News at a glance
| Topic | GS Paper | Why in News / Context |
| Honour Killings in India | GS1 – Indian Society (Issues) | Despite laws, caste-based honour killings persist, especially where inter-caste marriages challenge caste hierarchies. |
| Mines & Minerals (Development & Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025 | GS2 – MoM – Initiative | Parliament amends MMDR Act: expands leases, liberalizes captive mines, launches mineral exchanges and Critical Mineral Mission. |
| Regulatory Reform in Biopharmaceuticals | GS2 – Governance (Issues) | India aims to move from “pharmacy of the world” to biotech innovation leader – reforms needed in approvals and regulation. |
| Right to Charge (EV Charging Access) | GS2 – Governance (Reform) | Push for legal right to install home EV chargers in apartments; key to democratize EV adoption and meet sustainability goals. |
| India’s Path to Technological Sovereignty | GS2 – Governance (Initiatives) | PM Modi highlights tech self-reliance: focus on AI, semiconductors, R&D, reverse brain drain, and indigenous innovation. |
| India’s S&P Rating Upgrade | GS3 – Indian Economy (Development) | S&P upgrades India’s sovereign credit rating to BBB citing fiscal consolidation, growth, and price stability. |
| Next-Generation GST Reforms | GS3 – Indian Economy (Taxes) | PM signals structural, rate, and compliance reforms in GST for growth, consumption, and ease of doing business. |
| Bhubaneswar Bypass Project (Odisha) | GS3 – Infra (Transportation) | Union Cabinet approves 6-lane, 110km bypass project under PPP in Odisha for logistics, connectivity, and decongestion. |
| Mega Renewables Park in Ladakh | GS3 – Environment (RE) | 13 GW hybrid solar-wind park threatens Changpa nomads’ land, raising conflict between climate goals and local livelihoods. |
| AI Terrorism/Naxalism Trend | GS3 – Internal Security (Issues) | AI-driven terrorism threats global security, while India’s Naxal insurgency is declining due to integrated countermeasures. |
| Compostable Bioplastic in Railway | Prelims – Environment (Conservation) | NFR adopts IIT Guwahati’s compostable bioplastic packaging—first Indian railway zone with green transit innovation. |
| E. coli Mercury Sensor (Biotech) | Prelims – Science (Biology) | Scientists engineer E. coli as a self-powered electronic biosensor to detect heavy metals like mercury in water. |
| 97 LCA Mk1A Jet Induction | Prelims – S&T (Defence) | Govt approves procurement of 97 indigenous LCA Mk1A jets to replace MiG-21 fleet and boost Atmanirbhar Bharat. |
Honour Killings in India (GS1 – IS – Issues)
Context:
Despite legal safeguards, caste-based honour killings persist in India, especially in regions where caste hierarchies are being challenged by social change and inter-caste marriages.
Key Facts:
- Only about 5% of marriages in India are inter-caste; violence spikes where caste boundaries are contested, not where caste is strongest.
- States with empowered Dalits (TN, Telangana, Maharashtra, Kerala) see more inter-caste unions and related honour killings, particularly involving Dalit men and dominant caste women.
- Families reproduce caste via customs, rituals, and marriage norms; deep internalisation in children transmits caste across generations.
- Urban youth emphasizing autonomy and self-growth are weakening familial/caste control.
- Social shifts, global trends in diverse relationships, democracy, and legal protection signal gradual movement toward an egalitarian society.
- Honour killings are illegal under IPC, but specific legislation and more robust social interventions are advocated.
Mines and Minerals (Development & Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025 (GS2 – MoM – Initiative)
Context:
Parliament passed a major reform bill amending the MMDR Act, 1957, to modernize India’s mining sector and bolster exploration/supply of critical minerals.
Key Facts:
- Expands leases to cover critical/strategic minerals without added premium; allows 100% commercial sale of minerals from captive mines.
- Sets up regulated mineral exchanges.
- Links with National Critical Mineral Mission (Jan 2025; ₹32,000 crore), focusing on 24 minerals crucial for renewables, EVs, defence, electronics.
- KABIL (PSU) undertakes international exploration, aligning with India’s resource security strategy.
- Reduces reliance on China/single-source supply, creates jobs, and supports domestic industry.
- Strategic partnerships with Africa, Latin America, and Australia.
Regulatory Reform in Biopharmaceuticals (GS2 – Governance – Issues)
Context:
India, erstwhile “pharmacy of the world”, now seeks regulatory reforms to evolve into a global biotechnology innovation hub.
Key Facts:
- Key laws: Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940; New Drugs & Clinical Trial Rules, 2019; NPPA regulates pricing; CDSCO is the nodal regulator.
- Challenges: Fragmented oversight, slow approvals, limited capacity, outdated rules, investor concerns.
- Potential: Regulatory streamlining can advance rare disease therapies, attract investment, boost biotech startups and employment.
- Way forward: Digital regulatory window, adaptive trials, AI for safety, special market access for startups, innovation incentives like patent-box schemes.
Right to Charge (GS2 – Governance – Reforms)
Context:
India faces obstacles for home EV charging access, especially in apartments. “Right to Charge” aims to democratize EV adoption.
Key Facts:
- Most global EV charging is at home/work; housing society hurdles prevail in India (permissions, technical/spatial restrictions).
- Policy: Model Building Byelaws amended, some states (Maharashtra) mandate quick NOCs; legal protection, technical standards, and dispute resolution key.
- Significance: Builds consumer confidence, aligns with net-zero targets and sustainable urbanization.
India’s Path to Technological Sovereignty (GS2 – Governance – Initiatives)
Context:
PM Modi emphasizes technological sovereignty in his Independence Day speech, citing self-reliant tech ecosystem’s role in national security and economic growth.
Key Facts:
- Sovereignty means indigenous tech infrastructure and reduced foreign reliance (semiconductors, cloud, platforms).
- Bottlenecks: Brain drain, weak academia–industry links, low R&D (0.7% GDP), lack of AI supercomputing infrastructure, underfunded IndiaAI/Quantum missions.
- Solutions: R&D boost to 1.5% GDP, IP-driven startups, accelerated semiconductor/chip missions, research clusters, reverse brain drain incentives.
India’s S&P Rating Upgrade (GS3 – IE – Development)
Context:
S&P Global Ratings upgraded India’s sovereign credit rating from BBB- to BBB after 20 years, highlighting fiscal improvement and growth resilience.
Key Facts:
- Fiscal deficit fell from 9.2% FY21 to 4.4% FY26; CPI inflation hit 1.55% (Jul 2025, lowest since 2017); GDP growth robust.
- Significance: Lower borrowing costs, higher investor confidence, rupee appreciation.
- “BBB” rating means adequate repayment capacity but greater risk in adverse events (India same as Mexico, Greece, Indonesia).
Next-Generation GST Reforms (GS3 – IE – Taxes)
Context:
PM Modi sets out next-generation GST reforms to boost ease of living, rate rationalization, and economic growth.
Key Facts:
- Roadmap: Fix inverted duties, standardize classification, stabilize rates, simplify to 2-3 slabs, end compensation cess, automate refunds, pre-filled returns.
- Lower GST on essentials boosts disposable income and consumption, aids rural inclusion, potentially adds 0.6% to GDP.
- Rationalization may buffer against US export tariffs and spur manufacturing sectors.
Bhubaneswar Bypass Project (GS3 – Infra – Transportation)
Context:
Cabinet sanctions ₹8,307 crore for 110 km, 6-lane bypass under Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) in Odisha, integrating multiple highways and industrial/logistics hubs.
Key Facts:
- Eases traffic on NH-16 (Kolkata–Chennai), connects SEZs, multi-modal logistics parks, ports, railways, and airports.
- Public-private partnership via HAM (40% public, 60% private investment).
- Socio-economic benefits: Reduces logistics costs, enhances regional connectivity, supports industrial growth.
India’s Mega Renewables Park in Ladakh (GS3 – Envi – RE)
Context:
Planned 13 GW hybrid renewable energy park in Ladakh threatens indigenous Changpa nomads’ pasture lands.
Key Facts:
- Combines 9 GW solar, 4 GW wind, battery storage in Pang, Debring, Kharnak.
- Risks: Displacement of Changpa (pashmina herders), loss of cultural heritage, green grabbing, lack of land rights.
- Pilot: SECI 25 MW solar-battery at Taru, Leh.
- Raises concerns about balancing climate goals with indigenous/heritage protection per UNDRIP.
Rising AI Terrorism amid Naxalism Decline (GS3 – IS – Issues)
Context:
AI-driven terrorism (deepfake campaigns, drone swarms, cyber attacks) is emerging as Naxalism/insurgency declines due to integrated development/security policies.
Key Facts:
- AI threats: synthetic media radicalization, autonomous drones, cyberintrusions, engineered pathogens.
- Naxalite influence reduced to Bastar, leadership crisis, youth diverted to jobs.
- India emphasizes rehabilitation and local development versus foreign-focused U.S. counter-terror practice.
Compostable Bioplastic in Railway (Prelims – Envi – Conservation)
Context:
Northeast Frontier Railway adopts IIT Guwahati’s compostable bioplastic packaging, pioneering green transit initiatives.
Key Facts:
- Supported by India’s single-use plastic ban (2022), NFR recycles waste into compostable bedroll bags.
- Bioplastics: renewable, degrade in controlled composting; not all are biodegradable.
- Demonstrates scalable public-sector innovation in sustainability.
E. coli Turned into Mercury Sensor (Prelims – Sci – Bio)
Context:
Researchers engineered E. coli bacteria as living biosensors, detecting mercury and sugars via direct electrical output.
Key Facts:
- Ultra-sensitive: detects 25 nM mercury (below WHO safe limits) in water; sugars in two hours.
- Potential for cost-effective, real-time water quality monitoring; harnesses bacterial metabolism.
India to Induct 97 LCA Mk1A Jets (Prelims – S&T – Defence)
Context:
Cabinet approved procurement of 97 Tejas Mark 1A light combat aircraft for IAF, a major boost to Make in India.
Key Facts:
- Designed by HAL, Mk1A variant has 65% indigenous content, advanced avionics, to replace ageing MiG-21 fleet.
- Strengthens India’s air defence, indigenous defence ecosystem, and Atmanirbhar Bharat push.