National Pension System (NPS) Vatsalya

• NPS Vatsalya is a modified version of the National Pension System (NPS), designed specifically for minors.
• Under this scheme, parents or guardians will be able to open an NPS account for their children and make regular contributions until the child turns 18.
• The primary advantage of this NPS Vatsalya scheme is the potential to create significant wealth over time through compounding.
• Features – The account will convert seamlessly into a regular NPS account, allowing the beneficiary to manage their investments and savings independently.
• The scheme is expected to offer the same diverse investment options as the traditional NPS, including a mix of equity, government securities, and corporate bonds, offering flexibility for different risk profiles.
• Subscribers can opt for either an automatic choice (which adjusts investments based on the age of the subscriber) or an active choice to manage their investments.
• Partial withdrawals will likely be allowed after three years of account creation, with a cap of 25% of the contributed amount.
• Withdrawals can be made for specified purposes, such as education or medical treatment.
• It is seen as a powerful tool for financial inclusion, encouraging families to think about future financial security from a young age.
• It was first announced in the 2024-25 Budget, is poised to be a transformational financial tool for Indian families, empowering them to start saving early and consistently.

Semiconductors

India and Singapore inked agreements on semiconductor and digital technology recently.

• Semiconductors, sometimes referred to as integrated circuits (ICs) or microchips, are made from pure elements, typically silicon or germanium, or compounds such as gallium arsenide.
• In a process called doping, small amounts of impurities are added to these pure elements, causing large changes in the conductivity of the material.
• They are an essential component of electronic devices, enabling advances in communications, computing, healthcare, military systems, transportation, clean energy, and countless other applications.
• Due to their role in the fabrication of electronic devices, semiconductors are an important part of our lives. Imagine life without electronic devices.
• Properties – At zero Kelvin, a semiconductor serves as an insulator and it functions as a conductor as the temperature increases.
• They have higher resistivity than conductors but a lower resistivity than insulators.
• They have higher resistivity than conductors but a lower resistivity than insulators.
• As the temperature increases, the resistance of semiconductor materials decreases, and vice versa.

Tibetan Plateau

• Historically, Tibet was much larger than the autonomous region, being made up of 3 major areas such as:
  1. U-Tsang
  2. Amdo
  3. Kham
• While most of U-Tsang is in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, the other two lie outside it.
• Lhasa is the capital of Tibet Autonomous Region and the languages spoken are Tibetan and Mandarin.
• The Tibetan Plateau stretches miles into the sky, creating an environment drastically different from the lower atmosphere.
• This extreme altitude translates to significantly thinner air and is occupied with lower air density relatively.
• Beyond the air’s density, the Tibetan Plateau is a meteorological maelstrom.
• Violent wind patterns, unpredictable turbulence, and sudden storms are common occurrences.
• Due to these reasons no flight passes thorough the Tibetan Plateau.
• Tibet could be divided into two broad geographic divisions such as:
  1. ‘Lake region’ in the West
  2. ‘River region’ to the East and South
• The “lake region” is an arid and wind-swept desert.
• It has a very arid alpine climate on account of the very high mountain barriers with annual precipitation around 100 millimetres and has no river outlet.
• Mountain Peaks – The prominent Mountain perks of Tibet are:
  • The Changtse, Lhotse, Makalu, Gauri Sankar, Gurla Mandhata, Cho Oyu, Mount Kailash, Namcha Barwa, Shishapangma and Yangra.
• Rivers – Tibet is the principal water tank of Asia and the source of some of the world’s largest rivers.
• Tibet accounts for 6% of the annual throughput of water in Asia with around 90% of this water flowing outside the region through the rivers that originate in this region.
• Major Rivers that originate in the Tibet include:
  • Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra in India),
  • Machu (Yellow River in China) and Drichu (Yangtse in China),
  • Senge Khabab (Indus in India) and Phungchu (Arun in India),
  • Gyalmo Ngulchu (Salween in Burma) and Zachu (Mekong in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos).
• Native Wildlife – Tibetan antelope, wild yak, wild ass and Tibetan argali, blue sheep, black-necked crane, Tibetan gazelle, giant panda, red panda, golden monkey.