Syllabus subtopic: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the India-US weapon deal; about IADWS
News: The U.S. Department of State has approved the potential sale of a $1.867 billion Integrated Air Defence Weapon System (IADWS) to India.
About the weapon system
About the deal
Significance
Source: The Hindu
Syllabus subtopic: Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the draft policy and its features; its criticisms
News: After being directed by the Madras High Court, on January 6, to consider the issue of providing medical care to those suffering from the rare Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSD) as a “national emergency”, the Centre informed the court of having notified a draft national policy on rare diseases.
About the draft policy
Criticism of the policy
Public health groups have criticised the policy on following grounds:
Rare diseases
Source: The Hindu
Syllabus subtopic:
Prelims and Mains focus: about the case; salwa judum; about NHRC: composition and powers
News: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has accused state officials of the Chhattisgarh government of ‘abetting’ the crimes allegedly committed by Special Police Officers as part of Salwa Judum’s anti-Maoist activities in the state.
Background
According to the complaint, filed by human rights organisation People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), seven people were killed and 95 houses were torched by SPOs in the three villages, leading to other villagers abandoning their homes and fleeing. When they returned in 2013, the villagers filed a complaint with the Sukma collector in July 2013. The NHRC requested them to provide information.
What is Salwa Judum?
Source: Indian Express
Syllabus subtopic: Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and Issues arising out of their Design and Implementation.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the court’s ruling; about SC/ST act and amendments to it; arguements against the amendments
News: The Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of amendments made in 2018 to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Background
The amendments were brought to nullify the effect of the top court’s March 20, 2018 judgment in the Subhash Kashinath Mahajan vs State of Maharashtra & Another case. In it, the SC took serious note of “instances of abuse” of the 1986 law by “vested interests” for political or personal reasons, and laid down stringent safeguards, including provision for anticipatory bail and a “preliminary inquiry” before registering a case under the SC/ST Act.
What were those amendments?
Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989
Objectives of the Act
SC/ST amendment Act, 2018
Arguements against the 2018 amendments to the Act
Source: Indian Express
Syllabus subtopic: Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the move and its significance; arguements for and against the move; about indigenous Assamese muslims and their concerns
News: Assam is planning to implement a census to identify Assam’s ‘khilonjiya’, or indigenous Muslim population in 2020.
Background
About the Assamese Muslim community
Arguements in favour of conducting a census
Arguements against conducting a census
Source: Indian Express
Syllabus subtopic: Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the move and its benefits; about CMS; about GIB; efforts made by India for conservation of migratory species
News: The 13th Conference of Parties (COP) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) is scheduled from February 17 to 22 in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
About the COP meet
How will this move benefit?
Having the elephant and the Great Indian Bustard in the list — more formally known as Appendix 1 — would coax countries neighbouring India, where wild animals such as tigers and elephant foray into, to direct more resources and attention to protecting them. There are now 173 species in the Appendix 1.
Migratory species in India and efforts at conservation
About the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS)
About Great Indian Bustard (GIB)
Source: The Hindu
Syllabus subtopic: Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, Robotics, Nano-technology, Bio-technology and issues relating to Intellectual Property Rights.
Prelims and Mains focus: about the mission and its significance; about Ulysses and Parker missions; about Heliosphere
News: The Solar Orbiter spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral (USA) on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 411 rocket and is on a 10-year voyage.
Background
This follows the Ulysses spacecraft, another collaboration between ESA and NASA that launched in 1990 and also flew over the sun's poles. Ulysses completed three passes of the sun before its mission ended in 2009, but its view was limited to what it could see from the sun's equator.
About the Space orbiter mission
What’s so special about the mission?
Significance of the mission
Cooperation with Parker Mission
About Heliosphere
Source: The Hindu
Syllabus subtopic:
Prelims and Mains focus: about the highlights of the training programme; about Gaganyaan mission and its significance
News: The four Indian pilots chosen as candidate-astronauts began their 12-month training at the Gagarin Research and Test Cosmonaut Training Centre (GCTC) in Moscow, Russian space business company Glavkosmos has announced.
Background
In June 2019, the Human Space Flight Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Russian government-owned Glavkosmos signed a contract for the training, which includes Russian support in the selection of candidates, their medical examination, and space training.
About the training programme
Source: The Hindu
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