The 14 th Sirarakhong Hathei Chilli festival was recently launched in Sirarakhong Village of Ukhrul district of Manipur. Not just a festival which glorifies the unique GI tagged Hathei chilli of the region, this 14 day event is also a mix of culture, agricultural pride and environmentalism. The festival has become an important avenue to put the importance of Manipur traditional crops into the national focus.

More recently, the Western Ghats, which is of great biodiversity, was again in the limelight following the rediscovery of the scarlet dragonfly (Crocothemis erythraea) in cool high altitude valleys of Munnar in Kerala. This is a rare occurrence which has pleased the naturalists and researchers since the species are normally found in warmer and lowland areas and not in mountainous areas which are colder.

Introduction

The final of the men javelin throw event during the 2025 World Athletics sports event in Tokyo experienced stiff competition amidst poor rainy weather. Olympic champion, Neeraj Chopra performed poorly placing eighth with his best of 84.03 meters and compatriot Sachin Yadav was doing well in his performance as he missed out on a podium finish by the narrow margin.

Introduction

The Supreme Court of India in an important decision in Shivangi Bansal vs Sahib Bansal (2025) has affirmed the guidelines laid down by the Allahabad High Court to deal with the perceived abuse of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The rules recommend two months of cooling off period prior to coercive action and provide for referrals of the complaints to Family Welfare Committees (FWCs). The ruling has once again sparked the controversies concerning the balancing of the rights of women and protection against false arrests.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed a mutual defence agreement that broadens the strategic relationship of the two countries during the state visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Riyadh. The agreement contains a huge point which states that any aggression to either of the countries would be regarded as aggression to both.