Author: ForumIAS

Online degree in non-tech courses  Context The Centre would soon finalise regulations enabling universities with high National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) scores to offer degree, certificate and diploma courses for non-technical subjects in online mode Eligibility criteria Only institutions with a NAAC grade of A plus and A plus plus – meaning, a NAAC… Continue reading Online degree in non-tech courses 

Water scarcity may hit thermal power  Context New report by the World Resources Institute (WRI) Findings of the report Risk of outages to Thermal power plants: India’s thermal power plants, about 90% of which rely on fresh water for cooling, risk facing serious outages because of shortage of water Shutdowns: Between 2013 and 2016, 14… Continue reading Water scarcity may hit thermal power 

Govt holds firm on disability pensions  Context The Defence Ministry has no proposal to withdraw pending appeals against disability pensions and benefits. This was conveyed by Defence Minister NirmalaSitharaman in a letter to RajyaSabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar Background Former Defence Minister ManoharParrikar had attempted to reduce litigations against veterans and serving personnel and had appointed… Continue reading Govt holds firm on disability pensions 

1.2 lakh fewer deaths in under-5 category in 2016  Context Figures from the Sample Registration Survey (SRS) Findings Sharpest decline in U5 mortality rate: India has posted its sharpest, year-on-year decline in the under-5 infant mortality rate (u5) since 2010. The u5, at 39 deaths per 1,000 live births, recorded a 5-point decline from the… Continue reading 1.2 lakh fewer deaths in under-5 category in 2016 

36% rural youth cant name India’s capital, finds survey  Context 2017 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) Focus of the survey The survey looks ‘Beyond Basics’, exploring a wider set of domains beyond foundational reading and arithmetic in an attempt to throw light on the status and abilities of youth in this age group.” What… Continue reading 36% rural youth cant name India’s capital, finds survey 

Megalithic-era sarcophagus unearthed in Kerala  Context A rare sarcophagus (stone coffin), said to be 2,000-year old from the Iron Age–Megalithic era, was discovered from a rock-cut cave at Viyur village of Kollam, near Koyilandy, in Kozhikode district on Monday Man or woman The bone fragments could be of either a man or a woman Carbon… Continue reading Megalithic-era sarcophagus unearthed in Kerala 

Link rivers Gadkari urges States Context Union Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari has asked officials to work on ways to “better utilise” water from non-Himalayan rivers that are emptying out into the sea Polavaram project example He cited the Polavaram project as an example of where water was being transferred from the Godavari to the… Continue reading Link rivers Gadkari urges States

Bengal’s rivers in a bad shape A dip in the Ganges is, generally speaking, synonymous with the idea of purification. But that shall no longer be so in Bengal, where the river is so polluted that it is now officially unfit for bathing 17 of them have high levels of bacteria found mainly in human… Continue reading Bengal’s rivers in a bad shape

Google to make AI accessible to every firm Context Artificial intelligence is no longer going to remain the secret sauce of giant technology companies Cloud AutoML Google unveiled ‘Cloud AutoML‘’, which is aimed at helping businesses go beyond limitations of machine-learning expertise and start building their own high-quality custom models using advanced techniques provided by… Continue reading Google to make AI accessible to every firm

The price prescription Context Post-GST, we need a more targeted taxation and retail policy on tobacco products What India is the second largest consumer and producer of tobacco-based products — categorised as sin goods or demerit goods — and it has become imperative for policymakers to devise measures to effectively curb their use. Health comes… Continue reading The price prescription