About National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC):

• It is an institute under the Indian Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
• The institute was established to function as a national centre of excellence for control of communicable diseases.
• The Director, an officer of the Public Health sub-cadre of Central Health Service, is the administrative and technical head of the Institute.
• Headquarters: New Delhi.
• Besides the headquarters in Delhi, NCDC has 8 branches located at Alwar (Rajasthan), Bengaluru (Karnataka), Kozhikode (Kerala), Coonoor (Tamil Nadu), Jagdalpur (Chhattisgarh), Patna (Bihar), Rajahmundry (Andhra Pradesh), and Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh).
• History:
  • NCDC, formerly the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), had its origin as the Central Malaria Bureau, established at Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) in 1909, and following expansion, was renamed in 1927 as the Malaria Survey of India.
  • The organization was shifted to Delhi in 1938 and called as the Malaria Institute of India (MII).
  • In view of the drastic reduction achieved in the incidence of malaria under National Malaria Eradication Programme (NMEP), the Government of India decided to reorganize and expand the activities of the institute to cover other communicable diseases.
  • Thus, in 1963, the erstwhile MII was renamed as the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) to shoulder these additional responsibilities.
  • In the year 2009, NICD transformed into the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) with a larger mandate of controlling emerging and re-emerging diseases.
• Functions:
  • It functions as the nodal agency in the country for disease surveillance facilitating prevention and control of communicable diseases.
  • In coordination with the State Governments, NCDC has the capacity and capability for disease surveillance, outbreak investigation, and rapid response to contain and combat outbreaks.
  • It also deals with Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR), an emerging area of concern with far-reaching consequences.
  • It also provides referral diagnostic support, capacity building, and technical support to States/UTs in the country.
  • The mandate of the Institute broadly covers three areas viz. services, trained health manpower development, and research.

About Muthuvan Tribe:

• The Muthuvans, or Mudugars, live on the border hill forests of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• There are two different groups among the Muthuvan, and they speak slightly two different dialects. Hence, they call each other Malayalam Muthuvan and Pandi Muthuvan.
• They are known for coexisting with the wildlife with their traditional knowledge and understanding of hills.
• They have expertise in traditional medicines which are very effective and these medicines and the medicine men are confidentially preserved and passed on to the generations.
• Social Organization:
  • The Muthuvan have six clans known as Koottams. Each koottam is again divided into sub clans.
  • The functions of these divisions are mainly for marriage alliance, to keep up the social status, and to indicate descent and ancestry.
• The Muthuvan adhere to community endogamy and clan exogamy.
  • These tribal people follow a unique system of governance called the ‘Kani System’.
  • Under this system, each village is headed by a ‘Kani’, who is responsible for the administration of the village.
  • They have various punishment methods for breaking their traditions and moral standards.
• Religion and Beliefs:
  • They are animists and spirit worshippers and also worship the forest gods.
  • They believe that the spirits of their ancestors are to be the first migrants to the hill forests.
• Occupation:
  • Virippukrishi (a form of shifting cultivation) is their traditional means of livelihood, and they cultivate a wide variety of food grains that are used only for consumption.
  • Ragi (Little Millet), Maize (Sorghum), Thina (Italian Millet), Varagu, Chama Rice, Tomato, Carrot, Sweet Potato, Potato, Cheeni Vala, Toppi, Mocha, etc., are principal food crops cultivated by the Muthuvan community.

About Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple Tiger Reserve (BRT):

• It is located in the BR Hills (Biligirirangana Hills) in Chamarajanagar District of Karnataka.
• This unique Bio-geographical habitat is in the middle of the bridge between Western and Eastern ghats
• It was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2011.
• It is spread over an area of 574.82 sq.km. and lies at an elevation of 5,091 feet above sea level.
• The reserve gets its name from Biligiri, meaning “white rocky cliff,” which is home to the ancient Rangaswamy Temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu.
• It is also believed that the hill range gets its name due to white mist and silvery clouds which cover these lofty hills for a greater part of the year.
• There is a tribal community living within the tiger reserve known as the Soliga tribe.
  • Soligas was the first tribal community living inside a tiger reserve and getting their forest rights recognised by a court in a judgment in 2011.
• Vegetation: It is covered with a variety of species of plant life, including scrub, dry deciduous, moist deciduous, shola forests, and montane grasslands.
• Flora: The major species include Anogeissus latifolia, Dalbergia paniculata, Grewia teliaefolia, Terminalia alata, Terminalia bellirica, Terminalia paniculata, etc.
• Fauna: Animals including tiger, elephant, leopard, wild dog, bison, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, four-horned antelope, sloth bear, wild boar, common langur, bonnet macaque, varieties of reptiles, birds, etc., are found in the Tiger Reserve.

About Kasargodia sheebae and Pilarta vaman:

• They are two new species of freshwater crabs.
• They are discovered in the Western Ghats regions in Kerala.
• They belong to the freshwater crab family Gecarcinucidae.
• In the case of Kasargodia sheebae, the name of the new genus, Kasargodia, is derived from the northernmost Kerala district.
  • Kasargodia sheebae is distinguished by a brownish-orange carapace with numerous black spots.
  • The limbs bearing the claws are orange with black spots.
• The other new species, Pilarta vaman, is named after Vaman, one of the avatars of Vishnu in Hindu mythology.
  • The name alludes to the small size of this crab.
  • The carapace of this species is more quadrate.

About Biosafety levels (BSL):

• Biosafety levels (BSL), also known as biological safety levels or biohazard levels, define the necessary containment precautions for handling infectious agents in laboratory settings.
• They’re a mandatory requirement in any biological research facility.
• Biosafety levels contribute to the isolation of dangerous organisms and lethal agents.
• The levels of containment range from the lowest biosafety level 1 (BSL-1), to the highest at level 4 (BSL-4).
• Each BSL lab level builds upon the previous level—thereby creating layer upon layer of constraints and barriers.
• These lab levels are determined by the following:
  • Risks related to containment
  • Severity of infection
  • Transmissibility
  • Nature of the work conducted
  • Origin of the microbe
  • Agent in question
  • Route of exposure
• BSL-1: It applies to laboratory settings in which personnel work with low-risk microbes that pose little to no threat of infection in healthy adults. Because of this, BSL-1 labs typically do not need to be isolated from surrounding facilities.
• BSL-2: It covers all laboratories that work with agents associated with human diseases — that is, pathogenic or infectious organisms — that pose a moderate health hazard if inhaled, ingested, or exposed to the skin.
• BSL-3: BSL-3 laboratory typically conducts research into or work on microbes that are either indigenous or exotic and can cause serious or potentially lethal disease through inhalation.
• BSL-4: BSL-4 labs are rare. As the highest level of biological safety, BSL-4 labs work with highly dangerous and exotic microbes. Infections caused by these types of microbes are often fatal and come without treatment or vaccines.
• At the lowest level of biosafety, precautions may consist of regular hand-washing and minimal protective equipment.
• At higher biosafety levels, precautions may include airflow systems, multiple containment rooms, sealed containers, positive pressure personnel suits, established protocols for all procedures, extensive personnel training, and high levels of security to control access to the facility.

About National Medical Register:

• It is a centralized database of registered medical practitioners in modern medicine, maintained by the National Medical Commission (NMC).
• It was launched in August 2024 under Section 31 of the NMC Act, 2019, the register was introduced as a mandatory exercise for all registered medical practitioners.
• It aims to eliminate duplication and enable the public to access information on any doctor working in India.
• It contains information on each practitioner, including qualification, area of specialisation (in process), registration status, and date of registration, and assigns a unique identification number called the NMR ID.
• Each doctor’s record is linked to their Aadhaar ID for verification, with some data made public while sensitive information is restricted to specified individuals and institutions.
• State Medical Councils (SMCs) are responsible for verifying degrees and facilitating the process, with the portal dynamically updated for transparency and governance.
• Upon successful verification by the State Medical Council, the application is sent to the National Medical Commission. After the NMC verification, a unique NMR ID would be issued.

About Blue Pinkgill Mushroom:

• It is referred as “sky-blue mushroom,” (scientific name: Entoloma hochstetteri) this genus of mushrooms has pink to purplish hues in their gills.
• It is a species native to New Zealand and famously featured on the country’s $50 note.
• Appearance of Blue Pinkgill Mushroom:
  • It is a vivid blue mushroom, its colour derived from rare azulene pigments.
  • Some are small, with a distinctive all-blue colour and slightly reddish-tinted gills from spores, thanks to azulene pigments.
  • They have caps that can be flat or funnel-shaped, pink or white gills and stems that may be centrally or laterally attached.
  • The spore print is typically pink to salmon-coloured, which helps in identification.
• Habitat: It is common in forests across New Zealand, where it grows in the ground between litter in the broadleaf forest.
• The Blue Pinkgill mushroom appears during the monsoon when the forest cover reaches saturation due to abundant rainfall, which creates perfect soil conditions for mushrooms to grow and thrive.

About UN Conference on Landlocked Developing Countries:

• The LLDC3 conference, held once every ten years, brings global attention to the 32 landlocked developing countries, which collectively house over 600 million people.
• The primary objective of LLDC3 is to facilitate coordinated international efforts to bridge these development gaps.
• The conference will explore actionable solutions through partnerships, smarter investment frameworks, and the development of efficient, flexible transport corridors that enhance the movement of goods and services across regions.
• Due to lack of direct access to seaports, landlocked countries face disproportionate barriers to trade, economic diversification, and infrastructure development. 
• This year’s conference, themed “Driving Progress through Partnerships,” serves as a crucial platform to address structural challenges, mobilize investment, and implement the newly adopted Awaza Programme of Action (2024–2034).

Key facts about The Awaza Programme of Action (2024–2034)

• A central focus of LLDC3 is the implementation of the Awaza Programme of Action (APoA) for the Decade 2024–2034.
• The APoA was adopted by consensus at the UN General Assembly on 24 December 2024 and offers a comprehensive framework to tackle persistent development challenges faced by LLDCs. 
• Built on five interconnected priority areas, the programme aims to support:
  • Structural Transformation, and Science, Technology, and Innovation
  • Trade, Trade Facilitation, and Regional Integration
  • Transit, Transport, and Connectivity
  • Enhancing Adaptive Capacity, Strengthening Resilience, and Reducing Vulnerability
  • Implementation, Follow-up, and Monitoring.

About Colorado River:

• It is a major river of North America.
• Origin: It rises in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, U.S.
• It flows generally west and south for 1,450 miles (2,330 kilometres) into the Gulf of California in northwestern Mexico.
• It flows through seven U.S. states and two Mexican states, providing water to over 40 million people.
• The river drains a vast arid and semiarid sector of the North American continent, and because of its intensive development it is often referred to as the “Lifeline of the Southwest.”
• Lakes: It forms several major reservoirs, including Lake Mead and Lake Powell.
• Colorado forms an international boundary between Arizona (US) and Mexico for about 29 kilometers.
• Tributaries: The Colorado River has several tributaries, including Green, Gunnison, San Juan, Dolores, Little Colorado, Gila, and Virgin Rivers.
• One of the Colorado River’s most famous features is the Grand Canyon, which it carved over millions of years. This breathtaking landscape is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major tourist attraction.
• The river also flows through Canyonlands National Park and Horseshoe Bend in Arizona.

About Barda Wildlife Sanctuary:

• Location: It is located in the state of Gujarat.
• Rivers: There are two waterways, the Bileshvary River and the Joghri River, and two dams, Khambala and Fodara.
• Tribes: Ethnic races such as Maldharis, Bharvads, Rabaris, and Gadhvis live in this region.
• To develop Barda as the second home for the Asiatic lion, the state government implemented the ‘Gir-Barda Project’ in 1979.
• The sanctuary is a significant biodiversity hotspot and a key area for the conservation of Asiatic Lions.
• Flora: It is characteristically abundant in floral diversity, which consists of a good number of medicinal plants.
• The sanctuary boasts about 650 plant species, which comprise Rayan, Babul, Ber, Jamun, Amli, Gorad, Bamboo, Dhav, Dhudhlo, etc
• Fauna: Leopard, Hyena, Wild boar, wolf, Jackal, blue bull, rare and endangered spotted eagle, crested hawk eagle, etc.

Key Facts about Asiatic Lion

• It is also known as the Persian Lion or Indian Lion, belongs to the subspecies Panthera leo persica.
• It is found exclusively in India, specifically in the Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary in Gujarat.
• Conservation Status
  • IUCN: Vulnerable
  • CITES: Appendix I
  • Wild Life Protection Act 1972: Schedule I.