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  • Unified Database of Birth and Death

    The Centre has proposed amendments to a 1969 law that will enable it to “maintain the database of registered birth and deaths at the national level”.

    Registration of Births and Deaths Act (RBD), 1969

    • The registration of births, deaths and stillbirths are compulsory under the provisions of RBD Act in all parts of the Country.
    • The normal period of 21 days (from the date of occurrence) has been prescribed for reporting the birth, death and stillbirth events.

    Why need amendment?

    • The database may be used to update the Population Register and the electoral register, and Aadhaar, ration card, passport and driving licence databases after the amendment.
    • Presently, the registration of births and deaths is done by the local registrar appointed by States.

    What are the proposed amendments?

    Ans. Unified Database of Birth and Death

    • It is proposed that the Chief Registrar (appointed by the States) would maintain a unified database at the State level.
    • It would then integrate it with the data at the “national level,” maintained by the Registrar General of India (RGI).
    • The amendments will imply that the Centre will be a parallel repository of data.

    Significance of the database

    • It would help update:
    1. Population Register prepared under the Citizenship Act, 1955;
    2. Electoral registers or electoral rolls prepared under the Representation of the People Act, 1951
    3. Aadhaar database prepared under the Aadhaar Act, 2016;
    4. Ration card database prepared under the National Food Security Act, 2013;
    5. Passport database prepared under the Passport Act; and
    6. Driving licence database under the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019, and
    7. Other databases at the national level are subject to provisons of Section 17 (1) of the RBD Act, 1969

     

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  • Krishi UDAN 2.0 Scheme

    The Union Minister of Civil Aviation has launched Krishi UDAN 2.0.

    Krishi UDAN 2.0

    • The scheme proposes to facilitating and incentivizing movement of Agri-produce by air transportation.
    • It lays out the vision of improving value realization through better integration and optimization of Agri-harvesting and air transportation.
    • It works by contributing to Agri-value chain sustainability and resilience under different and dynamic conditions.
    • It will be implemented at 53 airports across the country mainly focusing on Northeast and tribal regions and is likely to benefit farmer, freight forwarders and Airlines.

    Key highlights of the scheme

    • Facilitating and incentivizing movement of Agri-produce by air transportation: Full waiver of Landing, Parking, TNLC and RNFC charges for Indian freighters and P2C at selected Airports. Primarily, focusing on NER, Hilly, and tribal regions.
    • Strengthening cargo-related infrastructure at airports and off airports: Facilitating the development of a hub and spoke model and a freight grid.
    • Concessions sought from other bodies: Seek support and encourage States to reduce Sales Tax to 1% on aviation fuels for freighters / P2C aircraft as extended in UDAN flights.
    • Resources-Pooling through establishing Convergence mechanism: Collaboration with other government departments and regulatory bodies.
    • Technological convergence: Development of E-KUSHAL (Krishi UDAN for Sustainable Holistic Agri-Logistics).

    What is E-KAUSHAL?

    • It is a platform to be developed to facilitate information dissemination to all the stakeholders.
    • This will be a single platform that will provide relevant information at the same time will also assist in coordination, monitoring and evaluation of the scheme.
    • Furthermore, integration of E-KUSHAL with the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) is proposed.

    Airports under the scheme

    Proposed timeline Locations
    2021 – 2022 Agartala, Srinagar, Dibrugarh, Dimapur, Hubballi, Imphal, Jorhat, Lilabari, Lucknow, Silchar, Tezpur, Tirupati, Tuticorin
    2022 – 2023 Ahmedabad, Bhavnagar, Jharsuguda, Kozhikode, Mysuru, Puducherry, Rajkot, Vijayawada
    2023 – 2024 Agra, Darbhanga, Gaya, Gwalior, Pakyong, Pantnagar, Shillong, Shimla, Udaipur, Vadodara
    2024 – 2025 Holangi, Salem

    7 focus routes & products

    Routes Products
    Amritsar – Dubai Babycorn
    Darbhanga – Rest of India Lichis
    Sikkim – Rest of India Organic produce
    Chennai, Vizag, Kolkata – Far East Seafood
    Agartala – Delhi & Dubai Pineapple
    Dibrugarh – Delhi & Dubai Mandarin & Oranges
    Guwahati  – Hong Kong Pulses, fruits & vegetables

     

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  • [pib] CERT-In authorized as CVE Numbering Authority (CNA)

    CERT-In has partnered with the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) Program and has been authorized as a CVE Numbering Authority (CNA) for vulnerabilities impacting all products designed, developed and manufactured in India.

    What is CVE Program?

    • CVE is an international, community-based effort and relies on the community to discover vulnerabilities.
    • The vulnerabilities are discovered then assigned and published to the CVE List.
    • Information technology and cybersecurity professionals use CVE Records to ensure they are discussing the same issue, and to coordinate their efforts to prioritize and address the vulnerabilities.
    • Partners publish CVE Records to communicate consistent descriptions of vulnerabilities.

    Mission of the Program

    • The mission of the CVE Program is to identify, define, and catalog publicly disclosed cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
    • The vulnerabilities are discovered then assigned and published by organizations from around the world that have partnered with the CVE Program.

    Who are the CNAs?

    • CNAs are organizations responsible for the regular assignment of CVE IDs to vulnerabilities, and for creating and publishing information about the Vulnerability in the associated CVE Record.
    • The CVE List is built by CVE Numbering Authorities (CNAs).
    • Every CVE Record added to the list is assigned by a CNA.
    • The CVE Records published in the catalog enable program stakeholders to rapidly discover and correlate vulnerability information used to protect systems against attacks.
    • Each CNA has a specific Scope of responsibility for vulnerability identification and publishing.

    Back2Basics: Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN)

    • CERT-IN is an office within the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
    • It is the nodal agency to deal with cyber security threats like hacking and phishing. It strengthens the security-related defense of the Indian Internet domain.
    • It was formed in 2004 by the Government of India under the Information Technology Act, 2000 Section (70B) under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.

     

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  • [Yojana Archive] Girl Child Protection

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    September 2021: “Nari Shakti”
    • Child protection is a human rights issue, and it comes under the purview of the legislative framework.
    • In 1989, an international agreement, ‘The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child’ (UNCRC) was adopted.
    • It legally binds the governments to set out the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights of every child.

    On 11 December 1992, India ratified UNCRC, making it a landmark encouragement for the Indian Government to develop progressive legislation to safeguard child rights.

    Covid-19 and Girls

    Socio-economic impacts of Covid-19 are gendered, evident in the form of educational inequality, sexual violence, and increased household burden.

    • Increased domestic violence: In India, the National Commission for Women reported 2.5 times increase in domestic violence during the initial months of nationwide lockdown.
    • Abuse & Trafficking: Closure of schools and pandemic induced poverty has increased the vulnerability of children especially the girl child to abuse and trafficking
    • School dropout: UNESCO’s Global Education Monitoring Report (2021) throws light on increased educational inequalities for adolescent girls during the Covid-19 crisis. UNESCO estimates that around 11 million girls may not return to school.
    • School Closures pushed Children into Labour: In 2021, says UNESCO, 24 million children may not find their way back to schools after the pandemic. Any child who is not in school is a potential child labourer.
    • Child Marriages: India witnessed an increase in the number of child marriages since 2020. Girls are further at risk – married off early, these child brides are also often child labourers.
    • Reduced Education Budget: Despite knowing the impact of Pandemic on education system & thus on Children’s future, the Union budget has Rs 5,000 crore less to spend on education for children this year.
    • Digital gender gap: The digital gender gap deters girls’ remote education and access to information.

    Various policy initiaitives

    • Improving sex ratio: Beti Padhao, Beti Bachao Scheme, Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act are meant to prevent sex selective abortions and improve sex ratio in the country.
    • Literacy: Sukanya Samridhi Yojana creates a fund for the future education of the girl child and Udan for higher education of girl child.
    • Child Marriage: Prohibition of Child marriage Act 2006 has been enacted to prevent marriage of girls below 18 years of age.
    • Health and nutrition: Supplying iron and folic acid tablets, Kishori Shakti Yojana, POSHAN abhiyan, Mid-day meal scheme have been undertaken to provide sufficient nutrition to girl child.
    • Hygiene: Ujjwala sanitary napkin at minimal cost under Suvidha scheme will support menstrual hygienic among girls.
    • Child labour protection: The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016 has been enacted to make sure girls are not indulged in child labour and instead get education.
    • Sexual abuse: Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 provides strict punitive action in case of sexual abuse against the child.
    • Protection against offences: Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 seeks to safeguard the rights of children in conflict with the law, and those in need of care and protection. Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) was launched in 2009 to build a protective environment for children in difficult circumstances.
    • In 2020, the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights launched Standard Operating Procedure for Care and Protection of Children in Street Situations.

    Way Forward

    Ensuring a gender-responsive child protection system amid crisis is paramount.

    • Educate families about the detrimental impacts of the household burden on young girls. Enable families to empower their daughters through education and household decision-making.
    • Overcome gender bias in education – gender-neutral school curriculum, pedagogy, and environment. Challenge the gender discriminatory attitudes of students and present role models.  Ensure safe and gender-responsive reopening of schools.
    • Engage children to voice and act against child marriage in the community. Ensure that girl safety is a collective responsibility.
    • Lead advocacy, campaigns, and activism to echo girl child protection with zero tolerance for heinous crimes against minor girl child. Prevention is to be prioritized in legal frameworks and not merely relief and compensation.
    • Strong protection net for most vulnerable- safety of orphaned. abandoned girl child, girls living in street situations, those in institutions with girl child of prisoners, and commercial sex workers to be prioritized.
    • Gender-responsive training of police and other duty bearers. Focus on prohibition. prevention, regulation, rehabilitation, and restoration services.
    • Educate girls about cyber safety particularly adolescent girls. Spread awareness on measures to stay safe on social media platforms and prompt reporting of potential threats.
    • A gendered approach to disaster risk mitigation. Identify gendered vulnerabilities and gender-responsive mitigation strategies in events of disasters, emergencies, and humanitarian crises. Empower young girls to act on climate change.
    • Encourage young girls to take environmental issues to Bal Panchayats and other platforms. Prioritise climate change in school curriculum and pedagogy to encourage girls to be the leaders of tomorrow.
  • Registrations Closing Soon || Free Live Webinar at 6 PM ||How to crack UPSC without leaving your fulltime job?||LINK INSIDE

    Registrations Closing Soon || Free Live Webinar at 6 PM ||How to crack UPSC without leaving your fulltime job?||LINK INSIDE

    Our Hall of Fame boasts of nearly 150 aspirants who have cleared the exam as working professionals. This year, our Civilsdaily students — Vaibhav Rawat (AIR 25) and Ravi Kumar (AIR 84) worked really hard in their respective jobs and studies before they tasted success. This busts the myth that only full-time aspirants can clear the exam.

    REGISTER here FOR FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    Lack of Time or Lack of Time-Management?

    UPSC-CSE is not only one of the toughest exams of the world, but one of the longest as well. An exam that is a year long, needs a preparation of 2 years to clear it.

    Some of us have family responsibilities that cannot and should not be neglected. Maybe you are the only earning member of your family. But, is it impossible to juggle UPSC CSE and work? Not at all. It might be challenging, but it’s an achievable ambition. One needs the discipline to study everyday, whether they had a good or a bad day at work.

    REGISTER here FOR THE FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    All aspirants get only 24 hours in a day, how they spend every hour determines their final result.

    Does this mean there will be no scope for rest as a Working Junta? Don’t be surprised if we tell you toppers like Srishti Jayant Deshmukh (AIR 5, 2018) and Roman Saini (AIR 18, 2013) found time to take breaks in between their college studies (engineering and medical respectively) and UPSC preparation! While Srishti took a 5 minute break after every 30 minutes, Roman took a 10 minute break after every 1 hour.

    Why should you attend this webinar?

    When we asked Vaibhav Rawat and Ravi Kumar their secret of topping the exam despite working 8-9 hours everyday, their answer was time management and syllabus completion.

    Instead of complaining about the limited time they had, they completed modules assigned by us within that time. Sometimes, they got 6 hours in a day and sometimes 5 hours. But after office, they never let the stress of work distract them. Nor did they compare their preparation to other full-time aspirants and get demotivated.

    Every topper has their own time-management technique. As a working junta, its about time you learnt them. This is what Sudhanshu Sir will address in this upcoming webinar. You will not only get to know how to balance work and study in a day, but also when to take breaks in between the two!

    What will you learn in this Webinar?

    1. The 4 different phases of UPSC preparation. What to study in each phase?

    2. Our 5-hour Step-by-Step learning plan. Also time-management techniques of other toppers.

    3. Avoiding mistakes that cost you an attempt. How to kickstart your preparation in the right direction?

    4. Advantages of being a UPSC aspirant as a working professional. What do you have that others don’t?

    5. Studying smartly. How can you use the Civilsdaily App to get consolidated material that can save your time?

    See the source image
    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    At the end of the session, Sudhanshu sir will hold an interactive Q&A session where all beginners and veterans are welcome to get solutions for their issues.

    Webinar Details

    Everyone is welcome to attend our free webinar for working professionals by Sudhanshu Sir. All you have to do is register your details.

    Date: 28 October, 2021

    Time: 6 PM

    About Sudhanshu Sir

    Sudhanshu Sir has served in the Defense Ministry for 10 years. He has a keen interest in regional and global geopolitics and has ample experience of various other competitive exams as well. Experienced with UPSC CS and Several State PSCs..

    register here for free webinar by sudhanshu sir

  • Preparing for outbreaks

    Context

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission, one of the largest pan-India schemes for strengthening healthcare infrastructure, in his parliamentary constituency Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.

    Aims of Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (ABHIM) and how it seeks to achieve it

    • This was launched with an outlay of ₹64,180 crore over a period of five years.
    •  In addition to the National Health Mission, this scheme will work towards strengthening public health institutions and governance capacities for wide-ranging diagnostics and treatment, including critical care services.
    • The latter goal would be met with the establishment of critical care hospital blocks in 12 central institutions such as the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, and in government medical colleges and district hospitals in 602 districts.
    • Laboratories and their preparedness: The government will be establishing integrated district public health labs in 730 districts to provide comprehensive laboratory services.
    • Research: ABHIM will focus on supporting research on COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, including biomedical research to generate evidence to inform short-term and medium-term responses to such pandemics.
    • One health approach: The government also aims to develop a core capacity to deliver the ‘one health’ approach to prevent, detect, and respond to infectious disease outbreaks in humans and animals.
    • Surveillance labs: A network of surveillance labs will be developed at the block, district, regional and national levels for detecting, investigating, preventing, and combating health emergencies and outbreaks.
    • Local capacities in urban areas: A major highlight of the current pandemic has been the requirement of local capacities in urban areas.
    • The services from the existing urban primary health centres will be expanded to smaller units – Ayushman Bharat Urban Health and Wellness Centres and polyclinics or specialist clinics.

    Conclusion

    The Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (ABHIM) is another addition to the arsenal we have to prepare for such oubreaks in the future.

    UPSC 2022 countdown has begun! Get your personal guidance plan now! (Click here)

  • How to crack UPSC without leaving your fulltime job?|| Free Webinar on Time-Management Techniques for Working Junta|| 1 Day to Go, Register Now

    How to crack UPSC without leaving your fulltime job?|| Free Webinar on Time-Management Techniques for Working Junta|| 1 Day to Go, Register Now

    Our Hall of Fame boasts of nearly 150 aspirants who have cleared the exam as working professionals. This year, our Civilsdaily students — Vaibhav Rawat (AIR 25) and Ravi Kumar (AIR 84) worked really hard in their respective jobs and studies before they tasted success. This busts the myth that only full-time aspirants can clear the exam.

    REGISTER here FOR FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    Lack of Time or Lack of Time-Management?

    UPSC-CSE is not only one of the toughest exams of the world, but one of the longest as well. An exam that is a year long, needs a preparation of 2 years to clear it.

    Some of us have family responsibilities that cannot and should not be neglected. Maybe you are the only earning member of your family. But, is it impossible to juggle UPSC CSE and work? Not at all. It might be challenging, but it’s an achievable ambition. One needs the discipline to study everyday, whether they had a good or a bad day at work.

    REGISTER here FOR THE FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    All aspirants get only 24 hours in a day, how they spend every hour determines their final result.

    Does this mean there will be no scope for rest as a Working Junta? Don’t be surprised if we tell you toppers like Srishti Jayant Deshmukh (AIR 5, 2018) and Roman Saini (AIR 18, 2013) found time to take breaks in between their college studies (engineering and medical respectively) and UPSC preparation! While Srishti took a 5 minute break after every 30 minutes, Roman took a 10 minute break after every 1 hour.

    Why should you attend this webinar?

    When we asked Vaibhav Rawat and Ravi Kumar their secret of topping the exam despite working 8-9 hours everyday, their answer was time management and syllabus completion.

    Instead of complaining about the limited time they had, they completed modules assigned by us within that time. Sometimes, they got 6 hours in a day and sometimes 5 hours. But after office, they never let the stress of work distract them. Nor did they compare their preparation to other full-time aspirants and get demotivated.

    Every topper has their own time-management technique. As a working junta, its about time you learnt them. This is what Sudhanshu Sir will address in this upcoming webinar. You will not only get to know how to balance work and study in a day, but also when to take breaks in between the two!

    What will you learn in this Webinar?

    1. The 4 different phases of UPSC preparation. What to study in each phase?

    2. Our 5-hour Step-by-Step learning plan. Also time-management techniques of other toppers.

    3. Avoiding mistakes that cost you an attempt. How to kickstart your preparation in the right direction?

    4. Advantages of being a UPSC aspirant as a working professional. What do you have that others don’t?

    5. Studying smartly. How can you use the Civilsdaily App to get consolidated material that can save your time?

    See the source image
    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE WEBINAR BY SUDHANSHU SIR

    At the end of the session, Sudhanshu sir will hold an interactive Q&A session where all beginners and veterans are welcome to get solutions for their issues.

    Webinar Details

    Everyone is welcome to attend our free webinar for working professionals by Sudhanshu Sir. All you have to do is register your details.

    Date: 28 October, 2021

    Time: 6 PM

    About Sudhanshu Sir

    Sudhanshu Sir has served in the Defense Ministry for 10 years. He has a keen interest in regional and global geopolitics and has ample experience of various other competitive exams as well. Experienced with UPSC CS and Several State PSCs.

    register here for free webinar by sudhanshu sir

  • Why India shouldn’t sign on to net zero

    Context

    The recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change made it clear that limiting the increase in the world’s average temperature from pre-industrial levels to those agreed in the Paris Agreement requires global cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide to be capped at the global carbon budget.

    Understanding why reaching net zero by itself is irrelevant to forestalling dangerous warming

    • The promise of when you will turn off the tap does not guarantee that you will draw only a specified quantity of water.
    • The top three emitters of the world — China, the U.S. and the European Union — even after taking account of their net zero commitments and their enhanced emission reduction commitments for 2030, will emit more than 500 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide before net zero.
    • These three alone will exceed the limit of about 500 billion tonnes from 2020 onwards, for even odds of keeping global temperature increase below 1.5°C.

    Issues with ‘net zero’ target

    • Neither the Paris Agreement nor climate science requires that net zero be reached individually by countries by 2050, the former requiring only global achievement of this goal “in the second half of the century”.
    • Claims that the world “must” reach specific goals by 2030 or 2050 are the product of specific economic models for climate action.
    • They front-load emission reduction requirements on developing countries, despite their already low emissions, to allow the developed world to backload its own, buying time for its own transition.
    • These stringent limits on future cumulative emissions post 2020, amounting to less than a fifth of the total global carbon budget, is the result of its considerable over-appropriation in the past by the global North.
    • Promises of net zero in their current form perpetuate this hugely disproportionate appropriation of a global commons, while continuing to place humanity in harm’s way.

    Suggestions for India

    • India is responsible for no more than 4.37% cumulative emissions of carbon dioxide since the pre-industrial era, even though it is home to more than a sixth of humanity.
    • India’s per capita emissions are less than half the world average, less than one-eighth of the U.S.’s.
    • For India to declare net zero now is to accede to the further over-appropriation of the global carbon budget by a few.
    • India’s contribution to global emissions, in both stock and flow, is so disproportionately low that any sacrifice on its part can do nothing to save the world.
    • India, in enlightened self-interest, must now stake its claim to a fair share of the global carbon budget.
    • Technology transfer and financial support, together with “negative emissions”, if the latter succeeds, can compensate for the loss of the past.
    • Such a claim by India provides it greater, and much-needed long-term options.
    • It enables the responsible use of coal, its major fossil fuel resource, and oil and gas, to bootstrap itself out of lower-middle-income economy status and eradicate poverty, hunger and malnutrition for good.
    • India’s resource-strapped small industries sector needs expansion and modernisation.
    • The agriculture sector, the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions for India after energy, needs to double its productivity and farmers’ incomes and build resilience.
    •  Infrastructure for climate resilience in general is critical to future adaptation to climate change.
    • All of these will require at least the limited fossil fuel resources made available through a fair share of the carbon budget.

    Conclusion

    Without restriction of their future cumulative emissions by the big emitters, to their fair share of the global carbon budget, and the corresponding temperature target that they correspond to made clear, India cannot sign on to net zero.

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  • What to do about the heavy cost of doing business in India

    Context

    The controversy over Ease of the Doing Business (EoDB) notwithstanding, India must now sharpen its focus on the Cost of Doing Business (CoDB).

    Cost of Doing Business in India

    • India has made considerable progress on EoDB rankings since 2016.
    • While the Centre’s focus on EoDB has been commendable, several state governments have also made efforts to improve business conditions.
    •  India must now sharpen its focus on the Cost of Doing Business (CoDB).
    • India lags behind other countries in terms of CoDB on several counts.

    Two key factors influencing CoDB — energy costs and regulatory overload

    • High fuel costs: Diesel prices in India are 20.8 per cent higher than those in China, 39.3 per cent higher than in the US, 72.5 per cent higher than Bangladesh and 67.8 per cent higher than in Vietnam.
    • This is largely because of heavy taxation — total taxes on diesel account for over 130 per cent of the base price in India.
    • High power costs: In the case of electricity, prices for businesses in India were higher by around 7-12 per cent vis-à-vis those in the US, Bangladesh or China and by as much as 35-50 per cent as compared to those in South Korea or Vietnam prior to the recent coal/energy crisis.
    • Coal, which accounts for more than 70 per cent of electricity generation in India, is also pricier vis-à-vis other countries leading to higher electricity prices.
    • Like in the case of the petroleum sector, government levies account for nearly half of the prices paid by coal consumers.
    • And coal producers cannot claim input tax credit because electricity is not under GST.
    • Further, coal freight costs are amongst the highest in the world as high freight rates are used to cross-subsidise passenger fares by the railways.
    • Regulatory overload: Outsized regulatory levels also pose a significant burden on businesses.
    • A Teamlease report highlights that a small manufacturing company with just one plant and up to 500 employees is regulated by more than 750 compliances, 60 Acts and 23 licences and regulations.
    • A mid-sized manufacturing company with six plants spread across different states is regulated by more than 5,500 compliances, 135 Acts and 98 licences and registrations.
    •  Keeping track of such a large number of regulations along with the changes thereof, imposes huge operational and financial costs on businesses, particularly the MSME segment.

    Way forward

    • Including fuels under GST would lower costs for businesses owing to input tax credit even if taxation levels continue to remain high.
    • Cleaning up the power distribution sector, which is largely state-controlled, could potentially lower electricity prices for businesses.
    • Fiscal incentives by the Centre: A majority of the compliances stem from the states and reducing this burden would require a significant push on states to act on this front.
    • The Centre could leverage the “carrot and stick” framework — using fiscal incentives to nudge the states to act and disincentivise them from maintaining the status quo.

    Consider the question “What are the factors affecting the cost of doing business in India? Suggest the measures to reduce it.”

    Conclusion

    The Government must prioritise reducing the cost of energy and compliances for businesses rather than focusing on de jure measures to boost ease of doing business. These will boost India’s manufacturing competitiveness significantly and further increase formalisation in the economy.

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  • China’s new land border law and Indian concerns

    China has recently passed a new land law for the “protection and exploitation of the country’s land border areas”.

    Land Border Law: Key Takeaways

    • The law states that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of China are sacred and inviolable.
    • It asks the state to take measures to safeguard territorial integrity and land boundaries and guard against and combat any act that undermines these.
    • The state can take measures to strengthen border defence, support economic and social development as well as opening-up in border areas.
    • It seeks to improve public services and infrastructure in such areas, encourage and support people’s life and work there.

    Other features

    • In effect, this suggests a push to settle civilians in the border areas.
    • The law also asks the state to follow the principles of equality, mutual trust, and friendly consultation, handle land border related-affairs with neighbouring countries.

    China’s land borders

    • China shares its 22,457-km land boundary with 14 countries including India, the third-longest after the borders with Mongolia and Russia.
    • Unlike the Indian border, however, China’s borders with these two countries are not disputed.
    • The only other country with which China has disputed land borders is Bhutan (477 km).

    Why is it significant for India?

    • China claims up to 90,000 square kilometres in Arunachal Pradesh in the eastern sector.
    • It has illegally occupied 38,000 square kilometres of Aksai Chin in the western sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
    • While recent tensions in the western sector have been centred on Ladakh, both sides have lately clashed in Uttarakhand as well.

    A signal to India

    • The law is not meant specifically for the border with India.
    • However, this could create hurdles in the resolution of the 17-month-long military standoff at LAC.
    • There is also a clear distinction that PLA will do border management but it will make negotiations a little more difficult.

     

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