• Bihar Cabinet has recently passed a resolution seeking special category status to State.
• Niti Aayog, in its first ‘Multi-dimensional Poverty Index’ (MPI) report, ranked Bihar as the poorest state in India, estimating that nearly 52 per cent of its population did not have access to requisite health, education and living standards.

ABOUT SCS

• Special category status is generally granted to States which face geographical and socio-economic disadvantages, such as those which
  • lie along an international border,
  • have hilly terrain,
  • a sizable share of tribal population,
  • suffer from economic and infrastructural backwardness or
  • non-viable nature of state finances.
• Such States receive a higher share of Central funding and financial support for development purposes.
• The ‘special category’ status to a state, first introduced in 1969 by 5^th Financial Commission, allows preferential treatment in the form of Central assistance and tax breaks, establishing special development boards, reservation in local government jobs, educational institutions, etc. to disadvantaged states.
  • This formula was named after the then Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, Dr Gadgil Mukherjee and is related to the transfer of assistance to the states by centre under various schemes.
• Initially, three states—Assam, Nagaland and Jammu & Kashmir—were granted special category status.
  • Since then, eight more have been included—Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Tripura and Uttarakhand.
• After the dissolution of the planning commission and the formation of NITI Aayog, the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission were implemented which meant the discontinuation of the Gadgil formula-based grants.
  • The 14^th Finance Commission effectively removed the concept of special category status.

CONSTITUTIONAL BACKING

• The Constitution of India does not include any provision for the categorization of any state in India as a ‘special category state.
• However, a wide range of provisions are available to as many as 10 states that have been listed under Articles 371, 371-A to 371-H, and 371-J.

• The six-day international Renuka Ji fair was inaugurated in Sirmaur district.
• The palanquin of Lord Parshuram and other deities is brought to Renuka Ji from the ancient temple at Jamu Koti village and it departs after religious ceremonies, which include a dip in Renuka Lake.
• The fair signifies the union of Lord Parshuram with his mother Goddess Renuka on Dashmi.
• Every year on the Devprobodhini Ekadashi, the traditional Renukaji fair is organised on the banks of the Renuka Lake where lakhs of devotees converge.

• Indian cueist Pankaj Advani rallied to win the IBSF (the International Billiards and Snooker Federation) World Billiards Championship title for a staggering 26th time, beating compatriot Sourav Kothari in the final.
  • Advani won his first world title in 2003.

• The cyclonic storm named “Midhili” impacted the Northeast Bay of Bengal, near the coast of Bangladesh.
• The designation ‘Midhili’ has been assigned by the Maldives.

ABOUT CYCLONES

• Cyclones are large-scale air masses that rotate around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure.
• They are characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Favorable conditions-
  • Large sea surface with temperature higher than 27° C.
  • Presence of the Coriolis force.
  • Small variations in the vertical wind speed.
  • A pre-existing weak low- pressure area or low-level-cyclonic circulation.
  • Upper divergence above the sea level system.

• The black-spotted croaker, or the ghol fish — considered a fisherman’s lottery — was declared the state fish of Gujarat recently.
• The fish is usually found in the Indo-Pacific region that stretches from the Persian Gulf to the Pacific Ocean.
• Ghol fish has the scientific name Protonibea dianthus.
• The Ghol fish is also called Ghoti, Jewfish, Palli Kora, Pulli Panna and Kathalai.
• While Ghol is one of the costliest fish, its heart has tremendous medicinal value which is why it is known as ‘sea gold.’
• It is highly esteemed in East Asia due to its medicinal attributes.
• The air bladder of the Ghol fish holds significant value in international markets, especially in China, Hong Kong, and other countries, where it is commonly used in the preparation of soups.
• Packed with a wealth of nutrients such as iodine, omega-3, DHA, EPA, iron, taurine, magnesium, fluoride, and selenium, this fish is considered a nutritional powerhouse.

• The 54^th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is taking place in Goa currently.
• It will showcase over 270 films from 105 countries across four venues.

ABOUT IFFI

• It was established in 1952 and stands among the prominent film festivals in Asia.
• It aims at providing common platform for cinemas of world to project the excellence of the film art.
• It is held annually in Goa since 2004.
• It is jointly organized by National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG).

• Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) probe will use double gravity assist, for the first time ever, from Earth and Moon to propel itself towards Jupiter.
• It was launched to study the planet as well as its three icy and potentially ocean-bearing moons – Ganymede, Callisto and Europa.
• JUICE is among the heaviest interplanetary spacecraft ever launched with a total weight of around 6000 kg.
• European Space Agency’s (ESA) successfully launched its JUICE spacecraft from its spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, in April 2023.
• JUICE aims to make detailed observations of the giant gas planet and is equipped with remote sensing, geophysical and in situ instruments.
• It is planned to reach Jupiter in 2031.
• Only two other spacecraft have ever examined Jupiter-
  • the Galileo probe, which orbited the gas giant between 1995 and 2003, and
  • Juno, which has been circling the planet since 2016.

ABOUT GRAVITY ASSIST

• Gravity assist is a technique by which a spacecraft, with the help of the gravitational field of a planet, gets a speed boost.
• However, it is tricky to do so, to execute a gravity assist, the spacecraft needs to pass through the planet’s gravitational field at a carefully calibrated exact point in order to get a “slingshot effect.”
• JUICE would have to arrive at the Earth-Moon system at precisely the correct time, and speed and be travelling in the correct direction.

• A team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Ropar has found the presence of tantalum, a rare metal, in the Sutlej river sand in Punjab.

ABOUT TANTALUM

• Tantalum is a rare metal with the atomic number 73 — the number of protons found in one atom of the element.
• It is grey, heavy, very hard, and one of the most corrosion-resistant metals in use today.
• It possesses high corrosion resistance because when exposed to air, it forms an oxide layer that is extremely difficult to remove, even when it interacts with strong and hot acid environments.
• It is almost completely immune to chemical attack at temperatures below 150°C, and is attacked only by hydrofluoric acid, acidic solutions containing the fluoride ion, and free sulphur trioxide.
• When pure, tantalum is ductile (meaning it can be stretched, pulled, or drawn into a thin wire or thread without breaking).
• Tantalum also has an extremely high melting point, exceeded only by tungsten and rhenium.
• Discovery
  • Tantalum was discovered by Anders Gustaf Ekenberg, a Swedish chemist, in 1802 in minerals obtained from Ytterby, Sweden.
  • The rare metal has been named after a Greek mythological figure Tantalus, the rich but wicked king of a town above Mount Sipylus in Anatolia.
• Applications
  • It is most prominently used in the electronic sector.
  • As tantalum has a high melting point, it is frequently used as a substitute for platinum, which is more expensive.
  • The rare metal is also used to make components for chemical plants, nuclear power plants, aeroplanes and missiles.
  • Tantalum does not react with bodily fluids and is used to make surgical equipment and implants, like artificial joints.

• Ministry of Education (MoE) will write to all States to encourage aspirants to utilise the newly launched portal for exam preparation — SATHEE (Self Assessment Test and Help for Entrance Exams).

ABOUT SATHEE PORTAL

• The online coaching platform has been launched by the MoE and IIT-Kanpur.
• SATHEE is an open learning platform available to students at no cost.
• SATHEE hosts live and recorded lectures, expertly designed curriculum, and doubt-clearing sessions [for students] to brush up their knowledge.
• About 5,000 students from the Kendriya Vidyalayas, Navodaya Vidyalayas, and schools under the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) have registered on the platform so far.
  • MoE goal is to reach 1,00,000 students.
• The portal uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to interact with students, and can be customised to each student’s pace of learning.
• The initiative is in line with the National Education Policy, with the goal to provide inclusive, high quality education even to remote parts of the country.
• Pan India mock tests are held every weekend, with the same look and feel adopted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for conducting the JEE.
• SATHEE hosts lectures and video content prepared by Professors and students of the IITs, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
• Currently, digital learning material is available on the SATHEE portal in four languages — English, Hindi, Odia, and Telugu.

• President Draupadi Murmu has recently inaugurated the Eklavya Model Residential School in Mayurbhanj, Odisha.

ABOUT EMRS

• Eklavya Model Residential Schools, initiated by the government in 1997-98, are designed to impart quality education to Scheduled Tribe (ST) children in remote areas.
• The objective is to empower them to access opportunities in higher and professional educational courses, ultimately facilitating their employment across various sectors.
• There has been nationwide establishment of over 700 Eklavya Model Residential Schools.
• Aim to provide quality education to more than 3.5 lakh tribal students across India, enabling them to contribute to the development of society and the nation.
• Each school has a capacity of 480 students, catering to students from Class VI to XII.
• Nodal ministry- Ministry of Tribal Affairs
• Minimum of 15 acres of Land is required for establishing EMRSs.
• Non-ST students can be admitted in these schools on seats up to 10% of the total seats.
• CBSE curriculum is followed in these schools, and education is completely free.