Content:
Manage anaemia before pregnancy
Why are ‘sugar boards’ necessary in schools?
Scientists finally solve the 160-year-old problem of Mendel’s peas
Centre’s reform nudge to States resulting in less land wastage: Ministry data
The dawn of autonomous satellites and the legal vacuum above us
Manage anaemia before pregnancy
Problem Identification
High prevalence of anaemia: Over 57% of women of reproductive age in India suffer from undiagnosed anaemia.
Symptoms ignored: Fatigue, dizziness, and weakness are often dismissed as routine.
Critical timing: By the time pregnancy begins, many women already have dangerously low haemoglobin levels.
Relevance : GS 2(Health)
Consequences of Anaemia at Conception
Increased risk of:
Preterm birth
Low birth weight
Maternal complications: e.g., pre-eclampsia, post-partum hemorrhage
Reduced iron transfer to fetus → infant anaemia
Maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality increases
Need for a Paradigm Shift
Current maternal health efforts are focused during pregnancy.
For long-term improvement:
Shift to preconception care
Focus on woman’s health before conception
Ask not just “Are you ready for motherhood?” but “Is your body ready for pregnancy?”
Limitations of Current Anaemia Management
Oral Iron-Folic Acid (IFA) is the standard, but:
Side effects: nausea, diarrhea, constipation
Poor absorption, especially in chronic anaemia
Low adherence in women
Oral iron’s effectiveness is reduced due to Hepcidin-regulated absorption
Suggested Interventions
Intravenous Ferric Carboxymaltose (IV FCM):
Rapid restoration of haemoglobin and iron stores
Not affected by Hepcidin
Suitable for moderate to severe anaemia
Vitamin B12 and Folate injection:
49% women have B12 deficiency
Essential for RBC formation and neurological development
Oral iron alone is insufficient without addressing B12
Thyroid and blood sugar screening:
Undiagnosed hypothyroidism/hyperthyroidism can mask or worsen anaemia
Gestational diabetes often detected late → risks to fetal health
Community & Policy-Level Actions
Community awareness:
Involve families to promote preconception check-ups
Grassroots healthcare workers:
ASHAs and Anganwadi workers should integrate preconception education in maternal health programs
Normalize preconception check-ups:
Treat as essential as antenatal care
Policy Recommendations
Expand interventions:
Broaden IV FCM usage
Combine B12, folate, and iron injectables
Improve oral IFA strategies:
Rethink dosing patterns (alternate day, twice weekly)
Make preconception care routine and institutionalised
Long-Term Vision
Addressing anaemia before pregnancy is key to:
Healthier mothers
Smarter, healthier future generations
Maternal health is a societal imperative, not just a medical concern
Conclusion
No woman should begin pregnancy anaemic.
Preconception health care must become standard, urgent, and transformative.
Action is not optional — it’s essential for national health and development.
Why are ‘sugar boards’ necessary in schools?
Why are ‘sugar boards’ necessary in schools?
Rising incidence of Type-2 diabetes among children: Once considered an adult disease, it is now increasingly seen in children due to high sugar intake.
Excess sugar in diets: Children aged 4–10 get 13% of calories from sugar, and 11–18-year-olds get 15% — far above the recommended 5%.
Unhealthy food environment in schools: Easy availability of sugary snacks, beverages, and processed foods in and around schools.
Need for early health education: Schools are an effective platform to inculcate healthy eating habits from a young age.
Relevance : GS 2(Health , Governance)
What are ‘sugar boards’?
Visual learning tool: DIY boards display actual sugar content in popular food/drinks like cola and packaged juices using teaspoons or packets of sugar.
Student involvement: Children create the boards during workshops, making the activity interactive and engaging.
Informative content: Includes sugar content in common foods, recommended daily intake, and health risks of excess sugar.
CBSE’s role: Over 24,000 CBSE schools asked to implement the boards and submit reports/photos by July 15.
Role of NCPCR (National Commission for Protection of Child Rights):
Advocated for nationwide adoption: Urged all schools (CBSE + State boards) to implement sugar boards.
Expressed concern: Highlighted the rise of Type-2 diabetes in children and the poor dietary environment in schools.
Stakeholder engagement: Organizing sessions with pediatricians, teachers, and parents; promoting workshops and awareness programs.
Is Type-2 Diabetes prevalent in Indian children?
Estimated incidence: 397 per lakh among Indian children (second only to China with 734/lakh).
Lack of comprehensive data: No nation-wide population-based studies yet.
Higher vulnerability: Indian genetic makeup predisposes to metabolic disorders even at lower BMI thresholds.
FSSAI’s regulatory status on sugar and HFSS:
No finalized HFSS cut-offs: Scientific panel discussions underway but no consensus yet.
Existing standards: WHO recommends <25g (6 tsp) sugar/day; India relies on these in absence of indigenous norms.
Call for Indian-specific data: Experts argue for country-wide studies tailored to Indian dietary and metabolic profiles.
Labeling norms: A product must have ≤5g sugar/100g to claim “low sugar”, but HFSS definitions for school meals are yet unresolved.
Next steps:
Beyond sugar boards: NCPCR aims to include warnings about high salt and trans-fat in school meals.
Data collection ongoing: Gathering health data from hospitals and during school health drives.
Parent engagement: Emphasizing nutrition education during PTA meetings.
Health expert outreach: Pediatricians to conduct awareness workshops in schools.
Conclusion:
Sugar boards are a simple yet powerful educational tool to combat childhood obesity and lifestyle diseases.
Their widespread adoption, combined with regulatory clarity, community engagement, and health data tracking, could form a holistic public health strategy for India’s children.
Scientists finally solve the 160-year-old problem of Mendel’s peas
Historical Context
In 1856, Gregor Mendel began experiments on pea plants to study inheritance.
He identified 7 discrete traits, noticing dominant and recessive patterns.
His findings (1866) were largely ignored during his lifetime.
In 1900, three scientists — Hugo de Vries, Carl Correns, Erich von Tschermak — independently rediscovered Mendel’s work.
Relevance : GS 3(Science)
Mendel’s Key Discoveries
Traits followed predictable 3:1 ratios in second-generation crosses.
Introduced the concepts of dominant/recessive traits and discrete units of heredity (now called genes).
Formed the foundation for modern genetics, later leading to the chromosome theory of inheritance.
The Unresolved Mystery
Despite scientific advancements, genetic basis for all 7 traits Mendel studied was not fully explained.
Only 4 traits were genetically characterised until recently:
Seed shape
Seed colour
Plant height
Flower colour
Breakthrough Study in Nature (2025)
Paper: ‘Genomic and genetic insights into Mendel’s pea genes’ (Feng et al.).
Used next-generation sequencing on 697 pea variants.
Generated a 60 terabase DNA dataset (≈14 billion pages worth of genetic data).
Major Scientific Breakthroughs
Genetic Basis for Remaining 3 Traits Identified:
Pod Colour: Deletion near ChlG gene disrupts chlorophyll, causing yellow pods.
Pod Shape: Changes in MYB and CLE-peptide genes cause constricted pods.
Flower Position: Deletion in CIK-like-coreceptor-kinase gene and a modifier locus leads to terminal flower positioning.
Complexity of Pea Plant Genetics Revealed:
Though peas belong to 4 species, genetically cluster into 8 groups due to admixture.
Discovered additional alleles for traits previously thought to be simple — e.g., a variant that turns white flowers purple.
Expanded Trait Mapping:
Identified 72 agriculturally important traits (e.g., architecture of seed, pod, root).
Created a genomic map for deep trait-tracking and breeding research.
Scientific and Agricultural Implications
Resolves a 160-year-old puzzle in genetics.
Provides a blueprint for plant breeding — improved crop yield, disease resistance, stress adaptation.
Demonstrates the power of combining classical genetics with modern genomics.
Reflection
Mendel’s curiosity in a monastery garden laid the groundwork for centuries of biological advancement.
The study underscores how fundamental research can yield profound future applications.
Centre’s reform nudge to States resulting in less land wastage: Ministry data
Background of the Reform Initiative
In 2020, the Centre launched the Scheme for Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment.
It provides 50-year interest-free loans to States for capital expenditure.
A portion of the loans is conditional, tied to the implementation of specific reforms:
➤ Road construction
➤ Digitisation
➤ Optical fibre installation
➤ Urban reforms
➤ Disinvestment and monetisation
Relevance : GS 2(Solid Waste Management)
Budgetary Growth of the Scheme
In 2020, the scheme’s cap was ₹12,000 crore.
It has expanded to ₹1,50,000 crore in 2025–26, reflecting growing state participation and investment needs.
Land and Industrial Reforms Outcomes
22 States have amended building bylaws related to industrial and commercial land use.
18 States have reduced land wastage to below 30% in factory plots.
Previously, ~50% of industrial land was consumed by parking and setback norms.
Reforms led to more optimal land use by revising outdated regulations.
Digitisation of Land Records – Key Achievements
90% of cadastral maps (ownership and boundary details) have been digitised.
91% of Records of Rights (RoR) have been digitised
➤ 35 crore out of 38 crore records.
30% of land parcels have received Unique Land Parcel Identification Numbers (ULPINs)
➤ 22 crore out of 76 crore parcels.
Broader Implications
Efficient land use encourages industrial investment by freeing up usable factory land.
Digitisation enhances land transparency, dispute resolution, and supports Ease of Doing Business.
Supports Centre–State cooperative federalism by incentivising reform through funding.
The dawn of autonomous satellites and the legal vacuum above us
Evolution of Satellites
The Space Age began with the launch of Sputnik (1957) — satellites were passive tools (e.g., GPS, communication, Earth observation).
Now, AI integration is transforming satellites into autonomous, intelligent machines capable of real-time decision-making and self-operation.
Relevance : GS 3(Space ,Technology)
Features of AI-Powered Satellites
Satellite edge computing enables onboard processing and decision-making.
Key capabilities:
Automated space operations (docking, refuelling, debris removal).
Self-diagnosis and repair of faults.
Route planning for orbital optimization.
Real-time geospatial intelligence and disaster detection.
Combat support, including threat identification and engagement.
Emerging Risks and Challenges
AI hallucinations could lead to misclassification of threats (e.g., mistaking commercial satellites as hostile).
Autonomous reactions (e.g., evasive manoeuvres) could trigger diplomatic crises or near-collisions.
AI decisions may occur without human oversight, creating serious accountability gaps.
Legal and Regulatory Vacuum
Existing space laws — Outer Space Treaty (1967) and Liability Convention (1972) — assume human control.
Key legal challenges:
Fault attribution: Who is liable — the launching state, the operator, the developer, or the AI?
Jurisdictional complexity: Multinational development, operation, and registration of satellites complicates legal responsibility.
Authorisation and supervision under OST becomes vague in AI contexts.
Need for Legal and Technical Solutions
Legalreforms:
Categorise levels of autonomy, similar to autonomous vehicles.
Mandate meaningful human control for high-risk decisions.
Develop global certification standards for satellite AI behaviour (fault response, manoeuvre logs, etc.).
International frameworks could emulate aviation and maritime insurance and liability models (e.g., HNS Convention, Montreal Convention).
Ethical and Geopolitical Imperatives
Dual-use concerns: Satellites could be used for autonomous weapons, raising fears of an arms race in space.
Ethical data governance needed to manage massive data collection, privacy, and surveillance issues.
Risk of escalation from AI-triggered errors underscores the need for international cooperation.
Call for a New Regulatory Architecture
AI-driven autonomy in orbit demands intelligent, adaptive legal frameworks.
Historical analogy: just as cars needed traffic laws, AI satellites need space governance reforms.
Shared orbits mean shared responsibilities — requiring multilateral collaboration and technological foresight.
