Editorials/Opinions Analyses for UPSC – 19 July 2021
Content: Leaving the past behind Leaving the past behind: India-Afghanistan Context: Two events in Central Asia last week, which India attended, saw Afghanistan’s neighbours seeking solutions to the conflict there. The first was a meeting in Dushanbe, of the Contact group on Afghanistan of SCO Foreign Ministers, and The second, a Central and South Asia […]
Leaving the past behind: India-Afghanistan
Context: Two events in Central Asia last week, which India attended, saw Afghanistan’s neighbours seeking solutions to the conflict there. The first was a meeting in Dushanbe, of the Contact group on Afghanistan of SCO Foreign Ministers, and The second, a Central and South Asia connectivity conference in Tashkent. Relevance: GS-II: International Relations (India and […]
Current Affairs for UPSC IAS Exam – 19 July 2021
Contents Supreme Court mulls limit to role as policy watchdog Lokpal yet to get director of inquiry Midday meals leave a long-lasting impact: study RBI bars Mastercard from issuing new cards in India U.S., Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan: Quad G7’s Build Back Better World Initiative Supreme Court mulls limit to role as policy watchdog Context: The […]
G7’s Build Back Better World Initiative
Context: G-7 leaders finally came around with the proposed Build Back Better World (B3W) to counter China’s rising influence across 100-plus countries through Belt Road Initiative (BRI) projects. Relevance: GS-II: International Relations (India and its Neighborhood, Effect of Policies & Politics of Countries on India’s Interests, Important International Groupings affecting India’s Interests) Dimensions of the […]
U.S., Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan: Quad
Context: The US, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan have agreed in principle to establish a new quadrilateral diplomatic platform focused on enhancing regional connectivity, Relevance: GS-II: International Relations (Important International Groupings, Foreign Policies affecting India’s Interests) Dimensions of the Article: About the new US, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan Quad Significance of the new quad grouping How […]
RBI bars Mastercard from issuing new cards in India
Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed restrictions on Mastercard Asia / Pacific Pte. Ltd. from on-boarding new domestic customers (debit, credit or prepaid) onto its card network for non-compliance with the regulator’s directions. According to the RBI, the U.S. card-issuer Mastercard has failed to comply with the local data storage rules announced by […]
Midday meals leave a long-lasting impact: study
Context: According to a new study on the inter-generational benefits of India’s midday meal scheme Relevance: GS-II: Social Justice (Issues related to Poverty and Hunger, Government Policies and Initiatives, Welfare Schemes) Dimensions of the Article: Mid-Day-Meal (MDM) Scheme How the Mid-Day-Meal Scheme came to be- Has the Mid-Day-Meal Scheme helped? Criticism of MDM scheme and […]
Lokpal yet to get director of inquiry
Context: More than two years after the Lokpal came into being, the Centre is yet to appoint a director of inquiry for conducting preliminary inquiry into graft complaints sent by the anti-corruption ombudsman, according to a Right to Information reply. Relevance: GS-II: Polity and Governance (Constitutional and Non-Constitutional Bodies, Policies and Interventions on Transparency and […]
Supreme Court mulls limit to role as policy watchdog
Context: The resolve voiced by a Division Bench of the Supreme Court recently to “examine” the extent to which the judiciary can question the government’s COVID-19 policies drifts from the court’s three-judge Bench judgment previously in May 2021 which held that courts cannot be “silent spectators when constitutional rights of citizens are infringed by executive […]
Editorials/Opinions Analyses for UPSC – 17 July 2021
Contents India needs a renewed health-care system India needs a renewed health-care system Context: India has a new Union Health Minister after the recent cabinet reshuffle. So, what does the new Health Minister need to learn from previous experience, and what unfinished tasks need to be taken forward? Relevance: GS-II: Social Justice (Health and associated […]