August-2017 (Topic for Prelims-2018)

Sources: The Hindu, Indian Express, PIB, Downtoearth, Economic Times etc. Table of Contents: National and International Importance 1. Making India a Preferred MICE Destination 2. Warming to boost deadly humidity levels across South Asia 3. Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons 4. 4th Session of the India-Tanzania Joint Trade Committee 5. Mechi River at Indo-Nepal border 6. MoU between India and Nepal 7. The Hague Convention and India 8. India and China 9. US India strategic partnership forum 10. JICF’s first meeting for NE region held 11. Agriculture Research Platform 12. MOU between India and Spain & BRICS 13. Hambantota under Chinese control 14. Bolivia to join Mercosur 15. China produces flammable ice/natural gas 16. Pakistan is yet to award the most favoured nation 17. India and MGC member countries 18. India and Iran 19. International Maritime Search and Rescue Exercise
20. MoU between India-Brazil 21. India and Myanmar

Economic and Social Issues 1. Ease of Doing Business Report by NITI Aayog 2. YUVA – a skill development programme 3. New Industrial Policy 4. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana 5. UDAN-2 6. Alternative Mechanism 7. Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana 8. What is Herfindahl-Hirschman index in Economics? 9. What is loss aversion in Psychology? 10. What is Big Mac index in Economics? 11. What is payout ratio in finance? 12. What is ‘capital adequacy ratio’ in finance? 13. What is ‘Pork barrel’ in Economics? 14. What is ‘bounded rationality’ in economics? 15. GeMSamvad 16. Banking Regulation Bill 17. Anti-dumping duty 18. e-Shakti 19. BHARAT 22 20. Exit of RBI from NABARD 21. Kishenganga projects 22. E-RaKAM 23. Financial Assistance to Economically Backward Classes Children 24. Labour Code on Wages Bill 25. India and Retirement Option 26. National Deworming initiative 27. ‘SheMeansBusiness’ 28. Transparency of Rules Act 29. Centre’s eBiz initiative 30. North Koel Reservoir project in Jharkhand 31. 17th meeting of FSDC 32. Global Commission on the Future of Work 33. NITI Aayog pitches to remove agriculture from Essential Commodities Act

Political Issues 1. Jharkhand Religious Independence Bill, 2017 2. Institutions of Minority Education 3. Section 498A of IPC 4. What is Article 35A? 5. Endgame for Section 377? 6. The lowdown on the right to privacy 7. Right to Privacy & Aadhaar 8. Data privacy & India legislation 9. Quotas within OBC quota 10. Right to Privacy: What Supreme Court judges said in separate judgements 11. Privacy is a fundamental right 12. Plea against special status to J&K 13. Cattle trade ban rules 14. Inclusion of castes in Scheduled Caste List 15. Whistle Blowers Act defeat the very purpose of the legislation 16. Instant triple talaq 17. SC judgement on parliamentary secretaries 18. Anti-racial law 19. Indra Sawhney case

Science and Technological Issues 1. International Rice Research Institute South Asia Regional Centre 2. Ultra-thin carbon nanotubes 3. Varshadhare 4. H1N1 returns 5. Artificial Intelligence 6. NASA’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-M 7. Big Bang Theory 8. Microsoft’s AI 9. Swasth Bachche, Swasth Bharat 10. Autism may reflect a brain imbalance 11. Why a scorpion sting hurts 12. Copper-coated membrane 13. ‘New state of matter’ discovered 14. What is Conformal Cyclic Cosmology? 15. What is Vaccinia? 16. Understanding the new DNA tech Bill 17. What is genome editing? 18. Blue Whale Challenge 19. New drug delivery for bacterial infections 20. IISc researchers discover CO sensor 21. Scientists develop silk mat to combat arthritis 22. Anti-Venom and Anti-Rabies injections 23. India 60th on its list of 130 most innovative countries 24. Liquid Nitrogen 25. ISRO, NASA working towards realisation of NISAR Mission by 2021 26. 2nd phase of measles-rubella vaccination drive launched 27. Online courses on infusion therapy 28. Now, DNA sensor for quick pathogen detection

Environment, Ecology & Geographical Issues 1. New species of the genus Nasikabatrachus 2. National Biopharma Mission 3. Tackling dengue with mosquitoes 4. Bringing Green Revolution to Eastern India 5. ‘Yoda bat’ 6. Hilsa fish now a cerified unique product of Bangladesh 7. Rights to Explore Polymetallic Nodules 8. Two new species of Cycas found 9. What is a Perseid meteor shower? 10. Studying the Sun’s corona 11. What is El NINO? 12. What is Patagotitan? 13. India ratifies 2nd commitment period of Kyoto Protocol 14. Swachh Survekshan Gramin 2017 15. Focus on Chemicals in firecrackers 16. NAP, GIM launched to implement tree plantation 17. Two new species of plants 18. Hot Jupiter may have stratosphere 19. CAC adopts Codex norms for three spices 20. Save Western Ghats March 21. Hallucinogenic mushroom blooms in the Nilgiris 22. Coconut palm declared State tree of Goa 23. Aeroplanes may be affecting ozone, monsoon 24. ‘Malpelo plate’ 25. All-India Elephant Population Estimation 26. Two new species of Earthworm discovered in Kerala 27. Moss serves as a cheap pollution monitor 28. Ocean forecasting system unveiled 29. What is Fisher’s principle in Biology?

Defence, Art & Culture Issues etc. 1. Promotion of traditional sports 2. Gobindobhog rice gets GI status 3. Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav & Michhamidukkadam 4. India’s Freedom Struggle: Contribution of Lala Lajpat Rai 5. Structural Temples 6. IN LCU L52 7. Sankalp Se Sidhi 8. Hyperspectral Imaging Satellite or HySIS 9. What is a ‘Columbian Exchange’ in History? 10. ISRO to develop full-fledged Earth observation satellite 11. Buffalo Chocolates 12. Venus – Israel launches first exploration satellite 13. NavIC: Indigenous regional positioning system 14. Shachi and Shruti 15. CubeSat 16. Monumental legislation