Title: Death with dignity
The court has laid down(officially
stated what someone do) a much-needed legal framework for enforcing living
wills.
ü Passive
euthanasia is the act of withdrawing or withholding medical support to a dying
patient who has no hope for revival or cure.
ü The
fundamental right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution
includes the “right to die with dignity.” Dignity is lost if a man is allowed
or forced to undergo pain and suffering because of “unwarranted medical support.”
ü Passive
euthanasia was recognised by a two-judge Bench in Aruna Shanbaug in 2011.
ü Now
the Constitution Bench has expanded the jurisprudence(न्यायशास्र)
on the subject by adding to it the principle of a ‘living will’, or an advance
directive(आदेश),
a practice whereby a person, while in a competent(सक्षम)
state of mind, leaves written instructions on the sort of medical treatment
that may or may not be administered in the event of the reaching a stage of
terminal illness.
ü The
government submitted that it was in the process of introducing a law to
regulate passive euthanasia, but opposed the concept of advance directive on
the ground that it was liable to be misused.
ü The
stringent(कठोर)
conditions imposed by the court regarding advance directives are intended to
serve as a set of robust(मजबूत)
safeguards and allay(दबाना)
any apprehensions about misuse.
ü The court is justified in concluding that
advance directives will strengthen the will of the treating doctors by assuring
them that they are acting lawfully in respecting the patient’s wishes
.
ü An
advance directive, after all, only reflects the patient’s autonomy(स्वराज्य)
and does not amount to a recognition of a wish to die.
Title: Trade goes on
ü (The
revival(पुनः
प्रवर्तन)
of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, sans(के
बिना)
U.S., must buttress(समर्थन
देना)
the free trade debate)
ü On
Thursday, 11 Asia-Pacific countries, including Japan, Australia and Canada,
signed the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific
Partnership in Chile.
Trans- Pacific Partnership
ü Twelve
countries that border the Pacific Ocean signed up to the TPP in February 2016,
representing roughly 40% of the world's economic output.
ü The
pact(संधि)
aimed to deepen economic ties between these nations, slashing tariffs and
fostering(को
बढ़ावा
देने)
trade to boost growth. Members had also hoped to foster a closer relationship
on economic policies and regulation.
ü The
agreement was designed so that it could eventually create a new single market,
something like that of the EU.
ü But
all 12 nations needed to ratify(पुष्टि
करना)
it, before it could come into effect.
Member states of Comprehensive and
Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership are:
ü Japan
ü Malaysia
ü Vietnam
ü Singapore
ü Brunei
ü Australia
ü New
Zealand
ü Canada
ü Mexico
ü Chile
ü Peru
ü Mr.
Trump had promised to pull the U.S. out of the TPP, and went on to do
precisely(ठीक) that within weeks of
assuming office.
ü Interestingly,
the CPTPP comes soon after the U.S. had made clear its plan to impose tariffs
on the import of aluminium and steel in an attempt to protect domestic
manufacturers.
ü The
countries signing the agreement, which account for more than 13% of the world
economy, have agreed to bring down(गिराना)
tariffs on cross-border trade by as much as 98% after domestic ratification(अनुममर्थन).
ü But
even in the absence of the world’s largest economy, countries that are
currently part of the deal will only gain from any reduction in the costs
imposed on trade.
ü This
will leave the world, which has largely been moving towards increasing free
trade even as the U.S. has turned inwards, better off than without the deal.
Final words
ü Amid
palpable(स्पष्ट)
fears of a global trade war, the survival of a free trade agreement despite the
sudden pullout of the U.S. offers some respite(राहत)
to the supporters of free trade.
European Bank of Reconstruction and
Development (EBRD)
India has got the go-ahead to join the
European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Shareholders of EBRD
have given their consent(सहमति)
in this regard.
Now, India will become EBRD’s 69th
member
About EBRD
ü Headquarter
– London
ü EBRD
is a multilateral development bank set up in 1991
ü It
invests in 38 emerging economies across three continents, according to a set of
criteria that aim to make its countries more competitive, better governed,
greener, more inclusive, more resilient(लचीला)
and more integrated.
How will this membership help India?
ü Membership
of EBRD would enhance India’s international profile and promote its economic
interests. It will also give access to EBRD’s Countries of Operation and sector
knowledge.
ü India’s
investment opportunities would get a boost. It would increase the scope of
cooperation between India and EBRD through co-financing opportunities in
manufacturing, services, Information Technology, and Energy.
Vocabulary words:
- Adversity (noun) = Misfortune (विपत्ति)
- Euthanasia (noun) = Painless killing (इच्छामृत्यु)
- Concur (verb) = Agree (सहमत होना)
- Persistent (adj) = Continuing firmly (दृढ़)
- Consent (noun) = Agreement (सहमति)
- Autonomy (noun) = Freedom from external control (स्वराज्य)
- Stringent (adj) = Strict, firm (कठोर)
- Revival (noun) = An improvement in the condition (पुनः प्रवर्तन)
- Precisely (adv) = Exactly (ठीक-ठीक)
