1. Why forced recusals of judges harm the independence of the judiciary READ MORE
2. Humane law: A Delhi district judge has shown sensitivity that needs to be emulated while handling rape cases READ MORE
3. The real cost of data: India needs a privacy law before data use policy READ MORE

1. Nueva Pescanova: World’s First Octopus Farm Stirs Ethical Debate READ MORE
2. Living in gratitude is a way to be at peace READ MORE
3. Apathy, cynicism of babus hurt welfare READ MORE

1. India must revisit its forestry goals READ MORE
2. In Antarctica, Does a Burgeoning Krill Fishery Threaten Wildlife? READ MORE
3. Human presence has accelerated snow melting in Antarctica: Report READ MORE

1. On Hijab issue, listen to the missing voices READ MORE
2. Why Judges Should Not Interpret Religion READ MORE
3. Introduce digital media literacy in schools READ MORE

1. Drafting a new Constitution is impossible: That the Centre is suppressing the powers of the States is not reason enough for a new statute READ MORE
2. Understanding the Draft India Data Accessibility & Use Policy, 2022 READ MORE
3. India needs to take a serious look at its business laws. Here’s why READ MORE
4. Democracy needs challenges to assert itself READ MORE
5. India needs judicial reforms – but granting more powers to the chief justice won’t solve anything READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. NASA’s plan to decommission the International Space Station READ MORE
2. Indian Navy’s MILAN exercise to be held in Visakhapatnam from February 25 READ MORE
3. Ukraine Crisis: US Imposes Sanctions On Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Pipeline READ MORE
4. Tejas to participate in prestigious Cobra Warrior exercises of the Royal Air Force in the U.K. READ MORE
5. Explained: Who are Angadias and what are the challenges they face? READ MORE
6. SC to hear plea to declare ‘Ram Sethu’ national heritage monument on March 9 READ MORE
7. ‘Lakshya Zero Dumpsite’: Daddumajra Dumpsite Remediation in Chandigarh READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. India must revisit its forestry goals READ MORE
2. On Hijab issue, listen to the missing voices READ MORE
3. Why Judges Should Not Interpret Religion READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Drafting a new Constitution is impossible: That the Centre is suppressing the powers of the States is not reason enough for a new statute READ MORE
2. Understanding the Draft India Data Accessibility & Use Policy, 2022 READ MORE
3. India needs to take a serious look at its business laws. Here’s why READ MORE
4. Democracy needs challenges to assert itself READ MORE
5. India needs judicial reforms – but granting more powers to the chief justice won’t solve anything READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Introduce digital media literacy in schools READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Emerging axes, new equations: Pak-Russia dynamics in a changing world READ MORE
2. Quad takes another step forward READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Explained: How Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could impact Indian exports READ MORE
2. No garble, please READ MORE
3. Dealing with unclaimed bank deposits READ MORE
4. Circular economy for plastic: Progress in handling waste has been uninspiring READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. In Antarctica, Does a Burgeoning Krill Fishery Threaten Wildlife? READ MORE
2. Human presence has accelerated snow melting in Antarctica: Report READ MORE

SCIENCE

1. Fixing the under-representation of women in the sciences READ MORE
2. Promote the whys & hows: Objective should be to encourage the spirit of enquiry, not reverence for science READ MORE

SECURITY

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

GS Paper- 1

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Nueva Pescanova: World’s First Octopus Farm Stirs Ethical Debate READ MORE
2. Living in gratitude is a way to be at peace READ MORE
3. Apathy, cynicism of babus hurt welfare READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘India needs judicial reforms but granting more powers to the chief justice won’t solve this issue’. Comment on the statement.
2. Discuss the need for a protection law that can provide accountability and remedy for privacy violations such as coercive and excessive data collection.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• The important thing is to never stop questioning.
• Mining activities result in deforestation, alter the community ecology of native wildlife and push populations to extinction or migration. This will increase the instances of human-wildlife conflict.
• Drafting a new Constitution will be a chaotic exercise and will shut the voices of some sections, especially the vulnerable.
• India does not have a data protection law that can provide accountability and remedy for privacy violations such as coercive and excessive data collection or data breaches.
• Efforts to ensure gender equity should not be limited to the academies. All stakeholders must get involved.
• Muslim women’s voices are infantilised, dismissed, and they are forced to choose between false binaries such as education or hijab, Indianness or Muslimness.
• Financial illiteracy and lack of awareness about the procedures among the people lead to these kinds of situations. Therefore, financial literacy drive is welcome.
• A recent study focused on the United States and India pointed out the lack of attention to digital media literacy in education policies as a critical factor in spreading online misinformation.
• To reform the system, bureaucrats must start believing in welfare. Only then they will be able to find the right algorithm.
• Instead of wasting public money on grand events, government agencies engaged in science popularisation should direct their resources towards genuine engagement with people and communities.
• The fate of Indian democracy at this juncture hangs on the outcome of this struggle.
• The Quad has to now deliver on the identified sectors to maintain credibility and not regress again into a dormant state.
• Instead, the focus should have been on the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for judicial infrastructure, which is the flagship program for funding judicial infrastructure.

50-WORD TALK

• Mining activities result in deforestation, alter the community ecology of native wildlife and push populations to extinction or migration. This will increase the instances of human-wildlife conflict. These short term economic gains will ruin wildlife habitat as well as impose soil, water and air pollution. Such projects are being challenged by public interest litigators in the Madhya Pradesh High Court.

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 also 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.

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

1. Paper forests: India’s missing stretches of green READ MORE
2. Why the Plastic Waste Amendment Rules 2022 Is a Paper Tiger READ MORE

1. More than Covid-19, inequality killed many READ MORE
2. Are ‘metaverse’ weddings the new normal in India? READ MORE

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

(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.

1. Experience of interbeing READ MORE
2. Reforming Higher Education, With a Helping Hand From Philanthropy READ MORE

1. Global geography community commits to meaningful action in support of indigenous languages READ MORE
2. Marine Birds Continue to Die as Peru Oil Spill Clean-Up Stretches On READ MORE
3. Humans have degraded 84% of the world’s coastlines, reveals a new study READ MORE
4. Wildfires will be more frequent, larger and intense due to climate change: UNEP READ MORE

1. Why the right of young Indian Muslims to wear the hijab must be protected READ MORE
2. Protect LGBT people from violence, bias READ MORE

1. A red pen moment for corporate governance: Convulsions of outrage after episodes such as the NSE affair are pointless; significant institutional reform is a must READ MORE
2. Appointing High Court Judges–II READ MORE
3. Governors on warpath: Locked in unsavoury tussle with govts in Bengal, Kerala READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Fundamental duties must be enforced, says plea in Supreme Court READ MORE
2. India’s maritime strength in full display at Presidential Fleet Review READ MORE
3. Rajasthan: Cairn Vedanta makes oil discovery in OALP block in Barmer dist READ MORE
4. Assam: Padma Shri awardee & Gandhian Shakuntala Chowdhary passes away at 102 READ MORE
5. 2022 Winter Olympics: Everything you need to know about the Beijing Winter Olympics READ MORE
6. Explained: What are NFTs? How is it different from cryptocurrency? READ MORE
7. Storm Antonia: Fresh hurricane-force winds hit Germany READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. Why the right of young Indian Muslims to wear the hijab must be protected READ MORE
2. Global geography community commits to meaningful action in support of indigenous languages READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. A red pen moment for corporate governance: Convulsions of outrage after episodes such as the NSE affair are pointless; significant institutional reform is a must READ MORE
2. Appointing High Court Judges–II READ MORE
3. Governors on warpath: Locked in unsavoury tussle with govts in Bengal, Kerala READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Protect LGBT people from violence, bias READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Jaishankar, French counterpart discuss India-EU ties, Ukraine, Afghanistan READ MORE
2. India-US partnership for post-pandemic world READ MORE
3. The Ukraine crisis: Its impact on India READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. What explains India’s high import traiffs READ MORE
2. Digital ecosystems: Who should finance what? READ MORE
3. Workers in Gig and Platform Economies READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Marine Birds Continue to Die as Peru Oil Spill Clean-Up Stretches On READ MORE
2. Humans have degraded 84% of the world’s coastlines, reveals a new study READ MORE
3. Wildfires will be more frequent, larger and intense due to climate change: UNEP READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Information threats to India’s security READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Experience of interbeing READ MORE
2. Reforming Higher Education, With a Helping Hand From Philanthropy READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Centre-State ties require a working relationship and while it is not unusual for different parties to be in power at the Centre and in states, public interest requires them to work in tandem in a parliamentary democracy’. In the light of the statement discuss how the issue of Confrontation between state governments and Governors can be resolved?
2. ‘Confrontation between state governments and Governors are not unusual but they should adhere to political decorum and constitutional propriety with redress of public grievances being the common aim’. Comment.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful.
• It is urgent to protect gig workers labour rights and ensure minimum wages and social security benefits.
• A reality that acknowledges that in India today there is a perceptible hardening of attitudes towards Muslims in general and an increase in negative feelings and vicious actions against them.
• The insufficient public spending on higher education needs to be supplemented, not with for-profit private investment, which does not consider educational standards and quality, but rather with genuine philanthropy.
• The government should rationalize the direct taxes to address anomalies between Personal Income Tax (PIT) and corporate tax at one level and capital gains tax at another. Moreover, the tax rates should be low but free from exemptions/deductions.
• Low import duties need not boost exports and a selective trade-pact approach could help us replicate other success stories.
• India-USA can spearhead a sustainable and inclusive abundance agenda through our trade partnership, making the case for democracy through our shared prosperity.
• The essence and reach of Geography is much more than the study of the earth’s physical features, atmosphere and the impact of human activity upon them.
• In a political system where securing a majority may make the party in power at the Centre act unilaterally, states are wary of the office of the Governor being used to destabilise an elected government.
• Centre-State ties require a working relationship and while it is not unusual for different parties to be in power at the Centre and in states, public interest requires them to work in tandem in a parliamentary democracy.
• Confrontation between state governments and Governors are not unusual but they should adhere to political decorum and constitutional propriety with redress of public grievances being the common aim.

50-WORD TALK

• The Ukraine crisis is curtailing Indian role in the UN Security Council. New Delhi is doing its best to remain relevant. India is developing relations with EU and other countries and would prefer the European way of dealing with Russia than the tough posture which the US wants NATO to adopt. European nations will toe America’s line if war erupts. This reduces the efficacy of India’s European initiative.

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 also 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.

1. When habits return READ MORE
2. LEAD WITH COMPASSION READ MORE
3. Stress: A Positive Phenomenon READ MORE

1. Marine Birds Continue to Die as Peru Oil Spill Clean-Up Stretches On READ MORE
2. Humans have degraded 84% of the world’s coastlines, reveals a new study READ MORE
3. Wildfires will be more frequent, larger and intense due to climate change: UNEP READ MORE

1. Tapping technology for multilingual learning: As the theme of International Mother Language Day 2022, it has much relevance in reshaping Indian higher education READ MORE
2. A Bindi, a Hijab and the Inequality in What Is Proclaimed to Be Indian READ MORE
3. Will India’s gender budget truly serve as an instrument for ushering in women-led development? READ MORE

1. Upholding the law: UP pays for overreach in penalising anti-CAA protesters READ MORE
2. The steel frame of cooperative federalism READ MORE
3. The artificial intelligence-enabled nation READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Leather, footwear exports to reach $6 billion in 2022-23: Council for Leather Exports READ MORE
2. Explain Speaking: Why record food grain production may trigger renewed demands for MSPs READ MORE
3. Centre moots policy on synthetic biology READ MORE
4. KSI to be first research, studies centre on Kashmir Shaivism READ MORE
5. Assam government to launch ‘Project Arohan’ to hone students’ skills READ MORE
6. Government of India, World Bank sign loan agreement of 115 million US dollar for implementation REWARD Project READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. Tapping technology for multilingual learning: As the theme of International Mother Language Day 2022, it has much relevance in reshaping Indian higher education READ MORE
2. A Bindi, a Hijab and the Inequality in What Is Proclaimed to Be Indian READ MORE
3. Will India’s gender budget truly serve as an instrument for ushering in women-led development? READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Upholding the law: UP pays for overreach in penalising anti-CAA protesters READ MORE
2. The steel frame of cooperative federalism READ MORE
3. The artificial intelligence-enabled nation READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Protect LGBT people from violence, bias READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India and the UAE READ MORE
2. The significance of EU-India partnership in the Indo-Pacific READ MORE
3. The imperial roots of the India-China row READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Beyond the hype of blockchain, a look at its reality READ MORE
2. Green hydrogen’s promise READ MORE
3. Wealth Inequality: Capitalism Versus Socialism READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Marine Birds Continue to Die as Peru Oil Spill Clean-Up Stretches On READ MORE
2. Humans have degraded 84% of the world’s coastlines, reveals a new study READ MORE
3. Wildfires will be more frequent, larger and intense due to climate change: UNEP READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. When habits return READ MORE
2. LEAD WITH COMPASSION READ MORE
3. Stress: A Positive Phenomenon READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘The growing use of artificial intelligence in public policy is the most important thing to track about India’s governance’. Comment.
2. Do you think that Democracy resulting in better economic growth and educational attainment is a universal standard? Substantiate.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Uncertainty is an uncomfortable position. But certainty is an absurd one.
• Barely three decades ago, there existed societies where inequality was lower than ever before in human history, as compared to now when a mere 0.027% of world’s population owns a combined wealth of $45 trillion.
• Lightning strikes and air pollution will also increase due to wildfires according to the UNEP Frontiers report.
• Without urgent change, the implications for coastal biodiversity and society will become more profound.
• Co-existing over centuries, borrowing from and nurturing each other, our languages are interwoven with our individual, local and national identity.
• A truly strategic relationship can reshape the post-pandemic world and promote a multipolar order.
• A policy thrust will work well with India’s solar push. An RPO-like package will boost demand.
• At the heart of border dispute is the larger historical challenge of fitting the Ladakh region into a territorial model ill-suited to it.
• The state’s contention that a refund of damages would send a wrong message on deterrence was also rightly denied, highlighting the supremacy of the law.
• Consultation and consensus, and not unilateralism, must inform decision making, being the bedrock of our cooperative federalism.
• Once you create a new inequality, it is difficult to extinguish it; even if this ‘interim’ ban on the hijab is lifted, the harm won’t be undone.

50-WORD TALK

• The current payment and reimbursement structure creates incentives that are not only perverse but also disparate. The larger private sector fuelled by diabolical out-of-pocket payments has little or no incentive to control costs or deliver value. On the other hand, the public sector has strong incentives to underperform, again compromising on the value in healthcare.

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 also 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.

1. What it means to have a fertility rate of 2 READ MORE
2. Muslim women and their right to an education READ MORE
3. Child safety READ MORE

1. Culture is not fixed, it keeps changing with time READ MORE
2. Cease all arguments READ MORE
3. How Secular are Indian Schools in Practice? READ MORE