UPSC Key: New Aravalli benchmark, BlueBird Block-2, and Punjab’s 3 new ‘holy cities’

Key Points to Ponder:

— Read about the Aravali Hills.

— What is the significance of the Aravalli Hills?

— What are the threats to the Aravalli Hills?

— How does mining impact the Aravalli ecosystem?

— What steps should be taken to protect the Aravalli Hills?

— Read about the Forest Survey of India (FSI), Geological Survey of India (GSI), and Survey of India (SOI) and their role in framing a uniform definition of the Aravalli Hills.

Key Takeaways:

— On November 20, the Supreme Court accepted the 100-metre recommendation of the ministry. The CEC is a body set up by the SC in 2002 to monitor and ensure compliance of its orders related to environment and forests.

— In its October 14 letter reviewed by The Indian Express, the CEC underlined that the definition formulated by the Forest Survey of India (FSI) should be “adopted in order to ensure the protection and conservation of the ecology of the Aravalli Hills and its range.”

— The FSI had mapped 40,481 sq km as Aravallis in 15 districts of Rajasthan as areas above the minimum elevation with a slope of at least 3 degrees. By this definition, even the lower hills would be protected as Aravallis. The FSI undertook the exercise after it was engaged by the CEC under a Supreme Court order in 2010.

— In May 2024, the SC had asked the ministry to form a committee under the Environment Secretary to “come out with a uniform definition” for Aravalli to protect the hills from mining. Dr JR Bhatt represented the CEC in the committee.

— On November 26, The Indian Express quoted an internal assessment — not any study — by the FSI that flagged to the ministry and the CEC that the 100-metre definition would exclude 91.3 per cent of 12,081 Aravalli Hills 20 metre or higher, spread across 15 districts in Rajasthan.

The FSI had mapped 40,481 sq km as Aravallis in 15 districts of Rajasthan as areas above the minimum elevation with a slope of at least 3 degrees

— While the 20 metre height cut-off is crucial for a hill’s function as a wind barrier, if all 1,18,575 Aravalli hills are considered, over 99 per cent will not make the 100-metre cut, according to the FSI’s internal assessment.

— On Monday, Environment minister Bhupender Yadav told the media in New Delhi that mining is allowed in only 0.19 per cent of the entire Aravalli spanning 1.44 lakh sq mt — or just 278 sq km. However, the ministry’s own data shows that this 278 sq km is the total area already under mining in Aravalli across Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana.

— The ministry is yet to address the future scope for mining and other developments in the lower segments of Aravallis once they are excluded under the 100-metre definition.

— The minister also said that the extent of Aravalli areas covered under the 100-metre definition would be known only after the ground demarcation is completed. In such a scenario, it remains unclear how the ministry assured the SC that more areas will be counted as Aravalli under the 100-metre formula compared to FSI’s 3-degree definition.

Do You Know:

— The Aravalli Mountains, one of the world’s oldest ranges, are a prominent geological feature shaping western and northwestern India.

— It serves as a natural barrier against desertification, preventing the expansion of the Thar Desert and protecting cities like Delhi, Jaipur, and Gurgaon.

— The range also supports water recharge systems and is the source of important rivers such as Chambal, Sabarmati, and Luni. Its forests, grasslands, and wetlands harbour endangered flora and fauna, contributing to biodiversity and regulating precipitation through evapotranspiration, which helps mitigate droughts.

— The highest peak of the Aravalli mountain range is Guru Shikhar, located in the Sirohi district of Rajasthan.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Facing flak, minister claims no relaxation for mining in Aravallis

UPSC Prelims Practice Question Covering similar theme:

(1) With reference to the Aravalli ranges, consider the following statements:

1. These are one of the world’s oldest ranges.

2. It lies in western and northwestern India.

3. It acts as a natural barrier against desertification.

4. The highest peak of the Aravalli mountain range is Arma Konda.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) Only three

(d) All four

THE EDITORIAL PAGE

SHANTI Bill is India’s second shot at nuclear energy leadership

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies-II, III: Government Policies and Interventions, Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life

What’s the ongoing story: Syed Akbaruddin writes: India’s nuclear power programme has long been marked by promise but limited progress. Complex laws and liability concerns have kept private investors and global partners at bay. The Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, passed by Parliament, offers a second chance at building a framework to make nuclear power a cornerstone of clean and reliable energy.

Key Points to Ponder:

— What is India’s nuclear power programme?

— What is the Nuclear Energy Mission?

— What are the features of the Atomic Energy Act, 1962 (AE Act) and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act, 2010 (CLNDA)?

— What is the status of the nuclear energy sector in India?

— What are the steps taken by India to make nuclear power a pillar of clean energy security?

— What is the role and function of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB)?

— What is the purpose of the Nuclear Liability Fund in the Bill?

Key Takeaways:

— Building on past lessons, SHANTI proposes a reset by replacing the Atomic Energy Act of 1962 and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act of 2010 with a single umbrella law. It is an effort to align with norms of global nuclear commerce so that nuclear power can become a serious pillar of clean energy security, with an ambition of 100 GW by 2047, tied to India’s longer-term decarbonisation roadmap.

— The Bill is pragmatic about who builds. It envisages the involvement of both the public and private sectors. However, this is not an unrestricted opening. It is an invitation to build domestic capability within a state-led system. It draws a sovereignty boundary by excluding foreign-incorporated companies as licensees.

— The most sensitive parts of the fuel cycle such as enrichment and spent fuel management including reprocessing remain exclusive to the central government. That balance, open where it helps and restricted where it must be, is the right instinct for a cautious expansion strategy.

— Institutionally, SHANTI separates roles more cleanly than the current architecture. Licensing remains with the government, while safety authorisation sits with the regulator, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), on an enhanced statutory base.

— SHANTI tunes India’s framework to global practice and keeps the overall accident ceiling at 300 million SDR (Special Drawing Rights). It narrows the operator’s right of recourse mainly to what is written into contracts, or to intentional wrongdoing.

— It shifts a share of responsibility beyond the operator’s cap to the central government through a Nuclear Liability Fund, and points to the Convention on Supplementary Compensation (CSC) for supplementary funds if claims exceed that level.

— In a key policy shift, the Bill treats terrorism as a sovereign risk. It excludes operator liability for nuclear damage caused by terrorism and places liability on the Centre in such scenarios. The policy intent is to ensure victims are not left in limbo when an uninsurable event occurs.

— SHANTI moves away from a single prominent operator cap in the previous legislation and grades operator liability by category of installation. The policy logic is understandable since not every facility poses the same risk, and mature systems do differentiate by class.

— On the victim’s side, SHANTI broadens what counts as nuclear damage. It includes long-term health impacts, economic loss, environmental restoration, lost income from environmental use, and the costs of preventive measures.

— It also creates a claims pathway with defined timelines and quicker disbursement once money is deposited. Speed matters almost as much as quantum. A slow compensation system, in practice, amounts to a denial of justice.

— One of the Bill’s most forward-looking provisions is intellectual property. SHANTI creates a special inventions regime and amends the Patents Act to allow patents for nuclear energy-related inventions. This matters because nuclear power is not only reactors. It is also materials, robotics, safety software, specialised manufacturing, and radiation applications.

— SHANTI has a foreign policy payoff. By bringing liability and compensation closer to international norms, it can help turn India’s civil nuclear opening, especially with the United States, from a strategic promise into real projects. It also strengthens India’s leverage to work with multiple partners rather than being tied to a single supplier.

— SHANTI integrates India more firmly into the mainstream, on terms India can defend. India does not need a perfect nuclear law. It needs a credible one. SHANTI is directionally bold.

Do You Know:

— The government has set a target of 100 GW nuclear power capacity by 2047, a massive increase from the current 8.18 GW. To achieve this, the Nuclear Energy Mission for Viksit Bharat has been launched, focusing on enhancing domestic capabilities.

— In India, nuclear energy accounts for only 3 per cent of the overall power generation today.

— In the Budget 2025, the government announced the Nuclear Energy Mission worth ₹20,000 crore for research and development of Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), and promised that at least five such indigenously developed SMRs would be operationalised by 2033.

— SMRs are essentially advanced small nuclear reactors that have a power capacity of 30MWe to 300 MWe (megawatt electrical) per unit. The relatively simpler and modular design of SMRs—enabling their components to be assembled in a factory instead of being constructed on-site—lowers costs and allows flexible deployment, making them a much more attractive proposition in recent years.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Knowledge Nugget: India’s three-stage nuclear programme — A must-know for UPSC exams

📍How India is overhauling its nuclear power sector

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(2) India is an important member of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor’. If this experiment succeeds, what is the immediate advantage for India? (UPSC CSE 2016)

(a) It can use thorium in place of uranium for power generation

(b) It can attain a global role in satellite navigation

(c) It can drastically improve the efficiency of its fission reactors in power generation

(d) It can build fusion reactors for power generation

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:

With growing energy needs should India keep on expanding its nuclear energy programme? Discuss the facts and fears associated with nuclear energy. (UPSC CSE 2018)

 

THE IDEAS PAGE

Beyond chips, data centres lies India’s AI opportunity

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies-II, III: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation, Awareness in the fields of IT.

What’s the ongoing story: Samir Saran writes- “The world is competing over AI. But this will not remain merely a race towards a smaller chip, a larger data centre, or a faster model. The winner will be determined by those who turn innovation into impact and convert technological advances into product value, institutional capacity and community trust. Power in this era will flow not only to those who own algorithms or command fields of silicon, but also to those who find ways to weave AI into daily life at the national or continental scale.”

Key Points to Ponder:

— What is artificial intelligence (AI)? What are the various applications of AI?

— How does trust and localisation of AI models influence large-scale adoption?

— What are the limitations of Western data dominance in training LLMs and its implications for countries?

— What is the significance of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in blending private innovation with public good in the AI ecosystem?

— What steps should be taken to balance data sovereignty, individual rights, and innovation?

— What are the concerns associated with the use of AI?

Key Takeaways:

— “Three distinct processes and evolutions compose this AI age. The first is the Compute Era, in which chip supply chains and hyperscale data centres determine market share. It tilts towards those with capital, energy and traditional resources such as land and water. The second is the Diffusion Era, where nations with population-scale digital platforms and deep real-economy deployment shape how and where value is created, captured, and compounded. The third is the Governance Era, in which sovereign power and political legitimacy — as well as geopolitical leverage — pick winners among AI systems.”

— “As talk of overinvestment in data centres and supporting facilities grows, we may see the peaking of the Compute Era. Computational resources will become a utility — invested in like legacy utilities, priced like them, and regulated like them. Such a path has been followed many times: The introduction of a new technology, a boom period of sensation and overinvestment, followed by an overhang in which the physical, corporate and human-capital remnants of the boom are transformed into core infrastructure for broader innovation and growth.”

— “What you do with compute infrastructure is what will create value in the Diffusion Era. Nations like India — experienced at adopting and adapting technology at scale — will have a natural advantage. The benefits of compute as a utility will flow to those who can build applications that create value for the greatest number. Trust will be the key. Success will depend upon how effectively kinship and trust can be nurtured, and how much value a community sees in a product. LLMs will have to localise. Large models are trained on the Common Crawl, which over-represents Western data and misrepresents the cultural context of countries like India. The Diffusion Era will seek to correct that. New winners will emerge from within communities.”

— “Beyond the horizon lies the Governance Era. Governments will respond to the Diffusion Era by guarding data sovereignty more zealously than they have hitherto. They will seek to control the utilities left over from the Compute Era, and intervene in the competitive dynamics of the Diffusion Era. Such a return to sovereign power is almost inevitable for a boom-bust-diffusion technology.”

— “As the world leaves the Compute Era and enters the Diffusion Era, India — its companies, its institutions and governments — must ask three questions.”

— “First, can Indian companies take the necessary risks? Do they have the capability to bet on an unknown future? Smaller enterprises have demonstrated they have the entrepreneurial nous to do so. But will the broader private sector be able to seize the benefits of the Diffusion Era? It will require a change in mindset, in corporate governance, and risk appetite.”

— “Second, can Indian institutions and finance find, energise and incentivise capital to create systems that can bet on unknowns and undiscovered innovations? Can we ensure that patient capital emerges from India and the world that can support and develop infrastructure at a utility scale?”

— “And can the government create a world-beating regulatory structure that blends private profit and public good — like, for example, the Digital Public Infrastructure model? Can it protect individual rights and digital sovereignty without stifling entrepreneurial fever? Can we build an India-specific AI architecture that sits comfortably within and atop a global AI system? If India can answer these three questions, it will dominate the threefold era of AI. Let’s build compute infrastructure, unleash entrepreneurial communities, and create supportive regulation.”

Do You Know:

— Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the field of computer science which aims to make computer systems think, reason, learn, and act to solve a complex system like humans.

— AI can be classified into two types: Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI) also known as weak AI and Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) also referred to as strong AI.

— ANI is designed for specific tasks and excels within a narrow domain. Examples include virtual assistants like Siri, recommendation systems on platforms like Netflix, and image recognition software. ANI systems are highly specialised and cannot transfer their expertise to unrelated tasks.

— In contrast, AGI aims to replicate human cognitive abilities, enabling it to perform any intellectual task a human can do. AGI would possess general reasoning skills, understand context, and adapt to new situations across various domains. It would be capable of autonomous learning and problem-solving without requiring task-specific programming.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍AI basics: What are artificial intelligence and machine learning?

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(3) With the present state of development, Artificial Intelligence can effectively do which of the following? (UPSC CSE 2020)

1. Bring down electricity consumption in industrial units

2. Create meaningful short stories and songs

3. Disease diagnosis

4. Text-to-Speech Conversion

5. Wireless transmission of electrical energy

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2, 3 and 5 only

(b) 1, 3 and 4 only

(c) 2, 4 and 5 only

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

 

EXPLAINED

ISRO’s heaviest-ever launch today is test of capability, cost

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies-III: Science and Technology- Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology; Awareness in the fields of IT and space.

What’s the ongoing story: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched the LVM-3 rocket carrying its heaviest-ever satellite — BlueBird Block-2, weighing nearly 6,100 kg — on Wednesday at 8:24 am. A modified version of the LVM-3 rocket will also be used in the Gaganyaan missions.

Key Points to Ponder:

— Know about the LVM-3.

— What is the significance of the BlueBird Block-2 mission?

— Know about the ISRO’s launch vehicles.

— Read about the Gaganyaan mission and Bharatiya Antariksh Station.

— What is the difference between Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO)?

— What is direct-to-mobile satellite connectivity and how does it differ from conventional satellite communication systems?

— What are the other important space missions of the ISRO?

— What are the major achievements of ISRO in recent years?

Key Takeaways:

— The satellite will be injected into an orbit of around 520 km just over 15 minutes after take-off. The BlueBird Block-2 satellite will be the largest-ever commercial communications satellite to be deployed in low Earth orbit (LEO).As the name suggests, LEO is an orbit that is relatively close to Earth’s surface. It is normally at an altitude of less than 1,000 km.

— The satellite, designed by the US company AST SpaceMobile, will be part of an LEO constellation that will provide direct-to-mobile connectivity. This means that unlike conventional communications satellites, which beam their signals to specialised ground stations before disseminating data further, this constellation will be able to directly communicate with the phones we use. This constellation will enable 4G and 5G voice and video calls, texts, streaming, and data for “everyone, everywhere, at all times,” ISRO said.

— The current mission is the third commercial one involving ISRO’s newest launch vehicle, after the launches of 36 satellites of OneWeb, a broadband satellite internet service provider, in 2022 and 2023. India had been chosen for these missions following Russia’s refusal in the wake of the Ukraine war, and with the European Space Agency’s (ESA) launcher, Ariane-5, going out of commission.

— The LVM-3 is hardly the only heavy launch vehicle on the market. Other options are SpaceX’s Falcon-9 and the ESA’s Ariane 6. But Wednesday’s launch is ISRO’s chance to demonstrate that it can carry out such heavy launches — at a lower cost.

— This mission marks the third time the LVM-3 will be used to carry a satellite into LEO. The powerful cryogenic engine-based vehicle was initially designed to carry satellites to the distant geosynchronous orbits of around 36,000 km from the Earth’s surface. After several satellites were placed in different orbits during the 2022 OneWeb launch, the rocket, then called the Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle Mark 3 or GSLV-Mk3, was renamed.

— At 6,100 kg, the BlueBird Block-3 is the heaviest payload ISRO will have placed into orbit. Until now, the heaviest payload carried by the space agency so far has been the sets of OneWeb satellites — cumulatively weighing more than 5,700 kg — to LEO. The space agency also broke its record for the heaviest satellite placed in the distant geosynchronous transfer orbit last month with the launch of CMS-03 using the same vehicle. The satellite weighed 4,410 kg.

— ISRO has been working to introduce redundancies to the vehicle to make it safe for humans for the Gaganyaan mission, as well as increasing its lift-off capacity to carry the modules for the Bharatiya Antariksh Station, the space station envisaged by India.

— To increase the lift-off capacity of the vehicle, ISRO is working to increase the thrust produced by the third or the cryogenic upper stage of the rocket. This stage accounts for nearly 50% of the velocity needed to place the satellites in the geosynchronous transfer orbits. The C25 stage, presently being used in the launch vehicle, can carry only 28,000 kg of propellant, thus producing a thrust of 20 tonnes. The new C32 stage will be capable of carrying 32,000 kg of fuel and produce a 22-tonne thrust.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍What to know about LVM3, India’s biggest ever launch vehicle

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(4) With reference to India’s satellite launch vehicles, consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE 2018)

1. PSLVs launch the satellites useful for Earth resources monitoring whereas GSLVs are designed mainly to launch communication satellites.

2. Satellites launched by PSLV appear to remain permanently fixed in the same position in the sky, as viewed from a particular location on Earth.

3. GSLV Mk III is a four-staged launch vehicle with the first and third stages using solid rocket motors; and the second and fourth stages using liquid rocket engines.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 2 only

(d) 3 only

OTPs, FASTag, food orders: How digital clues helping police

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies-III: Challenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and social networking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cyber security; money-laundering and its prevention

What’s the ongoing story: The Indian man who ran the alleged Rs 1,000-crore BlueChip Group con from Dubai was captured in Dehradun last month after around a year on the run. What brought him down was not an old-fashioned police stakeout but a food delivery order.

Key Points to Ponder:

— What are the various types of cyber threats?

— What are the reasons for increased cyber fraud cases in India?

— What are the initiatives taken for cyber security?

— What is the sim-to-device binding rule?

— How can India strengthen its cyber security?

— What are the Telecommunication Identifier User Entity (TIUE)?

Key Takeaways:

— Ravindra Soni’s arrest is one of the most recent examples of law enforcement’s increasing reliance on the digital residue of everyday life — one-time passwords, food-delivery logs, e-commerce histories — to trace elusive suspects and dismantle sophisticated criminal networks.

— Apps and services designed for convenience have become instruments for tracking individuals in an age where nearly every transaction, message and delivery request leaves behind an electronic fingerprint.

— The people behind the scam would keep changing their mobile numbers, keeping them switched off most of the time, switching them on only to receive OTPs from delivery apps. This helped police track them down. FASTag was also tapped to track the high-end luxury cars used by these people on the Delhi-Noida-Lucknow route.

— The fine print in online applications’ privacy policy typically has a clause which allows them to share users’ personal data with law enforcement agencies. For instance, Zomato’s policy states that it may share a user’s data with the police when it is necessary to investigate, prevent or take action regarding possible illegal activities or to comply with legal processes.

— This shift towards digital evidence is not confined to financial crime. In the United States, prosecutors building a case against the accused instigator of the devastating 2025 Palisades Fire in California cited interactions with ChatGPT — including prompts about sparking fires and AI-generated imagery of dystopian infernos — as part of the evidentiary mosaic linking the suspect to the blaze that consumed more than 23,000 acres and destroyed thousands of homes.

— According to a government press release from October, the surge in cybersecurity incidents from 10.29 lakh in 2022 to 22.68 lakh in 2024 reflects the growing scale and complexity of digital threats in India. At the same time, the financial toll is becoming more pronounced, with cyber frauds amounting to Rs 36.45 lakh reported on the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP) as of February 2025.

— The Department of Telecommunications’ (DoT’s) recent directive to enforce SIM-to-device binding for messaging platforms reflects a broader shift in how authorities view digital identifiers in law enforcement.

— The DoT directed companies such as WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal to ensure that their services are “continuously” linked to the SIM card used to register with them. The department said they must disallow access if the device does not contain a SIM card.

— The Centre is drawing powers from the Telecommunication Cybersecurity Amendment Rules, 2025, that were notified in October, to introduce the concept of Telecommunication Identifier User Entity (TIUE) under the scope of telecom regulations. As per the rules, a TIUE (who is not a licensee like telecom operators) uses telecommunication identifiers — such as mobile numbers — to identify its users.

— This essentially means that apps that require a user’s phone number to onboard, or register them, can be classified as a TIUE.

— While for now, the SIM binding directive has been sent to messaging services, experts believe that the broad definition of a TIUE could also cover food delivery platforms such as Swiggy or Zomato since they too utilise mobile numbers to create user accounts.

Do You Know:

— The Kaspersky report released in February 2025, found that one in every three internet users in India were targeted by web-borne threats last year. Between January and December 2024, the company detected 4,43,72, 823 Internet-borne cyberthreats on computers of users in India

— The Central Government has introduced a new feature titled as ‘Report and Check Suspect’ on https://cybercrime.gov.in. This facility provides citizens a search option to search I4C’s repository of identifiers of cyber criminals through ‘Suspect Search’.

— the ‘National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal’ (https://cybercrime.gov.in) has been launched, as a part of the I4C, to enable the public to report incidents pertaining to all types of cyber-crimes.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Stay calm, preserve evidence, alert banks: Legal experts on safeguards against digital arrest

📍Knowledge Nugget: What Digital Threat Report tells about cybersecurity and how is it relevant for UPSC exam

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(5) In India, it is legally mandatory for which of the following to report on cyber security incidents? (UPSC CSE 2017)

1. Service providers

2. Data centres

3. Body corporate

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:

What are the different elements of cyber security ? Keeping in view the challenges in cyber security, examine the extent to which India has successfully developed a comprehensive National Cyber Security Strategy. (UPSC CSE 2022)

Punjab’s 3 new holy cities’, chosen for milestone in Sikhism history

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies-I: Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present –
significant events, personalities, issues

What’s the ongoing story: The Punjab government has granted the “Holy City” status to Amritsar, Anandpur Sahib, and Talwandi Sabo through a recent official notification.

Key Points to Ponder:

— What is the historical significance of Anandpur Sahib?

— Who was Guru Tegh Bahadur?

— Who created the five thakts in Sikhism?

— Understand the historical and cultural significance of these thankts

— Who are the Nihangs?

— What are the steps taken  by the government to boost religious tourism?

Key Takeaways:

— A resolution to this effect was passed unanimously by the Punjab Legislative Assembly last month during a day-long special session held in Anandpur Sahib to mark the 350th martyrdom anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh guru. On Sunday (December 21).

— The cities host three of the five Sikh Takhts: the Akal Takht (Amritsar), Takht Keshgarh Sahib (Anandpur Sahib), and Takht Damdama Sahib (Talwandi Sabo). The Takht Patna Sahib is in Bihar, and the Takht Hazur Sahib is in Nanded, Maharashtra.

— “Takht” in Persian means an imperial throne. Akal Takht, considered the supreme among the five, was set up in 1606 by Guru Hargobind. His succession as the sixth Guru after the execution of his father, Guru Arjan Dev, is seen as a milestone in Sikh history.

— The Akal Takht, a raised platform he built in front of the causeway leading to the sanctum sanctorum of Amritsar’s Golden Temple, symbolised the coming together of the temporal authority and the political sovereignty of the Sikh community (miri) with the spiritual authority (piri).

— Takhts are known to issue hukumnamas from time to time on issues that concern the community. Any edict or order concerning the whole community is issued only from Akal Takht, including the ones on Sikhs found to be violating the Sikh doctrine

— The other four takhts are linked to the life of Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru. It was at Keshgarh Sahib that Guru Gobind Singh raised the Khalsa, the initiated Sikh warriors, in 1699. Patna Sahib was his birthplace.

— He spent several months in Damdama Sahib preparing the revised version of the Guru Granth Sahib — the holy book and the eternal Guru of the Sikhs. Guru Gobind Singh spent his final days in Hazur Sahib, where he was cremated in 1708.

— The new Holy City status will lead to a ban on the sale of liquor, tobacco and cigarettes, and meat within the walled city area of Amritsar, and the municipal limits of Anandpur Sahib and Talwandi Sabo. Additional facilities, such as mini buses and e-rickshaws, will be provided for devotees arriving in the cities to boost religious tourism.

— The Holy City status has raised questions about the sale of jhatka meat (obtained after killing an animal in a single strike). It is a part of Sikh tradition, particularly among the Nihangs — a group of warrior Sikhs who are often seen wearing deep blue clothing.

— Meat is often prepared in the chhawanis (camps) of the Nihang Sikhs, and many such chhawanis of prominent Nihang groups, including Baba Budha Dal, are located in these three cities and close to the Takhts. The current head of the Baba Budha Dal was present in Anandpur Sahib when the government made the Holy City declaration.

— What makes the issue complex is the fact that there is no unanimous agreement on what practices constitute “holiness”, even within the same religious groups. Singh added that enforcement of the new norms may become challenging, since meat is a part of the Nihangs’ langars (community kitchens in gurudwaras).

Do You Know:

— Nihang is an order of Sikh warriors, characterised by blue robes, antiquated arms such as swords and spears, and decorated turbans surmounted by steel quoits.

— Sikh historian Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon said, “Etymologically the word nihang in Persian means an alligator, sword and pen but the characteristics of Nihangs seem to stem more from the Sanskrit word nihshank which means without fear, unblemished, pure, carefree and indifferent to worldly gains and comfort.”

— Dhillon said this can be traced back to the creation of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699. The word nihang, he says, also occurs in a hymn in the Guru Granth Sahib, where it alludes to a fearless and unrestrained person.

— Nihangs had a major role in defending the Sikh panth after the fall of the first Sikh rule (1710-15) when Mughal governors were killing Sikhs, and during the onslaught of Afghan invader Ahmed Shah Durrani (1748-65). When the Khalsa army was divided into five battalions in 1734, one Nihang or Akali battalion was led by Baba Deep Singh Shahid.

— Nihangs also took control of the religious affairs of the Sikhs at Akal Bunga (now known as Akal Takht) in Amritsar. They did not consider themselves subordinate to any Sikh chief and thus maintained their independent existence. At Akal Takht, they held the grand council (Sarbat Khalsa) of Sikhs and pronounced the resolution (Gurmata) passed.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍The Nihangs: once valiant warriors, now a fragmented community

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(6) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CAPF 2021)

1. The early Sikh Gurus were religious preachers and did not interfere in politics but Guru Arjan extended his good wishes for the rebel prince Khusrau.

2. Guru Arjan attempted to organize the finances by introducing the system of more or less compulsory ‘spiritual tribute’ to be collected by his agents called Masands.

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

 

PRELIMS ANSWER KEY

1. (c)   2. (d)   3. (b)     4. (a)   5. (d)   6. (c)

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