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GS Paper: GS2

  • What India can learn from Kenya about women’s representation

    Asymmetric representation in India and Kenya has given rise to complex debate in both countries. The article analyses the similarities and difference.

    Issue of women’s representation in Parliament

    • Many political promises have been made in seven decades of the working of the Indian Constitution regarding 33 per cent reservation in Parliament.
    • But the two bills, introduced in 1996 and 2010, have been allowed to lapse.

    What are the hurdles?

    • Every political party endorses the idea but the battle within political classes has been over “quota within a quota”.
    • Some have argued that ways should be found to ensure that this reservation should contain 33 per cent reservation within for SC and ST women.
    • Some have championed a systemic practice of reservation at the stage of distributing party tickets.
    • Some continue to fight for underprivileged and rural women.
    • Some maintain that a constitutional convention mandating increased representation for women by parties will be more appropriate than a constitutional amendment.

    Comparison with Kenya

    • While both fall short in equitable representation, Kenya has secured about 22 per cent women in the present National Assembly.
    • India peaked to its highest number in the 2019 elections with 62 women (around 14.58 per cent),out of a total of 542 Lok Sabha seats.
    • In the Kenyan Senate women number only 21 (or 31 per cent) of the 67-member House are female; in the Indian Rajya Sabha women comprise 25 out of 243 elected members.
    •  In both societies, women’s representation has always been “pyramidical”, most women remain below the constitutional radar at the bottom, even when a few scale national heights.
    • Asymmetric representation in both societies has generated a long and complex debate concerning women’s representation.

    Difference in constitutional histories and judicial actions

    • India has nothing like the two-thirds rule in Kenya’s new constitution.
    • Kenya’s Constitution requires that not more than two-thirds of the members of elective or appointive bodies shall be of the same gender.
    • But the 2010 constitutional norm of a “two-thirds gender rule”, buttressed by the requirement that the electoral system shall comply with this rule has been breached.
    • The judicial orders (from 2012) giving various timeframes to enact legislation to implement gender parity have found Parliament unresponsive.
    •  The stage was thus set for the exercise of constitutional power and function by the chief justice to advise the president to dissolve Parliament.
    • This was a great victory for the Kenyan women.

    Conclusion

    Indian sisterhood can yearn wistfully, but valiantly, for another Vishakha moment in the demosprudential leadership of the nation by the apex court.

  • Labour code reforms address basic needs

    The article highlights the key provision of the labour code and how it will help in removing the various hurdles faced by the key stakeholders.

    Increase in the threshold for closure/lay-off and its impact

    • The Industrial Relations Code 2020 increased the threshold for retrenchment/closure or lay-off without requiring government approval, from 100 to 300 workers.
    • This will help in addressing the matter of expansion of the firms.
    • In 2014, Rajasthan had increased the threshold of taking prior permission of the government before retrenchment.
    • The reform has helped firms to set up larger operations in Rajasthan, and the same amendment was followed by 15 states.

    Fixed Term Employment(FTE): Ensuring flexibility and tackling exploitation

    • In many jobs employees are required for a few months such as infrastructure projects, textiles and garments, food and agro-processing, etc.
    • However, the contractual employment workforce is quite often exploited with respect to wages, social security, and working conditions as well as welfare facilities.
    • Fixed Term Employment is an intervention to enable the hiring of employees directly instead of hiring through contractors, which will ensure flexibility.
    • For employees, all statutory entitlements and service conditions equivalent to those of a regular employee have now been made applicable.
    • The Code on Industrial Relations also extends the benefit of gratuity even for an FTE contract of one year, which is five years in the case of regular employees.

    Strengthening the formal economy

    • The inclusion of the gig and platform workers in the Social Security Code 2020 is a step towards strengthening the formal economy.
    • The provision for insurance coverage has been extended to plantation workers, and free annual health check-ups and a bipartite safety committee has been introduced for establishments such as factories, mines and plantation sectors in place of hazardous factories.
    • The ESIC and EPFO requirements will now apply to establishments employing less than 10 and 20 workers respectively on a volunteer basis.

    Ensuring female labour force participation

    • Falling women’s workforce participation in India has been a matter of concern for a long time.
    • Female labour force participation is a driver of growth and, therefore, participation rates indicate the potential for a country to grow more rapidly.
    • The new Code ensures the employment of women in night shifts for all types of work.

    Expansions of the provisions for migrant workers

    • The Occupational Health, Safety & Working Conditions Code expands the definition of a migrant worker.
    • The expanded definition includes workers who would be directly employed by the employer besides those employed through a contractor.
    • Also a migrant, who comes on his own to the destination state, can declare himself a migrant worker by registering on an electronic portal.
    • Registration on the portal has been simplified and there is no requirement of any other document except Aadhaar.
    • For de-licencing/de-registration, it is mandated to notify registering officers about the closure of their establishment and certify payment of dues to all employed workers.
    • This will ensure that workers will not be exploited even during the closure of the concerned establishment.

    Other provisions

    • The introduction of a concept of conducting web-based inspections can be seen as an attempt of matching corporate needs in the digital world.
    • The provision for a 14-day notice period before strikes and lockdowns would allow both workers and employers to attempt resolving the issues.
    •  The codes also promote lifelong learning mechanism to match the evolving skill sets required for technology and process changes through the introduction of a reskilling fund.

    Consider the question “What are the various provision added in the three labour code and how it will help revive the economy and tackle barriers in the expansion of firms?”

    Conclusion

    The reform measures address basic needs — to revive the economy and tackle barriers in the expansion of firms. Moreover, they promote the employment of women as well as reskilling of the workforce for the deployment of migrants.

  • Confusion on what the Quad is and its future

    The article analyses the basics of India’s foreign policy and its implications for the Quad.

    Context

    • There is confusion on what the Quad is and its future in India’s international relations.
    • Sustaining that confusion is the proposition that India is abandoning non-alignment in favour of a military alliance with the US in order to counter the China threat.

    4 Question on Quad’s future and India’s role

    1) What is the nature of alliance?

    • Alliances involve written commitments to come to the defence of the other against a third party.
    • Working of alliance varies according to the distribution of power within the members of an alliance and the changing nature of the external threat.
    • Alliances come in multiple shapes and forms — they could be bilateral or multilateral, formal or informal and for the long-term or near term.
    • Alliances feature in India’s ancient strategic wisdom and contemporary domestic politics in India.
    • Yet, when it comes to India’s foreign policy, alliances are seen as a taboo.
    • Part of the problem is that India’s image of alliances is frozen in the moment when India became independent.
    • After the Second World War, a newly independent India did not want to be tied down by alliances of the Cold War.
    • That notion is seen as central to Indian worldview.

    2) Does India forge alliances?

    • Contrary to conventional wisdom, India has experimented with alliances of different kinds.
    • During the First World War, some nationalists aligned with Imperial Germany to set up the first Indian government-in-exile in Kabul.
    • In the Second World War, Subhas Chandra Bose joined forces with Imperial Japan to set up a provisional government.
    • Policy of non-alignment among the great powers also did not rule out alliances in a different context.
    • For example, when Bhutan, Nepal and Sikkim turned to Delhi for protection amidst Maoist China’s advance into Tibet during 1949-50, Nehru signed security treaties with them.
    • India turned to the US for military support to cope with the Chinese aggression in 1962.
    • Indira Gandhi signed a security cooperation agreement with the Soviet Union in 1971 to cope with the crisis in East Pakistan.
    • Then, as now, there was much anxiety in Delhi about India abandoning non-alignment.
    • India does do alliances but the question is when, under what conditions and on what terms.

    3)  Is the US offering India an alliance against China?

    • The current political discourse in Washington is hostile to alliance-making.
    • President Donald Trump does not miss an opportunity to trash US alliances.
    • In any case, formal commitments do not always translate into reality during times of war.
    • Even within the long-standing US military alliances with Japan and the Philippines, there is much legal quibbling over what exactly is the US’s obligation against, say, Chinese aggression.
    • In case of the Quad, it is quite clear that Washington is not offering a military alliance, nor is Delhi asking for one.
    • Because it knows India has to fight its own wars.
    • Both countries, however, are interested in building issue-based coalitions in pursuit of shared interests.

    4) Instrumental nature of alliance

    • Agreements for security cooperation are made in a specific context and against a particular threat.
    • When those circumstances change, security treaties are not worth the paper they are written.
    • Consider India’s security treaties with Nepal, Bangladesh and Russia.
    • The 1950 Treaty was designed to protect Nepal against the Chinese threat.
    • Now, Nepali communists have long argued that the Treaty is a symbol of Indian hegemony.
    • India’s 1972 security treaty with Bangladesh did not survive the 1975 assassination of the nation’s founder, Mujibur Rahman.
    • India’s own enthusiasm for the 1971 treaty with Moscow waned within a decade.
    • Today Beijing is Moscow’s strongest international partner, a reality that has a bearing on India’s strategic partnership with Russia.

    What India can learn from China about alliances

    • Mao aligned with the Soviet Union after in 1949 and fought the Korean War against the US during 1950-53.
    • He broke from Russia in the early 1960s and moved closer to the US in the 1970s.
    • Mao, who denounced US alliances in Asia, was happy to justify them if they were directed at Russia.
    • He also welcomed Washington’s alliance with Tokyo as a useful means to prevent the return of Japanese nationalism and militarism.
    • Having benefited from the partnership with the US, China is trying to push America out of Asia and establish its own regional primacy.
    • Delhi could learn from Beijing in not letting the theological debates about alliances cloud its judgements about the extraordinary economic and security challenges India confronts today.

    Conclusion

    The infructuous obsession with non-alignment diverts Delhi’s policy attention away from the urgent task of rapidly expanding India’s national capabilities in partnership with like-minded partners.

  • Legal challenges the Farm Acts could face

    Farm Acts passed by the Parliament could face the legal hurdle in the court when challenged on its constitutional basis. This article explains the issue.

    Background

    • Recently, Parliament passed three acts related to agriculture. These Acts are-
    • 1) The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020.
    • 2) The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020.
    • 3) The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
    • This has led to the question: Does the Union government have the authority to legislate on what are rightfully the affairs of States?

    Why agriculture is considered as States’ prerogative

    • Agriculture is a State subject in the Constitution, listed as Entry 14 in the State List (List II).
    • Entry 26 in the State List refers to “trade and commerce within the State”.
    • Entry 27 in the State List refers to “production, supply and distribution of goods”.
    • Entry 28 refers to “markets and fairs”.
    • For these reasons, intra-State marketing in agriculture was always considered a legislative prerogative of States.

    What was the legal basis used by the Parliament to pass the Farm Acts

    • The central government invoked Entry 33 in the Concurrent List (List III).
    • Entry 26 and 27 in List II are listed as “subject to the provisions of Entry 33 of List III”.

    Entry 33 in List III: Trade and commerce in, and the production, supply and distribution of, — (a) the products of any industry where the control of such industry by the Union is declared by Parliament by law to be expedient in the public interest, and imported goods of the same kind as such products; (b) foodstuffs, including edible oilseeds and oils; (c) cattle fodder, including oilcakes and other concentrates; (d) raw cotton, whether ginned or unginned, and cotton seed; and (e) raw jute.

    Historical background of  “Entry 33” of Concurrent List

    • Entry 33, in its present form, was inserted in List III through the Constitution (Third Amendment) Act, 1954 after heated constitutional debates.
    • The contention of the dissent was the following:
    • As per Article 369 in the original version of the Constitution, the responsibility of agricultural trade and commerce within a State was temporarily entrusted to the Union government for a period of five years beginning from 1950.
    • The 1954 Amendment attempted to change this into a permanent feature in the Constitution.
    • According to dissident “if matters enumerated in Article 369 in were placed in List III, State autonomy would be rendered illusory and State powers and rights would be progressively pulverised…”.
    • While another dissident argued that “passage of the Bill would transform the Indian Constitution into a “unitary Constitution” instead of a “federal Constitution” and reduce “all the States’ powers into municipal powers”.
    • Notwithstanding the strong dissenting voices, the Bill was passed.

    Let’s look into the related Supreme Court Judgments

    • In many of its judgments after 1954, the Supreme Court of India has upheld the legislative powers of States in intra-State agricultural marketing.
    • Most notable was the ruling of the five-judge Constitution Bench in I.T.C. Limited vs. Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) and Others, 2002.
    • The Tobacco Board Act, 1975 had brought the development of the tobacco industry under the Centre.
    • However, Bihar’s APMC Act continued to list tobacco as an agricultural produce.
    • In this case, the question was if the APMC in Monghyr could charge a levy on ITC for the purchase of unprocessed tobacco leaves from growers.
    • An earlier judgment had held that the State APMC Act will be repugnant to the Central Act, and hence was ultra vires.
    • But the Constitution Bench upheld the validity of the State APMC Act, and ruled that market fees can be charged from ITC under the State APMC Act.

    Consider the question “Examine the validity of legal basis used by the Parliament to pass the Farm Acts. Why it could face the legal challenge?”

    Conclusion

    It was unwise on the part of the Centre to use Entry 33 in List III to push the Farm Bills. Such adventurism weakens the spirit of federal cooperation that India needs in this hour of crisis. Second, agriculture is exclusively a State subject.

    Back2Basics: Read more about 3 Agricultural Acts passed by the Parliament here-

    [Burning Issue] Agricultural Reform Bills, 2020

     

  • [pib] Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness for Innovation (CEPI)

    Translational Health Science And Technology Institute (THSTI), an autonomous institute of the Department of Biotechnology, has now been recognized by Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness for Innovation (CEPI) as one of the Global Network of Laboratories for centralized assessment of COVID 19 Vaccines.

    Note: CEPI is neither a WHO subsidiary nor a UN body .

    Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness for Innovation (CEPI)

    • The CEPI is a foundation that takes donations to finance independent research projects to develop vaccines against emerging infectious diseases (EID).
    • It is focused on the WHO’s “blueprint priority diseases.
    • These diseases include the Middle East respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus (MERS-CoV), the SARS coronavirus 2 the Nipah virus, the Lassa fever virus, and the Rift Valley fever virus, as well as the Chikungunya virus and the hypothetical, unknown pathogen “Disease X”.
    • CEPI investment also requires “equitable access” to the vaccines during outbreaks.
    • CEPI was conceived in 2015 and formally launched in 2017 at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.

  • Narco Test and the Issue of Consent

    Involuntary administration of narco or lie detector tests is an “intrusion” into a person’s “mental privacy,” a Supreme Court judgment of 2010 has held.

    Try this question:

    Q.What are the ethical issues associated with the Lie-detection tests?

    Various Lie detector tests

    (1) Polygraph Test

    • A polygraph test is based on the assumption that physiological responses that are triggered when a person is lying are different from what they would be otherwise.
    • Instruments like cardio-cuffs or sensitive electrodes are attached to the person, and variables such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, change in sweat gland activity, blood flow, etc., are measured as questions are put to them.
    • A numerical value is assigned to each response to conclude whether the person is telling the truth, is deceiving, or is uncertain.

    (2) Narcoanalysis

    • Narcoanalysis, by contrast, involves the injection of a drug, sodium pentothal, which induces a hypnotic or sedated state.
    • In such a state, the subject’s imagination is neutralized, and they are expected to divulge information that is true.
    • The drug, referred to as “truth serum” in this context, was used in larger doses as anaesthesia during surgery and is said to have been used during World War II for intelligence operations.

    Why these tests are so (in)famous?

    • Investigating agencies seek to employ these tests in the investigation, and are sometimes seen as being a “softer alternative” to torture or “third degree” to extract the truth from suspects.
    • These tests put into consideration the international norms on human rights, the right to a fair trial, and the right against self-incrimination under Article 20(3) of the Constitution.

    Legal status in India

    • In ‘Selvi & Ors vs State of Karnataka & Anr’ (2010), a Supreme Court Bench comprising CJI ruled that no lie detector tests should be administered “except on the basis of the consent of the accused”.
    • Those who volunteer must have access to a lawyer, and have the physical, emotional, and legal implications of the test explained to them by police and the lawyer, the Bench said.
    • It said that the ‘Guidelines for the Administration of Polygraph Test on an Accused’ published by the National Human Rights Commission in 2000, must be strictly followed.
    • The subject’s consent should be recorded before a judicial magistrate, the court said.

    What was the latest Judgement?

    • Involuntary administration of narco or lie detector tests is an “intrusion” into a person’s “mental privacy,” a Supreme Court judgment of 2010 has held.
    • The consequences of such tests on “individuals from weaker sections of society who are unaware of their fundamental rights and unable to afford legal advice” can be devastating.
    • It may involve future abuse, harassment and surveillance, even leakage of the video material to the Press for a “trial by media.”
    • Such tests are an affront to human dignity and liberty and have long-lasting effects.
    • “An individual’s decision to make a statement is the product of a private choice and there should be no scope for any other individual to interfere with such autonomy,” the apex court had held.

    Legal status of its outcome

    • The results of the tests cannot be considered to be “confessions”, because those in a drugged-induced state cannot exercise a choice in answering questions that are put to them.
    • However, any information or material subsequently discovered with the help of such a voluntarily-taken test can be admitted as evidence, the court said.
    • Thus, if an accused reveals the location of a murder weapon in the course of the test, and police later find the weapon at that location, the statement of the accused will not be evidence, but the weapon will be.

  • Conference on Disarmament (CD)

    India has supported the holding of negotiations on a Comprehensive Nuclear Weapons Convention at the Conference on Disarmament (CD). It reiterated its commitment to the disarmament of nuclear weapons in a step-by-step non-discriminatory process.

    List out various factors which are preventing the nuclear disarmaments amongst the nations.

    About the Conference on Disarmament (CD)

    • The CD is a multilateral disarmament forum established by the international community to negotiate arms control and disarmament agreements based at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
    • The Conference meets annually in three separate sessions in Geneva.
    • The Conference was first established in 1979 as the Committee on Disarmament as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community.
    • It was renamed the Conference on Disarmament in 1984.

    Recent developments from India

    • India has not revised its key principles regarding the weapons in its arsenal.
    • Raksha Mantri has earlier hinted at a possibility of changing the No First Use (NFU) principle by declaring that ‘circumstances’ will determine the “No First Use” stance.

    India stands committed

    • India believes that nuclear disarmament can be achieved through a step-by-step process underwritten by a universal commitment and an agreed multilateral framework.
    • India remains convinced of the need for meaningful dialogue among all states possessing nuclear weapons, for building trust and confidence.
    • India also remains committed to negotiations regarding a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty in the CD on the basis of the report of the Special Coordinator or CD/1299 which dates to March 24, 1995.

    B2BASICS

    India’s No first use doctrine

    For India, Nuclear weapons are political weapons and not weapons of war and their sole purpose is to deter the use of nuclear weapons by India’s adversaries. India has nit only established itself as a responsible nuclear state, but guided the world about how to be a responsible nuclear state through No first use policy.

    Features of India’s nuclear doctrine:

    1. Building and maintaining a credible minimum deterrent.
    2. A “No First Use” policy i.e. nuclear weapons to be used only in case of any nuclear attack on Indian territory or on Indian forces anywhere.
    3. Non use of nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapon states.
    4. Nuclear retaliatory attacks to be authorised only by civilian political leadership through the Nuclear Command Authority.
    5. Nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage.
    6. India may retaliate with nuclear weapons to retaliate against attack  with biological or chemical weapons.
    7. Strict controls on export of nuclear and missile related materials and technologies.
    8. A commitment to goal of nuclear weapon free world.

  • Swachh Bharat Puraskar (PIB)

    What are Swachh Bharat Puruskar ?

    • he Swachh Bharat (2020) Awards were conferred to the best performing States/UTs, districts, blocks, GPs and others in various categories marking six years of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) launch.
    • The awards were given by Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS).
    • Top Awards were conferred upon Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab& others.
    • Gujarat was felicitated with the first prize in the state category; Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu as best district; Khachrod, Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh as best block; and Chinnaur, (Salem) as the best Gram Panchayat for Swachh Sundar Samudayik Shauchalaya (SSSS) campaign organized from 1st Nov 2019 to 30th April 2020.
    • For the week-long Gandagi Se Mukt campaign launched by Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi on 8th August 2020, Telangana received the top award for maximum Shramdaan participation.

     

  • CBD Oil

    Context- Earlier this week, late actor Irrfan Khan’s wife Sutapa Sikdar made an appeal to legalise CBD oil in India for its potential to treat cancer. Her appeal followed the criticism of actor Rhea Chakrabaorty after it was reported that she had administered CBD oil, used as a pain reliever for some, to Sushant Singh Rajput when he was alive.

    About CBD oil ?

    • CBD oil is an extract from the cannabis plant. The two main active substances in it are cannabidiol or CBD and delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.
    • The high that is caused by the consumption of cannabis is due to THC. CBD, however, does not cause a “high” or any form of intoxication.
    • CBD oil is made by extracting CBD from the cannabis plant, then diluting it with a carrier oil like coconut or hemp seed oil.
    • Cannabidiol can reduce pain and anxiety. It also reduces psychotic symptoms associated with conditions such as schizophrenia as well as epilepsy.
    • There is not enough robust scientific evidence to prove that CBD oil can safely and effectively treat cancer.
    • CBD oil manufactured under a license issued by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 can be legally used. However, the use of cannabis as a medicine is not much prevalent in India.

  • Changes in the labour laws needs to discussed and debated

    Increase in the jobs without employment security

    • Between 2004-05 and 2017-18, the share of salaried workers outside agriculture without any written contract increased from 60 per cent to 71 per cent.
    • Even in private and public limited companies, this share increased from 59 per cent to 71 per cent.
    • In the government and the public sector the share of such workers increasing from 27 per cent to 45 per cent over the period.
    • Many of the wage jobs in the organised sector came through contractors.
    • In organised manufacturing, the reported share of contract labour increased from 13 per cent in 1995-06 to 36 per cent in 2017-18.

    Policy response

    • A policy to deal with the problem of employment security was much needed.
    • The response came in the form the three revised labour Code Bills — on Industrial Relations, Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions, and Social Security.
    • These were introduced in Parliament in the Monsoon Session, and approved on September 23.
    • These three labour codes, along with the Code on Wages approved earlier, touch the lives of every Indian worker.

     “Fixed term” worker

    • In 2018, the government amended the Standing Orders on Employment Act and introduced the category of “fixed term” worker.
    • That category creates a permanent cadre of temporary workers, with no prospects of career growth and job security.

    Changes and issues with the Bills

    • 1) Government had rationalised fixed-term employment by arguing that industries had resorted to the third-party engagement of contract labour to get around the rigidities in firing workers.
    • But that has not stopped the Codes from further liberalising the provisions relating to employment of contract labour and making their regulation applicable only in establishments employing 50 or more workers, instead of 20 or more.
    • 2) The key provisions which regulate the employment of inter-state migrant workers have been further diluted and made applicable only to establishments employing 10 or more such workers, compared to five earlier.
    • 3) Along with the provisions of retrenchment, the applicability of the Standing Orders, which regulate the categorisation as well as the terms of employment of workers in establishments, has also been raised from 100 to 300 workers.
    • 4) The threshold for factories has now been doubled — from 10 to 20 workers with power — thereby eliminating a large number of important regulatory provisions for the smaller factories.
    • 5) Relevant governments have been given much more leeway in exempting establishments from the applicability of a whole range of provisions in the Code.
    • 6) Inspection provisions have been diluted in all the Codes and will no longer even be complaints based.
    • 7)  The changes have also made legal industrial action a virtual impossibility, and the presence of unions less possible.

    Conclusion

    Informality contributes to inequality and to conditions which make sustainable growth impossible, and economic recovery more difficult. It also creates conditions in which employers under-invest in workers’ capacities and workers are not invested in a company’s future — leading to low productivity and lack of competitiveness.