UPSC Key: Cauvery Water Dispute, Eco-Sensitive Zones and Rupee Overvalued

ICMR’s cervical cancer pill shows promise by stopping HPV from turning cancerous

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

What’s the ongoing story: An oral therapy called SHetA2 targets the virus’s cancer-causing proteins and could offer a new treatment option after larger human trials.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What Is SHetA2?

• How is it different from the HPV vaccine?

• Why are experts calling it a breakthrough?

• What is human papillomavirus?

• Know about Cervical cancer

• What is the main cause of cervical cancer?

• How common is cervical cancer in India?

• How effective is the new cancer pill?

• Why cervical cancer is most common in India?

Key Takeaways:

• SHetA2 is a small molecule therapy that is designed to stop an HPV infection from causing cancer. (Small molecule therapies are chemically manufactured, low-weight compounds that can easily be absorbed by the body. Manufacturing them is also easy and cost-effective.)

• This therapy targets three proteins in the human body called mortalin, heat shock cognate (hsc70), and glucose regulated protein 78 (Grp78). These are essential for the proliferation of the cancer-causing oncoprotein of the virus. “It works by breaking the connection between the HPV-E7 protein and a host protein inside human cells. Normally, this host protein protects E7 and allows it to keep damaging healthy cells. When SHetA2 breaks this connection, the harmful E7 protein is destroyed by the body’s normal immune defences,” explains Dr. Showket Hussain, senior scientist from ICMR National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research (ICMR-NICPR). This mechanism also ensures that the therapy selectively affects the cancer cells while sparing the normal ones.

Do You Know:

• Cervical cancer is one of the two cancers caused by infections and, therefore, is preventable through vaccination. It is the second most common type of cancer among women in India, affecting over 79,000 of them and killing 36,319 in 2024, according to Global Cancer Observatory data. Cervical cancer accounts for just over 10% of all cancers among women and 5.1% of all cancers in the Indian population, the data shows.

• INDIA ACCOUNTS for about a fifth of the world’s cervical cancer cases. With about 1.25 lakh new cases and 75,000 deaths each year, cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in India, after breast cancer. About 83 per cent of invasive cervical cancer cases are attributed to HPV 16 or 18 in India.
The official explained that nearly 8 crore children between the ages of 9 and 14 years will be eligible for the vaccine across the country. When divided over three years, there will be at least 2.6 crore children eligible during the first year.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: What a new study has found on HPV vaccine, which protects against cervical cancer

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
1) ‘RNA interference (RNAi)’ technology has gained popularity in the last few years. Why? (UPSC CSE, 2019)
1. It is used in developing gene silencing therapies.
2. It can be used in developing therapies for the treatment of cancer.
3. It can be used to develop hormone replacement therapies.
4. It can be used to produce crop plants that are resistant to viral pathogens.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1, 2 and 4
(b) 2 and 3
(c) 1 and 3
(d) 1 and 4 only

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
📍What are the research and developmental achievements in applied biotechnology? How will these achievements help to uplift the poorer sections of the society ? (2021)

Vijay urges Modi to review Govt’s Mekedatu dam stand

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein.

What’s the ongoing story: Even as he awaits a response from Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar for a proposed meeting on the immediate release of Cauvery water, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has drawn a firm constitutional line on another, much larger question: the proposed Mekedatu dam.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the Cauvery water dispute?

• What did the tribunal rule?

• How did the Supreme Court rule?

• What is the Mekedatu project and the dispute surrounding it?

• What is the immediate background of the Mekedatu issue?

• Why is the Cauvery water-sharing dispute resurfacing?

• Cauvery Water Management Authority (CMA)-Know in brief

• How is the Cauvery water being shared?

• Understand the term-upper riparian and lower riparian

• What is the Cauvery River Dispute?

• Map Work- Cauvery River (Source, drainage pattern, tributaries, distributaries, delta etc.)

• What does the Indian Constitution say about the water sharing?

• What is interstate water dispute?

• Interstate water dispute-give some example

• What are the major causes of conflicts over water?

• How many interstate water disputes Tribunal are there in India?

• The resolution of water dispute is governed by which act?

• Inter-State River Water Disputes (ISRWD) Act, 1956-Know the highlight

Key Takeaways:

• In a detailed letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, Vijay urged the Union government to withdraw a recent parliamentary reply by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, arguing that it overlooks settled legal principles governing interstate rivers and the rights of downstream States.

• The intervention is significant because it separates two disputes that often become politically intertwined. One concerns Tamil Nadu’s immediate demand for water during a distress monsoon year. The other concerns Karnataka’s long-term proposal to construct the Mekedatu balancing reservoir. While the Chief Minister has sought political dialogue with Karnataka on the first issue, his letter to the Prime Minister makes clear that the second must remain firmly anchored in the legal architecture created by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal and the Supreme Court.

• Vijay wrote that he wished to draw the Prime Minister’s attention to the Union government’s reply in the Rajya Sabha stating that the Supreme Court’s judgment of February 16, 2018, “does not expressly stipulate that Karnataka should obtain the consent of the lower riparian States before constructing a structure across the River Cauvery.”

• Calling that response “disappointing”, Vijay said it appeared to have been issued “without taking into consideration the prevailing legal position and settled law with regard to the consent of the lower riparian states.”

Do You Know:

• Historically, Tamil Nadu used about 602 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of the total yield of the Cauvery river. As a result, only about 138 TMC was available for Karnataka until the turn of the 20th century.

The Cauvery basin (Wikimedia Commons)

• In 1924, Tamil Nadu built the Mettur Dam, and the two states signed an agreement effective for 50 years. The pact allowed Tamil Nadu to expand its agricultural area by 11 lakh acres from the existing 16 lakh acres. Karnataka was authorised to increase its irrigation area from three lakh acres to 10 lakh acres.

• In 1974, when the accord lapsed, Karnataka claimed that the agreement restricted its ability to develop farming activities along the Cauvery basin. To make up for lost ground, it started building reservoirs. This led to a dispute between the two states.
On the insistence of Tamil Nadu, the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) was formed in 1990 by the Union government.

• The tribunal passed its order on February 5, 2007, after 17 years of hearings. Of the 740 TMC of water available for utilisation, 419 TMC was awarded to Tamil Nadu, 270 TMC to Karnataka, 30 TMC to Kerala and seven TMC to Puducherry. The remaining 14 TMC was reserved for environmental protection.

• The order also stated that Karnataka must release 192 TMC of water in normal monsoon years (June to May) at the rate of 10 TMC in June, 34 TMC in July, 50 TMC in August, 40 TMC in September, 22 TMC in October, 15 TMC in November, 8 TMC in December, 3 TMC in January and 2.5 TMC each month from February to May to Biligundlu water station in Tamil Nadu.

• “In case the yield… is less in a distress year, the allocated shares shall be proportionately reduced among… Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and… Pondicherry,” the Tribunal said. Karnataka opposed the verdict and filed a petition in the Supreme Court claiming 312 TMC of water. Tamil Nadu followed suit.

• The Supreme Court increased Karnataka’s share of the Cauvery waters to 284.75 TMC from the 270 tmc ft awarded by the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal in 2007.
This meant that Tamil Nadu would get 404.25 TMC, as against 419 TMC awarded by the Tribunal. But Tamil Nadu was also compensated by being allowed extraction of 10 TMC of groundwater. The share of the other two parties in the decades-old dispute, Kerala and Puducherry, remained unchanged at 30 TMC and seven TMC respectively.
In the verdict, the three-judge bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices Amitava Roy and A M Khanwilkar underlined that the “drinking water requirement” of Karnataka has to be placed “on a higher pedestal”.

• The Mekedatu dam project is located in Ramanagaram district, about 100 km south of Bengaluru, close to where the Cauvery enters Tamil Nadu. The dam has a proposed capacity of 48 TMC (thousand million cubic feet) and an estimated cost of Rs 6,000 crore.
The proposed project has been contentious for years. Tamil Nadu maintains that increased upstream storage could enable Karnataka to regulate flows in a manner detrimental to downstream releases during dry years.

The Cauvery at Mekedatu (Wikimedia Commons)

• The Mekedatu dispute comes amid the larger tussle between the two states over the release of Cauvery waters.

• Between June 1 and July 23, Tamil Nadu said it should have received roughly 32 TMC of water under the tribunal award as modified by the Supreme Court in 2018. However, it received only about 3.5 TMC. Even allowing for deficient southwest monsoon rainfall and proportionate reduction during a distress year, the state believes at least another 3 TMC should have been released. A deficit or delayed release will severely affect farmers in the Cauvery delta.

• The Cauvery Water Regulation Committee (CWRC), which met in New Delhi on Tuesday to review the situation in the drought-hit Cauvery basin, has now directed Karnataka to release 4 TMC of water to Tamil Nadu at a rate of 3,500 cusecs a day for 15 days.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍What’s the Cauvery dispute and how does the Mekedatu dam feature in it?

📍Cauvery water dispute: All you need to know

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
2) Which of the following Protected Areas are located in Cauvery basin? (UPSC CSE, 2020)
1. Nagarhole National Park
2. Papikonda National Park
3. Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve
4. Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3 and 4 only
(c) 1, 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Previous year UPSC main Question Covering similar theme:
📍Constitutional mechanisms to resolve the inter-state water disputes have failed to address and solve the problems. Is the failure due to structural or process inadequacy or both? Discuss. (2013)

Centre declares 56,825 sq km of Western Ghats as eco-sensitive area

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

What’s the ongoing story: The Centre has issued a seventh iteration of a draft notification declaring 56,825.7 square kilometre of Western Ghats, the biodiversity hotspot spread across Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, as an ecologically sensitive area (ESA).

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are Eco-Sensitive Zones?

• Why are Eco-Sensitive Zones created?

• Which state has the highest number of ecologically sensitive zones in India?

• Which are the states where the areas to be demarcated as ESA?

• Who declares ecologically sensitive areas?

• Map Work-Western Ghats (Starting point and ending point), Nilgiri Hills, Doddabetta, Anaimalai Hills, Palani Hills, Cardamom Hills, Agasthyamalai Hills.

• Where do the Western Ghats stretch from?

• Name the place where the Western and Eastern Ghats meet.

• What are the committees constituted on Western Ghats conservation?

• Why are local communities significant in the conservation and sustainable development of the Western Ghats?

• Compare the recommendations of the Gadgil and Kasturirangan Committees in the context of the Western Ghats.

• What are the challenges posed by developmental activities such as mining, tourism, and infrastructure in the Western Ghats?

Key Takeaways:

• The fresh draft was issued on Monday – the day sixth iteration lapsed due to a continuing deadlock between the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) and the states concerned over demarcation of ESA areas.

• The ESAs proposed across these states are spread over 449 sq km in Gujarat, 17,340 sq km in Maharashtra, 1,461 sq km in Goa, 20,668 sq km in Karnataka, 6,914 sq km in Tamil Nadu, and 9,993.7 sq km in Kerala.

• While Gujarat and Goa have largely agreed upon an area to be finalised as ESA, Maharashtra’s fresh revised proposal is under appraisal. Karnataka continues to oppose the draft notification, while the Centre is still resolving sticking points and information discrepancies with Kerala and Tamil Nadu, respectively.

• The Centre has also given a year’s tenure extension to an expert committee, formed in April 2022, which continues to examine the views of the six stakeholder state governments, keeping in view the conservation aspects of the disaster-prone ecosystem, as well as rights, privileges, needs and developmental aspirations of the region. The tenure of the expert committee, headed by Sanjay Kumar, ex-Director General of Forest, MoEFCC, was extended till July 2027 late last month.

• As in the previous one, the latest draft notification also recommended a complete ban on mining, quarrying and sand mining in ESAs as well as phasing out of all existing mines within five years from the date of the final notification or expiry of the lease, whichever is earlier.

• It also recommends prohibition of new thermal power plants and expansion of existing ones in ESAs. Further, ‘red’ category or the most polluting industries and their expansion is also proposed to be banned in ESAs.

• It was stated that the draft notification be finalised in a phased manner, either state-wise or through a combined single notification —a provision that was also inserted in the previous draft notification published on August 2, 2024.

Do You Know:

• The draft notification declaring ESAs in Western Ghats was first issued in March 2014, based on recommendations by the High-Level Working Group (HLWG), headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation chairman K Kasturirangan. The committee was formed in 2012 to review recommendations of the report prepared by the Western Ghats Expert Ecology Panel, headed by renowned ecologist Madhav Gadgil.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Knowledge Nugget: Why are the Western Ghats back in headlines?

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
3) From the ecological point of view, which one of the following assumes importance in being a good link between the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats? (UPSC CSE, 2017)
(a) Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve
(b) Nallamala Forest
(c) Nagarhole National Park
(d) Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve

Explained

The rupee’s journey: From overvalued to undervalued

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

What’s the ongoing story: The hardening of global oil prices, following the resumption of hostilities between the US and Iran, saw the rupee breach the 96-to-the-dollar mark afresh on July 14 and remain at those levels till Friday (July 24).

Key Points to Ponder:

• What does overvalued mean in currency?

• What happens if a currency is overvalued?

• What is the difference between rupee appreciation and rupee depreciation?

• What is the nominal effective exchange rate (NEER)?

• What is Real Effective Exchange rate (REER)?

• How is overvalued is different from rupee appreciation?

• What is the relationship between exchange rates and the Balance of Payments?

• How exchange-rate movements affect India’s merchandise exports and imports?

Key Takeaways:

• The pause in daily strikes since has led to the domestic currency strengthening to around 95.9, even as Brent crude prices have eased to below $85 per barrel after surging past $95 on July 23.

• Amid these spikes and drops — the rupee hit an all-time-low of 96.96-to-the-dollar on May 20 and Brent crossed $126.4 per barrel on April 30 — one thing is clear: The rupee is no longer an overvalued currency.

• On the contrary, as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Sanjay Malhotra told The Hindu businessline in an interview, “one could argue that the rupee has become undervalued… Once the situation in West Asia stabilises, one could very well see the rupee appreciate as one has seen during similar past periods and episodes of external shock-driven volatility”.

• One of the best, and most widely used, gauges to measure whether a currency is over or undervalued is its so-called Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) and Real Effective Exchange rate (REER) indices. These reflect the rupee’s movement against not just the dollar, but a basket of currencies of countries that account for the bulk of India’s exports and imports.

• In November 2024, when the rupee’s average exchange rate was 84.4 to the dollar, the NEER index stood at 91.68. It meant that the rupee had already fallen around 8.3% against the currencies of India’s major trade partners since 2015-16.

• The NEER, however, is a summary index that captures movements in the external value of the rupee relative to a basket of global currencies without factoring in inflation. If a currency’s nominal exchange rate falls less than the domestic inflation rate during a particular period, it has actually appreciated in “real” terms.

• The rupee’s gain of an international trade competitiveness advantage is also borne out by the estimates of Real Broad Effective Exchange Rate (RBEER) by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The RBEER is similar to the RBI’s REER. It compares a country’s average currency value to that of a wider group of 64 trade partners, taking 2020 as the base year.

Chart.

Do You Know:

• The NEER and REER are indices similar to the consumer price index (CPI). CPI is the weighted average retail price value of a representative basket of consumer goods and services for a given month or year, relative to a fixed base period.

• The NEERs/REERs are indices of the weighted average of the rupee’s exchange rates vis-à-vis the currencies of the country’s key trade partners. The basket here comprises 40 currencies and the base year (used as a reference for comparison, with its value set at 100) is taken as 2015-16. The currency weights are derived from the share of the individual countries in India’s total foreign trade, just as the weight of each commodity in the CPI is based on its relative importance in the overall consumption basket.

• The 40 currencies are of countries having a combined share of about 88% in India’s annual trade flows.

• The REER is basically the NEER index adjusted for the inflation differentials between India and its trading partners. It is, hence, a true measure of whether the rupee is undervalued, overvalued or fairly valued against the currencies of other countries, after taking into consideration both exchange rate and relative price movements. If the rupee’s nominal exchange rates stay the same, but prices in India rise faster than in other countries, the REER goes up, resulting in Indian products becoming relatively more expensive and less competitive in the world market.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍ExplainSpeaking: To defend, or not to defend (the rupee), that is the question

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
4) With reference to the Indian economy, consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE, 2022)
1. An increase in Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) indicates the appreciation of rupee.
2. An increase in the Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER) indicates an improvement in trade competitiveness.
3. An increasing trend in domestic inflation relative to inflation in other countries is likely to cause an increasing divergence between NEER and REER.
Which of the above statements are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

‘Viruses don’t respect borders; world must ensure timely, fair access to vaccines

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

What’s the ongoing story: Recent episodes involving cases of ebola, hantavirus, and nipah virus show that dangerous zoonotic infections are no longer rare, isolated events. They are appearing with increasing regularity at the interface of humans, animals, forests, farms, hospitals, and global travel.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Why WHO declares any outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern?

• What is Public Health Emergency of International Concern?

• What you know about ebola, hantavirus, and nipah virus?

• Why early pathogen surveillance is critical in preventing pandemics.

• Why should pandemics be treated as disasters requiring whole-of-government preparedness?

• What is Pandemic? How it is different from endemic and epidemic?

• How does globalization lead to epidemics and pandemics?

Key Takeaways:

• These outbreaks are not only scientific events; they also expose weaknesses in surveillance, public trust, vaccine access, and international preparedness.

• While these viruses differ in ecology, reservoirs, and routes of spillover, recent cases show why they remain serious international health concerns. Ebola virus disease is feared because it can cause severe illness and death, with an average case-fatality rate of around 50%. Recent cases in central Africa have again shown how conflict, displacement, unsafe burials, distrust of health workers, and weak surveillance can make outbreak control extremely difficult.

Do You Know:

• Hantaviruses, named after the Hantaan River region in South Korea, are mainly rodent-borne viruses. Some cause kidney disease, while others cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe lung illness that can rapidly progress to respiratory failure and shock. The cluster linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship brought hantavirus back into public discussion because it showed how a virus usually associated with a local ecological niche can acquire international significance through travel, enclosed spaces, and multi-country contact tracing.

• Nipah virus, carried mainly by fruit bats, can cause respiratory illness and encephalitis, with case-fatality rates estimated at 40-75%. Recurring concerns in India and Bangladesh show that it remains a persistent regional threat.

• Under particular conditions, all three infections can involve human-to-human transmission: Ebola through infected body fluids, Nipah through close household or healthcare contact, and Andes hantavirus, unlike most hantaviruses, through limited person-to-person spread. This makes early detection, isolation, infection control, community trust, and vaccine preparedness inseparable.

• While a licensed vaccine exists for one major Ebola virus species, there are still no licensed human vaccines for Bundibugyo Ebola, Nipah virus, or hantavirus infections, and no simple curative treatment that can be relied upon once outbreaks begin.

• The terms endemic, epidemic, and pandemic describe how widely and how fast a disease spreads through a population. An endemic is a steady, expected presence of a disease in a specific area. An epidemic is a sudden, large increase in disease cases above what is normal for that area. A pandemic is an epidemic that has spread globally across multiple countries and continents

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍India Ebola Advisory: An Expert Explains why infection spillover is not a pandemic

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
5) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE, 2025)
I. No virus can survive in ocean water.
II. No virus can infect bacteria.
III. No virus can change the cellular transcriptional activity in host cells.
How many of the statements given above are correct?
(a) Only one
(b) Only two
(c) All the three
(d) None

The World

Magnitude 7.1 quake shakes south Japan, many feared trapped

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.

Mains Examination: General Studies I: Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc., geographical features and their location-changes in critical geographical features (including water-bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.

What’s the ongoing story: A preliminary magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck off Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu on Tuesday afternoon, with its epicentre located 10 km beneath the seabed, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). Public broadcaster NHK reported that the quake was felt in Kumamoto Prefecture, prompting the JMA to issue a tsunami advisory for coastal areas along the Ariake Sea and the Yatsushiro Sea.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Map Work-Mark Circum-Pacific Belt

• Earthquake zones in World-Know in detail

• Map Work-Earthquake-prone areas in India

• Is Japan the most earthquake prone country in the world?

• Why is Japan so prone to earthquakes?

• How devastating was earthquake in Japan?

• Where and when did the earthquake occur?

• What is called Ring of Fire?

• What does the Ring of Fire have to do with Japan?

• Why does the earth shake when there is an earthquake?

• What are the Major and Minor Plates?

• The movement of the tectonic plates creates three types of tectonic boundaries-What are they?

• What is seismic waves or earthquake waves?

• What is Body waves and Surface waves?

• Know in detail-Primary waves (p-waves), Secondary waves (s-waves), L-waves and Rayleigh waves

Key Takeaways:

• Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi urged residents to stay away from the coastline after authorities warned of a tsunami of up to one metre (3 feet) following the powerful earthquake, Associated Press reported.

Do You Know:

• Plate tectonics is the theory that Earth’s land masses are in constant motion. The realization that Earth’s land masses move was first proposed by Alfred Wegener, which he called continental drift.

• Tsunami (a Japanese word that means “harbour wave”) is a series of giant ocean waves caused by earthquakes or volcanic eruptions under the ocean. When an earthquake takes place under the ocean, a large chunk of the ocean floor can suddenly move upward or downward, leading to a sudden displacement of a large volume of water, thereby causing tsunami waves. A similar thing can happen when a volcano erupts in the ocean. The lava flowing out of the volcano displaces the water around it and that water can become a large wave. “Big tsunamis usually begin in the deep ocean, where a large volume of water can be displaced. As the wave moves closer to the shore, it grows taller as the ocean becomes shallower,” according to a report by NASA.

• Tsunami waves can be hundreds of feet tall and can travel as fast as jet planes over deep waters while slowing down when reaching shallow waters. However, not all earthquakes or volcanic eruptions lead to tsunamis. The formation of a tsunami can depend on a host of factors, including the shape of the ocean floor, and the earthquake’s distance and direction.

• Japan is situated along the ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’, which is the most active earthquake tectonic belt in the world. The ‘ring’ refers to “an imaginary horseshoe-shaped zone that follows the rim of the Pacific Ocean, where many of the world’s earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur,” according to a report by Live Science.

• Within the Ring of Fire, there are different tectonic belts, including the Pacific Plate, Eurasian Plate, and Indo-Australian Plate, which keep meshing and colliding with each other, causing earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis.

• In 2011, Japan was hit by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and a resulting tsunami which devastated its northeastern coastal communities, killing around 18,000 people and displacing tens of thousands. Those tsunami waves led to a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima power plant, causing the most severe nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster in the Soviet Union.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Japan earthquake triggers tsunami warning: What is a tsunami, why does it keep forming in the island country?

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
6) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE, 2023)
1. In a seismograph, P waves are recorded earlier than S waves.
2. In P waves, the individual particles vibrate to and fro in the direction of wave propagation whereas in S waves, the particles vibrate up and down at right angles to the direction of wave propagation.
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

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
📍Why are the world’s fold mountain systems located along the margins of continents? Bring out the association between the global distribution of fold mountains and the earthquakes and volcanoes. (2014)

France, Spain make headway against huge blazes as new heatwave looms

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

What’s the ongoing story: More than 300,000 people have fled their homes as massive wildfires continue to sweep across France and Spain, driven by strong winds and extreme heat. In France, firefighters are battling fast-moving blazes near Bordeaux, while Spain has declared a state of emergency as fires rage around Madrid and other regions, reports stated.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is meant by forest fire?

• What are the geographical and climatic factors contributing to the frequency and intensity of wildfires?

• Analyse the environmental impacts of wildfires.

• What is the role of international frameworks, such as the Sendai Framework, in addressing the risks associated with wildfires?

• Discuss the policy measures and governance mechanisms needed to manage and mitigate wildfires in wildfire-prone regions like France, Spain, California or Australia?

• How winds impact the region’s ecology and climate patterns?

Key Takeaways:

• Authorities in France have evacuated around 250,000 people from the south-western regions of Gironde and Landes, with another 55,000 ordered to leave late Saturday.

• In Spain, nearly 60,000 people have been evacuated from the Madrid and Ávila regions, while thousands more remain confined to their homes. A man believed to be in his 70s was found dead in his car after a wildfire in Manises, near València.

• Spain’s Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska warned that weather conditions were making firefighting efforts more difficult, with winds expected to push the flames further south. Madrid regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso described the blaze as the worst wildfire in the region’s history.

Do You Know:

• Officials say a combination of intense heat, prolonged dry conditions and powerful winds has fuelled the rapid spread of the blazes. Firefighters in France said gusts have made the fires erratic and difficult to contain.

• EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said this year’s wildfire season started earlier than usual and warned Europe could see record levels of destruction. France has recorded about 98,000 hectares burned in 2026, while Spain has reported 130,000 hectares, BBC reported.

• Weather forecasts indicate that temperatures across the affected regions are expected to remain well above seasonal averages over the coming days, with dry air and gusty winds continuing to create dangerous fire conditions.

• France has activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, with Croatia, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania sending aircraft, helicopters and firefighting teams.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU has also deployed additional firefighting planes and helicopters to assist France and Spain.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Europe battles wildfires as heatwave forces 30,000 to evacuate across France, Spain

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
7) The vegetation of Savannah consists of grassland with scattered small trees, but extensive areas have no trees. The forest development in such areas is generally kept in check by one or more or a combination of some conditions. Which of the following are such conditions? (UPSC CSE, 2021)
1. Burrowing animals and termites
2. Fire
3. Grazing herbivores
4. Seasonal rainfall
5. Soil properties
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 and 2
(b) 4 and 5
(c) 2, 3 and 4
(d) 1, 3 and 5

Oman presents Iran with Gulf-backed plan for voluntary fees to use Hormuz

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

What’s the ongoing story: A proposal to charge fees on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, which has drawn mixed signals from Iran and Oman, may offer a path to end the stalemate and revive peace negotiations with the United States as the West Asia conflict enters its sixth month.

Key Points to Ponder:

• How will the toll work, and who could be charged?

• What is the proposal?

• Map Work– Strait of Hormuz

• Which country has jurisdiction over Strait of Hormuz?

• What is Exclusive Economic Zone?

• What United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) says?

• Iran’s ‘toll-booth system’ in the Strait of Hormuz-why it is said so?

• Is collecting formal tolls for the Strait of Hormuz legal?

Key Takeaways:

• Despite a deadlock in talks between Washington and Tehran, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, said the Islamic Republic is engaged in “constructive” talks with Oman related to Hormuz that are not linked to the US.

• Baghaei, in a statement, said, “The aim is for Iran and Oman, as the two littoral states, to develop mechanisms to ensure safe navigation in the Strait of Hormuz while respecting the sovereign rights of both coastal states and safeguarding Iran’s security and national interests,” CNN reported.

Do You Know:

• Since the war between US-Israel and Iran broke out in February, Tehran has reiterated its stance to charge fees from ships for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, arguing that the critical waterway lies within the territorial waters of Iran and Oman.

• Prior to the West Asia conflict, about 20 per cent of global oil and liquefied natural gas was being shipped through the strait, but since February 28, Hormuz has remained virtually choked, affecting energy prices across the world.

• Oman has continued to resist the imposition of a toll on vessels to cross the strait, upholding the position that international law already protects the right to safe transit passage through straits used for international navigation. However, Oman has reportedly been looking for a compromise in order to accommodate Iran’s position.

• The proposal presented by Oman to Iran calls for a joint regional management of the Strait of Hormuz with shipping companies paying voluntary fees for transiting the strategic waterway, Reuters reported.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Expert Explains: ‘The Strait of Hormuz is simply too vital an artery to remain closed for too long’

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
8) With reference to the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea, consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE, 2022)
1. A coastal state has the right to establish the breadth of its territorial sea up to a limit not exceeding 12 nautical miles, measured from baseline determined in accordance with the convention.
2. Ships of all states, whether coastal or land-locked, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.
3. The Exclusive Economic Zone shall not extend beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

 

PRELIMS ANSWER KEY

1.(a)  2.(c)  3.(a) 4.(c) 5.(d) 6.(c) 7.(c) 8.(d)

  

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