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Subject: Governance

Important aspects of Society

  • Rise in Unvaccinated Children in India

    The number of children in India who were unvaccinated or missed their first dose of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) combined vaccine doubled due to the pandemic, rising from 1.4 million in 2019 to 2.7 million in 2021, according to official data published by the WHO and UNICEF.

    Why in news?

    • This data signifies that the world recorded the largest sustained decline in childhood vaccinations in approximately 30 years.
    • There was an increase in zero dose.
    • This is the first time ever there has been a decline in evaluated coverage in immunisation for India as a whole.

    Vaccination measures in India

    • Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 4.0: India started IMI 4.0 from February 2022, which is expected to further reduce the number of unvaccinated children.
    • India’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP): It provide free vaccines to all children across the country to protect them against Tuberculosis, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio, Hepatitis B, Pneumonia and Meningitis due to Haemophilus Influenzae type b (Hib), Measles, Rubella, Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and Rotavirus diarrhoea. (Rubella, JE and Rotavirus vaccine in select states and districts).

    About Intensified Mission Indhradhanush (IMI) 4.0

    • IMI 4.0 aims to fill gaps in the routine immunisation coverage of infants and pregnant women hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and also aims to make lasting gains towards Universal Immunization.
    • It will have three rounds and will be conducted in 416 districts across 33 states.
    • Unlike the past, each round under IMI 4.0 will be conducted for seven days, including Routine Immunization (RI) days, Sundays, and public holidays.

    Mission Indradhanush (MI)

    • Mission Indradhanush (MI) was launched in 2014 with the goal to ensure full immunization with all available vaccines under Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) for children up to two years of age and pregnant women.
    • It targets achieving 90% full immunization coverage in all districts.
    • Under MI, all vaccines under the Universal Immunization Program (UIP) are provided as per National Immunization Schedule.
    • UIP provides free vaccines against 12 life-threatening diseases, mentioned above.

    Back2Basics: Universal Immunisation Programme

    • The Expanded Programme on Immunization was launched in 1978.
    • It was renamed as UIP in 1985 when its reach was expanded beyond urban areas.
    • UIP is one of the largest public health programmes targeting close to 2.67 crore newborns and 2.9 crore pregnant women annually.
    • Under UIP, Immunization is provided free of cost against 12 vaccine-preventable diseases.
    • The two major milestones of UIP have been the elimination of polio in 2014 and maternal and neonatal tetanus elimination in 2015.
    • To speed up the coverage, Mission Indradhanush was planned and implemented to rapidly increase the full coverage to 90%.

     

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  • Draft disability policy

    Context

    The Department of Empowerment of Person with Disabilities (DoEPwD) recently released the draft of the national policy for persons with disabilities.

    Why new policy?

    • Signing of UN convention: The necessity for a new policy which replaces the 2006 policy was felt because of multiple factors such as India’s signing of the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
    • Increased number of disabilities: Enactment of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016, which increased the number of disabilities from seven conditions to 21 necessitated the change.
    • Incheon Strategy: Being a party to the Incheon Strategy for Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022 (“Incheon commitment”).
    • Changed discourse from medical model to human right: These commitments have changed the discourse around disability by shifting the focus from the individual to society, i.e., from a medical model of disability to a social or human rights model of disability.
    • The principle of the draft policy is to showcase the Government’s commitment to the inclusion and empowerment of persons with disabilities by providing a mechanism that ensures their full participation in society.

    Absence of commitment to political uplift

    • Article 29 of the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities mandates that state parties should “ensure that persons with disabilities can effectively and fully participate in political and public life on an equal basis with others, directly or through freely chosen representatives….”
    • The Incheon goals also promote participation in political processes and in decision making.
    • The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 embodies these principles within its fold.
    • India does not have any policy commitment that is aimed at enhancing the political participation of disabled people.
    • The exclusion of disabled people from the political space happens at all levels of the political process in the country, and in different ways.
    • Section 11 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act prescribes that “The Election Commission of India and the State Election Commissions shall ensure that all polling stations are accessible to persons with disabilities and all materials related to the electoral process are easily understandable by and accessible to them”.
    • Although this mandate has been in existence for a few years, the disabled people still report accessibility issues before and on election day. 
    • There is often a lack of accessible polling booths in many locations.
    • Lack of aggregate data: The lack of live aggregate data on the exact number of the disabled people in every constituency only furthers their marginalisation.

    Lack of representation

    • Representation plays an imperative role in furthering the interests of the marginalised community.
    • Disabled people are not represented enough at all three levels of governance.
    • However, few States have begun the initiative at local levels to increase participation.
    • For instance, Chhattisgarh started the initiative of nominating at least one disabled person in each panchayat.
    • If a disabled person is not elected then they are nominated as a panchayat member as per changes in the law concerned.
    • This is a step that has increased the participation of the disabled in the political space at local level.
    • The goal of the policy document — of inclusiveness and empowerment — cannot be achieved without political inclusion.

    Suggestions: Follow four pronged approach

    • The policy can follow a four-pronged approach:
    • 1] Capacity building: Building the capacity of disabled people’s organisations and ‘empowering their members through training in the electoral system, government structure, and basic organisational and advocacy skills’;
    • 2] Legal and regulatory framework: The creation, amendment or removal of legal and regulatory frameworks by lawmakers and election bodies to encourage the political participation of the disabled;
    • 3] Participation of civil society: Inclusion of civil societies to ‘conduct domestic election observation or voter education campaigns’;
    • 4] Framework for outreach by political parties: A framework for political parties to ‘conduct a meaningful outreach to persons with disabilities when creating election campaign strategies and developing policy positions’.

    Conclusion

    The document lays emphasis on the point that central and State governments must work together with other stakeholders to “make the right real”. This right can be made real only when it includes political rights/political participation within it.

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  • Kerala reports India’s first Monkeypox Case

    The first known lab-confirmed case of monkeypox in India has been reported in a 35-year-old man in Kerala.

    What is Monkeypox?

    • The monkeypox virus is an orthopoxvirus, which is a genus of viruses that also includes the variola virus, which causes smallpox, and vaccinia virus, which was used in the smallpox vaccine.
    • It causes symptoms similar to smallpox, although they are less severe.
    • While vaccination eradicated smallpox worldwide in 1980, monkeypox continues to occur in a swathe of countries in Central and West Africa, and has on occasion showed up elsewhere.
    • According to the WHO, two distinct clade are identified: the West African clade and the Congo Basin clade, also known as the Central African clade.

    Its origin

    • Monkeypox is a zoonosis, that is, a disease that is transmitted from infected animals to humans.
    • Monkeypox virus infection has been detected in squirrels, Gambian poached rats, dormice, and some species of monkeys.
    • According to the WHO, cases occur close to tropical rainforests inhabited by animals that carry the virus.

    Symptoms and treatment

    • Monkeypox begins with a fever, headache, muscle aches, back ache, and exhaustion.
    • It also causes the lymph nodes to swell (lymphadenopathy), which smallpox does not.
    • The WHO underlines that it is important to not confuse monkeypox with chickenpox, measles, bacterial skin infections, scabies, syphilis and medication-associated allergies.
    • The incubation period (time from infection to symptoms) for monkeypox is usually 7-14 days but can range from 5-21 days.
    • There is no safe, proven treatment for monkeypox yet.

     

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  • Assessing Juvenility a ‘Delicate Task’: SC

    The Supreme Court has given some guidelines for the delicate task of deciding whether juveniles aged between 16 and 18, accused of heinous offences such as murder can be tried like adults as per the JJ Act, 2005.

    Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

    • The JJ Act, 2015 replaced the Indian juvenile delinquency law, Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000.
    • It allows for juveniles in conflict with Law in the age group of 16–18, involved in Heinous Offences, to be tried as adults.
    • The Act also sought to create a universally accessible adoption law for India.
    • The Act came into force from 15 January 2016.

    Key features

    • Change in nomenclature from ‘juvenile’ to ‘child’ or ‘child in conflict with law’, across the Act to remove the negative connotation associated with the word “juvenile”
    • Inclusion of several new definitions such as orphaned, abandoned and surrendered children; and petty, serious and heinous offences committed by children;
    • Setting up Juvenile Justice Boards and Child Welfare Committees in every district. Both must have at least one woman member each.
    • Special provisions for heinous offences committed by children above the age of 16 years: This was in response to the juvenile convict in Nirbhaya Case.
    • Inclusion of new offences committed against children:  Sale and procurement of children for any purpose including illegal adoption, corporal punishment in child care institutions, use of child by militant groups, offences against disabled children and, kidnapping and abduction of children.
    • Penalties for cruelty against a child: Offering a narcotic substance to a child, and abduction or selling a child has been prescribed.

    What is the recent Supreme Court assessment?

    • The “delicate task” of deciding whether juveniles aged between 16 and 18, accused of heinous offences such as murder, can be tried like adults should be based on meticulous psychological investigation.
    • They should not left to the discretion and perfunctory “wisdom” of juvenile justice boards and children’s courts across the country, the Court held.

    What delicate tasks does the apex court is referring to?

    (1) Preliminary Assessment

    • Section 15 of the JJ Act requires a “preliminary assessment” to be done of the mental and physical capacity of juveniles, aged between 16 and 18, who are involved in serious crimes.
    • The assessment is meant to gauge a child’s ability to understand the consequences of the offence and the circumstances in which he or she allegedly committed the offence.
    • If the Juvenile Justice Board is of the opinion that the juvenile should not be treated as an adult, it would not pass on the case to the children’s court and hear the case itself.
    • If the Board decides to refer the case to the children’s court for trial as an adult, the juvenile, if guilty, would even face life imprisonment.

    (2) Mental capacity

    • The evaluation of ‘mental capacity and ability to understand the consequences’ of the child in conflict with law can should not be relegated as a routine task.
    • The process of taking a decision on which the fate of the child in conflict with law precariously rests, should not be taken without conducting a meticulous psychological evaluation.
    • The court said the Board which conducts the assessment of the child should have at least one child psychologist.

    Way forward

    • The court discovered that there were neither guidelines nor a specific framework in place for conduct of the preliminary assessment.
    • The court left it open for the Centre and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights to consider issuing guidelines or directions in this regard.
    • It should further take the assistance of experienced psychologists or psychosocial workers.

     

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  • Child labour in India

    The Centre does not have any data on child labour in the country and a reason for this is the drying up of budgetary provisions meant for the National Child Labour Project (NCLP).

    What is Child Labour?

    • The term “child labour” is often defined as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development.
    • It refers to work that:
    1. is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to children; and/or
    2. interferes with their schooling by: depriving them of the opportunity to attend school; obliging them to leave school prematurely; or requiring them to attempt to combine school attendance with excessively long and heavy work.

    National Child Labour Project (NCLP)

    • The NCLP Scheme is a Central Sector Scheme under the Ministry of Labour.
    • Under this Scheme the District Project Societies (DPS) are set up at the district level under the Chairmanship of the Collector/District Magistrate to oversee the implementation of the project.
    • Under this Scheme, the children in the age group of 9-14 years are withdrawn from work and put into NCLP Special Training Centres.
    • They are provided with bridge education, vocational training, mid-day meal, stipend, health care etc. before being mainstreamed into formal education system.
    • The children in the age group of 5-8 years are directly linked to the formal education system through a close coordination with the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
    • A dedicated online portal named PENCiL (Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour) is developed for better monitoring and implementation.

    Why in news now?

    • No ministry had any data regarding the status of child labour in our country.
    • The NCLP’s schools for child labourers work for three to four years and they have also more or less stopped functioning due to scarcity of funds.
    • Education Ministry also does not have a mechanism to find out the number of children engaged in child labour.

    Grave concerns of the issue

    • This is a serious situation.
    • It is for the first time that a parliamentary panel is engaged in a detailed examination of the national policy on child labour.
    • Though we have legislation, the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, since 1986 the menace of child labour is continue unchecked.

    Various provisions against Child Labour

    • Article 23 of the Indian Constitution states that any type of forced labour is prohibited.
    • Article 24 states that a child under 14 years cannot be employed to perform any hazardous work.
    • Article 39 states that “the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused”.
    • The Child Labour Act (Prohibition and Regulation) 1986 prohibits children under the age of 14 years to be working in hazardous industries and processes.

     

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  • The road to productivity

    Context

    The commute time for the labour force to the workplace plays a very important role in determining their productivity in cities.

    Issue of long travel time to work

    • Labour market: Cities are labour markets where the labour force exchanges their labour and creates knowledge spillovers.
    • Relation between commute time and productivity: The commute time for the labour force to the workplace plays a very important role in determining their productivity in cities.
    •  The longer the commute time in a city, the smaller is its effective labour market and vice-versa.
    • Difference between nominal and effective labour market: While the nominal labour market of the city refers to all jobs created in the metropolitan area, the effective labour market refers to the jobs accessible within a certain commute.
    • Importance of effective labour market: The larger a city’s effective labour market, the greater its agglomeration economies and knowledge spillovers will be.
    • From the viewpoint of enlarging a city’s effective labour market and economic output, it is therefore very important to keep the commute time short and commuting cost cheap within a city as it keeps growing in population.

    Way forward

    • One way in which urban local bodies (ULBs) directly impact the city’s economic output is through their infrastructure.
    • Increase in tax base: Road length has a positive effect on the city’s tax base.
    • Motivation to pay texes: This is because roads lead to easy access to jobs and increased economic activity; that also gives the public more confidence and motivation to pay taxes.
    • Cities should not view investment in road networks as expenditure; rather, roads add to the city’s revenue base which the city can use to improve infrastructure and public services.

    Conclusion

    Investing in roads not only reduces travel time and enlarges effective labour markets of cities and their economic output, but also improves access to schooling for children as well as healthcare, thereby upgrading human development. This is indeed the road to the $5 trillion economy along with improvement in human well-being.

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  • Centre releases guidelines for Mission Vatsalya

    In order to access Central funds and benefits under Mission Vatsalya (an umbrella scheme for child protection services in the country), the centre has issued certain guidelines.

    What is Mission Vatsalya?

    • Mission Vatsalya promotes family-based non-institutional care of children in difficult circumstances based on the principle of institutionalization of children as a measure of last resort.
    • It is one of the new triad of schemes along with Mission Shakti, and Poshan 2.0, that aims at securing a healthy and happy childhood for every child.

    Components under the mission include:

    1. Improve the functioning of statutory bodies;
    2. Strengthen service delivery structures;
    3. Upscale institutional care/services;
    4. Encourage non-institutional community-based care;
    5. Emergency outreach services;
    6. Training and capacity building.

    Implementation

    • It will be implemented as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme in partnership with state governments and UT administrations, with a fund-sharing pattern in a 60:40 ratio.
    • However, for the eight states in the Northeast — as well as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the UT of J&K — the Centre and state/UT’s share will be 90:10.
    • The Centre will cover the whole cost in UTs without a legislature.

    What are the new guidelines?

    (1) Official changes

    • States will have to retain the official name, as given by the Centre. Only a correct translation to local language is permissible.
    • The centre detailed the process by which funds will be disbursed to states under various heads by defining institutionalised arrangements.
    • Funds to states will be approved through the Mission Vatsalya Project Approval Board (PAB), which will be chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of WCD.
    • The Secretary will scrutinise and approve annual plans and financial proposals received from states and UTs for release of grants.

    (2) Special arrangements

    • States/UTs have also been directed to focus on special needs children with physical or mental disabilities.
    • Institutions now have to provide special educators, therapists and nurses to impart occupational therapy, speech therapy, verbal therapy and other remedial classes.
    • The staff in these special units will have to know sign language, Braille, etc, according to the new guidelines.

    (3) Newly shouldered tasks

    • The guidelines state that Mission Vatsalya will support State Adoption Resource Agencies (SARA), which will support the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA).
    • This move aims at promoting in-country adoption and regulating inter-country adoption.
    • Mission Vatsalya, in partnership with states and districts, will execute a 24×7 helpline service for children, as defined under JJ Act, 2015.

    Name change saga: Child Protection Services Scheme

    • Before 2009, three schemes were being implemented under the WCD Ministry for children in need of protection:
    1. Programme for juvenile justice for children in need of care and protection, and children in conflict with law;
    2. Integrated programme for street children and
    3. Scheme for assistance to homes for children
    • These were clubbed in 2010 into a single scheme called the Integrated Child Protection Scheme.
    • It was then renamed “Child Protection Services” Scheme in 2017, and again as Mission Vatsalya in 2021-22.

  • [pib] National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI)

    Two new Internet Exchange points (IXP) of NIXI were inaugurated at Durgapur and Bardhman.

    What is NIXI?

    • NIXI is a not for profit Organization under section 8 of the Companies Act 2013 and was registered on 19th June 2003.
    • It’s an initiative under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) vision 1000 days.
    • It aims for spreading the internet infrastructure to the citizens of India through the following activities:
    1. Internet Exchanges through which the internet data is exchanged amongst Internet Service Protocols (ISPs), Data Centers and CDNs.
    2. .IN Registry, managing and operation of .IN country-code domain and .भारत IDN domain for India.
    3. Indian Registry for Internet Names and Numbers (IRINN), managing and operating Internet protocol (IPv4/IPv6).

    Why NIXI?

    • NIXI was set up for peering of Internet Service Protocols (ISPs) among themselves for the purpose of routing the domestic traffic within the country, instead of taking it all the way to US/Abroad.
    • It is thereby resulting in better quality of service (reduced latency) and reduced bandwidth charges for ISPs by saving on International Bandwidth.
    • NIXI is managed and operated on a Neutral basis, in line with the best practices for such initiatives globally.

    Utility of NIXI

    • The launch of these new NIXI internet exchanges will contribute to the enhancement and improvement of Internet and Broadband services at local level and in neighbouring regions.
    • The internet service providers connecting at these points will benefit as their broadband services to their end users will improve, bringing about a change in the lives of the people of the region.
    • It will benefit every sector of the state ranging from health, education, agriculture, startup, and ecosystem to MSMEs & other business verticals.
    • Accessibility and convenience will increase for citizens in terms of availing government benefits and improving quality of life.

     

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  • A ‘no’ to pharma freebies

    Context

    The judgment by a two-judge Bench of the Supreme Court dismissed the Special Leave Petition by Apex Laboratories to claim deduction on freebies given to doctors.

    About the case

    •  In the said case, the company was giving out freebies to doctors in order for them to create awareness about a health supplement it was manufacturing called Zincovit.
    • Prohibited by the law: Upholding a decision by the Madras High Court, the Bench said that the act of pharmaceutical companies giving freebies to doctors is clearly ‘prohibited by the law’.
    • Further, it cannot be claimed as a deduction under Section 37(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
    • The judge said that in the process of interpretation of the law, it is the responsibility of the court to discern the social purpose which the specific provision subserves.
    •  Invoking the principle of implied condition, the Court relied on the precedents in the case of P.V. Narasimha Rao (1998) 4 SCC 626 under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and Jamal Uddin Ahmad (2003) 4 SCC 257 under the Representation of the People Act.

    Immoral practice

    • Breach of trust: Laying emphasis on the fiduciary relationship between doctor and patient, the Court noted that a doctor’s prescription is considered as the final word on medication by the patient even if the cost of such medication is unaffordable.
    • In a situation where such trust is reposed in doctors, having prescriptions manipulated by the lure of freebies is immoral.
    • Driving up the cost of medicine: The Court was conscious that the cost of such freebies is factored in the cost of medicines sold, in turn driving up their prices and perpetuating a publicly injurious cycle.
    • This fact was taken note of by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare in its 45th report, dated August 4, 2010.
    • Report from the US: In its elaborate judgment, the Supreme Court bench also took note of a report issued by the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office called “Savings Available Under Full Generic Substitution of Multiple Source Brand Drugs in Medicare Part D”.
    • Here, it was stated that the beneficiaries could have saved over $600 million in out-of-pocket payments had they been dispensed generic equivalent drugs.
    •  In the U.S., by the reason of the Physician Payments Sunshine Act 2010 also known as Section 6002 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010, the law compels the manufacturers of drugs, devices, biologic and medical supplies to report to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, on three broad categories of payments or transfers of value.

    Way forward

    • Keeping the price under control: Even though the Drug Price Control Order and Drugs and Cosmetics Act are there on the statute book, there is hardly any action to keep the sale price of medicines under control with due and proper investigation into their so-called research and development costs and keeping their profit margins within a prescribed limit.
    • The law should be amended to compel the manufacturer of drugs to sell at the verified genuine cost, that also factors in a reasonable profit margin for each product by bringing manufacturers, both foreign or domestic, under the control of the MCI or any other equivalent body.
    • This must be at a uniform rate throughout the country; further, classified life saving drugs should be sold at cost only or even at subsidised rates.

    Conclusion

    This judgment can also go far. It should be debated and applied to other unethical practices and expenditure out of public funds.

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  • New Rules to keep Advertisements in Check

    The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) recently issued guidelines to prevent false or misleading advertisements.

    Guidelines on Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022: Key takeaways

    (1) Conditions for non-misleading and valid advertisement

    An advertisement shall be considered to be valid and not misleading:

    • If it contains truthful and honest representation;
    • Does not mislead consumers by exaggerating the accuracy,
    • Scientific validity or practical usefulness or capability or performance or service of the goods or product;
    • Does not present rights conferred on consumers by any law as a distinctive feature of advertiser’s offer.

     (2) Bait Advertisement

    • A bait advertisement shall not seek to entice consumers to purchase goods, products or services without a reasonable prospect of selling such advertised goods, products or services at the price offered.
    • The advertiser shall ensure that there is an adequate supply of goods, products or services to meet foreseeable demand generated by such advertisement.

    (3) Prohibition of surrogate advertising

    • No surrogate advertisement or indirect advertisement shall be made for goods or services whose advertising is otherwise prohibited or restricted by law.
    • No circumventing of such prohibition or restriction and portraying it to be an advertisement for other goods or services shall be allowed.

    (4) Free claims advertisements

    • A free claims advertisement shall not describe any goods, product or service to be ‘free’, ‘without charge’ or use such other terms if the consumer has to pay anything other than the unavoidable costs.
    • Seller must make clear the extent of commitment that a consumer shall make to take advantage of a free offer.

    (5) Children targeted advertisements

    • An advertisement that addresses or targets or uses children shall not condone, encourage, inspire or unreasonably emulate behaviour that could be dangerous for children or take advantage of children’s inexperience, credulity or sense of loyalty.

    (6) Limitations on Celebrity Endorsers

    • The government has tightened norms for endorsers, including celebrities and sportspersons.
    • They are now required to make material connection disclosures and undertake due diligence while doing advertisements.
    • Endorsements must reflect the honest opinions, belief or experience of the endorsers.
    • The endorsers have to make material connection disclosures and failing to do so will attract penalty under the Consumer Protection Act (CPA).
    • Material disclosures mean any relationship that materially affects the weight or credibility of any endorsement which a reasonable consumer would not expect.
    • Violation of these guidelines will attract a penalty of ₹10 lakh for the first offence and ₹50 lakh for the subsequent offence, under the CPA.

    (7) ASCI rules

    • The latest guidelines will also apply to government advertisements.
    • Moreover, the advertising guidelines for self-regulation issued by the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) will also be in place in a parallel manner.

    Back2Basics:

    Explained: Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA)

     

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