A recent study shows that Climate change is causing glaciers and ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica to melt at an accelerating rate, redistributing weight across the planet and slightly slowing down the Earth's rotation on its axis. The Earth has been spinning slightly faster than normal for a few decades. Timekeepers have added an extra "leap second" to clocks worldwide to adjust for this increase in speed of Earth’s rotation – they have done this 27 times since the 1970s. The plan was to remove this leap second for the first time in 2026, a change they called the "Negative leap second.".
Recently, a deadly tornado struck Mainaguri in Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal, killing five and injuring over a hundred, highlighting the increasing frequency of tornadoes in India. A tornado is a rotating column of air that forms from a thunderstorm and touches the ground, while over the sea it is known as a waterspout. Any collision of warm, moist air with dry, cool air in the presence of a low-pressure system like a trough causes thunderstorms and tornadoes.
India aims to construct its first commercial crude oil strategic storage to bolster reserves as a precaution against potential supply interruptions. Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL) has invited bids for building 2.5 million tonnes of underground storage at Padur in Karnataka.
Recently, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has approved the setting up of Bima Sugam — an online insurance marketplace (like an e-commerce platform) for buying, selling, and servicing insurance policies as well as settling claims. It will onboard all the companies that offer life and non-life insurance products under one roof. Bima Sugam will serve as a unified platform, integrating with government databases, insurers, intermediaries, and insurance repositories.
Recently, the Hurun Global Rich List, 2024 is released by the Hurun Research Institute. This is the 13th year of the ranking. According to the List, Mumbai became the fastest-growing billionaire capital in the world with 92 billionaires, adding 26 since the previous year, taking it third in the world. Mumbai has now surpassed Beijing as Asia's billionaire capital.
Recently, a terror attack at Moscow's Crocus City Hall claimed over 137 lives, reigniting concerns about the resurgence of the Islamic State (IS) and its growing terror capabilities. Experts believe the attack was likely carried out by IS Khorasan (IS-K), the group's Afghanistan-Pakistan branch.
