Context:

A landmark global study published in The Lancet has brought to light the disturbing scale of child sexual abuse (CSA) worldwide. Using data from 204 countries (1990–2023), the study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation found that 18.9% of women and 14.8% of men globally were victims of CSA. In India, 30.8% of women and 13.5% of men reported having experienced sexual violence before turning 18, placing it among the countries with the highest prevalence for women.

The research revealed that most abuse begins in childhood, with 67% of girls and 72% of boys facing their first abuse before 18. A staggering 26.9% of Indian women and 9.4% of men aged 20–24 continue to report having been abused during their childhood, indicating the persistence of this crisis.

Context and Contributing Factors

CSA in India is exacerbated by societal stigma, patriarchal norms, and underreporting, particularly among boys. Male survivors face additional silence due to entrenched ideas of masculinity and victim-blaming. Abuse often occurs in familiar settings, including homes and schools, with digital exploitation emerging as a growing threat.

Furthermore, regional disparities persist. Urban areas report more digital abuse, while rural areas suffer from familial exploitation compounded by lack of awareness and legal access. States like Kerala and Maharashtra show better reporting, while Bihar and Uttar Pradesh lag.

Legal and Institutional Response

India enacted the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in 2012, a gender-neutral law covering a wide range of sexual offences with child-friendly procedures. However, implementation gaps remain:

• Conviction rates below 30%
• Backlogged trials
• Insufficient training for police and judiciary

Additionally, mental health services for survivors are scarce, and sex education in schools remains inadequate, leaving children vulnerable and uninformed.

Civil Society and Global Comparisons

NGOs such as Save the Children, Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, and HAQ have played key roles in rehabilitation and awareness. International best practices offer valuable lessons:

• Nordic countries integrate mandatory sex education.
• Australia uses public awareness and national offender registries.

Recommendations and Way Forward

A multisectoral, prevention-focused approach is vital:

• Legal Reforms
  • Fast-track POCSO courts
  • Child-friendly police units
  • Sensitisation training for frontline staff
• Education System Overhaul
  • Include modules on “safe/unsafe touch” and digital safety
  • Train teachers to detect and report CSA
• Community Engagement
  • Empower Panchayats and child welfare committees
  • Conduct grassroots campaigns to break the culture of silence
• Technological Safeguards
  • Strengthen helplines like Childline 1098
  • Collaborate with tech platforms for safer digital ecosystems
• Research and Data Collection
  • Create a national CSA data repository
  • Promote evidence-based policymaking through academic and NGO partnerships

Conclusion

The Lancet study underscores that CSA is not merely a criminal issue—it is a public health and social emergency. Laws like POCSO, while crucial, are not enough. What is needed is a coordinated, empathetic, and data-driven strategy that spans homes, schools, communities, and cyberspace. Only then can India safeguard its children not just from predators, but from institutional neglect and societal apathy.

In News:

The office of the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha, though not explicitly bound by rigid timelines, holds constitutional and democratic significance in India's parliamentary democracy. Under Article 93 of the Constitution, the Lok Sabha must elect a Speaker and Deputy Speaker from among its members "as soon as may be." Despite this mandate, the Deputy Speaker’s post has remained vacant since June 2019, reflecting a deepening divergence from constitutional propriety and democratic convention.

Constitutional Framework and Election Process

The Deputy Speaker is elected by Lok Sabha members, with the election date fixed by the Speaker and communicated through a parliamentary bulletin. As per Article 94, the Deputy Speaker remains in office until resignation, disqualification, or removal by a resolution supported by a majority. If the seat falls vacant, the House must elect a replacement. Constitutionally, under Article 95, the Deputy Speaker exercises all powers of the Speaker in their absence, including presiding over sessions, maintaining order, and ensuring legislative discipline.

While the Constitution does not mandate a time frame for this election, the phrase “as soon as may be” is intended to ensure prompt appointment to avoid any constitutional vacuum. However, the absence of legal compulsion has been misinterpreted, leading to prolonged delays.

Functions and Powers

The Deputy Speaker assists the Speaker in running the House and steps in as presiding officer when the Speaker is absent. In legislative committees, if nominated, the Deputy Speaker automatically assumes chairmanship. Distinctively, unlike the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker may participate in debates and vote on all matters when not presiding. When chairing, however, the Deputy Speaker can only vote in case of a tie. The salary of the Deputy Speaker is charged on the Consolidated Fund of India, ensuring financial independence from executive discretion.

Parliamentary Convention and Historical Practice

India's parliamentary practice, inspired by the Westminster model, has traditionally ensured balance by allocating the Deputy Speaker’s post to the Opposition, especially since the post-Emergency era. Notable examples include G.G. Swell (1969–77) and Godey Murahari (1977–79), both from Opposition parties. The intent has been to uphold a power-sharing mechanism and offer space for dissent within the House's functioning.

Democratic Concerns Arising from Prolonged Vacancy

The continued absence of a Deputy Speaker through the 17th and now 18th Lok Sabha raises serious concerns. It undermines Articles 93–95, and violates Rule 8 of the Lok Sabha Rules (1952), which mandates timely election post a formal motion. The delay centralizes authority in the Speaker—typically from the ruling party—and distorts the democratic balance between treasury and Opposition benches.

Moreover, the non-appointment sidelines the principles of consensus-based governance and institutional checks and balances, weakening parliamentary accountability. It also poses risks during any potential Speaker vacancy, potentially triggering a constitutional crisis.

Conclusion

The Deputy Speaker's post is not a ceremonial redundancy but a constitutional necessity for balanced legislative functioning. Upholding this institution is critical for the health of India’s democracy. The ongoing vacancy reflects not just administrative inaction but a gradual erosion of parliamentary conventions, warranting urgent political consensus and constitutional fidelity.

In News:

In a landmark medical feat, a nine-month-old American boy, Kyle “KJ” Muldoon Jr., became the first known human to be successfully treated using base editing, a next-generation gene editing technique derived from CRISPR-Cas9. KJ was born with Carbamoyl Phosphate Synthetase I (CPS1) deficiency, a rare genetic disorder that disrupts nitrogen breakdown, leading to toxic ammonia buildup—known as hyperammonemia—which can be fatal if untreated.

From CRISPR-Cas9 to Base Editing: Evolution of Gene Editing Tools

CRISPR-Cas9, developed in 2012 by Jennifer Doudna and Emmanuelle Charpentier, revolutionized biotechnology and earned them the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Modeled after a microbial immune system, CRISPR works by creating “genetic memory”—capturing viral DNA and guiding the Cas9 enzyme, which acts as molecular scissors, to target and cut specific DNA sequences. This enables scientists to eliminate or repair faulty genes by inducing a double-strand break followed by insertion of a corrected DNA sequence.

However, the double-strand break mechanism raised concerns about unintended genetic consequences. Enter base editing, a refined tool that modifies single DNA bases—the letters A, T, C, G—without cutting both strands of the DNA. Instead of scissors and glue, base editing works like a pencil and eraser, replacing one incorrect base pair with the correct one using a fusion of Cas9 and a base-modifying enzyme. In KJ’s case, the specific base mispair causing CPS1 deficiency was successfully corrected using this technique.

Advantages of Base Editing

• Precision and Safety: Avoids double-strand breaks, reducing off-target effects.
• Compactness: Easier to deliver to cells via viral vectors.
• No foreign DNA: Eliminates need for donor DNA insertion.
• Customisation: Suitable for diseases caused by single-nucleotide mutations.

Challenges: Economic, Ethical, and Regulatory

Despite its promise, base editing faces several bottlenecks:

• Cost and Accessibility: The procedure is prohibitively expensive—estimated in the range of hundreds of thousands of dollars—and was funded by research institutions and biotech firms in KJ’s case.
• Scalability: The therapy was custom-designed for KJ’s specific mutation, limiting its use for others. Such personalised medicine lacks the economies of scale that attract pharmaceutical investment.
• Regulatory hurdles: Countries like India face issues of bureaucratic red tape and outdated ethical frameworks that delay the deployment of advanced genomic therapies.
• Ethical concerns: As the technology becomes more powerful, there are concerns about misuse, eugenics, and the potential editing of germline cells.

Conclusion

KJ’s treatment marks a paradigm shift in personalised medicine, highlighting the transformative potential of base editing in addressing rare and otherwise untreatable genetic disorders. However, wider application requires systemic reforms in bioethics, regulatory frameworks, and healthcare infrastructure. To ensure equitable access, future efforts must focus on cost reduction, public funding, global collaboration, and ethical oversight. If successfully scaled, base editing could revolutionise medicine for millions suffering from rare genetic diseases.

In News:

Medium enterprises (MEs), a vital yet under-recognized segment of India’s MSME ecosystem, have long faced significant challenges, especially in accessing affordable and timely credit. Though they constitute only about 0.3% of registered MSMEs, medium enterprises contribute nearly 40% of MSME exports, highlighting their critical role in India’s industrial growth and global trade competitiveness.

Significance of Medium Enterprises in the Indian Economy

The MSME sector as a whole contributes around 29% to India’s GDP and employs over 60% of the workforce. However, while micro and small enterprises dominate in number (97% and 2.7% respectively), medium enterprises represent a minuscule share by count but a disproportionately large share in exports and innovation. Medium enterprises have a turnover range of ?100–500 crore and investment in plant and machinery between ?25–125 crore, as per the revised FY26 classification norms announced in the Union Budget 2025-26.

Credit Gap and Financing Challenges

NITI Aayog’s 2025 report, Designing Policy for Medium Enterprises, reveals a credit deficit of approximately $10 billion faced by medium enterprises. This gap stems from institutional biases and structural constraints. Unlike micro units that benefit extensively from priority sector lending, medium enterprises receive fewer such loans and face borrowing costs about 4% higher than those for large companies. Moreover, out of 18 government MSME schemes, only 8 specifically target medium enterprises, which receive less than 18% of total scheme funds (?5,442 crore overall). The absence of dedicated working capital schemes exacerbates liquidity issues, limiting growth and scale-up prospects.

NITI Aayog’s Key Policy Recommendations

• Working Capital Financing Scheme: A sector-specific loan scheme, administered by the Ministry of MSME, is proposed to provide medium enterprises with working capital loans capped at ?25 crore, with individual requests up to ?5 crore. Loans would be linked to enterprise turnover and offered at concessional interest rates, addressing their substantial capital needs.
• Medium Enterprise Credit Card: To meet immediate liquidity requirements—such as payroll, inventory, and equipment maintenance—a credit card facility with a pre-approved limit of ?5 crore is recommended. This facility would follow market interest rates but include a repayment grace period.
• Expedited Credit Disbursal via Retail Banks: Leveraging local retail banks for faster fund distribution under MSME ministry supervision aims to reduce bureaucratic delays and enhance timely access to credit.
• Technology and Skilling Initiatives: The report advocates transforming existing MSME technology centres into ‘India MSME 4.0 Competence Centres’ tailored to sectoral and regional demands, spanning industries like engineering, electronics, and specialized manufacturing. It also proposes incorporating medium enterprise-specific modules into entrepreneurship training and skilling programmes to bridge labour skill mismatches.
• Digital Access and Compliance Support: NITI Aayog recommends creating a dedicated sub-portal within the Udyam platform that facilitates scheme discovery, compliance guidance, and AI-powered navigation to help medium enterprises efficiently access government resources.

Broader Structural Challenges

Apart from financing, medium enterprises face low adoption of advanced technologies, limited R&D support, inadequate sector-specific testing infrastructure, and a disconnect between training programmes and industry needs. These gaps impede innovation and scalability.

Strategic Importance and Policy Outlook

NITI Aayog emphasizes that medium enterprises have the potential to be major employment generators and innovation drivers if provided focused policy attention and financial support. Drawing lessons from global examples like Germany’s Mittelstand and Italy’s fashion industry, the report envisions India’s medium enterprises evolving into globally competitive firms over the next decade.

The medium sector’s formal labour structure also makes it key to transitioning India’s economy from informal to formal. Therefore, a coordinated and inclusive policy framework focusing on finance, technology, skill development, and digital infrastructure is vital to unlock this segment’s full potential and enhance India’s industrial competitiveness, export growth, and self-reliance.

In News:

India’s space sector, traditionally dominated by public institutions like ISRO, has seen major policy shifts since 2020 to enable private participation. In a significant development, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have become the first Indian states to formulate state-level space policies, aiming to bolster private investment, foster innovation, and generate employment.

Recently, Gujarat launched the Space Tech Policy 2025–30, becoming the first state to do so. A day later, Tamil Nadu approved its Space Industrial Policy 2025. These policies complement the Indian Space Policy 2023 and the liberalisation of FDI norms in the space sector. They also align with national efforts led by IN-SPACe (Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre), established in 2022 to facilitate private sector engagement in space activities.

Key Features and Objectives

Employment and Investment Targets:

• Gujarat aims to create 25,000 jobs, while Tamil Nadu targets 10,000 new high-skilled jobs.
• Tamil Nadu expects to attract ?10,000 crore in investments over five years.

Sectoral Scope: Both policies aim to develop a full spectrum of space-tech activities including:

• Satellite payload and component manufacturing
• Communication and propulsion systems
• Ground stations and control centres
• Space application software and analytics

State-specific Incentives:

• Gujarat will provide launch and patent support, capital incentives via the Gujarat Electronics Policy, and access to benefits under the IT/ITeS and Deep Tech Start-up Programme.
• Tamil Nadu offers capital subsidies up to 20%, a ?10 crore Space Tech Fund, payroll subsidies up to 30% in the first year, and location-based investment incentives.

Infrastructure and Ecosystem Development

• Gujarat plans to establish a Centre of Excellence in Space Technology and a dedicated manufacturing cluster in Sanand, near Ahmedabad.
• Tamil Nadu will create TNSpaceBays, special industrial zones catering to MSMEs, deep-tech start-ups, R&D labs, and international players.
• New satellite testing infrastructure and skill development programmes are planned in Chennai.

Strategic Importance

The policies reflect recognition of space technology’s growing importance in national security, navigation, healthcare, internet services, weather forecasting, and disaster management. Missions such as Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan, and SpaDeX have enhanced India’s global space credentials, motivating states to leverage their talent and industrial ecosystems to participate in this high-value sector.

These state initiatives also resonate with India’s broader push towards Atmanirbhar Bharat, by promoting domestic manufacturing and reducing dependence on imports in critical technology sectors.

Conclusion

The Gujarat and Tamil Nadu space policies mark a paradigm shift in India’s sub-national innovation strategy. By aligning with central space policy reforms and incentivising private participation, these states are poised to become key hubs in India’s space-tech value chain. Such proactive state-level interventions are vital for India’s ambition to emerge as a global space power and offer a replicable model for other states like Karnataka and Telangana, which are also planning similar initiatives.

In News:

In a significant milestone for the Indian economy, India has officially surpassed Japan to become the 4th largest economy in the world in nominal GDP terms, as per the IMF World Economic Outlook (April 2025). According to NITI Aayog CEO B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, India’s GDP now stands at $4.19 trillion, marginally higher than Japan’s $4.18 trillion. This marks a historic moment, reflecting a shift in the global economic order and reaffirming India's rising stature on the world stage.

From Fifth to Fourth: A Decade of Accelerated Growth

India’s economic rise has been particularly notable over the past decade. From a GDP of $2 trillion in 2014, India has more than doubled its output to cross the $4 trillion mark in 2025. This rapid expansion has also been accompanied by a sharp rise in per capita income, which has grown from $1,438 in 2014 to $2,880 in 2025. In global rankings, India moved from the 5th position in 2024 to 4th in 2025, overtaking Japan and trailing only the United States, China, and Germany.

Factors Driving the Surge

India’s ascent is the result of multiple structural reforms and policy initiatives undertaken in recent years. Programs such as Digital India, Atmanirbhar Bharat, and the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme have enhanced domestic manufacturing, boosted digital infrastructure, and encouraged self-reliance. The government’s focus on ease of doing business, tax reforms (GST, corporate tax rationalisation), and large-scale infrastructure investment under schemes like Gati Shakti have further catalysed growth.

Despite global trends towards supply chain diversification and reshoring, India continues to attract foreign companies due to its cost-effective labor, large consumer base, and improving logistics. For instance, companies like Apple continue to expand their operations in India, viewing it as a reliable manufacturing hub.

Strategic and Geopolitical Implications

India’s new economic position carries significant geopolitical weight. As the 4th largest economy, India’s influence in global financial institutions, climate negotiations, trade partnerships, and multilateral forums such as G20 and BRICS is set to grow. The achievement enhances investor confidence, thereby potentially increasing foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows.

Domestically, this growth presents an opportunity for addressing structural issues such as unemployment, regional disparities, and income inequality. The challenge ahead lies in ensuring that growth remains inclusive, sustainable, and innovation-driven.

Future Outlook

According to NITI Aayog, India is poised to surpass Germany within the next 2.5–3 years, potentially becoming the third-largest economy globally. For this, sustaining macroeconomic stability, boosting exports, enhancing skill development, and transitioning to a green economy will be crucial.

Conclusion

India’s rise to the 4th largest economy marks a defining moment in its development trajectory. It reflects not just statistical growth, but also the success of structural reforms, demographic potential, and policy resilience. As India prepares for its next leap, balancing economic dynamism with social equity will be the key to truly becoming a global economic leader.