FRONT PAGE
‘Karnataka sovereignty’: BJP seeks action, EC asks Cong to ‘rectify’
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.
Mains Examination: General Studies II: Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story- The Election Commission on Monday asked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to “clarify” and take “rectification measures” over party leader Sonia Gandhi’s alleged remarks supporting “sovereignty of Karnataka”.
• What does the word ‘sovereignty’ mean?
• What exactly Sonia Gandhi Said?
• “Sovereignty of Karnataka”-what is your interpretation?
• What is sovereignty in Indian constitution?
• What Section 29A (5) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, says?
• Why BJP invoked Section 29A (5) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951?
• Under what circumstances did the word ‘sovereignty’ enter India’s Constitution?
• For Your Information- The word sovereignty appears in the beginning of the Preamble to the Constitution of India, as the first attribute of the independent republic of India. Its placement as the first among the core principles of the republic underlines its importance in the Constitution. The Constituent Assembly debated whether the word ‘sovereignty’ should be made part of the Preamble. Today, the Preamble says, “WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC…IN OUR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION.”
• How does the Constitution use the word ‘sovereignty’?
• What is the relationship of the Indian states with the sovereign Union?
• What provisions of the Constitution attest to the superior position of the Centre?
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Sonia Gandhi row: What does the Constitution say about the sovereignty of India?
Bengal bans The Kerala Story, BJP cries foul as TN halls withdraw it
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies II: Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure and Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story-WEST BENGAL Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday ordered a ban on the film The Kerala Story in West Bengal, citing threat to law and order in the state. After a press conference at the state administration headquarters, Mamata ordered Chief Secretary Harikrishna Dwivedi to issue a statewide ban, saying, “The film won’t be shown in any hall in Bengal.”
• Banning of movies-is it justified?
• “Films have been accepted as a form of speech and expression and freedom of speech and expression is the concept of being able to speak freely”-Comment
• Banning of movies-What does the law say
• ‘The Kerala Story’-why centre of the storm these days?
• “The film’s most controversial claim thus far has been that approximately 32,000 girls have gone ‘missing’ from the southern state, allegedly after being forcefully/deceitfully converted to Islam and then recruited by the Islamic State”-is there any data available to support the claim?
• In 2012, then chief minister Oommen Chandy tabled a report in the Kerala Assembly-What was that report and how it is connected with the movie?
• ‘The Kerala Story’ as “propaganda”-Critically analyse the given statement
• What is propaganda?
• There are many techniques commonly used in spreading of propaganda-what are they?
• How propaganda influence public opinion?
• How do films as forms of propaganda affect society as a whole?
• What are examples of propaganda films?
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?How accurate are the claims made by ‘The Kerala Story’?
EXPRESS NETWORK
5 more cheetahs to be released into wild at Kuno National Park before monsoon
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change
Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story- Five more cheetahs three females and two males will be released from acclimatisation camps into free-ranging conditions at Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park (KNP) before the onset of the monsoon in June, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change said on Monday. In a statement, the ministry also said that Uday, the male adult South African cheetah who was found dead at KNP on April 23, had died of cardio-pulmonary failure, and that a detailed post-mortem examination found that it did not suffer from any infectious disease that may affect other cheetahs.
• What is the Reintroduction of the cheetah in India plan?
• Cheetah in India- Background
• Extinction of Cheetah from Indian Landscape-know the reasons
• Action Plan for Introduction of Cheetah in India-Important Highlights
• Know the difference between cheetah and Leopard and African cheetah and Asiatic cheetah
• Supreme Court of India on Translocating Animals-know in detail
• Trans-continental translocation of Animals-know the Issues and Challenges
• Map Work World-South Africa, Namibia and Botswana
• Map Work India-Kuno Palpur National Park (Madhya Pradesh)
• For Your Information-Cheetahs are among the oldest of the big cat species, with its ancestors going back about 8.5 million years. It is listed as “vulnerable” by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. Two subspecies, the Asiatic cheetah and the Northwest African cheetah, are listed as “critically endangered”.
• One of the world’s leading experts on cheetahs, Dr Laurie Marker, said that managing a human-animal conflict will be the biggest challenge in India-What is human-animal conflict in India?
• What are the major causes of human-animal conflict in India?
• The Reintroduction of the Cheetah in India is the first such trans-continental project which is taking off-Know how Reintroduction of the cheetah in India plan is executed?
• One of the world’s leading experts on cheetahs, Dr Laurie Marker, said that managing a human-animal conflict will be the biggest challenge in India-What is human-animal conflict in India?
• What are the major causes of human-animal conflict in India?
• Do You Know-All the cheetahs are fitted with satellite collars that record their location twice a day or more depending upon the situation. Monitoring teams have been employed to follow the released cheetahs 24×7 in rotating shifts.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Explained: How cheetahs went extinct in India, and the plan to reintroduce them into the wild
?What it takes to successfully move big cats like cheetahs out of their natural habitats
As Rlys builds new station in Odisha town, INTACH raises red flag, seeks heritage tag
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: History of India
Mains Examination: General Studies I: Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story-As the railway ministry has started redevelopment of Paralakhemundi station, one of the oldest railway stations in Odisha, the state chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) has objected to the demolition of the heritage station built in 1899 by the then royals.
• What is the historical significance of the Parlakhemundi railway station?
• Where is Parlakhemundi railway station?
• Why INTACH Odisha is worried about Parlakhemundi railway station?
• What you know about the Eastern Ganga dynasty?
• The Gajapati dynasty and the Eastern Ganga dynasty-Compare
• The Eastern Ganga dynasty is most known for constructing world-famous temples and other structures. Can you identify some of them?
• Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH)-Know in detail
• INTACH has pioneered the conservation and protection of India’s natural and cultural heritage. Can you recall a few of their projects?
• What is the role of INTACH in urban conservation?
• Archaeological Survey of India and Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage-Comapre and Contrast
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?INTACH has earned its position
THE EDITORIAL PAGE
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story-Pradip Phanjoubam Writes- The suddenness and scale of the communal violence which erupted at several townships in Manipur on May 3 took everybody by surprise, but the authorities should have known the steam for this was building up for years. Developments on May 3 just happened to provide the spark to cause the explosion. The answer to the intriguing question as to why the violence was only between the Kukis and Meiteis, not the Nagas or any other, throws some light on the matter.
• Why the violence is only between the Kukis and Meiteis, and not Nagas or any other?
• What is the immediate cause for the bloody clash between the two groups?
• For Your Information-The immediate cause for the bloody clash was a tribal solidarity rally held in all hill districts by both the Nagas and Kukis, opposing a proposal for the Meiteis’ inclusion in the Scheduled Tribes list. Since the initial spark for this explosion came from Churachandpur district, where Kuki-aligned tribes are concentrated, it is again obvious the Kukis were more sensitive to the friction.
• For some time now, two parallel and provocative narratives in the portrayal of Manipur history were being pushed from certain quarters-What are those two parallel and provocative narratives?
• “The first and more recent is that Kukis are illegal migrants. This at best is a half-truth. This narrative is often taken advantage of by rivals to humiliate the Kukis as “refugees” etc., and it is imaginable the latent anger from this would have made Kukis ultrasensitive”-Who are Kukis?
• What is that peculiar land-holding tradition amongst Kukis which writer has highlighted?
• A look into the history-The other party in this spell of violence, Meiteis, too have been on the receiving end of a peculiar turn of history since colonial days putting them in an unenviable corner. In 1891, after its defeat, the British banished the ruling dynasty and installed Churachand as ruler, a young prince from another dynasty. Churachand was still a minor and the British sent him off to Mayo College for education. Churachand was crowned upon his return in 1907 but the British also brought in their tried and tested land revenue administrative mechanism from Assam whereby revenue plains were separated from the non-revenue hills by drawing an Inner Line at the base of the hills. In the same pattern, the central Imphal valley, the traditional home of Meiteis, thus came to be separated from the hills surrounding it. Again, while the plains were to be administered by the Maharaja, the hills were kept under the President of the Manipur State Durbar (PMSD), a British officer — the same way that the hills beyond the Inner Line in Assam were kept under the Governor, and not the legislature. Amongst the administrative measures the PMSD undertook in Manipur hills was the creation of reserved forests of several uninhabited mountain stretches. These reserved forests were continued by a decision of the then Union Territory government after Manipur became part of India in 1949. The current controversy over forest encroachments has this antecedent. But the animus has since transformed into a tribal-nontribal conflict.
• “The reason cited for the demand for ST inclusion of Meiteis also has this insecurity of their becoming marginalised in their own home ground”- Why ST inclusion of Meiteis?
• What was the Manipur High Court directive?
• For Your Information- The Meiteis are the largest community in Manipur, making up roughly 64.6% of its population. In a plea before the High Court, the Meiteis argued that they were recognised as a tribe before the 1949 merger of the princely state of Manipur with the Union of India. Owing to a loss of their identity as a tribe in the aftermath of the merger, the demand for ST status was felt within the community to “save the ancestral land, tradition, culture, and language” of the Meiteis. Thus, the Meiteis sought inclusion in the ST list on account of the community being “victimised without any constitutional safeguards to date”. On April 19, the Manipur High Court observed that the issue had not been decided due to the state government’s negligence in not sending a recommendation to the Centre for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the ST list to date. Directing the Manipur government to consider the case of the Meiteis’ inclusion in the ST list “expeditiously” within four weeks, the court disposed of the case. This resulted in opposition from the existing tribes within Manipur on the grounds that the Meiteis were already dominant in terms of both population and political representation, adding that their Manipuri language finds a place in the Eighth Schedule. Further, sections of the predominantly Hindu Meiteis are already classified under the SC or OBC groups and consequently, have access to opportunities associated with the status. The high court order stands at the center of tensions between the Kukis and the Meiteis and finally escalated into violent clashes between the two communities over the past few days. As the situation worsened, the state’s Home Department issued “shoot-at-sight” orders “in extreme cases”.
• What do the “shoot-at-sight” orders say?
• What provisions of law allow the issuance of “shoot-at-sight” orders?
• “The Manipur conflagration seems to be a culmination of several developments”-Discuss
• “In the tribal states of the Northeast, particularly in the Sixth Schedule areas, natural resources belong to the people, not the state”-What are the provisions given in the sixth schedule?
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Slow down hits hard, Manipur’s jobless rate twice national average
?Manipur violence: Before SC, plea for probe, challenge to HC order
THE IDEAS PAGE
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
Mains Examination: General Studies III: Urbanization, their problems and their remedies.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story--Fahad Zuberi Writes: Quality of our cities is the quality of our lives. What should also be an important issue in this poll is that Bengaluru is a basket case of disastrous urban planning and consequent insufficient infrastructure, environmental damage, unaffordable real estate
• “The issue of urban development carries a strange duality about its relevance in politics”- What strange duality?
• “The state’s capital, Bengaluru, is the basket case of disastrous urban planning and the consequent insufficient infrastructure, environmental damage, and unaffordable real estate”-Discuss
• How is urban planning policy for Bengaluru conceptualised?
• For Your Information-The first urban planning policy for Bengaluru was framed in 1952 by the Bangalore Development Committee after the city grew between 1941-51 owing to the rise in public sector employment opportunities. The committee prepared an Outline Development Plan and submitted it to the government which enforced the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act in 1965 and adopted the plan in 1972. In 1976, the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) was constituted to prepare a Comprehensive Development Plan (CDP) every 10 years.
Bengaluru became the sixth-largest city in India by 1961 with a population of 1.2 million at the time and grew further in the 1970s with private manufacturing coming to the region. Through the 1980s, however, led by the emerging technology sector and then by the IT industry, Bengaluru saw exponential growth of population — from 1.2 million in 1961 to 1.6 million in 1971. The population further jumped to 2.9 million in 1981 and 4.1 million in 1991. In a (delayed) response to this growth, the Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority was established in 1986.
• ‘With a lot of capital and population flowing into the city, the government struggled to keep up with the demands and pressures of the urban agglomeration for two fundamental reasons.” What were those reasons?
• How are urban infrastructure challenges being highlighted in electoral narratives?
• “The fact is urban infrastructure is the canvas of modern life and politics”-Analyse
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Political economy of Karnataka
EXPLAINED
WHY ARAB LEAGUE HAS REINSTATED SYRIA,12 YEARS AFTER SUSPENSION
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance
Mains Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story- The Arab League on Sunday (May 7) voted to reinstate Syria’s membership after its suspension more than 10 years ago, underlining the thawing relations between Damascus and other Arab countries. The decision was taken at a closed-door meeting, attended by foreign ministers from 13 out of 22 member states of the organisation, held in Cairo, Egypt.
• Why Syria was ousted from the Arab League in 2011?
• Map Work-Syria
• What is the Arab League?
• For Your Information-The Arab League, formally known as the League of Arab States, was established in 1945 with initially just six nations: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Currently, it has 22 member states, who have pledged to cooperate on economic and military affairs, among other issues. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, an American think tank, “The League makes decisions on a majority basis, but there is no mechanism to compel members to comply with resolutions. “It has been criticised for its internal conflicts and collective inaction on important international issues.”
• How many countries are in the Arab League?
• Who are the members of Arab League?
• Map Work-Mark member countries of Arab League
• Is India member of Arab League?
• What made the Arab League reinstate Syria’s membership?
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Analysis: Arabs ease Syria President Assad’s isolation as US looks elsewhere
ECONOMY
Ensuring financial stability is a shared responsibility, says FM
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story-Regulators should maintain a constant vigil as ensuring financial sector stability is their ‘shared responsibility’, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in the 27th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) held Monday.
• What is the role of the Financial Stability and Development Council?
• Who heads Financial Stability and Development Council?
• Is Financial Stability and Development Council an organ of NITI Aayog?
• Is Financial Stability and Development Council is a statutory body?
• Recently, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman chaired the 27th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC)-what are the key highlights?
• “Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth said that daunting challenges are coming from the global economy, but the Indian financial sector is well protected”-What daunting challenges are coming for the Indian Economy?
• What is a financial stability report?
• Who publishes financial stability report?
• For Your Information-According to Department of Economic Affairs, “With a view to strengthening and institutionalizing the mechanism for maintaining financial stability, enhancing inter-regulatory coordination and promoting financial sector development, the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was set up by the Government as the apex level forum in December 2010. The Chairman of the Council is the Finance Minister and its members include the heads of financial sector Regulators (RBI, SEBI, PFRDA, IRDA & FMC) Finance Secretary and/or Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Secretary, Department of Financial Services, and Chief Economic Adviser. The Council can invite experts to its meeting if required. Without prejudice to the autonomy of regulators, the Council monitors macro prudential supervision of the economy, including functioning of large financial conglomerates, and addresses inter-regulatory coordination and financial sector development issues. It also focuses on financial literacy and financial inclusion”.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?FSDC: Early-warning indicators, 2023 G20 presidency in focus
Previous Prelims Question covering same theme:
?With reference to ‘Financial Stability and Development Council’, consider the following statements: (Please refer GS 1, 2016 for complete question)
a) It is an organ of NITI Aayog.
b) It is headed by the Union Finance Minister.
c) It monitors macro-prudential supervision of the economy.
Reserve Bank’s gold reserves rose 4.5% to 794.64 tonnes in 2022-23
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.
Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story– The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) added 34.22 metric tonnes of gold in the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2023, taking the total gold reserves to 794.64 metric tonnes. RBI held 760.42 metric tonnes as of March 31, 2022, compared to 695.31 metric tonnes as of March 31, 2021. The gold reserves as of March 31, 2023, included gold deposits of 56.32 metric tonnes, according to the RBI’s half-yearly report on Management of Foreign Exchange Reserves- October 2022 – March 2023.
• What is RBI gold reserve?
• What is World gold Council?
• World Gold Council Report is exactly what?
• What is India’s ranking in World Gold Council Report?
• Gold and Economy-Connect the dots
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?RBI gold reserves up 40.4 tonnes in 2019-20, more than half of total holdings held overseas
Oil min panel proposes ban on diesel 4-wheeler vehicles by 2027
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.
Key Points to Ponder:
• What’s the ongoing story- A panel formed by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has recommended a ban on the use of diesel-powered four-wheeler vehicles by 2027 in cities with a population of more than 1 million, and instead transition to electric and gas-fuelled vehicles. The Energy Transition Advisory Committee, headed by former petroleum secretary Tarun Kapoor, has also recommended that city transport should be a mix of Metro trains and electric buses by 2030.
• What is the background of this proposal on diesel?
• For Your Information-India should by 2027 ban the use of diesel-powered four-wheelers in cities with over 10 lakh population and switch to electric and gas-fuelled vehicles, according to a report commissioned by the oil ministry. The report of the committee headed by former Oil Secretary Tarun Kapoor also suggested phasing out motorcycles, scooters, and three-wheelers with internal combustion engines by 2035.
• Which companies in India make diesel cars?
• What then is the problem with such a proposal?
• What are the reasons people prefer diesels?
• Why have carmakers started to move away from diesel?
• Didn’t petrol engines too need upgrades as a result of the shift to BS-VI?
• What about the buyers of diesel vehicles?
• What is the upshot, overall, of this proposal?
• What is Bharat stage emission standards (BSES)?
• The standards and the timeline for implementation for Bharat stage emission standards (BSES) are set by whom?
• Bharat stage emission standards (BSES) and The European emission standards-Compare and Contrast
• What is BS-IV?
• What is BS-VI?
• What is the difference between BS-IV and BS-VI
• What it means for vehicles
• What area unit BSI, BSII, BSIII, BSIV, and BSVI emission norms?
• The Supreme Court of India’s Verdict on Bharat Stage Emission Standards (BSES)-Know in Detail
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
?Ban diesel four-wheelers in cities with 10 lakh population, says panel
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