President Murmu Appoints Governors for Six States

What’s the News?

President Droupadi Murmu has approved Governors’ appointments for Tamil Nadu, Keralam, Odisha, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Sikkim.

• The reshuffle comprises four fresh appointments and two transfers of serving Governors.
• The appointments take effect when the appointees assume charge of their respective offices.
• Braj Mohan Ram has been appointed Governor of Odisha, succeeding Hari Babu Kambhampati.

New Appointments and Transfers

• Arlekar had already been holding additional charge of Tamil Nadu while serving as Governor of Keralam. The new appointment gives him the Tamil Nadu post on a regular basis.
• Mathur moves from Sikkim to Keralam, while Gautam takes his place in Sikkim.
• Sudha Yadav succeeds Thaawarchand Gehlot in Karnataka; Dhal Singh Bisen succeeds Lt. Gen. Gurmit Singh (Retd.) in Uttarakhand.

Background of the Fresh Appointees

• Braj Mohan Ram: Former Lok Sabha member from Palamu, Jharkhand, elected in 1996, 1998 and 1999. He also served in the legislature of undivided Bihar.
• Sudha Yadav: Former Lok Sabha member from Mahendragarh, Haryana, and member of the BJP Parliamentary Board. She served on the National Commission for Backward Classes.
• Dhal Singh Bisen: Former Lok Sabha member from Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh, and former state Cabinet minister. He has also chaired Madhya Pradesh’s Fourth State Finance Commission.
• Dushyant Gautam: Former Rajya Sabha member and senior BJP organisational leader.

Constitutional Framework

• Article 153: Each state has a Governor; the same person may serve two or more states.
• Article 155: The President appoints Governors by a signed and sealed warrant.
• Article 156:
  • The Governor holds office during the President’s pleasure.
  • The normal term is five years, subject to the pleasure provision.
  • Resignation is addressed to the President.
  • After term expiry, the Governor continues until a successor enters office.
• Article 157: Requires Indian citizenship and a minimum age of 35 years.
• Article 158: Bars parliamentary or state-legislature membership and another office of profit.
• Article 159: The High Court Chief Justice administers the oath, or the senior-most available judge in the Chief Justice’s absence.

Role in State Government

• Article 154: Vests state executive power in the Governor.
• Article 163: The Chief Minister-led Council of Ministers aids and advises the Governor, except where constitutional discretion applies.
• Article 164: The Governor appoints the Chief Minister; other ministers are appointed on the Chief Minister’s advice.

Sources

• The Economic Times
• The Indian Express
• Rediff

IMD Launches Cyclone Warning and Marine Weather Decision Support System

What’s the News?

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has launched the Cyclone Warning and Marine Weather Services Decision Support System (DSS), a public platform that combines cyclone and marine-weather information on interactive maps.

• It provides location-specific hazard information to disaster managers, government agencies, coastal communities and maritime users.
• The launch took place during IMD’s biannual Pre-Cyclone Exercise Meeting for the October–December post-monsoon season.
• Dr. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology, chaired the meeting.

What Does the Platform Show?

The DSS uses WebGIS, a geographic information system delivered through a web interface, to display several layers of weather information together.

• The platform is accessible through the IMD and Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre (RSMC), New Delhi websites.
• A storm surge is an abnormal rise in coastal sea level associated with a cyclone, caused mainly by winds pushing water towards the shore and changes in atmospheric pressure.
• The cone of uncertainty concerns the cyclone’s track. It should be considered alongside wind, rainfall and surge information when assessing hazards.

From Forecasts to Preparedness

• Disaster-management authorities: Can use mapped hazards to inform evacuation planning, deployment of response teams and protection of exposed settlements.
• Fisheries and maritime agencies: Can interpret weather information relevant to fishing activity, ports and operations at sea.
• State and district administrations: Can connect forecasts with local response arrangements and public communication.
• Residents: Can better understand where adverse weather is expected and follow official warnings.

These are the intended uses of the information. The system’s value depends on forecasts reaching users and being translated into timely action on the ground.

Pre-Cyclone Coordination

IMD has conducted the preparedness meeting twice a year since 2008 to review the coming cyclone season, previous recommendations and operational challenges.

• The latest exercise involved about 230 participants from more than 30 organisations: approximately 180 online and 50 in person.
• Participating agencies included NDMA, NDRF, the Ministry of Home Affairs, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Indian Coast Guard and Central Water Commission.
• State disaster-management authorities and fisheries departments also participated, including representatives from Odisha.
• A live demonstration invited feedback on the DSS’s practical usefulness.

Additional Info

Four Stages of Cyclone Warning

Institutional and Historical Context

• IMD functions under the Ministry of Earth Sciences and provides India’s weather forecasting and warning services.
• RSMC New Delhi provides tropical-cyclone advisories for the north Indian Ocean, including the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.
• The launch recalled IMD’s successful forecasts of Very Severe Cyclonic Storms Phailin (2013) and Hudhud (2014). Both made landfall on 12 October in their respective years; Phailin is particularly relevant to Odisha’s cyclone-preparedness experience.

Sources

• Odisha TV
• DD India
• StratNews Global

Lakshadweep Achieves 100% Literacy Status Under ULLAS

What’s the News?

Lakshadweep has been declared a 100% literate Union Territory under ULLAS – Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram.

• Administrator Praful Patel announced the milestone at a function in Kavaratti.
• Special teaching and evaluation campaigns enabled all eligible learners identified for the programme to pass the literacy assessment.
• The achievement concerns adult literacy under ULLAS and should be understood in the context of its learner identification and assessment process.

How Was the Milestone Achieved?

• Survey: The Department of Education identified 1,113 adult non-literate persons across the islands.
• Teaching: Intensive learning drives developed basic reading, writing and numeracy skills.
• Accessible assessment:
  • Volunteer teachers and supervisors conducted doorstep and home-based assessments for learners unable or hesitant to attend designated centres.
  • Follow-up assessments and re-testing helped eligible learners complete the process.
• Outcome: All eligible learners cleared the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT), enabling the declaration.

The approach combined identification, teaching and assessment rather than relying only on enrolment numbers. Home-based evaluation also helped reach learners who faced difficulties attending examination centres.

ULLAS Programme

ULLAS stands for Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society. It is also known as the New India Literacy Programme (NILP).

• Type: Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
• Ministry: Ministry of Education, through the Department of School Education and Literacy.
• Period: FY 2022–23 to FY 2026–27.
• Target group: Adults aged 15 years and above who missed formal schooling.
• Policy basis: National Education Policy, 2020.
• Total outlay: ₹1,037.90 crore over five years.
  • Central share: ₹700 crore.
  • State share: ₹337.90 crore.
• Method: Community participation and volunteer teaching, supported by learning resources available through the ULLAS mobile app and DIKSHA.

Five Components

The programme treats literacy as a foundation for everyday participation: understanding written information, carrying out calculations and using essential services. Its broader components support continued learning after the basic assessment.

What Does “Full Literacy” Mean?

• The Ministry of Education’s framework permits 95% literacy in a state or Union Territory to be treated as equivalent to full literacy.
• Its expanded conception includes reading, writing and computing with comprehension, alongside critical life skills.
• Lakshadweep’s announcement followed successful assessment of its identified eligible adult learners. It is not a new Census estimate covering every resident.
• The conventional Census literacy measure applies to people aged seven years and above who can read and write with understanding in any language. Its age group and measurement method differ from ULLAS assessments.

Ladakh was declared fully functionally literate under ULLAS in 2024 after crossing 97% literacy. Lakshadweep’s milestone should therefore not be described as the first-ever full-literacy declaration for a Union Territory under the programme.

Additional Info

• Kavaratti: Capital of Lakshadweep.
• Location: Arabian Sea.
• Geography: India’s smallest Union Territory by area, comprising 36 islands across approximately 32 sq km.
• Census 2011 literacy rate: 91.85%, a historical benchmark distinct from the latest programme-based declaration.

Sources

• News On AIR
• The Hindu

India and UK Inaugurate Genomics Centre of Excellence

What’s the News?

India and the United Kingdom have jointly inaugurated the BRIC-CDFD–ONT India Genomics Centre of Excellence during the 8th India–UK Science and Innovation Council meeting in New Delhi.

• The inauguration was led by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, and Jonathan Reynolds, the visiting UK minister.
• The centre connects genomics research, sequencing technology and industry collaboration.
• It forms part of a wider bilateral effort to convert scientific discoveries into practical technologies and applications.

Partner Institutions

• Dr. Rajesh S. Gokhale, DBT Secretary and BRIC Director General, attended the inauguration.
• Other participants included Prof. Ullas Kolthur-Seetharam, Director of BRIC-CDFD, and Nick Keher, Chief Financial Officer of Oxford Nanopore Technologies.

Genomics and Nanopore Sequencing

• Genome: An organism’s complete genetic material.
• Genomics: The study of that genetic material, including genes, their interactions and their relationship with biological functions and the environment.
• DNA sequencing: Determines the order of nucleotide bases in DNA. Comparing sequences helps researchers identify genetic variants.
• Nanopore sequencing:
  • DNA or RNA passes through extremely small pores in a membrane.
  • Its passage changes an electrical current.
  • Computational analysis converts those signals into sequence information.
  • The technology supports real-time analysis and long reads, which can help investigate complex genomic variation.

Sequencing produces information about genetic material. Interpreting the biological or medical significance of that information requires further analysis and validation.

Research and Healthcare Applications

The collaboration’s reported areas of interest include rare diseases, cancer, infectious-disease surveillance, newborn screening and maternal and child healthcare, with attention to applications in oral cancer.

• Rare-disease research: Investigates variants that may explain inherited disorders and support diagnosis.
• Cancer genomics: Studies changes in tumour DNA that may inform disease classification or treatment research.
• Pathogen surveillance: Uses microbial sequences to study infectious agents and changes during outbreaks.
• Precision medicine: Combines genomic findings with other clinical and environmental information to better understand differences between patients.

These describe research directions and possible applications. The inauguration does not establish that a new screening service or treatment has already been delivered nationwide.

Wider India–UK Cooperation

The Council reviewed collaboration built on the India–UK Research and Innovation MoU, Technology Security Initiative and India–UK Vision 2035.

• Industry-led R&D: DST and Innovate UK have agreed to support eight projects in areas such as advanced manufacturing, power electronics and net-zero technologies. They are at different implementation stages.
• Biomanufacturing: Cooperation between the UK’s Centre for Process Innovation and BRIC aims to help biotechnology move towards practical production and scale.
• Emerging technologies: The agenda includes AI, quantum technologies, semiconductors, critical minerals, advanced materials and telecommunications.
• Other research: Healthcare, antimicrobial resistance, agriculture, weather and climate science, geohazards and fundamental science.

Why Technology Translation Matters

Technology translation moves a laboratory finding towards a validated tool, process or product. It requires research institutions, technology developers and industry to work together on performance, practical use and production.

The centre’s significance lies in connecting these capabilities. Genomic discoveries can inform healthcare research, while collaboration on validation and commercialisation can help useful technologies reach wider application.

Sources

• APAC News Network
• Digital Health News

Antarctic Sea Ice Reaches Third-Lowest Winter Maximum

What’s the News?

Antarctic sea ice reached a winter maximum extent of approximately 17.59 million sq km in 2026, the third-lowest annual maximum in the satellite record.

• NASA and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) reported the measurement; NSIDC’s subsequent analysis confirmed the third-lowest ranking.
• The maximum was about one million sq km below the long-term average.
• It continues a recent period of unusually low Antarctic sea-ice coverage, despite considerable variation between years and regions.

Winter Maximum and Seasonal Cycle

Sea ice is frozen seawater floating on the ocean. Around Antarctica, it expands during the Southern Hemisphere autumn and winter and retreats during spring and summer.

• Antarctica is a continent surrounded by ocean. Sea ice can spread into the surrounding Southern Ocean during winter, including towards warmer latitudes where it melts in summer.
• The Arctic is an ocean largely surrounded by land, giving the two polar regions different sea-ice conditions.
• An annual maximum is a seasonal peak, distinct from the average extent for an entire month.

How is Sea-Ice Extent Measured?

• Sea-ice extent: Total area of ocean grid cells containing at least 15% sea-ice concentration.
• Sea-ice area: Estimates the actual ice-covered portion within the grid cells. It differs from extent because extent counts the full qualifying cell.
• Satellite method: Passive microwave sensors distinguish the microwave energy emitted by sea ice from that emitted by open water.
  • They can monitor ice through clouds and during polar darkness.
  • This provides repeated observations across remote ocean regions.
• The satellite record began in late 1978, with annual comparisons commonly presented from 1979.

The 17.59 million sq km figure measures horizontal extent; it is not a measurement of ice thickness, volume or the size of Antarctica’s land ice sheet.

Longer-Term Changes

• Between 1979 and 2014, total Antarctic sea ice increased by roughly 1% per decade, with substantial year-to-year variability.
• Winter maximum extent reached successive record highs during 2012–2014.
• Significant decreases began in 2016. Occasional rebounds have occurred, but coverage has largely remained below normal.
• 2023 recorded both the lowest annual maximum and the lowest annual minimum in the satellite record.

Scientists continue to investigate ocean temperatures, winds, circulation and other influences on the recent changes. A single year’s ranking does not establish a precise cause or the future course of Antarctic sea ice.

Why Does Sea Ice Matter?

• Reflectivity: Bright ice reflects more sunlight than dark seawater. Reduced ice exposes more ocean to solar heating, creating an ice–albedo feedback.
• Marine ecosystems: Sea ice supports ice-associated organisms and habitats, affecting food webs involving krill, penguins and seals.
• Ocean conditions: Freezing and melting alter surface salinity and exchanges of heat between the ocean and atmosphere.
• Sea level: Melting floating sea ice has very little direct effect on sea level. Loss of land-based glaciers and ice sheets adds water to the ocean and has a much larger direct effect.

Additional Info

• NSIDC: A research and data centre at the University of Colorado Boulder, associated with the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences.
• Antarctic ice sheet: Formed from accumulated snow on land; distinct from seasonal sea ice around the continent.
• Cryosphere: Earth’s frozen-water systems, including sea ice, glaciers, ice sheets, snow and frozen ground.

Sources

• Scripps News
• The Times of India
• Climate.us

International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2026: Resilience Starts at Home

What’s the News?

International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR) was observed on 13 October 2026 with the theme “Resilience Starts at Home”, selected by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).

• The day promotes awareness and action to reduce disaster risks before hazards cause severe losses.
• This year’s focus is safe housing, household preparedness and community participation.
• It emphasises that governments, builders, financiers and households all influence whether homes protect people or increase their vulnerability.

Why Does Resilience Start at Home?

The location, design, construction and maintenance of a house affect its exposure to floods, cyclones, earthquakes, extreme heat and other hazards.

• Safer locations: Risk-informed land-use planning can reduce exposure in hazardous areas.
• Stronger buildings: Suitable designs, building-code enforcement and retrofitting can reduce avoidable damage.
• Affordable protection: Low-income households need access to safe housing, finance and relevant assistance.
• Inclusive design: Plans must account for children, older people, persons with disabilities and people who need help evacuating.

The campaign also recognises unequal access to information, secure housing and resources. Household preparedness requires public support and inclusive planning alongside individual action.

Turning Warnings into Action

• Governments and local authorities: Provide understandable local risk information, enforce suitable construction standards and invest in resilient housing.
• Private sector: Follow zoning and building rules, disclose known risks and support safer construction and accessible finance.
• Households and communities:
  • Learn about local hazards and the meaning of official alerts.
  • Prepare family emergency plans and essential supplies.
  • Identify evacuation arrangements and support neighbours who need assistance.
  • Participate in local disaster planning and preparedness activities.

A warning is useful when it reaches household members in an accessible form and they know how to respond. Preparedness connects the alert with practical protective action.

History of the Day

• 1989: The UN General Assembly established the observance through Resolution 44/236, initially on the second Wednesday of October as the International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction.
• 2009: Resolution 64/200 fixed the annual observance on 13 October.
• The day supports a global culture of risk awareness, prevention and resilience; UNDRR coordinates international disaster-risk-reduction efforts.

Sendai Framework, 2015–2030

Adopted at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan, the framework succeeded the Hyogo Framework for Action, 2005–2015.

It seeks to prevent new risks, reduce existing ones and limit losses affecting lives, livelihoods, health and assets. It recognises governments’ primary responsibility alongside participation by other stakeholders.

Four Priorities

1. Understand risk: Assess hazards, exposure, vulnerability and available capacity.
2. Improve governance: Strengthen institutions, coordination and accountability for managing risk.
3. Invest in resilience: Direct public and private resources towards prevention and safer infrastructure.
4. Prepare and recover better: Strengthen response capacity and apply “Build Back Better” during recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

The framework has seven global targets and 38 indicators to monitor progress. The home-resilience theme also relates to SDG 11, concerning safe, inclusive and resilient settlements.

Odisha Context

• Multipurpose cyclone shelters and approach roads under the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project support safer evacuation and access for response vehicles in vulnerable communities.
• OSDMA’s Aapada Mitra programme, supported by NDMA, trains community volunteers in disaster response.
• Trained volunteers and community task forces complement agencies such as ODRAF, NDRF and Odisha Fire Service during cyclone preparedness and response.

These measures illustrate the connection between household readiness, community support and public infrastructure in protecting people before and during disasters.

Sources

• ArchDaily