GOVERNMENT INTERVENTIONS

1. MARINE SPATIAL PLANNING FRAMEWORK

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II-GOVERNMENT INTERVENTIONS

THE CONTEXT: Puducherry has launched the country’s first Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) framework as part of a pact under the Indo-Norway Integrated Ocean Initiative.

THE EXPLANATION:

Aim: to balance growth alongside sustainable management of ocean resources and coastal environment preservation.

About Marine Spatial Planning:

• MSP is an ecosystem-based spatial planning process for analyzing current and anticipated ocean and coastal uses and identifying areas most suitable for various activities.
• It provides a public policy process for society to better determine how the ocean and coasts are sustainably used and protected – now and for future generations.
• The initiative, known as Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), will be implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) through the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR) for India.

The IOC-UNESCO Marine Spatial Planning Programme:

• It helps countries implement ecosystem-based management by finding space for biodiversity, conservation and sustainable economic development in marine areas.
• IOC-UNESCO has developed several guides, including a 10-step guide on how to get a marine spatial plan started: “Step-by-step Approach for Marine Spatial Planning toward Ecosystem-based Management”.

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. ALLOCATION OF ELECTION SYMBOLS BY ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA (ECI)

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II-POLITY

THE CONTEXT: ECI has recognised Eknath Shinde group as official “Shiv Sena”, allowing them to use the official “Bow & Arrow” symbol and “Shiv Sena” name.

THE EXPLANATION:

Sadiq Ali case

• The ECI has applied the tests mentioned in the 1971 Supreme Court judgment in Sadiq Ali v. Election Commission of India.
• In the Sadiq Ali case, it was held that in matters of disputes among groups of a political party, the test of majority support among the members of the ‘organizational and legislature wings’ of the party was the critical test to decide the dispute.
• It includes the Test of aims and objects of the Party Constitution, Test of Party Constitution and Test of Majority.

The 1968 Order

• On the question of a split in a political party outside the legislature, Para 15 of the Symbols Order, 1968, states that the decision of the Commission shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups.
• This applies to disputes in recognised national and state parties (like the Shiv Sena).
• For splits in registered but unrecognized parties, the ECI usually advises the warring factions to resolve their differences internally or to approach the court.
• The first case to be decided under the 1968 Order was the first split in the Indian National Congress in 1969.

Election Symbols:

• Political parties are allotted the symbols by the Election Commission of India under the Election Symbols (Reservation & Allotment) Order, 1968.
• A reserved symbol is one that is allocated to a registered political party while a free symbol is available to be allocated to non-recognized parties and independent candidates.
• Paragraph 4 of the order deals with the allotment of symbols.
• Paragraph 5 classifies the symbol into reserved and free symbols.
• Paragraph 8 of the Election Symbols Order deals with the choice and allotment of symbols to candidates of national and state parties.

Registration of Political Parties:

• According to the Election Commission, any party seeking registration has to apply to the Commission within a period of 30 days following the date of its formation as per guidelines prescribed by the Commission
• It is in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 324 of the Constitution of India and Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
• The registration of all political parties is governed by the provisions of Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

3. MOMENTUM 2.0 APP

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II- Government Schemes

THE CONTEXT: Delhi Metro will introduce the Momentum 2.0 app that will allow users to make a variety of purchases and schedule various services, including those for last-mile connectivity.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Momentum 2.0 app:

• It is India’s first virtual shopping app for the metro.
• It is launched by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).
• Features:
• It will allow customers to make payments and schedule services, including those for last-mile connections.
• It will also contain features such as rapid recharge of Delhi Metro’s smart cards and smart payment choices for other utility services.
• The app would also allow users to have digital lockers at metro stations.
• Commuters can use this app to find bikes, e-rickshaws, cabs, and the schedules of feeder buses and cluster bus routes from Delhi Metro stations.
• The app will also provide complete information on metro station infrastructure, such as the location and condition of gates, lifts, escalators, platforms, train scheduling, coach occupancy, and space availability.
• The app will also provide information on shops, outlets, kiosks, and ATMs located at the stations.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. PANGOLINS

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III- Environment

THE CONTEXT: According to the analysis by TRAFFIC, a global wildlife conservation non-profit, and World-Wide Fund for Nature-India, over 1200 Pangolins were poached for illegal wildlife trade in India from 2018-2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Pangolins:

• Pangolins are nocturnal, toothless mammals that dig burrows and feed on ants and termites.
• Pangolins are scaly anteater mammals and they have large, protective keratin scales covering their skin.
• Pangolin is the only scaly mammal on the planet.
• It uses these scales as armor to defend itself against predators by rolling into a ball when threatened.
• Out of the eight species of pangolin, the Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) and the Chinese Pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) are found in India.

About Ecosystem Services:

• They play a vital role in the ecosystem management, mostly in aerating and adding moisture to the soil as well as succession of plant communities through burrowing.
• They also keep in check the population of certain insects they prey on.
• The burrows made by pangolins also get utilized as shelters by other species within their ecosystem.

Indian Pangolin

• Range – Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka
• IUCN – Endangered
• The Indian pangolin, which dons a thick scaly skin, is hunted for meat and used in traditional Chinese medicine.
• Both these species are listed under Schedule I Part I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.

Chinese Pangolin

• Range – Bangladesh; Bhutan; China; Hong Kong; India; Lao People’s Democratic Republic; Myanmar; Nepal; Taiwan, Province of China; Thailand; Viet Nam
• IUCN – Critically Endangered.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. KENDU LEAF

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT:The GST council meeting recently rejected Odisha’s demand for tax exemption on kendu leaf.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Kendu leaf:

• Kendu leaf is called the green gold of Odisha.
• It is a nationalized product like Bamboo and Sal seed.
• It is one of the most important non-wood forest products of Odisha.
• It is also referred to as tendu leaf in some parts of the country and is used to roll tobacco into bidis (local cigarettes).

Production:

• The states producing kendu leaves in India comprise mainly Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
• Odisha is the third-largest producer of kendu leaf after Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.

GEOGRAPHY

1. WHAT ARE GEOMAGNETIC STORMS?

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-I-GEOGRAPHY

 THE CONTEXT:  Recently, a Geomagnetic Storm was caused by a solar wind that passed through a gap created in the Earth’s magnetic field.

THE EXPLANATIONS:

About Geomagnetic Storms:

• A geomagnetic storm is a major disturbance of Earth’s magnetosphere.
• These storms result from variations in the solar wind that produces significant changes in the currents, plasmas, and fields in Earth’s magnetosphere.
• The solar wind conditions that are effective for creating geomagnetic storms are sustained (for several hours) periods of the high-speed solar wind and a southward-directed solar wind magnetic field (opposite the direction of Earth’s field) at the dayside of the magnetosphere.
• The largest such storms are associated with solar coronal mass ejections (CMEs), where a billion tons or so of plasma from the sun, with its embedded magnetic field, arrives at Earth.

Effects:

• These storms can heat the ionosphere, causing beautiful auroras on Earth.
• Because the ionosphere is heated and distorted during storms, long-range radio communication that relies on sub-ionospheric reflection gets affected.
• Ionospheric expansion due to these storms can increase satellite drag and make their orbits difficult to control.
• Satellite electronics can be damaged through the build-up and discharge of static-electric charges.
• It can disrupt global navigation systems.
• It can create harmful geomagnetic-induced currents (GICs) in the power grid and pipelines.

What is a Solar wind?

• It is a stream of energized, charged particles, primarily electrons and protons, flowing outward from the Sun through the solar system at speeds as high as 900 km/s and a temperature of 1 million degrees (Celsius).
• It is made of plasma.
• When the solar wind reaches Earth, it sends a flurry of charged particles toward the magnetosphere, along Earth’s magnetic field lines, towards the poles.

What are Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs)?

• CMEs are large expulsions of plasma and magnetic field from the Sun’s corona that propagates outward into interplanetary space.
• The blast of a CME carries about a billion tons of material out from the Sun at very high speeds of hundreds of kilometers per second.

INDIAN POLITY

2. DOCTRINE OF NECESSITY

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II-POLITY

CONTEXT: Recently, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) Invoked the “doctrine of necessity” to clear six deals involving mergers & acquisitions (M&A) and investment proposals.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Doctrine of necessity:

• It allows the legal authorities to carry out certain activities which are not permitted in the normal course.
• This term is used to describe a principle of constitutional law, where in an emergency or an exigent circumstance, a state may legally act which in other circumstances is deemed to be illegal.
• The term was first used in 1954 in a controversial judgment in Pakistan.
• The Doctrine of Necessity was changed to the Doctrine of Absolute Necessity in the case of “Election Commission of India v. Dr. Subramaniam Swamy”
• Outcome: This doctrine shall be used only in case of absolute necessity.
• It acts as a defense against violating the law making the decision valid and not biased.
• Doctrine of necessity acts as an exception to ‘Nemo judex in causa sua’, where an authority is disqualified on the grounds of a biased decision.

Evolution of the Doctrine of Necessity

• The term Doctrine of Necessity is a term used to describe the basis on which administrative actions by administrative authority, which are designed to restore order, are found to be constitutional. The maxim on which the doctrine is based originated in the writings of the medieval jurist Henry de Bracton, and similar justifications for this kind of administrative action have been advanced by more recent legal authorities, including William Blackstone.
• In modern times, the term was first used in a controversial 1954 judgment in which Pakistani Chief Justice Muhammad Munir validated the extra-constitutional use of emergency powers by Governor General, Ghulam Mohammad. In his judgment, the Chief Justice cited Bracton’s maxim, ‘that which is otherwise not lawful is made lawful by necessity’, thereby providing the label that would come to be attached to the judgment and the doctrine that it was establishing.

ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

3. INDIAN PANGOLIN

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: International non-profit organization TRAFFIC recently reported that 1,203 pangolins had been found in illegal wildlife trade in India from 2018 to 2022.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Indian Pangolin:

• The Indian pangolin, also called thick-tailed pangolin and scaly anteater is native to the Indian subcontinent.
• It is one of the eight species of pangolins found.
• They are one of the most trafficked mammals in the world, despite an international ban on their trade.
• Scientific name: Manis crassicaudata
• Distribution: It lives in India (south of the Himalayas), Bangladesh, Southern Nepal, Sri Lanka, and small parts of Pakistan.
• Habitat: It occurs in tropical forests, open land, grasslands, and degraded habitat, including in close proximity to villages.

Features:

• Like other pangolins, it has large, overlapping scales on its body, which act as armor.
• The Indian pangolin’s armor is amongst the most effective in the mammalian world. It has about 13 rows of moveable sharp scales covering its body, which are shed periodically.
• The colour of its scales varies depending on the colour of the earth in its surroundings.
• It can also curl itself into a ball as self-defense against predators.
• It is an insectivore feeding on ants and termites.
• It is nocturnal and rests in deep burrows during the day.

Conservation status:

• IUCN Red List: Endangered
• Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I
• CITES: Appendix I

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. FINDER DEVICE

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III-DISASTER MANAGEMENT

THE CONTEXT: NASA has developed a technology that can remotely detect the tiniest motions of the body that will be used by disaster relief teams in earthquake-stricken Turkey.

THE EXPLANATION:

About FINDER device:

• The devices, called FINDERs( Finding Individuals for Disaster Emergency Response), use microwave radar sensors to find survivors underneath the rubble.
• It was designed to detect a human heartbeat buried beneath 30 feet of rubble.
• The radar illuminates the rubble pile and receives reflections back from a disaster site, including the victim.
• FINDER looks for changes in the reflection that indicate movement and then checks to see if those movements can be attributed to human heartbeats and respirations.
• It can distinguish human respiration from animals or mechanical movements.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. WHAT IS YAKSHAGANA?

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-I-ART AND CULTURE

THE CONTEXT: The Prime Minister of India has expressed deep grief over the demise of noted Yakshagana playback singer, Shri Balipa Narayana Bhagavatha.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Yakshagana:

• Yakshagana is a traditional folk dance form popular in Coastal Karnataka
• It is a rare combination of dance, music, song, scholarly dialogues and colourful costumes.
• Traditionally, men portray all roles, including the female ones, though women are now part of Yakshagana troupes.
• A typical troupe consists of 15 to 20 actors and a Bhagavatha, who is the master of ceremonies and the main storyteller.

What are the elements of Yakshagana?

• The Act: Each performance typically focuses on a small sub-story (known as ‘Prasanga’) from ancient Hindu epics of Ramayana or Mahabharata. The show consists of both stage performances by talented artists and commentary (performed by the lead singer or Bhagavatha) accompanied by traditional music.
• The Music: Musical instruments used in Yakshagana include Chande (drums), Harmonium, Maddale, Taala (mini metal clappers) and flute among others.
• The Dress: Costumes used in Yakshagana are very unique and elaborate. Large size headgear, coloured faces, elaborate costumes all over the body and musical beads on the legs (Gejje).

GEOGRAPHY: NATURAL RESOURCES

1. NEW LITHIUM RESERVES

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-I-GEOGRAPHY

THE CONTEXT: India’s Ministry of Mines recently announced that 5.9 million tonnes of lithium reserves have been found for the first time in the country in Jammu and Kashmir.

THE EXPLANATION:

• It is a soft, silvery-white metal that heads group 1, the alkali metals group, of the periodic table of the elements.

Features:

• It has the lowest density of all metals.
• It is the lightest of the solid elements.
• It reacts vigorously with water.
• It has a body-centered cubic crystal structure.
• Occurrence:
• Lithium does not occur as a metal in nature but is found combined in small amounts in igneous rocks.
• Lithium is found in brine deposits and as salts in mineral springs. Its concentration in seawater is 0.1 part per million (ppm).
• Major Reserves: Lithium reserves are concentrated in the lithium triangle in South America – Argentina, Bolivia & Chile, with 50% of the deposits concentrated in these regions.

FIG: LITHIUM TRIANGLE

Uses:

• Lithium is important in rechargeable batteries for mobile phones, laptops, digital cameras, and electric vehicles.
• It is also used in some non-rechargeable batteries for things like heart pacemakers, toys, and clocks.
• Lithium metal is made into alloys with aluminium and magnesium, improving their strength and making them lighter.
• Lithium oxide is used in special glasses and glass ceramics.
• Lithium stearate is used as an all-purpose and high-temperature lubricant.
• Lithium carbonate is used in drugs to treat manic depression.

INDIAN POLITY

2. MODES OF LOSING INDIAN CITIZENSHIP

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-II- POLITY

THE CONTEXT: Over 16 lakh Indians have renounced their Indian citizenship since 2011, including 2,25,620 people last year, the highest during the period, while the lowest of 85,256 was in 2020, according to government data.

THE EXPLANATION:

Modes of losing Indian Citizenship:

• The Citizenship Act 1955 lays down the three modes by which an Indian citizen, whether a citizen at the commencement of the Constitution or subsequent to it, may lose their citizenship. These are,

By Renunciation:

• An Indian Citizen of full age and capacity can renounce his Indian citizenship by making a declaration to that effect and having it registered.
• But if such a declaration is made during any war in which India is engaged, the registration shall be withheld until the Central Government otherwise directs.
• When a male person renounces his citizenship, every minor child of him ceases to be an Indian citizen.
• Such a child may, however, resume Indian citizenship if he makes a declaration to that effect within a year of his attaining full age, i.e. 18 years.

By Termination:

• If a citizen of India voluntarily acquires citizenship of another country, then the citizenship of India gets terminated.
• This provision does not apply during times of war.
• If any question arises as to whether, when, or how any person has acquired the citizenship of another country, it is to be determined by such authority and in such manner as may be prescribed by the rules.

By Deprivation:

• It is a compulsory termination of citizenship of India.
• A citizen of India by naturalization, registration, domicile and residence may be deprived of his citizenship by order of the Central Government if it is satisfied that:
• The citizen has obtained the citizenship by means of fraud, false representation, or concealment of any material fact;
• The citizen has shown disloyalty to the Constitution of India;
• The citizen has unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy during a war;
• The citizen has, within five years after registration or neutralization, been imprisoned in any country for two years;
• The citizen has been ordinarily resident out of India for seven years.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. THANE CREEK

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: A seven-km undersea tunnel will be constructed for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail Corridor project in a bid to save about 12 hectares of mangrove forests in Maharashtra’s Thane creek.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Thane creek:

• It is an inlet along the shoreline of the Arabian Sea that isolates the city of Mumbai from the Indian mainland.
• The east bank lies in the Thane and Navi Mumbai districts, while the west bank is in the Greater Mumbai district.
• It is Asia’s largest creek, with a length of 26 km.
• Thane Creek is fed by numerous freshwater sources (of which Ulhas river is the largest), making the water brackish.
• The creek is covered with mangroves on both sides.
• Thane Creek is a very important wintering ground for waterbirds. It supports over 1,00,000 birds during winter, including the iconic flamingos.
• A major part of the creek has been declared a bird sanctuary called Thane Creek Flamingo Bird Sanctuary (TCFS).

Thane Creek Flamingo Bird Sanctuary (TCFS):

• TCFS also referred to as the Airoli Flamingo Sanctuary, is the first flamingo sanctuary in India located along the western bank of the Thane creek.
• It encompasses more than 1600 hectares of mudflats, mangroves, and water bodies.
• The area was declared a flamingo sanctuary in 2015 and is home to substantial bird life – both residential and migratory.
• TCFS  was declared a Ramsar site by the International Wetlands Convention in 2022.
• Flora: Avicennia marina, Rhizophora mucronata, Acanthus ilicifolius, Aeluropus lagopoides, Sesuvium protulacastrumetc.
• Fauna: Over 205 species of birds have been reported from this area, including Lesser Flamingo, Greater Flamingo, Asian Openbill, White Stork, Pied Avocet, Eastern Golden Plover, etc.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. SMALL SATELLITE LAUNCH VEHICLE (SSLV-D2)

TAGS: PRELIMS- GS-III- SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched the second edition of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV-D2) from the first launch pad of Satish Dhawan space centre at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

THE EXPLANATION:

About the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle:

• The new vehicle was developed to capture the emerging small and microsatellite commercial market.
• The SSLV caters to the launch of up to 500 kg satellites to low earth orbits on a ‘launch-on-demand’ basis.
• The launch vehicle uses three solid stages followed by a liquid-fuel-based Velocity Trimming Module (VTM) to place satellites in orbit
• The rocket provides low-cost access to space, offers low turn-around time and flexibility in accommodating multiple satellites, and demands minimal launch infrastructure.
• It placed the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) earth observation satellite EOS-07 and two co-passenger satellites — Janus-1 and AzaadiSat2

What is Janus-1?

• Janus-1 is a technology demonstrator satellite built by United States-based Antaris and its Indian partners XDLinks and Ananth Technologies.
• It weighs only 10.2 kg and is a six-unit cube satellite with five payloads on board — two from Singapore, and one each from Kenya, Australia, and Indonesia.

What is AzaadiSat2?

• The payloads have been built by 750 girl students from across India.
• The payloads include: LoRa amateur radio, a sensor to measure radiation levels in space, and sensors to measure the health of the satellite such as temperature, reset count, and inertial data.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. ASBESTOS

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: Brazil has sunk a decommissioned aircraft carrier despite the presence of asbestos and toxic materials in Atlantic,  many environmental groups claiming the former French ship was packed with toxic materials.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Asbestos:

• It is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral.
• Asbestos is a group of six naturally occurring minerals made up of heat-resistant fibers.
• It consists of flexible fibers resistant to heat, electricity and corrosion.
• Asbestos is an excellent electrical insulator and is highly fire-resistant, so for much of the 20th century it was very commonly used across the world as a building material.
• Construction materials contained asbestos because it is an effective insulator.
• Asbestos in cloth, paper, cement, plastic and other materials makes them stronger.
• Asbestos mainly comes from Russia, Kazakhstan and China.
• The toxic mineral was once mined throughout North America.
• Asbestos has been used on ships as both a fire retardant and an insulator to protect sailors from the constant and jarring vibrations of ships’ engines.

Health Effects

• It is known to be a highly toxic material and a carcinogen.
• Inhaled or swallowed asbestos fibers can become trapped in the respiratory or digestive systems of the body, accumulating over time.
• Repeated exposure can cause inflammation and damage the DNA.
• The following illnesses have been associated with asbestos exposure: lung cancer, COPD, mesothelioma and asbestosis.

INDIAN POLITY

1. WHAT IS RES JUDICATA?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-II- POLITY

THE CONTEXT:The Madras High Court recently dismissed a civil revision petition filed by a woman against an order of a lower court that had allowed a second divorce petition filed by her husband on the ground of res-judicata.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The concept of res judicata has evolved from the English Common Law System.
• Res judicata literally means ‘the thing has been judged”.
• The principle of res judicata applies when a litigant attempts to file a subsequent lawsuit on the same matter after having received a judgment in a previous case involving the same parties.
• It is a judicial concept which means that the issue before the court has already been decided by another court, between the same parties, and the courts do not allow a petition to be filed in the same or to the other Court.
• Therefore, the court will dismiss the case before it as being useless.
• Res Judicata as a concept is applicable both in the case of the Civil as well as Criminal legal system.

Purpose:

• To prevent injustice to the parties of a case supposedly finished.
• To avoid unnecessary waste of resources and time of the Judicial System.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

2. WHAT IS THE LIBERALISED REMITTANCE SCHEME (LRS)?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III- ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT:The Union Budget 2023 proposes a Tax Collection at Source (TCS) for foreign outward remittance under LRS (other than for Education and medical purpose) of 20% on the entire value.

THE EXPLANATION:

About the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS):

• LRS allows Indian residents to freely remit up to USD $250,000 per financial year for current or capital account transactions or a combination of both. Any remittance exceeding this limit requires prior permission from the RBI. The scheme was introduced on February 4, 2004

Who can remit funds under LRS?

• Only individual Indian residents, including minors, are permitted to remit funds under LRS.
• Corporates, partnership firms, HUF, trusts, etc., are excluded from its ambit.

Frequency of Remittances:

• There are no restrictions on the frequency of remittances under LRS.
• Once a remittance is made for an amount up to USD 2,50,000 during the financial year, a resident individual would not be eligible to make any further remittances under this scheme.

Types of transactions permitted:

• Opening of foreign currency account abroad with a bank;
• Acquisition of immovable property abroad, overseas direct investment (ODI), and overseas portfolio investment (OPI);
• Extending loans, including loans in Indian Rupees to non-resident Indians (NRIs) who are relatives as defined in the Companies Act, 2013;
• Private visits abroad (excluding Nepal and Bhutan);
• Maintenance of relatives abroad;
• Medical treatment abroad;
• Pursuing studies abroad ;
• Tax liability on profit made: If any profit is made on foreign investments made under LRS, it is taxable in India based on how long the investment was held.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. WHAT ARE VERMINS?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT:The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) is working to develop immuno-contraceptive measures for population management of species that have become problematic for humans in many parts of the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Vermins:

• Vermin are usually considered problem or nuisance animals that attack humans, crops, livestock or property.
• Species which are classified as Vermin are placed under Schedule Vof the Wildlife Protection Act, of 1972.

Key facts about the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.

• There are Six Schedules in this act. These Schedules give a different standard of protection.
• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule I and part II of Schedule II get supreme protection. Offences under these are prescribed the highest penalties.
• For example Himalayan Brown Bear, Indian Elephant etc.
• The Listed breeds and types of animals in Schedule III and Schedule IV are also secured, but the penalties are comparatively much lower.
• For example, Barking Deer, Falcons, Kingfisher, Tortoise etc.
• Schedule V includes the animals which can be hunted.
• For example, Common Crow, Mice, Rats, Fruit Bats etc.
• The plants, trees and crops mentioned in Schedule VI are banned from Cultivation and Planting. For example, Kuth, Red Vanda, Pitcher Plant etc.

4. DICKINSONIA

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-ENVIRONMENT

THE CONTEXT: Recently, an alleged fossil discovered near Bhopal about two years ago and thought to be of the extinct Dickinsonia turned out to be the impression of a decayed beehive.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Dickinsonia:

• Dickinsonia is an extinct genus of basal animal that lived during the late Ediacaran period on ocean floors around present-day’s Australia, Russia and Ukraine.
• The individual Dickinsonia typically resembles a bilaterally symmetrical ribbed oval.
• Its affinities are presently unknown; its mode of growth is consistent with a stem-group bilaterian affinity, though some have suggested that it belongs to the fungi or even an “extinct kingdom”.
• The discovery of cholesterol molecules in fossils of Dickinsonia lends support to the idea that Dickinsonia was an animal.
• It is believed to be one of the key links between the early, simple organisms and the explosion of life in the Cambrian Period, about 541 million years ago.

About the Ediacaran period

• It consisted of tubular and frond-shaped organisms that lived during this period.
• The Ediacaran Period was about 20 million years before the emergence of modern animal life — a period known as the Cambrian explosion.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. KEANUMYCINS

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT:Recently, researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology (Leibniz-HKI) have discovered a new antimicrobial agent.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Keanumycins :

• A group of molecules developed by bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas has proven to have such a strong antimicrobial effect that researchers have named them keanumycins.
• The researchers proved that the substance is effective against both plant fungal diseases and human-pathogenic fungi.
• The group of molecules works effectively against the planet pest Botrytis cinerea, which triggers grey mould rot in crops, causing massive harvest losses every year.
• It also affects fungi that are dangerous to humans, like Candida albicans and has been proven to be harmless to plant and human cells.
• Keanumycins can be an environment-friendly alternative to chemical pesticides.

What is Pseudomonas?

Pseudomonas is a type of bacteria (germ) that is found commonly in the environment, like in soil and water.

POLITY AND CONSTITUTION

1. WHO IS A ‘PUISNE’ JUDGE, AND WHAT DOES THE TERM MEAN?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-II- POLITY

THE CONTEXT: While recommending two names for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court, the Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said in a statement that the collegium had taken into “consideration the seniority of Chief Justices and senior puisne Judges.

THE EXPLANATION:

What does puisne mean, and who are puisne judges?

• According to the dictionary, the word puisne has French origins, which means “later born” or younger.
• Puisne is almost always used in the context of judges, and essentially denotes seniority of rank. The term puisne judge is used in common law countries to refer to judges who are ranked lower in seniority, i.e., any judge other than the Chief Justice of that court.

Common law is the body of law that is created by judges through their written opinions, rather than through statutes or constitutions (statutory law). Common law, which is used interchangeably with ‘case law’, is based on judicial precedent. The United Kingdom (UK) and the Commonwealth countries, including India, are common law countries.

Is a “puisne judge” in India the same as in the UK?

• In the UK, puisne judges are judges other than those holding distinct titles. The Supreme Court of Judicature Act, 1877 defined a “puisne judge” as any judge of the High Court besides the Lord Chancellor, the Lord Chief Justice of England, and the Master of the Rolls.
• In India, all judges have the same judicial powers. As the senior most judge of a court, the Chief Justice has an additional administrative role. In India, there is a reference to a puisne judge only while considering the order of seniority for appointments, elevations to High Courts, etc., but it does not have a bearing on the exercise of a judge’s judicial power.

What did the collegium say about puisne judges?

• The Supreme Court collegium recommended Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Aravind Kumar, the current Chief Justices of the Allahabad and Gujarat High Courts respectively, for appointment as judges of the Supreme Court.
• While giving reasons for its recommendation, the collegium said that the decision was made taking “into consideration the seniority of Chief Justices and senior puisne Judges in their respective parent High Courts as well as the overall seniority of the High Court Judges”.
• This was done because seniority is one of the several criteria that are considered while making appointments to the higher judiciary.
• In the Third Judges Case ruling in 1998, one of the two cases that led to the evolution of the collegium system, the Supreme Court clarified that “The Chief Justice of India must make a recommendation to appoint a Judge of the Supreme Court and to transfer a Chief Justice or puisne Judge of a High Court in consultation with the four senior most puisne Judges of the Supreme Court.”

HEALTH ISSUES

2. DEER COULD BE RESERVOIR OF OLD CORONAVIRUS VARIANTS: WHAT A NEW STUDY SAYS

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-II- HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: According to a virus expert at Cornell University and an author of the study, which was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,The alpha and gamma variants of the coronavirus continued to circulate and evolve in white-tailed deer, even after they stopped spreading widely among people.

THE EXPLANATION:

• But the findings, which are based on samples collected through December 2021, provide more evidence that deer could be a reservoir of the virus and a potential source of future variants, which could spill back into human populations.

What’s the link between deer and coronavirus?

• Previous studies of deer have suggested humans have repeatedly introduced the coronavirus into white-tailed deer populations in the United States and Canada and that deer can spread the virus to one another.
• Scientists are not sure how people are passing the virus to deer, but they have speculated that it might happen when people feed deer or deer encounter human trash or waste.
• The scale of the risk that infected deer pose to humans remains unclear. Scientists have documented one case that most likely resulted from deer-to-human transmission in Ontario, and they note that hunters and others who have regular contact with the animals could potentially catch the virus from them.

How was the study conducted?

• For the new study, Diel and his colleagues analysed about 5,500 tissue samples collected from deer killed by hunters in New York state from September through December in 2020 and 2021.
• During the 2020 season, just 0.6% of the samples tested positive for the virus, a figure that rose to 21% during the 2021 season. Genetic sequencing revealed that three variants of concern — alpha, gamma and delta — were all present in deer during the 2021 season.
• At the time, delta was still prevalent among New York’s human residents. But alpha and gamma had practically vanished, especially in the rural parts of the state where the infected deer were found.
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that deer hunters take a variety of basic precautions to reduce the risk of infection, including wearing masks while handling game and washing hands thoroughly afterward.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

3. WHAT IS ANGEL TAX?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III- ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT: A recently proposed detail has Indian start-ups worried. These new age firms, that offer their shares to foreign investors, may have to pay ‘angel tax’, which was earlier only supposed to be paid for investments raised by resident Indian investors, as per a motion made in the Finance Bill, 2023.

THE EXPLANATION:

The move could adversely impact financing available to the start-ups, which have already been reeling under a funding winter since 2022, industry insiders are speculating.

What exactly is the proposed change?

• The Finance Bill, 2023, unveiled by Finance Minister has proposed to amend Section 56(2) VII B of the Income Tax Act.
• The provision states that when an unlisted company, such as a start-up, receives equity investment from a resident for issue of shares that exceeds the face value of such shares, it will be counted as income for the start-up and be subject to income tax under the head ‘Income from other Sources’ for the relevant financial year.
• However, with the latest amendment, the government has proposed to also include foreign investors in the ambit, meaning that when a start-up raises funding from a foreign investor, that too will now be counted as income and be taxable.

What is Angel Tax? 

• Angel tax is levied on start-ups when they receive investments in excess of their ‘fair market value’. The perceived profit is considered as income from other sources—it’s taxed at 30% and termed as angel tax.
• Note that angel tax (as of now) is not applicable in the case of investments made by venture capital firms or foreign investors. It’s limited to investments made only by Indian investors.

Description

• Referred to colloquially as Angel Tax, this rule is described in Section 56(2)(viib) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
• This clause was inserted into the act in 2012 to prevent-laundering of black money, and roundtripping via investments with a large premium into unlisted companies. Essentially it’s a tax on capital receipts, unique to India in the global context.
• The tax covers investment in any private business entity, but only in 2016 was it applied to startups.

A step to prevent Money Laundering

In India, unlike in the US, the angel investor does not get any tax rebate for investment in small businesses. So, people can invest their black money in start-ups and make it legal. Angel tax was introduced to prevent money laundering that might happen in the name of investment.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. WHAT ARE LAB-GROWN DIAMONDS?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III- ECONOMY AND SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: During the Budget speech, Finance Minister announced the government’s move to focus on lab-grown diamonds.

THE EXPLANATION:

What are lab-grown diamonds?

• Lab-grown diamonds are diamonds that are produced using specific technology which mimics the geological processes that grow natural diamonds. They are not the same as “diamond simulants” – LGDs are chemically, physically and optically diamond and thus are difficult to identify as “lab-grown.”
• While materials such as Moissanite, Cubic Zirconia (CZ), White Sapphire, YAG, etc. are “diamond simulants” that simply attempt to “look” like a diamond, they lack the sparkle and durability of a diamond and are thus easily identifiable. However, differentiating between an LGD and an Earth Mined Diamond is hard, with advanced equipment required for the purpose.

How are LGDs produced?

• There are multiple ways in which LGDs can be produced. The most common (and cheapest) is the “High pressure, high temperature” (HPHT) method. As the name suggests, this method requires extremely heavy presses that can produce up to 730,000 psi of pressure under extremely high temperatures (at least 1500 celsius). Usually graphite is used as the “diamond seed” and when subjected to these extreme conditions, the relatively inexpensive form of carbon turns into one of the most expensive carbon forms.
• Other processes include “Chemical Vapor Deposition” (CVD) and explosive formation that creates what are known as “detonation nanodiamonds”.

What are LGDs used for?

• LGDs have basic properties similar to natural diamonds, including their optical dispersion, which provide them the signature diamond sheen. However, since they are created in controlled environments, many of their properties can be enhanced for various purposes.
• For instance, LGDs are most often used for industrial purposes, in machines and tools. Their hardness and extra strength make them ideal for use as cutters. Furthermore, pure synthetic diamonds have high thermal conductivity, but negligible electrical conductivity. This combination is invaluable for electronics where such diamonds can be used as a heat spreader for high-power laser diodes, laser arrays and high-power transistors.
• Lastly, as the Earth’s reserves of natural diamonds are depleted, LGDs are slowly replacing the prized gemstone in the jewelry industry. Crucially, like natural diamonds, LGDs undergo similar processes of polishing and cutting that are required to provide diamonds their characteristic lustre.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. OPERATION SADBHAVANA

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: Under ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’, Indian Army is undertaking multiple welfare activities such as running of Army Goodwill Schools, Infrastructure Development Projects and Education Tours etc. for the children living in remote areas of Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh.

THE EXPLANATION:

Objectives:

Some of the objectives achieved through ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ are national integration tours, women empowerment, employment generation, education and development activities towards nation building. ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ projects are selected after taking local aspirations into consideration, in conjunction with local civil administration and it is ensured that there is no duplicacy with projects of civil administration.

• To improve the standard of education and to provide them with quality education, Indian Army is presently running seven (07) Army Goodwill Schools (AGS) under ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ in Ladakh Region. More than 2,200 Students are currently studying in these schools.
• In addition, a total of Rs 8.82 crore of ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ funds have been allotted for the Union Territory of Ladakh during the current financial year 2022-23. The funds are being utilised for various activities like Human Resource/Skill Development, Sports, Healthcare, National Integration, Infrastructure Development, Ecology, Environment and Education.

Following assistance has been provided in the field of Health and Sanitation, Community Development and Infrastructure development:

• As a step towards Healthy Nation for prosperous Ladakh, medical camps, veterinary camps, provision of medical equipment, upgradation of medical infrastructure and staffing of Medical Aid Centres have been provided at various remote locations in Ladakh. A total number of 23 Projects have been allotted in the financial year 2022-23 for health and sanitation out of the ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ funds in the Ladakh Region.
• Women in remote areas of Ladakh are being empowered through various training programmes organised and funded through ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’ in Vocational Training Centres, Women Empowerment Centres and Computer Centres at various locations in Ladakh. In addition, training classes for women are also being organised for various activities i.e. Pashmina Shawl Weaving, Wool Knitting, Extraction of Apricot Oil, Yak Cheese Making, Yak Cheese Baking.
• Girl students have a fair representation in the education fund outlay of ‘Operation SADBHAVANA’. Further, ‘Kargil Ignited Minds’ an initiative exclusively for girl students of Kargil is launched for preparation for various competitive examinations for admissions into various professional colleges and institutions in India.

INDIAN POLITY

1. 16TH FINANCE COMMISSION

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS-II POLITY

THE CONTEXT: The Union government will soon kick off the process to set up the 16th Finance Commission, with the Finance Ministry likely to notify the terms of references for the constitutional body, tasked with recommending the revenue sharing formula between the Centre and the States and their distribution among the States, towards the latter half of this year.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The 15th Finance Commission was set up in November 2017 with a mandate to make recommendations for the five-year period from 2020-21. While the Constitution requires a Finance Commission (FC) to be set up every five years, the 15th FC’s mandate was extended by a year till 2025-26, breaking the cycle.
• “In the normal course of things, the next Finance Commission should have been appointed by now, but since our report covered six years instead of five, it must be appointed this year,” the 15th FC’s chairperson N.K. Singh told The Hindu. In late 2019, the commission was asked to give a standalone report for 2020-21 and another report for an extended five-year period till 2025-26.
• The last time an FC was granted a six-year time frame was for the 9th Finance Commission, formed in June 1987. It was asked to submit a single year report for 1989-90 and a five-year report for the five years till 1994-95. These reports were submitted in 1988 and 1990, when the country’s Finance Ministers were S.B. Chavan and Madhu Dandavate, respectively. The 10th Finance Commission was still constituted in June 1992 within the five-year deadline specified by Article 280 of the Constitution, which has not been the case this time.
• “The commission is usually granted about two years to deliberate on its terms of reference, consult States and frame its recommendations, and the government should ideally have its report by October 2025 to consider it in time for Budget 2026-27 — where it will have to place its action taken report on the Commission’s report”.

VALUE ADDITION:

FINANCE COMMISSION

• Article 280 provides for this quasi-judicial body.
• It is constituted by the President every five years or even earlier.
• It is required to make recommendations to the President on the following matters:
  o Distribution of net proceeds of taxes shared between the centre and the states, and the allocation between the states, the respective shares of such proceeds
  o Principles which should decide the grants-in-aid as per article 275
  o Measures needed to augment the Consolidated Fund of the state to supplement the resources of panchayats and municipalities in the state based on the recommendation of the state finance commission
  o Any other matter referred to it by the President
  Some bills can be introduced in the Parliament only on the recommendation of the President so as to protect the financial interests of the states:
• A bill which imposes or varies any tax or duty in which states are interested
• A bill which varies the meaning of the term ‘agricultural income’ as defined for the purposes of the enactments relating to the income tax
• A bill which affects the principles on which moneys are or may be distributable to states; and
• A which imposes any surcharge on any specified tax or duty for the purpose of the centre.

HEALTH ISSUES

2. NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS-II-HEALTH ISSUES

THE CONTEXT: The recent World Health Organization (WHO) report said that Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) continue to disproportionately impact the most impoverished members of the international community.

THE EXPLANATION:

About Neglected Tropical Diseases

• Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a diverse group of tropical infections which are common in low-income populations in developing regions of Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
• They are caused by a variety of pathogens such as viruses, bacteria, protozoa and parasitic worms (helminths).
• There are a diverse group of 20 diseases that are affecting more than 1 billion people who live in impoverished communities.
• They include Buruli ulcer, Chagas Dengue, Chikungunya, Echinococcosis; foodborne trematodes; human African trypanosomiasis; leishmaniasis; leprosy; Lymphatic filariasis, mycetoma, etc

Global Initiative to end NTDs
The WHO’s new road map for 2021–2030 calls for three strategic shifts to end NTDs:

• From measuring process to measuring impact.
• From disease-specific planning and programming to collaborative work across sectors.
• From externally driven agendas reliant on programmes that are country-owned and country-financed.

ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY & CLIMATE CHANGE

3. WHAT ARE INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS-III-ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: The Nodal Centre for Biological Invasions (NCBI) at the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) has come out with a management plan to eradicate Senna spectabilis, the exotic invasive plant that is posing a severe threat to the State’s wildlife habitat.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Based on the results of the experimental study done at the Periyar Tiger Reserve, the plan envisages landscape-level management of the tree. The two key factors considered in developing the management protocol were the fast nature of the spread of the tree in natural forests, and restoration of natural forests based on landscape.

What are invasive species?

• Invasive alien species are plants, animals, pathogens and other organisms that are non-native to an ecosystem, and which may cause economic or environmental harm or adversely affect human health.
• In particular, they impact adversely upon biodiversity, including decline or elimination of native species – through competition, predation, or transmission of pathogens – and the disruption of local ecosystems and ecosystem functions.

The impacts of invasive species include:

• Reduced biodiversity.
• Decreased availability and quality of key natural resources.
• Water shortages.
• Increased frequency of wildfires and flooding.
• Pollution caused by overuse of chemicals to control infestations.

VALUE ADDITION:

Senna spectabilis

• It is an invasive species.
• It is introduced as an ornamental species and for use as firewood from South and Central America.
• The species has become highly invasive in the Sigur plateau in both the core and buffer zones of the MTR.
• Senna spectabilis, along with Lantana camara, is among five major invasive weeds that had taken over vast swathes of the Nilgiris.
• Eucalyptus and pine, though exotic, do not spread as quickly as the other species and are considered easier to manage.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. CHINA’S BAIDU MAY LAUNCH CHATGPT

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS-III-SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: The BAIDU is a Chinese-based technology company. It offers a popular search engine in China called BAIDU. (Major search engines like Google are banned in China).

THE EXPLANATION:

• The company works on artificial intelligence and internet-related products. The headquarters of the company is in Beijing. The company is one of the largest AI companies in the world. The TECH giant is now planning to develop a chatbot similar to that of ChatGPT.

What is Baidu’s plan?

• The Beln Crypto report recently said that BAIDU is to launch a ChatGPT-like chatbot. Beln Crypto is one of the most popular and largest cryptocurrency news platforms in the world. BAIDU’s chat platform will have conversation-style interfaces just like ChatGPT.

Background

• BAIDU has been investing millions and millions of dollars in this AI platform. With this, the company is planning on shifting into a complete technology company and stopping all its online marketing services.

Features

• BAIDU’s chatbot is to be built on the Ernie system. ERNIE stands for Electronic Random Number Indicator Equipment. It is a hardware random number generator. It was invented to be used in lotteries and casinos.

ChatGPT

• It is a Microsoft product. Today it is at the peak of its success. Apart from BAIDU, other Chinese investors are also looking for ways to develop an AI chatbot just like ChatGPT.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS

5. ECONOMIC SURVEY: WHAT IS IT AND WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2023

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS-III-ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT: The Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) will release the Economic Survey for the current financial year (2022-23). The survey is always presented a day before – typically January 31 since Union Budgets are scheduled for February 1 – the Finance Minister unveils the Union Budget for the next financial year (2023-24 in the present case).

THE EXPLANATION:

What is the Economic Survey?

• As the name suggests, the Economic Survey is a detailed report of the state of the national economy in the financial year that is coming to a close.
• It is prepared by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the guidance of the CEA. Once prepared, the Survey is approved by the Finance Minister.
• The first Economic Survey was presented for 1950-51 and until 1964, it was presented along with the Budget.
• Similarly, for the longest time, the survey was presented in just one volume, with specific chapters dedicated to different key sectors of the economy – such as services, agriculture, and manufacturing – as well as key policy areas – such as fiscal developments, state of employment and inflation etc. This volume carries a detailed statistical abstract as well.
• However, between 2010-11 and 2020-21, the survey was presented in two volumes. The additional volume carried the intellectual imprint of the CEA and often dealt with some of the major issues and debates facing the economy.
• Last year’s (2022) survey reverted back to a single volume format, possibly because it was prepared and presented while there was a change in guard in the CEA’s office and the current CEA – V Anantha Nageswaran – took charge when the survey was released.

What is the Economic Survey’s significance?

• Even though it comes just a day before the Budget, the assessment and recommendations carried in the survey are not binding on the Budget.
• Still, the survey remains the most authoritative and comprehensive analysis of the economy that is conducted from within the Union government.
• As such, its observations and details provide an official framework for analysing the Indian economy.

What should one look for in this year’s survey?

• The Indian economy has been struggling to grow at a fast pace since the start of 2017-18. The years immediately after Covid may have registered fast growth rates but that was just a statistical illusion. Many outside economists have argued that India’s potential growth itself has fallen from 8% to 6%.
• Along with a deceleration in growth, the economy has also witnessed historically high unemployment and a sharp rise in poverty and inequality during the Covid pandemic.
• The survey is expected to diagnose the true extent of economic recovery in the Indian economy and whether India’s growth potential has lost a step or not.
• The survey can be expected to paint future scenarios and also suggest policy solutions. For instance, what can be done to boost manufacturing growth in the country? How can India continue to grow fast at a time when both global growth and world trade is likely to remain muted.

THE CONTEXT: In August 2022, the International Federation of Association Football(FIFA) has suspended the All India Football Federation (AIFF) with immediate effect due to undue influence from third parties, which constitutes a serious violation of the FIFA Statutes. This incident is only a symptom of the larger issues of mis-governance, mal-administration and an all-pervading malaise of corruption that have plagued sports bodies in India. Against this backdrop this article analyses the problems of sports bodies and also suggest reforms so that India can emerge as champion among the sporting nations.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS RELATED TO SPORTS GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

1. BCCI ISSUE: In January 2015, the SC appointed a committee headed by Justice (Retd) RM Lodha to determine punishments for those named in the Mudgal Committee (2014) report and to recommend reforms for cricket in India particularly suggesting amendments to the processes followed by BCCI.R M Lodha panel recommendations (2016) to restructure the BCCI and disclosure of the assets by the members of the governing body of the BCCI. But, the problems with BCCI seem to continue despite changes in its working.
2. AIFF ISSUE: Recently in August 2022, FIFA, suspended the country’s top administrative organization, the All-India Football Federation (AIFF), for undue influence from third parties.

• AIFF’S President’s Unwillingness to Vacate His Post: President Praful Patel, also a FIFA council member, refused to relinquish his post as the head of football in the country.
• Third-Party Intervention: Despite the growing concerns about the working of AIFF, the Supreme Court of India intervened and removed Patel from his post.Further, The SC also appointed a Committee of Administrators (COA) to run the AIFF.
  o As per FIFA Statutes, member federations should not be subject to legal and political interference in their respective countries. [Third Party Intervention refers to a situation in which a member association of FIFA fails to remain independent, is co-opted, and no longer has control over its organization.]

SPORTS GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

• A federated model is the cornerstone of the Indian sporting infrastructure. The sport regulating organizations for each geographic location are distinct and unique for each sport.
• Numerous important organizations exist independently of the federated framework as well. Governments (both national and state), government organizations (such as the Sports Authority of India), and the Indian Olympic Association are among them (IOA).
• In India, private and non-profit organizations extensively and innovatively contribute to the sports industry in a manner that is unprecedented in other nations, be it in Kabaddi or in Football.
• Non-profit organizations such as GoSports Foundation and Olympic Gold Quest, rely on sponsorship through the enormous efforts of corporate social responsibility and offer athletes exceptional support and services that could not be accessed through the more formalized sports system.

CURRENT STRUCTURE OF SPORTS GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

The model in India has multiple stakeholders such as the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS), Sports Authority of India (SAI), National Sports Federation (NSF), Indian Olympic Association (IOA), State Olympic Association (SOA), etc. The present scheme of arrangements of sports governance in India can better be understood by the pictorial representation given below:

In accordance with the Olympic Charter that restricts government influence of sports federations, the sports bodies in India are autonomous entities. While the IOA is the umbrella body under which all the NSFs and SOAs conduct various sporting events in the country, government bodies operate under MYAS, playing a support role such as training and infrastructure management.
In addition, there are federations for non-Olympic sports such as Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for cricket. These federations are directly affiliated to their respective international federations. Similar to the IOA and NSFs, government intervention is restricted by the charter of their respective international federations.

ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH SPORTS GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

UNCLEAR DEMARCATION OF RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITY

• Currently, there is very little distinction between management and governance within Indian sport.
• In many Indian sporting organizations, the executive committee, the body ostensibly responsible for governance, usually finds itself doing the management work.

LACK OF CHECKS AND BALANCES

• In the pretext of autonomy, sporting organizations have been allowed to function in any manner without checks and balances.

LACK OF TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY

• The current sports model faces accountability issues such as that of having unlimited discretionary powers and also there is no transparency in the decision-making with irregularity in revenue management. For instance:
• In July 2010, the Central Vigilance Commission released a report about irregularities in 14 projects of Commonwealth Games held in India.
• The 2013 Indian Premier League spot-fixing and betting case.

LACK OF SUFFICIENT INFRASTRUCTURE

• Status of sports infrastructure in India is yet to reach the desired level. This creates an obstacle in developing a culture of sports in the country.

PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUGS

• Use of performance enhancing drugs is still a major problem in the sports sector.
• This problem still needs to be addressed effectively, despite the creation of the National Anti Doping Agency in the country.

IMPLICATIONS OF POOR SPORTS GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

1. Developing a strategic plan takes time and effort from a wide variety of stakeholders. Good governance provides the structures, tools and formal mechanisms to ensure the plan is implemented consistently and in line with the current and future aspirations. Poor sports governance leads to poor performance in sports and moral loss of the sportspersons as well as admirers of the sports.
2. Poor governance means a lack of transparent decision making processes, and can open the way for financial irregularities and/or corruption on and off the field – in part due to a lack of rules, regulations, formal guidance and/or unethical culture. Poor governance shows poor social responsibility.
3. Aside from the effect which poor governance can have on an organisation, the strongest consideration must also be given to the impact on the most important constituent of any sport: its people. Any negative impact on an organisation detracts from its ability to provide for its members, participants, staff, volunteers and fans. The most serious governance failings will lead to very real and grave implications on a human level.
4. The poor sports governance also have economic implications on the related industries manufacturing sport equipments, the livelihood of locals near and around the sport facilities, international tourism etc are all staring at a loss in view of poor sports governance.

WHETHER THE SPORTS BODIES SHOULD BE BROUGHT UNDER THE DEFINITION OF “STATE” FOR BETTER GOVERNANCE?

Over the years there have been many debates as to whether sports bodies like BCCI should be classified as a ‘State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution of India and to bring the sport bodies/federations under the realm of the Right to Information Act.
In case of Cricket the Court took into account the principles of absence of “deep and pervasive control and lack of substantial government funding” to rule out BCCI as ‘State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution of India. The Court ruled out BCCI from the purview of it being an ‘Instrumentality of the State’ but stated that these tests are not definitive as has been time and again specified by the Court.
The current status is that the Supreme Court has declared BCCI a public authority under the RTI Act. But the BCCI is yet to declare this by themselves.
The Olympic Charter also restricts government influence of sports federations and the sports bodies in India are autonomous entities. While the IOA is the umbrella body under which all the NSFs and SOAs conduct various sporting events in the country, government bodies operate under MYAS, playing a support role such as training and infrastructure management.
Against this backdrop it is imperative to maintain the balance between the autonomy of the sport federations and the overall governance mechanism by the state. However, areas where much of the public fund is utilised there shall be transparency and accountability on the part of the organisations.

NATIONAL SPORTS DEVELOPMENT CODE AND SPORTS GOVERNANCE

• National Sports Development Code of India (SPORTS CODE) was introduced in 2011 by the Central government to bring good governance practices in the management of sports at the national level without interfering with the autonomy of the national sports bodies.It enunciates the basic universal principles of good governance, ethics and fair play in the sports.The code prescribes restrictions on the age and tenure of the office-bearers of federations and also envisages transparent functioning along with free and fair elections.
• The Delhi High Court in 2014 held that the government can ‘insist upon adherence to these provisions (sports code), without the aid of legislation’ and added that the sports code provisions were ‘neither arbitrary’ nor did they ‘violate any freedom under the Constitution.’The court is also of the opinion that a federation which does not follow the guidelines should be suspended and it is indeed imperative that no further exemptions be granted to or lenience be shown to noncompliant NSFs.
• In 2021 the court had asked the sports ministry for the status of compliance with the Sports Code by 41 national federations. As of October 2022 the report has not yet been submitted.
• When a sports body is found in violation of the sports code the respective federations can be put under a Committee of Administrators (CoA). However even the CoA was accused by many of failing to implement the reforms proposed by Justice RM Lodha in BCCI case.
• Sports code was envisaged as a one stop solution to the malaises in the sports governance in India but it is hard to say that it had been efficient.
• Global professional sports clubs have contributed significantly to raise the standard of some sports. Football, tennis, cricket, basketball, baseball, track and field events in athletics and boxing, to name a few and currently more than 100 professional leagues in various sports exist across the world. (NFL, MLB and NBA are the top three, profitability wise.) India has an immense coaching talent with vast experience in different sports that can act as a catalyst for the development of India as a training hub for sports like Kabaddi and Cricket at an international sphere. For instance, a small town Iten in Kenya has produced more than 10 world champions in athletics in the last couple of decades. Such grassroot level interventions shall be made and sports be included in the school curriculum to attract the talented individuals early and train them for world platform.

THE WAY FORWARD:

1. Restructuring Governance and Management: There should be a proper demarcating of roles and responsibilities among different bodies involved in the Indian sport sector to maximize the use of resources and ensure there are no gaps in meeting the needs of sport. This will also bring transparency and accountability in the functioning of the respective sports federations.
2. Effective Legislative Backing: In the absence of strong legislation, there will be no efficacy in the functions of the sports authorities. Also, the political intervention can be easily checked with a well-drafted legislation reducing anomalies.
3. Sports Awareness: By incorporating sports into children’s daily lives, it will not only boost their confidence, self-image and personality, but also open the gateway to a possible career in sports. The quality of infrastructure can be scaled up to the village level and regional centres should be made available for those who are serious at taking their sport professionally.
4. Sports are governed by the International Sports Federations and the peculiar regional demands shall be incorporated so as not to encroach the sovereignty of the country in any way.

THE CONCLUSION: Needless to say, the current model of governance of Indian sports lacks accountability and transparency, which creates an environment that is conducive to wide-scale corruption, threatening a sports overall credibility. Unless mechanisms are brought in place to govern the huge sums of money and the interests of various stakeholders, sports will always run the risk of losing credibility, negatively impacting the future of its players and stakeholders.

Mains Practice Questions:

1) India cannot evolve into a sporting nation through watching television alone. Comment.
2) National Sports Development Code of India (2011) has failed to achieve its objective and a new model of Sports Governance is long overdue. Critically examine.
3) “The sports governance ecosystem in India requires immediate reforms”. Argue

THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Ministry of Communication published  the draft of  the Indian Telecommunication Bill, 2022 to replace the current legislation governing the telecommunication regime in India, including the Indian Telegraph Act, of 1885. Although the Bill has many laudable objectives, there are also some critical concerns raised regarding the impact of the Bill on various stakeholders. This article analyses these issues in detail from the UPSC perspective.

THE SALIENT FEATURES OF THE BILL

CLARITY ON SPECTRUM ASSIGNMENT

• The Bill reaffirms the government’s authority to assign spectrum, with or without auction, and declares common good and access to telecom services as the objective for spectrum assignment.

EASING CRIMINAL PENALTIES

• It seeks to remove several redundant penalties. Example- trespass in telegraph office under Section 23, The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885.
• Further, introduces the settlement of offenses by payment of fines, and voluntary undertaking.
• This would augment the ease of doing business and considerably reduce the threat of criminal prosecution for operational issues faced by telecom operators.

LICENSING INTERNET-BASED APPS

• The Bill requires OTT communication services, which are essentially Internet-based apps/software, to obtain telecom licenses and thereby bring them under the telecom framework.

EXPANSION OF SHUTDOWN AND SURVEILLANCE POWERS

• The Bill allows the government to direct suspension of transmission of messages or provision of telecom networks or services.

COORDINATION

• It is based on Wireless Planning Coordination (WPC) reforms which are aimed at making the process more efficient and without physical interference for companies applying for permits. WPC is responsible for issuing amateur radio licenses, allotting the frequency spectrum, and monitoring the frequency spectrum.
• It is expected that time for licensing would reduce to 28 days ushering reforms in licensing through an online process.

REFUND/DEFAULT IN PAYMENT BY LICENSEES

• It has proposed a provision for refund of fees in case a telecom or internet provider surrenders his license.
• Further, it has provided a framework for governing payment defaults by licensees, registered entities, or assignees, and allows the government to write off such amounts or part thereof.

TELECOMMUNICATION DEVELOPMENT FUND (TDF)

• It proposes to replace the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) with the TDF.
• USOF is the pool of funds generated by the 5% Universal Service Levy that is charged to all telecom fund operators on their Adjusted Gross Revenue.

RIGHT OF WAY (ROW)

• RoW is a pre-requisite for establishing telecommunication networks and improvement of telecommunication services.
• The Bill seeks to reduce approval permission for RoW down to 6-7 days promoting uniformity in telecommunication infrastructure.

TELECOM REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA (TRAI)

• TRAI’s position has been reduced in a number of ways:

Ø  Reducing it to a recommendatory body from a regulatory body.

Ø  Department of Telecommunications will no longer be required to refer back to TRAI the recommendations for reconsideration.

• The removal of such powers is not in line with an international practice where telecom regulators are endowed with a greater degree of independence to ensure that investor confidence and consumer protection are maintained in the market.

THE RATIONALE FOR THE DRAFT INDIAN TELECOMMUNICATION BILL, 2022

India’s Telecom sector stands second in the world in terms of market share. On the contrary, it is coupled with a number of challenges, of which Policy overlapping is a major one. The Telecom sector in India has become a victim of an Institutional Jungle. The duality of control by various machineries of the government has created unresolved dilemmas for the Telecom Sector in India. This led to the drafting of the Telecom Bill 2022, so as to replace the obsolete colonial laws and to bring coordination in the sector.

Regulatory Framework of Telecom Sector in India

Ministry of Communication

Department of Telecommunication

Wireless Planning Commission (WPC)

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal

Laws and Regulations

The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885

The Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997

The Information Technology Act, 2000

The Broadband Policy 2004

National Digital Communications Policy, 2018

PROBLEMS IN THE TELECOM SECTOR IN INDIA

SUPPLY-SIDE ISSUES

• The telecom market is fragmented as it is divided into many players. According to TRAI, the market share of various Telecom companies as of June 2022 is- 36% of Jio whereas Airtel’s market share improved slightly to reach 31.63%.
• The telecom sector is accumulated in huge debt as it is likely to escalate to as much as Rs 6 lakh crore by this fiscal end following the spectrum purchase outgo, and network upgradation.

DEMAND SIDE ISSUES

• As per the white paper on broadband at the last International Telecommunication Union (ITU), states that broadband penetration in India is only 7% which is a matter of concern.
• The inadequate availability of spectrum is a major concern for India. Further, the situation is worsened as ISRO and India’s defense forces are demanding a major reservation in Spectrum allocation.

REGULATORY ISSUES-

• Since 2005, the DoT and telecom companies have had a dispute over the definition of AGR.
• The telecom companies argued that the AGR should include only the income from the telecom operations which was supported by TDSAT whereas, in 2019, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the DoT by accepting its definition so as to include non-telecom incomes like the asset sales, interests on deposits, rents, etc. in AGR.
• Thereby, ordering them to pay Rs.92,000 crores to the government within three months.

AVERAGE REVENUE PER USER (ARPU)

• The decline in ARPU is sharp and steady, which, combined with falling profits and in some cases, serious losses, is prompting the Indian telecom industry to look at consolidation as the only way to boost revenues.

LACK OF TELECOM INFRASTRUCTURE IN SEMI-RURAL AND RURAL AREAS

• Service providers have to incur huge initial fixed costs to enter semi-rural and rural areas. Key reasons behind these costs are the lack of basic infrastructures like power and roads, resulting in delays in rolling out the infrastructure.

CURRENT DEVELOPMENT- 5G SPECTRUM ALLOCATION A SETBACK FOR TELCOS

Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has made its position clear by allowing independent entities to set up private captive networks with direct 5G spectrum allotment would ‘severely’ impact revenues and degrade 5G’s business case for telecom operators.

REVOLUTIONARY PROVISIONS OF THE DRAFT INDIAN TELECOMMUNICATION BILL, 2022

• Consumer Protection Measures: The identity of the person communicating using any form of telecommunication services shall be available to the user receiving such communication, thereby curtailing spam calls and frauds.

This would mean that unlike now where only the phone number of the person making the communication is displayed, going forward the name of the person would also be displayed. This facility will be available for voice calls but also for users of OTT communication services.

• Commercial communications which are advertising and promotional in nature should be made only with the prior consent of a subscriber.
• Covering OTT services: One of the key changes is the inclusion of new-age over-the-top communication services like WhatsApp, Signal, and Telegram in the definition of telecommunication services, which has been a long-standing demand of the Telecom Companies.

 CONCERNS OVER THE DRAFT INDIAN TELECOMMUNICATION BILL, 2022

It is argued that, if the bill is passed in its current state, it would not only fail to achieve its objectives but also prove an impediment to human liberties and the goal of digitization claimed by the world’s largest democracy.

1. INTERNET SHUTDOWNS

• The bill empowers the Union and state government under Clause 24(2), to suspend internet services in cases of “occurrence of any public emergency or in the interest of the public safety or in cases of national security”.
• This has raised concerns that the proposed provision gives the government power to order internet shutdowns explicitly.
• Currently, internet shutdowns are done under the Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017.

Statistics-Studies-Judgment on Internet Shutdown:

➢  The Software Freedom Law Centre (SFLC), a legal services organization that tracks global internet shutdowns, has found that there have been 683 internet shutdowns in India since 2012, 66 of which were in 2022.

➢  The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology, in its 26th report, titled ‘Suspension of Telecom Services/Internet and its Impact’, noted the human rights impact of the misuse of internet shutdowns in India, and how the grounds of “public emergency” and “public safety” are used as a tool of policing and for administrative purposes.

➢  In Anuradha Bhasin versus Union of India (2020), the Supreme Court also expressed displeasure regarding the frequent shutdowns of the internet, and opined that they should only be enacted if absolutely necessary and only after carrying out certain balancing tests as a restrictive step.

     2. SURVEILLANCE

• The bill not only mirrors but also expands the scope of Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act by expanding the scope to “telecommunication services or telecommunication network” to take OTT under its ambit.

Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, of 1885 states that the Union or state government or any officer authorized on their behalf to intercept messages through telegraph as a part of the surveillance framework of the country.

• It may cause OTT platforms practicing end-to-end encryption to disclose information to surveillance officers authorized by the government.
• The Justice B.N. Srikrishna-led Committee of Experts on a Data Protection Framework for India also noted the plague of surveillance without any protections from legislation and judiciary, which needed to be addressed.

    3. IMPACT ON TRAI(TELECOM REGULATORY AUTHORITY OF INDIA)

The Bill considerably dilutes TRAI’s position in a number of ways, reducing it from a regulatory to a recommendatory body.

• First, the government would no longer be required to seek recommendations from the TRAI before issuing licenses.
• Second, it also removes the power of the TRAI to requisition from the government information or documents that are necessary to make such recommendations.
• Moreover, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will no longer be required to refer back to TRAI the recommendations for reconsideration, those recommendations that it does not agree with, as it was required to do previously.

     4. INFORMATION SHARING- CONCERN OVER PRIVACY

• It obligates license holders to identify the users of its service through a verifiable mode of identification. To ensure that a user provides correct details, the draft Bill penalizes providing wrong identification details.
• The users of the internet have a certain expectation of privacy which would be ultimately taken from them. Experts have called this an attack on people’s fundamental rights and freedoms, including that privacy and free expression.
• It has also been called an attempt to reinforce the colonial Indian Telegraph Act and an undoing of the progress made after the Supreme Court’s landmark Puttaswamy judgement.

     5. OTT COMMUNICATION SERVICES AS TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES

• The Bill expands the definition of “telecommunication services” to include OTT communication services as a consequence of this they may be subject to the same licensing conditions as TSPs(Telecom Service Providers).

TSPS ALLEGE OTT FOR USING THEIR RESOURCES

• Over-the-top (OTT) communication services refer to services that provide real-time person-to-person telecommunication services using the network infrastructure of telecom service providers like Airtel, Vodafone, and Jio.
• TSPs allege that these features result in a double whammy for them as OTT cuts into their sources of revenue (voice calls, SMS) while not having to deal with infrastructure and licensing costs that they have to undertake. Therefore, TSPs have been demanding a level playing field with OTT services.

THE WAY FORWARD:

1. The Government must address the concerns related to the privacy of the users.

• According to the Supreme Court in the Puttaswamy judgment (2017), the right to privacy is a fundamental right and it is necessary to protect personal data as an essential facet of informational privacy. Thus, Draft Telecom Bill coupled with Personal Data Protection Bill 2019 should be revised, strengthened, and come into force to avoid concerns over Privacy.

2. The role of the independent sector regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), and the Telecom Dispute Settlement and Dispute Tribunal (TDSAT) should be strengthened.
3. The Bill places emphasis on the development of telecom infrastructure while covering new-age services to keep up with the times. The proposed legal framework seeks to be future-ready, provides certainty regarding spectrum management, and reserves the penalty of imprisonment or heavy fines only for a small set of critical offenses.

THE CONCLUSION: The Indian Telecommunication Bill, 2022 is a much-awaited move as India’s Digital space is expanding at a very rapid pace with new technologies and new players. It will not only address the present issues but will also provide a future-ready law.

Mains Practice Questions.

Q.1 What are the challenges and opportunities of the draft Telecom bill, 2022? How does it aims to bring uniformity in the Spectrum allocation process?

Q.2 What are the main constraints in the current regulatory framework in the Telecom Sector in India? Do you think that the Draft Telcom Bill, 2022 can address these constraints?

Q.3 “The Draft Telecom Bill, 2022  suffers from constitutional, administrative and regulatory challenges ”  Comment.

The Context- As the political parties are the most significant part of the democratic system in India, it is expected that they themselves function on a democratic basis. Hence, internal elections in parties are emphasized.  However, the appointment of a “Permanent President” by a political party in Andhra Pradesh recently, has reignited  the debate on the need for mandatory internal elections in the Indian political parties. This article examines this issue in detail.

LEGAL PROVISION FOR INTERNAL PARTY ELECTION IN INDIA

Presently, there is no statutory backing for internal democratic regulation of political parties in India, and the only governing provision is under Section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples’ Act, 1951. All rules and regulations apply more to candidates than to political parties in India.

However, Political parties in their constitution have elaborate provisions on Internal Party elections of which some can be cited as:

Ø  Indian National Congress- Its constitution says that each state has a Pradesh Congress Committee. No office bearer at the block or district level can hold the position for more than two consecutive terms, but this structure does not apply to the state or national level.

Ø  Bahujan Samaj Party- Its constitution says that the national president is elected by vote or by consensus among delegates. The national president then nominates other office bearers of the Central Executive Committee, which leads the party. The president’s power is absolute.

Ø  Communist Party of India- Its constitution says that members of the central committee, the highest authority of the party, elect delegates to the Polit bureau. The general secretary is part of the Polit bureau. The party has a system of checks and balances through which the general secretary is not given unmitigated power. There are elections for all posts every three years.

NECESSITY TO PROMOTE INTERNAL PARTY DEMOCRACY

On a pragmatic level, the parties using internally democratic procedures are likely to select more capable and appealing leaders, have more responsive policies, and, as a result, enjoy greater electoral success. Moreover, the political parties “practice what they preach,” in the sense of using internally democratic procedures for their deliberation and decisions, strengthening democratic culture generally. So, there is a necessity to promote Internal Party Democracy as:

REDUCE TRUST DEFICIT AND HERO WORSHIP

Inner-party democracy enhances the ‘visibility’ of fair and transparent procedures in selecting leaders within political parties which counters a general trust deficit amongst the public. In the absence of such a provision, parties often tend to be centered around charismatic figures which can foster blind hero worship as one individual becomes central to the power, vision, and authority in the party’s agenda.

INCLUSIVE REPRESENTATION

The opaque nature of selecting party candidates also runs the risk of excluding marginalized groups. A transparent process of election will allow proper ticket distribution and candidate selection. The selection would not be based on the whims of a few powerful leaders in the party but will represent the choice of the larger party.

DECENTRALIZATION AND PARTICIPATION.

Election at each level be it at the district or local level allows the creation of power centers at different levels. Further, providing  autonomy may lead to more creative, innovative, and responsive programs by allowing local  experimentation.

DECLINE IN CRIMINALIZATION OF POLITICS

Transparency deficit in selecting candidates within political parties becomes a breeding ground for criminalization in Indian politics. According to data released by the ADR, the 17th Lok Sabha holds the infamous record of 43% of members facing criminal charges against them.

COUNTERS FACTIONALISM

Democratizing political parties can also work as a safety valve against factionalism and splits into parties. Various incidents of internal party rivalry have culminated in splits, for instance, the split in Shiv Sena owing to differences between Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde.

HOW DEMOCRATIZATION OF PARTIES ENRICH THE DEMOCRACY MATRIX?

The political parties are instrumental in carrying out free and fair elections. By virtue of their near monopoly in contesting elections, they determine the nature of (democratic) government. There are two types of democracy, procedural and substantive democracy. The first one focuses on the processes and procedures like conducting  free and fair elections, whereas the second one is more focused on bringing socio-economic change. The internal organization structure of parties would determine the way it participates in both these aspects of democracy. Activities like campaigns, canvassing, and grievance redressal mechanisms of political parties have huge implications for society at large.

A political party based on democratic lines would choose the candidate in the most transparent manner by conducting elections. It would select those candidates who are not only qualified but also those who showcase democratic ethos. It means a government that is formed on democratic credentials will act democratically. The laws and policies formulated by such a government would reflect democratic ideals of freedom, equality, and justice. In India, where the government touches every aspect of social life and follows individuals from cradle to grave, it is expected that the government will work to enhance and enrich democracy in society.

However, the  political parties structured on the basis of favoritism, caste, and communal lines, will end up polarizing society. When such political parties form the government, their actions eventually lead to a democratic deficit. Hence, political parties organized on democratic lines through internal elections can have a salutary effect on the institutions(broadest sense of the term) of the country. As politics and political institutions influence society, economy, administration, culture, and the people at large, their nature of working will ultimately decide whether democracy becomes a way of life.

PERSPECTIVE ON HOLDING INTERNAL PARTY ELECTION AS A CHALLENGE

‘One reason for the relative neglect of the internal life of political parties is that these organizations have long been commonly regarded in liberal theory as private associations, which should be entitled to compete freely in the electoral marketplace and govern their own internal structures and processes. Any legal regulation by the state, or any outside intervention by international agencies, was regarded in this view as potentially harmful by either distorting or even suppressing pluralist party competition with a country.’

WHY DO THE PARTIES RESIST INTERNAL PARTY ELECTIONS?

DYNASTY POLITICS

• The lack of intra-party democracy has contributed to the growing nepotism in political parties. With senior party leaders fielding their kin in elections, succession plans for “family” constituencies are being put in place.

CENTRALIZED STRUCTURE OF POLITICAL PARTIES

• The centralized mode of functioning of the political parties and the stringent anti-defection law of 1985 deters party legislators from voting in the national and state legislatures according to their individual preferences.

LACK OF LAW

• Currently, there is no express provision for internal democratic regulation of political parties in India and the only governing law is provided by Section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples’ Act, 1951 which provides for registration of political parties with the ECI. However, ECI does not have any statutory power to enforce internal democracy in parties or to mandate elections.

PERSONALITY CULT

• There is a tendency of hero worship in people and many times a leader takes over the party and builds his own coterie, ending all forms of intra-party democracy.

EASY TO SUBVERT INTERNAL ELECTIONS

• The ability of existing repositories of power to subvert internal institutional processes to consolidate power and maintain the status quo is unquestionable.

GLOBAL SCENARIO-BEST PRACTICES

●  Germany’s intra-party democracy regulations- They were originally enacted to respond to international political pressure to convince the world of the country’s objection to fascism and totalitarianism of all sorts. This resulted in regulations on intra-party democracy regarding party registration, candidate selection, and leadership elections which are present still today.

●  In Finland, both political elites, as well as the public, have continuously acknowledged the regulations on candidate selection, leadership elections, and democratic internal rules promoting Intra Party Democracy.

THE WAY FORWARD

• Political parties shall take appropriate steps to ensure the holding of elections at all levels. The recently concluded Presidential election in the Congress party can work as a template for other parties(See the box below)

CONGRESS PARTY PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PROCESS

The Central Election Authority (CEA) of the Congress, recruited a massive team of 943 returning officers from within the party for overseeing the process of choosing the delegate from each block unit. Any of them could choose to contest for the post of president by getting the support of 10 other delegates. Voting is through a secret paper ballot under a rank-choice voting system. This mammoth exercise is only possible due to the institutional structure of the CEA, the constitutionally prescribed election rules, and an experienced team of nearly a thousand people working on it for over a year.

• Exploring options for providing such powers to the Election Commission of India and/or carrying out amendments in the RPA to bring meaningful internal democracy in the working of the political parties.
• The Anti-Defection Act of 1985 requires the party legislators to act according to the party whip which is decided by the diktats of the highest party leadership. One way to democratize political parties is to promote intra-party dissent.

THE CONCLUSION: Those who emphasize the participatory aspects of democracy place the most value on intra-party democracy as an end in itself. They see parties not primarily as intermediaries, but rather as incubators that nurture citizens’ political competence. Be that the case may be, the idea of  mandatory internal elections in parties may require wider debate on the constitutional, legal, administrative and logistical challenges.

Mains Practice Questions:

Q.1 Discuss the desirability of giving statutory status to Internal elections in political parties for enriching democracy in India.

Q.2 ‘Intra party democracy promotes accountability, inclusivity, and counter factionalism’. Comment.

Q.3. Can the vicious cycle of gender inequality be solved by engendering Intra Party Democracy? Analyze your view.

1. WHAT IS A COLD WAVE?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-I- GEOGRAPHY

THE CONTEXT: In the month of January 2023, Delhi and other parts of northwest India have been reeling under a cold wave.

THE EXPLANATION:

• Delhi recorded cold wave conditions for five consecutive days so far this (Jan) month, making it the longest such spell in a decade. The lowest minimum temperature recorded this month was 1.9 degrees Celsius on January 8, 2023 the second-lowest minimum temperature in January in 15 years.
• While lower-than-normal temperatures were recorded over parts of Northwest India from the December 2022 , these conditions intensified in the first week of January. Fog and low cloud coverage brought severe cold day conditions to the region, when temperatures remained below normal over parts of Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

What is a cold wave?

• The IMD marks a cold wave in terms of minimum temperatures – when the minimum temperature in the plains is 4 degrees or less or when the minimum temperature is less than 10 degrees and 4.5 to 6.4 degrees below the normal.
• According to scientist, one of the major factors contributing to colder than normal temperatures over north India this month is the large-scale fog cover. “While westerly and north-westerly winds of around 5 to 10 kmph in the afternoon have also been contributing to the dip in temperature, an important factor this month is fog, which has been lasting for longer durations, preventing sunlight from reaching the surface and affecting the radiation balance.
• There is no heating in the day time, and then there is the impact of the night. Foggy or cloudy nights are usually associated with warmer nights, but if the fog remains for two or three days, cooling begins even at night”.

2. LAND SUBSIDENCE

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-I- GEOGRAPHY- GEOMORPHOLOGY

THE CONTEXT:The exact reason behind Joshimath land subsidence is still unknown but experts cite unplanned construction, over-population, obstruction of the natural flow of water, and hydel power activities as possible causes.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is Land Subsidence?

• According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA), subsidence is the sinking of the ground because of underground material movement.
• It can happen for a host of reasons, man-made or natural, such as the removal of water, oil, or natural resources, along with mining activities. Earthquakes, soil erosion, and soil compaction are also some of the well-known causes of subsidence.
• The subsidence can happen over very large areas like whole states or provinces, or very small areas like the corner of your yard.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), subsidence is the sinking of the ground because of underground material movement.

Reasons can be manmade or natural:

• removal of water, oil, or natural resources, along with mining activities
• Earthquakes
• Soil erosion and
• Soil compaction

Reasons behind Joshimath subsidence:

• unplanned construction,
• over-population,
• obstruction of the natural flow of water and hydel power activities.
• the area is a seismic zone, which makes it prone to frequent earthquakes.
• the subsidence in Joshimath might have been triggered by the reactivation of a geographic fault —
• defined as a fracture or zone of fractures between two blocks of rock — where the Indian Plate has pushed under the Eurasian Plate along the Himalayas.

3. OZONE HOLE

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III- ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: According to a new assessment says the ozone layer will recover to 1980 values by 2066 over Antarctica; in Artic by 2045. Success of Montreal Protocol is noteworthy, but phasing out greenhouse gases is more difficult.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The ozone ‘hole’, once considered to be the gravest danger to planetary life, is now expected to be completely repaired by 2066, a scientific assessment has suggested. In fact, it is only the ozone layer over Antarctica — where the hole is the most prominent — which will take a long time to heal completely. Over the rest of the world, the ozone layer is expected to be back to where it was in 1980 by 2040 itself, a UN-backed scientific panel has reported.
• The recovery of the ozone layer has been made possible by the successful elimination of some harmful industrial chemicals, together referred to as Ozone Depleting Substances or ODSs, through the implementation of the 1989 Montreal Protocol. The assessment has reported that nearly 99 per cent of the substances banned by the Montreal Protocol have now been eliminated from use, resulting in a slow but definite recovery of the ozone layer.

Damage to the ozone layer

• The depletion of the ozone layer, first noticed in the early 1980s, used to be the biggest environmental threat before climate change came along. Ozone (chemically, a molecule having three Oxygen atoms, or O3) is found mainly in the upper atmosphere, an area called stratosphere, between 10 and 50 km from the Earth’s surface. It is critical for planetary life, since it absorbs ultraviolet rays coming from the Sun.
• UV rays are known to cause skin cancer and many other diseases and deformities in plants and animals.
• Though the problem is commonly referred to as the emergence of a ‘hole’ in the ozone layer, it is actually just a reduction in concentration of the ozone molecules. Even in the normal state, ozone is present in extremely low concentrations in the stratosphere. Where the ‘layer’ is supposed to be the thickest, there are no more than a few molecules of ozone for every million air molecules.

Improvement in the situation

• The ozone hole has been steadily improving since 2000, thanks to the effective implementation of the Montreal Protocol.
• The latest scientific assessment has said that if current policies continued to be implemented, the ozone layer was expected to recover to 1980 values by 2066 over Antarctica, by 2045 over the Arctic, and by 2040 for the rest of the world.
• The elimination of ozone-depleting substances has an important climate change co-benefit as well. These substances also happen to be powerful greenhouse gases, several of them hundreds or even thousands of times more dangerous than carbon dioxide, the most abundant greenhouse gas and the main driver of global warming.

Connect the dots:

• Montreal Protocol
• Paris Agreement
• Ozone Depleting Substances or ODS’s.

4. SC DEMONETISATION VERDICT: WHAT IS DELEGATED LEGISLATION

TAGS:GS-II- POLITY

THE CONTEXT:In upholding the Centre’s 2016 decision on demonetisation, one of the key questions to decide for the Supreme Court was whether Parliament gave excessive powers to the Centre under the law to demonetise currency.

THE EXPLANATION:

While the majority ruling upheld the validity of the delegated legislation, the dissenting verdict noted that excessive delegation of power is arbitrary.

What is delegated legislation?

Parliament routinely delegates certain functions to authorities established by law since every aspect cannot be dealt with directly by the law makers themselves. This delegation of powers is noted in statutes, which are commonly referred to as delegated legislations.

• The delegated legislation would specify operational details, giving power to those executing the details. Regulations and by-laws under legislations are classic examples of delegated legislation.
• A 1973 Supreme Court ruling explains the concept as: “The practice of empowering the Executive to make subordinate legislation within a prescribed sphere has evolved out of practical necessity and pragmatic needs of a modern welfare State.
• At the same time it has to be borne in mind that our Constitution-makers have entrusted the power of legislation to the representatives of the people, so that the said power may be exercised not only in the name of the people but also by the people speaking through their representatives. The role against excessive delegation of legislative authority flows from and is a necessary postulate of the sovereignty of the people.”

What was the delegation of power in the demonetisation case?

• Section 26(2) of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 essentially gives powers to the Centre to notify that a particular denomination of currency ceases to be legal tender.
• The provision reads: “On recommendation of the Central Board the Central Government may, by notification in the Gazette of India, declare that, with effect from such date as may be specified in the notification, any series of bank notes of any denomination shall cease to be legal tender.”

Why is excessive delegation power an issue?

• A 1959 landmark ruling in Hamdard Dawakhana v Union of India, the Supreme Court had struck down delegation of powers on the grounds that it was vague. A Constitution Bench considered the validity of certain provisions of the Drug and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act that prohibited advertisements of certain drugs for treatment of certain diseases and dealt with the powers of search, seizure and entry.
• The Court held that the central government’s power of specifying diseases and conditions as given in Section 3(d) is ‘uncanalised’, ‘uncontrolled’, and going beyond the permissible boundaries of valid delegation. Hence, the same was deemed unconstitutional.

5. INDIAN BLACKBUCK

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY

THE CONTEXT:A new study conducted by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has shed light on how blackbuck in India have fared in the face of natural and human-induced challenges to their survival.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The blackbuck is found only on the Indian subcontinent. While males have corkscrew-shaped horns and black-to-dark brown coats, the females are fawn-coloured. The animals are mainly seen in three broad clusters across India that pertain to the northern, the southern, and the eastern regions.
• This geographic separation as well as dense human habitation between the clusters would be expected to make it difficult for them to move from one location to another.

Genetic profiling

• The researchers tracked the animals on foot and in vehicles from a distance to collect the samples. In the lab, they extracted and sequenced the DNA from the faecal samples to study the genetic makeup of blackbuck, and deployed computational tools to map the geographic locations with the genetic data. The team also used simulations to trace how the three present-day clusters may have evolved from their common ancestor.
• What they found was that an ancestral blackbuck population first split into two groups: the northern and the southern cluster. The eastern cluster seems to have emerged from the southern cluster.
• Next, the team found that despite all odds, male blackbuck appear to disperse more than expected, thus contributing to gene flow in this species. Females, on the other hand, appear to stay largely within their native population ranges, which the researchers inferred from unique mitochondrial signatures in each population. The data also showed an increasing trend in blackbuck population numbers as compared to the recent past.

VALUE ADDITION:

• Indian Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) is an antelope and is the only living species of the genus Antilope.
• It is considered to be the fastest animal in the world next to Cheetah.
• The horns of the blackbuck are ringed with one to four spiral turns and the female is usually hornless.

• Habitat: 
  • Blackbuck inhabits grassy plains and slightly forested areas.
  • Due to its regular need of water, it prefers areas where water is perennially available.
  • It is found in Central- Western India (MP, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra and Odisha) and Southern India (Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu).
• Protection Status: 
  • Hunting of blackbuck is prohibited under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.
  • It has been categorised least concerned in IUCN Red Data Book.
• The Bishnoi community of Rajasthan is known worldwide for their conservation efforts to blackbuck and Chinkara.

THE CONTEXT: On August 15,the Gujarat government released 11 convicts who were sentenced to life imprisonment for the heinous murder and gang rape of women during the Gujarat communal riots of 2002.The action by the government has received heavy criticism from all sections of society with more than 130 former civil servants writing an open letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) against the action and asking for its revocation.In this article, we will analyze this issue in detail.

THE BASIC CONCEPT OF REMISSION AND LAWS GOVERNING IT

WHAT IS REMISSION?

• Remission is the complete ending of a sentence at a reduced point. Remission is distinct from both furlough and parole in that it is a reduction in sentence as opposed to a break from prison life.
• In remission, the nature of the sentence remains untouched, while the duration is reduced i.e., the rest of the sentence need not be undergone.
• The effect of the remission is that the prisoner is given a certain date on which he shall be released and in the eyes of the law he would be a free man.
• However, in case of breach of any of the conditions of remission, it will be cancelled, and the offender has to serve the entire term for which he was originally sentenced.

REMISSION POWER OF THE PRESIDENT

• Article 72 deals with the clemency power of the President of India. This power extends to:
  o in all cases where the punishment or sentence is by a Court Martial;
  o in all cases where the punishment or sentence is for an offence against any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the Union extends;
  o in all cases where the sentence is a sentence of death.
• This power should be exercised on the advice tendered by the executive to the President, who, subject to the provisions of Article 74(1) must act in accordance with such advice.

REMISSION POWER OF THE GOVERNOR

• Under Article 161, the Governor has the power to grant clemency to anyone convicted under any law on a matter which comes under the State’s executive power.
• This power is to be exercised by the Governor as per the advice of the CoM.
• The power to pardon in all cases where the sentence is death, the power lies within President as per Art 72.
• The Supreme Court has held in Maru Ram and Kehar Singh that the power under Articles 72 and 161 of the Constitution are to be exercised by the Central and the State Governments and not by the President or Governor on their own.

REMISSION POWER OF THE STATE GOVERNMENT

• The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) provides for remission of prison sentences, which means the whole or a part of the sentence may be cancelled.
• Under Section 432, the ‘appropriate government’ may suspend or remit a sentence, in whole or in part, with or without conditions.
• This power is available to State governments so that they may order the release of prisoners before they complete their prison terms.
• Under Section 433, any sentence may be commuted to a lesser one by the appropriate government.

REMISSION POWER OF THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT

• Section 435 says that if the prisoner had been sentenced in a case investigated by the CBI, or any agency that probed the offence under a Central Act, the State government can order such release only in consultation with the Central government.
• The power of remission under the CrPC is different from the constitutional power enjoyed by the President and the Governor. Under the CrPC, the government acts by itself.
• Under Article 72 and Article 161, the respective governments advise the President/Governor to suspend, remit or commute sentences. Despite the fact that it is ultimately the decision of the government in either case, the Supreme Court has made it clear that the two are different sources of power.

KEY TERMS-AN EXPLAINER

• Pardon: It absolves the convict of all sentences, punishments, and disqualifications by removing both the sentence and the conviction. A pardon may be absolute or conditional. It may be exercised at any time, either before legal proceedings are taken or during their pendency or after conviction. The rejection of one clemency petition does not exhaust the pardoning power of the President.
• Parole: It is a system of releasing a prisoner with suspension of the sentence. The release is conditional, usually subject to behaviour, and requires periodic reporting to the authorities for a set period of time.Parole is not a right, and is given to a prisoner for a specific reason, such as a death in the family or a wedding of a blood relative.It may be denied to a prisoner even when he makes out a sufficient case, if the competent authority is satisfied that releasing the convict would not be in the interest of society.
• Commutation: The substitution of one form of punishment for a less severe form. A death sentence, for example, may be commuted to rigorous imprisonment, which may then be commuted to simple imprisonment.
• Furlough: It is similar to parole, but with some significant differences. It is given in cases of long-term imprisonment. The period of furlough granted to a prisoner is treated as remission of his sentence.Unlike parole, furlough is seen as a matter of right for a prisoner, to be granted periodically irrespective of any reason, and merely to enable the prisoner to retain family and social ties, and to counter the ill-effects of prolonged time spent in prison.
• Respite: It refers to the imposition of a lesser sentence in place of one that was originally imposed due to a unique circumstance, such as a convict’s physical disability or a woman offender’s pregnancy.
• Reprieve:It denotes a temporary stay of execution of a sentence (especially one of death). Its purpose is to give the convict enough time to petition the President for a pardon or commutation.

ABOUT THE BILKIS BANO CASE

• Bilkis Bano and her family were attacked on March 3 2002 during the Gujarat Riots. She was gangraped and seven of her family members were murdered.
• The Supreme Court ordered a CBI probe into the incident and arrests were made in 2004. In 2008, the Special CBI Court in Mumbai sentenced the 11 accused to life imprisonment on the charges of conspiring to rape a pregnant woman, murder and unlawful assembly under the Indian Penal Code.
• One of the convicts had approached the Supreme Court for the remission of his sentence. This plea led to the remission of the sentences of the 11 convicts.
• The apex court directed the Gujarat government to look into the issue of remission, following which the government formed a committee. Following the recommendation of the committee, the government decided to release the convicts.

THE CONTROVERSY OVER RECENT GRANT OF REMISSION TO CONVICTS IN GUJARAT

RECENT AFFIDAVIT FILED BY THE GUJARAT GOVERNMENT

• In an recent affidavit filed by the Gujarat government had stated that it decided to release the 11 convicts since they had “completed 14 years and above in prison and their behaviour was found to be good”, and that the Centre had also “conveyed (its) concurrence/approval”.
• Earlier the “Superintendent of Police, CBI, Special Crime Branch, Mumbai” and the “Special Civil Judge (CBI), City Civil and Sessions Court, Greater Bombay”, had opposed the early release.
• The state government cited a “unanimous” recommendation of the Jail Advisory Committee to grant them remission on grounds of “good behaviour”.
• Since then, the apex court has issued notices to the state government on two petitions challenging their release The petitioners have contended that the remission was granted without the Centre’s sanction.
• In their plea, the petitioners stated that the case was investigated by CBI and “accordingly, grant of remission solely by the competent authority of a state government/ state of Gujarat without any consultation with the Central government is impermissible in terms of the mandate of Section 435 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973”.
• Also,the recent point of concern is according to the Gujarat government’s affidavit, the 11 convicted men were out of jail for an average of 1,176 days each before each of them was released.

NOT FOLLOWED THE LATEST POLICY

Critics have pointed out that the convicts were not eligible for remission of sentence under the Gujarat government’s latest 2014 policy, but were released under the old 1992 policy instead.

OPINION OF THE JUDGE NOT TAKEN

The opinion of the judge who conducted the trial or in charge of the district should be taken too. But in this case, it was not taken.

SAY OF THE MAHARASHTRA GOVERNMENT

Section 432(7) of the CrPC says the appropriate government will be “the State within which the offender is sentenced or the said order is passed”. Thus, in this case, it should be Maharashtra Government.

CAN STATE GOVERNMENT GIVE REMISSION TO ANY PRISONER?

• Union may frame guidelines but States are not bound to follow. As 7TH Schedule Prison is a ‘State Subject’.
• If CBI had investigated the case the State must consult the Union government.
• In ‘Laxman Naskar v. Union of India’ (2000) the SC laid down five grounds on which remission is considered:
  1. Whether the offence is an individual act of crime that does not affect the society.
  2. Whether there is a chance of the crime being repeated in future.
  3. Whether the convict has lost the potentiality to commit crime.
  4. Whether any purpose is being served in keeping the convict in prison.
  5. Socio-economic conditions of the convict’s family.
• Also, convicts serving life sentences are entitled to seek remission after serving a minimum of 14 years in prison.

IMPLICATIONS OF THE ISSUE?

ON THE VICTIM RELATED TO THE CASE

• The victim (in this case) Bilkis Bano, has not only suffered the assault of rape but also the loss of her child. It may shake her faith in justice, and the ripple effect may set in motion affecting other women who are struggling in courts for justice.
• Her safety and well-being may get compromised due to the release of the convicts.

ON CONVICTS

• The 11 people who got released by the Government may transfer a wrong message to society and can create further hatred against the minority communities.

IN SOCIETY AT LARGE

• Society will affect the most by the incident, as the rights and sex-based violence in the country may be provoked further.
• It is possible that, technically, the government is within its rights to release murderers and rapists, but it goes against the spirit of the Centre’s current guidelines

THE WAY-FORWARD

THE ROLE OF APEX COURT

The Supreme Court should constitute a Bench:

• To reconsider judgments that allow the remission policy obtaining on the date of conviction, instead of the policy currently in force.
• To address whether the ‘appropriate government’ should be the one in the State where the crime took place, or the State to which the trial was transferred on judicial orders should be responsible for remission.
• To formulate a rational remission policy that will be based on humanitarian considerations and have the scope for reform of the offenders and their sense of remorse.

REFORMATION OF CRIMINALS

• The supreme aim of our prison discipline should be the reformation of criminals, and that there must be in every prison a well-devised and skilfully applied system of rewards for good conduct of prisoners.

POLITICIZATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

• The human rights of individuals should not be made to suffer at the altar of political manipulations and machinations.

JUSTICE TO VICTIMS OF CRIME

• The Malimath Committee made a series of recommendations to ensure justice to the victims:
  1. The victim should be allowed to participate in cases involving serious crimes and also be given adequate compensation.
  2. If the victim is dead, the legal representative shall have the right to implead himself or herself as a party, in case of serious offences.
  3. The State should provide an advocate of victim’s choice to plead on his/her behalf and the cost has to be borne by the State if the victim can’t afford it.
  4. Victim compensation is a State obligation in all serious crimes, whether the offender is apprehended or not, convicted or acquitted. This is to be organised in a separate legislation.
  5. A Victim Compensation Fund can be created under the victim compensation law and the assets confiscated in organised crimes can be made part of the fund.

THE CONCLUSION: It is an event of concern for India’s democracy and it also questions equal and fair Justice to all, as the release of convicts challenges the rights of minorities, promotes Gender-related crimes, and even against the fundamental Rights of an individual.

QUESTION FOR MAINS EXAMINATION:

Q1. Critically analyse the remission policy in India. Do you think that the policy is used for political milage in recent times?
Q2. Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future. In the light of this statement discuss whether the remission should be granted to prisoners of serious crimes like rape and murder?
Q3.”Seriousness of the crime, the status of the co-accused and conduct in jail should be the factors considered for granting remission”.Elucidate.

THE CONTEXT: Recently, a PIL was filed in Supreme Court to issue directions to the Kerala government to not implement the Gadgil committee report as no space is available to displace the population within the state. There are large groups completely dependent on agriculture, and banning the cultivation of several crops will affect their livelihood. Though valid to a certain extent, yet it negates the larger issue of environmental crisis manifested in Kerala flood and such other issues. This raises a paradox on the discourse between Democracy and Ecology. In this context, we will study in detail about the reports of different commissions on conservation and preservation of biodiversity in western ghats and what are the issues in implementing their recommendations.

ABOUT WESTERN GHATS

• The Western Ghats is a mountain range that runs from the western coast of Peninsular India. Older than the Himalaya Mountains, they are also known as Sahyadri.
• A significant characteristic of the Western Ghats is the exceptionally high level of biological diversity and endemism. This mountain chain is recognized as one of the world’s eight ‘hottest hotspots’ of biological diversity along with Sri Lanka.
• It begins near the border of Gujarat and stretches down 1600 km through the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala ,Goa and Tamil Nadu covering around 160,000 km2 of the area.
• It has an exceptionally high level of biological diversity and endemism and is recognized as one of the world’s eight ‘hottest hotspots’ of biological diversity.
• The forests of the site include some of the best representatives of non-equatorial tropical evergreen forests anywhere and are home to at least 325 globally threatened flora, fauna, bird, amphibian, reptile and fish species.

MADHAV GADGIL COMMITTEE REPORT ON THE WESTERN GHATS?

Gadgil Commission, an environmental research commission is named after its chairman Madhav Gadgil. The commission is formally known as Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP). The commission submitted the report to the Government of India on 31 August 2011.

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE GADGIL COMMITTEE

• The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) designated the entire hill range as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA).
• The panel, in its report, has classified the 142 taluks in the Western Ghats boundary into Ecologically Sensitive Zones (ESZ) 1, 2 and 3.
• ESZ-1 being of high priority, almost all developmental activities (mining, thermal power plants etc) were restricted in it.
• The extent of existing Protected Areas plus ESZ1 will not normally exceed 60% of the total area. And the extent of area covered by existing Protected Areas plus ESZ1 and ESZ2 together will be around 75% and the extent of ESZ3 will normally be around 25% of the total area.
• Gadgil report recommended that “no new dams based on large-scale storage be permitted in Ecologically Sensitive Zone 1. Since both the Athirappilly of Kerala and Gundia of Karnataka hydel project sites fall in Ecologically Sensitive Zone 1, these projects should not be accorded environmental clearance,” it said.
• In Ecologically Sensitive Zone 1 and 2 no new license for mining and No new polluting (red and orange category) industries to be given while in Ecologically Sensitive Zone 3 new mining and setting up of New polluting industries may be taken up only under strict regulation and social audit . Agriculture activities are allowed by phasing out the use of chemical fertilizers in all the three zones.
• Gadgil Committee report specifies that the present system of governance of the environment should be changed. It asked for a bottom to top approach (right from Gram sabhas) rather than a top to bottom approach. It also asked for decentralization and more powers to local authorities.
• The commission recommended the constitution of a Western Ghats Ecology Authority (WGEA), as a statutory authority under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, with the powers under Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

WHAT WAS THE NEED FOR THE KASTURIRANGAN COMMITTEE SUBSEQUENTLY?

• None of the six concerned states accepted the Gadgil committee report.
• In August 2012, a High-Level Working Group on Western Ghats under Kasturirangan was constituted to “examine” the Gadgil Committee report in a “holistic and multidisciplinary fashion in the light of responses received” from various stakeholders.

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE KASTURIRANGAN COMMITTEE

• Instead of the total area of Western Ghats, only 37% (i.e. 60,000 sq. km.) of the total area be brought under ESA under Kasturirangan report.
• A complete ban on mining, quarrying and sand mining in ESA.
• Distinguished between cultural (58% occupied in the Western Ghats by it like human settlements, agricultural fields and plantations) and natural landscape (90% of it should come under ESA according to the committee).
• Current mining areas in the ESA should be phased out within the next five years, or at the time of expiry of mining lease, whichever is earlier.
• No thermal power be allowed, and hydropower projects are allowed only after detailed study.
• Red industries i.e. which are highly polluting be strictly banned in these areas.
• Kasturirangan report on the Western Ghats has made several pro-farmer recommendations, including the exclusion of inhabited regions and plantations from the purview of ecologically sensitive areas (ESAs).
• The Kasturirangan report had said 123 villages fall under the ESA purview.

COMPARISON OF MADHAV GADGIL REPORT AND KASTURIRANGAN REPORT

GADGIL REPORT

• Recommended that the entire stretch of the western ghats should be declared an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA)
• It divided the region into three zones-ESZ1, ESZ2 & ESZ3 and gave a broad outline of certain restrictions for each zone
• It recommended the determination of an area as ESZ1 or ESZ2 or ESZ3 be done at the block/taluka level
• No new polluting industries (red and orange category) were to be permitted in ESZ1&ESZ2.Existing industries were to be phased out by 2016.

KASTURIRANGAN REPORT

• Divided the western ghats into two: natural landscape and cultural landscape
• Of the natural landscape, it picked out merely 37% as “biologically rich” and “with some measure of contiguity”. Any restrictions were only placed in this area
• It proposed the demarcation of ESA be done at the village level
• Only red category industries (heavily polluting such as mining) were completely restricted

WHY STATE GOVERNMENT’S NOT IMPLEMENTING THE REPORT?

BARRIER TO DEVELOPMENT

• The state government believes that implementation of the report will halt the developmental activities in the region.
• Karnataka Government states that it has the distinction of being one of the states with extensive forest cover and the government has taken care to protect the biodiversity of Western Ghats.

GROUND REALITY

• The Kasturirangan report has been prepared based on the satellite images, but the ground reality is different.
• People of the region have adopted agriculture and horticultural activities in an eco-friendly manner.
• Priority has been accorded for environment protection under the Forest Protection Act.
• In this background bringing one more law that would affect the livelihood of the local people is not appropriate.

PEOPLE’S PROTEST

• The political representatives from Uttara Kannada district have always opposed the Kasturirangan report since 600-plus villages will fall under the eco-sensitive area if the report is implemented.

PRESENT STATUS

• While there is a growing concern over the forest encroachments in Karnataka, the state government has planned to further shrink the deemed forest area from 3,30,186.938 hectares to 2 lakh hectares.

REINVENTING DEMOCRACY

Seventy-five years since Independence, it is now acutely clear that we need to rethink this paradigm of development altogether since it has failed to balance economic interests with social costs. This model of development promises equality, but in reality, it privileges corporate interests. Displacement has been one of the major consequences of this process, particularly the displacement of tribals and other marginalised communities.

ISSUES IN THE PESA (PROVISIONS OF THE PANCHAYATS EXTENSION TO SCHEDULED AREAS) ACT, 1996 IN DEMOCRATIC DECENTRALISATION

• Social audits conducted across the state have also pointed out that in reality different developmental schemes were being approved on paper by Gram Sabha, without actually having any meeting for discussion and decision making which results into respond by the localities for eg: “Pathalgarhi movement” by the tribals who basically seeks for autonomy.

ISSUES IN THE FOREST RIGHTS ACT

• The main barriers with regard to implementation relate to the structural conditions, which define the power of the state vs powerlessness of the scheduled tribes and other forest dependent communities.
• The current growth model which is basically top to bottom approach has systematically perpetuated high levels of inequality, which reflects on competing interests over the rich base of natural resources- land, minerals, water and forest. To elaborate more, three significant barriers, which impede the realisation of forest rights.

A clash of ideas: for a brighter future

IMPACT OF THE NON-IMPLEMENTATION OF THE REPORT ON THE WESTERN GHATS

• There have been a lot of evident climatic changes like temperature increase, excess floods, droughts etc. such incidents will further increase.
• Gadgil called on the authorities to take immediate measures to preserve Kerala’s natural environment, especially in the ecologically fragile Western Ghats region. Gadgil also urged the state government to impose a ban on industrial and mining activities in the area and strictly regulate development work but the environmental expert says the government did not pay heed to his recommendations Which results into deadly floods in Kerala.
• The impacts include pollution (noise, air and groundwater), depletion of fisheries, deforestation, siltation of water bodies and loss of unique biodiversity among many others. The report claimed that there are also numerous illegal activities in these areas causing these problems.

THE WAY FORWARD

To eradicate poverty and increase growth in the economy, development is mandatory. Without economic development, a nation cannot come out of the vicious circle of poverty. As our population grows, finding a balance between economic advancement and consumption of natural resources is a vital question that we should address.

• ECO-TOURISM: Eco-tourism is ecologically sustainable tourism with a primary focus on experiencing natural areas that fosters environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation, and conservation. Thus,ecotourism needs to be promoted in western ghats.
• JOINT FOREST MANAGEMENT (JFM): The rationale behind Joint Forest Management (JFM) approach is that the willing and active participation of the Forest Department with the local community is essential for ensuring regeneration, conservation, protection and sustainable use of forest resources. JFM is to be considered as cost-effective approach for the regeneration and conservation of forest apart from meeting the diverse needs of the local communities.
• ENVIRONMENTAL GOVERNANCE: Good environmental governance which limits the exploitation of natural resources to sustainable levels.

THE CASE STUDY CONSERVATION BY EXCLUSION- SOLIGAS OF BRT HILLS

BRT hills are a forest covered range in Karnataka to the east of the Nilgiris. It is the traditional homeland of Soliga tribals, who earlier practised hunting-gathering and shifting cultivation. They have protected a large sacred grove, harbouring a magnificent Michelia champaca tree. When this area was declared a Wild Life Sanctuary, Soligas could no longer hunt or practice shifting cultivation. So gathering of honey, medicinal plants and amla became the mainstay of their subsistence. A voluntary organization, Vivekananda Girijana Kalyana Kendra, has organized them effectively and helped set up a system of regulated collection, processing and marketing of forest produce. A scientific institution, ATREE, has been engaged in a study of the Soliga forest produce collection practices and their impact on resource stocks. They have come to the conclusion that these practices are entirely sustainable. The Soliga earnings had also improved because of their own processing industry. Most regrettably, the Forest Department has banned all collection of forest produce for marketing, forcing Soligas into destitution.

THE CONCLUSION: There is a need to find solutions to the problem of power shortage, paucity of drinking water, poverty and unemployment, without forgetting the fact that ecological biodiversity needs to be recognized as an integral part of the human and cultural landscape as well as the natural one. Everyone agrees that one must strike a fine balance between conservation, preservation and development and ensure that they can go hand in hand; but this is easier said than done.

QUESTION FOR MAINS EXAMINATION:

Q1.Explain the significance of western ghats for India. Suggest some innovative ways to conserve the biodiversity of the region.
Q2.Is it possible to strike a balance between developmental imperatives of a growing economy like India and the limits to growth imposed by environmental degradation? Critically analyse.

INDIAN POLITY

1. THE KARNATAKA-MAHARASHTRA BORDER ROW

TAGS:GS-II & III-INTER STATE BORDER DISPUTES

THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, unanimously passed a resolution to protect its interests and called the dispute a “closed chapter”. For that the Maharashtra government retaliated by passing a unanimous resolution in its Assembly to legally pursue the inclusion of 865 Marathi-speaking villages from Belagavi, Karwar, Nipani, Bidar, Bhalki and others in Karnataka into the State.

THE EXPLANATION:

What are the claims of the two States?

• The raging boundary dispute between the two States dates back to the reorganisation of States along linguistic lines. In 1957, unhappy with the demarcation of boundaries, Maharashtra demanded realignment of its border with Karnataka.
• It invoked Section 21 (2)(b) of the Act, submitting a memorandum to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs stating its objection to Marathi-speaking areas being included in Karnataka. It filed a petition in the Supreme Court staking a claim over Belagavi.
• Karnataka has argued that the inclusion of Belagavi as part of its territory is beyond dispute. It has cited the demarcation done on linguistic lines as per the Act and the 1967 Mahajan Commission Report to substantiate its position.
• Karnataka has argued for the inclusion of areas in Kolhapur, Sholapur and Sangli districts (falling under Maharashtra) in its territory. From 2006, Karnataka started holding the winter session of the Legislature in Belagavi, building the massive Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in the district headquarters to reassert its claim.

What were the terms of the Mahajan Commission?

• In 1966, at Maharashtra’s insistence, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi established a one-man commission led by Mehr Chand Mahajan, which recommended that 264 villages be transferred to Maharashtra and that Belagavi (Belgaum) and 247 villages remain with Karnataka.
• Maharashtra rejected the report, while Karnataka welcomed it. Karnataka argued that either the Mahajan Commission Report should be accepted fully, or the status quo maintained.

Connect the dots: States Reorganisation Act 1956

2. WHAT IS TRIPLE TEST SURVEY?

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE-GS -II-POLITY

THE CONTEXT: Recently, the Allahabad High Court ordered the Uttar Pradesh government to hold urban local body elections without reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) because the ‘triple test’ requirement for the quota had not been fulfilled, the state set up a commission for this purpose.

THE EXPLANATION:

• The five-member commission will conduct a survey to ensure that the OBCs are provided reservation on the basis of the triple test, as mandated by the Supreme Court.
• This is the first time that the triple test exercise will be carried out in Uttar Pradesh. Sources said the law department and the urban development department will lay down the guidelines to be adopted for the process.
  a) To set up a dedicated commission to conduct a rigorous empirical inquiry into the nature and implications of the backwardness in local bodies;
  b) To specify the proportion of reservation required in local bodies in light of recommendations of the commission, so as not to fall foul of overbreadth;
  c) To ensure reservation for SCs/STs/OBCs taken together does not exceed an aggregate of 50 per cent of the total seats.
  d) These triple test/conditions were outlined by the Supreme Court in the case of Vikas KishanraoGawali vs. State of Maharashtra and others, decided on March 4, 2021.

Why triple test instead of rapid survey?

The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on said that any inquiry or study into the nature and implications of the backwardness with respect to local bodies involves ascertainment of representation in such bodies. The court said such an exercise cannot be confined to counting of heads alone, as is being done through the rapid survey.

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

3. PROPOSAL TO SHIFT FROM “MINIMUM” TO “LIVING” WAGES

TAGS:GS-II & III- SOCIAL ISSUES-ECONOMY

THE CONTEXT: The Union Labour Ministry is currently mulling to shift from the “minimum wages” to “living wages” in a bid to bring more people from poverty in the country.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is a living wage?

• The term “living wage” is the theoretical income level that enables an individual or a family to afford adequate shelter, food, healthcare and other basic necessities. It is the minimum income of that helps support a satisfactory standard of living and prevents individuals from falling into poverty.

How is the living wage different from minimum wage?

• A living wage is defined as the minimum income necessary for workers to meet their basic necessities. It is different from the minimum wage, which is based on labor productivity and skill sets.
• Minimum wage is the lowest amount of money a laborer can earn as mandated by the law. It does not change based on inflation. It can increase only with the government intervention. This is not true for the living wage.
• The living wage is determined by the average cost to live comfortably, while the minimum wage is the fixed amount set by the government.
• The difference between the minimum wage and the living wage can range between 10 and 25 percent based on the cost of living in a specific place.

About India’s decision

• The Indian government is considering to shift from the minimum wage to the living wage to eliminate poverty in the country. If such a shift happens, it would have significant financial implications for India and the government. It will make Sustainable Development Goal commitments easily achievable.
• India is planning to receive assistance from the International Labour Organization (ILO) to understand what constitutes a living wage since it is highly subjective. The ILO member states, including India, have recently requested the ILO to contribute to the improved understanding of living wages by undertaking a peer-reviewed research on the theoretical concepts and theoretical estimations.

Connect the Dots: ILO

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

4. OMEGA CENTAURI

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE- GS-III-SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

THE CONTEXT: Astronomers and scientists at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), while studying the Omega Centauri found that hot stars and white dwarfs emitted less ultraviolet radiation than expected.

THE EXPLANATION:

• A team of Scientists at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics detected strange hot stars in the Globular clusters using the Ultra Violet Imaging Telescope (UVIT) images on AstroSat (India’s first dedicated space observatory, which has been operating since 2015).

What are Globular clusters?

• Globular clusters are spherical aggregates of several thousand to millions of stars bound by gravity. These systems are thought to have formed early on in the Universe and can serve as perfect astrophysical laboratories for astronomers to understand how stars evolve through various phases.
• Omega Centauri is a globular cluster in the constellation of Centaurus that was first identified as a non-stellar object by Edmond Halley in 1677.
• Located at a distance of 17,090 light-years, it is the largest-known globular cluster in the Milky Way at a diameter of roughly 150 light-years.

What is Galaxy?

• A galaxy is a huge collection of gas, dust, and billions of stars and their solar systems bound together by gravity.
• Milky Way, is stuffed with between 100 billion and 400 billion other stars, many of them with planets of their own. The Milky Way got its name from the way it looks from the ground: like a streak of spilt milk across the sky.

PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

5. GARRARNAWUN BUSH TOMATO

TAGS: PRELIMS PERSPECTIVE

THE CONTEXT: A new species of bush tomato, christened Garrarnawun bush tomato (Solanum scalarium), was discovered in Australia recently.

THE EXPLANATION:

About the genus Solanum

• Genus Solanum has around 1,400 accepted species that are distributed across the world. The species belonging to this genus are found in all continents except Antarctica. It is the most species-rich genus in the Solanaceae family and is among the largest in the angiosperms (flowering plants).
• The genus includes 3 food crops having high economic value. These are the potato, tomato and eggplant (brinjal).
• Much of the species belonging to the Solanum are concentrated in circum-Amazonian tropical South America. However, its hotspots are also found in Africa and Australia.
• This genus is often recognized by its two-chambered superior ovary, fused sepals and petals, 5 stamens, poricidal anthers, and sometimes branched hairs and/or prickles.

About the new species

• The Garrarnawun bush tomato (Solanum scalarium) is currently found only in one site in world i.e., the Judbarra/Gregory National Park in the Australia’s Northern Territory.
• It is a perennial pale green shrub that is around 30 cm tall.
• This species belongs to the taxonomically challenging group called Kimberley dioecious clade in Australia. It is distinguished from other members of this group by its spreading decumbent habit and conspicuously prickly male floral rachis.
• Its common name recognizes the lookout point in the Judbarra/Gregory National Park. This point is the traditional meeting place of the Wardaman and Nungali-Ngaliwurru peoples, whose lands intersect in this region.
• This species is currently known from a single population of around 50 to 100 individuals. Hence, scientists are proposing to include in the “data deficit” category of the IUCN Red List.
• It is found on skeletal pink soil, dissected rocks and exposed sandstone pavements.
• It is expected to be found in more locations due to the prevalence of a similar and less accessible outcrops in the immediate region.