INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

 1. NINE NEW SUPREME COURT JUDGES TAKE OATH

THE CONTEXT: Chief Justice of India N V Ramana administered the oath of office to the new judges in a swearing-in ceremony held in the auditorium of the Supreme Court’s additional building complex. 

ANALYSIS:

• It is for the first time in the history of the apex court that nine judges took oath of office at one going.
• With the swearing-in of the nine new judges, the strength of the Supreme Court has now risen to 33, including the CJI, out of the sanctioned strength of 34.
• The government’s nod to appoint nine judges comes a week after the Supreme Court collegium, ending a nearly two-year-long impasse, sent its recommendations.
• Justice Oka will be the most senior among the nine judges.
• Others in the list include, in order of seniority, Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Vikram Nath, Sikkim High Court Chief Justice J K Maheshwari, Telangana High Court Chief Justice Hima Kohli, Karnataka High Court judge Justice B V Nagarathna, Justice C T Ravikumar of Kerala High Court, Justice M M Sundaresh of Madras High Court, Justice Bela Trivedi of Gujarat High Court, and senior advocate P S Narasimha.
• Justices Nath, Nagarathna and senior advocate Narasimha will join the line of succession for the office of the CJI. While Justice Nath and Narasimha are likely to have tenure of just over six months, the expected first woman CJI is likely to have a relatively short tenure of just over a month.
• With the additions, the apex court will have four women judges for the first time — Justices Nagarathna, Kohli and Trivedi, besides Justice Indira Banerjee, the only woman judge in SC at present.

Reference: Indian express

2. NATIONAL PARTIES COLLECTED OVER ₹3,370 CRORE FROM FROM UNKNOWN SOURCES

THE CONTEXT: According to poll rights group Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), National parties collected 3,377.41 crore rupees from unknown sources in the 2019-20 financial year, which was 70.98% of the total income of these parties.

ANALYSIS:

• In a new report, the ADR said that the BJP declared ₹2,642.63 crore as income from unknown sources, the highest among the national parties, which also include the Congress, the NCP, the CPI, the CPI(M), the TMC and the BSP.
• The Congress declared ₹526 crore as income from unknown sources which is 15.57% of the total income of the national parties from unknown sources.
• National parties collected ₹3,377.41 crore from unknown sources in the financial year 2019-20, which is 70.98% of the total income of the parties. Out of the ₹3,377.41 crore as income from unknown sources, share of income from Electoral Bonds was ₹2,993.826 crore or 88.643%.
• Between 2004-05 and 2019-20, the national parties collected ₹14,651.53 crore from unknown sources.
• Unknown sources are income declared in income tax returns, but without giving source of income for donations below ₹20,000. Such unknown sources include ‘donations through Electoral Bonds’, ‘sale of coupons’, ‘relief fund’, ‘miscellaneous income’, ‘voluntary contributions’, ‘contribution from meetings/morchas’.
• The details of donors of such as voluntary contributions are not available in the public domain.
• The ADR recommended that scrutiny of financial documents submitted by political parties should be conducted annually by a body approved by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and the Election Commission of India to increase transparency and accountability of political parties with respect to their funding.

Reference: The Hindu

3. FAMILIES OF MILITANT RECRUITS OFFERED AN OLIVE BRANCH

THE CONTEXT: Top Army and police officers held a conversation-cum-counselling session with around 80 families of militant recruits in south Kashmir in a bid to initiate their safe return to the mainstream.

ANALYSIS

• These families whom we met were asked to convince their children [newly-recruited terrorists] to return to the mainstream. We made an earnest appeal to them.
• The Army promised to offer all assistance if the youths intend to lay down their arms.
• The Army said the interaction was intended to instill confidence and convey the intent of the security forces, among the families of active terrorists.
• According to the police figures, militant recruitment has shown no let-up since the Centre ended J&K’s special constitutional position on August 5, 2019.
• A total of 167 youths were recruited by militants in 2020 and 88 have been recruited this year so far.

Reference: The Hindu

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. MECHANIZED SCAVENGING SYSTEM

THE CONTEXT: CSIR-CMERI is developing a Mechanized Scavenging System, which was initiated after intensive studies of the diverse nature of Indian Sewerage Systems and the manner of its chokages.

ANALYSIS:

• The technology is Modular in design so as to ensure customised deployment strategies as per situational requirements.
• The System also focuses upon Sustainable Usage of resource i.e. Water as the System sucks in Slurry Water from the choked Sewerage Systems and after adequate filtration of the same redirects the same for Clearing of Chokages using Self-Propelling Nozzle.
• CSIR-CMERI technology provides in-situ option for Mechanized Scavenging as well as purification of Water. The design of the Technology is such that the Water Filtration Mechanism may be changed/modified as per the customised needs/requirements with the ability to change/redesign the Filter Media.
• The Vehicle-mounted Filtration Units will be able to augment and use Water from Surface Drain and Flooded Areas and purify it into Water suitable for Agricultural, Household and Drinking Water usages.
• The Drinking Water Scarcity prevalent in Flood-Affected regions can be solved to a certain by providing instantaneous and in-situ Water Purification solutions at ease. This provides a consolidated Technology Solution in a Flood-Affected region as it will be able to clear Drainage Chokages in flood-affected regions, which will help in providing an outlet for flood stagnated Water, as well as provide Water Purification solutions in Flood Disaster Zones.

Reference: PIB

INDIAN ECONOMY

5. ECONOMY GROWS 20.1% IN Q1 FY22

THE CONTEXT: As per the provisional estimates of GDP released by the MoSPI, India GDP Q1 Data: India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the April-June quarter (Q1) of the ongoing financial year 2021-22 (FY22) grew by 20.1 per cent.

ANALYSIS:

• The GVA at basic prices during Q1 of FY22 was 8 per cent, against (-)22.4 per cent in the corresponding quarter year ago
• The sharp rise in Q1 GDP data can be mainly attributed to a low base last year. The Indian economy had contracted by a record (-)24.4 per cent in the corresponding quarter last year owing to the impact of the nationwide lockdown that was imposed to curb the transmission of the Covid-19, which brought all non-essential activities to a halt.
• A recent Reuterspoll of 41 economists showed gross domestic product rose 20.0 per cent in the three-month period ended June.
• Separately, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its monetary policy committee meeting earlier this month had projected the Q1 GDP to grow at 21.4 per cent.
• In value terms, the GDP stood at Rs 32,38,020 crore in Q1 FY22, higher than Rs 26,95,421 crore in corresponding period of FY21 but lower than Rs 35,66,708 crore in Q1 FY20.
• In the first quarter, the manufacturing sector, rose by 49.6 per cent against a contraction of (-)36 per cent a year ago, while the construction sector grew at 68.3 per cent in Q1 FY22 vs. (-)49.5 per cent a year ago.
• The sector of trade, hotels, transport, communication & services related to broadcasting gained 34.3 per cent against a contraction of (-) 48.1 per cent.
• Apart from this, the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector which had grown at 3.5 per cent in the corresponding quarter last year grew 4.5 per cent in Q1 FY22.
• Electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services segment grew by 14.3 per cent in the first quarter of this fiscal, against a 9.9 per cent contraction a year ago.
• The financial, real estate and professional services grew by 3.7 per cent in Q1 FY22 compared to a contraction of (-)5.0 per cent, while public administration, defence and other services grew at 5.8 per cent, compared to (-)10.2 per cent a year earlier.

6. INDEX OF EIGHT CORE INDUSTRIES FOR JULY 2021

THE CONTEXT:  The Office of Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is released Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) for the Month of July, 2021.

ANALYSIS:

• ICI measures combined and individual performance of production in selected eight core industries viz. Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity.
• The Eight Core Industries comprise 40.27 percent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
• The combined Index of Eight Core Industries stood at 134.0 in July 2021, which increased by 9.4 per cent (provisional) as compared to the Index of July 2020. The production of Coal, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity industries increased in July 2021 over the corresponding period of last year.

SOURCE: IE

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. INDIA OFFICIALLY TALKS TO TALIBAN

THE CONTEXT:  In the first official contact with Taliban, Indian envoy to Qatar Deepak Mittal met Taliban leader Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai at the Indian Embassy.

ANALYSIS:

• It said that the discussions focused on safety, security and early return of Indian nationals stranded in Afghanistan. The travel of Afghan nationals, especially minorities who wish to visit India, also came up.
• Ambassador Mittal raised India’s concern that Afghanistan’s soil should not be used for anti-Indian activities and terrorism in any manner.
• The Taliban Representative assured the Ambassador that these issues would be positively addressed.
• This came at a time when in view of the evolving situation in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently directed that a high-level group comprising External affairs minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval and senior officials focus on the immediate priorities of India.
• This group has been meeting regularly over the past few days. It is seized of issues pertaining to the safe return of stranded Indians, the travel of Afghan nationals (especially minorities) to India, and ensuring that Afghanistan territory is not used for terrorism directed against India.
• The group has also been monitoring the ground situation in Afghanistan and international reactions, including the Resolution passed by the UN Security Council.

SOURCE: IE

8. UNSC RESOLUTION ON TALIBAN

THE CONTEXT: The United Nations Security Council under India’s presidency passed the Resolution that reminded Taliban to stand by its commitment to prevent international terrorism.

ANALYSIS:

• Resolution 2593 of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) addresses India’s major concerns on Afghanistan at this time.
• The observation came hours after the UNSC under India’s presidency passed the Resolution that reminded Taliban to stand by its commitment to prevent international terrorism but left the P-5 countries divided over the issue.
• The Resolution failed to get consensus support from all the permanent members of the UNSC. Russia and China abstained during the voting over the draft saying it divided the approach to the Afghan crisis.
• Russian representative at the UNSC pointed out that the author of the draft resolution, that is the U.S., has divided terrorists in Afghanistan into “ours and theirs” indicating at a changing stance of the U.S. towards the Taliban and its allied Haqqani Network which has in the past attacked both American and Indian targets in Afghanistan.
• Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, representing India at the UNSC highlighted the role of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed and said that these outfits should be “called out and condemned” without referring to the Haqqani Network that is likely to come up at the Taliban Sanctions Committee for a discussion among the members for possible delisting.
• The Indian diplomatic team at the U.N. tried to build consensus and reached out to “high-level official contacts” on all sides. The draft resolution called upon the Taliban to stand by its commitment to stop any terrorist activity from originating from the territory of Afghanistan.
• Sources said that a high-level group consisting of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and senior officials are focused on ensuring evacuation of stranded Indians from Afghanistan and also airlifting of religious minority groups from Kabul.

SOURCE: TH

9. MEDICAL SUPPLIES TO BANGLADESH

THE CONTEXT: Indian Navy’s Offshore Patrol Vessel INS Savitri departed Visakhapatnam and is enroute to Chittagong, Bangladesh to support the ongoing efforts of the Bangladesh military and government agencies in combating the ongoing wave of the Covid pandemic in their country.

ANALYSIS:

• The ship will arrive on 02 September carrying two 960 LPM Medical Oxygen Plants (MOP), one each for Bangladesh Navy and Dhaka Medical College.
• INS Savitri, is an indigenously built Offshore Patrol Vessel of the Indian Navy under the Eastern Naval Command based at Visakhapatnam. As part of the Government of India’s vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), the Indian Navy has been proactively engaging with countries in the region and has been at the forefront of numerous humanitarian missions spanning the entire extent of the Indian Ocean including South/ South East Asia and East Africa.
• Earlier, Indian Naval Ship Shakti had transported 100 T of LMO to Colombo, Sri Lanka, whilst INS Airavat is currently on a deployment to South East Asia for trans-shipment of medical aid to Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand.
• India and Bangladesh have a close, long-standing relationship covering a wide spectrum of activities and interactions, which has strengthened over the years.
• The people of India and Bangladesh also share close cultural bonds and a shared vision of democratic society and a rules-based order.

SOURCE: PIB

10. CONCERN RISES OVER AFGHANISTAN’S SAARC MEMBERSHIP

THE CONTEXT: With uncertainty hanging over the international representation of Afghanistan under the Taliban, a question has risen over its membership in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), which is scheduled to meet next in Islamabad.

ANALYSIS:

• Veteran diplomats here observed that the fate of Afghanistan’s membership, and even the future of SAARC to some extent, depends on the Taliban creating an inclusive government.
• Afghanistan was admitted into the SAARC as the eighth member in 2007.

ABOUT SAARC

• It was established with signing of SAARC Charter in Dhaka in 1985.
• Its secretariat is in Kathmandu, Nepal.
• It objective is to promote the welfare of the people of South Asia and to improve their quality of life, and to accelerate economic growth, territorial integrity, mutual trust and benefit etc.
• Eight members: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
• Highest decision-making authority: Summit level Meetings of the Heads of State or Government of Member States.
• South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA), the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) of SAARC, came into force in 2006.
• India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Nepal are five common countries in SAARC as well as BIMSTEC groupings.

Reference: The Hindu

Q1.  Consider the following statements:

1. SAARC was established in 1985.
2. Its headquarter is located in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
3. Afghanistan is not a member of SAARC.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 1 and 2
3. 3 only
4. 1 and 3

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 31, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: d)

Explanation:

• UNEP hosts the secretariats of several multilateral environmental agreements and research bodies, including CBD, the Minamata Convention on Mercury, CMS and CITES.

Q.2 Answer: a)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The Malabar rebellion, also known as the Moplah rebellion, was an armed revolt staged by the Mappila Muslims of Kerala in 1921.
• Statement 2 is correct: Mappilas were Muslim peasant community in Malabar region.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: The Moplah tenants agitated against the Hindu landlords (locally referred to as janmi) and the British government.

[WpProQuiz 35]

THE CONTEXT: Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 was passed by both the Houses recently which seeks to amend FCRA,2010. It seeks to regulate the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution by individuals, associations and companies. In this article, let us try to understand the key amendments and the associated problems regarding it along with possible suggestions.

Amendments under Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020

Acceptance of Foreign Contribution

• FCRA Act, 2010 prohibits acceptance of foreign contribution by certain persons such as election candidate, editor or publisher of a newspaper, judge, government servant, MPs and MLAs, judges and political parties among others
•  FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020 adds public servants ( as defined by IPC) to this list. He is any person who is in service or pay of the government, remunerated by the government for the performance of public duty.

Transfer of foreign contribution

• A person cannot transfer foreign contribution to any other person unless such persons is also registered to accept under FCRA act 2010
• FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020 prohibits to transfer of foreign contribution to any other person I.e. individual, association or registered company

Aadhar for Registration

• Under FCRA Act, 2010 , a person may accept foreign contribution if they have:
  1. Obtained a certificate of registration from central government or
  2.  Not registered, but obtained prior permission from the government to accept foreign contribution.
• Under FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020, now, any person seeking prior permission, registration or renewal of registration must provide the Aadhaar number of all its office bearers, directors or key functionaries, as an identification document.  In case of a foreigner, they must provide a copy of the passport or the Overseas Citizen of India card for identification.

FCRA Account

• Presently, a person must accept foreign contribution only in a single branch of a scheduled bank specified by them.  However, they may open more accounts in other banks for utilisation of the contribution.
  1. Foreign contribution can be received only in an account designated by the bank as “FCRA account” in such branch of the State Bank of India, New Delhi, as notified by the central government.
  2. No funds other than the foreign contribution should be received or deposited in this account.  As per FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020,
  3. The person may open another FCRA account in any scheduled bank of their choice for keeping or utilising the received contribution.

Restriction in utilisation of Foreign Contributions

• Under FCRA Act, 2010 If a person is found violating any provision of FCRA, the unutilised or unreceived foreign contribution may be utilised or received, only with the prior approval of the central government.
• Now, as per the current bill, the government can also restrict usage of unutilised foreign contribution for persons who have been granted prior permission to receive such contribution. It can be done, based on a summary inquiry and any other inquiry which makes government believe that such person has contravened the Act.

Renewal of License

• As per Under FCRA Act, 2010, License needs to be renewed within six months of expiration
• According to FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020, Now the government can conduct an inquiry before renewing the certificate to ensure that person applying for it is-

1. Not fictitious or benami.
2. Is not prosecuted or convicted for creating communal tensions or indulging in activities aimed at religious conversion
3. Guilty of diversion or misutilisation of funds.

Restriction in use of foreign contribution for administrative purposes

• Under FCRA Act, 2010, not more than 50% can be used for administrative expenses but as per the current bill, it reduces it to 20%.

Surrender of Certificate

• FCRA (Amendment) Bill 2020 adds a provision allowing the Central government to permit a person to surrender their registration certificate based on an inquiry but such provision is not available under FCRA Act, 2010

Suspension of Registration

• Under FCRA Act, 2010, a registration of a person can be suspended for period not exceeding 180 days.
• The Bill adds that such suspension may be extended up to an additional 180 days.

Necessity of FCRA

1. International Learning : As per a study by University of Iowa, India has disproportionately high number of foreign funded NGOs. Other outliers were Egypt and Iraq which later suffered from anarchy and upheaval. Thus, to maintain our integrity, it is necessary to regulate these NGOs.
2. NTU Singapore study : The study showed that foreign interference, foreign influence, soft power and hostile information campaigns are used by NGOs to impact the unity and integrity of nations and highlights the importance of regulating them.
3. IB Report :An IB report highlighted how FCRA funds were being diverted towards scuttling developmental projects in the power, mining, agricultural and industrial sectors. The modus operandi includes  disguised money flows, staged protests and PR hit jobs against specific projects.
4. Poverty Porn :Pictures of hungry African children and distraught rural women are used to raise funds, which are then diverted for business-class travel, five-star dinners and jamborees for NGO staff.
5. High Staff Pay : The donations to organisations like Amnesty International are provided to save democracy and protect human rights. Instead, they are used to pay former executive high severance pay in the
6. Industry-NGO nexus : Industries are running their own NGOs which are at times used to promote their product in the garb of welfare.

SYNGENTA CASE

Switzerland based agrochemical giant Syngenta runs a foundation in India for transforming Indian agriculture. Emamectin Benzoate used to be imported and sold at Rs 10,000 per kg by Syngenta NGO, was later manufactured by domestic companies and sold at Rs 300/kg. Thus, Industry promoted its product through its NGO not for welfare but to increase its own profit.

Problems under FCRA Amendment Bill

1. Legislative Scrutiny :The bill got passed by both the Houses of the Parliament without any real deliberation and thus is seen as a legislative action that intends to silence civil society.
2. Meaning of Democracy : The bill proposes a flawed understanding of democracy which reduces it to electoral democracy and any other form of democratic action is seen with suspicion and as illegitimate.
3. Lack of data : The Bill fails to elaborate on the necessity of amendment. It has no data to showcase lack of accountability or regulation of the already heavily regulated NGO sector.
4. Restriction on distribution of funds :The amendment stops distribution of funds to other bodies including FCRA registered bodies. It fails to understand the structure of NGOs where a big and capable NGO raises funds and then distributes it to small organisation which lack capacity to raise foreign funds on their own.
5. Restriction of Administrative Expenses to 20% : The expense of any NGO that works on research, advocacy, capacity building, networking, model building for social innovations etc. are mostly administrative expenses. These same NGOs seek accountability from government and thus restriction fo fund use over 20% will throttle civil society.
6. Bank account to be opened in SBI Delhi Branch : When all the commercial banks are connected through Core Banking solutions, the insistence on a SBI Delhi Branch shows unprecedented centralisation.
7. Power of Investigation :The enhancement of power of the investigative officers and government officials in the name of inquiry do away with time bound investigations which were in earlier amendment.

WAY FORWARD

1. Institutionalised Transparency and Accountability : NGOs need to be transparent and accountable in their own conduct if they seek to ensure transparency and accountability from the government.
2. Regulation : NGOs need to be regulated and an Industry led NGO should not be allowed to work in the same or allied sector as that of the parent company. This will stop Industry-NGO nexus and allow real philanthropic bodies to start NGOs.
3. Macro-management : Government needs to macro-manage the sector and not micro-manage the working of NGOs. Regulation should not lead to silencing the functioning of bodies.
4. Independent Directors : Similar to Companies, NGOs should also have independent directors which are not motivated by profits and thus provide an independent voice of conscience to the NGOs.
5. Time-bound Inquiry and permissions : Any inquiry and permissions that have to be provided by the government need to be time bound and all remarks should be noted down in written with attached evidences.

CONCLUSION:

NGOs are the third tier of Governance and play an important role in ensuring development of people and the nation. However, it is also true that some of the NGOs have been utilised by people with vested interests against the unity and integrity of nations. Thus, it is pertinent that NGOs should be regulated by the government while at the same time ensuring that their voice is not stifled and their survival is threatened. A proper balance between these two needs to be maintained for ensuring growth of nation and development of citizens.

Questions to Ponder

1. “NGOs are dangerous. They do what the missionaries used to do in Colonial times. They are trojan horses. The worse the situations, the more the NGOs” ‐ Arundhati Roy. Comment.

2. Critically analyse the FCRA Amendment Bill, 2020 while enumerating its salient features.

ART AND CULTURE

1. PASHMINA SHAWLS

THE CONTEXT: New initiative in J&K to restore lost glory of Pashmina shawls. Plans are afoot to re-engage women artisans in critical production process by doubling wages and announcing MSPs for GI-certified products.

ABOUT PASHMINA

• Pashmina refers to a fine variant of spun cashmere, the animal-hair fibre forming the downy undercoat of the Changthangi goat.
• Both generic cashmere and pashmina come from the same goat, but generic cashmere ranges from 12 to 21 microns in diameter, whereas pashmina refers only to those fibres that range from 12 to 16 microns.
• Goats naturally shed their undercoat, which regrows in winter. This undercoat is collected by combing goat, not by shearing, as in other fine wools.
• Traditional producers of pashmina wool in the Ladakh region of the Himalayas are a people known as the Changpa. These are a nomadic people and inhabit the Changthang plateau of Tibet.
• Raw pashmina is exported to Kashmir.

Reference: The Hindu

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

2. WHAT HAS THE SUPREME COURT RULED ON ‘CREAMY LAYER’?

THE CONTEXT: On August 24, the Supreme Court observed that economic criterion cannot be the sole basis for identifying the ‘creamy layer’ of a backward class, and that other factors like social advancement, education, employment, too, matter. The judgment came on a writ petition filed by a group from Haryana, the Pichra Warg Kalyan Mahasabha, challenging two notifications issued by the State government in 2016 and 2018, under the Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Act, 2016.

WHAT WERE THE NOTIFICATIONS?

• The 2016 notification identified as ‘creamy layer’ backward class members whose gross annual income exceeded ₹6 lakh. It said backward class sections whose families earn less than ₹3 lakh would get priority over their counterparts who earn more than ₹3 lakh but less than ₹6 lakh.
• The Supreme Court struck down the notifications as a “flagrant violation” of the 2016 Act. It said Section 5 (2) of the Act required the State to consider social, economic and other factors together to identify and exclude backward class members as ‘creamy layer’.

WHO BELONGS TO THE ‘CREAMY LAYER’?

• The ‘creamy layer’ concept was introduced in the Supreme Court’s Indra Sawhney judgment, delivered by a nine-judge Bench on November 16, 1992. Though it upheld the government’s decision based on the Mandal Commission’s report to give 27% reservation to Other Backward Classes, the court found it necessary to identify sections of backward classes who were already “highly advanced socially as well as economically and educationally”.
• The court believed that these wealthy and advanced members form the ‘creamy layer’ among backward classes. The judgment directed the State governments to identify the ‘creamy layer’ and exclude them from the purview of reservation.
• However, certain States like Kerala did not promptly implement the judgment. This led to the Indra Sawhney-II case, reported in 2000.
• In this, the court went to the extent of determining the ‘creamy layer’ among backward classes. The judgment held that persons from backward classes who occupied posts in higher services such as IAS, IPS and All India Services had reached a higher level of social advancement and economic status, and therefore, were not entitled to be treated as backward. Such persons were to be treated as ‘creamy layer’ without any further inquiry. Likewise, people with sufficient income who were in a position to provide employment to others should also be taken to have reached a higher social status and treated as “outside the backward class”.
• Other categories included persons with higher agricultural holdings or income from property. Thus, a reading of the Indra Sawhney judgments shows that social advancement, including education and employment, and not just wealth, was key to identify the ‘creamy layer’.

WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO DRAW THE LINE?

• Justice Jeevan Reddy, in the Indra Sawhney judgment, wondered “how and where to draw the line” between the deserving and the creamy layer among backward classes. The basis of exclusion should not merely be economic, unless, of course, the economic advancement is so high that it necessarily means social advancement.
• Justice Reddy highlighted the pitfalls of identifying the creamy layer merely on economic basis. For example, a person who earns ₹36,000 a month may be economically well-off in rural India. However, the same salary in a metropolitan city may not count for much. Here, Justice Reddy warned that while the income of a person can be taken as a measure of his social advancement, the limit to be prescribed should not be such as to result in taking away with one hand what is given with the other. The income limit must be such as to mean and signify social advancement.

Reference: The Hindu

 3. 102 VANDE BHARAT TRAINS TO BE OPERATIONAL BY MARCH 2024

THE CONTEXT: Railway officials say 102 Vande Bharat trains would be commissioned by early 2024.

ANALYSIS:

• On the occasion of the 75th Independence Day celebrations, Mr. Modi said 75 Vande Bharat trains would be operationalised to connect different parts of the country.
• Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the operation of 75 Vande Bharat trains, the Ministry of Railways has floated tenders for manufacturing 58 rakes, each comprising 16 coaches. Tenders have already been floated for making 44 rakes.
• The Train18, later named Vande Bharat Express, was rolled out by the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai. It was showcased as India’s first semi high-speed train with an operational efficiency of 160 kmph and a game-changer.
• Though the Vande Bharat train was celebrated as one of the most successful products of the Make in India mission, it ran into a controversy over allegations of compromises on safety bringing production of more rakes to a grinding halt.

Reference: The Hindu

4. SCHOOL BUBBLE

THE CONTEXT: The Covid-19 technical advisory committee (TAC) constituted by the Karnataka government has proposed the ‘school bubble’ concept to mitigate the spread of the disease among children (aged below 18) attending offline classes at schools and pre-university colleges across the state.

ANALYSIS

• School bubbles are physical classifications made between groups comprising a small number of students. As per the concept, each such bubble will include students who tend to remain as a group during school hours throughout the term or an academic year.
• For instance, a school bubble can include 30 students. If one among them gets infected, the others can self-isolate but the school need not be closed completely. This would allow uninterrupted learning to others as well.
• The concept of school bubbles, experts feel, will be more relevant to students studying in primary school or below. These students will have more chances of peer-to-peer interactions on a daily basis. With school bubbles in place the risk assessment process to identify close contacts of a Covid-positive student will also get easier.
• This has been being successfully implemented at schools in the United Kingdom.

Reference: Indian express

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

5. UNEP: LEADED PETROL ERADICATED

THE CONTEXT: The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) said that the use of leaded petrol has been eradicated from the globe, a milestone that will prevent more than 1.2 million premature deaths and save world economies over $2.4 trillion annually.

ABOUT UNEP

• It is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system.
• It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm in June 1972.
• Member of the United Nations Development Group.
• UNEP hosts the secretariats of several multilateral environmental agreements and research bodies, including CBD, The Minamata Convention on Mercury, CMS and CITES.
• In 1988, the World Meteorological Organization and UNEP established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
• UNEP is also one of several Implementing Agencies for the Global Environment Facility (GEF)

Reference: The Hindu

6. WHY ARE HYDROPOWER PROJECTS IN THE HIMALAYAS RISKY?

THE CONTEXT: Environment Ministry told the SC earlier this month that 7 hydroelectric power projects can go ahead. 

WHAT’S THE HISTORY OF HYDROPOWER PROJECTS IN THE HIMALAYAS?

• In the aftermath of the Kedarnath floods of 2013 that killed at least 5,000 people, the Supreme Court had halted the development of hydroelectric projects in Uttarakhand pending a review by the Environment Ministry on the role such projects had played in amplifying the disaster.
• A 17-member expert committee, led by environmentalist Ravi Chopra, was set up by the Ministry to examine the role of 24 such proposed hydroelectric projects in the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi basin, which contains the Ganga and several tributaries.
• The Chopra committee concluded that 23 projects would have an “irreversible impact” on the ecology of the region. Following this, six private project developers, whose projects were among those recommended to be axed, impleaded themselves in the case on the ground that since their projects had already been cleared for construction before the Kedarnath tragedy; they should be allowed to continue.
• The SC directed a new committee to be set up to examine their case. This committee, led by Vinod Tare of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, concluded that these projects could have a significant environmental impact.
• The Environment Ministry in 2015 set up yet another committee, led by B.P. Das, who was part of the original committee, but had filed a “dissenting report”. The Das committee recommended all six projects with design modifications to some, and this gives lie to the Environment Ministry’s current stance. The Power Ministry seconded the Environment Ministry’s stance.
• The Water Resources Ministry, then led by Minister Uma Bharti, has been consistently opposed to hydropower projects in the Ganga. In charge of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, the Water Ministry has maintained that the cleanliness of the river was premised on minimum levels of water flow in all seasons and the proposed projects could hinder this.
• By 2019, however, the renamed Jal Shakti Ministry had changed its stance to accommodate seven out of the 24 projects. Its current position however is that barring these, it is “not in favour” of new projects in the Ganga river basin.
• Though hearings in the SC are ongoing, this is the first time that the government has a formal uniform position on hydropower projects in the Uttarakhand region.

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES SUCH PROJECTS FACE?

• Glacier retreat and permafrost thaw are projected to decrease the stability of mountain slopes and increase the number and area of glacier lakes. Climate change has driven erratic weather patterns like increased snowfall and rainfall.
• The thermal profile of ice, say experts, was increasing, which means that the temperature of ice that used to range from -6 to -20-degree C, was now -2-degree C, making it more susceptible to melting.
• It was these changing phenomena that made infrastructure projects in the Himalayan regions risky, and made expert committees recommend that there should be no hydropower development beyond an elevation of 2,200 metre in the Himalayan region. Moreover, with increased instances of cloudbursts, and intense spells of rainfall and avalanches, residents of the region were also placed at increased risk of loss of lives and livelihood.

HOW CAN THESE CONFLICTS BE RESOLVED?

• Several environmentalists, residents of the region, say that the proposed projects being built by private companies allot only a limited percentage of their produced power for the State of Uttarakhand itself. Thus the State, on its own, takes on massive environmental risk without being adequately compensated for it or its unique challenges accounted for.
• Though the Centre is committed to hydropower projects because it’s a renewable source of power, the ecological damage combined with the reduced cost of solar power means that it has in recent times said on multiple occasions that it is not in favour of greenfield hydropower projects in the region.
• But several environmental activists say that the Centre has frequently changed its position and will continue to prioritise infrastructural development in the region, even if it comes at a heavy environmental cost.

Reference: The Hindu

INDIAN ECONOMY

7. NATIONAL SMALL INDUSTRY DAY

THE CONTEXT:  Every year on August 30, the country celebrates National Small Industry Day. The day is dedicated to encouraging small businesses around the country.

HISTORY OF THE DAY

On August 30, 2000, a comprehensive policy package for the SSI sector was launched, providing significant support to small firms in India. It was subsequently agreed that August 30 would be designated as “SSI Day” by the Ministry.

THE KEY REFORMS INTRODUCED BY MINISTRY OF MSME

• India is home to more than 6.3 crore MSMEs, which have the ability and capability to access international markets and work as ancillaries to larger international firms.
• In terms of exports, the sector holds high potential in various sub-sectors such as textiles, leather & leather goods, pharmaceuticals, automotive, gems & Jewellery etc. with overall contribution of 45 percent.
• Ministry of MSME has been tirelessly working towards development of MSMEs and has undertaken interventions to enhance MSME ecosystem in India. Some of the key reforms introduced by Ministry of MSME are:
• Revision of MSME definition: In line with Government of India’s top focus on energizing MSMEs in the country, Government of India approved the upward revision of MSME definition on 1st June 2020 under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Package. The Government revised the MSME classification by inserting composite criteria of both investment and annual turnover.
• Udyam Registration: Udyam is an online and simplified procedure of filing of registration which enables MSMEs to obtain registration without any documentation and fees. It is a globally benchmarked process and a revolutionary step towards Ease of Doing Business. Ministry of MSME has also commenced API integration of Udyam Registration portal with GeM so that MSEs can participate in Government procurement easily.
• Champions Portal: CHAMPIONS is an online platform to help and handhold the MSMEs specially in this difficult time. It is an ICT based technology system aimed at making the smaller units big by solving their grievances, encouraging, supporting, helping and handholding throughout the business lifecycle. The platform facilitates a single window solution for all needs of MSMEs.
• National SC-ST Hub (NSSH): National SC-ST Hub has been launched to promote entrepreneurship culture in the SC-ST community and fulfill the 4% procurement target mentioned in the Public Procurement Policy order, 2018.To boost entrepreneurship among SC/ST population and for maximum on-ground penetration, several interventions have been undertaken to cater to the challenge of market linkages, finance facilitations, capacity building etc.
• Self-Reliant India (SRI) Fund: The scheme is expected to facilitate equity financing of Rs.50,000 crore in the MSME Sector. The infusion of equity will provide an opportunity to get MSMEs listed in stock exchanges. Further, it will also facilitate MSMEs to scale-up their business & growth and will help creating more jobs in the MSME sector.
• Procurement Policy: For providing marketing support to MSEs, all Central Ministries/Government Departments and CPSEs are required to procure 25% of their annual requirements of goods and services from MSEs including 4% from MSEs owned by SC/ST and 3% from MSEs owned by women entrepreneurs under the Public Procurement Policy.
• Establishment of Enterprise Development Centers (EDCs): With a view to provide Information related to MSMEs at one place, Enterprise Development Centres (EDCs)have been conceptualized. Till date Ministry of MSME has set up 102 EDCs across India. The aim of these centers is to build a network of entrepreneurial leaders by providing professional mentoring and handholding support services to existing as well as aspiring MSMEs with special focus on rural enterprises on continuous basis.

 Reference: PIB

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

8. IS COVID-19 NOW ENDEMIC IN INDIA?

THE CONTEXT:  As India gets ready to face a possible third wave of SARS-CoV-2, World Health Organization (WHO) chief scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan has said that India seems to be entering some stage of Covid-19 endemicity where there is low- to moderate-level transmission.

WHAT IS ENDEMICITY?

• Endemic means something that is present all the time. For example, said leading virologist Dr Shahid Jameel, influenza is endemic, unlike smallpox which has been eradicated.
• Only those pathogens can be eradicated that don’t have animals (another species) as a reservoir. Smallpox and polio are human virus examples, rinderpest is a cattle virus. This means if there is a virus/pathogen that is present in some animal reservoir like bats, camels or civet cats, and then it can transmit again once the level of immunity wanes in the population against the disease caused by it.
• In the case of coronavirus disease, it will continue to circulate as it is present in the animal reservoir. This also means that it will cause disease to the extent that people have had no vaccination against or exposure. If, however, enough people are vaccinated or have been exposed to the infection, then the virus will cause symptomatic infection but not disease. So, that is what is considered becoming endemic – it is there but not causing disease.

WHEN IS SARS-COV-2 LIKELY TO BECOME ENDEMIC?

• That will depend on how fast it spreads and mutates. There are many variables that have to be considered and there is no clear answer regarding when the virus is likely to be endemic.
• The last serological survey by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) had shown from a representative sample of the population — 70 districts out of 718 — that roughly two-thirds of the populations have antibodies. Again, out of those two-thirds, some would have had the antibodies because they have now been fully vaccinated. However, since vaccination rates are still fairly low, the general assumption is that most people who have antibodies have been infected but not all have had disease. This means a majority will be protected from symptomatic disease later on they may get infected but are protected.
• Again, that is assuming the virus is not going to change to a form that transmits easily and evades immunity. One cannot predict if and when the virus mutates into something where vaccines start failing.

HOW LONG CAN THE ANTIBODIES BE EXPECTED TO LAST?

• Most everybody now has antibodies that likely reduces the chance of infection and even if infected may not develop severe disease. This virus is going to stay with us. We may already have developed herd immunity, which indicates that most of us have antibodies — either due to infection or vaccination — and hence if infected we may not develop severe disease.
• “From its rate of spread and its rate of mutation, many of us indeed expect that this coronavirus will never be eradicated – not just in India, but globally – and will become endemic to stay with you without causing major health problems, since the vast majority would have developed protective antibodies.

CAN AN ADDITIONAL VACCINE DOSE HELP?

• Whether or not a booster dose of a vaccine is required depends on how quickly the antibody level comes down in the average individual.
• There are wide variations in the trend of waning of antibody level among persons; sufficient data have not yet accumulated to definitively determine the need for a booster dose.
• While vaccine effectiveness does appear to decline over time, there is still expected to be substantial protection. It is likely that a third shot or booster might be necessary in the future and in fact, a regular booster shot, just like for influenza, might be indicated.

SHOULD WE WORRY ABOUT NUMBERS RISING AGAIN?

• One can expect a more or less constant level of infection within the population, with the likelihood of severe illness, hospitalisation or death becoming increasingly small as people are vaccinated.
• The Delta variant now dominates new infections around the country. Viruses mutate constantly, but the question is whether a new variant will come along that is much more transmissible than Delta and can evade a immune response from either a prior infection or vaccination.
• As long as it does not, we might expect that a small background of reinfections and vaccine breakthroughs will help maintain numbers of infected at a low, constant level. It is more likely that there will be a steady level of cases, with some regions, especially of low prior seroprevalence and low vaccination rates, seeing spikes. It is completely unlikely that we will see case numbers comparable to the second wave.

Reference: Indian express

9. IISC COMPLETES TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER OF OXYGEN CONCENTRATORS

THE CONTEXT: Over the past year, researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have been working on solutions to address the oxygen shortage due to COVID-19. Two key efforts in this direction have been the development of oxygen generation systems and oxygen concentrators.

ANALYSIS:

• The oxygen concentrator is an indigenous design developed by IISc researchers led by Praveen Ramamurthy, Professor in the Department of Materials Engineering. The group had already been working on oxygen concentrators since March 2020.
• A prototype capable of producing oxygen at more than 93% purity at five litres per minute (LPM) and 82% at 10 LPM was developed by August 2020 itself. The researchers then modified this prototype which now delivers more than 93% purity oxygen at 10 LPM within three minutes.
• The stability and performance of the system was monitored continuously for more than eight months. Clinical trials have been completed, and the system was found to perform on par with compressed oxygen cylinders.
• Till date, the technology has been transferred to 24 companies, and about 35 units have been supplied to various hospitals. Recently, the Government of Karnataka issued a circular for the supply of two units each to 2,508 public health centres from the licensees, says a press release.
• Another solution catering to needs of the hospitals is an oxygen generation system based on technology developed by an IISc team . The process is based on a twin-bed swing adsorption system integrated with storage and discharge vessels, and various safety systems. In one of the variants, a cylinder-filing mechanism has also been incorporated using a boost pump. The oxygen produced fulfills the quality requirements prescribed by Indian Pharmacopeia and can be used in ICUs/CCUs/OTs and other clinical wards. Last month, the first unit based on this system was installed at the Pobbathi Medical Centre in Bengaluru.
• On 15 August 2021, Prof Rangarajan, the Director of IISc, inaugurated an open-source design for a medical oxygen generation system with 50 LPM capacity. The system will be installed at St Mary’s Polyclinic in Lucknow. A unique feature of this system is the capability to fill about ten 47-litre cylinders at 200 bar pressure within 24 hours, apart from supplying oxygen to patient beds. Preparations are underway to ship the system to the Lucknow hospital.
• IISc has also signed technology transfer agreements with four agencies from across the country for installing oxygen generation systems at various capacities (50 LPM-1000 LPM) to meet the requirements of hospitals.

Reference: The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

10. INS AIRAVAT ARRIVES AT HO CHI MINH CITY

THE CONTEXT:  As part of the ongoing Mission SAGAR, INS Airavat arrived at Ho Chi Minh City Port in Vietnam with COVID Relief Material on 30 August 2021.

ANALYSIS:

• The ship is carrying 100 Metric Tons of Liquid Medical Oxygen in 05 ISO Containers and 300 Oxygen Concentrators of 10 LPM capacity each based on the requirement projected by the Government of Vietnam in its fight against the ongoing COVID19 pandemic.
• INS Airavat, an indigenously built Landing Ship Tank (Large) under the Eastern Naval Command based at Visakhapatnam, is on a deployment to South East Asia for trans-shipment of COVID Relief aid.
• The ship had earlier entered Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta, Indonesia on 24 August 2021 and disembarked 10 Liquid Medical Oxygen Containers requested by the Government of Indonesia.
• As part of the Government of India’s vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), the Indian Navy has been proactively engaging with countries in the region and has been at the forefront of numerous humanitarian missions spanning the entire extent of the Indian Ocean including South/ South East Asia and East Africa.
• India and Vietnam enjoy a strong traditional bond of friendship and have been working together towards a safer maritime domain. The two navies cooperate in various areas including a composite training programme in the fields of the submarine, aviation and technical training, and regularly carry out joint naval exercises in the form of bilateral exercises. The current deployment of the ship aims to further strengthen the strategic relationship.
• The ship will depart Ho Chi Minh City post disembarkation of the medical supplies and as part of the ongoing Mission SAGAR continue onwards to deliver medical supplies to other friendly nations in the region.

Reference: PIB

Q1. UNEP hosts secretariat of which of the following?

1. Convention on Migratory Species
2. Minamata Convention
3. Convention on Biodiversity

Select the correct answer using code given below:

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 1 and 3 only
3. 2 and 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. Consider the following statements about Malabar Rebellion of 1921:

1. The rebellion was started by Mappila community.
2. Mappilas were Muslim peasant community in Malabar region.
3. The rebellion was against Hindu landlords only.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

1. 1 and 2
2. 2 and 3
3. 1 and 3
4. 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 29 & 30, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: D

Explanation:

Concerns associated with Oil Pal cultivation:

• Destruction of rainforests and native biodiversity.
• The impact on community ownership of tribal lands.
• The oil palm is a water-guzzling, monoculture crop with a long gestation period unsuitable for small farmers.
• High pesticide use in areas where it is not a native crop, leading to consumer health concerns as well.
• High levels of investment and long wait for high returns tend to attract large corporate investors, while small cultivators have struggled with long gestation period, and have required heavy government support.

[WpProQuiz 34]

THE CONTEXT: Fifteen years have passed since the implementation of the landmark Right to Information Act, 2005. In this article, we will assess the performance of the Act along with the associated problems and possible suggestions.

Some success stories of RTI 

1. High number of applications being filled : There is a constant increase in the number of application being filed for seeking information. There are around 60 lakh cases filed every year as per an estimate.
2. Attendance of the Village School Teacher in Panchanpur : Villagers sought information regarding attendance records, leave records and medical records of the absconding village school teacher. The teacher was summoned and suspended while a new teacher was appointed to the school thus upholding accountability of the system.
3. Transparency in PDS for BPL Families, Bahraich, UP : When ration was not provided to the village between the period of Feb 2006 to December 2006, villagers filed an RTI regarding the acquisition and the distribution of the ration and also asked for copies of the ration records. The Kotedar was finally suspended after inquiry and thus upheld transparency in the system.
4. Scams : Many scams such as Adarsh Society Scam, 2G scam, Commonwealth Games Scam, Indian red Cross Society Scam etc were found due to the application of RTI.

Problems with RTI Performance

1. Capacity :The Central Information Commission has been headless since August 2020 leading to reduced capacity of the Commission. Similar, Odisha is functioning with only four commissioners and Rajasthan with three while Jharkhand and Tripura have none.
2. Inter-state distribution : There is inter-state differences in the number of pending cases with the maximum being in Maharashtra followed by UP
3. Low punishment to Government Officials : As per a study, government officials hardly face any punishment for violating the law. This sets a wrong precedent which promote complacent attitude to wards the Act in government officials.
4. Pendency : Around 2.2 lakh cases are pending in Central and State Information Commissions which are the final court of appeal under the Act. It will take years to clear this backlog.
5. Awareness : Awareness still eludes people of their rights provided under the RTI Act for holding public officials accountable.
6. Failure of Courts to Uphold RTI : Court itself has failed to uphold RTI as seen in the RTI application for PM CARES or to the case seeking list of wilful defaulters from RBI.

RTI act salient features

1. RTI Act provide for setting up of Central Information Commission and State Information Commission. These Commissions act as the Second Appellate Authority and also exercise supervision and monitoring over the functioning of Public Information Officers.
2. Public authorities have to provide information as early as possible as but not later than 30 days (not later than 48 hours in the matters pertaining to life and liberty of an individual).
3. In case of delay, the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission can impose a penalty. The Commission can also recommend disciplinary proceedings against the officials guilty of the not providing information with malafide intention.
4. In case of denial or not providing proper information an appellate structure has also been provided. First appeal lies with the First Appellate Authority nominated by the Department while the second appeal lies with the Central Information Commission or State Information Commission.
5. Under the law, every commission should have a chief and up to 10 commissioners.

Supreme court ruling in CBSE vs. Aditya Bandhyopadhyay case, 2011

1. RTI Act should not be “allowed to be misused or abused, to become a tool to obstruct the national development and integration, or to destroy the peace, tranquillity and harmony among its citizens”.
2. Nor should it be converted into a tool of oppression or intimidation of honest officials striving to do their duty.
3. The threat of penalties under the RTI Act and the pressure of the authorities under the RTI Act should not lead to employees of a public authorities prioritising `information furnishing’, at the cost of their normal and regular duties.”

The controversial verdict is being utilised by the PIOs to discourage RTI Applicants.

WAY FORWARD

1. Awareness : Government should undertake immediate and widespread dissemination of knowledge about the law, as mentioned in Section 26 of the Act.The media and the civil society can play a major role in spreading awareness.
2. Change in the mindset of officials : Officials need to realise their authority will in no way be undermined by opening up official bureaus.
3. Modernisation :Officials have to put extra hours of work for streamlining and record-keeping, weeding out records as per the procedure laid down and computerising maximum information with proper indexing.  Information should be easily accessible by the people.
4. Review of Laws : Even though the Act provides for precedence of its provisions over any other existing law that may contradict it, there is still a chance of conflict between laws. Thus, constant and consistent review and analysis of various provisions of the Act should be undertaken to ensure that it actually facilitates and does not restrict access to information.

CONCLUSION

In the present times, the incentives for secrecy are great, and the scope for discretionary actions wide, and thus, the role of information commissions is crucial for ensuring that people can obtain information on healthcare facilities, social security programs and delivery of essential goods and services meant for those in distress.

Questions to Ponder

1. Critically analyse the performance of RTI in its life of 15 years.
2. “Information is the currency of Democracy”. Comment.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. 7 YEARS OF PMJDY

THE CONTEXT: Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) – National Mission for Financial Inclusion, completes seven years of successful implementation.

BACKGROUND:

• PMJDY was announced by Prime Minister in his Independence Day address on 15th August 2014. While launching the programme on 28th August, the Prime Minister had described the occasion as a festival to celebrate the liberation of the poor from a vicious cycle.
• PMJDY is National Mission for Financial Inclusion to ensure access to financial services, namely, Banking/ Savings & Deposit Accounts, Remittance, Credit, Insurance, Pension in an affordable manner.

OBJECTIVES

• Ensure access of financial products & services at an affordable cost
• Use of technology to lower cost & widen reach

BASIC TENETS OF THE SCHEME

• Banking the unbanked – Opening of basic savings bank deposit (BSBD) account with minimal paperwork, relaxed KYC, e-KYC, account opening in camp mode, zero balance & zero charges
• Securing the unsecured – Issuance of Indigenous Debit cards for cash withdrawals & payments at merchant locations, with free accident insurance coverage of Rs. 2 lakh
• Funding the unfunded – Other financial products like micro-insurance, overdraft for consumption, micro-pension & micro-credit

INITIAL FEATURES

• Universal access to banking services  – Branch and BC
• Basic savings bank accounts with overdraft facility of Rs. 10,000/- to every eligible adult
• Financial Literacy Program– Promoting savings, use of ATMs, getting ready for credit, availing insurance and pensions, using basic mobile phones for banking
• Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund – To provide banks some guarantee against defaults
• Insurance – Accident cover up to Rs. 1,00,000 and life cover of   Rs. 30,000 on account opened between 15 Aug 2014 to 31 January 2015
• Pension scheme for Unorganized sector

APPROACH ADOPTED IN PMJDY

• Accounts opened are online accounts in core banking system of banks, in place of earlier method of offline accounts opening with technology lock-in with the vendor
• Inter-operability through RuPay debit card or Aadhaar enabled Payment System (AePS)
• Fixed-point Business Correspondents
• Simplified KYC / e-KYC in place of cumbersome KYC formalities

EXTENSION OF PMJDY WITH NEW FEATURES

• Focus shift from ‘Every Household’ to Every Unbanked Adult’
• RuPay Card Insurance – Free accidental insurance cover on RuPay cards increased from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh for PMJDY accounts opened after 28.8.2018.
• Enhancement in overdraft facilities –
• OD limit doubled from Rs 5,000/- to Rs 10,000/-; OD up to Rs 2,000/- (without conditions).
• Increase in upper age limit for OD from 60 to 65 years

ACHIEVEMENTS UNDER PMJDY- AS ON 18^TH AUGUST’21

JAN DHAN DARSHAK APP

• A mobile application, was launched to provide a citizen centric platform for locating banking touch points such as bank branches, ATMs, Bank Mitras, Post Offices, etc. in the country. Over 8 lakh banking touchpoints have been mapped on the GIS App.
• The facilities under Jan Dhan Darshak App could be availed as per the need and convenience of common people. The web version of this application could be accessed at the link http://findmybank.gov.in.
• This app is also being used for identifying villages which are not served by banking touchpoints within 5 km. these identified villages are then allocated to various banks by concerned SLBCs for opening of banking outlets. The efforts have resulted in significant decrease in number of such villages.

Reference: PIB

2. MAJOR PLANS FOR BOOSTING AYUSH INITIATIVES IN NORTHEAST

THE CONTEXT: In a major boost to the initiatives to promote traditional medicinal practices in the North East, the Union Minister of Ayush announced a slew of major initiatives planned to boost the traditional medicinal practices in the north-eastern states of India.

ANALYSIS:

• As many as 1000 new Health & Wellness Centres (HWC), as part of the National Ayush Mission (NAM) Scheme, will be opened in the NE states for growth and development of Ayush systems. The aim of these centres is to provide a holistic wellness model based on principles of Ayush systems of medicine.
• Financial provision of Rs 70 crore, under NAM support, will also be provided for establishment of a new Ayurvedic College at Dudhnoi in Goalpara, announced the union minister while addressing the conference.
• The Ministry of Ayush has decided to upgrade the Government Ayurvedic College in Guwahati and develop it as a Centre of Excellence. A sum of Rs 10 crore as financial grant is to be provided in this regard. All states of Northeast were requested to put up specific proposal to the ministry for open new Ayush educational institutions.
• A facilitation Centre for Semi Processing of raw material is going to be opened up in NE. Along with this, it is also envisaged to set up Regional Raw Drug Repository (RRDR) in NE states in collaboration with National Institute of Bio-Resources and Sustainable Development in Imphal, Manipur under Department of Bio-Technology.
• Ministry is implementing Central Sector Scheme on Conservation, Development and Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants. This Scheme has provision to support joint forest management committees (JFMCs) for value addition, drying, warehousing and augmenting marketing infrastructure.
• AHMIS is a comprehensive IT platform to effectively manage all functions of health care delivery systems and patient care in Ayush facilities. It is developed with an aim to improve patient care, work efficiency, effective management and scientific documentation and research of Ayush.
• The strategic policy & facilitation bureau at Invest India, under the aegis of Ministry of Ayush, will coordinate with and encourage potential investors to  in Ayush and wellness centres in NE states including manufacturing and services.
• Medical value travel promotion in NE states will be a priority area for the team.

Reference: PIB

3. ONORC NOW SUCCESSFULLY OPERATIONAL IN 34 STATES

THE CONTEXT: From its launch on March 12^th 2021, ‘Mera Ration’ app has recorded over 15 lakh downloads on Google Play Store. The app was launched under One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) plan to benefit National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiaries, particularly migrant beneficiaries to avail maximum benefit of ration cards portability.

ANALYSIS:

• The App has been developed by the Department in technical association with Central NIC Unit – providing a host of useful TPDS/ONORC information and features.
• To facilitate better access and maximum benefit, the app is available in 12 languages viz. English, Hindi, Oriya, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Urdu, Gujarati, Marathi and Bangla.
• Under One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) which was running successfully in 32 states/UTs till December 2020, has now became operational in two more states/UTs-Delhi and West Bengal till August 2021 thereby, expanding the scheme to 34 states/UTs covering nearly 75 Crore beneficiaries (almost 94.3% NFSA population).
• In addition, presently a monthly average of about 2.2 Crore portability transactions (including inter-/intra-State and PM-GKAY food grain transactions) are being recorded consistently in the States/UTs under delivering the subsidised NFSA food grains with anywhere flexibility to intended beneficiaries, mostly migrants.
• The One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) is an ambitious plan and endeavour of the Department to ensure seamless delivery of subsidised food-security entitlements to all beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA), irrespective of their physical location anywhere in the country.
• The objective of this programme is to empower all NFSA beneficiaries to be self-reliant for their food security anywhere in the country, through portability of their same existing ration cards to seamlessly lift their subsidised food grains (in part or full) from any ePoS (electronic Point of Sale device) enabled Fair Price Shop in the country with biometric/Aadhaar authentication at the time of lifting the food grains through portability. Further, their family members back home can also lift balance/their requirement of food grains on the same ration card.

Reference: PIB

4. BHARAT SERIES (BH-SERIES)

THE CONTEXT:   Government introduces a new registration mark for new vehicles “Bharat series (BH-series)” to facilitate seamless transfer of vehicles.

ANALYSIS:

• In order to facilitate seamless transfer of vehicles, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has introduced a new registration mark for new vehicles i.e. “Bharat series (BH-series)”. A vehicle bearing this registration mark shall not require assignment of a new registration mark when the owner of the vehicle shifts from one State to another.
• Format of Bharat series (BH-series) Registration Mark –

Registration Mark Format: –

   YY BH #### XX

   YY – Year of first registration

   BH- Code for Bharat Series

   ####- 0000 to 9999 (randomized)

XX- Alphabets (AA to ZZ)

• This vehicle registration facility under “Bharat series (BH-series)” will be available on voluntary basis to Defense personnel, employees of Central Government/ State Government/ Central/ State Public Sector Undertakings and private sector companies/organizations, which have their offices in four or more States/Union territories.
• The motor vehicle tax will be levied for two years or in multiple of two. This scheme will facilitate free movement of personal vehicles across States/UTs of India upon relocation to a new State/UT.
• After completion of the fourteenth year, the motor vehicle tax shall be levied annually which shall be half of the amount which was charged earlier for that vehicle.

Reference: PIB

5. POSHAN ABHIYAAN

THE CONTEXT: ‘Thematic’ POSHAN Maah to be celebrated across the nation throughout the month of September as part of azadi ka amrit mahotsav.

ANALYSIS:

• POSHAN Abhiyaan is Government of India’s flagship programme to improve nutritional outcomes for children, adolescent Girls, pregnant women and lactating mothers.
• Launched by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on the occasion of  International Women’s Day on 8 March, 2018 from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan, the POSHAN (Prime Minister’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nutrition) Abhiyaan directs the attention of the country towards the problem of malnutrition and address it in a mission-mode.
• Focusing on the aims of POSHAN Abhiyaan, Mission Poshan 2.0 (Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0) has been announced in the Budget 2021-2022 as an integrated nutrition support programme, to strengthen nutritional content, delivery, outreach and outcomes with focus on developing practices that nurture health, wellness and immunity to disease and malnutrition.
• POSHAN Abhiyaan is a Jan Andolan or “People’s Movement” by incorporating inclusive participation of public representatives of local bodies, government departments of the States/UTs, social organizations and the public and private sector at large. In order to ensure community mobilization and bolster people’s participation, every year, the month of September is celebrated as POSHAN Maah across the country.
• During the PoshanMaah, activities related to nutrition awareness will be carried out across all the States/UTs right upto the grass root levels.
• The implementing departments /agencies like women and child development department through Anganwadi workers, health and family welfare department through ASHA, ANM, primary health centres, community health centres, school education and literacy department through schools, Panchayati Raj departments through panchayats, and rural development trough self-help groups will carry out the activities and spread the message of holistic nutrition throughout the month to ensure a healthier future for women and children.
• The POSHAN Maah intends to achieve the holistic goals of PoshanAbhiyaan with swiftness in a harmonized manner

Reference: PIB

INDIAN ECONOMY

6. NITI AAYOG BATS FOR TAX BREAKS TO ACHIEVE MONETISATION GOAL

THE CONTEXT:  The NITI Aayog has recommended that to make the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) a success, the government should give Income tax breaks to attract retail investors into instruments like Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs).

ANALYSIS:

• The Centre’s think tank driving the NMP, estimated to raise almost ₹6 lakh crore for the exchequer over four years, has also called for bringing such Trusts under the ambit of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to provide greater comfort to investors.

Reference: The Hindu

INDIAN SECURITY

7. INDIAN COAST GUARD SHIP ‘VIGRAHA’

THE CONTEXT: Raksha Mantri dedicated to the Nation, indigenously built Coast Guard Ship ‘Vigraha’ in Chennai on August 28, 2021. The ship is a perfect example of a successful partnership between public and private sectors to realise the dream of self-reliant India.

ANALYSIS:

• ICGS Vigraha will be based at Visakhapatnam and operate on India’s Eastern Seaboard under the Operational and Administrative Control of the Commander, Coast Guard Region (East).
• The 98 meters OPV has been designed and built indigenously by M/s Larsen & Toubro Ship Building Ltd., and is fitted with advanced technology Radars, Navigation and Communication Equipment, Sensor and Machinery capable of operating in tropical sea conditions. The vessel is armed with a 40/60 Bofors gun and fitted with two 12.7 mm Stabilised Remote Control Gun (SRCG) with Fire Control System.
• The ship is also equipped with Integrated Bridge System (IBS), Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS), and Automated Power Management System (APMS) and High-Power External Firefighting (EFF) system. The ship is designed to carry one Twin Engine Helicopter and four high speed boats for Boarding Operation, Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement and Maritime Patrol.
• The ship is also capable of carrying limited pollution response equipment to contain oil spill at sea.  The ship displaces approx. 2200 tons (GRT) and is propelled by two 9100 KW diesel engines to attain a maximum speed of 26 knots with endurance of 5000 nm at economical speed.
• The ship, on joining the Coast Guard Eastern fleet, will be deployed extensively for EEZ surveillance and other duties as enshrined in the Coast Guard Charter, to safeguard the maritime interests of India. The Indian Coast Guard with this ship joining the fleet will have 157 Ships and 66 Aircraft in its inventory.

Reference: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

8. INDIA, RUSSIA TO EXPAND COOPERATION IN CENTRAL ASIA

THE CONTEXT: Interview with Indian Envoy in Russia D.B. Venkatesh Varma.

ANALYSIS:

• India and Russia are expecting to conclude the bilateral logistics agreement, Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS), and a Navy-to-Navy cooperation memorandum of understanding (MoU) when Russian Defence Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu visits India later this year.
• Both countries are also scheduled to hold the maiden 2+2 ministerial dialogue during visit of Gen. Shoigu.
• There are specific defence and nation- al security considerations that led India to conclude the contract for the supply of S-400 systems. This contract will be implemented.
• Both sides were also looking at how they could cooperate in using India as a production base for exporting to third countries of Russian-origin equipment and services and would add to the Make in India programme.
• Situation in Afghanistan impact both India and Russia and normal inter-State relations especially with respect to Central Asia, with additional threats emanating from drug trafficking, organized crime and the flow of refugees.

Reference: The Hindu

9. CHINA TO REQUIRE FOREIGN VESSELS TO REPORT IN ‘TERRITORIAL WATERS’

THE CONTEXT:  Chinese authorities said they will require a range of vessels “to report their information” when passing through what China sees as its “territorial waters”, starting from September 1.

ANALYSIS:

• While it remains unclear how, whether, and where China plans to enforce this new regulation.
• Over $5 trillion trade passes through the South China Sea, and 55% of India’s trade pass through its waters and the Malacca Straits.
• The “nine dash line” is deemed by most countries as being inconsistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which only gives states the right to establish a territorial sea up to 12 nautical miles.
• The requirements of the latest notice will also be seen as being inconsistent with UNCLOS, which states that ships of all countries enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea.

Reference: The Hindu

Q1. Which of the following are possible negative effects of Oil Pal cultivation in North-East Indian states?

1. Groundwater depletion
2. Reduction in forest area
3. Reduced biodiversity Loss of community ownership of tribal people

 Select the correct answer using code given below:

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 1, 2 and 3 only
3. 1, 3 and 4 only
4. All of them

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 28, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: A)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: ESZs are transition areas around the protected areas of National parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: Environment (Protection) Act 1986 does not mention about ESZs.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: They can be up to 10 Kms around the protected areas.

[WpProQuiz 33]

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. OVER 1 CRORE DOSES: INDIA RECORDS HIGHEST SINGLE-DAY VACCINE COVERAGE

THE CONTEXT: India on 27^th August administered a record one crore vaccine doses, the highest single day tally achieved since the roll out of the COVID-19 immunization drive on January 16.

ANALYSIS:

• As per the provisional data, the country reported 1,00,64,032 vaccinations and crossed 62 crore cumulative vaccinations.
• As per the official data, India has administered a cumulative 62.17 crore vaccinations: 49.08 crore first dose, and, 14.08 crore second dose.
• On 26th August, India crossed 50 percent first dose vaccine coverage of the eligible adult population.

Reference: Indian express

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

2. BRICS-AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH PLATFORM

THE CONTEXT: Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare announced the operationalization of BRICS Agricultural Research Platform prepared and set up in India for strengthening the cooperation in the field of agricultural research & innovations amongst the BRICS member States.

ABOUT BRICS-ARP

• The BRICS- Agricultural Research Platform, as a global platform for science-led agriculture will help in addressing the issues of world hunger, undernutrition, poverty and inequality by promoting sustainable agricultural development through strategic cooperation in agriculture and allied sector.
• The BRICS-ARP has been operationalised to intensify cooperation in the areas of agricultural research, technology, policy, innovations and capacity building including technologies for smallholder farming and to sustainably increase yields and farmers income in the BRICS member countries.
• The platform shall escalate the exchange of research findings and innovation and best practices for upscaling in the respective BRICS Nations.

 Reference: PIB

 3. THE DEEPAR BEEL WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

THE CONTEXT: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change notified the Eco sensitive zone of Deepar Beel Wildlife Sanctuary on the southwestern edge of Guwahati.

ABOUT DEEPAR BEEL WLS

• Deepar Beel is one of the largest freshwater lakes in Assam and the State’s only Ramsar Site (declared in 2002), besides being an Important Bird Area.
• The wetlands have for decades been threatened by a railway track — set to be doubled and electrified — on its southern rim, a garbage dump and encroachment for human habitation and commercial units.
• Among activities prohibited in the eco-sensitive zone are hydroelectric pro- jects, brick kilns, commercial use of firewood and discharge of untreated effluents in natural water bodies or land areas.

ECO-SENSITIVE ZONES (ESZS) OR ECOLOGICALLY FRAGILE AREAS (EFAS)

• They are areas notified by the MoEFCC around Protected Areas, National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.
• The purpose of declaring ESZs is to create “shock absorbers” to the protected areas by regulating and managing the activities around such areas.
• They act as a transition zone from areas of high protection to areas involving lesser protection.
• The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 does not mention the word “Eco-Sensitive Zones”.
• However, Rule 5(1) of the Environment (Protection) Act 1986 (EPA) states that the central government can prohibit or restrict the location of industries and carry on certain operations or processes on the basis of certain considerations.
• An ESZ could go up to 10 kilometres around a protected area as provided in the Wildlife Conservation Strategy, 2002.

Reference: The Hindu

4. SHORT-TERM PM2.5 EXPOSURE IS DEADLY TOO

THE CONTEXT: Researchers have found a strong association between short-term exposure to PM2.5 (particles that have a diameter less than 2.5 micrometres) and mortality in Delhi.

ANALYSIS:

• They also noted that the city’s Graded Response Action Plan, designed to curb pollution levels, was not effective, with more ambitious, long-term goals to cut emissions required to bring about significant health benefits.
• The study — the result of a collaboration between Harvard University, Population Foundation of India, and the Delhi-based Centre for Chronic Disease Control — is the first of its kind to look into over 7 lakh deaths not caused by accidents between 2010 and 2016 to arrive at its conclusion.
• This study assessed whether changes in PM2.5 levels over 24 hours can affect the number of deaths that occur every day. It was  found that with every 25 μg/m3 increase over 24 hours, mortality increases by 0.8 per cent.
• Delhi’s PM2.5 levels exceeded 130 µg/m3 in 2016 — over 10 times the recommended World Health Organization (WHO)’s levels — and have been on the rise since.
• 5 particles are considered dangerous for health because they can penetrate the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing a higher risk of developing cardiovascular, respiratory diseases, and lung cancer. This risk is aggravated by chronic exposure.

Reference : The Print

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. QSIM

THE CONTEXT: Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology, launched QSim – Quantum Computer Simulator Toolkit, to enable Researchers and Students to carryout research in Quantum Computing in a cost effective manner.

ABOUT QSIM

• QSim is an outcome of the project “Design and Development of Quantum Computer Toolkit (Simulator, Workbench) and Capacity Building”.
• This is one of the first initiatives in the country to address the common challenge of advancing the Quantum Computing research frontiers in India.
• This project is being executed collaboratively by IISc Bangalore, IIT Roorkee and C-DAC with the support of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India.
• QSim allows researchers and students to write and debug Quantum Code that is essential for developing Quantum Algorithms.
• Quantum systems are highly sensitive to disturbances from environment, even necessary controls and observations perturb them. The available and upcoming Quantum devices are noisy and techniques to bring down the environmental error rate are being intensively pursued.
• QSim allows researchers to explore Quantum Algorithms under idealized conditions and help prepare experiments to run on actual Quantum Hardware.
• QSIM can serve as an important educational / research tool providing an excellent way to attract students / researchers to the field of Quantum Technology and provides a platform to acquire the skills of ‘programming’ as well as ‘designing’ real Quantum Hardware.

Reference: PIB

6. SUPER-MASSIVE BLACK HOLES

THE CONTEXT: Indian researchers have discovered three supermassive black holes from three galaxies merging together to form a triple active galactic nucleus, a compact region at the center of a newly discovered galaxy that has a much-higher-than-normal luminosity.

ANALYSIS: 

• This rare occurrence in our nearby Universe indicates that small merging groups are ideal laboratories to detect multiple accreting supermassive black holes and increases the possibility of detecting such rare occurrences.
• Supermassive black holes are difficult to detect because they do not emit any light. But they can reveal their presence by interacting with their surroundings.
• When the dust and gas from the surroundings fall onto a supermassive black hole, some of the mass is swallowed by the black hole, but some of it is converted into energy and emitted as electromagnetic radiation that makes the black hole appear very luminous. They are called active galactic nuclei (AGN) and release huge amounts of ionized particles and energy into the galaxy and its environment.
• Both of these ultimately contribute to the growth of the medium around the galaxy and ultimately the evolution of the galaxy itself.
• According to the researchers, a major factor impacting galaxy evolution is galaxy interactions, which happen when galaxies move close by each other and exert tremendous gravitational forces on each other.
• During such galaxy interactions, the respective supermassive black holes can get near each other. The dual black holes start consuming gas from their surroundings and become dual AGN.
• If two galaxies collide, their black hole will also come closer by transferring the kinetic energy to the surrounding gas. The distance between the blackholes decreases with time until the separation is around a parsec (3.26 light-years). The two black holes are then unable to lose any further kinetic energy in order to get even closer and merge. This is known as the final parsec problem.
• The presence of a third black hole can solve this problem. The dual merging blackholes can transfer their energy to the third blackhole and merge with each other.
• Many AGN pairs have been detected in the past, but triple AGN are extremely rare, and only a handful has been detected before using X-ray observations. However, the researchers expects such triple AGN systems to be more common in small merging groups of galaxies. Although this study focuses only on one system, results suggest that small merging groups are ideal laboratories to detect multiple supermassive black holes.

Reference: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. INDIA-AUSTRALIA AIM FOR ‘EARLY HARVEST’ TRADE PACT BY DECEMBER

THE CONTEXT: The trade ministers of India and Australia have agreed to speed up trade negotiations with an aim to reach an interim ‘early harvest’ pact by December for liberalising the bilateral flow of goods and services.

ABOUT EARLY HARVEST SCHEME

• Early harvest scheme is a precursor to a free trade agreement (FTA) between two trading partners.
• This is to help the two trading countries to identify certain products for tariff liberalisation pending the conclusion of FTA negotiation.
• It is primarily a confidence building measure between two trading partners
• An Early Harvest Scheme (EHS) is an agreement between two states (or regional trading blocs) which liberalizes tariffs on certain goods preceding the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA)

 Reference: The Hindu

Q1. Consider the following statements about Eco- sensitive zone:

1. They are transition areas around the protected areas of National parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
2. They are notified under the provisions of Environment (Protection) Act 1986.
3. They can be up to 20 Kms around the protected areas.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a. 1 only

b. 1 and 2 only

c. 1 and 3 only

d. 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 27, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 ANSWER: D)

Explanation:

• The Sambhar Salt Lake, India’s largest inland salt lake, is located 80 km southwest of the city of Jaipur and 64 km northeast of Ajmer, Rajasthan.
• It receives water from five rivers: Medtha, Samaod, Mantha, Rupangarh, Khari, Khandela.
• It is surrounded by the Aravali hills on all sides (Centripetal drainage).
• It has been designated as a Ramsar site (recognized wetland of international importance) because the wetland is a key wintering area for tens of thousands of pink flamingos and other birds that migrate from northern Asia and Siberia.

Q2. ANSWER: B)

Explanation:

• The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is NITI Aayog’s flagship initiative – a one-of-its-kind, unified information portal for women entrepreneurs.
• It strives to improve industry linkages and awareness of existing programs and services and provide access to peer support, learning resources, fundraising opportunities and mentorship.
• With an overarching objective of becoming an aggregator platform that solves for the information asymmetry in the ecosystem, WEP serves as a one stop solution for information and services relevant to women entrepreneurs.
• The platform currently hosts over 16,000 registered users and 30 partners and caters to six focus areas: Funding & Financial Management, Incubation Connects, Taxation & Compliance Support, Entrepreneur Skilling & Mentorship, Community & Networking and Marketing Assistance.
• tentatively assigned as Meso-Neoproterozoic based on the available evidence of stromatolites and organic-walled microfossils

[WpProQuiz 32]

[WpProQuiz 31]

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court had initiated suo moto criminal contempt proceedings against advocate and activist Prashant Bhushan for his tweets regarding the functioning of Judiciary. The long drawn battle between the two has raised the issue over the need for review of contempt powers of court

Prashant Bhushan case chronology

1. In the first tweet, He commented on the role of Judiciary especially the last four CJIs in the destruction of Indian Democracy.
2. In the second tweet, He commented on the CJIs act of driving a 50 lakh bike at a time when the SC was in lockdown.
3. Supreme Court initiated contempt proceedings on the basis of a complaint filed by a lawyer. Subsequently, Supreme Court held Mr. Bhushan guilty on both twits “against the judiciary”.
4. Advocate Bhushan refuses to apologise. This started a battle between the two due to which experts called the Supreme Court’s action as causing a chilling effect on fundamental right to freedom of expression.
5. Supreme Court finally took a liberal approach and gave a punishment for Rs. 1 only.

Sources of contempt in constitution

1. Article 129 : It grants the Supreme Court power to punish for contempt of itself. However, it fails to define Contempt of Court in clear terms.
2. Article 142 (2) : It gives the Supreme Court power to investigate or punish of any contempt of itself.
3. Article 215 : It grants High Courts power to punish for contempt of itself. It also fails to define Contempt of Court in clear terms

Contempt of court definition in India as per contempt of court act ,1971

Contempt refers to the offence of showing disrespect to the dignity or authority of a court. The Act divides contempt into civil and criminal contempt.
1. Civil contempt refers to the wilful disobedience of an order of any court.
2. Criminal contempt includes any act or publication which:

• ‘Scandalises ’the court, or
• Prejudices any judicial proceeding, or
• Interferes with the administration of justice in any other manner

3. ‘Scandalising the Court ’broadly refers to statements or publications which have the effect of undermining public confidence in the judiciary.

Contempt powers of Court

1. Fairness of criticism vs. Contempt : There is a think line between the two which needs to be checked by the judiciary as fair criticism of Judiciary is not contempt as per Section 5 of The Contempt of Court Act, 1971.
2. Interference : Section 13 of Contempt of Court Act states that even if some comment is assumed to be contempt, unless it substantially interferes or tends to substantially interfere, sentence cannot be imposed.
3. Truth of Statement : As per the amendment of 2006 in Contempt of Court Act which introduced section 13(b), truth is considered as a valid defence against contempt proceedings.

Nand Lal Balwani case, 1999 that shows necessity of contempt powers

• Nand Lal Balwani, who claimed to be an advocate enrolled with Bombay Bar Association since 1995 shouted slogans in the open court and thereafter hurled his shoe towards the Court thereby interrupting court proceedings. He was informed that his actions were a case of contempt of court and was given time to file his response. Later afternoon he was sentenced to four months of jail for his actions. This shows that a safeguard such as contempt powers is important to punish such acts against the judiciary as judiciary upholds the trust of citizens and thus maintaining its superiority is important.

Problems with contempt powers

1. Fundamental Duty to develop spirit of inquiry and reform : Article 51A(h) mandates that every person needs to develop the scientific temper, humanism and spirits of inquiry and inform. If critical analysis of Judiciary is threatened with persecution, it stops citizens from performing their duty.
2. Freedom of Expression: Fair criticism of Judicial action is not contempt of court and thus citizen’s fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) should be encouraged and not denied.
3. Right against Self-incrimination: Article 20(3) embodies the principle of privilege against self incrimination and declares that a person cannot be compelled to be a witness against himself. In Contempt of court cases, judges directly question the accused.
4. Vindication of Judges: Contempt power is necessary for the proper administration of justice. It is not to be used for the vindication of a judge as a person. However, in the present case it was used for the vindication of sitting CJI.
5. Vagueness: Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Court Act, 1971 uses phrases like scandalises or tends to scandalise or Lower the authority of court which are vague in characteristic.

Law commission of India report of 2018

1. High no. of Contempt cases: The Commission observed that there were a high number of civil (96,993) and criminal (583) contempt cases pending in various High Courts and the Supreme Court. The high no. of cases justify the continuing relevance of the Act.
2. International Comparisons: UK has abolished contempt laws. However, there are two differences with UK which warrant its continuity in India.

• India has high no. of continuing cases while the last case of scandalising the court in UK
  was in 1931.
• The offence of Scandalising the Court continues to be punishable in UK under other laws.
  Abolishing it will leave legislative gaps.

3. Source of Contempt laws : Superior courts in India derive authority from the Constitution. Thus, deletion of the offence from the Act will not impact the inherent constitutional powers of the courts.
4. Impact on Subordinate courts : If the definition of contempt is narrowed, subordinate courts will suffer as there will be no remedy to address cases of their contempt.
5. Ambiguity : Amending the definition will cause ambiguity. If there is no definition for criminal contempt in the Act, superior courts may give multiple definitions and interpretations to what constitutes contempt.
6. Adequate Safeguards : The Commission noted that there are several safeguards built into the Act to protect against its misuse. The Commission further noted that the Act had withstood judicial scrutiny, and therefore, there was no reason to amend it.

Way Forward

1. Independent Tribunal : The bench that faced contempt should not be the same that decides the contempt. A separate independent tribunal should be established to look after all the contempt cases.
2. Separation of criticism of judge and Judiciary : Courts should write down reason for initiating contempt proceeding and explicitly explain how it impacts the imparting of justice and is not due to the criticism of some libel judge or some verdict.
3. Liberal Approach towards Contempt : The courts should not be sensitive towards criticism and only take up contempt in various serious cases of Contempt.
4. Regulation of Social Media : Twitter which was used by Prashant Bhushan gives absolute freedom of speech and expression can be misutilised for spreading contempt. Thus, there is a need to ensure that technology is not utilised for undermining the institutions.

Some examples from courts that have set the precedent for contempt proceedings across the world 

1. Regina versus Commissioner of Police, 1968 case : The judgment remarked, ““Let me say at once that we will never use this jurisdiction as a means to uphold our own dignity. That must rest on surer foundations. Nor will we use it to suppress those who speak against us. We do not fear criticism, nor do we resent it. For there is something far more important at stake. It is no less than freedom of speech itself.”
2. Chief Justice Gajendra Gadkar : He cautioned against frequent or indiscriminate use of the power of contempt and observed, “Wise Judges never forget that that the best way to sustain the dignity and status of their office is to deserve respect from the public at large by the quality
of their judgments, the fearlessness, fairness and objectivity of their approach and by the restraint, dignity and decorum which they observe in their judicial conduct.
3. D.Feldman in his book – Civil Liberties and Human Rights in England and Wales, argues that the nature of the proceedings of contempt are in breach of Article 6 of the European Convention of Human rights which guarantee that an accused be informed of the nature and
cause of the allegation against him .
4. Justice Krishna Iyer :“The principle is to avoid confusion between personal protection of a libeled Judge and prevention of obstruction of public justice and the community’s confidence in the great process. The former is not contempt, the latter is, although overlapping spaces
abound.”
5. Phillmore Committee of UK : The crime of scandalising the court should be replaced by a new and strictly defined criminal offence.

Conclusion

• Contempt power of the Court was envisaged by the founding fathers of the India Constitution as a necessary safeguard for upholding the dignity of the Judiciary. Even the Law Commission in its report has suggested continuance of the Contempt power.
• However, it is also pertinent from experience that there is a greater need to have a liberal approach towards contempt of courts and principles of natural justice should be upheld in such cases.

Question to Ponder

1. Critically analyse the necessity of Contempt of court powers in India.
2. Do you think Contempt power is necessary for the proper administration of justice? Give your view with justification.  

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. THE BOOKLET ON ONE-YEAR OF NEP

THE CONTEXT: Union Education and Skill Development Minister launched the booklet on One-year New Education Policy (NEP) – 2020 Achievement along with some major initiatives of the New Education Policy- 2020 such as NIPUN Bharat FLN tools and resources on DIKSHA; Virtual School of NIOS; Alternate Academic Calendar of NCERT; and Release of ‘Priya’- accessibility booklet developed by the NCERT and Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.

ANALYSIS:

• NEP is a guiding philosophy to transform the hopes and aspirations of millions of the youth to reality and making India self – reliant.
• The formulation of NEP is also a live example of co-operative federalism to achieve a common goal of making India a global hub of knowledge.
• NEP 2020 envisages education as a continuum without any segmentation and focuses on making education more experiential, holistic, integrated, character-building, inquiry-driven, discovery-oriented, learner-centred, discussion-based, flexible, and above all, more joyful.
• Education is not merely a competition to acquire degrees, but is a transformative tool to leverage knowledge for character building and eventually nation building.
• The Virtual School of NIOS is a new model of learning and is an example how leveraging technology and innovation can facilitate greater inclusion in education. The school is first-of-its-kind initiative in the country which will provide advanced digital learning platforms through Virtual Live Classrooms and Virtual Labs.
• The Alternate Academic Calendar of NCERT has been developed to facilitate teachers and parents to assess the progress in the learning of children. The Alternate Academic Calendar contains week-wise plan of interesting and challenging activities, with reference to learning outcomes, themes and chapters taken from syllabus or textbook.
• The book “Priya -The Accessibility Warrior” will sensitize the students on accessibility related issues for Divyangs. Special emphasis has been laid to make the booklet simple, interesting and interactive to create awareness on accessibility in children right from their formative years.
• It provides glimpses into the world of a girl named Priya who met an accident and could not walk, due to plastered leg. The story depicts how Priya managed to participate in all activities at school, and in the process learnt the importance of the accessibility. She therefore takes the pledge of being an accessibility warrior. The comic book is also available with Indian Sign Language (ISL) explanatory videos.

Other major achievements include:

• the launch of NIPUN Bharat Mission with a vision to ensure every child achieves the desired learning competencies in reading, writing and numeracy by the end of Grade 3, by 2026-27;
• aligning of the existing scheme of Samagra Shiksha with Sustainable Development Goal for Education (SDG-4) and the NEP 2020 to ensure inclusive and equitable, quality, and holistic school education;
• Vidya Pravesh- a three months School Preparation Module for Grade I children;
• Blue print of National Digital Education Architecture (NDEAR) conceived to energise and catalyse the education ecosystem, capacity building of Secondary teachers under NISHTHA with a focus on improvement in quality of teachers and learning outcomes of students, Assessment reforms to make learning more joyful and experiential, DIKSHA as an teaching-learning repository of engaging e-content, etc.

Reference: PIB 

2. NCL BECOMES FIRST PSU TO VACCINATE ENTIRE WORKFORCE FOR COVID-19

THE CONTEXT:  Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL), a Coal India Ltd subsidiary has become the first PSU in the country, which has got all its employees and their family members vaccinated against Covid-19.

ANALYSIS:

• The company has strength of around fifty thousand people comprising of over thirteen thousand full time employees, sixteen thousand contract workers and their twenty thousand family members residing in and around its operation areas.
• The company started its covid vaccination drive with full support of local administration and later on also mobilized its own resources to get its entire workforce and their families vaccinated.
• Various target groups were identified and special drives along with door to door campaigns were conducted to achieve this goal.
• NCL is Singrauli based Miniratna Company of the Government of India operating with 10 highly mechanized opencast coal mines and accounts for 15 per cent of national coal production. The company had produced over 115 million tonnes of coal during the last financial year.

Reference: PIB

3. PROCEDURE OF ARRESTING CABINET MINISTER IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT: Three FIRs have been registered against Union Minister and Rajya Sabha member Narayan Rane in connection with a speech at Raigad where he spoke against Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. While the Maharashtra Police has sent a team to arrest Rane, Maharashtra BJP president said it was “against protocol” for the state government to arrest the Minister and questioned how it could issue an arrest warrant against a Union Minister suo motu.

WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE TO ARREST A CABINET MINISTER IN INDIA?

• If Parliament is not in session, a cabinet minister can be arrested by a law enforcement agency in case of a criminal case registered against him.
• As per Section 22 A of the Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business of the Rajya Sabha, the Police, Judge or Magistrate would, however, have to intimate the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha about the reason for the arrest, the place of detention or imprisonment in an appropriate form.
• The Chairman is expected to inform the Council if it is sitting about the arrest. If the council is not sitting, he/she is expected to publish it in the bulletin for the information of the members.

WHAT ABOUT THE PRIVILEGES OF THE RAJYA SABHA MEMBERS VIS-A-VIS ARRESTS?

• As per the main privileges of Parliament, in civil cases, they have freedom from arrest during the continuance of the House and 40 days before its commencement and 40 days after its conclusion, as per section 135 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The privilege of freedom from arrest does not extend to criminal offences or cases of detention under preventive detention.

CAN A PERSON BE ARRESTED FROM THE PRECINCTS OF THE HOUSE?

• No arrest, whether of a member or of a stranger, can be made within the precincts of the House without the prior permission of the Chairman/Speaker and that too in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Home Ministry in this regard.
• Similarly no legal process, civil or criminal, can be served within the precincts of the House without obtaining the prior permission of the Chairman/Speaker whether the House is in Session or not.

Reference: Indian express

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. PADDY PROCUREMENT HAS REACHED AT ALL-TIME HIGH

THE CONTEXT: Paddy procurement has reached at an all-time high level, surpassing previous high of 773.45 LMT in Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) procurement 2019-20.

ANALYSIS:

• About 129.03 Lakh farmers have already been benefitted from the ongoing KMS procurement Operations with MSP value of Rs. 1,64,951.77 Crore.
• Paddy procurement in the ongoing   season Kharif 2020-21 is continuing smoothly in the procuring States with purchase of 873.68 LMTs of paddy  (includes Kharif Crop 707.69 LMT and Rabi Crop 165.99 LMT) upto23.08.2021 against the last year corresponding purchase of 763.01 LMT.
• Marketing Season RMS 2021-22 has concluded in wheat procuring States and till now (upto18.08.2021) a quantity of 433.44 LMT of Wheat has been procured (which is all time high, as it has exceeded previous high 389.93 LMT of RMS 2020-21) against the last year corresponding purchase of 389.93 LMT.
• About 49.20 Lakh farmers have already been benefitted from the ongoing RMS procurement operations with MSP value of Rs. 85603.57Crore.

Reference: PIB

5.FORUM FOR DECARBONIZING TRANSPORT’ IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT: NITI Aayog and World Resources Institute (WRI), India, jointly launched the ‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’ in India as part of the NDC-Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC-TIA) project.

ANALYSIS:

• The project aims at bringing down the peak level of GHG emissions (transport sector) in Asia resulting in problems like congestion and air pollution.
• India has a massive and diverse transport sector, which is also the third most CO2 emitting sector. Data from (IEA, 2020; Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, 2018) suggests that within the transport sector, road transport contributes to more than 90% of the total CO2 emissions.
• Through various policy measures and initiatives, the Government of India is continuously working towards the decarbonisation of road transport, with a major focus on the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the country.
• NITI Aayog has been at the helm of the promotion of EVs and sustainable mobility through the National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage.
• However, to leverage and streamline EVs across the country, there is a need is to create a favourable ecosystem for different stakeholders. These stakeholders include Central/state Governments, state-designated agencies, financial institutions, businesses, OEMs, research and technical institutes, private bodies and think tanks. A coordinated effort between these stakeholders will help enable investment, encourage adoption, and ensure fair operation in the industry.
• The NDC-TIA India component focuses on developing a coherent strategy of effective policies and the formation of a multi-stakeholder platform for decarbonizing transport in the country.
• Through this forum, the WRI India team, along with NITI Aayog and other project partners, will work in close coordination with all these stakeholders to formulate strategies and develop appropriate business models to accelerate electric mobility in India.
• The forum will also provide a platform to initiate dialogues for the development of uniform policies and help achieve specific results in reducing emissions from the transport sector.
• The NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023) is a joint programme of seven organisations that will engage China, India, and Vietnam in promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonizing transport in their respective countries.
• The project is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) support the initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag.
• NITI Aayog is the implementing partner for the India component of the project.

Reference: PIB

INDIAN ECONOMY

 6.INDIA SECOND MOST ATTRACTIVE MANUFACTURING HUB GLOBALLY

THE CONTEXT: According to real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield, India has overtaken the United States (US) to become the second-most sought-after manufacturing destination globally, driven mainly by cost competitiveness.

ANALYSIS:

• China remains at number one position in 2021 Global Manufacturing Risk Index, which assessed the most advantageous locations for global manufacturing among 47 countries in Europe, the Americas and Asia-Pacific (APAC).
• India takes the second spot after China as the most sought-after manufacturing destination globally.
• The US is at third position, followed by Canada, Czech Republic, Indonesia, Lithuania, Thailand, Malaysia and Poland.
• This indicates the growing interest shown by manufacturers in India as a preferred manufacturing hub over other countries, including the US and those in the APAC region.
• The growing focus on India can be attributed to India’s operating conditions and cost competitiveness. Also, the country’s proven success in meeting outsourcing requirements has led to the increase in the ranking year-on-year.
• The rankings in the report are determined based on four key parameters, including the country’s capability to restart manufacturing, business environment (availability of talent/labour, access to markets), operating costs, and the risks (political, economic and environmental).
• The baseline ranking for top manufacturing destinations is determined on the basis of a country’s operating conditions and cost effectiveness.
• This year, India and the US switched places (second and third) taking India one rank above from the rankings released last year, when India stood at the third place.

Reference: Indian express

INTERNAL SECURITY

7. MULTI-MODE HAND GRENADES

THE CONTEXT: The first batch of Multi-Mode Hand Grenades (MMHG), manufactured by Economic Explosives Limited (EEL) following Transfer of Technology from Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory of Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO), was handed over to the Indian Army.

ANALYSIS:

• The Government undertaken many measures to transform the defense sector into a self-reliant industry which can cater to the present and the future needs of the Armed Forces. These include setting up of Defence Industrial Corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu; formulation of draft Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy (DPEPP) 2020; earmarking around 64 per cent of its modernization funds under capital acquisition budget for 2021-22 for procurement from domestic companies; notifying two Positive Indigenisation Lists of over 200 defence items to promote self-reliance & defence exports; Corporatisation of Ordnance Factory Board (OFB); increasing FDI limit from 49 to 74 per cent under automatic route and beyond 74 per cent through government route and according top priority to ‘Buy {Indian-IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)}’ category for capital procurement.
• The grenade is not just more lethal, but is safer to use. It has a distinctive design that gives flexibility of employment in both defensive (fragmentation) and offensive (stun) modes. It has a highly accurate delay time, very high reliability in usage and safe for carriage.
• These new grenades will replace Grenade No 36 of World War I vintage design, which had been continuing in service till date.

Reference : PIB

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

8. THE REPAIR OF AERO-ENGINE COMPONENTS

THE CONTEXT: Indian Scientists have for the first time repaired aero-engine components through emerging additive manufacturing or 3D printing technique called Directed Energy Deposition process that can significantly reduce repair costs and overhaul time. They indigenously made powders suitable for the additive manufacturing process called the Directed Energy Deposition process.

ANALYSIS:

• Ni-based superalloys are widely used in aero-engine components. Despite having exceptional properties, they are prone to damage due to extreme operational conditions.
• Manufacturing defects during the casting or machining process are another major cause of rejection, and tons of such unused components are scrapped due to minor defects.
• A team of scientists indigenously developed powders suitable for additive manufacturing using inert gas atomizer available at ARCI by melting unused scrap material. Utilising this, ARCI is developing the Laser-DED process for the repair of aero-engine components made of Ni-based superalloy.
• Furthermore, the ARCI team developed a technology to refurbish pinion housing assembly (critical component in helicopters used for power transmission to the main fan) by machining out the damaged layer and rebuilding it using laser cladding process followed by final machining.
• Laser cladding and Laser-DED (both processes) are the same. In general, for two-dimensional deposition (surface coating), the term laser cladding is used, and for the manufacture of three-dimensional parts, the term laser-DED is used. A patent (201911007994) has been filed for the same.

Reference: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

9. INDIA-ASEAN ENGINEERING PARTNERSHIP SUMMIT

THE CONTEXT: The “India-ASEAN Engineering Partnership Summit” organised by Engineering Exports Promotion Council (EEPC) with the support from Ministry of External Affairs and Department of Commerce.

ANALYSIS:

• Focus of summit was on collaborations in engineering sector. The summit offers an important platform for engagement of Indian industry on India-ASEAN partnership in engineering trade and investments.
• This forum will also be instrumental in achieving the landmark export target set by the government both in terms of engineering as well as merchandise exports.
• Engineering exports constitutes one-fourth of the merchandise exports and is the largest foreign exchange earners among all export sectors and the performance of engineering exports has been remarkable in the last few years.
• ASEAN, with over 15 percent share in India’s global engineering shipment, is likely to be a key region to focus with a target of around USD 16 billion of exports for 2021-22.
• As one of the largest destinations for Indian exports, ASEAN will be an important region for India with an export target of US$ 46 billion in meeting the global export target of US$ 400 billion in financial year 2021-22.
• ASEAN as a region is the third largest export destination of Indian engineering products after EU and North America. Among the ASEAN member nations, Singapore and Malaysia are major export destinations for Indian engineering products.
• Both India and ASEAN have large share of skilled population, robust service and manufacturing sectors and there are many complementary sectors and products available for greater cooperation. With a combined economy of approx. US$ 5.8 trillion, there is significant potential for enhancing trade and investment partnership between India and ASEAN.
• This year is special for both partners as it marks the 25thanniversary of India-ASEAN dialogue partnership and 10 years of the Strategic Partnership.
• An E-Book on India-ASEAN trade and investment emphasizing engineering and MSME sector was also launched during the inaugural session. The book covers several important aspects of enhancing bilateral trade and investment and also provides exhaustive information on India and ten ASEAN nations.

Reference : PIB

Q1. Consider the following statements about Arctic Council:
1. It was set up in 1996 by the Ottawa declaration.
2. Its secretariat is located in Russia.
3. India is given observer status in the Council.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 and 2
b) 2 and 3
c) 1 and 3
d) All of them

Q2. Which of the following groups of countries are members of Arctic Council?
a) Canada, Denmark, Finland, United States.
b) Iceland, Norway, Russia, U.K.
c) Canada, Iceland, Russia, France.
d) Finland, Norway, U.K., Russia

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: A
Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: India’s eastern coast is more vulnerable to tropical cyclones as
  compared to western coast. On an average, the ratio is 4:1.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: In 2021, Cyclone Tauktae hit the western coast of India (Gujarat)
  while Cyclone Yaas hit the eastern coast of India (Odisha, West Bengal).

Q2. Answer: B
Explanation:

• The portal under Bhuvan “Yuktdhara” will facilitate planning of new MGNREGA assets using Remote Sensing and GIS based information.
• This platform will serve as a repository of assets (Geotags) created under various national rural development programmes i.e. MGNREGA, Integrated Watershed Management Programme, Per Drop More Crop and Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana etc., along with field photographs.
• The word ‘Yukt’ is derived from Yojanam, the planning and ‘Dhara’ indicates the flow.
• It is a culmination of untiring joint efforts of ISRO and Ministry of Rural development made towards realising a G2G service for rural planning in support of decentralized decision making.
• Tentatively assigned as Meso-Neoproterozoic based on the available evidence of stromatolites and organic-walled microfossils.

[WpProQuiz 30]

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. YUKTDHARA PORTAL

THE CONTEXT: The new portal under Bhuvan “Yuktdhara” will facilitate planning of new MGNREGA assets using Remote Sensing and GIS based information.

ANALYSIS:

• This platform will serve as a repository of assets (Geotags) created under various national rural development programmes i.e. MGNREGA, Integrated Watershed Management Programme, Per Drop More Crop and Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana etc., along with field photographs.
• The word ‘Yukt’ is derived from Yojanam, the planning and ‘Dhara’ indicates the flow.
• It is a culmination of untiring joint efforts of ISRO and Ministry of Rural development made towards realising a G2G service for rural planning in support of decentralized decision making.
• The high point is that, this portal integrates wide variety of thematic layers, multi-temporal high resolution earth observation data with analysis tools. Planners will analyse previous assets under various schemes and facilitates identification of new works using online tools.
• Yuktdhara based plans will be prepared by grassroot functionary and verified by appropriate authorities for relevance and resource allocation. This would ensure quality of plan and enable a long term monitoring of the assets created over the years.
• Geo MGNREGA on Bhuvan has received wide acclaims. The Before-During-After Geotagging of assets has successfully implemented the progress based disbursement of the funds during the process of creation of rural assets. Also, a Citizen-centric Mobile Application JANMANREGA has helped rural population for providing feedback using Bhuvan services.
• The synergy of Geographic Information and Earth Observation technology has not only brought the value of location to each rural asset, but also brought in unprecedented transparency in MGNREGA programme.

Reference: PIB

2. INDIAN ARMY GRANTS COLONEL RANK TO WOMEN OFFICERS

THE CONTEXT: A Selection Board of the Indian Army cleared the way for the promotion of five women officers to Colonel (Time Scale) rank, post completion of 26 years of reckonable service.

ANALYSIS:

• This is the first time that women officers serving with the Corps of Signals, Corps of Electronic and Mechanical Engineers (EME) and the Corps of Engineers have been approved to the rank of Colonel.
• Previously, promotion to the rank of Colonel was only applicable for women officers in the Army Medical Corps (AMC), Judge Advocate General (JAG) and the Army Education Corps (AEC).
• The widening of promotion avenues to more branches of the Indian Army is a sign of increasing career opportunities for women officers.
• Combined with the decision to grant permanent commission to women officers from a majority of branches of the Indian Army, this step defines the Indian Army’s approach towards a gender-neutral Army.

Reference: PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. GOVERNMENT CLEARED OIL PALM MISSION DESPITE RED FLAGS BY TOP FORESTRY INSTITUTE

THE CONTEXT: Recently the Union Cabinet cleared the Rs 11,040-crore National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) with a focus on growing the crop in the North-east and Andaman and Nicobar Islands due to their favourable rainfall and temperature. That clearance came in the face of objections raised by India’s top forestry research institute against introducing oil palm in biodiversity rich areas and in the absence of a detailed study it had proposed.

ANALYSIS:

• Between 1976 and 1985, nearly 16 sq km of forest land gave way to oil palm plantations in Little Andaman. In 1995, three NGOs moved the SC seeking to defend the island’s tropical rainforests and indigenous communities. The apex court formed a committee in 2001 and, based on its report, stopped monoculture or commercial plantations on the archipelago’s forest land in 2002. It also banned the introduction of exotic species
• Approached by the Andaman and Nicobar administration for relaxing its 2002 ban on plantations of exotic oil palm in the archipelago, the Supreme Court, in November 2019, had asked the Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education (ICFRE), an autonomous institute under the Environment Ministry, for its opinion.
• In January 2020, ICFRE submitted its report recommending that introduction of oil palm “should be avoided” in biodiversity rich areas, including grasslands, without detailed studies on its ecological impact.
• The push for replanting oil palm in Little Andaman came in July 2018 when Niti Aayog member Ramesh Chand visited the archipelago following a policy meeting. He recommended that the administration “should seek a review of the ban on plantation of exotic species” and commission a feasibility report for oil palm.
• Oil Palm is the source of the world’s largest consumed edible oil primarily due to its high productivity, versatility and substantial price advantage. But plantations are also blamed for inflicting widespread environmental and social damage across continents, from Cameroon to Malaysia.
• The usual oil palm planting practices — burning an area after felling forests or draining peat swamps — cause massive loss of forests and biodiversity. Whether burnt, dried or simply left to rot, dead trees and vegetation release greenhouse gases. Such rapid change in land use have also been linked to social impact.

Reference: Indian express

4. INDIA’S NEW DIRECTIVES ON SUSTAINABLE DISPOSAL OF FLY ASH MAY DO MORE HARM THAN GOOD

THE CONTEXT: According to researchers and activists, the latest government attempt to ensure the safe and sustainable disposal of fly ash could end up damaging India’s farmlands, water bodies and fragile habitats.

ANALYSIS:

• Over the last two decades, the Indian government has been issuing notifications on the disposal and utilisation of fly ash.
• Its recommendations have varied: use it to manufacture building material and in construction work and apply it as soil conditioner in farms and use it to reclaim low-lying areas and empty mines. However, over 50% of industries remain non-compliant, mostly dumping the ash in the open, in water bodies and in unlined and uncovered pits.
• As per a status report by Fly Ash Watch Group ,there have been eight major incidents involving coal ash in India between August 2019 and May this year. The Singrauli region spread across Singrauli district in Madhya Pradesh and Sonbhadra district in Uttar Pradesh accounted for half of these.
• In 2019-’20, 197 thermal plants in India generated 226 million tonnes of fly ash. And nearly 1.6 billion tonnes of it are scattered over 65,000 acres of land, as of 2019.
• Accidents happen mostly when fly ash overflows or breaks through the embankment of ash ponds where it has been dumped.
• An ash pond is designed with an embankment all around and an internal and external drainage system. It needs to be constantly monitored for safety and spillage.

Reference: Scroll

5. DELHI’S NEW SMOG TOWER

THE CONTEXT: Delhi Chief Minister inaugurated the country’s first ‘smog tower’, an experimental set up worth Rs 20 crore to purify air in a 1-km radius around the structure.

COMPONENTS OF SMOG TOWER

HOW IT WORKS?

• Polluted air is sucked in at a height of 24 m, and filtered air is released at the bottom of the tower, at a height of about 10 m from the ground.
• When the fans at the bottom of the tower operate, the negative pressure created sucks in air from the top.
• The ‘macro’ layer in the filter traps particles of 10 microns and larger, while the ‘micro’ layer filters smaller particles of around 0.3 microns.
• The downdraft method is different from the system used in China, where a 60-metre smog tower in Xian city uses an ‘updraft’ system — air is sucked in from near the ground, and is propelled upwards by heating and convection. Filtered air is released at the top of the tower.

LIKELY IMPACT

• Computational fluid dynamics modelling by IIT-Bombay suggests the tower could have an impact on the air quality up to 1 km from the tower.
• The actual impact will be assessed by IIT-Bombay and IIT-Delhi in a two-year pilot study that will also determine how the tower functions under different weather conditions, and how levels of PM2.5 vary with the flow of air.
• An automated Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system in the tower will monitor air quality. Levls of PM2.5 and PM10, besides temperature and humidity, will be measured constantly, and will be displayed on a board atop the tower.
• Monitors will soon be installed at various distances from the tower to determine its impact at these distances. The project aims to provide purified air in a “localised” area.

SUPREME COURT ORDER

• In 2019, the Supreme Court directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Delhi government to come up with a plan to install smog towers to combat air pollution.
• The court was hearing a matter related to air pollution in the national capital due to stubble-burning in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
• IIT-Bombay then submitted a proposal for the towers to the CPCB. In January 2020, the Supreme Court directed that two towers should be installed by April as a pilot project.
• The smog tower at Connaught Place is the first of these towers. The second tower, being constructed at Anand Vihar in east Delhi with CPCB as the nodal agency, is nearing completion.

NO EVIDENCE SO FAR

• This is the first experiment with a large-scale outdoor air-purification system in India. Small smog towers have been raised in Netherlands and South Korea; larger ones have been set up in China. Experts said there isn’t enough evidence that smog towers work.
• We haven’t come across any clear data that has shown that smog towers have helped to improve the outdoor ambient air quality of a city, either in India or other parts of the world.
• There were no proven efficiency calculations on such installations. We would have to control emissions at the ground level, not create emissions and then try to clean it.
• Delhi has three smaller air purifiers (about 12 feet tall) installed by the Gautam Gambhir Foundation in Krishna Nagar, Gandhi Nagar, and Lajpat Nagar — essentially big versions of indoor air purifiers.

Reference: Indian express

6. GLOBAL EMISSIONS CAN DECLINE 10% IF REFINERIES CLEAN UP THEIR ACT

THE CONTEXT: According to the global inventory of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions published recently in One Earth, Global cumulative emissions could be reduced by 10 per cent during 2020-2030 if refineries adopted low carbon measures.

ANALYSIS:

• The carbon measures include refineries improving their efficiency and upgrading heavy oil processing technologies. The inventory covered 1,056 refineries from 2000-2018.
• The researchers also found that emissions from the refineries were about 1.3 gigatonne (Gt) in 2018. These would increase to 16.5 Gt of CO2 from 2020-2030 if mitigation strategies were not adopted.
• The oil refining industry in 2003 witnessed a spurt in growth in China and India, directly leading to a rise in CO2 emissions. China’s refinery output increased by 11 per cent in 2003 and 12 per cent in 2004.
• In contrast, Europe witnessed a decline in the refinery industry after 2009. This was due to a decline in the demand for refined petroleum products because of the impact of the European Union’s environmental and energy policies.
• CO2 emissions from the oil refineries in China and India experienced growth between 2000 and 2018 and their contribution climbed to 16 per cent and seven per cent in 2018, from six per cent and three per cent in 2000 respectively.
• In the same period, the share of Europe and the United States fell to 17 per cent and 21 per cent in 2018, from 22 per cent and 24 per cent in 2000.
• The global oil refining industry was dominated by two types of refineries in 2018 — new refineries (less than 40 years) in China, India and West Asia and older refineries (40 years and older) in Europe, the United States and Japan.
• The refining capacity of the two types of refineries accounted for 22 per cent and 35 per cent of the total refining capacity in 2018 respectively and their CO2 emissions accounted for 22 per cent and 37 per cent of the total CO2 emissions of the oil refining industry.
• Old refineries in Japan, Europe and the United States were still emitting large amounts of CO2 in 2018 and they were unlikely to be shut down in the next few years, according to the inventory.
• Petroleum refineries are the third-largest global source of stationery greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for 40 per cent of emissions from the oil and gas supply chain.

Reference: Down to earth

INDIAN ECONOMY

7. THE NATIONAL MONETISATION PIPELINE

THE CONTEXT: Union Minister for Finance launched the asset monetisation pipeline of Central ministries and public sector entities: ‘National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP Volumes 1 & 2)’.

NATIONAL MONETISATION PIPELINE: AN INTRODUCTION

• Union Budget 2021-22 has identified monetisation of operating public infrastructure assets as a key means for sustainable infrastructure financing.
• Towards this, the Budget provided for preparation of a ‘National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP)’ of potential brownfield infrastructure assets. NITI Aayog in consultation with infra line ministries has prepared the report on NMP.
• NMP aims to provide a medium term roadmap of the programme for public asset owners; along with visibility on potential assets to private sector. Report on NMP has been organised into two volumes.
• Volume I is structured as a guidance book, detailing the conceptual approaches and potential models for asset monetisation.
• Volume II is the actual roadmap for monetisation, including the pipeline of core infrastructure assets under Central Govt.

FRAMEWORK

• The pipeline has been prepared based on inputs and consultations from respective line ministries and departments, along with the assessment of total asset base available therein. Monetization through disinvestment and monetization of non-core assets have not been included in the NMP.
• Currently, only assets of central government line ministries and CPSEs in infrastructure sectors have been included. Process of coordination and collation of asset pipeline from states is currently ongoing and the same is envisaged to be included in due course.
• The framework for monetisation of core asset monetisation has three key imperatives.

• This includes selection of de-risked and brownfield assets with stable revenue generation profile with the overall transaction structured around revenue rights. The primary ownership of the assets under these structures, hence, continues to be with the Government with the framework envisaging hand back of assets to the public authority at the end of transaction life.

ESTIMATED POTENTIAL

• Considering that infrastructure creation is inextricably linked to monetisation, the period for NMP has been decided so as to be co-terminus with balance period under National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP).
• The aggregate asset pipeline under NMP over the four-year period, FY 2022-2025, is indicatively valued at Rs 6.0 lakh crore. The estimated value corresponds to ~14% of the proposed outlay for Centre under NIP (Rs 43 lakh crore).
• This includes more than 12 line ministries and more than 20 asset classes. The sectors included are roads, ports, airports, railways, warehousing, gas & product pipeline, power generation and transmission, mining, telecom, stadium, hospitality and housing.  Sector wise Monetisation Pipeline over FY 2022-25 (Rs crore)

• The top 5 sectors (by estimated value) capture ~83% of the aggregate pipeline value. These top 5 sectors include: Roads (27%) followed by Railways (25%), Power (15%), oil & gas pipelines (8%) and Telecom (6%).
• In terms of annual phasing by value, 15% of assets with an indicative value of Rs 0.88 lakh crore are envisaged to be rolled out in the current financial year (FY 2021-22). However, the aggregate as well as year on year value under NMP is only an indicative value with the actual realization for public assets depending on the timing, transaction structuring, investor interest etc.
• Indicative value of the monetisation pipeline year-wise (Rs crore).

• The assets and transactions identified under the NMP are expected to be rolled out through a range of instruments. These include direct contractual instruments such as public private partnership concessions and capital market instruments such as Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvIT) among others.
• The choice of instrument will be determined by the sector, nature of asset, timing of transactions (including market considerations), target investor profile and the level of operational/investment control envisaged to be retained by the asset owner etc.
• The monetisation value that is expected to be realised by the public asset owner through the asset monetisation process, may either be in form of upfront accruals or by way of private sector investment. The potential value assessed under NMP is only an indicative high level estimate based on thumb rules. This is based on various approaches such as market or cost or book or enterprise value etc. as applicable and available for respective sectors.

IMPLEMENTATION & MONITORING MECHANISM

• As an overall strategy, significant share of the asset base will remain with the government.
• The programme is envisaged to be supported through necessary policy and regulatory interventions by the Government in order to ensure an efficient and effective process of asset monetisation. These will include streamlining operational modalities, encouraging investor participation and facilitating commercial efficiency, among others. Real time monitoring will be undertaken through the asset monetisation dashboard, as envisaged under Union Budget 2021-22, to be rolled out shortly.
• The end objective of this initiative to enable ‘Infrastructure Creation through Monetisation’ wherein the public and private sector collaborate, each excelling in their core areas of competence, so as to deliver socio-economic growth and quality of life to the country’s citizens.

Reference: PIB

8. INDIA AND ADB SIGN $500 MILLION LOAN TO EXPAND METRO RAIL NETWORK IN BENGALURU

THE CONTEXT: The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) today signed a $500 million loan to expand the metro rail network in Bengaluru with construction of two new metro lines totaling 56 km in length.

ANALYSIS:

• The project supports urban transformation of Bengaluru City into a more livable and sustainable city through support to urban public transport and urban development with concepts of transit-oriented development (TOD) and multi-modal integration (MMI).
• The project will bring various benefits including road de-congestion, better urban livability and environmental improvement.
• TOD-based urban development model will target realigning growth and increase the city’s economic productivity by creating higher density, compact, mixed use, mixed income, safe, and resource-efficient and inclusive neighborhoods.
• TOD also aims to raise land values along these corridors, generating capital revenues for the state government to meet the city’s long-term investment needs.
• MMI will aim to provide people-oriented, environment-friendly solutions and a safe, total mobility solution for all Bangalore residents through the seamless integration of different modes of public transport.
• The project will construct two new metro lines, mostly elevated, along Outer Ring Road and National Highway 44 between Central Silk Board and Kempegowda International Airport with 30 stations.
• This will help decongest traffic in the city area and provide seamless connectivity to the airport. The needs of vulnerable groups, such as the elderly, women, children, and differently abled persons, will be reflected on the metro facilities.
• An additional $2 million technical assistance grant from ADB will help the state government formulate urban development plans and their implementing frameworks, focusing on TOD and multimodal integration.
• The grant will also be used to strengthen the capacity of the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited and other state agencies to implement these initiatives.
• ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.

Reference: PIB

Q 1. Consider the following statements:
1. India’s eastern coast is more vulnerable to tropical cyclones as compared to western coast.
2. In 2021, Cyclone Tauktae hit the eastern coast of India while Cyclone Yaas hit the western Coast of India.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) 1 only
b) 2 only
c) Both 1 and 2
d) Neither 1 nor 2

Q 2. Recently in news, “Yuktdhara” Portal is related to:
a) Education
b) Rural Development
c) Health
d) Refugees

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 ANSWER: A

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: It is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesia. Guam’s capital is Hagåtña.

Answer: A
Explanation:
• The barasingha (Rucervus duvaucelii), also called swamp deer.
• In Assamese, barasingha is called dolhorina; dol meaning swamp.
• Habitat: Swamp deer occur in the Kanha National Park of Madhya Pradesh, in only 6 localities in Uttar Pradesh. A few survive in Assam’s Kaziranga and Manas National Parks.
• In 2005, a small population of about 320 individuals was discovered in the Jhilmil Jheel

• Conservation Reserve in Haridwar district in Uttarakhand on the east bank of the Ganges.
• Threats: Poaching for antlers and meat, wetlands converted and used for agriculture.
• Conservation:
  • listed on CITES Appendix I.
  • Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
  • IUCN status- Vulnerable

THE CONTEXT: There was not a single meeting of any parliamentary committee in the four months following the national lockdown and the opposition parties have claimed that the government is making Parliamentary Standing Committees irrelevant by bypassing them while passing legislations. The Lok Sabha Speaker has initiated an assessment of the effectiveness of the Standing Committees and the Rajya Sabha secretariat had already done a similar analysis.

BACKGROUND

• The institution of Parliamentary Committees has its origins in the British Parliament. The earliest parliamentary committees were the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) (1921) followed by the Estimates Committee (1950).
• A parliamentary committee is a committee which is appointed or elected by any House or nominated by the Speaker/Chairman and which works under the direction of the Speaker/Chairman and presents its report to the House or to the Speaker/Chairman and the respective Secretariat. They draw their authority from Article 105 and Article 118
• The practice of regularly referring bills to committees began in 1989 after government departments started forming their own standing committees. Prior to that, select committees or joint committees of the houses were only set up to scrutinise some very important bills.
• DRSCs were set up first in 1993, to ensure Parliament could keep with the growing complexity of governance.  These are permanent Committees that are reconstituted every year.
• DRSCs are composed of members from across political parties. Currently, there are 24 DRSCs. Each has 21 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha.
• Each DRSC focuses on a set of ministries and, therefore, helps its members build sector knowledge. DRSCs can examine Bills referred to them; select specific topics related to the ministries and examine implementation by the Government; and examine the budgetary outlays of the departments.
• They do not consider matters of day-to-day administration but only focus on long-term plans and policies to guide the working of the executive. They have the right to call for records and witnesses and prepare reports that are then placed before Parliament for necessary action.
• Some of the important Bills currently under scrutiny of standing committees include those on data protection, surrogacy and DNA technology regulation and the Industrial Relations Code, 2019.

TYPES OF COMMITTEES

• There are broadly two kinds of committees: (a) Standing Committees; and (b) Ad-hoc Committees.
• Both Houses have a similar committee structure, with few exceptions. Their appointment, terms of office, functions, and procedure for conducting business is regulated as per Rules of Business of each House.
• Standing committees are permanent in nature, and are reconstituted from time to time. They can be further divided into financial committees and DRSCs.
• Ad hoc committees are appointed for a specific purpose — like the examination of a bill or inquiry into specific subjects, say, the 2G scam — and exist only until this purpose is fulfilled.

IMPORTANCE OF STANDING COMMITTEES

• Over the years, responsibilities of the government have increased significantly. Government expenditure and legislation have become technical and complex in nature. Disruptive changes in technology and the expansion of trade, commerce and economy in general throw up new policy challenges. The laws and regulations that are required to govern a digital society cannot be made without highly specialised knowledge and political acumen. MPs may have great acumen but they are generalists. They are neither effective in their role as lawmakers nor in questioning the functioning of the government. Also, given the volume of work it is difficult for Parliament to scrutinise all government activities in the House in a limited time.
• Parliamentary Committees ensure that Parliament can effectively discharge its two functions – lawmaking and oversight of the executive. Their ability to devote more time on each item allows them to examine matters in greater detail. Smaller group of lawmakers with interests and expertise of individual members could have more open, intensive and better informed discussions. Members of Parliament can get the assistance of experts through the committees.
• The sittings of Parliament are steadily declining over the years, from 100-150 sittings in the 1950s to 60-70 sittings per year. Fewer sittings of Parliament are compensated by the working of DRSCs. During the recess in the current Budget session, the committees have done work worth 30 sittings of Parliament. Also, only a limited proportion of the budget (17% in the 16th Lok Sabha) is usually discussed in the House. The DRSCs examine the budget in detail and ensure financial accountability. Bills that are referred to committees are returned to the House with significant value addition. For example, the Committee on Food and Consumer Affairs suggested several amendments in the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, most of which were accepted and incorporated in the Act.

ADVANTAGES

• Parliamentary committees enable input from experts and those who may be directly affected by a policy or legislation. For example, the DRSCs often invite comments from the public and call people to testify.
• Since time on the floor of the house is allocated on the basis of party strength, many MPs very less time. But in committee meetingsMPs can contribute extensively to the discussions.
• Committee reports are usually exhaustive and provide authentic information on matters related to governance. Their reports allow for informed debate.
• Being outside direct public glare allows members to discuss issues and reach consensus without worrying about constituency pressures.
• They also help parties reach consensus on various issues as committee meetings are ‘closed door’ and members are not bound by party whips and the anti-defection law does not apply to committees.
• The committees allow members to focus on some specific areas and build their expertise, which helps them scrutinise issues more thoroughly.

FUNCTIONING OF DRSCs

While it is difficult to analyse the quality of deliberations of its sittings, the number of sittings held by various DRSCs can be used as an indicator to measure the quantity of work done by them.

• Examining Demands for Grants: in many cases MPs do not have sufficient time to study the DRSC reports on Demands for Grants
• Examining Bills: the trend shows that fewer Bills are being referred to Committees as compared to previous Lok Sabha
• Examination of Issue some of the subjects identified for examination by DRSCs constituted for 2019-20 include: state of the Indian economy, online security measures for data protection etc.
• Reports submitted by DRSCs: During the 16th Lok Sabha, 2,038 sittings were held by DRSCs and they submitted 1,111 reports. On average, DRSCs published one report in 1.8 sittings. Average sittings taken to publish one report vary across DRSCs.

RECENT TRENDS

• The recent decline in the role and performance of standing committees is part of a larger trend visible even before the lockdown, an India Spend analysis of published parliamentary data regarding eight standing committees found.
• Despite 133 Bills being passed in the 16th Lok Sabha, 15% higher than the previous Lok Sabha, a lesser number of Bills were sent to committees for scrutiny. According to PRS Legislative Research, only 25% of the Bills introduced were referred to committees in the 16th Lok Sabha, as compared to 71% and 60% in the 15th and 14th Lok Sabha respectively.
• Comparing every standing committee’s number of meetings and number of hours under both governments shows a steady decline. The number of sittings decreased by 22.1% and the standing committees were 26.8% less productive by number of hours during 16th Lok Sabha as compared to the 15th Lok Sabha.
• The average attendance of every departmentally-related standing committee was 54% in the second session (November-December 2019) and 48% in the third session (January-March) of the 17th Lok Sabha.
• The standing committee on finance, which scrutinises the expenditure of the Ministry of Finance, had the lowest attendance of all at 22 between November and March.

HOW THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEES IS REDUCING?

DIMINISHED SAY IN LEGISLATIVE MATTERS

There was a decrease in the involvement of standing committees in legislative matters. Only 25% of all bills were referred to committees, compared to 71% under the previous government. Only about 10% of bills introduced in Parliament during the 17th Lok Sabha have been referred to committees.

The opposition has charged the government with bypassing parliamentary panels by introducing all bills in the Lower House, where it has a strong majority. Controversial laws like RTI Amendment Bill and the UAPA Amendment Bill were not referred to any Parliamentary Committees despite the Opposition’s motion. During the lockdown between March and August, the government has promulgated 11 ordinances. Some of the ordinances which had nothing to do with the pandemic could have been brought as bills and sent to the committees for review.

PARTISANSHIP CURTAILING DELIBERATION

Traditionally, parliamentary committees function on a non-party basis. This tradition seems to have broken down and members have started political posturing. The committee on home affairs saw political partisanship during its meeting on Kashmir post abrogation of Article 370.

When a party has sufficient numbers in both Houses of Parliament, it is almost inevitable that these standing committees are populated by members from the ruling disposition, which enables them to prevent matters unfavourable to the government from being taken up.The PAC was recently prevented from scrutinising the PM-CARES Fund by committee members from the ruling party.

Such political partisanship during the proceedings of committees has reduced its deliberation over important issues such as tracking the expenditure of ministries and, consequently, its ability to hold the government to account.

VIRTUAL MEETINGS NOT ALLOWED

Virtual meetings of standing committees were not allowed by the Speaker despite requests due to the confidentiality conditions under Rule 275 of the Lok Sabha. If parliamentary standing committees were able to meet virtually, they could review the performance of the government and how it dealt with the pandemic.

The standing committee on labour looked at the performance of the One Nation-One Ration Card scheme and the welfare benefits to migrant labourers, but months later. Timely review and recommendations by the committee was required here. More than 15 countries have allowed their parliamentary committees to meet virtually to ensure socially distanced proceedings.

A NEW TREND

Several Bills piloted by the Finance Ministry have been referred to specially-formed joint committees of the two Houses rather than the DRSCs. The DRSC is chaired by a member from the opposition while the joint committees were chaired by a member of the ruling party.

WHY THE ROLE OF PARLIAMENTARY STANDING COMMITTEES IS REDUCING?

In 2002, the NCRWC pointed out some shortcomings of the committees: (a) low attendance of MPs at meetings; (b) too many ministries under a committee; (c) norms not followed by most political parties while nominating MPs to committees; and (d) the constitution of DRSCs for a year leaves very little time for specialisations.

Saving time and scrutiny could be reasons to bypass parliamentary panels. It can take months to table a report in the Parliament with some bills being referred to committees more than once. When a government has adequate numbers to push through legislation, it might view the committee as unnecessary and disadvantageous as it allows the Opposition to get its dissent noted on record.

Repeated requests to either send or not send or send bills to a joint committee, instead of an already established specialised committee, creates an impression that the committee process is political and not focused on technical scrutiny. Not referring a bill to a committee sends the message that the bills piloted by the government are perfect, and they are so urgently needed that they do not require the contribution of a committee of MPs. These impressions reduce overall interests of the MPs to participate in the meetings.

With reports of large-scale absence of MPs from the committees, the Rajya Sabha Chairman has pointed out that a total of 95 MPs did not attend a single meeting of the 8 DRSCs that reviewed allocations for 18 Ministries after the presentation of the 2020-21 Union Budget. MPs are unable to pay attention to the committees as they prioritize social functions in their constituency due to risk losing voters.

The issue of members not attending the meetings of committees, particularly DRPSCs, has come to the fore against the backdrop of the opposition’s criticism that the government was bypassing parliamentary scrutiny by not referring bills to the DRPSCs. The committee chair’s supervisory role has not proved to be effective and there is no mechanism for a regular assessment of the performance of the committee.

MEASURES TO STRENGHTHEN THE COMMITTEE SYSTEM

REFERRING BILLS TO COMMITTEES

Currently, it is not mandatory to refer a Bill to a Committee. All Bills, other than Money Bills, should be referred to the DRPSCs for consideration and scrutiny after public opinion has been elicited. The Committees may schedule public hearings, if necessary, and finalise with the help of experts the second reading stage. Referring all Bills to a Committee would ensure that all laws go through a minimum level of Parliamentary scrutiny.

EXPERT WITNESSES AND RESEARCH SUPPORT

Very often, MPs experience a knowledge gap when dealing with specialised subjects. The DRSC usually invites experts while scrutinising Bills but this is not always the case. The technical support available to Parliamentary Committees is limited to a secretariat. Late Speaker Somnath Chatterjee favoured associating external experts with parliamentary committees to support the committees in analysing legislations and policies. There is a need to reconsider the infrastructure support that MPs require for contributing effectively. Committees in other countries such as the UK, USA, and Canada can retain specialist advisors to assist in specific inquires.

REPORTS OF THE COMMITTEES

Currently, reports of the Parliamentary Committees are not discussed in the Parliament. The reports are non-binding and have persuasive or advisory value. The government can ignore the recommendations. Major reports of all Parliamentary Committees should be discussed by the Parliament especially where there is disagreement between a Parliamentary Committee and the Government. The findings and recommendations of the PAC should be accorded greater weight.

LONGER TENURES

The Standing Committees are permanent and the one-year term is of the members of the committees and not of the committees per se. MPs should have longer tenure in committees so that they could build up their expertise in subject areas. Once a member is nominated to a committee, he should be allowed to continue till he retires or otherwise discontinues the membership.

ATTENDANCE OF MEMBERS

Persistently absent members from the committees should be dropped from them after being duly cautioned. A proportionate reduction in salary and other allowances could also be effected

WAY FORWARD

• Parliamentary committees are the brain of Parliament. They give the institution the ability to identify pressing and prospective issues, suggest solutions, and highlight gaps in implementation. They are a huge reservoirs of information, which are made available to MPs in order to enlighten themselves, and contribute ideas to strengthen the parliamentary system and improve governance.
• The DRSC system has been a fairly successful experiment. It is important to further strengthen its ability for detailed scrutiny of issues so that it helps parliament work well in its lawmaking and accountability roles. They largely have an audit-based role of their respective ministries and are restricted in their areas of functioning. Strengthening their working will improve Parliament’s overall effectiveness. Standing Committees should embrace the entire spectrum of administration for an in-depth and continuous study.
• The performance of the Committees affects the overall effectiveness of Parliament as an institution. There should be periodic evaluation of the parliamentary committees which can be then reviewed by the chairman of the Rajya Sabha and the speaker of the Lok Sabha along with the chairmen of the committees following a parliament session.

CONCLUSION

• Standing committees are the parliament’s principal instrument to ensure executive accountability. These Committees could restore the balance between Parliament’s legislative and deliberative functions and its role as a representational body. They could provide a potent mechanism for a meaningful multilateral dialogue and reasonable accommodation of varying viewpoints and harmonization of conflicting interests.
• Parliamentary oversight of administration is never intended to adversely affect administrative initiative, effectiveness and discretion. The purpose of accountability mechanisms is to strengthen efficient functioning of administration and not weaken it. Better scrutiny leads to better governance.

Question to Ponder

1. Are Parliamentary Committees witnessing a gradual decline? Analysis the situation and suggest measures to strengthen the committee system.

[WpProQuiz 29]

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. 1183 MOBILISATION CAMPS ORGANISED UNDER THE DDU-GKY

THE CONTEXT: As part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM) celebrations, around 1183 ‘mobilisation camps’ were organised across the country under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) programme between 13th and 19th August, 2021.

ABOUT DDU-GKY:

• Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) launched on the 25th September, 2014, is a nationwide placement-linked skill training program funded by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Government of India (GoI).
• DDUGKY seeks to build the placement-linked skills of the poor rural youth and place them in wage employment across various sectors of the economy.
• The programme has an outcome led design with guaranteed placements for at least 70% trained candidates.
• The DDU-GKY programme is being implemented in 27 states and 3 UTs for rural poor youth with an emphasis on placements.
• More than 871 PIAs are training rural poor youth in close to 611- job roles through more than 2381 training centers.
• Cumulatively 10.94 lakh youth have been trained and 7.07 lakh youth have been placed till 31st July, 2021.

Reference: Indian express

2. AFGHANISTAN RETURNEES PROVIDED FREE POLIO VACCINATION

THE CONTEXT: The Health Ministry has decided to vaccinate returnees from Afghanistan with free polio vaccines as a preventive measure.

ANALYSIS:

• India received its polio-free certification along with the entire southeast Asia region on March 27, 2014. However, wild polio virus cases continue to be reported in neighbouring Pakistan and Afghanistan — the last two polio-endemic countries in the world.
• Failure to eradicate polio from these last remaining strongholds could result in as many as 200,000 new cases every year, within 10 years, all over the world.
• There are three types of wild polio viruses (WPV) — type 1, type 2, and type 3. Wild polio viruses are naturally occurring isolates known or believed to have circulated persistently in a community.
• The WHO has said that people need to be protected against all three types of the virus in order to prevent the occurrence of polio disease, and polio vaccination is the best protection.

Reference: The Hindu

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. MORE EARTHQUAKE OBSERVATORIES

THE CONTEXT: India to add 35 More Earthquake Observatories by end of this year and 100 more by year 2026.

ANALYSIS:

• In last six and a half decades since Independence, the country had only 115 Earthquake Observatories but now there is going to be a quantum leap in the number of Earthquake Observatories in India  The Indian subcontinent is considered as one of the world’s most disaster-prone areas in terms of earthquakes, landslides, cyclones, floods, and tsunamis and the Government is taking all necessary steps to meet these challenges.

Reference: PIB

4. LARGEST FLOATING SOLAR PV PROJECT IN THE COUNTRY

THE CONTEXT: The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Ltd has commissioned the largest floating solar PV project of 25MW on the reservoir of its Simhadri thermal station in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

ANALYSIS:

• This is also the first solar project to be set up under the Flexibilisation Scheme, notified by the Government of India in 2018.
• The floating solar installation which has a unique anchoring design is spread over 75 acres in an RW reservoir.
• This floating solar project has the potential to generate electricity from more than 1 lakh solar PV modules.
• This would not only help to light around 7,000 households but also ensure at least 46,000 tons of CO2e are kept at arm’s length every year during the lifespan of this project.
• The project is also expected to save 1,364 million litres of water per annum. This would be adequate to meet the yearly water requirements of 6,700 households.
• The 2000MW coal-based Simhadri Station is the first power project to implement an open sea intake from the Bay of Bengal which has been functional for more than 20 years.
• NTPC is also planning to set up a hydrogen-based micro-grid system on a pilot basis at Simhadri.
• With a total installed capacity of 66900 MW, NTPC Group has 71 Power stations including 29 Renewable projects.
• NTPC has set a target to install 60 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy (RE) capacity by 2032.
• NTPC is also India’s first energy company to declare its energy compact goals as part of the UN High-level Dialogue on Energy (HLDE).

Reference: PIB

5. OIL & GAS COMPANIES EXPLORING GREEN ENERGY OPTIONS

THE CONTEXT: State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation is considering inorganic investments to reach a target of 10 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2040. Other oil and gas PSUs are also investing in renewable energy.

ANALYSIS:

• Global moves to reduce carbon emissions to slow down climate change have led to oil and gas companies around the world investing in renewable energy to reduce their carbon footprint and diversify offerings.
• State-owned upstream and downstream oil and gas companies are also taking part in energy investments to help achieve the government’s ambitious renewable energy targets.
• India is targeting 450 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2030 up from about 100 GW currently.
• India’s largest upstream oil and gas company, ONGC, is targeting 10 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2040, up from 178MW of renewable energy capacity at the end of FY20.
• GAIL is also looking at acquisitions to augment its 130 MW renewable energy portfolio. The company is aiming at reaching 1 GW of renewable capacity within 3-4 years.
• Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, India’s largest refiner, had a total installed renewable energy capacity of about 233 MW at the end of FY21. It has also set up 257 electric charging and battery swapping stations at 29 retail fuel outlets.
• The results of its battery swapping stations were positive and that the company was looking at a potential joint venture (JV) with Sun Mobility to provide battery swapping on a larger scale in the future. IOC is also setting up the first green hydrogen plant in India in Mathura.
• Indian Oil also has a JV with Israel-based battery technology startup Phinergy to develop aluminium-air technology based battery systems for electric vehicles and stationary storage.
• Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd has tied up with Tata Power to set up electric vehicle charging at various retail points around the country. It has also set up about 133 MW of renewable energy capacity, including about 100 MW of wind energy capacity.
• Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd had installed renewable energy capacity of 43 MW at the end of FY20.

Reference: Indian express

6. DUST FROM THE ARABIAN DESERT IS MELTING HIMALAYAN GLACIERS AND AFFECTING THE SEAS

THE CONTEXT: Scientists say that catastrophic melting the glaciers is being exacerbated by dust blowing from West Asia.

ANALYSIS:

• Winds that sweep across Asia link the Hindu Kush Himalayas and the Gulf in an interconnected system. Globally, around 5 billion tonnes of desert dust from arid regions is swept into the atmosphere every year.
• These dust particles, travel long distances at an altitude of 2 km-5 km and reach the High Mountain Asia during summer. Dust from arid regions such as the Thar desert in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia gets lofted above the boundary layer [the lowest part of the planet’s atmosphere] of Earth by convection and gets transported to far places with wind at altitudes and deposited mainly above 3 km.
• The dust particles are thus deposited in the high Himalayan Mountains, blanketing glaciers in a layer of particles that are darker than snow.

• Warming mountains mean warmer winds, which have begun to fundamentally shift monsoon patterns across Asia and West Asia.
• Widespread coral bleaching in the Gulf is the result of low shamal winds [strong north-westerly winds that blow across West Asia] during summer. Those shamal winds are generated by a pressure gradient driven by the monsoon. If the monsoon weakens, so will shamals, leading to more frequent and/or severe coral bleaching in the Gulf region.
• Altered monsoons have created the perfect conditions for a single-celled algal organism called Noctiluca scintillans to multiply by the millions.

Reference: SCROLL

7. CHILDREN IN INDIA AT EXTREMELY HIGH RISK OF CLIMATE CRISIS IMPACTS: UNICEF

THE CONTEXT: According to a new UNICEF report, India is one of four South Asian nations where children are most vulnerable to the effects of climate change, which jeopardise their health, education, and protection.

ANALYSIS:

• ‘The Climate Crisis Is a Child Rights Crisis: Introducing the Children’s Climate Risk Index’ (CCRI) is UNICEF’s first focused on children. It ranks countries based on children’s exposure to climate and environmental shocks such as cyclones and heatwaves, as well as their vulnerability to those shocks based on their access to essential services.
• Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and India are among four South Asian countries where children are at extremely high risk of the impacts of the climate crisis, with a ranking of 14th, 15th, 25th and 26th respectively.
• CCRI has placed India as one of the 33 extremely high-risk countries with flooding and air pollution being the repeated environmental shocks leading to socio-economic adverse consequences for women and children.
• Approximately 1 billion children live in one of the 33 countries classified as extremely high-risk.
• It is estimated that more than 600 million Indians will face ‘acute water shortages’ in the coming years, while at the same time flash flooding is to increase significantly in the majority of India’s urban areas once the global temperature increase rises above 2° Celsius.
• Twenty-one of the world’s 30 cities with the most polluted air in 2020 were in India.

Reference: India today

INDIAN ECONOMY

8. FALL IN FOREX RESERVES

THE CONTEXT: Data released by the Reserve Bank showed that the nation’s forex reserves decreased by $2.099 billion to stand at $619.365 billion for the week ended August 13, as a result of a decline in core currency assets as well as gold reserves. In the previous week ended August 6, the foreign exchange had seen a rise of $889 million to reach a lifetime high of $621.464 billion.

ANALYSIS:

• The foreign currency assets (FCA), a vital component of the overall reserves, declined by $1.358 billion to reach $576.374 billion during the week ended August 13.
• Expressed in dollar terms, the FCA includes the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies such as the euro, pound sterling and Japanese yen held in the foreign exchange reserves.
• The country’s reserve position with the IMF also decreased by $14 million to $5.111 billion.
• An increase in the forex reserves could bring some comfort to the government as well as the Reserve Bank in managing the nation’s external and internal financial issues at a time when the economy is facing Covid stress once again and it could have an impact on the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for the ongoing fiscal as states are announcing lockdowns.
• It is a big cushion in the event of any crisis on the economic front and enough to cover India’s import bill for a year. A higher forex kitty could also help strengthen the rupee against the dollar.

Reference: India express

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

9. EXERCISE KONKAN 2021

THE CONTEXT: Exercise Konkan 2021 was held between INS Tabar and HMS Westminster on 16 Aug 21 in the English Channel. .

ANALYSIS:

• The exercise included the participation of integral helicopters of the two ships and the Falcon Electronic Warfare aircraft.
• A wide range of exercises including co-ordinated anti-submarine procedures, firing drills; combined maritime picture compilation, combat formation maneuvering and replenishment at sea were conducted.
• These along with the diverse professional engagements held earlier in harbour, have enabled Exercise Konkan 2021 consolidate interoperability and helped cement the strong bonds of friendship the between the two navies.
• Konkan is an annual bilateral maritime exercise between the Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of United Kingdom. The Konkan series of exercises commenced in 2004.

Reference: PIB

10. EXERCISE MALABAR-21

THE CONTEXT: Indian Naval Ships Shivalik and Kadmatt arrived at Guam, an Island Territory of the USA. The two ships are scheduled to participate in the annual Exercise MALABAR-21, between navies of Australia, India, Japan and the USA.

ANALYSIS:

• MALABAR series of maritime exercises commenced in 1992 as a bilateral IN-USN exercise and has grown in stature over the years to include four prominent navies in the Pacific and Indian Ocean Region.
• Exercise MALABAR-21 will be conducted with USN, JMSDF and RAN at sea from 26-29 Aug 21.
• The exercise will provide an opportunity for common minded navies to enhance inter-operability, gain from best practices and develop a common understanding of procedures for Maritime Security Operations.
• MALABAR-21 would witness high-tempo exercises conducted between Destroyers’, Frigates, Corvettes, Submarines, Helicopters and Long Range Maritime Patrol Aircraft of the participating navies. Complex surface, sub-surface and air operations including Live Weapon Firing Drills, Anti-Surface, Anti-Air and Anti-Submarine Warfare Drills, Joint Manoeuvres and Tactical exercises will be conducted during the exercise.
• The participating Indian Ships Shivalik and Kadmatt are the latest indigenously designed and built, multi-role Guided Missile Stealth Frigate and Anti-Submarine Corvette respectively and form part of the Indian Navy’s Eastern Fleet based at Visakhapatnam, Eastern Naval Command.
• Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. it is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesia. Guam’s capital is Hagåtña.

Reference: PIB

11. HAZARAS- THE AFGHAN MINORITY GROUP HATED & TORTURED BY TALIBAN

THE CONTEXT: The Hazaras, an ethnic minority group in Afghanistan, have been subjected to repeated persecution and torture by the Taliban. According to a 2018 United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) report, most attacks by the Taliban on civilians in Afghanistan are directed towards the country’s minority population, most of whom are ethnic Hazaras.Just last month, the Taliban had captured and killed nine men of the Hazara community in Afghanistan.

WHO ARE THE HAZARAS?

• The Hazaras are the third largest ethnic group of Afghanistan and a religious minority.
• Around 10 per cent Muslims in Sunni-majority Afghanistan are Shiite and almost all of them are Hazaras. The Taliban as well as the Islamic State are Sunni groups.
• The Hazaras are said to be of Mongolian and Central Asian descent, and the descendants of Mongolian leader Genghis Khan, who invaded Afghanistan in the 13th Century.
• They are mostly based in the mountainous area of central Afghanistan known as ‘Hazaristan’, or the land of the Hazaras. Hazaras speak a dialect of Dari called Hazaragi, which is a Persian dialect.

HISTORY OF HAZARA PERSECUTION

• Not just the Taliban, Hazaras have been persecuted and repressed by the majority Sunni population in Afghanistan even as far back as in the reign of Pashtun leader Amir Abdul Rahman in the 1880s, when Sunni leaders had declared jihad on all Shias of the country.
• After the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 1996, ethnic minority groups, such as the Hazaras, and women bore the brunt of the Taliban torture.
• Even though the Constitution of Afghanistan gave equal rights to Hazaras in 2004 and former president Hamid Karzai had included Hazaras in his cabinet, the minority group continues to face discrimination and is placed at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder in the country.

WHY TALIBAN HATES THE HAZARAS?

• The Taliban’s hatred for the Hazaras is primarily due to their different sect and distinct ethnic origins, and they thus consider them to be ‘infidels’.
• Mohammed Alizada, a Hazara member of parliament, has said that the Hazaras’ “support for democracy and thirst for knowledge” have clashed with the strict religious and conservative values of the Taliban and Islamic State.
• Former Taliban governor of Mazar-e-Sharif Mullah Manon Niazi was also known to make provocative speeches at mosques and over radio against Hazaras.
• During the Taliban’s past rule in Afghanistan (between 1996 and 2001), Hazaras were massacred in 1998 in Mazar-e-Sharif and in central Bamian province in 2000 and 2001. The Buddhas of Bamian, gigantic statues that were held in respect by Hazaras because of their antiquity, were destroyed by the Taliban in 2001.

Reference: The print

Q 1. Consider the following statements about Guam island

1. Guam is territory of the United States.

2. It is located in the Polynesia.

Select the correct answer using code given below:
a) 1 only
b) 2 only

c) Both
a) None

Q 2. Which one of the following protected areas is well-known for the conservation of a sub-species of the Indian swamp deer (Barasinga) that thrives well in hard ground and is exclusively graminivorous ?
a) Kanha National Park
b) Manas National Park
c) Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary
d) d) Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 ANSWER: B)

Explanation:

• Therriaghat: Also in East Khasi Hills district, it is probably one of the best-preserved and most complete Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary sections in India. Most of the large vertebrates, planktons and many tropical invertebrates suddenly became extinct at the end of the Cretaceous period. A new assemblage of ammonites recorded recently probably represents a few of the last representatives just before the mass extinction in which the complete sub-class Ammonidea vanished from the face of the earth.
• Unakoti: This site in the Unakoti district has numerous rock-cut sculptures and temples made between the 7th and 9th centuries. The hilly environs and waterfalls are an added attraction at Unakoti, which means “one less than a crore”. The place is a historic Shaiva pilgrimage 172 km from Agartala. The central Shiva head, known as ‘Unakotiswara Kal Bhairava’ is about 30 feet high, including an embroidered headdress that is 10 feet high.
• Reiek Tlang: About 29 km from State capital Aizawl, this hill is a cuesta formed due to erosion of the tertiary sand shale alternations. Cuesta means a ridge with a gentle slope or dip on one side and a steep slope or scarp on the other. The local authorities host the annual anthurium festival at a heritage village near the Reiek peak.
• Stromatolite Park: At Mamley, about 80 km from State capital Gangtok, this site comprising stromatolitic (algal) development – boulder outcrops with circular structures – hosted in the limestone of Buxa Formation was discovered a little over a decade ago. It provides one of the rare examples of early life on earth in the Sikkim Himalayas. The age of the Buxa Formation is tentatively assigned as Meso-Neoproterozoic based on the available evidence of stromatolites and organic-walled microfossils.

[WpProQuiz 28]

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. ARREST SHOULD NOT BE ROUTINELY MADE: SC

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court has said that merely because an arrest can be made as it is lawful does not mandate that it must be made. SC observed that personal liberty is an important aspect of constitutional mandate.

ANALYSIS:

• The apex court said if arrest is made routine, it could cause “incalculable harm” to the reputation and self-esteem of a person. If the investigating officer of a case does not believe that the accused will abscond or disobey the summons, he or she is not required to be produced before the court in custody.
• Personal liberty is an important aspect of our constitutional mandate. The occasion to arrest an accused during investigation arises when custodial investigation becomes necessary or it is a heinous crime or where there is a possibility of influencing the witnesses or accused may abscond.
• The top court passed the order while hearing a plea against the Allahabad High Court verdict which had dismissed an application seeking anticipatory bail in a case in which FIR was registered seven years ago.
• The bench noted that contrary to the observations made in the apex court verdict of 1994 on how a police officer has to deal with a scenario of arrest, the trial courts are stated to be insisting on arrest as a pre-requisite formality to take charge sheet on record in view of provisions of section 170 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). Section 170 of the CrPC deals with cases to be sent to magistrate when evidence is sufficient.
• The top court said the word ‘custody’ appearing in section 170 of the CrPC does not contemplate either police or judicial custody but it merely connotes the presentation of accused by the investigating officer before the court while filing charge sheet.
• It noted that section 170 of the CrPC does not impose an obligation on the officer-in-charge to arrest the accused at the time of filing of charge sheet.

Reference: Indian express

2. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA MOBILE APP

THE CONTEXT: Geological Survey of India has decided to make itself accessible to the masses and make its presence felt digitally by launching the GSI Mobile App (Beta Version). Through the App, people will become more enlightened about various facets of GSI activities. It is also in line with the Digital India campaign initiated by the Central Government.

ANALYSIS:

• The App is divided into various sections where it talks about the legacy of GSI, the in-house publications of the organisation, various case studies on different missions of GSI, the picture gallery etc.
• E-news division updates masses about the latest news as far as the organization is concerned in terms of work and the career opportunities as well as the training facilities that are available with GSI.
• It also deals with various maps, videos and downloads of GSI work.
• The e-book section would give the masses an idea of the exploration works done by GSI.
• It connects the YouTube, Facebook and Twitter pages of GSI from the app as well.
• This App will be further upgraded for higher versions of Android OS and for iOS compatible mobiles (i-Phones) and many more features will be added in the near future.

ABOUT GSI

• The Geological Survey of India (GSI) was set up in 1851 primarily to find coal deposits for the Railways. Over the years, GSI has not only grown into a repository of geo-science information required in various fields in the country but has also attained the status of a geo-scientific organisation of international repute.
• Its main functions relate to creating and updating of national geoscientific information and mineral resource assessment. These objectives are achieved through ground surveys, air-borne and marine surveys, mineral prospecting and investigations, multi-disciplinary geoscientific, geo-technical, geo-environmental and natural hazards studies, glaciology, seism tectonic study, and carrying out fundamental research.
• GSI’s chief role includes providing objective, impartial and up-to-date geological expertise and geoscientific information of all kinds, with a focus on policy making decisions, commercial and socio-economic needs.
• GSI also emphasises on systematic documentation of all geological processes derived out of surface and subsurface of India and its offshore areas. The organisation does so by using the latest and most cost-effective techniques and methodologies, including geophysical and geochemical and geological surveys.
• GSI’s core competence in survey and mapping is continuously enhanced through accretion, management, co-ordination and utilization of spatial databases (including those acquired through remote sensing).
• It functions as a ‘Repository’ or ‘clearing house’ for the purpose and uses latest computer-based technologies for dissemination of geoscientific information and spatial data, through cooperation and collaboration with other stakeholders in the Geo-informatics sector.
• GSI, headquartered in Kolkata, has six regional offices located in Lucknow, Jaipur, Nagpur, and Hyderabad, Shillong and Kolkata and state unit offices in almost all states of the country.
• GSI is an attached office to the Ministry of Mines.

Reference: PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. GSI LISTS GEO-TOURISM SITES IN NE TO VISIT AFTER ‘UNLOCK’

THE CONTEXT: Geological Survey of India (GSI) has identified certain geological sites across the Northeast for promotion of geo-tourism as some States in the region prepare to ‘unlock’ from September.

ANALYSIS:

• Twelve locations in the Northeast are included in the 32 approved geo-tourism or geo-heritage sites in the country.
• Of the 12 sites, three are in Meghalaya, two each in Assam and Tripura, and one each in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Naga- land and Sikkim.

MEGHALAYA

• Mawmluh Cave: Near Cherrapunjee in the East Khasi Hills district, this cave led scientists to the Meghalayan Age associated with a major climatic event – very abrupt, critical and significant drought and cooling – 4,200 years ago. A stage of the Meghalayan Age is defined from a specific level in a stalagmite from this cave. According to geologists, speleothems from the cave provide important records of Holocene paleo-climate and paleo-monsoon. The cave is about 55 km from the State capital Shillong.
• Mawblei or God’s Rock: Situated near Syntung village in East Khasi Hills district, it is a huge balancing rock slanting at an angle of about 45 degrees in the south-southeast direction on a hill slope at 1,303 metres above mean sea level overlooking the Wahrashi River valley. The rock is composed of the reddish-purple Mahadek sandstone belonging to the Khasi group of cretaceous age. Thin partings of shale are also observed in the boulder. Mawblei in the Khasi language means God’s Rock and is a sacred place for the local populace. The rock is about 63 km from Shillong.
• Therriaghat: Also in East Khasi Hills district, it is probably one of the best-preserved and most complete Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary sections in India. Most of the large vertebrates, planktons and many tropical invertebrates suddenly became extinct at the end of the Cretaceous period. A new assemblage of ammonites recorded recently probably represents a few of the last representatives just before the mass extinction in which the complete sub-class Ammonidea vanished from the face of the earth.

ASSAM

• Majuli: A river “island”, among the world’s largest, Majuli is a district at the mercy of the Brahmaputra. The river erodes the island every year but also deposits soil to ensure a constant change in its shape. The island is also the hub of spiritualism in Assam because of a number of ‘satras’ or Vaishnav monasteries established by the 15th-16th century saint-reformer Srimanta Sankaradeva and his disciples. The island is about 330 km east of Guwahati.
• Umananda: One of the smallest inhabited islands in the Brahmaputra, Umananda is off the administrative hub of Guwahati and sports an old Shiva temple. The island is actually an inselberg, composed of the rocks of the Assam-Meghalaya gneissic complex.

TRIPURA

• Chabimura: In Gomati district, this site is known for its panels of rock carving on a steep hill wall on the bank of river Gomati. The huge images of Shiva, Vishnu, Karthikeya, Durga and other gods and goddesses date back to the 15th-16th century and the biggest carved deity is about 20 ft. The hill range is covered with thick jungles and one can reach this abode of gods after trekking through the foliage but rafting or boating on the river is the only option for a view of the rock-face carvings. The site is about 82 km from the State capital Agartala.
• Unakoti: This site in the Unakoti district has numerous rock-cut sculptures and temples made between the 7th and 9th centuries. The hilly environs and waterfalls are an added attraction at Unakoti, which means “one less than a crore”. The place is a historic Shaiva pilgrimage 172 km from Agartala. The central Shiva head, known as ‘Unakotiswara Kal Bhairava’ is about 30 feet high, including an embroidered headdress that is 10 feet high.

ARUNACHAL PRADESH

• Sangetsar Tso: Popularly known as Madhuri Lake, this waterbody in Tawang district is close to the border with Tibet and was formed due to the damming of a river during a major earthquake in 1950. The lake is surrounded by a lush valley and snow-capped mountains.

MANIPUR

• Loktak Lake: About 40 km from State capital Imphal, this lake in the Bishnupur district is the largest freshwater lake in the Northeast. The attractions of this lake are the ‘ phumdis’ or floating biomass and the ‘phumsangs’ or huts of fishermen on them. The Keibul Lamjao National Park, the only floating wildlife habitat on earth, is on the southwestern part of the lake and is the last natural habitat of the sangai or brow-antlered dancing deer.

MIZORAM

• Reiek Tlang: About 29 km from State capital Aizawl, this hill is a cuesta formed due to erosion of the tertiary sand shale alternations. Cuesta means a ridge with a gentle slope or dip on one side and a steep slope or scarp on the other. The local authorities host the annual anthurium festival at a heritage village near the Reiek peak.

NAGALAND

• Naga Hill Ophiolite: Geologically referred to as NHO, it is in the Pungro region of Kiphire district and about 240 km from State capital Kohima. It refers to the ophiolitic rocks of mantle and oceanic crust percentage at the continental plate margin with vast potential for intensive research and economic growth. The NHO consists of a variety of Mesozoic and the subsequently Cenozoic rocks – magmatic, metamorphic and sedimentary – that originated at the India-Myanmar convergent plate boundary. It has been assigned ages ranging from Cretaceous to Paleocene.

SIKKIM

• Stromatolite Park: At Mamley, about 80 km from State capital Gangtok, this site comprising stromatolitic (algal) development – boulder outcrops with circular structures – hosted in the limestone of Buxa Formation was discovered a little over a decade ago. It provides one of the rare examples of early life on earth in the Sikkim Himalayas. The age of the Buxa Formation is tentatively assigned as Meso-Neoproterozoic based on the available evidence of stromatolites and organic-walled microfossils.

Reference: The Hindu

4. EXTREME HEAT GROWING HEALTH ISSUE: LANCET

THE CONTEXT: Extreme heat is an increasingly common occurrence worldwide, with heat-related deaths and illnesses also expected to rise. The authors of a new two-paper Series on Heat and Health, published in The Lancet, recommended immediate and urgent globally coordinated efforts to mitigate climate change and increase resilience to extreme heat to limit additional warming, avoid permanent and substantial extreme heat worldwide, and save lives by protecting the most vulnerable people.

ANALYSIS:

• In alignment with the Paris Agreement, the Series authors call for global warming to be limited to 1.5°C to avoid substantial heat-related mortality in the future.
• Reducing the health impacts of extreme heat is an urgent priority and should include immediate changes to infrastructure, urban environment, and individual behavior to prevent heat-related deaths.
• The series is published ahead of this year’s COP26 UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow.
• Effective and environmentally sustainable cooling measures can protect from the worst health impacts of heat. These range from increasing green space in cities, wall coatings that reflect heat from buildings, and widespread use of electric fans and other widely available personal cooling techniques that have been shown by thermal physiologists to help people regulate their body temperature without exacerbating other types of physiological strain.
• While air conditioning is becoming more widely available around the world, it is unaffordable for many of the most vulnerable, is financially and environmentally costly, and leaves many defence less against extreme heat during power outages.
• Two strategic approaches are needed to combat extreme heat. One is climate change mitigation to reduce carbon emissions and alter the further warming of the planet. The other is identifying timely and effective prevention and response measures, particularly for low-resource settings.

Reference: Indian express

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. ZYCOV-D- INDIA’S FIRST COVID-19 VACCINE FOR THOSE ABOVE 12

THE CONTEXT: The Drug Controller General has granted emergency approval to the Zycov-D, a COVID-19 vaccine developed by the Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadilla group, making it the first vaccine in India that can be administered to adults as well as those 12 and above.

ANALYSIS:

• It is also the only DNA- based vaccine in the world and can be administered without a needle, purportedly minimising chances of reactions.
• Interim results from phase-III clinical trials in July, in over 28,000 volunteers, showed a primary efficacy of 66.6% for symptomatic RT-PCR positive cases.
• The vaccine has been developed in partnership with the Department of Biotechnology under the ‘Mission COVID Suraksha’.
• The three-dose vaccine once administered produces the spike protein of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and elicits an immune response.

Reference: The Hindu

6. J&J SEEKS APPROVAL FOR COVID VACCINE TRIALS ON ADOLESCENTS

THE CONTEXT: U.S. pharma major Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has applied for permission to conduct Clinical trials of its single-shot COVID-19 vaccine on adolescents aged 12-17 years in India.

ANALYSIS:

• The company has moved an application to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) seeking approval.
• Previously in August, J&J’s single-dose COVID-19 vaccine had been granted emergency use approval (EUA) in India.
• J&J vaccine has demonstrated 85% efficacy in staving off severe COVID-19 disease in its phase 3 trials.

Reference: The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. CHINA FORMALLY PASSES THREE-CHILD POLICY INTO LAW

THE CONTEXT: China’s legislature formally amended the country’s family planning rules to allow couples to have three children, also announcing a number of policy measures aimed at boosting declining birth rates.

ANALYSIS:

• The amended law calls on the authorities to take supportive measures, including those in finances, taxes, insurance, education, housing and employment, to reduce families’ burdens as well as the cost of raising and educating children.
• In 2016, a “two-child policy” was introduced that largely failed to boost birth rates.
• The changes come in the wake of China’s once-in-ten year population census that recorded rapidly declining birth rates over the past decade.
• The census said China’s population was 1.41 billion in 2020, an increase of 72 million since the last census in 2010.
• The census recorded 264 million in the age group of 60 and over, up 5.44% since 2010 and accounting for 18.70% of the population.

Reference: The Hindu

8. U.S. NOT INTERESTED IN FTA

THE CONTEXT: Commerce and Industry Minister said that hopes of an India-U.S. trade pact are off the table for now, with the Joe Biden administration conveying to India that it is not interested in a Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

ANALYSIS:

• The US, as of now, has kind of indicated that they are not looking for new trade agreements, but we will look at working with them on market access issues on both sides.
• Resolving issues like non-tariff barriers, entering mutual recognition agreements and aligning on higher quality international standards will help spur trade between the two countries.
• The minister also said that India has begun working on an FTA with Bangladesh, and is close to sealing an early harvest deal with Australia ‘which has almost agreed’ on the matter, with a similar deal being worked out with the U.K.
• Other FTAs currently on the government’s priority list are UAE, GCC and Israel.

Reference: The Hindu

Q 1. Which of the following pairs are correctly matched?

GSI Site                                                       Region

1. Therriaghat                                         Meghalaya

2. Unakoti                                               Tripura

3. Reiek Tlang                                          Sikkim

4. Stromatolite Park                              Mizoram

Select the correct answer using code given below:
a) 1, 2 and 3 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 4 only
a) 1, 2 , 3 and 4

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: c)

Explanation:

• The Delhi-Chandigarh Highway has become the first e-vehicle friendly highway in the country, with a network of Solar-based Electric Vehicle Charging stations (SEVCs) set up by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) under the FAME-1 [Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) & Electric Vehicles in India] scheme of the Ministry of Heavy Industries.
• The EV charging station at Karnal lake resort, is strategically located at the midpoint of Delhi-Chandigarh highway, and is equipped to cater to all types of E- cars plying currently in the country.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. IATA’S TRAVEL PASS

THE CONTEXT: After IndiGo, SpiceJet will also start trials of IATA’s travel pass next week onwards. This means that starting August 23, passengers on SpiceJet’s Mumbai-Male flights would be able to use IATA’s travel pass to show their vaccination status.

ABOUT IATA’S TRAVEL PASS

• The travel pass will be a mobile app that will help passengers manages their travel in line with government requirements for Covid-19 tests or vaccines.
• The IATA Travel Pass will also enable authorised labs and test centres to securely send test results or vaccination certificates to passengers.
• Digital passports like the IATA travel pass have been developed to provide governments with the means to verify the authenticity of tests or vaccinations, airlines with the ability to provide accurate information to their passengers on test requirements and verify that a passenger meets the requirements for travel and travellers with accurate information on test requirements, where they can get tested, and the means to securely convey their travel health credentials to airlines and border authorities.
• In addition to IndiGo and SpiceJet, global airlines such as Singapore Airlines, Qatar Airways, Emirates, Etihad, British Airways, Air France, Virgin Atlantic, Swiss Air, Thai Air, and several others have joined the IATA travel pass initiative.

Reference: Indian express

2. GOVERNMENT MONITORING BOOSTER DOSE MOVE IN U.S.

THE CONTEXT: The Union Health Ministry said it was closely following the developments in the United States, which has given the green signal for booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine that is to start rolling out soon.

ANALYSIS:

• Doctors in India are also advocating booster dose. They stated that giving a third dose after a space of six-eight months had been shown to increase immune response markedly as per some research papers.
• The scenario in the U.S. is different, as most of the population has been fully vaccinated, so there is no harm in giving booster doses, although we will only be able to understand its benefits after studies are conducted on it. It is certainly going to be a trend in future to get a booster dose every year, just like the flu vaccine.
• As the virus keeps on mutating, even vaccines need to be updated with the latest strain annually. It has to be decided whether it would be administered on a yearly basis or not or whether every person would require it.
• All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Director Randeep Guleria had explained that India will have to take a serious look at bringing in booster doses to ensure that the population here is able to keep up the antibody levels in the body which will offer better protection to the emerging variants.
• This is when the WHO has raised alarm at the vast vaccine gap between high-income and low-income countries.
• Currently in India, we still do not have guideline recommendations for booster doses of vaccine. However, with the upcoming scientific evidence, we may see a role for such booster doses in the near future.

Reference: The Hindu

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. SOLAR ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EV) CHARGING STATION

THE CONTEXT: The Delhi-Chandigarh Highway has become the first e-vehicle friendly highway in the country, with a network of Solar-based Electric Vehicle Charging stations (SEVCs) set up by Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) under the FAME-1 [Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) & Electric Vehicles in India] scheme of the Ministry of Heavy Industries.

ANALYSIS:

• The EV charging station at Karnal lake resort, is strategically located at the midpoint of Delhi-Chandigarh highway, and is equipped to cater to all types of E- cars plying currently in the country.
• Further, the company is also working on upgrading the other charging stations on this highway, within this year.
• The establishment of similar EV chargers at regular intervals of 25-30 kms.
• On the highway will allay range-anxiety among Electric Vehicle users and bolster their confidence for inter-city travel.
• The SEVC stations are equipped with individual grid-connected rooftop solar plants that will supply green and clean energy to the charging stations.

Reference: PIB

4. INDIA DEVELOPED ROBUST MECHANISM FOR ONLINE TRADING OF ENERGY SAVING CERTIFICATES

THE CONTEXT: Ministry of Power issued more than 57 lacs Energy Saving Certificates to 349 industrial units because they saved more energy than the targets. These units will be able to trade certificates through Power Exchange Portal after a month to those units who could not achieve their targets.

ANALYSIS:

• Ministry of Power has taken several initiatives to enhance energy efficiency of major industrial sectors. The objective is to reduce consumption of fossil fuel, coal, oil and gas thereby leading to low carbon economy. This will not only enhance energy security for India but will also contribute towards climate goals as per the Paris Agreement.
• PAT scheme as a market-based mechanism, under National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE) is to enhance cost effectiveness through certification of excess energy savings in energy intensive industries that can be traded.
• The scheme seeks to reduce the specific energy consumption (SEC), i.e. energy used per unit of production in energy intensive large industries.
• Under this scheme, an Energy Audit is done to verify the baseline data (current level of efficiency) and thereafter energy saving targets are given.
• Energy Saving Certificates (ESCerts) are issued to those plants that have achieved excess energy savings over their targets. Units that are unable to meet the targets either through their own actions or through purchase of ESCerts are liable to financial penalty under the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
• After Issuance of ESCerts DCs are required to register with the Registry as Eligible Entity before registering with the power exchanges for trading of ESCerts and book keeping of ESCerts. The Trading of ESCerts takes place on the Power Exchange platform.

ABOUT BEE

• The Government of India has set up the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) on 1st March 2002 under the provision of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
• The mission of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency is to assist in developing policies and strategies with a thrust on self-regulation and market principles with the primary objective of reducing energy intensity of the Indian economy within the overall framework of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.
• This will be achieved with active participation of all stakeholders, resulting in accelerated and sustained adoption of energy efficiency in all sectors.

ABOUT AZADI KA AMRIT MAHOTSAV

• “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”, is the Government’s initiative to mark 75 years of India’s Independence.
• The idea behind the Mahotsav that starts the celebration of 75 years of India’s Independence 75 weeks before 15th August, 2022 and extends up to Independence Day 2023 is to showcase accomplishments since 1947 so as to instil a sense of pride and to create a vision for ‘India@2047’. The commemorations will include 75 events for 75 weeks with one prominent event every week.

Reference: PIB

5. DELHI’S FIRST SMOG TOWER

THE CONTEXT: The smog tower will be inaugurated by Chief Minister on August 23, 2021. Next, experts will start monitoring the performance of the tower and then assess its impact on the environment.

ANALYSIS:

• On January 13, 2020, the Supreme Court ordered the Delhi government to build a smog tower at Connaught Place in the city by April 13, 2020, to pollution.
• On the same day, the court also ordered a smog tower to be installed in Anand Vihar by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) by the same time.
• The smog tower is a pilot project and is expected to influence the air quality of more than 1 km in the downwind direction.

Reference: The Hindu

INDIAN ECONOMY

6. COVID-19 VACCINE: $11 BILLION GLOBAL MARKET OPPORTUNITY FOR INDIA

THE CONTEXT: According to Care Ratings agency’s report India’s pharmaceutical sector is looking at an opportunity to the tune of $10 to 11 billion in the form of COVID-19 vaccine supply, in both domestic and export markets in the next three years.

ANALYSIS:

• However, the Indian vaccine makers are unlikely to get the premium pricing enjoyed by US-based multinational companies which is anywhere between $15 and 25 per dose and their average realization could remain anywhere between $3.25 and $3.50 per dose.
• According to CARE Ratings, the majority of domestic demand is expected to be fulfilled by March 2022, when the export opportunities in the high-income markets such as Europe, North America and developed Asian countries are likely to be completely exhausted.
• As of August 10, 2021, over 4.35 billion COVID-19 vaccine shots have been administered globally. The USA, China and most of the European countries have vaccinated more than 50% of their total eligible population with at least one dose.
• As the majority of the Indian populace is expected to get vaccinated during 2021, the opportunity for the domestic pharma companies for this period is about $4.6 billion. However, the same is expected to increase to $4.9 billion during 2022 with an increase in exports.
• Furthermore, with near saturation of demand, the sales opportunity is expected to come down to about $1.6 billion during 2023, thus, $10-11 billion worth of opportunity for Indian vaccine manufacturers during 2021-2022.

Reference: The Hindu

7. PAKISTAN-BASED TERROR GROUPS OPERATE WITH IMPUNITY

THE CONTEXT: Amid the rapidly unfolding events following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, India flagged heightened activities of the proscribed Haqqani network and said other Pakistan-based terrorist groups such as the Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed continue to operate with impunity and encouragement.

ANALYSIS:

• Addressing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the events in Afghanistan have naturally enhanced global concerns about their implications for both regional and international security.
• India holds the current presidency of the UNSC.
• It is, therefore, vital that this Council does not take a selective, tactical or complacent view of the problems we face. We must never countenance sanctuaries for terrorists or overlook their raising of resources. And when we see state hospitality being extended to those with innocents’ blood on their hands, we should never lack the courage to call out their double-speak.
• The UNSC briefing considered the 13th report of the Secretary General on the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) to international peace and security. The August 3 report states that ISIL-Khorasan (ISIL-K), a self-proclaimed branch of the ISIL, has expanded its presence in several provinces of Afghanistan and strengthened its positions in and around Kabul.

Reference: Indian express

INTERNAL SECURITY

8. DRDO DEVELOPS ADVANCED CHAFF TECHNOLOGY FOR INDIAN AIR FORCE

THE CONTEXT: Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed an Advanced Chaff Technology to safeguard fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF) against hostile radar threats.

ANALYSIS:

• Defence Laboratory Jodhpur, a DRDO laboratory developed the advanced Chaff material and chaff cartridge-118/I in collaboration with High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL), a Pune based laboratory of DRDO, meeting qualitative requirements of IAF.
• The Indian Air Force has started the process of induction of this technology after completion of successful user trials.
• In today’s electronic warfare, survivability of fighter aircraft is of prime concern because of advancement in modern radar threats. To ensure survivability of aircraft, Counter Measure Dispensing System (CMDS) is used which provides passive jamming against Infra-Red and radar threats.
• Chaff is a critical defence technology used to protect fighter aircraft from hostile radar threats.
• The importance of this technology lies in the fact that very less quantity of chaff material deployed in the air acts as decoy to deflect enemy’s missiles for ensuring safety of the fighter aircraft. The technology has been given to the industry for production in large quantities to meet the annual rolling requirement of the Indian Air Force.

Reference: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

9. BRICS SIGNS DEAL ON COOPERATION IN REMOTE SENSING SATELLITE DATA SHARING

THE CONTEXT: According to ISRO, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) signed an agreement for cooperation in remote sensing satellite data sharing.

ANALYSIS:

• The pact inked on August 17 enables building a virtual constellation of specified remote sensing satellites of BRICS space agencies and their respective ground stations will receive the data.
• This will contribute in strengthening multilateral cooperation among BRICS space agencies in meeting the challenges faced by mankind, such as global climate change, major disasters and environmental protection.

Reference: The Hindu

10. INDIA, AUSTRALIA SIGN DOCUMENT TO BOOST NAVAL TIES

THE CONTEXT: Chiefs of the Indian and Australian navies signed a ‘Joint Guidance for the Australia-India Navy to Navy Relationship’ document to streamline interaction between the two forces at various levels.

ANALYSIS:

• The document is aligned to the ‘2020 Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ agreed to by prime ministers of the two nations, and aims to ensure a shared approached to regional and global security challenges.
• Australia and India, along with the US and Japan are members of the four-nation Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or the Quad, which has irked China. The navies of the four Quad nations will also participate in the Malabar Naval Exercise later this year.
• The strengthening of the naval ties with Australia comes at a time when India and China are involved in an over 15-month long military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
• The document’s highlights include “close cooperation in regional and multilateral fora” including the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS), Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS), Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) and Expert Working Groups subordinate to the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus framework.
• Indian and Australian bilateral defence relationship has strengthened over the years, and Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, Mutual Logistics Support Agreement, conduct of trilateral Maritime Security Workshop and participation of the Australian navy in Exercise Malabar are significant milestones which underline the role played by both Navies in bolstering this relationship in recent times.
• The document would be pivotal in consolidating the shared commitment to promote peace, security, stability and prosperity in the Indo – Pacific region.

Reference: Indian express

Q1. Which of the following highway has become the first e-vehicle friendly highway in the country?

a) Delhi- Kolkata Highway
b) Delhi-Mumbai Highway
c) Delhi-Chandigarh Highway d) Delhi to Chennai Highway

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 19, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: a)
Explanation

• Statement 1 is incorrect: Kigali amendment is amendment done to Montreal protocol in 2016
• Statement 2 is correct: envisages phasing out of hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) by 80-85% of present levels by 2040 in a phased manner by all signatory countries.
• Statement 3 is correct: Hydro fluorocarbons (HFCs) are both Ozone Depleting Substances as well as Green House Gases. At the same time, they are also Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).

[WpProQuiz 27]

ART AND CULTURE

1. NEW STUDY SUGGESTS INDUS VALLEY PEOPLE SPOKE ANCESTRAL DRAVIDIAN LANGUAGE

THE CONTEXT: Using similarities between the word used in bronze-age Mesopotamia for ‘elephant’ and that used by people of the Indus Valley civilisation (IVC), a study published by the journal Nature suggests that a significant population of the IVC spoke ancestral Dravidian languages.

ANALYSIS:

• Mukhopadhyay’s study analyses archaeological, linguistic, archaeo-genetic and historical evidence to claim that the words used for ‘elephant’ (‘pīri’, ‘pīru’) in bronze-age Mesopotamia and the word for ‘ivory’ (‘pîruš’) recorded in Old Persian documents dated to the sixth century BC were originally borrowed from ‘pīlu’, Proto-Dravidian for ‘elephant’.
• Since the IVC traded extensively with Mesopotamia, especially in ivory objects that were considered luxury goods, these words are “fossilised foreign words” that had their origin in languages that the IVC people spoke.
• The only other source of ivory for IVC was Egypt, whose words for the object (‘ab’, ‘abu’, ‘ȧb’, ‘beḥu’, ‘netcheḥ-t’) don’t share phonetic connections with ‘pīru’. Mukhopadhyay concludes, thus, that the ‘pīru’-based words could likely have originated in the IVC.
• While this inference suggests these words originated in the IVC, Mukhopadhyay analyses present-day words for ‘elephant’ in Indo-Aryan and Dravidian languages as well to conclude that ‘pīlu’ is Proto-Dravidian.
• In today’s Dravidian languages, too, words like ‘pīlu’, ‘pella’, ‘palla’, ‘pallava’, ‘piḷḷuvam’ and ‘pīluru’, signify elephants.
• In Sanskrit, the most popular words for ‘elephant’ are ‘hastin’/’hastī’ (referring to its trunk) or ‘dantin’ (referring to its tooth). Neither of these words, which refer to stable taxonomical features, is phonetically similar to ‘pīlu’.
• The study has also reported independent evidence of ‘pīlu’s’ connection with the meaning of ‘tooth’ in the name of the Salvadora persica tree, commonly known as the ‘toothbrush tree’. In Arabic countries, it is called ‘miswak’, meaning ‘tooth-cleaning-stick’. It has been used “since antiquity as [a] natural toothbrush.
• Speakers of several Indic languages call Salvadora persica ‘pīlu’, reinforcing the inference that ‘pīlu’ is related to the Proto-Dravidian word for ‘tooth.

Reference: The Wire

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

2. COLLEGIUM RECOMMENDS NINE JUDGES FOR SUPREME COURT

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended to the government nine names for appointment as apex court judges, and in the process scripted history by naming Karnataka High Court judge B.V. Nagarathna, who may become India’s first woman CJI.

ANALYSIS:

• The names include eight judges and one lawyer from the Supreme Court Bar.
• They are Karnataka High Court (HC) Chief Justice (CJ) A.S. Oka, who is the most senior Chief Justice; Gujarat Chief Justice Vikram Nath; Sikkim Chief Justice J.K. Maheshwari; Telangana Chief Justice Hima Kohli, who is also the only serving woman Chief Justice; Justice Nagarathna; Kerala High Court judge Justice C.T. Ravikumar; Madras High Court judge Justice M.M. Sundresh; Gujarat High Court judge Justice Bela M. Trivedi; and senior advocate P.S. Narasimha, in that order.
• The Collegium has for the first time, in one single resolution, recommended three women judges. It has thus sent a strong signal in favour of representation of women in the highest judiciary.
• It has also continued the recent trend to recommend direct appointments from the Supreme Court Bar to the Bench of the court.
• If the government approves the names, three of the nine – Chief Justice Nath and Justice Nagarathna and Mr. Narasimha would go on to be the CJIs.
• Mr. Narasimha, who had served as Additional Solicitor General, may become the ninth lawyer to be ever appointed directly as judge in the apex court.
• The top court currently has 10 vacancies. Judicial appointments to it have remained frozen since September 2019.

Reference: The Hindu

3. SC ALLOWS WOMEN CANDIDATES TO APPEAR FOR UPSC NDA EXAM

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court allowed the women candidates to take the National Defence Academy (NDA) exam scheduled for September 5. The apex court said that admissions will be subject to the final orders of the court.

ANALYSIS:

• The apex court further took upon the Army for not allowing women to take part in NDA exams. On Army’s submission that it’s a policy decision, the top court said that this policy decision is based on “gender discrimination”.
• As per the current eligibility criteria, candidates (male) who have cleared class 12 level or equivalent education were only eligible to apply. They should be at least 18 years of age to be eligible to apply for the job.
• After the court’s decision, it is expected that UPSC may soon define the new eligibility criteria and guidelines for admitting women candidates through the NDA exam. Those who clear the UPSC NDA exam are called for an SSB interview. On the final selection, candidates are recruited in the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force wings of the NDA, and for the Indian Naval Academy Course (INAC) for training.

Reference: Indian express

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. RATIFICATION OF KIGALI AMENDMENT THIRD OF INDIA’S

THE CONTEXT: Cabinet approves Ratification of Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer for phase down of Hydrofluorocarbons.

ANALYSIS:

• Under the Kigali Amendment; Parties to the Montreal Protocol will phase down production and consumption of Hydrofluorocarbons, commonly known as HFCs.
• Hydrofluorocarbons were introduced as non-ozone depleting alternative to Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). While HFCs do not deplete the stratospheric ozone layer, they have high global warming potential ranging from 12 to 14,000, which have adverse impact on climate.
• Recognizing the growth in use of HFCs, especially in Refrigeration and Air-conditioning sector the Parties to the Montreal Protocol, reached agreement at their 28th Meeting of the Parties (MOP) held in October 2016 in Kigali, Rwanda to add HFCs to the list of controlled substances and approved a timeline for their gradual reduction by 80-85 per cent by the late 2040s.
• India will complete its phase down of HFCs in 4 steps from 2032 onwards with cumulative reduction of 10% in 2032, 20% in 2037, 30% in 2042 and 80% in 2047.
• All amendments and adjustments of the Montreal Protocol, prior to the Kigali Amendment have Universal support.
• National strategy for phase down of Hydrofluorocarbons as per the applicable phase down schedule for India will be developed after required consultation with all the industry stakeholders by 2023.
• Amendments to the existing legislation framework, the Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules to allow appropriate control of the production and consumption of Hydrofluorocarbons to ensure compliance with the Kigali Amendment will be done by mid-2024

Reference: PIB

5. NATIONAL MISSION ON EDIBLE OILS – OIL PALM

THE CONTEXT: The Union Cabinet has given its approval to launch a new Mission on Oil palm to be known as the National Mission on Edible Oils – Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme with a special focus on the North east region and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

ANALYSIS:

• There are two major focus areas of the Scheme. The oil palm farmers produce Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFBs) from which oil is extracted by the industry. Presently the prices of these FFBs are linked to the international CPO prices fluctuations. For the first time, the Government of India will give a price assurance to the oil palm farmers for the FFBs. This will be known as the Viability Price (VP).
• This will protect the farmers from the fluctuations of the international CPO prices and protect him from the volatility. This VP shall be the annual average CPO price of the last 5 years adjusted with the wholesale price index to be multiplied by 14.3 %. This will be fixed yearly for the oil palm year from 1st November to 31st October. This assurance will inculcate confidence in the Indian oil palm farmers to go for increased area and thereby more production of palm oil.
• The second major focus of the scheme is to substantially increase the assistance of inputs/interventions. A substantial increase has been made for planting material for oil palm and this has increased from Rs 12,000 per ha to Rs.29000 per ha. Further substantial increase has been made for maintenance and inter-cropping interventions. A special assistance @ Rs 250 per plant is being given to replant old gardens for rejuvenation of old gardens.
• Further Special assistance will be provided for the North-East and the Andaman regions in which special provisions is being made for half moon terrace cultivation, bio fencing and land clearance along with integrated farming. For capital assistance to the industry, for the North East states and Andamans, a provision of Rs 5 core of 5 mt/hr unit with pro rata increase for higher capacity. This will attract the industry to these regions.

Reference: PIB

INTERNAL SECURITY

6. DISC 5.0

THE CONTEXT: Three years after the launch of Defence India Startup Challenge 1.0 (DISC), Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), will launch DISC 5.0 in New Delhi on August 19, 2021.

ANALYSIS:

• iDEX provides a platform for different stakeholders in the defence & aerospace sectors, essentially acting as an umbrella organisation to oversee technology development and potential collaborations in the specific field.
• With initiatives such as DISC and Open Challenges, iDEX is able to utilise the strong science, technology and research talent base of the country to develop new capabilities in defence innovation.
• DISC 5.0 will have more challenges than the first four DISC editions taken together.
• The launch of DISC 5.0 will be a massive leap towards leveraging the startup ecosystem to develop India’s defence technologies, equipment design and manufacturing capabilities.
• These challenges will also encourage startups to become more attuned to innovative concepts and inculcate the approach of creative thinking in India’s budding entrepreneurs.

Reference: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. G7 MEETING ON AFGHAN CRISIS

THE CONTEXT: U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on August 17, 2021, on the situation in Afghanistan and they agreed to hold a virtual G7 leaders’ meeting next week to discuss a common strategy and approach.

ANALYSIS:

• The U.S. President and the British PM discuss humanitarian assistance and support for refugees.
• The United States and Western allies resumed evacuating diplomats and civilians , the day after scenes of chaos at Kabul airport as Afghans thronged the runway.
• As they rush to evacuate, foreign powers are assessing how to respond to the transformed situation on the ground after Afghan forces melted away in just days, with what many had predicted as the likely fast unravelling of women’s rights.

Reference: The Hindu

Q 1. Consider the following statements:
1. Kigali amendment is amendment done to Kyoto protocol in 2016.
2. It is about phasing out of hydrofluorocarbons (HFC).
3. HFCs are Green House Gases.
Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?
a) 1 only
b) 1 and 2 only
c) 2 and 3 only
d) 3 only

ANSWER FOR AUGUST 18, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS (REFER RELEVANT ARTICLE)

Q.1 Answer: b)
Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: It is launched by RBI.
• Statement 2 is correct: The index will be released in the month of July every year.
• Statement 3 is correct: The financial inclusion will be measured in a single value ranging between 0 and 100, where 0 represents complete financial exclusion and 100 indicates full financial inclusion.

Q.2 Answer a)

• The Odisha Forest and Environment Department is set to begin ‘Island Odyssey’ and ‘Hirakud Cruise’ ecotourism packages for tourists to islands inside the reservoir whenCOVID-19 restrictions are lifted.
• ‘Cattle Island’, one of three islands in the Hirakud reservoir .It has been selected as a sight-seeing destination.
• When large numbers of people were displaced from their villages when the Hirakud dam was constructed on the Mahanadi river in 1950s, villagers could not take their cattle with them.
• They left their cattle behind in deserted villages. As the area started to submerge following the dam’s construction, the cattle moved up to Bhujapahad, an elevated place in the Jharsuguda district.
• Subsequently named ‘Cattle Island’, the piece of land is surrounded by a vast sheet of water. The cattle show wild characteristics. They are not ferocious, but shy. If a person comes near, the animals just run away.