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URBAN UNEMPLOYMENT

Ravi Verma, hired by an electrical parts manufacturing firm early last year as India’s economy surged, was fired in November when the company lost several export orders. He has since remained unemployed, unable to pay back a ₹1 lakh loan he took to buy a two-wheeler. Verma is among thousands …

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GOOGLE AXES 12,000 JOBS OR 6% OF ITS WORKFORCE

Google is laying off 12,000 workers, or about 6% of its workforce, becoming the latest tech company to trim staff as the economic boom that the industry rode during the COVID-19 pandemic ebbs. Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google’s parent Alphabet, informed staff Friday at the Silicon Valley giant about …

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AUTONOMY OF PANCHAYAT LEVEL IN INDIA

A few weeks ago, Balineni Tirupati, an up-sarpanch in Telangana’s Jayashankar Bhupalpally district, committed suicide due to indebtedness. He had taken out a loan to undertake development works in the village and was unable to bear the burden after the State government’s inordinate delay in releasing bill payments. A few …

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DECLINE IN CHINA’S POPULATION

The last time China’s population saw a decline was in 1961, in the midst of a devastating four-year famine following Mao’s failed “Great Leap Forward” campaign. The latest decline in population, however, is no blip. The shrinking of the world’s most populous country by as much as 8,50,000 in 2022 …

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DROP IN INDIAN EXPORTS

December 2022 marked the steepest fall in two years for India’s goods exports, with products worth $34.5 billion shipped out — 12.2% lower than a year ago. This was the second time in three months that shipments dropped year-on-year and top Commerce Ministry officials sought to calm nerves by citing …

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ANCIENT PORT CITY OF POOMPUHAR TRACED UNDER SEA

Researchers of Bharathidasan University’s Department of Remote Sensing, the lead agency of a Department of Science and Technology-sponsored research study, on Friday claimed to have found traces of an ancient port city buried under sea, at a depth of 50-100 metres, about 30-40 km off the coast of present-day Poompuhar …

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1ST G20 HEALTH WORKING GROUP MEETING

Highlighting the philosophy of “Aarogyam Param Bhagyam, SwasthyamSarwaarthSadhanam”, which translates as “Good Health is the Greatest Fortune” and “Health is the only way to Happiness in the World”, Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar, Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare stated that “under G20 India Presidency, we plan to strive …

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INDIA PARTICIPATES IN THE FMC LEADERSHIP MEETING OF THE WEF

India participated in the First Movers Coalition (FMC) Leadership Meeting of the World Economic Forum which deliberated on the world need for clean energy technologies to confront climate crisis globally. Industry leaders appreciated India’s fight against COVID leveraging digital technologies and also expressed their appreciation for Government partnering with industry …

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THE POLITICAL FLUX IN PAKISTAN

With the dissolution of Punjab and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provincial assemblies, Pakistan’s politics has entered tumultuous territory. Former Prime Minister and founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan believes that now the PTI has a better chance to return with more seats. On the contrary, the Pakistan Muslim …

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‘UAE, INDIA DISCUSS RUPEE NON-OIL TRADE’

The United Arab Emirates is in early discussions with India to trade non-oil commodities in Indian rupees, Emirati Minister for Foreign Trade Thani Al Zeyoudi said on Thursday. The UAE signed a wide-ranging free trade agreement last year with India, which, along with China, is among the biggest trade partners …

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WOMEN ARMY OFFICERS IN COMMAND

The Army has begun the process for selection of women officers for command postings in the rank of Colonel, which has so far been the domain of male officers. According to sources, a Special No. 3 Selection Board is being conducted for promotion of women officers from the rank of …

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ANNUAL STATUS OF EDUCATION REPORT (ASER) REPORT FOR 2022

After a gap of four years, the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) report for 2022 was recently released in New Delhi. This nationwide household survey that covers all rural districts in the country generates estimates for schooling and basic learning for every State in India. Data from 2018 and …

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POCSO ACT

Ten years have passed since the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, enacted in consequence to India’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1992, came into effect on November 14, 2012. The aim of this special law is to address offences …

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PIB AND FACT-CHECKS

A proposal by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology that seeks to force social media platforms to take down content “fact-checked” by the Government’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) as false needs to be opposed without even a second look. The proposed amendment to the IT Rules opens the door …

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VIRAL NUTRITION

The difference lies in being able to ‘eat’ viruses to fulfil one’s biological imperatives. Plankton of the genus Halteria, they claim to have found, can each consume 10,000 to a million virus particles a day, increase their population using the metabolised energy, and provide more food for the zooplanktons that …

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SYSTEMIC REFORM ON JUDICIARY

There is something rude and unpleasant in the way the Government is going about the task of demanding a big say in the appointment of judges in constitutional courts. The latest salvo is from Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, who has written to the Chief Justice of India to request …

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