17 September 2024, The Hindu
‘DU’s single girl child quota has given us a chance to open up’
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GS 1: Social Empowerment
- For 17-year-old Anshika Singh, her favourite thing about studying at Miranda House in Delhi University (DU) is her new-found independence in a big city.
- The student, who hails from Haryana’s Rohtak, is one of the 764 entrants in the university under its new supernumerary single girl child quota, which allots one seat in each programme across undergraduate courses for female students who are single children. Last year, a similar quota was introduced for orphaned students.
A new CM will enable AAP to accelerate its welfare schemes ahead of Delhi pol
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GS 2: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal’s sudden announcement on Sunday about relinquishing the Delhi Chief Minister’s chair within two days is one of a piece with his familiar playbook of initiating surprise moves in order to reclaim the narrative and set the terms of debate. A closer look, however, also reveals that the AAP leader, by stepping aside to get an endorsement from the people’s court on his innocence vis-a-vis corruption charges, is bidding to retain the functionality of the post before the city-state votes for its next government.
- A new CM would be able to ensure the continuance of welfare schemes of the AAP government in Delhi and bolster the ‘Kejriwal model of governance’ to safeguard the party’s prospects of retaining power in the next Assembly election. Its populist agenda has served the party well in the national capital and pitchforked it to power in neighbouring Punjab.
SC to examine suggestions to stop bulldozer justice’
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GS 2: Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions
- The Supreme Court will examine on Tuesday (September 17, 2024) suggestions from petitioners seeking relief from States bulldozing homes and private properties of undertrials, and frame pan-India guidelines.
- A Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai had made it clear that the law did not permit retributory demolition of the properties of accused, who were still awaiting trial, or their immediate families.
Indian military export to Israel — aiding genocide
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GS 2: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests
- A Bench of the Supreme Court of India, headed by the Chief Justice of India, recently dismissed a petition filed by former civil servants, academics, and activists. The petition, in Ashok Kumar Sharma and Others vs Union of India, had sought the suspension of existing licences and the withholding of further licences by the government to public sector and private companies, for exporting military equipment to Israel during the ongoing war. While the Court made it clear that it was not ruling on the merits of the case, it went on to issue a somewhat detailed judgment. The dismissal raises important questions about the limits of judicial review over executive decisions in matters of foreign policy and especially where there are grave violations of international humanitarian law.
Rights of future generations must guide climate debate
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GS 3: Environmental justice and Conservation
- The Summit Of The Future, which is to convene at the United Nations in New York on September 22-23, 2024, aims to identify multilateral pathways to address the major problems that threaten the common future of humanity. The list is long — from conflict to climate change, pandemics to pollution and outrageous income inequalities to abominable forms of discrimination. The vision guiding this multi-stakeholder consultation is a world wherein people can thrive with a greater assurance of protection from the impact of such threats on their well-being.
Women-led development in the Rajya Sabha
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GS 1: Role of women
- The phrase ‘women-led development’, which was recognised as one of the six focal points during India’s presidency of the G20, has always been a cornerstone of the government’s priorities and policies. Under a women-led development approach, women are not just beneficiaries of development, but also set the agenda for development. They are key participants in planning and decision-making.
Why is T.N.’s education funding on hold?
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GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- Tamil Nadu is yet to receive this year’s funds from the Union government under the flagship education scheme Samagra Shiksha. According to the State government, the Centre has linked these funds to the complete implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which includes provisions that the State has opposed, including the contentious three-language formula. The impasse has come to a head over the last two weeks, with a public war of words between the Centre and State erupting on X.
What is the current status of the introduction of African cheetahs?
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GS 3: Species Conservation and preservation
Scientists seek transparency in Vigyan Puraskar selection process
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GS 2: Important aspects of Governance, transparency and accountability
- A group of eminent scientists, all former recipients of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar (SSB) Awards, have written to the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) for clarification on whether the selection process employed to select winners of the Rashtriya Vigyan Puraskar (RVP) was “fully fair, transparent and free of extraneous considerations.”
- The RVP replaced the SSB awards – traditionally given to outstanding scientists younger than 45 – this year and, in its new avatar, was conferred on 33 scientists on August 23 by the President of India.
‘Sliding oil, OMC margins offer room for fuel price cut’
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- With global crude oil prices slipping below $70 a barrel, economists reckon there is a strong case for a fuel price cut for Indian consumers, stressing that cheaper petrol and diesel would also help slow inflation, paving the way for interest rate cuts, and boost consumption.
- While fuel prices are deregulated in India with oil marketing companies (OMCs) free to reset prices, in practice, prices have not been reset in line with supply price trends for a few years now. Retail prices for petroleum products have been static since March, when they were reduced by ₹2 a litre ahead of the general election.
How quantum computing can make large language models even better
Page II Science
Prelims: General Science
- In recent years, the landscape of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly within the realm of natural language processing (NLP), has undergone a remarkable transformation. We have witnessed the rise of powerful large language models (LLMs) made by OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft, among others, and generative AI (Gen-AI), characterised by its unparalleled ability to generate data based on user inputs.
- These sophisticated models have revolutionised human-computer interactions, bestowing upon users experiences akin to human understanding. The advent of these cutting-edge technologies and their wide availability has compelled the people at large, industry stakeholders, and governmental bodies to pay attention to their implications.
