1. NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) functions under the administrative control of which department?
[A] Department of Science and Technology (DST)
[B] Department of Telecommunications (DoT)
[C] Department of Space (DOS)
[D] Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Department of Space (DOS)]
Notes:
NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has signed 70 Technology Transfer Agreements with industry. NSIL was incorporated on 6 March 2019 under the Companies Act, 2013, and works under the Department of Space (DOS), Government of India. It helps Indian industries take up high-technology space activities and promotes commercial use of India’s space products and services.
2. Shieldtail snake, that was recently seen in news, is endemic to which region?
[A] India and Bangladesh
[B] India and Sri Lanka
[C] Nepal and Bhutan
[D] Bangladesh and Myanmar
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [India and Sri Lanka]
Notes:
A new shieldtail snake species, Rhinophis siruvaniensis, was discovered with help from citizen scientists in the Siruvani Hills, spanning Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the Western Ghats. The snake is shiny brownish-black with creamy white patches and has a dome-shaped tail tip. Shieldtail snakes are small, non-venomous, soil-burrowing snakes of the Uropeltidae family, also called uropeltids. They are named “shieldtails” because of their disc-shaped tail tip. These snakes are endemic to India and Sri Lanka, mainly found in the Western Ghats and parts of Peninsular India.
3. SAMPANN Portal functions under which ministry?
[A] Ministry of Finance
[B] Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
[C] Ministry of Communications
[D] Ministry of Home Affairs
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Ministry of Communications]
Notes:
Controller General of Communication Accounts (CGCA) Smt. Vandana Gupta inaugurated onboarding of MTNL employees retiring in November 2025 onto the SAMPANN pension portal at the Principal CCA Office, Delhi. The initiative covers 45,939 MTNL pensioners from Delhi and Mumbai, including current and past retirees, and will enable fully digital pension processing from December 2025. SAMPANN (System for Accounting and Management of Pension) is a Comprehensive Pension Management System (CPMS). It is an online pension processing and payment system for Department of Telecommunications pensioners under the Ministry of Communications.
4. The Swasthya Portal has been developed under which central sector scheme?
[A] Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana
[B] Tribal Research Information Education Communication and Events (TRI ECE)
[C] Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Adivasi Nyaya Yojana
[D] National Health Mission (NHM)
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Tribal Research Information Education Communication and Events (TRI ECE)]
Notes:
The Minister of Tribal Affairs confirmed that the Swasthya Portal will not be expanded to include national health databases, district dashboards, or AI-enabled analytics. Swasthya Portal is a one-stop platform showing the health and nutrition status of India’s tribal population. It was developed under the central sector scheme Tribal Research Information Education Communication and Events (TRI ECE) of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. It provides data, research briefs, case studies, best practices, and innovative models. It features a dashboard, knowledge repository, partner section, and Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) support corner, covering 177 high-priority tribal districts.
5. Which institute has developed GlowCas9, a CRISPR protein that glows during gene editing?
[A] Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru
[B] Bose Institute, Kolkata
[C] National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru
[D] Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Bose Institute, Kolkata]
Notes:
Scientists at the Bose Institute, Kolkata have developed GlowCas9, a CRISPR protein that glows during gene editing. It is a bioluminescent Cas9, created by fusing Cas9 with a split nano-luciferase enzyme from deep-sea shrimp proteins. GlowCas9 is highly stable, retaining structure and activity even at higher temperatures. When Cas9 folds correctly, the luciferase pieces reconnect and produce light, enabling real-time, non-harmful tracking of gene editing in cells, tissues, and plant leaves. It improves the precision of Homology-Directed Repair (HDR), a key DNA repair process for genetic diseases like sickle cell anaemia and muscular dystrophy. GlowCas9 advances theratracking, the visual monitoring of molecular gene therapy in action.
