1. ST. PETERSBURG INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC FORUM (SPIEF)

TAG: GS 2: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

THE CONTEXT: At the 26th edition of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), held recently in Russia’s second-largest city and former imperial capital, the Kremlin made its message clear to the entire world: the economy is holding up despite unprecedented Western sanctions.

EXPLANATION:

• The SPIEF used to be called “Russian Davos” as it was probably the only such elite gathering of global business community leaders in this part of the world.
• At ‘Russian Davos’, Russian President praises ‘economic resilience’, seeks alternative partnerships.
• As the war in Ukraine drags on, taking a heavy toll on both sides of the frontline, Russia, faced with the biggest standoff with the West in its modern history, keeps looking for alternative economic and geopolitical partnerships to navigate the “challenging times”.
• This year’s “wartime” SPIEF turned out less international and lavish than its past editions, for obvious reasons, even though organisers claimed the participation of over 17,000 people from 130 countries, including high-ranking officials from the UAE, Algeria, Armenia, Cuba and delegations from China, India and Brazil.
• According to people close to the organisers, international media outlets were given “special attention” even as recently as last year, when the SPIEF was conducted for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine, but the decision to not allow them to cover the event was taken for the first time in the forum’s history.
• Despite all odds the Russian economy contracted 2.1% in 2022, which was way less than the 7-10% decline projected by the Ministry of Economic Development and the Bank of Russia, and is forecast to grow by 0.8-1.2% this year.
• The resilience of the Russian economy and the ways to mitigate external factors such as disruption in logistics and exclusion from the global financial system remained the key topics of discussion at the forum, with policymakers and businesses engaged in sometimes heated debates of the ways to go forward.

Alternative routes

• Payments and logistics indeed remain the key obstacles for Russia’s trade with what it sees as friendly countries, many of which are located outside already developed land and maritime routes.
• Moscow is pushing the development of the Northern Sea route, which takes off at Russia’s Murmansk and leads to Shanghai, and the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), a 7,200 km–long multimodal transport route connecting Russia’s north with Iran and India via the Caspian Sea.
• But developing new routes requires immense investments in the infrastructure, something that could be a problem given Russia’s resources are streamlined elsewhere and its ability to borrow money is very limited.
• For the Arctic route, for instance, Russia is planning to construct more than 50 icebreakers and ice-class vessels, ports and terminals, emergency and rescue centres, as well as building an orbital group of satellites. This would require a total investment of 2 trillion roubles ($24 billion) over the next 13 years.

SPIEF

• It is one of the biggest and most important business events in the world.
• Over the past 25 years, the Forum has cemented its status as a leading international event focusing on key issues on the global economic agenda.
• It provides a platform for participants to exchange best practices and expertise in the interests of sustainable development.
• SPIEF has been held annually since 1997. Since 2005, it has been held under the auspices of the President of the Russian Federation, who has also attended each event.
• In 2021, SPIEF was the first business event of such magnitude to be held offline since the unavoidable break caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Forum was also notable for its use of cutting-edge digital technology.
• SPIEF 2022 welcomed 14 thousand people from 130 countries. Among them were heads of state and government, senior executives of major corporations, and world-renowned experts in the fields of science and civil society. 81 countries were represented by their official delegations
• The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is a unique event in the world of business and economics. SPIEF has been held since 1997, and since 2006, it has been held under the auspices of the President of the Russian Federation, who has also attended each event.
• Over the last 24 years, the Forum has become a leading global platform for members of the business community to meet and discuss the key economic issues facing Russia, emerging markets, and the world as a whole.
• The business programme focus on the global and Russian economies, social issues, and technological development.

2. GLOBAL GENDER INDEX

TAG: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: According to recently released global gender index, The country had improved by 1.4 percentage points from 2022 figures, marking a partial recovery towards its 2020 parity level; it had closed 64.3% of the overall gender gap but had reached only 36.7% parity in economic participation.

EXPLANATION:

• India was ranked at 127 out of 146 countries in terms of gender parity an improvement of eight places from last year, according to the annual Gender Gap Report, 2023 of the World Economic Forum (WEF).India was ranked 135 in the report’s 2022 edition.
• The country had attained parity in enrolment across all levels of education.
• India had closed 64.3% of the overall gender gap, the report said. However, it underlined that India had reached only 36.7 % parity on economic participation and opportunity.
• The index ranked India’s neighbours Pakistan at 142, Bangladesh at 59, China at 107, Nepal at 116, Sri Lanka at 115 and Bhutan at 103.
• Iceland is the most gender-equal country in the world for the 14th consecutive year and the only one to have closed more than 90% of its gender gap, according to the report.

Global Gender Gap Index Rankings

• Chart shows how rankings have changed for top 15 most populous countries between 2022 and 2023.

Wages and income

• In India, while there had been uptick in parity in wages and income, the share of women in senior positions and technical roles had dropped slightly since the last edition.
• On political empowerment, India has registered 25.3% parity, with women representing 15.1% of parliamentarians the highest for the country since the inaugural report in 2006.
• Out of the 117 countries with available data since 2017, 18 countries including Bolivia (50.4%), India (44.4%) and France (42.3 %) have achieved women’s representation of over 40% in local governance.
• For India, the 1.9 percentage point improvement in sex ratio at birth had driven up parity after more than a decade of slow progress, the report said.

Skewed sex ratios

• However, it also said that for Vietnam, Azerbaijan, India and China, the relatively low overall rankings on the Health and Survival sub-index is explained by skewed sex ratios at birth.
• Compared with top scoring countries that register a 94.4% gender parity at birth, the indicator stands at 92.7% for India (albeit an improvement over the last edition) and below 90% for Vietnam, China and Azerbaijan,” it said.
• Overall, the Southern Asian region has achieved 63.4% gender parity, the second-lowest of the eight regions.
• The score in South Asia has risen by 1.1 percentage points since the last edition on the basis of the constant sample of countries covered since 2006. The improvement is partially attributable to the rise in scores of populous countries such as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Global Gender Gap Index

• Global Gender Gap Index creates an urgent case for renewed and concerted action. Accelerating progress towards gender parity will not only improve outcomes for women and girls but benefit economies and societies more widely, reviving growth, boosting innovation and increasing resilience.
• The index provides a tool for consistent tracking of gender gaps across the economic,political, health and education spheres, and is designed for leaders to identify areas for individual and collective action.
• The Global Gender Gap Index annually benchmarks the current state and evolution of gender parity across four key dimensions (Economic Participation and Opportunity, Educational Attainment, Health and Survival, and Political Empowerment).
• It is the longest-standing index tracking the progress of numerous countries’ efforts towards closing these gaps over time since its inception in 2006.
• The Global Gender Gap Index measures scores on a 0 to 100 scale and scores can be interpreted as the distance covered towards parity (i.e. the percentage of the gender gap that has been closed). Cross-country comparisons support the identification of the most effective policies to close gender gaps

3. INDIA’S JET ENGINE DEAL WITH THE U.S.

TAG: GS 2: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

THE CONTEXT: A landmark agreement to facilitate the transfer of at least 11 critical jet engine technologies is likely to be announced during Prime Minister ongoing official State Visit to the United States.

EXPLANATION:

• A mega defence deal for the manufacture of fighter jet engines in India is expected to dominate the agenda of Prime Minister first state visit to the United States recently.
• According to sources, India and the U.S. have “almost” finalised details and the White House is set to sign off on the deal that will allow American manufacturing company General Electric (GE) Aerospace to share critical technology with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the joint production of GE-F414 jet engines that will power indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk-II.
• The proposed agreement has evoked considerable interest in India and beyond, with experts terming it a significant step for bilateral defence and high-tech cooperation amid China’s growing influence and global technological dominance.

Tracing India’s quest for indigenous aero-engines

• India’s pursuit of self-reliance and technological transformation in the defence sector stems from the necessity to deal with the dual threat along its borders and maintain strategic autonomy in the emerging world order.
• Over the years, India has seen substantial accomplishments in various helicopter, missile and space programmes. India has also designed and built a fighter jet but hasn’t achieved much success in producing engines to power these aircraft.
• The quest began in the 1960s with the country’s first indigenous fighter, HF-24 Marut. The aircraft was envisioned as a supersonic jet, but failed to achieve its potential for want of a suitable engine and was eventually phased out.
• A few decades later, India sanctioned the Kaveri programme to develop an indigenous military gas turbine engine for the ambitious LCA project.
• With Kaveri still a work in progress, India shortlisted American GE-F404 engines for LCA Tejas Mark-1 as an interim measure. In 2010, the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) selected the more powerful variant, F414 engines, to power Tejas Mark-2. . In a media release, the company stated that it would supply an initial batch of the selected variant and the rest will be manufactured in India under a transfer of technology (ToT) arrangement.
• As a sign of deepening ties and with an eye on China, the U.S. recognised India as a “major defence partner” in 2016, which paved the way for sharing of critical military equipment and technology. It sought to put India on par with NATO-member countries.

What are the features of the F414 engine?

• India has shortlisted the F414-INS6 model for LCA Mk-II for the IAF, and the export market in the future. An advanced and more efficient version of the F404 engines conceived in the early ‘90s, F414 engines currently power the LCA Tejas.
• At the time the deal was struck, in 2010, the aerospace giant said that the Indian variant will include a fully digital electronic system to control different aspects of the engine, known as the Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC), along with added single-engine safety features customised to meet the country’s defence requirements.

The engine’s main specifications are: 

1. An afterburner turbofan 154-inch long engine in the 22,000-pound (98 kilonewtons) thrust class — 35% more thrust than the F404 engines. The afterburner tech increases the thrust of a jet engine for short periods to improve an aircraft’s take-off, climb, and combat performance.
2. A thrust-to-weight ratio of 9:1, which is an indicator of aircraft propulsion. The higher an aircraft’s thrust-to-weight ratio, the higher its acceleration, excess thrust, and rate of climb.
3. Has low maintenance costs and boasts of unrestricted engine performance on demand with more than five million engine flight hours.
4. Is more reliable and has greater engine durability with a reduced life-cycle cost. The engine is designed to maximise time on wings, which is a measure of the operational reliability of an engine.

The F414 engines power several advanced, next-generation combat aircraft around the globe. Currently, these engines are operational in Boeing’s F-18 Super Hornet twin-jet fighters and Saab’s JAS 39-Gripen (Next Generation) single-engine combat aircraft and are being integrated into aircraft being built in South Korea. As per estimates, GE has produced F414 engines for F-18 Super Hornets at $3.71 million

How crucial is the deal for India?

• India will become the fifth country in the world to produce jet engines once the deal is sealed, joining the U.S., Russia, France and the U.K.
• Besides boosting its military capabilities and growing defence manufacturing at a time when the world is reeling due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the agreement will help replace the fleet of ageing Russian fighters.
• The jet engine deal will take India’s capability in the aircraft industry to a new level, and I think from a U.S. perspective, it will mean jobs. The deal also sends a message to the Chinese that the relationship between India and the U.S. is not just a surface relationship and is getting deeper.
• Addressing India’s dependence on Russian imports, the report added, “Expanding the type and sophistication of the arms the U.S. is willing to sell to India may elevate the U.S. as an alternative to India’s traditional dependence on Russian hardware, particularly amid rising concerns about Russia’s strategic embrace of China, and growing questions about the quality, reliability, and capacity of a Russian defence industrial base increasingly strained by the Ukraine conflict.”

4. PM GATI SHAKTI SCHEME

TAG: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: CII moots that government could share information from portal after blocking out ‘sensitive’ data to facilitate greater private capital investments in infrastructure projects. Industry eyes access to Gati Shakti portal to boost capex in connectivity, allied sectors.

EXPLANATION:

• Industry is hopeful that the government may soon agree to open up access to the PM Gati Shakti portal developed for planning multi-modal infrastructure projects, thus helping facilitate greater private capital investments especially in connectivity projects that are seen as critical to sustain the economy’s momentum.
• Unveiled in October 2021, the PM Gati Shakti digital platform brings together 16 ministries, including Railways and Roadways, so as to spur an integrated and coordinated approach to planning and implementing infrastructure connectivity projects across the country.
• So far, access to portal’s data, which include detailed maps with existing economic and social infrastructure as well as upcoming projects, is restricted to Central and State government agencies and departments.

Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti Scheme:

• The Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti National Master Plan is a central government project, aimed to revolutionise infrastructure in India.
• On October 13, 2021, PM Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti (PMGS) scheme, aimed at breaking inter-ministerial silos and to integrate the planning of infrastructure projects.
• Gati Shakti is one of the four big priorities for the government. “The touchstone of the Gati Shakti master plan will be world-class, modern infrastructure and logistics synergy among different modes of movement of both, people and goods, and location of projects.
• The Gati Shakti national master plan, spruced by seven engines of infrastructure, will go a long way in developing multi-modal network to create world-class infrastructure with full support on planning, financing, innovation and technology.

 How does it work?

• To get the mission going, a centralised portal will be set up to unite the infrastructural initiatives planned and initiated by 16 central ministries and departments, including railways, roads and highways, petroleum and gas, power, telecom, shipping and aviation, etc.
• By putting in place better coordination among these ministries, the Gati Shakti portal, which also aims at a centralised transportation and logistics grid, will enable smoother information flow and expedite project clearance process.
• Large-scale infrastructure projects that will now implimented according to the prescriptions laid in the Gati Shakti master plan include flagship projects like Bharatmala, Sagarmala, UDAAN, expansion of railway network, inland waterways and Bharat Net.
• Also expected to result in employment generations for millions, the Gati Shakti masterplan will work to meet the three basic targets— seamless multimodal connectivity to facilitate easy movement of goods and people; improved prioritisation, optimal usage of resources, timely creation of capacities; and resolution of issues such as disjointed planning, standardisation and clearances.

Gati Shakti mission: Key objective

• With the broad objective of making products manufactured in the country more competitive by cutting down the logistics costs and improving supply chains, the Pradhan Mantri Gati Shakti scheme will help India attract investment from all over the world for improving the infrastructure of the country.
• It begs mention here that logistics and supply chain costs account for around 12% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in India at present.  This is much higher when compared to the global average of 8%.
• Factors that lead to this higher expense are excessive dependence on transportation by road, and under-utilisation of waterways, air and rail networks. Overall, these factors hike rates of Indian produces when compared to other countries, making them less competitive globally.
• The Gati Shakti Plan consolidates infrastructure projects in specific corridors, and will help various ministries plan projects together without getting hampered by the specific/time-consuming approval processes,” Brickwork Ratings said in a note while statting that the pan will be game-changer in the space of infrastructure development.

PM Gati Sghakti plan goals

Mentioned below are the various targets that will be achieved under the Gati Shakti scheme:

*Roadways capacity to be increased with the national highway network to touch the 2 lakh-km mark.

*Aviation will receive a massive boost, with around 200 new airports, heliports and water aerodromes envisioned in the plan.

*Capacity of railways transport cargo to be increased to around 1,600 tonne by FY25

*Ease in the electricity access with the transmission network to be increased to 454,200 circuit km

*Renewable capacity to be increased to 225 GW by FY25.

*Also around 17,000 kms of gas pipelines will be completed in the same year.

*4G connectivity for the villages by FY22

*20 new mega food parks

*11 industrial corridors and two new defence corridors in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh

*202 fishing clusters/harbours/landing centres

5. U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE RATE HIKE CYCLE

TAG: GS 3: ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT: The U.S. Federal Reserve (Fed) recently paused its rate hike cycle by deciding to hold interest rates after ten rate hikes since March 2022. The central bank kept its target for the benchmark federal funds rate between 5% and 5.25% until its next policy meeting. Many analysts, however, expect the Federal Reserve to resume its rate hikes and some even expect the federal funds rate to hit 6% soon.

EXPLANATION:

What does a pause in rate hikes mean?

• Central banks around the world try to steer their economies primarily by targeting interest rates at which lending/borrowing happens in the short-term credit markets.
• For instance, if a central bank wants to lower short-term interest rates, it can enter the market where banks borrow funds for their short-term needs with fresh funds, bid up the price of these loans and thus lower interest rates.
• The fresh money injected into the banking system, in turn, would tend to percolate into the economy and cause prices to rise in the wider economy.
• A central bank can thus use monetary policy to influence prices in the wider economy. And keeping inflation within a certain target range is a major goal of central banks.
• Another policy goal that central banks try to meet along with the inflation target is to keep the economy operating at its full capacity wherein all resources are fully employed. Many economists believe that there is a trade-off between inflation and unemployment. According to this framework, if inflation falls too low, this can cause a rise in unemployment and hence unused capacity.
• So, the agenda of most central banks is to keep inflation up at a certain level at which the economy functions at full capacity. Inflation above a certain level, however, is seen as having no positive effect on economic activity.

Why did the Fed decide to hold rates steady?

• It should be noted that the Fed began raising interest rates after inflation hit multi-decade highs as the U.S. economy slowed down due to the Covid-19 lockdowns and the U.S. central bank responded by flooding the economy with massive amounts of dollars.
• A rapid withdrawal of monetary support can cause prices to undershoot the Fed’s inflation target, something the U.S. central bank may not want.

What lies ahead?

• The Fed’s rate hike pause is no guarantee that there won’t be any future rate hikes in the short term. Other western central banks have continued to raise rates after a pause, and major central banks such as the European Central Bank and the Bank of England continue to raise interest rates as inflation continues to be a challenge in their economies.
• Many economists over the last year or so have been trying to predict a recession in the U.S. without much success. It can only be said that the U.S. Federal Reserve’s actions are likely to be influenced by several factors including inflation, economic growth and political compulsions ahead of the U.S. Presidential elections next year.
• The Fed’s rate hike pause is no guarantee that there won’t be any future rate hikes in the short term. Other western central banks have continued to raise rates after a pause, and major central banks such as the European Central Bank and the Bank of England continue to raise interest rates as inflation continues to be a challenge in their economies.

1. Attitude of selflessness READ MORE
2. Comfortable life and a little progress READ MORE
3. Be conscious of your conscience READ MORE

1. Heat and state: On a heatwave being only one half of the issue READ MORE
2. Extreme weather events led to 12 million displacements of children in 2022, estimates UNICEF READ MORE

1. Caste census needed, but with a plan READ MORE
2. Integration of minds still a challenge READ MORE

1. Rethink the retention of sedition READ MORE
2. Opposition is wrong in resisting UCC. It’s poor politics, runs against Constitution spirit READ MORE
3. The Case for Restorative Justice: A Compassionate Approach to Eradicating Crime READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Assam Rifles plans to secure lifelines of Manipur hills READ MORE  
2. Climate breakdown: the Arctic Ocean could beice-freeby the 2030s READ MORE
3. NaBFID eyes ₹60,000 crore loan book by March 2024 READ MORE
4. Telecom regulator suggests norms for undersea cables READ MORE
5. Childline 1098 to be merged with 112 line in 9 States READ MORE
6. Nearly 2,300 babies adopted in nine months READ MORE
7. Tribal mat art woven into Yoga Day this time READ MORE
8. Hard to restore Internet while blocking social media websites, Manipur tells HC READ MORE
9. Heatwave deaths: Why a heat stroke kills, and how to stay safe READ MORE
10. More robust measures needed to minimise disaster impact in Lake Victoria Basin: Study READ MORE
11. Scientists find link between surges of cosmic radiation from space and earthquakes READ MORE

Main Exam

GS Paper- 1

1. Heat and state: On a heatwave being only one half of the issue READ MORE
2. Extreme weather events led to 12 million displacements of children in 2022, estimates UNICEF READ MORE
3. Caste census needed, but with a plan READ MORE
4. Integration of minds still a challenge READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Rethink the retention of sedition READ MORE
2. Opposition is wrong in resisting UCC. It’s poor politics, runs against Constitution spirit READ MORE
3. The Case for Restorative Justice: A Compassionate Approach to Eradicating Crime READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Finding the indiscernible poor: Community knowledge as a targeting approach READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. More HIT than miss in India-Nepal ties READ MORE
2. PM Modi’s US visit: Why America needs India READ MORE
3. A new chapter in India-US relations READ MORE
4. Holding sway READ MORE
5. US and India need to deal with their trust issues READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. India must recalibrate its chips strategy: For strategic autonomy, the country must acquire indigenous capacity in chip manufacturing READ MORE
2. How India’s telecom sector fares in a 5G world READ MORE
3. Decoding decarbonization READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Strive to achieve Net Zero emission READ MORE
2. Closing the Gap Between Rhetoric and Action at COP28 READ MORE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

1. Phonons on the chopping block: Are ‘sound particles’ quantum too? READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Need to understand data both as a strength and vulnerability READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Shimla in danger: Construction in green belts would be disastrous READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Attitude of selflessness READ MORE
2. Comfortable life and a little progress READ MORE
3. Be conscious of your conscience READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do. Justify.
2. We face many challenges in life and the way we handle them speaks volumes about our character. In the end, our character embodies our values and is the sum of our behaviors. Comment.
3. ‘Values are basic and fundamental beliefs that guide or motivate attitudes or actions’. Argue.
4. Ethics is about creating an environment that supports the expression of ethical values while keeping in check non-ethical values. Discuss.
5. Ethics is not relative to an individual’s desires and beliefs. It is not what one thinks or feels is right or wrong. Justify with suitable example.
6. What do you understand by the concept “ethical legalism? In what situation, an legal action can be considered an ethical action?

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• The cost of a semiconductor chip fabrication plant doubles every four years.
• The national integration of minds depends on the emergence of strong national leaders with the political-intellectual-spiritual capacity to unite people while keeping their rich diversity intact.
• Indian intellectuals, the media, religious ideologues, and the youth should create a conducive environment for the integration of minds with rich diversity.
• A comprehensive analysis incorporating the social costs of environmental damage and climate change disasters reveals that fossil fuel-based energy is costlier than renewable alternatives.
• Tensions over values impose hard constraints on the Indo-US relationship. Unfortunately, the very things we expected would bring us together are now driving us apart.
• Directly or indirectly, the issue of human rights is sure to come up again during Modi’s visit. It is what PM Modi conveys in his address to the US Congress that will indicate what his government’s priorities are.
• Strategic dissonance has been at the core of US-India engagement especially since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the open strategic embrace between Russia and China.
• The global community is urgently required to operate within the environmental limits to keep humanity safe.
• Forest Conservation Amendment Bill 2023 (FCAB) reiterates India’s commitment towards realising ‘Net Zero Emission’ by 2070.
• The desire of the political leadership of the USA-India to build a strong relationship is based on regional, domestic, and strategic factors.
• Repairing the relationship of India and Nepal has been a slow process but the results are now quite visible with a rebuilding of trust

Essay topic

• Take the diplomacy out of war and the thing would fall flat in a week.

50-WORD TALK

• China’s decision to stall United Nations blacklisting of Lashkar-e-Taiba leader Sajid Mir insults the victims of 26/11, and undermines the global effort against terrorism. After years spent claiming he was dead, Pakistan jailed Mir last year to avert international sanctions. There is no explanation for Beijing’s action, bar pure malice.
• Punjab government’s decision to change the rules of appointment of the police chief and the university vice-chancellors is another example of a non-BJP ruled state defying the central government. It also underlines how the fragile federal structure between the centre and the states is breaking down amid growing political mistrust.

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.

[WpProQuiz 492]

THE CONTEXT: With the continuing global risks and uncertainties, the availability of fiscal space with governments has become paramount. In India, particularly when all economic activities had reached a standstill, fiscal policy was instrumental in providing a safety net to the vulnerable, reviving the economy by boosting demand, and addressing certain domestic supply-side constraints through public investments and sustained structural reforms. The Government of India adopted a calibrated fiscal response to the pandemic and planned to withdraw the fiscal stimulus gradually as it moves along the glide path outlined in the Budget FY22.

DEVELOPMENTS IN UNION GOVERNMENT FINANCES

• While India entered the pandemic with a stretched fiscal position, the government’s prudent and calibrated fiscal response enabled stable public finances even amidst the present uncertainties.
• The fiscal deficit of the Union Government, which reached 9.2 per cent of GDP during the pandemic year FY21, has moderated to 6.7 per cent of GDP in FY22 and is further budgeted to reach 6.4 per cent of GDP in FY23.
• This gradual decline in the Union government’s fiscal deficit as a per cent of GDP, in line with the fiscal glide path envisioned by the government, is a result of careful fiscal management supported by buoyant revenue collection over the last two years.

Union Government on track to achieve the Fiscal deficit target for FY23

• The Union Government is well on track to achieve the budget estimate for the fiscal deficit in FY23. The fiscal deficit of the Union Government at the end of November 2022 stood at 58.9 per cent of the BE, lower than the five-year moving average of 104.6 per cent of BE during the same period.

Conservative budget assumptions provide a buffer during global uncertainties

• As an illustration, the Gross Tax Revenue (GTR) to the Centre was envisaged to grow at 9.6 per cent in FY23. Against this implicit (budgeted) growth, the data for the first eight months of the year show that GTR has grown at a much higher rate. The annual estimate of GTR for FY23 is thus expected to overshoot the budget estimates.

Direct taxes propelling the growth in Gross tax revenue

• Direct taxes, which broadly constitute half of the Gross Tax Revenue (Figure III.3), have registered a YoY growth of 26 per cent from April to November 2022, enabled by corporate and personal income tax growth. The growth rates observed in the major direct taxes during the first eight months of FY23 were much higher than their corresponding longer-term averages.

• Customs and Excise duties act as Flexi-fiscal policy tools: The excise duty collection has declined by 20.9 per cent from April to November 2022 on a YoY basis.
• Stabilising Goods and Services Tax yielding returns: The pick-up in GST collections was consistently spread across all the months during the current fiscal year, with an average monthly collection of ₹1.5 lakh crore. Apart from directly supporting government revenues, GST has led to better reporting of income, which in turn has positive externalities for income tax collection and economic activity.

PERFORMANCE OF UNION GOVERNMENT EXPENDITURE

• The government adopted a pragmatic approach of increasing its expenditure in a calibrated way. Upon ensuring the basic safety nets for the vulnerable, the emphasis of the Government expenditure shifted to productive domestic capital expenditure.

• The Government’s thrust on Capital expenditure, particularly in the infrastructure-intensive sectors like roads and highways, railways, and housing and urban affairs, has longer-term implications for growth.

Geopolitical developments stretched the Revenue Expenditure requirements

• Due to the sudden outbreak of geopolitical conflict resulting in higher international prices for food, fertilizer and fuel, there was a higher food and fertilizer subsidy requirement for supporting the people and ensuring macroeconomic stability. Around 94.7 per cent of the budgeted expenditure on subsidies has been utilized from April to November 2022.
• Another major component of revenue expenditure, interest payments, had maintained a stable ratio of non-debt receipts and revenue expenditure during the pre-pandemic years.

OVERVIEW OF STATE GOVERNMENT FINANCES

• State Governments improved their finances in FY22 after being adversely impacted by the pandemic in FY21. The combined Gross Fiscal Deficit (GFD) of the States, which increased to 4.1 per cent of GDP in the pandemic-affected year, was brought down to 2.8 per cent in FY22.
• Given the geopolitical uncertainties, the consolidated GFD-GDP ratio for States has been budgeted 3.4 per cent in FY23.
• However, the States’ monthly fiscal Accounts data released by CAG shows that from April- November 2022, the combined borrowings of the 27 major states have just reached 33.5 per cent of their total budgeted borrowings for the year.

Cooperative fiscal federalism drives a well-targeted fiscal policy

• Transfer of funds to the States comprises the share of States in Union taxes devolved to the States, Finance Commission Grants, Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS), and other transfers. Total transfers to the States have risen between FY19 and FY23.

DEBT PROFILE OF THE GOVERNMENT

• For India, the total liabilities of the Union Government, which were relatively stable as a percentage of GDP over the past decade, witnessed a sharp spike in the pandemic year FY21.
• This spike in debt resulted from the pandemic-induced higher Government borrowings to finance the additional expenditure needs, given the strained revenues and sharp contraction in the GDP.
• Total liabilities of the Union Government moderated from 59.2 per cent of GDP in FY21 to 56.7 per cent in FY22 (P).

• India’s public debt profile is relatively stable and is characterized by low currency and interest rate risks.

THE CONCLUSION: The Government of India has adopted a holistic policy towards fiscal stability in the last few years. Using the crisis as an opportunity to bring about reforms, the government undertook a series of policy measures in the previous few years. The Centre should continue incentivizing the States for reforms and higher capital spending to ensure a stronger General government. The capex-led growth strategy will ensure sustainable debt levels in the medium term.

1. ARE PHONONS, PARTICLES OF SOUND, QUANTUM TOO?

TAG: GS 3: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: Recently, IBM published a paper in which it claimed to have demonstrated that a quantum computer could solve a useful problem that today’s conventional computers can’t, a result merited by concerns that their computations might become too unreliable when they also become complicated .

EXPLANATION:

• One of the two big news items these days from the realm of computing is quantum computers (the other is artificial intelligence).
• Physicists have found that packets of vibrational energy behave like packets of light energy using a new kind of beam-splitter.

Quantum Computing

• The premise of quantum computing is that information can be ‘encoded’ in some property of the particle, like an electron’s spin, and then processed using these peculiar abilities.
• As a result, quantum computers are expected to perform complicated calculations that are out of reach of the best supercomputers today.
• Other forms of quantum computing use other units of information. For example, linear optical quantum computing (LOQC) uses photons, the particles of light, as qubits.
• Just like different pieces of information can be combined and processed by encoding them on electrons and then having the electrons interact in different ways, LOQC offers to use optical equipment like mirrors, lenses, splitters, waveplates, etc.  with photons to process information.
• In fact, any particle that can be controlled and manipulated using quantum-mechanical phenomena should, on paper, be usable as an information unit in a quantum computer.

What are qubits?

• Quantum computers use qubits as their basic units of information.
• A qubit can be a particle like an electron; a collection of particles; or a quantum system engineered to behave like a particle.
• Particles can do funky things that large objects like the semiconductors of classical computers  can’t because they are guided by the rules of quantum physics.
• These rules allow each qubit to have the values ‘on’ and ‘off’ at the same time.

What are phonons?

• Photons are packets of light energy; similarly, phonons are packets of vibrational energy.
• The problem is that researchers can manipulate electrons using electric currents, magnetic fields, etc., and they can manipulate photons with mirrors, lenses, etc.
• In the new study, researchers from the University of Chicago have reported developing an acoustic beam-splitter to manipulate phonos.

What is a beam-splitter?

• Beam-splitters are used widely in optics research.
• Imagine a torchlight shining light along a straight line. This is basically a stream of photons. When a beam-splitter is placed in the light’s path, it will split the beam into two: i.e. it will reflect 50% of the photons to one side and let the other 50% pass straight through.
• While it seems simple, the working of a beam-splitter actually draws on quantum physics. If you shine a million photons at it, it will create two beams, each of 500,000 photons.
• We can then reflect these two beams to intersect each other, creating an interference pattern. But researchers have found that an interference pattern appears even when they shine photons at the beam-splitter one by one.

What are the photons interfering with? The answer is themselves.

• This is because a) particles can also behave like waves, and b) until an observation is made, a quantum system exists in a superposition of all its possible states (like a qubit being partly ‘on’ and partly ‘off’ at the same time).
• So when the single wave interacts with the beam-splitter, it enters a superposition of the two possible outcomes reflected and transmitted. When these states recombine, an interference pattern shows up.

What did the new study do?

• In the new study, the researchers developed an acoustic beam-splitter a tiny device resembling a comb, with 16 metal bars jutting out of it.
• It was placed in the middle of a 2-mm-long channel of lithium niobate. Each end of the channel had a superconducting qubit, a qubit whose circuit components were superconducting that could both emit and detect individual phonons. The whole setup was maintained at an ultra-low temperature.
• If these phonons were converted to sound, their frequency would be too high for humans to hear. Each phonon in the study represented, according to the paper, the “collective” vibration of around one quadrillion atoms.
• The team found that these phonons interacted with the comb just like photons interact with an optical beam-splitter. When a phonon was emitted from the left side of the channel, it was reflected half of the time and transmitted to the right side the other half.
• When phonons were emitted simultaneously from the left and the right sides, they both ended up on one side (as expected)

2. EMERGING MONKEYPOX OUTBREAKS IN ASIA-PACIFIC REGION

TAG:  GS 2: HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: In recent weeks, although overall global cases of mpox have been decreasing, some regions are seeing an increase in reported cases.

EXPLANATION:

• Over a month ago, the World Health Organization declared the Mpox global health emergency over. However, even though cumulative cases across the world continue to decline, there has been an increase in reported cases from some countries, particularly in Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific Region.

What is monkeypox?

• Monkeypox, or mpox, is a viral disease that primarily spread to the human population through zoonotic spillovers, with rodents and primates serving as potential reservoirs.
• Mpox can be transmitted between humans through close contact and exposure to infected bodily fluids or lesions. Sexual contact is also believed to contribute to the spread of the disease particularly among certain demographics.
• Mpox was a rare infection that was predominantly restricted to some countries in Africa until early 2022, when a rise in cases across the globe where the disease was not endemic, particularly in Europe and North America.

Cause for concern

• Mpox being reported from newer territories is worrisome as the disease is potentially expanding its reach through an undetected spread, posing new challenges in its containment efforts.
• The lack of a corresponding surge in reported cases suggests that there may be challenges in accurately capturing and documenting cases in the Middle East, suggesting that there may be challenges in detecting cases in the region.
• This also highlights the need for improved reporting mechanisms to obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the situation in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the African region has also experienced a surge in cases, notably in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Nigeria.
• Genomic surveillance of the monkeypox pathogen allows for contact tracing and monitoring of its evolution.

3. BETELGEUSE

TAG: GS 3: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: The bright, red star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion has shown some unexpected behaviour. In late 2019 and 2020 it became fainter than before at least in records going back more than a century. Briefly it became fainter (just about) than Bellatrix, the third brightest star of Orion. This event became known as the “great dimming”.But Betelgeuse has since become bright again. For a few days this year, it was the brightest star in Orion.

EXPLANATION:

• Stars are, by and large, remarkably stable. They shine with the same brightness year after year. But there are exceptions and some stars dubbed variable stars change in brightness. Most famous is Mira, the “star of wonder”, which was discovered as a variable star by the German pastor David Fabricius in 1596 – it is a pulsating star which regularly expands and contracts.
• Algol is another well known example which is periodically eclipsed by a companion star. There are around 30 such variable stars visible with the naked eye, although it requires care to notice their variation in brightness.
• Betelgeuse, the seventh brightest star in the sky (discounting the Sun), is the brightest of the variable stars. Sometimes Betelgeuse becomes nearly as bright as Rigel (the blue fourth brightest star in the constellation), while at other times it is notably fainter. The variation is caused by pulsations, similar to those of Mira although not as large or as regular.
• Sometimes, however, a star can briefly become extremely bright. The brightest and rarest among those are the supernovae, formed when an entire star ends its life in a powerful explosion.
• Supernovae can be bright enough to be visible during the day, although that has only happened a few times in the past 1,000 years. A nearby, bright supernova is the kind of event astronomers live for but which few of us will ever get to see.

Mysterious behaviour

• Although Betelgeuse is a variable star, the great dimming in 2021 was extreme. Within months, it had in fact dimmed by about 60%. This was eventually shown to be caused by a cloud.
• It is still don’t know what caused the sudden brightening – it is now 50% brighter than usual. But an impending supernova doesn’t seem that likely. In these kinds of stars, a supernova explosion is triggered in the core. Brightness variations, on the other hand, are a surface phenomenon.
• The extreme brightening may in fact be due to the same dust cloud that caused the dimming, now reflecting light from the star towards us and making it appear brighter.
• Betelgeuse is about 15- to 20-times more massive than the Sun, and stars of this mass are expected to end their lives in a powerful explosion known as a supernova. Betelgeuse’s red colour shows it is a red supergiant, meaning it’s already approaching the end of its life.
• But that end may still be a million years away. Stars like Betelgeuse can live in excess of 10 million years – a very brief period to astronomers, but a very long time to anyone else.

Explosion dynamics

• If Betelgeuse does go supernova, there would be detect a rain of massless particles called neutrinos, which would be harmless. After that, the star would quickly brighten.
• After one or two weeks it would shine with about the same brightness as the full Moon. Betelgeuse would then fade over the next several months but remain visible in the day time for six to 12 months.

Is there any danger to us?

• Supernovae produce high energy particles called cosmic rays, which can get past the shield of the earth’s magnetic field. But the amounts would be small compared to other radiation we receive for all but the nearest supernovae.
• A supernova explosion would also create radioactive iron. In fact this substance has been found in the earth’s seabed and on the Moon, believed to have formed in a supernova explosion between 2 and 3 million years ago. That supernova was perhaps 300 light-years from us, closer than Betelgeuse, but far enough to cause no major problems for life on the earth.
• A very close supernova, closer than 30 light-years, could cause major problems as the cosmic rays could cause ozone destruction and dangerous UV levels on the earth. It could reduce ozone by half over a period lasting hundred to thousands of years: this level is considered capable of causing an extinction event. But such a close supernova would be very rare, and may happen only once per billion years.

4. ROOTS OF INDIA’S ANAEMIA PROBLEM

TAG: GS 2: HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: New Diet and Biomarker Survey(DABS) trace the roots of anaemia problems looks at nutritional profiles and biomarkers, and may put ‘anaemia back to the dietary deficiency position, which is not always the case’.

EXPLANATION:

• The Union Health Ministry is rethinking how it takes stock of anaemia across the country. Anaemia’s prevalence will be tracked using the new Diet and Biomarkers Survey (DABS), launched in December 2022 by the National Institute of Nutrition, which will “map the diet, nutrition and health status and provide a correct estimate of anaemia among urban and rural population using state-of-the-art techniques.
• The NFHS is a nationally representative survey providing granular data at the State and district levels. NFHS-5 conducted between 2019-21 showed an “inexplicable” jump in anaemia levels across all age groups as more Indians were anaemic than ever before, with at least 67% of children having anaemia as compared
• World Bank data shows one in two Indian women is anaemic, 20% higher than the world average.

All about anaemia

• Anaemia is linked to insufficient healthy red cells (haemoglobin) that carry oxygen in the body.
• Reasons for anaemia include iron deficiency, deficiencies in folate, Vitamin B12, Vitamin A, chronic conditions such as diabetes or inherited genetic disorders.
• There are several documented types of anaemia, with some being: aplastic anaemia; iron deficiency anaemia; sickle cell anaemia; thalassemia; vitamin deficiency anaemia.
• Anaemia extracts a significant physical and emotional toll, causing fatigue, heart problems, pregnancy complications and life threatening consequences due to chronic anaemia.
• Studies have also mapped the intangible social and economic burden, with people reporting lost productivity and schooling due to fatigue.
• India has recognised anaemia as a public health challenge, launching the Anaemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) strategy in 2018, aiming to provide supplementation to the last mile, raise awareness levels and improve diagnostics.
• In the Union Budget 2023, Finance Minister announced plans to create awareness of sickle cell anaemia, with universal screening of seven crore people in the age group of 0-40 years in affected tribal areas.
• Other government schemes, including the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), National Nutritional Anaemia Prophylaxis Programme (NNAPP) and Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan, also list addressing anaemia as a challenge.
• Evidence shows India has increased the iron and folic acid (ICA) supplement coverage for all age groups steadily. However, challenges run parallel to these initiatives: including a lack of awareness about anaemia causes, undernourishment since birth, resistance to and information gap around iron-folic acid (ICA) tablets, cultural biases that fuel a lack of agency, and deficient health interventions that don’t reach the last mile.

The opportunities and challenges with DABS

• The Diet and Biomarkers Survey-I, for which the questionnaire is available online, will be conducted by the National Institution of Nutrition along with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
• It will be the first reflection of “nutrient-composition data” on cooked and uncooked food across India, which can help develop interventions to tackle public health issues like obesity.
• DABS may offer more accurate, macro-level figures since it uses the venous blood sampling method. Venous blood sampling is considered the “gold standard” for anaemia diagnosis. A biomarker survey overcomes the limitations of questionnaires that rely on self-reported dietary intake measurements, which can often be biased, and instead more precisely “identify persons with specific dietary deficiency” in support of medical treatment, evidence shows.
• A biomarker test for anaemia can be used to analyse levels of folate, iron, vitamin B12, copper and zinc in the body, helping trace the cause of anaemia.
• Moreover, DABS also links a person’s nutrition profile with anaemia, providing a more comprehensive picture. The survey form includes questions at the household level, about the food and groceries, type of drinking water, cooking fuel, education status, religion and community details.
• What is unclear as of now is the list of biomarkers that will be assessed or how the data will be disaggregated and used for health interventions.
• However, the sample size for DABS is restricted to 1.8 lakh people (as opposed to NFHS’s 6.1 lakh). Venous blood testing requires trained personnel who are equipped to draw blood, which restricts the scale of the survey. Studies show “most population‐based surveys use point‐of‐care diagnostics and capillary blood” because it allows for testing more people.
• Sickle cell anaemia, for instance, is concentrated in tribal belts and areas that historically have a high malaria burden. Central government-funded schemes such as the public distribution system (PDS) or PM-Poshan (mid-day meals), focusing on iron supplementation, can cause adverse health issues among these communities, activists warned last year.

Anatomy of an anaemia survey

• Experts argue for filling more data gaps in the clinical and social understanding of anaemia. Both DABS and NFHS link anaemia to a haemoglobin deficiency, but assessment should ideally go beyond haemoglobin cut-offs and iron deficiencies.
• Diverse causes of anaemia, including hemoglobinopathy, inherited genetic disorders and vitamin deficiencies, are often overlooked but still require district-level screening and diagnosis. This skews health interventions whether through tablets or iron fortification, all of our interventions towards anaemia currently are focused on pumping iron.
• Moreover, since anaemia affects more women globally, a gendered lens to disease mapping is needed for targeted interventions. It is known that inequitable gender norms exacerbate anaemia cases among women systemic disregard for women’s health, unequal food allocation or lack of financial autonomy to seek healthcare shape a district’s anaemia profile.
• A comprehensive dataset can map other common causes of anaemia (beyond iron deficiency), and demographic- and region-specific burden, which can help calibrate targeted interventions that account for gender, caste, class and other socio-economic markers.

5. CONTENTION BETWEEN COAL INDIA AND Competition Commission of India (CCI)

TAG: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Supreme Court held that there was “no merit” in Coal India Ltd (CIL), a public sector undertaking, being excluded from the purview of the Competition Act. The Court was hearing the PSU’s appeal against the Competition Appellate Tribunal’s order which alleged the former of abusing its position.

EXPLANATION:

What was the case about?

• In March 2017, Competition Commission of India (CCI) had imposed a penalty of ₹591.01 crore on CIL for imposing unfair/discriminatory conditions in fuel supply agreements (FSAs) with the power producers for supply of non-coking coal.
• In other words, CIL was found to be supplying lower quality of the essential resource at higher prices and placing opaque conditions in the contract about supply parameters and quality.
• The regulator contended that Coal India and its subsidiaries operated independently of market forces and enjoyed market dominance in the relevant market with respect to production and supply of non-coking coal in India.

What did the PSU argue in court?

• Coal India argued that it operated with the principles of ‘common good’ and ensuring equitable distribution of the essential natural resource. With this objective, it was secured as a ‘monopoly’ under the Nationalisation Act, 1973 (more specifically, the Coal Mines (Nationalisation) Act, 1973).
• The entity said that it may have to adhere to a differential pricing mechanism to encourage captive coal production (referring to mines that are handed over to companies for specific and exclusive use through lease or any other route).
• Differential pricing, which may be inconsistent with market principles, was to ensure the viability of the larger operating ecosystem as well as for pursuing welfare objectives.

How did the CCI respond?

• The respondents broadened the scope of the arguments. The Raghavan Committee (2020) report, put up for perusal by the respondents, had observed that state monopolies were not conducive to the best interests of the nation.
• They could not be allowed to operate in a state of inefficiency and should instead, operate amid competition. Furthermore, coal ceased to be an ‘essential commodity’ in February 2007 and the Nationalisation Act too was removed from the Ninth Schedule (laws that cannot be challenged in court) in 2017.
• It was also pointed out that Coal India was a fully-government owned entity until the disinvestment in 2010. The government’s shareholding reduced to 67% with the rest held by private hands.
• Moreover, it was stated that the CIL directed 80% of its supplies to power companies. The latter would then pass power generated using coal to discoms (distribution companies), who, in turn, would supply power to the final consumer.
• The continual supply of coal, adherence to the contract, reasonableness in the rates and quality of coal also serve a common good, the respondents contended. Coal constitutes about 60 to 70% of the costs for power generation companies. Thus, irregular prices and supply will have a significant bearing indirectly on consumers.

What were the SC’s observations?

• The court said there was “no merit” in the argument that the Competition Act would not apply to CIL because they are governed by the Nationalisation Act, and it cannot be reconciled with the Competition Act.
• “The novel idea which permeates the Act, would stand frustrated, in fact, if the state monopolies, the government companies and public sector units are left free to contravene the (competition) act,” it stated. Separately, it said that entities cannot act with caprice, treat unfairly otherwise or similarly situated entities with discrimination.
• The judgment reinforced the principle of “competitive neutrality” entailing that the Competition Act equally applies to public and private sector enterprises.
• “Government companies, across sectors, which may be dominant in their sector of operation, would have to conduct business in a fair and non-discriminatory manner so as to not fall foul of the principles of antitrust law. This allows for a level playing field between public sector and private enterprises operating in India.

COAL INDIA LIMITED

• Coal India Limited (CIL) is an Indian central public sector undertaking under the ownership of the Ministry of Coal, Government of India. It is headquartered at Kolkata. It is the largest government-owned-coal-producer in the world
• CIL have now 8 subsidiaries viz. Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), Central Coalfields Limited (CCL), Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL), Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), South Eastern Coalfields Limited (SECL), Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL), Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) and Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI).
• The CMPDI is an engineering, design and exploration company set up for preparing perspective plan(s), rendering consultancy services and undertaking exploration and drilling work to establish coal reserves in the country and collection of detailed data for preparation of projects for actual mining. The other seven subsidiaries of CIL are coal producing companies.
• CIL and its subsidiaries are incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 and are wholly owned by the Central Government. The coal mines in Assam and its neighbouring areas are controlled directly by CIL under the unit North Eastern Coalfields.

 COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA (CCI)

• The Competition Act, 2002 was passed by the Parliament in the year 2002, to which the President accorded assent in January, 2003. It was subsequently amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007.
• In accordance with the provisions of the Amendment Act, the Competition Commission of India and the Competition Appellate Tribunal have been established. The Competition Commission of India is now fully functional with a Chairperson and six members. The provisions of the Competition Act relating to anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominant position were notified on May 20, 2009.
• The Competition Commission of India (‘Commission’) has been established to enforce the competition law under the Act. The Commission consists of a Chairperson and not more than 6 Members appointed by the Central Government.
• It is the statutory duty of the Commission to eliminate practices having adverse effect on competition, promote and sustain competition, protect the interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade carried on by other participants, in markets in India as provided in the Preamble as well as Section 18 of the Act.
• The Commission is also mandated to give its opinion on competition issues to government or statutory authority and to undertake competition advocacy for creating awareness of competition law.