9 PM Current Affairs Brief – April 28th, 2018

Archaeologists find child sacrifice site in Peru What has happened? Archaeologists in Peru have found evidence of the biggest-ever sacrifice of children, uncovering the remains of more than 140 youngsters who were slain alongside 200 llamas as part of a ritual offering some 550 years ago, National Geographic announced in a study Ancient pre-Columbian people said to… Continue reading Archaeologists find child sacrifice site in Peru

Collegium allotting cases will cause chaos’ What has happened? Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal on Friday differed with a plea by former Law Minister Shanti Bhushan to have a collegium of Supreme Court judges collectively allocate cases in the court rather than leave the entire power in the hands of the Chief Justice of India in his… Continue reading Collegium allotting cases will cause chaos’

‘India should get sanctions waiver’ Context Mattis seeks changes in anti-Russia law What has happened? The Secretary of State should be allowed to grant waiver to countries such as India that will otherwise come under American sanctions under a new law that intends to target Russia, Secretary of Defense James Mattis told lawmakers on Thursday… Continue reading ‘India should get sanctions waiver’

Failed by design What has happened? Insurance companies collected premiums of Rs 22,180 crore in 2016-17 and Rs 24,454 crore in 2017-18, both directly from farmers and as government subsidy, under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). The issue Low claim payments (under PMFBY) defeats the whole purpose of insurance — which is to… Continue reading Failed by design

The elephant in the Patent Office Context Patents for trivial improvements on drugs, though statutorily barred, are routinely granted What has happened? India hit the headlines when it incorporated certain anti-evergreening provisions such as Sections 3(d), 3(e) and 3(i) into the Patents Act to restrict patentability of a host of secondary patents — essentially alternative forms of… Continue reading The elephant in the Patent Office