Gender: The UNDP Gender Social Norms Index 2023 found that 9 out of 10 people globally still hold biases against women, with no improvement over a decade.
Defence: The Cabinet approved the acquisition of 31 MQ-9B armed drones from the US for India's three armed forces.
Environment: Russia deployed tactical nuclear warheads to Belarus, the first nuclear deployment outside Russia since the Soviet era.
Rights: Daniel Ellsberg, the Pentagon Papers whistleblower, died at 92.
Literature: Arundhati Roy received the 45th European Essay Prize for her collection "Azadi."
1. UNDP Gender Social Norms Index 2023
GS area: Society, Social Justice
The UNDP released its second Gender Social Norms Index, covering over 80 countries and tracking gender biases over a decade.
Main finding: No meaningful improvement in gender biases globally over the past decade.
Scale of bias: 9 out of 10 people globally hold at least one bias against women.
Political dimension: 50 per cent believe men make better political leaders.
Economic dimension: 40 per cent think men make better business executives.
Violence: 25 per cent believe a husband is justified in beating his wife.
Structural gap: Women hold fewer than a third of managerial positions globally. A 39 per cent gender income gap persists even when women have equivalent or higher education than men.
Four dimensions measured: Political participation, educational attainment, economic activity, and physical integrity.
Static linkage: Society; social justice; gender.
2. MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones: Cabinet approval
GS area: International Relations, Defence
The Cabinet Committee on Security approved the procurement of 31 MQ-9B SeaGuardian armed remotely piloted aircraft from the US company General Atomics.
Numbers: 15 for the Indian Navy and 8 each for the Army and Air Force.
Specifications: Endurance over 27 hours; ceiling 50,000 feet; can carry Hellfire missiles and precision-guided munitions.
Primary role: Maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, and strike capability in the Indian Ocean and the line of actual control.
Significance: India's first approved acquisition of armed long-endurance drones. The procurement was discussed during PM Modi's White House meeting in June 2023 (announcement came ahead of the visit).
INDUS-X: The India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem announced at the same time sets up a bilateral defence innovation and co-development channel.
Static linkage: International relations (India-US); science and technology (defence).
3. VAIBHAV Fellowship for overseas Indian scientists
GS area: Government Schemes, Science and Technology
The government announced VAIBHAV (Vaishwik Bharatiya Vaigyanik) Fellowships for 75 Indian-origin researchers working abroad.
Purpose: Bring accomplished Indian-origin scientists and technologists back to India for collaborative research.
Focus areas: Quantum technology, health, agriculture, and clean energy.
75 fellowships: Marking India's 75 years of independence.
Predecessor: The GIAN (Global Initiative of Academic Networks) programme had already brought foreign faculty to Indian institutions for short courses.
Static linkage: Government schemes; science and technology.
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) issued guidelines against "dark patterns" in digital advertising, effective 1 September 2023.
Dark patterns: Deceptive interface designs that manipulate users into purchases or subscriptions without explicit informed consent.
Types identified:
Drip pricing: Hidden charges revealed only at checkout.
Disguised ads: Advertisements designed to look like editorial content.
Bait and switch: Showing one product at checkout and delivering another.
False urgency: Countdown timers or fake "limited stock" messages.
Sneaking: Automatic subscriptions added to carts without consent.
ASCI role: ASCI is a self-regulatory body for advertising in India. It is not a statutory regulator. The Consumer Protection Act 2019 provides the statutory framework.
Consumer Protection Act 2019: Establishes the Central Consumer Protection Authority with powers to recall products and prohibit misleading advertisements.
Belarus nuclear deployment: Russia moved tactical nuclear warheads to Belarus in June 2023. Belarus is a landlocked country in eastern Europe bordering Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia. This was the first nuclear weapons deployment outside Russian territory since the Soviet era ended in 1991.
Texas fish kill: Thousands of fish washed ashore on Texas beaches. The cause was low dissolved oxygen in warm water. Scientists linked the phenomenon to warmer ocean temperatures and climate change.
Leela Row Dayal: The first Indian woman to win a match at Wimbledon (in 1934) was recalled on the occasion of a sports heritage event. She later became a documentarian of classical Indian dance forms.
Practice MCQs
Check yourself
Consider the following statements about the UNDP Gender Social Norms Index 2023: 1. It found that 9 out of 10 people globally hold at least one bias against women. 2. It covers gender biases across four dimensions including physical integrity. 3. It found a significant improvement in gender biases over the previous decade. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Check yourself
The MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones acquired by India are primarily manufactured by:
Check yourself
ASCI (Advertising Standards Council of India) is best described as: