Which country is home to the Finke River, recently confirmed as the world’s oldest continuously surviving river system?
Finke River in Australia is considered the world’s oldest continuously surviving river system.
Geological evidence suggests the Finke River has followed the same course for 300–400 million years.
The Indigenous Arrernte people call the Finke River “Larapinta.”
The river stretches approximately 640 kilometres across Northern Territory and parts of South Australia.
Finke River cuts across some of the oldest rock formations, serving as a natural archive of Earth’s geological history.
The river does not flow year-round and exists mostly as isolated waterholes in a desert landscape.
During heavy rainfall, the waterholes connect to form a continuous river system.
Its deep gorges through the MacDonnell Ranges indicate it is an antecedent river, older than surrounding mountains.
Antecedent rivers maintain their course by eroding downward as land rises due to tectonic activity.
The Finke River survived because of its entrenched channel and slow geological changes in central Australia.
Erosion patterns, sediment studies, and radioactive isotope dating confirm the river’s ancient age.
Finke River is one of the best examples of an antecedent river system in the world.
Who was appointed as the Vigilance Commissioner in the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in January 2026?
Shri Praveen Vashista was appointed as Vigilance Commissioner in the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).
He assumed office on 16 January 2026 after taking oath.
Appointment was made through a Presidential warrant dated 12 December 2025 under Section 4(1) of the CVC Act, 2003.
Oath was administered by the Central Vigilance Commissioner under Section 5(3) of the CVC Act.
Shri Vashista is a 1991-batch IPS officer of Bihar cadre.
He has over 30 years of service in policing, crisis response, internal security, and economic offence investigation.
In January 2026, marine scientists discovered a giant black coral, estimated to be 300–400 years old, in which country’s deep waters?
Marine scientists discovered a giant black coral in the deep waters off Fiordland, New Zealand.
The coral is estimated to be 300–400 years old, making it one of the oldest recorded.
Its size measures over 13 feet tall and nearly 15 feet wide.
The discovery highlights the importance of protecting fragile deep-sea ecosystems.
The research expedition was led by Victoria University of Wellington.
Such large corals indicate stable ocean conditions maintained over centuries.
Black corals are found in deep, cold waters and form complex structures supporting marine biodiversity.
Despite their name, black corals appear white or pale when alive; only the internal skeleton is black.
The coral is protected under New Zealand’s Wildlife Act, making it illegal to harm or collect.
Mapping such coral colonies is essential to prevent accidental destruction from human activity.
Historically, black corals have been used in jewellery and traditional medicine.
Which company recently launched TranslateGemma, a new open suite of AI translation models?
Google launched TranslateGemma on 15 January 2026 as an open-source AI translation model suite.
TranslateGemma is built on Gemma 3 architecture to enable high-quality multilingual translation.
The models support 55 global languages and nearly 500 additional language pairs.
TranslateGemma is available in 4B, 12B, and 27B parameter sizes for mobile, local, and cloud deployment.
The 12B model outperforms the larger 27B Gemma 3 baseline in translation efficiency.
Smaller models maintain state-of-the-art translation quality while reducing computational cost.
Performance is achieved through two-stage training: Supervised Fine-Tuning (SFT) and Reinforcement Learning (RL).
Where will the 2nd Global Buddhist Summit (GBS) be held?
New Delhi will host the 2nd Global Buddhist Summit (GBS) on January 24–25, 2026.
The Summit is organised by the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Culture.
The venue for the Summit is Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
The theme of the Summit is “Collective Wisdom, United Voice, and Mutual Coexistence.”
The Summit aims to address contemporary global challenges using the principles of Buddha Dhamma.
A language learning AI model named NORBU (Neural Operator for Responsible Buddhist Understanding) will be demonstrated.
NORBU, adopted as Kalyan Mitra (Spiritual Friend), aims to connect youth with Buddhist teachings in multiple languages.
The first Global Buddhist Summit was held in April 2023 in New Delhi with over 170 delegates from 31 countries.
IBC was established in 2011 and is headquartered in New Delhi under the Ministry of Culture.
IBC has a global membership of over 300 monastic and lay organisations.
IBC’s motto is “Collective Wisdom, United Voice”, promoting inclusiveness and balanced representation across Buddhist traditions.
NORBU is based on the ChatGPT algorithm and trained on Buddhist texts for educational purposes.
INS Sagardhwani, recently in news, is associated with which of the following?
INS Sagardhwani is an Indian oceanographic research vessel operated by NPOL under DRDO.
The vessel was flagged off for the fifth edition of the Sagar Maitri initiative.
The launch took place from the Southern Naval Command, Kochi.
Sagar Maitri is a joint initiative of the Indian Navy and DRDO.
The initiative aligns with India’s MAHASAGAR vision for regional security and growth.
Sagar Maitri aims to strengthen cooperation among Indian Ocean Rim (IOR) countries.
The programme focuses on scientific collaboration and socio-economic engagement in ocean research.
DRDO launched MAITRI (Marine & Allied Interdisciplinary Training and Research Initiative) under Sagar Maitri.
MAITRI aims to establish long-term ocean research partnerships with regional countries.
INS Sagardhwani retraces the route of INS Kistna, part of the International Indian Ocean Expedition (1962–65).
The current mission involves eight IOR countries, including Oman, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Myanmar.
INS Sagardhwani was commissioned in July 1994.
The ship was designed by NPOL and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE).
India’s first open-sea marine fish farming project was launched in which sea?
India launched its first open-sea marine fish farming project in the Andaman Sea.
The project was inaugurated by Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (IC) for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences.
The pilot initiative was launched at North Bay near Sri Vijaya Puram.
The project is a milestone in India’s Blue Economy development.
It aims to harness India’s ocean-based economic potential.
India’s ocean resources remained largely underutilised for nearly 70 years after Independence.
A policy shift towards maritime development has been emphasised since 2014.
The project is implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) is the technical arm executing the project.
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands administration is a key implementation partner.
The project strengthens India’s Blue Economy ecosystem.
The Minister visited the Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park during the tour.
The park is located near Wandoor in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park was established in 1983.
The park covers 15 islands.
It is known for coral reefs, mangroves, turtles and diverse fish species.
Which of the following states recently notified rules under the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), nearly 25 years after its formation?
Jharkhand notified rules under the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), 25 years after attaining statehood.
PESA aims to extend grassroots self-governance to Fifth Schedule Areas.
Jharkhand is among the last Fifth Schedule states to implement PESA rules.
PESA rules apply fully in 13 out of 24 districts of Jharkhand.
Partial PESA implementation covers Palamu, Garhwa and Godda districts.
Scheduled Tribes constitute 26.3% of Jharkhand’s population as per Census 2011.
Over half of Jharkhand’s tribal population lives in more than 12,000 villages.
Gram Sabha is declared the supreme institution in Scheduled Areas under PESA rules.
Gram Sabha president is selected according to customary practices.
Gram Sabhas are empowered to manage community resources including minor minerals.
Gram Sabhas can manage water bodies and resolve local disputes.
Gram Sabhas can impose fines up to ₹2,000 under the notified rules.
District administration controls recognition and boundary notification of Gram Sabhas.
PESA provisions have triggered constitutional and political debate in Jharkhand.
Jharkhand formally recognises traditional systems like Manki-Munda and Majhi-Pargana.
PESA applies to Fifth Schedule Areas under Article 244 of the Constitution.
Jharkhand has 28 Scheduled Tribe reserved seats in its 81-member Assembly.
Jharkhand holds nearly 40% of India’s mineral resources.
Which state government launched the scheme ’Aame Padhiba Aama Bhasare’?
Odisha government launched the five-year education scheme ’Aame Padhiba Aama Bhasare’.
The scheme focuses on early childhood education in the mother tongue.
It targets children aged 3–6 years.
The scheme is aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020.
Initial implementation covers six tribal languages in Odisha.
The tribal languages include Munda, Kui, Saura, Kuvi, Gondi and Koya.
The scheme will be implemented in Keonjhar, Kandhamal, Gajapati, Rayagada, Nabarangpur and Malkangiri districts.
Anganwadi workers will receive language-specific training and teaching materials.
Audio-visual learning content will be used to improve classroom engagement.
Anganwadi centres will be made more child-friendly.
Odisha launched a 100-day campaign to prevent child marriage.
A pilot project has been initiated to prevent teenage pregnancy and support teenage mothers.
Indian boxing icon Vijender Singh has been appointed as a member of which international body?
Vijender Singh has been appointed as a member of the Asian Boxing Council.
The appointment marks Vijender Singh’s transition from elite athlete to sports administrator.
Vijender Singh won India’s first Olympic medal in boxing at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He secured a bronze medal in boxing at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
Vijender Singh represented India in Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and world championships.
The Asian Boxing Council is responsible for boxing governance and development in Asia.
The Council formulates policies, technical standards, and long-term plans for Asian boxing.
Vijender’s inclusion strengthens athlete-centric decision-making in Asian boxing governance.
Boxing Federation of India is the national governing body for boxing in India.
Vijender Singh acknowledged the role of the Boxing Federation of India in his appointment.
Vijender Singh has been appointed as a member of the Asian Boxing Council.
The appointment marks Vijender Singh’s transition from elite athlete to sports administrator.
Vijender Singh won India’s first Olympic medal in boxing at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
He secured a bronze medal in boxing at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
Vijender Singh represented India in Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and world championships.