1. Reliable data, good policy: The onus is on the government to ensure that there is a robust system of public data production and use READ MORE
2. ‘Go back to committees’ is the farm laws lesson: In any key legislation, the practice now of not involving the established systems of Parliament has to be reviewed READ MORE
3. POCSO Act: Why the SC’s ruling is critical READ MORE
4. Digitisation of courts brings privacy concerns. But India lacks right to be forgotten READ MORE
5. How the Modi government’s new IT rules jeopardise the right to privacy and free speech READ MORE

1. Error corrected: Laws should not be interpreted in a way that destroys the intent behind them READ MORE
2. Caste Dimensions of Poverty and Wealth: Large income and asset deficits disempower the disadvantaged castes. READ MORE

1. Explained | Why is India’s coal usage under scrutiny? READ MORE
2. Restructure economy to bring down pollution READ MORE

1. Accountability at the workplace READ MORE
2. Happiness: Another Name for Contentment READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Cleanest Cities of India Honoured by President at Swachh Amrit Mahotsav READ MORE
2. Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin completes 5 years READ MORE
3. Tastier, more nutritious, climate-resistant chana soon, thanks to study led by India’s ICRISAT READ MORE
4. New plant species named after tribal sect READ MORE
5. Explained | Will Pakistan law on Kulbhushan Jadhav help India’s position? READ MORE
6. Life expectancy lower for urban poor, says study READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. Attempts To Add Communal Colour to the Moplah Rebellion Are Wrong READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Reliable data, good policy: The onus is on the government to ensure that there is a robust system of public data production and use READ MORE
2. ‘Go back to committees’ is the farm laws lesson: In any key legislation, the practice now of not involving the established systems of Parliament has to be reviewed READ MORE
3. POCSO Act: Why the SC’s ruling is critical READ MORE
4. Digitisation of courts brings privacy concerns. But India lacks right to be forgotten READ MORE
5. How the Modi government’s new IT rules jeopardise the right to privacy and free speech READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Error corrected: Laws should not be interpreted in a way that destroys the intent behind them READ MORE
2. Caste Dimensions of Poverty and Wealth: Large income and asset deficits disempower the disadvantaged castes. READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Steel and aluminium can unlock the US-India trade agenda READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Tackling the problem of bad loans READ MORE
2. Farm laws: Finding the right public-private mix in farming READ MORE
3. A controversy in the making? READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Explained | Why is India’s coal usage under scrutiny? READ MORE
2. Restructure economy to bring down pollution READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Accountability at the workplace READ MORE
2. Happiness: Another Name for Contentment READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Investigating agencies needs independence in their working, not tenure extension for their directors’. Discuss the statement in the light of recent tenure extensions of the director of CBI and ED.
2. ‘Agriculture should be transformed into a business rather than a livelihood programme with active participation from the private sector’. Discuss the statement.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• When tillage begins, other arts follow. The farmers are the founders of human civilization.
• The government and research institutions’ initiatives need to be complemented with efforts by civil society to address social barriers and information gaps in crop residue management.
• When evidence-based policymaking becomes the cornerstone of good governance, it is difficult to overstate the importance of reliable and timely public data.
• A proper parliamentary scrutiny of pieces of legislation is the best guarantee that sectoral interest will not jeopardise basic national interest.
• Despite various attempts to create an efficient framework for resolving bad loans, poor ecosystem and legal delays frustrate many of these initiatives.
• Repeal of farm laws reveals excessive social mistrust of private players. Farmers need public goods as well as private innovation.
• As a profession, agriculture should be transformed into a business rather than a livelihood programme with active participation from the private sector.
• Any right to privacy of individuals should not have to depend on their privilege, but ensure their access to resources and ability to approach the higher judiciary to get relief.
• The Centre’s recent attempts to provide clarification over the notification fail to allay concerns raised by civil society, tech companies and internet users.

50- WORD TALK

• Supreme Court ordering a CBI probe into 26% stake sale in HZL by government in 2002 but allowing it to divest its remaining stake is a bit perplexing. The history of privatisation shows that it has worked well. An overly technical reading of rules can end up hurting this process.
• The repeal of the controversial but much-needed farm reform laws is the second big retreat by the Modi government. First was the ambitious land acquisition ordinance. These expose the limitations of parliamentary majority in a democracy. Numbers may bring hubris but public consensus still needs to be sought and built.

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.

[WpProQuiz 94]

INDIAN GEOGRAPHY

WHY WERE THERE NO CYCLONES IN OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER?

THE CONTEXT:  According to Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) data, “As many as seven low-pressure areas (LPA) have formed in the North Indian Ocean region since October 1, 2021 — but none of them has intensified into a cyclone. October and November constitute the peak cyclone season for India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• No cyclone formation in the rest of November would mean a first-time anomaly in the last 31 years for October and November.
• If December also remains cyclone-free, it would be the first time since 1961 that the post-monsoon season would remain without a cyclone. This has happened only five times since 1891: In 1900, 1911, 1953, 1954 and 1961.
• Initially, in the month of October 2021, the forecast for this system by the Global Forecasting System of the United States data had suggested it would intensify into a cyclone. But that did not happen. The IMD on October 18, 2021, said that cyclone formation did not happen because of unfavourable land interactions of the system.
• This is happening even though the La Nina phase of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon is currently prevailing. The La Nina is the cooling phase of the ENSO and is generally favourable for cyclone/hurricane/typhoon formation all over the world, including in the North Indian Ocean region.
• The North Atlantic Ocean experienced record storm and hurricane activity due to the emergence of La Nina or due to its potential emergence in the last two years. The phenomenon creates an extended region of low vertical wind shear, which is favourable for the intensification of cyclones.
• In fact, when cyclones Gulab and Shaheen had formed successively around the end of September 2021 it seemed like the cyclone season had started off. This had also come after the record-breaking formation of low-pressure areas in September that continued in October and November and caused excessive rainfall and floods in many parts of the country.

THE BACKGROUND:

What is Low Pressure and High-Pressure Area?

• A low-pressure system has lower pressure at its centre than the areas around it. Winds blow towards the low pressure, and the air rises in the atmosphere where they meet.
• A high-pressure system has higher pressure at its centre than the areas around it. Winds blow away from high pressure.

ENSO:

• El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is an irregularly periodic variation in winds and sea surface temperatures over the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean, affecting the climate of much of the tropics and subtropics.
• The warming phase of the sea temperature is known as El Niño and the cooling phase as La Niña. The Southern Oscillation is the accompanying atmospheric component, coupled with the sea temperature change:
• El Niño is accompanied by high air surface pressure in the tropical western Pacific and La Niña with low air surface pressure there. The two periods last several months each and typically occur every few years with varying intensity per period.

THE SHALE EXPLORATION IN RAJASTHAN

THE CONTEXT: Cairn Oil & Gas has announced that it is partnering with US-based Halliburton to start shale exploration in the Lower Barmer Hill formation, Western Rajasthan.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is shale oil? How does it differ from conventional crude oil?

• Shale oil is a substitute for conventional crude oil; however, extracting shale oil is costlier than the production of conventional crude oil both financially and in terms of its environmental impact. Deposits of oil shale occur around the world, including major deposits in the United States.
• The key difference between shale oil and conventional crude is that the former, also called ‘tight oil’, is found in smaller batches, and deeper than conventional crude deposits.
• Its extraction requires the creation of fractures in oil and gas-rich shale to release hydrocarbons through a process called hydraulic fracking.
• Russia and the US are among the largest shale oil producers in the world, with a surge in shale oil production in the US has played a key role in turning the country from an importer of crude to a net exporter in 2019
• A number of US shale exploration firms, including Halliburton, have faced litigation from citizens living in areas adjacent to shale production sites who have claimed that hydraulic fracking has contributed to groundwater contamination.

What are the benefits of shale gas?

• It notes that done properly, shale gas development can enhance energy security and the availability of energy fuels, lower natural gas prices, offer a cleaner environmental footprint than some other fossil fuels, and enable local economic development.

What is the importance of shale?

• Black shale contains organic material that can generate oil and natural gas and trap the generated oil and natural gas within its pores. Shale natural gas resources are found in shale formations that contain significant accumulations of natural gas and/or oil. These resources, or plays, are found in about 30 states.

What are the prospects of shale oil exploration in India?

• Currently, there is no large-scale commercial production of shale oil and gas in India. State-owned ONGC had, in 2013, started exploration and, by the end of FY21, assessed shale oil and gas potential in 25 nomination blocks, but has reduced investments over the past few years after only getting limited success in shale exploration efforts.
• While ONGC’s assessment found prospects of shale oil at the Cambay basin in Gujarat and the Krishna Godavari basin in Andhra Pradesh, the company concluded that “the quantity of oil flow observed in these basins” did not indicate “commerciality” and that the general characteristics of Indian shales are quite different from North American ones.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

THE REPEAL OF THREE FARM ACTS

THE CONTEXT:  The Prime Minister announced the repeal of three contentious farm laws, assuring farmer groups protesting against them for the past year that the legislative process for the repeal would be completed in the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament.

THE EXPLANATION:

What are those laws?

The three laws that let to agitation by farmers across India are:

1. Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020
2. Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020
3. Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020.

What were Farmer’s concerns?

The main concerns of farmers were that these laws will abolish the Minimum Support Price (MSP), which is guaranteed by the Centre on select crops. It will eventually leave farmers at the mercy of big corporate houses.

The Centre’s Decision of the laws

• The PM noted that the majority of farmers are small scale farmers in India. Central government tool multi-faceted approach ranging from seed technology to crop insurance schemes, in order to help these farmers.
• The three farm bills were put forward to benefit small farmers, to empower & strengthen them.
• However, the government could not convince a section of protesting farmers. In that light, the laws were repealed.

Zero Budget Natural Farming

In his address pm also noted that the central government has decided to implement Zero Budget Natural Farming and make MSP more efficient. The government will set up a committee, comprising of centres, State representatives, scientists, economists and farmers.

HOW TO REPEAL A LAW?

• Article 245 of the Indian Constitution which gives Parliament the power to make laws also gives the legislative body the power to repeal them
• The government can repeal the laws in two ways — it can either bring a Bill to repeal the three laws or promulgate an ordinance that will have to be subsequently replaced with a Bill within six months.
• Article 245 of the Constitution which gives Parliament the power to make laws also gives the legislative body the power to repeal them through the Repealing and Amending Act. The Act was first passed in 1950 when 72 Acts were repealed.
• The Act was sixth such repealing act, aimed at repealing laws, tabled by the NDA government. The ruling government already repealed 1,428 Acts during its first term.
• Generally, laws are repealed to either remove inconsistencies or after they have served their purpose. When new laws are enacted, old laws on the subject are repealed by inserting a repeal clause in the new law.
• The Repealing and Amending (Amendment) Bill will pass through the same procedure as any other Bill. It will have to clear by both Houses of Parliament and the President would give his assent to make it a law.

To learn more about Three Farm Laws, Join our Exclusive Editorial Discussion programme.

THE UNIFORM CIVIL CODE

THE CONTEXT:  The Allahabad High Court has called upon the Central Government to forthwith initiate the process for its implementation. Also, stating that the Uniform Civil Code “is a necessity and mandatorily required today,”.

THE EXPLANATION:

• “A common civil code will help the cause of national integration by removing disparate loyalties to laws which have conflicting ideologies. No community is likely to bell the cat by making gratuitous concessions on this issue.
• It is the State which is charged with the duty of securing a uniform civil code for the citizens of the country (Article 44) and, it has the legislative competence to do so,” the court observed.
• HC made the observations while hearing a bunch of 17 petitions filed by inter-faith couples, seeking protection of their life, liberty and privacy guaranteed under Article 21, to live independently as man and woman without the interference of their family or others.
• Holding that “Intimacies of marriage lie within a core zone of privacy, which is inviolable”, HC said, “The absolute right of an individual to choose a life partner is not in the least affected by matters of faith.”

What is Uniform Civil Code?

The Directive Principles of State Policies (DPSP) in the Indian Constitution under Article 44 states that “The State shall endeavour to secure for citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India.” Pursuant to this provision, the task of enforcing a UCC in the country was dropped in the bucket of the legislature by the Constitution makers. Being a DPSP, Article 44 is not enforceable in courts alike the fundamental rights.

The hope expressed in Article 44 of the Constitution that the State shall secure for its citizens Uniform Civil Code ought not to remain a mere hope.” This is an excerpt from a recent Allahabad High Court judgment, wherein the judiciary has once again conveyed the need of having a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in our country. Consequently, the debate and deliberations on the need for the uniform governance of personal laws has been brought back to the table.

What are Personal Laws?

• The people of India belong to different religions and faiths. They are governed by different sets of laws in respect to matters relating to family affairs, i.e., marriage, divorce, adoption, and succession.
• We inherited this system of having different sets of personal laws for different communities from the British colonial rule, as our lawmakers at the time of Independence preferred not to interfere with religious issues. But by providing a provision for UCC in our Constitution, the constituent assembly clearly manifested its vision about uniform India.

Need of the hour:

• However, the political unwillingness and incapacity to call spade a spade has lingered on this issue for very long. The Supreme Court and various High Courts in a catena of matters have counselled the governments to enforce a UCC for more than four decades.
• The Shah Bano case (1985) dealing with maintenance to divorced Muslim women, thereafter the Jordan Diengdeh case (1985) examining the Christian Succession Act, the Sarla Mudgal case (1995) against deceitful Islamic conversion for polygamy, and the John Vallamattom case (2013) on succession rights to the recent Delhi High Court judgment, are amongst the multiple instances when the courts have strongly urged the need of having uniform civil code for the country.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

AMAZON DEFORESTATION

THE CONTEXT:  At the U.N. climate summit in Glasgow this month, COP26, Brazil’s government brought forward a pledge to end illegal deforestation by two years to 2028, a target that would require aggressive annual reductions in the destruction.

Image Courtesy: Shutterstock

THE EXPLANATION:

• Deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest rose by almost 22 per cent from August 2020 to July 2021 compared with the same period the year before, reaching the highest level in 15 years.
• The National Institute for Space Research’s Prodes monitoring system showed the Brazilian Amazon lost 13,235 square kilometres of rainforest in the 12-month reference period from 2020 August to July 2021
• Brazil was among a number of nations, including China, Russia and the United States, who vowed to end and reverse deforestation by 2030 at climate talks in Glasgow, in a landmark agreement that encompasses some 85 per cent of the world’s forests.
• Against this backdrop, Brazil’s government announced a two-year deadline to halt illegal deforestation by 2028during the United Nations Climate Summit in Glasgow this month, a goal that would need drastic yearly reductions in deforestation.

Increase in Brazil’s carbon footprint by 9.6%

• Due to extensive deforestation and warming temperatures in the region, parts of Amazon now emit more carbon than they capture. With the increase in greenhouse gas emissions and the drop of 4.1 per cent in GDP, Brazil became poorer and polluted more.
• Emissions from agriculture, which covered 577 million tons of carbon dioxide (27% of the national total) in 2020, also increased by 2.5 per cent.
• This occurred in part for a counterintuitive reason: the economic crisis reduced meat consumption, with a reduction of nearly 8 per cent in cattle slaughter. The national herd increased by about 3 million heads, which, in turn, also increased methane emissions from enteric fermentation.

Reasons for Deforestation:

• State policies that encourage economic development, such as railway and road expansion projects have led to “unintentional deforestation” in the Amazon and Central America.
• Deforestation started in the 1970s and 1980swhen large-scale forest conversion for cattle ranching and soy cultivation began.

Spread of Amazon:

• These are large tropical rainforests occupying the drainage basin of the Amazon River and its tributaries in northern South America and covering an area of 6,000,000 square km.
• Comprising about 40% of Brazil’s total area, it is bounded by the Guiana Highlands to the north, the Andes Mountains to the west, the Brazilian central plateau to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east.
• The basin is shared by eight countries (Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname), as well as the overseas territory of French Guiana.

THE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

FIRST LIGO PROJECT IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT:  Hingoli Income division of Maharashtra handed around 225 hectares of land right to the authorities of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) project for setting up the first such facility in the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Aim: To study Gravitational waves arriving at earth cataclysmic events in the distant universe, and carry out experiments.
• There are currently a couple of such labs in the US – at Hanford in Washington and Livingston in Louisiana – which study the gravitational waves.

What is LIGO?

LIGO is a massive observatory to detect cosmic gravitational waves and to carry experiments. Its main objective is to make use of gravitational-wave observations in astronomical studies. This project currently operates three gravitational waves (GW) detectors. Out of three, two are at Hanford in Washington while one is at Livingston in Louisiana.

LIGO India project

• The LIGO India project was proposed with the aim of moving one advanced LIGO detector to India, from Hanford. This project is piloted by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) and the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE).
• This project in India will be coordinated and executed jointly by three Indian research institutions namely, Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) in Indore, Department of Atomic Energy organisations: Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) in Gandhinagar and Inter-University Centre for Astronomy & Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune.

Image Courtesy: Times of India

MISCELLANEOUS

NGO PRATHAM AWARDED INDIRA GANDHI PEACE PRIZE

THE CONTEXT:  Pratham, a pioneering civil society organization that is dedicated to improving the quality of education for underprivileged children in India and across the globe, has been awarded the Indira Gandhi Peace Prize 2021.

THE EXPLANATION:

Image Courtesy: Indira Gandhi Peace Prize

PRATHAM:

• Set up in 1995 by Mrs Farida Lambay and Dr Madhav Chavan in Mumbai, Pratham began its work in slum areas by setting up community-based pre-schools and by offering remedial education to students who lagged behind in their classes. Its outreach in India has now expanded to an average of one million children directly and to five million through government partnerships annually.
• “It also seeks to prevent children from dropping out of school, with special programs, especially for girls and women aimed at giving them a second chance to complete their education,”
• “The 2021 Prize is awarded for its pioneering work over more than a quarter century in seeking to ensure that every child has access to quality education, for its innovative use of digital technology to deliver education, for its programs to provide skills to young adults, for its regular evaluation of the quality of education, and for its timely response in enabling children to learn during the Covid-19 – related school closures,”.

ASER:

• The foundation’s Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), with the latest one being released in November 2021, serves as a model to assess educational outcomes and learning deficiencies across 14 countries on three continents.
• ASER 2021 is based on a survey conducted by the education foundation in 25 states and Union territories. This year, the survey, which covered a total of 76,706 households and 75,234 children between the age group of five to 16 years, said that between 2018 and 2021, government schools saw an increase in the proportion of enrolled students for all ages and grades.

INDIRA GANDHI PRIZE FOR PEACE:

• The Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development was instituted in the memory of the former prime minister by a trust in her name in 1986. It consists of a monetary award of ₹25 lakh along with a citation. The jury is chaired by former Chief Justice of India, Justice T.S. Thakur.

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Which Article of the Constitution of India safeguards one’s right to marry the person of one’s choice? (UPSC Prelims 2019)

a) Article 19

b) Article 21

c) Article 25

d) Article 29

ANSWER FOR NOVEMBER 19^th, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Answer: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: The law considers children as those individuals below the age of 18 years of age.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: The act is gender-neutral.
• Statement 3 is correct: The case under the provision of this law is disposed of within one year from the date of reporting of the offence.

1. Weigh future potential when awarding relief: SC READ MORE
2. Be A Light To Oneself; This Light Is The Law READ MORE
3. Sanitation, prosperity are sides of the same coin READ MORE

1. Climate change denial 2.0 was on full display at CoP26, but there was also pushback READ MORE
2. Raag Bhairavi at Glasgow COP26 READ MORE

1. Error corrected: Laws should not be interpreted in a way that destroys the intent behind them READ MORE
2. Caste Dimensions of Poverty and Wealth: Large income and asset deficits disempower the disadvantaged castes. READ MORE

1. Seeds of hope: Farmers should withdraw protest, and push for consultations in efforts to reform the sector READ MORE
2. Democracy’s victory shows limits of parliamentary power READ MORE
3. The Judiciary Remains the Last Resort in a Stifled Democracy READ MORE
4. Analysis: Narendra Modi’s farm law repeal will bring new energy to India’s embattled civil society READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main:

1. Narendra Modi government relents, decides to spike farm laws READ MORE
2. Explained | How to repeal a law? READ MORE
3. IMD withdraws red alert for Chennai READ MORE
4. ‘Tight oil’: What is shale and its potential in India READ MORE
5. Why were there no cyclones in October and November? READ MORE
6. 225 hectare Maharashtra land handed over for first LIGO project in India READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Seeds of hope: Farmers should withdraw protest, and push for consultations in efforts to reform the sector READ MORE
2. Democracy’s victory shows limits of parliamentary power READ MORE
3. The Judiciary Remains the Last Resort in a Stifled Democracy READ MORE
4. Analysis: Narendra Modi’s farm law repeal will bring new energy to India’s embattled civil society READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Error corrected: Laws should not be interpreted in a way that destroys the intent behind them READ MORE
2. Caste Dimensions of Poverty and Wealth: Large income and asset deficits disempower the disadvantaged castes. READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. NAM and Nehru’s Principled Stand: Part 2- To Nehru, disarmament in general, and the elimination of nuclear weapons in particular, were integral to the doctrine of non-alignment. READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Why India’s pro-rich, anti-poor taxation policies must change READ MORE
2. Farm Bills’ repeal and the way ahead READ MORE
3. Time to firm up legalities of cryptocurrency READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Climate change denial 2.0 was on full display at CoP26, but there was also pushback READ MORE
2. Raag Bhairavi at Glasgow COP26 READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Northeast needs holistic approach for peace READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Weigh future potential when awarding relief: SC READ MORE
2. Be A Light To Oneself; This Light Is The Law READ MORE
3. Sanitation, prosperity are sides of the same coin READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘The climate conference at Glasgow has provided hopes for limiting global warming to 1.5°C’. Elucidate.
2. ‘Flexibility is not a bad trait in democracy, which is about constant negotiations, but it should not be merely political expediency’. Analyse the statement in the light of the recent farmers’ protests.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Silence is complicity. Speak now or surrender your ground.
• The climate conference at Glasgow, COP26, has provided hopes for limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
• Victory depends on factors, many of them beyond the control of citizens. In the end, all they can do is to struggle to achieve their goals. There is no respite from that.
• Faecal Sludge Management is critical for delivering safe sanitation in rural areas due to the considerable number of toilets linked to on-site sanitation.
• India has great reservations on the currency aspect of the crypto ecosystem.
• The Indian policy and regulatory approach to the crypto ecosystem must be evolved in such a manner so as to protect not just the business and legal interests of Indian users and investors, but also the interests of the nation and the sovereignty, security and integrity of India.
• Our agriculture can be future-ready only if the spirit of cooperation and collaboration prevails over discord and discontent.
• Flexibility is not a bad trait in democracy, which is about constant negotiations, but it should not be merely political expediency.
• Farmers need a New Deal, where their interests will not be hijacked by political or corporate entities.

50- WORD TALK

• Supreme Court ordering a CBI probe into 26% stake sale in HZL by government in 2002 but allowing it to divest its remaining stake is a bit perplexing. The history of privatisation shows that it has worked well. An overly technical reading of rules can end up hurting this process.
• The repeal of the controversial but much-needed farm reform laws is the second big retreat by the Modi government. First was the ambitious land acquisition ordinance. These expose the limitations of the parliamentary majority in a democracy. Numbers may bring hubris but public consensus still needs to be sought and built.

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.

1. An Ideal Education READ MORE
2. Truth is Self-Evident READ MORE

1. The heavy lifting on climate action must begin: Glasgow’s success was that it finished building the scaffolding for climate action, and countries must respond now READ MORE  
2. COP26: A Step Forward or a COP-Out? READ MORE

1. Learning right: Aser data on govt schools’ higher enrolment doesn’t at all mean India needs fewer private schools READ MORE
2. Missing an inclusionary vision for the urban poor READ MORE

1. No consensus on limiting Speaker’s powers READ MORE
2. Ordinances extending tenures of CBI, ED chiefs show a worrying trend READ MORE
3. Targeting civil society: It is most disconcerting that NGOs seem to be under siege in India READ MORE
4. Constitution is our gateway to freedom, growth READ MORE
5. Changes in RTI Act are need of the hour READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. India received $87 billion in remittances in 2021: World Bank READ MORE
2. RBI May Launch Digital Currency Pilot Next Year, Says Report READ MORE
3. In Assam, the rare Barca snakehead fish is on the brink of extinction READ MORE
4. Rising ammonia levels in West Africa linked to biomass burning READ MORE
5. India re-elected to UNESCO executive board for 2021-25 term with 164 votes READ MORE
6. WHO global report on trends in prevalence of tobacco use 2000-2025, fourth edition READ MORE
7. A Clean Ocean by 2030: UN Experts’ “Clean Ocean Manifesto” READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. No consensus on limiting Speaker’s powers READ MORE
2. Ordinances extending tenures of CBI, ED chiefs show a worrying trend READ MORE
3. Targeting civil society: It is most disconcerting that NGOs seem to be under siege in India READ MORE
4. Constitution is our gateway to freedom, growth READ MORE
5. Changes in RTI Act are need of the hour READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Learning right: Aser data on govt schools’ higher enrolment doesn’t at all mean India needs fewer private schools READ MORE
2. Missing an inclusionary vision for the urban poor READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. India’s crucial role in Afghan diplomacy READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. The monetary, fiscal challenges of cryptocurrency READ MORE
2. Promise of ‘one district, one product’ READ MORE
3. Strengthening financial sector: Governance in the banking system needs to be improved READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. The heavy lifting on climate action must begin: Glasgow’s success was that it finished building the scaffolding for climate action, and countries must respond now READ MORE  
2. COP26: A Step Forward or a COP-Out? READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Where insurgency persists in northeast READ MORE
2. The attack on Assam Rifles in Manipur shows precarity of peace at Indo-Myanmar border READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. An Ideal Education READ MORE
2. Truth is Self-Evident READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. Do you think that the increase of the jurisdiction of BSF can be called a ‘central rule by proxy’? Justify your view.
2. Discuss the importance of central Asia for India. How can multilateral organisations like SCO serve as platforms for sustained engagement and regular exchange of ideas between India and central Asia?

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• The Tamil Nadu draft resettlement policy clings to a tired model of peripheral resettlement that fails on social justice.
• Glasgow’s success was that it finished building the scaffolding for climate action, and countries must respond now.
• Attack on Assam Rifles in Manipur indicates precarious peace along the border with Myanmar. India must bolster intelligence gathering, security.
• India needs to recalibrate its relations with Bangladesh and Myanmar to effectively deal with outfits such as the PLA and UNLF.
• Investigative agencies are often used by the government to accomplish its political goals.
• Democracy and its institutions are sidelined to serve the interests of the ruling class. Parliament is a victim of this ideological assault becoming more ornamental with every passing day.
• In our country today, ordinances are no longer just ordinances. They are the forerunners of something harsher to come.
• A civil servant cannot afford to, and must not, take part in politics. Nor must he involve himself in communal wrangles. To depart from the path of rectitude in either of these respects is to debase public service and to lower its dignity.
• We need to understand the importance of nurturing our Constitution in order to ensure civility in our public and private lives.
• The RBI’s aim should be to ensure that banks and NBFCs deal with the overall impact of the pandemic transparently, and have adequate capital to facilitate economic recovery.

50- WORD TALK

• The 33% jump in three years in the number of Indian students taking private tuitions is worrying and a poor appraisal of our education system. Hopefully, some of this is due to the loss of learning during the pandemic and therefore temporary. Educators need to address this as schools reopen.

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.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

ANNUAL STATUS OF EDUCATION REPORT-2021

THE CONTEXT: In November 2021, the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) -2021 was published highlighting School enrolment fell during pandemic and the gap between States in access to online education with varying levels of access to technology, school and family resources resulting in Digital Divide.

ABOUT 2021 REPORT

• The percentage of rural children who were not enrolled in school doubled during the pandemic, with Government schools seeing an increase in enrolment at the expense of private schools, according to the report. Over a third of children enrolled in Classes 1 and 2 have never attended school in person.
• In a survey of over 76,000 households with children aged six to 14, ASER found that while 92% of children had textbooks for their grade, only a third had access to any other learning resources or support.
• With smartphone availability and access limited, online learning was restricted to a quarter of students, though there were major differences in the experience of students from different States.
• For instance, 91% of students from Kerala and almost 80% from Himachal Pradesh had online education, but only 10% from Bihar and 13% from West Bengal.

THE MAJOR SHIFT

• In both the 2020 and 2021 surveys, that figure had jumped to 6%. Government school enrolment spiked significantly from 64.3% in 2018 to 70.3% in 2021, while private school enrolment dropped from 32.5% to 24.4% over the same period.
• “The shift to government school enrolment could be a result of financial distress, the closure of affordable private schools and the movement of migrants to rural areas,” Also,
  • Due to reverse Migration (Urban to Rural)
  • Loss of income during a pandemic
  • Small schools couldn’t Sustain

Tuition classes:

• During the pandemic, almost 40% of students took tuition classes, as many parents struggled to provide the learning support students were not receiving from closed schools.
• Although textbook distribution was a success story in most States, with 92% of students having the texts for their grade level, many students did not receive much else.

• Online learning (Digital Divide): With smartphone availability and access limited, online learning was restricted to a quarter of students.
  • Inter-state variations: 91% of students from Kerala and almost 80% from Himachal Pradesh had online education, but only 10% from Bihar and 13% from West Bengal.

• Access to study materials: textbook distribution was a success story in most States, with 92% of students having the texts for their grade level.

Measures taken by the Government:

• National Knowledge Network, (NKN)
• PRAGYATA Guidelines
• National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning
• SWAYAM MOOC’S

WHO GLOBAL REPORT ON TRENDS IN PREVALENCE OF TOBACCO USE 2000–2025

THE CONTEXT: World Health Organisation (WHO) published the 4^th edition of Global report on trends in the prevalence of tobacco use 2000-2025.

THE EXPLANATION:

• As per the report, South-East Asia Region achieved the fastest rate of decline in the use of tobacco. The average prevalence of smoking among men decreased to 25% in 2020, as against 50% in 2000.
• In South-East Region, tobacco smoking among women decreased from 9% in 2000 to 1.6% in the year 2020.
• India and Nepal are the countries, which is likely to achieve a 30% relative reduction in tobacco use in order to meet the Global NCD action target plan by 2025.
• WHO report highlights that, if tobacco control efforts continue with the current level, smoking rates in this region can reach as low as 11% in 2025. It will be the second-lowest Regional average rate after Africa, which is 5% in 2025.
• The South-East Asia Region has the highest rates of tobacco use, which is 29 per cent of the population. It accounts for 432 million users.
• This region is also home to 266 million smokeless tobacco users out of 355 million across the globe.

How was this progress achieved?

• This progress was the result of the effective implementation of the FCTC and MPOWER package of WHO as well as a set of six cost-effective & high impact measures in order to help countries in reducing the demand and supply of tobacco.
• Tobacco use is one of the key risk factors of non-communicable diseases and effective tobacco control is significant to prevent and control NCDs. It is a flagship priority of this region since 2014.

SEXUAL INTENT “NOT SKIN TO SKIN CONTACT: SC

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court quashed a Bombay High Court decision to acquit a man charged with assault under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) solely on the grounds that he groped the child over her clothes without “skin-to-skin” contact.

THE EXPLANATION:

• “The act of touching a sexual part of the body with sexual intent will not be trivialised and not excluded under Section 7 of the POCSO Act”.
• The Bench noted that the most important ingredient in Section 7 was the sexual intent of the offender and not skin-to-skin contact.
• The bench said that “where the intention of the Legislature cannot be given effect to, courts would accept the bolder construction for the purpose of bringing about an effective result. Restricting the interpretation of the words ‘touch’ or ‘physical contact’ to ‘skin-to-skin contact’ would not only be a narrow and pedantic interpretation of the provision contained in Section 7…but it would lead to an absurd interpretation of the said provision.”
• “Abuse and outraging the modesty of a child has been a matter of great concern. POCSO Act was enacted to deal with evil and to impart speedy justice, for addressing this issue, Special courts were needs to be formed.

About Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012:

• It was enacted to protect the children from offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment, and pornography with due regard for safeguarding the interest and well-being of children.
• It was amended in August 2019 to provide more stringent punishment, including the death penalty, for sexual crimes against children.
• It defines a child as any person below eighteen years of age and regards the best interests and welfare of the child as a matter of paramount importance at every stage, to ensure the healthy physical, emotional, intellectual and social development of the child.
• It deems a sexual assault to be “aggravated” under certain circumstances, such as when the abused child is mentally ill or when the abuse is committed by a person in a position of trust or authority like a family member, police officer, teacher, or doctor.
• It also casts the police in the role of child protectors during the investigative process.
• The Act stipulates that a case of child sexual abuse must be disposed of within one year from the date the offence is reported.
• Implementation of Act by statutory bodies- the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and State Commissions for the Protection of Child Rights (SCPCRs).

POCSO (Amendment) Act 2019:

• Provision of the death penalty in cases of sexual offences against children.
• Levy of fines and imprisonment to curb child pornography.
• Protection of children from sexual offences in times of natural calamities.

INDIAN ECONOMY

INDIA IS THE LARGEST RECIPIENT OF REMITTANCES

THE CONTEXT: According to the report by World Bank, India received $87 billion in remittances in 2021 which constitutes India as the world’s largest recipient.

THE EXPLANATION:

• According to the report, the United States was the biggest source, accounting for over 20% of these funds.
• India is followed by China, Mexico, the Philippines, and Egypt in terms of overall remittance received.
• A resurgence in COVID-19 cases and the subsequent mobility restrictions pose the biggest risks to remittance flow.
• The resurgence of a new wave of COVID-19 cases and the subsequent mobility restrictions pose the biggest risks to the outlook for global growth, employment, and remittance flows to developing countries.

What are Remittances?

• Remittances represent one of the largest sources of income for people in low-income and developing nations. It often exceeds the amount of direct investment and official development assistance.
• The sender is typically an immigrant and the recipient a relative back home.

• Remittances help families afford food, healthcare, and basic needs.
• India is the world’s biggest recipient of remittances. Remittances bolster India’s foreign exchange reserves and helps fund its current account deficit.

ABOUT WORLD BANK

The World Bank Group is an international partnership comprising 189 countries and five constituent institutions that works towards eradicating poverty and creating prosperity.

Reports Published by World Bank:

• World Development Report
• Global Economic Prospects Report

NOTE:

• The ease of Doing Business Report was discontinued by World Bank in September 2021.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

RARE FISH ON THE BRINK OF EXTINCTION

THE CONTEXT: In Assam, the rare Barca snakehead fish is on the brink of extinction, since it is an ornamental fish, it is in high demand in the international market and is susceptible to illegal trade.

THE EXPLANATION:

• “Pipli Cheng” or “Cheng Garaka” is the local name for the Channa barcaor the Barca snakehead fish.
• The fish Channa barca is endemic to the upper Brahmaputra river basin. The fish is mainly found in Orang National Park located on the northern bank of the Brahmaputra river. 

What is Ornamental Fish?

Fishes that are kept in home aquariums, or for aesthetic purposes are considered ornamental fish.

Why the demand?

• This snakehead fish is attractive to look at and has high ornamental value amongst specialist aquarists, in national and international markets.
• Since it is rarely available and restricted to only a particular region of the Brahmaputra basin, it has become extremely expensive over the years and is now counted as one of the most expensive fish in the world.
• Overall, it has been assessed as data deficient by the IUCN and in 2014 it was assessed by the IUCN as critically endangered due to habitat loss in Bangladesh.

What’s the Way forward:

• “If threatened species are exported without captive breeding or mass propagation then they will soon cease to exist in the region.
• A proper and strict checking system should be put in place in exit points like the airport and the railway stations so that these highly threatened fish species cannot be smuggled out,”
• “Monoculture should also be done if captive breeding is done at all so that the female of the species is not exported out and so that the ornamental and endemic status of the species is not compromised.

RISE IN AMMONIA DUE TO BIOMASS BURNING

THE CONTEXT: In West Africa rise in ammonia level was observed which is linked to biomass burning. The trend was centred over Nigeria and the Southern coast.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Ammonia concentration in the air increased substantially in West Africa and the Lake Victoria region. According to a new study by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
• The rise was found to be linked with biomass burning as well as expansion and intensification of agricultural practices.
• The rise in ammonia concentration in Western Africa was previously linked to fertiliser use. However, this study found that most of the increase occurred before the start of the planting season. Fertiliser is not typically applied in West Africa until the start of the growing season (April).
• The study found regional hotspots in the Lake Victoria basin region, South Sudanese wetlands and along the Nile delta and river as well.
• In the Lake Victoria basin, the expansion of agricultural area and fertiliser use led to increases in ammonia concentration over the study period.
• Countries in Europe have committed to modest reductions of ammonia emissions in the framework of the Gothenburg Protocol, part of the convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution and the National Emissions Ceilings directive.

Ammonia:

• It is a colourless gas and is used as an industrial chemical in the production of fertilisers, plastics, synthetic fibres, dyes, and other products.
• Ammonia reduces the amount of oxygen as it is transformed into oxidised forms of nitrogen.
• It occurs naturally in the environment from the breakdown of organic waste matter, and may also find its way to ground and surface water sources through industrial effluents, contamination by sewage or agricultural runoff.

A CLEAN OCEAN BY 2030: SAYS UN EXPERTS

THE CONTEXT: The Clean Ocean International Expert Group of the UN Decade for Ocean Science for Sustainable Development will formally present its shortlist of activities and goals, and a strategy to reach them, in a “Clean Ocean Manifesto” at the outset of a three-day online conference on achieving a clean ocean.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The deep-sea biodiversity expert outlines “the challenges and some of the opportunities that the Ocean Decade can provide for a Clean Ocean.”

The statement charts the most direct route to a clean ocean citing these objectives for 2030:

• Enlarge understanding of pathways for spread and fates of pollutants
• Reduce and remove top-priority forms of pollution (e.g., marine debris) by large amounts, as much as 50% to 90%
• To prevent a recurrence, reduce sources or emission of pollutants (e.g., anthropogenic noise, discarded plastic and harmful chemicals, farming practices adding harmful sediment outflow)
• Improve dramatically the outcomes of control measures (e.g., to decrease amounts of mercury in tuna, die-offs of marine life, eutrophication)
• Improve monitoring (often as part of the Global Ocean Observing System [GOOS]) for more accurate, precise, timely, comprehensive real-time tracing of spills and monitoring of ocean soundscapes; improve systems to provide timely warning of pollutants emerging and increasing
• Identify and accelerate the development and adoption of technologies to promote a Clean Ocean. These could range from cleaner, more efficient motors and fuels to new forms of remediation and waste management; better ways to monitor, track and map marine pollutants and progress toward a clean ocean (such as aerial remote sensing, genomics, and hydrophone arrays); and better technologies for emergency clean-up.
• Improve national mechanisms (legal, regulatory) for control and prevention, better align financial incentives, and lift compliance with international treaties

Interim objectives for 2025

The expert group underlined that “This process should aim to define and attract financial and other support to meet an initial set of goals for 2025, followed by goals for the end of the Ocean Decade in 2030.”

The conference highlights more than 30 activities in place or in development around the world that can make important contributions by 2030 to a Clean Ocean.

These include initiatives to:

• Successfully and consistently monitor marine debris from space as part of an Integrated Global Marine Debris Observing System
• Operate deep-sea observatories in the Atlantic that document and publicize multiple stressors
• Observe the vast Southern Ocean give early warnings of possible pollution hot spots in this relatively pristine ocean
• Instrument 30% of coastal city ocean spaces to report on pollution changes including restoration
• Identify and greatly reduce persistent organic pollutants globally.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

INDIA RE-ELECTED TO UNESCO

THE CONTEXT: India was re-elected to the executive board of the UN’s cultural and education organisation for the 2021-25 term.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India was re-elected to Group IV of Asian and Pacific States which also include Japan, Philippines, Vietnam, Cook Islands and China.

About the Executive Board:

• The UNESCO Executive Board is one of the three constitutional organs of the UN agency (the others being the General Conference and the Secretariat) and it is elected by the General Conference.
• The executive board consists of 58 member-states, each with a four-year term. It examines the programme of work for the organisation and corresponding budget estimates submitted to it by the director-general, according to UNESCO.

About UNESCO:

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN). It seeks to build peace through international cooperation in Education, Sciences and Culture.

• Established in November 1965.
• It has 195 Members and 8 Associate Members and is governed by the General Conference and the Executive Board
• The Secretariat, headed by the Director-General, implements the decisions of these two bodies. Headquartered at Paris.
• UNESCO’s mission is to contribute to the building of a culture of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue through education, the sciences, culture, communication and information.

Objectives:

• Attaining quality education for all and lifelong learning
• Mobilizing science knowledge and policy for sustainable development
• Addressing emerging social and ethical challenges
• Fostering cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and a culture of peace
• Building inclusive knowledge societies through information and communication
• It also focuses on a set of objectives in the global priority areas “Africa” and “Gender Equality”

MISCELLANEOUS

REZANG LA MEMORIAL

THE CONTEXT: Defence Minister inaugurates renovated memorial  during the Rezang La battle anniversary.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It will now include the names of Army personnel who lost their lives in the violent clash at Galway last year.

Where is Rezang La?

• Rezang La is a mountain pass on the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh.
• It is located between the village of Chushul and the Spanggur Lake that stretches across both Indian and Chinese territories.
• Rezang La is one of the heights of the Kailash Range in the Chushul Sub-sector, occupied by India in August 2020, that provided leverage in the standoff negotiations.
• The positions India occupied on the Kailash Ranges allowed the Indian troops to dominate not only China’s Moldo Garrison but also the strategically sensitive Spanggur Gap, which was used by China to launch an offensive during the 1962 War.

 About the battle:

• Troops from the 13 Kumaon Regiment defeated several waves of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in 1962.
• Despite being heavily outnumbered, soldiers of the regiment fought to the last man standing, under freezing temperatures, and with limited ammunition.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

1. Consider the following statements about provisions of the POCSO Act 2012:

1. The law considers children as those individuals below the age of 16 years of age.
2. It dedicated law only for the protection of female children against sexual offences.
3. The case under the provision of this law is disposed of within one year from the date of reporting of the offence.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 2 and 3 only

c) 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR NOVEMBER 17^th, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: It is published annually by GermanWatch, a non-profit organisation.
• Statement 2 is correct: India ranked at 7th position in Global CRI 2021 with a CRI score of 16.67. The score and position improvised in comparison to the 2020 report, where India ranked at the 5th position with a CRI score of 18.17.

THE CONTEXT: In May 2021 India’s as a member of the UNSC made a carefully crafted statement at the UN Security Council “open debate” on the escalated Israel-Palestine violence, striving to maintain a balance between India’s historic ties with Palestine and its blossoming relations with Israel. India’s statement at UNSC seeks a balance between its old ties with Palestine and growing relations with Israel. This article traces India’s journey through the world’s oldest conflict, from Nehru years to the Modi regime.

RECENT ISRAEL-PALESTINE CONFLICT

• The conflict erupted on May 10, when weeks of simmering tensions in Jerusalem among Palestinian protesters, the police and right-wing Israelis escalated, against the backdrop of a long-standing battle for control of a city sacred to Jews, Arabs and Christians.
• The root of the latest violence is an intense dispute over East Jerusalem, which is predominantly Palestinian.
• Protests had gone on for days before a Supreme Court ruling, originally expected on May 10 but then postponed, on the eviction of several Palestinian families from East Jerusalem. Israeli officials described it as a dispute over real estate.
• Many Arabs called it part of a wider Israeli campaign to force Palestinians out of the city, describing it as ethnic cleansing.
• The ceasefire came after 11 days of fighting, which left at least 255 people dead. Most of those killed were Palestinians in the territory of Gaza.

SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING ON THE CONFLICT

• In May 2021 United Nations Security Council held an emergency open meeting on the escalated violence in Gaza.
• India, as a non-permanent UNSC member, also made a statement over the conflict and appealed for a peaceful solution to the conflict. Although India’s statement was about the peaceful solution there was a major shift in India’s statement.

SHIFT IN INDIA’S STATEMENT

 AN ANALYSIS OF THE INDIA’S STATEMENT

• The statement is seeing major shift in India’s policy toward the conflict and it was clear that in council India was careful not to upset Israel’s sensitivities.
• The crux of the Indian argument of a two-state solution, that East Jerusalem should be the capital of future Palestine state, was missing in India’s statement.
• This is the first time when India tried to create a balance in UNSC meetings and in past India’s always supported the two-state theory with East Jerusalem as Palestine capital.
• India dropped referring to East Jerusalem after Jerusalem was recognized as the capital of Israel by former President of America, Donald Trump, in 2017. A similar practice was followed in Modi’s statement during the visit of Palestine President Mahmoud Abbas in 2017 and during Modi’s visit to Ramallah in 2018.
• A closer look at the syntax of the statement delivered by India reveals the underlying nuances in India’s evolving Israel-Palestine policy.
• This is a subtle way of saying that India doesn’t stand with the Palestinian narrative.
• India’s carefully drafted statement backs Israel’s right to self-defence against indiscriminate attacks from a terrorist outfit that targets Israeli civilians

A balancing act:

• India went to support “the just Palestinian cause,” and an “unwavering commitment to the two-state solution”. But in essence, this was a balancing act, because even as India recognized this “just” cause for Palestinians, it also “condemned” the “indiscriminate” rockets coming from Gaza and targeting Israeli citizens.

However, the balancing did not appear to have gone down well with the Israeli side. When Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has a good rapport with Narendra Modi, thanked 25 countries that he said stood with Israel, there was no reference to India.

WHY DOES INDIA TRIED TO CREATE A BALANCING ACT?

HOW DID INDIA’S PALESTINE POLICY EVOLVE?

ISRAEL-PALESTINE CONFLICT: UNDERSTANDING THE ISSUE

A 100-year-old issue

• Britain took control of the area known as Palestine after the ruler of that part of the Middle East, the Ottoman Empire, was defeated in World War One.
• The land was inhabited by a Jewish minority and Arab majority.
• Tensions between the two peoples grew when the international community gave Britain the task of establishing a “national home” in Palestine for Jewish people.
• For Jews it was their ancestral home, but Palestinian Arabs also claimed the land and opposed the move.
• Between the 1920s and 1940s, the number of Jews arriving there grew, with many fleeing from persecution in Europe and seeking a homeland after the Holocaust of World War Two.
• Violence between Jews and Arabs, and against British rule, also grew.
• In 1947, the UN voted for Palestine to be split into separate Jewish and Arab states, with Jerusalem becoming an international city.
• That plan was accepted by Jewish leaders but rejected by the Arab side and never implemented.

The creation of Israel and the ‘Catastrophe’

• In 1948, unable to solve the problem, British rulers left and Jewish leaders declared the creation of the state of Israel.
• Many Palestinians objected and a war followed. Troops from neighbouring Arab countries invaded.
• Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were forced out of their homes in what they call Al-Nakba, or the “Catastrophe”.
• By the time the fighting ended in a ceasefire the following year, Israel controlled most of the territory.
• Jordan occupied land which became known as the West Bank, and Egypt occupied Gaza.
• Jerusalem was divided between Israeli forces in the West and Jordanian forces in the East.
• Because there was never a peace agreement – with each side blaming the other – there were more wars and fighting in the following decades.

The map today

• In another war in 1967, Israel occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank, as well as most of the Syrian Golan Heights, Gaza and the Egyptian Sinai peninsula.
• Most Palestinian refugees and their descendants live in Gaza and the West Bank, as well as in neighbouring Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.
• Neither they nor their descendants have been allowed by Israel to return to their homes – Israel says this would overwhelm the country and threaten its existence as a Jewish state.
• image caption Israeli military commanders arrive in East Jerusalem, after Israeli forces seized East Jerusalem, during the Six-Day War in 1967
• Israel still occupies the West Bank, and although it pulled out of Gaza the UN still regards that piece of land as occupied territory.
• Israel claims the whole of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state. The US is one of only a handful of countries to recognise the city as Israel’s capital.
• In the past 50 years Israel has built settlements in these areas, where more than 600,000 Jews now live.
• Palestinians say these are illegal under international law and are obstacles to peace, but Israel denies this.

WAY FORWARD

CONCLUSION: India, which historically has been an ally to the Palestine cause, has resorted to a balancing act on issues concerning Israel and Palestine. But this act is a repudiation of India’s historical worldview and it disregards the harsh realities which are skewed against Palestine. By compromising on India’s longstanding policy by not acknowledging Eastern Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine, which is the crux of the ‘two-state solution, India blemishes the geographical validity of the solution itself. India, with its history pulling through the partition, which essentially was a political issue with a religious dimension, to build an inclusive, secular democracy, can act as the viable model for the peaceful coexistence of formerly antagonistic groups. For this to materialize, India must relinquish its balancing act and call a spade a spade.

ART AND CULTURE

SABZ BURJ

THE CONTEXT: One of Delhi’s earliest Mughal-era monuments— Sabz Burj has been conserved and restored over the last four years using traditional materials and building-craft techniques favoured by 16th Century craftsmen.

ABOUT SABZ BURJ

• The tomb, which was built in 1530, does not have any markings pointing to the identity of those buried under it.
• It is of immense significance due to the ceiling on its double-dome structure painted in pure gold and lapiz and revealed after conservation efforts began.
• Conservationists believe that the painting on the ceiling that has floral motifs predates similar work that was seen in miniature paintings and textiles from the Mughal era and was covered with plaster sometime in the 20th Century when the structure was used as a police station.
• The monument stands at the entrance to Humayun’s Tomb and would have originally stood within an enclosed garden.

SOURCE: TH

THE PURI HERITAGE CORRIDOR

THE CONTEXT: Odisha Chief Minister is expected to soon lay the foundation stone of the much-awaited Puri heritage corridor, which is being developed at a cost of Rs 800 crore.

ABOUT THE PURI HERITAGE CORRIDOR PROJECT

• Conceived in 2016, the Puri Heritage Corridor Project was unveiled in December 2019 to transform the holy town of Puri into an international place of heritage.
• The project includes redeveloping major portions of the holy town and in the vicinity of the temple for visitors and tourists. A resolution for the project was passed in the state assembly unanimously by all the parties in February 2020 to begin the first phase of work estimated at a cost of Rs 800 crore.
• Following this, the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) approved the architectural design plan of the project at an estimated cost of Rs 3,200 crore.
• A total of 22 different projects will be executed in a phased manner. After the initial funds of Rs 800 crore from the state government’s Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture at Puri (ABADHA) scheme, another Rs 265 crore will be provided in the first phase.
• The project will include Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) building redevelopment, a 600-capacity Srimandir reception centre, Jagannath cultural centre including Raghunandan library, integrated command, and control centre, Badadanda heritage streetscape, Srimandir amenities improvement, Sri Setu, Jagannath Ballav pilgrim centre, multilevel car parking, municipal market development, Swargadwar development, Pramod Udyan, Gurukulam, Mahodadhi market, beachfront development, Puri lake, Musa river revival plan, Atharnala and housing for sevayats.

SOURCE: IE

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

COVID’S IMPACT ON LEARNING

THE CONTEXT: 16th annual report of Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) released.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) survey, which is facilitated by Pratham Education Foundation, is the oldest survey of its kind in the country and is well regarded for the range of insights it provides on levels of foundational learning at the elementary level. In the context of the pandemic, the ASER Centre switched its focus to access to learning opportunities in 2020.
• The 16th edition of the report is based on a phone survey, conducted in September and October, of 75,234 children ages 5-16 across 581 rural districts in 25 states and three Union Territories. The surveyors also contacted teachers or headteachers from 7,299 government schools offering primary grades.

KEY FINDINGS

• Headline numbers: The report shows a “clear shift” from private to government schools — from 64.3 per cent in 2018 to 65.8 per cent in 2020, to 70.3 per cent in 2021; and a fall in private school enrolment from 28.8 per cent in 2020 to 24.4 per cent in 2021.
• Tuition-dependent: Students, especially those from poor families, are dependent more than ever on private tuition.
• Digital divide: From having no experience of pre-primary class to the lack of access to digital devices, the pandemic has left the youngest entrants in India’s formal education system particularly vulnerable, and not addressing their specific needs can have grave consequences. While the percentage of enrolled children having at least one smartphone at home has risen from 36.5 to 67.6 between 2018 and 2021, only 19.9 per cent of children in Classes I-II have access to the devices whenever they require. The access to smartphones increases with age, with 35.4 per cent of students in Classes IX and above having constant access.
• Falling behind:65.4 per cent of teachers flagged the problem of children being “unable to catch up” as one of their biggest challenges. During the recent National Achievement Survey (NAS) of the central government, teachers and field investigators across the country reported that primary grade kids struggled to make sense of questions to test basic comprehension and numerical skills.
• Silver lining: The report captured a decline in the proportion of children not currently enrolled in the 15-16 age group. The survey also found that 91.9 per cent of enrolled children have textbooks for their current grade. But only about a third (33.5 per cent) of children in grades I-II of yet-to-reopen schools reported having received learning materials.

SOURCE: IE        

CABINET APPROVED USOF SCHEME FOR UNCOVERED VILLAGES

THE CONTEXT:    The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister has given its approval for the provisioning of mobile services in Uncovered Villages of Aspirational Districts across five States of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra & Odisha.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Project envisages providing 4G based mobile services in the 7,287 uncovered villages of 44 Aspirational Districts across five States at an estimated cost of implementation of about Rs 6,466 crore including operational expenses for 5 years.
• The project would be funded by Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF). The project will be completed within 18 months after the signing of the Agreement and is likely to be completed by November 23.
• The work related to the provision of 4G mobile services in identified uncovered villages will be awarded through an open competitive bidding process as per extant USOF procedures.
• It will enhance digital connectivity useful for self-reliance, facilitate learning, dissemination of information and knowledge, skill up-gradation and development, disaster management, e-Governance initiatives, the establishment of enterprises & e-commerce facilities, provision of adequate support to educational institutes for knowledge sharing & availability of job opportunity and fulfilling the vision of Digital India promoting domestic manufacturing and fulfilling the objectives of Atmanirbhar Bharat etc.

SOURCE: PIB

GLOBAL BRIBERY RISK RANKINGS

THE CONTEXT: India has slipped to 82nd position in 2021, five places down from 77th rank last year, in a global list that measures business bribery risks.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The list by TRACE, an anti-bribery standard-setting organisation, measures business bribery risk in 194 countries, territories, and autonomous and semi-autonomous regions.
• According to this year’s data, North Korea, Turkmenistan, Venezuela and Eritrea pose the highest commercial bribery risk, while Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and New Zealand present the lowest.
• This score is based on four factors — business interactions with the government, anti-bribery deterrence and enforcement, government and civil service transparency, and capacity for civil society oversight which includes the role of the media.
• India fared better than its neighbours – Pakistan, China, Nepal and Bangladesh. Bhutan, meanwhile, secured 62nd rank.

SOURCE:  IE 

INDIAN ECONOMY

CABINET APPROVED CONTINUATION OF PMGSY

THE CONTEXT: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs gave its approval to the proposals of the Department of Rural Development, Ministry of Rural Development for the continuation of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana-I and II up to September 2022 for completion of balance road and bridge works. The CCEA also approved the continuation of the Road Connectivity Project for Left Wing Extremism Affected Areas (RCPLWEA) up to March 2023.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The interventions/verticals for which extension of time have been solicited are already under implementation under PMGSY. All the projects under PMGSY-I and II are already sanctioned.
• The Ministry would constantly follow up the progress with the states to ensure completion of the balance projects with the extended timeline.
• A total of Rs. 1,12,419 crore, including state share, is likely to be incurred from 2021-22 to 2024-25 for completion of all the ongoing interventions of PMGSY

ABOUT PMGSY-I

• PMGSY-I was launched in the year 2000 to provide connectivity to eligible unconnected habitations of 500+ in plain areas and 250+ in North-East and Himalayan states as per census, 2001.
• The Scheme also included the component of up-gradation of existing rural roads for those districts where all the eligible habitations had been saturated.
• In the year 2013, it was decided to also cover habitations of population size 100-249 as per census, 2001 in the Left-wing Extremism Affected blocks identified by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Out of 1,78,184 habitations of 250+ and 500+ population size identified for coverage under the scheme, 1,71,494 habitations have already been connected and 1,968 habitations are balanced as of 15^thNovember, 2021.
• A total of 6,45,627 Km road length and 7,523 bridges have been sanctioned under PMGSY-I, of which only 20,950 Km road length and 1,974 bridges are balanced as of 15^thNovember, 2021.
• The majority of the pending projects are in North-East & Himalayan states/UTs.
• All the balance habitations are targeted for connectivity within the proposed extended period, i.e. up to September 2022 by constructing 20,950 Km road length and 1,974 bridges.

ABOUT PMGSY-II

• PMGSY-II, which was approved by the Cabinet in May 2013, envisaged the consolidation of 50,000 Km of the existing rural road network.
• All the proposals of states/UTs have been sanctioned.
• Out of a total of 49,885 Km and 765 bridges sanctioned under the scheme, only 4,240 Km road length and 254 bridges are balanced.
• The majority of the pending projects are in North-East & Himalayan states/UTs as also in the State of Bihar.
• All pending projects are targeted for completion within the proposed extended period, i.e. up to September 2022.

ABOUT ROAD CONNECTIVITY PROJECT FOR LEFT-WING EXTREMISM AFFECTED AREAS (RCPLWEA)

• Launched in 2016 for construction/up-gradation of 5,412 Km road length and 126 bridges of strategic importance in 44 districts in 9 states, viz. Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana and Uttar Pradesh, with an outlay of Rs. 11,725 crore.
• Implementation period: 2016-17 to 2019-20
• Road and bridgework to be taken up under the scheme have been identified by the Ministry of Home Affairs in consultation with states and security forces.
• 10,231 Km road length and bridges sanctioned under the scheme so far with an outlay of Rs. 9,822 crore, including the additional proposals recommended by MHA subsequently.
• 4,490 Km road length and 105 bridges have already been completed.
• Balance projects and additional projects of around 1,887 Km, which are yet to be sanctioned, are targeted for completion within the proposed extended period, i.e. up to March 2023.

 SOURCE: PIB                       

INTERNAL SECURITY

INDIA PLACED ORDERS FOR FRENCH HAMMER MISSILES

THE CONTEXT:   To strengthen the capabilities of the indigenous LCA Tejas fighter aircraft, the Indian Air Force has placed orders for HAMMER missiles from France which would allow it to take out any hardened bunkers or ground targets at stand-off ranges of more than 70 kilometres.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The capability enhancement of the LCA Tejas fighter aircraft is being done in the middle of a military stand-off with China using the emergency procurement power granted by the government to the defence forces.
• The Indian Air Force had acquired the first lot of these HAMMERs for the Rafale fighters at the time when the aircraft had started coming to the IAF from France to further enhance the air to ground targeting capabilities of its most advanced plane.
• Due to the urgency at that time in view of the Chinese aggression, the French authorities had agreed to supply them at a short notice for our Rafale combat aircraft.
• HAMMER (Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range) is a medium-range air-to-ground weapon designed and manufactured for the French Air Force and Navy initially.
• The HAMMERs would give India the capability to take out any bunkers or hardened shelters in any type of terrain including mountainous locations such as Eastern Ladakh, the sources said.
• Indian armed forces have extensively utilised the emergency procurement powers granted to them in different phases by the government to equip themselves with necessary weaponry to handle any conflict or aggression by enemies on both sides.
• The Indian Air Force is strongly supporting the indigenous LCA Tejas fighter aircraft programme by adding more and more capabilities of the aircraft.
• The IAF has already operationalised two of its squadrons in the initial operational clearance and final operational clearance versions while a contract has been signed for the 83 Mark1As set to be delivered a couple of years from now.

SOURCE: ThePrint

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTION

Q1. To strengthen the capabilities of the indigenous LCA Tejas fighter aircraft, the Indian Air Force has placed orders for HAMMER missiles from which country?

a) Russia

b) The USA

c) France

d) Germany

ANSWER FOR NOVEMBER 17^th, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1 Answer: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: UNWTO was formed in 1975 as a UN specialised agency.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: Its headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain.
• Statement 3 is correct: The Tourism Villages is a global initiative of UNWTO to highlight villages where tourism preserves cultures and traditions, celebrates diversity, provides opportunities and safeguards biodiversity. Statement 4 is correct: Pochampally village in Telangana is set to be named as one of the best Tourism Villages by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).

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