Context

• India has made remarkable progress in financial inclusion, with millions gaining access to formal banking services.
• However, access alone cannot guarantee economic security or improve living standards.
• The next phase of development should focus on financial health, enabling individuals to manage daily expenses, withstand financial shocks, save for future goals, and retire with dignity.
• Strengthening financial health is essential for inclusive growth and long-term national prosperity.

The Story of Nar: A Symbol of Financial Transformation

• Nar, a golf club caddie with 45 years of service, had a bank account but lacked the means to save for retirement because of family responsibilities.
• Learning about the National Pension System (NPS) enabled him to begin saving, giving him confidence about his future.
• His journey shows that bank account ownership alone is insufficient.
• Long-term security depends on access to pensions, insurance, investments, and responsible credit, which together promote financial stability and dignity.

Understanding Financial Health

• Financial health refers to the ability to manage everyday expenses, remain resilient during emergencies, save and invest for short- and long-term goals, access suitable financial products, and maintain confidence about the future.
• Unlike financial inclusion, which focuses mainly on access to banking, financial health ensures that financial services genuinely improve people's lives and strengthen household resilience.

India's Achievements in Financial Inclusion

• India has achieved significant success in expanding financial access.
• According to the World Bank Global Findex, adult account ownership increased from 56% to 89% within a decade.
• Initiatives such as the Pradhan Mantri Jan-DhanYojana (PMJDY), Direct Benefit Transfers (DBTs), and digital payment systems have created a strong foundation for improving household financial well-being.

Financial Health and National Development

• Financially secure households contribute to resilient growth by coping better with economic shocks, investing in education and businesses, and improving productivity.
• Advancing financial health also supports the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, which aims to shift the country from welfare dependence to wealth creation through stronger household financial resilience.

Examples of Financial Health in Practice

• Informal workers in New Delhi have gained retirement security through Universal Pensions, reducing dependence on family members in old age.
• Nurses in Mumbai have improved financial stability through workplace financial wellness programmes offering financial health scores, responsible credit, and insurance.
• Banks, regulators, and fintech companies are using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital innovation to improve financial decision-making, increase savings, expand insurance coverage, and reduce financial fraud.

Four Key Recommendations

• Strengthen Jan Dhan 2.0
  • Transform PMJDY accounts into comprehensive financial resilience platforms by integrating them with schemes such as PM-KISAN, MGNREGA, e-Shram, Atal Pension Yojana (APY), PMJJBY, and PMSBY.
  • This would particularly benefit women, informal workers, migrants, and gig workers.
• Expand Digital Public Infrastructure
  • Leverage DigiLocker, Unified Lending Interface (ULI), Account Aggregators, MahaVISTAAR, and AI to improve financial capability, consumer choice, and informed financial decision-making.
• Improve Financial Health Data
  • Use household surveys, administrative records, and digital infrastructure to collect financial health data.
  • Better information will strengthen policymaking, improve consumer protection, and enhance accountability across the financial sector.
• Promote Public-Private Partnerships
  • Collaboration among the government, regulators, financial institutions, employers, and private firms is essential to expand responsible financial products and services.
  • International experiences demonstrate that such partnerships significantly improve household financial well-being. 

Conclusion

• Achieving universal financial health requires moving beyond financial inclusion to provide every household with access to pensions, insurance, responsible credit, savings opportunities, and digital financial services.
• Strengthening these systems through innovation, effective policies, and public-private collaboration will create a financially resilient society and accelerate progress toward Viksit Bharat 2047, ensuring security, dignity, and prosperity for all.

Why in News?

• Recent landslides in the Western Ghats (that struck the under-construction twin tunnel project in Wayanad, Kerala) and other parts of India have renewed focus on the urgent need for effective landslide early warning systems (LEWS).
• Experts argue that scientific forecasting, coupled with timely evacuation, can significantly reduce casualties in highly vulnerable regions such as the Western Ghats and the Himalayas.

Why in News?

• Why Early Warning Systems Matter?
• Major Approaches to Landslide Forecasting
• Towards a Comprehensive National Landslide Warning System
• Challenges and Way Forward
• Conclusion

Why Early Warning Systems Matter?

• Landslides are predictable to a considerable extent, particularly in identified high-risk zones.
• Early warning systems enable timely evacuation, reducing loss of life and property.
• Countries such as Switzerland have successfully prevented casualties through advance warnings and planned evacuations.
• In India, the 2024 Munnar landslides (Kerala) demonstrated the effectiveness of an early warning system, where evacuations based on scientific advice prevented fatalities.
• India's landslide vulnerability:
  • According to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), around 13% of India's landmass (0.42 million sq km) is prone to landslides.
  • The Himalayan region and the Western Ghats are the most vulnerable zones.
  • Highly vulnerable regions: Tehri Garhwal and Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand), Mandi and Shimla (Himachal Pradesh), Aizawl region (Mizoram), and parts of Manipur.
  • Relatively less vulnerable:
    • Sikkim, despite frequent attention, has comparatively lower vulnerability because road networks are less extensive.
    • Reduced mountain cutting and slope disturbance improve geological stability.

Major Approaches to Landslide Forecasting:

• Sensor-based monitoring system:
  • Developed by research groups such as Amrita University, this method involves installing sensors at high-risk slopes.
  • Key instruments: Tilt meters, pressure gauges, accelerometers, ground movement and vibration sensors.
  • Working mechanism:
    • Sensors continuously monitor slope stability.
    • When readings exceed predefined safety thresholds, warnings are issued to local authorities for evacuation.
  • Advantages: Scientifically robust and highly accurate. Provides sufficient lead time for evacuation. Successfully tested in Kerala.
  • Limitations: Monitors only the instrumented slope. Cannot predict landslides on nearby, unmonitored slopes. Installation and maintenance involve significant costs.
• Probabilistic forecasting model:
  • Developed by IIT Mandi, this approach predicts landslide probability across large regions.
  • Methodology:
    • Uses satellite-based mapping of historical landslides.
    • Integrates localised rainfall forecasts, soil characteristics, rock stability, slope gradient, and population density.
    • Employs 7–10 rainfall-derived parameters for each location.
  • Validation: Successfully validated against around 80 actual landslides in the Himalayan region.
  • Advantages: Covers extensive geographical areas, including remote locations. Identifies multiple vulnerable sites simultaneously.
  • Limitations:
    • Dependent on high-resolution rainfall forecasts.
    • Current rainfall predictions are available only one day in advance, limiting lead time.
    • Improved forecasts from the India Meteorological Department (IMD) could significantly enhance predictive capability.

Towards a Comprehensive National Landslide Warning System:

• Experts believe India can develop an effective nationwide LEWS within two years, provided adequate resources and institutional support are available.
• Priority actions: Identify high-frequency, high-impact landslide zones. Prepare detailed hazard zonation and risk maps. Install sensor networks at the most vulnerable locations.
• Integrate: Satellite monitoring, sensor-based observations, high-resolution weather forecasting, and GIS and remote sensing technologies.
• Strengthen coordination: Among IMD, NDMA, Geological Survey of India (GSI), State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs), and local administrations.

Challenges and Way Forward:

• Absence: Of comprehensive mapping of high-risk landslide hotspots. Develop an integrated National Landslide Early Warning System combining sensor-based monitoring with probabilistic forecasting models.
• Limited deployment of sensor networks: Expand landslide susceptibility mapping using remote sensing, GIS and AI-based analytics.
• Dependence on short-term rainfall forecasts: Accelerate development of high-resolution rainfall forecasting by IMD.
• High costs of monitoring infrastructure: Prioritise vulnerable infrastructure, transport corridors and densely populated hill settlements.
• Need: For greater inter-agency coordination and sustained investment. Promote community awareness, evacuation drills and local disaster preparedness.

Conclusion:

• With climate change increasing the frequency of extreme rainfall events, landslides are becoming a growing disaster risk in India.
• A combination of above suggestions can transform landslide management from reactive relief to proactive risk reduction, saving lives and protecting critical infrastructure.

Why in News?

• The film Satluj, based on the life of rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, premiered on ZEE5, after being stuck for nearly three years over certification issues.
• Just two days later, it was taken off the platform in India, though it remains available internationally. Government sources cited "security concerns," and an Inter-Departmental Committee under the IT Rules, 2021 has been set up to examine the matter.
• The episode has spotlighted India's two separate regulatory regimes: the Cinematograph Act for theatres and the IT Rules for streaming platforms.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Background: Why Was Satluj Banned?
• How CBFC Certification Works?
• How Streaming Platforms Are Regulated?
• Understanding Section 69A

Background: Why Was Satluj Banned

• The film chronicles the life and death of Jaswant Singh Khalra, an Amritsar-based activist who investigated the alleged illegal cremation of thousands of unidentified bodies by police during Punjab's militancy years.
• He was abducted and killed in 1995, a case in which several police officials were convicted.
• Originally titled Ghallughara, the film was renamed Punjab '95 after CBFC scrutiny, when the board demanded 127 cuts for theatrical release.
• The makers refused, so the film never reached cinemas. It later arrived on OTT, without cuts, under the new title Satluj.
• The makers had also challenged the CBFC's objections in the Bombay High Court in 2023 but later withdrew the petition.

How CBFC Certification Works?

• Theatrical releases are governed by the Cinematograph Act, 1952.
• Under Section 4, anyone wishing to publicly exhibit a film must obtain certification from the CBFC, a statutory body under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
  • Screening uncertified films in cinemas is a criminal offence.
• The CBFC certifies films as U (unrestricted), UA (unrestricted with parental guidance), A (adults only), and S (restricted to specialised audiences).
• The Cinematograph (Amendment) Act, 2023 split the UA category into age-based sub-categories and made certificates perpetually valid, removing the earlier 10-year limit.
• The Act allows the CBFC to refuse certification or demand cuts if a film threatens India's sovereignty and integrity, state security, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency, morality, or involves defamation or contempt of court.
  • These mirror the "reasonable restrictions" under Article 19(2) of the Constitution.
• Until 2021, filmmakers could appeal CBFC decisions before a dedicated tribunal (FCAT).
  • Tribunal rationalisation reforms abolished FCAT and shifted its functions to High Courts, making appeals slower and costlier for time-sensitive releases, and removing specialised judicial expertise in cinema matters.

How Streaming Platforms Are Regulated?

• OTT platforms historically operated with minimal oversight since the Cinematograph Act covers only public exhibition, not private viewing.
  • In 2019, the Karnataka High Court dismissed a plea to bring OTT content under the Cinematograph Act, distinguishing public exhibition from private streaming.
• OTT content is instead regulated under Part III of the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
• These rules prescribe a code of ethics and a three-tier grievance redressal structure: self-regulation by publishers, self-regulatory bodies, and government oversight via the Information & Broadcasting Ministry.
• This framework is currently under challenge, with the Bombay and Madras High Courts staying the provision.
• The 2023 Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, which sought to classify OTT platforms as broadcasting services, was later withdrawn.
• In Satluj's case, the government invoked its takedown power under Section 69A of the IT Act.

Understanding Section 69A

• Section 69A empowers the government to block content, exercised through the IT (Procedure and Safeguards for Blocking Access of Information by Public) Rules, 2009.
• The government must record reasons for blocking in writing, and a designated Review Committee examines whether such orders comply with Section 69A.
• In this case, the I&B Ministry constituted a high-level Inter-Departmental Committee under Rule 14 of the IT Rules to examine the film's content.
• The committee can recommend a warning, an apology or disclaimer, reclassification or modification of content, or complete deletion and blocking under Section 69A.

Conclusion

The Satluj episode reveals a regulatory gap: filmmakers can bypass strict CBFC theatrical scrutiny via OTT, but face parallel, less-defined IT Rules oversight instead.

This highlights the need for a coherent, rights-respecting framework governing content across both platforms, balancing free expression with genuine security concerns.

Why in news?

During his three-day visit to Indonesia, PM Modi announced that India will help restore the iconic Prambanan Temple in Yogyakarta, calling it a symbol of shared cultural heritage between the two nations.

During his recent trip to Indonesia, PM Modi visited the temple along with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, and jointly launched the India-supported conservation project.

This came amid a broader visit in which over 20 agreements were signed covering defence, maritime cooperation, critical minerals, technology, digital payments, and education.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Origins: A Hindu Temple Born from Dynastic Rivalry
• Architecture and Design
• The Legend of Loro Jonggrang
• Decline and Rediscovery
• A Symbol of Religious Harmony
• Heritage Recognition
• India's Role in Restoration

Origins: A Hindu Temple Born from Dynastic Rivalry

• Prambanan's history is rooted in the political and religious contest between two Javanese dynasties.
• The Sanjaya dynasty, associated with the revival of Shaivite Hinduism, ruled the Mataram Kingdom in Central Java during the 8th and 9th centuries.
• Its authority was challenged by the Sailendra dynasty, a powerful Buddhist royal house under which Javanese art and architecture flourished.
• Following the reign of Sailendra ruler Samaratungga, Rakai Pikatan of the Sanjaya dynasty married Samaratungga's daughter and ruled between 842-856 CE.
• He is credited with commissioning Prambanan as a grand Hindu sanctuary, marking the Sanjaya dynasty's return to power after nearly a century of Buddhist dominance.
• Inscriptions record the temple's consecration in 856 CE.

Architecture and Design

• Prambanan, built in the 9th century, is Indonesia's largest Hindu temple complex, located near the Buddhist Borobudur temple.
• Rather than a single structure, it is a complex built across the reigns of two kings, Rakai Pikatan and Rakai Balitung, originally comprising 240 large and small temples dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma.
• The complex follows a design of three concentric squares, with the innermost square housing 16 temples.
• The most significant is the 47-metre central Shiva temple, flanked by the Brahma temple to the north and the Vishnu temple to the south.
• The Shiva temple's interior has four chambers: the main eastern chamber houses a Shiva statue, while the other three house statues of Durga (his wife, also called Loro Jonggrang locally), Agastya (his teacher), and Ganesh (his son).
• The complex's walls are carved with scenes from the Ramayana.

Decline and Rediscovery

• Around 929-930 CE, the Mataram Kingdom's political centre shifted to East Java, a move linked to both the eruption of Mount Merapi and political-economic factors.
• As Central Java was abandoned, Prambanan fell into disuse and was gradually buried under vegetation and volcanic debris.
• Its rediscovery by outsiders is debated. A 15th-century Javanese court poet may have described the ruins in his writings.
• Later, Dutch East India Company official C.A. Lons documented the ruins during a visit in 1733.
• Thomas Stamford Raffles, Lieutenant-Governor of Java during the British interregnum (1811-16), took a keen interest in cataloguing Central Java's monuments in the 19th century.
• Restoration efforts, begun in 1918, were repeatedly interrupted by the Second World War and Indonesia's independence struggle, with the main temple's reconstruction finally completed in 1953 and inaugurated by Indonesia's first president, Soekarno.

A Symbol of Religious Harmony

• Prambanan reflects the coexistence of Hinduism and Buddhism in ancient Java.
• The marriage between the Hindu ruler Rakai Pikatan and a Buddhist princess is seen as symbolic of this harmony, echoed architecturally in a Buddhist stupa-like element atop the temple's superstructure.
• Several Buddhist temples, including Candi Sewu, Bubrah, and Lumbung, were built in the same era around Prambanan, reinforcing this shared religious landscape.
• In modern Indonesian usage, the word "candi" refers to any ancient Hindu or Buddhist shrine.

Heritage Recognition

• The Prambanan Temple Compounds were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage Listing 1991, recognised for their remarkable cultural value and architecture.
• The site was further designated a National Cultural Property in 1998, with a national law in 2010 supporting its protection and conservation.
• Today, Prambanan remains both a popular tourist destination and an active place of Hindu worship, with the Ramayana ballet performed at an open-air theatre on full moon evenings from May to October.

India's Role in Restoration

• New Delhi's assistance for Prambanan's conservation will be carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
• An ASI team surveyed the site in March 2026 and determined that restoration would use the anastylosis technique, reassembling structures using original stones found on location.
• Part of a Broader Pattern: India's Heritage Diplomacy
  • The Prambanan initiative fits into India's sustained strategy of restoring shared cultural heritage across Asia:
    • Vietnam (2014): MoU to restore the UNESCO-listed Mỹ Sơn Sanctuary, a Shaivite temple complex built between the 4th and 13th centuries as the religious hub of the Champa kingdom.
    • Myanmar (2017): MoU to restore monuments in the Bagan Archaeological Zone damaged by the 2016 earthquake.
    • Cambodia: Major Indian role in conserving the Angkor Wat complex.
    • Laos (2024): India completed restoration of the 1,000-year-old Vat Phou Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva.
    • Sri Lanka and Bangladesh: Additional conservation projects undertaken by the Indian govt.

Conclusion

The Prambanan restoration exemplifies India's use of shared civilisational heritage as a tool of soft power and diplomacy.

Beyond preserving a UNESCO site, it strengthens India-Indonesia ties and reflects New Delhi's consistent strategy of leveraging cultural connect across South and Southeast Asia to build lasting regional partnerships.

Context:

• Sharp oil price increases have historically triggered macroeconomic instability in India, recalling the 1973 oil shock and the 1991 balance-of-payments crisis.
• When tensions escalated in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz became the epicentre of global anxiety, many feared a repeat of history.
• India imports nearly 90% of its crude oil and depends heavily on the Gulf for oil, gas, and fertilizers, making it seemingly vulnerable.
• Yet India defied expectations and emerged stronger, raising the question: was this resilience luck, or the result of deliberate policy?

Defying the Odds

• India, the world's third-largest oil importer, faced serious exposure when the crisis hit.
• The Indian crude basket crossed $120 per barrel, LPG cylinder costs rose above ₹1,600, and war-risk premiums spiked sharply.
• Despite this, India contained inflation better than most peers:
  • Petrol prices rose just 7.5% in India, compared to 14% in Germany, 19% in the UK, 45% in the US, over 50% in Pakistan and the Philippines, and nearly 90% in Myanmar.
  • Diesel prices rose only 8% in India, versus about 85% in the UAE.
  • LPG cylinders stayed at ₹942 (₹642 for Ujjwala beneficiaries), cheaper than in Pakistan, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, and far below prices in the US, Australia, and Canada.
• This stability came at a fiscal cost: state-run Oil Marketing Companies absorbed ₹74,781 crore in losses on petrol, diesel, and LPG sales up to June 30, shielding households from the full price shock.

Weathering the Storm: Four Key Factors

• Strategic relationships as energy security: Sustained engagement with Iran and Gulf partners kept communication channels open. Iran facilitated movement of Indian ships, and Gulf producers continued supplying energy.
• Diversified supplier base: Energy partnerships with Russia, the US, Africa, and Latin America gave India flexibility that earlier crises lacked.
• A decade of energy planning: Higher ethanol blending, expanding renewable energy capacity, larger strategic reserves, and stronger refining capacity built layered resilience over time.
• Whole-of-government coordination: The Ministries of External Affairs, Petroleum and Natural Gas, Ports, Shipping and Waterways, the Indian Navy, and the National Security Council Secretariat worked together to monitor risks and protect supplies.

The Way Ahead

• The crisis demonstrated that resilience is built through years of preparation, not panic responses.
• Strategic foresight, diplomatic outreach, and institutional coordination together turned a potential shock into a managed outcome, one that could underpin India's 'Viksit Bharat' ambitions amid growing global uncertainty.

Conclusion

• India's calm handling of the West Asia crisis was no accident.
• It was the fruit of patient diplomacy, diversified energy sourcing, and coordinated governance, proof that true security lies in preparation, not improvisation, and a template for navigating future global shocks.

Context:

• India's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)—built around Aadhaar, UPI, GST, FASTag, and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)—has significantly improved governance, reduced leakages, and expanded financial inclusion.
• The next transformative phase lies in integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) with DPI, enabling higher state capacity, better public service delivery, and accelerated economic development under the government's Jan Vishwas approach.

From Digital Identity to Intelligent Governance:

• Japan's pension fraud involving deceased beneficiaries highlight how India's Aadhaar-enabled authentication has curbed similar leakages.
• Over the past decade, DPI has -
  • Improved efficiency in welfare delivery through DBT.
  • Reduced fraud in government expenditure.
  • Enabled India to account for nearly 42% of global digital payment transactions through UPI.
  • Expanded digital governance at an unprecedented scale.
• The next step is to combine this digital infrastructure with AI for smarter governance.

Why India is Uniquely Positioned for AI?

• World's largest natural data laboratory: India has transformed from a data-poor to a data-rich economy due to three major reforms introduced around 2016 -
  • Jio (mass internet access),
  • UPI (digital payments), and
  • GST (formalisation of the economy).
• These have generated massive real-time datasets, for example,
  • UPI: Around 23 billion monthly transactions, producing valuable behavioural and financial data.
  • GST: Nearly 20 crore payment records, providing real-time insights into production, consumption and supply chains.
  • FASTag: Around 4.5 billion annual transactions, generating logistics and mobility data.
  • Aadhaar: More than 27 billion annual authentications, enabling a 16-fold expansion in DBT beneficiaries.
• Unlike traditional surveys that are delayed and incomplete, these datasets enable continuous evidence-based policymaking.
• However, India still requires better academic research, stronger think tanks, open public data ecosystems, and improved data governance.

AI Can Transform State Capacity:

• Addressing India's governance deficit:
  • India's relatively weak state capacity has been a major constraint on economic transformation despite being the world's largest democracy.
  • Traditionally, governments improved capacity by expanding bureaucracy, increasing public expenditure, and creating more administrative structures.
  • Today, AI integrated with DPI can achieve similar outcomes more efficiently by optimising resource allocation, improving service delivery, detecting fraud earlier, and enabling faster policy responses.
• Current challenges: Despite impressive digital infrastructure, governance remains constrained by -
  • Fragmented digital systems (digital silos),
  • Poor interoperability,
  • Limited government technological capability,
  • Continued dependence on document-based governance (PDFs) instead of interoperable APIs.
• How AI can help?
  • It can integrate structured and unstructured government data.
  • Strengthen multilingual citizen interfaces.
  • Improve education and healthcare delivery.
  • Enhance labour market matching.
  • Operate within India's consent-based data architecture and the principles of Jan Vishwas Siddhant, ensuring trust-based governance.
• Essence: DPI without AI is infrastructure; AI without DPI is intelligence; AI combined with DPI creates enhanced state capacity.

AI Deployment can Generate More Jobs than AI Development:

• India may not currently lead in developing frontier AI models, with countries like the US and China dominating AI innovation.
• However, India's comparative advantage lies in AI deployment rather than AI generation.
• Deploying AI across governance, businesses and public services requires skilled professionals, organisational innovation, sector-specific applications, and human capital development.
• Just as one need not manufacture cars to benefit from roads, India need not build every frontier AI model to create enormous value through AI applications.

Enterprise DPI - The Next Frontier:

• India is developing an Enterprise DPI, which may include Universal Enterprise Number, entity DigiLocker, API Setu, and single source of truth for regulation.
• Combined with a proposed Universal Lifetime Social Security Account ("Aadhaar Punji"), it could -
  • Reduce information asymmetry,
  • Lower transaction costs,
  • Improve credit access,
  • Enhance worker-job matching,
  • Strengthen supply chains,
  • Accelerate formalisation,
  • Generate high-productivity private non-farm employment.
• The model resembles how NPCI created a public digital layer that enabled large-scale private innovation in payments.

Strategic Importance:

• Drawing from the Arthashastra, the successful national strategy aligns strength, timing, and institutional capability.
• India's strengths: Population-scale DPI, vast digital datasets, growing AI capabilities, and trust-based governance through Jan Vishwas.
• Opportunity: While 66% of connected Indians use the internet primarily for entertainment, only 11% use it for online government services, indicating significant scope for expanding digital governance.

Conclusion:

• By integrating AI with DPI, India can strengthen state capacity, improve public service delivery, accelerate formalisation, generate quality employment, and achieve inclusive economic growth.
• Realising this vision will require stronger interoperability, robust data governance, research ecosystems, and citizen-centric digital services grounded in trust and transparency.