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GS: 2
International Relations:
Korean thaw(The Hindu Opinion)
The summit between the leaders of the two Koreas is perhaps the most significant step in decades towards securing peace on the peninsula. Kim Jong-un on Friday became the first North Korean leader since the 1953 armistice to step on South Korean soil.
Indian Constitution and Polity:
Take oath of office in given time: SC(The Hindu)
Elected representatives should face “serious consequences” for not taking the oath of office within a specified time, the Supreme Court urged State Legislatures in a judgment.
A dangerous incursion(The Hindu Opinion)
There is an inadequate representation of the Scheduled Castes (SC) and the Scheduled Tribes (ST) in the Supreme Court. First, the total sanctioned strength of the Supreme Court is 31 judges.
Local democracy in disarray(The Hindu)
It’s been 25 years since decentralised democratic governance was introduced in India by the 73rd and 74th Constitution Amendments, which came into force on April 24 and June 1, 1993, respectively.
GS: 3
Internal Security:
AFSPA will continue in Nagaland: Rijiju(The Hindu)
Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said AFSPA, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, will continue in Nagaland as it is a “special case” and the “peace agreement” hasn’t been finalised there yet.
Government Schemes:
Power Ministry feels no need to change electrification definition(The Hindu)
The government had in September 2017 launched the Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya), aimed at covering the last-mile connectivity of taking electricity to the household level. The target for the scheme is March 31, 2019.
Environment:
The cost of pollution(The Hindu Opinion)
Pollution is a challenge to developing countries which try to achieve rapid economic development without adequately managing the environment. In recent years, the pollution load has increased, sometimes beyond the carrying capacity of the environment. Though various measures have been adopted to manage pollution, significant progress has not been achieved.
Lake Victoria species under threat: report(The Hindu)
A fresh report backed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) assessed the extinction risk of 651 freshwater species like fish, molluscs, dragonflies, crabs and aquatic plants native to Africa’s largest lake.
Heavy rain spells doom for baby turtles(The Hindu)
Hundreds of thousands of Olive Ridley turtle hatchlings were found buried alive after four days of persistent thundershowers in Odisha’s Gahirmatha Sanctuary compacted their sand-pit nests.
Science and Technology:
NASA mission to the ‘heart’ of Mars(The Hindu)
NASA’s first-ever mission to study the deep interior of Mars is on schedule to launch this week, the U.S. space agency said. The Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) is the first planetary mission to take off from the West Coast of U.S.
Yesterday’s current affairs material by Forum IAS
7 PM Editorial: Rural Electrification: An overview
