Tag: gs paper 2

News: COVID-19 pandemic revealed the poor status of India’s health infrastructure. Now it is time to revamp this infrastructure. COVID-19 pandemic in India exposed the weakness of health infrastructure. Overflowing intensive care units, empty oxygen cylinders, lack of medicines, dead bodies outside hospitals all revealed the poor status of health infrastructure in India. Contents1 What… Continue reading How to fix India’s creaking health infrastructure?

News: Unlike most democratic countries, arrest seems to be becoming a norm in India. This needs an urgent course correction. There are so many cases of unjustified arrests and denial of bails like of Aryan Khan, journalist Siddique Kappan, and many others. These all incidents raise questions on rule of law in India. It is… Continue reading Jail should be the exception, not the norm

News: Given the seriousness and complexity of the issue of malnutrition in India, innovative approaches are needed. Hippocrates famously stated that Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food. This highlights the importance of nutrition in the growth of a child. A unique Project Sampoorna was conceived in the Bongaigaon district of Assam.… Continue reading A vital cog in Bongaigaon’s response in malnutrition

News: India’s Indo-Pacific strategy has got a concrete political and institutional shape with the setting up of QUAD. India must develop a similar strategy for Eurasia as well. The Eurasian Strategy will completement the Indo-Pacific Strategy as the latter influences maritime geopolitics while the former will be in the Continental domain. What is the concept… Continue reading India needs a new integrated approach to Eurasia

News: The Madras High Court recently quashed the provision of 10.5% reservation for Vanniyakula Kshatriyas within the overall 20% quota for Most Backward Communities (MBCs) and Denotified Communities (DNCs). This has highlighted the importance of quantifiable data while taking a decision on reservation in education and employment. What is the issue? The State Assembly had… Continue reading No Quota without quantifiable data

News: India has failed to utilise the international law to advance its national security interests.   International laws cover wide array of security issues ranging from terrorism to maritime security. For example, Article 1(1) of the UN Charter recognizes the maintenance of “international peace and security” as a principal objective of the UN. However, India has not been able… Continue reading It’s time to engage in ‘lawfare’

News: The stringent provisions of UAPA have denied bail to many accused. However, Thwaha Fasal’s judgment can now be invoked to release other political prisoners in the country who have been denied bail due to harshness or narrow interpretation of the law. In Thwaha Fasal vs Union of India, the Court has deconstructed the provisions… Continue reading A new jurisprudence for political prisoners

News: Vaccination is key to returning to normalcy and in curbing the further spread of COVID-19. Now is the time to put extra efforts to boost vaccine confidence among the public. After the devastating second wave, India has performed well in controlling the spread of Covid. Vaccination, together with face masks and social distancing, have… Continue reading Strengthening vaccine trust

Synopsis: As mental health issues are increasing in India, there is need to address social, institutional and governance issues to overcome this impending crisis. Introduction India celebrates 10th October as World Mental Health Day. Despite such campaigns, mental health remains under-invested and underappreciated in India. What is the status of mental health issues in India?… Continue reading The country needs to get a handle on mental health

News: There remain delays in the stage where the Central government transfers wages to the workers’ accounts. There are wage payment delays under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). Eight crore MGNREGA wage transactions were pending on Diwali. According to the People’s Action for Employment Guarantee (PAEG) findings, funds allocation for this… Continue reading The long road to timely MGNREGA payments