Author: ForumIAS

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

Make -II promise for arms firms Context Indian industry can suggest projects related to sub-systems for innovation and import substitution under the revised Make-II procedure in the Defence Procurement Procedure, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday Indian industry can suggest projects related to sub-systems for innovation The potential ‘Make-II’ projects will be approved by a collegiate… Continue reading Make -II promise for arms firms

Terror disrupts, says Sushma Context Hitting out at the sponsors of international terrorism, India on Wednesday urged for greater consensus among countries for devising a global strategy. Backdrop: Raisina dialogue Theme: “Managing Disruptive Transitions: Ideas, Institutions and Idioms.” The 3rd annual Raisina Dialogue was launched on Tuesday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu where he… Continue reading Terror disrupts, says Sushma

Talking over a law Context There should be a frank public conversation on the judiciary — an internal patch-up is not enough Lack of transparency The immediate trigger for the press conference was the apparent arbitrariness of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) in allocating benches for disposal of cases Question arises Assuming such credence,… Continue reading Talking over a law

Four Supreme court judges in talks with colleagues Context Even as the second round of talks between Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and his four senior-most colleagues did not take place on Wednesday, “each of the four judges” — Justices Jasti Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan B. Lokur and Kurian Joseph — is “speaking” to… Continue reading Four Supreme court judges in talks with colleagues

MPs panel debates proxy voting for migrant workers Context If proxy voting is meant to make it easier for NRIs to exercise their franchise and save up on travel costs, then why the same facility shouldn’t be extended to a migrant worker within India? This and many other questions were raised at a meeting of the Parliamentary… Continue reading MPs panel debates proxy voting for migrant workers

Can govt. mandate sharing of biometric data, asks SC Context The Supreme Court asked whether the state could compel citizens, including children, to part with their biometrics in public interest even as petitioners described the Aadhaar “project” as a “giant electronic leash,” which reduces individuals to mere numbers. Court begins hearing on 27 petitions against… Continue reading Can govt. mandate sharing of biometric data, asks SC