Author: civil mentor

    Fiscal balance turns surplus after 8 years  –   (Economics) For the first time in 8 years, India’s fiscal balance turned from deficit to surplus in the month of August, the latest data from the Controller-General of Accounts (CGA) show. The fiscal deficit, the excess of the Centre’s expenditure over its revenues, was (-) Rs. 15,808 crore in August. The negative figuRead More…

    India to cut emissions intensity  –    (Environment) On Thursday midnight, the Union Environment Ministry submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), committing to cut the emissions intensity of GDP by 33-35 per cent by 2030 from 2005 levels. The INDCs, inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s famoRead More…

    Swachh Bharat: plan to produce power, compost from solid waste  –    (Environment) On the first anniversary of Swachh Bharat Mission, the Urban Development Ministry on Thursday announced some crucial policy changes since it is planning to generate electricity and compost from municipal solid waste.     Tyagi’s kin took €10.05 million: ED  –    (GovernaRead More…

    India to hold G20 Chair in 2018, Delhi may play host  –   (International Relation) India is set to be the G20 Chair in 2018, and New Delhi could host the prestigious annual G20 summit. The G20 member nations took a decision on the Chair for 2018 earlier this month, a top Finance Ministry source told The Hindu . “China is chairing the G20 this time, following which GRead More…

      Capital spending shows pick-up  –    (Economics) When Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley lands in the U.S., he will be able to present a healthy picture of India’s growth to investors. The Union government’s Plan capital expenditure is showing a robust pick-up, show data from the Controller-General of Accounts. It is up to Rs. 52,612 crore in the first fivRead More…

    SC imposes green charge on commercial vehicles entering Delhi  –    (Environment) Declaring that controlling Delhi’s pollution had become the “requirement of the day”, the Supreme Court agreed to formalise in a judicial order a series of directions to impose “environment compensation charge” on all light and heavy duty commercial vehicles entering the National CaRead More…

      Empower intelligence agencies  –   (Secuirty) If national security requires greater intrusion into the lives of citizens, that is a price we need to pay. However, it should be accompanied by a strengthening of the oversight mechanism. The candour with which MI5 chief Andrew Parker spoke on television of security threats to the U.K. should make Indian intelligence explorRead More…

    Minister decries cow slaughter  –    (Indian Polity) The outcry over the Dadri lynching notwithstanding, the NDA government seems determined to prioritise its ideological stand on banning cow slaughter and beef consumption in the country. Minister of State for Agriculture Sanjeev Balyan (accused in the Muzzaffarnagar riots and MP from that district) has called a reviewRead More…

      Security agencies suspect NSCN (I-M) is regrouping  –    (Security) A series of developments in the north-east, especially in Manipur, since the August peace accord between the Centre and the Naga rebel group NSCN (I-M), have raised serious concern that the security situation in the region could dramatically worsen in the coming months. Dim is the assessment frRead More…

    Chemistry Nobel for mapping how cells repair damaged DNA  –   (Science and Technology) Tomas Lindahl, Paul L. Modrich and Aziz Sancar were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry on Wednesday for having mapped and explained how the cell repairs its DNA and safeguards its genetic information.   Banks killed road sector: official  –   (Economics) Banks caused a bRead More…