Chittaranjan Das
Syllabus: GS1/ Personalities
In News
- Lok Sabha paid floral tribute to freedom fighter Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, on his birth anniversary.
About Chittaranjan Das (1870 – 1925)
- Overview: He was popularly known as “Deshbandhu (Friend of the Nation),” and was a key nationalist leader, lawyer, freedom fighter, and social reformer of the Indian independence movement.
- He defended Aurobindo Ghosh in the Alipore Bomb Case (1908) and later joined the freedom movement full-time.
- Key Contributions: He was a participant of the Non-Cooperation Movement (1919–22) led by Mahatma Gandhi.
- He founded the Swaraj Party in 1923 with Motilal Nehru to enter legislative councils and resist colonial rule from within.
- Chittaranjan Das was first elected Mayor of Calcutta (1924), worked for urban reforms and Indian empowerment in municipal administration
- He wrote poems, essays, and books including ‘India for Indians’ and ‘Freedom through Disobedience’.
Source: AIR
The Global Peace Prayer Festival
Syllabus: GS1/Culture
Context
- The Global Peace Prayer Festival (GPPF) was inaugurated at Thimphu, by the Royal Government of Bhutan.
About
- The 16-day festival is a global initiative dedicated to prayers for world peace and healing of humanity amid ongoing global conflicts.
- This was the first-ever Global Peace Prayer Festival (GPPF) where religious leaders and scholars from three main branches of Buddhism — Mahayana, Theravada, and Vajrayana were present.
- One of the key events of the festival is Jabzhi, a profound Vajrayana Buddhist ritual believed to cleanse negative karma and dispel destructive forces.
- In a spiritual gesture, the Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha, enshrined at the National Museum in New Delhi, arrived in Thimphu as a “goodwill gift” from India for GPP.
- The Global Peace Prayer Festival stands as a universal call for peace on earth, celebrating Bhutan’s unique spiritual heritage and reaffirming the shared Buddhist values that have long guided India–Bhutan relations.
Source: TH
Angola
Syllabus: GS1/ Places In News
In News
- President Droupadi Murmu is on a State Visit to Angola, marking the first-ever visit by an Indian President to the southern African nation, to strengthen bilateral cooperation under the India–Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) framework.
About Angola (Capital: Luanda)
- Location: Angola is located on the west coast of Southern Africa, bordered by Namibia (south), Zambia (east), the Democratic Republic of Congo (north), and the Atlantic Ocean (west).
- Political Overview: Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975 after years of anti-colonial struggle led by the MPLA (People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola).
- Economic Profile: It is Africa’s second-largest oil producer after Nigeria. Diamonds form another major export sector.
- Geographical Profile: Roughly square-shaped, rising from a narrow coastal plain to a central plateau averaging 1,000–2,000 m in elevation.
- Highest Point is Mount Moco near Huambo & major rivers are Cuanza, Cunene, and Cuango.
India–Angola Relations
- The diplomatic ties established in 1985 and India’s Embassy in Luanda opened in 1986.
- Trade Value is over $4 billion, majorly led by crude oil imports from Angola and Indian exports of pharmaceuticals, vehicles, machinery, and textiles.
- Angola benefits from Indian Lines of Credit, ITEC programs, and the Pan-African e-Network for tele-education and telemedicine.
- Cooperation extends to defense training, renewable energy, and agro-industries.
Source: TH
Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill-2025
Syllabus: GS2/Governance
Context
- Assam Chief Minister announced that the Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill-2025 will be tabled in the Assembly.
About
- It proposes to make the act of marrying multiple times while a spouse is still alive a punishable offence, with a prison term of up to seven years.
- The offence has been made a cognizable offence, meaning they will not be given bail immediately.
- This law will not apply to the state’s Scheduled Tribe communities and in the tribal districts under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
- Special Fund: The Bill also contains a provision for the state government to set up a special fund to offer compensation to women who are “victims of polygamy”.
- The bill is part of a broader campaign to reshape Assam’s social fabric and gender justice.
Source: IE
India Development and Strategic Fund (IDSF)
Syllabus: GS2/Governance
Context
- The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has suggested setting up an India Development and Strategic Fund (IDSF) to support long-term growth and global economic security.
India Development and Strategic Fund (IDSF)
- Aim: To create a “twin-arm” national fund to mobilise domestic and global savings and recycle capital from mature assets into new productive capacity.
- It will build an enduring financial engine for long-term national development beyond annual budgets.
CII suggested that IDSF will have two arms:
- Development Investment Arm: It will focus on Long-term domestic priorities.
- Sectors: Infrastructure, Clean energy, Logistics and industrial corridors, MSME scale-up, Education & skilling, Healthcare, Urban infrastructure.
- Role: Acts as anchor investor, attracting pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and institutional investors (both domestic and foreign).
- Strategic Investment Arm: It will focus on securing critical overseas assets vital for India’s economic and security interests.
- Targets: Energy assets, Critical minerals, Frontier technologies (AI, semiconductors).
| Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) – Type: Non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed organization. – Established: 1895 (as Engineering and Iron Trades Association; renamed CII in 1992). – Headquarters: New Delhi. – Membership: Over 9,000 direct members (private and public enterprises, SMEs, MNCs) and 300,000 indirect members (through sectoral associations). – Coverage: All sectors of economy across 62 offices in India and 8 overseas offices. – CII charts change by working closely with governments and thought leaders and enhancing efficiency, competitiveness and business opportunities for industry. |
Source: BS
Boxfish
Syllabus: GS3/Environment
In News
- Engineers at the University of Colorado Boulder have developed a mathematical model to replicate the ornate boxfish’s skin patterns.
- Their work builds on Alan Turing’s 1952 theory of pattern formation, which explains how diffusion and chemical reactions can create natural designs like leopard spots and seashell swirls—known as Turing patterns.
About Boxfish
- They are small, shallow-water marine fishes from the family Ostraciontidae, known for their rigid, boxlike carapace made of fused plates, which encases most of their body except the eyes, mouth, fins, and tail.
- They are found in warm tropical seas worldwide.
- They are brightly colored and sometimes called cowfish due to hornlike head projections.
- Though edible and often dried as curios, boxfish release a toxic substance when handled that can harm nearby fish.
Source :IE
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