GS-II

Two identical legislation backed by top companies from Silicon Valley, like Google, have been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate to end the per-country limit on green cards. They could benefit thousands of Indian professionals waiting to gain permanent legal residency. In the Senate, Republican Mike Lee …

The French government took a dig at Italy’s populist leaders and the country’s economic problems on Friday, while defending its decision to recall its Ambassador to Rome. Paris summoned back its Ambassador in Rome for consultations on Thursday for the first time since Second World War, a symbolic move that …

Her surprise entry ahead of the March 24 elections deals a heavy blow to the ruling junta’s head A Thai princess will run for Prime Minister in March elections in an unprecedented entry by a royal into front-line politics, pitting her against the chief of the ruling junta and redrawing …

Aim is to analyse entry of vessels without CBIC permission The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) under the Ministry of Finance has asked the Customs Kochi Preventive Division to thoroughly look into the arrival of all foreign vessels at the Lakshadweep islands in the last couple of …

Police in the Maldives have asked the country’s Prosecutor-General to charge former President Abdulla Yameen with money laundering and his former Minister with aiding him. The case stems from an allegedly shady deal to lease islands for tourist resort development and the discovery of $1 million in his bank account.AP …

Ivanka Trump unveiled an effort aimed at helping 50 million women in the developing world get ahead economically over the next six years. On Thursday, the White House officially launched the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative, a government-wide project led by the senior adviser and daughter to President Donald …

Senior U.S. Treasury official and World Bank critic David Malpass has been confirmed as the U.S.’s choice for the presidency of the Bank, President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday afternoon. The announcement is the culmination of a search effort headed by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and the President’s daughter, Ivanka …

President Donald Trump has proved himself adroit at creating villains to serve as his political foils. In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, he introduced a new one: socialists. Right after his calls to support the overthrow of Venezuela’s President, Nicolás Maduro, and condemning the “socialist policies” that …

The court had then ordered the CBI to get instructions and report back at 2 p.m. An affidavit was duly filed by an officer in the afternoon. However, the court expressed dissatisfaction, saying the officer was not competent to submit it. “Never file an affidavit without your personal satisfaction on …

The Rohingya issue dominated meetings that the Bangladesh Foreign Minister held here on Thursday with the Indian leadership. Interacting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, A.K. Abdul Momen, who is on his maiden trip to India, sought continued support in resolving the humanitarian disaster that has brought more than a million …

The election season in Israel and India may derail Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after an initial date for his visit on February 11 fell through, officials involved in planning the visit confirmed. According to a senior diplomatic source, Mr. Netanyahu, who had proposed …

The Indian Journal of Clinical Practice (IJCP) Group, a doctor-run publisher of medical journals, has come under flak from public health experts for partnering with American e-cigarette maker Juul Labs Inc. Juul, which is evaluating an entry into India, has retained the Group to “better understand the India market,” a …

In the State of the Union address, President presses hishard line on immigration, says he will get the wall built Speaking words of bipartisanship, U.S. President Donald Trump delivered a State of the Union (SOTU) address that suggested he would continue to pursue policies that have most deeply divided the …

A senior Finance Ministry official has slammed a key plank of the government’s agriculture policy, saying that raising minimum support prices (MSP) for major crops causes distortions in the agriculture market. This leads to a vicious cycle of oversupply of such crops and a crash in market prices, said the …

India gains little by engaging the Taliban directly at this stage, says Amar Sinha , former Ambassador to Afghanistan and member of the National Security Advisory Board, countering Army chief General B.P. Rawat’s call for India to ‘join the bandwagon’ in talks. On Wednesday, a two-day ‘intra-Afghan’ dialogue of Afghan …

The Union Home Ministry has banned the Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen (TuM) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for promoting terrorism and radicalising and recruiting youth for terrorist activities in India. Set up in the 1990s, TuM claims to be fighting for the “liberation of Kashmir,” the Ministry said in a notification announcing …

Protests by Opposition parties on issues such as the National Register for Citizens and a cut in faculty positions for SC/ST and OBC candidates ensured that the Rajya Sabha functioned only for a total 11 minutes on Wednesday. Soon after official papers were tabled in the morning, Rajya Sabha Chairman …

An expert committee of the Union Environment Ministry has “deferred” clearance to a Rs. 100 crore proposal by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Limited (ANIIDCL) to develop an island resort, as well as put up “premium tents” and “tree houses”, on the grounds that it doesn’t take …

The TDP government on Wednesday introduced two Bills for 5% reservation each to the Kapu sub-castes and the other Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in the general category (upper castes) in the Assembly on Wednesday in the wake of the 103rd amendment to the Constitution. Minister for BC Welfare and Empowerment …

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the State to respond to a public interest litigation petition that sought a direction to restrict the working hours of retail alcohol outlets, bars and pubs. The petitioner, advocate B. Ramkumar Adityan, pointed out that even minors were getting …