News: India’s exports in May were up 15.5% on last year’s figure. On this upbeat momentum, India could see another year of robust exports, beating the $418 billion record set in 2021-22. High oil prices are also a major reason for a rise in exports this year, since petroleum products made up a big share… Continue reading External vulnerabilities: Time for a rupee review
New WHO report on assistive technology for disabled provides a roadmap for India
News: The World Health Organisation (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) jointly launched the first Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT) on May 16. What is Assistive technology (AT)? It may include any item, piece of equipment, software programme or product system that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of… Continue reading New WHO report on assistive technology for disabled provides a roadmap for India
The IPEF holds promise but there are perils too
News: Recently, the US President Joe Biden has established the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) which is said to be a new version of a “pivot to Asia”. Background The US President had first spoken about it in October 2021 during the East Asia Summit, in the presence of all IPEF signatories except Fiji.… Continue reading The IPEF holds promise but there are perils too
The Ukraine conflict has raked up old dilemmas
News: The Ukraine Conflict has caused a resurfacing of the deepest dilemma related to the energy sector, i.e. – whether to ensure there is affordable, secure, and accessible energy at present, or – to secure the longer-term imperatives of economic growth and sustainable development. Situation Prior to the Ukraine Conflict Oil market It was globally… Continue reading The Ukraine conflict has raked up old dilemmas
The new era of fiscal federalism could strengthen national unity
Context: The 15th Finance Commission (2021-2026) retained the states’ share, and its methodology of assigning weights based on population. This is likely to be a factor in the politics of federalism. Importance of fiscal federalism in India Linguistic pluralism, a federal structure and fiscal federalism have served us well and enabled us to succeed At… Continue reading The new era of fiscal federalism could strengthen national unity
Why kidney rackets thrive
News: Last week, a network of kidney traffickers was busted in Delhi. This is the 3rd such scam in the last 15 years in Delhi. The trafficker involved doctors and other healthcare personnel, hospital administrators. They catered to patients that have end-stage kidney diseases and cannot be treated with medicines or dialysis and require a… Continue reading Why kidney rackets thrive
7% Growth Is India’s Best Foreign Policy Strategy
Context: Countries from around the world like the US, Israel, Iran, etc. are trying to build good relations with India. However, India is still not free to make strategic choices. How economic development determines freedom to make choices for countries? In 2010, Professor Michael Beckley analyzed the relationship between military effectiveness and economic development. In the… Continue reading 7% Growth Is India’s Best Foreign Policy Strategy
Unnatural urbanisation
News: Recently, a 20-minute thunderstorm in Delhi uprooted many trees, some of them between 40 and 50 years old, throwing the city out of gear for hours. This chaos, caused due to poor urban planning, has become a pattern whenever a pre-monsoon storm, with high-velocity winds, hits the city. Delhi High Court has taken note… Continue reading Unnatural urbanisation
[Yojana May Summary] Empowering Divyangjan – Explained, pointwise
For 7PM Editorial Archives click HERE → Introduction The Prime Minister coined the term “Divyangjan” to address persons with disabilities. The rationale was to change the social attitude towards them and recognise their potential. The renaming has also helped put the issues related to divyangjan at the forefront of Government initiatives. India, being a signatory to the United… Continue reading [Yojana May Summary] Empowering Divyangjan – Explained, pointwise
[Attempt | Practice] UPSC IAS CSE Prelims 2022 Questions
Dear Friends, We have created this platform for you so that you can try and attempt UPSC Prelims 2022 Questions in the test mode. However, 1) If you want to just go through the questions, you can visit this page. 2) If You are just looking for the Prelims 2022 GS Paper 1 answer key… Continue reading [Attempt | Practice] UPSC IAS CSE Prelims 2022 Questions
