India – Mali Launch First Trade Forum
Context: India and Mali launched the first India–Mali Forum for the Promotion of Exports in Bamako to institutionalise bilateral economic cooperation amid growing trade and investment ties.
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Key Highlights
- First Trade Forum: Held under the theme “Reinforcing Trade and Strategic Partnerships.”
- Organised by: Mali’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Embassy of India in Bamako, and the Malian Agency for the Promotion of Exports (APEX-Mali).
- Engagement: The forum featured Business-to-Business (B2B), Business-to-Government (B2G), and Government-to-Government (G2G) meetings to promote commercial partnerships and MoUs.
- APEX-Mali presented “Ready-Made Business Plans” that highlighted immediate investment opportunities.
- Priority Areas of Cooperation: Both countries identified the following sectors for deeper cooperation: Cotton and textiles; Mining and energy; Agro-industry and shea processing; Pharmaceuticals; and Social infrastructure, including healthcare and education.
- Key Requests:
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- Mali sought India’s support for the Digitisation of its Certificate of Origin system and the Faster registration of approved Indian pharmaceutical products.
- India requested a Review of Mali’s shea nut export ban and the Safety and security of Indian nationals and investments in Mali.
- Roadmap: Mali reaffirmed its commitment to creating a secure business environment under its Vision Mali 2063 roadmap.
Bilateral Trade between India and Mali
- Trade Growth: India–Mali bilateral trade reached USD 326.61 million in FY 2025–26, registering a 55% increase over the previous financial year.
- Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme: India’s Duty-Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) Scheme has significantly boosted bilateral trade.
- Untapped Export Potential: Mali’s untapped export potential in the Indian market is estimated at USD 3.96 billion.
- Mali’s exports to India: Raw cotton, Finished leather, Cashew, Lead, Gum arabic, Sesame.
- India’s exports to Mali: Pharmaceuticals, Cotton fabrics, Two- and three-wheelers, Bicycles.
Banyan Tree (Ficus benghalensis)
Context: Scientists from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences confirmed Bihar’s Munger Banyan to be about 700 years old through radiocarbon dating, making it the world’s oldest scientifically dated banyan tree.
About Banyan Tree (Ficus benghalensis)
- The Banyan (Ficus benghalensis) is a large evergreen fig tree belonging to the Moraceae family and is recognised as the National Tree of India.
- Native: Indian subcontinent, including India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and is widely distributed across tropical South Asia.
- National Status: It is designated as the National Tree of India.
- It is also the official state tree for both Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
- Features
- Growth Habit: The Banyan develops aerial prop roots from its branches that descend to the ground and form additional trunks, enabling the tree to spread over extensive areas.
- Leaves and Fruits: It has large leathery leaves and produces small fig fruits (syconia) that are pollinated by species-specific fig wasps through a unique mutualistic relationship.
- Ecological Characteristics: The tree provides year-round food and shelter for birds, bats, insects and mammals, functioning as a keystone species that supports biodiversity and ecosystem stability.
- Significance
- Ecological Importance: The Banyan enhances carbon sequestration, prevents soil erosion, improves microclimatic conditions and sustains diverse wildlife through its extensive canopy and root system.
- Cultural and Religious Importance: The tree is revered in Indian traditions as a symbol of longevity, wisdom and immortality, and serves as a focal point for community gatherings and religious ceremonies.
- Conservation Importance: Scientific dating using Accelerator Mass Spectrometry radiocarbon techniques provides reliable age estimates, supporting the conservation of heritage trees and historical landscapes.
The Banyan Tree is an ecologically vital, culturally revered and scientifically valuable heritage species that supports biodiversity, climate resilience and conservation of India’s natural legacy.
Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas (PYA)
Context: The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying conducted the third national-level Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas in Madhya Pradesh to strengthen zoonotic disease preparedness.
About Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas (PYA)
- Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas (PYA) is a national-level mock drill designed to strengthen India’s preparedness for animal health emergencies and zoonotic disease outbreaks.
- Origin: It is conducted under the National One Health Mission to operationalise India’s integrated response framework for emerging and re-emerging zoonotic diseases.
- Organised By: Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying (MoFAHD).
- Conducted in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), National Centre for Disease Control, Indian Council of Medical Research, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, State Governments, and the National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT).
- Objective: To evaluate and strengthen India’s preparedness, coordination mechanisms and emergency response for managing zoonotic disease outbreaks under the One Health approach.
- Key Initiatives
- One Health-Based Simulation: Simulates zoonotic disease outbreaks involving the animal, human and wildlife sectors to validate coordinated emergency response mechanisms.
- End-to-End Response Testing: Tests disease surveillance, early warning, reporting, field investigation, laboratory diagnosis, containment, biosecurity and public communication.
- Intersectoral Coordination: Integrates veterinary, public health, wildlife, food safety, laboratories and district administration for unified outbreak management.
About National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT)
- The National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) is a multidisciplinary rapid response mechanism for managing zoonotic disease outbreaks under the One Health approach.
- Origin: Established in 2024 under the National One Health Mission to strengthen integrated disease surveillance and emergency response.
- Role and Functions
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- Conducts rapid epidemiological investigations and coordinates surveillance, containment and outbreak response.
- Facilitates field and laboratory diagnosis, including deployment of Bio-Safety Level-3 laboratories when required.
- Participates in national mock drills such as Pashujanya Yudh Abhyas and Vishanu Yuddh Abhyas to strengthen intersectoral preparedness and response capacity.
Significance
PYA strengthens India’s One Health framework by improving early detection, rapid response and inter-agency coordination against zoonotic diseases, protecting public health, livestock and food security.
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Radio Telemetry
Context: Radio telemetry data helped monitor a radio-tagged White-rumped Vulture (Z25), but the bird died after colliding with a power transmission line in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve.
About Radio Telemetry
- Radio telemetry is a remote monitoring technique that transmits data from tagged subjects to a receiver using radio waves for real-time tracking and analysis.
- Working Mechanism
- Sensor and Radio Transmitter: A radio transmitter attached to the subject records parameters such as location or physiological data and converts them into radio signals.
- Radio signals are electromagnetic waves (3 kHz–300 GHz) that travel at the speed of light and wirelessly transmit information by varying their amplitude or frequency for decoding by antennas.
- Signal Transmission: The transmitter broadcasts encoded radio signals through an antenna, enabling data transmission across remote or inaccessible landscapes.
- Reception and Analysis: A receiver captures and decodes the signals into actionable information for monitoring movement, behaviour and environmental conditions.
- Applications
- Wildlife Conservation: Radio telemetry tracks migration, habitat use, breeding behaviour and survival of endangered wildlife, supporting scientific conservation and species recovery.
- Healthcare: Hospitals use radio telemetry to continuously monitor patients’ heart rhythms and vital signs without restricting movement.
- Aerospace and Industrial Monitoring: It enables real-time monitoring of aircraft performance, pipelines, power infrastructure and other critical engineering systems.
About White-rumped Vulture
- The White-rumped Vulture (Gyps bengalensis) is a large scavenging bird native to the Indian subcontinent and plays a vital ecological role by removing animal carcasses.
- Features
- It is distinguished by a white rump, pale underwing coverts and a featherless head adapted for scavenging.
- The species feeds primarily on carrion, helping prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
- Habitat: It inhabits open forests, grasslands, agricultural landscapes and areas near human settlements across South Asia.
- Conservation Status
- IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered.
- Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I protection.
- CITES: Appendix II.
- Major Threats (UPSC Prelims ): The principal cause of decline is poisoning from the veterinary drug Diclofenac, along with habitat loss, food scarcity and electrocution from power lines.
Significance: White-rumped Vultures provide essential ecosystem services by rapidly disposing of carcasses, thereby reducing disease transmission and maintaining ecological and public health.
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Nameri Tiger Reserve
Context: The Nameri Tiger Reserve’s tiger population increased from 3 in 2022 to 12 in 2025, highlighting a major conservation success validated by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
About Nameri Tiger Reserve
- It is a biodiversity-rich protected area in Sonitpur district, Assam, forming part of the Sonitpur Elephant Reserve.
- It is an important habitat for tigers, elephants, rare birds and Eastern Himalayan flora and fauna.
- Establishment: Declared as a Reserve Forest in 1978, Notified as a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1985, and upgraded as a National Park (1998)
- Declared a Tiger Reserve under Project Tiger, becoming Assam’s second tiger reserve in 2000.
- Location: Located in Sonitpur district of Assam along the foothills of the Eastern Himalayas.
- The Jia-Bharali River forms its southern boundary and sustains the reserve’s ecosystem.
- Bordering Tiger Reserve: Shares a contiguous northern boundary with Pakke (Pakhui) Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh.
- Together, they form an ecologically connected transboundary tiger and elephant landscape.
- Status of Tigers: Tiger population increased from 3 (AITE 2022) to 12 (2025), as validated by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
- Tigers have also been successfully reintroduced into the Sonai Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary which is Nameri’s satellite core, after local extinction.
Key Features of the Reserve
- Vegetation: Dominated by Assam Valley Tropical Evergreen and Semi-Evergreen forests.
- Also contains moist deciduous forests, bamboo brakes, cane brakes and riverine grasslands.
- Climate: Experiences a sub-tropical monsoon climate with high rainfall and humidity.
- Hydrology is sustained by the Jia-Bharali, Bor-Dikorai and Diji rivers.
- Wildlife
- Mammals: Bengal Tiger, Asian Elephant, Clouded Leopard, Leopard, Dhole, Gaur and Sloth Bear.
- Birds: Endangered White-winged Wood Duck (Assam’s State Bird), Great Hornbill and over 370 bird species.
- Aquatic fauna: Home to the Golden Mahseer, an important freshwater game fish.
- Significance: Nameri Tiger Reserve conserves Eastern Himalayan biodiversity, strengthens interstate wildlife corridors, and protects globally threatened species such as the White-winged Wood Duck and Bengal Tiger.
4 Jul 2026
