9 PM Current Affairs Brief – January 2, 2018

NRC wins consensus but not Citizenship bill  Context AGP has threatened to snap ties with BJP if the Centre grants citizenship to Hindu Bangladeshis who have entered Assam illegally post-1971 Migration after marriage The verification of the NRC for the subsequent draft will also decide on the applications from 29 lakh women, who have submitted… Continue reading NRC wins consensus but not Citizenship bill 

1.9 cr names in first draft of Assam NRC  Context Nearly 32 years after the Assam Accord was signed, the first draft of an updated National Register of Citizens (NRC) for the State listed 1.90 Crore names out of the 3.29 crore applicants. The updated NRC was published at midnight on December 31 Facts Assam is… Continue reading 1.9 cr names in first draft of Assam NRC 

One register to count them all-how the NRC fares  Context Assam is the only state to have its own register of citizens Why was it necessary to bring out an NRC in Assam? The NRC is being updated in Assam to detect Bangladeshi nationals, who may have illegally entered the State after the midnight of… Continue reading One register to count them all-how the NRC fares 

IPFT team to meet Rajnath over separate state demand  Context A 10-member delegation of Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) would leave for New Delhi on Tuesday to hold talks with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and the top brass of BJP over its contentious separate state demand Backdrop Twenty seats in 60-member Tripura Assembly are… Continue reading IPFT team to meet Rajnath over separate state demand 

Unseemly haste  Context The triple talaq Bill and the fantasy of legislative-judicial collaboration Author’s contention Author contends that the Bill is at odds with the very judgment that it purports to reinforce Contradictions Terms triple talaq an illegal divorce: The statement of objects and reasons accompanying the Bill indicates that it is meant to give… Continue reading Unseemly haste 

US drastically cut aid to Pakistan in the Obama years  Context U.S. President Donald Trump’s New Year tweet is indicative that his administration is not satisfied by Pakistan’s response on terror. A month ago, U.S. Secretary of Defence James Mattis had told Pakistan during a visit that it “must redouble its efforts to confront militants… Continue reading US drastically cut aid to Pakistan in the Obama years 

Seize the Asian century  Context The old economic order is dead, but India and China must take the lead to preserve its successes Three decades of success No other period in human history has seen as many people lifted out of absolute poverty as in the three decades since the mid-1980s. That is largely because… Continue reading Seize the Asian century 

US foolishly gave money to Pakistan  Context Pakistan was U.S. President Donald Trump’s target of ire on January 1 as he threatened to stop U.S. aid to Islamabad What has Mr Trump said? The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have… Continue reading US foolishly gave money to Pakistan 

Ancient jumping genes may give corals new lease of life  What has happened? Scientists have identified a gene that improves the heat tolerance of the algae that live symbiotically with coral species, and could potentially help the corals adapt to some warming Effect of rising temperatures Symbiodinium is a unicellular algae that provides its coral… Continue reading Ancient jumping genes may give corals new lease of life 

Alternative drugs for mild infection the way  Context Drug resistance News Developing alternatives to antibiotics for small infections could prevent bacteria from developing drug-resistance and help humans win the battle against superbugs, scientists say Backdrop It has been widely reported that bacteria will evolve to render antibiotics mostly ineffective by mid-century, and current strategies to… Continue reading Alternative drugs for mild infection the way 

Googles new AI system can atriculate like humans  Context In a major step towards its “AI first” dream, Google has developed a text-to-speech artificial intelligence (AI) system that will confuse you with its human-like articulation Tacotron 2 The tech giant’s text-to-speech system called “Tacotron 2” delivers an AI-generated computer speech that almost matches with the… Continue reading Googles new AI system can atriculate like humans 

IBBI registration must for asset valuation  Context Professionals carrying out asset valuations under Companies Act and Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code will have to get themselves registered with Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) from April to conduct such activities, an official statement said on Monday Registration mandatory With effect from April 1, 2018, for… Continue reading IBBI registration must for asset valuation 

Real Estate Act yet to show teeth  Context RERA News Only 20,000 housing projects have been registered under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, six months after the legislation seeking to protect the interests of homebuyers came into force last May This is just a fraction of the under-construction and proposed housing projects… Continue reading Real Estate Act yet to show teeth 

The money trail Context Government’s warning against cryptocurrencies What has happened? The government has joined the Reserve Bank of India in cautioning potential customers about investing in cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, likening them to ponzi schemes where investors risk losing their money Price fluctuation The price of bitcoin, the most popular of all cryptocurrencies, not only shot up… Continue reading The money trail

Tourist entry banned at National Park  Context The Bhitarkanika National Park in Odisha’s Kendrapara district will be out of bounds for tourists for a week in view of for the annual census of estuarine crocodiles 7 day ban The forest department has imposed a seven-day ban, starting January 3, to prevent noise pollution during the… Continue reading Tourist entry banned at National Park