Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Welfare schemes for various vulnerable sections of population
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved changes to the post-matric scholarship scheme for students from the Scheduled Castes (SCs), including a new funding pattern of 60-40 for the Centre and States.
Note:
Equality enshrined in the Constitution is not mathematical equality and does not mean all citizens will be treated alike without any distinction.
To this effect, the Constitution underlines two distinct aspects which together form the essence of equality law:
1) Non-discrimination among equals, and
2) Affirmative action to equalize the unequal
About the Scholarship
- It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme and implemented through State Government and UT administration.
- Under the scheme, the government provides financial assistance to students from SCs for higher education at post-matriculation and post-senior-secondary stages, which means Class XI onwards.
- It can be availed by those, whose household incomes are less than Rs 2.5 lakh annually.
What are the new changes?
- States would carry out verification of the students’ eligibility and caste status and collect their Aadhaar and bank account details.
- Transfer of financial assistance to the students under the scheme shall be on DBT [direct benefit transfer] mode, and preferably using the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System.
- Starting from 2021-22, the Central share [60%] in the scheme would be released on DBT mode directly into the bank accounts of the students as per a fixed time schedule.
Why such changes now?
- The changes were aimed at enabling four crore students to access higher education over the next five years.
- Switching from the existing “committed liability” formula, the new funding pattern would increase the Centre’s involvement in the scheme.
Benefits of the scheme
- The changes approved by the Cabinet were aimed at enrolling the poorest students, ensuring timely payments, and maintaining accountability.
- An estimated 1.36 crore students who would otherwise drop out after Class 10 would be brought into the higher education system under the scheme in five years.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: National Food Security Act
Mains level: Paper 3- Problem of food subsidy and excess grain stocks
The article highlights the challenge of managing the procurement of wheat and rice at MSP by the FCI and maintaining its financial health.
The problem of surplus in wheat and rice procurement
- While MSP is declared for 23 crops, the biggest financial burden comes from wheat and rice.
- Procurement has increased significantly with states like MP, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Odisha stepping up their efforts.
- Overall procurement of rice and wheat has gone up to 52 million tonnes and 39 million tonnes, respectively.
- The requirement of PDS and welfare schemes is about 60 million tonnes.
- This leaves a surplus of about 30 million tonnes, in addition to the carry-over stock of about 42 million tonnes (current)—far above the buffer and strategic reserve norms.
Cost of the surplus and its significance
- The subsidy burden for rice and wheat (2020-21) is estimated to be Rs 1.8 lakh crore.
- FCI procures wheat and rice at MSP (some states do so under the decentralised procurement & distribution scheme).
- They incur costs like market fees, labour charges, packing costs, transport, storage charges, etc.
- These are of the order of 9% for procurement, 9-11% for labour and transport, and 15-17% for distribution.
- The sale price is fixed at Rs 2 and Rs 3 per kg for wheat and rice, respectively, under the National Food Security Act.
- In addition, there are releases under LEAN (lower entitlements and higher costs compared to NFSA cards, but subsidised nonetheless) and Open Market Sales (OMSS).
- Cost of holding the buffer for a year is about Rs 5,500 per tonne.
- FCI is holding 39 million tonnes of rice and 55 million tonnes of wheat (July 2020) against the buffer/strategic reserve norm of 13.5 million tonnes of rice and 27.6 million tonnes of wheat, i.e., a surplus of 52 million tonnes.
- The cost of holding this stock works out to Rs 29,000 crore per year.
Financial burden on FCI
- The finance ministry has not been able to allocate adequate funds to meet the full requirement of food subsidy.
- Under-provisioning on this account has been going on, and FCI was being given loans at 8% interest from the National Savings Scheme Fund (NSSF) since 2016-17.
- The outstanding loan on this account (October 31, 2020) is Rs 2,93,000 crore.
- This has meant FCI getting zero budgetary support against current subsidy claims since 2017, thereby, postponing the problem year after year.
- The subsidy burden is rising (with MSP increasing every year, quantities going up and prices under PDS fixed), and is likely to cross Rs 2 lakh crore.
Conclusion
Government need to bring in the reforms in the PDS and MSP regime to stop both the systems from collapsing under their own weights.
Source:-
https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/union-budget-2021-22-the-burgeoning-food-subsidy-bill-will-be-a-key-budget-worry/2155584/
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Targets under the Paris Agreement
Mains level: Paper 3- 5 years of Paris Agreement and actions of EU and India
This article by the Ambassador of the European Union underscores the need for implementation and action on the commitments made in the Paris Agreement to deal with climate change.
EU’s commitment to implement Paris Agreement
- In December 2019, the European Commission launched the European Green Deal — roadmap to achieve climate neutrality in the EU by 2050.
- “Next Generation EU” recovery package and our next long-term budget earmark more than half a trillion euros to address climate change.
- Recently EU leaders unanimously agreed on the 2030 target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% compared to 1990 levels.
Impact on low carbon technologies
- These actions and commitments of the EU towards Paris Agreement will further bring down the costs of low carbon technologies.
- The cost of solar photovoltaics has already declined by 82% between 2010 and 2019.
- Achieving the 55% target will even help us to save €100 billion in the next decade and up to €3 trillion by 2050.
EU working with India on climate actions
- No government can tackle climate change alone.
- India is a key player in this global endeavour.
- The rapid development of solar and wind energy in India in the last few years is a good example of the action needed worldwide.
- India has taken a number of very significant flagship initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure and the Leadership Group for Industry Transition.
- India and Team Europe are engaged to make a success of the forthcoming international gatherings: COP 26 in Glasgow on climate change and COP 15 in Kunming on biodiversity.
Way forward
- The international community should come forward with clear strategies for net-zero emissions and to enhance the global level of ambition for 2030.
- Our global, regional, national, local and individual recovery plans are an opportunity to ‘build back better’.
- We will also need to foster small individual actions to attain a big collective impact.
Conclusion
With climate neutrality as our goal, the world should mobilise its best scientists, business people, policymakers, academics, civil society actors and citizens to protect together something we all share beyond borders and species: our planet.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: League of Nations
Mains level: Paper 2- Changing global order and opportunities for India
Despite China’s rise, the world will remain committed to multi-polar order. The article highlights the emerging trends in the global order against the backdrop of a pandemic and explains how there could be an opportunity for India.
Changing geopolitical landscape and choices India face
- As the world is slowly recovering from the disruption caused by the pandemic, there are worrying intimations of other crises looming round the corner.
- Geopolitics has been transformed and power equations are being altered.
- There are a new set of winners and losers in the economic changes.
- Technological advancement will magnify these changes.
- India will need to make difficult judgements about the world that is taking shape and find its place in a more complex and shifting geopolitical landscape.
- As the pandemic recedes, the world could draw the right lessons and proceed on a more hopeful trajectory.
Unlearnt lessons: lack of international cooperation
- Most challenges the world faces are global, like the pandemic.
- However, international cooperation in either developing an effective vaccine or responding to its health impacts has been minimal.
- The pre-existing trend towards nationalist urgings, the weakening of international institutions and multilateral processes continues.
- Even in the distribution of vaccines, we are witnessing a cornering of supplies by a handful of rich nations.
Need for a collaborative solution
- Global challenges such as climate change, cybersecurity, space security, terrorism, drug trafficking, money laundering and ocean and terrestrial pollution demand collaborative, not competitive solutions.
- The challenges require some display of statesman-like leadership to mobilise action on a global scale.
- The nation-state will endure but its conduct will need to be tempered by a spirit of internationalism and a sense of common humanity.
Role of China and Asia
- The pre-pandemic shift in the centre of gravity of the global economy and political power and influence, from the trans-Atlantic to the trans-Pacific, has been reinforced under the impact of the crisis.
- East Asian and South-East Asian countries are the first to register the green shoots of recovery.
- China has been the first large economy to witness a significant rebound in its growth rate.
- The regional supply chains centred on China have been reinforced rather than disrupted.
- China will emerge in pole position in the geopolitical sweepstakes commencing in 2021.
- The power gap with its main rival, the US, will shrink further.
Why should India prefer multi-polar world order
- As the power gap between India and China is expanding, the threat from China will intensify and demand asymmetrical coping strategies.
- Despite China emerging a relative gainer from the pandemic the trend towards multi-polarity is here to stay.
- Neither the US nor China can singly or as a duopoly manage a much more diffused distribution of economic and military capabilities across the globe.
- This is only possible through multilateral approaches and adherence to the principle of equitable burden-sharing.
- But a multipolar order can only be stable and keep the peace with a consensus set of norms, managed through empowered institutions of international governance and multilateral processes.
- India’s instinctive preference has been for a multipolar order as the best assurance of its security and as most conducive to its own social and economic development.
- India now has the opportunity to make multipolar order as its foreign policy priority as this aligns with the interests of a large majority of middle and emerging powers.
- This will be an important component of a strategy to meet the China challenge.
The favourable geopolitical moment for India
- Due to China’s aggressive posture across the board and its unilateral assertions of power, there is a significant push-back even from smaller countries, for example, in South-East Asia and Africa.
- China’s blatant “weaponisation of economic interdependence” such as action against Australia, has made its economic partners increasingly wary.
- In this context, India is seen as a potential and credible countervailing power to resist Chinese ambitions.
- The world wants India to succeed because it is regarded as a benign power wedded to a rule-based order.
- India can leverage this propitious moment to encourage a significant flow of capital, technology and knowledge to accelerate its own modernisation.
Consider the question “Though it may sound counterintuitive, India which is dealing with pessimism about its economic prospect in the wake of the pandemic, may be located at favourable geopolitical moment” Comment.
Conclusion
India should seize the opportunity and make multi-polar world order a pillar of its foreign policy to counter China threat while trying to leverage the moment to attract the flow of capital, technology and knowledge to accelerate its own modernisation.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: TIbetan issue
The US and China sparred over Tibet and the South China Sea over the passing of the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA).
Do you think that India’s support for the Tibetan cause is the root cause of all irritants in India-China relations?
About TPSA
- The TPSA once signed into law would make it the official policy of the US Government to oppose any effort by the govt. of the People’s Republic of China to select, educate, and venerate Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders in a manner inconsistent with Tibetan Buddhism.
- The proposed legislation will empower the US Government to impose sanctions on China who might try to interfere in the process of selecting the next incarnation of the Dalai Lama.
Why such a law?
- Tibetans were concerned over the possibility of the Chinese Government making an attempt to install someone loyal to it as the 15th Dalai Lama after the death of the incumbent.
- The PRC could use him as a puppet to fizzle out the global campaign against its occupation of Tibet.
- The incumbent and the 14th Dalai Lama have been living in exile in India ever since his 1959 escape from Tibet, which had been occupied by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in 1950-51.
- He has been leading the movement for “genuine autonomy” for Tibet and the Tibetans.
Significance of TPSA
- The TPSA acknowledged the legitimacy of the Tibetan Parliament in Exile elected by the exiled community as well as the CTA.
- It seeks to introduce key provisions aimed at protecting the environment and water resources on the Tibetan Plateau.
- In an aggressive move, the PRC government has forced resettlement of the nomads from grasslands.
- TPSA recognizes the importance of traditional Tibetan grassland stewardship in mitigating the negative effects of climate change in the region.
- In addition, it calls for greater international cooperation to monitor the environment on the Tibetan plateau.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: India's population boom
The latest data from the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) proves that the country’s population is stabilizing and fears over a “population explosion” and calls for a “two-child policy” is misguided.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Economic growth in country X will necessarily have to occur if
(a) There is technical progress in the world economy
(b) There is population growth in X
(c) There is capital formation in X
(d) The volume of trade grows in the world economy
Two-Child Policy
- The two-child policy is a state-imposed limit of two children allowed per family or the payment of government subsidies only to the first two children.
- A two-child policy has previously been used in several countries including Iran, Singapore, and Vietnam.
- In British Hong Kong in the 1970s, citizens were also highly encouraged to have two children as a limit (although it was not mandated by law), and it was used as part of the region’s family planning strategies.
- Since 2016, it has been re-implemented in China replacing the country’s previous one-child policy.
Present status in India
- There is no national policy mandating two children per family.
- A parliamentarian had tabled a Bill in the Rajya Sabha in 2019 on the matter, proposing incentives for smaller families.
- PM in 2019 had appealed to the country that population control was a form of patriotism.
- Months later, the NITI Aayog called various stakeholders for a national-level consultation on the issue, which was subsequently cancelled following media glare on it.
- In 2020, the PM spoke about a likely decision on revising the age of marriage for women, which many stakeholders view as an indirect attempt at controlling the population size.
Why doesn’t India need it?
- The survey provides evidence of uptake in the use of modern contraceptives in rural and urban areas.
- It gives an improvement in family planning demands being met and a decline in the average number of children borne by a woman.
- The report stated that most States have attained replacement level fertility, i.e., the average number of children born per woman at whom a population exactly replaces itself from one generation to the next.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Matter, Anti-matter
Mains level: Formation of the universe and the Big Bang
This newscard is an excerpt from the original article published in DownToEarth.
Try this PYQ:
Q.The known forces of nature can be divided into four classes, viz, gravity, electromagnetism, weak nuclear force and strong nuclear force. With reference to them, which one of the following statements is not correct?
(a) Gravity is the strongest of the four
(b) Electromagnetism act only on particles with an electric charge
(c) Weak nuclear force causes radioactivity
(d) Strong nuclear force holds protons and neutrons inside the nuclear of an atom.
What is Antimatter?
- Antimatter is the opposite of normal matter. More specifically, the sub-atomic particles of antimatter have properties opposite those of normal matter.
- The electrical charge of those particles is reversed.
- Antimatter was created along with matter after the Big Bang, but antimatter is rare in today’s universe.
- To better understand antimatter, one needs to know more about the matter.
- The matter is made up of atoms, which are the basic units of chemical elements such as hydrogen, helium or oxygen.
Their existence
- The existence of antimatter was predicted by physicist Paul Dirac’s equation describing the motion of electrons in 1928.
- At first, it was not clear if this was just a mathematical quirk or a description of a real particle.
- But in 1932 Carl Anderson discovered an antimatter partner to the electron — the positron — while studying cosmic rays that rain down on Earth from space.
- Over the next few decades’ physicists found that all matter particles have antimatter partners.
- Scientists believe that in the very hot and dense state shortly after the Big Bang, there must have been processes that gave preference to matter over antimatter.
- This created a small surplus of matter, and as the universe cooled, all the antimatter was destroyed, or annihilated, by an equal amount of matter, leaving a tiny surplus of matter.
- And it is this surplus that makes up everything we see in the universe today.
Studying the difference between matter and antimatter
- A Quark is a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter.
- Quarks combine to form composite particles called hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons, the components of atomic nuclei.
- The behaviour of quarks, which are the fundamental building blocks of matter along with leptons, can shed light on the difference between matter and antimatter.
- Since they are unstable, they will “decay” — fall apart — into other more stable particles at some point during their oscillation.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Great Indian Bustard
Mains level: Not Much
The Environment Ministry along with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) India has come up with a unique initiative a “firefly bird diverter” for overhead power lines in areas where Great Indian Bustard (GIB) populations are found in the wild.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which one of the following groups of animals belongs to the category of endangered species?
(a) Great Indian Bustard, Musk Deer, Red Panda, Asiatic Wild Ass
(b) Kashmir Stag, Cheetah, Blue Bull, Great Indian Bustard.
(c) Snow Leopard, Swamp Deer, Rhesus Monkey, Saras (Crane)
(d) Lion Tailed Macaque, Blue Bull, Hanuman Langur, Cheetah
Great Indian Bustard
- The GIB is one of the heaviest flying birds and can weigh up to 15 kg which grows up to one metre in height.
- In July 2011, the bird was categorised as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
- It is considered the flagship grassland species, representing the health of the grassland ecology.
- For long, conservationists have been demanding to secure this population, warning that the bird might get extinct in the coming decades.
- It would become the first mega species to disappear from India after Cheetah in recent times.
- Till the 1980s, about 1,500-2,000 Great Indian Bustards were spread throughout the western half of India, spanning eleven states.
- However, with rampant hunting and declining grasslands, their population dwindled.
Bird Diverters
- The diverters are called fireflies because they look like fireflies from a distance, shining on power lines in the night.
- GIBs are one of the heaviest flying birds in India. Therefore, when they encounter these wires, they are unable to change the direction of their flight.
- Death is most cases is due to impact with the wires and not due to electrocution.
- The diverter will not only save GIB but other species of large birds, including migratory birds.
Why such a move?
- GIB is one of the most critically threatened species in India, with less than 150 birds left in the wild.
- A report has pointed out that power lines, especially high-voltage transmission lines with multiple overhead wires, are the most important current threat for GIBs in the Thar region.
- They are causing unsustainably high mortality in about 15% of their population.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Coalition with the European middle powers
The article explains the shift in India’s foreign policy in its relations with the European middle powers against the backdrop of churn in the geopolitics.
India’s changing perception of Europe
- Three recent developments underline India’s changing perceptions of Europe.
- 1) India’s support for France’s membership of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).
- 2) India’s backing for a larger European role in the Indo-Pacific.
- Delhi has welcomed the interest of Germany and the Netherlands in building a new geopolitical architecture in the Indo-Pacific.
- 3) Security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific is also emerging as an important theme in partnership between India and the U.K.
Reasons for India’s shift
- India is looking beyond the bipolar geopolitical competition between the US and China.
- Delhi also wants to insure against the inevitable volatility in the complex dynamic between Washington and Beijing.
- To cope with the uncertain political trajectory of the US, Delhi is already supplementing its American partnership with a network of multilateral groups with other middle powers, such as the India-Australia-Japan forum and the trilateral dialogue with France and Australia.
Rebuilding ties with Europe and challenges
- Rebuilding ties with Europe needs a significant corrective to Delhi’s traditional strategic neglect of the continent.
- The bipolar Cold War dynamic and the North-South framework developing world versus the developed prevented Delhi from taking a more nuanced view of Europe’s political agency after WWII.
- Attempts to impart strategic momentum after the Cold War did not really succeed.
- As the economic gap between China and India widened, so did the scale of European interest in both countries.
- It is also true that the European ability to project military power into the Indo-Pacific is limited.
- But in combination with Asian democracies, Europe can certainly make a difference.
- It can mobilize massive economic resources, wield political influence, and leverage its significant soft power to shape the Indo-Pacific discourse.
An exceptional relationship with Frace
- France has been an exception in Europe in its connection with India.
- India’s partnership with France now has a strong regional anchor — the Indo-Pacific as it has its territories in the Western Indian Ocean and the South Pacific.
- France and Britain have lingering disputes leftover from the era of decolonization in parts of the Western Indian Ocean.
- India will have to contribute to the amicable resolution of those problems.
Consider the question “A strong coalition with the European middle powers should be the indispensable element of India’s foreign policy in the face of changing geopolitical circumstances. Comment.”
Conclusion
As China transforms the Eurasian landmass as well as the Indo-Pacific, it is abundantly clear that the US alone cannot redress the imbalance. A strong coalition of Asian and European middle powers must now be an indispensable element of the geopolitics of the East. Such a coalition can’t be built overnight. But India could push for a solid start in 2021.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: TRAI
Mains level: Paper 3- Ensuring the success of radio spectrum
The article analyses the factors influencing the outcome of the spectrum auction and suggests the measures to ensure the success and avoid the repeat of 2016 auction.
Details of the auction
- Based on the recommendation of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the government is planning to auction spectrum in the sub GHz bands of 700, 800, and 900 MHz along with mid-band frequencies in bands of 1800, 2100, 2300, and 2500 MHz across the 22 Licensed Service Areas (LSAs) of the country.
- The cumulative reserve price — and hence the potential revenue accrual to the government at reserve prices — is about $50 billion.
- The total reserve price of spectrum put on auction in 2016 was about $90 billion while the realized value was just about one-tenth of that.
- Hence, while the 2016 auction could be considered as a failure from the auctioneer’s point of view.
Factors determining the success of the spectrum auction
1) Right reserve price
- Research on a cross-country spectrum database shows that the reserve price significantly and positively correlated to the winning bid price.
- However, a higher reserve price also inhibits bidders from bidding for more spectrum blocks.
- If the quantity effect is more than the price effect, then it results in reduced revenues for the government exchequer, as happened in 2016.
2) Role of Over The Top (OTT) provider
- Over The Top (OTT) providers who are providing substitute goods such as Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP); and capturing a greater mind share of customers while remaining relatively invisible to government regulators.
- The rise of VoIP subscribers could have a positive effect on winning bid prices.
- However, the erosion of the position of telcos in the overall digital value network of devices, connectivity, and apps, could result in a lower willingness to pay.
3) Allocation of unlicensed spectrum for WiFi
- By off-loading mobile data, Wi-Fi supplements the carrier network and reduces the demand for mobile network capacity.
- A number of countries including the United States have unlicensed the V-band spectrum in 60 GHz — pencil beam band.
- Referred to as “wireless fiber”, the 60 GHz spectrum provides huge capacities in a limited area.
- Wi-Fi 6 (a.k.a. IEEE 802.11 ax) that operates in the 2.4/5 GHz unlicensed band requires additional unlicensed spectrum allocation to provide Gigabit speeds.
- The more the unlicensed spectrum allocation, the lower will be the demand for licensed spectrum.
4) Clarity on the availability of spectrum for auction
- While there is an indication by the government that the spectrum for the 5G auction, namely 3.4-3.6 GHz, will be held in late 2021, the amount of spectrum that will be made available is not clear.
- There is still uncertainty about the release of 26 GHz by the Department of Space for mobile services.
- With this limited visibility, the bidders will be in a quandary whether to acquire the spectrum now or wait for subsequent auctions.
- Further, some part of the current spectrum holding of all the operators is coming up for renewal in mid-2021, and hence there is additional pressure on them to retain them in the forthcoming auction.
Steps need to be taken
- A re-visit of reserve prices and lower it further, especially that of 700 MHz which is the “golden band” for covering the hinterlands of the country.
- Releasing more unlicensed spectrum in 2.4/5/60 GHz for proliferating Wi-Fi as a suitable complement to [the] carrier network.
- This will also augment the deployments of the Public Wi-Fi project which the cabinet approved recently.
- Provide visibility of future auctions, especially the quantum of the spectrum that can be put on the block in 3.3/3.6/26/28 GHz.
- The government should release guidelines on how OTT platforms will be regulated and what will be regulated so that the telcos and OTTs can join hands to provide superior services for the benefit of the consumers.
Conclusion
The government should follow the steps mentioned here to make the auction of the spectrum a success.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Winter Solstice
Mains level: Summer and Winter Solstice
Yesterday, December 21, was Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, conversely, it was Summer Solstice, the year’s longest day.
Try this MCQ:
Q.On 21st June, the Sun
(a) Does not set below the horizon at the Arctic Circle
(b) Does not set below the horizon at Antarctic Circle
(c) Shines vertically overhead at noon on the Equator
(d) Shines vertically overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn
Why are the hours of daylight, not the same every day?
- The explanation lies in Earth’s tilt.
- And it’s not just the Earth — every planet in the Solar System is tilted relative to their orbits, all at different angles.
- The Earth’s axis of rotation is tilted at an angle of 23.5° to its orbital plane.
- This tilt — combined with factors such as Earth’s spin and orbit — leads to variations in the duration of sunlight than any location on the planet receives on different days of the year.
Impact of the tilted axis
- The Northern Hemisphere spends half the year tilted in the direction of the Sun, getting direct sunlight during long summer days.
- During the other half of the year, it tilts away from the Sun, and the days are shorter.
- Winter Solstice, December 21, is the day when the North Pole is most tilted away from the Sun.
- The tilt is also responsible for the different seasons that we see on Earth.
- The side facing the Sun experiences day, which changes to night as Earth continues to spin on its axis.
Un-impacted regions
- On the Equator, day and night are equal. The closer one moves towards the poles, the more extreme the variation.
- During summer in either hemisphere, that pole is tilted towards the Sun and the polar region receives 24 hours of daylight for months.
- Likewise, during winter, the region is in total darkness for months.
Celebrations associated with the Winter Solstice
- For centuries, this day has had a special place in several communities due to its astronomical significance and is celebrated in many ways across the world.
- Jewish people call the Winter Solstice ‘Tekufat Tevet’, which marks the start of winter.
- Ancient Egyptians celebrated the birth of Horus, the son of Isis (divine mother goddess) for 12 days during mid-winter.
- In China, the day is celebrated by families coming together for a special meal.
- In the Persian region, it is celebrated as Yalda or Shab-e-Yalda. The festival marks the last day of the Persian month of Azar and is seen as the victory of light over darkness.
- Families celebrate Yalda late into the night with special foods such as ajeel nuts, pomegranates and watermelon, and recite works of the 14th century Sufi poet Hafiz Shirazi.
In Vedic tradition
- In Vedic tradition, the northern movement of the Earth on the celestial sphere is implicitly acknowledged in the Surya Siddhanta.
- It outlines the Uttarayana (the period between Makar Sankranti and Karka Sankranti). Hence, Winter Solstice is the first day of Uttarayana.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Kosi River
Mains level: Floods in India
The Bihar government will try to divert the course of the mighty Kosi River in Bhagalpur district to save an archaeological site discovered recently.
Tap to read more about the Himalayan Drainage System:
Drainage System | Part 3
Kosi River: The Sorrow of Bihar
- The Kosi is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, Nepal and India.
- The river crosses into northern Bihar, India where it branches into distributaries before joining the Ganges near Kursela in Katihar district.
- Its unstable nature has been attributed course changes and the heavy silt it carries during the monsoon season, and flooding in India has extreme effects.
- It is also known as the “Sorrow of Bihar” as the annual floods affect about 21,000 km2 of fertile agricultural lands thereby disturbing the rural economy.
Why change its course?
- Several priceless artefacts have been found at the Guwaradih village in Naugachhia sub-division of Bhagalpur district during the excavation of a mound.
- These items could be 2,500-years-old and could be of interest for historians if conserved.
- The historical sites are facing threats from the Kosi floods.
- The Kosi currently flows around 300-400 metres from the site, while its old course is about two kilometres from the village.
Threats posed by the move
- Environmentalists have warned that changing the Kosi’s course could be disastrous for Bihar as seen in 2008.
- At that time, the river had breached its mud embankments at Kushaha in Nepal.
- The Kosi frequently changes its course naturally. If its course is artificially changed, it will cause floods and erosion in new areas, leading to massive displacement of people.
- It then caused extensive damage to life and property downstream in five densely populated districts of northeast Bihar.
- Some 500 people were killed and four million rendered homeless.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Role of intermediaries in governance
The article highlights the important role played by the intermediaries in connecting the citizens with the government.
Addressing the connect between government and citizens
- By exploring how digitally excluded communities engage with governance we understand that humans are significant in brokering trust between governments and citizens.
- This is true even for the ‘Digital India’.
- However, only a few States have built a cadre of individuals for last mile governance.
- Andhra Pradesh, for instance, rolled out a ward secretariat programme with over 16,000 ward secretaries and volunteers for delivering government services at citizens’ doorstep.
Understanding the role played by intermediaries
- Intermediaries help citizens overcome barriers to awareness of availability of digital services and rights from the state and ability.
- Intermediaries support individuals by placing complaints, directing them to the right authorities, and following up.
- Intermediaries are crucial offline architectures that enable the state to do its work better.
- Community-based organisations and NGOs see their work as allied to their core work.
Way forward
- Various types and forms of intermediation emerge based on regional, social, cultural and economic contexts.
- Equally, it is essential to pay attention to the varying incentives of intermediaries and not romanticise the benefits.
- We need to see intermediaries as crucial to the realisation of governance outcomes.
- India has formalised intermediation in traditional markets such as mutual funds from which we can learn.
- In these areas, formal governance mechanisms, structured capacity building, widespread awareness campaigns, and process re-engineering enabled growth and usage.
- At a broader level, increasing digitisation of governance across domains including healthcare, financial inclusion, justice and social services should be considered.
Conclusion
By acknowledging the role of intermediaries and supporting them, we will be able to support the process of responsible, responsive and data-driven governance across domains.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Chillai Kalan
Mains level: Not Much
People in the Kashmir valley are finding unique ways to celebrate the start of ‘Chillai Kalan’, a local term for the 40-day period of harshest winter that begins annually from December 21.
Tap here to read all about:
Festivals, Dances, Theatre, Literature, Art in News
Chillai Kalan
- Chillai Kalan is the coldest 40-day period of harsh winter of winter in the Jammu and Kashmir region.
- It is traditionally defined as a seasonal period of harsh winter accompanied by a change in increase in both frequency and quantity of precipitation usually snow.
- It begins from December 21 and ends on January 31 next year.
- It is followed by a 20-day long Chillai-Khurd (small cold) that occurs between January 31 and February 19 and a 10-day long Chillai-Bachha (baby cold).
- According to Persian tradition, the night of 21st December is celebrated as Shab-e Yalda-“Night of Birth”, or Shab-e Chelleh “Night of Forty”.
Its’ celebration
- In the Persian tradition, the night of December 21, the longest of the year, is celebrated as Shab-e-Yalda (night of birth) or Shab-e-Chelleh.
- Dozens of netizens from Kashmir named it the ‘Pheran Day’, after the long woollen gown worn during the winters in Kashmir.
- Use of a traditional firing pot called Kangri increases.
- Tap water pipelines partially freeze during this period. The Dal Lake also freezes.
- The famous tourist resort of Gulmarg receives heavy snow which attracts skier’s from every part of the world.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Rights to the Electricity Consumers
The Ministry of Power has for the first time laid down Rights to the Electricity Consumers through “Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, 2020”.
Q.What are the new Rights to the Electricity Consumers as envisaged under Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, 2020?
Rights to the Electricity Consumers: A highlight
Following key areas are covered in the Electricity (Rights of consumers) Rules:
- Rights of consumers and Obligations of Distribution licensees
- Release of new connection and modification in an existing connection
- Metering arrangement
- Billing and Payment
- Disconnection and Reconnection
- Reliability of supply
- Consumer as Prosumer
- Standards of Performance of licensee
- Compensation Mechanism
- Call Centre for Consumer Services
- Grievance redressal mechanism
(1) Rights and Obligations
- It is the duty of every distribution licensee to supply electricity on request made by an owner or occupier of any premises in line with the provisions of the Act.
- It is the right of the consumer to have minimum standards of service for the supply of electricity from the distribution licensee.
(2) Release of new connection and modification in an existing connection
- Transparent, simple, and time-bound processes,
- The applicant has an option for online application,
- The maximum time period of 7 days in metro cities and 15 days in other municipal areas and 30 days in rural areas identified to provide new connections and modify existing connections.
(3) Metering
- No connection shall be given without a meter;
- Meter shall be the smart pre-payment meter or pre-payment meter;
- Provision of Testing of meters;
- Provisions for replacement of defective or burnt or stolen meters specified.
(4) Billing and payment
- Transparency in applicable consumer tariff and bills;
- A consumer shall have the option to pay bills online or offline;
- Provision for advance payment of bills.
(5) Reliability of supply
- The distribution licensee shall supply 24×7 powers to all consumers. However, the Commission may specify lower hours of supply for some categories of consumers like agriculture;
- The distribution licensee shall put in place a mechanism, preferably with automated tools to the extent possible, for monitoring and restoring outages.
(6) Consumer as prosumer
- The prosumers will maintain consumer status and have the same rights as the general consumer.
- They will also have the right to set up RE generation units including rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems – either by themselves or through a service provider.
- Net metering for loads up to ten kW and for gross metering for loads above ten kW.
(7) Standards of Performance
- The Commission shall notify the standards of performance for the distribution licensees;
- Compensation amount to be paid to the consumers by the distribution licensees for violation of standards of performance.
(8) Compensation mechanism
- Automatic compensation shall be paid to consumers for which parameters on standards of performance can be monitored remotely;
- The standards of performance for which the compensation is required to be paid by the distribution licensee.
(9) Call Centre for Consumer Services
- Distribution licensee shall establish a centralized 24×7 toll-free call center;
- Licensees shall endeavor to provide all services through a common Customer Relation Manager (CRM) System to get a unified view.
(10) Grievance redressal mechanism
- Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF) to include consumer and prosumer representatives;
- The consumer grievance redressal has been made easy by making it multi-layered and the number of consumer’s representatives has been increased from one to four.
- The licensee shall specify the time within which various types of grievances by the different levels of the forums are to be resolved. Maximum timeline of 45 days specified for grievance redressal.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Leopard populations in India
Mains level: Tiger and leopard conservation: A success
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has released the Status of Leopards Report.
Confused over Leopard and Cheetah?
The most common difference between these two animals is the patterns on their coat. At first glance, it may look like they both have spots, but in actual fact, a leopard has rosettes which are rose-like markings, and cheetahs have a solid round or oval spot shape.
Indian Leopards
- The Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is a leopard subspecies widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent.
- It is one of the big cats occurring on the Indian subcontinent, apart from the Asiatic lion, Bengal tiger, snow leopard and clouded leopard.
- It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because populations have declined following habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching for the illegal trade of skins and body parts.
Leopards in India
- India now has 12,852 leopards as compared to the previous estimate of 7910 conducted 2014.
- More than 60% increase in population has been recorded.
- The States of Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra recorded the highest leopard estimates at 3,421, 1,783 and 1,690 respectively.
- India’s world record tiger survey also estimated the population of leopards and the tiger range was found a home to 12,852 (12,172-13,535) leopards.
Significance
- The increase in Tiger, Lion & Leopards numbers over the last few years is a testimony to the conservation efforts and of the fledgeling wildlife & biodiversity of the country.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Policy implementation and monitoring
Policy implementation matters as much as the policy itself. The article highlights the importance of monitoring system to track the implementation of the policies.
Implementing policy
- It is taken for granted that a government policy or social-development program, is meant to be perfectly executed.
- Implementation is the key and ends up with sub-par results and uncompleted projects.
- India has had mixed experiences post-Independence, the consolidated development chart will appear rather skewed.
- Millions continue to live in abject poverty, deprived of basic amenities.
Dealing with implementation deficit
- India needs to work on the implementation and reforms processes in a wider manner, with the primary aim of attaining fast-paced development and effective delivery of the intended public benefits.
- The first requirement would be a capable implementing machine — or what has been called the “perfect administration”, driven by passionate team leaders.
- The guiding urge should be to complete the task before schedule.
- Other critical determinants include:
- Unambiguous demarcation of responsibilities.
- Frequent brainstorming sessions to anticipate and take formal note of likely challenges and agreeing upon solutions.
- Ensuring and authorizing a largely freehand with matching resources, and the ability to make on-the-spot decisions.
- The evergreen strategy to make the implementation of a near-perfect process is to build in a vigilant monitoring and evaluation mechanism.
- A dynamic monitoring mechanism makes use of technology, which today is being built into various flagship programs initiated by the present government.
Achieving implementation
- In the interest of achieving wholesome implementation, it would be desirable to set up an autonomous “Monitoring Trust”.
- The trust will act as an integral part of all important public policies and programs.
- The proposed Trust can comprise core technical, administrative, and legal members, along with stakeholders and social activists.
- Engaging stakeholders and implementers, through various methodologies, is fast emerging as an effective strategy.
- Sharing information and progress through dashboards and other technology tools, inviting suggestions through IT portals like MyGov democratize and enrich both policy formulation and execution.
- The institutions and methodologies developed in Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana present an exemplary fusion between human ingenuity and the miracles of customized technology.
Conclusion
The political leadership both at the national and the state level is the most crucial force behind the success of the implementation machinery. An endeavor’s effective implementation alone can provide the converge with good governance, bold innovation, rewarding delivery, and the transformation of marginalized human lives.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ayushman Bharat
Mains level: Paper 2- Importance of public investment in health care
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Lack of resources such as 1:1,700, doctor: citizen ratio, well below the minimum ratio of 1:1,000 stipulated by WHO.
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Rural areas and smaller towns of India are the worst sufferers, where even basic health services remain inaccessible, many cases were reported where ward boys and alone found running the primary healthcare center.
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Inadequate government spending on healthcare and lack of access to health insurance to a large section of society.
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The quality of public health services in India continues to remain below expectations which hamper the economic growth of the country.
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Government’s inability to build sufficient capacity and infrastructure, difficulty in reaching out to poor and vulnerable groups.
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An undersized skilled workforce and the absence of upgraded technology is a major challenge in the health sector.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Custodial torture and challenges in dealing with it
Installation of cameras would help in curbing the custodial torture to some extent but ending the menace requires comprehensive reforms.
Installation of CCTV cameras to curb custodial torture
- The Supreme Court recently mandated that CCTV cameras be installed in police stations and offices of other investigative agencies.
- However, previous decisions with similar recommendations have been poorly implemented.
- The present decision shows a marked difference from the earlier ones in its approach.
- It shows more care by listing out areas of police stations where cameras must be installed to ensure that there are no blind spots.
- It asks for oversight committees to be set up to monitor the functioning of the cameras.
- It also specifies that the cameras must be equipped with night vision and be able to record audio and visual footage.
- The recordings will have to be preserved for at least 12 months.
Issues with installing CCTV cameras
- Alteration of a video to conceal an object, an event, or change the meaning conveyed by the video is a well-documented reality in the United States.
- Indian courts have also expressed their apprehension of police tampering with CCTV footage.
- The judgment does not assuage these concerns.
- Cameras in police stations will not foreclose the possibility of torture in other locations.
- Multiple works on torture in India suggest that torture is often not inflicted in police stations, but in isolated areas or police vehicles.
- Victims are illegally detained and tortured in undisclosed locations before officially arrested and brought to the police station.
Challenges in fixing criminal responsibility
- Since torture is not recognized as an offense per se under Indian law, the judgment refers to the use of force resulting in “serious injuries and/or custodial deaths” unwittingly creates a high threshold for what amounts to torture.
- It fails to acknowledge the existence of forms of physical and psychological torture that leave behind no marks on the body.
- Requiring prior sanction from the government operates as the foremost hurdle in initiating criminal complaints.
- The absence of statutory guidelines mandating independent investigation results in police officers from the same police station investigating the crime and suppressing evidence.
- Between 2005-2018, with respect to 1,200 deaths in police custody, 593 cases were registered, 186 police personnel were charge-sheeted, and only seven were convicted (National Crime Records Bureau).
- Evidentiary concerns frequently arise since often the only witnesses are the victims themselves.
- The Supreme Court (1995) has noted that police officials remain silent to protect their colleagues as they are “bound by brotherhood” and held that courts should not insist on direct or ocular evidence in these cases.
- This position is rarely applied and many cases result in acquittal for want of evidence.
Conclusion
Monitoring the police through CCTVs is an important step towards combating torture but its effectiveness is contingent on broader reforms. The Supreme Court needs to ensure a robust implementation of its order and simultaneously plug the gaps so that incidents of torture are curtailed.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: E20 fuel
Mains level: Ethanol blended petrol programme
The government has proposed the adoption of E20 fuel — a blend of 20% of ethanol and gasoline — as an automobile fuel in order to reduce vehicular emissions as well as the country’s oil import bill.
E20 Fuel
- E20 is a blend of 20% ethanol with gasoline (petrol) and can be used as an alternative to the fuels currently available.
- The government is looking at the adoption of mass emission standards for this fuel for transport application.
- Additionally, it also wishes to facilitate the development of E20 compliant vehicles.
- The government believes that the E20 blend will not only curb vehicle emissions but help reduce the country’s oil import bill.
Ethanol – Pros and Cons
- Ethanol is a common by-product that comes from agricultural feedstock like corn, hemp, potato, etc. It can be used as a bio-fuel in Flexi-fuel vehicles.
- It is greener than gasoline because the corn and crop plantations absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they grow.
- While the fuel still releases CO2 when you burn it, the net increase is comparatively lower.
- However, ethanol is less efficient as a fuel. It has lower energy content than energy-rich gasoline and diesel.
- The rule delivers less power when burned, which in return results in more fuel consumption and lower mileage.
- Additionally, blends over E20 (20% ethanol) is highly corrosive for older vehicles as the alcohol can break down old rubber seals and can damage engines.
Vehicle compatibility
- It added the compatibility of vehicles with the percentage of ethanol in the blend would be defined by the vehicle manufacturer, which would have to be displayed on the vehicle with a sticker.
- Ethanol is a biofuel and a common by-product of biomass left by agricultural feedstock such as corn, sugarcane, hemp, potato, etc.
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