• On May 2, India and the United Kingdom signed a fresh UK-India Programme of Cultural Cooperation aimed at enhancing ties in fields such as arts and culture, creative sectors, tourism, and sports. This agreement is expected to pave the way for greater UK creative exports to India and foster new collaborations between cultural institutions and museums from both countries, thereby expanding the UK’s cultural influence.

• A few days later, on May 6, the two nations finalized a significant Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The deal provides India with zero-duty access for industrial products and eliminates tariffs on more than 99.3% of animal-based goods, 99.8% of vegetable and oil products, and 99.7% of processed food items.

• Although India ranks as the UK’s 12th largest trading partner, its share of UK goods imports is modest—just 1.8%, amounting to $15.3 billion. In comparison, the UK’s major export destinations include the US ($71.3 billion), China ($46.4 billion), and Germany ($38.8 billion).

• In terms of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), India stands as the second-largest source of FDI into the UK, trailing only the United States. Meanwhile, the UK is India’s sixth-largest investor.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who also met UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, acknowledged Lammy’s efforts in advancing the India-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, particularly through the successful conclusion of the FTA. Modi also commended the UK for its continued support in India's efforts against cross-border terrorism.

• Lammy’s trip marked the first visit by a Foreign Minister from a P-5 country since last month’s India-Pakistan tensions. He previously visited Islamabad on May 16, where he had welcomed the ceasefire between the two countries.

• External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar called the FTA and the Double Contribution Convention major milestones, noting their potential to boost bilateral trade, investment, and strategic cooperation, particularly in supply and value chains.

• Jaishankar also highlighted the Technology Security Initiative (TSI), which aims to deepen collaboration in high-tech areas including artificial intelligence, semiconductors, telecom, quantum technologies, biotech, health tech, critical minerals, and advanced materials.

• The two nations also established the Strategic Exports and Technology Cooperation Dialogue, intended to enhance the effectiveness of the TSI by addressing licensing and regulatory challenges related to emerging and critical technologies.

• As per the British High Commission, Lammy's key focus areas during this visit were to strengthen economic and migration ties and explore growth avenues for British businesses.

• The visit comes on the heels of the historic trade deal, which is projected to add over £25 billion annually to bilateral trade, raise UK GDP by £4.8 billion, and increase wages by £2.2 billion, ultimately benefiting the working population in the UK

• Buddhism took root in India around the 5th–6th centuries BCE, during what historians refer to as the "second urbanisation" of the Indian subcontinent—a time marked by profound social and cultural shifts in the Gangetic plains. It developed alongside other non-Vedic systems like Jainism, partly as a reaction against the rigid rituals of orthodox Vedic Hinduism.

• India is home to many important Buddhist pilgrimage sites, drawing visitors and spiritual seekers from all over the world. These sacred places not only reflect the rich legacy of Buddhist teachings but also serve as peaceful locations for meditative and spiritual practices.

• Among the treasures unearthed are ornate relics, including a fish-shaped knob from a 5 cm x 10 cm relic casket, adorned with gold leaves and precious stones. Another container, discovered in a stone chest buried 18 feet underground, carried a Brahmi inscription. The inscription records that the relics of Lord Buddha were donated by the Sukirti brothers, along with their families, who belonged to the Sakya clan.

• For more than 127 years, these ancient relics—dating back to the 3rd century BCE, including five caskets, a sandstone coffer, and over 220 gems—have been carefully safeguarded in the vaults of the Indian Museum in Kolkata, away from public display.

• Now, for the first time, the Ministry of Culture is preparing to exhibit these significant relics to the public. These relics were discovered in a stupa associated with Emperor Ashoka and were donated by Buddha’s relatives, the Sakyas, according to findings reported by The Indian Express.

• Historical accounts note that in January 1898, William Claxton Peppe, son of a British estate manager, excavated a mound in Birdpur Estate and uncovered a deep shaft that led to the sandstone coffer containing ashes, bones, and other relics. Recognising their sacred value, the then Viceroy of India, Lord Elgin II, gifted the bones and ashes to King Rama V of Siam (Thailand). However, the remaining relics—caskets and the coffer—remained in India and have since been preserved by what is now the Indian Museum, Kolkata, according to its Director-in-Charge Arijit Dutta Choudhury.

• In a recent development, the Ministry of Culture issued a legal notice to Sotheby’s in Hong Kong, urging them to cancel the planned auction of some of the relics believed to be from the Peppe family's collection and to return the artefacts to India. While Sotheby’s halted the auction scheduled for May 7, India’s legal claim to recover the relics remains unresolved.

• The attempted auction of the Piprahwa relics, believed by many to be linked to Lord Buddha himself, has triggered international criticism, as it treats sacred remains as marketable items. According to Khushi Kesari, a Program Officer at the Advanced Study Institute of Asia at SGT University, Gurugram, such relics are not mere antiquities—they are spiritual symbols representing living faith for followers around the world

Why Kerala wants Wildlife Act amended to allow it to kill some wild animals?

For Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international significance

For Mains Examination: GS III - Enviroment and ecology

Context:

Kerala has sought the Union government’s nod to kill wild animals that pose a threat to human life and properties. The state wants the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 amended so it can be allowed to kill wild animals that foray into human habitats.

Read about:

Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

Human and animal conflict

Key takeaways:

• Wildlife-related conflicts have become a serious concern in Kerala, with the state government designating 273 out of 941 village panchayats as conflict-prone zones.
• The primary species involved in these incidents include tigers, leopards, elephants, bison, wild boars, bonnet macaques, and peafowls. While bonnet macaques and peafowls are not life-threatening, their persistent invasions into farmland have led many farmers to abandon large areas of cultivation.
• According to official records, from 2016-17 up to January 31, 2025, Kerala reported 919 human fatalities and 8,967 injuries resulting from wildlife encounters. The underlying causes range from inconsistent wildlife population trends and deteriorating habitats, to domestic livestock grazing in forests and shifts in crop cultivation.
• A significant contributor to the crisis is the population boom of wild pigs and various monkey species, which has intensified the conflict in human settlements. Authorities cite that the legal framework limits swift responses, especially when dealing with species listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act.
• Before a decision can be made to eliminate a threatening animal, the chief wildlife warden must be satisfied that other options—such as capturing, tranquilizing, or relocating—are not viable.
• Moreover, any captured animal cannot be confined permanently. In addition to the Act's provisions, compliance with the guidelines issued by the Tiger Conservation Authority and Project Elephant is also necessary in handling such conflicts.
• Although district collectors hold the authority to order the removal of public nuisances, courts have restricted their application in cases involving wildlife. The Kerala government has proposed reclassifying wild boars as vermin under Section 62 of the Act for a limited period and is also seeking to downgrade the bonnet macaque from Schedule I protection.
• This monkey species was granted Schedule I status in 2022, which has since curtailed the wildlife warden’s authority to independently capture and relocate problem-causing monkeys