28 April 2025 Current Affairs

United Nations Security Council (UNSC) strongly condemned Pahalgam attack.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has strongly condemned the terror strike at Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which took place on April 22. The attack claimed 26 lives, including that of a Nepali citizen. Leaders from across the globe conveyed their condolences to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the aftermath of the attack.

Key Points

• The UNSC members expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims, as well as to the Governments of India and Nepal.
• They wished a speedy and full recovery to the injured.
• The UNSC emphasized the need to bring the perpetrators, organisers, financiers, and sponsors of the attack to justice.
• The council reaffirmed that terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, poses one of the most serious threats to international peace and security.
• China (a permanent member) and Pakistan (a non-permanent member) also condemned the attack, joining the rest of the UNSC.
• India alleged "cross-border support" for the attack, with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefing G-20 envoys regarding Pakistan-based elements' involvement.
• Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed willingness to participate in a neutral investigation.
• In Kashmir, Indian authorities razed the houses of four militants and detained hundreds in connection with the attack.
• The UNSC called upon "all states" to cooperate actively with Indian authorities to bring those responsible to justice.

Background on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)

• The UNSC is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, primarily responsible for maintaining international peace and security.
• It has 15 members: 5 permanent (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) and 10 non-permanent members elected for two-year terms.
• The UNSC has the authority to establish peacekeeping operations, impose international sanctions, and authorize military action through Security Council resolutions.
• It plays a crucial role in addressing threats to global peace, including terrorism, armed conflict, and international disputes.

India Expanded Its Claim In the Central Arabian Sea By Nearly 10,000 Square Km

India has expanded its claim in the Central Arabian Sea by nearly 10,000 square km as part of its extended continental shelf project. To address a long-standing maritime boundary dispute with Pakistan, India has also modified an earlier submission made to the United Nations.

Key Points

• Coastal nations are entitled to an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extending up to 200 nautical miles from their coastline, allowing exclusive mining and fishing rights.
• Beyond the EEZ, countries can claim additional oceanic territory by scientifically proving the natural extension of their continental shelf to the UN body Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
• India currently has 12 nautical miles of territorial sea and 200 nautical miles of EEZ from its baselines.
• With the addition of approximately 1.2 million square km of extended continental shelf (ECS) to its ~2 million sq. km EEZ, India's seabed and sub-seabed area will become almost equal to its land area (3.274 million sq. km).
• India made its first submission in 2009 for areas in the Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean, and Arabian Sea.
• Pakistan raised objections in 2021 over India’s claim, citing an overlap near the Sir Creek dispute area in the Rann of Kutch.
• In March 2023, the CLCS rejected India’s earlier claim in the Arabian Sea region but permitted submitting modified claims.
• In April 2024, India submitted two partial claims to protect its Central Arabian Sea claim, increasing its claim by 10,000 square km.
• M Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), explained that this strategy ensures valuable regions without disputes are secured first.
• Some overlap exists with Oman's claims; however, both countries agreed in 2010 that their continental shelf delimitation remains pending but not disputed.
• India’s claims in the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean (about 300,000 sq. km) are contested by Myanmar and Sri Lanka.
• The CLCS is expected to start new consultations later this year regarding these claims.

Background on the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS)

• The CLCS is a body established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
• It consists of 21 experts in geology, geophysics, or hydrography, elected by the states parties to UNCLOS.
• The CLCS examines the scientific and technical data submitted by coastal states to establish the outer limits of their continental shelves beyond 200 nautical miles.
• The Commission makes recommendations; if accepted by a state, the limits become final and binding under international law.
• The CLCS does not settle maritime boundary disputes between states.

Startup Sarvam To Build The Country’s First Homegrown AI Large Language Model (LLM).

The Government of India has selected Bengaluru-based startup Sarvam to build the country’s first homegrown AI large language model (LLM). Sarvam was chosen from among 67 applicants and will receive government support under the IndiaAI Mission. The model aims to strengthen India's position in AI, with a focus on Indian languages and infrastructure.

Key Points

1. Startup Selected:

• Bengaluru-based Sarvam selected from among 67 applicants.

2. Support from Government:

• Access to 4,000 GPUs for six months for model training.
• GPUs provided by government-selected AI data centers.

3. IndiaAI Mission:

• Sarvam is the first start-up to be approved for sops (support) under India’s ₹10,370 crore IndiaAI Mission.
• Hundreds of other proposals are still under evaluation.

4. About Sarvam’s Model:

• Model will have 70 billion parameters.
• Designed to be capable of advanced reasoning and fluency in Indian languages.
• Built, deployed, and optimized entirely within India using local infrastructure.

5. Model Variants:

• Sarvam-Large: Advanced reasoning and generation.
• Sarvam-Small: Real-time interactive applications.
• Sarvam-Edge: Compact, on-device tasks.

6. Government's Strategic Focus:

• Promoting strategic autonomy in AI.
• Encouraging domestic innovation.
• Building population-scale deployment capacity.

7. Comparison with Global Models:

• Initiative comes in response to China’s DeepSeek model, which is open-source, low-cost, and trained on lower-end GPUs.
• DeepSeek’s rise affected global tech markets, including Nvidia’s stock value.

8. Open Source Policy:

• Sarvam’s model is not expected to be open-sourced but will be fine-tuned for Indian needs.

Background on IndiaAI Mission

• The IndiaAI Mission is a government initiative with a budget of ₹10,370 crore aimed at establishing India as a global AI innovation hub.
• It includes building foundational models, supporting startups, creating datasets, and establishing AI compute infrastructure (high-end GPU clusters).
• Focus areas include Indian language capabilities, population-scale AI solutions, and strategic technological independence.

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