THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1.THE UKRAINE’S BREAKAWAY AREAS

THE CONTEXT: Russia has formally recognised the Luhansk and Donetsk ‘People’s Republics’ in Ukraine’s Donbass.

THE EXPLANATION:

The amid tension between the Russia and Ukraine, the Russian President formally recognised the Luhansk “People’s Republic” and Donetsk “People’s Republic”, two breakaway areas of the Donbass region of Ukraine.

The President has ordered Russian troops into these areas for “peacekeeping”. The deployment is viewed as bringing Russia and the US-European alliance closer to war.

The two areas

• Luhansk and Donetsk are areas in south-eastern Ukraine, both major industrial centres in an area collectively known as the Donbass that borders Russia. They had declared themselves independent of Ukraine in 2014, encouraged by Russia’s annexation of Crimea, but had remained unrecognised by Moscow and the international community. Western intelligence reports have spoken about the presence of Russian troops in these two areas since then, but this was denied by Russia.
• Donbass has the largest coal reserves in Ukraine. Donetsk, with a population of about 2 million, is the fifth largest city in Ukraine, and is known for a wide range of metallurgical industries. Luhansk, also an industrial city centred on metal industries, has a population of 1.5 million.

2. GERMANY SUSPENDS NORD STREAM 2 GAS PIPELINE

THE CONTEXT: Germany has taken steps to halt the process of certifying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Nord Stream 2?

• Nord Stream 2 is a 1,200km pipeline under the Baltic Sea, which will take gas from the Russian coast near St Petersburg to Lubmin in Germany.
• It cost €10bn (£8.4bn) and was completed September 2021. The Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom put up half of the cost and western energy firms such as Shell and ENGIE of France are paying the rest.
• Nord Stream 2 runs parallel to an existing gas pipeline, Nord Stream, which has been working since 2011.

Why is Nord Stream 2 pipeline important for Russia?

While Europe needs Russian gas, Gazprom relies on the European market for sales to support Russian government budgets. The European Union has been able to force Gazprom to comply with many of its anti-monopoly rules in recent years.

German dependence

Germany finds itself in a precarious position. Oil and gas are the lifeblood of Germany’s manufacturing economy, but the country produces very little energy domestically and is dependent on imports for 98% of its oil and 92% of its gas supply. As of 2015, Russia already supplied the plurality of its oil and gas (40% and 35% respectively), so it was with no great surprise that plans to increase Russia’s presence were met with hostility on both sides of the Atlantic.

Nordic security

The 1,200 kilometer pipeline travels from Russia to Germany, but its proposed route enters the territorial waters and EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) of three other countries: Finland, Sweden and Denmark.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. INVASIVE ALIEN SPECIES THREATEN AGRICULTURE AND BIODIVERSITY IN AFRICA: STUDY

THE CONTEXT: According to a new report, the Invasive alien species (IAS) of plants, animals and microbes lead to losses running up to billions of dollars annually in every part of the world, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The region has seen the arrival of many IAS in recent years.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Africa may lose about $3.66 trillion annually from the impact of the IAS on agriculture and other vital food production programmes, a 2021 study showed.
• The new study was conducted in Ghana on nearly 200 potentially harmful alien plant species that can affect agriculture, forestry and biodiversity. It was led by the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International and published in the journal NeoBiota.

What is Invasive Alien Species?

• The International Union for the Conservation of Nature defines an alien species as a species introduced outside of its natural range. They may be brought in by people accidentally or intentionally into regions where they do not exist.
• There are around 18,000 invasive alien species around the world, according to another study by an international team of scientists from 13 countries.
• IAS cause yield loss, resulting in serious negative impacts on livelihoods. They are also responsible for the extinction or decline of many species.

THE GOVERNMENT SCHEMES AND INITIATIVES IN NEWS

4. THE CHILD WELFARE SCHEME SAW HIKE OF 390%

THE CONTEXT: According to the Union Ministry of Women and development, that a children-centric scheme of the government had seen a “390%” increase in budgetary allocations since 2014.

MISSION VATSALYA: Children have been recognized by policy makers as one of the supreme national assets. India is home to 472 million children upto the age of 18 years and comprise 39 percent of the country’s population. The objective of Mission Vatsalya is to secure a healthy and happy childhood for every child in India; foster a sensitive, supportive and synchronized ecosystem for development of children; assist States/UTs in delivering the mandate of the Juvenile Justice Act 2015; achieve the SDG goals.

Components under Mission Vatsalya will include statutory bodies; service delivery structures; institutional care/services; non-institutional community based care; emergency outreach services; training and capacity building.

Recently, the ministry of women and child development classified all of its major schemes under 3 umbrella schemes: MissionPoshan 2.0, Mission Vatsalya and Mission Shakti.

MISSION SHAKTI: It envisages a unified citizen-centric lifecycle support for women through integrated care, safety, protection, rehabilitation and empowerment to unshackle women as they progress through various stages of their life. Mission Shakti has two sub-schemes ‘Sambal’ and ‘Samarthya’. While the “Sambal” sub-scheme is for safety and security of women, the “Samarthya” sub-scheme is for empowerment of women. The Sambal sub-scheme consists of the existing scheme of One Stop Centres (OSC), Women Helplines (181-WHL) and BetiBachaoBetiPadhao (BBBP). Besides, a new component of Nari Adalats has been added as women’s collectives to promote and facilitate alternative dispute resolution and gender justice in society and within families. The “Samarthya” sub scheme is for empowerment of women, consisting of existing schemes of Ujjwala, SwadharGreh and Working Women Hostel. In addition, the National Creche Scheme for children of working mothers and the Pradhan Mantri MatruVandanaYojana (PMMVY), which have been under the Umbrella ICDS Scheme till now, are also subsumed in ‘Samarthya’.

Mission POSHAN 2.0:It is an Integrated Nutrition Support Programme. It seeks to address the challenges of malnutrition in children, adolescent girls, pregnant women and lactating mothers through a strategic shift in nutrition content and delivery and by creation of a convergent eco-system to develop and promote practices that nurture health, wellness and immunity. Poshan 2.0 will seek to optimize the quality and delivery of food under the Supplementary Nutrition Program.

Mission Poshan 2.0 will contribute to human capital development of the country; address malnutrition challenges; promote nutrition awareness and good eating habits for sustainable health & well-being and address nutrition related deficiencies through key strategies.Under the programme, nutritional norms and standards and quality and testing of THR will be improved and greater stakeholder and beneficiary participation will be promoted besides traditional community food habits.Poshan 2.0 will bring 3 important programmes/schemes under its ambit, viz., Anganwadi Services, Scheme for Adolescent Girls and PoshanAbhiyaan.

Poshan 2.0 shall focus on Maternal Nutrition, Infant and Young Child Feeding Norms, Treatment of MAM/SAM and Wellness through AYUSH. It will rest on the pillars of Convergence, Governance, and Capacity-building. Poshan Abhiyan will be the key pillar for Outreach and will cover innovations related to nutritional support, ICT interventions, Media Advocacy and Research, Community Outreach and Jan Andolan.

Mission Poshan 2.0 will integrate several key strategies to fulfil its objectives, viz., Corrective strategies, Nutrition Awareness strategies, Communication strategies and Creation of green eco-systems. The objectives under Mission Poshan 2.0 will be realized through strong interventions-driven convergent activities with key Ministries/Depts./Organizations.

Digital infrastructure under the “Poshan Tracker” rolled out by MoWCD on 1st March 2021 through National e-Governance Division as a governance tool, will strengthen and bring about transparency in nutrition delivery support systems. Technology under Poshan Tracker is being leveraged for (i) dynamic identification of stunting, wasting, under-weight prevalence among children; (ii) last mile tracking of nutrition service delivery.

THE PT PERSPECTIVE

5. THE CHAR CHINARI ISLAND ON SRINAGAR’S DAL LAKE

THE CONTEXT: The Char Chinar, the iconic tourist spot in the middle of Dal Lake in Srinagar, is set to regain its glory that had somewhat faded in the wake of the decay of three of the four majestic chinar trees from which the island got its name.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Char Chinar, also sometimes called Char Chinari, Ropa Lank, or Rupa Lank, is an island in Dal Lake, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. Dal Lake includes 3 islands, 2 of which are marked with beautiful Chinar trees.
• The island located on the Lakut Dal (small Dal) is known as Roph Lank (Silver Island), is marked with the presence of majestic Chinar trees at the four corners, thus known as Char-Chinari (Four Chinars).
• The second Chinar Island, known as Sone Lank (Gold Island), is located on the Bod Dal (Big Dal) and overlooks the holy shrine of Hazratbal.
• Chinar trees characteristically grow in Eastern Himalayas. Their botanical name is Platanus orientalis. They have been an important part of Kashmiri tradition, in that, a Chinar tree is found in almost every village in Kashmir. These trees have survived for ages, because Chinar is basically a long-living tree.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION OF THE DAY 23^rd FEBRUARY  2022

Q1. ‘Samarthya’, is one of the two sub-schemes of umbrella scheme ‘Mission Shakti’. It does not include which of the following earlier scheme?

a) Ujjwala

b) SwadharGreh

c) Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana

d) Beti Bachao Beti Padhao

Q2. Char Chinari island is located in which of the following?

a) Wular lake

b) Dal lake

c) Maharana Pratap Sagar

d) Harike lake

ANSWER FOR 22^nd FEBRUARY 2022

Answer: D

Explanation:

Please refer to the given map:

[WpProQuiz 165]

1. Two questions worth asking yourself this year READ MORE
2. For the sake of peace READ MORE
3. Can the world unlearn helplessness? READ MORE

1. Paper forests: India’s missing stretches of green READ MORE
2. Why the Plastic Waste Amendment Rules 2022 Is a Paper Tiger READ MORE

1. More than Covid-19, inequality killed many READ MORE
2. Are ‘metaverse’ weddings the new normal in India? READ MORE

1. Regulation, not prohibition: The online skill gaming industry hopes that a reform-oriented policy structure will soon be in place READ MORE
2. What price regulatory credibility? READ MORE
3. Election freebies: But at whose cost? READ MORE
4. Election Commission Must Count All VVPAT Slips to Protect Electoral Integrity READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Child welfare scheme saw hike of 390%: Smriti Irani READ MORE
2. Chinars return to iconic ‘Char Chinari’ island on Srinagar’s Dal lake READ MORE
3. Centre extends scheme for children orphaned by COVID-19 READ MORE
4. New India leaders less from English-speaking world, so judged harshly: MEA paper READ MORE
5. Reserve Bank of India plans to manage liquidity via forex swap before LIC IPO READ MORE
6. Invasive alien species threaten agriculture and biodiversity in Africa: Study READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. Paper forests: India’s missing stretches of green READ MORE
2. More than Covid-19, inequality killed many READ MORE
3. Are ‘metaverse’ weddings the new normal in India? READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Regulation, not prohibition: The online skill gaming industry hopes that a reform-oriented policy structure will soon be in place READ MORE
2. What price regulatory credibility? READ MORE
3. Election freebies: But at whose cost? READ MORE
4. Election Commission Must Count All VVPAT Slips to Protect Electoral Integrity READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Three is a crowd: US did a China on Soviet Union in 1972; now, China is doing a Russia on America READ MORE
2. A helping hand for our neighbour Lanka READ MORE
3. New leadership models in the post-Covid world READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. A new measure of inflation is brewing on the horizon READ MORE
2. The reforms that farming really needs READ MORE
3. Alternative growth path: Raghuram Rajan’s idea must be debated READ MORE
4. Onerous disclosures: New CSR reporting requirements raise tricky issues READ MORE
5. Amending the FRBM Act READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. Why the Plastic Waste Amendment Rules 2022 Is a Paper Tiger READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Explained: How big is insurgency threat in Manipur? READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Two questions worth asking yourself this year READ MORE
2. For the sake of peace READ MORE
3. Can the world unlearn helplessness? READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘The uncertainty over economic growth in view of Covid is understandable. But in such a situation setting the goalposts for fiscal rectitude becomes even more important’. In the light of the statement do you think Government to amend the FRBM Act and set another target for the fiscal deficit?
2. How far do you agree with this view that Supreme Court should put a stop to freebies practice and save the precious national resources? Analyse your case.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Strategy requires thought, tactics require observation.
• An amended FRBM Act or the medium-term fiscal consolidation plan would have been useful also for getting a sense of how the government planned to reduce its debt over the next few years.
• The uncertainty over economic growth in view of Covid is understandable. But in such a situation setting the goalposts for fiscal rectitude becomes even more important.
• Encouraging companies to spend their surpluses on social projects such as education and health instead of merely enhancing shareholder value may sound logical in theory, but the question is whether a mandate of this nature can transform society in a meaningful way.
• Most concerning, perhaps, is that at a time when India urgently needs investment, the new disclosure requirements are unlikely to enhance India’s reputation as an easy place to do business.
• In order to gain a greater foothold in diverse services, India will need to invest heavily in education in the coming years, and it’s not clear how this will happen.
• Only the SC can put a stop to freebies practice and save the precious national resources from the clutches of the amoral political class.
• The nightmare scenario for India would be if the US decides that it confronts a greater threat from Russia and that this justifies a strategic accommodation with China.
• What SEBI’s decision would mean for the credibility of regulatory organisations, and the need for continuity in regulatory provisions is a matter worth losing sleepover.
• Now that the contentious farm laws have been repealed, focus can shift to strengthening APMC markets, which will improve access, give bargaining powers to farmers.
• The online skill gaming industry and government can work together to create a policy structure based on principles of light-touch regulation and not prohibition.

50-WORD TALK

• Pakistan has finally done the right thing by allowing Indian humanitarian aid to transit through Wagah to Afghanistan. Trade normalisation should be the next step. In 2019, Pakistan stopped imports from India, hurting its own economy. Top Pakistani industrialists are now seeking resumption of trade. Islamabad should heed their calls.
• The government’s decision to examine if SEBI took necessary punitive action in NSE scandal is apt. It should extend this to NSE’s independent directors at the time and probe if they fulfilled their fiduciary responsibility. Independent directors, especially former bureaucrats, need to be accountable, not treat such critical positions as sinecures.

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 the news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and 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 main 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.

THE CONTEXT: Efforts in the fight against “the tsunami of hate and xenophobia in social media” appear to be largely failing, because hate is increasing, not diminishing. In this context, attempts are being made to control it by moral suasion, voluntary controls by the regulators but the attempts are largely failing, sometimes due to vested interest, other time due to recognition of such issues.

THE ISSUE: In an unequal society, hate speech has developed out of unequal power relations, which determine one’s ‘vulnerability’ to extreme forms of discrimination. Hate speech is inflicted based on religion, gender, sexuality, disability, nationality, race, and caste. The tangible presence of hate speech can have the effect of silencing exactly those at the forefront of expressing dissent against that hate speech. But when it is done, offline, there are various mechanisms to prevent it. But, when it is done on digital platforms where the “ sense of control is missing”  generally out of regulatory lacuna problem arises. Further, it can condescend into real-life violence which was witnessed in the events like:

• Capitol Hill violence
• Frequent trolling of influential persons
• Caste-based hate speech
• Gender-based hate speech

WHAT IS CYBERHATE?

Cyberhate can be defined as the use of violent, aggressive or offensive language, focused on a specific group of people who share a common property, which can be religion, race, gender or sex or political affiliation through the use of the Internet and Social Networks, based on a power imbalance, carried out systematically and uncontrollably, through digital media and often motivated by ideologies to which individuals and groups adhere, deriving in behaviours that can be considered as acts of deviant communication as they may violate shared cultural standards, rules or norms of social interaction in group contexts.

REASONS FOR CYBERHATE

• Anonymity: One of the supposed advantages of the Internet as a medium for communication is that people are not compelled to reveal aspects of their offline identity unless they wish to do so. It has been suggested that the anonymity of the Internet can provide opportunities for freer speech because people can say what they think without fear that other people will react or respond unfavourably simply because of the colour of their skin, their sexual orientation, or even their gender identity
• The perceived anonymity of the Internet may remove the fear of being held accountable for cyberhate and may also evince a sense that the normal rules of conduct do not apply; the associated feeling of liberation may drive people to give in to their worst tendencies
• Invisibility A second potentially distinctive feature of online hate speech is that there can be a physical distance between speaker and audience, meaning that the speaker can be non-visible or in some sense invisible to the audience and vice versa.
• Community There is always people’s innate desire) to engage with like-minded others allied to the power of the Internet to put people in touch with each other—people who otherwise might be unable to connect due to geography or people who might be simply ignorant of each other’s existence
• In that sense, online hate speech is different in one sense simply because it has become the method of choice among hate groups for cementing in-group statuses and fermenting a sense of intra-group community. Of course, this fact itself also relies on some other distinctive features of the Internet. One feature is that the Internet is relatively cheap and easy to use compared to other comparable means of communication
• Instantaneousness: On the Internet, the time delay between having a thought or feeling and expressing it to a particular individual who is located a long distance away, or to a group of like-minded people or to a mass audience can be a matter of seconds.

THE ORIGIN OF INTERNET TROLLING

HARM

• Because the Internet allows cheap access to mass communication and easy transmission of words, images, music and videos, it has a tendency to support and encourage ingenuity, creativity, playfulness, and innovation in such content
• The same applies to hate speech. Online hate speech is heterogeneous and dynamic: it takes many different forms, and those forms can shift and expand over relatively short spaces of time
• The Internet is home to forms of hate speech that are banned by existing hate speech laws in India, including the stirring up of hatred toward people based on certain protected characteristics and certain public order and harassment offences aggravated by hostility toward people based on certain protected characteristics.
• But the Internet is also home to hate speech that is not directly banned by existing hate speech laws in India including forms of negative stereotyping, vilification, group defamation.

CURRENT LEGAL PROVISIONS TO DEAL WITH HATE SPEECH

• Not defined in the legal framework: Hate speech is neither defined in the Indian legal framework nor can it be easily reduced to a standard definition due to the myriad forms it can take.
• The Supreme Court, in Pravasi Bhalai Sangathan v. Union of India (2014), described hate speech as “an effort to marginalise individuals based on their membership in a group” and one that “seeks to delegitimise group members in the eyes of the majority, reducing their social standing and acceptance within society.”
• The Indian Penal Code illegalises speeches that are intended to promote enmity or prejudice the maintenance of harmony between different classes.
• Specifically, sections of the IPC, such as 153A, which penalises promotion of enmity between different groups;
• 153B, which punishes imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration;
• 505, which punishes rumours and news intended to promote communal enmity, and
• 295A, which criminalises insults to the religious beliefs of a class by words with deliberate or malicious intention.
• Summing up various legal principles, in Amish Devgan v. Union of India (2020), the Supreme Court held that “hate speech has no redeeming or legitimate purpose other than hatred towards a particular group”.
• Lack of established legal standard: Divergent decisions from constitutional courts expose the lack of established legal standards in defining hate speech, especially those propagated via the digital medium.

From the private side

YouTube included caste policy in 2019

PROBLEMS IN CONTROLLING ONLINE HATE SPEECH

• Absolute free speech laws that protect against any type of censorship inadvertently render protection to hate speech as well. In India, hate speech is not profusely restricted, it remains undefined with appropriate IT Act provisions or a regulatory mechanism for online content. Absent appropriate codes or regulations for intermediaries, those who tend to have a louder voice—such as politicians or celebrities—can harness this capacity to incite anger or divide communities without being threatened by any form of liability. But, overcriminalisation can have a problem, as it will have a chilling impact on free speech.
• Both government authorities and social media platforms alike, have been criticised for their failure to secure data and effectively regulate content. Many platforms, experts, and politicians have welcomed a government-led moderation of illicit content, with ample checks and balances against arbitrary imposition.
• Human rights groups and activists express scepticism against allowing any avenue for governmental intervention through either the arbitrary imposition of bans, content moderation or internet shutdowns. Another paradigm champions the principle of “self-regulation”—where the platform itself adjudicates on their user-policy and community guidelines. Self-regulation has largely been ineffective in preventing abuse of the platform and has garnered criticism in various democracies
• The difficult question concerning hate speech or fake news legislation pertains to the existing ethical-legal gap, the executive response departing from the conservative understanding of online spaces and data. While disruptive technologies are evolving at a faster rate, the regulations fail to address gaps to deter unethical behaviour. The platforms alone are not equipped to oversee the task for a remodelled approach to counter manipulation and hate speech. Due to the overarching jurisdictional nature of these acts and easy multiplication, taking down content is not a silver bullet in countering hate speech and fake news.

THE STRUCTURAL PROBLEM

• The overregulation vs. under-regulation debate tends to overshadow the deeper and more inherent structural problems in the tech platforms themselves. The platform structure is driven by exploiting the disparities of wealth and power, as algorithms reward virality and interactions for monetary gains, even though they might be “divisive, misleading or false”.
• Platforms are also known to amplify certain types of users and content over others. Platforms decentralise free speech, but “special” megaphones are provided to sensationalist ideologies or popular content. Its algorithmic nature creates and perpetuates an information divide, alienating communities with different subscriptions through echo chambers and information silos.
• This has become obvious with the platform’s incentive structure, which is driven by monetisation of user data, advertisement money, and constant engagement. For example, a few popular YouTube channels that earlier achieved “Creator Award” were inciting violence including rape but suffered fewer takedowns. Platforms conveniently hide behind the garb of free speech enablers, with little responsibility, if at all.
• Even as xenophobia, communication and racism have long existed in the real world, the susceptibility of social media platforms to misuse has magnified such ill-speech at a faster pace.

THE BEST PRACTICES AROUND THE WORLD

WHAT SHOULD BE THE INDIA APPROACH?

• Institute an independent regulator to oversee compliance with fake news and hate speech codes that will be adopted;
• Proportional, necessary and minimal interventions from the government and platforms with effective and consistent application of their duties;
• An inclusive and ethical Code of Conduct developed in consultation with all stakeholders to realign the platform’s fiscal-driven-incentives with the public interest;
• Democratic application of penal and non-penal standards of existing laws; Periodic review policies to improve effectiveness;
• Encourage transparency by commissioning open-source research with periodic reports from regulators, platforms, civil society organisations and academia;
• Avoid creating any barriers or strengthening any dominant positions by large incumbents;
• Promote digital education initiatives and workshops to acquire necessary skills from a young age;
• Redressal and appellate mechanisms to provide support to any wrongful application of standards, take-downs or breach.
• There should be continuous collaborative engagements within the industry, along with state and non-state actors.
• While the creation of charters or codes that define each stakeholder’s duties and rights will be a lengthy process, a pre-emptive plan cannot be delayed further.
• This can enable the creation of voluntary multi-platform and multi-stakeholder initiatives. The Code of ethics and voluntary audits are other welcome by-products of these collaborative measures. Issue-specific methods of advertisement rules for transparency and media guidelines or ethical codes also aim to strengthen industry standards.
• Some shared responsibilities between the stakeholders have already been outlined but limited action has been taken to counter online harm.
• Platforms have deployed minimal resources to take down blatantly illegal content, as they lack real-time local responders who are well-versed in Indian languages.
• Even their community guidelines are globally uniform and limited due to implementational and definitional challenges locally. Therefore, the government and the tech platforms should complement other information gatekeepers like media and politicians.

THE CONCLUSION: Hate speech is provocative and divisive, and in extreme scenarios where it has remained unchecked, has been responsible for terrorism and genocide. With newer tools to weaponise and sensationalise enmity, it must not be protected under the realm of free speech doctrine. Similarly, misinformation (“fake news”) also has the potential to affect human safety and public health, and instigate violence. If fake news and hate speech continue to proliferate at the current rate, they pose threats to the democratic ecosystem. India must work to devise an all-stakeholder model to counter the weaponisation of online content before it further widens societal faultlines.