UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport

Context: Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya chaired the third formal meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP10) Bureau and the fourth formal meeting of the Fund’s Approval Committee for 2026–27 in New Delhi to strengthen global cooperation against doping in sport.

About the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport 

• Adoption: Adopted on 19 October 2005 during UNESCO’s 33rd General Conference and entered into force on 1 February 2007.

• Objective: To harmonise anti-doping policies, legislation and regulations internationally and ensure fair and safe competition for athletes.

• Membership: It has 192 States Parties, making it UNESCO’s second most ratified treaty.

• Key provisions:  It promotes international cooperation, doping controls, restrictions on prohibited substances, anti-doping education, research and capacity-building.

• Governance: The Conference of Parties (COP) is the Convention’s sovereign governing body and ordinarily meets every two years. 

• The COP Bureau coordinates its work between sessions.

• Fund: The Fund for the Elimination of Doping in Sport supports anti-doping education, policy development and capacity-building in member countries.

India’s Status in Anti-Doping

• Legal framework: India strengthened its anti-doping framework through the National Anti-Doping Act, 2022, and its 2025 Amendment, came into force in July 2026.

• Testing and awareness: During 2025–26, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) conducted over 7,000 tests and more than 350 awareness sessions, reaching 27,000 participants.

• Global participation: India represents Group IV as a Vice-Chairperson of the COP10 Bureau and supports international cooperation to promote clean sport.

• Education initiative: India plans to introduce UNESCO’s Sport Values in Every Classroom Toolkit through a proposed agreement involving the Ministries of Youth Affairs and Sports, Education, and UNESCO.

12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum, 2026

Context: The 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum, held in New Delhi on 26–27 October 2026, concluded with the adoption of a Joint Declaration reaffirming parliamentary cooperation, inclusive development and reforms in global governance.

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• Theme: “Fostering Parliaments for People-Centric Development”.

• Inaugurated by: Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla; the forum adopted a Joint Declaration supporting India’s 2026 BRICS Chairship.

• Key outcomes: Called for United Nations Security Council reform, condemned cross-border terrorism and terrorism financing, and promoted cooperation in Artificial Intelligence, Digital Public Infrastructure and climate action under the principle of CBDR-RC.

• BRICS Parliamentary Forum: A platform for parliamentary dialogue, legislative cooperation and exchange of best practices among BRICS member countries.

About BRICS

• BRICS is a consensus-based grouping of emerging markets and developing countries, rather than a treaty-based organisation.

• Origin: The term “BRIC” was coined by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O’Neill in 2001. 

• The first BRIC Summit was held in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in 2009.

• Evolution: South Africa joined in 2011, transforming BRIC into BRICS. Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates joined in 2024, followed by Indonesia in 2025.

• Membership: BRICS has 11 members: Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia. It also has a separate Partner Country category.

• Three pillars of cooperation:

1. Political and security cooperation.

2. Economic and financial cooperation.

3. Cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

• Global weight: The 11 members collectively account for approximately 49.5% of the global population, 40% of global GDP (at purchasing power parity) and 26% of global trade.

• Key institutions: 

• New Development Bank (NDB): Established in 2014 under the Fortaleza Declaration; headquartered in Shanghai, it finances infrastructure and sustainable development projects.
• Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA): Provides financial support to members facing balance-of-payments pressures.

SAMHiTA Palm-Leaf Manuscript Digitisation Project

Context: India and Sri Lanka are strengthening cultural cooperation through the launch of the SAMHiTA Project at Colombo’s Gangaramaya Temple on October 23, 2026, with grant assistance from the Government of India.

About the SAMHiTA Project

• Full Form: South Asian Manuscript Histories and Textual Archive.

• The Sanskrit word Samhita means “collection” or “compilation”, reflecting the project's aim of consolidating scattered manuscript information on a common online platform accessible to all.

• Implementing Institution: India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi, in collaboration with institutional partners outside India.

• Objective: To create a relational database and digital archive of Indian and South Asian manuscripts preserved in libraries, archives and other repositories outside India.

• Manuscript Heritage: These manuscripts document languages, medicine, mathematics, architecture, philosophy, literature, religious traditions and cultural practices. 

• They exist in languages such as Sanskrit, Tamil, Odia and Bengali, and on materials including palm leaves, birch bark and copper plates.

• Sri Lankan Partnership: Gangaramaya Temple became the first institution in Sri Lanka to partner with the project. 

• Under a Memorandum of Understanding signed in July 2026, local experts are digitising 100 ancient manuscripts, with completion expected by the end of November 2026.

• Digital Platform: Information collected will be shared through PANDiT (Prosopographical Database of Indic Texts and Records), a database on South Asian intellectual history.

Tata Steel Introduces Hydroseeding Technology in Jharkhand

Context: Tata Steel has introduced hydroseeding technology at its West Bokaro Division in Jharkhand to stabilise mine dump slopes, prevent soil erosion and accelerate ecological restoration.

About Hydroseeding

• Definition: Hydroseeding is a hydraulic method of sowing seeds by spraying a slurry of seeds, water, mulch, fertilisers and tackifiers (binding agents) onto the soil using specialised equipment.

• Working: A hydro-mulcher mixes these components into a uniform slurry, which is sprayed over the ground to ensure seed distribution, moisture retention and effective seed-to-soil contact.

• Seed Selection: Grass, native plant and leguminous species are selected according to soil type, climatic conditions and the purpose of restoration.

• Key Benefits: It promotes rapid vegetation growth, reduces soil erosion, retains moisture, improves slope stability and lowers labour requirements.

• Applications: It is used in mine-land rehabilitation, highway slope stabilisation, degraded land restoration and landscaping.

• Environmental Significance: Vegetation cover helps bind soil through root systems, supports biodiversity, reduces surface runoff and contributes to long-term ecological restoration.