Why in News?

• The Parliament has passed the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 in the aftermath of the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, widespread student protests, and growing concerns over the credibility of competitive examinations.
• The Bill amends the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, introducing stricter penalties, time-bound investigations, and special fast-track courts to curb examination malpractices.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• Background - Evolution of the Legislative Response
• The Amendment Bill
• Concerns and Limitations
• Expert Views

Background - Evolution of the Legislative Response:

• The issue gained national attention after the NEET-UG 2024 paper leak, with alleged leak networks operating in Patna (Bihar) and Hazaribagh (Jharkhand).
• The controversy intensified after 67 candidates secured full marks, aided by disputed grace marks, triggering nationwide protests and judicial scrutiny.
• Investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and monitoring by the Supreme Court exposed organised cheating syndicates.
• In response, Parliament enacted the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.
• However, the cancellation of NEET-UG 2026, affecting nearly 22 lakh aspirants, highlighted shortcomings in the existing legal framework and prompted the introduction of the Amendment Bill.

The Amendment Bill:

• Key objectives:
  • Strengthen deterrence against organised examination fraud.
  • Ensure time-bound investigation and adjudication of offences.
  • Improve institutional accountability.
  • Protect the integrity, transparency and merit-based nature of public examinations.
• Major provisions:
  • Time-bound investigation and trial:
    • Investigation by police, central agencies or Special Task Forces must be completed within 60 days.
    • Trials in designated special fast-track courts must conclude within three months of filing the chargesheet.
    • Appeals before the High Courts are to be heard by a two-judge Division Bench and disposed of within three months.
• Enhanced punishments: The Bill substantially increases penalties under the 2024 Act.
• For general offences (Section 10(1)): Imprisonment increased from 3–5 years to 5–10 years. Maximum fine increased from ₹10 lakh to ₹50 lakh.
• For service providers: Maximum fine raised from ₹1 crore to ₹5 crore. The debarment period extended from 4 years to 8 years.
• For directors and senior management: Minimum fine increased from ₹1 crore to ₹5 crore. Imprisonment increased from 3–10 years to 5–10 years.
• For organised crime networks (Section 11): Minimum imprisonment enhanced from 5 years to 7 years. Maximum fine increased from ₹1 crore to ₹10 crore.
• Measures to reduce procedural delays: The Bill introduces procedural reforms to accelerate justice -
  • Courts cannot grant adjournments beyond the following day except for recorded exceptional reasons.
  • All pending cases under the 2024 Act will be transferred to special fast-track courts.
  • States and Union Territories must appoint special public prosecutors exclusively for these cases.

Concerns and Limitations:

• Lack of accountability for delayed investigations:
  • According to PRS Legislative Research, the Bill prescribes a 60-day investigation timeline but does not specify -
    • Consequences for missing the deadline,
    • Accountability of investigating officers, or
    • Mandatory recording of reasons for delay.
  • This contrasts with legislations such as the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013; and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which contain stronger accountability provisions.
• Possible conflict with judicial precedent:
  • The Supreme Court (2002) held that -
    • Prescribing rigid time limits for criminal proceedings is generally neither feasible nor judicially permissible, and
    • Criminal trials should not automatically terminate merely because prescribed timelines are exceeded.
  • Thus, mandatory timelines under the Bill may face judicial scrutiny.
• Capacity constraints of fast-track courts:
  • Merely prescribing timelines may not ensure speedy justice because fast-track courts already face heavy pendency.
  • For example,
    • Pending cases increased from over 2.02 lakh (2023) to 2.45 lakh (2025).
    • Disposal rates vary significantly across States (Andhra Pradesh - ~257 days; and Delhi - ~1,717 days in POCSO fast-track courts).
    • This reflects uneven judicial capacity and infrastructure.

Expert Views:

• Systemic challenges identified by the Law Commission: Persistent bottlenecks delaying criminal trials include -
  • Non-production or absence of accused persons.
  • Failure to apprehend absconding offenders.
  • Frequent and unnecessary adjournments.
  • Non-attendance of official witnesses.
  • Weak judicial case management.
  • Inadequate judicial manpower and court infrastructure.
• Performance of the 2024 Act:
  • Despite introducing a legal framework against examination malpractices, the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 failed to secure a single conviction during its two years of operation.
  • This underscores deficiencies in enforcement and prosecution.
• Significance of Amendment Bill for Governance:
  • Reinforces integrity of public recruitment and entrance examinations.
  • Seeks to restore public confidence in merit-based selection.
  • Reflects a shift from merely criminalising examination fraud to strengthening investigation, prosecution, and judicial processes.
  • Success will depend not only on stricter penalties but also on institutional capacity, investigative accountability, judicial infrastructure, and effective implementation.

Why in news?

Indian missions abroad are increasingly deploying AI-enabled videos and digital tools to educate and assist the Indian diaspora, marking a shift from traditional text-based advisories to more accessible, engaging formats.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• The Sarathi Initiative
• Origins: The Heads of Mission Conference
• Broader AI and Digital Push Across Missions
• India as a Testbed for the Global South
• Conclusion

The Sarathi Initiative

• The Consulate General of India in Munich launched an AI-enabled video awareness series featuring a virtual avatar named 'Sarathi', a month ago.
• Sarathi addresses common issues faced by Indians abroad — passports, visas, OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) services, birth registration, police clearance, and consular matters — through short videos.
• Officials describe the goal as leveraging artificial intelligence and modern digital communication tools to educate and assist the regional diaspora.
• The shift to audio-visual content over text-based advisories aims to make information more accessible and easier to comprehend for a wider, more diverse audience.

Origins: The Heads of Mission Conference

• The initiative emerged from brainstorming at the 11th Heads of Mission Conference, held in April 2026, themed 'Reforming Indian Diplomacy for 2047'.
  • PM Narendra Modi addressed over 180 Indian envoys at the conference, stressing the 3Ts — Tourism, Technology, and Trade.
• Discussions flagged that Indian missions were lagging in using technology for diaspora outreach, and stressed the need for messaging that is "engaging, interactive and contemporary."
• Officials linked the initiative to govt.'s broader emphasis on citizen-centric governance.

Broader AI and Digital Push Across Missions

• Indian missions are integrating the government's Bhashini AI platform — a voice-first tool enabling seamless translation of text, documents, and voice across dozens of Indian and international languages — to bridge multilingual communication gaps.
• Several missions have deployed chatbots and digital assistants over recent years:
  • New York Consulate (serving 10 US states, ~2.5 million diaspora members) was among the first, deploying chatbot 'Bharati' for subject-specific queries.
  • Dubai Consulate General has integrated AI/chatbot technology into its Pravasi Bharatiya Sahayata Kendra (PBSK) digital services, developed with Zoho Corp, to assist Indian workers.
  • The official Indian Visa Su-Swagatam Mobile App has offered built-in chatbot support for visa and e-FRRO services since 2024.
  • The Indian Embassy in Hungary (also serving Bosnia and Herzegovina) has a 'Bharati' chatbot on its website.
• The current emphasis is on channelising these platforms to multiply outreach and shift messaging from standard text replies to more visual and interactive formats.

India as a Testbed for the Global South

• India's real AI opportunity lies in applying it at scale, leveraging its vast population and digital infrastructure.
• The "India Stack" — comprising Aadhaar, UPI, and financial inclusion programmes — has already proven that technology can be deployed at population scale.
• The next step: building an AI layer atop this digital public infrastructure, creating a model that could extend to other emerging economies.
• This positions India as a potential gateway to the Global South, offering cost-effective AI solutions to underserved markets across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Conclusion

India's AI strategy is increasingly intertwined with its global diaspora — not merely as a source of capital or talent, but as connectors linking ecosystems, ideas, and markets across borders.

As AI reshapes the global technology landscape, this diaspora network, built over decades, may prove to be one of India's most valuable strategic assets in defining its role in the world's AI future.

Why in news?

Recently, the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) issued a circular clarifying that qualified, registered practitioners of India's traditional medicine systems cannot legally be labelled "quacks" or "bogus doctors" merely for practising the Indian System of Medicine (ISM).

What’s in Today’s Article?

• About National Commission for Indian System of Medicine
• What the Circular Says?
• Why the Clarification Was Needed?
• Does This Make ISM Doctors Equivalent to MBBS Doctors?
• Relevant Supreme Court Rulings
• Who is a "Quack"?
• Significance of the Circular

About National Commission for Indian System of Medicine

• National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) is the statutory regulator established under the National Commission for Indian System of Medicine Act, 2020.
• It oversees medical education, professional standards, and registration of practitioners in India's recognised traditional systems: Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Sowa-Rigpa.
• Autonomous Boards under NCISM
  • There are four autonomous boards entrusted with conducting overall education of Ayurveda, under Board of Ayurveda and Unani, Siddha & Sowarigpa under Board of Unaini, Siddha and Sowarigpa.
  • There are two common Boards namely:
    • Board of assessment and rating to assess and grant permission to educational institutions of Indian systems of Medicine and
    • Board of ethics and registration of practitioners of Indian systems of medicine to maintain National Register and ethical issues relating to practice under the National Commission for Indian Medicine.

What the Circular Says?

• Practitioners holding recognised qualifications — Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS), Bachelor of Unani Medicine and Surgery (BUMS), Bachelor of Siddha Medicine and Surgery (BSMS), or Bachelor of Sowa-Rigpa Medicine and Surgery — and registered under the NCISM Act are legally recognised medical practitioners.
• Such practitioners cannot be called "quacks" or "bogus doctors."
• The circular distinguishes between qualified, registered ISM practitioners and unqualified individuals falsely claiming to practise medicine.

Why the Clarification Was Needed?

• NCISM received reports of registered ISM practitioners being labelled "quacks" or "fake doctors," targeted through public notices, criticised in media, and harassed in public forums.
• The clarification aims to: affirm the legal status of registered practitioners, prevent misinformation, protect their professional standing, and ensure that action against genuinely fraudulent practice isn't confused with lawful ISM practice.

Does This Make ISM Doctors Equivalent to MBBS Doctors?

• Not exactly. The circular:
  • Recognises ISM practitioners as legally valid within their own systems of medicine.
  • Does not erase distinctions between different systems of medical education.
  • Does not automatically authorise ISM practitioners to practise modern (allopathic) medicine.
  • Whether an ISM practitioner can prescribe allopathic medicines depends on State laws, statutory provisions, government notifications, and court rulings applicable in that jurisdiction.
• Relevant Supreme Court Rulings
  • Poonam Verma v. Ashwin Patel (1996): A homeopathic doctor treating a patient with allopathic medicine was held guilty of negligence — practising in a system one isn't qualified for amounts to acting without authority.
  • Mukhtiar Chand & Others v. State of Punjab (1998): Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani practitioners cannot practise allopathic medicine solely on the strength of their ISM qualifications. Cross-practice is permitted only where specifically authorised by law, including State government notifications under the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules.

Who is a "Quack"?

• Commonly refers to someone who falsely claims medical qualification or practises medicine without required qualifications/legal registration.
• No official nationwide estimate exists of the number of quacks in India.
• Health being a State subject, identifying and acting against unqualified practitioners is the responsibility of State governments and State Medical Councils.

Significance of the Circular

• Reaffirms statutory recognition of Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Sowa-Rigpa practitioners under the NCISM Act.
• Draws a clear line between registered ISM practitioners and unqualified individuals falsely claiming to practise medicine.
• Clarifies that legal recognition as an ISM practitioner does not automatically extend to practising modern medicine.

Conclusion

NCISM's circular reaffirms the legal standing of registered Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Sowa-Rigpa practitioners while preserving the boundary between traditional and modern medicine.

It seeks to curb the misuse of the term "quack" against legitimate ISM practitioners without diluting regulatory safeguards against unqualified practice or unauthorised cross-system prescriptions.

About Cholera:

• Cholera is a disease that is caused by the bacteria Vibrio cholerae.
• Cholera can cause serious diarrhea and dehydration. Without treatment, the disease can be fatal within hours, even in people who are healthy.
• Transmission:
  • People can get cholera by drinking water or eating food contaminated with cholera bacteria.
  • The disease is most common in places with poor sanitation, crowding, war, and famine. Cholera outbreaks are more common in warm climates.
  • Cholera bacteria also can live in brackish (slightly salty) and coastal waters. Eating raw shellfish like shrimp and crab can be a source of cholera.
  • Cholera is not likely to spread from person to person or from casual contact with someone with cholera.
  • It is often predictable and preventable. It can ultimately be eliminated where access to clean water and sanitation facilities, as well as good hygiene practices, are ensured and sustained for the whole population.
• Treatment:
  • Treatment for cholera includes drinking plenty of fluids or getting intravenous fluids to prevent dehydration.
  • Healthcare providers also sometimes prescribe antibiotics like doxycycline, erythromycin, or azithromycin to help you feel better.
  • Providers also treat kids between the ages of 6 months and 5 years with zinc supplements.
  • Antidiarrheal medicines aren’t recommended for cholera and could make symptoms worse.

About Bagdara Wildlife Sanctuary:

• It is situated in the Sidhi and Singrauli districts of Madhya Pradesh.
• The sanctuary was established in 1978 for the conservation of blackbuck and other wildlife species, including wild boar, jackal, fox, porcupine, hyena, and sambar.
• Son River makes the southern boundary of the sanctuary.
• Natural caves and rock shelters are part of the Sanctuary.
• Vegetation: The sanctuary hosts a very dense cover of dry deciduous mixed forest.
• Flora:
  • The dominant trees include Gigantic Creepers, Mango Groves, Orchids, Teak Trees, and many more.
  • Lendia, Khair, Dhawda, and Tendu are also common.
• Fauna: It boasts a number of wild animals, including Tiger, Panther, Deer, Sambhar, Hyenas, Chinkara, Cheetal, Wild Boar, Black Buck, along with an incredible diversity of birds.

About Dhimsa Dance:

• It is a popular tribal dance performed by tribes, including Bagata, Valmiki, Poraja, Khond, Gadaba, Kondadora, Mukadora, and Kotia in Andhra Pradesh.
• It is performed during festivals, weddings, and at the time of the “hunting festival” in April when men and women dance for hours together.
• There are 12 varieties of Dhimsa and the origin can be traced to the Koraput area, the home of the Ghond Tribe.
• Performance:
  • Typically performed by a group of 15 to 20 women dressed in traditional, colorful ethnic sarees and ornaments, the dancers move in synchronous circles to the rhythm of native instruments played by male community members.
  • The beauty of this dance centres on the movements of the dancers without much emphasis on expression or literary texts.
  • The feet and the hand movements dominate the dance.
  • It is accompanied by wind and percussion instruments; the dance changes with the music.
  • Unique tribal musical instruments accompanying this dance form include the Mori (a wind instrument), Thudum (drum), and Dappu.
• Themes: Various themes of the Dhimsa, are woven around their mythologies, folktales, ethos, mores, economic activities, and kinship and marital life, etc.

About Republic of Naoero:

• It is an island republic located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean.
• It is the world’s smallest independent republic.
• Its closest neighbor is the island of Banaba, in Kiribati.
• Nauru has no official capital.
• Nauruan is the national language.
• Currency: Australian dollar
• Economy:
  • Historically one of the world's wealthiest countries per capita because of phosphate mining.
  • Phosphate reserves have been largely depleted, leading to economic challenges.
  • Agriculture (with the exception of coffee and copra plantations along the coastal and lagoon perimeters), fishing, manufacturing, and tourism are of minor value to the overall economy.

About Pseudolaguvia khairii:

• It is a new species of freshwater catfish.
• It was discovered in the Budhabalanga River in the Mayurbhanj district, Odisha.
• It was named in honour of the legendary tigress Khairi, who became the face of wildlife conservation and a unique human-animal bond in Odisha nearly five decades ago.
• It belongs to the genus Pseudolaguvia, a group of small hillstream catfishes inhabiting the clear, fast-flowing rivers of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Myanmar.
• Only a few centimetres long, Pseudolaguvia khairii can be distinguished from all its known relatives by a unique fleshy protuberance at the base of its dorsal fin, a feature not previously recorded in the genus.