9 PM Current Affairs Brief – April 7th, 2018

Disruptive Mr. Trump Context The consistent undermining of multilateralism by the U.S. must be countered The larger point Trump continues to undermine the World Trade Organisation and the international world trade order, now that it has served the West well and developing countries are in a significantly stronger position than when the WTO came into… Continue reading Disruptive Mr. Trump

Will fight U.S. tariffs at any cost, warns China What has happened? China on Friday warned that it was digging in for a long campaign to counter Washington’s attempts to undermine its economy, following President Donald Trump’s threat to impose new tariffs China not afraid of trade war Beijing would take “comprehensive countermeasures” and fight… Continue reading Will fight U.S. tariffs at any cost, warns China

WTO is unfair to us, says Trump What has happened? U.S. President Donald Trump teed up a fight with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on Friday, claiming the 164-country body was biased against the United States. China gets perks and advantages China, which is a great economic power, is considered a Developing Nation within the… Continue reading WTO is unfair to us, says Trump

U.S. sanctions target Putin’s allies What has happened? The U.S. struck at the heart of President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle on Friday, imposing sanctions on seven of Russia’s most influential oligarchs and stoking a diplomatic crisis that some have dubbed a new Cold War. Total Targets In all, seven oligarchs, 12 companies they own or… Continue reading U.S. sanctions target Putin’s allies

Nepal PM pitches for Indian investments What has happened? Nepal’s economy at present depends heavily on global remittances, which make up about 30% of its GDP. More than four million Nepalese live and work outside the Indian subcontinent, with about five to seven million estimated to be living and working in India, crossing an open… Continue reading Nepal PM pitches for Indian investments

Not above the law Context The Wildlife (Protection) Act, the landmark law from 1972 that shields the diversity of India’s endangered animals mainly in 4% of its land area designated as protected, struggles to be effective and conviction rates are low. What has happened? The stiff sentence of five years in jail awarded to actor… Continue reading Not above the law

All the rhinoceroses Context Counting one-horned rhinos in Kaziranga National Park, home to nearly two-thirds of the world’s population of the ‘vulnerable’ species, is no easy task Problems faced in the process Shortage of guards: require at least 3,000 men to be deployed in 8 hour shifts. The park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since… Continue reading All the rhinoceroses

RBI raises limits on FPIs’ debt investment What has happened? The Reserve Bank on Friday upped debt investment limits for foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) across all segments, which will cumulatively result in an increase of more than Rs. 1 lakh crore in fiscal year 2018-19 Numbers The total debt limit will rise to Rs. 5,94,600… Continue reading RBI raises limits on FPIs’ debt investment

Forging a culture of innovation Context India’s innovation policy has to shift beyond a mere focus on R&D spending to transforming the ecosystem On paper India should be in a good position in terms of research and development (R&D) spending on paper Our pipeline of researchers seems undiminished; we are ranked third in the world… Continue reading Forging a culture of innovation