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  • Terrorism and Challenges Related To It

    UNSC bans LeT’s Makki after China lifts its hold

    | Security Issues | Mains Paper 3: Organized Crime & Terrorism

    makki

    The ISIL and Al Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council (UNSC) has placed Abdul Rehman Makki, a fundraiser and key planner of the Pakistan-based terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), on its sanctions list.

    Blacklisting Maki: Under UNSC 1267 list 

    • The UNSC resolution 1267 was adopted unanimously on 15 October 1999.
    • It came to force in 1999, and strengthened after the September, 2001 attacks.
    • It is now known as the Da’esh and Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee.

    What is UNSC 1267 committee?

    • It comprises all permanent and non-permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
    • The 1267 list of terrorists is a global list, with a UNSC stamp.
    • It is one of the most important and active UN subsidiary bodies working on efforts to combat terrorism, particularly in relation to Al Qaeda and the Islamic State group.
    • It discusses UN efforts to limit the movement of terrorists, especially those related to travel bans, the freezing of assets and arms embargoes for terrorism.

    How is the blacklisting done?

    (1) Submission of Proposal

    • Any member state can submit a proposal for listing an individual, group, or entity.
    • The proposal must include acts or activities indicating the proposed individual/group/entity had participated in the financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or perpetrating of acts or activities linked to the said organizations.

    (2) Actual decision

    • Decisions on listing and de-listing are adopted by consensus.
    • The proposal is sent to all the members, and if no member objects within five working days, the proposal is adopted.
    • An “objection” means rejection for the proposal.

    (3) Putting and resolving ‘Technical Holds’

    • Any member of the Committee may also put a “technical hold” on the proposal and ask for more information from the proposing member state.
    • During this time, other members may also place their own holds.
    • The matter remains on the “pending” list of the Committee.
    • Pending issues must be resolved in six months, but the member state that has placed the hold may ask for an additional three months.
    • At the end of this period, if an objection is not placed, the matter is considered approved.

    How China supports Terror in Pakistan?

    • China has exposed its double standards on the issue of terrorism for consistently stopping the listing of Pakistan-based terrorists.
    • This time, Beijing has argued that the blacklisting is in fact a “recognition” of Pakistan’s record of fighting terrorism.

    Here is a timeline of how China disrupts the global efforts against terrorism:

    • 2009: After the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, India moved an independent terror designation proposal against Masood Azhar but China blocked the move.
    • 2016: After seven years, India proposes listing of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist and is supported by the US, the UK and France. China blocks the move again.
    • 2017: The trio moves a third proposal only to be blocked by China again.
    • 2019: After the attacks on the CRPF personnel in J-K’s Pulwama, India calls 25 envoys of different countries to highlight the role Islamabad plays in funding, promoting and strengthening global terrorism. India moves the fourth proposal demanding Masood Azhar’s listing. China lifted its technical hold.
    • June 2022: China blocked a proposal by India and the US to list Pakistan-based terrorist Abdul Rehman Makki as a ‘Global Terrorist’
    • August 2022: China blocks India-US joint proposal to list Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) deputy chief Abdul Rauf Azhar as UNSC designated terrorist.

    Why China shields Pak-based terrorists?

    • Rewarding Pakistan: China rewards Pakistan to keep India engaged in regional battles and internal conflicts.
    • Oppressing the Uighurs: The quid pro quo is that Pakistan does not utter a word against Uighur Muslim oppression by China in restive Xinjiang province.

    Conclusion

    • China’s actions expose its double speak and double standards when it comes to the international community’s shared battle against terrorism.
    • This clearly depicts its care for its vassal state Pakistan.

    Back2Basics: United Nations Security Council (UNSC)

    • The UNSC is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security.
    • Its powers include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of international sanctions, and the authorization of military action through Security Council resolutions.
    • It is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions to member states.
    • The Security Council consists of fifteen members. Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, and the United States—serve as the body’s five permanent members (P5).
    • These permanent members can veto any substantive Security Council resolution, including those on the admission of new member states or candidates for Secretary-General.
    • The Security Council also has 10 non-permanent members, elected on a regional basis to serve two-year terms. The body’s presidency rotates monthly among its members.

     

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  • Banking Sector Reforms

    UPI for NRIs: What it means for India and Indians abroad

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    upi

    The National Payments Corp. of India (NPCI) has allowed Indians abroad to use fast payments network UPI, if their domestic bank accounts are linked to their foreign mobile numbers.

    What is UPI?

    • UPI is an instant real-time payment system developed by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) facilitating inter-bank transactions.
    • The interface is regulated by the Reserve Bank of India and works by instantly transferring funds between two bank accounts on a mobile platform.

    What exactly has NPCI allowed on UPI?

    • NPCI issued a circular that paved the way for wider adoption of homegrown payments platform UPI.
    • So far, only Indian phone numbers were allowed on UPI, leaving out non-resident bank accounts linked to their phone numbers abroad.
    • In the first phase, phone numbers from 10 countries including Singapore, Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Oman, Qatar, the US, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and the UK have been allowed to be used on UPI.
    • NPCI said it could extend this to other nations as well.

    How will it benefit Indians abroad?

    • Once the systems are in place, non-resident Indians will be able to transact using UPI, irrespective of whether they are in India or abroad.
    • To use UPI, non-residents need to have either a non-resident external (NRE) account or a non-resident ordinary (NRO) account in India.
    • It would, of course, be more useful when account holders visit India, given the scale of UPI merchant infrastructure in India.
    • While abroad, they can use UPI to transfer funds to families in India and use it on e-commerce portals that allow such payments.

    What are the prerequisites for this facility?

    • NPCI has asked banks to onboard only those accounts that meet the Foreign Exchange Management Act guidelines and instructions issued by the departments of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
    • Apart, the remitter, as well as beneficiary banks, will have to ensure they comply with anti-money laundering (AML) and combating of financial terrorism (CFT) checks.

    Does it help the plan to take UPI global?

    • NPCI has been attempting to make UPI a global phenomenon and the idea to tap NRIs is a step towards that.
    • 10 countries are just to begin with and the list will expand in future.
    • NPCI has been trying to push homegrown payment systems in other countries through NPCI International Payments Ltd, a subsidiary it set up in 2020.
    • It has already tied up with payment system operators in Nepal, UAE, France, UK and others to allow UPI usage there.
    • There is also a plan to link UPI with Singapore’s Paynow.

    How will it help the UPI ecosystem?

    • UPI is almost synonymous with digital payments in India, clocking over ₹12.8 trillion worth of transactions in December.
    • After a slow start in 2016, UPI payments have grown at a rapid pace. Given there are over 13.5 million NRIs, the availability of UPI is expected to raise transaction volumes.
    • Industry experts said that just like resident Indians do not have to pay for UPI, it will also be available to NRIs at no extra cost.
    • That said, it might be off to a slow start as the acceptance infrastructure abroad is still being developed.

     

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  • ISRO Missions and Discoveries

    [pib] First evidence of Solitary Waves near Mars

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

    In a first-of-its-kind discovery, a team of Indian scientists from the Indian Institute of Geomagnetism (IIG) reported the first evidence of the presence of solitary waves around Mars.

     

    Mars

    mars

    • Of the largest Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, being larger than only Mercury.
    • In English, Mars carries the name of the Roman god of war and is often referred to as the “Red Planet”.
    • The latter refers to the effect of the iron oxide prevalent on Mars’s surface, which gives it a reddish appearance distinctive among the astronomical bodies visible to the naked eye.
    • Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmosphere, with surface features reminiscent of the impact craters of the Moon and the valleys, deserts and polar ice caps of Earth.
    • The days and seasons are comparable to those of Earth, because the rotational period, as well as the tilt of the rotational axis relative to the ecliptic plane, is similar.
    • Mars is the site of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano and highest known mountain on any planet in the Solar System, and of Valles Marineris, one canyons in the Solar System.

     

    What are Solitary Waves?

    • Solitary waves are distinct electric field fluctuations (bipolar or monopolar) that follow constant amplitude-phase relations.
    • Their shape and size are less affected during their propagation.
    • Solitary waves are known to be responsible for the plasma energization and its transport in Earth’s magnetosphere.

    Unveiling the undercover solitary waves

    • Earth is a giant magnetic entity, wrapped in a magnetosphere generated by the motion of molten iron in its core.
    • This magnetosphere casts a protective layer around our home planet, shielding us from the solar winds coughed towards us by the Sun.
    • But unlike Earth, Mars lacks a robust intrinsic magnetic field, which effectively allows the high-speed solar wind to interact directly with the Martian atmosphere.
    • This interaction suggests that even with a weak and flimsy magnetosphere, the frequent occurrences of solitary waves on Mars remain a possibility.

    Why this is a significant feat for India?

    • Despite several missions to Mars, their presence has never been detected — until now.
    • However, Indian Scientists have successfully identified and reported the first-ever solitary waves detected on Mars.
    • They arrived at this result by analyzing about 450 solitary wave pulses observed by the Langmuir Probe and Waves instrument on NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft.

    Decoding the data

    • Their analysis revealed distinct electric field fluctuations, which lasted for about 0.2-1.7 milliseconds.
    • Such signals were predominant during dawn or between afternoon to dusk at an altitude of 1000-3500 km from Mars’ surface.
    • Further investigation is needed to determine exactly why these waves are dominant during a fixed time of the day.

    Significance of such waves on Mars

    • These pulses are dominantly seen in the dawn and afternoon dusk sectors at an altitude of 1000–3500 km around Mars.
    • Researchers are further exploring their role in the particle dynamics in the Martian magnetosphere and whether such waves play any role in the loss of atmospheric ions on Mars.
    • The study of these waves is crucial as they directly control particle energization, plasma loss, transport, etc., through wave-particle interactions.

     

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  • Human Rights Issues

    Voting Rights of Migrant Workers

    op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters,Representation Of People’s Act

    Voting

    Context

    • It is very worrying that a third of the eligible voters, a whopping 30 crore people, do not vote. Among the many reasons, including urban apathy and geographical constraints, one prominent reason is the inability of internal migrants to vote for different reasons.

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    Voting

    What are the efforts by election commission to address the problem?

    • Committee of Officers on Domestic Migrants: The Election Commission had earlier formed a “Committee of Officers on Domestic Migrants” to address this issue. The Committee’s report submitted in 2016 suggested a solution in the form of “remote voting”.
    • All party representative: To further address this serious problem, the EC invited representatives from all recognised national and state political parties to discuss the legal, administrative, and statutory changes to resolve the issue.
    • All party consensus: The discussion took place in the presence of a technical expert committee. It is important to recall that the last major decision about the voting system was the introduction of Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT), with the consensus of all political parties in 2010.

    Migrant workers and their voting rights

    • Least represented group: The Constitution guarantees freedom of movement to every citizen and freedom to reside in any part of the country. However, migrant workers, especially circular or short-term migrants, constituting tens of millions of citizens are some of the least represented groups in the ballot.
    • Lack of access to vote: The issue of disenfranchisement faced by migrant workers is not one arising out of deliberate denial of the right to vote, but for lack of access to vote.
    • Fundamental right: The Supreme Court, in a series of cases, has conclusively interpreted the freedom to access the vote as within the ambit of Article 19(1)(a).

    Voting

    Problems related to migrant workers and Voting

    • Large scale migration: According to the 2011 Census, the number of internal migrants stands at 450 million, a 45 per cent surge from the 2001 census. Among these, 26 per cent of the migration (117 million) occurs inter-district within the same state, while 12 per cent of the migration (54 million) occurs inter-state.
    • Alienation by residency criteria: The root cause of the migrant voters’ issue is that the individual’s inalienable right to vote is conditioned by a rather strict residency qualification. As a consequence, it tends to disenfranchise the migrant population.
    • 60% migrants could not vote: In the survey report, ‘Political inclusion of Seasonal Migrant Workers in India: Perceptions, Realities and Challenges’ by Aajeevika Bureau, it was found that “close to 60 per cent of respondents had missed voting in elections at least once because they were away from home seeking livelihood options”.

    What is the way forward?

    • Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System: Section 60(c) of the Representation of People Act, 1951 empowers the Election Commission of India, in consultation with the government, to notify “classes” of voters who are unable to vote in person at their constituencies owing to their physical or social circumstances. Once notified, the voters are eligible for the ETPB system (Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System). In the 2019 general elections, the ETPB system was accessed by 18 lakh defence personnel across the country.
    • Postal ballots for migrants: In 2019, in the backdrop of a PIL before the Supreme Court, a bill was floated to extend a similar remote voting possibility to over 10 million adult NRIs in order to “boost their participation in nation-building”. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, more than 28 lakh votes were received via postal ballots.
    • Migrants are also equal citizens: In the existing system, remote voting within the constituency by voting via postal ballot is available to senior citizens, people with disabilities, and Covid-affected personnel. The postal ballot voting outside the constituency is available only to service voters, persons on election duty and persons on preventive detention. The Indian migrant worker too deserves the secured right to have access to vote through some mechanism.
    • Remote electronic voting machine: The Election Commission has proposed the use of remote voting for migrant workers wherein a modified version of the existing model of M3 EVMs will be placed at remote polling stations. In fact, the Electronic Corporation of India Ltd. has already developed a prototype of a Multi-constituency Remote EVM (RVM) a modified version of the existing EVM which can handle 72 constituencies in a single remote polling booth. Technical details will be available only after the crucial demonstration.

    Voting

    Conclusion

    • Migrant workers are also the equal citizens of the country. Social-economic and structural barriers should not the hurdle in there right to vote. Election commission of India has taken the step in the right direction. However, consensus needs to be built over the voting rights of migrants.

    Mains Question

    Q. What are the problems faced by migrant workers in exercise of there voting rights? What is the way forward towards ensuring voting rights to migrants?

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  • Tax Reforms

    Making The Case for Wealth Tax

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

    Wealth Tax

    Context

    • The discourse on efficient, effective and equitable public spending often takes us into the realm of limited resources facing competing demands. India definitely needs to widen its revenue collection as well as base. In this context, it is important to discuss the need for levying a wealth tax, and levying it now.

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    Why wealth needs to be taxed?

    • Accumulation of wealth: The most compelling reason stems from evidence that there has been massive accumulation of wealth in a few hands. A small section of people has access to a large share of economic assets and resources that remain almost completely untaxed and thus unavailable for public allocation.
    • Wealth without hard work: Wealth, much less than even income, has little to do with one’s education, merit or efforts; it is largely dependent on inheritance and opportunities that come with the advantages associated with belonging to one of India’s privileged classes and castes.
    • Income inequality: India’s top 10% population owns 65% of the country’s wealth, while the bottom 10% owns only 6%, according to the World Inequality Database, 2022.
    • Wealth of rich doubled in pandemic: An Oxfam report has highlighted how India’s richest doubled their wealth during the pandemic. This happened for a variety of reasons, including profits made on vaccines and commodity and asset price movements.
    • Wealth doesn’t translate into productive resources: But the fact remains that India, despite facing grave financial and economic challenges, has no means to convert any of this growing wealth into productive resources that can generate employment opportunities and push up the incomes of multitudes, which in turn can drive demand for goods something that is needed to counter an economic drag-down.

    What is the government’s attitude towards wealthy?

    • Rich knows how to invest: One may argue and it is common to hear this that wealth is better left to the wealthy, as they know best how to invest. This has not been in sufficient evidence, at least in India.
    • Corporate tax lowered: The government lowered the corporate tax rate significantly from 30% to 22% in 2019-20, which has continued despite the economic crises caused by the pandemic. However, this did not elicit much private investment.

    Wealth Tax

    History of Wealth taxation in India

    • Wealth tax: Wealth tax, which is a direct tax unlike the goods and services tax or value-added tax, can take several forms, such as property tax, inheritance or gift tax and capital gains tax.
    • Capital gains tax: Capital Gains tax exists in India, but applies only to transactions and hence is limited in its base.
    • Estate duty: India scrapped its estate duty in 1985 and has no inheritance tax. Although the receipt of gifts is subject to income tax in the beneficiary’s hands, it has various exemptions; it is almost entirely exempt if received from within the family, including the extended family of self and spouse.
    • Exemption leads to accumulation: These exemptions shrink the base significantly, as most accumulated wealth is acquired through family, and that remains outside the gift tax’s ambit. Given the cultural context of wealth inheritance, some exemptions make sense, but upper thresholds can be easily added to make it more effective.

    Present status of wealth taxation

    • No wealth tax: India presently does not have any wealth tax i.e., a tax levied on one’s entire property in all forms.
    • One time solidarity tax: It did not impose a one-time ‘solidarity tax’ on wealth in post-covid budgets that could have generated resources for essential public investment.
    • Example of developing countries: A number of Latin American countries, including Argentina, Peru and Bolivia, have either introduced or are introducing a progressive annual wealth tax levied on the wealth gains of each year or a one-time covid ‘solidarity’ tax.

    Wealth Tax

    Conclusion

    • Idea of wealth tax appear good on paper however; it may negatively impact the domestic and foreign investment in the country. Direct tax slab for superrich in India is already among the highest in the world. The idea of wealth taxation needs careful deliberation before implementation.

    Mains Question

    Q. Comment on history of wealth tax in India. why wealth tax is necessary in India? elaborate.

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  • Women Safety Issues – Marital Rape, Domestic Violence, Swadhar, Nirbhaya Fund, etc.

    Supreme Court to hear petitions for Criminalization of Marital Rape

    | Indian Society | Mains Paper 1: Salient features of Indian Society

    marital rape

    The Supreme Court is set to begin hearing a series of petitions seeking to criminalize marital rape from March 14.

    What is Marital Rape?

    • Marital rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one’s spouse without her consent.
    • It is no different manifestation of domestic violence and sexual abuse.
    • It is often a chronic form of violence for the victim which takes place within abusive relations.

    Status in India

    • Historically considered as right of the spouses, this is now widely classified as rape by many societies around the world.
    • In India, marital rape is not a criminal offense (as protected under IPC section 375).
    • India is one of fifty countries that have not yet outlawed marital rape.

    Reasons for disapproval of this concept

    • The reluctance to define non-consensual sex between married couples as a crime and to prosecute has been attributed to:
    1. Traditional views of marriage
    2. Interpretations of religious doctrines
    3. Ideas about male and female sexuality
    4. Cultural expectations of subordination of a wife to her husband
    • It is widely held that a husband cannot be guilty of any sexual act committed by himself upon his lawful wife on account of their mutual matrimonial consent.

    Why it must be a crime?

    • Associated physical violence: Rape by a spouse, partner or ex-partner is more often associated with physical violence and sexual mutilation.
    • Mental harassment: There is research showing that marital rape can be more emotionally and physically damaging than rape by a stranger.
    • Compulsive relationship: Marital rape may occur as part of an abusive relationship.
    • Revengeful nature: Furthermore, marital rape is rarely a one-time event, but a repeated if not frequent occurrence.
    • Obligation on women: In the case of marital rape the victim often has no choice but to continue living with their spouse.

    Violation of fundamental rights

    • Marital rape is considered as a violation of FR guaranteed under Article 14 of the Indian constitution which guarantees the equal protection of laws to all persons.
    • By depriving married women of an effective penal remedy against forced sexual intercourse, it violates their right to privacy and bodily integrity, aspects of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21.

    Problems in prosecuting marital rape

    • Lack of awareness: A lack of public awareness, as well as reluctance or outright refusal of authorities to prosecute is common globally.
    • Gender norms: Additionally, gender norms that place wives in subservient positions to their husbands, make it more difficult for women to recognize such rape.
    • Acceptability of the concept: Another problem results from prevailing social norms that exist.

    Present regulations in India

    • Indian Penal Code criminalizes rape in most cases, although marital rape is not illegal when the woman is over the age of 18.
    • However, until 2017, men married to those between 15 and 18 could not be convicted of rape.
    • Marital rape of an adult wife, who is unofficially or officially separated, is a criminal offence punishable by 2 to 7 year in prison; it is not dealt by normal rape laws which stipulate the possibility of a death sentence.
    • According to the Protection of Women From Domestic Violence Act (2005), other married women subject to such crime by their husband may demand for financial compensation.
    • They also have the right to continue to live in their marital household if they wish, or may approach shelter or aid homes.

    However, marital rape is still not a criminal offense in this case and is only a misdemeanor.

    Arguments against criminalization

    • Subjective: It is very subjective and intricate to determine whether consent was acquired or not.
    • Prone to Misuse: If marital rape is criminalized without adequate safeguards it could be misused like the current dowry law by the dissatisfied wives to harass and torture their Husbands.
    • Burden on Judiciary: It will increase the burden of judiciary which otherwise may serve other more important causes.

    Way forward

    • Sanctioning marital rape is an acknowledgment of the woman’s right to self-determination (i.e., control) of all matters relating to her body.
    • In the absence of any concrete law, the judiciary always finds it difficult to decide the matter of domestic rape in the absence of solid evidence.
    • The main purpose of marriage is procreation, and sometimes divorce is sought on the ground of non-consummation of marriage.
    • Before giving a final interpretation, the judiciary must balance the rights and duties of both partners.

     

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  • RBI Notifications

    RBI proposes Expected Loss-based Approach for Loan Provisioning

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed a framework for the adoption of an expected loss-based approach for loan provisioning by banks.

    What is Loan-Loss Provision?

    • The RBI defines a loan loss provision as an expense that banks set aside for defaulted loans.
    • Banks set aside a portion of the expected loan repayments from all loans in their portfolio to cover the losses either completely or partially.
    • In the event of a loss, instead of taking a loss in its cash flows, the bank can use its loan loss reserves to cover the loss.
    • Since the bank does not expect all loans to become impaired, there is usually enough in the loan loss reserves to cover the full loss for any one or a small number of loans when needed.
    • An increase in the balance of reserves is called loan loss provision.
    • The level of loan loss provision is determined based on the level expected to protect the safety and soundness of the bank.

    And what is the expected loss-based approach?

    • Under this practice, a bank is required to estimate expected credit losses based on forward-looking estimations, rather than wait for credit losses to be actually incurred before making corresponding loss provisions.
    • As per the proposed framework, banks will need to classify financial assets (primarily loans, including irrevocable loan commitments, and investments classified as held-to-maturity or available-for-sale) into one of three categories — Stage 1, Stage 2, or Stage 3.
    • This depends upon the assessed credit losses on them, at the time of initial recognition as well as on each subsequent reporting date, and make necessary provisions.
    1. Stage 1 assets are financial assets that have not had a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition or that have low credit risk at the reporting date. For these assets, 12-month expected credit losses are recognised and interest revenue is calculated on the gross carrying amount of the asset.
    2. Stage 2 assets are financial instruments that have had a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition, but there is no objective evidence of impairment. For these assets, lifetime expected credit losses are recognised, but interest revenue is still calculated on the gross carrying amount of the asset.
    3. Stage 3 assets include financial assets that have objective evidence of impairment at the reporting date. For these assets, lifetime expected credit loss is recognised, and interest revenue is calculated on the net carrying amount.

    What are the benefits of this approach?

    • The forward-looking expected credit losses approach will further enhance the resilience of the banking system in line with globally accepted norms.
    • It is likely to result in excess provisions as compared to shortfall in provisions as seen in the incurred loss approach.

    What is the problem with the incurred loss-based approach?

    • The incurred loss approach requires banks to provide for losses that have already occurred or been incurred.
    • The delay in recognising expected losses under an “incurred loss” approach was found to exacerbate the downswing during the financial crisis of 2007-09.
    • Faced with a systemic increase in defaults, the delay in recognising loan losses resulted in banks having to make higher levels of provisions which ate into the capital maintained precisely at a time when banks needed to shore up their capital.
    • This affected banks’ resilience and posed systemic risks.
    • Further, the delays in recognising loan losses overstated the income generated by the banks which, coupled with dividend payouts, impacted their capital base

     

    Which banks are covered under this approach?

    • The proposed norms are for all scheduled commercial banks, excluding regional rural banks.
    • Regional rural banks and smaller cooperative banks (based on a threshold to be decided based on comments) are proposed to be kept out of the framework.

     

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  • World Economic Forum (WEF) Summit at Davos

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

    davos

    The World Economic Forum has begun its annual summit in Davos, Switzerland,

    World Economic Forum (WEF)

    • Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, WEF is an international not-for-profit organization, focused on bringing the public and private sectors together to address the global political, social, and economic issues.
    • It was founded in 1971 by Swiss-German economist and Professor Klaus Schwab in a bid to promote the global cooperation on these most pressing problems.
    • The first meeting of WEF was held more than five decades ago in Davos, which has been the home of the annual gathering almost ever since, also becoming the shorthand for the event.

    Tap to read more about important reports published by the World Economic Forum (WEF).

    WEF partners

    • The WEF is largely funded by its partnering corporations.
    • These are generally global enterprises with an annual turnover greater than $ 5 billion.
    • For these corporations, the WEF provides a platform “to shape the future, accessing networks and experts to ensure strategic decision-making on the most pressing world issues.”
    • Partners range from Apollo Tyres to Apple – they can be from any industry, as long as they wish to engage using WEF’s platforms.
    • WEF also partners with public subsidies.

    Why are the summits held at Davos?

    • Sometimes described as Europe’s highest town, Davos has been the venue for the WEF’s annual meeting every year since its inception – with one exception.
    • Davos, a ski resort, and the annual host of WEF’s meeting is a quaint town located on the lap of the Swiss Alps.
    • In many ways, it is a surprising choice for a meeting of global economic giants and geopolitical leaders.
    • The meeting was held in New York in 2002 in a gesture of solidarity following the 9/11 attacks.

    Who are the attendees and what actually happens in Davos?

    • Typically, Davos attracts global business executives and policymakers – and it’s strictly invite-only.
    • Usually attending will be the sitting U.S. president, top EU and UN leaders, business leaders and entrepreneurs, academics, heads of NGOs and charities, the media, activists and even some celebrities.
    • Donald Trump, Jens Stoltenberg, Ursula von der Leyen, Greta Thunberg, Elton John and many other high-profile names have all previously attended Davos.
    • The conference includes hundreds of discussions, keynote speeches and panels, and all-important networking sessions, usually behind closed doors in five-star hotels.
    • CEOs and investors seize the opportunity for face-to-face deal-makings.

    Davos 2023: What’s on this year’s agenda?

    • This year’s annual meeting in Davos will take place January 16–20, 2023.
    • The theme is “cooperation in a fragmented world” and within that are five sub-themes, including the energy and food crises, inflation, technology for innovation, social vulnerabilities and geopolitical risks.

     

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  • ISRO Missions and Discoveries

    ISRO pushing Venus Mission ‘Shukrayaan’ to 2031

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

    venus

    ISRO said that it is yet to receive approval from the Indian government for the Venus mission and that the mission could as a result be postponed to 2031.

    Shukrayaan I: Venus Orbiter Mission

    • Shukrayaan-I is a planned orbiter to Venus by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to study the surface and atmosphere of Venus.
    • The idea was born in 2012; five years later, ISRO commenced preliminary studies after the Department of Space received a 23% hike in the 2017-2018 budget.
    • The orbiter, depending on its final configuration, would have a science payload capability of approximately 100 kilograms (220 lb) with 500 W available power.
    • The launch will involve GSLV Mark II.

    Expected launch

    • ISRO had originally hoped to launch Shukrayaan I in mid-2023 but cited the pandemic when it pushed the date to December 2024.
    • Optimal launch windows from Earth to Venus occur once around every 19 months.
    • This is why ISRO has ‘backup’ launch dates in 2026 and 2028 should it miss the 2024 opportunity.
    • But even more optimal windows, which further reduce the amount of fuel required at liftoff, come around every eight years.

    Other missions to Venus

    • The US and the European space agencies have Venus missions planned for 2031 — referring to VERITAS and EnVision, respectively.

     

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  • International Space Agencies – Missions and Discoveries

    James Webb Telescope discovers its first Earth-sized Exoplanet

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

    exoplanet

    NASA has announced that the James Webb Space Telescope has discovered its first new exoplanet LHS 475 b.

    LHS 475 b

    • The exoplanet LHS 475 b is roughly the same size as Earth.
    • Located just 41 light-years away, the planet orbits very close to a red dwarf star and completes a full orbit in just two days.

    Red Dwarf Stars

    • As mentioned before, the newly discovered exoplanet orbits around a red dwarf star.
    • Such types of stars are the most common and smallest in the universe.
    • As they don’t radiate much light, it’s very tough to detect them with the naked eye from Earth.
    • However, as red dwarfs are dimmer than other stars, it is easier to find exoplanets that surround them.
    • Therefore, red dwarfs are a popular target for planet hunting.

    What are Exoplanets?

    • Exoplanets are planets that orbit other stars and are beyond our solar system.
    • According to NASA, to date, more than 5,000 exoplanets have been discovered.
    • Scientists believe that there are more planets than stars as each star has at least one planet orbiting it.
    • Exoplanets come in a host of different sizes. They can be gas giants bigger than Jupiter or as small and rocky as Earth.
    • They are also known to have different kinds of temperatures — boiling hot to freezing cold.

    Significance of exoplanets study

    • Studying exoplanets not only broadens our understanding of other solar systems but also helps us piece together information about our own planetary system and origin.
    • However, the most compelling reason to learn about them is to find extraterrestrial life.
    • Researchers emphasize on determining if exoplanets are solid or gaseous or even has water vapour in the atmosphere.
    • This helps scientists determine if a discovered world is habitable or not.
    • Another important element of the study is finding out the distance between an exoplanet and its host star.

    Do you know?

    If an exoplanet is too close to the star, it might be too hot to sustain liquid water. If it’s too far, it might only have frozen water. When such a planet is at a distance that enables it to have liquid water, it is said to be in the “Goldilocks zone”.

     

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