Educate Girls Wins 2025 Ramon Magsaysay Award

Educate Girls, an Indian NGO that works to bring out-of-school girls into classrooms, has won the 2025 Ramon Magsaysay Award.

• It is the first Indian organisation (not an individual) to receive this award, often referred to as the “Nobel Prize of Asia.”

What is the Ramon Magsaysay Award?

• Asia’s most prestigious award, given annually for exceptional courage, integrity, and service to people.
• Established: 1957, by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund in memory of Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay (who died in a plane crash in 1957).
• Eligibility: Individuals and organisations from Asia that demonstrate “greatness of spirit in selfless service to the people.”
• Features: Each awardee receives a medallion with Magsaysay’s image, a certificate, and a cash prize.

Indian Winners:

• Vinoba Bhave (1958): First Indian recipient.
• In recent years:
  • Bezwada Wilson and T.M. Krishna (2016) – Human Rights; Carnatic Music.
  • Bharat Vatwani and Sonam Wangchuk (2018) – Restoring Health & Dignity; Community Education.
  • Ravish Kumar (2019) – Journalism.
  • Ravi Kannan R. (2023) – Healthcare.
  • 2025 Special Mention: Educate Girls became the first Indian organisation to win.

About Educate Girls NGO

• Full Name: Foundation to Educate Girls Globally (popularly known as Educate Girls).
• Founded: 2007 by Safeena Husain, a graduate of the London School of Economics.
• Objective: To break the cycle of illiteracy and poverty by promoting girls’ education in rural and disadvantaged areas.
• Motto: “One girl at a time.”

Functions & Initiatives:

• Community mobilisation: Identifying out-of-school girls, enrolling them, and ensuring retention.
• Government partnerships: Expanding programmes with state government support.
• Innovative finance: Launched the world’s first Development Impact Bond in education (2015).
• Pragati Programme: Open schooling for women aged 15–29 to complete secondary education.

Impact: Now active in over 30,000 villages, benefitting more than 2 million girls, with a retention rate of over 90%.

Sea-Level Rise

• Between 1930–2019, the sea level rose by about 0.3 meters, indicating long-term acceleration.
• Rate of rise: 1–1.8 mm/year (1930–59), 2.7–4.1 mm/year (1960–92), 3.9–4.8 mm/year (1990–2019).
• Since 1959, the average rise has been 3.2 mm/year, reaching ~4 mm/year over the last 20–30 years.
• In the Maldives–Lakshadweep region, sea level has risen by 30–40 cm in the past 50 years.

Key Findings:

• Acceleration in sea-level rise began in the 1950s, not in the 1990s as earlier believed.
• Coral growth bands and uranium dating provided accurate long-term sea-level records.
• Coral interruptions are linked to El Niño, Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD), and lunar cycles, which affect tides.
• In the central Indian Ocean, specific regional factors caused earlier and faster rise compared to coastal areas.

Causes of Sea-Level Rise:

• Thermal Expansion: Oceans absorb heat, water expands, leading to continuous global sea-level rise.
• Glacier & Ice Sheet Melting: Huge volumes of freshwater from the Himalayas, Arctic, and Antarctica flow directly into oceans.
• Indian Ocean Warming: Above-average heating intensifies currents and circulation, causing higher local rise.
• Climate Variability: Events like El Niño, IOD, and wind shifts amplify regional fluctuations.

Impacts:

• Ecological: Reduced sunlight for corals → coral bleaching, coastal erosion, reef ecosystem disruption.
• Social: Populations of low-lying islands like Maldives and Lakshadweep face displacement and loss of homes.
• Economic: Severe long-term damage to fisheries, tourism, and infrastructure – the lifeline of island economies.
• Geopolitical: Displacement will create climate refugees, challenging governance and regional security.

Way Forward:

• Monitoring: Use coral microatolls, tide gauges, and satellites to generate accurate long-term data.
• Coastal Resilience: Restore mangroves, build embankments, adopt climate-resilient infrastructure.
• Regional Cooperation: Indian Ocean Rim countries must share data and develop joint adaptation strategies.
• Global Climate Action: Fulfill Paris Agreement goals, cut emissions, and slow ocean warming.
• For India: Prioritize Lakshadweep, focusing on ecological protection, disaster preparedness, and adaptation investments.

Conclusion:

Sea-level rise in the Indian Ocean is occurring earlier and faster than expected, threatening islands and coastal life. Coral microatolls provide crucial historical evidence for future predictions. Adaptation, cooperation, and urgent emission reduction are essential to safeguard the region.

Bhairav Commando Battalion

Source: Deccan Herald (DH)

Context:
The Indian Army is setting up the first five ‘Bhairav’ Commando Battalions to strengthen its swift strike capability along the borders with China and Pakistan.

About Bhairav Commando Battalion

What is it?

• Newly created light commando battalions (each with about 250 soldiers), raised through the “Save and Raise” method.
• Soldiers have been drawn from existing infantry battalions, not recruited afresh.
• Will supplement the Army’s existing 10 Para-SF (Special Forces) and 5 Para (Airborne) battalions.

Objectives:

• Enhance swift strike capability along the borders with China and Pakistan.
• Relieve Para-Special Forces so they can focus on strategic, high-risk, deep-penetration operations.
• Provide rapid and effective response in changing battlefield conditions, especially in drone-dominated environments.

Key Features

• Unit Size: ~250 soldiers, 7–8 officers per battalion.
• Training:
  • 2–3 months at regimental centres
  • +1 month of advanced training with Special Forces.
• Equipment: Modern weapons, drones, surveillance systems, and tactical gear.
• Agility: Smaller than Infantry (~800 soldiers) and Para-SF (~620 soldiers), but more flexible and mobile.
• Deployment Locations (first 5 units):
  • 3 in Northern Command – Leh, Srinagar, Nagrota
  • 1 in Western Desert sector
  • 1 in Eastern Mountain sector

Roles & Tasks

• Reconnaissance and disrupting enemy troop activities.
• Providing tactical support in disputed cross-border areas.
• Operate across mountains, deserts, and border zones.
• Act as a force multiplier to artillery and drone-based modern warfare units.

Significance

• Bridges the operational gap between regular Infantry and elite Special Forces.
• Marks a step in the Army’s strategic modernization drive.
• Complements other new formations like the Rudra Brigade, Shaktibaan Regiment, and Divyastra Batteries.