News In Short 10-08-2026

Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore 

Syllabus: GS1/ Modern Histroy

Context

• Poet Laureate Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore’s death anniversary was observed recently.

About Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941)

• He was born on 7 May 1861 in Calcutta & his birth anniversary is celebrated as Pochishe Boishakh in West Bengal and Bangladesh.
• He was an eminent poet, novelist, playwright, composer, philosopher, painter, and social reformer.
• His fater Debendranath Tagore is a prominent leader of the Brahmo Samaj.

Literary Contributions

• Tagore wrote more than fifty volumes of poetry, along with novels, essays, short stories, and plays.
  • Gitanjali (Song Offerings): A collection of devotional poems, and the work that brought him international fame.
  • Gora: Deals with questions of nationalism, identity, and religion.
  • Ghare-Baire (The Home and the World): A critical look at aggressive nationalism.
• Modernised Bengali literature and music by blending tradition with contemporary themes.

Education & Social Reform

• Founded an experimental school at Shantiniketan, which later became Visva-Bharati University (1921), now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Advocated humanism, creativity, freedom of thought, harmony with nature, and holistic education.

Honours & Legacy

• He won 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature and become first Indian and non-European Nobel laureate, awarded for Gitanjali.
• Composed the national anthems of:
  • India: Jana Gana Mana
  • Bangladesh: Amar Shonar Bangla
• His song Banglar Mati Banglar Jol is the State Anthem of West Bengal.
• Knighted by the British in 1915, but renounced the knighthood in 1919 in protest against the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
• He was revered as Gurudev, Kobiguru, and Biswokobi.

Source: AIR

Quit India Movement

Syllabus: GS1/History 

In News

• Recently, the Prime Minister paid homage to brave participants of the Quit India Movement.

Quit India Movement

• It was launched under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi on August 9, 1942, during the All-India Congress Committee (AICC) session in Bombay. 
• The historic slogan ‘Do or Die’ (Karo ya Maro) was given by Mahatma Gandhi to the nation, and it inspired millions to demand nothing short of complete independence (Purna Swaraj). 

Reasons

• The major trigger was the failure of the Cripps Mission at the beginning of 1942. 
• The British offered post-war “dominion status,” which Indian leaders rejected, saying that they wanted immediate and full independence.
• In addition, the acute shortages and inflationary pressures of World War II, combined with the looming spectre of a Japanese invasion on India’s eastern borders, served to generalise anti-British discontent.

Major leaders

• Mahatma Gandhi led the way with his historic resolve, “Do or Die”. 
• But the colonial government acted ruthlessly, arresting the top leadership, including Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Abul Kalam Azad.
• The movement was thus kept alive by young underground leaders like Aruna Asaf Ali, Jayaprakash Narayan, Ram Manohar Lohia and Usha Mehta (who ran a secret radio station).

Effects

• In the face of severe and violent repression by the British authorities, including mass arrests and censorship, the movement became a spontaneous, leaderless, nationwide agitation. 
• It brought together peasants, factory workers, women, students and rural communities into active opposition, creating deep-rooted national unity.
• It redefined the Freedom Struggle by moving the political agenda from negotiating minor constitutional reforms to demanding the absolute and non-negotiable exit of the British Empire.

Source: TH

Mithila Makhana

Syllabus: GS3/ Economy

In News

• The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has facilitated the first-ever commercial sea shipment of GI-tagged Mithila Makhana from Bihar to Australia.

About Mithila Makhana

• Makhana, also called fox nut or gorgon nut, is the seed of the prickly water lily (Euryale ferox), grown in stagnant freshwater bodies like ponds and wetlands.
• It’s sometimes called the “Black Diamond” because of its dark outer shell, which turns white once processed.
• Mithila Makhana received its GI tag in 2022, legally linking the product to the Mithila region of Bihar (mainly Darbhanga, Madhubani, and Purnia) and protecting it from being marketed under the same name by other regions.

Makhana Board

• In the Union Budget 2025–26, the government announced the creation of a Makhana Board in Bihar, along with a National Makhana Research Centre, to strengthen production, processing, value addition, and marketing of the crop.
  • Bihar accounts for nearly 85% of India’s total Makhana production.
  • Makhana is also covered under the government’s One District One Product (ODOP) scheme.
• It follows the same sector-specific model used for boards like the Tea Board, Coffee Board, and the more recently announced Turmeric Board.

Source: PIB

Sharks As the Real-time Ocean-Data Observers

Syllabus: GS3/Science and Technology

Context

• Researchers are testing whether sharks can serve as mobile near-real-time ocean-data observers.

About

• Sensors to be used that measure ocean conditions to inform oceanographic, atmospheric and climate models.
  • These CTD tags are small electronic devices that measure ocean electrical ‌conductivity (a metric closely related to salinity) as well as temperature and depth, as marine creatures to which they are attached swim and dive.
• Animal-borne sensors have been used successfully by oceanographers for years, particularly on ‌elephant seals in polar regions where scientific observations are scarce.
• Sharks offer a new opportunity in such research because they are ⁠abundant, widely distributed and easier to access than many protected marine mammals.
  • Previous analyses identified shortfin mako sharks, blue sharks, smooth hammerheads and juvenile great white sharks as strong candidates for such research in the North Atlantic.
• The tagging is carried out under institutional animal care oversight to minimise impact on the sharks.
  • The tags are attached using materials designed to corrode and fall off over time. 

Source: TH

Indian Peafowl

Syllabus: GS3/Species In News

In News

• India has donated five Indian peafowls, four blue and one white, to the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG), renewing a long tradition of peacocks at Ariana Park. 

Background 

• India previously sent a breeding pair from Delhi Zoo to Geneva in 1981, during Indira Gandhi’s tenure as Prime Minister. 
• The latest donation therefore revives a 45-year-old tradition connecting India’s national bird with UN Geneva.
• The move highlights India-UN cooperation, multilateralism, biodiversity conservation and responsibility for the environment. 

Indian Peafowl(Pavo cristatus)

• The Indian Peafowl is a large terrestrial member of the pheasant family that is easily recognised.
  • This species displays clear sexual dimorphism, with males (peacocks) and females (peahens) easily distinguished by physical characteristics
• Physical characteristics:
  • Males (Peacocks): Known for their bright blue feathers and spectacular, iridescent tail trains, which they display in elaborate fashion to attract mates.
  • Females (Peahens): Much smaller than the males, and with drab brown plumage, shorter tails, and slight green accents on their necks. These colours afford important concealment when the Peafowls are nesting.
• Diet and Vocalisations:  Peafowl are vocal birds, most famous for their loud, carrying ‘may-yow’ call, which becomes more intense during the monsoon breeding season.
  •  They are opportunistic omnivores, and have a natural diet of seeds, flowers, insects and small reptiles or mammals.
• Range and Habitat:  They are native to the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka, occurring in open woodland, forest edges and agricultural areas.
  • The Indian peacock (male) is the official national bird of India and is deeply embedded in the heritage of the area.
• Conservation and Legal Protection
  • IUCN Red List: Listed as Least Concern because of its wide distribution.
  • Legal Protection: Strict legal protection as per Schedule I of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 in India.

Source: IE