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GS Paper: GS2

  • Day 7| Daily Answer Wars| CD WarZone

    Topics for Today’s question:

    GS-2       Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.

    Question:

    Q. Discuss the role of the Vice President of India as the chairman of Rajya Sabha. (10 Marks)

     

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  • Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) and their concerns

    overseas

    Context

    • Government will observe the 17th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. The day is meant to celebrate the contributions of India’s diaspora. The theme for this year’s event is, “Diaspora: Reliable Partners for India’s Progress in Amrit Kaal”.

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    Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas

    • Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (Non-Resident Indian Day) is a celebratory day observed (starting in 2003) on 9 January by the Republic of India to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community towards the development of India. The day commemorates the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to Mumbai on 9 January 1915.

    overseas

    Who are the Overseas Citizens of India (OCI)?

    • OCI are not citizens: Overseas Citizenship of India is a form of permanent residency available to people of Indian origin and their spouses which allows them to live and work in India indefinitely. Despite its name, OCI status is not citizenship and does not grant the right to vote in Indian elections or hold public office.
    • It can be revoked: The Indian government can revoke OCI status in a wide variety of circumstances. As of 2020, there are 6 million holders of OCI cards among the Indian Overseas diaspora.

    What are the concerns of OCI/NRI persons?

    • Scheme for dual citizenship: Originally conceptualised in 2003 by the then NDA government led by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the OCI scheme was envisaged as a dual-citizenship project.
    • All rights of citizen of India: OCIs would enjoy all rights as normal citizens except the right to hold public office and cast their vote.
    • Citizenship to OCI from certain countries: The Vajpayee government introduced the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2003 in Parliament. The statement accompanying the Bill, that was passed by Parliament in December that year clearly stated that it was meant to provide dual citizenship to persons of Indian origin from certain countries.
    • Present government Downgraded OCI status: Nearly two decades later, the Union Home Ministry is downgrading the OCI scheme from dual-citizenship to virtually a residency permit scheme. The ministry’s statements in circulars and courts declaring that OCIs are not Indian citizens and that they would not enjoy any fundamental rights under the Indian Constitution have been particularly disheartening.

    overseas

    What are the ambiguities about the downgrading of OCI status?

    • Confusion over rights: There is considerable legal confusion about the status of OCIs. Can they practice certain professions like journalism without prior government permission? Do contributions by OCIs residing in India to charities/schools violate the country’s laws?
    • Problem in donation: During the pandemic, resident OCIs had to ensure their donations went only to NGOs that had FCRA clearance. As a result, many local level initiatives could not be supported with their monetary contributions.
    • Confusion over the status: Very often OCIs have been confronted with remarks, including at courts, that we are foreigners in India. Unlike several other countries, the Indian Constitution does not have exhaustive provisions on citizenship.

    overseas

    Making a case of citizenship for OCI

    • Vasudaiva kutumbakam philosophy: The Government of India announced that India’s Presidency of G20 will be grounded in the principles of “Vasudaiva kutumbakam” wherein the entire world is considered as one family.
    • Push to Mobility for diaspora: Hopefully such political homilies are reflected in the way the government thinks about the idea of citizenship in relation to the increasingly mobile Indian diaspora.
    • Injustice to people born in India: Clearly, an elemental question is whether it is proper to cancel the citizenship of people born in the country, and who have continued engagement with it, merely because they have acquired foreign citizenship. No other progressive democracy does that today, even though most countries had similar laws when India enacted the Citizenship Act, 1955.
    • Removing the outdated laws: In a recent address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi advised Chief Secretaries of states and Union Territories to focus on quality of service over outdated laws and rules, to achieve the goal of making India a developed country by 2047. Realising the essence of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2003 is in the spirit of the PM’s directive.

    Conclusion

    • OCI contribute immensely to India at home and abroad. But granting a citizenship to Overseas citizens of India will create structural asymmetry in economic, social, political life of ordinary people of India. It will open the flood gates for demand for dual citizenships from other sections of diaspora.

    Mains Question

    Q. What are problems of Overseas Citizens of India? Discuss why OCI deserve the better status in India?

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  • Centre seeks 6 more months to frame CAA rules

    The Union Home Ministry has sought another extension of 6 months to frame the rules of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), without which it cannot be implemented.

    Why in news?

    • This is the seventh such extension sought by the Ministry.
    • The legislation is contentious issue in West Bengal.
    • The Act is aimed at giving citizenship to the Matua community in West Bengal who trace their origins to present day Bangladesh.

    What is Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019?

    • The act is sought to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian illegal migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, eligible for citizenship of India.
    • In other words, it intends to make it easier for non-Muslim immigrants from India’s three Muslim-majority neighbours to become citizens of India.
    • Under The Citizenship Act, 1955, one of the requirements for citizenship by naturalization is that the applicant must have resided in India during the last 12 months, as well as for 11 of the previous 14 years.
    • The amendment relaxes the second requirement from 11 years to 6 years as a specific condition for applicants belonging to these six religions, and the aforementioned three countries.
    • It exempts the members of the six communities from any criminal case under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Passport Act, 1920 if they entered India before December 31, 2014.

    Key feature: Defining illegal migrants

    • Illegal migrants cannot become Indian citizens in accordance with the present laws.
    • Under the CAA, an illegal migrant is a foreigner who: (i) enters the country without valid travel documents like a passport and visa, or (ii) enters with valid documents, but stays beyond the permitted time period.
    • Illegal migrants may be put in jail or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and The Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920.

    Exceptions

    • The Bill provides that illegal migrants who fulfil four conditions will not be treated as illegal migrants under the Act.  The conditions are:
    1. they are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians;
    2. they are from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan;
    3. they entered India on or before December 31, 2014;
    4. they are not in certain tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, or Tripura included in the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, or areas under the “Inner Line” permit, i.e., Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland.

    Controversy with the Act

    • Country of Origin: The Act classifies migrants based on their country of origin to include only Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
    • Other religious minorities ignored: It is unclear why illegal migrants from only six specified religious minorities have been included in the Act.
    • Defiance of purpose: India shares a border with Myanmar, which has had a history of persecution of a religious minority, the Rohingya Muslims.
    • Date of Entry: It is also unclear why there is a differential treatment of migrants based on their date of entry into India, i.e., whether they entered India before or after December 31, 2014.
    • Against the spirit of Secularism: Further, granting citizenship on the grounds of religion is seen to be against the secular nature of the Constitution which has been recognised as part of the basic structure that cannot be altered by Parliament.

    Conclusion

    • India is a constitutional democracy with a basic structure that assures a secure and spacious home for all Indians.
    • Being partitioned on religious grounds, India has to undertake a balancing act for protecting the religious minorities in its neighbourhood.
    • These minorities are under constant threat of persecution and vandalism.
    • India needs to balance its civilization duties to protect those who are prosecuted in the neighbourhood.

     

     

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  • PM launches Aspirational Block Programme

    aspirational

    Prime Minister has launched the government’s Aspirational Block Programme (ABP), which is aimed at improving the performance of blocks lagging on various development parameters.

    Aspirational Block Programme (ABP)

    • The Aspirational Blocks Programme is on the lines of the Aspirational District Programme that was launched in 2018 and covers 112 districts across the country.
    • The Centre had announced its intention to launch this initiative in the Union Budget 2022-23.
    • The programme will cover 500 districts across 31 states and Union Territories initially.
    • Over half of these blocks are in 6 states—Uttar Pradesh (68 blocks), Bihar (61), Madhya Pradesh (42), Jharkhand (34), Odisha (29) and West Bengal (29).
    • However, states can add more blocks to the programme later.

    About Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP)

    • Launched in January 2018, the ‘Transformation of Aspirational Districts’ initiative aims to remove this heterogeneity through a mass movement to quickly and effectively transform these districts.
    • The broad contours of the program are Convergence (of Central & State Schemes), Collaboration (of Central, State level ‘Prabhari’ Officers & District Collectors), and Competition among districts driven by a spirit of mass Movement.
    • With States as the main drivers, this program will focus on the strength of each district, identify low-hanging fruits for immediate improvement, measure progress, and rank districts.

    Behind the name

    • PM then negated the idea of naming any scheme based on their backwardness.
    • Rather the name ‘Aspirational’ presents a more affirmative action-based execution of the scheme.

    Selection of districts

    • A total of 117 Aspirational districts have been identified by NITI Aayog based upon composite indicators.
    • The objective of the program is to monitor the real-time progress of aspirational districts based on 49 indicators (81 data points) from the 5 identified thematic areas.

    Weightage has been accorded to these districts as below:

    • Health & Nutrition (30%)
    • Education (30%)
    • Agriculture & Water Resources (20%)
    • Financial Inclusion & Skill Development (10%)
    • Basic Infrastructure (10%)

    Strategy of the ADP

    The core Strategy of the program may be summarized as follows.

    • Making development a mass movement in these districts
    • Identify low hanging fruits and the strength of each district, to act as a catalyst
    • for development.
    • Measure progress and rank districts to spur a sense of competition.
    • Districts shall aspire to become State’s best to Nation’s best.

    Features of the ADP

    • It has transformed into a Jan Andolan.
    • The ADP is different in trying to monitor the improvement of these districts through real-time data tracking.
    • The programme seeks to develop convergence between selected existing central and state government programmes.
    • District performance in the public domain and experience building of the district bureaucracy is another notable feature.
    • The programme is targeted, not towards any single group of beneficiaries, but rather towards the population of the district as a whole.

    What makes this program special?

    The program reflects what has become of the development project in India under neoliberalism, especially after the end of planning.

    • Long overdue sectors have been given more emphasis.
    • It is not a tailor-made program with one-size-fit strategy. More onus has been laid on the districts. It has a district-intervention strategy.
    • It works on the principle of SWOT (strength, weakness, opportunity and threats) model and comparison with national best parameters for effective resource management.
    • It is the most reviewed programme by the Prime Minister.
    • A general idea behind the idea is that a good work never goes un-noticed. It is duly appreciated on social media as well as by the officials.

    Programmatic Strengths

    • A key strength of the ADP is the collection of baseline data and follow-ups at regular intervals.
    • Sustaining this effort would create a robust compilation of statistics for use by both researchers and policy-makers.
    • In doing this, the government also brings much-needed attention to human development and a willingness to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
    • Incremental progress being made in the chosen districts as reflected in the rankings.
    • The programme also claims to be “non-partisan and unbiased” and geared towards all-India growth.
    • The selection of districts indeed suggests that the programme has not favored any bias either regional, political or any other.
    • The programme seeks convergence of central and state schemes anchored around specific activities.

    Issues with the programme

    • Using the case of Bihar, they argue that the programmes selection of districts itself is problematic.
    • In fact, it actually excludes the most backward districts because per capita income, the most basic measure of development, has not been considered.
    • There seems to be some ambiguity around the issue of whether the programme is concerned only with improved access or also with the quality of service provided.
    • The indicators used are not defined relationally, rather they are static human development indicators that do not see people mired in dynamic social relations.
    • It is also accused that the state is not making any new or focused public investment (except for possible use of Flexi-funds) into these districts, on the other hand, it is moralizing about their inability to improve (through rankings).
    • The programme is carrying the burden of proving the government’s “developmental” work without addressing any of the fundamental issues around achieving equitable development.
    • Yet, the NITI Aayog justifies the overall approach as capitalizing on “low-hanging fruit.”

    Way forward

    • The program has been able to make difference in the lives of citizens of India, in education, health, nutrition, financial inclusion, skill development and this has made a difference to some most backward and most geographically far-flung districts of the nation.
    • ADP is ‘aligned to the principle of “leave no one behind—the vital core of the SDGs. Political commitment at the highest level has resulted in the rapid success of the program the report said.
    • UNDP has recommended revising a few indicators that are slightly close to reaching their saturation or met by most districts like ‘electrification of households’ as an indicator of basic infrastructure.

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  • Government Litigation

    cases

    Context

    • Much has been said about why we have a staggeringly high number of cases that constitute pendency or cases that are undecided in the court system. Pendency or cases pending in courts have been a source of agony for litigants, lawyers and judges alike. In 2018, the Law Commission of India, in its 230th report, noted that the government is the biggest litigant in the system.

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    Ratio: Number of Judges serving the population

    • India has 21 judges for every million people: India has a terribly low number of judges serving a very large population to be more precise, India has about 21 judges for every million people, as the government recently informed the Rajya Sabha.
    • Comparatively in China: China has about 159 judges for every million people.

    What is cause of concern for the government?

    • Pendency impacts governance and weakens law and order: It is a cause of concern for the government since an arduous dispute resolution system adversely impacts governance and weakens law and order in any country.
    • Government is the largest litigant: Our government has been seized by the burdens of the justice system for long, and is acutely aware of its own role in contributing to the number of cases that enter the courts and remain to be decided.

    Efforts taken by the Government to reduce its litigation

    • Government is well aware: The government has been cognisant of its role in contributing to litigation simply by being the biggest litigator in the courts.
    • Action plan in response to large number of Government litigation: On June 13, 2017, the department of justice of the Government of India, released an Action Plan to reduce Government Litigation. The action plan was in response to the fact that 46 per cent of the total pending cases in the court system pertains to the government.
    • Legal Information Management Briefing System (LIMBS): In 2015, they started the rather aptly named LIMBS project that intends to connect 55 ministries and their departments for litigation management. Aptly named, for it seeks to connect the various limbs of governance of our state. As on January 3, LIMBS shows that there are 6,20,000 cases involving the government pending before the court system.
    • National Litigation Policy (NLP), 2010: The status report to the NLP, 2010, was prepared because it is based on the recognition that the government and its various agencies are the predominant litigants in the courts and tribunals in the country. And, hence, it aimed to transform the government into an efficient and responsible litigant.

    Is all its litigation is initiated by the government?

    • To be fair to the government, not all its litigation is initiated by it.
    • For instance, the government is the catalyst in inter-departmental litigation (between wings of the government) and routine appeals in service matters.
    • However, citizens trigger writ jurisdiction of the courts and file appeals in criminal cases. These also constitute a segment of cases involving the government being heard at various high courts and the Supreme Court.
    • So, while the government can control some of the litigation it is involved in, it is not the catalyst in certain classes of cases that involve it.

    Way ahead

    • Insights provided by the Vidhi Centre: The Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy in its report on Government Litigation published in 2018, provides great insights into where the government can and cannot control the litigation it is party to.
    • Where Government control its litigation: For instance, the government’s 2010 National Litigation Policy (NLP) recognises that service matters should not be normally appealed and only cases which involve questions of constitutional interpretation should be pursued all the way till the Supreme Court. The government should implement this reform suggested by its own policymakers.
    • Reasons to reduce the litigation: There are many good reasons to reduce litigation that involves the government. Reducing the burden on the courts is a prime reason. As Vidhi 2018 notes, the costs involved in pursuing litigation eat into public funds. And a court battle between the individual and the state is also a battle of unequals.

    Conclusion

    • What we need to address the overburdened court system is for the largest litigant to use the court system more efficiently and cautiously. This would be a tremendous start to addressing the problem of pendency. Appointing more judges would be a massive step to helping more dispute resolution as well.

    Mains question

    Q. Pendency of cases haunts Indian judiciary for a very long time. While there are multiple reasons for pendency, it is said that Government is the largest Litigant discuss. Enlist what efforts are taken by the government to reduce its litigation?

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  • UGC norms to setup Foreign Universities in India

    foreign universities

    The University Grants Commission (UGC) has unveiled draft regulations for ‘Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India’.

    Quest for Foreign Universities in India: A quick recap

    • The government had in 1995 drafted the Foreign Education Bill which had to be shelved.
    • Another attempt was made in 2006, but the draft law could not cross the Cabinet stage.
    • Then in 2010, the UPA-2 government brought the Foreign Educational Institutions Bill, which failed to get enough support in the Parliament.
    • The bill lapsed in 2014 as UPA lost power.
    • The New Education Policy, 2020 allows for establishment of foreign university campuses in India.

    Procedure for Universities coming to India

    • The process for getting approval for setting up a campus in India will be strictly online in the beginning. Interested institutions have to apply at the UGC portal with a non-refundable fee, and then submit some documents.
    • After the applications are received, a committee formed by the Commission will examine these applications on these factors:
    1. Credibility of the institution
    2. Programmes to be offered by the institution
    3. Their potential to strengthen academic opportunities in India
    4. Proposed infrastructure

    UGC (Setting up and Operation of Campuses of Foreign Higher Educational Institutions in India) Regulations 2023: Key questions answered

    • UGC approval compulsory: All foreign universities that wish to set up their campus in India will be allowed to do so only after getting approval from the UGC.
    • Reputed institutions: To set up a campus in Indian foreign universities will either have to be in the top 500 to apply or will have to be “highly reputed” in their respective countries (if the varsity does not participate in global rankings). If their ranking is between 500 and 100, but the subject-wise ranking is higher than overall, then in such cases, the institutions will be permitted to set up their campuses only for those ranked subjects.
    • Quality assurance: Additionally, the UGC will reserve the right to inspect these Indian campuses of foreign HEIs at any time, and they will not be outside the purview of anti-ragging and other criminal laws.
    • Offline classes only: All the foreign universities that open their branches in India will be allowed to conduct offline classes only, i.e. foreign universities can offer only full-time programmes in physical mode.
    • Freedom to choose admission process, fee, and faculty: All foreign varsities will have the freedom to come up with their own admission process. However, the universities will have to ensure “quality of education imparted at their Indian campuses is on par with their main campus.”
    • Admissions to all: Foreign higher educational institutes will have the freedom to enroll Indian as well as international students on their Indian campuses.
    • International funds transfer: To ensure that there is no chaos in funds transfer, all matters related to funding will be as per the Foreign Exchange Management Act 1999.
    • Safeguarding of students’ interest: FHEI shall not discontinue any course or programme or close the campus without the commission’s prior approval. In the case of a course or programme disruption or discontinuation, the parent entity shall be responsible for providing an alternative to the affected students.
    • Equivalence with degrees awarded by Indian HEIs: The qualifications awarded to the students in the Indian campus shall be recognised and treated as equivalent to the corresponding qualifications awarded by the FEHI in the main campus located in the country of origin.
    • Securing India’s national interest: FEHIs shall not offer any such programme or course which jeopardises the national interest of India or the standards of higher education in India. The operation of FEHIs shall not be contrary to the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency, or morality.

    Why such move?

    • Increase in domestic enrolment: India has more than 1000 universities and 42,000 colleges. Despite having one of the largest higher education systems in the world, India’s Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education is just 27.1%, among the worlds’ lowest.
    • Education quality improvement: The lack of quality in Indian education is reflected in the QS World University Rankings 2022. IIT Bombay was the top-ranking Indian institute in the list with a ranking of 177. Only eight Indian universities made it to the top 400.
    • Paving the way: London Business School, King’s College in London, the University of Cambridge, and New York University have started preliminary discussion with the GIFT City authorities and the regulator to establish facilities at the GIFT International Financial Services Centre.

    Benefits of the move

    • Human capital generation: This move would complement efforts to provide high quality human capital to India’s financial services industry.
    • Decreased overseas spending: Indian students’ overseas spending is set to grow from current annual $28 billion to $80 billion annually by 2024.
    • Reduce FOREX spending: Apart from fostering a competition in quality, International branch campuses can also help in reducing the foreign exchange outflow.
    • Prevents brain-drain: Education attracts opportunities. Atmanirbhar Bharat push will retain the domestic talent. More than eight lakh Indians gave up their citizenship in the last seven years.
    • Increase India’s soft power: Opening the door for foreign universities can improve India’s soft power as it will provide further impetus to the government’s Study in India programme that seeks to attract foreign students.

    Challenges

    • Regulatory challenges: The following factors may deter foreign higher educational institutions from investing in India-
    1. Multi-layer regulatory framework governing different aspects of higher education
    2. Lack of a single regulatory body overlooking the collaborations/ investments and
    3. Multiple approvals required to operate in India
    • Implementation issues: While NEP has taken the right steps to boost the education sector and pave the way for a globally-compatible education system, its implementation has been slow and requires clarity.
    • Higher possibility of Brain Drain: A policy challenge that stands before the GoI is to facilitate such tie-ups in a way that the Indian talent chooses to and is incentivised to remain in India and the Indian educational infrastructure is developed to match global standards.

    Conclusion

    • The intent of the GoI, with respect to international universities setting up campuses in India, is clear from the provisions in the NEP.
    • However, much clarity is awaited for the proper implementation.

     

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  • Census exercise postponed till September 2023

    census

    The decennial census exercise has been postponed till September, at least, as the government informed States that the date of freezing of administrative boundaries has been extended till June 30.

    What is the Census of India?

    • The decennial Census of India has been conducted 16 times, as of 2021.
    • While it has been undertaken every 10 years, beginning in 1872 under British Viceroy Lord Mayo, the first complete census was taken in 1881.
    • Post 1949, it has been conducted by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
    • All the censuses since 1951 were conducted under the 1948 Census of India Act.
    • The last census was held in 2011, whilst the next was to be held in 2021. But it has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    What is the purpose of the census?

    • To collect the information for planning and formulation policies for Central and the State Governments.
    • The census tells us who we are and where we are going as a nation.
    • It helps the government decide how to distribute funds and assistance to states and localities.
    • The census data is widely used by National and International Agencies, scholars, business people, industrialists, and many more.

    Why is the census important?

    • Vital statistics for governance: The census is the foundational database for official statistics and policymaking in a modern economy. Outdated census data makes block and district-level planning particularly difficult, since survey data do not offer that kind of high resolution.
    • Provides most credible statistics: Information on Demography, Economic Activity, Literacy and Education, Housing & Household Amenities, Urbanisation, Fertility and Mortality, SCs and STs, Language, Religion, Migration, Disability and many other socio-cultural and demographic data.
    • Delimitation/reservation of Constituencies: Parliamentary/Assembly/Panchayats and other Local Bodies are also done on the basis of the demographic data thrown up by the Census.
    • Administration: Census is the basis for reviewing the country’s progress in the past decade, monitoring the ongoing Schemes of the Government.
    • Planning the future: It provides pathways for planning and resolving problems, and fixing deficiencies. Government goes through analysis over the census data and formulates policies for the future accordingly.
    • Detailed accounts: The best of sample surveys find it impossible to beat a census as It carries the promise of counting each and every Indian. A census is when the state connects to every individual and it will find it hard to hide or duck from the data.
    • Welfare schemes: Identifying the actual beneficiaries, Census is the key to creating identity and affirming it over time. Census data enable neat, inter-temporal comparability.

    Impact of delay in census 2021

    (1) Discrepancies in PDS beneficiary identification

    • The National Food Security Act, 2013, says that 75% of the rural population and 50% of the rural population are entitled to receive subsidised food grains from the government under the targeted public distribution system (PDS).
    • Under the 2011 Census, India’s population was about 121 crore, hence PDS covered approximately 80 crore people.
    • If we apply projected population of 137crore ,current delay in Census data would continue to deprive more than 10 crore people of subsidised food entitlements, with the biggest gaps in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, with 2.8 crore and 1.8 crore projected exclusions respectively.

    (2) Poor targeting of beneficiaries for welfare schemes

    • Although the Government’s intent to use SECC data but failed at budgetary allocation for the projected expansion.
    • Census data may not be used to calculate the beneficiaries of most schemes, but it is critical to policy planning, budgeting and administration.
    • A number of schemes need to use the disaggregated age and fertility indicators to assess effectiveness as demographics change over time.

    (3) Identifying migration data

    • From the COVID19 lockdowns it is realized that the Numbers, causes and patterns of migration, which could not be answered using outdated 2011 Census data.
    • The D-tables on migration from the 2011 Census were only released in 2019, so it’s outdated by the time it came out.
    • Apart from the One Nation, One Ration card scheme which now allows for portability of food subsidy entitlements, the migration data is actually not used too much in broader economic policy and planning.

    Why there is delay in Census?

    • Administrative boundaries demarcation: As per norms, census can be conducted only three months after freezing of boundary limits of administrative units such as districts, sub-districts, tehsils, talukas etc.
    • COVID-19 Pandemic: The pandemic is being cited as the official reason for the delay, but it is an unconvincing excuse. Pandemic-related restrictions were removed long back.
    • CAA, NRC Issue: The Union government had declared that the 2021 census would be used to draw up an all-India NRC. The Centre is yet to frame the rules for Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).
    • Lack of Political will: The Union government has shown no urgency in getting census operations back on track. When questioned about the delay, it refuses to clarify when the census might take place.

    Way forward

    • Complete Pre-census work: Conduct house-listing and other allied activites ASAP.
    • Digital census: The data collected through a mobile app will reduce the overall time taken to process the census data and to publish the results in time.
    • Self-enumeration: Allowing households to self-enumerate is a new initiative but it is unclear how successful it would be in terms of data quality and completeness of coverage.

    Conclusion

    • The Census of India has to be saved from needless disruptions and inexplicable delays.
    • Unless the census is insulated from day-to-day politics, the integrity of its data will be compromised.
    • The world’s largest democracy deserves clean and honest data.

     

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  • In news: Affordable Rental Housing Complexes

    A Parliamentary panel has asked the government to clarify how many of the 66 proposals received under the Affordable Rental Housing Scheme launched for the urban poor, especially migrant workers, during the COVID-19 pandemic have been approved by their respective local urban bodies.

    Affordable Rental Housing Scheme

    • AHRC is a sub-scheme under PM Awas Yojana – Urban.
    • Under the scheme, existing vacant government-funded housing complexes will be converted in ARHCs through Concession Agreements for 25 years.
    • The concessionaire will make the complexes livable by repair/retrofit and maintenance of rooms and filling up infrastructure gaps like water, sewer/ septage, sanitation, road etc.
    • States/UTs will select concessionaire through transparent bidding.
    • Complexes will revert to ULB after 25 years to restart next cycle like earlier or run on their own.

    Beneficiaries of the scheme

    • A large part of the workforce in manufacturing industries, service providers in hospitality, health, domestic/commercial establishments, and construction or other sectors, labourers, students etc. who come from rural areas or small towns seeking better opportunities will be the target beneficiary under ARHCs.

    Benefits of AHRCs

    • Usually, these migrants live in slums, informal/ unauthorized colonies or peri-urban areas to save rental charges.
    • They spend a lot of time on roads by walking/ cycling to workplaces, risking their lives to cut on the expenses.
    • ARHCs will create a new ecosystem in urban areas making housing available at affordable rent close to the place of work.
    • Investment under ARHCs is expected to create new job opportunities.
    • ARHCs will cut down unnecessary travel, congestion and pollution.

    Back2Basics: Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)

    PMAY-Urban

    The PMAY- Urban Programme launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA), in Mission mode envisions provision of Housing for All by 2022. The Mission seeks to address the housing requirement of urban poor including slum dwellers through following programme verticals:

    • Slum rehabilitation of Slum Dwellers with participation of private developers using land as a resource
    • Promotion of Affordable Housing for weaker section through credit linked subsidy
    • Affordable Housing in Partnership with Public & Private sectors
    • Subsidy for beneficiary-led individual house construction /enhancement.

    PMAY-Rural

    • In pursuance to the goal – Housing for all by 2022, the rural housing scheme Indira Awas Yojana has been revamped to Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin and approved during March 2016.
    • Under the scheme, financial assistance is provided for construction of a pucca house to all houseless and households living in dilapidated houses.
    • It is proposed that one crore households would be provided assistance for construction of pucca house under the project during the period from 2016-17 to 2018-19.
    • The scheme would be implemented in rural areas throughout India except for Delhi and Chandigarh. The cost of houses would be shared between the Centre and States.

     

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  • Digital healthcare Services

    healthcare

    Context

    • India leveraged information and communications technologies (ICTs) during the pandemic. Digital health solutions played a crucial role in bridging the gap in healthcare delivery as systems moved online to accommodate contactless care.

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    India’s spectacular demonstration of digital public good (DPG) so far

    • Aadhar and UPI are like the building blocks of DPG: India has demonstrated its digital prowess by building digital public goods the digital identity system Aadhaar, the DPGs built on top of Aadhaar and the Unified Payments Interface.
    • Aadhar for PDS and UPI for payments: While Aadhaar has become central to India’s public service delivery architecture, UPI has transformed how payments are made.
    • One of the largest internet users: Our digital public infrastructure has reached the last mile, enabled by 1.2 billion wireless connections and 800 million internet users.
    • Some examples of DPGs developed during the pandemic: For instance, the Covid Vaccine Intelligence Network (CoWIN) and the Aarogya Setu application. CoWIN propelled India to adopt a completely digital approach to its vaccination strategy. Aarogya Setu provided real-time data on active cases and containment zones to help citizens assess risk in their areas.
    • Increasing use of Telemedicine platforms: Telemedicine platforms saw a steep increase in user acquisitions, as 85 per cent of physicians used teleconsultations during the pandemic, underscoring the need to better incorporate cutting-edge digital technologies into healthcare services.

    Acknowledging the current need?

    • Although the impact of the pandemic on health services put the spotlight on the benefits of digital innovation and technology-enabled solutions, private entities, health technology players, and the public sector have been driving digitisation in the sector for some time now.
    • It has become clear that a comprehensive digital healthcare ecosystem is necessary to bring together existing siloed efforts and move toward proactive, holistic, and citizen-centric healthcare.

    Government efforts in this direction?

    • Shared public goods for healthcare: Recognising this need, the government has created shared public goods for healthcare and developed a framework for a nationwide digital health system. This brought healthcare to a turning point in India.
    • Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM): The PM launched the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission on September 27, 2021, under the aegis of the National Health Authority. Within a year of its launch, ABDM has established a robust framework to provide accessible, affordable, and equitable healthcare through digital highways. The ABDM has implemented vital building blocks to unite all stakeholders in the digital healthcare ecosystem.
    • The Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA): ABHA creates a standard identifier for patients across healthcare providers. With the ABHA and its associated Personal Health Record (PHR) app, citizens can link, store, and share their health records to access healthcare services with autonomy and consent. With more than 300 million ABHAs and 50 million health records linked, the mission is growing at a massive rate.
    • The Health Facility Registry (HFR) and the Health Professional Registries (HPR) for central digital health information: HFR and HPR accounts provide verified digital identities to large and small public and private health facilities and professionals. This enables them to connect to a central digital ecosystem while serving as a single source for verified healthcare provider-related information. HFR and HPR improve the discovery of healthcare facilities and help health professionals build an online presence and offer services more effectively. The
    • Drug registry for centralised repository of approved drugs: It is a crucial building block designed to create a single, up-to-date, centralised repository of all approved drugs across all systems of medicine.
    • Unified Health Interface (UHI) enables a connect between healthcare providers with end users: It aims to strengthen the health sector by enabling all healthcare service providers and end-user applications to interact with each other on its network. This will provide a seamless experience for service discovery, appointment booking, teleconsultations, ambulance access, and more. The UHI is based on open network protocols and can address the current challenge of different digital solutions being unable to communicate with each other.

    What the government is planning next in this domain?

    • To give UHI the necessary push, the government is repurposing Aarogya Setu and CoWIN: Aarogya Setu is being transformed into a general health and wellness application. At the same time, CoWIN will be plugged with a lite Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) for small clinics, to bring digitisation to the masses.
    • Addressing well the patient registration process at the hospital counters: Another use-case of ABDM is scan and share, which uses a QR code-based token system to manage queues at hospital counters. It uses the foundational elements of ABHA and PHR to streamline the outpatient registration process in large hospitals
    • Expanding healthcare digital initiative worldwide: The government is also planning to expand its digital initiatives in the healthcare sector with Heal by India, making India’s healthcare professionals’ services available worldwide.
    • Platform for organ donation: Additionally, a platform is being developed to automate the allocation of deceased organ and tissue donations, making the process faster and more transparent.

    Way ahead

    • Digitise insurance claim settlement process: With the implementation of digital solutions, the next step is to digitise and automate the insurance claim settlement process through the Health Claim Exchange platform.
    • Making claim settlement process inexpensive and transparent: There is need to make claim-related information verifiable, auditable, traceable and interoperable among various entities, enabling claim processing to become inexpensive, transparent and carried out in real time.
    • Bringing together global efforts for digital health: India assumes the G20 presidency this year. The G20 Global Initiative on Digital Health calls for the creation of an institutional framework for a connected health ecosystem to bring together global efforts for digital health.
    • Accelerating UHC by scaling up the technologies: It also calls for the scaling-up of technologies such as global DPGs to accelerate Universal Health Coverage.

    Conclusion

    • The ABDM has proven to be a valuable asset and its adoption across states has been accelerated by the National Health Authority. It aims to build the foundation for a sustainable digital public infrastructure for health, enabling India to achieve universal health coverage. The mission embodies G20’s theme of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth. One Family. One Future”

    Mains question

    Q. India has demonstrated spectacular success in digital public goods, specifically in Digital health. Discuss how the government efforts are taking shape in this direction and suggest a way ahead in short.

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  • Day 4| Daily Answer Wars| CD WarZone

    Topics for Today’s question:

    GS-2       Constitution of India —historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

    Question:

    Q. “The most significant achievement of modern law in India is the constitutionalization of environmental problems by the Supreme Court.” Discuss this statement with the help of relevant case laws. (10 Marks)

     

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