🔆 NPS Swasthya Pension Scheme (NSPS)

📍 Launch
✅ Launched in 2026 on a pilot basis under the regulatory sandbox of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority.
✅ It is a contributory pension scheme.

📍 Aim
✅ To integrate health-related financial benefits with the National Pension System framework.

📍 Implemented By
✅ Implemented by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority through Pension Funds.

📍 Beneficiaries / Target Sector
✅ Voluntary subscribers, i.e., Indian citizens opting to join the scheme.

📍 Key Features
✅ Subscribers can contribute any amount, in line with existing NPS guidelines applicable to the non-government sector.
✅ It is a sector-specific contributory pension scheme within the Multi-Scheme framework of the National Pension System architecture.
✅ The scheme is offered by Pension Funds after prior approval of the PFRDA.
✅ Available to Indian citizens on a voluntary basis.

📍 Significance
✅ Links pension savings with healthcare-related financial security.
✅ May help reduce out-of-pocket medical expenditure for retirees.
✅ Expands the scope of the National Pension System beyond old-age income support.

#goverment_schemes

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🔆 Sant Kabir Das Ji

📍 About
✅ Kabir was a 15th-century mystic poet and Bhakti saint.
✅ Born in Varanasi.
✅ He sought to bridge Hindu and Muslim devotional traditions through universal spiritual teachings.

📍 Religious Philosophy
✅ Born in a Muslim family but deeply influenced by Ramananda.
✅ He belonged to the Nirguni tradition, which viewed God as formless, universal and beyond rituals.

📍 Role in Bhakti Movement
✅ A major proponent of the Bhakti Movement.
✅ Emphasised:
➡️ Devotion over ritual
➡️ Equality and social harmony
➡️ Spiritual unity between religions

📍 Literary Contributions
✅ His compositions are mainly found in three forms:

➡️ Dohas – Short two-line verses
➡️ Ramanis – Rhymed four-line verses
➡️ Padas / Sabdas – Sung compositions of varying length

📍 Language
✅ Wrote mainly in Hindi and local dialects.
✅ Many of his verses are included in the Guru Granth Sahib.

📍 Significance
✅ Kabir criticised caste discrimination, religious orthodoxy and blind rituals.
✅ His teachings continue to inspire social reform and communal harmony.

#history #prelims #mains

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FY 2025–26, India’s exports reached a record US$ 860.09 bn (vs US$ 825.26 bn). Merchandise exports rose to US$ 441.78 bn, while services exports grew 7.84% to US$ 418 bn, reflecting resilience amid global headwinds.

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🔆 TRACERS Mission

📍 Context
✅ Recently, NASA launched the twin TRACERS Mission satellites.

📍 About the Mission
✅ TRACERS stands for Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites.
✅ Launched in 2025 as a 12-month mission.
✅ Launched by NASA under its Heliophysics Small Explorer (SMEX) programme.

📍 Aim
✅ To study magnetic reconnection and how solar activity affects Earth’s near-space environment and atmosphere.

📍 Orbit
✅ The satellites will fly in Low Earth Orbit through the polar cusps—funnel-shaped openings in Earth’s magnetic field.
✅ They will be placed in a Sun-synchronous orbit.

📍 Twin Satellites
✅ The mission consists of two spacecraft flying close together, around 10 seconds apart.
✅ They are expected to capture nearly 3,000 magnetic reconnection events.
✅ This will help create a detailed, time-resolved picture of changing space-weather dynamics.

📍 Magnetic Reconnection
✅ It occurs when streams of solar wind and charged particles from the Sun interact with Earth’s magnetic field (magnetosphere).
✅ During such events, solar particles that are usually deflected can enter Earth’s atmosphere at high speed.
✅ It represents a sudden release of magnetic energy in space.

📍 Effects of Magnetic Reconnection
✅ Can push solar particles toward Earth.
✅ Can create auroras.
✅ Can disrupt satellites, GPS systems and power grids.

#GS3
#prelims
#science_technology
#science_and_technology

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🔆 Personality in News: Raja Ravi Varma

📍 About
✅ Raja Ravi Varma (1848–1906) was born in Kilimanoor in the princely state of Travancore.
✅ He belonged to the family of Maharajas of Travancore and was addressed as “Raja”.
✅ He is widely regarded as the “Father of Modern Indian Art”.

📍 Key Contributions
✅ Mastered the Western technique of oil painting and realistic portraiture.
✅ Combined European artistic methods with Indian themes and traditions.
✅ Painted scenes from the Ramayana and Mahabharata, making mythological characters appear more human and relatable.

📍 Printing Press
✅ Established the Ravi Varma Fine Art Lithographic Press in 1894 at Girgaum, Bombay (now Mumbai).
✅ It was among the earliest large-scale printing presses in India and enabled mass production of his paintings, making art accessible to common people.

📍 Famous Works
✅ Damayanti Talking to a Swan
✅ Shakuntala Looking for Dushyanta
✅ Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair
✅ Shantanu and Matsyagandha

📍 Awards and Recognition
✅ Received the Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal in 1904 from Lord Curzon on behalf of the British Emperor.
✅ The title “Raja” was formally used for him for the first time in this citation.

📍 Significance
✅ Raja Ravi Varma’s works promoted cultural nationalism by portraying Indian traditions and mythology through modern artistic techniques.
✅ His paintings continue to influence Indian art, popular culture and calendar art.

#history #prelims #mains

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Failure is the story of yours success


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🔆 Ports of Ancient India

📍 Lothal Port (Gujarat)
✅ Oldest known port in India (Indus Valley Civilization)
✅ Excavated by ASI (1954) → Dockyard, marketplace, township discovered
✅ Evidence of maritime trade & urban planning

📍 Muziris Port (Kerala)
✅ Major Indo-Roman trade centre
✅ Exported spices (pepper), ivory, pearls, semi-precious stones
✅ Imports included wine, gold coins, textiles, wheat

📍 Poompuhar / Kaveripattinam (Tamil Nadu)
✅ Chola port town at mouth of River Kaveri
✅ Trade with Asian regions & Arab merchants
✅ Famous for spice trade

📍 Arikamedu (Puducherry)
✅ Known as Podouke in classical texts
✅ Bead-making & Indo-Roman trade hub
✅ Sangam literature references

📍 Bharuch / Barygaza (Gujarat)
✅ Located at mouth of River Narmada
✅ Trade with Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Africans, Chinese
✅ Important trans-shipment centre using monsoon winds

📍 Sopara / Śūrpāraka (Maharashtra)
✅ Capital of Aparanta region
✅ Trade links with Mesopotamia, Egypt, Arabia, East Africa
✅ Ashokan edict fragments & relics found

📍 Calicut / Kozhikode (Kerala)
✅ Major medieval spice trade port (pepper, cloves, cinnamon)
✅ Flourished under Chera rule
✅ Imports: Chinese ceramics, European goods

📍 Tuticorin / Thoothukudi (Tamil Nadu)
✅ Important seaport of Pandya & Chola dynasties
✅ Famous for pearl fishery & maritime trade

📍 Other Important Ancient Ports (Quick Facts)
✅ Nirppeyarru (Mahabalipuram) – Tamil Nadu
✅ Tondi & Korkai – Key Pandya ports
✅ Motupalli – Port of Kakatiya dynasty (Andhra Pradesh)
✅ Machilipatnam (Masula/Bandar) – Flourished in Satavahana period, famous for muslin trade
✅ Tamralipti (West Bengal) – Major eastern trade gateway, mentioned by Ptolemy & Xuanzang
✅ Pulicat – Important during Vijayanagara rule
✅ Barbaricum (near Karachi) – Key Indus delta port for Indo-Roman trade

#history #prelims #mains

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🔆 Ballistic Missile vs Cruise Missile

📍 Ballistic Missile
✅ Follows a ballistic trajectory after initial launch.
✅ Propelled only during the initial phase; later motion depends on gravity, air resistance and Earth’s rotation.
✅ Short-range ballistic missiles remain within atmosphere, while long-range missiles may travel outside it.
✅ Usually faster and used for long-distance strikes.

📍 Cruise Missile
✅ Remains guided throughout most of its flight.
✅ Flies within the atmosphere at low altitude.
✅ Powered continuously by jet/ramjet engine.
✅ More accurate and harder to detect due to low-altitude flight.

📍 Examples
✅ Agni-V: Long-range ballistic missile with range beyond 5,000 km.
✅ BrahMos: Supersonic cruise missile with speed around Mach 2.8.

🔆 Prelims Question

📍 Regarding Ballistic Missile and Cruise Missile, consider the following statements:
1. Ballistic missiles are jet-propelled at subsonic speeds throughout their flights, while cruise missiles are rocket-powered only in the initial phase of flight.
2. Agni-V is a medium-range supersonic cruise missile, while BrahMos is a solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missile.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

✅ A. 1 only
✅ B. 2 only
✅ C. Both 1 and 2
✅ D. Neither 1 nor 2

📍 Answer: D) Neither 1 nor 2

✅ Statement 1 is incorrect because ballistic missiles are rocket-powered only initially, while cruise missiles remain powered and guided during flight.
✅ Statement 2 is incorrect because Agni-V is a ballistic missile, whereas BrahMos is a cruise missile.

#prelims #Defence

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🔆 Urban Challenge Fund (UCF) Guidelines Launched

📍 Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched the Operational Guidelines for the Urban Challenge Fund and the Credit Repayment Guarantee Sub-Scheme in New Delhi.

🔆 About Urban Challenge Fund (UCF)

✅ Nature: Market-linked, reform-driven and outcome-oriented fund for urban infrastructure financing.

✅ Duration: FY 2025–26 to FY 2030–31

✅ Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

✅ Total Central Assistance: ₹1 lakh crore
➡️ Expected to mobilise nearly ₹4 lakh crore investment.

📍 Funding Model
✅ Central assistance limited to only 25% of project cost.
✅ At least 50% funding must come from market-based sources such as:
▪️ Municipal Bonds
▪️ Bank Loans
▪️ Public-Private Partnership (PPP)

📍 Aim
✅ Transform cities into investment-ready and financially sustainable growth hubs.
✅ Mobilise private capital for urban infrastructure.
✅ Support the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.

📍 Focus Areas
▪️ Redevelopment of old city areas
▪️ Urban mobility and last-mile connectivity
▪️ Non-motorised transport
▪️ Water supply and sanitation
▪️ Climate-resilient infrastructure

📍 Eligibility & Selection
✅ Projects selected through a challenge-based mechanism.
✅ Funding linked to:
▪️ Project bankability
▪️ Urban reforms by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs)

📍 Significance
✅ Enforces fiscal discipline in cities.
✅ Promotes financial sustainability through market-based financing.

🔆 Credit Repayment Guarantee Sub-Scheme (CRGSS)

✅ A sub-scheme under UCF that provides credit guarantees to cities.

📍 Corpus: ₹5,000 crore

📍 Aim
✅ Bridge the credit gap and improve access to finance for smaller cities.

📍 Key Features
✅ Provides guarantees to lenders financing urban projects.
✅ Makes cities more creditworthy for market borrowing.

📍 Target Group
▪️ Tier-II cities
▪️ Tier-III cities
▪️ Hilly region cities
▪️ North-Eastern region cities

📍 Significance
✅ Improves access to loans and private investment.
✅ Encourages balanced and inclusive urban development.
✅ Helps smaller cities participate in large infrastructure projects.

#goverment_schemes

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🔆 Memristor

📍 Researchers at the University of Cambridge have developed a new hafnium-oxide memristor that could sharply reduce the energy consumption of artificial intelligence systems.

📍 What is a Memristor?
✅ A memristor is an electronic component that regulates current flow and remembers its past electrical state.
✅ The term comes from combining “memory” and “resistor”.

📍 Origin
✅ Concept proposed by Leon Chua in 1971.
✅ First physical memristor developed by HP Labs in 2008.

📍 Working Mechanism
✅ A memristor changes its resistance depending on the voltage applied.
✅ Unlike an ordinary resistor, its resistance depends on the history of current flow.
✅ Even after power is switched off, it retains its last resistance state.

📍 Key Characteristics
▪️ Non-Volatile
✅ Stores data even without power.

▪️ Non-Linear Device
✅ Current and voltage do not have a straight-line relationship.
✅ Cannot amplify signals like active components.

📍 Cambridge Innovation
✅ Researchers developed a hafnium-oxide memristor using a p-n junction instead of unstable conductive filaments.
✅ Low-voltage pulses move ions and control the energy barrier.
✅ This makes the device more stable, reliable and energy-efficient.

📍 Major Features
✅ Can reduce energy use by more than 70%.
✅ Mimics the functioning of brain synapses by combining memory and processing.
✅ Uses hafnium oxide, which is compatible with existing semiconductor chips.
✅ Can withstand repeated switching cycles.

📍 Applications
▪️ Memory Devices
✅ Can be used as non-volatile memory in computers and industrial systems.

▪️ Integrated Circuits
✅ May replace or complement transistors in future chips.

▪️ Neuromorphic Computing
✅ Useful for building brain-like computing systems.

▪️ Artificial Intelligence & Edge Computing
✅ Enables faster and energy-efficient AI processing in small devices.

#GS3
#prelims
#science_technology
#science_and_technology

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🔆 Etikoppaka Toys

📍 Andhra Pradesh’s Republic Day tableau showcased the 400-year-old Etikoppaka Toys tradition.

📍 About
✅ Made by artisans of Etikoppaka village located on the banks of the Varaha River in Andhra Pradesh.

✅ Crafted from the wood of the Ankudu tree (Wrightia tinctoria).
✅ The wood is lightweight, soft and suitable for intricate carving.

📍 Key Features
✅ Toys have rounded shapes with no sharp edges, making them safe for children.
✅ Coloured using natural dyes prepared from:
▪️ Seeds
▪️ Roots
▪️ Leaves
▪️ Bark

✅ Finished through the lacquer-turning technique, giving them a smooth and glossy surface.

📍 Cultural Significance
✅ Designs often depict:
▪️ Mythological characters
▪️ Animals
▪️ Household items
▪️ Musical instruments

✅ Some motifs are inspired by the Indus Valley Civilization, especially Mohenjo-daro and Harappa.

📍 GI Tag
✅ Etikoppaka Toys received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2017.

⸻

🔆 Other GI-Tagged Toys in India

📍 Channapatna Toys – Karnataka
✅ Made from ivory wood and lacquer-coated with natural dyes.

📍 Thanjavur Dolls – Tamil Nadu
✅ Also called “Thanjavur Thalaiyatti Bommai”; made from terracotta.

📍 Nirmal Toys – Telangana
✅ Hand-carved wooden toys with gold-painted designs.

📍 Kondapalli Toys – Andhra Pradesh
✅ Made from Tella Poniki wood and depict mythology and rural life.

#prelims
#art_and_culture

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