About Chelonus (Carinichelonus) mahadeb:

• It is a new species of parasitic wasp.
• It was discovered from Nahortoli Tea Estate in Assam.
• Parasitic wasps of the genus Chelonus are tiny insects but play an important ecological role.
  • They are known as egg–larval parasitoids, meaning they lay their eggs inside the eggs of other insects, usually moths and butterflies.
  • The developing wasp larva eventually consumes the host, helping regulate insect populations
  • Because many moth larvae are major agricultural pests, species of Chelonus are often considered beneficial insects that contribute to natural pest control in crop ecosystems, including plantations.
• The discovery is notable because the subgenus Carinichelonus is extremely rare and poorly documented worldwide.
• It is only the second new species of this subgenus described from India in recent times.

About Peptides:

• Peptides are chains of amino acids that are naturally found in the body.
• The amino acids in a peptide are connected to one another in a sequence by bonds called peptide bonds.
• Peptides vs. Proteins:
  • Proteins and peptides are fundamental components of cells that carry out important biological functions.
  • Both proteins and peptides are made up of amino acids, but peptides contain far fewer amino acids than proteins.
  • Traditionally, peptides are defined as molecules that consist of between 2 and 50 amino acids.
  • Meanwhile, proteins are long molecules made up of multiple peptide subunits, and are also known as polypeptides.
  • In addition, peptides tend to be less well defined in structure than proteins, which can adopt complex conformations known as secondary, tertiary, and quaternary structures.
  • Proteins can be digested by enzymes (other proteins) into short peptide fragments.
• Functions of Peptides:
  • The body makes lots of different peptides, each of which has a different role.
  • They may provide pro-aging support, anti-inflammatory, or muscle-building properties.
  • Some peptides act as hormones, which are molecules that when released from cells, affect other areas of the body.
  • Due to the potential health benefits of peptides, many supplements are available that contain peptides that manufacturers have derived either from food or made synthetically.

What are Amino Acids?

• Amino acids are molecules that combine to form proteins.
• Amino acids and proteins are the building blocks of life.
• There are 20 different amino acids.
• A protein consists of one or more chains of amino acids (called polypeptides) whose sequence is encoded in a gene.
• Some amino acids can be synthesized in the body, but others (essential amino acids) cannot and must be obtained from a person’s diet.
• The nine essential amino acids are: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine. 

About Nevado Ojos del Salado:

• Location: It is located in the Andes Mountain Range on the boundary between Chile and Argentina. 
• It is also the highest mountain (6,893 meters) in Chile.
• Features OF Nevado Ojos del Salado:
  • It is the world’s highest active stratovolcano.
  • It was largely formed from the accumulation of lava flows and explosive volcanic material.
  • Climate: The Mountain’s climate is high desert.
  • The upper part of the mountain features a set of craters and elongated volcanic peaks.
  • Due to its location near the Atacama Desert, the mountain has very dry conditions with snow usually only remaining on the peak during winter.
  • There is a permanent crater lake about 100 m (330 ft) in diameter at an elevation of 6,390 m (20,960 ft) on the eastern side of the mountain.

About National Shipping Board:

• It is a permanent statutory body established in 1959, under Section 4 of Merchant Shipping Act, 1958.
• Function: It advise the Government of India on matters related to shipping including the development.
• It has played a very distinguished role in the Maritime development of the country, as its deliberation and recommendations have contributed to the evolution of a sound and pragmatic National Maritime Policy over the years.
• Composition:
  • It consists of Chairman and Members.
  • Six Members elected by Parliament (Four from the Lok Sabha and two from Rajya Sabha from amongst its Members).
  • Tenure: The Chairman and other members of the Board held office for a period of two years.
  • Such Members of other members not exceeding sixteen as the Central Government may think fit to appoint on the Board to represent the Central Government, Ship-owners, and Seamen.
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

About Kurumba Painting:

• It is a prehistoric art form, estimated to be over 3000 years old.
• It originates from the Kurumba tribe in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka.
• The art was traditionally drawn on rocks and in caves across the high hills of the Nilgiris.
• Raw Materials and Tools Used:
  • Kurumba paintings use natural pigments sourced from the forest.
  • Yellow-brown and black pigments come from Vengai tree resin, while green pigments are derived from crushed leaves.
  • Artists use fine twigs, bamboo sticks, and natural fiber brushes for application.
  • The paintings are traditionally done on walls, fabric, and handmade paper.
• Design and Color:
  • Kurumba tribal paintings use natural colors—green from leaves, red and white from soil, and black from tree bark—applied with cloth on cow dung-coated walls.
  • The art features simple, linear motifs with dots, lines, and geometric shapes, depicting huts, animals, and community life.
  • Themes center around spiritual beliefs, rituals, festivals, and daily activities.
  • This minimalist yet expressive style preserves the tribe’s cultural heritage and reflects their deep spiritual bond with nature.
• Product Range: Wall murals, decorative panels, ritual paintings, cloth artworks.

About Cobalt:

• It is a hard, lustrous, silver-grey metal.
• Properties:
  • It is a ferromagnetic strategic alloying metal.
  • It is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic no.27.
  • It is associated mostly with copper, nickel and arsenic ores.
  • Cobalt is extracted as a by-product of copper, nickel, zinc or precious metals.
• Major World reserves of cobalt: Democratic Republic of Congo, Russia, Canada, Philippines and Cuba.
• Occurrences of cobalt in India: Jharkhand, Odisha, Rajasthan, Nagaland and Madhya Pradesh.
• Applications:
  • Major use of cobalt is in metallurgical applications, in Special alloy/Super alloy Industry, in magnets and cutting tools industries.
  • Cobalt is used as precursors (cobalt compounds) for cathodes in rechargeable batteries.
  • It is also used in powerful magnets, cutting tools and high-strength alloys in the aerospace, energy and defence sectors.
  • Cobalt compounds have been used since antiquity as a pigment (cobalt-blue) for pottery, glass, paints and other media.

About Spotted Hyena:

• It is also called the laughing hyena.
• It is a strong and capable hunter and the largest member of the hyena family.
• It looks like a dog but is closer related to cats, civets, and genets.
• Appearance: It is physically distinguished from other species by its vaguely bear-like build, rounded ears, less prominent mane, spotted pelt, more dual-purposed dentition, fewer nipples, and pseudo-penis.
• Habitat: It inhabits in savannas, open and dense dry woodland, grasslands, mountains, tropical rainforests, semi-deserts, and coastal areas. 
• Distribution: It is mainly found throughout sub-Saharan Africa (Chad, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, Angola, Namibia, and parts of South Africa),
• Characteristics of Spotted Hyena:
  • They have excellent night vision, being mostly nocturnal, hunting at night, and sleeping or staying near their den in the daytime.
  • They have a matriarchal social order of related individuals that are called clans. One alpha female leads the clan.
  • These animals mark their territory by scratching the ground and with an oily substance that they secrete from their anal glands.
  • Diet: These are carnivorous animals that hunt and scavenge.
  • It is the only placental mammalian species where females have a pseudo-penis and lack an external vaginal opening. 
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Least Concern.

Why in news?

The Supreme Court directed the Centre to create a “no-fault” compensation policy for people who suffered serious side effects or died after receiving Covid vaccines.

The Court said victims’ families should not have to prove negligence in courts and that the State must provide a structured compensation mechanism as part of its public health responsibility during the vaccination drive.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Background: Vaccine Injury Cases Before the Supreme Court
• No-Fault Liability and the Right to Health
• Supreme Court’s Direction on Compensation for Covid-19 Deaths

Background: Vaccine Injury Cases Before the Supreme Court

• The Supreme Court heard petitions filed by families who lost their children or spouses, aged between 18 and 40 years, due to rare complications such as blood clotting disorders after receiving Covishield and Covaxin vaccines in 2021.
• Petitioners’ Arguments
  • Lack of Informed Consent - The petitioners argued that the government failed to ensure proper informed consent and did not adequately communicate the potential risks associated with the Covid vaccines.
  • Vaccination Effectively Mandatory - They also contended that although vaccination was officially voluntary, administrative restrictions on unvaccinated individuals effectively made it mandatory, thereby infringing their fundamental rights.
• Government’s Defence
  • Safety and Regulatory Approval - The Union government maintained that the vaccines had undergone rigorous regulatory approvals and that India’s system for detecting Adverse Events Following Immunisation (AEFI) was robust.
  • Rare Incidence of Vaccine-Related Deaths - It argued that vaccine-related deaths were extremely rare, citing a reporting rate of 0.001 per one lakh doses for certain clotting disorders.
  • Existing Legal Remedies - The government suggested that affected families could seek compensation by approaching civil or consumer courts and proving negligence by vaccine manufacturers.
• Supreme Court’s Observations
  • The Bench rejected the suggestion of pursuing individual cases in lower courts.
  • It noted that proving negligence in vaccine injury cases involves complex scientific evidence, which places an excessive burden on families.
  • The Court also warned that forcing families into multiple individual legal battles could lead to inconsistent outcomes and unequal access to relief, undermining the principle of equality under Article 14 of the Constitution.

No-Fault Liability and the Right to Health

• To address vaccine injury claims, the Supreme Court invoked the principle of “no-fault liability,” which allows victims or their families to receive compensation without proving negligence or wrongdoing.
• The Court noted that this principle already exists in Indian law, such as in motor vehicle accident compensation, and is commonly used in vaccine injury compensation schemes in countries like Australia, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
• Constitutional Basis under Article 21
  • The judgment relied on Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and the right to health.
  • The Court emphasised that the State cannot remain a passive observer to human suffering but must act as a guardian of welfare and dignity.
  • Since the Covid-19 vaccination programme was a State-led public health initiative, the government has a responsibility to support those who suffered serious adverse outcomes, regardless of how rare they are.
• Reference to Earlier Supreme Court Ruling
  • The Court clarified that it was not reviewing the scientific validity of the vaccines.
  • It cited its 2022 judgment in Jacob Puliyel vs Union of India, which upheld the legality of the vaccine approval process and the AEFI monitoring system, while affirming that bodily integrity under Article 21 means vaccination cannot be forcibly imposed.
• Adequacy of Existing AEFI Mechanisms
  • Based on the earlier ruling, the Court refused to establish a separate expert medical board to investigate vaccine-related deaths.
  • It stated that the existing AEFI committees are sufficient for monitoring and investigation.
• Directive to Formulate Compensation Framework
  • The Supreme Court directed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to quickly develop and publish a no-fault compensation policy for serious adverse events related to the Covid-19 vaccination drive.
  • It clarified that such a policy should not be treated as an admission of liability or fault by the Union government.

Supreme Court’s Direction on Compensation for Covid-19 Deaths

• The Supreme Court’s recent judgment on vaccine injury compensation reflects its earlier intervention during the pandemic in the 2021 case of Gaurav Kumar Bansal vs Union of India, which dealt with financial relief for families of Covid-19 victims.
• It directed the NDMA to frame guidelines for providing ex gratia compensation to families of those who died due to Covid-19.
• NDMA Guidelines on Ex Gratia Compensation
  • Following the Court’s direction, the NDMA issued guidelines in September 2021, fixing an ex gratia amount of ₹50,000 for each Covid-19 death, to be paid by states through the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).
  • To ensure fair access to compensation, a simplified procedure was introduced.
  • Deaths occurring within 30 days of a positive Covid-19 test were treated as Covid deaths, and district-level grievance redressal committees were established to resolve disputes over death certificates.

Why in news?

The United States has launched a Section 301 investigation into several countries, including India and China, over concerns of structural excess capacity and overproduction in manufacturing sectors.

This is the first such probe by the Trump administration after the US Supreme Court struck down tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The investigation will examine economies with large trade surpluses or underutilised industrial capacity across multiple sectors.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Section 301 of the US Trade Act
• Possible Tariffs as US Launches Fast-Track Section 301 Probe
• US Concerns Over India’s Excess Manufacturing Capacity
• Trade Deal Uncertainty Amid US Concerns Over Excess Capacity
• Implications of the US Section 301 Investigation for India
• US Legal Tools Used to Impose Tariffs

Section 301 of the US Trade Act

• Section 301, part of the Trade Act of 1974 (Sections 301–310), empowers the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) to investigate foreign trade practices that may violate trade agreements or unfairly restrict US commerce.
• The law allows the USTR to initiate investigations independently or based on complaints, examine foreign government policies affecting trade, and impose remedies such as tariffs or other trade restrictions.
• As a result, Section 301 serves as the US government’s primary legal instrument for responding to perceived unfair trade practices by other countries.

Possible Tariffs as US Launches Fast-Track Section 301 Probe

• Trade experts note that most countries targeted in the investigation have trade deficits in goods with the US.
• The probe is moving quickly, with a short window for public comments and hearings scheduled for early May.
• This could mean that fresh tariffs could be imposed on India and other countries after May.

US Concerns Over India’s Excess Manufacturing Capacity

• The USTR has targeted India for structural excess capacity in several manufacturing sectors.
• It noted that India recorded a $58 billion trade surplus with the US in 2025, with global surpluses in textiles, healthcare products, construction materials, and automobiles.
• The USTR also highlighted excess capacity in sectors such as solar modules, petrochemicals, and steel, stating that India’s solar module production is nearly three times higher than its domestic demand.

Trade Deal Uncertainty Amid US Concerns Over Excess Capacity

• The US investigation comes as India and the US are negotiating a trade deal that is yet to be formally signed.
• India has indicated that talks will resume once there is clarity on tariff policies.
• Meanwhile, the US argues that structural excess capacity in manufacturing sectors among trading partners undermines its efforts to reshore supply chains and create domestic jobs.
• According to the USTR, government-supported overcapacity leads to overproduction, persistent trade surpluses, and underutilised industrial capacity, distorting global trade dynamics.

Implications of the US Section 301 Investigation for India

• According to the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), the US investigation highlights several Indian sectors where structural excess capacity or export surpluses may exist.
• This includes solar modules, petrochemicals, steel, textiles, healthcare goods, construction materials, and automobiles.
• The US notice points out that India’s solar module manufacturing capacity is nearly three times higher than domestic demand, suggesting the possibility of export-driven surpluses.
• Similar concerns have been raised regarding expanding capacity in petrochemicals and steel.
• Experts stated that the investigation mainly addresses global concerns over manufacturing overcapacity.
• They emphasised that India’s export growth is largely demand-driven and diversified, though the situation will need to be closely monitored.

US Legal Tools Used to Impose Tariffs

• International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), 1977 - The Trump administration invoked the IEEPA in February 2025 to impose tariffs. However, in February 2026, the US court ruled that this law cannot be used to impose tariffs.
• Section 122 of the Trade Act, 1974 - In February 2026, the US President invoked Section 122 to impose 10% tariffs on all countries for 150 days, with the authority to increase the tariffs up to 15%.
• Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, 1962 - This provision allows the US to impose trade restrictions on national security grounds. It has been used to impose sector-specific tariffs on steel, aluminium, and auto components, and could potentially be expanded to other sectors.
• Section 301 of the Trade Act, 1974 - Section 301 is designed to address unfair foreign trade practices that harm US commerce. It allows the US to respond to policies considered unjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory, though investigations require evidence and follow a formal legal process.
• Section 302(b) of the Trade Act, 1974 - Under Section 302(b), the US Trade Representative (USTR) can self-initiate investigations under Section 301 to examine foreign trade practices that may affect US economic interests.