Author: pah
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Net neutrality concept demystified
Why in news? Obama supported it. The principle of Net Neutrality was struck down by a US Federal appeals court. ISPs can manipulate traffic. What is it? Net Neutrality is the idea that broadband Internet Service Providers should treat everything that flows across the Internet equally. Since we get the same internet speed for all websites, user…
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Ancient Indian Physicians – important contributions
PM has been reading Dina Nath Batra certainly. He has been unequivocally rooting for Ancient Indian medicine practices and practitioners. UPSC too might be in awe of Modi , and might as well ask us to list some of them and their contributions. Jivaka belonged to Bihar, 6th century BC – contemporary of Bimbisara and…
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Katchatheevu Island, India – Sri Lanka Fishermen Issue, and Impact on Bilateral Ties – Pointwise
One of the main bones of contention in the diplomatic domain remains the issue of fishermen in the region, with both the governments not being able to reach any concrete and once-and-for-all resolution as yet. Why in news recently? protest against EU ban on seafood exports from Sri Lanka. persistent protest from northern fishers against…
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India – Nepal hydel cooperation , PTA PDA – challenges and solutions
Nepal has endorsed the Power Trade Agreement (PTA) with India and also inked the Project Development Agreement (PDA) with Indian private company GMR. Let us take a holistic view at the different challenges that are likely and the possible solutions. 1. Timely execution of the projects – Pancheshwar multipurpose project was halted for long only because of…
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Clean India mission – challenges
” Every one must be his own scavenger – MK Gandhi “ Swacch Bharat mission has been launched, but several hurdles are there on the path. Waste Generation and Disposal Lack of capacity to process the collected waste and Inadequate landfills—the waste gets transported from point A to B, where it is either dumped indefinitely, or…
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Supreme Court v/s Tribunals Issue – Demystified
Supreme Court struck down the National Tax Tribunal Act, on the grounds that it encroached upon the power of the judiciary and the principle of separation of powers. Here is the gist of the entire matter , all that is required for the exam. What are Tribunals? Tribunal is a body of administrative character powered with judicial and quasi…
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Leader of Opposition issue , need for LoP
The Issue: What happens when the single largest Party is Opposition does not secure even 10% of the Seats. Current Constitutional Provision requires that for having the Leader of Opposition, the single largest party in opposition should have at least 10% seats in the Lok Sabha. The Leader of such a party acts as the…
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Global Gender Gap Index 2014
Reports and Indices are always important for the exam. UPSC asks them in both prelims and mains. It also serves as good fodder for Essay. Global Gender Gap Report is published by World Economic Forum. First Report published in 2006. Global Gender Gap Index – What is it for ? Measures the relative gender based gaps in…
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Clinical Trials – all that you need to know, explained pointwise
What are Clinical Trials? Clinical trials are research studies that explore whether a medical strategy, treatment, or device is safe and effective for humans. Before a drug is launched in market, it has to be tested for its safety and efficacy. This is done in stages, with a large pool of patients after which the data…
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Sankirtana – snippets for mains
UPSC’s penchant for culture is well known. Although this is not a very recent development , it might have caught the examiner’s eye as a potential 2/5 marker. Why in news? UNESCO has inscribed Sankirtana of Manipur on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, for the year 2013. What is…
