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  • Reform lessons for education

    The article deals with state of the education and its relation with employment in India.

    Improving higher education system

    • Improving India’s higher education justice and worker productivity needs the broadening of our education ambition.
    • Our focus on Gross Enrollment Ratio should also be anchored to Employed Learner Ratio -proportion of our 55 crore labour force in formal learning.
    • For enrolling five crore new employed learners, India needs five regulatory changes.

    Reflecting on global and domestic education experience

    • Multi-decade structural changes include  organisations that are less hierarchical, lower longevity, shorter employee tenures, higher competition.
    • There is also change in the form of work: capitalism without capital, soft skills valued more than hard skills, 30 per cent working from home etc.
    • There change in the form of education in which Google knows everything, so tacit knowledge is more valuable than codified or embedded knowledge.
    • These shifts are complicated by a new world of politics, third-party financing viability, and fee inflation.

    India faces financing failure in skill

    • We have 3.8 crore students in 1,000-plus universities and 50,000-plus colleges.
    • We confront a financing failure in skills:
    • Employers are not willing to pay for training of candidates but a premium for trained candidates.
    • Candidates are not willing to pay for training but for jobs.
    • Financiers are unwilling to lend unless a job is guaranteed, and training institutions can’t fill their classrooms.

    Steps need to be taken

    • For many people the income support of learning-while-earning is crucial to raising enrollment.
    • Many students lack employability and workers lack productivity because learning is supply-driven.
    • Learning-by-doing ensures demand-driven learning.
    • The de facto ban on online degree learning with only seven of our 1,000-plus universities licensed for online offerings.
    • That needs to be changed.
    • High regulatory hurdles creates an adverse selection among entrepreneurs running educational institutions.

    Five regulatory changes

    • First, modify Part 3 of the UGC Act 1956 and Part 8 of the UGC Act to include skill universities.
    • Second, remove clauses 3(A), 3(B), and clause 5 of UGC ODL and Online Regulations 2020 and replace them with a blanket and automatic approval for all accredited universities to design, develop and deliver their online programmes.
    • Third, modify clause 4(C)(ii) of UGC online regulations 2020 to allow innovation, flexibility, and relevance in an online curriculum as prescribed in Annex 1-(V)-3-i) that allows universities to work closely with industry on their list of courses.
    • Fourth, modify clauses 13(C)(3), 13(C)(5), 13(C)(7), 18(2) of UGC online regulations 2020 to permit universities to create partner ecosystems for world-class online learning services, platforms, and experience.
    • Fifth, introduce Universities in clause 2 of the Apprentices Act 1961 to enable all accredited universities to introduce, administer and scale all aspects of degree apprenticeship programs.
    • These five changes would enable enrolling five crore incremental employed learner.

    Conclusion

    Reforming education requires thinking horizontally, holistically, and imaginatively. The reforms suggested here should be carried out considering these aspects.

  • Drafting labour code keeping in mind the realities of informal sector workers

    The article highlights the vulnerabilities of workers in the informal sector and also highlights the issues in the draft rules in the labour codes.

    Context

    • The budget referred to the implementation of the four labour codes.
    • There is also a provision of Rs 15,700 crore for MSMEs, more than double of this year’s budget estimate.

    Impact of pandemic on informal workers

    • India’s estimated 450 million informal workers comprise 90 per cent of its total workforce, with 5-10 million workers added annually.
    • Nearly 40 per cent of these employed with MSMEs.
    • According to Oxfam’s latest global report, out of the total 122 million who lost their jobs in 2020, 75 per cent were lost in the informal sector.
    • The National Human Rights Commission recorded over 2,582 cases of human rights violation as early as April 2020.

    Issues with the draft rules in labour code

    • The rush to clear the labour codes and form the draft rules shows little to no intent on part of the government to safeguard workers.
    • The draft rules envisage wider coverage through the inclusion of informal sector and gig workers, at present the draft rules apply to manufacturing firms with over 299 workers.
    • This leaves 71 per cent of manufacturing companies out of its purview.
    • The draft rules mandate the registration of all workers (with Aadhaar cards) on the Shram Suvidha Portal to be able to receive any form of social security benefit.
    • This would lead to Aadhaar-driven exclusion and workers will be unable to register on their own due to lack of information on the Aadhaar registration processes.
    • A foreseeable challenge is updating information on the online portal at regular intervals, especially by the migrant or seasonal labour force.
    • It is also unclear as to how these benefits will be applicable in the larger scheme of things.

    Neglect of informal sector

    • The draft rules fail to cater to the growing informal workforce in India.
    • The growing informal nature of the workforce and the lack of the state’s accountability makes it a breeding ground for rising inequality.
    • The workers face the risk of violations of their human and labour rights, dignity of livelihood, unsafe and unregulated working conditions and lower wages.

    Consider the question “Assess the impact of covid pandemic on workers in the informal sector. Also examine the issues with the draft rules in the labour code.”

    Conclusion

    The Code on Social Security was envisaged as a legal protective measure for a large number of informal workers in India but unless the labour codes are made and implemented keeping in mind the realities of the informal sector workers, it will become impossible to bridge the inequality gap.

  • #MeToo and Defamation Cases

    The Delhi High Court has dismissed former Union Ministers’ criminal defamation complaint against a famous journalist over her tweets accusing him of sexual harassment.

    What is the #MeToo Movement?

    • The #MeToo movement, with variations of related local or international names, is a social movement against sexual abuse and sexual harassment towards women, where people publicize allegations of sex crimes.
    • The phrase “Me Too” was initially used in this context on social media in 2006, on Myspace, by sexual harassment survivor and activist Tarana Burke in the US.
    • It is aimed at demonstrating how many women have survived sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace.

    You must know this!

    The Vishaka Guidelines were a set of procedural guidelines for use in India in cases of sexual harassment. They were promulgated by the Indian Supreme Court in 1997 and were superseded in 2013 by the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.

    What did the court say?

    • Women have the right to put their grievances at any platform of their choice and even after decades.
    • The court also rejected the argument that the former union minister was a man of a stellar reputation.

    What is the case?

    • The former minister had filed a criminal defamation case against the person in October 2018 since she did not produce any proof.
    • The criminal case was initiated to create a chilling effect against women who spoke out about their experience of sexual harassments.

    Legal backing of the acquittal

    • Criminal defamation is defined in Section 499 of the IPC as making or publishing any imputation about a person intending to harm, or knowing it will harm the reputation of a person.
    • Any statement or article criticizing a person or accusing them of any sort of problematic behaviour will obviously lower their reputation.
    • Hence this is always emphasised in legal notices and complaints to courts alleging defamation.
    • However, the law recognizes that a person’s reputation can’t be a shield against their own bad behaviour and that there can be various circumstances when outing this bad behaviour is in the public interest.
    • This is why Section 499 of the IPC also prescribes several exceptions to claims of defamation.

    Is it a win for the survivors?

    • It should be noted that this does not necessarily mean that a corresponding criminal case for sexual harassment against the man would be successful.
    • This is because the allegations of harassment would have to be proved against the man beyond all reasonable doubt.
    • Therefore even though the present defence of truth was accepted by Delhi HC, this would not guarantee that the former minister would be convicted, as the standard of proof is different.

    Conclusion

    • This judgement will set an example for the reluctant or other ousted women who are willing to revisit the cases of sexual misconduct against them.

  • Proposed amendments to the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

    The Union Cabinet has approved a slew of amendments to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.

    What are the key features of Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015? Discuss the proposed amendments by the WCD ministry.

    Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

    • The JJ Act, 2015 replaced the Indian juvenile delinquency law, Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000.
    • It allows for juveniles in conflict with Law in the age group of 16–18, involved in Heinous Offences, to be tried as adults.
    • The Act also sought to create a universally accessible adoption law for India.
    • The Act came into force from 15 January 2016.

    Key features

    • Change in nomenclature from ‘juvenile’ to ‘child’ or ‘child in conflict with law’, across the Act to remove the negative connotation associated with the word “juvenile”
    • Inclusion of several new definitions such as orphaned, abandoned and surrendered children; and petty, serious and heinous offences committed by children;
    • The Act mandates setting up Juvenile Justice Boards and Child Welfare Committees in every district. Both must have at least one woman member each.
    • Special provisions for heinous offences committed by children above the age of sixteen years – Under Section 15, special provisions have been made to tackle child offenders committing heinous offences in the age group of 16-18 years (in response to the juvenile convict in Nirbhaya Case).
    • Separate new chapter on Adoption to streamline adoption of orphan, abandoned and surrendered children – To streamline adoption procedures for orphan, abandoned and surrendered children, the existing Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is given the status of a statutory body.
    • Inclusion of new offences committed against children – Sale and procurement of children for any purpose including illegal adoption, corporal punishment in child care institutions, use of child by militant groups, offences against disabled children and, kidnapping and abduction of children.
    • Penalties for cruelty against a child– offering a narcotic substance to a child, and abduction or selling a child has been prescribed.
    • Mandatory registration of Child Care Institutions

    What are the news amendments?

    The amendments are aimed at strengthening the Child Protection set-up to ensure the best interest of children.

    (A) More powers to the DM

    • These include empowering the DMs and the additional DMs to monitor the functioning of agencies responsible for implementing the JJ Act.
    • The District Child Protection Units will function under the DMs.

    (B) Evaluating shelter homes

    • Before someone sets up a shelter home for children and sends their proposal for registration under the JJ Act to the State, a DM will have to assess their capacity and conduct a background check.
    • A DM could also independently evaluate the functioning of the Child Welfare Committee, Special Juvenile Protection Units and registered childcare institutes, the Minister stated.

    (C) Members of committees

    • The proposed amendments also define the eligibility parameters for the appointment of members of the Child Welfare Committees.
    • These committees are tasked to decide on children in need of care and protection and mandate their background checks.

    (D) Definition of Children

    • It is also proposed to expand the definition of children in need of care and protection and include those children who have been victims of trafficking or drug abuse or child labour.
    • It would also include those children who have been abandoned by their guardians.

  • What is Extinction Rebellion?

    Delhi Police have named some environmental activists who are volunteers of a global environment movement seeking to call attention to the climate change emergency, in the Greta Thunberg ‘toolkit’ case.

    Q.Climate activism is increasingly turning into a propaganda movement. Discuss.

    What is Extinction Rebellion?

    • The global movement Extinction Rebellion also referred to as ‘XR’, describes itself as a decentralized, international and politically non-partisan movement using non-violent direct action and civil disobedience.
    • It aims to persuade governments to act justly on the Climate and Ecological Emergency.
    • XR was launched in the UK on October 31, 2018, as a response to a report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
    • It had then declared that we only have 12 years to stop catastrophic climate change and our understanding that we have entered the 6th mass extinction event.
    • The movement now has a presence in 75 countries, including India.

    What does XR want?

    • The group has “three core demands” of governments around the world.
    • It wants governments to “Tell the Truth”, to “Act Now”, and to “Go Beyond Politics” in order to confront the climate and ecological emergency that the world is faced with.
    • It wants them to communicate the urgency to bring change, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2025.
    • XR seeks to “rebel”, and asks groups to “self-organise”, without the need for anyone’s permission, to come up with collective action plans as long as they adhere to the group’s core principles and values.

    What activities have XR done so far?

    • The group had announced a “Declaration of Rebellion” at launch, involving a public act of civil disobedience in London, demanding that the government reduce carbon emission to zero by 2025.
    • The eventual plan was to coordinate actions in other countries and to engage in an “International Rebellion” in March 2019.
    • The XR global website, however, states that the movement is “strictly non-violent”, and that they are “reluctant law-breakers”.
    • In April 2019, Greta Thunberg, the teenage Swedish climate activist, lent her support to the group by speaking to its members in London.

    XR and India

    • The movement claims to have been inspired by 15 major civil disobedience movements around the world, including, apart from Women’s Suffrage and the Arab Spring, India’s struggle for Independence.
    • It refers to Mahatma Gandhi’s Salt March in 1930.
    • XR’s website says there are 19 groups in the country, including in the cities of Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Chennai.

    Recent events

    • One of the group’s early public events was a “die-in” protest organised at Bandra Reclamation in Mumbai in October 2019.
    • Participants at “die-in” protests lie on the ground, pretending to be dead.
    • Since the city was already seeing protests against the felling of trees at Aarey Colony for the Metro crashed, police did not grant permission for the “die-in” protest.

  • vaccine hesitancy

    Reluctance to take the vaccine has several implications. The misinformation around the vaccines needs to be fought through several measures. 

    Understanding vaccine hesitancy

    • According to the World Health Organization, vaccine hesitancy is defined as a reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccine services.
    • To date, two vaccines have been approved for inoculation in India: Pune-based Serum Institute’s Covishield and Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.
    • An adequate supply of vaccines is in place at least for the first phase, but the trickier part is to persuade the population for vaccination.
    • Like Western nations, vaccine hesitancy has been a cause of concern in the past in India as well.
    • Social media has seen a rising number of self-proclaimed experts who have been making unsubstantiated claims.
    • The debates around hesitancy for COVID-19 vaccines include concerns over safety, efficacy, and side effects due to the record-breaking timelines of the vaccines, competition among several companies, misinformation, and religious taboos.

    Need to adopt libertarian paternalism

    • It is suggested that we adopt the idea of libertarian paternalism, which says it is possible and legitimate to steer people’s behaviour towards vaccination while still respecting their freedom of choice.
    • Vaccine hesitancy has a different manifestation in India, unlike in the West.
    • According to the World Economic Forum/Ipsos global survey, COVID-19 vaccination intent in India, at 87%, exceeds the global 15-country average of 73%.

    Way forward

    • Instead of anti-vaxxers, the target audience must be the swing population i.e., people who are sceptical but can be persuaded through scientific facts and proper communication.
    • The second measure is to pause before you share any ‘news’ from social media.
    • It becomes crucial to inculcate the habit of inquisitive temper to fact-check any news related to COVID-19 vaccines.
    • The third measure is to use the celebrity effect — the ability of prominent personalities to influence others to take vaccines.
    • Celebrities can add glamour and an element of credibility to mass vaccinations both on the ground and on social media.

    Consider the question “What is vaccine hesitancy? Suggest the measures to deal with it”

    Conclusion

    The infodemic around vaccines can be tackled only by actively debunking myths, misinformation and fake news on COVID-19 vaccines.

  • New York Convention

    Cairn Energy has filed a case in a U.S. district court to enforce a $1.2 billion arbitration award it won in a tax dispute against India. Cairn aims to enforce the award under international arbitration rules, commonly called the New York Convention.

    New York Convention

    • The Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards is commonly known as the New York Convention.
    • It was adopted by a UN diplomatic conference on 10 June 1958 and entered into force on 7 June 1959.
    • It requires courts of contracting states to give effect to private agreements to arbitrate and to recognize and enforce arbitration awards made in other contracting states.
    • Widely considered the foundational instrument for international arbitration, it applies to arbitrations that are not considered domestic awards in the state where recognition and enforcement are sought.

    What was the case?

    • The Indian government has lost an international arbitration case to energy giant Cairn Plc over the retrospective levy of taxes and has been asked to pay damages worth $1.2 billion to the UK firm.
    • The Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague has maintained that the Cairn tax issue is not a tax dispute but a tax-related investment dispute and, hence, it falls under its jurisdiction.
    • India’s demand in past taxes, it said, was in breach of fair treatment under the UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty.

  • Arjun: Main Battle Tank MK-1A

    PM has recently handed over the indigenously developed Arjun Main Battle Tank (MK-1A) to the Indian Army.

    Q.Discuss India’s preparedness for high-altitude warfare.

    Arjun Main Battle Tank

    • The Arjun Main Battle Tank project was initiated by DRDO in 1972 with the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) as its lead laboratory.
    • The objective was to create a “state-of-the-art tank with superior firepower, high mobility, and excellent protection”.
    • During the development, the CVRDE achieved breakthroughs in the engine, transmission, hydro-pneumatic suspension, hull and turret as well as the gun control system.
    • Mass production began in 1996 at the Indian Ordnance Factory’s production facility in Avadi, Tamil Nadu.

    Features of the Arjun tank

    • The Arjun tanks stand out for their ‘Fin Stabilised Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot (FSAPDS)’ ammunition and 120-mm calibre rifled gun.
    • It also has a computer-controlled integrated fire control system with a stabilised sighting that works in all lighting conditions.
    • The secondary weapons include a co-axial 7.62-mm machine gun for anti-personnel and a 12.7-mm machine gun for anti-aircraft and ground targets.

    How is Mk-1A different?

    • The Mk-1A version has 14 major upgrades on the earlier version.
    • It is also supposed to have missile firing capability as per the design, but this feature will be added later as final testing of the capability is still on.
    • However, the biggest achievement with the latest version is 54.3 per cent indigenous content against the 41 per cent in the earlier model.

  • Tax regime change

    Article explains the measures adopted in the Budget 2021-22 for increasing compliance and transparency.

    Maintaining the status quo

    • COVID-19 has upset fiscal maths around the world.
    • It is in this context that the Union budget assumed significance this year.
    • The expectations of tax breaks were rife on the presumption that this could boost economic activity.
    • Whereas others called for a tax on stock market gains.
    • Unyielding to such requests, the budget was based on a pragmatic approach to maintain the status quo.

    Why higher tax rates would not help much

    • Nearly 60 per cent of corporate taxes are paid by the 0.06 per cent of the companies belonging to the top income bracket.
    • On the other hand, among individual taxpayers, only 0.17 per cent report taxable incomes above Rs 25 lakh.
    • Therefore, higher taxes would either yield little revenue or adversely affect economic activity.

    Need to shift focus to compliance and greater transparency

    •  For increasing compliance and transparency, significant proposals have been made:
    • 1) Limited the window for reopening the case to 3 years.
    • 2) The introduction of the requirement for an assessment officer to provide facts on the basis of which he/she re-assesses.
    •  3) The faceless Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT).
    • By making the process of assessment faceless the major causes for litigation are addressed.
    • The limited window of re-opening cases for small taxpayers and due consideration of risk management strategy and the CAG’s observations in carrying out such assessments marks an improvement in the process.

    Dispute resolution mechanism with better interface

    • The Vivad se Vishwas scheme was launched in 2020 to address piling litigation and it is reported that collections under this scheme have been Rs 85,000 crore for 1,10,000 taxpayers.
    • This is a small fraction as compared to the Rs 4.34 lakh crore in corporate taxes and Rs 4.49 lakh crore in income taxes that are locked in dispute.
    • Therefore, a dispute resolution mechanism that allows for better interface between the taxpayer and the department may, in fact, be relatively beneficial.

    Consider the question “Examine the reasons for small tax base in India. Examine the measures adopted in the Budget 2021-22 for increasing compliance and transparency.”

    Conclusion

    The budget estimates suggest that corporate tax and income tax collections are expected to increase by 22 per cent. With an expected growth rate of 14 per cent in nominal GDP, the remaining gains in taxes are presumably expected from higher compliance or realisation of taxes due. Whether this will pan out remains to be seen.

     

  • Govt liberalized Geospatial Data Policy

    In sweeping changes to the country’s mapping policy, the government has announced liberalisation of norms governing the acquisition and production of geospatial data.

    Q.What do you mean by Geo-Spatial Data? What are its economic and strategic significance?

    What is the news?

    • The Ministry of Science and Technology has released new guidelines for the Geo-spatial sector in India.
    • It deregulated the existing protocol and liberalizes the sector to a more competitive field.

    What is a Geo-Spatial Data?

    • Geospatial data is data about objects, events, or phenomena that have a location on the surface of the earth.
    • The location may be static in the short-term, like the location of a road, an earthquake event, malnutrition among children, or dynamic like a moving vehicle or pedestrian, the spread of an infectious disease.
    • Geospatial data combines location information, attribute information, and often also temporal information or the time at which the location and attributes exist.
    • Geo-spatial data usually involves information of public interest such as roads, localities, rail lines, water bodies, and public amenities.
    • The past decade has seen an increase in the use of geospatial data in daily life with various apps such as food delivery apps like Swiggy or Zomato, e-commerce like Amazon or even weather apps.

    What is the present policy on geospatial data?

    • There are strict restrictions on the collection, storage, use, sale, dissemination of geo-spatial data and mapping under the current regime.
    • The policy had not been renewed in decades and has been driven by internal as well as external security concerns.
    • Private companies need to navigate a system of permissions from different departments of the government as well as the defence and Home Ministries, to be able to collect, create or disseminate geospatial data.

    Why has the government deregulated geospatial data?

    • This system of acquiring licenses or permission, and the red tape involved, can take months, delaying projects, especially those that are in mission mode – for both Indian companies as well as government agencies.
    • The deregulation eliminates the requirement of permissions as well as scrutiny, even for security concerns.
    • Indian companies now can self-attest, conforming to government guidelines without actually having to be monitored by a government agency- these guidelines, therefore, place a great deal of trust in Indian entities.
    • There is also a huge lack of data in the country which impedes planning for infrastructure, development and businesses which are data-based.
    • The mapping of the entire country that too with high accuracy, by the Indian government alone could take decades.
    • The government, therefore, felt an urgent need to incentivise the geospatial sector for Indian companies and increased investment from private players in the sector.
    • Large amounts of geospatial data are also available on global platforms, which makes the regulation of data that is freely available in other countries, untenable.

    What next?

    • While for decades, geospatial data has been a priority for strategic reasons and for internal and external security concerns.
    • This priority has seen a shift in the past 15 years – geospatial data has now become imperative for the government in planning for infrastructure, development, social development as well as the economy.
    • More and more sectors such as agriculture, environment protection, power, water, transportation, communication, health (tracking of diseases, patients, hospitals etc) are relying heavily on this data.
    • There has also been a global push for open access to geospatial as it affects the lives of ordinary citizens.

    Expected impacts

    • By liberalizing the system, the government will ensure more players in the field, the competitiveness of Indian companies in the global market, and more accurate data available to both the government to formulate plans and administer, but also for individual Indians.
    • Startups and businesses can now also use this data in setting up their concerns, especially in the sector of e-commerce or geospatial based apps – which in turn will increase employment in these sectors.
    • Indian companies will be able to develop indigenous apps, for example, an Indian version of Google maps.
    • There is also likely to be an increase in public-private partnerships with the opening of this sector with data collection companies working with the Indian government on various sectoral projects.
    • The government also expects an increase in investment in the geospatial sector by companies, and also an increase in export of data to foreign companies and countries, which in turn will boost the economy.