PM Surya Ghar scheme

Government Schemes

In News

Recently, the Prime Minister praised 30 lakh households adopting rooftop solar under the PM Surya Ghar scheme, marking a key clean energy milestone.
Gujarat leads in adoption, followed by Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, with widespread participation across other states and UTs.

PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana

Objective: Installing rooftop solar (RTS) & providing free electricity for up to 300 monthly units for 1 Crore households.

Uniqueness – It is the world’s largest domestic rooftop solar initiative, transforming India’s energy landscape
Subsidy: The scheme offers a subsidy of up to 40% to households.

Defence

Context

The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Tejas fighter aircraft fleet is undergoing a “maintenance check” to determine the reason for the recent incident that occurred while one of the fighters was taking off from a base.

Tejas fighter aircraft

It is an indigenous, fourth-generation, multi-role supersonic fighter jet developed for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Navy

Designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) under DRDO and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Major Variants

Variant	Features	Status
Tejas Mk-1	Initial version; 4th-gen capabilities.	Operational in IAF.
Tejas Mk-1A	4.5-gen; features AESA Radar (Uttam), Advanced Electronic Warfare Suite, and mid-air refueling.	First aircraft completed; mass production starting in 2026.
Tejas Mk-2	Medium Weight Fighter; larger airframe, canards, more powerful GE F414 engine.	Prototype flight expected by mid-2026.
Naval Variant	Carrier-capable with strengthened landing gear and arrestor hook.	Prototype successfully tested on *INS Vikramaditya*.

Environment

Context

CITES report revealed that over 500,000 pangolins were seized globally between 2016 and 2024.

Pangolin

Pangolins are mammals covered in keratin scales, the only such mammals on Earth.
They feed on ants, termites, and larvae using their long sticky tongues.
When threatened, they use volvation (rolling into a ball) to protect themselves with their armor-like scales.
They are considered “ecosystem engineers” due to their role in soil aeration and pest control.
There are eight recognised species of pangolins globally — four species are found in Africa (Black-bellied, White-bellied, Giant Ground, and Temminck’s Ground pangolins) and four species are found in Asia (Indian, Philippine, Sunda, and Chinese pangolins).

Health

Context

The Union government is set to launch a nationwide immunisation drive against Human Papillomavirus (HPV) targeting girls aged 14 years, marking a major preventive step against cervical cancer.

Human papillomavirus (HPV)

Additional Information – Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer develops in a woman’s cervix (the entrance to the uterus from the vagina).
Spread: Almost all cervical cancer cases (99%) are linked to infection with high-risk human papillomaviruses (HPV), an extremely common virus transmitted through sexual contact.
Prevalence: Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women.
It is the second most common type of cancer in India for women.
Treatment: When diagnosed, cervical cancer is one of the most successfully treatable forms of cancer, as long as it is detected early and managed effectively.
Vaccination: There are, at present, two vaccines available in the country against the human papillomavirus (HPV) which causes cervical cancer, namely Merck’s Gardasil and Serum Institute of India’s Cervavac.

Governance

In News

The Supreme Court dismissed a plea filed by an overseas citizen of India (OCI) seeking to be treated at par with NRIs for the purpose of practising law and obtaining state bar council membership.

Overseas Citizen of India

Introduced in – OCI scheme was introduced by the Indian government in 2005.
A registered OCI is granted multiple entry, multi-purpose life-long visa for visiting India.
They are exempted from registration with Foreign Regional Registration Officer (FRRO) or Foreign Registration Officer (FRO) for any length of stay in India.
OCI cardholders can open special bank accounts in India. They can buy non-farm property and exercise ownership rights. They can also apply for a driver’s licence and PAN card.
However they are required to seek permission or a permit to visit protected areas in India.