Current Affairs – March 05, 2026

Context (IE): The World Obesity Atlas 2026 highlights rising global trends in childhood obesity and India’s rapidly increasing burden.

Global Childhood Obesity Trends

Prevalence: Childhood overweight and obesity now affect 20.7% of children worldwide, rising sharply from 14.6% in 2010.
Geographic Shift: The obesity epidemic mainly affects low- and middle-income countries, led by China, India, and the US.
Weight Transition: Children with obesity have surpassed underweight children globally for the first time.
Future Projections: About 227 million children will live with obesity, and 507 million will be overweight or obese by 2040.

India’s Childhood Obesity Burden

Rank: India is now second globally in the number of children living with overweight and obesity.
Age Pattern: Children aged 5–9 make up 36% of India’s overweight or obese population, while adolescents aged 10–19 account for 64%.
Regional Share: India leads the WHO South-East Asia Region with over 45 million individuals aged 0–19 living with overweight or obesity.
Growth Rate: India reports one of the fastest rises in childhood obesity globally, with an average annual increase of nearly 5%.

Structural Drivers of Childhood Obesity

Physical Inactivity: About 74% of Indian adolescents fail to meet the WHO physical activity guidelines due to sedentary lifestyles.
Dietary Pattern: Children consume more ultra-processed foods and sugary drinks, increasing daily calories and obesity risk.
Nutrition Gap: Only 35.5% of school children receive regulated meals; 32.6% of infants get sub-optimal breastfeeding, weakening early metabolic protection.
Maternal Factors: High BMI and Type 2 diabetes in women of reproductive age elevate the risk of obesity in their children.

Future Burden and Implications for India

Future Burden: India may have 56 million children with high BMI by 2040, including 20 million children living with obesity.
Rising NCDs: By 2040, BMI-related hypertension could impact 4.21 million children, while hyperglycaemia might affect 1.91 million children.
Economic Burden: Obesity-related diseases may cost over 3% of the global GDP by 2060, risking India’s fiscal stability.
Demographic Risk: Early diabetes and cardiovascular disease in youth threaten India’s future workforce productivity and demographic dividend.

Read More > Obesity in India

Context (IE): A recent Lancet analysis examined breast cancer trends (1990–2023) across more than 200 countries and predicted the global burden until 2050.

Key Global Trends

Incidence Projection: Global breast cancer cases will rise by one-third, reaching 3.5 million cases annually by 2050, with a 44% increase in deaths.
Age Pattern: Incidence among women aged 20–54 increased by 29% since 1990, indicating a rising disease burden in younger populations.
Geographic Shift: High-income countries have the highest incidence, while low-income countries have seen nearly 150% growth in cases since 1990.
Mortality Gap: Mortality fell ~30% in high-income countries due to better screening and treatment, while it nearly doubled in low-income countries since 1990.
Key Drivers: Six risk factors account for 28% of the total burden — tobacco use, obesity, high blood sugar, inactivity, red meat consumption, and unhealthy weight.
Preventable Loss: Adopting a healthy lifestyle could prevent a quarter of the 24 million years of healthy life lost due to illness and premature death.

Breast Cancer Burden in India

Incidence Surge: Cases have more than doubled, rising from 13 per lakh in 1990 to 29.4 per lakh in 2023, with mortality increasing by 74%.
Disease Share: Breast cancer is the most common female cancer in India, making up nearly a quarter of all cancer cases among women.
Age Pattern: Indian women bear the burden at younger ages, with incidence rates rising sharply from their early 30s.
Major Bottleneck: More than 60% of Indian breast cancer patients are diagnosed late because of delayed clinical presentation.

Policy and Public Health Imperatives

Early Diagnosis: Expand screening programmes and improve treatment capacity to reduce mortality.
Data Systems: Broaden the coverage of cancer registries to generate region-specific, accurate data for improved strategies.
Risk Reduction: Adopt health policies that promote obesity management, tobacco reduction, healthy diets, and regular physical activity.
Financial Protection: Reduce out-of-pocket expenditure for cancer patients and their households.

{GS3 – IE} India’s Expanding Global Export Footprint **

Context (PIB): India has leveraged its robust banking system, significant foreign reserves, and stable current account balance to develop a resilient export economy.

India’s Export Performance

Cumulative: India’s exports grew 6.15% YoY to $720.76 billion in Apr-Jan 2025-26.
- Services exports reached $354.13 billion, growing 10.57% YoY.
Partnership: UNCTAD Trade and Development Report 2025 ranks India 3^rd among Global South economies in trade partnership diversity, behind China and the UAE.
FTA: India concluded 9 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) covering 38 countries over the last three years.
- These FTAs provide mostly zero-duty access to markets representing ~70% of global GDP.

Sector-wise Export Performance

Electronics: Electronics emerged as the 3^rd-largest export category in FY25, after engineering goods and petroleum products.
- Mobile Phones: India is the 2^ndlargest mobile phone manufacturer, with production rising 28-fold between FY15 and FY25.
Petroleum: It ranks 7^th in refined petroleum exports and among the top five refining nations.
Pharmaceuticals: India, known as the Pharmacy of the World, ranks 3^rd in pharmaceutical exports by volume and 11^th by value.
Automobiles: Employing over 30 million, the sector saw 30% export growth between FY21 and FY25.
Textiles: India is the 6^th largest exporter of textiles and apparel, with a 4% share in world exports.
Defence: Defence exports grew ~23-fold from below ₹1,000 crore in 2014 to ₹23,622 crore in FY25, now reaching over 100 countries.

Government Interventions Under Export Promotion Mission

EPM: Export Promotion Mission (EPM) consolidates fragmented export support schemes like IES and MAI into a unified framework.
Sub-schemes: EPM operates through two integrated sub-schemes –
- Niryat Protsahan: Provides financial support to exporters through Export Factoring, E-Commerce Credit, and Emerging Market Support instruments.
- Niryat Disha: Strengthens market readiness through non-financial interventions covering compliance, logistics, and trade intelligence; includes TRACE, FLOW, LIFT, and INSIGHT.

{GS3 – S&T} Defence Ministry Signs Contracts for ALH Mk-III Helicopters and VL-Shtil Missiles **

Context (IE): Ministry of Defence signed a ₹2,901 crore contract with HAL for six ALH Mk-III (Maritime Role) helicopters for the Indian Coast Guard under the Buy (Indian-IDDM) category.

It also signed a ₹2,182 crore contract with Russia’s JSC Rosoboronexport for Vertical Launch Shtil (VL-Shtil) missiles for the Indian Navy.

Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Mk-III

The ALH Mk-III is an indigenously developed twin-engine helicopter designed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) as part of the Dhruv ALH family.
Configuration: It is powered by two Shakti-1H1 engines and equipped with a 270-degree surveillance radar for wide-area scanning.
Multirole: ALH Mk-III is a multirole helicopter capable of coastal patrolling, search and rescue, maritime security operations, and pollution response.
Basing: The helicopter can operate from both shore-based airfields and naval ships.

Vertical Launch Shtil (VL-Shtil)

VL-Shtil, also known as Shtil-1, is a Russian-designed ship-based medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system.
Purpose: It provides near-instantaneous 360-degree layered air defence for frontline warships.
Launch System: Its below-deck Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells offer omnidirectional defence and a higher rate of fire (one missile every 2-3 seconds)
Parameters: The system has an operational range of up to 50 km and a speed of up to Mach 4.5.
Altitude: It can engage targets from as low as 5 metres (sea-skimming) up to 15 km altitude.
Capacity: A single installation can track and engage up to 12 targets simultaneously.

{GS3 – Envi} Climate Change Challenges to Core Principles of International Law

Context (TH): Climate change impacts such as sea-level rise and fossil fuel phase-out pressures are challenging fundamental principles of international law.

Evolving Challenges to International Legal Principles

Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources (PSNR)

Resource Sovereignty: PSNR recognises every state’s sovereign right to exploit all natural resources for economic development.
Legal Origin: United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 1803 (1962) codified PSNR as a principle of economic self-determination.
Sovereignty Clash: Climate governance treats fossil fuels as a global concern, while PSNR treats them as sovereign entitlements of states.
Policy Tension: Climate mitigation policies challenge the traditional scope of PSNR by requiring limits on fossil-fuel extraction.

Territorial Requirement for Statehood

Statehood Criteria: Montevideo Convention (1933) defines statehood through four elements – defined territory, permanent population, effective government, and capacity for international relations.
- Territorial Rule: The Convention does not prescribe any minimum territorial size as a requirement for statehood.
Submergence Risk: Sea-level rise (SLR) may submerge low-lying states such as Tuvalu and Kiribati, undermining the territorial basis of statehood.
Legal Gap: International law does not clarify whether submerged states retain sovereignty, Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) rights, treaty obligations, or UN membership.

Climate-Induced Migration and Refugee Protection

Narrow Definition: The 1951 Refugee Convention defines a refugee as a person fleeing persecution due to race, religion, nationality, social group, or political opinion.
Legal Exclusion: Environmental or climate-driven displacement does not meet the Convention’s definition and does not qualify for treaty-based refugee protection.
Fragmented Response: Climate migration relies on diverse national policies and humanitarian visas due to the absence of a single global legal framework.
Assumption Gap: Refugee law assumes temporary flight and eventual return to the country of origin, whereas displacement from submerged territories may become permanent.

Unsettling of Maritime Zones

UNCLOS Framework: United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) defines maritime zones based on coastal baselines.
Ambulatory Baseline: Under UNCLOS, baselines change with natural coastline alterations like erosion or sea-level rise.
Baseline Retreat: Rising sea levels move baselines inland, shrinking maritime zones and decreasing access to fisheries and seabed resources.
Legal Conflict: Demands by small island states for permanent baselines conflict with the ambulatory baseline doctrine under UNCLOS.

Read More> India’s Climate Challenges

{Prelims – IR} Raisina Dialogue 2026 *

Context (DDN): The 11^th Raisina Dialogue (2026), India’s premier conference on geopolitics and geo-economics, has begun in New Delhi.

This annual multilateral conference was initiated in 2016 to address global governance issues.
It is modelled on the Shangri-La Dialogue (Singapore) and the Munich Security Conference (Germany).
Hosts: It is organised jointly by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF).
Theme: This year’s theme, “Saṁskāra: Assertion, Accommodation, Advancement”, highlights civilisational identity in guiding global engagement, cooperation, and progress.
Chief Guest: The President of Finland, Dr Alexander Stubb, is this year’s chief guest.
Six Pillars: Raisina Dialogue 2026 focuses on shifting power centres, governing oceans and cyberspace, climate urgency, sustainability, AI, and digital governance.
Participation: Representatives from 110 countries, including ministers, former heads of state, military leaders, and industry figures, are participating.
Significance: It reinforces India’s role as a “Vishwamitra” and as the voice of the Global South.

ORF: It is an independent Indian think tank established in 1990 that conducts research and offers policy input on international relations, economy, and governance.
Shangri-La Dialogue: It is Asia’s leading defence and security summit, held annually in Singapore.
Munich Security Conference: It is an annual conference on international security policy held in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, since 1963.

Read More > Raisina Dialogue

{Prelims – A&C} Megalithic Rock-Cut Chamber Unearthed in Kerala *

Context (TH): An underground laterite rock-cut burial chamber was uncovered at Panayal in Kasaragod district, Kerala.

The structure belongs to the Megalithic cultural phase, dating back around 2,000 years.
Key Features: A vertical rectangular shaft leads to an underground chamber with a circular or hemispherical interior and a domed ceiling.
Unique Feature: A small circular opening at the top, probably a symbolic vent for ritual offerings.
Local Names: These structures are locally called Muniyara, Pandava Cave, Peeranki Cave, and Nidhikuzhi.

About Megalithic Culture

Megalithic culture in India (1500 BCE to 300 CE) marks a transition between the Neolithic-Chalcolithic periods and the early Historic period.
Key Feature: Large stones (megaliths) used as memorials or burial markers for graves.
Distinguishing Pottery: Wheel-made Black-and-Red Ware often marked with graffiti symbols.
Iron-Age Link: Most Megalithic sites have iron objects, connecting the culture to the Iron Age.
Burial Forms: South Indian sites feature umbrella stones (Kudakkallu) and hat stones (Thoppikkallu) above ground, along with underground chambers for secondary burials.

{Prelims – Species} Two New Primitive Earthworm Species Discovered in Silent Valley National Park

Context (TH): Scientists discovered two new primitive moniligastrid earthworm species, named Moniligaster girishi and Drawida reynoldsi, in the Silent Valley National Park in Kerala.

Significance: The discovery raises India’s total recognised moniligastrid species count to 95, with 70 found in the Western Ghats.

Newly Discovered Species

Moniligaster girishi

Feature: M. girishi has a single, undivided spermathecal atrial gland (sperm-storage organ) on each side of its anterior body.
Prostatic Capsule: Its prostatic capsule (reproductive fluid gland) remains smooth and tubular at one end and flattens into a strap-like shape at the other.
Habitat: The species inhabits tropical wet evergreen forests and lives inside decaying logs.
Endemism: It is endemic to the Chembotti region of Silent Valley National Park in Kerala.

Drawida reynoldsi

Features: D. reynoldsi has a sausage-shaped prostatic capsule and a large, erect, spermathecal atrium.
Habitat: The species inhabits high-altitude montane grasslands, especially the Shola grassland.
Endemism: It has been recorded only from the Silent Valley National Park.