Content

1. Gyan Bharatam Mission to ink pact with institutes
2. EC warns parties against misuse of AI-generated content during elections
3. Makhanomics
4. Pendency issue in courts: Why SC flagged execution petitions
5. Pratibha Setu Portal & Rozgar Melas

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Gyan Bharatam Mission to ink pact with institutes

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Why in News

• The Union Ministry of Culture is signing MoUs with around 20 institutes (and 30 more soon) under the Gyan Bharatam Mission for the conservation, digitisation, and promotion of India’s manuscript heritage.
• Key institutes: Asiatic Society (Kolkata), University of Kashmir (Srinagar), Hindi Sahitya Sammelan (Prayagraj), Government Oriental Manuscript Library (Chennai).

Relevance

• GS-1 (Indian Culture): Preservation of cultural heritage and manuscripts.
• GS-2 (Governance): Institutional collaboration and administrative reforms in heritage management.
• GS-3 (Science & Technology): Application of digital technologies in heritage conservation.

Background

• India is home to one of the largest manuscript heritages globally — over 10 million manuscripts across 80+ languages (Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, Persian, Arabic, Tamil, etc.).
• Many are inaccessible or deteriorating due to lack of preservation, cataloguing, or digitisation.
• Earlier attempts:
  • National Mission for Manuscripts (NMM) – launched in 2003 under the Culture Ministry; documented over 5 million manuscripts.
  • Gyan Bharatam builds on this framework, introducing digital integration and research promotion.

Launch and Institutional Framework

• Announced: Union Budget 2024–25 as a flagship cultural heritage initiative.
• Implementing Ministry: Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
• Mission Objective: Identify, conserve, digitise, preserve, research, and promote India’s manuscript heritage.

Core Objectives

• Identification & Documentation: Comprehensive survey and cataloguing of manuscripts nationwide.
• Digitisation & Preservation: Use of advanced imaging and metadata standards to create a National Digital Repository (NDR).
• Research & Translation: Promote scholarship, translation, and publication of rare texts.
• Capacity Building: Train conservators, cataloguers, and digitisation experts.
• Outreach & Awareness: Public exhibitions, seminars, and digital access to manuscripts globally.

Key Components

Vertical	Activities	Institutional Role
Survey & Cataloguing	Identification, listing, and metadata creation	Institutes & cluster centres
Conservation & Capacity Building	Restoration, preservation labs, training programs	Technical institutions
Technology & Digitisation	Scanning, metadata tagging, cloud storage	NIC, CDAC support expected
Linguistics & Translation	Rendering ancient texts into modern Indian languages	Universities & linguistic institutes
Research & Publication	Critical editions, annotated translations	Academia & cultural bodies
Outreach	Exhibitions, public lectures, educational content	Partner centres

 Institutional Structure

• Cluster Centres:
  • Each manages up to 20 partner centres in its region.
  • Responsible for coordination, quality assurance, and data sharing.
• Independent Centres:
  • Manage their own manuscript collections independently.
• Gyan Bharatam Cell:
  • Dedicated in each centre for project coordination, voluntary service, and liaison with the Ministry.

Financial Framework

• Funding Model: 2-installment structure
  • 1st installment (70%) – released upon annual budget approval.
  • 2nd installment (30%) – after submission of progress reports, utilisation certificates (UCs), and verified outcomes.
• Budget Allocation: Based on approved work plans, milestones, and quality checks.
• Support Provided: Equipment, digitisation tools, conservation materials, and expert assistance.

Expected Outcomes

• Creation of a National Digital Repository (NDR) to globally showcase India’s manuscript wealth.
• Improved physical and digital preservation of endangered texts.
• Enhanced research access for scholars and students.
• Revival of Indic knowledge systems (Ayurveda, mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, polity).
• Integration with Digital India and Viksit Bharat@2047 goals for cultural preservation.

Data & Impact Potential

• Estimated corpus: 10 million+ manuscripts (per NMM records).
• Languages covered: 80+ (including Sanskrit, Pali, Persian, Tamil, Arabic, Bengali, etc.).
• Institutes onboard (Phase-1): 20 (Phase-2: additional 30).
• Digital Access Goal: 100% online accessibility via NDR by 2030.

Challenges

• Condition deterioration: Nearly 40% manuscripts in fragile state (as per NMM estimates).
• Lack of skilled conservators and standardised metadata.
• Dispersed ownership (temples, mutts, private collections).
• Digital divide in smaller regional centres.

Significance

• Cultural Diplomacy: Showcases India’s civilizational knowledge to the world.
• Knowledge Economy: Opens pathways for research in ancient science, arts, and philosophy.
• Heritage Conservation: Aligns with UNESCO conventions on safeguarding intangible heritage.
• National Identity: Reinforces Bharat’s legacy as a global Vishwaguru in knowledge.

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EC warns parties against misuse of AI-generated content during elections

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 Why in News ?

• Ahead of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) issued an advisory to all political parties regarding the responsible use and disclosure of AI-generated content and synthetic information during election campaigns.
• Trigger: Reports of hyper-realistic AI-generated political content potentially misrepresenting leaders or spreading false narratives, threatening a level playing field.

Relevance

• GS-2 (Governance): Electoral reforms, use of technology in elections, regulatory oversight.
• GS-3 (Science & Technology): Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity, digital ethics.
• GS-1 (Society): Voter awareness, media literacy, democratic participation.

Background

• Election Integrity at Risk:
  • AI tools can generate synthetic images, videos, and audio depicting political leaders in misleading contexts.
  • Risk: Manipulation of voters’ perception and undermining public trust.

• Previous Steps by ECI:
  • May 2024: Guidelines on social media ethics for general elections.
  • January 16, 2025: Advisory specifically on labeling AI-generated content, emphasizing transparency.

Core Objectives of the Advisory

• Ensure transparency and accountability in political campaigning.
• Preserve electoral integrity and voter trust.
• Prevent the misuse of hyper-realistic synthetic content that can influence election outcomes unfairly.
• Reinforce the level-playing field among political participants.

Key Guidelines for Political Parties

1. Disclosure Requirement:
   1. Any AI-generated or AI-altered content (image, audio, video) must carry a clear and legible label such as “AI-Generated.”
2. Responsible Use:
   1. Parties and candidates must verify the content before dissemination.
3. Monitoring & Accountability:
   1. Campaign representatives must ensure compliance with the advisory, reporting any misuse.
4. Ethical Boundaries:
   1. Avoid using synthetic content to defame, mislead, or manipulate public opinion.

Context of Use

• AI-generated content could be used for:
  • Political messaging or endorsements.
  • Satire or criticism (with ethical labeling).
  • Campaign advertisements.
• Risks without regulation:
  • False perception of leader statements.
  • Manipulation of voter sentiment and opinion polls.
  • Legal and reputational challenges for parties using unlabelled AI content.

Technical Challenges

• Deepfakes & Hyper-realism:
  • AI-generated videos/images can be indistinguishable from real footage.
• Scale & Speed:
  • Social media allows rapid dissemination to millions of voters.
• Detection Difficulty:
  • Existing automated detection systems are not fully reliable; hence ECI emphasizes self-regulation by parties.

Data & Facts

• Global Context:
  • Deepfake political content incidents reported in USA, Germany, Brazil, influencing campaigns and legal frameworks.
• India-Specific Observations:
  • During General Elections 2024, multiple parties flagged misleading AI content, prompting prior ECI guidelines.
• Election Coverage:
  • Bihar Assembly elections involve 243 constituencies, high stakes for digital campaigning.

Significance

• Preserves Democratic Process: Ensures fair competition and prevents digital manipulation.
• Builds Voter Awareness: Labels like “AI–Generated” help voters distinguish real from synthetic content.
• Legal Precedent: Strengthens ECI’s regulatory framework in the era of AI and deepfakes.
• Global Alignment: India joins countries setting standards for AI ethics in political campaigns.

Key Challenges Ahead

• Ensuring strict compliance across parties and candidates.
• Detecting unlabelled AI content in real-time during elections.
• Addressing technological sophistication of deepfakes used in political propaganda.
• Balancing freedom of speech with electoral integrity.

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Makhanomics

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Why in News

• Ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections 2025, the government is promoting the makhana (foxnut) industry as a key economic and political initiative.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to the recently inaugurated National Makhana Board as a “revolution” during a poll rally in Samastipur, highlighting government support for the sector.

Relevance

• GS-1 (Indian Culture & Society): Regional agricultural practices, Maithil community, socio-economic structures.
• GS-2 (Governance): Policy-making, institutional support, government initiatives for rural economy.
• GS-3 (Economy & Agriculture): Agro-based industrialisation, value addition, food processing policy, rural livelihoods, export promotion.

Background

• Makhana (Foxnut): Dried seeds of the prickly water lily (Euryale ferox), grown in freshwater ponds.
• Primary region: Bihar, contributing ~90% of India’s makhana production, mainly in Mithilanchal districts: Darbhanga, Madhubani, Purnea, Katihar, Saharsa, Supaul, Araria, Kishanganj, Sitamarhi.
  • Top 4 districts (Darbhanga, Madhubani, Purnea, Katihar) produce ~80% of Bihar’s output.
• Cultivation area & production:
  • Area: ~15,000 hectares (Bihar)
  • Popped makhana production: ~10,000 tonnes (ICAR, 2020)

Nutritional & Commercial Potential

• Superfood trend: Low-fat, nutrient-dense, high protein, antioxidants; increasingly popular nationally and globally.
• Ritual use: Traditionally consumed during religious ceremonies and fasting.
• Commercialisation efforts:
  • Marketing campaigns, industrial infrastructure, value addition, and export linkages.
  • Formation of National Makhana Board with Rs 100 crore budget for ecosystem development.

Challenges in the Industry

• Low productivity: Labour-intensive cultivation and harvesting; seeds sown in water, harvested manually.
• Raw material export: Bihar lacks processing and export infrastructure; sells raw makhana to Punjab and Assam.
• Technology adoption: Farmers slow to adopt high-yield varieties like Swarna Vaidehi and Sabour Makhana-1.
• Lack of food processing ecosystem: Weak value addition, storage facilities, and supply chain management.

Government Initiatives

• National Makhana Board:
  • Focus: Production, processing, value addition, marketing
  • Budget: Rs 100 crore
  • Support: Funding, food processing institute creation, research & training, marketing support.
• Food processing ecosystem: Aim to develop storage chains, export facilities, and industrial linkages.
• Value addition: Promotion of popped makhana products, snacks, and packaged health foods.

Economic & Social Impact

• Employment: ~10 lakh families involved in cultivation and processing.
• Community benefit: Primarily supports Maithil farmers, concentrated in riverine belts of North Bihar.
• Vote-bank significance: Maithils: 2.6% of population, but can influence >6% vote share in North Bihar constituencies.

Political Context

• Ahead of elections, “Makhanaomics” serves as:
  • A poll strategy to support a key local community (Maithils).
  • Part of ruling coalition’s broader economic vision beyond infrastructure.
• Criticism faced by prior governments for narrow economic focus (roads, power) motivates agriculture-led development messaging.
• Potential to boost rural income, promote regional economic identity, and strengthen political support.

Data & Facts

• Bihar produces ~90% of India’s makhana.
• Cultivation area: 15,000 hectares; output: 10,000 tonnes of popped makhana.
• Top producing districts: Darbhanga, Madhubani, Purnea, Katihar (80% of state output).
• Initial Makhana Board budget: Rs 100 crore.
• High-yield seed varieties: Swarna Vaidehi, Sabour Makhana-1.
• Employment impact: ~10 lakh families.
• Maithil population: 2.6% of Bihar; political influence in North Bihar >6% vote share.

Key Challenges Ahead

• Enhancing productivity and mechanisation.
• Building food processing infrastructure in Bihar.
• Developing export chains to reduce dependency on other states.
• Encouraging adoption of improved seed varieties among farmers.
• Ensuring equitable benefit-sharing for smallholder Maithil farmers.

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Pendency issue in courts: Why SC flagged execution petitions

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 Why in News

• The Supreme Court flagged the “alarming” pendency of execution petitions in district courts, describing delays in enforcing decrees as a “travesty of justice.”
• Trigger: Contempt petition by Anil Yadav, highlighting that litigants often wait years even after winning a case for enforcement of the decree.
• High-profile remarks by Justices B.R. Gavai and K.V. Viswanathan emphasized that delayed execution undermines the value of judicial victories.

Relevance

• GS-2 (Governance): Judicial reforms, efficiency of public institutions, rule of law.
• GS-2/3 (Law & Justice/Economy): Legal frameworks, dispute resolution mechanisms, impact of judicial delays on economic justice.
• GS-3 (Society & Infrastructure): Access to justice, regional disparities, social trust in legal system.

What is an Execution Petition?

• Definition: A legal mechanism to enforce a decree passed by the court.
• Purpose: Ensures the winning party actually receives what they are legally entitled to, such as payment of money, possession of property, or other reliefs.
• Procedure:
  • Court issues notice to losing party (debtor or defendant).
  • Opportunity for objections.
  • Enforcement via:
    • Court (civil enforcement)
    • Police or other agencies (commonly for property possession or recovery)
• Problem: Delays mean that even after adjudication, the decree cannot be effectively realised, rendering litigation costly and inefficient.

Data & Facts: Pendency Statistics

• Average Civil Suit Duration: 4.9 years (3.9 years for adjudication + 1 year for execution).
• Execution Petition Delay: Additional 3.9 years, making total enforcement duration over 7 years.
• Regional Disparities (2025 Data):
  • Maharashtra & Goa + Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu: >34 lakh pending execution petitions.
  • Tamil Nadu & Puducherry: 8.82 lakh pending execution petitions.
  • Tamil Nadu: 3,368 execution petitions disposed on April 10, 2025; issues persist.
• Data Source: National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG); Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy highlights limited data granularity on types of executions.

Reasons for Delays

1. Procedural Complexity:
   1. Notices, objections, hearings add significant time.
2. Manual & Court-Based Enforcement:
   1. Court-led enforcement slower than police/agency route.
3. Regional Judicial Infrastructure Constraints:
   1. Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra show high pendency due to overloaded courts.
4. Lack of Monitoring:
   1. No systematic state-level oversight committees until SC intervention.
5. Resource & Personnel Gaps:
   1. Insufficient judges, clerical staff, and enforcement officers.

Special Focus: Partition & Property Cases

• High Pendency: Partition suits and property-related decrees often take longer due to:
  • Multiple heirs or parties.
  • Complicated asset valuation and distribution.
  • Disputes over enforcement methods (cash, possession, or structural division).

Judicial Responses

• Supreme Court Directions:
  • Urged state governments, especially Tamil Nadu, to set up monitoring committees.
  • Bench of Justices Gavai & Viswanathan emphasized time-bound disposal.
  • Bench of Justices Parthiv & Mithal instructed district courts to ensure execution petitions are disposed within six months.
• Tamil Nadu Measures:
  • Senior judges issued mandatory directions for six-month deadlines for execution petitions.

Implications

• For Litigants:
  • Years of delay can erode value of legal victories and trust in judiciary.
• For Justice System:
  • Pendency highlights structural inefficiencies and enforcement bottlenecks.
• For Governance:
  • Underscores need for digitisation, monitoring, and capacity expansion in district courts.
• Socio-economic Impact:
  • Delays in property possession or financial recoveries impact business, inheritance rights, and economic activity.

Key Takeaways

• Execution petitions are crucial final stage of civil suits.
• Pendency extends total resolution time to over 7 years on average.
• States like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Goa, and UTs show highest backlog, affecting millions of litigants.
• Need for:
  • Digitisation of enforcement processes
  • Special task forces or monitoring committees
  • Better resource allocation and infrastructure improvement
  • Time-bound disposal mechanisms

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PRATIBHA SETU PORTAL & ROZGAR MELAS

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Why in News ?

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pratibha Setu Portal to connect UPSC candidates who narrowly miss final selection with employment opportunities in public and private sectors.
• Launched during the Rozgar Mela, a platform distributing appointment letters for government jobs, highlighting youth employment initiatives.

Relevance

• GS-2 (Governance): Public service delivery, youth employment, government initiatives.
• GS-3 (Economy): Skill development, employment generation, digital governance, public-private collaboration.
• GS-3 (Infrastructure & Technology): Digital portals for recruitment and job matching.

Pratibha Setu Portal

• Objective: Ensure optimal utilisation of talent among candidates who qualify UPSC Written exams but do not clear the Personality Test.
• Functionality:
  • Connects highly capable candidates with institutions seeking skilled talent.
  • Bridges the gap between education/exam preparation and productive employment.
• Significance:
  • Avoids wastage of trained and educated youth talent.
  • Enhances public-private collaboration in talent acquisition.

UPSC Context

• 2024 UPSC Civil Services Exam:
  • Written (Main) Exam qualifiers: 14,627 candidates.
  • Personality Test qualifiers: 2,845 candidates.
  • Final appointments: 1,009 candidates (725 men, 284 women).
• Implication: Majority of candidates who invest years in preparation remain unutilised, creating a talent gap.

Rozgar Melas

• Objective: Mass recruitment and appointment of youth in government jobs.
• Recent Achievements:
  • Over 51,000 youth received appointment letters during the latest Rozgar Mela.
  • Cumulative impact: Over 11 lakh appointment letters distributed in recent years.
• Government Schemes:
  • PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana: Targeting 3.5 crore employment opportunities.
  • Skill India Mission: Bridging skill gaps.
  • National Career Service (NCS) portal: Facilitates job matching, with 7+ crore vacancies shared.

Policy Rationale

1. Youth Empowerment: Leveraging skills and hard work of young candidates.
2. Talent Retention: Prevents brain drain and demotivation among highly trained aspirants.
3. Nation-building: Encourages capable youth to contribute to public and private sectors.
4. Digital Integration: Portal ensures direct engagement between talent and institutions, increasing transparency.

Political & Social Significance

• Portal launch coincided with Rozgar Mela, symbolically marking a “double Diwali” — festival + employment.
• Enhances government’s image of youth-centric governance.
• Promotes Nagarik Devo Bhava, encouraging dedication, service, and integrity among recruits.

Data & Facts

• Total civil servants recruited (2024): 1,009.
• Rozgar Mela appointments: 51,000 in recent event; 11 lakh cumulatively.
• UPSC Written Exam qualifiers not selected: ~11,782 candidates (14,627 – 2,845).
• NCS platform: >7 crore vacancies shared.
• PM Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana: Targeting 3.5 crore jobs.

Key Takeaways

• Pratibha Setu: Addresses underutilised talent among UPSC candidates.
• Rozgar Melas: Provide large-scale employment, reinforcing youth empowerment policies.
• Integrated Approach: Combines digital platforms, skill development, and government employment schemes.
• Supports India’s vision of harnessing youth potential for national growth and governance.