Current Affairs SSC

  WRITE A NEWS REPORT ABOUT KASHMIR UNREST.    TURBULENT KASHMIR   Independent News   Srinagar, 21st September   The recent killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Warn by the security' forces has again created unrest in the Kashmir valley. The killing was followed by an outcry m a up-port of the militant. Protestors,, mainly youngsters participated in huge number in rallies and J&K police had to use pellet, guns to control the crowd. The use to pellet, guns to disburse the mob was severely criticized as it maims a person forever. The death of Insha malik (aged-14), a. class 9th student by a. pellet gun was lamented by the Opposition as well as other sections of the nation. Pellet guns, though, claimed as a non-Thed weapon darn ages the soft tissues of the body, especially the eyes leading to lose of version as well. An expert committee has suggested the use of marker grenades emitting irritating gas or permanent paint that helps identify protesters later in place of pellet guns to reduce the casualties.

  WRITE A REPORT ON THE ANNUAL SCHOOL MAGAZINE   "PRADASHITAM"-2016   DAV News   Ludhiana, 12th November   The confluence of mesmerizing arts, emergence of new dimensions in creativity, conjunction of tradition, culture, philosophy and modernism. This is just a gist of the cultural event "PRADARSHITAM" which took place in DAV SCHOOL, ASHOK VIHAR in the month of November, The event saw a footfall of nearly 500 people each day which went on for five days. Students from different schools participated in various activities. From making graffiti on the wall, to trying their and in musical competition, from classical dance to painting on face, students participated in. huge numbers in every event. Some students also got rewards and prizes for best performances. Events like these provide a platform for students to acquaint themselves with the traditional and cultural values. Participation in events and interaction with others gives them an opportunity to socialize and perform to a wider audience as "PRADARSHITAM" itself means to present oneself

  WRITE A NEWSPAPER REPORT ON THE RECENT BENGALURU   VIOLENT RIOTS FORCE BENGALURU SHUTDOWN   BHM News   14th September   India's tech capital was virtually shut down owing to widespread riots following the Su-prime Court verdict. The court on Monday had asked the Karnataka government to divert some water to Tamil Nadu, against the petition filed by Tamil. Nadu, Indian and foreign companies have asked employees to stay at home till the violence is over. thus leading to shutdown of India's Silicon Valley. Bengaluru has been facing constant disruptions this month, owing to Cauvery issue and trade union strike, but this week's violence was the most serious. One person has died so far in the riots. The Cauvery issue dates back to pre-independence years and the three riparian states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been filing petitions intermittently, whenever one state feels they're being cheated out of their fair share. The business world signals that frequent interruptions leading to business loss would make them look for alternate locations. The state assures that this is a one-time incident and the state shall give all possible security for smooth functioning of business and daily life transactions.

  WRITE A NEWSPAPER REPORT ON CYCLONE VARDAH.   CYCLONE VARDHAH CLAMS 18 LIVES   Express News service   14th December   18 people were killed in multiple events related to cyclone Vardah, according to official estimates. The cyclone has brought the city of Chennai to standstill. More than 50 per cent of the affected areas remain in darkness as transformers were damaged and electric poles had fallen in the cyclone that hit Chennai port on Monday. There are reports of massive agricultural loss too. Internet connections are also disrupted in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which experts attribute to the cyclone's possible impact on under-sea fibre cables. This has affected ATM transactions of many banks and also card payments. As life remained disrupted at many places, the state government announced closing of schools for the third day. Train services were partially cancelled but bus and airplanes run on schedule. The cyclone originated as a low pressure area near the Malay Peninsula on December 3, and transformed into a cyclone on December 8. The name Vardah was suggested by Pakistan and means 'red rose'.

  WRITE A NEWSPAPER REPORT ABOUT THE PRIDE PARADE IN BENGALURU.   RAINBOW PRIDE PARADE IN BENGALURU     SRM News   Bengaluru, 27th November   The silicon valley of India witnessed the rainbow colour flags flying over its streets on 20th November, 2016 which is celebrated as INTERNATIONAL DAY OF TRANSGENDER REMEMBRENCE all over the world. The "Pride Parade", was an act of solidarity, emphasizing LGBTQIA (Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual) community's intolerance of growing transphobia. The parade started from Tuisi Thota near the central railway station to Town hall in Bengaluru and a large number of people from all walks of life participated in it. India under IPC section 377 (Chapter xvi) criminalizes homosexuality punishable upto 10 years of imprisonment, which further instills a sense of fear and detachment from the society among LGBTQIA community. The Parliament in 2016 passed a private member bill i.e, THE TRANSGENDERS PERSONS (PROTECTION OF RIGHTS)" bill which gives them an identity by defining what transgender community is and prohibits discrimination against transgenders. Initiatives such as Pride Parade and prohibition of discrimination can create a sense of security and belongingness among the people of LGBTQIA community, thereby creating an environment for the inclusion of people from the oppressed society and bringing them in the mainstream.

  WRITE A NEWSPAPER REPORT ON A DAY IN CONNAUGHT PLACE   A DAY IN CONNAUGHT PLACE     Times News Delhi, 18th December   The magnificence of the heart of Delhi city i.e. Connaught place fades away due to the massive traffic jams it encounters every now and then. Connaught place is divided in two parts: Inner circle and Outer circle. The outer circle gets congested due to the passing of vehicles lined up one after the other. Construction works also add up to this congestion. Inner circle witnesses large footfall during the day and connoisseurs visit to get a taste of different cuisines and delicacies at the renowned restaurants. The traffic jams can take several hours to get cleared some times. Sitting in one's car, one might see a kid performing aerobics on the road side, vendors selling balloons and other stuffs, or beggars knocking on window shield for a penny. People belonging to every class can be seen buying books from book stalls or having the road side pani poori. And through all this, one can get a glimpse of the majestic National Flag in the central park.   PRACTICE TOPICS FOR REPORT WRITING   1.            Write a report for the local newspaper on rising theft in your locality. 2.            Write a report for your college magazine on the increasing scope for research in solar energy devices. 3.            Write a report for the newspaper on breast cancer day. 4.            Write a report for the newspaper on the need to introduce new parking spaces and green lots in the city. 5.            Write a report for the newspaper on how earth day was celebrated in your locality. 6.            Write a report for the Sunday edition of the newspaper on street food vendors and flavors of India. 7.            Write a report for the newspaper on the increasing number of vehicles in the city and the need to introduce Delhi model. 8.            Write a report for the school magazine on the increase in drug addiction among the young generation. 9.            Write a report for the newspaper on unemployment among more...

  PRECIS WRITING INRODUCTION   A good precis should be a miniature of the original passage. It should give the whole idea of the passage in simple and clear words, avoiding superfluous expressions. While changing the words of the original passage, the writer should take care that the tone and mood of the same is maintained. Though there is no fixed word limit for a precis, the general rule is to compress it to one-third of the original passage. There is no need to stick to the original order of statements or ideas, but one should focus on finding the key idea of the passage and highlight it in the beginning thus creating the contextual setting for the whole precis.   TIPS FOR WRITING A GOOD PRECIS  

Read the passage as many times as you want, till you get a clear meaning

Keep it simple

Don't add comment, criticism, wish or remark

Avoid using 'I'

The precis should have coherence in itself

Write in reported speech

Write in one's own words, avoid words from passage

  PASSAGE ON ENVIRONMENT   The UN conference on climate change held in Marrakesh, with an emphasis on raising the commitment of all countries to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, is particularly significant as it provided an opportunity to communicate concerns about, the future climate policy of the U.S. It would be untenable for the U.S., with a quarter of all cumulative fossil fuel emissions, to renege on its promise to assist vulnerable and developing nations with climate funding, technology transfer and capacity-building under Donald Trump's presidency. As the Marrakesh Action Proclamation issued at the close of the conference emphasizes, the world needs all countries to work together to close the gap between their intended reduction of carbon emissions and what needs to be done to keep the rise of the global average temperature well below 2°C in this century. The Paris Agreement on climate change was forged on the consensus that man-made climate change does have a scientific basis, that the developed countries are responsible for accumulated emissions, and that. future action should focus on shifting all nations to a clean energy path. Not much progress was made at Marrakesh on raising the $100 billion a year that is intended to help the poorer nations. Political commitment and resource mobilization will be crucial to meet targets for mitigation of emissions and adaptation.   India is in. a particularly difficult situation as it has the twin challenges of growing its economy to meet the development aspirations of a large population, and. cutting emissions. National GHG levels are small per capita, but when added up they put India in the third place, going by data from the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center in the U.S. As a signatory to the Paris Agreement, which has provisions to monitor emissions and raise targets based on a review, pressure on India to affect big cuts is bound to increase. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change will hear from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in 2018 on what impact an additional warming of I.3°C could have on the planet and what can be done to ensure it. is pegged at this level., The pledges made so far are well short of this target, and even if they are all implemented, a minimum rise of 2.9°C is forecast by the UN Environment Programme, India has no historical responsibility for accumulated GHGs, but smaller; more vulnerable countries such as island states and Bangladesh are demanding action to cut emissions, A strategy that involves all State governments will strengthen the case for international funding, and. spur domestic action.   MARRAKESH AND INDIA The Marrakesh conference reaffirmed the collective responsibility of all nations to ensure the global average temperature stays below 2 degree Celsius, as was decided in Paris agreement. The fears of the future climate policy of the US were in the air, but the conference focused on mobilization of funds for the developing countries by the developed. Though India more...

  PASSAGE ON JANANI SURAKSHA YOJANA   OVER the last decade, a government programme aimed at increasing institutional deliveries has changed the health-seeking behavior of Indian women. A new study, released on Friday, has found that the maternal health programme Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) led to a 22 per cent increase in women delivering in government hospitals between 2004 and 2014. The scheme also is attributed for increasing the probability of a woman being hospitalized by 1.3 per cent, resulting in a 2 per cent increase in overall hospitalization of women in India. The increase, however marginal, is a cause of celebration as women in rural India are known to delay seeking health interventions.   Launched in 2005, JSY, the world's biggest conditional cash-transfer scheme, aimed to promote institutional delivery - instead of delivering babies at home to improve India's infant and maternal mortality rates. Under JSY, pregnant women choosing to deliver at the hospital and the health worker who motivated her to take the decision get cash incentives - Rs. 1,400 for the woman and JRs.600 for the Accredited Social Health Activist in rural areas and Rs. 1,000 and Rs.200 respectively in urban areas. The cash incentive was intended to reduce financial barriers to accessing institutional care for delivery.   The researchers have found a causal link between JSY and increase in hospitalization, even for non-childbirth-related ailments. The study found that while fertility rates in Indian women have steadily declined (from 2004 when it was 2.88 per woman to 2.4 in 2014), JSY impacted overall hospitalization of women in India. "JSY led to a 15 per cent increase in institutional childbirth with a commensurate decline in deliveries at home. The data also show\s that there is a tremendous increase of over 22 per cent in deliveries in government hospitals. This increase is fuelled by an 8 per cent decline in childbirth at private hospitals and a 16 per cent decline" in childbirth at home. Our analysis shows that the JSY hypothesis holds true and the programme led to a significant increase of 2 percent in overall public hospitalization of women in India," states the Brookings India report.   The study, titled Health and Morbidity n India: 2004-2014'. is based on analysis of the 60th and 71st round of National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) data. Prima facie, childbirth has increased as an 'ailment' causing hospitalization in the NSSO data. Nearly 3, 50,000 women - over two rounds of NSSO surveys - were studied.   THE SUCCESS OF JANANI SURAKSHA YOJANA Launched in 2005, the Janani Suraksha Yojana programme, has been a great success in taking Indian women to hospitals. Hailed to be the biggest conditional cash transfer scheme in the world, the programme gives cash incentives to the pregnant women and also the health worker who persuaded her to deliver in the hospital. This has led to a significant increase in hospital deliveries and also in hospitalization for other ailments too, which is a more...

PASSAGE ON NATIONAL ANTHEM ISSUE   PATRIOTISM is a value that most. People cherish without being required to demonstrate it in visible ways. Unfortunately, a notion has emerged in the country that it ought to be articulated frequently, demonstrated publicly and enforced in such a manner that it will be an object lesson to the odd dissenter. Given this, it is hard to1 understand the rationale for the Supreme Court's order that every cinema hall should play the national anthem before the exhibition of a film. India has given itself an. anthem easily recognized as a lofty and moving rendering of the country's oneness amidst diversity. It hardly requires judicial promotion. The singing of the national anthem on specie, occasions, especially in schools and colleges, is sufficient to help citizens identify the anthem, with something larger than their daily concerns. There are clear rules on when the- anthem should be played. Any misuse of the anthem or any willful insult to it is legally prohibited, and those aggrieved by any such incident can take recourse to the law. Beyond this, in a nature democracy such as India, there really is no need to make the playing or the singing of the anthem mandatory through a judicial order.   It is not clear why cinema hails were singled out for special treatment by the Supreme Court. The only possible explanation, is that they were required to play the national, anthem some decades ago, a practice that has been largely given up. But if the logic tor playing the national anthem at places where a sizeable number of people congregate is taken to its logical conclusion, they should be extended, for example, to dance arid music  recitals as well. To take this line of reasoning even further, why not in every sitting of the legislature, or the court itself? Playing the national anthem in theatres, at the end of the film was given up some three decades ago in most parts of the country, largely as a result of the tendency of a section of the audience to walk out. To reintroduce it now gives the impression that cinemas should forever be the main sites for the demonstration of patriotism. Matters such as commercial exploitation and dramatization of the anthem cannot be the subject of blanket interim orders in a public interest petition. The appeal to a sense of constitutional patriotism' is also intriguing, as the only reasonable interpretation of the term is that of having allegiance to the values underlying the Constitution. This is not something that can be enforced by judicial diktat, or by making cinema halls the playground for a misplaced sense of patriotism.   ENFORCED PATRIOTISM Being Indian is a thing everyone holds dear to his heart, and to be made to show that feeling in every public place forcibly is not something that suits a mature democracy like India. Being sung at schools and on special occasions like Independence Day, the more...