ipcc report, 2021 - sivarajavel ias academy

AUGUST 2021A Monthly Publication

the

A CODE REDFOR HUMANITY

IPCC REPORT, 2021IPCC REPORT, 2021

Sivarajavel IAS Academy ‘s The CATALYST is a monthly magazine for current affairs which tries to give aspirants an in-depth comprehension of certain topics which appeared in different sources over the month. The Magazine has been designed in such a way that the reading experience is enriching and insightful for the readers.

DIRECTOR: S. SIVARAJAVELEDITOR: P. MohanSUB-EDITOR: S. Suresh Kumar & S. VivekanandanEDITORIAL TEAM:J.J. Deepak, S. Infency, P. Mathan Prasad, N. Shanmuga Priya, M. Ravimuthu.DESIGNERS: R. Kalai Selvi, D.Reeta Mary.COVER DESIGN: K.V. Kunal

AUGUST 2021AUGUST 2021 The CATALYST

*New sections will be added or removed based on the new updates we include in the forthcoming issues.

Information contained in this work has been obtained by sources believed to be reliable. We do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein, and neither Sivarajavel IAS Academy nor its authors shall be responsible for any errors, omissions, or damages arising out of use of this information.

The contents have been grouped into a thematic structure to help aspirants focus on the overall GS syllabus.

Section I contains theme based Current affairs Analysis:

Within the Sub themes first few topics will be Prelims oriented followed by indepth coverage of Mains Topics.

A Section with an Essay Topic is also added.

The last section will have Questions for practice*.

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POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

RTE ACT EXEMPTIONS HURTING MINORITY KIDS: NCPCR REPORT 2PARDONING POWER OF GOVERNOR 3FAST-TRACK SPECIAL COURTS 4TRIBUNAL REFORMS BILL 2021 5CASTE BASED CENSUS 7COLLEGIUM SYSTEM 8CREAMY LAYER 10

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

UNSC MARITIME SUMMIT 13UNITE AWARE 13MALE CONNECTIVITY PROJECT 13MALABAR EXERCISE 14GILGIT-BALTISTAN 15INDIA, CHINA NEW HOTLINE IN SIKKIM 15UNSC PRESIDENCY 16TALIBAN CAPTURES AFGHAN 17AFGHAN DRUG TRAFFICKING 19

SOCIETY AND SOCIAL JUSTICEALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF AYURVEDA 21AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING 21RASHTRIYA MAHILA KOSH (RMK) 21FIT INDIA FREEDOM RUN 2.0 22QUALITY OF LIFE FOR ELDERLY INDEX 22100 DAYS ‘SUJALAM’ CAMPAIGN 23SAINIK SAMMAN PENSION SCHEME 23JAN SHIKSHAN SANSTHAN SCHEME 23HUNGER HOTSPOTS REPORT 24SAMAGRA SHIKSHA SCHEME 2.0 25DHYAN CHAND KHEL RATNA AWARD 26STATE OF FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION 2021 REPORT 27NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES “THE SILENT PANDEMIC” 30

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND AGRICULTUREUBHARTE SITAARE PROGRAMME 33VEHICLE SCRAPPAGE POLICY 33

INLAND VESSELS BILL 2021 34OPEN ACREAGE LICENSING POLICY 35UJJWALA 2.0 36RODTEP SCHEME 37AUTHORITY OF ADVANCE RULING 38FINANCIAL INCLUSION INDEX 39THE GATI SHAKTHI MASTER PLAN 40INTERNATIONAL BULLION EXCHANGE 40GREEN BONDS 41E-SHRAM PORTAL 42PM KUSUM SCHEME 43UCBS: RBI PANEL FOR FOUR-TIER STRUCTURE 44FRP FOR SUGAR 44EASE 4.0 45WTO E-TRANSMISSIONS MORATORIUM 46E-RUPI 46RETROSPECTIVE TAX LAW 47PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE SURVEY 49ELECTRICITY AMENDMENT BILL 2021 51NATIONAL MISSION ON EDIBLE OIL 53COVID-19 THREATENS INDIA’S DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND 55OIL BONDS: “THE FUTURE BURDEN” 57

GEOGRAPHY,ENVIRONMENT,BIODIVERSITY AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT

ELEPHANT TIGER CENSUS 60SULTANPUR BHINDWAS RAMSAR 61INDIA PLASTICS PACT 62BACTERIA IN CANADIAN ARCTIC SEAWATER CAN HELP CLEAR UP OIL SPILLS 63‘OLYMPIAN’ BAT 64DELHI’S SMOG TOWER 65DEEPOR BEEL WILDLIFE SANCTUARY 66ANIMAL DISCOVERIES 2020 67DAM SAFETY PROGRAM 67CHILDREN’S CLIMATE RISK INDEX 68PLACES IN NEWS 68GOGRA 68AGALEGA ISLAND AND DIEGO GARCIA 69PANJSHIR VALLEY 70

Table of Contents

STANDING COMMITTEE ON WATER RESOURCES: REPORT 71AGING THERMAL POWER PLANTS 74PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT RULES, 2021 76IPCC REPORT, 2021 78NATIONAL HYDROGEN MISSION 82CYCLONE DISASTERS 83

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

MARBURG VIRUS 86GM SOY SEEDS 87PATENT TO AN AI SYSTEM 88ISRO’S EOS-03 SATELLITE MISSION 89ZYCOV-D VACCINE 90JAXA’S MARS MISSION 91NATIONAL GENE BANK 92MERGER OF MASSIVE BLACK HOLES 92NUCLEAR FUSION TECHNOLOGY 93POLIO 94BOOSTER DOSE 95

SECURITYADVANCED CHAFF TECHNOLOGY 98DEFENCE INDIA STARTUP CHALLENGE 98EXERCISE KONKAN 99MANTHAN 2021 HACKATHON 99NATIONAL AUTOMATED FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM 100PERMANENT COMMISSION FOR WOMEN 102

HISTORY, ART AND CULTUREABANINDRANATH TAGORE 105MADUR MATS 106MOPLAH MARTYR 107NARAYANKOTI TEMPLE-UTTARAKHAND 107WANCHUWA FESTIVAL 108INDIAN INSTITUTE OF HERITAGE, NOIDA 108

ESSAY 109CHILDREN AND PANDEMIC - "THE FUTURE OF TOMORROW".

PRACTICE QUESTIONS 113

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. RTE ACT EXEMPTIONS HURTING MINORITY KIDS: NCPCR REPORT

2. PARDONING POWER OF GOVERNOR

3. CABINET APPROVES CONTINUATION OF SCHEME FOR FAST-TRACK SPECIAL COURTS

What's Inside?

TRIBUNAL REFORMS BILL 2021 It dissolves eight tribunals that functioned as appellate bodies to

hear disputes under various statutes,

CASTE BASED CENSUS“The Government of India has decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in

Census.”

COLLEGIUM SYSTEMThe word ‘sedition’ is extremely nuanced and

needs to be applied with caution

CREAMY LAYER SC observed that economic criterion cannot be the sole basis for

identifying the ‘creamy layer’ of a backward class, and that other fac-tors like social advancement, education, employment, too, matter.

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Polity & GovernanceAugust 2021

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RTE Act exemptions hurting minority kids: NCPCR Report

Why in News?National Commission for Protection of

Child Rights (NCPCR) has released a report titled “Impact of Exemption under Article 15 (5) with regards to Article 21A of the Constitution of India on Education of Children in Minority Communities”.

Objective: to assess the impact of exemption of minority educational institutions from implementing The Right to Education policy.

Key Findings of the StudyMany students in minority institutions

or schools are not able to enjoy the entitlements that are provided to the children of non-minority institutions.

For ensuring free and compulsory quality education to children, the RTE Act, 2009 provides for norms pertaining to basic minimum infrastructure, number of teachers, books, uniform, Mid-day Meal, etc. Students in minority schools are not receiving these benefits.

Christians comprise 11.54% of the minority population but run 71.96% of schools, whereas Muslims comprise 69.18% of the minority population but run 22.75% of schools,

Around 74% of students studying at Christian missionary schools are non-minority students. Further, only 8.76% of total students in minority

schools belong to socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Madrasas: According to the report, there are three kinds of madrasas in the country:

1. Recognised Madrasas: These are registered and impart both religious and secular education

2. Unrecognised Madrasas: These have been found deficient for registration by state governments, as secular education is not imparted.

3. Unmapped Madrasas: These have never applied for registration.

The report has found the syllabus of these madrasas that have evolved over centuries are not uniform.

Moreover, Sachar Committee report 2005, which says 4% of Muslim children (15.3 lakh) attend madrasas, has only taken into account the registered madrasas.

Recommendations of the ReportThe government should bring all such

schools, including madrasas, under the purview of the Right to Education and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan campaign.

The report has also backed reservations for students from minority communities in minority schools.

86th amendment to the constitution of India in 2002: It provided the Right to Education as a fundamental right. The same amendment inserted Article 21A, which made the RTE a fundamental right for

children aged between six and 14 years.

Article 15(5): In 2006, the 93rd Constitution Amendment Act inserted Clause (5) in Article 15 which enabled the State to create special provisions such as reservations for the advancement of any backward classes of citizens like Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, in all aided or unaided educational institutes, except minority educational institutes.

Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009: Section 12(1)(c) of the Act provided for 25% reservation of seats in unaided schools for admission of children from economically weaker sections and disadvantaged groups.

However, Article 30 of the Constitution provides for the right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions, with a view to provide opportunities to children from different religious and linguistic minority communities to have and conserve a distinct culture, script, and language.

Subsequently, in 2012, through an amendment, the institutions imparting religious education were exempted from following the RTE Act.

Later on, in 2014, the Supreme Court in the Pramati judgment declared the RTE Act inapplicable to schools with minority status.

Polity & Governance

THECATALYST www.sivarajavelias.com3

August 2021

Why in News?Recently, the Supreme Court (SC) held that

the Governor’s power to pardon overrides Section 433A of Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

What’s the case?The Court was considering the feasibility of

remission policies in Haryana. It was considering whether a state can frame policy to release a life-term convict prematurely before completing at least 14 years in jail or the government has to strictly go by Section 433A of CrPC which specifies that remission cannot be granted till he/she has served at least 14 years in jail?

The court held that,

3 Section 433A mandates that a prisoner’s sentence can be remitted only after 14 years of jail

3 According to the judgement, the Governor’s power to pardon overrides Section 433A provision in the Code of Criminal Procedure

3 It also quoted, “the power to release a prisoner after serving 14 years of actual imprisonment is vested with the State government. On the other hand, the power conferred on the governor, though exercised on the aid and advice of the State, is without any restrictions of the actual period of imprisonment undergone by the prisoner”.

Power Exercised by State Government 3 The court noted that the sovereign power

of a Governor to pardon a prisoner under Article 161 is actually exercised by the State government and not the Governor on his own.

3 The advice of the appropriate government binds the Head of the State.

Pardoning Power of the President in India

Under Article 72 of the Constitution, the President shall have the power to grant pardons,

reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence where the sentence is a sentence of death.

Limitation: The President cannot exercise his power of pardon independent of the government. In several cases, the SC has ruled that the President has to act on the advice of the Council of Ministers while deciding mercy pleas. These include Maru Ram vs Union of India in 1980, and Dhananjoy Chatterjee vs State of West Bengal in 1994.

Reconsideration: Although the President is bound by the Cabinet’s advice, Article 74(1) empowers him to return it for reconsideration once. If the Council of Ministers decides against any change, the President has no option but to accept it.

Governor’s Pardoning PowerUnder Article 161, the Governor of a State shall

have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence against any law relating to a matter to which the executive power of the State extends.

Difference Between Pardoning Powers of President and Governor

The scope of the pardoning power of the President under Article 72 is wider than the pardoning power of the Governor under Article 161 which differs in the following two ways:

Court Martial: The power of the President to grant pardon extends in cases where the punishment or sentence is by a Court Martial but Article 161 does not provide any such power to the Governor.

Pardoning power of Governor



4

Death sentence: The President can grant pardon in all cases where the sentence given is

TermsPardon: It removes both the sentence and the conviction and completely absolves the convict from all sentences, punishments and disqualifications.

Commutation: It denotes the substitution of one form of punishment for a lighter form. For example, a death sentence may be commuted to rigorous imprisonment, which in turn may be commuted to a simple imprisonment.

Remission: It implies reducing the period of sentence without changing its character. For example, a sentence of rigorous imprisonment for two years may be remitted to rigorous imprisonment for one year.

Respite: It denotes awarding a lesser sentence in place of one originally awarded due to some special fact, such as the physical disability of a convict or the pregnancy of a woman offender.

Reprieve: It implies a stay of the execution of a sentence (especially that of death) for a temporary period. Its purpose is to enable the convict to have time to seek pardon or commutation.

Cabinet approves continuation of Scheme for fast-track special courts

the sentence of death but the pardoning power of the Governor does not extend to death sentence cases.

What is fast track courts?Fast-track courts are, by definition, courts

that have been set up to operate at a pace quicker than the rest of the judicial system, usually to resolve crimes of a grave nature or long-standing issues.

The primary responsibility and power for establishing FTSCs lie with the state governments and not with the central government. The central government, however, is in charge of dispersing funds to the various state governments.

Fast-track courts were first proposed by the 11th Finance Commission for the purpose of disposing of long-standing litigation that was clogging up the Indian judicial system. These were

first set up in 2000 for a period of five years.

The Union Cabinet approved the continuation of the centrally sponsored scheme for fast-track special courts till 31 March 2023. Following this, 1023 fast-track special courts, including 389 exclusive POCSO courts, will get an extension.

The Centre’s share is to be funded from the Nirbhaya fund. The scheme was launched in September 2019.

The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the continuation of the scheme with an outlay of Rs.1572.86 crore -- Rs.971.70 crore as Centre’s share and Rs.601.16 crore as states’ share

Polity & Governance


August 2021

TRIBUNAL REFORMS BILL 2021

Why in News?The Rajya Sabha passed the

Tribunals Reforms Bill-2021.

The bill was approved by the Lok Sabha on August 3.

The bills seek to eliminate as many as nine appellate tribunals, including the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT).

What is the bill about? The Tribunals Reforms Bill,

2021 replaces a similar Ordinance promulgated in April 2021 that sought to dissolve eight tribunals that functioned as appellate bodies to hear disputes under various statutes, and transferred their functions to existing judicial forums such as a civil court or a High Court.

The Bill states that the Chairpersons and Members of the tribunal being abolished shall cease to hold office, and they will be entitled to claim compensation equivalent to three months’ pay and allowances for their premature termination.

It also proposes changes in the process of appointment of certain other tribunals.

GS-II (Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary, Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies.)



6

What are These Changes? While the Bill provides

for uniform pay and rules for the search and selection committees across tribunals, it also provides for removal of tribunal members. It states that the central government shall, on the recommendation of the Search-cum-Selection Committee, remove from office any Chairperson or a Member, who

a. has been adjudged as an insolvent; or

b. has been convicted of an offence which involves moral turpitude; or

c. has become physically or mentally incapable of acting as such Chairperson or Member; or

d. has acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as such Chairperson or Member; or

This gives the government a foot in the door in the process. The Chief Justice of the High Court, who would head the committee, will not have a casting vote.

What happens to cases pending before the tribunals dissolved?

These cases will be transferred to High Courts or commercial civil courts immediately.

Legal experts have been divided on the efficacy of the government’s move. While on the one hand, the cases might get a faster hearing and disposal if taken to High Courts, experts fear that the lack of specialisation in regular courts could be detrimental to the decision-making process.

For example, the FCAT exclusively heard decisions appealing against decisions of the censor board, which requires expertise in art and cinema

WHAT ARE THE TRIBUNALS THAT ARE BEING DISSOLVED?

Among the key ones are the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) under the Cinematograph Act, 1952; the Intellectual Property Appellate Board under the Copyrights Act, 1957; and the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appealate Tribunal.

The government has said that analysis of data of the last three years has shown that tribunals in several sectors have not necessarily led to faster justice delivery and they are also at a considerable expense to the exchequer.

This has led to the decision to rationalise the functioning of tribunals, a process that it began in 2015.

India now has 16 tribunals including the National Green Tribunal, the Armed Forces Appellate Tribunal, the Debt Recovery Tribunal among others which also suffer from crippling vacancies as

the SC has noted.

e. has so abused his position as to render his continuance in office prejudicial to the public interest.

f. Chairpersons and judicial members of tribunals are former judges of High Courts and the Supreme Court.

While the move brings greater accountability on the functioning of the tribunals, it also raises questions on the independence of these judicial bodies.

State Tribunals In the Search-cum-

Selection Committee for state tribunals, the Bill brings in the Chief Secretary of the state and the Chairman of the Public Service Commission of the concerned state who will have a vote and Secretary or Principal Secretary of the state’s General Administrative Department with no voting right.

Polity & Governance


August 2021

Why in news?Union Minister of State for

Home informed in Lok Sabha: “The Government of India has decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste-wise population other than SCs and STs in Census.”

Why Does the Census Not Involve a Caste Count?

While the first census in India was held in 1872 by its then colonial rulers, the beginning proper of the periodic count was in 1881. Since then, it has been held every 10 years.

Till the time the British conducted the census, it included data on castes, though only till 1931. The caste count was excluded for the 1941 census reportedly because of administrative and financial issues with England involved in World War II.

The last count of OBCs is, therefore, available for 1931, when their share of the population was found to be 52 per cent.

What kind of caste data is published in the Census?

Every Census in independent India from 1951 to 2011 has published data on Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, but not on other castes. Before that, every Census until 1931 had data on caste.

In August 2018, a meeting chaired by then Home Minister that reviewed preparations for Census 2021,and to collect data on OBC for the first time.

What happened to the Socio-economic caste census (SECC)data, then?

With an approved cost of Rs 4,893.60 crore, the SECC was conducted by the Ministry of Rural Development in rural areas and the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation in urban areas.

The SECC data excluding caste data was finalised and published by the two ministries in 2016.

The raw caste data was handed over to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, which formed an Expert Group under former NITI Aayog Vice-Chairperson Arvind Pangaria for classification and categorisation of data.

It is not clear whether it submitted its report; no such report has been made public. This time, the demand is that castes be enumerated as part of Census 2021 itself.

CASTE BASED CENSUS

However, in 1941, caste-based data was collected but not published. In the absence of such a census, there is no proper estimate for the population of OBCs, various groups within the OBCs, and others.

The Mandal Commission estimated the OBC population at 52%, some other estimates have been based on National Sample Survey data, and political parties make their own estimates in states and Lok Sabha and Assembly seats during elections.

How often has the demand for a caste census been made?

It comes up before almost every Census, as records of debates and questions raised in Parliament show.

The demand usually come from among those belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBC) and other deprived sections, while sections from the upper castes oppose the idea.

What has been the current government’s stand?

The government informed in parliament that ,The Union of India after Independence, decided as a matter of policy not to enumerate caste wise population other than SCs and STs.

(GS-1 Salient features of Indian Society, GS-II mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.)



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Why in news?The Supreme Court

Collegium, comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices U U Lalit, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and L Nageswara Rao, recommended nine names, including eight High Court judges and an advocate, for elevation to the apex court.

The Centre is learnt to have cleared all the nine names recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium for appointment to the top court, which currently has 24 judges against a sanctioned strength of 34.

What is the collegium system?

It is the system of appointment and transfer of judges that has evolved through judgments of the Supreme Court, and not by an Act of Parliament or by a provision of the Constitution.

The Supreme Court collegium is headed by the Chief Justice of India and comprises four other senior most judges of the court. A High Court collegium is led by its Chief Justice

and four other senior most judges of that court. Names recommended for appointment by a High Court collegium reaches the government only after approval by the CJI and the Supreme Court collegium.

Judges of the higher judiciary are appointed only through the collegium system, and the government has a role

than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of India shall always be consulted.”

Article 217: “Every Judge of a High Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, the Governor of the State, and, in the case of appointment of a Judge other than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of the High Court.”

How did the Collegium System Evolve?

The collegium system has its genesis in a series of Supreme Court judgments called the ‘Judges Cases’. The collegium came into being through interpretations of pertinent constitutional provisions by the Supreme Court in the Judges Cases.

First Judges CaseIn S P Gupta Vs Union of

India, 1981, the Supreme Court by a majority judgment held that the concept of primacy of the Chief Justice of India was not really to be found in the Constitution.

It held that the proposal for appointment to a High Court can emanate from any of the constitutional functionaries mentioned in Article 217 and not necessarily from the Chief Justice of the High Court.

The Constitution Bench also held that the term “consultation” used in Articles 124 and 217 was not “concurrence” meaning

COLLEGIUM SYSTEM

only after names have been decided by the collegium.

The government’s role is limited to getting an inquiry conducted by the Intelligence Bureau (IB) if a lawyer is to be elevated as a judge in a High Court or the Supreme Court.

It can also raise objections and seek clarifications regarding the collegium’s choices, but if the collegium reiterates the same names, the government is bound, under Constitution Bench judgments, to appoint them as judges.

But what does the Constitution say on this matter?

Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are appointed by the President under Articles 124(2) and 217 of the Constitution. The President is required to hold consultations with such of the judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts as he may deem necessary.

Article 124(2) says: “Every Judge of the Supreme Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with such of the Judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts in the States as the President may deem necessary for the purpose and shall hold office until he attains the age of sixty-five years.

Provided that in the case of appointment of a Judge other

(GS II: Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary)

Polity & Governance


August 2021

that although the President will consult these functionaries, his decision was not bound to be in concurrence with all of them.

The judgment tilted the balance of power in appointments of judges of High Courts in favour of the executive. This situation prevailed for the next 12 years.

Second Judges CaseIn The Supreme Court

Advocates-on-Record Association Vs Union of India, 1993, a nine judge Constitution Bench overruled the decision in S P Gupta, and devised a specific procedure called ‘Collegium System’ for the appointment and transfer of judges in the higher judiciary.

It was this judgment that was sought to be reviewed in the petition filed by the National Lawyers’ Campaign for Judicial Transparency and Reforms.

Underlining that the top court must act in “protecting the integrity and guarding the independence of the judiciary”, the majority verdict in the Second Judges Case accorded primacy to the CJI in matters of appointment and transfers while also ruling that the term “consultation” would not diminish the primary role of the CJI in judicial appointments.

form of the collegium, and has been prevalent ever since.

This opinion laid down that the recommendation should be made by the CJI and his four senior most colleagues, instead of two. It also held that Supreme Court judges who hailed from the High Court for which the proposed name came, should also be consulted.

It was also held that even if two judges gave an adverse opinion, the CJI should not send the recommendation to the government.

And why has the collegium system been criticised?

Critics argue that the system is non-transparent, since it does not involve any official mechanism or secretariat.

It is seen as a closed-door affair with no prescribed norms regarding eligibility criteria or even the selection procedure.

There is no public knowledge of how and when a collegium meets, and how it takes its decisions. Lawyers too are usually in the dark on whether their names have been considered for elevation as a judge.

Ushering in the collegium system, the court said that the recommendation should be made by the CJI in consultation with his two senior most colleagues, and that such recommendation should normally be given effect to by the executive.

It added that although it was open to the executive to ask the collegium to reconsider the matter if it had an objection to the name recommended, if, on reconsideration, the collegium reiterated the recommendation, the executive was bound to make the appointment.

Third Judges CaseIn 1998, President K R

Narayanan issued a Presidential Reference to the Supreme Court over the meaning of the term “consultation” under Article 143 of the Constitution (advisory jurisdiction).

The question was whether “consultation” required consultation with a number of judges in forming the CJI’s opinion, or whether the sole opinion of CJI could by itself constitute a “consultation”.

In response, the Supreme Court laid down nine guidelines for the functioning of the coram for appointments and transfers – this has come to be the present



10

Why in news?A Division Bench of the

Supreme Court, led by Justice L. Nageswara Rao, observed that economic criterion cannot be the sole basis for identifying the ‘creamy layer’ of a backward class, and that other factors like social advancement, education, employment, too, matter.

The judgment came on a writ petition filed by a group from Haryana, the Pichra Warg Kalyan Mahasabha, challenging two notifications issued by the State government in 2016 and 2018, under the Haryana Backward Classes (Reservation in Services and Admission in Educational Institutions) Act, 2016.

Mandal Commission case The Mandal Commission

was set up in 1979 under Article 340 of the Constitution by the Janata Party government when Morarji Desai was prime minister with a mandate to “identify the socially or educationally backwards”.

It laid down 11 indicators or criteria for determining social and economic backwardness. In light of this report, the government provided 27 per cent reservation in central government jobs for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in 1990.

This was challenged in the Supreme Court by several writ

exemption limit as prescribed under the Wealth Tax Act for a period of three consecutive years.

It, however, clarified that income from salaries and agricultural land will not be clubbed, and asserted that the income criteria in terms of rupee will be modified taking into account the change in its value every three years. However, the ceiling has been revised only four times since 1993 — the last time it happened was in September 2017 when the cap was raised to Rs 8 lakh per annum.

Why is it difficult to draw the line?

The identification of ‘creamy layer’ has been a thorny issue. The basic question here is how rich or advanced should a backward class section be to invite exclusion from reservation.

The amendments that followed

Meanwhile, in order to change the effect of the judgment in the Indira Sawhney case, there were some amendments to enable the government to make laws regarding reservation in promotion for SCs and STs.

The first of these amendments was when the Parliament enacted the Constitution (77th Amendment) Act, 1995, inserting Article 16(4A), thereby enabling the government to make laws providing quota in promotion for SCs and STs.

CREAMY LAYER

petitions. A nine-judge bench in the Indira Sawhney case had upheld reservations for OBCs in 1992, but ruled that creamy layer among the backward class of citizens must be excluded “by fixation of proper income, property or status criteria” by the central government.

The court asserted that on these specifications, people falling in the creamy layer would not get the benefit of reservations. The Supreme Court also held that reservations in appointments — under Article 16(4) of the Constitution do not apply to promotions.

The 1993 creamy layer norms

Following the SC judgment, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) had laid down categories under the creamy layer in 1993.

According to the 1993 order, sons and daughters of Group A/Class I Officers of All India Central and State Services (direct recruits), Group B/Class II Officers of Central and State Services (direct recruits), employees of Public Sector Undertakings etc. and armed forces fall within the creamy layer, and, therefore, they would not be entitled to reservation benefits.

The order also included within the creamy layer sons and daughters of people with a gross annual income of Rs 1 lakh above or possessing wealth above the

(GS II- Amendments, significant provisions and basic structure of Indian Constitution)

Polity & Governance


August 2021

Article 16(4B) was also inserted, providing that reserved promotion posts for SCs and STs that remain unfilled can be carried forward to the subsequent year.

While the SC judgement in the Indira Sawhney case capped the reservation quota at 50 per cent, the government’s amendment ensured that the 50 per cent ceiling for these carried-forward unfilled posts does not apply to subsequent years.

Creamy layer to SCs & STs These amendments led

to the 2006 Supreme Court

judgment in M. Nagaraj vs Union of India, where a five-judge bench approved Parliament’s decision to extend reservations for SCs and STs to include promotions with three conditions.

It required the government to provide proof for the backwardness of the class benefitting from the reservation, for its inadequate representation in the position/service for which reservation in promotion is to be granted and to show how reservations in promotions would further administrative efficiency.

The judgment also held that the creamy layer concept was applicable to SCs and STs.

Supreme court observations

“The whole object of reservation is to see that backward classes of citizens move forward so that they may march hand in hand with other citizens of India on an equal basis. This will not be possible if only the creamy layer within that class bag all the coveted jobs in the public sector and perpetuate themselves, leaving the rest of the class as backward as they always were,” it observed.

What's Inside?

1. UNSC MARITIME SUMMIT 2. UNITE AWARE3. GREATER MALE CONNECTIVITY

PROJECT (GMCP) 4. MALABAR EXERCISE

GILGIT-BALTISTAN5. INDIA, CHINA SET UP NEW

HOTLINE IN SIKKIM

Pg 17

Pg 19

TALIBAN CAPTURES AFGHAN

Taliban almost captured entire country including Kabul after 20 years when they lost power in 2001 because of

US and NATO entered Afghanistan

AFGHAN DRUG TRAFFICKING

The primary source of the Taliban’s funds has been the drug trade,


International Relations August 2021

UNSC Maritime SummitWhy in news?

The first time Indian PM was presiding over the UN Security Council debate on ‘Enhancing Maritime Security — A Case for International Cooperation’,

Five Basic Principles for Enhancing Maritime Security

Free maritime trade sans barriers so as to establish legitimate trade

Settlement of maritime disputes should be peaceful and on the basis of international law only

Responsible maritime connectivity should be encouraged

Need to collectively combat maritime threats posed by non-state actors and natural calamities

Preserve maritime environment and maritime resource

This is a technological platform developed in partnership with the UN to help enhance the safety of UN peacekeepers.

UNITE Aware will provide terrain information and “improve situational awareness” for peacekeepers by allowing for visualizing, coordinating and monitoring of peacekeeping operations on a real-time basis.

UN Peacekeeping missions and India’s role:

Peacekeeping has been earmarked as a priority area of focus for India’s month-long UNSC presidency; and it would play a crucial role in India’s vision of ensuring international peace and security.

UNITE AwareIndia is one of the top troop contributors

to the U.N. peacekeeping missions and thus a key priority has been to ensure the safety of the Indian peacekeeping personnel.

Four-point framework for securing the safety of peacekeepers:

i. Deployment of proven, cost-effective and field-serviceable technologies.

ii. Availability of sound information and intelligence.

iii. Continuous technological improvements and their availability.

iv. Capacity building and training of peacekeepers with regard to technology

Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP)The Maldives government officially signed

an agreement with Mumbai-based company AFCONS, for the construction of the Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP). This project was funded by India in a grant of $100 million, with a line of credit of $400 million.

The GMCP is not only the biggest project India is doing in the Maldives but also the biggest infrastructure project in the Maldives overall, involves the construction of a 6.74-km-long bridge and causeway link that will connect the Maldives

capital Male with the neighbouring islands of Villingli, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi.

This project is significant because it facilitates inter-island connectivity in the country. Transport is a major challenge for residents who have to take boats or seaplanes to distant islands. It becomes even more difficult during the monsoons when the seas are rough.

This bridge that would connect Male with the three neighbouring islands would ease the process.


International RelationsAugust 2021

14

Why in News?Recently, the Navies of the Quad

(Quadrilateral Framework) Nations i.e. India, the United States, Japan, and Australia have participated in the 25th edition of the Malabar Exercise, which began off the coast of Guam in the Pacific Ocean.

It is taking place in the midst of a growing convergence of interests in the maritime domain as well as military cooperation among the Quad nations in the face of China’s increasing assertiveness.

Global concerns are mounting over China’s growing military muscle-flexing in the Indo-Pacific region.

AboutMalabar Exercise started off in 1992 as a

bilateral naval exercise between Indian and US navies.

In 2015, Japan joined the exercise Malabar making it a trilateral naval exercise.

In 2020, the Australian Navy joined the Malabar Exercise making it a quadrilateral naval exercise. Earlier, Australia joined the exercise in 2007.

It is seen as a reflection of the increasing partnership among the Quad countries.

China has been suspicious about the purpose of the exercise as it feels that the annual war game is an effort to contain its influence in the Indo-Pacific.

The exercise is not part of the framework of cooperation under Quad.

Malabar Exercise



Why Gilgit-Baltistan matters to India & Pakistan?

Gilgit was part of the princely state of Jammu & Kashmir, but was ruled directly by the British, who had taken it on lease from Hari Singh, the Hindu ruler of the Muslim-majority state.

When Hari Singh acceded to India on October 26, 1947, the Gilgit Scouts rose in rebellion, led by their British commander Major William Alexander Brown.

On November 15, it declared it was acceding to Pakistan, which accepted the accession only to the extent of full administrative control, choosing to govern it directly under the Frontier Crimes Regulation, a law devised by the British to keep control of the restive tribal areas of the northwest.

In 1974, Pakistan adopted its first full-fledged civilian Constitution, which lists four provinces —Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakthunkhwa.

India, China set up new hotline in Sikkim A hotline has been set up between the Indian

and Chinese armies in the North Sikkim sector to further boost confidence along the Line of Actual Control in the region,

The hotline is between the Indian Army in Kongra La, North Sikkim and China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at Khamba Dzong in Tibetan Autonomous Region.

The hotline is aimed at furthering “the spirit of trust and cordial relations along the borders.

The setting up of the hotline came amid a continued standoff between the two armies in a number of friction points in eastern Ladakh.

This is the sixth hotline to be established between the two countries.

There are two in the Ladakh sector, two in Arunachal Pradesh and now two in the Sikkim sector.

Gilgit-Baltistan

Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Gilgit-Baltistan were not incorporated as provinces

In 2009, Pakistan brought in the Gilgit-Baltistan (Empowerment and Self-Governance) Order, 2009, replacing the Northern Areas Legislative Council (NALC) with the Legislative Assembly, and the Northern Areas were given back the name of Gilgit-Baltistan.



16

UNSC PRESIDENCYAs the world’s largest democracy and an

important military and economic power, India seeks a permanent seat at the UNSC. Presently the permanent membership of the UN Security Council (UNSC) — the select club of the US, Russia, China, France and the UK.

As a non-permanent member India has been elected for the presidency of UNSC for the month of AUG 2021

What are the powers of the UNSC President?

The UNSC Handbook says that the president is “responsible for the conduct of the meetings of the Security Council and is authorised to represent (it) in relations with other organs of the UN and with member states”.

Importantly, the president decides the provisional agenda for the month in which it is in charge and can call meetings when it deems it necessary. It also presides over the meetingsWhat agenda has India proposed for its Presidency?

An agenda “which embraces pressing global issues including maritime security, peacekeeping & counter-terrorism”.

Several important meetings including Syria, Iraq, Somalia, Yemen, and the Middle East”.

“Also be adopting important resolutions on Somalia, Mali, & UN Interim Force in Lebanon,”

Meanwhile, reports suggest that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will preside over a UNSC meeting, which would make him the first Indian PM to do soDo non-permanent members get veto power?

No. The non-permanent members do not enjoy the veto power.

Article 27 of the UN Charter says each member of the UNSC shall have one vote and that decisions on “procedural matters” shall require no more than the affirmative vote of nine out of the 15 members. However, decisions on any other matter needs not only an affirmative vote of nine members but also the concurring votes of the permanent members.

(GS-II Important International institutions, agencies and fora - their structure, mandate.)

The UN defines ‘veto’ as a “special voting power”, which provides that “if any one of the five permanent members cast a negative vote in (UNSC), the resolution or decision would not be approved”.

Can India push its case for inclusion as permanent member during its UNSC Presidency?

India’s bid for a permanent UNSC seat has received backing from successive US Presidents going back at least to George W Bush and including his successors Barack Obama and Donald Trump. Joe Biden, who succeeded Trump, had in his campaign policy document last year talked about supporting India as a permanent member. The UK, France and Russia, too, are known to back India’s bid but the biggest stumbling block in that regard is China, which has reportedly been using its veto to block India’s elevation as a permanent UNSC member.

How did the UNSC Presidency pass to India?

Apart from the five permanent members, the UNSC also includes 10 non-permanent members who are each chosen for a two-year term.

India has been elected as a non-permanent member on seven occasions in the past and started its eighth stint on January 1 this year. The 10 non-permanent members have to earn election by the UN General Assembly.

According to UN rules, the General Assembly “elects each year five non-permanent members" who have to bag twothirds majority to qualify for the seat.

The presidency of UNSC changes hands for a period of one month each between its members following the English alphabetical order of the member states’ names.

The presidency passed to India from France and in September 2021, Ireland will take

over from India



TALIBAN

Why in news? After the US-Taliban signed

peace deal in March 2020, US and NATO completely withdraw from Afghanistan. Taliban almost captured entire country including Kabul after 20 years when they lost power in 2001 because of US and NATO entered Afghanistan for elimination of terrorist groups Al quaeda Haqqani network.

What is US Taliban peace deal?

On March2020, the US and Taliban signed an agreement for “Bringing Peace to Afghanistan”, which will enable the US and NATO to withdraw troops in the next 14 months.

The pact is between the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan

which is not recognized by the United States as a state and is known as the Taliban” and the US.

The four-page pact was signed between Zalmay Khalilzad, US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, political head of the Taliban.

The key elementsTroops withdrawal: The US will draw down to 8,600

troops in 135 days and the NATO or coalition troop numbers will also be brought down, proportionately and simultaneously. And all troops will be out within 14 months — “all” would include “non-diplomatic civilian personnel”.

Taliban commitment: The main

counter-terrorism commitment by the Taliban is that “Taliban will not allow any of its members, other individuals or groups, including al-Qaeda, to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies”.

Sanctions removal: UN sanctions on Taliban leaders

to be removed by three months (by May 29) and US sanctions by August 27. The sanctions will be out before much progress is expected in the intra-Afghan dialogue.

Ceasefire: Identified as another potential “trouble spot”. The agreement states ceasefire will be simply “an item on the agenda” when intra-Afghan talks start, and indicates actual ceasefire will come with the “completion” of an Afghan political agreement.

India and Taliban India and the Taliban have

had a bitter past. New Delhi nurses bitter memories from the IC-814 hijack in 1999, when it had to release terrorists — including Maulana Masood Azhar who founded Jaish-e-Mohammed that went on to carry out terror attacks on Parliament (2001), in Pathankot (2016) and in Pulwama (2019).

The Taliban perceived India as a hostile country, as India had supported the anti-Taliban force Northern Alliance in the 1990s.

India never gave diplomatic and official recognition to the Taliban when it was in power during 1996-2001. In recent years, as US-Taliban negotiations picked up momentum, New Delhi has been in touch with all stakeholders. But its foreign policy establishment has shied

(GS-II India and its neighborhood- relation. Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests)



18

away from engaging with the Taliban directly.

New Delhi and KabulIndia has been backing

the Ghani-led government and was among very few countries to congratulate Ghani on his victory. India’s proximity to Ghani also drew from their shared view of cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan.

India built vital roads, dams, electricity transmission lines and substations, schools and hospitals, etc. India’s development assistance is now estimated to be worth well over $3 billion. And unlike in other countries where India’s infrastructure projects have barely got off the ground or are mired in the host nation’s politics, it has delivered in Afghanistan.

The 2011 India-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership Agreement recommitted Indian assistance to help rebuild Afghanistan’s infrastructure and institutions; education and technical assistance for capacity-building in many areas; encourage investment in Afghanistan; and

provide duty-free access to the Indian market. Bilateral trade is now worth $1 billion.

Bilateral trade relationsDespite the denial of an

overland route by Pakistan, India-Afghanistan trade has grown with the establishment in 2017 of an air freight corridor.

Two air corridors — Kabul-Delhi and Herat-Delhi — are in operation now. Trade through Chabahar started in 2017 but is restricted by the absence of connectivity from the port to the Afghan border. Trade volumes are minuscule.

In 2019-20, bilateral trade crossed $1.3 billion, Afghan government officials said at a recent interaction with Indian exporters in Mumbai.

The balance of trade is heavily tilted — exports from India are worth approximately $900 million, while Afghanistan’s exports to India are about $500 million.

Afghan exports are mainly fresh and dried fruit. Some of this comes overland through the Wagah border; Pakistan has permitted Afghan trade with India through its territory.

Indian exports to Afghanistan take place mainly through g o v e r n m e n t - t o - g o v e r n m e n t contracts with Indian companies. Exports include pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, computers and related materials, cement, and sugar.

What next for India?As India considers its

options, it is fairly certain that while India will lose influence in Afghanistan, the India-Pakistan relationship will acquire one more layer of difficulty due to the Taliban comeback.

The Haqqani Network, closely allied to both the ISI and the Taliban, is blamed by the US and India for the deadly attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul that claimed the lives of an Indian diplomat and an Indian Army officer posted at the embassy, along with 60 Afghan civilians.

The Indian security establishment fears that to escape the Financial Action Task Force lens on Pakistan, India-focused jihadi tanzeem such as LeT and JeM may find new safe havens in Afghanistan from where they will continue to plan attacks against India



Why in News? In a May 2020 report, the

United Nations Security Council estimated that “overall Taliban annual combined revenues range from $300 million to upwards of $1.5 billion per annum”.

The primary source of the Taliban’s funds has been the drug trade, as report after report has shown over two decades. Their income suffered in recent years because of the “reduction in poppy cultivation and revenue, less taxable income from aid and development projects, and increased spending on “governance” projects”, the UNSC report said.

Flourishing drug tradeHeroin cultivation and

production have provided the bulk of Taliban revenue for many years, the emergence of methamphetamine in Afghanistan is giving impetus to a major new drug industry with significant profit margins,” the report noted.

According to the report, “interdiction of methamphetamine was first recorded by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in 2014 (9 kg) and has continued on a sharp upward trajectory, with 650 kg interdicted in the first half of 2019”.

AFGHAN DRUG TRAFFICKING

Methamphetamine, stated to be more profitable than heroin because its ingredients are low-cost and it does not require large laboratories.

The Taliban were reported to be in control of 60 per cent of methamphetamine laboratories in the key producing provinces of Farah and Nimruz.

The system of heroin smuggling and taxation organised by the Taliban stretched across eight of Nangarhar’s southern districts from Hisarak to Dur Baba, on the border with Pakistan.

In each district, smugglers paid a tax to district Taliban commanders of 200 Pakistan rupees (approximately $1.30), or its equivalent in afghanis, per kilogram of heroin.

Smugglers were provided documentation by each Taliban commander certifying payment of tax before proceeding to the next district and repeating the same process. Afghan officials stated that the smuggling routes thus helped to financially empower each district Taliban commander.

UNODC Report Afghanistan, the country

where most opium is produced, which has accounted for approximately 84 per cent of global opium production over the past five years, supplies markets in neighbouring countries, Europe,

the Near and Middle East, South Asia and Africa and to a small degree North America (notably Canada) and Oceania.”

Afghanistan: "A Narco-State"The Afghan climate was

favourable for the low-cost poppy cultivation which would end up giving high dividends to the cultivators.

Between 1970 to 1991, the annual production of poppies in Afghanistan grew from 100 tons to 2,000 tons.

It is unclear what exactly led the Taliban to ban Opium production towards the end of the 20th century, forgoing massive revenues, afflicting its GDP and stripping its population of employment. Interestingly, this ban coincided with the fall of the Taliban government after the 9/11 attacks.

By 2007, poppy production touched new heights, surging to 8,200 tons, and the Taliban intrinsically made inroads in Afghan villages.

It would turn the cultivators into dependents of poppy. To take Afghanistan out of this narcotics grip, thus minimizing the strength of the Taliban, there has to be change at the grassroots first providing Afghan cultivators viable alternatives through positive intervention in the area of agriculture.

(GS-II India and its neighborhood- relation. GS-III Security challenges and their management in border areas - linkages of organized crime with terrorism)

Society & Social Justice

SSOCIETYOCIETY &&

What's Inside?

1. ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF AYURVEDA (AIIA)

2. AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING 3. RASHTRIYA MAHILA KOSH

(RMK) 4. FIT INDIA FREEDOM RUN 2.0 5. QUALITY OF LIFE FOR ELDERLY

INDEX6. 100 DAYS ‘SUJALAM’

CAMPAIGN 7. SAINIK SAMMAN

PENSION SCHEME (SSSPS) 8. JAN SHIKSHAN

SANSTHAN (JSS) SCHEME9. HUNGER HOTSPOTS REPORT10. SAMAGRA SHIKSHA 2.011. MAJOR DHYAN CHAND KHEL

RATNA AWARD

FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION The State Of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2021 Report

Pg 30

Pg 27

NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES (NCD) - “THE SILENT PANDEMIC”

Nearly 71% of all deaths worldwide occur due to non-communicable diseases

21




August 2021

AIIA is an autonomous institute under the Ministry of AYUSH.

Established in 2015; and located in New Delhi.

It is an Apex Institute for Ayurveda.

Aims to bring a synergy between Traditional Wisdom of Ayurveda and Modern tools and technology.

All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA)Offers postgraduate and doctoral courses of

Ayurveda; and focuses on fundamental research of Ayurveda, drug development, standardization, quality control, safety evaluation etc.

This institute shall also have an international collaborative centre for global promotion and research in Ayurveda; and also boosts medical tourism in India.

Affordable Rental Housing Complexes Scheme under Atmanirbhar Bharat Package

Aims and Objectives To address the vision of ‘AtmaNirbhar Bharat

Abhiyan’ significantly by creating a sustainable ecosystem of affordable rental housing solutions for urban migrants/poor.

To achieve overall objective of “Housing for All” encompassing the need of affordable rental housing for urban migrants/poor. ARHCs will provide them dignified living with necessary civic amenities near their place of work.

To create a conducive environment by

incentivizing Public/Private Entities to leverage investment for creating affordable rental housing stock to take care of their own requirements for workforce and also cater to neighbouring areas, if they have available vacant land.

A total of 88,236 existing Government funded vacant houses are available to be converted into ARHCs for rental accommodation to migrants under Model-1 of ARHC Scheme. However, no vacant houses are available in Telangana for rental accommodation to migrants under Model-1.

Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) To be discontinued

Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK), established in 1993 as a national level autonomous body for socio-economic empowerment of women; especially those in the rural and unorganized sector, by providing them concessional, collateral free micro-credit.

It extended loans to Intermediary Micro-Finance Organizations (IMOs) which further on lend for entrepreneurial activities of women.

However, as per the recommendations in the report on ‘Rationalisation of Government Bodies’, by the Principal Economic Adviser to the Government of India, the Government has decided to close down RMK; as it has lost its relevance and utility in the present scenario with substantial alternative credit facilities becoming available to women through various governmental initiatives and efforts such as Jan Dhan Yojana, PM Mudra Yojana etc. and also to avoid duplicity of efforts.


Society & Social JusticeAugust 2021

22

Fit India Freedom Run 2.0The programme launched at 75 ‘iconic’

locations by the Union Minister of Sports.

Aim: To encouraging people to take up fitness activities like running and sports in their daily lives in order to get freedom from laziness, obesity, stress, anxiety, diseases etc.

Activities involvedPledge, rendering of National Anthem,

Freedom Run, cultural functions at all the venues, raising awareness among Youth Volunteers to

participate and organize such ‘Freedom Runs’ in their villages.

Government has planned to reach out to every household with the mantra of ‘Fitness ki dose ‘aadha ghanta roz’ in order to keep Indians fit.

Azadi Ka Amrut MahotsavThis event is being organised by Government

of India to commemorate 75th Anniversary of India’s Independence; and inaugurated by the Indian Prime Minister from Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmadabad.

Quality of Life for Elderly IndexWhy in News?

Recently, the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) has released the Quality of Life for Elderly Index.

What is Quality of Life for Elderly Index?Created by the Institute for Competitiveness

at the request of EAC-PM and it sheds light on an issue often not mentioned- problems faced by the elderly.

The report identifies the regional patterns of ageing across Indian States and assesses the overall ageing situation in India.

It presents a deeper insight into how well India is doing to support the well-being of its ageing population.

Pillars and Sub - pillars of the indexFour Pillars: Financial Well-being, Social Well-being, Health System and Income Security

Eight Sub-Pillars: Economic Empowerment, Educational Attainment & Employment, Social Status, Physical Security, Basic Health, Psychological Well being, Social Security and Enabling Environment.

Key Findings 1. Elderly Population

India is currently enjoying the demographic dividend. But the age group above the age of 65 will become the fastest-growing age group by 2050.

The share of elders, as a percentage of the total population in the country, is expected to increase from around 7.5% in 2001 to almost 12.5% by 2026, and surpass 19.5% by 2050.

Further, there will be a significantly higher proportion of women than men in the higher age cohort due to higher life expectancy. 2. State-wise assessment

Rajasthan is the top scorer in the aged states’ category, defined as states with an elderly population of more than 5 million.

Himachal Pradesh leads in the Relatively-Aged States section (below 5 million population).

Mizoram leads in the North Eastern States category and Chandigarh among all UTs.

3. Pillar-wise Performance The Health System pillar observes the

highest national average, 66.97 at an all-India level, followed by 62.34 in Social Well-being.

Financial Well-being observes a score of 44.7. It is at a lower stage due to the low performance of 21 States across the Education Attainment & Employment pillar, which showcases scope for improvement.

States have performed particularly worse in the Income Security pillar because over half of the States have a score below the national average in Income Security, which is the lowest across all pillars.

23




August 2021

Why in News?Recently, the Ministry of Jal Shakti began

‘SUJALAM’, a ‘100 days campaign’ as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ Purpose

To create more and more ODF Plus villages by undertaking waste water management at village level particularly through

1. creation of 1 million Soak-pits 2. Grey water management activities.

The effort of campaign would be directed towards achieving the ODF plus status for villages across the country in an accelerated manner in a short time.

The key activities that will be organised in the villages under this campaign include:

1. Organizing Community consultations, Khuli Baithaks and Gram Sabha meetings to analyze the current situation

2. Pass resolution to maintain ODF sustainability and achieve needed number of soak pits to manage the grey water

3. Develop a 100 days’ plan to undertake sustainability and soak pit construction related activities

4. Construct requisite number of soak pits5. Retrofit toilets where needed through IEC

and community mobilization and6. Ensure all newly emerging Households in

the village have access to toilets.

Greywater refers to domestic wastewater that is generated in households or office buildings from streams without faecal contamination. Greywater includes all streams of water except wastewater from toilets. The sources of greywater include showers, sinks, baths, dishwashers and washing machines.

100 days ‘SUJALAM’ Campaign

It is a Central Scheme for the grant of pension to freedom fighters and their families from the Central Revenues.

The Scheme provides for the grant of pension to living freedom fighters and their families – if they are no more alive, and to the families of martyrs.

Sainik Samman Pension Scheme (SSSPS) On their demise, pension is provided

to their eligible dependents viz. spouses and thereafter, unmarried and unemployed daughters and dependent parents, as per prescribed eligibility norms and procedure.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (Freedom Fighters Division) is the implementing agency.

Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) SchemeThe Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) recently

provided high-speed internet to some of Kerala’s most isolated tribal hamlets deep within the Nilambur jungle.

AboutThe JSS Scheme, formerly known as Shramik

Vidyapeeth, was a one-of-a-kind initiative of the Indian government that has been implemented across the country by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) since 1967.



24

In the year 2000, the scheme was renamed Jan Shikshan Sansthan.

In July 2018, it was moved from the Ministry of Education (formerly the Ministry of Human Resource Development) to the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.

The JSSs provide low-cost, low-infrastructure vocational skill training programs at the doorsteps of the recipients.

JSSs are unusual in that they teach not only occupational skills but also a component of life skills that can assist the recipient in daily life.

They don’t work alone; they collaborate with other departments on convergence programmes. There are now 233 JSSs operating in 25 states and three union territories.

The beneficiaries’ yearly coverage is estimated to be approximately 4 lakhs, with 85 percent of them being women.

Why in News?Recently, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP)

released a report named Hunger Hotspots - August to November 2021.

Hunger Hotspots Report by FAO and WFP

Major Hunger HotspotsEthiopia, Madagascar, South Sudan,

northern Nigeria and Yemen are among 23 countries where acute food insecurity will worsen from August through November, 2021.

Ethiopia and Madagascar are the world’s newest “highest alert” hunger hotspots.

Ethiopia faces a devastating food emergency linked to ongoing conflict in the Tigray region.

Meanwhile, in southern Madagascar the worst drought in 40 years is expected to push

25




August 202128,000 people into famine-like conditions by the end of 2021.

Factors causing food insecurityViolence: Population displacement,

abandonment of agricultural land, loss of life and assets, disruption of trade and cropping and loss of access to markets caused by conflicts can worsen food insecurity. Violence is predicted to intensify in Afghanistan, Central Sahel, the Central African Republic etc.

Pandemic Shocks: In 2020, almost all low- and middle-income countries were affected by the Pandemic-induced economic downturns.

Natural Hazards: Extreme weather conditions and climate variability are likely to affect several parts of the world during the outlook

period. In Haiti, for instance, reduced precipitation during the main growing season ended May is likely to have impacted yield. Continued below-average rainfall, on the hand, is likely to reduce yield during the main rice-growing season. Desert Locust infestation was a major worry in the Horn of Africa at the beginning of July 2021, while other regions were unaffected.

Poor humanitarian access: Humanitarian access is limited in various ways, including administrative/bureaucratic impediments, movement restrictions, security constraints and physical constraints related to the environment. Countries currently facing the most significant obstacles, preventing aid from reaching those who need it most are Afghanistan, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic etc.

Samagra Shiksha Scheme 2.0Why in News?

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the school education programme Samagra Shiksha Scheme 2.0 till the 2025-26 financial year.

About Samagra Shiksha Scheme 2.0Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT): In order to enhance the direct outreach of the scheme, all child-centric interventions will be provided directly to the students through DBT mode on an IT-based platform over a period of time. This DBT would include RTE (Right to Education) entitlements such as textbooks, uniforms and transport allowance.

On NEP RecommendationsEncouraging Indian languages: It has a new component for appointment of language teachers, which includes salaries, and training costs as well as bilingual books and teaching learning material as recommended in NEP.

Pre-primary Education: It will now include funding to support pre-primary sections at government schools, i.e. for teaching and learning materials, indigenous toys and games and play-based activities. Master trainers for pre-primary teachers and anganwadi workers will be supported under the scheme.

NIPUN (National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy) Bharat Initiative: Under this initiative, an annual provision of Rs. 500 per child for learning materials, Rs. 150 per teacher for manuals and resources and Rs. 10-20 lakh per district will be given for assessment for foundational literacy and numeracy.

On Digital Initiatives: There is a provision for ICT labs and smart classrooms, including support for digital boards, virtual classrooms and DTH channels which have become more important in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

For out-of-school children: It includes a provision to support out of school children from age 16 to 19 with funding of Rs. 2000 per grade to complete their education via open schooling. There will also be a greater focus on skills and vocational education, both for students in school and dropouts.

Additional Sports grant of upto Rs. 25000 to schools in case atleast 2 students of that school win a medal in Khelo India school games at the National level.

Holistic, 360-degree, multi-dimensional report showing progress/ uniqueness of each learner in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains will be introduced in the form of Holistic Progress Card (HPC).



26

Support for activities of PARAKH, a national assessment centre (Performance, Assessments, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development)

Provision for Bagless days, school complexes, internships with local artisans, curriculum and pedagogical reforms etc included.

Support for Social Audit covering 20% of schools per year so that all schools are covered in a period of Five years.

About Samagra Shiksha SchemeSamagra Shiksha is an Integrated Scheme for School Education. It has been launched throughout the country as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with effect from the year 2018-19.

Merged Schemes: The scheme subsumes the three erstwhile Centrally Sponsored Schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), and Teacher Education (TE).

Aim: To ensure inclusive and equitable quality education at all levels of school education.

Coverage: It is an overarching programme for the school education sector, extending from pre-school to class XII. It covers 11.6 lakh schools, over 15.6 crore students, and 57 lakh teachers of government and aided schools (from pre-primary to senior secondary level).

Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award

Why in News?Recently, the Prime Minister renamed the

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the country’s highest sporting honour, after hockey wizard Major Dhyan Chand. This came a day after the Indian men’s hockey team won the bronze medal in the ongoing Tokyo Olympics and hours after the women’s team finished fourth.

AboutThe now renamed Major Dhyan Chand Khel

Ratna award comes with a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh.

Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award is the highest sporting award given by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for the spectacular and most outstanding performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over a period of four years.The award comprises a medallion, a certificate, and a cash prize of Rs 7.5 lakh.The Khel Ratna award was instituted in 1991-1992 and the first recipient was Chess legend Viswanathan Anand. Among the other winners were Leander Paes, Sachin Tendulkar, Dhanraj Pillay, Pullela Gopichand, Abhinav Bindra, Anju Bobby George, Mary Kom and Rani Rampal in 2020.

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August 2021

Key FindingsNumber of hungry people,

worldwide (in 2020): between 720 and 811 million

i. Asia: 418 million (More than half of world’s hunger population)

ii. Africa: 282 million (One-third)

iii. Latin America and the Caribbean: 60 million

Nearly 2.37 billion people did not have access to adequate food in 2020 (an increase of 320 million people over 2019).

After remaining unchanged for five years, the prevalence of under-nourishment (PoU) increased from 8.4% to around 9.9% in just one year, heightening the challenge of achieving the Zero Hunger target by 2030.

While the global prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity (measured using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale) has been slowly on the rise since 2014, the estimated increase in 2020 was equal to that of the previous five years combined.

At the global level, the gender gap in the prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity has grown even larger after COVID-19 pandemic i.e. 10% higher among women than men in 2020, compared with 6% in 2019.

THE STATE OF FOOD SECURITY AND NUTRITION

The high cost of healthy diets coupled with persistent high levels of income inequality put healthy diets out of reach for around 3 billion people, especially the poor, in every region of the world in 2019 – slightly less than in 2017.

Notably, only Africa and Latin America show an increase in the unaffordability of healthy diets between 2017 and 2019, but it is likely that increases will be seen in most regions in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nutrition IndicatorsIn 2020, it is estimated that,

i. 22% (149.2 million) of children under 5 years of age were affected by stunting;

ii. 6.7% (45.4 million) were suffering from wasting;

iii. 5.7% (38.9 million) were affected by overweight.

Some progress towards increasing the percentage of infants (0–5 months of age) who are fed exclusively with breast milk – 44% in 2019 compared with 37% in 2012.

Anaemia in women aged 15–49 years is now an SDG indicator (2.2.3). Globally, 29.9% of women aged 15 to 49 years are affected by anaemia; however, the data reveal stark regional differences.

Major drivers causing food insecurity

In the last decade, the increased frequency and intensity of conflicts, climate variability and extremes, and economic slowdowns and downturns coupled with high income inequality which is now exacerbated by the pandemic, has led to a rise in hunger and has undermined progress in reducing all forms of malnutrition, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Recent increases in the unaffordability of healthy diets are associated with increases in both severe and moderate forms of food insecurity, especially in lower-middle-income countries.

Drivers that are external (e.g. conflict and climate shocks) and internal (e.g. low productivity and inefficient food supply chains) to food systems are pushing up the cost of nutritious foods which is combined with low income increases the unaffordability of healthy diets.

Hunger will not be eradicated by 2030 unless bold actions are taken to accelerate progress, especially actions to address inequality in access to food.

IN THE WORLD, 2021 REPORT( GS-II Issues relating to poverty and hunger.)



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Six Pathways to address major drivers behind recent Food Security and Nutrition Trends

Food FortificationAccording to WHO, food

fortification is defined as “the practice of deliberately increasing the content of essential micro-nutrients; so as to improve the nutritional quality of the food supply and to provide a public health benefit with minimal risk to health”.

Bio-fortification differs from conventional food fortification i.e. bio-fortification aims to increase nutrient levels in crops during plant growth rather than through manual means during processing of the crops.

Types 1. Targeted: Food

fortification can be done for foods widely consumed by the general population (mass fortification), to fortify foods designed

for specific population subgroups, such as complementary foods for young children or rations for displaced populations.

2. Market-Driven: To allow food manufacturers to voluntarily fortify foods available in the marketplace (market-driven fortification).

Procedure The extent to which a

national or regional food supply is fortified varies considerably. The concentration of just one micronutrient might be increased in a single foodstuff (e.g. the iodization of salt), or, at the other end of the scale, there might be a whole range of food–micronutrient combinations.

Advantages offered in Food Fortification

Health: Fortified staple foods will contain natural or near-natural levels of micro-nutrients, which may not necessarily be the case with supplements.

Taste: It provides nutrition without any change in the characteristics of food or the course of our meals.

PM in his Independence Day

speech has announced the fortification of rice distributed under various government schemes, including the Public Distribution System (PDS) and mid-day meals in schools, by 2024, in order to fight chronic anaemia and under nutrition, with special focus on Aspirational districts. The blending of rice is done at the milling stage.

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August 2021Nutrition: If consumed on a regular and frequent basis, fortified foods will maintain body stores of nutrients more efficiently and more effectively than will intermittently supplement.

Economy: The overall costs of fortification are extremely low; the price increase is approximately 1 to 2 percent of the total food value.

Society: It upholds everyone’s right to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger.

Adverse Impacts of Food Fortification

Recently, a group of scientists and activists have warned the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) of the adverse impacts of Food Fortification on health and livelihoods. It is a pushback against the Centre’s plan to mandatorily fortify rice and edible oils with vitamins and minerals.

Inconclusive Evidence: Evidence supporting fortification is inconclusive and certainly not adequate before major national policies are rolled out. Many of the studies which FSSAI relies on to promote fortification are sponsored by food companies who would benefit from it, leading to conflicts of interest.

Hypervitaminosis: Recent studies published in Lancet

show that both anaemia and Vitamin A deficiencies are over diagnosed, meaning that mandatory fortification could lead to hypervitaminosis which is a condition of abnormally high storage levels of vitamins, which can lead to various symptoms such as over excitement, irritability, or even toxicity.

Toxicity: One major problem with chemical fortification of foods is that nutrients don’t work in isolation but need each other for optimal absorption. Undernourishment in India is caused by monotonous cereal-based diets with low consumption of vegetables and animal protein. Adding one or two synthetic chemical vitamins and minerals will not solve the larger problem, and in undernourished populations can lead to toxicity. A 2010 study that showed iron fortification causing gut inflammation and pathogenic gut microbiota profile in undernourished children.

Cartelisation: Mandatory fortification would harm the vast informal economy of Indian farmers and food processors including local oil and rice mills, and instead benefit a small group of multi-national corporations and these companies have historically engaged in cartelising behaviour leading to price hikes.

Decrease Value of Natural Food: Dietary diversity was a healthier and more

cost-effective way to fight malnutrition. Once iron-fortified rice is sold as the remedy to anaemia, the value and the choice of naturally iron-rich foods like millets, varieties of green leafy vegetables, flesh foods, liver, to name a few, will have been suppressed by a policy of silence.

Government Interventions 1. FSSAI Regulations: In

October 2016, FSSAI operationalized the Food Safety and Standards (Fortification of Foods) Regulations, 2016 for fortifying staples namely Wheat Flour and Rice (with Iron, Vitamin B12 and Folic Acid), Milk and Edible Oil (with Vitamins A and D) and Double Fortified Salt (with Iodine and Iron) to reduce the high burden of micronutrient malnutrition in India.

2. Nutritional Strategy: India’s National Nutritional strategy, 2017, had listed food fortification as one of the interventions to address anaemia, vitamin A and iodine deficiencies apart from supplementation and dietary diversification.

3. Milk Fortification Project: The Milk Fortification Project was launched by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in collaboration with the World Bank and Tata Trusts, as a pilot project in 2017.



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ContextThe outcomes in COVID-19

patients with pre-existing Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like cardiovascular disease or diabetes can be worse than others.

About NCDsN o n - c o m m u n i c a b l e

diseases (NCDs) are not caused by infectious agents rather they are chronic diseases of long duration, and generally with slow progression.

They are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors.

NCDs are the silent killers of our generation. Nearly 71% of all deaths worldwide occur due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, and cancer.

One out of every four deaths occurs due to cardiovascular diseases, especially among younger patients.

In the Indian subcontinent, there is early onset and rapid progression of such diseases, and a high mortality rate.

Those with NCDs find that productive years of life are lost and there is high-out-of-pocket expenditure on treatment.

NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES (NCD) - “THE SILENT PANDEMIC”

ii. Lack of staffs for NCDs treatment due to their reassignment to the COVID-19 works.

iii. There is a severe shortage of medicines and diagnostics services available for NCDs.

iv. The lockdowns and decreased availability of public transport has led to cancellations of planned treatments.

The pandemic has severely disrupted Primary Health Care (PHC) systems which forms a critical part of the screening and management of NCDs.

Lockdowns and reduced physical interactions led to loneliness, especially in the geriatric population. This resulted in mental health disorders such as anxiety and depression.

The subsequent increase in consumption of alcohol and tobacco and adoption of an unhealthy diet increases the exposure to NCD risk factors.

As per a World Health Organization (WHO) survey 2020, low-income countries were most affected by this disruption.

(GS-II Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health)

Socio-economic Impacts NCDs threaten progress

towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which includes a target of reducing premature deaths from NCDs by one-third by 2030.

Poverty is closely linked with NCDs. The rapid rise in NCDs is predicted to impede poverty reduction initiatives in low-income countries, particularly by increasing household costs associated with health care.

Vulnerable and socially disadvantaged people get sicker and die sooner than people of higher social positions, especially because they are at greater risk of being exposed to harmful products, such as tobacco, or unhealthy dietary practices, and have limited access to health services.

In low-resource settings, health-care costs for NCDs quickly drain household resources. The exorbitant costs of NCDs, including often lengthy and expensive treatment and loss of breadwinners, force millions of people into poverty annually and stifle development.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on NCDs

i. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the disruption of NCD services due to,

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August 2021Global Initiative

In 2013, the WHO Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of NCDs 2013–2020 (Global NCD Action Plan) was adopted by the World Health Assembly to strengthen global and national responses to prevent and control NCDs. It includes a global monitoring framework and nine voluntary global targets to be attained by 2025.

WHO has set a target of 25% relative reduction in overall mortality from cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, or chronic respiratory diseases by 2025.

Now, the World Health Assembly called for tackling twin challenges of the pandemic and NCD morbidities.

Universal access to screening of NCD and application of AI paired with telemedicine to continue healthcare for NCD patients to overcome challenges which lockdown imposes on continuity of health services.

India’s NCD strategyIn response to the “WHO

Global NCD Action Plan 2013-2020”, India is the first country to adopt the National Action Plan aimed at reducing the number of global premature deaths from NCDs by 25% by 2025.

National Non-communicable Disease Monitoring Survey (NNMS) conducted during 2017–18, to

RecommendationsA paradigm shift is the need

of the hour to tackle the silent epidemic transition to NCDs.

To address the challenge posed by NCDs, the National Health Mission launched the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke, in 2010 which needs to be further expanded and adequately funded.

The importance of healthy lifestyle including physical activity and mental health needs to be emphasized.

Strengthening the Primary Health Care (PHC) system can tackle up to 80% of the health needs; which will help to prevent, diagnose and treat NCDs earlier, and ease the burden on hospitals.

Telemedicine can help maintain a degree of continuum in healthcare services disrupted by the pandemic. Also, it can help reduce travel expenses, thus lowering patients’ expenditure burden.

India’s response plan to address the growing burden of NCDs must include tobacco and alcohol cessation activities.

ASHA workers can be incentivised to ramp up the screening of NCDs at grassroot level.

collect reliable baseline data on key indicators related to the National NCD monitoring framework and NCD Action Plan.

Under Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana 100 million of the most vulnerable population is covered under health insurance which eliminates out-of-pocket expenditure for the poorest which could be as high as 72% if not covered under public insurance.

PM Ujjawala Yojana replaced fuel wood with LPG in millions of families which has significantly reduced the risk of the chronic lung diseases and cancer to the women.

Fit India Movement was launched to motivate every Indian to incorporate simple, easy ways of staying fit in their everyday life.

What is the Outcome?The results of the schemes

are seen in the steady decline in NCD mortality rates since 2014.

India’s NCD mortality rate is at 558 per 1 lakh population and a comparison shows India’s better performance in NCD mortality compared to the other neighbouring countries.

India’s remarkable efforts reduced the mortalities due to NCD which have yielded positive outcomes for reduced COVID mortality.

A study by the NCD team shows that every 10% decline in the NCD mortality rate leads to a 20% decline in COVID mortality rate.

Economic Development

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Agriculture

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FINDINGS OF PERIODIC LABOUR FORCE SURVEY (PLFS)

National Statistical Office (NSO) released the third annual report on Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), conducted between July

2019 and June 2020

RETROSPECTIVE TAX LAWThe government brought in The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill,

2021 in Lok Sabha to withdraw the Retrospective law relating to tax on indirect transfers.

ELECTRICITY AMENDMENT BILL 2021

To delicensing the power distribution companies and introduced some reforms in electricity sector

OIL BONDS: “THE FUTURE BURDEN”

Is it the reason for todays rising oil prices?`

NATIONAL MISSION ON EDIBLE OIL-OIL PALM

Centrally Sponsored Scheme with a special focus on the North east region and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

COVID-19 THREATENS INDIA’S DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND

India’s population will surely peak and subsequently decline in population, driven by a sharp reduction in fertility. There is a narrow window of time, in which India has to

leverage this demographic dividend.

1. UBHARTE SITAARE PROGRAMME 2. VEHICLE SCRAPPAGE POLICY 3. INLAND VESSELS BILL 2021 4. OPEN ACREAGE LICENSING POLICY 5. UJJWALA 2.0 6. RODTEP SCHEME 7. AUTHORITY OF ADVANCE RULING 8. FINANCIAL INCLUSION INDEX 9. THE GATI SHAKTHI MASTER PLAN 10. INTERNATIONAL BULLION EXCHANGE11. GREEN BONDS 12. E-SHRAM PORTAL13. PM KUSUM SCHEME 14. UCBS: RBI PANEL FOR FOUR-TIER STRUCTURE 15. FAIR AND REMUNERATIVE PRICE FOR SUGAR 16. EASE 4.0 17. INDIA SEEKS REVIEW OF

WTO E-TRANSMISSIONS MORATORIUM 18. E-RUPI

What's Inside?

33THECATALYST www.sivarajavelias.com

August 2021Economic Development & Agriculture

Objectives of the Programme a. To enhance India’s competitiveness in

select sectors through finance and extensive handholding support;

b. To identify and nurture companies having differentiated technology, products or processes, and enhance their export business;

c. To assist units with export potential, which are unable to scale up their operations for want of finance;

d. To identify and mitigate challenges faced by successful companies which hinder their exports;

e. To assist existing exporters in widening their basket of products and target new markets through a strategic and structured export market development initiative.

Ubharte Sitaare Programme The Ubharte Sitaare Programme (USP)

identifies Indian companies that are future champions with good export potential.

An identified company should have potential advantages by way of technology, product or process.

It can be supported even if it is currently underperforming or may be unable to tap its latent potential to grow.

The Programme diagnoses such challenges and provides support through a mix of structured support covering equity, debt and technical assistance.

Vehicle Scrappage PolicyWhy in news?

India’s vehicle scrapping policy, unveiled in March, has now been launched and such a policy is important for the economy and environment.

Features of new policy The launch of India’s vehicle scrapping policy,

or the “Voluntary Vehicle-Fleet Modernisation Programme”, seeks to usher in a new age of what it means to own and use an automobile in India.

The policy dictates that all automobiles over a certain age should be off the roads in the interest of better pollution control and safety, which new vehicles ensure.

Commercial vehicles over 15 years old and personal vehicles over 20 years old are marked for scrapping — it doesn’t matter if they run on diesel or petrol — if they fail an automated fitness test.

These will be deregistered; the owner can choose to scrap them, but cannot use them on the road

What is a circular economy? A circular economy depends on reuse,

sharing, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing and recycling of resources to create a closed-loop system, minimising the use of resources, generation of waste, pollution and carbon emissions.

How many vehicles will come under its ambit initially?

India has 51 lakh light motor vehicles that are more than 20 years old and 34 lakhs over 15 years old.

Around 17 lakh medium and heavy commercial vehicles are older than 15 years without valid fitness certificates, according to data with the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

This does not mean that vehicle owners need to rush to scrap their old vehicles.

India is still not ready with the infrastructure to either test or scrap vehicles in such large numbers.



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The investor summit seeks to sensitise India’s industry about the scope and profitability of the scrappage industry.Does it help the economy?

Globally, a scrappage policy has been followed by boost in demand in the auto manufacturing sector, especially in Europe and the US.

This has also been a tool to deal with economic slowdown in the manufacturing sector and consumption due to recession.

Besides, there are spelt-out benefits vis-à-vis environment since newer cars come with better emission standards and better fuel efficiency

Inland Vessels Bill 2021Why in news?

Parliament passed a new law that will bring uniformity in the rules and regulations governing inland waterways and navigation on them. It is aimed at developing India’s inland waterways as a viable, thriving mode of transport, especially for cargo. The inland waterways network spans close to 15,000 km across rivers, channels, backwaters, creeks etc.

National WaterwaysIn 2016, the government notified 111 inland

waterways as National Waterways of India under the National Waterways Act, 2016. Of these, 13 National Waterways are operational for shipping and navigation and cargo/passenger vessels are moving on them, according to the government.

The Inland Waterways Authority of India under the Ministry of Shipping is developing the

National Waterways for commercial navigation, including with assistance from the World Bank.

The government wants to promote inland waterways especially as a supplement to freight movement across India.

This mode of transport has been recognised worldwide as environmentally friendly and economical, especially for cargo that do not depend on speed of delivery.

According to a government study conducted by RITES, one litre of fuel moves 24 tonne-km on road; 95 tonne-km on rail and 215 tonne-km on inland waterways.

To move a tonne of cargo over a kilometre, it takes about Rs 1.36 on railways, Rs 2.50 on highways, and Rs 1.06 on inland waterways.

Underutilised right now, India’s inland waterways carry about 55 million tonnes of cargo every year.



The movement is currently restricted to Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly, Brahmaputra, Barak, rivers in Goa, the backwaters in Kerala, inland waters in Mumbai and deltaic regions of Godavari-Krishna rivers.

New law featuresThe new law prescribes certain dos and

don’ts. For example, to operate in inland waters, vessels must have a certificate of survey, and registration.

Those with Indian ownership must be registered with the Registrar of Inland Vessels (appointed by the state government). Once registered, it will be valid across India.

While the state government will issue the certificate, the form will be prescribed by the Centre, much like in the case of motor vehicles.

Like motor vehicles, the vessels must be insured. Mechanical vessels must adhere to specifications for signals and equipment to ensure

navigation safety, as specified by the central government.

The new law mandates that if any distress or SOS signal is sent out by the master of a vessel, any other vessel nearby must respond — much like maritime custom and rules on sea.

If the master of a nearby vessel fails to come for help, he or she will be fined up to Rs 10,000 unless they failed to provide assistance on some specified grounds.

The new law empowers the Centre to prescribe what kind of pollutants and sewage vessels and can discharge, and how much.

The Bill envisages maintaining a fund, which will be used for emergency preparedness, checking pollution and boosting navigation.

The fund will source from state governments schemes, sale of cargo and wreck and contribution from stakeholders.

Open Acreage Licensing PolicyWhy in news?

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas launched the sixth round of bids under the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP). An official statement said that 21 blocks, with an area of approximately 35,346 sq km are on offer to investors.

About OALP The Directorate General of hydrocarbons

introduced its new Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) in 2017, a part of its revamped Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) unveiled in March 2016.

The ‘open acreage’ in OALP refers to the fact that potential investors are now able to choose exactly which areas they want to explore and develop.

Under OALP, investors choose the exact areas they are interested in, convey their interest to the government, which then places just those blocks up for bidding, typically twice a year.

Under the new policy, developers don’t need to apply for separate licences for each of the hydrocarbons they want to extract from the block. They can obtain a single unified license that will allow them to extract and market oil, gas, coal bed methane, shale oil and shale gas.

The new policy also does away with the earlier provision for a profit-sharing model with the government.

Profit sharing as a policy led to a number of delays and complications over what exactly constituted the cost, and therefore profit, of the firm doing the exploring.

The new policy hinges on revenue-sharing, doing away with this ambiguity. India is the 3rd largest consumer of crude oil and petroleum products with oil and gas contributing 34.4% to primary energy consumption.

In 2015-2016, India’s crude oil import dependence rose to 81% from 78.5%.



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In last five years, India has seen overall decline in exploration and production of conventional resources.

New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) created in 1997 ended the state dominance and created a competitive environment leading to

Why in News?Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi

launched the second phase of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) - gas connection scheme for the poor and said it would provide the biggest relief to lakhs of migrant worker families in the country.

PMUY-I: Launched in May 2016 to provide LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) connections to poor households.

PMUY-II: It is aimed to provide maximum benefit to the migrants who live in other states and find it difficult to submit address proof. Now they will only have to give “Self Declaration” to avail the benefit.

ObjectivesEmpowering women and protecting their

health.

Reducing the number of deaths in India due to unclean cooking fuel.

Preventing young children from a significant number of acute respiratory illnesses caused due to indoor air pollution by burning fossil fuel.

liberalization of oil and gas exploration and production industry.

However, it failed to keep the momentum of production growth and attracting the foreign investment.

Ujjwala 2.0Features

The scheme provides a financial support of Rs 1600 for each LPG connection to the BPL households.

Along with a deposit-free LPG connection, Ujjwala 2.0 will provide the first refill and a hotplate free of cost to the beneficiaries.

TargetUnder Ujjwala 1.0, the target was to provide

LPG connections to 50 million women from the below poverty line (BPL) households, by March 2020. However, in August 2018, women from seven other categories were brought under the purview of the scheme:

SC/ST, those under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), beneficiaries of the Antyoday Anna Yojana (AAY), Forest Dwellers, most backward classes, tea gardens and Islands.

Under Ujjwala 2.0, an additional 10 million LPG connections will be provided to the beneficiaries.

Government has also fixed a target of providing piped gas to 21 lakh homes in 50 districts.

Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG).



BackgroundIndian Exporters have been waiting for last 8 months for the announcement of the benefits under

RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) Scheme.

Ministry of Commerce & Industry under Department of Commerce has finally come out with the

Scheme guidelines.

What is RODTEP scheme?

RoDTEP scheme is notified for the remission of duties, taxes and other levies at the Central, State and local level which are borne on the exported goods manufactured in India. It also includes incidence of taxes suffered post manufacturing of the goods i.e., in respect of the distribution of exported goods.

The benefit is not available in respect of those duties or taxes which are otherwise exempted or remitted or credited.

Whether RODTEP scheme is different from MEIS scheme? If yes, in what manner

MEIS was given under chapter 3 of the FTP i.e. Exports from India Scheme, as an incentive.

RoDTEP SCHEME

RoDTEP is announced under chapter 4 of FTP i.e. duty exemption and remission scheme, which is in compliance with the global trade norms of WTO.

The objective of the MEIS was to incentivize the export of the goods from India whereas the objective of RoDTEP is neutralize the taxes and duties suffered on exported goods which are otherwise not credited or remitted or refunded in any manner.

Products covered under RODTEP The RoDTEP scheme “roughly covers two-

thirds, 65 per cent of the exports of the country,”

Exports of certain products, including steel, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, would not be eligible to receive refunds under the scheme as



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Objective of AAR The broad objective for setting up such an authority is to:

1. Provide certainty in tax liability in advance in relation to an activity proposed to be undertaken by the applicant;

2. Attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI);

3. Reduce litigation;

4. Pronounce ruling expeditiously in transparent and inexpensive manner

Which are the Questions for which Advance Ruling can be sought?

Advance Ruling can be sought for the following questions:

3 classification of any goods or services or both;

3 applicability of a notification issued under provisions of the GST Act(s);

3 determination of time and value of supply of goods or services or both;

3 admissibility of input tax credit of tax paid or deemed to have been paid;

3 determination of the liability to pay tax on any goods or services under the Act;

3 whether applicant is required to be registered under the Act;

3 whether any particular thing done by the applicant with respect to any goods or services amounts to or results in a supply of goods or services, within the meaning of that term.

What will be the Composition of Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR) Under GST?

Authority for advance ruling’ (AAR) shall comprise one member CGST and one member SGST/ UTGST. They will be appointed by the Central and State government respectively.

What is the Appellate Authority for Advance Ruling (Aaar)?

Appellate authority for advance ruling (AAAR), shall be constituted under the SGST Act or UTGST Act and such AAAR shall be deemed to be the Appellate Authority under the CGST Act in respect of the respective state or Union Territory. An applicant, or the jurisdictional officer, if aggrieved by any advance ruling, may appeal to the Appellate Authority

they have “done very well for themselves” without incentives since RoDTEP was aimed at targeting exports where assistance was required.

The benefit is given for 8555 tariff items.

The benefit is available in respect of exported goods to any of the Countries without any specific restrictions or permissions based on the country

Authority Of Advance Ruling



as the pension sector in consultation with the Government and respective sectoral regulators.

The index captures information on various aspects of financial inclusion in a single value ranging between 0 and 100, where 0 represents complete financial exclusion and 100 indicates full financial inclusion.

The FI-Index comprises of three broad parameters (weights indicated in brackets) viz., Access (35%), Usage (45%), and Quality (20%) with each of these consisting of various dimensions, which are computed based on a number of indicators.

The Index is responsive to ease of access, availability and usage of services, and quality of services, comprising all 97 indicators.

A unique feature of the Index is the Quality parameter which captures the quality aspect of financial inclusion as reflected by financial literacy, consumer protection, and inequalities and deficiencies in services.

Why in news?The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has

constructed a “financial inclusion Index” to measure and improve the extent of access, usage and quality of financial inclusion in the country,” As announced in the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies in the First Bi-monthly Monetary Policy Statement for 2021-2022, the Reserve Bank of India has constructed a composite Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) to capture the extent of financial inclusion across the country.

What Is Financial Inclusion Index?The Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index)

has been conceptualised as a comprehensive index incorporating details of banking, investments, insurance, postal as well as the pension sector in consultation with the Government and respective sectoral regulators.

Salient Features The FI-Index has been conceptualised as

a comprehensive index incorporating details of banking, investments, insurance, postal as well

Financial Inclusion Index



40

Why In News?On India’s 75th Independence Day, Prime

minister announced that ,the Centre will launch ‘PM Gati Shakti Master Plan’, a Rs. 100 lakh-crore project for developing ‘holistic infrastructure’.

What Is Gati Shakti Master Plan? The project as a source of employment

opportunities for the youth in future.

It will make a foundation for holistic infrastructure and give an integrated pathway to our economy.

What are the focus areas of the Project?

Gati Shakti plan will help raise the global profile of local manufacturers and help them compete with their counterparts worldwide.

It also raises possibilities of new future economic zones. India needs to increase both manufacturing and exports.

Every product that is sold globally from India is attached to India will make India as manufacturing hub.

The Increased FDI in Insurance Sector Indian Insurance Companies (Foreign

Investment) Amendment Rules, 2021 notified by the Finance Ministry which will apply to all the

insurers irrespective of the stake held by the foreign partner.

These rules will give an effect to increased FDI limit in the Insurance Sector to 74% from 49%.

Total Foreign Investment in an Indian Insurance Company shall mean the sum total of direct and indirect foreign investment by Foreign Investors.

Any Indian insurance company with foreign investment exceeding 49% should have half of its board of directors as an independent director. But if the chairperson of its board is an independent director then at least one-third of its board shall comprise independent directors

Indian insurance companies, with foreign investment, should have the majority of their directors and key management persons as resident Indians. There should be at least one resident Indian among the three key persons— chairperson of the board, managing director (MD), and chief executive officer (CEO).

Every Indian insurance company having foreign investment shall comply within one year with the requirements of these provisions.

The Gati Shakthi Master PlanInsurance penetration in India is 3.7%

of the country’s GDP compared to the world average. of 6.31%.

Why in News?International Financial Services Centres

Authority (IFSCA), launched the pilot run/soft launch here today. The International Bullion Exchange is scheduled to go live on October 1, 2021 the Foundation Day of IFSCA.

What is Bullion?Bullion refers to physical gold and silver of

high purity that is often kept in the form of bars or coins.

International Bullion Exchange

Direct investment by a foreigner will be called Foreign Direct Investment. While Investment by an Indian company (which is owned or controlled by foreigners) into another Indian entity is considered as Indirect Foreign Investment.

Bullion can sometimes be considered legal tender and is often held as reserves by central banks or held by institutional investors.



Investors can buy or sell bullion through dealers who are active on one of several global bullion markets.

About International Bullion Exchange (IBX)

It is a precious metals dealer with an established reputation as a trusted and dedicated resource for people wanting to diversify their holdings with intelligent precious metals and diamond investments.

It offers investors multiple possibilities for investing in precious metals.

Through International Bullion Exchange, a person can:

Purchase gold or other precious metals for immediate personal delivery;

Open or rollover an existing IRA into a Precious Metals IRA; or

Arrange for convenient and safe storage at an independent bank or depository

The holding company India International Bullion Holding IFSC Limited has been created for setting up and operationalising International Bullion Exchange, Bullion Clearing Corporation and Bullion Depository in IFSC.

Expected OutcomesIt will be the “Gateway for Bullion Imports

into India”, wherein all the bullion imports for domestic consumption shall be channelized through the exchange.

To bring all the market participants at a common transparent platform for bullion trading

To provide an efficient price discovery, assurance in the quality of gold,

Enable greater integration with other segments of financial markets and

Help establish India’s position as a dominant trading hub in the World.

About International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA)

It has been established in 2020 under the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019.

It is headquartered at GIFT City, Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

It is a unified authority for the development and regulation of financial products, financial services and financial institutions.

The GIFT IFSC is the maiden international financial services centre in India.

The main objective of the IFSCA is to develop a strong global connect and focus on the needs of the Indian economy as well as to serve as an international financial platform for the entire region and the global economy as a whole.

Green BondsWhy in News?

According to a Council On Energy, Environment and Water – Centre for Energy Finance (CEEW-CEF) report, Indian renewable energy project developers have raised Rs. 26,300 crore through issuance of green bonds during January to June this year.

What is Green Bond ?A green bond is a debt instrument, like

any other bond, by which investors can finance sustainable assets or projects.

The proceeds of the green bond offering are earmarked for use towards financing ‘green’

projects like electric vehicles, mass rapid transport systems, water and irrigation management, renewable energy etc.

They can be raised either by financial institutions for further lending to green projects, or by the developers directly for investment in their projects.

Benefits of Green BondsPositive Impact on EnvironmentAttracts InvestmentAlternative to Bank Loan: Green bonds are

also an effective tool in driving down the cost of capital and reducing asset-liability mismatches.



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Green Bonds in IndiaYes Bank was the first Indian Bank to issue

Green Infrastructure Bonds (GIBs) in India in 2015.

SEBI has allocated the following eight categories with the tag of green projects:

a. renewable energyb. clean transportation

c. sustainable water management

d. climate change

e. energy efficiency

f. sustainable waste management and

g. land use and

h. biodiversity conservation.

E-Shram Portal

What is E-Shram Portal?The government launched the e-Shram

portal, a database of unorganised sector workers.Union Minister for Labour and Employment Minister launched the logo of the e-Shram portal.

The government aims to register 38 crore unorganised workers, such as construction labourers, migrant workforce, street vendors and domestic workers, among others.

The workers will be issued an e-Shram card containing a 12-digit unique number, which, going

ahead, will help in including them in social security schemes.

How will the registration for workers happen on the portal?

The registration of workers on the portal will be coordinated by the Labour Ministry, state governments, trade unions and CSCs.

Awareness campaigns would be planned across the country to enable nationwide registration

of workers.



Following the launch of the portal, workers from the unorganised sector can begin their registration from the same day.

A national toll-free number 14434 will also be launched to assist and address the queries of workers seeking registration on the portal.

A worker can register on the portal using his/her Aadhaar card number and bank account details, apart from filling other necessary details like date of birth, home town, mobile number and social category

PM KUSUM SchemeObjective of the scheme

The scheme aims to add solar and other renewable capacity of 25,750 MW by 2022 with total central financial support of Rs. 34,422 Crore including service charges to the implementing agencies.

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has launched the Pradhan Mantri Kisan

Urja Suraksha even Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) Scheme for farmers for installation of solar pumps and grid connected solar and other renewable power plants in the country.

Scheme implementation and benefits State Nodal Agencies (SNAs) of MNRE will

coordinate with States/UTs, Discoms and farmers for implementation of the scheme.

The scheme will open a stable and continuous source of income to the rural land owners for a period of 25 years by utilisation of their dry/uncultivable land.

Further, in case cultivated fields are chosen for setting up solar power project, the farmers could continue to grow crops as the solar panels are to be set up above a minimum height.

The scheme would ensure that sufficient local solar/ other renewable energy-based power is available for feeding rural load centres and agriculture pump-set loads, which require power mostly during the day time.

As these power plants will be located closer to the agriculture loads or to electrical substations in a decentralized manner, it will result in reduced



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Transmission losses for STUs and Discoms. Moreover, the scheme will also help the Discoms to achieve the RPO target The solar pumps will save the expenditure incurred on diesel for running diesel pump and provide the farmers a reliable source of irrigation through solar pump apart from

preventing harmful pollution from running diesel pump.

In light of the long waiting list for electric grid connection, this scheme will benefit 17.5 lakh farmers over a period of four years, without adding to the grid load.

UCBS: RBI Panel for Four-Tier Structure Why in news?

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) expert committee on urban co-operative banks (UCBs) has suggested a four-tiered structure to regulate them, based on size of deposits.

The committee, headed by former RBI Deputy Governor NS Vishwanathan, has proposed setting up an umbrella organisation to oversee co-operative banks and suggested that they should be allowed to open more branches if they meet all regulatory requirements.

Criteria for tier structureAccording to the committee, based on the

cooperativeness’ of the banks, availability of capital

and other factors, UCBs may be categorised into

four tiers for regulatory purposes:

Tier 1 with all unit UCBs and salary earner’s

UCBs (irrespective of deposit size) and all other

UCBs having deposits up to Rs 100 crore, Tier 2

with UCBs of deposits between Rs 100 crore and Rs

1,000 crore, Tier 3 with UCBs of deposits between

Rs 1,000 crore and Rs 10,000 crore and Tier 4 with

UCBs of deposits more than Rs 10,000 crore. “The

Umbrella organisation should be financially strong

and be well governed by a professional board and

senior management

Fair and Remunerative Price for SugarWhy in News?

Recently, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the hike in the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane for sugar season 2021-22.

Despite demands from sugar mills, however, the Centre refused to hike the minimum price at which they can sell the processed sugar, citing consumer interests.

Who determines Sugarcane prices?Sugarcane prices are determined by the

Centre as well as States.

The Centre announces Fair and Remunerative Prices which are determined on the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) and are announced by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, which is chaired by Prime Minister.

Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP)FRP is the minimum price at which

sugarcane is to be purchased by sugar mills from farmers.

The FRP is based on the Rangarajan Committee report on reorganizing the sugarcane industry.

With the amendment of the Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966, the concept of Statutory Minimum Price (SMP) of sugarcane was replaced with the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane in 2009-10.

The State Advised Prices (SAP) are announced by key sugarcane producing states which are generally higher than FRP.

Minimum Selling Price (MSP) for SugarMinimum Selling Price is the minimum

price at which Sugar mills can sell the processed sugar.



The price of sugar is market-driven & depends on the demand & supply of sugar.

However, with a view to protecting the interests of farmers, the concept of MSP of sugar has been introduced since 2018.

MSP of sugar has been fixed taking into

account the components of Fair & Remunerative

Price (FRP) of sugarcane and minimum conversion

cost of the most efficient mills.

EASE 4.0Union Minister of Finance and Corporate

Affairs, launched the fourth edition of Public

Sector Bank (PSB) Reforms Agenda called ‘EASE

4.0’ for the financial year 2021-22.

AboutEnhanced Access and Service Excellence

(EASE) is a common reform agenda for Public

Sector Banks (PSBs). It is aimed at institutionalizing

clean lending, better customer service, simplified

and enhanced credit and robust governance and

HR practices.

1. The EASE 1.0 was aimed at enabling banking

from home, effective grievance redressal and

responsible banking through monitoring of

large-value stressed loans among others.

2. The EASE 2.0 was launched in FY20 to further

build on the foundation of EASE 1.0. It

focussed on CLEAN and SMART banking.

3. The EASE 3.0 was launched in FY21. It

focuses on the transformation of Public Sector

Banks (PSBs) into Digital and Data-driven

Banks through smart lending, Technology

enabled ease of Banking, Credit@click, Dial-

a-loan, and Prudent banking among others.

Achievements of EASE 3.0 includes,i. Public Sector Banks (PSBs) have reported

healthy profits in FY21 as compared to losses in FY20. This is the first year when PSBs have reported a profit after five years of losses.

ii. The total gross non-performing assets reduced by Rs. 62,000 crore from March 2020 to March 2021.

iii. Nearly 72% of financial transactions happening at PSBs are now happening through digital channels.

iv. PSBs are now offering services across call centres, Internet banking, and Mobile banking in 14 regional languages.

4. EASE 4.0 aims to further the agenda of customer-centric digital transformation and deeply embed digital and data into PSBs’ ways of working.

Key themes under EASE 4.0 are,i. Smart Lending,ii. New Age 24×7 banking with resilient

technology,iii. Data-Enabled agricultural financing,

andiv. Collaborative banking for synergistic

outcomes.



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Why in News?Ahead of Ministerial meeting 12 (MC-12)

of WTO, India and South Africa are collaborating for joint effort for review of E-transmission moratorium imposed by WTO.

What is E-transmission moratorium?In 1998, WTO member countries agreed

to temporarily keep custom duties, on electronic transmission of services such as e-books, music, and a variety of services, at zero.

The moratorium dates back to 1998 when ministers at the Second Ministerial Conference adopted the Declaration on Global Electronic Commerce, calling for the establishment of a work programme on e-commerce, which was adopted later that year.

The WTO Work Programme on electronic commerce defines electronic commerce” as the “production, distribution, marketing, sale or delivery of goods and services by electronic means.”

The moratorium is extended every year.

Issues with the moratoriumIndia and other developing countries fear

that the moratorium imposed by WTO is hurting the sentiments of developing countries.

In March 2020, India and South Africa circulated a communication, outlining the implications the moratorium has on developing countries, including:

1. Tariff revenue losses: According to a UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in 2017 alone, the potential tariff revenue loss to developing countries due to the moratorium was $10 billion.

2. Impacts on industrialization: Impacts on the use of digital technologies like 3D printing in manufacturing

3. Losses of other duties and charges

The countries argue that the moratorium is “equivalent to developing countries giving the digitally advanced countries duty-free access to [their] markets.”

India seeks review of WTO e-transmissions moratorium

e-RUPI: A voucher system ahead of digital currency

What is e-RUPI?e-RUPI is a cashless and contactless digital

payment medium, which will be delivered to mobile phones of beneficiaries in form of an SMS-string or a QR code.

This will essentially be like a prepaid gift-voucher that will be redeemable at specific accepting centres without any credit or debit card, a mobile app or internet banking.

e-RUPI will connect the sponsors of the services with the beneficiaries and service providers in a digital manner without any physical interface.

The system has been built by NPCI on its UPI platform, and has onboarded banks that will be the issuing entities

What are the use cases of e-RUPI? According to the government, e-RUPI is expected

to ensure a leak-proof delivery of welfare services.

It can also be used for delivering services under schemes meant for providing drugs and nutritional support under Mother and Child welfare schemes, TB eradication programmes, drugs & diagnostics under schemes like Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, fertiliser subsidies etc.

The government also said that even the private sector can leverage these digital vouchers as part of their employee welfare and corporate social responsibility programmes.



Why in news?The government brought in The Taxation

Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in Lok Sabha to withdraw the Retrospective law relating to tax

on indirect transfers. The Bill introduced by the Finance Ministry is aimed at encouraging more international investments into India and is touted as a welcome relief for companies who have long invested in the country.

RETROSPECTIVE TAX LAW

What is Retrospective Tax and how does it affect Investors?

The retrospective tax was introduced in 2012 by late former president and then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Retrospective Tax enabled the government to collect tax from earlier years even though they were not taxable at the time.

Retrospective Tax slapped on various companies in India:

Cases such as Vodafone’s transaction with Hutchison in 2007 or the internal reorganisation of

the India business that Cairn Energy did in 2006-

07 before listing it on local bourses came under the

purview of Retrospective Tax.

The same law was used by tax authorities in January 2013 to slap Vodafone with a tax demand of Rs 14,200 crore, including principal tax of Rs 7,990 crore and interest. This was in February 2016 updated to Rs 22,100 crore plus interest. They slapped an assessment of Rs 10,247 crore on Cairn

(GS-III Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, Government Budgeting)

Energy in January 2014, which after including penalties came to Rs 20,495 crore.

A similar demand was also slapped on Vedanta Ltd, which bought Cairn’s India business in 2011

Retrospective taxation: the Vodafone case, and the Hague court ruling What is the case?

In May 2007, Vodafone had bought a 67% stake in Hutchison Whampoa for $11 billion. This included the mobile telephony business and other assets of Hutchison in India.

In September that year, the India government for the first time raised a demand of Rs 7,990 crore in capital gains and withholding tax from Vodafone, saying the company should have deducted the tax at source before making a payment to Hutchison.

Vodafone challenged the demand notice in the Bombay High Court, which ruled in favour of the Income Tax Department. Subsequently,



48

Vodafone challenged the High Court judgment in the Supreme Court, which in 2012 ruled that Vodafone Group’s interpretation of the Income Tax Act of 1961 was correct and that it did not have to pay any taxes for the stake purchase.

The same year, the then Finance Minister, the late Pranab Mukherjee, circumvented the Supreme Court’s ruling by proposing an amendment to the Finance Act, thereby giving the Income Tax Department the power to retrospectively tax such deals.

The Act was passed by Parliament that year and the onus to pay the taxes fell back on Vodafone. The case had by then become infamous as the ‘retrospective taxation case’

What did the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague say?

Vodafone Sought for international arbitration on grounds of violation of the BIT and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL).

In 2014, when the Vodafone Group had initiated arbitration against India at the Court of Arbitration, it had done so under Article 9 of the BIT between India and the Netherlands.

Article 9 of the BIT says that any dispute between “an investor of one contracting party and the other contracting party in connection with an investment in the territory of the other contracting party” shall as far as possible be settled amicably through negotiations.

The other was Article 3 of the arbitration rules of UNCITRAL, which, among other things, says that “constitution of the arbitral tribunal shall not be hindered by any controversy with respect to the sufficiency of the notice of arbitration, which shall be finally resolved by the arbitral tribunal”.

What is the Bilateral Investment Treaty? On November 6, 1995, India and the

Netherlands had signed a BIT for promotion and protection of investment by companies of each country in the other’s jurisdiction.

Among the various agreements, the treaty had then stated that both countries would strive to “encourage and promote favourable conditions for investors” of the other country.

The two countries would, under the BIT, ensure that companies present in each other’s jurisdictions would be “at all times be accorded fair and equitable treatment and shall enjoy full protection and security in the territory of the other”.

While the treaty was between India and the Netherlands, Vodafone invoked it as its Dutch unit, Vodafone International Holdings BV, had bought the Indian business operations of Hutchinson Telecommunication International Ltd. This made it a transaction between a Dutch firm and an Indian firm.

The BIT between India and the Netherlands expired on September 22, 2016



Why in News?Recently, the National Statistical Office

(NSO) released the third annual report on Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), conducted between July 2019 and June 2020. Labour indicators recorded an all-round improvement in 2019-20 compared with the previous two years i.e. 2017-18 and 2018-19.

Unemployment RateThe unemployment rate fell to 4.8% in 2019-

20. In 2018-19, it stood at 5.8% and 6.1% in 2017-18.

Worker Population RateIt improved to 38.2% in 2019-20 compared

with 35.3% in 2018-19 and 34.7% in 2017-18.

Labour Force Participation Ratio

It increased to 40.1% in 2019-20 from 37.5% and 36.9%, respectively, in the last two years. The higher the LFPR, the better.

Gender Based Unemployment RateThe data showed the jobless rate for both

male and female fell to 5.1% and 4.2%, respectively, in 2019-20 from 6% and 5.2% in 2018-19.

WPR and LFPR also comparatively improved during the year.

Significance of the recent PLFSThe recent PLFS showed two surprising

trends. One, India’s unemployment rate (UER) has declined over the survey period. Two, the Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) had increased.

The results are surprising because they correspond to a period when India’s GDP growth rate is decelerated sharply.

What are LFPR, WPR and UER?Labour force participation rate (LFPR) is defined as the section of the working population in the age group of 16-64 in the economy currently employed or seeking employment.

The Worker-Population Ratio (WPR) is the proportion of the population that is working.

The Unemployment Rate (UER) is the percentage of people in the labour force who do not get employment. The PLFS survey calculates unemployment using two methods.

Usual Status (US): Earlier, this job was done by Employment-Unemployment Surveys, but these were conducted once every five years. The PLFS focus on US as against CWS.

Current Weekly Status (CWS): In this, the survey tries to figure out whether a person was adequately employed in the 7 days preceding the survey. The CWS method is closer to the global norm in calculating UER.

About Periodic Labour Force SurveyIt is India’s first computer-based survey

launched by the NSO in 2017.

It has been constituted based on the recommendation of a committee headed by Amitabh Kundu.

It essentially maps the state of employment in the country. In doing so, it collects data on several variables such as the level of unemployment, the types of employment and their respective shares, the wages earned from different types of jobs, the number of hours worked etc.

Before PLFS, the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)- previous name of NSO used to bring the data related to employment and unemployment based on its quinquennial (every 5 year) household socio-economic survey programme.

Objective: To estimate the key employment and unemployment indicators (viz. WPR, LFPR, UR) in the short time interval of three months for the urban areas only in the Current Weekly Status (CWS). To estimate employment and unemployment indicators in both usual status and CWS in both rural and urban areas annually.

FINDINGS OF PERIODIC LABOURFORCE SURVEY (PLFS)

(GS-III Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment)



50

Reason for high jobs during low economic activity

The PLFS categorises the workforce into self-employed, regular wage/salaried workers and casual labourers. Of all the worker categories, only the proportion of unpaid family workers has gone up significantly in the last three years.

Almost the entire rise in the workforce was accommodated by agriculture. Agriculture continues to perform the function of a sink — absorbing the workforce that cannot find remunerative employment elsewhere.

Eight states, including populous ones like Uttar Pradesh, have more than 70% of people reporting themselves as self-employed, following the current weekly status (CWS) approach.

Increase in women participation: The story of the declining unemployment rate can largely be explained by a movement of women from domestic

work to agriculture and other petty production activities as unpaid family helpers.

Increase in the Service sector: The proportion of the urban workforce dependent on services has gone up from 69.3% to 71.8% over 2017-18 to 2019-20. This is due to a high increase in low-paid service sector jobs.

Challenges exposed by the PLFS The data also suggests an unsurprising

correlation between employment and consumption. The employment among those consuming the least being the lowest. This suggests extreme inequity in employment, leading to consumption inequities.

60% of our population is not available to our labour force, and only 38.2% of our population is employed. This is in stark with data from China. In China, 66.8% of its labour force actively employed or seeking employment and 63.5% of its population employed in 2020.



(GS-III Infrastructure)

Why in news? Recently introduced electricity amendment bill to delicensing the power distribution companies and

introduced some reforms in electricity sector which were part of the budget 2021 proposal.

ELECTRICITY AMENDMENT BILL 2021

Power Sector Troubles:

Except for cities like Delhi, Ahmedabad and Mumbai, power supply in most parts of the country is controlled by state owned companies.

Discoms are however struggling with high levels of losses and debt. The government has brought out a number of schemes to restructure the outstanding debts of discoms while incentivising them to reduce losses.

However, such schemes have only brought short term financial space for discoms which have tended to continue to accumulate losses and debts post restructuring schemes such as the UDAY scheme launched by the government in 2015.

What are the key proposals?Entry of private players: The amendments seek to de-license

power distribution, allowing private sector players to enter the sector and compete with state-owned power distribution companies (discoms).

It would let consumers choose a distributor of their choice.

Disputes & Penalties: The Bill provides for the constitution of the Electricity Contract Enforcement Authority (ECEA). The ECEA will have the sole authority to adjudicate upon contract-related disputes in the electricity sector.

Certain penalties for non-compliance by licensees in meeting Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO).

What is RPO? It mandates that all electricity distribution licensees should

purchase or produce a minimum specified quantity from renewable energy sources as a percentage of their total electricity consumption.

A selection committee will be constituted to select the chairperson and members of the Appellate Tribunal (APTEL), the central and state regulatory commissions (CERC, SERCs) and the ECEA.



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What is are the objections to delicensing of power distribution?

States have highlighted concerns that allowing the entry of private players could lead to “cherry-picking”, with private players providing power to only commercial and industrial consumers and not residential and agricultural consumers.

Tariffs for power currently vary widely in India with commercial and industrial players cross subside the power consumption of rural residential consumers and agricultural consumers by paying far higher tariffs.

What are other key concerns?Other key concerns that states have raised

are higher penalties for failure to meet Renewable energy Purchase Obligations (RPOs) and the requirement that Regional Load Dispatch Centres

and State Load Dispatch Centres follow instructions by the National Load Dispatch Centre.

The Aggregate Technical & Commercial (AT&C) losses of 12 states were more than 25 per cent and of six states between 15 and 25 per cent, according to a report released by the distribution utility forum based on Uday dashboard in 2020.

AT&C losses may be made a key performance indicator by a provision in the Act for evaluation of the status of governance of the states.

This indicator combines per capita income / paying capacity of consumers, enforcement of laws and status of finance of the state in terms of timely release of subsidy to discoms.

This subsidy is not a grant but given instead of a reduction of tariff ordered by the state government for certain consumer categories like domestic and agricultural, and sometimes to industries.



Objective The Union Cabinet, chaired

given its approval to launch a new Mission on Oil palm to be known as the National Mission on Edible Oils Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme with a special focus on the North east region and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Due to the heavy dependence on imports for edible oils, it is important to make efforts for increasing the domestic production of edible oils in which increasing area and productivity of oil palm plays an important part.

Salient features of missionA financial outlay of

Rs.11,040 crore has been made for the scheme, out of which Rs.8,844 crore is the Government of India share and Rs.2,196 crore is State share and this includes the viability gap funding also.

Under this scheme, it is proposed to cover an additional area of 6.5 lakh hectare (ha.) for oil palm till the year 2025-26 and thereby reaching the target of 10 lakh hectares ultimately.

The production of Crude Palm Oil (CPO) is expected to go upto 11.20 lakh tonnes by 2025-26 and upto 28 lakh tonnes by 2029-30.

The scheme will immensely benefit the oil palm farmers, increase capital investment, create employment generation, shall reduce the import dependence and also increase the income of the farmers.

Since 1991-92, many efforts have been made by the Government of India to increase the production of oilseeds and oil palm.

The oilseeds production has increased from 275 lakh tons in 2014-15 to 365.65 lakh tons in 2020-21.

NATIONAL MISSION ON EDIBLE OIL-OIL PALM

(GS-III Technology missions)

Focus area of the scheme There are two major focus areas of thea Scheme. The oil palm

farmers produce Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFBs) from which oil is extracted by the industry.

Presently the prices of these FFBs are linked to the international CPO prices fluctuations.

For the first time, the Government of India will give a price assurance to the oil palm farmers for the FFBs.This will be known as the Viability Price (VP).

This will protect the farmers from the fluctuations of the international CPO prices and protect him from the volatility.

The second major focus of the scheme is to substantially increase the assistance of inputs/interventions.

A substantial increase has been made for planting material for oil palm and this has increased from Rs 12,000 per ha to Rs.29000 per ha.

Further substantial increase has been made for maintenance and inter-cropping interventions.

A special assistance @ Rs 250 per plant is being given to replant old gardens for rejuvenation of old gardens.

For harnessing the potential of palm oil production, in the year 2020, an assessment has been made by the Indian institute of Oil Palm Research (IIOPR) for cultivation of oil palm which has given an assessment of around 28 lakh ha.

Thus, there is huge potential in oil palm plantation and subsequently production of Crude Palm Oil (CPO).

At present only 3.70 lakh hectares is under Oil Palm cultivation. Oil palm produces 10 to 46 times more oil per hectare compared to other oilseed crops and has yield of around 4 tons oil per ha.



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Thus, it has enormous potential for cultivation. Keeping the above in view, and also the fact that even today around 98% of CPO is being imported, it is proposed to launch the Scheme to further increase the area and production of CPO in the country.

The proposed scheme will subsume the current National

Food Security Mission-Oil Palm programme.

Ecological impact in Tropical Rainforest

In January 2020, Indian council of forest research and education submitted its report recommending that introduction of oil palm “should be avoided” in biodiversity rich areas, including

Betrly 16 sq km of forest land gave way to oil palm plantations in Little Andaman.

In 1995, three NGOs moved the SC seeking to defend the island’s tropical rainforests and indigenous communities.

The apex court formed a committee in 2001 and, based on its report, stopped monoculture or commercial plantations on the archipelago’s forest land in 2002.

grasslands, without detailed studies on its ecological impact.

Accordingly, the Environment Ministry in August 2020 asked ICFRE to undertake a study on oil palm’s invasiveness and ecological impact and develop models for substituting existing plantations and intercropping with indigenous trees and plants.

It also banned the introduction of exotic species. Oil Palm is the source of the world’s largest consumed edible oil primarily due to its high productivity, versatility and substantial price advantage.

But plantations are also blamed for inflicting widespread environmental and social damage across continents, from Cameroon to Malaysia. The usual oil palm planting practices burning an area after felling

forests or draining peat swamps cause massive loss of forests and biodiversity.

Whether burnt, dried or simply left to rot, dead trees and vegetation release greenhouse gases. Such rapid change in land use have also been linked to social impact.



“India’s biggest strength is its ‘demographic dividend’ and people need to fully leverage it to fast-track the country’s progress in various sectors”, Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu.

What is Demographic Dividend?

According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), “demographic dividend means the economic growth potential that can result from shifts in a population’s age structure. The change in age structure is typically brought on by a decline in fertility and mortality rates.”

The demographic dividend leads to an increased labor supply that will increase the production of goods and boost savings and investment on the other.

Demography of Indiai. India’s population is

among the youngest in an ageing world (62.5% of its population in the age group 15-59).

ii. By 2022, the median age in India will be 28 years; in comparison, it will be 37 in China and the United States, 45 in Western Europe, and 49 in Japan.

have taken / taking actions against climate change.

This is the reason the Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI), 2021, puts only two G20 (or Group of Twenty) countries — India and U.K. — in the top 10.

Implications of the Pandemic

India’s fabled young demographics were meant to put the country on the path to power and prosperity in the decades ahead. But some shocking new data shows that COVID-19 has thrown a huge wrench in the works.

1. As per an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) study, the equivalent of five years or more of per capita income is likely to be lost by the end of 2021 due to Covid-19.

2. The World Bank mentioned that the world would witness deep global recessions fuelled by lowered investments, displacement of human capital, and disintegration of global trade and supply chains.

3. The effects of increased use of plastics and the generation of bio-

COVID-19 THREATENS INDIA’S DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDEND

(GS-I Population and associated issues, GS-III Inclusive Growth and issues arising out of it)iii. India’s working-

age population has numerically outstripped its non-working age population.

A rising youth population in India can provide an enormous growth opportunity as the highest number of people in the workforce.

India can achieve the goal of self-reliance (Atma Nirbharta) by enhancing the capability of youth.

Advantages of rising young population

I n d i a ’ s n o n - w o r k i n g population would be out numbered by the working population, leading to a favourable demographic dividend. This will accelerate urbanisation and the growth of industries.

The purchasing power of the populace will increase. It will open up a bigger domestic market, thus attracting more investment and increasing opportunities.

The younger population will be more climate-conscious. This can simply be explained by younger generations seeing the real-time impact of climate change. Further, they will be more inclined to act towards a greener tomorrow.

The UN report on climate change mentions that close to half a million youth around the world



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medical wastes during the pandemic will cost fisheries, tourism, and maritime transport industries, an additional 40$ billion, according to a UN Environment Program report.

“The impacts of the pandemic on India’s youth threaten to last for years to come, undoing decades of progress on multiple fronts.”

COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdowns have deepened the Inequality in India. The dominance of the informal economy makes the government subsidies and employment schemes a difficult one for all benefactors to reap the benefits.

How a ‘demographic dividend’ can turn into a disaster?

The growth benefit of a demographic dividend is not automatic. Much depends on whether the increase in working

population can be trained, and enough jobs created to employ the 10 million more people who will join the labour force every year.

While digital technologies may enable the creation of new products and more productive jobs, they may also substitute existing jobs. India may not be able to take advantage of these opportunities, due to a low human capital base and lack of skills.

Lack of jobs combined with a demographic dividend will increase the share of the population that is dependent on the working population increasing the economic insecurity of the elderly, as there will be fewer people generating wealth.

Whether the demographic dividend promotes growth or transforms into a curse depends on how prepared the states that should benefit from a young population are.

Way AheadUnited Nations

Development Programme (UNDP) projects that India’s population will be around 1.64 billion by the year 2050, and then decline to 1.45 billion by 2100.

India’s population will surely peak and subsequently decline in population, driven by a sharp reduction in fertility. There is a narrow window of time, in which India has to leverage this demographic dividend.

The Covid-19 pandemic has amplified the challenges to the youth as regards employment opportunities. The policy steps taken by the government have led to a slowdown in economic activities, leading to loss of jobs and mass unemployment.

India stands to lose its demographic dividend irreversibly during the pandemic if immediate steps are not taken; so, adequate measures and policies should be effectively implemented to utilise this opportunity and stop turning demographic dividend into demographic disaster.



Why in news?Fuel prices as of now remain

incredibly high, the Centre has argued that it cannot reduce taxes on petrol and diesel, as it has to bear the burden of payments in lieu of oil bonds issued by the previous government to subsidize fuel prices.

BackgroundPrior to deregulation, the

government would intervene

in fixing the price at which retailers were to sell diesel or petrol. Government did this to keep the fuel price cheaper. But, it led to under-recoveries for oil marketing companies, which the government had to compensate for via subsidies.

Hence, the prices were deregulated to make them market-linked, unburden the government from subsidizing prices, and allow consumers to benefit from lower

OIL BONDS: “THE FUTURE BURDEN”

What are oil bonds?These are bonds issued

to oil marketing companies, instead of cash subsidies. They have a 15-20 year life, during which the government pays the companies interest on the amount. Once the bond is due, the total amount will have to be paid.

Moreover, oil bonds do not qualify as statutory liquid-ity ratio (SLR) securities, making them less liquid when compared to other government securities.

Oil bonds can be traded for liquid cash by sale in the

secondary market to insurance companies, banks, and other financial institutions. The government, being the issuer, would bear the interest payments and redemption at maturity.

Before the deregulation of oil prices, the oil companies faced tremendous losses. Government used to fix the price, and

A bond is nothing but a piece of paper via which someone promises to return your money, along with interest, after a specified period of time. In this case, government owed money to oil companies and decided to pay via issuing bonds so that it doesn’t have to pay them cash subsidy immediately.

(GS-III Government Budgeting)

rates when global crude oil prices dipped.

Deregulation for Aviation turbine fuel happened in 2002; Petrol in 2010; and Diesel in 2014.

Since deregulation, the public sector Oil Marketing Companies make decisions on the pricing of petrol and diesel based on international product prices, exchange rate, tax structure, inland freight, and other cost elements.

companies had to sell at a lower selling price as compared to the international market price.

To compensate for their losses, government-issued subsidies to them by issuing oil bonds, totaling Rs. 1.34 lakh crore to the state-fuel retailers.



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Of the Rs. 1.34 lakh crore worth of oil bonds, only Rs. 3,500 crore principal has been paid and the remaining Rs. 1.3 lakh crore is due for repayment between this fiscal (2021-22) and 2025-26.

Issuing such bonds, to delay paying expenses immediately, is not a new practice. It has been done in other sectors as well.

Bonds which subsidized payments have been issued earlier too. For example,

i. Previous government’s era also saw the issuance of fertilizer bonds from 2007 to compensate fertilizer companies for their losses due to the difference in the cost price and selling price.

ii. Over the years, the present government has issued bank recapitalization bonds, worth Rs 3.1 lakh crore, to specific public sector banks (PSBs) to meet the large capital requirements of these PSBs without allocating money from the budget. These bonds will come up for redemption between 2028 and 2035.

How it helps?Instead of providing

direct cash, government preferred issuing bonds,

To shield the domestic consumer from the harmful effects of higher prices of a commodity, the government

tries to maintain its price to a cheaper level. But, in this case, companies would need to be compensated for their losses. This is done via issuing of bonds. Now, this could also be done via giving away direct cash subsidy, which is usually not preferred because of the following reason.

Compensation to companies through issuance of such bonds is typically used when the government is trying to delay the fiscal burden of such a payout to future years. Governments resort to such instruments when they are in danger of breaching the fiscal deficit target due to unforeseen circumstances.

Being a developing country and as a welfare state, the Indian government is constantly under fiscal pressure with so many competing demands. Hence, the usage of government funds has to be rationalized as per priority and if something can be paid gradually over time then it is the preferred way.

ConcernsBut, this approach does

have its negative implications as well.

These types of bonds do not have an impact on that year’s fiscal deficit, but they do increase the government’s overall debt.

Interest payments and repayment of these bonds become a part of the fiscal

deficit calculations in future years.

These bonds do not contribute anything towards the generation of any long-term viable assets for the country. They are just used as a means to delay the payment burden over time. Hence, they don’t generate any revenues for the economy, acting as a liability.

Way forwardIndia, being a developing

country, our needs will always outpace our fiscal capacity. Hence,i. Focus on alternative

and renewable sources of energy and shift to a greener economy.

ii. Farmers should be encouraged to shift towards biological farming solutions.

iii. Subsidies are also one of the reasons why such bonds are being issued. Though necessary, they must be rationalized to ensure that they are targeting the right segments of the population who are in genuine need.

iv. Issuing bonds to cover up the subsidy bill is never a long-term solution because it’s akin to passing on the burden to our future generations.

STANDING COMMITTEE ON WATER RESOURCES: REPORT

The Committee recommended establishing the National Integrated Flood Management Group under the Ministry of Jal Shakti as an

overarching body responsible for flood management.

AGING THERMAL POWER PLANTS

Shutting down of old coal power plants, which are major contributors to emissions, will aid the achievement of India’s Nationally

Determined Contributions.

PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT RULES, 2021

These rules prohibit specific single-use plastic items which have “low utility and high littering potential” by 2022.which will make cities

more permeable

IPCC REPORT, 2021: “A CODE RED FOR HUMANITY”

Average surface temperature is expected to touch 20 Celsius by the mid-21st century without a sharp reduction of emissions

NATIONAL HYDROGEN MISSIONAverage surface temperature is expected to touch 20 Celsius by the

mid-21st century without a sharp reduction of emissions

CYCLONE DISASTERSWhy is India vulnerable to cyclone and what impacts do they have on

the economy. A disaster management perspective

BBIODIVERSITY ANDIODIVERSITY AND

DISASTER DISASTER MANAGEMENTMANAGEMENT

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1. ELEPHANT TIGER CENSUS SULTANPUR BHINDWAS RAMSAR INDIA PLASTICS PACT

2. BACTERIA IN CANADIAN ARCTIC SEAWATER CAN HELP CLEAR UP OIL SPILLS: STUDY

3. ‘OLYMPIAN’ BAT 4. DELHI’S SMOG TOWER5. DEEPOR BEEL WILDLIFE

SANCTUARY ANIMAL DISCOVERIES 2020 DAM SAFETY PROGRAM

6. CHILDREN’S CLIMATE 7. RISK INDEX8. PLACES IN NEWS-GOGRA9. PANJSHIR VALLEY

What's Inside?


Geography, Environment, Bio-Diversity & Disaster Management August 2021

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ELEPHANT TIGER CENSUSWhy in news?

Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, released the population estimation protocol to be adopted in the exercise to be taken up for the All-India elephant and tiger population estimation in 2022.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), for the first time is converging elephant and tiger population estimation, the protocol for which was released today on the occasion of World Elephant Day.

Elephants in India Asian elephants are listed as “Endangered”

on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. This has been done as most of the range states except India, have lost their viable elephant populations due to loss of habitats & poaching etc.

The current population estimates indicate that there are about 50,000 -60000 Asian elephants in the world. More than 60 % of the population is held in India.

Indian Elephant has also been listed in the Appendix I of the Convention of the Migratory species in the recently concluded Conference of Parties of CMS 13 at Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat in February 2020.

World Elephant Day is being celebrated to bring attention of various stakeholders to support various conservation policies to help elephants, including improving enforcement policies to prevent the illegal poaching and trade of ivory, conserving elephant habitats, providing better treatment for captive elephants and reintroducing some captive elephants into sanctuaries.

Elephant is the Natural Heritage Animal of India and India

also celebrates this day to spread awareness towards conservation of the species.

Elephant CensusIndia does have an elephant census, but this is

largely a headcount of elephants in various elephant habitats conducted by state forest departments.

The last one was carried out in 2017 and concluded that India has at least 27,000 elephants. India will embark on a first scientific estimation of its elephant population next year, using DNA analysis of dung samples, camera trapping, and statistical modelling, following a process similar to that used in the quadrennial tiger count.

The 2017 elephant census results revealed that the distribution range of elephants in the country had expanded and many states that never had any elephants were recording elephant presence.

Elephant populations were reported for the first time from Manipur, Mizoram, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Andaman and Nicobar

www.sivarajavelias.com61

August 2021Geography, Environment, Bio-Diversity & Disaster Management

THECATALYST

Why in news?Four more wetlands from India – two

from Haryana and two from Gujarat – have been recognised as Ramsar site of international importance, taking the number of such sites in the country to 46, covering a total area of 1,083,322 hectares.

The Ramsar list aims to conserve an international network of wetlands that are important for sustaining biological diversity.

The wetlands that received the tag are Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary and Sultanpur National Park from Haryana; and Thol Lake Wildlife Sanctuary and Wadhvana Wetland from Gujarat.

While these are the first two wetlands in Haryana to be recognised under the Ramsar Convention, Nalsarovar Bird Sanctuary from Gujarat was given the tag in 2012.

With eight wetlands, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of sites that have received the tag.

RAMSAR conventionThe convention is an intergovernmental treaty

that provides the framework for national action and

international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

Bhindwas Sultanpur The Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary is a

human-made freshwater wetland and the largest one in Haryana.

Over 250 bird species use the sanctuary throughout the year as a resting and roosting site. The site supports more than 10 globally threatened species including the endangered Egyptian Vulture, Steppe Eagle, Pallas’s Fish Eagle, and Black-bellied Tern.

The Sultanpur National Park also from the state supports more than 220 species of resident, winter migratory and local migratory waterbirds, supporting more than 10 globally threatened and critically endangered birds.

The development comes at a time when India is heading the UN body on conservation of migratory species of wild animals (CMS), with the government spearheading trans-boundary cooperation on securing the Central Asian Flyway.

SULTANPUR BHINDWAS RAMSAR



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Why in News?The India Plastics Pact, the first in Asia,

will be launched in September in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Recently, a report published on closing the plastic circular Gap, suggested that there is a dire need to make large scale global interventions to manage plastic waste.

About the pactThe India Plastics Pact is an ambitious,

collaborative initiative that aims to bring together businesses, governments and NGOs across the

whole value chain to set time-bound commitments to reduce plastics from their value chains.

While the India Plastics Pact will be active in India, it will link globally with other Plastics Pacts.

The Pact will develop a road map for guidance, form action groups composed of members, and initiate innovation projects.

Members’ accountability is ensured through ambitious targets and annual data reporting.

The vision, targets and ambition of the India Plastics Pact are aligned with the circular economy principles of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy.

India Plastics Pact

Aim

The Pact aims to transform the current linear plastics system into a circular plastics economy that will:

It aims to promote public-private collaborations that enable solutions to eliminate the plastics we do not need, bring innovation to packaging design, and to capture the value of the plastics we use

Global Scenario

Mismanagement of more than 7.7 billion metric tonnes of plastic waste globally over the next 20 years is expected, which is equivalent to 16-times the weight of the human population.

Among the many applications of plastic, plastic packaging is the largest.

A 2019 report by the Center for International Environmental Law suggests that by 2050, greenhouse gas emissions from plastic could reach over 56 gigatonnes, 10-13% of the remaining carbon budget.



THECATALYST

Why in News? A new study confirmed Stimulating

bacteria with nutrients in the cold seawaters of the Canadian Arctic can help decompose diesel and other petroleum oil after oil spills. It

found that bioremediation using bacteria such

as Paraperlucidibaca, Cycloclasticus, Oleispira,

Thalassolituus Zhongshania and some others

helped remove several classes of contaminants.

Bacteria in Canadian Arctic seawater can help clear up oil spills: Study

Oil trade through the sea route and potential production have made spills common off the Labrador coast in Canada, the site of the study. These accidents deteriorate the coastal water quality and choke marine ecosystems.

Oil-Spill An oil spill refers to any uncontrolled release

of crude oil, gasoline, fuels, or other oil by-products into the environment. Oil spills can pollute land, air, or water, though it is mostly used for oceanic oil spills.

Major Causes Oil spills have become a major environmental

problem, chiefly as a result of intensified petroleum exploration and production on continental shelves and the transport of large amounts of oils in vessels.

Oil spills that happen in rivers, bays and the ocean most often are caused by accidents involving tankers, barges, pipelines, refineries, drilling rigs and storage facilities, but also occur from recreational boats and natural disasters.

Environmental ImpactsThreat to Indigenous people: Oil pollution

poses health hazards for the indigenous population who depend on seafood.

Harmful to aquatic life: Oil on ocean surfaces is harmful to many forms of aquatic life because it prevents sufficient amounts of sunlight from penetrating the surface, and it also reduces the level of dissolved oxygen.

Hypothermia: Crude oil ruins the insulating and waterproofing properties of feathers and fur of birds, and thus oil-coated birds and marine mammals may die from hypothermia (decrease in body temperature to below-normal levels).

Toxic: Moreover, ingested oil can be toxic to affected animals, and damage their habitat and reproductive rate.

Threat to Mangroves: Saltwater marshes and Mangroves frequently suffer from oil spills.

Related Laws in IndiaPresently, there is no law covering oil spill as

such and its consequential environmental damage



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in India but India has “the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan of 1996 (NOS-DCP)” to handle such situations.

The document was issued by the Ministry of Defense in 1996; it was last updated in March 2006.

It gives the Indian Coast Guard the mandate to coordinate with state departments, ministries,

port authorities and environmental agencies to assist in oil spill cleaning operations.

In 2015 India ratified the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, 2001 (Bunker Convention). Convention ensures adequate, prompt and effective compensation for damage caused by oil spills.

It was administered by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Why in News? A bat dubbed the “Olympian bat” by

scientists, broke British records by flying a distance of more than 2,000 km from London to the Pskov region in northwestern Russia.

Key PointsBats belonging to the Nathusius’ pipistrelle

species typically weigh less than 10 grams and the Olympian bat is one of them.

They are known to migrate from summer breeding grounds in northeastern Europe to warmer areas of the continent where they hibernate in trees in buildings.

The ‘Olympian’ bat’s record is topped by another bat from the same species that flew from Latvia to Spain in 2019 covering a distance of 2,224 km.

For climate scientists, the journey is a window into studying bat migration and its connection with climate change.

‘Olympian’ bat



THECATALYST

Increased variation in climatic extremes raises the possibility of bats emerging from hibernation early or at a greater frequency.

That would not only put hibernating bats at risk from depleted energy stores, but could also affect the birth and survival of pups.

Thus, Nathusius’ pipstrelle’s range expansion is linked to climate change and future changes in climate will further impact this species.

The Bat Conservation Trust launched a project called the National Nathusius’ Pipistrelle Project in 2014 to improve understanding of the ecology, current status and conservation threats for Nathusius’ pipistrelles in Great Britain.

IUCN status of Nathusius’ pipistrelle species of bats: Least concern.

Delhi’s Smog TowerWhy in news?

Ahead of its infamous season, Delhi got a smog tower, a technological aid to combat air pollution.

Components of smog towerThe structure is 24 m high, about as much

as an 8-storey building an 18-metre concrete tower, topped by a 6- metre-high canopy. At its base are 40 fans, 10 on each side.

Each fan can discharge 25 cubic metres per second of air, adding up to 1,000 cubic metres per second for the tower as a whole.

Inside the tower in two layers are 5,000 filters. The filters and fans have been imported from the United States.

Smog tower: How it worksThe tower uses a ‘downdraft air cleaning

system’ developed by the University of Minnesota.

IIT-Bombay has collaborated with the American university to replicate the technology, which has been implemented by the commercial arm of Tata Projects Limited.

Polluted air is sucked in at a height of 24 m, and filtered air is released at the bottom of the tower, at a height of about 10 m from the ground. When the fans at the bottom of the tower operate, the negative pressure created sucks in air from the top.

The ‘macro’ layer in the filter traps particles of 10 microns and larger, while the ‘micro’ layer filters smaller particles of around 0.3 microns.

The downdraft method is different from the system used in China, where a 60-metre smog tower in Xian city uses an ‘updraft’ system air is sucked in from near the ground, and is propelled upwards by heating and convection. Filtered air is released at the top of the tower.



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India ratifies Kigali Amendment, to phase out HFCs

The Union Cabinet agreed to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol which is an international treaty that entered into force in 1989.

Its signatories include all the UN member nations; and are committed to phasing out the use and production of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), compounds that led to the infamous hole in the ozone layer.

The treaty was amended in 2016 (for the ninth time) in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, to include hydro-fluorocarbons (HFCs), which contribute significantly to global warming.

The terms of the Kigali Amendment entered into force in 2019. They require ratifying countries to reduce their use of HFCs by 80% by 2050. Doing so was estimated to be able to reduce Earth’s average surface warming by 0.50 Celsius over pre-industrial era levels.

Some developing countries have slightly different terms. For example, India will be expected to reduce its HFCs use starting from 2028, by 85% of the figure for 2024-2046 by the year 2047.

Amendments to the existing legislation framework, the Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules to allow appropriate control of the production and consumption of hydro fluorocarbons to ensure compliance with the Kigali Amendment, will be done by mid-2024.

The Montreal Protocol is an international treaty that entered

into force in 1989.

The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol entered into force in 2019. It requires ratifying countries to reduce their use of hydro fluorocarbons by 80% by 2050.

India will be expected to reduce its HFCs use starting from 2028, by 85% of the figure for 2024-2046 by the year 2047.

Deepor Beel Wildlife SanctuaryWhy in News?

Recently, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change notified the eco-sensitive zone of Deepar Beel Wildlife Sanctuary on the south-western edge of Guwahati.

The notification specified an area “to an extent varying from 294 metres to 16.32 km” as the eco-sensitive zone with the total area being 148.9767 sq. km.

About Deepar BeelDeepar Beel is one of the largest freshwater

lakes in Assam and the State’s only Ramsar Site.Considered as one of the largest beels in

the Brahmaputra valley of Lower Assam, it is categorised as a representative of the wetland type under the Burma monsoon forest biogeographic region.

It is also an important bird sanctuary inhabiting many migrant species.ConcernsThe wetlands have for decades been threatened by

a. a railway track — set to be doubled and electrified — on its southern rim

b. a garbage dump and encroachment for human habitation and commercial units.

c. Deepar Beel’s water has become toxic and lost many of its aquatic plants that elephants would feed on.



THECATALYST

Why in News?

Recently, by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) published a document that reveals that India has added 557 new species to its fauna, which includes 407 new species and 150 new records.

Species Discovered The number of faunal species in India has

climbed to 1,02,718 species with the discovery of the new species.

Among the new species, some interesting species discovered in 2020 are

1. Trimeresurus salazar, a green pit viper discovered in Arunachal Pradesh;

2. Lycodon deccanensis, the Deccan wolf snake discovered in Karnataka;

3. Sphaerotheca Bengaluru, a burrowing frog named after the city of Bengaluru.

4. Xyrias anjaalai, a deep water species of snake eel from Kerala;

5. Glyptothorax giudikyensis, a species of catfish from Manipur;

6. Clyster galateansis, a species of scarab beetle from the Great Nicobar Biosphere.

Animal Discoveries 2020

Dam Safety Program The Cabinet Committee on Economic

Affairs recently approved second and third phases of Rs10,211 crore Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project to improve safety and operational performance of 736 dams across the country.

This assumes significance given India’s efforts to strengthen its dams following incidents of glacier bursts and flash floods.

The country has around 5000 large dams that play an important role in India’s water security and mitigating floods.

The Government of India, the Central Water Commission, government representatives from 10 participating states and the World Bank

have signed a $250 million project, to support the Government of India’s long-term dam safety program and improve the safety and performance of existing dams across various states of India.

The project will be implemented in approximately 120 dams across the states of Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu, and at the national level through the Central Water Commission (CWC).

World Bank support to dam safety in India includes the recently closed DRIP-1 ($279 million + $62 million Additional Financing) that improved the safety and sustainable performance of 223 dams in six states of India and one central agency



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Why in News?“The climate crisis is a child rights crisis,” presents

the Children’s Climate Risk Index (CCRI), launched by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in collaboration with Fridays for Future

AboutIt is the first comprehensive analysis

of climate risk from a child’s perspective which uses data to rank countries based on children’s exposure to climate and environmental hazards, shocks and stresses, such as Cyclones and Heat waves.

Pakistan (14th), Bangladesh (15th), Afghanistan (25th) and India (26th) are among four South Asian countries where children are at extremely high risk of the impacts of the climate crisis.

India is among four South Asian countries where children are most at risk of the impacts of climate change threatening their health, education, and protection.

It is estimated that more than 600 million Indians will face ‘acute water shortages’ in the coming years, while at the same time Flash Flooding is to increase significantly in the majority of India’s urban areas once the global temperature increase rises above 2 Celsius.

Twenty-one of the world’s 30 cities with the most polluted air in 2020 were in India.

Global ScenarioYoung people living in the Central African

Republic, Chad, Nigeria, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau are the most at risk of the impacts of climate change.

These children face a deadly combination of exposure to multiple climate and environmental shocks with a high vulnerability due to inadequate essential services, such as water and sanitation, healthcare and education.

Children’s Climate Risk Index: Unicef

India pressed for an early disengagement of troops and weapons in Hot Springs, Gogra and other remaining friction points in eastern Ladakh

PLACES IN NEWS

during the 12th round of military talks with China that lasted for around nine hours.

Gogra, Hot Spring area in Ladakh



THECATALYST

Mauritius has denied a report that it has allowed India to build a military base on the remote island of Agalega, telling that no such agreement exists between the two nations.

The report raised fears of a repeat of the 1965 decision by Britain to separate the Chagos Islands from Mauritius and set up a joint military base with the United States on Diego Garcia, the largest of the isles.

The decades-old move has sparked protests by Chagossians, who accuse Britain of carrying out an “illegal occupation” and barring them from their homeland.

Britain insists the islands belong to London and has renewed a lease agreement

with the United States to use Diego Garcia until 2036.

Diego Garcia played a strategic role during the Cold War, and then as an airbase, including during the war in Afghanistan.

Agalega Island and Diego Garcia



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Located 150 km north of Kabul; near the Hindu Kush Mountain range.

It’s divided by the Panjshir River and ringed by the Panjshir Mountains in the north and the Kuhestan Mountains in the south.

The mountain tops are covered by snow throughout the year. This difficult terrain makes the Valley a nightmare for invaders.

Why is it significant?The Valley has repeatedly played a decisive

role in Afghanistan’s military history, as its

Panjshir Valleygeographical position almost completely closes it off from the rest of the country.

The only access point to the region is through a narrow passage created by the Panjshir River, which can be easily defended militarily.

Famed for its natural defenses, the region tucked into the Hindu Kush Mountains never fell to the Taliban during the civil war of the 1990s, nor was it conquered by the Soviets a decade earlier.

The valley is also known for its emeralds, which were used in the past to finance the resistance movements against those in power.



THECATALYST

The Standing Committee on Water Resources submitted its report on the subject ‘Flood Management in the Country including International Water Treaties in the field of Water Resource Management with particular reference to Treaty/Agreement entered into with China, Pakistan and Bhutan’. National Integrated Flood Management Group should be responsible for:

i. Formulating strategies on prevention and mitigation of flooding, and

ii. Supervise management of floods, including aspects controlled by states or local governments and which are under international linkages.

1. Funding: The central government’s share in funding of flood management programmers has reduced from 75% to 50% for general states and from 90% to 70% for special category states. The Committee recommended increasing central government’s funding share in flood management schemes and providing adequate budgetary support for it.

2. Flood control planning: The Committee recommended adopting an integrated approach towards flood control which may halt soil erosion, and encourage ground water percolation.

It suggested evolving a strategy including:

i. Regeneration and conservation of natural vegetation and soil cover in catchment areas,

ii. Employing agricultural methods which make best use of floods,

iii. Invigorating dry springs,

Key observations and RecommendationsFlood control under concurrent list: As per the Constitution, flood

control falls under the jurisdiction of respective states. However, since most rivers flow across multiple states, flood control measures taken by one state may have inter-state ramifications. It recommended the central government to build consensus on placing flood control and management under the Concurrent list of the Constitution.

Legislation: It recommended the Ministry of Jal Shakti to facilitate passage of the Dam Safety Bill and the River Basin Management Bill at the earliest. The Bills provide for optimum utilisation and efficient management of water resources along with mitigation of floods.

And, the Model Bill providing for zoning of floodplains which was circulated by the central government to all the states, was not adopted by most of the flood-prone states. Hence, it needs to be modified to take into account socio-economic situations and it must include provide compensation mechanism for implementing states.

The Committee recommended establishing the National Integrated Flood Management Group under the Ministry of Jal Shakti as an overarching body responsible for flood management. The group may include concerned ministers of state governments as members and meet at least once a year.

STANDING COMMITTEE ON WATER RESOURCES: REPORT

(GS-III Disaster and disaster management GS-I critical geographical features (including water-bodies)

iv. Recharging ground water table and ensure better ground water percolation, and

v. Developing an integrated river basin management plan.

Floods in North East: The Committee noted that Assam and North Eastern region face devastating floods every year. In order to tackle floods in Assam and the North Eastern region the Committee recommended:

i. Taking steps to prevent floods (develop flood



72

forecasting model, de-silting of reservoirs, set up weather stations),

ii. Management of water resources (set up River Basin Organisations and River Basin M a n a g e m e n t Authority, enact North East Water M a n a g e m e n t Authority Bill, fill up vacancies in the Brahmaputra Board), and

iii. Provide assistance for river erosion.

International Treaties: 1. The Indus Water Treaty, 1960

It establishes a water-sharing system between India and Pakistan. The Committee noted

that under it India has unrestricted access to Eastern rivers (Sutlej, Beas and Ravi) while the water of the Western rivers (Indus, Jhelum and Chenab) can be used in a non-consumptive manner for agriculture and generation of hydro-electric power.

The Committee noted that India does not fully utilise all accessible water of the Eastern rivers and the irrigation and hydropower potential of the Western rivers. It urged the Centre to expedite new projects like the one on the Ujh (tributary of the Ravi), and the Shahpurkandi on the Ravi itself to exploit the full potential of the rivers for irrigation and other purposes; and the canal systems in Punjab and Rajasthan be repaired to increase their water carrying capacity.

The Committee recommended the government take necessary diplomatic measures to renegotiate the treaty

with Pakistan to address the present-day issues like impact of climate change, global warming and environmental impacts on water availability in the Indus basin.

The expert also described the various impacts of climate change on the Indus basin in the years ahead:

i. Rainfall Pattern: There are instances of more high-intensity rainfall as well as long stretches where there is low rainfall.

ii. Glacial Melt: The contribution of glaciers in the Indus basin is higher than in the Ganges or Brahmaputra basins.

iii. Disasters: Because there is a fragile Himalayan region involved, there is greater frequency of landslides and flash floods.



THECATALYST

2. On China’s Development on Brahmaputra

Committee expressed apprehension that though ‘run of the river’ projects undertaken by China per se may not lead to diversion of waters, but there is every possibility that water can be stored in pondages and released for running the turbines.

This may lead to certain diurnal variation in downstream flow and as a consequence

have an impact on water flows in Brahmaputra river and thus affect India’s endeavours to tap the region’s water resources.

Three hydropower projects on the main stream of Brahmaputra River in Tibet Autonomous Region have been approved by the Chinese authorities and a hydropower project at Zangmu was declared fully operational by Chinese authorities in October 2015.

India should constantly monitor the Chinese actions so as to ensure that they do not pursue any major interventions on Brahmaputra river which would adversely affect our national interests.

The committee expressed satisfaction at the fact that China is sharing hydrological data with regard to the Brahmaputra and Sutlej, though on payment basis.

“There is no water treaty between India and China at present.”

3. Cooperation with Bhutan

A scheme titled “Comprehensive Scheme for Establishment of Hydro-meteorological and Flood Forecasting Network on rivers Common to India and Bhutan” is in operation. Rivers common to India and Bhutan include Manas river, Sankosh river, etc.

The network consists of 32 Hydro-meteorological/meteorological stations located in Bhutan and being maintained by

the Royal Government of Bhutan with funding from India. The data received from these stations are utilized in India for formulating flood forecasts.

A Joint Group of Expert (JGE) on Flood Management has been constituted between India and Bhutan to discuss and assess the probable causes and effects of the recurring floods and erosion in the southern foothills of Bhutan and adjoining plains in India and recommend to both Governments appropriate and mutually acceptable remedial measures.



74

ContextAs part of the Union

Budget address for 2020-21, the Union Finance Minister said that the shutting down of old coal power plants, which are major contributors to emissions, will aid the achievement of India’s Nationally Determined Contributions.

Since plants older than 25 years make up around 20% of the total installed thermal capacity in the country and play a significant role in the country’s power supply, decisions regarding their retirement merit finer scrutiny to see if the claimed benefits really accrue.

Advantages of Shutting Down

Economic Advantage: It is argued that the availability of under-utilised newer (and presumably more efficient) coal-based capacity means that shutting down older inefficient plants would lead to improved efficiencies, reduced coal usage, and hence, cost savings.

Difficulty in Pollution Control mechanism: It would be uneconomical for old plants to install pollution control equipment required to meet the emission standards announced by the Ministry of Environment, Climate change and Forest and hence it would be better to retire them.

Decline in Land Degradation: Untreated air and water pollutants from coal power plants, especially older ones affect the water and the flora and fauna of adjoining areas making them unfit for living or livelihood activities.

Risks Associated with Shutting Down

Not Much Saving: Analysis suggests that the total savings in generation cost from shutting down plants older than 25 years would be less than Rs. 5,000 crore annually, which is just 2% of the total power generation cost. These savings may not be sufficient to even pay for the fixed costs (such as debt repayment) that would have to be paid anyway, even if the plants are prematurely retired. Similarly, savings in coal consumption by replacing generation from plants older than 25 years with newer coal plants are

AGING THERMAL POWER PLANTS(GS-III Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation)

also likely to be only in the 1%-2% range.

Environmental Benefits of Some Old Plants: There are some old plants that may continue to be economically viable even if they install pollution control equipment, as their current fixed costs (which would increase with pollution control equipment installation) are very low.

Moreover, about half the coal capacity older than 25 years has already issued tenders for pollution control equipment installation.

Need of Power Sector: There is lack of power availability in India, and the limited savings associated with early retirement of coal plants may not be worth the risks. To support the growing intermittent renewable generation in the sector, there is an increasing



THECATALYST

need for capacity that can provide flexibility, balancing, and ancillary services. Old thermal capacity, with lower fixed costs, is a prime candidate to play this role until other technologies (such as storage) can replace them at scale. Further, the capacity value of the old capacity is critical to meet instantaneous peak load, and to meet load when renewable energy is unavailable.

Political Economic Risk: Aggressive early retirement of coal-based capacity, without detailed analyses, could result in real or perceived electricity shortage in some States, leading to calls for investments in coal-based base-load capacity by State-owned entities. About 65 gigawatts (GW) of thermal capacity is already in the pipeline, of which about 35

GW is in various stages of construction. This is likely in excess of what the country needs, and further addition to it, driven by State political economy considerations, will lead to stranded assets and locked-in resources.

Way AheadCost Effective Solar

Plants: The average cost of coal-fired projects is Rs.4 per unit and generally sees an upward escalation, whereas new solar power plants are being bid out at less than Rs.3 per unit.

Encourage Private Sector: New private competition can bring new capital and more innovation.

More Analysis And Research Required Before Final Decision: Using age as the only lever to drive these decisions is too blunt an instrument, and can prove counterproductive.

Instead, a more disaggregated and nuanced analysis, considering the various technical, economic and operating characteristics of individual plants and units, while also accounting for aspects such as intermittency of renewables, growing demand, and need to meet emission norms, would be appropriate to make retirement-related decisions.

For instance, plants such as Rihand, Singrauli (both Uttar Pradesh), and Vindhyanchal (Madhya Pradesh), are all over 30 years old and have very low generation costs of around ₹1.7/kWh, which is lower than the national average. This may be due to locational advantage rather than efficiency, as older plants are likely to be located closer to the coal source, reducing coal transport costs. However, this just highlights the complexity of the issue, since efficiency does not naturally translate to savings.



76

ContextRecently, the Ministry Of

Environment Forest And Climate Change has notified the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021. These rules prohibit specific single-use plastic items which have “low utility and high littering potential” by 2022.

New RulesThe manufacture, import,

stocking, distribution, sale and use of the identified single-use plastic will be prohibited with effect from the 1st July, 2022.

The ban will not apply to commodities made of compostable plastic.

For banning other plastic commodities in the future, other than those that have been listed in this notification, the government has given industry ten years from the date of notification for compliance.

The permitted thickness of the plastic bags, currently 50 microns, will be increased to 75 microns from 30th September, 2021, and to 120 microns from the 31st December, 2022.

Plastic bags with higher thickness are more easily handled as waste and have higher recyclability.

The plastic packaging waste, which is not covered under the phase out of identified

PLASTIC WASTE MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT RULES, 2021(GS-III Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation)

single use plastic items, shall be collected and managed in an environmentally sustainable way through the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) of the Producer, importer and Brand owner (PIBO), as per Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016.

Legal Framework for Banning Plastic: Currently, the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, prohibits manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of carry bags and plastic sheets less than 50 microns in thickness in the country. Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021 amend the 2016 rules.

Implementing Agency: The Central Pollution Control

Board, along with state pollution bodies, will monitor the ban, identify violations, and impose penalties already prescribed under the Environmental Protection Act, 1986.

Compostable PlasticsInstead of using plastic

made from petrochemicals and fossil fuels, compostable plastics are derived from renewable materials like corn, potato, and tapioca starches, cellulose, soy protein, and lactic acid.

These are non-toxic and decompose back into carbon dioxide, water, and biomass when composted.

Reasons to banAccording to World Wildlife Fund (WWF), plastic is harmful to the environment



THECATALYST

as it is non-biodegradable, takes years to disintegrate. Also:

Waste plastic bags are polluting the land and water immensely.

Plastic bags have become a threat to the life of animals living on earth as well as in water.

Chemicals released by waste plastic bags enter the soil and make it infertile.

Plastic bags are having a negative impact on human health.

Plastic bags lead to drainage problems.

Scale of plastic waste in India

About 34 lakh tonnes generated in 2019-20, India has a staggering annual volume of plastic waste, of which only about 60% is recycled.

A recent study of the top 100 global producers of polymers that culminate in plastic waste found six of them based in India.

India generates 9.46 million tonnes of plastic waste annually.

40% plastic waste goes uncollected.

43% of all plastics produced in India are used for packaging, majority of them being single-use.

However, viewed from the angle of livelihoods, post-consumer segregation, collection and disposal of plastics make up about half of the income of 1.5- 4 million waste-pickers in India.

Issues with the rulesSelection of the items: Some of the items which are low on utility, but high environmental impact are left out of the rules, thus benefiting big corporations.

Discriminatory provisions: Schedule for phase out does not cover a range of SUPs generated by fast-moving consumer goods companies (FMCGs) such as cigarette filters, plastic water bottles etc. rather they impact MSME’s.

Plastic packaging waste outside the rules: Plastic packaging, which contributes to almost 60% of the total plastic waste generated, is not listed for being phased out. It was proposed to be collected and managed in an environmentally sustainable way through the extended producer responsibility (EPR) according to the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016. However, the EPR for plastic waste management remains only on paper, due to non-compliance by companies and weak enforcement by authorities.

Exemption of compostable plastic: Compostable plastic is exempted, but India does not have an existing labelling mechanism to differentiate fossil-based plastics from the compostable ones. This loophole could be misused to label 50-micron plastics as compostable.

Moratorium: Notification gives a 10-year moratorium to the plastic industry, rather than pushing the plastic industry to invest in relevant research and development and ensure use of recycled products in their non-food packaging applications.

Exemption to Multi-layer plastic (MLP): The 2021 amendment have exempted MLP from the list of items to be phased out for another 10 year.

Challenges to phase out single-use plastic

India does not have systems in place for effective segregation, collection and recycling.

No policy for recycling plastics. Also challenges are there to set up a recycling plant because of environmental issues raised by Pollution Control Boards of various states.

Single-use plastic has been a very good business, and that’s projected to continue.

The economics favour more plastic production.

A significant amount ends up in rivers, oceans and landfills are not recyclable.

Also, Trade bodies like All India Plastic Manufacturers Association (AIPMA) recommends government to extend the deadline for phasing out SUP products by a period of one year to 2023 because of challenges caused by COVID



78

ContextUnited Nation’s

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), “Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis,” prepared by Working Group-I, has assessed climate change and its implications, potential future risks, along with adaptation and mitigation options. IPCC Assessment Reports

First IPCC assessment report was published in 1990. The fifth climate report was published in 2014 ahead of the climate change conference in Paris.

Key Findings of AR61. Average surface

temperature is expected to touch 20 Celsius by the mid-21st century without a sharp reduction of emissions. The global surface temperature was 1.09°C higher during 2011-2020 than 1850-1900.

2. CO2 concentrations are highest in at least 2 million

IPCC REPORT, 2021: “A CODE RED FOR HUMANITY”

(GS-III Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment)

The IPCC Assessment Reports by three working groups of scientists are as follows:

i. Working Group-I: The group deals with the scientific basis for climate change.

ii. Working Group-II: This group deals with the likely impacts, vulnerabilities and adaptation issues.

iii. Working Group-III: The group of scientists in this group deals with actions that can be taken to fight climate change.

years and much of it is human-induced. Humans have emitted around 2,400 billion tonnes of CO2 since the late 1800s.

3. Sea level rise has tripled since 1971. The Arctic Sea ice is the lowest in 1000 years. During the 21st century, the coastal areas will experience coastal erosion, frequent and severe flooding in low-lying areas due to continued sea-level rise. Almost half of the sea level rise is due to thermal expansion.

4. Every 0.50 Celsius rise in global warming will increase hot extremes,

high precipitation and drought. It will further weaken Earth’s carbon sinks present in plants, soils, and the ocean.

5. Increased heat extremes and decreased cold extremes have been observed and will continue over the coming decades.

6. The report further predicts a change in the freezing level of mountains and retreat in snowlines over the coming decades, thereby causing a change in the water cycle, precipitation patterns, floods and water across the Himalayas.



THECATALYST

Findings for India 1. As the IPCC report

predicts that global warming will lead to a rise in temperature in every part of the world, the extent of temperature rise may vary across the world, causing heat waves in many parts. These heat waves are being called extreme heat waves for India as they will be hotter as compared to the heat waves in the past.

2. The report also highlights the monsoon patterns across the world. It predicts that pluvial floods are set to increase across South Asia and India. India will not only have to predict excessive rainfall due to erratic monsoons but will also have to outline areas experiencing extreme drought.

3. Furthermore, the report underlined that snowcaps in the Himalayas will show rapid thawing in the coming decades.

4. The Indian Ocean which includes the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal has warmed faster than the global average. The sea surface temperature over the Indian Ocean is likely to increase by 10 - 20 Celsius over the next 20 years.

The Government of India has welcomed the report and stated that the developed nations have contributed the most to rising global temperatures; and therefore initiate faster and swifter curbs on their carbon emissions.

Assessment of the reportHuman-induced climate

change is affecting the world. The report pressed red alert on global

warming of 1.50-20 Celsius which is expected to exceed during the 21st century subject to deep reductions in CO2 levels and GHGs emissions in the coming decades.

Much of the changes in the climate system become larger in direct relation to increasing global warming such as rising frequency and intensity of hot extremes, marine heat waves, heavy precipitation, agricultural and ecological droughts in some regions, the proportion of intense tropical cyclones and reductions in Arctic sea ice, snow cover and permafrost.

The continued global warming is projected to intensify the global water cycle, including its variability, global monsoon precipitation and the severity of wet and dry events.



80

Increasing CO2 emissions will eventually reduce the effectiveness of the ocean and land carbon sinks at slowing the accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere. The changes due to the past and future greenhouse gas emissions are irreversible for centuries to millennia, especially in the ocean, ice sheets, and global sea level.

Linking human-induced global warming to a specific level requires limiting cumulative CO2 emissions, reaching at least net zero CO2 emissions, along with strong reductions in other GHG emissions.

Strong, rapid and sustained reductions in CH4 emissions would also limit the warming effect resulting from declining aerosol pollution and would improve air quality.

Scenarios with low or very low GHG emissions lead within years to discernible effects on greenhouse gas and aerosol concentrations, and air quality, relative to high and very high GHG emissions scenarios.

Under these contrasting scenarios, discernible differences in trends of global surface temperature would begin to emerge from natural variability within around 20 years and over longer time periods for many other climatic impact drivers.

Major Concerns

The report highlights that our climate is rapidly changing due to human influence and is already altering our planet in drastic ways –

Arctic Sea ice is at its lowest level in more than 150 years;

Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in at least the last 3,000 years; and

Glaciers are declining at a rate unprecedented in at least 2,000 years.

India’s stand on the issue of climate action

The Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2021 puts only two G20 countries -

India and U.K. - in the top 10; which means that India has made substantial efforts towards mitigating climate change.

India needs its development space urgently to cope with the future. Committing to carbon neutrality would compromise on ensuring the economic growth of its citizenry.



THECATALYST

India has contributed less than 5% of global cumulative emissions to date, with per capita annual emissions a third of the global average; which continues to be one of the lowest and well below the global average.

Also, the current climate change can be mainly attributed to legacy emissions of the developed world, India cannot be held responsible for the climate crisis and the developed world should take up a proportionately higher responsibility.

India is on track to achieve its INDCs as per the 2015 Paris agreement.

i. Reducing the emissions intensity of GDP by 33%–35% by 2030 below 2005 levels.

ii. Increasing the share of non-fossil-based energy resources to 40% of installed electric power capacity by 2030. India has committed to installing 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030 of which 100 GW is reportedly installed.

iii. Creation of an additional (cumulative) carbon sink of 2.5–3 GtCO2e through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.

The failure to provide the promised funds from the developed countries like the

Way Forward One of the alarming

findings is that the world is set to cross the 1.5°C limit within 10-15 years. The three big emitters -the U.S., the European Union and China- must take up deep

transfer of technology and low-cost international finance including from the Green Climate Fund is indicative of the attitude of developed countries to climate action

Recently, the Union Cabinet has approved ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol.

The Kigali amendment envisages phasing out of Hydro Fluoro Carbons (HFC) by 80-85% of present levels by 2040 in a phased manner.

India has committed to phasing down HFC in four steps from 2032 with a 10% reduction in 2032, 20% in 2037, 30% in 2042 and 80% in 2047.

emissions cuts, failing which, even the prospect of a mild overshoot of the limit followed by a later decline might not materialise.

With the focus having shifted from net zero emissions to cumulative emissions; it is the responsibility of the developed countries to take responsibility and concrete actions to cut down on emissions.

The need of the hour is to focus on definite cumulative emission targets keeping equity and historical responsibility in view.

Conclusion Immediate emission

reductions by the developed countries with phase-out dates for

all fossil fuels, massive investment in new technologies and their deployment, and a serious push to the mobilisation of adequate climate finance are needed. This is the message that the IPCC report has sent to the world.



82

ContextRecently the Prime Minister

of India announced the launch of the National Hydrogen Mission on India’s 75th Independence Day.

National Hydrogen MissionIt was proposed in the

Union Budget 2021.

The government’s aim is to make India a global hub for the production and export of green hydrogen.

Green hydrogen energy is vital for India to meet its Nationally Determined Contributions.

It is a clean-burning molecule, which can decarbonise a range of sectors including iron and steel, chemicals, and transportation.

The initiative has the potential of transforming transportation.

Need for the MissionIndia imports 85% of its oil

and 53% of gas demand.

Electricity generation in India is heavily dependent on fossil fuels (coal). If hydrogen can replace it, there will be reduced pollution (because of not burning fossil fuels). Additionally, the import of coal can be reduced.

Hydrogen is the most abundant element on the planet and has other advantages such as being lighter, more energy-dense

and energy-efficient (2 – 3 times more than petrol).

The transportation, iron and steel, and chemical industries will be benefitted.

Hydrogen as a FuelHydrogen is a clean source

of alternate fuel. When used in a fuel cell that produces electrical energy through a chemical reaction, the by-product is only water. This makes it extremely attractive as a renewable energy source..

Hydrogen fuel is a zero-emission fuel burned with oxygen.

It can be used in fuel cells or internal combustion engines.

It is also used as a fuel for spacecraft propulsion.

It can be manufactured by 1. Electrolysis of water by

using direct current.2. Natural Gas Reforming/

Gasification: Natural Gas on reaction with steam produces Synthesis gas. Synthetic gas is a mixture of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and a small amount of carbon dioxide.

3. Fermentation: Biomass is converted into sugar-rich feedstocks that can

NATIONAL HYDROGEN MISSION(GS-III Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation & Infrastructure: Energy)

be fermented to produce hydrogen.

It is then stored after mixing or converting to ammonia or synthetic gas for easy liquefaction and transport.

Types of Hydrogen FuelGrey Hydrogen: Manufactured using Natural Gas without carbon sequestration.

Brown Hydrogen: Manufactured using Coal without carbon sequestration.

Blue Hydrogen: Manufactured using Natural Gas with carbon sequestration.

Green Hydrogen: Manufactured using Renewable Energy.

ChallengesTransportation cost: Majority of low-cost renewable energy resources are located far from potential demand centres. As a result, the cost of transportation from the plant to the demand centre rises.

High cost of production: The technology used in production of green hydrogen is still in its early stages and is costly, which raises the cost of production.

Storage related issues



THECATALYST

CYCLONE DISASTERS(GS III – Disaster Management & GS I– Geographical phenomena: Cyclones)

ContextThe severe cyclones,

Tauktae and Yaas, which battered India earlier this year, made landfalls on the country’s western coast, Gujarat, and the eastern coast, Odisha, on May 17 and May 26, 2021, respectively. Both storms caused massive damage to infrastructure, the agricultural sector, and houses.

Cyclones in IndiaAccording to the India

Meteorological Department (IMD) 2013 data, the coastal states of India account for 7% of the global tropical cyclones.

The eastern coast has experienced more cyclones as compared to the western coast. The state of Odisha has experienced the most number of cyclones.

Every year, India experiences an average of around five to six tropical cyclones that are formed in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea with at least two of these developing into severe cyclonic storms.

The North Indian Ocean cyclone season occurs between April and November, with peaks in late April to May and October to November.

Among the natural disasters, cyclones constituted the second most frequent phenomena that occurred in

15% of India’s total natural disasters over 1999-2020.

According to the Global Climate Risk Index report 2021, India ranks as the seventh worst-hit country globally in 2019 due to the frequent occurrence of extreme weather-related events.

Vulnerability of India to cyclones

Position of India: Given India’s location in the North Indian Ocean and it being surrounded by the Indian Ocean on two sides, India continues to remain vulnerable to tropical cyclones both on the east and the west coasts.

The absence of a large landmass between the

Pacific and the Bay allows cyclonic winds to easily move into the Bay of Bengal. Hence low-pressure s y s t e m s o r i g i n a t i n g from the Pacific Ocean also travel t o w a r d s the Indian coastline.

Long coastline: The Indian coastline is around 7,500 km and it includes 96 coastal

districts. Of India’s 7500 km coastline, almost 5700 km are highly vulnerable to the impacts of tropical cyclones and related hydro-meteorological hazards and consequently to recurrent loss of life and properties.

Dense population density: Around 262 million people live in the 96 coastal districts of India. The World Bank and the United Nations (2010) estimate that around 200 million city residents would be exposed to storms and earthquakes by 2050 in India.

Impact of climate changeTropical cyclones will

grow stronger and wetter due to global warming. The increasing sea surface temperatures in the northern Indian Ocean



84

and the changing geo-climatic conditions in India have led to a rise in the frequency and intensity of cyclones in the coastal States.

ConcernsFatalities: Cyclones have been the third most lethal disaster in India after earthquakes (42%) and floods (33%).

Number of fatalities due to cyclones over the years have reduced mainly due to improved early warning systems, cyclone forecasting, and better disaster management activities such as timely evacuation, rehabilitation and relief distributions.

Economic impact: The administration has nt been able to minimise economic losses from cyclones.

Cyclones have been the second most expensive disaster in terms of the costs incurred in damage in India, accounting for 29% of the total disaster-

related damages after floods (62%).

The absence of long-term mitigation measures has resulted in cyclones inflicting substantial damage to public and private properties.

Cyclones have also led to an increase in the fiscal burden of governments through increased spending to implement effective cyclone preparation measures.

Way Forward It is imperative to improve

the cyclone warning system and revamp disaster preparedness measures.

The Government must widen the cover under shelterbelt plantations and help regenerate

mangroves in coastal regions to lessen the impact of cyclones.

In addition, adopting cost-effective, long-term mitigation measures, including building

cyclone-resilient infrastructure such as constructing storm surge-resilient embankments, canals and improving river connectivity to prevent waterlogging in low-lying areas are important.

Installing disaster-resilient power infrastructure in the coastal districts, providing concrete houses to poor and vulnerable households, and creating massive community awareness campaigns are essential.

Finally, healthy coordination between the Centre and the States concerned is essential to collectively design disaster mitigation measures. It is only such a collective mitigation effort by the Centre and States that can help reduce the fiscal burden of States and also be effective in minimising disaster deaths.

Pg 95

What's Inside?

SSCIENCE & CIENCE &

TTECHNOLOGYECHNOLOGY

MARBURG VIRUS

(GM) SOY SEEDS

PATENT TO AN AI

GSLV-F10 FAILURE

ZYCOV-D VACCINE

JAXA’S MARS MISSION

NATIONAL GENE BANK

MERGER OF THREE MASSIVE SUPER BLACK HOLES

NUCLEAR FUSION AND A RECENT BREAKTHROUGH

POLIO

BOOSTER DOSESA booster shot is a means of strengthening one’s immune system agains a particular pathogen. These shots are only for the fully-vaccinated.


Science and TechnologyAugust 2021

86

Marburg virus

Common symptoms: Fever, headache, fatigue, abdominal pain and gingival hemorrhage.

Virus transmitted to the people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of the patient, surfaces and materials.

The case fatality rate is around 50%. Case fatality rates have varied from 24% to 88% in past outbreaks, depending on virus strain and case management.

There are no approved vaccines or anti-viral treatments for the virus yet. Early supportive care with rehydration and symptomatic treatment improves survival.

Why in News?West Africa’s first case of the extremely

contagious and deadly Marburg virus was confirmed in Guinea.

AboutMarburg virus disease (MVD) was formerly

known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever.

Belongs to the same family (Filoviridae family) as the Ebola virus.

Initially detected in 1967, after simultaneous outbreaks in Marburg and Frankfurt in Germany and in Serbia.


Science and Technology August 2021

Why in News?After facing crushing losses due to the

pandemic, the poultry industry is demanding the Central government to permit the import of crushed Genetically Modified Soy seeds.

What are GM Crops?GM or transgenic crop is a plant that has a

novel combination of genetic material obtained through the use of modern biotechnology.

The DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering techniques; GM crop can contain a gene(s) that has been artificially inserted instead of the plant acquiring it through pollination.

More than 10% of the world’s crop lands are planted with GM crops.

Aim: To introduce a new trait to the plant which does not occur naturally in the species like resistance to certain pests, diseases, environmental conditions, herbicides etc.

Genetic Modification is also done to increase nutritional value, bio-remediation and for other purposes like production of pharmaceutical agents, biofuels etc.

GM soybeanGM soybean or Roundup Ready (RR)

soybean, was developed by the biotech giant Monsanto and made it commercially available to farmers in 1996.

It was developed to make the plant survive being sprayed on with the non-selective herbicide, Roundup, which can kill conventional soybean plants.

GM Soybean was developed by introducing a copy of a gene from the Agrobacterium sp. strain CP4.

Conventional soybean has a similar gene in its DNA but is sensitive to glyphosate, the active ingredient of the herbicide Roundup.

With the insertion of the CP4 version of the gene, the GM soybean was able to develop resistance to the Roundup herbicide.

Currently, India allows the import of GM soybean and canola oil. Import of GM soya bean seeds was so far not approved in India.

ConcernsEnvironmental activists have raised concerns

about the permission given for something derived from a genetically modified plant to enter the human food chain, given that India’s regulatory system has yet to approve GM foods.

Besides, the 1989 rules of the Environment Protection Act applied not just to GM organisms, but also products and substances thereof.

Legal structure related to GM cropsThe Genetic Engineering Appraisal

Committee (GEAC) is the apex body that allows for commercial release of GM crops.

Genetically Modified (GM) Soy seeds



88

Use of the unapproved GM variant can attract a jail term of 5 years and fine of Rs. 1 lakh under the Environment Protection Act, 1986.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is the authorised body to regulate the imported crops in India.

The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is an international agreement on biosafety, as a supplement to the CBD; effective since 2003. The Biosafety Protocol seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by genetically modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology.

In a world first, South Africa grants patent to an artificial intelligence system

Why in News?Recently, South Africa granted a patent to

an Artificial Intelligence system named DABUS, for invention of “food containers based on fractal geometry”. The AI has designed interlocking food containers that are easy for robots to grasp.

The issue South Africa’s decision has received

widespread backlash from intellectual property experts. Some have labelled it a mistake, or an oversight by the patent office because the inventor in this case is not a human being.

Under present patent law, only natural persons may be named as an inventor in a patent application.

Also, ideas, for the purposes of patents, require the element of “mental conception” — something of which only a human mind is capable.

Further, inventorship comes with rights, which AI is not legally capable of possessing.

About DABUS DABUS stands for device for the autonomous

bootstrapping of unified sentience, created by Stephen Thaler, a pioneer in the field of AI and programming.

The system mimics human brainstorming and creates new inventions. DABUS is a particular type of AI, often referred to as “creativity machines” because they are capable of independent and complex functioning.

What are Creativity Machines? Machines which can process and critically

analyse data, and learn from it, are referred to as creativity machines. This process is known as machine learning. Once the machine learning phase has occurred, the machine is able to “autonomously” create without human intervention.



Why in News?Recently, Indian Space Research Organisation

(ISRO) suffered the loss of an important earth observation satellite (EOS-03) during launch when the GSLV rocket carrying it malfunctioned about five minutes from the lift-off.

About the EOS-03It was capable of imaging the entire country

four to five times every day.

It was riding on a GSLV rocket (GSLV-F10), which has a new payload carrier designed to significantly reduce aerodynamic drag and thus carry larger payloads.

The rocket was supposed to deposit the satellite in the geostationary transfer orbit, from where the satellite’s onboard propulsion system will guide it to a geostationary orbit, 36,000 km from earth’s surface.

Geostationary transfer orbit is a circular orbit positioned approximately 35,900 km above Earth’s equator and having a period of the same duration and direction as the rotation of the Earth.

An object in this orbit will appear stationary relative to the rotating Earth.

SignificanceEOS-03, part of the new generation of earth-

observation satellites, was meant to provide almost real-time images of large parts of the country.

The images could be used for monitoring natural disasters like floods and cyclones, water bodies, crops, vegetation and forest cover.

EOS-03 was being sent ahead of EOS-02 which has been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

EOS-02 was supposed to be launched around March-April this year, but now has been rescheduled for September-October.

EOS-02 was supposed to ride on ISRO’s new SSLV (Small Satellite Launch Vehicle) rocket.

SSLVs will broaden ISRO’s current rocket range that comprises PSLVs and GSLVs, and cater to the increasing demand for launching of small commercial satellites.

Reasons to the failure of the GSLV-F10Liquid fuel strap-on boosters start the launch

of the satellite by providing the extra thrust needed to lift the rocket off the ground.

Then, follows a solid fuel first stage with another liquid fuel stage coming next. These two stages operated as expected.

It was the rocket’s crucial third stage, which uses an indigenously-made Cryogenic Upper Stage (CUS) which then failed to ignite.

The cryogenic stage is “technically a very complex system compared to solid or earth-storable liquid propellant stages due to its use of propellants at extremely low temperatures and the associated thermal and structural problems”.

GSLV-F10 Failure: ISRO’s EOS-03 Satellite Mission



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Why in news?

Vaccination gives the code to cells in the recipient’s body, so they can begin making the spiky outer layer of the virus.

The immune system is expected to recognize this as a threat and develop antibodies in response.

Most Covid-19 vaccines currently are given in two doses, with a couple of single-shot ones also available.

ZyCov-D by contrast, will be given in three doses, with an interval of 28 days between the first and second and second and third shots. The other unique thing about the vaccine is the way it is given.

No needle is used instead, a spring-powered device delivers the shot as a narrow, precise stream

ZYCOV-D VACCINE

Ahmedabad-based Zydus Cadila has applied to Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), the national drugs regulator, seeking emergency use authorisation (EUA) for ZyCov-D, its Covid-19 vaccine.

What is the Zycov-D Vaccine, and How does it work?

ZyCov-D is a “plasmid DNA” vaccine or a vaccine that uses a genetically engineered, non-replicating version of a type of DNA molecule known as a ‘plasmid’.

The plasmids in this case are coded with the instructions to make the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes Covid-19.


Science and Technology August 2021of fluid that penetrates the skin. ZyCov-D has been developed with the support of the central government’s Department of Biotechnology and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).

How Safe And Effective Is The Vaccine? ZyCov-D has been tested in phase 1, 2 and 3

clinical trials involving over 28,000 participants in all. A thousand of these participants were of ages between 12 and 18 years.

Two doses of the vaccine seem to be enough to prevent people from developing severe symptoms of Covid-19 and to prevent death, while three doses keep even moderate symptoms at bay, according to trial data.

Salient Features of Zycov-D Vaccine by Zydus Cadila

ZyCov-D is the world’s first DNA vaccine

against infection with SARS-CoV-2.

It is a “plasmid DNA” vaccine that uses a genetically engineered, non-replicating version of a type of DNA molecule known as a ‘plasmid’.

While most of the Covid-19 vaccines available now are given in two doses, with a couple of single-shot ones too, ZyCoV-D will be given in three doses, with an interval of 28 days between the first, second and and third shots.

Unlike other vaccines approved in India till now, ZyCoV-D is to be administered in children above 12 years age, apart from adults. Trials for the vaccine were also conducted among children of ages 12 years and 18 years who constituted at least a thousand of the total number of participants.

Also, no needle is used while administering the jabs to the beneficiaries. Instead, a spring-powered device delivers the shot as a narrow, precise stream of fluid that penetrates the skin.

JAXA’s Mars Mission The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency

(JAXA) plans to launch an explorer in 2024 to land on Phobos, a Martian moon, to collect 10 grams of soil and bring it back to Earth in 2029 (ahead of the United States and China).

Soil on Phobos is likely to be a mixture of material from the moon itself and material from Mars that was spread by sandstorms.

Collecting samples from multiple locations on Phobos could provide a greater chance of obtaining possible traces of life from Mars. Scientists also hope to learn about the evolution of the Martian biosphere.

NoteNASA’s Perseverance rover has landed in a

Mars crater where it is to collect 31 samples that are to be returned to Earth with help from the European Space Agency as early as 2031.

China became the second country to land and operate a spacecraft on Mars and plans to bring back samples around 2030.

Earlier missions• Two other NASA landers operating on

Mars:

i. 2018- InSight and

ii. 2012- Curiosity rover.

• Other Mars missions under explora-tion:

i. U.S. – Odyssey, MAVEN, Mars Recon-naissance Orbiter, Mars 2020 (Perse-verance Rover & Ingenuity Helicop-ter)

ii. Europe – Exo-Mars, Mars Express

iii. India – Mangalyaan

iv. China – Tianwen-1 (orbiter & rover)

v. UAE – Emirates Mars Mission, Hope Spacecraft



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National Gene BankWhy in News?

Recently, the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare inaugurated the world’s second-largest refurbished state-of-the-art National Gene Bank at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR).

National Gene BankThe National Gene Bank was established in

the year 1996 to preserve the seeds of Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) for future generations.

It has the capacity to preserve about one million germplasm in the form of seeds.

Presently it is protecting 4.52 lakh accessions, of which 2.7 lakh are Indian germplasm and the rest have been imported from other countries.

An accession is a single, collected variety or varieties of a wild plant, a landrace or a plant variety that has been produced by selective breeding, more commonly known as a cultivar.

The NGB has four kinds of facilities, namely, Seed Genebank (- 18°C), Cryogenebank (-170°C to -196°C), In vitro Genebank (25°C) and Field Genebank, to cater to long-term as well as medium-term conservation.

It stores different crop groups such as cereals, millets, medicinal and aromatic plants and narcotics, etc.

SignificanceResearchers or farmers can withdraw

samples from these “gene” banks to help rebuild populations of rare plant varieties and animal breeds or to help increase genetic diversity within species.

Gene banks also preserve cells or organisms that host unusual gene variants — genes with special traits. Those genes might later prove useful when some disease epidemic strikes, when the climate changes or when other factors threaten the survival of plants or animals.

Farmers could use the banked deposits — stored cells or tissues — to restore genetic diversity or to introduce traits from other breeds or varieties.

About National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR)

NBPGR is a nodal organisation in India for the management of Plant Genetic Resources.

It is one of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)Institutes under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare.

NGPGR is meeting the need of in-situ and ex-situ germplasm conservation through Delhi Headquarters and 10 regional stations in the country.

MERGER OF THREE MASSIVE SUPER BLACK HOLESWhy in news?

A rare merging of three supermassive black holes has been spotted by a team of astrophysicists in India.

What is super massive black holes?Supermassive black holes are difficult to

detect because they do not emit any light.

But they can reveal their presence by interacting with their surroundings. When

the dust and gas from the surroundings fall onto a supermassive black hole, some of the mass is swallowed by the black hole, but some of it is converted into energy and emitted as electromagnetic radiation that makes the black hole appear very luminous.

They are called active galactic nuclei (AGN) and release huge amounts of ionized particles and energy into the galaxy and its environment. Both of



Nuclear fusion and a recent breakthroughWhy in News?

Recently, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California announced that an experiment carried out in its National Ignition Facility has made a breakthrough in nuclear fusion research.

This breakthrough has brought the world closer to the dream of near-limitless clean energy through nuclear fusion.

About the ExperimentThey applied laser energy on fuel pellets to

heat and pressurise them at conditions similar to that at the centre of our Sun.

This triggered the fusion reactions.

These reactions released positively charged particles called alpha particles (helium), which in turn heated the surrounding plasma.

The heated plasma also released alpha particles and a self-sustaining reaction called ignition took place.

Ignition helps amplify the energy output from the nuclear fusion reaction and this could help provide clean energy for the future.

Nuclear FusionNuclear fusion is defined as the combining

of several small nuclei into one large nucleus with the subsequent release of huge amounts of energy.

It is the opposite reaction of fission, where heavy isotopes are split apart.

Harnessing fusion, the process that powers the Sun, could provide a limitless, clean energy source.

In the sun, the extreme pressure produced by its immense gravity creates the conditions for fusion to happen.

Fusion reactions take place in a state of matter called plasma. Plasma is a hot, charged gas made of positive ions and free-moving electrons that has unique properties distinct from solids, liquids and gases.

At high temperatures, electrons are ripped from atom’s nuclei and become a plasma or an ionised state of matter. Plasma is also known as the fourth state of matter.

these ultimately contribute to the growth of the medium around the galaxy and ultimately the evolution of the galaxy itself

Recent events A team of researchers from the Indian

Institute of Astrophysics consisting of Jyoti Yadav, Mousumi Das, and Sudhanshu Barway along with Francoise Combes of College de France, Chaire Galaxies et Cosmologie, Paris, while studying a known interacting galaxy pair, NGC7733, and NGC7734, detected unusual emissions from the centre of NGC7734 and a large, bright clump along the northern arm of NGC7733.

Their investigations showed that the clump is moving with a different velocity compared to the galaxy NGC7733 itself.

The scientists meant that this clump was not a part of NGC7733; rather, it was a small separate galaxy behind the arm.

They named this galaxy NGC7733N. The UV and H-alpha images also supported the presence of the third galaxy by revealing star formation along with the tidal tails, which could have formed from the merger of NGC7733N with the larger galaxy. Each of the galaxies hosts an active supermassive black hole in their nucleus and hence form a very rare triple AGN system



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GENOME SEQUENCINGWhat is genome sequencing?

A genome is an organism’s complete set of DNA, including all of its genes. Genomics is an interdisciplinary field of science focusing on the structure, function, evolution, mapping, and editing of genomes. Genomics also involves the sequencing and analysis of genomes through uses of high throughput DNA sequencing.

Advances in genomics have triggered a revolution in discovery-based research and systems biology to facilitate understanding of even the most complex biological systems such as the brain.

Genome India ProjectThe Genome India Project will involve 20

leading institutions including the IISc, Bengaluru; and it’s Centre for Brain Research, an autonomous institute, will serve as the nodal point of the project.

In the first stage of the project, samples of “10,000 persons from all over the country” to

form a “grid” that will enable the development of a “reference genome” be looked.

Significance of the ProjectAs the genetic landscape differs across the

world, it is necessary that genetic data is shared in order to derive greater knowledge from information and serve the purpose of enabling better treatment outcomes.

The initiative will pave the way for identifying genes and genetic variations forcommon diseases, treating Mendelian disorders, enabling the transformation of the Precision Medicine landscape in India, and thus improving the healthcare of the general population in our country.

Once we have a genetic basis, it may be possible to take action before the onset of the complex disorders, including diabetes, mental health, etc.

POLIOIndia recently agreed to provide free polio

vaccinations to Afghan returnees as a preventative step against the Wild Polio Virus.

AboutPolio is a crippling and potentially deadly viral

infectious disease that affects the nervous system.

There are three individual and immunologically distinct wild poliovirus strains:

3 Wild Poliovirus type 1 (WPV1)



There are genetic and virological differences, which make these three strains separate viruses which must each be eradicated individually.

WPV2 and WPV3 have been eradicated globally but WPV1 remains in circulation in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The virus is transmitted by person-to-

person mainly through the faecal-oral route or, less frequently, by a common vehicle like, through contaminated water or food.

It largely affects children under 5 years of age.

There is no cure, but it can be prevented through immunisation.

Polio EradicationEradication of a disease refers to the complete

and permanent worldwide reduction to zero new cases through deliberate efforts. If a disease has been eradicated, no further control measures are required.

However, elimination of a disease refers to reduction to zero or a very low defined target rate of new cases in a defined geographical area. It requires continued measures to prevent re-establishment of disease transmission.

India received polio-free certification by the WHO in 2014.



Waning efficacy: It is been noticed that the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccine doses are falling over time.

These boosters will be particularly helpful for the elderly and immuno-compromised people whose bodies were unable to mount a robust protection against the virus following the first two shots.

New variants: The issue of a booster has arisen because the researches show that the Delta mutation is powerful enough to make even mRNA shots from BioNTech SE and Moderna less effective, bringing down protection to below 90%.

Mixing vaccines: Mixing an mRNA vaccine and an adenovirus-based one could therefore provide advantages of both kinds of vaccines and it is “exceptionally good” at inducing high levels of antibodies.

Types of VaccinesVaccines can be classified as two types,

1. Replicating live infectious vaccines:

At present ‘live virus vaccines’ administered by injection include measles, rubella, mumps and chickenpox vaccines.

The dose contains a few thousand live but attenuated viruses; they replicate in body tissues without producing overt disease.

To gain immunity there is a need for more than one shot.

The final effective dose that stimulates the immune system may be billions or trillions of viruses and the stimulus sustained for days to weeks as the injected viruses continue to multiply within the human body.

Therefore, immune responses to replicating live virus vaccines — both antibody and T-cell immunity — are robust and long-lasting.

GS-3 Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life.

The booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine will help get India out of COVID-19’s stranglehold and deal with the pandemic. Countries like the United Arab Emirates, Thailand or Bahrain which had inoculated most of its population with the Oxford AstraZeneca doses have decided to offer a booster shot.

BOOSTER DOSE: A COMPLETE VACCINATION

Need for booster dose

What is a booster dose?A booster shot is a means

of strengthening one’s immune system agains a particular pathogen. These shots are only for the fully-vaccinated.

The vaccine contains weakened forms of the disease-causing virus or bacteria, or it may be made of an altered genetic “blueprint” for the germ that can make one sick.

It may be exactly the same original vaccine, in which case its goal is to increase the magnitude of protection by producing more antibodies.

The shot triggers one’s immune system to attack the foreign organism. This helps your immune system remember the disease-causing germ.

What a booster shot does is that it gives the memory cells the crucial signal to re-engage when the virus attacks.

Experts said it could constitute a third dose of the same vaccine used to twice-inoculate a person or could be “dosage mixing” - that is, inoculating a person previously dosed with a viral-vector vaccine such as Covishield with an mRNA vaccine such as the Pfizer vaccine or an inactivated virus vaccine such as Covaxin.

1. Non-replicating non-infectious vaccines:The non-replicating injected vaccines

include nearly all others like diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus, hepatitis B, Haemophilus influenzae b, pneumococcal, human papilloma virus, inactivated poliovirus, inactivated hepatitis A vaccines etc.

For them, the dose confronted by the immune system is what is injected.

A tiny amount of antigen (micrograms) plus



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stabilisers, preservatives or adjuvants, chemicals and salts in minute quantities are administered.

ConcernsUSA’s National Institute of Allergy and

Infectious Diseases has said there isn’t enough data for the government to recommend a booster.

The WHO has expressed caution in encouraging third doses. Booster shots are yet to get a nod from the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Such a recommendation is unnecessary and premature given the paucity of data on booster shots and the fact that high-risk individuals in much of the world still haven’t been fully vaccinated.

Way ForwardThe immunology science says that a booster

dose delivered at an interval of 4, preferably 6 to 12 months after the last priming dose, will stimulate the production of long-lived antibody-secreting cells, as well as ‘long-lived memory cells’.

Decisions should be based on data on immunological memory. This means that after two doses, the status of antibody concentration must be

checked and after how long does it fall below a level where the third booster dose is needed.

In India, there exists an ethical dilemma — as long as there is inadequate vaccine supply, everyone deserves priming doses before the highly vulnerable early vaccine recipients are offered booster doses. India should accelerate vaccine procurement without counting the cost to avoid this.

For India, a vaccination strategy should be,i. First, completing two priming doses in all

adults and childrenii. Then a third dose to the special categoryiii. Later, one booster dose to everyone one

year later might turn out to be a good strategy.

Such a vaccination campaign needs meticulous planning and execution.

Pg 102PERMANENT COMMISSION

FOR WOMENSupreme Court ruled that women be allowed to face the

National Defence Academy (NDA) entrance exam

What's Inside?

1. DRDO’S ADVANCED CHAFF TECHNOLOGY

2. DEFENCE INDIA STARTUP CHALLENGE 5.0

3. EXERCISE KONKAN 4. MANTHAN 2021

HACKATHON 5. NATIONAL

AUTOMATED FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM


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In today’s electronic warfare, survivability of fighter aircraft is of prime concern because of advancement in modern radar threats.

To ensure survivability of aircraft, Counter Measure Dispensing System (CMDS) is used which provides passive jamming against Infra-Red and radar threats.

Chaff is a critical defence technology used to protect fighter aircraft from hostile radar threats.

The importance of this technology lies in the fact that very less quantity of chaff material

DRDO’s Advanced Chaff Technology

deployed in the air acts as decoy to deflect enemy’s missiles for ensuring safety of the fighter aircraft.

The technology has been given to the industry for production in large quantities to meet the annual rolling requirement of the Indian Air Force.

Another step of DRDO towards ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’.

The technology to safeguard fighter aircraft from hostile radar threats.

Why in News?Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday

launched the 5th edition of the Defence India Start-up Challenge (DISC) under Innovations for Defence Excellence - Defence Innovation Organisation (iDEX-DIO) meant to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation and technology development in the defence and aerospace sectors.

Thirty-five problem statements – 13 from the Services and 22 from Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) – were unveiled under DISC 5.0. Some of which are:

Situational awareness, augmented reality, Artificial Intelligence, aircraft-trainer, non-lethal devices, 5G network, Underwater Domain Awareness, Drone SWARMS and data capturing.

Defence India Startup Challenge 5.0About Defence India Start-up Challenge

DISC aims at supporting Startups/MSMEs (Micro Small and medium Enterprises)/Innovators to create prototypes and/or commercialize products/solutions in the area of National Defence and Security.

It is meant to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation and technology development in the defence and aerospace sectors.

It was launched by the Ministry of Defence in partnership with Atal Innovation Mission.

Under the program, the start-ups, Indian companies and individual innovators (including research & academic institutions) can participate.


Security August 2021DISC 5.0 will be a massive leap towards

leveraging the startup ecosystem to develop India’s defence technologies, equipment design and manufacturing capabilities.

VisionPrototyping: Help create functional prototypes of products/technologies relevant for national

security, and spur fast-moving innovation

in the Indian defence sector.

Commercialization: Help new tech

products/technologies find a market and

early customer in the form of the Indian

Defence Establishment.

Why in news? Exercise Konkan 2021 was held between

INS Tabar and HMS Westminster in the English Channel.

The exercise included the participation of integral helicopters of the two ships and the Falcon Electronic Warfare aircraft.

A wide range of exercises including co-ordinated anti-submarine procedures, firing drills, combined maritime picture compilation, combat formation maneuvering and replenishment at sea were conducted.

About Konkan exerciseThe aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth,

Britain’s largest warship, and its strike task group is conducting complex maritime exercises with the Indian Navy in the Bay of Bengal as part of efforts to enhance interoperability and naval cooperation. Britain has sent the 65,000-tonne carrier and its task group to the Indian Ocean as part of the country’s moves to enhance its profile in the Indo-Pacific and to foster defence ties with nations across the region.

EXERCISE KONKAN The task group is set to sail to the disputed

South China Sea on the next leg of its deployment.

The three-day annual Konkan exercise between the Indian and British navies, warships from both sides conducting a range of multi-ship, air, sea and sub-surface maritime drills, as well as close quarter manoeuvring.

The exercise is being conducted at a time when both the UK and India are in the midst of bolstering the capabilities of their navies with aircraft carriers, and UK carrier strike group is spearheading Britain’s joint expeditionary capability.

HMS Queen Elizabeth is equipped with fifth generation F-35B Lightning multi-role aircraft, which are jointly manned by the Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and US Marine Corps.

The group includes six Royal Navy ships and a submarine, a US Navy destroyer, a frigate from the Netherlands and 32 aircraft, and is manned by 3,700 sailors, aviators and marines from the combined forces of the UK, US and the Netherlands

Why in news?Working toward empowering these

imperative notions of our society, the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) have launched ‘MANTHAN 2021’ a unique national Hackathon to identify innovative concepts and technology solutions for addressing the security challenges of the 21st century faced by our intelligence agencies.

MANTHAN 2021 HACKATHON Premiere Hackathon for national security

Manthan is a hackathon based on national interests and challenges faced by our intelligence agencies that will be conducted online (Virtual).

Virtual Hackathon basically refers to conducting an entire event online on a cloud based tool for non-stop 36 hours coding concept derived from Smart India Hackathon that engages all user types under one web console with different nodes.


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Similar to the physical event apart from the physical presence the virtual mode will emulate most functionalities and some even better. In order to conduct Manthan 2021 AICTE-MIC will follow the same procedure that we followed in Smart India Hackathon 2020 Software Edition.

A virtual/cloud-based web tool that allows all the stakeholders such as Students, Mentors, evaluators, experts and MIC-AICTE Officials to get connected via different nodes.

As per Students view the tools will provide them a virtual room connected to cloud and will show all problem statements with description of the same, at the same time in that particular virtual

room evaluator/Mentors will also be available just to ensure the progress of idea development during Hackathon.

As per Problem statement creator’s view the tools will work as a reporting tool cum streaming console that will allow users to see the progress and interaction with the teams working on their problem statements.

The tools will provide all essential reporting methods to ensure quality evaluation along with storage of the data in a secure cloud.

As it’s a software Hackathon hence, AWS Code pipeline will be used in order to provide standardized coding outputs.

National Automated Facial Recognition System

Why in News?To empower the Indian police with

information technology, India approved implementation of the National Automated Facial Recognition System (NAFRS) to “facilitate investigation of crime and detection of criminals” in a quick and timely manner.

On its implementation, NAFRS will function as a national-level search platform that will use facial recognition technology to facilitate investigation of crime or for identifying a person of interest (e.g., a criminal) regardless of face mask, makeup, plastic surgery, etc.

BenefitsIn India, a severely under-policed nation,

NAFRS surely offers many benefits:

Control of crime with enhanced detection abilities.

Better border controls and countering terrorism.

The facial recognition technology could help protect human and child trafficking victims.

In identification of unidentified dead bodies


Security August 2021Concerns

The technology is absolutely intrusive: computer algorithms map unique facial-landmarks (biometric data) such as shape of the cheekbones, contours of the lips, distance from forehead to chin, and convert these into a numerical code — termed a faceprint.

Thus, for the purposes of ‘verification’ or ‘identification’, the system compares the faceprint generated with a large existing database of faceprints (typically available to law enforcement agencies) through a database on driver’s licence or police mugshots.

Results are not accurate: The real problem is that facial recognition does not return a definitive result — it ‘identifies’ or ‘verifies’ only in probabilities (e.g., a 70% likelihood that the person shown on an image is the same person on a watch list). This can result in the possibility of ‘false positives’ (a situation where the algorithm finds an incorrect match, even when there is none) resulting in wrongful arrest.

Possibility of bias: Facial recognition software is based on pre-trained models. Therefore, if certain types of faces (such as female, children, ethnic minorities) are under-represented in training datasets, then this bias will negatively impact its performance. With the element of error and bias, facial recognition can result in profiling of some overrepresented groups (such as Dalits and minorities) in the criminal justice system.

Impact on Right to privacyIn Justice K.S. Puttaswamy vs Union of

India (2017) Supreme Court recognized right

to privacy as a precious fundamental right and provided a three-fold requirement. Accordingly, any encroachment on the right to privacy requires:

1. The existence of ‘law’ (to satisfy legality of action)

2. There must exist a ‘need’, in terms of a ‘legitimate state interest’

3. The measure adopted must be ‘proportionate’ (there should be a rational nexus between the means adopted and the objective pursued) and ‘least intrusive.’

Unfortunately, NAFRS fails each one of these tests.

NAFRS lacks ‘legitimacy’: It does not stem from any statutory enactment (such as the DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill 2018 proposed to identify offenders or an executive order of the Central Government. Rather, it was merely approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in 2009.

Disproportionate measure: Even if we assume that there exists a need for NAFRS to tackle modern day crimes, this measure is grossly disproportionate. This is because to satisfy the test of ‘proportionality’, benefits for the deployment of this technology have to be sufficiently great, and must outweigh the harm.

For NAFRS to achieve the objective of ‘crime prevention’ or ‘identification’ will require the system to track people on a mass-scale, resulting in everyone becoming a subject of surveillance: a disproportionate measure.


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Context Recently, the Supreme

Court ruled that women be allowed to face the National Defence Academy (NDA) entrance exam for gaining commission as officers in defence services.

With this, not only have the doors been thrown open for women to gain permanent commission in the Indian Army, Air Force and Navy, the decision has long-term ramifications regarding the future of women in the armed forces.

Captain Tania Shergill is country’s first woman parade adjutant

Till now, women could join the Army through the Indian Military Academy and the Officers Training Academy. The directive allows girls who clear the exam to study at the NDA and then at the IMA or the naval and air force academies and become commissioned officers.

What is Short Service Commission?

It is an option of joining the Army and serving as a Commissioned Officer for 10 years.

A Permanent Commission means a career in the Army till you retire.

Under the Short Service Commission (SSC) scheme, women were commissioned into

PERMANENT COMMISSION FOR WOMEN(GS-III Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate)

the Army for a period of 10 years, extendable up to 14 years.

Women were, however, restricted to roles in specified streams such as Army Education Corps, Corps of Signals, Intelligence Corps, and Corps of Engineers. These specified streams excluded combat arms such as infantry and armoured corps.

While male SSC officers could opt for permanent commission at the end of 10 years of service, this option was not available to women officers. Women officers, were, thus, kept out of any command appointment, and could not qualify for government pension, which starts only after 20 years of service as an officer.

Brief history of Women in Defence Services

In 1992, the Union Government issued a notification making women eligible for

appointment as officers in select non-combat branches.

In 2008, the government extended the permanent commission to women in two branches — Judge Advocate General (JAG) and Army Educational Corps (AEC).

In a long legal battle for equality, 322 women officers had approached the top court for granting permanent commission, and the Supreme Court delivered its landmark verdict in February 2020.

In July 2020, the Defence Ministry issued the government sanction letter, specifying grant of permanent commission to women officers in all streams in which they are presently serving.

Following the sanction letter, the Army constituted a special selection board for screening women officers for grant of permanent commission


Security August 2021who joined the service through the Women Special Entry Scheme (WSES) and Short Service Commission Women (SSCW).

Of the 365 opted officers who were considered fit for permanent commission by the Selection Board, 277 women short service commission officers (WSSCOs) were granted permanent commission after medical scrutiny.

However, some petitioners said the process followed was arbitrary and challenged it in the top court.

Implications of the recent ruling

The women officers will be eligible to occupy all the command appointments, at par with male officers, which would open

avenues for further promotions to higher ranks for them.

If women officers had served only in staff, they would not have gone beyond the rank of Colonel.

After implementation of the judgement, a woman can rise to the rank of Colonel and above based on merit, like their male counterparts.

At the rank of Colonel, an officer picks up a substantive command and would be delegated to carry out independent tasks.

A Colonel commands a battalion, which typically consists of 850 men. A woman officer who is successful in this position could technically rise to the highest ranks of the Army, though, women officers will not

be inducted into the combat arms such as the infantry, artillery or armoured corps.

In The Secretary, Ministry of Defence vs Babita Puniya & Others, the top court pointed out that women had played a “significant role” in the Army since their induction in 1992 and extending permanent commission to women SSC officers “is a step forward in recognising and realising the right of women to equality of opportunity in the Army”.

Other countries: The United States, Israel, North Korea, France, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and Canada are among the global militaries that employ women in front-line combat positions.

What's Inside?

HISTORY

ART & CULTURE

1. ABANINDRANATH TAGORE

2. MADUR MATS

3. MOPLAH MARTYR

4. UTTARAKHAND’S NARAYANKOTI TEMPLE

5. WANCHUWA FESTIVAL

6. INDIAN INSTITUTE OF HERITAGE, NOIDA


History, Art & Culture August 2021

Why in News?`The year-long celebrations marking

150 years of Abanindranath Tagore will be started soon, with a host of online workshops and talks paying tributes to the leading light of the Bengal School of Art.

AboutAbanindranath Tagore was born in a family

of Tagores of Jorasanko in Kolkata in 1871. He was a nephew of Rabindranath Tagore.

In his youth, Abanindranath received training in European and Academic style from European artists.

However, during the last decade of the 19th century, he developed a distaste for European naturalism (which represented things closer to the way one sees them - inspired by the principles of natural science).

He leaned towards painting images with historic or literary allusions. He drew inspiration from Mughal miniatures.

Another source of inspiration came from the visit of the Japanese philosopher and aesthetician Okakura Kakuzo to Kolkata in 1902.

Contribution to Indian Freedom Struggle

In the last decades of the nineteenth century, a new art movement emerged which received its primary stimulus from the growing nationalism in India.

In Bengal, a new group of nationalist artists gathered around Abanindranath Tagore.

He was arguably the first major exponent of an artistic idiom that sought to modernise the Mughal and the Rajput styles in order to counter the influence of Western models of art under the colonial regime.

Though many of the paintings of this new trend primarily focused on themes of Indian mythology and cultural heritage, they are important

Abanindranath Tagore

sources for studying the modern art movement in India and for the art historians.

His unique interpretation of swadeshi themes created a new awakening and heralded a revival of Indian art.

He was the creator of the iconic ‘Bharat Mata’ painting.

Victoria Memorial Hall is the custodian of the Rabindra Bharati Society collection, the single-largest collection of works by the artist.

Bengal School of PaintingIt is also called the Renaissance School or

the Revivalist School, as it represented the first modern movement of Indian art.

It rediscovered the glories of Indian art and consciously tried to produce what it considered a truly Indian art inspired by the creations of the past.

Its leading artist was Abanindranath Tagore and its theoretician was E.B. Havell, the principal of the Calcutta School of Art.


History, Art & CultureAugust 2021

106

Why in News?

Recently, the National Handicraft Award was given to two women from West Bengal in recognition of their outstanding contribution to the development of crafts, ‘Madur floor mats’.

Gauri Rani Jana and Gauri Bala Das were honoured for their skills in making madur floor mats that are unique to West Bengal.

About Madur matsThese are an intrinsic part of the Bengali

lifestyle. They are made of natural fibres.

Around 74% of the weavers make hand woven mats and the remaining develop loom based products.

Few of the traditional mat making families still retain the knowledge of weaving a fine variety of exclusive mats locally known as Masland or Mataranchi.

WBKVIB (West Bengal Khadi & Village Industries Board) has taken up an initiative

Madur Matsto develop skill, capacity and institutions of Madurkathi artisans, facilitate market linkage in order to augment their earnings and provide infrastructural support in Purba and Paschim Medinipur.

It was awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the GI Registry in April 2018.

It is a rhizome-based plant (Cyperus tegetum or Cyperus pangorei) found abundantly in the alluvial tracts of Purba and Paschim Medinipur of West Bengal.

About the AwardShilp Guru Award, National Award and

National Certificate of Excellence are one of the highest awards for handicraft artisans in the country.

Shilp Guru is the country’s highest award in the field of handicrafts given to artisans aged above 50 with 20 years of experience.

Similarly, National Award is conferred on a craftsperson in recognition of his/her outstanding contribution towards the development of crafts and who is above the age of 30 years and is having 10 years of experience in the field of handicrafts.

And the National Certificate of Excellence is conferred on Master craftsperson in recognition of their body of work, work undertaken to promote the crafts, dissemination of the same and his/her skill level and who is above the age of 30 years and is having 10 years’ experience in the field of handicrafts.


History, Art & Culture August 2021

Why in news? A three member panel which reviewed

entries in fifty volume of dictionary ,brought out by Indian council of historic research decided to remove Malabar Rebellion leaders Variamkunnath Kunhamed Haji, Ali Musaliar and 387 other “Moplah martyrs” from “dictionary of Martyrs of freedom struggle

What is the Malabar rebellion of 1921? August 20, marks the centenary of the

Malabar rebellion, which is also known as the Moplah (Muslim) riots. It had been an uprising of Muslim tenants against British rulers and local Hindu landlords. The uprising, which began on

Moplah Martyr August 20, 1921, went on for several months marked by many bouts of bloodstained events.

Some historical accounts state the uprising led to the loss of around 10,000 lives, including 2,339 rebels.

It has often been perceived as one of the first nationalist uprisings in southern India. It has even been described as a peasant revolt.

In fact, in 1971, the then Kerala government had included the participants of the rebellion in the category of freedom fighters.

The incidents of the uprising took place in regions which are currently under the Malappuram district in north Kerala.

Uttarakhand’s Narayankoti Temple: Adopt a Heritage Project

Why in News?Recently, the Narayankoti temple

(Uttarakhand) has been included under the Centre’s Adopt a Heritage project. Social Legal Research & Education Foundation (SLREF) has come on board as Monument Mitra for the site.

Narayankoti TempleThe temple is a group of ancient temples,

about 2 km from Guptkashi on the Rudraprayag-Gaurikund highway.

This is the only place in the country which has nine planetary temples in a group that are a “symbol of nine planets”.

It is devoted to Lakshmi Narayana who is associated with Pandavas.

It is believed that these temples were constructed in the 9th century.

Adopt a Heritage ProjectLaunched on 27th September, 2017 (World

Tourism Day), it is a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), State/UTs Governments.

AimTo develop tourism amenities at heritage/

natural/ tourist sites spread across India to make them tourist friendly, in a planned and phased manner.

ImplementationThe sites/monuments are selected on the

basis of tourist footfall and visibility and can be adopted by private and public sector companies and individuals — known as Monument Mitras — for an initial period of five years.


History, Art & CultureAugust 2021

108

The Monument Mitras are selected by the ‘oversight and vision committee,’ co-chaired by the Tourism Secretary and the Culture Secretary, on the basis of the bidder’s ‘vision’ for development of all amenities at the heritage site.

There is no financial bid involved.

The corporate sector is expected to use Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds for the upkeep of the site.

Wanchuwa is one of the important festivals of the Tiwas as it is related with agriculture which is the mainstay of their economy.

In this festival, the Tiwas pray for a bountiful harvest during this festival and to protect their crops from pest and other natural calamities.

Tiwas are recognized as a Scheduled tribe within the State of Assam. They were known as Lalungs in the Assamese Buranjis and in Colonial literature.

Wanchuwa FestivalThough members of the group prefer to call

themselves Tiwa (meaning “the people who were lifted from below”). Some of their neighbours still call them Lalung.

A striking peculiarity of the Tiwa is their division into two sub-groups, Hill Tiwa and Plains Tiwas, displaying contrasting cultural features.

Habitation of majority Tiwas tribe is in Karbi-Anglong district of Assam.

A world-class university, ‘Indian Institute of Heritage’ will be set up by the Ministry of Culture at Noida, Gautama Buddha Nagar.

About Indian Institute of Heritage will be an umbrella body under which all the heritage institutes in the country will operate.

It would focus on the conservation and research in India’s rich tangible heritage; and also offers research, development, and knowledge associated with a heritage that contributes to the cultural, scientific, and economic life of India.

Indian Institute of Heritage, NoidaThe institute will have the status of a ‘deemed university’. Certificate and diploma courses currently run by various institutions like IGNCA and National Archives of India and others are to be brought under IIH.

It would have a major impact on higher education and research in the field related to rich Indian heritage and its conservation, leading to Masters and Ph.D courses in these fields.

However, no budget allocation has been made for the project in the current fiscal.

Children are not the face of this pandemic. But they risk being among its biggest victims, as children’s lives are nonetheless being changed

in profound ways. All children, of all ages, and in all countries, are being affected, in particular by the socio-economic impacts and, in some cases, by mitigation measures that may inadvertently do more harm than good.

As families lose their sources of income due to COVID-19 and the global economy has been plunged into a recession, more households are falling into monetary poverty. For the poorest families, including those who do not have access to social protection, the situation is dire.

Moreover, the harmful effects of this pandemic will not be distributed equally ans is expected to be more damaging for those in already disadvantaged or vulnerable situations.

“Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of

man.”Rabindranath Tagore

CHILDREN AND PANDEMIC- THE FUTURE OF “TOMORROW”

Essay/FEATURE

Deepak [email protected]

109

Studies estimate that 142 million children will be pushed into pandemic induced poverty of which two thirds are in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Region

Since children experience poverty differently than adults, it is also important to assess their material shortcomings and potential deprivations and to measure their poverty multi-dimensionally rather than just through income alone.

Increase of Child labor

Due to increased economic insecurity, lack of social protection and reduced household income, children from poor households are being pushed to contribute to the family income with the risk of exposure to exploitative work.

While child labour has declined during the past decade globally, estimates indicate that the rate of reduction has slowed by two-thirds in the most recent four year period.

The economic contraction and lockdowns have worsened the present situation, posing a real risk of back-tracking the gains made in eliminating child labour.

Policy interventions such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) 2005, the Right to Education Act 2009 and the Mid-day Meal Scheme have paved the way for children to be in schools along with guaranteed wage employment (unskilled) for rural families.

The child labour in India decreased in the decade 2001 to 2011, and this demonstrates that the right combination of policy and programmatic interventions can make a difference.

These positive and negative trends have to be taken into account when developing India’s policy and programmatic response during and after the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Work performed may not appear to be immediately dangerous, but it may produce long-term and devastating consequences for their education, their skills acquisition, and hence their future possibilities to overcome the vicious circle of poverty, incomplete education and poor quality jobs.

The challenges are significant and manifold, and the pandemic has also amplified its contributing factors, policy and programmatic interventions can save children.

But it is not impossible to meet them if the right level of commitment among all the relevant stakeholders and the

right mix of policy and programmatic interventions are present.

It is through strategic partnerships and collaborations involving government, employers, trade unions,community-based organisations and child labour families that we could make a difference building back better and sooner.

As we reinforce the commitment to protect children from unacceptable forms of work, our focus to mitigate the aftermath of the pandemic also remains. We need a strong alliance paving our way towards ending child labour in all its forms by 2025 as countries around the world have agreed to in Sustainable Development Goal 8.7.

We the governments, employers, unions, civil society organizations and

even individuals must rise and pledge to ‘Take Action against Child Labour’ as a part of the UN’s declaration of 2021 as the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour. Our actions today will determine the future of children tomorrow.

Exacerbating the learning crisisWith closure of schools and challenges of distance learning, children may drop out leaving little scope for return unless affirmative and immediate actions are taken.

As many schools and educational institutions are moving to online platforms for continuation of learning, the ‘digital divide’ is a challenge that India has to reconcile within the next several years.

The National Sample Survey (NSS) Report ‘Household Social Consumption on Education in India’ suggests that in 2017 18, only 24% of Indian households had access to an

Internet facility, proportions were 15% among rural households and 42% among urban households.

The potential losses that may accrue in learning for today’s young generation, and for the development of their human capital, are hard to fathom. Schools for more than 168 million children globally have been completely closed for more than a year due to COVID-19 lockdowns.

Globally, many schools lack the resources to invest in digital learning, and many children from poorer households do not have internet access.

At least one in three of the world’s schoolchildren – 463 million children globally – were unable to access remote learning when COVID-19 shuttered their schools. And the actual number

“Small hands can handle a pen better. Lend your support to abolish child labor.”

of students who cannot be reached is likely significantly higher than this estimate.

In many situations, despite remote learning policies and the presence of the necessary technology at home, children may be unable to learn due to skills gaps among their teachers or a lack of parental support.

Even short disruptions in children’s schooling can have long-lasting negative impacts due to factors including the lack of structured programmes for catching up. In the past, school closures have led to an increase in child marriage and child labour which often prevent children from continuing their education.

Threats to child survival and health

While children appear to be largely spared the direct mortality impacts of COVID-19, the indirect effects stemming from strained health systems and disruptions to life-saving health services such as immunization and antenatal care, can result in devastating increases in child deaths. The pandemic threatens to reverse decades of progress made around the world toward eliminating preventable child deaths.

COVID-19 is also likely to increase the number of still births. Nearly 200,000 additional still births could occur in 12 months as women are less likely or able to access health services. This senseless loss of life can often be prevented with quality antenatal and delivery care but even before the pandemic hit, few women were receiving the necessary care to prevent still births.

Today, more vulnerable children are becoming malnourished due to the deteriorating quality of their diets and the multiple shocks created by

the pandemic and its containment measures. Efforts to mitigate the transmission of COVID-19 are disrupting food systems, upending health and nutrition services, devastating livelihoods, and threatening food security.

COVID-19 threatens to roll back decades of progress made in reducing preventable child deaths by hindering access to these life-saving services.

According to new data, nearly 14 million children did not receive any vaccines in 2019. Additionally, almost 6 million children received some but not all vaccines required for full protection against many life-threatening diseases.

With COVID-19 putting enormous pressure on already weak or

overstretched health systems, the number of unvaccinated and under vaccinated children is expected to increase, exacerbating existing inequities and putting the lives of many children at serious risk of disease or death. Many studies have reported the possibility of increased cases of Measles and HIV infections among children in the coming years.

Increased risks of violence, ex-ploitation and abuse

Lockdown measures can expose children to a range of risks. Several factors related to confinement measures are likely to result in heightened tensions in the household,

added stressors placed on caregivers, economic uncertainty, job loss or disruption to livelihoods, and social isolation. These are well known risk factors for violence at home.

And as the risk of violence against children has increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic, child protection services have been weakened due in part to measures implemented to control the spread of the virus.

“66% of countries reported a disruption in violence against children-related services due to COVID-19.”

The everyday lives of girls have been overturned by the pandemic; their physical and mental health, their education, and the economic circumstances of their families and communities. Changes like these increase the likelihood of child marriage, and over the next decade, up to 10 million more girls will be at risk of becoming child brides as a result of the pandemic.

It is well known, for example, that economic insecurity can lead to child marriage as a way to relieve financial pressure on a family. The evidence is also clear that education is a protective factor against child marriage.

Thus, school closures such as those triggered by COVID-19 may, in effect, push girls towards marriage since school is no longer an option. Additionally, the disruption of ‘non-essential’ services including reproductive health services have a direct impact on teenage pregnancy and subsequently on marriage.

Covid-orphaned children and their adoption

The waves of COVID-19 pandemic have swept India, and left many children orphaned and

“Childhood is the time that makes our adulthood special. Also, children’s are

like pottery vessels whom you can shape in any way you

like.”

vulnerable. NCPCR statistics shows that 3,621 children were orphaned, 26,176 children lost either parent and 274 children were abandoned between April 1, 2021 and June 5, 2021. At the same time the social media is flooded with requests to adopt these children and few NGOs also come forward to help such children.

According to United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), India has 29.6 million orphaned and abandoned children since 2018. Only a fraction of these children is ending with a family due to low adoption rates in India. Other such children are not only living an emotional tragedy, but they are also at high risk of neglect, abuse and exploitation, said UNICEF.

Under Indian law, an orphaned child must be seen by a government official and is put in an institution if there are no relatives to look after them. Our authorities are overburdened, people are hassled.

Apart from this, many children are also left in financial distress, with their primary caregivers gone too soon, without having the chance to secure the child’s future. This is especially true of poor families or children of single mothers, who have succumbed to COVID. Children whose parents have died or are sick have been reduced to selling vegetables on the streets, according to the Protsahan India Foundation, a child rights NGO.

Orphaned children faced more abuse during the pandemic. The amount of SOS calls received to the majority of the helpline numbers witness the increase in child abuse among orphaned children.

In many cases, a situation arises where one parent has succumbed

to the virus and the other remains hospitalized. This resulted in a temporarily orphaned child of a single mother/father till the recovery of hospitalized parents.

There are children, who saw their parents die in front of their own eyes. Delicate counseling is the need of the hour for them. Else, these traumatic events will resurface in their mind and impact the psychological and mental well-being of children.

Need of the hour

To combat this humanitarian crisis, Central government and several state governments have stepped up to ensure that some help is given to these children like the PM-CARES for Children scheme. The scheme includes a comprehensive financial aid package for children orphaned due to the pandemic.

The government also established a dedicated child helpline number 1098 for the emergency messages about children who have lost their families Covid-19. Though these steps are aimed at providing relief to orphaned children, these steps are not sufficient.

The orphaned children must be taken care of by the authorities entrusted with responsibilities under the Juvenile Justice Act. Rehabilitation of all orphaned, abandoned and surrendered children is regulated by the strict mandatory procedures of the Adoption Regulations.

CARA must conduct an outreach programme on social media, newspapers and TV, warning everyone not to entertain any illegal adoption offers under any circumstances whatsoever.

The NCPCR and SCPCRs must step up their roles as vigilantes. Social activists, NGOs and enlightened

individuals also must report all the incidents that come to their notice.

Children are an important national asset, and the well-being of the nation, and its future, depend on how its children grow and develop. The primary purpose of giving a child in adoption is his welfare and restoring his or her right to family.

Therefore, orphaned children who have lost both their parents or abandoned or surrendered due to the COVID-19 pandemic must not be neglected and left to face an uncertain future. Tough times call for tough measures. This business of criminal trading of children must be checked with an iron hand. This directive needs to be implemented in the most humane manner.

India needs short, medium, and long-term measures to ensure the safety of orphaned children. Third wave of Covid-19 is a possibility. This is why, India must ensure to formulate adequate guidelines for addressing the situation of orphaned children. Further, Indian society also needs to think of adoption from the point of the welfare of the child and not from the point of the parent like the child should have genes, blood, and lineage.

Children are like buds, they care for everyone equally without any discrimination. Moreover, they teach everyone the lesson of humanity that they have forgotten in this hectic lifestyle of this world. The socio-psychological impacts caused by the pandemic, challenges the future of children and the nation. Sow the goodness to children, to reap the same of the nation. Let’s protect the children, to protect the “tomorrow”.


August 2021 113

1. With reference to the National Mineral Explorrust (NMET), consider the following statements:1. The Mines and Mineral (Development and

Regulation) Act, 1957 as amended in 2015, provides for establishment of National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET).

2. The NMET fund is being utilized to undertaking studies for mineral development; regional and detailed exploration with special emphasis to strategic and critical minerals.

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

2. With reference to the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) Scheme, consider the following statements:1. It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.

2. Under this Scheme, the children in the age group of 9-14 years are withdrawn from work and put into NCLP Special Training Centres.


a) 1 only b) 2 onlyc) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2

3. With reference to the Governor’s power to pardon, consider the following statements:1. Section 433A of Code of Criminal Procedure

mandates that a prisoner’s sentence can be remitted only after 14 years of jail.

2. Section 433A of the Code of Criminal Procedure affects the constitutional power conferred on the President/Governor to grant pardon under Articles 72 or 161 of the Constitution.



4. India recently assumed the Presidency of United Nations Security Council (UNSC). In this context consider the following statements:1. India now can veto on resolution seeking admission

of new member states to the United Nations.2. UNSC is the only UN body with the authority

to issue binding resolutions on member states.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?a) 1 only b) 2 onlyc) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2

5. Which of the following statement is incorrect regarding Pangolins:

a) Chinese Pangolin is found in Assam and the eastern Himalayas.

b) Indian pangolin is listed as critically endangered as per IUCN Red List.

c) All pangolin species are listed in CITES Appendix I.

d) In India, both Indian and Chinese pangolins are protected under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972.

6. With reference to the Samagra Shiksha Scheme, consider the following statements:1. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs

has recently approved continuation of the revised Samagra Shiksha Scheme for a period of five years.

2. The Scheme is implemented as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme through a single State Implementation Society (SIS) at the State level.



7. With reference to the natural gas, consider the following statements:1. The share of natural gas in the primary energy

mix in India is envisaged to increase to 15% by 2030 by boosting domestic production and procuring LNG.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS


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2. LNG imports are under Open General Licensing (OGL) category and establishment of LNG infrastructure, including LNG terminals, is also under 75% FDI (automatic route).



8. Which of the following country is home to Africa's northernmost point, Cape Angela?

a) Tunisia b) Kenyac) Niger d) Libya

9. With reference to the retrospective tax law, consider the following statements:1. The new Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill

aims to nullify the relevant retrospective tax clauses that were introduced in 2012 to bring past indirect transfer of Indian assets under the ambit of taxation.

2. As per the proposed changes, any tax demand made on transactions that took place before May 2012 shall be dropped, and any taxes already collected shall be repaid with interest.



10. Which of the following tribes belong to the state of Arunachal Pradesh?

1. Buksa2. Memba3. Khampti

Choose the correct answer from the codes given below:

a) 1 only b) 1 and 2 only c) 3 only d) 2 and 3 only

11. With reference to Bengal School of Art, consider the following statements:1. It represents the first modern movement of

Indian Art.

2. Oil paintings and realistic style of painting are the prominent features of this school.

3. Abanindranath Tagore was the leading artist of this school.

Which of the above statements is/are correct? a) 1 and 2 only b) 2 and 3 only c) 1 and 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

12. Agalega Island, seen recently in news, is located in:

a) Indian Ocean b) Pacific Oceanc) Atlantic Ocean d) Arctic Ocean

13. Consider the following statements regarding “Innate immunity” in human beings.1. It is present at the time of birth.

2. It is disease specific due to its memory of disease attack and response.

Which of the above statements is/are incorrect?a) 1 only b) 2 onlyc) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2

14. With reference to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), consider the following statements:1. It is the Atlantic branch of the ocean conveyor

belt or Thermohaline circulation (THC), and distributes heat and nutrients throughout the world’s ocean basins.

2. It carries warm surface waters from the tropics towards the Northern Hemisphere, where it cools and sinks.

3. Gulf Stream is a part of the AMOC.


a) 1 only b) 2 and 3 onlyc) 1 and 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

15. With reference to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report, “Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis”, consider the following statements:1. The warming of the ocean would lead to a rise

in sea levels, leading to frequent and severe coastal flooding in low-level areas.


115August 20212. The planet is irrevocably headed towards

warming by 1.5 degrees Celsius over pre-industrial times in the next two decades.



16. With reference to E-RUPI1. It is prepaid voucher used to avail special

government services

2. Beneficiary must needed bank account

3. RBI developed E-RUPI

Select the correct answera) 1 only b) 1 and 3c) 1 and 2 d) 2 and 3

17. The only state to house all species of crocodile-gharial,mugger,saltwater crocodile

a) Madhya Pradesh b) Odishac) Chhattisgarh d) Gujarat

18. International fusion centre-Indian ocean region (IFC-IOR) established at

a) Goa b) Chennai c) Gurgaon d) Mumbai

19. Which country is not a member of gulf cooperation council?

a) Saudi Arabiab) Omanc) United Arab Emirates d) Iran

20. With reference to world heritage sites consider the following statements 1. It signifies only cultural significance which is so

exceptional as to transcend national boundaries and to be of common importance for present and future generations of all humanity.

2. At present India has 39 world heritage sites.

Select the correct answer (a) 1 only (b) 2 only(c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2

21. The Gadaba, Paroja and Omanatya tribes belong to:

a) Gujarat b) Odishac) Bihar d) Jharkhand

22. With reference to the “sovereign right to taxation”, consider the following statements:1. Any tax in India being charged has to be backed

by a law passed by the legislature or Parliament.

2. The Seventh Schedule of the Constitution puts taxation under the Concurrent list.



23. With reference to the vehicle scrappage policy, consider the following statements:1. The scrappage policy will come into effect after

the expiry of this 10 or 15 year period.

2. As per the motor vehicle law, renewal of fitness certificate annually is mandatory for a commercial vehicle once it is older than eight years.



24. ‘SonChiraiya’, recently seen in news, is an initiative of:

a) Union Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare

b) Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment

c) Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs d) Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs

25. With reference to the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, consider the following statements:1. It prohibits identified single use plastic items

which have low utility and high littering potential by 2022.


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2. Polystyrene and expanded polystyrene are exempt from prohibition.



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

Region often in news Country1. Mazar-i-Sharif Iran

2. Kandahar Afghanistan

3. Herat Iraq

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a) 2 only b) 1 and 2 onlyc) 2 and 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

27. With reference to the Ramsar Convention, consider the following statements:1. Sultanpur National Park in Gurgaon and

Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary in Jhajjar are part of Ramsar convention.

2. The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands is an intergovernmental treaty adopted on February 2, 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar.



28. Consider the following statements regarding IndiGau, seen recently in news:1. It is India’s first Cattle Genomic Chip for the

conservation of pure varieties of indigenous cattle breeds.

2. Jersey and Holstein Friesian are the indigenous breeds of cattle.

3. It is developed by the National Institute of Animal Biotechnology, an autonomous institution under the Department of Biotechnology.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?a) 1 and 2 only b) 2 and 3 onlyc) 1 and 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

29. The Project BOLD (Bamboo Oasis on Lands in Drought), recently seen in news, is an initiative of:

a) Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC)

b) TRIFEDc) NITI Aayog d) None of the above

30. Recently which tiger reserve declared as 51st tiger reserve by government of India

a) Ramgarh visdhari tiger reserveb) Kamlang tiger reserve c) Meghamalai tiger reserved) Orang tiger reserve

31. Which of the following countries does not share a border with Afghanistan

a) Uzbekistan b) Kyrgyzstan c) Turkmenistan d) Tajikistan

32. With reference to the Defence India Startup Challenge (DISC) 5.0, consider the following statements:1. It was launched under Innovations for Defence

Excellence - Defence Innovation Organisation (iDEX-DIO)

2. The iDEX initiative was launched by the Indian Prime Minister to achieve self-reliance and foster innovation and technology development in defence and aerospace sectors.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?a) 1 only b) 2 onlyc) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2

33. The UNITE- AWARE platform is launched by India in collaboration with:

a) World Health Organizationb) G-20c) United Nationsd) Arctic Council


117August 2021

34. Consider the following statements regarding Istanbul Convention.1. It is on preventing and combating violence

against women and domestic violence.

2. The Convention sets minimum standards for governments to meet when tackling violence against women.

3. When a government ratifies the Convention, they are not legally bound to follow it.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?a) 1 only b) 1, 2 onlyc) 1, 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

35. With reference to the MALABAR exercise, consider the following statements:1. MALABAR series of maritime exercises

commenced in 2010.

2. Currently it is a bilateral exercise between India and USA.



36. Which of the following is a natural waterway that separates Europe and Asia?

a) Bosphorus Strait b) Bering Straitc) Strait of Hormuz d) Malacca Strait

37. “Madur mats”, recently seen in news, belongs to

a) Odishab) Jharkhandc) West Bengald) Bihar

38. Acetabularia jalakanyakae, recently seen in news, is

a) Fish b) Green Algaec) Plant d) Protozoa

39. Sunil Sethi committee, recently seen in news, is related to a) doubling the production and quadrupling the exports of handlooms in a span of three year

b) to decide the appropriate level of reserves that the RBI should hold

c) improvement in the Customer Service at Primary (Urban) Cooperative Banks

d) None of the above

40. Consider the following statements with respect to the National Security Act,1. The NSA empowers the Centre or a State

government to detain a person to prevent him from acting in any manner prejudicial to national security.

2. The maximum period for which one may be detained is 6 months.

3. It gives power to the governments to detain a foreigner with a view to regulate his/her presence or expel from the country.

Which of the statements given above is/are CORRECT?

a) 1 and 2 only b) 1 and 3 onlyc) 2 and 3 only d) All of above

41. Consider the following statements with regarding to Polio1. It is a deadly viral infectious disease that

multiplies in the intestine, then affects the nervous system and can cause paralysis.

2. Wild Poliovirus types- WPV2 and WPV3 have been eradicated globally, but WPV1 still remains in India.

Which of the statements given above is/are CORRECT?


42. Sainik Samman Pension Scheme (SSSPS) is related to?a) Pension to the freedom fighters and their families.

b) Special pension to the families of COVID-19 deceased frontline workers.


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c) Pension to the senior citizens who are not covered under any other social security measures.

d) Pension to the retired armed force personals and their families.

43. Which of the following currency is not in special drawing rights of IMF

a) Yen b) Yuanc) Riyal d) dollar

44. Consider the following statements 1. The e-Shram portal is the national database for

unorganised sector workers.

2. E-shram portal launched by ministry of labor and employment.

Select the correct answera) 1 only b) 2 only c) Both 1 and 2 d) neither 1 nor 2

45. Consider the following statements regarding “Yuktadhara”, seen recently in news:1. It is a geospatial planning portal which will

facilitate planning of assets to be created under MGNREGA scheme using Remote Sensing and GIS based information.

2. This platform will serve as a repository of assets created under various national rural development programmes.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?a) 1 only b) 2 onlyc) Both 1 and 2 d) Neither 1 nor 2

46. Consider the following statements regarding the Panjshir Valley1. Located south west of Kabul, near the Hindu

Kush Mountain range.

2. It is divided by the Panjshir river and ringed by the Panjshir mountains in the north and the Kuhestan mountains in the south.

Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?


47. Which of the following statements is/are right about Drone Rules 2021?1. The total number of forms that were to be filled

has been reduced.

2. The government has done away with the need for a security clearance prior to the issuance of a registration or licence.

3. Foreign ownership has been discontinued.a) 1 and 2 only b) 2 and 3 onlyc) 1 and 3 only d) 1, 2 and 3

48. Which of the following vaccines below is the World’s first plasmid DNA vaccine for human use?

a) Moderna b) Covishieldc) ZyCoV-D d) Pfizer

49. “Deepor Beel”, recently seen in news, is located in which of the following states?

a) Assam b) Mizoramc) Arunachal Pradeshd) Manipur

50. Consider the following statements regarding Oil Bonds:1. Oil bonds are issued by the government to

compensate oil marketing companies (OMCs), fertilizer companies and the Food Corporation of India (FCI) for losses borne by them in the process of regulating prices in the domestic market.

2. It was introduced in 2005 to defer the payment of money to the oil marketing companies

3. Oil bonds can be traded for liquid cash by sale in the secondary market to insurance companies, banks, and other financial institutions.

Which of the above statements are correct?a) 1 and 2 b) 1 and 3c) 2 and 3 d) 1, 2 and 3


119August 2021

1. c 2. b 3. a 4. b 5. b 6. c 7. a 8. a 9. a 10. d

11. c 12. a 13. b 14. d 15. c 16. a 17. b 18. c 19. d 20. b

21.b 22. a 23. c 24. d 25. a 26. a 27.c 28. c 29. a 30. c

31. b 32. b 33. c 34. b 35. d 36. a 37. c 38. b 39. a 40. b

41. a 42.a 43. c 44. c 45. c 46. a 47. d 48. c 49. a 50. d

Answers:

ipcc report, 2021 - sivarajavel ias academy

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