REVENUE RIDDLES: ON GST INFLOWS AND AREAS OF CONCERN

RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 3: INDIAN ECONOMY AND ISSUES RELATING TO PLANNING, MOBILIZATION OF RESOURCES

THE CONTEXT

India’s gross revenues from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) stand at over ₹9.92 lakh crore in September 2023 which is halfway through the financial year, marking an 11.1% increase over collections between April and September 2022.

WHAT IS GST?

GST has been introduced by 101st Amendment Act of 2016 and is one indirect tax for the whole nation, which will make India one unified common market. GST is a single tax on the supply of goods and services, right from the manufacturer to the consumer. It essentially is a tax only on value addition at each stage.
The final consumer will thus bear only the GST charged by the last dealer in the supply chain, with set-off benefits at all the previous stages.

At the Central level, the following taxes are being subsumed:

Central Excise Duty
Additional Excise Duty
Service Tax
Additional Customs Duty commonly known as Countervailing Duty
Special Additional Duty of Customs.

At the State level, the following taxes are being subsumed:

Subsuming of State Value Added Tax/Sales Tax,
Entertainment Tax (other than the tax levied by the local bodies), Central Sales Tax (levied by the Centre and collected by the States),
Octroi and Entry tax,
Purchase Tax,
Luxury tax, and
Taxes on lottery, betting and gambling.

BENEFITS OF GST

Easy compliance: All the tax payer services such as registrations, returns, payments, etc. are available to the taxpayers online, which would make compliance easy and transparent.
Uniformity of tax rates and structures: GST ensure that indirect tax rates and structures are common across the country, thereby increasing certainty and ease of doing business.
Removal of cascading: A system of seamless tax-credits throughout the value-chain, and across boundaries of States, ensure that there is minimal cascading of taxes. This reduce hidden costs of doing business.
Higher revenue efficiency: GST mechanism decrease the cost of collection of tax revenues of the Government, and therefore, lead to higher revenue efficiency.

GST COUNCIL

GST Council has been introduced for smooth and efficient administration of GST by cooperation and coordination under Article 279-A in the constitution of India.
The GST Council consists of the following members:

The Union Finance Minister (as Chairman).
The Union Minister of State in-charge of Revenue or Finance.
The Minister in charge of Finance or Taxation or any other Minister, nominated by each State Government.
The members of the Council from the states have to choose one amongst themselves to be the Vice-Chairperson of the Council. They can also decide his term.
The Union Cabinet also decided to include the Chairperson of the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) as a permanent invitee (non-voting) to all proceedings of the Council.

The council is devised in such a way that the centre will have 1/3^rd voting power and the states have 2/3^rd. The decisions are taken by 3/4^th

Reasons for the Increase in GST Revenue

Improvement in economic activity: One of the main reasons for the increase in GST revenue is the improvement in economic activity.
Enhanced compliance: Another reason for the increase in GST revenue is the enhanced compliance and anti-evasion measures taken by the government.
Reforms introduced by government: The government has introduced several reforms such as e-invoicing, e-way bills, Aadhaar authentication, data analytics, and artificial intelligence to plug leakages and prevent tax evasion.

THE ISSUES

Impact of slowdown not evenly distributed: The impact of the slowdown has not been evenly distributed across income groups and categories.
Beyond the macro resilience that these numbers indicate, a few areas of concern deserve closer scrutiny from policymakers and the GST Council:
Slowdown in growth of GST: There is slowdown in the growth of GST inflows and in domestic transactions and services imports between July and September, the slowest since July 2021.
Mandatory E-invoicing: E-invoicing became mandatory for all firms with a turnover of over ₹5 crore since August 1, 2023 ,so there comes need of another compliance mechanism.
Shrink in revenue from goods: Revenues from goods imports that have shrunk four times in 2023 despite high import. Authorities must check for revenue leakages from imports.

THE TRENDS

Increase in taxpayers: A substantial increase has been observed across different categories individuals, firms and companies. For example, number of taxpayers increased by 64% between 2014 and 2022.
More number of returns filed: There is growth in number of taxpayers filing returns.

However, this growth in taxpayers is insufficient as the most of the tax returns are associated with nil taxes.

Rise in direct tax: There is growth in direct tax collections and higher tax buoyancy with increase in taxpayers and increase in returns filed which suggests noticeable gains in compliance.

THE WAY FORWARD

Strengthening of GST Council: There is need of strengthening of GST Council for its better functioning. There have been instances of disagreements in resolving issues such as dispute resolution mechanism and revenue-sharing formulas that needs to be resolved.
Simplification of GST rates: The rationalization of GST rates and slabs would reduce compliance costs, improve tax buoyancy, and eliminate classification disputes.
Mechanism for higher revenue generation: An increase in returns filed is however not an end in itself. It must lead to higher revenues for which newer mechanism needs to be developed.
Need scrutiny: Amid broadly healthy GST inflows, some trends need greater scrutiny. There is need of capacity building of state tax authorities as success of GST depends on adapting to the new requirements.

THE CONCLUSION

With higher revenue and simplified tax regime, GST is termed as positive step towards shifting Indian economy from the informal to formal economy. There is need of certain reforms to overcome the impending challenges.

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Explain the rationale behind the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act of 2017. How has COVID-19 impacted the GST compensation fund and created new federal tensions? (2020)
Enumerate the indirect taxes which have been subsumed in the goods and services tax (GST) in India. Also, comment on the revenue implications of the GST introduced in India since July 2017.(2019)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Although there has been improvement in GST revenue collection, the GST regime suffers from multiple challenges. Comment.

SOURCE: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/revenue-riddles-the-hindu-editorial-on-gst-inflows-and-areas-of-concern/article67389922.ece

HOW THE CONTRASTING VIEWS OF AMBEDKAR AND GANDHI PAVED WAY FOR CASTE RESERVATION?

RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 1: HISTORY; PERSONALITIES; GS 2: SOCIETY: CASTE SYSTEM

THE CONTEXT

The caste survey released by the Bihar government has ignited a fresh debate on the caste-politics dynamics in India. The caste system has been a subject of intense political debate and reform efforts from the Colonial times. This article mentions how Ambedkar and Gandhi’s contrasting views paved way for caste reservation.

HISTORY OF CASTE RESERVATION

From the British era to the Mandal versus Kamandal politics, caste has been central to the socio-political narrative of mainland India.
Two prominent figures who have significantly contributed to this discourse are Mahatma Gandhi and Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar. Both Mahatma Gandhi and BR Ambedkar differed over how to address caste inequities through the electoral system. Their subsequent debates have shaped the course of Indian society and politics.

GANDHI’S VIEW

While Gandhi denounced untouchability, he did not condemn the varna system which is a social hierarchy based on occupation for most of his life.
He believed in reforming the caste system through the abolition of untouchability and by giving equal status to each occupation.

AMBEDKAR’S VIEW

BR Ambedkar argued that the caste system disorganised and demoralised Hindu society, reducing it to a collection of castes.
Ambedkar completely denounced the Vedas and scriptures, believing that the caste system and untouchability were manifestations of Hindu religious scriptures.
He first articulated caste inequality in Indian society and worked for the “annihilation of caste”, believing that anything built on caste would inevitably create inequality.

DEMAND FOR SEPARATE ELECTORATE: GANDHI vs AMBEDKAR

Their exchanges led to the Poona Pact of 1932, which shaped the reservation system in India’s electoral politics.
In 1930s, alongside the fight for independence, issue raised of political representation and safeguard of Dalits.
BR Ambedkar believed that a separate electoral process for Dalits was essential to ensure their political representation and protect their interests in legislative bodies.
Gandhi, on the other hand, was totally opposed to the idea of a separate electoral process, fearing it would perpetuate divisions among Indians.
In 1932, the British government formalized a separate electoral process for Muslims, Sikhs and Dalits in Round Table Conference to address the issue of representation for different religious and social groups in India.
Under the proposed process, only members from particular communities would be eligible to vote and elect a representative to legislative assemblies.
Gandhi started fast unto death in Yerwada Central Jail in Pune to pressurise the British for abandoning the idea of separate electorates.
A committee including Sir Tejbahadur Sapru, MR Jayakar, Madan Mohan Malviya and Mathuradas Wasanji was formed to have negotiations with Ambedkar on Gandhi’s behalf.
Gandhi’s unrelenting fast forced Ambedkar to bend and let go of his desire to have a separate electoral process for the depressed classes.
The Poona Pact was finally signed on September 24, 1932. Madan Mohan Malaviya signed it on behalf of Hindus and Gandhi, and Ambedkar on behalf of the depressed classes.
Instead of separate electorates, the pact introduced the concept of reserved seats for the Dalits in provincial and central legislative bodies. These reserved seats were to be filled through a joint electorate system, where all communities would vote together.
The Poona Pact also stipulated that in constituencies reserved for Dalits, only Dalit candidates could contest. However, in other general constituencies, Dalit voters could choose to vote for candidates of their choice from any community.

AMBEDKAR’S PERSPECTIVE ON GANDHI AFTER POONA PACT

Shortly after the signing of the Poona Pact, Ambedkar visited Gandhi on October 17, 1932, and urged him to end his civil disobedience and join the Round Table Conference.
After signing the Poona Pact, Ambedkar felt that the Poona Pact did not go far enough in addressing the social and economic injustices faced by the Dalits and was a compromise.
However, the Poona Pact marked a crucial turning point in Indian politics by rejecting separate electorates and introducing the concept of reserved seats, ensuring political representation for marginalized communities, particularly Dalits.
This agreement laid the foundation for the development of India’s reservation system, which has since been expanded to include various communities to promote social justice and equality.
The principles of the Poona Pact were later enshrined in the Government of India Act, 1935, and the Indian Constitution, which was adopted in 1950.

THE CONCLUSION

Despite their contrasting views on the caste system, both Gandhi and Ambedkar valued each other. Both leaders were united in their commitment to social justice and equality, and this left an indelible mark on Indian society and its electoral process.

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Bring out the constructive programmes of Mahatma Gandhi during the Non-Cooperation Movement and Civil Disobedience Movement. (2021)
Highlight the differences in the approach of Subhash Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi in the struggle for freedom. (2016)

MAINS PRACTICES QUESTIONS

Gandhi and Ambedkar despite their differences developed an understanding to work for the betterment of the Depressed Classes. Discuss.
How has Poona Pact shaped the electoral politics of the nation and laid foundation for the development of India’s social justice policies?

SOURCE: https://www.indiatoday.in/history-of-it/story/ambedkar-gandhi-caste-system-poona-pact-1932-reservation-2445208-2023-10-06

WSDP Bulletin (09-10-2023)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

Recommendations of 52nd GST Council Meeting READ MORE
India and Saudi Arabia sign MoU in Electrical Interconnections, Green / Clean Hydrogen and Supply Chains READ MORE
PATA and India to jointly promote Travel for LiFE in Asia-Pacific region READ MORE
Attophysics — new tools to fathom the world of electrons | Explained READ MORE
Significance of quantum dots in nanotechnology | Explained READ MORE
Ganga-Ghagra basin canals pose a threat to dolphins: study READ MORE
Prey, habitat dictate Asiatic wild dog-tiger coexistence, says study READ MORE
Afghanistan earthquake kills 2,000: The frequent tremors the country sees READ MORE
Why the RBI’s Open Market Operation plan caught the market by surprise READ MORE

Main

GS Paper- 1

Women farm workers need workplace safety READ MORE
Dalit students still face discrimination READ MORE
Caste-wise census: An opportunity to rectify the injustice done to the Adi Dravidas READ MORE
What caused the flood in Sikkim? | Explained READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

Why does the State want to control universities? READ MORE
Women’s reservation: A law on paper, but a reality far away READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

New malaria vaccine to be a game changer READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

Why did Hamas launch a surprise attack on Israel? | Analysis READ MORE
Toofan Al-Aqsa jolts West Asian geostrategic architecture READ MORE
Regime change in the Maldives distinctly favours China READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Revenue riddles: By not raising interest rates, RBI betrays its concerns about slowing growth READ MORE
Building an India for manufacturers READ MORE
Inflation clouds growth dreams READ MORE
Why IBC should give bankrupting promoters a second chance READ MORE
Globalisation of Indian financial markets READ MORE
Rate decision signal of concern, uncertainty READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Why India is launching a national framework for climate services READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

What turned Teesta into a killer? Here’s proof Sikkim flash floods are a man-made disaster READ MORE

INTERNAL SECURITY

How the Digital India Act will shape the future of the country’s cyber landscape READ MORE
Beefing up cybersecurity for India’s energy transition READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

Gita can take you from mediocrity to perfection READ MORE
Why must you suffer? READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

Empowering women with the right to a safe and inclusive online environment is a crucial step toward a more equitable and just society in the digital age. Comment.
There is a need to redefine the relationship between the State and universities for a truly autonomous and thriving academic environment. Comment on the statement in light of recent developments.
While constitutional safeguards and legal protection for Dalits exist, caste-based discrimination has taken on new forms in the modern era. Discuss why the safeguards and legal protection are failed to address the issue of discrimination in higher educational institutions?

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

All wars are follies, very expensive and very mischievous ones.
Recognising internet access as a fundamental human right, India is bound by international agreements like the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
The Adi Dravida community should seize the forthcoming caste census as an opportunity to rectify the errors made during the 1931 caste census.
To create a world-class clean energy ecosystem in India that is safe, all stakeholders must work collectively to develop all critical components and associated cyber architecture.
Implementation of reservation of seats for women in Parliament and State Assemblies will have to wait for the Census and a delimitation exercise.
Since no one knows when women’s reservation will legally come into force, in the immediate future we can only monitor ticket allocation by all parties across the ideological spectrum and see who stands where.
To keep up with the developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning, suitable vulnerability management tools and cyber-attack resilient capabilities may be co-developed with indigenous centres of excellence.
Addressing cybercrimes requires tackling under-reporting, which currently obscures the true scale of the problem.
Empowering women with the right to a safe and inclusive online environment is a crucial step toward a more equitable and just society in the digital age. It is time to act, bridge the gender gap, and make the internet a safer space for all.
Dalit students face various forms of exclusion and caste-based discrimination in educational institutions across the country. While constitutional safeguards and legal protection for Dalits exist, caste-based discrimination has taken on new forms in the modern era.
There is a need to redefine the relationship between the State and universities for a truly autonomous and thriving academic environment.
In sync with India’s rising stock in the global economy and geopolitics, Indian financial market is about to be truly globalized.
Measures such as collecting data, raising awareness, and creating safe spaces are needed to combat violence against women in agriculture.
The proposed Digital India Act (DIA) encompasses several pivotal clauses that mirror the dynamic evolution of the digital environment, addressing its multifaceted challenges and opportunities.

50-WORD TALK

Addressing cybercrimes requires tackling under-reporting, which currently obscures the true scale of the problem. Psycho-social cybercrimes pose a significant threat to women, particularly due to the gender gap in online access. These crimes thereby violate fundamental rights, including the right to privacy, freedom of speech, dignity, education, and information.
In the face of a growing crisis of cybercrimes against women, recognising the right to internet access is imperative. It aligns with India’s democratic principles, expands on existing constitutional rights, and addresses the gender data gap. Empowering women with the right to a safe and inclusive online environment is a crucial step toward a more equitable and just society in the digital age. It is time to act, bridge the gender gap, and make the internet a safer space for all.

Things to Remember:

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

INTERNET UPS AND DOWNS

REFERENCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 2: DIGITAL INDIA, INTERNET SHUTDOWNS, GS 3: INTERNAL SECURITY

THE CONTEXT

The internet shutdown in Manipur was reimposed on September 26, 2023. The internet had been back in place for barely three days after the 143-day-long shutdown that began on May 3, 2023 before it was shut down again as the conflict intensified.

MORE ON THE NEWS

There is a cycle of internet shutdowns happening in the state of Manipur as it is trapped in ethnic conflict, marked by frequent loss of life and property. It underpins a lack of confidence in the state as a recurring theme for protests in Imphal, regardless of internet access.
Violence and brutality from Manipur reflect a deep-seated social discord and a breakdown in public trust. The term “cycle of violence,” is aptly used here. It was coined by Lenore Walker to describe situations of domestic abuse, and is no longer used in this context.
However, it captures the toxic relationship that can develop between the state and its citizens. Those in power persist in depriving citizens of digital access to essential aspects of life, all to evade accountability. Cycles do not stop by themselves. To end, they require political leadership, not the continued use of “limited internet shutdowns” in Manipur.

WHAT IS INTERNET SHUTDOWN?

Internet shutdowns are an absolute restriction placed on the use of internet services due to an order issued by a government body.
It may be limited to a specific place and to specific period, time or number of days. Sometimes it can even extend indefinitely.
An internet shutdown may be limited to mobile internet that you use on smartphones, or the wired broadband that usually connects a desktop – or both at the same time.

INTERNET SHUTDOWNS IN INDIA

Data compiled by global digital rights group Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition reveals that India implemented at least 84 shutdowns in 2022, the highest number of shutdowns in the by any country in 2022.
Since 2016, India has accounted for approximately 58% of all shutdowns documented in the Shutdown Tracker Optimization Project (STOP database).

REGULATION RELATED TO INTERNET SHUTDOWNS IN INDIA

Till the year 2017, shutdowns were imposed largely under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
However, in 2017 the law was amended and the Government promulgated the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules 2017 under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885.
The 2017 Rules provide for temporary shutdown of telecom services in a region on grounds of public emergency and give senior bureaucrats from the Home Ministry at the central and state levels the power to order shutdowns.
The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 grants the central government the power to disconnect or intercept communication services in the interest of case including: Public safety, sovereignty and integrity of India, defense of India, security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, or public order.
Section 69 of the IT Act allows the government to issue content-blocking orders to online intermediaries such as Internet Service Providers (ISPs), telecom service providers, web hosting services, search engines, online marketplaces, etc. However, the Section requires the information or content being blocked to be deemed a threat to India’s national security, sovereignty, or public order.

ISSUES RELATED TO INTERNET SHUTDOWNS

Economic impact: Internet shutdown has vast economic implication due to disruptions in communication as businesses and startups mostly rely on internet to operate.
Suppress dissent: Internet shutdowns are tend to often used by governments to suppress dissent and limit political opposition.
Affects day to day life: Shutdowns tend to disturb day-to-day life as online transactions, delivery and essential services came to a standstill. Students preparing for their boards, patients unable to reach their doctors and candidates struggling to commute to their job interviews were.
Affects international reputation: India is seen as democratic nation and frequent internet shutdowns have a negative impact on India’s international reputation as a democratic nation.
Not effective steps by regulators: As, the Department of Telecom refuses to maintain a centralised database and has proposed a Telecom Bill that retains unchecked power to implement internet shutdowns. Also, a recently concluded Telecom Regulatory Authority of India consultation ignored internet shutdown issue. Thus, institutions which serve as checks on a state government are either offering tacit support or adopting wilful ignorance towards internet shutdowns.

THE WAY FORWARD

Need of political leadership: The Cycles of shutdowns do not stop by themselves. To end, they require political leadership, not the continued use of ‘limited internet shutdowns’ for long term solutions.
Reforming the Legal Framework: Existing legal framework seems to be inadequate in limiting the internet shutdowns, government should repeal or amend the outdated laws.The state also needs to follow the Anuradha Bhasin judgement of the SC in letter and spirit.
Alternative solution: There can be alternative solution by engaging civil society for peace and communication. Also, instead of complete shutdown, there can be blocking of specific content or websites.
Action by private players: There is need of cautionary approach by private players. OTT platforms must exercise due caution and discretion when featuring the activities, beliefs, practices, or views of any racial or religious group. For example, Major telecom players like Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone are advocating for service-level blocks by internet companies, a move that could not only increase compliance burdens but also risk government-dictated “essential” internet services.

THE CONCLUSION

A proportionality and necessity test analysis to determine the proper course of action are essential at this juncture. For better internet governance and government and the Indian civil society needs to push for a transparent and accountable system.

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Has digital literacy, particularly in rural areas, coupled with lack of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) accessibility hindered socio-economic development? Examine with justification. (2021).
Discuss different types of cybercrimes and measures required to be taken to fight the menace. (2020).

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

India has accounted for one of the highest internet shutdowns in recent years. In this respect, discuss the laws for internet shutdown regulation and issues arising out of frequent shutdown in India.
Is internet shutdown provides an effective solution for maintaining public order or it is used as a tool to evade accountability? Discuss.

SOURCE: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/apar-gupta-writes-in-manipur-another-internet-shutdown-a-conflict-intensified-8970390/

WSDP Bulletin (07-10-2023)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

As per GRAP, Stage-I is to be imposed in the entire NCR when the daily average AQI of Delhi touches/ crosses 201 index value READ MORE
India Re-elected as President of Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) for a Third Successive Term READ MORE
REC launches ‘SUGAM REC’, a mobile app for 54EC Bonds Investors READ MORE
Two of every five amphibians threatened with extinction, reveals study READ MORE
Election Commission briefs observers ahead of Assembly polls in five states READ MORE
RBI’s status quo and an indication that rate cuts would have to wait: What’s in store for borrowers, depositors READ MORE
Russia may pull out of CTBT: How the treaty tried — and failed — to stop nuclear testing READ MORE
When can a bill be designated as a ‘money bill’: SC to hear challenge READ MORE
UN launches 10 principles to close Asia-Pacific sustainable finance gap READ MORE

Main

GS Paper- 1

Equality and identity: On the findings of the Bihar caste count READ MORE
Implement women’s reservation now READ MORE
Beyond Politics: Caste Census Is About Deepening India’s Social Justice Paradigm READ MORE
Modelling study shows how controversial geoengineering may affect global food production READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

Age of Consent: Law Panel Report Simply Diagnoses, Doesn’t Solve the Problem READ MORE
In Strong Judgement, SC Comes Down Heavily on ‘Arbitrary Exercise of Power’ by ED READ MORE
Law Commission of India and Uniform Civil Code: Looking Back, Looking Forward READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

Aligning higher education with the United Nations SDGs READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

India-China power play gets new life in Maldives READ MORE
Reading ‘India Way’ in the Neighbourhood First Policy: Moral Exceptionalism or Strategic Pragmatism? READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Revenue riddles: On GST inflows and areas of concern READ MORE
RBI’s Monetary Policy and the art of letting it be READ MORE
Rates to stay elevated for longer READ MORE
Inflation clouds growth dreams READ MORE
De-risking is better than decoupling READ MORE
Factsheet of bad loans in the banking sector READ MORE
GDP Growth: The Gap Between Reality and Rhetoric READ MORE
K-shaped Recovery Dents Growth of Worker Earnings READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Over $9 trillion investments in infrastructure resilience, Net Zero needed by 2050 to mitigate climate impact: CDRI READ MORE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Inspiring colours: On the 2023 Chemistry Nobel READ MORE
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2023 goes to three scientists for quantum dots fundamental to nanotechnology READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

‘Sikkim tells us to be very careful before allowing any new hydropower project in the Himalayas’ READ MORE
Sikkim serves a warning, govts must heed now READ MORE
Deluge of apathy: Sikkim flash flood has claimed several lives after decade-old warnings were conveniently ignored READ MORE
Sikkim Flood Was a Disaster Forecast – But Warnings Were Ignored READ MORE

INTERNAL SECURITY

In Manipur, another internet shutdown, a conflict intensified READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

Can We Teach Someone to Be Ethical? READ MORE
Give us a smile READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

Ethics are moral principles that govern behavior. Comment.
An urgent review of both the impact of climate change and infrastructure development in hilly areas is needed. Comment on the statement in the wake of the Sikkim glacial lake outburst flood.
India’s Neighborhood First Policy is guided by ideas of moral exceptionalism rooted in particular civilizational framings but is not without strategic pragmatism. Critically examine.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

Anything that you will build on the foundations of caste will crack and will never be a whole.
As India refigures its foreign policy to a region now changed by Armenia’s defeat in Nagorno-Karabakh, it almost certainly will have to seek out other, more stable avenues for its infrastructure ties given the potential of the INSTC project.
India’s Neighborhood First Policy is guided by ideas of moral exceptionalism rooted in particular civilizational framings, but is not without strategic pragmatism.
The growing dependence of female workers on self-employment points to increasing economic distress that forced women to shift from household work to informal employment.
India’s GDP numbers need to be recalculated with a change in methodology. The argument that the discrepancies get evened out is not a strong one.
The eastern Himalayas require special attention in terms of the potential for earthquakes as well as flood disasters. A special effort needs to be mounted to develop hazard scenarios and models as well as land zonation maps that demarcate areas prone to floods and landslides.
Nationality is a feeling of oneness which makes those who are charged with it feel they are kith and kin. It is a feeling of ‘consciousness of kind.
With four decades of experience in political reservation for women in local elections, there’s a compelling case for introducing the bill sooner rather than later.
The Indian banks, especially the public sector banks, are yet to benchmark the criterion for NPA and keep risk in tolerable limits while disbursing loans.
Globalisation has become so strong that complete economic decoupling of a country or region is not feasible. De-risking and realignment is the way forward.
The victory of a pro-China government in the Maldives offers Beijing an opportunity to restore its influence in the Indian Ocean region.
The rise in extreme weather events should prod the government to rehaul its management of all mountain approaches.
We need high-elevation meteorological stations for more accurate weather forecasts. Most of us use remote-sensing methods but we also need to develop our capacity in field glaciology.
Educational institutions have to rethink their approach so that it is in tune with the NEP which will be crucial in realising the 2030 deadline for SDGs.
It is high time that universities adopted sustainability as a mantra and incorporated SDGs into their institutional strategies, both in daily administration and in teaching and research.
It has been realised that higher education cannot work in isolation; rather it must be directly integrated with socio-economic development where each activity and transaction has meaningful and multiple impacts on SDGs.
Every citizen must feel that the universities contribute directly to their well-being and nation-building.

ESSAY TOPIC

India to awaken the people, it is the women who must be awakened
What we sow we reap.

50-WORD TALK

In wake of the Sikkim glacial lake outburst flood, an urgent review of both the impact of climate change and infrastructure development in such areas is needed. India alone can’t do anything about global warming. But it’s imperative to assess the viability, risks of dams generating power from glacier runoff.
MK Stalin is right to say that National Medical Commission rules are undermining state rights. Linking MBBS seats with state population means southern states can’t raise seats or open new colleges. It amounts to punishing states that actually delivered quality medical education. Instead, add better colleges elsewhere in the country.
Hiking LPG subsidy for Ujjwala customers by 50% is further backsliding of the government’s proclaimed freebie policy. From making scathing political speeches about opposition’s ‘revdi culture’, PM Modi is himself distributing subsidies with increasing frequency as elections approach. It’s cynical politics that fiscal prudence is being sacrificed for electoral gain.
Nobody’s above the law of the land, including NewsClick. But UAPA, on top of the already draconian PMLA, peremptory seizure of electronic devices, characterises a heavy-handed State. Just allow the law to play out instead. The goal appears to be to silence critics through shock-and-awe while courts watch on ineffectually.

Things to Remember:

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

UNDECLARED EMERGENCY: ON THE ARRESTS AND ACTIONS IN NEWSCLICK CASE

RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 2: POLITY: FREEDOM OF PRESS; FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS; UAPA ACT, 1967.

THE CONTEXT:

The arrest and actions in the Newsclick case under the draconian provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 can create a chilling effect and is seen as an attack on freedom of press.

MORE ON THE NEWS:

The arrest is based on an FIR filed due to alleged illegal funding from China via the United States. The FIR was filed under UAPA Sections 13 (unlawful activities); 16 (terrorist act); 17 (raising funds for terrorist acts); 18 (conspiracy); 22 (C) (offences by companies, trusts); along with IPC Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different group) and 120B (criminal conspiracy).
These actions against the website are not new it has been under the scrutiny of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income-Tax Department since 2021, with seizures of electronic equipment, but no charge sheet was ever filed against it.
The government has, thus far, disclosed no specific allegation on what exactly merited the arrest. Reportedly, the website is under investigation for a “terror case with Chinese links”, but no article or content has been brought to light that allegedly suggests any link to “terror” or pro-Chinese propaganda.

UNLAWFUL ACTIVITIES (PREVENTION) ACT, 1967:

It was passed in 1967 and aimed at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
Unlawful activity refers to any action taken by an individual or association intended to disrupt the territorial integrity and sovereignty of India.

Key provisions of the UAPA, 1967:

It empowers the central government to declare an association as unlawful if it believes that the association is involved in unlawful activities that threaten the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India.
It leaves very little room for judicial reasoning, and makes the grant of bail virtually impossible under UAPA. It has death penalty and life imprisonment as highest punishments.
Under UAPA, both Indian and foreign nationals can be charged. It will be applicable to the offenders in the same manner, even if crime is committed on a foreign land, outside India.
Under the UAPA, the investigating agency can file a charge sheet in maximum 180 days after the arrests and the duration can be extended further after intimating the court.
The 2004 amendment, added “terrorist act” to the list of offences to ban organizations for terrorist activities. Till 2004, “unlawful” activities referred to actions related to secession and cession of territory.

Features of 2019 Amendment:

Under the Act, the central government may designate an organisation as a terrorist organisation if it:
- commits or participates in acts of terrorism,
- prepares for terrorism,
- promotes terrorism, or
- is otherwise involved in terrorism.
- It additionally empowers the government to designate individuals as terrorists on the same grounds.
Under the Act, investigation of cases may be conducted by officers of the rank of Deputy Superintendent or Assistant Commissioner of Police or above. It additionally empowers the officers of the NIA, of the rank of Inspector or above, to investigate cases.
The Act defines terrorist acts to include acts committed within the scope of any of the treaties listed in a schedule to the Act.
The Schedule lists nine treaties, including the Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings (1997), and the Convention against Taking of Hostages (1979). The Bill adds another treaty to the list. This is the International Convention for Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (2005).

WHAT IS THE FREEDOM OF PRESS?

Freedom of press or media refers to the rights given by the Constitution of India under the freedom and expression of speech in Article 19(1)(a). It encourages independent journalism and promotes democracy by letting the people voice their opinions for or against the government’s actions.
However this Freedom under Article 19 is also not absolute. It faces certain restrictions under Article 19(2), which are as follows: Matters related to in interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.

ISSUES RELATED TO PRESS FREEDOM IN INDIA:

Arbitrary use of UAPA Act: Arbitrary use of powers given in the UAPA Act is resulting into restriction on freedom of press and rights of journalists. For example, Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan who was booked by Uttar Pradesh government under the UAPA Act while performing his journalist duty and his prolonged custody can be noted as a marker of India’s declining press freedom.
Fake news: One of the major issues related to journalism is misinformation and disinformation spread in media.
India’ ranking in world: India is faring worst place in terms of press freedom in world. It has fallen from 150^th to 161 in 2023 among the 180 countries.
Harassment of journalists: Press in India are often subjected to harassment and physical attacks by both state and non-state actors. This has created a climate of fear among journalists.
Lack of regulation: There is persistent lack of regulation and oversight over media outlets which led to unethical practices.
Pressure from political parties: Media houses in India often face pressure from political parties and business interests to promote certain agendas which results in biased reporting.

THE WAY FORWARD

Room for dissent: There should be enough room for dissent for media persons and outlets and a responsive and responsible government should not dismiss criticism and be tolerant enough to take the criticism positively.
Holding the person or body accountable for their actions: Rather than curbing whole of press freedom, holding of actual culprit can be a better way out.
Freedom to press: Freedom of press has always been a cherished right in all democratic countries and the press has rightly been described as the Fourth Pillar of Democracy. Therefore, ensuring its freedom to necessary for democratic principles.
Awareness & Good Governance: There should be awareness among both citizens and media outlets of their democratic rights for transparent reporting.

THE CONCLUSION:

An independent press acts as an important check on the Government and its policies. Therefore, Freedom of press on public affairs and investigations into wrongdoing in the administration of public affairs is must for a healthy democracy.

SOURCE: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/undeclared-emergency-the-hindu-editorial-on-the-arrests-in-the-newsclick-case/article67380803.ece

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

Examine the scope of Fundamental Rights in the light of the latest judgement of the Supreme Court on Right to Privacy. (2017)
“Recent amendments to the Right to information Act will have profound impact on the autonomy and independence of the Information Commission”. Discuss. (2020)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Discuss the role of the Freedom of Press in establishing accountability of the government to the people.
What do you mean by freedom of press in India? Discuss the challenges faced by the press in India and suggest measures to overcome these challenges.

WSDP Bulletin (05-10-2023)

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

PM hails landmark of 50 lakh beneficiaries of PMSVANidhi Scheme READ MORE
2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry: Three share prize for discovery of quantum dots, now used in LEDs READ MORE
National Action Plan for Green Shipping promotes eco-friendly practices: DG of Shipping READ MORE
U.S. keeps distance on Muizzu’s plan to end Indian military presence in Maldives READ MORE
New defence indigenisation list has futuristic weapons, systems READ MORE
In first polls post-370, Kargil hill council elections sees over 78% turnout READ MORE
Glacial lake outburst flood kills 14 in Sikkim, 102 people missing: What is GLOF, and why does it happen? READ MORE
Delhi HC passes ‘dynamic injunction’ against illegal ICC World Cup broadcast: What this means, what was the case READ MORE
Latest Nipah Virus Outbreak reports 33% case fatality rate, all bat samples tested negative: WHO READ MORE
India, Japan launch sustainability fund worth $600 million for low carbon emission projects READ MORE

Main

GS Paper- 1

Hugh and Colleen Gantzer write: Women’s Bill, through our travels READ MORE
Missing in the caste survey READ MORE
Economic and social reform constitute a radical agenda of eradicating caste READ MORE
Cause and Effect | Did an underwater volcanic eruption add to rising temperatures? READ MORE
Monsoon woes READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

Women’s quota, panchayats to Parliament READ MORE
Retribution for the south, accolade for the north READ MORE
Drawing lines in Cauvery waters READ MORE
Court’s Sweeping Powers Under Article 142 Can’t Be Used to Override Substantive Law: SC READ MORE
Age of Consent: Law Panel Report Simply Diagnoses, Doesn’t Solve the Problem READ MORE
“One Nation-One Election” is vital for good governance READ MORE
Dynamics of women’s empowerment in Indian politics READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES

Making menstrual health a welfare priority: Insights from three states READ MORE
NEP 2020 centralises education, worsens existing maladies READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

Development partnerships for food security: India in the Indo-Pacific READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Driving mobility to a sustainable future READ MORE
Advancing women’s role in India’s economic progress READ MORE
It is a global recession with economic growth among lowest in four decades READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Keeping tabs on carbon with an accounting system READ MORE
Tackle climate risk firmly to minimise economic losses READ MORE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Let there be light: On the 2023 physics Nobel READ MORE
Don’t deprive scientists of funds, incentives READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

As Sikkim Reels From Disastrous Floods, Concerns Over Warning Signs and Enormous Impact READ MORE

INTERNAL SECURITY

Mizoram National Front and the politics of cross-border kinship READ MORE
Why the Five Eyes remain blind to India’s security concerns READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

Is mortality subjective? READ MORE
God and his many forms READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

ONOE would be a great help in substantially minimizing the effects of using polarisation based on socio-economic toxicity to win elections. How far do you agree with this statement? Analyse your viewpoint.
Discuss the issue of climate migrants. Suggest ways to address the challenges related to climate migration.
By collaborating with neighbouring countries, India can serve as a catalyst for positive change and promote food security and sustainable development in the Indo-Pacific. Comment.
India’s female workforce participation remains paltry and calls for an urgent review of India’s policies and schemes related to women’s empowerment. Argue.
While legislative representation is a critical aspect, it must be complemented by measures that empower women at the grassroots level. Comment on the statement in the light of the recent Women’s Reservation Act

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

Don’t hit at all if it is honourably possible to avoid hitting; but never hit soft!
ONOE would be a great help in substantially minimizing the effects of using polarisation based on socio-economic toxicity to win elections.
An election should mark the celebration of a vibrant democracy. It should not degenerate into an exercise maximising polarisation based on socio-economic toxicity. ONOE would be a great help in substantially minimising this adverse impact.
Being a multilateral forum of international economic cooperation, the G20 can serve as a suitable platform for creating a dedicated fund for climate migrants.
By collaborating with neighbouring countries, India can serve as a catalyst for positive change and promote food security and sustainable development in the Indo-Pacific.
India’s female workforce participation remains paltry and calls for an urgent review of India’s policies and schemes related to women’s empowerment.
While legislative representation is a critical aspect, it must be complemented by measures that empower women at the grassroots level.
Achieving gender equity and true empowerment requires a deeper understanding of the complexities involved and a commitment to addressing them effectively.
True empowerment necessitates a sociopolitical transformation at the grassroots level, characterised by women’s access to education, equal opportunities, economic independence, and, most importantly, political independence.
Consent is pivotal as it respects individual autonomy, fosters safety, maintains ethical standards, and promotes healthy, respectful relationships.
A good plan of action is being implemented by the Integrated Development Project implemented by the Himachal Forest Department with the assistance of the World Bank. It seeks to improve upstream water management and water productivity of selected gram panchayats.
Resolution of dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu can pave the way for addressing interstate river water conflicts.
The five southern States have effectively controlled their population and should not be penalised through reduced political representation.

ESSAY TOPIC

India to awaken the people, it is the women who must be awakened
What we sow we reap.

50-WORD TALK

Canada should have first pursued private diplomatic talks with New Delhi before it decided to go to parliament with Nijjar killing allegations and collect a mohalla-style panchayat of its global allies. The onus of privileging its domestic politics over diplomacy is on Ottawa. Justin Trudeau can’t have it both ways.
The journey to gender equality in India’s workforce is long and challenging. Yet, the potential benefits of women’s economic empowerment are enormous and transformative, both for women and society. Our collective responsibility is to ensure that the women workforce in India gets their due.
India can serve as a catalyst for positive change, promoting food security and sustainable development in the Indo-Pacific for the benefit of the entire region. Regional cooperation, knowledge-sharing, and collaboration among nations in the region are vital for developing and implementing effective strategies to overcome these challenges.

Things to Remember:

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

CIRCULAR MIGRATION: LOOKING AT BOTH SIDES OF THE DEBATE

REFERENCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 1: SOCIETY: POPULATION RELATED ISSUES; SIGNIFICANCE OF MIGRATION, CHALLENGES TO MIGRATION

CONTEXT: With rapid industrialisation, there has been a huge flow of migrants from rural areas to urban cities. In India, internal migration, which is migration within a particular country or State, has almost always been circular.

WHAT IS CIRCULAR MIGRATION?

- Circular migration is a repetitive form of migration wherein people move to another place i.e the destination country and back i.e country of origin according to the availability of employment.
- This effectively means that instead of migrating permanently or temporarily to another location, people move to different locations for a brief period of time when work is available.
- It is a phenomenon mostly seen among low-income groups who migrate to avail of seasonally available jobs in another country, city, place etc.
- As per the report on measuring circular migration by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Task Force, one is called a circular migrant if one have completed at least ‘two loops’ between two countries. This means one have travelled between your destination and origin country at least two times.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CIRCULAR MIGRATION

According to Philippe Fargues, migration can be defined as circular if it meets the following criteria:

1. 1. There is a temporary residence in the destination location
  2. There is the possibility of multiple entries into the destination country
  3. There is freedom of movement between the country of origin and the country of destination during the period of residence
  4. There is a legal right to stay in the destination country
  5. There is protection of migrants’ rights
  6. There is a healthy demand for temporary labour in the destination country.

CIRCULAR MIGRATION WITHIN INDIA

- In India, internal migration, which is migration within a particular country or State, has almost always been circular with the advent of jobs in the manufacturing, construction and services sector.
- However, only recently has the phenomenon been given its due as the seasonal movement of migrants was not properly documented or was boxed along with short-term or temporary migration.
- In India, the uneven development post-liberalisation, has led to a lot of inter-State migration, with States like West Bengal, Odisha and Bihar having some of the highest rates of out-migration. Initially, while most of the migration was to Delhi, nowadays it has increased to southern States as well.
- According to a study, most of the rural migrants were occupied in agricultural jobs in their origin States and when they migrated a majority of them were engaged in low-skill jobs.

REASONS BEHIND CIRCULAR MIGRATION

- Advent of globalization: Circular migration became quite popular in the 60s and 70s with the advent of globalisation and development.
- Access to modern communication: Increased access to modern forms of transport and communication, social networks and the growth of multinational corporations have aided the advent of circular migration.

POSITIVES OF CIRCULAR MIGRATION

- Balancing act: Circular migration is now seen as the best way forward, as needs of development and individual economic advancement can be balanced out. It is also seen as a balanced migration method which looks at migration not only from the point of view of the receiving country but also of the sending nation.

1. 1. For the country of origin, migration, especially international migration, is beneficial due to the flow of remittances which will boost and aid the domestic economy. The flow of foreign capital will enhance the economy ensuring more infrastructure, more jobs and by association, a better standard of living.
  2. From the perspective of the host countries, especially those of the West, a lesser population and a higher access to education has resulted in a large dearth of low-income low-skill jobs which migrants have been able to fill.

- Rises standard of living: The positive outcomes of such migration rises standards of living of migrants which include increased access to higher paying jobs when compared to origin States, better household welfare due to remittances, ease of mobility etc.
- More autonomy to women: Some reports have even stated how women get more autonomy and decision-making power in the family due to the absence of men who migrate.

ISSUES WITH CIRCULAR MIGRATION

- Framing public policy: With the increasing fluid movement of people, framing policy around migration is one of the biggest challenges for policymakers as it needs to address complex challenges.
- Brain drain: Migration of citizen from origin to host country creates brain drain for their origin countries where most talented people of origin country use their intellect and innovation for the advancement of another country.
- Reduced opportunity for natives: There is a concern of reduced opportunity for natives in host countries and increased competition between citizens.
- Job uncertainty: There is also a certain risks associated with circular migration as jobs related are seasonal and often irregular. There are also issues of migrant to work in unhygienic and unsafe conditions and are routinely exploited.
- Cultural conflicts: The influx of migrants have caused a wide range of anxieties and cultural conflicts in the host populations with most of them now calling for restrictions and outright ban on migration.

THE WAY FORWARD:

- Bilateral agreements with host countries: For protection of migrant workers in other counties there is need to ensure bilateral agreements with countries like UAE, USA where most of our countrymen in order to ensure their welfare and security.
- Digitisation: There is need for digitization of migrant workers data for better management and ensure access to basic resources through government initiative like One nation One card.
- Government initiative: Both Central Government and host and origin government need to take stringent action to address the issue. Though, Central government have enacted Inter-State Migrant Workmen act, 1979 and Code on Social security to regulate safety and employment of migrant workers. Also, some States like Kerala have announced health insurance schemes for migrant workers as Awaz Health scheme but there is need of more effort to ensure migrants rights.
- Beneficial for both countries: Circular migration can bring the tendency of frequent movement where negative effects of brain drain will reduce and a sort of brain circulation will be encouraged. Here, the individual can use his talents in both countries and still contribute to remittances.
- Using migration for development: There is need for effective management of migration to maximize the development impact of migration for all.
- Cultural unification: Migration leads to intermixing of people from diverse cultures. It can be used for positive contributions such as the evolution of composite culture and breaking of the narrow mentality of the people at large.

THE CONCLUSION: Circular migrants remain at the margins of physical, social, cultural, and political spaces in both areas whether rural or urban. It is high time that States start actively formulating policy to understand the extent of circular migration and address the issue of migrants proactively.

SOURCE: https://www.thehindu.com/specials/text-and-context/circular-migration-looking-at-both-sides-of-the-debate/article67377466.ece

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

1. 1. What are the main socio-economic implications arising out of the development of IT industries in major cities of India? (2021)
  2. Discuss the changes in the trends of labour migration within and outside India in the last four decades. (2015)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

1. 1. What is circular migration and how is it different from other forms of migration? Explain its reasons with context of trends seen in India.
  2. With rapid industrialisation, there has been a huge trend of circular migration. Discuss the positive and negative aspects of circulation migration.

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 30,2022)

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. THE BATTLE OVER MINING IN CHHATTISGARH’S HASDEO FOREST

THE CONTEXT: The state government had in March given a go-head for coal mining in an area of 1,136 hectares under the second phase of Parsa East-Kete Basan (PEKB) coal block.

THE EXPLANATION:

The state government had in March given a go-head for coal mining in an area of 1,136 hectares under the second phase of the Parsa East-Kete Basan (PEKB) coal block.
A sprawling forest in the northern part of Chhattisgarh, Hasdeo Arand is known for its biodiversity and also its coal deposits. The forest falls under Korba, Sujapur and Sarguja districts with sizeable tribal populations. The Hasdeo river, a tributary of Mahanadi, flows through it.

Released in 2021, a report on the region by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, termed Hasdeo Arand the “largest un-fragmented forests in Central India consisting of pristine Sal (Shorearobusta) and teak forests.”

The Hasdeo Arand Coal Field (HACF) is spread over nearly 1,880 sq km and comprises 23 coal blocks. The demand for mining picked up around 2010, when the Chhattisgarh government recommended forest clearance for diverting 1,898.328 hectares of forest land for Parsa East and Kente Basan (PEKB) coal fields. These were allotted to Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited (RRVUNL).
The PEKB coal block is run by Adani Enterprises, the official Mine Developer and Operator in this venture.
However, this first move was followed by multiple court orders, forest assessment reports, and protests by forest-dwellers.
In June 2011, the Forest Advisory Committee of the Environment ministry recommended against diverting the forest land for mining. The then Environment Minister, the Congress party’s Jairam Ramesh, overruled this decision, saying coal mining will be done in an area away from the dense forests.
In 2012, Forest Clearance was granted by the MoEF for mining in phase I of PEKB coal mines, which limited mining to 762 hectares and a reserve of 137 million tonnes.
In March, the Chhattisgarh government said that it has given permission to Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam for coal mining in an area of 1,136 hectares under the second phase of PEKB coal block.
As of May 2022, two studies by the ICFRE and Wildlife Institute of India (WII) have come out. Both have underlined the importance of biodiversity in the region that mining will undoubtedly affect. They also address the issue of human-elephant conflicts, noting that while Chhattisgarh has less elephants compared to other states, it accounts for a significant percentage of conflict due to habitat loss or clearing of forests. Further deforestation could lead to elephant movements spilling over to urban areas, these studies have noted.
The ICFRE also noted the loss of the natural environment and the “serious impact on the community in form of loss of livelihood, identity, and culture” with regards to tribal people living in the area, if mining were to be allowed. But it backed considering mining in four blocks: Tara, Parsa, PEKB and Kente Extension with “strict environmental safeguards”. It further said that the PEKB block was a “habitat to rare, endangered and threatened flora and fauna”.
Though cases are pending in various courts and a further study has been suggested by even the ICFRE, in March 2022 the Chhattisgarh government approved the second phase of mining in PEKB coal block.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. RESERVATION IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT

THE CONTEXT: The jurisprudence of reservation relies on the symbiotic coexistence of constitutionally guaranteed equality of opportunity in public employment under Article 16 (1) of the Constitution of India and classifications thereunder various clauses of the same article, especially Article 16(4) and Article 16 (4 A), which are in the nature of facilitating provisions, vesting a discretion on the government to consider providing reservations for the socially and educationally backward sections of the society and to provide reservation in promotion to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, respectively.

THE EXPLANATION:

It is settled law, time and again reiterated by the Supreme Court, that there is no fundamental right to reservation or promotion under Article 16(4) or Article 16(4 A) of the Constitution, rather they are enabling provisions for providing reservation, if the circumstances so warrant ( Mukesh Kumar and Another vs State of Uttarakhand &Ors. 2020).
However, these pronouncements no way understate the constitutional directive under Article 46 that mandates that the state shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people and in particular Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
In fact, the sensitivity of the welfare state towards the weaker sections over decades resulted in the gradual expansion of canopy of reservation in the form of increasing classifications under Article 16, a set of actions that created a wave of litigation by which resulted in the ever-evolving jurisprudence of affirmative action in public employment.
Reservation in employment which was otherwise confined to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes got extended to Other Backward Classes as well on the basis of the recommendations of the Second Backward Class Commission as constituted, headed by B.P. Mandal.
The recommendation of the Mandal Commission (1980) to provide 27% reservation to Other Backward Classes in central services and public sector undertakings, over and above the existing 22.5% reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, was sought to be implemented by the V.P. Singh Government in 1990 and the same was assailed in the Supreme Court resulting in the historic Indra Sawhney Judgment (1992). In the judgment, a nine-judge bench presided by Chief Justice M.H. Kania upheld the constitutionality of the 27% reservation but put a ceiling of 50% unless exceptional circumstances warranting the breach, so that the constitutionally guaranteed right to equality under Article 14 would remain secured.
The Court dwelled on the interrelationship between Articles 16(1) and 16(4) and declared that Article 16(4) is not an exception to article 16(1), rather an illustration of classification implicit in article 16(1).
While Article 16(1) is a fundamental right, Article 16(4) is an enabling provision. Further, the Court directed the exclusion of the creamy layer by way of horizontal division of every other backward class into creamy layer and non-creamy layer.
In Indra Sawhney Case, the Supreme Court had held that Article 16(4) of the Constitution of India does not authorise reservation in the matter of promotions. However, the judgment was not to affect the promotions already made and hence only prospective in operation, it was ruled.
By the Constitution (Seventy-seventh Amendment) Act, 1995, which, Article 16(4-A), was inserted to provide that “nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for reservation in matters of promotion to any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes which, in the opinion of the State, are not adequately represented in the services under the State”.
Later, two more amendments were brought, one to ensure consequential seniority and another to secure carry forward of unfilled vacancies of a year, the former by way of addition to Article 16(4 A) and the latter by way of adding Article 16(4 B).
A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court declared the 1995 amendment as not vocative of basic structure of the Constitution but laid down certain conditions which included the collection of “quantifiable data showing backwardness of the class and inadequacy of representation of that class in public employment”. . The bench held that the creamy layer among Scheduled castes and tribes is to be excluded from the reservation.
In the aforementioned case, a constitution bench of the Supreme Court was called on to examine the wisdom of the 2006 judgment in the light of the constitutionally recognised socio-economic backwardness of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes which may not require any further substantiation. It was also contended that the requirement to identify creamy lawyer among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled tribes fell foul of Indra Sawhney’s decision.
The constitution bench invalidated the requirement to collect quantifiable data in relation to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes but upheld the principle of applicability of creamy lawyer in relation to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Jarnail Singh judgment authored by Justice Rohinton Nariman indicates a critical turn in the jurisprudence of reservation.
The 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), other Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and backward classes for government jobs and admission in educational institutions is currently under challenge before the Supreme Court which has referred the same to a constitution bench.
The adjudication awaited in this regard may also turn to be a critical milestone in the jurisprudence of reservation as the traditional understanding of backwardness is broadened to specifically include economic backwardness without social backwardness as is traditionally seen.
Despite the Indra Sawhney ruling, there have been attempts on the part of many States to breach the rule by way of expanding the reservation coverage and Maharashtra Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Act 2018, (Maratha reservation law) came under challenge before the Supreme Court which referred the same to a bench of five judges and one question was whether the 1992 judgment needs a relook.
Interestingly, the Supreme Court not only affirmed the Indra Sawhney decision but also struck down Section 4(1)(a) and Section 4(1)(b) of the Act which provided 12% reservation for Marathas in educational institutions and 13% reservation in public employment respectively, citing the breach of the ceiling. “The 2018 Act as amended in 2019 granting reservation for Maratha community does not make out any exceptional circumstance to exceed the ceiling limit of 50% reservation,”, declared the apex Court.
This judgment is likely to rein in the propensity on the part of some State governments to blatantly disregard the stipulated ceiling on electoral grounds rather than any exceptional circumstances as conceived by the constitution bench. It is pertinent to note that several States such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh had made submissions before the Supreme Court against any upper limit on the reservation.

3. ABSOLUTION: ON NEED TO COMPENSATE FOR UNLAWFUL ARRESTS

THE CONTEXT: India needs a law to make compensation for unlawful arrest a statutory right

THE EXPLANATION:

Shoddy investigation is one thing, but a malicious and motivated probe is quite another. The probe conducted by former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) official Sameer Wankhede into a purported tip-off about the consumption of drugs on board a cruise ship, in October 2021, seems to fall in the latter category.
The raid on the vessel resulted in seizure of narcotic substances and the arrest of several people, including Aryan Khan, son of Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan. Even though nothing was seized from Mr. Khan, the agency made sensational claims in court about his being part of an international drug trafficking network and, quite strangely, cited messages purportedly exchanged on WhatsApp as ‘evidence’. By the time he obtained bail weeks later, the case had all the makings of a witch-hunt.
A special investigation team from Delhi, which took over the case after allegations of extortion surfaced against Mr. Wankhede, has now cited lapses in the initial investigation and the lack of prosecutable evidence, and absolved Mr. Khan and five others and excluded them from the charge sheet filed recently. The lapses include failure to video-graph the search of the ship, not conducting a medical examination to prove consumption, and examining Mr. Khan’s phone and reading messages on it without any legal basis.
It is good that the agency made amends for the mischief done by the initial set of investigators by applying the standard of ‘proof beyond reasonable doubt’ while presenting its final report. At the same time, the NCB has to re-examine its priorities. It is an elite agency in the fight against international trafficking in narcotic and psychotropic substances.
Its primary focus ought to be on trans-national smuggling networks, while the job of pursuing drug peddlers and raiding rave parties must be left to the local police. While strict disciplinary action is warranted if any officer is found involved in ‘fixing’ someone, it is also time that the Government came out with a legal framework for compensating those jailed without proof. The country does not have a law on the grant of compensation to those maliciously prosecuted.
However, constitutional courts do exercise their vast powers sometimes to award monetary recompense; the remedy of a civil suit is also available in law, but it is time-consuming. The Law Commission of India has recommended the enactment of a law to make compensation in such cases an enforceable right. Currently, Section 358 of the Cr.P.C. provides for a paltry fine to be imposed on a person on whose complaint a person is arrested without sufficient grounds.
Such provisions should be expanded to cover just compensation by the state for unnecessary arrests. It is a sobering thought to note that even people with celebrity status and vast resources are not insulated from the misuse of police powers, even while recognising that it is still possible to vindicate one’s innocence and force the establishment to adopt a course correction.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

4. DEEPENING STRATEGIC COMMITMENT

THE CONTEXT: The Quad (the U.S., India, Japan and Australia) held its second in-person leaders’ summit in Tokyo on May 24. It has emerged stronger and clearer in its strategy and goals for the security and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific. The efforts by the Quad countries should be viewed not only from the prism of the summits but also from the wider context of international developments and the continuing process of consolidation of the bilateral relations within, especially U.S.-India ties.

THE EXPLANATION:

This is the second interaction of the Quad leaders held after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. That war has no end in sight. With India abstaining from most anti-Russia voting in multilateral bodies, experts in India worried about the impact of Ukraine on the Indo-Pacific region, particularly U.S.-India ties. Some feared that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would face new and intense pressure in Tokyo from the U.S. to condemn Russia. Others argued that the U.S. understood India’s nuanced position on Ukraine and may refocus on China’s strategic game in the region.
The latter interpretation proved correct. India and the U.S. agreed to disagree on Ukraine but showed full readiness to further strengthen the Quad and their bilateral cooperation, which, U.S. President Joe Biden said, he was “committed to making…among the closest we have on Earth.”
With China, he has moved beyond the traditional U.S. stance of ‘strategic ambiguity’ and pointedly referred to Ukraine to stress that China’s armed action against Taiwan would be unacceptable and attract a military response.
The central driving force of the Quad is to counter China’s growing expansionism and belligerence. The grouping’s diplomatic device of defining its raison d’être without ever using the word ‘China’ was best reflected in the ‘Quad Joint Leaders’ Statement’ which reads, “We reaffirm our resolve to uphold the international rules-based order where countries are free from all forms of military, economic and political coercion.”
Thus, China is not only the glue that holds the Quad together; it is also the fuel that may, through Beijing’s bad behaviour in the future, drive the grouping’s inner consolidation, as shown by an expanding agenda.
The Quad agenda now covers nine sectors: vaccine partnership and health security, climate action, critical and emerging technologies, cooperation on infrastructure, cyber security, space cooperation, education and people-to-people ties, maritime domain awareness, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. The Quad claims to have established “a positive and practical agenda” in year one; in year two, it will focus on “delivery.” This needs to be watched.
Not all commitments have been met. The promise of making available at least one billion COVID-19 vaccine doses to Indo-Pacific countries has fallen short. Excluding what the Quad countries contributed to COVAX, just 25% have been delivered to the region so far.
This needs to be expanded rapidly. Meanwhile, Quad experts have begun planning ways to enhance capacity for early detection and monitoring of “new and emerging pathogens with pandemic potential.”
On infrastructure, a new commitment was made at Tokyo for the Quad to extend over $50 billion in investment and assistance to the Indo-Pacific countries over the next five years. While the focus is on the ASEAN countries and the Pacific Island States, a part of this funding should perhaps reach the Indian Ocean region too, with its touch points in Africa.
The Common Statement of Principles on Critical Technology Supply Chains is significant, as it concerns cooperation on semiconductors.
The atmospherics of the summit improved significantly after the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) a day earlier. The joint announcement was made by the Quad, seven ASEAN member-states (excluding Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos), South Korea and New Zealand.
The plan is to prepare their economies for the future by conducting negotiations on the pillars of trade; supply chains; tax and anti-corruption and clean energy; decar bonisation and infrastructure. The IPEF is ambitious, but doable.
India’s constructive participation in the Tokyo summit and agreement to join IPEF demonstrated commitment to strengthening its strategic partnerships in order to push back China’s dominance. At the same time, New Delhi has agreed to the expansion of BRICS membership. This simultaneous engagement with the Quad and BRICS is New Delhi’s strategic autonomy in full play.
India’s presidency of the G20 in 2023 and the likelihood of India hosting the Quad summit in 2024 will ensure that it follows a calibrated policy and stays on track, as every major step will attract international attention.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. ECONOMY FACING STAGFLATION

THE CONTEXT: The Government, worried about the inflation rapidly inching up month after month, has finally become proactive. The steps announced are designed to lower the prices of basics like diesel, steel, cement and plastics. Wholesale Price Index (‘WPI’) has risen at more than ten percent for more than a year, and in April 2022, it was at 15.08 percent – a level not seen in more than a decade. Consumer Price Index (‘CPI’) has risen 7.8 percent, well above the Reserve Bank of India (‘RBI’)’s target of four percent plus-minus two percent for the fourth consecutive month.

THE EXPLANATION:

Inflation is high whichever measure we take. The CPI reflects the impact of inflation on the citizen’s budget. If it is higher than the increase in incomes, wages and salaries of people, then their standard of living declines. The WPI is what the producers take into account in their cost of production.
That in turn determines the price of their product and the profits they earn. Rising WPI sooner or later translates to higher consumer prices, which have been moderated of late by the decline in the wage bill and interest costs. That is why the CPI has lagged considerably behind the WPI for some time.
The April 2022 data shows that the increase in CPI is accelerating. It is much higher (7.8 percent) than its level in April 2021 (4.2 percent). Also, it is substantially above March 2022, at about 20 percent at an annualized rate. This has given momentum to the rising rate of inflation measured by CPI, and it is likely to continue to rise in the coming months. The government is trying to check this.
The situation is aggravated by the slowing down of the world economy due to the war in Ukraine and lockdowns in China. They are causing increased supply disruptions and shortages of various critical inputs like energy, fertilizer, metals, computer chips, manufactured products, wheat and soybean.
Consequently, prices are not only rising; India’s current account deficit has rapidly increased, thereby weakening the rupee against the dollar, though not against other major currencies. Since trade is denominated in dollars, it has meant that all imported items, including energy, become more expensive in India and inflation kicks up.
Including the unorganized sectors, production, employment and investment have not recovered to the pre-pandemic levels. The economy has recouped only a part of the pandemic hit production in 2020-21.
Not only is the economy below the pre-pandemic level: if undisturbed by the pandemic, it would have continued to grow at about four percent; thereby in 2021-22, it would have been higher than its level in 2019-20 by more than eight per cent (not the official 1.7 per cent).
So, at best, one can say the economy is stagnant. Combined with the accelerating inflation, the implication is that the economy is in stagflation. This has serious implications for the economy and especially for the marginalized sections. For them, a reduction in the rate of inflation is not enough, given their stagnant or declining incomes.
It puts policy makers in a fix. If, to control inflation, they try to reduce demand, then the economy slows down. If they try to boost growth, then inflation may rise. The delicate solution lies in eliminating supply bottlenecks without curtailing demand.
The RBI raised the cash reserve ratio to reduce liquidity, and raised interest rates to reduce demand. However, these do not address the reasons for rising inflation, which are: supply bottlenecks in India and abroad, the war in Ukraine and consequent shortages, the lockdown in China, the increased pricing power of corporates, closure of units in small and micro sectors in India and increase in global freight charges. Presently, when consumption has not yet recovered and demand is short, an increase in interest rates will only reduce investment, employment and incomes – worsening stagflation.
It is for government to address supply bottlenecks, check speculation and reduce indirect taxes to lower inflation. Units that have closed down need to be helped to revive. Direct tax collections have to be increased so that the indirect taxes can be cut without driving up the fiscal deficit in the budget. Specific steps for doing this have been suggested many times recently. The budget needs to be redrawn since expenditures will rise with inflation (through, for instance, the subsidy bill) while revenue buoyancy will decline due to slowdown in the economy.
In brief, the economy faces stagflation, to tackle which government, rather than the RBI, needed to act; the steps announced are a start. More needs to be done to eliminate supply bottlenecks without curtailing demand.

THE MISCELLANOUS

6. WHAT IS THE WEST NILE VIRUS, HOW DOES IT SPREAD?

THE CONTEXT: The Kerala health department is on alert after the death of a 47-year-old from Thrissur due to the West Nile Virus. Earlier in 2019, a six-year-old boy in Malappuram district had died of the same infection. The virus was first reported in the state in Alappuzha in 2006 and then in Ernakulam in 2011.

THE EXPLANATION:

The West Nile Virus is a mosquito-borne, single-stranded RNA virus. According to the WHO, it is “a member of the flavivirus genus and belongs to the Japanese Encephalitis antigenic complex of the family Flaviviridae”. Culex species of mosquitoes act as the principal vectors for transmission. It is transmitted by infected mosquitoes between and among humans and animals, including birds, which are the reservoir host of the virus.
WNV can also spread through blood transfusion, from an infected mother to her child, or through exposure to the virus in laboratories. It is not known to spread by contact with infected humans or animals.
According to the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it does not spread “through eating infected animals, including birds. Always follow instructions for fully cooking meat”.
To date, no human-to-human transmission of WNV through casual contact has been documented, says the WHO.
The disease is asymptomatic in 80% of the infected people. The rest develop what is called the West Nile fever or severe West Nile disease. In these 20% cases, the symptoms include fever, headache, fatigue, body aches, nausea, rash, and swollen glands.
The virus was first isolated in a woman in the West Nile district of Uganda in 1937. It was identified in birds (crows and columbiformes like doves and pigeons) in the Nile delta region in 1953. Before 1997, WNV was not considered pathogenic for birds, but then, a more virulent strain caused the death in Israel of different bird species, presenting signs of encephalitis and paralysis.
In 1999, a WMV strain, believed to be one circulating in Israel and Tunisia, reached New York producing a large outbreak that spread across the United States and eventually across the Americas, from Canada to Venezuela.
According to the WHO, human infections attributable to WNV have been reported in many countries in the world for over 50 years.
WNV outbreak sites are found along major bird migratory routes.
Today, the virus is found commonly in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, North America, and West Asia.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 30TH MAY 2022

Q1.Consider the following statements about India’s external trade in 2021-22:

U.S. surpassed China to become India’s top trading partner.
Exports to U.S. from India are higher than exports to China.
Imports from China to India are higher than imports from U.S.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 28^thMAY

Answer: A

Explanation:

The Sela Pass is the high-altitude mountain pass located in Tawang District. It has an elevation of 4170 m (13,700 ft) connects the Buddhist city of Tawang Town to Tezpur and Guwahati and is the main road connecting Tawang with the rest of India.

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 26,2022)

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. WHY ARE TRIBALS OF RAJASTHAN AND GUJARAT DEMANDING A SEPARATE STATE OF BHIL PRADESH?

THE CONTEXT: The Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP), a political party based in Gujarat, envisions Bhil Pradesh as a separate state carved out of 39 districts spread over four states: 16 in Gujarat, 10 in Rajasthan, seven in Madhya Pradesh, and six in Maharashtra.

THE EXPLANATION:

What is ‘Bhil Pradesh’?

The Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP), a political party based in Gujarat, envisions Bhil Pradesh as a separate state carved out of 39 districts spread over four states: 16 in Gujarat, 10 in Rajasthan, seven in Madhya Pradesh, and six in Maharashtra.
Bhil social reformer and spiritual leader Govind Guru first raised the demand for a separate state for tribals back in 1913 after the Mangarh massacre. The massacre, which took place six years before Jallianwala Bagh and is sometimes referred to as the “Adivasi Jallianwala”, saw hundreds of Bhil tribals being killed by British forces on November 17, 1913, in the hills of Mangarh on the border of Rajasthan and Gujarat. Post-Independence, the demand for Bhil Pradesh was raised repeatedly.

But why do the tribals want a separate state of their own?

Earlier, the Dungarpur, Banswara, Udaipur region in Rajasthan and Gujarat, MP, etc. was part of a single entity. But post-Independence, the tribal majority regions were divided by the political parties, so that the tribals don’t organise and unite.
over the decades, several Union governments brought various “laws, benefits, schemes, and committee reports” on tribals, but went slow on their execution and implementation.
“There were various measures such as the protection of tribal interests through the Fifth Schedule under Article 244(1) of the Constitution, but most of these were mere assurances by the ruling party,
The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996. “The law was enacted in 1996. The Rajasthan government adopted the law in 1999 and came out with its Rules in 2011. But even in my village Paldeval in Dungarpur, 25 years on, people don’t even know about the law. Even the MLAs and ministers don’t have proper knowledge about the law.”

2. SUPREME COURT RECOGNISES SEX WORK AS A ‘PROFESSION’

THE CONTEXT: The apex court says police should neither interfere nor take criminal action against adult and consenting sex workers.

THE EXPLANATION:

In a significant order recognising sex work as a “profession” whose practitioners are entitled to dignity and equal protection under law, the Supreme Court has directed that police should neither interfere nor take criminal action against adult and consenting sex workers.
“It need not be gainsaid that notwithstanding the profession, every individual in this country has a right to a dignified life under Article 21 of the Constitution,” the court observed.
“Sex workers are entitled to equal protection of the law. Criminal law must apply equally in all cases, on the basis of ‘age’ and ‘consent’. When it is clear that the sex worker is an adult and is participating with consent, the police must refrain from interfering or taking any criminal action,” a three-judge Bench led by Justice L. Nageswara Rao directed in an order which was passed after invoking special powers under Article 142 of the Constitution.
The Bench ordered that sex workers should not be “arrested or penalised or harassed or victimised” whenever there is a raid on any brothel, “since voluntary sex work is not illegal and only running the brothel is unlawful”.
A child of a sex worker should not be separated from the mother merely on the ground that she is in the sex trade, the court held. “Basic protection of human decency and dignity extends to sex workers and their children,” the court noted.
Further, if a minor is found living in a brothel or with sex workers, it should not be presumed that the child was trafficked.
“In case the sex worker claims that he/she is her son/daughter, tests can be done to determine if the claim is correct and if so, the minor should not be forcibly separated,” the court-ordered.
The court ordered the police to not discriminate against sex workers who lodge a criminal complaint, especially if the offence committed against them is of a sexual nature. Sex workers who are victims of sexual assault should be provided every facility including immediate medico-legal care.
The Centre and States must involve sex workers or their representatives to reform laws, the court suggested.

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

3. INDIA MUST SHIFT THE DISCOURSE ON ABORTION RIGHTS

THE CONTEXT: It is not just a family planning and maternal health issue, but also a sexual health and reproductive rights issue

THE EXPLANATION:

Our public health journeys started with witnessing maternal deaths in India. One of us, on her first clinical rotation, saw a woman die of sepsis, and infection in the blood, due to unsafe backstreet abortion. And the other, during her rural health internship in Uttar Pradesh, witnessed a pregnant woman die on a wooden hand-pulled cart because she was unable to reach the hospital in time. The images of these two women with their swollen abdomen and pale, dying faces still haunt us, as we reflect on the privileges we enjoy as women belonging to a certain class and caste in India.
Women, pregnant people and transgender persons in India struggle every day to exert their choice about birthing and their bodily autonomy. Yet, despite this bleak reality, netizens on social media in India claim that the country is more progressive than the U.S. on abortion rights because we have the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (“MTP Act”). Such a self-congratulatory attitude is neither in good faith nor is it factually correct.
According to the World Health Organization, six out of 10 of all unintended pregnancies end in induced abortion. Around 45% of all abortions are unsafe, almost all of which (97%) take place in developing countries. As per a nationally representative study published in PLOS One journal in 2014, abortions account for 10% of maternal deaths in India.
The recent round of the National Family Health Survey 2019-2021, shows that 3% of all pregnancies in India result in abortion. More than half (53%) of abortions in India are performed in the private sector, whereas only 20% are performed in the public sector — partly because public facilities often lack abortion services. More than a quarter of abortions (27%) are performed by the woman herself at home.
In another a fact-finding study published in The Lancet in 2018, 73% of all abortions in India in 2015 were medication abortions, and even though these may have been safe — many of these are illegal as per the MTP Act, if they occur without the approval of a registered medical practitioner. Another 5% of all abortions were outside of health facilities with methods other than medication abortion.
These risky abortions are performed by untrained people under unhygienic conditions using damaging methods such as insertion of objects, ingestion of various substances, abdominal pressure, etc. A recent study found that sex-selective abortions in India could lead to 6.8 million fewer girls being born between 2017 to 2030.
Many may be unaware of these disturbing statistics and facts. But we all know of at least one adolescent girl among our family or friends or networks who had to travel to another city in order to find a ‘non-judgmental’ obstetrician or who had to arrange money to access abortion in the private sector. Or, we may have heard of someone who has aborted a female foetus because the family wanted a son; or know of a mother who escaped the pressure of such forced abortion because she did not want to lose her pregnancy.
The MTP Act, first enacted in 1971 and then amended in 2021, certainly makes ‘medical termination of pregnancy’ legal in India under specific conditions. However, this Act is framed from a legal standpoint to primarily protect medical practitioners because under the Indian Penal Code, “induced miscarriage” is a criminal offence. This premise points to a lack of choice and bodily autonomy of women and rests the decision of abortion solely on the doctor’s opinion. The MTP Act also only mentions ‘pregnant woman’, thus failing to recognise that transgender persons and others who do not identify as women can become pregnant.
Moreover, the acceptance of abortion in Indian society is situated in the context of population control and family planning. But, most importantly, after more than 50 years of the MTP Act, women and transgender persons face major obstacles in accessing safe abortion care.
These are seven examples: First, they may not even be aware that abortion is legal or know where to obtain one safely; second, since the MTP Act does not recognise abortion as a choice, they need the approval of medical professionals even in the first few weeks of the pregnancy; third, unmarried and transgender people continue to face stigma and can be turned away from health facilities, forcing them to resort to unsafe care; fourth, mandatory reporting requirements under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Bill (POCSO), 2011 law against child sexual offences, impact privacy and hinder access of adolescents to safe abortion services; fifth, many are still coerced into agreeing to a permanent or long-term contraceptive method as a prerequisite for getting abortion services; sixth, health-care providers may impose their own morality by insisting on ‘husbands’ or ‘parental’ consent for abortion.
Even women seeking abortion care in health facilities are often mistreated and not provided medications for pain relief; seventh, despite laws prohibiting sex determination, the illegal practice persists. The mushrooming of unregulated ultrasound clinics in India continues to facilitate the illegal practice of sex determination, resulting in unsafe abortions and female foeticide.
It is a testament to class and caste divides when netizens talk of being ‘progressive’ when, 50 years after the MTP Act, women continue to die due to unsafe abortions. Passing one law and assuming the job is done is far from “progressive” when so many face a lack of access, systemic barriers, social norms and cultural preferences, and even criminal liability.
There is an urgent need in our country to shift the discourse on abortions from just being a family planning and maternal health issue to one of a sexual health and reproductive rights issue. The situation in India shows that one law alone is insufficient and we must raise the bar on reproductive justice.
We must improve our health systems to ensure good quality and respectful abortion care. As the focus on abortion rights in the U.S. rages, we call upon all to self-reflect and to stand in solidarity with people in the U.S. and other places where reproductive rights are in jeopardy. Reproductive injustice anywhere is a threat to the lives of people everywhere.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. PRIORITISE RESIDUE-FREE FARMING OVER ORGANIC FARMING

THE CONTEXT: Over the past few years, there has been a paradigm shift in consumer preferences. Indian buyers are becoming increasingly health-conscious and watchful of the food they consume. In light of this trend, two modes of farming — residue-free and organic, have become increasingly popular.

THE EXPLANATION:

Simply put, residue-free farming techniques entail the protection and growth improvement of seedlings and plants by using organically procured bio-fertilizers and biocides.
The produce is also grown using synthetic pesticides, which are applied at predetermined intervals so that the residue is not present in enormous quantities, conforming to the (MRL) Maximum Residue Level.
Organic farming, on the other hand, is an agricultural system that relies on pest controls and bio-fertilizers that are obtained from animal and plant waste. It even involves the plantation of nitrogen-fixing cover crops.

The consumption factor

Residue-free farming eliminates the shortcomings of organic farming techniques. It is essential to promote residue-free over organic farming for the following reasons:
Research now reveals that there are no clear indicators to suggest that organic produce offers a higher nutritional value when compared to fruits and vegetables grown using other techniques.
Residue-free farming practices have been successful in overcoming this downside. Since it does not involve any toxin throughout the production process, the fruits and vegetables, thus produced, are best for those with allergies and other dietary restrictions.
Their overall nutritional value and quality are high. Despite the obvious benefits, farmers in India do not fully embrace residue-free farming, which is mostly neglected by buyers and sellers in the local market.
Several State governments have recognised the importance of residue-free produce. The ₹2,200-crore State of Maharashtra Agribusiness and Rural Transformation (SMART) project plans to supply the urban population of Pune with residue-free produce.

The production factor

According to a study, the yield capacity of organic farming methods is so low that relying solely on these techniques will be insufficient to meet the demands of a constantly rising population. Further, the production of organic items is expensive, and in some instances, the mark-up of these produces is as high as 40 percent. Residue-free techniques, on the other hand, are economical, and they do not hamper production quantity.
It makes use of modern practices like poly-houses, grafting, bio-fertiliser management, and rainwater harvesting. The Centre has launched the All India Network Project on Pesticide Residues (AINP-PR) to combat pesticide contamination in several food commodities. Numerous agritech players are also collaborating with farmers to produce residue-free fruits and vegetables.

The environmental factor

Traditional farming practices depended largely on chemical fertilisers and pesticides. These substances are not only detrimental for consumers but also impoverish the quality of the surrounding environment. For instance, they lead to soil degradation, water pollution and loss of aquatic life, among others. Though organic farming eradicates this problem, the cost of doing so is very high. The yield is insufficient. Residue-free practices entail minimal or no usage of chemicals. They do not hamper any other aspect of farming.
As the name suggests, it leaves no harmful traces behind. To instill a culture of food safety in the country, FSSAI has introduced a list of crop contaminants and their acceptable levels. According to regulation, the certified levels of mentioned elements cannot be breached during production.

Trade and international standards

India apart from its domestic consumption also caters to international fresh food demand. However, Indian goods face rejection because they fail to fall under the international Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs). For example, the EU refused consignments of table grapes of India as they failed to fall under their strict MRL. In 2020, the crops that faced issues on the international front included chillies, basmati rice and sesame seeds. Developed countries encourage and promote residue-free crops. Good agricultural practices, as well as well-defined MRL standards, are used to ensure residue-free produce, and the slightest deviation from their pre-set parameters renders the entire consignment useless.
To make indigenous produce more competitive in the export market, FSSAI has issued a set of MRLs for the compliance of domestic producers. These standards are set after considering the global requirements.
The subcontinent’s focus on residue-free and clean produce has seen a dramatic increase in recent years. Apart from the government and its subsidiary bodies, a plethora of agri-tech players have also entered the picture to spread awareness. Many private players are leveraging technology to empower farmers, streamline the supply chain, incorporate end-to-end traceability and minimise wastage through residue-free cultivation.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. WHAT IS THE SERVICE CHARGE LEVIED BY RESTAURANTS ON CUSTOMERS?

THE CONTEXT: The Centre has called a meeting of restaurant owners over service charges levied by them on customers. The meeting, called by the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, will be held on June 2, 2022, with the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI).

THE EXPLANATION:

The ministry wrote a letter to NRAI – the umbrella restaurant body – saying the restaurants are collecting service charges from consumers by default, even though the collection of any such charge is voluntary and at the discretion of consumers and not mandatory as per law.
A restaurant bill in India comprises food charge (from the menu), with an addition of service charge (anywhere between 5 to 15 percent) and a 5 percent GST on this amount (IGST+SGST). This is for all kinds of standalone restaurants. In case a restaurant is located inside a hotel wherein the room rate is upwards of Rs 7,500 (mostly in case of five-stars), the GST would be 18 percent. While the GST is a mandatory component as per law, it is the service charge which is supposed to be optional. It is the equivalent of what is known as gratuity around the world, or tip, in casual parlance.
Most restaurants decide on the service charge on their own, and print it at the bottom of the menu with an asterisk. It is this component that has come under dispute from time to time, with consumers arguing they are not bound to pay it.
The issue, as per the Ministry, is that almost all restaurants have put service charge (fixed at their own accord) as a default billing option, and if a consumer is aware that it is not compulsory and wants it removed or wants to tip the server directly, the onus is on them to convince the management why they don’t want to pay it.
The department says they received several complaints saying it leads to public embarrassment and spoils the dining experience since at the end of it, they either pay the charge quietly and exit the place feeling cheated or have to try hard to get it removed.
Also, there is no transparency as to where this charge goes. The officials also say that collecting service charge on their own and paying GST on it to the government doesn’t make it authorised.

6. APEX COURT’S RULING ON GST IS A WATERSHED

THE CONTEXT: The judgment is likely to have some impact on the GST Council’s functioning. Collaborative decision making is the way forward

THE EXPLANATION:

In tax laws, every once in a while, a Supreme Court decision gets the ‘landmark’ tag. The recent Supreme Court ruling in the Mohit Minerals case has earned that tag. The issue before the apex court was whether GST could be levied on ocean freight when IGST has been levied on the total transaction value which included freight.
The apex court struck down the levy as unconstitutional and ended the controversy over double taxation on ocean freight. What interested everyone during the course of this decision was the observations of the Court on the GST Council.
The operative part of the court ruling was that the recommendations of the GST Council are not binding on the Union and States for the following reasons:
Parliament intended for the recommendations of the GST Council to only have a persuasive value, particularly when interpreted along with the objective of the GST regime to foster cooperative federalism and harmony between the constituent units.
Parliament and the State legislatures possess simultaneous power to legislate on GST.
The ‘recommendations’ of the GST Council are the product of a collaborative dialogue involving the Union and States. They are recommendatory in nature. To regard them as binding edict would disrupt fiscal federalism, where both the Union and the States are conferred equal power to legislate on GST.
It is not imperative that one of the federal units must always possess a higher share in the power for the federal units to make decisions.
The government, while exercising its rule-making power under the provisions of the CGST Act and IGST Act, is bound by the recommendations of the GST Council.
However, that does not mean that all the recommendations of the GST Council made by virtue of the power of Article 279A (4) are binding on the legislature’s power to enact primary legislation.
The IGST Act and the CGST Act define reverse charge and prescribe the entity that is to be taxed for these purposes. The specification of the recipient — in this case the importer — by Notification 10/2017 is only clarificatory. While import of services qualifies for reverse charge under this notification, this cannot be extended to cases where IGST has already been paid.
The apex court has observed that the impugned levy imposed on the ‘service’ aspect of the transaction is in violation of the principle of ‘composite supply’ enshrined under Section 2(30) read with Section 8 of the CGST Act. Since the Indian importer is liable to pay IGST on the ‘composite supply’, comprising supply of goods and supply of services of transportation, insurance, etc. in a c.i.f. contract, a separate levy on the Indian importer for the ‘supply of services’ by the shipping line would be in violation of Section 8 of the CGST Act.
In essence, the Centre cannot a tax a transaction twice.The operative part of the court ruling was that the recommendations of the GST Council are not binding on the Union and States for the following reasons:
Parliament intended for the recommendations of the GST Council to only have a persuasive value, particularly when interpreted along with the objective of the GST regime to foster cooperative federalism and harmony between the constituent units.
Parliament and the State legislatures possess simultaneous power to legislate on GST.
The ‘recommendations’ of the GST Council are the product of a collaborative dialogue involving the Union and States. They are recommendatory in nature. To regard them as binding edict would disrupt fiscal federalism, where both the Union and the States are conferred equal power to legislate on GST.
It is not imperative that one of the federal units must always possess a higher share in the power for the federal units to make decisions.
The government, while exercising its rule-making power under the provisions of the CGST Act and IGST Act, is bound by the recommendations of the GST Council.
However, that does not mean that all the recommendations of the GST Council made by virtue of the power of Article 279A (4) are binding on the legislature’s power to enact primary legislation.
The IGST Act and the CGST Act define reverse charge and prescribe the entity that is to be taxed for these purposes. The specification of the recipient — in this case the importer — by Notification 10/2017 is only clarificatory. While import of services qualifies for reverse charge under this notification, this cannot be extended to cases where IGST has already been paid.
The apex court has observed that the impugned levy imposed on the ‘service’ aspect of the transaction is in violation of the principle of ‘composite supply’ enshrined under Section 2(30) read with Section 8 of the CGST Act.
Since the Indian importer is liable to pay IGST on the ‘composite supply’, comprising supply of goods and supply of services of transportation, insurance, etc. in a c.i.f. contract, a separate levy on the Indian importer for the ‘supply of services’ by the shipping line would be in violation of Section 8 of the CGST Act. In essence, the Centre cannot a tax a transaction twice.
This judgment of the apex court is bound to have some impact on the working of the GST Council. Collaborative decision-making would be the way forward — this is easier said than done since a few States have strong views on certain aspects of GST taxation and the decision in Mohit Minerals gives them more teeth.
It is expected that the GST Council would not recommend anything that could turn out to be controversial.
While the decision in Mohit Minerals does not give State governments unilateral powers of taxation, it sends a message to the GST Council to listen to all voices including those of protest.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 26TH MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about National Tiger Conservation Authority:

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) is a statutory body.
The Prime Minister is the chairperson of NTCA.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE25^thMAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

Statement 1 is incorrect: It is built by the kings of the Ganga dynasty.
Statement 2 is correct: It is an example of Kalinga Architecture.

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 25,2022)

THE ART AND CULTURE

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

What is the Puri Heritage Corridor Project?

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

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

2. GLASS CLIFF

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

6. INDIA MUST STABILISE THE VALUE OF THE RUPEE

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 25TH MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about Jagannath Puri temple:

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE 24^{th of}MAY

Answer:D

Explanation:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 24,2022)

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE POLITY

2. INTER-STATE COUNCIL RECONSTITUTED

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

3. INDIA NEEDS PARLIAMENTARY SUPERVISION OF TRADE PACTS

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

What triggered SweFin’s NATO application?

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

Why is Turkey against SweFin’s bids?

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. ENGINEERING TOMATOES TO PRODUCE VITAMIN D

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 24TH MAY 2022

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

Rickets
Osteoporosis
Dementia
Cancer

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 3 only

c) 1, 3 and 4 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 23^RDMAY

Answer:D

Explanation:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 22 & 23, 2022)

THE SOCIAL ISSUES

1. HOW DISASTERS, AND POVERTY FUEL HUMAN TRAFFICKING

THE CONTEXT: The World Migration Report 2022noted that more people across the world are now displaced due to climate change-induced disasters than conflicts, reversing a historical trend. This has created a vulnerable group of the population that is targeted for trafficking, studies have shown.

THE EXPLANATION:

Human trafficking is the result of the exploitation of existing vulnerabilities in society such as gender, poverty, place of residence, and geographical locations. These vulnerabilities are aggravated during natural disasters. The devastating situation acts as a breeding ground for traffickers.
Some 30.7 million displacements in 2020 were triggered by natural disasters in 145 countries and territories, according to the report published every other year by the United Nations International Organisation for Migration.
Storms accounted for 14.6 million displacements globally, floods for 14.1 million, extreme temperatures for 46,000 and droughts for 32,000, it added. India reported nearly 4 million new displacements due to climate-induced disasters in 2020, the UN migration data showed.
Total internal displacement across the world due to disasters, conflicts, and violence increased to 40.5 million in 2020 from 31.5 million in 2019, despite containment measures to curb the COVID-19 pandemic, the study added.
Women and children are primarily trafficked in the garb of employment opportunities, assuring safe habitats, among others.
Around 143 million people will migrate to their countries by 2050 due to climate change-related events in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Latin America, the World Bank estimated in September 2021.
Droughts could lead to the migration of 22 million more people in Africa, 12 million in South America and 10 million in Asia by 2059 (in comparison to the 2000-15 period), the UN Convention to Combat Desertification estimated.
Such displacement after disasters leads to people becoming easy targets for traffickers, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees noted.
The link of trafficking with extreme weather events has been observed across the globe in the past decades. Rising incidents of trafficking were first noticed in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, showed a 2016 report by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). In Indonesia, children were abducted and then put up for adoption.
In Haiti, the 2010 earthquake exacerbated cases of trafficking, according to IOM. In the Philippines — where poverty and trafficking were already rampant — cases increased in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, the organization mentioned.
Thailand also saw a rise in human trafficking after this typhoon hit. Drought-affected migrants have also reportedly been smuggled from Cambodia to Thailand, the IOM report showed.
Droughts in African nations have resulted in a rise in marriages of children as young as nine years old, solely because their parents don’t have the money to feed another mouth.
Young girls of age 13-18 years were sexually exploited “by some members of a non-governmental organization, humanitarian staff, security forces and men in positions of power and influence in exchange for money, food or other goods,” a 2002 study by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), citing a survey by UNHCR and Save the Children, the UK showed.
Evidence of forced early marriages were found in Iran after an earthquake and floods hit Bushehr and Mazandaran. In Fiji, after a flood wreaked havoc, children were forced to stay home to look after their younger siblings during the day and indulge in sex work at night, as per the IUCN study.
The Pacific Islands, where erratic rainfall, droughts, floods, and cyclones occur frequently, combined with persisting gender-based violence, is another place where crime has gone up, but evidence remains thin.
Modern slavery and human trafficking are on the rise in India, among other countries, warn the UK-based non-profits International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and Anti-Slavery International in a recent report.

2. LAHBERA: HOW THE LAST SANTHAL SETTLEMENT OF DHANBAD IS FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL

THE CONTEXT: The Santhals of Lahbera are fighting for their identity, ancestral land, and survival amid the dust-laden air of coal mines in what used to be their ancestral homeland once.

THE EXPLANATION:

The settlement of Lahberabasti, surrounded by coal mines, has 50 shanties that are home to almost 500 people. It is the last stronghold of the Santhal tribe in Jharkhand’s Dhanbad district.
The Santhals are fighting for their identity, ancestral land, and survival amid the dust-laden air of the mines in what used to be their ancestral homeland once.
The district of Dhanbad was a part of the region of Manbhum in the province of Bengal during the British Raj and was home to the Santhals and Mundas. Today, though, it looks like any other locality, with hardly any traces of Santhal identity as one enters it.
But on going further, a temple dedicated to Marang Buru, the Santhal god of forests, appears. The shrine is simple and plain, with just a few percussion instruments hung on the wall and an image of the deity.
The Santhals in the basti are gripped by an identity crisis, which they blame on its close proximity to Dhanbad, the second-largest city in Jharkhand.
Many of them are gradually forgetting their own traditions, torn between ‘mainstream’ culture and their traditional practices.
Their food habits, art and dressing style has also undergone major changes in the last 50 years, alienating them from their own culture.

FIGHTING FOR RIGHTS

The Santhals’ struggle for rights to their ancestral land and their daily survival is, however, their top priority.
Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL), a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd, started mining the area in the 1980s. They employed people from the tribe and changed their means of livelihood forever after acquiring their land.
The new generation of Lahbera Santhals is also now completely dependent on the coal economy, as they have no more farmland to practice agriculture.
The Vishwakarma Project began here in 2008, converting the underground mines under the Dhansar Project to open cast, giving 37 jobs to local youth in exchange for land.
Since the mines around the locality are active, the temperature in the area soars 8-9 degrees Celsius above the city temperature. The people of the locality face several problems and have to breathe polluted air every day.
There is a severe water crisis in the area. There is no scope of digging wells or bore wells for water since the area is surrounded by mines on three sides.

THE POLITY

3. UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESS OF ISSUING LOCS

THE CONTEXT: On April 5, the Punjab and Haryana High Court passed omnibus instructions to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Bureau of Immigration (BOI) to serve a copy of an issued LOC to the affected person, state the reasons for issuing the LOC and provide a “post-decisional opportunity”. The Supreme Court, however, stayed this particular paragraph of the High Court order.

THE EXPLANATION:

After several businessmen fled the country after defaulting on loans, the MHA in 2018 brought changes to the 2010 guidelines authorising executives of all public sector banks to generate LOCs against persons who could be detrimental to the economic interests of the country.
Many citizens have moved courts to get the LOC quashed.
A large number of agencies which includes the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Income Tax, State police and intelligence agencies are authorised to generate LOCs. The officer should not be below the rank of a district magistrate or superintendent of police or a deputy secretary in the Union Government.
According to a 2010 official memorandum of the Ministry, details such as First Information Report (FIR) number, and court case number are to be mandatorily provided with name, passport number and other details. The BOI under the MHA is only the executing agency.
They generate LOCs based on requests by different agencies. Since immigration posts are manned by the BOI officials, they are the first responders to execute LOCs by stopping or detaining, or informing about an individual of the issuing agency. The LOCs can be modified; deleted or withdrawn only at the request of the originator. Further, the legal liability of the action taken by immigration authorities in pursuance of LOC rests with the originating agency.
After several businessmen including liquor baron Vijay Mallya, businessmen Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi fled the country after defaulting on loans, the MHA in 2018 brought changes to the 2010 guidelines authorising the chairman, managing director and chief executives of all public sector banks to generate LOCs against persons who could be detrimental to economic interests of the country.
Though an LOC generated by the CBI on October 16, 2015 to “detain” Mr. Mallya existed based on the preliminary enquiry in a ₹900 crore loan default case, it was downgraded to “inform only” on November 23, 2015 as there was no FIR yet against him. Mr. Mallya who was a Rajya Sabha member then was a frequent flyer and he fled to the U.K in March 2016.
The Ministry recently told the Delhi High Court that banks were authorised to generate LOCs as “in the recent past there have been incidents where the willful defaulters or economic offenders of public financial institutions have left the country after usurping public money or defrauding such public financial institutions.”
The 2010 Ministry guidelines give sweeping powers to police and intelligence agencies to generate LOCs in “exceptional cases” without keying incomplete parameters or case details against “suspects, terrorists, anti-national elements, etc, in larger national interest.” In 2015, Greenpeace activist Priya Pillai was stopped from travelling to London on a request by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) based on the “etc” provision in the 2010 order. The LOC was later quashed by the Delhi High Court.
After the special status of J&K under Article 370 of the Constitution was read down by the Parliament in August 2019, LOCs were opened against several politicians, human rights activists, journalists and social activists to bar them from flying out of the country. The number of persons and the crime for which they have been placed under the list is unknown.
Many citizens have moved courts to get the LOC quashed. The MHA has asserted that “LOCs cannot be shown to the subject” at the time of detention nor can any prior intimation be provided. The Ministry recently informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the LOC guidelines are a secret document and the same cannot be shared with the ‘accused’ or any unauthorised stakeholder; it cannot be provided or shown to the subject at the time of detention by the BOI since it defeats the purpose of LOC and no accused or subject of LOC can be provided any opportunity of hearing before the issuance of the LOC.
On January 12, a Delhi High Court bench led by Justice Rekha Palli had quashed a LOC against a Delhi businessman Vikas Chaudhary generated at the instance of the Income Tax department. The court said “no proceedings under any penal law had been initiated against the petitioner” and the LOC was “wholly unsustainable.”
A Delhi court on April 8 while quashing a LOC against Aakar Patel, chair, of Amnesty International India said that “there cannot be any unfettered control or restriction on the right to travel” and that it was part of the fundamental rights and asked the Director of the CBI to tender a written apology.
As per norms, a LOC will stay valid for a maximum period of 12 months and if there is no fresh request from the agency then it will not be automatically revived.

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

4. PM TO ATTEND TOKYO LAUNCH OF U.S. TRADE INITIATIVE

THE CONTEXT: India is yet to take a decision on joining the trade partnership framework but is keen to understand the ‘contours’ of the plan.

THE EXPLANATION:

Prime Minister on May 23, 2022arrived in Japan on a two-day visit to attend a summit of the Quad leaders which is aimed at further bolstering cooperation among the member nations of the influential grouping and discussing developments in the Indo-Pacific region.
Prime Minister will participate in U.S. President Joseph Biden’s unveiling of the “Indo-Pacific Economic Framework” (IPEF) in Tokyo o, a US initiative for trade partnerships in the region.
Sources confirmed PM’s attendance of the event is a significant step towards building economic ties amongst Quad countries in the Indo-Pacific, although officials were hesitant to bill the IPEF as a counter the 15-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the 17-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) that China is a member of.
The Quad will organise a special session on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly (WHA) on May 24, where the four countries will jointly tackle issues of disinformation during the pandemic and boosting vaccine confidence.
The grouping is also expected to discuss and possibly review its Quad Vaccine Initiative project to disburse US-developed and funded, India-made distributed by Japan and Australia amongst Indo-Pacific countries that has been stuck due to what Mr. Sullivan called “regulatory issues” with India.
The first Quad interaction last year had committed to distributing one billion of the vaccines, made at Hyderabad-based Biological-E by the end of 2022, but has made no headway on the project yet.
Another issue the Quad is divided over whether to support Taiwan’s request to be included as an observer at the WHA, something China opposes. While the US, Australia and Japan have backed the Taiwanese request, India has made no statement thus far, and MEA officials did not confirm whether India would endorse it.

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. WHEAT CONFUSION: ON INDIA’S EXPORT RESTRICTION

THE CONTEXT: Apprehensions of shortage in India are misplaced, and the Government must allow export.

THE EXPLANATION:

India, which surprised the world with its decision to bar wheat export with immediate effect, appears to be on the defensive now after its May 13 announcement. Initially, the Centre had amended the order by allowing export consignments registered in the Customs Department’s systems and handed over for examination on or prior to May 13.
From the start, indications of a mismatch in demand and supply were evident. Rising levels of wholesale and retail inflation, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war and a lower opening balance of wheat (on April 1, 2022) in the Central pool for the public distribution system than a year ago were well known.
After several parts of wheat-producing States in the north experienced unusually warm weather in March-April, the Government lowered marginally, early this month, the estimated wheat production, from 111.32 million tonnes to 105 million tonnes.
As for international food prices, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said that even before the war, prices had reached an all-time high due to market conditions and the high prices of energy, fertilizers and other agricultural services.
By May 4, the Centre clarified that there was no move to curb wheat export, the reasoning being that this was the opportune moment for exporters to sell in the international market as wheat from Argentina and Australia would begin arriving next month. The higher prices in the domestic market compared to the minimum support price offered by the Government were projected as favourable for farmers.
Also, just days before the Government’s decision, an official announcement was made that trade delegations would be sent to countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, and Indonesia to explore possibilities for wheat export.
In addition to Egypt, Turkey had given its approval for the import of Indian wheat, and an announcement had been made that the current year’s target for wheat export had been fixed at 10 million tonnes, three million tonnes higher than last year.
India’s decision has faced criticism from the G-7’s Agriculture Ministers. After its U-turn, the Government should not persist for too long with its current position of “restrictions” on the export of wheat, as the move seems to have hit the farmers, if reports of a fall in the price are any indication.
Lessons must be gleaned from the experience 15 years ago when India took about two years to lift its ban on the export of non-basmati rice, by which time Thailand and Vietnam had moved in to take full advantage. Apprehensions of a food shortage are misplaced, and the Government would do well to lift the “restrictions” sooner rather than later.

6. WHY TEXTILE AND GARMENT INDUSTRIES WANT A BAN ON COTTON EXPORTS

THE CONTEXT: Domestic cotton prices have doubled compared to last year. But does that justify a ban on shipment similar to that on wheat, especially ahead of the new planting season.

THE EXPLANATION:

Cotton prices have nearly doubled compared to last year. The average modal or most-quoted price of kapas (raw un-ginned cotton) at Rajkot APMC (Agricultural Produce Market Committee) mandi was Rs 12,250 per quintal, as against around Rs 6,300 this time last year. This was also way above the government’s minimum support price of Rs 6,025 per quintal for long-staple cotton varieties.
Basically, three reasons: The first is lower production. In 2020-21, India’s total cotton lint fibre output was 353 lakh bales (lb) of 170 kg each.
The second reason is international prices. The Cotlook ‘A’ Index price – an average of representative quotes in the Far East destination markets – is currently ruling at 167 cents per pound, up from 92 cents a year ago. India is the world’s second-largest cotton producer (after China) and third-largest exporter (after the US and Brazil). High global prices have made exports attractive. Also, they have pushed up domestic prices closer to export parity levels, while simultaneously making imports more expensive.
The third reason is consumption. In the state-owned Cotton Corporation of India (CCI), in March, projected total domestic consumption for 2021-22 at 345 lb, compared to 334.87 lb, 269.19 lb and 311.21 lb in the preceding three marketing years. “Demand has significantly increased, as mills and other users were operating at sub-optimal levels in the past few years. Even during the pandemic, demand for bedsheets and towels had zoomed, translating into higher consumption of cotton and yarn”.
The area sown under cotton in India has reduced from 134.77 lakh hectares (lh) in 2019-20 to 132.85 lh in 2020-21 and 123.5 lh in 2021-22. This has been largely due to the diminishing benefits from the genetically modified Bt cotton, which helped almost treble the country’s production from 136 lb to 398 lb between 2002-03 and 2013-14.
Over a period, Bt cotton has become increasingly susceptible to pink bollworm and white-fly insect pest attacks, making it riskier for farmers to grow the crop. Besides, the government does not permit the testing or commercialization of next-generation transgenic breeding technologies.
This time, the crop was also affected by unseasonal rains in November-December, which affected yields as well as the quality of the bolls from the second and third “flushes” (cotton is generally harvested over three or even four pickings, with the first one in October-November and the subsequent ones every following 20-30 days).
India’s cotton exports are actually projected at 40 lb this year, down from the 78 lb of 2020-21. At the same time, imports are likely to be higher, at 15 lb, from last year’s 10 lb. Moreover, on April 13, the Centre slashed the import duty on cotton from 11% to nil. Given the anyway lower exports and duty-free imports – which have for now been allowed until September 30, before the next marketing season – there may be no strong case for an outright ban on shipments.
Further, with domestic prices already rising to international parity levels, exports would slow down in the natural course. Advocates of an export ban say it would not impact farmers, as they have already sold their crop. However, a ban can also send wrong signals ahead of the planting season, which will take off next month with the arrival of the southwest monsoon rains.
Lint, the white fibre that mills spin into yarn, constitutes only about 34% of kapas. The balance is seed (65%) and moisture. The seed further yields both oil (used for cooking) and de-oiled cake (used as a protein ingredient by livestock feed manufacturers). Kapas rates have firmed up not only because of export and domestic demand for lint, but also due to rising vegetable oil prices. Cottonseed oil is, in fact, India’s third-largest domestically produced vegetable oil. Its estimated output, at 12.49 lakh tonnes (lt) in 2020-21, was next only to mustard (27.39 lt) and soybean (13.29 lt), out of a total of 93.18 lt, according to the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India.
Kapas is mostly bought by traders and ginning units that separate the cotton fibre from the seeds. The fibre is sold to spinning mills and seed to oil mills for crushing and producing vegetable oil. From every one kilo of lint, mills obtain 700-800 grams of yarn.
The yarn is further woven or knitted into fabric and garments. India in 2021-22 not only exported raw cotton valued at $2.8 billion but also cotton yarn worth $5.5 billion and fabrics and made-ups worth $8.2 billion. Every part of the value chain, thus, involves exports.

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 23rd MAY 2022

Q1.Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) is a trade initiative of which the following country?

a) Japan

b) Australia

c) China

d) USA

ANSWER FOR THE21^stMAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

It evaluates research into GM plants and recommends, or disapproves, their release into farmer ﬁelds.
It is a statutory body.
It functions under the Environment Ministry.

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 20 & 21, 2022)

THE POLITY

1. 29 PHONES TESTED FOR PEGASUS SPYWARE: SUPREME COURT

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

2. THE NEIGHBORHOOD IN TURMOIL, LESSONS FOR INDIA

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

THE EXPLANATION:

A NEUTRAL POSITION WILL NOT DO

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

THE ECONOMY MATTERS

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

CONSENSUS NEEDED

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

5. BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION THROUGH BIOSPHERES

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

6. NORMS EASED FOR GM CROP RESEARCH

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 21st MAY 2022

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

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 19^thMAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION (WMO)

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 19, 2022)

THE POLITY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. NGT ORDERS STAY ON DRAFT SHIMLA DEVELOPMENT PLAN 2041

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

5. INDIA’S VULNERABILITY TO DROUGHT

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 19th MAY 2022

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

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 1, 2 and 4 only

c) 2, 3 and 4 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 18^thMAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 18, 2022)

THE POLITY

1. LAUNCH OF TWO FRONTLINE WARSHIPS BY THE INDIAN NAVY

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2. WHAT IS STAGFLATION

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. INDIA TOPPED AIR POLLUTION DEATH TOLL IN 2019

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

POLLUTION IN INDIA

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 18th MAY 2022

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

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 and 2 only

b) 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 17^thMAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

When repo rate is increased:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 17, 2022)

THE POLITY

1. HOW SIKKIM BECAME A PART OF INDIA

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

ATTACKS DURING NAMGYAL RULE

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

BRITISH EXPANSION

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

THE TURNING POINT

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

SCENARIO AFTER 1947

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

DISCONTENT AGAINST MONARCHY

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

1974 ELECTIONS

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

DECISION TO JOIN INDIA

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

2. THE REPO RATE IN INDIA

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

Grain that looks good

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

PREVIOUS RELAXATIONS

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

Is the wheat bad?

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 17th MAY 2022

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

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

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

Answer: D

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 15 & 16, 2022)

THE INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. PM TO LAUNCH BUDDHIST CENTRE WORK

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

EXPLANATION:

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

Zero emission building

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

2. QUAD INITIATIVE FOR VACCINES RUNS INTO ROUGH WEATHER

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

What will the 21st Amendment entail?

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

Which amendments preceded the 21st Amendment?

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

THE POLITY

4. PARDON POWERS OF PRESIDENT AND GOVERNOR

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

THE EXPLANTION:

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

What is the scope of the pardon power?

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

What is the difference between statutory power and constitutional power?

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. INDIAN GOVERNMENT PROHIBITS EXPORT OF WHEAT WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

6. HEATWAVE IN INDIA

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

Sweltering heat grips north and central India

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

Why have the temperatures been so high?

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

Heatwaves not unusual for May

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

7. WHAT IS POST COVID AND LONG COVID?

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

8. BLOOD GROUPS AND BLOOD DONATION

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

Who can donate blood to whom?

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 16th MAY 2022

Q1. Consider the following statements about Election Commission:

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

Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) All of them

ANSWER FOR THE 14TH OF MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 14, 2022)

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. WORLD MIGRATORY BIRDS DAY

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 14th MAY 2022

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

Kazakhstan
Afghanistan
Tajikistan
Uzbekistan

ANSWER FOR THE 13TH MAY

Answer: D

Explanation:

Please refer to the given map-

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 13, 2022)

THE INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

1. SECOND GLOBAL COVID VIRTUAL SUMMIT

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

EXPLANATION:

HIGHLIGHTS OF PM SPEECH

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

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

2. WHO CAN NOTIFY MINORITIES?

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

THE EXPLANATION:

Who is a minority and who decides that?

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

How has the Centre responded?

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

What next?

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

3. RAJIV KUMAR APPOINTED AS NEXT CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONER

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

EXPLANATION:

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

ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA

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

Structure

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

Appointment & Tenure of Commissioners

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

Functions of the Election Commission of India

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

The main duties of the Election Commission are:

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

CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONER

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

EXPLANATION:

What is Retail Inflation?

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

Trends in Retail Inflation

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

What’s the reason behind the rise?

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

Effects of inflation

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

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

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

EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 13th MAY 2022

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

Sweden
Finland
Denmark
Norway

ANSWER FOR THE 12TH OF MAY

Answer: D

Explanation:

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

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 12, 2022)

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. WHAT IS THE SEDITION LAW?

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

What is the sedition law?

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

What are the origins of the sedition law?

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

VALUE ADDITION

Sedition laws in other countries

In the United Kingdom, the sedition law was officially repealed under Section 73 of the Coroners and Justice Act, 2009, citing a chilling effect on freedom of speech and expression. The common law on sedition, which is traced to the Statute of Westminster, 1275, when the King was considered the holder of Divine right, was termed “arcane” and “from a bygone era when freedom of expression wasn’t seen as the right it is today.”

In the United States, sedition is a federal felony under the Federal Criminal Code, Section 2384, and is now being used against rioters involved in the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Despite the First Amendment that forbids any restrictions on free speech, “conspiracy to interfere directly with the operation of the government” and not just speech is considered sedition.

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

2. SHALLOW AND DEEP ECOLOGISM

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

4. RUPEE FELL ON SPILLOVER EFFECTS OF STRONG DOLLAR

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

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

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

5. NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY DAY

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE MISCELLANEOUS

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 12th MAY 2022

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

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

Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 11TH OF MAY

Answer: A

Explanation:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 11, 2022)

THE HEALTH AND SOCIAL ISSUES

1. MEGHALAYA HIT BY AFRICAN SWINE FEVER

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

3. THE GRIM FOREWARNINGS OF A GLOBAL STUDY ON BIRDS

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

What are marsquakes, and why do they happen?

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

What is InSight doing on Mars?

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

THE INTERNAL SECURITY

6. SURVIVING SOLDIERS OF ‘OPERATION DUDHI’ FETED

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE MISCELLANEOUS

7. A HISTORY OF THE PULITZER PRIZE

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

When were the Pulitzer awards instituted?

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 11th MAY 2022

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

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 2 only

c) Both 1 and 2

d) Neither 1 nor 2

ANSWER FOR THE 10TH OF MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

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

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS (MAY 10, 2022)

THE ART AND CULTURE

1. MARTAND SUN TEMPLE

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

VALUE ADDITION

Other Important Sun Temples in India

1. Modhera Surya temple, Gujarat

2. Martand Sun temple, Kashmir

3. Katarmal Sun Temple, Uttarakhand

4. Dakshinarkaa temple Gaya, Bihar

5. Bhramanya temple, Unao, Madhya Pradesh

6. Surya Prahaar temple, Assam

7. SuryanarKovil Temple at Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu

8. Suryanarayana temple at Arasavalli, Andhra Pradesh

THE POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

4. CYCLONE ASANI HITS PARTS OF BENGAL

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

5. UK INDIA INDUSTRY TASK FORCE

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

WHY HAS IT FALLEN?

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

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

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

IMPLICATIONS:

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

THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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

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

THE EXPLANATION:

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

THE PRELIMS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

QUESTION FOR 10th MAY 2022

Q. Consider the following statements:

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

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a) 1 only

b) 1 and 2 only

c) 2 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

ANSWER FOR THE 8 & 9TH MAY

Answer: B

Explanation:

Rakhigarhi– Haryana
Dholavira – Gujarat
Alamgir– Uttar Pradesh