
GS1: History
- "Explained: What is Victory in Japan Day, and why it coincides with India’s Independence Day(IE)" On August 15, the Japanese emperor Hirohito in his first radio address ever announced Japan’s surrender. V-J Day marked the complete end of World War II, and Japan formally signed surrender documents on September 2 that year.
GS1: Social Issues
- Explained: The logic of, and debate around minimum age of marriage for women(IE) He argued that Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, which guarantee the right to equality and the right to live with dignity, were violated by having different legal ages for men and women to marry.
GS2: Polity
- PMO denies RTI plea seeking info on PMCARES(TH) It is Section 8 (1) which lists the various valid reasons for exemptions under the Act, which would allow denial of information. Section 7(9), on the other hand, only says, “An information shall ordinarily be provided in the form in which it is sought unless it would disproportionately divert the resources of the public authority or would be detrimental to the safety or preservation of the record in question.”
- SC holds Prashant Bhushan guilty of contempt: What the verdict means(IE); It relied on Brahma Prakash Sharma (1953) in which a Constitution Bench had held that it is not necessary to prove affirmatively that there has been actual interference with the administration of justice, and it is enough if a defamatory statement is likely, or tends in any way, to interfere with the proper administration of justice.
- Suo motu contempt power is inherent: SC A three-judge Bench led by Justice Arun Mishra held that the suo motu contempt powers of the top court is drawn from Article 129 of the Constitution, which says the Supreme Court, as a court of record, has the power to punish for contempt of itself.The Contempt of Court Act of 1971 cannot limit this power of the court. The statute only provides the procedure in which such contempt is to be initiated.
Governance: GS2
- Explained: Behind PM Modi’s three big digital announcements(IE) BharatNet was originally named National Optical Fibre Network or NOFN. It’s being financed by the Universal Service Obligation Fund of the Department of Telecommunications, through a 5 per cent levy on the revenues of private telecom service providers. The project’s primary objective is to extend fibre connectivity — available at the state capital, district headquarters and blocks — to every panchayat, thereby providing access to broadband internet services to 69 per cent of India’s rural population.
- Explained: What is the National Health ID announced by PM Modi?(IE)" The Health ID is created by using a person’s basic details and mobile number or Aadhaar number. This will make it unique to the person, who will have the option to link all of their health records to this ID.
- Democracy needs an Internet ombudsman(TH) . Section 35, which provides the government with unfettered access to personal data, negates the three tests of legality, necessity and proportionality given by the Supreme Court in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) vs Union Of India.
GS2: International Relations
- Germany may join International Solar Alliance(Mint) It assumes significance, considering that Germany is a member of the P5+1 grouping, comprising five permanent members—China, France, Russia, the UK, and the US, and is one of the earliest green economy proponents.
- How will the Israel-UAE pact impact the Gulf?(TH) Will the diplomatic breakthrough sharpen divisions in the region even further? How will it affect Palestine, Turkey and Iran?
Science & Technology GS3
- "ISRO pays tribute to Dr Vikram Sarabhai by announcing that Chandrayaan 2 Orbiter has captured the Moon images of “Sarabhai” Crater(PIB) "Sarabhai" Crater is named after Dr Vikram Sarabhai and around 250 to 300 kilometres east of this Crater is where the Apollo 17 and Luna 21 Missions had landed.
- "Indigenous Air Unique-quality Monitoring (AUM) Photonic System developed for Real- Time Remote Monitoring of Air Quality(PIB)" The AUM system (patent pending) is an innovative application of the principles of laser backscattering, statistical mechanics, optoelectronics, artificial intelligence, machine/deep learning, and Internet of Things. It can identify, classify, and quantify various pollutants simultaneously (of orders of less than one part per billion) and meteorological parameters, with very high precision, sensitivity and accuracy.
PIB Corner
- "SHRI ARJUN MUNDA TO E-LAUNCH TRIBAL HEALTH AND NUTRITION PORTAL “SWASTHYA” ON 17TH AUGUST, 2020(PIB)" ‘Swasthya’ is the first of its kind comprehensive platform for health and nutrition related information of the tribal population of India. It has a dashboard, knowledge repository, partner segment, Sickle Cell Diseases (SCD) support corner. The dashboard presents data curated from multiple sources for the 177 identified high priority tribal districts
- Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launches Indigenisation portal SRIJAN On the final day of Atmanirbhar Week celebration of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh today launched Department of Defence Production, MoD’s portal SRIJAN which is a ‘one stop shop online portal that provides access tothe vendors to take up items that can be taken up for indigenization.