Table of Contents

Polity and Governance...................................................................................................... 1

1. SC removes BCCI bosses (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains paper II) ............................. 1
2. SC asks Govt., SAI to take a stand on Lodha recommendations (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II, Topic: reforms in Sports bodies) ............................................................. 3

3. Union Cabinet approves Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana 2017 (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II, III) ............................................................................................... 3
4. India ranks 79 in Corruption Perception Index (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains Paper II) ....................................................................................................................... 4
5. Donations received by Political Parties (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper
II) ............................................................................................................................................. 4
6. Padma Awards (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ........................................... 6
7. IIMs could grant degrees instead of diplomas soon (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ....................................................................................................................... 7
8. Budgeting for the elections (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ........................ 8
9. CBI ordered to probe abuse of office by its former chief (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II) ................................................................................................................ 9
10. Delhi police chief named CBI director (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ...... 9
11. Dealing with the deadwood: Compulsory retirement of Civil Servants (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II).................................................................................................. 10
12. Himachal Pradesh overtakes Kerala in learning outcomes: ASER (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II).................................................................................................. 11
13. Richest 1% own 58% of total wealth in India: Oxfam Study (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 11
14. Jallikattu issues assuming large proportions (Relevant for GS Mains Paper I and
Prelims) ................................................................................................................................. 12
15. State of Bhopal AIIMS (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II) ................................................ 13
16. Church courts cannot veto divorce law: Supreme Court (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 14
17. India ranks 60th in Inclusive Development Index (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 15
18. How EC decided on the party symbol row in SP? (Relevant for GS prelims and GS mains
paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 15
19. New Army, Air Force Chiefs assume charge (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains paper II)
.............................................................................................................................................. 17
20. Seniority done away with in another Army appointment (Relevant for GS Mains Paper
II) ........................................................................................................................................... 18
21. A wake-up call: Disenchantment in armed forces (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II) ..... 18
22. Why can t FM stations broadcast news, asks SC (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II) ....... 19
23. Recommendations of Panel for reforms in education (Relevant for SG Mains paper II
and III)................................................................................................................................... 20
24. PAC not to call PM on demonetization (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II, Topic: Can PAC
call PM or any other minister?) ............................................................................................ 22
25. Subrata Roy investor fraud issue (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ...... 23
26. Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act Anomaly (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 24
27. SC dismisses plea for probe into payoffs to Modi, others (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 24
28. Cash for land is just not done: SC order on mode of rehabilitation (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains paper II) ............................................................................................ 25
29. SC orders audit of 30 lakh NGOs (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper II) ....... 26
30. PM Narendra Modi announces Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains Paper II) ......................................................................................................... 27
31. SC wants VVPAT in EVMs for fair elections (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 28
32. SC backs Madras HC order quashing T.N. appointments (Relevant for GS Prelims and
GS Mains Paper II) ................................................................................................................ 29
33. Aadhaar must for MGNREGS work (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) ....... 29
34. Fuel outlets to stop accepting cards (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ...... 31
35. Unclogging the cities (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) ............................. 32
36. ICHR drags its feet on volumes on freedom struggle martyrs (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains paper I and II) ................................................................................................ 33
37. Clamping down on ordinance raj, Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar (Relevant for
GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ....................................................................................... 33
38. SC asked to resolve conflict over rape definition in two laws (Relevant for GS prelims
and GS mains paper II) ......................................................................................................... 35
39. The Kerala High Court has declared unconstitutional the University Grants
Co issio s UGC Natio al Eligi ilit Test riterio ......................................................... 36
 40. Government invites comments for creating new Financial Redressal Agency (Relevant
for GS Prelims, GS Mains paper II and III) ............................................................................ 37
41. Assembly polls due in 5 states (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II) ................................... 38
42. Government meets PMUY target of 1.5 crore LPG connections (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains Paper II) ........................................................................................................ 39
43. Hotel service charge is optional (Relevant for GS prelims and Mains paper II) ............ 40
44. Seeking votes on religious basis a corrupt practice: SC (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 40
45. News Schemes announced on New Year eve (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains Paper
II) .......................................................................................................................................... 41
46. Second Raisina Dialogue held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 42
47. IOA cancels life presidency given to Kalmadi, Chautala (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 43

International Organisations ............................................................................................ 45

. Bilateral trade hit a ks relu ta e to tra sa t ith ra ele a t for GS Preli s
and Mains Paper II, Topic: Issues in Indo-Iran Trade Relations) .......................................... 45
. A eri a Court stops Tru p s tra el a order ele a t for GS Preli s a d Mai s
Paper II, Topic: America for Americans only?) .................................................................... 45
3. US exits from Trans Pacific Partnership (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II) ... 47
4. Stealth frigate deal inconclusive with Russia (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains Paper II,
Topic: Issues in Defence cooperation with Russia) .............................................................. 47
5. Relations with Gulf Cooperation Council (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II) . 48
6. Visit of Crown Prince of Dubai as republic day chief guest (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 49
7. Secularism receding in Bangladesh (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ......... 50
8. India rejects attempts by EU, Canada for global investment agreement (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II and III) ...................................................................................... 51
9. The hard road to Brexit (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains Paper II) ................................. 51
10. First China-Britain freight train arrives in London (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper II) ................................................................................................................................ 52
11. U.K. seeks Indian help in resolving Chagos Archipelago dispute (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains Paper II) ........................................................................................................ 53
12. Commutation of Chelsea Manning (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) .. 54
 13. India, Sri Lanka in talks on port Trincomalee (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II) ............. 55
14. Second Raisina Dialogue held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ............................................................................................................................... 55
15. India becomes Associate member of CERN (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ............................................................................................................................... 56
16. China hands over two ships to Pakistan Navy for Gwadar Port security (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ........................................................................................... 57
17. Pakistan test-fires first nuclear- capable submarine cruise missile Babur- 3 (Relevant
for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper II) ................................................................................. 58
8. U.S. orried o er Pak. Missiles ele a t for GS Preli s a d GS Mai s paper II) ....... 59
19. Pakistan s activists go missing (Not Relevant for Exams directly, Topic to be read only
for understanding) ............................................................................................................... 60
20. Upcoming visit on Israeli-Palestinian issue (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II) ............................................................................................................................... 60
21. Recent vote at UN over Israeli Settlements ................................................................... 61
22. U.S. ends special treatment for Cuban migrants (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II, Topic :
US-Cuba Relations) .............................................................................................................. 61
. I dia s ote a has hit Nepal hard, sa s e o ele a t for GS Mai s II a d III, Topic:
Implications of note ban on Nepal) ...................................................................................... 62
24. Russian spares to support India (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ............ 62
25. Russian influence in American Presidential elections (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 63
26. Emigration trends (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ............................ 63
27. India, Portugal sign defence agreement (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper
II) .......................................................................................................................................... 64
28. India lacks plan for global rescue: Study (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III) ........ 64
29. With gifts and goodwill, 218 fishermen return from Pakistan (Relevant for GS prelims
and GS mains paper II) ........................................................................................................ 65
30. India- Israel Relations (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains paper II) ............................. 65
31. Turkey in turmoil (Relevant for GS Mains paper II) ....................................................... 66

Economics ...................................................................................................................... 68
1. Recent breakthroughs in GST Council Meet .................................................................... 68
2. India Post gets payments bank licence to start services (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................................................... 69
3. Centre says GAAR will be effective from April 1 (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper II, III, Topic: GAAR)...................................................................................................... 70
4. Safety issue of Railways (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II, Topic: Need for
investment in Railways to ensure safety) ............................................................................. 70
5. Rail budget: a thing of past (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II, Topic: Merger
of General and Rail Budget) ................................................................................................. 71
6. Universal Basic income (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ............................. 72
7. Views on Economic viability of National Waterway 1(Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper III, Topic: Potential of National Waterways in India) ................................................. 72
8. Arrest of IDBI officials responsible for giving loan to Kingfisher (Relevant for GS Prelims,
GS Mains paper III, Topic: Bank- businessmen nexus) ......................................................... 73
9. Banks get green light to recover Kingfisher dues (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains Paper II
and III)................................................................................................................................... 74
10. BSE IPO subscribed more than 51 times (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) 75
11. Centre shifts disinvestment advice to department of Economic Affairs (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ............................................................................................ 75
12. Japan threatens India with WTO on steel (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper
II) ........................................................................................................................................... 76
13. Draft steel policy to enable Rs.10 lakh crore investments (Relevant for GS Prelims and
GS Mains Paper III) ............................................................................................................... 76
14. Rs. 9.2 lakh cr. back in circulation: RBI chief (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III) ... 77
15. Death by adulterated food may lead to life term (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains Paper
II) ........................................................................................................................................... 78
. 'Serious jo losses are taki g pla e : Vie s of A art a Se ele a t for GS Preli s
and GS Mains Paper III) ........................................................................................................ 78
17. Questions over RBI autonomy on account of recent instances (Relevant for GS Mains
paper II and III) ..................................................................................................................... 80
18. Cost of Ken-Betwa project now goes up to Rs. 18,000 crore (Relevant for GS Mains
Paper III, Topic: High cost of inter-linking of rivers) ............................................................. 81
19. Surviving the drought (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II and III) ............ 82
20. Amazon at fault again (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II, Topic:
Insensitivity towards Indian culture by MNCs) ..................................................................... 83
21. Evaluation of Green Bonds (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) .................... 83
22. Meeting of FSDC held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper III) . 84
 23. Google launches My Business and Digital Unlocked tool for small and medium
businesses ............................................................................................................................. 85
24. Banks cut their interest rates (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains paper III) ................ 85
25. Centre plans to double airport capacity through Hybrid Till Model (Relevant for GS
Prelims, GS Mains Paper III) ................................................................................................. 86
26. What is Rose Valley Group Scam? (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II and III) 87

Environment................................................................................................................... 89
1. Oil spill near Chennai (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)............................... 89
2. India to ratify amended version of Kyoto Protocol (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper II and III) ..................................................................................................................... 89
3. Indian model to predict impact of climate change (Relevant for GS Mains III, Prelims).. 90
4. Massive Antarctic ice shelf ready to break: Evidence of climate change (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper III)................................................................................................. 90
5. What is interglaciation? (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) .......................... 91
6. Living in a hotter world (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper III) ...................... 92
7. SC-appointed panel to tackle air pollution (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper
III) .......................................................................................................................................... 92
8. Distilleries overexploiting water in Kerala (Relevant for GS Mains Paper III) .................. 93
9. Green tribunal orders test of cosmetics containing microbeads (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper III) ............................................................................................................. 94
10. Navsari Parsis get a burial ground (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III) ........ 94
11. Water literacy campaign need of the hour: Rajendra Singh (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper III) ............................................................................................................. 95
12. Endosulfan victim, family members commit suicide (Relevant for GS prelims and GS
mains paper II) ...................................................................................................................... 96
13. India lost 97 wild tigers in 2016: conservation authority (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS
Mains paper III) .................................................................................................................... 96

Science & Technology ..................................................................................................... 98

1. Mesentry: New organ in human body (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III) ..... 98
2. About Leprosy in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains paper III) ............................. 98
3. GM mosquito trials to control dengue, chikungunya launched (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper III) ............................................................................................................. 99
 4. Improved Pinaka rockets test-fired (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ........ 100
5. Cognitive Computing (Intelligence Automation) (Relevant for GS Mains III, Prelims) ... 100
6. Kudankulam second reactor starts generating 1,000 MWe (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper III) .................................................................................................................. 102
7. Milestone in cryogenic engine test paves way for GSLV-MkIII (Relevant for GS Prelims,
GS Mains paper III) ............................................................................................................. 103
8. Tejas to make first appearance at R-Day parade (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III)
............................................................................................................................................ 104
9. No demand from IAF; India goes slow on Hawk variant (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains
Paper III) ............................................................................................................................. 104
10. Hyperloop in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III) ................................ 105
11. Anti-biotic resistance in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)............... 105
12. Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology (CKDu) (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains paper III) .................................................................................................................. 106
13. TB institute warns against use of new drug (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper III) ............................................................................................................................. 106
14. What is 3D Graphene? (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper III) ................... 107
15. Agni-IV test fired (Relevant for GS Prelims).................................................................. 107

Internal Security .......................................................................................................... 109

1. Hirakhand Express derails (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III, Topic: Increasing rail
accidents) ........................................................................................................................... 109
2. On recent rail accident: No proof of sabotage, wagon faults may have derailed train,
says panel (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II) ................................................... 109
3. Avalanches in Kashmir (relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III) ............................ 109
4. Drones on Mumbai railway tracks to boost safety (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper III) ............................................................................................................................. 110
5. J&K Assembly passes resolution for return of Kashmiri Pandits (Relevant for GS Mains
Paper II and III) ................................................................................................................... 110
6. Railway Ministry unveils Mission 41K to save energy worth Rs 41,000 crore (Relevant for
GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II) ..................................................................................... 111
7. Evaluation of Boat tragedy in Bihar (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III) ....... 111
8. % rise i killi gs of Na als i ele a t for GS Preli s a d GS Mai s Paper III
............................................................................................................................................ 112
Relevant for Prelims Only ............................................................................................. 114
1. Miss France crowned Miss Universe 2016 (Relevant for GS Prelims) ............................ 114
2. Banks Gyan Sangam to discuss digitisation, consolidation at PSBs (Relevant for GS
Prelims) ............................................................................................................................... 114
3. Federer grabs 18th Grand Slam Title (Relevant for GS Prelims) .................................... 114
4. Al-Shabab, Kenya claim deaths in Somalia attack (Relevant for GS Prelims) ................ 114
. Gro th i dia s oil o su ptio to e fastest ele a t for GS Preli s ...... 115
6. Smart glasses that automatically focus on what you see (Relevant for GS Prelims) ..... 115
7. RBI press denies sharing information on amount and features of new currency (Relevant
for GS Prelims) .................................................................................................................... 115
8. Why US President enters White House on 20th January (Relevant for GS Prelims) ...... 116
9. Brahmaputra Literary Festival (Relevant for GS Prelims)............................................... 116
10. Pakistan tests 2,200-km range surface-to-surface missile (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II) ................................................................................................................... 116
11. Tejas enter republic day parade for first time (Relevant for GS Prelims) ..................... 117
. After jallikattu, it is ka ala s tur ele a t for GS Preli s ..................................... 117
13. Dharamsala declared second capital of Himachal Pradesh (Relevant for GS Prelims) 117
14. 3D zebra crossings (Relevant for GS Prelims) ............................................................... 118
15. Ordinance to clear path for holding jallikattu in TN (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains Paper II) ................................................................................................................... 118
16. Cabinet approves listing of five insurance companies (Relevant for GS Prelims) ........ 118
17. Gene Cernan, last astronaut to walk on the moon, dies at 82 (Relevant for GS Prelims)
............................................................................................................................................ 119
18. WEF meet at Davos (Relevant for GS Prelims) ............................................................. 119
19. 62nd Filmfare Awards (Relevant for GS Prelims) ......................................................... 119
20. Indian American could be FDA head under Trump (Relevant for GS Prelims) ............. 119
21. Illegal weapons seized across U.P. (No Direct Question can be asked, Read only for
understanding) ................................................................................................................... 120
22. The Madame Tussauds in Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims)........................................... 120
23. N. Chandrasekaran, TCS veteran to head Tata Sons (Relevant for GS Prelims) ........... 122
. PM i augurates I dia s first i ter atio al e ha ge at GIFT it ele a t for GS
Prelims) ............................................................................................................................... 122
 25. Hope Island becomes graveyard for Olive Ridleys (Relevant for GS Prelims) .............. 122
26. Vibrant Gujarat Summit (Relevant for GS Prelims) ...................................................... 123
27. Flipkart appoints Kalyan Krishnamurthy as new CEO (Relevant for GS Prelims) ......... 124
28. Golden Globes award ceremony held (Relevant for GS Prelims) ................................. 124
29. Gurugram gets E-governance award (Relevant for GS Prelims) .................................. 124
30. UN declares 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development
(Relevant for GS Prelims) .................................................................................................... 125
31. Google Doodle pays tribute to )ndias social reformer Savitribai Phule (Relevant for GS
Prelims) ............................................................................................................................... 125
32. U.S. First Lady picks Indian-American in education crusade (Relevant for GS Prelims)
............................................................................................................................................ 127
33. Veteran actor Om Puri takes his final bow (Relevant for GS Prelims) .......................... 127
34. Jan Shatabdi fitted with solar panels flagged off (Relevant for GS Prelims)................ 127
. aji Shah is o kefeller s first I dia -American head (Relevant for GS Prelims) ....... 128
. World s tallest solar to er i Israel ele a t for GS preli s ..................................... 129
37. Prakash Parv celebrated at patna (Relevant for GS Prelims) ....................................... 129
38. David R Syiemlieh appointed new UPSC chairman (Relevant for GS Prelims) ............. 129
39. Shraddha, Ghyansham Kumar Devansh chosen for 2016 Bharatiya Jananpith
Navlekhan award (Relevant for GS Prelims) ...................................................................... 130
40. What is a Megamaser? (Relevant for GS Prelims) ....................................................... 130
41. British-I dia k ighted i Ne Year s ho ours ele a t for GS Preli s ................... 131

Expected Questions for Prelims 2017 ............................................................................ 132

Answer Key
 Polity and Governance
1. SC removes BCCI bosses (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains paper II)

The Supreme Court stripped BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke of
their posts.

Why was the move taken?

1. Mr. Thakur had washed his hands of a duty to ensure compliance with the Lodha panel
reforms, citing the excuse that he had been rendered totally incapable and without any
authority to compel the members to comply with the orders of the court.

2. Guilty of contempt: The BCCI bosses not only made unfortunate comments about the
Lodha panel in public but also ended up hurting the dignity of the Supreme Court with their
attitude, SC noted.

Major recommendations of Lodha Panel

1. Bar on ministers and civil servants and those above 70 from becoming its members.

2. It, however, left it to Parliament to decide whether BCCI should come under the RTI and
betting on the game should be legalised.

3. A CAG nominee in the BCCI to oversee receipt and expenditure of funds.

4. The Bench rejected the BCC) s objection against recommendation of one-State-one-vote.

It said that States like Maharashtra and Gujarat that have more than one cricket association
will have voting rights on a rotational basis.
5. It accepted the recommendation that there should be a players association in the BCCI
and the funding of players association accepted while leaving it to the Board to decide the
extent of funding.

6. The Bench accepted the recommendation that one person should hold one post in cricket
administration to avoid any conflict of interest and scrapping of all other administrative
committees in the BCCI after the CAG nominee comes in.

7. It left it to the Board to decide whether there is need for any change in the existing
agreement relating to broadcasting rights and whether a franchise member should be in
the Board to avoid any conflict of interest.

The Bench requested the three-member panel headed by former CJI Lodha to oversee the
transition of administrative structure in the BCCI which has to take place within six
months. The apex court-appointed Lodha Committee on January 4,2016 to recommend
reforms in functioning of BCCI.

About BCCI
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body for cricket
in India. The board was formed in December 1928 as a society, registered under the Tamil
Nadu Societies Registration Act. It is a consortium of state cricket associations and the state
associations select their representatives who in turn elect the BCCI officials.

Interim bosses of BCCI

The Supreme Court appointed a four-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) headed
by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai to oversee the Board of
Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

The four will function as the interim bosses of the BCCI and run the day-to-day
administration of the cricket body till the Lodha reforms are fully implemented and
elections held.

Duties of Committee of Administrators:

. The COA s immediate task will be to oversee the BCC) administration through its CEO
Rahul Johri.

2. To ensure that the directions contained in the judgement (which accepted the reforms in
cricket report of the Justice Lodha Committee with modifications) are fulfilled and to adopt
all necessary and consequential steps for that purpose.

The COA will not have more than three members.

2. SC asks Govt., SAI to take a stand on Lodha recommendations (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II, Topic: reforms in Sports bodies)

Responding to a petition made by 28 sportspersons, including Olympians and former India

cricketers, the Supreme Court has sought the Government of )ndia s GO) views on the
Justice Lodha committee s recommendations for reform in not just BCC) but various sports
bodies.

The SC has also asked the Sports Authority of India (SAI) for its view; SAI functions directly
under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, GOI.

Demands by Sportspersons
1. )t s submitted that like in the game of cricket control of few persons exist in other
sports administration which is to the great detriment of the respective sports.
,
2. The sportspersons have asked that the recommendations be integrated with the
National Sports Development Code of India 2011. It may also be noted that there is an
urgent need to amend and rework the National Sports Code so as to ensure that sports
administration is not treated as a self perpetuating business but instead must be for the
betterment of the sports concerned.

3. Union Cabinet approves Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana 2017 (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II, III)

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for launching of Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana
2017 (VPBY 2017). The scheme will be launched as part of Government s commitment for
financial inclusion and social security.

The scheme will be implemented through Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) during
the current financial year i.e. FY 2016-17. It will be open for subscription for a period of
one year from the date of launch.

Features of Scheme
1. The purpose of the scheme is to provide social security during old age and protect
elderly persons aged 60 years and above against future fall in their interest income due to
uncertain market conditions.

2. It will provide an assured pension based on a guaranteed rate of return of 8% per

annum for ten years, with an option to opt for pension on a monthly, quarterly, half yearly
and annual basis. The Union Government will bear the differential return i.e., the difference
between the return generated by LIC and the assured return of 8% per annum as subsidy
on an annual basis.
4. India ranks 79 in Corruption Perception Index (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains Paper II)

India has been ranked 79th out of 176 countries in the recently released Corruption
Perception Index (CPI) for the year 2016 by the Berlin-based corruption watchdog
Transparency International (TI).

About the index

The index has been complied by using World Bank data, the World Economic Forum (WEF)
and other institutions data. It ranks countries on the score in the scale ranging from 0
(highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean).

Key Facts
New Zealand and Denmark shared first place (with a score of 90) and Somalia was ranked
the most corrupt country. Other countries with lower rankings were Syria, South Sudan,
North Korea, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

In this edition of list, India, China and Brazil with a score of 40 each figured in the 10 key
economies in the mid-range. The global average score is 43, indicating endemic corruption
in a country s public sector.

About India's performance

India has marginally improved its score for 2016 by two points from 38 score in 2015.
)ndia has been ranked th among countries. The country s rank, however, slipped
from 76 to 79, but eight more countries were evaluated in 2016 (176 countries), so the
rank is not the best judging matrix.

About Transparency International

Transparency International is an international non-governmental organization which is
based in Berlin, Germany, and was founded in 1993. Its non-profit purpose is to take action
to combat corruption and prevent criminal activities arising from corruption. It publishes
various reports for example the Global Corruption Barometer and the Corruption
Perceptions Index.

About Corruption Perception Index

Transparency International (TI) has published the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI)
since 1995, annually ranking countries "by their perceived levels of corruption, as
determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys." The CPI generally defines
corruption as "the misuse of public power for private benefit."

5. Donations received by Political Parties (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper
II)

Unknown Donators
If you want to know how political parties raise funds in the country, you will only get a part
of the answer. The known donors and sources of contributions to national and regional
parties account for less than a third of their total income.

Association for Democratic Reforms report

An analysis by the Association for Democratic Reforms shows that 69% of funds and
contributions received by political parties from 2004-05 to 2014-15 came from unknown
sources. Going by income tax returns and statements submitted to the Election
Commission, six national and 51 recognised regional parties together had an income of Rs.
11,367.34 crore during this period, but only Rs. 1,835.63 crore came from named donors,
while other declared sources such as sale of assets, bank interest, membership fee and sale
of publications. This means a total income of Rs. 7,832.98 crore came from unknown
sources.

Major political parties of the country

Details submitted by the Congress held that 83% of its income came from unknown sources
and the BJP said it raised 65% of its funds as anonymous contributions.

Faulty laws hindering transparency

The reason for these startling numbers is that under the present income tax law, parties
need not disclose the names of those donating up to Rs. 20,000.
To enjoy income tax exemption, they need to maintain records only of those who donate
sums above this. This provision effectively gives parties the required cover to pass off
sizeable donations as small contributions from anonymous donors.

Political parties under RTI ?

In 2013, the Central Information Commission ruled that political parties were covered
under the Right to Information Act. It was pointed out that they got tax exemptions, land
allotments and free airtime on state-owned media, in effect benefiting significantly from
the exchequer and thus, are public authorities under RTI act.

The order, however, is yet to be accepted by parties. Bringing them under the ambit of the
RTI Act is definitely a step in the right direction. It would mean the list of donors,
regardless of size of contribution, is open to public scrutiny.

Other alternatives
1. State funding of elections is another solution to reduce the dependency on
contributions..
2. Another mechanism is to have a regulatory authority to receive authentic reports on
political funding, scrutinise them and put them in the public domain.

View of SC
The Supreme Court said political parties require donations from followers to project their
political ideas and represent the people. )t dismissed a petition seeking to lift per cent
tax exemption granted to political parties.
The court observed that it was up to the government of the day to decide what tax regime
they need to impose.

About writ petition :

The petition asked the apex court to decide why ordinary persons are taxed while political
parties enjoy exemption from tax.

What prompted petition?

The cause of petition arose when the Finance Secretary on December 16 declared that no
investigation would be done against political party accounts and funding upon depositing
of old demonetisation notes owing to the 100 per cent tax exemption.

6. Padma Awards (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

About Padma Awards

Padma Awards were instituted in the year 1954. Except for brief interruptions during the
years 1977 to 1980 and 1993 to 1997, these awards have been announced every year on
Republic Day. The award is given in three categories, viz. Padma Vibhushan, Padma
Bhushan and Padma Shri, in the decreasing order of importance.

Padma Vibhushan for "exceptional and distinguished service".

Padma Bhushan for "distinguished service of a high order".
Padma Shri is awarded for "distinguished service".

This award seeks to recognize work of any distinction and is given for distinguished and
exceptional achievements/service in all fields of activities/disciplines, such as art,
literature and education, sports, medicine, social work, science and engineering, public
affairs, civil service, trade and industry, etc. All persons without distinction of race,
occupation, position or sex are eligible for these awards.

About Bharat Ratna

Apart from Padma Awards, Bharat Ratna is also given on Republic Day.
The Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted in 1954,
the award is conferred "in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest
order", without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex.

So far 45 people have been awarded Bharat Ratna. This year Bharat Ratna was not given to
anyone.

The last Bharat Ratna awardees

Madan Mohan Malaviya 2014
Atal Bihari Vajpayee- 2014
Sachin Tendulkar - 2013
Allegations of Statecraft in Padma award calculations
This year s list of Padma awardees has many unsung heroes that the )ndian state has
recognised, but statecraft is definitely a part of the calculation in the list of politicians
honoured.

Political motives in giving Padma awards

Leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Sharad Pawar and P.A. Sangma, his former
comrade-in-arms in the rebellion against Congress president Sonia Gandhi over her foreign
origin, have been awarded Padma Vibhushan. Mr. Sangma will get the award
posthumously.

In his long and storied career in Indian politics, Mr. Pawar has friends across party lines, as
witnessed during his 75th birthday celebrations in 2015. His place on the list of Padma
awardees points to the balancing act Mr. Modi wants to maintain in Maharashtra where his
ally, Shiv Sena, can only be described if one wants to be charitable as a frenemy. Mr.
Modi is signalling to the Shiv Sena that he needs to see it cut line.

P.A. Sangma s case is simpler. (is son, Conrad Sangma, heads the National People s Party
(NPP), which the former Lok Sabha Speaker launched after he broke away from the NCP.
The NPP is part of the North Eastern Democratic Alliance (NEDA) affiliated to the NDA. The
acknowledgement of Sangma s contribution to )ndian public life is part of the BJP s look-
east policy in domestic politics.

Finally, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi s inclusion in the list comes two years after
his contemporary and fellow Margdarshak Mandal member L.K. Advani was similarly
rewarded. With the elections under way in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP wants to ensure that a
crucial Brahmin vote doesn t feel slighted in any form.

7. IIMs could grant degrees instead of diplomas soon (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II)

The Union Cabinet approved the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Bill, 2017, which
aims at permitting the IIMs to grant degrees rather than diplomas and be declared as
Institutions of National Importance.

Problem with existing provision

Being societies, IIMs are not authorised to award degrees and, hence, they have been
awarding Post Graduate Diploma and Fellow Programme in Management.

While these awards are treated as equivalent to MBAs and Ph.D, respectively, the
equivalence is not universally acceptable, especially for the Fellow Programme.

Provision to accord autonomy to IIMs:

The Bill will also aim at providing the IIMs complete autonomy, apart from accountability.
The Board of an IIM will drive the management of the institution. The Board will select the
Chairperson and Director of the institution.

8. Budgeting for the elections (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

The suspense over the timing of the Union Budget for 2017-18 finally ended with the
Election Commission and the Supreme Court order in the light of upcoming elections for
five State Assemblies.

The NDA government has been keen to abandon the tradition of presenting the next
financial year s Budget on the last working day of February, citing the potential benefits for
the economy from faster spending of the approved public expenditure.

View of Government on presenting Budget at 1st Feb

With a February-end Budget, transmission of funds, and meaningful implementation, rarely
starts before June, by that time the monsoon sets in. This leaves just about two quarters to
spend a whole year s funding for projects. This is the argument in favour of advancing the
Budget date.

View of Opposition
The Opposition, for its part, has voiced concern that a Budget presentation this year so
close to Assembly polls could influence voters. In 2012, the last time these five States were
headed for polls, the UPA government had voluntarily opted to defer the Budget
presentation.

View of SC and EC
1. The Supreme Court has pointed out that the Central Budget cannot shake the minds of
voters in a State.

2. The Election Commission s EC nod for a February Budget comes with the caveat
that it must not announce schemes aimed at poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand,
Manipur, Punjab and Goa, or even expound on any achievements of development
programmes in these States.

Model Code of conduct comes into force with announcement of elections.

The other side of model code of conduct

1. For long, governments have voiced discomfort with the model code of conduct in )ndia s
perpetually ticking election cycle, arguing that it inhibits decision-making.

2. This anxiety to reduce the paralysis imposed by the model code has been one of the main
reasons cited for a proposal for simultaneous elections to Parliament and State Assemblies.
But simultaneous elections could pose their own complications.
9. CB) ordered to probe abuse of office by its former chief Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II)

Investigation against previous Director by CBI

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under a new chief will, on the basis of a Supreme
Court order, investigate and, probably prosecute, its former director for prima facie
abusing his authority while in office.

SC asked CBI chief Alok Verma to form a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which he will
personally head, to probe the role played by former CB) director Ranjit Sinha to scuttle
enquiries, investigations and prosecutions being carried out by the CBI in coal block
allocation and other important cases.

Reason for the probe: Logbook entries

The order came on the basis of revelations made by NGO Common Cause. It had accessed
the visitors log maintained at Mr. Sinha s official residence when he headed the agency.
The log showed frequent and unofficial meetings held by Mr. Sinha at home with the
accused in the multi-crore coal scam cases in the absence of investigating officers.
CBI Director is the senior most position in the CBI.

SIT probe
The court had earlier appointed a former CBI special director, to go through the entries in
the log and conduct enquiries into other relevant documents to verify the allegations. He
reported back in March 2016 that an enquiry by a SIT was necessary.

10. Delhi police chief named CBI director (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper
II)

Alok Kumar Verma

The government appointed Alok Kumar Verma, currently Delhi s Police Commissioner, as
Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation. The 1979-batch IPS officer has never served
the premier agency in the past.

About CBI Director

CBI Director heads CBI, the premier investigative agency of India. The Central Bureau of
Investigation traces its origins to the Special Police Establishment, which was set up in
1941 by the government. The CBI is overseen by the Ministry of Personnel, Public
Grievances and Pensions of the Federal government, headed by a Cabinet Minister who
reports directly to the Prime Minister.

CBI Director's Appointment

The amended Delhi Special Police Establishment Act empowers a committee to appoint the
director of CBI. The committee consists the following people:
Prime Minister chairperson
Leader of Opposition member (or leader of largest opposition party)
Chief Justice of India or a Supreme Court Judge recommended by the Chief Justice
member

When making recommendations, the committee considers the views of the outgoing
director. Above Selection committee was constituted under The Lokpal and Lokayuktas
Act, 2013.

11. Dealing with the deadwood: Compulsory retirement of Civil Servants (Relevant
for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

Background
The Central government s recent decision to compulsorily retire two )ndian Police Service
(IPS) officers and one Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer for non-performance is
bold and laudable. One of the officers is reported to have been under investigation for
disproportionate assets.

Service Rules require review of performance

The compulsory retirements are in pursuance of the service rules that contemplate a
review either when an officer reaches the age of 50 or completes 25 years of service.
Such action was a long-needed corrective. There was a similar, but feeble, attempt in the
wake of the Emergency under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. It has taken more than 40
years for the Centre to again administer a shock to a complacent and growingly dishonest
civil service.

State of efficiency and responsiveness among Public officials

The public should know that our All India Services and the Central Services are paid well by
Indian standards. Each Pay Commission has enlarged the civil service pay packet and
perquisites. Only around 10 per cent of officers remain current in their knowledge and
exert themselves to keep the administrative system in shape.

Except for a few dedicated officers, both in the higher echelons and in the lower rungs, it is
a sad fact that ordinary citizens mostly cannot get through to any senior member of the
bureaucracy, either in person or over the telephone, to express their grievances.

System also creates conditions for non-performance

1. The malady of non-performance arises from the fact that not all positions in
governments are meaningful, portfolios are created only to accommodate officers. As a
result, many officers do not have more than a few hours of work a day.
It is against this backdrop that one should study the phenomenon of how some senior
officers become deadwood, and how only a few select ones get to be in important positions
during their careers.
2. If a District Collector or a District Superintendent of Police is himself not a model of
efficiency and honesty, the trainee Assistant Collector or Assistant Superintendent of Police
cannot go elsewhere to learn the virtues of hard work and probity.

12. Himachal Pradesh overtakes Kerala in learning outcomes: ASER (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II)

According to Status of Education Report (ASER) 2016, students of Himachal Pradesh stand
ahead of Kerala and all other states in terms of learning outcomes.
The 2016 ASER was the largest annual household survey of the children in India in the field
of education. It focused on status of schooling and basic learning.

Revelations of ASER report

1. The report found that enrolment rate of students in the age group 6 to 14 in Himachal
Pradesh was 99.8%. It secured first rank in achieving learning outcomes in basic reading
and mathematics across the country.

2. In language category, outcome of government schools in Himachal Pradesh was 65.3% as

compared to the national level of 41.6%. In mathematics, outcome of Himachal Pradesh
was 47.4% as compared to the national level of 21.1%.

13. Richest 1% own 58% of total wealth in India: Oxfam Study (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II)

According to study conducted by rights group Oxfam, )ndia s richest % now hold a huge
% of the country s total wealth, indicating rise in income inequality. )t is higher than the
global figure of about 50%. It shows that 57 billionaires in India now have same wealth
($216 billion) as that of the bottom 70% population of the country. Globally, just 8
billionaires have the wealth as the poorest 50 % of the world population.

Key Findings of Study

1. The total global wealth in the year 2016 was $255.7 trillion of which about $6.5 trillion
was held by billionaires, led by Bill Gates ($75 billion), Amancio Ortega ($67 billion) and
Warren Buffett ($60.8 billion).

2. Since 2015, richest 1 % owned more wealth than the rest of the planet. Over the next 20
years, 500 people will hand over $ 2.1 trillion to their heirs (a sum larger than GDP of India,
a country of 1.3 billion people).

Way out
It calls to build a human economy that benefits everyone not just the privileged few. In
India, there are 84 billionaires with a collective wealth of $248 billion led by Mukesh
Ambani ($19.3 billion), Dilip Shanghvi ($16.7 billion) and Azim Premji ($15 billion).
Gender pay gap
India suffers from huge gender pay gap. It has among the worst levels of gender wage
disparity (men earning more than women in similar jobs) and the gap exceeding 30%. In
India, women form 60% of the lowest paid wage labour but only 15% of the highest wage
earners. Thus, India women are poorly represented in top bracket of wageearners and
experience wide gender pay gap at the bottom.

Suggestion to introduce inheritance tax and increase wealth tax

Indian government must introduce inheritance tax and increase wealth tax as the
proportion of this tax in total tax revenue is one of the lowest in India to end the extreme
concentration of wealth and to end poverty.

14. Jallikattu issues assuming large proportions (Relevant for GS Mains Paper I and
Prelims)

Action taken by State Government

The Tamil Nadu government went for an ordinance to facilitate the conduct of jallikattu
once the surge in popular sentiment in favour of the traditional bull-taming sport gathered
momentum. The State amendment to the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, seeks
to exempt jallikattu from the purview of the law.

Action taken by Union Government

With the implacable mass movement demanding a legal solution to overcome the judicial
ban on jallikattu on the one side, and related litigation pending in the Supreme Court on the
other, there was little that the Union government could have done on its own. For the
Centre to bring in an amendment would have incurred the wrath of the Supreme Court.
Instead, the Centre granted its consent to the State Governor promulgating the ordinance.

Earlier response of Central Government

Last year, the Centre did try to get around the court order by issuing an executive
notification that granted exemption from restrictions on the use of bulls as performing
animals in traditional sports.

SC s view
The Supreme Court has declared that jallikattu is inherently cruel and contrary to the
objectives of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (PCA). The Supreme Court banned
this spectacle that took a heavy toll on both the animals and the human participants, it did
so after attempts at its regulation and the orderly conduct of this sport were deemed a
failure.

In 2013, under the watch of the Animal Welfare Board of India, the onus was on the State of
Tamil Nadu to ensure that jallikattu did not violate the provisions of the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals Act.
View of PETA
PETA and other animal rights organisations have filed more petitions in Supreme court for
protection of animal rights in response to the passage of ordinance exempting Jallikattu.

Present situation in Tamil Nadu

Meanwhile, the public uprising has gone beyond jallikattu, attained a critical mass as an
assertion of Tamil identity and culture and metamorphosed into a protest against
mainstream political parties.

Way forward
It is time the protesters took a step back and let the legislative and judicial institutions
determine the future of jallikattu. It is also time for them to reassess the cruelty and the
risks to life posed by the sport, and link any demand to its reintroduction with the strictest
of regulations. Two people were tragically killed and over 120 injured in the jallikattu at
Pudukottai recently. A culture that legitimises such mindless and unnecessary death is not
Tamil culture. In fact, it is no culture at all.

What is PETA ?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is an American animal rights
organization. It claims that it has 3 million members and supporters (5 million in total) and
is the largest animal rights group in the world. Its slogan is "animals are not ours to eat,
wear, experiment on, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way."
PETA India, based in Mumbai, was launched in January 2000. PETA India operates under
the same principle.

About Jallikattu
Jallikattu is a mass-participant ritual of hundreds of men chasing a bull and trying to hold
on to its hump or stop it by pulling at or twisting its tail. It involves bull-taming spectacle
held during the time of the harvest festival of Pongal.

15. State of Bhopal AIIMS (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II)

AIIMS Bhpoal: Lacks basic facilities

1. Five years after the first batch of students was admitted, Bhopal s A))MS is yet to get a
licence to open a blood bank. Without a blood bank, the emergency department cannot be
operational. Other crucial departments like surgery and gynaecology are not functional
either. All of which, students say, has affected their learning.

2. From the third year on, students are supposed to spend the first half of their day in
hospital, learning practical skills, and attending lectures during the second half. Not a single
one of students has learnt these practical skills or assisted in surgery. They have only
observed surgeries in other hospitals.

About AIIMS Bhopal

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences Bhopal (AIIMS Bhopal) is a medical research
public university located in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. It is one of the seven AIIMS
apex healthcare institutes being established by the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare,
Government of India under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojna(PMSSY).The
Institute operates autonomously under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (India).
AIIMS Bhopal's hospital was inaugurated in 2013.

16. Church courts cannot veto divorce law: Supreme Court Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II)

Canon law and decrees of divorce given Church Courts cannot veto the statutory law of
divorce, the Supreme Court said.

The petition
Bench disposed of a writ petition filed in 2013 seeking a judicial declaration that divorce
decrees passed by ecclesiastical tribunals ( Christian courts) are valid and binding.
The petition had challenged why courts prosecute Roman Catholics under Section 494 of
the Indian Penal Code for the alleged offence of bigamy without considering the Canon law.

1996 verdict
The Supreme Court referred to its 1996 judgment in the case of Molly Joseph versus George
Sebastian upholding the binding nature of the Indian Divorce Act of 1869, which governs
divorce among Christians.

)n Molly s case, the court said the implication of the Canon law is confined to either
theological or ecclesiastical, but has no legal impact on the divorce or annulment of
marriage between two persons professing the Christian religion.

Triple talaq argument

In his petition, Pais, a former president of the Catholic Association of Dakshina Kannada in
Karnataka, had argued that when courts can recognise dissolution by triple talaq under the
Mohammedan personal law, they should also recognise the Canon law as the personal law
of Indian Catholics.

The court is presently hearing a row of petitions, including a suo motu one, on the question
whether practices of Islamic personal law like triple talaq and polygamy discriminate
against Muslim women.

Canon law
Canon law is the body of laws and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (Church
leadership), for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members.
Marriage, dissolution according to Canon law
The Canon law enjoins that Catholics are required to marry in a Catholic church and equally
enjoins that they seek nullity in the canonical court (ecclesiastical court/ tribunal) also
under the Code of Canon Law. Otherwise, the marriage and the dissolution will not be
recognised by the Catholic Church.

17. India ranks 60th in Inclusive Development Index (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS
Mains Paper II)

India ranked 60th among the 79 developing countries in 2017 Inclusive Development
)ndex )D) released in World Economic Forum s WEF )nclusive Growth and
Development Report . The index is based on performance indicators and countries are
ranked on IDI scores based on a scale of 1-7. It has three pillars Growth and Development,
Inclusion and Sustainability in order to provide a more complete measure of economic
development than GDP growth alone.

Key Highlights of 2017 IDI

India, with a score of only 3.38, ranks low among 79 developing economies. The index gives
separate ranking for developed and developing economies.

Reasons for )ndia s lower rank:

)ndia s debt-to-GDP ratio is high, that raises some questions about the sustainability of
government spending. )ndia s labour force participation rate is low, informal economy is
large and many workers are vulnerable to employment situations with little room for social
mobility. India needs more progressive tax system to raise capital for expenditures in
infrastructure, health care, basic services and education.

18. How EC decided on the party symbol row in SP? (Relevant for GS prelims and GS
mains paper II)

Issue at hand:
Rival factions were staking claim to the name and symbol of the Samajwadi Party. How did
the Election Commission decide which group or faction is the real party?

Under what authority does the EC decide such disputes?

The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 empowers the EC to
recognise political parties and allot symbols. Under Paragraph 15 of the Order, it can decide
disputes among rival groups or sections of a recognised political party staking claim to its
name and symbol.

What is the legal status of Paragraph 15?

Under Paragraph 15, the EC is the only authority to decide issues on a dispute or a merger.
The Supreme Court upheld its validity in Sadiq Ali vs. ECI in 1971.

What aspects does the EC consider before recognising one group as the official party?
The ECI primarily ascertains the support enjoyed by a claimant within a political party in
its organisational wing and in its legislative wing.

How does the ECI establish a claim of majority in these wings?

The Commission examines the party s constitution and its list of office-bearers submitted
when the party was united. It identifies the apex committee(s) in the organisation and finds
out how many office-bearers, members or delegates support the rival claimants.
For the legislative wing, the party goes by the number of MPs and MLAs in the rival camps.
It may consider affidavits filed by these members to ascertain where they stand.

What ruling will the EC give after a definite finding?

The ECI may decide the dispute in favour of one faction by holding that it commands
enough support in its organisational and legislative wings to be entitled to the name and
symbol of the recognised party. It may permit the other group to register itself as a
separate political party.

What happens when there is no certainty about the majority of either faction?
Where the party is either vertically divided or it is not possible to say with certainty which
group has a majority, the EC may freeze the party s symbol and allow the groups to register
themselves with new names or add prefixes or suffixes to the party s existing names.

What happens when rival factions settle their differences in future?

If reunited, the claimants may approach the EC again and seek to be recognised as a unified
party. The EC is also empowered to recognise mergers of groups into one entity. It may
restore the symbol and name of the original party.

Decision of EC
The Election Commission allotted the bicycle symbol to the Akhilesh faction of the
Samajwadi Party.

Basis of decision
1. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister enjoyed majority in the party s organisational and
legislative structures.

2. The EC concluded that there was indeed a split in the Samajwadi Party. Mulayam Singh
Yadav faction was claiming that there was no split the party.

Background
The Akhilesh faction submitted that Ramgopal Yadav had filed individual affidavits of
support from an overwhelming majority of members at all levels of the party including
parliamentarians, MLAs, MLCs, National Executive membes, and delegates of the National
Council, the total amounting to almost per cent of the party s total strength.
On the other hand, Mr. Mulayam Singh had not submitted any affidavit to show the support
enjoyed by him in any of these categories. The Mulayam faction averred that he was still
the party s national president; that the party national convention, in which Akhilesh was
elected the national president, was convened in violation of the party s constitution.

Possible hidden reasons behind split

1. Mr. Akhilesh Yadav responded to his father s gesture by seeking his blessings, and Mr.
Mulayam Singh sent his son a list of his faction s candidates who needed to be
accommodated. The SP is not in self-destruct mode. Both factions are playing their cards on
the basis of cold calculations, not hot-headed impulse.

2. The split, and the retention of the election symbol, appear to have compensated in some
measure for the party s failings on the governance front over the last five years. Mr.
Akhilesh Yadav is now able to seek a fresh mandate on his own terms.

3. Moreover, Akhilesh Yadav can, with some degree of credibility, blame the shortcomings
on the party s old guard.

4. Also, an alliance with the Congress is now very much within the realm of possibility. Mr.
Mulayam Singh was averse to a tie-up, but Mr. Akhilesh Yadav seems to enjoy a better
rapport with the Congress leadership.

Conclusion
The SP only gained from the split, and it might have lost nothing at all in terms of
organisational muscle. After giving up the fight for the symbol, Mr. Mulayam Singh does not
seem too eager to take the fight with his son to the polling booths, so long as his loyalists
got their share of seats.

19. New Army, Air Force Chiefs assume charge (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains
paper II)

Controversy
The Army and the Air Force got new chiefs, amid a raging controversy as the government
has given the go-by to the convention of appointing the senior-most Army commanding-in-
chief as the chief of the force.

New Army Chief

General Bipin Rawat, who was selected ignoring the seniority of Lt. Gen. Praveen Bakshi
and Lt. Gen. P.M. Hariz, took over as the new Chief of the Army Staff from General Dalbir
Singh.

New Air Marshal

Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa took over as the 25th Chief of the Air Staff.
20. Seniority done away with in another Army appointment (Relevant for GS Mains
Paper II)

Instances of violation of seniority-cum-merit principle in armed forces appointments

1. After setting aside the guiding principle of seniority-cum-merit in the appointment of
General Bipin Rawat as the Chief of Army Staff, the government now seems to be doing
away with it in other senior positions in the Army.

2. In appointing the Engineer-in-Chief, who heads the Military Engineer Services and the
Corps of Engineers, the government has superseded the seniormost officer Lt. Gen.
Vishwambhar Singh, Director General Weapons & Equipment. Instead, it has appointed Lt.
Gen. Suresh Sharma, currently Director General-Border Roads.

3. The move comes a month after the government, in a surprise move, superseded Eastern
Army Commander Lt. Gen. Praveen Bakshi in the appointment of the 27th Army Chief,
which had caused considerable concern in the service.

Who makes appointments?

The appointment has been cleared by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC)
headed by the Prime Minister.

Role of Engineer-in-Chief
The Engineer-in-Chief is an advisor to all three service chiefs. Generally, the appointments
are by done on the principle of seniority-cum-merit .

The procedure of appointment

As per procedure, the Army Headquarters forwards a list of eligible officers to the Defence
Ministry. The Defence Minister then puts down his recommendations and sends the file to
the ACC, which makes the final selection.

21. A wake-up call: Disenchantment in armed forces (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II)

A flurry of videos has emerged in the social media in recent days showing jawans of both
the paramilitary forces and the Army complaining against a host of issues from diet to
colonial-era practices. While these are disciplinary breaches, they are a good reason to
initiate a detailed study into the internal health of our security establishment.

Videos depicting grievances of armed personnel

1.The present lot of videos began when BSF constable Tej Bahadur Yadav posted a series of
them complaining about burnt parathas and watery lentil curry served along the Line of
Control.

2. From the Army, Lance Naik Yagya Pratap Singh of 42 Infantry Brigade expressed his
grievances against the sahayak (helper) system. He alleged that professional soldiers were
being forced to wash clothes, polish boots and walk dogs for senior officers, and that he
was being victimised with court martial proceedings for complaining against the practice.

3. Nursing Assistant Naik Ram Bhagat of the Army complained in another video about their
rations, that they were only getting about 40 per cent of the menu items allotted. He also
complained about the buddy system in the Army, in which soldiers are deputed to be with
officers and end up doing their personal chores.

4. Yet another video of an Army jawan showed him singing about the difficulties they face
and discrimination by officers. He spoke about leave being denied for 10 months, poor food
and other issues.

Responce of Army, paramilitary forces and Government

The videos quickly grabbed national attention. From the Prime Minister s Office to the
Army chief, the senior leadership has been quick to respond. Both the PMO and Home
Minister Rajnath Singh sought an immediate report from the paramilitary forces, while
Chief of the Army Staff General Bipin Rawat ordered the provision of grievance and redress
boxes. However, many of the responses, especially from the middle- and senior-rung
leadership of the Army and the paramilitary forces, spelt almost outright denial.

Way forward
Without doubt the videos are serious disciplinary breaches, and they must be viewed
keeping in mind the possibilities of such rampant access and use of social media ending up
assisting the enemy. The resort to social media to air grievances could compromise
national security, especially when the forces are in sensitive locations. But that should not
take the attention away from the larger malaise reflected in them, and it is in tackling them
that the senior leadership, both in the executive and the security establishment, must
spend time now. The videos are a wake-up call.

22. Why can t FM stations broadcast news, asks SC (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II)

View of Supreme Court

The radio is an inevitable part of the ordinary )ndian s life. From broadcasting crop updates
for farmers to soothing jingles to tide over the morning blues and live traffic alerts for the
hassled commuter, the radio has been an inseparable friend for many.
If the Supreme Court has its way, private FM radio stations will have an essential role to
play in the world s oldest democracy dissemination of news. The SC asked to question to
government in response to pending public interest litigation petitions to end the monopoly
of the Prasar Bharati Corporation, which owns and operates All India Radio, over news
broadcasting and current affairs programmes.
Questions raised by the bench
The Bench asked why there should be a continuing prohibition on FM radio stations and
community radios from airing their own news and current affairs on a par with private TV
channels and the print media.

Government control
The court asked why the government wanted to control news on radio, which covers
almost the entire population, even the rural masses, as per official estimates.
The government s prohibition was in clear violation of the Supreme Court s landmark
verdict in 1995 in the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting vs Cricket Association of
Bengal . The apex court then held that airwaves are public property to be used to promote
public good and expressing a plurality of views, opinions and ideas.
Policy Guidelines and of the Grant of Permission Agreements framed by the government
which prohibit private FM radio stations and community radio stations from broadcasting
their own news and current affairs programmes are clearly violative of the fundamental
right of freedom of speech and expression as guaranteed under Article 19 (1) (a) of the
Constitution.

Background
In 2008, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India recommended that for private FM radio
broadcasting Phase ))), FM broadcasters may only be permitted to broadcast news, taking
content from AIR, Doordarshan, authorised TV news channels, United News of India, Press
Trust of India and any other authorised news agency without any substantive change in the
content .

In 2011, a minor change was made under Phase III policy guidelines for FM to allow
broadcast of FM radio news bulletins of AIR without any addition or modification.

23. Recommendations of Panel for reforms in education (Relevant for SG Mains

paper II and III)

Recommendations of Panel
A Group of Secretaries on education has recommended to Prime Minister Narendra Modi
that starting April this year, English should be taught in all secondary schools and there
should be at least one government-run English-medium school in each of the 6,612 blocks
in the country.

The Group on Education & Social Development pushed for promotion of English and
Science, saying English should be made a compulsory subject in all schools from class th
onwards and at least one English medium school be set up in every block along with
Science education facility in a radius of kms .

Present provisions of Education Policy

Education, being a subject in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, is guided by the Three
Language Formula as laid down in the National Policy on Education (Parliamentary
Resolution) of 1 . The Formula provides for the study of (indi, English and modern
)ndian language in (indi-speaking states and regional language, English and Hindi in non-
Hindi-speaking states.

)t s only in Central Board of Secondary Education-affiliated schools that English is

compulsory for the first eight years. However, the Board does not offer English as a
compulsory subject in classes 9 to 12; rather, students need to choose between English and
Hindi.

Other recommendations to improve Education

1. The Secretaries group, in an effort to improve learning outcomes in the country, has
suggested that surveys by third party be allowed annually to measure outcomes. Besides,
they have called for the country s participation in the Programme for )nternational Student
Assessment (PISA) and said that there should be a School Education Quality Index (SEQI) to
assess and rank states on their performance, with partial funding to states linked to
improvement in their SEQI scores.

2. The 12-member group has also recommended that the policy of detention in secondary
schools be reintroduced, with states being given the freedom to decide at which level or
class the detention policy will come it and alternative safety nets such as skill training and
remedial interventions from Class 6.

3. )t also wants a basic aptitude test and counseling to be introduced in Class for proper
career planning .

4. On skill training, it has said that skill development centres should be opened in districts
with more than 25 percent tribal population and in minority-dominated blocks.

5. On higher education, it has recommended the standardisation of post-school national

exams for entrance to all higher educational institutions through a National Testing
Organisation that would conduct JEE, NEET, UGC NET, CAT, GATE and CMAT for entry into
medical, engineering as well as university colleges.

6. It has suggested that 50 best colleges be made autonomous by giving them

administrative, academic and financial autonomy as well allowing them to fix their fees and
curriculum. For the rest, it said that the university curriculum be reviewed every three
years by all departments.

About the committee

Last October, the PM formed 10 Groups of Secretaries to undertake a critical review of the
work done by the Union Government in the respective sectors and provide new ideas to
push the reform agenda further.
The Group had secretaries of Higher Education as well as School Education & Literacy as
members and its recommendations were framed after consultations with state
governments.

Education Status Report

The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2014 report, the proportion of children
aged 6-14 years enrolled in school in rural areas has been above 96% for the past six years
but more than 50% of the 5th graders cannot read second standard level text.

24. PAC not to call PM on demonetization (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II, Topic: Can
PAC call PM or any other minister?)

Final decision by PAC

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) BJP members prevailed upon chairperson and
former Union Minister K.V. Thomas to give his assent to a clarification that the committee
did not have the powers to summon either Prime Minister Narendra Modi or any other
Minister with regard to any issue before it.
View of PAC Chairperson
Mr. Thomas had declared that the PAC was within its rights to summon Mr. Modi as the
committee was examining monetary policy and the issue of demonetisation.

Mr. Thomas reportedly said that he had meant that if there was consensus in the committee
then it could summon the Prime Minister. He also asked ruling party MPs to be cautious
about attempts to kill the institution of the PAC.

Rules on calling minister before PAC

Referring to the Speaker s directions related to the rules overseeing financial committees
and those concerning calling Prime Minister/Ministers, the committee said in a release,
Ministers shall not be called before the Committee either to give evidence or consultation
in connection with the examination of estimates of accounts.

Opposition parties continued to claim victory on account of the second part of the
clarification that states, however, [the] chairperson, when [it is] considered necessary but
after its [committee s] deliberations are concluded, may have an informal interaction with
the Minister.

About PAC
PAC is a paliamentary committee to review public accounts and CAG Report. It is headed by
opposition member.

25. Subrata Roy investor fraud issue (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

Charges against Subrata Roy

Sahara India Pariwar investor fraud case is the case of the failure of Subrata Roy-led Sahara
India Pariwar to return Rs 24,000 crore plus interests to its investors as directed by the
Supreme Court of India, after a prolonged legal battle with the Securities and Exchange
Board of India.

Timeline of events
The unravelling of this fraud case started in 2010 and it is still in process in the Supreme
Court of India as of 2016.

November 2010 - Securities and Exchange Board of India barred Sahara India Pariwar chief
Subrata Roy and two of its companies Sahara India Real Estate Corp (SIREC) and Sahara
Housing Investment Corp (SHIC) - from raising money from the public as they had raised
several thousand crores through debentures that SEBI deemed illegal.

In 2014, The Supreme Court of India ordered the arrest of Subrata Roy, chairman and
founder of Sahara India Pariwar, for failing to appear in court in connection with the Rs.
24,000 crore deposits his company failed to refund to its investors as per a Supreme Court
order, after a legal dispute with the Indian market regulator SEBI (Securities and Exchange
Board of India).

In March 2015, Supreme Court stated that the total dues from Sahara have gone up to Rs
40,000 crore with the accretion of interest. In May 2016, Subrata Roy was released on
parole from Tihar jail.

26. Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act Anomaly (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II)

The Supreme Court directed Parel s KEM (ospital to examine a -year-old pregnant
woman carrying a foetus with severe anomaly and submit the report of its findings. The
women little over 23 weeks pregnant, has sought permission for termination of pregnancy
on grounds of foetal anomaly. The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act allows abortions
only up to 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Amendment in the MTP bill:

The case has once again highlighted the need of implementation of the amendment that
was drafted in 2014 for the MTP bill. The draft bill has increased the abortion limit from 20
weeks to 24 weeks. In cases where doctors detect fatal anomaly, there is no limit for
termination.

The law v/s reality:

1.The problem is that the law of the land is still far from where it needs to reach. Many
woman are fairly malnourished to carry the pregnancy. Their life comes in grave danger.

2.But as per our present abortion law, they have no choice but to carry the pregnancy
knowing well that they are not going to get the baby, this cycle of approaching the court
every time for such cases has to stop.

3. There will be so many others out there who are forced to carry the pregnancy for full
term.

Way Forward:
The government should either pass the amendment or introduce a temporary relief for
such women so that they don t have to go to court every time.

27. SC dismisses plea for probe into payoffs to Modi, others Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II)

View of Supreme Court

Holding that courts should be constantly on guard about ordering investigation against
high constitutional functionaries lest there is an abuse of law and personal liberty, the
Supreme Court dismissed a plea for an apex court-monitored Special Investigation Team
(SIT) probe into alleged massive pay-offs made by Birla and Sahara companies to
influential politicians including Prime Minister Narendra Modi while he was Chief Minister
of Gujarat.

Similar instance
Agreeing with the Centre s argument that nobody is safe if an investigation is ordered on
the basis of uncorroborated material, a Bench of SC made reference of the infamous Jain
hawala scandal of the 1990s, which accused high-profile national leaders like L.K. Advani of
receiving bribes.

Rationale by SC
The Bench held it was improbable to order the registration of an FIR against Mr. Modi,
other national leaders and senior bureaucrats by merely banking on some diary entries
and random loose computer sheets. The anomaly witnessed in the Jain hawala case should
not take place.

About jain Hawala Scandal

The Hawala scandal or hawala scam was an Indian political scandal involving payments
allegedly sent by politicians (black money) through four hawala brokers, the Jain brothers.
It was a US$18 million bribery scandal that implicated some of the country's leading
politicians.

In 1991, an arrest linked to militants in Kashmir led to a raid on hawala brokers, revealing
evidence of large-scale payments to national politicians. Those accused included L. K.
Advani, V. C. Shukla, P. Shiv Shankar, Sharad Yadav, Balram Jakhar, and Madan Lal Khurana.
The prosecution that followed was partly prompted by a public interest petition (Vineet
Narain case), and yet the court cases of the Hawala scandal eventually all collapsed without
convictions.

Many were acquitted in 1997 and 1998, partly because the hawala records (including
diaries) were judged in court to be inadequate as the main evidence. The Central Bureau of
Investigation's role was criticised. In concluding the Vineet Narain case, the Supreme
Court of India directed that the Central Vigilance Commission should be given a
supervisory role over the CBI.

28. Cash for land is just not done: SC order on mode of rehabilitation (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains paper II)

Agreeing to hear the plight of the landless victims of the Sardar Sarovar Project in detail,
the Supreme Court observed that giving cash instead of land to farmers who lost their
fertile lands to the mega dam project is tentatively not acceptable.

Appearing for the Narmada Bachao Andolan, Mr. Parikh said the farmers are left with
neither land nor livelihood despite there being binding orders from the Supreme Court
upholding their right to land.
29. SC orders audit of 30 lakh NGOs (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper II)

SC Directions
1. The Supreme Court directed the government to audit nearly 30 lakh NGOs which
received public funds but consistently failed to explain how they spent the money.

2. It ordered that any NGO found to have cooked its books or indulged in misappropriation
should be subject to immediate criminal prosecution.

3. Besides, the government should initiate civil recovery proceedings against such rogue
organisations.

The Supreme Court demanded that the government file a compliance report by March 31,
2017.

Significance of judicial order:

The judicial order is unprecedented because defaulting NGOs so far have been only
blacklisted by the government. Pulling up the government for failing to put in place a
regulatory mechanism to keep a watch on the financial activities of NGOs and voluntary
organisations, the apex court ordered that by next hearing, the government should have
framed guidelines for their accreditation, the manner in which these organisations should
maintain their accounts and the procedure for recovery in case they fail to submit their
balance sheets.

Present status of compliance of NGOs

Though public funds to the tune of thousands of crores are spent on NGOs and voluntary
organisations annually, the CBI submitted that only about three lakh of about 32 lakh NGOs
file their balance sheets with the government.
At one point, the court was taken aback when it found that despite the large amounts
drawn from State coffers and given to NGOs, the government seemed to be unaware that
General Financial Rules, 2005 mandate a regulatory mechanism for them. SC even called
representatives of CAPART to explain disbursement of public funds among various NGOs.

About CAPART
Council for Advancement of People s Action and Rural Technology (CAPART) was launched
in 1986. It works as a nodal agency for catalyzing and coordinating the emerging
partnership between voluntary organizations and the Government for sustainable
development of rural areas.

The scheme was formed at that time by merging CART and PADI which refer to Council for
Advancement of Rural Technology and People s Action for Development )ndia
respectively. CAPART is an autonomous body registered under the Societies Registration
Act 1860. It is chaired by the Union Minister for Rural Development.

Issues with CAPART

1. In last 30 years, CAPART had been dogged by controversies over corruption, lack of
accountability, lack of understanding of voluntary action and its context, and an inability to
move fast enough to innovate.

2. The major problem is that functioning of CAPART is not transparent and majority of the
voluntary organizations funded by it failed to deliver properly. Some of the NGOs even did
not exist.

3. In recent years, CAPART has been under scanner for mismanagement and doling out
money to non-existing NGOs. CAPART has been slammed by critics as a white elephant .
Nearly 1000 NGOs have allegedly looted the wealth of CAPART and some of them have
been blacklisted. There are cases of fraud also in various police stations across the country.

4. Thus, CAPART, which was once claimed to be a major promoter of rural development in
the country, assisting over 12,000 voluntary organizations in implementing a wide range of
development initiatives; is criticised for a variety of reasons.

30. PM Narendra Modi announces Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PKVY), a skill
development program targeted at Indian youth seeking overseas employment to make
India the Skill Capital of the World. It was launched after inauguration of 14th Pravasi
Bhartiya Divas convention at )ndia s )T hub Bengaluru, Karnataka. Portuguese Prime
Minister Antonio Costa was the Chief Guest of the event.

Features of the new scheme:

1. PKVY will provide training and certify Indians who are seeking overseas employment in
selected sectors that have high demand in the global labour market in line with
international standards.

2. It will be implemented by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) through

its training partners and in consultation with the Union Ministry of External Affairs and the
Union Skill Development Ministry.

About Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas:

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is celebrated in India on 9 January every other year (every year
before 2016) to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community to the
development of India. The day commemorates the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South
Africa in Bombay on 9 January 1915.

Established in 2003, it is sponsored by the Ministry of External Affairs of the government of

India and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)
the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Ministry of Development of the North
Eastern Region of India. A celebratory event is held on 79 January every other year in an
Indian city: a forum for issues concerning the Indian Diaspora is organised and the Pravasi
Bharatiya Samman Awards are given.

This year Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas was held at Bengaluru, Karnataka.

31. SC wants VVPAT in EVMs for fair elections (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

The Supreme Court has reiterated the necessity to implement the Vote Verifier Paper Audit
Trail (VVPAT) in electronic voting machines (EVMs) to ensure 100% transparency in
elections. Earlier in 2013, SC had directed the EC to introduce VVPAT. In response the EC
had informed the apex court that the VVPAT can be introduced in a phased manner.

What is VVPAT?
The VVPAT system is a new initiative of the Election Commission to ensure free and fair
elections. In the VVPAT system, when a voter presses the button for a candidate of his
choice in the electronic voting machines (EVM), a paper ballot containing the serial
number, name of the candidate and poll symbol will be printed for the voter. It is intended
as an independent verification system for EVM designed to (i) allow voters to verify that
their votes are casted correctly, (ii) detect possible election fraud or malfunction and (iii)
Provide a means to audit the stored electronic results.

32. SC backs Madras HC order quashing T.N. appointments (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains Paper II)

Supreme Court refused to stay a Madras High Court decision to quash the appointment of
members, including a prematurely retired district judge, of the Tamil Nadu Public
Service Commission (TNPSC) by the earlier Jayalalithaa government.

Fresh selection order

SC directed the Tamil Nadu government to conduct fresh selection of the TNPSC members
after a meaningful, deliberative process. The apex court specifically ordered that the
retired district judge in question would be ineligible for fresh selection.

Flaws in appointment
1. SC asked why the Tamil Nadu government chose to appoint him to the TNPSC, when
the judiciary had retired him at 58 without offering him extension of service till the age of
60.

2. The Bench noted how the entire appointment process of the 11 members was
completed in a single shot, in one day.

3. SC also questioned the State on the ground how a Public Service Commission of Class
10-pass persons interview Class 1 officer-candidates.

4. Chief Justice Khehar said just because the Constitution leaves it to the State s wisdom to
appoint its administrative officers and devises no procedure whatsoever, it does not mean
that such appointments can be made arbitrarily and without consideration.

33. Aadhaar must for MGNREGS work (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)
From April 1, workers in rural areas enrolled under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), which mandates 100 days of work for a
household a year, must have Aadhaar.

Alternate Temporary identification cards

Ration card, driving licence, voter identity card, Kisan passbook with photo, job card issued
under the MGNREGS and a certificate issued by a gazetted officer or a tehsildar will be
admissible as proof of identity for the people to get the benefits till they get Aadhaar.

Legal basis to make Aadhar compulsory

The government has invoked Section 7 of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and
other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016. The Section mandates that when the
government gives subsidy, benefit or service from the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI), an
individual can be asked to undergo authentication or furnish proof of possession of
Aadhaar. The expenditure for the MGNREGS is met from the CFI.

Benefits of the move to make Aadhar mandatory:

1. The move to make Aadhaar mandatory for the MGNREGS will prevent leakages of
subsidies.
2. Ensure that the beneficiaries get their due.
Widening DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) scheme
The DBT scheme, aimed at checking leakages of welfare funds, was launched on January 1,
2013 to cover 24 schemes of eight Ministries. Under the DBT, all cash benefits are
transferred to the beneficiary s bank account.

The Centre has asked its departments and the State governments to widen the scope of the
DBT scheme to include all monetary and in-kind transfers.

Aadhar also mandatory under EPF Scheme

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation has also made it mandatory for lakh
pensioners and four crore subscribers to provide either the Aadhaar number or proof that
they have applied for it.

34. Fuel outlets to stop accepting cards (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

The All India Petroleum Dealers Association (AIPDA) announced that its members would
not accept payments by credit and debit cards.

Reason for refusal to accept cards

A)PDA president said that the decision came after (DFC and other banks...quoted [an] RB)
circular... [to charge] 1 per cent on all credit card transactions and between 0.25 and 1 per
cent on all debit card transactions from January , which would eat into the dealers
profits.

Background:
1.A decision was made earlier by a few private banks to introduce from January 9 a one
percent transaction fee on card payments. The move has not gone down well with
petroleum dealers across the country.

2.It was claimed by the petroleum dealers that they were operating on a very thin
margin,0.75 per cent on every litre of petrol sold out of which banks now wants them to
pay one per cent .

(ence we have no other go than stop accepting debit and credit cards of banks that are
making these deductions, despite there being no reference to it in the circular issued by the
RB), Mr. Bansal. HDFC and Axis Banks have written to dealers about the deductions.

35. Unclogging the cities (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)

The move to make New Delhi s iconic Connaught Place a pedestrian zone from February
and keep out cars and other vehicles from its middle and inner circle roads, during a three-
month trial programme is an inspiring attempt to reconquer public space.

Urban design in India is the preserve of State governments and local bodies, which have
failed spectacularly to provide a safe, comfortable and accessible experience for walkers.
The pilot project in the national capital represents a refreshing change, taking a leaf out of
the book of global cities that have pedestrianised their landmarks, often in the face of
conservative opposition.

Contrary to apprehensions that restrictions affect commercial activity, the

experience around the world has been quite the opposite:
1. better walking and public transport infrastructure and availability of food plazas attract
more people, improving the local economy.

2. In America, pedestrian injuries decreased after vehicles were removed from Times
Square.

3. Globally this has been the trend too when cities curb car use and clean up the air.
Such examples should convince the Ministry of Urban Development that it is moving in the
right direction, and if anything, this needs to be extended to other cities.

In the intermediate phase, many cities find it rewarding to levy a stiff congestion charge on
personal vehicles entering designated areas.
This is a mature idea and needs to be trialed in India, under its ongoing smart cities
programme. It should be mandated by law that all proceeds would go towards funding
walking, bicycling and emissions-free public transport infrastructure.
Measures to unclog cities are often posed, wrongly, as detrimental to the economy and
efficiency. While cars will continue to remain relevant for longer-distance travel, dense
urban areas need relief from excessive motorisation.

36. ICHR drags its feet on volumes on freedom struggle martyrs (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains paper I and II)

The collections cover individuals across regions, castes and communities, with details on
how they were killed.

The last two volumes of a comprehensive, five-volume dictionary on around 15,000

freedom fighters who became martyrs during the struggle for Independence are yet to see
the light of day though work on them has been completed.

Allegation on ICHR:
This has led to speculation that the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) could be
sitting on them. The Council has, however, denied the allegations and insisted that the work
is in process.

It is alleged that ICHR under influence of government is deliberately preventing release of

the volumes because The list showcases up to per cent of the martyrs happen to be
Muslim, said a former )C(R official, requesting anonymity.

Background:
Funded by the Ministry of Culture, the project has been carried forward from the UPA
government. Three volumes of the compendium were published between 2011 and 2014.
The collections cover individuals across regions, castes and communities, with
authenticated details on how they were killed and precise references to related official
documents.

37. Clamping down on ordinance raj, Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar
(Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

Both superior courts and constitutional functionaries have routinely criticised the
governments to take the ordinance route for mere political expediency. The temptation to
use the power vested in the President and the Governors under Articles 123 and 213 of the
Constitution is generally a result of one of the following three reasons:

1. Reluctance to face the legislature on particular issues,

2. Fear of defeat in the Upper House where the government may lack the required
numbers,

3. The need to overcome an impasse in the legislature caused by repeated and wilful
disruption by a vociferous section of the Opposition.

The Supreme Court had already declared in 1986, in D.C. Wadhwa, that repeated re-
promulgation of ordinances was unconstitutional.

Recent verdict in Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar

1. Now, in Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar, it goes deeper and concludes that the
failure to place an ordinance before the legislature constitutes abuse of power and a fraud
on the Constitution. It noted in this case that a 1989 ordinance by which the State
government took over 429 Sanskrit schools in Bihar was promulgated several times until
1992, but not once tabled in the State Assembly.

2. Widening of purview of judicial review: A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court can
now examine whether the President or the State Governor was spurred by an oblique
motive to bypass the legislature and promulgate an ordinance.
The satisfaction of the President under Article 123 and of the Governor under Article 213 is
not immune from judicial review. The apex court would scrutinize whether the satisfaction
of the President or the Governor to promulgate an ordinance was based on relevant
material or whether it amounted to a fraud on power.

The issue with the new judgement: Government not be solely blamed
It is not always that the ordinance route can be neatly explained as a cynical move to
privilege political expediency over parliamentary accountability.

While contending that ordinances should be issued only to meet certain exigencies and
under compelling circumstances, it is equally important to understand that disruption as a
parliamentary tactic plays a significant role.

A dysfunctional House constitutes a compelling circumstance in itself. Generally, it is the

combination of Opposition obstructionism and government obstinacy in not making any
concessions to those across the aisle that derails legislative business and leads to
ordinances.

Way forward
The courts can only define the boundaries between the use and abuse of power, but it is up
to parties in the legislature to observe the limits of constitutional propriety and show that
they have both the time and the will to enact laws.

Issue discussed in the case

The seminal question that came up in reference before the seven-judge Constitution Bench
dealt with the constitutionality of seven successive re-promulgations of the Bihar Non-
Government Sanskrit Schools (Taking Over of Management and Control) Ordinance of
1989.

The State government had approached the Supreme Court after the Patna High Court
declared that repeated re-promulgation of the ordinances was unconstitutional after
relying on the D.C. Wadhwa judgment on the dos and don'ts of promulgation of ordinances
by another Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court in 1986.

What is an ordinance
Ordinances are temporary laws that are promulgated by the President of India on the
recommendation of the Union Council of Ministers. They can only be issued when
Parliament is not in session. They enable the Indian government to take immediate
legislative action. Similarly, Governor can promulgate ordinance on recommendation of
State Council of Ministers.

D.C. Wadhwa Judgement

The Supreme Court in D. C. Wadhwa v. State of Bihar (1986) held that it is unconstitutional
to re-promulgate ordinances, unless in exceptional circumstances. Ordinances themselves
are an exception, the Court noted. The primary authority to enact legislation is the
legislature. It is only to tide over a temporary urgency that the executive resorts to an
ordinance. But to re-promulgate it is to circumvent the legislature s primacy; it is an
underhanded way of prolonging the life of an ordinance.

38. SC asked to resolve conflict over rape definition in two laws Relevant for GS
prelims and GS mains paper II)

Conflict between IPC (Indian Penal Code) and POSCO (Protection of Children from
Sexual Offences)
Colonial-era Indian Penal Code (IPC) condoning sexual intercourse and exploitation of a 15-
year-old child wife has been brought to the Supreme Court s attention. An exception to
Section 375 (rape) in the IPC allows a man to go scot-free despite having sex with his 15-
year-old wife . This exception ensures that he will not be charged with rape even though
child marriage is a crime.

The plea:
Nobel Peace laureate Kailash Satyarthi, through his organisation Bachpan Bachao Andolan,
appealed to the Supreme Court for help to end this statutorily-backed crime against
children. In a petition before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India J.S. Khehar, the
organisation said an estimated 47 per cent of children in India were married off before they
turned 18, according to the United Nations.

The illegal practice was a serious deterrence to the physical, social, psychological and
moral well-being of children.The petition said the IPC condones the rape of a 15-year-old
by her husband despite the fact that the more recent Protection of Children from Sexual
Offences Act of qualifies those aged below as children .

POCSO has specific penal provisions against penetrative sexual assault and aggressive
penetrative sexual assault on children below . Section 6 of the Act enunciates the
punishment for aggravated penetrative sexual assault as rigorous imprisonment of not less
than 10 years to life imprisonment. Mr. Satyarthi wants the apex court to clear the anomaly
in law. The IPC terms children as those aged under 15 years while POCSO terms children as
those aged under 18.

Anomaly:
Despite being a child by definition (under the age of 18), provisions of POCSO are not
applied. The benefit of a Special Act (POCSO) is not afforded to children when they are in
married relationship but over the age of . Therefore, a child s status as a child till she
attains the age of 18 is denied to her once she is forcefully or otherwise wed.

The SC direction:
The apex court directed the government to address the issue within four months. The
Bench asked Mr. Satyarthi to approach the court on the same grounds for immediate
resolution if he is not satisfied with the government s response.

What is the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) 2012 :
POCSO Act was formulated in order to effectively address sexual abuse and sexual
exploitation of children. It defines different forms of sexual abuse, including penetrative
and non-penetrative assault, as well as sexual harassment and pornography.

39. The Kerala High Court has declared unconstitutional the University Grants
Commission s UGC National Eligibility Test criterion

The Kerala (igh Court has declared unconstitutional the University Grants Commissions s
(UGC) National Eligibility Test criterion that the top 15 per cent of candidates from each
the four reserved categories on the merit list will be declared qualified for eligibility for the
post of assistant professors.

The court observed that if the impugned criteria were adopted, the number of NET
qualified general category candidates would be skeletal. The court made clear that this
judgment would not affect the result of the NET already held.

Background
The court passed the judgment while allowing writ petitions filed by the Nair Service
Society (NSS) and a general merit candidate. According to the petitioners, in the light of the
lower minimum marks prescribed for the candidates belonging to the reserved categories,
the number of candidates securing minimum marks in NET from the reserved categories
was more than the number of general category candidates securing minimum marks.

The UGC notification:

As per the UGC notification regarding the procedure and criteria for declaration of results,
the merit list of candidates who secured minimum marks would be prepared subject wise
as also reserved category wise (other backward classes, disabled persons, Scheduled Castes
and Scheduled Tribes) based on the aggregate marks secured by the candidates in all the
three papers and the top 15 per cent candidates in all the categories will be declared NET
qualified for eligibility for assistant professors.

Therefore, when the top 15 per cent of candidates from each category, subject wise, were
qualified in NET, the qualified candidates in NET from the reserved categories far
outnumbered the general category qualified candidates.

40. Government invites comments for creating new Financial Redressal Agency
(Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains paper II and III)

The Union Government has invited public comments on a report for the creation of a
Financial Redressal Agency (FRA). The report also calls for a new financial consumer
protection and redressal legislation and also recommends an initial budget of Rs. 100 crore
for the setting up of the FRA.

Key Facts
1. The objective of FRA will be to address the grievances of retail consumers against all
financial service providers in an easy, transparent and cost-effective manner.

2. It will offer a simplified resolution process to allow retail consumers in distant and
remote locations to pursue effective remedies without imposing significant costs on them.

3. FRA will try to resolve all complaints through mediation. Cases where parties are
unable to reach a settlement will be resolved through a light-touch adjudication process.

4. It will establish a front-end presence in diverse locations for consumers to submit

complaints and discourage court-like processes.

Why there is need for FRA?

There are substantial inadequacies in the current redressal system as follows:
1. The average consumer is put under unnecessary stress as he has to approach different
redress agencies based on nature of product. This stress is further amplified due to varying
levels of consumer protection across regulators.
2. In some instances, regulated financial service providers (FSPs) are not covered within
the scope of the concerned regulator s redress functions.

3. Further, there is a lack of powers to award compensation in some cases, pushes

consumers to courts or consumer forums.

4. Even the present systems do not have a specialised cadre of redress professionals and
there is possibility of a conflict of roles between the various redressal agencies.

Background
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his 2015-16 budget speech had announced creation
of a sector-neutral FRA, following the recommendations of the Financial Sector Legislative
Reforms Commission (FSLRC). The FSLRC in 2013 had recommended an FRA as part of the
regulatory framework aimed at fostering customer protection and regulator independence
and accountability.

41. Assembly polls due in 5 states (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II)

Assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa will be held
between February 4 and March 8, the Election Commission announced.

Model Code of conduct

Election Commission of India's Model Code of Conduct is a set of guidelines issued by the
Election Commission of India for conduct of political parties and candidates during
elections mainly with respect to speeches, polling day, polling booths, election manifestos,
processions and general conduct. These set of norms has been evolved with the consensus
of political parties who have consented to abide by the principles embodied in the said
code in its letter and spirit. The Model Code of Conduct comes into force immediately on
announcement of the election schedule by the commission for the need of ensuring free
and fair elections.

Much of it is designed to avert communal clashes and corrupt practices. For example,
politicians should not make hate speeches, putting one community against another or make
promises about new projects that may sway a voter.

The Model Code of Conduct is applicable to Centre, the State governments, political parties
and their candidates.

Details of Polls
Polls will be held in a total of 690 Assembly constituencies. In the 403 constituencies of
Uttar Pradesh, the elections will be conducted in seven phases from February 11 to March
8.

Elections in the 60 constituencies of Manipur will be held in two phases on March 4 and 8;
Goa (40) and Punjab (117) will go to the polls on February 4, and Uttarakhand (70) on
February 15. The counting will be carried out on March 11.

Maximum expense limit allowed to candidates

The maximum limit for expenses for each candidate in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and
Uttarakhand is Rs. 28 lakh. In Goa and Manipur, the limit is Rs. 20 lakh.

42. Government meets PMUY target of 1.5 crore LPG connections (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

The Union Ministry for Petroleum & Natural Gas has met the 1.5-crore target for LPG
connections that were to be added under the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) in the
2016-17 financial year. This Target was achieved within a span of less than eight months
since the launch of the scheme which is implemented across 35 States/UTs.

Key Facts
Since the launch of the PMUY, the LPG coverage across the country has increased to 70% as
of December 1, 2016 from earlier 61% as of January 1, 2016.

About Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)

1. The scheme provides free LPG connection with financial assistance of Rs. 1600/- per
connection to an adult woman member of BPL family identified through Socio-Economic
Caste Census (SECC) data.
2. PMUY is the first welfare scheme being implemented by the Union Ministry of Petroleum
and Natural Gas.

3. The tagline of scheme is Swachh Indhan, Behtar Jeevan. It seeks to empower women and
protect their health by shifting them from traditional cooking based on unclean cooking
fuels or fossil fuels to clean cooking gas.

. )t is being implemented over three years time frame i.e. in the FY -17, 2017-18 and
2018-19 with budgetary allocation of allocated Rs, 8,000 crore announced in the Union
Budget 2016.

43. Hotel service charge is optional (Relevant for GS prelims and Mains paper II)

The declaration by the government:

Consumer Affairs Department asked the States to advise hotels/restaurants to display that
the service charges are discretionary/voluntary and a consumer dissatisfied with the
services can have it waived.

Reasons behind the move:

There were several complaints that hotels and restaurants are charging service charge in
the range of 5-20 per cent, in lieu of tips, which a consumer is forced to pay irrespective of
the kind of service provided, the department said.

The Consumer Protection Act, 1986, provides that a trade practice which, for the purpose
of promoting the sale, use or supply of any goods that adopts any deceptive method is to be
treated as unfair.

What can the consumer do:

The department said a consumer can make a complaint to the appropriate forum
established under the Act against such unfair trade practices.
It had called for a clarification from the Hotel Association of India, which said the service
charge is discretionary and should a customer be dissatisfied with the dining experience,
he/she can have it waived.

44. Seeking votes on religious basis a corrupt practice: SC (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains paper II)

Explanation given by SC :
Terming religion a very private relationship between man and his God, a seven-judge
Bench of the Supreme Court, held that an appeal for votes during elections on the basis of
religion, caste, race, community or language, even that of the electorate, will amount to a
corrupt practice and call for disqualification of the candidate.

Background:
The court was interpreting the pronoun his used in Section of the Representation
of the People Act, whether the word his only meant a bar on appeals made in the name of
the candidate or his rival or his agent or others in his immediate camp. Or, does the word
also extend to soliciting votes on the basis of the religion, caste, community, race, language
of the electorate as a whole.

As per Supreme Court, the word his religion, race, caste, community or language
appearing in section 123(3) would mean the religion, race caste or community of the
candidate or the voter/ elector.

Wording of Section 123(3) Representation of the People Act:

123. Corrupt practices.The following shall be deemed to be corrupt practices for the
purposes of this Act:

Clause (3) The appeal by a candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent
of a candidates or his election agent to vote or refrain from voting for any person on the
ground of his religion, race, caste, community or language or the use of, or appeal to
religious symbols or the use of, or appeal to, national symbols, such as the national flag or
the national emblem, for the furtherance of the prospects of the election of that candidate
or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate

The Representation of People Act, 1951 is an act of Parliament of India for the conduct of
elections of the Houses of Parliament or Houses of the Legislature of each State, the
qualifications and disqualifications for membership of those Houses, the corrupt practices
and other offences in connection with such elections.

45. News Schemes announced on New Year eve (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains
Paper II)

1. PM announced a special scheme under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana to provide an
interest subvention of 4 per cent on loans up to Rs. 9 lakh and 3 per cent on loans up to Rs.
12 lakh for urban housing.

A similar scheme would be rolled out for the rural poor to get a house-building loan of up
to Rs. 2 lakh at a 3 per cent lower interest rate.

2. Promising to convert three crore Kisan credit cards to Rupay cards in the next three
months, the Prime Minister flagged the inconvenience posed by Kisan credit cards which
require farmers to go to the bank to withdraw cash against their credit limit. With a Rupay
card, they will be able to make transactions for farm inputs without visiting the bank.
Rupay cards can function can as normal debit or credit card.

3. Mr. Modi also announced a guaranteed 8 per cent return on bank deposits up to Rs. 7.5
lakh made by senior citizens for a period of 10 years.
4. He also announced a virtual doubling in the credit flow to the farm sector via district
central co-operative banks and primary societies, with the Centre bearing the interest cost
for 60 days on existing loans availed by farmers.

5. This interest subvention will be credited to farmers accounts and an additional Rs.
30,000 crore is being provided by the Centre to the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD) to lend to co-operative banks and societies at a lower interest
rate.

6. He also promised strict action against black money by flagging the fact that just 24 lakh
Indians have a declared income of Rs. 10 lakh.

7. Mr Modi also raised the credit guarantee for small businesses from Rs 1 crore to Rs 2
crore.

8. Banks have also been directed to raise the cash-credit limit from 20 per cent to 25 per
cent for such businesses and raise the working capital loans from 20 per cent to 30 per cent
to the extent that such traders transact in a cashless mode.

9. The Prime Minister also enhanced the maternity benefits given to pregnant women for
pre-natal care to Rs 6,000 from the existing level of Rs 4,000 and declared that this benefit
will now be available for women in all 650 districts of the country. Currently, the scheme is
only working as a pilot project in 53 districts.

46. Second Raisina Dialogue held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

The second edition of Ministry of External Affairs annual Raisina Dialogue was held in New
Delhi with the theme The New Normal: Multilateralism in a multipolar world .
The flagship geo-political conference was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
and was attended by delegates from 65 countries. During the conference, several
international issues were discussed.

About Raisina Dialogue

Raisina Dialogue is an annual conference held in New Delhi. )t is envisioned to be )ndia s
flagship conference of geopolitics and geo-economics.

The conference is held jointly by Ministry of External Affairs and the Observer Research
Foundation (ORF), an independent think tank based in India. The name of conference
comes from Raisina Hill which is the elevation in New Delhi where presidential palace of
India, Rashtrapati Bhavan is located.

The first edition of the conference was held in March with the theme Asia: Regional
and Global Connectivity . )t is organized on the lines of the Shangri-La Dialogue held in
Singapore.
It is structured as a multi-stakeholder, cross-sectorial conclave, involving policy and
decision makers, including cabinet ministers from various Governments, high-level
Government officials and policy practitioners, leading personalities from business and
industry etc.

47. IOA cancels life presidency given to Kalmadi, Chautala (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains paper II)

Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has cancelled the appointments of Suresh Kalmadi and
Abhay Chautala after IOA was derecognised by Government of India. The outrage against
what appeared to be an attempt to rehabilitate former presidents within the organisation
has seemingly forced the de-recognised Indian Olympic Association to step back.

Background:

Suspension of IOA
The Indian Olympic Association was suspended by the Sports Ministry after failing to
respond to the show cause notice issued to it questioning the decision to confer life
presidency on Suresh Kalmadi and Abhay Chautala.

Response of Kalmadi and Chautala

While Kalmadi voluntarily refused the position till he is absolved of all corruption charges,
Chautala has been defiant, claiming he would give up the post only if asked to do so by the
International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Stand of Government
The government has suspended the deemed recognition, granted by it to the Indian
Olympic Association (IOA), until the IOA reverses its decision to appoint Suresh Kalmadi
and Abhay Chautala as Life Presidents.Both Kalmadi and Chautala have corruption cases
pending against them.

Implication of suspension
Following the suspension, IOA ceased to enjoy the privileges and prerogatives bestowed on
it by the Government as the National Olympic Committee. All Government assistance,
financial or otherwise, to IOA also stopped. Govt. opposed appointment of Kalmadi as
honorary life president at IOA

Why government is opposing?

Mr. Kalmadi, who was the IOA president for 15 years from 1996 to 2011, is one of the main
accused in the 2010 Commonwealth Games corruption scam.

About IOA:
The Indian Olympic Association is the body responsible for selecting athletes to represent
India at the Olympic Games, Asian Games and other international athletic meets and for
managing the Indian teams at the events.
 International Organisations
1. Bilateral trade hit by banks reluctance to transact with )ran Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper II, Topic: Issues in Indo-Iran Trade Relations)

)ndia s trade with )ran is yet to be fully normalised even a year after the lifting of
international sanctions on Tehran. Indian exporters are complaining of difficulties faced by
them due to some Indian nationalised banks refusing to deal with Iran-related
transactions. This is despite the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in a notification in May 2016,
specifying that payment or remittance or reimbursement can be made from or to Iran in
any freely convertible currency for imports from Iran and exports to that country.

Background
Previously, following the sanctions on Iran over its nuclear activities, both the nations had
agreed in that % of )ndia s oil import payments to )ran would be paid in rupees and
deposited in UCO Bank as that bank hardly had an exposure to U.S. or European Union.

In turn, Iran was to utilise that amount to pay for its imports from India. It is learnt that the
balance in the rupee account may not be sufficient to cover three months of )ndia s exports
to Iran.

A senior official in a public sector bank, however, said on condition of anonymity that there
have been no problems regarding Iran-related transactions in currencies other than the
U.S. dollar. Exporters and importers have been advised to carry out their transactions in
currencies such as the Euro wherever possible, the official said, adding that banks still have
apprehensions that the U.S. regulators could take arbitrary decisions on Iran-related
transactions.

India-Iran trade
)ndia s trade with )ran in FY was $ billion, of which $ . billion were imports from )ran
(of which $4.5 billion was the oil import bill , while )ndia s exports were worth only $ .
billion.

Of the $5.4 billion worth imports from Iran in April-October FY , oil imports were $ .
billion. )ndia s exports to )ran during April-October FY were $ . billion. The trade
between these two countries was worth $16.2 billion in 2011- )ndia s exports of $ .
billion and imports from Iran worth $13.8 billion).

To boost India-Iran trade, FIEO had in December 2016 asked the RBI to soon allow Iranian
banks such as Persia International Bank, Parsian Bank, Bank Pasargad, Bank Mellat and
Saman Bank to open branches in India.

2. American Court stops Trump s travel ban order Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II, Topic: America for Americans only?)
A judicial order stayed the deportation of people from seven Muslim-majority countries
who arrived in the U.S. after President Donald Trump barred their entry through an
executive order.
Rationale behind judicial order
The judicial order argued that the order to ban entry of muslims could be deemed
unconstitutional as it effectively sanctions religious discrimination.

Status of Judiciary in USA

Judiciary in America enjoys larger powers than Executive and Legislature in USA.

Background: Trump restricts entry from 7 Muslim nations

U.S. President Donald Trump has banned people from seven Muslim-majority countries
from entering the nation for 90 days and suspended admission of refugees for 120 days
through an executive order. The order has also indefinitely barred refugees from Syria.

U.S. immigration authorities have started detaining travellers from Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan,
Libya, Yemen and Somalia, and all refugees, though the order allowed exemption for those
who were already in transit.

Possibility in future
As the new measures, which Mr. Trump calls extreme vetting of new entrants into the
U.S., take full shape over the next three to four months, the ban could be extended, more
countries could be added to the list and doors could be shut for refugees, particularly
Muslims, fleeing violence.

Reason for taking such steps

US President argues new vetting measures have been opted to keep radical Islamic
terrorists out.

Exemption to Christians
Mr. Trump has also ordered that religious minorities facing persecution in these 7
countries shall be admitted to the U.S. Mr. Trump also said in an interview that he would
help Christians facing persecution in Syria.

Opposition from US Companies

U.S. technology companies for years have relied on a steady stream of skilled engineers
from overseas to help them create their products. Now many of those companies and their
workers are girding for expected changes to immigration policy under President Donald
Trump that the companies say could hurt their ability to tap the technical talent they need
to stay competitive.

Trump, who has signed a series of executive orders related to immigration, is expected to
soon take similar action on visa programmes for foreign workers. The technology industry
relies heavily on the H-1B visa programme, through which highly skilled workers like
software engineers are permitted to work in the U.S. for companies like Microsoft, Google
and Intel.

3. US exits from Trans Pacific Partnership (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper
II)

China backs regional trade pacts after U.S. exits TPP

China is hoping to be past of two regional trade proposals the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Free-Trade Agreement of the Asia-Pacific (FTAAP)
following the formal exit of the U.S. from the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Withdrawal of US
President Donald Trump signed an executive order, withdrawing the U.S. from the 12-
nation trade deal, widely seen in China as a Washington-led attempt to contain its rise.
US withdrew on the ground that under TPP it conceded higher trade concessions to
member nations of TPP.

What is TPP?
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA), is
a trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New
Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam. The finalized proposal was signed
on 4 February 2016 in Auckland, New Zealand, concluding seven years of negotiations. It
currently cannot be ratified due to U.S. withdrawal from the agreement on 23 January
2017.

What is RCEP?
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a so-called mega-regional
economic agreement being negotiated between the 10 ASEAN (Association of South-East
Asian Nations) governments and their six FTA partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, New
Zealand and South Korea.

4. Stealth frigate deal inconclusive with Russia (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains
Paper II, Topic: Issues in Defence cooperation with Russia)

The multi-billion dollar deal between India and Russia for four stealth frigates has run into
trouble over pricing and local construction with Transfer of Technology (ToT).

Details of deal
India and Russia had signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for four additional
Krivak or Talwar class stealth frigates. As per the agreement, two ships are to be procured
directly from Russia and two to be built in India with Russian assistance.

In the commercial offer submitted later, Russia has quoted about $990 million for the two
ships to be directly imported. For those to be built in India, the commercial offer quoted
about $ million for supply of material to ensure construction of the two ships in )ndia
and $ million for supply of project documentation to ensure their construction. The
cost of construction of the two ships in an Indian yard yet to be identified was to be
arrived at later.

Defence sources said this would steeply push up the overall cost of the two ships and it was
seen as a way to ensure that all four ships were imported from Russia.

What are Stealth Frigates?

A stealth frigate is a ship which employs stealth technology construction techniques in an
effort to ensure that it is harder to detect by one or more of radar, visual, sonar, and
infrared methods.

5. Relations with Gulf Cooperation Council (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper
II)

Relations with GCC

1. Trade: The Gulf Cooperation Council GCC is )ndia s second-largest trading partner, the
largest single origin of imports into the country, and the second largest destination for
exports from India.

The GCC countries supply per cent of )ndia s petroleum, with the UAE being the sixth
largest source of imports of crude oil.

2. The region remains a major destination for Indian investment. India hopes that major
GCC states such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Oman will participate in its planned
infrastructure expansion.

3. Human Resources: Meanwhile, the Gulf states are interested in human resources from
India in order to develop sectors as varied as information technology, construction,
transportation and services.

4. Energy and Trade Security: )ndia s trade and energy security is inextricably linked to
the security of the Straits of Hormuz and Bab-el-Mandeb. With this in mind, the Indian
Navy regularly visits Gulf ports, and trains with states in the region. It has undertaken a
series of naval exercises with a number of Gulf States in recent years, thereby helping in
expanding )ndia s reach in the region. )ndian warships have also been deployed in the Gulf
of Aden to carry out anti-piracy patrols.

5. Expatriate labour: In addition, Indians are the largest expatriate community in the GCC
states, numbering around 7 million. There are an estimated 2.6 million Indians in the UAE
alone. Indian expatriate labour constitutes around 30 per cent of the total population of the
UAE, and Indians have a significant presence in Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar.
6. Remittances: India receives around 52 per cent of its remittances from its Gulf
expatriates, which have contributed significantly to )ndia s economic resurgence, even as
there have been growing concerns about the living and working conditions in the host
countries.

Steps taken to secure welfare of labour

India is pursuing manpower and labour agreements with Gulf states to help Indian workers
in the region. It has also launched the e-Migrate system for recruitment of Indian workers
across the 17 Emigration Check Required countries.

About GCC
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf also called as the Gulf Cooperation
Council is a regional intergovernmental political and economic union consisting of all Arab
states of the Persian Gulf, except for Iraq. Its member states are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

6. Visit of Crown Prince of Dubai as republic day chief guest (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II)

Presence of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan as the
chief guest at the Republic Day parade and participation of a marching contingent of the
country s military in the celebrations would indicate its willingness to play a more active
regional role. A contingent of 179 UAE soldiers lead the Republic Day parade.

India- UAE Relations

1. Today, Indians make up 30% of the country s population the single largest
expatriate community in the UAE.

2. During the recent visit, both the countries signed Comprehensive Strategic Partnership
agreement. The agreement calls for cooperation between India and Dubai in various fields.

3. Trade Levels: Currently, India and the UAE have a $35 billion bilateral trade, which they
plan to increase three times in the near future. After China and the U.S., the UAE is )ndia s
largest trading partner.

4. Investment: The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth
funds, is seeking to identify investment opportunities in the Indian infrastructure sector.
The $75 billion UAE-)ndia )nfrastructure )nvestment Fund, to support investment in )ndia s
infrastructure sector over a decade, has not seen much progress.

5. Terrorism: Both sides denounced and opposed terrorism in all forms and
manifestations. The target was clearly Pakistan, as they came down strongly on countries
sponsoring terrorism against other states.
That Mr. Modi could get the UAE, one of the countries closest to Pakistan, to deliver such a
message shows how well he had read the changing strategic realities in West Asia. The UAE
endorsing )ndia s concerns on terrorism underscores the challenges facing the Gulf
kingdoms at a time when the Islamic State is rising and sectarian divide in the region is
widening.
6. Afghanistan: They also hope to work closely in Afghanistan, where five UAE diplomats
were killed earlier this month in a terror attack and where regional alignments are in flux.

India to fill strategic reserve facility at Mangaluru with oil from UAE
India signed a deal with the United Arab Emirates that allows the Gulf nation to fill half of
an underground crude oil storage facility at Mangaluru that is part of New Delhi s strategic
reserve system.

India has already filled the other half of the Mangaluru storage in Karnataka state with six
million barrels of )ranian oil.)ndia, the world s third-biggest oil consumer, has also filled a
Vizag storage site in southern Andhra Pradesh with 7.55 million barrels of Iraqi oil and has
invited bids from suppliers to fill an 18.3 million-barrel facility at Padur in Karnataka.

Background
The vigour in India-UAE ties today owes its origins to Prime Minister Narendra Modi s visit
to the UAE in 2015, the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the Emirates in 34 years.

About UAE
United Arab Emirates (UAE) is a federation of seven emirates, and was established on
December 2, 1971. The constituent emirates are Abu Dhabi (which serves as the capital),
Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain. Each emirate is
governed by an absolute monarch; together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council.
One of the monarchs is selected as the President of the United Arab Emirates. Islam is the
official religion of the UAE and Arabic is the official language.

Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan is the second in command in Abu Dhabi. His elder
brother is head of Abu Dhabi.

7. Secularism receding in Bangladesh (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

Recent event
Bangladesh s Education Ministry was preparing to print the editions of its standard
Bengali textbooks when a group of conservative Islamic religious scholars demanded the
removal of poems and stories they deemed atheistic .

By the time the books were distributed to schools on Jan. 1, the 17 poems and stories were
gone, with no explanation from the government.
State of Bangladesh
Bangladesh has struggled to contain extremist violence in recent years, as Islamist
militants have targeted secular writers and intellectuals. But equally significant, over the
long term, are changes taking place in the general population: The number of women
wearing the hijab has gradually risen, as has the number of students enrolled in madrasas,
or Islamic schools.

Past of Secularism
Bangladesh broke away from Pakistan in 1971, and in the decades that followed, it defined
itself as adamantly secular and democratic. For years, this ideology seemed to serve as an
insulating force. Transnational jihadist networks that flourished in Afghanistan and
Pakistan found little purchase in Bangladesh, despite its dense, poor Muslim population
and porous borders.

8. India rejects attempts by EU, Canada for global investment agreement (Relevant
for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II and III)

India, along with Brazil, Argentina and some other nations, has rejected an informal
attempt by the European Union (EU) and Canada to work towards a global investment
agreement at the World Trade Organisation (WTO)-level that would incorporate a
contentious Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism.

Reasons for rejection of global investment agreement :Contentious mechanism

1. The ISDS mechanism has become contentious as it permits companies to drag
governments to international arbitration without exhausting the local remedies and claim
huge amounts as compensation citing losses they suffered due to reasons, including policy
changes.

2. The EU and Canada have inked an investment pact that has incorporated the contentious
ISDS. They wanted the investment pact to be the template for a similar multilateral
agreement. India summarily rejected such an idea.

Japan also opposed the idea on the grounds of the costs involved in international
arbitration.

India Pushed for Services agreement at WTO: Trade Facilitation in Services (TFS)
Agreement
India pushed for discussions on its proposal for a Trade Facilitation in Services (TFS)
Agreement at the WTO-level. The pact, among other things, aims to facilitate easier
movement of skilled workers and professionals across borders for short-term work.

9. The hard road to Brexit (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains Paper II)
Prime Minister Theresa May s speech on her government s plans for Britain s exit from the
EU:

1. She said that Britain would leave the single market and with it gain more control over
its borders and its laws, some of which are currently under the oversight of the European
Courts of Justice.

2. The U.K. would seek to negotiate a deal that would give it as much access to the single
market without being a part of it.

3. It would seek a modified customs union membership to be able to negotiate its own
trade treaties with non-EU countries, and build what the Prime Minister called a truly
global Britain .

4. She spoke of wanting to strike a trade deal with the EU but hinted that if it did not get a
good deal the U.K. had the rest of the world to trade with, and the option to offer tax
incentives to attract the best companies and the biggest investors .

Possible implications of Brexit

1. The EU, which according to recent data accounts for approximately half the U.K. s
imports and exports, is likely to be overwhelmingly important to it after the exit.

2. Trade deals with non-EU countries such as India are likely to involve greater movement
of people across borders and this is bound to raise difficult immigration issues again.

3. The Scottish Parliament has now reiterated its resolve to discuss Scotland s
continuation in the single market, and a second referendum for Scottish independence is
now more likely.

About United Kingdom

United Kingdom consists of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Popularly UK is
called as Britain. Though, Great Britain is an island consisting territory of England, Scotland
and Wales.

Background
Recently, there was a referendum in UK for separation of Scotland. However, the
referendum was defeated. After this referendum, there was another referendum on exit of
UK from EU. This referendum was passed. However, the people from Scotland oppose exit
of UK from EU.

10. First China-Britain freight train arrives in London (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II)
The first China-to-Britain freight train run by Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment arrived in
London after completing a 7,500-mile journey in 18-days. This marks a milestone in China s
push to build commercial links across Europe and Asia.

The train had started its journey from Yiwu, a wholesale market town in the eastern
Chinese province of Zhejiang and passed through Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Poland,
Germany, Belgium, France and the English Channel to reach Britain.

This successfully journey of freight train from China, makes London the 15th European city
to have a direct rail link with China as part of its ambitious One Belt, One Road (OBOR)
initiative.

11. U.K. seeks Indian help in resolving Chagos Archipelago dispute (Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

The British Foreign Secretary has sought Indian assistance in resolving current tensions
between the U.K., the U.S. and Mauritius over the future of the U.S. military base Diego
Garcia, and the Indian Ocean Chagos Archipelago, amid a warning from Mauritius last year
that it would push to take the matter to the International Court of Justice.

Background
The British acting on the request of the U.S. are hopeful that India may be able to
exercise its influence with the Mauritian government to help the three sides come to some
agreement. The British believe that ensuring the future of Diego Garcia with US, would be
in )ndia s security interest in the region too. This is because China is expanding its influence
in South China Sea and Indian Ocean Region.

About The Chagos Islands

The Chagos Island referred to by the British as the British Indian Ocean Territory, which is
not recognised as such by Mauritius is home to the U.S. military base Diego Garcia.
In the 1960s and 1970s, inhabitants were removed from the islands. Tensions remain,
with Mauritius maintaining that the archipelago remains its integral part.

The Hague international tribunal order

1. In March 2015, a tribunal brought against the U.K. found that the Marine Protected
Area brought in by the U.K. around the Archipelago in 2010 (but not including Diego
Garcia) actually belongs to Mauritius.

2. Mauritius holds legally binding rights to fish in the waters surrounding the Chagos
Archipelago.
3. And directed eventual return of the Chagos Archipelago to Mauritius when no longer
needed for defence purposes.

4. To preserve the benefit of any minerals or oil discovered in or near the Chagos
Archipelago for Mauritus.

U.K. s response
1. Last year, the U.K. government announced that it had ruled out the resettlement of the
islanders.

2. It also renewed the lease for Diego Garcia, up until 2036, presently used by US as
military base.

Response of Mauritius
The Mauritius government reacted furiously following announcement of renewal of lease.
Mauritius claimed it had full justification to seek UN General Assembly approval to take
the matter to the International Court of Justice a move that the U.K. government is keen
to avoid.

Views of India
India has maintained that the matter of whether or not to proceed with the UN General
Assembly move is a decision for the Mauritian government to make.

12. Commutation of Chelsea Manning (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper
II)

Commutation of Chelsea Manning

Commutation of Chelsea Manning, the American whistle-blower slapped with a 35-year
sentence for leaking classified State Department documents to the anti-secrecy group
WikiLeaks, has had her sentence commuted by the outgoing President, Barack Obama.

Earlier known as Bradley, she has gender dysphoria, is undergoing hormone therapy for
gender reassignment, and has twice attempted suicide while being held at a men s prison.
She has served more than six years of her sentence and, assuming Mr. Obama s
commutation is implemented, could hope to be freed by May 2017.

Central to his argument was the fact that she had served time in jail after pleading guilty to
10 of the 22 charges, relating to espionage, fraud and theft, for releasing 2,50,000
diplomatic cables, 5,00,000 military reports, military videos from Iraq and Afghanistan, and
dossiers on prisoners held in Guantanamo Bay.
Background
Mr. Obama s decision to commute the sentence could not have come at a more fraught
juncture in U.S. politics. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, holed up in the Ecuadorian
Embassy in London, had promised to allow himself to be extradited to the U.S. if Mr. Obama
freed Ms. Manning. Now he says he will abide by that promise.

13. India, Sri Lanka in talks on port Trincomalee (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II)

Sri Lanka is in talks to offer the port of Trincomalee to India. Sri lanka wants to offer
Trincomalee port, which is one of the best deep sea ports in the world, to India. Sri Lanka
wants to maintain a neutral stand and provide equal access to its ports to both China and
India.

Hambantota hurdles
Sri Lanka s experience with the Chinese, who carried out major infrastructural work at the
Hambatota port in southern coast of the island nation, has put a heavy burden on the
country.

Sri Lankan experience [with the Chinese] on Hambantota has not been very beneficial as SL
is facing a heavy debt burden due to the work done in that port. The problems and
corruption in the project prompted it to review our policy on infrastructural development.

Debt burden
The port of Hambantota was conceived as a major Sri Lanka-China project during the
presidency of Mahinda Rajapakse, but the controversy around the debt burden has slowed
down the project.

14. Second Raisina Dialogue held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

The second edition of Ministry of External Affairs annual Raisina Dialogue was held in New
Delhi with the theme The New Normal: Multilateralism in a multipolar world .
The flagship geo-political conference was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
and was attended by delegates from 65 countries. During the conference, several
international issues were discussed.

About Raisina Dialogue

Raisina Dialogue is an annual conference held in New Delhi. It is envisioned to be )ndia s
flagship conference of geopolitics and geo-economics. The conference is held jointly by
Ministry of External Affairs and the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), an independent
think tank based in India. The name of conference comes from Raisina Hill which is the
elevation in New Delhi where presidential palace of India, Rashtrapati Bhavan is located.
The first edition of the conference was held in March with the theme Asia: Regional
and Global Connectivity . )t is organized on the lines of the Shangri-La Dialogue held in
Singapore.

It is structured as a multi-stakeholder, cross-sectorial conclave, involving policy and

decision makers, including cabinet ministers from various Governments, high-level
Government officials and policy practitioners, leading personalities from business and
industry etc.

15. India becomes Associate member of CERN (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

India became an Associate member of CERN with the Indian government completing its
internal approval procedures in respect of the agreement it had signed with CERN on
November 21, 2016.

Background
On November 21, 2016, Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary of the
Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) CERN Director General signed an Agreement to admit
)ndia to CERN as an Associate member. But )ndia had to notify CERN of its final approval
for the Agreement to enter into force and become an Associate member.

Impications of becoming an associate member of CERN

1. India will have full access to all data generated at CERN. As there are many experiments
in CERN, there will be plenty of information available. Earlier India could get data only from
those experiments where it was participating.

2. As an Associate member, India can participate in all experiments. India can choose the
experiments where it wants to participate.

3. Whenever any CERN facilities get upgraded and go through maintenance, it will provide
opportunities for Indian industries to participate.

4. Indian industry will be entitled to bid for CERN contracts, which will allow it to work in
areas of advanced technology. So the Make in )ndia will get a boost due to CERN, making
India more competitive than others.

5. Since Indian scientists will become eligible for staff appointments, it will enhance the
participation of young scientists and engineers in operation and maintenance of various
CERN projects.

6. As an associate member only, India will not have voting rights at meetings of CERN.

)ndia s participation in activities of CERN

In 1991, India and CERN signed a Cooperation Agreement, setting priorities for scientific
and technical cooperation. India and CERN have signed several other protocols since then.
But )ndia s involvement in CERN began in the s with researchers from the Tata
Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai participating in experiments at CERN. In the
1990s scientists from Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore too got
involved in CERN experiment. Researchers from TIFR, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced
Technology and other institutes built components for an accelerator (LEP) and detectors
(L3, WA93 and WA89). India was granted Observer status to the CERN Council in 2002.

About CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research known as CERN is a European research
organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established
in 1954, the organization is based in a northwest suburb of Geneva on the FrancoSwiss
border, and has 22 member states. Israel is the only non-European country granted full
membership. Besides India, Turkey, Pakistan, Ukraine are Associate members and Serbia
and Cyprus are associate members in the pre-stage to membership.

CERN's main function is to provide the particle accelerators and other infrastructure
needed for high-energy physics research as a result, numerous experiments have been
constructed at CERN through international collaborations.

16. China hands over two ships to Pakistan Navy for Gwadar Port security (Relevant
for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)
China has handed over two ships to the Pakistan to safeguard the strategic Gwadar port
and trade routes under the ambitious China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). These
ships have been named as Hingol and Basol, after two rivers near Gwadar.
They will be part of Pakistan Navy and are equipped with state-of-the-art guns. They will
be used to protect the sea-lanes in the Arabian Sea. Besides, China will also provide two
more ships to Pakistan Navy which have been named Zhob and Dasht after two districts in
Balochistan.

Strengthening of Pakistan navy in Arabian sea region has raised the alarm bells for India.

Background
In recent times, China has actively started extending its help and cooperation to Pakistan
for security along the $ billion CPEC s land and sea routes. As a follow up, Pakistan Army
already has raised a new division of the army to ensure security along the CPEC route and
around the strategic Gwadar port. The security of Gwadar city also has been handed over to
the Pakistan Army s new division raised during the tenure of former army chief Gen Raheel
Sharif.

In the past, China restrained itself from deploying its naval ships in Gwadar, as it could had
raise alarm in US and India.

Gwadar port
The strategic Gwadar port is located in Pakistan s restive Balochistan province. )t has been
developed under CPEC which link western China through Pakistan with the Middle East,
Africa and Europe. The revamped port became operational in November 2016.

17. Pakistan test-fires first nuclear-capable submarine cruise missile Babur-

3 (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper II)

Pakistan successfully test-fired its first Submarine-Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM) Babur-
3 capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. This launch gives Pakistan a credible second-
strike capability.

About Babur-3
1.SLCM Babur-3 is a sea-based variant of Ground Launched Cruise Missile (GLCM) Babur-2.
It has been named after the first Mughal Emperor Zahir-ud-Din Babur. It has a range of
450km.

2. Babur-3 SLCM in land-attack mode, is capable of delivering various types of payloads

including conventional as well as nuclear warheads.

Comparison with India

India for the first time had successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable, submarine-launched
missile in 2008 and tested a submarine-launched cruise missile in 2013.
18. U.S. worried over Pak. missiles Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper ))

The U.S. is increasingly worried over the rising range and variety of Pakistan s missile
capability and that the recent decision of the Obama administration to impose trade
restrictions on seven Pakistan entities came out of this concern.

Details of Official US announcement

The official announcement of the decision did not detail the reasons, but said there was
reasonable cause to believe, based on specific and articulable facts , that these entities
have been involved in actions contrary to the national security or foreign policy interests
of the United States . All the entities are linked to Pakistan s missile programme.

Speaking at an event on nuclear security, Vice-President Not just North Korea, but Russia,
Pakistan and others have made counterproductive moves that only increase the risk that
nuclear weapons could be used in a regional conflict in Europe, South Asia or East Asia.

Cause of worry
What has triggered the alarm bells in Washington is Shaheen-III, which has a range of 2,750
km. Pakistan has officially explained its longest-range missile to date, tested for the first
time in 2015, as a capability to strike the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the farthest Indian
territory from its shores. But the missile also has Israel in its range, along with several
European countries something that the U.S. strategic community finds unnerving.

The entities put under trade restrictions by the U.S. include the Islamabad-based National
Engineering and Scientific Commission, and its subsidiaries, Air Weapons Complex,
Maritime Technology Complex and New Auto Engineering.

With the addition of these seven, there are 47 Pakistani entities that are under strict watch
of U.S. agencies.

Trump s policy towards )ndia and Pakistan: Continuation of past

The incoming administration will continue with the existing U.S. policies towards India and
Pakistan. He complemented Pakistan for its action against terror groups that operate
within the country, adding he would push for more effective targeting of groups that attack
neighbouring countries. This is in line with the Obama administration s efforts in the
region.

He also pledged to continue with the Obama policy of enhancing a long-term strategic
relationship with )ndia based on the convergence of our interests and our shared
democratic values . ) note that the United States and )ndia recently cemented )ndia s
status as a major defence partner.

19. Pakistan s activists go missing Not Relevant for Exams directly, Topic to be read
only for understanding)

Five Pakistani activists have gone missing. Nobody has claimed responsibility, and the
family members haven t got any ransom calls.

What were the activists doing?

They were all active social media-based campaigners for human rights and critical of the
military and its support for militancy. They challenged the extremist narrative propagated
by the fundamentalist groups and promoted the idea of a modern, inclusive Pakistan,
largely through Facebook posts and blogs.

Previous instances:
This is not the first time activists and writers critical of the military-terror complex have
come under attack in Pakistan. For years both the security apparatus and militant groups
have used force to silence critics. This time the victims are social media activists.

Freedom of speech and freedom of press in Pakistan:

In Pakistan where television faces censorship and the print media is under pressure, social
media platforms are a thriving space where people express views without fear. Whoever is
behind the disappearances is targeting such free debates.

20. Upcoming visit on Israeli-Palestinian issue (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

View of nations
In a strong message to Israel, dozens of countries are expected to reiterate their opposition
to )sraeli settlements and call for the establishment of a Palestinian state as the only way
to ensure peace in the region.

Upcoming West Asia Peace Summit in France

France is hosting more than 70 countries at a West Asia peace summit, in what will be a
final chance for the Obama administration to lay out its positions for the region. The draft
for the meet has been prepared. The details of the draft are as follows:

. The conference will urge )srael and the Palestinians to officially restate their
commitment to the two-state solution .The draft says that participants will affirm that a
negotiated solution with two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and
security, is the only way to achieve enduring peace .
 . )t also will affirm that the international community will not recognise changes to
)srael s pre-1967 lines without agreement by both sides.

Israel has settled some 600,000 of its citizens in the West Bank and east Jerusalem
occupied territories claimed by the Palestinians for a future independent State. Israel
captured both areas in the 1967 war.

21. Recent vote at UN over Israeli Settlements

The summit comes on the heels of a U.N. Security Council resolution last month that
condemned the settlements as illegal. The resolution passed 140 after the U.S. declined
to use its traditional veto power and instead abstained.

View of Israel
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled out a return to the 1967 lines, and
many members of his nationalist coalition oppose Palestinian independence and support
expanded settlements.

Mr. Netanyahu has rejected the U.N. resolution and accuses the Obama administration of
conspiring behind )srael s back. )srael has refused to participate in the French conference.

View of Palestine
The Palestinians, who also are not invited to this weekend s conference, have welcomed the
French initiative. In recent years, they have campaigned for the international community to
assume a greater role in resolving the conflict.

22. U.S. ends special treatment for Cuban migrants (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II,
Topic : US-Cuba Relations)

New policy for Cuban migrants

President Barack Obama said that he was terminating the 22-year-old policy that has
allowed Cubans who arrived on United States soil without visas to remain in the country
and gain legal residency, an unexpected move long sought by the Cuban government.

Cuban nationals who attempt to enter the United States illegally and do not qualify for
humanitarian relief will be subject to removal, consistent with U.S. law and enforcement
priorities. By taking this step, we are treating Cuban migrants the same way we treat
migrants from other countries.

Implication of the move

The move places a finishing touch on Mr. Obama s efforts as President to end a half-century
of hostility between the U,S, and Cuba and to establish normalized relations and diplomatic
ties with a government U.S. presidents have long sought to isolate.
Earlier, Cubans disenchanted with their government in Cuba used to leave Cuba for US. US
used to welcome such Cuban migrants on account of its policy to bring disgrace to Cuban
government so as to create ground for changing government in Cuba.

23. )ndia s note ban has hit Nepal hard, says envoy Relevant for GS Mains )) and ))),
Topic: Implications of note ban on Nepal)

)ndia s demonetisation has triggered a serious financial crisis in Nepal. Not just the
government but the people are also facing hardships, said Nepal s envoy.

Reasons
The government is facing a severe shortfall of its annual stock of Indian currency, due to
the lack of supplies from the Reserve Bank of India. Even citizens living in the far-flung
mountain regions have nowhere to go with the Indian currency that they traditionally held
as savings for difficult times. People from far areas are seeking explanation about the
demonetisation. They are asking India to give them an opportunity to deposit old Indian
notes.

24. Russian spares to support India (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

New amendment in Russian law:

Russia has amended its laws permitting lot of their Russian Original Equipment
Manufacturers (OEMs) to enter into long-term agreements for spares with Indian
companies and support for military equipment supplied to India. This will address long-
standing concerns on the serviceability of the imported equipment.
India is also discussing the possibility of Russian Original Equipment Manufacturers
(OEMs) allowing licence to manufacture spares locally by Indian vendors.

Problem with existing law:

Procurement of spares is a long and cumbersome process as India cannot deal directly with
the OEMs but with designated intermediaries like Rosoboronexport. Rosoboronexport is
the sole Russian state intermediary agency responsible for import/export of the full range
of defense and dual-use end products, technologies and services. The change in law does
away with this.

A constant concern
Indian military largely constitutes platforms and equipment of Russian origin and a
constant concern has been the availability of spares for them.
To address this, the two countries began discussions for a long-term agreement on spares
for five years, which would ensure quick delivery of spares and support from the OEMs.
One of the biggest beneficiaries of this will be the frontline Su-30MKI fighter jets of the
Indian Air Force, the serviceability of which had at one time fallen below 50 per cent, which
means less than half of the over 210 jets in service were available for operational
deployment.
25. Russian influence in American Presidential elections (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains paper II)

Conclusion of interference by Russia

The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence has released a declassified report
purportedly supplying the details of a conspiracy theory that has dogged the victory of
Donald Trump in the November presidential election: Russia s alleged influence
campaign that sought to tip the scales in favour of the property magnate.

The conclusions of the report:

1. Report concludes with high confidence that Russian President Vladimir Putin
personally ordered such a campaign in 2016, which saw hacking of email accounts of
Democratic Party officials and other political figures.

2. Personal information of the victims was passed on to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks
and broader media, which in turn disseminated large troves of data.

3. These releases and public propaganda by the Russian regime, the report suggests,
undercut the campaign of the Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton.

Amid boiling relations:

The report comes at a time when relations between Washington and Moscow could not be
worse. President Barack Obama himself cited the highest levels of the Russian
government as the provenance of this malicious cyber activity when he announced
sanctions against Russia and expelled 35 diplomats from U.S. soil in December.

26. Emigration trends (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

In the last two years, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, West Bengal, Punjab and Rajasthan
have been the top six States sending people to the Gulf. In this period, emigration from
India increased by 24 per cent. Earlier, Kerala used to largest contributory of workers
abroad.

Revelations by the new statistics:

Statistics released by the External Affairs Ministry during a session on Managing the
Emigration Cycle: Streamlining and Supporting )ndian Workers Emigration to ECR
countries at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas show that these six States led the list from to
2015, and 90 per cent of the emigration was to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries.

Significance of emigrants:
Currently, there are 8.54 million workers in 17 Emigration Check Required (ECR) countries
around the world. They remit $69 billion annually, which constitutes 3 per cent of the GDP.
As per MEA statistics, 40 per cent of the total remittances come from the GCC countries.

Problems faced by the emigrants:

1. Many have to deal with unscrupulous recruitment agents.

2. Domestic sector workers are not covered under labour laws. The Ministry has asked
States to set up an NRI department to protect the interests of their citizens.

Problems in Tracking the emigrants:

An e-migrate system had been operational for the last 18 months. It records details of those
going to ECR countries. The problem is that this data will remain incomplete because a
large number of people go through devious routes.

27. India, Portugal sign defence agreement (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
paper II)

In a bid to boost joint production and development of niche weapons systems, India and
Portugal entered into a defence agreement one of the seven sealed during the Delhi visit
of Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Costa.

Background:
The agreement came following Portugal s support to )ndia s multilateral plans in various
technology regimes including Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) where India
secured membership in . Prime Minister Modi invited Portuguese companies to Make
in )ndia and set up joint ventures and commercial partnerships based on joint production
and technology transfer.

28. India lacks plan for global rescue: Study (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III)

The government s plans for conducting emergency large-scale international evacuation is

ad hoc and depends on quick-fix solutions , a major think tank paper has stated.

The paper authored for Carnegie India has revealed that despite conducting nearly 30
international evacuations, South Block does not have a standard operating procedure (SOP)
for such missions and continues to depend on individual sacrifices from civil aviation,
military and diplomatic services.

Need of SOP:
As more than million )ndians now reside abroad, and more than million now travel
abroad each year, the government will no longer be able to rely on heroic, ad hoc efforts
and quick fix solutions, said the author of the paper Constantino Xavier, pointing out the
urgent need to craft an SOP on emergency evacuation.

Mr. Xavier s paper which coincided with the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas -9 January,
Bengaluru), stated that the U.S., the U.K., and the NATO have institutionalised non-
combatant evacuation operations (NEO) doctrine. Among the developing countries, Brazil
too has institutionalised an SOP. However, India is yet to do the needful even as public
scrutiny increases on international crisis situations.

29. With gifts and goodwill, 218 fishermen return from Pakistan (Relevant for GS
prelims and GS mains paper II)

Pakistan released 218 Indian fishermen detained over the past twelve months.

Relevance of the release

This was a goodwill gesture aimed at confidence-building. This is the second batch of
Indian fishermen to be released by Pakistan in less than two weeks. It earlier released 220
fishermen on December 25.

Release Amid the Worsening ties

Pakistan and India relations nosedived following attacks in Pathankot and Uri. India had
accused Pakistan based terrorists of carrying out the attack.

30. India- Israel Relations (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS mains paper II)

Incidents highlighting tilt towards Israel

)ndia s decision to abstain from resolutions critical of )srael at the U.N., the United Nations
Human Rights Council and UNESCO,etc.

Stand of India
India says they are committed to the Palestinian cause, to the Arab cause, and they have
good relations with Israel that they intend to pursue. Since it came to power in 2014, the
Modi government has consistently promised better ties with Israel, which it considers an
ally on counter-terrorism and defence cooperation.

Past stand of India

Traditionally, India has stood unequivocally with the Palestinian cause, voting in favour of
all resolutions critical of Israel.

Shift in stand
1. In July 2015, India abstained on a vote against Israel at the U.N. Human Rights Council,
marking what seemed a major shift in policy, especially as it followed a phone call from
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

2. India repeated the abstention in 2016, but explained that it was due to a reference to the
)nternational Criminal Court, which )ndia doesn t recognise.

3. In August 2016, India supported Israeli Ambassador Danny Dannon for the first time to
become Chair of the U.N. Legal Committee, a vote opposed by all Arab countries.

4. And in October 2016, India changed its vote at the UNESCO in Paris to an abstention, on a
resolution criticising Israel for encroachments at the Western Wall and near the Al-Aqsa
Mosque.

31. Turkey in turmoil (Relevant for GS Mains paper II)

The New Year s-eve attack on an Istanbul nightclub that killed at least 39 people, mostly
foreigners including two Indians, is yet another reminder of the rapidly deteriorating
security situation in Turkey.

Why is Turkey being repeatedly targeted?

Syria policy of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan:

1. Like many of his Western allies, Mr. Erdogan also initially thought that Syrian President
Bashar al-Assad was about to fall, and offered help to the anti-regime rebels.

2. Ankara also inadvertently helped the rise of the IS by allowing jihadists to cross into
Syria via the Turkish border. By the time the government realised its folly and started
attacking the IS, the group had grown into a real terror machine.

. Mr. Erdogan s decision to relaunch the war with Kurdish rebels. When the rebels started
building an autonomous Kurdistan in Syria in the wake of the government s withdrawal
from the border and emerged as battlefield allies of the U.S. against the IS, Mr. Erdogan saw
it as a long-term challenge to Turkey, given the long history of fighting between the Turkish
state and the Kurdish militants.

He abandoned a ceasefire with the Kurdistan Workers Party, kicking off a new phase of the
civil war.

Present threats:
1.The country faces constant threats from the IS, a group that it once ignored.

2.The civil war with Kurdish rebels, which Mr. Erdogan might have hoped would curtail the
nationalist ambitions of the Kurdish minority, is growing out of control.
3. Mr. Erdogan s authoritarian tendencies and the crackdown on dissent and opposition
parties are deeply polarising the country.

It is this fragility of the security architecture in Turkey that is frequently being exposed by
the attackers.
 Economics
1. Recent breakthroughs in GST Council Meet

Recent breakthroughs in GST Council Meet

The Goods and Services Tax Council has made some breakthroughs on outstanding issues
that were holding up the introduction of the indirect tax regime.

1. The issue of cross empowerment and dual control was taken. The entire taxation base
will be shared between the assessment machinery of the Centre and the States. 90:10
formula was agreed upon for dual control of assesses. As per the formula for dual control of
assessees, 90 per cent of those with a GST turnover of Rs. 1.5 crore or less will be assessed
for the purposes of scrutiny and audit by the States, and 10 per cent by the administrative
machinery of the Centre. Those above a turnover of Rs. 1.5 crore would be assessed in the
ratio of 50:50 between the Centre and the States.

2. Another area of contention between the Centre and the States was the issue of who
would get to collect tax on the economic activities taking place in Indian territorial waters.
As per United Nations Convention on Law of seas (UNCLOS), territorial waters extend upto
200 nautical miles. The states have been given right to tax transactions occurring upto 12
nautical miles. (1 nautical mile = 1.853 km)

Status of implementation of GST

Centre has finally laid to rest its hopes of an April , rollout and adopts a more
realistic July date. Since the trickiest issues between the Centre and the States are now
resolved and only legislative drafts remain to be approved when the Council meets next on
February 18.
What were the issues between centre and states?

1. The definition of the word territory : The territory issue is a complex one. The area of
12 nautical miles from the India coast is Indian territory. Service tax in this area has been
levied by the Government of India. But fishing in these areas has been taxed by the States.
The States want to continue taxing the region, whereas the Centre has said that
constitutionally those areas are not part of States or Union Territories.

2. The issue of dual control: An agreement on the crucial issue of dual control, which
envisage a division of control over tax assessees between the states and the Centre under
the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been reached.

3. One other issue raised by the States was the compensation, and how this amount should
be increased due to the hit to State revenues caused by the demonetisation of high value
currency notes.

4. Cross empowerment: A cross-empowerment model was implemented to ensure a

taxpayer with an annual turnover above Rs 1.5 crore deals with only one authority for all
taxes. Centre argues only it should have right to deal with taxpayers with an annual
turnover above Rs 1.5 crore and states should deal with taxpayers upto Rs. 1.5 crore
turnover whereas State governments oppose this argument.

2. India Post gets payments bank licence to start services (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper II)

India Post has received payments bank licence from the Reserve Bank of India to start
rollout of banking operations commercially under the permit. India Post Payments Bank is
the third entity to receive payments bank permit after Bharti Airtel and Paytm.

About Payments Bank

Payments banks can accept deposits up to Rs 1 lakh per account from individuals and small
businesses. The new model of banking allows mobile firms, supermarket chains and others
to cater to banking requirements of individuals and small businesses. It will be set up as a
differentiated bank and will confine its activities to acceptance of demand deposits,
remittance services, Internet banking and other specified services.

Background
)n , RB) had granted in-principle approval to entities, including Department of
Posts, to set up payments banks and proposed to give such licences on tap basis in future.

However, Tech Mahindra, a consortium of Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd promoter

Dilip Shanghvi, IDFC Bank Ltd and Telenor Financial Services and Cholamandalam
Investment and Finance Co. backed have dropped their plan to roll out payments bank.
3. Centre says GAAR will be effective from April 1 (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper II, III, Topic: GAAR)

The Centre has reiterated that the General Anti Avoidance Rules aimed at curbing tax
avoidance will come into force on April 1, ignoring industry s suggestion to defer the
rules on account of uncertainty over their applicability and to provide adequate time to
prepare for the new regime.

What are GAAR?

General anti-avoidance rule (GAAR) is an anti-tax avoidance Rule of India. It is framed by
the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance. Originally proposed in the Direct
taxes code 2009,are targeted at arrangement or transactions made specifically to avoid
taxes.

Why GAAR were discussed for the first time?

In 2007, Vodafone entered the Indian market by buying Hutchison Essar. The deal took
place in Cayman Islands. The Indian government claimed over US$2 billion were lost in
taxes. In September 2007, a notice was sent to Vodafone. Vodafone claimed that the
transaction was not taxable as it was between two foreign firms. The government claimed
that the deal was taxable as the underlying assets involved were located in India.

Further issues while implementing GAAR

1. LOB clause clarity
Limitation of Benefits (LOB) clause argues that if an organization does not undertake tax
avoidance on account of controversial transaction, then provisions of GAAR will not apply.
Government has decided to incorporate LOB clause in new GAAR rules.

2. Another positive thing is that court-approved arrangements are outside the purview of
GAAR. The official clarification also said that, if at the time of sanctioning an arrangement,
the court had explicitly and adequately considered the tax implications, then GAAR would
not apply to such an arrangement.

GAAR provisions still not clear

While these clarifications are expected to bring about some certainty to GAAR issues,
experts said believe that some doubts would still remain primarily because of the
subjectivity inherent in GAAR.

4. Safety issue of Railways (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II, Topic: Need
for investment in Railways to ensure safety)

The preliminary finding of the Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) that the derailment of
the Indore-Rajendranagar Express near Kanpur in November 2016 that killed over 140
people was primarily caused by carriage and wagon defects should serve as a reality check
for the Railway Ministry.
While sabotage is indeed a factor in some derailments, bad railway performance is
responsible for the majority. The CRS report merits serious consideration: it has
specifically identified a variation in the wheel gauges of two coaches, and found carriages
being run beyond their useful life.

This is not a rare instance where inquiries have found the Railways seriously deficient. The
Kakodkar committee on railway safety found that out of 441 derailments it analysed, only
about 15% were the result of sabotage, while the majority were caused by factors
completely under the control of the railway administration.

Way forward
1. The Railway Ministry is pursuing a major safety initiative, the Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha
Kosh, with a non-lapsable corpus of 1,19,183 crore. Not only should such a fund be
constituted, given the past contribution of dedicated safety funds to rail track renewal, it
should be governed by a transparent framework with public reporting requirements.

2. Replacing ageing and unsafe carriages with modern coaches is a five-year-old Kakodkar
panel recommendation, but supply has not kept pace with requirement. Travel demand
has, meanwhile, continued to leap as economic growth both needs and encourages greater
mobility.

About the Kakodkar committee on railway safety

The Ministry of Railways had appointed a High Level Safety Review Committee under the
chairmanship of Dr. Anil Kakodkar to review the safety of the Indian Railways and
recommend improvements. The Committee recently presented its report. The Committee
recommends a total financial investment of Rs 1,00,000 crore over a five year period.

5. Rail budget: a thing of past (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II, Topic:
Merger of General and Rail Budget)

Level of Operations of Railways

The Indian Railways (IR) is a behemoth employing 1.3 million workmen, lifting more than
1 billion tonnes of freight annually and carrying 24 million passengers in its 12,000
passenger trains each day.

A separate rail budget has its genesis in the recommendations of the Acworth Committee
of . This was considered necessary because the railway s revenues far outstripped the
general revenue and had the potential of masking small yet important aberrations in the
general budget of the Government of India, if presented together.

Delay in merging Railway and General Budget

In 1947, when independence was achieved, railway revenues were still 6% more than the
general revenue. The revised convention was to be effective for a period of five years
starting 1950-51, but continued for 66 years. By the 1970s the size of rail revenues had
shrunk and was about 30% the size of general revenues. By 2015-16 it was down to
11.5%.

Flaws in administration of railways

1. Subsidising the passenger fares from artificially jacked up freight rates. The non-AC
fares have remained static for the past 12 years.

Freight rates now are at such high levels that road hauliers successfully compete with
railways on grounds of being cheaper. It is not surprising that the rail share in the overall
freight kitty is down from 89% in 1950-51 to less than 30% in 2014-15.

2. The railways themselves have been withdrawing from their core areas of operations
and concentrating on peripheral items. They have withdrawn themselves from all urban
transport activities.

Conclusion:
A retrieval of the railways financial health is quite within reach, if due focus is laid on the
core sectors of freight operation and enhanced productivity of assets. It will be harsh to
contend that a separate rail budget has not served the country well. Before independence,
the same administration controlled the areas in the present day Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Look at the fate of those rail systems today and compare it with Indian Railways. It was a
separate budget which kept IR on a graph of growth throughout.

6. Universal Basic income (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

The idea of a universal basic income (UBI) has been gaining ground globally. While
Switzerland held a referendum on it last year (it was voted down), Finland introduced it
earlier this month. Media reports suggest that the government of )ndia s flagship Economic
Survey this year is likely to endorse the UBI, setting the stage for its introduction.

What is need for unconditional basic income (UBI)?

UBI is being discussed as a solution to two problems:
1. Unemployment due to automation.
2. Extreme poverty in some regions.

What would UBI involve?

UBI is about giving cash under one umbrella, what is already being given (in-kind and cash
benefits) via different channels.

Its objective remains the same: to eliminate the public distribution system (PDS) and with
it, the food, fuel, and fertiliser subsidies.

7. Views on Economic viability of National Waterway 1(Relevant for GS Prelims and

Mains Paper III, Topic: Potential of National Waterways in India)
The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) was set up way back in 1986 and five
National Waterways (NW) have remained designated for several years now. In 2014, the
Union Government announced the Rs. 5369 crore NW1 project spanning 1,400 kms from
Allahabad to Haldia on the river Ganga that would come up with technical and financial
assistance of the World Bank (WB). The primary objective is to enable movement of cargo
on vessels up to 1,500 to 2,000 tonnes.

The government has also ensured the passage of the National Waterways Act 2016 by
which an additional 106 waterways were declared as NWs, taking the total to 111 NWs.

Views of IWAI Vice Chairman :

What is the overall plan for NW1?

Keeping in mind that a rail rake carries 2,200 tonnes of cargo, we will be operating vessels
with the capacity of 1,500 to 2,000 tonnes so as to provide commercial and competitive
choice to users. Only then would they like to shift.

How viable is this project?

1. Though we are developing many NWs, the NW1 is economically viable. We are
spending only 5% of the project cost on land acquisition. In highway projects more than
50% of the project cost goes for only land acquisition and compensation packages.

2. To make the project viable without increasing the tariff, we will lease out land to
private parties to set up warehousing, tourism or cold-storage facilities. Today the user
only pays 2 paisa per tonne per km. We are not going to raise that.

What is )WA) s fund-raising programme?

Seeing the progress we have made, the ministry of finance has now allowed us to go to the
market to raise Rs. 1,000 crore through infrastructure bonds.

8. Arrest of IDBI officials responsible for giving loan to Kingfisher (Relevant for GS
Prelims, GS Mains paper III, Topic: Bank- businessmen nexus)

The arrests by the Central Bureau of Investigation of former IDBI officials are worth noting
.The agency is investigating these officials, who had been at the helm of the public sector
bank s affairs eight years ago, on charges of facilitating a Rs. 900-crore loan to the now-
defunct Kingfisher Airlines without due diligence.

Status of Mr. Mallya

Mr. Mallya owes banks close to Rs. 9,000 crore and has been in exile in the U.K. for nearly a
year, even as his lenders have scrambled to recover their dues.
Amidst the rising pile of non-performing assets in government-owned banks, wilful
defaulters were said to be responsible for around Rs. 77,000 crore of bad debts, but the
Kingfisher baron has emerged as the poster boy of the problem.
Way out
Breaking the banker-borrower nexus is just as critical for safeguarding public money as is
acting against corrupt administrators, but a timely and transparent system is needed to
ensure that bankers don t turn wary of extending credit at the slightest hint of risk.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had, early in his term, urged officers to take bold decisions
without fear of retribution and promised to stand by them for decisions taken in good
earnest. That promise requires:

1. Some necessary amendments to the Prevention of Corruption Act, particularly the much-
too-broad and subjective Section 13(1)(d) that has resulted in many an honest officer being
charge sheeted for the corruption of others.

2. If there is malfeasance involved in the IDBI loan, action must be swift and exemplary
but to ensure circulation of credit, systems must also be put in place to reassure bankers
against random witch-hunts.

9. Banks get green light to recover Kingfisher dues (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains
Paper II and III)

Allowing a consortium of 15 banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) to initiate
proceedings for recovering dues from Kingfisher Airlines Ltd (KAL), the Bengaluru Bench
of the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) said dues of Rs. , . crore should be paid jointly
and severally by KAL and its guarantors United Breweries (oldings Ltd and liquor baron
Vijay Mallya, and Kingfisher Finvest (India) Ltd.

Other directions given by DRT

1. They will have to pay an interest at the rate of 11.5 % per annum on the dues with
yearly rests from the date of the application till the date of completion of realisation.

2. The applicant banks are at liberty to sell the

hypothecated/mortgaged/movable/immovable properties. Also the SBI-led consortium is
permitted to proceed against the persons and other properties of KAL and its guarantors as
per law if the banks fail to fully realise the dues, despite sale of the schedule properties.

About Debt Recovery Tribunal

1. Government of India has constituted 33 Debt Recovery Tribunals and 5 Debt Recovery
Appellate Tribunal across the country. The idea was to keep in line with the international
trends on helping financial institutions recover their bad Debt quickly and efficiently.

2. Each Debt Recovery Tribunal is presided over by a Presiding Officer. The Presiding
Officer is generally a judge of the rank of Dist. & Sessions Judge. Each Debt Recovery
Tribunal has two Recovery Officers.
3. The Debt Recovery Tribunals are governed by provisions of the Recovery of Debt Due
to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993, also popularly called as the RDB Act.

4. The Debt Recovery Tribunal is fully empowered to pass comprehensive orders like in
Civil Courts. The Tribunal can hear cross suits, counter claims and allow set offs.

10. BSE IPO subscribed more than 51 times (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains
Paper III)

The initial public offer (IPO) of BSE has been subscribed 51.15 times.

What is an IPO?
An initial public offering (IPO) is the first time that the stock (shraes, debentures, etc.) of a
private company is offered to the public. IPOs are often issued by smaller, younger
companies seeking capital to expand, but they can also be done by large privately owned
companies looking to become publicly traded.

What is BSE?
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) is an Indian stock exchange located at Dalal Street, Kala
Ghoda, Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Maharashtra, India. Established in 1875, the BSE is
Asia s first stock exchange. )t claims to be the world's fastest stock exchange, with a median
trade speed of 6 microseconds. The BSE is the world's 11th largest stock exchange with an
overall market capitalization of $1.43 Trillion as of March, 2016. More than 5500
companies are publicly listed on the BSE. Unlike countries like the United States where
70% of the GDP is derived from larger companies and the corporate sector, the corporate
sector in India accounts for only 12-14% of the national GDP. Of these, as of November
2016, there are only 7,800 listed companies of which only 4000 trade on the stock
exchanges at BSE and NSE. Hence the stocks trading at the BSE and NSE account for only
about 4% of the Indian economy.

11. Centre shifts disinvestment advice to department of Economic Affairs (Relevant

for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

In keeping with its ongoing efforts to streamline the disinvestment process, the
government transferred the role of advising the government on how to utilise the proceeds
from disinvestment from the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management
(DIPAM) to the Department of Economic Affairs.

According to a notification issued by the Cabinet Secretariat changing the Allocation of

Business rules, the Department of Economic Affairs in the Finance Ministry will now be in
charge of financial policy in regard to the utilisation of the proceeds of disinvestment
channelised into the National Investment Fund.

About National Investment Fund

The Centre had created a National Investment Fund in 2005 in which the proceeds from the
disinvestment of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) were to be channelised.

12. Japan threatens India with WTO on steel (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper II)

Japan is threatening to take India to the WTO over restrictions that nearly halved its steel
exports to the South Asian nation over the past year. Japan s is second-biggest steel
producer.

Background
India imposed duties of up to 20 percent on some hot-rolled flat steel products in
September 2015, and set a floor price in February 2016 for steel product imports to deter
countries such as China, Japan and South Korea from undercutting local mills.

13. Draft steel policy to enable Rs.10 lakh crore investments (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains Paper III)

The Steel Ministry has proposed setting up greenfield steel plants along )ndia s coastline to
tap cheap imported raw materials such as coking coal and export the output in a more cost-
effective manner, as part of the new draft National Steel Policy of 2017.

National Steel Policy of 2017

1. The policy envisages to more than double )ndia s domestic steel production capacity to
300 million tonnes by 2030-31, anticipates a requirement of Rs.10 lakh crore of fresh
investments to meet that goal and expects at least 11 lakh new jobs being created in the
process.

The steel sector presently employs about 25 lakh people and has a capacity of little over
120 million tonnes.

2. The draft policy lays out two alternatives of its vision to create a globally competitive
steel industry that promotes inter-sectoral growth or to create a self-sufficient steel
industry that is technologically advanced, globally competitive and promotes inclusive
growth.

3. The draft focuses on impediments like high input costs, availability of raw materials,
import dependency and financial stress plaguing the sector.

4. To cut down reliance on expensive imports of coking coal, the policy has mooted gas-
based steel plants and technologies such as electric furnaces to bring down the use of
coking coal in blast furnaces.

5. PSU units
Public sector firms in the steel sector should aim for economies of scale and will be
encouraged to divest their non-core assets through mergers and restructuring, according to
the policy.

6. Establishment of steel plants along the coast under the aegis of Sagarmala project will
be undertaken.

Such plants would be based on the idea of importing scarce raw materials and exporting
steel products, the policy stated, adding that a cluster-based approach will be pursued,
especially for micro, small and medium enterprises to ensure optimum land use, easy
availability of raw materials and economies of scale (a proportionate saving in costs gained
by an increased level of production).

14. Rs. 9.2 lakh cr. back in circulation: RBI chief (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and
III)

Status of currency circulation in India

Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on
Finance that about Rs. 9.2 lakh crore had been put back in circulation since the
demonetisation on November 8.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi s announcement that Rs. and Rs. , notes would
cease to be legal tender from the midnight of November 8 had sucked out 86%
amounting to Rs. 15.44 lakh crore of currency notes in circulation till then.

No answers given on amount of black money deposited

Dr. Patel, did not offer any answer to questions on how much of the demonetised currency
had been deposited back in banks, saying calculations were still on.
He maintained that counting of the notes was continuing, a panel member said, making it
appear that this itself was a mammoth task. when Dr. Patel was asked.

Background
There have been media reports that 97% of the demonetised currency was back in the
system, though the RBI rejected these claims. The central bank s argument is that figures
would need to be reconciled with the physical cash balances to eliminate accounting
errors/possible double counts, etc, without which estimates may not indicate actual
numbers.

Importance of money deposited back in banks

The figures pertaining to money deposited back are crucial as the Opposition is reading the
reported return of almost all the money as a sign that black money has been converted into
white.
15. Death by adulterated food may lead to life term (Relevant for GS Prelims, Mains
Paper II)

Recommendations of The Law Commission of India

1. The Law Commission of India has recommended life imprisonment for traders,
businessmen and shopkeepers found guilty of the death of their customers by intentionally
selling them adulterated or noxious food and drink, saying that punishment should be
proportional to the crime.

2. The guilty should pay the victim's family a sum of Rs. 10 lakh as fine for his crime.

Reasons for recommendations : Victims of greed

The Commission, headed by former Supreme Court judge, highlighted how innocent human
lives, especially those of pregnant women and children in anganwadis and government
schools, fall victim to the greed of individuals looking for a slight margin by selling
adulterated food and drinks to unsuspecting consumers.

Current law
Under Sections 272 and 273 of the colonial-era Indian Penal Code of 1860, the guilty get
away with either a fine of Rs. 1000 or, rarely, an imprisonment of six months for selling
adulterated or noxious food and drink with fatal results.

The Law Commission recommendations are now on the government's table, awaiting a
decision. The suggested amendments in penal law for food adulteration is the focus of the
Commission's 264th report titled 'The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2017 (Provisions
dealing with Food Adulteration)'.

Background
The report was spurred by a Supreme Court direction to the government in Swami
Achyutanand Tirth versus Union of India, which dealt with rampant adulteration in milk
supplied to school students, for urgent amendments in the penal law and bring punishment
on food adulteration up to the times.

16. 'Serious job losses are taking place : Views of Amartya Sen Relevant for GS
Prelims and GS Mains Paper III)

Views of Amartya Sen on demonetization

More than two months after the demonetisation, Nobel Laureate and economist Amartya
Sen says that any proper economic reasoning could not have sensibly led to such a ham-
handed policy. (e predicts that the demonetisation will hit the economy quite drastically.

Impact of demonetization
1. Primary impact of the demonetisation: long queues outside banks and shortage of
cash.
2. The secondary impact is on the informal sector. Some businesses are collapsing.

What could be the impact of all this?

a. Particularly for small businesses (farming, for example), money is often used in the
form of cash. In the long run, cashless transactions can perhaps be made into routine
practice, through organisation and training, but that would take time.

b. To act on the presumption of instant learning and institutionalisation is to place the

hard-earned interests of many people without any connection to black money in serious
risk.

c. Given the underdevelopment of electronic accounts and transactions, big parts of the
economy are vulnerable. For many, especially among the poor, making efficient and correct
use of electronic payments and receipts would remain difficult to master and the possibility
of losing one s money would be hard to avoid, especially given the shortage of
infrastructure and the slowness of learning in using cashless transactions.

Criticism of government

Lack of vision of government

The perplexing question is why some people those who gave us demonetisation did
not foresee that this would happen and even more perplexing is how the promoters of
demonetisation can be so blind even now to the overwhelming evidence of a crisis.

Confusion in objectives
85 per cent of cash was suddenly been taken out of circulation. The Government of India
seems to have been caught in a confusion of purposes. Demonetisation has been seen both
as a way of catching and eliminating black money , and as a way of moving towards a
cashless economy .

The former has gradually been replaced in the rhetoric of the government by the latter,
which is not surprising as demonetisation can make only a very small contribution at a
huge social cost to the black money problem .

All cash is not black and all black is not cash

This is because only a very small proportion of black money (it is estimated to be 6 per cent
or so, certainly less than 10 per cent) is in cash. Most black money is in the form of precious
metals and other assets in foreign accounts. The inconvenience and loss imposed with no
black money (workers earning wages; small businesses doing trade or production; people,
even housewives, keeping small savings) are much more acute than any benefit from
catching relatively small amounts of black money.

Job losses expected

There are going to be huge job losses too, and the recent reports by All India
Manufacturers Organisation are beginning to show that serious job losses are already
happening as a result of what London s Financial Times has called a dramatic drop in
business in the days since Narendra Modi announced his plan to scrap per cent of
its banknotes.

17. Questions over RBI autonomy on account of recent instances (Relevant for GS
Mains paper II and III)

Events over the last couple of months have led to questions as to whether this inherent
tension was missing as the government announced its decision to withdraw Rs and Rs
1,000 notes and subsequently, in the handling of the exercise by the government and the
central bank.

The manner in which the RBI handled demonetisation, especially the frequent modification
of rules, and the way the Governor remained silent for weeks in this age of transparency
show that its autonomy has been impaired.

Past instances when RBI has withstood against view of Government

Governors vs Governments
Bimal Jalan: In 1998-99, soon after the NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee took
over, a few senior Cabinet ministers started speaking openly on the need to have a strong
rupee. That was impeding the RB) s currency management strategy and leading to more
volatility in the markets. Governor Jalan protested to finance minister Yashwant Sinha and
later sought a meeting with the prime minister to request government functionaries from
pronouncing on the rupee. It had the desired impact after word went out from the prime
minister.

Y V Reddy: A proposal to utilise )ndia s growing foreign exchange reserves during -5

to 2007-8) was mooted first by the Planning Commission and then by the government. That
put the government in conflict with the RBI, which was opposed to the proposal. It was
sorted out only after Governor Reddy insisted that the government provide a guarantee on
lending by a government-backed entity, the India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited,
from part of the reserves. In another instance, after Reddy made a mention of Tobin tax
(tax on spot currency conversions) on capital flows in a speech, citing it as an empirical
case, the government forced the Governor to clarify that there was no intention to tax
inflows.

D Subbarao: The formation of the Financial Stability and Development Council or FSDC
headed by the finance minister was a flash point between the finance ministry and the RBI.
The central bank s rationale was that the primary responsibility of stability was with the
RBI and the new arrangement could undermine its influence. The government still went
ahead with the proposal when Pranab Mukherjee was finance minister.

The other major dispute which played out in the open was on interest rates, when P
Chidambaram, as finance minister, was pitching for lower interest rates at a time when
inflation was still relatively high.

Raghuram Rajan: In 2015, when the government incorporated a provision in the Finance
Bill without consulting the RBI assigning the responsibility of regulating the money
markets to SEBI the RBI protested fiercely. Rajan took his objections to the finance
minister and the government, leading to the proposal being rolled back

WHY AUTONOMY OF RBI IS KEY

Autonomy of RBI is important because RBI performs the following muklti-faceted
functions:

1. Targeting INFLATION: With a formal mandate to combat inflation, allowing it to choose

tools to achieve inflation target is critical.

2. Currency management: As issuer of currency, important for RBI to be seen as upholding

faith and trust of people.

3. Soundness of banking system: As banking regulator, exercises oversight over banks.

4. Financial stability: Critical to functioning of financial markets

5. Regulator of payment systems: Handles transactions valued in billions

6. Merchant banker to govt: Handles debt management functions, borrowings for Central
and state governments.

18. Cost of Ken-Betwa project now goes up to Rs. 18,000 crore (Relevant for GS Mains
Paper III, Topic: High cost of inter-linking of rivers)

The cost of the interlinking project to transfer water from the Ken to the Betwa river has
now reached Rs. 18,000 crore, or nearly double the estimate used by the National Board for
Wildlife to accord clearances to the project last year.

Because it disturbs the habitat of resident wildlife and requires the diversion of forest land
in Madhya Pradesh, the project required a wildlife, forest and environmental clearance by
separate, independent committees.

Going by publicly-available records, documents estimated the project cost to be about Rs.
9,393 crore.

Re-evaluation
The main feature of the project is a 230-km long canal and a series of barrages and dams
connecting the Ken and Betwa rivers that will irrigate 3.5 lakh hectares in Madhya Pradesh
and 14,000 hectares of land in Uttar Pradesh s Bundelkhand.
The key projects are the Makodia and Dhaudhan dams, the latter expected to be 77 metres
high and responsible for submerging 5,803 hectares of tiger habitat in the Panna Tiger
Reserve.

Reasons for Cost escalation

Officials involved with the project said that re-evaluations of the cost of resettlement and
rehabilitation of families resident in the area, and re-estimating the cost of the value of the
forests that would be lost to the dam, as well as inflation, have led to the escalated costs.

Implications of cast escalation

Funding the project has now emerged as the next big hurdle which, according to Union
Minister Uma Bharti, would take about seven years to be ready.

19. Surviving the drought (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II and III)

Tamil Nadu s move to declare a drought, ironically on the eve of the harvest festival of
Pongal, is an important step to address the agrarian distress that is sweeping the State
following poor rainfall during the northeast monsoon.

Even with relatively better governance structures, desperation among farmers has resulted
in a spate of suicides, particularly in the Cauvery delta rice belt that has received little
water from Karnataka in recent times.

Implication of declaring drought

Postponement of loan recovery, waiver of land tax and alternative employment through
schemes such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Reforms required
1. A monsoon management centre drawing upon the expertise of multiple departments
would help use scarce resources conservatively during a drought and maximise their
potential in good times.

2. It is also crucial to preserve the health of cattle and other livestock, as they tend to
suffer irreparable harm during drought, with cascading effects on their future productivity.

3. The Centre should provide all support to achieve this under the National Disaster
Response Fund and the Prime Minister s crop insurance scheme.

State of drought management

The importance of welfare support for small and marginal farmers cannot be overstated,
given the vagaries of the monsoon. More than a decade ago, the National Commission on
Farmers pointed out that successive droughts, illness, high expenditure on social
obligations and asset loss push farmers to the brink.

Yet, not much has changed in the management of drought from the low-budget practices of
the colonial era, as the Swaraj Abhiyan case in the Supreme Court last year revealed.
In Tamil Nadu, excessive reliance on water-intensive rice cultivation, and lower priority for
hardy millets have raised the risk for many farmers. Active recharging of groundwater and
harvesting of surface water are vital to meet the challenges.

20. Amazon at fault again (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II, Topic:
Insensitivity towards Indian culture by MNCs)

The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that global e-tailer giant Amazon has withdrawn
the doormats bearing the Indian national flag.

The withdrawal came after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj threatened to impose a
visa boycott on employees of the e-tailer and also rescind the visas issued earlier.

Similar instances
The episode involving the Indian tricolour doormat is the latest controversy to hit Amazon
over India-linked items. Last year the company withdrew footmats that had Hindu deities
and images inscribed on them. The company had similarly drawn criticism for selling
footmats bearing Islamic inscriptions.

21. Evaluation of Green Bonds (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)

1. What are green bonds?

A green bond is like any other regular bond but with one key difference: the money raised
by the issuer are earmarked towards financing `green' projects, i.e. assets or business
activities that are environment-friendly. Such projects could be in the areas of renewable
energy , clean transportation and sustainable water management.

2. What are its benefits?

Green bonds enhances an issuer's reputation, as it helps in showcas sing their commitment
towards sustainable development. It also provides issuers access to specific set of global
investors who invest only in green ventures. With an increasing focus of foreign investors
towards green investments, it could also help in reducing the cost of capital.

3. When did the concept start?

In 2007, green bonds were launched by few development banks such as the European
Investment Bank and the World Bank. Subsequently, in 2013, corporates too started
participating, which led to its overall growth. Back home, Yes Bank was the first bank to
come out with a issue worth Rs 1,000 crore in 2015. Following this, few other banks too
had green bond issuances. CLP India, was the first Indian company to tap this route. So far,
Rs 7,200 crore has been raised via green bonds.

4. Has Sebi mandated additional rules on such issues?

For designating an issue of a corporate bond as green bond, an issue apart from complying
with the issue and listing of debt securities regulations, would have to disclose additional
information in the offer document such as use of proceeds.

5. What are the avenues where these funds can be invested?

Sebi's indicative list includes renewable and sustainable energy such as wind and solar,
transportation, sustainable water management, climate change adaptation, energy
efficiency , sustainable waste management and land use and biodiversity conservation.

Expectations from 2017 and beyond

. The interpretation indicated in SEB) s green bond guidelines on what classifies as green ,
there is a need for developing a formal definition of green to ensure understanding across
sectors.
A more descriptive and exhaustive classification from Indian regulators and policymakers
in the coming years would be crucial in expanding the green bond market further.

2. Following global trends, the upcoming year is poised to witness the first blue bond
issuance (bonds used to specifically finance water infrastructure) in India.
Globally blue bond issuances have crossed $10 billion, with India yet to enter the market.
Given the rising financing gap in )ndia s water sector, it is imperative to utilise such
innovative mechanisms for water infrastructure augmentation as well.

3. The recent drive by the Prime Minister to resuscitate the municipal bond market for
water supply projects in cities such as Pune and Hyderabad is highly commendable.
The )ndian government s ambitious push for smart cities has opened emerging points that
may be suitable for private sector participation and may soon culminate into )ndia s first
green muni bond.

22. Meeting of FSDC held in New Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper
III)

The 16th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) was held in
New Delhi. It was chaired by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. It was attended by heads
of all financial sector regulators as its members. It reviewed the major issues and
challenges facing the economy.

About Financial Stability and Development Council :

The Central Government had established Financial Stability and Development Council
(FSDC) in December 2010 with the Finance Minister as it Chairman. The idea to create it
was first mooted by the Raghuram Rajan Committee on Financial Sector Reforms in 2008.
It is a super regulatory body for regulating financial sector which is a vital for bringing
healthy and efficient financial system in the economy. The FSDC envisages to strengthen
and institutionalise mechanism of
(i) maintaining financial stability
(ii) Financial sector development
(iii) inter-regulatory coordination along with monitoring macro-prudential regulation of
economy.

Composition of FSDC
Chairman: Union Finance Minister.
Members: Heads of the financial sector regulatory authorities (i.e, RBI, SEBI, IRDA, PFRDA),
Finance Secretary and/or Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs (Union Finance
Ministry), Secretary, Department of Financial Services, and Chief Economic Adviser.

23. Google launches My Business and Digital Unlocked tool for small and medium
businesses

Internet giant Google launched two new initiatives My Business and Digital Unlocked tool
for small and medium businesses. These initiatives were launched by Google CEO Sundar
Pichai in New Delhi in presence of Union IT and law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in New
Delhi.

24. Banks cut their interest rates (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains paper III)

According to a statement issued by the SBI, its one-year MCLR would be 8 per cent as
compared with 8.9 per cent earlier. The rate cut will be applicable to all fresh loans.
)C)C) Bank, the country s largest private sector lender, has reduced its marginal cost of
fundsbased lending rate (MCLR) by 70 basis points (bps) across all loan tenures.
Other banks have also reduced their benchmark lending rates.

Reason for slashing interest rates:

Banks have been able to cut interest rates because of large amount of deposits made by
people following demonetisation drive by government. Moreover, Government has
mandated banks to reduce the interest charges.

What is MCLR?
The Reserve Bank of India has brought a new methodology of setting lending rate by
commercial banks under the name Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate (MCLR). It
has modified the existing base rate system from April 2016 onwards.

The new methodology requires the banks to charge interest rates based on the additional
cost or marginal cost incurred by banks to obtain the funds. This means that the interest
rate given by a bank for deposits and the repo rate (for obtaining funds from the RBI) are
the decisive factors in the calculation of MCLR.
Why the MCLR reform?
At present, the banks are slightly slow to change their interest rate in accordance with
interest rate change by the RBI. Commercial banks are significantly depending upon the
RB) s repo to get short term funds. But they are reluctant to change their individual lending
rates and deposit rates with periodic changes in repo rate.

Whenever the RBI is changing the repo rate, it was verbally compelling banks to make
changes in their lending rate. The purpose of changing the repo is realized only if the banks
are changing their individual lending and deposit rates.

25. Centre plans to double airport capacity through Hybrid Till Model (Relevant for
GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

The existing airport terminals can handle 25 crore passengers per annum, according to
AAI.

Double airport capacity

The Centre will require up to Rs. 3 lakh crore for doubling the airport capacity over the
next 10 to 15 years. The present rate of air traffic growth is 10% to 20% per annum.
At present, out of 125 airports managed by Airports Authority of India (AAI), 69 airports
receive commercial flights. The existing airport terminals can handle 25 crore passengers
per annum, according to AAI.

Financing options
Airports in India are either run by the state owned Airport Authority of India or leased out
to a private operator under joint Venture. The joint ventures are signed on either Single till,
Double till or Hybrid Till Models.

The joint venture lease agreement specifies the Internal rate of Return (IRR) in percentage
which the Private operator is assured every year . Now, In the calculation of IRR,
Aeronautical and Non Aeronautical Charges are considered. Aeronautical Charges are the
landing, parking , ground handling and airport infrastructure charges . The revenue
generated through Duty free Shops, Hotels, and other shops constitute Non Aeronautical
charges.

Any shortfall in the earnings to meet IRR through Aeronautical and Non Aeronautical
Charges is made up by levying Airport Development Fee .

What is a single Till Model?

In the Single till model the entire Aeronautical and Non Aeronautical charges is taken into
account for calculation of IRR.

What is a Double Till Model?

In double till Model only Aeronautical Charges are considered for IRR calculation.
What is a Hybrid Till Model?
In the Hybrid till model 100% Aeronautical Charges and only 30% of Non Aeronautical
Charges are taken for Calculation of IRR. The remaining 70% of Non Aeronautical charges
are allowed to be utilised by the operator for development of Airport Infrastructure.

Adoption of Hybrid Till Model in future

The National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016 has initiated the process to abandon the
single-till approach it has followed till date. In place of Single- till approach, hybrid- till
approach will be used in future.

Evaluation of Hybrid-Till Approach

Advantages
1. It will lead to increased commercialization of the Airports.
2. Attract Private investment: It will revive the interest of the private developers in
running the airports as the model increases their revenue by pocketing 70% of the profit
generated from the Non-aeronautical segments.
3. Better and high quality airport infrastructure.

Disadvantages
Increase in international and domestic airfares for passengers through user development
fees (UDF)
How? If private operators are not able to meet their predetermined IRR then they will levy
increased charges on the airlines which will further increase the passenger airfares to meet
their own targets

Way Forward
If this model has to be implemented across all the airports of India , then the AAI (Airport
authority of India) needs to keep the tariff reasonable by exploring ways and spreading the
excess amount over the future without impacting the UDF

26. What is Rose Valley Group Scam? (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper II and
III)

According to reports, Rose Valley chit fund scam amounts to almost Rs 60,000 crore. The
scam is believed to be the biggest ponzi fraud in India and the scam itself is at least three
times bigger than Saradha scam.

Making of a scam
- Rose Valley, as per the ED estimates reportedly collected money from depositors across
India, especially West Bengal, Assam and Bihar

- In March 2015, the ED arrested group s chairman Gautam Kundu.

- Huge amounts were allegedly siphoned off and transferred to other accounts

- ED is certain a major portion of the money was used to bribe politicians for smooth
running of the ponzi chain.

- Rose Valley hotels & entertainment reportedly owns nearly 23 properties across India

- In addition, all the 2,600 bank accounts of the company, which together hold cash
balances of Rs 800-1,000 crore, have been frozen by the government

- There are as many as 30 companies under the Rose Valley banner on paper, which
includes companies such as Rose Valley Airlines, Rose Valley Microfinance, Rose Valley
Fashion, Rose Valley Consultancy, Rose Valley Beverages, Rose Valley Infotech and Rose
Valley Housing Finance, says a news report

What is Ponzi Scheme?

A Ponzi scheme also a Ponzi game is a fraudulent investment operation where the operator,
an individual or organization, pays returns to its investors from new capital paid to the
operators by new investors, rather than from profit earned through legitimate sources.
Operators of Ponzi schemes usually entice new investors by offering higher returns than
other investments, in the form of short-term returns that are either abnormally high or
unusually consistent.

Trinamool MP held in chit fund scam

Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP and actor-turned-politician Tapas Paul was arrested by the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the Rose Valley Group chit fund
scam case.
 Environment
1. Oil spill near Chennai (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)

A thick oily tide from the sea lapped at the coast of several fishing hamlets in north
Chennai, a day after two cargo ships, one of them an oil tanker, collided off Kamarajar Port.
Several dead turtles and hatchlings coated with the black oil were washed ashore and
discovered among the boulders.

Cause of the accident

Of the two ships, coming from Mumbai with a full load of petrol and diesel collided with an
LPG tanker.

Oil Spill containment measures taken immediately

Since there was a spill from the oil vessel, the Ennore Kamarajar Port authorities placed
containment booms around the ships. A Pollution Response team from the Coast Guard
reached the spot and used oil mop skimmers and sponge-like absorbents.

2. India to ratify amended version of Kyoto Protocol (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper II and III)

India will soon ratify an amended version of the Kyoto Protocol

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its approval to ratify the
deal that is set to expire in 2020 and was shunned by several developed countries, most
prominently the United States.

Low chances of deal coming into force

1. Until now, 75 countries have ratified the so-called Doha Amendment of the Kyoto
Protocol, which spans from 2012 to 2020, and falls far short of the 144 needed to bring it
into force.

2. The 1997 Kyoto Protocol came into effect in 2005 and obligated the rich and
industrialised countries to reduce emissions by 5.2% of 1990 levels during the 2008-2012
period.

However, the refusal of the U.S., the second largest polluter, to be part of the Protocol and
lack of commitments by Canada, Japan and major developing countries meant that global
emissions actually rose during this period.

Background
Kyoto Protocol which was signed in 1997 to oblige industrialized nations to reduce
emission of greenhouse gases to fight global warming has been extended till 2020. The
protocol was due to expire at the end of 2012. It was decided in the 8th session of the CoP
serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol held in Doha, Qatar to extend the
Kyoto Protocol till 2020.

Highlights of the Conference:

New agreement covers only developed nations whose share of world greenhouse gas
emissions is less than 15 %, it excludes countries such as China and India. It was agreed to
bring a new pact, in 2015, which will be binding to all countries and will replace Kyoto
Protocol. The extension was supported by European Union, Australia, Switzerland and
eight other industrialised nations.

US rejected the idea of equity by refusing to associate itself to any new agreement that is
under the Convention. Russia also rejected the proposal. )ndia s principle of equity and
common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR) were re-introduced in the negotiations
after it had been kept out of the talks in 2009 and 2010. It failed to deliver anything of
significance for poor countries due to lack of credible pathway to provide then financial aid
to deal with climate change.

3. Indian model to predict impact of climate change (Relevant for GS Mains III,
Prelims)

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, are likely to unveil a
computerised model that can forecast the impact of climate change on the Indian monsoon
until 2100.

Significance of the model

1. This model is significant because it is the first time India will be submitting a home-
grown assessment to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a body
convened by the United Nations, and hugely influential to policymakers and governments
on the risks posed by climate change.

2. IITM scientists have customised significant parts of a model, called CFS 2 (Climate
Forecast System version 2) and used it to give three month forecasts of the Indian monsoon
and projected how it will be altered by climate change over the next century.

4. Massive Antarctic ice shelf ready to break: Evidence of climate change (Relevant
for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)
Largest shelf about to snap from ice shelf
A gigantic chunk of ice that is breaking away from West Antarctica is now attached to its
parent ice shelf just by a thread. Covering 5,000 sq km and nearly 100 storeys-deep, the
formation is poised to snap off from Larsen C ice shelf, creating one of the largest
icebergs ever recorded , the researchers said in a statement. A widening rift running the
length of the finger-shaped, 350 metre-thick ice block grew 10 km longer some time during
the last three weeks, satellite images revealed.

About Ice shelf

Ice shelves float on the sea, extending from the coast, and are slowly fed by glaciers from
the ice sheet on land. They act as giant brakes, preventing the glaciers from sliding directly
into the ocean.If the glaciers held in check by Larsen C spilt into the Antarctic Ocean, it
would lift the global water mark by about 10 cm, the researchers said. The nearby Larsen A
ice shelf collapsed in 1995, and Larsen B broke up seven years later.

5. What is interglaciation? (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)

Interglaciation is the term used by geologists to refer to the alternating periods of warming
and cooling in the earth s past. The cooler times are called the glacial period during which
ice shelves from the Arctic slowly creep southward and spread across the earth. Times
when the earth is covered in these large ice sheets are known as glacial periods (or ice
ages).

When the ice sheets are not spread, it is called an interglacial period. The most recent
glacial period occurred between about 120,000 and 11,500 years ago. Since then, the earth
has been in an interglacial period called the Holocene.

6. Living in a hotter world (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper III)

2016 hottest year

The 2016 with the was the warmest year on the instrumental record since the late 19th
century, and the hottest of three record-breaking years in a row. While the rise in global
average surface temperature by about 1.1 C last year over the pre-industrial era was
aggravated by the El Nino phenomenon of 2015-16, the trend is a warning to all countries
that they cannot afford to rely on carbon-intensive growth any longer.

Explaining the scientific view, Studies points to the rise in temperature as being driven
largely by increased carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions into the
atmosphere. The warming pattern must be seen in the context of declining sea ice cover in
the Arctic.

Possible implications of melting of ice

In the Arctic, which is witnessing a decline in the extent of sea ice in the lowest month at
the rate of about 13% every decade, melting creates a vicious circle of more exposure of
dark areas to sunlight, higher melting and more dark surface absorbing heat.
Such phenomena accelerate the rate of global warming, with consequences through climate
change for coastal areas, access to water, farming and human health.

What is El- Nino Effect?

El Nio is a climate cycle in the Pacific Ocean with a global impact on weather patterns.
The cycle begins when warm water in the western tropical Pacific Ocean shifts eastward
along the equator toward the coast of South America. These warm waters add to rise in
global temperatures.

7. SC-appointed panel to tackle air pollution (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper III)

Concerned over the deteriorating air quality in Delhi and the NCR, the Environment
Ministry has amended laws and formally tasked a Supreme Court-appointed panel with
implementing a graded action plan for pollution control.

The comprehensive plan, prepared by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB),
focussing on Delhi was submitted to the Supreme Court. The court had accepted the plan
and asked the Centre to notify it.
Implications of the plan
Once the plan is notified, measures like odd-even car rationing scheme and ban on
construction activities will be enforced if level of PM 2.5 breaches 300 micrograms per
cubic metre and PM 10 levels stay above 500 micrograms per cubic metre for two
consecutive days. Normal levels of PM 2.5 are 60 micrograms per cubic metre and that of
PM 10 are 100 micrograms per cubic metre respectively.

8. Distilleries overexploiting water in Kerala (Relevant for GS Mains Paper III)

Though Palakkad is the worst-drought affected district in the State, it suffers at hands
of water guzzling enterprises at concessional tariff in the Kanjikode industrial belt. They
include two major plants manufacturing beer and distilled spirit meant for alcoholic
beverages.

The problem
A huge portion of the drinking water stored at Kerala s largest reservoir, Malampuzha, is
being diverted to these units.

According to the official data

1. Data received by Right to Information (RTI) activist, liquor manufacturing major UB
Distilleries alone gets 5 lakh litres of treated drinking water on a daily basis from
Malampuzha reservoir at discounted tariff and that too by using the supply chain of Kerala
Water Authority (KWA).

2. Liquor manufacturer MP Distilleries gets 33,000 litres of treated drinking water from
the reservoir daily at discounted tariff.

3. The local community says these two liquor manufacturers had caused drinking water
scarcity in the locality along with Pepsico )ndia s bottling plant that allegedly draws nearly
6.5 to 15 lakh litres of groundwater a day in the place of the permission granted to fetch 2.4
lakh litres of ground water daily.

Contradictions in use of water

Liquor barons have free access round the clock to the water resources of the region while
the drinking water supply in the region is limited to just one hour a day.
Interestingly, the RTI reply given by the regional office of KWA confirms that there was no
formal agreement between the State government agency and managements of UB
Distilleries and MP Distilleries over round-the-clock supply of drinking water for industrial
use.
Further, the plunder of water resources is happening in an area where the District Collector
ordered a complete stoppage of irrigation water for paddy farms.

Other issues
Other than exploiting Malampuzha reservoir, Distilleries are also accused of operating huge
illegal borewells.

9. Green tribunal orders test of cosmetics containing microbeads (Relevant for GS

Prelims and Mains Paper III)

The National Green Tribunal has directed the Centre to test cosmetic products containing
microbeads after a plea sought a ban on their use on the ground they are extremely
dangerous for aquatic life and environment.

About Microbeads
Microbeads (also called microplastics ) are tiny plastic substances measuring less than five
millimetres that act as exfoliators (agents which remove dead cells) on skin and teeth when
used in soap, toothpaste and other products. Many brands manufacturing beauty products
use microbeads.

Status of Microbeads
They are being banned internationally but Indian government has not banned them.
The United States has promulgated a ban, which will come into effect next July, on cosmetic
products containing microbeads.

Over 299 million tonnes of plastic was produced worldwide in 2013 some of which made
its way to oceans, costing approximately $13 billion per year in environmental damage to
marine ecosystems, says a June 2015 report by the United Nations Environmental
Programme that investigated the possible harm by microbeads/microplastics.

Arguments for ban

These plastics are too small to be caught by sewage treatment and water filtration
techniques and they pass unchecked into rivers and seas and contaminated them. They
take centuries to degrade and worse, are sometimes eaten by fish and other aquatic
animals and could even make their way into human diets.

10. Navsari Parsis get a burial ground (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper III)

The Navsari Samast Anjuman decided to allot a burial ground to Parsis who choose an
alternative method of disposing of their dead, instead of the tradition of leaving the bodies
exposed to scavenger birds

A section of Parsis across the country has long been demanding acceptance of methods like
burial and cremation, as they are of the view that the traditional system has failed due to
the disappearance of vultures.
The demand was made to Navsari Anjuman for burial ground in the 15 acres of land where
the two dakhmas or Towers of Silence stand. Dakhmas are large wells where the dead are
put to rest and left to be eaten by scavenger birds.

The Navsari Anjuman s decision tells us that the community is now convinced about the
failure of the Dokhmenishini system.

Criticism
Orthodox section criticise that use of burial ground is irreligious and antiZoroastrian
system where dakhmas are in service.

Parsi Tradition of disposing dead bodies

Parsis keep their dead bodies in Towers of silence or Dakhmas where Vultures scavenge
the dead bodies. On account of disappearance of Vultures, tradition of Towers of silence
can t be followed.

Navsari Samast Anjuman

is a regional body in South India comprising of representatives of all religions which
allocates burial ground to various communities.

Dokhmenishini system refers to mode of disposal of dead in Zoroastrian religion.

11. Water literacy campaign need of the hour: Rajendra Singh (Relevant for GS
Prelims and Mains Paper III)

Renowned water conservationist Rajendra Singh has stressed on the need for a water
literacy campaign to end the water crisis in the country.

We have to blame ourselves. We changed the course of rivers. We built dams

indiscriminately. And, there is a climate change, Mr. Singh said and added we can solve the
looming crisis if local and traditional solutions were followed.

About Rajendra Singh

Rajendra Singh is a well-known water conservationist from Alwar district, Rajasthan in
India. Also known as "waterman of India", he won the Stockholm Water Prize, an award
known as "the Nobel Prize for water", in 2015. Previously, he won the Ramon Magsaysay
Award for community leadership in 2001 for his pioneering work in community-based
efforts in water harvesting and water management. He runs an NGO called 'Tarun Bharat
Sangh' (TBS).

His achievement in field of water conservation

He revived an ancient dam technology in his State of Rajasthan. The Johads, earthen check
dams, hold water and allow it to percolate deep down replenishing the aquifer. The
landscape and climate have been transformed; seven long-dead rivers have begun to flow,
wells were full and once-parched fields were now fertile.
12. Endosulfan victim, family members commit suicide (Relevant for GS prelims and
GS mains paper II)

Four members of a family, including an endosulfan victim, reportedly committed suicide in

Kerala.

Activists said it was high time the government establish permanent rehabilitation centre
for bedridden and mentally-retarded endosulfan victims.

What is Endosulfan?
Endosulfan is an insecticide and acaricide that is being phased out globally. Endosulfan
became a highly controversial agrichemical due to its acute toxicity, potential for
bioaccumulation, and role as an endocrine disruptor.

Because of its threats to human health and the environment, a global ban on the
manufacture and use of endosulfan was implemented under the Stockholm Convention in
2012, with certain uses exempted for five additional years.

More than 80 countries, including the Australia, New Zealand, several West African nations
had already banned it or announced phase-outs by the time the Stockholm Convention ban
was agreed upon. It is still used extensively in India, China, and few other countries.

What are Acaricides?

Acaricides are pesticides that kill members of the arachnid subclass Acari, which includes
ticks and mites.

What are Endocrine disruptors?

Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that may interfere with the body's endocrine system
and produce adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune effects in
both humans and wildlife.

13. India lost 97 wild tigers in 2016: conservation authority (Relevant for GS Prelims,
GS Mains paper III)

Statistics provided by the official database of the National Tiger Conservation Authority
(NTCA) show that the death toll of wild tigers in the country touched 97 in 2016, the
highest among the annual death figures of the big cat during the past five years. In 2015,
the figure of wild tiger deaths was 70, in 2014 it was 66, in 2013 it was 63 and in 2012 it
was 72. Thirty wild tiger deaths were reported from Madhya Pradesh alone in 2016.

Reasons for deaths

Natural causes such as poisoning, infighting between tigers, drowning, electrocution and
poaching are main reasons for tiger deaths.
What is NTCA?
The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006 has come into force in 2006. The Act
provides for creating the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

The functions and powers of the Authority, inter alia include :

1. approval of Tiger Conservation Plan prepared by States,
2. laying down standards for tiger conservation,
3. providing information on several aspects which include protection, tiger estimation,
patrolling, etc.,
4. ensuring measures for addressing man-wild animal conflicts and fostering co-existence
with local people,
5. preparing annual report for laying before Parliament, constitution of Steering
Committee by States,
6. preparation of tiger protection and conservation plans by States,
7. ensuring agricultural, livelihood interests of people living in and around Tiger
Reserves,
8. establishing the tiger conservation foundation by States for supporting their
development.

The Notification of the National Tiger Conservation Authority has been issued on 4
September 2006 with the Minister for Environment and Forests as its Chairperson and the
Minister of State for Environment and Forests as the Vice-chairperson.
 Science & Technology
1. Mesentry: New organ in human body (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

Mesentry is an organ which connects your intestine to your abdomen.It performs

important functions that affect systems throughout the body, from cardiovascular to
immunological.

When was it talked about it earlier?

Leonardo da Vinci depicted it as one contiguous organ, and it remained that way for
centuries until 1885, when Sir Frederick Treves' findings presented the mesentery as
fragmented amongst the small intestine, transverse colon and sigmoid colon.

2. About Leprosy in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains paper III)

)ndia s fight against leprosy 16 years after being eliminated globally as a public health
issue is far from over.

The World Health Organization (WHO) asked South-East Asian countries, including India
which accounted for 60% per cent of such cases worldwide in 2015, to focus on preventing
disabilities in children.

Position of India
)ndia is among the countries considered as having a high burden for leprosy along
with high transmission by W(O.

How it spreads
While the mode of transmission of leprosy is not known, the most widely held belief is that
the disease was transmitted by contact between those with leprosy and healthy persons.
More recently, the possibility of transmission by the respiratory route is gaining ground.
There are also other possibilities such as transmission through insects which cannot be
completely ruled out.

About World Leprosy Day

World Leprosy Day is observed, on the last Sunday of January since 1954, to effectively
combat the disease.

3. GM mosquito trials to control dengue, chikungunya launched (Relevant for GS

Prelims and Mains Paper III)

Outdoor caged trials to demonstrate the efficiency of genetically modified mosquitoes to

suppress wild female Aedes aegypti mosquito populations that transmit dengue,
chikungunya and Zika were launched in Maharashtra. Based on the results of the trials
which use the Release of Insects carrying Dominant Lethal genes (RIDL) technology, open
field trials were conducted.

Logic behind Modified males

Technology uses genetically modified male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that carry a
dominant lethal gene. When male GM mosquitoes mate with wild female mosquitoes the
lethal gene is passed on to offspring. The lethal gene in the offspring kills the larvae before
they reach adulthood.

Since male mosquitoes do not bite humans, the release of GM males will not increase the
risk of dengue, chikungunya and Zika. The open field studies will be conducted for about a
year in two villages in Jalna (Maharashtra).

Problems with the plan

1. There are practical problems of raising a large number of mosquitoes needed for vector
control 100-150 [GM] mosquitoes are needed per person for months together.
2. Large numbers of GM male mosquitoes have to be released at regular intervals to
compete with wild normal males for mating. Since the larvae die before reaching
adulthood, the technology is a self-limiting approach .

Alternate means to control mosquito population

Vector control using A. aegypti infected with the bacterium Wolbachia is achieved by using
the life-shortening bacteria strain in both male and female mosquitoes. Uninfected wild
female mosquito embryos fertilised by Wolbachia-infected males fail to develop, while
embryos from infected females fertilised by infected or uninfected wild males survive.

As Wolbachia is maternally inherited, the bacteria are anyway passed on to offspring.

Dengue, Zika or chikunguya viruses cannot replicate when mosquitoes have Wolbachia.
Unlike the genetically modified males technology, a feature of Wolbachia is that it is self-
sustaining, making it a low-cost intervention.

4. Improved Pinaka rockets test-fired (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

Pinaka rockets, with a guidance system and an enhanced range, were successfully test-fired
from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha.

Change in Pinaka
1. The earlier Pinaka version, which was an unguided one, has now been transformed into
a guided version, with a navigation, guidance and control kit developed by the Research
Centre, Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad.(The RCI comes under the Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO)).

2. Longer range
According to the DRDO officials, the conversion helped in enhancing the range and
accuracy of Pinaka. If its range was earlier 40 km, it is more than 70 km now.

3. Radars, electro-optical systems and telemetry systems at the ITR tracked and monitored
the rocket all through its flight path. The guided version is Pinaka mark-II, which evolved
from Pinaka mark-I.

The success of the guided Pinaka has reinforced the technological strength of the country in
converting the unguided systems into weapons of high precision.

5. Cognitive Computing (Intelligence Automation) (Relevant for GS Mains III,

Prelims)

)n , supercomputer Watson beat human contestants in a quiz game show Jeopardy!,

sparking speculation on whether machines would one day replace human beings in the
workforce.

In the last six years, Watson has come a long way. It is now a cognitive technology platform
that uses natural language processing and machine learning to reveal insights from
unstructured data. For example, it can assist doctors by recommending possible diagnosis
and lines of treatment.

Views of Sriram Raghavan (Director of India Research Labs, IBM)

How different is cognitive computing from robotics?

Robots automate mundane tasks. But cognitive technology enables automation of tasks
that require human beings to think and make decisions. In other words, cognitive
computing involves automation of tasks that require intelligence. It is actually intelligence
automation. It is popularly called by people as artificial intelligence.

Why is cognitive technology being spoken of as transformative?

Cognitive technology is gaining a lot of attention because traditionally, it was possible to
analyse and understand only structured data, which make up just 20% (of all available
data). With cognitive technology, we can analyse with precision unstructured data as well.

It is about understanding, reasoning and learning?

Watson Oncology Advisor, for example, has been taught to understand data about cancer.
This is revolutionary because the amount of data on clinical trials and research material is
so vast that the average doctor can t keep up. With understanding and reasoning, Watson
has become the assistant. The system also keeps learning, with the feedback from doctors.
Its applications are: assisting human beings, scaling expertise and personalisation.

How difficult is it for Watson to understand, reason and learn?

1. The system has to understand if the same information is presented in different ways. For
example, you can write in different ways an email to me to say that you will meet me at 6
p.m. tomorrow. But irrespective of the way you write, I will understand what you mean.

2. Another challenge is ambiguity. The same information can have different meanings in
different contexts.

Case Study
A good case study was reported from Japan in 2015. A woman was admitted to a hospital
and diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a type of blood cancer. Post-chemotherapy
recovery, however, was abnormally slow. That s when the hospital turned to Watson,
which cross-checked the woman s genetic data with its database and detected gene
mutations.

She had mutations in over 1,000 genes, many of them were not related to her disease.
Watson found out which of these 1,000 genes were diagnostically important, in just 10
minutes; while scientists would have taken nearly two weeks to do that. Based on Watson's
recommendations, the doctors changed their line of treatment, and her condition
improved.
In October, you announced the release of Watson Element for teachers to tailor
educational material for students. How does it work?
Education is the third area where we are making progress. There is great potential to
personalise education. Just as a travel portal personalises the adverts and the offers for
you, teachers can personalise the delivery of content to students. Customising helps, as
students have their own strengths and weaknesses, and they learn differently.

Traditionally, teachers assess students by looking at their past records or tests or by

talking to them. But this is not scalable. Can we have one teacher for every student?
We are working on the notion of cognitive tutor. Its capabilities are understanding
students strengths and weaknesses, and using that data to personalise the delivery of
content.

Technology enables us to track how students use content. Data on content usage - such as
starting point, portions of video that the student watched repeatedly, points where the
student paused, for how long, how the eye moved while reading, etc. can provide
valuable insights for the software to intervene and suggest study material.

One of the applications of AI is in vetting of resumes during recruitment. But does AI

dilute the importance of the human element?
Resumes are huge unstructured documents, and if you want to apply a set of objective
criteria (like whether all applicants are graduates), there is no harm in machines doing
that, since you don t have the scale to apply that criteria.

For example, if the existing number of people can cover only 200 resumes, the machine can
do 2,000 resumes. But if you are going to extend it and hand over the whole recruitment
process, then probably you are exceeding the maturity of technology.

6. Kudankulam second reactor starts generating 1,000 MWe (Relevant for GS Prelims
and Mains Paper III)

The second unit of Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project attained its maximum capacity of
1,000 MWe.

About Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant

Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (or Koodankulam NPP or KKNPP) is the single largest
nuclear power station in India, situated in Koodankulam in the Tirunelveli district of the
southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
KKNPP is scheduled to have six VVER-1000 reactors built in collaboration with
Atomstroyexport, the Russian state company and Nuclear Power Corporation of India
Limited (NPCIL), with an installed capaciity of 6, 000 MWe.

Unit 1 is generating power to its warranted limit of 1000 MWe. The second unit started
generated power in July 2016 and now has reached its maximum capacity of 1000 MWe.

The ground-breaking ceremony for construction of units 3 & 4 was performed in February
2016. Work is expected to begin shortly. The cost of units 3 & 4 is twice the cost of units 1 &
2. However, there is delay in start on account of high cost of reactors and issue of liability of
suppliers.

7. Milestone in cryogenic engine test paves way for GSLV-MkIII (Relevant for GS
Prelims, GS Mains paper III)

Development of new Cryogenic engine

A milestone crossed in the making of a new cryogenic rocket engine set the stage for the
first flight of the country s most powerful satellite launcher to date, the GSLV-Mark III.
The cryogenic stage and the entire launch vehicle s readiness is closer to fruition after the
engine, technically called CE , passed the high altitude flight acceptance test lasting
about 25 seconds at Mahendragiri in mid-December.

Introduction of GSLV MKIII

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) plans to fly its new launch vehicle powered
by this new engine and send the 3,200 kg GSAT-19 communication satellite to space on it.

Mk-))) becomes operational or ready for regular work after two successful launches in a
row. ISRO plans to have one MkIII launch in a year, and the next one is planned for
December this year.

MkIII, when it completes trials and commences functioning in the coming years, will double
)SRO s lifting power for communications satellites to , kilos.

About Cryogenic stage

Cryogenic technology refers to technology to deal with matter at extremely low
temperatures. In Cryogenic stage, Liquid Hygrogen (fuel used in Launch vehicle) is kept
at C and Liquid oxygen oxidiser used to burnt fuel is kept at C .

The cryogenic stage is vital for a GSLV rocket as it gets its final and biggest push in space
from this stage; it can take a big communications satellite to higher reaches of 36,000 km
above ground.

About the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III:

The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III also referred to as the Launch
Vehicle Mark 3, LVM3 or GSLV-III)[ is a launch vehicle developed by the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) intended to launch satellites into geostationary orbit and as
a launcher for an Indian crew vehicle. The GSLV-III features an Indian cryogenic third stage
and a higher payload capacity of about 4000 kgs than the current GSLV of about 2000 kgs.

8. Tejas to make first appearance at R-Day parade (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II
and III)

The indigenously developed fighter jet Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will make its
maiden appearance in the flypast on Rajpath in the Republic Day parade this year.
The single-engine aircraft was designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA)
and is produced by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

About Tejas
The HAL Tejas is an Indian single-seat, single-jet engine, multi-role light fighter for the
Indian Air Force and Navy. It has entered into service with the Indian Air Force (IAF) in July
2016.

It came from the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme, which began in the 1980s to
replace India's ageing MiG-21 fighters. LCA was officially named "Tejas" in 2003, meaning
"Radiant" in Sanskrit by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The Tejas is the second supersonic fighter developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited
(HAL) after the HAL HF-24 Marut.

9. No demand from IAF; India goes slow on Hawk variant (Relevant for GS Prelims,
Mains Paper III)

India is going slow on the development of a combat variant of the Hawk Advanced Jet
Trainer (AJT) as there has been no demand for it from the Indian Air Force.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and BAE Systems have teamed up to develop the
combat variant.

About Hawk
India had contracted 123 Hawk Mk-132 AJT aircraft from BAE Systems of the U.K. for the
IAF and the Navy.HAL is assembling the Hawks in India under a license.
Under the new plan, the idea is to equip the Hawk jet with air-to-air and air-to-ground
missiles, rockets and bombs to transform it into a combat platform.
Discussions are under way between HAL and BAE Systems to work out the model of
development of the advanced Hawk.

BAE Systems is bringing in a technology demonstrator of the combat Hawk which would be
displayed at the upcoming Aero )ndia air show at Bengaluru.
10. Hyperloop in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari is contemplating introduction of Hyperloop travel

technology that could lead to people being able to travel from Chennai to Bengaluru in 30
minutes for a fraction of the cost of an airplane ticket.

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, also known as HTT, is an American research

company formed using a crowd collaboration approach (a mix of team collaboration and
crowdsourcing) to develop a transportation system based on the Hyperloop concept, which
was envisioned by Elon Musk in 2013.

11. Anti-biotic resistance in India (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

A woman in the U.S. died after being infected by a superbug during her visit to India, say
doctors who found that the nightmare bacteria was resistant to all available antibiotics.
The infection was caused by carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), a multidrug-
resistant organism associated with high mortality.

Background
The 70-year-old patient was admitted to an acute care hospital last year after an extended
trip to India. She was given a primary diagnosis of serious infection called Klebsiella
pneumoniae; none of the 14 antibiotics physicians used to treat the woman worked.

NDM-1 : Resistant to all anti-biotics

That testing confirmed the presence of New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM-1), an
enzyme that directly breaks down carbapenems, a powerful class of antibiotics that are
often used to treat multidrug-resistant infections. The U.S. Centres for Disease Control and
Prevention s antimicrobial testing showed the isolate was resistant to different
antibiotics.

12. Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology (CKDu) (Relevant for GS Prelims
and GS Mains paper III)

The International Society of Nephrologists (ISN) recently honoured Sri Lankan President
Maithripala Sirisena for his extraordinary contribution to the fight against Chronic
Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology (CKDu).

The recognition comes months after the World Health Organisation declared Sri Lanka
malaria-free , a significant public health achievement in the region.

About Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Etiology CKDu : Silent condition

While hypertension and diabetes are known to be common causes for kidney ailments,
CKDu falls outside that ambit. In every renal data base in the world there is a percentage of
CKDu which causes long-term progressive damage to the kidneys.

CKDu is a specific term used to connote conditions where causal factors remain unknown.
)t is also termed as silent condition , symptoms are seldom manifested till the final stages.

Spread of CKDu
CKDu was in the news some years ago when farmers working in Central America s sugar
cane farms succumbed to a mysterious kidney disease. )n , Sri Lanka media widely
reported on a mysterious kidney disease spreading among farmers.
More recently, there are reports of the disease in some parts of Andhra Pradesh, among
people from the agricultural community.

Possible cause
There is a lot of hypothesis that agrochemicals and contaminated water could be likely
causes. So focus on providing good quality drinking water, raising awareness about the
risk of dehydration and ensuring supervised use of agrochemicals and fertilisers is done.

13. TB institute warns against use of new drug (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains
Paper III)

Drug resistant TB
Uncertainty continues to shroud the fate of 18-year-old girl suffering from Extreme Drug
Resistant (XDR) Tuberculosis who is waiting for the drug Bedaquiline (BDQ). The National
Institute of Tuberculosis & Respiratory Diseases (NITRD) told the Delhi High Court that the
drug could not be administered without proper tests as it might lead to the TB-causing
bacteria becoming further drug resistant and may spread to the community and have
catastrophic effects.
View of TB patient's family
Father of the girl, who claimed that BDQ, manufactured by U.S. pharma major, Janssen
Pharmaceutica, was the only option to save his daughter.

The court had asked the NITRD whether the patient could be administered BDQ without
further tests. BDQ is available through limited sources in India, one of which is the NITRD
in Delhi.

Background:
The N)TRD said: )f BDQ is given with an inefficient backbone regimen, the patient is likely
to fail the treatment and develop an additional and fatal resistance to BDQ which may
spread to the community and have catastrophic effects.

14. What is 3D Graphene? (Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains paper III)

Graphene is one of the strongest materials known to man, but so far it hasn't lent itself to
practical use because it is extremely thin.

However, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) said they had
designed a 3D version of the material by compressing and fusing flakes of graphene, a two-
dimensional form of carbon. One of the variants of the lightweight material is only 5 per
cent as dense as steel, but 10 times stronger.

The scientists, also said that creation of the new porous, 3D form had less to do with the
material itself and more to do with the unusual geometric configuration employed. This
could lead to more lighter, stronger materials with similar geometric features.

15. Agni-IV test fired (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Agni-IV surface-to-surface ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear warhead was test
fired from Abdul Kalam Island (Wheeler Island) on the Odisha coast. The Agni-IV can cover
a distance of 4,000 km.

Agni-IV had been tested twice earlier for ranges between 3,000 and 3,500 km instead of its
full range of more than 4,000 km. The DRDO conceived, designed and developed the Agni-
IV.

Agni-V test
The latest victory, coming in the wake of the spectacular success of the Agni-V mission on
December , , confirmed )ndia s nuclear deterrence capability for, both the missiles
can cover the entire area on the other side of the border. Agni-V can carry a nuclear
warhead weighing 1.5 tonnes over a distance of 5,000 km and plus. Agni-V is yet to be
inducted in Army. All earlier versions have been inducted.
Status of Agni-IV
Agni-IV has already been deployed by the Army. It is 20 metres long and weighs 17 tonnes.
Solid propellants power its two stages. It had been flight-tested five times earlier in
2011, 2012, twice in 2014 and in 2015. All the five missions were successful. This is the
sixth success in a row.

What is a ballistic missile?

Ballistic missile is a missile with a high, arching trajectory, which is initially powered and
guided but falls under gravity on to its target. It is different from a cruise missile which
moves under its own fuel and near the surface of earth.
 Internal Security
1. Hirakhand Express derails (Relevant for GS Mains Paper II and III, Topic:
Increasing rail accidents)

As many as 39 passengers lost their lives and over 50 were injured when the engine and
nine coaches of the Hirakhand Express, bound for Bhubaneswar from Jagdalpur, derailed
near the Kuneru railway station in Vizianagaram district.

Cause of accident
The derailment was caused by a suspected rail fracture at a few places.

2. On recent rail accident: No proof of sabotage, wagon faults may have derailed
train, says panel (Relevant for GS Prelims and Mains Paper II)

The Commission of Railway Safety (CRS) has not found any evidence of deliberate
destruction in the November 20 derailment of the Indore-Rajendranagar Express.
1. The commission has identified carriage and wagon defects as the prime reason for the
accident which resulted in the most number of casualties in a train accident.

2. The report holds over aged coaches, carriage and wagon defects, and wheel alignment
issues as the primary reasons behind the derailment.

3. Commission also blamed variations between Wheel and gauge

Background
However, Ministry of Home Affairs had asked the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to
probe the accident for possibility of sabotage in six train accidents in the past year.

3. Avalanches in Kashmir (relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

Ten soldiers were killed and four went missing after twin avalanches hit an Army patrol
party and a camp in Bandipora s Gurez valley, km from Srinagar.

What is an Avalanche?
On any slope, the snow is piled up and supported by a snow-pack. It keeps the snow from
tumbling down all the time. Avalanches occur when the snow-pack starts to weaken and
allows the buildup of snow to be released. Small avalanches are generally made up of ice,
snow and air. The larger ones comprise of rocks, trees, debris and even mud that is resting
on the lower slopes. Contrary to belief, these snow slides are not random events that occur
without any warning signs. Rainfall and sleet also tend to be responsible for avalanches in
the summer and monsoon season. Global warming is leading to increase of avalanches.

Hypothermia
Excessive exposure to snow leads to a condition called Hypothermia (loss of body heat).
The effects of hypothermia are:
1. Frost bite leading to Gangrene in hands and feet.
2. Fluid in lungs
3. Inflammation of Pancreas
4. Pneumonia
5. Kidney failure
6. Heart failure

4. Drones on Mumbai railway tracks to boost safety (Relevant for GS Prelims and
Mains Paper III)

Escalators at stations, and boundary walls along tracks have cut the death rate on
Mumbai s railways, and it will now be the turn of drones. The Western Railway is close to
finalising a plan to deploy small unmanned aerial vehicles to monitor its tracks, and cut the
number of train-hit deaths due to trespassing.

The data revelations

The death toll along Mumbai rail tracks was 3,304 in 2015, and 3,349 persons were injured,
according to official data.

About the drone

1. The drone will keep an eye on trespassing, which cannot easily be detected, as there are
no CCTV cameras at all places.

2. Fly at 50 metres: The drone is likely to cost the railways Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 15,000 per day
to run. The images generated will enable security staff to reach an accident spot within
minutes. Discussions are on between security and railway officials, and multiple clearances
are required.

3. Drone cameras can produce superior recordings. Sometimes, there are suicides and we
can save people through live feed. After getting a location, we can immediately send
security staff, said an official.

5. J&K Assembly passes resolution for return of Kashmiri Pandits (Relevant for GS
Mains Paper II and III)

The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly passed a unanimous resolution calling for the return of
those who have migrated, including Kashmiri Pandits.

History of Kashmiri Pandits and their plight

The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are a Brahmin community from
the Kashmir Valley. They are the only remaining Hindu community native to the Kashmir
Valley.

Why Kashmiri Pandits left the Valley?

20 per cent of them left the valley as a consequence of the 1948 Muslim riots and the 1950
land reforms and by 1981 the Pandit population amounted to 5 per cent of the total.
They began to leave in much greater numbers in the 1990s during the eruption of
militancy, following persecution and threats by radical Islamists and militants.

The events of 19 January 1990 were particularly vicious. On that day, mosques issued
declarations that the Kashmiri Pandits were Kafirs and that the males had to leave
Kashmir, convert to Islam or be killed.

6. Railway Ministry unveils Mission 41K to save energy worth Rs 41,000 crore
(Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains Paper II)

Union Railway Ministry has unveiled Mission K to save Rs. , crore on the )ndian
Railways expenditure on energy consumption over the next years.

(ow will Mission K be achieved?

. This target of Mission K will be achieved by taking a slew of measures which include
moving 90% of traffic to electric traction over diesel from present 50% of the total rail
traffic. The Electrification Mission will help Indian Railways to reduce dependence on
imported fuel, change energy mix, and rationalize the cost of energy for Railways.

2. The railways will also procure more and more electricity at cheaper rates through open
market instead of sourcing it through DISCOMs. Thereby it hopes to save as much as 25%
on its energy expenses.

3. New technologies will be also explored to bring down electric consumption and change
the energy mix of Indian Railways.

4. In the 2016-17 Budget, Indian Railways already had set a target of generating 1000 MW
of solar power and 200 MW of wind energy.

7. Evaluation of Boat tragedy in Bihar (Relevant for GS Prelims, GS Mains Paper III)

Lacking safety in public transport

The boat disaster in the Ganga on Makar Sankranti day that killed at least 24 people is
another reminder that safety in public transport remains a low priority for governments.
As with road accidents, mishaps in the inland waterways and lakes take a terrible toll of
lives regularly, with no effective administrative response.

Direct cause of tragedy

In the Ganga Diara tragedy near Patna, a large number of people had apparently crammed
themselves into a small vessel for a free ride after witnessing a kite festival.

Way forward
This was obviously the result of serious neglect of safety norms for which accountability
must be fixed. The Centre, which talks of a paradigm shift in freight and passenger
transport using inland waterways, should respond to the shameful national record on boat
safety by firmly implementing existing laws and introducing new measures along with the
States.

8. % rise in killings of Naxals in Relevant for GS Prelims and GS Mains

Paper III)

The Home Ministry flagged the operational efficiency of security forces in the Maoist-
affected areas as one of its biggest achievements during a presentation before Prime
Minister Narendra Modi.

The Ministry informed Mr. Modi that since the NDA government came to power in May
2014, there had been a 45 per cent increase in the efficiency of Central forces in operations
against the Maoists.

Maoists Killed
In a presentation made by Home Secretary, Mr. Modi and other officials were informed that
the number of Naxal cadres killed in 2016 had been the highest ever in six years.
Eighty-four Maoist cadres were killed in 2015 and in 2016, the number swelled to 218,
which was an increase of 160 per cent. There was also an increase in the number of police
encounters, from 237 in 2015 to 316 in 2016.

Violence by Maoists reduced

He also said that Maoist-related violence was down by 40-50 per cent and the Ministry
expected the situation to be normal in the next two-three years.

Steps taken by NDA govt:

1. After the NDA government came to power, the Home Ministry sent an additional 14
battalions of Central police forces to the Maoist-affected districts.
In all, 104 battalions (each battalion has approximately 1,000 men) of Central forces are
currently deployed in the affected areas, besides a large number of State police personnel.

2. The Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) has already given the go-ahead for an
ambitious road project in the 44 worst-affected districts. Under this project, the
government proposes to construct 5,412 km of roads and 126 bridges and it would cost Rs.
11,725 crore.

3. Redrawing Red Corridor

The government is redrawing the Red Corridor the area affected by Left Wing
Extremism (LWE) and may soon take off 20 districts from the list of Maoist-affected
areas.
The 106 districts which span 10 States Bihar, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra,
Odisha, Telangana, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
constitute the Red Corridor. Of these, 44 districts are said to be the worst affected. India
has a total of 683 districts.
 Relevant for Prelims Only

1. Miss France crowned Miss Universe 2016 (Relevant for GS Prelims)

A 23-year-old dental student from France, Iris Mittenaere has won the Miss Universe
crown in the annual pageant held this year in the Philippines.

About Miss Universe Title

Miss Universe is an annual international beauty pageant that is run by the Miss Universe
Organization. Along with its rival contests, Miss World and Miss Earth, this pageant is one
of the most important and publicized beauty pageants in the world. It is held in more than
190 countries worldwide and seen by more than half a billion people annually. The pageant
was founded in 1952 by the California-based clothing company Pacific Knitting Mills, and
the Miss Universe Organization.

2. Banks Gyan Sangam to discuss digitisation, consolidation at PSBs (Relevant for GS

Prelims)

The push for digitisation in the wake of demonetisation and the proposal for public sector
bank (PSB) consolidation are likely to top the agenda for Gyan Sangam.

About Gyan Sangam

GYAN SANGAM is a two days' Retreat for Banks and Financial )nstitutions to take
forward the Government's commitment to Reforms in the Banking and Financial Sector.

3. Federer grabs 18th Grand Slam Title (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The Grand Slam tournaments, also called majors, are the four most important annual tennis
events. The Grand Slam itinerary consists of

1. Australian Open in mid January,

2. French Open in May and June,
3. Wimbledon in June and July
4. US Open in August and September.
Each tournament is played over a period of two weeks. The Australian and United States
tournaments are played on hard courts, the French on clay, and Wimbledon on grass.
Wimbledon is the oldest, founded in 1877, followed by the US in 1881, the French in 1891,
and the Australian in 1905.

4. Al-Shabab, Kenya claim deaths in Somalia attack (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Extremist group al-Shabab killed at least 51 Kenyan soldiers in an attack on a military base
in Somalia.

About Al-Shabaab
Al-Shabaab is considered Al-Qaeda s East African affiliate and is fighting in order to impose
a strict version of Islam in this Horn of Africa nation. It is particularly active in Somalia.
 . Growth in )ndia s oil consumption to be fastest by Relevant for GS Prelims

Having crossed Japan to become world s third-largest oil consumer, )ndia s oil consumption
growth will be the fastest among all major economies by 2035, BP Statistical Review of
World Energy said.

)ndia, Asia s second-biggest energy consumer since 2008, had in 2015 overtaken Japan as
the world s third-largest oil consuming country behind US and China.

Other revelations of the report

1. While energy consumption will grow by 4.2 per cent per annum faster than all major
economies in the world )ndia s consumption growth of fossil fuels would be the largest
in the world.

2. India will overtake China as the largest growth market for energy in volume terms by
2030.

6. Smart glasses that automatically focus on what you see (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The days of wearing bifocals or constantly swapping reading glasses may soon be over,
thanks to the new smart glasses developed by scientists, including one of )ndian origin,
that can automatically adjust the focus on what a person is seeing, whether it is far away or
close.

About the glasses

1. The glasses developed by researchers at University of Utah in the U.S. contain lenses
made of glycerin, a thick colourless liquid enclosed by flexible rubber-like membranes in
the front and back.
2. The rear membrane in each lens is connected to a series of three mechanical actuators
that push the membrane back and forth like a transparent piston, changing the curvature of
the liquid lens and the focal length between the lens and the eye.
3. When the wearer looks at an object, the meter instantly measures the distance and tells
the actuators how to curve the lenses.
4. If the user then sees another object that is closer, the distance meter readjusts and tells
the actuators to reshape the lens for farsightedness. A rechargeable battery in the frames
could last more than 24 hours per charge.

7. RBI press denies sharing information on amount and features of new currency
(Relevant for GS Prelims)

Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Ltd. (BRBNMPL) a subsidiary of the
Reserve Bank of India which prints banknotes has said it has the capacity to print 16
billion pieces of currency notes per annum, when operating in two shifts and when the
presses are operating at full capacity.
In reply to an RTI, BRBNMPL said the new Rs.500 notes are printed both by the
government-owned Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd. and BRBNMPL
while the Rs.2,000 denomination bank notes are printed only at BRBNMPL.

Controversial reply to RTI

BRBNMPL declined to reply to queries seeking information on the specific number of new
Rs. 500 and Rs. 2,000 notes that had been printed and circulated, as well as questions on
the security features in the new notes citing Section 8 (1) a of the Right to Information Act,
which allows information to be withheld if it would prejudicially affect the sovereignty
and integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the State.

8. Why US President enters White House on 20th January (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Originally the inauguration date was March 4. This was the date through the 19th and
early 20th centuries. Then the 1932 presidential election came along after the Hoover (ex-
President) administration failed to do much of anything as the Great Depression got
underway.

So the inauguration was changed from 4th March to 20th January to in order to give the
people and the markets confidence that there would not be an overly long period between
the election of President and when he could begin implementing measures to improve the
economy.

9. Brahmaputra Literary Festival (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Assam hosts the Brahmaputra Literary Festival (BLF) with more than 150 authors from
within and outside the country participated in the three-day literary extravaganza.

Panel discussions
The festival focused on languages, literature, culture, society, politics, performance
traditions, music, identity, media of the North-eastern region of the country but also
national and international elements packages in the three-day event.

Way forward
This was the first time the festival was held. The objective of the festival was to give larger
exposure to writers of North-East.

10. Pakistan tests 2,200-km range surface-to-surface missile (Relevant for GS

Prelims and Mains Paper II)

Pakistan conducted the first flight test of long range surface-to-surface ballistic missile
Ababeel.

About Ababeel
1. The missile has the capability to carry nuclear warheads.
2. The missile has a maximum range of 2,200 Km.
3. On January 9, Pakistan had conducted a test-firing of submarine-launched cruise
missile Babur- , having a range of Km.

Babur-3 test
In an obvious reference to India, officials said a second strike capability gives Pakistan the
option of a measured response to nuclear strategies and postures being adopted in the
neighbourhood. Babur-3 is a sea-based variant of cruise missile Babur-2.

11. Tejas enter republic day parade for first time (Relevant for GS Prelims)

In Republic Day flypast for a single-engine aircraft, the indigenously developed light
combat aircraft- Tejas, will set a record. Three of these aircraft will take off from Bikaner
and fly in victory formation over Rajpath.

Reason for avoidance of use of single engine aircrafts

In October 1989, a Mirage-2000 fighter crashed while performing manoeuvres during the
57th anniversary celebration of the Indian Air Force at the Palam Air Force station, after
which single-engine aircraft have generally been avoided in view of public safety.

Single-engine jets are believed to face a greater risk from bird hits, low-flying conditions
and also in view of large public gatherings and presence of important dignitaries.

. After jallikattu, it is kambala s turn Relevant for GS Prelims)

Demand for lifting ban on Kambala

With an Ordinance promulgated to lift the ban on jallikattu (bull-taming) in Tamil Nadu, the
demand for lifting the ban on kambala, traditional buffalo racing, is gaining momentum in
coastal Karnataka.

The State government in November last informed the High Court, during the hearing of a
PIL petition filed by PETA, that it had withdrawn the permission given to hold the kambala,
based on the Supreme Court s order on jallikattu. The hearing on the petition is scheduled.

13. Dharamsala declared second capital of Himachal Pradesh (Relevant for GS

Prelims)

Himachal Pradesh Government has declared Dharamsala (Winter capital) as the second
capital of the hill state with a population of about 70 lakh. Henceforth winter session of
state legislature will be held in Dharamshala.

Political significance of Dharamshala

It is also being abode of Tibetan Spiritual head Dalai Lama and the headquarters of Central
Tibetan Administration (the Tibetan government in exile).

Other States with two capitals

 1. Jammu & Kashmir : Srinagar (Winter capital) and Jammu (Summer Capital)
2. Maharashtra : Mumbai (Summer) and Nagpur (Winter)

Winter session of Legislative assembly is held at winter capital.

14. 3D zebra crossings (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Zebra crossings that appear to jump out of the road are expected to expand in Delhi soon
with the New Delhi Municipal Council NDMC planning on expanding its D project.

Purpose of D project
The aim of the project is to make roads safer by alerting motorists in advance to slow down
at a pedestrian crossing.

15. Ordinance to clear path for holding jallikattu in TN (Relevant for GS Prelims and
GS Mains Paper II)

Centre gives nod for draft of proposal submitted by State; ordinance likely to be
promulgated soon.

The Centre cleared the Tamil Nadu government s proposal to promulgate an ordinance to
hold jallikattu. The State government had proposed to issue an ordinance in a day or two to
allow jallikattu, a bull taming sport.

16. Cabinet approves listing of five insurance companies (Relevant for GS Prelims)

In a move that could bring significant resources to the exchequer, the Cabinet Committee
on Economic Affairs approved, the listing of five public sector general insurance companies
on the stock markets, with a plan to divest % of the Centre s stake in each of them over
time.

The companies whose stake would be offloaded, as per stock market watchdog Securities
and Exchange Board of )ndia s listing norms, are:
The New India Assurance Company, United India Insurance Company, Oriental Insurance
Company, National Insurance Company, and General Insurance Corporation of India.

Implications of listing the companies to stock exchange

1. The idea is once the insurance companies get listed on the stock market, the prospects
of the industry go up and insurance becomes better known to the common man.
2. Public shareholding in Government-owned companies is a means of ensuring higher
levels of transparency and accountability in functioning of these insurance companies.
3. It gives an opportunity for the public as well as employees to have a stake in the
company s fortune.

Details of listing
As per the listing conditions for equity markets, the minimum public shareholding has to be
25 per cent, so the government's shareholding will be brought down from 100 per cent to
75 per cent.

17. Gene Cernan, last astronaut to walk on the moon, dies at 82 (Relevant for GS
Prelims)

Gene Cernan, who became the last of only a dozen men to walk on the moon, died.
Cernan was commander of NASA s Apollo mission and on his third space flight when he
set foot on the lunar surface. On Dec. 14, 1972, he became the last of only a dozen men to
walk on the moon.

Neil Armstrong was the first man to step on moon, who died in 2012.

18. WEF meet at Davos (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The theme of meet is Responsive and Responsible Leadership . The first meeting of
WEF was held in year 2011. After that, every year one annual meet is held at Davos in
January.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) is a Swiss nonprofit foundation, based in Geneva.
Recognized by the Swiss authorities as an international body, its mission is cited as
"committed to improving the state of the world by engaging business, political, academic,
and other leaders of society to shape global, regional, and industry agendas. However, it is
said that meet is dominated by view of globalistation, liberalism and capitalism.
The Forum is best known for its annual meeting at the end of January in Davos.

19. 62nd Filmfare Awards (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The grand Annual 62nd Filmfare Awards event organised by the Filmfare magazine was
held in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

About Filmfare awards

The Filmfare Awards are presented annually by The Times Group to honour both artistic
and technical excellence of professionals in the Hindi language film industry of India. The
Filmfare ceremony is one of the oldest film events in India. The awards were first
introduced in 1954, the same year as the National Film Awards. They were initially
referred to as the Clare Awards or The Clares after Clare Mendonca, the editor of The Times
of India.

20. Indian American could be FDA head under Trump (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Indian American biotech entrepreneur Balaji Srinivasan is being considered for a role in
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under President Donald Trump.

About Mr. Srinivasan

Mr. Srinivasan is currently CEO and co-founder of bitcoin startup 21(name of the
company). Mr. Srinivasan is a person of Indian Origin.

Other appointees in Trump Administration

If appointed FDA Commissioner, Mr. Srinivasan will be the third Indian American to join
the Trump administration after Nikki Hailey, who will be U.S. Ambassador to the UN, and
Seema Verma, who will be administrator of the Centres for Medicare and Medicaid
Services. All three positions require confirmation by the Senate.

21. Illegal weapons seized across U.P. (No Direct Question can be asked, Read only
for understanding)

Weapon seize in UP
Since the imposition of the Model Code of Conduct in Uttar Pradesh on January 4, the State
police has seized more than 1,750 illegal weapons, 39 crude bombs and 1,800 cartridges,
and shut down 40 small factories manufacturing these banned items across the State.

The single biggest haul came in the communally-sensitive western U.P. s Shamli district
adjoining Muzaffarnagar, on Thursday night, when police seized 203 illegal weapons (123
guns and 80 pistols) and 500 semi-formed country-made pistols, and busted three factories
manufacturing them.

Prepared for use in elections

What the accused has told us is that they prepared the arms keeping in mind the elections.
They were expecting a lot of demand. We are not ruling out the gang s links to the recent
political firing [on a BJP leader in Ghaziabad], Shamli Superintendent of Police SP

Weapons seized
Apart from weapons, since January 4, the police and flying squads have seized more than
Rs. 31.6 crore in cash and Rs. 87 crore in foreign currency (of 14 nations) across Uttar
Pradesh.

Illegal liquor seized

The recovery of illegal liquor, a common item distributed during elections to woo voters,
was also high: 36,491 litres.

Other assets seized

During its operations, the police also recovered more than 4 kg gold, 104 kg silver, 44 silver
coins and 372 mobile phones.

22. The Madame Tussauds in Delhi (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Madame Tussauds is set to open its rd branch at the landmark Regal Cinema in Delhi s
Connaught Place.

The Madame Tussauds in Delhi

1. Over 50 wax figures of celebrated personalities from the worlds of sport, music, history,
film and TV, will be seen at the Madame Tussauds in Delhi.

2. Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan, Mahatma Gandhi, Hollywood superstar Jackie

Chan, cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and pop icon Lady Gaga are among the host of
personalities whose wax figures will be installed.

3. Every wax figure on display at a Madame Tussauds takes over four months to complete
and costs Rs.1.5 crore. Almost 500 precise body measurements are worked upon by a team
of 20 artists to create each wax masterpiece.

About Madame Tussauds

1. Madame Tussauds, the interactive museum of wax sculptures and one of London s
biggest tourist attractions with 22 branches across the world, is set to open its 23rd at the
landmark Regal Cinema in Delhi s Connaught Place.

2. Madame Tussauds is planning to open a branch in New Delhi to coincide with the 70
year of )ndia s independence in .

23. N. Chandrasekaran, TCS veteran to head Tata Sons (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Less than three months after it ousted Cyrus Mistry as Chairman, the board of Tata Sons
has picked N. Chandrasekaran, CEO of the group s most-profitable company, Tata
Consultancy Services Ltd. (TCS), as his successor.

The 53-year-old TCS veteran, will become only the third non-Tata Chairman of the $103
billion salt-to-software conglomerate s holding company.

A Tata group veteran of 30 years, Mr. Chandrasekaran popularly known as Chandra

will take charge of the group at a time when it is embroiled in a bitter power struggle with
its ousted former chief, Mr. Mistry, who has moved the National Company Law Tribunal
seeking to have the Tata Sons board superceded.

. PM inaugurates )ndia s first international exchange at GIFT city (Relevant for GS

Prelims)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated )ndia s first international exchange )ndia )NX
at the International Financial Service Centre (IFSC) of GIFT (Gujarat International Financial
Tech) City Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

About India INX:

India INX is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). It will enable
Indian firms to compete on equal footing with offshore firms.
It will work for 22 hours in a day working from sunrise to sunset i.e. starting when Japan
exchanges begin and close when US markets end.

25. Hope Island becomes graveyard for Olive Ridleys (Relevant for GS Prelims)
Carcasses of Olive Ridley turtles are washing ashore on beaches here, indicating that the
breeding cycle of the endangered species has been dealt a severe blow this year by
mechanised fishing boats.In the entire six-month season last year, around 152 carcasses
were spotted.

Journey of Olive Ridley Turtles

The turtles, which are protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, commence their
journey from the Indian Ocean during their mating season in October and November.
When they reach the Bay of Bengal, the females lay eggs on the beaches. Even as the
destination for a majority is Gahirmatha in Odisha, the sandy stretches of Hope Island of
the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary have turned into a breeding area for a few hundred turtles
every year.

A female lays 100 to 150 eggs in a pit dug by it carefully and leaves the shore after covering
the hollow with sand. Six weeks later, the newly hatched turtles start the journey to their
Indian Ocean habitat.

The problem:
1. Owners of mechanised boats are not taking precautions to protect the turtles. Most of
them are crushed under the boats and succumb to injuries.

2. The Fisheries Department tried to encourage the mechanised boat owners to fit a
Turtle Excluder Device (TED) to their trawl nets to allow the animals to pass, few have
opted for the device due to lack of sensitisation. The device is not available in the open
market.

26. Vibrant Gujarat Summit (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Vibrant Gujarat is the name given to a biennial investors' summit held by the government
of Gujarat in Gujarat, India. The event is aimed at bringing together business leaders,
investors, corporations, thought leaders, policy and opinion makers; the summit is
advertised as a platform to understand and explore business opportunities in the State of
Gujarat.

The global Summit of Vibrant Gujarat has now entered its 8th edition in 2017. Vibrant
Gujarat 2017 is being held from 10-13 January 2017.

The Summit has brought together Heads of States and Governments, Ministers, Leaders
from the Corporate World, Senior Policy Makers, Heads of International Institutions and
Academia from around the world to further the cause of development and promote
cooperation.

27. Flipkart appoints Kalyan Krishnamurthy as new CEO (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Flipkart has promoted former Tiger Global Management executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy
as the new chief executive to run the operations of India's largest online retailer.
Mr.Krishnamurthy is replacing co-founder Binny Bansal, who has been elevated to the
position of Group CEO.

Restructuring of Flipkart
The company announced a new organisation structure with Flipkart Group organisation at
the apex level. )t said that the newly formed Group Org will focus on creating future value
through a portfolio of new and high growth businesses. It would also manage capital
allocation across group companies, and ensure each business has a strong CEO in place.

28. Golden Globes award ceremony held (Relevant for GS Prelims)

About Golden Globe Awards

The Golden Globe Award is an American award bestowed by the 93 members of the
Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) recognizing excellence in film and television,
both domestic and foreign. The annual formal ceremony and dinner at which the awards
are presented are a major part of the film industry's awards season, which culminates each
year with the Academy Awards (Oscars).

About Hollywood Foreign Press Association

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) is a non-profit organization of
journalistsand photographers that reports on the entertainment industry activity and
interests in the United States for information outlets (newspaper,[3] magazine and book
publication, television and radio broadcasting) predominantly outside the U.S.

29. Gurugram gets E-governance award (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The district administration was conferred with the National e-Governance Award for the
project G-Triangulation at the two day 20th National Conference. The conference was held
at Visakhapatnam on January 9.

About G-Triangulation
G-Triangulation, the project, aimed at providing complete spatial referencing of the land
holdings across the district and further validating the land holding details in Manesar. "No
other state has done so many experiments in used records management. The revenue
estate of Manesar was taken up as a pilot for implementation of the project. The revenue
records of 14 out of 37 villages were fully processed. The results have shown remarkable
consistency in moving to a system for adoption of the method of conclusive titles.

About Triangulation
Triangulation is a simple concept where at least three points are necessary to identify an
area.

30. UN declares 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for

Development (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has declared the year 2017 as the
International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

The declaration recalls the potential of tourism sector to advance the universal 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development and 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Key Facts:
The International Year aims to support a change in business practices, policies and
consumer behaviour towards a more sustainable tourism sector that can contribute
effectively to achieve targets of the SDGs.

The tourism sector accounts for % of worldwide exports, % of the world s GDP and one
in eleven jobs. If managed well, it can foster inclusive economic growth, social inclusiveness
and protection of natural and cultural assets.

. Google Doodle pays tribute to )ndia s social reformer Savitribai Phule (Relevant
for GS Prelims)
Search engine giant Google honoured )ndia s th Century social reformer Savitribai Phule
on the occasion of her 186th birth anniversary (3 January 2017) by dedicating a doodle on
its webpage.

About Savitribai Phule :

1. Savitribai Phule Savitribai was among the country s first women to speak up for the
rights of women. She was the first woman teacher of the first women s school in )ndia and
also a first pioneer in modern Marathi poetry.

2. Born as Savitribai K. Patil on January 3, 1831 into a family of farmers. She was married
at the age of nine to the 13-year old Jyotirao Phule. She was home taught to read and write
by her husband.

3. Later the couple founded )ndia s first school for girls and women in Bhidewada, Pune
(Maharashtra). It started with just nine girls from different castes enrolled as students
but it became a historic step when female education was considered taboo in the orthodox
Indian society prevalent then.

4. During the British rule in India, the Phule couple had launched a crusade against social
discrimination based on caste and gender, and also had sparked the flame for women s
equal rights.
5. Savitribai s courageous campaign covered social issues such as child marriages, child
widows, practice of Sati , women education and fighting for equal rights for all women.

6. Even after death of Jyotirao Phule in 1890, she carried on legacy of his Satyashodhak.
She died while serving people suffering from bubonic plague in Maharashtra in 1897.

7. As a tribute to her sheer courage and pioneering efforts in field of women education,
social reform and gender equality Maharashtra government had renamed Pune University
as Savitribai Phule University. India Post also had released a stamp in honour of Savitribai
on March 10, 1998.

32. U.S. First Lady picks Indian-American in education crusade (Relevant for GS
Prelims)

U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama has selected 16-year-old Indian-American Swetha
Prabakaran to serve in the inaugural Student Advisory Board of an education campaign,
which seeks to provide educational opportunities for teenagers in America.
Swetha, whose parents immigrated from Tamil Nadu s Tirunelveli in , was chosen for
Better Make Room campaign s Student Advisory Board in recognition of her efforts to
educate youth in the field of computer sciences.She is among seventeen students selected
by the White (ouse to serve on Better Make Room Student Advisory Board.

About the board

Founded by Michelle, the board will work to create a college-going, college-persisting and
college-graduating culture at their schools.

33. Veteran actor Om Puri takes his final bow (Relevant for GS Prelims)
The 66-year-old veteran actor died of a heart attack at his residence in Mumbai.

About Om Puri:
Om Prakesh Puri (18 October 1950 6 January 2017) was an Indian actor who appeared
in mainstream commercial Indian, British, American and Pakistani films, as well as
independent films and art films. Puri was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian
award of India, in 1990.

34. Jan Shatabdi fitted with solar panels flagged off (Relevant for GS Prelims)
The solar panels will help the Railways save about 1,700 litres of diesel per annum per
coach. A solar-panel powered coach, the first of its kind in Jan Shatabdi in Southern
Railway, was flagged off. The 4.8 kW solar PV panels have been mounted on a specially
designed metallic structure to withstand wind velocity, vibration and shock of the trains.
The solar panels will help the Railways in saving about 1,700 litres of diesel per annum per
coach.

. Rajiv Shah is Rockefeller s first )ndian-American head (Relevant for GS Prelims)

The Rockefeller Foundation, one of the largest and most influential philanthropies in the
United States, was to name Rajiv J. Shah, a trustee, as president. He was to succeed Judith
Rodin, who has been holding the post for 12 years. At 43, Mr. Shah is the youngest person
and the first Indian-American to lead the Rockefeller Foundation.

The appointment was to make Mr. Shah one of the most powerful forces in charitable
giving, overseeing a foundation that donates roughly $200 million each year.

The Rockefeller Foundation:

Founded in 1913 by oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller, the foundation says it has given away
the equivalent of more than $ billion in today s dollars.Much of the foundation s work
concerns improving health and well being in Africa, aiding economic development in
impoverished areas and developing strategies to combat climate change.

Rockefeller Foundation also sponsors the famous Ramon magasaysay awards popularly
called as Asian nobel prizes.
 . World s tallest solar tower in )srael Relevant for GS prelims

The Ashalim project:

The Ashalim project deep in the Negev desert, will be )srael s largest renewable energy
project when completed by 2018. It will generate some 310 megawatts of power. The
centrepiece of the project is a solar tower that will be the world s tallest at m.

About Solar towers

Solar towers use a method differing from the more common photovoltaic solar panels,
which convert sunlight directly into electricity. Instead, towers use a solar-thermal method
Thousands of mirrors focus the sun s rays onto the tower, heating a boiler that creates
steam to spin a turbine and generate electricity.

Encircling the Ashalim tower are 50,000 mirrors, known as heliostats, in a shimmering
blanket of glass over the desert.

37. Prakash Parv celebrated at patna (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Prakash Parv is organised to celebrate the 350th birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh guru,
Guru Gobind Singh on 5th January, 2017.

About Guru Gobind Singh ji

Guru Gobind Singh, born Gobind Rai was the 10th Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior,
poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was beheaded for refusing to
convert to Islam, Guru Gobind Singh was formally installed as the leader of the Sikhs at age
nine, becoming the last of the living Sikh Gurus. His four sons died during his lifetime in
Mughal-Sikh wars two in battle, two executed by the Mughal army.

Among his notable contributions to Sikhism are founding the Sikh warrior community
called Khalsa in 1699 and introducing the Five Ks, the five articles of faith that Khalsa Sikhs
wear at all times. Guru Gobind Singh also continued the formalisation of the religion, wrote
important Sikh texts, and enshrined the scripture the Guru Granth Sahib as Sikhism's
eternal Guru.

Why Prakash Parv is celebrated at Patna?

Gobind Singh was the only son of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh guru, and Mata Gujri.
He was born in Patna (Bihar).His birth name was Gobind Rai, and a shrine named Takht Sri
Patna Harimandar Sahib marks the site of the house where he was born and spent the first
four years of his life.

38. David R Syiemlieh appointed new UPSC chairman (Relevant for GS Prelims )

President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed Prof David R Syiemlieh as the Chairman of the
Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) as per Article 316 of Constitution. He will take
over from Alka Sirohi and shall remain the head of the organisation till his retirement on
January 21, 2018 or till further orders
Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
UPSC is constitutional body that conducts the prestigious civil services examination to
select IAS, IFS and IPS officers among others. It has been established under Article 315 of
the Constitution and consists of a Chairman and ten Members; appointed and removed by
President

Article 316 Appointment and term of office of members

(1) The Chairman and other members of a Public Service Commission shall be appointed, in
the case of the Union Commission by the President. President makes such appointments on
recommendation of Union Council of ministers.

(2) A member of a Public Service Commission shall hold office for a term of six years from
the date on which he enters upon his office or until he attains, in the case of the Union
Commission, the age of sixty five years.

39. Shraddha, Ghyansham Kumar Devansh chosen for 2016 Bharatiya Jananpith
Navlekhan award (Relevant for GS Prelims)

Writers Shraddha and Ghyansham Kumar Devansh have been chosen for Bharatiya
Jnanpith Navlekhan Award for the year 2016. Shraddha was chosen for her short story
(awa Mein Phadphadati Chitthi and Devansh for his poem Akash Mein Deh .

About Bharatiya Jananpith Navlekhan award

The Jnanpith Award is an Indian literary award presented annually by the Bharatiya
Jnanpith to an author for their "outstanding contribution towards literature". Instituted in
1961, the award is bestowed only on Indian writers writing in Indian languages included in
the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India and English,[a] with no posthumous
conferral.

About Bharatiya Jnanpith

The Bharatiya Jnanpith, a research and cultural institute founded in 1944 by industrialist
Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain of the Sahu Jain family, conceived an idea in May 1961 to start a
scheme "commanding national prestige and of international standard" to "select the best
book out of the publications in Indian languages".

40. What is a Megamaser? (Relevant for GS Prelims)

At core, they are cousins of lasers. Just as lasers are devices used to emit a beam of light by
controlling the emission of photons from excited atoms, masers a play on the word
laser do the same in the microwave region.

They can be made in labs or can also be found naturally in galaxies such as the Milky Way.
Earlier this week, the (ubble telescope found a Megamaser that was around million
times brighter than the masers found in galaxies like the Milky Way.
41. British-)ndian knighted in New Year s honours Relevant for GS Prelims

Shankar Balasubramanian, an Indian-origin British professor of chemistry and DNA expert

at Cambridge University, has received a Knighthood along with Olympic stars Andy Murray
and Mo Farah among others by Queen Elizabeth II for their contributions.

Reason for conferring Knighthood

Mr. Balasubramanian (50), Herchel Smith Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at Cambridge
University, has been recognised for his work as a co-inventor of Next Generation DNA
sequencing, described as the most transformational advance in biology and medicine for
decades.

Solexa sequencing, as it is now known, allows an individual genome to be sequenced in a

day or two at a cost of less than 1,000 pounds; previously, sequencing the human genome
took years of work and cost billions.

What is knighthood?
Knighthood is the honour given British Monarch to people across the world for exceptional
contribution in various fields.
Expected Questions for Prelims 2017
Q1. Consider the following statements regarding Payments Banks:
1. Payments banks can accept deposits up to Rs 1 lakh per account from individuals and
small businesses.
2. Payments banks can also provide lending services to their customers.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q2. Consider the following statements about Gyaan Sangam:

1. Gyan Sangam is a meet for Banks and Financial Institutions to take forward the
Government's commitment to Reforms in the Banking and Financial Sector.
2. The top agenda for recent Gyan Sangam were digitisation in the wake of
demonetisation.
Which of the above statements is/are correct:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q3. The Terrorist outfit Al-Shabab is associated with which of the following country?
(a) Kenya
(b) South Africa
(c) Egypt
(d) Mali

Q4. Which Indian aircraft was showcased for the first time at the Republic Day Parade in
New Delhi?
(a) Rafale
(b) Sukhoi Su-30
(c) Tejas LCA
(d) Mirage 2000

Q5. Which of the following Indian States possess separate winter capital other than the
regular capital:
1. Maharashtra
2. Jammu and Kashmir
3. Himachal Pradesh
4. Karnataka
5. Uttarakhand
Select the correct answer from the choices given below:
(a) 1, 2, 3 and 4 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3 only
(c) 2, 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

Q6. Consider the following statements regarding the World Economic Forum:
1. World Economic Forum has partition of representatives from business community.
2. The annual meet takes place at Davos, Switzerland.
3. WEF was set up under the UN Charter.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q7. Consider the following statements about Madam Tussauds Museum:

1. It is a museum famous for its wax figures displays related to famous celebrities all over
the world.
2. It is set to open its branch in New Delhi, India.
3. The original museum is based in Paris, France.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q8. The term Vibrant Gujarat refers to:

(a) Annual tourist festival organised by the Gujarat tourism.
(b) Biennial investors' summit held by the government of Gujarat.
(c) Annual trade fair displaying the traditional and modern culture of Gujarat.
(d) An annual event organised by Anand Milk Union Limited for promotion of Cooperative
culture.

Q9. The year 2017 has been declared by UN as:

(a) International year of Light and Light based technologies.
(b) International year of pulses
(c) International year for protection of Glaciers and Polar Icecaps.
(d) International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

Q10. Consider the following statements regarding Savitribai Phule:

1. She was the first woman teacher of the first women s school at Bhidewada, Pune.
2. She was the wife of eminent social reformer Jyotibha Phule.
3. She was also the pioneer of modern Marathi poetry.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 1 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q . Consider the following statements with reference to the Ashalim project:

1. The project has been undertaken by Israel to harness solar power.
2. The centrepiece of the project is a solar tower that will be the world s tallest at m.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q12. The term Mesentry refers to:

(a) Mesentry is an organ which connects intestine to abdomen.
(b) It is an ICBM developed by America in collaboration with E.U.
(c) It is a Multi Drug Resistant strain of bacteria.
(d) It is a rare breed of marsupial found in the Australian Desert.

Q13. With reference to improvements incorporated in Pinaka rockets , consider the

following statements:
1. It is equipped with a navigation, guidance and control kit developed by the Research
Centre at Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad.
2. The range of the rockets has been increased to 70 km.
3. The new rocket developed is Pinaka Mark-III.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) None
Q14. Consider the following statements about GSLV-Mark III satellite launcher:
1. Its engine is based on cryogenic technology.
2. Its engine is based on combination of liquid and solid fuel technology.
3. It has been successfully tested and deployed by ISRO.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1, 2 and 3
(b) 1 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) None

Q15. Which of the following is correct regarding Hyperloop ?

(a) It is a particle accelerator designed to collide subatomic particles by using supercooled
magnets.
(b) It is a nanochip based Supercomputer that computes at 100 PFLOPS per second.
(c) It is a vaccum based transport system that can travel at speeds of 1200 kmph.
(d) It is a new computer language to simplify the designs of webpages.

Q16. The Corruption Perception Index is released by:

(a) Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative
(b) Transparency International
(c) International Federation for Human Rights
(d) Greenpeace

Q17. Consider the following statements regarding the recent appointment of Director of
CBI:
1. The committee to appoint the chairman consists of PM, Leader of opposition and a
Union Minister nominated by PM.
2. When making recommendations, the committee considers the views of the outgoing
director.
3. Selection committee was constituted under The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q18. Consider the following statements about CAPART:

1. It works as a nodal agency for catalyzing and coordinating the emerging partnership
between voluntary organizations and the Government for sustainable development of
rural areas.
2. It is chaired by the Union Minister for Rural Development.
3. )t was formed by merging Council for Advancement of Rural Technology and People s
Action for Development India.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q19. Consider the following statements about Pravasi Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PKVY):
1. It will provide training and certify Indians who are seeking overseas employment in
selected sectors.
2. It will be implemented by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
3. It will be implemented in consultation with the Union Ministry of External Affairs and
the Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q20. Consider the following statements about Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC):
1. Its member states are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the United
Arab Emirates.
2. GCC countries supply all of )ndia s petroleum needs.
3. Gulf Cooperation Council GCC is )ndia s second-largest trading partner after China.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1,2 and 3

Q21. Which of the following are overseas ports have Indian companies presence:
1. Hambantota, Sri Lanka
2. Gwadar, Pakistan
3. Chahbahar, Iran
4. Sittwe, Myanmar
 5. Port Sudan, Sudan
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 3 and 4 only
(b) 1, 3 and 4 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 5 only

Q22. Consider the following Statements about mission 41K:

1. It has been unveiled by Union Railway Ministry and aims to save Rs. 41,000 crore on the
)ndian Railways expenditure on energy consumption over the next years.
2. Measures taken to achieve such targets include switching over to electricity run trains,
procuring electricity through open markets, incorporation of renewable sources (wind
and solar energy) etc.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q23. Consider the following statements about Raisina Dialogue:

1. Raisina dialogue is at held at Delhi.
2. The conference is held jointly by Ministry of External Affairs and the Observer Research
Foundation (ORF)
3. It is organized on the lines of the Shangri-La Dialogue held in Singapore.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q24. Consider the following statements:

1. Under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana, an interest subvention of 4 per cent on loans
up to Rs. 9 lakh and 3 per cent on loans up to Rs. 12 lakh for urban housing will be
provided.
2. The maternity benefits given to pregnant women for pre-natal care was raised to Rs
6,000 from the existing level of Rs 4,000 and the benefit will be available for women in
all 650 districts of the country.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q25. What is interglacial Period ?

(a) The period when earth's surface is devoid of any glaciers.
(b) The period when all of the water in the oceans freezes to ice.
(c) The period during which ice shelves from the Arctic slowly creep southward and spread
across the earth.
(d) The period when the ice sheets are not spread and concentrated at a single land mass.

Q26. Consider the following statements regarding National Tiger Conservation Authority
(NTCA):
1. It was created under the provision of Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 2006.
2. The Minister for Environment and Forests acts as its Chairperson and the Minister of
State for Environment and Forests acts as the Vice-chairperson.
3. It reported 70 tiger deaths in India in 2016.

Select the correct answers from the choices given below:

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q27. Consider the following outcomes at recent GST Council meet:

1. 90 per cent of those with a GST turnover of Rs. 1.5 crore or less will be assessed for the
purposes of scrutiny and audit by the States, and 10 per cent by the administrative
machinery of the Centre.
2. Those above a turnover of Rs. 1.5 crore would be assessed in the ratio of 50:50 between
the Centre and the States.
3. The states have been given right to tax transactions occurring upto 12 nautical miles.
Select the correct answers from the choices given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Q28. What is the objective of General anti-avoidance rule (GAAR)?

(a) It is an anti-tax avoidance Rule of India.
(b) It is an attempt to evade environmental act provisions.
(c) It is an attempt to reduce plastic waste in India.
(d) It is an attempt to prevent chemical discharge into water bodies.
Q . What is Universal Basic )ncome ?
(a) It will be bare minimum guaranteed wages proposed by International Labour
Commission.
(b) It will be combinational of various benefits, currently given by government, in form of
cash under one umbrella.
(c) It is a concept proposed by Indian Government to implement MNREGA in all the areas
of country.
(d) It is proposal to attain 100% employability in India.

Q.30 The powers to give advise on how to utilise the disinvestment proceeds has been
recently transferred to:
(a) Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM)
(b) Department of Economic Affairs (DEA)
(c) Department of Expenditure
(d) Department of Investment
Answer Key

Q1.( a) Q2.( c) Q3. (a) Q4.( c) Q5. (b) Q6. (a)

Q7. (a) Q8. (b) Q9. (d) Q10. (d) Q11. (c) Q12. (a)
Q13. (a) Q14. (b) Q15. (c) Q16. (b) Q17. (b) Q18. (d)
Q19. (a) Q20. (c) Q21. (a) Q22. (c) Q23. (d) Q24. (c)
Q25. (d) Q26. (a) Q27. (d) Q28. (a) Q29. (b) Q30. (b)