Why in the News?

After a three-day hearing, the Supreme Court has reserved its judgment on the challenge to the Central government’s Electoral Bonds Scheme.

About Electoral Trusts (ET):

• As per Section 17CA of Income Tax Rules (1962), an Electoral Trust (ET) is a non-profit organization established for the orderly receipt of voluntary contributions from any person for distributing the same to political parties, registered under Section 29A of the Representation of People Act, 1951.
• This Scheme was notified in January 2013 by the then UPA government.
• Objective of Electoral Trust:
• Electoral Trusts are designed to bring more transparency in the funds provided by corporate entities to the political parties.
• The objective of an Electoral trust is not to receive any profit or pass on any direct or indirect benefit to its members or contributors.
• An Electoral trust will distribute funds only to eligible Political parties.
• These trusts are approved by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in accordance with the Electoral Trust Scheme of 2013.
• The ET may receive voluntary contributions from:
• an Individual (citizen of India)
• a Company registered in India  
• a Firm or HUF or Associations of Persons or Body of Individuals resident in India
• The electoral trusts have to apply for renewal every three financial years.

Why in the News?

On the eve of the India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue, the inaugural INDUS-X Investors Meet was held in New Delhi.

What is the INDUS X Initiative?

• The INDUS-X initiative, also known as the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem, was launched in June 2023 during the State Visit of the Prime Minister of India to the United States.
• Its primary objective is to expand the strategic technology partnership and defense industrial cooperation between the governments, businesses, and academic institutions of India and the United States.
• INDUS-X is envisioned as a defense innovation bridge, encompassing Joint Challenges, a Joint Innovation Fund, academia engagement, industry-startup connections, private sector investment in defense projects, mentorship by experts, and niche technology projects, among other initiatives.
• This collaborative effort holds the promise of ushering in a new era of defense innovation and cooperation between India and the United States.

About INDUS X Investors Meet:

• The first-ever INDUS-X Investors Event brought all the stakeholders including Startups, Investors, Incubators, and Industry from both sides under one roof to discuss the collaborative agendas and opportunities thereon.
• The event also had focused panel discussions with a select audience of 50 thought leaders, including start-ups, investors, government officials, and business leaders from the defence industry.
• The panel discussed ‘Investment Opportunities in the Defence Sector’, elaborating upon establishing a sustainable commercial foundation for defence collaboration and co-production.
• The INDUS-X Educational Series (Gurukul) was also launched during the event.
• The Gurukul initiative is aimed at helping innovators and startups to navigate the defence eco-system of the US and India.

Why in the News?

A recently captured image in the Palamu Tiger Reserve (PTR) reveals a new tiger, distinct from the one caught earlier this year.

About Palamau Tiger Reserve:

• The Palamau Tiger Reserve is located on the western side of Latehar district on the Chhotanagpur plateau in Jharkhand.
• It is one of the first 9 tiger reserves established in the country at the inception of ‘Project Tiger’, in the year 1973 in India and the only one in the state of Jharkhand.
• This reserve forms a part of the Betla National Park.
• The total area of the Tiger Reserve is 1129.93 sq. km
• It is the first reserve in the world in which a tiger census was carried out as a pugmark count, as early as 1932 under the supervision of J.W. Nicholson.
• The Palamau Tiger Reserve is very important for its biodiversity.
• The project area is constituted mainly of Sal forests, mixed deciduous forests, and bamboo groves.
• The reserve zone is the watershed area for 3 important rivers Koel, Burha, and Auranga.

Why in the News?

Adani Aerospace and Defence in partnership with Elbit Systems manufactures the complete carbon composite aerostructures for Hermes 900 and Hermes 450 in Hyderabad.

About Hermes 900 Starliner:

• The Hermes 900 StarLiner is an Israeli-made, medium-size, multi-payload, medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for tactical missions.
• It is also known as the Hermes 900 Heavy-Fuel Engine (HFE).
• It is developed by Elbit Systems.
• It is a successor to the Hermes 450 series of drones, one of the most widely used military drones in the world.
• The aircraft has a service ceiling of 30,000ft and offers a flight endurance of up to 36 hours.
• The Hermes 900 has a wingspan of 15 m (49 ft) and can carry a range of multi-sensor payloads weighing up to 450kg for multiple applications.
• Payload options include electro-optical/infrared sensors, synthetic-aperture radar/ground-moving target indication, communications and electronic intelligence, electronic warfare, and hyperspectral sensors.
• The drone has direct and indirect lighting strike capability and can perform missions under instrument flight rules (IFR) in all weather conditions.

Why in the News?

In a rare phenomenon, researchers from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) have recorded the auroral activity that is normally witnessed over the North Pole- at Hanle and Merak in Ladakh through the all-sky cameras recently.

What is Stable Auroral Arc (SAR)?

• An aurora is a glorious curtain of light that is usually seen at high latitudes like in the Scandinavian countries, and they are not expected to occur at lower latitudes.
• They occur due to the interaction between the Earth’s magnetosphere and the incoming solar wind that carries charged particles and magnetic fields.
• They are typically several hundred kilometers wide and can extend for thousands of kilometers.
• A Stable Auroral Arc (SAR) is red in colour as opposed to the usual green-blue curtains of light seen from high latitudes.
• It is a rare phenomenon and it was not exactly an aurora-like one witnessed from close to the North Pole.
• SAR arcs are typically subvisual, meaning that they cannot be seen with the naked eye.
• However, they can be detected using specialized instruments, such as photometers and spectrographs.
• It was observed in Ladakh during a strong G3-class geomagnetic storm and this event was registered in many parts of the world.