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  • Solar Energy – JNNSM, Solar Cities, Solar Pumps, etc.

    Solar Power Tariffs in India

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

    India’s solar power tariffs have hit a new record low of ₹2 per unit.

    Can you relate this?

    We have such a lower cost of solar energy. Then why do we rely on coal powered thermal power plants?

    Solar energy scenario in India

    • India has an ambitious target to increase its solar power base – by 2022, it wants to quadruple its current solar capacity to 100GW.
    • A number of industrial-scale solar energy plants have come up in the past few years.
    • The government-backed company Solar Energy Corp. of India (SECI) has been auctioning solar energy capacity to various private developers using a bidding process that favours the cheapest tariffs.

    Low tariff may seem lucrative

    • The record low solar tariffs are mainly due to the “reverse bidding” process, which selects the cheapest bidder.
    • India is now said to be considering a ceiling on solar tariffs – a cap of ₹2.5 ($o.035) and ₹2.68 ($0.038) per unit – for solar power companies that use both domestic and imported equipment.
    • India imports over 90 per cent of solar equipment including cells and modules from overseas, mainly from China and Malaysia.
    • The govt. now is in proves to impose a 25 per cent safeguard duty on solar equipment imports to protect domestic manufacturers, which could further put pressure on the razor margins of solar developers.

    Impacts of such low tariff

    • With the steep drop in prices, there are also concerns about the quality of the equipment being deployed, raising questions about future regulation and related costs.
    • The infrastructure of many solar plants in India didn’t meet many environmental stress factors and technical standards, according to a study.
    • India also has a target of increasing its rooftop solar capacity to 40,000 megawatts (MW) by 2022 similar to trends in many European countries.
    • But, here too, prohibitive costs of solar equipment have kept many residential property owners from switching to rooftop solar despite a government subsidy.

    Back2Basics: SECI

    • It is a company of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India, established to facilitate the implementation of the National Solar Mission (NSM).
    • It is the only Central Public Sector Undertaking dedicated to the solar energy sector.
    • The company’s mandate has been broadened to cover the entire renewable energy domain and the company will be renamed to Renewable Energy Corporation of India (RECI).
    • It is responsible for the implementation of a number of govt. schemes, major ones being the solar park scheme and grid-connected solar rooftop scheme etc.
    • It has a power-trading licence and is active in this domain through the trading of solar power from projects set up under the schemes being implemented by it.

    Reverse bidding Process

    In a reverse auction, the buyer puts up a request for a required good or service. Sellers then place bids for the amount they are willing to be paid for the good or service, and at the end of the auction the seller with the lowest amount wins.

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  • Cashless Society – Digital Payments, Demonetization, etc.

    NPCI caps UPI transactions on third-party apps at 30%

    op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The article deals with the recent NPCI decision to cap the number of transactions by third party application providers (TPAPs).

    Context

    • The National Payments Corp of India (NPCI), in its recent guidelines imposed a 30% volume-based cap on the share of transactions by TPAPs and payment service providers (PSPs), effective from January 2021.

     5 issues with the volume-based cap

    1) It undermines cashless economy

    • The growth and recognition of UPI would not have been possible had a cap been in place.
    • Typically, customers limit themselves to one or two TPAPs of their choice.
    • A transaction cap that forces users to use multiple apps may result in more transaction failures and dilute UPI’s popularity and impact.
    • Lack of accessibility and user-friendliness would push users away from UPI towards other payment methods, or even cash.

    2) It’s an anti-consumer decision

    • Open markets and user choice have been crucial factors in the exponential increase seen in UPI adoption and its transactions.
    • A volume-based cap would compel TPAPs to either limit the number of transactions on their platforms or stop enrolling new users, which in turn would restrict the customer’s use of UPI.
    • TPAPs will likely be forced to redact customer incentives like cashbacks, coupons and the like.
    • This could go against consumer interests by reducing choice.

    3) It will also make the Indian market less attractive for investors:

    • The cap would raise compliance and regulatory costs for players in the sector, which could deter new investors from entering.
    • It would also adversely affect the growth potential of existing UPI players.

    4) No regulatory impact assessment

    • The idea of a volume-based cap does not appear to have undergone an assessment of its impact on the sector.
    • As a general principle, before any such rule is imposed, an RIA (Regulatory Impact Assessment) needs to be undertaken.
    • Systemic risks are not restricted to UPI and are common in all financial systems; yet, a similar cap has not been suggested for, say, retail bank transactions.

    5) Impact on Atmanirbhar Bharat

    •  In order for Indian businesses to grow and compete at the global level, we need to integrate business processes with the global economy.
    • Indian start-ups, in particular, need tools and infrastructure that lets them gain an international edge.
    • Atmanirbhar Bharat envisions a self-reliant India that thrives on innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.
    • But this vision cannot be fulfilled if our policies restrain the growth of a cashless economy.

    Conclusion

    India’s UPI ecosystem is nascent, but has demonstrated significant growth and has had a positive impact on the economy by providing the backbone needed to move towards cashless commerce. Any policy decision by regulators at this point should aim at catalysing innovation in this space. Stifling it would serve India badly.

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  • Coronavirus – Health and Governance Issues

    Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network

    | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

    The government is using eVIN – Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network in association with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to identify primary beneficiaries and vaccine distribution networks.

    Try this question from CSP 2016:

    Q.‘Mission Indradhanush’ launched by the Government of India pertains to:

    (a) Immunization of children and pregnant women

    (b) Construction of smart cities across the country

    (c) India’s own search for the Earth-like planets in outer space

    (d) New Educational Policy

    What is eVIN?

    • E-VIN is an indigenously developed technology that digitizes vaccine stocks and monitors the temperature of the cold chain through a smartphone application.
    • It was first launched across 12 states in 2015 to support better vaccine logistics management at cold chain points.
    • It supports the central government’s Universal Immunization Programme by providing real-time information on vaccine stocks and flows, and storage temperatures across all cold chain points across states and UTs.

    Components of eVIN

    • eVIN combines state-of-the-art technology, a strong IT infrastructure and trained human resource to enable real-time monitoring of stock and storage temperature of the vaccines kept in multiple locations across the country.
    • At present, 23,507 cold chain points across 585 districts of 22 States and 2 UTs routinely use the eVIN technology for efficient vaccine logistics management.

    Benefits of eVIN

    • It has helped create a big data architecture that generates actionable analytics encouraging data-driven decision-making and consumption-based planning.
    • It helps in maintaining optimum stocks of vaccines leading to cost savings. Vaccine availability at all times has increased to 99% in most health centres in India.
    • While instances of stock-outs have reduced by 80%, the time taken to replenish stocks has also decreased by more than half, on an average.
    • This has ensured that every child who reaches the immunization session site is immunized, and not turned back due to unavailability of vaccines.

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  • Indian Navy Updates

    MQ-9B Sea Guardian Unarmed Drone

    | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Various Security Forces, Agencies & Their Mandates

    The Indian Navy has inducted two MQ-9B Sea Guardian unarmed drones procured from the U.S. on lease.

    Try this question from CSP 2018:

    Q.What is “Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)”, sometimes seen in the news?

    (a) An Israeli radar system

    (b) India’s indigenous anti-missile programme

    (c) An American anti-missile system

    (d) A defence collaboration between Japan and South Korea

    MQ-9B Sea Guardian

    • The Guardian, which is the maritime variant of the Predator MQ-9 UAV, has a maximum endurance of 40 hours and a maximum flying altitude of 40,000 feet.
    • It has 360-degree maritime surveillance radar and optional multimode maritime surface search radar.
    • The drone can perform over-the-horizon long-endurance, medium-altitude Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
    • The recently released Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020 has introduced an option for leasing military platforms.
    • The Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA) has simplified such high- technology cooperation.

    About BECA

    • BECA will help India get real-time access to American geospatial intelligence that will enhance the accuracy of automated systems and weapons like missiles and armed drones.
    • Through the sharing of information on maps and satellite images, it will help India access topographical and aeronautical data, and advanced products that will aid in navigation and targeting.
    • This could be a key to Air Force-to-Air Force cooperation between India and the US.
    • BECA will provide Indian military systems with a high-quality GPS to navigate missiles with real-time intelligence to precisely target the adversary.
    • Besides the sailing of ships, flying off aircraft, fighting of wars, and location of targets, geospatial intelligence is also critical to the response to natural disasters.

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  • Banking Sector Reforms

    Allowing corporate houses in banking

    op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The article argues against the suggestion of allowing the corporate houses in the banking sector in India.

    Context

    • An Internal Working Group of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recommended that corporate houses be given bank licences.

    Background of the idea

    • In February 2013, the RBI had issued guidelines that permitted corporate and industrial houses to apply for a banking licence.
    • No corporate was ultimately given a bank licence.
    • None of the applicants had met ‘fit and proper’ criteria.
    • In 2014, the RBI restored the long-standing prohibition on the entry of corporate houses into banking.
    • The RBI’s position on the subject has remained unchanged since 2014.

    Advantages

    • Corporate houses will bring capital and expertise to banking.
    • Moreover, not many jurisdictions worldwide bar corporate houses from banking.

    Risks involved

    • As the report notes, the main concerns are interconnected lending, concentration of economic power and exposure of the safety net provided to banks
    • Corporate houses can easily turn banks into a source of funds for their own businesses.
    • In addition, they can ensure that funds are directed to their cronies.
    • They can use banks to provide finance to customers and suppliers of their businesses.
    • Adding a bank to a corporate house thus means an increase in concentration of economic power.
    • Not least, banks owned by corporate houses will be exposed to the risks of the non-bank entities of the group.
    • If the non-bank entities get into trouble, sentiment about the bank owned by the corporate house is bound to be impacted.

    Suggestion by IWG and issues with them

    • The Internal Working Group (IWG) believes that before corporate houses are allowed to enter banking, the RBI must be equipped with a legal framework to deal with interconnected lending and a mechanism to effectively supervise conglomerates that venture into banking.
    • But there are following 4 issues with such suggestion-
    • 1) Tracing interconnected lending will be a challenge.
    • 2)The RBI can only react to interconnected lending ex-post, that is, after substantial exposure to the entities of the corporate house has happened.
    • It is unlikely to be able to prevent such exposure.
    • 3) Any action that the RBI may take in response could cause a flight of deposits from the bank concerned and precipitate its failure.
    • 4) Pitting the regulator against powerful corporate houses could end up damaging the regulator.

    Issues in allowing NBFC owning corporate house in banking

    • Under the present policy, NBFCs with a successful track record of 10 years are allowed to convert themselves into banks.
    • The Internal Working Group believes that NBFCs owned by corporate houses should be eligible for such conversion.
    • This promises to be an easier route for the entry of corporate houses into banking.
    • The Internal Working Group argues that corporate-owned NBFCs have been regulated for a while.
    • However, there is a world of difference between a corporate house owning an NBFC and one owning a bank.
    • Bank ownership provides access to a public safety net whereas NBFC ownership does not.
    • The reach and clout that bank ownership provides are vastly superior to that of an NBFC.
    • The objections that apply to a corporate house with no presence in bank-like activities are equally applicable to corporate houses that own NBFCs.

    Consider the question “What are the concerns and challenges in allowing the corporate houses in the banking sector in India?” 

    Conclusion

    India’s banking sector needs reform but corporate houses owning banks hardly qualifies as one. If the record of over-leveraging in the corporate world in recent years is anything to go by, the entry of corporate houses into banking is the road to perdition.

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  • Judicial Reforms

    Protecting Article 32

    op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Executive & Judiciary

    The article deals with the issue of recourse to Article 32 for violation of Fundamental Rights. But it is subject to fundamental principles of administration of justice.

    Context

    • The Chief Justice of India is reported to have stated during the hearing of journalist Siddique Kappan’s bail matter, that the Court was trying to “discourage” recourse to Article 32.

    Recourse under Article 32 is not absolute

    • The apex judicial process shows clearly that the Court regards Article 32 as a judicial power subject to the fundamental principles of administration of justice.
    • The Supreme Court has already extended rules and doctrines such as laches (delays) or res judicata (a matter already decided by a competent court) or any other principle of administration of justice.
    • Article 32 keep open “the doors of this court” and requires the state not to “put any hindrance” to a person seeking to approach the Court.
    • However, the Court must ignore all laws of procedure, evidence, limitation, res judicata and other provision.
    • The Supreme Court has also said that faith “must be inspired in the hierarchy of Courts [ Recourse under Article 226 should be sought before approaching the SC] and the institution as a whole” and not” only in this Court alone”.
    • So, even if there is a constitutional right to remedies it remains subject to the discipline of judicial power and process.

    New facets of Article 32

    • The Supreme Court has also discovered new facets of Article 32.
    • As early as 1950, it has ruled that powers under Article 32 are not limited to the exercise of prerogative writs.
    • In 1987 the Court ruled that it has powers to rule for compensation of violation of fundamental rights.
    • In 1999 it said that this power extended to the rectification of its own mistakes or errors.

    Comparing Article 226 and Article 32

    • Article 226 is the very dimension; the high court’s vast jurisdiction technically casts no duty on them to enforce fundamental rights.
    • They have the discretion to act or not to; in contrast, the Supreme Court must.
    • Fourth, Article 32 is not absolute, the Supreme Court decides on what “appropriate proceedings” should be for it to be so moved.
    • But the Court may not prescribe any process as it likes but only that process which preserves, protects and promotes the right to constitutional remedies.

    Need for effective bail system

    • The just demand for an expeditious and effective bail system stems from manifest discrimination in bail .
    • In several instances, one case is fast-tracked whereas others are consigned to slow-moving judicial action, even when rights to life and health are endangered.
    • Scandalous judicial delays, measures of decongestion and diversion, and a bold resolution of “who watches the watchman” syndrome now demand urgent apex response.

    Consider the question “Seeking remedy from the Supreme Court for the violation of fundamental rights under Article 32 is also a fundamental right. However, enforcement of it is not absolute. In light of this, examine the challenges in its enforcement by the Supreme Court.”

    Conclusion

    Article 32 makes the apex court into a “people’s court”. And future historians should not be able to conclude that the Court deliberately dealt deathblows to this “soul” of the Constitution, as Babasaheb Ambedkar described Article 32.

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  • Monsoon Updates

    Why has the Northeast Monsoon remained deficient this year?

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

    Rainfall over the Southern peninsular region has been deficient so far due to prevailing La Nina conditions according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.La Nina is suspected to have caused recent floods in Australia. How is La Nina different from El Nino?

    1. La Nina is characterized by unusually cold ocean temperature in equatorial Indian Ocean whereas El Nino is characterized by unusually warm ocean temperature in the equatorial Pacific Ocean.
    2. El Nino has an adverse effect on south-west monsoon of India, but La Nina has no effect on monsoon climate.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) Only 1

    (b) Only 2

    (c) Both 1 and 2

    (d) Neither 1 nor 2

    What is the Northeast monsoon?

    • India receives rainfall during two seasons.
    • About 75 per cent of the country’s annual rainfall is received from the Southwest monsoon between June and September.
    • The Northeast monsoon, on the other hand, occurs from October to December and is a comparatively small-scale monsoon, which is confined to the Southern peninsula.
    • After the complete withdrawal of the Southwest monsoon from the country takes place by mid-October, the wind pattern rapidly changes from the south-westerly to the north-easterly direction.
    • Also called the winter monsoon, the rainfall associated with the Northeast monsoon is important for almost entire South India.

    Why it is important?

    • Tamil Nadu records about 48 per cent (447.4 mm) of its annual rainfall (943.7 mm) during these months, making it the key factor for undertaking agricultural activities and reservoir management in the state.
    • Some South Asian countries such as Maldives, Sri Lanka and Myanmar also record rainfall from October to December.

    Why there are distortions?

    • The majority of districts in Tamil Nadu remain highly rain-deficient up this time.
    • The period after the Southwest monsoon season, from October to December, is the peak time for cyclonic activity in the North Indian Ocean region — covering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.
    • The winds associated with the formation of low-pressure systems, depressions, or cyclones influence this monsoon, and therefore, the rainfall.
    • Officials at IMD have linked it to the prevailing La Niña conditions in the Pacific Ocean.

    La Nina  link with the NE monsoon

    • While La Niña conditions enhance the rainfall associated with the Southwest monsoon, it has a negative impact on rainfall associated with the Northeast monsoon.
    • During La Niña years, the synoptic systems — low pressure or cyclones — formed in the Bay of Bengal remain significantly to the north of their normal position.
    • Besides, instead of moving westwards, these systems recurve. As they lie to the north of their normal position, not much rainfall occurs over southern regions like Tamil Nadu.

    Back2Basics: El Nino and La Nina

    • While El Niño (Spanish for ‘little boy’), the more common expression, is the abnormal surface warming observed along the eastern and central regions of the Pacific Ocean (the region between Peru and Papua New Guinea).
    • The La Niña (Spanish for ‘little girl’) is an abnormal cooling of these surface waters.
    • Together, the El Niño and La Niña phenomena are termed as El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO).
    • These are large-scale ocean phenomena which influence the global weather — winds, temperature and rainfall. They have the ability to trigger extreme weather events like droughts, floods, hot and cold conditions, globally.
    • Each cycle can last anywhere between 9 to 12 months, at times extendable to 18 months — and re-occur after every three to five years.
    • Meteorologists record the sea surface temperatures for four different regions, known as Niño regions, along this equatorial belt.
    • Depending on the temperatures, they forecast either as an El Niño, an ENSO neutral phase, or a La Niña.

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  • Water Management – Institutional Reforms, Conservation Efforts, etc.

    Desalination Plants and their Feasibility

    | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Maharashtra state govt. has announced the setting up of a desalination plant in Mumbai, becoming the fourth state in the country to experiment with the idea.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.What is the role of ultraviolet (UV) radiation in the water purification systems?

    1. It inactivates/kills the harmful microorganisms in water.
    2. It removes the entire undesirable odour from the water.
    3. It quickens the sedimentation of solid particles, removes turbidity and improves the clarity of water.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

    What are Desalination Plants?

    • A desalination plant turns salt water into water that is fit to drink.
    • The most commonly used techniques used for the process is reverse osmosis where external pressure is applied to push solvents from an area of high-solute concentration to an area of low-solute concentration through a membrane.
    • The microscopic pores in the membranes allow water molecules through but leave salt and most other impurities behind, releasing clean water from the other side.
    • These plants are mostly set up in areas that have access to seawater.

    How widely is this technology used in India?

    • Desalination has largely been limited to affluent countries in the Middle East and has recently started making inroads in parts of the United States and Australia.
    • In India, Tamil Nadu has been the pioneer in using this technology, setting up two desalination plants near Chennai in 2010 and then 2013, while there are two more to come.

    Need for such plant

    • According to the projections, the population of Mumbai is anticipated to touch 1.72 crores by 2041 and accordingly, the projected water demand would be 6424 MLD by then.
    • Currently, BMC supplies 3850 MLD as against the requirement of 4200 MLD each day.

    Is it ecologically safe?

    • The high cost of setting up and running a desalination plant is one reason why the Maharashtra government has over the last decade been hesitant in building such a plant.
    • Desalination is an expensive way of generating drinking water as it requires a high amount of energy.
    • The other problem is the disposal of the byproduct — highly concentrated brine (saltwater) — of the desalination process.
    • While in most places brine is pumped back into the sea, there have been rising complaints that it ends up severely damaging the local ecology around the plant.

    Back2Basics: Osmosis and Reverse Osmosis

    • Osmosis is a phenomenon where pure water flows from a dilute solution through a semi-permeable membrane to a higher concentrated solution.
    • Semi-permeable means that the membrane will allow small molecules and ions to pass through it but acts as a barrier to larger molecules or dissolved substances.
    • As water passes through the membrane to the salt solution, the level of liquid in the saltwater compartment will rise until enough pressure, caused by the difference in levels between the two compartments, is generated to stop the osmosis.
    • This pressure, equivalent to a force that the osmosis seems to exert in trying to equalize concentrations on both sides of the membrane, is called osmotic pressure.
    • If pressure greater than the osmotic pressure is applied to the high concentration the direction of water flow through the membrane can be reversed.
    • This is called reverse osmosis. Note that this reversed flow produces pure water from the salt solution since the membrane is not permeable to salt.

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  • Forest Conservation Efforts – NFP, Western Ghats, etc.

    What are Miyawaki Forests?

    | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Japan-inspired Miyawaki forests are emerging as a popular solution to restoring degraded habitats in the country.

    Try this question:

    Q.The Miyawaki Forests technique has to potential to revolutionize the concept of urban afforestation in India. Discuss.

    Miyawaki Forests

    • Doctor Akira Miyawaki, botanist and professor, is the inventor of the technique since 1980.
    • He is a recipient of the 2006 Blue Planet Prize, which is the equivalent of a Nobel Prize in ecology.
    • The approach is supposed to ensure that plant growth is 10 times faster and the resulting plantation is 30 times denser than usual.
    • It involves planting dozens of native species in the same area and becomes maintenance-free after the first three years.

    The technique

    • The method takes its inspiration directly from processes and diversity in nature: 15 to 30 different species of trees and shrubs are planted together.
    • This plant community works very well together and is perfectly adapted to local weather conditions.
    • The habitat thus created will get more complex over time and attract much biodiversity.
    • Vegetation becomes much denser than conventional plantations, and it has the structure of a mature natural forest. It is a multi-storey structure, where different levels of vegetation appear.
    • The forest thus structured delivers many benefits in the form of ecosystem services.
    • It would take about 200 years to let a forest recover on its own. With the Miyawaki method, a similar result is achieved in 20 years.

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-SAARC Nations

    South Asian University

    IOCR | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: India & Its Neighborhood – Relations

    The Delhi-based South Asian University, established by all eight SAARC countries, has not had a president for over a year, while its executive council and governing board have not met for almost two and three years respectively.

    Note the features of SAARC, ASEAN and East Asia Summit.

    South Asian University

    • South Asian University (SAU) is an International University sponsored by the eight Member States of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
    • The eight countries are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
    • India, as the host and the largest country in the SAARC group, bore the entire capital cost for setting up the university, and also pays 50% of the operational costs.
    • SAU attracts students predominantly from all the eight SAARC countries, although students from other continents also attend.
    • There is a country quota system for admission of students. Every year SAU conducts admission test at multiple centres in all the eight countries.
    • The degrees of the university is recognised by all the member nations of the SAARC according to an inter-governmental agreement signed by the foreign ministers of the eight-member states.

    Institution on failure

    • After a decade of existence, the university has yet to appoint a non-Indian president, despite rules stipulating a rotation among the member countries.
    • At a time when the Union government is trying to encourage international education in India, an existing international institution is facing a crisis of leadership.

    A matter of reluctance

    • According to the agreement signed by all the SAARC countries, the first president should have been from India, and then rotated among the other countries in alphabetical order.
    • So the next president should be from the Maldives.
    • But the MEA has put an advertisement calling only for Indian applicants, but there has been no appointment after one year.

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