1. GREEN OPEN ACCESS RULES 2022

TAGS: GS 3: ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: Union New and Renewable Energy Minister has directed the industry to set targets under the Green Open Access Rules 2022, in a bid to accelerate the country’s renewable energy programmes.

EXPLANATION:

• Electricity (Promoting Renewable Energy Through Green Energy Open Access) Rules, 2022 has been notified by Ministry of Power.
• The Ministry of Power notified Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) as Central Nodal Agency to set up and operate a single window green energy open access system for renewable energy under these Rules.
• It was launched in order to further accelerate our ambitious renewable energy programmes, with the objective of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and green energy for all.
• As per the Electricity Act 2003, the tariff is determined by the Appropriate Commission. Accordingly, the tariff for the green energy shall be determined by Appropriate Commission and shall comprise of the average pooled power purchase cost of the renewable energy, cross-subsidy charges, if any, and service charges covering the prudent cost of the distribution licensee for providing green energy to the consumers.
• It is a major step towards achieving India’s aims to cut emissions in India to net zero by 2070 and aims to achieve 500 GW renewable power capacity, reduce emissions by one billion tonnes and an emissions intensity of the GDP by 45 percent by 2030.

Key Features:

• There will be a uniform Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO), on all obligated entities in area of a distribution licensees. Green hydrogen/green ammonia has also been included for fulfillment of its RPO. The consumers will be given green certificate beyond their RPO obligation.
• It will provide certainty on open access charges to be levied on Green Energy Open Access consumers which includes transmission charges, wheeling charges, cross-subsidy surcharge and standby charges.
• It also enables a simplified procedure for the open access to green power. Open access permits a consumer to purchase power from a source of his/her choice.
• The transaction limit would be minimum 100 KW for non-captive consumers. No limit has been kept for captive consumers.
• These rules are notified for promoting generation, purchase and consumption of green energy including the energy from Waste-to-Energy plants.
• Consumers are entitled to demand supply of Green Power from Discoms. Discoms would be obligated to procure and supply green power to eligible consumers.
• Commercial and Industrial consumers are allowed to purchase green power on voluntarily basis.

Green Open Access Registry:

• It is a transparent platform through which long term, medium term and short-term open access transactions will be managed and performed to interstate transmission system and intra state transmission system.
• The Power Ministry has notified the Grid Controller of India Limited as the central nodal agency to operate the Green Open Access Registry (GOAR) portal which is the single window portal to register and apply for the green energy open access.
• This platform will be accessible to all the stakeholders present in the Indian Power Market.
• This platform will provide automated transaction workflows to ease the turnaround time of transaction for all open access consumers.

Green energy open access portal:

• It will allow consumers with a 100 KW-sanctioned load to get a supply of renewables. The government rules mandate approval for green energy open access to be granted to consumers in a time-bound manner within 15 days.

Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO)

• It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL). It was formed in March 2010 to handle the power management functions of PGCIL.
• It is responsible to ensure the integrated operation of the Grid in a reliable, efficient and secure manner.
• It consists of 5 Regional Load Despatch Centres and a National Load Despatch Centre (NLDC).

2. 25 YEARS OF KUDUMBASHREE

TAGS:  GS 1: SOCIETY

THE CONTEXT: In her maiden visit to Kerala, President of India inaugurated the silver jubilee celebrations of Kudumbashree, the largest self-help group network in the country. The president had also released a handbook titled chuvadu (footsteps) that codified ideas for the movement’s future and the achievements it has gained so far.

EXPLANATION:

• Kudumbashree means “prosperity of the family” in the local Malayalam language is the Kerala government’s ongoing participatory “poverty eradication and women empowerment” mission.
• It began in 1998 as a cluster of microcredit neighbourhood groups with thrift and credit activities, creating many crisis managers and entrepreneurs of humble origins over the years.
• The collective transformed ordinary women from poverty-ridden families into agents of change and recovery in critical times like the flood and the pandemic.
• Now, Kudumbashree is Kerala’s biggest social capital. Its members have risen to become elected members of the three-tier local bodies after enforcing the 33 per cent women reservation (in Kerala local bodies, the percentage of reservations is 50).

Background:

The two immediate contexts for Kudumbashree are the following:

• First, in 1997, a three-member task force constituted by the Kerala Government recommended setting up a State Poverty Eradication Mission (SPEM). However, it became fully operational only in April 1999 with the name Kudumbashree Mission.
• The second immediate context was the 73^rdand 74^th Constitution Amendment Acts. The Kerala government used the amendment as an opportunity to deliver poverty alleviation programmes through local participation and self-government institutions.
• From the beginning, it has been functioning under the local self-government department by accepting financial support from the union government and NABARD.

Membership:

• The Mission conceives women empowerment and community development as central to poverty eradication.
• Thus, the membership of the Mission’s community network is limited to women.
• During the initial phase, the membership consisted of women from below-poverty-line households but currently all adult women are eligible for membership to the Neighbourhood Groups the basic units of Kudumbashree’s community network.
• The membership follows a “one family, one member” rule. However, any women irrespective of this rule can participate in the discussion and activities of the Kudumbashree.

Organization:

• A three-tiered community network or self-help groups of women implements this mission.
• At the primary level, Kudumbasree is the collective of Neighbourhood Groups (NHG). Area Development Societies (ADS) at the ward level and Community Development Societies (CDS) at the local government level.
• The first and the lowest tier of Kudumbashree’s community network is Neighbourhood Groups (or Ayalkootamin Malayalam) consisting of ten to twenty women. The second level consisting of two or more Neighbourhood Groups is Area Development Societies. All Area Development Societies in an area are affiliated to the local self-government level Community Development Society.

Aims:

• The mission aims to eradicate poverty through women empowerment.
• economic empowerment such as through collective farming, livestock farming, market development
• social empowerment such as destitute identification and rehabilitation, and rehabilitation of mentally challenged persons
• women empowerment consisting of educational programmes and programmes for the elimination of violence against women.
• It also plans income-generating activities involving agriculture or micro-enterprises to be run jointly by members of the network.
• It also helps the local self-government institutions (Panchayats in rural areas and Municipalities in urban areas) in the preparation and implementation of the local bodies’ anti-poverty plan, women component plan, and other local development schemes.
• It also assists the local self-government institutions in the identification of beneficiaries of central (federal) and state (provincial) government’s welfare programmes.
• Community Development Society of the network acts as a liasing body with banks for loans for the network’s activities.
• It also facilitates capacity building activities by training and providing information to women in particular to assume leadership roles.
• It also helps in creating awareness around gender related government initiatives such as prevention of violence against women and legal literacy.

3. ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS

TAGS: GS 2: HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: The World Health Organisation recommended against using artificial sweeteners to achieve weight loss and prevent lifestyle diseases such as diabetes. The report emphasized that while there was a need to cut intake of sugar, it should not be replaced by artificial sweeteners.

EXPLANATION:

Artificial sweeteners or non-sugar sweeteners (NSS):

• Non-sugar sweeteners or artificial sweeteners are intensely sweet chemicals up to several hundred times sweeter than sugar that are used for sweeten food while only adding very little or no calories.
• It provides the sweet taste with very little to no calories. Many diabetics use the sweeteners in their tea and coffee, but there is a growing market for packaged foods and beverages using these sweeteners to offer low-calorie options.
• Common NSS include acesulfame K(Ace-K), aspartame, advantame, cyclamates, neotame, saccharin, sucralose, stevia and stevia derivatives. Erythritol, a popular artificial sweetener that is widely available in India and abroad under various brand name was associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.

WHO recommendations:

• The WHO guideline on NSS is part of a suite of existing and forthcoming guidelines on healthy diets that aim to establish lifelong healthy eating habits, improve dietary quality and decrease the risk of NCDs worldwide.
• While there could be some weight-lossand reduction in Body Mass Index in the short term as the artificial sweeteners bring down the calories consumed, but in the long run they have been linked to weight gain.
• The sweeteners have also linked to an increased risk of Type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and mortality in the long run. It is also linked to bladder cancer and preterm birth when consumed by pregnant women.
• Long-term adverse effects in the form of increased risk of death and disease offset any potential short-term health benefit resulting from the relatively small reduction in body weight and BMI observed in randomized controlled trials.
• The recommendation applies to all people except individuals with pre-existing diabetes and includes all synthetic and naturally occurring or modified non-nutritive sweeteners that are not classified as sugars found in manufactured foods and beverages or sold on their own to be added to foods and beverages by consumers.
• The recommendation does not apply to personal care and hygiene products containing NSS, such as toothpaste, skin cream, and medications, or to low-calorie sugars and sugar alcohols (polyols), which are sugars or sugar derivatives containing calories and are therefore not considered NSS.

4. SUSTAINABILITY AND RELATED INITIATIVES

TAGS: GS 3: ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: There are a number of traditional conservationists who dismiss the works covered under the broader sustainability/nature-based solutions framing it as deceptive. On the other hand, there are hardcore business folks who almost always feel a false sense of piety towards the sustainability agenda.

EXPLANATION:

• Sustainability is the ability to maintain or support a process over time. There is need of the strengthening of a better understanding and a space for deeper engagement and collaboration.
• While conservation is more action-focused on specific areas (landscape, theme, species), sustainability remains a bit more overarching. It is a strategic process of convening multiple stakeholders around a policy objective and programme strategies that would augment the work being done through conservation approaches.

Environment, Social and Governance:

• It is a framework that helps stakeholders understand how an organization is managing risks and opportunities related to environmental, social, and governance criteria (sometimes called ESG factors).
• It typically includes managing and avoiding the depletion of natural resources to maintain global ecological balance.
• It takes the holistic view that sustainability extends beyond just environmental issues.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR):

• It is a management concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business  operations and interactions with their stakeholders.
• CSR is generally understood as being the way through which a company achieves a balance of economic, environmental and social imperatives (“Triple-Bottom-Line-  Approach”), while at the same time addressing the expectations of  shareholders and stakeholders.

ESG vs CSR:

CSR may be used as an internal framework, while ESG provides a measure of assessment for investors. Corporate social responsibility is a business model by which companies make a concerted effort to operate in ways that enhance rather than degrade society and the environment whereas ESG provides a more quantitative measure of sustainability.

European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR):

• It is an initiative to limit deforestation caused by forestry and agricultural activities all over the world.
• EU deforestation-free regulation is part of the EU Green Deal and a broader EU strategy to protect the world’s forests.
• While these regulations focus on deforestation caused by illegal timber logging, the new EU deforestation-free regulation covers a broader set of commodities.
• The regulation affects seven specific commodities (cocoa, coffee, soy, palm oil, wood, rubber, and cattle) and their derivatives, as well as products made using these commodities (e.g. leather, cosmetics, chocolate etc.).
• The new Regulation will require any companyimporting or exporting these commodities from the EU to prove the products are deforestation-free. This applies to any company, regardless of whether they are EU-based or not, and for legal and illegal sources of deforestation in Europe and overseas.
• The Regulation defines a product as deforestation-free when the product itself, its ingredients or its derivatives were not produced on land subject to deforestation or forest degradation after the cut-off date of 31 December 2020. This cut-off date has been suggested to minimize disruption to international supply chains.

Greenwashing:

• It is typically corporate action to be perceived as environmentally conscious for marketing purposes without any notable sustainability efforts.
• It happens when a company makes an environmental claim about something the organization is doing that is intended to promote a sense of environmental impact that doesn’t exist. The green claim is typically about some form of positive effect on the environment.
• Greenwashing is when an organization spends more time and money on marketing itself as environmentally friendly than on actually minimizing its environmental impact.
• It’s a deceitful marketing gimmick intended to mislead consumers who prefer to buy goods and services from environmentally conscious brands Whilst some greenwashing is unintentional and results from a lack of knowledge about what sustainability truly is, it is often intentionally carried out through a wide range of marketing and PR efforts. But the common denominator among all greenwashing is that it is not only misleading, but it’s also really not helping to further sustainable design or circular economy.

As the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s common but differentiated responsibilities says:

The aim is minimum disruption and destruction — not to destroy the planet, the environment and the existing human life and ensure that this life remains available to future generations in its totality. With this understanding, countries and companies are building sustainability reporting into everyday action and attempting to turn theoretical issues into concrete actions.

5. MISSION DefSpace AND 100^TH SPRINT (NAVY) CONTRACT

TAGS: GS 3: SECURITY

THE CONTEXT: Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), the flagship initiative of Ministry of Defence, has reached a milestone with the signing of its 250^th contract – first under Mission DefSpace and 100^th SPRINT (Navy) contract.

EXPLANATION:

Mission DefSpace:

• Recognising the strategic significance of the space domain, Mission DefSpace was launched with 75 Defence Space Challenges to be addressed by the private sector in 2022.
• It aims to nurture the Indian Private Space industry through challenges addressing every stage of a space mission from mission planning to satellite data analytics.

Mission DefSpace contract

• The first iDEX contract of Mission DefSpace was exchanged where one of the winners of the challenge ‘Micropropulsion system for cubesats’. This challenge is being led by the Defence Space Agency.
• Cubesats are a class of smallsats, which are modular; low-cost; easy to manufacture, integrate, and launch; and form a critical component for launch-on-demand capabilities. For imagery/Intelligence Surveillance & Reconnaissance/communication purposes, cubesats need to be precisely aligned, hence there is a requirement of a compact micropropulsion system for precise manoeuvring and orbit correction.
• InspeCity is developing a gas-based system for this purpose. This technology, once developed, can be integrated with other satellites, including the cubesat swarm being developed under Mission DefSpace.

100^th SPRINT (Navy) contract

‘SPRINT’ initiative:

• The initiative aims at inducting at least 75 technologies/products into the Indian Navy by August 2023 as part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.
• The 100^thSPRINT (Navy) contract was exchanged where the winner of the Challenge was development of a prototype that is a lightweight ASIC (Application-Specific Integrated Circuit) based communication system using software defined antenna for Low Earth Orbit, Medium Earth Orbit and Geostationary satellite communication.

About iDEX

• iDEX is being implemented by Defence Innovation Organisation(DIO), established under the Department of Defence Production, MoD.
• It will help India become the biggest defence innovation ecosystem in the world in the times to come.
• Its objective is to provide the platform of co-creation & co-development in the defence sector. It aims to engage start-ups to contribute to the defence sector and develop defence and aerospace setup in the country.
• iDEX has also been able to generate thousands of jobs and attract India’s talent back to the country.
• iDEX is working at a path-breaking pace to ensure that its agreements with the start-ups and innovators reach logical conclusions timely, eventually opening a myriad of options for the budding, soon to be unicorns and at the same time addressing the requirement of Services.

1. The dilemma of truths & half-truths READ MORE
2. To Jesus, good or bad, all are God’s family READ MORE
3. Resilient and Determined READ MORE
4. Things to be desired READ MORE

1. Why a normal monsoon is key READ MORE  
2. With India as G20 president, where do the country’s climate and emission goals figure? READ MORE

1. Apathy of family and high costs hinder maternal healthcare READ MORE
2. Foundational learning outcomes: More recovery than loss READ MORE

1. ED overreach: Central agency should pay heed to SC observation READ MORE
2. Avoid regulatory overdrive: Trai’s recent moves run counter to its track record of light-touch regulation READ MORE
3. The regulation imperative: When we regulate medicines, airplanes, food, money, and travel, why wouldn’t we regulate artificial intelligence? READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Credit cards put under LRS to check excess forex spends: govt. READ MORE  
2. Centre pushes vaccination as lumpy skin disease ravages cattle again READ MORE
3. What are RBI regulations on green deposits? READ MORE
4. Hiroshi F Suzuki: ‘India is a critical partner in the ultimate goal of creating a world without N-arms’ READ MORE
5. Supreme Court upholds Tamil Nadu law allowing jallikattu: What is this decade-old case? READ MORE
6. Andhra Pradesh begins freeing 2 lakh acres of ‘dotted lands’: What are these disputed lands, which will now go to their tillers? READ MORE
7. 25 years of Kudumbashree: How this Kerala women’s collective intervened to empower women, fight poverty READ MORE
8. WWF confirms the presence of gharials in Pakistan’s Punjab READ MORE
9. Oxford University’s WildCRU, Panthera join forces for Africa’s lions; appoint joint programme director READ MORE

Main Exam

GS Paper- 1

1. Why a normal monsoon is key READ MORE  

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. ED overreach: Central agency should pay heed to SC observation READ MORE
2. Avoid regulatory overdrive: Trai’s recent moves run counter to its track record of light-touch regulation READ MORE
3. The regulation imperative: When we regulate medicines, airplanes, food, money, and travel, why wouldn’t we regulate artificial intelligence? READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

1. Apathy of family and high costs hinder maternal healthcare READ MORE
2. Foundational learning outcomes: More recovery than loss READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. A long-drawn test for India’s diplomatic skills: Walking the tightrope seems to have paid off for India, but the multilateral challenges it faces will multiply READ MORE
2. India-Maldives defence cooperation: Partnership and partisanship READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. New deal. Green innovation, a major driving force READ MORE  
2. View: A $5 trillion Indian economy is possible. The real challenge is something else READ MORE
3. Needed: A sustainable blue economy READ MORE
4. All you need to know about ONDC: The UPI of e-commerce in India READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. With India as G20 president, where do the country’s climate and emission goals figure? READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Comprehensive legal framework a must to curb cybercrime READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Warming warning: On the World Meteorological Organization projections for temperature trends READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. The dilemma of truths & half-truths READ MORE
2. To Jesus, good or bad, all are God’s family READ MORE
3. Resilient and Determined READ MORE
4. Things to be desired READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. In state administration, the bureaucracy, which serves as the executor of government policy, needs to be answerable only to the state’s legislative assembly. Comment on the statement in the light of recent Supreme Court judgement.
2. It is imperative for India to not only form and engage with new frameworks but also strengthen old ones, which will increase its options and influence among both developing and developed countries. Comment on the statement in the light recent geo-political developments.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user.
• The need for young civil servants to get things done rather than letting them linger is very important. It is critical to our entire development process. Similarly, the need for transparency in appointments is important in our democracy.
• Capitalism is facing multifaceted challenges due to the problem of policy-making based on incorrect data. Governments and international agencies like the World Bank that depend on faulty official data cannot correctly analyse and help resolve the problems facing the world and its poor.
• To be effective, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation needs to come out of Chinese influence and push its own cherished goals.
• The hidden nature of caste atrocities indicates that the problem is more pervasive and deeply rooted than official records may suggest!
• Our steps for sustainable groundwater management are in the right direction and these are bringing a paradigm shift towards positive change.
• India’s increasing engagement with Africa has largely been through bilateral channels, with limited participation in multilateral forums.
• India’s engagement with the Commonwealth should not be treated as a subset of its relationship with the UK. India–UK bilateral ties could face divergences due to variety of domestic and structural factors.
• It is imperative for India to not only form and engage with new frameworks but also strengthen old ones, which will increase its options and influence among both developing and developed countries.
• Data is the next big chasm for regulators to cross, with its growing importance in the financial system and the challenges in its management.
• In the geoeconomic domain, there is growing convergence of interests between India and the US. A model less driven by market fundamentalism presents an opportunity for India.

ESSAY TOPIC

• In our changing world, nothing changes more than geography.

50-WORD TALK

• The Jallikattu matter should have never gone to a constitution bench. Time has been wasted. The court said whether a law to “preserve cultural heritage” is a debatable issue has to be concluded in the House of people. The legislature had already taken a call on the animal rights-tradition conflict.
• The killing of a 23-year-old doctor in Kollam by her patient is disturbing. Kerala’s approval of an ordinance prescribing imprisonment for perpetrators of violence against healthcare workers is a step in the right direction. However, the state must take measures to protect its medical community before the crime is committed.
• Supreme Court has rightly faulted Manipur High Court for its factually incorrect verdict on ST status for Meiteis. The power to modify the ST list is with the President, the HC does not have the remit. Having disapproved of it in strong words, the Supreme Court should have stayed it.

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 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.

UPSC Civil Services Final Result 2022

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1. SEXUAL HARASSMENT OF WOMEN AT WORKPLACE (PREVENTION, PROHIBITION AND REDRESSAL) ACT, 2013 (POSH)

TAGS: GS 1: SOCIETY

THE CONTEXT: Ten years after the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (PoSH) came into force, the Supreme Court Bench of India has said there are “serious lapses” and “uncertainty” regarding its implementation, issuing directions to the Union, States, and Union Territories to verify if all government bodies had formed Internal Complaint Committees and to ensure that the composition of such panels is in strict adherence with the Act.

EXPLANATION:

How was the PoSH Act formed?

• Supreme Court noting the absence of any law “enacted to provide for effective enforcement of the basic human right of gender equality” guarantee against “sexual harassment at workplaces”, laid down a set of guidelines in 1997, christened the Vishakha Guidelines, to fill the statutory vacuum till a law could be enacted.
• These were to be “strictly observed in all workplaces” and were binding and enforceable in law.
• The Court drew its strength from several provisions of the Constitution including Article 15 (against discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, and place of birth), also drawing from relevant International Conventions and norms such as the General Recommendations of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), which India ratified in 1993.
• National Commission for Women submitted drafts of a Code of Conduct for the Workplace in 2000, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2010.
• After this, the Protection of Women against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill was introduced by then Women and Child Development Minister in 2007. The amended Bill came into force on December 9, 2013, as the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) or PoSh Act.

How are sexual harassment, the workplace, and an employee defined under the PoSh Act?

• The PoSH Act defines sexual harassment to include unwelcome acts such as physical contact and sexual advances, a demand or request for sexual favours, making sexually coloured remarks, showing pornography, and any other unwelcome physical, verbal, or non-verbal conduct of a sexual nature.
• It also lists down five circumstances that would constitute sexual harassment if they are connected to the above-mentioned acts- (i) Implied or explicit promise of preferential treatment in employment (ii) Implied or explicit threat of detrimental treatment in employment (iii) Implied or explicit threat about present or future employment status (iv) Interference with work or creating an intimidating or offensive or hostile work environment and (v) Humiliating treatment likely to affect health or safety.
• Under the Act, an employee is defined not just in accordance with the company law. All women employees, whether employed regularly, temporarily, contractually, on an ad hoc or daily wage basis, as apprentices or interns or even employed without the knowledge of the principal employer, can seek redressal to sexual harassment in the workplace.
• The law expands the definition of ‘workplace’ beyond traditional offices to include all kinds of organisations across sectors, even non-traditional workplaces (for example those that involve telecommuting) and places visited by employees for work. It applies to all public and private sector organisations throughout India.

Internal Complaints Committee (ICC):

• The law requires any employer with more than 10 employees to form an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) which can be approached by any woman employee to file a formal sexual harassment complaint.
• It has to be headed by a woman, have at least two women employees, another employee, and, to pre-empt any undue pressure from senior levels, to include a third party such as an NGO worker with five years of experience, familiar with the challenges of sexual harassment.
• Besides, the Act mandates every district in the country to create a local committee (LC) to receive complaints from women working in firms with less than 10 employees and from the informal sector, including domestic workers, home-based workers, voluntary government social workers and so on.
• These two bodies have to conduct inquiries in line with the POSH Act and comply with the “principles of natural justice” stated in the Rules of the Act.
• A woman can file a written complaint either to the internal or local complaints committee within three to six months of the sexual harassment incident.
• There are two ways to resolve the issue by the committee- “through conciliation” between the complainant and the respondent (which cannot be a financial settlement), or committees could initiate an inquiry, taking appropriate action based on what it finds.
• The employer has to file an annual audit report with the district officer about the number of sexual harassment complaints filed and actions taken at the end of the year. It also makes the employer duty-bound to organise regular workshops and awareness programmes to educate employees about the Act, and conduct orientation and programmes for ICC members. If the employer fails to constitute an ICC or does not abide by any other provision, they must pay a fine of up to ₹50,000, which increases for a repeat offence.

2. INDO-PACIFIC ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK FOR PROSPERITY (IPEF)

TAGS: GS 2: INTERNATIONAL RELATION

THE CONTEXT: In November 2019, India walked out from the trade pact called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). Fast forward to 2023, and now India along with many of the same countries, but with China replaced by the United States, is getting into the U.S.-driven Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).

EXPLANATION:

Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF):

• It is launched by United States in May 2022.
• IPEF is about developing a strategic-economic bloc an integrated economic system centered on the U.S., and, as importantly, excluding China.
• Members: India, USA, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• This framework will offer tangible benefits that fuel economic activity and investment, promote sustainable and inclusive economic growth, and benefit workers and consumers across the region.
• The 14 IPEF partners represent 40 percent of global GDP and 28 percent of global goods and services trade.
• The IPEF is designed to be flexible, meaning that IPEF partners are not required to join all four pillars.
• Aim: Its purpose is to “advance resilience, sustainability, inclusiveness, economic growth, fairness, and competitiveness for our economies. Through this initiative, we aim to contribute to cooperation, stability, prosperity, development, and peace within the region”.

What is different in IPEF from other trade deals?

• Traditionally, trade deals used to be mostly about tariffs. The U.S.’s IPEF completely removes the tariff element of typical trade deals.
• IPEF is not a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) like the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Comprehensive and Progressive Transpacific Partnership (CPTPP).
• IPEF as “a 21st century economic arrangement designed to tackle 21st century economic challenges, ranging from setting the rules of the road for the digital economy; to ensuring secure and resilient supply chains; to helping make the kind of major investments necessary in clean energy infrastructure and the clean energy transition; to raising standards for transparency, fair taxation, and anti-corruption”.
• It also seeks commitments to labour and environmental standards, which are highly unpopular in the region.
• Unlike other regional FTAs such as the RCEP or CPTPP, the IPEF does not offer increased market access (especially to the US market) through tariff liberalisation and non-tariff concessions.

The IPEF consists of the following four negotiating pillars:

1. Trade: The IPEF seeks to build “high-standard, inclusive, free, and fair trade commitments and develop new and creative approaches in trade and technology policy that advance a broad set of objectives that fuels economic activity and investment, promotes sustainable and inclusive economic growth, and benefits workers and consumers”.
2. Supply Chains:The IPEF will seek “first-of-their-kind supply chain commitments that better anticipate and prevent disruptions in supply chains to create a more resilient economy”. It also intends to establish an early warning system and coordinate crisis response actions.
3. Clean Energy, Decarbonisation, and Infrastructure: The framework will seek first-of-their-kind commitments on clean energy, decarbonisation, and infrastructure that promote good-paying jobs.
4. Tax and Anti-Corruption:The IPEF will seek new commitments to enact and enforce effective and robust tax, anti-money laundering, and anti-bribery regimes in line with existing multilateral obligations, standards, and agreements to curb tax evasion and corruption in the Indo-Pacific region.

India’s Stand:

• India has joined the other three pillars of supply chains, clean economy, and fair economy but not trade. But there is great pressure on it to join trade too. Joining the trade pillar is the worst, but the other pillars too contribute to developing hard new economic architectures and structures that are not tariff-based.

The rise of the ‘Indo-Pacific’:

• With the shift of the centre of gravity from the Atlantic to Asia, the new concept of the ‘Indo-Pacific’ has entered the geopolitical discourse, replacing the hitherto dominant ‘Asia-Pacific’ construct, even though its geographic boundaries are not well defined.
• Based on maritime geography, the Indo-Pacific refers to a contiguous zone encompassing the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The geographic boundaries of the Indo-Pacific could stretch from East Africa to the west coast of the US and encompass a large number of countries at varying stages of development, with distinct policy agendas and divergent interests.
• Bringing together highly heterogeneous countries with high-standard commitments on the digital economy, green infrastructure, clean energy, and social and environmental standards under the rubric of IPEF is a herculean effort.
• In the economic realm, the Indo-Pacific is one of the world’s most dynamic regions. The region accounts for more than 60% of the global GDP, and almost 50% of the global merchandise trade passes through its waters.
• The region includes the world’s four big economies: the USA, China, Japan, and India. With the engine of global economic growth shifting eastwards, the Indo-Pacific region will gain greater importance in coming years.

3. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND FACIAL RECOGNITION POWERED SOLUTION FOR TELECOM SIM SUBSCRIBER VERIFICATION (ASTR)

TAGS: GS 3: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has developed an artificial-intelligence-based facial recognition tool that it claims has the capability of running checks on subscriber databases of telecom operators to deduce whether it contains multiple connections associated with the same person.

EXPLANATION:

Origin of ASTR:

• In 2012, DoT had issued an order to all telecom operators that they would have to share their subscriber database including users’ pictures with the department.
• These images constitute the core database on which authorities are running their facial recognition algorithm using ASTR.
• The ASTR project was conceptualised and designed between April 2021 and July 2021 by the DoT’s unit in Haryana.

How ASTR works:

• Human faces in subscribers’ images are encoded using convolutional neural network (CNN) models in order to account for the tilt and angle of the face, opaqueness and dark colour of the images.
• After that, a face comparison is carried out for each face against all faces in the database, and similar faces are grouped under one directory. Two faces are concluded to be identical by ASTR if they match to the extent of at least 97.5 per cent.
• Once the faces are matched, ASTR’s algorithm uses what it describes as “fuzzy logic” to find similarity or approximate matches for the subscriber names.

Benefits of ASTR:

• It can potentially bring down cyber frauds by detecting and blocking possible fraudulent mobile connections.
• ASTR is capable of detecting all SIMs against a suspected face in less than 10 seconds from a database of 1 crore images.
• It also accounts for any typographical errors that might have occurred while the subscriber acquisition form was being filled.

Convolutional neural network (CNN) model:

• It is a type of Deep Learning neural network architecture commonly used in Computer Vision. Computer vision is a field of Artificial Intelligence that enables a computer to understand and interpret the image or visual data.

In a regular Neural Network there are three types of layers:

1. Input Layers: It’s the layer in which we give input to our model. The number of neurons in this layer is equal to the total number of features in our data (number of pixels in the case of an image).
2. Hidden Layer: The input from the Input layer is then feed into the hidden layer. There can be many hidden layers depending upon our model and data size.
3. Output Layer: The output from the hidden layer is then fed into a logistic function like sigmoid or softmax which converts the output of each class into the probability score of each class.

Artificial Intelligence (AI):

• Artificial Intelligence(AI) is a vast subset of computer science revolving around the development of smart machines that can perform tasks that typically need some semblance of human intelligence.
• It is a multi-faceted, interdisciplinary science, but modern advancements in deep learning and machine learning are bringing it into nearly every area of the tech industry.

Facial recognition:

• Facial recognition is a category of biometricsoftware that maps an individual’s facial features mathematically and stores the data as a faceprint. The software uses deep learning algorithms to compare a live capture or digital image to the stored faceprint in order to verify an individual’s identity.

AI face recognition software has the following advantages:

• Real-time identification
• Anti-spoofing measures
• Lessened racial or gender bias due to model training across millions of faces
• Can be used across multiple cameras.

4. 4^th POSITIVE INDIGENISATION LIST

TAGS: GS 3: SECURITY

THE CONTEXT: Defence Ministry Releases Fourth Positive Indigenisation List under make in India to reduce dependence on foreign weapon suppliers.

EXPLANATION:

Positive Indigenisation List:

• In pursuit of atmanirbhartain defence, the Ministry of Defence has approved a “positive-indigenisation list” (PIL) of 928 items which will reduce imports worth Rs 715 crore.
• The list ranges from line replacement units (LRUs) and subsystems to components, high-end materials, and spares.
• The aim of the move is in sync with the government’s overall aim to promote ‘Aatmanirbharta’ (self-reliance) in defence production and to minimise imports by the defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs).
• Gaining self-sufficiency in Defence production would not only guarantee long-term security of our country but also give significant boost to the domestic industry engaged in design, development and manufacturing of weapons and platforms.
• This will also augment the design capabilities of the domestic defence industry by involving academia and research institutions.

4th Positive Indigenisation List:

• It is the fourth such “positive indigenisation list (PIL)” comprising line replacement units, sub-systems and components used for various military platforms, equipment and weapons.
• 4th Positive Indigenisation List released during Def Expo 2022 and This list is in continuation to the three similar PILs that were brought out in December 2021, March 2022 and August 2022.
• 101 more Defence Items will now be procured from indigenous sources. Highly complex systems, sensors, weapons and ammunitions have been included in this list.
• As per preliminary estimates, more than 1,75,000 Cr worth orders would be placed on Indian Industry in the next 5-10 years.
• This would further stimulate the potential of Domestic Research & Development by attracting fresh investment into technology and manufacturing capabilities.
• The items which were already indigenised comprised 262 from the first PIL, 11 from the second list and 37 from the third PIL.
• The ministry said DPSUs will soon initiate procurement action for these notified items.

How will this take place?

• The defence ministry has set specific timelines for import ban of the items, spanning the period from December 2023 to December 2028.
• The DPSUs will undertake indigenisation of these items through different routes under ‘Make’ category and in-house development through the capabilities of MSMEs and private Indian industry, thereby providing impetus to the growth in economy, enhanced investment in defence and reduction in import dependence of DPSUs.
• In addition, this will augment the design capabilities of the domestic defence industry by involving academia and research institutions.
• These lists contain 2,500 items which are already indigenised and 1,238 (351+107+780) items which will be indigenised within the given timelines.

Reasons for the move:

• India is one of the largest importers of arms globally.
• According to estimates, Indian armed forces are projected to spend around USD 130 billion in capital procurement over the next five years.
• This will reduce dependence on imported military platforms and has decided to support domestic defence manufacturing.

5. DATA GOVERNANCE QUALITY INDEX (DGQI)

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) has been ranked second among 66 ministries in the Data Governance Quality Index (DGQI) assessment for the December quarter (Q3) of FY23.

EXPLANATION:

• It is conducted by the Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), NITI Aayog
• It aims to measure the maturity level of administrative data systems and their use in decision-making of various ministries and departments on the implementation of central sector schemes and centrally-sponsored schemes.
• It also identifies reforms to reach the frontier of seamless data exchange and its synergistic use within the ministry, while defining clear pathways to achieve these goals.

Under the realm of the overall approach, six key themes have been identified under data systems pillar covered by the Data Governance Quality Index:

• Data Generation: Data generation measures the ability of the respective ministries/departments to efficiently generate useful data in the course of their programme implementation. It covers areas related to the level of digitization, frequency and granularity of data generation. It also assesses if mobile phones, location tracking and GIS mapping is used to authenticate the generated data.
• Data Quality:Data Quality covers processes of scientifically and statistically evaluating data in order to determine whether they meet quality benchmarks. The key areas covered under this theme relate to profiling of data, data quality assessment processes (for e.g. data pipeline design, well defined data schema etc.), data cleaning, use of latest technologies and mobile phones in the process.
• Use of Technology:This theme assesses if emerging technologies are being utilized to improve data robustness. It assesses if MIS of ministries/departments have linkages with PFMS for ensuring transparency and Jan-Dhan, Aadhar and Mobile [JAM-trinity (if applicable)] for delivering last mile services. It also measures if emerging technologies like block chain, big data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, IoT are being used to collect data or to draw analytical insights from it.
• Data Analysis, Use and Dissemination:One of the core themes, it covers if the collected data is being analyzed and used for evidence creation and decision making. It gauges whether ministries/departments are undertaking basic cross-sectional analyses only or regression and predictive analysis as well.
• Data Security and HR Capacity:While data security requires an in-depth analysis in itself, the same is briefly captured in the index also to reflect its importance. These were identified to be the minimum requirements expected to be met and are not meant to be exhaustive in nature.

Several existing data maturity models were studied to develop DGQI’s methodology. Three key steps of data preparedness were identified:

(a)Data Strategy to lay down systemic guidelines

(b) Data Systems to ensure smooth processes of data generation, management and its use

(c) Data driven Outcomes where data is utilized and widely shared by institutions to drive decision making.

The objectives are as follows:

• To enable review and assessment of data preparedness of the data/ MIS systems of the Ministries/Departments on objective parameters of a standardized framework.
• To prepare a self-assessment diagnostic tool that will enable the M/Ds to internally contemplate the need for improving data systems.
• To enable the commissioning agencies to conduct a comparative assessment of data preparedness and source best practices in IT systems which can enable improved cross-learning between the participating agencies.
• It iwill help in laying the foundation of more integrated monitoring systems, for e.g., a single, online, API-integrable ‘Overarching Dashboard’ kind of monitoring system of all the CS/ CSS schemes of all M/Ds, ultimately leading to a state-of-the-art data-driven decision making.