What is the News? Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan has been ousted from power after losing a no-confidence vote. What are the key takeaways from this? Pakistan Democracy: Pakistan’s flawed democracy is still seen as a “guided democracy”. No elected Prime Minister there has ever completed his or her five-year term. However, this is the… Continue reading Explained: What Imran Khan’s ouster as Pakistan PM means for India
Researchers identified over 5,500 new viruses in the ocean, including a missing link in viral evolution
What is the News? Researchers have identified more than 5,000 new RNA virus species in the world’s oceans. What are RNA Viruses? An RNA virus is a virus that has ribonucleic acid (RNA) as its genetic material. This means they carry their genetic information in RNA, rather than DNA. They also evolve at much quicker… Continue reading Researchers identified over 5,500 new viruses in the ocean, including a missing link in viral evolution
Good while it lasted – I: 6th mass extinction underway, courtesy humans
What is the News? The sixth mass extinction is underway and the earth is losing species at an unprecedented rate. Hence, this marks the beginning of the Anthropocene Epoch. Note: Anthropocene Epoch is an unofficial unit of geologic time, used to describe the most recent period in Earth’s history when the human activity started to… Continue reading Good while it lasted – I: 6th mass extinction underway, courtesy humans
First ever NTCA meeting outside National Capital held at Arunachal Pradesh
What is the News? The 20th Meeting of National Tiger Conservation Authority(NTCA) was held in Pakke tiger reserve in Arunachal Pradesh under the chairmanship of the Union Minister for Environment, Forest & Climate Change. Note: This is the first time in history that the NTCA meeting happened outside Delhi. What are the key highlights from… Continue reading First ever NTCA meeting outside National Capital held at Arunachal Pradesh
Centre extends ₹40 crore relief to Dalai Lama’s Tibetan Committee upto 2025-26
What is the News? The Union government has extended the scheme to provide Rs.40 crore grants-in-aid to the Dalai Lama’s Central Tibetan Relief Committee (CTRC) for another five years, up to the fiscal year 2025-26. Scheme to provide grants-in-aid to the Central Tibetan Relief Committee(CTRC) Launched in: 2015 Purpose: To provide an annual grant of… Continue reading Centre extends ₹40 crore relief to Dalai Lama’s Tibetan Committee upto 2025-26
9 PM Daily Current Affairs Brief – April 11th, 2022
Dear Friends, We have initiated some changes in the 9 PM Brief and other postings related to current affairs. What we sought to do: Ensure that all relevant facts, data, and arguments from today’s newspaper are readily available to you. We have widened the sources to provide you with content that is more than enough… Continue reading 9 PM Daily Current Affairs Brief – April 11th, 2022
RBI proposes to make card-less cash withdrawal facility available across all banks, ATM networks using UPI
What is the News? Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has proposed to make cardless cash withdrawal facilities available at all ATMs, irrespective of banks, through the Unified Payment Interface(UPI). What is a cardless cash withdrawal facility? The cardless cash withdrawal facility does not require bank customers to use their debit or credit cards while withdrawing cash… Continue reading RBI proposes to make card-less cash withdrawal facility available across all banks, ATM networks using UPI
Red lines got blurred in our triage of mega risks
News: For last two years, India has been witnessing the fiscal and monetary expansion measures. Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has adopted a monetary policy. It aims to prioritize price-control or inflation in India. What is the meaning of shifting of red lines in the article? It refers to a situation when the… Continue reading Red lines got blurred in our triage of mega risks
Social media has a serious disinformation problem. But it can be fixed.
Context: Social media platforms have effectively supplanted traditional information networks in India. What are the benefits of social media? Democratizing access to information, fostering community, increasing citizen participation and reducing the distance between ordinary people and decision-makers. Why are there instances of misinformation on social media? Social media platforms have adopted design choices that have… Continue reading Social media has a serious disinformation problem. But it can be fixed.
India’s role in a disordered world
Context: Institutes of global governance are weakening. For instance, the climate crisis is unresolved, vaccines were hoarded by rich countries, and the World Trade Organization is struggling. How did the institutes of global governance emerge? After World War II, new institutions of global governance were established – the United Nations and the General Agreement on… Continue reading India’s role in a disordered world
