Nile River
Syllabus: GS1/ Places In News
In News
- South Sudan experiencing heavy rains and rising water levels along the Nile River.
About Nile River
- The Nile River is a north-flowing river in Africa, spanning about 6,650 km and draining into the Mediterranean Sea.
- It is among the longest rivers on Earth and a vital lifeline for Egypt, Sudan, and South Sudan.
- The Nile has two main tributaries: the longer White Nile and the Blue Nile.
- The White Nile flows from the Lake Victoria region through Uganda and South Sudan, while the Blue Nile rises from Lake Tana in Ethiopia before meeting the White Nile at Khartoum.
Source: AIR
Madagascar
Syllabus: GS1/Places in News
In News
- The Madagascar military unit seized power after the President was impeached for desertion of duty amid weeks of mass protests.
Madagascar
- It is an island country lying off the southeastern coast of Africa.
- It is located in the southwestern Indian Ocean and is separated from the African coast by the 250-mile- (400-km-) wide Mozambique Channel.
- It is an island country of Africa. It is located around 400 km off the coast of East Africa in the Indian Ocean with the nearest mainland African country being Mozambique.
- It is located in the Southern and Eastern Hemispheres of the Earth.
- Mauritius and Réunion (territory of France), lie to the east of Madagascar.
Source :TH
India Elected to UN Human Rights Council
Syllabus: GS2/IR
Context
- India has been elected unopposed to the Human Rights Council for the seventh time for a three-year term (2026-28) starting next year.
The Human Rights Council
- The Human Rights Council is an intergovernmental body within the United Nations with 47 members.
- The Council was formed by the General Assembly in 2006, when India was elected to its first term.
- It promotes and protects human rights around the world, reviews the situation in member countries, and provides a forum to discuss issues.
- The Human Rights Council replaced the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights.
- Elections take place every year. Seats are equitably distributed among the five UN regional groups, with one-third of the members being renewed each year.
- Each member serves a three-year term.
- Membership is limited to two consecutive terms.
Source: AIR
Dashboard of the Legal Information Management and Briefing System (LIMBS)
Syllabus: GS2/ Judiciary
In News
- The Department of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Law and Justice organized an event to showcase the “Live Cases” Dashboard of the Legal Information Management and Briefing System (LIMBS).
About LIMBS
- The “Live Cases” Dashboard provides real-time visualization of ongoing court cases and upcoming hearings, supporting better inter-ministerial coordination and proactive legal decision-making.
Source: PIB
Uttarakhand Eases Marriage registration rules under UCC
Syllabus :GS2/Governance
In News
- Recently, the Uttarakhand government amended its Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to allow citizens of Nepali, Bhutanese, and Tibetan origin residing in the state to register their marriages without an Aadhaar card.
Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code Act, 2024
- It mandates registration of marriages, divorces, and live-in relationships, with penalties for non-compliance, and grants equal property and inheritance rights to women.
- Children from live-in relationships are recognized as legitimate under the code.
- The Act aims to harmonize personal laws governing marriage, divorce, succession, and inheritance across communities.
- It mandates that marriages can only be solemnized between mentally competent individuals who meet the legal age requirement—21 years for men and 18 years for women—and requires compulsory registration of all marriages within 60 days of solemnization post-implementation.
- It also allows for the registration of marriages conducted before March 26, 2010, or outside Uttarakhand, provided certain conditions are met, with a six-month window for compliance.
- Applicable to all residents of Uttarakhand, including those living outside the state.
- It excludes tribal communities and bans practices like halala, iddat, and talaq.
Latest Amendments
- Nepali, Bhutanese, and Tibetan can use documents like a citizenship certificate, residence certificate, passport, or valid ID, including certification from the Foreign Registration Officer.
- The move acknowledges the deep cultural and historical ties these communities share with Uttarakhand and ensures their inclusion in legal processes.
Source :TH
How Does the Crew Escape System Work?
Syllabus: GS3/ Science and Technology
Context
- The Gaganyaan mission uses a Crew Escape System (CES) integrated with the LVM3 rocket to swiftly separate and safeguard astronauts in case of any launch or ascent emergency.
What is the Crew Escape System (CES)?
- The Crew Escape System is a specialised safety mechanism designed to quickly separate the crew module from the launch vehicle during emergencies in the atmospheric phase of flight.
- It uses powerful, quick-acting motors that create enough thrust to pull the crew module away from the launch vehicle within seconds.
- Once separated, the crew module is guided to a safe distance and then slowed down using multiple parachutes, allowing for a safe splashdown in the sea.
Decision System for CES Activation
- The decision to activate the CES in the Gaganyaan mission is managed by ISRO’s Integrated Vehicle Health Management System (IVHM).
- It continuously monitors rocket systems, engine health, and crew conditions through sensors and onboard computers.
- If a fault is detected, it automatically triggers the CES within milliseconds to ensure the astronauts’ safety.
Types of Crew Escape Systems
- Puller-Type CES: It is used in Gaganyaan, Soyuz (Russia), Saturn V (USA), and Long March (China) missions. The CES pulls the crew module away from the rocket using escape motors.
- Advantage: Simple and reliable, particularly for solid-propellant rockets.
- Pusher-Type CES: It is used in SpaceX’s Falcon 9. The module is pushed away using compact, high-thrust liquid-fuel engines.
- Advantage: Can be reused and integrated within the spacecraft design.
Source: TH
Tipping Point
Syllabus: GS3/ Environment
Context
- Warm-water coral reefs have been identified as the world’s first climate tipping point, according to the Global Tipping Points Report 2025.
What is a “tipping point”?
- A climate tipping point refers to a threshold beyond which a small change in global temperature can trigger a self-reinforcing and potentially irreversible shift in a natural system.
- For coral reefs, this threshold is estimated to lie between 1°C and 1.5°C of warming.
- Once exceeded, reefs can rapidly degrade, leading to bleaching, coral death, and transformation into algae-dominated ecosystems.
Source: TOI
India’s Wild Elephant Numbers Drop by 18%
Syllabus: GS3/ Environment
Context
- India’s first-ever DNA-based elephant census, conducted under the All-India Synchronous Elephant Estimation (SAIEE) 2025, has revealed a significant 18% decline in the wild elephant population.
- The exercise was carried out by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), Project Elephant, and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
Key Findings of SAIEE 2025
- Population Estimate: India’s wild elephant population is now estimated at 22,446, down from 27,312 in 2017.
- Methodology: The count was based on DNA fingerprinting of dung samples, enabling the identification of individual elephants, similar to human genetic profiling.
- Regional Distribution: The highest elephant population is in the Western Ghats (11,934), followed by the North Eastern Hills and Brahmaputra floodplains (6,559), Shivalik Hills and Gangetic plains (2,062), and Central India and Eastern Ghats (1,891).
- Top Five States: Karnataka, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Uttarakhand.
| Asian Elephant – The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), is distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. – It is the largest living land animal in Asia. Three subspecies are currently recognised: the Sri Lankan, the Indian, and the Sumatran elephant. – Appearance: Smaller than their African counterparts, Asian elephants are easily recognizable by their “small” rounded ears. 1. They often have a hump on their back, a double-domed head with two humps, and a single “finger” on their trunk for grasping. – IUCN Status: Endangered |
Source: TH
Previous article
Microplastics Pollution Threatens Estuarine Fisheries
Next article
Fiscal Challenges of Indian Municipalities
