June 2021

Advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court The Jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India can broadly be categorized into three parts: 1. Original Jurisdiction 2. Appellate Jurisdiction 3. Advisory Jurisdiction Article 143 of the Constitution of India confers upon the Supreme Court advisory jurisdiction. Article 143 Power of President to consult...

Fugitive Economic Offenders Context: The Enforcement Directorate has transferred assets worth Rs. 8,441.50 crore to public sector banks that suffered losses to the tune of Rs. 22,585.83 crore due to frauds committed allegedly by Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi. All the three have been declared 'Fugitive Economic Offenders' by PMLA (Prevention...

Gujarat International Maritime Arbitration Centre (GIMAC) Context: Recently, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Gujarat Maritime University and International Financial Services Centre Authority in GIFT (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) City. The objective of the MoU is to jointly support the establishment of the Gujarat International Maritime Arbitration Centre (GIMAC). About: GIMAC: This will be the...

  LiDAR Based Survey of Forest Areas Context: Recently, the Union Environment Minister in a virtual event released the Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) of LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) based survey of forest areas in ten states. The 10 mapped states are Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra,...

Agristack: The New Digital Push in Agriculture Context: Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Microsoft to run a pilot programme for 100 villages in 6 states. The MoU requires Microsoft to create a ‘Unified Farmer Service Interface’ through its cloud computing services. This comprises a major part of the ministry’s plan of creating ‘AgriStack’ (a collection...

Pygmy Hog Context: Recently, eight captive-bred pygmy hogs, the world’s rarest and smallest wild pigs, were released in the Manas national Park of Assam. This is the second batch to have been reintroduced into the wild under the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP) in a year. About: Pygmy Hog: Scientific Name: Porcula Salvania ...

Antarctic Treaty Context: Recently, the 60th anniversary of the Antarctic treaty was celebrated. The Antarctic treaty remains the only example of a single treaty that governs a whole continent. It is also the foundation of a rules-based international order for a continent without a permanent population. About: The Antarctic Treaty was signed between 12 countries...

Special Purpose Vehicle for Mission Karmayogi Context: Recently, a three-member task force has been formed to help the government in bringing major bureaucratic reforms through its ambitious “Mission Karmayogi”. About: Special Purpose Vehicle for Mission Karmayogi   The Centre has recently approved the 'National Programme for civil Services Capacity Building- Mission Karmayogi' to...

Electoral Trust Scheme, 2013 Context: For the first time, an electoral trust (under Electoral Trust Scheme, 2013) has declared donation through electoral bonds and hasn’t revealed the names of the political parties that received the money, citing anonymity guaranteed under the electoral bond scheme. According to...