9 PM Current Affairs Brief – March 22nd, 2018

Southern pride Context At a press conference last week, when Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam working president M.K. Stalin was asked what he thought of the southern States combining to form “Dravida Nadu,” he replied, “If this happens, it is welcome and it will happen I believe.” Given the brouhaha (an overexcited reaction) around his remark, it… Continue reading Southern pride

Aadhaar data safe, govt. asserts in SC Context The government has assured the Supreme Court that Aadhaar is not a “fly-by-night effort to score some brownie points” and personal data collected from millions of people is safe from breach in storage facilities barricaded behind five-foot thick walls SC’s observations vs government’s views Chief Justice’s views… Continue reading Aadhaar data safe, govt. asserts in SC

BJP, Cong. trade charges over use of data analytics firm Context Days after data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica (CA), a subsidiary of the U.K.-based SCL Group, was suspended by social media company Facebook for not deleting user data obtained from an app developer for the platform, the controversy reached Indian shores with both the BJP… Continue reading BJP, Cong. trade charges over use of data analytics firm

Behind a growing social fissure Context Anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lanka Issues Majority with a minority complex: Due to various historical and geographical reasons, Sinhala Buddhists are a majority with a minority complex, existentially fearful of losing majority status in Sri Lanka either to Tamil Hindus or to Muslims Muslims are seen as aliens: The… Continue reading Behind a growing social fissure 

‘Assam rhinoceros data may have been doctored for funds’ Context An organization of whistleblowers in Assam armed with an RTI reply from the authorities of a national park, has said that rhinoceros census data may be getting doctored for ensuring the flow of foreign funds Info relevant from Pre 2018 perspective Indian Rhino Vision 2020… Continue reading ‘Assam rhinoceros data may have been doctored for funds’

Conserve every drop Context The grave water situation in Cape Town in South Africa is a wake-up call to everybody across the globe — from policymakers to the common man — that it cannot be business as usual when it comes to water usage. A similar crisis is looming large in other cities in the… Continue reading Conserve every drop 

US Fed hikes key interest rate; says economic outlook stronger Context The Federal Reserve on Thursday increased the benchmark interest rate a quarter point to a target range of 1.5 % to 1.75 %, citing a stronger US economic outlook in recent months Basis of hike Fiscal policy has become more simulative ongoing job gains… Continue reading US Fed hikes key interest rate; says economic outlook stronger

Tremendous’ response to OALP: DGH Context Interest in the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) and Discovered Small Fields (DSF), two key components of the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy, has been considerable as India works to reduce oil imports by at least 10%, by 2022, according to a senior government official What has happened? OALP:… Continue reading Tremendous’ response to OALP: DGH

Union Cabinet approves Ayushman Bharat health scheme Context The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the launch of the Ayushman Bharat — National Health Protection Mission (AB-NHPM), which was announced in the Budget Features of the scheme The scheme will provide a cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year It would take care of almost… Continue reading Union Cabinet approves Ayushman Bharat health scheme 

Read the distress signals  Context Reducing agrarian distress What should be done to alleviate agrarian distress in India? Accelerating industrial growth and improving the ease of doing business: The biggest priority is to reduce the workforce which depends on agriculture for its livelihood. This can only be done if ample job opportunities exist outside Banning… Continue reading Read the distress signals