[pib] Swayam Prabha TV Channels

The HRD Ministry has taken several prompt, new and unique initiatives to ensure that the education of learners should not get affected by the challenging situation arising out of COVID 19. One of them is Swayamprabha TV channels. There are various web/portals/apps with peculiar names such as YUKTI, DISHA, SWAYAM etc. Their core purpose is… Continue reading

Removal of AP State Election Commissioner by ordinance route

The removal of the SEC by the ordinance route raises the question over the legality of the move. And if it passes the judicial scrutiny it would harm the independence of the body. The legality of the removal and its implication for free and fair elections The fact that it was the culmination of an… Continue reading

Using knowledge-era technology to bridge the urban-rural gap

This article puts forward the idea of using knowledge-era technology to minimise the difference between rural and urban areas. In the first part, it elaborates the reasons and circumstances that led to the neglect of rural areas and development in urban areas. In the next part, the idea of using knowledge-era technologies to close the… Continue reading

Is the Centre’s lockdown different from a state’s lockdown?

The central government has extended the 21-day nationwide lockdown by two more weeks. Before this, some states had already ordered to extend the lockdown till the end of this month. How do the two lockdowns differ? Newspapers are flooded up with news on lockdowns. The two lockdowns are fundamentally different from each other. Such difference… Continue reading

How IS regroups and its threat to India

IS has shown its ability to strike by regrouping and co-opting local affiliates be it the case of Ester Sunday attack in Sri Lanka or a recent attack on a Gurudwara in Afghanistan. For India, the presence of sleeper cells and their links with the Islamic jihad group has internal security implications. We have… Continue reading

What are Primordial Black Holes (PBH)?

A scientist duo from Pune has studied primordial black holes that were born as a result of a tiny bump in the potential energy levels of the universe, at a time when it was expanding rapidly. Strange space events are known to be the favourites of UPSC 🙂 Primordial Black Holes (PBH) PBH are a… Continue reading

How a dollar swap line with US Fed can help in uncertain times?

India is working with the US to secure a dollar swap line that would help in better management of its external account and provide an extra cushion in the event of an abrupt outflow of funds. What are Currency Swaps? A currency swap, also known as a cross-currency swap, is an off-balance sheet transaction in… Continue reading

Covid-19 donations to CM Relief Fund won’t qualify as CSR

The corporate affairs ministry has clarified that COVID-19 donations to CM Relief Fund won’t qualify as CSR contributions. Contributions considered under CSR According to the ministry, contributions made to the State Disaster Management Authority to combat COVID-19 would qualify as CSR expenditure. The contributions by companies to PM-CARES Fund to tackle the pandemic would be… Continue reading

[pib] Operation Lifeline UDAN

To ensure a steady supply of essentials, even in the most remote locations, the Union Civil Aviation Ministry launched ‘Lifeline Udan’. Don’t get confused or correlate this with Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) Scheme. The name clearly indicates that it is an HADR like operation. Whats HADR? Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Op. Lifeline… Continue reading

[pib] YUKTI web-portal

Union Ministry for HRD has launched a web-portal YUKTI (Young India Combating COVID with Knowledge, Technology and Innovation). There are various web/portals/apps with peculiar names, ex. DISHA, SWAYAM. Note them down with their one line purpose. UPSC Prelims may quiz you on these. YUKTI web-portal YUKTI is a unique portal and dashboard to monitor and record… Continue reading

A plan for the aftermath

Context Everyone is agreed that the whole world is hurtling towards an unprecedented economic recession. India, already facing a massive slowdown, is going to get hurt perhaps more than the others, because our economic immune system is already weak. Three things that we must do in the present situation The first is containing the spread… Continue reading

Know all about the National Board for Wildlife

The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) hasn’t met since 2014. Policy decisions and clearances have, meanwhile, come from a standing committee to the dismay of experts. This newscard is all about the factoids on National Board for Wildlife. The fact that they haven’t met since 2014 makes it interesting for UPSC to quiz you on… Continue reading

[pib] ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ campaign

Union HRD Ministry has launched a week-long ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ campaign for Crowdsourcing of Ideas for Improving Online Education ecosystem of India. ‘Bharat Padhe Online’ campaign Students and teachers are the main target audience of this campaign. Students who are currently studying in schools or higher educational institutions are the ones engaging with the existing… Continue reading

Financing the pandemic rescue package

Context The priority for India is to ensure that it overcomes the COVID-19 pandemic and kick-starts GDP growth. Financing strategy for the 1.7 lakh crores package Rather than fix the weaknesses in the macroeconomy: a high fiscal deficit of 7.49% and government indebtedness that was 69% of GDP in 2019, the government wants to overcome… Continue reading

Is e-NAM portal capable of supporting farmers?

Context The union government has launched new features in electronic agriculture market platform (e-NAM), to decongest wholesale markets amid coronavirus threat. Whether these features would solve the problems of farmers is a matter of question. What is e-NAM? eNAM platform is an online trading platform for agricultural commodities in India. It was launched on April… Continue reading

India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package

The Centre has approved a centrally funded ‘India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness Package’ with the objective of strengthening national and state health systems. About the Package The package is 100 per cent centrally funded project under the National Health Mission. It will be implemented in three phases from January 2020 to March… Continue reading

[pib] Integrated Government Online Training (iGOT)

The Union govt. has launched a training module for management of COVID-19 named ‘Integrated Government Online training’ (iGOT) on DIKSHA platform of MHRD. About iGOT It is training module for management of COVID-19 on DIKSHA platform for the capacity building of frontline workers to handle the COVID-19 pandemic efficiently. Courses on iGOT have been launched… Continue reading

[pib] Kendriya Bhandar

Kendriya Bhandar which functions under the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has taken the unique initiative of providing “Essentials Kits” to needy families during the ongoing lockdown. About Kendriya Bhandar The Central Govt. Employees Consumer Cooperative Society Ltd. is popularly known as Kendriya Bhandar. It was set up in 1963 as a welfare project… Continue reading

Third mass bleaching of Great Barrier Reef

A survey has found record sea temperatures had caused the third mass bleaching of the 2,300-kilometre Great Barrier Reef system in just five years. What is Coral Bleaching? When corals face stress by changes in conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae zooxanthellae living in their tissues, causing them to turn… Continue reading

Delhi’s ‘5T’ war against virus

Delhi CM has announced a “5T plan” created by his government to contain COVID-19 spread in Delhi. These five Ts are testing, tracing, treatment, teamwork and tracking-monitoring. 5Ts strategy 1)Testing Testing when done on a mass scale enables the actual data of people affected by novel coronavirus. Like South Korea, Delhi will be testing on… Continue reading

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