9 February 2026

• Social media: Adolescent suicide in Ghaziabad linked to screen addiction renews the debate on whether India should ban social media for minors under 16.
• Environment: TREESCAPES 2026 Congress in Delhi highlights Nature-based Solutions; UNEP says global NbS investment must triple to $571 billion annually by 2030.
• Space: Mons Mouton on the Moon is identified as a potential Chandrayaan-4 landing site near the lunar south pole.
• Security: Project Tiger scheme upgraded from 9 reserves (1973) to 51 reserves across 18 states.

GS area: Governance, Society, Science and Technology

Three sisters in Ghaziabad died by suicide in January 2026. Investigators found severe screen addiction as a factor. The incident sparked a renewed national debate on restricting social media access for minors.

• Scale of India's social media use: India has over 400 million Instagram and Facebook users. Over 90 per cent of Indian teenagers are active social media users (ASER Report 2025-26). 61 per cent of urban children spend three or more hours daily online.
• Australia's model (2024): Australia banned social media for children under 16, with penalties of up to $50 million for platforms that fail to enforce the ban. It is the strictest regime globally.
• DPDP Act, 2023, Section 9: Requires parental consent before platforms collect or process data of children under 18. This is the existing Indian framework. It applies to data processing, not access itself.
• Online Gaming Regulation Act 2025: The Centre's framework for online gaming regulation, which includes provisions on in-game addiction and loot-box restrictions. Does not directly cover social media.
• Arguments against a ban: VPN-based bypasses make enforcement technically difficult. Mandatory ID verification raises surveillance risks. Social media provides support communities for LGBTQ+ youth and other marginalised groups. Banning pushes children to less-moderated dark-web and gaming platforms.
• Gender dimension: Only 33.3 per cent of women vs 57.1 per cent of men use the internet in India. Device policing tends to fall disproportionately on girls, an unintended consequence of any restriction.

Static linkage: DPDP Act 2023, child protection, digital governance (Governance/Society).

GS area: Environment (Climate change, Biodiversity)

The TREESCAPES 2026 Congress in New Delhi brought together researchers, policymakers and practitioners on Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for climate adaptation.

• UNEP estimates: NbS can provide 37 per cent of cost-effective CO₂ mitigation needed by 2030 at the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C pathway. Global NbS investment must triple from current levels to $571 billion annually by 2030.
• Mangroves as NbS: Healthy mangroves avert an estimated $57 billion in annual flood damage globally. India's MISHTI scheme (Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes) is the primary instrument.
• Agroforestry: Trees integrated into agricultural systems provide shade, reduce erosion, sequester carbon and diversify farmer income. The TREESCAPES focus on agroforestry aligns with India's commitment to create 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of additional carbon sink by 2030 under its NDC.
• India's rank in forest cover: India ranks 9th globally in total forest area. Forest cover is 25.17 per cent of geographical area (ISFR 2023).
• Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam: Planted 262.4 crore saplings under this campaign. The campaign motivates tree planting through an emotional appeal.
• Aravalli Green Wall Project: 6.31 million hectares of restoration along the Aravalli range. The Aravalli ridge is a natural barrier against desert encroachment from the Thar.

Static linkage: India's NDC, MISHTI scheme, Paris Agreement (Environment).

GS area: Environment (Wildlife conservation)

Project Tiger was launched in 1973 with 9 reserves. As of February 2026 there are 51 reserves across 18 states, covering 2.23 per cent of India's geographical area.

• National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA): Established under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 (Amendment 2006). NTCA is the statutory body overseeing tiger conservation. It conducts tiger population estimation and approves reserve management plans.
• Tiger population estimate (2022 census): India has approximately 3,682 tigers, over 70 per cent of the world's wild tiger population.
• Four zone-wise expert groups: NTCA formed four groups to review 28 management policy decisions across the reserve zones (western, central, southern, north-eastern).
• Buffer zones: Each tiger reserve has a core critical tiger habitat (protected zone with no human activity) and a buffer zone (where controlled human activity is permitted). The Wildlife Protection Act mandates that the core is inviolate.
• Corridor importance: Tiger reserves function effectively only if wildlife corridors allow gene flow between reserves. The 101 identified elephant corridors partially overlap with tiger corridors.

Static linkage: Wildlife Protection Act, NTCA, tiger conservation (Environment).

GS area: Science and Technology (AI governance)

The AI Impact Summit is scheduled for 16-20 February at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. It will be the first global AI summit hosted in the Global South.

• MANAV framework: India's proposed AI governance model. The acronym stands for Moral/Ethical Systems, Accountable Governance, National Sovereignty, Accessible/Inclusive AI, and Valid/Safe Systems.
• IndiaAI Mission allocation: ₹10,372 crore for AI compute infrastructure, datasets and skilling. The Mission aims to make 10,000 GPUs available through a common compute portal.
• Seven chakras: The Summit is organised around seven thematic working groups (human capital, inclusion, safe AI, science, resilience and innovation, democratising AI resources, and AI for development).
• India's positioning: India seeks a "Third Way" between the EU's compliance-heavy regulation, the US laissez-faire approach and China's state-control model.
• IT Rules Amendment (February 10): Mandatory AI-content labelling and a 3-hour takedown window for harmful AI-generated content were announced on the eve of the Summit. This is India's first binding AI-content rule.

Static linkage: AI governance, IndiaAI Mission, digital policy (Science and Technology).

GS area: Economy (Agriculture, Trade)

The removal of India's 11 per cent duty on US cotton under the interim trade deal is drawing organised farmer protest.

• Samyukt Kisan Morcha position: The SKM demands the Commerce Minister's resignation. The concern is that duty-free US cotton will depress domestic cotton prices below the MSP floor.
• Current MSP: The MSP for cotton is ₹7,710 per quintal. The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) recommended ₹10,075. The gap between market price and recommended MSP is a chronic complaint.
• US cotton surge: US cotton exports to India rose 95.5 per cent in 2024-25 following duty concessions in the earlier trade framework.
• Apple and corn: Farmers' groups also oppose removal of duties on US apples (affecting 55 lakh apple farmers in Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir) and maize imports (affecting 120 lakh corn farmers).
• Minimum Support Price mechanism: MSP is not a guaranteed purchase price in law. The government procures at MSP through FCI and NAFED for select crops. Cotton is procured through Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) in distress situations.

Static linkage: MSP, WTO Agreement on Agriculture, farm policy (Economy/Agriculture).

• Moon's Mons Mouton: A large flat-topped lunar mountain near the south pole, 160 kilometres from the lunar south pole. It spans roughly 100 kilometres in width and rises 6,000 metres above the terrain. Identified as a potential Chandrayaan-4 landing site because of proximity to permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) that may contain water ice.
• KFD vaccine Phase I: India is beginning domestic Phase I clinical trials of a novel KFD vaccine candidate. The existing formalin-inactivated vaccine requires multiple doses with partial protection. A better vaccine is a public health priority for Western Ghats communities.