Context:

• Recent terrorist attacks on tourists in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, highlight the persistent threat from Pakistan’s deep state.
• The attack is part of Pakistan's attempts to derail democratic normalcy and development in the region.

Lessons for India:

• Historical parallels:
  • America’s strategic myopia: America evacuated its personnel from the roof of its Saigon embassy via helicopter (on 30 April, 1975) and lost a proxy war in Vietnam.
  • End of soft separatism in J&K: Same year, Sheikh Abdullah returned to democratic politics in J&K (as the elected CM of J&K), ending 22 years of soft separatism.
• Modern misjudgments - Trump and Munir:
  • Trump’s proposal to “empty Gaza” (to make it a Mediterranean Florida) ignores historical lessons.
  • Pakistan Army Chief Asif Munir echoed outdated ideas - Jinnah's two-nation theory and Z.A. Bhutto’s "jugular vein" rhetoric on Kashmir. Both ignore India’s institutional strength, strategic autonomy, and economic rise.

Three Pillars of India’s Long-Term Kashmir Strategy:

• Specialisation - Targeted security operations:
  • Intelligence-driven operations led to the formation of Rashtriya Rifles (1990) and Special Operations Groups (1993).
  • Replacement of BSF with CRPF (1995) and CBI with NIA for counter-terror financing shows institutional adaptability.
• Moderation - Minimum use of force:
  • India followed a path opposite to the US's "search and destroy" in Vietnam.
  • Strategy rooted in public order with minimal resistance, echoing Subrata Mitra's “Governance by Stealth”.
  • Symbols of legitimacy: Surrender of terrorists at Hazratbal (1993), state election voting lines (2024).
• Democracy - Civil participation in conflict zones:
  • Frequent elections, civil service involvement, and respecting political diversity, even those who espoused soft separatism.
  • Reflects a deeper commitment to democratic processes versus Pakistan’s unstable governance (no PM completing a full term since 1947).

Killings Signal Pakistan’s Desperation:

• India’s evolving strategy - abrogation of Article 370, cross-border strikes, strategic autonomy, and infrastructure development (e.g., railways) - is yielding results.
• Terrorist attacks are a reaction to India’s success in integrating J&K, not a sign of weakness.

Message from Kashmir:

• Kashmiris: After the murders at Baisaran (Pahalgam, J&K), Kashmiris are on streets blaming Pakistan for the attack.
• Security forces of India:
  • 1,608 J&K police, 511 CRPF, and hundreds of army personnel’s supreme sacrifice in protecting J&K depicts that “The flag does not flutter in the wind, but with the last breath of martyrs.”
  • So, “Veer Bhogya Vasundhara” (The brave shall inherit the earth) is the symbolic message from the forces.

Conclusion - Strategic Resolve over Reaction:

• India's response must be seen not as war-mongering but as measured, courageous defence of peace.
• The world must draw lessons from India’s experience: institutional resilience, democratic depth, and calibrated security actions.

Context

• As climate change intensifies, nations are seeking sustainable solutions to reduce carbon emissions and restore ecological balance.
• For India, a rapidly developing economy with high carbon dependencies, tree plantation and carbon sequestration have emerged as indispensable tools.
• These tools are necessary not only to mitigate climate change but also to strengthen environmental resilience, industrial competitiveness, and rural livelihoods.

The Urgent Need for Afforestation and Environmental and Economic Benefits

• The Urgent Need for Afforestation
  • India’s forest and tree cover currently stands at 25.17%, significantly below the 33% target outlined in the National Forest Policy of 1988.
  • This gap is critical, especially as deforestation, urban expansion, and industrial emissions continue to strain ecological systems.
  • Forests serve as natural carbon sinks, absorbing atmospheric CO₂ and regulating climate systems.
  • The need to enhance India’s carbon sequestration potential through afforestation is urgent, not just as a climate imperative, but also as a socio-economic strategy.
• Environmental and Economic Benefits
  • Large-scale tree plantations offer multifaceted benefits.
  • Beyond absorbing greenhouse gases, they contribute to improving soil health, reducing erosion, recharging groundwater, and increasing resilience against climate-induced disasters like droughts and floods.
  • These environmental functions translate into economic value, particularly in rural areas where afforestation creates jobs in nursery management, forest restoration, and agroforestry.
  • Agroforestry, which integrates trees with crops and livestock systems, is especially promising.
  • It enhances biodiversity, boosts productivity, and diversifies income streams.
  • According to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, agroforestry practices can raise farm incomes by 20–30%, showcasing their potential for climate adaptation and rural development.

Policy Initiatives and Private Sector Involvement

• Recognising these benefits, India has rolled out several policies to accelerate afforestation.
• The National Agroforestry Policy (2014) and the Trees Outside Forests in India Program encourage private landowners and industries to undertake tree planting, reducing pressure on natural forests and restoring degraded lands.
• One flagship initiative, the Green India Mission (GIM), under the National Action Plan on Climate Change, has been instrumental in increasing forest cover and promoting sustainable forest management.
• Between 2017 and 2021, GIM contributed to a 0.56% increase in forest area, signalling modest but tangible progress.
• Corporate engagement has also grown, driven by environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals and international pressure.
• Companies in sectors such as cement, steel, and automotive have adopted tree plantation drives as part of their carbon offset strategies.
• These efforts are not merely philanthropic; they are increasingly strategic, helping firms earn carbon credits under mechanisms like the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and Clean Development Mechanism (CDM).

Global Pressures and Competitive Advantage

• India’s industrial sector faces growing international scrutiny regarding carbon intensity.
• Notably, the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), set to take effect in 2026, will levy tariffs on carbon-intensive imports such as steel, aluminium, and cement.
• With India-EU trade hitting €124 billion in 2023, non-compliance could erode India's export competitiveness.
• Consequently, afforestation presents a cost-effective alternative for emission reduction.
• While the average price of carbon credits under the EU Emissions Trading System reached €83 per tonne in 2023, investing in domestic tree plantations allows Indian firms to offset emissions at a lower cost, while also contributing to national climate goals.

Challenges and Policy Recommendations

• Despite its promise, large-scale afforestation in India faces structural challenges. Chief among them is the lack of a robust carbon trading framework.
• To fully leverage the global carbon market, India must establish a transparent national carbon credit registry and adopt a clear regulatory framework under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
• Furthermore, financial incentives and risk mitigation tools are necessary to encourage long-term private sector investments in forestry projects.
• Additionally, there is a need for greater community involvement.
• Empowering rural communities through training, financial support, and market linkages can ensure the sustainability and scalability of afforestation efforts.
• Local participation not only increases the success of these projects but also fosters a sense of ownership and environmental stewardship.

Conclusion

• As India aspires to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070, tree plantation and carbon sequestration will remain central to its climate strategy.
• These initiatives are no longer optional; they are essential for national sustainability, economic competitiveness, and social welfare.
• The convergence of environmental policy, corporate strategy, and community action around afforestation represents a powerful pathway for India to lead in climate resilience and green development.
• The costs of inaction, ecological degradation, economic penalties, and social instability, are far too great to ignore.

Context

• India’s plastic pollution crisis has reached alarming levels, as highlighted by a recent study published in Nature, which ranks the country as the largest contributor to global plastic emissions.
• Releasing an estimated 9.3 million tonnes annually, nearly 20% of global emissions, India’s plastic waste problem is not only a reflection of consumer behaviour and systemic mismanagement but also a critical failure of monitoring, data transparency, and institutional accountability.
• Therefore, it is important to analyse the key challenges, governance failures, and potential legal and administrative solutions to India’s increasing plastic waste crisis.

The Core of the Problem: A Deepening Crisis and Data Blindness

• At the core of the problem lies a glaring mismatch between reported statistics and ground realities.
• According to the Nature study, India underestimates its per capita plastic waste generation.
• While the official figure stands at 0.12 kg per capita per day, the study suggests the actual number is closer to 0.54 kg, a more than fourfold discrepancy.
• Much of this underestimation is attributed to the exclusion of rural areas, uncollected waste, and informal recycling activities from official statistics.
• Additionally, India’s waste management infrastructure is overwhelmingly reliant on uncontrolled dumpsites, which outnumber sanitary landfills by a staggering 10:1 ratio.
• This data deficit is particularly stark in ecologically sensitive zones such as the Indian Himalayan Region, where plastic waste has begun to choke delicate mountain ecosystems.
• Despite alarming anecdotal evidence, no comprehensive or transparent methodology exists to account for either the quantity or quality of waste generated in these regions.
• Reports by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), based on data from state pollution control boards and municipal bodies, lack methodological transparency and fail to include crucial rural data.
• This omission further undermines efforts to design effective waste management strategies.

Legal Mandates and the Role of Local Governance

• The Indian legal framework does mandate local governance structures, urban municipal bodies and rural panchayats, to be the primary nodes for waste management.
• However, without accurate data and adequate infrastructure, these mandates remain largely unfulfilled.
• There is an urgent need for robust data systems that not only track the generation and composition of waste but also map the infrastructure meant to handle it, such as Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), recycling units, sanitary landfills, and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) kiosks.
• To operationalise EPR effectively, the formation of decentralised kiosks across the country is proposed.
• These would serve as collection points for producer-importer-brand-owner (PIBO) waste and would be staffed to ensure proper segregation and redirection to appropriate recycling or disposal streams.
• While challenging, such a plan is feasible if built upon a foundation of reliable data, coordination, and technological leverage, a domain where India already has significant capability.

Judicial Activism and the Role of the Supreme Court

• The Indian judiciary, particularly the Supreme Court, has increasingly recognised its role in enforcing environmental safeguards.
• In a landmark judgment on January 31, the Court ordered a remediation program to reverse environmental degradation caused by tanneries in Vellore, Tamil Nadu.
• Notably, the Court adopted the principle of continuing mandamus, which enables it to retain jurisdiction over the matter to ensure ongoing compliance.
• This verdict not only affirmed environmental protection as a constitutional obligation but also reinforced the polluter pays principle, placing absolute liability on polluters for both ecological restoration and victim compensation.
• This judicial stance presents a viable template for addressing the broader issue of waste mismanagement in India.
• Continuing mandamus could be institutionalised as a tool to enforce compliance in cases of systemic environmental degradation, especially where government action is ineffective or delayed.

The Way Forward: Towards Accountability and Sustainable Development

• India's plastic waste crisis is not merely an environmental issue but a matter of public health, ecological sustainability, and constitutional justice.
• Despite having a robust legal framework, enforcement remains weak due to bureaucratic inertia, data opacity, and institutional fragmentation.
• Bridging the gap between law and practice requires three key interventions:
• Comprehensive Data and Transparency
  • Waste generation and processing data must be systematically gathered, made public, and subjected to third-party scrutiny.
  • Geotagging of infrastructure and real-time reporting mechanisms should be prioritized.
• Strengthening Local Governance
  • Urban and rural local bodies must be provided with both financial and technical support to develop and maintain waste infrastructure.
  • Integration with PIBO systems and EPR mandates must be mandatory and verifiable.
• Legal Enforcement and Judicial Oversight
  • Courts must continue to play a proactive role in ensuring environmental compliance.
  • The use of continuing mandamus, equitable compensation, and clear accountability mechanisms will be key to translating environmental rights into real-world impact.

Conclusion

• India stands at a critical juncture, as a major plastic polluter and a global technology leader, it has both a responsibility and the capacity to tackle its waste crisis with urgency and innovation.
• The road ahead demands systemic transparency, empowered local governance, and unwavering judicial oversight.
• Only through a multi-pronged approach that combines data integrity, infrastructural investment, and legal enforcement can India hope to transform its waste management systems and set a precedent for sustainable development on the global stage.

Padma Awards Historical Background

• The Padma Awards were established in 1954 alongside the Bharat Ratna.
• Initially, Padma Awards had three classes: Pahela Varg, Dusra Varg, and Tisra Varg.
• These were renamed in 1955 via Presidential Notification as: Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri

Padma Awards Categories

• Padma Vibhushan: Awarded for exceptional and distinguished service.
• Padma Bhushan: Conferred for distinguished service of a high order.
• Padma Shri: Recognises distinguished service in any field.

Eligibility Criteria

• All persons, regardless of race, occupation, position or gender, are eligible for the award.
• Government servants, including employees of Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), are not eligible, except doctors and scientists.
• Awards are normally not conferred posthumously, but in highly deserving cases, exceptions are allowed.
• A minimum 5-year gap is required for conferring a higher category Padma award upon a previously awarded individual. However, this can be relaxed by the Awards Committee in exceptional cases.
• Nominations are open to the public, and self-nomination is also allowed.

 Selection Process

• All nominations are evaluated by the Padma Awards Committee, which is constituted annually by the Prime Minister.
• The Committee is headed by the Cabinet Secretary.
• Its recommendations are submitted to the Prime Minister and President for final approval.
• The awards are presented by the President, usually in March or April.
• Awardees receive a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion.

Other Key Features

• The total number of Padma awards per year is capped at 120, excluding:
  • Posthumous awards
  • Awards to NRIs, foreign nationals, and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs)
• The award does not constitute a title and cannot be used as a prefix or suffix to the awardee’s name.
• Disciplines covered: Awards span across art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports, civil service, among others.

Key Facts about Bhutan

• Bhutan is a landlocked Himalayan country, bordered by India to the south, east, and west, and China (Tibet Autonomous Region) to the north.
  • Indian states bordering Bhutan: Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, and Arunachal Pradesh.
• Thimphu is the capital and largest city of Bhutan.
  • Phuntsholing is Bhutan’s key financial and trade hub, located along the India-Bhutan border.
• Political System: Bhutan is a parliamentary monarchy.
  • It transitioned to democracy in 2008 with the first democratic elections.
  • The King of Bhutan remains the Head of State.
• Official name: Kingdom of Bhutan.
  • Local name: Druk Gyal Khap, meaning "Land of the Thunder Dragon".
• Longest River: The Manas River (376 km), a transboundary river flowing through southern Bhutan into India, forms an important ecological and trade corridor.

Significance of India–Bhutan Customs Cooperation

• India is Bhutan’s largest trading partner, accounting for about 80% of Bhutan’s total trade, making border customs cooperation vital for both countries.
• Bhutan, being a landlocked country, relies heavily on Land Customs Stations (LCSs) for trade. There are 10 India-Bhutan LCSs—6 in West Bengal and 4 in Assam.
• The JGC is an annual bilateral mechanism aimed at strengthening Customs cooperation, facilitating cross-border trade, and reforming customs procedures in line with global best practices.

About National Supercomputing Mission (NSM)

• The National Supercomputing Mission (NSM) is a flagship initiative launched in 2015 by the Government of India to strengthen the nation’s High-Performance Computing (HPC)
• It aims to enhance India’s computational capacity in sectors like science, technology, academia, research, and industry, making the country self-reliant in supercomputing technologies.
• The mission is jointly steered by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), and is implemented by C-DAC, Pune and IISc, Bengaluru.
• The key goal is to position India globally among top nations in supercomputing by enabling research, reducing technological import dependence, and creating a robust indigenous HPC ecosystem.

Key Achievements

• 34 supercomputers have been deployed with a total computational capacity of 35 Petaflops across top institutes like IITs, IISc, and C-DAC, including institutions in Tier II and Tier III cities.
• Supercomputers have recorded 85–95% utilisation, supporting over 10,000 researchers and 1,700+ PhD scholars from 200+ institutions.
• More than 1 crore computing jobs have been completed and over 1,500 research papers published, reflecting substantial research productivity.
• NSM has trained over 22,000 individuals in HPC and AI skills through five dedicated centres in Pune, Kharagpur, Chennai, Palakkad, and Goa.

Indigenisation Milestones

• "Rudra" HPC servers, developed indigenously, are the first HPC-class servers built in India, matching global standards.
• Supercomputers like PARAM Rudra (Pune, Delhi, Kolkata) have been dedicated for advanced research in physics, cosmology, and earth sciences.
• The Trinetra high-speed network (developed under NSM) boosts data transfer rates up to 200 Gbps and is being rolled out in phases – PoC, Trinetra-A (100 Gbps), and Trinetra-B (200 Gbps).

AI Supercomputing: AIRAWAT

• The AIRAWAT project is India’s AI-focused supercomputing initiative under NSM, offering a common AI computing platform for start-ups, researchers, and innovation hubs.
• The Proof of Concept (PoC) system of AIRAWAT features 200 petaflops of AI processing power, scalable to 790 AI petaflops.
• AIRAWAT secured 75th rank in the Top 500 Global Supercomputing List (ISC 2023, Germany), placing India among the top AI supercomputing nations.

Institutional Milestones

• PARAM Shivay (2019) at IIT-BHU was the first indigenous supercomputer under NSM.
• PARAM Pravega (2022) at IISc Bengaluru is among the largest academic supercomputers in India, with 3 petaflops processing power.

About Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA)

• The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) was established in 2016 under the Companies Act, 2013.
• It manages the Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) and promotes investor awareness and financial protection.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Corporate Affairs
• The IEPF consists of amounts that remained unclaimed for 7 years, including:
  • Unpaid dividends,
  • Application money is due for refund,
  • Matured deposits and debentures,
  • Interest on investments from the fund,
  • Grants or donations received from the government or other entities.

IEPFA’s ‘Niveshak Shivir’ Initiative

• ‘Niveshak Shivir’ is a joint initiative of IEPFA and SEBI launched to simplify the process of reclaiming unclaimed dividends and shares.
• The camps will feature one-stop kiosks set up by companies and RTAs in cities with large numbers of unclaimed dividend holders, starting with Mumbai and Ahmedabad in May 2025.
• Investors can update KYC and nominations, verify claim status, and get real-time grievance redressal at these camps.
• The initiative aims to reduce investor dependence on intermediaries, thereby minimising fraud and misinformation risks.

A QR-code-based Google Form will be used for pre-registration, supported by the regional offices of ICAI and SEBI.