The US and Australia accused India of exceeding the WTO’s 10% subsidy limit for developing countries by providing excessive subsidies to sugarcane farmers.

• These subsidies or domestic support are called aggregate measurement of support (AMS) in trade parlance.

About AMS

• It calculates annual support provided for agricultural products.
•  It includes all product-specific support and non-product-specific support in one single figure. 
• It is used to identify trade distortion subsidies that may need reduction as per the Agreement on Agriculture.

Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW) inaugurated a Krishi ICCC at Krishi Bhavan in New Delhi.

About Krishi ICCC              

• It is a tech-driven solution under MoA&FW for informed decision-making in agriculture using technologies like artificial intelligence, remote sensing, and Geographic Information Systems.
• It monitors farm sector by consolidating geospatial information from various sources like sowing data from Digital Crop Survey, Unified Portal for Agricultural Statistics for market intelligence etc.
• Application: Customised farmer advisories based on GIS soil mapping and weather data; Proactive drought management, Identification of crop diversification etc.

Border Road Organisation will soon commence the construction of the 4.1-km long Shinku La tunnel.

About Shinku La tunnel

• Once completed, this tunnel will become the world’s highest tunnel at 15,800 ft, surpassing Mila tunnel in China.
• It will provide all-weather connectivity from Manali to Leh.
• It is expected to streamline the transportation of heavy machinery to strategic locations such as Kargil, Siachen, etc.

• Interpol issues blue colour notice against an absconding MP who faces serious sexual harassment allegations.
  • Blue Notice refers to collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a criminal investigation.

About INTERPOL                                

• Established in 1956 at Lyon (France). 
• General Assembly is supreme governing body; meets once a year; comprises representatives of every member country.
• 196 Member countries including India.
• Supports national efforts in combating crimes across four global areas – Terrorism; Cybercrime; Organized crime; and Financial crime and Anti-corruption.

• For the first time, Scientists studying the sperm whales have outlined that they communicate using bursts of clicking noises- called codas- sounding a bit like Morse code.

About Sperm Whale

• Characteristics: Largest of the toothed whales and only males tend to be observed closer to poles.
• Distribution: Found in deep open waters, or around islands and coastal areas with deep canyons or very narrow continental shelves.
  • Found in India, Argentina; Bangladesh etc.
• Threats: Vessel Strikes, Entanglement in Fishing Gear, Underwater noise pollution etc.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Vulnerable
  • Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule II

Constructed wetlands are engineered structures designed to replicate the functions of natural wetlands. 

• They are composed of vegetation, soil and water, orchestrated to facilitate a seamless process of purification.
• These wetlands foster biodiversity, ranging from microorganisms to aquatic plants and even birds,  to engage in the purification process.

Benefits

• It replicates the functionalities of natural wetlands.
• Its construction and maintenance entail minimal energy consumption and lower operational expenses.

Natural wetlands 

• They have often been referred to as "earth's kidneys" because of their capacity to filter pollutants.

Researchers have detected atmospheric gases surrounding 55 Cancri e, a hot rocky exoplanet (planet beyond solar system).

About 55 Cancri e (also known as Janssen)

• Classified as a super-Earth: Larger than Earth, smaller than Neptune, and likely similar in composition to rocky planets in solar system.

Rocky Planets (Terrestrial Planets)

• Terrestrial, meaning earth-like as they are made up of rock and metals, and have relatively high densities.
• Planets include: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars.
  • They lie between sun and the belt of asteroids.
• Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are Jovian (gaseous) planets.

Newly captured aerial footage of Batagay Crater has revealed that it is growing every year as the frozen ground melts.

About Batagay (also spelled Batagaika) crater

• It is also known as “Gateway to Underworld” or “Doorway to Hell” and is the world's biggest permafrost crater.
• Located in Siberia, Russia, it is a massive, expanding depression in Earth's surface, formed due to permafrost thaw.
• Since 1960s, its growth accelerated due to deforestation and climate change.
• From 1991 to 2018, the crater area increased by almost three times.