Author: ForumIAS

No affront to Dalit rights, says SC What has happened? The Supreme Court said its March 20 judgment, banning immediate arrest of a person accused of insulting or injuring a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe member, is meant to protect innocents from arbitrary arrest and not an affront to Dalit rights SC’s comments Protecting the innocent Called… Continue reading No affront to Dalit rights, says SC

The pawns in international disputes What has happened? Among the many hazards that diplomats face today, the most ancient one is expulsion, also known as declaration of a diplomat as persona non grata. It is the most effective bloodless punishment as the person concerned is removed lock, stock, and barrel from the scene, never to… Continue reading The pawns in international disputes

How the data sets stack up What has happened? In recent years, there has been a lot of discussion on increasing inequality within several countries of the world, including India, particularly after the publication of Thomas Piketty’s book on inequality What we discuss here The trends in inequality That the poverty ratio is equally important… Continue reading How the data sets stack up

NASA hires Lockheed Martin to build supersonic plane  What has happened? NASA has inked a deal with Lockheed Martin to develop a supersonic “X-plane” that could break the sound barrier without a sonic boom. Objective The goal is to enable quieter supersonic flight and create new commercial cargo and passenger markets in faster-than-sound air travel… Continue reading NASA hires Lockheed Martin to build supersonic plane 

‘India third most vulnerable country to cyber threats What has happened? India emerged as the third most vulnerable country in terms of risk of cyber threats, such as malware, spam and ransomware, in 2017, moving up one place over previous year, according to a report by security solutions provider Symantec Report: Internet Security Threat Report… Continue reading ‘India third most vulnerable country to cyber threats

India pips Japan, becomes second largest manufacturer of crude steel What has happened? In a major achievement, India has overtaken Japan to become the world’s second largest producer of crude steel in February, according to the Steel Users Federation of India (SUFI). At present, China is the largest producer of crude steel in the world,… Continue reading India pips Japan, becomes second largest manufacturer of crude steel

Anti-forest, anti-forest dweller What has happened? Last month, Minister of State for Environment, Forests and Climate Change Mahesh Sharma informed Parliament that his Ministry has collected over Rs. 50,000 crore in a Central compensatory afforestation fund (CAF). This money is to be used though the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF) Act, 2016 or CAF, a purported… Continue reading Anti-forest, anti-forest dweller

The violent aftermath Context The court must re-examine the SC/ST Act verdict, but in an atmosphere of calm Two factors: Keeping a balance There are two disparate factors at play Protecting the innocent against harassment and misuse of a law Faithfully preserving the letter and spirit of a piece of legislation aimed at upholding the… Continue reading The violent aftermath

Confidence in the House  What has happened? The Speaker has enough powers to restore order in the Lok Sabha and act upon a notice for a no-trust vote The issue About three weeks ago, several members of Lok Sabha gave written notices to the Speaker for a no-confidence motion against the current council of ministers… Continue reading Confidence in the House 

‘EC backs one seat, one candidate policy’ What has happened? The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to respond to an affidavit filed by the Election Commission (EC) of India to amend the law to prevent candidates contesting from multiple constituencies Background A petition seeking a declaration striking down Section 33(7) of the Representation… Continue reading ‘EC backs one seat, one candidate policy’