The Ministry of Jal Shakti began ‘SUJALAM’, a ‘100 days campaign’ to create more and more ODF Plus villages by undertaking wastewater management at the village level.
SUJALAM Campaign
The key activities that will be organized in the villages under this campaign include:
Organizing Community consultations, Khuli Baithaks and Gram Sabha meetings to analyze the current situation
Pass resolution to maintain ODF sustainability and achieve a needed number of soak pits to manage the greywater
Develop a 100 days’ plan to undertake sustainability and soak pit construction-related activities
Construct a requisite number of soak pits
Retrofit toilets where needed through IEC and community mobilization and
Ensure all newly emerging Households in the village have access to toilets
Objectives of the campaign
The effort of the campaign would be directed towards achieving the ODF plus status for villages across the country in an accelerated manner in a short time.
The campaign will not only build desired infrastructure soak pit for management of greywater in villages but will also aid in sustainable management of water bodies.
The disposal of wastewater and clogging of water bodies in the villages or on the outskirts of the villages remain one of the major problems.
The Campaign would help in the management of the wastewater and in turn, would help to revive the water bodies.
GS-1 Factors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in various parts of the world (including India).
GS-2 India and its Neighborhood- Relations.
GS-3 Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, Robotics, Nano-technology, Bio-technology and issues relating to Intellectual Property Rights.
GS-4 Probity in Governance: Information sharing and_ transparency in government, Right to Information, Codes of Ethics, Codes of Conduct, Citizen’s Charters, Work culture, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds, challenges of corruption.
HOW TO ATTEMPT ANSWERS IN DAILY ANSWER WRITING ENHANCEMENT(AWE)?
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Polity is the key to success in UPSC, and here’s why:
Up to 20 questions in Prelims – 40 marks!
Command over Polity means great writing material in essays.
The knowledge of polity can be used in GS papers, IR, and national issues.
Polity concepts are highly useful in writing Ethics answer.
Master polity and your score can rise by 100 marks in Mains.
It is easy to master the subject if you know the right tricks!
This is why we believe that all UPSC aspirants who are serious about clearing Prelims in this attempt should know the 5 Most Valuable Topics in polity and the smart way of completing the syllabus in time. And we would like to share these with you for FREE in the upcoming session with Sudhanshu Sir.
For example, these are the areas that UPSC has focused on in the previous years:
And this is where these questions were sourced from:
But what about this year? Sudhanshu sir will explain, in detail, in the session.
How to complete the Polity syllabus ‘effectively.’
How to revise the syllabus in record time.
How to use the knowledge of Polity for better answer writing.
How to use the knowledge of polity for writing better essays.
How to make sure you answer ALL the polity questions in Prelims correctly.
How to use Polity to gain advantage over other candidates.
You can learn all of this and more for absolutely free in the session.
DO NOT miss this opportunity to know the right way of completing your Polity syllabus for UPSC 2022. The session is absolutely free and you can gain up to 40 MARKS in Prelims by attending this session. But there are just limited slots available so we request you to register now!
In the past decade, there has been long term peace all over the Northeast region leading to new ideas flourishing and investments flowing in.
There are many examples that the North East is changing as this new breed is going into unchartered territory as the region provides more opportunities than challenges.
There are sporadic incidents, slow pace in achieving a Naga solution, but the peace has taken an irreversible stand and today in front of the mighty denim of peace for all the people.
The emerging challenge is to invent new ways of ensuring the participation of States in the formulation of national policies and motivating them for effective implementation in key development areas.
Achievements in NER
Today the North East is insurgency free.
Occasional incidents arc too insignificant in front of the grater picture.
Sooner or later the last remaining accord- the Naga Accord will be signed.
Opportunities for NER: Gateway to the East
The region is a vantage entry point to southeastern Asian markets.
Moreover, no less than five major bridges over Brahmaputra, along with the world’s longest bridge at Dhubri-Phulbari are in the various stages of construction which are going to unlock North East India completely.
The two single biggest fast-moving projects is the 1500-kilometer-long Trans Arunachal Highway from Sousa north of Teepee to Naharkatiya near Nagaland through Arunachal Pradesh. The project is worth $1.4 Billion.
The other one is the Jirbam-Imphal railway line, opening up Manipur to the vast railway network of India.
Under the Special Accelerated Road Development Programme in North-East (SARDP-NE), the Trans-Arunachal highway is being developed.
Under the initiative, a sub-regional Motor Vehicle Agreement allows buses and later private vehicles with a Bhutan, Bangladesh, India and Nepal (BBIN) permit.
Concerns
Lack of Agricultural Infrastructure: The absence of efficient cold storage chains exposes cultivators to market fluctuations.
Tourism isn’t in full capacity: Tourism, too, has not made much headway due to poor infrastructure development.
Federal Issues: There are uncoordinated and fragmented efforts by individual states.
High expenditure: Each Ministry of the Union Government is required to spend at least 10 per cent of its budget in the North-East.
Lack of investment: To harness the full potential of these sectors, significant investments will be required in upgrading the region’s infrastructure, education and skill development.
SWOT Analysis of the NER
Strengths
Several tourist attractions such as Blue Mountain (Phawngpui-Mizoram), Palak Lake (Mizoram), Kangla Fort (Manipur), Majuli (river island in Assam).
Presence of an ethnic, tribal culture each with unique customs and traditions.
The north-eastern region has a very well-performing gender development index.
Rich bamboo reserves.
The abundance of natural resources like limestone as well as water for hydropower potential.
Safe and clean, pollution-free environment.
Weakness
Lack of proper connectivity.
Limited tourism infrastructure facilities.
Scarcity of skilled and unskilled labour.
Floods and landslides in the monsoons make places inaccessible.
Landlocked states.
Opportunities
Development of the handicraft industry.
Flood management system to improve accessibility.
Linkages to existing tourism circuits.
Trade can drastically be improved by improving infrastructural facilities and accessibility.
Threats
Overuse and commercialization of eco-sensitive zones could lead to depletion of resources and weakening of attraction.
Regional connectivity concerns.
Land banks and land availability not addressed.
Migration of local people to urban areas for employment prospects.
Conclusion
The North-East region has great potential to develop not just as a self, sustaining economic unit of India but also contribute to the success story of the country, which is reflected by the PM’s focus on this region.
Maintaining consistency is one of the biggest issues faced by IAS Aspirants. Streak’s initiative is to help Aspirants in their day-to-day preparation. You can follow the monthly, weekly, and daily timetables and continue this streak until you find yourself on the final list.
The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan has triggered a new debate in international law on the issue of recognising an entity that claims to be the new government of a state.
Legal challenge of recognising a government
Questions of recognition do not arise when the change of government within a state occurs when political power is transferred through legal means.
However, things are different when the change of government happens through extra-legal methods like ousting the sitting government using unconstitutional means.
China and Russia, two of the five permanent United Nations Security Council members, have seemingly shown readiness to recognise a Taliban-led government.
Whereas countries like Canada have opposed it.
Recognition of governments under international law is vital for several reasons.
Recognition of government Vs. Recognition of State: Malcolm Shaw, the international lawyer, writes, “a change in government, however, accomplished, does not affect the identity of the State itself.”
Thus, in the current debate, the issue is not about the recognition of Afghanistan, whose legal personality remains intact it’s about the recognition of government.
Two doctrines in Internation laws for recognising a government
1) Effectiveness
According to this principle, to recognise a government means to determine whether it effectively controls the state it claims to govern.
Under this doctrine, it is immaterial how the new government occupied office.
Since there is hardly any doubt that the Taliban now effectively controls Afghanistan, as per this test, it would be recognised as Afghanistan’s government for international law and thus, international relations.
2) Democratic legitimacy
According to this doctrine, recognition of a government also depends on whether it is the legitimate representative of the people it claims to govern.
The end of the Cold War, the subsequent spread of democracy in the world, and the growing demand for universal respect for human rights gave an impetus to this doctrine in the last three decades.
This doctrine has led many countries to bestow de jure recognition (legal recognition) on governments in exile in place of governments exercising effective control.
Two recent examples include recognition by some states of Yemen’s government in exile since 2015.
Second, the Nicolás Maduro government in Venezuela is not recognised by several countries due to the alleged lack of democratic legitimacy.
The Taliban regime, despite exercising effective control over Afghanistan, lacks democratic legitimacy.
Thus, it would fail to be recognised as the legitimate representative of Afghanistan if the doctrine of democratic legitimacy is applied.
Nevertheless, there is no binding legal obligation on countries to withhold recognition citing democratic legitimacy.
Thus, if Russia and China were to formally recognise the Taliban regime due to its effective control of Afghanistan, it would be consistent with international law.
Way forward for India
India will have to find a way to engage with the Taliban given India’s huge investments in Afghanistan and stakes in the South Asian region.
India should adopt a clear policy that it will deal with the Taliban simply because it is the de facto government, not because it is a legitimate one.
This principle should be followed for bilateral relations and also for multilateral dealings such as within the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.
Consider the question “What are the doctrines in international law in recognising the government of State? What should be India’s course of action in dealing with the Taliban in Afghanistan?”
Conclusion
Given the Taliban’s brutal past, India is within its right to withhold de jure recognition of the Taliban regime. However, India has to devise a policy to deal with the Taliban as a de facto government.
Polity is the key to success in UPSC, and here’s why:
Up to 20 questions in Prelims – 40 marks!
Command over Polity means great writing material in essays.
The knowledge of polity can be used in GS papers, IR, and national issues.
Polity concepts are highly useful in writing Ethics answer.
Master polity and your score can rise by 100 marks in Mains.
It is easy to master the subject if you know the right tricks!
This is why we believe that all UPSC aspirants who are serious about clearing Prelims in this attempt should know the 5 Most Valuable Topics in polity and the smart way of completing the syllabus in time. And we would like to share these with you for FREE in the upcoming webinar with Sudhanshu Sir.
For example, these are the areas that UPSC has focused on in the previous years:
And where are these questions sourced from?
But what about this year? Sudhanshu sir will explain, in detail, in the webinar.
How to complete the Polity syllabus ‘effectively.’
How to revise the syllabus in record time.
How to use the knowledge of Polity for better answer writing.
How to use the knowledge of polity for writing better essays.
How to make sure you answer ALL the polity questions in Prelims correctly.
How to use Polity to gain advantage over other candidates.
You can learn all of this and more for absolutely free in the webinar.
DO NOT miss this opportunity to know the right way of completing your Polity syllabus for UPSC 2022. The webinar is absolutely free and you can gain up to 40 MARKS in Prelims by attending this session. But there are just limited slots available so we request you to register now!
Important Types of Bills in Parliament/Types of Majority
A Bill is a draft legislative proposal that becomes a Law upon enactment. Bills could be broadly classified into two ways:
On the basis of the source of origin:
(1) Government Bill
It is also called Public Bill. It is a Bill introduced by a minister in the government. It is the primary method of legislation.
(2) Private Member Bill
It is the bill introduced by a Member of Parliament who is not a minister.
It is important to remember that a Bill introduced by a non-minister MP of even the ruling party is called Private Member Bill.
Such bills can only be introduced and discussed on Fridays.
2. On the basis of the procedure of passage of the Bill:
(1) Ordinary Bill
An ordinary bill does not require the recommendation of the President and can be introduced in either of the Houses.
It needs only a simple majority and the second House may choose any of the following courses of action:
Pass the Bill
Reject the Bill
Propose Amendment to the Bill
No action In case the Bill is rejected or amendments which are not agreeable to the originating House are proposed or inaction for a period of 180 Parliamentary days, a deadlock is deemed to have emerged. Such a deadlock could be resolved by a joint sitting notified and summoned by President under article 108. Once notified, neither House shall proceed forth with the pending bill. When submitted to the assent of President. Such a deadlock could be resolved by a joint sitting notified and summoned by the President under article 108. Once notified, neither House shall proceed forth with the pending bill. When submitted for the assent of President, after due passage in the Parliament, he has the following options:
Give assent to the Bill and then it becomes a Law
Withhold assent
Exercise Suspensive Veto or
Exercise Pocket Veto
(2) Money Bill
It is the bill which exclusively deals with one or more money matters under article 110 which are as follows:
Imposition, alteration or abolition of a tax
Borrowing of money by the government
Custody of Consolidated Fund of India or Contingency Fund of India
Deposit or withdrawal from the above mentioned funds
Appropriation of money out of consolidated fund of India
Receipt of money upon Consolidated Fund of India or Public Accounts of India
Declaring any expenditure as expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.
Points to Remember about Money Bill
A Money Bill can be introduced only in Lok Sabha and that too only after the recommendation of the President.
It needs only a simple majorityand the speaker is required to certify it as a Money Bill prior to its transmission to Rajya Sabha.
Rajya Sabha does not have the power to amend or reject the bill but it may suggest amendments.
If Rajya Sabha does not pass the bill within 14 days the bill would be deemed as passed by the Rajya Sabha.
Deadlock is not possible.
The President may either give or withhold assent to Money Bill. But ordinarily he is expected to give his assent.
The President cannot send a Money Bill back in the House is for reconsideration as per Article 111.
(3) Financial Bill
It deals with non-money matters along with the money matters mentioned under article 110.
The differences with Money Bill are:
Money Bill exclusively deals with money matters under article 110 only.
While the money is the sole purpose of a Money Bill, the primary objective of a Financial Bill in general is something else and money is only incidental to that objective.
Financial bill requires prior recommendation of the President.
It can be introduced only in Lok Sabhaand not in Rajya Sabha.
However, the Rajya Sabha enjoys the same powers as are available in the case of an Ordinary Bill.
Even a deadlock can be a possibilitywhich could be resolved by a joint sitting.
(4) Constitutional Amendment Bill
It is a bill to amend one or more provisions of the Constitution.
Unlike money bill and financial bill it does not require prior recommendationof the President.
It can be introduced in either of the Houses and would require special majorityfor passage in each House.
There can be a deadlockbut for resolution there cannot be a joint sitting.
If a constitutional amendment bill deals with the distribution of powers between Centre and States, it would require ratification bynot less than half of the States.
Through the 24th Constitutional Amendment act 1971, it was ensured that the presidentshall give hisassent to our Constitutional Amendment Bill duly passed by the Houses.
Types of Majority
There are 4 main types of Majority. The last one being Special Majority that has 3 sub-types.
The most important Majorities will be Simple Majority and Special Majority of the 2nd kind. We will use current strength of the Lok Sabha = 545 in the examples to explain.
Absolute – More than 50% of the Total Strength of the House. Meaning
1/2 x 545 = 273 or more
This majority is never used anywhere but has a huge significance. If a political party has an Absolute Majority, it means it gets to form the govt., there is stability in the house.
Simple – Also called functional majority. It means Majority of more than 50% of members present and voting.
Lets assume the members present and voting is 300 (out of 545). We have
1/2 X 300 = 150 or more
Usage
When not stated what type of Majority in the Constitution, this majority is assumed.
Passage of Ordinary, Money and Financial Bills.
Passage of No-Confidence Motion, Confidence Motion, Vote of Thanks to the President, Censure Motion, Adjournment Motion, Calling Attention Motion.
Election of the Speaker, Dy. Speaker, Dy. Chairman of RS.
Passage of approval to President’s Rule and Financial Emergency.
Approval by LS for discontinuance of Emergency.
Effective– Means Majority of the Effective Strength of the House where Effective Strength is defined as Total Strength – No. of Vacancies. Vacancies arise due to 3 reasons – Death, Disqualification, Resignation. Some sources mention Absenteeism as a vacancy but that is incorrect.
Lets assume Number of Vacancies are 6. We have
1/2 X (545-6) = 270 or more
Usage
Removal of the VP. Initiated by the RS, requires Effective Majority in the RS, thereafter Simple Majority in the LS.
Removal of the Speaker, Dy. Speaker and Dy. Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
Special– This majority has 3 sub-types that require some attention.
1st kind:Not less than 2/3 of the Members present and voting.
Usage (only in 2 conditions)
Passage of Resolution under Art. 249 and Art. 312.
2nd kind : Fulfills the following criteria:
i) Not less than 2/3 of the Members present and voting.
ii) Majority of the Total Strength of the House.
Eg. Out of 545, 450 Members are present and 300 vote in favor. Both the above conditions are satisfied – 300 is more than 2/3 of 450 and 300 is more than 1/2 of 545.
To make it simpler to remember, it is
Special Majority of First kind + Absolute Majority.
Usage
Passage of Constitutional Amendment Bills under Art. 368.
Approval by both Houses for the continuance of Emergency.
Removal of Judges of SC, High Court, CAG, CEC.
Approval for the creation of State Legislative Council of a State under Art. 169.
3rd kind:This is used only once – during the impeachment of the President of India. Is mentioned in Art. 61 of the Constitution.
2/3rd Majority of the Total Strength of the House.
On June 23, 2021, the Joint Committee examining the Personal Data Protection Bill (2019) was granted a fifth extension by Parliament. While the Government has been simultaneously exploring the potential of facial recognition technology.
Automatic Facial Recognition in India
To empower the Indian police with information technology, India approved implementation of the National Automated Facial Recognition System (NAFRS).
On its implementation, it will function as a national-level search platform that will use facial recognition technology.
It will help to facilitate investigation of crime or for identifying a person of interest regardless of face mask, makeup, plastic surgery, beard or hair extension.
Issues with AFR technology
Intrusive in nature: The technology is absolutely intrusive, for the purposes of ‘verification’ or ‘identification’, the system compares the faceprint generated with a large existing database of faceprints typically available to law enforcement agencies.
Accuracy and bias: Though the accuracy of facial recognition has improved over the years due to modern machine-learning algorithms, the risk of error and bias still exists.
With the element of error and bias, facial recognition can result in profiling of some overrepresented groups (such as Dalits and minorities) in the criminal justice system.
Privacy: As NAFRS will collect, process, and store sensitive private information: facial biometrics for long periods; if not permanently — it will impact the right to privacy.
Accordingly, it is crucial to examine whether its implementation is arbitrary and thus unconstitutional, i.e., is it ‘legitimate’, ‘proportionate to its need’ and ‘least restrictive’?
The Supreme Court, in the K.S. Puttaswamy judgment provided a three-fold requirement to safeguard against any arbitrary state action.
Unfortunately, NAFRS fails each one of these tests.
Any encroachment on the right to privacy requires the existence of ‘law’ (to satisfy legality of action); there must exist a ‘need’, in terms of a ‘legitimate state interest’; and, the measure adopted must be ‘proportionate’ and it should be ‘least intrusive.’
Lack of law: It does not stem from any statutory enactment (such as the DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill 2018 proposed to identify offenders or an executive order of the Central Government.
Rather, it was merely approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in 2009.
Fails proportionality test: Even if we assume that there exists a need for NAFRS to tackle modern day crimes, this measure is grossly disproportionate.
For NAFRS to achieve the objective of ‘crime prevention’ or ‘identification’ will require the system to track people on a mass scale — avoiding a CCTV in a public place is difficult — resulting in everyone becoming a subject of surveillance: a disproportionate measure.
Impact on civil liberties: As anonymity is key to functioning of a liberal democracy, unregulated use of facial recognition technology will dis-incentivise independent journalism or the right to assemble peaceably without arms, or any other form of civic society activism.
Due to its adverse impact on civil liberties, some countries have been cautious with the use of facial recognition technology.
In the United States, the Facial Recognition and Biometric Technology Moratorium Act of 2020 was introduced in the Senate to prohibit biometric surveillance without statutory authorisation.
Similarly, privacy watchdogs in the European Union have called for a ban on facial recognition.
Way forward
Statutory basis: NAFRS should have statutory authorisation, and guidelines for deployment.
Data protection law: In the interest of civil liberties it is important to impose a moratorium on the use of facial recognition technology till we enact a strong and meaningful data protection law.
Consider the question “What are the issues associated with the deployment of NAFRS? Suggest the way forward.”
Conclusion
In sum, even if facial recognition technology is needed to tackle modern-day criminality in India, without accountability and oversight, facial recognition technology has strong potential for misuse and abuse.
