14 June 2025

• West Asia: Israel struck Iran's nuclear and military sites in Operation Rising Lion. Natanz and Fordow are both hit. The Strait of Hormuz now threatens 20 per cent of world oil supply and 60 per cent of India's crude imports.
• Environment: CPCB released draft solar waste management guidelines under E-Waste Rules 2022. India may produce 34,600 tonnes of solar panel waste by 2030.
• Finance: SEBI's Verified UPI Mechanism with unique handles ending in @valid launches October 2025 to prevent investor cyber fraud.
• History: Servants of India Society completes 120 years. Founded by Gopal Krishna Gokhale in Pune in 1905.
• Diplomacy: PM Modi becomes the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Cyprus in over 20 years.

GS area: International Relations, Geography (West Asia)

Israel launched Operation Rising Lion against Iran's nuclear and military infrastructure. The scale and target list make this the most significant direct escalation between the two countries to date.

• Targets struck: Natanz enrichment facility (Isfahan province), Fordow enrichment facility (Qom province), Bid Kaneh missile complex, airbases near Kermanshah and Tabriz, and sites in Tehran.
• IAEA non-compliance: the International Atomic Energy Agency declared Iran non-compliant under its 1974 Safeguards Agreement. IAEA inspectors found enriched uranium at previously unreported sites: Lavisan-Shian, Varamin and Turquzabad. Safeguards agreements require declaration of all nuclear material and facilities.
• Iran's proxy network: Iran funds and directs Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, Houthis in Yemen and several Iraqi Shia militias. Together these form what analysts call Iran's "Axis of Resistance." An Israeli attack on Iran directly destabilises each of these fronts.
• Strait of Hormuz: a narrow waterway connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and then the Arabian Sea. It is bounded by Iran to the north and Oman's Musandam exclave and the UAE to the south. Approximately 20 per cent of the world's traded oil passes through this strait. No alternative sea route exists from the Persian Gulf.
• India's exposure: India has approximately 8 million citizens living in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Roughly 60 per cent of India's crude oil imports transit the Strait of Hormuz. A sustained closure would spike oil prices, widen the current account deficit and weaken the rupee.

The Strait of Hormuz is a perennial map question. Prelims also tests Iran's nuclear programme and IAEA's mandate. Do not confuse the 1974 Safeguards Agreement (bilateral treaty between IAEA and each country) with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968), which is the multilateral framework.

Static linkage: World geography (chokepoints), India's energy security, West Asia (International Relations).

GS area: Environment (Waste management, regulatory bodies)

The Central Pollution Control Board released draft guidelines for safe storage and handling of end-of-life solar photovoltaic panels on 4 June 2025. Public comments are open until 25 June 2025.

• Legal anchor: the guidelines are issued under the E-Waste (Management) Rules 2022. Solar panels are classified as Category 14 under the Rules, a category defined by the Centre for Energy and Environment (CEEW).
• Scale of the problem: India may generate over 34,600 tonnes of solar panel waste by 2030 as the first generation of large-scale installations reaches end of life. The actual figure could be higher if capacity additions accelerate.
• Hazardous materials in panels: cadmium, lead, arsenic, gallium and tellurium. These heavy metals leach into soil and groundwater if panels are improperly disposed of.
• EPR exemption: solar panels are currently exempt from Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) recycling targets until 2034-35. EPR requires manufacturers to collect and recycle a percentage of the products they sell. The exemption reflects the immaturity of the domestic solar recycling industry.
• Storage rule: safe storage requires stacking no more than 20 layers or 2 metres in height. Panels above that height risk structural damage and additional hazard.
• CPCB: the Central Pollution Control Board is a statutory body under the Environment (Protection) Act 1986. It operates under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.

The gap between India's solar ambition (500 GW by 2030) and its absence of a functional solar waste recycling ecosystem is the structural issue behind these guidelines.

Static linkage: Environment and Ecology (waste management, pollution control bodies).

GS area: Health, Government schemes

The Ministry of Ayush promoted Y-Break, a 5-minute workplace yoga module designed for office workers.

• What it includes: the module contains three components: Nadi Shodhana Pranayama (alternate nostril breathing for calming the nervous system), Tadasana (mountain pose for posture correction and spine alignment) and Bhramari Pranayama (humming bee breath for stress reduction).
• Ministry: Ayush stands for Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy. The ministry was created in 2014 as a separate department under the then AYUSH department of the Health Ministry.
• Policy context: Y-Break is part of India's International Yoga Day (21 June) outreach. The UN declared 21 June as International Day of Yoga in December 2014 following India's proposal.

Static linkage: Health and welfare schemes (Social Issues, GS Paper 2).

GS area: Science and Technology, Current Events

The Air India crash (13 June) renewed public interest in how aircraft black boxes work. AAIB investigators would rely on both devices.

• Two devices, not one: "black box" refers collectively to two separate instruments. The Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) captures audio from the cockpit for the last 2 hours. The Flight Data Recorder (FDR) captures hundreds of operational parameters for the last 25 hours.
• Inventor: Dr David Warren of Australia developed the modern FDR concept in 1953-54 at the Aeronautical Research Laboratory in Melbourne. He was motivated by the de Havilland Comet crashes of 1953.
• Mandated since 1960: commercial aircraft have been required to carry FDRs since 1960. CVRs became mandatory shortly after.
• Not black: the devices are painted bright orange to aid location after a crash. The name "black box" is a colloquial term from British English for any opaque electronic device whose internal workings are not visible to the user.
• Survivability: black boxes are designed to survive fires at 1,100 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes. They also withstand an impact of 3,400 G-force and immersion in saltwater for 30 days.

Static linkage: Science and technology (aviation safety), India's aviation regulatory framework.

GS area: Economy (Financial markets, regulatory bodies)

SEBI announced the launch of a Verified UPI Mechanism from 1 October 2025 to protect retail investors from cyber fraud.

• Unique handles: verified brokers and mutual funds will receive UPI handles ending in @valid. This is the distinctive marker that distinguishes them from fraudulent impostors.
• Suffixes: brokers will use the suffix .brk and mutual funds will use .mf within the @valid handle structure.
• Visual indicator: a thumbs-up icon inside a green triangle will appear for verified handles in UPI payment apps. This visual cue helps users who may not check the full handle string.
• Developed with: NPCI, the National Payments Corporation of India. NPCI owns and operates the UPI infrastructure.
• Regulatory body: SEBI is the Securities and Exchange Board of India. It is the statutory regulator for securities and capital markets under the SEBI Act 1992.
• Problem it solves: fraudsters create UPI handles that mimic legitimate brokerage names to collect investment money. The verified mechanism closes this gap by anchoring authenticity to the handle structure itself.

Static linkage: Financial markets (Economy), Regulatory bodies (GS Paper 2).

GS area: History (Modern India, Freedom movement)

The Servants of India Society completed 120 years on 12 June 2025. It was founded on 12 June 1905 in Pune.

• Founder: Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Gokhale was the president of the Indian National Congress in 1905. He is associated with the moderate school of nationalist politics that emphasised constitutional methods and social reform.
• Purpose: to train educated Indians in public service and self-sacrifice for the nation. Members pledged celibacy, gave up private wealth and devoted themselves to social and political causes.
• Gandhi connection: Gokhale was Gandhi's political mentor. The Society funded the early activities of Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad after Gandhi returned from South Africa. Gandhi himself sought to join the Society but Gokhale died in 1915 before Gandhi was formally admitted.
• GIPE dispute: the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics in Pune is demanding a neutral administrator be appointed to manage the Society's assets. This governance dispute is what brought the Society into current news.

Static linkage: Modern Indian history (Freedom movement, social reformers).

GS area: Social Justice, Tribal Affairs, Polity

The government established 324 Forest Rights Act (FRA) Cells across 18 States and Union Territories under the Dharti Aba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA).

• Forest Rights Act 2006: the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act 2006. It recognised individual and community rights of forest-dwelling Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers over forest land and resources.
• FRA Cells: the first dedicated implementation cells since the Act came into force in 2006. Each cell is district-level and receives Rs 8.67 lakh per district for staffing and operations.
• DAJGUA: the Dharti Aba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan is an integrated development mission for tribal areas. "Dharti Aba" is the title associated with Birsa Munda, the tribal freedom fighter from Jharkhand.
• Scale: 324 cells across 18 States and UTs. The cells are to accelerate claim processing, reduce pendency and improve awareness of rights among forest communities.
• Ministry: the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

The FRA is frequently tested. Know the two categories of rights: individual rights (title over land up to 4 hectares occupied before 13 December 2005) and community rights (access to forest produce, water, grazing).

Static linkage: Tribal affairs (Social Justice, GS Paper 2), Forest governance.

GS area: Economy (PSUs, critical minerals), International Relations

India directed IREL (India) Limited to suspend a 13-year rare earth mineral supply agreement with Japan. The move signals a reassessment of India's critical minerals strategy.

• IREL: establishment: Indian Rare Earths Limited was established on 18 August 1950. It is now known as IREL (India) Limited. It is a Mini Ratna Category-I Central Public Sector Enterprise under the Department of Atomic Energy.
• Headquarters: Mumbai.
• What IREL mines: heavy mineral sands from coastal deposits. The principal minerals are Ilmenite (titanium ore), Zircon (zirconium ore), Rutile (high-grade titanium dioxide), Sillimanite and Garnet.
• OSCOM, Odisha: IREL's flagship facility at Odisha Sands Complex produces approximately 11,000 tonnes of rare earth concentrate annually.
• Exports: IREL earned Rs 962 crore from mineral exports in FY2023-24.
• Japan supply agreement: IREL had supplied rare earth concentrates to Japan under a long-term bilateral agreement. India's decision to suspend supply reflects the strategic value of these materials. Rare earths are essential for electric vehicles, wind turbines, defence electronics and semiconductors.
• Atomic Energy link: IREL is under the Department of Atomic Energy because the heavy mineral sands it mines also contain monazite, which contains thorium. Thorium is a potential fuel for India's three-stage nuclear programme.

The Japan angle matters. Japan is the world's largest importer of rare earth materials and has historically relied on China and then diversified to India. India suspending supply signals that critical minerals are now treated as strategic assets rather than export commodities.

Static linkage: Critical minerals (Economy), India's nuclear programme (Science), India-Japan relations.

GS area: International Relations, Geography

Prime Minister Modi visited Cyprus, becoming the first Indian Prime Minister to do so in over 20 years.

• Cyprus geography: the third-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily and Sardinia). Capital: Nicosia. Major mountain ranges: Kyrenia Mountains in the north and Troodos Mountains in the south.
• Political situation: the island is divided. The Republic of Cyprus controls the south. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (recognised only by Turkey) controls the north. A UN buffer zone runs between them.
• EU membership: Cyprus joined the European Union in 2004. It will hold the EU Council Presidency in 2026. EU Presidency is a rotating six-month chairmanship of the Council of the EU.
• UNSC permanent seat: Cyprus formally supports India's bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
• IMEC node: Cyprus is a node in the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC), an infrastructure connectivity initiative announced at the G20 New Delhi summit in 2023. IMEC connects India through the Gulf to Europe via Israel and Greece.
• India-Cyprus ties: Cyprus has historically been a conduit for Indian investment flows into Europe through its favourable tax treaties. The Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement between India and Cyprus was renegotiated in 2016.

Static linkage: Indian Ocean and Mediterranean geography, India's bilateral relations (International Relations).

• Safeguards Agreement vs NPT: the IAEA Safeguards Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the IAEA and a country under the NPT framework. Iran signed the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement in 1974. Non-compliance with safeguards (not just possessing weapons) is the immediate legal issue.
• NPCI and UPI: the National Payments Corporation of India is a not-for-profit entity under Section 8 of the Companies Act. It was set up by RBI and the Indian Banks' Association. UPI, launched 2016, processes over 10 billion transactions per month.
• Thorium reserves: India holds approximately 25 per cent of the world's known thorium reserves, concentrated in Kerala and Odisha coastal sands. IREL's mining is the upstream step in India's three-stage nuclear programme.