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GS-1
Social Issues
Consent key factor in defining sexual assault, says Delhi HC:
The High Court discusses the various “models” of sexual consent in the modern world.
UN human rights review: What India ‘accepted’, what it merely ‘noted’: (Indian Express, Explained)
- Between May 1 and May 12, 14 states were reviewed, including India.
- Then Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi led the Indian delegation, which comprised officials from the Ministries of External Affairs, Home, Women & Child Development, Social Justice & Empowerment, Minority Affairs and Rural Development, and the NITI Aayog.
GS-2
India and neighbors
Diary of a very long year: (The Hindu, Editorial)
A year after the surgical strikes across the Line of Control, India must recover its role as a regional stabilizer.
New foray into the great game: (Indian Express, Editorial)
Short of joining the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, New Delhi can do much in shoring up Kabul’s military capabilities.
International groupings and agreements
India, S. Korea to upgrade FTA at ‘earliest’:
- India-South Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will be expanded soon to boost bilateral trade and investment.
- Voiced concerns about the low utilization of FTA by India due to the ‘complicated’ provisions in the pact as well as South Korea’s regulations.
GS-3
Infrastructure and investment models
PM launches ‘Saubhagya’ plan for household electrification:
About the launch of ₹16,000 crore scheme, Saubhagya, under which households across the country that have no access to electricity, will be given power connections free of cost.
Waiting for a signal: (The Hindu, Editorial)
The Railway Minister must put a safety upgrade above plans for punctuality and new trains.
In defence of manufacturing: (Live Mint, Editorial)
Low-skill manufacturing jobs are essential for easing the fundamental economic shifts that are underway globally.
India’s refining capacity expansion lags behind growth in fuel demand:
Rising disposable income has helped boost refined fuel products’ consumption.
Pollution and conservation
Worrying downgrade: (The Hindu, Editorial)
Removing the snow leopard from the Red List must not affect conservation efforts.
Cropping pattern, Agriculture, e-technology
Solving food challenges with more research: (The Hindu, Editorial)
Linking agricultural and nutritional outcomes is crucial.
What should an agricultural export promotion policy focus on?: (Live Mint, Editorial)
Better infrastructure to promote processed agricultural exports can unleash India’s untapped farm export potential.
Science and Tech
Removing toxic metals from tannery waste: (The Hindu, Editorial)
Researchers find that a fungal biomass does the job.
Indian Economy
Database soon of savings schemes linked with Aadhaar:
Cabinet Secretariat has directed that all GPF, EPF, PPF account data be seeded.
‘Intervention, rethinking needed to stir demand’:
Centre, States should step up capital spending in this fiscal.
Case for a fiscal push: (Indian Express, Editorial)
Policy should focus on recapitalising banks, giving incentives to sectors like telecom and housing, and alleviating the disruption caused by demonetisation and GST.
What stimulus?: (Indian Express, Editorial)
Boosting private consumption as against public investment is a more efficient way to revive the economy.
Of new ecosystems and more competition: (Live Mint, Editorial)
Instead of adding skills and services in-house, companies are proactively partnering with other organizations.
How financial services incumbents can keep up: (Live Mint, Editorial)
They should assess how they can find the right ecosystems in order to acquire customers and deliver relevant and convenient financial solutions seamlessly.
Time for a Reserve Bank of India ‘dot plot’: (Live Mint, Editorial)
Since a dot plot gives a sense of future rate movements, it would be valued by markets, firms and households.
Prelims Related Facts
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