Current Affairs – May 09, 2025

{GS1 – A&C – Literature} Revival of Rare Ayurvedic Lexicons

• Context (PIB): Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), under Ministry of Ayush, has revived rare Ayurvedic manuscripts, Dravyaratnakara Nighantu and Dravyanamakara Nighantu.

• Ayurvedic Manuscripts are ancient handwritten texts that document India’s indigenous knowledge of medicinal substances, therapeutic principles, and formulation techniques across disciplines like Dravyaguna and Rasashastra.
  • Nighantus are the traditional Ayurvedic lexicons detailing synonyms, properties, actions, and classifications of medicinal substances from plant, mineral, and animal sources.

About the Revival Initiative

• Aim: To digitise, critically edit, and translate unpublished classical Ayurvedic texts, thereby preserving India’s medicinal heritage and aligning it with contemporary academic and clinical frameworks.
• Digitisation and Preservation: Part of CCRAS’s ongoing mission to digitally archive rare medical texts, ensuring the intergenerational transmission of knowledge.

• Significance: The revived manuscripts will act as living systems of knowledge, vital for transforming current healthcare paradigms, strengthening India’s cultural identity and global soft power through the promotion of Ayurveda as a validated scientific discipline.

Dravyaratnakara Nighantu

• Authored by Mudgala Pandita in 1480 AD, it is a foundational text in Ayurvedic literature.
• Comprises synonyms, medicinal properties & therapeutic actions of both classical & new substances.
• Draws from Dhanvantari Nighantu and Raja Nighantu, while introducing substances from plant, mineral, and animal origins.

Dravyanamakara Nighantu

• Attributed to Bhisma Vaidya, this work serves as an appendix to the Dhanvantari Nighantu, focusing on drug and plant homonyms (words that have the same spelling and pronunciation but different meanings), clarifying confusion through precise classification and interpretation of medicinal terms.
• Significant for Rasashastra (alchemy), Bhaishajya Kalpana (formulation) & Ayurvedic pharmacology.

{GS1 – Geo – PG – Geomorphology} Palaeofires *

• Context (PIB): Scientists have uncovered a remarkable record of Earth’s prehistoric wildfires—palaeofires in the heart of peninsular India, beneath the ancient rock layers of the Godavari Basin.

What are Palaeofires?

• Palaeofires refer to ancient wildfires that occurred naturally on Earth long before humans began recording history. Evidences are found in fossilised charcoal, especially in coal-bearing sedimentary rocks.
• These ancient fires influenced vegetation patterns, climate conditions, and even coal formation over geological time scales.

Significance

• Carbon Sequestration Insights: The transformation of organic matter during these fires provides key insights into how carbon is stored long-term in the Earth’s crust.
  • Highly relevant to efforts in carbon sequestration, a vital strategy to combat climate change.
• Decoding Past Ecosystems: Palaeofire evidence clarifies how ancient ecosystems functioned, responded to fire, and evolved.
• Improved Palaeoclimate Reconstructions: Fire residues help scientists reconstruct ancient climates more accurately, refining our understanding of climate change across geological eras.
• Enhanced Geological Dating: Charcoal layers serve as markers within rock strata, helping geologists date sedimentary formations and track environmental transitions.

{GS1 – MIH – Personalities} Rabindranath Tagore

• Context (IE): Tagore Jayanti on May 7 revives Tagore’s timeless caution against placing nationalism above humanity.

Rabindranath Tagore

• Rabindranath Tagore, (1861-1941) often referred to as Gurudev, was a multi-faceted Indian polymath whose impact on literature, music, art, and social reform remains unparalleled.
• In 1915, he was awarded knighthood by the British King George V. In 1919, following the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre, he renounced his Knighthood.

• Literary Achievements:
  • Tagore authored a vast body of work, including poems, songs, short stories, plays, and essays.
  • His collection of poems, “Gitanjali” (Song Offerings), earned him the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913, making him the first non-European to receive this honour.
  • He is also remembered for his song ‘Ekla Chalo Re’.
  • Nature, with its profound beauty and spirituality, often served as a central theme in his writings.
• Educational Vision:
  • Tagore founded Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan, emphasising a holistic approach to education that combined the best of Indian and Western traditions.
  • His educational philosophy aimed to foster creativity, freedom, and the unity of knowledge.
• Legacy: Tagore’s compositions, like the Indian national anthem (“Jana Gana Mana”) & Bangladesh national anthem (“Amar Shonar Bangla”), hold special significance.
• Relationship with Gandhi:
  • Admired each other deeply but differed on means: Tagore rejected mass boycotts and superstition-based moralism.
  • Shared Ethical Concerns: Both feared nationalism’s violent impulses and wanted India to remain spiritually rooted.
    • Opposition to Militant Nationalism: Agreed that adopting violence corrupted the freedom movement and future society.
• Humanity over Patriotism (Spiritual Universalism): Believed patriotism was not a final spiritual shelter and rejected blind loyalty to the nation-state.

Tagore’s Personal Experience of Xenophobia

• Seattle Incident (1920s): Harassed and humiliated by immigration officials despite prior visits and plans to lecture in the US.
  • Left the US not out of personal grievance but due to systemic anti-Asian xenophobia on West Coast.
  • Solidarity with Asians: Refused special treatment and saw his mistreatment as reflective of broader racial prejudice against all “coloured peoples”.

Tagore’s View of Nation and Nationalism

• Nation as a Mechanical Construct: Defined nations as artificial entities formed for mechanical purposes, not organic communities.
• Nationalism vs Humanity: Saw nationalism as mechanising human relations and leading to loss of moral individuality.
• Believed nations created both physical and emotional boundaries that divide rather than unite.

Relevance in Contemporary Times

• Against Nationalist Hubris: Critiqued the exceptionalism & exclusion inherent in modern nationalism.
• Transcending Borders: A world order based on human compassion rather than territorial allegiance.
• Moral Reckoning Beyond Freedom: True liberation requires addressing internal injustices, not just opposing colonial powers.

{GS2 – MoRTH – Schemes} Cashless Treatment for Road Accident Victims *

• Context (MINT): The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has launched a cashless treatment scheme for road accident victims nationwide.

• Under Section 162(2) of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, the Central government was required to frame a scheme to provide cashless treatment to motor accident victims during the “golden hour”.
• Section 2(12A) of the Act defines “golden hour” as the period of one hour following a traumatic injury when prompt treatment has the highest likelihood of preventing the victim’s death.

Key Features

• Coverage: Effective from 5 May 2025, this scheme entitles every road accident victim to receive treatment worth up to ₹1.5 lakh per person, per accident, without any upfront payment.
• Eligibility: It applies to any individual injured in an accident. Victims can avail themselves of cashless treatment at designated hospitals for a maximum period of 7 days from the date of the accident.
  • If a victim receives treatment at a hospital not designated under the cashless treatment scheme, care will be limited to stabilisation only, until transfer to a designated facility is possible.
• Designated Hospitals: A list of 30,000 designated hospitals is usually available through the State Road Safety Council or the National Health Authority’s portal.
• Implementation: The National Health Authority (NHA) is the implementing agency, coordinating closely with police, hospitals, and State Health Agencies to ensure smooth execution.
• Nodal Agency: Each state and Union Territory has a State Road Safety Council acting as the nodal agency to onboard hospitals, manage patient records, and facilitate timely payments.
• Monitoring: Central government has constituted a steering committee headed by the Road Secretary.
  • It includes representatives from the NHA, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Finance, Health, and selected states, alongside insurance and non-governmental agencies.
• Allocation: 272 crore for 2025-26.

Significance

• This initiative is designed to remove financial barriers that often delay critical medical attention, thereby saving precious lives, in road accidents occurring on any road in India.
• According to MoRTH data, in 2023 over 4.80 lakh road accidents took place in the country which resulted in over 1.72 lakh people fatalities.

Read More> Road Safety in India.

{GS2 – MoST – Schemes} SUNIL Programme

• Context (DST): SUNIL Programme is being run to leverage Science & Tech for socio-economic empowerment of Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) through scalable livelihood interventions.

SUNIL Programme (Strengthening, Upscaling & Nurturing Innovations for Livelihood)

• Earlier known as the Technology Advancement for Rural Areas (TARA) Programme.
• It is a Central Sector Scheme, implemented through SEED Division of DST, Ministry of Science & Tech.
  • SEED (Science for Equity, Empowerment and Development) Division identifies grassroots livelihood gaps, promotes Science-Technology-Innovation based interventions and facilitates collaborations.
• Objective: To address systemic and localised livelihood issues using STI and promote scalable, sustainable social enterprise models.
• Target Beneficiaries: Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) including farmers, artisans, informal workers, transgenders and even prisoners.
• Key Focus Areas: Agriculture, natural resource management, clean energy, water, sanitation, health, nutrition, skilling, infrastructure, connectivity and social security.
• Project Partnerships: Mandatory inclusion of at least one Knowledge Institution (KI), one NGO and local community stakeholders like SHGs, FPOs, startups or panchayats.
• Community-Centric: Follows the Land–Lab–Land model, emphasising local, field-tested innovations tailored to socio-economic and geographical contexts and replication of STI-led livelihood solutions.
• Funding Mechanism: 100% grant is disbursed to the lead partner (KI or NGO) after signing of MoU.
• Models: Hub-and-Spoke model and Peer-to-Peer networking for effective resource sharing.
• Planning Strategy: Emphasises bottom-up, region-specific planning & last-mile delivery of solutions.
• Project Duration: Typically between 3 & 5 years, depending on project scope and intervention scale.
• Eligibility:
  • Type-1: Knowledge institutions like IITs, NITs and R&D bodies with societal engagement experience.
  • Type-2: NGOs or private organisations with minimum 3 years of STI-based rural work.

{GS3 – Envi – Misc} Lagrangian Growth-Advection Model *

• Context (PO): Researchers have developed a Lagrangian Growth-Advection Model that enhances satellite-based estimation of oceanic carbon export.

Key Features of the Model

• A satellite-driven oceanographic model that simulates the movement of water parcels (advection), biological growth within them (especially phytoplankton), and export of carbon to the deep ocean.
• Uses a Lagrangian framework, which tracks the movement of water masses over time and space, unlike traditional models that monitor fixed points.

• Key Components:
  • Plankton growth & succession: Captures the lifecycle of phytoplankton blooms, essential in absorbing atmospheric CO₂ and supporting marine food chains.
  • Advection by ocean currents: Incorporates satellite-derived surface ocean currents to map horizontal transport of biological material, including plankton.
  • Spatial and temporal lag integration: Accounts for the delay and movement between surface carbon production and deep-sea export, which is often missed by conventional satellite models.
  • Zooplankton activity: Considers zooplankton grazing, waste production, and their influence on carbon pathways.
• Technological Innovations:
  • Satellite-Derived Currents: Tracks biological hotspots and export pathways without relying solely on ocean colour data (e.g., chlorophyll).
  • Advanced Biological Modelling: Captures complex interactions between physical movement and ecosystem processes.
  • Comparable or Better Accuracy: Performs as well as or better than traditional models, and explains carbon pulses at sites like Station M (MBARI observatory), previously unexplained.

Significance

• Improves Carbon Budget Estimates: Offers better understanding of how much carbon the ocean sequesters—critical for global climate models.
• Supports Blue Carbon Initiatives: Aids in quantifying ocean-based carbon sinks, supporting strategies under the Paris Agreement, UN SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 14 (Life Below Water).
• Strengthens India’s Ocean Governance: Aligns with India’s Deep Ocean Mission, promoting sustainable ocean exploration, and supports Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) through science-backed environmental stewardship.

Also Read,> Energy Flow through an Ecosystem: Food Chain, Food Web , Biomes or Terrestrial Ecosystems and Aquatic Ecosystems, Mission LiFE , India’s Deep Ocean Mission

{GS3 – S&T – Defence} HAROP Loitering Munition

• Context (IE): India reportedly used HAROP loitering munitions to destroy air defence systems and strategic targets, including one in Lahore during Operation Sindoor.

Credit:BS

About HAROP

• HAROP is an Israeli-made loitering munition, developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). It combines surveillance and strike capabilities, crashing into targets with a built-in explosive payload.

Variants

• HAROP (Main): Long-range, combat-proven version.
• Mini HAROP: Lightweight version for tactical, mobile operations with 1-hour endurance.

Technical Specifications

• Type: Loitering Munition (a hybrid of UAV – Unmanned Aerial Vehicle – and a precision-guided missile)
  • Also known as a “suicide drone” or “kamikaze drone”, it loiters over an area and crashes into the target with an explosive warhead.
• Payload: 16 kg High-Explosive (HE) warhead – effective against radar stations, command posts, and missile launchers.
• Endurance: Up to 9 hours – can hover and wait for a suitable target.
• Range: Approximately 200 km from launch site – useful for deep-strike missions.
• Speed: Max speed of 417 km/h.
• Service Ceiling: Flies up to 15,000 feet (approx. 4.5 km altitude).
• Accuracy: CEP < 1 meter (Circular Error Probable – indicates very high precision).
• Sensors: Uses EO/IR seekers.
  • EO (Electro-Optical): Daylight cameras for visual targeting.
  • IR (Infrared): Thermal sensors for night or camouflaged targets.
• Control System:
  • Human-in-the-loop – operator monitors and controls the drone;
  • Can abort mid-flight to avoid collateral damage.
• Launch Platform: Canister-launched from trucks or ships – mobile and flexible deployment.
• GNSS Resistance: Immune to GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) jamming.
  • Can operate in GPS-denied zones, which is important in electronic warfare.

Also Read,> Operation Sindoor: Need, Global Implications & Challenges

{GS3 – S&T – Defence} India’s Multi-Layered Air Defence Shield *

• Context (BT | IE): India activated its air defence systems in response to a coordinated aerial attack by Pakistan, demonstrating its robust capabilities to counter a range of aerial threats.

India’s Air Defence System: Raksha Kavach, S400, Akash, Barak, Pechora

Raksha Kavach

• It is a multi-layered protection platform developed by the DRDO, featuring ballistic, electronic, and blast protection, which integrates satellite surveillance, drones, and laser-based weapons.
• Protects high-value assets and personnel through integrated defense technologies. The system can neutralize threats in real time using drones, missiles, electronic warfare, and laser weapons.
• Defensive Capabilities: Designed for rapid detection and neutralization of aerial threats before they reach critical targets.
• Tech: Employs advanced nanotechnology-based materials for durable lightweight construction.
  • Integrated Multi-Domain Defence System: Combines QRSAM (25–30 km), VSHORADS, ATAGS (45 km), air-to-air missiles and laser-based weapons for layered aerial and ground threat response.
  • Electronic and Drone Warfare Capability: Features Dharashakti EWS and Adani’s D4 system to detect, deter and destroy drones and enemy electronic activity.
  • Surveillance and Early Warning: Includes Arudhra 3D radar, Netra AEW&C, satellite-based systems, reconnaissance UAVs and indigenous secure satellite phones for real-time situational awareness.

S-400 Triumf

• Russian-made long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed by Almaz-Antey.
• Indian Designation: Sudarshan Chakra.
• NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler.

Source: ET

Detection and Tracking Capabilities

• Detection range: up to 600 km; tracks up to 300 targets simultaneously.
• Advanced phased-array and panoramic radars offer 360° coverage and stealth detection.
• Includes Big Bird/Tombstone Radar, 92N6E Grave Stone (tracks 100, prioritises 6, mid-course guidance), and 96L6E Cheese Board Radar (detects low-flying targets).

Target Engagement and Speed

• Simultaneously engages 36 targets; guides 72–160 missiles at once; Can neutralise threats flying at speeds up to Mach 14 (4.8 km/s or 17,000 km/h).
• Response time: 9-10 seconds.

Missile Types and Ranges

• 40N6E: 400 km range, 30–35 km altitude, active/semi-active radar homing.
• 48N6DM/48N6E3: 250 km range, 27 km altitude, semi-active radar homing.
• 9M96E2: 120 km range, 30 km altitude, active radar homing.
• 9M96E: 40 km range, 20 km altitude, active radar homing.

Launch and System Components

• 5P85TE2 launchers: up to 12 units per battalion, each carrying 4 missiles.
• Deployment time: 5–10 minutes from mobile units; 35 seconds in standby.
• 55K6E Command Post: controls radars and launchers with 5 operator stations.

Mobility and Integration

• Fully mobile with rapid redeployment; integrated into air defence networks.
• Provides layered defence using varied missile types for multi-range interception.

Operational Roles and Strategic Coverage

• Protects against aircraft, drones, cruise and ballistic missiles, and smart bombs.
• Secures strategic assets like cities, nuclear plants, and space facilities.
• Offers area denial over Pakistani and Chinese airspace, including coverage against J-20 fighters and naval threats like aircraft carriers.
• Sea denial and anti-stealth capability enhance overall deterrence.

Limitations and Constraints

• Purely defensive system, lacks offensive strike capability.
• Limited efficacy against hypersonic glide vehicles.
• Requires complex integration with Indian and Western systems.
• High procurement costs and geopolitical friction, especially with potential US sanctions.

Akash Missile System

• Induction: Inducted into the Indian Air Force in 2014 and the Indian Army in 2015.

Design, Configuration and Capabilities

• Developer and Manufacturer: Designed by DRDO and produced by Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL), Hyderabad, designed to intercept lower-tier threats.
• Type: Indigenous, Short-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM) system for protecting vital areas and points from aerial threats.
• Range 45 km, Mach 2.5 to 3.5 (up to 4,200 km/h) supersonic speed, mid-course command and terminal active radar guidance, 60 kg HE-fragmentation warhead.
• Mobility: Fully mobile system deployable via road, rail and air; suited for both static and mobile defence.
• Battery Composition: Each battery includes a Rajendra 3D PESA radar and four launchers, each with three missiles.
• Coverage Formations: Supports multiple deployment patterns like box, linear array and trapezoidal based on threat scenario.

Missile Specifications and System Features

• 5.8 m long, 350 mm diameter, 1,105 mm wingspan, with 60 kg high-explosive pre-fragmented warhead.
• Range of Operation: 4.5 km to 25 km and 360° coverage; used to neutralize drones and low-flying missiles; upgraded versions target up to 45 km.
• Altitude Range: Capable of engaging targets from 100 m up to 20 km.
• Guidance System: Command guidance throughout the missile’s flight.
• Propulsion: Integrated high-energy solid propellant and ramjet rocket engine for sustained high-speed performance
• Simultaneous Engagement: Tracks up to 64 targets and engages 12 simultaneously in group or autonomous mode.
• Target Types: Engages fighter aircrafts, helicopters, UAVs, cruise missiles and ballistic threats.
• ECCM Features: Built-in Electronic Counter-Counter Measures for high immunity against jamming (active and passive).
• Open System Architecture: Ensures adaptability to both existing and future air defence ecosystems.
• Deployment Modes: Operates in both autonomous and group modes depending on mission and threat environment.

Radar and Tracking Systems

• Fire Control Radar: Rajendra 3D Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA) radar can track up to 64 aerial targets; provides tracking for range, azimuth and height.
• Surveillance Radar: 3D Central Acquisition Radar (3D CAR) tracks up to 200 targets at long ranges.
• System Integration: Seamless link between radar and missile for real-time target engagement.

Variants and Upgrades

• Akash-1S: Added indigenous seeker for enhanced terminal accuracy.
• Akash Prime: Improved active RF seeker and optimized for cold and high-altitude operations.
• Akash-NG (New Generation): Features faster reaction time, greater accuracy and superior resistance to saturation attacks.

How is Akash-NG different from the Akash?

• It has achieved a higher altitude ceiling of over 20 km, along with an extended range beyond 25 km.
• It has a two-pulse, solid rocket motor that replaces the old ramjet on the Akash missile.
• Its weight has been reduced to 350 kg from Akash’s 700kg.

Source: Wikipedia

Barak-8 MRSAM

Source: Wikipedia

• A long and medium-range system developed with Israel, extending interception capabilities to 70 km. Effective against airborne threats including cruise missiles, fighter jets, UAVs, and helicopters.
• With up to 16 km altitude, Mach 2 speed, two-way datalink with active/IIR seeker, it is operated by Army Air Force Navy, and has been deployed in Ladakh against China.

S-125 Pechora

• Legacy air defence system integrated for supplementary coverage against low-medium altitude threats.
• Soviet origin air defence system with a range of 30 km and a speed of Mach 3–3.5.

Source: Wikipedia

Comparing India’s Defence Systems with Israel’s Iron Dome

• Iron Dome: Primarily designed for short-range rocket threats, focusing on localized protection.
• India’s Defence System: A multi-tier structure addressing long-range ballistic and cruise missiles, hypersonic threats, stealth aircraft, and drones.
  • Broader strategic coverage compared to Israel’s more localized Iron Dome.

Also refer to India’s Integrated Guided Missile Development Program.

{GS3 – S&T – Defence} Indo-Pacific Logistics Network

• Context (NN|ANI): The Quad-India, the United States, Japan, and Australia nations conducted a Tabletop Exercise (TTX) in Honolulu, Hawaii, leading to the launch of the Indo-Pacific Logistics Network (IPLN).

Key Features of IPLN

• IPLN is a Quad-led initiative aimed at building a shared logistics framework for efficient, timely, and coordinated civilian disaster response operations across the Indo-Pacific region.
• Core objectives include:
  • Enable rapid deployment of humanitarian aid.
  • Improve interoperability among Quad nations.
  • Utilise digital logistics tools for real-time coordination.
• Nature: Civilian-focused, non-military initiative by Quad countries.
• Purpose: Enhances coordinated response to natural disasters and health emergencies.
• Scope: Includes disaster relief, pandemic response, and supply chain resilience.
• Technology Use: Utilises digital logistics mapping, real-time tracking, and joint planning tools.
• Deployment Model: Scalable and adaptable—suitable for islands, coastal states, and remote regions.

Significance of IPLN

• Humanitarian Role Beyond Strategic Posturing: Helps reposition the Quad not just as a security grouping, but as a regional humanitarian force.
  • Addresses the vulnerability of Indo-Pacific nations to climate-induced disasters and pandemics.
• Strengthening Disaster Preparedness: As the Indo-Pacific is disaster-prone (e.g., tsunamis, cyclones, pandemics), IPLN enables faster relief, minimises duplication of efforts, and enhances regional resilience.
• Synergy with Other Initiatives:
  • IPMDA (Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness): Focuses on maritime surveillance and coordination.
  • Quad Pandemic Preparedness Programme: Improves health governance and surveillance systems.
  • India’s ‘One Health’ approach: Emphasises integrated health and environmental response systems.

India’s Role and Relevance in IPLN

• Aligns with SAGAR Doctrine: Enhances India’s vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region.
• Boost to Act East Policy: Deepens India’s engagement with the Indo-Pacific and ASEAN partners.
• Leadership in regional resilience: Hosting the Quad Pandemic Preparedness Workshop in March 2025 shows India’s proactive role in building regional capacity for public health emergencies.
  • It reflects India’s commitment as a humanitarian first responder and trusted development partner.

Also Read > QUAD , Act East Policy ,SAGAR Doctrine, One Health Approach