25 June 2026

3 articles1 high importance3 with quiz

•Neuroscientists at the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, identified the brain circuit that produces cold allodynia — pain triggered by ordinarily harmless cold — a common side effect of chemotherapy.
•The study, published online in Cell Reports on 25 June 2026, traced inputs from the lateral parabrachial nuclei in the brainstem to the parafascicular nuclei of the medial thalamus in mice.
•Those thalamic neurons were nociceptive, sensitised by peripheral neuropathy and acutely aversive, driving both the sensory and the affective-motivational responses to cold pain.

•The Department of Food and Public Distribution released the draft National Food Security (Amendment) Bill, 2026 on 25 June 2026 and invited stakeholder comments until 13 July 2026.
•It proposes to amend the first proviso to Section 3(1) of the National Food Security Act, 2013, so that every member of an Antyodaya Anna Yojana household is entitled to 7 kg of foodgrains a month, subject to a ceiling of 35 kg per household.
•At present AAY households receive a flat 35 kg per household per month regardless of size, while Priority Households receive 5 kg per person per month.

•The Ministry of External Affairs clarified in June 2026 that an Indian passport is primarily a travel document and not conclusive proof of citizenship.
•A passport is issued on the basis that the holder is believed to be a citizen, but it neither confers citizenship nor settles a dispute about it.
•Passports are governed by the Passports Act, 1967, while citizenship is governed by the Citizenship Act, 1955.