Why in the News? ● Naval Induction: The Indian Navy will commission INS Mahendragiri (F38), the sixth Project 17A indigenous stealth frigate, on 11 July at Visakhapatnam. ● Aatmanirbhar Defence: The warship has been designed and built in India with over 75% indigenous content, strengthening domestic defence manufacturing. PROJECT 17A STEALTH FRIGATES ● About: Project…
Why in the News? ● Governance Reform: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has proposed a customised self-governance framework for the Union Territory of Ladakh, establishing new legislative districts and electoral power distribution mechanisms. ● Key Proposal: The Centre has discussed creating a UT-level elected body with constitutional safeguards modelled on Article 371, while Statehood…
Why in the News? ● First State: Madhya Pradesh has become the first State to reconstitute its State Waqf Board under the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, implementing new voting qualifications and membership criteria for board representation. ● Legal Challenge: Congress MLA Arif Masood has announced that he will approach the Supreme Court, as the constitutional…
Why in the News? ● Census Rehearsal: The second-phase Census rehearsal has begun in 16 States and Union Territories, with the questionnaire containing an open column for recording caste and ethnicity data. ● Historic Exercise: Census 2027 will be the first digital Census and the first Census after Independence to enumerate all castes, addressing historical…
Why in the News? ● Delhi HC Ruling: The Delhi High Court held that private media houses perform a public function, allowing writ petitions against them for violating the fundamental right to privacy. ● Significance: The judgment expands the horizontal application of fundamental rights, with important implications for press freedom, privacy, and constitutional remedies, similar…
Why in the News? ● Major Reform: The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) has revised the National Pension System (NPS) withdrawal rules, making retirement corpus more flexible and supporting long-term financial sustainability aligned with climate goals. ● Key Change: Subscribers can now withdraw a larger lump sum while reducing the mandatory annuity requirement….
Why in the News? ● Global Leadership: India is chairing the 9th Session of the Intergovernmental Group of Experts (IGE) on Consumer Protection Law and Policy at UNCTAD in Geneva, Switzerland. ● Key Development: The session will witness the launch of the United Nations Principles for Consumer Product Safety, adopted by the UN General Assembly…
Why in the News? ● Retention Proposal: The Indian Armed Forces are considering increasing the retention of Agniveers beyond the existing 25% after completion of their four-year service under the Agnipath Scheme. ● Operational Need: The proposal is driven by the requirement for a larger pool of experienced, technologically trained, and combat-ready personnel, drawing lessons…
Why in the News? ● Growing Adoption: Farmers are increasingly adopting Direct-Seeded Rice (DSR) technology due to water scarcity, rising labour costs, groundwater stress, and below-normal monsoon rainfall associated with El Niño, promoting agricultural sustainability and water resource management. ● Water-Efficient Cultivation: The adoption of herbicide-tolerant (HT) basmati varieties is enabling wider use of DSR…
Why in the News? ● New Legislation: The West Bengal Assembly has passed the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-social Activities Bill, 2026 and the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Bill, 2026. ● Objective: The laws aim to strengthen preventive detention provisions and establish a mechanism to recover compensation for damage…