INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. SC FORMS COMMITTEE TO EXAMINE PEGASUS ALLEGATIONS

THE CONTEXT:   The Supreme Court-appointed an independent expert technical committee is overseen by a former apex court judge, Justice R.V. Raveendran, to examine allegations that the government used Israeli spyware, Pegasus, to snoop on its own citizens.

THE EXPLANATION:

• SC stressed that the power of the state to snoop in the name of national security into the “sacred private space” of individuals is not absolute.
• It decided to refuse the Centre’s offer to appoint an expert committee to investigate the allegations because “such a course of action would violate the settled judicial principle against bias, i.e., that ‘justice must not only be done but also be seen to be done.”
• Indiscriminate spying on individuals by the state is not allowed in a democracy. The use of technology for surveillance by the state must be evidence-based.
• A need may arise to encroach into individual privacy to access information vital to prevent violence and terror. However, the state can violate a person’s privacy only if it is “absolutely necessary” to protect national security and interests. The necessity to trespass on individual privacy should be proportional.
• In a democratic country governed by the rule of law, indiscriminate spying on individuals cannot be allowed except with sufficient statutory safeguards, by following the procedure established by law under the Constitution.
• Snooping on journalists or creating a fear that the media is being spied on creates a “chilling effect” on journalistic freedom and is an assault on the vital public watchdog role of the press.
• Two principles enunciated by SC in its order: 1. Surveillance, or even the knowledge that one could be spied upon, affects the way individuals exercise their rights, warranting the Court’s intervention. 2. There is no omnibus prohibition on judicial review merely because the spectre of national security is being raised.

SOURCE:  TH

2. FOUR YEAR INTEGRATED TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMME

THE CONTEXT:    Ministry of Education notifies the Four Year ITEP, a dual-major holistic bachelor’s degree offering B.A. B.Ed./ B. Sc. B. Ed. and B.Com. B.Ed. which is one of the major mandates of the National Education Policy 2020 related to Teacher Education.

THE EXPLANATION:

• As per the NEP, 2020, teacher engagement from the year 2030 onwards will be only through ITEP.
• It will be offered in pilot mode initially in about 50 selected multidisciplinary institutions across the country.
• National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) under the Ministry of Education has devised the curriculum of this course in such a way that it enables a student-teacher to get a degree in education as well as a specialised discipline such as history, mathematics, science, arts, economics, or commerce.
• ITEP will not only impart cutting-edge pedagogy, but will also establish a foundation in early childhood care and education (ECCE), foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN), inclusive education, and an understanding of India and its values/ethos/art/traditions, among others.
• The Year ITEP will be available for all students who choose teaching as a profession after secondary, by choice. This integrated course will benefit students since they will save one year by finishing it in four years rather than the customary five years required by the present B.Ed. plan.
• The commencement of Four Year ITEP will be from the academic session 2022-23. Admission for the same will be carried out by the National Testing Agency (NTA) through the National Common Entrance Test (NCET). This course will be offered by multidisciplinary institutions and will become the minimal degree qualification for schoolteachers.

SOURCE:  PIB

3. HAR GHAR DASTAK CAMPAIGN

THE CONTEXT: According to the Health Ministry, the “Har Ghar Dastak” (Knock Every Door) campaign is scheduled to start soon in districts with low vaccination rates to enthuse and motivate people towards getting their jab.

THE EXPLANATION:

• There were more than 10.34 crore people in the country who had missed the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine that they were due to take.
• He added that adequate vaccine doses were available in the country, and more than 12 crore unutilized doses were available with the States.
• Innovative strategies to encourage stakeholders to achieve their targets.

SOURCE:  TH

4. SAMBHAV

THE CONTEXT: Union Minister of MSME launched “SAMBHAV”, a National Level Awareness Programme-2021.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The mass outreach program will be a one-month long initiative under the Ministry of MSME in which students from different colleges/ITIs from all parts of the country will be encouraged by 130 field offices of the Ministry to take up entrepreneurship.
• During the campaign, the college students will be made aware of the various schemes being implemented by the Ministry of MSME through Audio/Video film presentations.
• Awareness programs will be conducted in more than 1,300 colleges across the country in which 1, 50,000 students are expected to participate.

SOURCE:  PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

5. KRISHI UDAN 2.0

THE CONTEXT: Union Minister of Civil Aviation released Krishi UDAN 2.0. Krishi UDAN 2.0 lays out the vision of improving value realization through better integration and optimization of Agri-harvesting and air transportation and contributing to Agri-value chain sustainability and resilience under different and dynamic conditions. The scheme proposes to facilitate and incentivize the movement of Agri-produce by air transportation.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF KRISHI UDAN 2.0

• Facilitating and incentivizing movement of Agri-produce by air transportation: Full waiver of Landing, Parking, TNLC and RNFC charges for Indian freighters and P2C at selected Airports of Airport Authority of India. Primarily, focusing on NER, Hilly and tribal regions.
• Strengthening cargo-related infrastructure at airports and off airports: Facilitating the development of a hub and spoke model and a freight grid. Airside transit and transhipment infrastructure will be created at Bagdogra and Guwahati airports, and at Leh, Srinagar, Nagpur, Nashik, Ranchi, and Raipur airports as a part of a focus on NER, Tribal and Hilly Districts.
• Concessions sought from other bodies: Seek support and encourage States to reduce Sales Tax to 1% on ATF for freighters / P2C aircraft as extended in UDAN flights.
• Resources-Pooling through establishing Convergence mechanism: Collaboration with other government departments and regulatory bodies to provide freight forwarders, airlines and other stakeholders with Incentives and concessions to enhance air transportation of Agri-produce.
• Technological convergence: Development of E-KUSHAL (Krishi UDAN for Sustainable Holistic Agri-Logistics). Platform to be developed facilitate information dissemination to all the stakeholders. Furthermore, integration of E-KUSHAL with the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) is proposed.
• Total 53 airports are selected for the first phase of Krishi UDAN 2.0. The majority of them are operated by AAI.
• The strategic selection of the airports is primarily focused on the northeast region. Additionally covers North, entire western coast and southern India (including two islands).
• Airports for implementation of KrishiUdan 2.0 are selected with the aim of providing benefit to the entire country Opted airports not only provide access to regional domestic market but also connects them to international gateways of the country.
• Development of E-KUSHAL(Krishi Udaan for Sustainable Holistic Agri-Logistics). Proposed to develop a platform that will facilitate information dissemination to all the stakeholders. This will be a single platform that will provide relevant information at the same time will also assist in coordination, monitoring and evaluation of the scheme. Proposed convergence of E-Kushal with National Agriculture Market (e-NAM).
• Facilitating the development of a hub and spoke model and a freight grid (identified locations for cargo terminals).

 SOURCE: PIB

INTERNAL  SECURITY

6. AGNI -5

THE CONTEXT: A successful launch of the Surface to Surface Ballistic Missile, Agni-5, was carried out on October 27, 2021, at approximately 1950 hrs from APJ Abdul Kalam Island, Odisha.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Agni-5 is capable of striking targets at ranges up to 5,000 kilometres with a very high degree of accuracy.
• Uses a three-stage solid-fuelled engine.
• Successful launch in line with India’s policy to have ‘credible minimum deterrence’ that underpins the commitment to ‘No First Use’

SOURCE: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. 16TH EAST ASIA SUMMIT

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi participated in the 16th East Asia Summit via videoconference.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 16th East Asia Summit was hosted by Brunei as EAS and ASEAN Chair.
• It saw the participation of leaders from ASEAN countries and other EAS Participating Countries including Australia, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, the USA and India. India has been an active participant in EAS.
• This was Prime Minister’s 7th East Asia Summit.
• In his remarks at the Summit, Prime Minister reaffirmed the importance of EAS as the premier leaders-led forum in Indo-Pacific, bringing together nations to discuss important strategic issues.
• Prime Minister highlighted India’s efforts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic through vaccines and medical supplies.
• The 16th EAS also discussed important regional and international issues including Indo-Pacific, South China Sea, UNCLOS, terrorism, and situation in Korean Peninsula and Myanmar.
• PM reaffirmed “ASEAN centrality” in the Indo-Pacific and highlighted the synergies between ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and India’s Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI).
• The EAS leaders adopted three Statements on Mental Health, Economic recovery through Tourism and Sustainable Recovery, which have been co-sponsored by India.
• Overall, the Summit saw a fruitful exchange of views between the Prime Minister and other EAS leaders.

SOURCE: PIB

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1 Har Ghar Dastak (Knock Every Door) campaign is started by the government for which of the following purpose?

a) To motivate youth to get electoral cards.

b) To motivate people towards getting their COVID-19 vaccine.

c) To motivate people to vaccinate their children.

d) To motivate youth to participate in sports.

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 27, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank.
• Statement 2 is correct: It is headquartered in Beijing and began its operations in January 2016.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: China is the largest contributor to the Bank, contributing USD 50 billion, half of the initial subscribed capital. India is the second-largest shareholder, contributing USD 8.4 billion.

ART AND CULTURE

1. QUEEN HEO HWANG-OK MEMORIAL PARK

THE CONTEXT:   On the banks of the Sarayu in Ayodhya, acres of green space will be known as Queen Heo Hwang-ok Memorial Park, after a Korean queen believed to have had Indian roots.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Queen Heo Hwang-ok was a Korean queen who is believed to have been born Princess Suriratna of Ayodhya, daughter of King Padmasen and Indumati. Padmasen ruled the ancient kingdom of Kausala, a region that extended from present-day UP to Odisha.
• Her story is described in Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of Three Kingdoms), a 13th-century collection of legends, folktales, and history of Korea’s three kingdoms — Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla — and some other regions.
• In 48 BC, the princess, then 16, travelled to Korea from the ancient land of ‘Ayuta’ and married Kim Suro, founder, and King of Geumgwan Gaya in south-eastern Korea. She travelled by boat along with an entourage, having been sent by her father, who is said to have had a dream about her marrying Suro. She became the first queen of Geumgwan Gaya, believed to be located around modern-day Gimhae city in Southern Gyeonsang province. The couple are said to have had 12 children.
• More than six million present-day Koreans trace their lineage to Heo Hwang-ok. For years now, many Koreans have visited Ayodhya to pay homage to the queen’s ancestral home.
• In 2000, India and South Korea signed an agreement to develop Ayodhya and Gimhae as sister cities.
• The memorial now comprises Queen and King pavilions with their busts in place, and a pond to represent Princess Suriratna’s journey. According to the legend, the princess had taken a golden egg to Korea, and the park includes an egg made of granite.
• The story has helped boost the relationship between India and South Korea. But there is some debate about her Indian origins.
• There are many versions of the same story. While Samguk Yusa talks about the queen from a distant land named Ayuta and popular culture considers it Ayodhya, no Indian document or scripture has any record of her.
• Some historians also believe that the princess could actually be from Thailand’s Ayutthaya kingdom. But the kingdom in Thailand came about in 1350, years after Samguk Yusa had already been written.

SOURCE: IE

2. THE JOURNEY OF PALLAVA SCRIPT FROM TN TO SOUTH-EAST ASIA

THE CONTEXT:   Amidst its vast collection of Buddhist images and Hindu sculptures, India gets several mentions in the Ramkhamhaeng National Museum in Sukhothai, Thailand.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Indian influence is clearly visible across the vast Sukhothai Historical Park, which houses the museum and comprises the ruins of 13th and 14th-century temples, monasteries and other structures of the Sukhothai Kingdom.
• Thais revere this kingdom and King Ramkhamhaeng, who is believed to have invented the Sukhothai script, which was derived from Old Khmer, itself derived from the Pallava script.
• Traditional scripts across South East Asia were derived from the Pallava writing system, named after the Pallava dynasty (3rd Century BCE to 9th Century CE).
• The journey of the Pallava script to South East Asia is an interesting, even if not fully understood, part of history.
• History books in South East Asian countries say that the script spread to the region through traders, priests, monks and scholars who went to South East Asia during the reign of the Pallavas.
• The export of the script to South East Asia is believed to have commenced during the reign of Mahendravarman I (600 CE to 630 CE), who was a major patron of the Tamil language.
• This “two-language” policy was adopted by the Khmer Empire.
• The oldest inscription in the Khmer script that has been found in Cambodia dates back to 611 CE.
• The script, which was developed from Pallava, then spread across the Khmer Empire to the Mekong Delta, to parts of modern-day Laos and Thailand. Sanskrit and Lao inscriptions in Laos detail incidents from the country’s Khmer past.
• The Khmer script was used in central and northern Thailand until it was replaced by the Sukhothai script, which later evolved into the modern Thai script. Some of the famous Khmer and Sanskrit inscriptions of the Khmer Empire are found in archaeological sites in Thailand.
• The Pallava script also reached the Malay peninsula and the Indonesian archipelago in the 8th century CE. The Sojomerto inscription (9th century CE) in Central Java is the oldest discovered specimen of Old Malay, a language that was deeply influenced by Sanskrit and had several Dravidian words.
• Even the Philippines had a writing system that was a variant of the Pallava script.
• Despite the logistical difficulties and the time taken for the movement of people and ideas in the 7th century, southern India and South East Asia seemed to be better connected at that time.
• Asia was not plagued then by the ideas of national identity cards, passports and the modern nation-state.
• India welcomed pilgrims and travellers from other parts of Asia, some of whom stayed behind and became Indians. The exchange worked both ways, with Indians settling in East and South-East Asia in small numbers.

SOURCE:  Scroll

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

3. INDIA NEEDS TO BOLSTER ITS HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE

THE CONTEXT:    Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) president Jin Liqun that India should strike a balance between ramping up the physical infrastructure and the social infrastructure such as healthcare systems.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Stressing that the country faces a ‘huge need’ to strengthen its healthcare infrastructure, the AIIB president said that the multilateral lender would look to fund both social as well as climate-resilient infrastructure in India in the coming years.
• The AIIB will align its operations with the goals of the Paris Agreement to cope with climate change by July 2023, and expects to finance infrastructure projects to mitigate and adapt to climate change worth $50 billion by 2030

ABOUT AIIB

• The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is a multilateral development bank.
• It is headquartered in Beijing and began its operations in January 2016.
• China is the largest contributor to the Bank, contributing USD 50 billion, half of the initial subscribed capital.
• India is the second-largest shareholder, contributing USD 8.4 billion.
• Voting rights: China is the largest shareholder with 26.61 % voting shares in the bank followed by India (7.6%), Russia (6.01%) and Germany (4.2 %)

SOURCE:  PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. AUSTRALIA WILL BEAT 2030 GOAL FOR LOWER EMISSIONS

THE CONTEXT: Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the country is set to reduce emissions by 35% below 2005 levels by 2030, but he won’t commit to such a target at the U.N. climate conference in Scotland.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The country will commit to a target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the Glasgow conference.
• Australia is one of the world’s largest exporters of coal and liquified natural gas.
• Morrison said his net-zero plan would not shut down Australia’s coal or gas production or increase costs to households and businesses. The government expected existing technologies would take Australia 85% of the way toward net-zero and emerging technologies would achieve the remainder.
• Policy levers include investment in technologies and incentives. At least 20 billion Australian dollars ($15 billion) would be invested in low-emissions technology by 2030.
• The government has yet to release economic and climate modelling behind the plan.
• The conditions also include a government review every five years of the economic impacts of the net-zero target outside major cities. The first assessment would be delivered in 2023.
• However, Australia is likely to be criticized in Glasgow for its relatively weak 2030 target. The United States has committed to reductions of between 50% and 52% below 2005 levels. Britain has pledged to cut emissions by 68% below 1990 levels.

 SOURCE: TH

5. TRIGONOPTERUS CORONA

THE CONTEXT:  On the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, museum scientists have discovered 28 new species of beetles.

THE EXPLANATION:

• One of them has been named Trigonopterus corona. This reflects the large impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on this project.
• It is not the only insect species to be named after the pandemic. A new species of caddisfly (a moth-like insect) was collected near a stream in Kosovo by a team of scientists and named Potamophylax coronavirus.
• Out of six new species of Brazilian wasps described in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research, one was named Allorhagas quarentenus, a reference to the quarantine.

SOURCE: TH

6. CLIMATE VULNERABILITY INDEX 

THE CONTEXT: According to Climate Vulnerability Index released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), the states of Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Bihar are the most vulnerable to extreme climate events such as floods, droughts and cyclones in India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The report ‘Mapping India’s Climate Vulnerability – A District-level Assessment’, which has been supported by the India Climate Collaborative and Edelgive Foundation, has analysed 640 districts in India and found that 463 of these are vulnerable to extreme floods, droughts and cyclones.
• Dhemaji and Nagaon in Assam, Khammam in Telangana, Gajapati in Odisha, Vizianagaram in Andhra Pradesh, Sangli in Maharashtra and Chennai in Tamil Nadu are among India’s most climate-vulnerable districts, finds the study.
• More than 80 per cent of Indians live in districts vulnerable to climate risks, that is, 17 of 20 people in the country are vulnerable to climate risks, out of which every five Indians live in areas that are extremely vulnerable.
• More than 45 per cent of these districts have undergone unsustainable landscape and infrastructure changes.
• Further, 183 hotspot districts are highly vulnerable to more than one extreme climate event.

SOURCE:  IE

7. CLIMATE DELIVERY PLAN

THE CONTEXT: The UK COP26 Presidency released the ‘Climate Delivery Plan’, outlining an agenda and a timetable for developed countries to deliver $100 billion worth of monetary help to low-income countries to manage the climate crisis.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The $100 billion packages were supposed to have been delivered by 2020, with developed countries contributing the same amount every year for a period of five years, until 2025. The latest Climate Delivery Plan, however, suggests developed countries may not be able to drum up $100 billion before 2023 — three years after the original deadline.
• So far, 18 out of the 23 developed countries that had initially agreed to supply the $100 billion have made fresh pledges double/increase the amount previously pledged ahead of COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference, where climate finance is expected to play a central role in negotiations.
• These countries are Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the European Commission, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States of America.
• The $100 billion goals had been originally decided upon in 2009, at the COP15, with the intention of supporting developing countries to cope with climate mitigation and adaptation. The goal was reaffirmed and extended in 2015, at COP21, to mobilise the finance from 2020 to 2025. In 2016, developed countries came up with a roadmap to achieve the $100 billion goals by 2020.
• But by 2019, developed countries had contributed only $79.6 billion towards climate finance for low-income countries

SOURCE: THEPRINT

MISCELLANEOUS

8. FIRST DIRECT FLIGHT ON SHILLONG-DIBRUGARH

THE CONTEXT: Union Minister of Civil Aviation virtually flagged off the first direct flight on the Shillong – Dibrugarh route under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (RCS-UDAN) of the Government of India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Due to the non-availability of any direct mode of transportation, people were compelled to cover a long 12-hour journey by road & train to travel between Shillong & Dibrugarh.
• Now, natives can easily fly between the two cities by opting for a flight of just 75 mins.

ABOUT UDAN SCHEME

• In 2016, the Ministry of Civil Aviation announced Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN), a regional connectivity plan.
• The scheme’s goal is to develop affordable, yet economically sustainable and successful, regional flights so that flying becomes accessible to the general public, even in tiny towns.
• The plan calls for the revitalization of existing airstrips and airports to provide connectivity to the country’s underserved and unserved airports. The scheme is in place for a ten-year term.
• Under-served airports have fewer than one flight per day, while unserved airports have no operations.
• To date, 389 routes and 62 airports (including 5 heliports and 2 water aerodromes) have been operationalized under the UDAN scheme.

SOURCE: PIB

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS:

Q1.  Consider the following statements about AIIB:

1. It is a multilateral development finance bank.
2. Its headquarter is located in Shanghai, China.
3. India is the third-largest shareholder in it after China and Japan.

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 OCTOBER 26, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Answer: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: It was launched by the governments of Sweden and India at the UN Climate Action Summit in September 2019 and is supported by the World Economic Forum.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT) gathers countries and companies that are committed to action to achieve the Paris Agreement.
• Statement 3 is correct: Its secretariat hosted by Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI)

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. AYUSHMAN BHARAT HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE MISSION

THE CONTEXT:  Prime Minister launched the Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission, one of the largest Pan-India schemes for strengthening healthcare infrastructure.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It is one of the largest Pan-India schemes for strengthening healthcare infrastructure across the country. It is in addition to the National Health Mission.
• Its objective is to fill gaps in public health infrastructure, especially in critical care facilities and primary care in both urban and rural areas. It will provide support for 17,788 rural health and wellness centres in 10 high-focus states. Further, 11,024 urban health and wellness centres will be established in all the States.
• Through this, critical care services will be available in all the districts of the country with more than five lakh populations through exclusive critical care hospital blocks, while the remaining districts will be covered through referral services.
• People will have access to a full range of diagnostic services in the public healthcare system through a network of laboratories across the country, and integrated public health labs will be set up in all the districts.

PM AYUSHMAN BHARAT HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE MISSION

• There are 3 major aspects of the Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission to address the different gaps in the health sector of the country.
• The first is related to the creation of elaborate facilities for diagnostics and treatment. Under this, Health and Wellness Centers are being opened in villages and cities, where there will be facilities for early detection of diseases. Facilities like free medical consultation, free tests, and free medicine will be available in these centres. For serious illness, 35 thousand new critical care-related beds are being added in 600 districts and referral facilities will be given in 125 districts.
• The second aspect of the scheme is related to the testing network for the diagnosis of diseases. The necessary infrastructure will be developed for the diagnosis and monitoring of diseases. 730 districts of the country will get Integrated Public Health labs and 3 thousand blocks will get Block Public Health Units. Apart from that, 5 Regional National Centers for Disease Control, 20 Metropolitan units, and 15 BSL labs will further strengthen this network, said the Prime Minister.
• The Third aspect is the expansion of existing research institutions that study pandemics. Existing 80 Viral Diagnostic and research labs will be strengthened, 15 Biosafety level 15 labs will be operationalized, 4 new National institutes of Virology and a National Institute for One Health are being established.

SOURCE:  PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

2. CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS IN 2020 ABOVE DECADAL AVERAGE

THE CONTEXT: A report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said the increase in CO2 from 2019 to 2020 was slightly lower than that observed from 2018 to 2019 but higher than the average annual growth rate over the last decade. 

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Bulletin, as the WMO report is called, flagged concern that the ability of land ecosystems and oceans to act as ‘sinks’ may become less effective in future, thus reducing their ability to absorb CO2 and act as a buffer against larger temperature increases.
• The Bulletin shows that from 1990 to 2020, radiative forcing (the warming effect on our climate) by long-lived greenhouse gases increased by 47%, with CO2 accounting for about 80% of this increase. The numbers are based on monitoring by WMO’s Global Atmosphere Watch network.
• This is despite the approximately 5.6% drop in fossil fuel CO2 emissions in 2020due to restrictions related to the pandemic.
• For methane, the increase from 2019 to 2020 was higher than that observed from 2018 to 2019 and also higher than the average annual growth rate over the last decade.
• For nitrous oxides also, the increase was higher and also than the average annual growth rate over the past 10 years.
• The concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), the most significant greenhouse gas, reached 413.2 parts per million in 2020 and is 149% of the pre-industrial level.
• Methane (CH4) is 262% and nitrous oxide (N2O) is 123% of the levels in 1,750 when human activities started disrupting earth’s natural equilibrium.
• Roughly half of the CO2 emitted by human activities today remains in the atmosphere. The other half is taken up by oceans and land ecosystems.

SOURCE:TH

3. INDIA’S EXPECTATIONS FROM COP26

THE CONTEXT: Ahead of the 26th meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP) next month in Glasgow, there have been several bilateral meetings between India and other countries. The big push at the COP will be to have more countries commit to a “net-zero” deadline by mid-century. Huge expectations include arriving at a consensus on unresolved issues of the Paris Agreement Rule Book, long-term climate finance and market-based mechanisms

WHY HASN’T INDIA AGREED TO A NET-ZERO TARGET?

• India sees a mid-century target upon itself as opposed to the principle of “common but differentiated” responsibility that allows countries to eschew fossil fuel without compromising equitable development.
• Net-zero means that a country must commit to a year beyond which its emissions won’t peak and a point at which it will balance out its emissions by taking out an equivalent amount of greenhouse gas from the air.
• Even theoretically committing to a net-zero by 2050 would require India to retire its coal plants and fossil fuel use overnight and even this wouldn’t guarantee that temperature-rise stays below 1.5C by the end of the century.
• India says countries responsible for the climate crisis haven’t made good on previous promises to fund mitigation and adaptation projects and so future net zero promises are therefore hollow.

WHAT ARE INDIA’S EXPECTATIONS FROM COP 26?

• India was also hoping to strengthen global climate initiatives including the International Solar Alliance, Coalition Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT Group), Call for Action on Adaptation and Resilience and Mission Innovation.
• India has said it is “open to all options” provided it gets assurances that commitments in previous COPs such as developing countries getting compensated to the tune of $100 billion annually, the carbon-credit markets be reinvigorated and the countries historically responsible for the climate crisis be compensated by way of “Loss and Damages,” and clean development technologies be made available in ways that its industries can painlessly adapt to.

ABOUT LEAD IT

• The Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT) gathers countries and companies that are committed to action to achieve the Paris Agreement.
• It was launched by the governments of Sweden and India at the UN Climate Action Summit in September 2019 and is supported by the World Economic Forum.
• LeadIT members subscribe to the notion that energy-intensive industry can and must progress on low-carbon pathways, aiming to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
• The Management Board is made up of representatives from Sweden, India, and the World Economic Forum. A Technical and Expert Committee, made up of LeadIT member representatives, advises the Board.
• The Secretariat is responsible for managing the work of the Leadership Group and is hosted by Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).

SOURCE: TH

4. MAXIMUM WATER LEVEL AT MULLAPERIYAR DAM

THE CONTEXT: The Supreme Court directed the Supervisory Committee to take an immediate and firm decision on the maximum water level that can be maintained at Mullaperiyar dam amidst torrential rains in Kerala.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Kerala said the water level should not go above 139 feet. Tamil Nadu, on the other hand, informed the court that the level in the dam was 137.2 ft.
• The Supreme Court made it clear that this was not an issue to play politics about.The court directed the Supervisory Committee to get to work as there was an immediate need to specify the maximum water level in the dam because of the rains.
• The order came in a petition filed by Idukki resident Joe Joseph and office-bearers of the Kothamangalam block panchayat in Kerala, who had expressed their apprehensions about the supervision of water levels in the Mullaperiyar dam located along the Periyar tiger reserve, especially during the rainy season.

ABOUT MULLAPERIYAR DAM

• It is a masonry gravity dam on the Periyar River in the Indian state of Kerala.
• It was constructed between 1887 and 1895 and also reached in an agreement to divert water eastwards to the Madras Presidency area.
• The dam created the PeriyarThekkady reservoir, from which water was diverted eastwards via a tunnel to augment the small flow of the Vaigai River.
• The dam is built at the confluence of Mullayar and Periyar rivers.
• The dam is located in Kerala on the river Periyar but is operated and maintained by the neighbouring state

SOURCE: TH

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. THE SUPERIORITY OF HYBRID IMMUNITY

THE CONTEXT: The study, posted in the preprint server medRxiv  has found that in 500 healthcare workers, the neutralising antibodies were twofold more in people immunised with Pfizer vaccine following natural infection compared with people immunised with Pfizer vaccine but without prior infection.

SOURCE: TH

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

6. 18TH ASEAN-INDIA SUMMIT AND 16TH EAST ASIA SUMMIT

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister will attend the 18th ASEAN-India Summit to be held virtually on October 28, 2021. Prime Minister will also attend the 16th East Asia Summit to be held on October 27, 2021, virtually.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 18th ASEAN-India Summit will review the status of the ASEAN-India Strategic Partnership and take stock of progress made in key areas including Covid-19 & Health, Trade & Commerce, Connectivity, and Education & Culture.
• Important regional and international developments including post-pandemic economic recovery will also be discussed.
• ASEAN-India Strategic Partnership stands on a strong foundation of shared geographical, historical and civilizational ties. ASEAN is central to our Act East Policy and our wider vision of the Indo-Pacific.
• The year 2022 will mark 30 years of ASEAN-India relations.
• The East Asia Summit is the premier Leaders-led forum in the Indo-Pacific. Since its inception in 2005, it has played a significant role in the strategic and geopolitical evolution of East Asia. Apart from the 10 ASEAN Member states, East Asia Summit includes India, China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Russia.
• India, being a founding member of the East Asia Summit, is committed to strengthening the East Asia Summit and making it more effective for dealing with contemporary challenges.
• It is also an important platform for furthering practical cooperation in the Indo-Pacific by building upon the convergence between ASEAN Outlook on Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and Indo-Pacific Ocean’s Initiative (IPOI).
• At the 16th East Asia Summit, Leaders will discuss matters of regional and international interest and concern including maritime security, terrorism, Covid-19 cooperation.
• Leaders are also expected to accept declarations on Mental Health, Economic recovery through Tourism and Green Recovery, which are being co-sponsored by India.

SOURCE: PIB

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Consider the following statements about Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT):

1. It was launched by the governments of Sweden and India at the UN Climate Action Summit in 2019.
2. It is an inter-governmental forum of countries that are committed to action to achieve the Paris Agreement.
3. Its secretariat is hosted by Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 and 3 only

c) 1 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 23, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Answer: B

Explanation:

Tiger reserves of Madhya Pradesh:

1. Kanha Tiger Reserve
2. Pench Tiger Reserve
3. Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve
4. Panna Tiger Reserve
5. Satpura Tiger Reserve
6. Sanjay-Dhubri Tiger Reserve

Note: Achanakmar tiger reserve is located in Chhattisgarh.

Q2.Answer: D

Explanation:

Buffaloes from Banni are also called “Kutchi” or “Kundi.” The Kutch area of Gujarat is home to this kind of buffalo. The term ‘Banni’ refers not just to buffaloes, but also to pasture grass species native to this region. The ‘Maldharis,’ a Kutch-based community, is dedicated to preserving this breed of buffalo.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. CONSCIOUS POSSESSION OF DRUGS

THE CONTEXT:  A special court in Mumbai denied bail to Aryan Khan, even though the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) did not find any drugs on him during his arrest on October 3 after a raid on a cruise ship off Mumbai. The court rejected his bail application on the ground that he had “conscious possession” of drugs.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Section 35 of the Act recognises the ‘presumption of culpable mental state’. Possession need not be physical and could be ‘constructive.
• The Supreme Court defines the word ‘conscious’ as “awareness about a particular fact” — a state of mind which is deliberate or intended. That is, a person can still have power and control over the article in question, while another to whom physical possession is given holds it, subject to that power or control.
• An illustration of ‘conscious possession’ is if a person keeps his gun in his mother’s flat, which is safer than his own home, he must be considered to be in possession of the firearm.
• The liability is on the accused to dispel the court’s presumption of his culpable mental state.
• Section 54 of the Act also allows for a similar presumption in the possession of illicit articles.

ABOUT NCB

• The government constituted the NCB on March 17, 1986, to coordinate with other departments and ministries to fight illicit traffic in drugs and drug abuse.
• One of the Directive Principles in the Constitution (Article 47) directs the state to act against narcotic activities injurious to health.
• The NDPS Act mandates the formation of a central authority to exercise its powers and functions under the statute.

SOURCE:  PIB

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

2. DATA ON EXPORT OF RICE FROM INDIA

THE CONTEXT: About 500 tonnes of broken rice imported from India were claimed to be genetically modified (GM) by a French manufacturer. This has drawn sharp reactions from the European countries as the European Union (EU) does not permit GM rice. An American company recalled four of its product lines fearing GM contamination. Data show that rice exports form the fifth-highest share in terms of India’s total exports. India is also the biggest exporter of rice globally, forming over 30% of the world’s exports. However, less than 5% of the rice exported from India is destined for the European countries. But for many European countries, India is their primary source for rice imports.

SOURCE:TH

3. INDIA’S FIRST BANNI BUFFALO IVF CALF BORN

THE CONTEXT: At a farmer’s house in Gujarat’s Gir Somnath district, India’s first in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) calf of the Banni breed of buffaloes was born.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Banni buffalo breed is mostly found in Gujarat’s Kutch region.
• The IVC procedure was used to increase the number of genetically superior buffaloes in order to increase milk output.
• A dairy farmer’s Banni buffalo from Dhanej village gave birth to an IVF male calf.
• Using IVF technology, Banni donors’ embryos were implanted in 18 recipient buffaloes.
• At the farmer’s farm, the Banni breed had produced six pregnancies, one of which was a calf. In a few days, more will be born.
• JKBovagenix of NGO JK Trust, a social project of Raymond Group, carried out this technique.

ABOUT BUFFALO BANNI

• Buffaloes from Banni are also called “Kutchi” or “Kundi.” The Kutch area of Gujarat is home to this kind of buffalo.
• The term ‘Banni’ refers not just to buffaloes, but also to pasture grass species native to this region.
• The ‘Maldharis,’ a Kutch-based community, is dedicated to preserving this breed of buffalo.
• A typical Banni buffalo produces 12 to 18 litres of milk each day. They’re noted for their better milk production capacity as well as their ability to withstand arid conditions.
• They have a different genetic makeup than other breeds, which allows them to have longer lactation periods and higher milk production capacity.

SOURCE: PIB

4. ONE IN THREE SPECIES OF SHARKS AND RAYS IS NEARING EXTINCTION 

THE CONTEXT: Sharks, rays and chimaeras are now the second-most threatened vertebrate group, after amphibians. In a recent study, we found that over one-third of sharks and rays are threatened with extinction.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The IUCN Shark Specialist Group reassessed the extinction risk of all species of sharks and rays. This eight-year project took hundreds of experts from all over the world to compile the data we needed to shed light on the status of sharks and rays.
• Of the 1,199 species of sharks and rays, 391 (32.5%) are classified in one of the three threatened categories: “critically endangered”, “endangered” and “vulnerable.” Additionally, 123 (10.4%) are “near threatened,” 529 (44.1%) are of “least concern”, and 156 (12.9%) are “data deficient”. Overall, as many as 450 species (37.5%) of sharks and rays may be “threatened” if the “data deficient” species are as threatened as the species for which we have sufficient data.
• Nearly all species of sharks and rays (99.6%) are captured in fishing operations and all threatened species are imperiled by overfishing.
• Shark and ray populations are in free fall, with little effective management to halt or even slow down their decline.
• Whether the capture of sharks and rays is intentional or not, most species end up being retained at some level to be eaten or processed into animal feed. The skins of sharks and rays are made into leather for apparel and accessories (wallets and belts) and the liver oil is used for pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and even as a form of biodiesel.

SOURCE: Scroll

5. INDIA FACING BOUTS OF EXTREME WEATHER

THE CONTEXT: Even as the southwest monsoon began to retreat from the subcontinent, Kerala and Uttrakhand received record rainfall in October. In both these States over the last few years, there have been variations in the pattern and intensity of rainfall.

THE EXPLANATION:

• There are different factors at play in Kerala and Uttrakhand. There have been two rain-bearing ‘low-pressure systems’ that are active in the Arabian Sea as well as the Bay of Bengal.
• The low-pressure system in the Arabian Sea contributed to the heavy rain in Kerala, whereas western disturbances, which are periodic influxes of moisture-laden clouds from the Mediterranean, and common during winter, are what caused the rain in northern India.
• The Bay of Bengal is still warm and strong winds from there are reaching as far as Uttrakhand and will contribute to rainfall in several parts of north-eastern India.
• October is the month when the southwest monsoon entirely retreats from India and the northeast monsoon sets in, bringing rain over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. Both low pressures, as well as western disturbances, are tangentially connected to the larger pattern of global warming.
• The Bay of Bengal is historically the warmer ocean that seeds low pressures and cyclones that bring rain to India. In recent years, however, the Arabian Sea, too, has been warmer than normal, and leading to significant cyclonic activity.
• Overall elevated temperatures are also contributing to warmer waters in the Arctic Ocean and drawing colder air from the poles with greater intensity. This added to the increased moisture, thereby seeding more intense western disturbance activity over north India.
• The monsoon cycle is prone to large variations, and every year regional factors get accentuated — it’s hard to predict which in advance — that then lead to extreme climate events.

SOURCE : TH

6. LEOPARD RELEASED IN WILD

THE CONTEXT: A female leopard, rescued from a forest in Madhya Pradesh’s Raisen district over two months back, has now been released in the Satpura Tiger Reserve in Hoshangabad district.  It was subsequently brought to Bhopal’s Van Vihar National Park where it was treated by a team of veterinarians.

Source: ZEE

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. CHINA’S NEW LAW ‘FORMALISES’ ITS LAC ACTIONS

THE CONTEXT: China’s legislature has adopted a new border law, to take effect on January 1, that calls on the state and military to safeguard the territory and “combat any acts” that undermine China’s territorial claims.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The law was first proposed in March this year, a year into tensions that erupted along the Line of Actual Control(LAC) with India after the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) mobilised two divisions in forwarding areas and carried out multiple transgressions.
• China has unresolved border disputes with India and Bhutan. The new law would formalise some of China’s recent actions in disputed territories with both India and Bhutan, including the PLA’s massing of troops in forwarding areas along the India border, multiple transgressions across the LAC, and the construction of new “frontier villages” along the border with Bhutan.
• The law stipulates that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the People’s Republic of China are sacred and inviolable.
• The state shall take measures to safeguard territorial integrity and land boundaries and guard against and combat any act that undermines territorial sovereignty and land boundaries.
• It also calls on the state to take measures to strengthen border defence, support economic and social development as well as opening-up in border areas, improve public services and infrastructure in such areas, encourage and support people’s life and work there, and promote coordination between border defence and social, economic development in border areas.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Which of the following Tiger reserve is not located in Madhya Pradesh?

a) Satpura Tiger Reserve

b) Achanakmar Tiger Reserve

c) Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve

d) Panna Tiger Reserve

Q2. Which community/tribe is dedicated to preserving banni breed of buffalo

a) Chenchus

b) Gaddis

c) Todas

d) Maldharis

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 23, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: Loktak lake is located in Loktak Lake is the largest freshwater lake in Northeast India. Also, it is included as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. 
• Statement 2 is correct: It is famous for the phumdis(heterogeneous mass of vegetation, soil and organic matter at various stages of decomposition) floating over it.
• Statement 3 is correct: KeibulLamjao National Park located on this phumdis, is the only floating national park in the world. The park is the last natural refuge of the endangered Sangai (state animal), or Manipur brown-antlered deer, one of three subspecies of Eld’s deer.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. THE CABINET APPROVED PM GATISHAKTI NATIONAL MASTER PLAN

THE CONTEXT: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved PM GatiShakti National Master Plan including an institutional framework for rolling out, implementation, and monitoring and support mechanism for providing multi-modal connectivity.

THE EXPLANATION:

• CCEA has also approved formation, composition and terms of reference for Network Planning Group (NPG) consisting of heads of Network Planning wing of respective infrastructure ministries and it will assist the EGOS.
• In view of the complexities involved in the overall integration of networks, enhancing optimization to avoid duplication of works for holistic development of any region as well as reducing logistics costs through micro-plan detailing, the Technical Support Unit (TSU)is approved for providing the required competencies. The structure of TSU has also been approved. 
• shall have domain experts from various infrastructure sectors as Aviation, Maritime, Public Transport, Rail, Roads & Highways, Ports, etc. and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) as Urban & Transport Planning, Structures (Roads, Bridges & Buildings), Power, Pipeline, GIS, ICT, Finance/Market PPP, logistics, Data Analytics, etc.
• The PM GatiShakti NMP is intended to break Departmental Silos and bring in more holistic and integrated planning and execution of projects with a view to addressing the issues of Multi-Modal connectivity and last-mile connectivity. This will help in bringing down the logistics cost. This will translate into enormous economic gains to consumers, farmers, youth as well as those engaged in businesses.
• With this approval, the rollout of PM GatiShakti will get further momentum which will result in a holistic and integrated planning framework for infrastructure development in the country.
• With this approval, PM GatiShakti shall bring various stakeholders together and help integrate different modes of transportation. PM Gatishakti NMP for multi-modal connectivity will ensure holistic governance at the Centre of which are people of India, industries of India, manufacturers of India and farmers of India.

SOURCE:  PIB

2. INDIA INTERNET GOVERNANCE

THE CONTEXT: India Internet Governance Forum to be conducted in November 2021 to bring all stakeholders of internet governance on a single platform.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A curtain-raiser event of the India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) concluded with an interesting insight into the roadmap for Digitisation in India.
• The curtain raiser event, is a precursor to the India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF), which will be conducted jointly by the Ministry of Electronics and IT, NIXI and Multistakeholder Group from 8th to 11th of November, 2021.
• The theme of IIGF 2021 is ‘Empower India through Power of Internet’. The event will witness enlightening discussions on the road to Digitization in India.
• The salient feature of the event will be the three plenary sessions on themes- India &Internet- India’s Digital Journey and Her Global Role, Equity, Access & Quality – High-speed Internet for All and Cyber Norms and Ethics in Internet Governance.

About IIGF

• The India Internet Government Forum is an initiative associated with the UN Internet Governance Forum (UN-IGF).
• The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is a multi-stakeholder platform bringing representatives together from various groups to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.

SOURCE:  PIB

3. SUCCESS STORY OF VACCINATION IN INDIA

THE CONTEXT: India has completed vaccination of 100 crore doses on October 21, 2021, in just about nine months since starting vaccination.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India took 85 days to touch the 10-crore vaccination mark, 45 more days to cross the 20-crore mark and 29 more days to reach the 30-crore mark.
• The country took 24 days to reach the 40-crore mark from 30-crore doses and then 20 more days to surpass the 50-crore vaccination mark on August 6. It then took 76 days to go past the 100-crore mark.

• India’s vaccine drive is an example of what India can achieve if citizens and the Government come together with a common goal in the spirit of Jan Bhagidari. When everyone takes ownership, nothing is impossible.
• People’s participation is the biggest strength of democracy.
• Only a handful of countries have developed their own vaccines. The credit should be given to Indian scientists and entrepreneurs for rising to the occasion.
• The Government partnered with the vaccine makers right from day one and gave them support in the form of institutional assistance, scientific research, funding, as well as accelerated regulatory processes.
• All Ministries of the Government came together to facilitate the vaccine makers and remove any bottlenecks as a result of our ‘whole of Government’ approach.
• In a country of the scale of India, it is not enough to just produce. The focus has to be on last-mile delivery and seamless logistics.
• These efforts were complemented by a robust tech platform in CoWIN. It ensured that the vaccine drive was equitable, scalable, trackable, and transparent.

SOURCE:  TH

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. SC: ACT ON ILLEGAL CONSTRUCTION IN KAZIRANGA

THE CONTEXT: The Central Empowered Committee (CEC), constituted by the Supreme Court, has asked the Assam government to act on illegal construction in the identified wildlife corridors of the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The court’s order disallowed new construction on private lands that form part of the nine identified animal corridors of the tiger reserve, considered the world’s safest address of the one-horned rhinos.
• The court had also banned all types of mining on these corridors.

SOURCE:TH

5. INDIAN RAILWAYS LIKELY TO BECOME WORLD’S FIRST ‘NET-ZERO’ CARBON EMITTER BY 2030

THE CONTEXT: Indian Railways is taking a multi-pronged approach to go green and decarbonise — from increasing its sourcing of renewable energy (RE) to electrifying its traction network and reducing its energy consumption. Its goal is to become a ‘net-zero’ carbon emitter by 2030. And it has ambitious plans to accomplish this goal.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The plan includes a significant goal of electrifying the entire network by December 2023. With the complete electrification of Indian Railways targeted by the financial year 2024, the total traction requirement is expected to increase to around 3,400 MW. It will be the world’s largest 100 per cent electrified rail transportation system by then.
• The second pillar consists of using solar power to meet its electricity needs, as well as having an environmentally friendly infrastructure and a microlevel cleanliness drive.
• The Indian Railways is committed to using solar energy to meet its traction power needs and becoming a fully green mode of transportation. It has decided to build massive solar power plants on its vacant land.
• The ministry has started up a 2.5-MW solar project in Diwana, Haryana, with state transmission unit connectivity. Work on a third pilot with a capacity of 50 MW has begun in Bhilai (Chhattisgarh).
• Some challenges the Indian Railways faces in terms of solar plant proliferation:
• No-objection certificate for open access: Open access has been granted as a deemed licensee in 11 states and the Damodar Valley Corporation area. The no-objection certificate (NoC) for open access to electricity flow for railways in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Telangana has not been operationalised due to regulatory challenges that the railways are vigorously pursuing. If approval for procuring power through open access is granted in these states, solar deployment may increase.
• Wheeling and banking provision: Full deployment of solar potential will become more feasible if states provide wheeling and banking arrangements.
• The merger of solar purchase obligation and non-solar purchase obligation: The availability of a banking facility and the consolidation of solar and non-solar obligations will allow the railways to meet their Renewable Purchase Obligations.
• Unrestricted net metering regulations: Unrestricted net metering for rooftop solar projects would hasten the deployment of railway solar plants.

SOURCE:  DTE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. INNOVATIONS FOR YOU

THE CONTEXT: NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) has launched – “Innovations for You” an attempt to showcase the success stories of Atal Innovation Mission’s Startups in different domains.

THE EXPLANATION:

• These startups have worked to create new, disruptive and innovative products, services, and solutions that can pave a path for a sustainable future.
• The first edition of this book is focused on innovations in Health Care and soon other sectors shall follow.
• The book is a compilation of 45health tech startups, incubated at Atal Incubation Centres spread across the country. These startups are leveraging frontier technologies such as AI, IoT, ICT and others to provide socially relevant solutions to problems like anemia, Malaria, dental care, mental health, neonatal and child care and monitoring human vitals, among others.

ABOUT ATAL INNOVATION MISSION OF NITI AAYOG

• The Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is the Government of India’s flagship initiative to promote innovation and entrepreneurship culture in the country.
• AIM is mandated to create an umbrella structure to oversee the innovation ecosystem of the country and revolutionize the innovation eco-system – touching upon the entire innovation life cycle through various programs.
• The Atal Tinkering Laboratories (ATLs) create innovators, Atal Incubation Centres and support to Established Incubation Centres ensure innovations are taken to the market and help create enterprises around these innovations, Atal Community Innovation Centres are promoting benefits of technology-led innovation to the unserved/underserved regions of India.
• Atal New India Challenges are creating product and service innovations having a national socio-economic impact and ARISE ANIC Challenges promote innovation in a phased manner in the MSME/Startup sector.

SOURCE: PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. PAKISTAN RETAINED FATF’S GREYLIST AGAIN

THE CONTEXT: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) retained Pakistan in the ‘greylist’ yet again, observing that it needed to further demonstrate that investigations and prosecutions were being pursued against the senior leadership of U.N.-designated terror groups, which include Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The FATF had asked Pakistan to work on the remaining recommendation by demonstrating that terror financing investigations and prosecutions targeted senior leaders and commanders of the U.N.-designated terrorist groups.
• It had advised that Pakistan should continue to work to address its six strategically important deficiencies, which included enhancing international cooperation by amending the money-laundering law and demonstrating that assistance was being sought from foreign countries in implementing the UNSCR 1373 designations.

ABOUT FINANCIAL ACTION TASK FORCE (FATF)

• It is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.
• It was established by the G-7 Summit that was held in Paris in 1989.
• The Secretariat is located at the OECD Headquarters in Paris.
• Members- 39
• On June 25, 2010, India was taken in as the 34th country member of FATF.
• The FATF has developed the FATF Recommendations, or FATF Standards, which ensure a coordinated global response to prevent organised crime, corruption and terrorism.
• The FATF also works to stop funding for weapons of mass destruction.
• FATF has 2 types of lists:

1. 1. Black List: Countries knowns as Non-Cooperative Countries or Territories (NCCTs) are put on the blacklist. These countries support terror funding and money laundering activities. The FATF revises the blacklist regularly, adding or deleting entries.
   2. Grey List: Countries that are considered a safe haven for supporting terror funding and money laundering are put in the FATF grey list. This inclusion serves as a warning to the country that it may enter the blacklist.

• Consequences of being in the FATF grey list: Those countries in the grey list may face economic sanctions from IMF, World Bank, ADB, Problem in getting loans from IMF, World Bank, ADB and other countries, Reduction in international trade, International boycott

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Consider the following statements about FATF:

1. It is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.
2. It was established by the G-20 Summit that was held in Paris in 1989.
3. The Secretariat is located at the OECD Headquarters in Paris.
4. India is the founding member of FATF.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 3 only

c) 1, 3 and 4 only

d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Answer: B

Explanation:

• Kushinagar – Mahaparinirvana
• Lumbini – Birth
• Sarnath – Dhamma Chakra Pravartana
• Bodh Gaya – Nirvana

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. KUSHINAGAR INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

THE CONTEXT: Prime Minister inaugurated the Kushinagar International Airport in Uttar Pradesh, which will help connect key Buddhist pilgrimage sites. Kushinagar is an important Buddhist pilgrim destination and is believed to be the final resting place of the Gautam Buddha.

THE EXPLANATION:

• An inaugural flight of Sri Lankan Airlines landed at the airport earlier in the day, bringing a large contingent of Buddhist monks and Sri Lankan Ministers.
• Diplomats from 12 countries where Buddhism is practised, including Mongolia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Bhutan, Republic of Korea, Nepal and Japan, were also present.
• There is a special focus on the development of places associated with Lord Buddha through better connectivity, and the creation of facilities for devotees. Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha, is not far from here. Sarnath, where Lord Buddha gave the first sermon, is also within a radius of 100-250 km. Bodh Gaya, where Buddha attained enlightenment, is also a few hours away.
• On the sidelines of the Kushinagar airport inauguration, Mr Namal Rajapaksa (sports minister of Sri Lanka and nephew of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and son of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa) presented to Mr Modi a Sinhala-Tamil-English translation of the Bhagavad Gita.

SOURCE:  TH

2. DRAFT POLICY CALLS FOR LINKING NATIONAL DATABASE OF PWD

THE CONTEXT:  A national database of persons with disabilities (PwD) linking their Unique Disability Identity (UDID) numbers with welfare schemes and education and health services was among the proposals of the draft National Policy for PwD, 2021was likely to be published next month.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The draft would be put in the public domain for comments after approval from Social Justice and Empowerment Minister. The last time such a policy was published was in 2006.
• The UDID project and a national database had been proposed in 2014 and implemented from 2016 in stages. 62.33 lakh UDID cards had been generated through the portal. However, no other services are offered through it.
• While online certification through the UDID portal was made mandatory on June 1, the policy suggests taking it forward by integrating services and schemes with the IDs.
• The portal would allow the PwD and stakeholders to monitor the progress of applications for various schemes, including the distribution of assistive devices.
• The policy called for increased funding and public-private partnership in the disability sector.

SOURCE:  TH

 3. COVID-19 PANDEMIC FUELLED RISE IN CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE ONLINE

THE CONTEXT:  The Global Threat Assessment report 2021, by WeProtect Global Alliance, said COVID-19 had contributed to a significant spike in child sexual exploitation and abuse online.

THE EXPLANATION:

• protect Global Alliance is a global movement of more than 200 governments, private sector companies and civil society organisations working together to transform the global response to child sexual exploitation and abuse online.
• The rise in child ‘self-generated’ sexual material is another trend that challenges the existing response, with the Internet Watch Foundation observing a 77% increase in child ‘self-generated’ sexual material from 2019 to 2020.

SOURCE:  TH

4. INDIA AT 71ST ON GLOBAL FOOD SECURITY INDEX 2021

THE CONTEXT: India is ranked at 71st position in the Global Food Security (GFS) Index 2021 of 113 countries, but the country lags behind its neighbours Pakistan and Sri Lanka in terms of food affordability.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The GFS Index was designed and constructed by London-based Economist Impact and is sponsored by CortevaAgriscience.
• The GFS Index measures the underlying drivers of food security in 113 countries, based on the factors of affordability, availability, quality and safety, and natural resources and resilience. It considers 58 unique food security indicators including income and economic inequality – calling attention to systemic gaps and actions needed to accelerate progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger by 2030.
• According to the report, India held 71st position with an overall score of 57.2 points on the GFS Index 2021 of 113 countries, fared better than Pakistan (75th position), Sri Lanka (77th Position), Nepal (79th position) and Bangladesh (84th position). But the country was way behind China (34th position).
• Ireland, Australia, the UK, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Canada, Japan, France and the US shared the top rank with the overall GFS score in the range of 77.8 and 80 points on the index.
• In the food affordability category, Pakistan (with 52.6 points) scored better than India (50.2 points). Sri Lanka was also better at 62.9 points on the GFS Index 2021.
• In case of availability of food, quality and safety as well as protecting natural resources for food production, India scored better than Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on the GFS Index 2021, the report added.
• However, over the past 10 years, India’s incremental gains in overall food security score were lagging behind that of Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
• India’s score improved only by 2.7 points to 57.2 in 2021 from 54.5 in 2012 when compared with Pakistan by 9 points (to 54.7 in 2021 from 45.7 in 2012) while that of Nepal by 7 points (to 53.7 points in 2021 from 46.7 points in 2012) and Bangladesh by 4.7 points (to 49.1 in 2021 from 44.4 points in 2012).
• China’s score improved by 9.6 points to 71.3 in 2021 from 61.7 in 2012.
• The findings of the GFS Index 2021 also showed that global food security has decreased for the second year in a row after seven years of progress towards the Sustainable Development Goal of achieving zero hunger by 2030.
• In its global report, Economist Impact stated that the Index shows that to meet these present and emerging future challenges requires that investments in food security are sustained – from innovation in climate-resilient crop yields to investing in programs to assist the most vulnerable.

SOURCE: IE

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

5. MICRO SNAIL SPECIES DISCOVERED IN MEGHALAYA’S MAWSMAI CAVE

THE CONTEXT: A micro snail species named Georissamawsmaiensis has recently been discovered from Mawsmai, a limestone cave in Meghalaya, 170 years after the last such discovery was made.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It was in 1851 that Georissasaritta, a member of the same genus as the latest find, was collected and described from the Musmai (Mawsmai today) valley near Cherrapunjee by WH Benson.
• The discovery this time has been reported in the Journal of Conchology.
• The Mawsmai cave is situated in the small village of Mawsmai, around four kilometres from Cherrapunjee (Sohra) in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya.
• The term ‘Mawsmai’ means ‘Oath Stone’ in the Khasi language. The Khasi people use the local term ‘Krem’ for the cave.
• Mawsmai cave is located at an altitude of 1,195 metres above sea level and is indirectly influenced by the streams of the Kynshi river originating from the East Khasi Hills.

SOURCE: DTE

6. INDIA IS EXPORTING STRICTLY NON-GMO RICE TO WORLD

THE CONTEXT: There were media reports that food recalls linked to alleged GM rice from India. The government clarified that there is no commercial variety of GM rice in India, in fact, the commercial GM cultivation of rice is banned in India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• There is no question of the export of GM rice from India.
• A particular incident which is reported through Rapid Alert by EU, the GMO contamination is suspected to have been found in the rice flour which was processed in EU and they themselves are not sure of the exact source of contaminant.
• The broken white rice exported from India which is allegedly one of the possibilities has passed through many hands before reaching the actual processors in the EU.
• There is always a possibility of mixing or cross-contamination at every stage.
• Since there is no commercial variety of GM in India, proper testing was also done before the shipment of the consignment. The possibility of GMO contamination due to white rice exported by India is not possible.
• India is exporting strictly Non GMO rice to World.
• As reported in the same news item this could be the conspiracy to malign the image of India as a reliable supplier of quality rice to the world.
• The experts in India both from Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) and the Agricultural experts from IARI and other rice experts in India are, however, investigating the matter but re-confirming that the commercial GM variety of rice is not grown in India.

 SOURCE:  SCROLL

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

INDIAN TEAM MEETS TALIBAN DEPUTY PM

THE CONTEXT: India joined a 10-nation statement recognising the new reality of the Taliban in power in Afghanistan at the Moscow format meeting, as Indian officials reportedly met Taliban Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Salam Hanafi and offered humanitarian aid to the regime in Kabul.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Government sources confirmed that the meeting had taken place, and India was considering a donation of a large consignment of wheat and other aid to Afghanistan.
• India was also a signatory to the joint statement issued by representatives of China, Iran, Russia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan which called on the Taliban to keep their commitment to forming an “inclusive” government and ensuring that their territory is not used by terror groups to threaten the security of other countries, curb transnational drug routes and pursue “friendly relations” with neighbouring countries.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Consider the following pairs of places and associated important events in the life of the Gautama Buddha:

1. Kushinagar – Nirvana
2. Lumbini – Birth
3. Sarnath – Dhamma Chakra Pravartana
4. Bodh Gaya – Mahaparinirvana

Which of the above-given pairs are correctly matched?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 2 and 3 only

c) 3 and 4 only

d) 1 and 4 only

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 20, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: C

Explanation:

The World Economic Outlook (WEO) is an IMF report that provides analysis and forecasts of economic developments and policies in its member countries. The report encapsulates the state of the global economy and highlights risks and uncertainty that could threaten growth.

ART AND CULTURE

1. BHASKARABDA TO BE ADDED TO OFFICIAL ASSAM CALENDAR

THE CONTEXT: Bhaskarabda, an era counted from the date of the ascension of a seventh-century local ruler, will be added to Saka and Gregorian eras in the official calendar of the Assam Government.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Bhaskarabda began when Bhaskaravarman was crowned ruler of the Kamrupa kingdom.
• He was a contemporary and political ally of northern Indian ruler Harshavardhana.
• Unlike Gregorian, where a day starts at midnight, the Assamese calendar begins and ends at sunrise over 24 hours.
• While the Gregorian goes by the solar cycle, the Saka and Bhaskarabda eras use a lunisolar system based on both the phases of the moon and the solar year.
• The gap between Bhaskarabda and Gregorian is 593 years

KAMARUPA KINGDOM

• Kamarupa, also called Kamrup or Kamata, ancient Indian state corresponding roughly to what is now the state of Assam, in northeastern India.
• The earliest mention of a kingdom comes from the 4th-century Allahabad inscription of Samudragupta that calls the kings of Kamarupa and Davaka frontier rulers (pratyantanripati).
• The Chinese travellerXuanzang visited the kingdom in the 7th century, then ruled by Bhaskaravarman.
• Having a unique mix of South Asian and East Asian cultures, Kamarupa was the seat of evolution for the Tantric form of Hinduism, including at the Kamakhya temple complex in Guwahati.
• Bhaskaravarman was the last of the Varman dynasty and made political alliances with Harshavardhana of Thaneswar.
• After his death, Salasthambha, who established the Mlechchha dynasty, acquired power in the Kamarupa Kingdom.

SOURCE:  TH

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

2. CYCLONES HAVE A POSITIVE EFFECT ON THE ABILITY OF MANGROVES TO SOAK UP CARBON DIOXIDE

THE CONTEXT: Researchers at the department of geography at the University of Georgia in the United States found that tropical storms, in the last 21 years, have had an overall positive impact on the ability of mangroves in India to fix carbon dioxide.

THE EXPLANATION:

• They examined satellite-datasets of Gross Primary Productivity for seven mangrove sites along the east and west coasts of India, from January 2000 to July 2020, finding that there is a net increase in Gross Primary Productivity for all mangrove sites, and especially for the east coast mangroves which are more frequently hit by cyclones compared to the west coast.
• While the researchers theorise that the cyclones may be having a net positive effect on mangrove Gross Primary Productivity by intermittent, excessive nutrient supply, cyclones could have an opposite effect by negatively affecting carbon burial rate and a declining soil organic carbon.
• Gaps need to be plugged in the lack of long-term measurements to unravel how the carbon balance in mangrove forests is likely to change with climate change.

SOURCE:Scroll

INDIAN ECONOMY

3. IMF OUTLOOK AND STATUS OF JOBS

THE CONTEXT: The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook has underlined that employment growth is likely to lag output recovery after the pandemic.

THE EXPLANATION:

The central message was that the global economic recovery momentum had weakened a tad, thanks largely to the pandemic-induced supply disruptions. But more than just the marginal headline numbers for global growth, it is the increasing inequality among nations that IMF was most concerned about.

• As far as GDP is concerned, India’s growth rate hasn’t been tweaked for the worse. In fact, beyond the IMF, several high-frequency indicators have suggested that India’s economic recovery is gaining ground.
• But what the IMF has projected on employment — that the recovery in unemployment is lagging the recovery in output (or GDP) — matters immensely for India.
• According to the data available with the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the total number of employed people in the Indian economy as of May-August 2021 was 394 million and in May-August 2016 the number of employed people was 408 million.
• India was already facing a deep employment crisis before the Covid crisis, and it became much worse after it.
• As such, projections of an employment recovery lagging behind output recovery could mean large swathes of the population being excluded from the GDP growth and its benefits. Lack of adequate employment levels would drag down overall demand and thus stifle India’s growth momentum.
• The first thing to understand is that India is witnessing a K-shaped recovery. That means different sectors are recovering at significantly different rates. And this holds not just for the divergence between the organised sector and the unorganised sector, but also within the organised sector.
• The second big reason for worry is that the bulk of India’s employment is in the informal or unorganised sectors.So, a weak recovery for the informal/unorganised sectors implies a drag on the economy’s ability to create new jobs or revive old ones.

SOURCE: IE

4. RAILWAYS SHUTS DOWN IRSDC

THE CONTEXT: In continuation with its efforts to rightsize the Railways, the Railway Board has issued an order to shut down the Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation (IRSDC) that was set up for the redevelopment of stations across the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The step is a move to accept the recommendation of the Finance Ministry, which in a report has recommended the rationalisation of government bodies either by closing them down or through merging multiple organisations under different ministries.
• The order said the stations managed by the IRSDC will now be handed over to the respective zonal railways and the corporation will pass on all project-related documents to them for further development.
• Among several other projects, the IRSDC, which was set up in March 2012, was involved in the bidding process for the redevelopment of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai.
• The IRSDC recently invited bids for the setting up of “Rail Arcade” at Chandigarh and KSR Bengaluru Railway Stations. It had also announced plans to undertake facility management of 90 railway stations across South India.
• The report prepared by Principal Economic Advisor, Sanjeev Sanyal, has also recommended the merger of the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), which implements projects relating to the creation and augmentation of the railway infrastructure, with the Indian Railway Construction Limited (IRCON), a specialised infrastructure construction organisation.

SOURCE: TH

5. PREMATURE TIGHTENING MAY LEAD TO STAGFLATION: RBI REPORT

THE CONTEXT:  RBI said in its ‘State of the economy’ report that premature tightening of the monetary policy could bring about the stagflation (slow growth and high level of unemployment and inflation) that all fear, quashing growth just as the economy is recovering. Consequently, policy support for a sustained and inclusive recovery may be needed for longer.

THE EXPLANATION:

• This is because the economy may be healing but it is still digging out of one of the deepest contractions to hit any major economy during the pandemic.
• We were among the first hit and our recovery started late, towards October-November 2020. In the second wave, we did not impose a nationwide lockdown, but daily infections at over 400,000 were at that time the highest in the world and it clearly moderated the recovery that was underway till then.
• Perhaps the need of the hour is not to focus so single-mindedly on normalisation but on supply-side reforms to ease the bottlenecks and disruptions, labour shortages and high commodity prices, especially of crude, it said.
• Going forward, the focus is likely to be on the normalisation of prudential policies and the strengthening of insolvency frameworks and restructuring mechanisms, including for the overhang of public and private debt.

SOURCE:  IE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. VALNEVA VACCINE

THE CONTEXT: Valneva SE, a French vaccine company, announced results from its Phase 3 trial of its inactivated Covid-19 vaccine candidate, VLA2001. They said that the vaccine was as effective as the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.

THE EXPLANATION:

• VLA2001 is an inactivated, adjuvanted vaccine. This means that it delivers the whole Sars-CoV-2 virus in an inactivated form. The virus is killed using chemicals, heat, or radiation. The dead virus cannot infect us but can still trigger an immune response.
• Polio and flu vaccines are common examples of inactivated vaccines. India’s Covaxin is also an inactivated vaccine.
• Currently, none of the vaccines in the UK – Moderna, Oxford/AstraZeneca, – are inactivated vaccines. Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech are mRNA vaccines. They contain the code of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and once inside the body teach our body to produce the spike protein. Our immune system recognises this and initiates an immune response against Covid-19. Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine delivers the code of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein using a carrier – another virus called adenovirus.
• The Valneva jab is stable when stored in a standard refrigerator, making it easier to distribute than the Covid vaccines, which require shipping and storage at ultra-low temperatures.
• The results showed that two weeks after vaccination, in adults aged 30 and older, the vaccine was able to trigger high levels of neutralising antibodies compared to the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine. The team notes that the vaccine was able to induce broad T-cell responses.
• The participants who received the Valneva vaccine reported lower levels of adverse effects compared to the group given the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.

SOURCE: IE

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. INDIA, ISRAEL, UAE, U.S. DECIDE TO LAUNCH QUADRILATERAL ECONOMIC FORUM

THE CONTEXT: India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States decided to launch a new quadrilateral economic forum.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The quadrilateral, which followed his bilateral meeting with Israeli Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister YairLapid, builds on ongoing cooperation between the U.S.-Israel-the UAE after the Abraham Accords last year that saw the UAE and Israel establish diplomatic ties, and the India-Israel-the UAE cooperation that has been launched since then.
• In an interesting aside, Mr Jaishankar’s travel to Israel is also routed via the UAE, on flights that started as a consequence of the Abraham Accords and the opening of diplomatic missions and flights between them.
• The four ministers discussed expanding economic and political cooperation in the Middle East and Asia, including through trade, combating climate change, energy cooperation, and increasing maritime security as well as ways to counter the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Foreign Ministers of the U.S., Israel and the UAE met in Washington on October 13 to discuss the modalities of trilateral cooperation, and set up two working groups: on religious coexistence and on water and energy.
• Business groups in India, the UAE and Israel have also been in talks for cooperation since diplomatic ties were established, and the International Federation of Indo-Israel Chambers of Commerce (IFIIC) has predicted that the potential for agreements, backed by Israeli innovation, the UAE funding and Indian manufacturing, given India’s close ties and strategic partnership with the two other countries, could cross $100 billion by 2030.
• In the first such venture, a UAE project for robotic solar (panel) cleaning technology was signed by Israeli company Ecoppia that has a manufacturing base in India.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Recently in news, World Economic Outlook is released by?

a) World Bank

b) World economic forum

c) IMF

d) UN

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 19, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: A

Explanation:

• NITI Aayog in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has developed a comprehensive Geographic Information System (GIS) Energy Map of India with the support of Energy Ministries of Government of India.
• The GIS map provides a holistic picture of all energy resources of the country which enables visualisation of energy installations such as conventional power plants, oil and gas wells, petroleum refineries, coal fields and coal blocks, district-wise data on renewable energy power plants and renewable energy resource potential, etc through 27 thematic layers.

[WpProQuiz 72]

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

1. INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

THE CONTEXT: The fourth general assembly of The International Solar Alliance (ISA), is to be held virtually between October 18th and October 21st, 2021.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Fourth Assembly of the ISA will deliberate on the key initiatives around the operationalisation of the OSOWOG initiative, the $1 trillion Solar Investment Roadmap for 2030, and approval of a Blended Financial Risk Mitigation Facility.
• World leaders of ISA member countries will also discuss the strategic plan of the ISA for the next five years encompassing a Country Partnership Framework, Strategy for Private Sector Engagement, and initiatives such as Viability Gap Financing scheme to facilitate affordable finance for solar energy projects across ISA’s membership.
• The ISA will also discuss the partnership with Global Energy Alliance (GEA) to scale up technical and financial support to LDCs and SIDS.
• A detailed report on One Sun One World One Grid (OSOWOG) is expected to be discussed at the Assembly.
• With India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, the World Bank and the ISA signing a tripartite agreement on OSOWOG, the initiative could be the world’s most important renewables catalyst.

ABOUT ISA

• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) was conceived as a coalition of solar-resource-rich countries (which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn) to address their special energy needs.
• The ISA will provide a dedicated platform for cooperation among solar-resource-rich countries, through which the global community, including governments, bilateral and multilateral organizations, corporates, industry, and other stakeholders, can contribute to help achieve the common goal of increasing the use and quality of solar energy in meeting energy needs of prospective ISA member countries in a safe, convenient, affordable, equitable and sustainable manner.
• It was launched by the Prime Minister of India and the President of France on 30^th November 2015 in Paris, France on the side-lines of the Conference of the Parties (COP-21)

SOURCE:PIB

2. PRINCE WILLIAM’S INAUGURAL EARTH SHOT PRIZE

THE CONTEXT:   An India-based entrepreneur’s technology that recycles agricultural waste to create fuel was named among the winners of Prince William’s inaugural Earth shot Prize that honours people trying to save the planet.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Dubbed as the “Eco Oscars,” the prizes have been created by the Duke of Cambridge and renowned British naturalist David Attenborough.
• Their aim is to provide assistance to and inspire innovative local solutions amid the growing climate crisis faced globally.
• Vidyut Mohan led Takachar’s innovation was recognised for its affordable technology to convert crop residues into sellable bio-products. The technology reduced smoke emissions by 98 per cent and calls for improving air quality.
• Vidyut Mohan from Takachar was awarded for this technology in the “clean our air” category.
• Other winners included a land-based coral farm in the Bahamas to restore dying coral reefs, a green hydrogen technology developed to transform how homes and buildings are powered.

SOURCE:   TH

3. MUMBAI LOST 40% GREEN COVER BETWEEN 1991 AND 2018

THE CONTEXT: According to a recent study, Mumbai lost 81% of its open land (barren spaces without any vegetation), 40% green cover (forests & scrublands) and approximately 30% of its water bodies (lakes, ponds, floodplains) between 1991 and 2018, while the built-up area (areas developed upon) rose by 66% in the same period.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It concludes that the city witnessed a 2- degree Celsius average temperature rise across 27 years.
• The extreme heat that one experiences while strolling through any urban landscape is caused by the Urban Heat Island Effect, a micro-climatic phenomenon.
• This is due to a number of causes, the most prominent being the usage of materials such as concrete.

SOURCE:  TH

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. GEOSPATIAL ENERGY MAP OF INDIA

THE CONTEXT: NITI Aayog in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has developed a comprehensive Geographic Information System (GIS) Energy Map of India with the support of Energy Ministries of Government of India.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The GIS map provides a holistic picture of all energy resources of the country which enables visualisation of energy installations such as conventional power plants, oil and gas wells, petroleum refineries, coal fields and coal blocks, district-wise data on renewable energy power plants and renewable energy resource potential, etc through 27 thematic layers.
• The map attempts to identify and locate all primary and secondary sources of energy and their transportation/transmission networks to provide a comprehensive view of energy production and distribution in a country.
• It is a unique effort aimed at integrating energy data scattered across multiple organizations and presenting it in a consolidated, visually appealing graphical manner.
• It leverages the latest advancements in web-GIS technology and open-source software to make it interactive and user friendly.
• The Geospatial Energy Map of India will be useful in planning and making investment decisions. It will also aid in disaster management using available energy assets.

SOURCE: PIB

INTERNAL  SECURITY

5. ARMY TRAINS OFFICERS ALONG LAC IN TIBETOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: With a view to orienting its officers and men posted along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Tibetan culture and also preparing them to better understand the information warfare, the Army has begun a course in Tibetology in a tie-up with the Central Institute of Himalayan Cultural Studies in Arunachal Pradesh.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The Army’s Training Command, ARTRAC, has identified seven institutes for Tibetology across the country, two of which are in the northeast. The other one is the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology in Sikkim.
• Lamas who were proficient in Tibetan issues were hired from the Bomdila Monastery to teach the course.

SOURCE: TH

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

6. TRADE TALKS BETWEEN INDIA- ISRAEL

THE CONTEXT: India and Israel agreed to resume long-pending negotiations on a free trade agreement, as External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met his Israeli counterpart YairLapid in Jerusalem.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Both also joined a virtual quadrilateral meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed.
• The quadrilateral meeting, seen as an outcome of last year’s Abraham Accords brokered by the U.S. that saw the UAE and Israel establish diplomatic relations, also underlines India’s close relationships with both the West Asian countries and Washington.
• The India-Israel relationship will enter its 30th year.
• The FTA talks would begin in November and concluded by June 2022.
• During the talks, India and Israel also agreed to mutually recognise each other’s vaccination process “in principle”, although for the moment Israel will only allow Indians vaccinated with Covishield to travel there, but not those vaccinated with Covaxin, which is still awaiting an Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) from the World Health Organisation.

SOURCE: TH

7. KUSHINAGAR CONNECT TO SRI LANKA

THE CONTEXT:  When the Prime Minister declares open the Kushinagar International Airport in Uttar Pradesh on October 20, a sizeable Sri Lankan contingent, led by a member of the first family, will be present.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The airport is expected to provide seamless connectivity to tourists from Sri Lanka, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore and so on.
• Kushinagar is the centre of the Buddhist circuit, which consists of pilgrimage sites at Lumbini, Sarnath and Gaya.
• Buddhist pilgrims consider Kushinagar a sacred site where, they believe, Gautama Buddha delivered his last sermon and attained ‘Maha- parinirvana’ or salvation.
• To mark the occasion, Sri Lanka will present to India photographs of two murals painted by renowned Sri Lankan artist SoliasMendis at the KelaniyaRajamahaVihara, a popular Buddhist temple near Colombo.
• One of the murals depicts ‘ArahatBhikkhu’ Mahinda, son of Emperor Ashoka delivering the message of the Buddha to King Devanampiyatissa of Sri Lanka.
• The other shows the arrival of ‘TheriBhikkhuni’ Sanghamitta, the daughter of the Emperor, in Sri Lanka, bearing a sapling of the ‘sacred Bodhi tree’ under which Siddhārtha Gautama is believed to have obtained enlightenment.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Geographic Information System (GIS) Energy Map of India is developed by:

a) NITI Aayog and ISRO

b) NASA

c) Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad

d) None of the above

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 16, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: B)

Explanation:

1. YudhAbhyas – Army
2. Cope India – Air force
3. Malabar – Navy
4. Tiger Triumph – Tri-service

[WpProQuiz 71]

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. GOVERNMENT SAYS DATA IN GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX INFLATED

THE CONTEXT: According to the government, the value of a key indicator used in the Global Hunger Index is ‘inflated’ as there are only 3.9% of Anganwadi children found to be undernourished.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The real-time data of beneficiaries registered on the Anganwadi platform include 7.79 crore children aged between 6 months to 6 years as per real-time Poshan Tracker data [as of 16-10-2021]. The corresponding number of undernourished children reported on Poshan Tracker is 30.27 lakh which comes to only 3.9%.
• The GHI 2021 ranked India at 101 positions out of 116 countries. The index is based on four indicators — under-nourishment, wasting, stunting and under-five mortality. Of these, India’s performance is shown to deteriorate only for undernourishment, which is what the Government has challenged.
• According to FAO’s data, which is used in the Index, the prevalence of undernourishment in India rose from 14% in 2017-2019 to 15.3% in 2018-2020 which the Government has called exaggerated.
• The Government has also alleged that there has been a selective approach adopted by the publishing agencies to deliberately lower India’s rank on the GHI 2021 by relying on higher values of indicators such as stunting and wasting from different datasets available.
• The Government also maintains that it is not possible to evaluate the extent of malnutrition for the period before 2018 as there were no growth monitoring devices available at anganwadis until they were introduced under the PoshanAbhiyaan.

SOURCE: TH

2. FOOD TECH SUMMIT 2021

THE CONTEXT: To commemorate World Food Day, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, under the Pradhan MantriFormalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme, organised the Food Tech Summit on 16th October 2021.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The Food Tech Summit 2021 aimed at setting the stage for all food-tech stakeholders to impart, discuss and acquaint micro enterprises on the new emerging trends in food processing and technological innovation.

ABOUT THE PMFME SCHEME

• Launched under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, the Pradhan MantriFormalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme that aims to enhance the competitiveness of existing individual micro-enterprises in the unorganized segment of the food processing industry and to promote formalization of the sector and provide support to Farmer Producer Organizations, Self Help Groups, and Producers Cooperatives along their entire value chain.
• With an outlay of Rs. 10,000 crores over a period of five years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, the scheme envisions to directly assist the 2,00,000 micro food processing units for providing financial, technical, and business support for up-gradation of existing micro food processing enterprises.

SOURCE: PIB

3. INDIA TO ACHIEVE 100-CRORE VACCINATION MARK

THE CONTEXT:  In a couple of days or so from now, the number of Covid-19 vaccine doses administered in India will have crossed 100 crores, or 1 billion. Already, India has administered more vaccine doses than any other country in the world apart from China.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• Still, for a country that faced huge supply bottlenecks, and a fair amount of vaccine hesitancy, at least in the initial period, reaching the 100-crore milestone is no small achievement. Transportation, distribution and storage of vaccines at specific low temperatures posed huge additional hurdles in a country lacking in an elaborate cold-chain network.
• The 100-crore milestone is being achieved in about 275 days — the first vaccine doses were administered on January 16 — which means that, on average, 27 lakh doses have been given every day through this ten-month period.
• There have, of course, been wide variations in the daily number of doses administered. On six days, more than 1 crore doses were administered, with a record of 2.18 crore being achieved on September 17.
• On the other hand, in the initial few days in January and a couple of days in February, less than 50,000 doses were administered.
• States with smaller populations have much better coverage of coverage of Covid-19 vaccination. But some of the larger states, with much larger populations, such as Gujarat, Kerala, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand have also managed to vaccinate over 90% of their adult population with at least one dose.
• On the other hand, some low-population northeastern states — Manipur, Meghalaya and Nagaland – and also Puducherry are lagging behind, with less than 60% of their people having been vaccinated with even a single dose.

SOURCE:  IE

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

4. COP26 CLIMATE CONFERENCE

THE CONTEXT: The UK will host the COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference from October 31 to November 12. The event will see leaders from more than 190 countries, thousands of negotiators, researchers and citizens coming together to strengthen a global response to the threat of climate change. It is a pivotal movement for the world to come together and accelerate the climate action plan. This year marks the 26th Conference of Parties and will be held in the Scottish Event Campus in Glasgow.

FORMATION OF COP

• The Conference of Parties comes under the United Nations Climate Change Framework Convention (UNFCCC) which was formed in 1994. The UNFCCC was established to work towards the stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.
• It laid out a list of responsibilities for the member states which included:
• Formulating measures to mitigate climate change
• Cooperating in preparing for adaptation to the impact of climate change
• Promoting education, training and public awareness related to climate change

COP1 to COP25

• COP members have been meeting every year since 1995. The UNFCCC has 198 parties including India, China and the USA.
• The first conference (COP1) was held in 1995 in Berlin. At COP3 held in Kyoto, Japan, in 1997, the famous Kyoto Protocol was adopted. It commits the member states to pursue limitation or reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. It entered into force on 16 February 2005 and there are 192 Parties in the Kyoto Protocol.
• India hosted the eighth COP from October 23 to November 1, 2002, in New Delhi. The conference laid out seven measures.
• One of the most important conferences, COP21 2015, in Paris, France. Member countries agreed to work together to ‘limit global warming to well below 2, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels.’

COP26 GOALS

• According to the UNFCCC, COP26 will work towards four goals:

1. 1. Secure global net-zero by mid-century and keep 1.5 degrees within reach
   2. Adapt to protect communities and natural habitats
   3. Mobilise finance
   4. Work together to deliver

SOURCE:IE

5. GREEN CRACKERS

THE CONTEXT: In view of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) related situation and concerns surrounding the rising level of pollution due to firecrackers during the festive season, several states have imposed certain rules on fireworks this year. These vary from either a complete or a partial ban on firecracker sales in these respective states to permitting the sale of ‘green crackers’ instead.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In July 2021, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea challenging the National Green Tribunal’s order for the imposition of a complete ban on the sale and use of all firecrackers during the Covid-19 pandemic in cities and said that no further clarification or deliberation was required.
• The apex court said that the authorities may permit the sale and use of firecrackers as per the category of AQI in the cities.
• The bench said that manufacturing or production of firecrackers was allowed and those who wanted to use firecrackers could do so with permission depending upon the category of AQI.
• It clarified that the ban is in places where air quality is poor and there is no ban on the manufacture.
• Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin has urged his Delhi, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Odisha counterparts to seriously consider the sale of green crackers in their respective territories.

WHAT ARE GREEN CRACKERS?

• ‘Green crackers’ are low-emission fireworks permitted by the Supreme Court for celebrations to a moderate degree during festivals, relaxing the ‘complete ban on fireworks previously imposed in 2017.
• These green crackers, researched and developed by experts at the CSIR-NEERI (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research – National Environmental Engineering Research Institute).
• These green crackers are produced with less harmful raw materials, in accordance with instructions issued by the Supreme court, and are made in a way that suppresses the dust when they are burnt – thus reducing emissions.
• They also do not contain harmful chemicals such as lithium, arsenic, barium, and lead and instead release water vapour that does not allow the dust to rise.
• Although still impactful on the climate to an extent, these green crackers are believed to cause 30 per cent less particulate matter pollution than traditional crackers and are thus considered generally less harmful than their conventional alternatives.

SOURCE:  HT

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

6. EX YUDH ABHYAS 21

THE CONTEXT: The 17th Edition of Indo – US joint training exercise “EX YUDH ABHYAS 21” commenced at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson, Alaska (USA) on 15 October 2021.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The joint exercise will facilitate both Armies to know each other better, share their wide experiences and enhance their situational awareness through information exchange.
• This will help them in undertaking joint operations at the Battalion level in mountainous terrain with cold climatic conditions under the ambit of the United Nations.

SOURCE: PIB

7. NEW DELHI TO HOST NSAS ON AFGHANISTAN ISSUE

THE CONTEXT:  New Delhi is planning to engage regional powers on the future of Afghanistan. It is sending an official team to attend the Moscow process of talks on October 20 that will include the Taliban government’s, Deputy Prime Minister. New Delhi has also invited regional National Security Advisers to Delhi for a meeting in November.

THE EXPLANATION:

• New Delhi has reached out to countries that participated in the Iran-plus six-nation “Regional Security Dialogue” in Tehran- Iran, Russia, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan for the meeting to be chaired by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
• A Pakistani official confirmed receiving the invitation but said a decision on participation was yet to be taken.
• Although no foreign government has recognised the Taliban as the official government, several, including India are in talks with them, mainly through their political office in Doha, while at least six nations, including Russia, China, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey and Qatar maintain embassies in Kabul.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Consider the following pairs of armed forces exercises between India and the U.S.

1. YudhAbhyas – Army
2. Cope India – Tri-service
3. Malabar – Navy
4. Tiger Triumph – Air force

Which of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1 and 3 only

c0 1, 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

ANSWER FOR OCTOBER 16, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: D

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: Convertibility refers to the ability to convert domestic currency into foreign ones and vice versa to make payments for the balance of payments transactions.
• Statement 2 is correct: Current account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for current account transactions
• Statement 3 is correct: Capital account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for capital account transactions.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. TUBERCULOSIS DEATHS UP IN PANDEMIC

THE CONTEXT: India is on the list of countries that contributed most to the global reduction in TB notifications between 2019 and 2020.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• According to the 2021 Global TB report released recently by the World Health Organization (WHO), the COVID-19 pandemic has reversed years of global progress in tackling tuberculosis and for the first time in over a decade, TB deaths have increased.
• Worse, India (41%) was on the list of countries that topped those that contributed most to the global reduction in TB notifications between 2019 and 2020. India along with Indonesia (14%), the Philippines (12%), China (8%) and 12 other countries accounted for 93% of the total global drop in notifications.
• The WHO estimated that some 4.1 million people currently suffer from TB but had not been diagnosed with the disease or had not officially reported to national authorities. This figure is up from 2.9 million in 2019.
• The organisation added that there was also a reduction in the provision of TB preventive treatment.

SOURCE:TH

2. COMPASSION CANNOT BE FOREVER: SC

THE CONTEXT: Compassion cannot continue in perpetuity, the Supreme Court said in an order holding that Kashmiri migrants who retired as government officers cannot stay in official accommodation indefinitely.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The order was passed by a Bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and A.S. Bopanna in applications filed by retired officers occupying government accommodation in Delhi and Gurgaon. Some of these officers had been victims of terrorism and served in critical intelligence offices.
• Applicants are occupying the government accommodation at the cost of other government servants who are waiting in queue for the allotment of a government accommodation to discharge their official duties. The compassion shown to Kashmiri migrants has to be balanced with the expectations of the serving officers to discharge their duties effectively.
• The court struck down as arbitrary an office memorandum allowing government accommodation to retired employees who were Kashmiri migrants.

SOURCE: TH

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

3. TIGER MDT23 CAPTURED AFTER 22-DAY-LONG SEARCH

THE CONTEXT: After a 22-day-long operation, a tiger — nicknamed MDT23 — believed to have been responsible for the death of two herders in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and Gudalur, was tranquillised by the Forest Department.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Mudumalai Tiger Reserve is located in the Nilgiri district, Tamil Nadu.
• It was declared a tiger reserve in 2007.
• The Nilgiri sub-cluster (UNESCO World Heritage Site) includes the Mudumalai, Mukurthi, Nagarhole, Bandipur and Silent Valley national parks, as well as the Aralam, Wayanad and Sathyamangalam wildlife sanctuaries.

SOURCE:IE

4. FALL IN STUBBLE BURNING INCIDENTS IN PUNJAB AND HARYANA

THE CONTEXT: According to a report by the Commission for Air Quality Management, there is a 70% reduction so far in instances of stubble burning in Punjab and 18% in Haryana from last year.

ABOUT NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT

• It is a statutory body established through the recently enacted The Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act 2021.
• Composition: (i) a Chairperson, (ii) an officer of the rank of a Joint Secretary as the member-secretary and Chief Coordinating Officer, (iii) a serving or former Joint Secretary from the central government, (iii) three independent technical members with expertise in air pollution, and (iv) three members from non-government organisations.
• Tenure: The Chairperson and members of the Commission will have a tenure of three years or till the age of seventy years, whichever is earlier.
• Ex-office members: (i) from the central government and concerned state governments, and (ii) technical members from Central Pollution Control Board, Indian Space Research Organisation, and NITI Aayog. It may also appoint representatives of certain ministries.
• Selection of Commission: The central government will constitute a selection committee to recommend appointments of members of the Commission. The Committee will be headed by the Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. Members of the Committee will include the Cabinet Secretary and the Minister of (i) Commerce and Industry, (ii) Road Transport and Highways, and (iii) Science and Technology.
• Functions of the Commission: (i) co-ordinating actions by concerned state governments (Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh), (ii) planning and executing plans to prevent and control air pollution in NCR, (iii) providing a framework for identifying air pollutants, (iv) conducting research and development through networking with technical institutions, (v) training and creating a special workforce to deal with issues related to air pollution, and (vi) preparing action plans such as increasing plantation and addressing stubble burning.
• Powers of the Commission: Powers of the Commission include: (i) restricting activities influencing air quality, (ii) investigating and conducting research related to environmental pollution impacting air quality, (iii) preparing codes and guidelines to prevent and control air pollution, and (iv) issuing directions on matters including inspections, or regulation which will be binding on the concerned person or authority.
• The Commission will be the sole authority with jurisdiction over matters defined in the Bill (such as air quality management). In case of conflicts, the directions of the Commission will prevail over the orders of the respective state governments, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), state PCBs, and state-level statutory bodies.
• Sub-Committees: The Commission is required to form sub-committees on (i) monitoring and identification, (ii) safeguarding and enforcement, and (iii) research and development.
• The commission may collect environmental compensation from farmers causing pollution by stubble burning. This compensation will be prescribed by the central government.
• Appeals against the Commission’s orders will lie with the National Green Tribunal.

SOURCE:  TH

INDIAN ECONOMY

5. CAPITAL ACCOUNT CONVERTIBILITY

THE CONTEXT: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar said market participants, particularly banks, will have to prepare themselves to manage the business process changes and the global risks associated with capital convertibility.

THE EXPLANATION:

• India has come a long way in achieving increasing levels of convertibility on the capital account.
• It has broadly achieved the desired outcome for the policy choices it has made, in terms of achieving a stable composition of foreign capital inflow.
• At the same time, India is on the cusp of some fundamental shifts in this space with increased market integration in the offing and freer non-resident access to debt on the table.
• The rate of change in capital convertibility will only increase with each of these and similar measures. With that comes the responsibility to ensure that such flows are managed effectively with the right combination of capital flow measures, macro-prudential measures and market intervention.
• Convertibility refers to the ability to convert domestic currency into foreign ones and vice versa to make payments for the balance of payments transactions.
• Current account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for current account transactions while capital account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for capital account transactions.

SOURCE: IE

INTERNAL  SECURITY

6. ENHANCED POWERS OF BORDER SECURITY FORCE

THE CONTEXT: The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), through a notification in the Gazette of India on October 11, enhanced the “arrest, search and seize” powers of the Border Security Force (BSF) up to 50 km from the international boundary within Assam, West Bengal and Punjab. In Gujarat, the limit was reduced from the existing 80 km to 50 km. In Rajasthan, the 50-km limit remains unchanged.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The notification replaces a 2014 order under the BSF Act, 1968, which also empowers the force to conduct counter-insurgency operations in Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya.
• Though Jammu and Kashmir were not mentioned in the 2014 order, notification specifically mentions the two newly created Union Territories-J&K and Ladakh.
• According to a background note submitted by the MHA to a parliamentary standing committee in 2011, Under Rule 15 of the BSF Rules, 1969, the BSF has been assigned three primary tasks while deployed along the borders: promote a sense of security among the people living in the border area, prevent trans-border crimes/unauthorised entry into or exit from the territory of India and prevent smuggling and any other illegal activity.
• The violations against which the BSF carries out search and seizure include smuggling of narcotics, prohibited items, illegal entry of foreigners and offences punishable under any other Central Act.
• The MHA has given powers to the BSF personnel in border areas under the Customs Act, the Passport Act, the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, the Foreigners Act, 1946, and the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947.
• The BSF does not have police powers; after apprehending a suspect it can only conduct “preliminary questioning” and has to hand over a seized consignment or the suspect to the local police within 24 hours. It does not have the power to prosecute crime suspects. Police is a State subject under the Constitution.
• The amendment establishes uniformity in defining the area within which the BSF can operate and also to improve its operational effectiveness in curbing trans-border crimes. The operational writ of the BSF was different in different Border States and the fresh notification ends this anomaly.
• The two States- Punjab and West Bengal, have termed the MHA’s move an attack on federalism.

ABOUT BSF

• The BSF is a central armed police force (CAPF) that functions under the Union government. It was raised in 1965 in the aftermath of the India-Pakistan war.
• The BSF Act was passed by Parliament in 1968 and the rules governing the Act were framed in 1969.
• The MHA issues all orders pertaining to the BSF and other CAPFs such as the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), SashastraSeema Bal (SSB), Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), National Security Guard (NSG) and Assam Rifles.
• India is a Union of States and under the One Border One Force policy, the BSF is deployed along the Pakistan and Bangladesh borders.
• It is also deployed in areas affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) and is routinely deployed for election and other law and order duties on the request of State governments.

SOURCE:TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to the concept of Convertibility in the Indian economy.

1. Convertibility refers to the ability to convert domestic currency into foreign ones and vice versa to make payments for the balance of payments transactions.
2. Current account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for current account transactions
3. Capital account convertibility is the ability or freedom to convert domestic currency for capital account transactions.

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 OCTOBER 15, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: C

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach— working at the local, regional, national, and global levels — with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
• Statement 2 is correct: This concept is used by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). In India, it is a component under the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well Being.

THE CONTEXT: The Goods and Services Tax Council is the backbone of the GST system. Of late, this sui generis federal institution has been facing several challenges impacting its working and output. The several States have voiced concerns about the lack of proper deliberations, the high handedness of the Centre, excessive delegation to bureaucracy etc. Added to this, there are questions being raised on the Constitutional status of the decisions of the GST Council. Against this backdrop, this writes up comprehensively examines the various issues the GST Council is facing and also analyses the probable solutions for improving its working.

BACK TO BASICS: UNDERSTANDING THE GST COUNCIL

THE GST COUNCIL AND THE MAKING OF INDIAN COOPERATIVE FEDERALISM

The adoption of GST and the creation of the GST Council itself was a major shift from the past in terms of cooperative and competitive federalism. The working of the GST Council also has been transformative in terms of its number of meetings (more than 43 times), review of GST rates and efforts to seek cooperation with states for the effective implementation of GST. In fact, the work of the GST Council was considered as more successful than that of the Inter-State Council and National Development Council. However, the Covid-19 pandemic and the emerging implementation challenges of GST have also posed challenges for the GST Council.

THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE FUNCTIONS OF THE GST COUNCIL

NATURE OF DECISIONS OF THE GST COUNCIL: RECIPE FOR CONFLICTS?

MAKING THE DECISION BINDING: PROBABLE SOLUTIONS AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS

REFORMING THE GST COUNCIL: THE WAY AHEAD

THE CONCLUSION: The GST Council has been a pioneering experiment in the arena of fiscal federalism in India. Although fiscal sovereignty and autonomy are the key features of a federal political system, the States and centres have surrendered their taxation power for the collective good. Despite such noble intentions and objectives, the GST Council suffers from multiple issues, perhaps the biggest among them is the “nature of recommendations of the council”. Along with providing clarity on this issue, the increasing politicisation of the proceedings of the Council must be addressed. In order to make India Atmanirbhar, the GST Council must work in the spirit of “cooperative and collaborative federalism” than in “competitive and disruptive federalism”.

INDIAN POLITY, GOVERNANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. ONE HEALTH CONSORTIUM

THE CONTEXT: Country’s first ‘One Health’ consortium launched by the Department of Biotechnology.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• The consortium, consisting of 27 organisations led by DBT-National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, Hyderabad, is one of the biggest health programs launched by the Govt of India in post-COVID times. The One health consortium consists of AIIMS, Delhi, AIIMS Jodhpur, IVRI, Bareily, GADVASU, Ludhiana, TANUVAS, Chennai, MAFSU, Nagpur, Assam agricultural and veterinary university and many more ICAR, ICMR centres and wildlife agencies.
• COVID-19 pandemic showed the relevance of ‘One Health’ principles in the governance of infectious diseases, especially efforts to prevent and contain zoonotic diseases throughout the world.
• The risk of infectious agents capable of jumping the barriers of species is increasing, mainly because of the potential of novel infectious agents to spread rapidly around the globe due to increased travel, food habits and trade across borders.
• Such diseases have devastating impacts on animals, humans, health systems, and economies, requiring years of social and economic recovery.

ABOUT ONE HEALTH CONCEPT

• One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach— working at the local, regional, national, and global levels — with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
• This concept is used by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). In India, it is a component under the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well Being.

SOURCE: PIB

2. GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 2021

THE CONTEXT:  India has slipped to the 101st position among 116 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021 from its 2020 ranking (94), to be placed behind Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• With this, only 15 countries, like Papua New Guinea (102), Afghanistan (103), Nigeria (103), Congo (105), fared worse than India this year.
• A total of 18 countries, including China, Kuwait and Brazil, shared the top rank with a GHI score of less than five.
• The report, prepared jointly by Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide and German organisation Welt Hunger Hilfe, mentioned the level of hunger in India as “alarming” with its GHI score decelerating from 38.8 in 2000 to the range of 28.8 – 27.5 between 2012 and 2021.
• The GHI score is calculated on four indicators — undernourishment; child wasting (the share of children under the age of five who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition); child stunting (children under the age of five who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition); child mortality (the mortality rate of children under the age of five).
• According to the report, the share of wasting among children in India rose from 17.1 per cent between 1998-2002 to 17.3 per cent between 2016-2020.
• However, India has shown improvement in indicators like the under-5 mortality rate, the prevalence of stunting among children and prevalence of undernourishment owing to inadequate food.

SOURCE: IE

3. NEW RULES ALLOWING ABORTION

THE CONTEXT:  As per the government’s new rules, the gestational limit for termination of a pregnancy in India has been increased from 20 to 24 weeks for some categories of women.

THE EXPLANATION: 

• Under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Rules, 2021, the women for whom the limit has been increased include survivors of sexual assault, rape or incest, minors, those whose marital status changes during pregnancy (widowhood and divorce) and those with physical disabilities.
• The new rules also include mentally ill women, cases of foetal malformation in which there is a substantial risk of physical or mental abnormalities and women in disasters or emergency situations as declared by the government.
• These new rules fall under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021, which was passed by Parliament in March this year.
• Earlier, an abortion required the opinion of one doctor if carried out within twelve weeks of conception and two doctors if done between twelve and twenty weeks.
• As per the new rules, state-level medical boards will be set up to decide if pregnancy may be terminated after 24 weeks in cases of foetal malformation where there is a substantial risk of incompatibility with life, physical or mental abnormalities or handicaps.
• The medical boards are to examine the woman and her reports and then either accept or reject the proposal for medical termination of pregnancy within three days of receiving the request.
• The boards also have to ensure that the abortion procedure, when advised by them, is carried out with all precautions along with counselling. The procedure has to be done with five days of the board receiving the request for the same.
• Experts say that given the advancements in scientific and medical technology the world has witnessed over the years, the extended 24-week gestation period should be for all women and not just ‘special categories of women. The creation of state medical boards could potentially create impediments for women’s access to abortion services as many women discover they are pregnant at a later stage.

SOURCE: INDIA TODAY

4. GLOBAL COVID-19 EDUCATION RECOVERY TRACKER

THE CONTEXT: A global Covid-19 education recovery tracker has revealed that nearly half the countries across the world are still taking classes in the online and hybrid (both online and offline) mode while some are on an extended break due to the pandemic.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Created by the Johns Hopkins University in the US, Unicef and World Bank, the tracker captures information from 208 countries worldwide and was launched in March.
• While schools have restarted in several countries over the past few months, the latest data on the tracker, till the month of September, shows that classes are yet to go fully in-person in almost half the nations.
• A large number of countries are either teaching children online or through the hybrid mode, which means juggling online and in-person lessons.
• in India, education is currently being imparted in the hybrid mode. At the school level, students in the senior classes have started attending school in person in most states while junior classes continue online.
• The tracker also shows that schools in some countries are on an extended break due to Covid-19.

Source: THEPRINT

ENVIRONMENT, GEOGRAPHY AND AGRICULTURE

5. THE DECLINING MONSOON RAINFALL IN PUNJAB OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES

THE CONTEXT: The state has seen a declining trend in rainfall during monsoon in the past two decades. The only silver lining was that the rainfall pattern was good this year, which was witnessed after a long gap.

THE EXPLANATION:

• There are several factors and they are not Punjab-specific but a global phenomenon due to which erratic weather changes are occurring, for which a collective approach is required to minimise the effect of global warming to control extreme weather variables.
• Experts said deforestation in the state is also one of the causes of the decreasing rainfall trend.

SOURCE:IE

6. THE LARGE SCALE BESS FOR 1000 MW HOUR PROJECT

THE CONTEXT: Government has given go-ahead for inviting the expression of interest for the installation of a 1000 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) as a pilot project.

THE EXPLANATION:

• This is the joint effort of both Ministry of New and renewable energy and the Ministry of Power who have been working on this to provide a road map for the installation of the energy storage system in the country.
• In order to support the ambitious goal of achieving the 450 GW renewable energy target of the Ministry of New and renewable energy by 2030, it is important that it gets duly supported with the installation of energy storage systems (battery energy storage system, hydro pump storage plants etc.).
• Going forward, India plans to use an energy storage system under the following business cases:–
• Renewable energy along with the energy storage system
• The energy storage system as grid element to maximize the use of transmission system and strengthening grid stability and also to save investment in the augmentation of transmission infrastructure.
• Storage as an asset for balancing services and flexible operation. The system operator i.e. load dispatchers (RLDCs and SLDCs) may use storage system for frequency control and balancing services to manage the inherent uncertainty/variations in the load due to un-generation.
• Storage for distribution system i.e. it may be placed at the load centre to manage its peak load and other obligations.
• As a merchant capacity by the energy storage system developer and sell in the power market
• Any other future business models as a combination of the above.

SOURCE:   PIB

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

7. INDIA-U.S. FINANCIAL DIALOGUE

THE CONTEXT: Finance Minister and her American counterpart, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, met for the eight Ministerial meetings of the U.S.-India Economic and Financial partnership. The Ministerial held a session dedicated to climate finance for the first time.

THE EXPLANATION:

• In the run-up to the UN Climate Change Conference ( “COP26”)in Glasgow at the end of the month, India has been pushing for rich countries to meet their Paris Accord climate finance commitment of $100 billion per year.
• The two sides “reaffirmed the collective developed country goal to mobilise $100 billion annually for developing countries from public and private sources, in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation,” the statement said. Holding such a session, the statement said, reflected the “critical” role climate finance has to play in achieving global climate goals and the two sides’ commitments to drive “urgent progress” in combatting climate change.
• On international taxation, the two sides welcomed the OECD (Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development, a group of wealthy countries) tax agreement and committed to working with others to implement the agreement’s two pillars by 2023. Pillar One involves the allocation of taxing rights (tax on multinationals) between jurisdictions, and Pillar Two, a global minimum tax of 15% on certain companies

SOURCE: TH

8. INDIA GETS RE-ELECTED TO U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL

THE CONTEXT:  India was re-elected to the U.N. Human Rights Council for the 2022-24 term on Thursday with an overwhelming majority in the General Assembly, with New Delhi’s envoy describing the election as a “robust endorsement” of the country’s strong roots in democracy, pluralism and fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 76th UN General Assembly held elections on Thursday for 18 new members of the U.N. Human Rights Council who will serve for a period of three years, starting in January 2022.
• India got 184 votes in the 193-member assembly, while the required majority was 97.
• India’s current term was set to end on December 31 2021. For election for the term 2022-2024, there were five vacant seats in the Asia-Pacific States category – India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

SOURCE: TH

PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTION

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to “One Health Concept”

1. The goal of one health is achieving optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment.
2. It is a component under the National Mission on Biodiversity and Human Well Being.

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 OCTOBER 14, 2021 PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

ANSWER: A

Explanation:

Prime Minister launched the Gati Shakti – National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity.   Gati Shakti — a digital platform — will bring 16 Ministries including Railways and Roadways together for integrated planning and coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity projects.

[WpProQuiz 69]