Why is it in news? The Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee recently recommended the commercial approval of the GM Mustard crop. If approved by the Environment Ministry, GM Mustard will be the first genetically modified food crop to be cultivated in India. Given the results of extensive bio-safety studies over the last decade and the edible… Continue reading Issue of Genetically Modified Crops in India
Author: ForumIAS
Cattle trading: Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act
Context Doubt with Supreme Court: if they can override animal cruelty Act. Current Issue One of the primary questions the Supreme Court will have to settle when it starts hearing the challenge to the government’s new notifications banning the sale and trade of cattle in livestock markets for slaughter and animal sacrifices is whether these… Continue reading Cattle trading: Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act
Electronic Voting Machine (EVM)
Why is it in news? The issue over the reliability of the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) has been in news ever since the results of assembly elections of five states came out in March. Some of the political parties raised doubts over EVMs regarding their technical sophistication. The Election Commission invited political parties to prove… Continue reading Electronic Voting Machine (EVM)
Caste based violence in India
What is the Issue? The anti-Dalit violence in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh started with the dominant Thakur community. They prevented the Dalits in Shabbirpur village from installing a statue of B.R Ambedkar at the Saint Ravidas temple on the occasion of Ambedkar’s birth anniversary, though they had got the necessary permission from the authorities. The… Continue reading Caste based violence in India
Must Read News Articles – June 17
Archives GS 2 Aadhaar must for bank accounts: (The Hindu) The government, through a notification amending a prevention of money laundering law, has made it mandatory to provide Aadhaar to open a bank account and to conduct a transaction of Rs. 50,000 or more. Maximum force: (Indian Express, Editorial) The arbitrariness of the sedition charges imposed… Continue reading Must Read News Articles – June 17
Issue of farmer’s suicide in India
Present issue Farmers in Maharashtra have gone for strike recently. Demand of the farmers includes: Full waiver of farm loans, Hikes in the minimum support price for agricultural produce and Writing off of pending electricity bills. As the strike nears the end of its first week, prices of essential goods such as milk, fruits and… Continue reading Issue of farmer’s suicide in India
MULTIDIMENTIONAL POVERTY INDEX
Context In 2010, for the 20th anniversary edition of the United Nation’s Development Programme’s flagship Human Development Report, the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) developed a new way to estimate poverty, known as the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). This international measure paints a clear picture of people living in poverty within and across… Continue reading MULTIDIMENTIONAL POVERTY INDEX
NEW ADVICE ON ANTIBIOTICS
Context The World Health Organization (WHO) decides to restrain the antibiotics resistance. WHO has divided the drugs into three categories i.e., access, watch and reserve. The saturation is on the basis of common ailments and complicated diseases. The division of the antibiotic is as follows: Access: For commonly used antibiotics Watch: For slightly more potent… Continue reading NEW ADVICE ON ANTIBIOTICS
Quota in higher education institutes
What is the Issue? Noting that the Allahabad High Court “overstepped” its jurisdiction, the Supreme Court has set aside the High Court’s decision to remove the 50% institutional quota for admission to postgraduate medical courses in Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and Banaras Hindu University (BHU). Judgment The judgment said: “The High Court did not take… Continue reading Quota in higher education institutes
Need to Reform International Investment Agreement (IIA) and Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS)
India’s Take on ISDS Earlier this year some of the countries led by India, Japan, Argentina and South Africa rejected an informal proposal brought forward by the EU and Canada to form a multilateral investments pact at the World Trade Organization (WTO) that will have an in-built an Investor State Dispute Settlement system. The EU… Continue reading Need to Reform International Investment Agreement (IIA) and Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS)
