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  • Agricultural Sector and Marketing Reforms – eNAM, Model APMC Act, Eco Survey Reco, etc.

    Indonesia’s Palm Oil Crisis

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

    The world’s largest producer and exporter of palm oil, Indonesia, is facing domestic shortages, leading to price controls and export curbs.

    What is the news?

    • It’s rare for any country that is the largest producer and exporter of a product to experience domestic shortages of the same product.
    • Consumers are unable to access or paying through the nose for a commodity in which their country is the preeminent producer and exporter.

    What is Oil Palm?

    • Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp of the fruit of the oil palms.
    • The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel.

    Palm oil production in Indonesia

    • Its palm oil production for 2021-22 (October-September) at 45.5 million tonnes (mt).
    • That’s almost 60% of the total global output and way ahead of the next bigger producer: Malaysia (18.7 mt).
    • It is also the world’s No. 1 exporter of the commodity, at 29 mt, followed by Malaysia (16.22 mt).

    Do you know?

    14,000 IDR is less than $1 or Rs 74! See the extent of depreciation one currency can undergo!

    Have you ever heard of the Zimbabwean hyperinflation of 2009? One literally had to pay a heap of cash to buy a piece of bread!

    Why in headlines?

    • Indonesia has seen domestic prices of branded cooking oil spiral, from around 14,000 Indonesian rupiah (IDR) to 22,000 IDR per litre between March 2021 and March 2022.
    • Much recently, the government imposed a ceiling on retail prices at 14,000 IDR.
    • This led to the product disappearing from supermarket shelves, amid reports of hoarding and consumers standing in long queues for hours to get a pack or two.

    India’s imports of palm oil (in lakh tonnes)

    Plausible factors

    (1) Ongoing War

    • The possible reason has to do supply disruptions — manmade and natural — in other cooking oils, especially sunflower and soyabean.
    • Ukraine and Russia together account for nearly 80% of the global trade in sunflower oil, quite comparable to the 90% share of Indonesia and Malaysia in palm.
    • Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in port closures and exporters avoiding Black Sea shipping routes.
    • Sanctions against Russia have further curtailed trade in sunflower oil, the world’s third most exported vegetable oil after palm and soybean.

    (2) Diversion for Bio-Fuels

    • Another factor is linked to petroleum, more specifically the use of palm oil as a bio-fuel.
    • The Indonesian government has, since 2020, made 30% blending of diesel with palm oil mandatory as part of a plan to slash fossil fuel imports.
    • Palm oil getting increasingly diverted for bio-diesel is leaving less quantity available, both for the domestic cooking oil and export market.

    Impact on India

    • India is the world’s biggest vegetable oils importer.
    • Out of its annual imports of 14-15 mt, the lion’s share is of palm oil (8-9 mt), followed by soyabean (3-3.5 mt) and sunflower (2.5).
    • Indonesia has been India’s top supplier of palm oil, though it was overtaken by Malaysia in 2021-22 (see above table).
    • The restrictions on exports, even in the form of levy, take into cognizance Indonesia’s higher population (27.5 crores, against Malaysia’s 3.25 crore) as well as its ambitious biofuel program.
    • To that extent, the world – more so, the bigger importer India – will have to get used to lower supplies from Indonesia.

     

    Answer this PYQ from CSP 2019:

     

    Q.Among the agricultural commodities imported by India, which one of the following accounts for the highest imports in terms of value in the last five years?

    (a) Spices

    (b) Fresh fruits

    (c) Pulses

    (d) Vegetable oils

     

    Post your answers here.

     

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  • Wildlife Conservation Efforts

    Species in news: Indian Tent Turtles

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

    Indian tent turtle is now listed in Schedule –I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 and is thereby provided the highest degree of protection.

    Why in news?

    • The Indian tent turtle is threatened due to illegal mining in Narmada River.
    • This turtle has also been widely traded as a pet at aquariums.

    Indian Tent Turtles

    IUCN status: Least Concerned

    • The Indian tent turtle (Pangshura tentoria) is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae. The species is endemic to India and Bangladesh.
    • Its preferred habitats are freshwater rivers and swamps.
    • The species is native to India, Nepal and Bangladesh, with three subspecies recorded from the region viz., P. t. tentoria, P. t. circumdata and P. t. flaviventer.
    • t. tentoria occurs in peninsular India and is recorded from Orissa, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Assam and Madhya Pradesh.
    • t. circumdata occurs in the western tributaries of Ganga and the rivers of Gujarat. It is found in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.
    • t. flaviventer occurs in the northern tributaries of Ganga and is recorded from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Assam.

    Back2Basics:  Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

    • WPA provides for the protection of the country’s wild animals, birds and plant species, in order to ensure environmental and ecological security.
    • It provides for the protection of a listed species of animals, birds and plants, and also for the establishment of a network of ecologically-important protected areas in the country.
    • It provides for various types of protected areas such as Wildlife Sanctuaries, National Parks etc.

    There are six schedules provided in the WPA for protection of wildlife species which can be concisely summarized as under:

    Schedule I: These species need rigorous protection and therefore, the harshest penalties for violation of the law are for species under this Schedule.
    Schedule II: Animals under this list are accorded high protection. They cannot be hunted except under threat to human life.
    Schedule III & IV: This list is for species that are not endangered. This includes protected species but the penalty for any violation is less compared to the first two schedules.
    Schedule V: This schedule contains animals which can be hunted.
    Schedule VI: This list contains plants that are forbidden from cultivation.

     

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  • Police Reforms – SC directives, NPC, other committees reports

    CBI should have a strong leader with a distinct belief in the law and ethics

    op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters

    Context

    The Chief Justice of India (CJI), Justice N.V. Ramana, while delivering the annual (and the 19th edition) D.P. Kohli Memorial Talk minced no words in condemning the utter subordination of agencies to the executive and its disastrous consequences for the cause of justice.

    Key takeaways

    • Resisting the pressure: The CJI called upon investigators to stand up to unethical pressures in order not to betray the trust reposed in them by the public.
    • Strong court: We need a strong Supreme Court and equally strong High Courts to keep our investigators on the straight and narrow path.
    •  Fixed tenure: Earlier, CBI Directors were changed at will.
    •  Mandatory tenure was meant to insulate the CBI Director from the caprice of the executive.
    • This process has since been expanded to include the CJI in the selection panel.
    • Strong leadership: The CBI now has some of the brightest Indian Police Service officers in its higher echelons.
    • However, it is not enough if the middle-rung supervisors alone are straightforward.

    Should there be an umbrella organisation?

    • The CJI had proposed an umbrella organisation that will oversee all investigating agencies.
    • This idea was meant to avoid having multiple agencies looking into the same set of allegations.
    • Apart from its impracticality, such a novel body could generate its own problems — of turf wars and ego clashes.

    Way forward

    • There is a need to focus on weeding out the dishonest among officers and rewarding those who have shown and proven themselves to be honest and professionally innovative.

    Conclusion

    There needs to be a strong and virtuous leader who will not only be honest but also stick his neck out to protect his deputies if and when confronted by an unscrupulous political heavyweight.

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Nepal

    India-Nepal relationship

    op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: India & Its Neighborhood – Relations

    Context

    The Nepal Prime Minister, Sher Bahadur Deuba, paid a long-awaited visit to India last week (April 1-3). Sworn in in July 2021, this was his first bilateral visit abroad, in keeping with tradition.

    Positive outcomes of the visit

    • Among the highlights was the operationalisation of the 35 kilometre cross-border rail link from Jayanagar (Bihar) to Kurtha (Nepal). 
    • The second project that was inaugurated was the 90 km long 132 kV double circuit transmission line connecting Tila (Solukhumbu) to Mirchaiya (Siraha) close to the Indian border.
    • In addition, agreements providing technical cooperation in the railway sector, Nepal’s induction into the International Solar Alliance, and between Indian Oil Corporation and Nepal Oil Corporation on ensuring regular supplies of petroleum products were also signed.
    • The Mahakali Treaty covers the Sarada and Tanakpur barrages as well as the 6,700 MW (approximately) Pancheshwar Multipurpose project.
    • Both sides have agreed to push for an early finalisation of the detailed project report.
    • The joint vision statement on power sector cooperation recognises the opportunities for joint development power generation projects together with cross border transmission linkages and coordination between the national grids; it can provide the momentum.

    Issues in India-Nepal relations

    • Over the years, a number of differences have emerged between India and Nepal that need attention.
    • The relationship took a nosedive in 2015, with India first getting blamed for interfering in the Constitution drafting process and then for an “unofficial blockade” that generated widespread resentment against India.
    • Revision of Treaty of  Peace and Friendship: As one of the oldest bonds, the 1950 Treaty of Peace and Friendship was originally sought by the Nepali authorities in 1949 to continue the special links they had with British India.
    • It provides for an open border and for Nepali nationals to have the right to work in India.
    • But today, it is viewed as a sign of an unequal relationship, and an Indian imposition.
    • The idea of revising and updating it has found mention in Joint Statements since the mid-1990s.
    • Demonetisation is another irritant. In November 2016, India withdrew ₹15.44 trillion of high value (₹1,000 and ₹500) currency notes. Many Nepali nationals who were legally entitled to hold ₹25,000 of
    • Indian currency (given that the Nepali rupee is pegged to the Indian rupee) were left high and dry.
    • The Nepal Rashtra Bank, which is the central bank, holds ₹7 crore and estimates of public holdings are ₹500 crore.
    • After more than five years, it should certainly be possible to resolve this to mutual satisfaction.
    • Kalapani boundary issue: These boundaries had been fixed in 1816 by the British, and India inherited the areas over which the British had exercised territorial control in 1947.
    • While 98% of the India-Nepal boundary was demarcated, two areas, Susta and Kalapani remained in limbo.
    • In November 2019, India issued new maps following the division of the State of Jammu and Kashmir as Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
    • Though the new Indian map did not affect the India-Nepal boundary in any material way, a new map of Nepal was endorsed by the legislature through a constitutional amendment.
    • While it did not alter the situation on the ground, it soured relations with India and added a new and emotive irritant.

    Way forward

    • The political narrative has changed in both countries and these issues can no longer be swept under the carpet or subsumed by invoking a ‘special relationship’.
    • Part of the success of Mr. Deuba’s visit was that none of the differences was allowed to dominate the visit.
    • Yet, to build upon the positive mood, it is necessary these issues be discussed, behind closed doors and at Track 2 and Track 1.5 channels.

    Conclusion

    The need today is to avoid rhetoric on territorial nationalism and lay the groundwork for quiet dialogue where both sides display sensitivity as they explore what is feasible. India needs to be a sensitive and generous partner for the “neighbourhood first” policy to take root.

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  • Nuclear Diplomacy and Disarmament

    What are Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)?

    Bills/Act/Laws | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    The Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Amendment Bill, 2022 has been unanimously passed in Lok Sabha.

    WMD Bill

    • The Bill seeks to amend The Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act, 2005.
    • It aims to provide against the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems in line with India’s international obligations.
    • The 2005 Act prohibited the manufacturing, transport, and transfer of weapons of mass destruction, and their means of delivery.

    Need for the Bill

    • In recent times, regulations relating to proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems by international organisations have expanded.
    • The UNSCs targeted financial sanctions and the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force have mandated against financing of proliferation of WMD and their their delivery systems.

    Weapons of Mass Destruction

    • The expression “weapon of mass destruction” (WMD) is usually considered to have been used first by the leader of the Church of England, the Archbishop of Canterbury, in 1937.
    • They usually refer to the aerial bombing of civilians in the Basque town of Guernica by German and Italian fascists in support of General Franco during the Spanish Civil War.
    • The expression WMD entered the vocabularies of people and countries around the world in the early 2000s after the US under President George W Bush and the UK under PM Tony Blair justified the invasion of Iraq.
    • They invaded Iraq on the grounds that the government of Saddam Hussain was hiding these weapons in the country. However, no WMDs were ever found.

    What are NBC weapons?

    • While there is no single, authoritative definition of a WMD in international law, the expression is usually understood to cover nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) weapons.
    • WMD can be any nuclear, radiological, chemical, biological, or other device that is intended to harm a large number of people.

    India’s 2005 WMD Act defines-

    1. “Biological Weapons” as “microbial or other biological agents, or toxins…of types and in quantities that have no justification for prophylactic, protective or other peaceful purposes; and weapons, equipment or delivery systems specially designed to use such agents or toxins for hostile purposes or in armed conflict”; and
    2. “Chemical Weapons” as “toxic chemicals and their precursors” except where used for peaceful, protective, and certain specified military and law enforcement purposes; “munitions and devices specifically designed to cause death or other harm through the toxic properties of those toxic chemicals”; and any equipment specifically designed for use in connection with the employment of these munitions and devices.

    Control over use of WMDs

    • The use of chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons is regulated by a number of international treaties and agreements.
    • Among them are the Geneva Protocol, 1925, that banned the use of chemical and biological weapons; and the Biological Weapons Convention, 1972, and Chemical Weapons Convention, 1992, which put comprehensive bans on the biological and chemical weapons respectively.
    • India has signed and ratified both the 1972 and 1992 treaties.
    • There are very few non-signatory countries to these treaties, even though several countries have been accused of non-compliance.
    • The use and proliferation of nuclear weapons is regulated by treaties such as Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).

    Back2Basics:

    Nuclear Security Contact Group

    • The NSCG was established in 2016.
    • The NSCG or “Contact Group” has been established with the aim of facilitating cooperation and sustaining engagement on nuclear security after the conclusion of the Nuclear Security Summit process.
    • The Contact Group is tasked with:
    1. Convening annually on the margins of the General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and, as may be useful, in connection with other related meetings
    2. Discussing a broad range of nuclear security-related issues, including identifying emerging trends that may require more focused attention

    Nuclear Suppliers Group

    • NSG is a group of nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear-related exports.
    • The NSG was set up as a response to India’s nuclear tests conducted in 1974.
    • The aim of the NSG is to ensure that nuclear trade for peaceful purposes does not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

    Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty

    • CTBT was negotiated at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1996.
    • The Treaty intends to ban all nuclear explosions – everywhere, by everyone.
    • It was opened for signature in 1996 and since then 182 countries have signed the Treaty, most recently Ghana has ratified the treaty in 2011.

    Fissile material cut-off treaty

    • FMCT is a proposed international agreement that would prohibit the production of the two main components of nuclear weapons: highly-enriched uranium (HEU) and plutonium.
    • Discussions on this subject have taken place at the UN Conference on Disarmament (CD), a body of 65 member nations established as the sole multilateral negotiating forum on disarmament.
    • The CD operates by consensus and is often stagnant, impeding progress on an FMCT.
    • Those nations that joined the nuclear NPT as non-weapon states are already prohibited from producing or acquiring fissile material for weapons.
    • An FMCT would provide new restrictions for the five recognized nuclear weapon states (NWS—United States, Russia, United Kingdom, France, and China), and for the four nations that are not NPT members (Israel, India, Pakistan, and North Korea).

     

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  • Banking Sector Reforms

    The HDFC Ltd.-HDFC Bank Merger

    | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    Mortgage lender HDFC Ltd. and India’s largest private sector bank HDFC Bank on Monday announced a mega-merger.

    Impact of the move

    • Under the terms of the deal, which is one of the biggest in the Indian financial sector, HDFC Bank will be 100% owned by public shareholders.
    • Existing shareholders of HDFC Ltd. will own 41% stake in HDFC Bank.
    • Post-merger HDFC Ltd. will no longer be a separate mortgage lender, it will get folded into the bank.

    What are the terms of the merger?

    • The merger has to go through a series of regulatory approvals.
    • It has to get approval from the shareholders of both companies.
    • At this moment what has been announced by the two entities is that its an all-share deal, so there’s no cash transaction involved.
    • The terms of the share swap are such that shareholders of HDFC Ltd. will receive 42 shares of HDFC Bank for every 25 shares they hold in HDFC Ltd.

    What happens to existing customers and employees?

    • As far as customers are concerned, HDFC Ltd.’s customers will become the bank’s customers as well.
    • As for employees, HDFC Bank is planning to absorb and retain all the employees.
    • Neither of the entities are very heavy on employee numbers and have been fairly conservative in their employee sizes.

    What is the rationale behind this merger?

    • HDFC have largely had a fairly conservative lending culture, both reasonably customer-friendly, customer-centric, culturally, there wouldn’t be a big challenge.
    • The evolution of the regulatory framework for the NBFC (non-banking financial company) industry has been gradually moving closer, to harmonise with the banking sector’s regulatory framework.
    • Earlier, NBFCs had a fairly different and a far more loose sort of framework for lending and deposits.
    • This led to issues in the industry with some NBFCs struggling and going under or being taken over by others.
    • As Basel III norms for capital adequacy are in place, the NPA (non-performing asset) book is very closely monitored.

    What is in it for HDFC Ltd. and HDFC Bank?

    • Post-merger, the mortgage lender, HDFC Ltd., gets access to HDFC Bank’s CASA (current and savings accounts) deposits, which are lower cost funds.
    • For the mortgage lending business, the capital cost will come down. As the capital cost comes down, automatically it will have the ability to lend at a finer rate.
    • For HDFC Bank, every home loan customer can be tapped to become a bank customer.

    Impacts of the deal

    • It’s possible that we might see more NBFCs seeking to merge with banks.
    • There is already talk of the number of banks coming down.
    • So in some ways, this merger may be a precursor to what is going to happen in the state-run banking space, where the government has said it is going to reduce the number of public sector banks.

    Back2Basics: Basel Accords

    • They refer to the banking supervision Accords (recommendations on banking regulations)—Basel I, Basel II and Basel III—issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS).
    • They are called the Basel Accords as the BCBS maintains its secretariat at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland and the committee normally meets there.
    • These are a set of recommendations for regulations in the banking industry.
    • India has accepted Basel accords for the banking system.

    Let’s revise them:

    [1] Basel I

    • In 1988, BCBS introduced capital measurement system called Basel capital accord, also called as Basel 1.
    • It focused almost entirely on credit risk. It defined capital and structure of risk weights for banks.
    • The minimum capital requirement was fixed at 8% of risk-weighted assets (RWA).
    • RWA means assets with different risk profiles.
    • For example, an asset backed by collateral would carry lesser risks as compared to personal loans, which have no collateral. India adopted Basel 1 guidelines in 1999.

    [2] Basel II

    • In June ’04, Basel II guidelines were published by BCBS, which were considered to be the refined and reformed versions of Basel I accord.
    • The guidelines were based on three parameters, which the committee calls it as pillars:
    • Capital Adequacy Requirements: Banks should maintain a minimum capital adequacy requirement of 8% of risk assets.
    • Supervisory Review: According to this, banks were needed to develop and use better risk management techniques in monitoring and managing all the three types of risks that a bank faces, viz. credit, market and operational risks.
    • Market Discipline: This need increased disclosure requirements. Banks need to mandatorily disclose their CAR, risk exposure, etc to the central bank. Basel II norms in India and overseas are yet to be fully implemented.

    [3] Basel III

    • In 2010, Basel III guidelines were released. These guidelines were introduced in response to the financial crisis of 2008.
    • A need was felt to further strengthen the system as banks in the developed economies were under-capitalized, over-leveraged and had a greater reliance on short-term funding.
    • Also the quantity and quality of capital under Basel II were deemed insufficient to contain any further risk.
    • Basel III norms aim at making most banking activities such as their trading book activities more capital-intensive.
    • The guidelines aim to promote a more resilient banking system by focusing on four vital banking parameters viz. capital, leverage, funding and liquidity.

     

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-China

    Centre extends relief to Tibetan Committee by 5 years

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

    The Union government has extended the scheme to provide ₹40 crore grants-in-aid to the Dalai Lama’s Central Tibetan Relief Committee (CTRC) for another five years, up to fiscal year 2025-26.

    Do you think that India’s support for the Tibetan cause is the root cause of all irritants in India-China relations?

    What is CTRC?

    • The Dalai Lama’s Central Tibetan Relief Committee (CTRC) was formed and registered as Charitable Society under Indian Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860.
    • It effectively acts as the Relief and Development Wing of Home Department, Central Tibetan Administration.
    • All the CTRC activities are carried out with consent and support from Board of Directors and approval from TPiE (Tibetan Parliament in Exile).

    Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE)

    • The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile (TPiE) has its headquarters in Dharamsala, in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh.
    • According to the Green Book of the Tibetan government-in-exile, over 1 lakh Tibetans are settled across India.
    • The remaining are settled in United States, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Mexico, Mongolia, Germany, United Kingdom, Switzerland and various other countries.

    Working of the TPiE

    • The Speaker and a Deputy Speaker head the Tibetan Parliament-in-exile.
    • It includes two members from each of the four schools of Tibetan Buddhism and the pre-Buddhist Bon religion.
    • Other representatives are from the Tibetan Communities in North America and Europe; and from Australasia and Asia (excluding India, Nepal and Bhutan).
    • Till 2006, it used to be called as Assembly of Tibetan People’s Deputies (ATPDs) with the chairman as its head and a vice-chairman.

    Tibetan Constitution

    • The Central Tibetan Administration exists and functions on the basis of the Constitution of the Tibetan government called the ‘The Charter of the Tibetans in Exile’.
    • In 1991, The Constitution Redrafting Committee instituted by the Dalai Lama prepared the Charter for Tibetans in exile. The Dalai Lama approved it on June 28, 1991.
    • In 2001, fundamental changes happened with the amendment of the Charter that facilitated the direct election of the Kalon Tripa by the Tibetans in exile.
    • The Kalon Tripa is called Sikyong or president of the Central Tibetan Administration.

    The Kashag (Cabinet)

    • The Kashag (Cabinet) is the Central Tibetan Administration’s highest executive office and comprise seven members.
    • It is headed by the Sikyong (political leader) who is directly elected by the exiled Tibetan population.
    • Sikyong subsequently nominates his seven Kalons (ministers) and seeks the parliament’s approval. The Kashag’s term is for five years.

    A backgrounder: Democracy for Tibet

    • The Dalai Lama began democratization soon after he came to India during the 1959 Tibetan National Uprising.
    • He reportedly asked Tibetans in exile to choose their representatives through universal adult suffrage, following which polls were held for electing Tibetan Parliamentarians in 1960.
    • Democracy for the Tibetans, thus, began in exile.
    • The Dalai Lama, however, continued to remain the supreme political leader. On March 14, 2011, he relinquished his political responsibilities, ending a 369-year-old practice.

    Is TPiE officially recognized by any country?

    • Not exactly, it is not recognised officially by any country, including India.
    • But, a number of countries including the USA and European nations deal directly with the Sikyong and other Tibetan leaders through various forums.
    • The TPiE claims its democratically-elected character helps it manage Tibetan affairs and raise the Tibetan issue across the world.
    • The incumbent Sikyong, Lobsang Sangay, was among the guests who attended the oath-taking ceremony of our PM in 2014, probably a first.

     

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  • AIIB & The Changing World Order

    Asian Development Outlook Report

    IOCR | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The Asian Development Bank (ADB) forecasts has provided some useful insights about India’s GDP growth.

    About Asian Development Bank (ADB)

    • The ADB is a regional development bank established on 19 December 1966 which is headquartered in Philippines.
    • ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty.
    • The bank admits the members of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP).
    • The ADB was modelled closely on the World Bank, and has a similar weighted voting system where votes are distributed in proportion with members’ capital subscriptions.
    • The president has a term of office lasting five years, and may be re-elected.
    • Traditionally, and because Japan is one of the largest shareholders of the bank, the president has always been Japanese.
    • ADB is an official United Nations Observer.

    Highlights of the ADB Outlook Report 2020

    • India’s GDP growth will moderate to 7.5% in 2022-23, from an estimated 8.9% in 2021-22.
    • It has factored in the Russia-Ukraine conflict’s implications for India, which would be largely indirect through higher oil prices
    • The severity of the COVID-19 pandemic would subside with a rise in vaccination rates.
    • Higher public capital spending is expected to improve the efficiency of India’s logistics infrastructure, crowd-in private investment, generate jobs in construction and sustain growth.

     

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  • Climate Change Impact on India and World – International Reports, Key Observations, etc.

    Demand side strategies for climate change mitigation

    op-ed snap | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

    Context

    A paradigm shift in the way we think about climate action has been reported for the first time in the recent IPCC report through a chapter on “demand, services and social aspects of mitigation”.

    Demand side strategies and their impact

    • The report shows how, through comprehensive demand-side strategies, carbon dioxide and non-carbon GHG emissions globally can be reduced by 40–70 per cent compared to the 2050 emissions projection.
    • This can be achieved through reduced food waste, following sustainable healthy dietary choices that acknowledge nutritional needs, adaptive heating and cooling, climate-friendly dressing culture, integration of renewable energy in buildings, shifting to electric light-duty vehicles, and to walking, cycling, shared and public transit, sustainable consumption by intensive use of longer-lived repairable products, compact city design and efficient floor area use of buildings.
    • The IPCC report also shows that individuals with high socioeconomic status contribute disproportionately to emissions and have the highest potential for emissions reductions, as citizens, investors, consumers, role models, and professionals.
    • Of the 60 actions assessed in this report, on an individual level, the biggest contribution comes from walking and cycling wherever possible and using electricity-powered transport.

    Need for systemic changes

    • To be effective, these shifts will need to be supported by systemic changes in some areas — for example, land use and urban planning policies to avoid urban sprawl, support for green spaces, reallocation of street spaces for walking and physical exercise, investment in public transport and infrastructure design for active and electric vehicles.
    • Electrification and shifts to public transport also bring benefits in terms of enhancing health, employment, and equality.
    • By providing user-level access to more efficient energy conversion technologies, the need for primary energy can be reduced by 45 per cent by 2050, compared to 2020.
    • Demand-side changes cannot deliver the net-zero goal on their own.
    • But this requires investment in and transformation across every sector, along with policies and incentives that encourage people to make low-carbon choices in all aspects of their lives.
    • There is huge untapped potential in the near term through changes across transport, industry, buildings, and food that will take away the supply-side uncertainties and make it easier for people to lead low-carbon lifestyles and, at the same time, improve well-being.

    Conclusion

    The latest IPCC report puts people and their well-being at the centre of climate change mitigation. The messages are from a global perspective but have relevance to the national context of every country.

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  • Strengthen secularism

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

    Context

    The High Court of Karnataka has not been able to settle the hijab issue. The petition has been filed in the apex court by a Muslim student against the high court judgement.

    Political and Constitutional dimensions of the issue

    • The issue of the hijab is political as well as constitutional.
    • The top court will examine the constitutional aspect and its judgment will hopefully settle the issue.
    • But the political dimension of the hijab issue will continue to trouble Indian society for a long time.
    • The Indian Constitution provides for freedom of religion and conscience on the one hand and secularism for the governance of the country on the other.

    Understanding the freedom of religion under Indian Constitution

    • Under the Indian Constitution, there is a separation of religion from the state as in Europe.
    • The essence of India’s secularism is that the state has no religion.
    • This is clear from Articles 27 and 28 of the Constitution.
    • Article 27 says that no tax can be levied for promoting any particular religion.
    • In other words, no public revenue is permitted to be spent in favour of any particular religion. 
    • Article 28 says that no religious instruction shall be given in any educational institutions wholly maintained out of state funds.
    • The same Article says that no educational institution recognised or aided by the state shall compel any person to attend religious classes or worship therein.
    • Article 25(2)(a) empowers the state to regulate secular activities associated with religious practice.
    • Article 15 prohibits any kind of discrimination on the ground of religion.
    • Freedom of religion is subject to other fundamental rights: Above all, freedom of religion is made subject to other fundamental rights, apart from the reasonable restrictions on the grounds of public order, morality and health.
    • Thus, the freedom of religion under the Constitution does not enjoy the same status as other secular rights such as equality before law, non-discrimination, right to life and liberty, etc.

    Why India needs to be secular

    • Theocracy will ensure the disintegration of the country.
    • 1] India is a multi-religious country where the largest minority is around 200 million.
    • The Government of India had notified as many as six minority religions in the country.
    • So, a theocratic state with the majority religion as the state religion is an unworkable proposition.
    • 2] Complex structure: Another crucial factor which makes a theocratic state impossible in India is the complex, inegalitarian, hierarchical and oppressive social structure of the majority religion.
    • 3] There would be no equality: Since a theocratic state based on the religious texts, in the Indian context, would mean a state which would deny equality before law and equal protection of law to the subaltern class and discriminate against them on the basis of caste, it will be inherently unstable.
    • This may lead to perennial conflicts and the eventual disintegration of society.
    • Therefore, we reach the inevitable conclusion that India, as a nation, can survive only as a secular state where the state has no religion and does not promote any religion.

    Conclusion

    Secularism was chosen as the foundational principle of the republic to keep the nation united. Enlightened citizens should realise that if secularism is jettisoned, the hard-won national unity will be in peril. It is the patriotic duty of every citizen to strengthen secularism and thus save the republic.

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