30 March 2023

• Polity: Rajasthan Day marks 30 March 1949, the date 22 princely states merged to form India's largest state by area.
• Education: The Institute of Eminence scheme has disbursed Rs 620.59 crore to IISc Bangalore (highest allocation), but 5-year performance reviews can trigger revocation.
• International: Saudi Arabia is approved as a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, joining six other dialogue partners.
• Environment: Vembanad Lake has lost 85 per cent of its water retention capacity over 120 years due to encroachment. Gamma-Ray Burst GRB 221009A, the brightest ever recorded, released photons at 18 TeV.
• Economy: India's combined goods and services exports crossed USD 750 billion, with a USD 2 trillion target set for 2030.

GS Paper II: Education; government schemes; higher education.

The Institute of Eminence (IoE) scheme's first performance data showed significant variation in fund utilisation and progress toward world-class status, with IISc Bangalore as the top recipient.

• Scheme design: The IoE scheme, launched in 2018 under the UGC's regulatory framework, selects up to 10 public and 10 private higher education institutions for an accelerated development grant and regulatory relaxation to help them break into global top-100 university rankings.
• Public institution grant: Each public IoE receives up to Rs 1,000 crore over five years from the central government. Private IoEs receive no central grant but get regulatory flexibility (autonomous curriculum design, faculty hiring, fee setting).
• Institutions selected: 12 institutes hold IoE status as of March 2023: 8 public (IISc Bangalore, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Roorkee, BHU, University of Hyderabad) and 4 private (BITS Pilani, Manipal Academy, VIT Vellore, Jamia Hamdard).
• Top recipient: IISc Bangalore has received Rs 620.59 crore, the highest total disbursed to any single institution under the scheme.
• NIRF criterion: Selection requires that the institution is ranked in the top 50 by the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) or in the top 500 of a recognised global ranking (QS, THE, ARWU).
• Revocation clause: Performance is reviewed after five years. Institutions that fail to meet agreed milestones can have IoE status revoked. This is the accountability mechanism the scheme depends on; as of 2023 no revocations have occurred.

Revises: Education; Government schemes; Higher education.

GS Paper I: Modern Indian history; political integration; geography.

India's largest state by area, Rajasthan, celebrated its 74th formation day on 30 March 2023.

• Formation date: Rajasthan achieved its present territorial extent on 30 March 1949, when the final merger of 22 princely states was completed. The process involved several stages of integration beginning in March 1948.
• Integration stages: The integration of Rajputana principalities began with the Matsya Union (four states: Alwar, Bharatpur, Dhaulpur, Karauli) in March 1948 and proceeded through a series of mergers. The last major addition was Jodhpur, Jaipur and Jaisalmer joining the Rajasthan Union in March 1949.
• Area: Rajasthan covers approximately 3.42 lakh sq km, making it the largest state in India by land area. It borders Pakistan to the west along the International Boundary, Haryana and Punjab to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh to the east and southeast, and Gujarat to the south.
• Thar Desert: Approximately 60 per cent of Rajasthan is covered by the Thar Desert (Great Indian Desert), which extends into Pakistan (Cholistan desert). The Thar is one of the world's most densely populated desert regions.
• Rivers: Major rivers include the Chambal (a tributary of the Yamuna), Banas, Luni (drains into the Rann of Kutch, does not reach the sea) and the seasonal Ghaggar (which is associated with the ancient Saraswati river debate).

Revises: Political integration of India; Geography of Rajasthan.

GS Paper III: Environment; Ramsar sites; wetland conservation.

Vembanad Lake, the largest lake in Kerala, was found to have lost 85 per cent of its water retention capacity over 120 years, driven by human encroachment on its banks and reclamation of its floodplain.

• Vembanad Lake: The largest lake in Kerala and one of the longest lakes in India at approximately 96 km. It stretches from Kottayam to Alappuzha to Ernakulam. A Ramsar wetland since 2002. Chilika Lake in Odisha is larger by area; Vembanad is the longest.
• Capacity loss: Systematic encroachment for paddy cultivation (Kuttanad region, which lies below sea level), tourism infrastructure and urban settlement has reduced the lake's water-holding capacity by approximately 85 per cent over 120 years. This makes the surrounding area more flood-prone during heavy rainfall.
• Ashtamudi Lake: The second-largest lake in Kerala, located in Kollam district. Also a Ramsar wetland. It has an unusual multi-arm configuration and is known as the "Gateway to Kerala Backwaters." Coir-retting (soaking coconut husk in water to separate fibres) in the lake causes water quality degradation.
• Ramsar Convention: India has 75 Ramsar sites as of 2022-23, the most of any country. Ramsar sites are designated under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (signed at Ramsar, Iran, in 1971) and carry obligations for conservation and wise use.

Revises: Environment; Wetlands; Ramsar Convention.

GS Paper III: Science and technology; astrophysics.

The October 2022 gamma-ray burst designated GRB 221009A continued to generate scientific analysis in March 2023, with confirmation that it was the brightest gamma-ray burst ever recorded in the observable universe.

• What a gamma-ray burst (GRB) is: A GRB is an extremely energetic flash of gamma radiation, the most energetic form of electromagnetic radiation. GRBs are detected from distant galaxies and are associated with either the collapse of a massive star into a black hole (long GRBs, lasting more than 2 seconds) or the merger of two neutron stars (short GRBs, less than 2 seconds).
• GRB 221009A specifics: Detected on 9 October 2022. Duration of the initial pulse: approximately 5 minutes. The burst originated in a galaxy approximately 1.9 billion light-years from Earth. It is classified as a long GRB, indicating a supernova-type collapsar event.
• Energy record: GRB 221009A released photons with energies up to 18 teraelectron volts (TeV). This is the highest photon energy ever detected from a gamma-ray burst. Standard GRB models do not predict photons above a few GeV, making the 18 TeV detection anomalous and a subject of intense theoretical interest.
• Common name: Astronomers nicknamed it "BOAT" (Brightest Of All Time). Its flux was so high that it saturated many space-based gamma-ray instruments.
• Black hole formation indicator: Long GRBs are thought to mark the birth of a black hole from a collapsing massive star. The energetic jet that produces the gamma rays is generated by matter falling rapidly onto the newly formed black hole.

Revises: Science and technology; Astrophysics.

GS Paper III: Economy; trade; external sector.

India's combined merchandise and services exports crossed USD 750 billion in 2022-23, a milestone attributed to post-pandemic recovery and a diversification of export markets.

• Breakdown: Merchandise exports were approximately USD 450 billion; services exports approximately USD 300 billion. Both segments set records in 2022-23.
• Target: India's stated export target is USD 2 trillion in goods and services combined by 2030, requiring compound annual export growth of approximately 12 per cent from the 2022-23 base.
• Top merchandise export categories: Engineering goods, petroleum products, gems and jewellery, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. The petroleum products surge reflected both higher crude prices and India's refining capacity.
• Services export strength: India is the world's second-largest exporter of IT and business process management services. The US and Europe are the dominant buyers.
• G20 context: Under India's G20 Presidency, trade ministers discussed reforming the WTO dispute settlement mechanism and addressing trade distortions from industrial subsidies. India has been an active participant in WTO appellate body reform discussions.

Revises: External sector; Trade policy; WTO.

GS Paper II: International relations; multilateral organisations.

Saudi Arabia was approved as a dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at a meeting of SCO Foreign Ministers in March 2023.

• SCO overview: The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation was founded in 2001. Its full members are China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Iran (Iran joined as a full member in 2023). India and Pakistan joined as full members in 2017.
• Observer states vs dialogue partners: Observer states participate in SCO meetings without voting rights and may be on a path to full membership. Dialogue partners are a less formal category: they engage on specific sectors without the full Observer state level of institutional integration.
• Current dialogue partners: As of March 2023, the seven dialogue partners are Sri Lanka, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain, Maldives, UAE and Saudi Arabia (newly approved).
• Why Saudi Arabia matters: Saudi Arabia's SCO dialogue partnership signals a deliberate diversification of its multilateral relationships beyond the Western alliance architecture. It complements Riyadh's simultaneous rapprochement with Iran (brokered by China in March 2023) as part of a broader reorientation of Gulf geopolitics.
• India's interest: India sees SCO as a useful platform for connectivity and security dialogue in the extended neighbourhood. The inclusion of Gulf states creates openings for energy cooperation discussions within an SCO framework.

Revises: International organisations; India's foreign policy; SCO.

GS Paper II / III: International institutions; India's G20 Presidency.

Under India's G20 Presidency, an Independent Expert Group of 11 members was constituted to review and strengthen the capital adequacy frameworks of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).

• MDB capital adequacy issue: MDBs such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank and New Development Bank hold large capital buffers relative to their loan portfolios because credit rating agencies require high creditworthiness ratings for MDBs to borrow cheaply in bond markets. Critics argue the buffers are excessive, preventing the MDBs from scaling up climate and development lending.
• Expert Group mandate: The group was asked to recommend how MDBs can triple their lending capacity without compromising financial integrity, including by recalibrating capital adequacy standards and mobilising private capital through guarantees and blended finance.
• India's broader G20 agenda: India's Presidency (1 December 2022 to 30 November 2023) focused on Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (One Earth One Family One Future). MDB reform is one of the five priority areas alongside energy transition, food security, digital public infrastructure and gender inclusion.

Revises: International institutions; G20; Development finance.

GS Paper III: Environment; climate change; governance.

The Ministry of Power released the Draft Carbon Credit Trading Scheme for public consultation, establishing the architecture for India's domestic carbon market.

• Carbon credit definition: One carbon credit equals one tonne of CO2 equivalent removed from the atmosphere, reduced at source or sequestered in a sink (forest, soil, ocean). Credits can be bought by entities seeking to offset their emissions.
• Indian Carbon Market Governing Board: A new apex body to oversee the market, set rules and adjudicate disputes. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency acts as administrator of the carbon market.
• Registry: Grid Controller of India Ltd will maintain the official registry of carbon credit issuances and retirements.
• Trading platform: The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) will regulate trading of carbon credits on designated exchanges.
• Linkage with PAT: The scheme will interface with India's existing Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) scheme for energy-intensive industries, allowing excess PAT certificates to be converted into carbon credits.
• Article 6 context: Article 6 of the Paris Agreement enables countries to use internationally transferred mitigation outcomes to meet their Nationally Determined Contributions. India's domestic carbon market design will need to be compatible with Article 6 rules to allow credit exports.

Revises: Environment; Climate change; Carbon markets.

• AFINDEX 2023 (concluded): The 10-day India-Africa Army Field Training Exercise at Aundh, Pune formally concluded, with 23 African nations participating. The focus was UN peacekeeping standard operating procedures and humanitarian assistance.
• New India Literacy Programme: The five-year scheme (2022-23 to 2026-27) targets 5 crore adults for foundational literacy and numeracy skills using the DIKSHA digital platform. It is the successor to the Saakshar Bharat programme.