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News In Short 21-07-2025

Context

  • A woman in Himachal Pradesh has married two brothers of the Hatti tribe.

    • About

  • Polyandry refers to the practice of having more than one husband at a time.
  • The custom, known as “Jodidara” in Himachal Pradesh, is followed by the Hattis and some other communities in the lower Himalayas.
  • The Hatti community, present in the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border, has been practising polyandry for centuries and it was declared a Scheduled Tribe three years ago.
  • Indian law does not permit polyandry. However, it allows for the protection of the customs and traditions of its many tribes.

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    India To Address Concerns of Private Sector in Civil Nuclear Segment

    Context

  • The Union Minister of Science and Technology has said that India will address the apprehensions of the private sector globally about investments in the civil nuclear sector.

    • About

  • The Nuclear Sector was opened up to achieve the ambitious target of producing 100 GW of atomic power by 2047.
  • Currently, India produces 8780 MWe of nuclear power and plans to scale it up to 22,480 MW by 2031-32.
  • India’s nuclear sector is governed by the Atomic Energy Act, 1962, under which only government-owned entities such as NPCIL can generate and supply nuclear energy.
  • There has been no private sector involvement in India’s nuclear power sector so far.

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    Kashi Declaration for Drug-Free India

    Context

  •  The Kashi Declaration, outlining a five-year roadmap for a drug-free India was signed during the Youth Spiritual Summit in Varanasi.

    • Kashi Declaration

  • The Kashi Declaration affirms a national consensus to treat substance abuse as a multi-faceted public health and societal challenge, and calls for a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach. 
  • It emphasises the integration of spiritual, cultural, educational, and technological efforts to prevent addiction, support recovery, and foster a national culture of sobriety. 
  • It proposes institutional mechanisms for multi-ministerial coordination, including the formation of a Joint National Committee, annual progress reporting, and a national platform for linking affected individuals to support services.

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    India’s Rising Abstentions at the United Nations

    Context

  • Recent analysis, based on more than 5,500 UN resolutions voted on by India from 1946 to June 2025, has found that India is altering its voting strategy at the United Nations (UN).

    • Key Examples: Recent Notable Abstentions

  • Resolutions on Russia-Ukraine conflict (2022): India abstained in both the UN General Assembly and Security Council, signaling concern for sovereignty while avoiding direct condemnation.
  • Israel-Palestine Issue: India has repeatedly abstained on votes condemning Israel or supporting Gaza, justifying abstention as reflecting a balanced approach or concern for missing context (e.g. terrorism).
  • Myanmar: Abstentions on resolutions dealing with the Rohingya crisis and the military junta since 2017.
  • China’s Human Rights Record: India avoided antagonizing an immediate neighbor, opting for abstention on several critical votes.

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    China’s Mega-Dam on the Brahmaputra River

    Context

  • China officially commenced construction of a massive hydropower project on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, near the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.

    • Coordination Mechanism for Cooperation Between India and China:

  • There is an umbrella Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation on transboundary rivers, and two separate MoUs on the Brahmaputra and Sutlej.
  • The Brahmaputra MoU, renewable every five years, lapsed in 2023.
  • The umbrella MoU was signed in 2013, and has no expiry date. 
  • China and India have the Expert Level Mechanism (ELM) since 2006 for hydrological data sharing, but lack a comprehensive treaty.

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    Birth Anniversary of Mangal Pandey

    In News

  • The Prime Minister paid tributes to freedom fighter Mangal Pandey on his birth anniversary. 

    • Mangal Pandey

  • He was born on 19 July 1827 in Nagwa village, Ballia district, Uttar Pradesh, India.
  • Mangal Pandey is renowned for his role as a sepoy in the 34th Bengal Native Infantry of the British East India Company and for sparking the Indian Rebellion of 1857, widely regarded as India’s First War of Independence.

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    Aviation Safety Is At Stake, Reform Cannot Wait

    The preliminary report of the recent Air India Boeing 787 crash in Ahmedabad from the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) remains inconclusive, leaving critical questions unanswered about pilot intent and systemic failures.

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