💥UPSC 2027,2028 Mentorship (April Batch) + Access XFactor Notes & Microthemes PDF
Talk to mentor

Civilsdaily

Login

Archives: News

  • Human Rights Issues

    UN’s guidelines on Access to Social Justice for People with Disabilities

    IOCR | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Laws, Institutions & Bodies Constituted For The Vulnerable Sections

    The United Nations has released it’s first-ever guidelines on access to social justice for people with disabilities to make it easier for them to access justice systems around the world.

    Note: These guidelines can be used in mains answer while substantiating their rights.

    Defining a person with a disability

    • The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was adopted in 2007 as the first major instrument of human rights in the 21st century.
    • It defines persons with disabilities as those “who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others”.

    Highlights of the Guidelines

    The guidelines outline a set of 10 principles and detail the steps for implementation. The 10 principles are:

    • Principle 1: All persons with disabilities have the legal capacity and, therefore, no one shall be denied access to justice on the basis of disability.
    • Principle 2: Facilities and services must be universally accessible to ensure equal access to justice without discrimination of persons with disabilities.
    • Principle 3: PWDS including children with disabilities, have the right to appropriate procedural accommodations.
    • Principle 4: PWDS have the right to access legal notices and information in a timely and accessible manner on an equal basis with others.
    • Principle 5: PWDS are entitled to all substantive and procedural safeguards recognized in international law on an equal basis with others, and States must provide the necessary accommodations to guarantee due process.
    • Principle 6: PWDS have the right to free or affordable legal assistance.
    • Principle 7: PWDS have the right to participate in the administration of justice on an equal basis with others.
    • Principle 8: PWDS have the rights to report complaints and initiate legal proceedings concerning human rights violations and crimes, have their complaints investigated and be afforded effective remedies.
    • Principle 9: Effective and robust monitoring mechanisms play a critical role in supporting access to justice for persons with disabilities.
    • Principle 10: All those working in the justice system must be provided with awareness-raising and training programmes addressing the rights of persons with disabilities, in particular in the context of access to justice.

    Significance for India

    • As per statistics maintained by the UN, in India 2.4 per cent of males are disabled and two per cent of females from all age groups are disabled.
    • Disabilities include psychological impairment, intellectual impairment, speaking, multiple impairments, hearing, seeing among others.
    • In comparison, the disability prevalence in the US is 12.9 per cent among females and 12.7 per cent among males.
    • Disability prevalence in the UK is at 22.7 per cent among females and 18.7 per cent among males.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Electoral Reforms In India

    Need for a Common Electoral Roll

    | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Representation Of People’s Act

    The Prime Minister’s Office earlier this month held a meeting with representatives of the Election Commission and the Law Ministry to discuss the possibility of having a common electoral roll for elections to the panchayat, municipality, state assembly and the Lok Sabha.

    Try this question:

    Q.Discuss how a common electoral roll and simultaneous elections are ways to save the enormous amount of effort and expenditure on Elections in India.

    Electoral Rolls in India

    • In many states, the voters’ list for the panchayat and municipality elections is different from the one used for Parliament and Assembly elections.
    • The distinction stems from the fact that the supervision and conduct of elections in our country are entrusted with two constitutional authorities — the Election Commission (EC) of India and the State ECs.
    • Set up in 1950, the EC is charged with the responsibility of conducting polls to the offices of the President and Vice-President of India, and to Parliament, the state assemblies and the legislative councils.
    • The SECs, on the other hand, supervise municipal and panchayat elections. They are free to prepare their own electoral rolls for local body elections, and this exercise does not have to be coordinated with the EC.

    So do all states have a separate voters list for their local body elections?

    • Each SEC is governed by a separate state Act. Some state laws allow the SEC to borrow and use the EC’s voter’s rolls in toto for the local body elections.
    • In others, the state commission uses the EC’s voters list as the basis for the preparation and revision of rolls for municipality and panchayat elections.
    • Currently, all states, except UP, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Assam, MP, Kerala, Odisha, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and the UT of Jammu and Kashmir, adopt EC’s rolls for local body polls.

    Why need a common electoral roll?

    • First, the common electoral roll is among the promises made by the govt. in its manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections last year.
    • It ties in with the party’s commitment to hold elections simultaneously to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies and local bodies, which is also mentioned in the manifesto.
    • The incumbent government has pitched a common electoral roll and simultaneous elections as a way to save an enormous amount of effort and expenditure.
    • It has argued that the preparation of a separate voters list causes duplication of essentially the same task between two different agencies, thereby duplicating the effort and the expenditure.
    • The pitch for a single voters list is not new. The Law Commission recommended it in its 255th report in 2015. The EC too adopted a similar stance in 1999 and 2004.

    How it can be implemented?

    • In the meeting called by the PMO, two options were discussed.
    • First, a constitutional amendment to Articles 243K and 243ZA that gives the power of superintendence, direction and control of preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of local body elections to the SECs.
    • The amendment would make it mandatory to have a single electoral roll for all elections in the country.
    • Second, to persuade the state governments to tweak their respective laws and adopt the Election Commission’s (EC) voters list for municipal and panchayat polls.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • J&K – The issues around the state

    New rules for Transaction of Business of the Govt. of UT of J&K Rules, 2019

    | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Federalism

    The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has notified new rules for administration in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir that specify the functions of the Lieutenant Governor (LG) and the Council of Ministers.

    Tap to read more about: Reorganization of J&K

    New Rules for J&K

    • The new rules have been defined under Section 55 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019.

    What are they?

    (1)Executive functions of the L-G

    • According to the rules the “police, public order, All India Services and anti-corruption” will fall under the executive functions of the L-G.
    • Chief Minister or the Council of Ministers will have no say in their functioning.

    (2)Minority Community interests

    • The proposals or matters which affect or are likely to affect peace and tranquillity or the interest of any minority community, the SCs, the STs and the Backward Classes shall essentially be submitted to the LG through the Chief Secretary, under intimation to the CM, before issuing any orders.

    (3)Service Matters

    • The Council of Ministers, led by the CM, will decide service matters of non-All India Services officers, proposal to impose a new tax, land revenue, sale grant or lease of government property, reconstituting departments or offices and draft legislation.

    (4)Difference of Opinion

    • In case of difference of opinion between the L-G and a Minister when no agreement could be reached even after a month, the “decision of the Lieutenant Governor shall be deemed to have been accepted by the Council of Ministers”.

    (5)Relation with the Centre

    • According to the rules, “any matter which is likely to bring the Government of the UT into controversy with the Central Government or with any State Government” shall be brought to the notice of the L-G and the CM by the Secretary concerned through the Chief Secretary.
    • All communications received from the Centre, including those from the PM and other Ministers, shall be submitted by the Secretary to the Chief Secretary, the Minister in charge, the CM and the L-G for information after their receipt.

    (6)Various departments

    • Under the rules, there will be 39 departments in the UT, such as school education, agriculture, higher education, horticulture, election, general administration, home, mining, power, Public Works Department, tribal affairs and transport.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Modern Indian History-Events and Personalities

    Person in news: Noor Inayat Khan

    Prelims Only | | Mains Paper 1: Modern Indian History

    World War II spy Noor Inayat Khan is now the first woman of Indian origin to be commemorated by the distinct blue London plaque.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.A recent movie titled “The Man Who Knew Infinity” is based on the biography of-

    (a) S. Ramanujan
    (b) S. Chandrasekhar
    (c) S. N. Bose
    (d) C. V. Raman

    Noor Inayat Khan

    • A descendant of Tipu Sultan, Noor Inayat Khan became a secret agent during the Second World War.
    • She was the first woman radio operator to be infiltrated into occupied France in 1943 and worked under the code name ‘Madeleine’.
    • Renowned for her service in the Special Operations Executive, an independent British secret service set up by Winston Churchill in 1940.
    • Noor was Britain’s first Indian Muslim war heroine in Europe and the first female radio operator sent into Nazi-occupied France.
    • She was killed at the Dachau concentration camp in 1944 and was posthumously awarded the George Cross in 1949.

    What are Blue Plaques?

    • The idea of placing commemorative plaques on historically significant buildings was first mooted in 1863.
    • The idea was to honour important people and organisations that have lived or worked in London buildings.
    • Currently, the blue plaque scheme is being run by the charity organisation, English Heritage that takes care of historic sites and buildings in England.
    • While Khan is the first woman of Indian origin to be honoured with a blue plaque, it has been erected on houses and venues associated with several Indian men including Mahatma Gandhi, Raja Ram Mohun Roy, B R Ambedkar, Sardar Patel and Swami Vivekananda among others.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • GI(Geographical Indicator) Tags

    In news: Channapatna Toys

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a crippling blow to the Channapatna Toys industry.

    Must read:

    GI Tags in news for 2020 Prelims

    All time GI tags in news

    Channapatna Toys

    • Channapatna toys are a particular form of wooden toys (and dolls) that are manufactured in the town of Channapatna in the Ramanagara district of Karnataka.
    • This traditional craft is protected as a geographical indication (GI) under the World Trade Organization, administered by the state govt.
    • As a result of the popularity of these toys, Channapatna is known as Gombegala Ooru (toy-town) of Karnataka.
    • Traditionally, the work involved lacquering the wood of the Wrightia tinctoria tree, colloquially called Aale mara (ivory-wood).
    • Their manufacture goes back at least 200 years according to most accounts and it has been traced to the era of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan in the 18th century.
    • The toys are laced with vegetable dyes and colours devoid of chemicals and hence they are safe for children.

    Back2Basics: Geographical Indications in India

    • A Geographical Indication is used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
    • Such a name conveys an assurance of quality and distinctiveness which is essentially attributable to its origin in that defined geographical locality.
    • This tag is valid for a period of 10 years following which it can be renewed.
    • Recently the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry has launched the logo and tagline for the Geographical Indications (GI) of India.
    • The first product to get a GI tag in India was the Darjeeling tea in 2004.
    • The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 (GI Act) is a sui generis Act for the protection of GI in India.
    • India, as a member of the WTO enacted the Act to comply with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights
    • GI protection is granted through the TRIPS Agreement.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Pakistan

    Striving for amicable relations with Pakistan

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

    The article pitches for the resumption of India-Pakistan relations. But there are obstacles on both the side which come in the way of such resumption.

    Pakistan and relations over Kashmir issue

    •  In July, the Turkish president had assured Pakistan’s parliament of his country’s support for Islamabad’s Kashmir stand.
    • More recently, Malaysia’s former Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, has reiterated his backing for that stand.
    • Iran’s current negotiations with China do not necessarily mean alignment with the latter’s Kashmir policy.
    • Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries invited official criticism in Pakistan first time for their refusal to back Pakistan in its disputes with New Delhi.
    • Pakistan’s foreign minister had made a remark against Saudi Arabia over its reluctance to convene the meeting of IOC.
    • Given the long history of Saudi-Pakistani relations, such remarks suggest a high degree of frustration.

    India’s vulnerabilities and relations with Pakistan

    • An excess of confidence and an unwillingness to think things through may be India’s vulnerabilities.
    • Army’s chief of staff made the statement this year, “If Parliament wants that area [PoK] should be ours at some stage, and if we get such orders, we will definitely act on those directions.”
    • Prime Minister made the statement regarding time of a week to 10 days to defeat the neighbouring country in case of war.

    Picturing resumption of relations with Pakistan

    • In case of war, aware of the total devastation to follow, neither side in an India-Pakistan conflict will press the nuclear button.
    • On the other hand, it is also possible, before any war, to imagine negotiations that lead, not necessarily in that order, to a resumption of trade, travel and normal relations, the renunciation of terrorism, and the restoration of the democratic rights of the people of Kashmir.
    • While no realistic person today expects such talks, it is not a crime to picture them.

    Conclusion

    Amicable relations with Pakistan may seem remote but they are worth striving for.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Health Sector – UHC, National Health Policy, Family Planning, Health Insurance, etc.

    Changing India’s health delivery landscape through NDHM

    op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

    The National Digital Health Mission promises to transform the Indian healthcare system with the aid of technology. The article highlights the key aspects of the mission.

    Building integrated digital health infrastructure through NDHM

    • NDHM is based on the principles of health for all, inclusivity, accessibility, affordability, education, empowerment, wellness, portability, privacy and security by design.
    • NDHM will build the backbone necessary to create an integrated digital health infrastructure.
    • With its key building blocks HealthID, DigiDoctor, Health Facility Registry, Personal Health Records, Telemedicine, and e-Pharmacy, the mission will bring together disparate stakeholders and radically strengthen and, thus change India’s healthcare delivery landscape.
    • NDHM is also a purposeful step towards the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal of Universal Health Coverage.

    Importance of digital intervention in health service

    • Digital interventions significantly enhance the outcomes of every health service delivery programme.
    • Importance of digital intervention is demonstrated in the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana scheme.
    • Under PM-JAY, 1.2 crore cashless secondary and tertiary care treatments have been provided using an indigenously developed state-of-the-art IT platform.
    • The Arogya Setu mobile app deploys ICT innovations for contract tracing.

    Principal highlight of NDHM

    1) Voluntary in nature

    • HealthID is entirely voluntary for citizens.
    • Its absence will not mean denial of healthcare to a citizen.
    • They can choose to generate their Health Account or ID using their Aadhaar card or digitally authenticable mobile number and by using their basic address-related details and email ID.
    • The use of Aadhaar, therefore, is not mandatory.

    2) Data sharing based on consent

    • Providing access to and sharing of personal health records is a prerogative of the HealthID holder.
    • The consent of the health data owner is required to access this information or a part of it.The consent can be withdrawn anytime.
    • The personal health record will enable citizens to store and access their health data, provide them with more comprehensive information and empower them with control over their private health records.

    3) Compliance with laws and fundamental rights

    • NDHM has been built within a universe of fundamental rights and legislation such as the Aadhaar Act and the IT Act 2008 as well as the Personal Data Protection Bill 2019.
    • This project is also informed by the entire gamut of Supreme Court judgments and core democratic principles of cooperative federalism.
    • The Mission gets its strategic and technical foundation from the National Digital Health Blueprint, the architectural framework of which keeps the overall vision of NHP 2017 at its core and ensures security and privacy by design.

    4) Reaching out to the unconnected population

    •  NHDM is a digital mission led by technology powered by the internet.
    • So, to reach out to and empower the large number of “unconnected” masses specialised systems are being built and off-line modules that will be designed to reach out to the “unconnected”.

    5) Partnership with all key stakeholders

    • The design of NDHM has been built on the principle of partnership with all key stakeholders — doctors, health service providers, technology solution providers and above all citizens.
    • Without their belief, trust, adoption, and stewardship, this mission will not achieve its desired result.

    Consider the question “Examine the key aspects of the National Digital Heath Mission and how it could help transform the Indian healthcare landscape?”

    Conclusion

    NDHM is a mission whose time has come because health is the first step towards self-reliance and only a healthy nation can become Atma Nirbhar.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Goods and Services Tax (GST)

    Issue of GST compensation to states

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

    The article analyses the issue of GST compensation to states under GST regime for five years and how this has turned to be contentious issues after the economic disruption caused by Covid-19.

    The basis for compensation

    • Under Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime the Centre would make good the loss in the first five years if States faced revenue deficits after the GST’s introduction.
    • States sacrificed their constitutionally granted powers of taxation in the national interest.

    GST compensation cess

    • To pay the compensation to states, GST compensation cess was introduced.
    • When the GST compensation cess exceeded the amount that had to be paid to States, the Central government absorbed the surplus.
    •  Now, the economy has slowed down dramatically and the resources raised are insufficient.
    • The Centre is raising questions about whether it is legally accountable to pay compensation.
    • The constitutional framework that ushered in the GST does not provide an escape clause for ‘Acts of God’.

    Way forward

    • As stated by the Secretary of the GST Council in the tenth meeting, the central government could raise resources by other means for compensation and this could then be recouped by continuing the cess beyond five years.
    • Monetary measures are the monopoly of the central government.
    • Even borrowing is more efficient and less expensive if it is undertaken by the Central government.
    • As equal representatives of the citizens State governments expected the Centre to demonstrate empathy and provide them relief through the Consolidated Fund of India.

    Conclusion

    Central government should consider the legal provision in the GST regime and act in the spirit of cooperative federalism.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Goods and Services Tax (GST)

    What is Compensation of GST?

    | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    With Centre-State friction over pending compensation payments under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) taking a new turn in the 41st GST Council to meet, the strain on the finances of states is likely to continue in the near term.

    Try this question from CSP 2018:

    Q.Consider the following items:

    1. Cereal grains hulled
    2. Chicken eggs cooked
    3. Fish processed and canned
    4. Newspapers containing advertising material

    Which of the above items is/are exempt under GST (Goods and Services Tax)?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 1, 2 and 4 only

    (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

    What is GST?

    • GST, being a consumption-based tax, would result in loss of revenue for manufacturing-heavy states.
    • GST launched in India on 1 July 2017 is a comprehensive indirect tax for the entire country.
    • It is charged at the time of supply and depends on the destination of consumption.
    • For instance, if a good is manufactured in state A but consumed in state B, then the revenue generated through GST collection is credited to the state of consumption (state B) and not to the state of production (state A).

    Compensation under GST regime

    • Due to the consumption-based nature of GST, manufacturing states like Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu feared a revenue loss.
    • Thus, GST Compensation Cess or GST Cess was introduced by the government to compensate for the possible revenue losses suffered by such manufacturing states.
    • However, under existing rules, this compensation cess will be levied only for the first 5 years of the GST regime – from July 1st, 2017 to July 1st, 2022.
    • Compensation cess is levied on five products considered to be ‘sin’ or luxury as mentioned in the GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017 and includes items such as- Pan Masala, Tobacco, and Automobiles etc.

    Alternatives to prevent losses

    • The input tax credit can help a producer by partially reducing GST liability by only paying the difference between the tax already paid on the raw materials of a particular good and that on the final product.
    • In other words, the taxes paid on purchase (input tax) can be subtracted from the taxes paid on the final product (output tax) to reduce the final GST liability.

    Distributing GST compensation

    • The compensation cess payable to states is calculated based on the methodology specified in the GST (Compensation to States) Act, 2017.
    • The compensation fund so collected is released to the states every 2 months.
    • Any unused money from the compensation fund at the end of the transition period shall be distributed between the states and the centre as per any applicable formula.

    Significance of GST compensation

    • States no longer possess taxation rights after most taxes, barring those on petroleum, alcohol, and stamp duty were subsumed under GST.
    • GST accounts for almost 42% of states’ own tax revenues, and tax revenues account for around 60% of states’ total revenues.
    • Finances of over a dozen states are under severe strain, resulting in delays in salary payments and sharp cuts in capital expenditure outlay amid the pandemic-induced lockdowns and the need to spend on healthcare.

    Back2Basics:

    Goods and Services Tax

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

  • Digital India Initiatives

    GIS-enabled Land Bank System

    | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Effects Of Liberalization On The Economy, Changes In Industrial Policy and their effects on Industrial Growth

    A prototype of the National GIS-enabled Land Bank System was e-launched by Commerce and Industry Ministry for six States based on which land can be identified for setting up industries.

    Try to answer this question in short:

    Q.Discuss the benefits of digitizing land records in India.

    Land Bank System

    • The system has been developed by the Integration of Industrial Information System (IIS) with state GIS (Geographic Information System).
    • IIS portal is a GIS-enabled database of industrial clusters/areas across the states.
    • On the system, more than 3,300 industrial parks across 31 states/UTs covering about 4,75,000 hectares of land have also been mapped out on the system.
    • The information available on the system will include drainage, forest; raw material heat maps (horticulture, agricultural, mineral layers); multilayer of connectivity.
    • IIS has adopted a committed approach towards industrial upgrading, resource optimization, and sustainability.

    Various stakeholders

    • The initiative has been supported by the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), National Centre of Geo-Informatics (NCoG), Invest India, Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geo-Informatics (BISAG), and Ministry of Electronics and Informational Technology.

    Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor

Join the Community

Join us across Social Media platforms.