INDIAN POLITY

1. WHAT IS RES JUDICATA?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-II- POLITY

THE CONTEXT:The Madras High Court recently dismissed a civil revision petition filed by a woman against an order of a lower court that had allowed a second divorce petition filed by her husband on the ground of res-judicata.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The concept of res judicata has evolved from the English Common Law System.
• Res judicata literally means ‘the thing has been judged”.
• The principle of res judicata applies when a litigant attempts to file a subsequent lawsuit on the same matter after having received a judgment in a previous case involving the same parties.
• It is a judicial concept which means that the issue before the court has already been decided by another court, between the same parties, and the courts do not allow a petition to be filed in the same or to the other Court.
• Therefore, the court will dismiss the case before it as being useless.
• Res Judicata as a concept is applicable both in the case of the Civil as well as Criminal legal system.

Purpose:

• To prevent injustice to the parties of a case supposedly finished.
• To avoid unnecessary waste of resources and time of the Judicial System.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

2. WHAT IS THE LIBERALISED REMITTANCE SCHEME (LRS)?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III- ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT:The Union Budget 2023 proposes a Tax Collection at Source (TCS) for foreign outward remittance under LRS (other than for Education and medical purpose) of 20% on the entire value.

THE EXPLANATION:

About the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS):

• LRS allows Indian residents to freely remit up to USD $250,000 per financial year for current or capital account transactions or a combination of both. Any remittance exceeding this limit requires prior permission from the RBI. The scheme was introduced on February 4, 2004

Who can remit funds under LRS?

• Only individual Indian residents, including minors, are permitted to remit funds under LRS.
• Corporates, partnership firms, HUF, trusts, etc., are excluded from its ambit.

Frequency of Remittances:

• There are no restrictions on the frequency of remittances under LRS.
• Once a remittance is made for an amount up to USD 2,50,000 during the financial year, a resident individual would not be eligible to make any further remittances under this scheme.

Types of transactions permitted:

• Opening of foreign currency account abroad with a bank;
• Acquisition of immovable property abroad, overseas direct investment (ODI), and overseas portfolio investment (OPI);
• Extending loans, including loans in Indian Rupees to non-resident Indians (NRIs) who are relatives as defined in the Companies Act, 2013;
• Private visits abroad (excluding Nepal and Bhutan);
• Maintenance of relatives abroad;
• Medical treatment abroad;
• Pursuing studies abroad ;
• Tax liability on profit made: If any profit is made on foreign investments made under LRS, it is taxable in India based on how long the investment was held.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. WHAT ARE VERMINS?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT:The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is working to develop immuno-contraceptive measures for population management of species that have become problematic for humans in many parts of the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Vermins:

• Vermin are usually considered problem or nuisance animals that attack humans, crops, livestock or property.
• Species which are classified as Vermin are placed under Schedule Vof the Wildlife Protection Act, of 1972.

Key facts about the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

• There are Six Schedules in this act. These Schedules give a different standard of protection.
• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule I and part II of Schedule II get supreme protection. Offences under these are prescribed the highest penalties.
• For example Himalayan Brown Bear, Indian Elephant etc.
• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule III and Schedule IV are also secured, but the penalties are comparatively much lower.
• For example, Barking Deer, Falcons, Kingfisher, Tortoise etc.
• Schedule V includes the animals which can be hunted.
• For example, Common Crow, Mice, Rats, Fruit Bats etc.
• The plants, trees and crops mentioned in Schedule VI are banned from Cultivation and Planting. For example, Kuth, Red Vanda, Pitcher Plant etc.

4. DICKINSONIA

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: Recently, an alleged fossil discovered near Bhopal about two years ago and thought to be of the extinct Dickinsonia turned out to be the impression of a decayed beehive.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Dickinsonia:

• Dickinsonia is an extinct genus of basal animal that lived during the late Ediacaran period on ocean floors around present-day’s Australia, Russia and Ukraine.
• The individual Dickinsonia typically resembles a bilaterally symmetrical ribbed oval.
• Its affinities are presently unknown; its mode of growth is consistent with a stem-group bilaterian affinity, though some have suggested that it belongs to the fungi or even an “extinct kingdom”.
• The discovery of cholesterol molecules in fossils of Dickinsonia lends support to the idea that Dickinsonia was an animal.
• It is believed to be one of the key links between the early, simple organisms and the explosion of life in the Cambrian Period, about 541 million years ago.

About the Ediacaran period

• It consisted of tubular and frond-shaped organisms that lived during this period.
• The Ediacaran Period was about 20 million years before the emergence of modern animal life — a period known as the Cambrian explosion.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. KEANUMYCINS

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT:Recently, researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI) have discovered a new antimicrobial agent.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Keanumycins :

• A group of molecules developed by bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas has proven to have such a strong antimicrobial effect that researchers have named them keanumycins.
• The researchers proved that the substance is effective against both plant fungal diseases and human-pathogenic fungi.
• The group of molecules works effectively against the planet pest Botrytis cinerea, which triggers grey mould rot in crops, causing massive harvest losses every year.
• It also affects fungi that are dangerous to humans, like Candida albicans and has been proven to be harmless to plant and human cells.
• Keanumycins can be an environment-friendly alternative to chemical pesticides.

What is Pseudomonas?

Pseudomonas is a type of bacteria (germ) that is found commonly in the environment, like in soil and water.

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