Context: Just as the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal released its final verdict upholding the competition’s regulator’s findings that Google abused its market dominance in the Android ecosystem, the Lok Sabha passed a piece of competition-related legislation, the Competition (Amendment) Bill, 2023 which could pose a new frontier of challenges for Google and other global […]
Context: Rapidly melting Antarctic ice is dramatically slowing down the flow of water through the world’s oceans, and could have a disastrous impact on global climate, the marine food chain and even the stability of ice shelves, new research has found. Issue: The “overturning circulation” of the oceans, driven by the movement of denser water towards the […]
Context: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive board approved a nearly $3 billion bailout plan for Sri Lanka last week, of which about $333 million was to be disbursed immediately to alleviate the country’s humanitarian crisis. What is IMF bailout? In a general sense, a bailout means extending support to an entity facing a threat […]
Context: A recently proposed detail has Indian start-ups worried. These new age firms, that offer their shares to foreign investors, may have to pay ‘angel tax’, which was earlier only supposed to be paid for investments raised by resident Indian investors, as per a motion made in the Finance Bill, 2023. Importance: The move could […]
Context: The launches not only established LVM3 as a commercial vehicle propelling ISRO’s entry into the commercial heavier launch market, it also earned the agency upwards of Rs 1,000 crore. The second commercial launch of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s LVM-3 saw 36 OneWeb satellites placed in orbit. This was also the second launch that […]
Context: March 3, 2023 marked the 50th anniversary of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1973. CITES is considered a landmark agreement on conservation that focuses on ensuring the sustainability of endangered species. Significance: World Wildlife Day (WWD), marked annually to draw attention to issues of […]
Rationalizing schedules:Currently, the Act has six schedules for specially protected plants (one), specially protected animals (four), and vermin species (one). Vermin refers to small animals that carry disease and destroy food. The amended act reduces the total number of schedules to four by: (i) reducing the number of schedules for specially protected animals to two […]
Context: The European Union’s race to rid itself of dependence on Russian fossil fuels is well underway. The International Energy Agency says widespread bids to beef up energy security “turbocharged” growth of green power in 2022, and EU parliamentarians hope to ramp up renewables targets to reach 45% of bloc-wide energy consumption by 2030. Importance: The word […]
CONTEXT: While around 70% of Earth’s surface is covered with water, less than 1% per cent is actually drinkable. Desalination is highly energy intensive and environmentally toxic. But the unconventional freshwater resource is now vital for human survival in dry regions. Here are its challenges and advantages. Challenge: These finite freshwater resources are very unevenly […]
CONTEXT: The haste at which the purchase of Credit Suisse, a Swiss bank, by ubs, its great rival, was arranged left investors scrambling to understand the deal. One consequence is causing particular pain. The decision to write down around sfr16bn ($17bn) in Additional-Tier 1 (at1) bonds issued by Credit Suisse has evoked fury from […]