šŸ’„Join UPSC 2027,2028 Mentorship (July Batch) + XFactor Notes & Microthemes PDF
Talk to Mentor

Civilsdaily

Login

GS Paper: GS3

  • Langtang Project: Nepalā€™s first hydropower from a glacial lake

     

    Langtang Microhydro Electricity Project, Nepalā€™s first hydropower from a glacial lake has become functional recently.

    Langtang Microhydro Electricity Project

    • The Project was built three years after the 2015 earthquake-avalanche that devastated the valley, with help from the Hong Kong-based Kadoorie Charitable Foundation.
    • It has a weir and spillway at the moraine, and the water is taken through a fibre glass-insulated penstock pipe to a powerhouse that generates 100kW of electricity.
    • It seeks to provide 24 hours of electricity to 120 households and tourist lodges in Kyanjin and Langtang.

    Uniqueness of the project

    • The project is the first-of-its-kind in Nepal to power a village and holds promise for other remote Himalayan valleys where the risk posed by expanding glacial lakes can be mitigated.
    • At the same time, it provides electricity to tourism-dependent families.

     

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • India needs a coordinated approach for decarbonisation of economy

    Context

    The announcement of enhanced targets for climate action by India, particularly for achieving net-zero emissions by 2070, has highlighted the importance of long-term planning for decarbonising the economy.

    Why do we need a decarbonizing strategy

    • The Government of India has responded to rapid reductions in the cost of renewable energy (RE) based power, with dramatic enhancements in the targets for RE.
    • With this approach, India has done well and is on a path to fulfilling its Paris Agreement commitments for 2030.
    • However, the road ahead will be challenging, and therefore, a coordinated strategy for decarbonising the economy efficiently and effectively will be required.

    Strategy for decarbonising the economy

    • Factoring in the changes: By 2070, there will be many changes in technology, environmental conditions, and the economy.
    • The planning horizon of about 50 years will need to be broken up into shorter periods so that new knowledge about emerging technologies can be incorporated into plans.
    • Monitoring of the progress: Plans will need to be monitored so that the course can be corrected to respond to any unforeseen problems.
    • Five years, as the UK has used, seems like a reasonable ā€œGoldilocks ideal.ā€
    • An autonomous and technically credible agency, like the Climate Change Committee (CCC) in the UK, should be set up.

    Decarbonising the power sector

    • Biggest source of GHG: The power sectorĀ is the biggest source of GHG emissions and also the easiest one to decarbonise.
    • Reducing emission intensity is a good overarching objective; increased use of RE or non-fossil-fuel generation is a means to that end.
    • The four 2030 targets: Non-fossil fuel generating capacity to be 500 GW, RE capacity to be 50 per cent of all generation capacity, reduction in emission intensity by 45 per cent, and avoidance of GHG emissions by 1 billion tonnes ā€” are inter-related.

    Suggestions to decarbonise the power sector

    • Set emission intensity targets: Setting permissible emission intensity in terms of grammes of carbon dioxide equivalent per kWh of electricity sold, would be a good option for targets in the power sector.
    • Single emission-related objective: In order to decarbonise the power sector, it would be best to have a single emissions-related objective so that an optimal strategy can be developed to achieve the objective at the lowest cost.
    • Avoid separate targets: Currently there is a profusion of separate targets for almost every resource used to generate electricity.
    • For example, there are separate renewable purchase obligations (RPOs) for solar, non-solar RE, and hydropower.
    • Such an approach reduces the flexibility of distribution companies to select resources to meet their loads, resulting in a non-optimal resource mix, and a higher cost of electricity.
    • Reconsider RPO: RPOs are usually imposed to support nascent technologies, and because RE is now competitive on costs with conventional generation, the need for RPOs should be reconsidered.
    • The use of emission intensity targets is a better approach.

    Consider the question “Why power sector holds the key to decarbonising the Indian economy? Suggest the strategy India should follow to decarbonise the power sector.”

    Conclusion

    The use of five-year interim targets for permissible emission intensity and the establishment of an autonomous and credible agency to advise the government on targets and policies and to monitor progress will greatly facilitate an effective, economic, and smooth transition to decarbonisation of the power sector first, and the Indian economy later by 2070.

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Taproot upgrade in Bitcoins

    Bitcoin went through a major upgrade that enables its blockchain to execute more complex transactions, potentially widening the virtual currency’s use cases and making it a little more competitive with Ethereum for processing smart contracts.

    What is the new upgrade?

    • The enhancement, called Taproot, is the most significant change to the bitcoin protocol since the SegWit (Segregated Witness) block capacity change in 2017.
    • SegWit effectively increased the number of transactions that could fit into a block by pulling data on signatures from bitcoin transactions.
    • Smart contracts are self-executing transactions whose results depend on pre-programmed inputs.

    What is Taproot?

    • The Taproot upgrade consists of three separate upgrade proposals.
    • However, at its core, the upgrade introduces a new digital signature scheme called “Schnorr” that will help bitcoin transactions become more efficient and more private.
    • Schnorr can also be leveraged to let bitcoin users execute more complex smart contracts.

    When was Taproot officially activated?

    • Taproot was officially activated on block 709,632.
    • Blockchains settle transactions in batches or blocks.
    • Each block can contain only a certain number of transactions.

    What is its impact on Bitcoin?

    • The biggest impact would be the bitcoin network’s ability to process more smart contracts, similar to what Ethereum does.
    • Bitcoin has historically been much more limited in processing smart contracts compared with Ethereum.
    • Taproot increases privacy by obscuring what type of transaction is being executed.

    What are the other enhancements?

    • The Schnorr signatures can make more complex transactions on the bitcoin protocol, such as those from wallets that require multiple signatures, look like just any other transaction.
    • This makes transactions more private and more secure.
    • Bitcoin transactions will also become more data-efficient, optimizing block capacity and leading to lower transaction fees.

    What does Taproot mean for investors?

    • Large-scale upgrades have paved the way for the next phase of innovation in the bitcoin network.
    • The last major upgrade in 2017 helped launch the Lightning Network, which facilitated much faster and cheaper bitcoin payments than before.
    • Taproot to lead to a similar wave of innovation in bitcoin centered around smart contracts.

    Also read:

    Cryptocurrency

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Central bank digital currency (CBDC)

    Context

    Recently, Nigeria joined the Bahamas and five islands in the East Caribbean as the only economies to have introduced central bank digital currency (CBDC). This is a shortlist, but one that is likely to be supplemented.

    Benefits of CBDC

    • Desire to make domestic payments systems and cross-border remittances cheaper, faster and more efficient, and deepen financial inclusion, represent key areas of priority for most other emerging market and development economies (EMDEs).
    • Between 2019 and 2021, the last three surveys conducted by the Bank for International Settlements showed that the primary drivers for central banks of EMDEs to study CBDCs were domestic payments efficiency, financial inclusion and payments safety.

    Design features of CBDCs

    • In theory, the potential of CBDCs are only limited by their design and the capabilities of the central bank issuing it, but their appropriateness and form also depend on the state of the domestic banking and payments industry.
    • Ultimately, CBDCs must be seen as a means to an end.
    • A particular CBDC could, for example, be account-based or tokenised, may be distributed directly by the central bank or through intermediaries, may be interest-bearing (even the possibility of a negative interest has been considered), may be programmable, may offer limited pseudonymity to its holders (similar to, but not to the extent of, cash) and so on.
    • Whether it may be one or the other depends on what its country requires it to be.

    Challenges

    • An economy that adopts an interest-bearing CBDC could make the interest rate on CBDCs the main tool of monetary policy transmission domestically (assuming a high degree of substitution of fiat and fiat-like currency).
    • On the other hand, as former RBI Governor D Subbarao recently warned, rendering an Indian CBDC as an interest-bearing instrument could pose an existential threat to the banking system by eroding its critical role as intermediaries in the economy.
    • If CBDCs compete with bank deposits and facilitate a reduction of bank-held deposits, banks stand to lose out on an important and stable source of funding.
    • Banks may respond by increasing deposit rates, but this would necessitate a higher lending rate to preserve margins, and dampen lending activities.
    • The resultant shrinking of balance sheets will lead to a more pronounced disintermediation role for financial institutions, which could have long-term effects on financial stability, and facilitate easier bank runs.
    • The introduction of CBDCs would require central banks to maintain much larger balance sheets, even in non-crisis times.
    • They would need to replace the lost funding (because of migration of deposits) by lending potentially huge sums to financial institutions, while purchasing correspondingly huge amounts of government and possibly private securities.
    • CBDCs could also have implications for the state from seigniorage as the cost of printing, storing, transporting and distributing currency can be reduced.

    Conclusion

    Recent comments by RBI officials have focussed on the desirability of introducing CBDCs. But the path to a ā€œDigital Rupeeā€ is not clear.

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Creating safe digital spaces

    Context

    Various reports have indicated increased incidence of cyberbullying and online child sexual exploitation by adults.

    Tackling cyberbullying

    • School closures as a response to the COVID-19 lockdowns have led to an unprecedented rise in unsupervised screen time for children and young people, which in turn exposed them to a greater risk of online violence.
    • In India, an estimated 71 million children aged 5-11 years access the Internet on the devices of their family members, constituting about 14% of the countryā€™s active Internet user base of over 500 million
    • There is growing scientific evidence which suggests that cyberbullying has negative consequences on the education, health and well-being of children and young people.
    • Published in 2019 and drawing on data from 144 countries, UNESCOā€™s report ā€˜Behind the numbers: Ending school violence and bullyingā€™ highlighted the extent of the problem, with almost one in three students worldwide reporting being bullied at least once in the preceding month.
    • Therefore, cyberbullying prevention interventions should aim at tackling all types of bullying and victimisation experiences at the same time, as opposed to each in silo.

    Cyberbullying prevention interventions

    • Although online violence is not limited to school premises, the education system plays a crucial role in addressing online safety.
    • To prevent and counter cyberbullying, the information booklet brought out by UNESCO in partnership with NCERT on Safe Online Learning in Times of COVID-19 can be a useful reference.
    • Effective interventions also require gender-sensitive and targeted approaches that respond to needs of learners who are most likely to be the victims of online violence.
    • Concerted efforts must be made to provide children and young people with the knowledge and skills to identify online violence so that they can protect themselves from its different forms, whether perpetrated by peers or adults.
    • Teachers also play a critical role by teaching students about online safety, and thus supporting parental involvement.

    Conclusion

    It is imperative that digital and social media platforms are free of cyberbullying, if learners have to access quality education. More importantly, confidential reporting and redress services must be established.

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Why Glasgow Climate Pact disappoints

    Context

    The Glasgow Climate Pact was adopted on Saturday and, as was to be expected, it is a mixed bag of modest achievements and disappointed expectations.

    Transition away from fossil fuel

    • The Pact is the first clear recognition of the need to transition away from fossil fuels, though the focus was on giving up coal-based power altogether.
    • India introduced an amendment at the last moment to replace this phrase with ā€œphase downā€ and this played negatively with both the advanced as well as a large constituency of developing countries.
    • This amendment reportedly came as a result of consultations among India, China, the UK and the US.
    • As the largest producer and consumer of coal and coal-based thermal power, it is understandable that China would prefer a gradual reduction rather than total elimination.
    • India may have had similar concerns.

    Recognition of Adaptation

    • There is a welcome recognition of the importance of Adaptation and there is a commitment to double the current finance available for this to developing countries.
    • Since this amount is currently only $15 billion, doubling will mean $ 30 billion.
    • This remains grossly inadequate.
    • According to UNEP, adaptation costs for developing countries are currently estimated at $70 billion annually and will rise to an estimated $130-300 billion annually by 2030.
    • A start is being made in formulating an adaptation plan and this puts the issue firmly on the Climate agenda, balancing the overwhelming focus hitherto on mitigation.

    Disappointment on the issue of finance

    • The Paris Agreement target of $100 billion per annum between 2005-2020 was never met with the shortfall being more than half, according to some calculations.
    • There is now a renewed commitment to delivering on this pledge in the 2020-2025 period and there is a promise of an enhanced flow thereafter.
    • But in a post-pandemic global economic slowdown, it is unlikely these promises will be met.
    • In any event, it is unlikely that India will get even a small slice of the pie.
    • The same applies to the issue of compensation for loss and damage for developing countries who have suffered as a result of climate change for which they have not been responsible.

    Initiatives on methane and deforestation

    • Two important plurilateral outcomes could potentially develop into more substantial measures.
    • The most important is an agreement among 100 countries to cut methane emissions by 30 per cent by 2030.
    • India is not a part of this group.
    • Cutting methane emissions, which is generated mainly by livestock, is certainly useful but there is a much bigger methane emergency around the corner as the earthā€™s permafrost areas in Siberia, Greenland and the Arctic littoral begin to melt due to global warming that has already taken place and will continue to take place in the coming years.
    • Another group of 100 countries has agreed to begin to reverse deforestation by 2030.
    • India did not join the group due to concerns over a clause on possible trade measures related to forest products.

    Implications of US-China Joint Declaration on Climate Change for India

    • Declaration was a departure for China, which had held that bilateral cooperation on climate change could not be insulated from other aspects of their relations.
    • The declaration implies a shift in Chinaā€™s hardline position.
    • It appears both countries are moving towards a less confrontational, more cooperative relationship overall.
    • This will have geopolitical implications, including for India, which may find its room for manoeuvre shrinking.

    Conclusion

    As in the past, the can has been kicked down the road, except that the climate road is fast approaching a dead-end. What provides a glimmer of light is the incredible and passionate advocacy of urgent action by young people across the world. This is putting enormous pressure on governments and leaders and if sustained, may become irresistible.

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • What is the Retail Direct Scheme for investors in G-Secs?

    The RBI has announced proposals for the Retail Direct Scheme for investors in government securities and the Integrated Ombudsman Scheme.

    What is the Retail Direct Scheme?

    • Under the scheme, small investors can buy or sell government securities (G-Secs), or bonds, directly without an intermediary like a mutual fund.
    • It is similar to placing funds in debt instruments such as fixed deposits in banks.
    • However, the same tax rules apply to income from G-Secs.

    Benefits of RDS

    • With the government being the borrower, there is a sovereign guarantee for the funds and hence zero risk of default.
    • Also, government securities may offer better interest rates than bank fixed deposits, depending on prevailing interest rate trends.
    • For example, the latest yield on the benchmark 10-year government securities is 6.366%.

    How can individuals access G-Sec offerings?

    • Investors wishing to open a Retail Direct Gilt account directly with the RBI can do so through an online portal set up for the purpose of the scheme.
    • Once the account is activated with the aid of a password sent to the userā€™s mobile phone, investors will be permitted to buy securities either in the primary market or in the secondary market.
    • The minimum amount for a bid is ā‚¹10,000 and in multiples of ā‚¹10,000 thereafter. Payments may be made through Net banking or the UPI platform.

    Why was it necessary to introduce this scheme?

    • Broader investor base: The scheme would help broaden the investor base and provide retail investors with enhanced access to the government securities market ā€” both primary and secondary.
    • Institutional investment: Accessing retail investors could free up room for companies to bring funds from institutional investors which may otherwise have been cornered by the government.
    • Diverse borrowing for government: This scheme would facilitate smooth completion of the Government borrowing programme in 2021-22.
    • Structural reform: It is a major structural reform placing India among select few countries which have similar facilities.

    Why is the RBI setting up an Integrated Ombudsman?

    • Prior to the introduction of this scheme, the RBI had three different ombudsman schemes to aid dispute resolution with respect to banks, NBFCs, and non-bank pre-paid payment issuers (PPIs).
    • They were operated by the RBI through 22 ombudsman offices.
    • The RBI would now appoint the Ombudsman and a Deputy Ombudsman for three years.
    • Complaints may be made either physically to the Centralised Receipt and Processing Centre or the RBIā€™s offices; or electronically through the regulatorā€™s complaint management system.

    Back2Basics: Government Securities

    • These are debt instruments issued by the government to borrow money.
    • The two key categories are:
    1. Treasury bills (T-Bills) ā€“ short-term instruments which mature in 91 days, 182 days, or 364 days, and
    2. Dated securities ā€“ long-term instruments, which mature anywhere between 5 years and 40 years
    • T-Bills are issued only by the central government, and the interest on them is determined by market forces.

     

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Was it really a black hole that the EHT imaged in 2019?

    A new research says that M87* which was imaged by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) is not necessarily a black hole but could even be a naked singularity with a gravitomagnetic monopole.

    About M-87*

    • In 2019, astronomers of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) captured the first ever image of a supermassive black hole (M87*) which was located at the centre of a galaxy Messier 87.
    • This black hole was calculated to be 6.5 billion times the Sunā€™s mass and is 55 million light years away from the Earth.
    • The discovery set the world of astronomy on fire and also found a mention in the ā€œpopular informationā€ section of the announcement of the Nobel Prize in physics for 2020.
    • Andrea Ghez and Rheinhard Genzel were awarded half the share of the prize for their study of the black hole at the centre of the Milky Way galaxy, Sagittarius A*.

    A black hole has two parts:

    1. Singularity at its coreā€“ a point that is infinitely dense, as all the remnant mass of the star is compressed into this point.
    2. Event horizon ā€“ an imaginary surface surrounding the singularity, and the gravity of the object is such that once anything enters this surface, it is trapped forever.
    • Not even light can escape the pull of the singularity once it crosses the event horizon.
    • That is why, we cannot see the singularity at the heart of a black hole but only see points outside the event horizon.
    • Hence, all the physics happening within the black holeā€™s event horizon is indeed blocked from the view of the observer.

    What is the recent explanation of M87*?

    Ans. Naked Singularity

    • When stars much more massive than the Sun reach the end of their lives, they collapse under their own gravity, and the product of this collapse is a black hole.
    • In many scenarios of stellar collapse, the event horizon does not form, and the singularity is exposed to the outside, without any event horizon shielding it.
    • This is called naked singularity.

    Monopoles and gravity

    • In the nineteenth century, James Clerk Maxwell unified electricity and magnetism as one combined phenomenon, showing that light is an electromagnetic wave.
    • But there is an asymmetry between electricity and magnetism.
    • While positive and negative electric charges can be found to exist independently, the poles of a magnet are always found in pairs, north and south bound together.
    • There is an analogy between gravitational force and electromagnetism to say that mass is like electric charge and can exist independently, thus it can be called a ā€œgravito-electric chargeā€.

    But then, what is the gravito-magnetic charge?

    • In 1963, Newman, Tamburino and Unti (NUT) proposed a theoretical concept called a ā€œgravito-magnetic chargeā€ also called a gravitomagnetic monopole.
    • The new research has shown that M87* could be a black hole (with or without gravitomagnetic monopole) or a naked singularity (with or without gravitomagnetic monopole).

    Try this PYQ:

    Q. ā€œEvent Horizonā€ is related to:

    (a) Telescope

    (b) Black hole

    (c) Solar glares

    (d) None of the above

     

    [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”gr9bztx2ug” question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″]Post your answers here.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]

    Back2Basics: Event Horizon Telescope (EHT)

    • The EHT project is an international partnership formed in 2012.
    • It is a network of 10 radio telescopes on four continents that collectively operate like a single instrument nearly the size of the Earth.
    • Its main objective is to directly observe the immediate environment of a black hole.

     

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Kaiser-i-Hind is Arunachalā€™s State butterfly

    An elusive swallowtail butterfly carrying ā€˜Indiaā€™ in its name and found in next-door China will become the State butterfly of Arunachal Pradesh.

    Kaiser-i-Hind

    Protection status: Schedule II of Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

    • Kaiser-i-Hind (Teinopalpus imperialis) literally means Emperor of India.
    • This butterfly with a 90-120 mm wingspan is found in six States along the Eastern Himalayas at elevations from 6,000-10,000 feet in well-wooded terrain.
    • The butterfly also flutters in Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and southern China.
    • The move was made with a view to boosting butterfly tourism and saving the species from extinction in the State.

    Other butterflies in news

    • The Malabar Banded Peacock or the Buddha Mayoori which was recently declared the ā€˜State Butterflyā€™ of Kerala will have a dedicated butterfly park in Kochi.
    • Tamil Nadu has also recently declared Tamil Yeoman (Cirrochroa Thais) as its state butterfly to symbolize its rich natural and cultural heritage.
    • Other states to have state butterflies are Maharashtra (Blue Mormon), Uttarakhand (Common peacock), Karnataka (Southern birdwings).

     

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)

     

    States in the National Capital Region were directed to be ready to implement actions under the ā€˜emergencyā€™ category of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to control air pollution, said an official order.

    Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)

    • In 2014, when a study by the WHO found that Delhi was the most polluted city in the world, panic spread in the Centre and the state government.
    • Approved by the Supreme Court in 2016, the plan was formulated after several meetings that the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) held with state government and experts.
    • The result was a plan that institutionalized measures to be taken when air quality deteriorates.
    • GRAP works only as an emergency measure.

    How does it work?

    • As such, the plan does not include action by various state governments to be taken throughout the year to tackle industrial, vehicular and combustion emissions.
    • When the air quality shifts from poor to very poor, the measures listed under both sections have to be followed since the plan is incremental in nature.
    • If air quality reaches the severe+ stage, GRAP talks about shutting down schools and implementing the odd-even road-space rationing scheme.

    Measures taken under GRAP

    1) Severe+ or Emergency

    (PM 2.5 over 300 Āµg/cubic metre or PM10 over 500 Āµg/cu. m. for 48+ hours)

    • Stop entry of trucks into Delhi (except essential commodities)
    • Stop construction work
    • Introduce odd/even scheme for private vehicles and minimise exemptions
    • Task Force to decide any additional steps including shutting of schools

    2) Severe

    (PM 2.5 over 250 Āµg/cu. m. or PM10 over 430 Āµg/cu. m.)

    • Close brick kilns, hot mix plants, stone crushers
    • Maximise power generation from natural gas to reduce generation from coal
    • Encourage public transport, with differential rates
    • More frequent mechanized cleaning of road and sprinkling of water

    3) Very Poor

    (PM2.5 121-250 Āµg/cu. m. or PM10 351-430 Āµg/cu. m.)

    • Stop use of diesel generator sets
    • Enhance parking fee by 3-4 times
    • Increase bus and Metro services
    • Apartment owners to discourage burning fires in winter by providing electric heaters during winter
    • Advisories to people with respiratory and cardiac conditions to restrict outdoor movement

    4) Moderate to poor

    (PM2.5 61-120 Āµg/cu. m. or PM10 101-350 Āµg/cu. m.)

    • Heavy fines for garbage burning
    • Close/enforce pollution control regulations in brick kilns and industries
    • Mechanized sweeping on roads with heavy traffic and water sprinkling
    • Strictly enforce a ban on firecrackers

    Has GRAP helped?

    • The biggest success of GRAP has been in fixing accountability and deadlines.
    • For each action to be taken under a particular air quality category, executing agencies are clearly marked.
    • In a territory like Delhi, where a multiplicity of authorities has been a long-standing impediment to effective governance, this step made a crucial difference.

     

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)