UPSC Key- November 2, 2022: Why you should read ‘Hindus as Minority’ or ‘Tax Reforms’ or ‘Water’ for UPSC CSE

Minority tag for Hindus: Govt seeks time, tells SC it is sensitive

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Indian Constitution, Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- The Centre has again sought time from the Supreme Court to complete consultations on demands to grant minority status to Hindus in states where their numbers have gone below others, saying “the matter is sensitive in nature and will have far-reaching ramifications”.

• So, what exactly is the entire issue?

• Quick Revision-The petition by Advocate Ashwini Upadhyay has contended that the 2011 census showed that Hindus have become a minority in Lakshadweep (2.5%), Mizoram (2.75%), Nagaland (8.75%), Meghalaya (11.53%), J&K (28.44%), Arunachal Pradesh (29%), Manipur (31.39%), and Punjab (38.40%), but were being denied minority benefits that are currently being enjoyed by the respective majority communities in these places.

• Who can be minority in India?

• What is the definition of minority under Indian laws?

• What does the Constitution say about minorities?

• Who can grant minority status in India?

• In which State of India Hindu is minority?

• When can states in India declare Hindus as minority?

• Why TMA Pai case came in the limelight with respect to this particular litigation?

• What verdict Supreme Court of India delivered In the TMA Pai case?

• What is the purposes of Article 30 as per the Constitution of India?

• How Supreme Court of India interpreted Article 29 and Article 30 of the Indian Constitution?

• However, there is a “general perception” regarding the Hindu community in India. What may this perception be?

• What is the State-wise Percentage of Hindus as per Census 2011 in India?

• Are Hindus in India are denied rights in States where they are minority?

• What is Section 2(c) of the National Minorities Commission Act, 1992?

• Religious and linguistic minority-Know the difference

• Minority status with the principle laid down by the Supreme Court in 2002 TMA Pai Foundation and 2005 Bal Patil Case Ruling-Know in detail

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍An Expert Explains | Hindus as minority: Govt’s affidavit is consistent with the Constitution

📍Explained: Who is a ‘minority’ in India? What the Constitution says, how Supreme Court has ruled

Form reform: CBDT proposes 1 common I-T return as against 7

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-In what would mark a significant shift in the taxation regime, the Finance Ministry has proposed a common income tax return (ITR) form for all taxpayers. Currently, there are seven types of ITR forms which are filed by different categories of taxpayers. On Tuesday, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), under the Finance Ministry, released a draft common ITR form, inviting inputs from stakeholders and the public by December 15.

• What Is Income Tax?

• What percent of income is taxed in India?

• How many kinds of ITR forms are there now?

• What is the change that has been proposed?

• With this directive, ITR-1 (Sahaj) and ITR-4 (Sugam), used by most individual taxpayers, will be withdrawn?

• But why one common income tax return?

• What is the point of doing all this?

• How is the tax structure in India?

• Goods and Services Tax is one of the biggest direct or indirect tax reforms?

• Can you brainstorm major tax reforms?

• What is direct tax reforms in India?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍What Is Income Tax and How Are Different Types Calculated?

📍One nation, one ITR form? How will CBDT’s new proposal help taxpayers?

GOVT & POLITICS

Shared water resources can be used as weapon by any nation: Murmu

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Emphasising the significance of limited freshwater supply for a growing global population and rising industrialisation, President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday said that a vast quantity of this available freshwater is spread across international borders, and this “water resource” can be used as a “weapon” by any country and take the form of an international conflict.

• What is India Water Week?

• What is the rationale behind the conceptualization of India Water Week?

• Why there is a need for international cooperation for water conservation and management?

• Of all the water that exists on our planet, what is the rough share of saltwater and freshwater?

• What is source of most of Earth’s freshwater?

• What is the Water’s role in global migration?

• How does India conserve water?

• Who all are the stakeholders in the water conservation?

• Water is a state subject-True or false?

• What has the Government of India and various state government done to conserve water?

• “The third World War will be fought over water”-Decode the quote

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Initiatives taken for Water Conservation

📍PRESIDENT SMT. DROUPADI MURMU INAUGURATES INDIA WATER WEEK 2022

THE IDEAS PAGE

Raj Bhavan, rajdharma

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Faizan Mustafa and Anant Sangal Writes: In seeking resignation of Kerala minister, governor Arif Mohammad Khan has exceeded his remit. Real powers in a parliamentary democracy vest in the elected government, governor has to be a nominal head.

• What role does the Governor play in the parliamentary system?

• What Articles 153-161 of the Constitution says?

• The Governor is appointed by whom?

• ‘The post of the Governor was envisaged as being apolitical; however, the role of Governors has been a contentious issue in Centre-state relations for decades’-Discuss

• Article 164(1) says state “Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor”- What is the pleasure of the Governor?

• So, can the Governor of a state sack minister?

• In a landmark decision of the Supreme Court in Nabam Rebia (2016), the Chief Justice-led bench held that “[t]he exercise of executive power by the governor, is by and large notional”-Discuss

• What attempts have been made to address concerns over the alleged partisan role played by Governors?

• The Sarkaria Commission, set up in 1983 to look into Centre-state relations, proposed certain points for the selection of Governors-Know them in detail

• What Punchhi Committee, constituted in 2007 on Centre-state relations said on selection the Governor?

• The Punchhi Committee recommended deleting the “Doctrine of Pleasure” from the Constitution-What is “Doctrine of Pleasure”?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:  

📍Tussle in Kerala: Can Governor Khan dismiss a state minister?

📍The governors and their role, once again at the Centre of things

EXPLAINED

Status check before COP27

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-It is the time of the year when, for two weeks, climate change takes global centerstage. The annual United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27), beginning Sunday, is being held in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Shaikh amid fresh reminders that the window for meeting climate goals is closing fast.

• First of all, what is COP27?

• Why is COP27 important?

• What is the UN climate summit?

• Why are COP meetings needed?

• What will be discussed at COP27?

• What Is Climate Change?

• How Is Climate Change measured over time?

• What Causes Climate Change?

• What are the effects of Climate Change in every nook and cranny?

• “At the COP27 climate conference in November 2022, the international community and each country individually must set out what it has done and intends to do to limit the increase of global temperature to 1.5 degrees”-How?

• What are the expectations from COP27?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Express View: What the new UN climate report reveals

📍What is COP27? And other questions about the big UN climate summit

What are Coronal Holes, Which Put a ‘Smile’ on the Face of the Sun

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General Science.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology and issues relating to intellectual property rights.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Recently, the @NASASun Twitter handle shared an image of the sun seemingly ‘smiling’. Captured by the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory, the image has dark patches on the sun’s surface resembling eyes and a smile. NASA explained that the patches are called coronal holes, which can be seen in ultraviolet light but are typically invisible to our eyes.

• The sun is a star-True or false?

• Sun is composed of Hydrogen and Helium-true or false?

• What are coronal holes?

• What do they tell us?

• What happens during a geomagnetic storm?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍NASA image shows Sun ‘smiling’ down at us

Russia pullout from Black Sea deal: the impact

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Russia has suspended its part of the deal allowing Ukraine to ship grain from its Black Sea ports safely amid a monthslong war, and it appears that the remaining partners are now left to take their chances. On Monday, Ukraine said a dozen ships had sailed despite initially reporting that more than 200 vessels, many loaded and ready to travel, were stuck after Russia’s weekend announcement.

• What has the deal achieved?

• What about the ships still moving?

• What happens now?

• What else affects food supply?

• How significant a milestone is this shipment? Is there anything beyond symbolic value?

• How important is Ukraine to the global agricultural trade?

• What has been the war’s impact on this segment?

• Will the suspension of ship grain from Black Sea ports make a difference?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:   

📍Explained: What’s the significance of UN-backed grain export deal signed by Ukraine, Russia?

ECONOMY

Why has Google paused in-house Play billing system?

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies III: Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Google is pausing the enforcement of its Google Play billing system for in-app purchases for app developers based in India. Indian app developers were supposed to comply with this requirement by October 31, 2022, which lapsed yesterday. But Google has now suspended this requirement, a decision that comes after two antitrust rulings against Google by the Competition Commission of India (CCI).

• For Your Information-According to CCI, Play Store policies require app developers to exclusively and mandatorily use Google Play’s billing system (GPBS) not only for receiving payments for apps and other digital products but also for certain in-app purchases. Further, app developers cannot, within an app, provide users with a direct link to a webpage containing an alternative payment method or use language that encourages a user to purchase the digital item outside of the app.

• What is Google Play’s billing system?

• What happens If the app developers do not comply with Google Play’s billing system (GPBS)?

• So, why CCI imposed penalty on Google?

• What have you understood by “abusing its dominant position”?

• What Google said on CCI fine on Play Store policies?

• What is the role of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in India?

• Competition Commission of India (CCI)-Statutory Body or Constitutional Body?

• Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) and Competition Act, 2002-Compare and Contrast

• Composition of Competition Commission of India (CCI)-Members and their Appointment

• Functions and Role Competition Commission of India (CCI)

• Landmark Judgements of Competition Commission of India (CCI)

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:  

📍Anti-trust cases against Google, how regulator decided fine

E-rupee used to settle `275 cr govt bond trades

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday took a major leap towards making the country’s monetary and payment systems more efficient with the launch of digital rupee, or e-rupee, to settle secondary market transactions in government securities. Digital rupee was used to settle transactions in government securities worth Rs 275 crore as part of a pilot project.

• What is a digital rupee?

• What banks are involved in the pilot programme?

• What is the need for digital rupee?

• The use of the e-rupee wholesale segment (e?-W) is expected to make the inter-bank market more efficient-how?

• Digital rupee and Cryptocurrency-how they are different?

• How digital rupee will help Indian Economy?

• How digital currency will impact citizens?

• Do you Know-E-rupee is the same as a fiat currency and is exchangeable one-to-one with the fiat currency. Only its form is different. It can be accepted as a medium of payment, legal tender and a safe store of value. The digital rupee would appear as liability on a central bank’s balance sheet. A token-based e-rupee is viewed as a preferred mode for retail e-rupee as it would be closer to physical cash. A token-based CBDC would be a bearer instrument like banknotes, meaning whosoever holds the tokens at a given point in time would be presumed to own them.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: CBDC, the ‘digital rupee’ that RBI could introduce this year, and how it will help

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