3 October 2025

• Environment: India generated 2.2 million tonnes of e-waste in 2025 and ranks third globally. Formal recycling covers only 43 per cent.
• Defence: The Combined Commanders' Conference 2025 in Kolkata outlined new modular battle formations and integrated inter-services rules.
• Economy: Tamil Nadu's startup count surged six-fold in four years to more than 12,100. Women lead 50 per cent of the state's startups.
• International: The Sir Creek tidal estuary between India and Pakistan remains unresolved. A brief overview of the dispute entered the UPSC preparation cycle.
• Culture: Pandit Chhannulal Mishra, a Padma Vibhushan recipient and master of thumri, passed away.

GS area: Environment and Ecology, Governance

India generated 2.2 million tonnes of e-waste in 2025. That is a 150 per cent increase from 0.71 million tonnes in 2017-18. The country ranks third globally after China and the United States.

• Formal processing: only 43 per cent of e-waste entered the formal recycling stream in 2023-24. More than 50 per cent remains in informal chains.
• Formal recycling capacity: 322 certified units can collectively process 2.2 million tonnes a year. Capacity exists; collection does not.
• Geography of hotspots: 65 cities produce 60 per cent of total e-waste. Seelampur in Delhi, Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh and Bhiwandi in Maharashtra are the largest informal processing clusters.
• Health burden: 76 to 80 per cent of informal workers in these clusters suffer chronic bronchitis or asthma. Nearly all report skin conditions from acid-bath gold recovery. About 18 million children worldwide live or work in e-waste zones.
• E-waste (Management) Rules 2022: strengthened the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regime. Producers must register on the EPR portal, set annual collection targets and submit compliance certificates.
• EPR logic: the manufacturer bears the responsibility for end-of-life product recovery. This shifts the cost from government and informal workers to the producer.

The gap between formal capacity and actual collection reveals that the EPR framework is not enforcing collection in practice. The 2022 rules tightened penalties but enforcement remains patchy at the state level.

Static linkage: Environmental law, pollution, waste management.

GS area: Defence, Internal Security

The Combined Commanders' Conference 2025 convened in Kolkata. Inter-Services Rules 2025 were introduced, giving integrated theatre commanders administrative and disciplinary authority over troops from all three services under their command.

• Rudra units: new modular combined-arms formations integrating armour, artillery, engineers, drones and loitering munitions. Designed to deploy within 12 to 48 hours.
• Bhairav brigades: a companion formation focused on high-intensity rapid operations.
• MQ-9B drones: US-origin remotely piloted aircraft in Indian service, providing persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance plus precision strike capability.
• Rafale-M: the naval variant of the Rafale fighter for carrier aviation from INS Vikrant.
• Akashteer: an AI-based network integrating Army air defence radars and the IAF air defence command. Creates a common recognised air picture.
• Pralay missile: a quasi-ballistic surface-to-surface missile developed by DRDO. Range of 400 to 500 kilometres; manoeuvres in terminal phase to defeat point defences.
• Doctrinal framework: Joint Doctrine of the Indian Armed Forces 2017 and Army Land Warfare Doctrine 2018 underpin the theatre command concept.

Static linkage: Civil-military relations, defence modernisation.

GS area: Economy (Startups, State economic policy)

Tamil Nadu's startup count grew from 2,032 to more than 12,100 in four years, a six-fold increase. Women-led startups account for 50 per cent of the total.

• TANSEED programme: state government seed grant of Rs 10 lakh for standard startups; Rs 15 lakh for women-led, green-tech and rural startups.
• TANSEED multiplier: seed capital deployed through TANSEED generated a 28-fold return in follow-on investment. Total follow-on investment: Rs 537 crore.
• SC/ST fund: Rs 60 crore in equity investments specifically for startups led by SC/ST entrepreneurs.
• Space tech fund: up to Rs 50 lakh in milestone-based funding for space technology ventures.
• Tamil Nadu Global Startup Summit 2025: held in Coimbatore. 30,000 visitors from 35 countries; 2,000 delegates; 750 exhibitors.
• Gramam Thorum Puthozhil: targets 100 startups in 100 rural villages. An unusual scheme in that it explicitly targets non-urban startup activity.

Static linkage: Startup ecosystem, state economic development.

GS area: International Relations, Geography

Sir Creek is a 96-kilometre tidal estuary in the Rann of Kutch. India controls the territory to the east (Gujarat side); Pakistan controls territory to the west (Sindh side). The estuary drains into the Arabian Sea.

• Origin of the dispute: different interpretations of a 1914 Bombay Government Resolution that demarcated the boundary between the Bombay Presidency and the princely state of Sindh.
• India's position: the thalweg principle applies. The boundary runs along the midpoint of the main navigable channel.
• Pakistan's position: the entire creek belongs to the Sindh side. The boundary should follow the eastern bank of the creek, giving Pakistan control of the water itself.
• 1968 international tribunal: settled the broader Rann of Kutch boundary but left Sir Creek unresolved. The disagreement on Sir Creek also affects maritime boundary delimitation in the Arabian Sea, including the Exclusive Economic Zone.

Static linkage: India-Pakistan relations, maritime boundaries, geography of western India.

GS area: Art and Culture (Indian Music)

Pandit Chhannulal Mishra, a Padma Vibhushan recipient and one of the foremost exponents of thumri, passed away in October 2025. He was 89 years old.

• Thumri: a semi-classical vocal form within the Hindustani music tradition. It originated in eastern Uttar Pradesh in the 18th century, primarily in Lucknow and Banaras.
• Credited founder: Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh is credited with patronising and popularising the form. Sadiq Ali Shah is associated with its development.
• Themes: love, separation, devotion, and episodes from Radha-Krishna lore. The language is Braj Bhasha and Awadhi, sometimes mixing Urdu and Hindi dialects.
• Associated dance form: Kathak is the classical dance most closely linked to thumri performance.
• Gharanas: Banaras, Lucknow and Patiala are the three principal thumri gharanas. Pandit Chhannulal Mishra was the leading figure of the Banaras gharana.

Static linkage: Indian classical music, Hindustani music tradition.

GS area: Defence

The Indian Army's Spear Corps (under Eastern Command) conducted Exercise Drone Kavach over four days in the forward areas of Arunachal Pradesh. The Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police participated.

• Focus: counter-drone warfare in high-altitude terrain, including both active measures (kinetic neutralisation of hostile drones) and passive measures (camouflage, communication discipline, dispersal).
• Context: drone and loitering munition use has transformed the tactical level of warfare. The Eastern Command exercises in Arunachal Pradesh develop doctrine and capability specific to the mountainous and forested terrain there.

Static linkage: Border management, defence technology.

• External Commercial Borrowings draft framework: the RBI issued a draft framework to simplify ECB norms and broaden eligibility. ECBs are regulated under FEMA 1999. Two routes exist: the Automatic Route (through AD Category-I banks) and the Approval Route. Prohibited uses include real estate speculation and equity markets.
• Pharmaceutical Research and Innovation Promotion (PRIP) Scheme: Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers. Outlay: Rs 5,000 crore. Component A: centres of excellence in seven NIPERs (Rs 700 crore). Component B: research funding in priority areas including new chemical entities, biosimilars, precision medicine and antimicrobial resistance.
• Typhoon Bualoi: the 20th named storm and 9th typhoon of the 2025 Pacific typhoon season. Made landfall in Vietnam. Deaths: 36; houses damaged: 2,10,000; agricultural losses: $435 million.