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GS Paper: GS2

  • Leveraging government-private thought partnerships

    Thought partnership between government and the external players can aid in informed policymaking. The article deals with these issues and suggest forging of more of such partnerships. 

    Government working together with external partners

    • Policymaking requires multiple rounds of consultations and co-working with different entities, including collaboration between the government and external partners.
    • Over the last few years, there has been increasing evidence of the government and external partners working together on complex policy problems.
    • The government has formalized the induction of private individuals into the system by opening up lateral entry.
    • Several central government ministries and entities, such as NITI Aayog, routinely recruit private individuals as consultants, officers on special duty, or young professionals.
    • Given the staggering vacancies in the central government, such support is critical since civil servants are generally overburdened and under-resourced.

    What is thought partnership and how it works

    • Thought partnerships are a structured mechanism for private entities to lend relevant strategic expertise to the government on policy design, evaluation, and implementation.
    • It is also not always feasible for the government itself to fund projects involving private partners, more so when such projects are unconventional thought partnerships.
    • Several domestic and international philanthropies and impact investing firms are already investing in critical sectors in developing countries including India.
    • However, much of this funding goes into supporting projects or interventions that work in limited, contextual settings rather than systemic or sectoral transformation programs.
    • It is here that philanthropies and impact investing firms can make a huge difference.

    Past thought partnerships

    • In 2005, the Ashok Lahiri Committee report stated that there was not enough knowledge about external capital flows and controls in India.
    • The committee’s recommendation resulted in the establishment of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Department of Economic Affairs research program.
    • The program led to the creation of a rich body of world-class research on capital controls and flows in India that was used to inform government policy on the matter.
    • In 2015, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs constituted a research secretariat headed by the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, to support the Companies Law Committee to make “informed decisions”.
    • The National Institute of Financial Management is working with the Department of Economic Affairs to provide legal research and technical assistance on Indian and foreign financial markets, policy analysis, formulation as well as the conduct of impact assessment studies on decisions taken by the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

    Consider the question “What is thought partnership and how it could help in making informed policymaking? What are the challenges in forging thought partnerships?”

    Conclusion

    It is in the public interest that more thought partnerships are forged and funded to channel external expertise and skills towards finding scalable solutions to the pressing policy challenges the country faces.

  • Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) at UNSC

    Seeking urgent reform of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), India has highlighted the failure of the Intergovernmental Negotiations (IGN) since 13 years of its establishment.

    Note various countries in the various groups.

    What is the news?

    • India, along with Brazil, Japan and Germany are pressing for urgent reform of the UNSC and for a permanent seat in the reformed 15-member top organ of the world body.
    • India has said that the UNSC is finding itself unable to act effectively to address increasingly complex issues of international peace and security.
    • The UNSC lacks inclusivity of those who need to be members of the powerful organ of the world body.

    What is IGN?

    • The Intergovernmental Negotiations framework or IGN is a group of nation-states working within the United Nations to further reform of the UNSC.
    • The IGN is composed of several different international organizations, namely:
    1. African Union (55 member states)
    2. G4 nations (Brazil, Germany, India and Japan)
    3. Uniting for Consensus Group (UfC), also known as the “Coffee Club” (it aims to counter the bids for permanent seats proposed by G4 nations, includes Pakistan, Turkey, Canada, Spain and Italy)
    4. L69 Group of Developing Countries ( it includes developing countries from Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific)
    5. Arab League (six members: Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria) and
    6. Caribbean Community ( a group of 15 member countries called CARICOM)

  • What is Non-price Competition?

    Data privacy can take the form of non-price competition and abuse of dominance can lower privacy protection, a study by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has said.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Right to Privacy is protected as an intrinsic part of Right to Life and Personal Liberty. Which of the following in the Constitution of India correctly and appropriately imply the above statements?

    (a) Article 14 and the provisions under the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution

    (b) Article 17 and the Directive Principles of State Policy in Part IV

    (c) Article 21 and the freedoms guaranteed in Part III

    (d) Article 24 and the provisions under the 44th Amendment to the Constitution

    What is Non-price Competition?

    • Non-price competition is a marketing strategy “in which one firm tries to distinguish its product or service from competing products on the basis of attributes like design and workmanship”.
    • It often occurs in imperfectly competitive markets as it exists between two or more producers that sell goods and services at the same prices but compete through non-price measures.
    • Such measures include marketing schemes and greater quality or any sustainable competitive advantage other than price.

    What is CCI’s observation?

    • The CCI study made observations about non-price factors such as quality of service (QoS), data speeds etc. which are likely to be the new drivers of competitive rivalry between service providers in the telecom sector.
    • CCI noted that an aspect of data in the context of competition in digital communications market is the conflict between allowing access and protecting consumer privacy.

    Privacy at stake

    • Abuse of dominance can take the form of lowering the privacy protection and therefore fall within the ambit of antitrust as low privacy standard implies lack of consumer welfare.
    • Privacy can take the form of non-price competition, said the CCI.
    • On other non-price factors of competition, CCI found that consumers ranked network coverage at the top followed by customer service despite their Privacy.

  • Appointment of the Law Commission

    The Supreme Court has asked the Home and Law Ministries to explain the nearly three-year-long lapse in making appointments to the Law Commission.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.The power to increase the number of judges in the Supreme Court of India is vested in

    (a) The President of India

    (b) The Parliament

    (c) The Chief Justice of India

    (d) The Law Commission

    What is the news?

    • The posts of Chairperson and Members have been vacant ever since the 21st Law Commission under the former Supreme Court judge, Justice B.S. Chauhan completed its tenure in August.
    • The government approved the constitution of the 22nd Law Commission on February 19 last.
    • However, it has not appointed the Chairperson and Members to date.

    What is the Law Commission?

    • It is an executive body established by an order of the Government of India. The first law commission of independent India was established post Independence in 1955
    • Tenure: 3 Years
    • Function: Advisory body to the Ministry of Law and Justice for “Legal Reforms in India”
    • Recommendations: NOT binding
    • First Law Commission was established during the British Raj in 1834 by the Charter Act of 1833
    • Chairman: Macaulay; It recommended for the Codifications of the IPC, CrPC etc.

    Composition

    The 22nd Law Commission will be constituted for a period of three years from the date of publication of its Order in the Official Gazette. It will consist of:

    1. a full-time Chairperson;
    2. four full-time Members (including Member-Secretary)
    3. Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs as ex-officio Member;
    4. Secretary, Legislative Department as ex officio Member; and
    5. not more than five part-time Members.

    Terms of reference

    • The Law Commission shall, on a reference made to it by the Central Government or suo-motu, undertake research in law and review of existing laws in India for making reforms therein and enacting new legislations.
    • It shall also undertake studies and research for bringing reforms in the justice delivery systems for elimination of delay in procedures, speedy disposal of cases, reduction in the cost of litigation, etc.

    The Law Commission of India shall, inter-alia: –

    • identify laws that are no longer needed or relevant and can be immediately repealed
    • examine the existing laws in the light of DPSP and Preamble
    • consider and convey to the Government its views on any subject relating to law and judicial administration that may be specifically referred to it by the Government through Ministry of Law and Justice (Department of Legal Affairs);
    • Consider the requests for providing research to any foreign countries as may be referred to it by the Government through the Ministry of Law and Justice (Department of Legal Affairs);
    • take all such measures as may be necessary to harness law and the legal process in the service of the poor;
    • revise the Central Acts of general importance so as to simplify them and remove anomalies, ambiguities, and inequities

  • Ayushman Bharat for CAPFs

    Union Home Minister has rolled out the ‘Ayushman CAPF’ scheme, extending the benefit of the central health insurance programme to the personnel of all Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) in the country.

    Who are the CAPFs?

    • The CAPFs refers to uniform nomenclature of five security forces in India under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs.
    • Their role is to defend the national interest mainly against the internal threats.
    • They are the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB)

    Ayushman CAPF

    • Under this scheme, around 28 lakh personnel of CAPF, Assam Rifles and National Security Guard (NSG) and their families will be covered by ‘Ayushman Bharat: PM Jan Arogya Yojana’ (AB PM-JAY).
    • For the CAPF, the existing health coverage was not comprehensive as compared to other military forces.

    Do you know?

    The goal of universal health coverage (UHC) as stated in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs no. 3) is one of the most significant commitments to equitable quality healthcare for all.

    About Ayushman Bharat

    • PM-JAY aims to provide free access to healthcare for 40% of people in the country.
    • It is a centrally sponsored scheme and is jointly funded by both the union government and the states.
    • It was launched in September 2018 by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
    • The ministry has later established the National Health Authority as an organization to administer the program.

    Key features:

    • Providing health coverage for 10 crores households or 50 crores Indians.
    • It provides a cover of 5 lakh per family per year for medical treatment in empanelled hospitals, both public and private.
    • Offering cashless payment and paperless recordkeeping through the hospital or doctor’s office.
    • Using criteria from the Socio-Economic and Caste Census 2011 to determine eligibility for benefits.
    • There is no restriction on family size, age or gender.
    • All previous medical conditions are covered under the scheme.
    • It covers 3 days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days of post-hospitalization, including diagnostic care and expenses on medicines.
    • The scheme is portable and a beneficiary can avail medical treatment at any PM-JAY empanelled hospital outside their state and anywhere in the country.

    Note these features. They cannot be memorized all of sudden but can be recognized if a tricky MCQ comes in the prelims.

    Must read:

    [Burning Issue] Ayushmaan Bharat

  • New WhatsApp Privacy Policy

    Privacy policy update by the WhatsApp recently led to widespread protest from the user forcing company to put the update on hold. If India had made Personal Protection Bill into the law, the privacy policy update would have been illegal. The article deals with this issue.

    About WhatsApp

    • WhatsApp’s unique blend of text, audio, and voice messaging and calling platform.
    • In November 2014, WhatsApp adopted the Signal protocol for end-to-end encryption after its acquisition by Facebook.
    • WhatsApp has two billion users worldwide, of which 400 million are in India, the largest in any country.

    What the privacy policy update is about

    • The updated policy seeks consent from users to allow the platform to share their data with Facebook and its companies,
    • It means that WhatsApp would share transaction data, mobile device information, IP addresses, and other metadata on how users interact with businesses on WhatsApp.
    • Such sharing would be done with the user being notified before the start of a chat if the business uses Facebook to store and analyze data and the user would have the option of blocking the business.
    • The update would defy the principle of purpose limitation that has been the yardstick of addressing privacy concerns at a global level.

    What is the principle of purpose limitation

    • The Indian government has also sent a strong note to WhatsApp, seeking the company’s response to 14 queries.
    • This note has sent a clear message to WhatsApp to not subject Indian users to greater information security risks and vulnerabilities with the consolidation of data from WhatsApp and Facebook.
    • In the note, the government referred to the principle of purpose limitation provisions in the Personal Data Protection Bill (PDPB) currently being discussed by a joint select committee.
    • Had the bill been passed by now, WhatsApp’s move would have been illegal.
    • Provisions in the bill required that every data intermediary has to take explicit permission from the user whose data would be harvested.
    • Even the method of data classification into sensitive personal data and critical data has been defined and their processing possibilities mentioned in the bill.

    Way forward

    • The government should make the Personal Data Protection Bill into law so that such restrictive practices can never be introduced in the first place.
    • It is due to such law, WhatsApp did make an exception for its users in the European Union.
    • The Competition Commission of India should take note that this is a classic case of an organization using its near-monopolistic power to push through something that is not in the consumer interest.

    Consider the question “What is the principle of purpose limitation in the Personal Data Protection Bill? How it can help user protect its privacy?”

    Conclusion

    As Digital India expands and brings in more users from the current base of 70 crores, and more take to social media for communications and business, they must be ensured a safer digital space, given that most wouldn’t be aware of the reach of the data being generated.

  • A new framework around caste and the census

    The article suggests the ways to make the most of the data collected through Census and the SECC.

    Census and issues with it

    • The synchronous decennial Census has evolved over time and has been used by the government, policymakers, academics, and others.
    • Though Census is both a data collection effort and a technique of governance, it is criticized for not being useful enough for a detailed and comprehensive understanding of a complex society.
    •  There is a lack of depth in the Census where some issues are concerned.

    The debate around full-scale Caste Census

    • Since Independence, aggregated Census data on the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes on certain parameters such as education have been collected.
    • There is a growing demand for a full-scale caste census to capture contemporary Indian society and to understand and remedy inequalities.
    • While others believe that this large administrative exercise of capturing caste and its complexities is not only difficult but also socially untenable.
    • There have been concerns that counting caste may help solidify or harden identities, or that caste may be context-specific, and thus difficult to measure.
    • The other concern is whether an institution such as a caste can even be captured completely by the Census.

    Socio-Economic Caste Census: how it is different from Census

    • Following debate over full-scale caste census, the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC) was conducted in 2011.
    • The SECC, which collected the first figures on caste in Census operations since 1931, is the largest exercise of the enumeration of caste.
    • Questions remain on whether the SECC is able to cover the effects of caste as an aspect of Indian social structure.
    • This was a distinct exercise from the Census of 2011.
    • The Census and the SECC have different purposes.
    • Since the Census falls under the Census Act of 1948, all data are considered confidential, whereas the SECC data is open for use by Government departments to grant and/or restrict benefits to households.
    • The Census thus provides a portrait of the Indian population, while the SECC is a tool to identify beneficiaries of state support.

    Way forward

    • What is needed is a discussion on the caste data that already exists, how it has been used and understood by the government.
    • Linking and syncing aggregated Census data to other large datasets such as the National Sample Surveys or the National Family Health Surveys that cover issues that the Census exercises do not, such as maternal health, would be significant for a more comprehensive analysis.
    • This linking of the Census with the National Sample Survey data has been suggested in the past by scholars such as Mamta Murthi and colleagues.
    • Census operations across the world are going through significant changes, employing methods that are precise, faster, and cost-effective, involving coordination between different data sources.
    • Care must however be taken to ensure that digital alternatives and linking of data sources involving Census operations are inclusive and non-discriminatory, especially given the sensitive nature of the data being collected.
    • Delay in the release of data needs to be reduced.
    • There needs to be a closer and continuous engagement between functionaries of the Census and SECC, along with academics and other stakeholders concerned.

    Consider the question “How Socio-Economic and Caste Census is different from the Census? How linking and syncing of  these data with other databases could help in the governance?”

    Conclusion

    Data collected through both the exercises serve an important purpose in the governance of the country, however, there is scope to widen the use of data if the steps suggested here are implemented.

  • Making a Law ‘Operational’

    In the ongoing stalemate between protesting farmers and the Centre, the government has repeated its offer of keeping the three contentious farm laws on hold for one to one-and-a-half years.

    Bringing/removing a law

    • Parliament has the power to make a law and to remove it from the statute books (a law can be struck down by the judiciary if it is unconstitutional).
    • But the passing of a Bill does not mean that it will start working from the next day.
    • There are three more steps for it to become a functioning law.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Who/Which of the following is the custodian of the Constitution of India?

    (a) The President of India

    (b) The Prime Minister of India

    (c) The Lok Sabha Secretariat

    (d) The Supreme Court of India

    Making a law operational

    • The first step is the President giving his or her assent to the Bill.
    • Then the law comes into effect from a particular date. President Kovind signed the three farm Bills into law within a week of their passing in September 2020.
    • And finally, the government frames the rules and regulations to make the law operational on the ground.
    • The completion of these steps determines when the law becomes functional.

    Presidents’ actions

    • Article 111 of the Constitution specifies that the President can either sign off on the Bill or withhold his consent.
    • The President rarely withholds their assent to a Bill.
    • The last time it happened was in 2006 when President APJ Abdul Kalam refused to sign a Bill protecting MPs from disqualification for holding an office of profit.
    • A Bill is sent to Parliament for reconsideration if the President withholds his or her assent on it.
    • And if Parliament sends it back to the President, he or he has no choice but to approve it.

    A curious case of date of effect

    • The next step is deciding the date on which the law comes into effect.
    • In many cases, Parliament delegates to the government the power to determine this date.
    • The Bill states that the law “shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act”.

    Example:  Parliament passed the Recycling of Ships Act in December 2019. In October 2020, the government brought Section 3 of the law into force.  This section empowers the government to designate an officer to supervise all ship recycling activities in India.

    Giving effect to the implementation

    • There are also instances when the government does not bring a law into force for many years.
    • Two examples are the National Environment Tribunal Act and the Delhi Rent Control Act, which Parliament passed during PM P V Narasimha Rao’s tenure.
    • The government never brought these laws into force, which were passed in 1995 and cleared by the President.
    • The NGT Act finally repealed the environmental tribunal law in 2010. And a Bill to repeal the Delhi Rent Control Act introduced in 2013 is still pending in Rajya Sabha

    Rules & regulations to be made

    • For the law to start working on the ground, individuals need to be recruited or given the power, to administer it.
    • The implementing ministry also needs to finalise forms to gather information and provide benefits or services.
    • These day-to-day operational details are called rules and regulations. And Parliament gives the government the responsibility of making them. These regulations are critical for the functioning of law.
    • If the government does not make rules and regulations, law or parts of it will not get implemented.

    Example: The Benami Transactions Act of 1988 is an example of a complete law remaining unimplemented. For 25 years, such properties were immune from seizure in the absence of framing relevant government rules. The law was finally repealed in 2016 and replaced with a new one.

    A final word on implementation

    • Parliament has recommended that the government make rules within six months of passing a law.
    • But parliamentary committees have observed that this recommendation is being followed in breach by various ministries.
    • The government not only has the power to make rules but can also suppress rules made by it earlier.

  • [pib] Shramshakti Portal

    The Union Minister of Tribal Affairs has launched the “ShramShakti” Portal.

    Earlier we had ONORC move, now a repository for migrant workers. Keep a tab on all such updates for the welfare of migrant workers.

    Shramshakti Portal

    • It is a National Migration Support Portal.
    • It will record various data including demographic profile, livelihood options, skill mapping, and migration pattern.
    • It would effectively help in the smooth formulation of state and national level programs for migrant workers.

    Why need such a portal?

    • Migrants all over the country had to face after the lockdown was announced due to the pandemic caused by a coronavirus.
    • The migration of the tribal population is distress-driven and the migrants are exposed to difficult and unsafe conditions.
    • Sometimes they face trafficking or wage harassment issues including many occupational hazards at the workplace.
    • The lack of real-time data of migrants was the biggest challenge for governments in formulating effective strategies and policy decisions for the welfare of migrant workers at both source and destination states.

    Benefits of the portal

    • The tribal migration repository would be able to successfully address the data gap and empower migrant workers who generally migrate in search of employment and income generation.
    • It would also help the government for linking the migrant population with the existing Welfare Scheme- under Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

    A move for tribals

    • Tribal migrant workers often have low awareness about their rights and entitlements and ways to access services and social security in source and destination areas.
    • With this, they will be able to demand and access services, rights, and entitlements related to livelihood and social security at their village before migration, as well after migration at destination towns and cities.

  • Mercy petition

    The article highlights the issue of delay in carrying out the dealth penalty and issues associated with it.

    Review of India’s position on the death penalty

    • The delay in carrying out the death penalty is one of the reasons to review India’s position on capital punishment.
    • The debate on the efficacy of the death penalty in reducing crime has been going on for several decades.
    • A few years ago, the issue of abolishing capital punishment was raised in the Rajya Sabha but was rejected by a voice vote.
    • The then Minister of State for Home Affairs stated that the government was not contemplating abolition of the death penalty.
    • In 2015, the Law Commission of India proposed abolishing the death penalty and sought the comments of States and Union Territories on the subject.
    • India figures among the 56 nations in the world that have retained the death penalty.

    Issue of delay in carrying out the punishment

    • The prolonged detention of death row convicts in prison is not just inhuman but also against the canons of justice.
    • The delay coupled with long years of solitary confinement leads to immense psychological trauma.
    • It is small wonder that the courts tend to take a lenient view and reduce the sentence when such cases of prolonged years of detention come before them.
    • A time frame needs to be fixed for the President to dispose of mercy petitions.
    •  Delays in investigations, court hearings, and administrative steps to be taken after the final verdict need to be inquired into, and responsibility fixed.

    Consider the question “Against the backdrop of delay in carrying out the dealth penalty in India, take the review of India’s position on the abolition of death penalty.”

    Conclusion

    With the changing time, we must change and so do the way we punish people. Capital punishment should be abolished in the country and until then, the inordinate delays in carrying out punishment should be avoided.