Secularism
- Recently, the French government announced that the practice of wearing abaya would be banned in state-run schools as it violated the principle of Laïcité, which is the French idea of secularism.
Key Points:
- Laïcité: A term signifies the formal separation of the State and Church. It entails the removal of religious values from the public sphere, replaced by secular values like liberty, equality, and fraternity.
- Laïcité aims to foster tolerance and assimilation, relegating religion to the private realm, with the state ensuring adherence.
- The 1905 Law in France solidified Laïcité, emphasising secular state-run schools and religious freedom.
- Changing demographics, including immigration from Muslim-majority countries, created tensions and diverse interpretations of Laïcité.
- Controversial laws like the 2004 ban on religious symbols and the 2011 veil prohibition ignited debates over Laïcité’s impact on integration and discrimination.
Central Bank Digital Currency
- Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor recently said that the adoption of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), or digital currency, can help in making cross border payments more efficient.
Key Points:
- India is one of the few countries that has launched CBDC or e-rupee pilots in wholesale and retail segments.
- Benefits of CBDCs: Instant settlement, in making cross-border payments more efficient, secure, and cost-effective.
- Under India’s G20 presidency, the focus has been on addressing challenges in cross-border payments, aiming for solutions that are faster, cheaper, more transparent, and inclusive.
Constitutional Provisions related to Inter-State Water Dispute
- Entry 17 of the State List deals with water i.e., water supply, irrigation, canal, drainage, embankments, water storage and hydro power.
- Entry 56 of the Union List empowers the Union Government for the regulation and development of inter-state rivers and river valleys to the extent declared by Parliament to be expedient in the public interest.
- Article 262 of the Constitution deals with the adjudication of water disputes.
- Article 262 (1): Parliament may, by law, provide for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint with respect to the use, distribution or control of the waters of, or in, any inter-State River or river valley.
- Article 262 (2): Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution, Parliament may, by law, provide that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court shall exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such dispute or complaint as is referred to in clause (1).