The Hindu

Women’s dignity sacrosanct: Holding that the “dignity of a woman is a part of her non-perishable and immortal self”, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that courts should not go for compromises/mediation between the accused and the victim, but should punish the accused (if found guilty) to the greatest possible extent. A recent order by the Madras High Court asking a young woman to mediate with her rapist for the sake of the child borne out of the crime has come for immense criticism everywhere.

Top corporates back Digital India Week: Companies and industrial houses have outlined road maps and already committed Rs. 4.5 lakh crore for initiatives. These are expected to create 5 lakh jobs. The Digital India initiative aims to create 18 lakh jobs overall.

AFSPA is a failed statute in Indian Law: Amnesty International says the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Jammu and Kashmir, under which the Army can even kill someone just on mere suspicion of terrorist activities, portrays a disturbing picture in the violation of human rights. (Read this if you have time to spare).

U.S. to set up embassy in Cuba: The US and Cuba are scheduled to announce the reopening of embassies in Washington and Havana for the first time in over 50 years. The US has subjected Cuba to an arms embargo since 1962, ever since Cuba sympathized with communist USSR during the Cold War.

Outcomes with a pattern: Over the last two decades and more, the Election Commission of India has done a lot to limit the advantages of incumbency in elections. But with no possibility of bringing about a change of government through one by-election, voters have no incentive to vote for the Opposition parties.

A new multilateral institution: The AIIB has taken shape with 50 members, including China, Australia, India, Russia and the United Kingdom. It represents a challenge to the established order of international lending.

The Greek crisis and an imperfect EU: The concept of the European Union is built on the foundation of regional interdependence and mutual support facilitated by the different national political systems. The Greek crisis is showing us that this is nowhere close to getting accomplished.

Raking up the MQM-RAW link for brownie points: Pakistan raising a furore about alleged links between the terrorist outfit MQM and Indian intelligence network RAW seems to be an attempt to divert attention from its own inability to arrest terrorism, and a call for garnering international sympathy.

September 30 deadline to declare assets abroad: The govt has set September 30 2015, as the deadline for any Indian to declare undisclosed assets located outside India. The government also set December 31 as the last date by which a person must pay the relevant tax and penalty on the undisclosed assets so that no legal action will be taken against him.

ISRO preparing new Space roadmap: After the completion of the Chandrayaan Mission, ISRO has already set about identifying new targets (like advancements in satellite and communication technologies), but that the fulfillment of old backlogs (like the GSLV launch vehicles) will assume a priority in the next few months. (You do not need to read this interview completely.)

Cabinet nod for National Agriculture Market: The National Agriculture Market would require a single licence for market operations across all states, a single point of levy of market fee and electronic auction as a mode of price discovery. (There will be more articles about this over the next few days. Glance through this also).

India finds itself in a bind on Maldives: With the possibility of the U.N. Human Rights Council censuring the Maldives, India has two paths: see this as an opportunity to continue with its disapproval of the Maldivian government or resist taking action against a sovereign neighbour. India’s relations with Maldives have worsened ever since Mohamed Nasheed was forced out of the Maldivian Presidency.

Greece to move ahead with referendum: Greece’s government moved ahead with its plan to vote on austerity measures after European creditors rebuffed its latest proposal for a new aid programme.

World Bank approves $650 m loan: After two earlier loans, the World Bank has approved an additional loan of $650 million to India for the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC), which is aimed at the faster delivery of goods between the northern and eastern parts of the country.

Govt. to roll out road map for corporate tax reduction: The government in the next 45 days is going to unveil how it will reduce the corporate tax rate to 25 per cent over four years, and eliminate the existing incentives and exemptions.

Domestic passenger vehicle sales lose momentum: The current trend in the automobile industry reflects that sale of passenger cars has slowed down (although it still is positive) while the sale of two-wheelers has continued to grow. (Just remember the above line; no need to read this article).

The principle of trap cropping: Trap crops attract pests towards themselves and prevent the target crops from getting attacked. The principle of trap cropping rests on the fact that virtually all pests show a distinct preference to a certain crop stage, and that is when they attack the target crops.

Saving the sharks before it is too late: The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute at Kochi has drawn up an action plan “Guidance on National Plan of Action (NPOA) for Sharks in India” in line with the “International Plan of Action for conservation and management of sharks” developed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UNO.

Newspaper Must Read Articles of The Day – 02 July 2015