PCS - Mantralay (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🏛️ CHIEF INFORMATION COMMISSIONER & CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION RTI Act, 2005 | Transparency • Accountability • Right to Information 📌 Current CIC: Shri Raj Kumar Goyal 📌 Established: 12 October 2005 📌 Jurisdiction: Central Public Authorities 📌 Composition: CIC + up to 10 Information Commissioners

🏙️ GLOBAL CITIES INDEX 2026 | OXFORD ECONOMICS 🌍 Oxford Economics Global Cities Index (GCI) ranks 1,000 cities worldwide on 5 parameters: 💰 Economics 🎓 Human Capital ❤️ Quality of Life 🌱 Environment 🏛️ Governance 📊 GLOBAL RANKING 🥇 New York 🥈 London 🥉 Paris 4️⃣ Seattle 5️⃣ San Francisco 🇮🇳 INDIAN CITIES 🔹 Delhi — 268th → Highest-ranked Indian city 🔹 Bengaluru — 311th 🔹 Mumbai — 330th 🔹 Chennai — 381st 🔹 Hyderabad — 421st 🔹 Pune — 427th 📌 Around 100 Indian cities feature in the index, while 55 are among the world’s top 100 fastest-growing city economies. 🇮🇳 KEY TAKEAWAYS 🔹 Delhi: 13th globally in Human Capital; currently 63rd-largest city economy. 🔹 Bengaluru: “City to Watch”; rose 20 places. 🔹 Mumbai: 23rd globally for corporate headquarters. 🔹 Hyderabad & Chennai: 15th & 16th globally in forecast GDP growth. 🔹 Challenge: Infrastructure, quality of life & income inequality weigh on Indian cities. 🔹 Delhi: Ranked 2nd globally for worst air quality. 🎯 PRELIMS QUICK RECALL: GCI → Oxford Economics → 1,000 cities → 5 parameters → Delhi 268th ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

✈️ DEFENCE IN NEWS | MISSION PÉGASE 26 🇫🇷 French Air & Space Force deployed to Jodhpur with: 🔹 4 Rafale F4 🔹 3 A330 MRTT Phénix 🔹 2 A400M Atlas 🌍 Mission Pégase 26 • 7th edition of France’s long-range air projection exercise • Distance: 40,000+ km • Route spans Arctic → Indo-Pacific → Middle East • Aim: Operational readiness • Strategic partnerships • Freedom of air navigation 🇮🇳 India is a key stop → French contingent will participate in Tarang Shakti 2026. 🛩️ TARANG SHAKTI 2026 🔹 2nd edition | Hosted by IAF 🔹 Venue: Jodhpur & adjoining air bases 🔹 Aim: Interoperability + operational experience sharing 🔹 Foreign Air Forces: USA, France, Germany, Australia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE 🔹 Observers: 32 countries 🔹 Key aircraft: F-35 • Rafale • F-16 • C-130J • Tejas • Su-30MKI 🎯 PRELIMS: Pégase 26 → France → 40,000+ km → Jodhpur → Tarang Shakti 2026 ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

⚓ DEFENCE IN NEWS | QUAD-AT-SEA MISSION 🇮🇳🇦🇺🇯🇵🇺🇸 ICGS Shaunak sailed from Chennai to Perth with officers from all four QUAD countries. 🔹 Mission: QUAD-at-Sea Ship Observer Mission 🔹 Sea Riders: 6 officers — 🇮🇳2 | 🇯🇵2 | 🇦🇺1 | 🇺🇸1 🔹 Aim: Maritime interoperability • Coordination • Mutual trust 🔹 Indian Ship: ICGS Shaunak — Samarth-class OPV 🔹 Built by: Goa Shipyard Ltd. 🇮🇳 🔹 Commissioned: 2017 🔹 Base: Visakhapatnam 🔹 Role: EEZ surveillance • Maritime security • Search & Rescue • Pollution response 🌊 Strategic Significance: Supports the QUAD’s maritime cooperation and India’s MAHASAGAR vision. 🎯 PRELIMS: QUAD → India + USA + Japan + Australia | Shaunak → Samarth-class OPV | Chennai → Perth ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🌋 VOLCANO & SPACE TECH | NISAR 🇮🇳🇺🇸 NISAR captured radar imagery of Krasheninnikov Volcano in Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula as lava spread across the region. 🔹 Krasheninnikov: Active stratovolcano | Kamchatka, Russia 🔹 Location: Pacific Ring of Fire 🔹 NISAR: NASA–ISRO joint Earth-observation mission 🔹 Launched: 30 July 2025 | GSLV-F16 🔹 Radar: Dual-frequency L-band + S-band 🔹 Coverage: Entire Earth every 12 days 🔹 Uses: Volcanoes • Earthquakes • Land deformation • Environmental changes 🎯 PRELIMS: NISAR → NASA + ISRO → L & S Band → 12-day cycle → GSLV-F16 → Ring of Fire ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🦬 WILDLIFE IN NEWS | DEBRIGARH WLS 🌿 Habitat revival helped Indian Gaur population rise from 659 (2024) → 848 (2026). 📍 Location: Bargarh, Odisha 🔹 Near Hirakud Dam on the Mahanadi 🔹 Habitat: Dry & mixed deciduous forests + grasslands 🔹 Fauna: Gaur • Leopard • Sloth Bear • Chousingha • Dhole 🔹 Historical link: Veer Surendra Sai’s Barapathara base was here. 🦬 INDIAN GAUR 🔹 Largest wild cattle species 🔹 Range: South & Southeast Asia 🔹 Habitat: Evergreen, semi-evergreen & moist deciduous forests 🔹 WPA, 1972: Schedule I 🎯 PRELIMS: Debrigarh → Odisha → Hirakud → Mahanadi → Indian Gaur → Schedule I ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🌌 SPACE IN NEWS | BLAZARS 🔭 Astronomers studying high-energy blazars have found new clues about their X-ray emission. 🔹 Blazar: Active galaxy powered by a supermassive black hole 🔹 Components: Black hole • Accretion disk • Relativistic jet 🔹 Key Feature: Jets are directed almost towards Earth → appear extremely bright 🔹 TeV Blazars: Produce very-high-energy gamma rays (TeV range) 🔹 Importance: Help study extreme physics & matter behaviour near supermassive black holes 🔹 Challenge: Powerful jets dominate X-ray emission, making other sources like the accretion disk difficult to observe. 🎯 PRELIMS: Blazar → Supermassive Black Hole → Relativistic Jet → Earth-facing → Extreme Brightness ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🏺 CIVILISATION IN NEWS | ETRUSCANS 🇮🇹 2,700-year-old Etruscan tomb discovered at Vulci, Italy 🔹 Period: 8th–3rd century BCE 🔹 Region: Central Italy — Etruria 🔹 Also known as: Tyrrhenians 🔹 Political system: Confederation of 12 city-states 🔹 Economy: Agriculture • Trade • Iron resources 🔹 Achievements: Arch & vault architecture • Grid-based urban planning • Naval power 🔹 Legacy: Major influence on early Roman culture, religion, governance & urban planning 🔹 Decline: Gradually absorbed into the Roman Republic 🎯 PRELIMS: Etruscans → Etruria → Central Italy → 12 City-States → Vulci → Roman Influence ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

💱 mBRIDGE | DIGITAL CURRENCY IN NEWS 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia exited the mBridge project in 2025, stating it was part of its original plan. 🔹 mBridge: Cross-border payment platform using CBDCs 🔹 Launched: 2021 🔹 Partners: BIS + China 🇨🇳 + Thailand 🇹🇭 + UAE 🇦🇪 + Hong Kong 🇭🇰 🔹 Technology: DLT/Blockchain 🔹 Aim: Faster, cheaper & direct cross-border payments 🔹 Key feature: Direct settlement can reduce dependence on correspondent banks and potentially the US dollar as an intermediary currency 🔹 China’s role: PBoC’s Digital Currency Institute was a founding partner. 🎯 Prelims: mBridge → CBDC → DLT → BIS → Cross-border Payments ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🐱 MARFAN SYNDROME | FELINE CASE 🧬 Researchers have reported the first molecular characterization of Marfan syndrome in domestic cats. 🔹 Cause: Mutation in FBN1 (fibrillin-1) gene 🔹 Affects: Connective tissue, especially heart, eyes, blood vessels & bones 🔹 Nature: Hereditary genetic disorder 🔹 Treatment: No cure; symptom management & prevention of complications 🎯 Prelims: FBN1 → Fibrillin-1 → Connective Tissue → Genetic Disorder ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🏞️ RIVER IN NEWS | RANGEET 🎣 Rangeet River Festival to be organised near Jorethang, Sikkim, promoting catch-and-release fishing, river conservation & adventure tourism. 🔹 Tributary: Teesta River 🔹 Origin: Glacier of Mount Kabru, near Kanchenjunga 🔹 Course: West Sikkim → joins Teesta near Teesta Bazaar 🔹 Boundary: Forms part of Sikkim–West Bengal boundary 🔹 Importance: Fisheries • Irrigation • Freshwater • Hydropower 🔹 Tourism: Popular for white-water rafting 🔹 Rangeet Dam: 60 MW, operational since 2000 🎯 Prelims: Rangeet → Teesta → Mount Kabru → Sikkim → Teesta Bazaar ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

⚓ DEFENCE IN NEWS | EXERCISE VARUNA 2026 🇮🇳🇫🇷 India–France Bilateral Naval Exercise 🔹 24th Edition of Exercise VARUNA 🔹 Venue: Toulon, France 🔹 Indian Ship: INS Trishul 🔹 Phases: Harbour + Sea 🔹 Focus: Interoperability • Operational cooperation • Sharing best practices 🚢 INS TRISHUL 🔹 Class: Talwar-class guided missile frigate 🔹 Commissioned: 2003 🔹 Speed: >30 knots 🔹 Endurance: ~30 days at sea 🔹 Key Weapon: BrahMos PJ-10 supersonic cruise missile 📌 Other India–France Exercises: FRINJEX → Army | GARUDA → Air Force | VARUNA → Navy 🎯 Prelims: VARUNA → India–France → Naval Exercise → INS Trishul → Toulon ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🦎 SPECIES IN NEWS | TOKAY GECKO 🇮🇳 86 live Tokay Geckos seized in Assam by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in a wildlife-trafficking case. 🦎 TOKAY GECKO 🔹 Scientific name: Gekko gecko 🔹 Type: Large, arboreal lizard 🔹 Appearance: Bluish-grey body with bright orange/red/yellow spots 🔹 Habitat: Tropical forests, rock crevices & human settlements 🔹 Range: South & Southeast Asia 🔹 Behaviour: Nocturnal, solitary & carnivorous 🔹 Special feature: Can detach its tail as a defence mechanism 🔹 Communication: Distinctive vocal calls, especially during breeding 🛡️ CONSERVATION • IUCN: Least Concern • CITES: Appendix II • Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I 🎯 PRELIMS QUICK RECALL: Tokay Gecko → Gekko gecko → Arboreal → Nocturnal → Schedule I → CITES Appendix II ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

💰 INTERNATIONAL TAXATION | TRANSFER PRICING 🇮🇳 India calls for BRICS cooperation on Transfer Pricing Finance Minister urged BRICS nations to share experiences on treaty interpretation & multilateral tax negotiations, noting that transfer-pricing disputes can disproportionately affect developing countries. 🔹 Transfer Pricing: Price charged for transactions between related/associated enterprises under common control. 🔹 Used by: Mainly MNCs operating across different tax jurisdictions. 🔹 Key Principle: Arm’s Length Principle (ALP) ➡️ Related-party transactions should be priced as if conducted between independent parties. 🔹 Why disputes? Countries may differ over how MNC profits should be allocated and taxed across jurisdictions. 🔹 India: International transactions between Associated Enterprises must comply with ALP under Indian transfer-pricing rules. 🎯 MAINS LINK: Transfer Pricing → MNCs → Tax Avoidance → Developing Countries → International Tax Cooperation → BRICS ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

📡 PB-SHABD | MEDIA & BROADCASTING 🇮🇳 PB-SHABD is Prasar Bharati’s free news-feed service, launched in March 2024, providing verified, ready-to-use content to registered media organisations and digital publishers. 🔹 Formats: Text • Video • Audio • Photos • Infographics 🔹 Languages: 15 Indian languages 🔹 Coverage: National, regional & local news across ~50 categories 🔹 Users: Newspapers • TV channels • Digital publishers • Content creators 🔹 Cost: Free; access assured up to March 2027 📻 PRASAR BHARATI • India’s Public Service Broadcaster • Statutory autonomous body under Prasar Bharati Act, 1990 • Established in 1997 • Works through Akashvani & Doordarshan • Headquarters: New Delhi 🎯 PRELIMS: PB-SHABD → 2024 → Prasar Bharati → 5 formats → 15 languages ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🖤 BLACK CARBON | HIMALAYAN GLACIER MELT A new report highlights Black Carbon (BC) as a major contributor to Himalayan glacier melting. 🔹 What? Sooty particles from incomplete combustion 🔹 Type: Short-Lived Climate Pollutant (SLCP) 🔹 PM: Component of PM2.5 🔹 Sources: Diesel • Cookstoves • Coal • Biomass/Crop burning • Brick kilns • Forest fires 🔹 Glacier Impact: BC settles on snow/ice → reduces albedo → increases heat absorption → accelerates melting 🔹 Other impacts: Air pollution • Health risks • Rainfall & atmospheric circulation changes • Water security 📌 Key Point: Unlike CO₂, black carbon is a particle, not a greenhouse gas. 🎯 Prelims: Black Carbon → PM2.5 → SLCP → Albedo → Himalayan Glaciers ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)

🛡️ DEFENCE IN NEWS | SAT-SAAW 🇮🇳 MoD–BDL Contract | ₹811 Crore Ministry of Defence has contracted BDL for 160 SAT-SAAW for the Indian Air Force. 🔹 Type: Air-to-Ground Precision-Guided Glide Bomb 🔹 Developed by: DRDO 🇮🇳 🔹 Platforms: Jaguar • Hawk • Su-30MKI 🔹 Targets: Runways • Taxiways • Hangars • Bunkers • Radar installations 🔹 Guidance: GPS/NavIC + INS 🔹 Indigenous Content: 60% 🔹 Delivery: 2027–28 & 2028–29 🎯 Significance: Long-range precision strike + Aatmanirbharta in Defence ✔️Join 🔜 @PCSVERSE (PCS - मंत्रालय)