CHINA HITS A MILESTONE: NO NEW LOCAL COVID19 INFECTION
Why in news? As the coronavirus pandemic rampages across the world, the epicentre of the disease – China, has marked a major milestone in curbing the virus in the country. On 17th March 2020, China has recorded zero domestic infections for the first time since the outbreak erupted in late December 2020. As of 19th […]
NEW DEFINITION OF MSMES SOON
Why in news? Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) told the Rajya Sabha on 19th March 2020, that the government would come out with a new definition of MSMEs, which are currently defined on the basis of investment in plant and machinery, by the end of the ongoing session. What are MSMEs? […]
COVID19: PM CALLS FOR SOCIAL DISTANCING, PEOPLE’S CURFEW, STAY WHERE YOU ARE, MEA TELLS INDIANS ABROAD
Why in news? Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 19 2020 urged Indians across the country to face the coronavirus pandemic with collective determination and patience, to make sure that “humanity and India prevails” in his address to the nation over television. Urging Indians and residents who are stranded in different cities abroad to find […]
‘CALL DATA BEING USED TO IMPROVE QUALITY’: SURVEILLANCE CONCERNS
Why in news? Amid questions over possible surveillance and violation of privacy following bulk call data records being sought by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), the government on 18th March 2020, asserted that the data was only being collected to analyse and improve the quality of telecom services and ruled out any form of surveillance. […]
GUJARAT TOPS IN DOMESTIC SOLAR ROOFTOP INSTALLATIONS
Why in news? Gujarat has topped the list in the installations of solar rooftop plants across the country with about 50,915 systems being fixed on domestic rooftops in the State as on March 2, 2020. Solar Power Generation in India’s States 1. Karnataka Karnataka tops the list of states with the highest installed solar power […]
WORST SINGLE DAY FALL FOR SENSEX
Why in news? The Sensex on 9th March 2020 witnessed its worst fall since demonetisation in 2016 as the sell-off in stocks continues unabated. The Nifty hit a one-year low. 5 factors causing this crash Oil price crash Crude oil prices tanked over 30 per cent following Saudi Arabia’s decision to cut prices and raise […]
GLOBAL CRUDE OIL WAR BRINGS GOOD TIDINGS FOR INDIA
Why in news? Major oil buyers such as India are set to gain following Russia’s refusal to back broader cuts in crude oil production by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec). Details Crude prices are on a tailspin after Russia did not agree to Opec’s proposal for an additional production cut of 1.5 […]
THE SARS-COV-2 IS MUTATING, SAY SCIENTISTS
Why in news? Senior scientists at Australia’s national science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), have said the virus dubbed SARS-CoV-2 is mutating, after analysing the 115 published genome sequences from the current COVID-19 outbreak. Some of these ‘errors’ in the virus known as ‘mutations’ may be significant for the development and […]
OIL UP OVER 2% ON OPEC CUT, STIMULI HOPES
Why in news? Oil prices jumped more than 4 per cent, up from multi-year lows hit earlier on 2nd March 2020, as hopes of a deeper cut in output by OPEC and stimulus from central banks countered worries about damage to demand from the coronavirus outbreak. The unprecedented disruption to economic activity in China has […]
HACKERS MAY HAVE ACCESS TO YOUR SMART DEVICE
Why in news? iPhone, iPad, Amazon Echo or Kindle or certain handsets from Google, Samsung or Xiaomi, is exposed to have a vulnerable WiFi chips that allowed hackers to access data from the handset. Once a hacker gets access to any device for even a short period of time, they can do anything, including planting […]