About Anusandhan National Research Foundation:

• It was established through the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Act, 2023.
• It is functioning under the Department of Science & Technology (DST).
• The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) has been merged into ANRF.
• Objective: To seed, grow, and promote R&D, and foster a research and innovation culture across universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D labs in India.
• It acts as an apex body to provide high-level strategic direction of scientific research in the country as per recommendations of the National Education Policy.
• It has been established to promote research and development and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s Universities, Colleges, Research Institutions, and R&D laboratories. 
• Funding Target: It aims to mobilise funds amounting to ₹50,000 crore during 2023–28 through multiple streams including the ANRF Fund, Innovation Fund, Science and Engineering Research Fund, and Special Purpose Funds.
• ANRF forges collaborations among the industry, academia, research institutions and government departments.

About Solar Cycle:

• It describes an approximately 11-year cycle of solar activity driven by the sun’s magnetic field.
• It is indicated by the frequency and intensity of sunspots visible on the surface. 
• Every 11 years or so, the Sun’s magnetic field completely flips.
• This means that the Sun’s north and south poles switch places. Then it takes about another 11 years for the Sun’s north and south poles to flip back again.
• The solar cycle affects activity on the surface of the Sun, such as sunspots, which are caused by the Sun’s magnetic fields.
• As the magnetic fields change, so does the amount of activity on the Sun’s surface.
• It can be tracked by counting the number of sunspots.
• Cycle Stages:
  • Solar minimum: It is the beginning of a solar cycle or when the Sun has the least sunspots.
  • Solar maximum: It is the middle of the solar cycle or when the Sun has the most sunspots.
  • As the cycle ends, it fades back to the solar minimum, and then a new cycle begins.
• Impact: The solar cycle has the potential to impact Earth’s climatic conditions through changes in solar radiation, cosmic rays, and ozone distribution.

What is Sun's supergranulation?

• The Sun's supergranulation refers to a physical pattern covering the surface of the quiet Sun with a typical horizontal scale of approximately 30,000 km and a lifetime of around 1.8 d.
• Supergranulation was discovered by Hart (1954) using Doppler images of the Sun.

About Nilgiri Tahr:

• It is a mountain ungulate endemic to the southern part of the Western Ghats.
• It is also known by the name Nilgiri Ibex or simply Ibex. Locally the animal is called ‘Varayaadu’.
• It is the only mountain ungulate in southern India.
• Habitat: It inhabits the open montane grassland habitat of the southwestern ghats montane rain forests Eco region.
• Distribution: It is found in a roughly 400 km stretch in the Western Ghats, which falls in the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• The Eravikulam National Park (Kerala) has the highest density and largest surviving population of Nilgiri tahr. 
• Features of Nilgiri Tahr:
  • These are stocky goats with short, coarse fur and a bristly mane. 
  • The males are found to be larger than the females, and have a darker color when mature. 
  • Both sexes have curved horns, which are larger in the males.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN: Endangered 
  • Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972: Schedule I.

Threats: Habitat loss due to rampant deforestation, competition with domestic livestock, hydroelectric projects in Nilgiri tahr habitat, and monoculture plantations.

About Eklavya Model Residential Schools:

• It is a flagship intervention of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched in 1998.
• It aims to provide quality residential education to Scheduled Tribes students from Class 6th to 12th in remote areas to enable them to access the best opportunities in education and to bring them at par with the general population.
• The programme was revamped during the year 2018-19 to expand the geographical outreach and enhance the quality of facilities.
• EMRSs to be set up in every block with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons. 
• Governance: The National Education Society for Tribal Students (NESTS), an autonomous organization, has been set up under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to establish and manage EMRS across the country.
• Features of Eklavya Model Residential Schools:
  • EMRSs are co-educational residential schools from Class VI to XII.
  • Eklavya schools will be on par with Navodaya Vidyalayas and will have special facilities for preserving local art and culture besides providing training in sports and skill development.
  • Infrastructure: The school infrastructure will include classroom, administrative block, hostels, playground.
  • CBSE curriculum is followed in these schools, and education is completely free.
  • Each school has a capacity of 480 students with an equal number of seats for boys and girls.
  • Non-ST students can be admitted in these schools on seats up to 10% of the total seats. And also reservation of 20% of seats under sports quota for deserving ST students who have excelled in the field of sports.

About Software Technology Parks of India:

• It is a premier Science & Technology organization established in 1991 under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
• Objective: STPI’s main objective has been the promotion of software exports from the country. 
• It promotes software exports from the country and has been implementing the Software Technology Park (STP) scheme and Electronics Hardware Technology Park (EHTP) scheme for the promotion of the IT/ITES industry.
• STPI helps in facilitating software development, export, and compliance with regulatory requirements, including customs and foreign exchange rules.
• Further, STPI is nurturing pan India start-up ecosystem through its initiatives like Centres of Entrepreneurship (CoEs) & Next Generation Incubation Scheme (NGIS).
• STPI Services:
  • Infrastructure Support: Provides plug-and-play office space with IT infrastructure for software exporters.
  • Customs Clearances: Facilitates duty-free imports of capital goods, consumables, and other goods necessary for software export.
  • Statutory Compliance: Ensures compliance with export regulations and assists companies in meeting their export obligations.
  • Consultation and Guidance: Offers advice and support on matters related to exports, tax exemptions, and regulatory issues.

About Foraminifera:

• It is a group of single-celled organisms that have inhabited the world’s oceans for over 500 million years.
• The shells have hundreds of tiny holes called foramen, the Latin word for window. 
• They are among the most abundant and ecologically important organisms in the ocean.
• Features of Foraminifera:
  • Size: They are generally sand-grain size, measuring between 500 and 50 µm.
  • Habitat: They live in the open ocean, along the coasts, and in estuaries.
  • Most have shells for protection and either float in the water column (planktonic) or live on the sea floor (benthic). 
  • They construct their intricate shells, called “tests,” from materials they scavenge from their surroundings (agglutinating mineral grains). 
  • The most of foraminifera” ‘crawl around’ using their pseudopodia.
  • They don’t have a wall around their cell membranes, they are extremely flexible and can change shape.
  • The organism pushes extensions of its cytoplasm called pseudopodia (or false feet) through these holes to gather food.
  • Diet: Foraminifera eat detritus on the sea floor and anything smaller than them: diatoms, bacteria, algae, and even small animals such as tiny copepods.
  • They build complex shells, consisting at their simplest of one chamber (like a vase or tube) to many chambers that coil in elaborate ways.

About E85 Fuel:

• It is a high-ethanol blended fuel comprising 80–85 per cent ethanol and 14–19 per cent petrol, specifically designed for use in flex-fuel vehicles.
• The initiative aims to facilitate the adoption of Flex-Fuel Vehicles (FFVs), which are capable of operating on ethanol blends from E20 to E100, without restricting consumers to a single blend.
• Benefits of E85 Fuel:
  • Lower Price: E85 is priced lower than conventional petrol to ensure that the economic benefits of domestically produced ethanol are passed on to consumers.
  • Reduce lifecycle Greenhouse gas: Flex-fuel vehicles operating on E85 can reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by around 61 per cent compared to conventional petrol vehicles.
  • Knock Resistance: With a Research Octane Number (RON) of about 108,  ethanol offers superior knock resistance that allows engines to operate at higher compression ratios and optimized ignition timing.
  • Cleaner Combustion: Higher ethanol blends promote cleaner and more complete combustion, resulting in near-zero particulate matter emissions contributing to improved urban air quality.

About Venezuela:

• Location: It is located on the northern coast of South America.
• Bordering Countries: It is bounded by Guyana to the east, Brazil to the south, and Colombia to the southwest and west. 
• Maritime boundaries: It shares a border with the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean to the north.
• Capital: Caracas
• Geographical Features of Venezuela:
  • Terrain: Andes Mountains and Maracaibo Lowlands in northwest; central plains (llanos); Guiana Highlands in southeast
  • Major Rivers: Rio Negro (it is shared with Colombia and Brazil) and Orinoco (shared with Colombia).
  • Major Lakes: Lake Guri and Lake Maracaibo (the largest lake in South America).
  • Highest Point: Pico Bolivar 
  • Water Falls: The world’s highest waterfall – the Andes Mountains Angel Falls is located in the Guiana Highlands.
  • Natural Resources: It is home to the world’s largest oil reserves as well as huge quantities of coal, iron ore, bauxite, and gold.

About Jai Prakash Narayan Bird Sanctuary

• Location: It is located in the state of Uttar Pradesh.
• The sanctuary is also known as Surha Tal.
• It is a natural perennial oxbow lake which serves as a critical wintering ground for avian species traveling along the Central Asian Flyway.
• It is a freshwater wetland in the middle stretch of the Ganga River basin.
  • It was originally formed from a meander of the Ganga and receives freshwater inflow through three channels.
• It is characterized by floodplains, extensive marshes, seasonally flooded areas and rice paddies.
• It attracts several migratory and resident bird species due to its rich avifaunal biodiversity.
• Fauna: It supports a rich diversity of other species, including various plant, fish, reptile, and amphibian species.
• Notable fish include the vulnerable Wallago attu and Bagarius bagarius.

Key Facts about Ramsar Convention

• The Ramsar Convention was adopted in 1971 in the city of Ramsar in Iran and came into force in 1975.
• It was the first intergovernmental agreement focused exclusively on a specific ecosystem, i.e. wetlands.
• The convention rests on the three main pillars:
  • Conservation of wetlands of international importance,
  • Promotion of the wise use of all wetlands within a country’s territory
  • International co-operation on shared wetland systems and migratory species
• The Convention has 172 signatory countries.
  • India joined it in 1982, initially designating the Chilika Lake in Odisha and Keoladeo National Park in Rajasthan.