WSDP Bulletin (18/12/2024)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Why the government could discontinue the sovereign gold scheme READ MORE

2. One Nation One Election Bill Explained: Proposals, key takeaways READ MORE

3. Why scientists are recommending Punjab’s farmers grow barley READ MORE

4. Current climate change trends push biodiversity to irreversible loss: IPBES Nexus Report READ MORE

5. IPBES Nexus Report recognises role of indigenous peoples & knowledge in protecting nature READ MORE

6. India’s e-waste surges by 73% in 5 years READ MORE

7. The Constitution on minority rights READ MORE

8. House panel recommends legalised MSP, says it will address farmer suicides READ MORE

9. Explained Radhakrishnan panel recommends restructuring of NTA, asks for better coordination with States READ MORE

Main

GS Paper- 1

1. Empowering daughters: How conditional cash transfers can shift cultural norms READ MORE

2. Bridging Divides in the Workplace READ MORE

3. Why simplicity and equality must redefine weddings READ MORE

4. Are Indian wives really weaponising domestic violence and maintenance laws? READ MORE

5. Mapping of foetus’s brain at IIT-Madras can yield significant breakthroughs READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. The legal gaps in India’s unregulated AI surveillance READ MORE

2. Simultaneous polls are an imperative for India READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

​​​1. The challenge of universal health coverage READ MORE

2. United efforts required to end violence against people with disabilities READ MORE

3. Transforming rural health systems READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

​​1. More of the same: On the Sri Lankan President’s India visit READ MORE

2. What Indian PM’s first visit to Kuwait in four decades means for diplomacy in Middle East READ MORE

3. Nepal embraces China’s BRI READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. ​​Why taxing super-rich is an outmoded plan READ MORE

2. India@2024: A resilient economy on the fast track to growth READ MORE

3. Subsidy diversion calls for tighter checks READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Wetland revival: No room for false starts READ MORE

2. Burning green: Health costs of landscape fires READ MORE

3. Diluting the Wildlife (Protection) Act for rhesus macaques will be devastating for this Indian species READ MORE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

1. Trump 2.0 presents fresh possibilities for India’s technology sector READ MORE

INTERNAL SECURITY

​1. Understanding the new terrorist outfits in J&K READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Warding off fire: on hospital fires READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Here comes the Sun READ MORE

2. Rediscover Happiness READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. Enumerate the legal frameworks, gaps, and concerns surrounding AI surveillance in India and how they intersect with constitutional rights, particularly the right to privacy.

2. While data-driven governance offers solutions for public welfare and crime prevention, this practice is against the individual’s right to privacy, as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. Analyse.

3. The Supreme Court of India recognised privacy as a fundamental right, extending its scope to “informational privacy”. Examine.

4. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) aims to ensuring accountability for data privacy in India. Comment.

5. While integrating advanced technologies in law enforcement and governance offers immense potential, India must be balanced against citizens’ constitutional rights. Comment.

6. In the age of AI, transparency and fairness must guide the evolving relationship between creativity and technology. Comment in the light of copyright challenges posed by GenAI.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

    • While technological integration in law enforcement is commendable, it raises substantial legal and constitutional concerns.
    • While data-driven governance offers solutions for public welfare and crime prevention, these practices must be measured against the individual’s right to privacy, as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
    • While technological integration in law enforcement is commendable, it raises substantial legal and constitutional concerns.
    • While data-driven governance offers solutions for public welfare and crime prevention, these practices must be measured against the individual’s right to privacy, as guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
    • The Supreme Court of India, in K.S. Puttaswamy vs Union of India (2017), recognised privacy as a fundamental right, extending its scope to “informational privacy”.
    • The Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), passed in 2023, was meant to provide a framework for managing consent and ensuring accountability for data privacy in India.
    • The DPDPA places heightened scrutiny on individual data while offering the government broad leeway in its use and collection.
    • The right to privacy, as enshrined in Article 21, and the principle of proportionality, as outlined in the Puttaswamy judgment, demand that any intrusion into personal data be backed by law, pursue legitimate aims, and be proportionate to the goal pursued.
    • It is not the use of AI in governance itself that is problematic, but rather its unchecked application without sufficient safeguards. A comprehensive regulatory framework that addresses AI’s implications for civil liberties is urgently needed.
    • India is at a crucial juncture in deploying AI-powered surveillance. While integrating advanced technologies in law enforcement and governance offers immense potential, it must be balanced against citizens’ constitutional rights.
    • To mitigate risks from AI-driven surveillance, regulating “high-risk activities” through restrictions on digital personal data processing and transparent auditor oversight of data sharing is crucial.
    • The Middle East is poised for deep structural change and India’s evolving relationship with Arab Gulf nations will only help in establishing a concrete diplomatic and economic alliance in the turbulent region.
    • The introduction in Parliament of amendment bills to usher in simultaneous elections is a significant moment for India’s storied parliamentary democracy.
    • Nepal’s deepening ties with China through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) have set alarm bells ringing in New Delhi.
    • Governments, at the Central and state levels, and local bodies, should consider it their responsibility to restore wetlands that have deteriorated and ensure that the others are protected.
    • In the age of AI, transparency and fairness must guide the evolving relationship between creativity and technology.
    • The copyright challenges posed by GenAI are more than just legal questions — they reflect societal values of fairness, innovation, and intellectual property.

ESSAY TOPIC

    • Science, merely by virtue of its immense power, must equip itself to choose between right and wrong

50-WORD TALK

    • INDIA bloc members Omar Abdullah and Abhishek Banerjee are wise to question Congress’ hypocrisy about EVMs. It’s a conspiracy theory that waxes and wanes depending on whether you’re winning or losing. Call for return to paper ballots is cynical nonsense. You can’t insult voters’ judgement selectively when they reject you.

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.
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