SNIPPETS 21 FEBRUARY 2026

Tetrataenium paikadae: Recently, researchers discovered a new plant species+ The new species belongs to the carrot and coriander family called Apiaceae+ Habitat – Moist, marshy high-altitude grasslands+ Distribution – Endemic to Eravikulam National Park, Idukki district, Kerala+ Threats – Habitat degradation, climate change impacts on montane ecosystems, and human disturbances such as tourism and invasive species.

Kuno National Park: Three cubs born to a South African cheetah in Kuno National Park+ Lies in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur-Shivpuri region, in the Vindhyan landscape, named after the Kuno River+ Spread across ~74,200 hectares (around 748 sq km), known for dry deciduous forests and open grasslands+ Flora like Kardhai, Salai, Khair and diverse; fauna including deer, hyena, reptiles and over 200 bird species

VoicERA and Bhashini: An open source, end to end Voice AI stack+ Developed by: Digital India BHASHINI Division (DIBD) under Digital India Corporation (DIC), MeitY+ Function: As a national execution layer for multilingual Voice & Language AI+ It will expand BHASHINI’s capabilities from translation and language technologies to real time speech systems, conversational AI, and multilingual telephony at population scale

Municipal Bonds: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) organised a high-level consultation towards deepening Municipal Bond Market+ Marketable debt instruments issued by Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) either directly or through any intermediate (Corporate Municipal entity/statutory body/special purpose distinct entity) +Finance ULBs’ capital projects, refinance existing loans, meeting working capital requirements,  etc+ Regulation: Under Securities and Exchange Board of India ([Issue and Listing of Municipal Debt Securities]) Regulations, 2015