24 August 2023

• Space: The Pragyan Rover was deployed from the Vikram lander and began traversing the lunar south polar terrain. Initial soil analyses confirmed the instrument package was operational.
• International: The 15th BRICS Summit concluded with the Johannesburg II Declaration, formally inviting six new nations to join BRICS from 1 January 2024.
• Economy: Data on India's labour market showed the share of workers aged 45 and above rising from 37 per cent in 2016 to 49 per cent in 2022. Youth employment rates fell in the same period.
• Environment: India's Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve (Rajasthan's 5th) was formally notified, becoming India's 54th tiger reserve.

GS area: International Relations

The 15th BRICS Summit concluded with the Johannesburg II Declaration on 24 August 2023. The declaration's most consequential element was the formal invitation to six countries to join BRICS.

• New members invited: Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Effective date: 1 January 2024.
• Theme: "BRICS and Africa: Partnership for Mutually Accelerated Growth, Sustainable Development and Inclusive Multilateralism."
• India's position: PM Modi welcomed the expansion in principle, calling it "BRICS Plus." India emphasised consensus-based decision-making and opposed a China-dominated directional shift.
• Scale after expansion: The enlarged BRICS (called informally "BRICS+") would represent over 40 per cent of global oil production if Saudi Arabia and the UAE joined fully.
• India-South Africa: India agreed to share its Digital Public Infrastructure frameworks with South Africa.
• PM Modi's departing proposal: India proposed a BRICS Space Consortium for technology exchange. Chandrayaan-3's landing the previous day gave India's space diplomacy a strong backdrop.

Static linkage: BRICS, multilateral organisations, India's foreign policy (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Science and Technology (space)

The Pragyan Rover was deployed from the Vikram lander on 24 August 2023 and began its traverse of the lunar surface.

• LIBS analysis: The Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscope fired laser pulses at the soil, creating a plasma plume whose light spectrum reveals elemental composition.
• APXS analysis: The Alpha Particle X-Ray Spectrometer bombards the soil with alpha particles and measures backscattered particles and X-rays to identify elements.
• First confirmed find: Sulphur was confirmed at the lunar south pole for the first time. Other elements confirmed: aluminium, calcium, iron, chromium, titanium, manganese, silicon, and oxygen.
• Hydrogen search: The rover was actively searching for hydrogen, which would confirm water ice presence in the upper soil layer.
• 14-day operational window: The rover and lander are solar-powered. The lunar night lasts 14 Earth days. Instruments were designed to operate for one lunar day.

Static linkage: Space science, lunar exploration (GS Paper 3).

GS area: International Relations

The India-UK bilateral relationship was examined ahead of a high-level meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit period.

• Trade: Bilateral trade was approximately 36 billion pounds in 2022. The India-UK Free Trade Agreement negotiations were ongoing as of August 2023.
• UK investment: The UK had invested approximately 34 billion dollars as FDI in India, making it one of the top sources.
• JETCO: The Joint Economic and Trade Committee (established 2005) coordinates trade dialogue.
• UK support for India: The UK supports India's permanent UNSC membership and India's NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group) membership application.
• Outstanding disputes: Extradition of economic offenders (Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi) remained contentious. Taxation disputes (Vodafone and Cairn India retrospective tax cases) were largely resolved.
• Nuclear cooperation: India and UK signed a Civil Nuclear Cooperation Declaration (2010) and a Nuclear Collaboration Agreement (2015).

Static linkage: India's bilateral relations, trade policy (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Economy, Society

Data from India's labour market showed a demographic shift in the working-age population.

• Ageing trend: Workers aged 45 and above constituted 37 per cent of the workforce in 2016. This rose to 49 per cent by 2022.
• Youth decline: Workers aged 15-29 fell from 25 per cent of the workforce in 2016 to 17 per cent in 2022.
• Youth employment rate: The youth employment rate fell from 29 per cent in 2016 to 19 per cent in 2022.
• Female participation: Female labour force participation was approximately 32.8 per cent.
• Demographic dividend risk: India's demographic dividend (its large working-age population) is not automatically translating into jobs. Skill gaps, employment quality, and sectoral mismatches are reducing the dividend's value.

Static linkage: Demographic dividend, labour market, human development (GS Paper 1).

GS area: Geography (climate)

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology reported that the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) index had turned positive.

• Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD): A climate phenomenon describing the temperature difference between the western and eastern Indian Ocean.
• Positive IOD: The western Indian Ocean is warmer than the eastern. A positive IOD typically strengthens the Indian southwest monsoon, increasing rainfall.
• Negative IOD: The eastern Indian Ocean is warmer. Associated with weaker monsoon rainfall in India and drought in Australia.
• Relevance in 2023: A positive IOD was expected to partially counteract the suppressing effect of El Nino on India's monsoon during August-September 2023.
• Fujiwhara Effect: A separate weather concept in the news: when two tropical cyclones rotating in the same direction come close, they orbit each other around a common centre. Named after Japanese meteorologist Sakuhei Fujiwhara (1921).

Static linkage: Indian Ocean, monsoon, climatology (GS Paper 1).

• Methane-eating bacteria: The species Methylotuvimicrobium buryatense 5GB1C, studied at the University of Washington, can remove methane from the atmosphere without generating nitrous oxide as a byproduct. Methane is 80 times more potent than CO2 over a 20-year period.
• Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve: Formally notified as India's 54th tiger reserve and Rajasthan's fifth. Covers the Chambal landscape. Rajasthan's tiger population grew from 32 in 2006 to 88 by 2022.
• Pfizer RSV vaccine (Abrysvo): The FDA approved Pfizer's RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) vaccine for pregnant women to provide passive immunity to newborns. Also approved for adults over 60. RSV causes severe respiratory infections in infants.