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Distribution: weekly

  • E20 Fuel to Cut Vehicular Emissions

    The government has proposed the adoption of E20 fuel — a blend of 20% of ethanol and gasoline — as an automobile fuel in order to reduce vehicular emissions as well as the country’s oil import bill.

    E20 Fuel

    • E20 is a blend of 20% ethanol with gasoline (petrol) and can be used as an alternative to the fuels currently available.
    • The government is looking at the adoption of mass emission standards for this fuel for transport application.
    • Additionally, it also wishes to facilitate the development of E20 compliant vehicles.
    • The government believes that the E20 blend will not only curb vehicle emissions but help reduce the country’s oil import bill.

    Ethanol – Pros and Cons

    • Ethanol is a common by-product that comes from agricultural feedstock like corn, hemp, potato, etc. It can be used as a bio-fuel in Flexi-fuel vehicles.
    • It is greener than gasoline because the corn and crop plantations absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they grow.
    • While the fuel still releases CO2 when you burn it, the net increase is comparatively lower.
    • However, ethanol is less efficient as a fuel. It has lower energy content than energy-rich gasoline and diesel.
    • The rule delivers less power when burned, which in return results in more fuel consumption and lower mileage.
    • Additionally, blends over E20 (20% ethanol) is highly corrosive for older vehicles as the alcohol can break down old rubber seals and can damage engines.

    Vehicle compatibility

    • It added the compatibility of vehicles with the percentage of ethanol in the blend would be defined by the vehicle manufacturer, which would have to be displayed on the vehicle with a sticker.
    • Ethanol is a biofuel and a common by-product of biomass left by agricultural feedstock such as corn, sugarcane, hemp, potato, etc.

  • Who was Khudiram Bose?

    Union Home Minister has visited the native village of Bengali revolutionary Khudiram Bose in Midnapore, West Bengal.

    One of the youngest leaders of the Independence movement, Khudiram Bose is highly regarded in Bengal for his fearless spirit. He was just 19 when he was hanged!

    Who was Khudiram Bose?

    • Bose was born in 1889 at a small village in Midnapore district.
    • From his adolescent years, he was drawn towards revolutionary activities, being inspired by a series of public lectures given by Sri Aurobindo and Sister Nivedita, when the duo visited Midnapore in the early 1900s.
    • In 1905, when Bengal was partitioned, he actively participated in protests against the British.
    • At the age of 15, Bose joined the Anushilan Samiti, an early 20th-century organisation that propounded revolutionary activities in Bengal.
    • Within a year, he had learnt how to make bombs and would plant them in front of police stations.

    Revolutionary activities

    • The deciding moment of Bose’s life came in 1908 when he along with another revolutionary, Prafulla Chaki was assigned the task of assassinating the district magistrate of Muzaffarpur, Kingsford.
    • Before being transferred to Muzaffarpur, Kingsford was a magistrate in Bengal.
    • His tortuous clamping down on revolutionaries had earned him the ire of this young group of nationalists who decided to hurl a bomb on him.

    Kingsford’s assassination attempt

    • There were multiple attempts to assassinate Kingsford.
    • Initially, the plan was to throw the bomb in the court. However, after much deliberation, it was decided to avoid the court since a lot of civilians might get injured.
    • Thereafter, on April 30, 1908, Bose threw a bomb on a carriage which he suspected was carrying Kingsford.
    • But it turned out that it was carrying the wife and daughter of a barrister named Pringle Kennedy, who lost their lives, as Kingsford escaped.

    Arrest and execution

    • By midnight the entire town was aware of the incident and the Calcutta police were summoned to catch the duo.
    • Bose was arrested from a railway station called Waini where he had reached the next morning after having walked 25 miles.
    • Chaki on the other hand, killed himself before he could get arrested.
    • As Bose was brought handcuffed to the police station at Muzaffarpur, the entire town crowded around to take a look at the teenaged boy.
    • On July 13, 1908, he was finally sentenced to death.

  • Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC)

    India is looking at integrating more countries into coastal radar network IMAC.

    What is IMAC?

    • The Indian Navy’s IMAC located in Gurugram which was set up after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks is the nodal agency for maritime data fusion.
    • It functions under the National Maritime Domain Awareness (NMDA) Project.
    • The NMDA project was launched in accordance with the vision of PM on SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region).
    • The IMAC monitors movement of more than 120,000 ships a year passing through the Indian Ocean.
    • The cargo carried by these ships accounts for 66 per cent of world crude oil, 50 per cent of container traffic and 33 per cent of bulk cargo.
    • Thus, IMAC performs a very crucial role in collecting shipping information, analysing traffic patterns and sharing the inputs with the user agencies.

    Mission SAGAR, unlike other missions, can create confusion with the name and its purpose. Make note of such special cases. UPSC can ask such questions as one liner MCQs.

    Expanding IMAC

    • It is meant to enable real-time monitoring of the high seas for threats as also expand India’s assistance for capacity building to Indian Ocean littoral states.
    • Efforts are in advanced stages to set up coastal radar stations in Maldives, Myanmar and Bangladesh.
    • Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka have already been integrated into the country’s coastal radar chain network.
    • Similar plans are in the pipeline with Maldives and Myanmar and discussions are ongoing with Bangladesh and Thailand.

  • Species in news: Himalayan trillium

    The Himalayan trillium (Trillium govanianum), a common herb of the Himalayas was declared ‘endangered’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) last week.

    Try this MCQ:

    Q.Recently, there was a growing awareness in our country about the importance of Himalayan nettle (Girardinia diversifolia) because it is found to be a sustainable source of-

    (a) Anti-malarial drug

    (b) Bio-diesel

    (c) Pulp for paper industry

    (d) Textile fibre

    Himalayan trillium

    • In recent years, the plant has become one of the most traded commercial plants of the Himalayan region, due to its high medicinal quality.
    • It is found in temperate and sub-alpine zones of the Himalayas, at an altitude from 2,400-4,000 metres above sea level.
    • Their existence has also been traced across India, Bhutan, Nepal, China, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
    • In India, it is found in four states only- Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand.
    • Often called Nagchatri, in local areas this herb grows to a height of 15-20 cm.

    Various applications

    • It has been used in traditional medicine to cure diseases like dysentery, wounds, skin boils, inflammation, sepsis, as well as menstrual and sexual disorders.
    • Recent experiments have shown that the rhizome of the herb is a source of steroidal saponins and can be used as an anti-cancer and anti-ageing agent.
    • This increased its market value and has now become an easy target for poachers.

  • Laying the foundation for faster growth

    To ease the damage inflicted by the pandemic on the economy, India needs to act on multiple fronts. The article suggests the trajectory India should follow to compensate for the economic loss due to pandemic.

    Economy picking up

    • As the restrictions were slowly withdrawn, the economy has also started picking up.
    • There are many indicators such as collection of Goods and Services Tax (GST), the improved output of coal, steel, and cement, and positive growth in manufacturing in October 2020 which point to better performance of the private sector.
    • In Q1, the economy declined by 23.9%; it declined by 7.5% in Q2, when the relaxations were eased.
    • Reductions in the first half of GDP in 2020-21 as compared to the first half of 2019-20 is 7.66% of the 2019-20 GDP.
    • If the Indian economy at least maintains the second half GDP in 2020-21 at the level of the previous year, the full-year contraction can be limited to about 7.7%.

    Steps need to be taken

    • If the Indian economy grows at 8% in 2021-22 will we be compensating for the decline in 2020-21.
    • Thus, it is imperative that the Indian economy grows at a minimum of 8% in 2021-22.
    • This should be possible if by that time restrictions imposed because of COVID-19 are withdrawn and the nation goes back to a normal state.
    • Some sectors can act as lead sectors or engines of growth with increased government capital expenditures in them.
    • The private sector seems to be revising its future prospects.
    • Many new issues in the capital market have met with good response.
    • The attitude to trade must also change.
    • Closing borders may appear to be a good short-term policy to promote growth.
    • A strong surge in our exports will greatly facilitate growth, i.e. 2021-22.
    • However, much of Indian’s growth must rest on domestic factors.
    • Growth must not only be consumption-driven but also investment-driven.
    • It is the investment-driven growth in a developing economy that can sustain growth over a long period.

    The important role of monetary policy

    • The stance of monetary policy in 2020-21 has been extremely accommodating.
    • Three major elements in the policy are:
    • 1) A reduction in interest rate.
    • 2) Providing liquidity through various measures.
    • 3) Regulatory changes such as moratorium.
    • There has been a substantial injection of liquidity into the system.
    • With a large injection of liquidity, one should expect inflation to remain high.
    • In the final analysis, inflation is determined by the overall liquidity or money supply in the system in conjunction with the availability of goods and services.
    • While there may be sufficient justification for an accommodative monetary policy in a difficult year such as 2020, there will be a need to exercise more caution as we move into the next year.

    Role of government expenditure

    • Government expenditures play a key role in a situation such as the one we are facing.
    • The stimulus policies involving higher government expenditures were expected to arrest the contractionary momentum.
    • The government expenditures should be speeded up from now on so that the contraction in the current fiscal year as a whole can be reduced.
    • In 2021-22, government revenues should pick up with the rise in GDP.
    • The process of bringing down the fiscal deficit must also start.
    • What is required is a sharp increase in government capital expenditures which can act as a stimulus for growth.
    • A detailed investment plan of the government and public sector enterprises must be drawn up and presented as part of the coming Budget.

    Increasing investment

    • Over the past decade, the investment rate has been falling.
    • In 2018-19, the rate fell to 32.2% of GDP from 38.9% in 2011-12.
    • Some of the recent measures including corporate tax rate changes may help in augmenting investment.
    • A strong effort must be made to improve the investment climate. The National Infrastructure Pipeline is a good initiative.
    • But the government must come forward to invest more on its own.

    Reforms with consensus

    • Reforms are important in the context of rapid development.
    • However, timing, sequencing, and consensus-building are equally important while introducing them.
    • Labor reforms, for example, are best introduced when the economy is on the upswing.

    Consider the question ” Growth must not only be consumption-driven but also investment-driven. It is the latter which in a developing economy can sustain growth over a long period. In light of this, suggest the policy imperatives that India should follow to make good of the decline in 2020-202.”

    Conclusion

    To achieve the level of $5 trillion, we need to grow continuously at 9% for six years from now. That is the challenge before the economy. Jobs and employment will come from growth. They are not independent of growth. For that policymakers should eschew other considerations and focus only on growth.

  • West Bengal IPS Controversy

    Police personnel should not be made instruments of a political battle

    Tug of war between political parties in West Bengal

    • The appointment of three IPS officers of the West Bengal cadre to various posts by the Union Home Ministry on Thursday has escalated the confrontation between the State and the Centre.
    • Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has termed the deputation order despite the State’s objection “a colourable exercise of power and blatant misuse of emergency provision of IPS Cadre Rule 1954”.
    • The constant hostility between the State and Central governments is now taking a turn for the worse ahead of the 2021 Assembly election.
    • The tug of war began after a convoy of BJP President J.P. Nadda came under stone pelting in the State on December 10. The BJP apparently holds the IPS officers accountable for the incident.
    • After an initial move to recall these officials was resisted by the State, the Centre has invoked Section 6(1) of the Indian Police Service (Cadre) Rules, which says that “in case of any disagreement, the matter shall be decided by the Central Government….”

    Administrative instruments Vs. Political battles

    • The CM’s style of managing the police force has gained attention for the wrong reasons in the past.
    • Senior officials are seen as allied with the ruling govt and the oppositions determined drive to capture power in the State is multi-pronged.
    • The Supreme Court restrained West Bengal from taking any “coercive action” against several opposition leaders in criminal cases registered against them by the State Police.
    • The opposition continues to knock on the doors of the Court and the Election Commission of India to bring pressure on the State government.
    • By enforcing its writ on IPS officers, the Centre is sending a signal to all officers that their conduct will now be under scrutiny.

    Never-ending issues between the state and the centre

    • The central schemes, Ayushman Bharat and PM Kisan Samman Nidhi are also a bone of contention.
    • The Bengal government has refused to implement them, demanding that the funds be routed through the State.
    • The CM has also complained of insufficient central assistance to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and cyclone Amphan.
    • The Centre’s earlier demand that the Chief Secretary and DGP attend a meeting in New Delhi on the State’s law-and-order situation increased tensions.
    • The partisan use of the personnel and instruments of the state by parties in power as is happening in this tussle is a disturbing signal for democracy and federalism.

    Practice Question: The partisan use of the personnel and instruments of the state by parties in power is a disturbing signal for democracy and federalism. Elaborate.

  • Andhra Pradesh High Court and the CM Row

    The Supreme Court has stayed an Andhra Pradesh High Court order intending to embark on a judicial enquiry into whether there is a constitutional breakdown in the State machinery, requiring a declaration of President’s rule.

    A backfire from the AP High Court

    • Andhra Pradesh CM had earlier sparked controversy by writing to the CJI complaining about a Supreme Court judge for allegedly influencing posting of cases in the State High Court.
    • The alleged Judge is slated to be the next Chief Justice of India, and some judges of the AP High Court have opened sharp criticism over AP CM’s move.

    What did the Supreme Court say?

    • The apex court found the enquiry highly disturbing. Hence it decided to stay the order.
    • Solicitor General Tushar Mehta asked why the High Court “should go into whether there is a constitutional breakdown in the State”.
    • The Solicitor General of the state government argued that it was not up to the High Court to enquire and recommend President’s rule in a State.

    Citations for the President’s Rule in a State

    • President’s rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct central government rule in a state.
    • It is Article 356 that deals with the failure of constitutional machinery in a State.
    • This power to impose President’s rule exclusively vests in the Central Executive.
    • Under Article 356, this move can be taken- if the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen…..
    • The power in this regard, like sending a report either to the President of India or to the Governor of the concerned State or to record a finding in that regard, cannot be exercised by the judiciary.

    How did the AP govt respond?

    • The AP govt said that the High Court’s observation violated the Basic Structure doctrine of the Constitution.
    • Under the constitutional framework, it is not for the courts to decide as to whether there is a constitutional breakdown in a State.
    • The said power has been specifically conferred upon a different constitutional authority – and rightly so.
    • It is needless to mention that the constitutional courts do not have any judicially discoverable and manageable standards to determine if there has been a constitutional breakdown,” the petition contended.

    Back2Basics:

    President’s Rule

    • President’s rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct central government rule in a state.

    How it is imposed?

    • President’s Rule implies the suspension of a state government and the imposition of direct rule of the Centre.
    • This is achieved through the invocation of Article 356 of the Constitution by the President on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers.
    • Under Article 356, this move can be taken “(1) If the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution…”

    How long President’s Rule can last

    • A proclamation of President’s Rule can be revoked through a subsequent proclamation in case the leader of a party produces letters of support from a majority of members of the Assembly, and stakes his claim to form a government.
    • The revocation does not need the approval of Parliament.
    • Any proclamation under Article 356 —which stands for six months — has to be approved by both Houses in the Parliament session following it.
    • This six-month time-frame can be extended in phases, up to three years.

    The S.R. Bommai Case

    • R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) was a landmark judgment of the Supreme Court of India, where the Court discussed at length provisions of Article 356 of the Constitution of India and related issues.
    • The judgement attempted to curb blatant misuse of Article 356 of the Constitution of India, which allowed President’s rule to be imposed over state governments.
    • Article 356 (1) has been deliberately drafted in a narrow language by the Founding Fathers so that political parties in the Centre does not misuse it to subvert federalism, it had noted.
    • The expression used in the Article is ‘if the President is satisfied”, the court had observed.
    • In other words, the President has to be convinced of or should have sufficient proof of information with regard to or has to be free from doubt or uncertainty about the state of things indicating that the situation in question has arisen.
    • The court had stated that although the sufficiency or otherwise of the material cannot be questioned, the legitimacy of inference drawn from such material is “certainly open to judicial review”.

    What it directed?

    • The judgment had explained that in a multi-party political system, chances are high that the political parties in the Centre and the State concerned may not be the same.
    • Article 356 cannot be used for the purpose of political one-upmanship by the Centre.
    • Hence there is a need to confine the exercise of power under Article 356[1] strictly to the situation mentioned therein which is a condition precedent to the said exercise,” the court had said.

    Conditions for Prez Rule

    • Where after general elections to the assembly, no party secures a majority, that is, Hung Assembly.
    • Where the party having a majority in the assembly declines to form a ministry and the governor cannot find a coalition ministry commanding a majority in the assembly.
    • Where a ministry resigns after its defeat in the assembly and no other party is willing or able to form a ministry commanding a majority in the assembly.
    • Where a constitutional direction of the Central government is disregarded by the state government.
    • Internal subversion where, for example, a government is deliberately acting against the Constitution and the law or is fomenting a violent revolt.
    • Physical breakdown where the government willfully refuses to discharge its constitutional obligations endangering the security of the state.

  • What is the SolarWinds Hack?

    The ‘SolarWinds hack’, a cyberattack recently discovered in the US, has emerged as one of the biggest ever targeted against the US government, its agencies and several other private companies.

    Do you know about the ‘Five Eyes’ group of nations?

    Solar-Winds Hack

    • It was first discovered by US cybersecurity company FireEye, and since then more developments continue to come to light each day.
    • The US termed it as a highly sophisticated threat actor calling it a state-sponsored attack, although it did not name Russia.
    • It said the attack was carried out by a nation with top-tier offensive capabilities and the attacker primarily sought information related to certain government customers.

    How dangerous is the attack?

    • This is being called a ‘Supply Chain’ attack.
    • Instead of directly attacking the federal government or a private organization’s network, the hackers target a third-party vendor, which supplies software to them.
    • Once installed, the malware gave a backdoor entry to the hackers to the systems and networks of SolarWinds’ customers.
    • More importantly, the malware was also able to thwart tools such as anti-virus that could detect it.

    The deadliest cyber-attack ever in the US

    • The US Energy department which is responsible for managing America’s nuclear weapons is the latest agency to confirm that it has been breached in the SolarWinds cyber attack.

  • Gas Production in Krishna-Godavari Basin

    Reliance Industries Ltd and BP (British Petroleum) have announced the start of gas production from the R cluster of the KG Basin, the deepest off-shore gas field in Asia.

    Must read

    [Burning Issue] India’s push for a Gas-based Economy

    Krishna-Godavari Basin

    • The Krishna Godavari Basin is a proven petroliferous basin of continental margin located on the east coast of India.
    • Its onland part covers an area of 15000 sq. km and the offshore part covers an area of 25,000 sq. km up to 1000 m isobath.
    • The basin contains about 5 km thick sediments with several cycles of deposition, ranging in age from Late Carboniferous to Pleistocene.
    • The major geomorphologic units of the Krishna Godavari basin are Upland plains, Coastal plains, Recent Flood and Delta Plains.

    Minerals found

    • KG inland and offshore basins have good prospects of tight oil and tight gas reserves from the conducted field studies.
    • The first gas discovery in the basin was in 1983.
    • Most of the conventional wells drilled and operated have a shorter lifespan than envisaged life and with erratic production.
    • This may be due to drilling of conventional wells in tight oil and gas fields without horizontal drilling in the shale rock formations and hydraulic fracturing.

    Note: Tight gas and tight oil are produced from reservoir rocks with such low permeability that considerable hydraulic fracturing is required to harvest the well at economic rates.

    The KGD6 block

    • Krishna Godavari Dhirubhai 6 (KG-D6) was Reliance’s first offshore gas field development and its first underwater discovery.
    • It was also India’s largest deposit of natural gas and the largest such discovery in the world in 2002.
    • The project takes its name from India’s Krishna-Godavari Basin, which covers more than 19,000 square miles (50,000 square kilometres) in Andhra Pradesh and production block D6 in the Bay of Bengal.

    Why is this important?

    • The R cluster, along with the Satellite Cluster and MJ gas fields in the KG Basin is expected to produce around 30 MMSCMD (million standard cubic metres per day) of natural gas.
    • This is about 15% of India’s projected demand for natural gas by 2023.

    Do they impact India’s energy security efforts?

    • The three projects are a key part of the plan to boost domestic production of natural gas to increase the share of natural gas in India’s energy basket from 6.2% now to 15% by 2030.
    • Increased domestic production of natural gas is an important aspect of reducing India’s dependence on imports and improves energy security.

  • Person in news: Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji

    The Prime Minister has paid tributes to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji on his Martyrdom Day.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q. Consider the following Bhakti Saints:

    1. Dadu Dayal
    2. Guru Nanak
    3. Tyagaraja

    Who among the above was/were preaching when the Lodi dynasty fell and Babur took over?

    (a) 1 and 3

    (b) 2 only

    (c) 2 and 3

    (d) 1 and 2

    Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621–1675)

    • Guru Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He was born at Amritsar in 1621 and was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind.
    • His term as Guru ran from 1665 to 1675. One hundred and fifteen of his hymns are in Guru Granth Sahib.
    • There are several accounts explaining the motive behind the assassination of Guru Tegh Bahadur on Aurangzeb’s orders.
    • He stood up for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits who approached him against religious persecution by Aurangzeb.
    • He was publicly killed in 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Delhi for himself refusing Mughal rulers and defying them.
    • Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi mark the places of execution and cremation of his body.

    Impact of his martyrdom

    • The execution hardened the resolve of Sikhs against religious oppression and persecution.
    • His martyrdom helped all Sikh Panths consolidate to make the protection of human rights central to its Sikh identity.
    • Inspired by him, his nine-year-old son, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, eventually organized the Sikh group into a distinct, formal, symbol-patterned community came to be known as Khalsa (Martial) identity.