1. The hint of a ‘one nation one NGO’ regime READ MORE
2. FCRA Denial to Missionaries of Charity Holds Lessons on Federalism READ MORE
3. Poshan Abhiyaan: It’s time for national self-reflection READ MORE
4. Institutionalising the bane of manual scavenging must end READ MORE

1. Poshan Abhiyaan: It’s time for national self-reflection READ MORE
2. Institutionalising the bane of manual scavenging must end READ MORE
3. Urbanisation of rituals: Durga Puja won UNESCO recognition because it moved from rural to urban Bengal READ MORE

1. Saint Kuriakose Elias Chavara: a true karma yogi READ MORE
2. Right time to Start Preparing for Life’s Exams READ MORE
3. Cultivate Positive Thoughts in the Mind READ MORE

1. A partnership to carry India into net-zero future READ MORE  
2. Like Japan and Singapore, why doesn’t India burn plastic waste to produce energy? READ MORE
3. Significant increase in rainfall in north, central Africa: Study READ MORE
4. A Green Route READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Home Ministry push to Intelligence Bureau’s counter-terrorism grid READ MORE
2. Extending the GST compensation READ MORE
3. ICMR approves India-made kit to detect Omicron READ MORE
4. India’s old dams: Gandhi Sagar in MP needs immediate repair, says CAG report India to acquire lithium, cobalt mines in South America, Australia READ MORE
5. Moody’s assigns Baa2 rating to RIL’s $5 billion bonds issue READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. Urbanisation of rituals: Durga Puja won UNESCO recognition because it moved from rural to urban Bengal READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. The hint of a ‘one nation one NGO’ regime READ MORE
2. FCRA Denial to Missionaries of Charity Holds Lessons on Federalism READ MORE

SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Poshan Abhiyaan: It’s time for national self-reflection READ MORE
2. Institutionalising the bane of manual scavenging must end READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. The bottom line in Blinken’s foray into Southeast Asia READ MORE
2. The TRIPS waiver is needed more than ever READ MORE
3. Delhi-Dhaka ties have a long way to go READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. The eligible denied benefits READ MORE
2. Agriculture needs a separate budget READ MORE
3. The uneven nature of India’s export growth READ MORE
4. The limits of MSP: Farm sector needs intervention at multiple levels READ MORE

 ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. A partnership to carry India into net-zero future READ MORE  
2. Like Japan and Singapore, why doesn’t India burn plastic waste to produce energy? READ MORE
3. Significant increase in rainfall in north, central Africa: Study READ MORE
4. A Green Route READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Saint Kuriakose Elias Chavara: a true karma yogi READ MORE
2. Right time to Start Preparing for Life’s Exams READ MORE
3. Cultivate Positive Thoughts in the Mind READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘To achieve net-zero target by 2070, India needs and active cooperation from the private sector’. Discuss how the private sector can help India to achieve net-zero?
2. ‘India’s deficit in nutrition care can be bridged with systemic reforms for better maternal and child care’. Examine.
3. ‘Agriculture is too diverse a subject for it to be compressed into a sub-section of the regular budgets of the Centre and States’. In light of the statement, whether do you think there should be separate budget for agriculture?

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• The increasing level of surveillance type of data sought has resulted in many organisations losing people on their governance structure and resulting in problems in funding.
• The depth and the variety of the work of a civil society organisation cannot be captured in the annual returns filed on the FCRA portal, where there is no scope for explaining something beyond the binary.
• With active cooperation from the private sector, India will be able to help build a more sustainable world.
• India’s journey on the low-carbon pathway towards net-zero requires the active participation of all stakeholders. Sustainable lifestyles and climate justice are at the core of this journey.
• With cooperation from the private sector, India will be able to responsibly use its fair share of the global carbon space and contribute to reaching the global net-zero goal to build a more environmentally sustainable planet.
• India’s deficit in nutrition care can be bridged with systemic reforms for better maternal and child care.
• Agriculture is too diverse a subject for it to be compressed into a sub-section of the regular budgets of the Centre and States.
• The government will need a multi-pronged approach to address concerns in the farm sector. Guaranteed prices would only increase complications.
• To succeed with necessary and rapid technology transfer and development, increased global cooperation is needed. No single country can complete the entire value chain for hydrogen and thus there is a need for cooperation among countries to secure markets and make green energy available at the earliest opportunity.

50-WORD TALK

• A parliamentary panel with 30 men and one woman examining marriage age bill is inexcusable. Women parliamentarians are right in questioning why men should decide women’s rights. Their demand for better participation in scrutinising it is justified. RS chairman must look into skewed gender representation in standing committee on women.
• China’s new bridge across the Pangong lake will give the PLA improved logistics in a region where India has enjoyed tactical advantages. This isn’t a game-changer, but it shows China is anticipating a long military face-off. The crisis on the LAC doesn’t seem likely to melt away any time soon.
• The announcement of weekend curfew in Delhi is a knee-jerk, unimaginative reaction to the Covid surge. Much like night-time restrictions. The antidote to Covid is well established and simple – vaccines and masks. Governments should stop window dressing and creating alarm but should tell citizens how they are improving hospital infrastructure.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and also exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.

1. Save the valuable Western Ghats READ MORE  
2. Himalayan Glaciers Losing Ice 10x Faster Today Than They Did Until 1975 READ MORE

1. Newton’s laws resonate with Indic philosophy READ MORE
2. No relation is irreconcilable READ MORE
3. Humanity is moving towards machine life READ MORE

1. India will come apart if secular contract is torn READ MORE
2. Social media and the structural diminution of women READ MORE

1. A sobering reminder to the powers that be READ MORE
2. Aiding in governance: The synergy of NGOs, Government and corporates is the holy grail of development READ MORE
3. The 21st century challenge for democracy READ MORE
4. Understanding the mediation bill READ MORE
5. Fund of confusion: FCRA policy should benefit from transparency READ MORE
6. Centre vs states: Exploring the historical roots of India’s distinctive form of federalism READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. China constructing bridge on Pangong Tso READ MORE
2. RBI approves small, offline e-payments READ MORE
3. ‘ISRO gearing up for multiple space missions in 2022’ READ MORE
4. India’s income inequality fell post 2020 lockdown as rich got poorer, US economic study shows READ MORE
5. India’s old dams: Gandhi Sagar in MP needs immediate repair, says CAG report READ MORE
6. All you need know about GST Compensation READ MORE

Main Exam    

GS Paper- 1

1. India will come apart if secular contract is torn READ MORE
2. Social media and the structural diminution of women READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. A sobering reminder to the powers that be READ MORE
2. Aiding in governance: The synergy of NGOs, Government and corporates is the holy grail of development READ MORE
3. The 21st century challenge for democracy READ MORE
4. Understanding the mediation bill READ MORE
5. Fund of confusion: FCRA policy should benefit from transparency READ MORE
6. Centre vs states: Exploring the historical roots of India’s distinctive form of federalism READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. What lessons does Ukraine offer South Asia? READ MORE
2. Role of India, China and Russia in Central Asia READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Is GDP data a reliable way to measure the health of the economy? READ MORE
2. The tale behind putting off key power reforms READ MORE
3. Key takeaways from RBI’s Financial Stability Report READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Save the valuable Western Ghats READ MORE  
2. Himalayan Glaciers Losing Ice 10x Faster Today Than They Did Until 1975 READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Newton’s laws resonate with Indic philosophy READ MORE
2. No relation is irreconcilable READ MORE
3. Humanity is moving towards machine life READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘Centre-state entanglements in the welfare field reflect the deliberate choices of the architects of the Constitution’. Examine the statement.
2. As India needs Both the USA and Russia to save its interests, it should focus on balance rather than leaning to one side. Comment and suggest the way forward for India’s foreign policy.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• A key pillar of democratic governance is citizens’ power to question the state. NGOs and voluntary groups/organisations have played a significant role in building capacities of citizens to hold governments accountable.
• The tension between the tenets of liberty and equality is balanced by fraternity provided by the empathetic NGOs and CSOs in the journey towards a development state.
• NGOs and CSOs in India, irrespective of the open hostility of the current dispensation, will play a major role in mobilising citizen action to right various wrongs.
• Russia’s face-off with the West shows that spheres of influence are here to stay as instruments to regulate competition between great powers. But they endure only when the dominant power is wise and its neighbours are prudent.
• There are serious problems with India’s GDP data. Any analysis of recovery or growth forecast based on this data must be taken with a handful of salt.
• The states must recognise the dangers of destroying the ecosystem, especially when India has been facing the brunt of the climate crisis.
• The Constitution of India, considered a progressive document if there ever was one, guarantees equal rights to all its citizens, and that presumably includes women.
• The virtual world has twisted the terms of engagement giving an unknown quantum of humanity invested with a criminal mindset the licence to operate in public—with little consequence to themselves.
• Centre-state entanglements in the welfare field reflect the deliberate choices of the architects of the Constitution.
• Joint counter-terrorism exercises involving India, Russia and Central Asian nations have also been planned in the coming year. With other global players missing, it has been left to Russia and China to actively dominate Central Asia.
• Democracy can remain alive at the intersection of politics and political criticism.

50-WORD TALK

• Legislators enacted AFSPA in 1958, fearing Northeast insurgencies would burn down India. Those insurgencies are mostly dead, but AFSPA Raj lives on in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur. Experience — Punjab in 1997; Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram since 2014 — shows ending AFSPA can help heal post-insurgency societies. Lifting AFSPA will secure Northeast’s hard-won peace.
• India’s long overdue vaccinations of adolescents is a welcome beginning. It is important for young people to understand its importance not just for resuming their normal life but also protecting older family members. They should not get carried away by a belief in their own invincibility, natural at that age.
• Months after deplorable ‘Sulli Deals’, the emergence of a new app ‘Bulli Bai’ targeting Muslim women points to culture of impunity in a compromised system. Had arrests been made earlier, it wouldn’t have reappeared. Catching culprits cannot be difficult for an all-powerful government that knows how to deploy its agencies.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and also exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.

1. Fair and safe: The ECI must ensure a fair election process that also limits public health risks READ MORE
2. Why EC can’t delay upcoming polls READ MORE
3. Government data negates the need for laws to control India’s population growth READ MORE
4. Is India ready for delimitation of constituencies? Time has come for reorganisation of states READ MORE
5. Attacks on RTI Activists Are Rising. We Need Accountability Laws. READ MORE

1. Secure women from the impact of health emergencies READ MORE  
2. Picture of health: Health index needs a rejig READ MORE
3. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: How to Reunite India READ MORE

1. The cost of extreme weather events READ MORE
2. Half of global cropland expansion replaced natural vegetation and tree cover: Study READ MORE

1. Greed vs life READ MORE
2. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: How to Reunite India READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. PM releases 10th instalment of PM-KISAN READ MORE
2. Two new plant species discovered in Ghats READ MORE
3. Pilgrims pray at renovated century-old temple in Pakistan READ MORE
4. Dharmendra Pradhan launches 100-day reading campaign ‘Padhe Bharat’ READ MORE
5. Drilling under Antarctic ice shelf, scientists find treasure trove of life with 77 species READ MORE
6. India and Pakistan exchange lists of nuclear installations and prisoners READ MORE

Main Exam   

GS Paper- 1

1. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: How to Reunite India READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Fair and safe: The ECI must ensure a fair election process that also limits public health risks READ MORE
2. Why EC can’t delay upcoming polls READ MORE
3. Government data negates the need for laws to control India’s population growth READ MORE
4. Is India ready for delimitation of constituencies? Time has come for reorganisation of states READ MORE
5. Attacks on RTI Activists Are Rising. We Need Accountability Laws. READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Secure women from the impact of health emergencies READ MORE  
2. Picture of health: Health index needs a rejig READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Explained: China’s border law and India READ MORE
2. Why India and China must work together READ MORE
3. RCEP: Asia Readies World’s Largest Trade Deal READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Patchwork policy: The temporary rollback of tax hikes on textiles is a harbinger of challenges before GST regime READ MORE
2. The time to privatise PSU banks is now READ MORE
3. Are Subsidies Trade-distortionary? To benefit the farmers green box subsidies may be given. READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. The cost of extreme weather events READ MORE
2. Half of global cropland expansion replaced natural vegetation and tree cover: Study READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Pilgrim’s distress: Fixing accountability is key to ensuring that the Vaishno Devi tragedy does not recur READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Greed vs life READ MORE
2. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: How to Reunite India READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. Critically examine the importance of the Delhi Declaration on Afghanistan. Do you think it can help bring out a coordinated response against the Taliban regime?
2. Do you think that Democracy resulting in better economic growth and educational attainment is a universal standard? Substantiate.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• The Cold War is over but Cold War thinking survives.
• The Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021, recently introduced in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, is blatantly unconstitutional, as it is in abrogation of Articles 14 and 25 of the Constitution of India.
• Once the role of an authority like the state, vested with the specific task of ensuring compliance with the rule of law, is weakened, people take the law into their own hands and all hell breaks loose.
• Any ranking of human development indicators also offers a static picture and can be exploited for partisan ends unless they are measured against a standard.
• The most important breakthrough that’ll be required will be that of food production outside the Earth’s atmosphere.
• More education and the use of technology can help mitigate their unequally harsh effects on women.
• The ECI must take political parties into confidence and ensure an environment conducive to a fair election process that also limits public health risks.

50-WORD TALK

• China’s move to rename 15 places in Arunachal Pradesh is laughable. However, it also shows China is not looking at any kind of reproachment as far as border tensions with India are concerned. China is digging its heels in and has no plans of going back to pre-May 2020 status-quo.
• The Omicron surge, Delhi and Mumbai’s R values crossing 2 for the first time in the Covid pandemic is worrying. It calls for caution and discipline but not knee-jerk paranoia. Each variant is different, and we know little about Omicron yet. Hospitalisation and fatality figures need to be watched closely.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and also exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.

1. Frame a law based on the Hague Convention READ MORE
2. Lockdown no solution: Covid cases rising, India must take realistic steps READ MORE
3. FCRA non-renewal lacked finesse, dignity and respect READ MORE
4. A Dangerous Move: Linking voter ID and Aadhar READ MORE

1. Keep caste bias out of the classroom READ MORE
2. Prevention is better than cure: There are several compelling reasons for extending outpatient health care coverage READ MORE

1. Disaster damage: 2021 sixth year with insured loss bill over $100 billion READ MORE
2. Energy consumption, related emissions expected to increase through 2050: IEA READ MORE
3. Is UN Security Council inept in resolving climate change? READ MORE

1. Ethical Dilemmas and Unethical Dispensation: The Story of Indian Football in 2021 READ MORE
2. The Moral Convergence of the Real and the Ideal READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. North Eastern Region District SDG Index and Dashboard 2021-22 READ MORE
2. Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog releases ‘Innovations For You’ & ‘The Ingenious Tinkerers’ READ MORE
3. MoD notifies list of 2500 subsystems barred from imports READ MORE
4. Explained: Rythu Bandhu, Telangana govt’s DBT scheme for farmers’ assistance READ MORE
5. 7 IITs in top 10 of govt’s Atal rankings for innovation, IIT Madras is No.1 READ MORE
6. Covid fight: Telangana 1st large state to achieve 100% first-dose vaccination READ MORE

Main Exam  

GS Paper- 1

1. Keep caste bias out of the classroom READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. Frame a law based on the Hague Convention READ MORE
2. Lockdown no solution: Covid cases rising, India must take realistic steps READ MORE
3. FCRA non-renewal lacked finesse, dignity and respect READ MORE
4. A Dangerous Move: Linking voter ID and Aadhar READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Prevention is better than cure: There are several compelling reasons for extending outpatient health care coverage READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. Far from over: Israel is again violating international norms and laws with repeated strikes against Syria READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Vagaries of inflation: Time to tame it? READ MORE
2. India’s hopes and dynasties: The country needs greater social harmony to accelerate economic development READ MORE
3. Market-induced Global Inequalities: Excessive dependence on markets can result in even greater inequality and warped outcomes. READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Disaster damage: 2021 sixth year with insured loss bill over $100 billion READ MORE
2. Energy consumption, related emissions expected to increase through 2050: IEA READ MORE
3. Is UN Security Council inept in resolving climate change? READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Why AFSPA exists READ MORE
2. AFSPA: The Misuse of Power READ MORE

GS Paper- 1

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Ethical Dilemmas and Unethical Dispensation: The Story of Indian Football in 2021 READ MORE
2. The Moral Convergence of the Real and the Ideal READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘To address the issue of inequality we need to focus on equality of opportunity for better education and employment for the less privileged’. Comment.
2. ‘Excessive dependence on markets can result in even greater inequality and warped outcomes’. Do you agree with this view? Justify your view.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver.
• Excessive dependence on markets can result in even greater inequality and warped outcomes.
• The implementation of the AFSPA suggests that it deserves to be completely rewritten or scrapped; there is no third alternative.
• For Syria to see relative peace, there has to be a dial-down in tensions between Israel and Iran. A good beginning point would be the revival of the nuclear deal.
• AFSPA allows soldiers to carry out military operations which would otherwise, in the absence of any legal mandate, be legally and morally questionable.
• Since India is not a signatory to the Hague Convention, any case related to child custody is decided by the Indian courts on merit, taking into account the principles of comity of courts, and the principles of best interest and welfare of the child.
• Authorities must stop caste from vitiating interactions in the classroom, and sullying the education of young people. India made the constitutional promise of a dignified life to its most underprivileged castes, and is bound to fulfil it.
• Caste is ubiquitous in India.
• The double-digit inflation is due to the rise in prices of mineral oils, basic metals, crude petroleum and natural gas, chemicals, food products etc.
• As fiscal space gets limited in poor countries, governmental transfers must target the worst affected sections that cannot take the battering anymore.
• Despite the paucity of political alternatives, as we Indians enter another new year, we need to speak up more about social injustice and hopefully thus promote improved equality of opportunity for better education and employment for the less privileged.
• It is unfortunate enough that the Government of India has, without any effective parliamentary oversight or discussion, brought in this crucial legislation that could have a major impact on electoral outcomes.

50-WORD TALK

• Science has progressed rapidly since the onset of the pandemic, giving us new insights into the virus and its behaviour, and new tools such as testing kits and vaccines. We still need India-specific studies on various counts. In addition, pandemic management has a lot to do with disciplines beyond medical research.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and also exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.
• Try to use the given content in your answer. Regular use of this content will bring more enrichment to your writing.

INDIAN ECONOMY

1. REPORT ON TREND AND PROGRESS OF BANKING IN INDIA 2020-21: RBI

THE CONTEXT: According to the report, Report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2020-21”, published by the RBI, which states that the banking sector managed to improve asset quality during the Covid year with the ratio of gross non-performing assets to advances declining from 8.2 per cent at March-end 2020 to 7.3 per cent at March-end 2021 — and further to 6.9 per cent at September-end 2021.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Also, the report says, the loan write-offs were the predominant recourse for lowering gross NPAs in 2020-21. This improvement was also driven by lower slippages, partly due to the asset classification standstill.
• In absolute terms, gross NPAs declined to Rs 8,37,771 crore in March 2021 from Rs 8,99,803 crore in March 2020. NPAs worth Rs 4 lakh crore were added during the year while bad loans of Rs 2.08 lakh crore were written off by banks. Of the total NPAs, Rs 6.16 lakh crore in bad loans were accounted for by public sector banks.
• The ratio of gross NPAs to advances indicates the proportion of loans out of the total lending that has not been repaid within the due period. Banks normally write off a non-performing asset when all recovery measures are exhausted and chances of recovery are remote.
• In April 2020, when Covid hit the economy, the RBI decided to provide relief to standard bank accounts availing a loan moratorium between March 1 and May 31 that year. The 90-day NPA norm excluded the moratorium period for such accounts. The RBI provided a standstill on asset classification for standard bank accounts, implying these couldn’t be classified as bad assets after the stipulated 90-day period.
• The report highlights, that during 2020-21, the consolidated balance sheet of banks expanded in size, notwithstanding the pandemic and the resultant contraction in economic activity. “In 2021-22 so far, nascent signs of recovery are visible in credit growth. Deposits grew by 10.1 per cent at end-September 2021 as compared with 11.0 per cent in 2020.
• The RBI said the share of large borrowable accounts (exposure of Rs 5 crore or more) in total advances declined to 51 per cent at end-March 2021 from 54.2 per cent a year ago. Their contribution to total NPAs also declined in tandem from 75.4 per cent to 66.2 per cent during the same period.
• The consolidated balance sheet of NBFCs expanded during 2020-21, driven by credit and investments of non-deposit taking systemically important NBFCs (NBFCs-ND-SI). Their asset quality and capital buffers also improved.

 LOAN RECOVERY VIA LOK ADALATS, IBC FALLS IN FY21

• According to the report, the banks reported 4,071 frauds involving Rs 36,342 crore during the six-month period ended September 2021 as against 3,499 frauds involving Rs 64,261 crore in the same period of 2020.
• Loan recovery through various channels, most notably Lok Adalats, witnessed a sizeable decline in the cases referred for resolution during 2020-21.
• While 20.35 lakh cases were reported in FY21 involving Rs 4.56 lakh crore, only Rs 64,228 crore was recovered. In 2019-20, 61.27 lakh cases involving Rs 6.94 lakh crore were reported, with Rs 1.52 lakh crore of loans recovered.
• Even though initiation of fresh insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) of India was suspended for a year till March 2021 and Covid-19 related debt was excluded from the definition of default, it constituted one of the major modes of recoveries in terms of amount recovered.
• In the year 2020, out of Rs 2,24,935 crore referred, only Rs 1,04,117 crore was recovered.
• Recoveries through Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) were lower at Rs 8,113 crore, as against Rs 9,986 crore in the year 2020, and at Rs 27,686 crore through SARFAESI Act, against Rs 34,283 crore.
• Allowing pre-pack resolution window for MSMEs is expected to assuage the mounting pressure of pending cases before NCLTs, reduce haircuts and improve declining recovery rates.

Trends on Banking frauds

• There was a marked increase in frauds related to private banks, both in terms of number as well as the amount involved. In the first half of 2021-22, private banks accounted for more than half of the number of reported fraud cases.
• However, in value terms, the share of PSU banks was higher, indicating predominance of high value frauds. While the major share of loan-related cases pertained to PSU banks, private banks accounted for a majority of card/ internet and cash-related cases.

Value Addition:

What is the difference between Loan Waiver and Loan Write-offs?

• The major difference between “Write off” & “Waive off” Loan is that Loan Waive-off is something where the loan-taker is released from the burden of paying back the loan amount, while in the case of Loan Write-off; the financial institute still hopes to recover the loan amount from the person who not repaid it back.
• The decision of waiving off a loan is taken by the Government under certain conditions while Loan Write-off is carried out by the banks to keep a clear record of the unrecovered loan amount in their balance sheets.

 NPA Classification

About Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC)

• The IBC, 2016 is the bankruptcy law of India that seeks to consolidate the existing framework by creating a single law for insolvency and bankruptcy.
• It is a one-stop solution for resolving insolvencies which previously was a long process that did not offer an economically viable arrangement.
• The code aims to protect the interests of small investors and make the process of doing business less cumbersome.

What is Lok Adalat?

• It is one of the components of the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) system and delivers informal, cheap and expeditious justice to the common people.
• The first Lok Adalat camp was organised in Gujarat in 1982 as a voluntary and conciliatory agency without any statutory backing for its decisions.
• In view of its growing popularity over time, it was given statutory status under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987. The Act makes the provisions relating to the organisation and functioning of the Lok Adalats.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

2. BIHAR GOVERNMENT PLANS TO STERILISE NILGAI’S

THE CONTEXT: The Bihar forest department officials, caught six nilgais from the premises of Bihta Airport Station near Patna and sterilised them. They were taken to Valmiki Tiger Reserve in the state’s West Champaran district.

THE EXPLANATION:

• According to the Forest officials that they will not cull the Blue Bull, locally known as the nilgai or ghurparas, anymore. It will, instead, sterilise them to control their increasing population in the state.
• The state government will sterilise 5,000 nilgais in 2022. “All district forest officers have been asked to do so in their respective jurisdiction. Sterlising Nilgais is easier and eco-friendly. This will not harm them and provide much-needed relief to farmers”.
• The step was the result of a December 1, 2015, notification by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) that declared the nilgai and wild boar vermin in some districts of Bihar.

What is the Issue?

• Farmers in flood-prone north Bihar districts to drought-prone south Bihar districts have been troubled with nilgais, which regularly forage into farmland in search of food and damage crops.
• Farmers Baban Mahto and Ramji Singh Buxar districts said the animal has been destroying their wheat, mustard, seed and potato crops since early December of 2021. Their numbers have increased in the last two-three years.

About Nilgai:

• The Nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) is one of the largest species of Asian antelope native to the Indian subcontinent. The name ‘nilgai’ translates to ‘blue cow’.
• Major populations of the Nilgai are found in India, Nepal and Pakistan. It is found in large numbers across northern India.
• Nilgai are herbivores feeding on grass and herbs. Nilgai are better adapted to interference from livestock regarding forage competition as they can reach high branches and do not primarily depend on ground vegetation.
• The preferable habitat of a nilgai is the one replete with short bushes with scattered trees and grassy plains. They are common in agricultural lands as well.

Conservation Status:

• IUCN status: Least Conservation
• Wildlife Protection Act of 1972: Schedule III

 What is Vermin?

Vermin means wild mammals and birds which are harmful to crops, farm animals or which carry disease. In India, wild animals can be declared as vermin if they have become (i) dangerous to human life or property (including standing crops on any land). (ii) become disabled or diseased as to be beyond recovery.

How are they declared?

• Wildlife laws divide species into ‘schedules’ ranked from I to V. Schedule I members are the best protected, in theory, with severe punishments meted out to those who hunt them. Wild boars, nilgai and rhesus monkeys are Schedule II and III members — also protected but can be hunted under specific conditions. Crows and fruit bat fall in Schedule 5, the vermin category.
• Section 11(1)a of the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA) authorizes chief wildlife warden to permit hunting of any problem wild animal only if it cannot be captured, tranquillized or translocated.
• For wild animals in Schedule II, III or IV, chief wildlife warden or authorized officers can permit their hunting in a specified area if they have become dangerous to humans or property (including standing crops on any land).
• Section 62 of Act empowers Centre to declare wild animals other than Schedule I & II to be vermin for specified area and period.

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

3. CHINA LAUNCHES MINERAL SURVEY AND SCIENCE OUTREACH SATELLITES

THE CONTEXT: China launched the Ziyuan 1 (02E) Earth resources observation satellite and a small amateur radio satellite, marking the country’s 53rd orbital launch of the year.

THE EXPLANATION:

• China has deployed a new Earth resources observation satellite via its Chang Zheng 4C rocket. The Ziyuan-1 02E satellite, along with an amateur radio CubeSat, lifted off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center.
• Ziyuan (ZY), meaning Resource, is a series of remote-sensing satellites which China uses to acquire high-resolution images that can be used for surveying Earth resources, disaster management, and ecological and land use monitoring.
• The first Ziyuan satellite, Ziyuan-1 01, was launched in 1999 in a partnership between China and the Brazilian national space agency, INPE. Six of the nine Ziyuan satellites launched to date have been part of the China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite (CBERS) program, with the other three – including Ziyuan-1 02E – being solely Chinese-operated. Three more all-Chinese Ziyuan-3 satellites have also been launched, while the designation Ziyuan-2 was applied to a trio of military reconnaissance satellites deployed in the early 2000s, which are not part of the civilian Ziyuan series.
• Ziyuan-1 02E is believed to be similar in design to the Ziyuan-1 02D satellite launched in September 2019. It carries the same two imaging payloads: a high-resolution visible and near-infrared camera and a hyperspectral imager, as well as a new long-wave infrared camera.
• The high-resolution camera will be able to produce images with resolutions of up to five meters when operating in panchromatic mode. When operating in multispectral mode, it can produce images across three bands with a resolution of up to 10 meters. The hyperspectral payload can image across 166 spectral bands.

4. LOG4J VULNERABILITY

THE CONTEXT: A new vulnerability named Log4 Shell is being touted as one of the worst cybersecurity flaws to have been discovered.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The vulnerability is dubbed Log4 Shell and is officially CVE-2021-44228.
• CVE number is the unique number given to each vulnerability discovered across the world).
• It is based on an open-source logging library used in most applications by enterprises and even government agencies.
• The exploits for this vulnerability are already being tested by hackers and it grants them access to an application, and could potentially let them run malicious software on a device or servers.
• The problem impacts Log4j 2 versions which is a very common logging library used by applications across the world.
• Logging lets developers see all the activity of an application.

Concerns:

• Cryptocurrency Mining: Most of the attacks they have observed appear to focus on the use of cryptocurrency mining at the expense of the victims. However, new variations of the original exploit are being introduced rapidly.
• Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to disclosure of sensitive information, addition or modification of data, or Denial of Service (DoS).
• Global: The Australia-New Zealand (ANZ) area was the most impacted region with 46% of corporate networks facing an attempted exploit.
• While North America was the least impacted with 36.4% of organizations facing such an attempt.
• India: About 41% of corporate networks in India have already faced an attempted exploit.
• Indian companies are not more vulnerable than their western counterparts because they use Java-based applications.
• Indian companies are at high risk because of their weak security posture, especially the smaller companies that may not have the know-how or resources to detect and fix the issue quickly.
• In other countries such as China, some of the telcos such as China Unicom had started 5G trials as early as 2018, and have since rolled out the commercial services for users.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTION

Q1. The term ‘ACE2’ is talked about in the context of

a) genes introduced in genetically modified plants.

b) developments of India’s own satellite navigation system

c) radio collars for wildlife tracking

d) spread of viral diseases

ANSWER FOR 28^TH DECEMBER 2021

ANSWER: D

EXPLANATION:

• Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem Kumar Sehgal and Gurubaksh Singh Dhillon were officers of Indian National Army. Their whose was held in 1945 at the Red Fort in Delhi.

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