Today's Brief 21/05/2025

1 .India's Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution recently launched three significant digital initiatives – Depot Darpan, Anna Mitra, and Anna Sahayata –

General Studies Paper-II (250 Marks) – Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International Relations

to revolutionize the nation's Public Distribution System (PDS). Depot Darpan is a portal and mobile app empowering food storage depot managers to self-assess their infrastructure, operational efficiency, and financial performance in near real-time, aiming for higher quality standards and integrating with smart warehousing technologies like CCTV and IoT sensors.

The Anna Mitra mobile app serves as a real-time command center for ration distribution, offering secure, real-time access to operational data for FPS dealers, DFSO officers, and food inspectors, ultimately enhancing accountability and transparency across the supply chain.

Lastly, Anna Sahayata is an advanced, citizen-first grievance redressal system that allows over 81 crore beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) to register complaints through text and voice messages in local languages, leveraging tools like WhatsApp and IVRS for efficient tracking and feedback.

Together, these applications represent a major leap in modernizing India's food security efforts through digital innovation, striving for greater transparency, efficiency, and direct benefit to citizens

2 .Dr. Jayant Narlikar:

(General Studies-III (250 marks)Technology, Economic Development, Biodiversity, Environment, Security, and Disaster Management)

Renowned Indian astrophysicist and science communicator Dr. Jayant Narlikar passed away peacefully in his sleep on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, at his home in Pune, at the age of 86.

He had been recuperating from hip surgery two weeks prior. Dr. Narlikar was a towering figure in Indian science, celebrated for his pioneering contributions to cosmology, particularly his work on the Hoyle–Narlikar theory of gravity which offered an alternative to the widely accepted Big Bang theory.

He was also the founding director of the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune and was instrumental in popularizing science through his extensive writings, books, and public appearances.

His passing marks a monumental loss to the scientific community, and he is survived by his three daughters, all involved in scientific research.

2. Trachoma :

(General Studies-III (250 marks)Technology, Economic Development, Biodiversity, Environment, Security, and Disaster Management)

General Studies Paper-II (250 Marks) – Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International Relations

India has achieved a significant public health milestone by being awarded the Certificate of Elimination of Trachoma as a Public Health Problem by the World Health Organization (WHO).

 This prestigious recognition was presented at the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva on May 20, 2025. This achievement underscores India's sustained efforts in disease elimination, preventive healthcare, and its commitment to ensuring health for all its citizens. 

While the formal certification was granted at the assembly, the WHO had officially declared India free of trachoma as a public health problem on October 8, 2024, making it the third country in the Southeast Asia region to reach this significant public health milestone.

3 .Honduras,

General Studies Paper-I (Mains) - Indian Heritage and Culture, History and Geography of the World and Society

located in the heart of Central America, is a country of striking natural beauty and complex socio-economic challenges. Bordered by Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and both the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, its diverse landscape ranges from the lush Mosquito Coast rainforests to the stunning Bay Islands (including Roatán and Utila), renowned for their coral reefs.

The country's mountainous interior, covering 75% of its territory, contrasts with coastal plains, while its tropical climate brings both heavy rains and vulnerability to hurricanes like the devastating Hurricane Mitch (1998).

Steeped in history, Honduras was home to advanced Maya civilization, evidenced by the spectacular ruins of Copán, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After Spanish colonization in the 16th century, it gained independence in 1821, later becoming infamous as a "banana republic" due to U.S. corporate dominance in the early 1900s.

The 20th century saw turmoil, including the brief 1969 "Football War" with El Salvador and a 2009 coup that temporarily disrupted democratic governance.

4 . Booker Prize: Indian writer and women’s rights activist Banu Mushtaq has scripted history by becoming the first Kannada author to win the prestigious International Booker Prize.

Her acclaimed short story anthology Heart Lamp clinched the award in London on Tuesday.

Heart Lamp, originally written in Kannada and translated into English by Deepa Bhasthi, is a powerful anthology of 12 short stories that chronicle the everyday experiences of women and girls living in patriarchal communities in southern India.

Spanning over three decades of writing from 1990 to 2023 the collection reflects Mushtaq’s enduring commitment to portraying the nuanced realities of women’s lives.

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