Old Pension Scheme
Context:
Congress has already reverted to the Old Pension Scheme in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, and AAP has said it would do the same in Punjab.
Relevance:
GS II: Polity and Governance
Dimensions of the Article:
- About Old Pension Scheme
- Concerns with the OPS
- What was the origin of the New Pension Scheme?
MP Freedom of Religion Act, 2021
Context:
In a decision that provided relief to interfaith couples seeking to marry, the Madhya Pradesh High Court on restrained the state government from prosecuting “adult citizens if they solemnise marriage on their own volition” and violate Section 10 of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act (MPFRA), 2021.
Relevance:
GS II: Polity and Governance
Dimensions of the Article:
- Main provisions of the MPFRA, 2021
- How many cases have been registered under this law so far?
- Recent High Court order
Election Commission of India
Context:
Recently, Arun Goel, a retired IAS officer of the 1985 Punjab cadre, assumed charge as the new Election Commissioner (EC) of India
Relevance:
GS II- Polity and Governance
Dimensions of the Article:
- About Election Commission of India
- Structure of the Election Commission
- Issues with ECI
- Some Powers
Electoral bonds
Context:
According to an RTI reply, electoral bonds worth ₹10,246 crore have been sold by the State Bank of India (SBI) since the instrument was launched in March 2018.
Relevance:
GS-II: Polity and Governance (Governance and Government Policies)
Dimensions of the Article:
- What are Electoral Bonds?
- Why have they attracted criticism?
- Government’s response defending the Electoral Bonds scheme
Central Depositories Services India
Context:
Certain services at CDSL were disrupted due to a suspected cyber attack over the weekend.
Relevance:
GS II: Regulatory bodies, Facts for Prelims
What is CDSL?
- CDSL, or Central Depositories Services India Ltd, is a government-registered share depository, alongside its other state-owned counterpart National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL).
- Share depositories hold shares in an electronic or dematerialised form and are an enabler for securities transactions, playing a somewhat similar role to what banks play in handling cash and fixed deposits.
- While banks help customers keep their cash in electronic form, share depositories help consumers store shares in a dematerialised form.
- CDSL was founded in 1999.
- It is a Market Infrastructure Institution or MII that is deemed as a crucial part of the capital market structure, providing services to all market participants, including exchanges, clearing corporations, depository participants, issuers and investors.
- On its website, CDSL describes its foundational goal as “convenient, dependable and secured depository services”, and says that all its activities over the last two decades have been in support of that goal, at an affordable cost.
