16 May 2025

• Polity: Supreme Court invoked Article 143, asking whether time limits can be imposed on Governors and the President for acting on state legislature Bills.
• Health: India achieved a Total Fertility Rate of 2.0 (Sample Registration System 2021). Kerala's TFR is the lowest at 1.4.
• Rights: Supreme Court in Pragya Prasun v. Union of India (2025) recognised digital access as a Fundamental Right under Article 21.
• Science: India approved five CCU (Carbon Capture and Utilisation) testbeds for cement industry decarbonisation.
• Environment: Karenia mikimotoi algal bloom off South Australia killed 200 marine species over 4,400 sq km.

GS area: Governance, Social Indicators, Public Health

The Sample Registration System Statistical Report 2021 revealed India's population stabilisation.

• Crude Birth Rate: 19.3 (down from 19.5 in 2020). Kerala has the lowest at 12.9; Bihar has the highest at 25.6.
• Total Fertility Rate: 2.0. India has reached the replacement level (2.1) threshold. Delhi and West Bengal are at 1.4.
• Infant Mortality Rate: 27 per 1,000 live births (down from 34 in 2016).
• Neonatal Mortality Rate: 19 (down from 26 in 2014).
• Sex Ratio at Birth: Improved from 899 (2014) to 913 (2021).
• Medical attention at delivery: 91.1 per cent in 2021.
• SDG targets: 8 states achieved the maternal mortality rate SDG target; 12 states met the under-5 mortality rate target; 6 states met the neonatal mortality rate target.

Static linkage: Demographic transition, health indicators, SDGs, National Health Mission.

GS area: Polity, Constitutional Rights, Social Justice

The Supreme Court in Pragya Prasun and Amar Jain v. Union of India (2025) recognised digital access as a constitutional right.

• Constitutional basis: The Court grounded the right in Articles 14 (equality), 15 (non-discrimination), 21 (right to life with dignity) and 38 (state to promote social welfare).
• Specific issue: KYC norms that excluded visually impaired and disabled persons from digital financial services.
• Referenced legislation: Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (Section 42 mandates accessible ICT services); UNCRPD (UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities).
• Court directives: Introduce alternative verification modes; appoint digital accessibility nodal officers; conduct periodic accessibility audits.

Static linkage: Fundamental Rights, digital governance, disability rights.

GS area: International Relations, National Security

The Prime Minister articulated India's national security doctrine in formal terms.

• Pillar 1: Decisive Retaliation on India's terms.
• Pillar 2: Zero Tolerance for Nuclear Blackmail. Nuclear threats by adversaries will not deter India from conventional military action.
• Pillar 3: No Distinction Between Terrorists and State Sponsors. The state hosting terror infrastructure is held as accountable as the terror group itself.
• Strategic shift: From "strategic restraint" (post-Kargil approach) to "strategic assertiveness" demonstrated through Surgical Strikes (2016), Balakot (2019) and Operation Sindoor (2025).

Static linkage: India's nuclear doctrine, counter-terrorism, security policy.

GS area: Environment, Science and Technology, Climate

India approved five CCU testbeds for hard-to-abate sectors, primarily cement.

• Definition: CCU captures CO₂ from industrial emissions and converts it into value-added products such as synthetic fuels, urea, concrete aggregates and chemicals.
• Three stages: Capture (separation from flue gas or air); Transport (pipeline, road or ship); Utilisation (conversion into products).
• Capture types: Post-combustion, pre-combustion, oxy-fuel combustion and Direct Air Capture (DAC).
• Testbed partners: NCCBM with JK Cement; IIT Kanpur with JSW Cement; IIT Bombay with Dalmia Cement; CSIR-IIP with IIT Tirupati, IISc and JSW Cement; IIT Madras with BITS Goa and Ultratech Cement.
• Model: Public-Private Partnership.
• Strategic rationale: Helps Indian cement industry survive the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) by demonstrating decarbonisation.

Static linkage: Climate change, industrial decarbonisation, CBAM, energy security.

GS area: Polity, Judiciary, Constitutional Law

The President invoked Article 143 to seek the Supreme Court's opinion on Governor and Presidential powers regarding state Bills.

• Article 143(1): Allows the President to refer any question of law or fact of public importance to the Supreme Court.
• Key features: Opinion is discretionary (President may refer, not must). The opinion is technically non-binding but has strong moral authority. Requires a Constitution Bench (minimum 5 judges).
• Historical invocations: 14 times since 1950. Key cases: Delhi Laws Act (1951), Berubari Union (1960), Kesavananda Bharati (1973), Judges Appointment (1998), Cauvery Dispute (1992), Ayodhya Site (1993).
• Current question: Whether time limits can be constitutionally imposed on the President and Governors when acting on state legislature Bills. This arose from state Governors sitting on Bills indefinitely without assent or rejection.

Static linkage: Constitutional provisions, Governor's powers, advisory jurisdiction, President's role.

GS area: Indian Geography, International Relations

Two distinct items.

• Mahadayi River (Mandovi): Also called Mhadei. Flows through Karnataka (35 km), Maharashtra (1 km) and Goa (76 km). Total length 111 km. Originates in Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary, Belagavi, Karnataka. Meets the Arabian Sea near Panaji, Goa. Notable features: Dudhsagar Falls; Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary on Chorão Island. Catchment area: 2,032 sq km. Karnataka seeks diversion to drought-prone districts via the Kalasa-Banduri Project. Goa opposes on ecological grounds. Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal set up under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act.
• IAEA: Headquarters in Vienna, Austria. Statute adopted 23 October 1956. Functions independently but reports to UN General Assembly and Security Council. Confirmed no radiation leak from Pakistani nuclear facilities during Operation Sindoor. Key role: nuclear safeguards verification to ensure materials are not diverted to weapons.

Static linkage: Inter-state water disputes, river systems, nuclear non-proliferation.