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GSAT-30 successfully launched
India’s first satellite of 2020, the GSAT-30 was successfully launched. The launch vehicle Ariane 5 VA-251 lifted off from Kourou Launch Base, French Guiana.

GSAT-30
- GSAT-30 derives its heritage from ISRO’s earlier INSAT/GSAT satellite series and will replace INSAT-4A in
- In the days ahead, orbit-raising manoeuvres will be performed to place the satellite in Geostationary Orbit (36,000 km above the equator) by using its onboard propulsion
- During the final stages of its orbit raising operations, the two solar arrays and the antenna reflectors of GSAT-30 will be
- Following this, the satellite will be put in its final orbital . The satellite will be operational after the successful completion of all in-orbit tests.
Utility of the satellite
- GSAT-30 will provide DTH Television Services, connectivity to VSATs for ATM, Stock-exchange, Television unlinking and Teleport Services, Digital Satellite News Gathering (DSNG) and e-governance applications.
- The satellite will also be used for bulk data transfer for a host of an emerging telecommunication
January 17, 2020
[pib] Assam Inland Water Transport Project
India and the World Bank signed a loan agreement of $88 million for Assam Inland Water Transport Project.

Assam Inland Water Transport Project
- A majority of Assam’s more than 361 ferry routes cross the Brahmaputra or serve its islands, providing a crucial means of transport to thousands of commuters in both the urban and rural areas of the Brahmaputra Valley.
- The project will draw guidance from ‘working with nature’ principles that aim to design new infrastructure or rehabilitate existing infrastructure in a way that works with natural river processes.
- The terminals will have better access, lighting and signage while the new vessels will allow for individual seats, and separate toilets. Moreover, a strengthened regulatory regime will ensure reduction in overloading, adherence to time schedule and better crew standards.
- The Project will help Assam improve the passenger ferry infrastructure and its services and strengthen the capacity of the institutions running the inland water transport.
Significance
- Inland Water Transport is also a more sustainable mode of transport. And Assam has the largest network of navigable waterways in India.
- It provides low-carbon and low-cost options when compared to the cost of constructing and maintaining flood-resilient roads and bridges across the long stretches of the Brahmaputra river.
- Technically better-designed terminals and energy-efficient vessels (both new and retrofitted) will make the ferry services more sustainable with least disruption to nature.
January 17, 2020
17th January 2020| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement

The topics covered in the upcoming AWE on 20th January are:

Q.1) Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present.

Q.4) Case Studies

Question 1)

“Despite the Britishers being colonizers, they helped in rediscovering some of the treasures of Buddhism which were in a deplorable state.” Give your opinion with suitable justifications. (15 Marks)

Question 2)

‘The Demographic Dividend in India could easily turn into a Demographic Wasteland if not paid enough attention’. In light of the statement above elaborate what measures have been taken by the government to enhance the capacity of youth to be more productive and more employable? (15 Marks)

Question 3)

The RBI’s responsibility to regulate the financial sector may have taken a backseat after the adoption of inflation targeting as the main objective. Critically analyse the statement. (15 Marks)

Question 4)

“Information sharing is the key to the Government’s goal of delivering better, more efficient public services that are coordinated around the needs of the individual.” In light of the statement, explain the essentials of information sharing and citizen charter in public service. (15 Marks)

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

January 17, 2020
[op-ed of the day] Let’s not muddle along on how we share natural endowments
Context

Governments regulations and restrictions in the markets, believing that policies could artificially restrict either supply or demand, or both, often results in unrealistic or unworkable prices.

Adoption of the auctioning process to allocate resources
- Design of process makes the difference: While auctions may be the cleanest way to allot scarce natural resources to private parties, their design makes all the difference.
- Three things needed to get the desired results from auctions:
  - Clear policy goal: Define clear policy goals for the allotment of the resource whether coal blocks, spectrum or land.
  - The proper process of periodic review: Define a proper process for periodic review of the design itself, since it may not be possible to get everything right in the first instance.
  - Make the process non-partisan: Make the political oversight process as non-partisan as possible, so that regime changes do not keep upending policies.
What went wrong in spectrum allocation case?
- Arbitrary tweaks in policy: Arbitrary tweaks were made in the telecom licence and spectrum allocation policy.
  - Which is what forced the apex court to intervene and cancel those licences.
- The claim of revenue loss: Cancellation followed a claim by the CAG that the “presumptive” revenue losses may have been as high as ₹1.76.
- Result of the two events-policy of revenue maximisation: The net result was that all subsequent auctions were designed to maximize spectrum bids.
  - Winner’s curse: The policy finally ended up becoming a winner’s curse, evident in the pile of debt incurred by the telecom sector.
- Why did this happen? This happened because of the absence of a clear policy goal.
Real estate sector
- High land prices: The same goes for real estate, which is struggling right now due to high land prices because the bureaucracy prevents price reduction in land.
  - Unaffordable to middle-income buyers: That make most properties unaffordable for middle and lower-middle-income buyers.
- Low FSI issue: Urban land prices are high due to artificial constriction of supplies through the fixing of low floor space indices (FSIs) even in land-scarce localities.
Technology and periodic review of policy
- Technology can lower costs: Spectrum or land or coal mines are not always in short supply, for new technology lowers costs.
  - Efficient spectrum use: The same spectrum can, with the use of newer technology, be used more efficiently.
  - 3D printing in construction: Better infrastructure and improved building technologies (even 3D printing techniques for mass housing projects in non-urban areas) can lower housing costs enormously.
  - Automated coal mining: Automated coal mining can lower coal production costs, enabling higher profitability even with relatively high auction bids.
- Need for periodic policy review: Technology can reduce the prices of the resources and hence the periodic review of the prices at which the resources are allocated need to be taken to for balanced pricing.
Conclusion
- Policies on the allocation of scarce resources need to evolve based on actual experience and changing technologies and processes.
- The success or failure of a specific policy cannot be judged purely from a revenue or transparency point of view.
January 16, 2020
Get ready for the upcoming Geography Advanced Prelims Test on 18th January- sample questions highlighting our methodology
Click here to enrol for the Prime Prelims TS

Dear students,

31st May 2020 is the D-day for all civil service aspirants.

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”

This quote by Abraham Lincoln clearly sums up how one should prepare for that day. So before entering the battlefield alone should have enough practice. Our Prime Prelims Test series which shall enrich you to acquaint yourself with the pattern of CSE-2020, assess your abilities, rectify your mistakes and make you confident to appear on the examination day.

Our Prime Prelims Test Series follows the same approach as that adopted by UPSC. Our team of experts is quite enriched with the UPSC pattern and focal point of the questions and hence creates more chances for the aspirants to crack civil service examination by appearing our Test Series.

The key philosophy of our prelims TS is Evidence-based question making: The 3600 questions you face in our mocks have their relevance established in UPSC’s trend analysis. We focus on themes that are important as per UPSC so that we maximize your chances of questions overlap with the actual UPSC Prelims.

This Ancient and Medieval History test contains questions from the following themes:

Nothing speaks more than the facts itself rather than a mere jargon. Here is a list of 5 sample questions from the upcoming test which will help you in identifying the standards and approach we follow. (you can skip this if you want to attempt these directly in the test).

Noone but only you can assess how it will help you in being the top percentile of aspirants. You have to practice ruthlessly and civils Daily provides you with a platform to hone your skills.

Q.1) Consider the following rivers:
1. Indus
2. Teesta
3. Sone
Which of the above rivers are Himalayan rivers?

a. 1 only

b. 1 and 2 only

c. 2 and 3 only

d. All of them

Q.2) Consider the following statements with reference to time zones:
1. Antarctica does not have a fixed time zone as every line of longitude passes through it.
2. The International Date Line perfectly coincides with the 180-degree meridian.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a. 1 only

b. 2 only

c. Both of them

d. Neither of them

Q.3) Consider the following statements with reference to the Earth’s Revolution around the Sun:
1. The seasons arise from the Earth’s revolution around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth’s axis.
2. At the winter solstice, the northern hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun.
3. At the summer solstice, the southern hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun.
4. On the day of the equinox, day and night are of equal length everywhere on the globe.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a. 1 and 4 only

b. 2 and 3 only

c. 2,3 and 4 only

d. All of them

Q.4) Which of the following statements characterize convectional rainfall?
1. It occurs daily in the equatorial region in the afternoon.
2. It is generally of short duration
3. It is generally associated with rain-bearing cirrostratus clouds.
Select the correct option from the codes given above:

a. 1 only

b. 1 and 2 only

c. 2 and 3 only

d. All of the above

Q.5) Salinity is lower in the Bay of Bengal than in the Arabian Sea. Which of the following statements support this fact?
1. Net precipitation in the Bay of Bengal is higher than in the Arabian Sea.
2. Rate of evaporation is higher in the Arabian Sea than the Bay of Bengal.
3. Circulation of water mass from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea and vice-versa.
4. The Bay of Bengal receives more freshwater from rivers than the Arabian Sea.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:

a. 1 and 2 only

b. 3 and 4 only

c. 1, 2 and 4 only

d. All of them
January 16, 2020
16th January 2020 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

[WpProQuiz 340]

January 16, 2020
[op-ed snap] Power replay
Context

Five years after the launch of UDAY, power-sector once again seems to be going deep into the troubles.

Where the Discoms stand now?
- Losses increased: The losses of state-owned distribution companies (discoms) risen.
- Dues increased: Discom’s dues for power purchases have also surged.
  - Dues owed by discoms to power producers, both independent and state-run entities, stood at Rs 80,930 crore.
  - Of these, Rs 71,673 crore extends beyond the allowed grace period of 60 days.
  - Rajasthan leads the states with the most dues, followed by Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
Components of UDAY and progress made
- The UDAY scheme, which involved state governments taking over the debt of discoms, had three critical components
- First-Reduction in AT&C losses: While progress has been made on some of these fronts, it hasn’t been in line with the targets laid out under UDAY.
  - AT&C (Aggregate Technical and Commercial) losses have declined in some states, but not to the extent envisaged.
  - Under UDAY, discoms were to bring down AT&C losses to 15 per cent by FY19.
- Second- Timely revision of tariffs: While some states have raised power tariffs, the hikes have not been sufficient.
  - In tariff revision decisions political considerations prevailed over commercial decisions.
- Third- elimination of the gap between per unit of cost and revenue realised: The gap between the average cost per unit of power and the revenue realised has not declined in the manner envisaged.
  - Because of this discoms were forced to reduce their power purchases and delay payments to power producers.
Way forward:
- The new plan, being formulated by the government reportedly, aims to address these issues by-
  - Reducing electricity losses.
  - Eliminating the tariff gap.
  - Smart metering.
  - Privatising discoms.
  - Having distribution franchisees.
- Altering incentive structure: Along with the above, the Centre should also look at altering the incentive structures of states in order to ensure compliance.
- Provision of penalties: Stiff penalties need to be imposed for not meeting the targets laid out in the new scheme.
January 16, 2020
[op-ed snap] Reset and reform
Context

With the Indian economy caught in the middle of a socio-economic upheaval, the government needs to make its focus on the economy clear and pronounced.

India in the middle of a socio-economic upheaval
- Weakening economy: The economy has been weakening for a couple of years now.
- Social upheaval: The social upheaval is new but its seeds have been fermenting for a while.
- Consequences of the two: The social and economic sides of an economy are not divorced from each other.
  - Each influences the other and the current quagmire threatens to unleash the worst type of feedback between the two.
Consequences for the employment
- Most severe consequence due to the interaction between the social and economic sides is unemployment.
- Rising unemployment disproportionately affects the young.
- India’s job market: India whose median citizen is in the 30s and which is inducting 10 million new young people to the job market every year.
- Demographic dividend turning into a curse: This dynamic, popularly hailed as India’s demographic dividend, can rapidly turn into a demographic curse if the employment situation doesn’t improve.
Falling investment rate, increased risk perception
- Where will the jobs come from? The job creators are entrepreneurs, conglomerates, and multinationals.
  - It is in their nature to take investment risks as long as the returns are high enough.
- Investment rates below 30: In India, investment rate fell well below 30 per cent a while back.
  - Falling returns: The returns on investment were not compensating entrepreneurs for the risk.
  - The recent social upheaval is only adding to the perceived risk.
- Wait and see approach: The more investors adopt a “wait-and-see” approach, the worse the job situation will become.
Way forward
- Structural reforms: The government needs to announce a clear plan and timeline for structural reforms.
- Prioritising domain competence in staff: The government has to start staffing technical positions by prioritising domain competence and empowering these hires with policy relevance.
- Maintaining the integrity of institutions: The government need to maintain the integrity of institutions tasked with the regulation of corporations and banks, monetary policy management, data collection/dissemination and law enforcement.
- Accommodate dissent: The government also needs to desist from trying to drown out protesting voices with state muscle power.
January 16, 2020
Explained: What is the NIA Act, and why is Chhattisgarh challenging it?
The Chhattisgarh state govt. moved the Supreme Court against the 2008 National Investigative Agency (NIA) Act, stating it is violative of the Constitution. In its civil suit, the government told the apex court the NIA should have no power over state policing matters.

What is the NIA Act, 2008?
- The NIA Act, 2008 governs the functioning of India’s premier counter-terror agency.
- It was introduced by then home minister P Chidambaram in the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attacks and was passed in Parliament with very little opposition.
- The Act makes the NIA the only truly federal agency in the country, along the lines of the FBI in the United States, more powerful than the CBI.
- It gives the NIA powers to take suo motu cognizance of terror activities in any part of India and register a case, to enter any state without permission from the state government, and to investigate and arrest people.
Objections made by CG
- In its petition, the Chhattisgarh govt. said the Act is “ultra vires the Constitution” and “beyond the legislative competence of the Parliament”.
- According to the state, the 2008 Act allows the Centre to create an agency for investigation, which is a function of the state police.
- ‘Police’ is an entry in the State List of the Constitution’s 7th Schedule.
- The petition says the 2008 Act takes away the state’s power of conducting an investigation through the police, while conferring unfettered, discretionary and arbitrary powers” on the Centre.
- The provisions of the Act leave no room of coordination and pre-condition of consent, in any form whatsoever, by the Centre from the State govt. which clearly repudiates the idea of state sovereignty as envisaged under the Constitution.
Changes made to the NIA’s powers last year
- The 2019 NIA Amendment Act expanded the type of offences that the investigative body could investigate and prosecute.
- The agency can now investigate offences related to human trafficking, counterfeit currency, manufacture or sale of prohibited arms, cyber-terrorism, and offences under the Explosive Substances Act, 1908.
- The amendment also enables the central government to designate sessions courts as special courts for NIA trials.
- The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment (UAPA), also passed in 2019, allows an NIA officer to conduct raids, and seize properties that are suspected to be linked to terrorist activities without taking prior permission of the DG of Police of a state.
- The investigating officer only requires sanction from the Director General of NIA.
January 16, 2020
Indian Origin Tamils and Sri Lanka’s Citizenship Law
Recently an MHA spokesperson wrote on Twitter that about 4.61 lakh Tamils of Indian origin were given Indian citizenship during 1964-2008. The reference was to the Indian Origin Tamils (IOTs) of Sri Lanka, and the Lal Bahadur Shastri-Sirimavo Bandaranaike Pact of 1964.

The Indian Origin Tamils
- Different from Sri Lankan Tamils who live predominantly in the North and East, the IoTs are descendants of indentured Tamil workers.
- The British had shipped them to the island in the mid 19th century to work on tea estates in the five hill districts of the Central and Uva provinces.
- These people now call themselves Malayaha (hill country) Tamils — because of the historical stigma attached to being “Indian” Tamils.
- At the time of Sri Lanka’s independence, the IOTs numbered around 800,000.
- They were the backbone of the tea industry, politically active, and keen to ensure their rights in independent Sri Lanka through strategic alliances with unions and left parties.
- Determined to blunt their political rights, the ruling parties described IOTs as “birds of passage” with no loyalty to the country, as India’s fifth column in Sri Lanka, and as people who stole the locals’ jobs.
SL’s 1948 Citizenship Act
- Sri Lanka’s Nov. 1948 Citizenship Act was the first in a series of divisive moves by the Sinhala rulers to consolidate their political base in the majority Sinhalese (Buddhist and Christian) community.
- It was aimed at excluding IOTs — then as now, the predominant workforce in the upcountry tea estates — whose numbers and growing association with leftist parties were proving to be politically inconvenient.
- The IOTs that India accepted through the 1964 agreement were not “fleeing” Sri Lanka.
- Most were, in fact, reluctant to leave the country in which they had lived for three generations or longer.
- Those that remained, were stateless in Sri Lanka for decades until their status as citizens was settled ironically because the ruling party now wanted their votes.
What did the Act provide?
- Under the Act, citizenship could be only by patrilineal descent or registration.
- For citizenship by registration, umarried persons had to show 10 years of uninterrupted stay in Sri Lanka from the date of application; married persons had to show 7 years.
- Most IOTs were unlettered and poor, with no documents. Effectively an entire community was rendered stateless.
- Soon afterward came the Indian & Pakistani Residents’ Act of 1949, which opened a window for those above a certain income level.
- Only 1,40,000 had been granted citizenship under the Indian & Pakistani Residents’ Act, and 2,50,000 were accepted by India as its citizens.
- Finally, the 1949 Ceylon (Parliamentary Elections) Amendment was passed, under which only citizens could vote.
- The IOTs were stripped of voting rights, and the fallout was immediate: in 1947, there were 7 Indian Tamils in the legislature; in 1952, there were none.
Issues with the Act
- This Act sharply delineated ethnic differences, and distorted the political system to weight it in favour the Sinhalese majority.
- This created an intractable dynamic of ethnic outbidding between the two major Sinhalese-dominated parties to attract Sinhalese voters at the expense of the Sri Lankan Tamil minority.
- This directly contributed to the latter’s alienation, support for secessionism, and the outbreak of ethnic violence and civil war in the 1970s and 1980s.
India’s response
- The treatment of Indian Tamils had cast a shadow on India-Sri Lanka relations even before independence; post-independence, the citizenship laws became a major irritant.
- They were denounced in India, and the Madras legislature passed a resolution against them.
- In 1947, PM Nehru had tried unsuccessfully to persuade Senanayake to give citizenship to all Indian Tamils who had lived in the country for 7 years prior to January 1, 1948.
- The two countries corresponded on this issue until Nehru’s death in 1964.
- Nehru rejected the Sri Lankan position that the “stateless” IOTs were automatically Indian citizens, and would have to be shipped to India.
Repatriation of IOTs
- After the 1962 war with China, PM Shastri was eager to mend fences with Sri Lanka. He gave in to Bandaranaike’s demands, and it was agreed that Sri Lanka would accept 3,00,000 IOTs and their natural increase, while India would accept 5,25,000 IOTs and their natural increase.
- The status of the balance 1,50,000 IOTs was to be decided later.
- Some 4,00,000 reluctantly applied for citizenship of India; 6,30,000 applied for Sri Lanka’s.
- By the time the window agreed upon in 1964 closed, only 1,62,000 IOTs had been given Sri Lankan citizenship. In the same period, India gave citizenship to over 3,50,000.
January 16, 2020

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