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  • Industrial Sector Updates – Industrial Policy, Ease of Doing Business, etc.

    Opportunity to unlock the full Potential of MSMEs

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

    MSMEs

    Context

    • India overtook the UK as the world’s fifth-largest economy in 2022, and is on track to achieving PM Narendra Modi’s vision of a $5 trillion economy by 2026-27. Despite concerns of a looming global recession, supply disruptions and the Russia-Ukraine war, India has stood out as a bright spot, growing faster than most major emerging markets. The government’s budget for 2023 presents an opportunity to make the Indian MSMEs competitive and self-reliant.

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    MSMEs

    What are MSMEs? How are they defined?

    • Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006 which was notified on October 2, 2006, deals with the definition of MSMEs. The MSMED Act, 2006 defines the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises based on:
    1. The investment in plant and machinery for those engaged in manufacturing or production, processing or preservation of and
    2. The investment in equipment for enterprises engaged in providing or rendering of services.

    MSMEs in India at present

    • The 6.3 crore micro, small and medium enterprises which account for 30 per cent of GDP and employ nearly 11 crore people have demonstrated this spirit of resilience.
    • With sales in several industries across the MSME sector reaching 90 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, India’s small businesses are scripting a turnaround.

    MSMEs

    Union budget 2023: An opportunity to make MSMEs more competitive and self-reliant

    • Streamlining input tax credit for e-commerce suppliers: Currently, suppliers selling on e-commerce platforms need to procure input services like logistics, which are taxed at 18 per cent. This leads to precious working capital getting blocked without any visibility of future realisation, potentially discouraging suppliers from adopting e-marketplaces.
    • Adequate working capital for small businesses: From meeting fixed expenses such as electricity, rent and employee wages to investing in future growth, adequate working capital is a must for small businesses.
    • Lowering GST rates on input services: By lowering GST rates on input services availed by online sellers, the government will not only shore up their finances but also give a leg-up to their digitisation journey. Further, refunds of accumulated input tax credit will improve their cash flow situation.
    • Expedited GST relaxation for small online businesses: There is also a need to expedite GST relaxation for small online businesses. In a landmark move last year, the GST Council announced a relaxation of rules for small businesses looking to go online.
    • GST relaxation measures for small online vendors: Among other measures, mandatory GST registration was waived for small online vendors with a turnover of less than Rs 40 lakh and Rs 20 lakh for goods and services, respectively.
    • Unlocking the potential of MSMEs through Digitization: With just 10 per cent of our MSMEs currently online, expeditious implementation of these new norms is key to unlocking their full potential. Millions of small businesses are waiting in the wings, hoping to reap the benefits of digitisation such as a much bigger addressable market, increased efficiencies and easier access to capital.
    • The National Logistics Policy (NLP) can also be leveraged to make MSMEs competitive: The NLP aims to bring down logistics costs as a percentage of the GDP from 13-14 per cent to 8 per cent, on par with developed nations. While lower costs will encourage more MSMEs to use tech-powered logistics services, they will need support to tap rising e-commerce demand from smaller towns and semi-rural areas.
    • Indian post and railways can be utilized for cost effective last mile delivery: The government could rope in India Post as a tech-enabled last-mile delivery partner that can facilitate cash-on-delivery transactions at competitive prices. Similarly, the unparalleled reach of Indian Railways can be synergised to ship wares to the remotest parts of the country quickly and cost-effectively.

    MSMEs

    Why the MSME sector is important especially for India?

    • Employment: The Indian MSME sector provides maximum opportunities for both self-employment and wage-employment outside the agricultural sector.
    • Help building inclusive and sustainable society: It contributes to building an inclusive and sustainable society in innumerable ways through the creation of non-farm livelihood at low cost, balanced regional development, gender and social balance, environmentally sustainable development, etc.
    • For example: Khadi and Village industries require low per capita investment and employs a large number of women in rural areas.
    • Contribution to GDP: With around 36.1 million units throughout the geographical expanse of the country, MSMEs contribute around 6.11% of the manufacturing GDP and 24.63% of the GDP from service activities.
    • Exports: It contributes around 45% of the overall exports from India.

    Conclusion

    • With a visionary government charting out the nation’s growth path, it is anticipated that the budget would certainly deliver on the challenges for MSMEs and take us closer to the dream of an Atmanirbhar Bharat.

    Mains question

    Q. Highlight the significance of MSME’s for India. What more efforts can be taken to make MSMEs more competitive and self-reliant?

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  • Terrorism and Challenges Related To It

    Drugs in the valley: Pakistan’s new weapon to finance terrorism

    op-ed snap | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Border Area Security Challenges,Organized Crime & Terrorism

    valley

    Context

    • With arms and terror infiltration becoming difficult, Pakistan has now resorted to peddling drugs to degenerate the youth of Jammu and Kashmir. Narcotics, Pakistan’s new weapon to finance terrorism within the Valley, has been dubbed the biggest challenge confronting Jammu and Kashmir by Police Chief Dilbag Singh.

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    Background: Pakistan-sponsored terrorism and its impact

    • The culture of violence implemented through constant financial and strategic support to the insurgency in the Kashmir Valley by Pakistan by training and infiltrating weapons and militants impacted society in many ways.
    • Pakistan-backed terrorism destroyed the centuries-old socioeconomic and sociocultural fabric of society.
    • The deaths, mass exodus of Pandits, and increased unemployment eroded the composite way of life and increased boredom, depression, and anxiety among the masses.

    How Pakistan’s designs are failing?

    • Pakistan-sponsored terrorism is at an all-time low in Jammu and Kashmir, three years after the abrogation of Articles 370 and 35A.
    • The number of active militants has fallen from 250 by the end of 2019 to just over 100 by January 2023.
    • Security agencies have tried hard to achieve zero terror activities within the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and busted 146 terror modules created by Pakistan in 2022.
    • As a result, Pakistan’s design to create a culture of violence in the Valley endorsed by self-serving and incestuous political elite under the guise of autonomy for the last 30 years is failing.

    valley

    Drug strategy of Pakistan in Kashmir

    • Strategy serves dual purpose for Pakistan: Now, with the people of Kashmir increasingly relinquishing terrorism and a culture of violence, the drug strategy serves dual purposes for Islamabad. One, to attack the core of the social well-being, and two, to finance terrorism within the Valley.
    • Constant infiltration of drugs in the valley: There is a constant infiltration of drugs by Pakistan via the Valley’s Kupwara and Baramulla districts, less-used other drugs such as brown sugar, cocaine, and marijuana are also readily available within the Valley and even in parts of Jammu.

    valley

    Drug addiction in Kashmir

    • Valley is slowly becoming a drug hub: The Kashmir Valley is slowly becoming a drug hub in Northern India, having more than 67,000 drug abusers, of which 90 percent are heroin addicts, using more than 33,000 syringes daily.
    • Emerged as country’s top drug affected region: With 2.5 percent of the population using drugs, Kashmir has emerged as the country’s top-drug-affected region, ahead of Punjab, where 1.2 percent of the population is reportedly addicted to drug abuse.
    • Residents affected: In November 2022, the state-level narcotic coordination committee meeting chaired by the Chief Sectary revealed that at least six lakh residents were affected by drug-related issues in Jammu and Kashmir.
    • Increasing crime rate: Increasing on average, INR 88,000 are spent by a drug abuser in the Valley yearly, increasing Kashmir’s crime rate.

    Reasons for this situation

    • Collapse of age-old social discipline: A significant reason for such an alarming situation is the near-total collapse of the Valley’s age-old informal social discipline and control mechanisms enforced by village elders.
    • Attack on cultural core: Pakistan’s nefarious attack on the Valley’s cultural core has rendered this traditional mechanism of social control ineffective.
    • Few contributes in social degradation: The village elders have also often worked hand-in-glove with Pakistan’s evil designs by remaining silent and endorsing the societal degradation.

    valley

    Jammu and Kashmir police and war against drugs

    • Security agencies have trained their focus on drug peddlers: Security agencies in Jammu and Kashmir are known for anti-terror operations. They have successfully created a synergy with the local administration to sabotage Pakistan’s activities and allied forces within the Valley. With Pakistan-sponsored insurgency receding, the security agencies have trained their focus on drug peddlers.
    • Security agencies in action: In 2022, under Narcotic Drugs Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the police registered 1,021 cases and arrested 1700 drug peddlers, including 138 notorious peddlers. During the same time, the security agencies seized enormous quantities of contraband, including 212 kilograms of charas, 56 kilograms of heroin, 13 kilograms of brown sugar, 4.355 tonnes of poppy straw and 1.567 tonnes of fukki.
    • Busted narco terror modules: The security agencies also busted many narco-terror modules and arrested 36 persons with huge catches of drugs, arms, ammunition, and money.
    • Investigation revealed drugs smuggled from Pakistan: In December 2022, police busted a Pakistan-based narcotics module and arrested 17 persons, including five police officials and some political activists. Investigations revealed that over five kilograms of narcotics valued at INR 5 crore were smuggled from Pakistan in three months.
    • Launched Nasha-Mukt Bharat Abhiyan: The local administration has also launched the Nasha-Mukt Bharat Abhiyan an initiative started by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on 15 August 2020 to eradicate the menace of drug addiction in 272 districts across India. This programme has conducted large-scale awareness programmes in colleges, universities, and within communities.

    Way ahead

    • The Kashmiri society needs to have an internal interlocution and take a serious look at Pakistan’s policies to foment trouble, especially through narco-terrorism.
    • Kashmir’s elders and religious leaders through mosques need to get involved in the war against drugs and guide the youth to engage meaningfully with the spate of developmental activities undertaken by the national and Union territory government following the abrogation of Article 370.
    • The government should also initiate and enable public-private partnerships, where local police, military, paramilitary, and citizen bodies act in harmony to make Kashmir free of narco-terror and Pakistan-implemented culture of violence.

    Conclusion

    • With arms and terror infiltration becoming difficult, Pakistan has now resorted to drug trafficking to destroy Kashmir’s youth. Creating a working synergy between Kashmir’s traditional and formal social control system can go a long way in addressing the drug menace.

    Mains question

    Q. With arms and terror infiltration becoming difficult, Pakistan has now resorted to drug trafficking to destroy Kashmir’s youth. Discuss.

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  • Parliament – Sessions, Procedures, Motions, Committees etc

    History, Significance of President’s Address

    | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution – historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure

    president

    President Droupadi Murmu addressed the joint sitting of Parliament for the first time after assuming the position.

    Mains PYQ: The President’s address is one of the most solemn occasions in the Parliamentary calendar. Discuss. Highlight its importance in Parliamentary Democracy. (250W)

    President’s Address: What is the history?

    • United Kingdom: The tradition of the monarch addressing the Parliament began in the 16th century.
    • United States: President Gorge Washington addressed Congress for the first time in 1790.

    President’s Address in India

    (A) Colonial period

    • GoI Act, 1919: In India, the practice of the President addressing Parliament was established after the promulgation of the Government of India Act in 1919.
    • Governor General’s address: This law gave the GG the right of addressing the Legislative Assembly and the Council of State.
    • No joint address: The law did not have a provision for a joint address but the Governor-General did address the Assembly and the Council together on multiple occasions.
    • During constituent assembly: Between 1947 and 1950, there was NO address to the Constituent Assembly (Legislative).

    (B) After the enactment of Constitution

    • After the Constitution came into force, President Rajendra Prasad (after taking over from Dr Sachchidananda Sinha) addressed members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for the first time on January 31, 1950.
    • When the Constitution came into force, the President was required to address each session of Parliament. The Constitution gave the President and the Governor the power to address a sitting of the legislature.
    1. Article 87: It provides two special occasions on which the President addresses a joint sitting. The first is to address the opening session of a new legislature after a general election. The second is to address the first sitting of Parliament each year. A session of a new or continuing legislature cannot begin without fulfilling this requirement.
    2. Making it an annual affair: So during the provisional Parliament in 1950, President Prasad gave an address before every session. In 1951, the First Amendment to the Constitution changed this and made the President’s address an annual affair.

    What is the procedure and tradition?

    • Motion of Thanks: After the President’s address, the two Houses move a motion to thank the President for her speech.
    • Debate on the speech: This is an occasion for MPs in the two Houses to have a broad debate on governance in the country.
    • PM addresses the questions: The issues raised by MPs are then addressed by the Prime Minister, who also replies to the motion of thanks.
    • Unanimous voting: The motion is then put to vote and MPs can express their disagreement by moving amendments to the motion.
    • Scope for Amendment: Opposition MPs have been successful in getting amendments passed to the motion of thanks in Rajya Sabha on five occasions, including in 1980, 1989, 2001, 2015 and 2016.
    Do you know?

    The Motion of Thanks must be passed in Parliament. Otherwise, it amounts to the defeat of the government. It is one of the ways through which the Lok Sabha can also express a lack of confidence in the government.

    Content of the address

    • There is no set format for the President’s or Governor’s speech.
    • During the making of the Constitution, Prof K T Shah wanted the President’s address to be more specific.
    • He suggested that the language be changed to specify that the President shall inform Parliament “on the general state of the Union including financial proposals, and other particular issues of policy he deems suitable for such address”.
    • His proposal took inspiration from the US Constitution.
    • But the Constituent Assembly didn’t accept Prof Shah’s amendment.

    What is the government’s role?

    • Written by the government: The President’s speech is essentially the govt. viewpoint and is also written by the government itself.
    • Inputs from various ministries: Usually, in December, the Prime Minister’s Office asks the various ministries to start sending in their inputs for the speech.
    • Collation of information: The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs sends a message, asking ministries to give information about any legislative proposals that need to be included in the President’s address. All this information is collated and shaped into a speech, which is then delivered to the President.
    • Role of Lok Sabha Secretariat: The address is an event, associated with ceremony and protocol, and the Lok Sabha Secretariat makes extensive arrangements for it.

    Significance of the address

    • Policy announcements: The President’s address serves as a platform for the government to make policy and legislative announcements.
    • Report card of the government: It highlights the government’s accomplishments from the previous year and sets the broad governance agenda for the coming year.

    What if the President disagrees with the text of the speech?

    Ans. It is CONSTITUTIONAL OBLIGATION on the President.

    • The President or Governor cannot refuse to perform the constitutional duty of delivering an address to the legislature.
    • But there can be situations when they deviate from the text of the speech prepared by the government.
    • So far, there have been no instances of a President doing so.

    Recent instances of defiance

    Ans. States vs. Governors

    • There have been occasions when a Governor skipped or changed a portion of the address to the Assembly.
    • Most recently, Tamil Nadu’s Governor made changes to the prepared speech he read out in the Assembly.
    • TN Chief Minister had to step in and move a resolution, which demanded that only the original speech given to the Governor be put in records.
    • In 2020, Kerala Governor, during his address to the Assembly, stopped before reading out his speech’s paragraph 18, which related to the Kerala government’s opposition to the Citizenship Amendment Bill.

    Why it is so cherished in democracy?

    • Parliament as a unit: The President’s address is one of the most solemn occasions in the Parliamentary calendar. It is the only occasion in the year when the entire Parliament, i.e. the President, Lok Sabha, and Rajya Sabha come together.
    • Ceremonial event: The event is associated with ceremony and protocol. The Lok Sabha Secretariat prepares extensively for this annual event.
    • Grandeur: In the past, it used to get 150 yards of red baize cloth from the President’s house for the ceremonial procession.

     

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  • Special Category Status and States

    Vishakhapatnam is Andhra Pradesh’s new Capital

    Prelims Only | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution – historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure

    vishakha

    Visakhapatnam will be the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, announced the Chief Minister.

    AP’s move for three capitals

    • AP had introduced a ‘Three Capitals Act’ titled Andhra Pradesh Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Act, 2020.
    • Thus, it was decided that:
    1. Amaravati was to be the Legislative capital
    2. Visakhapatnam the Executive capital and
    3. Kurnool the Judicial capital
    • However, the Andhra Pradesh High Court repealed this Act citing that the legislature has no competence to enact any law for shifting the three organs of the capital.

    Concerns raised by AP government

    • AP contended that the judgement was in violation of the basic structure of the Constitution as the HC cannot hold that the State does not have the powers to decide on its capital.
    • The judgement was against the doctrine of separation of powers as it sought to preempt the legislature from taking up the issue (of three capitals).
    • Further, it is argued that under the federal structure of the Constitution, every State has an inherent right to determine where it should carry out its capital functions from.

    Reasons for AP’s consideration

    (1) Viable option of Visakhapatnam

    • Vizag always had been the biggest city, after Hyderabad, even in the combined State.
    • It has all the settings to become a good living space.

    (2) Sri Krishna panel recommendations

    • The advantages and qualities of Visakhapatnam to become the capital was elaborately deliberated by the Sri Krishna Committee to study the alternatives for a new capital for the State of Andhra Pradesh.
    • Coming to suggestion for the alternative capital, the Committee primarily took up three things for consideration — creation of single city or super city in greenfield location, expanding existing cities and distributed development.

    (3) Decentralisation

    • This idea was elaborately described in the Sri Bagh pact.
    • The pact clearly defined decentralisation, for the benefit of all three main regions such as Coastal AP, Godavari and Krishna districts and Rayalaseema.

    Major practical problems

    • Continuum of work: The government argues that the Assembly meets only after gaps of several months, and government Ministers, officers, and staff can simply go to Amaravati when required.
    • Logistics nightmare: coordinating between seats of legislature and executive in separate cities will be easier said than done.
    • Time and costs of travel: The distances in Andhra Pradesh are not inconsiderable. Executive capital Visakhapatnam is 700 km from judicial capital Kurnool, and 400 km from legislative capital Amaravati.

    Examples of multi-capital states in India

    • Among Indian states, Maharashtra has two capitals– Mumbai and Nagpur (which holds the winter session of the state assembly).
    • Himachal Pradesh has capitals at Shimla and Dharamshala (winter).
    • The former state of Jammu & Kashmir had Srinagar and Jammu (winter) as capitals where Darbar Move is carried out.

     

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  • Festivals, Dances, Theatre, Literature, Art in News

    Artform in news: Shumang Leela

    Prelims Only | History | Mains Paper 1: Arts & Culture

    shumang leela

    This newscard is an excerpt from the original article published in TH.

    Shumang Leela

    • Shumang Leela is a unique traditional form of theatre in Manipur.
    • The tradition is believed to be descended from Lai Haraoba, a ritual of the Meitei community of Manipur.

    Types of this dance

    Shumang Leela is of two types:

    1. Nupa Shumang Leela: It performed only by men. Here the roles of women are all played by men, called Nupi Shabis.
    2. Nupi Shumang Leela: It performed only by women and the roles of men are played by women.

    Performance details

    • The plays serve as a medium to spread awareness among people of social, political and economic issues. Shumang Leelas may also discuss moral values, unity and integrity.
    • This theatre form has for long been trying to strengthen the bond of brotherhood and friendship among various communities in the State.

    Significance of the art

    • In a society marked by heteronormativity, the gender-bending nature of Shumang Leela makes it a unique art form that is fraught with complexity.
    • The men who take up female roles or vice versa are highly appreciated and laughed at.
    • The traditional theatre form has preserved its original form, and its aim to inform and entertain has remained unchanged.

     

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  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Breakthrough

    Project ELLORA to preserve ‘rare’ Indian languages with AI

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

    Microsoft’s Project ELLORA is helping small languages like Gondi, Mundari become eloquent for the digital world.

    Project ELLORA

    • To bring ‘rare’ Indian languages online, Microsoft launched the Project ELLORA or Enabling Low Resource Languages in 2015.
    • Under the project, researchers are building digital resources of the languages.
    • They say that their purpose is to preserve a language for posterity so that users of these languages “can participate and interact in the digital world.”

    How is ELLORA creating a language dataset?

    • The researchers are mapping out resources, including printed literature, to create a dataset to train their AI model.
    • The team is also working with these communities on the project.
    • By involving the community in the data collection process, researchers hope to create a dataset that is both accurate and culturally relevant.

     

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  • Economic Indicators and Various Reports On It- GDP, FD, EODB, WIR etc

    Possibility of global recession?

    op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy,Issues relating growth and development, employment

    recession

    Context

    • There have recently been growing concerns about the global economy slipping into recession. These concerns were primarily triggered by the contraction of the US economy, observed in the first half of 2022. Negative growth in two consecutive quarters is commonly but not officially used as an indication of recession.

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    Background: Status of the US economy

    • First and second quarter of 2022: As reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the US real Gross Domestic Product (GDP adjusted for inflation) decreased at an annual rate of 1.6 per cent and 0.6 per cent in the first and second quarters of 2022, respectively.
    • Third quarter: In the third quarter, however, the US economy grew by 3.2 per cent, signalling a significant recovery.
    • Fourth quarter: The latest BEA advance estimates show that the US real GDP increased at an annual rate of 2.9 per cent in the fourth quarter.
    • Expansion of US economy a positive sign: Despite the slight decrease from the third quarter, the continued expansion of the US economy at the end of 2022 marks a positive sign, soothing concerns about a recession in 2023.

    recession

    Economic recovery of the US economy

    • Positive growth in fourth quarter: The positive growth in the fourth quarter can primarily be attributed to consumer spending, which increased by an annualised rate of 2.1 per cent, and private inventory investment that showed an upturn in 2022. Although a significant decline from the 5.9 per cent increase in 2021, the difference accounts for the enthused post-Covid economic recovery in 2021.
    • The US labour market continues to remain robust: The unemployment rate was recorded at a low of 3.5 per cent in December 2022, matching the pre-pandemic levels. Also, the total non-farm payroll employment increased by 2,23,000 in December, exceeding the Dow Jones estimate of 2,00,000.
    • Inflation has eased: While the labour market remains tight, US inflation has eased in the last few months. Consumer prices fell 0.1 per cent in December the largest month-over-month decrease since April 2020, due to reductions in motor vehicle and gasoline prices.
    • Layoffs not yet translated into rise in jobless claims: Although not a perfect association, the decline in jobless claims in January shows that the mass layoffs in recent weeks, particularly in the tech sector, have not yet translated into a rise in claims, suggesting the possibility of finding new jobs.
    • The reopening of China’s borders can have positive implications for the global economy: As China resumes its economic activities to pre-Covid levels by boosting growth, domestic consumption is expected to increase significantly. With the ease of trans-border movement and eventual increase in exports of consumer and industrial goods, global trade is expected to strengthen as well.

    recession

    What is Recession?

    • A recession is a significant decline in economic activity that lasts for months or even years.
    • Experts declare a recession when a nation’s economy experiences negative GDP, rising levels of unemployment, falling retail sales, and contracting measures of income and manufacturing for an extended period of time.
    • Recessions are considered an unavoidable part of the business cycle or the regular cadence of expansion and contraction that occurs in a nation’s economy.

    Possibility of a global recession

    • Elevated inflation continues to be a cause for global concern: Despite the fall in consumer prices, the headline CPI for the US showed an annual increase of 6.5 per cent in December 2022. In spite of the slow-paced increase in headline CPI, persistent elevation in core inflation excluding food and energy continues to be a major issue across economies.
    • Interest Rate Hikes on the Horizon: Consequently, the central banks are expected to continue with interest rate hikes in the coming months. On an annualised level, the CPI inflation in Australia also jumped to 7.8 per cent in the 2022 fourth quarter, increasing the likelihood of respective interest rate hikes as well.
    • China’s Impact on Commodity Prices: Moreover, an increase in China’s demand for goods post-reopening could drive up commodity prices, thereby creating an inflationary impact. For instance, China’s increased demand for natural gas would mean more competition with the European market, leading to higher commodity prices that can put further inflationary pressures on Europeans already dealing with high energy bills.
    • Higher borrowing costs: Rising interest rates would incur even higher borrowing costs that could dampen consumer spending. While sectors sensitive to high borrowing costs such as housing and construction have slowed down significantly.

    recession

    Conclusion

    • Among the positive signs are the continued expansion of the US economy and the reopening of China’s borders. Rising inflation remains a cause for global concern. However, prevalence of mixed signals suggests that the onset and depth of a global recession in 2023 are not certain.

    Mains question

    Q. Highlight the current situation of global economies. Discuss if there’s a global recession in 2023?

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

    Its high time to focus on Mental Health

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

    Mental

    Context

    • Suicides rates in India are amongst the highest when compared to other countries at the same socio-economic level. According to WHO, India’s suicide rate in 2019, at 12.9/1,00,000, was higher than the regional average of 10.2 and the global average of 9.0. Suicide has become the leading cause of death among those aged 15–29 in India.

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    Background: Mental Health

    • While every precious life lost through suicide is one too many, it represents only the tip of the mental health iceberg in the country, particularly among young adults. Women tend to suffer more.
    • Across the world, the prevalence of some mental health disorders is consistently higher among women as compared to men.

    Mental

    Prevalence of Mental ill-health

    • The pandemic has further exacerbated the problem: Globally, it might have increased the prevalence of depression by 28 per cent and anxiety by 26 per cent in just one year between 2020 and 2021, according to a study published in Lancet.
    • Increased among younger age groups: Again, the large increases have been noted among younger age groups, stemming from uncertainty and fear about the virus, financial and job losses, grief, increased childcare burdens, in addition to school closures and social isolation.
    • Use of social media exacerbating the stress: Increased use of certain kinds of social media is also exacerbating stress for young people. Social media detracts from face-to-face relationships, which are healthier, and reduces investment in meaningful activities. More importantly, it erodes self-esteem through unfavourable social comparison.

    Mental

    Socio-economic implications of Mental ill-health

    • People living in poverty are at greater risks: Mental ill health is a leading cause of disability globally and is closely linked to poverty in a vicious cycle of disadvantage. People living in poverty are at greater risk of experiencing such conditions.
    • People experiencing mental health problems likely to fall in poverty: On the other hand, people experiencing severe mental health conditions are more likely to fall into poverty through loss of employment and increased health expenditure.
    • Stigma and discrimination: Stigma and discrimination often further undermine their social support structures. This reinforces the vicious cycle of poverty and mental ill-health.
    • Higher income inequality has high prevalence of ill mental ill health: Not surprisingly, countries with greater income inequalities and social polarization have been found to have a higher prevalence.

    Mental

    Approach to protect, promote and care for the mental health of people?

    • Killing the deep stigma surrounding mental health issues: The first step should be killing the deep stigma which prevents patients from seeking timely treatment and makes them feel shameful, isolated and weak. Stigma festers in the dark and scatters in the light. We need a mission to cut through this darkness and shine a light.
    • Making Mental health an integral part of public health programme: There is need to make mental health an integral part of the public health programme to reduce stress, promote a healthy lifestyle, screen and identify high-risk groups and strengthen interventions like counselling services. Special emphasis will need to be given to schools.
    • Paying attention to highly vulnerable: In addition, we should pay special attention to groups that are highly vulnerable because of the issues such as victims of domestic or sexual violence, unemployed youth, marginal farmers, armed forces personnel and personnel working under difficult conditions.
    • Creating a strong infrastructure for mental health care and treatment: Lack of effective treatment and stigma feed into each other. Currently, only 20-30 per cent of people with such disorders receive adequate treatment.
    • Mental health services should be made affordable for all: Improved coverage without corresponding financial protection will lead to inequitable service uptake and outcomes. All government health assurance schemes, including Ayushman Bharat, should cover the widest possible range.

    Why is the wide treatment gap?

    • One major reason for a wide treatment gap is the problem of inadequate resources.
    • Less than two per cent of the government health budget, which itself is the lowest among all G20 countries, is devoted to mental health issues.
    • There is a severe shortage of professionals, with the number of psychiatrists in the country being less than those in New York City, according to one estimate.
    • Substantial investments will be needed to address the gaps in the health infrastructure and human resources.
    • Currently, most private health insurance covers only a restricted number of mental health conditions. Similarly, the list of essential medicines includes only a limited number of WHO-prescribed medications.

    Mental

    Conclusion

    • We need an urgent and well-resourced whole of society approach to protecting, promoting and caring for the mental health of our people, like we did for the Covid pandemic. Brock Chisholm, the first Director General of WHO, famously said, “there is no health without mental health”.

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  • The Crisis In The Middle East

    Israel-Palestinian violence on West Bank soars

    IOCR | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Important International Institutions

    west bank

    US has urged Israel and the Palestinians to ease tensions amid a spike in violence that has put the West Bank region on edge.

    Where is West Bank?

    • The West Bank is a landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediterranean in Western Asia that forms the main bulk of the Palestinian territories.
    • It is bordered by Jordan and the Dead Sea to the east and by Israel to the south, west, and north.

    Point of discussion: Anti-Semitism

    • Anti-Semitism (hatred against Jews) is an officially stated policy of many theocratic countries (created by divine orders of religion).
    • This includes entire Arab world, the self-proclaimed caliphate ‘Turkiye’ and even Pakistan.
    • Jews, the micro-minority religion of the world were denied access to their homeland.

    What is the Israel-Palestine Conflict?

    • The land to which Jews and Palestinians lay claim to was under the Ottoman Empire and then the British Empire in early 20th century.
    • Palestinian people —the Arab people from the same area— want to have a state by the name of Palestine in that area.
    • The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is over who gets what land and how it’s controlled.
    • Jews fleeing the persecution in Europe at the time wanted to establish a Jewish state on the land which they believe to be their ancient homeland.
    • The Arab at the time resisted, saying the land was theirs. The land at the time was called Palestine.
    • In 1917’s Balfour Declaration, the United Kingdom declared its support for the establishment of a “national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine.
    • Arabs resisted it which led to violence.

    Jews into West Bank: Arab hinterland in Israel

    • Some 75,000 Jews migrated to Palestine from 1922-26 and some 60,000 Jews emigrated in 1935, according to a history published by the University of Central Arkansas.
    • It adds that Palestinian Arabs demanded the UK to halt Jewish emigration, but the UK ignored such calls. There were violent incidents, leading to deaths of some 500 people.
    • In 1923, the British Mandate for Palestine came into effect.
    • The document was issued by the League of Nations, the failed predecessor of the United Nations (UN).
    • The mandate gave the UK the responsibility for creating a Jewish national homeland in the region.
    • In 1936, the UK government recommended the partition of Palestine into Jewish and Arab states.

    How did the issue escalate?

    • In 1947, Britain referred the issue of Palestine to the UN, which came up with a partition plan.
    • It put up two proposals. One, two separate states joined economically —the majority proposal— and, two, a single bi-national state made up of autonomous Jewish and Palestinian areas, the minority proposal.
    • The Jewish community approved of the first of these proposals, while the Arabs opposed them both.

    Israel’s independence

    • In May 1948, Israel declared its independence. This was eye-pricking development for Arabs.
    • The Arab countries of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Egypt invaded the newly-declared country immediately.
    • When the war ended, Israel gained some territory formerly granted to Palestinian Arabs under the UN resolution in 1947.
    • It also retained control over the Gaza Strip and the West Bank respectively.

    Resolving the conflict

    Ans. Two-state solution

    • The two-state solution refers to an arrangement where Israeli and Palestinian states co-exist in the region.
    • However, such a solution has not materialised over the decades.
    • As outlined in the beginning and in the briefly explained roots of the conflict, the two-state solution means two separate states for Israelis and Palestinians.

    Why it hasn’t worked out?

    There are four main reasons why the two-state solution has not materialized by now:

    [1] Borders

    • There is no consensus as to how to draw the lines dividing the two proposed states.
    • Many people say borders should have pre-1967 lines.
    • In 1967 Israeli-Arab war, Israel captured Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip, West Bank, Old City of Jerusalem, and Golan Heights.
    • Israel is not willing to give up these gains. It returned Sinai to Egypt in 1982.
    • Moreover, there is the question of Israeli settlements in West Bank.

    [2] Question of Jerusalem

    • Both Israel and Palestinians claim Jerusalem as their capital and call it central to their religion and culture.
    • The two-state solution typically calls for dividing it into an Israeli West and a Palestinian East, but it is not easy to draw the line — Jewish, Muslim and Christian holy sites are on top of one another.
    • Israel has declared Jerusalem its ‘undivided capital’, effectively annexing its eastern half, and has built up construction that entrenches Israeli control of the city.

    [3] Refugees

    • A large number of Palestinians had to flee in the 1948 War.
    • They and their descendants —numbering at 5 million— demand a right to return. Israel rejects this.
    • The return of these people would end the demographic majority of Jews, ending the idea of Israel that’s both democratic and Jewish.

    [4] Security

    • Security concerns are also central to Israel as it’s constantly harassed by terrorist group Hamas that controls Gaza Strip.
    • Hamas and other Islamist group in Gaza launch rockets into Israel time-to-time.
    • Moreover, there are also concerns of Palestinians’ attack inside Israel.
    • This year in March-April, at least 18 Israelis were killed in Palestinian attacks inside Israel.
    • A total of 27 Palestinians were also killed in the period, including those who carried out attacks inside Israel. Palestinians too have their concerns.
    • For Palestinians, security means an end to foreign military occupation.

    Why the two-state solution is needed?

    • Besides fulfilling the basic desire of both Jews and Arabs of their own states, supporters of two-state solutions say it must be backed because its alternatives are simply not workable.
    • A single state merging Israel, West Bank, and Gaza would reduce Jews to a minority.
    • At the same time, in such a state, Jews would be a significant minority which would mean that the Arab majority would be miffed.

    Moral reasoning for a two-state solution

    • It says that the aspirations of one person should not be overridden for others’ aspirations.
    • It’s a struggle for collective rights between two distinct groups of people.
    • Jews are the global micro-minority with a very small piece of land to exist.
    • Depriving Israeli Jews of a Jewish state or Palestinians of a Palestinian state would represent a subordination of one group’s aspirations to someone else’s vision.

    Way forward

    • India opines that long-term peace in Israel and Palestine can be achieved only through a negotiated two-State solution leading.
    • This can be done with the establishment of a sovereign, independent and viable State of Palestine living within secure and recognized borders.

     

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  • Electoral Reforms In India

    SC to hear plea against Electoral Bonds Scheme

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

    bond

    The Supreme Court is scheduled to examine whether petitions challenging the validity of electoral bonds scheme need to be referred to a Constitution Bench.

    What is a Constitution Bench?

    • The constitution bench is the name given to the benches of the Supreme Court of India.
    • The Chief Justice of India has the power to constitute a Constitution Bench and refer cases to it.
    • Constitution benches are set up when the following circumstances exist:
    1. Interpretation of the Constitution: Article 145(3) provides for the constitution of at least five judges of the court which sit to decide any case “involving a substantial question of law as to the interpretation” of the Constitution of India.
    2. President of India seeking SC’s opinion: When the President has sought the Supreme Court’s opinion on a question of fact or law under Article 143 of the Constitution. Article 143 of the Constitution provides for Advisory jurisdiction to the SC. As per the provision, the President has the power to address questions to the apex Court, that he deems important for public welfare.
    3. Conflicting Judgments: When two or more three-judge benches of the Supreme Court have delivered conflicting judgments on the same point of law, necessitating a definite understanding and interpretation of the law by a larger bench.
    • The Constitution benches are set up on ad hoc basis as and when the above-mentioned conditions exist.
    • Constitution benches have decided many of India’s best-known and most important Supreme Court cases, such as:
    1. K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (Preventive detention)
    2. Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (Basic structure doctrine) and
    3. Ashoka Kumar Thakur v. Union of India (OBC reservations) etc.

     

    What are Electoral Bonds?

    • Electoral bonds are banking instruments that can be purchased by any citizen or company to make donations to political parties, without the donor’s identity being disclosed.
    • It is like a promissory note that can be bought by any Indian citizen or company incorporated in India from select branches of State Bank of India.
    • The citizen or corporate can then donate the same to any eligible political party of his/her choice.
    • An individual or party will be allowed to purchase these bonds digitally or through cheque.

    About the scheme

    • A citizen of India or a body incorporated in India will be eligible to purchase the bond
    • Such bonds can be purchased for any value in multiples of ₹1,000, ₹10,000, ₹10 lakh, and ₹1 crore from any of the specified branches of the State Bank of India
    • The purchaser will be allowed to buy electoral bonds only on due fulfillment of all the extant KYC norms and by making payment from a bank account
    • The bonds will have a life of 15 days (15 days time has been prescribed for the bonds to ensure that they do not become a parallel currency).
    • Donors who contribute less than ₹20,000 to political parties through purchase of electoral bonds need not provide their identity details, such as Permanent Account Number (PAN).

    Objective of the scheme

    • Transparency in political funding: To ensure that the funds being collected by the political parties is accounted money or clean money.

    Who can redeem such bonds?

    • The Electoral Bonds shall be encashed by an eligible Political Party only through a Bank account with the Authorized Bank.
    • Only the Political Parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and which secured not less than one per cent of the votes polled in the last General Election to the Lok Sabha or the State Legislative Assembly, shall be eligible to receive the Electoral Bonds.

    Restrictions that are done away

    • Earlier, no foreign company could donate to any political party under the Companies Act
    • A firm could donate a maximum of 7.5 percent of its average three-year net profit as political donations according to Section 182 of the Companies Act.
    • As per the same section of the Act, companies had to disclose details of their political donations in their annual statement of accounts.
    • The government moved an amendment in the Finance Bill to ensure that this proviso would not be applicable to companies in case of electoral bonds.
    • Thus, Indian, foreign and even shell companies can now donate to political parties without having to inform anyone of the contribution.

    Issues with the Scheme

    • Opaque funding: While the identity of the donor is captured, it is not revealed to the party or public. So transparency is not enhanced for the voter.
    • No IT break: Also income tax breaks may not be available for donations through electoral bonds. This pushes the donor to choose between remaining anonymous and saving on taxes.
    • No anonymity for donors: The privacy of the donor is compromised as the bank will know their identity.
    • Differential benefits: These bonds will help any party that is in power because the government can know who donated what money and to whom.
    • Unlimited donations: The electoral bonds scheme and amendments in the Finance Act of 2017 allows for “unlimited donations from individuals and foreign companies to political parties without any record of the sources of funding”.

    Way ahead

    • The worries over the electoral bond scheme, however, go beyond its patent unconstitutionality.
    • The concern about the possibility of misuse of funds is very pertinent.
    • The EC has been demanding that a law be passed to make political parties liable to get their accounts audited by an auditor from a panel suggested by the CAG or EC. This should get prominence.
    • Another feasible option is to establish a National Election Fund to which all donations could be directed.
    • This would take care of the imaginary fear of political reprisal of the donors.

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