(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)
Prelim and Main
1. Amit Shah launches umbrella body for urban co-op banks READ MORE
2. Govt notifies Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 and its rules READ MORE
3. Mating calls of endangered hangul in Kashmir indicate record uptick in population READ MORE
4. Several OPEC+ nations extend oil cuts to boost prices READ MORE
5. Cuttack Rupa Tarakasi, Banglar muslin get GI tag READ MORE
6. PM to witness initiation of core loading of fast breeder reactor READ MORE
7. NDSA expert panel to examine Kaleshwaram project on March 6: Telangana Irrigation Minister READ MORE
8. Why Thailand’s now-replaced WTO Ambassador questioned India’s agriculture subsidies, what India argued READ MORE
9. Bribes for votes: SC says MLAs and MPs not immune from prosecution. What was the case? READ MORE
10. What the 2022 Status of Leopards in India report suggests about the big cat’s population estimates READ MORE
11. COM 2024: Climate financing hurdles take centrestage at African economic ministers’ conference READ MORE
Main
GS Paper- 1
1. ‘Gender gap’ between tall talk and action READ MORE
2. Uttrakhand’s Uniform Civil Code Is a Mere Extension of Highly Controlled Lives Indian Women Lead READ MORE
3. Most of Greater Horn of Africa to see excess rain till May thanks to El Nino, climate change READ MORE
GS Paper- 2
POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
1. Dire need to stem the rot plaguing democracy READ MORE
2. Bonds, not black money, gone: All eyes now on EC READ MORE
3. Why Simultaneous Polls May Reduce India to ‘World’s Largest Democracy’ Only in Name READ MORE
SOCIAL ISSUES
1. All is not well: Unintended consequences of maternity leave policy in India READ MORE
2. India’s pink economy READ MORE
INTERNATIONAL ISSUES
1. Can’t let war become work for Indian youth READ MORE
2. Need to reflect on WTO’s mandate READ MORE
3. The Greek presence at Raisina Dialogue READ MORE
GS Paper- 3
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
1. A women’s urban employment guarantee act READ MORE
2. Facts and statistics: On the national income data released by the National Statistical Office READ MORE
3. What it would mean to give farmers a fair deal READ MORE
4. It’s time to shut WTO down READ MORE
5. GDP growth numbers show robust optimism READ MORE
6. India’s widening economic disparity, food security READ MORE
ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY
1. UNEA-6 delegates want more action on plastics, Paris Agreement READ MORE
2. Mountains of plastic are choking the Himalayan States READ MORE
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
1. AI developers must keep an eye out for bias READ MORE
INTERNAL SECURITY
1. What is grey zone warfare, mentioned by India’s Chief of Defence Staff recently? READ MORE
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
1. Dilemmas in disaster management: SAARC under scrutiny READ MORE
GS Paper- 4
ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY
1. The complexity of communication READ MORE
2 Business of busy-ness and the absent self READ MORE
Questions for the MAIN exam
1. Supreme Court’s striking down of electoral bonds underscores the need for comprehensive reforms to combat corruption. Comment.
2. Discuss the importance of the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Smart Cities Scheme to address the issue of scientific waste management and make cities in the Indian Himalayan Region free of plastic.
3. The WTO has become like the UN, and it is important as a forum but of marginal usefulness in real situations. Comment in the light of recent developments.
4. WTO has always been a bargaining table for the Global North and South to balance their interests without jeopardising rules-based global trade but in recent times, it is increasingly failing to make the global trade regime equitable and rules-based. Comment.
5. Maternity leave policies have the potential to reduce the motherhood penalty faced by women in the labour market but past experience shows that correct policy design is critical to ensure that such women-centric policies benefit the targeted group. Comment.
QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS
- It is true that we have won all our wars, but we have paid for them.
- Empowering local bodies and creating the necessary infrastructure for waste management in the Indian Himalayan Region need immediate attention.
- Unscientific plastic disposal is causing soil and water pollution in the Indian Himalayan Region and impacting its biodiversity, which is having an adverse impact on the fresh water sources that communities downstream depend on.
- The Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Smart Cities Scheme under which many cities in the Indian Himalayan Region are selected, could also work in convergence on the issue of scientific waste management and making cities in the Indian Himalayan Region free of plastic.
- To address overall urban unemployment, some States have an urban employment programme. While these are not restricted to women, early evidence suggests a higher participation rate for women.
- Social audits would require an array of skill sets and this could be an important avenue for women who have completed Class 12 to join part time or full time and improve their job readiness.
- Legalising MSP would mean eliminating the urban consumer bias that always wants lower and lower prices, often at the cost of farmers.
- The discovery of the sense of self which is not in the past tense, or the future tense, but in the present, tense perfect.
- Free trade agreements are proliferating because they are beneficial and allow participants to hide behind the thick curtain of sovereignty.
- The WTO has become like the UN and it is important as a forum but of marginal usefulness in real situations.
- WTO has always been a bargaining table for the Global North and South to balance their interests without jeopardising rules-based global trade but in recent times, it is failing to make the global trade regime equitable and rules-based.
- Maternity leave policies have the potential to reduce the motherhood penalty faced by women in the labour market but past experience shows that correct policy design is critical to ensure that such women-centric policies benefit the targeted group.
- Menstrual rights encompass not only access to hygiene products but also the eradication of discriminatory practices surrounding this natural biological phenomenon.
- Changing cultural norms and ensuring menstrual rights are essential for a society free from shame and secrecy.
- India and Greece must build a Strategic Partnership by upgrading their bilateral ties further and forging cooperation in dimensions of economic, defence, maritime, shipping and cultural fields as they have a common interest in international and regional developments.
- Limited access to quality healthcare and education, often linked to economic disadvantage, can further exacerbate the existing inequalities, and perpetuate the cycle of poverty.
- Supreme Court’s striking down of electoral bonds underscores the need for comprehensive reforms to combat corruption.
- Letting loose the criminal justice system to defend the rights of animals has already victimised the most vulnerable in our society.
- The primary intention behind pushing simultaneous polls is to weaken multi-party democracy under which different parties govern in states and replace it with a one-party system with absolute power.
ESSAY TOPIC
- Passivity is fatal to a soldier.
50-WORD TALK
- Air pollution, women’s safety aren’t hot-button political issues. But brand India is taking a hard knock. ThePrint now reports a sharp drop in foreign tourists. Diplomats, expats list these as red flags on their ease-of-living index. Vishvaguru talk will sound hollow if informal whisper networks continue to rate India poorly.
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 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 mains 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.