August, 2017: Supreme Court Declares Right To Privacy Is Fundamental Right Under Constitution

The Supreme Court pronounced that individual privacy is a fundamental right protected by the Constitution. A nine-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ruled that right to privacy is “intrinsic to life and liberty” and is inherently protected under the various fundamental freedoms enshrined under Part III of the Indian Constitution.

July, 2017: India ranks third in terms of terror attacks world over

India has witnessed the third highest number of terrorist attacks in 2016, more than Pakistan that has slipped to the fourth position, according to the latest data compiled by the US State Department.

Iraq with 2,965 terrorist attacks and Afghanistan with 1,340 terrorist attacks, were ranked first and second position respectively, followed by India that recorded 927 attacks and Pakistan at 734 attacks, the department said in its Country Report on Terrorism. The department said more than half of the terrorist attacks in India in 2016 took place in four states: Jammu and Kashmir at 19%, Chhattisgarh at 18%, Manipur at 12%, and Jharkhand at 10%.

July, 2017: IMF retains India’s GDP growth rate at 7.2%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) retained India's economic growth projections at 7.2 per cent in 2017-18, up slightly from 7.1 per cent in the previous year. However, the growth would accelerate to 7.7 per cent in 2018-19, IMF said while also maintaining the growth rate level projected in April.

June, 2017: Trump announces US withdrawal from Paris Climate Agreement

President Trump announced the withdrawal of the United States from the landmark Paris climate agreement, an extraordinary move that dismayed America’s allies and set back the global effort to address the warming planet.

Trump’s decision set off alarms worldwide, drawing swift and sharp condemnation from foreign leaders as well as top environmentalists and corporate titans, who decried the U.S. exit from the Paris accord as an irresponsible abdication of American leadership in the face of irrefutable scientific evidence.

Trump, who has labeled climate change a “hoax,” made good on a campaign promise to “cancel” the Paris agreement and Obama-era regulations that he said were decimating industries and killing jobs. The president cast his decision as a “reassertion of America’s sovereignty,” arguing that the climate pact as negotiated under President Barack Obama was grossly unfair to the U.S. workers he had vowed to protect with his populist “America First” platform.

May, 2017: GST Council fixes rates for services

The GST Council fixed the rate of tax for goods and services under the new indirect tax regime. With regard to the GST on services, the council broadly agreed on 4 tax brackets having 5%, 12%, 18% and 28% of tax instead of the current uniform rate.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that all services have been fitted into four different rates, which are 5%, 12%, the standard 18% and the luxury rate of 28%, Transport services (Railways, air transport) will be under the 5% category since the main input used for such services are petroleum which is outside the GST Net. Hotels and lodges charging rent below Rs. 1000 are exempted under the GST.

May, 2017: Big B, Anushka to lead Modi govt’s ‘Darwaza Band’ campaign to discourage open defecation

The centre launched an aggressive new campaign titled 'Darwaza Band' to promote toilet use and freedom from open defecation across the country's villages. Darwaza Band stands for shutting the door on open defecation. The campaign produced by the MDWS (Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation) under Swachh Bharat Mission was launched in the presence of iconic actor Amitabh Bachchan and Union Minister for Drinking Water and Sanitation Narendra Singh Tomar.