Daily Current Affairs and News Analysis 22-02-2025

E-Personnel License

• Electronic Personnel License (EPL) Launched: Union Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu introduced the EPL for pilots.

  • Why: Modernizes civil aviation, enhances safety, security, and efficiency.

• Digital License: EPL is a digital version of the traditional physical pilot license.

  • Why: Easier access and reduces dependence on physical documents.

• Accessibility: Securely accessible via the eGCA Mobile Application.

  • Why: Seamless, transparent process, aligning with Ease of Doing Business and Digital India initiatives.

• ICAO Compliance: Implemented following ICAO’s Amendment 178, encouraging electronic licenses.

  • Why: Meets
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    international standards for improved security and efficiency in aviation.

• Global Leader: India is the second country globally (after China) to implement EPL.

  • Why: Demonstrates India’s leadership and commitment to aviation innovation.

• DGCA Implementation: Implemented by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

  • Why: DGCA is the regulatory body for civil aviation in India, ensuring safety and compliance.

• ICAO Role: ICAO is an intergovernmental agency associated with the UN, dedicated to safe and efficient international air transport.

  • Why: Sets standards and regulations for aviation safety, security, and economic development.

• Digital India Alignment: EPL aligns with the Government of India’s Digital India initiative.

  • Why: Transforms India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.

• Modern Aviation Governance: The step aligns with ICAO’s roadmap for modern aviation governance.

  • Why: Shows India’s readiness to embrace the future of aviation.

Bathousim

• Official Recognition: The Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) government in Assam now includes ‘Bathouism’ as an official religion option on application forms for educational institutions and key documents.

• Traditional Faith: Bathouism is the traditional religion of the Bodos, the largest plains tribe of Assam.

• Etymology: ‘Bathou’ means ‘five deep philosophical thoughts’ in the Bodo language.

• Five Elements: The faith is based on five elements: Air, Sun, Earth, Fire, and Sky.

• Supreme God: Bwrai Bathou is worshipped as the supreme god, representing ultimate power and knowledge.

• Sijou Plant Significance: The Sijou plant (Euphorbia splendens) is central to Bathouism, symbolizing life and Bathoubwrai.

• Altar Construction: The Sijou is planted on an elevated altar with a bamboo fence of 18 pairs of posts woven with five bamboo strips. These strips represent birth, marriage, sorrow, happiness, and death.

• Government Support: The Union Home Minister highlighted the government’s commitment to preserving nature-centric faiths. Assam has declared a state holiday for Bathou Puja.

• Religious Diversity: While Bathouism is the ancestral faith, some Bodos have converted to Christianity or follow reformist movements.

• Core Beliefs: Bathoubwrai is considered omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent, the source of all knowledge and light.

• Biggest Festival: Bwisagw is the greatest seasonal festival of the Bodos.

Tech Adoption Fund

• IN-SPACe launched a Technology Adoption Fund (TAF) with a corpus of ₹500 crore to boost India’s space startups.

• Why: Aims to propel growth

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  of indigenous space tech, cut dependence on imports, and establish India as a global space industry player.

• Offers financial support: up to 60% of project cost for startups/MSMEs, 40% for larger industries, capped at ₹25 crore per project.

• Why: Helps bridge the funding gap between early-stage development and commercialization.

• Open to eligible Non-Government Entities (NGEs) demonstrating commercial potential.

• Why: Broadens the scope of participation and encourages innovation.

• Provides technical guidance and mentoring.

• Why: Supports companies in navigating product development challenges.

• Supports the transition of early-stage technologies into commercially viable products, domestic research and development.

• Why: Facilitates technology refinement, production enhancement, and market access (domestic and international).

• Aims to create jobs, drive economic growth, and foster intellectual property.

• Why: Promotes advanced space technologies and strengthens collaboration between government and private sector.

• IN-SPACe promotes, enables, authorizes and supervises space activities of NGEs, like building launch vehicles & satellites.

Dukono Volcano

• Eruption: Mount Dukono recently erupted, spewing ash clouds up to 2,000 meters high.
• Aviation Warning: This eruption triggered an aviation warning issued by Indonesia’s Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Centre.
• Location: Located in North Maluku province, Indonesia, specifically on Halmahera Island.
• Volcanic Type: Complex volcano and one of Indonesia’s most active historically.
• Elevation: Stands at 1,087 meters above sea level.
• Continuous Activity: Dukono has been erupting continuously since 1933, characterized by frequent ash explosions and sulfur dioxide plumes.
• Active Volcano: It is one of Indonesia’s 127 active volcanoes.
• Past Eruptions: It has been recorded that Dukono Volcano has erupted 21 times.
• Halmahera Island: Dukono volcano is located in the northern part of Halmahera island in Indonesia

Iron Dome

• The US President recently signed an Executive Order to develop an Iron Dome-style missile defense system for the United States.

• Iron Dome is an Israeli mobile air defense system designed to intercept short-range rockets.

• Developed by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries (with Raytheon support), it was first deployed in 2011.

• It forms the innermost layer of Israel’s tiered air defense network.

• The system functions in all weather conditions, day or night.

• Iron Dome can launch various interceptor missiles.

• It is designed to intercept missiles with a range of up to 40 miles.

• It is mobile and can be deployed on ships or land.

• Reloading is necessary for continuous missile interception.

• The system comprises:

  • Radar for detecting incoming rockets.
  • A command-and-control system for threat assessment.
  • Interceptors to destroy incoming rockets.

• Akash Missile System is the India’s surface-to-air missile system that can intercept aerial targets at ranges up to 30 kilometres.

Giant Strobilanthes

• A new flowering plant species, Strobilanthes gigantra, has been discovered in Arunachal Pradesh, within the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR).

• It’s distinguished by its unusually large size, sometimes growing into a tree, and unique floral traits like densely imbricate bracts, uninterrupted inflorescence, a slightly curved corolla tube, and winged staminal curtain.

• Strobilanthes is the second-largest genus in the Acanthaceae family.

• India is home to 167 Strobilanthes species, mainly in the Himalayas and Western Ghats.

• Arunachal Pradesh in the Eastern Himalayas is a biodiversity hotspot for this genus, with 41 known species.

• The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is a large mountainous area across 11 Indian states and union territories recognized for its biodiversity and vital role in climate regulation.

• While some Strobilanthes species, such as Strobilanthes dyerianus, can be indoor plants, they require warm, humid, well-lit environments.

• Strobilanthes species have uses ranging from ornamental to medicinal, ecological, and cultural.

Kuno: Cheetah’s New Home

• Cheetah Reintroduction: Kuno National Park (KNP) is central to India’s Project Cheetah. Recent releases of cheetahs into the wild are key news.
• Recent Cheetah Release: Five cheetahs, including Jwala (from Namibia) and her four cubs, were released into the wild in February 2025.
• Cheetah Population: KNP now houses 26 cheetahs: 8 from South Africa, 4 from Namibia, and 14 born in India. 12 are in the wild and 14 in enclosures.
• Location: KNP is in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district, nestled near the Vindhyan Hills. It also spans the Morena district.
• Area: The park covers 750 sq. km.
• Kuno River: The Kuno River, a Chambal tributary, flows through the park and gives it its name.
• National Park Status: It was upgraded from a wildlife sanctuary to a national park in 2018.
• Vegetation: Primarily grassland with mixed forests of Kardhai, Salai, and Khair trees. 123 tree, 71 shrub, 32 exotic/climbing, and 34 bamboo/grass species exist.
• Fauna: Home to jungle cats, Indian leopards, sloth bears, Indian wolves, striped hyenas, golden jackals, Bengal foxes, dholes, and over 120 bird species.

Blue-Cheeked Bee-eater

• New Breeding Site Discovered: The first breeding site of the Blue-Cheeked Bee-eater in peninsular India has been found in the saltpans of Aandivilai, near Manakudy Mangroves in Kanniyakumari district, Tamil Nadu.

• Confirmation: The discovery was confirmed in the ornithological journal Ornis Hungarica (December 2024). Research team includes R. Kishore, Anand Shibu, Vinod Sadhasivan and Ajil Yesudhas.

• Shifting Status: This shifts the bird’s status in India from a passage migrant and winter visitor to a year-round resident and extends the known breeding range further south in the Indian subcontinent.

• Study Details: The study occurred along the Pazhayar Basin from January 2022 to October 2023, leading to the discovery of courtship and nesting sites.

• Breeding Success: The colony grew from 28 to 48 individuals during the research period, indicating successful breeding.

• Habitat and threats: Habitat destruction from development, anthropogenic pressures, as well as natural events, threaten the breeding ground, even though it’s in a CRZ and No Development Zone.

• Call for Protection: There is an appeal for authorities to protect the Aandivilai nesting colony, recognized as the only known breeding hub for the species in India.

Andaman Sea

• Earthquake: A 5.2 magnitude earthquake struck the Andaman Sea near Malaysia on Thursday morning.

• Seismic Activity: The Andaman Sea is a seismically active region due to the subduction of the Indian Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate. This convergence creates undersea features like the Andaman Trench and leads to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

• Location & Geography: The Andaman Sea is a semi-enclosed sea in the northeastern Indian Ocean, located between India and the Malay Peninsula. Bounded by the Bay of Bengal to the west and the Strait of Malacca to the east.

• Geological Context: The Andaman Sea is part of the larger Sunda Plate and is a tectonically complex region with undersea ridges, trenches, and faults.

• Ecological Significance: Home to extensive coral reef systems, seagrass meadows, and mangrove forests, providing habitats for marine organisms. It is also an important site for migratory birds.

• Rivers: The Irrawaddy River of Myanmar flows into the Andaman Sea.

• Maritime Boundary: The maritime boundary between India and Myanmar runs through the Andaman Sea.

• Tectonic Plates: Sunda Plate, Indian Plate, Australian Plate

Brine Pool Secrets

• Scientists have discovered deadly brine pools in the Red Sea that instantly kill or stun marine life.
• Brine pools are hypersaline, anoxic “underwater lakes” on the seafloor, denser than surrounding seawater.
• Their high salt content and lack of oxygen create toxic conditions for most marine life.
• The water in these pools filters through salt sediments, preventing mixing with the surrounding seawater and forming a distinct body of water.
• The deepest-known brine pool is in the Orca Basin in the Gulf of Mexico, 2,200 m below sea level, and is eight times saltier than the Gulf.
• Despite toxicity, specialized chemosynthetic organisms can survive and thrive on the edges of brine pools.
• Brine pools are not necessarily hot but can have elevated temperatures based on location.

Why it’s news:

• Highlights the discovery of extreme and potentially dangerous environments in the ocean.
• Showcases the unique adaptations of life in extreme conditions, specifically chemosynthetic organisms.
• Emphasizes the importance of exploring and understanding the deep sea, which remains largely unexplored.