Daily Hindu Editorials

👉Global research is slowly revealing its high indirect impact on the ecosystem👈 The bald tops of the Western Ghats are a pristine ecosystem replete with innumerable animal species and, apparently, an abundance of wind and windmills. As the country tries to achieve an ambitious renewable energy target of 175 GW, windmills have popped up in at least 65 sq km of forested area, with permissions for another 30 or so sq km still pending. This isn’t surprising given that India’s potential wind power map envelops the Western Ghats (from Kerala to Gujarat) and even large parts of the Eastern Ghats. While this has often led to expressions of concern over the environmental impact — as often in localised protests or civil action suits — these must be articulated in policy to prevent irrecoverable changes in the local ecosystem. Global scientific research has also highlighted the impact of windmills on wildlife. For example, in the first few months of 2018 alone, published papers have...

👉One Stop Centres(OSCs) - PIB 👈 100 additional One Stop Centres have been approved by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in the States of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. 👉About One Stop Centres(OSCs): Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), has formulated a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for setting up One Stop Centres (OSC), to be funded from the Nirbhaya Fund. The scheme is being implemented through States/UTs from 1st April 2015. These Centres will be established across the country to provide integrated support and assistance under one roof to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces in a phased manner. The purpose of these OSCs is to facilitate integrated services for women affected with violence such as police assistance, medical aid, psycho-social counselling, legal aid/counselling, temporary stay for 5 days etc. such that aggrieved women can avail s...

💥 Daily Word Bytes - 2  from editorial  - The Age of Putin 💥 credit with (verb) – be recognized as, be held responsible for, ascribe to (an achievement). Hindu Editorial usage :     Widely credited with stabilising post-Soviet Russia during his first two terms after the chaos of the Boris Yeltsin years chaos (noun) – disorder, disruption, confusion. Hindu Editorial usage :     Widely credited with stabilising post-Soviet Russia during his first two terms after the chaos of the Boris Yeltsin years bolster (verb) – strengthen, support, boost/reinforce. Hindu Editorial usage :     This image has helped him bolster his popularity popular vote (noun) – the popular vote is simply the total votes cast for each candidate across the whole country. The electoral vote is the total votes cast by the Electors of electoral college (a group of people whose job is to choose a leader/President). Electors are chosen depending on which candidate w...

💥 Daily Word Bytes - 1  from editorial  - For a Fair Trial 💥 trail (noun) – court case, judicial proceedings, legal action. Hindu Editorial usage :     For a fair trial: on shifting the Kathua rape and murder case  warranted (adjective) – necessary, justified, reasonable/appropriate. Hindu Editorial usage :     Shifting the Kathua rape case to another State is a warranted step abduction (noun) – kidnapping, hostage-taking. Hindu Editorial usage :     In shifting the case of the abduction and gang rape of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua district in Jammu and Kashmir to Pathankot in the neighbouring State of Punjab nomadic (adjective) – wandering, roaming, travelling/rambling. Nomads are people who have no  permanent home, travel from place to place in search of food (for them and their animals). Hindu Editorial usage :       when the girl from the nomadic Bakherwal community went missing, some sought...

👉India’s regional reset won’t be complete without a change in its Pakistan policy👈 Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s critics acknowledge his uncanny ability to take bold decisions and this reflects in his foreign policy initiatives. Interestingly, he is also demonstrating an ability to undertake course corrections. The informal summit at Wuhan, China, last month and a visit to Nepal this month reflect a change aimed at reviving the ‘neighbourhood first’ policy announced in 2014. The big challenge, however, will be providing a sense of direction to the policy on Pakistan which has oscillated between ‘jhappi’ and ‘katti’. 👉The China outreach Mr. Modi had received Chinese President Xi Jinping in September 2014 in Gujarat reflecting his personalised diplomacy even though the ongoing stand-off in Chumar in eastern Ladakh cast a shadow on the visit. The personalised diplomacy was reciprocated the following year when Mr. Modi visited China and Mr. Xi received him in Xian,...

👉Shifting the Kathua rape case to another State is a warranted step👈 In shifting the case of the abduction and gang rape of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua district in Jammu and Kashmir to Pathankot in the neighbouring State of Punjab, the Supreme Court has taken the first necessary step towards ensuring a fair trial. It is unfortunate that despite the horrific nature of the crime, which took place over several days in January, when the girl from the nomadic Bakherwal community went missing, some sought to see the incident along sectarian lines. Contradictions on communal and political lines came to the fore. The formation of a Hindu group in support of those arrested by the J&K Police Crime Branch, and the action of some lawyers in Kathua in heckling the police when they came to file the charge sheet, contributed to the impression that the atmosphere in the town is too vitiated for the conduct of a fair trial. In addition, sections of society, including political parties an...

👉The Russian President begins a new term with huge economic and foreign policy challenges👈 Vladimir Putin, who has maintained a tight grip on power in Russia for almost two decades, begins his fourth term as President at a time when the country is going through a difficult period, economically and diplomatically. Widely credited with stabilising post-Soviet Russia during his first two terms after the chaos of the Boris Yeltsin years, Mr. Putin presents himself as a strongman seeking to restore Russia’s lost glory. This image has helped him bolster his popularity. In the March presidential election he won 77% of the popular vote, the largest margin for any post-Soviet leader. That majority is a reminder of the suffocating grip that Mr. Putin and his coterie have on the democratic process. Russia’s most prominent opposition figure, Alexei Navalny, was barred from contesting the election, which rendered the presidential race a formality for the re-coronation of Mr. Putin. One of his...

👉Insularity and intransigence will only derail the Framework Agreement👈 Reams have been written about the Framework Agreement signed on August 3, 2015 between Union government and the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN-IM. The agreement has raised expectations among the Naga people but also apprehension in neighbouring Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, and rightly so. States that have been created after due consideration of a number of factors and their geographical boundaries clearly mapped out can hardly be expected to take kindly to any attempt at rearranging those boundaries. But let’s look at whether this is the only sticking point or if there are issues too — between the protagonists of the Naga peace talks, the NSCN-IM, and Delhi. 👉The two sides A section of articulate Nagas who have questioned the secrecy around the Framework Agreement believe that its terms need to be discussed and debated. However, this elite conveniently forgets t...