The International Monetary Fund(IMF) and Pakistan have agreed on terms for a $6bn bailout package to be disbursed to Pakistan over a span of more than three years. Earlier,Pakistan had asked the IMF to bail itself out from a severe financial crisis that threatens to cripple the country’s economy. Pakistan has already received financial aid… Continue reading Explained: Understanding Pakistan’s IMF bailout
Author: ForumIAS
Crop insurance fail: only ₹8 cr. spent for NE
According to the Agriculture Ministry officials,Out of ₹1,400 crore earmarked annually for the north-eastern States under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana,only ₹8 crore was actually spent last year. Further,Four north-eastern States namely Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland ,Manipur and Mizoram are not covered under the scheme at all. The lack of coverage has left thousands of… Continue reading Crop insurance fail: only ₹8 cr. spent for NE
Voynich Manuscript: An illustrated codex written in an extinct language, purchased in 1912, deciphered in 2019
Researcher at the University of Bristol has decoded the Voynich manuscript. The Voynich manuscript is a handwritten and illustrated text carbon-dated to the mid-15th Century.The document is housed in the Beinecke Library at Yale University in the USA. The manuscript is named after Wilfrid M Voynich,a Polish book dealer and antiquarian who purchased it in… Continue reading Voynich Manuscript: An illustrated codex written in an extinct language, purchased in 1912, deciphered in 2019
Telling Numbers | Under-5 mortality in India: study flags disparity among states
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has found out that the Under-5 mortality in India was higher than in any other country in 2015.Under-5 mortality means probability of dying between birth and age 5 which is expressed per 1,000 live births. Researchers have said that while India has reduced its annual… Continue reading Telling Numbers | Under-5 mortality in India: study flags disparity among states
RBI tells bigger NBFCs to appoint chief risk officer
The Reserve Bank of India has directed non-banking finance companies (NBFC) with assets size of over Rs 5000 crore to appoint a chief risk officer(CRO) to improve standards of their risk management. This directive comes at a time when NBFCs are facing a funding crisis as some of the firms are burdened with over-leveraging and… Continue reading RBI tells bigger NBFCs to appoint chief risk officer
Article 324 and role of Election Commission
The Election Commission of India has curtailed campaigning in West Bengal for the final phase of the general election shutting down election campaigning 19 hours earlier than it was to end.It has also removed the state’s Home Secretary and a senior police officer. This order comes after violence was reported in West Bengal during which… Continue reading Article 324 and role of Election Commission
COMCASA agreement will enable info exchange to fight terror, says U.S. Admiral
U.S. Chief of naval operations has said that India and the U.S. are cooperating to prevent all forms of terrorism both from land and sea. He said that the foundational agreement,Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) which India had signed in 2018 would enable exchange of information on such threats. COMCASA is an India-specific version… Continue reading COMCASA agreement will enable info exchange to fight terror, says U.S. Admiral
U.S. President Donald Trump announces new points-based green card system
The US President has decided to announce a new proposal to overhaul the country’s immigration policy.The policy would give preference to foreigners based on merit rather than the existing system that gives preference to family ties. Currently,about 12% of those receiving green cards entered the U.S. based on skill-based visas such as the H1B visas… Continue reading U.S. President Donald Trump announces new points-based green card system
UN report warns of greater economic threat to nations not investing in DRR
Recently,Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR) has warned of new and much larger threats due to extreme climate changes to economies in particular the Asia Pacific region. The GAR was launched at the ‘Global Platform’ organised by the by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction(UNISDR). The report has outlined major risk… Continue reading UN report warns of greater economic threat to nations not investing in DRR
India gives 2 attack helicopters to Afghanistan
India has handed over a pair of Mi-24 helicopters to Afghanistan with the aim of strengthening the Afghan air force. The Mi-24 is a large helicopter gunship.It can be used for assault and transport missions given that it can ferry up to eight people. The handover comes at a particularly crucial time for Afghanistan which… Continue reading India gives 2 attack helicopters to Afghanistan
