10 Aug 2026 - "Daily Current Affairs" Updates

Sowa-Rigpa and Bhoti-Language Manuscripts

Culture | Traditional medicine | Himalayan knowledge systems

WHY IN NEWS:

The Union AYUSH Minister called for wider global recognition of Sowa-Rigpa as an evidence-based traditional medical system and stressed the preservation of ancient Bhoti-language manuscripts containing medical and cultural knowledge.

IN ONE LINE: Sowa-Rigpa, or the Amchi/Tibetan system of medicine, means “Knowledge of Healing”; its Himalayan medical tradition is closely linked with Bhoti-language literature and Buddhist monastic scholarship.

Sowa-Rigpa: begin with the identity

• Sowa-Rigpa is one of the world’s oldest traditional systems of medicine and is also known as the Amchi System of Medicine or Tibetan Medicine.

• The term “Sowa-Rigpa” means “Knowledge of Healing” and is derived from the Bhoti language.

• According to tradition, Buddha is regarded as the originator of this medical system.

How did the system develop?

• It evolved and flourished in the Trans-Himalayan region.

• It incorporates knowledge from Ayurveda, traditional Tibetan medicine and indigenous Himalayan healing practices.

• More than 75% of its diagnostic and therapeutic concepts are derived from Ashtanga Hridaya, a classical Ayurvedic text.

Where is it practised?

• In India: Ladakh; Spiti and Lahaul in Himachal Pradesh; Jammu & Kashmir; Sikkim; Arunachal Pradesh; and Darjeeling in West Bengal.

• Outside India: Bhutan, Nepal, Mongolia, China and Russia.

Medicines, text and institutions

• Commonly used medicinal plants and formulations of Indian origin include Ashwagandha, Guggulu, Triphala, Ashok and Haridra (Turmeric).

• Gyud-Zi, or the Four Tantras, is the foundational text and principal medical treatise of Sowa-Rigpa.

• Sowa-Rigpa is officially recognised under India’s AYUSH framework.

• The National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa (NISR) is the apex institution for education, research and healthcare related to this system.

Bhoti-language manuscripts

• Bhoti-language manuscripts are historical, cultural and religious texts written in the Bhoti script, which is derived from the Tibetan script.

• The language has traditionally been associated with Buddhist monasteries, where it was used for scriptures, teachings and philosophical works.

MEMORY LOCK: Knowledge of Healing | Amchi/Tibetan Medicine | Trans-Himalayan | >75% concepts from Ashtanga Hridaya | Gyud-Zi/Four Tantras | AYUSH | NISR | Bhoti script derived from Tibetan script

CHECK YOUR RECALL

1. What does the term Sowa-Rigpa mean, and what are its other names?

2. Which classical Ayurvedic text is said to provide more than 75% of its diagnostic and therapeutic concepts?

3. What is Gyud-Zi, and what is the role of the National Institute of Sowa-Rigpa?

National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMSS)

Education | Welfare scheme | School retention

WHY IN NEWS:

The Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, invited fresh and renewal applications for NMMSS for the 2026-27 academic year.

IN ONE LINE: NMMSS is a Central Sector Scheme launched in 2008 to support meritorious students from economically weaker families and reduce dropouts after Class VIII.

Purpose and implementation

• The scheme encourages students to continue education at the secondary and higher secondary levels and supports academically talented students from economically disadvantaged families.

• It is implemented through the National Scholarship Portal (NSP), the unified platform for scholarship applications and disbursement.

Scholarship coverage

• One lakh fresh scholarships are awarded every year.

• Fresh scholarships are granted to eligible students studying in Class IX.

• The scholarship can be renewed from Class X to Class XII, subject to the prescribed conditions.

Eligibility: remember the filters

• Annual parental income from all sources must not exceed Rs 3.5 lakh.

• Students must have secured at least 55% marks, or equivalent grade, in Class VII; SC/ST students receive a 5% relaxation.

• Eligible students must be regular students of Government, Government-aided or local body schools.

• Students of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, Kendriya Vidyalayas and residential schools are not eligible.

• Reservation follows the norms of the respective State Government or UT Administration.

Selection and renewal

• Each State and Union Territory conducts its own selection examination at the Class VIII level.

• Students are selected on merit in this examination for the scholarship.

• For renewal in higher classes, scholarship holders must secure at least 60% marks in Class X; SC/ST students receive a 5% relaxation.

• Students must obtain promotion in the first attempt from Class IX to X and from Class XI to XII.

MEMORY LOCK: Central Sector Scheme | launched 2008 | 1 lakh fresh scholarships/year | starts Class IX | renewable to XII | income <= Rs 3.5 lakh | Class VII: 55% | SC/ST: 5% relaxation | NSP

CHECK YOUR RECALL

1. What is the main dropout stage that NMMSS seeks to address?

2. What are the parental-income and Class VII marks criteria?

3. Which school categories are excluded from NMMSS?

Mecca Defence Pact

International Relations | West Asia | Collective security

WHY IN NEWS: Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye signed the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in Mecca amid growing regional tensions.

IN ONE LINE: The Mecca Defence Pact is a trilateral Saudi Arabia-Pakistan-Türkiye defence arrangement built around collective deterrence, closer defence cooperation and a mutual-defence clause.

Members and objective

• Members: Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye.

• Official name: Mecca Joint Defence Agreement; signed in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in August 2026.

• Its objectives are to strengthen collective deterrence against aggression, promote peace and stability, and deepen strategic and defence cooperation among the three countries.

Background

• The pact builds on the Saudi Arabia-Pakistan Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement of 2025, which created a mutual-defence framework between those two countries.

• It emerged amid heightened geopolitical tensions and changing security dynamics in West Asia.

Core provision: mutual defence

• An armed attack on any one member is to be treated as an attack on all three members.

• This is often compared with NATO’s collective-defence principle, although the pact is not a NATO-style alliance.

Areas of cooperation and strategic weight

• The agreement provides for closer defence planning, military cooperation, security coordination and strategic deterrence.

• Türkiye possesses NATO’s second-largest military force.

• Saudi Arabia is the Gulf region’s leading military and economic power.

• Pakistan is the world’s only nuclear-armed Muslim-majority country.

Important limitation

• The agreement does not clearly specify the exact obligations or military commitments of each member.

MEMORY LOCK: Saudi Arabia + Pakistan + Türkiye | Mecca Joint Defence Agreement | August 2026 | attack on one = attack on all three | defence planning + military cooperation + security coordination | obligations not clearly defined

CHECK YOUR RECALL

1. Which three countries are members of the Mecca Defence Pact?

2. What does its mutual-defence clause provide?

3. What is the key limitation of the agreement?

Himalayan Serow

Biodiversity | Himalayan fauna | Species conservation

WHY IN NEWS: The Himalayan serow was recorded in the Dalhousie Forest Division of Himachal Pradesh for the first time in nearly two decades.

IN ONE LINE: The Himalayan serow is a shy, solitary mountain ungulate of steep Himalayan forests, typically found between 2,000 and 4,000 metres and absent from the Trans-Himalayan region.

Identity and taxonomy

• Scientific name: Capricornis sumatraensis thar.

• It is considered a subspecies of the mainland serow, Capricornis sumatraensis.

• Because of its distinctive appearance, it is often described as resembling a mix of a goat, donkey, cow and pig.

Distribution and habitat

• Its range is restricted to the Himalayan region, across the eastern, central and western Himalayas.

• It is absent from the Trans-Himalayan region.

• It generally occurs at elevations of 2,000-4,000 metres.

• Preferred habitat includes dense forests, rocky slopes and rugged mountain landscapes.

Behaviour and diet

• The Himalayan serow is solitary, elusive and adapted to steep terrain through strong limbs and sure-footed movement.

• It is herbivorous, feeding on grasses, leaves, shrubs and other vegetation.

Conservation status

• IUCN Red List: Near Threatened.

• CITES: Appendix I.

• Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I.

MEMORY LOCK: Capricornis sumatraensis thar | Himalayan ungulate | 2,000-4,000 m | absent Trans-Himalaya | herbivore | IUCN Near Threatened | CITES Appendix I | WPA Schedule I

CHECK YOUR RECALL

1. What is the scientific name of the Himalayan serow?

2. Which Himalayan region is it absent from?

3. Recall its IUCN, CITES and Wildlife (Protection) Act status.