8th August 2025

Explanation - Legal Insanity is a term used to describe a mental state that is severe enough to prevent a person from having legal capacity and excuses them from criminal responsibility. It is a recognised defence in criminal law. It is based on the assumption that at the time of the crime, the defendant was suffering from severe mental illness and therefore, was incapable of appreciating the nature of the crime and differentiating right from wrong behaviour, hence making them not legally accountable for the crime. The insanity defence is a legal concept, not a clinical one (medical one). This means that just suffering from a mental disorder is not sufficient to prove insanity. To benefit from legal insanity, the accused must establish, often through psychiatric or psychological evaluations, that they were not in control of their reasoning faculties during the commission of the prohibited act. The accused must present a prima facie case, supported by reasonable materials, to establish their legal insanity. This may involve presenting evidence of their conduct before, during, or immediately after the offence, along with relevant medical documentation. The objective is to convince the court that, due to mental incapacity, the accused should be exempt from full criminal responsibility. There are different types of legal insanity, such as emotional insanity, which is when a person experiences a violent excitement of emotions or passions that creates complete derangement of intellect. Another type is temporary insanity, which only exists at the time of a criminal act. Legal Insanity in Recent Judgments — The Supreme Court in Surendra Mishra vs. State of Jharkhand (AIR 2011 SC 627) emphasised that every person suffering from a mental disease is not automatically exempted from criminal liability. The accused bears the responsibility of proving legal insanity and the onus can be discharged by demonstrating their conduct with reference to their medical condition. 

Explanation - District Flood Severity Index accounts for the historical severity of floods in India based on the number of people they have affected and the spread and duration of such floods. Parameters used — It takes into account the mean duration in days of all flooding events in a district. Percentage of area that is historically flooded Total number of deaths, number of people injured Population in the district It is developed using the India Flood Inventory with Impacts (IFI-Impacts) database containing data of variables representing the occurrence of floods and damage due to floods. India Flood Inventory with Impacts contains death and damage statistics, and combines population and historically flooded area information sourced from a national hydrologic-hydrodynamic modelling system. Since the district is the most relevant unit for planning and decision making, a DFSI would be of immense value for flood management. 

Explanation - It was set up as a statutory body in January 1992 under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990. Its mission is to strive towards enabling women to achieve equality and equal participation in all spheres of life by securing her due rights and entitlements through suitable policy formulation, legislative measures, etc. 

Explanation - The PMMVY is targeted only at women delivering their first child. A cash amount of ₹6,000 is transferred to the bank account of the beneficiary in three instalments upon meeting certain conditions including early registration of pregnancy, having at least one ante-natal checkup and registration of child birth. 

Explanation - Biochar is a type of charcoal rich in carbon and is produced from agricultural residue and organic municipal solid waste. It offers a sustainable alternative to manage waste and capture carbon. It is granular material obtained by heating crop residue at 400°C to 600°C in a kiln-shaped structure in the absence of oxygen. This process is called pyrolysis, which involves heating biomass in low-oxygen conditions. 

Advantage of Biochar — It can hold carbon in the soil for 100-1,000 years due to its strong and stable characteristics, making it an effective long-term carbon sink. Research shows that biochar produced at pyrolysis temperatures above 550°C holds a 75% fraction of polycyclic aromatic carbon (PAC), which will persist after soil application for more than 1000 years. 

Potential Applications of Biochar —
Agriculture: Applying biochar can improve water retention, particularly in semi-dry and nutrient-depleted soils. This, in turn, can abate nitrous oxide emissions by 30-50%. Studies demonstrate that biochar at high application rates significantly suppresses N₂O emissions, with reductions of 19% at 20 t/ha application rates and up to 48% at 50 t/ha rates. 

Industries: In carbon capture applications, modified biochar can adsorb CO₂ from industrial exhaust gases. However, its carbon removal efficiency is currently lower than that of conventional methods. While biochar shows promise for CO₂ capture, studies indicate that conventional carbon capture and storage technologies currently outperform biochar in industrial applications.