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GS Paper: GS2

  • HC presses Centre on Uniform Civil Code

    Stating that the Uniform Civil Code “is a necessity and mandatorily required today,” the Allahabad High Court has called upon the Central Government to forthwith initiate the process for its implementation.

    What is a Uniform Civil Code?

    • A Uniform Civil Code is one that would provide for one law for the entire country, applicable to all religious communities in their personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption etc.
    • Article 44, one of the directive principles of the Constitution lays down that the state shall endeavour to secure a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.
    • These, as defined in Article 37, are not justiciable (not enforceable by any court) but the principles laid down therein are fundamental in governance.

    Why need UCC?

    • UCC would provide equal status to all citizens
    • It would promote gender parity in Indian society.
    • UCC would accommodate the aspirations of the young population who imbibe liberal ideology.
    • Its implementation would thus support the national integration.

    Issues with UCC

    • There are practical difficulties due to religious and cultural diversity in India.
    • The UCC is often perceived by the minorities as an encroachment on religious freedom.
    • It is often regarded as interference of the state in personal matters of the minorities.
    • Experts often argue that the time is not ripe for Indian society to embrace such UCC.

    Greater role for State

    • Fundamental rights are enforceable in a court of law.
    • While Article 44 uses the words “state shall endeavour”, other Articles in the ‘Directive Principles’ chapter use words such as “in particular strive”; “shall in particular direct its policy”; “shall be obligation of the state” etc.
    • Article 43 mentions “state shall endeavour by suitable legislation” while the phrase “by suitable legislation” is absent in Article 44.
    • All this implies that the duty of the state is greater in other directive principles than in Article 44.

    What are more important — fundamental rights or directive principles?

    • There is no doubt that fundamental rights are more important.
    • The Supreme Court held in Minerva Mills (1980): Indian Constitution is founded on the bed-rock of the balance between Parts III (Fundamental Rights) and IV (Directive Principles).
    • To give absolute primacy to one over the other is to disturb the harmony of the Constitution.
    • Article 31C inserted by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, however, lays down that if a law is made to implement any directive principle, it cannot be challenged on the ground of being violative of the FRs under Articles 14 and 19.

    Does India not already have a uniform code in civil matters?

    • Indian laws do follow a uniform code in most civil matters – Indian Contract Act, Civil Procedure Code, Sale of Goods Act, Transfer of Property Act, Partnership Act, Evidence Act etc.
    • States, however, have made hundreds of amendments and therefore in certain matters, there is diversity even under these secular civil laws.
    • Recently, several states refused to be governed by the uniform Motor Vehicles Act, 2019.

    What about personal laws?

    • If the framers of the Constitution had intended to have a Uniform Civil Code, they would have given exclusive jurisdiction to Parliament in respect of personal laws, by including this subject in the Union List.
    • But “personal laws” are mentioned in the Concurrent List.
    • Last year, the Law Commission concluded that a Uniform Civil Code is neither feasible nor desirable.

    Is there one common personal law for any religious community governing all its members?

    • All Hindus of the country are not governed by one law, nor are all Muslims or all Christians.
    • Not only British legal traditions, even those of the Portuguese and the French remain operative in some parts.
    • In Jammu and Kashmir until August 5, 2019, local Hindu law statutes differed from central enactments.
    • The Shariat Act of 1937 was extended to J&K a few years ago but has now been repealed.

    Various customary laws

    • Muslims of Kashmir were governed by a customary law, which in many ways was at variance with Muslim Personal Law in the rest of the country and was, in fact, closer to Hindu law.
    • Even on registration of marriage among Muslims, laws differ from place to place. It was compulsory in J&K (1981 Act), and is optional in Bengal, Bihar (both under 1876 Act), Assam (1935 Act) and Odisha (1949 Act).
    • In the Northeast, there are more than 200 tribes with their own varied customary laws.
    • The Constitution itself protects local customs in Nagaland. Similar protections are enjoyed by Meghalaya and Mizoram.
    • Even reformed Hindu law, in spite of codification, protects customary practices.

    How does the idea of a Uniform Civil Code relate to the fundamental right to religion?

    • Article 25 lays down an individual’s fundamental right to religion;
    • Article 26(b) upholds the right of each religious denomination or any section thereof to “manage its own affairs in matters of religion”;
    • Article 29 defines the right to conserve distinctive culture.
    • An individual’s freedom of religion under Article 25 is subject to “public order, health, morality” and other provisions relating to FRs, but a group’s freedom under Article 26 has not been subjected to other fundamental rights
    • In the Constituent Assembly, there was division on the issue of putting UCC in the fundamental rights chapter. The matter was settled by a vote.
    • By a 5:4 majority, the fundamental rights sub-committee headed by Sardar Patel held that the provision was outside the scope of FRs and therefore the UCC was made less important than freedom of religion.

    Minority opinion in the Constituent Assembly

    • Some members sought to immunize Muslim Personal Law from state regulation.
    • Mohammed Ismail, who thrice tried unsuccessfully to get Muslim Personal Law exempted from Article 44, said a secular state should not interfere with the personal law of people.
    • B Pocker Saheb said he had received representations against a common civil code from various organisations, including Hindu organisations.
    • Hussain Imam questioned whether there could ever be uniformity of personal laws in a diverse country like India.
    • B R Ambedkar said “no government can use its provisions in a way that would force the Muslims to revolt”.
    • Alladi Krishnaswami, who was in favour of a UCC, conceded that it would be unwise to enact UCC ignoring strong opposition from any community.
    • Gender justice was never discussed in these debates.

    How did the debate on a common code for Hindus play out?

    • In June 1948, Rajendra Prasad, President of the Constituent Assembly, warned Nehru that to introduce “basic changes” in personal law was to impose “progressive ideas” of a “microscopic minority” on the Hindu community as a whole.
    • Others opposed to reforms in Hindu law included Sardar Patel, Pattabhi Sitaramayya, M A Ayyangar, M M Malaviya and Kailash Nath Katju.
    • When the debate on the Hindu Code Bill took place in December 1949, 23 of 28 speakers opposed it.
    • On September 15, 1951, President Prasad threatened to use his powers of returning the Bill to Parliament or vetoing it. Ambedkar eventually had to resign.
    • Nehru agreed to the trifurcation of the Code into separate Acts and diluted several provisions.

     

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  • More a private sector primer than health-care pathway

    Context

    NITI Aayog recently published a road map document entitled “Health Insurance for India’s Missing Middle”.

    About missing middle and provision in the NITI Aayog report

    • The Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), aims to extend hospitalisation cover of up to â‚č5 lakh per family per annum to a poor and vulnerable population of nearly 50 crore people.
    • Left out segment: Covering the left out segment of the population, commonly termed the ‘missing middle’ sandwiched between the poor and the affluent, has been discussed by the Government recently.
    • Towards this, NITI Aayog recently published a road map document entitled “Health Insurance for India’s Missing Middle”.
    • Primary role for private commercial health insurer: The report proposes voluntary, contributory health insurance dispensed mainly by private commercial health insurers as the prime instrument for extending health insurance to the ‘missing middle’.

    Issues with the provision in the NITI Aayog report

    • Narrow coverage: Government subsidies, if any at all, will be reserved for the very poor within the ‘missing middle’ and only at a later stage of development of voluntary contributory insurance.
    • This is a major swerve from the vision espoused by the high-level expert group on UHC a decade ago, which was sceptical about such a health insurance model.
    • No country has ever achieved UHC by relying predominantly on private sources of financing health care.
    • Contributory insurance not best way: Evidence shows that in developing countries such as India, with a gargantuan informal sector, contributory health insurance is not the best way forward and can be replete with problems.
    • Issues with low premium model: For hospitalisation insurance, the report proposes a model similar to the Arogya Sanjeevani scheme, albeit with lower projected premiums of around â‚č4,000-â‚č6,000 per family per annum.
    • This model is a little different from commercial private insurance, except for somewhat lower premiums.
    • Low premiums are achieved by reducing administrative costs of insurers through an array of measures, including private use of government infrastructure.
    • This model is vulnerable to nearly every vice that characterises conventional private insurance.
    • Insufficient measures to deal with adverse selection: The report suggests enrolment in groups as a means to counter adverse selection.
    • The prevailing per capita expenditure on hospital care is used to reflect affordability of hospital insurance, and thereby, a possible willingness to pay for insurance.
    • Both these notions are likely to be far-fetched in practice, and the model is likely to be characterised by widespread adverse selection notwithstanding.
    • OPD insurance on a subscription basis: The report proposes an OPD insurance with an insured sum of â‚č5,000 per family per annum, and again uses average per capita OPD spending to justify the ability to pay.
    • However, the OPD insurance is envisaged on a subscription basis, which means that insured families would need to pay nearly the entire insured sum in advance to obtain the benefits.
    • Clearly, this route is unlikely to result in any significant reduction of out-of-pocket expenditure on OPD care.
    • Role of government:The NITI report defies the universally accepted logic that UHC invariably entails a strong and overarching role for the Government in health care, particularly in developing countries.

    Consider the question “What are the challenges in achieving universal health coverage? What are the issues with private sources  financing health care to achieve UHC?”

    Conclusion

    The National Health Policy 2017 envisaged increasing public health spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2025. Let us not contradict ourselves so early and at this crucial juncture of an unprecedented pandemic.

  • Speaker’s powers on Anti-Defection Cases

    The All-India Presiding Officers’ Conference (AIPOC) ended with the delegates failing to reach a consensus on whether the Speaker’s powers under the anti-defection law should be limited.

    What is Anti-defection Law?

    • The Anti-Defection Law under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution punishes MPs/ MLAs for defecting from their party by taking away their membership of the legislature.
    • It gives the Speaker of the legislature the power to decide the outcome of defection proceedings.
    • It was added to the Constitution through the Fifty-Second (Amendment) Act, 1985 when Rajiv Gandhi was PM.
    • The law applies to both Parliament and state assemblies.

    Cases considered under the anti-defection law

    The law covers three scenarios with respect to shifting of political parties by an MP or an MLA.

    (1) Voluntary give-up

    • The first is when a member elected on the ticket of a political party “voluntarily gives up” membership of such a party or votes in the House against the wishes of the party.
    • Such persons lose his seat.

    (2) Independent members

    • When a legislator who has won his or her seat as an independent candidate joins a political party after the election.
    • In both these instances, the legislator loses the seat in the legislature on changing (or joining) a party.

    (3) Nominated MPs

    • In their case, the law gives them six months to join a political party, after being nominated.
    • If they join a party after such time, they stand to lose their seat in the House.

    Powers to disqualification

    • Under the anti-defection law, the power to decide the disqualification of an MP or MLA rests with the presiding officer of the legislature.
    • The law does not specify a time frame in which such a decision has to be made.
    • As a result, Speakers of legislatures have sometimes acted very quickly or have delayed the decision for years — and have been accused of political bias in both situations.

    Significant role of the Speaker/Presiding Officer

    • Pandit Nehru had referred to the Speaker as “the symbol of the nation’s freedom and liberty” and emphasized that Speakers should be men of “outstanding ability and impartiality”.
    • Several judgments on the anti-defection law have been rendered by the Supreme Court.
    • A common factor that shows up in these rulings is the blatant, partisan conduct of speakers in state assemblies.

    Reasons for Speakers’ bias

    • The Speaker continues to belong to a particular political party.
    • The electoral system and conventions in India have ‘not been developed to ensure protection to the office, there are cogent reasons for Speakers to retain party membership.
    • It would be unrealistic to expect a speaker to completely abjure all party considerations while functioning.
    • There are structural issues regarding the manner of appointment of the Speaker and her tenure in office.

    Way forward

    • Parliament may seriously consider a Constitutional amendment to bring in a permanent Tribunal for dealing with defection cases.
    • It is suggested that a scheme should be brought wherein Speakers should renounce all political affiliations, membership, and activity once they have been elected.
    • We can learn from the UK model. In practice, once elected, the Speaker gives up all-partisan affiliation, as in other Parliaments of British tradition.
    • He/she remains in office until retirement, even though the majority may change and does not express any political views during debates.

    Conclusion

    • Impartiality, fairness, and autonomy in decision-making are the hallmarks of a robust institution.
    • It is the freedom from interference and pressures which provide the necessary atmosphere where one can work with an absolute commitment to the cause of neutrality as a constitutional value.

     

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  • A collaborative tech vision for US, UAE, Israel and India

    Context

    Last month’s meeting between the foreign ministers of India, the US, Israel, and the UAE has set foreign policy circles in India abuzz with talks of the potential emergence of another quadrilateral grouping or as analysts term it, a “new Quad”.

    Significance of the new Quad meeting

    • Collaboration in various areas: The grouping discussed technology collaboration along with the joint infrastructure projects in transportation, enhancing political and economic cooperation and maritime security matters.
    • Forum for economic cooperation: They have agreed to set up an international forum for economic cooperation.
    • Collaboration on technology: Amongst all the issues discussed, the technology dimension of this partnership promises a far greater potential for collaboration.
    • The four countries are uniquely placed to shape an innovation-based partnership, which can conjoin the technology hubs of Silicon Valley, Dubai, Tel Aviv, and Bengaluru.
    • Such potential collaboration can benefit from the existing robust cooperation between these countries.
    • Collaboration in fintech: The agreement between Start-Up Nation Central, an Israeli non-profit that connects the tech ecosystem, and Dubai International Financial Centre, the UAE’s financial hub, will create regulatory sandboxes and accelerators for start-ups and provide them with market access opportunities.
    • India and the US have been separately working with the two countries on multiple projects.

    New Quad’s technology cooperation

    • Tech-based collaboration: Given the synergies in the innovation and startup sector, it is logical that the “new Quad” works towards tech-based collaboration.
    • The agenda for the new Quad’s technology cooperation can begin by selecting three technologies — quantum science, blockchain, and 3D printing.
    • Collaboration in quantum technology: Israel and the US, too, have made research on quantum technology a priority by allocating $91 million and $1.2 billion respectively to this sector.
    • India is also fast catching up through its National Mission on Quantum Technologies and Applications and joining hands with countries like France to work on this technology.
    • Collaboration in the blockchain:  in blockchain, India and the UAE can leverage the American and Israeli expertise in cyber and cryptography to craft customised applications for use in banking, fintech and trade financing.
    • Collaboration in 3-D printing: In 3D printing, which promises to transform the manufacturing process radically, Israel has taken the lead in manufacturing about 40 per cent of 3D printers worldwide.
    • India, in contrast, has been slow in getting onto the 3D printing bandwagon. But it can certainly benefit from the expertise of the US, Israel and the UAE.
    • Opportunity for India: From the Indian perspective, such partnerships can leverage Silicon Valley’s venture capital funding, Tel Aviv’s close-knit organic linkages between start-ups, industry, and academia, and UAE’s funding and focus on innovation.
    • To this mix, Bengaluru — and potentially Hyderabad — can add opportunities for scaling up and manufacturing.
    • The startup community in the US, Israel and the UAE have already reached an advanced research and development stage providing an opportunity for India to build expertise and offer the scale to the development and applications of these technologies.

    Way forward

    • Security cooperation: The collaborative and customisation possibilities offered by these technologies and their dual-use nature offers the potential to give a technological edge to the four countries’ militaries.
    •  This, in turn, can add the security cooperation element to the grouping’s agenda.
    • Broaden the base: If the four countries plug their innovation ecosystems in this collaboration to shortlist, fund and develop technologies, it will also help to broaden the base of cooperation for this grouping, rather than restrict it to the government-to-government domain.
    • Government push will be the essential catalyst to unlock this space for cooperation through seed-funding, academic collaborations, industrial partnerships and MoUs.
    • China factor: By collaborating with Russia, and domestic flagship initiatives like “Made in China 2025”, Beijing has pursued emerging technologies and successfully reduced the capability gap with Washington.
    • These developments make it imperative for the US, Israel, UAE, and India to strengthen their newly established cooperation.

    Conclusion

    Each country with its unique advantage in the field of science and technology, innovation and start-ups can make a significant contribution to advance shared technological goals.

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  • India-Maldives Relations in recent times

    The Government of Maldives has said that it “strongly rejects attempts to spread false information” criticizing its ties with India, its “closest ally and trusted neighbor”.

    The India-Out Campaign

    • Maldivian protesters recently demanded the Solih administration to ‘stop selling national assets to foreigners’, implying India.
    • ‘India Out’ campaign in Maldives had started sometime last year as on-ground protests in the Maldives and later widely spread across social media platforms under the same hashtag.
    • It is not related to people-to-people conflict (Indian diaspora) but is discontent on close relationship between Maldivian government & India.

    Causes for the anti-India sentiments

    • Political instability: The anti-India sentiment is nearly a decade old and can be traced back to when Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom became president in 2013. He used anti-India sentiments for his political mobilization and started tilting China.
    • Controversy over helicopter gift: Two Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters (ALF) that were given by India to the Maldives for ocean search-and-rescue operations. Opposition tried to portray this as military presence in the country.
    • Confidential agreements: Most agreements being signed between the Ibrahim Solih government and India are backdoor and has not been publicly discussed in the Maldives Parliament.
    • Alleged interference in domestic politics: India being a big neighbour, there are unsubstantiated perceptions & allegations on Indian Diplomats stationed in Maldives interfering in Domestic affairs.

    India-Maldives Relations: A backgrounder

    • India and Maldives are neighbors sharing a maritime border.
    • Both nations established diplomatic relations after the independence of Maldives from British rule in 1966.
    • India was one of the first nations to recognize Maldives’ independence.
    • Since then, India and Maldives have developed close strategic, military, economic and cultural relations.
    • Maldivians generally regard Indians and India as a friend and trusted neighbor in the field economic, social and political.

    Restoration of ties

    • Ibrahim Mohamed Solih who became President in 2018 has restored Maldives close ties with India.

    Major irritants in ties

    • Political Instability: India’s major concern has been the impact of political instability in the neighborhood on its security and development.
    • Increasing radicalization: In the past decade or so, the number of Maldivians drawn towards terrorist groups like the Islamic State (IS) and Pakistan-based jihadist groups has been increasing.
    • Inclination towards terror: Radicalism in the island nation has increased the possibility of Pakistan based terror groups using remote Maldivian islands as a launch pad for terror attacks against India and Indian interests.
    • Chinese affinity: China’s strategic footprint in India’s neighborhood has increased. The Maldives has emerged as an important ‘pearl’ in China’s “String of Pearls” construct in South Asia.

    Recent gestures by India

    [1] 2014 Malé drinking-water crisis

    • In the wake of a drinking water crisis in MalĂ© in December 2014, following collapse of the island’s only water treatment plant, Maldives urged India for immediate help.
    • India came to rescue by sending its heavy lift transporters like C-17 Globemaster III, Il-76 carrying bottled water.

    [2] 2020 Covid-19 crisis

    • During the COVID-19 crisis of 2020, India extended help to Maldives in the form of financial, material and logistical support.
    • Also, the IAF airlifted 6.2 tonnes of essential medicines and hospital consumables to Maldives, as part of ‘Operation Sanjeevani’.

    [3] Greater Male Connectivity Project

    • India has recently announced the signing of a $500-million infrastructure project for the construction of the Greater MalĂ© Connectivity Project (GMCP).
    • This infrastructure project, the largest-ever by India in the Maldives, involves the construction of a 6.74-km-long bridge and causeway link.

    Why is Maldives significant for India?

    • Increasing maritime cooperation: As maritime economic activity in the Indian Ocean has risen dramatically in recent decades, the geopolitical competition too in the Indian Ocean has intensified.
    • Toll Gate in Indian Ocean: It is situated at the hub of commercial sea-lanes running through the Indian Ocean. More than 97% of India’s international trade by volume and 75% by value passes through the region.
    • Naval cooperation: Maldives is an important partner in India’s role as the net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region.
    • Important SAARC member: Besides, Maldives is a member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) and the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC).
    • People To People Contact: There is a significant population of Maldivian students in India. They are aided by a liberal visa-free regime extended by India. There is also medical tourism.
    • Major destination for Tourists: Tourism is the mainstay of the Maldivian economy. The country is now a major tourist destination for some Indians and a job destination for others.

    Conclusion

    • There is a significant Indian diaspora in the Maldives. Innumerable Indians work across the hospitality, education, and health-care sectors of the Maldives economy.
    • India must use its Diaspora more extensively for strengthening its relations.

     

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  • Issues with ordinance that extend the tenure of the Director of the CBI

    Context

    The Central government’s decision to give a five-year tenure to heads of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has drawn a lot of flak.

    Background

    • Apex court’s directive giving a mandatory two-year tenure to the Director of the CBI was a fallout of the Hawala scandal.
    • Prior to that, the government was arbitrary and capricious in choosing the Director.
    • It was not rare to see temporary appointments given to favour some individuals.
    • Seniority was often ignored in appointments and Directors were removed frequently.

    Why tenure matters

    • Short tenure: A two-year tenure for a CBI head is too short for any officer to make an impact on the organisation.
    • Longer provides the much-needed continuity that a Director needs in an outfit charged with the task of conducting highly sensitive investigations, which sometimes impinge on the longevity and stability of a democratically elected government.
    • The Federal Bureau of Investigation chief in the U.S. gets a 10-year term.

    Suggestions

    • Need to avoid government interference: Any blatantly dishonest interference in the working of the organisation is bound to raise the hackles of those who believe in and carry out straightforward investigations.
    • The government will therefore have to show enormous restraint in its interactions with the head of the CBI.
    • Balancing accountability with autonomy: Of course, as a measure of accountability, the Director will have to keep the government informed of all major administrative decisions.
    • He or she should inform the executive but not take orders from it.
    • Need for CBI Act: Successive chiefs have suggested the drafting of a CBI Act to ensure that the organisation is not dependent on the State governments, many of which have withdrawn consent for the CBI to function in that State.
    • Eight States — West Bengal, Maharashtra, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Mizoram — have withdrawn the general consent.
    • The CBI should be made to derive its authority for launching investigations from its own statute instead of depending on the Criminal Procedure Code, which makes the CBI a police organisation.

    Issue with ordinance

    • The only problem with the latest ordinance is that, at the end of the mandatory two-year tenure, the government will have to issue orders granting one-year extensions at a time. 
    • The rule about three annual extensions can be misused by a tendentious government.
    • It may be construed as a reward for ‘good behaviour’, which is a euphemism for an obliging Director.

    Consider the question “What are the challenges facing Central Bureau of Investigation? Suggest the measures to make the organisation more effective.” 

    Conclusion

    We will have to wait for a few years to gauge the impact of the change in tenure rules. It is preposterous to probe the intentions of this major move.

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    Back2Basics: General Consent

    • A “general consent” is normally given by states to help the CBI in seamless investigation of cases of corruption against central government employees in their states.
    • Almost all states have traditionally given such consent, in the absence of which the CBI would have to apply to the state government in every case, and before taking even small actions.
    • Section 6 of The DSPE Act (“Consent of State Government to exercise of powers and jurisdiction”) says: “Nothing contained in section 5 (“Extension of powers and jurisdiction of special police establishment to other areas”) shall be deemed to enable any member of the Delhi Special Police Establishment to exercise powers and jurisdiction in any area in a State, not being a Union territory or railway area, without the consent of the Government of that State.”

  • Kabul, Kashmir and the return of realpolitik

    Context

    In a rather unfriendly neighbourhood, New Delhi’s attempts at forming a regional consensus to stabilise Afghanistan, albeit wise and timely, will only achieve limited success thanks to the China-Pakistan coalition and its interests at play in and over Afghanistan.

    Role played by China and Pakistan in Afghanistan and its implications for India

    • China’s long-term vision for Afghanistan revolves around the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project of which Afghanistan has been a part since May 2016.
    • The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is also viewed as a key component within the larger Chinese BRI project and Afghanistan could eventually become part of CPEC if and when the Taliban regime stabilises itself in the country.
    • Role of Pakistan in keeping India away from Afghanistan: While Pakistan lobbies the international community to help prevent Afghanistan slide into further turmoil, it is determined to keep India as far away from Kabul as possible.
    • Pakistan has always been deeply suspicious of growing India-Afghanistan relations no matter who was/is in charge in Kabul.
    • Implications for India: It is likely that the more India gets close to the Taliban, the more the Pakistani side will increase the ‘attacks’ in Jammu and Kashmir.
    • By maintaining ties with the Taliban and convening the regional security meeting in New Delhi, India has indicated that this is an acceptable risk.
    • Regional Security Dialogue: The recently-held Delhi Regional Security Dialogue on Afghanistan was an important initiative to help Afghanistan stabilise, the reality is that the two countries that are key to stabilising Afghanistan — China and Pakistan — decided to stay away from it.
    • Scope for other powers: Russia or the Central Asian states have neither the ability nor the desire to pursue a role in Afghanistan autonomous from the larger Chinese or Pakistani designs there.

    The dilemma facing the international community

    • Taliban and Pakistan refer to the U.S.-led coalition as ‘colonisers’ who just vacated the Afghan territory; and in the same breath, they seek assistance from those very ‘former colonisers’.
    • But perhaps what might bother the West the most is that if they stabilise the country, they would still be called former colonisers, and Pakistan and China will benefit out of it geopolitically, making it, in that sense, a thankless job for the West.
    • So the question before the western leaders is how to offer structured incentives to the Taliban, and when.

    The dilemma facing India

    • To engage the Taliban or not: The first one was to decide whether to engage the Taliban or not.
    • The successive governments in Afghanistan, including the current Taliban regime, have sought relations with India which has upset Pakistan.
    • The Taliban want India to engage and help the country stabilise, but Pakistan resents that.
    • Catch-22 situation for India: If the Taliban regime is stabilised in Kabul without India’s assistance to the country, the more it is likely to do Pakistan’s bidding vis-Ă -vis India.
    • On the other hand, the more India helps the Taliban-led Afghanistan, the more Pakistan will up the ante in Kashmir.
    • This is a catch-22 situation that India finds itself in.
    • And yet, India has little choice but to engage the Taliban.

    How Taliban victory led to change in Pakistan’s Kashmir policy

    • The earlier Pakistani willingness to be conciliatory towards India on Kashmir before and in the run-up to the Taliban takeover of Kabul in August 2021 seems to have disappeared for now.
    • This is at least partly due to the Pakistani triumphalism about the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.
    • Since then, violence data show that the backchannel understanding is withering away with violence in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) spiking along all three indicators albeit gradually.
    • Sentiments from across the border also indicate that the earlier Pakistani stand that it would accept the Indian decision to withdraw the special status to Kashmir in lieu of New Delhi restoring Statehood to Kashmir and allowing political activity in the State has now change.
    • It now demands that India fully reverts to the pre-August 5, 2019 position on Kashmir.

    Way forward

    • No possibility of cooperation with China and Pak: Any possibility of India-Pakistan cooperation in Afghanistan would be very hard to achieve.
    • Beijing will play along; so will Iran and the Central Asian countries, for the most part.
    • Coordinate with other powers: For India, the options are to coordinate its Afghan policy with Moscow, Washington and the various western capitals while steadfastly engaging the Taliban.

    Consider the question “Return of Taliban in Afghanistan and consequential geopolitical changes in the region are bound to have implications for India-Pakistan relation. Comment.” 

    Conclusion

    India’s advances to court the Taliban and attempts to evolve a regional consensus on Afghanistan might deteriorate India-Pakistan relations and pose challenges for India in Kashmir.

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  • Back in news: Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)

    The Centre has told the Supreme Court that the CBI was an “autonomous body” and it had no “control” over the investigative agency.

    Background

    • The submission in the top court comes two days after the promulgation of an ordinance extending the tenures of the CBI Director and the Enforcement Directorate chief.
    • Attorney-General K was objecting to a suit filed by the West Bengal Government over the use of CBI.

    West Bengal vs. CBI

    • West Bengal has challenged the CBI’s jurisdiction to register FIRs and conduct investigations in the State in some cases.
    • The State had withdrawn its “general consent” to the CBI way back in 2018.

    About CBI

    • The Bureau of Investigation traces its origins to the Delhi Special Police Establishment, a Central Government Police force, which was set up in 1941 by the Government of India.
    • It then aimed to investigate bribery and corruption in transactions with the War and Supply Department of India.
    • It then had its headquarters in Lahore.
    • After the end of the war, there was a continued need for a central governmental agency to investigate bribery and corruption by central-government employees.
    • The DSPE acquired its popular current name, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through a Home Ministry resolution dated in 1963.

    Mandate of the CBI

    • The CBI is the main investigating agency of the GoI.
    • It is not a statutory body; it derives its powers from the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946.
    • Its important role is to prevent corruption and maintain integrity in administration.
    • It works under the supervision of the CVC (Central Vigilance Commission) in matters pertaining to the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
    • The CBI is also India’s official representative with the INTERPOL.

    Cases to investigate

    • Cases connected to infringement of economic and fiscal laws
    • Crimes of a serious nature that have national and international ramifications
    • Coordination with the activities of the various state police forces and anti-corruption agencies.
    • It can also take up any case of public importance and investigate it
    • Maintaining crime statistics and disseminating criminal information.

    Issues with CBI

    • Caged parrot: The Supreme Court has criticised the CBI by calling it a “caged parrot speaking in its master’s voice”.
    • Political interference: It has often been used by the government of the day to cover up wrongdoing, keep coalition allies in line and political opponents at bay.
    • Investigation delay: It has been accused of enormous delays in concluding investigations due to political inertia.
    • Loss of Credibility: CBI has been criticised for its mismanagement of several cases involving prominent politicians and mishandling of several sensitive cases like Bofors scandal, Bhopal gas tragedy.
    • Lack of Accountability: CBI is exempted from the provisions of the Right to Information Act, thus, lacking public accountability.
    • Acute shortage of personnel: A major cause of the shortfall is the government’s sheer mismanagement of CBI’s workforce.
    • Limited Powers: The powers and jurisdiction of members of the CBI for investigation are subject to the consent of the State Govt., thus limiting the extent of investigation by CBI.
    • Restricted Access: Prior approval of Central Government to conduct inquiry or investigation on the employees of the Central Government is a big obstacle in combating corruption at higher levels of bureaucracy.

    Way Forward

    • Need for autonomy:   As long as the government of the day has the power to transfer and post officials of its choice in the CBI, the investigating agency will not enjoy autonomy and will be unable to investigate cases freely.
    • A new CBI Act should be promulgated that ensures the autonomy of CBI while at the same time improving the quality of supervision.
    • Selection of director/ Officers: To ensure that the CBI is a robust, independent and credible investigation agency, there is an urgent need to work out a much more transparent mechanism for selection and induction of officers on deputation.
    • Lokpal scrutiny: The Lokpal Act already calls for a three-member committee made up of the PM, the leader of the opposition and the CJI to select the director.
    • Bifurcation of Cadre: CBI should be bifurcated into an Anti-Corruption Body and a National Crime Bureau.
    • Develop own cadre: One of the demands that have been before Supreme Court, and in line with international best practices, is for the CBI to develop its own dedicated cadre of officers.
    • Annual social audit should be carried out by ten reputed, knowledgeable persons with background of law, justice, public affairs and administration and the audit report should be placed before the parliament.

     

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  • Duare Ration Scheme in West Bengal

    West Bengal CM has launched an ambitious “Duare Ration” Scheme.

    Duare Ration Scheme

    • The Scheme aims for providing food grains under the public distribution system (PDS) at the doorstep for the entire population of the State.
    • It aims to unload the person carrying huge chunk of food grains manually.
    • Vehicles will carry ration in a particular street or lane and employees of ration dealers will make the food grains available to the people near their residence.

    Key arrangements

    • The state govt would provide around 21,000 ration dealers with the financial assistance of â‚č1 lakh each to purchase vehicles for delivering ration to people in this manner.
    • It also announced financial assistance to ration dealers to hire additional staff to make the scheme a success.

    Back2Basics: Public Distribution System

    • The PDS is an Indian food Security System established under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution.
    • PDS evolved as a system of management of scarcity through the distribution of food grains at affordable prices.
    • PDS is operated under the joint responsibility of the Central and State Governments.
    • The Central Government, through the Food Corporation of India (FCI), has assumed the responsibility for procurement, storage, transportation, and bulk allocation of food grains to the State Governments.
    • The operational responsibilities including allocation within the State, identification of eligible families, issue of Ration Cards and supervision of the functioning of Fair Price Shops (FPSs) etc., rest with the State Governments.
    • Under the PDS, presently the commodities namely wheat, rice, sugar and kerosene are being allocated to the States/UTs for distribution. Some States/UTs also distribute additional items of mass consumption through the PDS outlets such as pulses, edible oils, iodized salt, spices, etc.

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  • [pib] Digital India Land Record Modernization Program

    Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj has recently held a workshop on Digital India Land Record Modernization Programme (DILRMP).

    About DILRMP

    • The DILRMP was previously known as the National Land Record Modernization Programme (NLRMP).
    • It was launched in 2008 with the purpose to digitize and modernizing land records and developing a centralized land record management system.
    • The DILRMP is the amalgamation of two projects:
    1. Computerization of Land Records (CLR)
    2. Strengthening of Revenue Administration and Updating of Land Records (SRA & ULR)
    • The district will be taken as the unit of implementation, where all activities under the programme will converge.

    Components of DILRMP

    The DILRMP has 3 major components

    1. Computerization of land record
    2. Survey/re-survey
    3. Computerization of Registration

    Key features: Unique Land Parcel Identification Numbers

    • It is just like the Aadhar Number of land parcels.
    • A unique ID based on Geo-coordinates of the parcels is generated and assigned to the plots.
    • This has been introduced to share the computerized digital land record data among different States/Sectors and a uniform system of assigning a unique ID to the land parcel across the country.

    Benefits offered

    The citizen is expected to benefit from DILRMP in one or more of the following ways;

    • Real-time land ownership records will be available to the citizen
    • Property owners will have free access to their records without any compromise in regard to the confidentiality of the information
    • Abolition of stamp papers and payment of stamp duty and registration fees through banks, etc. will also reduce interface with the Registration machinery
    • These records will be tamper-proof
    • This method will permit e-linkages to credit facilities

     

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