Exploring cyanobacteria from diverse habitats of the Konkan region of India, unveiling novel species of the genera Desikacharya, Pseudoaliinostoc, and Chlorogloeopsis using a polyphasic approach.

The Indian subcontinent has emerged as a natural habitat to several cyanobacterial taxa which have been explored and described in the past few years using a polyphasic approach. Various new genera and species of Nostoc morphotypes, heteropolar unbranched as well as branched heterocytous cyanobacteria, have been described from various parts of India such as the central mainland, temperate hill stations of extreme northern India, and the biodiversity hotspots of northeast India. Konkan, a small strip of land bounded by Arabian sea on the west and Sahyadri mountains on the east, has various habitats such as coastal beds, old monuments, freshwater lakes, and rivers; however, this region has been less charted in modern cyanobacterial systematics, relative to others.

The 5G Question and India's Conundrum.

This article examines the Indian response to the ongoing debate on 5G technology. It explores the divergence between the government and the industry stakeholders on the issue in India - particularly in the context of deteriorating Sino-Indian ties. Though the Indian government is yet to announce its stand on Chinese telecom equipment manufacturers, and as such, India's vacillation on 5G may look indecisive, given how various stakeholders are divided on the question of sourcing the equipment from the People's Republic of China, this delay also may represent a sophistication in India's outlook on this important questions, warrantinga cautious, "wait and watch" approach to arrive at a decision.