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Chat Live with Zeeshan Sir on Habitat now– Score Boosting Discussions(Link Inside)
Hello students,
Zeeshan Sir, who has been spearheading the celebrated Tikdam Series shall be live tonight at 9 pm for one-on-one LIVE chat sessions, on CIVILSDAILY HABITAT.
Here, you can personally interact with Zeeshan Sir, ask doubts, learn, discuss, and better internalize these skills to emerge more confident to face the Prelims 2020 exam.INSTRUCTIONS
If you are already on Habitat, you don’t need to register again. Discussions will take place on General group. See you at 9:00 pm tonight. Others follow these steps:
- Click on the link provided above.
- Choose Web Application. (Mandatory)
- Enter your details. Click on ‘Register a new account’.
- Choose a username.
- That is it. Welcome to Habitat.
For access through Mobile app:
- Install the Mobile application (click here) from your Appstore.
- Click on Join a Workspace.
- Enter this in the Workspace URL – habitat.civilsdaily.com
- Use the same email id and password as you used above.
Should you encounter any issue in this process or you have a query, reach out to us at +91 89299 87787 or hello@civilsdaily.com
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The only thing you need before IAS 2020 prelims – Nikaalo Prelims 2020 FLTs | Don’t miss .. | Schedule inside
8 GS FLTs, 3 CSAT, Habitat membership, Discussion, Notes
Enroll here for Nikaalo Prelims 2020 – FLTs
(Schedule and details at the bottom)
Hi students
A little over three weeks are left for 2020 prelims. At this point in time, two things which must come as natural as breathing to you are: Revising and attempting FLTs.
Based on Zeeshan sir’s Score Boosting Techniques discussions on Civilsdaily’s Habitat in the past few days, we have updated and redesigned Nikaalo Prelims FLTs.
There are 4 Full Syllabus, full-length tests. These tests are essential. Each test will be discussed on Habitat. Other than these we’re providing 4 theme-based revision tests and 3 CSAT tests.
All full syllabus tests will get thoroughly discussed on Civilsdaily’s Habitat on scheduled dates (at the bottom).
Enroll here for Nikaalo Prelims 2020 – FLTs
Highly optimized, remarkably relevant, and really comprehensive it is a power pack.
Program inclusion
1. Four Full syllabus FLTs; 4 theme-based revision tests; 3 CSAT papers (check the schedule below)
2. Civilsdaily’s support and Habitat membership.
3. An in-depth discussion (question by questions) on Civilsdaily’s Habitat.
4. High-quality Nikaalo Prelims handouts.
5. All India ranking.
Enroll here for Nikaalo Prelims 2020 – FLTs
Four full-length, full syllabus tests:
These are IAS prelims essentials.
Based on the UPSC paper our FLTs will rigorously test your preparedness and point out weak areas. It will give you the necessary reflection, direction, and confidence for the actual battle.
Prepared by our team, these papers closely resemble an actual UPSC paper.
All important and probable questions for UPSC Pre 2020 are going to be covered in our tests.
Read about our innovation-Question Tagging
Theme based revision tests:
They will cover – Union Budget, Economic Survey, India Yearbook, Schemes, Acts, Organisations and Institutions (national and international).
Covering this part is a pain. We know. But there is no other way. We will help.
Around 50-55 questions are expected in the UPSC Prelims from these sections. Preparedness in this section will ensure your success in prelims. It can actually decide if you are writing Mains 2020 or not.
Enroll here for Nikaalo Prelims 2020 – FLTs
CSAT
3 Full-length CSAT papers based on latest UPSC CSAT paper.
Post-test
- All India ranking – released on the next day of the tests.
- Nikaalo Prelims handouts – comprehensive, simple and precise.
- Detailed discussion and analysis on Civilsdaily’s Habitat (on mentioned dates in the schedule).
Zeeshan sir’s Score Boosting Discussions on Habitat 
Details
- Fees for the test: Rs 500 + Taxes
- Click on the following link: https://bit.ly/2wIEKt8
Schedule
Nikaalo Prelims 2020 FLTs - You can give the Revision tests as per your timetable. You can ask any doubts you have on Habitat.
- Full syllabus FLT test discussion will take place on the scheduled dates only. You can separately ask doubts as well.
Enroll here for Nikaalo Prelims 2020 – FLTs
All the best.
Should you have any query or doubt, feel free to contact us at 89299 87787 or hello@civilsdaily.com
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The way out on GST compensation
The economic disruption due to pandemic has made the issue of GST compensation bone of contention between the Centre and the States. This article argues that it is the GST Council and not the Centre which is responsible to find ways to raise the revenue in such a situation.
GST revenue loss and role of the Centre
- Due to global pandemic, one significant area of loss of revenue to both the Centre and the states is GST.
- The states have the comfort of assured 14 per cent growth through the compensation mechanism.
- The Centre has no such guarantee.
- The Compensation Act mandates compensating the states for revenue loss on GST implementation from the Compensation Fund.
Role of GST Council
- The course of action to be adopted in the event of the amount in the Fund falling short of requirements was discussed at length in the GST Council.
- The late Arun Jaitley, then chairman, had, in the 8th meeting, assured that “in case Compensation Fund fell short of the compensation payable, the GST Council shall decide the mode of raising additional resources including borrowing from the market which could be repaid by collection of cess in the sixth year or further subsequent years”; the Council had agreed to this suggestion.
- Quite clearly, it is the Council and not the Government of India that shall decide the mode of raising additional resources in the event of a shortfall and this is reflected in Section 10(1) of the Compensation Act.
Why it makes sense for the States to borrow
- It is argued that borrowings by the Centre or by the states make no difference in the context of fiscal discipline.
- The argument further adds that the Centre should borrow in view of its higher borrowing and debt-servicing capacity and its ability to borrow at lower rates.
- Article 292 (1) mandates that the Centre can borrow on the security of the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI).
- However, the idea of providing compensation to the states from the Consolidated Fund of India was not agreed to in the Council, it is difficult to agree with the suggestion that GoI borrows on the basis of the said CFI.
- Large borrowings by the Centre would push up the bond yield rates, pushing up bond yield of the states setting off a spiral leading to hike in the interest rates for businesses and individuals.
- The states’ borrowing would become costlier if the Centre were to borrow for this purpose.
- The borrowing capacity of the states, too, is not very inferior.
- The RBI study of state finances shows that the debt receipts of all the states as a percentage of GDP has hovered between 2.4 per cent and 3.6 per cent during the last four years.
- The states have on the average borrowed just about 1.25 per cent of the GSDP thus far.
- The states are consistently borrowing less than they can borrow (legally and financially).
- The cost of state borrowings for this purpose can be considerably lowered if arranged through a special window.
- The Centre has already breached the budgeted borrowing limits for the current year.
- Thus it makes sense for the states to borrow.
Borrowing options for the States
- There are two ways in which the States can borrow.
- 1) Borrowing the entire shortfall in the revenue.
- 2) Borrowing only the shortfall attributable to GST implementation with the remaining shortfall to be made good from the Cess Fund post the transition period.
- Certain conditionalities have been relaxed for option-1.
- However, borrowing the entire shortfall, as envisaged in option-1, will hurt both the markets and the private sector, pushing up the interest rate.
- The single window under option-1 being arranged by the Centre and the entire debt being serviced from future cess receipts will ensure that the cost remains close to the G-sec rate.
- Moreover, there will be no variation in the interest rate as between the states.
Conclusion
The states should come forward and work with the Centre in the true spirit of cooperative federalism that the Council has come to be known for these past few years.
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11th September 2020| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement
Important Announcement: Topics to be covered on 14th September-
GS-1 Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism and secularism.
GS-4 Philosophical basis of governance and probity; Information sharing and transparency in government.
Question 1)
Question 2)
Question 3)
Question 4)
Reviews will be provided in a week. (In the order of submission- First come first serve basis). In case the answer is submitted late the review period may get extended to two weeks.
*In case your answer is not reviewed in a week, reply to your answer saying *NOT CHECKED*. If Parth Sir’s tag is available then tag him.
For the philosophy of AWE and payment, check here: Click2Join
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Exploring the idea of blockchain voting
The article analyses the pros and cons of the adoption of blockchain technology for remote voting.
Background
- The Election Commission of India has been exploring the idea of further digitising the electoral infrastructure of the country.
- In furtherance of this, it explored the possibility of using blockchain technology for the purpose of enabling remote elections.
What will be the benefits
- ‘Remote voting’ would appear to benefit internal migrants and seasonal workers, who account for roughly 51 million of the populace (Census 2011).
- The envisioned solution might also be useful for some remotely-stationed members of the Indian armed forces.
Key issues
- Electors would still have to physically reach a designated venue in order to cast their vote,
- Digitisation and interconnectivity introduce additional points of failure external to the processes which exist in the present day.
- Blockchain solutions rely heavily on the proper implementation of cryptographic protocols.
- If security is breached, it could unmask the identity and voting preferences of electors, or worse yet, allow an individual to cast a vote as someone else.
- The provisioning of a dedicated line may make the infrastructure less prone to outages, it may also make it increasingly prone to targeted Denial-of-Service attack.
- Digitised systems may also stand to exclude and disenfranchise certain individuals due to flaws in interdependent platforms, flaws in system design, as well as general failures caused by external factors.
Way forward
- Political engagement could perhaps be improved by introducing and improving upon other methods, such as postal ballots or proxy voting.
- Another proposed solution to this issue includes the creation of a ‘One Nation, One Voter ID’ system.
Consider the question “What are the opportunities and challenges in the adoption of blockchain technology. Suggest the other alternatives to enable the ballot portability.”
Conclusion
Adoption of technology should be weighed against the risk it carries in the electoral process. While the adoption of blockchain technology offers many opportunities, the concerns it raises must be addressed before its adoption.
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Global Biodiversity Outlook-5 Report
The Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO) 5 report was leaked before its official release. Let’s look at the highlights of the report.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Consider the following pairs:
Terms sometimes seen in the news- Their origin
- Annex-I Countries- Cartagena Protocol
- Certified Emissions- Nagoya Protocol Reductions
- Clean Development- Kyoto Protocol Mechanism
Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
About GBO report
- The GBO is the flagship publication of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
- It is a periodic report that summarizes the latest data on the status and trends of biodiversity and draws conclusions relevant to the further implementation of the Convention.
- It summarizes progress made towards achieving the objectives of the Convention, such as the Aichi Targets and identifies key actions to achieve these.
Highlights of the Report
- GBO-5 is an overview of the state of nature. It is a final report card on the progress made by countries in achieving the Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
- What the world needed was a shift from business-as-usual, the report said. This transformation needed to take place in all human activities that were interlinked with natural resources.
- This shift was crucial, the report added as natural resources would continue to decline and the world would not be able to meet the UN-mandated Sustainable Development Goals.
- The GBO-5 suggested some shifts that need to be implemented to achieve the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity. These include:
- Transition within land and forests: The report called the restoration of all forests that had been degraded. It also urged restoring local ecosystems.
- Sustainable agriculture: Farmers would have to reduce the use of chemicals and instead focus more on agroecological farming practices, the report said.
- Sustainable food systems: The report urged people to eat healthier, plant-based food and less meat. It also called for a focus on the problem of food wastage within the supply chain and household.
- Climate action: The report called for nature-based solutions to reduce climate change
- One health: Agricultural and urban ecosystems, as well as wildlife, should be managed in an integrated manner, it said.
Failure to meet the targets
None of the 20 ‘Aichi Biodiversity Targets’ agreed on by national governments through the CBD has been met, according to the report. The world was supposed to meet these targets by 2020. Whatever little progress has been made, has to do with the following:
- Aichi Biodiversity Target 1 (Creating awareness about the value of biodiversity)
- Aichi Biodiversity Target 11 (17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, to be effectively and equitably managed)
- Aichi Biodiversity Target 16 (Access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilization)
- Aichi Biodiversity Target 17 (Creation, adoption and implementation of an effective, participatory and updated national biodiversity strategy and action plan)
- Aichi Biodiversity Target 19 (Improvement and dissemination of knowledge, the science base and technologies relating to biodiversity).
Back2Basics: Convention on Biological Diversity
- The CBD, known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is a multilateral treaty.
- The Convention has three main goals including the conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity); the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources.
- It has two supplementary agreements:
- Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety- An international treaty governing the movements of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology from one country to another
- Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization (ABS)
- All UN member states—with the exception of the United States—have ratified the treaty.
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What constitutes a breach of the legislature’s privilege?
A motion for breach of privilege was moved in the Maharashtra Assembly against a news channel’s editor-in-chief. A similar motion was moved in the Maharashtra Legislative Council against an actor.
Try this PYQ:
Q.With reference to the Parliament of India, which of the following Parliamentary Committees scrutinizes and reports to the House whether the powers to make regulations, rules, sub-rules, by-laws etc. conferred by the constitution of delegated by the Parliament are being properly exercised by the Executive within the scope of such delegation?
(a) Committee on Government Assurances
(b) Committee on Subordinate Legislation
(c) Rules Committee
(d) Business Advisory Committee
Provisions to protect the privileges of the legislature
- The powers, privileges and immunities of either House of the Indian Parliament and of its Members and committees are laid down in Article 105 of the Constitution.
- Article 194 deals with the powers, privileges and immunities of the State Legislatures, their Members and their committees.
- Parliamentary privilege refers to the right and immunity enjoyed by legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties.
What constitutes a breach of this privilege?
- While the Constitution has accorded special privileges and powers to parliamentarians and legislators to maintain the dignity and authority of the Houses, these powers and privileges are not codified.
- Thus, there are no clear, notified rules to decide what constitutes a breach of privilege, and the punishment it attracts.
- Any act that obstructs or impedes either House of the state legislature in performing its functions, or which obstructs or impedes any Member or Officer of such House in the discharge of his duty, or has a tendency, directly or indirectly, to produce such results is treated as a breach of privilege.
- It is a breach of privilege and contempt to print or publish libel reflecting on the character or proceedings of the House or its Committees or on any member of the House for or relating to his character or conduct as a legislator.
Procedure followed in cases of an alleged breach
- The Legislative Assembly Speaker or Legislative Council Chairman constitutes a Privileges Committee consisting of 15 members in the Assembly and 11 members in the Council.
- The members to the committee which has quasi-judicial powers are nominated based on the party strength in the Houses.
- The Speaker or Chairman first decides on the motions.
- If the privilege and contempt are found prima facie, then the Speaker or Chairman will forward it to the Privileges Committee by following the due procedure.
- At present, there is no Privileges Committee in either House of the state legislature.
- The Committee will seek an explanation from all the concerned, will conduct an inquiry and will make a recommendation based on the findings to the state legislature for its consideration.
What is the punishment for this?
- If the Committee finds the offender guilty of breach of privilege and contempt, it can recommend the punishment.
- The punishment can include communicating the displeasure of the state legislature to the offender, summoning the offender before the House and giving a warning, and even sending the offender to jail.
- In the case of the media, press facilities of the state legislature may be withdrawn, and a public apology may be sought.
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Registration under Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA)
The Union Home Ministry has granted FCRA registration to the famous Gurdwara Harmandir Sahib, or the Golden Temple, in Amritsar, enabling it to receive foreign donations.
Foreign Contribution Regulation Act
- The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010 is an act to regulate the acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or associations or companies
- It prohibits acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality for any activities detrimental to the national interest and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto
- The central government has the power to prohibit any persons or organizations from accepting foreign contribution or hospitality if it is determined that such acceptance would likely “affect prejudicially”
(i) the sovereignty and integrity of India,
(ii) public interest,
(iii) freedom or fairness of election to any legislature,
(iv) friendly relations with any foreign State, or
(v) harmony between religious, racial, social, linguistic or regional groups, castes or communities
Premise for the FCRA
- Government of India enacted the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) in the year 1976 with an objective of regulating the acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution.
- Any association, non-government organisation (NGO) or registered society requires FCRA registration to receive foreign donations for specified purposes.
- The act was majorly modified in 2010 with several amendments because many NGOs were found using illegal use of foreign funding.
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What are SAROD-Ports?
Union Ministry of Shipping has e-launched ‘SAROD-Ports’ (Society for Affordable Redressal of Disputes – Ports).
Try this MCQ:
Q.The term SAROD is sometimes seen in the news with context to governance is related to:
(a) Disputes Redressal
(b) Employment
(c) Sustainable Development
(d) None of the above
SAROD Ports
SAROD-Ports are established under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 with the following objectives:
- Affordable and timely resolution of disputes in a fair manner
- Enrichment of Dispute Resolution Mechanism with the panel of technical experts as arbitrators.
- They consist of members from the Indian Ports Association (IPA) and Indian Private Ports and Terminals Association (IPTTA).
- They will advise and assist in settlement of disputes through arbitrations in the maritime sector, including ports and shipping sector in Major Port Trusts, Non-major Ports, including private ports, jetties, terminals and harbours.
- It will also cover disputes between granting authority and Licensee/Concessionaire /Contractor.
