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GS Paper: GS2

  • A ‘Taiwan flashpoint’ in the Indo-Pacific

    Context

    If the rising confrontation between the United States and China erupts into a clash of arms, the likely arena may well be the Taiwan Strait.

    Historical background of the Taiwan issue

    • The Guomindang (KMT) forces under Chiang Kai-shek lost the 1945-49 civil war to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 1949. forces under Mao Zedong.
    • Chiang retreated to the island of Taiwan and set up a regime that claimed authority over the whole of China and pledged to recover the mainland eventually.
    • The CCP in turn pledged to reclaim what it regarded as a “renegade” province and achieve the final reunification of China.
    • Role of the U.S.: Taiwan could not be occupied militarily by the newly established People’s Republic of China (PRC) as it became a military ally of the United States during the Korean War of 1950-53.
    • This phase came to an end with the U.S. recognising the PRC as the legitimate government of China in 1979, ending its official relationship with Taiwan and abrogating its mutual defence treaty with the island.
    • Strategic ambiguity policy of the US: Nevertheless, the U.S. has declared that it will “maintain the ability to come to Taiwan’s defence” while not committing itself to do so.
    • This is the policy of “strategic ambiguity”.
    • The PRC has pursued a typical carrot and stick policy to achieve the reunification of Taiwan with the mainland.
    • It has held out the prospect, indeed preference for peaceful reunification, through promising a high degree of autonomy to the island under the “one country two systems”.
    • The “one country two systems” formula first applied to Hong Kong after its reversion to Chinese sovereignty in 1997.

    China-Taiwan economic links

    • Taiwan business entities have invested heavily in mainland China and the two economies have become increasingly integrated.
    • Between 1991 and 2020, the stock of Taiwanese capital invested in China reached U.S. $188.5 billion and bilateral trade in 2019 was U.S. $150 billion, about 15% of Taiwan’s GDP.
    • By the same token, China is capable of inflicting acute economic pain on Taiwan through coercive policies if the island is seen to drift towards an independent status.

    Prospects for peaceful reunification

    • Taiwan has two major political parties.
    • The KMT, dominated by the descendants of the mainlanders remains committed to a one-China policy.
    • The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), on the other hand, is more representative of the indigenous population of the island, and favours independence.
    • Faced with aggressive threats from China and lack of international support, the demand for independence has been muted.
    • Ever since the DPP under Tsai Ing-wen won the presidential elections in 2016, China has resorted to a series of hostile actions against the island, which include economic pressures and military threats.
    • One important implication of this development is that prospects for peaceful unification have diminished.
    • Sentiment in Taiwan in favour of independent status has increased.

    Role of the US

    • While the U.S. does not support a declaration of independence by Taiwan, it has gradually reversed the policy of avoiding official-level engagements with the Taiwan government
    • The first breach occurred during the Donald Trump presidency.
    • The Joe Biden officials have continued this policy.
    • The Taiwanese representative in Washington was invited to attend the presidential inauguration ceremony (Biden), again a first since 1979.
    • Reports have now emerged that U.S. defence personnel have been, unannounced, training with their Taiwanese counterparts for sometime.

    Implications for Quad and India

    • The recent crystallisation of the Quad, of which India is a part, and the announcement of the AUKUS, with Australia being graduated to a power with nuclear-powered submarines, may act as a deterrent against Chinese moves on Taiwan.
    • But they may equally propel China to advance the unification agenda before the balance changes against it in the Indo-Pacific.
    • For these reasons, Taiwan is emerging as a potential trigger point for a clash of arms between the U.S. and China.

    Consider the question “What are the implications of Taiwan issue and the US involvement in it for India?”

    Conclusion

    In pursuing its Indo-Pacific strategy, India would do well to keep these possible scenarios in mind.

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  • Issues faced by World Bank and IMF

    This article discusses some inherent issues with the international organizations (IOs) i.e., the World Bank (Bank) and International Monetary Fund (IMF) (aka Bretton Woods Twins). This comes in the backyard of the WB decision to scrap its flagship publication, the ‘Doing Business’ report.

    Issue over chair: A monopoly of the West

    • Common individuals to head: The individuals which are common to them: Paul Wolfowitz, Jim-Kim, David Malpass, Rodrigo Rato, Dominique-Strauss Kahn, Christine Lagarde, and Kristalina Georgieva.
    • Monopoly of US/EU: They have all become heads via a dual monopoly selection procedure: Only an American can head the Bank and only a European can head the IMF.
    • Personal integrity: This has been called into question, the most recent being the revelations of malfeasance at the World Bank where data was apparently massaged to make at least two major countries — China and Saudi Arabia— look better than they would otherwise have been.

    Issues with these heads: Hypocrisy

    • Political accountability: Within countries, we expect reasonable standards of integrity from heads of important institutions, and democratic political accountability mechanisms exist to ensure that.
    • Probity: The effectiveness and legitimacy of these individuals and indeed of the international institutions they head require personal qualities of probity.
    • Non-virtuous preachers: These heads often go around the developing world, preaching the virtues of good governance, from arguing against the scourge of corruption to improving data integrity.
    • Undue parameters: There are even World Bank indices to rank countries on those metrics.

    How has this impacted these institutions?

    Ans. The credibility of the institutions is lost.

    • It is not just the charge of hypocrisy, but also the effect on the morale and motivation of the staff of these institutions.
    • Many of them chose to work here because of a commitment to public service.
    • The recent letter by more than 300 former World Bank staff, expressing their anguish at the recent revelations on the Doing Business index, captures this sentiment.

    Why such issues grapple these institutions?

    • Goal definition: International institutions operate in a grey zone of neither clearly being in or outside the realm of formal politics and hence have weaker mechanisms of accountability.
    • Selection of heads: The selection procedure for choosing heads of the Bank and the Fund has been a dismal failure. Compromised heads are potentially more biased.
    • Indoctrination: Contrast this with the growing alarm and anxiety that characterizes the rise of China and its attempts to place its own nationals in existing IOs as well as creating new ones.

    Chinese has intruded even into these

    • Countries place their nationals to head these institutions, both for prestige and to pursue their national interests.
    • China has its own nationals now head four of the 15 UN specialized agencies (it suffered a rare setback to head the World Intellectual Property Organisation last year).

    Conclusion

    • The contest between the West (and especially the US) and China to shape the global order is becoming manifest.
    • China’s efforts, its success, and more broadly its influence in IOs should certainly raise deep concerns, most notably the suppression of the inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus.
    • Looking ahead, if the US and Europe do not hold themselves to the standards they exhort to the rest of the world, their credibility and legitimacy will continue to degrade.
    • This will cede ground and soft power to geopolitical rivals.

    Way forward

    • So, global political leaders convening next week for the annual meetings of the Bank and Fund must act with urgency and conviction to stem the rot.
    • They must open the selection of the heads of these institutions to the best candidate, regardless of nationality.
    • And to pave the way, they should clear up the current mess over the Doing Business saga.

    Back2Basics:

    International Org. | Part 7 | Bretton Woods Institutions – World Bank Group

     

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  • India-ASEAN FTA

    The Commerce and Industry Minister has called for a renegotiation of the India-ASEAN free trade agreement (FTA).

    Why such move?

    • The MCI aims to prevent its misuse by ‘third parties’ and remove trade restrictions as well as non-tariff barriers that he said had hurt Indian exports disproportionately since the pact was operationalized in 2010.
    • The focus needed to be on new rules to eliminate misuse ‘by third parties outside ASEAN’, the minister said, hinting at China.
    • India had to deal with several restrictive barriers on exports in the ASEAN region, particularly in the agriculture and auto sectors.

    About ASEAN

    • Members:
    • Officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN is an economic union comprising 10 member states in Southeast Asia.
    • It promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, military, educational, and sociocultural integration between its members and other countries in Asia.

    India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement

    • The initial framework agreement for ASEAN–India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) was signed on 8 October 2003 in Bali, Indonesia.
    • The FTA came into effect on 1 January 2010.
    • The FTA had emerged from a mutual interest of both parties to expand their economic ties in the Asia-Pacific region.

    Background of the AIFTA

    • India’s Look East policy was reciprocated by similar interests of many ASEAN countries to expand their interactions westward.
    • After India became a sectoral dialogue partner of ASEAN in 1992, India saw its trade with ASEAN increase relative to its trade with the rest of the world.
    • Between 1993 and 2003, ASEAN-India bilateral trade grew at an annual rate of 11.2%, from US$2.9 billion in 1993 to US$12.1 billion in 2003.
    • Total Indian FDI into ASEAN from 2000 to 2008 was US$1.3 billion.

    Acknowledging this trend and recognising the economic potential of closer linkages, both sides recognised the opportunities to pave the way for the establishment of an ASEAN–India Free Trade Area (FTA).

    Structure of the AIFTA

    • The signing of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement paves the way for the creation of one of the world’s largest FTAs – a market of almost 1.8 billion people with a combined GDP of US$2.8 trillion.
    • It sees tariff liberalisation of over 90 percent of products traded between the two dynamic regions, including the so-called “special products”.
    • The products include palm oil (crude and refined), coffee, black tea and pepper.

    Criticism

    While there are many benefits to the ASEAN-India FTA, there is concern in India that the agreement will have several negative impacts on the economy.

    • Opening-up its market: This FTA will allow them to increase the market access of their products.
    • No specific gains: It is criticised, however, that India will not experience as great an increase in market access to ASEAN countries as ASEAN will in India.
    • Export driven ASEAN: The economies of the ASEAN countries are largely export-driven. Considering India’s expansive domestic market, the ASEAN countries will look eagerly towards India as a home for its exports.
    • Huge trade deficit: Since the early 2000s, India has had an increasing trade deficit with ASEAN. It is feared that a gradual liberalisation of tariffs and a rise in imported goods into India will threaten several sectors of the economy.
    • Inaccessible Markets: As a dominant exporter of light manufacturing products, ASEAN has competitive tariff rates that make it difficult for India to gain access to the industry market in ASEAN countries.
    • Cheaper imports: The state of Kerala is an important exporter in the national export of plantation products. It fears that cheap imports of oil palm, rubber, coffee, and fish would lower domestic production, adversely affecting farmers and ultimately its economy.

     

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  • NATO fires Russian Diplomats

    NATO has withdrew the accreditation of eight Russian officials to the military alliance in response to a rise in malign activities by Moscow.

    NATO

    • NATO is a military alliance established by the North Atlantic Treaty (also called the Washington Treaty) of April 4, 1949.
    • It sought to create a counterweight to Soviet armies stationed in Central and Eastern Europe after World War II.
    • Its original members were Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
    • NATO has spread a web of partners, namely Egypt, Israel, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland and Finland.

    Why was it founded?

    Ans. Communist sweep in Europe post-WWII and rise of Soviet dominance

    • After World War II in 1945, Western Europe was economically exhausted and militarily weak, and newly powerful communist parties had arisen in France and Italy.
    • By contrast, the Soviet Union had emerged from the war with its armies dominating all the states of central and Eastern Europe.
    • By 1948 communists under Moscow’s sponsorship had consolidated their control of the governments of those countries and suppressed all non-communist political activity.
    • What became known as the Iron Curtain, a term popularized by Winston Churchill, had descended over central and Eastern Europe.

    Ideology of NATO

    • The NATO ensures that the security of its European member countries is inseparably linked to that of its North American member countries.
    • It commits the Allies to democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law, as well as to peaceful resolution of disputes.
    • It also provides a unique forum for dialogue and cooperation across the Atlantic.

    The Article 5

    • The heart of NATO is expressed in Article 5, in which the signatory members agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all.

    Why in news now?

    • The relationship between NATO and Russia is at its lowest point since the end of the Cold War.
    • The NATO (rather US) sees their aggressive actions, not least against Ukraine, but also the significant military buildup and violations of important arms control agreements.
    • NATO suspended practical cooperation with Russia in 2014 after it annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.

     

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  • A strategy for India in a world that is adrift

    This article discusses new situations prompted by the tectonic shifts in India’s internal and external environment to take another look at India’s path to power in a world between orders.

    New global order: No Order

    • Multipolarity: The world is today adrift. We are neither in a bipolar Cold War nor in a multipolar world, though perhaps tending towards a world of several power centres.
    • Lack of cohesion: The lack of a coherent international response to the COVID-19 pandemic is proof of an absence of international order and of the ineffectiveness of multilateral institutions.
    • Climate ignorance: So is the ineffective international response to climate change and other transnational threats.

    What are the major shifts in global order?

    • Secular stagnation
    • Retreat from globalisation
    • Regionalisation of trade
    • Shifting balance of power
    • Rise of China and others
    • Structural China-United States strategic rivalry

    All above factors have shifted the geopolitical and economic centres of gravity from the Atlantic to Asia.

    Major Concerns

    • Chauvinism: Inequality between and within states has bred a narrow nationalism and parochialism.
    • Existential threats: We are entering a new polarised information age, and face ecological crises of the Anthropocene, making climate change an existential threat.

    Asia as the nucleus: With focus on China

    • Shift of focus by the US: Over the next decade we expect Asia to remain the cockpit of geopolitical rivalries, and that the US remains the most formidable power, though its relative power is declining.
    • China at the centre: China sees a window of opportunity but acts in a hurry, suggesting that she believes that window may close or is already closing due to push back from the West and others.

    China’s expansionism

    • China’s crowded geography constrains her both on land and at sea.
    • Hence it expects her profile and power to continue expanding, particularly in our periphery.
    • The result is likely continued friction, some cooperation, and quasi-adversarial relations between India and China, which others will take advantage of.
    • Overall, we do not expect conventional conflict between the great powers in Asia, though other forms and levels of violence and contention in the international system will rise, with Taiwan a special case.

    Opportunities in disguise for India

    • The uncertainty and changing geopolitical environment clearly pose considerable challenges to Indian policy.
    • However, it also throws up certain opportunities, enhancing our strategic options and diplomatic space, if we adjust policies internally and externally, particularly in the subcontinent.

    How can India reap the benefits?

    • Enhancing ties with the US: Increasing security congruence with the US could enable growing cooperation in fields significant for India’s transformation: energy, trade, investment, education and health.
    • Climate cooperation: Other areas in which India and the U.S. could increase cooperation are: climate change and energy, tech solutions for renewable energy, and on digital cooperation.
    • Neighbourhood first: Several middle powers like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Indonesia in the neighbourhood are now India’s natural partners.
    • Digital space: This time of transition between orders is also when new standards and norms are being developed, particularly in the digital space. India can and must be present at the creation.
    • Maritime cooperation: At sea, the balance is today more favourable to us than before, possibly more so than on the continent. India must bat for the creation of a Maritime Commission in IOR.

    Bottlenecks in India’s neighbourhood policy

    • Over securitisation of policy: towards our neighbours has driven trade underground, criminalised our borders.
    • Conducive environment for entry of China: This has enabled the large-scale entry of Chinese goods destroying local industry in the northeast.
    • Lack of self-strengthening: While lessening dependence on China, and seeking external balancing, our primary effort has to concentrate on self-strengthening.
    • Lack of socio-political enterprise: If there is one country which in terms of its size, population, economic potential, scientific and technological capabilities can match or even surpass China, it is India.

    Way forward for India

    (A) Bringing multipolarity in Asia.

    • The way forward should be based on the core strategic principles in Non-Alignment 2.0 which are still relevant: independent judgement, developing our capacities, and creating an equitable and enabling international order for India’s transformation.
    • Today’s situation makes India’s strategic autonomy all the more essential.

    (B) Making an issue-based coalition

    • India must adjust to changing circumstances. We have no choice but to engage with this uncertain and more volatile world.
    • One productive way to do so would be through issue-based coalitions including different actors, depending on who has an interest and capability.

    (C) Reviving SAARC

    • India must craft and reinvigorate regional institutions and processes in the neighbourhood, reviving the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for instance.
    • India could be the primary source of both prosperity and security in the neighbourhood — the subcontinent and the Indian Ocean Region.

    Conclusion

    • Economic policy must match political and strategic engagement.
    • Globalisation has been central to India’s growth.
    • A more active regional and international role for India is incompatible with a position on the margins of the global economy.
    • Self-reliance in today’s world and technologies can only be realised as part of the global economy.
    • We should not imitate China’s claims to being a civilisational state and its adoption of victimhood.
    • Instead, we should affirm our own strength and historic national identity.

     

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  • Government asks Supreme Court to set norms for quota in promotions

    The Union government has urged the Supreme Court to do away with the requirement of collecting quantifiable data by the Centre and states to determine the representation of people belonging to Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) while implementing reservation in promotion.

    Supreme Court directive on Quota in Promotions

    Background

    • The top court has called it “disturbing” that the Union government did not discontinue reservation in promotion for people belonging to SC/STs.
    • It referred to their numbers exceeded the upper ceiling of 15% and 7.5% respectively, of positions in some classes of central government jobs.

    Quota in Promotions: A timeline

    What was the case?

    • The Union government has been pressing for reservation in promotion proportionate to the population of SCs and STs as per a 1995 judgment by the top court in the RK Sabharwal case.
    • It wants it to be left open to the Centre and states to decide on promotional avenues for SCs and STs.
    • It claims that the condition regarding collection of quantifiable data to show inadequacy of representation of SCs/STs is “vague”.
    • Advocates representing general category have contended that the reservation cannot be for an indefinite period and that it must stop as soon as the upper ceiling has been reached.
    • Further, they have emphasised that reservation in promotion should be cadre-based only after quantifiable data is collected and the creamy layer has been excluded.

    Defying the need for quantifiable data

    • Attorney General sought to convince the court that the roster system, based on the proportionate population of SCs/STs, has been working quite well in all government departments.
    • The condition of collecting quantifiable data on inadequacy of representation of SCs/STs may not be required at all.
    • He urged that there is no need to verify any further or collect quantifiable data after the roster system.

    Referring to the Nagraj Case

    • Article 16(4A) of Indian Constitution allows reservations to SCs and STs in promotions, as long as the government believes that they are not adequately represented in government services.
    • In 2006, a Constitution bench’s ruling in the M Nagaraj case made it incumbent upon the state to collect quantifiable data showing inadequacy of representation in public employment.
    • This was to be done in addition to maintaining overall administrative efficiency.

    Why such demand by the Centre?

    • The Attorney General has said that it is tough for a member of the SC/ST to reach the ‘Group A’ category jobs.
    • The time has come for the apex court to firm up and draw the basis for reservation in promotions for SC/ST candidates to fill up vacancies in top jobs.
    • The Bench referred to records filed before it to note that there was low representation of SC/ST category in Group A jobs.
    • Instead of improving the situation in the Group A ranks, the court said, efforts are on to ensure adequate representation in Groups B and C. This was not fair, it remarked.

    Must read:

    [Burning Issue] SC judgement on Reservation not being a Fundamental Right

     

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  • On Digital Health ID, proceed with caution

    Much recently, the Prime Minister had launched the Digital Health ID project (DHID), generating debate on issues related to the use of technology in a broken health system.

    Explained: Digital Health ID

    Good intents of the DHID

    • The key objective of DHID is to improve the quality, access and affordability of health services by making the service delivery “quicker, less expensive and more robust”.
    • The ambition is undoubtedly high. Given that health systems are highly complex, the DHID would hardly be able to address some of the issues plaguing it.

    Why need DHID?

    (a) Record maintenance

    • The use of technology for record maintenance is not just inevitable but necessary. Its time has certainly come.
    • A decade ago, the process to shift towards electronic medical records was initiated in the private sector.
    • It met with limited success, despite the strong positives.
    • With DHID, the burden of storing and carrying health records for every visit to the doctor is minimised.

    (b) Better tracking of medical history

    • The doctor has instant access to the patient’s case history –the treatment undertaken, where and with what outcomes — enabling more accurate diagnosis and treatment.
    • As the DHID enables portability across geography and healthcare providers, it also helps reduce re-testing or repeating problems every time a patient consults a new doctor.
    • That’s a huge gain, impacting the quality of care and enhancing patient satisfaction and confidence.

    (c) Better Diagnosis

    • DHID can have a transformative impact in promoting ecosystems that function as paperless facilities.
    • Paperless hospitals can promote early diagnosis before the patient reaches the doctor after spending long hours in queue.
    • The doctor can already go through the patient’s record and the pharmacist can make the drugs available by the time the patient reached its counter.

    (d) Promoting medical research

    • Digitisation of medical records is another important positive, given the problems related to space and retrieving huge databases.
    • Well organised repositories that enable easy access to records can stimulate much-needed research on medical devices and drugs.
    • This storehouse of patient data can be valuable for clinical and operational research.

    Given our population, would this be an idealistic expectation?

    • We need to conduct pilot studies to assess the use of technology for streamlining patient flows and medical records and thereby increase efficiencies across different typologies of hospitals and facilities.
    • While technology helps smoothen processes and enhance patient experience, there is a cost attached.
    • Investments have to be made upfront and results should not be expected overnight.

    Issues with DHID

    (a) A costly affair

    • In the immediate short run, DHID will increase administrative costs by about 20 per cent, due to the capital investment in data infrastructure.
    • Over the long run, the additional cost to healthcare is expected to be about 2 per cent.
    • Any scaling up of this reform would require extensive fiscal subsidies and more importantly providing techno-logistical support to both government and private hospitals.

    (b) Privacy concerns

    • Most important is the issue of privacy, the high possibility of hacking and breach of confidentiality.
    • The possibility of privacy being violated increases with the centralisation of all information.
    • Though it is said that the patient is the owner of the information, how many of us deny access, as a matter of routine, when we download apps or programmes that seek access to all our records?
    • How far is this “consent” practical for an illiterate, vulnerable patient desperate to get well?
    • So, taking refuge behind a technical statement that access is contingent on patient consent is unconvincing.

    Ground situation in India

    • Inherently unaffordable healthcare: The costs in the Indian context can be high and that should lead to a careful assessment of the project.
    • Digital divide: Such a scenario is not inconceivable and in the case of health, may cause immense hardship to the most marginalised sections of our population.
    • Infrastructure gap: A large majority of facilities do not have the required physical infrastructure — electricity, accommodation, trained personnel.
    • Usual nature of technical glitches: Cards getting corrupted, servers being down, computers crashing or hanging, and power outages are common in India.
    • Conformity over data synchronization: The inability to synchronise biometric data with ID cards has resulted in large-scale exclusions of the poor from welfare projects.
    • Accuracy of records: Besides, the efficacy of the DHID hinges on the assumption that every visit and every drug consumed by the patient is faithfully and accurately recorded.
    • Increased workload on Medical Professionals: Moreover, while electronic mapping of providers may enable patients to spot a less busy doctor near their location, it is simplistic to assume that the patient will go there.

    Plugging the existing gaps

    • Patient preference for a doctor is dependent upon perception and trust. Likewise, teleconsultations need a huge backend infrastructure and organisation.
    • Teleconsulting has certainly helped patients access medical advice for managing minor ailments, getting prescriptions on the phone and even getting drugs delivered home.
    • But in handling chronic diseases that necessitate continuity of care, teleconsultations have been problematic and cannot be substituted for actual physical examination.
    • Continuity of care is central to good outcomes in inpatient management of chronic diseases.
    • The one serious shortcoming of using teleconsultation for such management is the high attrition rate of doctors within the context of an overall shortage of doctors.
    • Technology can be of little use in the absence of doctors and basic infrastructure.

    Way forward

    • What is needed is building very robust firewalls and trust.
    • Seeing the frequency with which Aadhaar cards have been breached, it is not unreasonable to be concerned with this issue and the implications it has at the family and societal levels.
    • For this reason, instead of a big bang approach, it is better to go slow and steady.
    • That’s the only way to ensure that a good policy does not die along the way due to poor implementation.

     

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  • Outer space

    In opening new pathways for outer space cooperation in the recent US visit, PM Modi has positioned India to engage more productively with a rapidly evolving domain that is seeing more commerce and contestation.

    Outer Space Cooperation: A backgrounder

    • International cooperation is the new normal in space exploration, but it’s not a new concept.
    • One example of this cooperation is the International Space Station (ISS).
    • Another advance in international cooperation in the peaceful exploration of outer space came with the Artemis Accords.
    • Introduced in October 2020, the Artemis Accords establish a set of principles to guide space cooperation among countries participating in NASA’s Artemis program.

    There are five treaties that deal with issues related to outer space

    1. Moon Treaty: Non-appropriation of outer space by any one country, arms control, the freedom of exploration
    2. Liability Convention: Liability for damage caused by space objects
    3. Rescue Agreement: Safety and rescue of spacecraft and astronauts
    4. Outer Space Treaty: Prevention of harmful interference with space activities and the environment
    5. Registration Convention: Notification and registration of space activities, scientific investigation and exploitation of natural resources in outer space and the settlement of disputes

    Why does Outer Spaces matter?

    • Space situational awareness (SSA) involves monitoring the movement of all objects — natural (meteors) and man-made (satellites) — and tracking space weather.
    • Today, space is integral to our lives and disruption of space-based communications and earth observation will have serious consequences.

    India’s strategic interest in Outer Space

    Delhi’s new strategic interest in outer space is based on a recognition of two important trends.

    1. Centrality of emerging technologies in shaping the 21st-century global order
    2. Urgency of writing new rules for the road to peace and stability in outer space

    Why need US for this?

    • Technology cooperation has always been an important part of India-US relations.
    • But it has been a boutique discourse between the relevant agencies of the two governments.
    • The US has traditionally dominated outer space in the commercial domain.
    • As emerging technologies overhaul global economic and security structures, Delhi and Washington now have to widen the interface of technology.

    Why need a comprehensive outer space treaty?

    • Although human forays into space began in the middle of the 20th century, the intensity of that activity as well as its commercial and security implications have dramatically increased in recent decades.
    • Outer space has become a location for lucrative business as well as a site of military competition between states.
    • Until recently, outer space has been the sole preserve of states. But private entities are now major players in space commerce.
    • At the same time, as space becomes a critical factor in shaping the military balance of power on the earth, there is growing competition among states.

    Expanding QUAD in this term

    • Until now, the maritime domain has dominated the strategic cooperation bilaterally between Delhi and Washington as well as within the Quad.
    • The annual Malabar naval exercise, for example, began nearly three decades ago as a bilateral venture in 1992 and became a quadrilateral one in 2020 with the participation of Australia.

    Why does US need India in OST?

    • India, which has developed significant space capabilities over the decades, is a deeply invested party.
    • The US recognises that it can’t unilaterally define the space order anymore and is looking for partners.
    • International cooperation on space situational awareness is similar to the agreements on maritime domain awareness — that facilitate sharing of information on a range of ocean metrics.
    • India has been strengthening its maritime domain awareness through bilateral agreements as well as the Information Fusion Centre for the Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) at Gurugram.
    • India has also taken tentative steps to cope with the unfolding military challenges in outer space.
    • It has also initiated space security dialogue with close partners like the US, Japan, and France.

    Making a first global move

    • When signed, the agreement with the US on SSA will be the first of its kind for India.
    • Washington has agreements with more than two dozen countries on SSA.
    • The US and Indian delegations have also discussed a US initiative called the Artemis Accords — that seek to develop norms for activity in the Moon and other planetary objects.

    Way forward

    • As commercial and military activity in outer space grows, the 20th-century agreements like Outer Space Treaty and the Moon Treaty (1979) need reinforcement and renewal.
    • The growing strategic salience of outer space demands substantive national policy action in India.
    • That can only be mandated by the highest political level. Back in 2015, PM Modi’s speech on the Indian Ocean focused national attention on maritime affairs.
    • India could do with a similar intervention on outer space today.

     

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  • What are the concerns of digital health mission?

    The Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), was recently launched by the PM.

    About Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission

    • The pilot project of the National Digital Health Mission was announced by PM Modi during his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort on August 15, 2020.
    • The mission will enable access and exchange of longitudinal health records of citizens with their consent.
    • This will ensure ease of doing business for doctors and hospitals and healthcare service providers.

    The key components of the project include

    • Health ID for every citizen that will also work as their health account, to which personal health records can be linked and viewed with the help of a mobile application,
    • Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR)
    • Healthcare Facilities Registries (HFR) that will act as a repository of all healthcare providers across both modern and traditional systems of medicine

    How will it work?

    • In order to be a part of the ABDM, citizens will have to create a unique health ID – a randomly generated 14-digit identification number.
    • The ID will give the user unique identification, authentication and will be a repository of all health records of a person.
    • The ID can also be made by self-registration on the portal, downloading the ABMD Health Records app on one’s mobile or at a participating health facility.
    • The beneficiary will also set up a Personal Health Records (PHR) address for the issue of consent, and for future sharing of health records.

    Major privacy issues involved

    • Informed Consent: The citizen’s consent is vital for all access. A beneficiary’s consent is vital to ensure that information is released.
    • Data leakages issue: Personalised data collected at multiple levels are a “sitting gold mine” for insurance companies, international researchers, and pharma companies.
    • Digital divide: Other experts add that lack of access to technology, poverty, and lack of understanding of the language in a vast and diverse country like India are problems that need to be looked into.
    • Data Migration: The data migration and inter-State transfer are still faced with multiple errors and shortcomings in addition to concerns of data security.

    Other challenges

    • Existing digitalization is yet incomplete: India has been unable to standardise the coverage and quality of the existing digital cards like One Nation One Ration card, PM-JAY card, Aadhaar card, etc., for accessibility of services and entitlements.
    • Lack of healthcare facilities: The defence of data security by expressed informed consent doesn’t work in a country that is plagued by the acute shortage of healthcare professionals to inform the client fully.
    • Lack of finance: With the minuscule spending of 1.3% of the GDP on the healthcare sector, India will be unable to ensure the quality and uniform access to healthcare that it hoped to bring about.

  • Election Symbols after Party Split

    The Election Commission of India (ECI) has frozen an election symbol of a political party in Bihar to which a cabinet minister belonged.

    What are the Election Commission’s powers in a dispute over the election symbol when a party splits?

    • The question of a split in a political party outside the legislature is dealt by Para 15 of the Symbols Order, 1968.
    • It states that the ECI may take into account all the available facts and circumstances and undertake a test of majority.
    • The decision of the ECI shall be binding on all such rival sections or groups emerged after the split.
    • This applies to disputes in recognised national and state parties.
    • For splits in registered but unrecognised parties, the EC usually advises the warring factions to resolve their differences internally or to approach the court.

    How did the EC deal with such matters before the Symbols Order came into effect?

    • Before 1968, the EC issued notifications and executive orders under the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961.
    • The most high-profile split of a party before 1968 was that of the CPI in 1964.
    • A breakaway group approached the ECI in December 1964 urging it to recognise them as CPI(Marxist). They provided a list of MPs and MLAs of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and West Bengal who supported them.
    • The ECI recognised the faction as CPI(M) after it found that the votes secured by the MPs and MLAs supporting the breakaway group added up to more than 4% in the 3 states.

    What was the first case decided under Para 15 of the 1968 Order?

    • It was the first split in the Indian National Congress in 1969.
    • Indira Gandhi’s tensions with a rival group within the party came to a head with the death of President Dr Zakir Hussain on May 3, 1969.

    Is there a way other than the test of majority to resolve a dispute over election symbols?

    • In almost all disputes decided by the EC so far, a clear majority of party delegates/office bearers, MPs and MLAs have supported one of the factions.
    • Whenever the EC could not test the strength of rival groups based on support within the party organisation (because of disputes regarding the list of office bearers), it fell back on testing the majority only among elected MPs and MLAs.

    What happens to the group that doesn’t get the parent party’s symbol?

    • The EC in 1997 did not recognise the new parties as either state or national parties.
    • It felt that merely having MPs and MLAs is not enough, as the elected representatives had fought and won polls on tickets of their parent (undivided) parties.
    • The EC introduced a new rule under which the splinter group of the party — other than the group that got the party symbol — had to register itself as a separate party.
    • It could lay claim to national or state party status only on the basis of its performance in state or central elections after registration.

     

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