WSDP Bulletin (23-02-2022)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Child welfare scheme saw hike of 390%: Smriti Irani READ MORE
2. Chinars return to iconic ‘Char Chinari’ island on Srinagar’s Dal lake READ MORE
3. Centre extends scheme for children orphaned by COVID-19 READ MORE
4. New India leaders less from English-speaking world, so judged harshly: MEA paper READ MORE
5. Reserve Bank of India plans to manage liquidity via forex swap before LIC IPO READ MORE
6. Invasive alien species threaten agriculture and biodiversity in Africa: Study READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. Paper forests: India’s missing stretches of green READ MORE
2. More than Covid-19, inequality killed many READ MORE
3. Are ‘metaverse’ weddings the new normal in India? READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Regulation, not prohibition: The online skill gaming industry hopes that a reform-oriented policy structure will soon be in place READ MORE
2. What price regulatory credibility? READ MORE
3. Election freebies: But at whose cost? READ MORE
4. Election Commission Must Count All VVPAT Slips to Protect Electoral Integrity READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Three is a crowd: US did a China on Soviet Union in 1972; now, China is doing a Russia on America READ MORE
2. A helping hand for our neighbour Lanka READ MORE
3. New leadership models in the post-Covid world READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. A new measure of inflation is brewing on the horizon READ MORE
2. The reforms that farming really needs READ MORE
3. Alternative growth path: Raghuram Rajan’s idea must be debated READ MORE
4. Onerous disclosures: New CSR reporting requirements raise tricky issues READ MORE
5. Amending the FRBM Act READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Why the Plastic Waste Amendment Rules 2022 Is a Paper Tiger READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Explained: How big is insurgency threat in Manipur? READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Two questions worth asking yourself this year READ MORE
2. For the sake of peace READ MORE
3. Can the world unlearn helplessness? READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘The uncertainty over economic growth in view of Covid is understandable. But in such a situation setting the goalposts for fiscal rectitude becomes even more important’. In the light of the statement do you think Government to amend the FRBM Act and set another target for the fiscal deficit?
2. How far do you agree with this view that Supreme Court should put a stop to freebies practice and save the precious national resources? Analyse your case.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Strategy requires thought, tactics require observation.
• An amended FRBM Act or the medium-term fiscal consolidation plan would have been useful also for getting a sense of how the government planned to reduce its debt over the next few years.
• The uncertainty over economic growth in view of Covid is understandable. But in such a situation setting the goalposts for fiscal rectitude becomes even more important.
• Encouraging companies to spend their surpluses on social projects such as education and health instead of merely enhancing shareholder value may sound logical in theory, but the question is whether a mandate of this nature can transform society in a meaningful way.
• Most concerning, perhaps, is that at a time when India urgently needs investment, the new disclosure requirements are unlikely to enhance India’s reputation as an easy place to do business.
• In order to gain a greater foothold in diverse services, India will need to invest heavily in education in the coming years, and it’s not clear how this will happen.
• Only the SC can put a stop to freebies practice and save the precious national resources from the clutches of the amoral political class.
• The nightmare scenario for India would be if the US decides that it confronts a greater threat from Russia and that this justifies a strategic accommodation with China.
• What SEBI’s decision would mean for the credibility of regulatory organisations, and the need for continuity in regulatory provisions is a matter worth losing sleepover.
• Now that the contentious farm laws have been repealed, focus can shift to strengthening APMC markets, which will improve access, give bargaining powers to farmers.
• The online skill gaming industry and government can work together to create a policy structure based on principles of light-touch regulation and not prohibition.

50-WORD TALK

• Pakistan has finally done the right thing by allowing Indian humanitarian aid to transit through Wagah to Afghanistan. Trade normalisation should be the next step. In 2019, Pakistan stopped imports from India, hurting its own economy. Top Pakistani industrialists are now seeking resumption of trade. Islamabad should heed their calls.
• The government’s decision to examine if SEBI took necessary punitive action in NSE scandal is apt. It should extend this to NSE’s independent directors at the time and probe if they fulfilled their fiduciary responsibility. Independent directors, especially former bureaucrats, need to be accountable, not treat such critical positions as sinecures.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in the news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and exploring other geographical locations nearby, including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the main point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.