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The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is considering Open Book Examinations (OBE) for students of Classes 9 to 12 in line with the recommendations of the new National Curriculum Framework released last year.
According to sources, CBSE has proposed a pilot run of open-book tests in a few schools for English, Mathematics and Science for Classes 9 and 10 and English, Mathematics and Biology for Classes 11 and 12 later this year to evaluate time taken by students to complete such tests and stakeholders’ response.
In an open-book exam, students are allowed to carry their notes, textbooks, or other study material and refer to them during the examination.
However, OBEs are not necessarily easier than closed-book exams; often they are more challenging. This is because an open-book test does not assess a student’s memory but her understanding of a subject and ability to analyse or apply concepts. It is not merely jotting down content from a textbook onto the answer script.
Express Network
India, China emphasize on full disengagement along the LAC (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 3, Internal Security)
Indian and China held the 21st round military talks earlier this week emphasising that a complete disengagement in the remaining areas along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh is essential for restoring normalcy along the borders.
In a statement released Wednesday, the Ministry of External Affairs said the latest discussions on Monday at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point built on the previous rounds.
It said the discussions sought complete disengagement in the remaining areas along the LAC in eastern Ladakh as an essential basis for restoration of peace and tranquillity in the India-China border areas.
Stating that the talks were held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere, the MEA said that the two sides shared their perspectives on disengaging from the remaining friction points along the LAC.
Editorial
Leader of the bar (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
The passing of Fali S Nariman represents the end of an era. Being 20 years of age when India attained Independence, Nariman belonged to a generation of lawyers who were almost the first post-Independence legal practitioners.
On their shoulders fell the task of decolonising a system which worked without a written constitution to one which had a constitution — a transition of immense importance for the citizens of the country.
On their shoulders also fell the task of making the first challenges to laws which could be declared unconstitutional.
There were advantages to starting in Bombay. It was the commercial centre of India. Bombay was a city which housed Parsi businesses and industry.
There is the famous House of Tatas — known as Bombay House — in which sat another famous Parsi lawyer N A Palkhivala. The legal profession in Bombay, now Mumbai, was proud of being an advisor to the East India Company.
At that time, the legal profession was bifurcated between solicitors who did not appear in court and counsels who only appeared in court and did no transactional legal work.
Fali Nariman chose the latter and was one of the most sought-after lawyers in his younger days. In a profession dominated by Parsis and Gujaratis, business and industry looked to Nariman for legal advice and guidance.
Economy
Legal scrubbing of India – Oman free trade pact underway (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The proposed India-Oman free trade agreement (FTA) that could boost Indian exports into the West Asia region is likely to be announced soon as pending issues have been settled and a legal scrubbing of the deal is underway.
While Oman is looking to diversify its economy by reducing its dependence on the oil and gas sector, India is looking for greater market access into diverse markets for its pharmaceuticals and textiles to technology and agricultural products. Currently, India relies on only half a dozen countries opening it up to external shocks.
The India-Oman FTA should be announced soon as most of the issues have been settled and the deal is undergoing legal scrubbing.
Once that is done, the leadership will take a decision on its announcement. The commerce ministry intends to sign the pact before the general elections.
This would potentially be India’s second FTA with a West Asian country after signing a trade deal with the UAE. India also furthered its economic integration with UAE by completing a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) with UAE earlier this month.
GDP growth may slow down to 6.5% in FY 25 (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Global banking group Morgan Stanley has said India’s economic growth is expected to slow down to 6.5 per cent in the financial year (FY) 2025 from 6.9 per cent forecast for FY2024.
“On growth, we expect GDP growth to remain healthy, and we are tracking December 2023 GDP at 6.5 per cent, even as it slows from 7.7 per cent in the first half of FY2024.
We expect GDP to average 6.9 per cent in FY2024 and 6.5 per cent in FY2025,” Morgan Stanley said in its latest research report on the Indian economy.
The RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee recently projected a lower GDP growth of 7 per cent for FY 2025, down from 7.3 per cent projected by the National Statistical Office for FY24.
Significantly, the government has projected higher a nominal GDP growth – without excluding the pace of inflation — of 10.5 per cent in the interim Budget presented on February 1 as against 8.9 per cent in 2023-24
With regard to macro-stability, we anticipate headline inflation to remain range-bound around 5.0-5.2 per cent in first quarter of FY24, supported by favourable base effect, and average 5.4 per cent in FY2024 and 4.5 per cent in FY2025.