Daily Current Affairs 07-October-2025

India’s First Cooperative Multi-Feed Compressed Biogas Plant in Maharashtra

Context:

In October 2025, India inaugurated its first cooperative-based multi-feed compressed biogas (CBG) plant in Kolhapur district, Maharashtra.
The project was launched under the ‘Waste to Wealth’ initiative and aligns with the SATAT scheme (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation) of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
This marks a significant step toward decentralized green energy production and rural income diversification.

What is Compressed Biogas (CBG)?

Compressed Biogas (CBG) is a purified form of biogas produced from organic waste materials such as agricultural residues, animal dung, municipal solid waste, and food waste.
After purification and compression, CBG contains over 95% methane (CH₄), making it chemically similar to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and suitable for use as a transport fuel or for energy generation.

How CBG is Produced:

1. Feedstock Collection: Biomass such as crop residues, press mud, and cattle dung is collected.
2. Anaerobic Digestion: The feedstock undergoes microbial digestion in an oxygen-free environment, generating raw biogas (a mix of methane and CO₂).
   
   
3. Purification: The gas is cleaned to remove CO₂, hydrogen sulfide, and moisture.
   
   
4. Compression: Purified methane is compressed to 250 bar pressure, resulting in CBG.
   
   
5. Byproducts: The remaining slurry is processed into organic manure or biofertilizer.
   
   

CBG serves as a renewable, carbon-neutral fuel that can directly replace CNG in vehicles or be injected into City Gas Distribution (CGD) networks.

 Key Features of the Kolhapur Plant

• Cooperative Model:
  
  
  • The plant is established and managed by a farmers’ cooperative society, ensuring participation of rural stakeholders.
    
    
  • It allows farmers to supply agro-waste and livestock waste, generating an additional revenue stream.
    
    
• Multi-Feed Technology:
  
  
  • Unlike single-feed plants, this facility can process multiple types of biomass—including sugarcane press mud, cattle dung, and agricultural residues.
    
    
  • This flexibility improves operational efficiency and ensures feedstock availability year-round.
    
    
• Production Capacity:
  
  
  • Generates about 10 tonnes per day (TPD) of compressed biogas and 40 TPD of organic manure.
    
    
  • The biogas produced is suitable for use as a transport fuel or can be injected into city gas distribution networks.
    
    
• Environmental and Economic Benefits:
  
  
  • Reduces open burning of crop residues and methane emissions from decomposing biomass.
    
    
  • Promotes rural energy self-sufficiency and waste-to-wealth conversion.
    
    
  • Supports local employment and sustainable farming practices.
• Policy Linkages:
  
  
  • Aligns with the National Bioenergy Programme, SATAT initiative, and India’s Net Zero 2070 commitments.
    
    

Environmental and Economic Benefits

• Reduces open burning of crop residues and prevents methane release from decomposing organic waste.
  
  
• Promotes rural energy self-sufficiency and waste-to-wealth conversion.
  
  
• Encourages sustainable farming through the use of organic manure.
  
  
• Creates local employment in biomass collection, processing, and logistics.
  
  
• Expected to cut CO₂ emissions by over 20,000 tonnes per year.
  
  

Ministry of Mines Issues Guidelines for Critical Mineral Recycling Incentive Scheme (CMRIS)

Context:

In September 2025, the Ministry of Mines released the operational guidelines for the Critical Mineral Recycling Incentive Scheme (CMRIS).
The scheme aims to promote recycling and reuse of critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and rare earth elements — essential for clean energy technologies like EV batteries, solar panels, and electronics.
This step follows the release of India’s Critical Minerals List (2024) and the establishment of the Indian Critical Minerals Mission (ICMM).

What Are Critical Minerals?

Critical minerals are natural elements or compounds that are essential for modern technologies and economic development, but are vulnerable to supply disruptions due to limited domestic availability or concentrated global production.

They are called “critical” because:

• They are indispensable to strategic sectors such as renewable energy, defense, space, electronics, and electric mobility.
  
  
• Their supply chains are fragile, often dependent on a few countries, making them strategically important for energy security and self-reliance.
  
  
• Many of these minerals are difficult and expensive to extract or substitute, and recycling them helps reduce dependence on imports.
  
  

Examples of Critical Minerals:

• Lithium: Used in lithium-ion batteries for EVs, smartphones, and energy storage systems.
  
  
• Cobalt: Enhances battery performance and durability.
  
  
• Nickel: Improves battery energy density and lifespan.
  
  
• Graphite: A key anode material in batteries and lubricants.
  
  
• Rare Earth Elements (REEs): Crucial for magnets in wind turbines, EV motors, and electronics.

Key Features:

• Objective:
  
  
  • To create a circular economy framework for critical minerals.
    
    
  • Reduce dependence on imports and ensure supply chain resilience for strategic industries.
    
    
• Incentive Mechanism:
  
  
  • Provides financial incentives up to 30% of capital expenditure for setting up recycling and recovery facilities.
    
    
  • Special preference to startups, MSMEs, and research-led projects in the recycling sector.
    
    
• Implementation Framework:
  
  
  • To be administered by the Indian Critical Minerals Mission (ICMM) under the Ministry of Mines.
    
    
  • Focus on technology development, waste collection mechanisms, and standardization of recycled mineral quality.
    
    
• Coverage:
  
  
  • Includes key minerals identified in India’s Critical Minerals List 2024, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earth elements (REEs), and graphite.
    
    
• Strategic Importance:
  
  
  • Supports India’s transition towards clean energy and electric mobility.
    
    
  • Enhances self-reliance (Atmanirbhar Bharat) in mineral resources.
    
    
  • Contributes to Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) by promoting recycling and resource efficiency.

Project Himank: BRO has constructed the world’s highest motorable road

Context:

In September 2025, the Ministry of Mines released the operational guidelines for the Critical Mineral Recycling Incentive Scheme (CMRIS).
The scheme aims to promote recycling and reuse of critical minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and rare earth elements — essential for clean energy technologies like EV batteries, solar panels, and electronics.
This step follows the release of India’s Critical Minerals List (2024) and the establishment of the Indian Critical Minerals Mission (ICMM).

What Are Critical Minerals?

Critical minerals are natural elements or compounds that are essential for modern technologies and economic development, but are vulnerable to supply disruptions due to limited domestic availability or concentrated global production.

They are called “critical” because:

• They are indispensable to strategic sectors such as renewable energy, defense, space, electronics, and electric mobility.
  
  
• Their supply chains are fragile, often dependent on a few countries, making them strategically important for energy security and self-reliance.
  
  
• Many of these minerals are difficult and expensive to extract or substitute, and recycling them helps reduce dependence on imports.
  
  

Examples of Critical Minerals:

• Lithium: Used in lithium-ion batteries for EVs, smartphones, and energy storage systems.
  
  
• Cobalt: Enhances battery performance and durability.
  
  
• Nickel: Improves battery energy density and lifespan.
  
  
• Graphite: A key anode material in batteries and lubricants.
  
  
• Rare Earth Elements (REEs): Crucial for magnets in wind turbines, EV motors, and electronics.

Key Features:

• Objective:
  
  
  • To create a circular economy framework for critical minerals.
    
    
  • Reduce dependence on imports and ensure supply chain resilience for strategic industries.
    
    
• Incentive Mechanism:
  
  
  • Provides financial incentives up to 30% of capital expenditure for setting up recycling and recovery facilities.
    
    
  • Special preference to startups, MSMEs, and research-led projects in the recycling sector.
    
    
• Implementation Framework:
  
  
  • To be administered by the Indian Critical Minerals Mission (ICMM) under the Ministry of Mines.
    
    
  • Focus on technology development, waste collection mechanisms, and standardization of recycled mineral quality.
    
    
• Coverage:
  
  
  • Includes key minerals identified in India’s Critical Minerals List 2024, such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earth elements (REEs), and graphite.
    
    
• Strategic Importance:
  
  
  • Supports India’s transition towards clean energy and electric mobility.
    
    
  • Enhances self-reliance (Atmanirbhar Bharat) in mineral resources.
    
    
  • Contributes to Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) by promoting recycling and resource efficiency.

Rising Landslide Threats in the Eastern Himalayas

• Recently, massive landslides struck the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal.
• Triggered by heavy monsoon rains, they caused destruction of roads, homes, and farmlands.
• The Eastern Himalayas are becoming a climate-vulnerable hotspot, with rising rainfall intensity and unplanned human activity increasing risks.

What Is a Landslide?

• A landslide is the downward movement of rock, soil, or debris under the force of gravity.
• It occurs when slope stability fails due to natural or human-induced factors.
• Landslides can be rapid and destructive, blocking rivers, damaging infrastructure, and endangering lives.

How Vulnerable Is India to Landslides?

• According to ISRO’s 2023 Landslide Atlas of India, 12.6% of India’s total land area is prone to landslides.
• The Himalayan region alone accounts for over 75% of this vulnerable area.
• Other high-risk zones include the Western Ghats, North-East states, and parts of Jammu & Kashmir.
• The Himalayan region is more vulnerable to landslides due to a combination of natural and anthropogenic (human-made) causes.

What Are the Natural Causes of Landslides in the Himalayas?

• The Himalayas are young fold mountains, formed by the collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates — making them geologically unstable.
• Monsoon rains, cloudbursts, and snowmelt saturate soil, reducing slope strength.
• High seismic activity, steep terrain, poor drainage, and flash floods worsen the situation.
• Climate change intensifies extreme weather, leading to more frequent and severe landslides.

How Do Human Activities Contribute to Landslides?

• Unplanned construction such as road cutting, tunneling, and hill slope modification weakens natural support.
• Deforestation removes root systems that stabilize soil.
• Mining, urbanization, and encroachment disrupt natural drainage patterns.
• Together, these actions make slopes more fragile and landslide-prone.

What Strategies Does NDMA Recommend for Risk Assessment?

• The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued Landslide Management Guidelines to reduce risks.
• Key strategies include:
  • Vulnerability Mapping – Identify and map landslide- and avalanche-prone areas.
  • Early Warning Systems – Use real-time monitoring for timely alerts.
  • Multi-Agency Coordination – Involve scientists, engineers, NDRF, and local bodies for disaster response.
  • Public Awareness & Training – Educate communities and train responders.
  • Legal Framework – Strengthen disaster management laws for accountability.

Philippines Launches Coral Larvae Cryobank to Safeguard Biodiversity in the Coral Triangle

• The Philippines has launched a coral larvae cryobank to preserve reef biodiversity.
• The cryobank works by freezing coral ‘seeds’ (larvae) for future restoration and scientific research.
• This project is part of a larger regional initiative to create a network of cryobanks across the Coral Triangle.
• The Coral Triangle is often called the “Amazon of the Seas” due to its vast biodiversity.
  • It covers a marine region of 5.7 million square kilometers spanning across Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste.
  • The Coral Triangle is the world’s richest marine biodiversity hotspot.
  • It contains over 75% of the world’s coral species.
  • The region also hosts one-third of all reef fish species.
  • Additionally, it includes vast mangrove forests, which are crucial coastal ecosystems. 

Overflowing Koshi River Raises Flood and Landslide Risks in Bihar and Nepal

• The overflowing Koshi River has increased the risk of floods and landslides in both Bihar (India) and Nepal.
• The Koshi River, also spelled Kosi, is a transboundary river, meaning it flows through more than one country.
• It originates in Tibet (China) and is formed by the confluence of three rivers: Sun Kosi, Arun Kosi, and Tamur Kosi.
• After originating, the river flows through Nepal and then enters India.
• The Koshi is one of the major tributaries of the Ganga River, joining it in Bihar.
  • A tributary is a river or stream that flows into a larger river.
• The Koshi River is often called the “Sorrow of Bihar” because of its history of causing large floods and destruction.
• The Koshi catchment area includes important peaks like Mount Everest and Kangchenjunga.
  • A catchment or drainage basin is the area from which rainfall flows into a river.
• Major tributaries of the Koshi include the Kamla and Bagmati rivers.

Arunachal Pradesh Opens First Commercial Coal Mine

• The first commercial coal mine in Arunachal Pradesh has been inaugurated at the Namchik-Namphuk coal block.
• The Government of India opened up commercial coal mining to the private sector in 2018.
• This move ended the monopoly of state-owned Coal India Limited (CIL) over commercial coal production.
• Before 2018, the private sector was allowed to mine coal only for captive use.
  • Captive use refers to coal mined for use in the private company’s own industrial processes, not for sale in the open market.
• The introduction of commercial coal mining for private players aims to promote transparent coal pricing.
• It also seeks to establish a competitive marketplace with multiple producers, reducing reliance on a single supplier.
• This is expected to drive efficiency, improve coal availability, and reduce prices for end consumers.