Must Read News Articles – March 23, 2018

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Society related issues:

Preventing trafficking(The Hindu Opinion)

The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill of 2018 addresses one of the most pervasive yet invisible crimes affecting the most vulnerable persons, especially women and children. There has been no specific law to deal with human trafficking, which is considered the third largest organised crime violating basic human rights.

Curbing misuse(The Hindu Opinion)

Protecting innocent persons is fine, as long as the SC/ST Act is not de-fanged

Terms of separation(The Hindu Opinion)

The move to recognise Lingayats as a separate religion must be seen in a political and historical context

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International relations:

Global lawmakers’ meet on Tibet called off(The Hindu)

After the cancellation of events involving the Dalai Lama in Delhi, a global conference on Tibet, scheduled for next month, has also been put off, officials in Delhi and Dharamshala confirmed to The Hindu. The decision reflects “sensitivities” over upcoming high profile meetings between the Indian and Chinese leadership, they said

Indian Constitution and Polity:

Cauvery row: Karnataka not to file review plea(The Hindu)

An all-party meeting convened by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah here on Thursday unanimously decided against filing a review petition challenging the final Cauvery verdict. It was decided to impress upon the Centre to set up a dispute-resolution forum.

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Economy:

UIDAI chief defends safety of Aadhaar data before SC(The Hindu)

“It would take more than the age of the universe for the fastest computer on earth, or any super-computer, to break one key” of Aadhaar encryption, CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Ajay Bhushan Pandey assured the Supreme Court on Thursday.

Is the economy back on track?(The Hindu Opinion)

Disturbances on account of demonetisation and GST were purely short term

‘10 missions on anvil to boost exports’(The Hindu)

Cabinet nod expected soon for the new market development programmes, says Commerce Minister.

Internal security:

FB apologises for breach of trust(The Hindu)

Four days after details emerged of massive breach of privacy involving data of millions of Facebook users, company CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday apologised for a “major breach of trust” with its users.

‘Face ID’ from July 1 for Aadhaar authentication(The Hindu)

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) informed the Supreme Court on Thursday that it will introduce ‘Face ID’ on July 1 to enable Aadhaar holders to authenticate their identity to access services, benefits and subsidies.

Protecting our data(The Hindu Opinion)

After the Cambridge Analytica crisis exploded, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad warned Facebook against the misuse of Indians’ data and any attempt to influence the electoral processes of this country.

CA, Facebook & you(The Hindu Opinion)

The controversy is a wake-up call to press ahead with a robust data protection law

EU leaders to push for privacy protection(The Hindu)

European Union leaders will on Thursday press tech giants to protect personal data in the wake of the scandal over information harvested from Facebook, draft summit conclusions said.

Not equipped to detect deep Maoist mines: Home Ministry(The Hindu)

The Home Ministry has told a parliamentary panel that forces were “unable to detect deep planted mines” with the technology presently available in the areas affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE).

Science and Technology:

Indigenous technology tested on BrahMos(The Hindu)

The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was on Thursday successfully test-fired with an indigenous seeker for the first time. So far the seeker, a critical technology in missiles, came from Russia.

Cockroach DNA reveals mighty little secrets(The Hindu)

Genome sequencing may throw light on the insect’s ability to heal itself in the most harshest of environments

Dubious journals abound: study(The Hindu)

A systematic study of the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) approved list of journals has confirmed what scientists have long suspected. The white list contains a huge number of dubious or predatory journals which publish substandard papers for a small fee with very little peer-reviewing, if at all.

One app, 1,000 services: mKeralam(The Hindu)

Kerala, which last year became the first State to declare Internet a basic human right, has notched up another first by launching mKeralam, an app that will serve as a single window for accessing thousands of government services.

Environment:

Pacific garbage patch is far larger than feared: study(The Hindu)

The vast dump of plastic waste swirling in the Pacific ocean is now bigger than France, Germany and Spain combined — far larger than previously feared — and is growing rapidly, a study published on Thursday warned.

Yesterday’s current affairs material by Forum IAS

7 PM Editorial:  India’s Looming Water Crisis

9 PM Current affairs brief:

10 PM Current  affairs MCQs: