• India has slipped by three notches to 11th position in the FDI Confidence Index 2018 of global consultancy firm A T Kearney. • India remains the second highest ranked emerging market on the Index. A variety of recent reforms…
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development recently held a National Conference of 244 Districts under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) in New Delhi. • The Nodal Officers of 244 Districts, State Nodal Officers and Senior officers were part…
• The environment ministry has firmed up guidelines that will require every corporate, seeking green clearance, to set aside up to 2% of its capital investment for Corporate Environment Responsibility (CER). • The guidelines make it mandatory for companies to…
• 51st Annual Meeting of Asian Development Bank (ADB) is being held in Manila, Philippines. The Annual Meeting of the ADB Board of Governors is an opportunity to provide guidance on ADB administrative, financial, and operational directions. • The theme…
• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) recently achieved another milestone of having signed its 200th Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreement (UAPA). • The total number of APAs entered into by CBDT has gone up to 220, which, inter alia…
==> YES • The Union government’s request to the collegium to reconsider the latter’s recommendation to appoint Justice K.M. Joseph to the Supreme Court has only reaffirmed the belief that the Constitution continues to be a contested space. • Granville…
• Dalit and Adivasi rights organisations observed May 1 as ‘National Resistance Day’. The immediate trigger was the Supreme Court order of March 20 on the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereafter SC/ST Act). •…
==> Belt and Road Initiative • The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is China’s ambitious project for increasing connectivity and economic cooperation within Eurasia. • BRI has been positively received by many countries covered within its ambit. However, notwithstanding the…
==> THE PAST • The first blow to the independence of the judiciary came in 1973 with the supersession of the three senior-most judges of the Supreme Court because they had ruled against the government. • Two years later, the…
• In a public-private partnerships (PPPs) to provide infrastructure such as roads and power there is a need of listening to both contestants, and assessing their strengths and weaknesses, is essential. ==> PUBLIC PROVISION • The public provision faces two…
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently tightened priority sector lending (PSL) norms for foreign banks in India. • Foreign banks with more than 20 branches in India will now be required to extend a portion of their…
• The Union Cabinet has given approval to accede to the Protocol under World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on tobacco control to eliminate illicit trade in tobacco products. • It will be applicable to both smoking and chewing or…
