9 PM Current Affairs Brief – April 11th, 2018

State election panels: Independent of central EC, with similar powers Context Amid a standoff between the Bengal State Election Commission and BJP over the withdrawal of a notification that had extended the last date for nominations in panchayat polls, Indian Express explains an SEC’s role and powers. What is a State Election Commission’s mandate? How is… Continue reading State election panels: Independent of central EC, with similar powers

Supreme order Context Judgment in Hadiya case is a robust defence of the individual’s rights against the writ of clan, community, family HC judgement The court had annulled the marriage of a 24-year-old adult, Hadiya, arguing that a girl her age was “weak and vulnerable,” and that “marriage being the most important decision in her life,… Continue reading Supreme order

A fresh deadline Context Devise a viable Cauvery scheme soon,stop disruptive protests What has happened? The Centre cannot continue to evade its legal obligation to create a mechanism to implement the Supreme Court’s final verdict in the Cauvery dispute. This was the broad message conveyed by the court on Monday when it admonished the government… Continue reading A fresh deadline

Aadhaar-PAN link doesn’t vitiate privacy’ What has happened? Noting that the usages like ‘legitimate State interest’ and ‘larger public interest’ mean one and the same, the UIDAI on Tuesday argued that linking of PAN card with Aadhaar does not amount to a violation of fundamental right to privacy. Arguments presented by UIDAI counsel Supreme Court… Continue reading Aadhaar-PAN link doesn’t vitiate privacy’

New norms for global projects Context Govt. departments must follow Indian rules in contracts What has happened? The Central Vigilance Commission has drawn up a new set of guidelines for projects funded by international agencies such as the World Bank, IMF and Asian Development Bank Govt departments to follow Indian rules The new guidelines will… Continue reading New norms for global projects

A new beginning with Nepal Context From all accounts, the Nepali PM’s visit went well but it will take pragmatism and patient nurturing on both sides to restore the trust and confidence Shift in Nepal PM of Nepal is shrewd enough to realise that his campaign rhetoric of Nepali nationalism with overt shades of anti-Indianism… Continue reading A new beginning with Nepal

A register by the people Context The draft National Forest Policy identifies threats to forests, but does not provide systems for public involvement. Question asked How much forest cover does India actually have? Data: State of Forests report Forest cover had increased in India by 0.21% in 2017 from 2015 but at the same time… Continue reading A register by the people

Banks seek review of RBI norms on restructuring of stressed assets What has happened? The central bank has issued new rules to ensure faster recovery of bad loans, as banks could recover only Rs 7,106 crore of written-off loans till December 31, 2017 while a total of Rs 84,272 crore worth of bad loans were written-off… Continue reading Banks seek review of RBI norms on restructuring of stressed assets

Internal e-waybills in 5 States from April 15 What has happened? The Union government on Tuesday announced that it would be rolling out the e-waybill system for intra-State transport of goods in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh on April 15 In phases The GST Council had said it would roll out the… Continue reading Internal e-waybills in 5 States from April 15