About Altermagnetism and RuO₂ Discovery

• Altermagnetism is recognised as the third fundamental class of magnetism, distinct from ferromagnetism and antiferromagnetism.
• In altermagnetic materials, magnetic moments alternate, but their arrangement follows complex symmetry operations such as rotation and reflection, rather than simple up–down cancellation.
• This leads to a net-zero external magnetic field, similar to antiferromagnets, but with internal electronic spin splitting comparable to ferromagnets.
• Ruthenium dioxide (RuO₂) thin films have been experimentally demonstrated to exhibit true altermagnetism, resolving long-standing global inconsistencies.
• The discovery was made by a joint research team from National Institute for Materials Science (Japan), University of Tokyo, Kyoto Institute of Technology, and Tohoku University, and published in Nature Communications.
• The team fabricated single-orientation (single-variant) RuO₂ thin films on sapphire substrates, ensuring uniform crystallographic orientation, which was crucial for conclusive verification.
• Using X-ray Magnetic Linear Dichroism (XMLD), researchers confirmed spin arrangements where net magnetisation cancels (no N–S poles).
• The study also observed spin-split magnetoresistance, electrically verifying the spin-splitting electronic structure, a key signature of altermagnetism.
• The experimental results were found to be consistent with first-principles calculations of magneto-crystalline anisotropy, strengthening theoretical validation.

About Exercise Desert Cyclone II

• Desert Cyclone II is the second edition of the India–U.A.E. Joint Military Exercise, following the inaugural edition held in 2024.
• The Indian contingent comprises personnel primarily drawn from a Mechanised Infantry Regiment battalion of the Indian Army.
• The A.E. Land Forces are represented by a contingent of similar strength from the Mechanised Infantry Battalion.
• The core objective of the exercise is to enhance interoperability and strengthen defence cooperation between the Indian Army and the U.A.E. Land Forces.
• The exercise focuses on sub-conventional operations in urban environments under a United Nations mandate, preparing forces for peacekeeping, counter-terrorism, and stability operations.
• Joint training includes fighting in built-up areas, heliborne operations, and detailed joint mission planning.
• A key feature is the integration of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and counter-UAS techniques for conducting urban military operations.
• The conduct of Desert Cyclone II reflects deepening military diplomacy, shared strategic interests, and growing operational synergy between India and the U.A.E.

Key Facts about India–U.A.E. Defence Relations

• India and the U.A.E. established diplomatic relations in 1972.
• The A.E. opened its Embassy in New Delhi in 1972, while India opened its Embassy in Abu Dhabi in 1973.
• The first-ever India–U.A.E. Joint Air Forces exercise was conducted in 2008 at the Al-Dhafra Air Base, Abu Dhabi.
• India has been a regular participant in the biennial International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) held in Abu Dhabi.
• In 2025, Indian Navy ships INS Visakhapatnam and INS Trikand participated in the bilateral naval exercise “Zayed Talwar”, aimed at enhancing naval interoperability and synergy.

About Kavach System

• Kavach is an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system designed to enhance railway operational safety.
• It has been developed by the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) under Indian Railways (IR) in collaboration with Medha Servo Drives Pvt Ltd, HBL Power Systems Ltd, and Kernex Microsystems.
• Kavach is a highly complex digital safety ecosystem consisting of five major integrated components, including continuous Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) laid along tracks and telecom towers for uninterrupted communication.
• The system uses a combination of electronic devices and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) installed in locomotives, signalling systems, and railway tracks, which communicate using ultra-high radio frequencies.
• Based on pre-programmed safety logic, Kavach can alert loco pilots, automatically apply brakes, and prevent unsafe train movements.

About INS Hansa

• INS Hansa is an Indian Naval Air Station located near Dabolim, Goa.
• It is the largest naval airbase in India and houses some of the Indian Navy’s premier air squadrons.
• The base includes a civil enclave, which functions as Dabolim Airport, handling domestic and international flights round-the-clock.
• The station was originally commissioned on at Sulur near Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, and was initially co-located with the Indian Air Force’s Sulur Air Force Station.
• Following the liberation of Goa, the Navy took over Dabolim airfield in 1962, and INS Hansa was relocated to Dabolim in 1964.
• INS Hansa has earlier witnessed key capability additions, including the commissioning of the second P-8I maritime patrol aircraft squadron in 2022, strengthening shore-based fixed-wing naval operations.
• The Navy is also progressing the acquisition of 15 MQ-9B Sea Guardian remotely piloted aircraft, which will enable persistent maritime surveillance and enhanced Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA).
• Although formally commissioned at Goa, the MH-60R helicopters have already demonstrated operational effectiveness in Operation Sindoor, TROPEX-25, and the Tri-Services Exercise 2025.

About MH-60R Seahawk Helicopter

• INAS 335 is the second Indian Naval Air Squadron to operate the MH-60R Seahawk helicopters, following the commissioning of the first squadron at Kochi, Kerala, in 2024.
• The MH-60R is an all-weather, day-and-night capable, multi-role helicopter designed to operate from ships and shore bases.
• It is optimised for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), enabling detection, tracking, and engagement of enemy submarines.
• The helicopter performs Anti-Surface Warfare (ASuW) roles against enemy surface vessels.
• It is equipped for Search and Rescue (SAR) and Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) missions during peacetime and combat operations.
• The platform supports Vertical Replenishment (VERTREP), improving logistics sustainment of naval task forces at sea.
• The induction of INAS 335 substantially augments integral naval aviation capability on the western seaboard, a region of high strategic and commercial importance.

Why in news?

The Indian Navy has commissioned its second MH-60R Seahawk helicopter squadron, INAS 335, at INS Hansa in Goa.

Nicknamed the “Ospreys,” the squadron operates US-origin MH-60R helicopters, the maritime variant of the Black Hawk. These helicopters will significantly enhance the Navy’s anti-submarine warfare, maritime surveillance, and blue-water operational capabilities, strengthening India’s overall naval defence posture.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• MH-60R Seahawks Fully Integrated into Naval Operations
• Key Features of the MH-60R Seahawk Helicopter
• MH-60R: Strengthening India’s Response to Conventional and Asymmetric Maritime Threats
• Five-Year Sustainment Support to Boost MH-60R Operational Readiness

MH-60R Seahawks Fully Integrated into Naval Operations

• With the induction of INAS 335, the Indian Navy has now fully operationalised its MH-60R Seahawk fleet.
• The first squadron, INAS 334, was commissioned at INS Garuda, Kochi, in March 2024, enabling seamless integration across the Navy’s air and sea-based platforms.
• The MH-60R helicopters can operate from shore bases, aircraft carriers, and major warships.
• These are designed for diverse roles including anti-submarine warfare (ASW), anti-surface warfare (ASuW), surveillance, search and rescue (SAR), medical evacuation (MEDEVAC), and vertical replenishment (VERTREP).
• Rigorously tested under Indian Reference Atmosphere (IRA) conditions, the 24 US-acquired helicopters are replacing the ageing Sea King fleet.
• Their induction in 2025 also marks 75 years since the approval of the Indian Navy’s Fleet Air Arm, underscoring a major milestone in naval aviation capability.

Key Features of the MH-60R Seahawk Helicopter

• The MH-60R Seahawk is a highly advanced maritime helicopter developed by Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, to US Navy specifications.
• A variant of the Black Hawk platform, it has also been used in high-profile missions such as Operation Neptune Spear in 2011.
• Equipped with a state-of-the-art digital sensor suite, the MH-60R features multi-mode radar, electronic support measures, infrared cameras, advanced datalinks, aircraft survivability systems, and dipping sonars.
• Its onboard mission system integrates sensor data to generate a comprehensive picture of surface and sub-surface threats.
• This enhanced situational awareness allows precise detection, tracking, and targeting of enemy ships and submarines.
• The helicopter can be armed with torpedoes, air-to-ground missiles, rockets, and onboard guns, making it a powerful platform for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare.

MH-60R: Strengthening India’s Response to Conventional and Asymmetric Maritime Threats

• The Indian Navy has described the MH-60R Seahawk as a highly agile and versatile platform capable of addressing both traditional and non-conventional maritime threats.
• On the conventional front, its core role is anti-submarine warfare, using dipping sonar, sonobuoys and torpedoes to detect, track and neutralise hostile submarines.
• It can also engage enemy surface ships, conduct mine-related reconnaissance, support sea-denial missions and extend the strike range of warships during blue-water operations in the deep sea.
• Equally significant is its role in countering asymmetric threats such as maritime terrorism, piracy, smuggling, sea-borne infiltration, sabotage of ports and offshore infrastructure, and disruptions by non-state actors.
• The helicopter is also suited to detecting unmanned threats like drones and hostile activity concealed within civilian or fishing vessels.
• As Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi has noted, modern maritime power is increasingly shaped by asymmetric capabilities deployed by both state and non-state actors.
• In this evolving security environment, the induction of the MH-60R substantially enhances India’s maritime surveillance, deterrence and response capabilities.

Five-Year Sustainment Support to Boost MH-60R Operational Readiness

• The Ministry of Defence has signed agreements with the United States to provide five years of sustainment support for the Indian Navy’s MH-60R Seahawk fleet.
• This comprehensive package includes spare parts, support equipment, training, technical assistance, repair and replenishment of components, and the establishment of intermediate-level repair and periodic maintenance facilities in India.
• According to the MoD, the support will significantly improve the helicopters’ operational availability and maintainability, enabling all-weather operations from ships and dispersed locations, and ensuring optimal performance across their full range of missions.

Why in news?

China recently demonstrated a major advance in rail technology by successfully operating seven fully loaded freight trains as a single coordinated unit without physical coupling.

Using a wireless control system, each train—carrying about 5,000 tonnes—ran at much closer intervals than normally possible. This innovation allows for safer, synchronised movement, effectively increasing freight capacity and efficiency.

The technology could significantly strengthen China’s already dominant rail freight network by enabling faster transport of larger cargo volumes without expanding physical infrastructure.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Wireless Control System Behind China’s Multi-Train Run
• Safe Spacing Through Wireless Synchronisation
• Implications for China’s Rail Freight Capacity
• Why Wireless Multi-Train Control Matters for China?

Wireless Control System Behind China’s Multi-Train Run

• China’s seven-train freight operation was enabled by a wireless control system deployed on the Baoshen Railway in Inner Mongolia.
• Instead of using traditional mechanical couplings, the trains were synchronised through a wireless network that coordinated their movement as a single unit.
• The system was developed by China Shenhua Energy, a subsidiary of the state-owned CHN Energy group, overcoming the key challenge of linking multiple heavy freight trains without physically joining them.
• Technology Behind China’s Wireless Train Convoy
  • China’s wireless freight convoy is powered by a “two-dimensional control mode” developed by China Shenhua Energy and domestic partners.
  • The system combines relative speed control with absolute distance monitoring, using continuous communication between trains and ground systems.
  • This virtual coupling allows trains to adjust dynamically to speed changes, shorten braking distances, and safely operate at closer intervals without physical connections.

Safe Spacing Through Wireless Synchronisation

• Despite operating closely on the same track, the seven freight trains maintained safe distances during the trial.
• CHN Energy said each train ran about 1,091 metres apart at a speed of 60 kmph.
• Using wireless communication and precise control, the system synchronised acceleration and braking across all trains without mechanical couplers.
• According to China Central Television (CCTV) report, the operation was completed without any collision or separation, demonstrating that wireless coordination can ensure both safety and efficiency in multi-train freight movement.

Implications for China’s Rail Freight Capacity

• The successful wireless multi-train operation could significantly boost China’s freight capacity—by up to 50%—without requiring new rail infrastructure.
• The breakthrough aligns with China’s strategy of using advanced technology to increase loading efficiency.
• CHN Energy noted that since 2022, the project has been tested across multiple heavy-haul scenarios, offering a scalable model for rail systems worldwide.

Why Wireless Multi-Train Control Matters for China?

• China’s rail freight volumes continue to surge, with over 3 billion tonnes moved in the first nine months of the year.
• Expanding capacity by building new lines is expensive, making efficiency-enhancing technologies more attractive. Wireless group train control allows longer trains, shorter intervals, and denser convoys without new infrastructure.
• The system can also raise station “throat capacity,” enabling more trains to enter and exit efficiently.
• As China expands international services like China Railway Express across Europe and Asia, mastering such technology strengthens its freight competitiveness and positions it as a global leader in heavy-haul rail operations.

Context:

• As India’s economy rises, millions from States like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Kerala migrate abroad for work, sustaining families and contributing significantly to national income.
• However, the Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2025—meant to replace the 1983 Emigration Act—risks weakening protections for these vulnerable workers.
• Marketed as a modern, efficient reform, the Bill prioritises ease of movement and deregulation over worker safety and welfare.
• Critics argue it could intensify exploitation rather than provide meaningful safeguards, turning a promised shield into a system that accelerates migrant workers’ insecurity.
• This article highlights how India’s Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2025, risks undermining the rights and safety of millions of migrant workers by prioritising deregulation and administrative ease over protection, accountability, and welfare.

Overseas Mobility Bill, 2025: Core Concerns

• Dilution of Migrant Workers’ Legal Rights
  • The Bill removes provisions that earlier allowed migrant workers to directly pursue legal action against exploiters.
  • Unlike the 2021 draft, it weakens enforceable rights and shifts responsibility to an overstretched state apparatus.
• Weakening Protections for Women and Vulnerable Migrants
  • Labour migration is deeply gendered, yet the Bill dilutes specific safeguards for women and children.
  • Stronger penalties proposed earlier are replaced with vague references to “vulnerable classes,” risking poor enforcement.
• Silence on Human Trafficking
  • The Bill fails to explicitly address human trafficking, despite migrants operating in high-risk corridors.
  • This omission undermines protection against coercion, forced labour, and modern forms of slavery.
• Deregulation of Recruitment Agencies
  • Key anti-exploitation measures are rolled back.
  • Mandatory disclosure of recruitment fees is dropped, increasing risks of debt bondage, contract substitution, and fraud by unregulated agents.
• Risky Accreditation and Digital-Only Oversight
  • Replacing Emigration Check Posts with digital clearances may streamline procedures but removes critical on-ground safeguards.
  • The accreditation model risks legitimising unscrupulous recruiters.
• Reduced Accountability Abroad
  • Earlier provisions holding recruitment agencies responsible for reception, dispute resolution, and document renewal overseas are diluted.
  • These duties are shifted to government bodies with limited capacity.
• Surveillance Without Safeguards
  • The Integrated Information System expands data collection without clear consent or protection norms, raising concerns about surveillance rather than worker welfare.
  • Online recruitment fraud remains unaddressed.
• Inadequate Reintegration Support
  • Reintegration measures are weak.
  • The Bill offers limited support for skill training or trauma care and excludes migrants deported within 182 days from rehabilitation benefits.
• Excessive Centralisation
  • Decision-making is concentrated at the Centre, sidelining States with high migration experience like Kerala and Uttar Pradesh.
  • Trade unions and civil society groups are excluded from governance structures.
• Weak Penalties and Enforcement Gaps
  • Penalties target recruitment violations but fail to address traffickers or abusive overseas employers, leaving the most powerful actors beyond the law’s reach.

A Call to Strengthen Protections for India’s Migrant Workers

• India’s labour migrants are vital contributors to the economy, not expendable exports.
• The Overseas Mobility Bill, 2025 risks deepening inequities by weakening safeguards and accountability.
• Parliament must act to restore workers’ self-advocacy rights, enforce transparent recruitment fees, ensure post-arrival protections, and involve States and civil society in governance.
• Stronger anti-trafficking provisions, expanded definitions of work, meaningful penalties with compensation, and well-funded reintegration support are essential.
• What migrants need is not facilitation alone, but firm legal and institutional protection.

Conclusion

• Unless substantially amended, the Overseas Mobility Bill will deepen migrant vulnerability; India must replace facilitation-driven reform with a rights-based, federal, and worker-centric protection framework.

Why in the News?

• The Supreme Court has settled a uniform definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges and paused fresh mining leases across Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, while issuing directions for sustainable mining and ecological restoration of the region.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Aravalli Mountain Range (Geographical & Ecological Significance, etc.)
• Mining & Environmental Degradation (Court’s Intervention, Committee’s Recommendations, Sustainable Mining, etc.)

Aravalli Mountain Range: Geographic and Ecological Significance

• The Aravalli Mountain Range is one of the oldest mountain systems in the world, estimated to be nearly two billion years old.
• Stretching over 650 km from Delhi to Gujarat, the range passes through Haryana, Rajasthan, and Gujarat, forming a critical ecological spine in north-western India.
• Ecologically, the Aravalli’s act as a natural barrier against desertification, preventing the eastward expansion of the Thar Desert into the fertile Indo-Gangetic plains.
• They play a vital role in climate regulation, groundwater recharge, and biodiversity conservation.
• Several important rivers, such as the Chambal, Sabarmati, and Luni, originate from or are supported by the Aravalli system.
• The region is rich in minerals like limestone, marble, sandstone, copper, zinc, and tungsten, which have historically made it a mining hub.
• However, excessive quarrying over recent decades has severely degraded forests, reduced groundwater levels, and worsened air quality, especially in the National Capital Region (NCR).

Mining and Environmental Degradation

• Since the early 1990s, the Environment Ministry has issued regulations restricting mining to sanctioned projects.
• Despite this, widespread illegal and unregulated mining continued, particularly in parts of Haryana and Rajasthan.
• In 2009, the Supreme Court imposed a blanket ban on mining in Faridabad, Gurugram, and Mewat districts of Haryana. However, enforcement challenges persisted.
• Recognising the long-term ecological risks and India’s commitments under the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, the Court revisited the issue in recent years to adopt a more comprehensive and sustainable approach.

Supreme Court Intervention and Uniform Definition

• A major issue in protecting the Aravalli’s was the absence of a uniform definition.
• Different States and agencies used inconsistent criteria to identify Aravalli formations, leading to regulatory loopholes.
• To address this, the Supreme Court constituted a committee comprising representatives from the Environment Ministry, Forest Survey of India (FSI), Geological Survey of India, State Forest Departments, and the Central Empowered Committee (CEC).
• In 2025, the Court accepted the committee’s recommendation that hills above 100 metres in height would be considered part of the Aravalli range.
• While concerns were raised that this definition might exclude smaller formations, the Court held that it was more inclusive and workable than earlier slope-based or buffer-based definitions, which risked excluding large areas altogether.

Central Empowered Committee Recommendations

• The Central Empowered Committee proposed a science-based, multi-layered strategy for protecting the Aravalli’s. Key recommendations included:

• Comprehensive scientific mapping of the Aravalli range across all States
• Macro-level environmental impact assessment of mining activities
• Strict prohibition of mining in ecologically sensitive zones such as wildlife corridors, aquifer recharge areas, water bodies, and protected habitats
• No new mining leases or renewals until proper mapping and assessments are completed
• Tight regulation of stone-crushing units contributing to air pollution

• These recommendations were accepted by the Supreme Court in its November 2025 order.

Sustainable Mining and the Green Wall Initiative

• Instead of imposing a complete ban, the Supreme Court adopted a calibrated approach.
• It allowed existing legal mining to continue under strict regulation while pausing fresh approvals. The Court noted that total bans often fuel illegal mining mafias and unregulated extraction.
• Complementing judicial action, the Centre launched the Aravalli Green Wall Project in June 2025.
• The initiative aims to increase green cover in a five-kilometre buffer zone across 29 districts in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Delhi.
• The project targets the restoration of 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030, strengthening India’s land degradation neutrality goals

Context:

• India has withdrawn Quality Control Orders (QCOs) on a wide range of industrial raw materials and intermediates, marking a significant regulatory reset in manufacturing governance.
• The move reflects a shift away from excessive mandatory certification towards a risk-based, pragmatic quality regime, aligned with global best practices.
• The decision (notified on November 13) follows the concerns raised by industry, MSMEs, and NITI Aayog.

Quality Control Orders (QCOs):

• QCOs mandate compulsory BIS certification for specified products, intended to prevent substandard imports and protect consumers.
• Over time, QCOs expanded from about 70 products a decade ago to about 790 products (as per NITI Aayog), including low-risk industrial inputs.

Key Features of the Rollback:

• Removal of compulsory BIS certification for 14 chemical products (chemicals and petrochemicals department) and 6 products (ministry of chemicals).
• It covers widely used industrial intermediates such as polymers, fibre intermediates, aluminium and copper products, and certain steel grades.
• These inputs pose no direct consumer safety risk.

Problems with the Earlier QCO Regime:

• One-size-fits-all regulation: Mandatory certification applied even to low-risk, widely traded inputs. Certification became a blunt instrument, not a targeted safety tool.
• High compliance costs: Foreign suppliers (Japan, Korea, EU) often refused factory inspections for low-volume exports. Resulted in input shortages, higher prices, reduced sourcing options.
• MSME and export competitiveness hit:
  • MSMEs struggled with paperwork, delays, and limited testing capacity.
  • Export sectors (textiles, electronics, engineering goods) lost price competitiveness vis-à-vis Vietnam, China, Bangladesh.
• Global practice ignored: In the EU and US, conformity requirements apply mainly to finished goods, safety-critical items. Intermediate inputs are governed largely by voluntary standards and contracts.

Significance of the Rollback:

• Regulatory maturity: Signals India’s shift from over-regulation to smart regulation. Acknowledges complex modern supply chains, especially under PLI schemes.
• Boost to manufacturing strategy: Easier access to globally competitive inputs. Supports India’s goal of becoming a manufacturing hub. Positive signal to investors and trading partners.

Challenges and Way Ahead:

• Risk of quality dilution if oversight weakens: Mandatory certification only where consumer or public safety is directly involved (e.g., pressure vessels, electrical equipment).
• Capacity constraints: Improve regulatory capacity, expand testing facilities, reduce certification timelines, and pre-notification impact assessments.
• Focus on enforcement, not expansion: Sharper enforcement improves credibility more than regulatory overreach.
• Weak voluntary standards: Promote contractual quality assurance and international standards for intermediates.

Conclusion:

• The rollback of QCOs marks a decisive shift from compliance-heavy regulation to outcome-oriented governance.
• Regulations that raise costs without enhancing safety undermine India’s manufacturing ambitions. Regulation should protect consumers, not choke competitiveness.
• A proportionate, globally aligned, and capacity-driven quality regime will better position India in the industries that will define the next decade.