THE INDIAN HISTORY
1. LIBERATION, INTEGRATION, NEGOTIATION: HOW HYDERABAD BECAME A PART OF INDIA
THE CONTEXT: Recently, the government of India began its year-long celebrations for the ‘Telangana Liberation Day’ on September 17, marking how on the same day in 1948, “the state of Hyderabad got its independence from Nizam’s rule”.
THE EXPLANATION:
From 1911 to 1948, Nizam Mir Usman Ali, the last Nizam of Hyderabad, ruled the state composed of Telangana and parts of present-day Karnataka and Maharashtra.
How did Hyderabad state become a part of India?
• At the time of India’s independence, British India was a mix of independent kingdoms and provinces that were given the options of joining India, Pakistan, or remaining independent. One among those who took a long time to make a decision was the Nizam of Hyderabad. Believed to be one of the richest people in the world at the time, the Nizam was not ready to let go of his kingdom.
• Meanwhile, the majority population of Hyderabad state was far from enjoying the same kind of wealth as the Nizam did. The feudal nature of the state at the time caused the peasant population to suffer high taxes, indignities of forced labour, and various other kinds of exploitation at the hands of powerful landlords.
• There was also a demand by the Andhra Jan Sangham for Telugu to be given primacy over Urdu. By the mid-1930s, apart from a reduction in land revenue rates and the abolition of forced labour, introducing Telugu in local courts became another important issue. Soon after the organisation became the Andhra Mahasabha (AMS), and Communists became associated with it. Together, the two groups built a peasant movement against the Nizam that found local support.
Who were the razakars and the Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen?
• In response to an uprising in July 1946 against forceful land acquisition on the part of a hereditary tax collector named Visnur Ramachandra Reddy, by October 1946, the Nizam banned the AMS. A close aide of the Nizam, Qasim Razvi, leader of the Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen, became closely involved in securing the Nizam’s position.
• The Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen was a political outfit that sought a greater role for Muslims in the early 20th century, but after Razvi took over the organisation, it became extremist in its ideology. It was under him that a militia of the ‘razakars’ was formed to suppress the peasant and communist movement, launching a brutal attack.
• Around this time, the Standstill Agreement was also signed between the Nizam and the Indian government in November 1947, declaring a status quo. This meant that until November 1948, the Nizam could let things be as they were and not finalise a decision as negotiations with the Indian union continued
The legacy of Operation Polo
• It has also been said that the army’s march into Hyderabad did not just target the razakars and the radical extremist forces. The 2013 AG Noorani book ‘Destruction of Hyderabad’ says a four-member goodwill mission led by Pandit Sunderlal was constituted by the then Prime Minister.
• At the request of then PM Jawaharlal Nehru, a month was spent in Hyderabad in November 1948 where evidence was gathered and at the end, a report was filed, estimating thousands of people died in communal violence during the military action. The contents of the report were not made public for a long time.
THE GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND INTERVENTION
2. THE NATIONAL LOGISTICS POLICY
THE CONTEXT: The National Logistics Policy aims to promote smooth movement of goods across India and boost competitiveness of the Indian goods in the domestic and international markets.
THE EXPLANATION:
• It aims to bring down the logistics cost, which in turn would improve efficiency of various sectors of the economy, boosting value addition and economic growth.
• The policy was announced for the first time in Union Budget 2020.
• Its focus areas are Integration of Digital System (IDS), Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP), Ease of Logistics (ELOG) and System Improvement Group (SIG).
• The IDS will integrate 30 different systems of seven different departments, such as customs, aviation, road transport, railways, international trade and commerce ministries.
• The ULIP aims to ensure continuous monitoring of cargo movement.
• The ELOG would seek to simplify procedures and achieve ease of doing business.
• The SIG would monitor all projects related to logistics in a regular basis and ensure the removal of hurdles faced in the sector.
• An empowered group of secretaries (EGoS) has been constituted under the PM Gati Shakti to monitor and review the implementation of the NLP.
India’s logistics sector
• India’s logistics sector provides jobs for more than 22 million people. The sector is complicated, as it is regulated by more than 20 government agencies, 40 partner government agencies, 37 export promotion councils, 500 certifications etc. India’s current logistics cost as a proportion of the GDP is some 13-14 per cent.
• he Indian Government is planning to decrease it to single digit. The sector’s present market size is 160 billion USD. Its improvement can ensure a 10 per cent decrease in indirect logistics cost and increase the growth of exports by 5 to 8 per cent.
3. NINE DISTRICT DISABILITY REHABILITATION CENTRES UPGRADED ACROSS INDIA
THE CONTEXT: The upgraded district disability rehabilitation centres (DDRC) have speech, visual therapy and psychologists.
THE EXPLANATION:
• The upgraded model DDRCs are situated in Badaun, Pilibhit, Bareilly, Balaghat, Golaghat, Ahmedabad, Amravati, Kullu and Rampur.
• They were virtually inaugurated by the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment.
• In these model DDRCs, services like hearing aids testing lab, speech therapy room, visual therapy room, psychologist room, physiotherapist room, gait practice parallel bar and telemedicine/tele-therapy facilities are provided.
• They will also assist persons with disabilities to register in the Unique Disability ID portal.
• The model DDRCs are established to provide effective rehabilitation services to persons with disabilities.
• They were upgraded by the Department of Empowerment of Persons With Disability, which comes under the aegis of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
About DDRC
• The District Disability Rehabilitation Centre (DDRC) is an initiative of the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment that aims to provide comprehensive services to Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in rural parts of India. They have been operating across India for the past 20 years.
• These centres have rehabilitation professions providing services like identifying Persons with Disabilities, creating awareness, early detection and intervention, Providing, fitting and repairing Assistive Devices and facilitating disability certificates, bus passes and other concessions/facilities targeting PwDs. These centres were set up and funded under the Scheme for Implementation of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (SIPDA).
Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016
The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 was passed by the Indian Parliament to fulfil its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which was ratified by India in 2007. This Act replaced the Persons With Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.
THE ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE
4. UNEP LAUNCHES GREEN FINS HUB
THE CONTEXT: The United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) and the UK-based charity Reef-World Foundation have launched the Green Fins Hub to boost sustainable marine tourism.
THE EXPLANATION:
• The Green Fins Hub is first-ever global marine tourism industry platform that would help diving and snorkelling operators across the world to make simple, cost-efficient changes in their daily practices by implementing international best practices that promotes sustainability of marine tourism.
• The platform would enable operators keep track of their yearly improvements and communicate with their communities and customers.
• It was developed by The Reef-World Foundation in collaboration with the UNEP.
• It would help spread awareness about the global best practices to protect the coral reefs and their fragile marine ecosystems.
• The Green Fins Community Forum in this platform would enable operators to discuss environmental issues, share best practices and raise the industry needs to the governments, non-profits and the overall industry.
• The Green Fins Solutions Library provides some 100 proven environmental solutions to solve daily operational challenges.
• The Action Plan Tracker would enable members to receive annual sustainability action plan with specific goals.
• The platform serves two types of membership – Digital Membership and Green Fin Certified Members.
• The Digital membership would be available for snorkel and liveaboard operations across the world. Throughout the one-year membership, operators will receive environmental scores based on an online self-evaluation. This would enable them to assess their progress on their action plans.
• The Green Fins Certified Members will be assessed annually and be trained in person at their operation. The assessment would be made using a scoring system, in which low score implies low impact of a business on coral reefs. A minimum threshold of 200 or below of environmental impact score is required for becoming a Green Fins Certified Member.
• The new digital platform is expected to reach from 700 operators across 14 countries.
VALUE ADDITION:
United Nations Environment Programme
• It is the leading global environmental authority established in 1972.
• It sets the global environmental agenda, promotes the coherent implementation of the environmental dimension of sustainable development within the United Nations system.
• Headquarters: Nairobi, Kenya.
• Major Reports: Emission Gap Report, Global Environment Outlook, Frontiers, Invest into Healthy Planet.
• Major Campaigns: Beat Pollution, UN75, World Environment Day, Wild for Life, etc.
THE SECURITY AFFAIRS
5. THE SOLIDARITY-2023 BORDER OPERATION
THE CONTEXT: India and other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) have extended their support to China-led initiative “Solidarity-2023”, in a bid to organise a joint border operation in 2023.
THE EXPLANATION:
This was announced by Director of Border Security Force (BSF) after concluding the eighth meeting of heads of border authorities of SCO member states.
• This meeting was held in Delhi, under the chairmanship of India.
• India had assumed the chair of SCO-RATS (anti-terrorist structure of the SCO) on October 28, 2021 for a one-year period.
• Member countries also “approved” work plan of expert group of the border services of competent authorities for 2023.
India’s largest guarding force
The Border Security Force (BSF) is the largest frontier-guarding force, with about 2.65 lakh personnel in its ranks. It is primarily tasked with guarding international boundaries with Bangladesh and Pakistan.
Solidarity 2019-2021
The member states also discussed the results of joint border operation, ‘Solidarity-2019-2021′, which were carried out in 2021 by border services of competent authorities of SCO member states. They also reviewed and approved the plan for preparations and conduct of joint border operation called “Friendship Border – 2022”.
THE PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE
6. VARANASI NOMINATED AS THE FIRST SCO TOURISM AND CULTURAL CAPITAL
THE CONTEXT: The temple city of Varanasi was nominated as the first-ever SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital during the recently held SCO Summit.
THE EXPLANATION:
• During the 22nd Meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Council of Heads of State held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Varanasi was nominated as the first-ever SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital for the period of 2022-23.
• This would promote tourism, cultural and humanitarian exchanges between India and other SCO member states.
• Under this framework, various events will be organized in Varanasi in 2022-23.
• These events bring together musicians, authors, scholars, Indologists and artists as well as other invited guests.
• The regulations for the nomination of the SCO Tourism and Cultural Capital were adopted at the Dushanbe SCO Summit in 2021.
• The purpose of this initiative is to promote cooperation between the SCO members in the area of culture and tourism.
• It also highlights India’s ancient civilizational links with SCO members, especially those from the Central Asia.
Background
During the 2019 Bishkek Summit, President of Uzbekistan suggested the establishment of an annual SCO tradition of nominating a city in the country presiding the SCO as the SCO tourism and culture capital. The objective of this proposal is to realize the tourism potential of cities and promote the cultural and historic heritage of the SCO member states.
Varanasi
Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh dates back to the 11th century BC. It is considered to be the “spiritual capital” of India. It hosts some 2,000 temples, including Kashi Vishwanath. It is situated at the left bank of River Ganga in the middle-Ganges valley.
About Shanghai Cooperation Organization
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is a political, economic and security alliance established in 2001. It is headquartered in Beijing. Its members are China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. India and Pakistan became members in 2017. The SCO is currently the world’s largest regional organization.
7. WEF TRAVEL AND TOURISM DEVELOPMENT INDEX
THE CONTEXT: In the WEF Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021, India has been ranked at 54th place. In 2019, India had ranked at 46th position. However, the country still topped within the South Asia region. This index is the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index’s direct evolution, having been published biennially for the last 15 years.
THE EXPLANATION:
Which country has topped the list?
In the 2021 index, the top place has been grabbed by Japan. The country is followed by the United States, Spain, France, and Germany respectively. The score of India in this list is 4.2.
Which are the top 10 countries on the list?
1. Japan (5.2)
2. United States (5.2)
3. Spain (5.2)
4. France (5.1)
5. Germany (5.1)
6. Switzerland (5.0)
7. Australia (5.0)
8. United Kingdom (5.0)
9. Singapore (5.0)
10. Italy (4.9)
What does this index highlight?
The Travel and Tourism Development Index 2021 of the World Economic Forum comprises of 117 countries. This index has shown that despite various positive trends, the tourism and travel industry is still facing hurdles and are yet to recover properly. 117 countries have been assessed by this index and it has identified certain key factors for enabling resilient and sustainable growth of tourism and travel economies. Due to the COVID-19 shutdowns, this sector has faced significant hurdles, thus, their contribution to a country’s economy has been limited. However, as the world is slowly recovering from the effects of the pandemic, the countries must invest in this sector to build a resilient and strong environment for tourism and travel.
