Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 29 April 2017

:: National ::

Even as the Supreme Court offered to set the stage for peace talks between influential voices in Kashmir and the Centre to facilitate the return of normality to the Valley.
The government put its foot down, saying it will not break bread with secessionist forces and cannot brook the risk of withdrawing security forces from the sensitive border State.
Appearing before a Bench led by CJI J.S. Khehar, Attorney-General Mukul said the government cannot negotiate with separatists. The Centre said it would “absolutely” not entertain any talks of azadi with these leaders.
Mr. Rohatgi read portions of submissions filed in court by petitioners, suggesting the route to peace in Kashmir would be for talks between India and Pakistan. He pointed to how the petitioners felt that even the accession of Jammu and Kashmir was “controversial.”
The court asked the stakeholders in Kashmir to “take two steps back” as a resolution can be initiated only if there are no stones and pellets fired on the streets of Kashmir.

The Maharashtra government will soon set up an executive committee under the ministry of Women and Child Welfare to activate functioning of Transgender Welfare Board, conceptualised in 2014.
The government will implement Central schemes for welfare of the transgenders through this committee, Women and Child Welfare Minister said.

Looking beyond traditional military ties with Pakistan and the NATO member countries, Turkey is eager to build a defence partnership with India.
Apart from defence, Ankara wants to explore nuclear and space opportunities with India and intends to join hands with it for a more just world order.
India is one of the biggest importers of defence material in the world and has an excellent defence industry. That is why Turkey is keen to build partnership with India’s defence industry.
Turkey and Pakistan have been traditional friends since the 1950s when both joined the Western Bloc. But Mr. Cevik maintained that Turkey has decided to create space for cooperation with India.

India is set to formalise a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union, clearing the decks for negotiations on deepening trade relations with the five former Soviet republics.
The joint statement on the FTA is likely to be issued during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at St. Petersburg.
The Eurasian Economic Union comprises Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The FTA is expected to open up a huge market with a trade potential of $37 to 62 billion.
Trade between India and the five Eurasian countries stands at about $11 billion.
The FTA with the Eurasian countries was dictated by India’s need to diversify into new markets. India has targeted trade of $30 billion with the five countries by 2025 and $15 billion annual investment.
Experts highlighted the need for better understanding of the challenges in the new market like non-tariff barriers and quality standards before the negotiations take place.
Eurasian market could open up new export opportunities for Kerala in medical tourism, IT and IT-enabled services, besides traditional sectors like spices, marine products, coir and rubber.

Poor Internet connectivity is turning out to be a challenge for the rollout of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), particularly in the North East, as the Centre pushes for the July 1 deadline to implement the new indirect tax regime.
The implementation of GST requires high-speed connectivity between the GST server and the State VAT data centre, and also between District VAT office and State VAT office since the processing of returns, among other processes, is done online.
Additionally, all dealers have to upload invoice-wise details online.
There are multiple projects going on in North East. However, the progress is poor and there is no coordination among all the agencies doing work.
In Arunachal Pradesh the optical fibre cable is available only in 7 of the 20 districts. There is a serious shortage of optical fibre cables, leading to delay in completion of work.
In addition, the agencies doing work are not following the norms of depth at which the OFC cable should be laid and as a result there are many instances of cutting OFCs in road repair works. This creates problem for connectivity.
With little more than two months to go for the proposed GST rollout, the government is yet to finalise the tax rates that will apply for different products but is confident of implementing the new tax regime from July 1.
Constitutional amendments to enable the GST regime mean that all existing indirect taxes and levies will lapse from September this year.