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GS: 2
International relations:
India, France join hands for Indian Ocean security(The Hindu)
India and France on Saturday joined hands in ensuring freedom of navigation in the Indo-Pacific region. Both sides also announced a new phase of cooperation in space security focussed on the maritime domain and a fresh logistics agreement that will allow their defence forces to closely cooperate on mutually agreed operations.
Indo-French ties: a signal for world powers(The Hindu)
Marking the 20th anniversary of their strategic partnership, India and France stepped up their engagement to a new level by quietly and swiftly concluding the reciprocal logistics support between their Armed Forces.
Sirisena forms panel to probe riots(The Hindu)
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Saturday appointed a panel to probe the recent anti-Muslim attacks in Kandy district.
Indian Constitution and Polity:
Registering marriages in T.N.? Keep parents in the loop(The Hindu)
New circular says couples have to show original documents on parents’ identity
‘Now there is a strong constituency for EVMs’(The Hindu)
Chief Election Commissioner says the steps the poll panel has taken have enhanced trust in the voting machines
the lowdown on the Prasar Bharati Act(The Hindu)
The twin objectives of the Prasar Bharati (Broadcast Corporation of India) Act of 1990 are crystallised in Section 12 of the law. Section 12 (3)(a) mandates that Prasar Bharati ensure that “broadcasting is conducted as a public service.”
GS: 3
Economy:
E-waybill to be rolled out on April 1, says Arun Jaitley(The Hindu)
The Goods and Services Tax Council, at its 26th meeting on Saturday, decided to go forward with the April 1 rollout of the e-waybill system for inter-State transport of goods. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the system would be implemented in phases.
Pakodas, PCs, and the future of jobs(The Hindu)
With the government having decided to formally drop the quinquennial employment-unemployment surveys of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO), as well as the annual jobs survey of the Labour Ministry, opting instead for what the NITI Aayog chief says will be a “more robust” quarterly data set, we officially do not know where we stand as a country on the issue of jobs.
‘Rising imports challenge Indian paper mills’ business’(The Hindu)
Paper imports during the first nine months of the current financial year rose 40% to 1.47 million tonnes or almost 15% of the total consumption in the country, posing a challenge to the domestic industry, according to industry sources.
Microfinance has potential, but is yet to bounce back on delinquency ratios(The Hindu)
Microfinance business has faced challenges in the aftermath of demonetisation. However, it is a key driver of financial inclusion and an integral part of the overall banking business, said R. Baskar Babu, MD and CEO of Maharashtra-based Suryoday Small Finance Bank Ltd. In an interview, he said that microfinance institutions are on a comeback trail.
Science and Technology:
Catching the signs early(The Hindu Opinion)
The revised guidelines for treating gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in India by the Union Ministry of Health are likely to have far-reaching implications for maternal and child health in the country. Launched in February, they make screening for GDM in pregnant women universal. All women who visit an ante natal clinic during their term will now have to be tested.
WHO steps up fight against tobacco(The Hindu)
The World Health Organization has launched new guidelines on the role that tobacco product regulations can play in reducing tobacco demand, saving lives and raising revenues for health services to treat tobacco-related diseases.
Death by denial(The Hindu Opinion)
TB patient-activists in India are calling the limited access to newer and more powerful drugs a ‘human rights violation’
A tough nut to crack(The Hindu)
Areca nut chewing produces a sense of euphoria, heightened alertness, sweating, salivation, a warm sensation in the body, and a feeling of having an increased capacity to work.
Electricity from soil bacteria and reading lights from plants(The Hindu)
Biology appears to suggest ways of generating electricity from plans and microbes that live beneath them in the soil
Saliva prevents traveller’s diarrhoea: study(The Hindu)
Scientists in the U.S. have identified a protein in saliva (histatin-5) that protects the body from traveller’s diarrhoea. The finding, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, may lead to the development of new preventive therapies for the disease.
IIT Hyderabad’s novel composite keeps tomatoes fresh for 30 days(The Hindu)
Composite has antimicrobial activity, allows optimum exchange of gases, moisture
Environment:
Coral sediments in oceans could dissolve by next century(The Hindu)
As oceans get more acidic, sediments that constitute coral reefs could begin dissolving by the end of this century, suggests a study published in the journal Science.
Now, low viscosity fuel oil from plastic waste(The Hindu)
Certain plastic wastes can soon help fuel your cars. Researchers from IIT Guwahati have successfully converted packaging plastic waste to plastic-derived oil (PDO), which has characteristics similar to diesel.
Yesterday’s current affairs material by Forum IAS
7 PM Editorial: Apex court allows ‘living will’ for terminally ill
