Current Context: ISRO and JAXA agreed to begin the design phase of their joint Chandrayaan-5 / Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) mission, targeting the Moon’s south pole.

About Chandrayaan-5 / LUPEX:

• Mission Goals:
  • Study volatile compounds (water, ice) in permanently shadowed lunar craters.
  • Search for resources to support future human missions.
• International Partnership:
  • India (ISRO): Builds the lander.
  • Japan (JAXA): Provides the rover.
  • Additional Instruments: Contributions expected from NASA and ESA.
• Legacy Missions:
  • Chandrayaan-1 & 2 (orbiters)
  • Chandrayaan-3 (lander and rover)
  • Upcoming Chandrayaan-4 (sample-return)
• Long-Term Vision: India aims to land astronauts on the Moon by 2040.

Current Context: Two annual river-based festivals—Pushkar Kumbh in Uttarakhand and Saraswati Pushkaralu in Telangana—are currently being celebrated at their respective sacred river confluences.

About Pushkar Kumbh (Uttarakhand):

• Timing: Every 12 years when Jupiter enters Gemini.
• Location: Keshav Prayag, Mana village, at the confluence of the Alaknanda and Saraswati
• Religious Significance:
  • Site where sage Vyasa is said to have composed the Mahabharata.
  • Visited by saints Ramanujacharya and Madhvacharya for divine insight from Goddess Saraswati.

About Saraswati Pushkaralu (Telangana):

• Timing: Every 12 years when Jupiter enters Gemini.
• Location: Triveni Sangamam, Kaleshwaram (Godavari, Pranahita, and hidden Saraswati rivers meet).
• Highlight: Devotees take a holy bath and worship at Sri Kaleshwara Sri Mukteshwara Swamy Temple.

Current Context: The Supreme Court directed the Central Government to set up special courts under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act as a priority to ensure faster justice for child victims.

About POCSO Special Courts:

• Legal Basis: Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.
• Court Structure:
  • Session Courts notified by states in consultation with High Courts.
  • Only POCSO cases are heard here.
• Key Features:
  • Evidence Recording: Child’s testimony to be recorded within 30 days of case registration.
  • Timely Trial: Courts aim to complete trials within one year.

Current Context: Glaciologists and local communities in Nepal have declared the Yala Glacier in the Langtang region “dead” after it shrank by two-thirds (66 percent) since the 1970s, illustrating the real-time impacts of climate change.

About the Yala Glacier Loss:

• Glacier Funeral: A symbolic ceremony—first popularised for Iceland’s Okjökull Glacier in 2019—marked its disappearance.
• Global Trend: Other glaciers declared dead include Switzerland’s Pizol (2019), the United States’ Clark (2020), and Mexico’s Ayoloco (2021).
• Key Causes:
  • Rising temperatures accelerate melting.
  • Reduced snowfall fails to replenish ice.

Current Context: The Union Cabinet has approved India’s sixth semiconductor fabrication plant near Jewar Airport in Uttar Pradesh, to be established through a joint venture between Hindustan Computers Limited and Foxconn.

About the Semiconductor Unit:

• Location: Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority region, near Jewar Airport, Uttar Pradesh.
• Partners: Hindustan Computers Limited (subsidiary of HCL Technologies) and Foxconn (Taiwanese electronics manufacturer).
• Product Focus: Display driver chips used in mobile phones, laptop screens, automotive displays, and other electronic devices.

India’s Semiconductor Ecosystem:

• Market Growth: Projected to expand from twenty-two billion dollars in 2019 to one hundred ten billion dollars by 2030, representing ten percent of global consumption.
• Local Content: In 2021, only nine percent of semiconductor components were sourced domestically; target is to reach seventeen percent by 2026.
• Design Capability: India has twenty percent of the world’s semiconductor design engineers and produces around three thousand integrated circuits annually.
• Process Technology: Cutting-edge nodes (seven, five, three, two nanometres) enable higher transistor density, lower power use, and faster processing speeds.

Current Context : At 19 years old, Srihari LR from Chennai clinched his third GM norm at the Asian Individual Championship in Al-Ain (UAE), becoming India’s 86th Grandmaster.

Who is Srihari LR?

• Age & Origin: 19, hailing from Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
• Achievement: Earned final GM norm among strong Asian competition.

Significance for India

• Rising Chess Nation: India now has 86 GMs, reflecting its growing chess culture.
• Pathway: Young talents increasingly breaking through international youth events to senior titles.

Current Context : Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released its revamped PLFS, showing India’s unemployment rate at 5.1% with monthly data now available.

Revamped PLFS Features

• Launch: Originally in 2017; now covers urban & rural
• Frequency: Monthly release of unemployment, LFPR, and WPR.
• Sample Size: 22,692 First Stage Units per year, up from previous surveys.

Key Indicators (April 2025)

• Unemployment Rate:1% overall (5.2% men; 5.0% women).
• LFPR (Labour Force Participation):6%
• WPR (Worker Population Ratio):8%
• Youth Unemployment (15–29):8%
• Urban vs Rural Unemployment:2% vs 12.3%

Gender Gap

• Women LFPR:2% (rural), 23.5% (urban)
• Women WPR: Lower than men, indicating barriers to female employment.

Current Context : Recently, Olympic javelin champion Neeraj Chopra has been awarded the honorary rank of Lieutenant Colonel in India’s Territorial Army.

Who is Neeraj Chopra?

• Origin: Born in Khandra village, Panipat, Haryana.
• Achievements:
  • Gold at Tokyo 2020 Olympics
  • Silver at Paris 2024 Olympics
  • 2023 World Champion (Budapest)

About the Honorary Rank

• Rule: Conferred under Para-31 of the Territorial Army Regulations, 1948.
• Purpose: Recognizes distinguished citizens who boost national pride.
• Role: Ceremonial duties; no active combat command.

About Territorial Army

• Founded: 9 October 1949
• Nature: Part-time volunteer force aiding the regular Army in war, disasters, and nation-building.
• 75th Anniversary: Celebrated in 2024

Other Honorees: M.S. Dhoni (Honorary Lt. Colonel, 2011)

Current Context :  Recently, the Supreme Court has asked a committee, set up by the Madras High Court, to list all Agamic and non-Agamic temples in Tamil Nadu within three months.

About Agamas

• The Agamas are a collection of scriptures of Hindu devotional schools.
• Meaning: “Agama” means “that which has come down”—scriptures passed down through tradition.
• Contents: Explain temple design, deity worship, rituals, mantras, meditation, yoga, and spiritual goals.
• Branches:
  • Shaiva Agamas (worship of Shiva)
  • Vaishnava Agamas (worship of Vishnu)
  • Shakta Agamas (worship of the Goddess)
• Relation to Vedas: Not derived from the Vedas but fully Vedic in spirit, and widely respected alongside them.
• Local Practice: Most major temples in Tamil Nadu follow Agamic rules for daily worship and festivals.

Current Context: By the end-2026, India will launch Samudrayaan, a crewed submarine project under the Deep Ocean Mission, to explore the ocean up to 6,000 m deep.

About the Mission:

• Deep Ocean Mission (DOM):
  • Launched in 2021 by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
  • Aims to study deep-ocean resources and technologies for five years.
• MATSYA-6000 Submersible:
  • India’s fourth-generation crewed mini-submarine.
  • Endurance: 12 hours normally, 96 hours in emergency.
  • Status: Successfully completed wet tests.
• Objectives:
  • Research deep-sea plants, animals, and minerals.
  • Build tools for long-term ocean monitoring.
  • Lay groundwork for deep-sea tourism and blue economy
• Global Context: Few countries (USA, Russia, China, France, Japan) have done crewed deep-sea dives.