THE ART AND CULTURE

1. TAMIL NADU SCULPTURES RECOVERED FROM AUSTRALIA, US

THE CONTEXT: Ten antiquities retrieved from Australia and the United States were handed over to the Government of Tamil Nadu in Delhi last week. A look at some of the returned antiquities, and how they had gone missing.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Ten antiquities (sculptures) retrieved from Australia and the United States were handed over to the Government of Tamil Nadu in Delhi last week. Union Culture Minister said at the event, “Bringing Our Gods Home is an initiative by the government that is rooted in preserving, promoting and propagating our heritage”. He said only 13 antiquities had been brought back to India between Independence and 2013, compared to 228 antiquities since 2014.

Some of the returned antiquities, and how they had gone missing:

• Dvarapala: Retrieved in 2020 from Australia, this stone sculpture belongs to the Vijayanagar dynasty dating to the 15th-16th century. He is holding a gada in one hand and has another leg raised up to the level of his knee. The sculpture was burgled from Moondreeswaram udayar Temple, Tiruneveli in1994.
• Nataraja: Retrieved in 2021 from the US, this image of Nataraja, a depiction of Shiva, in his divine cosmic dance form, is in tribhanga posture, standing on the lotus pedestal. It is dateable to the 11th-12th century. Possibly, anandatandava or the Dance of Bliss is portrayed here. The sculpture was burgled from the strong room of Punnainallur Arulmigu Mariyamman Temple, Thanjavur, in 2018.
• Kankalamurti: Retrieved in 2021 from the US, Kankalamurti is depicted as a fearsome aspect of Lord Shiva and Bhairava. The sculpture is four-armed, holding ayudhas such as damaru and trishula in the upper hands and a bowl and a trefoil shaped object, as a treat for the playful fawn, in the lower right hand. The idol is dateable to the 12th-13th century, and was stolen from Narasinganadhar Swamy Temple, Tirunelveli in 1985.
• Nandikeshvara: Retrieved in 2021 from the US, this bronze image of Nandikeshvara, dateable to the 13th century, is shown standing in tribhanga posture with folded arms, holding an axe and a fawn in the upper arms, with his forearms in namaskara mudra. This sculpture was stolen from Narasinganadhar Swamy Temple, Tirunelveli, in 1985.
• Four-armed Vishnu: Retrieved in 2021 from the US, dateable to the 11th century, and belonging to the later Chola period. The sculpture has Lord Vishnu standing on a padma pedestal holding attributes such as shankha and chakra in two hands; while the lower right hand is in abhaya mudra. It was stolen from ArulmiguVaradharaja Perumal Temple, Ariyalur, in 2008.
• Goddess Parvati: Retrieved in 2021 from the US, the image depicts a Chola-period sculpture dateable to the 11th century. She is shown holding a lotus in the left hand whereas the right is hanging down near her kati. This sculpture was also stolen from ArulmiguVaradharaja Perumal Temple, Ariyalur in 2008.
• Standing child Sambandar: Retrieved in 2022 from Australia. Sambandar, the popular 7th-century child saint, is one of the Muvar, the three principal saints of South India. The sculpture is dateable to the 11th century. The legend goes that after receiving a bowl of milk from Goddess Uma, the infant Sambandar devoted his life to composing hymns in praise of Lord Shiva. The sculpture displays the saint’s childlike quality, while also empowering him with the maturity and authority of a spiritual leader. It was stolen from Sayavaneeswarar Temple, Nagapattinam, between 1965 and 1975.

2.WHO WAS SANT KABIR, THE EXTRAORDINARY POET-SAINT OF THE BHAKTI MOVEMENT?

THE CONTEXT: During his address at the Kabir Chaura Dham, President said, “The life of Kabir is an epitome of human virtue and his teachings are relevant today even after 650 years. Kabir’s life was an ideal example of communal solidarity.”

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Bhakti movement, which began in the 7th century in South India, had begun to spread across north India in the 14th and the 15th centuries. The movement was characterized by popular poet-saints who sang devotional songs to God in vernacular languages, with many preaching for the abolishing the Varna system and some kind of Hindu-Muslim unity. They emphasized an intense emotional attachment with God.
• One school within the Bhakti movement was the Nirguni tradition and Sant Kabir was a prominent member of it. In this tradition, God was understood to be a universal and formless being.
• Many of the saints of the Bhakti movement came from the ranks of the lower to middle artisanal classes. Kabir was a ‘low caste’ weaver (Julaha), Raidas was a leather worker and Dadu a cotton carder.
• Their radical dissent against orthodoxy and rejection of caste made these poet-saints extremely popular among the masses and their ideology of egalitarianism spread across India.
• Kabir’s compositions can be classified into three literary forms – dohas (short two liners), ramanas (rhymed 4 liners), sung compositions of varying length, known as padas (verses) and sabdas (words).
• Kabir is in modern times portrayed as a figure that synthesized Islam and Hinduism. In many of the popular bhajans associated with him today, his strong dissent towards religion is somewhat muted, according to religious studies scholar David Lorenzen. While he did borrow elements from different traditions, he very forcefully proclaimed his independence from them.
• He did not only target the rituals and practices of both Hinduism and Islam, but also dismissed the sacred authority of their religious books, the Vedas and the Quran. Kabir did use the name Rama in his poems, but he clarified that he was not referring to the avatar of Vishnu, but a formless and general Hindu name for the divine. Author Manu S Pillai writes that he even combined Allah and Ram.
• Kabir’s revolt against the caste system also sought to do away with the complex rituals and ceremonies performed by the Brahmins. He, like the other prominent saints of his time, argued that it was only through bhakti, intense love or devotion to God could one attain salvation.
• In many of his verses, Kabir proclaimed that people of all castes have the right to salvation through the bhakti tradition.

THE SOCIAL JUSTICE

3. COVID RAISED INEQUALITIES — BY HOW MUCH?

THE CONTEXT: At the recent World Economic Forum conference in Davos, the exclusive get-together of the global elite, in May, Oxfam released its new report titled ‘Profiting from Pain’ that illustrates how the Covid pandemic caused havoc to millions across the globe and how the already persisting inequality on this planet just got intensified by the once-in-a-century pandemic.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Some catchy figures in the above-mentioned report immediately drew headlines all over the world. For example, along with 40 new pharma billionaires, a whopping 573 people became new billionaires during the pandemic, at the rate of one every 30 hours.
• In fact, the number of billionaires has increased more than 27 per cent since the pandemic started. The billionaires of the world own $3.78 trillion more, up nearly 30 per cent, from 2020. And the world’s 10 richest men own more wealth than the bottom 3.1 billion people. Rising income inequality had been observed through Gini index.
• Significantly, for every new billionaire created during the pandemic, nearly a million people could have been pushed into extreme poverty in 2022 every 33 hours — nearly the same rate, as is portrayed in the Oxfam report. Specifically, it was estimated that 263 million more people will crash into extreme poverty this year.
• The Oxfam report says that billionaires’ wealth rose more in the first 24 months of Covid than in 23 years. And corporations in the energy, food, and pharmaceutical sectors are experiencing record-high profits. As the cost of essential goods rises faster than it has in decades, billionaires in the food and energy sectors increased their fortunes by $1 billion every two days during the pandemic period.
• Well, there is no denying that global inequality was widened by the pandemic — the rich became richer while millions lost jobs. In fact, a few months ago, the World Inequality Report 2022, prepared by the World Inequality Lab at the Paris School of Economics, also portrayed a grim picture of widened global inequality.
• In fact, in many countries, no official income data is available. Incidentally, the last available consumer expenditure survey data in India is about a decade old. One may certainly wonder how the income distributions of these countries are at all estimated in these worldwide inequality calculations.
• If some data from some privately organised surveys are used, there would always be room for doubting that. Different organisations certainly use a lot of auxiliary data with bunches of unrealistic assumptions while measuring the income distribution of a country.
• Governments of different countries injected millions of dollars into their economies as stimulus during the Covid pandemic, significant money has been invested to develop and distribute vaccines, and near- zero-interest loans were given.
• And there is little doubt that, in many places, the rich became richer — the number of yachts increased, not the boats. And the economic recovery in many countries is observed to be K-shaped, indeed. It was possibly destined to be so. Some experts knew that apriori though.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

4. TAKING STEPS TO ENSURE SEX WORKERS’ RIGHTS

THE CONTEXT: Recently, in Budhadev Karmaskar v. State of West Bengal & Ors, while issuing interim directions to States and Union Territories, the Supreme Court re-asserted that sex workers and their children cannot be deprived of their right to live with dignity and human decency. The court said that notwithstanding the profession, every individual in this country has the right to a dignified life.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The court’s directions are nothing, but the recommendations made by the panel constituted by the Supreme Court in July 2011 and headed by a senior advocate, Pradip Ghosh, with regard to“conditions conducive for sex workers who wish to continue as sex workers to live with dignity in accordance with the provisions of Article 21 of the Constitution of India”.
• Since the Government of India had certain reservations about four of the 10 recommendations of the panel, the court directed the government to implement the other six recommendations as well as the provisions of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act (ITPA) of 1956. These are: to provide immediate medical assistance to sex workers who are victims of sexual assault; to release adult sex workers detained in ITPA protective homes against their will; to sensitise the police and other law-enforcement agencies about the rights of sex workers to live with dignity; to ask the Press Council of India to issue guidelines to the media so that they don’t reveal the identities of sex workers while reporting on arrest, raid and rescue operations; to not consider health measures that sex workers employ for their safety (such as condoms) as evidence of commission of an offence; and to ensure that the legal service authorities of the Central and State governments educate sex workers about their rights vis-à-vis the legality of sex work.
• A provision is already available in the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) on providing medical assistance to sex workers who are victims of sexual assault. However, the law is silent about not revealing the identity of sex workers. Similarly, though an order to send the sex worker to a protective home is passed by a magistrate after due inquiry about her need of care and protection, the ITPA and CrPC may be amended suitably to enforce the directions of the Supreme Court. Other directions may be implemented through executive orders by the governments.
• It is noteworthy that carrying on sex work outside the notified areas or outside a distance of 200metres of any place of public religious worship, educational institution, hospital, etc. is not punishable under the ITPA. The irony is that when the essential ingredient of sex work is ‘sexual exploitation’ or ‘abuse of persons’ for commercial purpose, how can this be allowed anywhere? Therefore, now with the court’s directives on the anvil, it will be apposite for the government to differentiate between prostitution and the work of sex workers and consider banning prostitution per se and allowing voluntary sex work with certain conditions keeping in mind the public interest.
• It is not disputed that women in the flesh trade should be viewed more as victims of adverse socioeconomic circumstances rather than as offenders. However, with all our laws and policies, we as a society have failed to contain prostitution.
• Therefore, the government may now use the Supreme Court’s directions as an opportunity to improve the conditions of sex workers and their surrounding environment, facilitate rehabilitation, and remove the various ambiguities and inconsistencies in the applicable laws and bring about clarity.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

5. A ‘SILVER’ MOMENT TO PROPEL A BAY OF BENGAL DREAM

THE CONTEXT: June 6 marked the completion of 25 years since the 1997 Bangkok Declaration launched a modest grouping (of Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand), with the acronym, BIST-EC. Three countries (Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar) joined it later to make it the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC).

THE EXPLANATION:

• This unique set of five countries from South Asia and two from Southeast Asia are parents to an institution with an unwieldy name but lofty ambitions. It is the parents’ responsibility that the 25-year-old offspring, now a full adult, begins taking strides to achieve the goals set before it.
• BIMSTEC has several achievements to its credit. It has crafted a new Charter for itself, spelling out the grouping’s vision, functions of its constituent parts, and has secured a legal personality. It has prioritised the sectors of cooperation, reducing them from the unwieldy 14 to the more manageable seven, with each member-state serving as the lead country for the assigned sector. It has, finally, taken measures to strengthen the Secretariat, although some members are yet to extend adequate personnel support to it.
• Above all, its success lies in its survival through the turns and twists of internal tensions. The BIMSTEC region witnessed the influx of over a million Rohingya refugees into Bangladesh, the result of oppression by the Myanmar military; the coup in Myanmar that led to its virtual boycott by a large segment of the international community; and the grave political and economic crisis afflicting Sri Lanka.
• Unlike the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, post-2014, BIMSTEC has continued to hold its summits and meetings of Foreign Ministers. Unlike the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) which held only one summit since its establishment in 1997, BIMSTEC has succeeded in holding five summits so far; it has now resolved to hold regular summits once in two years.
• The grouping has also registered progress in combating terrorism, forging security cooperation, and creating mechanisms and practices for the better management of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
• A whole basket of memoranda of understanding, agreements and legal instruments provide the foundation for developing functional cooperation in select areas such as agriculture, trade, sustainable development and connectivity. Institutions such as an Energy Centre and the Centre on Weather and Climate are in place to push sectoral cooperation forward.
• A fair balance sheet must factor in the shortfalls and the gaps between ambition and action. A major failure relates to the continuing inability to produce a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) 18 years after the signing of the Framework Agreement. Official sources concede that of the seven agreements needed to operationalise the FTA, only two are “ready” — a disappointing record. What is worse is that the highest political leaders, in their summit declarations, continue to “direct” ministers and officials to expedite action, but, alas, with little impact. Heads of state and government need to assert their authority or abandon the FTA as an unachievable goal.
• The other disappointment is connectivity — in infrastructure (roads, railways, air, river, and coastal shipping links), energy, the digital and financial domain, and institutions that bring people closer together for trade, tourism and cultural exchanges. Only limited progress has been achieved so far, despite the adoption of the Master Plan for Connectivity supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
• Much of the connectivity established recently is the outcome of bilateral initiatives taken by India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan to strengthen transport links. Mega-projects aimed to improve connectivity between India and Myanmar (and Thailand) have been delayed inordinately.
• For greater regional connectivity, more financial resources are needed. The movement towards establishing the BIMSTEC Development Fund is minimal. The grouping has talked about the Blue Economy but is yet to begin any work on it. Business chambers and corporate leaders are yet to be engaged fully with the activities of BIMSTEC.
• This leaves the grouping largely in the hands of officials and experts. The involvement of the ‘Third Space’ needs to be expanded significantly.
• An objective evaluation may award an A- to BIMSTEC@25, with the remark that it must do better. An exciting destiny awaits it as it works to realise the vision of the Bay of Bengal Community (BOBC). In this Indo-Pacific century, the BOBC has the potential to play a pivotal role, deepening linkages between South Asia and Southeast Asia.
• It should accelerate the region’s economic development by collaborating with the newly minted Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). New synergy should be created between BIMSTEC and the IPEF.
• Finally, while all member-states are equal, three have a special responsibility: Bangladesh as the host of the BIMSTEC Secretariat; Thailand as the representative of Southeast Asia; and India as the largest state in South Asia. This trio must be the engine to pull the BIMSTEC train with imagination and determination.
• when operating in difficult terrain, unsafe operating environments and also bad weather.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6.THE NEED FOR DIGITAL COLLABORATION

THE CONTEXT: The fact that the University Grants Commission (UGC) has simplified its approval process for local universities to collaborate with their counterparts abroad, to offer joint degrees, dual degrees, and twinning programmes, is heartening.

THE EXPLANATION:

• As per the rules, any Indian Higher Education Institution (HEI) accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council with a minimum score of 3.01 on a 4-point scale or featuring in the top 1,000 of the Times Higher Education or QS World University Rankings will be eligible to participate in the collaboration.
• For Indian institutes, being in the top 100 list of the National Institute Ranking Framework is also an acceptable criterion. Foreign institutes willing to enter a partnership must rank in the top 1,000 in either of the two world university rankings.
• While multiple steps taken by the present dispensation to meet the unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic include leveraging the potential of information and communication technology in the teaching and learning process, the fact that the UGC’s regulations do not allow academic collaboration with foreign institutions for online learning and open and distance learning (ODL) is puzzling.
• In order to increase the gross enrolment ratio in HEIs in India, the National Education Policy of 2020 suggested that more ODL and online programmes be started, especially to improve access for those living in remote areas. ODL programmes impart education to people for whom the regular mode of learning is a distant dream owing to financial, personal and professional constraints. Often, part-time employees in both the organised and unorganised sectors are the ones who opt for ODL in order to upgrade their qualifications for better career prospects.
• At the postgraduate, undergraduate, PG Diploma, Diploma, and Certificate levels, the share of distance enrolment in university is 13.8%, 35.9%, 1.1%, 1.5% and 0.4%, respectively (All India Survey on Higher Education, or AISHE, 2019-2000). Distance enrolment constitutes 11.1% of the total enrolment in higher education. These programmes are more affordable compared to the in-person programmes and are therefore popular among disadvantaged sections.
• In order to promote online education in India, initiatives such as MOOCs, SWAYAM and NPTEL are sponsored by the UGC, the Department of Education, and other national institutes of repute. Of late, universities and colleges are centrally funded under the RUSA and TEQIP-III programmes to create and strengthen infrastructure for online and digital education. The Union Budget too announced the establishment of a digital university.
• It is inexplicable, therefore, that while online education is being encouraged on the one hand through several government initiatives, online programmes are being kept out of the ambit of international collaboration efforts by the UGC on the other.
• According to AISHE’s findings, 49,348 international students from 168 countries are enrolled in courses offered by Indian universities. The highest share of foreign students (45.6%) come from four neighbouring nations: Nepal, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan.
• Reaching out to the HEIs of such countries for international collaboration, notwithstanding their present standing and rank, will pave the way for an increase in the footfall of international students in India. This may especially prove to be a game changer for the financially constrained HEIs. Also, it will help to compensate the outflow of foreign exchange from India.
• The allocation of grants to central universities has risen to ₹9,420 crore from ₹7,643.26 crore last year in higher education. Monetary support to the IITs has increased by ₹658.9 crore and to the IIMs by ₹177.9 crore in 2022-23 compared to last year.
• These institutions, generously funded by the Centre, outplay their State-sponsored counterparts in other academic indicators too, such as faculty strength and modernised laboratories and libraries. Hence, that State-funded HEIs do not perform well in the ranking system is no surprise. Now, their chances for smooth international collaboration is also impeded by the UGC regulations. This will only exacerbate the divide between central and State institutes.
• The UGC needs to revisit its policies for foreign collaborations. It must look at the present and overall needs of the education system so that students studying in State-sponsored HEIs and opting for ODL and online education are not deprived of benefits in India.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 7TH JUNE 2022

Q1. Which of the following statement is incorrect about Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC)?

a) It was established in 1969.

b) It has total 57 member countries.

c) Its headquarter is located in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

d) India is not a member of OIC.

ANSWER FOR THE 6^TH JUNE 2022

Answer: A

Explanation:

1. Change-4 – Moon probe of China
2. Tianwen-1 – Mars probe of China
3. Tiangong-1 – Space station of China

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. INDIA’S SDG PREPAREDNESS RANKING CONTINUES TO DECLINE: REPORT

THE CONTEXT: India is not placed well to achieve the United Nations-mandated Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and its preparedness has worsened over the years in comparison with other countries, a new report showed.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India’s rank in the global Sustainable Development Report, 2022 has slipped for the third consecutive year.
• The country continues to face major challenges in achieving 11 of the 17 SDGs, which has pushed down its global ranking on SDG preparedness.
• The progress in around 10 of these goals is similar to those in 2021. These include SDG 2 on ending hunger, SDG 3 on good health and well being and SDG 6 on clean water and sanitation.
• But ensuring decent work (SDG 8) has become more challenging, the report showed.
• In the 2022 Global Index of SDGs, the country ranked 121 out of the 163 countries. It had ranked 117 in 2020 and 120 in 2021.
• With eight years left to meet the global goals on sustainable development, the country is off-track, the trends indicated.
• Since 2015, the report has been tracking and ranking the performance of 163 UN member states on SDGs.
• It is published by a group of independent experts at the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).
• SDGs are not mentioned in the latest central or federal budget documents of India, pointed out the report based on a survey conducted in February 2022.
• India is on track to achieving SDG 13 on climate action, the report mentioned. But another report presented a grim picture.
• Preparedness to deal with climate impacts is essential to deal with climate crisis, but the country has been facing major challenges in this area, flagged The State of India’s Environment in Figures, 2022 released June 2, 2022.
• The report was based of the trends revealed in NITI Aayog’s index on SDGs.
• India’s performance on climate action — (SDG) 13 — has slipped from 2019-2020. In 2020, the country’s overall national score on SDG 13 was 54 (out of 100) — a significant dip from 60 in 2019.
• This decline in India’s overall performance is primarily due to eight states — Bihar, Telangana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Jharkhand — whose scores have dipped under SDG 13 in the two years.
• Telangana, the state which is among the top overall performers (rank three) in the country, has seen a dip in its score for climate action by 23 points.
• It is second after Bihar, whose SDG 13 performance worsened the most (by 27 points). Besides this, the performance of 27 states / Union territories remained off-track in SDG 13, according to the CSE report.
• Climate action failure is the most severe global risk in the short term and will also have the most severe impact over the next decade, the global risks report of the World Economic Forum alerted in January 2022.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2. THE STATUS OF EVTOL: A SOON TO BE REALITY?

THE CONTEXT: The Union Civil Aviation Minister has said that the Government of India is exploring the possibility of inviting manufacturers of Electric Vertical Take off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft to set up base in India.

THE EXPLANATION:

The Minister had been on a visit to the U.S. and Canada in April and in his interactions with key players in the industry, it was said that several eVTOL players were ‘keen on setting up production centres’ in the country. In late May, while speaking at “India@2047”, which was part of the seventh edition of the India Ideas Conclave in Bengaluru, the Minister also said that India is in ‘conversation’ with a number ofeVTOL producers — the implication being a futuristic vision for India.

WHAT IS eVTOL?

• As the acronym suggests, an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft is one that uses electric power to hover, take off, and land vertically. Most eVTOLs also use what is called as distributed electric propulsion technology which means integrating a complex propulsion system with the air frame. There are multiple motors for various functions; to increase efficiency; and to also ensure safety.
• This is technology that has grown on account of successes in electric propulsion based on progress in motor, battery, fuel cell and electronic controller technologies and also fuelled by the need for new vehicle technology that ensures urban air mobility (UAM). Thus, eVTOL is one of the newer technologies and developments in the aerospace industry.
• An article in Inside Unmanned Systems, a leading business intelligence platform, describes eVTOL as being “a runway independent technological solution” for the globe’s transportation needs. This is because it opens up new possibilities which aircraft with engines cannot carry out in areas such as manoeuvrability, efficiency and even from the environmental point of view.
• The article adds that there are an estimated 250 eVTOL concepts or more being fine-tuned to bring alive the concept of UAM. Some of these include the use of multi-rotors, fixed-wing and tilt-wing concepts backed by sensors, cameras and even radar.
• The key word here is “autonomous connectivity”. Some of these are in various test phases. There are also others undergoing test flights so as to be certified for use. In short, eVTOLs have been likened to “a third wave in an aerial revolution”; the first being the advent of commercial flying, and the second, the age of helicopters.
• An article in Avionics International says the roles eVTOLs adopt depends on battery technology and the limits of onboard electric power. Power is required during the key phases of flight such as take off, landing and flight (especially in high wind conditions).
• There is also the important factor of weight. BAE Systems, for example, is looking at formats using a variety of Lithium batteries. Nano Diamond Batteries is looking at “Diamond Nuclear Voltaic (DNV) technology” using minute amounts of carbon-14 nuclear waste encased in layered industrial diamonds to create self-charging batteries.
• There are some industry experts who are questioning the use of only batteries and are looking at hybrid technologies such as hydrogen cells and batteries depending on the flight mission. There is even one that uses a gas-powered generator that powers a small aircraft engine, in turn charging the battery system. But whatever the technology, there will be very stringent checks and certification requirements.

What are the challenges?

• As the technology so far is a mix of unpiloted and piloted aircraft, the areas in focus include “crash prevention systems”. These use cameras, radar, GPS (global positioning system) and infrared scanners. There are also issues such as ensuring safety in case of power plant or rotor failure. Aircraft protection from cyber attacks is another area of focus.
• A third area is in navigation and flight safety and the use of technology when operating in difficult terrain, unsafe operating environments and also bad weather.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. 75% OF RIVER MONITORING STATIONS REPORT HEAVY METAL POLLUTION: CENTRE FOR SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: Three out of every four river monitoring stations in India posted alarming levels of heavy toxic metals such as lead, iron, nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium and copper. In about a fourth of the monitoring stations, which are spread across 117 rivers and tributaries, high levels of two or more toxic metals were reported.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Of the 33 monitoring stations in Ganga, 10 had high levels of contaminants. The river, which is the focus of the Centre’s Namami Gange mission, has high levels of lead, iron, nickel, cadmium and arsenic, according to the State of Environment Report 2022 from the environmental NGO, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The report is an annual compendium of environment-development data and is derived from public sources.
• India has 764 river quality monitoring stations across 28 states. Of these, the Central Water Commission tested water samples from 688 stations for heavy metals between August 2018 and December 2020.
• Of the 588 water quality stations monitored for pollution, total coliform and biochemical oxygen demand were high in 239 and 88 stations across 21 States – an indicator of poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households.
• India dumps 72% of its sewage waste without treatment. Ten States do not treat their sewage at all, as per the Central Pollution Control Board.
• Over a third of India’s coastline that is spread across 6,907 km saw some degree of erosion between 1990 and 2018.
• West Bengal is the worst hit with over 60% of its shoreline under erosion. The reasons for coastal erosion include increase in frequency of cyclones and sea level rise and anthropogenic activities such as construction of harbours, beach mining and building of dams.
• While the global average of the Ocean Health Index, a measure that looks at how sustainably humans. are exploiting ocean resources, has improved between 2012 and 2021, India’s score in the index has declined over the same period, the CSE report underlines.
• India’s total forest cover has registered a little over a 0.5% increase between 2017 and 2021 though most of the increase has taken place in the open forest category, which includes commercial plantations. This has happened at the cost of moderately dense forest, which is normally the area closest to human habitations. At the same time, very dense forests, which absorb maximum carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, occupy just 3% of total forest cover.
• India has a forest cover of 77.53 million hectares. But recorded forests—the area under the forest department— with forest cover are only 51.66 million. This gap of 25.87 million hectares —a size bigger than Uttar Pradesh— remains unaccounted, the organisation noted.

4.INDIA ACHIEVED 10% ETHANOL BLENDING TARGET

THE CONTEXT: India has achieved the target of blending 10 per cent ethanol in petrol five months ahead of schedule, resulting in less carbon emissions, more savings for the country and better income for farmers.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 10 per cent ethanol blending target has resulted in three major advantages. First, it has resulted in the reduction of 27 lakh tonnes of carbon emissions; second, PM added, India has managed to save over Rs 41,000 crore over an eight-year period; and lastly, “the farmers of the country have earned more than Rs 40,000 crore” during this period.
• India is also working towards minimising its dependence on fossil fuels. “To meet our energy needs from renewable sources, we are working on increasingly bigger goals. We had set a target of achieving 40 per cent of our installed power generation capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources. India has achieved this target 9 years ahead of schedule. Today our solar energy capacity has increased about 18 times.
• While the global average for carbon emissions is four tonnes per person, PM said, the per capita carbon footprint for Indians is only around half a tonne per year. “Despite this, India is working towards the environment with a holistic approach, not only within the country but also by engaging with the global community,” he pointed out and mentioned that “India has also resolved… (to) achieve the target of Net Zero by the year 2070.”
• Speaking on the agricultural policy, PM said earlier farmers lacked information about the type of soil they were working on and its deficiencies. “To overcome this problem, a huge campaign was launched to give soil health cards to farmers in the country.”
• over 22 crore soil health cards have been given across the country, and a huge network for soil testing has also been create .Crores of farmers of the country are using fertilizers and micro-nutrients on the basis of information received from the Soil Health Card which has resulted in saving 8 to 10 per cent in cost to farmers and an increase of five to six per cent in yield.
• Natural farming, is a “great solution to our challenges today” and the government will encourage it in villages situated on the banks of the Ganga and “build a huge corridor for natural farming… our fields will not only be chemical-free, the Namami Gange campaign will also get new strength. India is also working on the target of restoring 26 million hectares of barren land by 2030.”

5. WORLD’S FIRST FISHING CAT CENSUS DONE IN CHILIKA

THE CONTEXT: The Chilika Lake, Asia’s largest brackish water lagoon, has 176 fishing cats, according to a census conducted by Chilika Development Authority (CDA) in collaboration with The Fishing Cat Project (TFCP).

THE EXPLANATION:

• This is the world’s first population estimation of the fishing cat, which has been conducted outside the protected area network.
• According to CDA, the estimation was conducted in two phases. Phase-I was conducted in 2021 in the 115 sq km marshland present in the north and north-eastern section of Chilika and its surrounding areas. Phase II was conducted in 2022 in the Parikud side along the coastal islands of Chilika.
• A total of 150 camera traps were deployed in two phases with each fixed in the field for 30 days. Spatially Explicit Capture Recapture (SECR) method was used to analyse the data.
• fishing cats are globally threatened cats that occur in wetlands like marshlands, mangroves and flooded forests in major South and Southeast Asian River basins starting from Indus in Pakistan till Mekong in Vietnam and in the island nations of Sri Lanka and Java.
• They are found in 10 Asian countries but have remained undetected in Vietnam and Java since the last decade or so.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. CHINESE ASTRONAUTS ENTER TIANGONG SPACE STATION MODULE AFTER SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH

THE CONTEXT: China’s strategically significant space station project entered the final phase on 5^th of june as three astronauts entered its orbiting module after they were successfully launched to complete its construction this year to further the Communist giant’s dream to emerge as a major space power.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Hours after they were launched into the designated orbit by the Shenzhou-14 spacecraft, which later docked with orbiting module of the space station called Tianhe and cargo crafts attached to it, the three astronauts, successfully entered for a six-month stay, during which they will be completing its remaining construction, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
• Earlier in the day, the spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China. Minutes later, the official at the ground control declared the mission a great success, saying the spacecraft has reached its designated orbit.
• Once ready, China will be the only country to own a space station. The International Space Station (ISS) of Russia is a collaborative project of several countries.
• The China Space Station (CSS) is also expected to be a competitor to the ISS built by Russia. Observers say that the CSS may become the sole space station to remain in orbit once the aging ISS retires in the coming years.
• The significant feature of China’s under-construction space station is its two robotic arms, especially the long one over which the US has previously expressed concern over its ability to grab objects including satellites from space.
• The 10-metre-long arm was in action previously seen in action successfully grabbing and moving a 20 tonne Tianzhou-2 cargo ship in a test, according to China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).
• One of the noteworthy tasks for the Shenzhou-14 crew is to test and operate the large and small mechanical arms.
• The core module is mounted with a big mechanical arm, and the Wentian lab module with a small one, Huang Weifen, the chief designer of the China manned space programme’s astronaut system.
• The small arm is quite flexible and can perform operations with greater precision.
• During the Shenzhou-14 mission, the crew will, for the first time, be aided by the small mechanical arm to get out of the space station, Huang said.
• During their stay in orbit, the Shenzhou-14 crew will witness the two lab modules, Tianzhou-5 cargo craft and Shenzhou-15 crewed spaceship dock with the core module Tianhe.
• They will rotate with the Shenzhou-15 crew in orbit and return to the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in December.
• China began constructing its three-module space station in April 2021 with the launch of Tianhe – the first and biggest of the station’s three modules.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 5^TH & 6^TH JUNE 2022

Q1. Consider the following pairs:

1. Chang’e-4 – Moon probe of China
2. Tianwen-1 – Space station of China
3. Tiangong-1 – Mars probe of China

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

a) Only one pair

b) Only two pairs

c) Only three pairs

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 4^TH JUNE

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

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. CONTROL AND DELETE: ON GOVERNMENT APPELLATE PANELS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA

THE CONTEXT: The Government’s plan to set up a panel that can overturn content moderation decisions made by social media platforms is problematic in many ways. The idea, which has been proposed as an amendment to the controversial IT Rules, 2021, is to constitute one or more appellate committees which will have the final word on any content moderation issue facing a social media platform.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The trigger for these Government-appointed committees to come to life will be, say, an appeal by a social media user who feels aggrieved by an order of the platform’s grievance officer. “Government policies and rulemaking are committed to ensure an open, safe, and trusted and accountable Internet for its users.
• As Internet access continues to rapidly expand in India, new issues related to the above commitments also keep emerging,” the draft reportedly says. It will be naive to think of such an aggrieved user as someone who has no axe to grind. With billions of users, social media is well and truly an influencing machine, and filled with influencers of all hues and shades. It is, therefore, important for democracy’s sake that it is not taken over by any one influential player, even if it is the Government, with an agenda
• But this is exactly what the mechanism will help to serve — tighten the Government’s grip on messaging on social media intermediaries, which not long ago served to disseminate alternative voices. Imagine how absurd it will be, for instance, if a Government-appointed committee sits to decide on an issue in which the aggrieved user is a Government entity or a ruling party member.
• How fair can that be? What makes it worse is in recent years, the Government has not covered itself with glory when dealing with dissent, in the real world and on social media. This will not only add another layer of complexity to the problematic IT rules that were introduced last year but also another lever of Government control.
• The IT rules were widely criticised, including by this newspaper as “deeply unsettling” for the kind of leverage that they give to the Government over digital channels, with troubling implications for freedom of expression and right to information. Ironically, they were launched by the then-Minister as a “soft-touch oversight mechanism”. It should be noted that the last word has not been said on those rules, what with pending legal challenges to them.
• All this is not to say that social media platforms should not be regulated. Far from it. What should be clear after all these years is that a Government committee is not the right answer for many woes, let alone social media ones. And in this case, it comes with dangerous implications for free speech. It is best, therefore, that the proposal is dropped.

2. WHAT IS THE PM CARES SCHEME FOR CHILDREN WHO LOST PARENTS TO COVID?

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister released benefits like scholarships and health insurance under the PM CARES for Children scheme to support children who lost their parents due to coronavirus during the pandemic.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In February this year, a study in The Lancet had estimated the number of such children in India to be around 19 lakhs. This was termed as “sophisticated trickery” by the Ministry for Women and Child Development (MoWCD), which said the number was close to 1.53 lakh.
• PM CARES for Children was launched in May 2021 to ensure rehabilitation and education of children who lost caregivers to Covid between March 11, 2020, when Covid-19 was declared as a pandemic by the WHO, and February 28, 2022. The scheme applies to children who have lost both parents or a surviving parent or legal guardians/adoptive parents, to ensure their rehabilitation and education.
• Funded by PM Cares and with MoWCD at its nodal agency in the Centre, the scheme will provide a monthly stipend to each child from the age of 18 years, and a lump sum amount of Rs 10 lakh on attaining the age of 23. The Prime Minister said the benefits also include an annual scholarship of Rs 20,000 for school students and monthly financial support of Rs 4,000 for daily needs.
• Health coverage will be given through the Ayushman Card, and counselling through the Samvad helpline for psychological and emotional help.
• Different guidelines have been mentioned for the care of children under different age brackets.
• Till six years of age, children will receive support from Anganwadi services for supplementary nutrition, pre-school education.
• For children below 10 years of age, admission shall be provided in any nearest school – government/government-aided school/KendriyaVidyalayas (KVs)/ private schools – as a day scholar.
• In private schools, tuition fees will be exempted. The scheme will also utilise existing schemes and programmes. For instance, two sets of free uniform and textbooks shall be provided under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.
• Additionally, the scheme will help place the orphaned children either in the care of relatives and family, or with Child Care Institutions (CCIs), or in a Sainik School, Navodaya Vidyalaya, or other residential schools. CCIs are centres for children in need of care or in conflict with the law, and are mentioned under the Juvenile Justice Act of 2015.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. GRADUAL ENGAGEMENT: ON INDIA-TALIBAN TIES

THE CONTEXT: India should maintain with Afghanistan a policy of gradual engagement rooted in realism

THE EXPLANATION:

• India’s decision to send a diplomatic delegation to Kabul to meet with Taliban officials shows a marked difference from the policy New Delhi took in the 1990s when the Sunni Islamist group was in power in Afghanistan. Back then, India had taken a policy of disengagement with Kabul and supported anti-Taliban militias.
• But this time, Afghanistan’s internal situation and the regional dynamics seem to be different, prompting many neighboring countries to adopt a more constructive line towards the Taliban regime, despite their differences with the group’s extremism. India shuttered its embassy in Kabul in August 2021, days before the Taliban takeover, but has maintained a line of communication with them.
• The MEA has said that the visit is only to help coordinate India’s humanitarian assistance for the Afghanistan people. While it could be true, the visit would also pave the way for better understanding and engagement given the bad blood in the past. India has three main concerns when it comes to the Taliban’s return to Afghanistan. One, India has made investments worth billions of dollars in the past 20 years. It would want to protect these investments and retain the Afghan people’s goodwill.
• Two, when the Taliban were in power in the 1990s, Afghanistan became a safe haven for anti-India terrorist groups. India also saw a sharp rise in violence in Kashmir during the Mujahideen-Taliban reigns of Afghanistan.
• New Delhi would not like history to repeat itself and would want commitments from the Taliban that they would not offer support for anti-India groups. Three, the Taliban remaining a Pakistani satellite forever is not in India’s strategic interest.
• New Delhi cannot pursue any of these objectives if it does not engage with the Taliban. But, at the same time, India should not hurry in to offer diplomatic recognition to the Taliban’s predominantly Pashtun, men-only regime, which has imposed harsh restrictions on women at home.
• India should work with other regional and global players to push the Taliban to adopt a more inclusive regime, while at the same time maintaining a policy of gradual bilateral engagement rooted in realism.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. NEW RULES SPUR OPPORTUNITIES FOR E-WASTE RECYCLERS

THE CONTEXT: Last month, the Union environment ministry unveiled a set of draft rules that further incentivises registered electronic waste recyclers. The crucial difference from the 2016 rules is the generation of EPR, or Extended Producer Responsibility, certificates.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Over the next five years, Delhi-NCR-headquartered Attero Recycling, one of India’s largest electronic waste management companies, expects to invest close to $1 billion in expanding their electronic waste recycling facilities.
• More than 70% of it is for setting up operations in Europe, the United States and Indonesia to recycle lithium-ion batteries premised on the increasing share of electric vehicles in the years ahead.
• The CEO of the company says that while lithium batteries may be the future for the company, the present is hinged on the growing number of electronic wastes that his factory in Roorkee is processing. Credit, he says, is due to the mandatory recycling targets that electronics-goods makers have been set under the Electronic Waste Management Rules, 2016. From 30% of sales in 2018, companies are expected to recycle 70% of their sales by 2023.
• Prior to the EPR regime, recyclers like us had to pay to procure e-waste. We extract the precious metals and sell them. The informal recyclers use hazardous methods and therefore were able to do this at a lower cost. Even if their recovery (of metals) was low, their costs were low and so profitable, now with the EPR regime, it’s Original Equipment Manufacturers who are paying for recycling and a lot more is collected in the formal sector.
• Recyclers on processing a certain quantity of waste would be given a certificate verifying this number by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Electronics goods companies can buy these certificates online from the CPCB to meet their annual targets. Recyclers can also directly contract with a company to recycle a certain quantity of waste and generate certificates that can be accessed from the CPCB.
• The challenge is verifiability. How for instance, does the CPCB verify that the certificates indeed guarantee the quantity of e-waste recycled? Prior to the EPR scheme, state pollution control boards were expected to be conducting checks on recycler and monitoring if they were indeed processing the amount of waste they claimed. In the new regime, said Gupta, this verification would be done via “software matching.” A recycling company would be paying a certain amount of Goods and Services Tax (GST) annually based on the quantity of precious metal they’ had extracted and sold, said Gupta, and this would correlate to the amount of e-waste processed. This could be further matched with the certificates bought by a producer company to meet targets.
• The latest e-waste rules are yet to be formally become law and the Environment Ministry has set a 60 day-period for public consultation.
• Independent experts say that verifying the actual quantity recycled is next to impossible because none of the data—how many electronic goods were sold in a particular year and how much e-waste is generated and how much recycled—is available in public domain.
• The CPCB said that in 2019-20, 1 million tons of e-waste was generated, 22% of which was “collected, dismantled, recycled”.
• The Global E-Waste Monitor reports that nearly 3 million tons of electronic waste was generated in India, which is thrice the Centre’s estimates.
• “A company if asked how many mobile phones it sold in a year would at most share a figure in kilograms and not units. This is information that is supposed to be shared with the CPCB but practically the figure is unavailable. So, there’s no transparency on whether a company is ensuring that a percentage of its sales is being actually recycled. In our own surveys, we’ve seen that companies never physically visit a recycler.”
• The EPR regime was generally positive and helped smaller recycling companies who couldn’t directly bag large recycling contracts from large producers but there were lacunae. “Because companies only have annual targets, the finance team would only want to buy permits at the end of the financial year.
• However, we need to recycle through the year. Where would we get working capital for that? Therefore, it’s advisable to have monthly recycling targets.

5.KEEP ECO-SENSITIVE ZONE OF 1 KM AROUND FORESTS: SUPREME COURT

THE CONTEXT: Environment Ministry guidelines show that the purpose of declaring ESZs around national parks, forests and sanctuaries is to create some kind of a “shock absorber” for the protected areas.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Supreme Court on Friday directed that every protected forest, national park and wildlife sanctuary across the country should have a mandatory eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of a minimum one km starting from their demarcated boundaries.
• Environment Ministry guidelines show that the purpose of declaring ESZs around national parks, forests and sanctuaries is to create some kind of a “shock absorber” for the protected areas. These zones would act as a transition zone from areas of high protection to those involving lesser protection.
• A three-judge Bench of Justices L. Nageswara Rao, B.R. Gavai and Aniruddha Bose, in a 60-page judgment, highlighted how the nation’s natural resources have been for years ravaged by mining and other activities.
• The judgment, by Justice Bose, observed that the government should not confine its role to that of a “facilitator” of economic activities for the “immediate upliftment of the fortunes of the State”.
• The State also has to act as a trustee for the benefit of the general public in relation to the natural resources so that sustainable development could be achieved in the long term.
• “Such a role of the State is more relevant today, than, possibly, at any point of time in history with the threat of climate catastrophe resulting from global warming looming large,” Justice Bose wrote for the Bench.
• The judgment came on a petition instituted for the protection of forest lands in the Nilgiris district of Tamil Nadu. Subsequently, the scope of that writ petition was enlarged by the court so as to protect such natural resources throughout the country.
• In a series of directions, the court held that in case any national park or protected forest already has a buffer zone extending beyond one km, that would prevail. In case the question of the extent of buffer zone was pending a statutory decision, then the court’s direction to maintain the one-km safety zone would be applicable until a final decision is arrived at under the law.
• The court directed that “mining within the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries shall not be permitted”.
• It held the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Home Secretaries of States responsible for the compliance of the judgment.The Principal Chief Conservator for each State and the Union Territory has also been directed to make a list of subsisting structures within the ESZs and submit reports to the apex court in three months.

6.URGENT NEED TO DEVELOP ADAPTATION OPTIONS FOR WATER AND AGRICULTURE SECTORS

THE CONTEXT: Rains towards the end of the southwest monsoon in India in 2021 were unusual: a very large part of the country experienced the second wettest September since 1994.  In eight states in central, western, and northwestern India, the excess rain ranged from 70% above average in Odisha to 268% above the average in Gujarat.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In the previous year, 2020, rains were average or above average in almost the entire country. Going back further, 2014, 2015 and 2016 were marked by generally below-average rains; before that, there were above average rains in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013.
• Such dry and wet epochs, each lasting several years to a decade, have occurred in the Indian subcontinent for at least the last 700 years. Some of the dry epochs caused mega-droughts, resulting in famines that killed millions of people, and catalysed mass migrations within and out of the subcontinent.
• Climate information recorded in trees over the last 300 years, ocean temperature and continental rain data in the last 50 to 100 years, and more recent climate models show that, worldwide, dry/wet epochs are caused primarily in 10-20-year-long decadal cycles in tropical-subtropical Pacific Ocean surface temperatures. These in turn are due to the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) – also known as the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO).
• Decadal cycles in tropical-subtropical ocean temperatures are caused by large-scale interactions among winds, ocean currents and waves, and heat and water vapour transfers from oceans to the atmosphere.
• In the positive phase of an IPO cycle, the tropical-subtropical Pacific surface temperatures are warmer than average. As a result, there is below-average rain in central, western and northwestern India. In the negative phase of the IPO cycle, there is above-average rain in these regions.
• The IPO/PDO was generally in the negative phase of the cycle in the wet epochs (2010-2013 and 2020-2021) and in the positive phase in the dry epoch (2014-2016). The IPO is still in the negative phase of the cycle in 2022, so we should expect the Indian monsoon to be average to above-average.
• The IPO’s effects on the atmosphere and Indian monsoon rain also affect crop output, especially in regions of non-irrigated crops. Fifty years’ (1961-2010) worth of data from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation shows that annual productions of rice, soybean, corn (maize), cashew nuts, orange, millet, cotton, barley and some other major, non-irrigated crops are substantially below average in the positive phases of the IPO, as should be expected.
• Apart from people and crops, natural ecosystems also fare poorly in both types of epochs. Especially in dry epochs, millions of milch and draft animals such as buffaloes, cows, goats and camels suffer due to shortages of fodder and forage.
• While such consequences of the IPO and other natural variable climate phenomena are bad enough, India’s long-term water quantity and quality situations are truly alarming.
• A 2018 report by NITI Aayog stated that India is currently facing its worst water crisis in history, with 600 million people facing high to extreme water stress, and 200,000 people dying every year due to inadequate access to safe water.
• The report also stated that by 2030, projected water demand would be double the available supply, implying permanent water scarcity for hundreds of millions of people and a 6% drop in India’s GDP. It pointed to an imminent need to deepen understanding of India’s water resources and use, and for the government to intervene to make water use efficient and sustainable.
• But as if this and other projections were not alarming enough, the report overlooked current and projected effects of climate variability and changes in their projections of India’s water situation.
• Data from tree rings indicates that the duration and severity of droughts have decreased substantially in the last 100 to 150 years. Since these droughts were caused by natural climatic variations, it seems likely that mega-droughts will return to the Indian subcontinent in future – and will be exacerbated by climate change. Then, there are the projected effects of climate change due to higher concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
• In light of India’s water situation already being precarious, the government should found and permanently sustain a multidisciplinary and multi-institution programme of research and applications in weather and climate variability; potential effects of climate change; understanding and predicting societal impacts of weather changes; and development of adaptation options for all affected sectors.
• Such a programme should have the Government of India as a partner and should be housed in an academic institution of national and international repute.
• This programme will have to address adaptation issues at all levels, from national to local administrative, and must involve stakeholders, government ministries and/or departments, and NGOs in all affected sectors and regions as partners. Finally, and importantly, such a programme must report frequently to the people of the country in languages and idioms they can easily understand.
• In the absence of such a programme sustained in this way, India will almost certainly face calamities like the ones in the past – multiplied manifold by the vastly increased scale of human activity, with consequences too catastrophic to contemplate.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 4TH JUNE 2022

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 THE 1^ST JUNE

Answer: C

Explanation:

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN)

• It was launched on 24^thFebruary, 2019 to supplement financial needs of land holding farmers.
• Financial benefit of Rs 6000/- per year in three equal installments, every four month is transferred into the bank accounts of farmers’ families across the country through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode.
• The scheme was initially meant for Small and Marginal Farmers (SMFs) having landholding upto 2 hectares but scope of the scheme was extended to cover all landholding farmers.
• It is a Central Sector Scheme with 100% funding from the Government of India.
• It is being implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
• Objectives:

1. To supplement the financial needs of the Small and Marginal Farmers in procuring various inputs to ensure proper crop health and appropriate yields, commensurate with the anticipated farm income at the end of each crop cycle.
2. To protect them from falling in the clutches of moneylenders for meeting such expenses and ensure their continuance in the farming activities.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. PM RELEASES 11TH INSTALLMENT OF PM-KISAN 10 CRORE FARMERS TO GET ₹ 2000

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister released the 11th installment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan) scheme in Shimla on Tuesday. Under the scheme, ₹6000 is given in three equal installments to all landholding farmer families. The Centre said it would distribute ₹21,000 crore among more than 10 crore beneficiary farmer families. Each beneficiary would get ₹2000 each in this installment.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Addressing the beneficiaries, the Prime Minister thanked the people for giving him the opportunity to serve them. He said the previous government considered corruption as an essential part of the system. He alleged that instead of fighting corruption, the then government succumbed to it and the money meant for needy people did not reach them.
• The Prime Minister maintained that vote bank politics had done a lot of damage to the country. “We are working to build a new India, not a vote bank,” he stressed. “100% empowerment means ending discrimination, eliminating recommendations, and ending appeasement. 100% empowerment means that every poor gets full benefits from government schemes,” he stated.
• The Prime Minister noted that the welfare schemes initiated by his government changed the meaning of government for people. “Now the government is working for the people. Be it PM housing schemes, scholarships, or pension schemes, with the help of technology, the scope of corruption has been minimized,” he said and asserted that the Centre was trying to give a permanent solution to the problems that were earlier assumed to be permanent. “The Direct Benefit of Transfer put an end to the injustice of pilferage and leakage by removing nine crore fake names from the benefits rolls”.
• The government started empowering the poor from day one. “We tried to reduce every single worry in his life. I can say with pride that almost every family of the country is benefitting from one or the other scheme.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. QUESTIONING THE SAFETY OF AADHAAR

THE CONTEXT: Two days after issuing an advisory asking people to refrain from sharing photocopies of their Aadhaar Card, the Unique Identification Development Authority of India (UIDAI) opted to withdraw the notification. It stated that the action was to avert any possibility of ‘misinterpretation’ of the (withdrawn) press release, asking people to exercise “normal prudence” in using/sharing their Aadhaar numbers.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The withdrawn notice had suggested holders use a masked Aadhaar card instead of the conventional photocopy, adding that the document must not be downloaded from a cybercafé or public computer and if done for some reason, must be permanently deleted from the system. ‘Masked Aadhaar veils the first eight digits of the twelve-digit ID with ‘XXXX’ characters. The notice informed that only entities possessing a ‘User Licence’ are permitted to seek Aadhaar for authentication purposes. Private entities like hotels or film halls cannot collect or keep copies of the identification document.
• In July 2018, Telecom Regulatory of India’s Chairman R.S. Sharma tweeted his Aadhaar number challenging users to “cause him any harm”. In response, users dug up his mobile number, PAN number, photographs, residential address and date of birth. It could not be ascertained if the PAN number was actually correct. UIDAI dismissed assertions of any data leak, arguing that most of the data was publicly available. It did however caution users from publicly sharing their Aadhaar numbers.
• The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 makes it clear that Aadhaar authentication is necessary for availing subsidies, benefits and services that are financed from the Consolidated Fund of India. In the absence of Aadhaar, the individual is to be offered an alternate and viable means of identification to ensure she/he is not deprived of the same.
• Separately, Aadhaar has been described as a preferred KYC (Know Your Customer) document but not mandatory for opening bank accounts, acquiring a new SIM or school admissions.
• The requesting entity would have to obtain the consent of the individual before collecting his/her identity and ensure that the information is only used for authentication purposes on the Central Identities Data Repository (CIDR). This centralized database contains all Aadhaar numbers and the holder’s corresponding demographic and biometric information. UIDAI responds to authentication queries with a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.
• In some cases, basic KYC details (such as name, address, photograph, etc) accompany the verification answer ‘Yes’. The regulator does not receive or collect the holder’s bank, investment, or insurance details. Additionally, the Aadhaar Act forbids sharing Core Biometric Information (such as fingerprint, and iris scan, among other biometric attributes) for any purpose other than Aadhaar number generation and authentication.
• The Act makes it clear that confidentiality needs to be maintained and the authenticated information cannot be used for anything other than the specified purpose. More importantly, no Aadhaar number (or enclosed personal information) collected from the holder can be published, displayed, or posted publicly. Identity information or authentication records would only be liable to be produced pursuant to an order of the High Court or Supreme Court, or by someone of the Secretary rank or above in the interest of national security.
• The Aadhaar Data Vault is where all numbers collected by authentication agencies are centrally stored. Its objective is to provide a dedicated facility for the agencies to access details only on a need-to-know basis.
• Comptroller and Auditor General of India’s (CAG) latest report stipulated that UIDAI neither specified any encryption algorithm (as of October 2020) to secure the same nor a mechanism to illustrate that the entities were adhering to appropriate procedures. It relied solely on audit reports provided to them by the entities themselves. Further, UIDAI’s unstable record with biometric authentication has not helped it with de-duplication efforts, the process that ensures that each Aadhaar Number generated is unique.
• The CAG’s report stated that apart from the issue of multiple Aadhaars to the same resident, there have been instances of the same biometric data being accorded to multiple residents. As per UIDAI’s Tech Centre, nearly 4.75 lakh duplicate Aadhaar numbers were canceled as of November 2019. The regulator relies on Automated Biometric Identification Systems for taking corrective actions. The CAG concluded it was “not effective enough” in detecting the leakages and plugging them. Biometric authentications can be a cause of worry, especially for disabled and senior citizens with both the iris and fingerprints dilapidating.
• Though the UIDAI has assured that no one would be deprived of any benefits due to biometric authentication failures, the absence of an efficient technology could serve as the poignant premise for frauds to make use of their ‘databases’.
• Also, what essentially needs to be remembered is that UIDAI is dealing with the world’s second-most populous country. As of March 2021, it had generated 129.04 crore Aadhaar numbers which cover 94% of the projected population.
• The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 states that Aadhaar authentication is necessary for availing subsidies and services that are financed from the Consolidated Fund of India. However, confidentiality needs to be maintained and the authenticated information cannot be used for anything other than the specified purpose.
• The NPCI’s Aadhaar Payments Bridge (APB) and the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) facilitate direct benefit transfer (DBT) and allow individuals to use Aadhaar for payments. This requires bank accounts to be linked to Aadhaar.
• But more than 200 central and State government websites publicly displayed details of some Aadhaar beneficiaries such as their names and addresses. This means that this data could be potentially used to fraudulently link the rightful beneficiary’s Aadhaar with a distinct bank account, embezzling the beneficiary by impersonation.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. INDUS WATER TALKS HELD ON ‘CORDIAL’ TERMS: MEA

THE CONTEXT: Indian and Pakistani negotiators ended another round of talks as a part of the Indus Water Treaty on “cordial” terms,  describing the 118th meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission that took place in Delhi on May 30-31.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The MEA did not give any details on the issues that were on the agenda for discussion, including Pakistan’s request for flood-flow data sharing and objections to hydropower projects planned on “western rivers” in Jammu & Kashmir. However, it said that the annual report of the Commission for the previous year had been finalized and signed, indicating some consensus on the way forward on a number of issues that come up each year. A statement from Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also added that India had assured response to its objections.
• According to the Indus Water agreement, Commissioners meet twice each year, alternately in India and Pakistan, a practice that was put in abeyance between 2019-2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and scheduling issues.
• The talks have taken place regularly despite the two neighbors cutting off all trade and travel ties, and having pulled out High Commissioners in each other’s capitals. Since December 2015, the two countries have also not held any bilateral talks under the composite dialogue process (now called the comprehensive dialogue), and there have been no political meetings between the two governments. In September 2016, after the Uri terror attack in Jammu & Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was quoted as telling a review meeting that “blood and water cannot flow together”, indicating a possible rupture in the water sharing talks.
• Subsequently, the government clarified that it had no intention of abrogating the treaty, but would seek to utilize waters allocated to India under the treaty more fully, setting up a special new committee to do so.
• The Indus talks, which followed just two months since the last round of the Permanent Indus Commission talks in Islamabad, also came a few weeks after another Pakistan delegation crossed over Wagah for multilateral talks on terrorism as part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s Regional Anti Terror Structure, leading to some speculation that ties between New Delhi and Islamabad may ease on other issues as well, given a change in government in Pakistan in April, as well as security-level back-channel talks that have been ongoing for some years and are believed to have led to the military ceasefire agreement at the Line of Control last February.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. Q4 GDP GROWTH DECELERATES TO 4.1%

THE CONTEXT: India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed to a four-quarter low of 4.1% during the January-March period, from 5.4% in the preceding quarter, as manufacturing output shrank, provisional national income estimates released on Tuesday show. As a result, full-year growth came in at 8.7% — a tad lower than the 8.9% pace projected in February.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Gross Value-Added (GVA) in the economy is estimated to have grown 8.1% in 2021-22, slightly lower than the 8.3% projected by the National Statistical Office (NSO) earlier. The GDP had shrunk 6.6% in 2020-21, while the GVA had contracted 4.8% in the wake of the COVID-19 lockdowns.
• The Finance Ministry said the latest national income estimates ‘establish full economic recovery’ as real GDP in 2021-22 exceeded the pre-pandemic levels of 2019-20. On a quarter-to-quarter basis, it argued real GDP growth was 6.7% in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2021-22, reflecting a ‘sustained growth momentum’ entering the current fiscal year.
• The contact-dependent and employment-intensive trade, hotels, transport, communication & services related to the broadcasting sector continued to languish below pre-pandemic levels, ending FY22 still 11.3% lower than 2019-20 GVA levels.
• Overall GVA growth slowed to 3.9% in the January-March 2022 quarter, from 4.7% in the preceding period. Worryingly, manufacturing sector output shrank 0.2% from a year earlier. This was the first contraction in factories’ output since the massive 31.5% fall in the first quarter of 2020-21 amid the strict national lockdowns.
• Economists pointed out that real GDP was only ‘a subdued’ 1.5% higher than pre-COVID levels and ascribed the lower than projected full-year growth to the effects of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, high commodity prices, and inflation as well as data corrections for the first half of the year.
• A downward revision in growth rates for the first two quarters of 2021-22 also affected the full year’s growth rate vis-à-vis the last estimates released on February 28. The 20.3% GDP growth estimated earlier for Q1 was pared to 20.1%, while the same number was revised to 8.4% from 8.5% for Q2.
• Chief Economic Advisor V. AnanthaNageswaran said the real GDP numbers were pretty much in line with earlier estimates, so it was difficult to make the argument that the growth rate was lower than anticipated earlier.
• For the full year, GVA from agriculture and the financial, real estate & professional services sectors, the only two sectors that grew in 2020-21, rose by 3% and 4.2% in 2021-22, compared with 3.3% and 2.2% in the previous year, respectively.
• Five major segments of economic activity recorded GVA growth of about 10% or more in the last fiscal, compared with sharp contractions in 2020-21, led by public administration, defense & other services whose GVA rose 12.6% from 5.5% a year earlier.
• GVA from mining and quarrying as well as construction, which had contracted 8.6% and 7.3% in 2020-21, bounced back to clock 11.5% growth in 2021-22. GVA from trade grew 11.1% from a steep 20.2% fall in 2020-21, while manufacturing GVA rose 9.9% from a 0.6% drop the previous year.
• The Finance Ministry highlighted that the investment rate in the economy rose to 33.6% in Q4, the highest since Q3 of 2019-20. Moreover, though the manufacturing sector shrank from a year earlier, it grew sequentially at 14.2% during Q4, it pointed out.
• Going forward, interest rate hikes would start impacting real GDP towards the end of this fiscal year, but growth could get a leg-up from ‘a strong bounce-back in contact-based services’.But headwinds from slower global growth and higher oil prices have tilted the risks downwards to our forecast of 7.3% for 2022-23.
• Managing the troika of growth, inflation and fiscal balance was the top challenge for India’s policymakers but emphasized that India was better off than several developed countries with respect to inflation as well as other global headwinds that threaten growth.
• Dismissing concerns of interest rate increases impacting growth,“In general, interest rates becoming normal may not necessarily be an anti-growth move if they are coming from a very low rate. The price of credit should reflect the demand for credit and the central bank’s confidence in raising rates reflects the belief that the recovery is taking root.

5. FAST GROWTH IS STILL ON, BUT INFLATION

THE CONTEXT: An anticipated slowdown in the last quarter still kept India on track to be the fastest-growing major economy in 2021-22.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on the gross domestic product (GDP) on Tuesday showed growth slowing to 4.1% in January-March. But this did not significantly alter the full year’s number, which was revised to 8.7% from the projection of 8.9% in February.
• All demand components – consumption, investment, and exports – are now above pre-pandemic levels, although the picture is clouded by persistent NSE -0.55 % inflation, an interest rate upcycle, and a ballooning imported energy bill. Sectorally, agriculture growth moderated, and industry and services – except contact-sensitive sectors – have climbed out of the trough.
  The sequential slowdown in growth from 20.3% in the first quarter of 2021-22 through 8.5% in the second and 5.4% in the third, before reaching 4.1% in the last quarter, is expected to be reinforced as the low base effect of the prior year is withdrawn and fresh supply disruptions affect commodity, food and fuel prices. Manufacturing contracted in January-March, although it posted a smart recovery for the full year. Labour-soaking agriculture and construction saw a sequential acceleration. Government expenditure propped up services growth in the last quarter.
• India’s recovery from the pandemic is now complete in terms of national income accounts. The revival of capital formation could have sustained the growth trajectory if the external environment were benign, which it is not. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in April lowered its estimate of the current fiscal year’s GDP growth from 7.8% to 7.2%, and there is a likelihood of a further downward revision at its next review of monetary policy in June as it pushes the policy interest rate closer to its pre-pandemic level.
• A favorable monsoon alongside concerted fiscal intervention to stabilize retail inflation – which reached an eight-year high of 7.8% in April – could temper the monetary tightening that is expected to slow down the economy.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

6. 50 YEARS SINCE STOCKHOLM CONFERENCE: THE SUMMER LINGERS

THE CONTEXT: From June 5 to June 16, 1972, countries across the world shed a bit of their sovereignty. The aim was to create a common governance structure for the planet’s environment and natural resources.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The occasion was the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, the first such worldwide convergence on the planetary environment, with the theme ‘Only One Earth’.
• When the participating 122 countries — 70 of them developing and poor countries — adopted the Stockholm Declaration on June 16, they essentially committed to 26 principles and an action plan that set in a multilateral environmental regime.
• One of the overarching principles was that sovereignty should be subject to not causing harm to the environment of other countries as well.
• This was the first globally subscribed document that recognized the “interconnections between development, poverty and the environment.”
• These principles were celebrated as a harbinger of “new behavior and responsibility which must govern their relationship in the environmental era”.
• To put it in another way, the planet’s environment and natural resources became a common resource with countries resetting their relationship with nature — from sovereignty over resources to shared responsibility for their sustainable uses.
• The three dimensions of this conference were: Countries agreeing not to “harm each other’s environment or the areas beyond national jurisdiction”; an action plan to study the threat to Earth’s environment, and the establishment of an international body called the UN Environment programme (UNEP) to bring in cooperation among countries.
• The Stockholm conference was historic, not just for being the first one on the planetary environment.
• Until 1972, no country had an environment ministry. Norwegian delegates returned from the conference to set up a ministry for the environment the host Sweden took a few more weeks to do so.
• India set up its ministry of environment and forest in 1985. The UN charter never had the environment as a domain to deal with. So, the first global conference on the environment happened when the environment was not a subject of importance for any country or global concern.
• In 1968, when Sweden first proposed the idea of the Stockholm conference (this is why it was referred to as the Swedish Initiative), cases of environmental degradation and hints of a meltdown of the planet’s atmospheric system had started making news.
• Acid rains were being reported; Rachel Carson’s now-famous book Silent Spring was just six-years-old but attained biblical status in terms of readership and impact on public consciousness. Species extinction made headlines, like that of the humpback whales and Bengal tigers; the mercury poisoning caused by methylmercury release into the Minamata Bay in Japan entered public discourse.
• In the UN General Assembly in 1968, for the first time climate change was discussed using emerging scientific evidence. Though it was still not believable, in 1965, the then US president Lyndon B Johnson’s Science Advisory Committee came out with the report, Restoring the Quality of Our Environment, which was definitive on the role of human-emitted carbon dioxide (CO2) to atmospheric warming
• The Stockholm conference indeed started the contemporary “environmental era”. In many ways, it made multilateral governance of planetary concerns mainstream. This led to more than 500 multilateral environmental agreements being adopted in the last 50 years.
• Most of today’s conventions related to planetary crises like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the whole environmental regime being implemented through the UN system trace their origin to the Stockholm Declaration.
• Since that summer in Stockholm half a century ago, nobody has lived a normal month climate-wise. In April 2017, scientists from Climate Central, an international association of scientists and journalists reporting and researching climate change, released a stunning chart depicting a monthly temperature rise since 1880.

Stockholm 2022

• The world is all tuned in to the Stockholm+50, to be held in the same city in June, but with a vastly changed planet, notwithstanding the rooting of the multilateral environmental regime.
• On June 2-3, world leaders will not discuss how the past half-century was, but how the next 50 years would be treated with emergency actions. It is also aptly themed as “Stockholm+50: A healthy planet for the prosperity of all — our responsibility, our opportunity.”
• If the Stockholm conference could accord some time to all, the current one comes without a deadline, as time has already run out.
• Since the “environmental era” started, there are no signs of a restrain on our relationship with nature. UN data circulated to commemorate Stockholm+50 showed that trade has increased gone up 10 times, the global economy has grown five times and the world population has doubled.
• “Human development is largely fuelled by a tripling in the extraction of natural resources, food production, and energy production and consumption over the past 50 years,” says an advance draft copy of the document to be discussed at Stockholm+50.
• The UNEP’ Inclusive Wealth Report 2018 had said:

During 1990-to 2014, produced capital grew at an average annual rate of 3.8 percent, while health- and education-induced human capital grew at 2.1 percent. Meanwhile, natural capital decreased at an annual rate of 0.7 percent.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 1ST JUNE 2022

Q1. Which of the following statements about the PM-KISAN Scheme:

1. It provides a financial benefit of Rs 6000/- per year in three equal installments to only Small and Marginal Farmers (SMFs).
2. It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
3. It is being implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 2 and 3 only

c) 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 31^ST MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

• PM CARES scheme for children orphaned by the COVID-19 pandemic covers all children who have lost both parents, the lone surviving parent or legal guardian or adoptive parent or parents, due to COVID-19 after March 11, 2020. The scheme has been extended till February 28, 2022. The scheme was earlier valid till December 31, 2021.
• To avail the scheme, a child should not have turned 18 on the date of death of his or her parents.
• Education aid: The scheme announced on May 29, 2021, provides gap funding for education and health and a monthly stipend from the age of 18 years, apart from a lump sum amount of ₹10 lakh when a beneficiary turns 23 years old.
• All children will be enrolled as a beneficiary under Ayushman Bharat Scheme (PM-JAY) with a health insurance cover of Rs. 5 lakhs.

Ministry of Women and Child Development shall be the nodal Ministry for the execution of the scheme at the central level. Department of Women and Child Development or Department of Social Justice in the State/UT Government, dealing with the Child Protection Services scheme in the State/UT shall be the nodal agency at the State level. The District Magistrates (DM) shall be the nodal authority at the District level for the execution of the scheme.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. DROP IN LEARNING OUTCOMES ACROSS GRADES, SUBJECTS, FINDS EDUCATION MINISTRY SURVEY

THE CONTEXT: The National Achievement Survey, conducted in November last year, found that the national average of scores in all subjects evaluated fell from the last iteration of the survey in 2017, and that learning outcomes get progressively worse in higher grades.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The performances of students in schools from across the country have suffered in the five years since 2017, a survey by the Ministry of Education has found.
• The National Achievement Survey (NAS) was conducted by the Ministry in November last year and covered 34 lakh students from 1.18 lakh schools in 720 districts across states and Union Territories (UTs) in the country.
• The survey tested students from classes 3, 5, 8 and 10 and covered a variety of subjects, from math to environmental and social science, with the specific concepts tested being tweaked for students from each grade.
• Importantly, a dip in educational outcomes was observed across grades and subjects with national average scores dropping by nine percentage points since the last time the survey was conducted, in 2017. Moreover, all but two states – Punjab and Haryana – saw poorer outcomes than in the last survey, the Indian Express reported.
• “The objective of NAS 2021 is to evaluate children’s progress and learning competencies as an indicator of the efficiency of the education system, so as to take appropriate steps for remedial actions at different levels,” the newspaper quoted an official Ministry statement as saying.

 COVID and the digital divide

• A major driver of disruption in the education sector was the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020. Not only were learning outcomes in general disturbed by lock downs and school closures, but the migration to the online mode of learning deepened the existing digital divide among students from different socio-economic backgrounds.
• The NAS, 2021 found that 24% of students surveyed did not have access to digital devices in their homes and 38% claimed that they had difficulty carrying out learning activities at home during the pandemic.
• Importantly, a whopping 80% of students said that they learnt better at school, where they could solicit the help of their peers.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. DIGITIZATION WILL ENSURE SPEEDY, EFFICIENT DELIVERY OF JUSTICE

THE CONTEXT: Digitization of court records, e-filing of cases and their virtual hearing, live streaming of court proceedings are particularly important.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Indian judiciary has increasingly started using technology and the change is reflected in the legal profession in general as well. Some significant developments had taken place before the Covid –19 crisis in 2020, with the digitization of judicial records and establishing of e-courts. Hence, it is imperative that the use of digital technology be discussed to better utilize its potential, particularly in terms of digitization of court records, e-filing of cases and their virtual hearing, live streaming of court proceedings.
• In India, e-governance in the field of administration of justice began in the late 1990s, but it accelerated after the enactment of the Information and Technology Act, 2000. As the 21st century began, the focus was on digitizing the court’s records and establishing e- courts across the country. In the year of 2006, e-courts were launched as a part of the National e-Governance Plan (NEGP).
• The time consumed in summoning records from the lower courts to the appellate courts is one of the major factors causing delays in cases. With digitization, it will take much less time for the lower courts to transmit the records as and when called for. It has also been observed that cases are adjourned simply because affidavits filed several years ago were not restored with the record or were not traceable.
• Once the documents are digitized and e-filed by counsels, at least the cases would not get adjourned by the courts on this account.
• Before the pandemic, virtual hearings were used only in a limited manner; for example, in criminal cases where it was not possible to produce the accused physically before the court or while extending the remand of the accused. Not every case can be disposed of virtually, however.
• Cases related to matrimonial issues and domestic violence, bounced cheques, motor accident compensation referred to mediation centres and lokadalats could be included in the list of cases fit for disposal through the virtual hearing.
• Internet connectivity issues and the need for a well-equipped space where lawyers can conduct their cases are some of the major problems requiring attention. Political will and the support of judges and lawyers are also necessary. Judges, court staff and lawyers are not well-versed with digital technology and its benefits. The need of the hour is for them to be made aware of these and receive adequate training.
• Virtual hearings cannot be a substitute for physical court hearings in all cases. However, in appropriate cases and certain categories of cases as identified by the court administration in consultation with the members of the Bar, virtual hearing should be made mandatory.

3. WHAT ARE COMMUNITY FOREST RIGHTS, WHY DO THEY MATTER?

THE CONTEXT: The Chhattisgarh government has become only the second state in the country to recognize Community Forest Resource (CFR) rights of a village inside a national park. The CFR rights of tribals living in Gudiyapadar, a hamlet inside the Kanger Ghati National Park in Bastar district.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The community forest resource area is the common forest land that has been traditionally protected and conserved for sustainable use by a particular community. The community uses it to access resources available within the traditional and customary boundary of the village, and for seasonal use of landscape in case of pastoralist communities.
• Each CFR area has a customary boundary with identifiable landmarks recognized by the community and its neighboring villages. It may include forest of any category – revenue forest, classified & unclassified forest, deemed forest, DLC land, reserve forest, protected forest, sanctuary, and national parks etc.
• The Community Forest Resource rights under Section 3(1)(i) of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act (commonly referred to as the Forest Rights Act or the FRA) provide for recognition of the right to “protect, regenerate or conserve or manage” the community forest resource.
• These rights allow the community to formulate rules for forest use by itself and others and thereby discharge its responsibilities under Section 5 of the FRA.
• CFR rights, along with Community Rights (CRs) under Sections 3(1)(b) and 3(1)(c), which include nistar rights and rights over non-timber forest products, ensure sustainable livelihoods of the community.
• These rights give the authority to the Gram Sabha to adopt local traditional practices of forest conservation and management within the community forest resource boundary.
• Aimed at undoing the “historic injustice” meted out to forest-dependent communities due to curtailment of their customary rights over forests, the FRA came into force in 2008.
• It is important as it recognises the community’s right to use, manage and conserve forest resources, and to legally hold forest land that these communities have used for cultivation and residence.
• It also underlines the integral role that forest dwellers play in sustainability of forests and in conservation of biodiversity.
• It is of greater significance inside protected forests like national parks, sanctuaries and tiger reserves as traditional dwellers then become a part of management of the protected forests using their traditional wisdom.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

4. THE WHAT, HOW AND WHY OF THE INDO-PACIFIC ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK

THE CONTEXT: On May 23, US President Joe Biden officially launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) in Tokyo. Conceived and led by the United States, the IPEF has 13 founding members, including Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

THE EXPLANATION:

• During the East Asia Summit in October 2021, President Biden announced plans to launch a US-led IPEF. Subsequently, US officials conducted exploratory discussions with their traditional allies in the region. In February 2022, an Indo-Pacific strategy was revealed, which mentioned the formal launch of the IPEF in early 2022.
• Not surprisingly, the United States has not invited China to join the IPEF despite China belonging to the Indo-Pacific region and holding significant regional economic influence. China has also not shown any interest in joining this framework, interpreting Indo-Pacific initiatives as a US-led containment strategy directed against it. Although Taiwan is eager to join the IPEF, the US would only pursue a bilateral engagement with it. Three ASEAN countries (Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar) are also not part of the IPEF.
• With the shift of the centre of gravity from the Atlantic to Asia, the new concept of the ‘Indo-Pacific’ has entered the geopolitical discourse, replacing the hitherto dominant ‘Asia-Pacific’ construct, even though its geographic boundaries are not well defined.
• Based on maritime geography, the Indo-Pacific refers to a contiguous zone encompassing the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The geographic boundaries of the Indo-Pacific could stretch from East Africa to the west coast of the US and encompass a large number of countries at varying stages of development, with distinct policy agendas and divergent interests.
• Bringing together highly heterogeneous countries with high-standard commitments on the digital economy, green infrastructure, clean energy, and social and environmental standards under the rubric of IPEF is a herculean effort.
• The term ‘Indo-Pacific’ started to be discussed in strategic circles about a decade ago, but has rapidly gained importance in recent years. The economic rise of India and the massive increase in maritime trade passing through the Indian Ocean have helped make the Indo-Pacific a geopolitical and geo economic construct. Currently, the Indo-Pacific is the most contested maritime zone in the world because of the growing strategic rivalry between the US and China and the security interests of other key players in the region.
• In the economic realm, the Indo-Pacific is one of the world’s most dynamic regions. The region accounts for more than 60% of the global GDP, and almost 50% of the global merchandise trade passes through its waters.
• The region includes the world’s four big economies: the USA, China, Japan, and India. With the engine of global economic growth shifting eastwards, the Indo-Pacific region will gain greater importance in coming years.
• Since the launch of the “Pivot to Asia” strategy (the re balancing towards Asia-Pacific) by the Obama administration in 2011, the US has intensified its engagement with the wider Asia-Pacific region to advance its economic and geopolitical interests. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was the centre piece of Obama’s strategic pivot to Asia and the Indo-Pacific Economic Corridor was also part of this strategy.
• In their foreign policy calculations, successive US administrations have given greater prominence to the Indo-Pacific region, pushing to connect the Indian and Pacific Oceans as a single maritime entity, which also enables India to play a more proactive role in the region.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. INDIA LIKELY TO GET ITS FIRST SEMI-HIGH SPEED FREIGHT TRAIN BY THIS DECEMBER

THE CONTEXT: To tap the growing freight sector, the Railways is aiming to introduce the country’s first semi-high speed freight train by December 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Based on the Vande Bharat platform, the 16-coach ‘Gati Shakti’ train will be able to run at 160 km/hour and will be manufactured at the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in Chennai.
• With these trains, the Railways plans to target the e-commerce and courier parcel segment. Quoting data from IBEF, an ICF official added that with the turnover of $50 billion in 2020, India had become the 8th largest market for e-commerce.
• “India’s ecommerce market is expected to reach $111 billion by 2024 and $200 billion by 2026 and expected to reach $350 billion by 2030,” the official said, adding that the Railways planned to capture the small size parcel shipments by running dedicated high speed freight trains.
• Additionally, each train would have two refrigerated wagons — the first and last cars, to ferry perishable items such as fruits and vegetables.
• The Railways is aiming to increase its share in freight transportation from the present 27% to 45% by 2030 through better infrastructure and business development plans, according to the National Rail Plan.

THE MISCELLANEOUS

6. NEW ARUNACHAL MONKEY NAMED AFTER SELA PASS

THE CONTEXT:A new species of old-world monkey recorded from Arunachal Pradesh has been named after a strategic mountain pass at 13,700 ft above sea level.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Sela macaque (Macacaselai), the new-to-science primate was identified and analysed by a team of experts from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the University of Calcutta. Their study has been published in the latest edition of Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution.
• Phylogenetics relate to the evolutionary development and diversification of a species or group of organisms.
• The phylogenetic analysis revealed that the Sela macaque was geographically separated from the Arunachal macaque (Macaca munzala) of Tawang district by Sela.
• This mountain pass acted as a barrier by restricting the migration of individuals of these two species for approximately two million years.
• Sela is situated between Dirang and Tawang towns in western Arunachal Pradesh.
• The new macaque species in western and central Arunachal Pradesh while exploring the Arunachal macaque’s wild population for genetic insights. It was found to be genetically different from the other species of monkeys reported from this region,” ZSI’s Mukesh Thakur.

Major cause for crop loss

• The study describes the Sela macaque as genetically closer to the Arunachal macaque. The two have some similar physical characteristics such as heavy-build shape and long dorsal body hair. Both species have troops that either avoid proximity to humans or are used to human presence.
• The zoologists identified some distinct morphological traits to differentiate the two species. While the Sela macaque has a pale face and brown coat, the Arunachal macaque has a dark face and dark brown coat.
• According to the villagers, the Sela macaque is a major cause of crop loss in the West Kameng district of the State.
• The study says the Sela macaque has a tail longer than the Tibetan macaque, Assamese macaque, Arunachal macaque and the white-cheeked macaque but shorter than the bonnet macaque and toque macaque.
• Sela macaque belongs to the sinica species-group of Macaca, but it differs from all other members of this group through attributes such as brown collar hair and muzzle, thick brown hair around the neck and the absence of chin whiskers.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 28TH MAY 2022

Q1. Sela pass, sometimes seen in news, is located in

a) Arunachal Pradesh

b) Himachal Pradesh

c) Jammu & Kashmir

d) Sikkim

ANSWER FOR THE 27^th MAY

Answer: C

Explanation:

The Emissions Gap Report 2021 shows that new national climate pledges combined with other mitigation measures put the world on track for a global temperature rise of 2.7°C by the end of the century. That is well above the goals of the Paris climate agreement and would lead to catastrophic changes in the Earth’s climate. To keep global warming below 1.5°C this century, the aspirational goal of the Paris Agreement, the world needs to halve annual greenhouse gas emissions in the next eight years. It is published by the United Nations Environment Programme.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. DISCRIMINATION AGAINST LGBTQI+ PERSONS HAS ECONOMIC COST, SAYS ILO REPORT

THE CONTEXT: Acknowledging that multiple and intersecting layers of discrimination aggravate work experiences for LGBTIQ+ persons, the International Labour Organization has issued a ‘learning guide’ for creating inclusive workplaces.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In spite of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognising that discrimination constitutes violation of human rights, only 29 countries legally recognise marriage equality, while 34 provide some same-sex partnership recognition.
• In India, same-sex marriage is not recognised. Nationalist Congress Party MP Supriya Sule in April this year introduced a private member’s Bill in the Lok Sabha to legalisesame-sex marriage, and provide the same marital rights to LGBTQIA+ couples that heterosexual people are entitled to.
• In the same month, the Allahabad high court rejected a plea by two women to recognise their marriage on the argument that such a union was not opposed by the Hindu Marriage Act.
• The report also navigates absence of LGBTIQ+ persons in the formulation of diversity and inclusion strategies in workplaces.
• For this report, ILO’s research primarily focuses on Argentina, Costa Rica, France, Indonesia, South Africa and Thailand but sheds light on global trends of harassment, violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics.
• It also focuses on India, in a key sub-head on how discrimination against LGBTIQ+ persons has an economic cost.
• In 2014, a World Bank model highlighted that an economy of India’s size could lose up to $32 billion per year or 1.7% of that country’s gross domestic product (GDP) over social exclusion of LGBTIQ+ persons.
• There is a correlation between workplace bullying and poor physical and mental health, including depression, low self-esteem and suicidal thoughts, the report says.
• Such discrimination results in lost labour time, lost productivity, under investment in human capital and the inefficient allocation of human resources. The decreased investment in human capital and sub optimal use of human resources also results in lower output at the broader economy level.
• Unsurprisingly, the report notes that persistent violence and harassment leads to poor work performance and attendance. Concealment of sexual orientation or gender identity due to fear of discriminatory treatment and violence can lead to considerable anxiety and loss of productivity.
• This leads to many excluding themselves from the formal economy altogether and isolating themselves, the report finds.
• “Developing human capital is a smart investment. Investing in networking and learning opportunities for LGBTIQ+ workers can contribute to finding the right people, help companies better utilise talent and build the social capital of marginalized individuals,” the ILO says.
• The report calls on governments to review national policy and labour law to assess a country’s work policy environment for LGBTIQ+ persons.
• This will allow the identification of concrete steps for improving the legal and policy environment, ending discrimination and exclusions, and complying with international instruments.Equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace make good business sense.
• Collaboration based on social dialogue, including with LGBTIQ+ workers and their representatives, and tripartite action by governments and employers’ and workers’ organisations are critical to ensuring an all-inclusive world of work, the ILO finds.
• In addition, social dialogue with LGBTIQ+ communities will allow the identification of barriers faced by community members entering the labour market and accessing government schemes.
• The report highlights how governments can work with diverse partners such as small and medium industry associations, sectoral unions and informal economy workers’ associations to monitor discrimination in the informal economy.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. APP-BASED ATTENDANCE HITS RURAL JOBS SCHEME WORKERS

THE CONTEXT: The Union government has made capturing of attendance through its app, National Mobile Monitoring System, compulsory at worksites where 20 or more workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) are employed. This move comes despite many problems, including patchy Internet connectivity in rural areas and little or no technical support.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Ministry of Rural Development had started the exercise on a pilot basis on May 21 last year. Initially, the utilization of application was to be voluntary but from May 16 this year, it has been made mandatory. The Ministry’s directive claims that the app, which requires two time-stamped and geo tagged photographs of the workers in a day, encourages transparency and increases citizen oversight.
• The biggest setback after the move has been for women employees, especially the supervisors or “work mates”. In a majority of cases, the employees’ families are averse to giving phones to women, especially smartphones. Hence, many women have dropped out.
• We had mobilised close to 15,000 women to work at these sites but the mandatory capturing of attendance through the app has led to their exclusion from the process. A majority of them do not have phones and they have to depend on their husbands or other men in their families. So essentially, we are on the reverse gear.
• In the last one year, the Union government has resolved some critical issues. As per the MGNREGA Act, the workers can do time-bound work or task-based work. The initial guidelines required uploading of geotagged and time-stamped photographs of the workers at about 11 a.m. and another one after 2 p.m. For task-based work, the workers had to stay back post 2 p.m. even if they had completed their work in order to take the photograph to be eligible for the wages. This requirement has now been suitably amended.
• There are other pitfalls that remain, primarily relating to technical glitches and minimal technical support.
• The supervisors of the worksites are expected to have a smartphone with Internet connection. According to officials from various States, there have been complaints from the mates that they are not given added incentives to pay for the smartphones or Internet connections.
• There is very little technical support provided. “Nobody at the village or even at the block level has any clear solution to offer in case the app doesn’t work or fails to upload a photograph. When we ask for help, the only thing they tell us to delete and reload the app

3. OVER 90 MILLION EXCLUDED FROM PDS ENTITLEMENT: REPORT

THE CONTEXT: More than 90 million eligible people have been excluded from legal entitlements under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TDPS), India’s tool to combat food insecurity, claimed a new report.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Census of India 2011 remains the source of data for arriving at the number of people to be covered by the scheme. As a consequence, subsequent years have seen the exclusion of a large chunk of the population. This in-built fallacy in the legal framework led to exclusion of at least 12 per cent of population from the legal entitlements in the most legitimised way, the report claimed.
• The Union government is yet to start the Census process that was supposed to be over last year.
• The citizen’s report published by Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (WNTA) — that loosely translates to Keep the Promise Campaign — read:
• “Targetism, as the basis for provision of entitlements under TPDS, has always dampened the potential impact of the scheme. Despite being one of the most important schemes for addressing food insecurity in the country, complications pertaining to identification of beneficiaries continue to affect the efficacy of the whole scheme.”
• WNTA, started in 2005 by civil society organisations, tracks delivery by governments on promises and commitments.
• Most states have adopted both inclusion and exclusion criteria to identify priority households for TPDS under the National Food Security Act, 2013. Yet many do not automatically pass on TDPS benefits single women, socially vulnerable groups, transgenders, persons with disabilities and those chronically.
• States like Rajasthan, Sikkim, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh did not include any of these population groups in their respective automatic inclusion criteria. Most of the states did not include SCs and STs automatically, the report said.
• The National Human Rights Commission in May 2021 issued notices to the Centre, states and Union territories to ensure that nobodu eligible was deprived of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana —meant to provide free foodgrains to poor households during the COVID-19 pandemic — is deprived of the Right to Food due to problems regarding biometric authentication.
• The WNTA report quoted a recent study by Dalberg Advisors and Kantar Public, with technical support from NITI Aayog, which found some three million children have grown weaker since the pandemic.
• Findings from the Fifth round of National Family Health Survey also revealed that 89 per cent of children between the formative ages of 6-23 months do not receive a “minimum acceptable diet’’.
• Also, increasing number of people across all population groups, including children below five years, adolescent girls and boys, and pregnant women, is being affected by anaemia. At least 67 per cent children (6-59 months) have anaemia as compared to 58.6 per cent in the last survey conducted in 2015-16. Among adults, 57 per cent of women and 25 percent of men (in the 15-49 group) have anaemia. Among women, its prevalence has increased from 53 percent in 2015-16 to 57 per cent in 2019-21. In men, it has increased from 23 per cent to 25 per cent.
• The Promises and Reality report also goes on to highlight that most of the state food commissions suffer financial autonomy and the state governments have not gone beyond designating District Grievance Redressal Officers (DGRO) and forming vigilance committees.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

4. SECURITY IN FRIENDSHIP: ON TOKYO QUAD SUMMIT

THE CONTEXT: The recent summit meeting of the leaders of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad, could not have come at a more critical juncture in world politics.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Between Russia’s invasion of Ukraine that has destabilised accepted norms on respecting territorial sovereignty; its knock-on effects on commodity and input prices, fuelling inflationary pressures and impacting global supply chains; and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic that spotlighted deficiencies in public health infrastructure, the leaders of India, the United States, Australia and Japan are likely to have had a full and multidimensional policy agenda in Tokyo.
• For the leaders the obvious, if not always explicitly stated theme linking several global issues is the China factor and the unique strategic challenges that that country poses to the rules-based international order.
• While U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida were blunt in their condemnation of Russia’s belligerence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and newly elected Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese avoided any direct reference to Moscow, as indeed did the summit’s joint statement.
• On China, however, the four nations were on the same page, and the Quad joint statement called for continued cooperation towards maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific; championing adherence to international law as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and in maintaining freedom of navigation and overflight; and meeting challenges to the maritime rules-based order, including in the East and South China Seas.
• The Quad leaders affirmed the Dialogue’s two core messages. First, they will continue to strongly oppose coercive, provocative, and unilateral actions by Beijing that seek to change the status quo and heighten tensions across the region, including through manoeuvres such as the militarization of disputed territories, the dangerous use of coast guard vessels and maritime militia, and clandestine attempts to disrupt other nations’ offshore resource exploitation activities. To this end, military coordination between the Dialogue members will continue to provide strategic depth to the mission, including notably the annual Malabar exercise.
• The second message seeks to leverage Dialogue member resources in vaccine delivery, climate action, supply chain resilience, disaster response, cyber security infrastructure, and economic cooperation. Even though Beijing may consider the Quad to be an “Asian NATO”, the Dialogue can be about much more than a strategic push back on China’s hegemonic intentions.
• At a time when the liberal consensus on globalization has anyway run its course and across the Indo-Pacific, there is, post-pandemic, a strong appetite for deepening regional cooperation for trade and investment. In this context, the Quad is in pole position to shape economic alliances and regional security architecture towards a new world order based on national interest and realpolitik.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

5. GREEN HYDROGEN: FUEL OF THE FUTURE?

THE CONTEXT: At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a few days ago, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri said India will emerge as the leader of green hydrogen by taking advantage of the current energy crisis across the globe. His assertion came almost a month after Oil India Limited (OIL) commissioned India’s first 99.99% pure green hydrogen plant in eastern Assam’s Jorhat.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic and highly combustible gaseous substance, hydrogen is the lightest, simplest and most abundant member of the family of chemical elements in the universe. But a colour — green — prefixed to it makes hydrogen the “fuel of the future”. The ‘green’ depends on how the electricity is generated to obtain the hydrogen, which does not emit greenhouse gas when burned.
• Green hydrogen is produced through electrolysis using renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind or hydel power.
• Hydrogen can be ‘grey’ and ‘blue’ too. Grey hydrogen is generated through fossil fuels such as coal and gas and currently accounts for 95% of the total production in South Asia. Blue hydrogen, too, is produced using electricity generated by burning fossil fuels but with technologies to prevent the carbon released in the process from entering the atmosphere.
• Under the Paris Agreement (a legally binding international treaty on climate change with the goal of limiting global warming to below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels) of 2015, India is committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 33-35% from the 2005 levels. At the 2021 Conference of Parties in Glasgow, India reiterated its commitment to move from a fossil and import-dependent economy to a net-zero economy by 2070.
• India’s average annual energy import bill is more than $100 billion and the increased consumption of fossil fuel has made the country a high carbon dioxide (CO2) emitter, accounting for nearly 7% of the global CO2 burden. In order to become energy independent by 2047, the government stressed the need to introduce green hydrogen as an alternative fuel that can make India the global hub and a major exporter of hydrogen.
• The National Hydrogen Mission was launched on August 15, 2021, with a view to cutting down carbon emissions and increasing the use of renewable sources of energy.
• India has just begun to generate green hydrogen with the objective of raising non-fossil energy capacity to 500 gigawatts by 2030.
• It was on April 20, 2022 that the public sector OIL, which is headquartered in eastern Assam’s Duliajan, set up India’s first 99.99% pure green hydrogen pilot plant in keeping with the goal of “making the country ready for the pilot-scale production of hydrogen and its use in various applications” while “research and development efforts are ongoing for a reduction in the cost of production, storage and the transportation” of hydrogen.
• The plant was set up at the petroleum exploration major’s Jorhat pump station, also in eastern Assam.
• Powered by a 500 KW solar plant, the green hydrogen unit has an installed capacity to produce 10 kg of hydrogen per day and scale it up to 30 kg per day.
• A specialized blender has also been installed for blending green hydrogen produced from the unit with the natural gas supplied by the Assam Gas Corporation Limited and supplying the blended gas to the Jorhat area for domestic and industrial use.
• OIL has engaged experts from the Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati to assess the impact of the blended gas on the existing facility.
• The intermittent nature of renewable energy, especially wind, leads to grid instability. Green hydrogen can be stored for long periods of time. The stored hydrogen can be used to produce electricity using fuel cells. In a fuel cell, a device that converts the energy of a chemical into electricity, hydrogen gas reacts with oxygen to produce electricity and water vapour. Hydrogen, thus, can act as an energy storage device and contribute to grid stability.
• Experts say the oxygen, produced as a by-product (8 kg of oxygen is produced per 1 kg of hydrogen), can also be monetized by using it for industrial and medical applications or for enriching the environment. The possibilities of hydrogen have made many countries pledge investments with Portugal having unveiled a national hydrogen strategy worth $7.7 billion in May.
• Renewable developers see green hydrogen as an emerging market and some have targeted the transport sector, although electric vehicles have begun to catch the imagination of consumers today.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

6. INDIA’S GDP TO TAKE A BIG HIT DUE TO PANDEMIC-LINKED LEARNING LOSSES FOR STUDENTS: ADB STUDY

THE CONTEXT: The gross domestic product (GDP) of India, which is among the countries with the longest school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, would see the highest decline in South Asia due to learning losses for the young, a new working paper published by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has reckoned.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Starting with a $10.5 billion dent in 2023, the country’s economy could take a nearly $99 billion hit by 2030, translating into a 3.19% reduction in GDP from the baseline growth trends, according to the paper on ‘Potential Economic Impact of COVID-19 related School Closures’.
• India may thus account for over 10% of the global GDP decline of $943 billion estimated by the ADB on account of earning losses in 2030, with jobs for skilled labour expected to decline by 1%, and unskilled labour by 2% that year.
• India has notable enrollment in secondary education and among students in rural areas. Pandemic-induced school closures have also been more extensive there.
• Economies with a significant population of schoolchildren and college-going youth in rural areas and in the poorest and second wealth quintile — have been worst-hit as they lack access to stable Internet connection needed to study online.
• Learning and earning losses are significant because a notable portion of the impacted population will migrate to the unskilled labour force, the paper said. A large part of India’s work force is constituted by unskilled labour — 408.4 million as per the ADB paper’s estimates, compared to 72.65 million skilled workers.
• In terms of absolute change, India experiences the highest GDP decline in South Asia, at about $98.84 billion in 2030. In percentage terms, its GDP decreases by 0.34% in 2023, 1.36% in 2026, and 3.19% in 2030.
• School closures lead to declines in global GDP and employment. Moreover, the losses in global GDP and employment increase over time. Declines in global GDP amount to 0.19% in 2024, 0.64% in 2028, and 1.11% in 2030.
• India has the highest number of children enrolled in primary and secondary education among the Asian economies covered in the paper, at 255.74 million. The number of students in tertiary education were second only to China at 36.39 million, as per January 2022 data used for the research.
• While mooting greater investments in education and skills with a focus on narrowing the digital divide, the paper’s authors have said the most immediate challenge for governments is to help students recover “lost opportunities” by conducting assessments among impacted children.
• It is important to identify the learning gap and specific learning needs of individuals. Effective learning programs should be devised to offer appropriate support such as tutoring or special classes and help them to bridge the learning gap.
• Governments need to direct adequate funding and resources to young populations most affected by closures, such as those from the poor, rural and socially disadvantaged groups. It is important to keep school-age children in education as much as possible by providing financial support and incentives, while giving additional support for skills training to youth already out of school.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 27TH MAY 2022

Q1. Which among the following institution releases the Emission gap report?

1. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
2. The Global Green Growth Institute
3. United Nations Environment Programme
4. Global Alliance on Health and Pollution

ANSWER FOR THE 26^th MAY

Answer: A

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change constituted under enabling provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, as amended in 2006, for strengthening tiger conservation, as per powers and functions assigned to it under the said Act.
• NTCA has been fulfilling its mandate within the ambit of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 for strengthening tiger conservation in the country by retaining an oversight through advisories/normative guidelines, based on appraisal of tiger status, ongoing conservation initiatives and recommendations of specially constituted Committees.
• The ‘Project Tiger’ is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, providing funding support to tiger range States for in-situ conservation of tigers in designated tiger reserves, and has put the endangered tiger on an assured path of recovery by saving it from extinction, as revealed by the recent findings of the All India tiger estimation using the refined methodology.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: The Minister for Environment & Forests is the current Chairperson of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

THE ART AND CULTURE

1. WHAT IS THE CONTROVERSY AROUND ODISHA’S JAGANNATH TEMPLE HERITAGE CORRIDOR PROJECT?

THE CONTEXT: The Archaeological Survey of India told the Orissa High Court this month that no permission was granted to the State government for construction around temple.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said on May 17, that a sculpture of a lion, which possibly dates back to the Ganga dynasty, was found during excavation for the controversial heritage corridor project around the 12th century Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha.
• This is the third such lion sculpture found during the excavation work. The East Ganga dynasty had ruled Kalinga, as Odisha was called in ancient times, from the early fifth century to the early 15th century.
• On May 9, the ASI noted in a report submitted to the Orissa High Court that there was every possibility of archaeological remains at the heritage site being destroyed due to the excavation work for the corridor.

What is the Puri Heritage Corridor Project?

• The Puri Heritage Corridor Project is a ₹3,200-crore redevelopment project of the Odisha government in Puri to create an international heritage site, including the 800-year-old Jagannath temple. Under the umbrella project falls the Shree Jagannatha Heritage Corridor (SJHC) or the Shree Mandira Parikrama Project, for the revamp of the area around the temple.
• Plans for the corridor had been in the making since 2016, with the State Assembly unanimously passing a resolution for the effective implementation of the Project’s plan in February last year. Soon after, the plan was approved by the Shree Jagannatha Temple Administration (SJTA). The Odisha government has listed three objectives for the revamp of the area around the temple- the security of the temple, the safety of devotees, and the creation of a religious atmosphere for devotees.
• The government allotted initial funds of ₹800 crore for the first phase of the Project from its Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture at Puri (ABADHA) scheme introduced in 2019.
• Under the scheme, 22 development projects are planned, including the temple corridor, redevelopment of the SJTA building, the creation of a reception centre with a capacity of 6,000 for devotees visiting the temple, a cultural centre including a library, the Bada Danda (grand road outside the temple) Heritage Street scape Project, a plan to improve temple amenities such as building cloakrooms and toilets, a control and command centre, multilevel parking, the revival of the Musa River, and the Puri Lake Project. While the project has been taken up by the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC) under the State’s Works Department, Tata Projects is the implementing authority.
• n February this year, when the OBBC started excavation work within 75 metres of the Jagannath temple to build public amenities such as toilets and cloakrooms, experts and members of civil society objected to the use of heavy machinery for digging, citing the possibility of an adverse impact on the 12th Century temple. Questions started being raised about whether the construction around the temple had the due permissions and clearances.
• The Jagannath temple has been designated a monument of national importance by the Archaeological Survey and is a centrally protected monument. As per the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act (AMSAR), construction is prohibited within a 100-metre periphery of a protected area.
• The area extending to 200 metres around the monument in all directions is called a regulated area. As per the provisions of the AMSAR Act, the National Monuments Authority (NMA), set up in 2011 under the Ministry of Culture, is charged with protecting and preserving ASI-protected sites by managing the prohibited and regulated area in the periphery of such a site. If construction has to be undertaken in the regulated or prohibited area, permission from the NMA is required.
• Notably, the term “construction” as defined in the AMSAR Act does not include the construction of public toilets, urinals, and “similar conveniences”. It also does not include works for the supply of water, electricity or “provision of similar facilities for publicity”.
• Besides, ​​an impact assessment is also required to be done by the NMA before development around a monument if the built-up area of the monument is beyond 5,000 square metres. The built-up area of the Jagannath temple stands at 43,301.36 sq metres.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

2. GLASS CLIFF

THE CONTEXT: A phenomenon that explains how women are promoted to leadership positions during times when an organisation is under performing, ensuring their failure.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The term ‘Glass Cliff’ was coined by researchers from the University of Exeter, United Kingdom after studying the disparity between the promotion of men and women in corporate organisations.
• They looked at the 100 companies included in the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) Index and found that women were more likely to be promoted to higher positions when the company was performing poorly or going through a crisis. By doing this, women were set up for failure which was likened to standing at the edge of a cliff.
• On November 11, 2003, an article titled, ‘Women on board: help or hindrance?’ was published in The [London] Times, where author Elizabeth Judge claimed that despite all the discourse on breaking the glass ceiling, women’s participation as members in London’s boardrooms worsened the companies, especially its share price performance. She came to the conclusion that appointing more women to company boards was detrimental to an organisation’s performance.
• It was this article that prompted Michelle Ryan and Alexander Haslam from the University of Exeter to study the phenomenon in 2005. Taking the sample of 19 companies in the London FTSE 100 that appointed male and female board members in 2003 and looking at their performance five months before and three months after board appointments, it was found that there was greater variability in company performance preceding and following the appointment of a woman.
• It was also found that women were appointed as board members mostly during an overall market slump or when the company was experiencing turbulence or when there was a decline in performance. Men, on the other hand, were appointed when the company was relatively stable, making sure that their success rates as board members or in higher positions were better.
• Thus, counter to Judge’s claims, the appointment of women was not related to the decline in company performance. The study further showed that, even during times of crisis, womens appointment to leadership positions despite its precariousness and risk, proved positive for the company, because in many cases its performance improved.
• The glass cliff is a phenomenon that reinforces stereotypes about women not being ideal in leadership positions. Although glass cliff mainly refers to the obstacles faced by women, the term also applies to the challenges faced by minorities and other marginalised groups when promoted to leadership roles. The phenomenon occurs in many different fields, including finance, politics, technology, and academia. When a company is performing poorly, it is associated with bad press, financial difficulties, and the need to restructure.
• During such periods, the company protects its male employees and promotes female employees to leadership positions. By promoting women, the company seems progressive but also sets them up for failure. Further, when the company fails to succeed, women can be replaced with their male counterparts, with the company also having a scapegoat to blame for their failures.
• Despite circumstances and studies that show that precarious positions do not necessarily appeal to women compared to men, women are more likely to take up these leadership roles because they rarely get other opportunities for advancement. Men, on the other hand, tend to turn down risky roles, as they are sure to get better opportunities for leadership positions elsewhere or when the companies return to stability.
• One of the notable examples of the phenomenon was when Marissa Mayer was appointed as the CEO of Yahoo! in 2012 after the company lost significant market share to Google. Despite the condition of the company in which she took over when she resigned in 2017 after failing to improve the company’s performance, critics attributed the failure of the company to her performance and effort, rather than to the environment in which she was promoted. She was later replaced by Thomas McInerny, a white male.
• There are many possible explanations as to why this effect prevails. One of the theories explains that when situations of stress or crises occur, women are preferred over men. This ‘think crisis think female’ theory perceives women to possess the qualities that help them deal with stressful situations better than men. Since stressful situations involve emotional management, women who are assumed to be better managers of people’s feelings and problems, are expected to make better leaders during such periods.
• Contrasting this, the ‘think crisis think not men’ theory explains how women are perceived to be less valuable than men, making it easier for the companies to throw them under the bus.
• A third theory explains how when a company is going through a crisis, bringing about a significant change in its structure can hold positive connotations. Thus, in order to signal a drastic change, especially to their relevant stakeholders, women or people from minority communities are promoted to positions of leadership as it deviates from the conventional idea of leadership.
• While the ‘glass ceiling effect’ hinders women and people from minority communities from advancing in their careers after a certain level in various organisations, the ‘glass cliff effect’ ensures that even when promoted, the leadership positions given to these groups are during periods of crisis, so that the company can look progressive and yet replace and blame them for the underperformance of the organisation. Both processes thus, help maintain the status quo and prevent women and members of minority communities from reaching positions of leadership.

 THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. ALL ABOUT THE QUAD, THE CURRENT SUMMIT, AND INITIATIVES

THE CONTEXT: The ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis has triggered geopolitical shifts, driven up global inflation, and affected supply chains amid a slew of Western sanctions on Moscow. In March this year, Quad leaders discussed the situation in Ukraine in an unscheduled virtual meeting called by Mr. Biden.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Quad is an informal multilateral grouping of India, the U.S., Australia, and Japan aimed at cooperation for a free and open Indo-Pacific region. The region, composed of two oceans and spanning multiple continents is a hub of maritime trade and naval establishments. While not stated explicitly by the leaders, one of the major basis for the grouping is to check China’s growing influence in the region.
• After the Indian Ocean Tsunami in 2004 wreaked havoc in the region now called the Indo-Pacific, India stepped up its rescue efforts not just in Tamil Nadu and the Andaman and Nicobar islands but also provided swift assistance to its maritime neighbours: Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Indonesia. Soon, the disaster relief effort was joined by three other naval powers — the U.S., Australia and Japan, with then U.S. President George W. Bush announcing that the four countries would set up an international coalition to coordinate the massive effort required.
• While the charge of the rescue operations was handed over to the United Nations shortly after, and the immediate mission of the four countries had ended, it led to the birth of a new framework: the Quadrilateral or Quad.
• Then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had been promoting the idea of an “arc of prosperity and freedom” that brought the Quad countries closer together, developed the concept, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh discussed it with him during a summit in December 2006. The grouping held a meeting in May 2007 but did not release an official statement.
• The 2007 Indo-U.S Malabar naval exercises also saw the partial involvement of Japan, Australia and Singapore. The exercises and coordination were seen by China as an attempt to encircle it, which termed the grouping as trying to build “an Asian NATO”.
• The Quad lost momentum post the 2007 meeting as the effort “dissipated amidst member leadership transitions, concerns about economic repercussions from China, and attention to other national interests,” according to the U.S Congressional Research Service.
• The grouping was only revived an entire decade later in 2017, at a time when all four countries had revised their assessment of the China challenge; and India had witnessed the Doklam standoff. Leaders of all four countries met in the Philippines for the ‘India-Australia-Japan-U.S.’ dialogue, not referred to as a Quad dialogue to avoid the notion of a “gang-up”. Even to this point, a set of objectives, areas of cooperation, and even the definition of Indo-Pacific were not fixed among Quad members.
• March 2021 was the first time, Mr. Biden, Mr. Modi, Australia’s outgoing Prime Minister Scott Morrison, and then Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga met virtually for an official Quad summit, releasing for the first time a set of objectives for the grouping in a joint statement called the ‘The Spirit of the Quad’.
• According to a statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs about the agenda of the May 24 summit, “The Leaders will review the progress of Quad initiatives and Working Groups, identify new areas of cooperation and provide strategic guidance and vision for future collaboration”.
• The Quad summit is expected to discuss the Russian war in Ukraine, and the impact of three months of Western sanctions. India is the only member of the Quad that has not joined sanctions against Russia, while also ramping up its intake of Russian oil, buying more oil in March and April, an estimated 40 million barrels more than it had in all of 2021.
• President Joseph Biden would also be unveiling the ‘Indo-Pacific Economic Framework’ (IPEF) in Tokyo on May 23, which, according to Reuters is a programme to bind countries in the region more closely through common standards in areas including supply-chain resilience, clean energy, infrastructure and digital trade.
• Modi would be attending the launch of the plan, seen as a significant step towards building economic ties amongst Quad countries, but India is likely to be cautious about its participation in IPEF as it could be seen as a counter to the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the 17-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that China is a member of.
• Besides, the Financial Times reported that Quad members would be launching a plan to curb illegal fishing in the Indo-Pacific region. Several countries have objected to Chinese fishing vessels often violating their exclusive economic zones resulting in economic losses, while also engaging in deep-sea trawling, which causes environmental damage.

4. CAUTION AND CLARITY: ON THE U.S.-LED INDO-PACIFIC ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK FOR PROSPERITY

THE CONTEXT: In a sudden decision not previously intimated, India became one of a 13-nation economic initiative led by the U.S., as President Joseph Biden unveiled plans for an Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF).

THE EXPLANATION:

• The initiative is touted as a substantial step by the U.S. as part of its decade-old “pivot to Asia”, and an attempt at putting some “economic heft” into its Indo-Pacific presence that has been on the decline after its decision to quit the Transpacific Free Trade Agreement, the CPTPP, in 2017. Officials say the IPEF framework has four “pillars”: supply-chain resilience; clean energy, decarbonisation and infrastructure; taxation and anti-corruption; and fair and resilient trade.
• Biden’s visit to Japan and South Korea, attendance at the Quad summit and helming the IPEF launch is also aimed at reassuring the Eastern hemisphere about the U.S.’s focus. India’s joining is an equally strong statement of commitment to Indo-Pacific goals, and to broadening regional economic cooperation, particularly after it walked out of the 15-nation RCEP. It is significant that all IPEF members, other than India and the U.S., are a part of the RCEP free trade agreement, and yet have chosen to be part of the U.S.-led initiative.
• Despite the strong signalling from all sides, however, there are many aspects to the IPEF that bear further scrutiny. Monday’s launch only signals the willingness of the 13 countries to begin discussions on the contours. Much will depend, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed, on how inclusive the process is. Second, U.S. officials have made it clear that it is not a free trade agreement; nor will it discuss tariff reductions or increasing market access, raising questions about its utility. Shorn of the rhetoric of Indo-Pacific cooperation, there must be more clarity on its framework.
• The four pillars also lend themselves to some confusion, drawing into question whether there is enough common ground among the 13 countries that are part of very different economic arrangements, as well as outliers (the U.S. and India), to set standards together, or be open to issues that vary for each country. The U.S.’s statement that the IPEF is essentially focused on “American workers” also raises questions on whether increasingly protectionist global trends will chafe. Each of the IPEF countries has considerable trade interests in China, with most having large trade deficits. So, it remains to be seen how much they will be willing to sign on with the IPEF.
• Already three ASEAN countries, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, have decided to stay out of the framework’s launch. Above all, given the fact that the U.S.’s previous initiatives (the Blue Dot Network and the Build Back Better Initiative) have made little headway in changing the region’s infrastructural needs, the IPEF faces a credibility challenge. Negotiators will need to move with both caution and clarity before making any big promises on its benefits for the region.

 THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

5. G20 CLIMATE GOALS JUST WON’T DO THE JOB

THE CONTEXT: None of the G20 countries have made climate commitments consistent with limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius, as the Paris Agreement stipulates, data from a new report showed.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Australia, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico submitted Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) weaker than or on a par with previous versions, the report titled Keeping 1.5C Alive by the United States and the United Kingdom-based groups E3G and ECIU, and WRI, noted.
• The report assessed the climate goals of the G20 countries, which are responsible for around 75 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The countries are signatories to the Paris Agreement, a global treaty that aims to halt global warming.
• Brazil’s revised NDC has actually worsened as they made changes to the baseline year, and the rate of deforestation in the country has accelerated, the report stated. Egypt, India and Turkey did not submit new NDCs.
• China, Russia, and Saudi Arabia require much higher ambition in their NDCs, while the remaining countries have updated their NDCs but need to implement them to achieve their stated targets, according to the report. The UK came the closest to a 1.5C consistent target.
• It was decided at the 26th Conference of Parties (CoP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) that countries would “revisit and strengthen” their commitments in 2022. This means they have to establish more stringent goals to cut GHG emissions.
• This should be done ideally before the next summit, CoP 27, to be held in Egypt in November 2022. But the “geopolitical context has changed considerably since CoP26, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022”, the report observed.
• The evidence is all around. Combatting high energy and food prices, and securing energy security are now the focus, rather than decarbonisation and climate action. The European Union is attempting to wean itself off Russian natural gas, and US is desperate to fill the vacuum with exports of its liquefied natural gas (LNG).
• The climate goals of US are “all but dead” with President Joe Biden’s climate-focused spending proposal stalled in Congress, held hostage by Joe Manchin, a politician with personal profits linked to coal.
• Meanwhile, China, the world’s largest coal consumer, has doubled down on its production of the polluting fuel, in the face of energy shortages.
• The new report calls India a “staller” since it is yet to submit its new NDC to the UNFCCC. In March 2022, India’s Environment Minister clarified that this will be done before CoP 27.
• India announced new goals at CoP26 such as a 500 gigawatts non-fossil energy target and carbon emission reduction of one billion tonne. There is, however, a general agreement among civil society that all the announced targets may not make it into the final submission. These have been called the “boldest new commitments at CoP26” in the report.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

6. INDIA MUST STABILISE THE VALUE OF THE RUPEE

THE CONTEXT: In May second week, the forex reserve of India has reduced to $595 billion from $635 billion in September 2021. Existing reserves are about 18% of nominal GDP which is a comfort zone.  Despite this, the value of rupee against US dollar fell almost by 6%to 77.4 in May 2022 from `73 in September 2021.  Such steep fall reveals that the value of the rupee is vulnerable to the net outflow of forex.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Historically, India has been in the trade deficit (goods & services) and therefore, the forex reserves are generally built from the “capital receipts” in shape of debt and equity.
• Net “inward remittance” in the current account is about$60-65 billion which is consumed in the part financing of trade deficit and mostly, India had been in “current account deficit”.
• The trade deficit is somewhat similar to “operating loss” and the current account deficit is similar to the”net loss” of a Nation in the international trade. This is not a good scenario for the stability of rupee. Ideally, India should be in “trade surplus” for a stable rupee. For appreciation of rupee value, India should have”current account surplus” on consistent basis.
• Import of energy (Petroleum & Coal) must be partially replaced with domestic production. India is having enough reserves of coal and its production must be increased through mineral and coal sector reforms.  India has also good reserves of oil and gas, as quoted by ex-petroleum Minister Veerappa Moily and also by Vedanta’s Anil Agrawal. However, this needs huge spending in prospecting.
• For replacing imports of electronics and defence items, Government has taken good steps; that may be pushed. Similar steps are also needed for other major imports. Government should bring a white paper for boosting exports and replacing imports with domestic production. Besides this, there is a vast scope of export of services in the field of tourism, consultancy (legal, accounting and engineering), shipping, education and health sector; that also needs a separate white paper.
• The financial savings of India are not adequate for financing the investment needs and therefore, the dependency upon the inflow of global funds shall continue for few more years. As an interim measure, the physical savings in gold must be reduced to almost nil through financial innovation, as suggested by author in his Book ‘Turn Around India’. Huge import of gold is indeed a drag on the trade balance.
• In 1992,the regime of the fixed exchange rate was ended. Thereafter, the value of rupee was almost stable from the year 2000 to 2010, as evident from the table below. It means that; it is feasible to maintain the stability of rupee. Simultaneously, the reasons for the subsequent fall in rupee value must be analysed and resolved. Total financial assets in the world are exceeding $200 trillion. Global investors are in search of such destinations which provide them a high return in terms of US dollars. In case, India succeeds in achieving stability of Rupee, the global funds shall rush in. In such a case, it is imperative that global funds are mostly used for the investment in productive assets and not for consumption.
• Failing which, the inflation might aggravate and the servicing of global funds might pose problem. For boosting investment in productive assets, the regulatory easement and the simplification of Tax laws are the prerequisites.
• The external risks, if any, arising due to outflow of forex and depreciation of rupee shall be totally eliminated. Rather, due to surplus forex reserves, the diplomatic relation of India shall improve, particularly with neighboring nations. And thus, India shall command high respect in the global fraternity. 

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 25TH MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about Jagannath Puri temple:

1. It is built by kings of Pala dynasty
2. It is an example of Kalinga Architecture

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE 24^{th of} MAY

Answer:D

Explanation:

• Vitamin D is needed for a process known as calcium homeostasis which is the maintenance of constant concentration of calcium ions in the body. This is needed for, among other things, bone development and strength, and its deficiency is a cause of conditions such as rickets and osteoporosis.
• Other diseases that are associated with vitamin D deficiency are cancer, Parkinson’s disease and dementia.

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. WHO ARE ASHA WORKERS, THE WOMEN HEALTHCARE VOLUNTEERS HONORED BY WHO?

THE CONTEXT: The World Health Organisation has recognized the country’s 10.4 lakh ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers as ‘Global Health Leaders’ for their efforts in connecting the community to the government’s health programmes.

THE EXPLANATION:

• ASHA workers are volunteers from within the community who are trained to provide information and aid people in accessing benefits of various healthcare schemes of the government.
• They act as a bridge connecting marginalised communities with facilities such as primary health centres, sub-centres and district hospitals.
• The role of these community health volunteers under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was first established in 2005.
• ASHAs are primarily married, widowed, or divorced women between the ages of 25 and 45 years from within the community. They must have good communication and leadership skills; should be literate with formal education up to Class 8, as per the programme guidelines.
• The aim is to have one ASHA for every 1,000 persons or per habitation in hilly, tribal or other sparsely populated areas.
• There are around 10.4 lakh ASHA workers across the country, with the largest workforces in states with high populations – Uttar Pradesh (1.63 lakh), Bihar (89,437), and Madhya Pradesh (77,531). Goa is the only state with no such workers, as per the latest National Health Mission data available from September 2019.
• They go door-to-door in their designated areas creating awareness about basic nutrition, hygiene practices, and the health services available. They focus primarily on ensuring that women undergo ante-natal check-up, maintain nutrition during pregnancy, deliver at a healthcare facility, and provide post-birth training on breast-feeding and complementary nutrition of children. They also counsel women about contraceptives and sexually transmitted infections.
• ASHA workers are also tasked with ensuring and motivating children to get immunised. Other than mother and childcare, ASHA workers also provide medicines daily to TB patients under directly observed treatment of the national programme.
• They are also tasked with screening for infections like malaria during the season. They also provide basic medicines and therapies to people under their jurisdiction such as oral rehydration solution, chloroquine for malaria, iron folic acid tablets to prevent anaemia, and contraceptive pills.
• The health volunteers are also tasked with informing their respective primary health centre about any births or deaths in their designated areas.
• ASHA workers were a key part of the government’s pandemic response, with most states using the network for screening people in containment zones, getting them tested, and taking them to quarantine centres or help with home quarantine.
• Since they are considered “volunteers”, governments are not obligated to pay them a salary and most states don’t. Their income depends on incentives under various schemes that are provided when they, for example, ensure an institutional delivery or when they get a child immunised. All this adds up to only between Rs 6,000 to Rs 8,000 a month.

THE POLITY

2. INTER-STATE COUNCIL RECONSTITUTED

THE CONTEXT: The Inter-State Council, which works to promote and support cooperative federalism in the country, has been reconstituted with Prime Minister as Chairman and Chief Ministers of all States and six Union ministers as members.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The mandate of the council is to create a strong institutional framework to promote and support cooperative federalism in the country, activate the council and zonal councils by organising its regular meetings.
• It also facilitates consideration of all pending and emerging issues of the Centre- State and inter-State relations by the zonal councils and inter-State council and develop a sound system of monitoring the implementation of the recommendations of the inter-State council and zonal councils.

3. INDIA NEEDS PARLIAMENTARY SUPERVISION OF TRADE PACTS

THE CONTEXT: Effective parliamentary supervision will increase the domestic acceptance and legitimacy of international treaties, especially economic agreements, which are often critiqued for imposing undue restraints on India’s economic sovereignty.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India is negotiating and signing several free trade agreements (FTAs) with countries like Australia, the UK, Israel, and the EU. While the economic benefits of these FTAs have been studied, there is very little discussion on the lack of parliamentary scrutiny of these treaties.
• This gives rise to arguments of democratic deficit in India’s treaty-making process. Given the wide-ranging impact of trade and other economic treaties, the question is: Shouldn’t Parliament exercise some control over the executive’s power to sign international treaties?
• In the Constitution, entry 14 of the Union list contains the following item — “entering into treaties and agreements with foreign countries and implementing of treaties, agreements and conventions with foreign countries”. According to Article 246, Parliament has the legislative competence on all matters given in the Union list.
• Thus, Parliament has the power to legislate on treaties. This power includes deciding how India will ratify treaties and thus assume international law obligations. This power includes Parliament’s competence to give effect to treaties within the domestic legal regime by enacting laws. Article 253 elucidates that the power of Parliament to implement treaties by enacting domestic laws also extends to topics that are part of the state list.
• While Parliament in the last seven decades has passed many laws to implement international legal obligations imposed by different treaties, it is yet to enact a law laying down the processes that India needs to follow before assuming international treaty obligations.
• Given this legislative void, and under Article 73(the powers of the Union executive are co-terminus with Parliament), the Centre has been not just negotiating and signing but also ratifying international treaties and assuming international law obligations without much parliamentary oversight.
• Arguably, Parliament exercises control over the executive’s treaty-making power at the stage of transforming a treaty into the domestic legal regime. However, this is a scenario of ex-post parliamentary control over the executive.
• In such a situation, Parliament does not debate whether India should or should not accept the international obligations; it only deliberates how the international law obligations, already accepted by the executive, should be implemented domestically. Even if Parliament does not amend or make domestic laws to transform the treaty, the treaty will continue to be binding on India.
• Concerns over the lack of parliamentary oversight were flagged by the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution, set up by the Vajpayee government more than two decades ago. But India’s treaty-making practice hasn’t changed.
• This practice is at variance with that of several other liberal democracies. In the US, important treaties signed by the President have to be approved by the Senate. In Australia, the executive is required to table a “national interest analysis” of the treaty it wishes to sign in parliament, and then this is examined by a joint standing committee on treaties – a body composed of Australian parliamentarians.
• In this way, the Australian parliament supervises the treaty-making process and acts as a check on the executive’s power. In Canada, too, the executive tables the treaties in parliament.
• Indian democracy needs to inculcate these healthy practices. Effective parliamentary supervision will increase the domestic acceptance and legitimacy of international treaties, especially economic agreements, which are often critiqued for imposing undue restraints on India’s economic sovereignty.
• Cynics might argue that in these times, when Parliament has been reduced to a rubber stamp for the government’s legislative agenda, the quest to augment Parliament’s role in the treaty-making process is like flogging a dead horse.
• But an effective counter to majoritarianism is to relentlessly strive for strengthening the democratic process, not accepting its weakness as a fait accompli.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

4. WHY IS TURKEY AGAINST SWEDEN, FINLAND JOINING NATO?

THE CONTEXT: With the Russian invasion of Ukraine nearing three months, Sweden and Finland (SweFin), the two Nordic countries that have historically stayed out of military alliances, have formally applied to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

THE EXPLANATION:

What triggered SweFin’s NATO application?

• The Russians may have their explanations for the war, the invasion saw Russia violating the sovereignty of a weaker power in its neighborhood. It also raised questions on whether Russia would have started the war had Ukraine been a NATO member.
• Unlike Ukraine, Sweden and Finland do not have any border conflict with Russia. But again, Ukraine didn’t have any major conflict with Russia until the 2014 regime change in Kyiv. So, the Russian attack seemed to have altered the security calculus of SweFin.
• They moved quickly to apply for NATO membership because they hoped the alliance would act as deterrence against potential future attacks. Sweden and Finland have already developed deep ties with the West. Both are members of the European Union.
• Their ties with NATO are the closest two non-members could get with the alliance. They hold joint military drills with NATO, share intelligence and have supported NATO’s military missions abroad. They did not formally seek membership until now because they did not want to upset the security status quo in Europe. They also feared Russian retaliation.
• But that status quo has been altered by the Russian invasion. And the possibility of Russian military retaliation is very less now because Russian troops are fighting a seemingly prolonged war in Ukraine. This opened the door for both SweFin and NATO. And they are ready to embrace each other.

Why is Turkey against SweFin’s bids?

• President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly said Turkey would oppose SweFin’s NATO bid. Within NATO, decisions are taken unanimously, which means every country in the 30-member bloc holds a veto.
• Turkey says Sweden and Finland have ties with “terrorist” groups — a reference to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the People’s Protection Units (YPG). The PKK, which seeks greater autonomy for Turkey’s Kurdish minority, has waged an armed insurgency since the mid-1980s.
• The YPG is the armed wing of Syrian Kurdistan which controls parts of the Kurdish region in Syria. Turkey faces serious allegations of human rights violations in the Kurdish region. In recent years, Mr. Erdogan’s government has cracked down on Kurdish political groups and leaders, including the left-wing People’s Democratic Party (HDP). Selahattin Demirtas, a charismatic Kurdish politician who was a former legislator and presidential election candidate, has been in prison since 2016. Turkey has justified its actions, claiming that the PKK, YPG and their associated political groups are “terrorists”.
• Turkey says Sweden, and Finland to a certain extent, maintain close ties with Kurdish militias, particularly the YPG. It also alleges that the countries are hosting supporters of the Fethullah Gulen movement, a religious sect led by the U.S.-based Gulen who is accused by Ankara of being the mastermind behind the failed 2016 coup against Mr. Erdogan. Turkish state TV reported last week that Sweden and Finland refused to extradite 33 people wanted by Ankara. Mr. Erdogan calls Sweden “a testing ground for terrorist organisations” and has ruled out Turkey backing SweFin’s NATO entry in the future either.

5. INDIA JOINS BIDEN’S NEW TRADE INITIATIVE FOR INDO-PACIFIC, NEGOTIATIONS TO BEGIN

THE CONTEXT: India signalled its readiness to join a new economic initiative led by the United States for the region, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined U.S. President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and leaders of 10 countries, who joined virtually, for the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) in Tokyo on May 23.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The negotiations for the IPEF, which will begin on May 24, are expected to center around four main pillars, including trade, supply chain resiliency, clean energy and decarbonisation, and taxes and anti-corruption measures.
• The grouping, which includes seven out of 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), all four Quad countries, and New Zealand, represents about 40% of global GDP.
• “India will work together with [other IPEF countries] to build an inclusive and flexible Indo-Pacific Economic Framework,” PM said at the launch of the new initiative, that comes three years after India walked out of the 15-nation RCEP (Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership).

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

6. WORLD LOST 11.2 CRORE JOBS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2022: ILO

THE CONTEXT: The “world of work” is being buffeted by multiple crises, says the ninth edition of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Monitor. The report says that after significant gains during the last quarter of 2021, the number of hours worked globally dropped in the first quarter of 2022, to 3.8% below the employment situation before the pandemic. About 11.2 crore jobs might have lost between this period, according to the report.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The gender gap in India’s employment scenario is mentioned in the report on the “world of work”. The report said both India and lower-middle-income countries excluding India experienced a deterioration of the gender gap in work hours in the second quarter of 2020.
• “However, because the initial level of hours worked by women in India was very low, the reduction in hours worked by women in India has only a weak influence on the aggregate for lower-middle-income countries. In contrast, the reduction in hours worked by men in India has a large impact on the aggregates,”.
• Explaining the data, an ILO official told The Hindu that for every 100 women at work prior to the pandemic, 12.3 women would have lost their job as an average through the entire period considered by the report.
• The fresh lockdowns in China, the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, and the global rise in the prices of food and fuel are cited as the main reasons for the findings. The ILO urged its member countries to take a humane approach to address the situation.
• Financial turbulence, potential debt distress and global supply chain disruption points at a growing risk of a further deterioration in hours worked in 2022, as well as a broader impact on global labour markets in the months to come.
• The report added that a “great and growing divergence between richer and poorer economies” continues to characterize the recovery. “While high-income countries experienced a recovery in hours worked, low- and lower-middle-income economies suffered setbacks in the first quarter of the year with a 3.6 and 5.7 percent gap respectively when compared to the pre-crisis benchmark.
• Women employment in India has come down, particularly in sectors such as healthcare as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ILO report suggests that the purchasing capacity of the workers should be improved. ILO has been proposing decent jobs and decent wages. We do not have decent employment here in India. Most people are on contract without any social security. If there are no decent wages, purchasing power will also come down. The Code on Wages was passed in 2019 but is not yet implemented.
• The Wage Committee in 1948 asked the government to implement minimum wage, living wage and decent wage. Government has not implemented even minimum wage yet.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. ENGINEERING TOMATOES TO PRODUCE VITAMIN D

THE CONTEXT: Scientists have used a novel way to modify tomato plants to have fruits rich in a precursor to vitamin D.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Reading the pages of the World Sustainable Development Goals 2 (SDG2) — Eradicating Hunger — is depressing to say the least. According to the estimates made in 2020, nearly 690 million people, who make up close to 8.9% of the world’s population, are hungry.
• This number has increased by 60 million in the preceding five years. The index which was initially decreasing has started to rise since 2015. This does not portend well for the SDG2 which has as its target zero hunger by 2030, and the guess is, if this trend continues, that the world will have 840 million people affected by hunger by 2030.
• There are various ramifications to hunger, and an important part of it is micronutrient malnutrition. This is a term used for diseases caused by deficiency of vitamins and minerals in the diet. This is particularly a problem in developing countries and the number of those suffering from this so-called invisible hunger is huge.
• Some methods of combating this are to provide micronutrient supplements in the form of tablets or capsules and to fortify food products such as flour or salt by enhancing micronutrients in them. There is also the route of genetically modifying plants to produce bio-fortified leaves and fruit which can be consumed to alleviate micronutrient hunger.
• In this line, a paper in Nature Plants by Jie Li et al tries to address vitamin D deficiency by genetically modifying tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) plants so that the fruit contains a significant amount of pro vitamin D 3 which is a precursor from which humans can make vitamin D.
• Provitamin D 3 has the chemical name 7-dehydro cholesterol, or 7-DHC for short. Humans can synthesize Vitamin D from 7-DHC when they are exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) light. Vitamin D is needed for a process known as calcium homeostasis which is the maintenance of a constant concentration of calcium ions in the body.
• This is needed for, among other things, bone development and strength, and its deficiency is a cause of conditions such as rickets and osteoporosis.
• Other diseases that are associated with vitamin D deficiency are cancer, Parkinson’s disease and dementia. Vitamin D 3 is present in fish and dairy products. Vegetarian diets are particularly deficient in Vitamin D.
• Mutant tomatoes
• The recommended intake of vitamin D is 15 microgram per day for children and 20 micro gram per day for elders. This can be given through supplements or a careful exposure to sunlight, but there are various caveats for the latter.
• It is in this context that the work of J. Li et al is significant. The authors of the paper, published in Nature Plants, tweaked a recently discovered pathway in tomato plants to produce cholesterol and a substance called steroidal glycoalkaloid (SGA for short) using the CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool. This inhibits the conversion of 7-DHC to cholesterol and instead the former accumulates in the leaves, green and ripe fruits.
• Usually, in untreated tomato plants, 7-DHC is present in leaves and to a lower extent in green fruit, but not in ripe fruit — which is the most consumed of the lot. The researchers showed that in their modified plants, the suppression of the activity of a particular gene, “led to substantial increases of 7-DHC levels in leaves and green fruit,” and, according to the paper, while levels of 7-DHC were lower in ripe fruits of the mutant, they remained high enough that if converted to Vitamin D 3 by shining UVB light, the amount in one tomato would be equivalent to that in two eggs or 28 grams of tuna, both of which are recommended sources of vitamin D.
• In addition, the researchers report that the mutants showed a reduction in their leaves of a substance called alpha-tomatine, and they comment that this may even be beneficial because of alpha-tomatine’s reported toxicant or anti nutritional activity. Surprisingly, the cholesterol levels in both fruit and leaves of the mutants was higher that of the wild-type. This was despite having blocked the conversion of 7-DHC to cholesterol.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 24TH MAY 2022

Q1. Vitamin D deficiency in humans may cause one of the following?

1. Rickets
2. Osteoporosis
3. Dementia
4. Cancer

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

       a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 3 only

c) 1, 3 and 4 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 23^RD MAY

Answer:D

Explanation:

• USA unveiled its trade initiative the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) in Tokyo on 23^rd Maty 2022.
• India is yet to take a decision on joining the trade partnership framework.

THE POLITY

1. 29 PHONES TESTED FOR PEGASUS SPYWARE: SUPREME COURT

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court on Friday gave more time to the technical committee appointed by it to finalise and submit its report with regard to the probe into allegations of Pegasus software’s use for unauthorized surveillance.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Chief Justice of India N V Ramana presiding a three-judge bench said the judge overseeing the inquiry, Justice R V Raveendran (retd), “has submitted an Interim Report requesting therein for extension of time to submit the final report, till 20.06.2022”.
• The CJI pointed out that the committee had informed that 29 mobile devices are being examined and would need time till the end of this month to finalise it. The report would then be submitted to the overseeing judge who would need a few more days to add his comments.
• According to CJI “29 mobile devices are being examined. They have developed their own software. They have also issued notices to agencies, including government and journalists, and invited objections, too…It has prayed for time to submit its report. Now, it is under process. We will give them time,”

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

2. THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN TURMOIL, LESSONS FOR INDIA

THE CONTEXT: The impact of the changes on Indian policy will offer New Delhi a better understanding of future domestic challenges.

THE EXPLANATION:

A NEUTRAL POSITION WILL NOT DO

• A silent or “neutral” position cannot mark the present government’s response to the changes in the way it has with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or China’s moves in Hong Kong or the South China Sea region.
• India faces the direct impact of almost every South Asian country in crisis, in terms of the need for aid and loans or a possible influx of refugees, as movements that develop in one neighboring country are often mirrored in another. Therefore, they must be watched more closely.
• The first lesson to be learned is that populism does not pay in the long run. While the potent combination of hyper-nationalism, religious majoritarianism, and a strident anti-elitism can bring “men of the masses” such as Mahinda Rajapaksa, K.P. Oli, and Imran Khan to power (as they promise an alternative to corrupt, dynasty regimes), it does not necessarily keep them there.
• It is a mistake for any government to conflate an electoral win and a mandate for governance with a carte blanche for ruling a country.
• The second is that the popularity of a leader can decline sharply and suddenly for one or a combination of reasons: K.P. Oli won a landslide victory in 2017 where his Left Alliance secured majorities in both houses, and formed governments in six of seven provinces; Imran Khan won all five National Assembly seats he fought in the 2018 elections, and while his party did not win a majority of seats, it won the popular vote; and the Rajapaksa-led Sri Lanka People’s Party (SLPP) ruling coalition won 150 of 225 parliamentary seats in 2020.
• That these popular mandates could be cast aside in just a few years is a stark reminder that nothing is forever, especially in a democracy.

THE ECONOMY MATTERS

• In Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka, the defeat of populists has come not so much at the hand of the Opposition parties, but by the slowdown in growth, jobs and rising inflation.
• India had already seen six successive quarters of straight losses in December 2019, and most of the neighborhood was floundering as well, when COVID-19 was first reported. In the years that followed, the COVID-19 pandemic enforced lock downs, and the resultant slowdown in the global economy made GDP figures in the region plummet.
• More recently, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and sanctions by the West have made food and fuel prices soar.
• In such a situation, the change in power in these three countries took only a small push, from the military, the courts, or from street protests.
• New Delhi must not only study the causes of the economic mismanagement that brought change in the neighborhood but must also survey the impact of new vulnerabilities on smaller neighboring countries that could be exploited by global powers as they seek a more direct influence in the region.
• Given the common challenges the region faces, New Delhi must find newer ways to energise regional groupings such as the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) and the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal (BBIN) Initiative, and even to reconsider SAARC, in order to discuss shared approaches to reviving tourism and exports, supporting South Asian expatriate labour abroad, and building common pools of food and fuel stocks to soften inflationary blows on the South Asian economy.

CONSENSUS NEEDED

• The government need to learn from the lessons in political culture that let down the “alpha leaders” in neighbouring democracies.
• One of the common threads in each of the governments (Rajapaksa, Oli and Khan) was an abhorrence for consensus building. In various ways, each of them turned their opposition into “the enemy”, and froze out the media, non-governmental organisations, and any voting constituency other than their own.
• Nations, especially democracies run on many engines — not just the single monolithic one of the party or people in power.
• As India essays its role as a regional leader, the Government would be wise to not only study the impact of changes in the neighborhood on Indian policy but also to look into the mirror the neighbors hold up to India, for a better understanding of its future challenges within the country.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

3. THE SC RULING THAT GST COUNCIL DECISIONS ARE NOT BINDING ON THE CENTRE OR STATES

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court ruled on  May 19 that recommendations of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council only have persuasive value, and cannot be biding on the Centre and States.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The apex court added that the Parliament and state legislatures possess equal powers to legislate on Goods and Services Tax (GST) and it is for the GST Council to advise suitably.
• The Centre along with several importers had been fighting a battle in the apex court over applicability of GST on transportation of imported goods through sea route.
• The SC dismissed an appeal by the Central government against an earlier Gujarat High Court judgement that said that Integrated GST (IGST) on ocean freight is unconstitutional.
• The bench led by Justice DY Chandrachud said that Parliament intended that the recommendations of the GST Council will have persuasive value.
• Reading the operative portion of the ruling in the Government vs Mohit Minerals case, Justice DY Chandrachud said that recommendations of the GST council are a product of collaborative discussion. It is not imperative that federal units must always possess a higher share.
• Justice Chandrachud observed that GST council is an area of political contestations as well and it impacts federalism. “The Union and states have simultaneous powers to legislate on GST and the constitution does not envisage a repugnancy provision and GST council must work in harmonious manner to achieve workable solution,”.
• Citing 246A and 279A of the Constitution, Justice Chandrachud said that 246A treats state and Centre as equal while 279A says that state and Centre cannot act independent of each other. This also points towards competitive federalism.
• This judgement may change the landscape of those provisions under GST which are subject to judicial review. As the court has gone ahead to categorically hold that the GST Council recommendations have only persuasive value, there will be pragmatic approach to the provisions which are subject to judicial review by way of challenge to the constitutionality of such provisions based on GST Council recommendations.
• GST Council is an apex member committee to modify, reconcile or to procure any law or regulation based on the context of GST in India. The council is headed by the Union Finance Minister, who is assisted by all state finance ministers.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. HOW TO FIGHT DESERTIFICATION: HERE’S WHAT THE 15TH COP TO UNCCD AGREED ON

THE CONTEXT: The 15th Conference of Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), concluded on May 20,2022 in Abidjan with a global pledge to boost drought resilience and invest in land restoration for future prosperity.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The UNCCD COP15 adopted 38 decisions, including on tenure, migration and gender, that highlight the role of land in addressing multiple crises.
• The global leaders representing UN member state agreed to establish an Intergovernmental Working Group on Drought for 2022-2024 to look into possible options, including global policy instruments and regional policy frameworks, to support a shift from reactive to proactive drought management.
• According to the most recent UN estimates, up to 40 percent of our planet’s land is degraded. This will directly affect half of humanity and is a threat to about 50 percent of global GDP or around $44 trillion.
• The world has is slow on restoration of one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030. So, the UN members also agreed and committed to accelerating the restoration of one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030.
• The UN member states will focus on improving data gathering and monitoring to track progress against the achievement of land restoration commitments.They committed to establishing a new partnership model for large-scale integrated landscape investment programmes, according to the UN statement released, May 20, 2022.
• The “Drought in Numbers, 2022” released, May 12, 2022 at the COP15 had called upon the world to prioritise drought preparedness and resilience.
• In this context, another important global consensus emerged on boosting drought resilience by identifying the expansion of dry lands, improving national policies and early warning. For this, mobilising drought finance will be critical.
• The leaders came on board and also committed to prioritise and ensure women’s involvement in land management for effective land restoration.
• Other significant outcomes of the COP 15 included three key declarations: Abidjan Call issued by the Heads of State and Government to boost long-term environmental sustainability, Abidjan Declaration on achieving gender equality for successful land restoration and the COP15 “Land, Life and Legacy” Declaration, which responds to the findings of the UNCCD’s flagship report, Global Land Outlook 2.
• UNCCD’s COP15 is the first Conference of the Parties of the three Rio Conventions taking place in 2022, ahead of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change COP27 and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity COP15.
• There is a need to ensure greater synergies among the three Rio Conventions, including complementarities in the implementation of these treaties through nature-based solutions and target-setting at the national level, said the leaders representing the UN member states.
• When barely 18 per cent of the Great Green Wall’s objectives for 2030 have been achieved, with just 18 million hectares restored out of a goal of 100 million according to Green wall accelerator programme, regional initiatives too were launched in support of the Africa-led Great Green Wall at COP 15.

5. BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION THROUGH BIOSPHERES

THE CONTEXT: According to the Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services released in 2019 by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, the main global drivers of biodiversity loss are climate change, invasive species, over-exploitation of natural resources, pollution and urbanization.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Biodiversity is the living fabric of our planet. It underpins human well-being in the present and in the future, and its rapid decline threatens nature and people alike.
• Because of our collective excesses, the ecological carrying capacity of planet earth has largely been exceeded.
• This trend needs to be redressed, with cleaner air, high quality drinking water, and enough food and healthy habitats to ensure that ecosystem services continue to benefit humanity without critically affecting nature’s balance.
• Whether we look at nature from an environmental, from a cultural or even from a religious point of view, it is our responsibility and clearly in our interest to respect the environment.
• In fact, the possibilities exist, and all is not lost. In the last 50 years or so, much has been accomplished for the protection of nature, including the establishment of conservation areas, and a number of international conventions have been signed and ratified.
• One of the best mechanisms that has been created is the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, created in 1971 by UNESCO.
• Biosphere reserves are places where humans live in harmony with nature, and where there is an effective combination of sustainable development and nature conservation. They represent pockets of hope and proof that we are not inexorably headed towards a doomsday ecological scenario, provided we take appropriate action.
• In South Asia, over 30 biosphere reserves have been established. The first one was the Hurulu Biosphere Reserve in Sri Lanka, which was designated in 1977 and comprises 25,500 hectares within the tropical dry evergreen forest.
• In India, the first biosphere reserve was designated by UNESCO in 2000 within the blue mountains of the Nilgiris. It stretches across the States of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The network has gone from strength to strength, and it now counts 12 sites, with Panna, in the State of Madhya Pradesh, as the latest inscription in 2020. We need many more biosphere reserves and pockets of hope, and the region offers countless options.
• UNESCO Biosphere Reserves have all developed science-based management plans, where local solutions for sustainable human living and nature conservation are being tested and best practices applied. Issues of concern include biodiversity, clean energy, climate, environmental education, and water and waste management, supported by scientific research and monitoring. The aim is to detect changes and find solutions to increase climate resilience.
• All biosphere reserves are internationally recognised sites on land, at the coast, or in the oceans. Governments alone decide which areas to nominate. Before approval by UNESCO, the sites are externally examined. If approved, they will be managed based on an agreed plan, reinforced by routine checks to ensure credibility, but all remain under the sovereignty of their national government.
• Some of the countries in South Asia do not yet have any or enough biosphere reserves. In most if not all cases, the political will is certainly there but there is a lack of know-how and financial resources. Of course, more financial support from richer nations and from the private sector would be desirable for establishing biosphere reserves in these countries.
• Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Nepal are on the priority list of UNESCO, because they do not yet have any biosphere reserves. Their governments are already working on their first nomination files. Our organisation also believes that it would be important to increase the number of biosphere reserves in India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
• The point is that if these pockets of hope can expand, with at least one biosphere reserve per country, and with more and larger sites covering the terrestrial surface, including coastal areas with their offshore islands, it will give the realisation to millions of people that a better future is truly possible, one where we can truly live in harmony with nature.
• On May 22 and on the occasion of the International Day for Biological Diversity, let us do what is right. Now is the time to act for biodiversity.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. NORMS EASED FOR GM CROP RESEARCH

THE CONTEXT: The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) has issued guidelines easing norms for research into genetically modified (GM) crops and circumventing challenges of using foreign genes to change crops profile.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The ‘Guidelines for Safety Assessment of Genome Edited Plants, 2022’ exempt researchers who use gene-editing technology to modify the genome of the plant from seeking approvals from the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC), an expert body of the Environment Ministry.
• The GEAC evaluates research into GM plants and recommends, or disapproves, their release into farmer fields. The final call is taken by the Environment Minister as well as States where such plants could be cultivated. The Environment Ministry too has sanctioned this exemption.
• The GM plants that have usually come for such scrutiny are those that involve transgenic technology or introducing a gene from a different species into a plant, for instance, Bt-cotton, where a gene from soil bacterium is used to protect a plant from pest attack.

• The worry around this method is that these genes may spread to neighboring plants, where such effects are not intended and so their applications have been controversial.
• Despite several kinds of transgenic crops having been researched and approved by scientific committees, none, save BT cotton, has made it to fields because of stringent opposition from environmental activists as well as farmer organisations.
• Genome editing involves the use of technologies that allow genetic material to be added, removed, or altered at particular locations in the genome. Several approaches to genome editing have been developed.
• A well-known one is called CRISPR-Cas9, which is short for clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats and CRISPR-associated protein 9.
• Just as foreign genes can be used to add properties to plants, gene editing too can be used to make plants express properties not native to them.
• The guidelines say that all requirements that researchers must adhere to develop transgenic seeds will apply to gene-edited seeds except clauses that require permission from the GEAC.
• Environmentalist groups have opposed this exception for gene-edited crops. “Gene editing is included in genetic engineering. Therefore, there is no question of giving exemptions to particular kinds of genome-edited plants from the regulatory purview.
• Gene editing techniques, the letter alleges, involve altering the function of genes and can cause “large and unintended consequences” that can change the “toxicity and allergenicity” of plants.
• “Without the necessary regulatory oversight, how will regulators and the public know about such changes? Who will be responsible for the resultant risk implications?” their letter queries. They have demanded that these exemptions be withdrawn.
• There were a great many similarities in the techniques employed in transgenic technology and gene-editing technology. “Gene-editing is getting quite popular in biotechnology labs across the country.
• Gene editing can address some of the fears around the use of ‘foreign genes’ but it can only be used to express genes already present in a plant’s genome that are not manifest.
• But more importantly, it is not about technology but about how plants developed thus are sold or made available to farmers.”

 THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 21st MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC):

1. It evaluates research into GM plants and recommends, or disapproves, their release into farmer fields.
2. It is a statutory body.
3. It functions under the Department of Biotechnology.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

           a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 19^th MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION (WMO)

• It is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 193 Member States and Territories.
• It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), the roots of which were planted at the 1873 Vienna International Meteorological Congress.
• Established by the ratification of the WMO Convention on 23 March 1950, WMO became the specialized agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology, and related geophysical sciences a year later.
• The Secretariat, headquartered in Geneva, is headed by the Secretary-General.
• Its supreme body is the World Meteorological Congress.

THE POLITY

1. ON MARITAL RAPE, REGRESSIVE NOTIONS UNDERMINE THE AUTONOMY OF WOMEN

THE CONTEXT: Being raped by someone in whom you have reposed trust is likely to have an indelible emotional impact. Marriage does not change that.

THE EXPLANATION:

• On 11 May, two judges of the Delhi High Court handed down separate judgments in RIT Foundation v Union of India. The issue before the Court was straightforward. Section 375 of the IPC defines “rape” as when a man has sex with a woman without her consent. However, an exception to Section 375 provides that it is not raped for a husband to have sex with his wife, regardless of consent.
• The effect of the law is that no husband can be prosecuted for the rape of his adult wife. Four petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the “marital rape exception” were filed at the Delhi HC.
• In his judgment, Justice Rajiv Shakdher concluded that the marital rape exception violated the rights to life, equality, non-discrimination, and freedom of speech and expression under the Constitution. His analysis is sound, even if not surprising.
• There is no reasonable basis to distinguish between married and unmarried women. Marriage is a relationship of equals, and women do not forfeit their agency and sexual autonomy upon marriage. It is no answer to say that a man who rapes his wife may be prosecuted for other offences, such as cruelty. Rape must be called out for what it is.
• Justice C Hari Shankar took a different view, concluding that the marital rape exception is constitutionally valid. Five aspects of his opinion are particularly striking. First, the judge held that it is the wrong starting point to assume that a husband who has sex with his wife without her consent “commits rape”.
• The judge noted that the effect of the exception to Section 375 of the IPC is that any sex between a husband and wife, whether or not consensual, is excluded from the definition of rape. That analysis does not bear scrutiny. Sex within marriage is carved out (by exception) from the definition of rape. It follows that, in the absence of that exception, non-consensual sex within marriage would be rape.
• More fundamentally, the judge allowed semantics to impede robust constitutional analysis. It makes little difference whether the starting point is that non-consensual sex within marriage should be characterized as rape or, for example, sexual assault. The critical question is whether it is unconstitutional to exclude non-consensual sex from the definition of rape.
• Second, Justice Shankar’s opinion elevates marriage to a status that is anachronistic. The judge held that the marital rape exception was “aimed at preservation of the marital institution, on which the entire bedrock of society rests”.
• The difficulty with that proposition is obvious — is it the policy of the law that marriage is to be preserved at all costs, even when a man has non-consensual sex with his wife? If so, does that withstand constitutional scrutiny? The judge then observed, on a lighter note, that neither lawyers nor judges would be around to examine this issue absent the institution of marriage. Scientists might disagree.
• Third, the judge rejected the challenge to the martial rape exception based on the right to equality on the spurious assumption that the impact on a woman who is raped by her husband cannot “be equated with the impact of a woman who is raped by a stranger”.
• Indeed, he goes so far as to say that “disagreements” (a euphemism for non-consensual sex) in marriage are “but natural” and “may even lend strength to the marital bond”. No evidence is cited in support of those claims. They also defy logic. Being raped by someone in whom you have reposed trust is likely to have an indelible emotional impact. Sadly, it is relatively easy to find many first-hand accounts that confirm this. It is perplexing to understand how non-consensual sex can ever strengthen a marriage.
• Fourth, the judge concluded that, as a practical matter, a “majority of Indian women” would be reluctant to file a complaint of rape against their husbands in any event. Even if that were true, it is no reason to disempower, by the operation of the law, women who do have the resolve to make a rape complaint against their husbands from doing so. No one expects tens of thousands of rape complaints to come out of the woodwork after the marital rape exception is declared unconstitutional. But some will, and they will inspire others.
• Fifth, Justice Shankar held that it is not within the court’s power to create a new offence, and striking down the marital rape exception would have that effect. There is no question of creating a new offence — the court would simply be striking down an exception carved out of an existing offence.
• The only principled basis for the judge’s objection is that it may be unfair to punish someone for rape for conduct that was excluded from the definition of rape when it was undertaken. But that is not a reason to avoid striking down the marital rape exception. The easy solution is for the court to declare that its judgment will apply only to conduct after the date of the judgment.
• An appeal is now pending before the Supreme Court. Asking Parliament to revisit the marital rape exception may be the path of least resistance. However, as Justice Rajiv Shakdher observed in his judgment, “it is incumbent on courts to take decisions concerning complex social issues and not dribble past them”.
• Whether the marital rape exception violates fundamental rights under the Constitution is a question that falls within the Court’s core competency. There is only one reasonable answer to that question.

 2. JUSTICE DELIVERY IN INDIA IS INDEED LOOKING ‘HOPELESS’

THE CONTEXT: The Attorney General Is Right, Justice Delivery in India Is Indeed Looking ‘Hopeless’.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Justice P.N. Bhagwati said in his Law Day address in 1985 that our judicial system is on the verge of collapse. In 1996, Justice Bhagwati said that the Supreme Court of India is the most powerful court in the world. I wonder what made him change his opinion. Assuming what he said in 1996 is correct, please compare it with the situation today.
• Recently, Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana addressed a very high powered conference in which he said that decisions of the courts are “not implemented by government for years together” resulting in a rise in contempt of court petitions. Has our justice delivery system now collapsed or is it teetering and still on the verge of collapse? I am reminded of Mark Antony’s: “O, what a fall was there, my countrymen!”
• The recruitment of judicial officers at the district level is through an examination conducted under the aegis of the high court. The Supreme Court has laid down a yearly calendar of events for the recruitment process with timelines. This is undoubtedly well-intentioned, but does the Supreme Court have administrative control over the high court through prescriptive guidelines? Do we know how many high courts are actually following the schedule? I would be surprised if even a handful are following the mandate. The fault lies with the system that is not able to ensure filling up vacancies.
• The situation with regard to high court vacancies is worse. This is where the almighty political executive comes into the picture. The CJI rightly said that judges do not appoint judges – they only recommend candidates for appointment. The president makes the appointment when the papers are put up to him for issuing the necessary warrants by the political executive. This can take months and years in most cases, because of the government’s whims and fancies. Recently, Aditya Sondhi of the Karnataka high court withdrew his consent for an appointment after having waited for a year for the government to decide. Eventually, the government took a decision but bypassed the recommendation of the Supreme Court. There’s not to reason why.
• The problem of plenty (of cases) is not necessarily linked to judicial vacancies. A former CJI boasted that he ensured there is no vacancy of judges in his parent high court. He was right, but did it have any impact on the pendency of cases? A casual study of the information available in the National Judicial Data Grid reveals that it made no positive difference to the pendency of cases in that high court.
• The solution? Even though I agree that the justice delivery system is in a “hopeless situation” and beyond repair, a few steps might mitigate the problems of millions of litigants. First, every case filed by the Union of India or any state government should be accompanied with a demand draft of Rs 1 lakh to take care of litigation expenses of the citizen who is dragged to court. If the court declines to issue notice to the citizen, the amount should be kept in a reserve fund for future utilisation. The governments must pay, period. The governments must also pay Rs 1 lakh for every adjournment sought – after all, the litigant has to pay his or her lawyer an appearance fee even if the case is adjourned. Actually, even governments pay their lawyers a fee for every adjournment.
• The CJI has said that governments are the biggest litigants, accounting for nearly 50% of pending cases. If courts are imposing heavy costs on individual litigants, why are governments or government departments treated with kid gloves? Governments must be held accountable for litigation. The sooner the courts realise it, the better.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

3. ETHANOL BLEND IN PETROL TO BE RAISED TO 20% IN 3 YEARS

THE CONTEXT: The Union Cabinet approved amendments to the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018, to advance the date by which fuel companies have to increase the percentage of ethanol in petrol to 20%, from 2030 to 2025. The policy of introducing 20% ethanol will take effect from April 1, 2023.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A press statement from the government said the new policy would allow more feed stock for producing biofuel and foster the development of indigenous technologies.
• A 2021 report by the NITI Aayog said that “immense benefits” could accrue to the country by 20% ethanol blending by 2025, such as saving ₹30,000 crore of foreign exchange per year, increased energy security, lowered carbon emissions, better air quality, self-reliance, better use of damaged food grains, increased farmers’ incomes and greater investment opportunities.
• India achieved 9.45% ethanol blending as on March 13, 2022, according to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG). The Centre projects that this will reach 10% by the end of financial year 2022. The government first announced its plans of advancing the 20% blending target in December 2020.
• A 10% blending of petrol does not require major changes to engines but a 20% blend could require some changes and may even drive up the prices of vehicles. A greater percentage of blending could also mean more land being diverted for water-intensive crops such as sugar cane, which the government currently subsidises.
• The NITI Aayog projects an ethanol demand of 10.16 billion litres by 2025, based on the adoption of vehicles. The current ethanol production capacity in India of 4.26 billion litres derives from molasses-based distilleries, and 2.58 billion litres from grain-based distilleries.
• This is expected to expand to 7.6 billion litres and 7.4 billion litres respectively and will require six million tonnes of sugar and 16.5 million tonnes of grains per annum by 2025.
• The increased allocation of land also puts into question the actual reduction in emissions that blending ethanol with petrol brings about.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. NGT ORDERS STAY ON DRAFT SHIMLA DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2041

THE CONTEXT: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) May 12 asked the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Department to put on hold the Draft Development Plan, Shimla Planning Area 2041.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The plan proposes to permit the construction of more floors, new constructions in core area, constructions in the green area, and development in the sinking and sliding area in violation of the NGT orders.
• If the State proceeds in such a manner, not only will it damage rule of law, it may result in disastrous consequences for the environment and public safety, said the green court bench led by Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel, Sudhir Agarwal and Arun Kumar Tyagi.
• Yogendra Mohan Sengupta, an environmental activist had filed the application in the NGT on April 20, 2022 against the draft development plan on the ground that such a plan is contrary to the sustainable development principle and destructive of the environment and public safety.
• The application said that NGT had already issued regulatory measures on November 16, 2017 to be adopted in terms of the number of floors, and restrictions on constructions in core and green areas of Shimla.
• The NGT in its November 2017 judgement had warned that if unplanned and indiscriminate development was allowed, there would be “irreparable loss and damage to the environment, ecology and natural resources on one hand and inevitable disaster on the other”.
• To prevent such untoward disasters, the court had prohibited new construction of any kind (residential, institutional and commercial) in any part of the core and green / forest areas “as defined under the various notifications issued under the Interim Development Plan as well by the State Government.”
• The order also said that even beyond the core and forest areas and the areas falling under the authorities of the Shimla Planning Area – construction would be permitted strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Town and Country Planning Act, Development Plan and the municipal laws in force. Even in these areas, construction would not be permitted beyond two storeys plus attic floor.
• The project background of the Draft Development Plan-Shimla Planning Area 2041, which was published in February 2022, read: There is an urgent need of a development plan for Shimla in order to revive the growth regulators with the vision for a well-regulated and planned Shimla and its peri-urban areas, best capturing the urbanisation trend and aspiration of the city and its fringes.
• The Development Plan was prepared under the AMRUT sub-scheme of the Government of India by the Town and Country Planning Department, Himachal Pradesh. A geographic information system-based development plan formulation for Shimla Planning Area comprises Shimla Municipal Corporation and its surrounding areas, including Kufri, Shoghi and Ghanahatti Special Areas and Additional villages, under the provisions of the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Act, 1977.
• It is interesting to note that the Draft Development Plan said that “town planning does not come under the purview of the NGT,” and that the orders of the National Green Tribunal on “height restriction in Shimla Planning Area is a dent on meeting the future urbanisation challenges.”
• The Tribunal directed that the Himachal Pradesh Town and Country Planning Department should not proceed from taking any further step in pursuance of the Draft Development Plan 2041.

5. INDIA’S VULNERABILITY TO DROUGHT

THE CONTEXT: A United Nations report has revealed that many parts of India fall under the list of regions that are vulnerable to drought globally.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The report stated that India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reduced by 2 to 5 percent between 1998 and 2017 due to severe droughts in the country.
• An upward trajectory in the duration of droughts and the severity of impacts, not only affecting human societies but also the ecological systems upon which the survival of all life depends, including that of our own species.
• UNCCD’s COP15 focuses on desertification, land degradation, and drought, with the theme for the conference being “Land. Life. Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity.” The conference has brought together government representatives, private sector members, and civil society stakeholders to ensure that land continues to benefit present and future generations.
• It proposes to tackle “the interconnected challenges of land degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss” as we move into the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.
• The UNCCD’s 197 parties, which includes 196 member States as well as the European Union, are expected to brainstorm sustainable ideas to further land restoration and drought resilience, focusing on “future-proofing land use.” The UNCCD envisions restoring one billion hectares of degraded land by 2030, creating a land degradation-neutral world.
• According to World Bank estimates, drought conditions can force up to 216 million people to migrate by 2050. Other factors at play along with drought could be water scarcity, declining crop productivity, rise in sea levels, and overpopulation.
• Weather, climate and water hazards have accounted for 50 percent of all disasters and 45 percent of all reported deaths since 1970, World Meteorological Organisation data has revealed. Nine in ten of these deaths have occurred in developing countries.
• Between 2020 and 2022, 23 countries have faced drought emergencies. These are Afghanistan, Angola, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Chile, Ethiopia, Iraq, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Mauritania, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, Pakistan, United States, and Zambia. According to the report, climate change alone will cause 129 countries to experience an increase in drought exposure in the next few decades.
• More than a billion people around the world were affected by drought in 2000-19, making it the second-worst disaster after flooding. Africa was the worst hit, with 134 droughts, of which 70 occurred in East Africa.
• The World Health Organisation has noted that approximately 55 million people globally are directly affected by droughts annually, making it the most serious hazards to livestock and crops in almost every part of the world.
• The impact of drought is, however, not uniform across genders. Research shows that women and girls in emerging and developing countries suffer more in terms of education levels, nutrition, health, sanitation, and safety as a result of droughts. The burden of water collection also disproportionately falls on women (72 percent) and girls (9 percent). The report notes that they may spend up to 40 per cent of their caloric intake fetching water.
• In 2022, over 2.3 billion people are facing water stress. Almost 160 million children are exposed to severe and prolonged droughts.
• According to the report, if predictions are correct and global warming reaches 3° C by 2100, drought losses could be five times higher than today’s levels. The largest increase in drought losses is projected in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic regions of Europe.
• Australia’s megadrought in 2019-2020 contributed to “megafires” resulting in one of the most extensive losses of habitat for threatened species. About three billion animals were killed or displaced in the Australian wildfires. On a related note, 84 percent of all terrestrial ecosystems are threatened by changing and intensifying wildfires.
• According to a 2017 report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the percentage of plants affected by drought has more than doubled in the last 40 years. Around 12 million hectares of land are lost each year due to drought and desertification.

6. SEA LEVELS ALONG INDIAN COAST RISING AT FASTER RATE THAN GLOBAL AVERAGE: WMO REPORT

THE CONTEXT: According to the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) State of the Global Climate in 2021 report released May 18, 2022. Sea levels along almost the entire Indian coast are rising faster than the global average.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Globally, the rate of sea-level rise was 4.5 millimetres per year between 2013 and 2021. This was more than twice the rate between 1993 and 2002.
• The major reason for the increase in sea levels is the accelerated loss of ice from the ice sheets in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. The increase happened despite the La Nina phenomenon being prevalent during the beginning and the end of 2021.
• La Nina is the cooler-than-normal phase of the El Nino Southern Oscillation phenomenon in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. Usually during La Nina years, sea levels are less than the mean.
• During El Nino (warmer-than-normal phase) years, they are higher than the mean. In 2021, the global mean sea level rise was close to the long-term trend.
• The increase in sea levels is not happening uniformly in all parts of the global oceans. In the Indian Ocean region, the rate of sea-level rise is the fastest in the south western part, where it is faster by 2.5 mm/year than the global average.
• In other parts of the Indian Ocean region, including the coastlines, the rate is between 0 and 2.5 mm / year, faster than the global average.
• Other regions where the rate is faster than the global average are the western Tropical Pacific, the South-west Pacific, the North Pacific and the South Atlantic.
• “Regional patterns of sea-level change are dominated by local changes in ocean heat content and salinity,” the report pointed out.
• The Indian Ocean region has previously been described as the fastest-warming ocean in the world, with an increase in temperature of one degree Celsius as against the global average of 0.7°C between 1951 and 2015. Ocean heat content had already reached record levels in 2021 globally.
• Such a sea-level rise could have major consequences for the millions of people living along the Indian coastline. While gradual erosion of the coastline, subsidence and inundation of deltas is a long-term concern for the people living close to the sea, the immediate concern is to do with the combined impact of tropical cyclones and sea-level rise.
• For instance, when a tropical cyclone occurs, the storm surge along with heavier rainfall, sea-level rise and high tides could make the resultant flooding much more intense and hence difficult to manage.
• Storm surge is the increase in the height and energy of sea waves during a cyclone which depends on the wind speeds of the cyclone. The higher the wind speeds of a cyclone, the more is their ability to pile up water towards the centre of the cyclone; hence a stronger storm surge.
• Storm surges may also get intensified if there is a high tide during the time of the cyclone. The combined effect of a storm surge and a high tide is known as a storm tide.
• Storm surges and tides bring saline water into agricultural fields and people’s homes, leading to long-term damage, including a decrease in soil quality.
• Recent cyclones in the Indian Ocean region have increased in intensity, with greater wind speeds than before which has meant higher storm surges. As sea levels rise, the storm surges will become even stronger and take more seawater onto land, causing inundation.
• In the case of Super Cyclone Amphan in 2020, seawater had come in 25 kilometres inland, inundating large parts of the Sunderbans delta which is already the most vulnerable to both, cyclones and sea-level rise in India.
• A cyclonic storm hits the Sunderbans every 1.67 years, according to the analysis by India Meteorological Department, Pune. Shorter return periods indicate more frequent cyclones. The researchers studied cyclonic storms passing within about 90 kilometres of the coastal districts between 1961 and 2020.
• Sea levels have risen at a rate of 30 mm per year in the Sunderbans delta in the last two decades, with a 12 percent loss in the shoreline, according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Landsat satellite imagery.
• This is more than six times the global average and has already led to the displacement of around 1.5 million people from the delta.
• If global warming is not kept under the 1.5°C mark as agreed to by countries under the Paris Agreement by rapid reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the rise in sea levels and intense cyclones will make places like the Sunderbans unlivable, causing a huge migration of people inland and a cascade of other socio-economic problems.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 19th MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about World Meteorological Organization (WMO):

1. It was established in 1950 through WMO Convention.
2. It is a specialized agency of the United Nations.
3. Its secretariat is headquartered in Rome.
4. India is a founding member of WMO.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 4 only

c) 2, 3 and 4 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 18^th MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: WPI is used as a measure to understand inflation at the producer level.
• Statement 2 is correct: It is compiled by the Office of Economic Advisor.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: It considers the price changes only in goods and not in services.

THE POLITY

1. LAUNCH OF TWO FRONTLINE WARSHIPS BY THE INDIAN NAVY

THE CONTEXT: Defence Minister launches the frontline warship of Indian Navy ‘Udaygiri’, a Project-17A Frigate, at Mazgaon Docks Limited, in Mumbai on May 17, 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Indo-Pacific region is important for the economy of the whole world and India being a responsible maritime stakeholder in the region, it is the primary objective of our Navy to keep the Indo-Pacific open, safe and secure said the Defence Minister while noting that global security, border disputes and maritime dominance have led nations around the world to modernize their militaries.
• If a country wants to safeguard its national interests, it should project its military prowess in areas far beyond the mainland. If a country has aspirations to become a regional or global power, it is necessary to develop a strong Naval force. Government is making all efforts in this direction. We want to make a strong, secure and prosperous India, which is recognized as a global power.
• He was speaking at the launch of two frontline warships under construction at Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) in Mumbai.
• The ships include ‘Surat’ the fourth and last ship of Project-15B destroyers and ‘Udaygiri’, the third ship of Project-17A stealth frigates.
• Speaking at the launch, Navy Chief Adm. R. Hari Kumar said India’s expanding strategic reach, based on the vision of SAGAR is a driver for the Navy’s continued acquisition of assets with long sea legs, increased capabilities and greater endurance.
• Udayagiri and Surat are shining examples of India’s growing indigenous capability. The warships will be among the most technologically advanced missile carriers in the world, that will cater to the present as well as future requirements. In the times to come, we will not only fulfill our own needs but will also meet the shipbuilding requirements of the world. We will soon realise the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’, Home Minister said.
• To support the ‘Make in India’ initiative, 80% Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) on cost basis have been awarded to Indian vendors, amounting to investment of nearly ₹1,75,000 Crore back into the Indian economy. Indigenous shipbuilding projects, such as these, are also catalysts for employment generation and skill development. “Thus, the Navy’s budget has a significant ‘plough-back’ into the economy, which signifies our impetus towards ‘Aatmanirbharta’.
• The four destroyers under Project-15B at a project cost of about ₹29,643.74 Crore are a follow-on to the Kolkata class (Project 15A) destroyers. They are christened after major cities from all four corners of the country — Visakhapatnam, Mormugao, Imphal and Surat. While INS Visakhapatnam has been commissioned, two other ships Mormugao and Imphal have been launched with the former now undergoing sea trials.
• The Project-17A class is a follow-on to the P17 Frigates (Shivalik Class) with improved stealth features, advanced weapons and sensors and platform management systems. A total of seven ships are being constructed, four at MDL and three at Garden Reach Ship Builders Limited (GRSE).

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2. WHAT IS STAGFLATION

THE CONTEXT: In the first quarter of the financial year 2021, the Indian economy contracted by 23.9 percent. In the current situation, with 6.07% the retail inflation has crossed the upper band of the parliamentary mandate in February.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• Stagflation is an economic state that occurs when high inflation, high unemployment and stagnant economic growth join hands together. The term was coined by Iain Macleod, MP in the United Kingdom in November 1965.
• Generally, when the economy of any country booms, people earn more and thus demand for goods and services increases, which further results in soaring prices and eventually rising inflation. On the other hand, when the economy is in the doldrums and demand is low, the prices of goods and services fall or stagnate.
• While in stagflation, the worst of both scenarios is experienced by the economy as the growth rate becomes stagnant with high unemployment and continuous high inflation.
• The situation occurs when a central bank creates money flow by printing more currency but puts supply on hold. The situation also rises when the central bank’s monetary or fiscal policies create credit.
• Along with this, the other policies also experience slow growth if taxes are increased by the government or interest rates are raised by the central bank, and in such a situation, the companies produce less.
• During the state of stagflation, there is increased financial risks and loss of income with high unemployment during the state of stagflation. It becomes a tough task to manage households as high prices limit spending on everyday necessities.
• The very slow growth of the economy continues to take place even in a state of stagflation. Further, there is no absolute cure to stagflation but economists suggest that higher production could help in the situation.

3. WHOLESALE PRICE RISE HITS RECORD HIGH OF 15.1% IN APRIL

THE CONTEXT: According to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry THE INFLATION rate based on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) surged to a record high of 15.1 percent in April, with the rise in prices of vegetables, fruits, milk, manufacturing, fuel and power.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• This is the highest WPI print in the 2011-12 series. Annual WPI inflation — inflation at the producer level — has remained in double digits for 13 months in a row, consistently edging upwards.
• According to data released last week, inflation at the retail level also surged to an eight-year high of 7.79 percent in April, with expectations now rising for another repo rate hike by the RBI in June of as much as 40 basis points.
• The heatwave this summer has led to a spike in prices of perishables such as fruits, vegetables and milk, which along with a spike in tea prices pushed up primary food inflation.
• Inflation for manufactured products rose to 10.85 percent in April mainly contributed by basic metals, chemicals and chemical products, textiles, machinery and equipment, and electrical equipment. Fuel inflation rose to 38.66 percent, led by high inflation in major categories of petrol, diesel, LPG and aviation turbine fuel. Crude petroleum and natural gas recorded inflation of 69.07 percent in April.
• The core-WPI inflation — the non-food, non-fuel component — rose to a four-month high of 11.1 percent in April, with producers forced to pass on the input price pressures. Inflation in food articles was 8.35 percent as prices of vegetables (23.24 percent), wheat (10.70 percent), fruits (10.89 percent) and potato (19.84 percent) recorded a sharp spike over the year-ago period.
• According to experts, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has aggravated the situation.
• “As the cost pressure of manufacturers is rising due to the rising input and transportation/logistics costs, they are increasingly passing on these into their output prices leading to higher inflation in manufactured products. Though this trend started well before the Russia-Ukraine conflict, it has got aggravated due to further spike in input cost especially of crude oil and raw materials.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. INDIA TOPPED AIR POLLUTION DEATH TOLL IN 2019

THE CONTEXT: Globally, air pollution alone contributes to 66.7 lakh deaths, according to the report, which updates a previous analysis from 2015.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Air pollution was responsible for 16.7 lakh deaths in India in 2019, or 17.8% of all deaths in the country that year.
• This is the largest number of air-pollution-related deaths of any country, according to a recent report on pollution and health published in The Lancet Planetary Health.
• Globally, air pollution alone contributes to 66.7 lakh deaths, according to the report, which updates a previous analysis from 2015. Overall, pollution was responsible for an estimated 90 lakh deaths in 2019 (equivalent to one in six deaths worldwide), a number that has remained unchanged since the 2015 analysis. Ambient air pollution was responsible for 45 lakh deaths, and hazardous chemical pollutants for 17 lakh, with 9 lakh deaths attributable to lead pollution.

POLLUTION IN INDIA

• The majority of the 16.7 lakh air pollution-related deaths in India – 9.8 lakh — were caused by PM 2.5 pollution, and another 6.1 lakh by household air pollution. Although the number of deaths from pollution sources associated with extreme poverty (such as indoor air pollution and water pollution) has decreased, these reductions are offset by increased deaths attributable to industrial pollution (such as ambient air pollution and chemical pollution).
• According to the report, air pollution is most severe in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This area contains New Delhi and many of the most polluted cities. Burning of biomass in households was the single largest cause of air pollution deaths in India, followed by coal combustion and crop burning.
• The number of deaths remains high despite India’s considerable efforts against household air pollution, including through the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana programme. India has developed a National Clean Air Programme, and in 2019 launched a Commission for Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region.
• However, India does not have a strong centralised administrative system to drive its air pollution control efforts and consequently improvements in overall air quality have been limited and uneven.
• In India, we need integrated surveillance platforms for health and exposure surveillance. Population exposure surveillance via biological and environmental monitoring can inform risk attributions within health programmes already in place to reduce the burden of maternal and child health as well as non-communicable diseases.
• Impacts from lead as shown in the report, that impacts children’s IQ, really drive home the point of irreversible long-term damage for multiple generations. Without surveillance at scale it is impossible to know what worked and what didn’t
• An estimated 9 lakh people die every year globally due to lead pollution and this number is likely to be an underestimate. Earlier the source of lead pollution was from leaded petrol which was replaced with unleaded petrol.
• However the other sources of lead exposure include unsound recycling of lead-acid batteries and e-waste without pollution controls, spices that are contaminated with lead, pottery glazed with lead salts and lead in paint and other consumer products.
• Globally more than 80 crore children (India alone contributes to 27.5 crore children) are estimated to have blood lead concentrations that exceed 5 µg/dL — which was, until 2021, the concentration for intervention established by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This concentration has now been reduced to 3.5 µg/dL

5. GREEN GROWTH CAN HELP AFRICAN COUNTRIES ADDRESS SOCIO-ECONOMIC INEQUALITIES

THE CONTEXT: According to a recently released report African countries need ‘Green Growth’ to address education and health-related inequalities that hinder socio-economic development on the continent and are likely to exacerbate the negative impacts of climate change.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Green growth has the potential to address these inequalities through the creation of decent jobs, better provision of basic services, improvement of air quality and enhancement of climate resilience.
• Climate action and inclusive green growth were particularly important at the current moment, as economies around the world had been ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Africa Green Growth Readiness Assessment was launched May 11, 2022, during a side-event at the 15th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP15) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, underway in Abidjan from May 9-20.
• The report defined ‘green growth’ as a strategy to sustain the economy through building resilience and managing resources efficiently.
• African countries can achieve sustainable growth and development if they expand access to digital and physical infrastructure such as the internet and quality roads. This will require greater support and investment.
• North African countries have made the most progress towards achieving the United Nations-mandated sustainable development goals (SDG), while countries in Central Africa require the greatest support, according to the report.
• With the exception of Tunisia and Morocco, the greatest challenges the focus countries faced were related to access to sustainable services, such as energy and sanitation.
• The assessment found evidence that African leaders were actively championing the SDGs and simultaneously implementing the nationally determined contributions (NDC), a component of the 2015 Paris Agreement.
• All focus countries had developed national climate change or green growth strategies and in some cases complementary action plans. The governments of Rwanda, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal and Mozambique had adopted green growth and climate-resilient economic strategies.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. WORLD MAY MISS NET-ZERO BY 2050, COURTESY COVID-19: INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE COUNCIL

THE CONTEXT: The COVID-19 pandemic may prevent the world from achieving net zero emissions by 2050, according to a report released by the International Science Council May 17, 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Unprecedented and Unfinished – COVID-19 and Implications for National and Global Policy called for increased adoption of the One Health approach to minimize environmental impacts and future pandemic risks.
• The report also urged increased investment and knowledge sharing from high-income states, according to a press statement.
• It considered three potential scenarios through the year 2027, primarily determined by the evolution of the virus and the global uptake and coverage of effective vaccines.
• In the most likely scenario, COVID-19 will have worsened inequalities in health, economics, development, science and technology, and society. COVID-19 will have become an endemic disease worldwide and low-income states risk health system collapse and growing food insecurity. Mental health concerns will grow even further.
• In a more pessimistic scenario, the world faces high levels of harm to social well-being — with long-term school closures, unemployment and increased gender-based violence. Growing nationalism and polarisation will inhibit cooperation on global vaccinations and trade and give rise to conflict.
• Despite climate change’s intensification, many countries will reverse environmental reforms in an attempt to overcome COVID-19’s economic impact under this scenario.
• The report highlighted a need to address the challenges of disinformation and to strengthen diverse scientific advice systems to increase trust in science, thereby protecting societies from acute health risks and the breakdown of social cohesion.
• The document noted that much more needed to be done — particularly by policymakers — to avoid the worst-case scenarios in the future, especially for low- and middle-income countries.
• National and global policy considerations should address widening global inequalities not only in vaccine distribution but also related to inclusive governance, economic recovery and the digital and educational divide.
• The report concluded that the future course of the pandemic and its consequences that extend well beyond the health sector, will depend on policy decisions taken today, which have the potential to either shorten or prolong the crisis and mitigate or aggravate its impacts.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 18th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements about the Wholesale Price Index (WPI):

1. It is used as a measure to understand inflation at the consumer level.
2. It is compiled by the Office of Economic Advisor.
3. It considers the price changes in both goods and services.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 17^th MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

When repo rate is increased:

• Money supply in the economy will reduce.
• It will reduce inflation.
• Private consumption will reduce and people will focus on savings.
• Decrease in goods and products as businessmen and investors do not invest in business expansion due to costly credit.

THE POLITY

1. HOW SIKKIM BECAME A PART OF INDIA

THE CONTEXT:  A turning point in the history of Sikkim involves the appointment of John Claude White, a civil servant in British India who in 1889 was appointed the Political Officer of Sikkim, which by then was a British Protectorate under the Treaty of Tumlong signed in March, 1861.

THE EXPLANATION:

It was on May 16, 1975 that Sikkim became 22nd state of the Union of India. While in many modern narratives, the tale of the former kingdom under the Namgyal dynasty acquiring Indian statehood begins in decades close to the 1970s, the real story, according to experts, can only be understood by tracing the events back to 1640s when Namgyal rule was first established.

ATTACKS DURING NAMGYAL RULE

• Beginning with Phuntsog Namgyal, the first chogyal (monarch), the Namgyal dynasty ruled Sikkim until 1975. At one point, the kingdom of Sikkim included the Chumbi valley and Darjeeling; the former being part of China now.
• In the early 1700s, the region saw a series of conflicts between Sikkim, Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet, which resulted in a shrinking of Sikkim’s territorial boundaries.

BRITISH EXPANSION

• When the British arrived, their expansion plans in the Indian subcontinent included controlling the Himalayan states.
• The kingdom of Nepal, meanwhile, continued with its attempts to expand its territory. This resulted in the Anglo-Nepalese war (November, 1814 to March, 1816), also known as the Gorkha war, which was fought between the Gorkhali army and the East India Company. Both sides had ambitious expansion plans for the strategically important mountainous north of the Indian subcontinent.
• In 1814, Sikkim allied with the East India Company in the latter’s campaign against Nepal. The Company won and restored to Sikkim some of the territories that Nepal had wrested from it in 1780.

THE TURNING POINT

• A turning point in the history of Sikkim involves the appointment of John Claude White, a civil servant in British India who in 1889 was appointed the Political Officer of Sikkim, which by then was a British Protectorate under the Treaty of Tumlong signed in March, 1861.
• As with most of the Indian subcontinent that the British had under their administrative control, the kingdom of Sikkim, although a protectorate, had little choice in the administration of its own kingdom.

SCENARIO AFTER 1947

• Three years after India’s Independence in 1947, Sikkim became a protectorate of India. In 1950, a treaty was signed between the then Sikkim monarch Tashi Namgyal and India’s then Political Officer in Sikkim, Harishwar Dayal. A clause in the treaty read: “Sikkim shall continue to be a Protectorate of India and, subject to the provisions of this Treaty, shall enjoy autonomy in regard to its internal affairs.”
• Geopolitical changes during that time put Sikkim in a delicate position. China’s invasion of Tibet in 1949 and Nepal’s attacks on Sikkim throughout the kingdom’s history were cited as reasons why the kingdom needed the support and protection of a powerful ally.
• Further, the talk of persecution of Tibetans after China’s arrival at the scene generated fear of the possibility of Sikkim suffering a similar fate.

DISCONTENT AGAINST MONARCHY

• The period between the 1950s and the 1970s marked growing discontent in Sikkim. Primarily, there was anger against the monarchy because of growing inequality and feudal control.
• In December 1947, political groups came together and formed the Sikkim State Congress, a political party that supported the merging of Sikkim with the Union of India.
• Three years later, the Sikkim National Party was formed that supported the monarchy and independence of the kingdom. A democratic system would have meant a reduction in powers held by the monarch in Sikkim and some researchers believe that the last monarch, Palden Thondup Namgyal, attempted to reduce civil and political liberties.
• Anti-monarchy protests grew in 1973, following which the royal palace was surrounded by thousands of protesters.
• Indian troops arrived after the monarch was left with no choice but to ask New Delhi to send assistance. Finally, a tripartite agreement was signed in the same year between the chogyal, the Indian government, and three major political parties, so that major political reforms could be introduced.

1974 ELECTIONS

• A year later, in 1974, elections were held, where the Sikkim State Congress led by KaziLhendupDorji won, defeating pro-independence parties. That year, a new constitution was adopted, which restricted the role of the monarch to a titular post, which Palden Thondup Namgyal bitterly resented.
• In the same year, India upgraded Sikkim’s status from protectorate to “associated state”, allotting to it one seat each in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Opposed to the move, the monarch attempted to bring international attention to it soon after.

DECISION TO JOIN INDIA

• A referendum was held in 1975 where an overwhelming majority voted in favour of abolishing the monarchy and joining India.
• A total 59,637 voted in favour of abolishing the monarchy and joining India, with only 1,496 voting against.
• Sikkim’s new parliament, led by KaziLhendupDorjee, proposed a bill for Sikkim to become an Indian state, which was accepted by the Indian government.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2. THE REPO RATE IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT: On May 4, the Reserve Bank of India, in a surprise move, announced that the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had held an ‘off-cycle’ meeting at which it had decided unanimously to raise the “policy repo rate by 40 basis points to 4.40%, with immediate effect”.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The repo rate is one of several direct and indirect instruments that are used by the RBI for implementing monetary policy. Specifically, the RBI defines the repo rate as the fixed interest rate at which it provides overnight liquidity to banks against the collateral of government and other approved securities under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF).
• Since this is the rate of interest that the RBI charges commercial banks such as State Bank of India and ICICI Bank when it lends them money, it serves as a key benchmark for the lenders to in turn price the loans they offer to their borrowers.
• Besides the direct loan pricing relationship, the repo rate also functions as a monetary tool by helping to regulate the availability of liquidity or funds in the banking system. For instance, when the repo rate is decreased, banks may find an incentive to sell securities back to the government in return for cash. This increases the money supply available to the general economy. Conversely, when the repo rate is increased, lenders would end up thinking twice before borrowing from the central bank at the repo window thus, reducing the availability of money supply in the economy.
• Since inflation is, in large measure, caused by more money chasing the same quantity of goods and services available in an economy, central banks tend to target regulation of money supply as a means to slow inflation.
• Inflation can broadly be: mainly demand driven price gains, or a result of supply side factors that in turn push up the costs of inputs used by producers of goods and providers of services, thus spurring inflation, or most often caused by a combination of both demand and supply side pressures.
• Changes to the repo rate to influence interest rates and the availability of money supply primarily work only on the demand side by making credit more expensive and savings more attractive and therefore dissuading consumption. However, they do little to address the supply side factors, be it the high price of commodities such as crude oil or metals or imported food items such as edible oils.

There is also another aspect to consider. Repo rate increases impact the real economy with a lag.

• In February 2021, the RBI in its annual ‘Report on Currency and Finance’ observed that “the challenge for an efficient operating procedure [of monetary policy] is to minimise the transmission lag from changes in the policy rate to the operating target”, which in this case is the mandate to keep medium-term inflation anchored at 4%, and bound within a tolerance range of 2% to 6%.
• The RBI noted in the report that there were several channels of transmission, ‘the interest rate channel; the credit or bank lending channel; the exchange rate channel operating through relative prices of tradables and non-tradables; the asset price channel impacting wealth/income accruing from holdings of financial assets; and the expectations channel encapsulating the perceptions of households and businesses on the state of the economy and its outlook’.
• “These conduits of transmission intertwine and operate in conjunction and are difficult to disentangle,” the central bank added, underscoring the challenges monetary authorities face in ensuring that changes to the repo rate actually help in achieving the policy objective.

3. WHAT IS FAIR AND AVERAGE QUALITY WHEAT, THE NORMS FOR     WHICH HAVE BEEN RELAXED BY GOVT?

THE CONTEXT: The relaxation of procurement parameters to “reduce the hardship of farmers and avoid distress sale of wheat” does not mean the quality of the grain is bad.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The Centre on May 15)relaxed the Fair and Average Quality (FAQ) norms for wheat in the ongoing rabi marketing season in Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh by a factor of three, raising the permissible limit of “shrivelled and broken grains” to 18% from the existing 6%.
• Unseasonal heat in March, when the rabi crop goes through its grain-filling stage, has led to shrivelling, making the grain unfit for procurement as per the usual quality norms.
• Every year, before procurement begins in this region in April, the Storage and Research (S&R) division of the Department of Food & Public Distribution in the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, notifies specifications to ensure the quality of the procured wheat.
• This year, wheat containing up to 0.75% foreign matter, 2% damaged grain, 4% slightly damaged grain, 6% shrivelled and broken grain, and 12% moisture was cleared for procurement.
• The specifications are implemented at the time of procurement by qualified personnel from the quality control wing of the central government’s nodal agency for procurement, the Food Corporation of India (FCI). According to FCI, fair and average quality (FAQ) wheat is one that meets all all-down specifications.

Grain that looks good

• FAQ wheat is fully developed, and has a proper shine or lustre. The main varieties are golden or pale yellow in colour, the grain is not dark, and does not have any streaks. It is properly dry, and meets all nutritional conditions, the values of which are tested in the lab in case of doubt.
• The inspector added that FCI’s QC wing conducts physical and chemical analyses during the procurement process, and on the stored crop to ensure quality standards and parameters are met.

PREVIOUS RELAXATIONS

• The government has in the past relaxed norms for moisture content and loss of lustre following heavy rain during the harvesting season, when ripe crops were flattened, and the grain turned blackish. This is for the first time, however, that such a major relaxation has been allowed for shrivelled grain, FCI officials said. The officials said they could not recall a previous relaxation for the shrivelled grain of more than perhaps 1-2%.

Is the wheat bad?

• The relaxation of procurement parameters to “reduce the hardship of farmers and avoid distress sale of wheat” does not mean the quality of the grain is bad. “The grains are smaller in size, but there is no loss of quality.
• The quality control wings of both FCI and the government have carried out several tests on the shrivelled grain, and found only weight loss, not a loss of quality,” a senior FCI officer said, adding that this wheat will now be called “Under Relaxed Specifications (URS) wheat” instead of FAQ.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. INDIA’S 52ND TIGER RESERVE, RAMGARH VISHDHARI NOTIFIED

THE CONTEXT: Ramgarh Vishdhari, spread across Bundi, Bhilwara and Kota districts in Rajasthan, will be a major corridor connecting tigers of Ranthambore and Mukundra reserves.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Ramgarh Vishdhari Wildlife Sanctuary was notified as a tiger reserve May 16, 2022, after a nod by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) in July 2021.
• It is now India’s 52nd tiger reserve and Rajasthan’s fourth, after Ranthambore, Sariska and Mukundra.
• There were an estimated 2,967 tigers in India in 2019, according to the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
• The population in this area will probably never be very high because it is a small area. But since it is an important area for tiger connectivity, the conservation efforts and funding that will be deployed there now will benefit the population of the big cats.

5. NEED TO TRIPLE INVESTMENTS FOR RESTORING DEGRADED LAND BY 2030: SEOUL DECLARATION

THE CONTEXT:The investment in forest and landscape restoration globally must be tripled by 2030 to implement global commitments and meet internationally agreed goals and targets, according to the recently adopted Seoul Declaration.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Declaration focuses on identifying key areas that can help combat multiple crises humanity faces. It was adopted May 5, 2022.
• The Seoul Forest Declaration sends a powerful message that forests, forestry and forest stakeholders offer major solutions to the challenges the world currently faces, but action is needed now.
• We must now scale up political will and increase financial and technical investments. The Declaration will add to the sense of urgency to accelerate action, strengthen partnerships and enhance cross-sectoral collaboration
• Forests transcend political, social and environmental boundaries and are vital for biodiversity and the carbon, water and energy cycles at a planetary scale. The responsibility over forests should be shared and integrated across institutions, sectors and stakeholders in order to achieve a sustainable future.
• It added that forest-based solutions must be inclusive of the perspectives of family farmers, smallholders, forest communities, indigenous peoples, women and youth and respectful of their rights.
• The solutions must empower them to participate equitably in decision-making and sustainable forest value chains.
• The Declaration, signed by 141 participant countries, also urged the use of innovative technology and mechanisms to enable evidence-based forest and landscape decision-making and effective forest communication.
• New partnerships such as the Assuring the Future of Forests with Integrated Risk Management (AFFIRM) Mechanism, the Sustaining an Abundance of Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) initiative and the Platform for REDD+ Capacity Building were also undertaken at the Congress to boost international participation and cooperation.
• The Declaration also pointed out that the health of forests and humans was closely related and forest degradation can have “serious negative impacts on human health and well-being”.
• It stated that forests must be maintained in a healthy and productive state to reduce the risk of future pandemics and to provide other essential benefits for the physical and mental health of mankind.
• The Declaration added that the full potential of sustainably produced wood can be utilized to transform the building sector, along with providing renewable energy and innovative new materials as wood was “renewable, recyclable and incredibly versatile.”
• The Declaration added that the outcomes of the 15th WFC, including it as well as the Youth Call for Action and the Ministerial Call on Sustainable Wood, should be transmitted to the next Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to the upcoming Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and to other important forest-related fora.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. SCIENTISTS DISCOVER FOSSIL OF PRE-HISTORIC GIANT SNAKE IN LADAKH

THE CONTEXT: Scientists have discovered the fossil of a Madtsoiidae snake in the Himalayan mountains in Ladakh, which sheds fresh light on the prevalence and existence of this rare serpent species in the Indian subcontinent.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Madtsoiidae is an extinct group of medium-sized to gigantic snakes, firstly appeared during the later part of the Cretaceous period, that began 145 million years ago and ended 66 million years ago. They are thought to grow up to 30 feet in length.
• Research by scientists indicates their prevalence in the Indian subcontinent for a much longer time than previously thought. Also, global climatic shifts and the prominent biotic reorganisation across the Eocene-Oligocene boundary did not cause the extinction of this important group of snakes in India.
• The study was undertaken by researchers from the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun, Panjab University, Chandigarh, Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar and Comenius University, Slovakia. The newly discovered specimen has been housed in the repository of Wadia Institute, according to a statement issued today by the Ministry of Science and Technology.
• Eocene–Oligocene, which took place about 34 million years ago, was the time of major climatic change on Earth due to shifts in volcanic and meteorite activity, and is marked by large-scale extinction and floral and faunal turnover.
• Madtsoiidae were mostly found in the Gondwanan landmasses, an ancient super continent that broke up about 180 million years ago and eventually split into landmasses that are today known as Africa, South America, Australia, Antarctica, the Indian subcontinent and the Arabian Peninsula.
• From fossil records, the whole group disappeared in the mid-Paleogene period, ranging between 66 million to 23 million years ago, across most Gondwanan continents except for Australia where it survived with its last known classification of Wonambi till the late Pleistocene period from 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 17th MAY 2022

Q.  If the Repo rate is increased by RBI, then which of the following can be the consequence of this step?

1. Money supply in the economy will increase.
2. Inflation may come down.
3. Private consumption will increase.
4. Increase in the production of goods and services.

ANSWER FOR THE 15^TH AND 16^{TH OF} MAY

Answer: D

• Explanation: Statement 1 is incorrect: Indian Constitution provides for the establishment of the Election Commission with the composition of the Chief Election Commissioner and as many Election Commissioners as President may fix from time to time. It is not necessarily a multi-member body.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: CEC and ECs have equal powers and equal salary, allowances which are similar to a judge of a Supreme Court.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: Constitution has not debarred CEC and ECs from any further appointment by the government after their retirement.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. PM TO LAUNCH BUDDHIST CENTRE WORK

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the construction of the ‘India International Centre for Buddhist Culture & Heritage’ during a daylong visit to Lumbini in Nepal. The visit will coincide with the celebrations to mark the Buddha Jayanti.

EXPLANATION:

• Lumbini is the place where Prince Siddhartha Gautama was born around 623 B.C.. He later attained enlightenment at Bodhgaya in Bihar district and came to be known as the Buddha.
• Modi participates in the shilanyas [foundation stone laying] ceremony for the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture & Heritage and offer prayers at the Mayadevi temple that is dedicated to the mother of the Buddha. He will also deliver an address at a Buddha Jayanti event organised by the Lumbini Development Trust of the government of Nepal.

Zero emission building

• An official press release has informed that the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and Heritage will be undertaken by the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC), which is a ‘grantee body’ under the Ministry of Culture. The IBC was registered on November 2, 2012 and is aimed at propagating and preserving the teachings and heritage of the Buddha across the world, and especially in India’s immediate neighbourhood. The official statement from India said the Buddhist centre would be the first ‘net zero emission’ building in Nepal.
• Buddha Jayanti will also be celebrated by the IBC in Delhi on Monday where the event will be led by Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju. “IBC has been actively involved in engaging Buddhist organisations in Nepal and has a strong relationship with several senior Buddhist monks,” stated the official press release.
• Modi’s visit to Lumbini comes two days after Nepal began the local election process across the country that will ultimately lead to the general election towards the end of the year.

2. QUAD INITIATIVE FOR VACCINES RUNS INTO ROUGH WEATHER

THE CONTEXT: More than a year after the first Quad summit where the leaders of the U.S., India, Japan and Australia launched an ambitious initiative to produce one billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines for distribution in the Indo-Pacific region, the project is floundering, and officials concede that it is unlikely to meet its target by 2022-end for a number of reasons.

THE EXPLANATION:

• While the original plan to produce the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine at the Hyderabad-based Biological E’s facility for the Quad Vaccine Initiative ran into trouble over legal indemnity issues, and then ov- er safety concerns, the other vaccine being produced at the facility, Corbevax, has yet to receive the WHO Emergency Use Listing (EUL) needed for distribution.
• In addition, experts say there is now an “oversupply” of vaccines in Southeast Asian countries and other regions of the world, bringing down the demand for vaccines.
• Quad countries have delivered vaccines to countries such as Thailand and Cambodia under a separate commitment made in September 2021, but the original initiative for a billion India-made vaccine doses, developed and funded by the U.S. and distributed by Japan and Australia, appears to have hit a roadblock.

3. WHAT’S THE 21ST CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AIMED TO CUT POWER OF SRI LANKAN PRESIDENTS

THE CONTEXT: Sri Lanka’s new Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has said that the 21st Amendment to the Constitution to curb the presidential powers will be discussed with the Attorney General’s Department.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 21st Amendment is expected to annul the 20th Amendment, which gave unfettered powers to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa after abolishing the 19th Amendment, a provision that had made the Parliament powerful over the president.

What will the 21st Amendment entail?

• The amendment is likely to reduce the Presidency to a ceremonial position, retaining the powers of the President on all three armed forces while handing over almost all other key powers pertaining to governance, and cabinet ministers to the Prime Minister.
• There are two proposed amendments in the form of Private Member’s Bills – one by Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and another by Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MPs.
• Both Bills look at transferring powers of making key appointments from the President to the Constitutional Council. Both proposals agree that the Council should comprise of both MPs and citizens not affiliated to political parties.

Which amendments preceded the 21st Amendment?

• The enactment of the 19th Amendment in April 2015 was rushed by then Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. It had removed the powers of the President to sack the Prime Minister at his discretion.
• Articles 46 (2) and 48 of the Sri Lankan constitution were amended ensuring that the cabinet ministers could have been dismissed only if the Prime Minister ceased to hold office by death, resignation or otherwise, or only if the Parliament rejects a statement of government policy or the budget or if the parliament passes a vote of no confidence against the Government.
• The amendment also restricted the President’s powers to dismiss Cabinet ministers as he was required to act on the advice of the Prime Minister.

THE POLITY

4. PARDON POWERS OF PRESIDENT AND GOVERNOR

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court has reserved orders on the question whether a Governor can refer the State government’s advice for granting remission to life convicts to the President for a decision.

THE EXPLANTION:

• The court is examining a petition from A.G. Perarivalan, one of the life convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, questioning the delay in his release even after the Tamil Nadu government, in 2018, recommended the release of all seven convicts in the case under Article 161 of the Constitution.
• The Governor, instead of acting on the recommendation, referred it to the President.

What is the scope of the pardon power?

• Both the President and the Governor have been vested with sovereign power of pardon by the Constitution, commonly referred to as mercy or clemency power.
• Under Article 72, the President can grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence in all cases where the punishment or sentence is by a court-martial, in all cases where the punishment or sentence is for an offence under any law relating to the Union government’s executive power, and in all cases of death sentences. It is also made clear that the President’s power will not in any way affect a Governor’s power to commute a death sentence.
• Under Article 161, a Governor can grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment, or suspend, remit or commute the sentence of anyone convicted under any law on a matter which comes under the State’s executive power.

What is the difference between statutory power and constitutional power?

• The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) provides for remission of prison sentences, which means the whole or a part of the sentence may be cancelled. Under Section 432, the ‘appropriate government’ may suspend or remit a sentence, in whole or in part, with or without conditions.
• This power is available to State governments so that they may order the release of prisoners before they complete their prison terms. Under Section 433, any sentence may be commuted to a lesser one by the appropriate government.
• However, Section 435 says that if the prisoner had been sentenced in a case investigated by the CBI, or any agency that probed the offence under a Central Act, the State government can order such release only in consultation with the Central government.
• In the case of death sentences, the Central government may also concurrently exercise the same power as the State governments to remit or suspend the sentence.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. INDIAN GOVERNMENT PROHIBITS EXPORT OF WHEAT WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT

THE CONTEXT: Citing a threat to food security, the Union government has “prohibited” the export of wheat with immediate effect. The decision was announced on Saturday in view of the “sudden spike in the global prices of wheat arising out of many factors” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Significantly, the order came two days after the government decided to send trade delegations to a number of countries to explore possibilities for its export.
• The global agriculture market has been destabilised by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a major wheat-producing nation and a major supplier to the European market. Apart from national requirements, the order cited the requirement of India’s wheat among its neighbours in the region.
• Officials revealed that there was a decline in the “opening stock” compared with last fiscal’s.
• The prohibition was “not a ban”, and was also aimed at controlling the sudden rise in the price of wheat and atta in India. The order will prevent some traders from carrying out “speculative” trading in wheat and help in stabilising the agriculture sector.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

6. HEATWAVE IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT: Severe heatwave conditions have been consistently reported over large parts of India since the beginning of the summer season in March. In April, the mercury touched nearly 50 degrees Celsius in some areas of Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, a day after Jacobabad in neighboring Pakistan had recorded 51 degree Celsius.

THE EXPLANATION:

• March and April saw early and unprecedented heat across India. March was the warmest and April was the fourth-warmest in 122 years.
• Though heatwave over large parts of north and central India is an annual phenomenon in May, the maximum temperatures in areas of Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir have been unusually high.

Sweltering heat grips north and central India

• Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Telangana are some of the states that witnessed heatwave conditions.
• A severe heatwave is declared when the maximum temperature jumps over 6 degrees Celsius above normal.

Why have the temperatures been so high?

• Urban areas like Delhi and Gurgaon recording day temperatures in the 45-49 degrees Celsius range is abnormal and was aggravated by contributions from other local weather, and anthropogenic and man-made factors.
• Western disturbances, which bring rainfall and cloudy skies to northwest India and regulate temperatures at this time of the year, have been feeble and lacked sufficient moisture, keeping the temperature high. In the absence of cloud cover, temperatures can soar with the solar radiation, while dry westerly winds do not bring any moisture.
• The India Meteorological Department (IMD) rainfall data since March shows that many states in north and central India have remained parched.

Heatwaves not unusual for May

• Heatwave season over India begins in March and peaks in May, especially over the core heatwave zone areas. This summer saw record temperatures during March and April but such warm days in May are normal.
• The current heatwave spell, prevailing for a week, is spread across 11 states and UTs. While the geographical extent may be similar to the spell recorded between March 27 and April 12, the severity this time is manyfold higher.
• The last spell saw a severe heatwave limited to some pockets of Rajasthan and eastern Uttar Pradesh, whereas the May spell has had similar conditions raging across all north and central India regions.
• On Sunday, more than ten meteorological stations recorded maximum temperatures over 47 degrees Celsius, including Banda (49), Gurgaon (48), Churu (47.9), Ganganagar (47.6), Pilani (47.7), Khajuraho and Nowgong (47.4 each), Jhansi (47.6), Hissar (47.3) and Delhi ridge (47.2).

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. WHAT IS POST COVID AND LONG COVID?

THE CONTEXT: With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, evidence showed that a considerable proportion of people who have recovered from COVID-19 continue to face long-term effects on multiple organs and systems.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Technically, post-COVID defines symptoms that persist four weeks after infection and Long COVID, 12 weeks past a COVID-19 infection.
• The effects range from skin rash, sleep difficulties, fatigue or muscle weakness, hair loss, joint pain, palpitations, dizziness, cough, headache, sore throat, chest pain, smell and taste disorders, anxiety disorders and mobility issues.
• The government of India developed its own National Comprehensive Guidelines for the management of post-COVID sequelae. This document sets out detailed techniques to treat post-COVID complications affecting cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, nephrological, neurological and respiratory systems.

8. BLOOD GROUPS AND BLOOD DONATION

THE CONTEXT: Blood in a healthy human body is about 7% of the total body weight (the average body weight being 55- 65 kg), or 4.7 to 5.5 litres (1.2 to 1.5 gallons).

THE EXPLANATION:

• India is the second-largest producer of wheat in the world, with a share of around 14.14 per cent of the total production in 2020. The country produces around 107.59 million MT of wheat annually and a major chunk of it goes towards domestic consumption.In a regular donation, the donor gives about 500 ml of blood, and this is replaced in the body within a day or two (24-48 hours).
• Blood types are determined by the presence (or absence) of certain antigens (molecules that can trigger an immune response), if they are foreign to the body of the recipient. Thus, a matching of the blood type of the donor with that of the receiver is necessary.
• Antigens are classified as antigens A and B in our red blood cells.
• Landmark research on these was done by a medical doctor, Dr. Karl Landsteiner of University of Vienna in Austria. He defined three acceptable types of blood cells which he called as A, B and O blood types.
• Blood group A in India to be about 40%, blood group B between 25-35% and group O to be 40-50%.
• Primates (chimpanzee, gorilla, orangutan, gibbons) also have blood groups containing AB, A, B and O, just as we humans have. Indeed, we owe our blood types (A, B, O, AB), thanks to what our primate monkey ancestors had millions of years ago.

Who can donate blood to whom?

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 16th MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about Election Commission:

1. Indian Constitution provides for establishment of Election Commission as multi-member body.
2. CEC and ECs have equal powers and equal salary, allowances which are similar to a judge of a High Court.
3. Constitution has debarred CEC and ECs from any further appointment by government after their retirement.

Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 14TH OF MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

• Prior to creation of SCO in 2001, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.
• Shanghai Five (1996) emerged from a series of border demarcation and demilitarization talks that the four former Soviet republics held with China to ensure stability along the borders.
• Following the accession of Uzbekistan to the organisation in 2001, the Shanghai Five was renamed the SCO.
• Eurasian political, economic and military organisation aims to maintain peace, security and stability in region.
• India and Pakistan became members in 2017.
• 8 members: Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan
• Secretariat: Beijing
• Official languages: Russian and Chinese.
• The Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) is a permanent organ of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) which serves to promote cooperation of member states against the three evils of terrorism, separatism and extremism. Its headquarters are located in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. WORLD MIGRATORY BIRDS DAY

THE CONTEXT: Arctic migrants such as the Pacific Golden Plover and Curlew Sandpiper have seen major decline in numbers in the past three decades, potentially due to pronounced effects of climate change in the Arctic

THE EXPLANATION:

• Several migratory species that make transcontinental journeys from northern latitudes to avian hotspots in India are increasingly facing threats such as climate change and habitat loss.
• There has been a decline in the number of waterfowl as well as shorebirds visiting wetlands including Bharatpur in the last 20-25 years.
• Arctic migrants such as the Pacific Golden Plover and Curlew Sandpiper have seen major declines in the past three decades, potentially due to pronounced effects of climate change in the Arctic.
• The Pacific Golden Plover declined by almost 85-90 per cent in the last 25 years according to the State of India’s Birds report based on observations uploaded by birdwatchers to the online platform eBird. The Curlew Sandpiper has declined by 80 percent likely reasons for the decline of these two species are climate change and changes in their breeding areas.
• Everybody loves the sight of flocks of exotic birds making the most of the winter sun. But how many pause to think of how their lot really fare?The eve of World Migratory Bird Day is marked for raising awareness.

2. THE HIDDEN ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS OF INDIA’S DATA CENTRE PUSH

THE CONTEXT: Data centres are giant industrial collections of servers that store and process data underlying the modern information economy.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Data centres are a crucial element of modern information and communication technology industries. They are giant industrial collections of servers that store and process data underlying the modern information economy. The control of data centres offers economic benefits as well as the ability to achieve data sovereignty.
• The Indian data centre market is estimated to grow to $5 billion. In addition, India’s natural resources, connectivity to global markets and strategic location at the junction of multiple submarine cables offers private players good incentives to invest in data centres.
• Recognising this, the Government of India released a draft ‘National Data Centre Policy‘ in 2020. Several major states have also notified their respective data centre policies and others have signed MoUs with private players to develop data centres. This is how the installed data centre capacity of India is expected to double from 499 MW in 2021 to 1,008 MW by 2023.
• These policies however, ignore a very pertinent issue with data centres their environmental impact.
• Data centres affect the environment in two major ways: electricity consumption and water usage. They are online 24/7 and require power back-up and a captive power source, as well as a substantial volume of water to stay cool. They often have a deleterious impact on nearby watersheds along with emissions issues arising from the disposal of cooling water and waste heat.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

3. RBI OPENS BANKS CREDIT FOR NBFCS TO ON-LEND CONTINUOUSLY TO PRIORITY SECTOR

THE CONTEXT: Bank credit to NBFCs, including HFCs, will be allowed up to an overall limit of 5% of an individual banks total priority sector lending

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to allow banks to lend to NBFCs for on-lending to priority sectors on an on-going basis to ensure continuation of the synergies that have been developed between banks and NBFCs in delivering credit to the specified priority sectors. The same holds true for small finance banks who are on-lending to NBFC-MFIs. This facility was earlier allowed till March 31, 2022.
• Now, bank credit to NBFCs, including housing finance companies (HFCs), for on-lending to priority sectors will be allowed upto an overall limit of 5 per cent of an individual banks total priority sector lending. Similarly, small finance banks for on-lending to NBFC-MFIs and other MFIs, which are RBI recognised, will be allowed up to an overall limit of 10 per cent of an individual bank’s total priority sector lending.
• These limits shall be computed by averaging across four quarters of the financial year, to determine adherence to the prescribed cap.
• Small finance banks will be allowed to lend to registered NBFC-MFIs and other MFIs who have a gross loan portfolio of upto Rs 500 crore as of March 31 of the previous financial year.
• In case the gross loan portfolio of the NBFC-MFIs/other MFIs exceeds the stipulated limit at a later date, all priority sector loans created prior to exceeding the gross loan portfolio limit will continue to be classified by the small finance banks (SFBs) as priority sector lending till repayment/maturity, whichever is earlier.

4. INDIA BANS IMMEDIATE EXPORT OF WHEAT TO CONTROL RISING DOMESTIC PRICES

THE CONTEXT: The government has banned the export of wheat with immediate effect in a bid to control rising domestic prices

THE EXPLANATION:

• India is the second-largest producer of wheat in the world, with a share of around 14.14 per cent of the total production in 2020. The country produces around 107.59 million MT of wheat annually and a major chunk of it goes towards domestic consumption.
• The move comes after India’s retail inflation rose to an 8-year high of 7.79 per cent in April, “largely driven by rising fuel and food prices and staying well above the Reserve Bank of India’s upper tolerance limit for a fourth consecutive month”.
• This also comes days after India decided to send trade delegations to countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Turkey, Algeria and Lebanon to explore the possibility of boosting wheat exports.
• food inflation reached a multi-month high in March globally and was “expected to remain elevated due to higher vegetable and cooking oil prices” across the world.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. SCIENTISTS GROW PLANTS IN LUNAR DIRT, THE NEXT STOP MOON

THE CONTEXT: For the first time, scientists have grown plants in soil from the moon collected by NASA’s Apollo astronauts.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Researchers had no idea if anything would sprout in the harsh moon dirt and wanted to see if it could be used to grow food by the next generation of lunar explorers. The results stunned them.
• The longer the soil was exposed to punishing cosmic radiation and solar wind on the moon, the worse the plants seemed to do. The Apollo 11 samples — exposed a couple billion years longer to the elements because of the Sea of Tranquility’s older surface — were the least conducive for growth, according to scientists.
• This is a big step forward to know that you can grow plants, “The real next step is to go and do it on the surface of the moon.”

6. ISRO SUCCESSFULLY CARRIES OUT STATIC TEST OF GAGANYAAN ROCKET’S BOOSTER

THE CONTEXT: The Indian Space Research Organisation successfully completed the static test of a human-rated solid rocket booster (HS200) for the Gaganyaan programme at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Indian Space Research Organisation on Monday successfully completed the static test of a human-rated solid rocket booster (HS200) for the Gaganyaan programme at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
• The HS200 is the human-rated version of the S200 rocket booster of satellite launch vehicle GSLV Mk III, popularly known as LVM3.
• The S200 motor, which is the first stage of the LVM3 launch vehicle intended for launching a 4,000 kg class satellite to the geosynchronous transfer orbit, was configured as a strap-on rocket booster.
• Based on the successful launch pedigree of this launch vehicle including the Chandrayaan mission, the LVM3 has been identified as the launcher for the Gaganyaan mission.
• For the manned space mission, LVM3 launch vehicle underwent improvements stipulated by the requirements of human rating.
• The additional safety features for motor case joints, robust insulation and ignition systems. The control system used in this booster employs one of the world’s most powerful electro-mechanical actuators with multiple redundancies and safety features.
• The system is indigenously designed and developed by ISRO in participation with various industries spread across the country.
• The HS200 booster loaded with 203 tonnes of solid propellant was tested for a duration of 135 seconds. The 20-metre long and 3.2 m diameter booster is the world’s second-largest operational booster with solid propellant.
• With the successful completion of this test, ISRO marches one more step closer to Gaganyaan Programme.
• Out of the three propulsion stages of LVM3, the human-rated versions of the second-stage known as L110-G loaded with liquid propellant and the third stage C25-G with cryogenic propellant are in the final phase of qualification, including tests with static firing.
• Gaganyaan programme, the most prestigious scientific endeavour of India, is steadily progressing towards its final goal of taking an Indian to space and bringing him safely back.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 14th MAY 2022

Q1. Which of the following is not a member of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)?

1. Kazakhstan
2. Afghanistan
3. Tajikistan
4. Uzbekistan

 ANSWER FOR THE 13TH MAY

Answer: D

Explanation:

Please refer to the given map-

THE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

1. SECOND GLOBAL COVID VIRTUAL SUMMIT

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi participated in the Second Global COVID Virtual Summit on the invitation of the President of U.S.A. Prime Minister delivered his remarks in the Opening Session of the Summit on the theme ‘Preventing Pandemic Fatigue and Prioritizing Preparedness’.

EXPLANATION:

HIGHLIGHTS OF PM SPEECH

• India adopted a people centric strategy to combat the pandemic and has made the highest ever allocation for its health budget this year.
• India was running the largest vaccination campaign in the world and had vaccinated close to ninety percent of its adult population and more than fifty million children.
• As a responsible member of the global community, India would continue to play an active role by sharing its low cost indigenous COVID mitigation technologies, vaccines and therapeutics with other countries. India is working to extend its genomic surveillance consortium.
• India has used traditional medicine extensively and has laid the foundation for a WHO Center for Traditional Medicine in India to make this knowledge available to the world.
• Prime Minister also called for strengthening and reforming the WHO to create a stronger and more resilient global health security architecture.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. WHO CAN NOTIFY MINORITIES?

THE CONTEXT: A public interest litigation (PIL) under the consideration of the Supreme Court of India challenges the power of the Centre to notify minority communities at a national level.

THE EXPLANATION:

Who is a minority and who decides that?

• The PIL specifically questions the validity of Section 2(f) of the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions or NCMEI Act 2004, terming it arbitrary and contrary to Articles 14, 15, 21, 29 and 30 of the Constitution.
• Section 2(f) says “minority ,”for the purpose of this Act, means a community notified as such by the Central Government.” Section 2(c) of the of National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act, 1992 also gives the Centre similar powers.
• In 2005, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) at the Centre notified five communities — Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis — as minorities at the national level. In 2014, the Manmohan Singh government notified followers of Jainism as a minority community, making them the sixth on the national list.

How has the Centre responded?

• The Centre said it had the power to notify minority communities. In the first, the Centre categorically defended the concept of minorities at the national level.
• The Centre has not taken a position, one way or the other, about continuing the national list of minorities while it reiterated its power to notify communities as minorities under Central Acts.
• The Centre had pointed out that it had concurrent powers with States to take measures for the welfare of minorities. States could have minorities notified as such within their jurisdiction
• The Centre said the pleas made by the petitioner must be rejected

What next?

• The Centre has said it would come back to the apex court “after consideration of several sociological and other aspects.” It said “any stand without detailed deliberations with stakeholders may result in an unintended complication for the country.”

3. RAJIV KUMAR APPOINTED AS NEXT CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONER

THE CONTEXT: The Union Ministry of Law and Justice announced Rajiv Kumar, the current Election Commissioner, will take over as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) from May 15. Kumar will take charge from CEC Sushil Chandra, who is due to retire.

EXPLANATION:

• In pursuance of clause (2) of Article 324 of the Constitution, the President is pleased to appoint Shri Rajiv Kumar as the Chief Election Commissioner with effect from the 15th May, 2022. My best wishes to Shri Rajiv Kumar.
• Kumar took charge as the Election Commissioner of the Election Commission of India (ECI) on September 1, 2020.
• Prior to assuming charge in the Election Commission, Kumar had been the chairman of the Public Enterprises Selection Board. He joined as the PESB chairman in April 2020.
• Kumar, an officer of the 1984 batch of the Indian Administrative Service of the Bihar/Jharkhand cadre, superannuated from the IAS in February 2020.

ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA

• The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a self-governing constitutional body which oversees the election process in India as per the Constitution of India.
• The ECI was set up on January 25 1950, with the aim of defining and controlling the multi-tiered election process in our country.
• The Election Commission of India administers the election process from the President of India to the State Legislative Assembly.
• As per Article 324 of the Indian Constitution, ECI has the supervisory and directional control of the complete process election to Parliament and Legislature of every State and to the office of the President and the Vice-President of India.

 Structure

• The ECI consists of a Chief Election Commissioner and 2 other Election Commissioners. The multi-member ECI works on the power of the majority vote.

 Appointment & Tenure of Commissioners

• The Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioner are appointed by the President of India.
• Each of them holds their offices for a period of 6 years or up to the age of 65 years, whichever comes first.
• They receive the same perks and pay as Supreme Court Judges.
• The only way a Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office is upon an order of the President supported by the Parliament.
• The Election Commissioner or Regional Commissioner can only be removed from office by the Chief Election Commissioner.

 Functions of the Election Commission of India

• ECI is responsible for a free and reasonable election
• It ensures that political parties and candidates adhere to the Model Code of Conduct
• Regulates parties and registers them as per eligibility to contest in elections
• Proposes the limit of campaign expenditure per candidate to all parties and monitors the same.
• It is mandatory for all political parties to submit annual reports to the ECI in order to be able to claim the tax benefit on the contributions.
• Guarantees that all political parties regularly submit audited financial reports.

The main duties of the Election Commission are:

• Supervise, control and conduct all elections to Parliament and State Legislatures
• Set general rules for election.
• Prepare electoral rolls
• Determine the territorial distribution of constituencies
• Give credit to political parties.
• Allot election symbols to political parties or candidates
• Appoint tribunals for the decision of doubts and disputes arising out of an election to Parliament and State Legislatures.

CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONER

• The Chief Election Commissioner of India heads the Election Commission of India.
• The Chief Election Commissioner is the first among the equal of the tree member of election commission.
• The President of India appoints the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India who has a tenure of 6 years or up to 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• It is very difficult to remove the Chief Election Commissioner once appointed by the President of India, as two-thirds of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha members need to vote against CEC for disorderly conduct or improper actions.
• From the formation of the Election commission in 1950 till 1989, the Election Commission was a single-member body. Two additional commissioners were appointed by the President of India on 16 October 1989 but they had a very short tenure ending 1 January 1990.
• The Election Commissioner Amendment Act, 1989 made the Commission a multi-member body. The concept of a 3-member Commission has been in operation since then, with the decisions being made by a majority vote.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. RETAIL INFLATION QUICKENS TO AN ALMOST EIGHT-YEAR HIGH AT 7.8%

THE CONTEXT: The retail inflation rate galloped to a 95-month high in April at 7.8 per cent, paving the way for more policy rate hikes by the central bank even as factory output growth remained lacklustre at 1.9 per cent in March, signalling weak domestic demand.

EXPLANATION:

1. What is Retail Inflation?

• An inflation rate is indicative of the rise in prices of commodities in an economy. Retail inflation, specifically, is measured in consumer price index (CPI), which is a weighted average of prices of a basket of consumer goods and services. Therefore, retail inflation is also termed CPI-based inflation.
• The CPI is the change in retail prices of goods and services which households purchase for their daily consumption, such as food articles, fuel, and services such as transportation and health care, among others.
• The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is responsible for compiling this data, which is measured by the rate of change in CPI over a period of time.
• The Reserve Bank of India monitors this figure in view of sustaining a balance in commodity prices in the economy.

2. Trends in Retail Inflation

• According to the Monetary Policy Report for April 2021, the inflation rate should be sustained between 2 to 6 percent, with the ideal inflation rate being 4 percent till March 2026.
• Since January 2022, this percentage has witnessed a steady rise and remained above 6 percent.
• In April, the MoSPI calculated the retail inflation of March to be 6.95 percent, which was a 17-month high. The food inflation in February was 6.07 per cent and in January, when it first breached the RBI limit, the retail inflation was 6.01 per cent.
• A year ago in April 2021, the CPI-based inflation was well within the benchmarks set by the RBI – standing at 4.29 percent. This was an ease from the inflation rate during the same time in the previous year, 2020.

3. What’s the reason behind the rise?

• Inflation happened because of global factors like commodities (such as agricultural produce) price rise, energy price rise and interest rate hikes by the United States Federal Reserve, as well as supply side factors caused by COVID-induced lockdowns.
• The war in Ukraine has contributed significantly to the surging inflation.
• Ukraine is one of the major sunflower oil producers in the world and India imports a major portion of the commodity from the war-ravaged country.Besides, Ukraine is a key supplier of fertiliser to India.
• The Ukraine-Russia war has also caused disruptions in the supply chain.
• The Russia-Ukraine war and the lockdown in China have resulted in shortages of coal for power, shortages of semiconductor chips for industry (especially cars) and international shortages (food, oil, edible oil, construction materials).

4. Effects of inflation

• The very immediate effect of inflation is the reduction in people’s purchasing power. It is well understood that if items keep becoming more expensive, people won’t buy or choose to ration those purchases. This, in turn, will reduce overall demand.
• The common man is the worst sufferer of inflation, as he has to struggle with managing a household with limited purchasing abilities.
• High inflation rates will also worsen the exchange rate. High inflation means the rupee is losing its power and, if the RBI doesn’t raise interest rates fast enough, investors will increasingly stay away because of reduced returns.

5. FOREX RESERVES FALL BY $28.05 BILLION IN SEPTEMBER 2021-MARCH 2022 PERIOD: RBI REPORT

 THE CONTEXT: The country’s foreign exchange reserves declined by $28.05 billion to $607.31 billion at the end of March this year from $635.36 billion at the end of September 2021, according to an RBI report.

EXPLANATION:

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) publishes half-yearly reports on management of foreign exchange reserves as part of its efforts towards enhanced transparency and levels of disclosure.
• These reports are prepared every six months with reference to the position as on March and September-end each year. The present report, which is 38th in the series, is with reference to the position as on end-March 2022.
• Although both US dollar and Euro are intervention currencies and the Foreign Currency Assets (FCA) are maintained in major currencies, the foreign exchange reserves are denominated and expressed in US dollar terms.
• Movements in the FCA occur mainly on account of purchase and sale of foreign exchange by RBI, income arising out of the deployment of the foreign exchange reserves, external aid receipts of the central government and changes on account of revaluation of the assets.
• The net forward asset (receivable) of RBI in the domestic foreign exchange market stood at $65.79 billion at the end of March 2022.
• At the end of December 2021, foreign exchange reserves cover of imports (on balance of payments basis) declined to 13.1 months from 14.6 months at end-September 2021.
• In value terms ($), the share of gold in the total foreign exchange reserves increased from about 5.88 per cent as at end-September 2021 to about 7.01 per cent as at end-March 2022.
• As of end-March 2022, out of the total FCA of $540.72 billion, $363.03 billion was invested in securities, $140.54 billion was deposited with other central banks and BIS, and the balance $37.16 billion comprised deposits with commercial banks overseas.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. SCIENTISTS RELEASE THE FIRST IMAGE OF THE MILKY WAY’S SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE

THE CONTEXT: Over 300 scientists from across the globe have captured the image of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), the supermassive black hole sitting in the heart of the Milky Way galaxy about 27,000 light-years away from the Earth.

EXPLANATION:

• Sgr A*, which is about four million times the mass of our sun, is starving, scientists said. Supermassive black holes typically feed on dust and gas from their surroundings.
• It is like the black hole is eating one grain of rice every million years, Sara Issaoun, NASA Einstein Fellow at the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Boston, United States, said in a press briefing. She was a part of the international Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) group that imaged the black hole.
• The image produced is a strong proof of Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, which had predicted that a massive yet compact object occupying the centre of the galaxy, Preeti Kharb from the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.
• The image is thanks to eight radio telescopes located in remote corners of the world, which combined to form a single ‘Earth-sized’ virtual telescope called EHT.
• A thick cloud of gas and dust envelopes Sgr A*, preventing ordinary telescopes from viewing it. Radio telescopes, on the other hand, allow astronomers to observe the naturally occurring radio waves emitted from stars, planets, galaxies, clouds of dust and molecules of gas.
• The EHT observed our supermassive galaxy on multiple nights in 2017, collecting data for many hours in a row. The researchers collected 6,000 terabytes of data from this exercise.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 13th MAY 2022

Q. Which of the following country does not have a border with Baltic Sea?

1. Sweden
2. Finland
3. Denmark
4. Norway

 ANSWER FOR THE 12TH OF MAY

Answer: D

Explanation:

Under Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021, opinion Needed for Termination of Pregnancy:

• Opinion of one Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP) for termination of pregnancy up to 20 weeks of gestation.
• Opinion of two RMPs for termination of pregnancy of 20-24 weeks of gestation.
• Opinion of the State-level medical board is essential for a pregnancy to be terminated after 24 weeks in case of substantial foetal abnormalities.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. WHAT IS THE SEDITION LAW?

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court ON 11^th May directed the Centre and states to keep in abeyance all pending trials, appeals, and proceedings with respect to the charge framed under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which deals with the offence of sedition, till the central government completes the promised exercise to reconsider and re-examine the provision.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The central government had initially defended the colonial provision, but later told the apex court it was reviewing it.

What is the sedition law?

• Section 124A defines sedition as: “Whoever, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Government established by law shall be punished with im­prisonment for life, to which fine may be added…”
• The provision also contains three explanations: 1- The expression “disaffection” includes disloyalty and all feelings of enmity; 2- Comments expressing disapprobation of the meas­ures of the Government with a view to obtain their alteration by lawful means, without exciting or attempting to excite hatred, contempt or disaffection, do not constitute an offence under this section; 3- Comments expressing disapprobation of the admin­istrative or other action of the Government without exciting or attempting to excite hatred, contempt or disaffection, do not constitute an offence under this section.

What are the origins of the sedition law?

• Although Thomas Macaulay, who drafted the Indian Penal Code, had included the law on sedition, it was not added in the code enacted in 1860. Legal experts believe this omission was accidental. In 1890, sedition was included as an offence under section 124A IPC through the Special Act XVII.
• The punishment prescribed then, transportation “beyond the seas for the term of his or her natural life”, was amended to life imprisonment in 1955.
• The provision was extensively used to curb political dissent during the Independence movement. Several pre-independence cases involving Section 124A of the IPC are against celebrated freedom fighters, including Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Annie Besant, Shaukat and Mohammad Ali, Maulana Azad and Mahatma Gandhi. It is during this time that the most notable trial on sedition — Queen Empress v. Bal Gangadhar Tilak — took place in 1898.
• The Constituent Assembly debated including sedition as an exception to the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression, guaranteed in the Constitution, but several members vehemently disagreed and the word is not included in the document.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

2. SHALLOW AND DEEP ECOLOGISM

THE CONTEXT: Heat waves are known to have been a reality for hundreds of years. But the long-term effects of climate change have exacerbated them, making the waves more extreme, frequent and prolonged. As India continues to grapple with the unrelenting waves, it becomes pertinent to unpack two strands of environmental philosophy that reinvent the relationship between nature and humans — shallow and deep ecologism.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The concepts emerged in the 1970s, when Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess sought to look beyond the popular pollution and conservation movements of his milieu to address environmental degradation.
• In his study of ecological concerns, Naess is more preoccupied with the role of the individual in nature. He believes that owing to increased anthropocentrism, humans have cut themselves off from nature, viewing nature and themselves as competing entities and establishing a master-slave dynamic.
• By placing humans at the heart of the environmental crisis, Naess outlines the difference between the two styles of ecologism. He terms the powerful and fashionable fight against pollution and resource depletion as shallow ecologism or environmentalism.
• Exponents of this philosophy believe in continuing our present lifestyle, but with specific tweaks aimed at minimizing the damage to the environment. Also referred to as weak ecologism, it may include the use of vehicles that cause less pollution or air conditioners that do not release chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).
• This branch of ecologism primarily serves to maintain the lifestyle of those dwelling in developed countries.
• Deep ecologism believes that humans should radically change their relationship with nature. Its proponents reject shallow ecologism for prioritising humans above other forms of life, and subsequently preserving the environmentally destructive way of life in modern societies.
• Deep ecologism maintains that by sustaining this lifestyle, shallow ecologism further widens the inequalities between countries.
• A narrow focus on pollution and conservation movements is counterproductive. A holistic perspective to environmental crisis is one that acknowledges regional differences and the disparities between under and over-developed nations.

3. WMO REPORT: BELOW NORMAL MERCURY IN INDIA FROM 2022 TO ’26

THE CONTEXT: In the latest Global Annual to Decadal Climate Update, the 2022 will be cooler (compared to the 1991 – 2020 average) over India, along with Alaska and Canada: WMO

THE EXPLANATION:

• In a rare trend, India could be among the few regions globally where below normal temperatures have been predicted for this year and the next four years, the decadal climate outlook report issued by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) has stated.
• In the latest Global Annual to Decadal Climate Update, the WMO said that 2022 will be cooler (compared to the 1991 – 2020 average) over India, along with Alaska and Canada.
• One of the primary reasons for lowering of temperatures over India from next year is the possible increase in rainfall activity in this decade.
• In April this year, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had said that the Indian monsoon will soon enter the positive epoch after remaining under a negative epoch since 1971.
• The future trend suggests that the decadal mean value will be close to near normal during 2021 to 2030. It will then turn positive, meaning that the decade 2031-2040 will be the beginning of a wet epoch.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. RUPEE FELL ON SPILLOVER EFFECTS OF STRONG DOLLAR

THE CONTEXT: The rupee’s fall to all-time lows and the decline in India’s forex reserves is not driven by capital outflows, but the spillover effects of a stronger U.S. dollar.

THE EXPLANATION: The RBI had been intervening in the forex markets since 9 May, the idea was not to hold or aim to keep the rupee at a certain level but to prevent ‘jerky’ moves, an official aware of the rationale for the interventions pointed out.

• There is no fixation about any particular value… it’s not as if there is an attempt to resist levels being breached, but they should not be jerky movements, adding that the interventions had helped the currency appreciate to 77.25 to a dollar on Wednesday, from Monday’s record low of 77.46.
• Dismissing speculation that the forex reserves had fallen below $600 billion due to such market interventions, the official said the scale of interventions were not that large and the dip was mainly attributable to valuation losses in forex holdings in non-dollar currencies as the dollar was appreciating against advanced economy currencies as well.
• There are adequate reserves to fund 18 months of imports, FDI levels are as high as last year and foreign institutional investors are making a beeline for Indian debt now.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY DAY

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister of India on 11 May paid tribute to India’s scientists and their efforts behind the successful nuclear tests in 1998 on the occasion of National Technology Day.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The day is observed to mark the successful nuclear tests in Pokhran.
• India conducted Pokhran-II tests, a series of five nuclear explosions, in May 1998 at the Indian Army’s Pokhran Test Range in Rajasthan. National Technology Day is observed every year on May 11 as a reminder of the anniversary of the Pokhran-II tests.
• National Technology Day is celebrated with a new and different theme every year. This year’s theme is ‘Integrated Approach in Science and Technology for a Sustainable Future’.

THE MISCELLANEOUS

6. INDIA ELECTED AS CHAIR OF ASSOCIATION OF ASIAN ELECTION AUTHORITIES FOR 2022-24

THE CONTEXT: India has been unanimously elected as the new Chair of the Association of Asian Election Authorities (AAEA) for 2022-2024.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India was elected at the recently held meeting of the executive board and general assembly at Manila, the Philippines on May 7.
• Commission on Elections, Manila was the current chair of AAEA.
• The new members in the executive board now include Russia, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Taiwan and the Philippines.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 12th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements about provisions under Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021:

1. Opinion of one Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP) for termination of pregnancy up to 24 weeks of gestation.
2. Opinion of two RMPs for termination of pregnancy of 24-28 weeks of gestation.
3. Opinion of the State-level medical board is essential for a pregnancy to be terminated after 28 weeks in case of substantial foetal abnormalities.

Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 11TH OF MAY

Answer: A

Explanation:

• African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious and deadly viral disease affecting both domestic and feral swine of all ages.
• It was first detected in Africa in the 1920s.
• ASF is not a threat to human health and cannot be transmitted from pigs to humans.
• It is not a food safety issue.
• ASF is found in countries around the world.
• The disease was first reported in November-December 2019 from the areas of China bordering Arunachal Pradesh.

THE HEALTH AND SOCIAL ISSUES

1. MEGHALAYA HIT BY AFRICAN SWINE FEVER

THE CONTEXT: At least 259 pigs have died in Meghalaya’s Ri-Bhoi district this year due to African Swine Fever with 45 pigs dying on May 8 alone

THE EXPLANATION:

• African swine fever (ASF) is a highly contagious and deadly viral disease affecting both domestic and feral swine of all ages.
• It was first detected in Africa in the 1920s.
• ASF is not a threat to human health and cannot be transmitted from pigs to humans.
• It is not a food safety issue.
• ASF is found in countries around the world.
• The disease was first reported in November-December 2019 from the areas of China bordering Arunachal Pradesh.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. COMMITTEE ON CRIMINAL LAW REFORMS RECOMMENDED AMENDMENTS TO SEDITION LAW

THE CONTEXT: A panel of experts constituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to suggest reforms to the British-era Indian Penal Code (IPC) has recommended amendments to the sedition law.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Committee for Reforms in Criminal Laws appointed by the MHA in 2020 submitted an exhaustive report in March, which among other IPC sections also examined Section 124-A IPC or sedition.
• There were two school of thoughts – either completely withdraw the law or amend the particular section.
• The panel was largely of the view that if sedition could be dropped and included as a sub-set in a wider range of crimes committed against the State. A person cannot be made to languish in jail for writing a newspaper article. It has to be seen if that article led to serious law and order problems, mere presumption is not sufficient.
• A questionnaire sent by the committee for public consultation in 2020 had under a category called the “Offences Against the State,” asked “Does the offence of sedition under Section 124-A require omission or any amendment in terms of its definition, scope and cognisability?”
• Other than IPC, the committee also examined and has recommended changes to the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and the Evidence Act, 1872.
• Simply criticising the State should not be enough to invoke sedition, let there be a guilty mind – whether such act wanted to disturbance? The term sedition is colonial. When there is no king, how can a provision meant to protect the king be there?
• The committee largely concluded that sedition can be amended and included in the category of crimes committed against the State to protect its sovereignty, integrity and security.
• According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), as many as 356 cases of sedition were registered in the country between the years 2015 and 2020 in which 548 persons were arrested. Only 62 cases went to trial, there were acquittals in 55 cases and only 12 persons in seven cases were convicted during the period.
• In 2019, as many as 96 persons were arrested for sedition but only two were convicted and 29 persons were acquitted. Of the 93 cases of sedition registered in 2019, charge sheet was filed in only 40 cases.
• On May 9, MHA filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court informed the apex court of its decision to “re-examine” and “re-consider” the sedition law in the background of Prime Minister’s belief that the nation should work harder to shed “colonial baggage”, including outdated laws, while celebrating 75 years of Independence under the banner of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• The maximum punishment for the crime is life imprisonment.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. THE GRIM FOREWARNINGS OF A GLOBAL STUDY ON BIRDS

THE CONTEXT: The State of the World’s Birds, an annual review of environmental resources published on May 5 by nine natural sciences and avian specialists across the globe, has revealed that the population of 48% of the 10,994 surviving species of birds is declining.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The study found that 5,245 or about 48% of the existing bird species worldwide are known or suspected to be undergoing population declines.
• While 4,295 or 39% of the species have stable trends, about 7% or 778 species have increasing population trends.
• The trend of 37 species was unknown.
• Birds are a truly global taxon, with one or more species occupying all habitats across the earth’s terrestrial surface including urban environments with no natural analogues.
• Birds contribute toward many ecosystem services that either directly or indirectly benefit humanity. These include provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting services.
• The functional role of birds within ecosystems as pollinators, seed-dispersers, ecosystem engineers, scavengers and predators not only facilitate accrual and maintenance of biodiversity but also support human endeavours such as sustainable agriculture via pest control besides aiding other animals to multiply.
• The study lists eight factors, topped by land cover and land-use change. The continued growth of human populations and of per capita rates of consumption lead directly to conversion and degradation of primary natural habitats and consequent loss of biodiversity.
• Although global tree cover increased between 1982 and 2016, including by 95,000 sq. km in the tropical dry forest biome and by 84,000 sq. km in the tropical moist deciduous forest biome, this has been driven by afforestation with plantations (often of non-native species) plus land abandonment in parts of the global North, with net loss in the tropics.
• The other factors are habitat fragmentation and degradation, especially in the tropics.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. INSOLVENCY AND BANKRUPTCY CODE(IBC) SHRINK TO 33%

 THE CONTEXT: Recoveries by financial creditors under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) have dropped significantly in the past two years owing to the pandemic, resulting in larger haircuts for them.

THE EXPLANATION:

• As of March 2022, financial creditors have recovered 33 per cent of the amount admitted as claims.
• It was 39.3 per cent as of March 2021, and as high as 46 per cent till March 2020, according to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) data. Further, on a quarterly basis, realisation by financial creditors as a percentage of their admitted claims in Q4FY22 dropped to as low as 10 per cent.
• In the preceding quarter (Q3FY22), it stood at 13 per cent. However, in the first two quarters of FY22 (Q1 and Q2), the rate was 25 per cent and 49 per cent, respectively.
• In Q4, the amount realised by financial creditors dropped below the liquidation value of assets. “The haircut for cases resolved in Q4FY22 was high at 90 per cent. The overall haircut scenario is not very encouraging.
• Some of the weaker assets where there are incomplete projects or sectors which are seeing very poor demand from buyers, the realization values have started to come down.
• The number of new cases admitted under the insolvency process has also gone down in FY22, with only 834 cases admitted as against 2,000 cases in FY20.
• Experts reckon the pandemic-induced slowdown in the economy and delays in the resolution process are the root cause behind the drop in realisation. Having said that, recovery under the IBC is still far higher than other measures.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. WHAT IS A ‘MARSQUAKE’, AND WHAT CAUSES IT?

 THE CONTEXT: On May 4, NASA’s InSight lander detected a quake on Mars, the largest ever observed on another planet.

THE EXPLANATION:

• NASA has reported that on May 4, its InSight Mars lander detected the largest quake ever observed on another planet.
• The rover first landed on Mars in November 2018, and has since heard 1,313 quakes.
• The largest previously recorded “marsquake” was detected in August 2021.

What are marsquakes, and why do they happen?

On Earth, quakes are caused by shifts in tectonic plates. Mars, however, does not have tectonic plates, and its crust is a giant plate. Therefore, NASA notes, ‘marsquakes’ are caused due to stresses that cause rock fractures or faults in its crust.

What is InSight doing on Mars?

• InSight is not looking for life on Mars, but is studying what Mars is made of, how its material is layered, and how much heat seeps out of it.
• This is important because Earth and Mars used to be similar — warm, wet and shrouded in thick atmospheres — before they took different paths 3-4 billion years ago. Mars stopped changing, while Earth continued to evolve.
• With InSight, scientists hope to compare Earth and Mars, and better understand how a planet’s starting materials make it more or less likely to support life.
• There are other missions to Mars that are looking for life on the planet, which makes Insight’s mandate unique. It mostly boils down to the possibility that the atmosphere of Mars was once warm enough to allow water to flow through its surface, which could mean life existed there too.
• In fact, what makes scientists curious about Mars is the “defining question” of the existence of life on the planet, because of the possible presence of liquid water on it, either in the past or preserved in its subsurface.
• This question makes the planet more intriguing for scientists since “almost everywhere we find water on Earth, we find life.
• If Mars harboured a warmer atmosphere enabling water to flow in its ancient past (3.5-3.8 billion years ago), and if microbial life existed on it, it is possible that it exists in “special regions” even today.
• But regardless of life having existed on Mars or not, there is the idea that humans themselves might be able to inhabit the planet one day.
• Some missions studying the possibility of life on Mars include UAE’s Hope, China’s Tianwen-1, and NASA’s Perseverance.

THE INTERNAL SECURITY

                   6. SURVIVING SOLDIERS OF ‘OPERATION DUDHI’ FETED

THE CONTEXT: Back in 1991, the Assam Rifles had eliminated 72 militants in a single counter-insurgency operation in Jammu & Kashmir and the force on Monday felicitated the surviving heroes.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Assam Rifles battalions are well-known for their valour and self-sacrifice but the story of Operation Dudhi is the most inspiring. It will remain etched in the annals of Assam Rifles’ history.
• The operation, undertaken by the battalion during its tenure in Jammu & Kashmir from 1990 to 1992, remains the most successful counter-insurgency operation conducted by any security force to date. Not only the battalion had eliminated 72 militants but it also apprehended 13 others in that operation.
• Conducted on May 3, 1991, Operation Dudhi was undertaken by a column comprising a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and 14 other ranks under the command of Naib Subedar Padam Bahadur Chhetri. The column had moved from Battalion Headquarters, Chowkibal, for a routine patrol to check the winter vacated post of Dudhi, with the staging camp established at Bari Baihk.
• Located about 13 km away from the battalion headquarters, the camp was covered with five to six feet of snow.

THE MISCELLANEOUS

7. A HISTORY OF THE PULITZER PRIZE

THE CONTEXT: A team of four Indian photographers from Reuters news agency — slain photojournalist Danish Siddiqui, Adnan Abidi, Sanna Irshad Mattoo and Amit Dave — have won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for feature photography for their coverage of the Covid-19 crisis in India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A member of the Ghadar Party in America, Indian American journalist Gobind Behari Lal, was the first from India to win the Pulitzer Prize for journalism in 1937.
• He won the award for reporting with four others, for their coverage of science at the tercentenary of Harvard University. A postgraduate from University of California, Berkeley, he also received the Padma Bhushan in 1969.
• The latter also won in the the 2020 Pulitzer in the Breaking News Photography category as part of the team from Reuters that covered the 2019-20 Hong Kong protests.
• In 2020, Channi Anand, Mukhtar Khan and Dar Yasin of Associated Press won the Pulitzer in the Feature Photography category “for striking images captured during a communications blackout in Kashmir depicting life in the contested territory as India stripped it of its semi-autonomy,”

Who was Joseph Pulitzer, after whom the awards are named?

• Born to a wealthy family of Magyar-Jewish origin in Mako, Hungary, in 1847, Joseph Pulitzer had a stint in the military before he built a reputation of being a “tireless journalist”.
• In the late 1860s he joined the German-language daily newspaper Westliche Post, and by 25 he had become a publisher. In 1978, he became the owner of St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Under him, the paper published several “investigative articles and editorials assailing government corruption, wealthy tax-dodgers, and gamblers”.
• In 1883, he also negotiated the purchase of The New York World, which was in financial straits, and elevated its circulation.
• In 1884, he was elected to the US House of Representatives from New York’s ninth district as a Democrat and entered office on March 4, 1885. During his tenure, he led a movement to place the newly gifted Statue of Liberty in New York City.

When were the Pulitzer awards instituted?

• The awards were instituted according to Pulitzer’s will, framed in 1904, where he made a provision for the establishment of the Pulitzer Prizes as an incentive to excellence.
• Pulitzer specified solely four awards in journalism, four in letters and drama, one for education, and five travelling scholarships.
• In his will, Pulitzer bestowed an endowment on Columbia of $2,000,000 for the establishment of a School of Journalism, one-fourth of which was to be “applied to prizes or scholarships for the encouragement of public service, public morals, American literature, and the advancement of education.After his death in 1911, the first Pulitzer Prizes were awarded in June, 1917.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 11th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements about African swine fever (ASF):

1. It was first detected in Africa in the 1920s.
2. ASF is a threat to human health and can be transmitted from pigs to humans.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE 10TH OF MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Cyclone ’Asani’ originated in May 2022 in Bay of Bengal.
• Name of the cyclone was given by Sri Lanka. It means ‘wrath’ in Sinhalese language.
• It did not make landfall, rather it weakened in Bay of Bengal.

THE ART AND CULTURE

1. MARTAND SUN TEMPLE

THE CONTEXT: The Sun Temple Martand in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag saw a flurry of activity on May 7 as over a hundred devotees thronged the premises to observe Shankara Jayanti (the birth anniversary of Adi Shankaracharya). This was celebrated for the first time since the temple was declared a “site of national importance” by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

THE EXPLANATION:

• The temple is said to have been built in the 8th century, but attempts were made to destroy it several times between 1389 and 1413.
• It is believed that Hindu ruler Lalitaditya had built the Martand Surya Temple in honor of the Sun God or Bhaskar in the 8th century AD.
• Lalitaditya was a Surya (Sun) Dynasty Kshatriya. The temple’s style of construction and the expertise displayed in it was unprecedented in world history.
• The Vastu science of architecture has been employed, and the building is designed so that the Sun’s rays fall on the Surya idol throughout the day.
• Though the cities, towns, and ruins of Lalitaditya’s era are not easily located, the remnants of the large Martand temple, which the emperor had built at the pilgrimage site of the same name, are an example of the expertise of the Kashmiri Hindu builders of ancient times.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. PMJJBY, PMSBY & APY COMPLETE SEVEN YEARS OF PROVIDING SOCIAL SECURITY NET

THE CONTEXT: Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMSBY), and Atal Pension Yojana (APY) on Monday complete seven years of providing social security net.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The schemes were launched by Prime Minister on 9th May 2015 in Kolkata, West Bengal. These schemes have been successful in providing affordable insurance and security to people.
• These three social security schemes are dedicated to the welfare of the citizens, recognizing the need for securing human life from unforeseen risks or losses and financial uncertainties.
• In order to ensure that the people from the unorganized section of the country are financially secure, the Government launched two insurance schemes – Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana and introduced Atal Pension Yojana to cover the exigencies in the old age.
• While the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana provide access to low-cost life or accidental insurance cover to the people, the Atal Pension Yojana provides an opportunity for saving in the present to get a regular pension in old age.
• As of 27th of last month, the cumulative enrolments under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana have been more than 12.76 crore and an amount of 11 thousand 522 crore has been paid for over 5 lakh 76 thousand claims.
• The cumulative enrolments under the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana have been more than 28.37 crore and an amount of one thousand 930 crore rupees has been paid for over 97 thousand claims. More than 4 crore individuals have subscribed to Atal Pension Yojana.

3. UNION GOVT REVISES ITS OWN STAND ON MINORITY STATUS FOR HINDUS

THE CONTEXT: The Ministry of Minority Affairs has superseded its earlier affidavit and claimed that the Union government has the power to notify minorities, not states, but that wide consultations are needed.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Union government has superseded its own affidavit to the Supreme Court in which it said that states had the ability to take a call on conferring minority status to any religious or linguistic community, including Hindus.
• In a fresh affidavit filed through the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs on Monday, May 9, it has claimed that the Union government has the power to notify minorities.
• However, it adds that a decision in this regard can only be taken by the Union government after “wide consultations with state governments and other stakeholders” to avoid “unintended complications in the future.”
• The government had filed the earlier affidavit after the Supreme Court sought its response in a plea that sought directions for framing of guidelines identifying minorities at the state level. The plea contended that Hindus are in a ‘minority’ in six states and three Union Territories of India but were allegedly not able to avail themselves of the benefits of schemes meant for minorities.
• The Ministry of Minority Affairs had said: “It is submitted that the State governments can also declare a religious or linguistic community as a minority community within the said state.”
• For instance, the Maharashtra government has notified ‘Jews’ as a minority community within the state. Moreover, the Karnataka government has notified Urdu, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi, Tulu, Lamani, Hindi, Konkani and Gujarati languages as minority languages within the state of Karnataka,”.
• Minority status is sought for Hinduism, Bahaism and Judaism in states like Mizoram, Kashmir, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur and Union Territories of Ladakh and Lakshadweep.
• The apex court had earlier allowed a plea seeking transfer of cases from several high courts to it against the Union government’s notification to declare five communities – Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Parsis – as minorities and tagged the matter with the main petition.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. CYCLONE ASANI HITS PARTS OF BENGAL

THE CONTEXT: According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD)Cyclone Asani has intensified into a ‘severe cyclone’.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Severe cyclonic storm Asani is over west-central region and adjoining southwest region of the Bay of Bengal. The department earlier said it was about 590km southwest of Puri and about 510km south-southwest of Gopalpur in Odisha.
• Though it is unlikely to make landfall, the weather agency said it would pass through coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh-Odisha in the next two days.
• The name Cyclone Asani has been given by Sri Lanka. It means ‘wrath’ in Sinhalese.
• Cyclones that Hit India in 2020-21: Tauktae, Yaas, Nisarga, Amphan.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. UK INDIA INDUSTRY TASK FORCE

THE CONTEXT: A new UK India Industry Task force, a joint commission to increase cross-industry collaboration and push the UK-India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) over the line, was launched on 9^th May.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) have created the new task force as part of a memorandum of understanding to provide a “critical forum” for discussion to ensure the FTA works to the benefit of businesses in both countries.
• The joint commission is designed to provide oversight and meet ahead of key milestones to reflect views on trade-offs, breakdown barriers to market access and help feed in on-the-ground business intelligence at a ministerial level in India and the UK.
• “A free trade agreement with the world’s fastest growing economy is now within touching distance, and to clinch that deal a focus on lowering barriers to trade is now essential.
• For example, on renewables, we have an opportunity to export UK’s expertise in clean tech. A deal has the potential to drastically lower tariffs on wind turbines parts that are currently as high as 15 per cent.
• The negotiating teams have since completed the third round of talks in New Delhi, with a focus on reducing the barriers to trade, cutting tariffs, and supporting firms to export.
• According to the CBI, reducing tariffs on green exports such as solar, onshore, and offshore wind, could open up new opportunities for companies in India, with an FTA with India expected to nearly double UK exports to India.
• A trade deal is also expected to boost Britain’s total trade by as much as 28 billion pounds (USD 34 billion) a year by 2035 and increase wages across the UK regions by 3 billion pounds (USD 3.6 billion), according to industry estimates.
• This partnership is an opportunity to address shared concerns, identify common interests and foster greater understanding and to develop capacity to address the issues of economic and global concerns.
• The collaboration between CII and CBI will cover joint efforts in specific areas such as advancing technology and digitalisation, climate change and sustainability, multilateral collaboration, alignment on FTA and education.
• Between them, the two industry organisations say they represent over 300,000 businesses of all sizes across both countries.

6. PROCUREMENT OF WHEAT IS SET TO HIT A 15-YEAR LOW THIS SEASON

THE CONTEXT: From an all-time high last year, procurement of wheat is set to hit a 15-year low this season, falling below existing stocks for the first time.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 18.5 million tonnes (mt) likely procurement this time — farmers mostly sell from April to mid-May, although government wheat purchases technically extends until June and the marketing season until the following March — will be the lowest since the 11.1 mt bought in 2007-08.
• Moreover, this would be the first time that wheat procured from the new crop (18.5 mt) is less than the public stocks at the start of the marketing season (19 mt). As the table shows, fresh procurement has always exceeded the opening balance stocks. It was so even during the previous two low procurement years of 2006-07 and 2007-08.
• This year would be an exception and in sharp contrast to 2021-22, which had unprecedented levels of both opening stocks (27.3 mt) and procurement (43.3 mt).

WHY HAS IT FALLEN?

There are two main reasons for procurement plunging to a 15-year-low this time.

• The first is export demand.
• In 2021-22, India exported a record 7.8 mt of wheat. Supply disruptions from the Russia-Ukraine war – the two countries account for over 28% of global wheat exports – have led to skyrocketing prices and a further increase in demand for Indian grain.
• Indian wheat getting exported at about $350 or Rs 27,000 per tonne free-on-board (i.e. at the point of shipping), farmers are realising well above the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 20,150/tonne at which government is procuring.
• This is even after deducting various costs – from bagging and loading at the purchase point, to transport and handling at the port. These would add up to Rs 4,500-6,000 per tonne, depending on the distance from the wholesale mandi to the port.

• The second reason is lower production.In mid-February, the Union Agriculture Ministry estimated the size of India’s 2021-22 crop (marketed during 2022-23) at 111.32 mt, surpassing even the previous year’s high of 109.59 mt. But the sudden spike in temperatures from the second half of March — when the crop was in grain-filling stage, with the kernels still accumulating starch, protein and other dry matter — has taken a toll on yields.
• In most wheat-growing areas — barring Madhya Pradesh, where the crop is harvest-ready by mid-March — farmers have reported a 15-20% decline in per-acre yields.
• A smaller crop, in combination with export demand, has resulted in open market prices of wheat crossing the MSP in many parts of India.
• The shorter the distance to the ports, the higher the premium that exporter/traders have paid over the MSP.
• Even in Punjab and Haryana — where the state governments charge up to 6% market levies, compared to 0.5-1.6% in MP, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan — flour millers have paid farmers Rs 50-100 above the MSP of Rs 20,150 per tonne.
• Traders and millers aren’t the only ones stocking up in anticipation of prices going up further. Many farmers, especially the more entrepreneurial/better-off sections among them, are also holding back their crop.
• Such “hoarding” by farmers was seen in the recent past in soyabean and cotton, too, again driven by soaring international prices.

IMPLICATIONS:

• With opening stocks of 19 mt and expected procurement of 18.5 mt, government agencies would have 37.5 mt of wheat available for 2022-23. Not all this, however, can be sold, as a minimum operational stock-cum-strategic reserve has to be maintained.
• The normative buffer or closing stock requirement for March 31 is 7.5 mt. Providing for that will leave 30 mt available for sale from government godowns this fiscal.
• That quantity should suffice for the public distribution system, midday meals and other regular welfare schemes, whose annual wheat requirement is around 26 mt. But the last two years have also witnessed substantial off take under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana scheme (10.3 mt in 2020-21 and 19.9 mt in 2021-22) and open market sales to flour mills (2.5 mt and 7.1 mt, respectively).
• There’s clearly not enough wheat for these, which explains the Centre’s recent decision to slash allocation under the PMGKAY from 10.9 mt to 5.4 mt for April-September 2022. Meeting even this requirement may not be easy, leave alone supplying to millers and other bulk consumers to moderate open market prices during the lean months after October.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. WHY SOUTH AFRICA’S FIFTH COVID WAVE IS DIFFERENT

THE CONTEXT: South Africa has entered the fifth wave but it’s very different to omicron BA.1

THE EXPLANATION:

• Those who are unvaccinated and whose only protection is from a previous infection of the original omicron variant are susceptible to the BA.4 and BA.5.
• 4 and BA.5 can easily break the immunity that was conferred by the earlier omicron variants such as BA.1 and BA.2.
• There is an evolutionary progression in variants as we go from BA.1 to BA.2 through to BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1 all the way to BA.4 and BA.5. Some people have observed that these sub-variants have become more infectious whilst the disease remains relatively mild.
• Many of the people who get infected by BA.4 and BA.5 remain asymptomatic but when there are symptoms, they are very mild.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 10th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements:

1. Cyclone ‘Asani’ originated in May 2022 in Bay of Bengal.
2. Name of the cyclone was given by Sri Lanka.
3. It made landfall along the coast of Odisha state.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

 ANSWER FOR THE 8 & 9TH MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

1. Rakhigarhi– Haryana
2. Dholavira – Gujarat
3. Alamgir– Uttar Pradesh

THE ART AND CULTURE

1. DNA SAMPLES FROM RAKHIGARHI BURIAL PITS SENT FOR ANALYSIS

THE CONTEXT: DNA samples collected from two human skeletons unearthed at a necropolis of a Harappan-era city site in Haryana have been sent for scientific examination, the outcome of which might tell about the ancestry and food habits of people who lived in the Rakhigarhi region thousands of years ago.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The skeletons of two women were found a couple of months ago at mound number 7 (named RGR 7 by the Archaeological Survey of India or (ASI), believed to be nearly 5,000 years old. Pots and other artefacts were also found buried next to them in a pit, part of the funerary rituals back in the Harappan Civilisation era.
• “Seven mounds (RGR 1-RGR 7) scattered around two villages (Rakhi Khas and Rakhi Shahpur) in Hisar district are part of the Rakhigarhi archaeological site. RGR 7 is a cemetery site of the Harappan period when this was a well-organised city. At present RGR 1, RGR 3 and RGR 7 have been taken up for investigation.
• The Rakhigarhi site, about 150 km north-west of Delhi, since it commenced on February 24, 2022, said the DNA analysis will help answer a lot of questions, anthropological or otherwise.
• “The outcome of the DNA analysis will help tell about the ancestry of the people who lived at this ancient city, whether they were native or had migrated from elsewhere to settle. Besides, samples taken from the teeth area would tell about their food habits, what kind of food they consumed and other anthropological patterns related to that human settlement which must have been one of the largest, dating from the Harappan Civilisation period.
• For the collection of DNA samples, experts had done it while wearing special uniform so as to not contaminate the samples. And samples were taken from the teeth region and petrous part of the temporal bone, located at the base of the skull in the ear region.
• The Rakhigarhi site is one of the “five iconic sites” declared by the Central government in the Union budget 2020-21.The cultural span of the Harappan Civilisation can be broadly subdivided into three periods — early (3300 BC to 2600 BC), mature (2600 BC to 1900 BC), and late (1900 BC to 1700 BC), according to archaeological experts.
• Five major urban sites — Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Ganweriwala, all three sites now in Pakistan, and Rakhigarhi and Dholavira in India — have been identified as regional centres of the Harappan Civilisation.
• Archaeological evidence from the Rakhigarhi site spanning seven mounds is spread across nearly 350 hectares, covering at the present villages of Rakhi Khas and Rakhi Shahpur in Hisar, according to the ASI.
• The Rakhigarhi site, “layers of history”, ranging from the early Harappan to the mature Harappan period can be seen, but compared to the previous excavation, where town planning contours had emerged, in the current excavation, “detailed town planning patterns, street designs, including provision for soak pits” as part of a possible drainage system can be seen.
• ASI officials are banking on the analysis of DNA samples to further unearth the fascinating story of Rakhigarhi, located in the Ghaggar river plain of the seasonal Ghaggar river.
• The two skeletons were found lying in a supine position with head pointing in the north direction. They were both buried with a plethora of pottery and adorned jewellery like jasper and agate beads and shell bangles. A symbolic miniature copper mirror was found buried along with one of the skeletons.
• Animal bones were also found at the site.
• First attempts to archaeologically explore the Rakhigarhi site are said to have been done in the late 1960s.

2. THE SOCIAL ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: A recent World Bank Report has shown that extreme poverty in India more than halved between 2011 and 2019 – from 22.5 per cent to 10.2 per cent. The reduction was higher in rural areas, from 26.3 per cent to 11.6 per cent. The rate of poverty decline between 2015 and 2019 was faster compared to 2011-2015.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Poverty has reduced significantly because of the current government’s thrust on improving the ease of living of ordinary Indians through schemes such as the Ujjwala Yojana, PM Awas Yojana, Swachh Bharat Mission, Jan Dhan and Mission Indradhanush in addition to the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihood Mission and improved coverage under the National Food Security Act.
• While debates on the World Bank’s methodology continue to rage, it is important to understand how poverty in rural areas was reduced at a faster pace. Much of the success can be credited to all government departments, especially their janbhagidari-based thrust on pro-poor public welfare that ensured social support for the endeavour. It will nevertheless be useful to delineate the key factors that contributed to the success.
• First, the identification of deprived households on the basis of the Socioeconomic and Caste Census (SECC) 2011 across welfare programmes helped in creating a constituency for the well-being of the poor, irrespective of caste, creed or religion. The much-delayed SECC 2011 data was released in July 2015. This was critical in accomplishing the objectives of “SabkaSaath, Sabka Vikas”.
• Since deprivation was the key criterion in identifying beneficiaries, SC and ST communities got higher coverage and the erstwhile backward regions in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Rajasthan and rural Maharashtra got a larger share of the benefits. This was a game-changer in the efforts to ensure balanced development, socially as well as across regions.
• Social groups that often used to be left out of government programmes were included and gram sabha validation was taken to ensure that the project reached these groups.
• Second, the coverage of women under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana and Self Help Groups (SHG) increased from 2.5 crore in 2014 to over 8 crore in 2018 as a result of more than 75 lakh SHGs working closely with over 31 lakh elected panchayati raj representatives, 40 per cent of whom are women.
• This provided a robust framework to connect with communities and created a social capital that helped every programme. The PRI-SHG partnership catalysed changes that increased the pace of poverty reduction and the use of Aadhaar cleaned up corruption at several levels and ensured that the funds reached those whom it was meant for.
• Third, Finance Commission transfers were made directly to gram panchayats leading to the creation of basic infrastructure like pucca village roads and drains at a much faster pace in rural areas. The high speed of road construction under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadhak Yojana created greater opportunities for employment in nearby larger villages/census towns/kasbas by improving connectivity and enhancing mobility.
• Fourth, the social capital of SHGs ensured the availability of credit through banks, micro-finance institutions and MUDRA loans. The NRLM prioritised livelihood diversification and implemented detailed plans for credit disbursement. New businesses, both farm and non-farm livelihoods, were taken up by women’s collectives on a large scale with community resource persons playing crucial hand holding roles, especially with respect to skill development.
• Fifth, in the two phases of the Gram Swaraj Abhiyan in 2018, benefits such as gas and electricity connections, LED bulbs, accident insurance, life insurance, bank accounts and immunisation were provided to 6,3974 villages that were selected because of their high SC and ST populations. The implementation of these schemes was monitored assiduously. The performance of line departments went up manifold due to community-led action. The gains are reflected in the findings of the National Family Health Survey V, 2019-2021.
• Sixth, the thrust on universal coverage for individual household latrines, LPG connections and pucca houses for those who lived in kuccha houses ensured that no one was left behind. This created the Labarthi Varg.
• Seventh, this was also a period in which a high amount of public funds were transferred to rural areas, including from the share of states and, in some programmes, through extra-budgetary resources.
• Eighth, the thrust on a people’s plan campaign, “Sabki Yojana Sabka Vikas” for preparing the Gram Panchayat Development Plans and for ranking villages and panchayats on human development, economic activity and infrastructure, from 2017-18 onwards, laid the foundation for robust community participation involving panchayats and SHGs, especially in ensuring accountability.
• Ninth, through processes like social and concurrent audits, efforts were made to ensure that resources were fully utilised. Several changes were brought about in programmes like the MGNREGS to create durable and productive assets. This helped marginal and small farmers in improving their homesteads, and diversifying livelihoods.
• Tenth, the competition among states to improve performance on rural development helped. Irrespective of the party in power, nearly all states and UTs focussed on improving livelihood diversification in rural areas and on improving infrastructure significantly.
• All these factors contributed to improved ease of living of deprived households and improving their asset base. A lot has been achieved, much remains to be done. The pandemic and the negative terms of trade shock from the Ukraine crisis pose challenges to the gains made in poverty reduction up to 2019.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

3. PRESIDENT APPOINTED TWO NEW JUDGES

THE CONTEXT: Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Jamshed Burjor Pardiwala took oath as Supreme Court judges on 09^th May.They would be judges 33 and 34, completing the sanctioned judicial strength of the court.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana read out the oath of the constitutional office to the two new judges in a brief, solemn ceremony held in an auditorium of the Supreme Court additional building complex.
• Other Supreme Court judges were in attendance on the dais. Justice Dhulia was sworn in first followed by Justice Pardiwala. They would be judges 33 and 34, completing the sanctioned judicial strength of the court.
• Justice Dhulia is the second judge to be elevated from Uttarakhand High Court. The grandson of a freedom fighter who took part in the Quit India Movement, Justice Dhulia, who hails from Madanpur, a remote village in Pauri Garhwal district, was elevated as a judge of the High Court of Uttarakhand in November 2008.
• He later became the Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court on January 10, 2021.
• Justice Pardiwala would be the sixth member of the Parsi community to become a Supreme Court judge.
• A fourth generation legal professional in his family, his father, Burjor Cawasji Pardiwala, had briefly served as the Speaker of the Seventh Legislative Assembly of Gujarat besides being a lawyer.
• The President appointed the two judges on May 7 within only a couple days of the Supreme Court Collegium’s recommendation last week.
• With Justices Dhulia and Pardiwala, the Ramana Collegium has successfully seen to the appointment of a total 11 judges to the Supreme Court since August 2021. A substantial feat considering that his immediate predecessor was not able to appoint even one judge to the Supreme Court.
• Of the 11 judges, Justice B.V. Nagarathna, is in line to be the first woman Chief Justice of India, albeit for 36 days, in 2027.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. FUTURE LOOMS DARK FOR 48% OF BIRD SPECIES

THE CONTEXT: According to The State of the World’s Birds  13.5% of 10,994 recognised extant species are currently threatened with extinction.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Humans eat 14% of the world’s surviving species of birds. However, this is not the only reason why 48% of the extant bird species are undergoing population decline.
• The State of the World’s Birds, an annual review of environmental resources published on May 5, has attributed the threat to almost half of the 10,994 recognised extant species of birds to the expanding human footprint on the natural world and climate change.
• The degradation and loss of natural habitats as well as direct over exploitation of many species are the key threats to avian biodiversity.
• The use of 37% of the surviving bird species as common or exotic pets and 14% as food are examples of direct over exploitation, the report indicates.
• The review found that 5,245 or about 48% of the existing bird species worldwide were known or suspected to be undergoing population decline. While 4,295 or 39% of the species had stable trends, about 7% or 778 species had increasing population trends. The trend of 37 species was unknown.
• The study underlines bird watching, a global pastime involving millions of people, as a form of avian conservation but warns of “local negative impacts” of bird feeding valued at $5-6 billion per year and growing by 4% annually.
• The caution is for some non-provisioned species via trophic cascades, an “ecological phenomenon triggered by the addition or removal of top predators and involving reciprocal changes in the relative populations of predator and prey through a food chain, which often results in dramatic changes in ecosystem structure and nutrient cycling”.
• “Avian diversity peaks globally in the tropics and it is there that we also find the highest richness of threatened species. We know a lot less about the fortunes of tropical bird species than we do about temperate ones, but we are now witnessing the first signs of a new wave of extinctions of continentally-distributed bird species, which has followed the historic loss of species on islands like the dodo”.
• Apart from tropical forests, the threat of natural grasslands has been particularly worrying for North America, Europe and India. “If unique ecosystems like grasslands are to retain their diverse bird life, governments and research groups must prioritise such landscapes and their inhabitants for conservation and ensure that they do not become plantations or woodlands,”.
• Because birds are highly visible and sensitive indicators of environmental health, we know their loss signals a much wider loss of biodiversity and threat to human health and well-being, he added.
• The State of the World’s Birds says 13.5% of 10,994 recognised extant species are currently threatened with extinction
• The degradation and loss of natural habitats, as well as direct overexploitation of many species, are the key threats to avian biodiversity
• Apart from tropical forests, the threat of natural grasslands has been particularly worrying for North America, Europe, and India

5. IS LA NINA A FAIR-WEATHER FRIEND OF OUR COUNTRY?

THE CONTEXT: In most years, meteorologists consider the La Nina to be a friend of India. The phenomenon associated with below normal sea surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean, makes the summer monsoon wetter and the winter colder unlike its evil twin, the El Nino, or a warming phenomenon that frequently dries up monsoon rains over India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• This year, however, the La Nina is being blamed for worsening perhaps the longest spell of heatwaves from March to April in north, west and Central India.
• Formally known as the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO), the La Nina-El Nino phenomenon follows a periodic pattern that roughly lasts three years.
• During a La Nina winter, a north-south pressure pattern sets up over India and normally this influences the trade winds that bring rains to India. However, because the La Nina didn’t peak, the sea surface temperatures continued to be cold and this drove hot westerly winds and blasts of hot air from the Middle East into Pakistan and India.
• The north-south pressure pattern has been persisting over India, with La Nina extending its stay over the Pacific. This has definitely impacted the weather over India, which has been seen even during 1998-2000 when La Nina had persisted for three years.
• While land temperatures over India begin rising in March, they are usually punctuated by western disturbances, or moisture from the Mediterranean region that fall as rain over north and western India. For these currents to make it as far as India, they need a significant difference in temperature between Europe and the latitudes over India. Partly due to La Nina, this temperature difference was absent and so the western disturbances that came to India were weak with hardly any rain.
• According to a 2021 report by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, ‘Assessment of Climate Change over the Indian Region’, all India averaged frequency of summer heatwaves is expected to rise to about 2.5 events per season by the mid-21st century, with a further slight rise to about 3.0 events by the end of 21st century under current trajectory of greenhouse gas emission.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

6. WHAT IS THE DEBATE AROUND STAR RATINGS FOR FOOD PACKETS MOOTED BY FSSAI? 

THE CONTEXT: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is expected to issue a draft regulation for labels on front of food packets that will inform consumers if a product is high in salt, sugar and fat. It is expected to propose a system under which stars will be assigned to a product, which has earned the ire of public health experts and consumer organisations who say it will be misleading and ineffective. Health experts are demanding that the FSSAI instead recommend the “warning label” system which has proven to have altered consumer behaviour.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In the past three decades, the country’s disease patterns have shifted. While mortality due to communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases has declined and India’s population is living longer, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries are increasingly contributing to the overall disease burden. In 2016, NCDs accounted for 55% of premature death and disability in the country.
• Indians also have a disposition for excessive fat around the stomach and abdomen which leads to increased risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. According to the National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-2021), 47.7% of men and 56.7% of women have high risk waist-to-hip ratio. An increased consumption of packaged and junk food has also led to a double burden of under nutrition and over nutrition among children. Over half of the children and adolescents, whether under-nourished or with normal weight, are at risk of cardiovascular diseases, according to an analysis by the Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey in India (2016-2018).
• Reducing sugar, salt, and fat is among the best ways to prevent and control non-communicable diseases. While the FSSAI requires mandatory disclosure of nutrition information on food packets, this is located on the back of a packet and is difficult to interpret.
• At a stakeholder’s meeting on February 15, 2022, three important decisions were taken on what would be the content of the draft regulations on front-of-package labelling. These included threshold levels to be used to determine whether a food product was high in sugar, salt and fat; that the implementation will be voluntary for a period of four years before it is made mandatory; and that the health-star rating system would be used as labels on the basis of a study commissioned by the FSSAI and conducted by IIM-Ahmedabad.
• The food industry agreed with the FSSAI’s decision on the issue of mandatory implementation and use of ratings, and sought more time to study the issue of thresholds. The World Health Organization representative said the thresholds levels were lenient, while the consumer organisations opposed all three decisions.
• The biggest contention is over the use of a health-star rating system that uses 1/2 a star to five stars to indicate the overall nutrition profile of a product.
• In a health-star rating system, introduced in 2014 in Australia and New Zealand, a product is assigned a certain number of stars using a calculator designed to assess positive (e.g., fruit, nut, protein content, etc) and risk nutrients in food (calories, saturated fat, total sugar, sodium).
• Scientists have said that such a system misrepresents nutrition science and the presence of fruit in a fruit drink juice does not offset the impact of added sugar. Experts say that so far there is no evidence of the rating system impacting consumer behaviour. The stars can also lead to a ‘health halo’ because of their positive connotation making it harder to identify harmful products. Over 40 global experts have also called the IIM-Ahmedabad study flawed in design and interpretation.
• There are many other labelling systems in the world, such as “warning labels” in Chile (which uses black octagonal or stop symbols) and Israel (a red label) for products high in sugar, salt and fat. The ‘Nutri-Score’, used in France, presents a coloured scale of A to E, and the Multiple Traffic Light (MTL), used in the U.K. and other countries depict red (high), amber (medium) or green (low) lights to indicate the risk factors. Global studies have shown a warning label is the only format that has led to a positive impact on food and beverage purchases forcing the industry, for example in Chile, to reformulate their products to remove major amounts of sugar and salt.
• The FSSAI is expected to make its draft regulations on front-of-package public soliciting comments from all stakeholders. The FSSAI’s scientific panel comprising independent experts will study these comments and make its proposal. Following this, it will go to a scientific committee, the FSSAI and the Health Ministry before the regulations are tabled before Parliament.
• The debate on front-of-package labelling has once again raised questions on the influence of the industry on the food regulator.
• Reducing sugar, salt, and fat is among the best ways to prevent and control non-communicable diseases. While the FSSAI requires mandatory disclosure of nutrition information on food packets, this is located on the back of a packet and is difficult to interpret.
• The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is expected to issue a draft regulation for labels on front of food packets that will inform consumers if a product is high in salt, sugar and fat
• The debate on front-of-package labelling has once again raised questions on the influence of the industry on the food regulator.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 8 & 9th MAY 2022

Q. Which of the following pairs is/are correctly matched?

1. Rakhigarhi– Haryana
2. Dholavira – Gujarat
3. Alamgir– Rajasthan

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 3 only

ANSWER FOR THE 7TH OF MAY

Answer: A

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) at national level in India has gone below replacement levels.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: There are five States — Bihar (2.98), Meghalaya (2.91), Uttar Pradesh (2.35), Jharkhand (2.26) Manipur (2.17) — in India which are above replacement level of fertility of 2.1 as per the national report of the NFHS-5, by the Union Health Ministry.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. FREE SPEECH VS DISINFORMATION CONTROL

THE CONTEXT: The Future of India Foundation’s ‘Politics of Disinformation’ report finds that in an age of amplification to boost user engagement, social media companies cannot use ‘freedom of expression’ as an excuse to let false information to further propaganda thrive.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Social media platforms cite ‘free speech’ in order to absolve themselves of their role in spreading disinformation. They have framed the discourse around disinformation and its resolution as a content-moderation problem. In reality, pervasive disinformation is spread more by social media’s amplification of disinformation-laden content rather than its failure to remove it. It is only at the removal stage that the question of free speech arises.
• The report pegs disinformation (the deliberate use of misinformation) as a political problem and finds that its solution does not solely lie in laws enacted by a government and its execution.
• When it comes to disinformation, the report notes that social media platforms have a more central role to play than they claim to have.
• As long as amplification is driven by engagement instead of the quality of content or the trustworthiness of the content’s sources, current moderation efforts by social media platforms are likely to fall short.

Neutrality

• However, platforms have neatly bypassed the discussion around amplified distribution and have found it convenient to exclusively frame measures to reduce misinformation as being in “tension” with freedom of expression – an issue which can arise only in the case of outright removal.
• Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook are all on the record stating their aversion to be the ‘arbiters of truth’ and that the platforms should be a marketplace of ideas. However, the report says that their very emphasis on free speech is because it is a grand business model.
• As private companies, the issue in the case of outright removal of content, is not freedom of speech but political neutrality of the platform, the report says, citing instances where Facebook did not restrict a post by former US president Donald Trump but Twitter did. The argument used by both companies was public interest.
• In 2020, an explosive report by the Wall Street Journal suggested that key Facebook employees in India were in conflict with the company’s pledge to remain neutral in elections around the world.
• The discussions focused on ascertaining the following:

1. how young people get and consume information.
2. how they determine which information is trustworthy.
3. how they sift between competing narratives on the same event/issue.
4. do they care to ascertain whether a piece of information is accurate.
5. the purpose and use of information
6. awareness of and reliance on fact-checking sites and
7. the impact of online misinformation.

• The report finds that the key takeaway from the focus group discussions is that not only have social media platforms disrupted the information ecosystem in India, but that they have allowed themselves to be weaponised by vested interests in ways which are leading to real world harm.

 2. MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE RELEASES NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY-5 (NFHS) REPORT

THE CONTEXT: The NFHS-5 survey work has been conducted in around 6.37 lakh sample households from 707 districts of the country from 28 States and 8 UTs, covering 7,24,115 women and 1,01,839 men respectively.

THE EXPLANATION:

• According to the report, Three times as many males as females are employed in the 15-49 age group in India, a stubborn gender gap that has remained virtually the same over the last five years, the latest edition of the National Family Health Survey Report shows.
• Around 75% of boys and men in the age group of 15-49 are currently employed, according to the fifth edition of the NFHS (for 2019-21), released by the ministry of health and family welfare.
• “About 25% of women in the age group of 15-49 are currently employed, compared with 75% of men aged 15-49. Employment is higher among less educated people. About 89% among men and 34% among women are employed with less than 5 years of schooling. There are approximately 87% men and 34% women who are employed with no schooling,” noted the report.
• Referring to the previous NFHS-4 (for 2015-16), the report said, “24% of women were currently employed in 2015-16, compared with 25% in 2019-21. Among men, the proportion who are currently employed has not changed in the same period.”
• The survey—an important indicator of social trends—defines currently employed as those who were employed in the seven days before the survey. This includes respondents who did not work in the past seven days but are regularly employed, and were absent from work for leave, illness, vacation or any other reason.
• India has been seeing a consistent decline in female labour force participation for years, and the survey raises important questions about whether India’s growth is inclusive enough, pointing to the need for urgent action, said Poonam Muttreja, executive director at the non-profit Population Foundation of India.
• Bihar (14%), Uttar Pradesh (17%), and Assam (18%) have the lowest percentage of women in work. More than a third of women were currently employed in a handful of states: Karnataka (35%), Andhra Pradesh (37%), Telangana (39%), Manipur (40%), and Meghalaya (42%).
• Those women who are employed are mostly working as farm or production workers.
• Ironically, women and men with 10-11 years of schooling, never married women and men, women and men with no children, and women and men belonging to the highest wealth quintile are less likely to be employed than others.

 THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. NASA’S CYNTHIA ROSENZWEIG RECEIVES 2022 WORLD FOOD PRIZE

THE CONTEXT: Cynthia Rosenzweig, a senior research scientist and head of the Climate Impacts Group at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York City, received the 2022 World Food Prize from the World Food Prize Foundation on May 5.

THE EXPLANATION:

• According to the World Food Prize Foundation, the World Food Prize is a prestigious international award conceived as the “Nobel Prize for Food and Agriculture” with a mission to elevate innovations and inspire action to sustainably increase the quality, quantity and availability of food for all.
• Rosenzweig was selected for the award for her research to understand the relationship between climate and food systems and forecast how both will change in the future.
• Her modeling work has provided a foundation for decision-makers around the world to create strategies to mitigate climate change and adapt our food systems to a changing planet, which has helped communities worldwide address the consequences of Earth’s changing climate.

4. DIRECT SEEDING OF RICE (DSR)

THE CONTEXT: The Punjab government recently announced Rs 1,500 incentive per acre for farmers opting for Direct Seeding of Rice (DSR), which is known for saving water.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Paddy is non-shelled rice that farmers grow and sell in mandis and then after milling paddy rice is prepared. According to the studies by Punjab Agriculture University (PAU), Ludhiana, around 3,600 litres to 4,125 litres of water is required to grow one kg rice depending upon the paddy variety.
• Long duration varieties consume more water. In Punjab, 32% area is under the long duration (around 158 days) paddy varieties, and the rest comes under paddy varieties that take 120 to 140 days to grow. So, on an average 3,900 to 4,000 litres water is required to grow one kg rice in the state.
• According to an analysis by the PAU, the DSR technique can help save 15% to 20% water. In some cases, water saving can reach 22% to 23%. With DSR,15-18 irrigation rounds are required against 25 to 27 irrigation rounds in traditional method.
• Since area under rice in Punjab is almost stagnant around 3 million hectares for the last three to four years, DSR can save 810 to 1,080 billion litres water every year if entire rice crop is brought under the technique.
• According to experts, DSR can solve labour shortage problem because as like the traditional method it does not require a paddy nursery and transplantion of 30 days old paddy nursery into the main puddled field. With DSR, paddy seeds are sown directly with machine.
• PAU experts said that DSR offers avenues for ground water recharge as it prevent the development of hard crust just beneath the plough layer due to puddled transplanting and it matures 7-10 days earlier than puddle transplanted crop, therefore giving more time for management of paddy straw.
• A PAU study said that results from research trials and farmers’ field survey have also indicated that yield, after DSR, are one to two quintals per acre higher than puddled transplanted rice.
• Experts said that with DSR technique, which is called ‘tar-wattar DSR’ (good soil moisture), farmers must sow paddy only after pre-sowing (rauni) irrigation and not in dry fields. Further, the field should be laser levelled. They said that spraying of herbicide must be done simultaneously along with sowing, and the first irrigation, which is done at 21 days after sowing.
• Experts said that suitability of soil is the most important factor as farmers must not sow it in the light textured soil as this technique is suitable for medium to heavy textured soils including sandy loam, loam, clay loam, and silt loam which accounts for around 80% area of the state.
• It should not be cultivated in sandy and loamy sand as these soils suffer from severe iron deficiency, and there is higher weed problem in it. Also, avoid direct seeding of rice in fields which are under crops others than rice (like cotton, maize, sugarcane) in previous years as DSR in these soils is likely to suffer more from iron deficiency and weed problems.
• Though government has said that farmers can sow paddy with DSR after May 20, but PAU experts say that DSR varieties must not be sown before May 25 or yield will get impacted. According to them, June 1-15 is best time to sow DSR-friendly paddy varieties and second fortnight of June is optimum time for direct sowing of basmati.
• Experts said that under agricultural extension services, farmers must train extensively at every stage from pre-sowing to harvesting so that they can develop confidence to adopt DSR without any hesitation.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

5. AT UNSC, INDIA CALLS FOR THE REMOVAL OF EXPORT CURBS ON   COUNTRIES COMBATING THE GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS

THE CONTEXT: At United Nations Security Council (UNSC), May 5, India called for an exemption on food export restrictions for countries that are sending assistance to combat the current food shortages being experienced globally, resulting from the Ukraine war.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Referring to the first report of the Global Crisis Response Group Task Team, India’s permanent representative to the UN, T.S. Tirumurti, observed that the conflict had led to “skyrocketing” inflation and a shortage of food grains and fertilizers.
• The Global Crisis Response Group is led by UN secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, constituted to examine the fallout of the Ukraine war on food and energy security.
• The Group has made a recommendation for “exempting purchases of food by WFP [World Foood Programme] for humanitarian assistance from food export restrictions with immediate effect”.
• India’s proposal applied to situations beyond humanitarian catastrophes where WFP was directly involved, but also covered the crisis in countries that may be facing severe food shortages, like Egypt.
• Following the COVID-19 pandemic, Singapore had led an initiative at WTO to remove export restrictions on food grains for non-commercial humanitarian efforts. But India had initially opposed it, worried that procurement of large volumes of food may lead to inflationary effects domestically.
• The Ukraine invasion by Russia has led to “a crisis that is also devastating global energy markets, disrupting financial systems and exacerbating extreme vulnerabilities for the developing world”.

6. AMID THE ECONOMIC CRISIS, SRI LANKA PLACED UNDER EMERGENCY FOR THE SECOND TIME IN A MONTH

THE CONTEXT: Sri Lanka’s president on 6^th may declare a state of emergency for the second time in five weeks, giving security forces sweeping powers amid a nationwide strike by angry demonstrators who blame him for an unprecedented economic crisis.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The decision came amidst weeks of protests demanding the resignation of the President and the government, blaming the powerful Rajapaksa clan for mishandling the island nation’s economy, already hit by the pandemic.
• Earlier in the day, student activists warned to lay a siege to Parliament as trade unions launched a crippling island-wide strike to demand the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government over their inability to tackle the economic meltdown which has caused unprecedented hardships to the public.
• The beleaguered Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has made it clear that he will not quit from his post, came under unexpected pressure to resign at the special Cabinet meeting.
• Sri Lanka is going through the worst economic crisis in its history with the shortage of essentials, and power outages caused by a severe forex crisis.
• Sri Lanka is currently in the throes of unprecedented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.
• Thousands of demonstrators have hit the streets across Sri Lanka since April 9, as the government ran out of money for vital imports; prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed and there are acute shortages in fuel, medicines and electricity supply.
• Despite mounting pressure, President Rajapaksa and his elder brother and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa have refused to quit.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

7. INDIA HAS NO PLANS TO JOIN THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION (WTO) GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT AGREEMENT (GPA)

THE CONTEXT: India has “no plans” to join the government procurement agreement grouping of the World Trade Organization (WTO) but is open to negotiating such agreements as part of bilateral deals.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It already figures in the free trade agreement signed with the UAE, and while this may act as a template for all future bilateral free-trade agreements the scope and coverage of the section may vary, the ministry of commerce and industry said on the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Pacts under negotiation include those with Canada, the EU, Israel and the UK.
• The India-UAE agreement, which came into effect on 1 May excludes government procurement (GP) for several union ministries.
• While this was the first time India had included government procurement in a free-trade pact, it is only limited to a few central ministries and excludes key sectors such as construction, infrastructure projects and health care, including medical devices and pharmaceutical products.
• India is an observer under WTO Agreement on government procurement since 2010 and, as of now, there is no plan to join the same.
• In future agreements, the GP chapter text may become a template, and the scope and coverage of the GP chapter may vary depending on the ambition.
• Under the pact, only government procurement contracts worth over ₹200 crore will be allowed for UAE-based companies on the same terms as Indian firms. Government procurement is open to 34 ministries and departments, including power and education.
• Earlier, India never took up government procurement for bilateral or multilateral trade agreements in order to protect domestic firms. This was one of the bottlenecks in several key FTA negotiations, including the one with the EU.State-owned firms and the defence ministry are excluded from GP.
• Only limited central government ministries are covered, that too with high thresholds for procurement of goods, services and construction services… excluded are subordinate entities of the central ministries including departments and attached bodies, autonomous bodies, government-owned firms, public sector enterprises, regulators or any other entity, wholly or partially, under the central government.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 7th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements:

1. The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) at national level in India has gone below replacement levels.
2. All states in India have reached the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) at replacement level or below.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE 6TH MAY

Answer: C

Explanation:

1. Koftgiri art – Rajasthan
2. Dhokra art – Chhattisgarh
3. Rogan painting – Gujarat

THE SOCIETY, ART, AND CULTURE

1. IN 2020, LADAKH RECORDED THE HIGHEST SEX RATIO IN THE COUNTRY, MANIPUR LOWEST

THE CONTEXT: The Union Territory of Ladakh recorded the highest sex ratio at birth in the country in 2020, followed by Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Tripura and Kerala, according to the annual report on Vital Statistics based on 2020 Civil Registration System report.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Highest Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) based on registered events has been reported by Ladakh (1104) followed by Arunachal Pradesh (1011), A&N Islands (984), Tripura (974), and Kerala (969)
• Lowest sex ratio at birth was reported by Manipur (880), followed by Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (898), Gujarat (909), Haryana (916) and Madhya Pradesh (921).
• In 2019, the highest sex ratio at birth was reported by Arunachal Pradesh (1024), followed by Nagaland (1001), Mizoram (975) and A&N Islands (965), and the lowest sex ratio was reported by Gujarat (901), Assam (903), Madhya Pradesh (905) and Jammu & Kashmir (909).

OTHER DETAILS

No data from 4 States

• The report said that the requisite information from Maharashtra, Sikkim, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi on sex ratio at birth was “not available.” They had not provided the said data to the RGI in 2019 as well.
• None of the States or Union Territories have recorded sex ratio at birth below 880.

Infant deaths

• The report noted that 1,43,379 infant deaths were registered in 2020 and the share of rural area was only 23.4%, while that of urban area was 76.6% in total registered infant deaths.
• Sex ratio at birth is number of females per thousand males.

2. THE DEBATE ON THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE

THE CONTEXT: The people of Karnataka celebrated Eid Ul Fitr and Basava Jayanthi together with peace and harmony. The day was celebrated as the ‘Harmony Day’.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In 2022, Eid and Basava Jayanti, both fell on the same day with several people across the state celebrating the festivals together, including in the North Karnataka region.
• Members of Both communities came together to celebrate the festivals as “Harmony Day” and the event also marked the beginning of a new organization that aims to counter the divisive forces.
• After floral tributes to the portrait of 12th-century social reformer Basavanna (Basaveshwara), the speakers said communal harmony and peaceful co-existence was the essence of India.

BASAVA JAYANTI

• Basava Jayanti is a Hindu festival celebrated by Lingayats in Karnataka, and other parts of south India to mark the birth anniversary of Lord Basavanna.
• Basavanna, a 12th century poet and philosopher, is celebrated and held in high regard, especially by the Lingayat community, as he was the founder of Lingayatism.
• As per the Hindu calendar, the birth of Basavanna falls on the 3rd day of Vaisahaka month in the Shukla paksha. This usually falls either in April of May of the English calendar.

CONTRIBUTION OF BASAVESHWARA

• Basaveshwara is known to have brought about several social reforms.
• He believed in a society free of the caste system, with equal opportunity for all and preached about manual hard work.
• He founded the Anubhava Mantapa, loosely translated as the forum of experiences, an academy that included Lingayat mystics, saints, and philosophers.
• These academicians and philosophers would congregate and share experiences and wisdoms of life.

THE SOCIAL ISSUE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

3. 40 MILLION MORE PEOPLE EXPERIENCED FOOD INSECURITY IN 2021 THAN 2020

THE CONTEXT: Some 40 million more people globally experienced acute food insecurity at crisis or worse levels in 2021 than 2020, according to a new report released May 4, 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Of these, over half a million people (570,000) in Ethiopia, southern Madagascar, South Sudan and Yemen were classified in the most severe phase of acute food insecurity.
• The report showed that around 193 million people in 53 countries or territories experienced acute food insecurity at crisis or worse levels in 2021.

CAUSES OF SUCH SCENARIO

• The Russian invasion of Ukraine- it found that conflict forced 139 million people in 24 countries/territories into acute food insecurity. This is an increase from 99 million in 23 countries/territories in 2020.
• Weather extremes- which forced over 23 million people in eight countries/territories into acute food insecurity, up from 15.7 million in 15 countries/territories in 2020.
• Economic shocks- Over 30 million people in 21 countries/territories suffered acute food insecurity in 2021 due to economic shocks, down from over 40 million people in 17 countries/territories in 2020.

SOLUTIONS

• The need for a greater prioritisation of smallholder agriculture as a front line humanitarian response, to overcome access constraints and as a solution for reverting negative long-term trends
• Urgent action is required to avert widespread collapse of livelihoods, starvation and death for these half a million, according to the report by the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC).
• The GNAFC is an international alliance of the United Nations, the European Union, governmental and non-governmental agencies working to tackle food crises together.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. RBI RAISES KEY REPO RATE BY 40 BPS IN OFF-CYCLE MOVE

THE CONTEXT: In a surprise move, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to increase the repo rate by 40 basis points (bps) in an off-cycle meeting, citing inflation concern.

THE EXPLANATION:

• This was followed by a 50 bps hike in the cash reserve ratio to 4.5 per cent, which will drain out Rs 87,000 crore liquidity from the banking system.
• This was the first repo rate hike in 45 months — since August 2018. The increase in the repo rate will lead to lending rates getting pushed up because 40 per cent of the loans of commercial banks are linked to it.
• The 10-year government bond shot up 26 bps, with the street expecting another rate hike in the June policy. As a result, the standing deposit facility (SDF) rate is now at 4.15 per cent and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate at 4.65 per cent.
• The SDF and MSF constitute the lower and the upper end of the interest rate corridor. While hiking the repo rate, the MPC decided to stay “accommodative” but dropped the word “stance” from its resolution — for the second meeting in a row.

• The hike in the cash reserve ratio (CRR) is in line with the central bank’s objective to drain out excessive liquidity, which is around Rs 7 trillion.
• Banks do not earn any interest on keeping CRR money with the RBI. Bankers said the hike in the repo rate, which would increase lending rates, would more than compensate for the high CRR.

5. BIHAR BOASTS OF INDIA’S FIRST GREENFIELD GRAIN-BASED ETHANOL PLANT

THE CONTEXT: Bihar has the distinction of being the first state in the country to set up a greenfield grain-based ethanol production plant.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Spread over an area of 15 acres and estimated cost of about Rs.105 crore, the Purnia plant is expected to produce 65,000 litres of ethanol per day.
• This is first ethanol production plant in Purnia district. This is among the 17 ethanol units proposed to be set up in the state.
• According to the Bihar industries department officials, the 17 ethanol production plants will produce approximately 35.2 crore litres of fuel from sugarcane, maize, rice and molasses every day, which will be subsequently supplied to oil marketing companies for blending into petrol and later diesel.
• After this plant, the state will be able to sell its agricultural produce at the actual price fixed by the government.

THE DISASTER MANAGEMENT

6. INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DISASTER RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE

THE CONTEXT: The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi addressed the inaugural session of the fourth edition of the International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.

THE EXPLANATION:

Highlights of PM speech

• The gathering that the solemn promise of the Sustainable Development Goals is to leave no one behind.
• Infrastructure is about people and providing them high quality, dependable, and sustainable services in an equitable manner.
• The importance of infrastructure in unleashing the human potential and damage to infrastructure leads to lasting damage for generations.
• India is tackling climate change in a very direct way. That is why, at COP-26 India has committed to attain ‘Net Zero’ by 2070, in parallel with its developmental efforts.
• In order to make our future resilient world have to work towards a ‘Resilient Infrastructure Transition’. Resilient infrastructure can also be the centre piece of our wider adaptation efforts.

What is Disaster Resilient Infrastructure?

• As the name implies, disaster-resilient infrastructure include vital buildings, public communal facilities, transit systems, telecommunications, and power systems that are strategically designed to withstand the impact of a natural disaster like a flood, earthquake, or wildfire.
• Communities building resilient infrastructure in their city or town need to analyze the risk of potential natural disasters, consider which architectural improvements will be most beneficial in their community, and consider a budget and timeline for implementing said improvements.
• Disaster resilient architecture is one of the pivotal aspects of risk management and disaster preparedness.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Q. Which of the following statements is/are correct about the Lord Basavanna?

1. He was the founder of Lingayatism.
2. He was in favour of caste system.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR 3rd & 4th MAY 2022

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: If the bill after reconsideration is passed again by the state legislature with or without amendments, the governor has to give his assent to the bill.
• Statement 2 is correct: Constitution does not lay down any time frame for the Governor to take action on the bill passed by the state legislature.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. CAN NOT FORCE VACCINATION: SUPREME COURT

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court has ruled that no individual can be forced to take any vaccination but stated that the government can impose some restrictions in the interest of the community.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Supreme Court ruled that no individual can be forced to get vaccinated against Covid-19 but added that “as long as there is a risk of spreading the disease, there can be restrictions placed on individuals’ rights in larger public interest”.
• A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai delivered the judgement on the plea challenging mandatory Covid-19 vaccine mandates as unconstitutional, “Considering bodily autonomy, bodily integrity is protected under article 21. No one can be forced to get vaccinated. (But) government can regulate in areas of bodily autonomy.”
• Observing that restrictions on unvaccinated individuals imposed through various vaccine mandates by State Governments/Union Territories cannot be said to be proportionate, the court clarified that the suggestion to review the vaccine mandates imposed is limited to the present situation alone.
• The personal autonomy of an individual, which is a recognized facet of the protections guaranteed under Article 21, encompasses the right to refuse to undergo any medical treatment in the sphere of individual health,” said a bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai in the judgment.
• The bench also reiterated that subject to the protection of privacy of individual subjects, with respect to ongoing clinical trials and trials that may be conducted subsequently for COVID-19 vaccines, all relevant data required to be published under the extant statutory regime must be made available to the public without undue delay.
• The bench said that no data has been placed by the Union of India or the States controverting the material placed by the petitioner in the form of emerging scientific opinion which appears to indicate that the risk of transmission of the virus from unvaccinated individuals is almost on par with that from vaccinated persons.
• In light of this, restrictions on unvaccinated individuals imposed through various vaccine mandates by State Governments/Union Territories cannot be said to be proportionate.
• The bench also approved the vaccination policy for children but directed that the clinical trial data be made public at the earliest.

2. THE DEBATE ON THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE

THE CONTEXT: The “national language” debate came back in focus recently, as Hindi actor Ajay Devgn took to Twitter to react to a comment by Kannada actor Kiccha Sudeep.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Under Article 343 of the Constitution, the official language of the Union shall be Hindi in the Devanagari script. The international form of Indian numerals will be used for official purposes.
• The Constituent Assembly was bitterly divided on the question, with members from States that did not speak Hindi initially opposing the declaration of Hindi as a national language. Proponents of Hindi were insistent that English was the language of enslavement and that it should be eliminated as early as possible. Opponents were against English being done away with, fearing that it may lead to Hindi domination in regions that did not speak the language.
• There were demands to make Sanskrit the official language, while some argued in favour of ‘Hindustani’. There were differences of opinion over the script too. When opinion veered towards accepting Hindi, proponents of the language wanted the ‘Devanagari’ script to be adopted both for words and numerals. Some advocated that the Roman script be adopted, as it would facilitate faster learning of Hindi. The predominant opinion was in favour of adopting ‘international numerals’ (the Arabic form used and understood throughout the world) instead of Hindi numerals.
• Ultimately, it was decided that the Constitution will only speak of an ‘official language’. And that English would continue to be used for a period of 15 years. The Constitution said that after 15 years, Parliament may by law decide on the use of English and the use of the Devanagari form of numbers for specified purposes.

WHAT IS THE EIGHTH SCHEDULE?

• The Eighth Schedule contains a list of languages in the country. Initially, there were 14 languages in the schedule, but now there are 22 languages. There is no description of the sort of languages that are included or will be included in the Eighth Schedule. There are only two references to these languages in the text of the Constitution.
• One is in Article 344(1), which provides for the formation of a Commission by the President, which should have a chairman and members representing these scheduled languages. The purpose of the Commission is to make recommendations for the progressive use of Hindi for official purposes of the Union and for restricting the use of English.
• The second reference, found in Article 351, says it is the Union government’s duty to promote the spread of Hindi so that it becomes “a medium of expression for all elements of the composite culture of India” and also to assimilate elements of forms and expressions from Hindustani and languages listed in the Eighth Schedule.

WHAT WERE THE 1965 PROTESTS ABOUT?

• The Official Languages Act, 1963 was passed in anticipation of the expiry of the 15-year period during which the Constitution originally allowed the use of English for official purposes. Its operative section provided for the continuing use of English, notwithstanding the expiry of the 15-year period. This came into force from Jan 26, 1965, a date which marked the completion of 15 years since the Constitution was adopted.
• Jawaharlal Nehru had given an assurance in 1959 that english would remain in official use and as the language of communication between the Centre and the States. The Official Languages Act, 1963, did not explicitly incorporate this assurance, causing apprehensions in some States as the January 1965 deadline neared. At that time, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri reiterated the government’s commitment to move towards making Hindi the official language for all purposes.
• In Tamil Nadu, then known as Madras, the prospect of the use of Hindi as the medium of examination for recruitment to the Union public services created an apprehension that Hindi would be imposed in such a way that the future employment prospects of those who do not speak Hindi will be bleak. With the Congress government in the State taking the view that the people had nothing to fear about, protests broke out in January 1965.
• It took a violent turn after more and more student activists joined the protest and continued even after key Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leaders were arrested. More than 60 people died in police firing and other incidents as the protests went on for days. The agitation died down later, but by then the Congress at the Centre realised the sensitivity of the language issue among Tamil-speaking people. When the Official Language Rules were framed in 1976, it was made clear that the Rules apply to the whole of India, except Tamil Nadu.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. INDIA-DENMARK TIES

THE CONTEXT: India and Denmark on 3 May 2022, agreed to further strengthen the Green Strategic Partnership with a focus on green hydrogen, renewable energy and wastewater management.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A number of agreements covering sectors such as green shipping, animal husbandry and dairying, water management, energy, cultural exchange were inked after the bilateral talks.
• The two Prime Ministers welcomed the Letter of Intent on the establishment of a Centre of Excellence on Green Shipping, which will further strengthen bilateral maritime cooperation.
• The two leaders also agreed to expand the cooperation on agriculture by a Joint Declaration of Intent establishing among others a Centre of Excellence on Dairy.
• India and Denmark also confirmed their continued collaboration in the field of antimicrobial resistance.
• India conveyed its acceptance of the Danish invitation to join the International Center for Antimicrobial Resistance Solutions (ICARS) as Mission Partner.

4. INDIA EXTENDS MORE ASSISTANCE TO SRI LANKA

THE CONTEXT: On 2 April 2022, India had extended its current credit line by a further $200 million to replenish Sri Lanka’s rapidly depleting fuel stocks.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India has committed more than $3 billion to debt-ridden Sri Lanka in loans, credit lines and credit swaps since January this year,as the island nation tries to navigate through its worst economic crisis since independence.
• The ongoing crisis in Sri Lanka is caused in part by a lack of foreign currency, which has meant that the country cannot afford to pay for imports of staple foods and fuel, leading to acute shortages and very high prices.
• A $400-million currency swap with the Reserve Bank of India, extended early this year, was on April 18 extended by another three months. A billion-dollar credit line for essential imports is operational and around 16,000 MT of rice has been supplied under it so far.
• India has helped Sri Lanka defer repayment of loans totalling $1 billion under the Asian Clearing Union. Further, 400,000 MT of fuel has been delivered to Sri Lanka through a $500 million credit facility.
• “Multi-pronged assistance provided by India testifies to the importance Government of India attaches to the welfare of the people of Sri Lanka and is guided by the twin principles of ‘Neighbourhood First’ and S.A.G.A.R (Security and Growth for All in the Region)”.
• Sri Lanka’s economic crash intensified from the beginning of this year, with the country’s foreign reserves plunging to barely a couple of billion dollars, owing to an acute balance of payments crisis in recent years.
• The crisis manifested in severe shortages of food, fuel and medicines, as the country experiences record inflation, that hit nearly 30% in April. Consequently, the ruling Rajapaksa administration’s popularity has plummeted over the last few months, with citizens demanding that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa quit.
• For almost a month now, demonstrators have been gathering at Colombo’s seafront, protesting every day against the government’s “failed” crisis response. Students, professionals, business people, worker unions, and scores of children, among others, can be spotted at the daily rallies, chanting anti-government slogans.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

5. GST SIGNALS: ON APRIL GST COLLECTIONS

THE CONTEXT: The first month of the new financial year has yielded a sharp surge in Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections, taking them well past ₹1.67 lakh crore — the highest, by a wide margin, in the five years since the levy was introduced by subsuming myriad State and central duties.

THE EXPLANATION:

• GST revenues have scaled fresh highs in three of the last four months, having hit ₹1.41 lakh crore in January and ₹1.42 lakh crore in March.
• Overall GST revenues had grown 30.8% in 2021-22 to ₹14.9 lakh crore, despite slipping below the ₹1 lakh crore mark for two months when the second COVID-19 wave raged.
• The 20% year-on-year revenue uptick this April could be seen as a comforting signal about 2022-23 revenue prospects for policymakers at the Centre and the States, whose treasuries are fretting about the prospect of income falling off a cliff from this July when the assured compensation for implementing the GST comes to an end.
• Compensation cess levies will persist till at least March 2026, but they will be used to pay off special borrowings of 2020-21 to bridge revenue shortfalls and recompense States.
• The Centre needs a mechanism to expedite the payment of outstanding compensation dues to States (₹78,700-odd crore, or four months of dues). The Finance Ministry has blamed ‘inadequate balance’ in the Compensation Cess fund and promised to pay up ‘as and when’ the requisite cess accrues.
• The Centre, which called the April inflows a sign of ‘faster recovery’, must also state whether these revenue levels warrant a rethink of its concern that the effective GST tax rate had slipped from the revenue-neutral rate envisaged at its launch.
• A clear acknowledgment is needed that the higher revenues are not solely driven by a rebound in economic activity. Persistently higher input costs facing producers for a year and their accelerating pass-through to consumers, seen in higher retail inflation, have contributed too, along with tighter input credit norms introduced in the Union Budget.
• That revenue growth from goods imports has outpaced domestic transactions significantly in recent months, also suggests India’s consumption story is yet to fully resurface. Urgent policy action is needed to rein in the inflation rally and bolster consumer sentiment, so as not to sink hopes of more investments, faster growth and even greater revenues.

6. NO SHORT CIRCUITS: ON ELECTRIC VEHICLES CATCHING FIRE

THE CONTEXT: A spate of incidents related to the burning of electric vehicles (EV) has resulted in the Union government announcing an expert panel to investigate the battery explosions causing them and a few manufacturers recalling batches of electric scooters after some caught fire.

THE EXPLANATION:

• EVs have increasingly become a viable transportation device, with more than 11 lakh electric/battery-operated vehicles registered in India (Vahan database, April 2022).
• The increase in the utilisation of EVs has also been largely helped by the significant reduction in costs of lithium-ion batteries that have fallen by an estimated 89% since 2010. With climate change concerns driving governments, including India’s, to incentivize the shift to EVs, their manufacture for commercial use has undergone an acceleration with an increase in indigenous companies in the Indian market as well.
• The enhanced use of EVs and utilization of the underlying technology is welcome as, despite the institution of fuel emission norms and building these into fossil fuel-driven vehicles, the shift to EVs from petrol and diesel ones is expected to gain significant net environmental benefits. But it must also be remembered that the Li-ion battery packs that form the core of the technology, are sophisticated devices and there should be no compromise on the inbuilt safeguards.
• Battery fires occur due to the convergence of heat, oxygen and fuel, and the controlled manufacturing of devices is specifically required to prevent these.
• Engineering higher safety into EVs can result in higher costs but the smooth functioning of Li-ion batteries without accidents is reliant on the absence of “shoddy engineering” and “cutting corner approaches”.
• With long-term device changes in Li-ion batteries such as the use of solid-state electrolytes, special safety switches, etc. still some time away in implementation, the onus is on manufacturers and regulators to ensure that testing and certification standards related to battery management systems such as devices that prevent accidental shorting of the cells, and thermal management solutions among others are met in existing EV systems and supply chains.
• The Ministry of Road Transport will issue guidelines for EVs which would include tests for compliance with specific safety norms. While the regulation of a fledgling albeit growing sector that has shown a lot of promise but requires adequate safety norms to be put in place is an imperative, manufacturers and other companies in the EV supply chain should also proactively work in recalling defective batches of vehicles and ensuring safety compliance to prevent the recurrence of mishaps.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. NASA TO SHUT DOWN SOFIA TELESCOPE

THE CONTEXT: NASA and the German Aerospace Center are permanently shutting down the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), a telescope on an airplane that has been scrutinized for years for its high cost and low scientific output.

THE EXPLANATION:

The organisation announced April 28, 2022, it would shut down the operations of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) mission by September 30, 2022.

ABOUT SOFIA –

• SOFIA is a 2.7-meter infrared telescope sitting inside a Boeing 747 SP airplane, flying at an altitude of 38,000-45,000 feet above the surface.
• It’s the second-most expensive astrophysics mission, according to NASA’s Financial Year 2023 budget estimates report. The document mentioned a 2020 decadal survey report, which concluded that SOFIA’s science productivity did not justify its operating costs.
• SOFIA is a collaboration between NASA and the German Space Agency (DLR). “SOFIA is globally unique and, with the start of regular operations in 2014, has been successfully used for scientific research during a total of approximately 800 flights.
• Since its inception in 2014, SOFIA has been collecting data to understand star birth and death and the formation of new solar systems. It has also been keeping a close eye on planets, comets and asteroids in our solar system, nebulas and galaxies, celestial magnetic fields and black holes at the centre of galaxies.
• SOFIA was designed to observe cosmic objects in far-infrared wavelengths. This allows researchers to watch star formation by looking through huge, cold clouds of gas, according to NASA.
• NASA’s decision to shut down SOFIA closely follows the White House’s 2023 federal budget request released on 28 March 2022, which did not allocate money to SOFIA.

IMPORTANT DISCOVERIES:

• The project has generated 309 scientific studies, according to information on SOFIA’s website. In 2020, NASA announced that SOFIA discovered water molecules (H2O) on the sun-facing side of the Moon.
• The site is the Clavius Crater, located in the Moon’s southern hemisphere. The telescope’s data suggested that the site contained water in concentrations of 100 to 412 parts per million — roughly equivalent to a 12-ounce bottle [355 millilitres] of water, according to NASA.
• India’s Chandrayaan-1 mission and NASA’s ground-based Infrared Telescope Facility found evidence of hydration in the sunnier regions, they couldn’t confirm whether hydrogen was in the form of H2O or OH, the report stated.
• In 2019, SOFIA also discovered helium hydride — the first molecule formed in the Universe almost 14 billion years ago, the German space agency said.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Q.Consider the following statements:

1. Even if the bill after reconsideration is passed by the state legislature with or without amendments, the governor is not bound to give his assent to the bill.
2. Constitution does not lay down any time frame for the Governor to take action on the bill passed by the state legislature.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR 1 & 2 MAY 2022

Answer: B

Explanation:

World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

• It is an intergovernmental organization with a membership of 193 Member States and Territories.
• It originated from the International Meteorological Organization (IMO), the roots of which were planted at the 1873 Vienna International Meteorological Congress.
• Established by the ratification of the WMO Convention on 23 March 1950, WMO became the specialized agency of the United Nations for meteorology (weather and climate), operational hydrology and related geophysical sciences a year later.
• The Secretariat, headquartered in Geneva, is headed by the Secretary-General.
• Its supreme body is the World Meteorological Congress.

THE ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

1. HEATWAVES MORE INTENSE AND ARE STARTING EARLIER THAN IN PAST IN INDIA: WMO

THE CONTEXT: Extreme heat is gripping large parts of India and Pakistan, impacting hundreds of millions of people in one of the most densely populated parts of the world said the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

THE EXPLANATION:

• As large parts of India and Pakistan experience scorching temperatures, the U.N.’s specialized agency on weather has said while it is premature to attribute the extreme heat in the two countries solely to climate change, it is consistent with a changing climate, with heatwaves starting earlier than in the past.
• Extreme heat is gripping large parts of India and Pakistan, impacting hundreds of millions of people in one of the most densely populated parts of the world, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
• It said that according to The India Meteorological Department, maximum temperatures reached 43 to 46°C in widespread areas on April 28 and that this intense heat will continue until May 2.
• It is premature to attribute the extreme heat in India and Pakistan solely to climate change. However, it is consistent with what we expect in a changing climate. Heatwaves are more frequent and more intense and starting earlier than in the past.
• Heatwaves have multiple and cascading impacts not just on human health but also on ecosystems, agriculture, water and energy supplies and key sectors of the economy, the WMO said adding that the risks to society underline why it is committed to ensuring that multi–hazard early warning services reach the most vulnerable.
• It noted that the heatwave was triggered by a high–pressure system and follows an extended period of above average temperatures. India recorded its warmest March on record, with an average maximum temperature of 33.1 ºC, or 1.86 °C above the long–term average. Pakistan also did so for at least the past 60 years, with a number of stations breaking March records.
• The WMO noted that India has established a national framework for heat action plans through the National Disaster Management Authority which coordinates a network of State disaster response agencies and city leaders to prepare for soaring temperatures and ensure that everyone is aware of heatwave dos and don’ts.
• It said Ahmedabad was the first South Asian city to develop and implement a city-wide heat health adaptation in 2013 after experiencing a devastating heatwave in 2010.This successful approach has been expanded to 23 heatwave–prone States and serves to protect more than 130 cities and districts.
• According to the WMO both countries have successful heat–health early warning systems and action plans, including those specially tailored for urban areas.
• Heat Action Plans reduce heat mortality and lessen the social impacts of extreme heat, including lost work productivity.
• The WMO said the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in its Sixth Assessment Report, said heatwaves and humid heat stress will be more intense and frequent in South Asia this century.
• The WMO also cited an open–access publication recently issued by India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences that highlights that the frequency of warm extremes over India has increased during 1951–2015, with accelerated warming trends during the recent 30-year period 1986–2015.
• Civil society, such as the Red Cross Red Crescent Society and the Integrated Research and Action for Development (IRADe), also play a critical role, deploying lifesaving communications and interventions to vulnerable communities.

 2. INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR FISHERIES, AQUACULTURE UNITS ABYSMAL IN INDIA, SAYS FAO REPORT

THE CONTEXT: FAO ‘World Review of Capture Fisheries and Aquaculture Insurance 2022’ has recommended that private and public insurance service providers work together as there is low penetration of insurance products in the fisheries sector. The service providers must also take proactive measures to help the aquaculture and fisheries insurance market of India recover.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The low penetration of insurance products in the fisheries sector, the ‘FAO World Review of Capture Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022’ has recommended that public and private insurance service providers work together to take proactive measures to help India’s fisheries and aquaculture insurance market recover.
• With the weather being a factor in the fisheries industry, insurance service providers should be encouraged to participate in order to improve the sector’s overall competitiveness and efficiency of service delivery.
• When occupational hazards to fishers’ and fish farmers’ lives and property are on the rise as a result of more frequent extreme weather events in recent years, the report takes on greater significance.
• Fishermen and aquaculture farmers, on the other hand, are generally unaware of insurance options. In India, fishing vessels, coastal immovable property, and aquaculture units have abysmal insurance coverage. Appropriate extension efforts by government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and aquaculture societies, with appropriate participation from the fishing community, could bridge the gap and facilitate insurance product marketing at the grassroots level.
• The asset insurance and fishing vessels in the coastal region have a high cost for insurance policies and this is affecting insurance coverage as people are not willing to invest that amount. Also, the premiums in this sector cannot be paid in installments. Along with this the aquaculture farmers and fishermen are mostly unaware of available insurance options.
• The report suggested that bundling disaster risk insurance packages with existing micro-credit schemes could be a viable option, given the strong network of micro-finance institutions and self-help groups in coastal areas.
• One of the reasons for the low adoption of the fishing vessels and asset insurance in the coastal region, is the prohibitive cost of the policies currently available.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

3. INDIA-UAE COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT (CEPA)

THE CONTEXT: India and the UAE have signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the aim of increasing bilateral merchandise trade to $100 billion by 2030 and it will be operationalized from 1 May, 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The India-UAE CEPA marks the first trade agreement India has made with a major trading partner in over a decade. The last major FTA India signed was with Japan in 2011.
• The agreement is the first in a series of FTAs that India is pursuing to boost exports sharply to 1 trillion dollars each in merchandise and services by 2030.
• India is also pursuing FTAs with Australia, UK, Canada, Israel and the EU.
• Under the agreement, the UAE is set to eliminate duties on 80 per cent of its tariff lines which account for 90 per cent of India’s exports to the UAE by value. This is particularly important for exports in highly competitive areas such as textiles and garments where India exporters have thus far been facing a competitive disadvantage in import tariffs.
• The zero-duty access for Indian products to the UAE is set to expand over 5-10 years to 97 per cent of UAE tariff lines corresponding to 99 per cent of India’s exports by value.
• Key domestic sectors that are set to benefit include, gems and jewellery, textiles, leather, footwear, sports goods, engineering goods, automobiles and pharmaceuticals.
• India has excluded certain goods from the agreement through a “sensitive list” of products amounting to 10 per cent of tariff lines that are excluded completely from the agreement.
• Dairy, fruits, vegetables, cereals, tea, coffee, sugar, food preparations, tobacco, toys, plastics, scrap of aluminium, and copper are among the products that are excluded from the pact. Certain other areas such as those that have seen sharp growth in domestic production or areas where the government is incentivising manufacturing through production-linked incentive schemes have also been excluded from the agreement.
• The India-UAE CEPA is based on the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘SabkaSaath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas aur SabkaPrayas’. India wants a larger share of the UAE market as Government sets its eyes on achieving $1 trillion goods exports by 2030.

THE GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES AND POLICIES

4. MECHANISM TO PROCESS UNORGANIZED WORKERS’ ACCIDENT CLAIMS IN THE WORKS: MINISTRY OF THE UNION LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT

THE CONTEXT: The Union Labour and Employment Ministry is working on a mechanism to process accident insurance claims by unorganised workers registered on the e-Shram portal, which has seen over 27 crore registrations so far.

THE EXPLANATION:

Thee-Shram portal was launched six months ago with the aim of creating a national database of unorganised workers and to facilitate social security schemes for them. Among the promises made at the time was that the workers would be eligible for Rs 2 lakh as accident insurance.

• The discussions were based on to link the e-Shram portal with the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana, the Centre’s existing accident insurance scheme. The scheme would allow the workers to get the direct benefit transfer (DBT) through the e-Shram unique ID number. The official added that the unique IDs on the e-Shram portal carried the same series from the Employees Provident Fund Organisation’s (EPFO) universal account number (UAN).

• At the time the portal was launched in August 2021, the Ministry had estimated that there were 38 crore unorganized sector workers in the country. According to the Ministry functionary, an analysis of the registrations so far was being carried out and a new campaign to get more workers to register would also be planned.
• In her Budget Speech 2022-2023, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the linking of four portals- the National Career Service, e-Shram, UDYAM (for those interested in starting MSMEs) and ASEEM (Atmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping).
• The Labour Ministry announced on April 20 that the inter-linking of the NCS and e-Shram portals had been completed recently.
• This linkage has enabled unorganised workers registered on e-Shram to seamlessly register on NCS and look for better job opportunities through NCS. So far, more than 26,000 e-Shram beneficiaries have registered on NCS and have started benefiting from this linkage.

5. WANT INDIA TO BE A KEY PARTNER IN GLOBAL SEMICONDUCTOR SUPPLY CHAIN: PM MODI

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his inaugural address At the ‘Semicon India Conference 2022’ in Bengaluru said the government’s aim is to place India as one of the key partners in the global semiconductor supply chain.

THE EXPLANATION:

• PM addressed that almost all of the top 25 semiconductor design companies globally have set up design and research and development centres in India. Additionally, the prime minster said that the government has undertaken several measures to transform the Indian manufacturing sector, when humanity was fighting a once-in-a-century pandemic.
• PM pointed out that the government has committed $10 billion to attract semiconductor companies to the country. The incentive scheme was announced on 15 December by Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, as part of efforts to establish the country as a global electronics hub.
• India was on its way to connect 600,000 villages with broadband, and is investing in developing capacity in 5G, IoT and green energy technologies.
• India is working to unleash the next wave of innovation in data, AI and other technologies. Thus, India is headed for robust economic growth. We have the world’s fastest growing startup ecosystem; new unicorns are coming up every few weeks. India’s own construction of semi conductors is expected to cross $80 billion by 2026 and $100 billion by 2030.
• The government has earmarked production linked incentive schemes to the tune of over $26 billion in 14 key sectors, with electronics industry expected to see record growth.
• To provide the enabling environment for the semiconductor industry in India, the efforts in enhancing digital connectivity, enabling broadband connections in the villages, technological advancements such as AI/ML, robust economic growth, and movements in ease of doing business and digitisation should be able to act as catylsts for the growth of the semiconductor industry in India.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

6. INDIA’S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE ROSE TO 7.83% IN APRIL: CMIE DATA

THE CONTEXT: India’s unemployment rate rose to 7.83% in April from 7.60% in March, according to the recent data released by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).

THE EXPLANATION:

• The urban unemployment rate rose to 9.22% in April from 8.28% in the March 2022, while the rural unemployment rate slipped to 7.18% from 7.29%, the data showed.
• The highest unemployment rate of 34.5% was recorded in the northern state of Haryana, followed by 28.8% in Rajasthan.
• Jobless rate in Haryana stood at 34.5 per cent, while it was 28.8 percent and 21.1 per cent in Rajasthan and Bihar respectively. While Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Assam saw the lowest unemployment rate which stood at a miniscule 0.2 per cent, 0.6 per cent and 1.2 percent respectively.
• The given reason for the rose unemployment rate is the labour market is showing signs of economic distress, also India’s labour force fell by 38 lakhs in the month of March, lowest level in the last eight months.
• According to Economists job opportunities have been hit by sluggish domestic demand and the slow pace of economic recovery amid rising prices.
• According to CMIE millions left the labor markets, they stopped even looking for employment, possibly too disappointed with their failure to get a job and under the belief that there were no jobs available.

7. INDIA’S FOREX RESERVES HAVE FALLEN OVER $30 BILLION

THE CONTEXT: India saw its foreign exchange (forex) reserves slump by $3.27 billion to $600.42 billion in the week concluded on April 22, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed in its latest data.

THE EXPLANATION:

• For the latest reported week, April 22 – the country’s forex reserves fell by $3.271 billion to $600.423 billion in the week ended April 22, compared to $631.527 billion reported for the February 25 week.
• Gold reserves shrank by $377 million to $42.768 billion in the reporting week. The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell $33 million to $18.662 billion, the central bank data showed.
• With the latest fall, the country has seen seventh straight drop in its forex reserves – wiping out over $30 billion in just two months since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out.
• For India to build its FX reserves to above $630 billion, it took almost a year, but the global energy crisis from the Ukraine war has hurt the country’s currency and its import cover, wiping out over $30 billion.
• The Reserve Bank had to keep interfering and selling dollars to prevent a slide in the value of the rupee in view of the Russia-Ukraine conflict situation.
• Further, the dollar’s rise against key currencies overseas amid US inflation surge and bond yields hitting multi-year highs too added to the pressure on the rupee as the US situation warranted that the Fed take an aggressive posture on rate hikes.
• The double whammy from the rupee slide and crude oil surging to well above $100 per barrel roiled market sentiment in India because the country depends on imports for 85 per cent of its oil needs.
• It suggests that the RBI keep selling dollars to prevent a slide in the value of the rupee amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION OF THE DAY

Q. Consider the following statements about World Meteorological Organization (WMO):

1. It was established in 1950 through WMO Convention.
2. It is specialized agency of the United Nations.
3. Its secretariat is headquartered in Rome.
4. India is founding member of WMO.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 4 only

c) 2, 3 and 4 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR 30TH APRIL 2022

Answer: A

Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The judges of a high court are appointed by the President.The chief justice is appointed by the President after consultation with the chief justice of India and the governor of the state concerned. For appointment of other judges, the chief justice of the concerned high court is also consulted. In case of a common high court for two or more states, the governors of all the states concerned are consulted by the president.

Statement 2 is incorrect: Constitution has not prescribed a minimum age for appointment as a judge of a high court.

Statement 3 is incorrect: Constitution does not prescribe a fixed tenure of a judge of a high court. He holds office until he attains the age of 62 years.

Statement 4 is incorrect: The Judges Enquiry Act (1968) regulates the procedure relating to the removal of a judge of a high court by the process of impeachment.