6 January 2025

• Governance: Draft Digital Personal Data Protection Rules released by MeitY, operationalising the DPDP Act 2023.
• Space: ISRO's PSLV-C60 (POEM-4 mission) germinated cowpea seeds in microgravity within four days.
• Events: The 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention was announced for 8-10 January 2025 in Bhubaneswar.
• Security: The Union Home Ministry flagged pig-butchering scams as a rising cybercrime threat targeting investors.
• Environment: Southern Nicobar proposed wildlife sanctuaries raised concerns about Shompen tribal displacement.

GS area: Governance, Technology

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) released the Draft Digital Personal Data Protection Rules under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

• Parent legislation: The DPDP Act 2023, which is India's first comprehensive data protection law.
• Key provisions of the draft rules: Citizens can consent to data processing digitally, withdraw consent, and demand data erasure. A digital grievance mechanism must be provided by Data Fiduciaries.
• Compliance relief for small entities: Reduced compliance requirements for startups and MSMEs compared to large corporations.
• Significant Data Fiduciaries (SDFs): Entities handling large volumes of sensitive personal data face stricter obligations including restrictions on cross-border data transfers.
• Data Protection Board (DPB): The rules establish the DPB as the adjudicatory body for data protection disputes and grievance redressal.

Static linkage: IT governance, privacy rights, Article 21 (right to privacy as recognised in Puttaswamy, 2017).

GS area: Science and Technology (Space, Agriculture)

ISRO's PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM-4) successfully germinated cowpea (lobia) seeds in microgravity.

• Module name: Compact Research Module for Orbital Plant Studies (CROPS).
• Developed by: Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC).
• Germination timeline: Seeds sprouted on Day 4. Visible leaves appeared on Day 5.
• Mission: PSLV-C60 launched the SpaDeX mission along with POEM-4.
• Significance: Growing food in space is a prerequisite for long-duration crewed missions such as lunar habitats or interplanetary travel. This experiment validates the concept of extraterrestrial agriculture under microgravity conditions.

Static linkage: Space technology, ISRO (Science and Technology, GS Paper 3).

GS area: International Relations, Diaspora

The 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Convention was scheduled for 8-10 January 2025 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

• Annual date: January 9. This date commemorates Mahatma Gandhi's return to India from South Africa on 9 January 1915.
• Biennial convention: The full convention is held every two years since 2015. Before that it was annual. A theme-based mini-PBD or regional event fills the alternate years.
• 2025 theme: "Diaspora's Contribution to a Viksit Bharat."
• Ministry: Ministry of External Affairs.
• Purpose: Engages the Indian diaspora on economic and social ties with India, recognises diaspora contributions, and provides a platform for bilateral discussions.

India's diaspora is one of the world's largest. The NRI and OCI community channels remittances of approximately $87 billion annually, making India consistently the world's largest remittance recipient.

Static linkage: Indian diaspora, India-foreign relations (International Relations, GS Paper 2).

GS area: Internal Security (Cybercrime)

The Union Home Ministry flagged pig-butchering scams as a serious and growing cybercrime threat.

• Method: Fraudsters build trust with victims over weeks through fake profiles on dating apps, Google, or Facebook. They then invite victims into fake online trading platforms that show fictitious profits. Once the victim invests heavily, the funds are stolen and the fraudster disappears.
• Name origin: "Pig butchering" describes the process of fattening a pig (building trust) before slaughter (stealing money).
• Connected crimes: Money laundering and cyber slavery (victims of trafficking in Southeast Asia are forced to run such scams).
• Key safeguard: I4C (Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre) under MHA coordinates cybercrime investigation. Citizens can report on the 1930 helpline or cybercrime.gov.in.

Static linkage: Cybercrime, internal security (GS Paper 3).

GS area: Polity (Schedule Tribes), Environment, Geography

Proposed wildlife sanctuaries in Southern Nicobar islands raised concerns about the future of the Shompen tribe.

• Proposed sanctuaries: Three wildlife sanctuaries: Meroë Island (coral), Menchal Island (megapode), and Little Nicobar (leatherback turtle).
• Shompen: A Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) dependent on hunting and foraging. Their territory overlaps with the proposed sanctuaries.
• PVTGs: Pre-Agricultural groups recognised by the government for special protection. They number 75 nationally. Shompen is among them.
• Sixth Schedule of the Constitution: The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are administered under the Union Territory framework, not the Sixth Schedule (which covers tribal areas of northeast India). This affects the nature of tribal land protections applicable.

Static linkage: Tribal rights, Sixth Schedule, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Polity and Geography).

• Homo juluensis: A University of Hawaii team identified a potential new human species from fossil evidence in eastern Asia dating to 300,000 to 50,000 years ago. It appears to have coexisted with Denisovans and was distributed across China, Korea, Japan, and Southeast Asia.
• Preventive healthcare in India: Non-communicable diseases account for 65% of deaths in India. WHO estimates the NCD economic burden will exceed Rs 280 lakh crore by 2030. Key schemes addressing this include NPCDCS (National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, CVD, and Stroke) and Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres.