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  • Climate Change Impact on India and World – International Reports, Key Observations, etc.

    IPCC releases part of the Sixth Assessment Report

    | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Important Geophysical Phenomena

    What is the issue:

    The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the second part of its sixth assessment report. The first part was released in 2021.

    What is IPCC?

    • The IPCC, an intergovernmental body was established in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
    • It was later endorsed by the UN General Assembly. Membership is open to all members of the WMO and UN.
    • The IPCC produces reports that contribute to the work of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the main international treaty on climate change.
    • The objective of the UNFCCC is to “stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic (human-induced) interference with the climate system.”

    What are the Assessment Reports?

    • Every few years, the IPCC produces assessment reports that are the most comprehensive scientific evaluations of the state of earth’s climate.
    • Instead, it asks scientists from around the world to go through all the relevant scientific literature related to climate change and draw up the logical conclusions.
    • So far, five assessment reports have been produced, the first one being released in 1990.
    • The IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report was a critical scientific input into the UNFCCC’s Paris Agreement in 2015.

    Highlights of the recent report

    • Rapidly advancing climate change: From the melting of the Greenland ice sheet to the destruction of coral reefs, climate related impacts are hitting the world at the high end much more quickly than previously assessed by the IPCC.
    • Limitations of technology: The use of some technologies designed to limit warming or reduce CO2 could make matters worse rather than better.
    • Impact of urbanization: While large cities are hotspots for climate impacts, they also offer a real opportunity to avoid the worst impacts of warming.
    • Limited opportunity for mitigation: The report has warned the opportunity for action will only last for the rest of this decade.

    Some projections of the first part of 6th Report

    • Regional focus: It is expected that this report would likely state what the scenarios for sea-level rise in the Bay of Bengal region is, not just what the average sea-level rise across the world is likely to be.
    • Rise of extreme events: There is expected to be bigger focus on extreme weather events, like the ones we have seen in the last few weeks.
    • Vulnerabilities of urban areas: Densely populated mega-cities are supposed to be among the most vulnerable to impacts of climate change. The report is expected to present specific scenarios the climate change impacts on cities and large urban populations, and also implications for key infrastructure.
    • Synergy of climate action is needed: IPCC is expected to present a more integrated understanding of the situation, cross-link evidence and discuss trade-offs between different options or pathways, and also likely to cover social implications of climate change action by countries.

    Here is what the previous assessment reports had said:

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Nepal

    Controversy around the $500 million MCC grant to Nepal

    | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Nepal’s House of Representatives has ratified 500 million US Dollar grant assistance-Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) pact along with the “interpretative declaration”.

    What is Millenium Challenge Corporation?

    • The MCC was founded in 2004 as a US foreign aid agency that acts in accordance with governments that have demonstrated a commitment to good governance, economic freedom, and citizen investment.
    • It was envisioned as an organisation that would follow the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness’ key principles.
    • MCC works with countries that have been identified as being eligible for assistance to develop programmes that are based on MCC’s purpose of decreasing poverty via economic growth.
    • MCC’s results framework, which is based on the fourth and fifth principles of the Paris Declaration, Results and Mutual Accountability.
    • It provides a framework for applying the agency’s rigorous methods for projecting, tracking, and evaluating the effects of its programmes.
    • MCC uses this framework to address basic questions about aid effectiveness.

    Investments made by MCC

    • Compact and threshold programmes are the two types of programmes in which MCC invests.
    • Compacts are large, five-year grants implemented by an accountable entity established by each partner nation.
    • Thresholds are smaller funds focusing on policy and institutional transformation in selected countries implemented by MCC.

    The background of the project

    • MCC’s partnership with Nepal began in 2011, when the country requested assistance.
    • MCC first chose Nepal for a smaller threshold grant, and subsequently in December 2014, for a larger compact.
    • Three years later, in September 2017, the MCC-Nepal compact was signed, with the US committing $500 million and Nepal committing $130 million.
    • Nepal is expected to generate an electricity infrastructure with 400kVA transmission lines through the MCC project, which will be used to distribute power both domestically and to India.
    • Furthermore, the MCC’s implementation could boost the Nepalese economy by increasing employment possibilities and increasing per capita income.

    Issues with the project

    • It is estimated that if the agreement is not passed by Parliament, the power producers in the country are likely to lose a staggering Rs. 142 billion every year.
    • As a result, PM Sher Bahadur Deuba is striving to get the MCC passed in Parliament as soon as possible, even if it means splitting the coalition government.
    • In addition, if he fails to get it through Parliament, there is a possible risk of losing his international credibility.

    America vs China: Objections around MCC

    • The MCC agreement has created a political divide in Nepal.
    • The compact has been criticised in Nepal as endangering the country’s sovereignty, integrity, and constitutional autonomy.
    • The claim that the MCC agreement supersedes the national charter and shall prevail over Nepal’s domestic laws.
    • Many have interpreted this to suggest that the compact replaces the constitution, compromising Nepal’s sovereignty.
    • The MCC’s inclusion in the Indo-Pacific Strategy (IPS) is considered problematic for Nepal, as the majority of the country’s political class views the US strategy as anti-China.

    India’s role in the ongoing political crisis in Nepal

    • Few claim that the electricity generated by MCC will be only for export to India and will not be for the local public.
    • As a result, it will not benefit the local economy directly.
    • Nepal’s hydroelectric generation potential is huge, with over 6,000 large and small rivers.
    • However, through a series of barrages and dams, India has control over the majority of Nepal’s major rivers.
    • Nationalists in the Himalayan country have strongly objected to this.
    • In Nepal, where India is still perceived as a meddling big brother, its goal of strengthening India’s military capabilities through this agreement to counter China’s was questioned.

     

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  • Coal and Mining Sector

    Land protests over Deocha Pachami Coal Block

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

    The West Bengal government’s ambitious Deocha Pachami coal block mining project in Birbhum district has run into hurdles over land acquisition and other issues.

    Deocha Pachami Coal Block

    • The State government is planning to start mining at the Deocha Pachami coal block, considered to be the largest coal block in the country with reserves of around 1,198 million tonnes of coal.
    • It is spread over an area of 12.31 sq. km, which is around 3,400 acres.
    • There are around 12 villages in the project area with a population of over 21,000, comprising Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

    Why are locals upset?

    • The project is facing protests over land acquisition of which a significant part is forest land.
    • Locals, mostly Santhal tribals, have close affinity with the land, with forests and waterways, and rely on it for their needs.
    • The tribals were harassed and had been arrested under false and serious charges for protesting.
    • Also, the project details have not yet been made public; and the environment clearance is awaited.

    Back2Basics:

    Coal

    • This is the most abundantly found fossil fuel. It is used as a domestic fuel, in industries such as iron and steel, steam engines and to generate electricity. Electricity from coal is called thermal power.
    • The coal which we are using today was formed millions of years ago when giant ferns and swamps got buried under the layers of earth. Coal is therefore referred to as Buried Sunshine.
    • The leading coal producers of the world include China, US, Australia, Indonesia, India.
    • The coal-producing areas of India include Raniganj, Jharia, Dhanbad and Bokaro in Jharkhand.
    • Coal is also classified into four ranks: anthracite, bituminous, sub-bituminous, and lignite. The ranking depends on the types and amounts of carbon the coal contains and on the amount of heat energy the coal can produce.

     

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Russia

    What is the International Court of Justice?

    Prelims Only | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: International Institutions

    Ukraine has filed an application before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), instituting proceedings against the Russian Federation for committing Genocide.

    International Court of Justice

    • The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations (UN).
    • It was established in June 1945 by the Charter of the United Nations and began work in April 1946.
    • The court is the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice (PCIJ), which was brought into being through, and by, the League of Nations.
    • It held its inaugural sitting at the Peace Palace in The Hague, Netherlands, in February 1922.

    Its establishment

    • After World War II, the League of Nations and PCIJ were replaced by the United Nations and ICJ respectively.
    • The PCIJ was formally dissolved in April 1946, and its last president, Judge José Gustavo Guerrero of El Salvador, became the first president of the ICJ.
    • The first case, which was brought by the UK against Albania over concerning incidents in the Corfu channel — the narrow strait of the Ionian Sea between the Greek island of Corfu and Albania.

    Seat and role

    • Like the PCIJ, the ICJ is based at the Peace Palace in The Hague.
    • It is the only one of the six principal organs of the UN that is not located in New York City.
    • The other five organs are:
    1. General Assembly
    2. Security Council
    3. Economic and Social Council
    4. Trusteeship Council
    5. Secretariat
    • The court as a whole must represent the main forms of civilization and the principal legal systems of the world.
    • The judges of the court are assisted by a Registry, the administrative organ of the ICJ. English and French are the ICJ’s official languages.

    Jurisdiction of ICJ

    • All members of the UN are automatically parties to the ICJ statute, but this does not automatically give the ICJ jurisdiction over disputes involving them.
    • The ICJ gets jurisdiction only if both parties consent to it.
    • The judgment of the ICJ is final and technically binding on the parties to a case.
    • There is no provision of appeal; it can at the most, be subject to interpretation or, upon the discovery of a new fact, revision.
    • However, the ICJ has no way to ensure compliance of its orders, and its authority is derived from the willingness of countries to abide by them.

    Judges of the court

    • The ICJ has 15 judges who are elected to nine-year terms by the UN General Assembly and Security Council, which vote simultaneously but separately.
    • To be elected, a candidate must receive a majority of the votes in both bodies, a requirement that sometimes necessitates multiple rounds of voting.
    • Elections are held at the UNHQ in New York during the annual UNGA meeting.
    • A third of the court is elected every three years.
    • The judges elected at the triennial election commence their term of office on February 6 of the following year.
    • The president and vice-president of the court are elected for three-year terms by secret ballot. Judges are eligible for re-election.

    India in ICJ

    • Four Indians have been members of the ICJ so far.
    • Justice Dalveer Bhandari, former judge of the Supreme Court, has been serving at the ICJ since 2012.
    • Former Chief Justice of India R S Pathak served from 1989-91, and former Chief Election Commissioner of India Nagendra Singh from 1973-88.
    • Singh was also president of the court from 1985-88, and vice-president from 1976-79.
    • Before him, Sir Benegal Rau, who was an advisor to the Constituent Assembly, was a member of the ICJ from 1952-53.

    Indian cases at the ICJ

    • India has been a party to a case at the ICJ on six occasions, four of which have involved Pakistan.
    • They are:
    1. Right of Passage over Indian Territory (Portugal v. India, culminated 1960);
    2. Appeal Relating to the Jurisdiction of the ICAO Council (India v. Pakistan, culminated 1972);
    3. Trial of Pakistani Prisoners of War (Pakistan v. India, culminated 1973);
    4. Aerial Incident of 10 August 1999 (Pakistan v. India, culminated 2000);
    5. Obligations concerning Negotiations relating to Cessation of the Nuclear Arms Race and to Nuclear Disarmament (Marshall Islands v. India, culminated 2016); and
    6. (Kulbhushan) Jadhav (India v. Pakistan, culminated 2019).

    Back2Basics:

    BASIS INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE
    Relationship with the United Nations Independent; UN Security Council may refer matters to it Primary judicial branch of the UN.
    Members 105 members 193 members (all members of the United Nations).
    Derives authority from The Rome Statute Charter of the United Nations and the Statute of the International Court of Justice.
    Scope of work Criminal matters – investigating and prosecuting crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes Civil matters- settling legal disputes between the member-states and giving advisory opinions on international legal issues
    Jurisdiction Only the member nations of the ICC, which means around 105 countries. Can try individuals. All the member nations of the UN, which means 193 countries. Cannot try individuals and other private entities.
    Composition 1 prosecutor and 18 judges, who are elected for a 9-year term each by the member-states which make up the Assembly of State Parties with all being from different nations 15 judges who are elected for a 9-year term each and are all from different nations.
    Funding Funded by state parties to the Rome Statute and voluntary contributions from the United Nations, governments, individual corporations, etc. Funded by the UN.

     

     

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  • Monsoon Updates

    [pib] International Monsoons Project Office (IMPO)

    Prelims Only | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 1: Geographical Features & Their Location

    Union Minister of Science & Technology has launched the International Monsoons Project Office (IMPO).

    International Monsoons Project Office (IMPO)

    • IMPO will be hosted at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, an institution under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Govt of India, initially for five years.
    • Setting up the IMPO reiterates the importance of monsoons for the national economy.
    • It would encompass activities and connections related to international monsoon research that would be identified and fostered under the leadership of the World Climate Research Programme.
    • Both the World Climate Research Programme and World Weather Research Programme are international programmes coordinated by the United Nations World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).

    Significance of IMPO

    • Setting up the IMPO in India would mean expanding an integrated scientific approach to solve the seasonal variability of monsoons, enhancing the prediction skill of monsoons and cyclones.
    • It would promote knowledge sharing and capacity building in areas of monsoon research crucial for agriculture, water resources and disaster management, hydropower and climate-sensitive socio-economic sectors.
    • It is a step towards making India a global hub for monsoon research and coordination in a seamless manner for addressing common and region-specific aspects of the monsoons around the world.

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    Back2Basics:

    Various terms related to Indian Monsoon

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  • Roads, Highways, Cargo, Air-Cargo and Logistics infrastructure – Bharatmala, LEEP, SetuBharatam, etc.

    [pib] Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP)

    PIB | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

    National Logistics Portal (NLP) is set to be integrated with Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP) to make the multi-modal logistics ecosystem more efficient.

    Unified Logistics Interface Platform (ULIP)

    • ULIP is designed to enhance efficiency and reduce the cost of logistics in India by creating a transparent, one window platform that can provide real-time information to all stakeholders.
    • It was also emphasized that the solution should have the visibility of multi-modal transport, and all the existing systems of various ministries, governing bodies, and private stakeholders should be integrated with the ULIP system.
    • This will create a National Single Window Logistics Portal which will help in reducing the logistics cost.
    • ULIP will provide real-time monitoring of cargo movement while ensuring data confidentiality with end-to-end encryption, comprehensive reduction in logistic cost resulting in competitive costing.

    There are three key components which are defining the ULIP platform:

    • Integration with existing data sources of ministries: As authorization, compliance and clearance are some of the critical activities of Logistics; the integration with data points of ministries shall enable a holistic view and interlink the handshaking points.
    • Data exchange with private players: To enable the private players, logistics service providers, and industries to utilize the data available with ULIP and at the same time share their data (transportation, dispatch, delivery, etc.) with ULIP, thereby streamlining the processes to bring better efficiency through data exchange.
    • Unified document reference in the supply chain: To enable a single digitized document reference number for all the documentation processes in a single platform.

     

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  • Cyber Security – CERTs, Policy, etc

    Reporting cyber attacks

    | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Cyber Security

    Context

    The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is likely to come out with new cyber security regulations which will put the onus on organisations to report any cybercrime that may have happened against them, including data leaks.

    Damages inflicted by the cyber crimes

    • Apart from private firms, government services, especially critical utilities, are prone to cyber attacks and breach incidents.
    • The ransomware attack against the nationwide gas pipeline in 2021 in the U.S. virtually brought down the transportation of about 45% of all petrol and diesel consumed on the east coast.
    • If it were measured as a country, then cyber crime — which is predicted to inflict damages totalling $6 trillion globally in 2021 — would be the world’s third-largest economy after the U.S. and China.

    Provision for reporting the cybercrime

    • Clause 25 in the Data Protection Bill 2021 says that data fiduciaries should report any personal and non-personal data breach incident within 72 hours of becoming aware of a breach.
    • Clause in EU GDPR: Even the golden standard for data protection, namely the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (EU GDPR), has a clause for reporting data breach incidents within a stringent timeline.
    •  This, in principle, is likely to improve cyber security and reduce attacks and breaches.

    Why reporting cybercrime is important

    • Alerting other organisations: If incidences are reported, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team and others can alert organisations about the associated security vulnerabilities.
    • Precautionary measures: Firms not yet affected can also take precautionary measures such as deploying security patches and improving their cyber security infrastructure.
    • Why firms are reluctant to notify the crime? Any security or privacy breach has a negative impact on the reputation of the associated firms.
    • An empirical study by Comparitech indicates that the share prices for firms generally fall around 3.5% on average over three months following the breach.
    • So, firms weigh the penalties they face for not disclosing the incidents versus the potential reputational harm due to disclosure, and decide accordingly.

    Possible solutions

    • Periodic cyber security audits:  How will the regulator come to know when a firm does not disclose a security breach?
    • It can be done only through periodic cyber security audits.
    •  Unfortunately, the regulators in most countries including India do not have such capacity to conduct security audits frequently and completely.
    • Empanel third-party auditors: The government can empanel third party cyber security auditors for the conduct of periodical cyber security impact assessments, primarily amongst all the government departments, both at the national and State level, so that security threats and incidents can be detected proactively and incidents averted.
    • Evaluation and Certification of cyber security: The Ministry, as part of cyber security assurance initiatives of the Government of India, to evaluate and certify IT security products and protection profiles, has set up Common Criteria Testing Laboratories and certification bodies across the country.
    • These schemes can be extended towards cyber security audits and assessments as well.
    • Security command centre:  Much like IBM, which set up a large cyber security command centre in Bengaluru, other large firms can also be encouraged to set up such centres for protection of their firms’ assets.

    Consider the question “Reporting cyber security breaches is important. Yet, firms are reluctant to report the breaches. Examine the reasons for reluctance on part of the firms and suggest the way forward.”

    Conclusion

    Such measures will also pass the muster of the EU GDPR, thereby moving India closer to the set of countries that have the same level of cyber security and data protection as that of EU, for seamless cross-border data flow.

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  • Innovations in Sciences, IT, Computers, Robotics and Nanotechnology

    Antonov AN-225: World’s largest aircraft

    Prelims Only | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

    Amid Moscow’s assault on Ukraine, the world’s largest cargo aircraft, the Antonov AN-225 or ‘Mriya’, was destroyed by Russian troops during an attack on an airport near Kyiv.

    Antonov AN-225

    • With a wingspan of over 290-feet, the unique Antonov AN-225 was designed in what was then the Ukrainian USSR during the 1980s amid a tense race to space between the US and the Soviet Union.
    • The plane, nicknamed ‘Mriya’ or ‘dream’ in Ukrainian, is very popular in aviation circles, and is known to attract huge crowds of fans at air shows around the world.
    • It was initially designed as part of the Soviet aeronautical program to carry the Buran, which was the Soviet version of the US’ Space Shuttle.
    • After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, when the Buran program was cancelled, the aircraft was instead used to transport massive cargo loads.

    Its manufacturing

    • Only one AN-225 was ever built by the Kyiv-based Antonov Company, the defence manufacturers who originally designed the plane.
    • It is essentially a large version of another design by the Antonoc Company — the four-engine An-124 ‘Condor’, which is used by the Russian Air Force.
    • The aircraft first took flight in 1988 and has been in use ever since.
    • In the recent past, it has been used for delivering relief supplies during calamities in neighbouring nations.

     

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India – EU

    The significance of EU-India partnership in the Indo-Pacific

    | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Context

    Europe and its key Indo-Pacific partners are joining forces to deliver a positive agenda for the region at the ministerial Forum to be held in Paris.

    Importance of Indo-Pacific for EU

    • The issues at stake in this crucial region, including security challenges, are of concern to all EU countries.
    • EU unveiled EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific,  in September 2021.
    •  Europe can offer the countries of the region a sustainable, transparent model for preserving their sovereignty, and an alternative to other models, such as China’s.
    • Addressing the connectivity and infrastructure need: There are immense connectivity and infrastructure needs in the Indo-Pacific.
    • But these needs should not force the countries of the region into unsustainable dependencies.
    • The EU’s Global Gateway initiative unveiled in December 2021 hopes to address this by pooling the resources of the EU’s institutions and its 27 member states to raise 300 billion euros to build sustainable links.
    • India’s role: The EU and India have already concluded a Connectivity Partnership (last May in Porto), which can be a pillar of this wider initiative.
    • The Indo-Pacific is a crucial region for tackling global challenges such as climate change, biodiversity protection and health resilience. 
    • At the Forum, the EU will present the support it can provide to countries of the region, including in terms of green finance, to achieve their ecological transitions in a just manner.
    • The ministers will also discuss concrete steps to strengthen health sovereignty and promote the “One Health” approach to the pandemic response.

    Role of France and India in the region

    • France, itself a nation of the Indo-Pacific, has a long-standing commitment to upholding the law of the sea in the region, particularly through our permanent naval presence and joint exercises, such as our annual “Varuna” drills with India.
    • In the fields of biodiversity protection and plastic pollution, France and India can act together to spur multilateral action, as exemplified by India’s decision to join the France-initiated international coalition to protect 30 per cent of the land and seas by 2030 (High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People).
    • Cooperation between France and India on protected areas and national parks can also be expanded at the Indo-Pacific scale.
    • At the forum, France will propose the creation of an Indo-Pacific health campus, to be established in India, to bring together India’s pharmaceutical prowess and Europe’s technological capacity for the benefit of the region.

    Conclusion

    In a world of growing tensions, the core goal of France’s EU Presidency is to strengthen Europe’s sovereignty and its ability to decide its own fate. This endeavour matches India’s fundamental aspiration for strategic autonomy.

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  • Food Procurement and Distribution – PDS & NFSA, Shanta Kumar Committee, FCI restructuring, Buffer stock, etc.

    How Russia-Ukraine conflict will effect inflation in India

    | Agriculture | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    Context

    With the Russia-Ukraine conflict flaring into a war, global commodity prices, especially that of crude oil and gas, are likely to see a strong surge. This poses a challenge not only for India to contain inflationary pressures but also the world at large.

    The problem of rising inflation

    • At 6 per cent, India’s consumer price index (CPI) inflation crossed the upper limit of RBI’s tolerance band in January 2022.
    • Implications: High inflation inflicts a large “inflation tax” on the general public whose bank savings earn an interest of less than 1 per cent.
    • This is robbing the general public in the name of fuelling growth.
    • India is not impervious to this tendency. Most of the major banks in the country offer interest rates between 3 to 4 per cent to depositors.
    • Both the finance ministry and the RBI are betting on revving up growth, at least for the time being.
    • This is fine as long as they can tame inflation within reasonable limits.
    •  If we want to do justice to the masses on whose deposits the entire banking system hinges, one must ensure positive real rates of interest.

    How to ensure lower rates of inflation

    • Given that food has a weight of more than 45 per cent in CPI in India, understanding the dynamics of food inflation is critical.
    • India imports roughly 60 per cent of its consumption of edible oils, and global prices of edible oils have gone up by more than 50 per cent over the last year.
    • Edible oil inflation in India was touching 35 per cent a few months back.
    • This has come down to 18 per cent after the reduction on import duties.
    • The Union Minister of Commerce has also recently claimed that they have brought down the inflation in pulses by imposing stock limits on traders and by lowering import duties and importing more pulses.
    • The Centre has also imposed stocking limits on domestic oil/oilseed traders. 

    Way forward:  Reform the grain-management-cum-food-subsidy system

    • Stock limit on wheat and rice with FCI:  As on January 1, it is saddled with stocks that are almost four times the buffer stock norms.
    • By unloading the excess grain in the open market, FCI could help in bringing down food inflation substantially as rice and wheat have a high weightage in CPI.
    •  In the name of the poor, India runs one of the largest but perhaps the most inefficient and corrupt public distribution system (PDS) in the world.
    • Stop competitive populism: Every political party promises freebies before elections.
    •  Unless the Election Commission comes down heavily on such promises or a public interest litigation is filed in the Supreme Court to stop this competitive populism, Indian policymaking cannot be growth-oriented.
    • Reduce the population coverage under PDS:  India’s food subsidy policy covers 67 per cent of the population and distributes rice and wheat at more than 90 per cent subsidy under the National Food Security Act of 2013.
    • Raise productivity: This should be combined with taking giant strides to raise productivity and producing more nutritious food while protecting the environment.
    • Focus on R&D in agriculture: It’s well-known agri-R&D gives a much higher return in terms of promoting growth with competitiveness, and reduces poverty by making food cheaper and controlling food inflation

    Conclusion

    It is important to reform the grain-management-cum-food-subsidy system to release precious resources for growth of agriculture.

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