Current Context: The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has launched the Samarth Incubation Program to support startups in India’s telecommunications and IT sectors, fostering innovation and technological advancement.

• Objective: Encourage sustainable, scalable business models in areas like Telecom Software, Cybersecurity, 5G/6G, AI, IoT, and Quantum Technologies.

Support Offered:

• Grants up to ₹5 lakh.
• Furnished office space at C-DOT campus for six months.
• Access to C-DOT lab facilities and expert mentorship.

Structure:

• Two cohorts, each with 18 startups, lasting six months.
• Conducted in hybrid mode.
• Networking: Facilitates connections with investors and industry leaders, fostering collaboration and creating job opportunities.
• Future Scope: Startups may qualify for C-DOT Collaborative Research Program for long-term partnerships.

Current Context: Chandrayaan-4, ISRO’s fourth lunar mission, is scheduled for launch in October 2027. It aims to achieve a landmark lunar sample return, advancing India’s space exploration capabilities.

About:

• Mission Objectives:
• Soft landing on the Moon’s southern polar region.
• Collection and return of lunar surface and sub-surface samples.

Launch Details:

• Two crafts, weighing 4,750 kg each, launched via two LVM3 rockets.
• Involves docking and undocking procedures in space.
• Funding: Allocated ₹2,104 crores (~$240 million).
• Significance: Places India alongside the USA, Russia, and China in lunar sample return missions.

Technological Innovations:

• Surface Sampling Robot and drilling mechanism for advanced sample collection.
• Five modules: Propulsion (PM), Transfer (TM), Re-entry (RM), Ascender (AM), and Descender (DM).
• Sample Return Process: DM collects samples, AM transfers them to orbit, and RM safely returns them to Earth.
• Future Implications: Prepares for manned lunar missions and boosts India’s space technology and employment.

Current Context: The Kaliyattam Festival, also known as Theyyam, is celebrated during the Malayalam month of Kumbham (February-March) in Kerala, showcasing ritual dance performances and cultural heritage.

About:

• Significance: The festival honors Goddess Kali and is recognized as part of Kerala’s intangible cultural heritage.
• Celebration Sites: Conducted in Kavus (sacred groves) and tharavadus (ancestral homes).
• Rituals: Performers are believed to embody deities, referred to as the “dance of gods.”
• Cultural Importance: Highlights Kerala’s traditional art forms and spiritual practices.

Context: The Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano on Flores Island, Indonesia, erupted three times on March 21, 2025, sending ash 8,000 meters high.

Key Facts

• Location: Flores Island, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia.
• Volcano Type: Stratovolcano; part of a twin-volcano system (Lewotobi Lakilaki – male, Lewotobi Perempuan – female).
• Ring of Fire: Indonesia lies on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire,’ a seismically active zone with frequent volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunamis.

• Anuj Kumar Singh, a 2009 batch officer of the Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers (IRSEE), has been appointed as the Joint Secretary (Director level) in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), Delhi.

• NIIT University (NU) has appointed Shri Amitabh Kant, former CEO of NITI Aayog and India’s G20 Sherpa, as its new Chancellor.
• Shri Amitabh Kant succeeds Shri K Kasturirangan, who significantly contributed to NU’s growth and reputation.

• The International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members is observed annually on March 25.
• Objective: To mobilize action, demand justice, and ensure the protection of UN staff, peacekeepers, and colleagues in NGOs and the press.
• Significance: A day to honor those detained or missing in the line of duty and to reaffirm efforts to safeguard their rights and safety.

• The Day of the Unborn Child is celebrated on March 25 each year.
• Aim: To raise awareness about the value and rights of unborn children and to condemn abortions.
• Established: In 1999 by Pope John Paul II.

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) reduced the minimum investment for Zero Coupon Zero Principal (ZCZP) instruments on the Social Stock Exchange (SSE) from ₹10,000 to ₹1,000 to boost retail participation in funding non-profit organizations (NPOs).
• Reduction in Investment Limit: Minimum investment size lowered to ₹1,000 to increase participation from small-scale investors.
• About ZCZP Instruments: Donation-based tools for NPO funding with no repayment of principal or interest, focusing on social impact causes.
• Purpose: To enhance funding in sectors like education and healthcare, strengthening India’s social impact investment ecosystem.
• Implementation: The change is effective immediately, revising SEBI’s earlier guidelines issued in 2022 and 2023.

• SBI Mutual Fund has launched two investment schemes focused on India’s public sector banking sector.

Schemes Introduced:

• SBI BSE PSU Bank Index Fund: Open-ended scheme tracking the BSE PSU Bank Index.
• SBI BSE PSU Bank ETF: Open-ended exchange-traded fund replicating the BSE PSU Bank Index.
• Objective: To deliver returns closely aligned with the BSE PSU Bank Index performance, subject to tracking error.
• Asset Allocation: 95% to 100% of assets invested in stocks listed in the BSE PSU Bank Index.