News In Short 14-2-2025

Sagar Island

Syllabus: GS1/Places in News

Context

• The West Bengal government has announced comprehensive preparations for the Gangasagar Mela 2025.

About

• Sagar Island is situated at the mouth of the Bay of Bengal about 120 km from the State capital Kolkata.
• It is the largest island in the Sundarbans archipelago.
• Lakhs of pilgrims visit the island every year to participate in the religious fair and take a dip at the confluence of the Ganga and the sea on the occasion of Makar Sankranti. 
• The site is considered sacred and is home to the Kapil Muni temple.

Source: TH

Manipur Placed Under President’s Rule

Syllabus: GS2/ Polity and Governance

Context

• The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has announced the imposition of President’s Rule in Manipur, with the state assembly placed under suspended animation.

Constitutional Provisions of Imposition of President’s Rule

• Article 356 empowers the President of India to impose President’s Rule in a state when governance cannot be carried out as per constitutional provisions. 
• Grounds: If the President receives a report from the state’s Governor or otherwise is convinced or satisfied that the state’s situation is such that the state government cannot carry on the governance according to the provisions of the Constitution.
• Under the President’s rule, the elected state government is dismissed and its powers are suspended.
  • The Governor becomes the executive head of the state and runs the administration on behalf of the President.
• The proclamation remains valid for up to two months but must be approved by both Houses of Parliament to extend further.
  • If approved, the Rule can last for six months and be extended in increments of six months, up to a maximum of three years.

Source: TH

Heatwaves

Syllabus: GS3/Environment and Conservation

Context

• India is experiencing more frequent, prolonged and severe heatwaves.
  • These extreme temperatures pose significant risk to public health, infrastructure, and livelihoods, especially in vulnerable regions.

About

• The World Bank estimates that India could account for 34 million job losses due to heat-stress-related productivity declines by 2030.
• 54% of India’s land is experiencing high-to-extreme-high water stress, according to the World Resources Institute (WRI).

Heatwaves and Its Impacts:

• A heatwave is defined as a prolonged period of unusually and excessively hot weather, accompanied by high humidity. 
• The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has specified the following criteria:
  • a heatwave need not be considered till the maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40°C for plains and at least 30°C for hilly regions. 
• Impacts: 
  • Health Risks: Increased heat can cause heatstroke, dehydration, and exacerbate pre-existing conditions like heart disease.
  • Agriculture: High temperatures can lead to crop failures, reduce yields, and damage livestock, threatening food security.
  • Water scarcity: Heatwaves can worsen droughts, leading to water shortages and affecting drinking water supplies.
  • Wildfires: Prolonged heat can increase the likelihood of wildfires, damaging ecosystems and property.
  • Energy demand: High temperatures often lead to higher energy consumption for cooling, which can strain power grids.

Source: IE

Removal of Judges In india 

Syllabus :GS 2/Governance 

In News

• Rajya Sabha Chairman emphasized that only Parliament has the constitutional authority to remove a High Court judge

About Removal of judges

• A judge can be removed on the grounds of ‘proved misbehaviour’ or ‘incapacity’ as per Articles 124 and 217 of the Constitution.
  • The Constitution does not define ‘proved misbehaviour’ or ‘incapacity.’
  • Supreme Court rulings clarify that wilful misconduct, corruption, lack of integrity, or offenses involving moral turpitude are grounds for misbehaviour.
    • Incapacity refers to a medical condition, either physical or mental.

Procedure for Removal

• Procedure for Removal: A judge can be removed only by an order of the President, based on a motion passed by both Houses of Parliament.
  • The Judges Inquiry Act, 1968, outlines the removal procedure.
    • A motion may be introduced in either House of Parliament.
    • In the Lok Sabha, at least 100 members must sign the notice.
    • In the Rajya Sabha, at least 50 members must sign the notice.
    • The Speaker (Lok Sabha) or Chairman (Rajya Sabha) may consult relevant individuals and decide whether to admit the motion.
• Motion Admission: The Speaker (Lok Sabha) or Chairman (Rajya Sabha) decides whether to admit the motion after due consideration and consultation.
• Three-Member Committee: If the motion is admitted, a three-member committee is formed:
  • A Supreme Court/High Court judge, A distinguished jurist, and A member of the judiciary.
• Investigation and Report: The committee investigates the case.
  • If the judge is cleared of misbehaviour or incapacity, the motion is dropped.
  • If guilty, the committee report is presented in Parliament for further action.
• Parliament’s Role: If the committee finds misbehaviour or incapacity, the motion is debated in Parliament.
  • A motion for removal must be passed by both Houses of Parliament.
  • The motion requires:
    • A majority of the total membership of each House.
    • A special majority of at least two-thirds of members present and voting in the same session.
• Sending the Motion to the President: Once adopted by both Houses, the motion is sent to the President.
  • The President will issue an order for the judge’s removal.

Source  :TH

Free Movement Regime (FMR)

Syllabus :GS 2/IR/Governance

In News

• 22 crossing points along the Myanmar border are now operational under the revised Free Movement Regime (FMR) agreement.

About Free Movement Regime (FMR)

• It allows border residents to visit relatives without a visa or passport.
• It was introduced in 1968 due to ethnic and familial relations between people on either side of the largely unfenced north-eastern border. 
• The territorial limit of free movement : Initially it  was 40 km, which was reduced to 16 km in 2004 and in 2016 additional regulations were enforced. It has now been reduced to 10 km.
• Monitoring :  Border passes are issued with biometrics recorded and checked against a centralised portal.
  • Assam Rifles is responsible for issuing border passes and conducting the first layer of security checks, while state police conduct further checks at the place of stay.
• Status of FMR: Although the Home Minister announced the scrapping of FMR, no formal orders have been issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to suspend the agreement.

Do you know ? – The India-Myanmar border passes through the States of Arunachal Pradesh (520 km), Nagaland (215 km), Manipur (398 km), and Mizoram (510 km).

Source :TH

India’s first Automated Biomedical Waste Treatment Plant

Syllabus: GS2/ Health

Context

• The Union Minister inaugurated India’s first indigenous Automated Biomedical Waste Treatment Plant at AIIMS New Delhi. 

About

• The plant, named “Sṛjanam,” was developed by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology (CSIR-NIIST).
• The plant disinfects pathogenic waste such as blood, urine, sputum, and laboratory disposables without using incinerators.
  • The system also neutralizes odors from waste. 
• With a daily capacity of 400 kg, the equipment is capable of handling 10 kg of degradable medical waste per day in the initial phase.

Significance

• According to a 2023 report of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India generates 743 tonnes of biomedical waste daily. 
• The new technology offers an alternative to traditional incineration, reducing risks associated with exposure and environmental contamination.

Source: AIR

ESG Framework

Syllabus: GS3/ Economy

In News

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed new measures to regulate ESG Rating Providers (ERPs), ensuring greater transparency, accountability, and consistency in ESG assessments.

What is the ESG Framework?

• It is a set of standards that assess how a company operates responsibly concerning the planet and people. It includes:
  • Environmental: How well a company manages its environmental impact.
  • Social: How it treats employees, customers, suppliers & communities.
  • Governance: Its leadership, ethics, and corporate accountability.

SEBI’s Key Proposals

• Withdrawal of ESG Ratings: ERPs can withdraw ratings if there are no subscribers, but ratings part of index-linked packages (e.g., Nifty 50) cannot be withdrawn selectively.
• Issuer-pays model: Ratings can be withdrawn after at least three years or 50% of the security’s tenure (whichever is higher), with approval from 75% of bondholders.
• Disclosure of Rating Rationale: ERPs following a subscriber-pays model must provide detailed rating rationales only to subscribers, but ESG ratings themselves should be disclosed publicly.
  • Stock exchanges will be required to display ESG ratings prominently on their websites.
• Governance and Oversight: Category-II ERPs will have to conduct internal audits and form a Nomination & Remuneration Committee (NRC) within two years of the new rules being implemented.

Implications for Stakeholders

• Investors & Issuers: Greater clarity and standardization in ESG ratings will help investors make more informed decisions.
• ESG Rating Providers: Increased compliance and governance requirements may add operational overhead but will enhance credibility.
• Listed Companies: Public display of ESG ratings on stock exchanges will add transparency, possibly influencing investor perception.

Source: BS

Indirect Prompt Injection (IPI)

Syllabus: GS3/ S&T

In News

• The rise of indirect prompt injection as a major security threat to AI chatbots is a wake-up call for both developers and users.

What is Indirect Prompt Injection?

• Unlike direct attacks, indirect prompt injection embeds harmful instructions within benign-looking text (e.g., documents, emails, or web content). When processed by an AI LLM, these hidden prompts can lead to unauthorized actions, data breaches, and misinformation.

Why Does This Matter?

• AI models are trained to interpret and execute instructions—making them susceptible to hidden manipulations.
• Recent research demonstrated how Google’s Gemini chatbot could be tricked into storing false information permanently.
• Attackers can bypass security safeguards, making traditional defenses ineffective.

Source: TH

Neutrino Detected under the Mediterranean Sea

Syllabus :GS 3/Science and Tech 

In News

• Scientists detected a record-breaking ultra-high energy neutrino using an observatory under construction in the Mediterranean Sea near Sicily, part of the KM3NeT (Cubic Kilometre Neutrino Telescope) Collaboration

About Neutrinos

• They are tiny elementary particles with very little mass, no charge, and a spin of half.
• They interact weakly with other matter particles and pass through our bodies unnoticed.
• Sources of Neutrinos: Neutrinos come from the Sun (solar neutrinos), other stars, cosmic rays from beyond the solar system, and the Big Bang.
  • They can also be produced in labs.
• Types of Neutrinos: There are three types of neutrinos, known as “flavours”: electron neutrino, tau neutrino, and muon neutrino.
• Findings of Recent Study :  The detected neutrino’s energy is 10,000 times more than that of particles from the Large Hadron Collider and quadrillion times more than photons (light particles)
  • The neutrino is believed to have originated from beyond the Milky Way galaxy.
  • Possible sources include 12 supermassive black holes at the centers of distant galaxies.
  • Neutrinos are produced in various astrophysical events, such as nuclear fusion in stars (low-energy) and violent processes like black hole activity or gamma-ray bursts (high-energy).
• Significance:  Neutrinos are electrically neutral and rarely interact with matter, making them ideal “cosmic messengers” to study the universe.
  •  They can travel through matter, including the Earth, unimpeded.
  • The study of neutrinos aims to understand the universe better, offering insights into astrophysical processes and the cosmos.

Source :IE

Foetus in Foetu

Syllabus: GS3/Science and Technology

Context

• In January 2025, doctors in Maharashtra detected a rare case of “foetus in foetu” in a pregnant woman.

About

• ‘Foetus in foetu’ is a foetus-like mass developed within the body of the other foetus in a monozygotic twin pregnancy. 
• Basically, one twin is very underdeveloped and enwrapped inside the body of the other twin, so much so that the pregnancy is considered a singleton pregnancy. 
• Also known as cryptodidymus, this rare congenital disorder affects about one in 500,000 births.
  • Less than 200 cases have been reported worldwide, with about 10 to 15 cases in India.
• Cause: About 10 to 15 days after the conception of monozygotic twins, the cell mass of the embryo may be split unevenly, due to which one twin is smaller and incompletely formed with the other twin fully developed.
  • The smaller twin gets trapped within the larger twin. The trapped twin is considered “parasitic,” as it draws its blood supply and nutrients from the other “host” twin.

Source: TH