Current Affairs – June 04, 2026

{GS2 – IR} India-Myanmar Bilateral Relations **

• Context (PIB): Myanmar President Min Aung Hlaing visited India as his first foreign trip since taking office.

• Myanmar is India’s sole land bridge to Southeast Asia, making it the geographic prerequisite for the Act East, Neighbourhood First and MAHASAGAR policies.
• Trade: Bilateral trade reached $2.1 billion in FY 2025-26, with the balance of trade favouring Myanmar. India ranks as Myanmar’s 4^th largest trading partner.
  • Trade Basket: India primarily exports pharmaceuticals, iron and steel, industrial machinery, and electrical appliances, while importing pulses (primarily Urad and Tur dal), timber, and Burma teak.
  • Rupee-Kyat Mechanism was operationalised in 2024 to settle trade in local currencies.
• Energy Stakes: ONGC Videsh and GAIL hold stakes in Myanmar’s offshore Shwe gas field (Blocks A-1 and A-3) in the Bay of Bengal.
• Military Diplomacy: India supplies military hardware and sonar systems to Myanmar and transferred the refurbished submarine INS Sindhuvir in 2020. Major Exercises: IMBAX (Army) and CORPAT (Navy).
• Corridor Project: Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project creates a sea-river-road corridor linking mainland India to the Northeast, reducing pressure on the Siliguri Corridor.
  • Sittwe Port, developed under the Kaladan project, gives India a Bay of Bengal presence near China’s Kyaukpyu deep-sea port in Rakhine State.
• ASEAN Integration: India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, spanning 1,360 km from Moreh (Manipur) to Mae Sot (Thailand), links Indian markets with ASEAN supply chains by land.
• Cultural Diplomacy: Shared Theravada Buddhist heritage provides a civilisational bond that India reinforced by funding restorations such as that of the Ananda Temple in Bagan, Myanmar.
• Friction Points: Myanmar’s economic and military dependence on China, cross-border refugee influxes, and drug trafficking networks from Rakhine State and Shan State.
  • Ministry of Home Affairs suspended the Free Movement Regime (FMR) and initiated a ₹31,000 crore smart-fencing project to seal the porous 1,643 km border.

{GS2 – MoE} Prime Minister Research Chair Scheme 2026 *

• Context (DDN): Ministry of Education has launched the PM Research Chair (PMRC) Scheme 2026 to attract Indian-origin researchers and innovators from across the world.

• Objective: To connect global Indian talent with Indian universities, national laboratories, and research institutions to strengthen India’s R&D ecosystem.
• Focus Sectors: Covers 13 strategic sectors, including AI, Quantum Computing, Semiconductors, Biotechnology, Healthcare, Cybersecurity, Space & Defence, Climate Change, Blue Economy, and Atomic Energy.
• Three-Pillar Structure: Built around Lead Institutions, Host Institutions, and PMRC Fellows.
• Categories of Fellows: Three levels of engagement: Young Research Fellows, Senior Research Fellows, and Research Chairs.
• Eligibility: Open to Indian nationals working abroad, OCI cardholders, and Persons of Indian Origin.
• Support Provided: Fellows will receive fellowships, research grants, and access to advanced laboratories.
• Lead Institutions: Seven institutions designated as Lead Institutions: IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Hyderabad, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, and IISc Bengaluru.
• Selection Mechanism: Selection will be overseen by an Empowered Committee chaired by the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India.

{GS2 – MoRTH} Scheme for Support to NCRPB for Replacement of Old Trucks and Buses

• Context (PIB): Union Cabinet approved a ₹9,585 crore, two-year clean mobility initiative funded through the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) to replace older commercial vehicles in Delhi-NCR.

• Objective: To upgrade ~2.07 lakh commercial buses and trucks from BS-IV or older standards to BS-VI and electric alternatives.
• Implementation: Ministry of Road Transport and Highways and Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas jointly implement the scheme across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.
• Eligibility Rules: Vehicle owners can access financial benefits under differentiated exit rules based on vehicle age and registration location.
  • BS-III and older vehicles must be compulsorily scrapped at Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facilities (RVSFs), while BS-IV owners can optionally sell their vehicles outside the NCR to non-NCAP cities.
  • Light Goods Vehicles (LGVs) purchased under the scheme in Delhi must be 100% electric, and buses must be either BS-VI CNG or fully electric. Government-owned vehicles are completely excluded.
• Central Incentives: 5% interest subvention on loans for five years, monthly fuel vouchers worth up to ₹4,800, lump-sum capital benefits for EV purchases, and a tradable Certificate of Deposit (CD).
• State Incentives: Registration fee waivers, up to 100% motor vehicle tax concessions for new vehicles and 50% for used vehicles for 10 years, and waivers of pending liabilities on old vehicles.
• OEM Discount: Participating automobile manufacturers (OEMs) are mandated to offer an 8% discount on the base ex-showroom price of eligible replacement vehicles.

{GS2 – Polity} Women in Indian Judiciary **

• Context (TOI): Senior Advocate V. Mohana became the second woman to be elevated directly from the Bar to the Supreme Court, after Justice Indu Malhotra.

Significance of Women in Judiciary

• Jurisprudential Diversity: Women judges add lived-experience diversity to sensitive cases involving domestic violence, family law, and sexual offences.
• Constitutional Inclusivity: Women’s representation in the higher judiciary upholds Article 14 (Equality before law) and Article 15 (Prohibition of discrimination).
• Public Trust: A gender-diverse bench strengthens public trust and reinforces the judiciary as an equitable democratic institution.
• Inspirational Precedent: Women in senior judicial positions serve as role models for younger female legal practitioners, gradually dismantling patriarchal biases.

Major Reasons for Low Representation

• Appointment Opacity: The Supreme Court Collegium lacks institutionalised gender-diversity criteria and relies on established male-dominated professional networks.
• Seniority Criteria: To become a District Judge, Article 233 requires 7 years of continuous practice, often overlapping with childbearing years and causing career breaks. The scarcity of women Senior Advocates limits future elevations to higher courts.
• Infrastructure Gaps: Nearly 22% of lower courts lack separate toilets for women, while creches, maternity benefits, and feeding rooms remain inadequate.
• Patriarchal Bias: Client preference for male litigators, professional isolation, and hostile environments constrain career progression for women lawyers.

Key Reform Measures

• Objective Appraisal: Adopt a point-based appraisal system like the UK Judicial Appointments Commission, weighting disposal rates, judgment quality, and legal acumen.
• Pipeline Broadening: Institutionalise High Court talent-mapping to identify women district judges and senior trial attorneys for a consistent elevation pipeline.
• Reservation Push: Target 30% to 50% reservation for women in lower courts across states, following Telangana, Goa, and Kerala models.
• Gender-Responsive Budgeting: Create central grants for gender-sensitive facilities, like on-site childcare centres and secure residential quarters for women officers.
• Mentorship Support: National Judicial Academy (NJA) should pair junior women judicial officers with senior judges to guide careers and reduce attrition.

Read More > Gender Imbalance in the Supreme Court of India

{Prelims – Envi} Mesalina Bishnoi

• It was named Mesalina bishnoi to honor the Bishnoi community’s centuries-old dedication to wildlife preservation and the conservation of desert ecosystems.
• The genus Mesalina was previously known only from the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia, making its discovery in India scientifically significant.
• Habitat: Adapted to arid and semi-arid landscapes.
• Range: At present, Mesalina bishnoi is known only from its type locality in Bikaner district and is considered endemic to the Thar biogeographic province.

{Prelims – Envi} Yellow-Throated Marten

• The yellow-throated marten is a medium-sized carnivorous mammal belonging to the mustelid family, which also includes otters, weasels, and badgers.
• Range: Himalayas, Southeast and East Asia.
• Habitat: Forested regions, especially Himalayan and Northeastern forests.
• Behaviour: Diurnal (active during daytime); excellent tree climber and aggressive & fearless predator etc.
• Role in Ecosystem: Functions as a mesopredator, meaning it occupies the middle level in the food chain below apex predators like tigers.
• IUCN: Least Concern | WPA, 1972: Schedule II | CITES Appendix: III.

{Prelims – Geo} Tana Bhagats *

• Context (IE): Tana Bhagat community in Jharkhand is opposing a highway expansion project under the Bharatmala Pariyojana, alleging violations of tribal land rights.

• Key Concerns: Protesters claim that Gram Sabha consent was not obtained under the PESA Act, 1996, and that the project violates protections provided by the Chotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act, 1908, which safeguards tribal land ownership and transfer in Jharkhand.

Tana Bhagats

• Tana Bhagats are a distinct socio-religious community within the Oraon (Kurukh) tribe, primarily concentrated in Jharkhand in the Chotanagpur region, especially in Ranchi, Gumla, Lohardaga, and Latehar districts.
• The community traces its origin to Jatra Bhagat (Jatra Oraon), who initiated a reform movement in 1914.
• They worship Dharmes (Supreme God), reject animal sacrifice, idol worship, witchcraft, and superstitions, and emphasise purity, simplicity, and non-violence.
• They are known for their resistance against colonial rule, zamindars, taxation, and other exploitative policies.

{Prelims – Geo} Kelvin Wave

• Context (NASA): NASA’s Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite observed a Kelvin wave, moving eastward in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.

• A Warm Kelvin Wave occurs when warm surface water travels eastward across the Pacific Ocean. It raises sea surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
• The arrival of warm Kelvin waves is considered an early indicator of a possible El Nino event.

{Prelims – Geo} Bolide

• Context (HT): Residents across several towns in the USA reported loud explosion-like booms and shaking, possibly caused by a bolide entering Earth’s atmosphere.

• A bolide is a bright meteor that explodes in Earth’s atmosphere, producing intense flashes, shockwaves, and sonic booms before reaching the ground.
• Big bolides may fragment into meteorites, while exceptionally energetic ones are known as superbolides.

{Prelims – IE} India Becomes World’s 2^nd Largest Solar Market

• Context (HT): India became the world’s second-largest solar growth market in 2025 (37 GW capacity added) after surpassing the United States in annual solar capacity additions.

• India ranks 3^rd globally in total renewable energy installed capacity after China & the USA.
• In 2025, renewable sources met ~51.5% of India’s electricity demand (203 GW).

{Prelims – IE} Technical Recession *

• Context (TOI): Canada has officially entered a technical recession after recording two consecutive quarters of annualised contraction.

• A technical recession is defined strictly by two consecutive quarters of negative growth in real Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
• It is termed “technical” because it relies entirely on quantitative output data rather than a holistic assessment of economic conditions. An economy can register a technical recession even if other indicators, such as unemployment or household income, remain relatively stable.

{Prelims – IR} BALTOPS 2026

• Context (DDN): United States and NATO allies are conducting BALTOPS (Baltic Operations) 2026 in the Baltic Sea amid continuing tensions with Russia.

• BALTOPS is an annual US-led multinational naval exercise held in the Baltic Sea since 1971.
• Objective: Focuses on maritime security, protection of sea lines of communication, logistics, and reinforcement of NATO’s eastern flank.
• Exercises include operations around Gotland, a strategically important Swedish island in the Baltic Sea.

{Prelims – PIN World} Beaufort Castle *

• Context (IE): Israeli forces seized Beaufort Castle as part of an expanded offensive against Hezbollah, marking their deepest incursion into Lebanese territory in 26 years.

• Beaufort Castle, also known as Qal’at al-Shaqif (“Castle of the High Rock”), is a medieval hilltop fortress in southern Lebanon, overlooking the Litani River near the Israeli border.
• The fortress exemplifies medieval military engineering by integrating its two-tier, triangular defensive structures with the naturally steep surrounding cliffs.
• At 717 metres above sea level, the castle overlooks large areas of southern Lebanon, the western Bekaa Valley, towns around Nabatieh, and northern Israel.

{Prelims – Polity} Legislative Productivity of State Assemblies

• Context (NIE): The PRS Annual Review of State Laws 2025 highlighted continuing low overall productivity and legislative scrutiny across India’s state assemblies.

• Average Sittings: State Legislative Assemblies met for an average of 24 days, varying widely from 43 days in Odisha to 7 in Nagaland.
  • Many met mainly to fulfil Article 174, which bars more than a six-month gap between sessions.
• Scrutiny: In 2025, state legislatures passed over 600 bills, with ~33% approved in a single sitting, showing weak deliberations. Complex bills skipped specialised committees, lowering statutory quality.
• Deputy Speaker Absence: Deputy Speaker’s office, mandated by Article 178, remained vacant in eight states. Jharkhand Assembly functioned without a Deputy Speaker for 21 years.

Read More > Declining Parliamentary Proceedings

{Prelims – Social Sector} FSSAI Vegan Logo

• Context (TOI): FSSAI has notified a standardised Vegan Logo, which will become mandatory on vegan food products from 1^st July 2027. It features a green square-framed symbol with a stylised “V”.

• Vegan foods exclude all animal-derived products, including milk, dairy products, ghee, paneer, and honey. All vegan foods are vegetarian, but not all vegetarian foods are vegan.

{Prelims – Misc} One-Liners

• UPI in Cambodia (DDN): NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) launched cross-border UPI payments in Cambodia, making it the ninth country worldwide to accept UPI.
  • Bhutan was the first country to enable UPI payments globally, followed by the UAE, Singapore, Nepal, France, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, and Qatar.
• S&T – AI in Media and Entertainment Academy (AIR): The Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) has launched the AIME (Artificial Intelligence in Media and Entertainment) Academy in New Delhi as a national hub for AI in the media sector.