9 PM Current Affairs Brief – April 5th, 2018

The violent aftermath Context The court must re-examine the SC/ST Act verdict, but in an atmosphere of calm Two factors: Keeping a balance There are two disparate factors at play Protecting the innocent against harassment and misuse of a law Faithfully preserving the letter and spirit of a piece of legislation aimed at upholding the… Continue reading The violent aftermath

Confidence in the House  What has happened? The Speaker has enough powers to restore order in the Lok Sabha and act upon a notice for a no-trust vote The issue About three weeks ago, several members of Lok Sabha gave written notices to the Speaker for a no-confidence motion against the current council of ministers… Continue reading Confidence in the House 

‘EC backs one seat, one candidate policy’ What has happened? The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to respond to an affidavit filed by the Election Commission (EC) of India to amend the law to prevent candidates contesting from multiple constituencies Background A petition seeking a declaration striking down Section 33(7) of the Representation… Continue reading ‘EC backs one seat, one candidate policy’

House unites to pass Bill on medical colleges What has happened? The Assembly on Wednesday unanimously passed a Bill regularising the controversial admission of 180 students to the Karuna and Kannur self-financing private medical colleges in 2016-17. To save the future of the students Kerala Professional Colleges (Regularisation of Admission in Medical Colleges) Bill, 2018… Continue reading House unites to pass Bill on medical colleges

SC invalidates domicile rule for PG medical seats What has happened? The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared invalid a Karnataka government condition restricting postgraduate admissions for medical and dental government quota seats to students with minimum 10 years domicile in the State. Modify info bulletin SC directed Karnataka to amend and modify the information bulletin… Continue reading SC invalidates domicile rule for PG medical seats

Heeding the lines on the map Context Making a paradigm shift in South Asia’s regional integration strategy Complicated current situation: South Asian nations caught in a tug of war among themselves India-Pakistan rivalry, further complicated by China-Pakistan proximity and India-China hostility A new dimension has been added with souring of Pakistan-Bangladesh relations and the India-China… Continue reading Heeding the lines on the map

India, Japan, U.S. stress keeping sea lanes open What has happened? Senior diplomats of India, Japan and the U.S. held the 9th trilateral meeting here on Wednesday, focusing on connectivity, counter-terrorism and other regional and global issues of common concern, a joint press release issued after the meeting, said.  Increase connectivity in Indo-Pacific The officials… Continue reading India, Japan, U.S. stress keeping sea lanes open

Tit for tat: China imposes fresh tariffs on U.S. goods What has happened? China’s Commerce Ministry on Wednesday listed 106 U.S. products, which will be subjected to a 25% tariff, in retaliation to Washington’s intent to impose fresh tariffs on Chinese products worth $50 billion. The items include soya beans, cars, chemicals and aircraft, triggering… Continue reading Tit for tat: China imposes fresh tariffs on U.S. goods

NASA hires Lockheed Martin to build supersonic plane  What has happened? NASA has inked a deal with Lockheed Martin to develop a supersonic “X-plane” that could break the sound barrier without a sonic boom. Objective The goal is to enable quieter supersonic flight and create new commercial cargo and passenger markets in faster-than-sound air travel… Continue reading NASA hires Lockheed Martin to build supersonic plane 

‘India third most vulnerable country to cyber threats What has happened? India emerged as the third most vulnerable country in terms of risk of cyber threats, such as malware, spam and ransomware, in 2017, moving up one place over previous year, according to a report by security solutions provider Symantec Report: Internet Security Threat Report… Continue reading ‘India third most vulnerable country to cyber threats

India pips Japan, becomes second largest manufacturer of crude steel What has happened? In a major achievement, India has overtaken Japan to become the world’s second largest producer of crude steel in February, according to the Steel Users Federation of India (SUFI). At present, China is the largest producer of crude steel in the world,… Continue reading India pips Japan, becomes second largest manufacturer of crude steel

Anti-forest, anti-forest dweller What has happened? Last month, Minister of State for Environment, Forests and Climate Change Mahesh Sharma informed Parliament that his Ministry has collected over Rs. 50,000 crore in a Central compensatory afforestation fund (CAF). This money is to be used though the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF) Act, 2016 or CAF, a purported… Continue reading Anti-forest, anti-forest dweller