Category: 7 PM Brief Infograph

Context: Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020 More in News: The Union Cabinet has approved the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020 to amend the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971.  Background: The Indian Penal Code, enacted in 1860 based on British law, declared induced abortion illegal (Section 312), describing it as intentionally ‘causing… Continue reading 7PM |Seeking a more progressive abortion law|10th February 2020

Context: SC ruling on the office of Speaker. More in news: Recently, the Supreme Court of India while adjudicating upon the matter relating to the disqualification of MLAs in the Manipur Legislative Assembly under the Tenth Schedule in Keisham Meghachandra Singh vs. the Hon’ble Speaker Manipur Legislative Assembly & Ors. made a significant suggestion. The Issue: The… Continue reading 7 PM |Course correction for the Speaker’s office|6th February 2020

Context: Urban India and mitigating the climate crisis. More in news: Australia’s recent bout of bushfires, sparked by an extended drought, has devastated its local flora and fauna. Indonesia’s capital Jakarta witnessed record-breaking flooding with unseasonal rainfall, displacing tens of thousands.  Recent events signaling towards climate crisis: In 2018 Kerala witnessed heavy flooding, combined with… Continue reading 7 PM |Urban India must prepare for the climate crisis|5th February 2020

Context: Key highlights of the Union Budget 2020-2021. More in news: Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled a series of far-reaching reforms, aimed at energizing the Indian economy through a combination of short-term, medium-term, and long term measures in the first union budget of the third decade of 21st century. Status of Indian Economy: Economic… Continue reading 7 PM |A workmanlike account: on Budget 2020-21 |3rd February 2020

Context: FRBM Act. More in news: Fiscal deficit has become a key factor to watch out for in every Budget presentation. It is considered the most important marker of a government’s financial health. Budget: The word ‘budget’ has not been used in the Constitution of India. Rather Article 112 of the Constitution of India mentions the… Continue reading 7 PM |The ugly truth about India’s adherence to the FRBM Act|31st January 2020

Context: Coronavirus. More in news: On 31 December 2019, WHO was alerted to several cases of pneumonia in Wuhan City, Hubei Province of China. The virus did not match any other known virus. This raised concern because when a virus is new, we do not know how it affects people. One week later, on 7… Continue reading 7 PM |China has responded promptly, but its efforts may have come a bit too late: On novel Coronavirus|30th January 2020

Context: Prison Reforms. More in News: Recently, the ministry of home affairs released the Prison Statistics India (PSI) 2018 report. Prison Statistics India: Prison Statistics India is the latest in the series of annual statistical reports being brought out by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). NCRB was established in 1986 with a mandate to empower Indian… Continue reading 7 PM |India’s prison system needs urgent reform|29th January 2020

Context: Bt Cotton in India. More in news: Hundreds of farmers gathered in Hiwri village of Yavatmal district in Maharashtra on January 5, 2020 in their attempt to prove the unapproved variety of cotton (HTBt) gave higher yields at a more reasonable cost as compared to the approved [insect-resistant] variety (Bt cotton). The Supreme Court… Continue reading 7 PM |A case of wholehearted biotechnology adoption: On GM crop|28th January 2020

Context: India-Brazil Relations. More in news: President Jair Bolsonaro to be the chief guest in Republic Day celebrations of 2020. India – Brazil Relations: India and Brazil share a very close and multifaceted relationship at bilateral level as well as in plurilateral fora such as BRICS, BASIC, G-20, G-4, IBSA, International Solar Alliance, Biofuture Platform and in the… Continue reading 7 PM |The final frontier: Bolsonaro’s Republic Day visit should spur strategic bilateral ties and open doors to Latin America|25th January 2020

Context: Upcoming budget and the fiscal deficit. More in news: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present her second Union Budget on February 1, 2020. The fiscal deficit for FY20 and its roadmap for FY21 could be heading towards a recalibration with the February Budget slated to hint at the targeted 3 percent fiscal… Continue reading 7 PM |Will the Budget suspend the FRBM’s fiscal deficit goals?|24th January 2020