GS2 POLITY Event Summary: On January 18, 2025, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi led the e-Distribution of SVAMITVA Property Cards, marking a significant milestone in rural governance and empowerment. Around 65 lakh property cards were distributed to over 50,000 villages across 10 states and 2 Union Territories, aiming to enhance …
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Lateral Entry Scheme
Context: The Government of India recently announced a significant recruitment drive for lateral entrants, addressing an “acute shortage” of IAS officers. Lateral entry allows experts from outside the traditional government structure to be appointed to mid and senior-level roles, bypassing the conventional UPSC examination process. This initiative aims to infuse …
Read More »Russia’s ‘High Income’ Status Despite Sanctions
Context: The World Bank has elevated Russia from an ‘upper-middle income’ to a ‘high-income’ country, a classification it last held in 2014. Russia’s Economic Resilience Global Rankings: Russia is 72nd in per-capita GNI and 53rd in purchasing power parity worldwide. GDP Growth: In 2023, Russia saw a 3.6% increase in …
Read More »National Emergency in India
On June 25, 2024, India marked fifty years since the National Emergency (1975-1977), a period characterized by the suspension of civil liberties, restricted press freedom, widespread arrests, and postponed elections. The Aftermath of the National Emergency in India (1975) Political Transformation The 1977 elections saw four major opposition parties merge …
Read More »Identity Politics in India- policies, national and social impact
What is Identity Politics? Identity politics refers to political strategies that focus on the interests and perspectives of specific social groups based on shared characteristics like caste, religion, language, gender, or ethnicity. These groups mobilize and advocate for policies that address historical injustices, promote cultural recognition, and achieve social and …
Read More »Alwar peasant movement and the Neemuchana massacre.
Social Fabric of Alwar State: Relation between Court and the Rajputs Hereditary Rule: Alwar, like other Rajput states, functioned with a hereditary monarchy. The Maharaja held significant power, but not absolute. Rajput Privileges: Rajputs enjoyed land grants, held military positions, and wielded influence in the court. This created a social …
Read More »NOTA and its Consequences
Why was the NOTA Option Introduced, and Its Consequences GS2 : About NOTA and its consequences with respect to the Voters Right to Secrecy, Implications of Large Number of Votes to NOTA Option, etc. The BJP’s Shankar Lalwani has won in Indore with a massive 10.09 lakh margin, receiving 12,26,751 …
Read More »Judicial Appointments: Political Neutrality in Global Perspective
GS Paper 2 : Mains: Issues with Collegium system, Global Examples of appointing Judges Recently, a retiring Calcutta High Court judge revealed that he has always been a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Timeline for changes in Political Ideology in Judicial Appointments in India Historical Context Pre-1970s: Political …
Read More »Basic Structure Doctrine of Indian Judiciary
Basic Structure The Basic Structure Doctrine is a cornerstone principle established by the Indian Judiciary to ensure the inviolability of the fundamental character of the Indian Constitution. This doctrine acts as a shield against attempts to radically alter the Constitution’s core tenets through amendments. Evolution of the Basic Structure Doctrine. …
Read More »Industrial Alcohol -Centre and State Laws for its Regulation
Concept : Industrial alcohol, unlike alcoholic beverages, is not meant for human consumption (denatured). It finds applications in various sectors, including manufacturing pharmaceuticals, disinfectants, chemicals, and even biofuels. Constitutional Framework: State List (Entry 8): Entry 8 in the State List grants states authority over intoxicating liquor legislation, including production, possession, …
Read More »UNHRC – Council for Preventing Human Rights Violations
Concept: The UNHRC is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) responsible for promoting and protecting human rights worldwide. It was established in 2006, replacing the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR), with the aim of addressing the shortcomings of its predecessor and enhancing the …
Read More »KARNATAKA-MAHARASHTRA BORDER ROW
The border town of Belagavi has been a part of Karnataka since boundaries were demarcated along linguistic lines under theStatesReorganisationAct, 1956. But theinter-State border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra erupts every now and then.The decades-old dispute flared up again in 2022when Karnataka Chief Minister BasavarajBommaisaid the Karnataka government was considering …
Read More »New Indian map shows UTs of J&K and Ladakh
The Survey of India has redrawn the map of India to depict the newly formed Union Territories (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Ladakh. Areas such as Gilgit, Gilgit Wazarat, Chilhas and the Tribal Territory of 1947 that have been occupied by Pakistan are included in the Ladakh UT. …
Read More »No light down the rabbit hole of online political advertising
While Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has said his company would no longer accept political advertisements, the online ecosystem of such advertising is dominated by Facebook and Google. Facebook gets much more advertiser interest because of the level of targeting available, as well as the possibility of engagement through comments, likes, …
Read More »J&K, Ladakh become Union Territories
The bifurcation of Jammu & Kashmir into two Union Territories came into effect at midnight Wednesday. Girish Chandra Murmu and Radha Krishna Mathur will be sworn in as Lieutenant Governors of J&K and Ladakh respectively at two separate ceremonies on Thursday. J&K Chief Justice Gita Mittal will administer the oath …
Read More »BJP, Sena teams meet Governor separately
As the tussle for power sharing continues in Maharashtra, delegations of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena met Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari separately at Raj Bhavan on Monday. The BJP delegation was led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the Sena team by Transport Minister Diwakar Raote. …
Read More »Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde appointed next Chief Justice of India
The most senior judge of the Supreme Court will take charge on November 18 and succeed Ranjan Gogoi. President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday signed a warrant to appoint Justice Sharad A. Bobde as the next Chief Justice of India (CJI). He will take the oath as CJI on November …
Read More »Purohit against freeing seven Rajiv case convicts
In response to the State government’s proposal in February 2014 and March 2016 to release the convicts, the order said the move would “set a very dangerous precedent and lead to international ramifications”. Before making its recommendation in September last year, the government received opinion from Advocate-General Vijay Narayan too. …
Read More »Legislative Council abolished in J&K
Once dominating the news for setting debates and settling sticky discourses for 70 years, the Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Council, the upper house of the Assembly, was abolished on Thursday as per Section 57 of the J&K Reorganisation Bill, 2019, which reduced the State to the Union Territories of J&K …
Read More »We are in no hurry: CJI to Ayodhya case lawyers
Mr. Dhavan, in his characteristic style, described the ongoing submissions of senior advocate C.S. Vaidyanathan, for some of the Hindu parties, as sheer “hop, skip and jump”.Mr. Vaidynathan, at the point when Mr. Dhavan rose to voice his displeasure, was reading certain paragraphs of P. Carnegie’s historic sketches, describing the …
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