Daily Current Affairs - 18th & 19th February 2026
- Kaushal
- Feb 19
- 18 min read
Updated: Feb 20
Comprehensive UPSC Current Affairs Summary | India–France Special Global Strategic Partnership, US Project Vault Critical Minerals Reserve, Bharat VISTAAR AI Agriculture Platform, AI & Employability Debate, 10 Years of UPI, Updated ECB Framework 2026, Denotified Tribes Census Enumeration, Akash Missile & Kaveri Engine Review, India AI Impact Summit & SAHI–BODH Launch, PERT Gene Editing Strategy, Great Nicobar Mega Project Clearance, BeeCorridors Initiative, Ol Chiki Script Centenary, Bhirrana Harappan Findings and more.
If you missed Monthly Current Affairs Pointers (CAP) | Nov - Dec 2025, read it hereTable of Content
SOCIAL ISSUES
SECURITY / DEFENCE
India and France upgrade ties to Special Global Strategic Partnership
The French President’s visit to India resulted in 21 important outcomes in areas from defence to critical minerals.
Key Outcomes
Defence and Security
H125 Helicopter Final Assembly Line Inaugurated at Vemagal, Karnataka
H125 is a light utility single-engine Helicopter of Airbus, the only helicopter to land on Mt. Everest Summit.
Joint venture between Bharat Electronics and Safran to produce HAMMER missile in India launched.
Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range (HAMMER) is a Smart Precision Guided Air-to-Ground Weapon system adaptable for Rafale and LCA Tejas aircrafts.
Technology & Innovation Cooperation
Launch of India-France Year of Innovation 2026 and India–France Innovation Network.
Constitution of a Joint Advanced Technology Development Group and Indo-French Centre for Digital Sciences and Technology.
Indo-French Centre for AI in Health (AIIMS, New Delhi) launched.
Critical Minerals and Energy Cooperation
Joint Declaration on cooperation in critical minerals to ensure diversified and resilient supply chains.
To deepen cooperation in large nuclear power projects (including Jaitapur), Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) and Advanced Modular Reactors (AMRs).
Trade and Economic Cooperation
Amending the Double Tax Avoidance Agreement between India and France.
Other Areas of Cooperation: Startups, Health, Renewable Energy, student mobility and Skilling.
India-France Relations
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Project Vault
Recently, the United States unveiled Project Vault.
About Project Vault
It is a supply chain security initiative establishing the U.S. Strategic Critical Minerals Reserve
It is an independently governed public-private partnership that will buy and store critical minerals and rare earth elements.
E.g. gallium and cobalt, essential for modern technology and defence equipment.
Objective: To store 60 critical minerals listed in the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2025 Critical Minerals List to strengthen the resilience of industries against supply chain disruptions.
It will combine $1.67 billion in private seed funding and $10 billion from the US government’s Export-Import Bank (EXIM).
Bharat VISTAAR
Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has launched the First Phase of the Artificial Intelligence-based ‘Bharat VISTAAR’ scheme in Rajasthan.
About Bharat VISTAAR
Objective: Promote the use of India’s major AI-powered digital public infrastructure for the agriculture-related needs of farmers.
Bharat-VISTAAR stands for Virtually Integrated System to Access Agricultural Resources.
It provides a multilingual AI-based conversational advisory system, integrating resources from AgriStack, ICAR, various agricultural schemes, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), mandi prices, and state systems into a single digital system.
Farmers can query the system through phones (including feature phones) to get instant agricultural solutions and market price information.
High-Level Discussion on “The Future of Employability in the Age of AI”
Artificial Intelligence (AI) has now become a widely deployed economic technology and is redefining employability across economic sectors.
How AI is Redefining Employability?
Job Replacement: AI is replacing jobs involving predictable, rule-based tasks (e.g., assembly lines, customer service chatbots, accountants, administrative assistants etc).
New Job Opportunities: New opportunities are arising in technology oriented areas like data scientists, machine learning experts, niche market solutions etc.
Qualitative Shift: Hiring is becoming skills-based particularly in fast-moving technological domains with wage premium (e.g., 28% higher wages according to world bank in AI-focused roles).
Improved Labour Productivity: Full adoption of Generative AI will raise the level of labour productivity by around 15%, translating into rise in unemployment rate.
Strategies for Adaptation
Focus on Skill Diffusion: Targeted skill acquisition through shorter, modular trainings.
Educational Overhaul: Move away from static knowledge toward fostering lifelong learning with emphasis on adaptability and complex problem solving in curricula.
Collaborative Approach: Clear national commitment involving the government, industry, and educators to align AI adoption with citizen welfare.
Democratization: Policies must support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in upskilling and ensure access to certification pathways to prevent a digital divide.
Ethical Considerations: Transparency and fairness must be central to employment practices.
Key Initiatives for AI Adoption
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Report on Digital Payments after 10 years of UPI Launch
Department for Financial Services, Ministry of Finance has released Report titled “Socio-Economic Impact Analysis of Incentive Scheme for Promotion of RuPay Debit Card and low-value BHIM-UPI Transactions (P2M)”.
Key Highlights of the Report
Dominance of UPI: UPI is the most preferred transaction mode (57%), surpassing cash (38%).
Global Leadership: India accounts for approximately half of the world’s instant payment transactions (49%).
Merchant Integration: UPI adoption among merchants stands at 94%, driven by faster transactions and improved record-keeping.
Economic Impact: UPI contributed an estimated $16.2 billion to India's GDP in 2022 through cost savings and efficiency.
International Expansion: UPI and RuPay are expanding internationally, with UPI live in eight countries, including the UAE, Singapore, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, France, Qatar and Mauritius.
Recommendations
Expand Merchant Acceptance: Extend support for QR and soundbox deployment in Tier 3–6 and subsidize POS terminals.
Offline Capability: Scale UPI Lite and 123Pay to serve low-bandwidth zones effectively.
Financial Inclusion and Sustainability: Integrate UPI with Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) programs for government subsidies.
Launch digital literacy programs targeting female entrepreneurs in rural areas.
Other: Deploy AI-driven anomaly detection and real-time alerts to prevent fraud; Enable scheduled payments for recurring bills in education, healthcare; etc.
Challenges
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External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs) framework
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the updated guidelines on ECBs through Foreign Exchange Management (Borrowing and Lending) (First Amendment) Regulations, 2026.
RBI has made amendments to the Foreign Exchange Management (Borrowing and Lending) Regulations, 2018 by exercising power conferred under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.
About ECB
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ECB Framework
Eligible borrowers: Any non-individual resident entity incorporated under central or state law is now eligible to raise overseas loans, subject to statutory permissions.
Increased Borrowing Limits and Maturity
Higher Caps: Eligible companies can now raise ECBs of up to $1 billion or 300% of their net worth.
Maturity Periods: The general minimum average maturity period is set at three years.
Borrowers in the manufacturing sector are permitted a shorter average maturity period of 1 to 3 years under certain conditions.
Conversion of ECB into non-debt instrument: An ECB (including those which is matured but unpaid) may be converted into a non-debt instrument, subject to compliance with the Foreign Exchange Management (Non-Debt Instruments) Rules, 2019.
Arm’s length principle: ECB from a related party shall be carried out on an arm’s length basis.
Arm’s length principle means a transaction between two related parties that is conducted as if the transacting parties were unrelated, so that there is no conflict of interest.
End-Use Restrictions: ECB funds cannot be used for: Chit funds or Nidhi companies, Stock market investments, etc
Denotified Tribes in India: Separate Schedule Demand
Demand for a “separate column” for Denotified, Nomadic, and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (DNTs) in the Census form
The Office of the Registrar General of India will enumerate Denotified, Nomadic, and Semi-Nomadic Tribes (DNTs) in the upcoming Census due in 2027.
Who are DNTs?
DNTs are communities earlier notified as “criminal tribes” by the colonial British government through various legislations, beginning with the Criminal Tribes Act, 1871.
Criminal Tribes Act was repealed in 1952, and these communities were “denotified”.
These communities were enumerated in 1911 and 1931 Census with 1931 Census being the last census with information on such communities.
Idate Commission in 2017 identified close to 1,200 DNT communities that have been assimilated into existing SCs, STs and OBCs classification and 268 other DNTs that had not been classified at all.
Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) comprehensively categorised these 268 DNTs and recommended their inclusion in SCs, STs and OBCs lists.
These communities remained largely socially, economically, educationally, and politically backward.
Government Interventions: Some schemes of Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment include:
Scheme for Economic Empowerment of DNTs (SEED): Educational support, Health Insurance Coverage, livelihood promotion, and Housing support.
Dr. Ambedkar Pre-Matric & Post-Matric Scholarship for DNTs (2014–15).
Nanaji Deshmukh Scheme of Construction of Hostels for DNT Boys and Girls (2014-15).
Institutional Mechanisms
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United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA)
Indian Army hosts first UN Training Program on Small Arms Control for Asia-Pacific region in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh.
Program is being organised by United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) and is being held under the aegis of India’s Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Defence.
About UNODA
Origin: Established in 1998 as the Department for Disarmament Affairs by UN Secretary General.
HQ: New York, USA.
Goal: Complete elimination of weapons of mass destruction especially nuclear weapons and the strict control of conventional weapons.
Akash Missile System
Defense minister flaged-off Akash 3rd and 4th Regiment Combat systems and inaugurated Mountain Fire Control Radar at Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) in Bengaluru.
Mountain Fire Control Radar is part of air‑defence fire control radars, specialising in high‑altitude operations (thin air and complex topography).
About Akash
Type: Medium range, surface-to-air missile system which provides air defence.
Developed by: DRDOin collaboration with BEL and Bharat Dynamics Limited.
Features: Can simultaneously engage multiple aerial targets e.g. aircraft, missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Covers upto 18 km in altitude.
Multi-function fire control radar named Rajendra, which has a coverage of 80 km.
3D Central Acquisition Radar scans the airspace upto 120 km.
Gas Turbine Engine
Minister for Defence reviewed projects of indigenous military gas turbine engine (Kaveri Programme) development at DRDO’s Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE) in Bengaluru.
About Gas Turbine Engine
It is a type of internal combustion engine that converts chemical energy from fuel into thermal energy.
How It Works: The process follows four main steps: intake, compression, combustion, and exhaust.
Compression: A compressor draws in air and compresses it.
Combustion: The fuel burns in presence of air and produces high temperature gas.
Power Generation: Turbine extracts power from the hot gas flow.
Exhaust: Remaining gas is removed through nozzle.
Exercise MILAN
Exercise Milan is taking place in Visakhapatnam with more than 70 nations participating in the 2026 edition.
About Exercise MILAN
It is a biennial multilateral naval exercise hosted by the Indian Navy.
It promotes cooperation, interoperability and maritime partnership among friendly navies across the world.
History: Launched in 1995 with four navies at Port Blair, it has evolved into a premier Multilateral Exercise with partner navies across the globe.
India’s Drone Ecosystem
India has transitioned from pilot drone projects to a regulated drone ecosystem with 38,500+ registered drones (Unique Identification Number (UIN).
The expanding drone ecosystem is reshaping public service delivery, infrastructure management, agriculture, and national security.
Transformation of Public Service Delivery through Drone Technologies
Agriculture & Livelihoods: Namo Drone Didi Scheme (2023) provides drones to Women SHGs to generate sustainable rural livelihoods.
Land Mapping: SVAMITVA Scheme (2020) uses drones for rural abadi surveys to resolve land disputes and enable property cards, improving access to institutional credit.
Highway Monitoring: NHAI mandates monthly drone-video mapping of highway projects for progress tracking, digital reporting, discrepancy checks, and use as evidence in dispute resolution.
Disaster Management: E.g., North East Centre for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR) drones provide real-time aerial visuals during floods and landslides, aiding rapid assessment, coordinated rescue, and emergency response.
Railway Surveillance: Ministry of Railways deploys UAVs for inspection of tracks, bridges, and hard-to-reach infrastructure, improving maintenance efficiency and safety.
Defence Applications: Drones enable border surveillance, intelligence gathering and precision strikes; integrated with radar and air-defence networks, they enhance rapid threat detection and protection of critical infrastructure (e.g., Operation Sindoor).
Accelerating Drone Adoption in India
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‘India AI Impact Summit 2026’ Begins in New Delhi
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 has commenced in New Delhi.
It is the first multilateral AI gathering hosted in the Global South.
Global South refers to developing and emerging economies in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Theme and Core Vision
The theme of the Summit is ‘Sarvajana Hitaya, Sarvajana Sukhaya’.
The phrase means welfare for all and happiness for all.
The Summit aims to translate global AI deliberations into actionable development outcomes.
It aligns with the IndiaAI Mission and the Digital India initiative.
It seeks to strengthen global collaboration and promote responsible and ethical AI.
It also aims to accelerate AI adoption and position India as a global AI hub.
Three Sutras Shaping a Sustainable AI Future
The Summit outlines Three Sutras as guiding principles. These Sutras define how AI can be harnessed for collective benefit.
1. People
AI must serve humanity in all its diversity.
It must preserve dignity and ensure inclusivity.
2. Planet
AI innovation must align with environmental stewardship.
It must promote sustainability in technological development.
3. Progress
The benefits of AI must be equitably shared.
AI should advance global development and prosperity.
Seven Chakras: Themes for Global Cooperation
The Seven Chakras translate the guiding Sutras into concrete areas of multilateral action.
They channel global collaboration toward measurable outcomes.
The themes span human capital, inclusion, trust, resilience, science, resources, and social good.
Key Areas under the Seven Chakras
Inclusion for Social Empowerment promotes equitable access to AI opportunities.
Human Capital focuses on skill development and capacity building.
Efficiency, Innovation, and Resilience enhance productivity and system robustness.
Democratizing AI Resources ensures wider access to computing and datasets.
AI for Economic Development and Social Good aligns AI with developmental goals.
Science promotes research collaboration and knowledge exchange.
Safe and Trusted AI ensures accountability, transparency, and risk mitigation.
Foundational Pillars of the Summit
The Three Sutras provide the ethical and philosophical foundation.
The Seven Chakras define priority areas for multilateral cooperation.
Together, they channel collective efforts toward sustainable societal outcomes.
Flagship Events under the Summit
1. Global Impact Challenges
These challenges aim to identify scalable and development-oriented AI solutions.
AI for ALL
The initiative identifies AI solutions with potential for large-scale impact.
It is implemented in partnership with Startup India.
AI by HER
This initiative promotes women-led innovation in AI.
It is implemented in partnership with NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform.
YUVAi
YUVAi encourages young innovators aged 13–21 years to develop AI solutions.
It is implemented in partnership with MyBharat and the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT).
Other Multilateral AI Forums
1. Global Partnership on AI (GPAI)
GPAI is an integrated partnership bringing together OECD members and GPAI countries.
It advances human-centric and trustworthy AI.
It has 29 members, and India is a founding member.
It is hosted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
2. UK AI Safety Summit (Bletchley Declaration)
The Summit focused on managing risks from Frontier AI.
Frontier AI refers to highly advanced and potentially transformative AI systems.
The Bletchley Declaration established a shared safety understanding among 29 nations and the European Union (EU).
India was among the participating countries.
3. G7 Hiroshima AI Process
The G7 Hiroshima AI Process is a G7-led initiative.
It promotes guardrails and a code of conduct for advanced AI systems globally.
Guardrails refer to policy safeguards ensuring safe AI deployment.
SAHI and BODH Initiatives
The Strategy for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare for India (SAHI) and the Benchmarking Open Data Platform for Health AI (BODH) were launched at the India AI Impact Summit 2026.
Both initiatives mark a significant step toward building a robust, responsible, and globally competitive health AI ecosystem in India.
Strategy for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare for India (SAHI)
1. Overview and Vision
SAHI is the national framework guiding responsible integration of AI into India’s health system.
Its vision is to enable safe, ethical, evidence-based, and inclusive adoption of AI across healthcare.
Evidence-based adoption refers to decisions supported by scientific validation and clinical data.
SAHI leverages digital public infrastructure (DPI).
Digital Public Infrastructure includes interoperable digital platforms that provide public services at scale.
It aims to expand healthcare access and improve health outcomes.
It also seeks to establish India as a global leader in responsible healthcare AI.
SAHI supports ecosystem stakeholders by providing shared principles and strategic direction.
2. Strategic Pillars of SAHI
SAHI is structured around five strategic pillars.
A. Establishing Governance and Safety Foundations
It prioritises regulatory oversight and risk mitigation.
Governance ensures accountability and compliance with ethical standards.
B. Strengthening Data and Digital Infrastructure
It enhances secure and interoperable health data systems.
Interoperability enables seamless data exchange across platforms.
C. Building Workforce and Institutional Capacity
It promotes AI skill development among healthcare professionals.
Institutional capacity ensures effective adoption at system level.
D. Enabling Responsible Innovation and Evidence Generation
It encourages innovation aligned with ethical safeguards.
It promotes clinical validation and research-backed AI tools.
E. Supporting Ecosystem-Level Adoption and Scale
It facilitates nationwide deployment of AI solutions.
It ensures scalable and sustainable health AI integration.
Benchmarking Open Data Platform for Health AI (BODH)
1. Development and Institutional Support
BODH has been developed by IIT Kanpur in collaboration with the National Health Authority (NHA).
The National Health Authority (NHA) implements flagship digital health initiatives in India.
2. Purpose and Functional Role
BODH is a privacy-preserving benchmarking platform.
It enables rigorous evaluation of AI models using diverse real-world health data.
It allows evaluation without sharing underlying datasets.
Benchmarking refers to systematic comparison of AI model performance against standard metrics.
BODH is positioned as a digital public good under the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM).
Digital public good refers to digital systems accessible for public benefit.
Other Initiatives for AI in Healthcare
1. Centres of Excellence for Artificial Intelligence
Centres of Excellence have been established at AIIMS Delhi, PGIMER Chandigarh, and AIIMS Rishikesh.
These centres lead development of indigenous AI healthcare solutions.
2. Ethical Oversight Mechanism
All AI deployments follow the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Ethical Guidelines (2023).
These guidelines ensure responsible and ethical AI use in healthcare.
3. IndiaAI Application Development Initiative
The initiative operates under the IndiaAI Mission.
It aims to develop, scale, and promote adoption of impactful AI solutions.
These solutions are designed to tackle significant national challenges.
Prime-Editing-mediated Readthrough of premature Termination codons (PERT)
Single genome-editing strategy based on PERT could potentially treat multiple genetic disorders.
About PERT
Many genetic diseases happen because of a specific error in DNA called a "nonsense mutation" that forces the cell to stop building a protein too early.
PERT uses prime editing - a precise CRISPR/Cas9 DNA editing system with the power to search and replace genetic sequences at their exact location in the genome, all without making double-strand breaks in DNA.
PERT does not edit nonsense mutations but instead makes another edit that equips cells with a tool to produce the normal, functional version of the protein, regardless of which gene is impacted.
NGT cleared Great Nicobar Mega-infrastructure Project
NGT while noting the “strategic importance of the project” upheld its environmental clearance and compliance with ICRZ (Island Coastal Regulation Zone) and CRZ norms.
About the Great Nicobar Project
Location: Great Nicobar Island (southernmost island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands) including parts of Galathea Bay, Campbell Bay and Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve.
Objective: Project envisions transforming the remote outpost into a major transshipment and defence hub with integrated township, 450 MVA Gas and Solar-based power plant, dual-use civil-military airport, etc.
Implementing Agency: Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation along with the NITI Aayog.
Concerns associated with the Project
Regulatory Lapses:
Environmental Impact assessment (EIA) relied on single-season data instead of comprehensive multi-season assessment.
Proposed compensatory afforestation in Haryana is inadequate to offset loss of a tropical rainforest ecosystem.
Forest Rights Act (FRA): Government has proceeded with project even after Tribal council withdrew its consent.
Threat to Biodiversity: The project involves diverting approximately 130 sq. km of tropical rainforest (felling one million trees), home to the Nicobar megapode, Nicobar tree shrew, Giant leatherback turtles, corals, etc.
Social Impact: Project might negatively impact tribal population, e.g. Shompen (Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group) and Nicobarese.
Natural Disaster Vulnerability: The Island falls in the highest seismic-risk zone (Zone VI).
Significance of the Project for India
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Malabar Pied Hornbill
Chhattisgarh Forest Department is establishing hornbill restaurants in Udanti Sitanadi Tiger Reserve (in Gariband District) to protect rare Malabar Pied Hornbill.
Hornbill Restaurants are natural clusters of fruit-bearing trees (eaten by Hornbills).
About Malabar Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros coronatus)
Distribution: Endemic to the Indian subcontinent - Western Ghats moist forests, North-eastern Himalayan foothills (India & Nepal), Satpuda Hills and Sri Lanka.
Features: Black body with white underparts; Keystone seed disperser in tropical forests.
Diet: Primarily frugivorous.
IUCN Status: Near Threatened.
Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas
CAQM has issued comprehensive Statutory Direction regarding implementation of Action Plans for Elimination of Wheat Stubble Burning in 2026.
About CAQM
Origin and Statutory Backing: It was established under the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act, 2021.
Objective: Management of air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR) and its adjoining areas.
Key Powers and Functions:
Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) implementation
Stubble Burning Control
Polluter Penalties
Industrial Regulation
Vehicular Standards
Snowball Earth
A study has reported evidence that shorter climate cycles still operated during at least one phase of this snowball earth.
About Snowball Earth
Snowball Earth refers to hypothesized period of extreme glaciation episodes during the Cryogenian Period (~720–635 million years ago) when ice likely covered even tropical regions.
Oceans were largely frozen, weakening climate–ocean interactions.
This glaciation was reinforced by the albedo effect and is believed to have had a major impact on the evolution of life during the Proterozoic aeon.
Loggerhead turtles
Loggerhead turtles face significant threat due to climate change.
Loggerhead turtles
Marine turtle
Habitat: Temperate and tropical oceans worldwide; prefers coastal bays, estuaries, and continental shelves.
Key Feature: Large head and powerful jaws adapted for crushing hard-shelled prey like crabs and molluscs.
Loggerheads are carnivores, only occasionally consuming plant material.
Lifespan: 70 to 80 years or more.
Protection Status
IUCN Status: Vulnerable
Protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
Distribution in India: Occasional sightings along Indian coasts; not as common as Olive Ridley.
Key Threats: Bycatch in fishing nets, coastal development, plastic pollution, etc.
BeeCorridors
NHAI has announced to develop First of its Kind ‘BeeCorridors’ Along the National Highways.
About Beecorridors
Beecorridors are a continuous linear stretch of bee-friendly vegetation comprising flowering trees and plants.
It will ensure the availability of nectar and pollen throughout the year.
Significance: The initiative will help reduce the increasing ecological stress faced by honeybees and other pollinators.
Bees & their Significance:
Characteristics
Only female bees have stingers (which are modified ovipositors, organs originally used to lay eggs).
Feed exclusively on sugary nectar and protein-rich pollen from flowering plants.
Significance: A third of the world’s food production depends on bees.
Super-Earth
Super-Earths are a unique class of planets that are larger than Earth but lighter than "ice giants" like Neptune and Uranus.
Key Features:
Size and Mass: have a mass up to 10 times that of Earth and a diameter about 2 times Earth's radius.
Composition: can be made of rock, gas, or a combination of both.
Importance: help scientists understand how planets form and evolve.
Ol Chiki Script
President of India inaugurated the centenary celebrations of the ol chiki script.
About Ol Chiki Script
Developed in 1925 by Raghunath Murmu, specifically for the Santhali language.
Transitioned Santhali from oral to written tradition.
Before Ol Chiki, Santhali was written using Roman, Bengali, Odia, Devanagari script.
About Santhali Language
Belongs to Austroasiatic language family.
Spoken in: Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Assam, Bihar and parts of Nepal & Bangladesh
Included in the Eighth Schedule via 92nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003.
Bhirrana site
After performing radiocarbondating at Bhirrana in Haryana the researchers now show the possibility that the Harappan Civilisation of the Indian subcontinent could be over 8,000 years old.
About Bhirrana Site
Excavated by: Shri L.S.Rao along the paleo-channels of Ghaggar river.
Period-IA: Hakra Wares Culture: Characterised by well-plastered subterranean dwelling pits dug into natural soil, Ceramic assemblage.
Period-IB: Early Harappan: Houses constructed with mud bricks, Pottery shows six fabrics similar to Kalibanga-I.
Period-IIA: Early Mature Harappan: Marked by transformation in city layout, Settlement enclosed by a mud-brick fortification wall.
Period-IIB: Mature Harappan: Steatite seals, Standard Harappan antiquities
Antiquities include: Beads of semiprecious stones, Terracotta objects, Copper bangles, bone objects etc.
Net Neutrality
Indian telecom operators are urging the TRAI to update 2016 Net Neutrality Regulations to permit 5G network slicing for premium services.
Network Slicing creates several virtual networks on a single physical infrastructure.
Each slice works like its own separate network and can have different performance levels regarding speed, latency etc.
About Net Neutrality
The Principle of Net Neutrality states that internet users should be able to access all content on the internet without being discriminated by Telecom Service Providers (TSPs)
Key Components:
All websites or applications should be treated equally by TSPs.
All applications should be allowed to be accessed at the same internet speed.
All applications should be accessible for the same cost.
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