High Seas Treaty | India and Bahrain’s Bilateral Relations | Maldives Becomes First Nation to Enforce Generational Tobacco Ban | Encephalomyocarditis Virus (EMCV) | National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) | Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana

High Seas Treaty

Syllabus – Environment

In News

• The High Seas Treaty, ratified by over 60 countries, will take effect in January 2026.

BBNJ Treaty (High Seas Treaty)

• Objective – It is a landmark international agreement aimed at the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
• Significance – It is a significant step towards protecting the ocean, promoting equity and fairness, tackling environmental degradation, and preventing biodiversity loss in the high seas.
• Adopted in – It was adopted by consensus at the 5th BBNJ Intergovernmental Conference in New York in March 2023.
• Member countries – Currently, it has been signed by representatives from more than 80 countries.

India and Bahrain’s Bilateral Relations

Syllabus: GS2/IR

Context

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Bahrain’s Foreign Minister and discussed cooperation in defence and security.

India and Bahrain’s Bilateral Relations

• Bilateral trade: USD 1.64 billion (FY 2024–25); India among Bahrain’s top five trading partners.
• Gateway to the Gulf: Bahrain, located near the western shores of the Gulf, serves as a strategic entry point for India into the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.
• Energy Security: Bahrain, though a smaller oil producer compared to other GCC states, plays a role in India’s energy diversification strategy and refined petroleum trade.

Additional Information – Bahrain (Capital: Manama)

Political Features

• Bahrain is the third-smallest nation in Asia.
• Location: Lies in West Asia, in the Persian Gulf.
• Border: It is an archipelago of islands and has no land borders with other countries.
• Neighbouring Water Bodies: Persian Gulf.
• Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

• It is a political and economic union of six Arabian Peninsula countries
• Members: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
• Establishment: Founded on May 25, 1981, through an agreement signed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• Objectives: To achieve unity and coordination among member states in all fields, including economic, security, cultural, and social cooperation.
• Headquarters: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Maldives Becomes First Nation to Enforce Generational Tobacco Ban

Syllabus: GS2/ Health

In News

• The Maldives has become the first country worldwide to impose a historic generational ban on tobacco and vaping.

Generational Ban

• A generational ban on tobacco refers to a progressive legal prohibition designed to create a tobacco-free generation by banning tobacco sales and usage for all individuals born after a specified date.

Additional Information – Maldives

• Capital: Male
• Official language: Dhivehi (an Indo-European language); Arabic, Hindi, and English are also spoken.
• Religion: Islam is the state religion
• Economy: Heavily dependent on tourism, along with fisheries and foreign aid.
• Constitution: The 2008 Constitution defines a presidential system with direct elections for a maximum of two five-year terms.

Geographical Features

• It is home to the 7th largest coral reef system in the world, contributing 3.14% of global reef area.
• The country has no rivers or streams and the average elevation is under 2 meters, making it highly vulnerable to sea-level rise.
• The Maldives is an archipelagic state consisting of about 1,200 coral islands grouped in 26 atolls, located in the north-central Indian Ocean.
• It is strategically positioned making it vital for maritime trade and security in the IOR.

Encephalomyocarditis Virus (EMCV)

Syllabus: GS2/Health

In News

• Delhi zoo’s lone African elephant died from the rare rodent-borne encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) — the first such case reported in any Indian zoo.

Encephalomyocarditis Virus (EMCV)

• Pathogen– It is a small, single-stranded RNA virus
• It causes myocarditis, encephalitis, neurological disorders, reproductive issues, and diabetes across various mammalian species.
• Transmission : Consumption of food and water contaminated with rodent urine or feces
• Occurrence : EMCV was first identified in 1945 from a gibbon in Florida

National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT)

Syllabus: GS2/ Governance

Context

• The Supreme Court refused to intervene with an order of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) which had allowed Aakash Educational Services Ltd, a subsidiary of Byju’s, to proceed with its proposed rights issue.

National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT)

• Constituted under – Section 410 of the Companies Act, 2013, with effect from 2016.
• Legal status – It functions as a quasi-judicial body to hear appeals against orders of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and several other regulatory authorities.
• It also serves as the Appellate Tribunal for hearing appeals against orders passed by the

1. National Company Law Tribunal (under Section 61 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016),
2. Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (under Sections 202 and 211 of the IBC),

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana

Syllabus: GS3/Economy

In News

• The Union Agriculture Minister has ordered on-field investigations into extremely low insurance payouts under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana(PMFBY)

• Implementation – Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare
• Launched in – It is an insurance service for farmers for their yields, launched in 2016.

Objectives:

• To provide insurance coverage and financial support to the farmers in the event of failure of any of the notified crops as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases.
• To stabilise the income of farmers to ensure their continuance in farming.
• To encourage farmers to adopt innovative and modern agricultural practices.
• To ensure flow of credit to the agriculture sector.

Key features of the PMFBY

Premium rates

• There will be a uniform premium of only 2% to be paid by farmers for all Kharif crops and 1.5% for all Rabi crops (winter sown).
• In case of annual commercial and horticultural crops, the premium to be paid by farmers will be only 5%.
• The balance premium will be paid by the Government (to be shared equally by the central and state government).
• The idea is to provide a fully insured amount to the farmers against crop loss on account of natural calamities.