Shikshapatri Dwishatabdi Mahotsav
Syllabus: GS1/ History and Culture
Context
- PM Modi addressed the Shikshapatri Dwishatabdi Mahotsav.
What is the Shikshapatri?
- The Shikshapatri is a sacred text authored by Bhagwan Swaminarayan in 1826.
- It consists of 212 concise Sanskrit verses that lay down moral, social, spiritual, and civic codes of conduct.
- The text serves as a practical guide for righteous living, addressing personal discipline, family life, social responsibilities, and devotion.
Significance of the Dwishatabdi Mahotsav
- The Dwishatabdi Mahotsav marks 200 years of the Shikshapatri’s promulgation.
- It is being observed as a global spiritual and cultural event, especially by followers of the Swaminarayan tradition.
- The celebration highlights the continuing relevance of ethical values in a modern, complex society marked by social fragmentation and moral uncertainty.
| Gyan Bharatam Mission (GBM)GBM is a flagship initiative launched by the Ministry of Culture to preserve, digitise, and disseminate India’s vast manuscript heritage.Announced in the Union Budget 2025–26, it revives and expands the vision of the National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM) established in 2003.The mission aims to document and digitise over 1 crore (10 million) manuscripts across India over the next five years. |
Source: PIB
Sea of Japan
Syllabus: GS1/ Places in News
In News
- North Korea recently test-launched short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan (East Sea).
About Sea of Japan
- It is a marginal sea in the Western Pacific that is elliptical-shaped, bordered east by Japan and Sakhalin Island, and west by Russia and the Korean Peninsula.
- It connects south to the East China Sea via Tsushima and Korea Straits, north to the Okhotsk Sea via La Perouse and Tatar Straits, and east to Japan’s Inland Sea and Pacific Ocean via Kanmon and Tsugaru Straits.
Source: TH
Lonar lake
Syllabus: GS1/Geography
Context
- There has been a steady water rise by 20 Feet in the water levels of Lonar Lake.
About
- Lonar lake is a lake of lagoon in Buldhana district of Maharashtra state.
- It was created by a meteorite impact about 52,000 years ago discovered by British Officer J E. Alexander.
- It is located in the basaltic rock of the Deccan Plateau, which was created by enormous volcanic eruptions 65 million years ago, it is the only impact crater that is known to exist.
- The lake has two distinct layers of water one alkaline and one saline harboring microorganisms not found anywhere else on Earth.
- Recognising its ecological and scientific significance, the Maharashtra government has designated Lonar and its surrounding area as a Wildlife Sanctuary.
- Depending on the time of year, the water shifts colour – sometimes emerald green, other times a surreal pink.
- This transformation is thanks to blooming microorganisms that flourish in the unique chemical below the surface.
Source: ET
Syria’s Kurdish Regions
Syllabus: GS2/IR
In News
- Recently, Syrian government forces advanced into Kurdish-held northern territory, capturing key towns and triggering clashes that threaten to derail efforts to reunify the country.
Background and Issues
- Since the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024, Syria has remained unstable despite hopes for peace.
- Ahmed al-Sharaa (formerly Abu Muhammad al-Golani) became interim leader and pledged inclusive governance, but sectarian violence resurfaced, and fighting erupted between government forces and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northeast.
Kurds
- They are one of the largest ethnic groups in the world, spread over Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria in West Asia.
- They also constitute a substantial diasporic population in Europe and elsewhere.
- The Kurdish language, with its various dialects, is a major unifying factor in their dispersion across countries.
- In Syria, the Kurds form around 10% of the total population, and comprise an estimated 5% of the total Kurdish population.
- They faced various forms of discrimination — cultural, linguistic, economic and political — during the Ba’athist rule in Syria under both Hafiz al-Assad and his son Bashar al-Assad, who was deposed in December 2024.
- The Kurdish issue originates from post-World War I agreements, where Wilson’s Fourteen Points and the Treaty of Sèvres (1920) proposed autonomy or potential independence for the Kurds, but the Treaty of Lausanne (1923) excluded such provisions.
Source :TH
Gig Workers’ Welfare Board
Syllabus: GS3/ Economy
In News / Context
- Karnataka has constituted a Gig Workers’ Welfare Board to strengthen social security coverage for platform-based workers in the State.
About
- It is constituted under the Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare Development) Act, 2025.
- The Labour Minister serves as ex-officio Chairperson.
- The Board oversees mandatory registration of aggregators and gig workers, issuing unique IDs valid across platforms.
- Aggregators must contribute 1-1.5% welfare fee (capped, potentially up to 5%) per transaction to fund social security schemes like health and income support.
- The Board will monitor schemes, grievance redressal, and transparent contracts, addressing gig economy growth projected at 4.1% of India’s workforce by 2030.
Source: TH
EURATOM
Syllabus: GS3/ S&T
In News
- India and the EU reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen cooperation on peaceful nuclear energy uses under the existing India-Euratom Agreement during the 16th India-EU Summit.
About
- EURATOM was established by the 1957 Treaty of Rome.
- It promotes joint R&D, safeguards fissile materials against military diversion, and fosters technical knowledge sharing.
- The 2020 India-Euratom R&D pact covers nuclear safety, fusion research (including ITER), radiation protection, and non-power applications like radio-pharmaceuticals.
- India has been CERN’s associate membership since 2017.
Source: TH
CERT-In
Syllabus: GS3/Cybersecurity
Context
- In 2025, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) handled over 29.44 lakh cyber incidents, reflecting large-scale national cyber response capability.
About
- CERT-In is the national agency for cyber incident response in India.
- Ministry: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
- Its mandate under section 70B of the Information Technology (IT) Act 2000 includes the prevention of cyberattacks, real-time monitoring of cyber threats, and swift coordination with stakeholders to mitigate and contain cyber incidents.
Source: PIB
Indo-Pacific Leopard Shark
Syllabus: GS3/Environment
In News
- Thailand has begun its first “rewilding” project for the Indo-Pacific leopard shark off Maiton Island.
The Indo-Pacific Leopard Shark (Stegostoma tigrinum)
- It is a medium-sized shark that occurs across the Indo-West Pacific Oceans.
- It is found on continental and insular shelves from inshore to a depth of 90 m and is associated with coral and rocky reefs, and inshore mudflats, mangroves and seagrass beds.
- The Indo-Pacific Leopard Shark inhabits tropical and subtropical waters up to 142 m deep, favoring coral reefs, rocky areas, sandy plateaus, mangroves, and seagrass beds.
- It occurs across the Indian and Western Central Pacific Oceans from South Africa to Samoa and north to Japan
- It is listed as Endangered species on the IUCN Redlist.
Source :Reuters
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News In Short 28-01-2026
