Australian Prime Minister announced an ‘Australia-India education qualification recognition mechanism’. Degrees obtained in Australia will now be recognised in India, and, vice-versa, degrees obtained in India will be recognised in Australia. The Deakin University: Geelong’s Deakin University will be the first overseas university to open its branch campus in India. Geelong’s Deakin University will be the first ever foreign university …
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NGT ORDER ON TREE PRUNING
The Delhi High Court stayed the pruning of over 800 trees in the city and set aside an order passed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT), observing that a more detailed assessment needs to be carried out before trees are trimmed. General guidelines for the pruning and felling of trees …
Read More »THE ELUSIVE POLITICAL SOLUTION IN SRI LANKA
Early February, a group of saffron-clad Buddhist monks gathered near the Sri Lankan Parliament and burnt a copy of the 13th Amendment. They were registering their rage and protest after President Ranil Wickremesinghe vowed to implement the law in full. He had told an all-party conference that it was his …
Read More »CHILD AUTISM
In a park, a group of three-year-old children are playing together, with their mothers watching. One toddler, Arun, is off to the side, looking up at the trees and squinting at the light. His mother calls several times but he does not respond. He doesn’t seem interested in the other …
Read More »INTEGRATED MEDICINE SYSTEM
Using yoga as an additional treatment can help patients suffering from migraine headaches and from syncope, according to two papers recently published in the prestigious journals of the American College of Cardiology and the American Academy of Neurology. The cardiology journal (2021) says that using yoga as an adjunctive therapy …
Read More »70 HTT-40 BASIC TRAINER AIRCRAFT
Ministry of Defence, on March 07, 2023, signed contracts with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) for procurement of 70 HTT-40 Basic Trainer Aircraft & three Cadet Training Ships respectively in the presence of Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh in New Delhi. Defence Secretary Shri Giridhar …
Read More »THE CONCERNS OVER LINKING AADHAAR WITH VOTER IDS
Around 60% of India’s voters now have their Aadhaar linked to their name on the electoral rolls. Activists have raised concerns on disenfranchisement, coercion and privacy as a result of the exercise, which has achieved coverage of over 90% in States such as Tripura, which went to the polls recently, …
Read More »WHEAT EXPORT TO AFGHANISTAN VIA CHABAHAR
India will send its next consignment of wheat as aid to Afghanistan under the Taliban regime via Chabahar. The decision, announced at the first meeting of the India-Central Asia Joint Working Group (JWG) on Afghanistan in Delhi, came after the agreement with Pakistan for sending the wheat over the land …
Read More »NON-ALIGNMENT FOR UKRAINE PEACE
At the recently-held Munich security conference, a major concern of the members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was the reluctance of the Global South to align itself with the G-7 on the war in Ukraine. Although the vast majority of countries across the world condemn the Russian invasion …
Read More »MIGRANT WORKERS ISSUES IN TAMIL NADU
The rumours and fake news about migrant workers in Tamil Nadu being attacked have seen the quick intervention of the authorities, assuring the workers of their safety. Many workers, most from Bihar, have been seen at railway stations waiting to leave for their home State after a video clip of …
Read More »EXERCISE FRINJEX-2023
Indo-France joint military exercise FRINJEX-2023 to commence at Thiruvananthapuram. This will be a maiden Joint Military Exercise between Indian Army and French Army. It is for the first time armies of both the nations are engaging in this format with each contingent comprising of a Company Group. Aim: The exercise is aimed at enhancing inter-operability, coordination and cooperation between both forces at tactical level. The …
Read More »COURT MARTIAL
An Army captain was court-martialled after a Court of Inquiry (CoI) and subsequent summary of evidence found that troops under his command had exceeded their powers under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. Court-martial is a procedure for trials of the military personnel for violating the military laws or making any military offences. It is conducted in …
Read More »URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND
Union Finance Minister had announced in her Budget speech that the UIDF would be established through the use of priority sector lending shortfall. The Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) is to be set up to ramp up infrastructure in tier-2 and tier-3 cities with an annual allocation of Rs 10,000 crore It will be established …
Read More »SCOTUS
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has begun hearing two pivotal lawsuits that will for the first time ask it to interpret Section 230 of the U.S. Communications Decency Act of 1996, the law that has shielded tech companies from liabilities over decades. The lawsuits pose a long-standing …
Read More »MULTILATERAL REFORMS AS A PRIORITY IN THE G-20
While assuming the G-20 presidency in December 2022, India stated that its agenda would be inclusive, ambitious, action-oriented, and decisive. New Delhi also said that its primary objectives are to build global consensus over critical development and security issues and deliver global goods. This resulted in placing multilateral reform as …
Read More »INDIA-GERMANY RELATIONs
It is no secret that India’s relationship with Germany has traditionally lagged behind its relations with its other European partners such as France. Benign mutual neglect coupled with Germany’s primary focus on China are factors, but this appears to be changing rapidly. Chancellor Scholz’s two-day visit to India, that began …
Read More »THE ANTI-DEFECTION LAW
After long years of legislative meanderings, Parliament enacted the anti-defection law (10th Schedule) in 1985 to curb political defection. The volume, intensity, recklessness and uncontrolled venality seen in defections in the 1960s and thereafter almost came to a stop after this. Defections not only caused the frequent fall of governments …
Read More »QUAD MEETING
During the recent meeting of Quad members in New Delhi, the Foreign Ministers of the Quad countries called for lasting peace in Ukraine and, in an indirect reference to the Russian invasion, underlined respect for territorial sovereignty and integrity. They also addressed China’s aggressive behavior in the Indo-Pacific and its attempts to block the UN designation of …
Read More »WORLD HEARING DAY
World Hearing Day is celebrated on the 3rd of March each year to raise awareness on how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and promote ear and hearing care across the world. Each year, the World Health Organization (WHO) determines the theme. The theme of this year is “Ear and hearing care for all”. Normal hearing …
Read More »ACADEMIC FREEDOM INDEX REPORT
According to the Academic Freedom Index report, India’s academic freedom index is in the bottom 30% among 179 countries in 2022. Academic freedom refers to the principle that scholars and researchers should have the freedom to pursue their research and express their findings without interference, censorship, or retaliation from the government, private institutions, or …
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