Author: ForumIAS

‘Manuscript magazines’ a hit among statisticians:  Context Government staff rediscovering their creative side through Malayalam calligraphy What has happened? Employees of the Economics and Statistics (E&S) Department in Kerala have launched manuscript magazines (Kaiyezhuthu Masika), with the aim of promoting Malayalam and giving a creative break to the staff from the drab world of statistics,… Continue reading ‘Manuscript magazines’ a hit among statisticians: 

EWS patients also ‘overcharged’ at Fortis:  What has happened? The four-member committee appointed by the Haryana government to probe into the death of seven-year-old Adya Singh during dengue treatment at Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, has also found faults with the treatment of patients from Economically Weaker Sections at the hospital Precondition As per the… Continue reading EWS patients also ‘overcharged’ at Fortis: 

Centre wants GST on fuel: ArunJaitley  Context The Centre favours including petroleum products within the ambit of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), but it would want a consensus among the States before taking such a step, Union Finance Minister ArunJaitley told the RajyaSabha on Tuesday. Finance Minister, however, says a consensus from the States… Continue reading Centre wants GST on fuel: ArunJaitley 

Transit gambit: on e-way bill mechanism for transport of goods  Context The Centre needs to do more to ease the shift to e-way bills for transport of goods The Centre needs to do more to ease the shift to e-way bills for transport of goods Already grappling with the Goods and Services Tax transition, businesses are… Continue reading Transit gambit: on e-way bill mechanism for transport of goods 

UIDAI tightens norms for Aadhaar-bank account linking  Context Following the  Airetel India- Aadhaar subsidy fiasco,the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on Tuesday has tightened the norms for mapping Aadhaar number to a different bank account. According to the latest rules, ‘explicitly informed consent’ from customers has been made compulsory The National Payments Corporation of… Continue reading UIDAI tightens norms for Aadhaar-bank account linking 

Reveal, recognise, resolve  Context Gap between global banks and Indian banks on bad loan recovery is set to narrow 5 theories There are five theories for why Indian banks recover so little of their bad loans The first suggests something cultural about repayment intentions of Indian borrowers The second theory suggests that many big bank… Continue reading Reveal, recognise, resolve 

NitiAayog to set up Methanol Economy Fund  Context NitiAayog plans to set up a Methanol Economy Fund worth Rs 4,000-5,000 crore to promote production and use of the clean fuel. The government think is aiming at generation of the fuel by converting high ash content coal into methanol and such a plant is expected to be… Continue reading NitiAayog to set up Methanol Economy Fund 

‘Centre planning strategy to boost services exports’  Context The government is formulating a new strategy to boost services exports by identifying new markets such as Latin America as well as services, including healthcare and financial services, which have tremendous potential in terms of exports and job creation, according to Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu. Backdrop The… Continue reading ‘Centre planning strategy to boost services exports’ 

Amendments to Companies Act passed; to ease compliance  Context A bill to amend the companies law to strengthen corporate governance standards, initiate strict action against defaulting companies, and help improve the ease of doing business in the country, was passed by Parliament on Tuesday New law will ensure better corporate governance: Minister The RajyaSabha passed… Continue reading Amendments to Companies Act passed; to ease compliance 

Need to bolster WTO process’  Context The World Trade Organisation (WTO) process needs to be strengthened and taken forward as India has a strategic interest in the functioning of the multilateral trade system, according to Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu. Backdrop Briefing members of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry in a closed-door meeting… Continue reading Need to bolster WTO process’