UPSC Prelims
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Prelims Pinpointer
Prelims Pinpointer — October 15, 2026
Today’s high-yield Prelims facts — 10 years of the Kigali Amendment, the Jeypore ground gecko, the end of UNIFIL’s mandate, and DAY-NULM lapsing without a successor
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Kigali Amendment Turns 10
Why in News
- The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol turned 10 on 15 October 2026.
- It phases down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and full implementation could avoid 0.3°C to 0.5°C of warming by 2100.
- Cooling demand is rising fast, and India faces this problem at an unusual scale.
More on the News
- Participation: 175 parties had joined by early October, so Kigali is not yet universal.
- Cooling load: Cooling is slightly more than a tenth of India’s annual electricity demand (IEA). India’s cooling demand is projected to more than double by 2035.
- Double benefit: UNEP and the IEA estimate that combining the HFC switch with more efficient cooling machines can roughly double the climate benefit.
About the Montreal Protocol
- It was agreed in 1987 to phase out CFCs and other chemicals that damage the ozone layer.
- Countries have eliminated nearly 99% of the controlled ozone-depleting substances, and the ozone layer is recovering.
- Its Multilateral Fund was set up in 1990 and has operated since 1991. Developed countries contribute to it, and it helps developing countries cover the extra cost of switching technologies, such as converting factories and training service technicians.
About HFCs
- HFCs became common substitutes for CFCs in refrigeration and air-conditioning. They do not harm the ozone layer.
- If they leak, many HFCs trap heat thousands of times more strongly than carbon dioxide over a century, weight for weight.
How cooling adds to warming
- Cooling adds to warming in two ways.
- Gases like CFCs and HFCs leak out of refrigerators, air-conditioners, car ACs and cold storage units, mainly through leaky pipes, poor servicing and improper disposal of old machines.
- The electricity used to run these machines also causes emissions where it is made from coal and other fossil fuels.
About the Kigali Amendment
- Origin: The Federated States of Micronesia and Mauritius proposed bringing HFCs under the Protocol in 2009.
- Adoption: It was adopted at Kigali, Rwanda, on 15 October 2016 and entered into force in January 2019.
- Binding targets: It sets binding schedules to reduce HFC production and consumption. The limits are calculated by the warming impact of each gas.
About India’s Kigali Targets
- India ratified the amendment in 2021.
- It must freeze HFC production and consumption in 2028, at an agreed baseline.
- The first cut of 10% below the baseline is due in 2032, and cuts reach 85% in 2047.
- Equipment bought before the first cuts can stay in use well into the 2030s.
About Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs)
- The four main SLCPs are methane, black carbon, HFCs and tropospheric (ground-level) ozone.
- They warm strongly but stay in the atmosphere for much less time than carbon dioxide, so cutting them slows warming relatively quickly.
- Each needs its own rules: for example, methane from cattle must account for small farmers’ incomes, and black carbon needs action on diesel engines and household cooking fuels.
Conclusion: Kigali has shown that a global treaty can cut a potent warming gas. Its next decade depends on cooling that is both cleaner and more efficient.
Source: The Indian Express
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Jeypore Ground Gecko and Bauxite Mining in the Balda Hills
Why in News
- Four individuals of the endangered Jeypore ground gecko have been recorded in the past year in Odisha’s Balda hills, inside the site of a proposed bauxite mine by an Adani-linked group.
- The species was presumed extinct for about 130 years before it was rediscovered in 2010, and its habitat is shrinking fast.
About the Jeypore Ground Gecko
- Conservation status: It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. It is also in Appendix II of CITES, added at CITES COP19 (Panama City, 2022) on India’s proposal, to control its trade.
- Appearance: It is a small nocturnal gecko, about 3.6 inches long, with a large head and a yellow-orange body with striking patterns.
- Habitat: It lives in rock crevices and leaf litter in high-elevation forests (900 to 1,400 metres) of the Eastern Ghats in Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
- Range: It has a restricted range and split from its closest relatives more than 20 million years ago.
- Unknowns: Its behaviour, habits and life cycle are still poorly known.
Source: The Hindu
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UNIFIL Mandate Nears Its End
Why in News
- The UN’s head of peace operations visited Lebanon to reassure the country that the UN will continue to support its peace and stability. UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force there, will end its mission soon, and he met Lebanese officials and the countries that send troops to the force.
- The UN Security Council voted last year, under US pressure, to end UNIFIL’s mandate on 31 December 2026.
Note: UNIFIL has about 7,500 personnel from nearly 50 countries.
About UNIFIL
- Origin: It was set up in 1978, after Israel’s invasion of southern Lebanon, to confirm Israeli withdrawal and help restore peace and Lebanese State authority.
- Role: It acts as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon and monitors the border area.
- Expanded mandate: It was strengthened after the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.
- Blue Line: It patrols the Blue Line, the line marking Israel’s 2000 withdrawal from Lebanon.
- India’s role: India is among the troop-contributing countries.
About UN Peacekeeping
- Peacekeeping operations are authorised by the UN Security Council, and the troops, called “Blue Helmets”, are contributed by member countries.
- The UN’s Department of Peace Operations runs them, and the cost is shared by all UN members.
About Lebanon
- Location: Lebanon is a small West Asian country on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Its capital is Beirut.
- Neighbours: It borders Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south. The Blue Line that UNIFIL patrols runs along the Israel border.
- Mountains: Two parallel ranges run north to south. The Mount Lebanon range lies near the coast, and the Anti-Lebanon range lies along the Syrian border. Mount Hermon is on the Anti-Lebanon range.
- Bekaa Valley: This fertile valley lies between the two ranges and is Lebanon’s main farming region.
- Litani River: It is the longest river wholly inside Lebanon. It flows through the Bekaa Valley and drains into the Mediterranean in the south, near Tyre. The area south of the Litani has been the focus of UNIFIL’s work.
- Coast and ports: Beirut, Tripoli, Sidon and Tyre are the main coastal cities and ports.
Mains Angle
- Security gap: The end of UNIFIL could leave a gap along the Israel-Lebanon border at a time of continuing tension in West Asia.
- UN politics: The decision under US pressure shows how big-power politics in the Security Council can shape the life of a peacekeeping mission.
- India’s stake: As a long-time troop contributor, India has an interest in the safety of peacekeepers during the drawdown.
Conclusion: UNIFIL’s end marks the close of a mission that has kept a fragile border calm for decades. The key question is who will keep the peace along the Israel-Lebanon border afterwards.
Source: The Hindu
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DAY-NULM Lapses without a Successor
Why in News
- The Centre has let its flagship urban livelihoods scheme, DAY-NULM (Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission), lapse without a successor. The scheme ended in October 2024, according to the source.
- Since its launch in 2014, it helped create 10.02 lakh self-help groups (SHGs), covering more than one crore women in cities.
More on the News
- Five States have raised the issue: Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Tripura.
- They have asked for funds so that SHGs keep their support, access to institutional credit and bank linkages.
About DAY-NULM
- Aim: It promotes livelihoods for the urban poor through SHGs, skills training, credit access and support for street vendors.
- Women’s role: SHGs improve access to credit and skills, build financial literacy and leadership, and increase women’s confidence and mobility.
- Components: Its main parts include skills training and placement, social mobilisation and SHG formation, self-employment loans, support to urban street vendors and shelters for the urban homeless.
About State Models of Women’s SHGs
- Bihar (JEEViKA): Initiatives such as Didi Ki Rasoi and Bank Sakhis put money in women’s hands and move them into decision-making roles.
- Kerala (Kudumbashree): It began as credit groups and grew into a network running community kitchens and waste collection. It also trains SHGs in other States.
Mains Angle
- Support gap: If a scheme ends with no successor, women’s groups lose their credit links and support. The gains made so far can be lost.
- Strength, not numbers: More groups are not enough. Groups last only when they get training, guidance, markets and loans.
- States’ role: States already fund cash-transfer schemes. They can also fund schemes that help women earn on their own.
Conclusion: DAY-NULM built a large network of women’s groups in cities. Without a successor, those gains could be lost, so the Centre and States need a clear plan to continue and strengthen them.
Source: The Indian Express
