Must Read News Articles – February 7th, 2019

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SC may curb advocates from speaking on cases

The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to examine the possibility of imposing curbs on advocates airing their views in the media about pending cases and the judges handling them, during a hearing on contempt petitions filed by the government and the Attorney General of India against civil rights lawyer Prashant Bhushan.

Bench reserves orders on Sabarimala review petitions

The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its verdict on a batch of petitions seeking review of its judgment which lifted the bar on menstruating women from worshipping at Sabarimala temple in Kerala.

Panel defers resort project at Andamans

An expert committee of the Union Environment Ministry has “deferred” clearance to a ₹100 crore proposal by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Limited (ANIIDCL) to develop an island resort, as well as put up “premium tents” and “tree houses”, on the grounds that it doesn’t account for the biodiversity of the islands’ coast.

Tough-talking

India must ensure it’s not cut out of the resolution process with the Taliban

Checks and balance

Seeking a count of 50% of VVPAT slips is too much; the focus should be on ending glitches.

We need a leap in healthcare spending

While the Interim Budget is responsive to the needs of farmers and the middle class, it does not adequately respond to the needs of the health sector.

A worrying approach

With West Bengal, Telangana, Delhi and Odisha not joining Ayushman Bharat, the question arises whether the scheme is hurting the idea of cooperative federalism.

Govt. diktat may cost privacy in WhatsApp

The Indian government’s proposal to make it mandatory for online platforms to trace the origin of unlawful messages is ‘overbroad’ and will require WhatsApp to re-architect the product into one without privacy, a spokesperson for the instant messaging app said on Wednesday.

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Unregulated deposit schemes to be banned

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the official amendments to an Act that classifies any deposit scheme not registered with the government as an offence and bans it, the government announced.

First career portal for students launched in Rajasthan

India’s first “career portal”, addressing the needs of secondary and higher secondary students for information on scholarships and career choices, was launched with the support of United Nations Children’s Fund here on Wednesday.

Pension for informal sector workers

A major announcement in the Interim Budget 2019-20 was the creation of the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Mandhan, a pension scheme for informal workers.