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Important topics and their relevance in UPSC CSE exam for September 14, 2025. If you missed the September 13, 2025, UPSC CSE exam key from the Indian Express, read it here.
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Main Examination: General Studies-II, III: Government policies and interventions, Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, Infrastructure.
What’s the ongoing story: After a change in his travel programme because of heavy rainfall in the Northeast on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his first visit to Manipur since the start of the ethnic conflict in the state in May 2023, delivering a message of peace as the path towards progress in the troubled state. His message was clear: “I am with you, the government of India is with you.”
Key Points to Ponder:
— Read about the violence in Manipur.
— What is the cause of ethnic violence in Manipur?
— Examine the role of ethnic and communal tensions in the North-eastern region of India with a focus on the Manipur conflict.
— What are the socio-political and historical reasons for persistent violence in the North-eastern states of India?
— What is the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement?
— Map work: Locate Manipur and its major geographical features.
— What measures can the government take to ensure peace and harmony in the Northeast region?
Key Takeaways:
— The thrust of the Prime Minister’s speeches in both locations was the development projects worth Rs 4,300 crore that he laid foundation stones for in Churachandpur and projects worth Rs 1,200 crore that he inaugurated in Imphal, with a clear message that “peace is imperative for development”.
— In both locations, he also spoke about people displaced by the conflict who continue to live in relief camps across the state. Over 58,000 people are currently living in such relief camps. On his development pitch in Imphal, Modi spoke about the launch of the Rs 3,600 crore Manipur Urban Road Project and the Rs 500 crore Infotech Development Project. In Churachandpur, he also emphasised tribal development and local governance projects.
6 key takeaways: From infrastructure as unifier to sports for integration
— On his first visit to Manipur since the onset of ethnic conflict in the state in May 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday addressed separate gatherings in Churachandpur and Imphal.
— While in the Kuki-Zo-dominated hill district of Churachandpur, PM Modi met victims in relief camps and sought to reassure displaced tribal communities, in the valley’s Imphal he reached out to Meiteis, underlining Manipur’s role in India’s growth story.
— In both his speeches, Modi’s themes were consistent: peace as a precondition for progress, reconciliation between the hills and the valley, infrastructure and welfare as bridges, and renewed focus on local governance, women, and youth.
— Here are six key takeaways from the PM’s speeches:
1. Peace for progress: Calling violence an “injustice” to Manipur’s forefathers as well as future generations, Modi made peace the central theme of his trip. In Churachandpur, he said, “This land of Manipur is the land of hope and aspirations. But, unfortunately, violence took over this magnificent region… the new dawn of hope and belief is knocking the doors of Manipur.” In Imphal, he warned, “Any kind of violence in Manipur is unfortunate. It is an injustice to Manipur’s forefathers and the future generations.”
2. Rehabilitation of displaced: In Churachandpur, after meeting families living in relief camps, the PM announced the construction of 7,000 homes, a Rs 3,000-crore special package, and Rs 500 crore for relief.
3. Local governance: Addressing one of the hills’ long-standing grievances, the PM said, “It is the government’s effort that local body governance is strengthened. Appropriate funds are being arranged for the development of local bodies. The development of every tribal community is a priority for the country.”
— The Autonomous District Councils in hill areas have long complained of being “sidelined”, with little financial or administrative power. Their alleged disempowerment under a Meitei-dominated polity has fuelled resentment in the hills and is understood to have sown the seeds of their demand for a “separate administration”.
4. Big-ticket infrastructure push: Modi positioned infrastructure as the bridge between fractured communities. In Churachandpur, he pointed to Rs 3,700 crore being already spent on highways, Rs 8,700 crore sanctioned for new projects, and Rs 22,000 crore on the Jiribam-Imphal rail link. In Imphal, the PM inaugurated projects worth thousands of crores, including the Rs 3,600-crore Manipur Urban Road Project and Rs 500-crore Infotech Development Project.
5. Women empowerment: In Imphal, Modi cited the state’s unique women-led market economy, highlighting the traditional Ima Keithel markets run by women traders. “Manipur is one state where women are at the forefront of the economy. The Ima Keithel tradition is evidence of that. I consider woman power as the fulcrum of India’s growth and Atmanirbhar Bharat,” he said, while announcing four new Ima Keithel markets and working women’s hostels.
6. Youth, sports, integration: From hoisting of the tricolour by the Indian National Army (INA) at Moirang during India’s freedom struggle to contemporary sporting pride, Modi projected Manipur’s youth as India’s bridge to both the past and future. The PM also underscored that “without Manipur’s sports, India’s sports is incomplete” while citing the government’s initiatives in the form of setting up of the National Sports University, Olympic Park, and polo infrastructure.
Do You Know:
— The Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement is essentially a tripartite ceasefire deal to initiate political dialogue. Signed in 2008, the agreement was between the Centre, the Manipur state government, and the KNO and the UPF, two umbrella groups comprising 24 separate Kuki-Zomi insurgent groups.
— The SoO agreement with militant groups under the umbrellas of Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and United People’s Front (UPF) has been renewed with renegotiated terms.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Main Examination: General Studies-II, III: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian Economy.
What’s the ongoing story: To prevent loss of market share following the high 50% US tariffs, the government is ready to extend a series of mitigating measures such as subsidised interest rates, collateral-free loans and credit guarantee, to labour-intensive exporters.
Key Points to Ponder:
— Read about the imposition of a 50% tariff by US on India.
— What are India’s import and export trends with regard to the US?
— What are the sectors to be affected most by the higher tariff imposed by the US?
— What steps should be taken to manage the implications of higher tariffs?
— How are tariffs retaliated?
— What is an interest equalisation scheme?
— What is countervailing duty?
Key Takeaways:
— Exporters also want government support in facilitating access to big domestic buyers — both public like the Railways, and private like Reliance Retail and Aditya Birla Group.
— In the first half of this year, and just weeks before the 25% reciprocal US tariffs kicked-in on August 7, India managed a 12% growth in shipments of textiles and apparels to the US. This was, however, far lower than the export growth clocked by competitors Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Cambodia.
— With the additional 25% secondary tariffs for Russian oil purchases becoming effective August 27, there is little doubt the comparative advantage has reversed sharply for India, impacting shipments of leather and shrimps, apart from textiles and apparel.
— In New Delhi, policy makers had multiple rounds of deliberations with affected exporters, and a constant refrain in these meetings is: Shore up market share, whatever it takes… Losing market share will make it really difficult to recover it back as and when the tariff situation normalises.
— Among the likely policy measures are several pandemic era schemes that were earlier targeted at addressing a demand shock. This includes a broad support package aimed at providing liquidity through collateral-free loans and subsidised interest rates, and likely credit guarantees offered on loans overdue by up to 3-months for small exporters.
— The reintroduction of a provision modelled on an earlier interest equalisation scheme, as demanded by the industry, is also being considered.
— The challenge for the government is to ensure that measures formulated for relief to exporters to tide over the impact of the American tariff, is not specific to the US. These need to be general measures, since an incentive aimed at one particular market, such as the US, could lead to the imposition of a corresponding countervailing duty by Washington – something that has happened in the past.
— The industry has been asking to restore the Interest Equalisation scheme (IES), which has been one of the most effective instruments to remove cost disability of Indian exports.
— This scheme (IES) – which provided the much-needed competitiveness to exports, particularly to the MSMEs, since the interest costs in India are much higher than in competitors’ countries – was inexplicably wound up by the Central government last year. It was a relatively small scheme, with some Rs 2,500 crore annual expenditure available mostly to the MSMEs.
Do You Know:
— The impact of the tariffs could be broad-based, as the US accounts for 20 per cent of India’s merchandise exports and slightly less than 2 per cent of its overall GDP.
— Product categories that are likely to be hit the hardest by high US tariffs include textiles and apparel, gems and jewellery, shrimps, machinery and mechanical appliances, some metals (steel, aluminium, copper), organic chemicals, agriculture and processed foods, leather and footwear, handicrafts, furniture, and carpets.
— The US accounts for 48 per cent of revenue for India’s shrimp exporters, which means that the marine exports sector would also see a sharp decline in volumes.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
📍Jaishankar hits out at US tariff, says talks on, ‘lines not cut’
UPSC Prelims Practice Question Covering similar theme:
(1) Consider the following statements:
1. Tariffs are taxes or duties imposed by a government on imported goods and services.
2. Objective of tariffs is to make foreign products more expensive compared to domestically produced goods.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Previous year UPSC Mains Questions Covering similar theme:
‘What introduces friction into the ties between India and the United States is that Washington is still unable to find for India a position in its global strategy, which would satisfy India’s National self-esteem and ambitions’. Explain with suitable examples. (UPSC CSE 2019)
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies-II, III: Government Policies and interventions, Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
What’s the ongoing story: While highlighting the importance of Mizoram as a major player in Centre’s Act East policy and its standing in the geopolitics of South East Asia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday inaugurated the ambitious 51.38-km Bairabi-Sairang rail line, connecting the capital Aizawl to the Indian Railways network for the first time.
Key Points to Ponder:
— What is Act East policy?
— What is the significance of the Bairabi-Sairang rail line?
— Read about the Mizrom state, its history, major tribes etc.
— What are the socio-economic effects of the introduction of railways in the Himalayas and North Eastern Region of India.
— What is Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project?
— What is the UDAN scheme?
Key Takeaways:
— Aizawl, which is around 20km far from the satellite town Sairang, is the fourth northeastern capital after Guwahati, Agartala and Itanagar to be linked to the Indian Railways’ grid. Before this project, there was only a 5-km railway line inside Mizoram, up to the Bairabi station on the Assam-Mizoram border.
— In all, PM Modi laid the foundation stone, inaugurated development works worth over Rs 9,000 crore in Aizawl. He also flagged off three new express trains, Sairang (Aizawl)-Delhi (Anand Vihar Terminal) Rajdhani express, Sairang-Guwahati Express and Sairang-Kolkata Express. He could not come to the Aizawl ground due to the bad weather and addressed the gathering through video conferencing from Mizoram’s Lengpui airport.
— PM Modi said that Mizoram has a major role in both our Act East Policy and the emerging North East Economic Corridor. “With the Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project and Sairang-Hbichhuah Railway line, Mizoram will also get connected to the Bay of Bengal through South East Asia. Due to this, trade and tourism will be boosted across North East India and South East Asia,” he said.
— Modi said that over the years, many states of the North East have been put on the rail map of India for the first time and Mizoram will also benefit from the UDAN scheme for air travel. Soon, helicopter services will begin to improve access to remote areas of the state.
— The Bairabi-Sairang line, which cuts through Kolasib and Aizawl districts of Mizoram, has 45 tunnels, 55 major bridges, 88 minor bridges, five Road over Bridges (ROBs) and six Road Under Bridges (RUBs), of which Bridge No. 196 or the Kurung Bridge is the highest at 114 metres, 42 metres taller than the Qutub Minar.
— Almost 54 per cent of the line is in tunnels and bridges only. Initially the cost of the project was Rs. 5021.45 crore, which was later revised to almost Rs 8,100 crore.
— Earlier, there was only a small metre-gauge line in Mizoram, which was laid in the late 1980s. It was only in May 2016 that the 84-km-long metre-gauge line between Katakhal (Assam) and Bairabi (Mizoram) was brought on the Broad Gauge network of the Indian Railways. It was the first time when the state received its first freight train with 42 wagons of rice and a passenger service flagged off virtually by PM Modi. Beyond Bairabi, which served as the railhead, the entire state depended on the depleted road network for transportation of people and freight.
Do You Know:
— The Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project links Kolkata to Sittwe port in Myanmar via sea link, before reaching Zorinpui in Mizoram. Beyond that, a network of road and rail projects such as the Bairabi-Sairang line and its proposed extension, the 223-km Sairang to Hbichhuah (on Mizoram’s border with Myanmar), is seen as India’s answer to flexing by Bangladesh and China.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
📍Bairabi-Sairang railway project: First cargo train from Mizoram to start operations
UPSC Prelims Practice Question Covering similar theme:
(2) Consider the following statements:
1. Bairabi-Sairang rail project connects three states of North-East India.
2. It will connect Mizoram’s capital for the first time with the Indian Railways network.
Which of the above given statements is/are true?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national importance, Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution.
Mains Examination: General Studies-II: Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act, Constitution of India — features, significant provisions and basic structure.
What’s the ongoing story: Pointing out that the rules regarding revision of electoral rolls do not couch the obligation to do so within a timeline but leave it to the discretion of the Election Commission (EC), the poll body has told the Supreme Court that directing it to hold Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the rolls at regular intervals would encroach on its exclusive jurisdiction.
Key Points to Ponder:
— Read about the Election Commission of India (ECI)
— What are the powers and functions of ECI?
— What is the Special Intensive Revision?
— What is the constitutional backing for conducting SIR?
— What is the purpose of conducting the SIR?
— What are the constitutional and statutory provisions related to the preparation and revision of electoral rolls in India?
— What are the concerns related to SIR?
— Read about the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Registration of Electors Rules 1960.
Key Takeaways:
— The EC said this in a counter-affidavit filed in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, seeking direction to conduct SIR at regular intervals throughout the country.
— Seeking dismissal of the petition, the poll panel said “any direction to conduct a SIR at regular interval throughout the country would encroach upon the exclusive jurisdiction of the ECI”.
— The poll panel pointed out that “under Article 324 of the Constitution of India, the superintendence, direction, and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to Parliament and to the Legislature of every State are vested in the Election Commission of India”.
— It added that the provision “forms the bedrock of the Election Commission’s plenary authority in all matters relating to the preparation of electoral rolls and conduct of elections”.
— The EC said it “is vested with constitutional as well as the statutory powers to oversee the preparation and revision of electoral rolls. These statutory powers include the authority to carry out either intensive revision or summary revision of the electoral roll, depending on the situation.”
— The Commission added that “the enabling provisions under The Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules 1960 provide ECI powers to decide whether an intensive or summary revision is appropriate, based on prevailing circumstances.”
— It further said that Section 21 of the Representation of People Act (RPA), 1950, provides for the preparation and revision of electoral rolls, and vests a discretion in the EC to as regards the “timing of the revisional exercise”.
— Section 21 of the RPA must be read with Rule 25 of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 (RER) which governs the exercise of revision and the manner in which it is to be conducted, it said, adding that, “on a bare perusal of Rule 25, it is further apparent that the decision to conduct a summary or an intensive revision of the electoral roll is left to the discretion of the ECI.”
Do You Know:
— The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a permanent, independent, and constitutional authority responsible for conducting free and fair elections in the Union and the States of India.
— The Constitution has the following articles (Articles 324–329) to empower the Election Commission and provide insight into the potential roles and functions of the commission.
— Article 324: The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of the electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to Parliament and the Legislature of every state and of elections to the offices of President and Vice-President.
— Article 325: No individual to be excluded from electoral rolls on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or any of them.
— Article 326: Adult suffrage shall be the basis for elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assemblies of States.
— Article 327: Parliament may, according to the provisions of this Constitution, from time to time enact laws with respect to all matters relating to elections to Parliament and Legislative Assemblies of States.
— Article 328: A state’s Legislature may from time to time by law make provision with respect to all matters relating to, or in connection with, the elections to the House or either House of the Legislature.
— Article 329: The article prohibits the courts from becoming involved in electoral matters.
— Special summary revisions take place every year, and the electoral roll is updated before each Lok Sabha and state Assembly election. Intensive revisions have been carried out in 1952-56, 1957, 1961, 1965, 1966, 1983-84, 1987-89, 1992, 1993, 1995, 2002, 2003 and 2004.
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
📍Election Commission of India: Composition, powers and functions
Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
(3) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE 2017)
1. The Election Commission of India is a five-member body.
2. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs decides the election schedule for the conduct of both general elections and bye-elections.
3. Election Commission resolves the disputes relating to splits/mergers of recognised political parties.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 3 only
Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:
To enhance the quality of democracy in India the Election Commission of India has proposed electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant to make democracy successful? (UPSC CSE 2017)
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies-II: India and its neighbourhood- relations.
What’s the ongoing story: Mahesh Kushwaha- “September 8 and 9 marked two of the darkest days in Nepal’s modern political history, which saw a Gen Z-led movement against corruption quickly turn into an unprecedented catastrophe.”
Key Points to Ponder:
— Know in detail about Nepal’s GenZ Protest.
— What led to the anti-government “Gen Z protests” in Nepal?
— What is India’s Neighbourhood First Policy?
— What can be the regional implications of Nepal’s ongoing political churn?
— What can be the impact of political instability in Nepal on India-Nepal relations?
Key Takeaways:
— “The government’s crackdown that left 19 protesters dead on the first day led to escalated protests on the second. Rampaging mobs vandalised businesses, attacked leaders, torched their houses and set ablaze some of the most important public offices, including Parliament and the Supreme Court. Thousands escaped prisons from across the country.”
— “By the end of the second day of protests, Nepal was not just under a massive political vacuum, but also under a state of lawlessness, causing widespread uncertainty about the country’s future. Marking an end to yet another revolution in Nepal, being referred to as ‘Jana Andolan-III’ by many, on September 12, former Chief Justice Sushila Karki was appointed as the interim head of the government and the President called for elections on March 5, 2026.”
— “Although this is not the first instance of Nepali youth influencing the country’s political trajectory through protests, the 2025 movement featured some stark differences: spontaneity, lack of leaders and digital-age energy. To make sense of how Nepal arrived at this crucial juncture, one needs to look into its cyclical history of popular movements and where the 2025 revolution fits.”
— “Nepal has gone through a series of unfinished revolutions, which included the participation of youth, all seeking to transform the country from the authoritarian Rana regime to a federal democratic republic. In 1951, a revolution deposed the 104-year-old Rana oligarchy, restoring King Tribhuvan to power in an arrangement mediated by India.”
— “Built on the aspirations of Nepali Congress members, who were active in India’s anti-colonial movement, and student uprisings like the Jayatu Sanskritam movement of 1947, it was hailed as the “dawn of democracy” in Nepal. However, political instability in subsequent years allowed King Mahendra to consolidate power in his hands.”
— “After three decades of absolute monarchy, in 1990, Nepal’s political parties led the first people’s movement, the Jana Andolan-I, with an active mobilisation of youth activists. The movement restored multiparty democracy and established constitutional monarchy in Nepal.”
— “From 1996 to 2006, Nepali youth performed a dual role — while radicalised rural youth served as Maoist guerrillas, students and youth fronts carried out urban protests. Maoist insurgency culminated in the second people’s movement, Jana Andolan-II, in 2006, after political parties joined hands to launch a revolution against monarchy.”
— “Triggered by King Gyanendra’s imposition of direct rule, the 19-day protests led to the monarchy being overthrown in 2008 and the declaration of Nepal as a “democratic, secular and inclusive republican nation”.”
— “However, a perceived sense of exclusion in the post-revolution political settlements saw Madhes-based parties and leaders launch their own struggles for greater autonomy and representation. When the Second Constituent Assembly promulgated a new Constitution in September 2015, the ongoing demonstrations in Madhes intensified.”
— “The 2025 revolution, which began on social media platforms and, ironically enough, spilled over into the streets after their ban, must be seen as a continuation of an unfinished agenda. Like earlier movements, it appears to have sprung from the disillusionment that the country’s democratic transitions have not delivered fundamental socio-economic changes.”
— “Late on September 12, when Karki was sworn in as the head of the interim government, people not only celebrated Nepal’s first woman Prime Minister, but also breathed a sigh of relief at having averted a major political crisis.”
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
(4) Consider the following pairs: (UPSC CSE 2016)
| Community sometimes mentioned in the news | In the affairs of | |
| 1. | Kurd | Bangladesh |
| 2. | Madhesi | Nepal |
| 3. | Rohingya | Myanmar |
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 3 only
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.
Mains Examination: General Studies-II: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests.
What’s the ongoing story: Sri Lanka in 2022. Bangladesh in 2024. Indonesia in August 2025…and now Nepal, a month later. The past few years have been littered with youth-led uprisings in Asian countries, coming at a time when the headline growth numbers have not resulted in better lives for those entering the labour force.
Key Points to Ponder:
— What is the demographic dividend?
— What is the Corruption Perceptions Index? ‘
— Read about the World Population Prospects 2024 report.
— What are the reasons behind the high unemployment rate in South Asian countries?
— Why are many Asian developing economies failing to harness demographic dividends effectively?
— What are the factors behind the recent youth-led uprisings in countries like Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Indonesia?
— What is the significance of governance reforms in addressing the youth’s discontent over corruption?
Key Takeaways:
— At the same time, the ruling elite and business class seem to have prospered. Over the last week, the children of Nepal’s political class have come under heavy fire for displaying their luxurious lifestyles on social media, with the phrase ‘nepo kids’ trending as the Gen Z’s ire over corruption took centre-stage.
— In 2024, Nepal was ranked 107 out of 180 countries in Transparency International’s corruption rankings. Bangladesh was ranked 151, Sri Lanka 121, and Indonesia 99.
— The high levels of corruption and lack of political continuity have meant economic growth has not been inclusive, with the youth suffering in particular. And these countries are all rather young. According to the United Nations’ World Population Prospects 2024 report, the median age of Nepal last year was 25 years, only slightly lower than Bangladesh’s 25.7. For Indonesia it was 30.1, while Sri Lanka’s was 33.1 years.
— Countries with a young population bank on the youth to propel economic growth higher. This gain, called the demographic dividend, comes from changes in the age structure of a country’s population which lead to the proportion of the working-age population becoming increasingly larger than those who don’t work – young children and the retired.
— As young adults finish their education, they expect to enter the labour force and boost the talent available to domestic firms. An increase in supply of talent can also ensure wages don’t rise much, helping raise profits, which can help finance future investments. This would then support the creation of more jobs. This, seemingly, has not happened in many of Asia’s developing economies.
— In Indonesia, the national average unemployment rate in 2024 was 4.91 per cent. But for those in the 20-24 age bracket, the unemployment rate was more than three times as high: 15.34 per cent. In Bangladesh, the national unemployment rate in 2023 was 3.35 per cent. However, at 8.24 per cent, the highest unemployment rate was for those in the 15-24 years age bracket.
— In Nepal, the country’s statistics office said in July that the employment challenge was “significant”. “The high dependence on foreign employment and remittances, coupled with limited industrial development and job creation in the formal sector, presents ongoing challenges for policymakers,” the National Statistics Office said in a report titled Demographic Dividend in Nepal, adding that the labour market sector had not shown any improvement, with unemployment increasing to 12.6 per cent in 2022-23 from 11.4 percent in 2017-18.
— With underemployment even more prevalent, especially among those aged 15-24, young Nepalis were looking abroad for jobs, resulting in remittances accounting for nearly a quarter of the country’s GDP. “These trends highlight the urgent need for domestic job creation in emerging sectors and industries to retain talent and support the economy sustainably… without sufficient job creation, Nepal risks missing out on the economic benefits of its demographic dividend.”
Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:
📍Jobs to inequality to corruption: What lit the fuse in Nepal
📍 Anger, remittance economy, tourism, I-T: Why social media ban was trigger
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| Angler’s paradise regained: Kashmir to bring back brown trout for game | In the winter of 1900, the British introduced Kashmir to a new guest – the Scotland native brown trout. Fittingly, the new guest took to the place like fish to water – not only did it enrich its aquatic life but it also made it an angler’s paradise. Over a century later, Kashmir is all set to welcome back its old friend — the fisheries department plans to reintroduce the trout back into the Valley for game. The fish will be reintroduced into cold-water streams in October.
A cold-water fish, the brown trout – like its cousin, the rainbow trout — prefers cool and well-oxygenated water. Usually growing to between 15 and 22 inches in length and between 1 and 5 pounds, the trout is considered a popular game fish. While the rainbow trout can grow robustly in fish farms or fish tanks, making them good for food production, the brown trout only thrives in the wild. Best suited to freshwaters, this fish spends much of its time in crevices between boulders in streams. |
| US seeks G7 action against Russian oil buyers to force an end to Ukraine war | The US has asked G7 countries to ramp up pressure on countries buying Russian oil, to end the war in Ukraine, a joint statement released by the US Department of the Treasury said on Friday. The G7 is an informal bloc of countries, including the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the UK. |
| Nepal’s next polls on March 5, says President’s Office | Nepal’s next parliamentary elections will be held on March 5, President Ramchandra Paudel’s office has announced, following a week of violent protests in Kathmandu that led to the resignation of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and appointment of former chief justice and anti-corruption activist Sushila Karki as interim PM. |
| UN overwhelmingly backs two-state solution to Israel-Palestine conflict | The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Friday to support a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict and urge Israel to commit to a Palestinian state, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vehemently opposes. The 193-member world body approved a nonbinding resolution endorsing the “New York Declaration,” which sets out a phased plan to end the nearly 80-year conflict. The vote was 142-10 with 12 abstentions. |
| Prelims Answer Key |
| 1. (c) 2. (b) 3. (d) 4. (c) |
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