Daily Current Affairs – 10 November 2025

Explore the Daily Current Affairs 10 November 2025, relevant for UPSC exam. Download quick REVISION NOTES from our telegram channel – https://t.me/CivilMentorIAS.

Context: India faces a dual challenge — persistent malnutrition and the need for sustainable food systems amid climate change. Functional foods and smart proteins could provide a nutritional and environmental solution, but regulatory and public acceptance issues persist.

What are Functional foods?

Foods that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition — they are enriched, fortified, or naturally rich in bioactive compounds that help prevent disease or promote well-being.

Examples:

• Vitamin-enriched rice
• Iron- and zinc-biofortified millet
• Omega-3 fortified milk
• Probiotic curd

Technologies Involved:

• Nutrigenomics: Study of how food interacts with genes.
• Biofortification: Enhancing nutrient content in crops (e.g., by ICRISAT, IIRR).
• 3D food printing & bioprocessing for nutrient-rich and customized foods.

Purpose in India:

• To tackle malnutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and lifestyle diseases.
• Shift focus from food security → nutrition security.

What are smart proteins?

Proteins made using biotechnology to replace conventional animal sources — aiming for sustainability and food security.

Types:

1. Plant-based proteins: Extracted from legumes, cereals, oilseeds (e.g., soy, peas).
2. Fermentation-derived proteins: Made by microbes (yeast, fungi).
3. Cultivated meat: Animal cells grown in bioreactors — no slaughter involved.

Examples in India:

• Startups: GoodDot, Blue Tribe, Evo Foods.
• Research: CCMB received ₹4.5 crore DBT grant for cultivated meat.
• Policy: Supported under BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment, and Employment) initiative by DBT and BIRAC.

Importance for India

• Health: Tackles protein deficiency and malnutrition.
• Environment: Reduces pressure from livestock-based emissions.
• Economy: Potential to create a multi-billion-dollar industry and new jobs.

Challenges

• Regulatory clarity: FSSAI yet to define norms for cultivated or lab-made foods.
• Public perception: Skepticism toward “lab-grown” food.
• Technology gap: Need for biomanufacturing and skilled workforce.

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About Aditya-L1

• Launched by ISRO in 2023, Aditya-L1 is India’s first space-based observatory to study the Sun.
• It is positioned at the Lagrange Point 1 (L1) — about 1.5 million km from Earth, providing continuous 24-hour solar observations without eclipse interruptions.
• Carries seven payloads, of which VELC (Visible Emission Line Coronagraph) is the primary instrument developed by IIA, Bengaluru.

What is a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME)?

A CME is a massive burst of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s corona. It can release billions of tons of charged particles into space, capable of disrupting satellites, power grids, and communication systems on Earth.

Significance of the Discovery

1. Scientific Importance:
   • Enables deeper understanding of CME formation and dynamics.
   • Provides data on mass and energy loss from the Sun, critical for solar physics.
2. Space Weather Prediction:
   • Helps improve forecasting of solar storms that can affect satellite communication, navigation, and power systems.
3. Technological Achievement:
   • Demonstrates India’s capability in high-precision solar instrumentation.
4. International Collaboration:
   • Joint analysis with NASA enhances India’s role in global heliophysics research.

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What is Soil Organic Carbon (SOC)?

SOC is the carbon component of organic compounds in soil, including decomposed plant and animal residues, soil microbes, and humus. It is a key indicator of soil health and fertility.

Key Concerns highlighted:

1. Correlation with Fertilizer Use: Overuse of chemical fertilizers, especially urea and phosphorus, has led to a decline in organic carbon. States like Haryana, Punjab, and Western Uttar Pradesh, with intensive fertilizer application, show significant reduction in SOC.
2. Influence of Climate and Topography: SOC is negatively correlated with temperature: hotter regions (Rajasthan, Telangana) have lower SOC. SOC is positively correlated with elevation: higher-altitude lands retain more organic carbon. Rainfall, temperature, and elevation are major determinants of SOC levels.
3. Impact on Soil Health and Nutrients: Low SOC is associated with micronutrient deficiencies in soil, affecting crop productivity and resilience.
4. Future Threats: Climate change may further reduce SOC due to rising temperatures. This can affect soil health, carbon credits, and greenhouse gas emissions from soil.

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Value added data for Mains:

1. New research by IPCC shows that Average global temperature rising at a rate of 0.27 C each decade, almost 50% faster than in the 1990s and 2000s when the warming rate was around 0.2 C per decade.
2. Sea levels are rising faster, at about 4.5 mm/year over the last decade compared to 1.85 mm/year measured across the decades since 1900. – data by WMO (World Meteorological Organisation)
3. The world is now on track to cross the 1.5 C warming threshold around 2030, after which scientists have warned we will likely trigger irreversible consequences. – By WMO
4. 2025’s State of Wildfires report, counted some 3.7 million sq. km as having burned between March 2024 and February 2025, an area about the size of India and Norway combined.
5. Heat-related health risks: worker productivity is dropping by 2-3% for every degree above 20 C, this accounts for global losses of more than $1 trillion from that lost productivity for last year alone.

What are Climate Tipping Points?

“Climate tipping points” are critical thresholds in the Earth’s system that, once crossed, can lead to abrupt, irreversible, or self-reinforcing changes in the environment. Crossing a tipping point can shift an ecosystem or climate system from one stable state to another, often with catastrophic consequences.

Examples:

1. Warm-water corals: Successive marine heatwaves can lead to their almost irreversible die-off.
2. Amazon Rainforest: Rapid deforestation and warming could transform it into savannah.
3. Greenland Ice Sheet: Melting could disrupt the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), affecting Europe’s climate.
4. Antarctic Ice Loss: Declining sea ice exposes dark water, increasing solar absorption, accelerating warming, and affecting phytoplankton.

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Daily Current Affairs 10 November 2025

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