Forced Labour: The US has launched a trade investigation against India and 59 other economies under Section 301 of the Trade Act, 1974 to examine whether their supply chains include goods produced using forced labour. The probe aims to address unfair trade advantages arising from lower production costs, which the US Trade Representative (USTR) argues […]
Category: Current Affairs
Economic Stabilisation Fund
Economic Stabilisation Fund: The Lok Sabha approved the 2nd batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants (2025-26), and the Finance Minister introduced the Economic Stabilisation Fund (ESF), a Rs 1 lakh crore fiscal buffer aimed at boosting macroeconomic stability and economic resilience. Under Article 115, Supplementary Demands for Grants are required when funds authorised by the […]
60th Jnanpith Award
60th Jnanpith Award: Eminent Tamil lyricist and author R. Vairamuthu has been selected for the 60th Jnanpith Award, becoming only the 3rd Tamil writer to receive the prize and the 1st to be recognised for Tamil poetry. He also won the Sahitya Akademi Award (2003) for his novel Kallikattu Ithikasam. He was also awarded the […]
Kharg Island–Fujairah Attacks
Kharg Island–Fujairah Attacks: Geopolitical escalation in West Asia has intensified after the US reportedly carried out bombing strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island, a crucial oil export hub, while Iran retaliated by striking oil facilities in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Both locations are critical nodes in the global oil supply chain, and attacks […]
India’s 1st Manuscript Mapping Drive
India’s 1st Manuscript Mapping Drive: The Ministry of Culture has launched a first-of-its-kind three-month nationwide survey to map India’s manuscript heritage. The exercise aims to curb intellectual piracy by digitising India’s vast manuscript heritage, which includes the world’s largest collection of about 1 crore manuscripts. The survey will be conducted from the district level upwards […]
Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025
Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025: The Sahitya Akademi announced the Sahitya Akademi awards 2025 across 24 languages, honoring 8 poetry collections, 4 novels, 6 short story books, 2 essays, 1 literary criticism, 1 autobiography, and 2 memoirs. Notable winners include former diplomat Navtej Sarna for his English novel Crimson Spring, Hindi writer Mamta Kalia for her […]
Menstrual Leave in India
Menstrual Leave in India: The Supreme Court of India (SC) expressed concerns that making paid menstrual pain leave a compulsory legal right could unintentionally harm women’s career prospects and employment opportunities, while hearing a petition seeking a uniform national policy on menstrual leave for working women and students. The petition argued that menstrual leave is […]
Dual-Sex Crab of Silent Valley
Dual-Sex Crab of Silent Valley: Researchers have found a rare case of gynandromorphy—a condition where an organism displays both male and female characteristics (e.g., male reproductive structures alongside female gonopores)—in a freshwater crab species, Vela carli. Vela carli is an endemic freshwater crab species discovered within the tree holes of Silent Valley National Park in […]
Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs: Researchers recently found two ancient rock carvings (petroglyphs) on a flat rock inside a rock shelter on a hill behind Beerappa Temple in Manchirevula, Telangana. Petroglyphs (also known as rock engravings) are symbolic images sculpted or engraved on the surface of rocks by removing material from its surface layer with instruments of superior hardness. […]
Butis bargabhimae : New Species Of Estuarine Fish
Butis bargabhimae : New Species Of Estuarine Fish Scientists in West Bengal recently identified a new species of estuarine fish named Butis bargabhimae. Butis bargabhimae is a new species of estuarine fish. It was found in the Rupnarayan River (tributary of the Hooghly River) near Tamluk, West Bengal. It belongs to the butid family, a […]
