1. MALABAR 2024

Why in the news?

• The Sea Phase of MALABAR 2024 concluded at Visakhapatnam. 
• This edition of MALABAR witnessed participation of warships with their integral helicopters, long range maritime patrol aircraft and submarines. Units participated in complex and advanced exercises in the domains of surface, sub-surface and air warfare. 
• Major exercises included surface weapon firings, anti-air shoots, air defense exercises, anti-submarine warfare exercises, extensive operations of shipborne helicopters, seamanship evolutions including fueling from tankers and maritime interdiction operations.

About MALABAR 2024:

• It was initiated in 1992 as a bilateral exercise between India and the US.
• It gained further traction as a significant maritime engagement, with Japan and Australia joining in subsequently.
• The exercise brings together like-minded nations to further enhance the ability to train and operate jointly, towards establishing the synergy critical to achieve shared objectives.
• It is aligned with the Indian Government’s vision of Security & Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR) and reflects India's growing engagement with like-minded nations.
• The 28th edition of the multi-national Malabar Naval exercise, hosted by the Indian Navy, commenced in the Bay of Bengal. 
  • The Royal Australian Navy hosted the 27th edition of the Malabar Naval exercise in August 2023 near Sydney.
• The sea phase of MALABAR 2024 exercise featured participation of various Indian naval platforms, including guided missile destroyers, multi-purpose frigates, submarines, fixed wing MR, fighter aircraft and helicopters.
  • Australia: HMAS Stuart, an Anzac Class Frigate with its MH-60R helicopter and P8 Maritime Patrol Aircraft
  • United States: USS Dewey, an Arleigh Burke-Class Destroyer and P8 Maritime Patrol Aircraft.
  • Japan: JS Ariake, a Murasame-class Destroyer

Topic: Multilateral Groupings

2. Group of Seven (G7)

Why in the news?

• Defence Ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) countries meet for talks in Naples  against a backdrop of dangerous escalation in the Middle East and mounting pressure on Ukraine as it faces another winter of fighting.
• Italy, which holds the rotating G7 presidency, has organized the first ministerial meeting dedicated to defense, holding it in Naples, the southern city home to a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base.

About Group of Seven (G7):

• It is an inter-governmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• Its members are the world’s largest IMF advanced economies and wealthiest liberal democracies
• It accounts for a little over 50% of global net wealth (which is $418 trillion), 32 to 46 percent of global gross domestic product, and about 770 million people or 10 percent of the world’s population
• It was founded primarily to facilitate shared macroeconomic initiatives in response to contemporary economic problems; the first gathering was centred around the 1970s energy crisis, and the ensuing global recession
• Beginning in the 1980s, the G7 broadened its areas of concern to include issues of international security, human rights, and global security

Topic: North America

3. Mexico

Why in the news?

• Mexico's Navy arrests 23 people in a record drugs bust.
• The navy also seized 8.7 thousand liters of fuel and six boats off the coast near Lazaro Cardenas, in Michoacan state, and further south off the coast of Guerrero State.

About Mexico: 

• It is a country in the southern portion of North America. 
• Covering 1,972,550 sq. km., it is the world's 13th largest country by area.
• It is the 10th most populous country and has the most Spanish speakers in the world.
• It is a constitutional republic comprising 31 states and Mexico City, its capital and largest city, which is among the world's most populous metropolitan areas. 
• It shares land borders with:
  • United States to the north
  • Guatemala and Belize to the southeast
• It shares maritime borders with:
  • Pacific Ocean to the west
  • Caribbean Sea to the southeast
  • Gulf of Mexico to the east.

Topic: Rivers

4. Yamuna river

Why in the news?

• ‘Toxic foam’ blankets the Yamuna river in Delhi ahead of Chhath Puja.
• The river's deplorable condition has sparked widespread outrage and calls for urgent action.

About Yamuna river:

• The Yamuna River System is an integral part of the Ganga Drainage System, which is one of the three major river basins in the Himalayan region.
• It flows for over 1,300 km. and is the largest tributary of the Ganga in the northern plains.
• It originates from the Yamunotri Glacier (situated in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand) near Bandarpoonch Peak in the Mussoorie range of the Lower Himalayas.
• It flows along states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Haryana and enters Delhi and merges with the Ganga near Triveni Sangam, Prayagraj.
• Tributaries of Yamuna River System
  • Tons River:
    • It also rises from the Bandarpoonch glacier.
    • It is the longest and biggest tributary of the Yamuna River, and it flows through Garhwal, the western part of the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand.
    • It begins at an elevation of 3,900 m. and merges with the Yamuna below Kalsi near Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
    • It is one of the major perennial rivers in the Indian Himalayas.
  • Giri River:
    • It serves as the primary water source in southeastern Himachal Pradesh.
    • It is well-known in the Jubbal and Rohru hills.
  • Hindon River:
    • It originates from upper Shivalik (Lower Himalayas).
    • It is sandwiched between Ganga on the left and Yamuna on the right.
  • Chambal River:
    • It originates from the Janapao Hills on the southern slopes of the Vindhya Range in Madhya Pradesh.
    • Due to severe erosion from poor rainfall, the river flows significantly below its banks, creating numerous deep ravines in the Chambal Valley and giving rise to badland topography.
    • Four significant dams located on the Chambal River from south to north: 
      • Gandhi Sagar Dam
      • Rana Pratap Sagar Dam
      • Jawahar Sagar Dam
      • Kota Barrage
  • Banas River:
    • It is also known as ‘Van Ki Asha’ (Hope of Forest).
    • It originates in the Aravalli Range in Rajsamand District of Rajasthan.
  • Kali Sindh River:
    • It flows in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh and joins the Chambal River near Sawai Madhopur in Rajasthan.
  • Sindh River:
    • It originates on the Malwa Plateau in Vidisha district and flows north-northeast through the districts of Guna, Ashoknagar, Shivpuri, Datia, Gwalior, and Bhind in Madhya Pradesh.
    • It joins the Yamuna River in Etawah District (Uttar Pradesh). 
  • Betwa River:
    • It is also known as Vetravati.
    • It rises in the Vindhya Range north of Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh.
    • The confluence of the Betwa and Yamuna Rivers occurs in Hamirpur, a town in Uttar Pradesh.
  • Ken River:
    • It originates from the slopes of the Kaimur Range in the Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh.
    • It merges with the Yamuna near Fatehpur in Uttar Pradesh.
    • The Ken Valley separates the Rewa Plateau from the Satna Plateau and passes through Panna National Park.
• Cities located on the banks of Yamuna include Noida, Mathura, Agra, Firozabad, Etawah, Kalpi, Hamirpur and Prayagraj.

Topic: Rivers

5. Kameng river

Why in the news?

• An Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel and his 12-year-old son were swept away by the strong currents of the Kameng river in Arunachal Pradesh and have been missing.

 About Kameng river:

• It originates in Tawang district from the glacial lake below snow-capped Gori Chen mountain on the India-Tibet border.
• It is not a transboundary river.
• It flows through Bhalukpong circle of West Kameng District, Arunachal Pradesh and Sonitpur District of Assam.
• It becomes a braided river in its lower reaches and is one of the major tributaries of the Brahmaputra River.
• It joins Brahmaputra river at Tezpur, just east of the Kolia Bhomora Setu bridge, Assam.
• It forms the boundary between East Kameng District and West Kameng Districts.
• It also forms the boundary between the Sessa and Eaglenest sanctuaries to its west (Arunachal Pradesh) and the Pakke tiger reserve to the east (Arunachal Pradesh).
• The Dafla Hills are east and the Aka Hills are located west of the Kameng River.
• Its tributaries include the Tippi, Tenga, Bichom and Dirang Chu rivers.

Topic: Biodiversity 

6. African Baobab  

Why in the news?

• New research by South African ecologists has refuted the claim that the African Baobab  tree is dying due to climate change.
• A 2018 study published in Nature Plants had suggested that 10 of 15 of the oldest and largest ancient African baobabs monitored in South Africa had died or collapsed on account of climate change. The South African scientists said in their own study that the claim was speculative but went viral, leading to a wide-ranging belief that climate change was impacting the trees.

About African Baobab:

• It is one of the nine species of baobab.
  • Baobabs are deciduous trees ranging in height from 5 to 20 m.
• It is native to mainland Africa. It is also found in African Savannah.
• It is one of the oldest known Angiosperm trees. Carbon-14 dating places the age of a specimen of African baobab in Namibia at about 1,275 years.
• As African baobab is a succulent, which means that during the rainy season it absorbs and stores water in its vast trunk, enabling it to produce a nutrient-dense fruit in the dry season when all around is dry and arid.
• It can live for more than a thousand years and provide food, livestock fodder, medicinal compounds, and raw materials.
• Since 2005, 9 of the 13 oldest African baobab specimens and 5 of the 6 largest trees have died or suffered the collapse and death of their largest or oldest stems, which may have been caused by the effects of climate change.

Topic: Agriculture

7. Yellow Leaf Disease

Why in the news?

• Worried over rise in yellow leaf disease, farmers in Dakshina Kannada keen to grow coffee as intercrop in arecanut plantations

About Yellow Leaf Disease:         

• It is transmitted by aphids, Melanaphis sacchari and Rhopalosiphum maidis, in a semi-persistent manner.
• This disease affects the 5 to 6 months crop.
• Its symptoms include:
  • Yellowing of midrib and adjacent laminar region also yellowing.
  • Subsequent leaf drying along the mid rib in 3 to 5 leaves from top.
  • Reddish discolouration (in some cases)
  • Drying of spindle along with leaves (in severe cases)
  • Stunted growth of cane, particularly internodes are affected
  • Bunchy top appearance at top of cane

Topic: Multilateral Organizations

8. International Brain Research Organization (IBRO)

Why in the news?

• A leading Indian woman scientist, Shubha Tole has been appointed as the president-elect of the International Brain Research Organisation (IBRO). She is the first scientist from a developing country to be appointed to the top position. She currently serves as the dean of graduate studies at Mumbai’s Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

About International Brain Research Organization (IBRO):

• It is the global federation of neuroscience organizations that aims to promote and support neuroscience around the world through training, teaching, collaborative research, advocacy and outreach. 
• It was founded in 1961 in response to the growing demand from neuroscientists around the world for the creation of a central organization that would cut across world boundaries and improve communication and collaboration among brain researchers.
• It was established as an independent, non-governmental organization, regulated by a Governing Council. 
  • More than 90 international, national and regional scientific organizations constitute IBRO's Governing Council which, together with the five IBRO Regional Committees, address the needs and advance the work of individual scientists and research communities everywhere. 
• It has partnerships with like-minded scientific societies and organizations to identify priorities and help bridge gaps in knowledge, investment and resources in the field of brain research.
• It represents the interests of circa 75,000 neuroscientists around the globe.
• Quadrennial meeting: In collaboration with neuroscience societies around the world, IBRO holds international congresses once every four years.

Topic: Diseases

9. Diphtheria

Why in the news?

• A three-year-old girl died of suspected diphtheria in Punjab’s Faridkot, in what may be the first case of the bacterial infection in the state this year. Authorities said the child was not vaccinated against the preventable disease. 
• According to a Punjab government report from August 2024, around 96% of children in the state were fully immunized. 

About Diphtheria:

• It is a serious contagious bacterial infection of the nose and throat. 
• It is caused by strains of bacteria called Corynebacterium diphtheriae that make a toxin.
  • The bacteria can also infect the skin, causing open sores or ulcers. However, diphtheria skin infections rarely result in severe disease.
• It can spread from person to person, usually through respiratory droplets, like from coughing or sneezing. People can also get sick from touching infected open sores or ulcers.
• Although diphtheria can be treated with medications, in advanced stages, the bacterial infection can damage the heart, kidneys and nervous system.
• Its symptoms include a sore throat, fever, swollen neck glands and weakness.
• After some time, the dead tissue in the respiratory tract forms a thick, grey coating that can cover tissues in the nose, tonsils and throat, making it hard to breathe and swallow.
• Its treatments include:
  • neutralization of unbound toxin with Diphtheria Antitoxin (DAT)
  • antibiotics to prevent further bacterial growth
  • monitoring and supportive care to prevent and treat complications, e.g. airway obstruction, myocarditis.