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1.Western Ghats offer major additions to flora Botanical Survey of India says 202 species were discovered across the country in 2020 The Botanical Survey of India, in its new publication Plant Discoveries 2020 has added 267 new taxa/ species to the country’s flora. The 267 new discoveries include 119 angiosperms; 3 pteridophytes; 5 bryophytes, 44 […]
1.IISc researchers find a way to substitute for single-use plastics By combining non-edible oils and cellulose extracted from agricultural stubble, the researchers made biodegradable, multiuse polymer sheets According to a report by Central Pollution Control Board of India, for the year 2018-2019, 3.3 million metric tonnes of plastic waste are generated by Indians. The bad […]
1.GST Council not for inclusion of petroleum products: FinMin Centre turns down States’ plea for compensation beyond June 2022 The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has decided to keep petroleum products out of the GST regime, while consumers will have to keep paying the Compensation Cess levied on products like automobiles till March 2026 […]
1.Two democracies and their vigilante problem While in India, the word spells bad news, in the U.S., as seen in Texas, the citizen arrester seems hardly diminished In the world’s largest democracy, the word ‘vigilante’ evokes unsavoury images of goons stopping cattle trucks and lynching drivers, or video filming themselves assaulting men accused of love […]
1.Lifeline for telcos as govt. offers four-year moratorium on dues Reforms include redefinition of AGR concept; 100% FDI under automatic route The Cabinet on Wednesday approved several measures to extend a lifeline to the cash-strapped telecom sector, including a redefinition of the much-litigated concept of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) to exclude non-telecom revenue and a […]
1.No firm commitment from India on ‘net zero’: Kerry Emissions goal not the only priority, govt. tells climate envoy The world is watching commitments on climate change made by all the “big emitters”, said U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry on Tuesday. Mr. Kerry was making a pitch for India to announce a […]
1.In Manipur, a case for asymmetric federalism Institutionally accommodating tribal distinctiveness as an enduring good will promote the State’s integrity As a normative idea and an institutional arrangement which supports the recognition and provision of an expansive ‘self-rule’ for territorially concentrated minority groups, asymmetric federalism has recently received bad press in India. The dissolution of […]
1.What is investment risk? Risk must be defined based on investment objective, not on the possibility of negative returns in future How do you define investment risk? We ask this question because many individuals are worried that equity investments currently carry high risk, having recorded continual uptrend in recent times. In this article, we show […]
1.CJI raises concern over backlog of criminal cases in Allahabad HC 1.83 lakh criminal appeals pending in court, Uttar Pradesh govt. had told SC Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana on Saturday said the pendency of criminal cases in the Allahabad High Court was “very worrying”. “I do not want to point any fingers or […]
1.BRICS seeks ‘inclusive’ intra-Afghan dialogue 5-member group adopts Counter Terrorism Action Plan The 13th BRICS summit held virtually on Thursday called for an “inclusive intra-Afghan dialogue” for stability in Afghanistan. The virtual summit, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was dominated by the developments in Afghanistan, and adopted the BRICS Counter Terrorism Action Plan. “We […]
1.The economic reforms — looking back to look ahead The fundamentals need to be set right with a focus on human capital, technology readiness and productivity The crisis caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic in the country and at global level has led to a debate about fresh thinking and new approaches to manage the […]
1.The long and the short of the NMP It is surprising the Government has avoided mentioning the consequences of asset monetisation on ordinary citizens In the Budget for 2021-22, the Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, had announced the Government’s decision to monetise operating public infrastructure assets, declaring this as an important financing option for constructing new […]
