Heavy rains and flash floods in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, specifically Tharali town, have resulted in one death, one missing person, and over 30 injuries. The disaster caused extensive damage to private and public property, including homes, vehicles, and roads. SDRF, NDRF, Army, and ITBP teams are involved in relief and rescue operations. The India Meteorological Department has issued orange and red alerts for Chamoli and other districts, indicating continued risk. A temporary relief and rehabilitation centre has been set up, and schools are closed.
Flash floods in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district caused significant loss of life and property damage.
Multiple agencies including SDRF, NDRF, Army, and ITBP are engaged in extensive relief and rescue operations.
The India Meteorological Department has issued high alerts for the region, indicating ongoing risk of heavy rainfall.
Exam Points
Location of flash floods: Tharali town, Chamoli district, Uttarakhand.
Agencies involved in rescue: SDRF (State Disaster Response Force), NDRF (National Disaster Response Force), Indian Army, ITBP (Indo-Tibetan Border Police).
Chief Minister of Uttarakhand: Pushkar Singh Dhami.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin accused the Centre of denying States their due share of financial devolution and undermining the independence of Finance Commissions, driven by "narrow political motives." He urged other States to form committees to protect their rights and promote federalism. Stalin highlighted historical efforts for State autonomy, including the Justice Rajamannar Committee (1969) and the Sarkaria Commission (1983), which warned against excessive centralisation. He also criticized the Union government's push for Hindi and its interference in Opposition-ruled States, advocating for stronger, self-reliant States for a united India.
Tamil Nadu CM M.K. Stalin alleges the Centre is politically motivated in denying States their financial share and undermining Finance Commissions.
He advocates for greater State autonomy and federalism, urging other States to join the movement.
Historical commissions like Justice Rajamannar Committee and Sarkaria Commission have previously addressed Union-State relations and centralisation.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged that the Centre's ₹72,000-crore mega infrastructure project on Great Nicobar island is being "bulldozed through" and is a "maha ecological disaster." He cited a report that the Tribal Council in Nicobar Islands complained to the Tribal Affairs Minister, stating that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands administration falsely claimed that tribespeople's rights under the Forest Rights Act (FRA) had been "identified and settled" and consent obtained. The project includes a trans-shipment port, airport, township, and power plant, raising serious concerns about environmental impact and tribal rights.
A ₹72,000-crore mega infrastructure project in Great Nicobar Island faces allegations of being an ecological disaster and violating tribal rights.
The Tribal Council claims the administration falsely reported that Forest Rights Act (FRA) rights were settled and consent obtained for land diversion.
The project encompasses a trans-shipment port, airport, township, and power plant, indicating significant developmental impact.
ISRO plans to launch at least three new satellites by 2026-end to replenish its Navic (Indian GPS) system, but the development of indigenous high-precision atomic clocks is a key impediment. Five of the nine launched Navic satellites are completely defunct due to clock failures, and only two have functional atomic clocks. The original clocks were imported from SpectraTime. ISRO is now developing indigenously designed rubidium clocks for the next series of satellites. Navic aims to provide accurate location services within a 1,500 km radius in India, serving as a fallback system during global conflicts.
ISRO is facing challenges with its Navic (Indian GPS) system due to failures of imported atomic clocks in existing satellites.
The agency plans to launch new satellites by 2026-end and is developing indigenous rubidium atomic clocks to overcome the dependency on foreign components.
Navic is designed to provide accurate location services within India and a 1,500 km radius, serving strategic national interests.
Exam Points
System: Navic (Navigation with Indian Constellation), also known as IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System).
Number of Navic satellites launched since 2013: Nine (eight reached orbit).
Type of indigenous clocks being developed: Rubidium clocks.
India's tobacco control measures, particularly the COTPA 2003, are deemed inadequate and poorly implemented, especially concerning smokeless tobacco (SLT). SLT, being cheaper and less stigmatized, is widely consumed and highly carcinogenic. The article highlights gaps such as weak regulation of SLT, unchecked surrogate advertising, and insufficient fiscal measures, with low taxation on bidis, cigarettes, and SLT making them affordable. It also points out the lack of effective evaluation for warning signs and the need for a comprehensive, multi-pronged strategy involving stronger policies, research, oversight, and collaboration to curb tobacco use and industry interference.
India's existing tobacco control laws, particularly COTPA 2003, are insufficient and poorly enforced, especially for smokeless tobacco (SLT).
SLT is more commonly consumed, highly addictive, and carcinogenic, yet it faces weak regulation, inadequate taxation, and pervasive surrogate advertising.
Low taxation on tobacco products, combined with rising incomes, has made them more affordable, undermining public health efforts.
Exam Points
Key legislation: Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003.
Economic costs of tobacco in 2017: ₹1.77 lakh crore (1.04% of GDP) for population 35+.
WHO recommended tobacco tax burden: 75% (India's bidi tax burden is 22%, cigarettes ~50%).
The African Union (AU) has endorsed the 'Correct the Map' campaign to replace the Mercator map projection with alternatives like the Equal Earth map. The Mercator projection, designed in 1569 for navigation, distorts landmass sizes, making areas near the poles appear larger (e.g., Greenland) and equatorial regions (like Africa) appear smaller than their actual size. This distortion, critics argue, has subtly reinforced Africa's marginalisation in the global imagination. The Equal Earth projection preserves relative areas but distorts shapes, while the Gall-Peters projection also preserves area but elongates continents. The AU's move aims to restore geographical accuracy and reclaim dignity, though displacing the entrenched Mercator map will be challenging.
The Mercator map projection, designed in 1569, distorts the true sizes of continents, making Africa appear smaller than it is and reinforcing a perception of marginalisation.
The African Union (AU) supports replacing Mercator with alternatives like the Equal Earth projection, which accurately represents relative landmass sizes.
Map projections inherently involve distortions, as flattening a sphere onto a plane requires compromises in area, shape, distance, or direction.
Exam Points
Map projection in question: Mercator projection (designed by Gerardus Mercator in 1569).
Alternative projections: Equal Earth projection (created in 2018), Gall-Peters projection.
Africa's actual size: 30 million sq. km (Greenland is 14x smaller).
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