Research

Mesalina lizards are small, swift, day-active reptiles usually associated with arid and semi-arid regions. They are adapted to dry terrain, open ground, sparse vegetation and harsh desert conditions. Until now, the presence of this genus in India remained uncertain. A historical reference by British zoologist Malcolm A. Smith in 1935 had mentioned Mesalina watsonana from Jaisalmer, but that record lacked specimen-based confirmation. The new discovery from Bikaner now provides verified scientific evidence that Mesalina occurs in India.

Majuli occupies a unique place in India’s geography and culture. Located within the powerful river system of the Brahmaputra and Subansiri, it is known for its living cultural heritage, tribal settlements and Neo-Vaishnavite traditions. At the same time, the island has been deeply shaped by floods, erosion and changing river courses. Its landscape carries both civilisational richness and ecological vulnerability, making it one of the most important riverine regions for studying climate adaptation.

The discovery was made from Kiphire district in Nagaland, a part of the eastern Himalayan and Indo-Burma biodiversity landscape. This region is known for its forested hills, streams, waterfalls and moist habitats that support a rich variety of amphibians. Cascade frogs usually live around fast-flowing hill streams and waterfalls, where they cling to wet rocks, breed in flowing water and depend on clean aquatic ecosystems for survival.

The project has been approved under the Telecom Technology Development Fund through Digital Bharat Nidhi. SAMEER Kolkata, an autonomous research and development organisation under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, is working with the three IITs on a testbed that explores one of the most advanced frontiers in future wireless communication: the terahertz band.

Modern chemical manufacturing often depends on high temperatures, toxic solvents and energy-intensive processes. These conditions increase cost, environmental burden and industrial complexity. The new nano-catalyst offers a more sustainable route by using light energy to drive chemical reactions under milder conditions. The PIB release says the technology could reduce the use of toxic solvents, lower energy consumption and make chemical production more environmentally friendly.

Traditional immunofluorescence imaging has been one of the most useful tools for studying proteins in their natural cellular environment. Its limitation, however, has been multiplexing capacity. Conventional methods are usually restricted to around four or five protein targets because different fluorescent dyes overlap spectrally and become difficult to separate cleanly. The CLEAR platform tackles this bottleneck by allowing the same sample to be labelled, imaged, erased and labelled again in repeated cycles.

The study was conducted by researchers from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science and Technology. The team used a multi-proxy approach that combined palynofacies analysis with advanced molecular techniques such as Raman spectroscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy. In simple terms, the scientists studied tiny fragments of organic matter preserved inside sedimentary rocks and then used molecular tools to identify whether those particles were linked to ancient fire events.

Indian researchers have developed a cost-effective, high-performance thermal energy storage material that could improve the

The specific challenge studied by the researchers is highly relevant to semi-cryogenic propulsion. In such engines, high-temperature gaseous oxygen can come into direct contact with liquid oxygen and must condense before entering the main pump. If the condensation remains incomplete, residual gas can disturb the pump’s performance and affect the smooth feeding of propellants into the engine. This is not a small laboratory curiosity; it is the kind of hidden internal behaviour that can determine whether a high-performance rocket engine runs efficiently and safely.