5 June 2025

• Environment Day: World Environment Day 2025 held in Jeju, Republic of Korea. Theme: "Beat Plastic Pollution." PM Modi launched the Aravalli Green Wall Project and flagged off 200 electric buses in Delhi.
• Data: MoSPI released EnviStats India 2025. India's mean annual temperature rose from 25.05°C (2001) to 25.74°C (2024). Renewable energy generation more than tripled in a decade.
• International: India elected to ECOSOC for the 2026-28 term with strong support. ECOSOC coordinates 15 UN specialised agencies.
• Census: the 16th Census of India will be the first digital census, concluding by March 2027. For the first time since Independence, caste enumeration is included.
• Energy: India commissioned its first variable-speed pumped storage plant at Tehri, Uttarakhand (1,000 MW total, 250 MW operational).

GS area: Environment and Ecology, Governance (International conventions)

World Environment Day is observed on 5 June every year. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) established it in 1973.

• 2025 host country: Jeju Province, Republic of Korea.
• Theme: "Beat Plastic Pollution."
• Global Plastics Treaty: negotiations for a legally binding global plastics treaty were scheduled for August 2025. The UNEP's Global Plastics Hub was launched on the occasion.
• Tide Turners Summit: youth-focused event with over 980,000 participants across 60 countries.
• India's action: PM Modi launched the Aravalli Green Wall Project at Bhagwan Mahavir Vanasthali Park in Delhi, planting a banyan sapling. He also flagged off 200 electric buses under Delhi's sustainable transport initiative.
• Aravalli Green Wall: 700 km green belt across 29 districts in Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat. Funded through CAMPA, MNREGA, and state schemes.
• UNEP: United Nations Environment Programme, established 1972, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. It is not a specialised agency but a programme of the UN General Assembly.

Static linkage: Environment and Ecology (plastic pollution, international conventions), Indian geography (Aravalli).

GS area: Environment and Ecology, Economy (Energy)

MoSPI (Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation) released the 8th edition of EnviStats India 2025 on 5 June 2025. The report uses the Framework for Development of Environment Statistics (FDES 2013).

• Temperature: India's annual mean temperature rose from 25.05°C in 2001 to 25.74°C in 2024, a rise of 0.69°C over 23 years.
• Thermal power: generation grew from 7.92 lakh GWh (2013-14) to 13.26 lakh GWh (2023-24), a 67 per cent increase.
• Renewable energy: grew from 65,520 GWh (2013-14) to 2.25 lakh GWh (2023-24), more than tripling in a decade.
• Fisheries: inland fish production grew from 61.36 lakh tonnes to 139.07 lakh tonnes. Marine fish production stood at 44.95 lakh tonnes.
• Biodiversity: 1,04,561 faunal species recorded in India.
• Environment spending: Rs 2,433 crore allocated to the Environment Sustainability Sector in 2021-22.
• MoSPI: releases data on national income (GDP), inflation (CPI), and environmental statistics. It is the nodal ministry for the National Statistical Commission.

Static linkage: Environment and Ecology (climate data, biodiversity), Indian economy (energy statistics).

GS area: International Relations (United Nations)

India was elected to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for the 2026-28 term.

• ECOSOC establishment: 1945 under the UN Charter. It is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations.
• Membership: 54 countries elected for 3-year terms by the General Assembly. Seats are distributed by regional groups.
• Functions: coordinates 15 UN specialised agencies (such as WHO, UNESCO, FAO, ILO, IMF, World Bank Group), 8 functional commissions, and 5 regional commissions.
• Contrast with Security Council: ECOSOC focuses on economic, social, environmental and development issues. The Security Council deals with peace and security. The Security Council has 5 permanent members with veto power; ECOSOC has no permanent members.
• India's position: India received strong support across regional groups for the 2026-28 seat.

Static linkage: International Relations (United Nations system, international organisations).

GS area: Governance (Administration, Social policy)

The 16th Census of India will conclude by March 2027 and is distinctive for two reasons: it will be the first digital census and the first since Independence to include a caste enumeration column.

• Reference dates: 1 October 2026 for snow-bound areas; 1 March 2027 for the rest of India.
• Digital enumeration: field workers will use mobile apps instead of paper schedules. Responses can also be self-submitted through a government portal.
• Caste data: for the first time since 1931 (when caste data was last compiled under British rule), a caste column is included for all communities. Caste census has been a political demand from several states and parties.
• Impact: the census will be the basis for delimitation of Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies after 2026, replacing the 1971 population figures that have been used (with a freeze on delimitation) since the 1976 constitutional amendment.
• Enumerators: over 30 lakh enumerators will be trained.

Static linkage: Governance (census, delimitation), Polity (Article 82, delimitation).

GS area: Economy (Energy), Geography

India commissioned the first unit of the Tehri Pumped Storage Plant in Uttarakhand, using variable-speed technology for the first time in the country.

• Total capacity: 1,000 MW. First unit operational: 250 MW.
• Location: Tehri, Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand.
• Executing agency: THDC India Limited (formerly Tehri Hydro Development Corporation).
• Technology partner: GE Vernova.
• How it works: during surplus renewable generation (especially solar during the day), the plant pumps water from a lower reservoir to the upper reservoir. During peak demand periods, the stored water is released to generate electricity.
• Variable-speed advantage: conventional pumped storage runs at fixed speed. Variable-speed turbines adjust their speed to match the exact amount of surplus power available, making integration with intermittent renewables (solar, wind) more efficient.
• Significance: pumped storage is the largest-scale form of energy storage available. As India scales up solar and wind capacity, balancing overnight and peak-hour demand becomes critical.

Static linkage: Economy (energy storage, renewable integration), Indian geography (Uttarakhand rivers).

• Bengaluru stampede: on 4 June 2025, a stampede at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium during the RCB IPL victory parade killed 11 people and injured over 30. An estimated 3 lakh people gathered at a venue designed for 35,000. NDMA guidelines on crowd management apply to such events.
• Socotra Island: in the news for UAE military presence. Located 340 km southeast of Yemen in the Indian Ocean. UNESCO World Heritage Site (2008). Known as "Galápagos of the Indian Ocean": 37 per cent of its plant species are found nowhere else. Dragon's blood trees are its most distinctive flora.
• Menar and Khichan Ramsar sites: both in Rajasthan. Menar (Udaipur, 104 hectares) is nicknamed "Bird Village" with 200-plus bird species. Khichan (Phalodi) is known for Demoiselle cranes on the Central Asian Flyway. India now has 91 Ramsar sites, the most in Asia, with Tamil Nadu holding 20 sites.