News: China’s status as a ‘developing country’ at the World Trade Organization (WTO) has become a contentious issue. A number of countries have raised concerns over the upper middle-income nation deriving benefits reserved for developing countries under WTO norms. Moreover, concerns have been raised over the ‘least developed country’ (LDC) status, with Bangladesh potentially… Continue reading At WTO, China a developing country-Why many nations are raising concerns
Tag: gs paper 2
Geopolitics of Eurasia: Understanding the Eurasian turmoil
News: Protests in Kazakhstan and other areas like Belarus, Ukraine, Caucasus have the potential to reshape the geopolitics of Eurasia. Russia, with its geographic spread across Eurasia, is at the very centre of this restructuring. What are the parameters involved in the geopolitics of Eurasia? The internal political evolution of Eurasian state: post-Communist states have not… Continue reading Geopolitics of Eurasia: Understanding the Eurasian turmoil
How India has approached customary international law
News: Parliamentary committee on external affairs has presented a report titled “India and international law” in the Lok Sabha. The report discusses how Indian courts have dealt with international law. Contents1 What is International customary law (CIL)? 2 What has been India’s stand towards CIL? 3 What has been the Supreme Court’s stand on CIL? 4 What… Continue reading How India has approached customary international law
Why India Needs A Fiscal Council
News: Recently, the Union Minister of State for Finance in a written reply to the Parliament ruled out setting up of a fiscal council, which was recommended by the FRBM Review Committee. It was reasoned that, there are institutions that already perform some or all of the proposed functions of the Fiscal Council. For example,… Continue reading Why India Needs A Fiscal Council
Tuberculosis(TB): We can’t afford to neglect TB care
News: COVID-19 pandemic put health systems under great stress. The government announced a policy to bolster public health by pledging four new national virology institutes, nine new high containment laboratories and the National Institute of one health. Unfortunately, it did not address other infectious diseases like tuberculosis. Read here: COVID-19 reverses decades of progress in TB… Continue reading Tuberculosis(TB): We can’t afford to neglect TB care
Discretionary powers of the governor: Some Raj Bhavans are on the war path
News: There have been some incidents that show the friction between the delicate relationships of the constitutional head of state and the elected government. What were the incidents all about? Maharashtra: Governor refused to accept the date of election of the Speaker recommended by the State government. However, this refusal goes against the principle of constitutional… Continue reading Discretionary powers of the governor: Some Raj Bhavans are on the war path
Unchanged: On EWS quota income norm
News: Supreme Court has allowed the commencement of counselling for postgraduate medical admissions under All India Quota scheme. What is the background of the development? Read here: Income Criteria for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in India – Explained, pointwise What is the decision made by the Supreme Court? The court has upheld the 27% quota… Continue reading Unchanged: On EWS quota income norm
NFHS-5: Reading NHFS-5 data to understand India’s health, population outlook
News: The government of India recently released National Family Health Survey 5 (NFHS-5) data. The data shows some promising trends and some areas of concern. Read here: NFHS-5 and its findings – Explained, pointwise What are the findings of the National Family Health Survey 5? Read here: What does NFHS-5 data tell us about state of… Continue reading NFHS-5: Reading NHFS-5 data to understand India’s health, population outlook
Health Infrastructure: PM bats for health infra at district level
News: While putting vaccination for adolescents in “mission mode”, the Prime minister stressed the need to ensure adequate health infrastructure at the district level. Read more: How to fix India’s creaking health infrastructure? What steps should be adopted to improve health infrastructure amid Omicron? – Government should work towards Upgrading health infrastructure, testing capacity, availability… Continue reading Health Infrastructure: PM bats for health infra at district level
Control rather than Privacy
News: The Puttaswamy judgment and the Justice B.N. Srikrishna committee report led to the introduction of the Personal Data Protection Bill of 2019. The bill was sent to a joint parliamentary committee for further scrutiny, which has now submitted its report. Although there are some concerns regarding the same. What are the concerns regarding… Continue reading Control rather than Privacy
