(HOT) UPSC Exam Complete Study Notes 2026

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NPS Vatsalya Scheme

Recently, the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has issued the NPS Vatsalya Scheme Guidelines 2025.

About NPS Vatsalya Scheme:

It is a contributory savings and long term financial security scheme designed exclusively for minors.

Key features of NPS Vatsalya Scheme:

Eligibility: It is open to all Indian citizens, including NRI/OCI, below 18 years of age.
Account Operation: Account opened in the name of the minor and operated by the guardian
Contribution: Minimum initial and annual contribution ₹250 and no maximum limit on contribution
The contribution can also be gifted by relatives and friends.
Pension Fund Selection: Guardian can choose any one Pension Fund registered with PFRDA
Partial Withdrawal Provisions: It is allowed after completion of three years from account opening
Up to 25% of own contributions (excluding returns) is permitted for education, medical treatment and specified disabilities
It is allowed twice before 18 years and twice between 18-21 years, subject to conditions.

Henley Passport Index

The 2026 Henley Passport Index has shown significant shifts in global travel mobility, with Asia continuing to dominate the top ranks.

About Henley Passport Index:

It is a popular ranking of global passports that measures passport strength by the number of destinations that holders can visit without a prior visa.
Base: The index ranks countries based on statistics provided by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Significance: The stronger the passport, the more countries its holders can enter without a prior visa, a privilege that reflects diplomatic ties, economic influence, and international trust.

Key Highlights of Henley Passport Index 2026:

India’s passport also saw improvement, climbing five spots to 80th position
The top three passports in the world come from Asia. Singapore ranks first, while Japan and South Korea are tied for second place.
Afghanistan is at the bottom of the list, ranked 101st, with visa-free access to 24 destinations.

Asola-Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary

The Delhi government recently said that over 6,500 monkeys rescued by civic bodies from residential and commercial areas across the city have been shifted to Asola-Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary in the last five years.

About Asola-Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary:

Asola-Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary, on the Southern Delhi Ridge of the Aravalli hill range on the Delhi-Haryana border, lies in Southern Delhi as well as the northern parts of Faridabad and Gurugram districts of Haryana state.
It is part of the Northern Aravalli Leopard Wildlife Corridor.
In Delhi, Sanctuary passes through historical sites such as Chattarpur Temple, Tughlakabad, Surajkund, Anangpur Dam, and Adilabad Ruins.

Flora:

The semi-arid forest vegetation of the Aravali region provides homes to certain plant species.
It includes dhak (flame of the forest), babool (Acacia), khejri, and various shrubs and grasses that are well-adapted to dry conditions.

Fauna:

It is home to a wide variety of animals, including the Indian leopard, jackal, Indian blue bull, sambar deer, wild boar, and mongoose.
It is also a birdwatcher’s paradise, with various birds spotted here, including the Indian peafowl, crested serpent-eagle, and Indian roller.
Reptiles such as the monitor lizard, Indian cobra, and Russell’s viper can also be found here.

Jamma Bane Lands

Recently, the Karnataka government has amended its land revenue law to modernise an age-old system of land records called Jamma Bane lands.

About Jamma Bane Lands:

The word Jamma means hereditary.
The Jamma Bane tenure is a form of land holding prevalent in Kodagu district of Karnataka.
It is distinctly different from other classes of land holdings in the state.
History: These lands were originally granted by erstwhile kings of Coorg and the British to local communities in return for military service.
These lands comprise both wetlands, used for paddy cultivation, and forested highlands, which have transformed into the now-famous coffee estates of Coorg.
Relevant Acts: The Coorg Land Revenue and Regulations Act, 1899 was in place to govern land ownership in the region till the introduction of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964.

Issue with Jamma Bane Lands:

Ownership: The Jamma Bane land ownership is registered in the name of the original pattedar from a family.
Over generations, the names of the new owners are added alongside the name of the pattedar.
The land ownership name could not be changed to reflect new owners.

Gorakhnath Temple

A massive wave of devotion swept through the Gorakhnath Temple recently, a day ahead of the main Makar Sankranti festival, as lakhs of devotees gathered to offer khichdi to Mahayogi Guru Gorakhnath.

About Gorakhnath Temple:

It is a Hindu temple situated in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.
The temple belongs to the Nath monastic group of the Nath tradition (a Shaiva sub-sect in Hinduism), which was instituted by Guru Matsyendranath.
It is named after the Guru Gorakhnath, who was one of the notable disciples of Guru Matsyendranath and well-known for his Hatha Yoga, a renowned branch of Yoga.
It serves as the epicenter of the Nath tradition.

Features:

It is a blend of traditional and modern North Indian architectural styles, reflecting the heritage and simplicity of the Nath sect.
The heart of the Gorakhnath Temple is the central shrine, which houses a sacred image of Gorakhnath as a deity and a Shiva Linga, as the Nath sect sees Gorakhnath as an incarnation of Lord Shiva.
Intricate stonework and marble structures surround the inner shrine.
Carved pillars and symbolic motifs around the sanctum highlight the Nath sect’s emphasis on inner spirituality.
One of the striking features is the temple’s dome, which is tall and conical, visible from a distance.
A significant feature of the Gorakhnath Temple is the Samadhi (final resting place) of Gorakhnath, which is a sacred spot within the temple complex.

Chang'e-6 Mission

Lunar regolith brought from the Moon by China's Chang'e 6 mission has revealed that the Moon is formed from the remains of an ancient collision between an object with Earth.

About Chang'e-6 Mission:

It is the first human sampling and return mission from the far side of the moon.
It is part of the broader Chang’e lunar exploration program, named after a Chinese goddess of the Moon.
Chang’e-6 consists of an orbiter, a returner, a lander, and an ascender.
The lander was equipped with multiple sensors, including microwave, laser, and optical imaging sensors which can measure distance and speed, and identify obstacles on the lunar surface.

The probe has adopted two methods of moon sampling, which include:

Using a drill to collect subsurface samples
Grabbing samples on the surface with a robotic arm.
It marks the second time a mission has successfully reached the far side of the moon. China first completed that historic feat in 2019 with its Chang’e-4
Though the far side of the Moon holds great scientific promise, it is harder to explore the far side of the Moon than the near side.
Communication signals from Earth can’t directly reach the far side, so relay satellites have to be launched ahead of any mission.
The Chang'e-6 landed on the lunar far side and collected rock and regolith samples, and launched them to eventually return to Earth nearly a month later.
Chang’e-6 landed in the South Pole-Aitken Basin, a massive and roughly 4-billion-year-old crater covering a vast portion of the far side of the Moon.
The samples Chang’e-6 collected there could include pieces of the Moon’s interior that would have been excavated by the giant impact that formed the basin.

Mt Elbrus

Recently, an artificially-triggered avalanche was filmed cascading down Russia's highest mountain, Mount Elbrus.

About Mt Elbrus:

Location: It is located in southwest Russia and is part of the Caucasus Mountains.
Formation of Mt Elbrus:
It is believed that the Caucasus Mountains were formed due to the northward collision of the Arabian Plate with the Eurasian Plate.
Geological studies have revealed that Mount Elbrus was formed over 2.5 million years ago and the volcano had been most active during the Holocene Epoch.
It is the highest point in Russia as well as the highest point in all of Europe.
It makes up part of the Prielbrusye National Park.
It is one of the Seven Summits of the world, which are the tallest mountains on each of the seven continents.
Mount Elbrus is an inactive volcano that consists of two principal summits, both of which are dormant volcanic domes.
Climate: The climate of Elbrus is generally cold.
Major Glaciers: Bolshoi Azaou and Irik Glacier
Major Rivers: Many Russian rivers like the Baksan, Malka, and Kuban rivers originate from Bolshoi Azaou and Irik Glacier glaciers.

Chatham Islands

A bloom of phytoplankton—tiny photosynthetic organisms that become visible to satellites when their numbers explode—encircled the Chatham Islands in austral summer recently

About Chatham Islands:

It is an island group in the South Pacific Ocean.
These islands are New Zealand's most easterly territory.
Composed of 10 islands, they are primarily of volcanic formation, but areas of limestone indicate that they may once have been part of New Zealand.
Only the two main islands are inhabited: Chatham Island and Pitt Island.
Chatham Island, the largest of the islands, has a high southern tableland flanked by towering cliffs and a gentle northern portion encompassing extensive waterways, low peatlands and long sandy beaches.
The Chatham Islands is the first inhabited place in the world to see the rising sun each day.
The islands were first inhabited by Moriori, who named the islands 'Rekohu' – translated as 'misty skies' or 'misty sun'.
European sealers and whalers were next to arrive, followed by Māori from New Zealand, who named the islands 'Wharekauri'.
Descendants of Moriori still reside on the Chatham Islands today.
The main settlement is Waitangi. Other settlements are Te One, Port Hutt, Kāingaroa, and Ōwenga.
The economy of the Chatham Islands is heavily dependent on fishing, farming, and tourism.

Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth ( CSPOC)

The Prime Minister recently inaugurated the 28th Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC) in New Delhi, highlighting India's commitment to sharing open-source tech platforms with the Global South.

About Conference of Speakers and Presiding Officers of the Commonwealth (CSPOC):

It brings together the Speakers and Presiding Officers of the national parliaments of the independent sovereign states of the Commonwealth.
It was created in 1969 as an initiative of the then Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada, Lucien Lamoureux.
Since its inception, Canada has provided CSPOC with a secretariat to support its activities.
The Conference is an independent group and has no formal affiliation with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, the Commonwealth Secretariat, or the Commonwealth Heads of Government.
CSPOC operates on a two-year cycle, holding a conference of the full membership every two years, usually early in January, and a meeting of the Standing Committee at the same time the intervening year.

The Conference aims to:

Maintain, foster, and encourage impartiality and fairness on the part of Speakers and Presiding Officers of Parliaments;
Promote knowledge and understanding of parliamentary democracy in its various forms; and
Develop parliamentary institutions

What is the Commonwealth?

It is a voluntary association of 56 independent countries, almost all of which were formerly under British rule.
It differs from other international bodies such as the United Nations or the World Trade Organization.
It has no formal constitution or bylaw
The members have no legal or formal obligation to one another; they are held together by shared traditions, institutions, and experiences as well as by economic self-interest.
Commonwealth action is based upon consultation between members, which is conducted through correspondence and through conversations in meetings.
The values and aspirations which unite the members of the Commonwealth are reflected in the Commonwealth Charter, adopted in December 2012.
The Charter expresses the commitment of Commonwealth members to the development of free and democratic societies, good governance, human rights, the rule of law, sustainable development, and the promotion of peace and prosperity.
The work of the Commonwealth is administered by the Commonwealth Secretariat based in London.
The last countries to join the Commonwealth were Gabon and Togo.
India is the largest member state of the Commonwealth, with nearly 60% of the total population of the association.

Lake Natron

Lake Natron in Tanzania glows blood-red, forged by volcanoes and extreme chemistry.

About Lake Natron:

It is located in the Arusha region of Northern Tanzania.
It is a soda and salty water lake very close to the Kenyan border in the Gregory Rift, which is the eastern part of the East African Rift.
It was designated as a Ramsar Site of International Importance in 2001.
Primarily, the lake is fed by the Ewaso Ng’iro River, which originates from the central region of Kenya.
One of the most striking features of this lake is its striking red coloration. The primary reason for its hue lies in its extreme alkalinity.
As water cannot flow out of the lake, evaporation levels are very high, and this leaves behind natron (sodium carbonate decahydrate) and trona (sodium sesquicarbonate dihydrate).
The high concentration of natron gives the lake extreme alkaline levels, and it is one of the deadliest lakes on the planet.
The saline waters make the lake inhospitable for many plants and animals, yet the surrounding saltwater marshes are a surprising habitat for flamingos.
In fact, the lake is home to the highest concentrations of lesser and greater flamingos in East Africa, where they feed on spirulina – a green algae with red pigments.

Womaniya Initiative

Recently, the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) marked seven years of the Womaniya initiative.

About Womaniya Initiative:

It was launched in 2019.
It is a flagship programme aimed at strengthening the participation of women-led Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) in public procurement.
Womaniya was conceived to address the limited access of women entrepreneurs and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to government markets.
It spurs Women entrepreneurship by aligning them with opportunities to sell their products to various Government ministries, departments and institutions.
By providing a direct, transparent and fully digital interface with government buyers, the initiative eliminated intermediaries and reduced entry barriers that had historically constrained participation.
Impact: The initiative seeks to develop women entrepreneurship to achieve gender-inclusive economic growth.

What is GeM Portal?

Government e-Marketplace, shortly known as GeM, is a digital platform that enables buying and selling of goods and services.
It is the Public Procurement Portal for procurement of goods and services for all Central Government and State Government Ministries, Departments, Public Sector Units (PSUs) and affiliated.
It was launched in August 2016, by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
The sole purpose of GeM is to enhance efficiency; transparency and speed in public procurement.
GeM Marks Seven Years of Womaniya Initiative to Strengthen Women-Led MSE Participation in Public Procurement.

Export Preparedness Index 2024

Recently, NITI Aayog released the Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2024.

About Export Preparedness Index 2024:

It is a comprehensive assessment of export readiness across India’s States and Union Territories (UTs).
It recognises the diversity of subnational economic structures and their critical role in advancing India’s global trade ambitions.
The first edition of the EPI was published in August 2020 and this is the 4th edition.
Framework and Coverage: It is structured around four pillars, further disaggregated into 13 sub-pillars and 70 indicators. Four Pillars are:
Export Infrastructure (20% Weightage)
Business Ecosystem (40% Weightage)
Policy and Governance (20% Weightage)
Export Performance (20% Weightage)
Classification of States and Union Territories: States and UTs have been categorised into Large States & Small States, North East States and Union Territories.

Within each category, they are further classified as

Leaders: States/UTs demonstrating relatively high export preparedness
Challengers: States/UTs with moderate preparedness and scope for improvement
Aspirers: States/UTs at early stages of export ecosystem development

Under EPI 2024, the following States and UTs have emerged as leading performers in their respective categories:

Leading Performers

Large States: Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh
Small States, North Eastern States & Union Territories: Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Nagaland, Dadra and Nagar Haveli & Daman and Diu, Goa.

Urban Cooperative Banks

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed resuming the issuance of licenses for Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) after nearly two decades.

About Urban Cooperative Banks:

Urban Cooperative Banks are not formally defined but refer to primary cooperative banks located in urban and semi-urban areas
History: The first formal co-operative legislation in India came with the Co-operative Credit Societies Act of 1904 (During Lord Curzon’s tenure) and also enacted the more comprehensive Co-operative Societies Act of 1912.
The first urban cooperative credit society,(Anyonya Sahakari Mandali) was established in 1889 in Baroda.
Functions: Provide services like housing finance, personal loans, MSME credit, and deposits to small borrowers, traders, and small-scale industries.
Registration: They are registered as cooperative societies under the provisions of, either the State Cooperative Societies Act of the State concerned or the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002.
Regulation: The Reserve Bank regulates and supervises the banking functions of UCBs under the provisions of Banking regulation Act, 1949.
Banking related functions (viz. licensing, area of operations, interest rates etc.) are to be governed by RBI.
Registration, management, audit and liquidation, etc. are governed by State Governments as per the provisions of respective State Acts.
The Reserve Bank has been vested powers to issues licence to UCBs under Section 22 and 23 Banking Regulation Act, 1949 to carry on banking business and to open new places of business(branches, extension counters, etc.) respectively.

Indian Customs Electronic Gateway

Recently, the Special Secretary Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) inaugurated Indian Customs Electronic Gateway–Land Port Management System (ICEGATE–LPMS) at the Integrated Check Post (ICP), at Agartala, Tripura.

About Indian Customs Electronic Gateway:

It is known as ICEGATE which was established in 2007.
It is the national portal of Indian Customs of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).
It provides e-filing services to the Trade, Cargo Carriers and other Trading Partners electronically.
It serves as a centralized hub for all electronic interactions between Indian customs and the trading community.
It is the main infrastructure for connecting trade users with the Indian government’s customs department, and acts as a hub for exchanging information between external trading partners involved in international trading.
It is internally linked with multiple partner agencies including RBI, Banks, DGFT, DGCIS, Ministry of Steel, Directorate of Valuation and other various Partner Government Agencies involved in EXIM.
Functions: It collectively contributes to streamlining customs procedures, enhancing trade facilitation and promoting transparency and efficiency in cross – border trade activities in India by providing multiple features for its users.

Integration of ICEGATE -Land Port Management System

The integration focuses on critical customs data elements, including Bill of Entry, Shipping Bill, Out of Charge (OOC), and Let Export Order (LEO).
It enables real-time, bidirectional exchange of data between ICEGATE and the Land Port Management System, creating a seamless digital ecosystem at land ports.
It also helps in early risk assessment, identification of anomalies, and selective application of controls.
This approach improves compliance outcomes while minimising disruption to compliant trade.

Sukhatme National Award in Statistics 2026

Recently, nominations have been invited online for Sukhatme National Award in Statistics – 2026 through the National Awards Portal.

About Sukhatme National Award in Statistics 2026:

It has been instituted by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation in the memory of P.V. Sukhatme.
It is given to the senior Indian Statisticians for their lifetime contributions and achievements in the field of Statistics.
It recognizes the exceptional/ outstanding contribution made by the individuals in terms of high-quality research work, to improve the system of official statistics.
This prestigious award is given in alternate years since the year 2000.
The Award carries a citation, shawl and memento.
Eligibility: It is given to eminent Indian Statisticians of the age 45 years and above for their Lifetime Contributions and Achievements in the field of Statistics.
Nomination: The eligible candidates can nominate themselves or the names can also be proposed by institution.
Award Presentation:The Award will be presented during Statistics Day function on 29th June.
Posthumous Cases: If the person proposed to be honoured, has passed away recently (say within a year), the award may be given posthumously.

Guillain-Barré Syndrome

A Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) outbreak has hit Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch district recently, with two deaths reported in Manasa town.

About Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS):

It is a rare neurological disorder in which a person’s immune system mistakenly attacks part of their peripheral nervous system.
This is the part of the nervous system outside the brain and spinal cord.
It controls muscle movement, pain signals, and temperature and touch sensations.
Since the body's own immune system does the damage, GBS is called an autoimmune disease.
GBS is also called acute inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (AIDP).
It can occur at any age, but it most commonly affects people between 30 and 50.

Causes:

The exact cause of the disease remains unclear, but it is often observed following a viral or bacterial infection, vaccination, or major surgery.
At such times, the immune system becomes hyperactive, leading to this rare condition.

Symptoms:

Patients often begin with an unknown fever, followed by weakness and other nervous system-related symptoms.
It can increase in intensity over a period of hours, days, or weeks until certain muscles cannot be used at all.
Some cases of GBS are very mild and only marked by brief weakness. Others cause nearly devastating paralysis, leaving the person unable to breathe on their own.
It is potentially life-threatening. People with GBS should be treated and monitored as quickly as possible

Treatment:

There’s no known cure for GBS.
Several treatment options can ease symptoms and help speed recovery.
Most people recover completely from GBS, but some serious illnesses can be fatal.
While recovery may take up to several years, most people are able to walk again six months after symptoms first began.
Some people may have lasting effects, such as weakness, numbness, or fatigue.

Soft Matter

Every morning, as you use either your toothpaste or shampoo, you engage with soft matter, materials that flow like liquids under force but hold their shape at rest.

About Soft Matter:

Soft matter, or soft materials, is a sub-field of “condensed matter”, referring to a variety of materials that can be easily deformed or structurally altered by thermal fluctuations or nominal external stress.
Soft materials include colloids, polymers, foams, gels, liquid crystals, and many biomaterials.
They exhibit many useful and appealing properties, which account for their ubiquity in everyday life, finding use in a diverse range of applications in industry including, food, medical, automotive, construction, transportation, electronics, and manufacturing.
Everyday examples include curd, toothpaste, shampoo, soap bubbles, and living cells.
One of the important characteristics of soft matter is their physical structures in the mesoscopic scale.
It is the properties and interactions of these structures that determine the overall behavior of the material.
Unlike “hard materials” such as metals, ceramics, or glass, the building blocks of soft matter are held together by weak forces.
As a result, soft material properties can be markedly affected as a result of small changes in temperature, applied force, time, and environment.

C-DOT’s Cell Broadcast Solution

Recently, the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has been conferred the “SKOCH Award-2025” for its Cell Broadcast Solution (CBS).

About C-DOT’s Cell Broadcast Solution:

It is an indigenous disaster and emergency alert platform.
It is designed to enable near real-time dissemination of life-saving information to citizens in affected areas through cellular networks.
It is developed by the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT).

Features of Cell Broadcast Solution:

It provides an automated integration between government emergency alert dissemination platforms and the telecom networks of the country for information delivery.
It is designed to support varied geographic & demographic scenarios.
It integrates multiple disaster alert generation agencies, including the India Meteorological Department, the Central Water Commission for floods, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, and Forest Survey of India.
It also brings together mobile service providers for message delivery, State Disaster Management Authorities and the National Disaster Management Authority for alert approval and disaster response.
It enables geo-targeted, multi-hazard alerts with support for 21 Indian languages.

Significance of C-DOT’s Cell Broadcast Solution:

It significantly enhances the efficiency of disaster risk reduction and management efforts.
It aligns with the United Nations’ Early Warnings for All programme, the International Telecommunication Union’s Common Alerting Protocol.

INS Sudarshini

The Indian Navy’s Sail Training Ship INS Sudarshini will embark on the flagship voyage of Lokayan 26, a 10-month transoceanic expedition.

About INS Sudarshini:

It is an indigenously built Sail Training Ship (STS).
It was built by Goa Shipyard Limited and based at Kochi, Kerala under the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy.
The aim of using such ships is to make sailors sea-friendly, as they are taught how to survive alone at sea, understand rough weather conditions and train themselves to become good sailors.

Features of INS Sudarshini:

Sudarshini is a three-masted barque.
It is capable of operations under sail or power.
It has got a very high endurance and can be deployed at sea continuously for a period of twenty days.

What is Lokayan 26?

It is a 10-month transoceanic expedition where the ship will visit 18 foreign ports across 13 countries.

Type 096 Tang- Class Submarine

China has unveiled the most significant upgrade to its undersea nuclear capability with the unveiling of the Type 096 Tang-Class ballistic missile submarine recently.

About Type 096 Tang-Class Submarine:

The Type 096 (NATO reporting name of Tang-class) submarine is China’s next-generation nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN).
It is bigger, stealthier, and armed with longer-range missiles than its predecessors.

Features:

It is said to have raft-mounted machinery, hull isolation systems, and a propulsion design that minimizes acoustic signatures during patrols.
These features are aimed at making the sub harder to detect in contested waters.
The vessel's pressurized water-cooled nuclear reactor powers a single shaft via a steam turbine arrangement.
Modern power plant elements and improved vibration dampening technologies are said to enhance submerged speed and stealth performance.
The submarine is expected to carry between 16 and 24 JL-3 submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), each capable of ranges exceeding 10,000 to 12,000 kilometers and equipped with multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs).
It can also launch wire-guided, high-speed Yu-6 torpedoes with a range of over 29 km.

Jinson Johnson

Jinson Johnson, India’s celebrated middle-distance runner, announced his retirement from competitive athletics.

About him:

The 34-year-old Kerala athlete represented India at the highest international level and achieved significant athletic milestones that earned him national recognition.
His retirement marks the end of a distinguished career spanning over a decade of professional running at national and international competitions.
Jinson Johnson’s retirement represents the end of an era in Indian middle-distance running. His achievements elevated India’s athletic profile globally:
Asian Games Champion – Gold medal winner in prestigious continental competition
National Record Setter – Broke records in two distance categories
International Standard – Competed at Commonwealth Games level
Youth Inspiration – Role model for emerging Indian distance runners
Long Career – Sustained excellence over 15+ years in competitive athletics

Indian Skimmer

Recently, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has launched a new conservation project under the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) at Dehradun to protect Indian Skimmer in the Ganga Basin.

About Indian Skimmer:

It is one of the three species that belong to the skimmer genus Rynchops in the family Laridae.
It gets its name from the way it feeds, flying low over the water surface and ‘skimming’for fish.
Habitat: It primarily found on larger, sandy, lowland rivers, around lakes and adjacent marshes, and, in the non-breeding season, in estuaries and coasts.
Distribution: It is native to South Asia and mainly found in India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, with some populations extending to Nepal and Myanmar.
In India, one of the key areas for spotting Indian Skimmers is the Chambal River.

Features of Indian Skimmer:

It has a striking appearance. Its upper body is black, while its underbelly is white.
The most eye-catching feature is its beak, which is orange with a lower mandible that is much longer than the upper one.
This special beak helps the bird skim across the surface of the water to catch small fish and aquatic creatures.
The bird’s wings are long and angular, designed for fast, precise flight.

Darwin’s Bark Spider

Recently, scientists from institutions in China, Madagascar, Slovenia, and the US studied bark spiders (Caerostris darwini and Caerostris kuntneri) to understand the conditions in which they produce the tough silk.

About Darwin’s Bark Spider:

The Darwin’s Bark Spider (Caerostris darwini) is a remarkable arachnid famed for producing the largest and toughest known webs in the animal kingdom.
It belongs to the family Araneidae, or orb-weaver spiders.
Habitat: It inhabits riverine forests and wetlands.
Distribution: It is found in the forests of Madagascar.

Characteristics of Darwin’s Bark Spiders:

It weaves silk that outperforms steel and most human-made fibres in both strength and toughness.
Their silk is more than twice as tough as any other spider silk studied.
Unique Habitat: Unlike most orb-weavers, it builds webs over open water rather than in vegetation.

Bor Tiger Reserve

Two new safari gates at the Bor Tiger Project were inaugurated recently.

About Bor Tiger Reserve:

It is located in the Wardha District of Maharashtra.
It is the smallest tiger reserve in India by area.
It is centrally located among several other Bengal tiger habitats.
Towards the northeast lies the Pench Tiger Reserve, towards the east is the Nagzira Navegaon Tiger Reserve, and to the southeast is the Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary.
The Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve is located to the southeast, the Melghat Tiger Reserve stands to the west, and the Satpura Tiger Reserve lies to the northwest.
Vegetation: The area is populated by the Dry Deciduous Forest type.
Flora: Teak, tendu, bamboo, tarot, and gokhru are some of the abundant species.

Fauna:

Apart from tigers, the reserve is home to several other mammals like leopards, sloth bears, sambar deer, Indian bison (gaur), chital, wild boars, and more.
It has recorded diversity of just under 200 avian species, with migratory waterfowl such as the tufted duck, northern shovelers, as well as the elegant fish specialist, the osprey.
Commonly seen resident species include the Indian peafowl, black-hooded oriole, and Indian paradise flycatcher.