PRELIMS
ASI CONCLAVE ON INDUS VALLEY SCRIPT
Event: ASI to host a 3-day international brainstorming conference in August 2024 to decipher the Indus script.
Script Details:
- Found mainly on seals, also on terracotta tablets, copper tools, pottery.
- Contains pictographic signs and symbols (plants, animals, tools).
- Inscriptions are short (4–5 signs), longest has 26.
- No bilingual inscriptions, making decipherment difficult.
ASI: Under Ministry of Culture; governed by Ancient Monuments Act 1958 and Antiquities & Art Treasure Act 1972.
SEINE RIVER & PARIS COOLING SYSTEM
Context: Paris uses water from the Seine River for underground cooling (800+ buildings).
Seine River:
- Origin: Langres Plateau, NE France.
- Length: ~777 km; navigable for 560 km.
- Major tributaries: Aube, Marne, Yonne, Oise, Eure.
- UNESCO World Heritage Site (banks in Paris – 1991).
NATIONAL INTERNET EXCHANGE OF INDIA (NIXI)
- Est.: 2003 under Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY).
- Nature: Not-for-profit; manages 77 IXPs.
- Functions:
- Keeps internet traffic within India, reducing latency.
- Promotes IPv6 migration via IRINN division.
Supports: Digital India, local internet ecosystems, $5 trillion digital economy target.
SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION (SCO)
Origin: Shanghai Five (1996) → SCO (2001) with Uzbekistan’s inclusion.
Members (9): China, Russia, India, Pakistan, Iran, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan.
• Observers: Afghanistan, Mongolia.
Key Bodies:
- CHS (Council of Heads of States – annual).
- Secretariat (Beijing), RATS (Tashkent).
- Languages: Russian, Chinese.
- Focus: Regional cooperation on terrorism, extremism, separatism.
WHA RESOLUTION ON SKIN DISEASES
Event: World Health Assembly (WHA) declares skin diseases as a global health priority.
Stats: Affect 1.9 billion people, mainly in LMICs.
Impacts: Stigma, emotional distress, economic burden.
Resolution Sponsors: Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Togo, Micronesia.
Goals: Include skin health in national agendas, improve primary care, diagnostics, funding, and anti-stigma efforts.
REVERSE FLIPPING
Meaning: Indian startups returning to India after initially being registered abroad.
Mechanism: Parent company abroad transfers IP, assets to Indian entity.
Reasons for initial flipping: Global VC access, relaxed foreign regulations, tax benefits.
Significance: Aligns with Atmanirbhar Bharat, improves domestic capital mobilisation.
ENERGY TRANSITION INDEX (ETI) 2025
India’s Rank: 71 (↓ from 63 in 2024).
Top Nations: Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway.
Emerging Asia Leader: China.
Developed by: World Economic Forum (WEF).
Based on: 43 indicators (transition readiness + system performance).
Energy Transition: Shift from fossil fuels to clean sources (solar, wind).
EXTREME HELIUM (EHe) STARS
Discovery: Indian astronomers find singly-ionized Germanium (Ge II) in EHe star A980.
What are EHe Stars?
- Rare, hydrogen-deficient, helium-dominant.
- Likely formed from white dwarf mergers.
Significance of Germanium Detection:
- Indicates s-process nucleosynthesis during AGB phase before white dwarf merger.
