- Context (TH): India records the highest number of road deaths globally, with over 1.7 lakh fatalities in 2023, highlighting deep structural weaknesses in the Regional Transport Office (RTO).
Road Accidents in India
- National Overview: India reported 4.73 lakh road accidents and 1.70 lakh fatalities across 35 states and UTs in 2024, excluding West Bengal.
- High-Incidence: Tamil Nadu remained the most accident-prone state for the seventh consecutive year, followed by Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, and Uttar Pradesh.
- Highest Fatalities: Uttar Pradesh reported the maximum accident deaths at 24,118 deaths in 2024, and the highest accident-to-fatality ratio of 52.37%.
- Major Causes: Overspeeding causes more than 68% of road accident deaths in India; other causes include poor road design, wrong-side driving, and not wearing safety gear.
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- Human Error Dominance: Speeding, wrong-side driving and poor lane discipline account for nearly 70% of road crashes (MoRTH), reflecting inadequate driver training and testing.
- Token Licensing: Driving tests last only 3–7 minutes on empty tracks, failing to assess real-world skills such as night driving, rain conditions, pedestrian awareness or hazard perception.
- Capacity Deficit: Only 3,000–4,000 Motor Vehicle Inspectors oversee 1,100+ RTOs, issuing 18–20 million licences annually, making rigorous scrutiny practically impossible.
- Corruption Nexus: Repeated scams in States such as Punjab and Maharashtra reveal agent-driven issuance of licences and fitness certificates without proper inspections.
- High Economic Cost: Road accidents impose an annual loss of ₹6–8 lakh crore (around 3–5% of GDP), besides immense human suffering.
Way Forward
- PPP Model: Adopt a Passport Seva–style Public–Private Partnership, where accredited private agencies conduct testing while RTOs retain final licensing authority and oversight.
- Advanced Testing: Establish modern training-cum-testing centres with simulators for skid control, night driving, rain conditions and hazard perception; E.g., Singapore Safety Driving Centre.
- AI Evaluation: Introduce AI-based, objective driving assessments to minimise human discretion.
- Digital Integration: Implement end-to-end digitisation of licensing and fitness certification to ensure transparency, traceability and accountability.
{GS2 – IR} Yarlung Tsangpo Mega Hydropower Project **
- Context (CNN): China is constructing a massive hydropower system, triggering strategic and water-security concerns for downstream India and Bangladesh.
About Yarlung Tsangpo Project
- Location & scale: Planned on the Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo (upper Brahmaputra), projected capacity is estimated at ~60 GW, potentially the world’s largest hydropower system.
- Design features: Multi-dam, tunnel-diversion, and cascade power stations with extensive underground infrastructure in a seismically active Himalayan zone.
- Strategic framing by China: Described as both a clean energy and national security project, aimed at energy security, Tibet integration, and long-term control over critical resources.
Implications for India
- Water Security Risks: Potential alteration of seasonal flow timing, sediment transport, and lean-season availability in the Brahmaputra basin affecting Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
- Flood Hazard Concerns: Sudden or mismanaged water releases could intensify flash floods, reinforcing fears of a “water bomb” scenario during monsoon extremes.
- Ecological Impact: Threats to riverine biodiversity, fisheries, wetlands, and agriculture in India’s northeast, which depends heavily on natural flood-sediment cycles.
- Strategic Leverage: Upstream infrastructure near a disputed border adds a geopolitical pressure point, linking water management with border security and diplomacy.
- Dam-Building Race: May push India to accelerate its own Brahmaputra hydropower projects, increasing cumulative environmental and social risks.
Transboundary Rivers between India and China
- Brahmaputra (Yarlung Tsangpo): Originates in Tibet as the Yarlung Tsangpo, flows into India through Arunachal Pradesh and Assam as the Brahmaputra, and then into Bangladesh.
- Sutlej (Langqen Zangbo): Rises in Tibet, enters India through Himachal Pradesh and Punjab; China shares hydrological data with India during the flood season under MoUs.
- Indus (Sênggê Zangbo): Originates in Tibet near Mount Kailash, flows through Ladakh into Pakistan.
- Karnali (Mapcha Tsangpo / Ghaghara): Originates in Tibet, flows into Nepal and then India; though China is upstream, there is no formal trilateral river treaty.
- Manas (Drangme Chhu): Rises in Tibet, flows through Bhutan and then into Assam; impacts India indirectly via Bhutan but remains hydrologically linked to China.
- Subansiri (Chayul Chu): Originates in Tibet, enters India in Arunachal Pradesh; important for hydropower and flood management concerns
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{GS2 – IR} U.S.–Venezuela Maritime Confrontation
- Context (TH): The U.S. seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker in international waters has intensified tensions, raising serious questions over international law, sovereignty, and great-power unilateralism.
Background of the Issue & Recent Developments
- Long-standing hostility: U.S.–Venezuela relations have remained adversarial since the Chávez–Maduro era, marked by economic sanctions, diplomatic isolation, and regime-change efforts.
- Oil–Cuba linkage: Venezuela has historically supplied subsidised oil to Cuba, receiving medical and security assistance in return, forming a critical economic lifeline for Havana.
- Recent escalation: In December 2025, the U.S. seized the Venezuelan tanker Skipper in international waters, following earlier naval actions in the Caribbean allegedly linked to drug interdiction.
- Political context: The action comes amid U.S. allegations of electoral manipulation by President Nicolás Maduro in the 2024 Venezuelan elections.
Legal Implications
- Freedom of navigation: Seizure in international waters potentially violates United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) principles.
- Use of force: Actions without UN Security Council authorisation may contravene Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, which prohibits the use of force against state sovereignty.
- Due process concerns: Extrajudicial seizure of civilian commercial vessels raises issues of piracy and unlawful expropriation under international law.
Geopolitical Implications
- Rules-based order erosion: Selective enforcement of international norms by powerful states weakens global legal institutions and multilateral credibility.
- Latin American instability: Revives fears of Monroe Doctrine-style interventionism, deepening regional mistrust of U.S. strategic intentions.
- Global South alignment: Pushes Venezuela and Cuba closer to China-Russia strategic partnerships, accelerating geopolitical polarisation.
- Energy geopolitics: Disruption of oil flows adds stress to global energy markets and reinforces the weaponisation of energy and sanctions diplomacy.
About Venezuela
- Location: Venezuela is situated on the northern coast of South America.
- Borders: It borders the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Guyana to the east, Brazil to the south, and Colombia to the southwest and west.
- Geographical Features: The Andes, the expansive grassland plains (Llanos), the Guiana Highlands, and the Caribbean coast. It hosts the world’s highest waterfall, Angel Falls.
- Resources: It has the world’s largest oil reserves and significant natural gas and mineral deposits.
- Major Water Body: Orinoco River (drains into the Atlantic Ocean), Rio Negro (drains into the Amazon River), Lake Maracaibo (the largest lake in South America) and Lake Guri.
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{GS3 – Agri} Kerala Rubber Producer Societies Crisis
- Context (DTE): Kerala’s Rubber Producer Societies (RPSs), created to correct middlemen dominance in natural rubber markets, are weakening, threatening the cooperative model.
- RPSs were initiated in 1986 by the Rubber Board as grower collectives to improve bargaining power, pool infrastructure/services, and enable joint marketing for smallholder rubber cultivators.
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Rubber Cultivation in India
- Production Share: India contributes ~5.4% of global natural rubber (NR) output (FAO, 2025).
- Area & Growers: Over 1.3 million smallholders cultivating rubber, mostly in small holdings (~0.57 ha).
- Top Producing States: Kerala (dominant), followed by Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and northeastern states.
- Strategic Input: Natural rubber is essential for tyres, defence, health and industrial goods.
Current Crisis of Rubber Producer Societies (RPSs)
- Institutional Decline: Roughly ~20% of RPSs are defunct, and another ~35% dysfunctional.
- Approval Withdrawals: The Rubber Board withdrew approvals to 336 (2020–21), 111 (2021–22), and 89 (2022–23) RPSs, underscoring systemic stress.
- Inactive Procurement: In a Kerala survey, <50% of RPSs engaged in active rubber procurement/sales.
- Weak Value Addition: Only ~11% of RPSs have processing equipment (rollers/smokehouses).
- Financial Fragility: Average revenue about ₹2.5 lakh with ~27% dependent on grants/loans/subsidies.
- Disengaged Members: Active participation is low (<50%), and leadership is predominantly older (∼72% above 50), weakening institutional innovation.
Way Forward
- Cooperative Value Integration: Thailand Rubber Authority model integrates smallholders into processing and export-linked cooperatives, enabling value addition and better price realisation.
- Cluster-Based Value Addition: Rubber Board’s Integrated Rubber Development Scheme (IRDS) promotes smoke houses, rollers, and sheet processing units at the RPS cluster level.
- Market Linkage Platforms: e-Rubber portal (Rubber Board) pilots transparent price discovery and reduces intermediary dependence for small growers.
- Institutional Buyer Tie-ups: RPS–Tyre Industry MoUs in Kerala & Tripura for assured offtake contracts, stabilising farmer incomes.
- Governance & Youth Inclusion: Kerala Cooperative Department’s digital audit and training pilots encourage transparency, women’s participation, and younger leadership in primary cooperatives.
About Rubber Board
- Statutory Body: Established under the Rubber Act, 1947.
- Administrative Ministry: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India.
- Headquarters: Kottayam, Kerala.
- Objective: Development, promotion, and regulation of the natural rubber industry in India.
- Advisory Role: Advises the Central Government on rubber policy and industry development.
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- Context (DTE): A nine-year ICAR field study in Odisha’s Eastern Ghats shows that smallholder agroforestry can simultaneously deliver climate mitigation, livelihood security, and food production.
Key Findings of the ICAR Study
- Carbon Sequestration: One-acre agroforestry farms sequestered up to 154.5 Mg CO₂e in nine years, demonstrating high mitigation potential on small landholdings.
- Slope Advantage: Lower-slope farms stored 73.1 Mg CO₂/acre, nearly 3 times higher than upper slopes (27.2 Mg), due to better moisture and nutrient retention.
- Species Selection: Cashew and mango emerged as dual-benefit species, combining high biomass carbon storage with strong farm incomes.
- Carbon Markets: At $20/Mg CO₂, potential carbon credits could reach ₹2.56 lakh per acre over nine years, subject to verification costs.
- Income Security: Farmers earned ₹1.1–1.13 lakh annually, while maintaining yields.
- Ecosystem Services: Farms released 112.4 Mg oxygen/acre, improving local.
About Agroforestry
- Agroforestry is the practice of integrating trees with crops or livestock on the same land unit.
- Legal Framework: It is primarily governed under the National Agroforestry Policy, 2014.
- Area Estimate: India has ~25 million hectares under agroforestry, covering about ~8% of its area.
- Significance: It contributes to sustainable land use, biodiversity, and climate resilience.
Types of Agroforestry
- Agrisilviculture: This system combines crop cultivation alongside timber or fuelwood trees.
- Silvopasture: It integrates trees with grazing lands to provide fodder and shelter for livestock.
- Agrihorticulture: This model intercrops fruit-bearing trees with seasonal crops.
- Apisilviculture: It promotes flowering tree plantations to support beekeeping and pollination.
- Aqua-forestry: This system pairs tree planting around ponds with fish farming activities.
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- Context (PIB): The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has strengthened digital and local outreach to improve awareness and uptake of government programmes.
About the DCID Scheme
- Nature: Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
- Objective: To disseminate information and enhance citizen outreach for Government schemes.
- Implementation: Central Bureau of Communication (CBC), PIB and New Media Wing.
Key Features of the Scheme
- Communication Strategy: Multi-platform approach with strong digital and local outreach.
- Digital Outreach Framework: Implemented as per Digital Advertisement Policy, 2023
- Target Groups: Youth and digitally active audiences via online platforms.
- Campaign Planning: CBC designs campaigns based on ministry requirements and target audience profiling. Activity-wise expenditure details will be available on the CBC website (davp.nic.in).
Need for Information Dissemination in India
- Last-Mile Awareness: 45% eligible households miss welfare benefits due to a lack of information.
- Digital Divide: Only ~38% rural households have internet access, necessitating non-digital outreach.
- Diversity: India has 22 scheduled languages and 1,600+ dialects, requiring localised communication.
- Scheme Uptake: Targeted IEC campaigns raised Swachh Bharat toilet usage to >70% from under 40%.
- Youth Reach: Over 65% of Indians are below 35, making digital and social media outreach critical.
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- Context (PIB): The Union Government highlighted the role of Agmarknet Portal and e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) in providing farmers with real-time mandi price information.
About Agmarknet Portal
- It is an e-governance portal launched in 2000 under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare to provide nationwide agricultural marketing information.
- It provides real-time daily arrival and price data for 300+ commodities and 2,000 varieties, linking 4,367 mandis across India.
- Implemented by the National Informatics Centre (NIC), the portal was upgraded to Agmarknet 2.0 in November 2025, along with a mobile app for on-spot mandi data entry.
- It functions under the Marketing Research and Information Network (MRIN) of the Integrated Scheme for Agricultural Marketing to strengthen price discovery and market efficiency.
About e-National Agriculture Market (e-NAM)
- It is a pan-India electronic trading platform for agricultural commodities launched in 2016 under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
- It is implemented by the Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) and, as of 2025, has onboarded over 1,520 mandis, enabling trading in 247 agricultural commodities.
- It integrates mandis into a unified national market, enabling online bidding, price discovery, quality assaying, and direct e-payments into farmers’ bank accounts.
- Agmarknet portal provides the mandi price and arrival information, while e-NAM enables online trading and e-payments using this market data.
Read More > Smart Farming
{Prelims – Species} Asiatic Wild Dog (Dhole)
- Kheoni WLS is a dry deciduous forest in the Dewas and Sehore districts of Madhya Pradesh.
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About Dhole (Cuon alpinus)
- About: Dhole, also called the Asiatic wild dog, is a highly social, medium-sized carnivorous mammal native to Asia.
- Taxonomic Status: They are the only living members of the genus Cuon.
- Appearance: It has a golden-brown coat, pale underbelly, and thick bushy tail with a black tip.
- Habitat Range: The species is a habitat generalist, occupying ecosystems ranging from evergreen forests to high-altitude alpine steppes.
- Communication: Often called whistling dogs, dholes use high-pitched whistles for coordination and do not bark or howl.
- Social Structure: They live in cohesive packs of five to twelve individuals, usually led by a dominant breeding pair.
- Distribution: The Dhole’s present range is fragmented across 11 Asian countries, including India, Nepal, China, Thailand, and Malaysia.
- Indian Range: In India, it occurs mainly in the Western Ghats, Central India, and Northeast India.
- Ecological Role: As apex predators, dholes regulate large herbivore populations and maintain balance in forest ecosystems.
- Major Threats: Habitat loss, prey depletion, competition with larger predators, diseases transmitted by domestic dogs, etc.
- Conservation Status: IUNC: Endangered; CITES: Appendix II; WPA: Schedule II
{Prelims – Disease} Kessler Syndrome
- Context (LB): SpaceX launched 29 new satellites into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO), raising concerns about the Kessler Syndrome theory.
About Kessler Syndrome
- It was proposed by NASA scientist Donald J. Kessler in 1978, describing a chain reaction where collisions between orbiting objects create debris that causes further collisions in Earth’s orbital space.
- The cascade begins once orbital debris reaches a critical density, where collision rates exceed the rate of debris removal by atmospheric drag, creating a point of no natural recovery.
- The risk is highest in Low Earth Orbit (below ~2,000 km) due to congestion, but debris spread can progressively affect higher orbits.
- As of 2024-25, Earth’s orbital environment contains 10,000+ active satellites and ~130 million debris fragments, with several altitude bands considered collision-prone.
- A full Kessler cascade could make entire bands of Earth’s orbit unsafe for satellites and crewed missions, disrupting navigation, communication, weather forecasting, and space access for decades.
- Mitigation efforts include active debris removal missions like the European Space Agency (ESA)’s ClearSpace-1 and initiatives like the Zero Debris Charter.
Read More > Types of Satellite Orbits
{Prelims – Awards} National Council of Science Museums
- Context (PIB): The National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) received two PRSI National Awards 2025 from the Public Relations Society of India (PRSI).
- NCSM is an autonomous society under the Ministry of Culture, established on 4 April 1978 to coordinate and expand science communication in India.
- It is the world’s largest network of science centres and museums under a single administrative umbrella.
- Headquarters: It is headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal.
- Objective: To popularise science & technology among the masses, and to develop a scientific temper across the country.
- Network Structure: It administers a three-tier system comprising national, regional, and sub-regional or district science centres.
- CRTL: The Central Research and Training Laboratory in Kolkata was established as the central hub for the council’s professional training, research, and developmental activities.
- Outreach Initiatives: Includes Mobile Science Exhibitions, workshops, and international science centres, such as the Rajiv Gandhi Science Centre, Mauritius.
- Policy Alignment: The activities of the NCSM support the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 by advancing multidisciplinary STEM education.
{Prelims – Awards} Sahitya Akademi Awards Announcement Cancelled *
- Context (TH): The Sahitya Akademi cancelled its 2025 awards announcement following a last-minute directive from the Ministry of Culture.
About Sahitya Akademi
- Sahitya Akademi is India’s National Academy of Letters, dedicated to promoting and preserving multilingual literary traditions.
- It was established on 12 March 1954 and is headquartered at Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi.
- It functions as an autonomous body under the Ministry of Culture, registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
Sahitya Akademi Awards
- The Sahitya Akademi Award is conferred annually and is considered the second-highest literary honour in India, after the Jnanpith Award.
- The Akademi also confers the Yuva Puraskar (for writers below 35 years of age) and the Bal Sahitya Puraskar (for children’s literature).
- The awards are given in 24 languages —the languages in the Eighth Schedule, English, and Rajasthani.
Read More > Sahitya Akademi Awards
{Prelims – In News} World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector *
- Context (PIB): The ‘World’s Largest Grain Storage Plan in Cooperative Sector’ has expanded significantly since its 2023 pilot rollout.
- It is an initiative under the Ministry of Cooperation to address the shortage of food grain storage capacity in the country.
- The plan entails the creation of decentralised grain storage infrastructure, including godowns and processing units, at the Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) level.
- Implementation: The National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) implements it.
- An Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) oversees the execution with support from the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NABARD), Food Corporation of India, etc.
- Scheme Convergence: The initiative converges eight existing flagship schemes, including the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) and, Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure Scheme (AMI).
- Financial Support: PACS receive AMI subsidies, AIF interest subvention, and NABARD refinance, reducing effective loan interest to 1%.
- Significance: It reduces foodgrain wastage, strengthens food security, and supports cooperative-led rural growth, aligning with ‘Sahakar-se-Samriddhi’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’.
