Today’s Articles for The Hindu Daily Digest
1. NIPGR’s gene-edited rice has better phosphate uptake, more yield
GS-III SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ▶️Biotechnology
Phosphorus is an essential mineral for plant growth and development. In case of limited phosphorus availability, crop productivity drops drastically. Even when phosphate fertilizers are used, only about 15-20% are taken up by plants, while the balance gets leached out or lost through runoff.
In the gene-edited rice lines, a recommended amount of phosphate fertilizer increased yield by 20%. However, when only 10% of the recommended dose was used, the yield increased by 40% over the control group.
2. What will be effect of rising military spending?
GS-II-International Relation ▶️ Funding Issue
Why have NATO nations decided to increase their defence expenditure? During which period was global military spending the most? Will increased remilitarisation have an effect on domestic health spending? Why has the United Nations decided to cut down on its budget?
THE GIST
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which produces the most comprehensive database on military spending, global military spending was $2,718 billion in 2024.
The latest budget of the United Nations is only $44 billion— with which it should fund development, humanitarian aid, and peacekeeping operations. But the UN, in six months, has only received $6 billion, and as a result, is seeking to reduce the budget to $29 billion.
The U.S., under President Donald Trump, seeking to cut foreign aid is the major cause of the UN funding crisis.
3. What the ‘neutral clean-up’ of Bihar’s poll rolls really is
GS-II-CONSTITUTION AND POLITY ▶️Political Dynamics
The hurried and opaque revision is a form of demographic manipulation and part of a broader political project aimed at weakening pluralism.
4. The dark signs of restricted or selective franchise
GS-II-CONSTITUTION AND POLITY ▶️Political Dynamics
What is about to unfold in Bihar is a fundamental disruption of India’s electoral democracy, with millions of second grade and insecure citizens.
5. The ECI does not have unfettered powers
GS-II-CONSTITUTION AND POLITY ▶️Political Dynamics
The Special Intensive Revision in Bihar does not conform with the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
Note – Articles 3,4 and 5 are on the same topic.
6. Sierra Leone islanders despair as rising ocean threatens survival
GS-III-Environment & Disaster Management ▶️Climate Change and their impact on island
The island has lost two-thirds of its surface area and measures only about 200 m long and 100 m wide. All that remains is an islet ringed by canoes, with shacks clustered in the center.
Turtle Islands, Sierra Leone, is an archipelago of eight islands located off the coast of Sierra Leone in the Atlantic Ocean, west of Sherbro Island.
7. Quick fix
Budgetary allowances alone will not solve India’s R&D problem.