11 September 2024, The Hindu
Students in Imphal defy curfew, clash with police
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GS 3: Challenges to internal security
- The Manipur government on Tuesday (September 10, 2024) banned Internet services in five districts of the Imphal Valley and imposed a curfew in two of them as students, protesting the rising violence in the State for the second successive day, clashed with the security forces on the streets of Imphal.
- More than 50 students were injured when police used force to prevent them from storming the Raj Bhavan and the Chief Minister’s residence within 200 metres of each other. The serious among them were admitted to the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal.
BJP plotting to topple Delhi govt. through President’s Rule: AAP
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GS 2: Issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure
- The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday slammed the BJP for seeking the dismissal of the Delhi government from President Droupadi Murmu.
- The principal Opposition party responded by claiming that the government had lost the right to remain in power after “repeated violations of Constitutional norms”.
A panoramic view of the 2024 China-Africa summit
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GS 2: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
- Africa figures prominently in China’s worldview and in the conduct of its foreign policy in the 21st century. During the past 24 years, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has emerged as an all-encompassing and effective platform for dialogue, interaction and planning between the two sides.
- African countries, despite their reservations and grievances, have found it useful to enhance their proximity to China. Unlike the previous decade, African governments and institutions of multiple hues now find it increasingly more comfortable to deal with their Chinese counterparts. In this light, the outcomes of the Ninth Ministerial Conference of FOCAC, which just concluded in Beijing, merit a dispassionate scrutiny.
Soothing salvo
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- Meeting for the second time after the 2024 general election results, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council on Monday (September 9, 2024) sought to calm some of the rising clamour against the 18% indirect tax levy on insurance premium payments. A new Group of Ministers is being formed to urgently recommend tax changes for life and health insurance policies, with an assurance the Council would meet again in November to take a call on its report.
- This marks a notable shift from last month, when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had staunchly defended the levy in Parliament, noting that States earn a large chunk of these revenues and Members of Parliament, who took on the Centre on the matter must flag it with States’ Ministers as they are a party to the Council’s decisions. It must be noted that a reconsideration of GST levies on insurance had come up at least three times under the Council’s aegis, starting a year and a half since the GST’s July 2017 launch, but the status quo was preferred each time.
UAE-India ties are rooted in affinity, trust and respect
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GS 2: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
- During the visit of Sheikh Khaled, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, to Delhi this week, there was one engagement that had emblematic significance for him and for the ties between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and India.
- Visiting Rajghat, His Highness planted a tree in memory of Mahatma Gandhi, following the example of his father, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, in 2016, and his grandfather, the founding president of our country, Sheikh Zayed, in 1992.
Montelukast: overused and dangerous
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Prelims: Current events of national and international importance
- In February 2018, Harry Miller, a 14-year-old British teenager, died by suicide after struggling to cope with mental health issues for two years. Miller, who had been suffering from asthma, had been prescribed montelukast on an ongoing basis for those two years. A couple of years after this incident, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) added a ‘black box warning’ to montelukast and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, U.K. issued a health warning saying the drug could cause serious neuropsychiatric adverse effects.
- Several patient advocacy groups across the world have been lobbying for the restricted use of this drug. While caution is being exercised everywhere, the sale of this drug in India is unregulated, largely irrational, and seems to be increasing exponentially.
Understanding ovarian cancer: its causes, symptoms, and screening methods
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Prelims: General Science
- Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecological malignancy. It is often called a “silent killer” because its symptoms are non-specific and mimic less serious conditions that lead to late diagnosis and a poor prognosis. In India, ovarian cancer ranks among the top three cancers, contributing to 6.6% of all women’s cancers.
‘India has a four-point principle to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict’
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GS 2: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests
- India has a four-point principle towards the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Tuesday. He said that “suggestions have been made” for India to host a peace conference on the issue, but made no commitment on whether India would in fact forward any peace proposal of its own.
- Responding to a question from The Hindu about the possibility of India hosting the conference, and playing a role as peacemaker, Mr. Jaishankar said that India believes in four principles: that this should be a time of peace; that there would be no solutions to the war on the battlefield; that Russia must be at the table for any successful peace process; and that India is “concerned and engaged” in trying to find a way to resolve the conflict.
Will deploy 5,000 cybercommandos in five years, says Shah
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GS 3: Challenges to internal security through communication networks
- Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Tuesday that cyber security was linked to national security and in the next five years around 5,000 cybercommandos will be trained and deployed across the States to counter such threats.
- “Trained Cybercommandos will assist States and Central Agencies in securing the digital space,” said Mr. Shah.
PM Modi convenes first meeting of National Research Fund board
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GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (September 10, 2024) convened the first meeting of the Governing Board of the Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF).
- During the meeting, Mr. Modi said that a new beginning had been made, according to an official statement. The PM stressed on the need to identify and remove obstacles in the country’s research ecosystem. There was a need to set big targets, focus on attaining them, and on doing path-breaking research. Mr. Modi said that research ought to be focussed on finding new solutions to existing problems. He emphasised that problems might be global in nature but their solutions must be localised in accordance with Indian needs.
‘Growth of credit outpacing deposits can tighten liquidity’
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- India’s banking system could face liquidity challengers if credit growth continues to outpace deposit growth and raising deposits to keep pace with the loan growth to keep the cost of credit low remains the top agenda of banks, a survey by FICCI-IBA shows.
- The findings of the survey, which was carried out between January and June, show that long-term credit demand has seen continued growth for sectors such as infrastructure, metals, iron and steel, engineering. Infrastructure is witnessing an increase in credit flow with 77% of the respondents indicating an increase in long-term loans.
Even as unemployment ‘halves’ in Haryana, its youth seek jobs abroad
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- The high unemployment rate in the Bharatiya Janta Party-ruled Haryana reflected even in Union government surveys, has been a major weapon in the hands of the Opposition to attack the State government, and more so as the State goes to the polls in a few weeks from now.
- But the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation for the January-March quarter in FY24, shows that the unemployment rate among those above 15 years of age as per current weekly status in urban areas has more than halved to 4.1% from 8.8% since the corresponding quarter the year before, dropping below the national average of 6.7%.
SpaceX mission launches all-civilian crew for first private spacewalk in orbit
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GS 3: Awareness in the fields of Space, developing new technology
- SpaceX launched its daring Polaris Dawn mission on Tuesday, a multiday orbital expedition carrying a four-member civilian crew for the first spacewalk by non-professional astronauts.
- The crew, led by Shift4 Payments CEO Jared Iscaacman, is also aiming to fly deeper into space than any other manned mission in more than half a century, reaching a peak altitude of 1,400 km.
Maldives Ministers resign after jibe against Indian PM
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GS 2: India and its neighborhood- relations
- In a significant development, the High Commission of India posted on their official X (formerly known as Twitter) handle about Ambassador Munu Mahawar, India’s co-chair, welcoming Minister Abdulla Muththalib to the 12th review meeting of the Greater Male Connectivity Project at Videsh Bhavan in Mumbai.
- This meeting marks the first time the review has been held in India, highlighting the strong commitment to the flagship development cooperation project between India and the Maldives.
