All new aspirants who have made up their mind to be a civil servant have no idea in the beginning how to prepare for the examination. They get nervous that the books are too lengthy, the test series seem to be baffling and the syllabus indefinite.
You might have consulted numerous websites on the internet on how to go about your UPSC 2023 preparation, but still you are confused as they address only the skin-deep theories about Do’s and Don’ts.
90% of websites suggest reading Ramesh Singh for India Economy. But after reading 2-3 pages of R. Singh you realize that you are not able to remember anything after just a couple of hours!
Attend the free live webinar conducted by Civilsdaily’s toppers’ mentor Parth Verma sir to understand how to start a concrete preparation from scratch, eliminate confusions and remain consistent and disciplined for one whole year.
Webinar Details
Don’t miss the chance to get value addition inputs to score better in the examination! This webinar is absolutely free. All aspirants are welcome to attend.
Our Civilsdaily Mentor, Mr Parth has been mentoring students since 2017. He has an admirable experience of attending UPSC-CSE interview two times. Parth sir has always scored 400+ in all the 4 GS Mains Subjects. The secret of success according to him is consistency and time-management.
Historical importance of good nutrition was ignored by the modern therapist who tried to control TB initially with streptomycin injection, isoniazid and para-aminosalisylic acid. In the ecstasy of finding antibiotics killing the germs, the social determinants of disease were ignored.
Lack of patient-centric TB treatment
With more drug arsenals such as rifampicin, ethambutol, pyrazinamide, the fight against TB bacteria continued, which became multidrug resistant.
The regimes and the mode of delivery of drugs were changed to plug the loopholes of non-compliance of patients.
Blister packs of a multi-drug regime were provided at the doorstep, and the directly observed treatment/therapy (DOT) mechanism set up.
Many of the poor discontinued blister-packaged free drugs thinking that these were “hot and strong” drugs not suited for the hunger pains they experienced every night.
Role of nutrition in dealing with TB
India has around 2.8 million active cases. It is a disease of the poor.
And the poor are three times less likely to go for treatment and four times less likely to complete their treatment for TB, according to WHO, in 2002.
The fact is that 90% of Indians exposed to TB remain dormant if their nutritional status and thereby the immune system, is good.
When the infected person is immunocompromised, TB as a disease manifests itself in 10% of the infected.
The 2019 Global TB report identified malnutrition as the single-most associated risk factor for the development of TB, accounting for more cases than four other risks, i.e., smoking, the harmful use of alcohol, diabetes and HIV.
The work and the findings of a team at the Jan Swasthya Sahayog hospital at Ganiyari, Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh established the association of poor nutritional status with a higher risk of TB.
Way forward
Chhattisgarh initiated the supply of groundnut, moong dhal and soya oil, and from April 2018, under the Nikshay Poshan Yojana of the National Health Mission.
All States began extending cash support of ₹500 per month to TB patients to buy food. This amount needs to be raised.
Nutrition education and counselling support: Without simultaneous nutrition education and counselling support, this cash transfer will not have the desired outcome.
Conclusion
Food is a guaranteed right for life under the Constitution for all citizens, more so for TB patients. Thus, the goals of reducing the incidence of TB in India and of reducing TB mortality cannot be reached without addressing undernutrition.
As the Prelims is getting closer, many tasks line up like static revisions, attempting mocks and wrapping up your current affairs. Quick revisions can help you remember the factual information on the final day.
To take care of your quick revision plan, Civilsdaily is introducing Prelims Mahasangram 2022.
The program will focus on targeted coverage of syllabus; Daily Discussion with Q&A; weekly zoom calls.
Program Starts on Monday 18th April, 2022.
Your War Commanders are Core mentors from Civilsdaily. They mentored around 50 Aspirants in 2021 and more than 22 Aspirants cleared prelims following their Strategy.
Now that the battleground is ready, Are you ready for the Mahasangram?
Complete the most important books like Laxmikant, Spectrum, NCERTs etc with Prelims Battle: Gamified.
Win daily, weekly and eventually final War with your favourite War Commanders.
Be the top on the weekly Leaderboard and arrange a strategy session on Google Meet with your War Commanders.
Major Components of The Program
Detailed Plan: You War commanders will provide you with a broader, Weekly and daily plan. They will also set Daily Accountability to ensure Consistency. Every morning you will be given a target to complete, which will be eventually taken up for discussion in the evening.
A Roadmap to secure 105 marks in Prelims 2022: You are not supposed to score 200 but just 100+ to secure a seat for mains 2022. Reading Everything in detail right now will create confusion and panic. Your War Lords will give you their smart strategy which helped their older spartans to clear prelims with flying colors. They will tell you the perfect plan to reach this milestone.
Daily Sessions: Evaluation is necessary after you complete your targets. Your War commanders will conduct daily sessions and ensure you do not miss any relevant topic. These session will be based on Q&A method on our Official Civilsdaily Space, Habitat.
Strategy: Strategy will definitely help you to plan your study for the next 45 days in a more efficient manner.You War commanders will provide you subject wise strategy specifically for prelims.
Daily and Weekly Leaderboard: Follow the daily schedule and earn reward points.
Weekly Rewards: Those who get the top 5 spots on the weekly leaderboard will get a personal session with the mentors over google meet.
TIKDAM: Learn the Art of Elimination and Be the warrior who will win the war. Ravi Sir is one of the pioneers of Tikdam and he will help you in developing logics. These logics will definitely help you clear the exam.There will be 10 Tikdam sessions.
You can get the joining and payment details for the program on the link given below:
See How Tikdam Works even with the toughest questions:
Q. Consider the following statements:
1. 21st February is declared to be the International Mother Language Day by UNICEF.
2. The demand that Bangla has to be one of the national languages was raised in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Statement-1: It is a part of culture therefore it should be UNESCO not UNICEF. Also by TIKDAM Rule-1, Above statement should be incorrect.
Statement 2: Present Bangladesh was a part of the then Pakistan. The statement does not say for the first time or only in the Assembly but a general statement that the demand was raised which sounds logical because East Bengal was a part of it as well. Therefore this statement should be correct.
Q Consider the following statements:
1. Moringa (drumstick tree) is a leguminous evergreen tree.
2. The Tamarind tree is endemic to South Asia.
3. In India, most of the tamarind is collected as minor forest produce.
4. India exports tamarind and seeds of moringa.
5. Seeds of moringa and tamarind can be used in the production of biofuels.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1, 2, 4 and 5
(b) 3, 4 and 5
(c) 1, 3 and 4
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 5
Almost every Indian has seen the Moringa Trees(Mungna, Saijan in hindi). They drop their leaves as we have seen. This means they are not evergreen. By eliminating we can get B as an answer.
Q What is blue carbon?
(a) Carbon captured by oceans and coastal ecosystems
(b) Carbon sequestered in forest biomass and agricultural soils
(c) Carbon contained in petroleum and natural gas
(d) Carbon present in atmosphere
We all know blue is used for Water/Oceans. Now option A has Ocean.
Q. With reference to the book “Desher Kather” written by Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar during the freedom struggle, consider the following statements :
1. It warned against the Colonial States hypnotic conquest of the mind.
2. It inspired the performance of swadeshi street plays and folk songs.
3. The use of desh‘ by Deuskar was in the specific context of the region of Bengal.
Which of the statements given above are curt?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Anything in the context of Bengal used to start as ‘Bang.’ For example Bang Bhasha Prakashak Sabha, Bang Bhang, Bangladesh etc. Therefore Desh should not be in the context of Bengal. Now by simply eliminating S3 we can get the answer.
The sinking of the huge Russian warship Moskva whether due to a Ukrainian missile strike or, as Russia claims, a fire on board — is a serious setback for Russia in the Black Sea.
About Black Sea
The famed water body is bound by Ukraine to the north and northwest, Russia and Georgia to the east, Turkey to the south, and Bulgaria and Romania to the west.
It links to the Sea of Marmara through the Bosphorus and then to the Aegean through the Dardanelles.
Significance of Black Sea for Russia
Domination of the Black Sea region is a geostrategic imperative for Moscow.
Black Sea has traditionally been Russia’s warm water gateway to Europe.
For Russia, the Black Sea is both a stepping stone to the Mediterranean.
It acts as a strategic buffer between NATO and itself.
It showcases the Russian power in the Mediterranean and to secure the economic gateway to key markets in southern Europe.
The Rhine-Main-Danube canal connects the Black Sea to the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea and the port of Odessa serves as a vital link between Ukraine and the outside world.
Black Sea in the Ukraine war
Russia has been making efforts to gain complete control over the Black Sea since the Crimean crisis of 2014.
During the ongoing invasion, the domination of the Black Sea has been a major Russian objective, along with the land bridge to connect Russia and Crimea.
As such, there have been intense efforts to capture Mariupol, the Sea of Azov port in the breakaway eastern Ukrainian oblast of Donetsk.
Mariupol appeared close to falling to the Russians.
Sinking of the Moskva
The sinking of the Moskva is believed to be the worst loss in the history of naval warfare.
It was sunk by shore-based anti-ship cruise missiles which took advantage of bad weather and used decoy UAV attacks to defeat the ship’s air defence systems.
It demonstrates the success of outside-the-box measures adopted by Ukraine in the war.
Must answer this PYQ in the comment box:
Q.Consider the following pairs:
Sea
Bordering country
1. Adriatic Sea
Albania
2. Black Sea
Croatia
3. Caspian Sea
Kazakhstan
4. Mediterranean Sea
Morocco
5. Red Sea
Syria
Which of the pair given above are correctly matched? (CSP 2020)
Over the last one year, as retail prices of petrol, diesel and other petroleum products have surged, the government has attracted criticism.
Finance Minister has sought to counter such criticism by claiming that the current government cannot bring down taxes (and, as a consequence, prices) because it has to pay for the oil bonds issued by the previous regime.
What are oil bonds?
An oil bond is an IOU (I owe you), or a promissory note issued by the government to the OMCs, in lieu of cash that the government would have given them so that these companies don’t charge the public the full price of fuel.
An oil bond says the government will pay the oil marketing company the sum of, say, Rs 1,000 crore in 10 years.
And to compensate the OMC for not having this money straightaway, the government will pay it, say, 8% (or Rs 80 crore) each year until the bond matures.
Thus, by issuing such oil bonds, the government of the day is able to protect/ subsidise the consumers without either ruining the profitability of the OMC or running a huge budget deficit itself.
Why were they issued?
When fuel prices were too high for domestic consumers, governments in the past often asked oil marketing companies (OMCs) to avoid charging consumers the full price.
But if oil companies don’t get paid, they would become unprofitable.
To address this, the government said it would pay the difference.
But again, if the government paid that amount in cash, it would have been pointless, because then the government would have had to tax the same people to collect the money to pay the OMCs.
This is where oil bonds come in.
How much of fuel prices is tax?
There are two components to the domestic retail price — the price of crude oil itself, and the taxes levied on this basic price.
Together they make up the retail price.
The taxes vary from one product to another. For instance, as of now, taxes account for 50% of the total retail price for a litre of petrol, and 44% for a litre of diesel.
How much of the UPA-era oil bonds has the NDA government paid back?
There are two components of oil bonds that need to be paid off: the annual interest payment, and the final payment at the end of the bond’s tenure.
By issuing such bonds, a government can defer the full payment by 5 or 10 or 20 years, and in the interim just pay the interest costs.
Table 1 shows that between 2015 and 2021, the NDA government has fully paid off four sets of oil bonds — a total of Rs 13,500 crore.
Each year, the BJP government had also had to pay the interest rate on all bonds that have not matured. Chart 1 shows the amount paid towards interest payment each year.
Between 2014 and 2022, the government has had to spend a total of Rs 93,686 crore towards interest as well as the principal.
Still, isn’t it a bad idea to issue such bonds?
Former PM Manmohan Singh was correct in noting that issuing bonds just pushed the liability to a future generation.
But to a great extent, most of the government’s borrowing is in the form of bonds.
This is why each year the fiscal deficit (which is essentially the level of government’s borrowing from the market) is so keenly tracked.
Further, in a relatively country like India, all governments are forced to resort to the use of bonds of some kind.
Take the current NDA government itself, which has issued bonds worth Rs 2.79 lakh crore (twice the amount of oil bonds) to recapitalise public sector banks.
These bonds will be paid by governments till 2036.
In a first-of-its-kind project in the country, the Maharashtra government has developed a website-based migration tracking system (MTS) application to map the movement of vulnerable seasonal migrant workers through individual unique identity numbers.
What is MTS Project?
The MTS project is envisaged to maintain the continuity of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) like nutrition supply, immunisation and health check-up etc. to migrant beneficiaries.
It is targeted for children aged up to 18 years, lactating mothers and pregnant women registered with the Anganwadi centres.
Their migration will be tracked for ensuring the portability of the ICDS for their families in their destination districts within or outside the state until their return to their native places.
Need for such a project
Distress-driven seasonal migration of workers is quite prevalent in Maharashtra.
Due to lockdowns, a large number of women and children had got displaced and missed on their nutrition, vaccination and other services under the ICDS scheme.
Like other states, does not have any institutionalized mechanism to enumerate it.
So, through this initiative, the state has sought to capture the data of intra-district, inter-districts and interstate migration of such workers.
Working details of the project
Anganwadi workers have to first register the migrating beneficiaries from their areas on the MTS website app on their laptops or mobile phones by using the workers’ identity cards like Aadhaar, PAN card, or ration cards etc.
Other than names, the Anganwadi workers have to mention the age, weight, and height of the migrant children, who will be placed in nutritional categories like severe, moderate or acute.
Depending on this data, the nutrition benefits will be allocated to the children in their new locations.
On the MTS app, the Anganwadi workers would also collect details about various informal sectors — such as brick kilns, agriculture labour, stone crushing, construction work, sugarcane cutting or sugar factory — where the migrant workers are headed along with their children.
The Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has developed the portal named ‘e-DAR’ (e-Detailed Accident Report).
Why such move?
Road accidents continue to be a leading cause of death, disabilities and hospitalization in the country despite our commitment and efforts.
India ranks first in the number of road accident deaths across the 199 countries and accounts for almost 11% of the accident related deaths in the World.
E-DAR portal
It is designed in consultation with insurance companies to provide instant information on road accidents with a few clicks and help accelerate accident compensation claims, bringing relief to victims’ families.
Digitalised Detailed Accident Reports (DAR) will be uploaded on the portal for easy access.
The web portal will be linked to the Integrated Road Accident Database (iRAD).
From iRAD, applications to more than 90% of the datasets would be pushed directly to the e-DAR.
Stakeholders like the police, road authorities, hospitals, etc., are required to enter very minimal information for the e-DAR forms.
Thus, e-DAR would be an extension and e-version of iRAD.
Its working
The portal would be linked to other government portals like Vaahan and would get access to information on driving licence details and registration of vehicles.
For the benefit of investigating officers, the portal would provide geo tagging of the exact accident spot along with the site map.
This would notify the investigating officer on his distance from the spot of the incident in the event the portal is accessed from any other location.
Details like photos, video of the accident spot, damaged vehicles, injured victims, eye-witnesses, etc., would be uploaded immediately on the portal.
Apart from the state police, an engineer from the Public Works Department or the local body will receive an alert on his mobile device and the official concerned will then examine the accident site.
Check on fake claims
The e-DAR portal would conduct multiple checks against fake claims by conducting a sweeping search of vehicles involved in the accident, the date of accident, and the First Information Report number.
Various moves to curb road accidents
Several initiatives have been taken by the MoRTH which continues to implement a multi-pronged road safety strategy.
It is based on Education, Engineering, Enforcement and Emergency Care consisting inter-alia of setting up Driver training schools, creating awareness, strengthening automobile safety standards, improving road infrastructure, carrying out road safety audit etc.
High priority has been accorded to rectification of black spots.
A major initiative of the Ministry in the field of Road Safety has been the passing of the Motor Vehicle Amendment Act, 2019.
It focuses on road safety include, inter-alia, stiff hike in penalties for traffic violations and electronic monitoring of the same, enhanced penalties for juvenile driving, cashless treatment during the golden hour etc.
Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is aggravating rapidly, putting citizens through enormous hardship.
Reasons for the Crisis
The first wave of the pandemic in 2020 offered early and sure signs of distress.
In-migration: Thousands of Sri Lankan laborers in West Asian countries were left stranded and returned jobless.
Shut-down: Garment factories and tea estates could not function, as infections raged in clusters. Tourism sector to saw a big dip.
Domestic job losses: Thousands of youth lost their jobs in cities as establishments abruptly sacked them or shut down.
Forex decline: It meant that all key foreign exchange earning sectors, such as exports and remittances, along with tourism, were brutally hit.
Policy failures of the Lankan govt
No strategy: The lack of a comprehensive strategy to respond to the crisis then was coupled with certain policy decisions last year.
Ill-advised policies: It included the government’s abrupt switch to organic farming —widely deemed “ill-advised”, further aggravated the problem.
Food hoarding: The government declared emergency regulations for the distribution of essential food items. It put wide import restrictions to save dollars which in turn led to consequent market irregularities and reported hoarding.
Continuous borrowing: Fears of a sovereign default rose by the end of 2021, with the country’s foreign reserves plummeting to $1.6 billion, and deadlines for repaying external loans looming.
Brief background of India-SL relations
India is the only neighbor of Sri Lanka, separated by the Palk Strait; both nations occupy a strategic position in South Asia and have sought to build a common security umbrella in the Indian Ocean.
There are deep racial and cultural links between the two countries. Both share a maritime border.
The India- SL relations have been however tested by the Sri Lankan Civil War and by the controversy of Indian intervention during the war.
In recent years Sri Lanka has moved closer to China, especially in terms of naval agreements.
India has signed a nuclear energy deal to improve relations and made a nuclear energy pact with Sri Lanka in 2015.
India’s role in the Lankan Civil War
In the 1970s–1980s, the RAW and the state government of Tamil Nadu were believed to be encouraging the funding and training for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a separatist insurgent force.
In 1987, faced with growing anger amongst its own Tamils, and a flood of refugees India intervened directly in the conflict for the first time.
This was after the Sri Lankan government attempted to regain control of the northern Jaffna region by means of an economic blockade and military assaults; India supplied food and medicine by air and sea.
Why did India intervene?
Indian intervention in Sri Lankan civil war became inevitable as that civil war threatened India’s unity, national interest and territorial integrity.
Outcomes
The peace accord assigned a certain degree of regional autonomy in the Tamil areas with a body controlling the regional council and called for the Tamil militant groups to lay down their arms.
Further India was to send a peacekeeping force, named the IPKF to Sri Lanka to enforce the disarmament and to watch over the regional council.
The accord failed over the issue of representations. The result was that the LTTE now found itself engaged in military conflict with the Indian Army.
Areas of cooperation
(1) Political Relations
Regular Exchange: Political relations between the two countries have been marked by high-level exchanges of visits at regular intervals.
Bilateral Cooperation: A joint statement covering all areas of bilateral cooperation, titled ‘MitratvaMaga’ was issued following the Virtual Summit of 2020.
(2) Commercial Relations
ISFTA: The India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISFTA) in 2000 contributed significantly towards the expansion of trade in areas such as infrastructure, connectivity, transportation, housing, health, livelihood and rehabilitation, education, and industrial development.
Trading Partner: India has traditionally been among Sri Lanka’s largest trade partners and Sri Lanka remains among the largest trade partners of India in the SAARC.
In 2020, India was Sri Lanka’s 2nd largest trading partner with the bilateral merchandise trade amounting to about USD $ 3.6 billion.
India and Sri Lanka are member nations of several regional and multilateral organizations such as the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme, South Asian Economic Union and BIMSTEC.
India is Sri Lanka’s third-largest export destination, after the US and UK.
Exports: Sri Lankan exports to India have increased substantially since 2000 when ISLFTA came into force.
FDI: India is also one of the largest contributors to Foreign Direct Investment in Sri Lanka. According to BoI, FDI from India amounted to about US$ 1.7 billion during the period 2005 to 2019.
(3) Development Cooperation
Grants: The overall commitment by GOI is to the tune of more than USD 3.5 billion.
Demand-driven and people-centric nature of India’s development partnership with Sri Lanka have been the cornerstone of this relationship.
The Indian Housing Project: India has so far committed to construct close to 62,500 houses in Sri Lanka, making it one of the largest projects undertaken by GoI abroad.
Emergency Ambulance Service: The Service which was initially launched in July 2016 is now expanded to all the Provinces.
At a total cost of more than USD 22.5 million, close to 300 ambulances were provided by GOI under this project.
Other Projects: India is also involved in projects for renovation of Palaly Airport, Kankesanthurai Harbor, construction of a Cultural Centre in Jaffna, interconnection of electricity grids between the two countries, construction of a 150-bed hospital in Dickoya and setting up a coal power plant in Sampur as a joint venture between National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB).
Latest Development: India-SL agreed for joint development of Trincomalee Oil Tank farmed in 2022 after 35 years of wait.
(4) Projects under Lines of Credit
Sectors: 11 Lines of credit (LOC) have been extended to Sri Lanka by the Export Import Bank of India in the last 15 years.
Important sectors under these LOCs include: Railway, transport, connectivity, defense, solar.
Infrastructure: Some important Projects completed are- supply of defense equipments; up-gradation of the railway line from Colombo to Matara; track laying by IRCON on Omanthai-Pallai sector; reconstruction of the Railway line; signaling and telecommunication system; supply of engine kits for buses, diesel locomotives railways, DMUs, Carrier and fuel tank wagons etc.
Rehabilitation: A project for the rehabilitation of the Kankesanthurai harbor is being executed under a LOC of USD 45.27 million, bringing immense economic benefits to the Northern region of Sri Lanka.
Solar Energy: A US$ 100 million LoC for undertaking solar projects in Sri Lanka has been signed for rooftop solar units for Government buildings, rooftop solar units for low-income families and a floating solar power plant.
Security: In 2019, a LOC of USD 400 million for development and infrastructure projects and USD 50 million for security and counter-terrorism were announced.
These LOC Agreements are currently under discussion.
(5) Cultural relations
India and Sri Lanka have a shared legacy of historical, cultural, religious, spiritual and linguistic ties that is more than 2,500 years old.
In contemporary times, the Cultural Cooperation Agreement signed by the Government of India and the Government forms the basis for periodic Cultural Exchange Programmes between the two countries.
(6) People-to-people ties: Buddhism
Buddhism is one of the strongest pillars connecting the two nations and civilizations from the time when Emperor Ashoka sent his children Arhat Mahinda and Sangamitta to spread the teachings of Lord Buddha at the request of King Devanampiya Tissa of Sri Lanka.
Underlining the deep people-to-people connect and shared Buddhist heritage, the venerated relics of Lord Buddha from Kapilawasthu discovered in 1970 in India have been exhibited two times in Sri Lanka.
India in 2020, announced USD 15 million grant assistance for the protection and promotion of Buddhist ties between India and Sri Lanka.
It may be utilized for the construction/renovation of Buddhist monasteries, education of young monks, strengthening engagement of Buddhist scholars and clergy, development of Buddhist heritage museums, etc.
Transport- In July 2020, the GoI declared the Kushinagar Airport in India, the place of Lord Buddha’s Mahaparinibbana, as an international airport, to allow Buddhist pilgrims from around the world to visit the revered site associated with Lord Buddha with ease.
The Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC)– since its inception in 1998, is actively promoting awareness of Indian culture by offering classes in Bharatnatyam, Kathak, Hindustani and Carnatic vocal, Violin, Sitar, Tabla, Hindi and Yoga.
(7) Tourism
e-Visa- Tourism also forms an important link between India and Sri Lanka. GoI formally launched the e-Tourist Visa (eTV) scheme for Sri Lankan tourists on 14 April 2015.
Visa Fee- Subsequently, in a goodwill gesture, the visa fee for eTV was sharply reduced. In 2019, out of the total 1.91 million tourists, 355,000 tourists arrived from India.
Sri Lankan tourists too are among the top ten sources for the Indian tourism market.
Visa on arrival- On 24 July 2019 Sri Lanka included India in the free visa on arrival scheme and commenced the scheme on 1 August 2019.
Plummeting relations
The ties began to worsen between the two since February, 2021 when Sri Lanka backed out from a tripartite partnership with India and Japan for its East Container Terminal Project at the Colombo Port, citing domestic issues.
However, later, the West Coast Terminal was offered under a public private partnership arrangement to Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones Ltd.
Sri Lanka in a state of economic emergency: Sri Lanka is running out of foreign exchange reserves for essential imports like food. It has recently declared a state of economic emergency.
Covid Impact:
Sri Lanka increased policy rates after the covid pandemic in response to rising inflation in August 2021 caused by currency depreciation.
Tourism sector has suffered since the Easter Sunday terror attacks of 2019, followed by the pandemic.
Earnings fell from $3.6 billion in 2019 to $0.7 billion in 2020, even as FDI inflows halved from $1.2 billion to $670 million over the same period.
Sri Lanka’s fragile liquidity situation has put it at high risk of debt distress. Its public debt-to-GDP ratio was at 109.7% in 2020, and its gross financing needs remain high at 18% of GDP.
Its gross official reserves slipped to $2.8 billion, which is equivalent to just 1.8 months of imports. More than $2.7 billion of foreign currency debt will be due in the next two years.
Major outstanding issues
Fishing disputes
There have been several alleged incidents of Sri Lankan Navy personnel firing on Indian fishermen fishing in the Palk Strait, where India and Sri Lanka are only separated by 12 nautical miles.
The issue started because of Indian fishermen having used mechanized trawlers, which deprived the Sri Lankan fishermen (including Tamils) of their catch and damaged their fishing boats.
The Sri Lankan government wants India to ban use of mechanized trawlers in the Palk Strait region, and negotiations on this subject are undergoing.
So far, no concrete agreement has been reached since India favors regulating these trawlers instead of banning them altogether.
Alleged political interference
A media report from Colombo soon after Rajapaksa’s defeat in the January 8 elections of 2015 had said that an Indian Intelligence official was instrumental in uniting rival political parties — the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the United National Party (UNP) — against him during the polls.
In October 2018, President Sirisena alleged that Indian intelligence agencies were plotting his assassination.
Katchatheevu Island
It is an uninhabited island that India ceded to Sri Lanka in 1974 based on a conditional agreement called “Kachchativu island pact”.
Later on, Sri Lanka declared Katchatheevu, a sacred land given the presence of a Catholic shrine.
But Tamil Nadu claimed that Katchatheevu falls under the Indian Territory and Tamil fishermen have traditionally believed that it belongs to them and therefore want to preserve the right to fish there.
China factor
Sri Lanka has a history of taking independent decisions even if they cause misgivings in India.
In the period of low profile relationship between the two nations, Sri Lanka apparently started favoring China over India.
China is Sri Lanka’s largest bilateral creditor: China’s loans to the Sri Lankan public sector amounted to 15% of the central government’s external debt, making China the largest bilateral creditor to the country.
Sri Lanka has increasingly relied on Chinese credit to address its foreign debt burden.
China’s Exports surpasses India: China’s exports to Sri Lanka surpassed those of India in 2020 and stood at $3.8 billion.
India’s exports were $3.2 billion.
Infrastructural Investment by China: Owing to Sri Lanka’s strategic location at the intersection of major shipping routes, China’s investment stands at $12 billion between 2006 and 2019.
Unable to service its debt, in 2017, Sri Lanka lost the unviable Hambantota port to China for a 99-year lease.
Sri Lanka passed the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act, which provides for establishing a special economic zone around the port and also a new economic commission, to be funded by China.
The Colombo port is crucial for India as it handles 60% of India’s trans-shipment cargo.
Shifting interests due to economic crisis: Sri Lanka’s economic crisis may further push it to align its policies with Beijing’s interests.
This comes at a time when India is already on a diplomatic tightrope with Afghanistan and Myanmar.
Other South Asian nations like Bangladesh, Nepal and the Maldives have also been turning to China to finance large-scale infrastructure projects.
Why is Sri Lanka important to India?
India is Sri Lanka’s closest neighbor. Both sides have built upon a legacy of intellectual, cultural, religious and linguistic interaction.
Sri Lanka has always been politically and economically important to India given its strategic geographical position in the Indian Ocean. The relationship has been marked by close contacts at all levels.
Sri Lanka sits at the epicenter of the arc connecting the Persian Gulf to the Strait of Malacca. An island nation with an economy that’s mainly reliant on tourism and tea exports, Sri Lanka’s blessed geography puts it at a crucial juncture of the busy shipping lanes of the Indian Ocean.
India also has a vital strategic stake in Sri Lanka for its own security interests. An unfriendly Sri Lanka or a Sri Lanka under influence of a power unfriendly to India would strategically discomfit India.
For the Indian Navy, Sri Lanka is important as the switching of naval fleets from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea and vice versa requires the fleets to go around the island nation.
Both countries share a common broad understanding on major issues of international interest and experience common social-political problems relating to community divides.
What does Sri Lanka expect from India?
The humanitarian work by Indian agencies like supplies of medicines, doctors and providing refuge to more than 3 lakhs IDP’s during the decade-old civil war has created a sense of mutual cooperation among the countries natives.
SL is one of the leading recipients of India’s Line of Credits.
India has always rushed for the relief at the first signs of the rains and floods in SL recently. SL still commends the post-tsunami HADR relief operations carried out by India in the end-2004.
India’s military, intelligence and security establishment has maintained its relations with its Sri Lankan counterpart, and both sides have been on the same page at all times.
The security environment in the neighborhood will be discussed in light of the 21 April Easter Church bombings, and lessons learned from it.
India is also the largest provider of defense training programs for Sri Lankan soldiers and Defence officials.
A greater role for India
(1) Gathering convergence towards SL
Delhi needs to invest some political capital in resolving problems such as the long-standing dispute over fisheries.
Beyond its objection to China’s BRI projects, Delhi, either alone or in partnership with like-minded countries like Japan, should offer sustainable terms for infrastructure development.
Delhi also needs to contribute more to the development of Colombo’s defence and counter-terror capabilities.
(2) Answering the Tamil Question
The second structural factor shaping India’s relations with Sri Lanka is the Tamil question.
Delhi has certainly learned the dangers of being drawn too deep into the domestic conflicts of neighboring countries.
If the new government in Colombo can advance reconciliation with the Tamil minority, it will be easier for India to strengthen ties with the Gotabaya government.
(3) No china factor indeed
Labeling governments in Sri Lanka as “pro-China” or “pro-India” is irrelevant. It is evident that China’s economic and strategic salience in the subcontinent is not tied to the regime leadership.
Previous Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena who considered as pro-India came to power criticizing the Chinese projects in Sri Lanka, but within two years into power, it extended full backing to the Chinese projects.
(4) Harnessing the ray of hope
Our challenges in Sri Lanka will continue, but we are off to a good start with the new government.
The new president has made repeated statements that his government would like Sri Lanka to be a “neutral country” and that “Sri Lanka won’t do anything that will harm India’s interests.”
Gotabaya was also critical of the previous government giving Hambantota Port on a 99-year lease to China.
He went on to add that giving land as investment for developing a hotel or a commercial property was not a problem but the strategically important, economically important harbor, giving that is not acceptable.
The Rajapaksas have acknowledged that India has not interfered in the recent elections.
The first visit abroad by Gotabaya Rajapaksa to India has its own symbolic significance, translating into a diplomatic gesture his statement to the EAM that while China is a trade partner, India is a relative.
