DAILY PRELIMS CA — 22 SEPT

Context: India attended the inaugural summit of P4M on the UNGA sidelines as an initial co-sponsor.
Nature: Non-superpower multilateral coalition of middle powers, regional organizations, and developing nations.
Founding Initiators: European Union, Brazil, Canada, and Kenya.
Initial Co-Sponsors: India, Australia, and Barbados.
Origin: Framework built upon Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's Carney Doctrine on middle-power solidarity.
Structure: Issue-based consultation platform | Non-treaty-based flexible coalition.
Key Aims: Reform of UN Security Council and global financial architecture | Address veto-related paralysis.
Focus Areas: AI governance, climate change, pandemics, supply chains | Protection against tariffs and economic coercion.

Context: RBI conducted an OMO sale auction worth ₹25,000 crore to absorb durable surplus rupee liquidity.
Nature: Quantitative monetary policy tool | Administered by RBI.
Instruments: Secondary market purchase and sale of G-Secs and Treasury Bills.
Outright Sale: Permanently absorbs durable surplus liquidity from banking system.
Outright Purchase: Injects reserve cash to address systemic liquidity deficits.
Operation Twist: Simultaneous short-term sale and long-term purchase of G-Secs + Flattens yield curve.
Platform: Electronic bidding and settlement executed on RBI's e-Kuber portal.
Target Rate: Anchors Weighted Average Call Rate (WACR) around policy Repo rate.

Context: India adopted four consensus outcome declarations at the G20 Energy Abundance Ministerial held in Houston, USA.
Nature: Non-binding multilateral policy declaration | Convened under the US G20 Presidency.
Core Tracks: Household energy access, regulatory efficiency, water recycling, and critical-mineral supply chains.
Clean Cooking: Explicitly recognizes LPG as a practical bridge fuel to replace traditional biomass.
India Impact: Endorses India's clean-cooking approach under PMUY by recognizing LPG transition.
Critical Minerals: Cooperation on lithium, nickel, cobalt, and rare earths + Respects sovereign resource rights.
Water Reuse: Circular water management framework for wastewater recycling across agriculture, industry, and power generation.

Context: The 18th edition of the India–Mongolia joint military exercise commenced at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.
Nature: Annual bilateral platoon-level military exercise | Alternates between India and Mongolia.
Venue: Foreign Training Node, Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand | Previous 17th edition held at Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
Participants: Indian Army and Mongolian Armed Forces.
Objective: Counter-insurgency operations in semi-urban and mountainous terrain under UN mandate.
Features: Special heliborne operations + drone and counter-drone systems + cybersecurity training.

Context: Researchers compiled a comprehensive checklist documenting 3,261 flowering plant species in Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve.
Location: Straddles inter-state border of Kerala and Tamil Nadu | Spans southern extremity of Western Ghats.
Status: Established nationally in 2001 | UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves (MAB) in 2016.
Topography: Highest point is Agasthyarkoodam peak at 1,868 metres above sea level.
Core Areas: Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (TN) + Shendurney, Peppara, Neyyar Sanctuaries & Agasthyavanam Park (Kerala).
Flora: Documents 3,261 species | Contains 1,018 Indian endemics and 245 steno-endemics.
Biogeographic Affinity: Shares 347 plant taxa with Sri Lanka via Gondwanan roots and Pleistocene land bridges.
Genetic Reservoir: Wild progenitor gene pool for black pepper, cardamom, nutmeg, jamun, and cinnamon.
Indigenous Tribe: Inhabited by the Kani tribe.
PYI Link: UPSC Prelims 2019 (Protected areas located within Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve).

PRELIMS CA 22 SEPT 2026