If there was one visible change in UPSC CSE 2021, then its the high weightage of questions from Enviornment and Ecology. Most of the current affairs questions from Environment and Ecology are not from the last one year and one had to know about conventions and conferences held long time back. About 25-30% of the questions in GS Paper 3 in UPSC Mains are from this subject.
Many aspirants make the mistake of assuming that Enviornment and Ecology is an easy subject as it tends to overlap with Geography and Science. Post 2013, with the introduction of separate Indian Forest Service Exams, the weightage for this subject has increased as well. Topics such as Biodiversity, Wildlife conservation, Pollution, Sustainable Development, Climate Change and International Organisations have the maximum questions asked.
Free Open for All Webinar by Retired Indian Forest Officer Aniket Wanve
If as a UPSC aspirant, you also want to appear for Indian Forest Exams and score better in Prelims and GS Paper 3, then this webinar is for you.
Ankit Wanve IFoS is a two time UPSC-CSE interview candidate. He however cleared the Indian Forest Exam in his first attempt with an AIR 66 in 2018. He was able to do this, thanks to his strong engineering background. This goes to show that if not UPSC-CSE, there are other overlapping government examinations one can give a try.
What will you learn from IFoS Aniket Wanve in this webinar?
1. How is IFoS as an alternative career choice to Civil Services. What are the roles, responsibilities, perks and benefits Ankit of an IFoS officer?
2. Forest and administration. Important conventions and clauses from exam point of view will be discussed.
3. Issues of Climate Change. What are the important protocols passed by International Organisations?
4. Current Affairs of Past One year related to Environment. What is happening in India with respect to this?
5. How to prepare for Environment and Ecology for Prelims and Mains. How to connect concepts of Geography with Environment?
6. Maximize your score in the Interview round. As a two-time interview what are Ankit Wanve’s suggestions?
This live webinar for all students will also be interactive in nature with a Q&A session.
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.
Date – 27th December 2021 (Monday)
Time – 7 PM
Limited slots are available. So please register ASAP.
There were reports of the Centre renewing attempts to build consensus with state governments and High Courts on setting of the AIJS.
However the government recently informed Parliament that only 2 states – Haryana and Mizoram, and two high courts, Tripura High Court and Sikkim High Court, are in favour of creating the AIJS.
As per govt data on High Courts, 13 have opposed the proposal, six have sought changes in it and others have not responded.
All India Judicial Service (AIJS): A backgrounder
The AIJS is a reform push to centralize the recruitment of judges.
It would work at the level of additional district judges and district judges for all states.
In the same way that the UPSC conducts a central recruitment process and assigns successful candidates to cadres, judges of the lower judiciary are proposed to be recruited centrally and assigned to states.
This idea has been debated in legal circles for decades, and remains contentious.
How are district judges currently recruited?
Articles 233 and 234: These articles deal with the appointment of district judges, and place it in the domain of the states.
State PSC: The selection process is conducted by the State Public Service Commissions and the concerned HC since HCs exercise jurisdiction over the subordinate judiciary in the state.
Interview by HC judges panelists: They interview candidates after the exam and select them for an appointment.
Why has the AIJS been proposed?
The idea was to ensure:
Efficient subordinate judiciary
Address structural issues such as varying pay and remuneration across states
Fill vacancies faster
Ensure standard training across states
Beginning of the debate
The idea of a centralized judicial service was first proposed in the Law Commission 1958 ‘Report on Reforms on Judicial Administration’.
It was proposed again in the Law Commission Report of 1978, which discussed delays and arrears of cases in the lower courts.
In 2006, the Parliamentary Standing Committee backed the idea of a pan-Indian judicial service, and also prepared a draft Bill.
What is the judiciary’s view on the AIJS?
1992: the Supreme Court directed the Centre to set up an AIJS in All India Judges’ Assam. vs Union of India
1993: In review of the judgment, the court left the Centre at liberty to take the initiative on the issue.
2017: The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the issue of appointment of district judges, and mooted a “Central Selection Mechanism”.
Need for AJIS
Huge vacancy of judges and delay in recruitment: Currently there are about 5400 vacant posts in lower judiciary across the country and a pendency of 2.78crore cases in lower judiciary.
Dearth of good quality judicial officers: The ever continuing decline in their qualityhas led to decline in the competence of overall judiciary.
Lack of finances: State judicial services are not attractive for ‘best talents’ due to low salaries, rewards and compensations by the state governments.
Lack of specialized training: Adjudication is a specialization which requires state of the art training institutes and professors but state institutes don’t allow such exposure to interns.
Discretion of a narrow body: The process of selecting a good judge is a difficult job and should not be left at the discretion of few persons (collegiums) however sagacious they may be.
Subjectivity in the process: Current judicial appointments suffer subjectivity, corruption and nepotism on the part of Collegium.
Critical views on AJIS
Blow to federalism: AJIS is seen as an affront to federalism and an encroachment on the powers of states granted by the Constitution.
Language of Business: Language and representation, for example, are key concerns highlighted by states. Judicial business is conducted in regional languages, whi ch could be affected by central recruitment.
Quotas: A “national exam” risks shutting out those from less privileged backgrounds from being able to enter the judicial services.
Separation of power: The opposition is also based on the constitutional concept of the separation of powers.
Not a complete remedy: Additionally, legal experts have argued that the creation of AIJS will not address the structural issues plaguing the lower judiciary.
Mismanaged legal education: Curriculum followed by law universities, overseen by Bar Council of India, lacks effective standards barring few National Law Universities.
Other limitations of AJIS
Legacy issues unaddressed: AIJS addresses neither the problem of disproportionately low pay nor unavailability of adequate judicial infrastructure in states nor the lack of career advancement.
Problem of local laws and customs: AIJS does not take into account the problem of local laws, practices and customs which vary widely across States, thus increasing the costs of training for judges selected through the mechanism.
Unnecessary bureaucratization: The argument that the centralization of recruitment processes through the UPSC automatically leads to a more efficient recruitment process is flawed and not a guarantee of a solution.
Why is the government seeking to revive the idea of AIJS?
The government has targeted the reform of the lower judiciary in its effort to improve India’s Ease of Doing Business ranking.
It will act as efficient dispute resolution is one of the key indices in determining the rank.
AIJS is a step in the direction of ensuring an efficient lower judiciary.
Centre’s argument for AJIS
The government has cited IAS officers’ examples.
It has argued that if a central mechanism can work for administrative services — IAS officers learn the language required for their cadre — it can work for judicial services too.
Way forward
In its report on Strategy for New India @75 which defines objectives for 2022-23, Niti Aayog suggested that
An all-India judicial services examination on a ranking basis can be considered to maintain high standards in the judiciary
There is a need to facilitate the availability and usage of video-conferencing facilities to assist in speedy access to justice and to minimize logistical issues.
To maintain judicial independence, the cadre should report to the Chief Justice in each High Court.
The Supreme Court has recently suggested the establishment of the National Judicial Infrastructure Corporation (NJIC) for the modernization of judicial infrastructure. This is also another welcome move in reforming India Judiciary.
Conclusion
If we want to create a robust judicial system at the subordinate level, the constitution of an Indian judicial service is a sound idea.
Only a meritocratic service with a competitive recruitment, high-quality uniform training and assured standards of probity and efficiency would be able to ensure speedy and impartial justice in India.
If there was one visible change in UPSC CSE 2021, then its the high weightage of questions from Enviornment and Ecology. Most of the current affairs questions from Environment and Ecology are not from the last one year and one had to know about conventions and conferences held long time back. About 25-30% of the questions in GS Paper 3 in UPSC Mains are from this subject.
Many aspirants make the mistake of assuming that Enviornment and Ecology is an easy subject as it tends to overlap with Geography and Science. Post 2013, with the introduction of separate Indian Forest Service Exams, the weightage for this subject has increased as well. Topics such as Biodiversity, Wildlife conservation, Pollution, Sustainable Development, Climate Change and International Organisations have the maximum questions asked.
Free Open for All Webinar by Retired Indian Forest Officer Aniket Wanve
If as a UPSC aspirant, you also want to appear for Indian Forest Exams and score better in Prelims and GS Paper 3, then this webinar is for you.
Ankit Wanve IFoS is a two time UPSC-CSE interview candidate. He however cleared the Indian Forest Exam in his first attempt with an AIR 66 in 2018. He was able to do this, thanks to his strong engineering background. This goes to show that if not UPSC-CSE, there are other overlapping government examinations one can give a try.
What will you learn from IFoS Aniket Wanve in this webinar?
1. How is IFoS as an alternative career choice to Civil Services. What are the roles, responsibilities, perks and benefits Ankit of an IFoS officer?
2. Forest and administration. Important conventions and clauses from exam point of view will be discussed.
3. Issues of Climate Change. What are the important protocols passed by International Organisations?
4. Current Affairs of Past One year related to Environment. What is happening in India with respect to this?
5. How to prepare for Environment and Ecology for Prelims and Mains. How to connect concepts of Geography with Environment?
6. Maximize your score in the Interview round. As a two-time interview what are Ankit Wanve’s suggestions?
This live webinar for all students will also be interactive in nature with a Q&A session.
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.
Date – 27th December 2021 (Monday)
Time – 7 PM
Limited slots are available. So please register ASAP.
If there was one visible change in UPSC CSE 2021, then its the high weightage of questions from Enviornment and Ecology. Most of the current affairs questions from Environment and Ecology are not from the last one year and one had to know about conventions and conferences held long time back. About 25-30% of the questions in GS Paper 3 in UPSC Mains are from this subject.
Many aspirants make the mistake of assuming that Enviornment and Ecology is an easy subject as it tends to overlap with Geography and Science. Post 2013, with the introduction of separate Indian Forest Service Exams, the weightage for this subject has increased as well. Topics such as Biodiversity, Wildlife conservation, Pollution, Sustainable Development, Climate Change and International Organisations have the maximum questions asked.
Free Open for All Webinar by Retired Indian Forest Officer Aniket Wanve
If as a UPSC aspirant, you also want to appear for Indian Forest Exams and score better in Prelims and GS Paper 3, then this webinar is for you.
Ankit Wanve IFoS is a two time UPSC-CSE interview candidate. He however cleared the Indian Forest Exam in his first attempt with an AIR 66 in 2018. He was able to do this, thanks to his strong engineering background. This goes to show that if not UPSC-CSE, there are other overlapping government examinations one can give a try.
What will you learn from IFoS Aniket Wanve in this webinar?
1. How is IFoS as an alternative career choice to Civil Services. What are the roles, responsibilities, perks and benefits Ankit of an IFoS officer?
2. Forest and administration. Important conventions and clauses from exam point of view will be discussed.
3. Issues of Climate Change. What are the important protocols passed by International Organisations?
4. Current Affairs of Past One year related to Environment. What is happening in India with respect to this?
5. How to prepare for Environment and Ecology for Prelims and Mains. How to connect concepts of Geography with Environment?
6. Maximize your score in the Interview round. As a two-time interview what are Ankit Wanve’s suggestions?
This live webinar for all students will also be interactive in nature with a Q&A session.
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.
Date – 27th December 2021 (Monday)
Time – 7 PM
Limited slots are available. So please register ASAP.
All Mains Recommended Aspirants, here is the good news! Civilsdaily is providing a free compilation of the topic-wise data and statistics that will help you write better answers for Mains 2022 examination. If you have difficulty remembering facts, you can use this handbook as a revision material.
We all know how an aspirant can create a good impression and get the extra 2-4 marks in their papers when they write an introduction and conclusion with solid data. The statistics, reports & indices complied by Civilsdaily is based on the past 1-2 year survey and committee reports.
The topics range from Education, Employment, Labour & MSME’s , Infrastructure, Population and Security.
If there was one visible change in UPSC CSE 2021, then its the high weightage of questions from Enviornment and Ecology. Most of the current affairs questions from Environment and Ecology are not from the last one year and one had to know about conventions and conferences held long time back. About 25-30% of the questions in GS Paper 3 in UPSC Mains are from this subject.
Many aspirants make the mistake of assuming that Enviornment and Ecology is an easy subject as it tends to overlap with Geography and Science. Post 2013, with the introduction of separate Indian Forest Service Exams, the weightage for this subject has increased as well. Topics such as Biodiversity, Wildlife conservation, Pollution, Sustainable Development, Climate Change and International Organisations have the maximum questions asked.
Free Open for All Webinar by Retired Indian Forest Officer Aniket Wanve
If as a UPSC aspirant, you also want to appear for Indian Forest Exams and score better in Prelims and GS Paper 3, then this webinar is for you.
Ankit Wanve IFoS is a two time UPSC-CSE interview candidate. He however cleared the Indian Forest Exam in his first attempt with an AIR 66 in 2018. He was able to do this, thanks to his strong engineering background. This goes to show that if not UPSC-CSE, there are other overlapping government examinations one can give a try.
What will you learn from IFoS Aniket Wanve in this webinar?
1. How is IFoS as an alternative career choice to Civil Services. What are the roles, responsibilities, perks and benefits Ankit of an IFoS officer?
2. Forest and administration. Important conventions and clauses from exam point of view will be discussed.
3. Issues of Climate Change. What are the important protocols passed by International Organisations?
4. Current Affairs of Past One year related to Environment. What is happening in India with respect to this?
5. How to prepare for Environment and Ecology for Prelims and Mains. How to connect concepts of Geography with Environment?
6. Maximize your score in the Interview round. As a two-time interview what are Ankit Wanve’s suggestions?
This live webinar for all students will also be interactive in nature with a Q&A session.
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.
Date – 27th December 2021 (Monday)
Time – 7 PM
Limited slots are available. So please register ASAP.
The dramatic changes in technology have created new challenges for the law, lawmakers, courts and lawyers to confront.
Challenges posed by technological transformation
Technology has outpaced the law, and lawmakers are being challenged by how quickly “we the people” have embraced technological transformations.
Challenges of regulation: Challenges include regulation of digital media platforms, censorship of Over The Top (OTT) streaming services, fixing accountability for procuring and deploying spyware like Pegasus, dealing with the bias within artificial intelligence etc.
Regulation of cryptocurrencies: In probably no other area are lawmakers required to appreciate science and technology than in cryptocurrency.
With 10 crore users of cryptocurrency and crypto assets in India, this ever-expanding market is almost entirely unregulated.
Practices or legislative models that have been adopted the other countries for regulation of cryptocurrencies
KYC, AML and CFT: Countries where cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets are legal have frameworks that mandate KYC (know your customer), AML (Anti-Money Laundering) mechanisms and demand adherence to CFT (Combating Financing of Terrorism) requirements.
[1] How Singapore regulates crypto-currencies?
Singapore adopted the approach which favours strong regulation rather than ban.
Common law to regulate traditional and cryptocurrencies: Singapore has the Payments Services Act, 2020 that has streamlined both traditional and cryptocurrencies under one law.
Provision for licences: The law also provides a framework to obtain licences to operate crypto businesses.
[2] How Switzerland regulates cryptocurrencies?
Switzerland has also favoured the strong regulation model overseen by an already established financial regulator.
Provision for licences: The Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) that oversees the country’s financial markets mandates that all virtual asset service providers, including cryptocurrency exchanges must be licenced.
KYC, AML and CFT procedures must be strictly complied with. These are the checks on the use of cryptocurrencies and crypto assets that could facilitate criminal enterprise.
[3] Approach adopted by the US
Crypto exchanges to be transmitters: The US does not consider cryptocurrency to be legal tender but defines cryptocurrency exchanges to be money transmitters.
Cryptocurrencies as property: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) treats cryptocurrency as property for US federal taxation purposes.
Exchanges must obtain requisite licences from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and implement the standard AML and CFT requirements that have become the norm in most jurisdictions that regulate cryptocurrencies.
Revenue potential: One of the most important lessons to absorb from the US is the revenue potential of cryptocurrencies and crypto assets.
Conclusion
In India, the need of the times is thoughtful legislation and rigorous regulation of cryptocurrencies and crypto-assets that are already here and being used.
If there was one visible change in UPSC CSE 2021, then its the high weightage of questions from Enviornment and Ecology. Most of the current affairs questions from Environment and Ecology are not from the last one year and one had to know about conventions and conferences held long time back. About 25-30% of the questions in GS Paper 3 in UPSC Mains are from this subject.
Many aspirants make the mistake of assuming that Enviornment and Ecology is an easy subject as it tends to overlap with Geography and Science. Post 2013, with the introduction of separate Indian Forest Service Exams, the weightage for this subject has increased as well. Topics such as Biodiversity, Wildlife conservation, Pollution, Sustainable Development, Climate Change and International Organisations have the maximum questions asked.
Free Open for All Webinar by Retired Indian Forest Officer Aniket Wanve
If as a UPSC aspirant, you also want to appear for Indian Forest Exams and score better in Prelims and GS Paper 3, then this webinar is for you.
Ankit Wanve IFoS is a two time UPSC-CSE interview candidate. He however cleared the Indian Forest Exam in his first attempt with an AIR 66 in 2018. He was able to do this, thanks to his strong engineering background. This goes to show that if not UPSC-CSE, there are other overlapping government examinations one can give a try.
What will you learn from IFoS Aniket Wanve in this webinar?
1. How is IFoS as an alternative career choice to Civil Services. What are the roles, responsibilities, perks and benefits Ankit of an IFoS officer?
2. Forest and administration. Important conventions and clauses from exam point of view will be discussed.
3. Issues of Climate Change. What are the important protocols passed by International Organisations?
4. Current Affairs of Past One year related to Environment. What is happening in India with respect to this?
5. How to prepare for Environment and Ecology for Prelims and Mains. How to connect concepts of Geography with Environment?
6. Maximize your score in the Interview round. As a two-time interview what are Ankit Wanve’s suggestions?
This live webinar for all students will also be interactive in nature with a Q&A session.
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.
Date – 27th December 2021 (Monday)
Time – 7 PM
Limited slots are available. So please register ASAP.
Why has Civilsdaily Student and Aspiring UPSC 2022 Civil Servant, Ashish Renewed his Program for One More Year With Us?
“Unlike other students in my batch, Ashish has been a dedicated and hardworking UPSC aspirant even before joining us. Since he is unable to prepare for UPSC fulltime, he compensates by studying for 6-7 hours everyday after he completes his work as a bank officer. He is always able to complete the weekly targets assigned to him 2-3 days in advance.”, says Ashish’s Civilsdaily Mentor Pravin sir as he sets the tone of our interview. Pravin sir has been mentoring Ashish for more than a year. Satisfied with his guidance, Ashish has upgraded his program once again for 2022 prelims.
Ashish had started his UPSC-CSE preparation in March 2020. For 6 months, he prepared without comprehending what was written in the books. He followed random videos on Youtube for a topic he didn’t understand and read all the pages of many books recommended by different toppers. Ashish struggled to study a topic concisely. He did not know what was the relevant information he had to gather for a topic. Hence, though he studied hard he was unable to score well in test series. As a result of which, Ashish in his first Civilsdaily Mains Test was able to score only 50 marks out of 250 and 40 out of 200 marks in prelims.
Challenges of Ashish When He Studied Without Mentorship
By July 2020, Ashish decided he cannot waste anymore time and wanted a personal mentor for his UPSC-CSE preparation. He knew he had no time to attend coaching classes so he was particular about the kind of mentor he preferred. Ashish wanted a mentor who could help him minimize his study materials, guide him on how he could judiciously utilize the available time for preparation and set weekly targets for him. “I wanted to do the studying by myself, it’s not classes that I wanted. I wanted someone with whom I can develop micro and macro study plans, someone who evaluates test series frequently and assesses my performance. Someone who motivates me to stay focused when I feel like taking long breaks.” This on surface, might appear as trivial requirements, but let’s not forget that on a daily basis many aspirants grapple with motivation, consistency and time-management issues.
Ashish was unable to find the right mentor till he approached Civilsdaily. ” I was a regular reader of the current affairs compilation at Civilsdaily. That’s when I thought of enrolling in its mentorship program as well.” Under it’s mentorship program, Pravin sir has analyzed the previous year questions from year 1994 onwards for every topic in the syllabus. He will then suggest which book or online source Ashish can read for a particular topic. This way, Ashish is able to read about 2-3 books per subject, but not waste time by reading every page of those books.
Pravin Sir, Civilsdaily Mentor and Two-Time UPSC CSE Interview Aspirant
“To give an example, I asked Ashish to read Ramesh Singh for Fundamentals of Economy but for certain key concepts I asked him to read only from Shankar Ganesh.”, Pravin sir says and continues, “If there is any current affairs in Samachar Manthan that corresponds to what Ashish is reading this week, I will bring it to his notice.” Pravin sir conducts weekly counselling session where Ashish is free to discuss anything that bothers him personally even if it’s not related to his studies. Every aspirant has had those days when it’s been hard to just study. It happens to the best of us sometimes and for some of us, it happens more frequently. And it is understandable, Civil Service preparation is a long and often lonely process. Every aspirant, from toppers to those who have quit have been overwhelmed by this process at some point in time. Working alone is monotonous and that’s why regular counselling is required. “I believe that during this tough preparation phase, an aspirant is vulnerable to the smallest of the negative distractions. Counselling helps them stay on track and not react to anything going around them in an impulsive manner.” Pravin sir has also included all his students in the Habitat Club where he posts inspirational quotes and invites everyone for a weekly zoom session to conduct live answer writing practice sessions. “I conduct this zoom session right before and after the weekly prelims and mains test series. I feel its important for everyone in a group to discuss and debate on how they can improve an answer for a question. Over here, I also show the answer writing copies of other UPSC toppers”
When Ashish first wrote the test series, he had a problem of writing vague points which were not backed by relevant factual data. He also did not give current affairs examples of the points he discussed in his answers.
By November 2020, Ashish learnt how to improve the presentation of his answers by writing shorter points and backing it up with examples wherever necessary. He also highlighted sub-headings as boxes to get the attention of the examiner. However, while concluding, he still made vague points and did not offer solutions to the issues.
In the recent test series conducted on December 9 2021, Ashish improved his answer writing in terms of presentation, valid specific points and solutions, examples and statistics. However, he missed on giving an introduction that could have fetched him 1-2 marks extra by mentioning about the recent cryptocurrency bill.
Right now, Ashish is able to score 105 in advanced prelims test series, 120 in basic prelims test series and 100 out of 250 in advanced mains test series. “I feel reassured when I get timely support from Pravin sir and always look forward to our weekly interactions when I can inform him I completed the modules of the week.” When asked about one particular instance of mentorship that he cherishes, Ashish says, “I did not understand parliamentary committee topic once. Pravin sir was on call with me for half an hour and explained the whole topic till I understood. I really appreciate that from his end.” Ashish told us that Pravin sir directs him to the right videos and sources when he is unable to get conceptual clarity. “This often happens to me when I am reading any topic in international relations. Because of Pravin sir’s support, I am able to understand a topic in lesser time.” Due to the weekly topic wise prelims and mains test series, Ashish has improved his speed and accuracy to a large extent. “While before, I used to take 15-20 minutes to write an answer, now I am able to do so within 10 minutes.”
Get Your First 30 Min Counselling session By a Mentor for Free
At the core of Samanvaya lies the fact that each one of you will have a unique journey while preparing for the exam. Some will get through on the first attempt without much effort while others will take both more time and more effort.
We want to understand you better to help you optimize your journey so you can focus on the right things and not waste time on the wrong ones. We are asking you to tap into the valuable experiences of mentors who underwent the same grind and realize the pitfalls and understand the shortcuts to make it.
In the first counselling session, we will understand your weaknesses. Over 80% of students who claimed to have revised NCERTs twice were unable to answer basic questions. Many were not comfortable with at least 1 GS subject and Optional. Many struggled with ‘What went wrong’ after 2-3 years of hard work. Our mentors will provide free preliminary assignments so that we can assess your preparedness and suggest accurate strategies. We then help you to stick to one plan or strategy throughout your preparation.
Samanvaya Code of Conduct to be followed
However, before you fill the form and get your first 30 minute counselling with us for free, please keep in mind the following —
Be honest with your mentors about your preparation levels and stage.
Follow their advice and participate in tests and assignments that they set for you
Stay active in the telegram groups, ask doubts, don’t hold yourself back.
Don’t expect spoonfeeding. You have to drive the initiative.
In a bid to cool down the domestic prices of Soya Meal, Government has notified order under the Essential Commodities Act to declare ‘Soya Meal’ as Essential Commodities under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.
Essential Commodities Act
The ECA, 1955 was established to ensure the delivery of certain commodities or products, the supply of which, if obstructed due to hoarding or black marketing, would affect the normal life of the people.
The list of items under the Act includes drugs, fertilizers, pulses, and edible oils, as well as petroleum and petroleum products.
The Centre can include new commodities as and when the need arises, and takes them off the list once the situation improves.
Additionally, the government can also fix the maximum retail price (MRP) of any packaged product that it declares an “essential commodity”.
How ECA works?
(1) Centre notifying stock limit holding
If the Centre finds that a certain commodity is in short supply and its price is spiking, it can notify stock-holding limits on it for a specified period.
The States act on this notification to specify limits and take steps to ensure that these are adhered to.
Anybody trading or dealing in the commodity, be it wholesalers, retailers or even importers are prevented from stockpiling it beyond a certain quantity.
(2) States can opt-out
A State can, however, choose not to impose any restrictions.
But once it does, traders have to immediately sell into the market any stocks held beyond the mandated quantity.
What happens for non-compliance?
As not all shopkeepers and traders comply, State agencies conduct raids to get everyone to toe the line and the errant are punished.
The excess stocks are auctioned or sold through fair price shops.
This improves supplies and brings down prices.
Ex: The Union Government has brought masks and hand-sanitizers under the ECA to make sure that these products, key for preventing the spread of Covid-19 infection, are available to people at the right price and in the right quality. Later this move was reverted.
The government utilizes the buffer of agri-horticultural commodities like pulses, onion, etc. built under Price Stabilization Fund (PSF) to help moderate the volatility in prices.
Recent amendments to the ECA
In 2020, the EC Act was amended for the stock limit to be imposed only under exceptional circumstances such as famine or other calamities.
Exceptional circumstances: It allowed the centre to delist certain commodities as essential, allowing the government to regulate their supply and prices only in cases of war, famine, extraordinary price rises, or natural calamities.
Commodities de-regulated: The commodities that have been deregulated are food items, including cereals, pulses, potatoes, onion, edible oilseeds, and oils.
Exceptions provided:
The government regulation of stocks will be based on rising prices, and can only be imposed if there is
A 100% increase in retail price in the case of horticultural produce and
A 50% increase in retail price in the case of non-perishable agricultural food items
These restrictions will not apply to stocks of food held for public distribution in India.
