New Delhi has been at the flashpoint of innumerable power struggles these days.
Why in news?
In the absence of statehood for Delhi, there has been a prolonged confrontation on the relative powers of the territorial administration and the Union government.
Dilemmas of Dual Governance
Article 239AA of the Constitution of India granted Special Status to Delhi among Union Territories (UTs) in the year 1991 through the 69th constitutional amendment.
It provided a Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers responsible to such Assembly with appropriate powers.
That’s when Delhi was named as the National Capital Region (NCT) of Delhi.
As per this article – Public Order, Police & Land in NCT of Delhi fall within the domain and control of Central Government which shall have the power to make laws on these matters.
For remaining matters of State List or Concurrent List, in so far as any such matter is applicable to UTs, the Legislative Assembly shall have the power to make laws for NCT of Delhi
[a] Centre-State Dispute
Delhi was given a fully elected legislative assembly and a responsible government through an amendment in the constitution in 1991.
Since 1991, Delhi had been made a UT with an assembly with “limited legislative powers”.
Cordial relations have prevailed between the Central and Delhi governments since 1996 and all differences have been resolved through discussions – with a few exceptions.
[b] Lt. Governor vs the CM
The Article 239AA while conferring on the assembly the power to legislate on all matters in the state list as well as the concurrent list except land, police and public order – contained one sore point.
It said that in case of a difference between the L-G and the council of ministers, the matter shall be referred to the president by the LG for his decision and pending such decision the LG can take any action on the matter as he thinks fit.
It is this issue that the constitution bench of the Supreme Court resolved in 2018, when it said that the government does not have to seek the concurrence of the L-G on its decisions.
Any differences between them should be resolved to keep in view the constitutional primacy of representative government and co-operative federalism.
It is after this judgement, the Centre brought up this Bill.
[c] NCT of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2021
Among the major proposed amendments, one makes it explicitly clear that the term “government” in any law made by the Legislative Assembly shall mean the L-G.
This, essentially, gives effect to the former L-G 2015 assertion that “Government means the Lieutenant Governor of the NCT of Delhi appointed by the President under Article 239 and designated as such under Article 239 AA of the Constitution”.
The Bill adds that the L-G’s opinion shall be obtained before the government takes any executive action based on decisions taken by the Cabinet or any individual minister.
India has witnessed a flurry of diplomatic activity during the past week with a long line of ministers, senior military officers and diplomats from a number of countries visiting Delhi and engaging with their Indian counterparts.
Highlights of this year’s Raisina Dialogue
The senior-most official and inaugural speaker was Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission.
The European presence was prominent.
China and Russia were absent from among official delegates, which is a pity.
The European presence was prominent. China and Russia were absent from among official delegates.
The focus narrowed down to the Ukraine war and, more specifically, India’s posture on Russia’s increasingly brutal assault on the hapless people of Ukraine.
It fell to the external affairs minister to deflect the expectations of India on this score.
What should be India’s approach toward West?
India will need the West more than it has in the recent past, whether in building up its deterrent capabilities or accelerating its own economic and technological transformation.
India’s Quad partners the US, Japan, Australia, its partners in Europe and several ASEAN countries, see India as an anchor that could help stabilise the international situation.
They have a stake in India emerging as an influential power and are willing to contribute to that end.
The temptation to indulge in criticising each other should be avoided.
Why India should recalibrate its ties with Russia?
Assumptions about Russia-China ties: A key assumption in India’s Russia policy has been that as a great power, Moscow would be unlikely to accept a junior partnership with China.
It was also assumed that in the long run, Russian and Chinese interests would not be aligned and, therefore, India should maintain a close relationship with Moscow.
Even if the Ukraine war had not erupted, the February 4 Sino-Russian Joint Declaration should have led India to question the continuing validity of these assumptions.
There are valid legacy reasons for maintaining positive ties with Russia just as some European countries have had to do.
The reality is that India-Russia relations are not a continuation of the old Indo-Soviet ties.
That strategic partnership that helped India cope with the Cold War and the Chinese and Pakistani threats evaporated with the end of that war and the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Moscow no longer saw Beijing as its main security challenge but for India, China became a bigger challenge.
Marginal economic and trade relations: India’s economic and trade relationship with Russia has become increasingly marginal.
Defence relationship diminishing progressively: Even the defence hardware relationship has diminished progressively as India has rightly tried to diversify its sources of supply.
The legacy in this respect, too, is of diminishing relevance.
India may have its issues with the existing order but what is envisaged in the Joint Declaration is not the alternative which would enhance India’s interests.
Way forward for India
Remain engaged with Russia and China: In a shifting geopolitical landscape, it is in India’s interest to remain engaged with Russia and China as two leading powers in the world.
Such engagement is important to gauge how these powers are themselves adjusting to the changing geopolitical equations across the world.
The US has shaken off the taint of its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan but its domestic politics is unpredictable and this calls for caution.
Europe will likely emerge as a more coherent and cohesive entity, anchored in German power, and playing a role more independent of the US than hitherto.
Deepen partnership with Europe: All the more reason why India must deepen its all-round partnership with Europe, build a shared vision of an altered geopolitical landscape and encourage Europe to play a greater role in the Indo-Pacific.
Conclusion
The attention being paid to India is substantive. A rare but perishable opportunity has presented itself to significantly advance India’s long-term prospects. It must be grasped with single-minded tenacity.
Illegal and unauthorized loudspeakers had been taken down across the Uttar Pradesh and their loudness had been capped, under “an existing government order of 2018, and set rules for sound decibel limits and court directions”.
What is the news?
The UP state authorities have taken action since the loudspeaker crackdown began in our country.
Notices were served to alleged violators by local police stations citing the order of Allahabad High Court of 2017, and centre’s the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000.
The recent UP order asked officials to remove illegal loudspeakers after dialogue and coordination with religious leaders, and to ensure that decibel levels are kept within laid down limits.
Legal basis of loudspeaker crackdowns
(a) Orders of 2022, 2018
The April 23 order said that two earlier orders passed by the government in 2018 were not being followed, and the situation needed to be rectified.
Those earlier orders had been passed to ensure implementation of The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000.
However, it had come to knowledge that many religious institutions are violating the standard decibel norms and are using loudspeakers in large numbers.
(b) The Noise Pollution Rules, 2000
The 2000 Rules define “Ambient Air Quality Standards in Respect of Noise”, i.e., Industrial, Commercial, Residential, and Silence Zones.
It asked officials to demarcate these areas and to ensure that the correct norms were followed.
Each police station has been asked to prepare a list of religious institutions using loudspeakers under their jurisdiction.
What is noise pollution?
Noise is defined as unwanted sound. A sound might be unwanted because it is loud, distracting, or annoying.
Noise pollution is manmade sound in the environment that may be harmful to humans or animals.
Objective of the NPR, 2000: To regulate and control noise producing and generating sources with the objective of maintaining the ambient air quality standards in respect of noise
Important compliance’s under NPR, 2000
What are the restrictions on using loud speaker or musical system at night?
: A person cannot play a loud speaker, public address system, sound producing instrument, musical instrument or a sound amplifier at night time except in closed premises like auditorium, conference rooms, community halls or banquet halls.
What is the noise level for using loudspeakers or the public address?
: The persons using loudspeakers or public address shall maintain the noise level and restrain it from exceeding 10 dB (A) above the ambient noise standards for the area specified or 75 dB (A) whichever is lower.
What is the Noise level for a private sound system?
: The persons owning a private sound system or a sound producing instrument shall not, exceed the noise above 5 dB (A) the noise standards specified for the area in which it is used.
What are the prohibitions on violating the silence zone areas?
A person shall not do the following acts in silence zone
Playing any music or uses any sound amplifiers,
A drum or tom-tom or blows a horn either musical or pressure, or trumpet or beats or sounds any instrument, or
Playing any musical or other performance of a to attract crowd
The Centre for Autism and Other Disabilities Rehabilitation Research and Education (CADRRE), a not-for-profit organization will launch “Pay Autention — a different mind is a gifted mind”, India’s first bridgital autism support network.
Pay ‘Autention’
The initiative shall pave the way for small towns and rural India to access specialised care and support and help create an auxiliary network of champions for the differently-abled.
This platform shall also enable mentoring, skilling and meaningful livelihoods for people with autism.
In the first phase, the initiative will primarily focus on supporting children with autism, and subsequently, in the second stage, it will focus on young adults, empowering them with life skills and career readiness.
The content is designed and delivered in collaboration with specialists from CADRRE who have expertise in training children with autism.
The project aims to create a network of grassroots champions, enable early identification, first-level care, teach social skills, ways to ease activities of daily living, hold workshops for sensory and motor development.
It also focuses on art and craft, dance, music therapy, physical and mental fitness, communication skills and enable support for academics.
What is Autism?
Autism, also called autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a complicated condition that includes problems with communication and behaviour.
It can involve a wide range of symptoms and skills.
ASD can be a minor problem or a disability that needs full-time care in a special facility.
People with autism have trouble with communication. They have trouble understanding what other people think and feel.
This makes it hard for them to express themselves, either with words or through gestures, facial expressions, and touch.
People with autism might have problems with learning. Their skills might develop unevenly.
For example, they could have trouble communicating but be unusually good at art, music, math, or memory.
What are the signs of Autism?
Symptoms of autism usually appear before a child turns 3. Some people show signs from birth. Common symptoms of autism include:
A lack of eye contact
A narrow range of interests or intense interest in certain topics
Doing something over and over, like repeating words or phrases, rocking back and forth, or flipping a lever
High sensitivity to sounds, touches, smells, or sights that seem ordinary to other people
Not looking at or listening to other people
Not looking at things when another person points at them
Not wanting to be held or cuddled
Problems understanding or using speech, gestures, facial expressions, or tone of voice
Talking in a sing-song, flat, or robotic voice
Trouble adapting to changes in routine
What causes Autism?
Exactly why autism happens isn’t clear. It could stem from problems in parts of your brain that interpret sensory input and process language.
Autism is four times more common in boys than in girls. It can happen in people of any race, ethnicity, or social background.
Family income, lifestyle, or educational level doesn’t affect a child’s risk of autism. But there are some risk factors:
Autism runs in families, so certain combinations of genes may increase a child’s risk.
A child with an older parent has a higher risk of autism.
Pregnant women who are exposed to certain drugs or chemicals, like alcohol or anti-seizure medications, are more likely to have autistic children
Other risk factors include maternal metabolic conditions such as diabetes and obesity.
Prevalence of Autism in India
Prevalence and incidence statistics about autism in India is 1 in 500 or 0.20% or more than 2,160,000 people.
According to a study, an estimated three million people live with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) on the Indian subcontinent.
The Supreme Court has sought the opinion of the Centre and state governments on a suggestion that physical literacy or sports be recognised as a fundamental right.
It goes on to say that all education boards be asked to ensure at least 90 minutes of every school day to be dedicated to “free play and games”.
Sports as a FR: A Backgrounder
India is a vibrant country that has always carried a fevered pitch and fervent excitement for sports.
The Supreme Court decision in the Bombay Dyeing case (2006) is emblematic of our vision for sport.
The Court, in August 2018, had asked for responses of the Centre and state governments in a public interest litigation filed by Kanishka Pandey, a sports researcher.
Subsequently, the court had appointed Sankarnarayanan as an amicus in April 2019 to assist it and suggest measures to deal with the issue.
Key recommendations in recent plea
Sports as FR under Article 21A: As part of a plea before the Supreme Court seeking to declare playing sports as a fundamental right, a report has been submitted by amicus curiae. It suggested that the broad term “physical literacy” be adopted instead of sports.
90 minutes of physical activity: Also, all education boards must be asked to ensure at least 90 minutes of every school day be dedicated to “free play and games”.
Sports be transferred to concurrent list: The petition also seeks to transfer sports to the concurrent list and to form an independent Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth Empowerment at union and state levels.
Sports as a part of education policy: The plea also asks for directions to governments to amend education policies to promote sports and make facilities available to enhance the opportunities to play sports.
National Physical Literacy Mission: The report makes a number of suggestions in this regard – from asking the government to establish a National Physical Literacy Mission.
Another striking feature: National Physical Literacy Mission
The report also proposed for all registered and unregistered private and public education institutions to have, publish and disseminate to all parents/guardians a Physical Literacy Policy.
The Policy would acknowledge the institution’s legal commitment to integrate physical literacy in all aspects of its curriculum.
This is to ensure that physical literacy is a part of the overall curriculum and syllabus for national and state school boards, in particular the National Curricular Framework for School Education 2020-21.
Why must we consider the fundamental right to physical literacy?
Physical activity is fundamental to human beings: The report states that having a fundamental right to literacy would mean identifying the intrinsic value of physical activity to human living.
Part of elementary education: It would mean not seeing physical activity as an end in itself, and the establishment of physical activity/ physical education as a core component of the education curriculum.
Supportive to other FRs: A fundamental right to physical literacy would actualise and enhance the enjoyment of other fundamental rights. It would go a long way in enhancing the opportunities and freedom to express oneself.
Enhancing life quality: A physically literate individual would have a more fulfilling life of higher quality than one who is not. Physical literacy, as a building block, would go a long way in the promotion and realisation of the right to health and the right to education.
Religion as a barriers: Some sports like swimming and athletics require attire that does not fully cover a woman’s body and are against the laws of some religions. They are often debated in light of modesty of the sportspersons beings violated.
Associated social reforms: Many women perceive sports as an opportunity to escape the confines of a highly regulated life. They use it as a tool to show their potential and tackle the patriarchal mindset. Further success of sportspersons like Mary Kom, Saina Nehwal, etc. have played a pivotal role in curbing the problems of child marriage and son meta preference.
Why need such a policy?
Poor performance in competitions: India has the worst population to medals ratio at the Olympics. We find our medal tally at the Olympics to be hopelessly out of sync with our 1.3 billion population.
Regressive attitude towards sports: Our attitude towards sport and physical well-being is another debilitating factor. Traditionally, India has not been a sports nation where many deserving candidates are discouraged right at the starting level.
Economic divide: It hard reality which we consistently refuse to acknowledge. Athletes are not generated from the comfortable classes, they invariably come often from the middle and lower economic strata.
Incentivization: There is more focus on post-success incentivization rather than pre-success support in India. For instance, the Haryana Government announced a 6 crore reward after Neeraj Chopra won the gold medal in Tokyo Olympics 2020.
Significance of physical education and sports
Physical development: Fitness, Health
Mental development: It improves decision making and collective action. It also acts as stress buster.
Character/ personality development: It instils confidence, team spirit, team coordination, group work)
Benefits of augmenting sports career
Alternative career development: For those for whom opportunities are few, and jobs are scarce, sport becomes a powerful mobility device. A strong sports sector encourages an average/ poor academic student to make a career in sports.
Reaping demographic dividend: India is having a very young population and is soon going to become the world’s youngest country. In such a scenario, a robust sports sector can help in reaping the potential demographic dividend.
Revenue generation: Developing robust sports infrastructure in the country will allow India to host a greater number of international events. Such hosting boosts tourism in the country and results in enhancing the revenue and employment in the region. Ex. IPL
Promotes the spirit of Unity in Diversity: People cheer for the Indian athletes and Indian teams at international events. An improvement in sports automatically fosters the spirit of brotherhood amongst the people of diverse nations. For instance, the Pan India support enjoyed by Indian cricket team enhances belongingness between India’s north and south.
Reasons for India’s poor performance
India’s below-par performance in sports can be attributed to the combination of all the factors discussed below:
Lack of facilities: We have thousands of education centres all over the country, but there are very few schools and colleges which have adequate facilities for any sport.
Regional discrepancies: The spending of money is concentrated in major cities where facilities do exist, but the broad-based structure to tap and develop talent is missing. The facilities wherever they are created are confined to a few popular games like cricket, hockey, football, tennis, etc.
Burden of ill-health: Mother and child health is an all-time contested issue in India. This may well be attributed to weather conditions, poor economic condition generally-due to which nutrition is not available to most of our children.
Narrow perception: The parents are keen that their kids should do well studies to get a degree and ultimately fetch a good job. Playing for long hours regularly is considered a waste of time.
Lesser academia for physical education: There are few Sports Colleges which are genuinely making efforts to produce national-level sportsmen, but their number is so small that no perceptible impact is seen due to their existence.
Lack of training: Another reason for our poor performance in sports is the lack of required number of trainers, coaches and psychotherapists. There is also a dearth of quality coaching or the qualified coaches.
Non-interest: The west often accuse that Indians lack the killer’s instinct. The zest and enthusiasm necessary to win over the opponent is naturally absent in the Indian psyche.
Obsession for few sports: There is no doubt that cricket and hockey plays a major unifying role in India. However, other sports and sportsperson are often discouraged due to such obsessions.
Performance anxiety: A high degree of pressure is inflicted upon a sportsperson to perform or else be prepared to live a vulnerable life. This sometimes creates excessive mental stress in them or induces them to resort to unethical means like doping.
Various initiatives for sports promotion
The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has formulated the following schemes to promote sports in the country, including in rural, tribal and backward areas:
Khelo India Scheme
Assistance to National Sports Federations
Special Awards to Winners in International sports events and their Coaches
National Sports Awards, Pension to Meritorious Sports Persons
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay National Sports Welfare Fund
National Sports Development Fund; and
Running Sports Training Centres through Sports Authority of India
Way forward
Sports is a state subject and therefore uniformity in sports specific activities of various states in India is extremely important for providing equal sporting opportunities to all the citizens of the country.
We have to take collective action to create a system and a proper environment whereby the young talent is spotted and developed in right earnest.
Integration of sports with education to introduce sports culture in India is the need of the hour.
The allocation of funds to sport, as a percentage of budget, can be increased for broad-basing sports in this country.
There is also a need to develop a culture in whole country by spreading awareness in society by telling benefit of sports in life.
The “health star rating” system that the Food Safety Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) plans to adopt in order to help consumers reduce their intake of unhealthy foods has been opposed by close to a dozen consumer and health advocacy groups.
What is the Health Star Rating System?
In February, the FSSAI decided to adopt the “health-star rating system”, which gives a product 1/2 a star to 5 stars, in its draft regulations for front of package labelling (FOPL).
The HSR format ranks a packaged food item based on salt, sugar, and fat content and the rating will be printed on the front of the package.
The underlying premise of the HSR is that positive ingredients such as fruits and nuts can offset negative nutrients such as calories, saturated fat, total sugar, sodium to calculate the number of stars ascribed to a product.
The decision was based on the recommendations of a study by the IIM-Ahmedabad the regulator had commissioned in September 2021.
In the same meeting, the regulator decided that FOPL implementation could be made voluntary for a period of four years.
What is FoPL?
In India, packaged food has had back-of-package (BOP) nutrient information in detail but no FoPL.
Counter to this, FoPL can nudge people towards healthy consumption of packaged food.
It can also influence purchasing habits.
The study endorsed the HSR format, which speaks about the proportions of salt, sugar, and fat in food that is most suited for consumers.
Countries such as the UK, Mexico, Chile, Peru, Hungary, and Australia have implemented FoPL systems.
What warranted the HSR rating in India?
Visual bluff: A lot of Indian consumers do not read the information available at the back of the packaged food item.
Burden of NCDs: Also, India has a huge burden of non-communicable diseases that contributes to around 5.87 million (60%) of all deaths in a year.
Healthy dietary choices: HSR will encourage people to make healthy choices and could bring a transformational change in the society.
Supreme Court order: A PIL seeking direction to the government to frame guidelines on HSR and impact assessment for food items and beverages was filed in the Supreme Court in June 2021.
Which category of food item will have HSR?
All packaged food items or processed food will have the HSR label.
These will include chips, biscuits, namkeen, sweets and chocolates, meat nuggets, and cookies.
However, milk and its products such as chenna and ghee areEXEMPTED as per the FSSAI draft notified in 2019.
Will there be pushback from food industry?
Negative warning: Some experts opposed the use of the HSR model in India, suggesting that consumers might tend to take this as an affirmation of the health benefits rather than as a negative warning of ill effects.
Lack of awareness: This is significant because there is lack of awareness on star ratings related to consumer products in India.
Impact on Sale: Certain organisations fear it might affect the sale of certain food products.
Arguments against health star rating
Experts argue that “warning labels” instead have been most effective in various countries.
They said the HSR system adopted in countries like Australia and New Zealand has not resulted in any meaningful behavior change.
Even after eight years of their implementation, there is still no evidence of HSRs having a significant impact on the nutritional quality of people’s food and beverage purchases.
Also, the HSR system “misrepresents nutrition science”.
The algorithm of adding and subtracting nutrients does not fit with our understanding of biology.
For example, the presence of fruit in a fruit drink juice does not offset the impacts of added sugar in the body.
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