THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. NO CLEAR DEFINITION FOR LYNCHING UNDER IPC

THE CONTEXT: The Union Home Ministry informed Parliament in 2019 that there was “no separate” definition for lynching under the IPC, adding that lynching incidents could be dealt with under Sections 300 and 302 of the IPC, pertaining to murder

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Lynching?

• lynching, a form of violence in which a mob, under the pretext of administering justice without trial, executes a presumed offender, often after inflicting torture and corporal mutilation. The term lynch law refers to a self-constituted court that imposes sentence on a person without due process of law.

Anti-mob lynching bills passed by 4 Assemblies at various levels of non-implementation:

1. In 2018, the Manipur Assembly passed the The Manipur Protection from Mob Violence Bill, recommending life imprisonment for those involved in mob violence if it led to death. The bill is still being examined by the Ministry.
2. On August 5, 2019, the Rajasthan Assembly passed the Rajasthan Protection from Lynching Bill, 2019, providing for life imprisonment and a fine from ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh to those convicted in cases of mob lynching leading to the victim’s death.
3. On August 30, 2019, the West Bengal Assembly passed a legislation- the West Bengal (Prevention of Lynching) Bill, 2019 that proposes a jail term from three years to life for those involved in assaulting and injuring a person and also defines terms such as “lynching” and “mob.” The government also proposed the West Bengal Lynching Compensation Scheme.
4. On December 22, 2021 the Jharkhand Assembly passed the Prevention of Mob Violence and Mob Lynching Bill, 2021, providing for punishment from three years to life imprisonment. The Bill awaits the Governor’s nod.

Why are the bills pending?

Most bills have been reserved by the Governor for consideration of the President.

The President has to go with the advice given by the Council of Ministers, in the case of such legislations, represented by the MHA.

The Union Home Ministry examines the State legislation’s on three grounds-

• Repugnancy with Central laws
• Deviation from national or central policy and
• Legal and constitutional validity

Supreme Court on Lynching:

• In July 2017, the Supreme Court, while pronouncing its judgment in the case of Tahseen s. Poonawala v. UOI, had laid down several preventives, remedial and punitive measures to deal with lynching and mob violence. States were directed to set up designated fast track courts in every district to exclusively deal with cases involving mob lynching’s.
• The court had also mooted the setting up of a special task force with the objective of procuring intelligence reports about the people involved in spreading hate speeches, provocative statements and fake news which could lead to mob lynchings. Directions were also issued to set up Victim compensation schemes for relief and rehabilitation of victims.

2. THE DIGITAL MAPS OF ALL VILLAGES

THE CONTEXT: According to the Ministry of Science and technology India plans to prepare digital maps of all its 6,00,000 villages and pan-India 3D maps will be prepared for 100 cities

THE EXPLANATION:

• An ongoing scheme, piloted by the Panchayati Raj Ministry, called SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) was launched in 2020.
• The updated guidelines help private companies prepare a variety of maps without needing approvals from a host of Ministries and make it easier to use drones and develop applications via location mapping. The “trinity of geospatial systems, drone policy and unlocked space sector will be the hallmark of India’s future economic progress”.
• The complete geospatial policy would be announced soon as the liberalisation of guidelines had yielded very positive outcomes within a year’s time. The geographical information-based system mapping would also be useful in forest management, disaster management, electrical utilities, land records, water distribution, and property taxation.
• Also, the Ministry noted, estimated the size of the Indian geospatial market in 2020 to be ₹23,345 crore, including ₹10,595 crore of export which was likely to grow to ₹36,300 crore by 2025.
• According to current information on the SVAMITVA portal: So far, drone surveys have covered close to 1,00,000 villages and maps of 77,527 villages had been handed over to States. Property cards have been distributed to around 27,000 villages.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

3. BAN ON ONLINE GAMING PLATFORMS

THE CONTEXT: The division bench of the Karnataka High Court delivered a judgment striking down major portions of the Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act, 2021, a new law that was introduced by the State government to ban online gambling and skill-based gaming platforms like rummy, poker and fantasy sports that involved any wagering or risking of money on an uncertain event.

THE EXPLANATION:

Apart from Karnataka, a similar law introduced by the Tamil Nadu government was struck down by the Madras High Court in August 2021. In September 2021, the Kerala High Court had also quashed a notification issued by the State government specifically banning the game of online rummy when played for stakes.

On what grounds did the Karnataka High Court strike down the online gaming law?

The Karnataka High Court struck down the amendments to the Karnataka Police Act on three major grounds: violation of fundamental rights of trade and commerce, liberty and privacy, speech and expression; the law being manifestly arbitrary and irrational insofar as it did not distinguish between two different categories of games, i.e. games of skill and chance; and lastly lack of legislative competence of State legislatures to enact laws on online skill-based games.

Is regulation of online gaming a better solution?

Experts believe that instead of a complete ban, one could look at licensing and regulating the industry with various checks and balances such as diligent KYC and anti-money laundering processes, barring minors from accessing real money games, placing weekly or monthly limits on the money that can be staked or time that can be spent, counselling for addictive players and allowing self-exclusion of such players etc.

4. THE PHENSEDYL SMUGGLING

THE CONTEXT: The Border Security force (BSF) has seized 630 bottles of Phensedyl worth Rs.1,09,905 in two incidents and apprehended two phensedyl smugglers, while they were trying to illegally cross the international border from India to Bangladesh.

THE EXPLANATION:

According to BSF officials, it was difficult to contain the smuggling because Phensedyl is smuggled in low quantities from India to Bangladesh. “In the past few years, BSF has stopped factories in the hinterland that were manufacturing Phensedyl. Sometimes farmers smuggle it, at other times people throw it over the fence on the other side of the border”.

Why Phensedyl?

• Bangladesh had a majority Muslim population, the religious faith prohibited consumption of liquor and cough syrups with codeine phosphate were an easy way for people to get high. Since liquor is banned in Bangladesh, the drug became a popular alternative for alcohol.
• Phensedyl used to contain codeine phosphate along with hydrochloride ephedrine and promethazine, a unique combination for addiction. This is what made it a popular drug of abuse and unfortunately the trend still continues even after the chemical formulation was changed.A bottle costs about ₹200 in India and the moment it crosses the border, the price goes up to thousands.

YABA TABLETS- The Madness Drug

• Along with Phensedyl another narcotic that is smuggled in huge quantities along the international border is Yaba tablets. According to investigative agencies, these tablets usually originate in Myanmar and come to India from Bangladesh.
• Yaba is a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine sold as cheap red or pink pills and works as stimulant to the central nervous system. In 2021, the BSF south Bengal Frontier seized about 14,147 tablets when it was allegedly being smuggled into India. The seizure in 2019 by the same frontier was 53,763 Yaba tablets.
• The ratio of caffeine to methamphetamine inevitably varies; however, the potent drug makes up approximately 20% of yaba. There is also a crystalline form of this narcotic known as ice, which can almost entirely be made up of methamphetamine.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

5. THE INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON COMBATING MARINE PLASTIC POLLUTION

THE CONTEXT: The Government of India, in partnership with the Government of Australia and the Government of Singapore, conducted an international workshop on combating marine pollution focusing on marine plastic debris on February 14-15, 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It aimed to discuss research interventions toward monitoring and assessing marine litter and plausible sustainable solutions to address the global marine plastic pollution issue.
• The workshop had four major sessions; the magnitude of the marine litter problem-monitoring program and research on plastic debris in the Indo-Pacific Region; best practices and technologies; solutions to prevent plastic pollution; and polymers and plastics: technology and innovations and opportunities for regional collaboration to remediate or stop plastic pollution.
• The sessions involved panel discussions and interactive break-out sessions to encourage discussion amongst participants from East Asia Summit countries.

Why is it important ?

• Plastic pollution is a widespread problem affecting the marine environment. It threatens ocean health, the health of marine species, food safety and quality, human health, coastal tourism, and contributes to climate change.
• The UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for action to ‘Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources’ (Goal 14) and ‘By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, particularly from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution’ (Target 14.1).

According to IUCN:

• Over 300 million tons of plastic are produced every year for use in a wide variety of applications.
• At least 14 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year, and plastic makes up 80% of all marine debris found from surface waters to deep-sea sediments.
• Plastic pollution threatens food safety and quality, human health, coastal tourism, and contributes to climate change.

Impacts on marine ecosystems

The most visible impacts of plastic debris are the ingestion, suffocation and entanglement of hundreds of marine species. Marine wildlife such as seabirds, whales, fish and turtles mistake plastic waste for prey; most then die of starvation as their stomachs become filled with plastic.

What can be done?

• Efforts should be made to adhere to and strengthen existing international legislative frameworks that address marine plastic pollution. The most important are the 1972 Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping Wastes and Other Matter (the London Convention), the 1996 Protocol to the London Convention (the London Protocol) and the 1978 Protocol to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL).
• Governments, research institutions and industries need to work collaboratively to redesign products, and rethink their use and disposal to reduce microplastic waste from pellets, synthetic textiles and tyres. Consumers and society must shift to more sustainable consumption patterns.
• More funding for research and innovation should be made available to provide policymakers, manufacturers and consumers with the evidence needed to implement technological, behavioural and policy solutions to address marine plastic pollution.

THE HEALTH AND COVID CORNOR

6. LASSA FEVER CLAIMS 3 LIVES IN UK

THE CONTEXT: For a world grappling with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), the news of a fresh virus has spared concern. The Lassa fever has claimed three lives in the United Kingdom, and the country’s health officials have said that it has “pandemic potential”. Eight cases of the Lassa fever have been reported in the UK since the 1980s, with the last two coming in 2009.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Lassa fever?

According to United States’ Centers for Disease Control (CDC), it is an animal-borne, or zoonotic,acute viral illness. The haemorrhagic illness is caused by Lassa virus, a member of the arenavirus family of viruses.

How does it infect the humans?

According to World Health Organization (WHO), humans usually become infected with Lassa virus through exposure to food or household items contaminated with urine or faeces of infected Mastomys rats. The disease is endemic in the rodent population in parts of West Africa.

Person-to-person infections and laboratory transmission can also occur, particularly in health care settings in the absence of adequate infection prevention and control measures, according to further information about the disease from WHO.

When was the first case of Lassa virus reported?

The illness was discovered in 1969 and is named after the town in Nigeria where the first cases occurred. According to CDC, an estimated 100,000 to 300,000 infections of Lassa fever occur annually, with approximately 5,000 deaths.

Treatment: Ribavirin, an antiviral drug, has been used with success in Lassa fever patients.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY 16^TH FEBRUARY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements about SVAMITVA scheme:

1. It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
2. The Scheme is implemented with the collaborative efforts of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, State Revenue Department and Survey of India.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a 1 only

b 2 only

c Both 1 and 2

d Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR 15^TH FEB 2022

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: It is a polar satellite launched with the help of PSLV C-52 and put in sun-synchronous orbit.

Statement 2 is correct: It is a radar imaging satellite is designed to provide high-quality images in all weather conditions for applications such as agriculture, forestry, plantation, flood mapping, soil moisture and hydrology.

1. HC strikes down law banning online gaming READ MORE
2. Reforming for a qualitative democracy READ MORE
3. The Unequal Republic READ MORE

1. To Be Or Not To Be – Secular READ MORE
2. Time to Criminalise Marital Rape READ MORE

1. The Quest To Understand How Earth’s Magnetic Field Shows Birds the Way READ MORE
2. Indian agriculture: The route post-CoP 26 READ MORE

1. A lesson from the Mahabharata READ MORE
2. Diverse beliefs, theories, faiths and attitudes READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. India, Australia, and Singapore come together to address marine pollution with a focus on plastic debris READ MORE
2. India to prepare digital maps of all villages READ MORE
3. ‘Communal Mindset’: India Slams OIC for Statement on Hijab Row, Muslims in India READ MORE
4. Sansad TV YouTube channel hacked READ MORE
5. Public order: A constitutional provision for curbing freedoms READ MORE
6. New IPCC report will strengthen science on links between biodiversity loss, climate change: UNEP READ MORE
7. Lassa Fever Claims 3 Lives in UK: All You Need To Know About It READ MORE

 Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. To Be Or Not To Be – Secular READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. HC strikes down law banning online gaming READ MORE
2. Reforming for a qualitative democracy READ MORE
3. The Unequal Republic READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Time to Criminalise Marital Rape READ MORE

 INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. India may come under pressure on Russia READ MORE  
2. To counter China, invest in regional deterrence READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. RBI’s gamble on banks’ balance sheets READ MORE
2. Job Security READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. The Quest To Understand How Earth’s Magnetic Field Shows Birds the Way READ MORE
2. Indian agriculture: The route post-CoP 26 READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Phensedyl smuggling remains a challenge on the India-Bangladesh border READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. A lesson from the Mahabharata READ MORE
2. Diverse beliefs, theories, faiths and attitudes READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Rape laws aim to protect not just physical safety but also preserve the sexual autonomy of women; they exist to also acknowledge the unique nature of this offence and its ubiquity’. In the light of the statement discuss the need for the criminalize marital rape.
2. How far do you agree with the view banning on online games a ban will militate against individual freedom? Justice your view.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• And empty words are evil.
• The existence of marital rape exemption encourages the subordination of women within their private lives. It also means that the State has legitimised men’s illegitimate control over women, to the extent that it can even allow routinized sexual assault on them in order to secure this control.
• The authority of the chair and its subsequent abuse by the person sitting in it and uttering ‘no’ is slowly destroying the power of knowledge and accountability in our society.
• To avoid delay in approving poll reforms by Parliament, the EC should be empowered to implement the reforms by giving one-year notice to it.
• The first industrial plastic — celluloid — was created partly with environmental conservation in mind, replacing ivory in the making of billiard balls.
• India’s relationship with ASEAN, a key cornerstone of our foreign policy, may be finally consolidated by addition of this critical security dimension that ASEAN members have sought from India’s leadership for a long time.
• Raising policy rates to curb inflation and using unconventional policy to rein the yield curve would have been a better option.
• No signifier has the ability to produce meaning in isolation. Its signifying capability is determined by its place among all of other signifiers.
• All legislation that assumes that sections of society require the hand of the state to guide and support them have some populist appeal. And there is an addictive element to online gaming, but that does not mean there is no individual freedom and choice at all.

50-WORD TALK

• Another ‘bank fraud’, India’s biggest involving Rs 22,842 crore and leading lender being ICICI Bank, not a PSU, shows how deep the NPA rot runs. A bad bank or recapitalising banks can’t fix this. More forensic audits, enforcement, better corporate governance are needed. Indian economy needs a healthy banking system.
• Having lectured India on the right to protest, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is using emergency powers to crush anti-vaccine demonstrators. Less than a third of Canadians support the far-Right protests, but they have paralysed the economy and everyday life. Ensuring law and order, Trudeau’s learned, is tougher than scoring points.

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 161]

THE CONTEXT: In the wake of Covid-19, climate changes and other important global issues such as globalization, cold war, trade, war, the world is facing several issues and the UN nearly just seems an audience in most of them. Hence, the demand is whether the world needs a global parliament for dealing with global issues. This article discusses this issue in detail.

WHAT IS WORLD PARLIAMENT?

The world should establish parliament to resolve the global issue and make the rules for International issues such as the pandemics, stockpiles of nuclear weapons, deadly biological weapons, natural disasters, climate change, loss of control over artificial intelligence, terrorism, serious imbalances in international trade, influence, intelligence, greed for power and a host of other threats.

It is obvious that these threats cannot be tackled by any one country alone and a united action at local, regional, and international levels alone can rid the world of these dangers.

THE ISSUES FACED BY MANKIND IN RECENT TIMES

• Amid ever-increasing threats facing humanity, it’s high time to initiate steps at the governance level to make the world a safer place for mankind.
• The COVID-19 pandemic has provided the impetus to the idea of a global democratic government and underlined the necessity of a world organization to tackle the dangers facing mankind in a more effective manner.
• These include — pandemics, stockpiles of nuclear weapons, deadly biological weapons, natural disasters, climate change, loss of control over Artificial Intelligence, terrorism, and so on.

NEED FOR THE WORLD PARLIAMENT

Transcending the Nation-State: There is nobody that represents the interest of the world community at Even if a treaty is concluded and ratified, a state can withdraw again. The international order recognizes no higher authority for decision or enforcement.

Social disparities between citizens: The world is witnessing the emergence of global social strata that are giving rise to vertical social tensions. The dividing line will no longer be between rich and poor countries, but between the super-rich and the rest everywhere.

Immigrationsemerged as a major issue: The promise of the “global village” is only valid for the rich. But for the poor people and minor communities of many countries face harassment and seek asylum in neighboring countries. As there is no world policy to resolve these issues they are facing many issues.

Addressing environmental threats: Humanity now shares a common destiny. The dangers posed by nuclear war, global pandemics, environmental devastation, biodiversity loss, or climate change affect everybody. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere knows no borders.

Global ruling in a proper way: The supply of important public goods like food security or the stability of the financial and economic system depends on how well global structures are working. Regulating research and development in fields such as artificial intelligence, genetics, biotechnology or autonomous weapons must be on the global agenda. Based on the collaboration of 193 nominally sovereign states, global regulation will never work well.

WHY DOES THE WORLD NEED WORLD PARLIAMENT DESPITE HAVING UNITED NATIONS?

Presently a world body already exists known as United Nations Organization (UNO). Formed after world war II in 1945 to prevent and eliminate recurrence of wars and to maintain peace all over the world, it was also mandated in broader terms to look after some aspects of areas like economic, social, and cultural development.

PAST RECORD OF UN:

• The organization has been beneficial to mankind in many ways, but looking back at its record during the last over seventy-five years of its existence, there is not much to feel proud about.
• Soon after its formation in 1945, it had to face a cold war between the western Block and the Soviet Block headed by the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics(USSR) which lasted till the collapse of the Soviet Block in 1991.
• It could not prevent local and regional wars in the Korean peninsula, Asia, Africa, and even in Europe and Latin America.
• It could not stop Chinese aggression against India in 1962 and the Cuban missile crisis between the then Soviet Union and the USA.
• Mostly because of the cold war, politics, and its attitude, it failed to take bold united action.
• Its response to natural disasters and epidemics at the national or international level also fell far short of its expectations.

THE ISSUE OF REPRESENTATION:

• Apart from the cold war, politics, other main causes responsible for its failure to meet expectations have been the lack of its full representative character and its failure to reform itself.
• Also, it has not restructured itself to keep up with the needs of changing world.
• Under these circumstances, its attitude towards enormous problems and threats and deviant forces facing mankind has been almost inflexible.
• Despite repeated calls by many countries, it has more or less continued with its inequitable representative character.
• A glaring example of this has been that India with over 1.38 billion population which constitutes about eighteen percent of the total world population has no permanent representation on its most important decision-making organ UN Security Council.
• While more basic structural changes in the organization will take years and years if not decades, it has to reform itself urgently to make itself fully representative to tackle the pressing problems.
• The urgency of such a step can also be gauged by the fact that last year in June out of 192 votes cast in the UN General Assembly,184 countries voted in favour of India for two-year non-permanent membership of UNSC which started from January this year.
• The world body has also to change its responses so that threats facing mankind are attended to promptly.

BIASED NATURE:

• In a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent profile.
• But it is evident in the recent past and in the past seventy-five years that the UN is facing business issues. It took actions against small countries, but against powerful countries, its peaceful appeal had no impact.

AN OLD CONCEPT: 

• One of the key challenges of modern cultural evolution is the time lag between rapid technological development and slow political adaptation.
• The United Nations that represents the best governance model humanity could come up with for the management of global affairs is now frozen in time.
• Its underlying principle of national sovereignty goes back to 1648, a hundred years before the industrial revolution even started.
• Today we live in the 21st century, the world population is approaching eight billion and technological development continues to accelerate.
• The need for global governance to catch up with the accelerating pace of change is more urgent than ever before.

HOW THE GLOBAL PARLIAMENT SHOULD WORK FOR BETTER OUTCOMES?

• In a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent profile.
• The parliament of the world body could be elected directly by proportional representation based on the population of each member nation or nation-state.
• The challenges facing mankind, as also the matters of economic and financial governance can be dealt with in a far better way by a Global Parliament.
• Such an institution will strengthen democracy, justice, and equity throughout the world and help in curbing fundamentalist and radical ideologies.
• Proper attention to all threats facing mankind could ensure the safety and survival of intelligent life on earth. But to realize it, the member countries will have to shed a few shades of their sovereignty which could democratically authorize and enable such a World Government to prevent deadly nuclear and biological wars at the local, regional, or international levels.
• At present, there are already scores of organizations in Africa, America, Europe, and elsewhere, and some of these are popularly elected.

WAY FORWARD

• The idea regarding the deep structural changes to turn the UN into a democratic World Government will take more time to come somewhat into shape.
• Moreover, in a world full of diversities and ideological differences, such an institution will have to be free from biases and prejudices and will have to transcend the diversities and differences to acquire a truly representative and independent character.
• Recently, with advancements in human civilization and thought, the necessity for such a global institution has been felt immensely at various stages.
• After the deeper restructuring of the existing world body, contours for a democratic World Government can be established and Parliament of the world body could be elected directly by proportional representation based on the population of each member nation.

CONCLUSION

The experience of democratic regimes teaches us that no parliament can govern a country alone. A government is necessary. So the World Parliament must be seen as a crucial milestone on the way toward forming a democratic government endowed with the necessary powers to enforce the laws approved by the World Parliament.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. INDIA-AUSTRALIA INTERIM TRADE AGREEMENT AND FTA

THE CONTEXT: India and Australia have announced that they are set to conclude an interim trade agreement in March 2022 and a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) 12-18 months thereafter.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is the early harvest agreement likely to cover?

• An interim or early harvest trade agreement is used to liberalise tariffs on the trade of certain goods between two countries or trading blocs before a comprehensive FTA (Free Trade Agreement) is concluded.
• According to the Commerce Ministry, the interim agreement set to be announced in about 30 days will cover “most areas of interest for both countries” including goods, services, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures and customs procedures.
• Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at about $12.5 billion in FY21 and has already surpassed $17.7 billion in the first 10 months of FY22.
• India has imported merchandise worth about $12.1 billion from Australia in the first 10 months of the fiscal and has exported merchandise worth $5.6 billion in the same period. Key imports from Australia include coal, gold and LNG while key exports to the country from India include diesel, petrol and gems and jewellery.

How has the Quad impacted trade relations between India and Australia?

India and Australia are both members of the Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue) along with the US and Japan. Both countries have noted that the coalition has given impetus to increasing trade relations between all members of the Quad. Australia noted that it already had FTAs with both the US and Japan and that all four countries could start building a framework for economic cooperation within the countries of the Quad after they announced a deal with India.

What other Free Trade Agreements is India currently negotiating?

India is currently in the process of negotiating FTAs with the UAE, the UK, Canada, the EU and Israel, besides Australia. India is also looking to complete an early harvest agreement with the UAE and the UK in the first half of 2022.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

2. THE INFLATION EDGES PAST 6% IN JANUARY 2022

THE CONTEXT: Retail inflation rose to a seven-month high of 6.01 per cent in January 2022, breaching the upper tolerance level of the medium-term inflation target of 4+/-2 per cent set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO). The rise was mainly on account of high food inflation, which jumped to a 14-month high of 5.43 per cent, along with an unfavourable base.

THE EXPLANATION:

• • Inflation at the wholesale level in January softened to 96 per cent from 13.56 per cent in December 2021 but marked the tenth consecutive month of being in double digits, another set of data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Wholesale food inflation was, however, at a 24-month high of 9.6 per cent. Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation rate is reflective of the price pressures on the inputs side and of manufacturers passing on the higher input costs to their output prices.
  • According to Economists, the high inflation was now turning structural, with price rise being seen in non-food segments such as clothing, fuel and light, household goods, health, transport, and communication above 6 per cent.

• These prices are based on the MRP principle and will not come down once increased. Manufacturers are in the process of passing on the higher input cost to the consumer and this will carry on for the next two months too.
• The structural aspect of inflation is reflected in the core inflation remaining sticky (96 per cent in January). “Clothing & footwear inflation now stands at a 97-month high (8.84 per cent) on the back of higher cotton prices. Household goods and services inflation at 7.1 per cent is at a 94-month high in January 2022. Amid elevated input costs, various automobile, telecom and FMCG firms have announced price hikes. As a result, core inflation has remained sticky.

VALUE ADDITION:

About Wholesale Price Index (WPI):

• Measures inflation at the first stage of the transaction, i.e. wholesale prices.
• Compiled by the Office of Economic Advisor, Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
• The Wholesale Price Index measures inflation on a year-on-year basis.
• It consists of 3 major groups as below:

QUICK FACTS

GLOSSARY

• Disinflation: Reduction in the rate of inflation.
• Deflation: Persistent decrease in the price level (negative inflation).
• Reflation: Price level increases when the economy recovers from recession based on the value of inflation.
• Creeping inflation – If the rate of inflation is low (up to 3%).
• Walking/Trotting inflation – Rate of inflation is moderate (3-7%).
• Running/Galloping inflation – Rate of inflation is high (>10%).
• Runaway/Hyper Inflation – The rate of inflation is extreme.
• Stagflation: Inflation + Recession (Unemployment).
• Misery index: Rate of inflation + Rate of unemployment.
• Inflationary gap: Aggregate demand > Aggregate supply (at full employment level).
• Deflationary gap: Aggregate supply > Aggregate demand (at full employment level).
• Suppressed / Repressed inflation: Aggregate demand > Aggregate supply. Here govt will not allow rising of prices.
• Open inflation: A situation where the price level rises without any price control measures by the government.
• Core inflation: Based on those items whose prices are non-volatile. (All items in CPI -Food & Energy).
• Headline inflation: All commodities are covered in this. (Goods + Services).
• Structural inflation: Due to structural problems like infrastructural bottlenecks.

3. CENTRE CUTS AGRI-CESS ON CRUDE PALM OIL

THE CONTEXT: According to the the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution the Centre Government has reduced the Agri-cess on crude palm oil (CPO) from 7.5 per cent to 5 per cent. This will benefit the domestic edible oil refiners and also check prices of cooking oils.

BEHIND THE MOVE?

 “With a view to provide further relief to consumers and to keep in check any further rise in the prices of domestic edible oils due to rise in the prices of edible oils globally, the Government of India has reduced the agri-cess for Crude Palm Oil (CPO) from 7.5% to 5% with effect from 12th February, 2022.”

“After reduction of the agri-cess, the import tax gap between CPO and Refined Palm Oil has increased to 8.25%. The increase in the gap between the CPO and Refined Palm Oil will benefit the domestic refining industry to import crude oil for refining”.

The rate of import duty on Refined Palm Oils at 12.5%, Refined Soyabean oil and Refined Sunflower Oil at 17.5% will remain in force up to 30th September 2022. This measure will help in cooling down the prices of edible oils which are witnessing an upward trend in the international market due to lower availability and other international factors”.

Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC)

• It was proposed in the 2021 Budget and it is applied on a small number of items.
• Under the norms, no additional burden will be placed on consumers on most items.
• AIDC was announced because there was an immediate need to improve the agricultural infrastructure in order to produce more along with conserving and processing agricultural output efficiently.
• This cess would also ensure enhanced remuneration for the farmers.

About National Edible Oil Mission-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP)

• The government will invest more than ₹11,000 crore via the National Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm to provide farmers with everything possible.
• Under the scheme, the government will ensure that farmers get all facilities, from quality seeds to technology to promote farming to produce palm oil and other oil seeds.
• The Centre plans to raise the domestic production of palm oil by three times to 11 lakh MT by 2025-26.
• It will involve raising the area under oil palm cultivation to 10 lakh hectares by 2025-26 and 16.7 lakh hectares by 2029-30.
• Under the scheme, oil palm farmers will be provided financial assistance and will get remuneration under a price and viability formula.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. THE FIGHT AGAINST ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE

THE CONTEXT: According to the paper titled Antimicrobial Resistance Collaborators, “Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance in 2019: a systematic analysis”, published by  the Lancet, found that AMR is a leading cause of death around the world, with the highest number of deaths occurring in low-resource settings.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Antimicrobial resistance (AMR)?

• Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is the ability of microorganisms to persist or grow in the presence of drugs designed to inhibit or kill them. These drugs, called antimicrobials, are used to treat infectious diseases caused by microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi, viruses and protozoan parasites.

Bacterial antimicrobial resistance occurs when changes in bacteria causes the drugs used to treat the infection to become less effective. A paper authored by Antimicrobial Resistance Collaborators states that around 4.95 million deaths were associated with bacterial anti microbial resistance in 2019 alone.

Impact

When infections can no longer be treated by first-line antibiotics, more expensive medicines must be used. A longer duration of illness and treatment, often in hospitals, increases health care costs as well as the economic burden on families and societies.

Antibiotic resistance is putting the achievements of modern medicine at risk. Organ transplantation’s, chemotherapy and surgeries such as caesarean sections become much more dangerous without effective antibiotics for the prevention and treatment of infections.

Research on a massive scale

The paper is an analysis of the burden of AMR, producing estimates for 204 countries and territories, 23 bacterial pathogens, and 88 drug-pathogen combinations in 2019. The six leading pathogens for deaths associated with resistance included E. coli, S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, S. pneumoniae, A. baumannii and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. They have been registered as priority pathogens by WHO.

The indiscriminate use of antibiotics, no proper sanitation and the lack of awareness among the public about the dangers of AMR are some of the reasons which need to be tackled in order to fight against antimicrobial resistance.

The way forward

• Reducing exposure to antibiotics that are used in the farming sector and poultry industry is also key. In this context, doctors point out that India’s move to ban colistin usage in the poultry industry will go a long way in reducing the AMR burden in the country.
• Antibiotic stewardship, or minimising the use of antibiotics unless absolutely necessary, remains at the core of the fight against AMR.
• It is the hope of all collaborators, who continue to fight the big war with bacterial antimicrobial resistance, before, and through pandemics, that this new data provides the urgency and fresh momentum for global action to counter the single biggest burden that poses a major threat to human health.

5. ISRO’S FIRST LAUNCH OF 2022

THE CONTEXT: ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle PSLV-C52 successfully injected Earth Observation Satellite EOS-04, into an intended sun-synchronous polar orbit of 529 km altitude.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The INSPIREsat-1 is a student satellite from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology in association with the University of Colorado, USA and is aimed at improving the understanding of ionosphere dynamics and the Sun’s coronal heating processes. The Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and the National Central University, Taiwan, were part of the development team of the INSPIREsat. Taiwanese is the first time collaborated with an international team to launch a satellite from India.
• The INS-2TD is a precursor to the India-Bhutan joint satellite [INS 2-B] and will assess land and water surface temperatures, delineation of crops and forest and thermal inertia.
• According to ISRO, with a mission life of 10 years, the EOS-4, a radar imaging satellite is designed to provide high quality images in all weather conditions for applications such as agriculture, forestry, plantation, flood mapping, soil moisture and hydrology. The satellite will collect earth observation data in C-band and will complement and supplement the data from Resourcesat, Cartosat series and RISAT-2B series.

THE SECURITY AFFAIRS

6. WHY DID THE GOVT BAN MORE CHINA-LINKED APPS?

THE CONTEXT:The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)  issued orders to ban 54 more apps, which either have originated in China or have some Chinese connection. These apps were banned for being a threat to national security.

THE EXPLANATION:

What are these new apps and why have they been banned?

As per the new list, video editing apps such as Viva Video Editor- Snack Video Maker with Music and Nice Video Baidu, which are used extensively for making short videos, games such as Onmyoji Chess and Conquer Online II have been banned in India. Garena Free Fire– Illuminate, a game, which had gained popularity among children, teenagers and youth in India after the ban on PUBG, has also been banned.

According to the Meity, the new apps have been banned using emergency powers under Section 69 of the Information Technology Act. Most of these apps, , were operating as clones or shadow apps of the apps that had earlier been banned by the government.

Which other apps have been banned by the government in the past?

• In June 2020, the IT ministry had, in a similar order issued under Section 69 of the IT Act, banned 59 apps, including TikTok, ShareIt, UC Browser, Likee, WeChat, and Bigo Live. In its reasoning then, the ministry had said that these apps were “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, security of state and public order”.
• The first ban was followed by another set of 47 apps being barred from operations in India from July 2020. These apps were mostly proxies of the apps banned in June 2020.
• Later, on September 2, 2020, the IT ministry banned another 118 Chinese mobile apps, which included the popular gaming platform PUBG as well as Baidu, which is China’s largest search engine provider. In total so far, close to 300 apps and their proxies have been banned by the IT ministry.

THE GOVERNMENT SCHEMES/INITIATIVES IN NEWS

7. THE NHA TO INTEGRATE DATABASES WITH PM-JAY

THE CONTEXT: According to the Union Health Ministry the National Health Authority (NHA) is working to integrate the database of Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) 2011 beneficiaries with the National Food Security Act (NFSA) portal so that beneficiaries can seek information regarding their entitlements under the AB PM-JAY using their ration card number.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The NHA is mandated with the implementation of the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri–Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY). The scheme provides health assurance of up to ₹5 Lakhs per family per year, for secondary and tertiary care-related hospitalizations.
• The Ministry added that the NHA is also working on a proposal to use Fair Price Shops or ration shops for providing information related to the scheme and entitlement under the scheme to eligible beneficiaries.
• “According to the Ministry, that this will provide an additional avenue to beneficiaries along with the existing Common Service Center, UTI-ITSL etc., for card creation. This will make the beneficiary identification process very convenient”.

Aadhar based

• It added that the existing beneficiary data available with various government welfare schemes can be meaningfully utilized only if a common identifier is available. “Aadhaar being a common identity across the majority of government databases will enable this integration.
• The beneficiary database enrichment under ABPM-JAY would mean adding additional parameters to the database for making searching easier. The majority of ABPM-JAY beneficiaries from SECC 2011 are also eligible for benefits under National Food Security Portal.

About National Health Authority (NHA)

• It is the apex body responsible for implementing India’s flagship public health insurance/assurance scheme called “Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana” & has been entrusted with the role of designing strategy, building technological infrastructure and implementation of “Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission” to create a National Digital Health Eco-system.
• NHA is leading the implementation for Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission ABDM in coordination with different ministries/departments of the Government of India, State Governments, and private sector/civil society organizations.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY 15^TH FEBRUARY 2022

Q Consider the following statements about Earth Observation Satellite (EOS-04):

1. It is a geo-stationary satellite.
2. It has applications in the fields of disaster management, resource survey and agriculture.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a 1 only

b 2 only

c Both 1 and 2

d Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR 14^TH FEB 2022

Answer: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: It is the world’s largest nature conservation partnership. It consist of 120 BirdLife Partners worldwide.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: The term ‘biodiversity hotspot’ was coined by Norman Myers (1988). The Conservation International in association with Myers made the first systematic update of the hotspots.
• Statement 3 is correct: It identifies the sites known/referred to as ‘Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas’. It is the official Red List authority for birds, for the IUCN.

Note: According to Birdlife International, designation of IBAs is based on standardized criteria, namely (i) hold significant numbers of one or more globally threatened bird species, (ii) be one of a set of sites that together hold a suite of restricted-range species or biome-restricted species and (iii) have exceptionally large numbers of migratory or congregatory birds. The Bombay Natural History Society and Birdlife International have identified 467 IBAs in India. Forty percent of these IBAs fall outside the PA network.

1. Don’t Be in a Hurry READ MORE
2. Pandemic didn’t just affect our mental and physical health, but also changed our morals, trust issues READ MORE

1. How ‘Wilderness’ Was Invented Without Indigenous Peoples READ MORE
2. Climate change may reduce carbon dioxide uptake by forests: Study READ MORE
3. Climate and food price rise: Weather systems are so extreme that farmers have lost entire crop cycle READ MORE

1. Lazy lumps: 41% adults lead inactive lifestyles; at risk of disease READ MORE
2. Uniformity: The need is to promote secularism among the citizenry without State interference READ MORE

1. Incorrect diagnosis, wrong remedy: There are simpler solutions to the shortage of IAS officers at the Centre than the proposed amendments READ MORE
2. States of union: State of federalism needs a debate. Opposition CMs need to rise above party politics to start it READ MORE
3. The debate around pendency in the Supreme Court needs a dash of empiricism READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Successful launch of PSLV-C52 with EOS-04 Satellite READ MORE
2. NHA to integrate databases of welfare schemes to boost PM-JAY coverage READ MORE
3. Centre cuts agri-cess on crude palm oil READ MORE
4. India bans 54 Chinese apps that pose threat to the country. Details here READ MORE
5. Explained: India-Australia interim trade agreement and FTA READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. Lazy lumps: 41% adults lead inactive lifestyles; at risk of disease READ MORE
2. Uniformity: The need is to promote secularism among the citizenry without State interference READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Incorrect diagnosis, wrong remedy: There are simpler solutions to the shortage of IAS officers at the Centre than the proposed amendments READ MORE
2. States of union: State of federalism needs a debate. Opposition CMs need to rise above party politics to start it READ MORE
3. The debate around pendency in the Supreme Court needs a dash of empiricism READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Are India’s elite abandoning the country’s poor and vulnerable? READ MORE

 INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Explained | The never-ending problem of Tamil Nadu’s fishermen READ MORE  
2. The significance of the Indo-Pacific for India READ MORE
3. New Delhi truly embraces Quad READ MORE
4. Australia warms up to India: Rediscovers relations after falling out with China READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Correct design can ensure CBDCs don’t destabilise banks READ MORE
2. The Budget’s food subsidy conundrum READ MORE
3. Jobless Growth READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. How ‘Wilderness’ Was Invented Without Indigenous Peoples READ MORE
2. Climate change may reduce carbon dioxide uptake by forests: Study READ MORE
3. Climate and food price rise: Weather systems are so extreme that farmers have lost entire crop cycle READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Military modernisation lacks enough funds READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Don’t Be in a Hurry READ MORE
2. Pandemic didn’t just affect our mental and physical health, but also changed our morals, trust issues READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Quad members may have similar concerns and share many core values, they do not have an identical world view.’ Comment.
2. Discuss the need for ease credit availability for the priority sector. Can changes in the co-lending model ease credit availability for the priority sector? Analyse your view.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.
• More than illegal fishing, the method of fishing, as practised by the fishermen of Tamil Nadu, is the problem.
• Stronger partnerships can strengthen engagement with the Indo-Pacific region and enhance India’s reach and impact.
• There is great synergy between the US desire to “empower allies and partners as they take on regional leadership roles themselves” and India’s ambition to play a larger role in the Indo-Pacific.
• There is a concern on whether a central bank digital currency could destabilise the banking sector. This stems from the sector’s crucial role in financial intermediation.
• Australia could become a major partner, but India must not only revive economic growth and revitalise trade policies, but also ensure social peace.
• India has once again requested the world body for a comprehensive convention against terror as it doesn’t even have a common definition.
• A long-term strategy could be to link our education system to requirements of trade and industry, ensuring that a student coming out of the education system has requisite skills for the jobs on offer and there is no oversupply in any discipline.
• At a time when upper classes continue to thrive on waves of profit maximisation, the social and economic safety net of the poor has been gradually eroding.
• “Skill India” and “Make in India” can be excellent catalysts for employment generation but the outcome has been sub-optimal because the Government appears to care more for headline numbers, planning to achieve a $5 trillion economy by subsidising big business.

50-WORD TALK

• Election Commission’s rule of 48 hours silence, even for news media, before voting needs a realistic, modern upgrade. As PM Modi, CM Yogi have shown, politicians routinely find ways around it. In this era of social media and multi-phase polls, it’s un-enforceable. Technology and political smarts are one step ahead.
• The Quad threatens to become another forum for discussing everything — but doing nothing. The alliance may be engaged on vaccines, cybersecurity and climate change, but it’s dancing around confronting China’s bullying. It’s also divided on geopolitical issues like Myanmar and Ukraine. Till Washington shows clarity and leadership, this won’t change.

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 160]

THE CONTEXT: The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) leaders will meet later this year. The organization will discuss the recommendations from a group of experts(NATO 2020 Reflection Process) that advocates extending a formal offer of partnership to India. Such an idea has been discussed before but has always sunk on India’s aversion to involvement in rival geopolitical blocs. Earlier this year, at the Munich Security Conference, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said that the Western allies and close partners must forge stronger ties to counter the threat posed by China’s rise for transatlantic security. Stoltenberg underlined that in view of global challenges no country – and no continent – can go it alone.

WHAT IS NATO?

• Formed in 1949 with the signing of the Washington Treaty, NATO is a security alliance of 30 countries from North America and Europe.
• NATO’s fundamental goal is to safeguard the Allies’ freedom and security by political and military means.
• NATO remains the principal security instrument of the transatlantic community and expression of its common democratic values.
• Article 4 of the treaty ensures consultations among Allies on security matters of common interest, which have expanded from a narrowly defined Soviet threat to the critical mission in Afghanistan, as well as peacekeeping in Kosovo and new threats to security, such as cyber attacks, and global threats such as terrorism and piracy that affect the Alliance and its global network of partners.
• Article 5 of the Washington Treaty — that an attack against one Ally is an attack against all — is at the core of the Alliance, a promise of collective defense.
• It also conducts extensive training exercises and offers security support to partners around the globe, including the European Union in particular, but also the United Nations and the African Union.

PARTNERSHIP, NOT MEMBERSHIP

• NATO alliance has long discussed India’s membership, the latest being September 2011 invitation to be a partner in its ballistic missile defense (BMD) but India refrained from getting entangled in rival geopolitical blocs.
• At present, NATO is not offering membership to India; nor is Delhi interested. The motive is the question of exploring potential common ground.
• NATO’s “partner” concept is shorn of the Article 5 guarantee of collective defense against armed attack but provides defense dialogue, military-to-military planning, joint exercises, interoperability, and predictability.
• In the event of a conflict, India would benefit from having prior planning and arrangements in place for cooperating with NATO and its Mediterranean partners (including Israel, with which India has a close strategic relationship) to secure its western flank and the approaches to the Red Sea.
• To play any role in the Indo-Pacific, Europe and NATO need partners like India, Australia, and Japan. Delhi, in turn, knows that no single power can produce stability and security in the Indo-Pacific.
• NATO’s partnerships are highly customized arrangements. In India’s case, the sheer size and importance of the country may warrant a new and special category of partnership — one that combines periodic high-level dialogue, technological cooperation, and defense planning for maritime contingencies.
• An India-NATO dialogue would simply mean having regular contact with a military alliance, most of whose members are well-established partners of India.

THE GEOPOLITICAL CONVERGENCE

Since the end of the Cold War India and NATO have been on trajectories that will likely converge in the not-too-distant future. Scholars and strategists argue for India and NATO to come out of their respective shells and openly partner to deal with issues of common interest and concern.

China’s meteoric rise has dramatically heightened India’s need for closer security relationships with politically reliable, like-minded states. As China’s aggressive actions in the Galway Valley and other border areas demonstrate, Beijing is increasingly willing to depart from its peaceful rise strategy to directly challenge even the largest of its neighbours. This behavioral shift is likely to accelerate as China’s military capabilities expand. Already, China spends more on its military than all of its immediate neighbours combined, and nearly three times as much as India.

In these circumstances, India’s longstanding strategy of careful equidistance is not viable. Inevitably, New Delhi will have to undertake more deliberate efforts to counter-balance the Chinese power.  It has already begun to deepen bilateral defense ties with Japan, the United States (US), and other regional players threatened by China, including through the Quad. Becoming a NATO partner would be a natural extension of this evolution.

NATO also wants to expand its influence in the Indo-Pacific and Asia-Pacific regions. As a result, NATO is likely to regard India’s unique geographical location and its position in the so-called democratic camp as important. NATO may shift its resources toward the Indo-Pacific region to adapt to the changing world landscape.

FEASIBILITY OF PARTNERSHIP

In the past, some NATO allies have effectively blocked discussion of the matter by insisting that any offer of partnership to India be accompanied by similar invitations to Pakistan. This may have seemed attractive to some in the era when NATO militaries were mainly focused on conducting operations in Afghanistan. But with the winding down of operations there, NATO has little in common with a Pakistan that is increasingly radicalized at home and aligned with China.

By contrast, the case for NATO partnership with India — a large maritime democracy with concerns and interests that tend to overlap with those of the US and many European allies — has only grown more compelling as China’s rise has accelerated.

During the Cold War, India’s refusal was premised on its non-alignment. That argument had little justification once the Cold War ended during 1989-91. Since then, NATO has built partnerships with many neutral and non-aligned states. NATO has regular consultations with both Russia and China, despite the gathering tensions with them in recent years. Also, Delhi does military exercises with two countries with which it has serious security problems — China and Pakistan — under the SCO. India has military exchanges with many members of NATO — including the US, Britain, and France — in bilateral and multilateral formats. So a collective engagement with NATO must not be problematic.

Thus, India is opening up to the idea of collaborating with NATO states to meet its enhanced national security needs, both in its neighborhood and in distant regions. NATO meanwhile, sees this as an opportunity to share international responsibilities with an emerging global power on a note of mutual trust and cooperation.

India is emerging as a global power to be reckoned with and the country has started asserting its influence at various international forums in order to augment its national interests. Unlike in the Cold War era, today India stands tightly integrated into the international economy and global political system.

Meanwhile, NATO as a security alliance is currently undergoing a transformational change from within. It is now involved in an array of capacity-building measures in order to refashion itself to suit the necessities of the day, while also preserving its fundamental identity and values. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, this collective security institution has been unable to define a common threat for all of its member states – especially an enemy state/states. However, it is now foreseeing the rise of China as a prospective threat for the sustenance of the established world order. So, in order to counterbalance the rising influence of Beijing, NATO is gearing up with essential changes to its strategic doctrine.

India and NATO both uphold a shared set of values, like democracy, rule of law, individual liberty, human rights, and international law. Moreover, at a strategic front India has extended its neighborhood framework beyond the Indian subcontinent over the past decade. This has brought it closer to NATO, which has forayed eastwards from the Mediterranean with its “out-of-area” operations during the same time.

Hence, the fundamental commonalities and emerging synergies are bringing the two parties together, both at the political and military levels.

QUAD and NATO

Amid increasing recognition of the Asia-Pacific Region as the engine and center of future global development and growth, the first high-level virtual summit of the Quad was held recently. The Quad’s recent resurgence has been driven by uneasiness about the rise of China and the security threat it poses to the international order. Yet there is no direct reference to China, or even military security, in Quad’s first-ever joint statement. On the contrary, the most significant outcomes of the summit are related to COVID-19 vaccine production, facilitating cooperation over emerging technologies, and mitigating climate change.

Not an Asian NATO

Commentators often cast it as an “alliance” in the making, perhaps an “Asian NATO.” It is not. Rather, the Quad is designed as a loose-knit network of like-minded partners aiming at a broader purpose.

The threat posed by China is at one level military, as evidenced by its proactive pursuit of territorial claims in South Asia, the South China Sea, and the East China Sea. At another, it is economic and technological. It is this broader aspect of the global order that the Quad aims to address, as is clear from two of the joint statement’s specifics, which focus on the establishment of working groups on vaccine development and critical technologies. Both these efforts seek to constrain China’s central position in the global system, but also to develop a world order that is broad-based and inclusive.

The third working group being set up is on climate change, an area in which China is a cooperative player and not a competitor, and thus downplays the notion that the Quad is simply an instrument of containment. Together, the three initiatives are designed to create an environment that encourages China to be a positive player and persuades other states to shed their hesitancy toward the Quad. With these arrangements, the Quad has the bandwidth to focus on countering the challenging non-security frontiers of Beijing’s influence.

Military Dimension:

Though the summit focused on non-military initiatives, the Quad by no means downplays the military dimension. Its members have established the basis for regular defense cooperation through naval exercises, and the sharing of intelligence and military logistics. Adding further heft to previous bilateral efforts, the trilateral India-U.S.-Japan Malabar naval exercises expanded to include Australia last year. The four states have consolidated their military responses by building a set of nested strategic partnerships: linking their bilateral relationships with the India-Japan-U.S., India-Australia-Japan, and U.S.-Japan-Australia trilateral. The Quad is a logical extension of this network and has the potential to build a “Quad Plus” arrangement involving Canada, France, and perhaps New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Unique Selling Point:

Therein lays the Quad’s unique selling point: offering value to all states and banking on the network effect that underpins an emerging world order. The Quad is not so much a tight alliance as a core group that seeks to enlist the support and cooperation of other states in both military and non-military actions. The notion of a “Quad Plus” captures this well without focusing on membership. The elasticity of this framework incentivizes other states who may want to link to and unlink themselves from specific Quad initiatives as and when useful.

China’s View:

China, on the other hand, views “Quad” as a threat to its dominance in the region and says that the forum is an attempt by the US to create an Asian version of the NATO directly aimed at counterbalancing its interests. In fact, the US deputy secretary of state recently suggested that the informal defense alignment between the four nations could be the beginning of a Nato-style alliance in Asia.

But India remained committed to rules-based world order and respect for territorial integrity as well as sovereignty. And advancing the security and economic interests of all countries having legitimate and vital interests in the Indo-Pacific remained a key priority. During the recent visit of the Russian Foreign Minister to Delhi, both sides agreed that military alliances in Asia were inadvisable and counterproductive.

The Quad can set the framework for a global governance model in a post-pandemic world, but it is unlikely to become a NATO-like formal security alliance. Its evolution will be determined by its ability to mix global challenges in the interests of a wider range of countries.

BENEFITS OF PARTNERSHIP

In the near term, India would derive strategic-signaling value from even the appearance of drawing closer to the Western Alliance at a crucial, early phase of Beijing’s transition to a more aggressive posture. The signal will hold all the more value precisely because it has till now it has bordered on geopolitical taboo.

Strengthening ties with NATO now, while China is still in the early phase of a shift to a more assertive posture toward both South Asia and Europe, could pay dividends in dissuading aggression and ensuring that, should China continue on its current trajectory, India has as many friends as possible in the right places.

Longer-term, India would derive military-strategic benefits from a partnership with the world’s most powerful alliance. NATO partnerships come with regular defense dialogues, military-to-military planning, and joint exercises that improve readiness, interoperability, and predictability. In the event of a conflict, India would benefit from having prior planning and arrangements in place for cooperating with NATO and its Mediterranean partners (including Israel, with which India has a close strategic relationship) to secure its western flank and the approaches to the Red Sea. Partnering with NATO also carries technological benefits. Under a provision in the US 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, India now enjoys the same technology-sharing and cost-sharing perks as other non-NATO US allies for purposes of the Arms Export Control Act. But adding NATO partner status could also position India to benefit from possible future programs aimed at lowering the barriers for cooperation in emerging technologies between NATO and its Asia-Pacific partners

Europe: A pragmatic engagement with NATO must be an important part of India’s new European orientation, especially amidst the continent’s search for a new role in the Indo-Pacific. India’s real problem is difficulty in thinking strategically about Europe. The bureaucratization of the engagement between Delhi and Brussels and the lack of high-level political interest prevented India from taking full advantage of a re-emerging Europe. Talking to NATO ought to be one important part of India’s European strategy.

CHALLENGES

1. Non-alignment: Any suggestion that India should engage the NATO is usually presumed as a political taboo in foreign policy. India’s traditional stance of non-alignment is preventing it from translating the current uptick in the relationship with the US into any meaningful collaboration. The country’s political-military establishment has always held a skeptical attitude toward aligning with any military bloc or superpower under the notion of safeguarding national sovereignty.
2. Indo-Russian ties: India and Russia share a special and privileged strategic partnership. India is trying to balance Russia and the US. If India is to be included in a security system like NATO, which was founded to deal with the Soviet Union, India-Russia relations would suffer a decline. There has already been a backlash in Moscow over New Delhi’s strategic alignment with Washington in recent years. Russia has reservations about New Delhi joining the Indo-Pacific initiative and Quad. Russia has tacitly nudged India to stay away from any move by the United States to turn the Quad into a NATO-like military alliance in order to contain China in the Indo-Pacific region.
3. Pakistan-Russia ties: Russia can also take advantage of the opportunity to strengthen its cooperation with Pakistan in this light as a warning to India. If Russia intensifies its cooperation with Pakistan, India will face greater challenges in geopolitical security. Recently, after visiting Delhi, the Russian Foreign Minister visited Pakistan for the first time in nine years. This was a clear message of deepening ties. Russia has expressed readiness to strengthen Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts with the supply of “relevant equipment”, which will raise eyebrows in Delhi.
4. AF-Pak: The U.S. government has not fully embraced India as a strategic partner over any of its existing partners in South Asia, including India’s arch-rival Pakistan, and elsewhere. The U.S.-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) — a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan — continued to freely engage with Pakistan in its War on Terror in Afghanistan despite India’s calling Pakistan a terrorist state.
5. NATO’s Weaknesses: While NATO is an impressive military alliance, it is riven with divisions on how to share the military burden and strike the right balance between NATO and the EU’s quest for an independent military role. NATO members disagree on Russia, the Middle East, and China. Meanwhile, conflicts among NATO members — for example, Greece and Turkey — have sharpened. NATO’s recent adventures out of Europe — in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya have not inspired awe.

WAY FORWARD

There is an imperative need on part of both parties to collaborate immediately. The big question remains how they can move in this direction. At this juncture, NATO needs to explain to New Delhi’s strategic community how it has changed since the Cold War and clearly convey its intentions to forge a “partnership of equals.”

Moreover, NATO needs to make Indian policymakers realize that it is a win-win situation for both parties to enter cooperation and collaboration. On the other hand, India needs to come out of its Cold War mindset and consider NATO a potential partner.

India is certainly considered an essential element of any strategy in the region. But so far, New Delhi has not dared either to directly align itself with the U.S. To contain China or add an outright anti-Chinese dimension to its participation in the Quad.

Meanwhile, the growing gap in national power, the long-term border confrontation, and other related factors might well push Indian strategists to a certain revision of the policy of strategic autonomy and make the U.S. the main security donor, as in the case of Australia and Japan.

If Delhi is eager to draw a reluctant Russia into discussions on the Indo-Pacific, it makes little sense in avoiding engagement with NATO, which is now debating a role in Asia’s waters. Russia has not made a secret of its reservations to the Quad and Delhi’s ties with Washington. Putting NATO into that mix is unlikely to make much difference.

Delhi, in turn, can’t be happy with the deepening ties between Moscow and Beijing. As mature states, India and Russia know they have to insulate their bilateral relationship from the larger structural trends buffeting the world today.

Meanwhile, both Russia and China have an intensive bilateral engagement with Europe. Delhi’s continued reluctance to engage a major European institution like NATO will be a stunning case of strategic self-denial.

China sees India as the principal impediment to the realization of its ambitions to dominate Asia and this is likely to lead to more violent confrontations. New Delhi should pursue a multifaceted strategy that includes cooperative elements, but there is ultimately little that India can do to mitigate the underlying sources of the rivalry. India has all the more reason to partner with the United States in a NATO-style arrangement.

CONCLUSION

Partnering with NATO would not significantly constrain India’s broader geostrategic options. Egypt and Israel are both NATO partners who maintain defense relationships with Russia. Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, and Austria are all NATO partners with long-standing neutralist traditions.

A sustained dialogue between India and NATO could facilitate productive exchanges in a range of areas, including terrorism, changing geopolitics; the evolving nature of military conflict, the role of emerging military technologies, and new military doctrines. More broadly, an institutionalized engagement with NATO should make it easier for Delhi to deal with the military establishments of its 30 member states. On a bilateral front, each of the members has much to offer in strengthening India’s national capabilities. NATO must extend a formal partnership offer to Delhi; India must shed its hesitation. Both have a common challenge.

THE INDIAN POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. WHAT IS THE ESSENTIAL PRACTICE TEST?

THE CONTEXT: The action of some pre-university colleges in Karnataka refusing entry to Muslim girl students wearing hijabs, or head-scarves, has now become a national controversy. While the girls have been protesting against being denied access to education, the counter-protests by a section of Hindu students wearing saffron shawls and turbans have led to a tense situation outside some campuses. The action of the college where the row broke out in Udupi is now being questioned in the Karnataka High Court. The court, by an interim order, has directed that students should not wear attire linked to any religion until it resolves the legal questions arising from the issue.

THE EXPLANATION:

What are the issues?

• The main question that arises is whether students can be kept out of educational institutions merely because they are wearing a piece of clothing indicating their religion. Is the denial of entry a violation of their freedom of conscience and freedom to practise their religion under Article 25?
• The question whether educational institutions can bar religious attire as part of their power to prescribe uniforms for students is also linked to the constitutional question whether the ban on such attire will come within the power to restrict freedom of religion in the interest of public order, health, and morality.
• Yet another question is whether the denial of entry into schools amounts to violation of the students’ right to education under Article 21A.
• From the Muslim students’ point of view, they have a fundamental right to wear a hijab as part of their right to practise their religion. Going by precedent on a right asserted in contrast to the general rule, as well as arguments advanced in court on their behalf, the issue may boil down to a finding on whether the wearing of hijab is essential to the practice of their faith.

What is the constitutional position?

Bijoe Emmanuel vs. State of Kerala (1986) pertained to three children belonging to the Jehovah’s Witnesses sect refusing to sing the national anthem during the morning assembly. The Supreme Court ruled in the students’ favour, holding that their expulsion violated their freedom of expression under Article 19(1)(a) as well as their right to freely practise and profess their faith under Article 25(1).

The freedom of conscience and to profess, practise and propagate religion is guaranteed by Article 25. This freedom is subject to ‘public order, morality and health’. It also makes it clear that there can be a law regulating any economic, financial, political, or other secular activity which may be associated with religious practice or to provide for social welfare and reform, including throwing open Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus.

The test in this approach is to find out whether a student who asserts religious freedom for a course of action that the authorities find objectionable genuinely and conscientiously holds that belief or not. Such a belief is constitutionally protected.

As for the wearing of hijab, the students are relying on a Kerala High Court judgment that had in 2016 allowed two Muslim students to take the All India Pre-Medical Test while wearing a hijab, after holding that it was an essential part of Islam. In a different case, the Kerala High Court declined to intervene in favour of a Muslim student who was not allowed to wear a head-scarf by a school.

How do we draw the line between matters of religion and matters other than religion?

• The ‘essential practice’ doctrine can be traced to a 1954 decision of the Supreme Court in ‘Shirur Mutt’ case. This litigation involved action sought to be taken by the Madras government against a mutt over some disputes over the handling of financial affairs.
• In Sardar Syedna Taher Saifuddin Saheb vs. Bombay (1962), the Supreme Court struck down a law that prohibited the head of the Dawoodi Bohra community from excommunicating members. The majority ruled that the power of excommunication exercised by the religious head on religious grounds was part of the management of affairs on religious matters, and the Act infringed on the community’s rights.
• In the Sabarimala case (2018), the majority ruled that the bar on entry of women in the age-group of 10 to 50 was not an essential or integral part of the religion, and denied the status of a separate religious denomination of devotees of Lord Ayyappa. However, in a dissenting judgment, Justice Indu Malhotra, said they constituted a distinct denomination and that the restriction on women of a particular age group is an essential part of their faith and is constitutionally protected.

What is the criticism against the essential practice test?

• Jurists have criticised the continuing emphasis on applying the essential practice test to determine the constitutionality of state action against any religious practice that claims protection despite being either discriminatory or exclusionary.
• The first criticism is that it was never intended to be a test to find out if a particular practice is essential to the practice of the religion but was only made to distinguish a matter of religion from a matter other than religion. However, a long line of judicial decisions seem to endorse the applying of this test to dispose of cases.
• The second criticism is that the doctrine of essentiality appears to allow courts to go deeply into the scriptures and tenets of a religion or a religious denomination to find out if the practice or norm that is at the heart of the issue is essential. This is seen as a theological or ecclesiastical exercise, which courts are forced to wade into.

What is the way forward?

• A more reasonable approach will be to apply the test of constitutional morality and legitimacy to the issue at hand. Applying the principles of equality, dignity and civil rights to a particular practice may be better to decide the constitutionality of a practice than a theological enquiry.
• The action of some pre-university colleges in Karnataka refusing entry to Muslim girl students wearing hijabs, or head-scarves, has now become a national controversy
• From the Muslim students’ point of view, they have a fundamental right to wear a hijab as part of their right to practise their religion.

2. THE POLICE MODERNISATION SCHEME

THE CONTEXT: According to MHA, under the five-year plan, provision has been made for internal security, law and order, adoption of modern technology by police, assisting states for narcotics control and strengthening the criminal justice system by developing a robust forensic set-up in the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Government has approved the umbrella scheme of modernisation of police force for the next five years with a financial outlay of Rs 26,275 crore. More than Rs 18,000 crore of this money will go towards security related expenditure in Jammu and Kashmir, Left Wing Extremism areas and the Northeast.
• “The approval for the period 2021-22 to 2025-26, moves forward the initiative of the Union Home Ministry to modernise and improve the functioning of Police Forces of States and Union Territories. This scheme comprises all relevant sub-schemes that contribute to modernization and improvement”.
• According to MHA, “the scheme for modernization of state police forces has a Central outlay of Rs 4,846 crore”.The approval includes central outlay of Rs 2,080 crore “to develop operationally independent and high-quality forensic sciences facilities in States/Union Territories for aiding scientific and timely investigation through modernization of resources”.
• Incidentally, in the 2022-23 Budget presented by Finance Minister, the central outlay for “Modernisation of Forensic Capacities” in the coming FY alone is Rs 8,976 crore.
• Also, the central outlay of Rs 18,839 crore has been earmarked for security related expenditure for the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir, insurgency affected North Eastern States and Left Wing Extremism (LWE) affected areas
• “With the implementation of ‘National Policy and Action Plan’ for combating LWE, the LWE violence incidents have come down drastically. To further pursue this accomplishment, six LWE-related schemes with Central outlay of Rs.8,689 crore have been approved. These schemes include Special Central Assistance (SCA) to Most LWE Affected Districts & Districts of Concern to consolidate the gains.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. INDIA SIGNS MOU TO HAND OVER WHEAT TO WFP IN KANDAHAR

THE CONTEXT: India signed an agreement with the United Nation’s World Food Programme (WFP) for the distribution of 50,000 MT of wheat that it has committed to sending Afghanistan as part of a humanitarian assistance.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The MoU for WFP to take charge of the wheat convoys when they reach Afghanistan, and to distribute them to those Afghans who are facing a humanitarian crisis.
• The WFP runs its own logistics network inside Afghanistan, partnering with civil society groups, and has launched a global campaign for enough food and aid for the population facing malnutrition — estimated to be half the population or 22 million Afghans.
• The route via Pakistan, which has been closed for all exports from India since 2019, and opened only as an exception, is likely to require several weeks for the transport of the current consignment, as infrastructure and labour required to load and reload the wheat has to be organised.
• Pakistan had shut down all trade with India to protest the government’s changes in Jammu and Kashmir and Article 370 in August 2019. Subsequently, the Pakistan government had allowed Afghan exports to India to pass through the Wagah border, making an exception also for medicines from India during the pandemic. India has also flown several consignments of medicines and medical equipment to hospitals in Afghanistan on board flights.

ABOUT WORLD FOOD PROGRAM:

It is an United Nations Agency division for the provision of food aid to those unable to provide enough food to feed  themselves  and their family. Headquartered in Rome.

• The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience.
• As the international community has committed to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition by 2030, one in nine people worldwide still do not have enough to eat. Food and food-related assistance lie at the heart of the struggle to break the cycle of hunger and poverty.
• For its efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict, WFP was awarded theNobel Peace Prize in 2020.
• In 2020, WFP assisted 115.5 million people – the largest number since 2012 – in 84 countries.

4. THE MAITRI SCHOLARS PROGRAMME

THE CONTEXT: Australian Foreign Minister announces Maitri initiatives aimed at strengthening ties with India. Under the Maitri Scholars Programme, the Australian government will provide over 11 million dollars over four years to support Indian students to study at Australia’s world-leading universities.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The initiatives are appropriately called the ‘Maitri’, meaning friendship initiatives,” Australian Foreign Minister continued saying that under the Maitri Scholars Program, the Australian government will provide over USD 11 million over four years to support Indian students to study at Australia’s world-leading universities.
• “The Maitri Fellowships Program will provide USD 3.5 million over four years to build links between future leaders, will support mid-career Australian and Indian professionals to collaborate on strategic research initiatives
• Australia will also provide over USD 6 million over four years for the Maitri cultural partnerships to support cultural exchanges and boost the role of the creative industries in our two countries.
• Cultural Partnerships: Australia will also provide over USD 6 million over four years to support cultural exchanges and boost the role of the creative industries in both countries.Also, the relationship between the countries has connections in trade and investment as well.
• CECA: Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment visited India to attend negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).The CECA is an agreement that both parties are certain will open up new trade and investment opportunities, particularly in the context of the impact of COVID-19.

Background:

India and Australia have deep ties in fields related to education and higher studies. India and Australia bilateral trade stood at $12.3 billion in 2020-21 compared to $12.63 billion in 2019-20. India exports refined petroleum, medicaments, railway vehicles including hover-trains, pearls and gems, jewellery, made up textiles articles while importing coal, copper ores and concentrates, gold, vegetables, wool and other animal hair, fruits and nuts, lentils and education related services.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

5. THE WINTER BIRD MONITORING PROGRAM (2021-22)

THE CONTEXT: The Winter Bird Monitoring Programme for 2021-22 has recorded the presence of 203 bird species, including 53 non-resident species, in the districts of Mysuru, Mandya, and Chamarajanagar.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The teams have collected data from 147 locations spread across Mysuru-Mandya-Chamarajanagar belt between January and February 2022. In all, 20 teams comprising 63 birders took part in the bird enumeration and each team was given a different route to cover, monitor and enumerate the birds.
• The data indicates that the number of species found in the region this year is almost identical to what were recorded in the past. While 203 species were recorded this year, 204 species were recorded year 2021. The bird count too was healthy this year and the team recorded 34,361 birds of all species underlining the sheer diversity of birds that is supported in the region. This is against 32,304 birds counted in last year’s exercise.
• The data has also generated interesting insights and of the 203 species of birds the most abundant – total counts from all locations — was Cattle Egret (2,064) followed by Eurasian Coot (1,111), Bar-headed Goose (995), Barn Swallow (974), and Little Cormorant (900).
• The most abundant species in any single location was Northern Shoveler and 650 of these birds was found in Lingambudhi Lake in Mysuru. There were 530 Spot-billed Pelicans at Ranganathittu apart from 480 Asian Openbills and 410 Indian Cormorants, also at Ranganathittu. Hadinaru lake in Nanjangud taluk played host to 400 Bar-headed Goose, as per the data generated by the bird monitoring teams.

VALUE ADDITION:

Important Bird Areas (IBA)

• Important Bird Areas are sites of international importance for the conservation of birds and their habitats.
• IBAs are among the world’s key site for biodiversity conservation and the IBA concept developed by the BirdLife International Partnership facilities their identification nationally using data gathered locally following globally agreed and standardized criteria. IBAs are practical networks for conservation.
• They help decision makers locally, nationally and globally to identity priorities and bring together key stakeholders to conserve and manage sites sustainably.
• The Indian IBA declaration is the result of five years’ exhaustive work by the IBA team and a large number of people: many amateur and professional ornithologists, birdwatchers, conservationists, forest officials and people interested in birds. As a partner designate Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) successfully corroborated the data and to the possible extent sprading the message and conserving these IBA sites.

Among 465 conservation priority locations identified as Important Bird Areas (IBA) spread throughout India, 37 sites are located in Karnataka. Assam is leading with 46 IBAs and next is Karnataka. Mysore area hosts 12 IBAs. They are:

1. Adi-chunchanagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, Mandya district
2. Karanji Lake, Mysore district
3. Kokkarebellur, Mandya district
4. Krishnarajasagar Reservoir, Mandya & Mysore district
5. Kukkarahalli Tank, Mysore district
6. Kunthur-Kalluru Lakes, Chamarajanagar district
7. Lingambudhi Lake, Mysore district
8. Melkote Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Mandya district
9. Narasambudhi Lake, Mysore district
10. Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary, Mandya district
11. Sule kere, Mandya district
12. Arabithittu Wildlife Sanctuary, Mysore district

THE COVID CORNOR

INDIA’S mRNA VACCINE TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT:The Pune-based Gennova Biopharmaceuticals is expected to roll out India’s first home-grown mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid) vaccine by April 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

The COVID-19 pandemic awakened the world to the power of RNA therapies — two of the first vaccines that emerged in late 2020, Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna, used this technology. At Present, an Indian company is developing an mRNA vaccine from scratch, signalling possibilities of the use of the molecule in a variety of diseases beyond COVID-19.

What are mRNA vaccines and how do they work?

• Most vaccines contain a weakened or dead bacteria or virus. However, scientists have developed a new type of vaccine that uses a molecule called messenger RNA (or mRNA for short) rather than part of an actual bacteria or virus. Messenger RNA is a type of RNA that is necessary for protein production.
• In cells, mRNA uses the information in genes to create a blueprint for making proteins. Once cells finish making a protein, they quickly break down the mRNA. mRNA from vaccines does not enter the nucleus and does not alter DNA.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTIONS OF THE DAY 14TH FEB 2022

Q.With reference to an organization known as ‘Birdlife International’ which of the following

statements is/are correct? (UPSC Prelims 2015)

1. It is a Global Partnership of Conservation Organizations.
2. The concept of ‘biodiversity hotspots’ originated from this organization.
3. It identifies the sites known/referred to as ‘Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas’.

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

a 1 only

b 2 and 3 only

c 1 and 3 only

d 1, 2 and 3

 ANSWER FOR 11^TH FEB 2022

Answer: D

Explanation:

• A koala or koala bear (Phascolarctos cinereus) is a well known native animal of Eastern Australia, as iconic as the kangaroo.
• They are usually found sleeping or browsing for leaves in trees, especially eucalypts. It is the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae and its closest living relatives are the wombats, which are members of the family Vombatidae. The koala is found in coastal areas of the mainland’s eastern and southern regions, inhabiting Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia.

It is easily recognisable by its stout, tailless body and large head with round, fluffy ears and large, spoon-shaped nose. The koala has a body length of 60–85 cm (24–33 in) and weighs 4–15 kg (9–33 lb). Fur colour ranges from silver grey to chocolate brown. Koalas from the northern populations are typically smaller and lighter in colour than their counterparts further south. These populations possibly are separate subspecies, but this is disputed.

1. A special occasion READ MORE
2. Adherence to Pandemic Ethics during India’s Covid-19 Lockdown READ MORE

1. India’s Biodiversity Act is being amended to help exploit bio-resources, not conserve them READ MORE
2. Fossil Fuel Firms and Their Mouthpieces Offer Net-Zero Logic on Climate Change READ MORE

1. Hijab row: Why empowerment through education is the only right approach READ MORE
2. Hidden Hunger READ MORE

1. How recent amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act threaten years of progress READ MORE  
2. Needed: A gender-inclusive police force READ MORE
3. Modernising the police force and policing READ MORE
4. Rethink must on IAS cadre rules change READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Union Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment Dr. Virendra Kumar launches “SMILE” scheme READ MORE
2. India signs MoU to hand over wheat to WFP in Kandahar READ MORE
3. Govt approves Rs 26,275 crore plan for police modernisation; Rs 18,000 crore fixed for security expenditure in J&K, NorthEast READ MORE
4. Australian Foreign Minister announces Maitri initiatives aimed at strengthening ties with India READ MORE
5. Winter bird monitoring programme: Over 200 species of birds recorded across Mysuru region READ MORE
6. Restoration of French heritage structure at Chandernagore will be completed soon: Ambassador Lenain READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. Hijab row: Why empowerment through education is the only right approach READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. How recent amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act threaten years of progress READ MORE  
2. Needed: A gender-inclusive police force READ MORE
3. Modernising the police force and policing READ MORE
4. Rethink must on IAS cadre rules change READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUE

1. Hidden Hunger READ MORE

 INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. For something: The Quad remains a group of friends who share many things, but not a common enemy READ MORE  
2. Ukraine crisis, US unilateralism and India’s dilemma READ MORE  

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. A faltering recovery: Flailing factory output trends suggestthe rebound in the economy is slow READ MORE
2. Budget 2022-23: Hits and misses READ MORE
3. Improvements in agri-credit system can revive agriculture READ MORE
4. Digital assets await enabling legal framework READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY  

1. India’s Biodiversity Act is being amended to help exploit bio-resources, not conserve them READ MORE
2. Fossil Fuel Firms and Their Mouthpieces Offer Net-Zero Logic on Climate Change READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. A special occasion READ MORE
2. Adherence to Pandemic Ethics during India’s Covid-19 Lockdown READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Quad members may have similar concerns and share many core values, they do not have an identical world view.’ Comment.
2. Discuss the need for ease credit availability for the priority sector. Can changes in the co-lending model ease credit availability for the priority sector? Analyse your view.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Politically, foreign policy never matters until it matters, and then it matters a lot.
• Ethics is indispensable to public health because of the great trade-off between the “voluntary versus coercive” measures often employed in health policies.
• Oil and gas CEOs were too chicken to show up to a recent congressional hearing—perhaps fearing that their climate pledges will be revealed as nothing more than slick PR.
• The Government must reboot its rose-tinted assessment of the economy so that the ‘on-paper’ optimism is reflected in billowing factory chimneys.
• There is a need to rethink power and fertiliser subsidies and reorient MSP and procurement policies towards minimising GHG emissions.
• Institutional development across states should be a priority area for equitable flow of subsidised credit.
• Hijab-abiding students should be allowed to exercise their right to education without any hindrance. Let the women be empowered first, so they can decide how much of themselves they wish to hide.
• Apart from the need for gender diversity, there is evidence that increasing women in the force has positive effects on society.
• The capital expenditure push by the government seems to be a step in the right direction, while the rationale behind the continued focus on protectionism is questionable.
• The court has told the state government to withdraw the controversial notices by February 18. It is expected that the due process of law would finally be followed at the earliest.
• States are, however,correct in pointing out that the proposed amendments are a serious infringement of their right to deploy IAS officers as they deem fit.
• The effects of hidden hunger can be devastating, leading to mental impairment, poor health, low productivity, and even death.

50-WORD TALK

• India has been seeing a massive increase in cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets. The Budget speech has broken new ground. It has provided the scheme of taxation of digital assets. However, this is a grey zone. The legalities of the digital rupee will have to be appropriately worked out. There is a need for more clarification so that more people could be encouraged to use digital currency.

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 159]