a byproduct of combustion of fossil fuels and mainly contains pollutants such as carbon dioxide (CO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, etc.
About Sulphur Dioxide
- SO₂ is a colorless, highly reactive gas with a pungent, irritating odor.
- Largest Source of SO2: Burning of fossil fuel by power plants and other industrial facilities.
- Impact: Respiratory problems (e.g., Bronchitis), causes Acid rain etc.
University of Oxford’s vaccine candidate has become the first against Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD) to enter Phase 1 clinical trials.
- BVD is a rare and potentially deadly type of viral hemorrhagic fever.
- It is caused by Bundibugyo virus, a type of Ebola virus.
About Ebola
- It is caused by a group of viruses, known as orthoebolaviruses (formerly ebolavirus).
- Orthoebolaviruses were discovered in 1976 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and are found primarily in sub-Saharan Africa.
- These viruses can cause serious illness that, without treatment, can cause death.
- Transmission of Ebola Virus:
- Person-to-person: Direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected or deceased person.
- Contaminated objects: Contact with infected surfaces, clothing, bedding, or medical equipment (e.g., needles).
- Animal-to-human: Handling or consuming infected wild animals such as fruit bats, chimpanzees, or gorillas (bushmeat).
Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh is set to get one hill council each for its seven districts and a UT-level body proposed under a customised Article 371 framework.
About Article 371
- It is a provision in the Constitution that grants special safeguards and autonomy to certain states and regions to protect their cultural identity, land rights, local employment and administrative systems.
- While the core Article focuses on Maharashtra and Gujarat, the broader Articles 371A through 371J provide specific constitutional safeguards for 12 states.
- Examples of Special safeguards granted:
- Establishment of Regional Development Boards for Vidarbha, Marathwada, Saurashtra, Kutch, etc.
- Protection of Naga religious and social practices, customary laws, land ownership, and resources in Nagaland and Mizoram.
- Equitable opportunities and facilities for the people of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in public employment and education etc.
Recently 10 European countries announced establishment of Integrated Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition to protect Europe from ballistic missiles.
About Integrated Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition
- Founding Members: Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.
- Objectives: Build a shared ballistic missile defence capability for Europe, taking advantage of Ukraine’s experience of fighting Russian invasion.
- It aims to build a shared antiballistic missile capacity for Europe with common operational capabilities, clear governance mechanisms, joint technical working groups etc.
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1 sourceIndia launches campaign for election as a non-permanent member of UN Security Council seat for 2028-29 term.
About the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
- Established: 1945 under UN Charter as one of the six principal organs of the UN.
- Purpose: Maintain international peace and security.
- Headquarters: New York City, USA.
- Unique Feature: The only UN organ whose decisions are legally binding on member states.
- Composition: 15 members
- 5 permanent members (China, France, Russia, UK, USA) with veto power, and
- 10 non-permanent members elected by the UN General Assembly for two-year terms; each member has one vote.
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