Current Affairs – August 30, 2025

{GS2 – MoRD – Schemes} MGNREGS Funding Constraints **

Context (TH): MGNREGS faces funding shortages as the first-quarter funds for FY 2025-26 are nearly exhausted, necessitating reallocation.

The Ministry of Finance had limited MGNREGS spending to 60% of its annual budget for the first half of FY 2025-26, aligning with Monthly/Quarterly Expenditure Plans (MEP/QEP) to manage cash flows.

Also Refer> MGNREGA

Current Issues with MGNREGS

Liability Burden: Nearly 38% of the 2025–26 funds were allocated to cover arrears from FY 2024–25.
Employment Deficit: Households averaged 47–52 workdays out of the 100-day statutory guarantee.
Wage Liabilities: Pending dues of ₹17,259 crore in April 2025 delayed the timely disbursal of wages.
Governance Gaps: Inspections revealed misappropriation of funds, but only seven states submitted Action Taken Reports (ATRs).

Read More> Revising NREGA Wage Rates

{GS2 – Governance – Issues} Rajasthan First State with Stray Dog Rules

Context (LM): Rajasthan issued India’s first stray dog management rules under the Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules 2023, following the Supreme Court directive on humane stray management.

Local bodies must enforce rules within 30 days and establish feeding points after consulting residents.
Municipalities must provide care and aftercare facilities with CCTV and a transparency mechanism.
Only trained staff may humanely catch strays; puppies ≤ six months & lactating mothers are exempt.

Context (PIB): The Ministry of Education released the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2024–25 report on India’s school education.

Teacher Milestone: Teacher strength exceeded one crore for the first time, a 6.7% rise since 2022–23.
Instructional Equity: The Pupil–Teacher Ratio improved at all levels, surpassing the NEP benchmark.
Systemic Progress: Dropout rates declined, and retention rose to 98.9% at the foundational level.
Educational Inclusion: The Gross Enrolment Ratio increased from 89.5% to 90.3% (Middle level), and from 66.5% to 68.5% (Secondary level).
Gender Equity: Female teachers increased to 54.2%, and girls’ enrolment reached 48.3%.
Infrastructure Progress: Nearly universal access to safe drinking water was achieved; improved computer and internet facilities enhanced digital learning.

Context (TH): The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) faces criticism for manipulation and lack of transparency, with cases from Andhra University and IIM Mumbai.

Key Issues

Andhra University: Claimed 702 faculty in NIRF, but RTI shows only 192, over 60% posts vacant.
IIM Mumbai: Jumped from 27th to 6th (2019-2024) by allegedly inflating faculty and financial data.
Methodology: One-third of score based on self-reported faculty data, prone to misuse.

Recommendations

Random audits and surprise field visits to verify faculty and course delivery.
Mandatory disclosure of course-faculty mapping.
Release of raw NIRF data in open-access format for independent analysis.

{GS2 – IR – Issues} Famine in Gaza

Context (TH): The United Nations-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has declared a famine in Gaza Governorate, the first officially declared famine in West Asia.

What is a Famine?

A famine is the most severe level of acute food insecurity. For an area to be classified (IPC Phase 5), all three criteria must be met:
1. Food Access: At least 20% of households face extreme food shortages, unable to meet basic needs.
2. Child Malnutrition: Acute malnutrition affects ≥30% of children (6-59 months), measured by weight-for-height, arm circumference, or oedema.
3. Death Rate: Crude mortality rate is ≥2 deaths per 10,000 people/day, or ≥4 under-five deaths per 10,000 children/day.

IPC Phase 5 is “the absolute inaccessibility of food for an entire population or subgroup, potentially causing death in the short term.”

{GS3 – IE – Industry} Industry 5.0 **

Context (IE): India is embracing Industry 5.0, focusing on human-machine collaboration and putting people at the centre of industrial innovation.

Preparing for Industry 5.0

Skill Development: Workers need proficiency in AI, robotics, data analytics, IoT, and cybersecurity, along with creativity, adaptability, and critical thinking.
Policy Support: A national Industry 5.0 roadmap and stronger innovation clusters are essential for sustainable growth.
- AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education) Initiatives like 2025 declared “Year of AI” with training for 40 million students, hackathons, faculty programs.

Way Forward

Smart Manufacturing: Invest in digital twins, cobots (collaborative robots), and AI on factory floors.
Regional Innovation: Strengthen innovation clusters in Tier 2/3 cities, leveraging the skilled yet underutilised youth workforce.
Ethical Governance: Enact strong governance for ethical AI deployment and data security, to avoid digital divides & IP risks.
Sustainable Exports: Mainstream sustainability and mass customisation in export-facing sectors (textiles, pharma, automotive), to stay globally competitive.

{GS3 – S&T – Tech} ISRO Tech Transfer to Boost Self-Reliance **

Context (TH): IN-SPACe transferred five ISRO technologies to private firms to lower imports, enhance self-reliance, and support applications in automotive, biomedical, and industrial sectors.
IN-SPACe is an independent, single-window agency within the Department of Space (DOS) that facilitates private sector participation in space.

Key Technologies Transferred

Ceramic Module: Low-Temperature Co-Fired Ceramic (LTCC) module integrates semiconductor chips.
Solar Adhesive: Room Temperature Vulcanising (RTV) Single-Part Adhesive bonds solar panels.
Film Adhesives: Epoxy film adhesives improve the strength of aerospace composite structures.
Power Converter: 30W Hybrid Micro-Circuit DC-DC converter ensures satellite power regulation.
3D Alloy: Anodization of 3D-printed Al-10Si-Mg alloy improves aerospace applications durability.

{GS3 – S&T – Tech} Rare Quadruple Star System Discovered *

Context (IE): Astronomers have discovered a rare quadruple star system, UPM J1040−3551, with two brown dwarfs orbiting two red dwarfs, a first of its kind.

Brown Dwarfs

Known as “failed stars”, they form like stars but lack mass to sustain hydrogen fusion.
Have planet-like atmospheres (E.g., water vapour clouds).
Can be up to 70 times the mass of Jupiter.
Brown dwarfs are cold and faint, emitting little visible light.

Red Dwarfs

Red dwarfs are the faintest main-sequence stars, less than 1/1000^th as bright as the Sun.
Due to their low luminosity, they are not visible to the naked eye.
Proxima Centauri, the nearest star to the Sun, is a red dwarf.

Significance: Challenges the belief that low-mass stars and brown dwarfs are typically solitary.

{Prelims – Envi – Air Pollution} Toxic Air Quality in India

Context (DH): A recent study (Air Quality Life Index, EPIC) shows India’s PM2.5 levels average eight times higher than the WHO safe limit of 5 µg/m³.

Extent of the Crisis

On average, air pollution reduces life expectancy by 3.5 years nationwide, while in Delhi, this figure rises to 8.2 years.
Approximately 46% of the population lives in areas with PM2.5 levels exceeding India’s limit of 40 µg/m³.
Meeting WHO standards could extend lives by up to 7.8 years in the cleanest regions.

Read More> Air Pollution

{Prelims} One Liners

India-Bangladesh Border Cooperation (NOA): India and Bangladesh have agreed to intensify joint efforts in combating trans-border crimes. Focus: Coordinated border plan, awareness campaigns, zero tolerance for terrorism, fencing, and riverbank protection.
Aadhaar Biometric Update (NOA): UIDAI asked schools to complete timely Aadhaar biometric updates for children aged 5–15 through the UDISE+ platform. UDISE+: A centralised platform collecting and monitoring nationwide school and student data for planning.