Current Context: DRDO successfully flight-tested the ULPGM‑V3 at the Kurnool Range, Andhra Pradesh.

 ABOUT ULPGM‑V3 MISSILE

• Developer: DRDO, in partnership with DRCI, DRDL, TBRL, Adani Defence, BDL, and 30+ MSMEs/start-ups.
• Technology:
  • Dual-channel HD seeker for precision.
  • Day-night operations, even in high-altitude terrain.
  • Two-way data link for real-time aim adjustments.
• Warhead Variants:
  • Anti-armour, penetration-cum-blast, and pre-fragmentation
  • Purpose: Boosts India’s UAV-launched precision attack
• Significance: Enhances tactical flexibility, Make in India defence efforts, and strategic autonomy.

Current Context: The Government of Sikkim will open Doklam Plateau and Cho La Pass for civilian battlefield tourism from September 2025, under the Bharat Ranbhoomi Darshan initiative.

 ABOUT DOKLAM (Doka La)

• Location & Strategic Value: Located at the tri-junction of India, Bhutan, and China, at ~13,780 ft altitude.
• Historical Significance: Site of the 2017 standoff between India and China over Bhutanese territory.
• Purpose: Serves as a strategic defense point for the Siliguri Corridor (Chicken’s Neck).
• Tourism Initiative: Included in Bharat Ranbhoomi Darshan; permits limited to 30–50 vehicles/day via Army-cleared routes.

ABOUT CHO LA PASS

• Location: Connects Sikkim and Tibet; ~4,593 m altitude.
• Historical Importance: Site of 1967 Sino-Indian clashes near Nathu La.
• Purpose: Included in heritage tourism to highlight India’s border defence history.
• Tourism Preparation: Infrastructure and security upgrades ongoing with Army coordination.

ABOUT BHARAT RANBHOOMI DARSHAN INITIATIVE

• Launch: January 2025 by Ministry of Defence & Tourism.
• Coverage: 77 strategic locations including Galwan, Siachen, Kargil, Doklam, Cho La.
• Purpose: Boost national pride, border tourism, and local economy.
• Features: App-based permits, virtual tours, and contextual history content.

Current Context: Indian Railways successfully tested its first hydrogen-powered Driving Power Car at the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai.

 ABOUT THE HYDROGEN TRAIN COACH TEST

• Engine & Power:
  • Powered by a 1,200 HP hydrogen fuel engine, twice as powerful as most European hydrogen trains (500–600 HP).
• Technology:
  • Uses hydrogen fuel cells to generate electricity.
  • Emits only water vapor, ensuring zero CO₂ emissions.
• Design & Capacity:
  • Includes a passenger car and two hydrogen storage coaches.
  • Can carry up to 2,638 passengers and run at 110 km/h.
• Deployment Plan:
  • Initial deployment on heritage routes like the Kalka–Shimla line.
  • Earlier planned for December 2024, now delayed for terrain optimization.

Current Context: As of 25 July 2025, Atal Pension Yojana has surpassed 8 crore gross enrolments, with around 39 lakh new subscribers added since April 2025 in the Financial Year 2025–26.

 ABOUT ATAL PENSION YOJANA (APY)

• Launched: 9 May 2015, as a voluntary and contributory pension scheme for Indian citizens aged 18–40 years who are non-taxpayers.
• Purpose: To provide social security to the poor, underprivileged, and unorganised sector workers post-retirement.
• Scheme Highlights:
• Offers guaranteed monthly pension of ₹1,000 to ₹5,000 after 60 years.
• Pension continues to the spouse on subscriber’s death.
• After the death of both, the corpus is returned to the nominee.

Current Context: Geetanjali Shree, acclaimed Hindi author and International Booker Prize winner for Tomb of Sand, has received the PEN Translates Award 2025 for her book Once Elephants Lived Here, translated by Daisy Rockwell.

 ABOUT PEN TRANSLATES AWARD

• Administered By: English PEN, it supports the translation of exceptional non-English literary works into English.
• Global Reach: The 2025 round includes 14 books, in 13 languages, from 11 regions.
• South Asian Focus: The PEN Translates × SALT initiative highlights South Asian literature, and Geetanjali Shree’s work is a key part of this programme.
• Selection Criteria: Based on literary quality, publishing vision, and promoting biodiversity — ensuring diversity of voices in global literature.

Celebrated annually on 28 July, which marks the birthday of Nobel Laureate Dr. Baruch Blumberg, who discovered Hepatitis B virus.

 ABOUT WORLD HEPATITIS DAY:

• A global campaign led by the World Health Organization (WHO).
• Aims to raise awareness about viral hepatitis types A, B, C, D, and E and their impact.
• Focuses on testing, prevention, treatment, and elimination of hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030.

Observed globally every year on 28 July.

ABOUT WORLD NATURE CONSERVATION DAY:

• Recognises the importance of a healthy environment as the foundation of a stable and productive society.
• Promotes the need to protect, conserve, and sustainably manage natural resources for current and future generations.
• Emphasizes individual and collective responsibility in maintaining ecological balance.

Observed on 26 July each year since 2016, following UNESCO’s 2015 declaration to protect mangrove ecosystems.

 ABOUT WORLD MANGROVE DAY

• Purpose: Recognizes the environmental and social importance of mangrove forests — including coastal protection, biodiversity support, carbon storage, and fisheries sustainability.
• Conservation Concern: Highlights the rapid global loss of mangroves — with some countries losing over 40%between 1980 and 2005; the overall decline rate is 3–5 times faster than other forests.
• 2025 Theme: “Protecting Wetlands for Our Future”, focusing on nature-based solutions for environmental sustainability.

Current Context: NASA has launched the TRACERS mission to study how Earth’s magnetic field protects the planet from solar storms and space weather.

ABOUT TRACERS MISSION

• TRACERS stands for Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites.
• It is designed to study magnetic reconnection, a process where the Sun’s magnetic field interacts with Earth’s magnetic field.
• These interactions can cause energy bursts that affect satellites, power grids, and communication systems on Earth.
• The mission will focus on the polar cusp—a region near the North Pole where Earth’s magnetic shield is most exposed.

 OBJECTIVES OF THE MISSION

• To measure magnetic reconnection and energy transfer in Earth’s polar cusp region.
• To study how solar energy and particles enter Earth’s upper atmosphere.
• To help improve understanding of space weather effects on Earth’s infrastructure.

CURRENT CONTEXT: Over 900 cattle have been infected with Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) in Pune district of Maharashtra.

 ABOUT LUMPY SKIN DISEASE:

• Cause: LSD is a viral disease affecting cattle and buffaloes. It is not transmissible to humans.
• Transmission: Spread through mosquitoes, ticks, flies, and partly through contaminated feed or water.
• Symptoms: Infected animals show fever, enlarged lymph nodes, and multiple skin nodules. It leads to reduced milk production and can be fatal.

CONTROL MEASURES & SIGNIFICANCE:

Vaccination: The indigenous Lumpi‑ProVacInd vaccine, developed in 2022, is safe and effective.

• Strategy: Involves ring vaccination within a 5 km radius, vector control, public awareness, and restriction of animal movement.