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  • Assessing the Learning of the School Children

    Context

    • The Covid pandemic had caused schools to shut down in March 2020, and India had one of the longest school closures in the world primary schools were closed for almost two years. The impact of the pandemic on the education sector was feared to be twofold learning loss associated with long school closures, and higher dropout rates, especially among older children, due to squeezed family budgets.

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    ASER survey during the pandemic

    • Assessing the learning losses: Estimates from these three state-level surveys could be used to understand the extent of children’s learning losses. These state level estimates are extremely useful as they are the only ASER estimates of learning we have between 2018 and 2022.
    • Rising learning level pre-pandemic: For the country as a whole, learning levels had been rising slowly between 2014 and 2018, after being stagnant for several years. For example, at the all-India level, the proportion of children in Class III who could read a Class II level text (a proxy for grade-level reading) had risen from 23.6 per cent in 2014 to 27.2 per cent in 2018.
    • Big fall during pandemic: ASER 2022 shows a big drop in this proportion to 20.5 per cent. This 7-percentage point fall is huge, given how slowly the all-India numbers move and confirms fears of large learning losses caused by the pandemic.
    • Higher losses in math: In math also, learning levels had risen slowly between 2014 and 2018. The 2022 estimates show a drop here as well although much smaller than in the case of reading.

    Case study of three states- Karnataka Chhattisgarh and West Bengal

    • Assess learning levels in three states: Karnataka, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal in 2021, when schools were still closed or had just reopened. While these are not national estimates, they provide an interim measurement that is more reflective of pandemic-induced learning losses than the estimates for 2022.
    • Reading and math losses: Across all three states, there were large learning losses in both reading and math in 2021 in excess of 7 percentage points, except in the case of Std V in West Bengal. The loss in reading is a little higher, though not by much.
    • Learning losses was much below 2014 levels: In both reading and math, the 2021 learning levels in these three states fell below their 2014 levels. A year later, ASER 2022 data shows that across all three states, there has been a recovery in both reading and math (except Karnataka in reading and West Bengal in reading in Std V) after schools reopened in 2021-22.
    • Recovery still below pandemic: In other words, while the 2022 learning levels were still below or in some cases close to the 2018 levels, comparing 2018 with 2022 hides the dramatic fall in learning levels observed between these two points and the subsequent recovery that has happened in the last year.

     Impact of New Education Policy

    • Focus on foundational competency: Another big development during 2020-21 was the introduction of the new National Education Policy (NEP) in 2020. For the first time, there was a big focus on the early years and the importance of foundational competencies.
    • Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN): Once schools reopened, states moved quickly and almost all states have made a major push in the area of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) under the NIPUN Bharat mission (National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy). This push is reflected in the ASER 2022 data.
    • Directive for NEP Implementation: As part of the survey, ASER field investigators visited one government school in each of the sampled village to record enrolment, attendance and school facilities. This year we also asked whether schools had received any directive from the government to implement FLN activities in the school and whether teachers had been trained on FLN. At the all-India level, 81 per cent schools responded that they had received such a directive and 83 per cent said that at least one teacher in the school had been trained on FLN.

    Recovery of learning losses

    • Partial recovery in some states: Extrapolating from the experience of the three states for which we have 2021 data, we can assume that other states also experienced large learning losses during the pandemic. However, once schools reopened, states made a concerted effort to build or re-build foundational competencies, which has resulted in a partial and in some cases, a full recovery.
    • Earliest open, recovered faster: The extent of the recovery varies across states depending on how long their schools were closed as well as when they initiated learning recovery measures. For instance, Chhattisgarh was one of the earliest states to reopen their primary schools in July 2021, giving them a longer period to work with children, as compared to, for instance, Himachal Pradesh or Maharashtra, where schools reopened much later.
    • Remarkable recovery by Chhattisgarh: Taking into account the 2021 figures, the 2022 estimates for Chhattisgarh point to a remarkable recovery, in both reading and math, that is hidden if we just compare 2022 with 2018.
    • Lack of data for many states: In the absence of a 2021 measurement for other states, it is difficult to say what the original pandemic-induced learning loss was from which states are aiming to recover.

    Conclusion

    • As per the ASER survey learning losses of the student have been recovered quickly than expected. NEP looks very promising for better learning outcomes for children and college students. Every state and union territory should implement the NEP in its entirety.

    Mains Question

    Q. Analyze the learning outcomes and recovery of children based on ASER survey. What is impact of NEP on recovery of learning outcome after pandemic?

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  • Much Needed Amendments in WHO

    Context

    • India has proposed several amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) that take into account the socio-economic development of states, promote One Health, among other things.

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    What are the amendments proposed by India?

    • International Health Regulations: The country advocated implementing IHR to be in accordance with (the) common but differentiated responsibilities of the States Parties, taking into consideration their social and economic development.
    • Assessing human+ animal health: It also recommended assessing human health in congruence with animal and environment health to promote One Health.
    • Public health alert: India also sought a provision for an intermediate public health alert in the event where an outbreak doesn’t yet meet the criteria for a public health emergency of international concern but requires timely mitigating measures.

    Impact of COVID 19 on proposed amendments

    • Equitable access demand: Drawing on the learnings from the COVID-19 pandemic, India argues for “equitable access to medical countermeasures.”
    • Accountability of WHO: India also sought greater accountability from the World Health Organization (WHO) in how the IHR is implemented and whether Member States are complying.
    • Reporting to WHA: It proposed the Director-General report all activities under the IHR to the World Health Assembly (WHA), particular instances when Member States did not share information.

    Support from other countries

    • Some developed and developing countries: Other countries which made submissions included Armenia, Brazil, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Namibia, New Zealand, Russia and Switzerland, among others.
    • Support from Arica: Eswatini also made suggestions to the IHR amendments on behalf of the WHO Africa Region.
    • Other issues are also raised: It included issues surrounding intellectual property, licensing, transfer of technology and know-how for diversification of production.

    What is the common demand from developing countries?

    • Equitable access to health: Equity has emerged as the common focal point in demands made by developing countries. Equitable access to the health products, international financing mechanisms, strengthening health systems, access and benefit sharing mechanisms and tailoring responsibilities based on a country’s capacity are some of the key features.
    • Similar demand by executive board: The WHO’s executive board, in its sixth meeting last January, had noted that IHR amendment “should be limited in scope and address specific and clearly identified issues, challenges, including equity,
    • Universal protection from disease: Other demands include, technological or other developments, or gaps that could not effectively be addressed otherwise but are critical to supporting effective implementation and compliance of the International Health Regulations (2005), and their universal application for the protection of all people of the world from the international spread of disease in an equitable manner”.

    What are the opposition from developed countries?

    • Equity only for pandemic: Amendments proposed by developed countries seem to evade the equity demand. The European Union’s policy, for instance, noted equity principles should only be applicable for pandemic-scale health emergencies.
    • Non-pandemic health emergency doesn’t need equity: This terminology, in effect, excludes health emergencies that are not officially declared a pandemic. The argument being that outbreaks at the scale of COVID-19 occur occasionally.
    • Pandemic specific capacities cannot be generalized: Capacities developed solely for pandemic response cannot therefore be put in use regularly and this will further result in the deterioration of the capacities as well.

    Conclusion

    • As per the current suggestions, the new regulations should make developed countries and WHO more responsible towards developing countries, put in place stricter mandates, swift action and regular implementation review by WHO.

    Mains Question

    Q. What are the amendments suggested by India for WHO? Why there is opposition from developed countries for demand of equity by developing countries?

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  • [Sansad TV] Medical Devices Industry in Sunshine Sector

    [Sansad TV] Medical Devices Industry in Sunshine Sector

    What are Sunshine Industries?
    Sunrise industry is a colloquial term for a burgeoning sector or business in its infancy stage showing promise of a rapid boom. They are typically characterized by high growth rates, numerous start-ups, and an abundance of venture capital funding.

    Medical Device Industry in India

    • This has been recognized as a key industry under the Make in India initiative and accorded the status of ―Sunshine Sector.
    • Vaccines, drugs and medical devices are the three vital pillars of the modern healthcare industry.
    • The current market size of the medical devices sector in India is estimated to be USD 11 billion and its share in the global medical device market is estimated to be 1.5%.
    • India is the 4th largest market for medical devices in Asia after Japan, China and South Korea and is amongst the top 20 markets in the world.
    • Indian medical devices industry has potential to reach 50 billion dollars by 2030.

    Segments of medical devices

    medical devices

    There are different segments into which the medical device industry is classified based on the type of products produced.

    • Equipment and instruments: They contribute largely to the total market share and include devices like ophthalmic instruments, dental products, medical and surgical sterilizers, and therapeutic respiration apparatus.
    • Diagnostic imaging: The total market share of this segment is the second and categorizes devices like electro-diagnostic apparatus, radiation apparatus, and imaging parts and accessories.
    • Patient aids: This segment mainly depends on orthopaedic and prosthetics, portable aids, wheelchairs, and hospital furniture and these contribute to a small amount of the total market share.
    • Consumables and implants: These are devices that are used internally or for injecting into the patient, such as syringes, needles, catheters, bandages, suturing materials, etc., and a percentage of it contributing to the total market share is managed by these devices.

    Push factors for growth

    • India’s population and life expectancy: It is expected to reach 1.45 billion by 2028, making it the world’s most populated country.  Life expectancy in India is anticipated to rise to 70 years by 2025, up from the current 67.5 years.
    • Disease Burden Shift: In India, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) account for half of the disease burden and 60% of all deaths.
    • Preferences changes: Increasing health knowledge, a shift in attitudes toward preventative healthcare, and an increase in the occurrence of lifestyle disorders
    • Increasing Disposable Income: By 2026, 8% of Indians will earn over $12,000 per year. Over the next ten years, 73 million Indian households will enter the middle class, increasing their purchasing power, including in the area of medical devices.
    • Health insurance reforms: About 20% of Indians are covered by health insurance. With increased affluence and urbanization, this number is anticipated to rise.
    • Medical Tourism: It is on the rise in India, because of the relatively low cost of medical care. It contributes more than $2 billion to India’s healthcare market.
    • Infrastructure Development: India is planning for more medical device parks. It has a dedicated PLI Scheme in this regard.
    • Policy Support and Incentives: 100% FDI authorized in Greenfield and brownfield projects, lower entry hurdles than other industries, and a varied and vibrant start-up ecosystem.
    • Make in India boost: The medical device industry in India attained independent status after the launch of the “Make in India” program in 2014 under the government scheme. 

    Technology surge and medical devices

    • Big Data: Medical devices provide enormous amounts of vital, timely data that can have a big clinical impact. Predictive analytics models based on ‘Big Data’ can assist physicians get helpful insights while also improving the quality of care and patient outcomes.
    • Wearable Devices: Due to their ease of use, wearable such as glucose monitors, exercise trackers, and wearable for mental health are becoming increasingly popular among Indian customers.
    • Surgical Robotics: Robotics is one of the most fascinating and rapidly increasing areas of healthcare, with potential innovations ranging from robot companions to exoskeletons. In healthcare, robot companions can help alleviate loneliness, cure mental health difficulties, and even assist children with chronic illnesses.
    • Startups: India has around 250 active medical technology startups. Between 2011 and 2020, Indian health-tech and digital health startups raised over $2 billion, including 500+ investments into 340+ companies. Over the last decade, there have been more than 70 successful exits.
    • Home Healthcare: This has the potential to save up to 65 percent of unnecessary hospital visits in India while also lowering hospital expenditures by 20%. By 2027, it is predicted to increase at a CAGR of 19.2%, reaching $ 21.3 billion.

    Regulatory mechanism in India

    • Legacy laws: After 1970 the government took control through the Indian Patent Act 1970 and Drug Price Control Order and gradually Indian companies started emerging.
    • Regulatory authorities: The Government of India has introduced Medical Device Regulation which has the task to regulate the manufacturing and marketing of medical devices and the authorities governing it are:
    • Central Drug Standards Control Organization:  Main regulatory body for pharmaceuticals and medical devices
    • Drug Controller General in India: He/She is the crucial official under CDSCO
    • Drugs & Cosmetic Act and Rules: This governs the manufacture, import, sales and distribution of medical devices

    Various challenges to this sector

    • Quality assurance: India has only 18 certified medical device testing laboratories that have been approved by the CDSCO and that is grossly insufficient keeping in view the size of the country.
    • Demand-supply gap: There is a huge gap in the current demand and supply of medical devices in India and this provides a significant opportunity for manufacturing devices in India.
    • Nascent industry: Around 65 percent of Indian manufacturers are domestic operators in the consumables sector, catering mostly to domestic consumption with negligible exports.
    • MNC monopoly: With vast service networks, large multinational corporations dominate the high-tech end of the Medical Devices industry in India.
    • Overpricing: To substantiate, let’s consider the example of stents or knee or hip implants. This needs no explanation!

    Policy Boost

    • Medical Device Parks Promotion Scheme: The government has approved the establishment of four medical device parks to offer shared infrastructure, build a healthy ecosystem for medical device manufacture, and lower manufacturing costs.
    • Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme: The PLI scheme for Promoting Domestic Manufacturing of Medical Devices and for Pharmaceuticals (PLI 2.0) were introduced to help India achieve its goal of becoming a worldwide medical device manufacturing powerhouse.
    • Draft National Policy for Medical Devices, 2022: The Medical Devices Rules (MDR) 2017 govern clinical research, manufacturing, importation, sale, and distribution of medical devices. The gadgets are divided into four categories in accordance with international standards.
    • QA mechanism: In June 2021, the Quality Council of India (QCI) and the Association of Indian Manufacturers of Medical Devices (AiMeD) launched the Indian Certification of Medical Devices (ICMED) 13485 Plus scheme to undertake verification of the quality, safety and efficacy of medical devices

    Need for a concrete policy

    • Policy vacuum: India’s medical devices sector has so far been regulated as per provisions under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940, and a specific policy on medical devices has been a long-standing demand from the industry.
    • Meaningful expense on R&D: The policy also aims to increase India’s per capita spend on medical devices. India has one of the lowest per capita spend on medical devices at $3, compared to the global average of per capita consumption of $47.
    • Reducing import dependence: With the new policy, the government aims to reduce India’s import dependence from 80 per cent to nearly 30 per cent in the next 10 years.
    • Becoming a global hub: It aims to become one of the top five global manufacturing hubs for medical devices by 2047.
    • Domestic manufacturing of high-end products: Indian players in the space have so far typically focussed on low-cost and low-tech products, like consumables and disposables, leading to a higher value share going to foreign companies.

    Way forward

    • Infrastructure boost: Having adequate common infrastructure including accredited laboratories in various regions of the country for standard testing will significantly encourage local manufacturers to get their products tested for standard. 
    • Surveillance System: There is a dire need for developing a robust IT-enabled feedback-driven post-market surveillance system for medical devices to evaluate their efficiency.
    • Validation Centre: Setting up government-run, common medical device testing facilities in PPP mode for testing/evaluating medical devices. 
    • Skill Development: There is a need to set up committees and representation through the National Institutes of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPERs) and the Healthcare Sector Skill Council.
    • R&D: Development of incubation centres, setting up an IP exchange where technologies can be showcased and licensed for commercial benefits.  
    • Synergy with State governments: Health Ministry needs to work in synergy with State governments and impart the necessary skills to the local medical device officers and also devise a mechanism.
    • 3As: Accessibility, availability and affordability must be at the core objectives for focusing on self-sustainability, innovation and growth in the medical devices sector.

    With inputs from:

    https://rjptonline.org/HTMLPaper.aspx?Journal=Research%20Journal%20of%20Pharmacy%20and%20Technology;PID=2019-12-12-57

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  • 19th Jan 2023 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

    19th Jan 2023 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

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    [WpProQuiz_toplist 1218]

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  • Highlights of ASER 2022

    aser

    Pratham’s Annual Survey of Education Report (ASER) 2022 — the first full-fledged one after the pandemic has now been published.

    ASER Survey

    • This is an annual survey (published by the education non-profit Pratham) that aims to provide reliable estimates of children’s enrolment and basic learning levels for each district and state in India.
    • ASER has been conducted every year since 2005 in all rural districts of India. It is the largest citizen-led survey in India.
    • It is also the only annual source of information on children’s learning outcomes available in India.
    • The survey is usually done once in two years.

    How is the survey conducted?

    • ASER tools and procedures are designed by ASER Centre, the research and assessment arm of Pratham.
    • The survey itself is coordinated by ASER Centre and facilitated by the Pratham network. It is conducted by close to 30,000 volunteers from partner organizations in each district.
    • All kinds of institutions partner with ASER: colleges, universities, NGOs, youth groups, women’s organizations, self-help groups, and others.
    • The ASER model has been adapted for use in several countries around the world: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Pakistan, Mali, and Senegal.

    Assessment parameters

    • Unlike most other large-scale learning assessments, ASER is a household-based rather than school-based survey.
    • This design enables all children to be included – those who have never been to school or have dropped out, as well as those who are in government schools, private schools, religious schools or anywhere else.
    • In each rural district, 30 villages are sampled. In each village, 20 randomly selected households are surveyed.
    • Information on schooling status is collected for all children living in sampled households who are in the age group 3-16.
    • Children in the age group 5-16 are tested in basic reading and basic arithmetic. The same test is administered to all children.
    • The highest level of reading tested corresponds to what is expected in std 2; in 2012 this test was administered in 16 regional languages.
    • In recent years, this has included household size, parental education, and some information on household assets.

    Highlights of ASER 2022

    The ASER 2022 report, which surveyed 6.99 lakh children aged 3 to 16 across 616 rural districts, however, bears some good news. School-level enrolment continues to grow strong and fewer girls are now out of school.

    (1) Enrolment

    • India has recorded a 95% enrolment for the last 15 years in the 6-14 age group.
    • Despite the pandemic forced school closure, the figure rose from 97.2% in 2018 to 98.4% in 2022.
    • Only 1.6% children are now not enrolled.
    • There is a clear increase in government school (6-14) enrolment across states — it rose from 65.6% in 2018 to 72.9% in 2022.
    • This is contrast to the trend in the 2006-14 period, which marked a steady decline in government school enrolment for the 6-14 age group.
    • From 10.3% of 11-14 year old girls not enrolled in schools in 2006, the proportion came down to 4.1% in 2018 and is at 2% in 2022. Save Uttar Pradesh, where it is at 4%, the number is lower across states.

    (2) Learning Loss

    • The ASER 2022 report says that children’s basic reading ability has dropped to ‘pre2012 levels, reversing the slow improvement achieved in the intervening years’.
    • The decline is seen across gender and across both government and private schools and is more acute in lower grades.
    • Percentage of children in Class III in govt or private schools who can read at Class II level dropped from 27.3% in 2018 to 20.5% in 2022.
    • Class V students who can at least read a Class II level text fell from 50.5% in 2018 to 42.8% in 2022.
    • Nationally, 69.6% of Class VIII students can read at least basic text in 2022, falling from 73% in 2018.

    (3) Arithmetic abilities

    • Students in Class III who are able to at least do subtraction dropped from 28.2% in 2018 to 25.9% in 2022.
    • For Class V, students who can do division has also fallen from 27.9% in 2018 to 25.6% in 2022.
    • Class VIII has done better with an improvement recorded — proportion of children who can do division has increased from 44.1% in 2018 to 44.7% in 2022.
    • ASER says that this increase is driven by improved outcomes among girls as well as among children enrolled in government schools, whereas boys and children enrolled in private schools show a decline over 2018 levels.

    (4) Tuition dependency

    • Rural India has been reporting an uptick in Class I-VIII paid tuition classes and it has moved up from 26.4% in 2018 to 30.5% in 2022.
    • In UP, Bihar, and Jharkhand, the proportion of children taking paid private tuition increased by 8 percentage points.

    (5) English proficiency

    • ASER recorded English abilities last in 2016 and the trend stays similar till date.
    • Children’s ability to read simple English sentences was at 24.7% in 2016 and is found at 24.5% in 2022.
    • Class VIII has shown some improvement from 45.3% in 2016 to 46.7% in 2022.
    • Children’s basic reading ability has dropped to pre-2012 levels, reversing the slow improvement achieved in the intervening years, while the basic maths skills have declined to 2018 levels nationally.

    (6) Schools improvement

    • Average teacher attendance increased from 85.4% in 2018 to 87.1% in 2022, while average student attendance persists at 72% as before.
    • Textbooks had been distributed to all grades in 90.1% of primary schools and in 84.4% of upper primary schools.
    • Fraction of schools with useable girls’ toilets increased from 66.4% in 2018 to 68.4% in 2022.
    • There were 76% schools with drinking water facilities compared with 74.85% in 2018, but there are interstate variations.
    • In 2022, 68.9% schools had a playground, up slightly from 66.5% in 2018.

    Way forward

    • In the past 10 years, we’ve seen improvement, but it has been in small bits. So it means that we really need to shake up things.
    • It is a critical thing for improving the productivity of the country. Business as usual is not going to work.
    • Again, it’s not a new message, but it’s a message that needs to be reiterated.
    • There are Anganwadi everywhere and their enrollment has gone up. Integration between the Anganwadi system and the school system is urgently needed because the work starts there.

     

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  • TRAI’s Calling Name Presentation (CNAP) Proposal

    cnap

    Telecom operators have expressed concerns over user privacy on the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s Calling Name Presentation (CNAP) proposal.

    Calling Name Presentation (CNAP)

    • Under this phones would need to display the name of a caller, by extracting the name of the telecom subscriber from their SIM registration data.
    • The feature would provide the called individual with information about the calling party (similar to ‘Truecaller’ and ‘Bharat Caller ID & Anti-Spam’).
    • The idea is to ensure that telephone subscribers are able to make an informed choice about incoming calls and curb harassment by unknown or spam callers.

    Why need CNAP?

    • Securing important calls: Genuine calls should not get unanswered. Hence proper system is solicited.
    • Blocking of spammers: Since subscribers are not given the name and identity of the caller, they may choose not to answer them believing it could be commercial communication from unregistered telemarketers.
    • Rise of robocalls: There have been rising concerns about robocalls (calls made automatically using IT-enabled systems with a pre-recorded voice), spam calls and fraudulent calls.

    What are the proposed models? 

    The regulator has proposed four models for facilitating the CNAP mechanism-

    1. TSPs operating CNAP database: The first model involves each telecom service provider (TSP) establishing and operating a CNAP database of its subscribers. Here, the caller’s TSP would have to extract the relevant data from its own database.
    2. Database sharing: In the second model, the operator of the calling entity shares its CNAP database with the receiver’s operator. The difference here is that the calling operator would permit the receiver’s operator to access its database for the caller’s CNAP data.
    3. Creating a Centralised database: The onus rests on the receiver’s operator to delve into the centralized database to retrieve and present the caller’s data. This model is similar to a plan envisaged by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in 2018, involving the setting up of a Digital Intelligence Unit at the central level.
    4. Centralized CNAP database: TSP retains a copy of a synchronized central database operated by a third party. It works this way: the call is facilitated as per the routine procedure, and since the receiver’s operator has access to both the centralized and their own database, the lookup is, therefore, internal.

    Issues involved

    • Latency: The regulator has said that latency in setting up the call must be ensured and CNAP must be inter-operable. The responsiveness might also suffer when moving from a faster wireless network (4G or 5G) to a comparatively slower one (2G or 3G), or vice-versa.
    • Privacy Issue: It is not clear how the CNAP mechanism would balance the caller’s right to remain anonymous, an essential component of the right to privacy. To put it into perspective, an individual may opt to remain anonymous for multiple reasons, for example, whistle-blowers or employees being harassed.
    • Gendered impact: The proposal may particularly harm women. The service will display a woman subscriber’s name and data, to every calling party whether or not she consents to it.
    • Data sharing without consent: We have to see it in parallel with The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill (2022) which has a clause on deemed consent lacking adequate safeguards including sharing of data with third parties.
    • Implementation loopholes: Marketers have figured out newer ways to circumvent the existing framework. Previously, telemarketers were required to be registered as promotional numbers. Now they have started deploying people not necessarily part of the entity’s set-up, but rather “at-home workers”.

    Way forward

    • Innovative solution: TRAI must build an interface that is user-friendly and in turn, an effective mechanism.
    • Spam identification: Active participation from the subscribers would ensure that spammers are rightly identified and are unable to make further calls.
    • Digital literacy: The government must also invest in digital literacy, skilling citizen’s to navigate and use the tech better, ensuring they do not share their data indiscriminately and are informed about dangers such as financial fraud and spoofing.

     

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  • Why India needs a fresh Fertilizer Policy?

    fertilizer

    The government is expected to come out with a new fertilizer policy.

    What is the news?

    • A task force to examine the production and promotion of bio-fertilizer and organic fertilizers has already been set up under the NITI Aayog.

    How much fertilizer does India consume?

    • Total consumption of fertilizers between April and mid-December 2022 was 40.146 million metric tonnes (mmt), with production of 32.076 mmt and imports of 12.839 mmt.
    • The gap between demand and production is met through timely imports.

    How is fertilizers availability monitored?

    • Some steps undertaken by the government to improve the availability of fertilizers include:
    1. Assessment of state-wise requirements every month;
    2. 100% neem coating of urea, which increases nutrient efficiency;
    3. Monitoring of crop yield and soil health; and
    4. Online monitoring of the movement of fertilizers through the integrated Fertilizer Monitoring System.

    Impact of the current policy

    • Heavy subsidies: This has prompted many farmers to use chemical fertilizers like urea, which leads to higher productivity, but affects soil fertility in the long run.
    • Excessive and inefficient use of fertilizers: This leads to nutrient losses to the environment and could also result in drinking water contamination and impact human lives as a result of unsafe storage practices, as per a UN report.
    • Emission causing: With the subsidy being released directly to companies, technology-inefficient companies are being protected causing carbon emission.

    While attempts have been made to reform the fertilizer policy, they had to be rolled back after pressure from various quarters.

    Trend in government expenditure

    • Food subsidy: The government has spiked spending on food, fertilizer and fuel subsidy by nearly 70%.
    • Increased expenditure: For 2023-24, the fertilizer ministry might seek budgetary support of ₹2.5 trillion subsidy – outgo for FY23 has already crossed ₹2 trillion.
    • Increased import bill: Russia being a major exporter of liquefied natural gas -critical input for manufacturing of urea – has also led to higher prices.

    Steps taken in 2022

    • Implementation of DBT: The department of fertilizers disbursed subsidies for urea and nutrient-based subsidy, and implemented direct benefit transfer.
    • One Nation One Fertilizers Scheme: It also implemented the ONOF scheme which aims to ensure timely supply of fertilizers.
    • Model fertilizer retail outlets: The existing village, block/sub district/taluk and district level fertilizer retail outlets are being converted into model fertilizer retail outlets.

    Way forward

    • Promoting local fertilizers: Lower duty on imported phosphoric acid to raise the competitiveness of local fertilizer manufactures, and an incentive for promoting organic fertilizers, could be proposed.
    • Bio-fertilizer and organic fertilizers: A task force on bio-fertilizer and organic fertilizers has already been set up under NITI Aayog.
    • Curbing hefty subsidies: Considering the long-term interests of agriculture and the effects of using inorganic fertilizers, saving a huge amount on account of subsidy support is a step in the right direction.

     

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  • What is National Coal Index (NCI)?

    The Ministry of Coal has launched the sixth round of commercial coal mines’ auction for 141 coal mines.

    What is the news?

    • As per the provisions of the tender document, the Performance Bank Guarantee (PBG) to be submitted for each successfully auctioned coal mine is to be revised annually based on the National Coal Index (NCI).

    What is National Coal Index (NCI)?

    • Ministry of Coal has started commercial auction of coal mines on revenue share basis.
    • In order to arrive at the revenue share based on market prices of coal, one National Coal Index (NCI) is conceptualized.
    • The NCI is a price index which reflects the change of price level of coal on a particular month relative to the fixed base year.
    • The base year for the NCI is FY 2017-18.
    • NCI is a price index combining the prices of coal from all the sales channels- Notified Prices, Auction Prices and Import Prices.
    • It is released every month.

    Components of NCI

    • The concept and design of the Index as well as the Representative Prices have been developed by the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
    • NCI is composed of a set of five sub-indices: three for Non-Coking Coal and two for Coking Coal.
    • The three sub-indices for Non-Coking Coal are combined to arrive at the Index for Non-Coking Coal and the two sub-indices for Coking Coal are combined to arrive at the Index for Coking Coal.
    • Thus, indices are separate for Non-coking and Coking Coal.
    • As per the grade of coal pertaining to a mine, the appropriate sub-index is used to arrive at the revenue share.

    Implementation of NCI

    • The amount of revenue share per tonne of coal produced from auctioned blocks would be arrived at using the NCI by means of a defined formula.
    • The Index is meant to encompass all transactions of raw coal in the Indian market.
    • This includes coking and non-coking of various grades transacted in the regulated (power and fertilizer) and non-regulated sectors.
    • Washed coal and coal products are not included.

     

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  • [pib] Grameen Udyami Scheme

    grameen

    The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship the felicitation program of 200 tribal women under the Grameen Udyami Scheme.

    Grameen Udyami Scheme

    • It was launched to augment skill training in tribal communities for their inclusive and sustainable growth.
    • It is a unique multiskilling project, funded by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) that aims to train tribal students in select states.
    • It is implemented under Sansadiya Parisankul Yojana.
    • Under the program, 49 ST clusters in 15 states of India have been selected by 40 tribal MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
    • Under their leadership, the scheme in respective clusters is being implemented.
    • One development associate is appointed by the MPs in each cluster.

    Stated objectives

    • Increase in Rural/Local Economy
    • Enhance employment opportunities
    • Reduce forced migration due to lack of local opportunities
    • Conservation of natural resources

    Scope of the project

    • The project is being implemented in six states – Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Gujarat.

    Benefits

    • Transportation, boarding & lodging during the learning period is provided to candidates
    • The training under the project will be conducted in the job roles which are relevant to the local economy.

     

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  • 18th Jan 2023 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

    18th Jan 2023 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

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