THE GST COUNCIL- A TRANSFORMATIVE INSTITUTION IN CRISIS

THE CONTEXT: The Goods and Services Tax Council is the backbone of the GST system. Of late, this sui generis federal institution has been facing several challenges impacting its working and output. The several States have voiced concerns about the lack of proper deliberations, the high handedness of the Centre, excessive delegation to bureaucracy etc. Added to this, there are questions being raised on the Constitutional status of the decisions of the GST Council. Against this backdrop, this writes up comprehensively examines the various issues the GST Council is facing and also analyses the probable solutions for improving its working.

BACK TO BASICS: UNDERSTANDING THE GST COUNCIL

ABOUT GST COUNCIL ·         The Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016 inserted Art 279A into the constitution which heralded a new regime of cooperative fiscal federalism by establishing the GST Council.

·          The GST Council is a joint forum of the Centre and the States which will make recommendations to the Union and the States on important issues related to GST.
COMPOSITION ·         Union Finance Minister – Chairperson. the Union Minister of State, in-charge of Revenue of finance – Member. the Minister In-charge of finance or taxation or any other Minister nominated by each State Government – Members.

·         The GST Council Secretariat, New Delhi shall be manned by officers taken on deputation from both the Central and State Governments.
FUNCTIONS OF THE GST COUNCIL ·         Make recommendations to the Union and the States on issues related to GST such as:

  • ØThe goods and services that may be subjected to or exempted from GST,
  • Model GST Laws, principles that govern Place of Supply, threshold limits,
  • GST rates including the floor rates with bands, special rates for raising additional resources during natural calamities/disasters,
  • Special provisions for certain States, etc.

·         The GST Council will also recommend the date on which GST will be levied on petroleum crude, high-speed diesel, petrol, natural gas and aviation turbine fuel.
DECISION MAKING PROCEDURE ·         The quorum of GST Council is 50% of total members

·         Decision is taken by 3/4th majority (75%), wherein the Central Government would have the weightage of 1/3rd of the total vote cast.

·         The State Governments would have a weightage of 2/3rd of the total votes cast.

·         The decisions are taken mostly on the basis of consensus but the Council voted on the issue of tax on the lottery in a meeting held in 2020.

THE GST COUNCIL AND THE MAKING OF INDIAN COOPERATIVE FEDERALISM

The adoption of GST and the creation of the GST Council itself was a major shift from the past in terms of cooperative and competitive federalism. The working of the GST Council also has been transformative in terms of its number of meetings (more than 43 times), review of GST rates and efforts to seek cooperation with states for the effective implementation of GST. In fact, the work of the GST Council was considered as more successful than that of the Inter-State Council and National Development Council. However, the Covid-19 pandemic and the emerging implementation challenges of GST have also posed challenges for the GST Council.

THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE FUNCTIONS OF THE GST COUNCIL

COMPENSATION TO STATES ·         As per the GST (Compensation to States) Act 2017, the Central Government has to compensate the States for any revenue loss arising out of GST.

·          Despite this legal mandate, the Centre largely failed to compensate the States on time in 2019-20 and also during the pandemic period.

·         Although an agreement was reached later, the fraternal feeling that dominated the Council proceedings have suffered serious damages.

·         Also, the modalities of unpaid compensation worth 63000 crores have not been settled yet which is likely to create further tension and conflicts in Council meetings.
LONG GAP BETWEEN MEETINGS ·         The Council is expected to meet every quarter but during the Covid 19 period, the meetings became irregular. For instance, the recent meeting on May 28, 2021, was held after a gap of seven months although the States have been requesting the Centre to schedule early meetings.

·         The gaps in holding the meetings and consequent delay in taking important decisions impact the entire GST system (Recall, debate on GST on life-saving medical drugs and devices during Covid second wave)
MOUNTING CRITICISM FROM STATES. ·         Tamil Nadu Finance Minister has lamented that the GST system is “badly designed and executed and repudiated the practice of every State having equal vote despite the difference in size and population.

·         West Bengal’s Finance Minister has argued that the GST Council’s meetings have become “acrimonious, vexing, and almost toxic with the erosion of mutual trust that held fast between the State and the Centre since the inception of the GST Council”.

·         Kerala’s Finance Minister has claimed that the GST is “antithetical to federalism to begin with”.
POLITICISATION OF MEETINGS ·         The deliberations in the Council meetings have seen the States and the Centre taking positions based on political party lines. The BJP and non-BJP groupings have started to impact the cordial and cooperative atmosphere in the meetings.

·         States even alleged that during virtual meetings, their microphones were switched off which prevented them from voicing their concerns.
EXCESSIVE DELEGATION ·         The GST Implementation Committee comprised of civil servants implements the decisions of the Council and also takes routine and procedural decisions in the period between the Council meetings.

·          The States have pointed out that the GIC has been taking substantive decisions without taking approval from the Council.

·         Bureaucratic decisions—ranging from restricting input tax credits to cancellation of GST registration—set the dangerous precedent of delegating excessive powers to bureaucrats and States like Punjab has asserted that it will not incorporate such substantive legal changes in State legislation in future unless cleared by the Council.
GST DISPUTE RESOLUTION MECHANISM ·         Art 279A (11) provides that The Goods and Services Tax Council shall establish a mechanism to adjudicate any dispute—

(a) Between the Government of India and one or more States; or

(b) Between the Government of India and any State or States on one side and one or more other States on the other side; or

(c) Between two or more States, arising out of the recommendations of the Council or its implementation.

·         Despite four years of GST, the adjudicatory mechanism has not been established which means future disputes can disrupt the GST system itself.
UNRESOLVED CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUE ·         Cooperative federalism implies a reasonable degree of autonomy to the participants. Each party can bargain about the terms of cooperation and, if driven too hard, decline to cooperate.

·         Voluntary participation is the core feature of cooperation in a federal polity which is at odds with the GST Council’s “majority rules” decision-making process. As a result, there is a lack of certainty regarding the status of the GST Council’s decisions (Read Ahead)

NATURE OF DECISIONS OF THE GST COUNCIL: RECIPE FOR CONFLICTS?

LACK OF CLARITY OF RECOMMENDATIONS POSSIBLE REASON

NUMBER 1

 POSSIBLE REASON

NUMBER 2

 POSSIBLE REASON

NUMBER 3
·         The GST Council is mandated to make “recommendations” on all matters to GST to the States and centres.

·         But nowhere in the Constitution is it mentioned whether the recommendations are binding on the Centre or the States.

·        If one or more States decide to opt-out of GST or refuse to follow the recommendations, it will lead to a constitutional crisis.

 ·   Treating the Council’s decisions as binding would be unconstitutional as it would be violating the legislative supremacy of both the Parliament and the State Legislatures.

·   Art 246A provides for concurrent taxation power to the Parliament and State legislatures relating to goods and services under GST.

 

 ·  The Supreme Court of India has long held that federalism is part of the Basic Structure of the Constitution.

·         Application of Basic Structure Test to any such amendment that violates the fiscal autonomy of the States may not stand the scrutiny of the courts under the Basic Structure doctrine.

 ·         There may be a lack of political will to make the GST Council’s decisions mandatory which would impact

the Constitutional right (however limited) of States to determine their own indirect tax policy

·  The States may have adopted a wait-and-watch approach. If the GST system is successful and their revenue targets are met, well and good. Instead, they may opt-out and revert to the old system.

MAKING THE DECISION BINDING: PROBABLE SOLUTIONS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS

SERIAL NO: SOLUTIONS IMPLICATIONS
1 ·         A Constitutional Amendment clarifying that the “recommendations” of the GST Council are binding on the Centre and the States.

 

 ·         This would end the ambiguity once and for all but would be tough to achieve for lack of political will.

·          States may not agree as the Amendment would make it obligatory for them to accept the decision of a majority, even in situations where they register their dissent. As recent events show, the States are yet to fully trust the GST system.
2 ·         Seeking court intervention to interpret the existing GST-related legislative provisions. The wording of certain provisions suggests that the GST Council’s decisions, despite being termed “recommendations,” are indeed binding.

·          For instance, the language of section 9(1) of the CGST Act 2017 suggests that the Centre can impose tax only at rates that are recommended by the GST Council. The language of the States’ GST statutes is almost identical to the Central Law.

 ·         A clarification from the Supreme Court on the real meaning and effect of the GST Council’s “recommendations” would provide clarity.

·         Under the doctrine of purposive interpretation, a court is supposed to attach to a provision the meaning that serves the “purpose” behind it.

·         This may or may not pass the Supreme Court of India’s “Basic Structure Test,” on the ground that federalism may be affected by undermining the legislative authority of States
3 ·         To create a dispute resolution mechanism for the GST Council that is similar to the existing Inter-State Water Disputes tribunals(ISWT)

·         The ISWT are the only quasi-judicial bodies in India that have original jurisdiction to decide inter-State disputes, which would otherwise fall within the exclusive domain of the Supreme Court of India.

 

 ·         As mentioned above, Article 279(A) (11) requires the GST Council to establish a mechanism to adjudicate Centre-State and inter-State disputes.

·         Making the decisions of such a dispute resolution mechanism final and binding could be an indirect way of making the GST Council’s decisions binding.

·         This solution might pass judicial scrutiny, unlike the other two, primarily because of the water disputes tribunals’ precedent.
4 ·         Improve the existing system by promoting voluntary compliance by States through incentivisation.

·         For instance, the GST Council is empowered to recommend a special rate for a specified period to raise additional resources during any natural calamity or disaster.

 

 ·         The Council exercised this power in January 2019, when it approved the State of Kerala’s proposal to levy a 1 per cent cess, following a devastating flood in August 2018.

·         This has generated goodwill among the constituents of the federal polity. The GST Council has many such tools to address the economic exigencies of the federal units and its use in an apolitical manner can enable smooth functioning of the GST Council.

REFORMING THE GST COUNCIL: THE WAY AHEAD

NOTION OF BINDING RECOMMENDATIONS ·         As outlined above, bringing clarity in respect of the “recommendations” must be the immediate priority of the Council. Among, the possible solutions listed above, the Fourth One seems to be more apt.

·         Fiscal autonomy is the essence of all federations; federal units may simply walk away in the absence of a binding mechanism. In Canada, for instance, British Columbia pulled out of Canada’s harmonised sales tax (HST) system barely three years after agreeing to participate.
DE POLITICISING THE COUNCIL ·         Both the Centre and States should adopt a more conciliatory attitude in deliberating critical issues in the Council and outside.

·          The Centre being the more mature and powerful partner need to show more accommodation to States concerns. For instance, its decision to directly borrow from the market (although belatedly) and channelize the funds to the States in lieu of GST revenue shortfall is well appreciated by States.

·         The dichotomy based on political party grouping must be ended and rather an issue-based position must be taken by all partners.
ISSUE OF COMPENSATION TO STATES ·         The GST Compensation to States 2017 Act has many grey areas which have made the Council meetings a political slugfest.  For instance, the compensation period is only for five years.

·         But as Covid 19 shows, the revenue shortfall is likely to last longer and such other exigencies might occur in future also.

·         So necessary consensus should be reached on the extension of the compensation period, the manner of funding it, and also what the phrase “on account of GST” means in the Act.
MODALITIES OF CALLING COUNCIL MEETINGS. ·         As it stands, the Centre has the monopoly in calling or deciding the meetings of the Council by virtue of it being headed by the Union Finance Minister. This has resulted in an element of arbitrariness in the working of the Council.

·         The States should have critical say in calling the meetings and also in deciding its agenda. For instance, if one-fourth of States demand Council meetings, then the Centre should schedule it urgently. Giving more voice to the States in the working of Council will allay their fears of losing out on the fiscal front thereby the working of the Council will become more productive.
LIMITING BUREAUCRATIC LEGISLATION ·         The GST Implementation Committee’s mandate must be clearly earmarked especially the items/areas where the Committee can make rules/regulations. Where substantive issues are involved, say changing the procedure of compliance, withholding input tax credit etc require approval from GST Council.

·         GST Council is the microcosm of the State Legislatures and the Parliament and thus delegated legislation must not be pursued to an extent of bypassing these peoples’ representative institutions.

·         Further, every critical decision of the Council must be placed before the State Legislatures and their approval must be taken and/or the state GST Law be amended wherever needed.
ESTABLISHMENT OF DISPUTE SETTLEMENT MECHANISM. ·         Along with the adjudicatory mechanism provided under Art 279A (11), the GST Appellate Tribunal under CGST Act must be set up on priority. While the former will provide a platform for effective grievance redressal for federal units, the latter will cater to the taxpayer segment (Recently a PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court to direct the Centre to constitute the tribunals both at national and regional under CGST Act).

·         Setting up these bodies will open up new chapters in the working of GST system and make the Council function with renewed purpose.

THE CONCLUSION: The GST Council has been a pioneering experiment in the arena of fiscal federalism in India. Although fiscal sovereignty and autonomy are the key features of a federal political system, the States and centres have surrendered their taxation power for the collective good. Despite such noble intentions and objectives, the GST Council suffers from multiple issues, perhaps the biggest among them is the “nature of recommendations of the council”. Along with providing clarity on this issue, the increasing politicisation of the proceedings of the Council must be addressed. In order to make India Atmanirbhar, the GST Council must work in the spirit of “cooperative and collaborative federalism” than in “competitive and disruptive federalism”.



Today’s Important Articles for Sociology (15-10-2021)

  1. Our public schooling system requires rapid expansion READ MORE
  2. Human rights and the State READ MORE


Today’s Important Articles for Geography (15-10-2021)

  1. The declining monsoon rainfall in Punjab over last two decades READ MORE
  2. Climate negotiations need an innovative approach READ MORE


Ethics Through Current Development (15-10-2021)

  1. Human rights and the State READ MORE
  2. A crisis of compassion in India READ MORE


Today’s Important Articles for Pub Ad (15-10-2021)

  1. Why India’s bureaucracy needs urgent reform READ MORE
  2. Human rights and the State READ MORE
  3. Regulate private hospitals: Must check fleecing of patients at all times READ MORE
  4. Why India’s civil services need corporate management structures and culture READ MORE


WSDP Bulletin (15-10-2021)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

  1. Country’s first ‘One Health’ consortium launched by D/o Biotechnology, Post COVID 19 READ MORE
  2. India gets re-elected to U.N. Human Rights Council for 2022-24 term READ MORE
  3. Global Hunger Index 2021: India slips to 101st spot, behind Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal READ MORE
  4. India among 50% countries where classes are yet to go fully in-person: Unicef-backed study READ MORE
  5. Are we seeing early signs of reverse migration in India? READ MORE
  6. Centre notifies new rules allowing abortion till 24 weeks of pregnancy in case of minors, rape survivors READ MORE

Main Exam

GS Paper- 1

  1. The declining monsoon rainfall in Punjab over last two decades READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

  1. Why India’s bureaucracy needs urgent reform READ MORE
  2. Human rights and the State READ MORE
  3. Regulate private hospitals: Must check fleecing of patients at all times READ MORE
  4. Why India’s civil services need corporate management structures and culture READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

  1. Our public schooling system requires rapid expansion READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

  1. AUKUS, Australia, and the Importance of Trust in Foreign Policy READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

  1. India towards the space and beyond READ MORE
  2. PLI Schemes: not a long-term answer READ MORE
  3. Speed and strength: Gati Shakti shows the intent, but hurdles remain READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

  1. Climate negotiations need an innovative approach READ MORE

 SECURITY

  1. The global war on terror grinds along: Notwithstanding some temporary setbacks, the broad contours of terrorism remain much the same READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

  1. A crisis of compassion in India READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

  1. ‘The civil services held India together after Independence, but if the country’s potential is to be realised, existing problems of inefficiency and inaction must be fixed’. Analyse the statement.
  2. ‘Space is a global phenomenon and India must not allow itself to miss the opportunity to be at the top of this frontier’. In the light of the statement, analyse whether India should move towards the privatisation of ISRO?

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

  • Fairness is what justice really is.
  • The civil services held India together after Independence, but if the country’s potential is to be realised, existing problems of inefficiency and inaction must be fixed.
  • Indian habitations must have easily accessible schools that serve the educational needs of children at every level if we are to ease a severe supply constraint in generating human capital.
  • There is a crying need for reforms such as a transparent and result-driven appraisal system, rules that make decision-making easier, better interdepartmental coordination, among others.
  • India’s private healthcare industry provides vital services to those who can afford to pay for them as the country’s public healthcare system is overburdened, understaffed and wholly inadequate.
  • Opening space programmes to private players is a breakthrough act and the world is watching keenly to see how feasible it will be to set up shop here.
  • India could then be a world leader not only in climate change innovation but also effectively control pollutants and use pollution as a raw material for mineral production.
  • The previous infrastructure pushes by the Union government failed because of burdensome or contradictory approaches from state government regulators and in some cases strong opposition by civil society groups. Planning should take these issues into account and therefore will need to be transparent and inclusive.
  • Space is a global phenomenon and India must not allow itself to miss the opportunity to be at the top of this frontier. Policies must be harmonised with the global best practices. Developments and standards need to be on par with the rest of the world.

50- WORD TALK

  • The Centre’s order to expand the BSF’s jurisdiction in border states from 15 km to 50 km inside Indian territory can severely strain the fragile federal structure. It amounts to big-footing the state police forces. Instead of adding muscle, it can create confusion in intelligence gathering and law enforcement activities.
  • The extortion “nexus” in West Bengal’s Jaigaon involving SSB officers and so-called ‘journalists’ preying on Bhutan’s trade with India is deplorable. Bhutan is a valuable friend and strategic ally of India. Such nefarious activities need to be dealt with a heavy hand, especially when China is hyperactively eyeing India’s neighbourhood.

Things to Remember:

  • For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
  • Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and also exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
  • For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
  • For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
  • Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.


DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (OCTOBER 15, 2021)

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. ONE HEALTH CONSORTIUM

THE CONTEXT: Country’s first ‘One Health’ consortium launched by the Department of Biotechnology.

THE EXPLANATION: 

  • The consortium, consisting of 27 organisations led by DBT-National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, Hyderabad, is one of the biggest health programs launched by the Govt of India in post-COVID times. The One health consortium consists of AIIMS, Delhi, AIIMS Jodhpur, IVRI, Bareily, GADVASU, Ludhiana, TANUVAS, Chennai, MAFSU, Nagpur, Assam agricultural and veterinary university and many more ICAR, ICMR centres and wildlife agencies.
  • COVID-19 pandemic showed the relevance of ‘One Health’ principles in the governance of infectious diseases, especially efforts to prevent and contain zoonotic diseases throughout the world.
  • The risk of infectious agents capable of jumping the barriers of species is increasing, mainly because of the potential of novel infectious agents to spread rapidly around the globe due to increased travel, food habits and trade across borders.
  • Such diseases have devastating impacts on animals, humans, health systems, and economies, requiring years of social and economic recovery.

ABOUT ONE HEALTH CONCEPT

  • One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach— working at the local, regional, national, and global levels — with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
  • This concept is used by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). In India, it is a component under the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well Being.

SOURCE: PIB

 

2. GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 2021

THE CONTEXT:  India has slipped to the 101st position among 116 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021 from its 2020 ranking (94), to be placed behind Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

THE EXPLANATION: 

  • With this, only 15 countries, like Papua New Guinea (102), Afghanistan (103), Nigeria (103), Congo (105), fared worse than India this year.
  • A total of 18 countries, including China, Kuwait and Brazil, shared the top rank with a GHI score of less than five.
  • The report, prepared jointly by Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide and German organisation Welt Hunger Hilfe, mentioned the level of hunger in India as “alarming” with its GHI score decelerating from 38.8 in 2000 to the range of 28.8 – 27.5 between 2012 and 2021.
  • The GHI score is calculated on four indicators — undernourishment; child wasting (the share of children under the age of five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition); child stunting (children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition); child mortality (the mortality rate of children under the age of five).
  • According to the report, the share of wasting among children in India rose from 17.1 per cent between 1998-2002 to 17.3 per cent between 2016-2020.
  • However, India has shown improvement in indicators like the under-5 mortality rate, the prevalence of stunting among children and prevalence of undernourishment owing to inadequate food.

SOURCE: IE

 

3. NEW RULES ALLOWING ABORTION

THE CONTEXT:  As per the government’s new rules, the gestational limit for termination of a pregnancy in India has been increased from 20 to 24 weeks for some categories of women.

THE EXPLANATION: 

  • Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Rules, 2021, the women for whom the limit has been increased include survivors of sexual assault, rape or incest, minors, those whose marital status changes during pregnancy (widowhood and divorce) and those with physical disabilities.
  • The new rules also include mentally ill women, cases of foetal malformation in which there is a substantial risk of physical or mental abnormalities and women in disasters or emergency situations as declared by the government.
  • These new rules fall under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021, which was passed by Parliament in March this year.
  • Earlier, an abortion required the opinion of one doctor if carried out within twelve weeks of conception and two doctors if done between twelve and twenty weeks.
  • As per the new rules, state-level medical boards will be set up to decide if pregnancy may be terminated after 24 weeks in cases of foetal malformation where there is a substantial risk of incompatibility with life, physical or mental abnormalities or handicaps.
  • The medical boards are to examine the woman and her reports and then either accept or reject the proposal for medical termination of pregnancy within three days of receiving the request.
  • The boards also have to ensure that the abortion procedure, when advised by them, is carried out with all precautions along with counselling. The procedure has to be done with five days of the board receiving the request for the same.
  • Experts say that given the advancements in scientific and medical technology the world has witnessed over the years, the extended 24-week gestation period should be for all women and not just ‘special categories of women. The creation of state medical boards could potentially create impediments for women’s access to abortion services as many women discover they are pregnant at a later stage.

SOURCE: INDIA TODAY

 

4. GLOBAL COVID-19 EDUCATION RECOVERY TRACKER

THE CONTEXT: A global Covid-19 education recovery tracker has revealed that nearly half the countries across the world are still taking classes in the online and hybrid (both online and offline) mode while some are on an extended break due to the pandemic.

THE EXPLANATION:

  • Created by the Johns Hopkins University in the US, Unicef and World Bank, the tracker captures information from 208 countries worldwide and was launched in March.
  • While schools have restarted in several countries over the past few months, the latest data on the tracker, till the month of September, shows that classes are yet to go fully in-person in almost half the nations.
  • A large number of countries are either teaching children online or through the hybrid mode, which means juggling online and in-person lessons.
  • in India, education is currently being imparted in the hybrid mode. At the school level, students in the senior classes have started attending school in person in most states while junior classes continue online.
  • The tracker also shows that schools in some countries are on an extended break due to Covid-19.

Source: THEPRINT

 

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

5. THE DECLINING MONSOON RAINFALL IN PUNJAB OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES

THE CONTEXT: The state has seen a declining trend in rainfall during monsoon in the past two decades. The only silver lining was that the rainfall pattern was good this year, which was witnessed after a long gap.

THE EXPLANATION:

  • There are several factors and they are not Punjab-specific but a global phenomenon due to which erratic weather changes are occurring, for which a collective approach is required to minimise the effect of global warming to control extreme weather variables.
  • Experts said deforestation in the state is also one of the causes of the decreasing rainfall trend.

SOURCE:IE

 

6. THE LARGE SCALE BESS FOR 1000 MW HOUR PROJECT

THE CONTEXT: Government has given go-ahead for inviting the expression of interest for the installation of a 1000 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as a pilot project.

THE EXPLANATION:

  • This is the joint effort of both Ministry of New and renewable energy and the Ministry of Power who have been working on this to provide a road map for the installation of the energy storage system in the country.
  • In order to support the ambitious goal of achieving the 450 GW renewable energy target of the Ministry of New and renewable energy by 2030, it is important that it gets duly supported with the installation of energy storage systems (battery energy storage system, hydro pump storage plants etc.).
  • Going forward, India plans to use an energy storage system under the following business cases:–
  • Renewable energy along with the energy storage system
  • The energy storage system as grid element to maximize the use of transmission system and strengthening grid stability and also to save investment in the augmentation of transmission infrastructure.
  • Storage as an asset for balancing services and flexible operation. The system operator i.e. load dispatchers (RLDCs and SLDCs) may use storage system for frequency control and balancing services to manage the inherent uncertainty/variations in the load due to un-generation.
  • Storage for distribution system i.e. it may be placed at the load centre to manage its peak load and other obligations.
  • As a merchant capacity by the energy storage system developer and sell in the power market
  • Any other future business models as a combination of the above.

SOURCE:   PIB

 

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. INDIA-U.S. FINANCIAL DIALOGUE

THE CONTEXT: Finance Minister and her American counterpart, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, met for the eight Ministerial meetings of the U.S.-India Economic and Financial partnership. The Ministerial held a session dedicated to climate finance for the first time.

THE EXPLANATION:

  • In the run-up to the UN Climate Change Conference ( “COP26”)in Glasgow at the end of the month, India has been pushing for rich countries to meet their Paris Accord climate finance commitment of $100 billion per year.
  • The two sides “reaffirmed the collective developed country goal to mobilise $100 billion annually for developing countries from public and private sources, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation,” the statement said. Holding such a session, the statement said, reflected the “critical” role climate finance has to play in achieving global climate goals and the two sides’ commitments to drive “urgent progress” in combatting climate change.
  • On international taxation, the two sides welcomed the OECD (Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development, a group of wealthy countries) tax agreement and committed to working with others to implement the agreement’s two pillars by 2023. Pillar One involves the allocation of taxing rights (tax on multinationals) between jurisdictions, and Pillar Two, a global minimum tax of 15% on certain companies

SOURCE: TH

 

8. INDIA GETS RE-ELECTED TO U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

THE CONTEXT:  India was re-elected to the U.N. Human Rights Council for the 2022-24 term on Thursday with an overwhelming majority in the General Assembly, with New Delhi’s envoy describing the election as a “robust endorsement” of the country’s strong roots in democracy, pluralism and fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.

THE EXPLANATION:

  • The 76th UN General Assembly held elections on Thursday for 18 new members of the U.N. Human Rights Council who will serve for a period of three years, starting in January 2022.
  • India got 184 votes in the 193-member assembly, while the required majority was 97.
  • India’s current term was set to end on December 31 2021. For election for the term 2022-2024, there were five vacant seats in the Asia-Pacific States category – India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

SOURCE: TH

 

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTION

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to “One Health Concept”

  1. The goal of one health is achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
  2. It is a component under the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well Being.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

 

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 14, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: A

Explanation:

Prime Minister launched the Gati Shakti – National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity.   Gati Shakti — a digital platform — will bring 16 Ministries including Railways and Roadways together for integrated planning and coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity projects.



Day-63 | Daily MCQs | UPSC Prelims | SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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