Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Constitution facts
Mains level: Evolution of the Constitution of India
Context
- On November 26, 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted our Constitution. Hence, every year we celebrate this day as Constitution or Law Day. India’s Constitution has now endured for almost 73 years.
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Did you know?
- The original constitution of India was handwritten by Prem Behari Narain Raizada in a flowing italic style with beautiful calligraphy.
- 2,000 Amendments were made to the 1st draft of the Constitution before it was finalized.
- Era of constitutional democracies: Constitution-making itself is a relatively unexceptional endeavor. Ginsburg, Elkins and Blount note that in the period from 1789–2005, 806 national constitutions were promulgated.
- Shadow of partition: It was written under extraordinarily difficult conditions, The partition of India which resulted in the displacement of millions of people on both sides of the border.
- Mass death and refugee crisis: Partition was accompanied by mass deaths, devastation, violence, and brutality. Amid all this, as refugees flowed into Delhi, our dual-purpose assembly, a parliament by morning and a constituent body in the afternoon drafted our enduring founding instrument. One that would remain relevant not just for the turbulence of that present, but also would be meaningful for future generations to come.
- A lengthy process: Of the 148 cases, which were randomly chosen from 806, on average, the constitution-making process took 16 months. India’s constitution-making project took about three years from 1946 to 1949.
Legitimacy of the constitution
- Constitution narrates the story of people: It’s not only the text, but also the story crafted of the birth of a constitution that is critical in the internalization of a constitutional order by a people.
- Legitimacy of constitution makers: The drafters deployed the considerable political goodwill enjoyed by key national leaders who were members of the assembly to give legitimacy to the Constitution.
- Egalitarian foundation for decent nation: The Constitution reflects the will of the people, and how its egalitarian foundation would create a better, more decent nation.
Influence of freedom movements on the crafting of the Constitution
- Rise of constitutionalism: The freedom movement and resistance to colonial power was also good training for constitution-crafting. Dietmar Rothmund highlights the unique evolution of Indian constitutionalism, each set of reforms introduced by the British coloniser, while being designed to fulfil certain demands, leads to inspiring new agitations.
- Tilak’s Swaraj Bill of 1895: As the legal historian Rohit De writes, the Constitution, had its inspiration in sources like Tilak’s Swaraj Bill of 1895 (which included rights to free speech, free press, equality before law) and the Declaration of Rights of 1918 (where the Indian National Congress demanded that civil and political rights to include the right to life and liberty, freedom of press and association and for all this to be included in the Government of India Act 1919).
- Resolution of Fundamental Rights and Economic Changes:
- Constitutional development that drew from the Resolution of Fundamental Rights and Economic Changes at the Karachi Session of the Congress in 1931. This resolution argues that “in order to end exploitation of the masses, political freedom must include economic freedom”.
- Along with fundamental rights, it provided for ending of bonded and child labour, free primary education, expansion of labour welfare, regime protection labour unions, women workers, providing for redistribution of resources through state control over key industries and national resources, recognizing the communal problem and laying out protection of minority rights.
Consensus based approach
- It was also the consensus-oriented method that found favor with the Constituent Assembly that has helped our Constitution endure.
- The framers appreciated the link between consensus in adoption and the legitimacy of the Constitution. For instance, when debating the adoption of Hindi as a national language, Rajendra Prasad, president of the Constituent Assembly, said that the choice of national language would have to be “carried out by the whole country”.
- Even if a majority of the Assembly made a choice that was not approved by a section of the people, then, implementation of the Constitution would be rendered perilous. Hence, Hindi was made “the official language of the Union”, while English was retained to be used for all “official purposes”.
Conclusion
- India’s drafters and the methodologies they adopted to craft their glorious product, hold lessons for contemporary politicians and law makers. Consensus, craft and vision are invaluable while making an instrument to endure.
Mains Question
Q. Explain the impact of colonial legacy and freedom movement on drafting of constitution? What were the extra ordinary circumstances during the partition of India?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Election Commission
Mains level: Issues with the Election Commission and Appointments
Context
- A vital issue of national importance dominating the headlines for the last three days is the PIL in the Supreme Court regarding the autonomy and neutrality of the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Constitutional mandate for Election Commission of India (ECI).
- The Constitution intended the Election Commission to be fiercely independent and vested it with enormous powers of superintendence, direction and control over all elections.
- The apex court has repeatedly adjudged these powers to be absolute and unquestionable.
- It has declared Article 324 to be the reservoir of all powers of the ECI and has repeatedly declared free and fair elections to be part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
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- The President has the power to select Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.
- They have tenure of six years, or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
- They have the same status and receive pay and perks as available to Judges of the Supreme Court of India.
- The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office only through accusation by Parliament.
- Election commissioner or a regional commissioner shall not be removed from office except on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner.
What are the issues regarding the appointment of the Election commissioners?
- Flawed system of appointment of the Election Commissioners: They are appointed unilaterally by the government of the day.
- B. R. Ambedkar’s remark on tenure: Tenure B R Ambedkar’s statement to the Constituent Assembly “the tenure can’t be made a fixed and secure tenure if there is no provision in the Constitution to prevent a fool or a naive or a person who is likely to be under the thumb of the executive”
- Uncertainty over the elevation: Uncertainty over the elevation of an Election Commissioner to the post of CEC, which makes them vulnerable to government pressure. They consider themselves on probation, always conscious of how their conduct is viewed by the government, which can exploit this fear. Since all three members have equal voting rights and all decisions in the commission are taken by the majority, the government can even control an independent-minded CEC through the majority voting power of the two Election Commissioners.
What are the demands for the appointment of EC’s?
- Appointments through a broad-based consultation: There has been a demand for appointments through a broad-based consultation, including parliamentary scrutiny.
- The Proposed mechanism: A collegium consisting of the Prime Minister, leader of the Opposition (LOP) and the Chief Justice of India (CJI).This system is already in operation for the appointment of the Central Vigilance Commissioner, Chief Information Commissioner and Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation.
- The probable benefit of this mechanism: This will obviate the possibility of allegations against the incumbent of being partisan to the government. Opposition parties would not be able to raise a finger against the incumbent since the LOP would be a party to the selection.
- Collegium system for appointing Election Commissioners: In its 255th Report, the Law Commission of India also recommended a collegium system for appointing Election Commissioners. Political stalwarts and many former CECs including BB Tandon, N Gopalaswami, TS Krishnamurthy supported the idea.
- Extending protection to Election Commissioners: At present, only the CEC is protected from being removed (except through impeachment). One has to remember that the Constitution enabled protection for the CEC as it was initially a one-man Commission. Logically, this should have been extended to the other two Commissioners, who were added in 1993, as they collectively represent the ECI.
Memory shot: Constitutional Provisions in short
- 324: Functions of EC and its composition.
- 325: One general electoral roll and equality among the citizens.
- 326: Adult suffrage.
- 327: Power to Parliament: To make provisions with respect to elections to federal and State Legislatures.
- 328: Power to State Legislature: To make laws with respect to elections to such legislature.
- 329: Bars interference by courts in electoral matters. Notwithstanding anything said in the constitution i.e., validity of any law relating to the delimitation of constituencies or the allotment of seats to such constituencies shall not be called in question in any court.
Added Information: Conditions for filing an Election Petition
- No election to either House of Parliament or either House of the Legislature of a State shall be called in question except by an election petition.
- Any elector or candidate can file an election petition on grounds of malpractice during the election.
- In respect of elections to the Parliament and State Legislatures, they can only be filed before the High Court.
- In respect of elections for the offices of President and Vice President, such petitions can only be filed before the Supreme Court.
Conclusion
- The recent questions raised about the ECI’s credibility are certainly worrisome. An ECI in office with the express consent of both the ruling and opposition parties is a great opportunity to convince the country and all the parties contesting the elections of its neutrality and impartiality.
Mains Question
Q. Election Commission of India, the most powerful in the world, is said to have the most flawed appointment system. What are the concerns and demands raised from time to time? Discuss
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Mains level: Urban Agriculture, Use of technology and food security
Context
- As per the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization, urban and peri-urban agriculture have a significant role in global food and nutritional security, and so it is seeking to encourage such activities through the Urban Food Agenda.
What is Urban Agriculture?
- Urban agriculture refers to agricultural practices in urban and peri-urban areas. Peri-urban areas are those transitioning from rural land uses (such as for agriculture or livestock production) to urban ones (such as the built environment, manufacturing, services, and utilities), and are located between the outer limits of urban and regional centres and the rural environment.
- Cultivating food and non-food product: Urban agricultural practices are geared towards cultivating or growing a wide range of food and non-food products, and include activities such as rearing livestock, aquaculture, beekeeping, and commercial-scale floriculture.
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Urban Agriculture and Technology
- Farming using software: In France, for instance, certain software gives farmers access to cross-referenced information on their smartphones about the weather, spraying dates, seeds, fertilization plans, and regulatory compliance.
- Use of mobile applications: In India and the US, mobile applications can help connect urban growers and local consumers. Technology also helps food growers in precision farming, which involves mapping and monitoring geological and plant data for a field so that inputs can be adapted to suit ultra-localized needs. Local communities can be helpful in the gathering of such data.
- Aeroponics: Aero Farms in Newark, US, builds and operates vertical indoor farms to enable local production at scale and increase the availability of safe and nutritious food. The company uses aeroponics to grow leafy greens without sun or soil in a fully controlled environment. The technology enables year-round production with less water consumption and high yields per square metre.
- Container system: In Paris, a start-up called Agricool grows strawberries in containers across the city. The company retrofits old, unused containers to accommodate LED lights and aeroponics system to grow strawberries year-round. These ‘cooltainers’ are powered by clean energy and use about 90 percent less water than traditional farming activities. This can also create job opportunities for city residents in the agricultural sector.
- Small area large population: India’s total urban area has been estimated at around 222,688 sq. km, or about 6.77 percent of the country’s geographical area. This small area is home to around 35 percent of India’s population, around 500 million Indians.
- less area to convert into green spaces: If Indian cities were to allocate 10 percent of their geographic space for greens (gardens, playgrounds, public parks and the like), as suggested in the Urban & Regional Development Plans Formulation & Implementation guidelines, this would mean 22,268 sq. km of the total urban area is available to convert into public green spaces.
- Space constraint hinders the urban agriculture: Even if half of this area (111,34 sq. km) were used for urban agriculture instead of parks, gardens, playgrounds, and horticulture, this is a mere 5 percent of all urban area and 0.56 percent of all land under agriculture in the country. This showcases the space constraints that urban agriculture must tackle.
Urban constraints and use of technology
- Raised bed farming: Raised bed farming is the agricultural technique of building freestanding crop beds above the existing soil level. In certain instances, raised beds are covered with plastic mulch to create a closed planting bed. The method helps reduce soil compaction and allows better control of the soil. The planted area also gets protected in case of excess rainfall. This method affords far greater productivity than regular farming.
- Container gardening: Container gardening refers to the practice of growing plants in containers instead of planting them on the ground. Containers could include polyethene plastic bags, clay pots, plastic pots, metallic pots, milk jugs, ice cream containers, bushel baskets, barrels, and planter box bottles. Most vegetables grown in backyard gardens can be grown in containers.
- Aquaponics: A closed-loop aquaponics system is an organic strategy that draws on the strengths of the basic ecological foundations of the nitrogen and carbon cycles. Nutrient-rich fish water is used to fertilise and water plants. This system requires only a few inputs primarily energy and some of the basic plant nutrients.
- The vertical farming: The vertical farming model essentially aims at increasing the amount of agricultural land by stacking many racks of crops vertically, thereby having many levels on the same space of land.
- Rooftop Plant Production: Under rooftop plant production (RPP) systems, food crops can be grown using raised beds, row farming, or a hydroponic greenhouse. Hydroponics is the practice of growing plants in a nutrient solution with or without a soilless substrate to provide physical support. RPP systems maximize the cultivation area with artificial lighting. RPP can be used to grow crops that require higher light intensities and more vertical space.
Conclusion
- Urban agriculture faces several constraints, but each of these can be overcome by adopting a range of technologies, establishing urban agriculture initiatives in peri-urban areas, launching community initiatives in common spaces, and altering planning parameters and city regulations to include urban agriculture as a ULB activity.
Mains Question
Q. What is the urban agriculture? What are constraints in urban agricultural practice and how to overcome those constraints?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: COP 27
Mains level: Loss and damage fund
Context
- All 197 Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) agreed to enable financing for loss and damage to those that need it the most.
What is Loss and damage (L&D) fund?
- Adverse impact of climate change: Loss and damage (L&D) refer to the adverse impacts that vulnerable communities and countries face as a result of a changing climate.
- Making the rich countries pay: Rich countries had resisted L&D payments for years. Under pressure, they could no longer duck their responsibility.
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- Formation of Transition committee: The COP27 decision includes the development of a Transition Committee dedicated to L&D, with equal representation from rich and poor countries.
- Operationalizing the funding arrangement: The committee has been tasked with configuring institutional arrangements, identifying and expanding sources of funding, and coordinating with existing funding arrangements — by COP28 in the UAE next year.
What role India can play in facilitating the Loss & Damage?
- Develop a Global Vulnerability Index: Last year, CEEW developed a Climate Vulnerability Index for India. It found that over 80 per cent of Indians are highly vulnerable to extreme climatic disasters. Such data in the public domain helps map critical vulnerabilities and plan strategies to build resilience by climate-proofing communities, economies and infrastructure.
- South-led research consortium: India would do well to convene experts and encourage the development of a South-led research consortium dedicated to scientific exploration of “event attribution” science. This would enrich climate science, draw attention to the more vulnerable regions, build research capacity in developing countries, and strengthen the L&D framework.
- Champion the Early Warning Systems Initiative: The Executive Action Plan for the Early Warnings for All Initiative, unveiled at COP27. It aims to ensure every person on Earth is protected by early warning systems within five years. It has called for targeted investments of $ 3.1 billion during 2023-27, which could avoid annual losses of $3-16 billion against natural hazards in developing countries.
- Leverage the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI): India founded the CDRI “to promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks in support of sustainable development”. CDRI is currently undertaking a Fiscal Risk Assessment study to support the development of a comprehensive disaster-risk financing strategy in more than 35 countries and multilateral entities.
Other strategies for Loss & Damage funds
- Pressurizing the developing countries: Pressure must also be put on large emerging economies, with rising emissions, to contribute to L&D financing. Limiting L&D compensation depends on increasing adaptation spending.
- Global Resilience Reserve Fund: The global resilience reserve fund is capitalized by IMF Special Drawing Rights, to create an insurance cushion against severe physical and macroeconomic shocks that climate risks would impose.
- Enhanced and accelerated emissions mitigation: While countries around the globe released its long-term low-carbon emissions development strategy last week, it must use scientific methods to quantify its long-term targets, to give direction to industry and investors.
Conclusion
- Loss & Damage financing is just a band-aid. Global emissions must reduce by 50 per cent by 2030 but there is no opprobrium for failing to present credible plans to do so. India drew attention to sustainable lifestyles via its Lifestyle for Environment mission. World must change its attitude towards climate change because it is already too late.
Mains Question
Q. What is Loss and damage fund agreed Under COP 27? What role India can play for global south for facilitating the L&D fund?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Measles and other contagious diseases
Mains level: Measles outbreak, Immunization program and the concerns
Context
- A measles outbreak in Mumbai has raised concerns amongst the country’s public health authorities. The city has reported more than 200 cases in the past two months and at least 13 children have lost their lives.
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Measles: A memory shot
- Measles is a highly contagious viral disease.
- Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family and it is normally passed through direct contact and through the air.
- The virus infects the respiratory tract, then spreads throughout the body.
- Measles is a human disease and is not known to occur in animals.
All you need to know about Measles
- Signs and symptoms include:
- The first sign of measles is usually a high fever, runny nose, a cough, red and watery eyes, and small white spots inside the cheeks can develop in the initial stage.
- The most serious complications include blindness, encephalitis, severe diarrhoea and related dehydration, ear infections, or severe respiratory infections such as pneumonia.
- Who is at risk?
- Unvaccinated young children are at highest risk of measles and its complications, including death.
- Unvaccinated pregnant women are also at risk.
- Any non-immune person (who has not been vaccinated or was vaccinated but did not develop immunity) can become infected.
- Transmission:
- Measles is one of the world’s most contagious diseases.
- It is spread by coughing and sneezing, close personal contact or direct contact with infected nasal or throat secretions.
- Treatment:
- No specific antiviral treatment exists for measles virus.
- Severe complications from measles can be reduced through supportive care that ensures good nutrition, adequate fluid intake and treatment of dehydration with WHO-recommended oral rehydration solution.
- All children diagnosed with measles should receive two doses of vitamin A supplements.
- Prevention:
- Routine measles vaccination for children, combined with mass immunization campaigns in countries with high case and death rates, are key public health strategies to reduce global measles deaths.
- The measles vaccine is often incorporated with rubella and/or mumps vaccines.
Reasons sought behind the sudden outbreak of Measles in India
- A backslide in the universal immunisation programme during the pandemic:
- By all accounts, the outbreak seems to have been precipitated by a backslide in the universal immunisation programme during the pandemic.
- According to the state government data, only 41 per cent of the eligible children have been inoculated against measles in Mumbai.
- Vaccine hesitancy:
- Parents, reportedly, are showing a disinclination to continue the inoculation regime for their children after they developed fever on being administered the first jab.
- Overworked public health professionals, including ASHA workers, have also had to combat vaccine hesitancy.
- Mission Indradhanush: In recent years, the Centre’s Mission Indradhanush project has improved vaccine coverage and reduced delays between shots.
- Low coverage in last two years: WHO and UNICEF studies have shown that immunisation programmes especially those focusing on DPT (diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus) and measles have taken a hit in low- and mid-income countries, including India, in the past two years.
- Missed shots during Pandemic restrictions: Early in the pandemic, the National Health Mission’s information system reported that at least 100,000 children missed their shots because of the restrictions on movement.
- India speeding up the immunization after the pandemic: Anecdotal reports do indicate that India’s universal inoculation programme picked up during the latter part of the pandemic. But measles is a highly contagious disease. Experts had cautioned that even a 5 per cent fall in the vaccination rate can disrupt herd immunity and precipitate an outbreak. The surge of the disease in Mumbai indicates that their fears are coming true.
Countries with lower per capita incomes are more at risk
- Measles is still common in many developing countries particularly in parts of Africa and Asia. The overwhelming majority (more than 95%) of measles deaths occur in countries with low per capita incomes and weak health infrastructures.
- Measles outbreaks can be particularly deadly in countries experiencing or recovering from a natural disaster or conflict. Damage to health infrastructure and health services interrupts routine immunization, and overcrowding in residential camps greatly increases the risk of infection.
- Measles outbreaks can result in epidemics that cause many deaths, especially among young, malnourished children. In countries where measles has been largely eliminated, cases imported from other countries remain an important source of infection.
Conclusion
- Studies have shown that child vaccination had suffered during the pandemic as attention shifted towards adult vaccination. Now that the pandemic has waned, governments must carefully evaluate at the grassroots how many children fell out of the vaccine net during this period and take countermeasures.
Mains question
Q. Measles is a highly contagious disease with a high mortality rate in unvaccinated children. Discuss the reasons behind the recent outbreak of measles in India.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Inflation
Mains level: Inflation and the concerns
Context
- The recent data seems to indicate that retail inflation has possibly peaked and is now likely to trend downwards. But, it would be wise to exercise caution. The latest data, while providing useful nuggets of information about price trends in the economy, challenges some of the widely held conceptions about inflation, and gives mixed signals about its trajectory.
- Inflation is an increase in the level of prices of the goods and services that households buy. It is measured as the rate of change of those prices. Typically, prices rise over time, but prices can also fall (a situation called deflation).
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Inflation Rate
- Inflation Rate is the percentage change in the price level from the previous period. If a normal basket of goods was priced at Rupee 100 last year and the same basket of goods now cost Rupee 120, then the rate of inflation this year is 20%.
- Inflation Rate= {(Price in year 2 – Price in year 1)/ Price in year 1} *100
Five broad trends emerge to consider as reasons behind high inflation.
- Russia- Ukraine war:
- The sharp rise in commodity prices as a consequence of the war is considered to have been largely responsible for the spurt in inflation this year, pushing it beyond the upper threshold of the RBI’s inflation-targeting framework.
- For instance, India’s crude oil import price rose from $84.67 per barrel in January to $112.87 in March, and further to $116.01 in June. The ripple effects of higher commodity prices have been felt across the economy.
- Inflation generalized in formal and informal sectors:
- There are indications that inflation is getting more generalized across both the formal and informal segments of the economy.
- One indication of this comes from the clothing and footwear category, a highly fragmented industry with the presence of both formal and informal segments. Another possible indication comes from rentals.
- Rental inflation in India had tended to remain largely range-bound over much of the past few years. But as this category has the highest individual item-wise weight in the inflation index, any movement in either direction, however small, would have a large impact on core inflation.
- Supply side disruptions during the pandemic: During the pandemic, supply-side disruptions had caused goods inflation to rise, even as services inflation remained relatively muted owing to risk-averse behaviour by consumers and restrictions on high-contact intensive sectors.
- Competition and the pricing mechanism in the economy:
- Prices are rigid on the downside will depend not only on how demand fares now with monetary conditions having been tightened, but also on the extent of competition in the economy, among others.
- After all, greater market concentration creates conditions for greater pricing power. A badly damaged non-corporate sector (MSMEs) would have led to ruptures in the low-cost economy, increasing the pricing power of the corporate sector during this period.
- Wage- price spiral:
- Inflation in India is not a consequence of a strong economy. Wage growth in the large informal rural economy has been lower than inflation.
- While some skill-intensive segments of the urban formal labour force may be able to exercise some bargaining power, the labour force participation rates suggest continuing slack in urban labour markets.
What are the concerns?
- Commodity should have come down over the period: If high core inflation in the months after the beginning of hostilities was an outcome of the passthrough, either in part or completely, of the Ukrainewar, then the decline in commodity prices since then should have led to a moderation in core inflation
- Services inflation vs goods inflation: But as activities normalised, there was an expectation that services inflation would see a strong pick-up. The recent data indicates that this has not been the case. While services inflation has risen, it remains considerably lower than goods inflation, perhaps owing to a combination of lower cost-push pressures, more slack and less demand.
Conclusion
- While inflation may have peaked, it is far from being quashed. The RBI expects inflation to edge downwards from 6.5 per to 5 per cent in the first quarter of the next financial year (2023-24). But RBI ca not afford to underestimate the price pressures in the economy.
Mains Question
Q. What is inflation? Some of the new emerging trends are considered while measuring rising inflation in the current scenario. Discuss.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CIC and RTI
Mains level: Central Information Commission, and issues with the effectiveness of Right to Information Act
Context
- The most vital mandate of the Central Information Commission, the apex body under India’s transparency regime, is to decide the disclosure or the non-disclosure of information. But the commission has seemingly relinquished this primary duty in cases of larger public importance.
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All you need to know about Central Information Commission (CIC)
- Chief Information commissioner (CIC): Chief Information commissioner who heads all the central departments and ministries- with their own public information officers (PIO)s. CICs are directly under the President of India.
- Composition: The Commission consists of a Chief Information Commissioner and not more than ten Information Commissioners. At present (2019), the Commission has six Information Commissioners apart from the Chief Information Commissioner.
- Appointment: They are appointed by the President on the recommendation of a committee consisting of the PM as Chairperson, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the PM.
- Office term: The CIC/IC shall hold office for such term as prescribed by the Central Government or until they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. They are not eligible for reappointment.
- Power and functions:
- It is the duty of the Commission to receive and inquire into a complaint from any person regarding information request under RTI, 2005.
- The Commission can order an inquiry into any matter if there are reasonable grounds (suo-moto power).
- While inquiring, the Commission has the powers of a civil court in respect of summoning, requiring documents etc.
Procedure of RTI and the role of CIC
- Provision to File and application and seek guaranteed reply: Citizens can file applications under the Right to Information Act with any public body and are guaranteed a reply from the public information officer of that public body within 30 days.
- Provision of appeal in case of dissatisfaction:
- In case of a no reply or dissatisfaction with the response, the citizen can file an appeal at the departmental level and then a second and final appeal with the Information Commission.
- Each State has its own State Information Commission to deal with second appeals concerning State bodies. At the Centre, it is the Central Information Commission (CIC).
- Before the amendment to the Until the 2019 amendment to the RTI Act, Information Commissioners (ICs) appointed to the CIC were equal in status to the Chief Election Commissioner, and that of a Supreme Court judge. They had a five-year fixed term and terms of service.
- After the amendments of 2019, the Centre gave itself powers to change and decide these terms whenever it wished, thereby striking at the independence of the commission and those who man it.
What are the concerns raised over the changed approach of CIC?
- Decreasing accountability: Records show that not a single order for disclosure has been forthcoming in matters of public importance. The present set of Information Commissioners have together adopted a new jurisprudence that has created additional hurdles in a citizen’s quest for accountability.
- Systematic ignorance to the mandate of non-disclosure: The Commission has adopted a new way of delegating its mandate to decide cases to the Ministry before it. In most cases, the Ministries reiterate their earlier stand of nondisclosure, most often under vague grounds of national interest.
- Refusing to its duty: After these public authorities pass fresh orders, which are usually a reiteration of their earlier stand against disclosure, the CIC refuses to accept any further challenge to such orders, therefore, refusing to do its duty of deciding the cases.
- Ignoring the principle of natural justice: One of the cardinal rules of natural justice is that no one should be a judge in their own cause. However, the commission now allows, or rather wants, the very Ministry that stands accused of violating the RTI Act to act as the judge in their own cause and decide whether a disclosure is necessary.
- New instruments such as pending cases and stay orders: A case to keep pending for final order or a stay order is unheard of and there is no provision in the RTI Act for the same.
- Officers have no fear of any penal provisions: Bureaucrats reject RTIs with glee with no fear of facing penal provisions outlined in Section 20 of the RTI Act, knowing fully well that they have a free hand under the Information Commissioners.
Back to basics: The Right to Information
- RTI is an act of the parliament which sets out the rules and procedures regarding citizens’ right to information.
- It replaced the former Freedom of Information Act, 2002.
- Under the provisions of RTI Act, any citizen of India may request information from a “public authority” (a body of Government or “instrumentality of State”) which is required to reply expeditiously or within 30.
- In case of the matter involving a petitioner’s life and liberty, the information has to be provided within 48 hours.
- The Act also requires every public authority to computerize their records for wide dissemination and to proactively publish certain categories of information so that the citizens need minimum recourse to request for information formally.
Conclusion
- Dark clouds surround India’s transparency regime. Citizens have to mount intense pressure on authorities to act and appoint commissioners of integrity. Lawyers have to help willing citizens take matters to court and seek justice.
Mains question
Q. What are the role and functions of Central Information Commission? CIC’s deviance from its duty may undermine citizens’ power of right to information.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NFHS and GHI
Mains level: Malnutrition in India
Context
- The Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2022 has brought more unwelcome news for India, as far as its global ranking on a vital indicator of human development is concerned. India ranked 107 out of 121 countries. Malnutrition still haunts India
- The GHI is an important indicator of nutrition, particularly among children, as it looks at stunting, wasting and mortality among children, and at calorific deficiency across the population.
Findings according to the National family health survey findings (NFHS-5)
- India’s National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) from 2019-21 reported that in children below the age of five years, 35.5% were stunted, 19.3% showed wasting, and 32.1% were underweight.
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Status of budgetary allocation for Government Schemes
- Gaps in the funding: Experts have suggested several approaches to address the problem of chronic malnutrition, many of which feature in the centrally-sponsored schemes that already exist. However, gaps remain in how they are funded and implemented, in what one might call the plumbing of these schemes.
- Saksham Anganwadi:
- The Government of India implements the Saksham Anganwadi and Prime Minister’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nutrition (POSHAN) 2.0 scheme (which now includes the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme),
- It seeks to work with adolescent girls, pregnant women, nursing mothers and children below three.
- However, the budget for this scheme for FY2022-23 was ₹20,263 crore, which is less than 1% more than the actual spent in FY2020-21 an increase of less than 1% over two years.
- PM POSHAN:
- PM POSHAN, or Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman, known previously as the Mid-Day Meal scheme (National Programme of Mid-Day Meal in Schools).
- The budget for FY2022-23 at ₹10,233.75 crore was 21% lower than the expenditure in FY2020-21.
- It is clear that the budgets being allocated are nowhere near the scale of the funds that are required to improve nutrition in the country.
What are the hurdles for effective Implementation of such large-scale schemes.
- Underfunded Nutrition Programme: An Accountability Initiative budget brief reports that per capita costs of the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (one of the largest components of this scheme) has not increased since 2017 and remains grossly underfunded, catering to only 41% of the funds required.
- Vacant posts of Projects officers and insufficient manpower: The budget brief also mentions that over 50% Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) posts were vacant in Jharkhand, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, pointing to severe manpower constraints in successfully implementing the scheme of such importance.
- Regular controversies over the food served under MDM: While PM POSHAN (or MDM) is widely recognized as a revolutionary scheme that improved access to education for children nationwide, it is often embroiled in controversies around what should be included in the mid-day meals that are provided at schools.
- Irregular social audits: Social audits that are meant to allow community oversight of the quality of services provided in schools are not carried out routinely.
- Volatile food prices effects: The effect of cash transfers is also limited in a context where food prices are volatile and inflation depletes the value of cash.
- Social factors: Equally, there are social factors such as ‘son preference’, which sadly continues to be prevalent in India and can influence household-level decisions when responding to the nutrition needs of sons and daughters.
Suggestions for the effective delivery of the government schemes
- Tracing the reasons behind existing malnutrition: It is clear that malnutrition persists due to depressed economic conditions in large parts of the country, the poor state of agriculture in India, persistent levels of unsafe sanitation practices, etc. Political battles over malnutrition are not going to help; nor is continuing to think in silos.
- Cash transfers where purchasing poverty is less: Cash transfers have a role to play here, especially in regions experiencing acute distress, where household purchasing power is very depressed. Cash transfers can also be used to incentivize behavioural change in terms of seeking greater institutional support.
- Targeted supplementation: Food rations through PDS and special supplements for the target group of pregnant and lactating mothers, and infants and young children, are essential.
- Community participation: Getting these schemes right requires greater involvement of local government and local community groups in the design and delivery of tailored nutrition interventions.
- Comprehensive social education programs for girls: A comprehensive programme targeting adolescent girls is required if the inter-generational nature of malnutrition is to be tackled. There is a need of comprehensive social education programme.
Conclusion
- Malnutrition has been India’s scourge for several years now. A month-long POSHAN Utsav may be good optics, but is no substitute for painstaking everyday work. The need of the hour is to make addressing child malnutrition the top priority of the government machinery, and all year around.
Mains Question
Q. Despite large government nutrition programs, malnutrition still haunts India. Discuss the problems and suggest solutions.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Role of PRI's in a fight against climate change
Context
- If India has to achieve the set of goals enunciated in the ‘Panchamrit’ resolution of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow 2021, it is necessary that Panchayati raj institutions, the third tier of government which are closest to the people are involved.
- Major impact on rural areas: The greater variability in rainfall and temperatures, etc. experienced of late has directly affected the livelihood and well-being of millions of rural households.
- PRI excluded from National action plan: India’s National Action Plan on Climate Change 2008 identifies a range of priority areas for coordinated intervention at the national and State levels. However, there would have been better results had Panchayati raj institutions been given a greater role.
- Decentralization of climate efforts are necessary: Through the ongoing decentralization process which ensures people’s participation, panchayats can play a crucial and frontline role in coordinating effective responses to climate risks, enabling adaptation and building climate-change resilient communities.
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What is carbon neutrality?
- Zero carbon production:
- The climate change discussion also focuses on the emerging and widely accepted concept of ‘carbon neutrality’ which puts forth the notion of zero carbon developments, nature conservation, food, energy and seeds sufficiency, and economic development.
- As human activities are the cause of the current climate crisis, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to growing and extreme weather events are critical.
- Zero carbon development which promotes sustainable living is the effective solution to reducing anthropogenic emissions and improving climate resilience.
Efforts of Panchayat raj institutes to fight climate change: Case study of Meenangadi
- Carbon neutral Meenangadi: In 2016, the panchayat envisaged a project called ‘Carbon neutral Meenangadi’, the aim being to transform Meenangadi into a state of carbon neutrality. There were campaigns, classes and studies to begin with. An awareness programme was conducted initially. A greenhouse gases emission inventory was also prepared. The panchayat was found to be carbon positive.
- Implementation of Multi-sectoral schemes: An action plan was prepared by organising gram Sabha meetings. Socio-economic surveys and energy-use mapping were also carried out. Several multi sector schemes were implemented to reduce emissions, increase carbon sequestration, and preserve the ecology and bio-diversity.
- Tree plantation Initiative: ‘Tree banking’ was one of landmark schemes introduced to aid carbon neutral activities which encouraged the planting of more trees by extending interest-free loans. Interestingly 1,58,816 trees were planted which have also been geo-tagged to monitor their growth.
- People’s participation: The entire community was involved in the process, with school students, youth, and technical and academic institutions given different assignments. Five years have passed and the changes are visible. Local economic development was another thrust area where LED bulb manufacturing and related micro-enterprises were initiated.
Government of India’s effort to support climate change: ‘Clean and Green Village’
- SDG theme: The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has focused its attention on localising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on a thematic basis.
- Various activities delegated to PRI: ‘Clean and Green Village’ has been identified as the fifth theme where panchayats can take up activities on natural resource management, biodiversity protection, waste management and afforestation activities.
- Documentation of best practices: According to the latest data, 1,09,135-gram panchayats have prioritised ‘Clean & Green Village’ as one of their focus areas for 2022-23. The Ministry has highlighted the need for the documentation of best practices and for wider dissemination.
- Integrated panchayat development plan: The net result is that many panchayats are coming forward with their eco plans. The integrated Panchayat Development Plan prepared by all panchayats is a stepping stone towards addressing many of the environmental concerns of villages.
Conclusion
- In today’s age of rapid technological advancements and digital transformation, India’s rural local bodies are silently contributing their strength to ensuring the global target of carbon neutrality, as envisaged in the UN conference on climate change.
Mains Question
Q. What role PRIs can play in a fight against climate change? What is the scheme of “Clean and Green Village” of Ministry of Panchayat Raj?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: India's rising geopolitical significance and balanced foreign policy
Context
- The ongoing war in Ukraine on the one hand and the confrontation between Russia and the United States and the West, on the other have increased the frequency/regularity of the question, whose side is India on, after all? Is India with Russia or with the U.S./the West in this war?
What is the issue of India taking the either side?
- India doesn’t support the either camp: When great powers seek India’s support during geopolitical contestations, such as the one over Ukraine, they end up facing a stubborn India that is reluctant to toe the line.
- India is not a satellite state: The inherent reason behind Indian reluctance, however, is not stubbornness but a sense of self which views itself as a pole in the international system, and not as a satellite state or a camp follower.
- India has a different position than two poles: India refuses to take sides because it views itself as a side whose interests are not accounted for by other camps or poles.
- India projects the multipolar world order: New Delhi’s constant exhortations of a multipolar world are also very much in tune with this thinking about itself as a pole in a multipolar world.
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India’s history of not taking the side (non-alignment)
- Historically different civilization: The origins of this thought can be found in the character of the country’s long struggle for independence; the pre- and post-Independence articulations of leaders such as Jawaharlal Nehru, Gandhiji, and Bal Gangadhar Tilak among others on international politics; the (not uncontested) primacy India inherited as the legatee state of the British empire in South Asia; India’s larger than life civilizational sense of self.
- Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) experiment: NAM have contributed to India’s desire for a unique foreign policy identity and a voice in the comity of nations. For much of its modern independent history, India’s foreign policy has been a unique experiment.
- Independent foreign policy: Historically, India’s view of itself as a pole is evident in the manner in which it used to pursue non-alignment for several decades after Independence. Some vestiges of this continue to inform India’s foreign policy to this day.
- Non-alignment is not a neutrality: It is also important to point out that India’s non-alignment is often misunderstood given that a number of foreign commentators and practitioners interpret it as neutrality. For India, however, non-alignment is not neutrality, but the ability to take a position on a given issue on a case-by-case basis.
How India asserts itself as a different pole in international affairs?
- No domination in south Asia: India has a different view of itself as a pole. It has not actively sought to dominate the South Asian regional subsystem even when it could.
- No alliance like NATO: Its balancing behaviour has been subpar, it has refused to build alliances in the classical sense of the term, or sought camp followers or allegiances. As a matter of fact, even its occasional balancing behaviour (for instance, the 1971 India-Soviet Treaty during the Bangladesh war) was contingent on emergencies.
- South Asia is not a Strategic periphery: It does believe it has a strategic periphery in South Asia where it has a natural claim to primacy.
- Doesn’t allow interference in south Asia: It discourages interference by other powers in that space.
- India speaks for global south: India often tends to speak for ‘underprivileged collectives’, physical (South Asia) or otherwise (NAM, developing nations, global south, etc. in varying degrees); and it welcomes the rule of law and regional order.
- India as unique player in international system: India’s recent or past statements on issues of global importance be it Ukraine or Iraq, or the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s aerial campaign in Serbia, or bringing climate change to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) indicate that it tends to take positions that not just suit its interests but are also informed by its sense of being a unique player on the global stage.
- India as partner not cheerleader: Western powers must, therefore, treat India as a partner rather than as a cheerleader. They should mainstream India into global institutions such as the UNSC, and consult India rather than dictate to India which side to take.
Conclusion
- As India becomes the chair of the G20 and the SCO in 2022, it will further seek to assert itself as a major pole in the international system, and dissuade demands to follow one camp or another. Therefore, those wishing to work with India on the global stage must learn to deal with the ‘India pole’.
Mains Question
Q. Analyse the India’s policy of not taking the position of west or Russia on global issues. How India asserts itself as a different pole in international affairs?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill, 2022
Mains level: Data surveillance and the concerns over the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Bill, 2022
Context
- Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology released the Digital Personal data Protection Bill, 2022, on November 18.
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Background: Demand for the data surveillance reforms
- The journey towards a data protection legislation began in 2011 when the department of Personnel and Training initiated discussions on the Right to Privacy Bill, 2011.
- As per an Office Memorandum dated September 29, 2011, the then attorney General, Goolam Vahanvati, opined that conditions under which the government can carry out “interception of communication” should be spelt out in the Bill.
- The report of the group emphasized the need to examine the impact of the increased collection of citizen information by the government on the right to privacy. Since then, civil society organizations, lawyers and politicians have consistently demanded surveillance reform, highlighting how personal data can only be protected when the government’s power to conduct surveillance of citizens is meaningfully regulated.
- Eases cross-border data flows but wide-ranging powers to state agencies: The reworked version of the data protection Bill, released three months after the Govt withdrew an earlier draft, eases cross-border data flows and increases penalties for breaches. But it gives the Centre wide-ranging powers and prescribes very few safeguards.
- Delicate balance on privacy and restrictions: Officials at the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) have said the new draft strikes a delicate balance and factors in learning from global approaches, while staying aligned to the Supreme Court’s ruling on privacy as a fundamental right, but within reasonable restrictions.
- Seven principles of the Bill: The explanatory note accompanying the Bill elaborates on the seven principles it seeks to promote, including transparency, purpose limitation, data minimization, and preventing the unauthorized collection of personal data.
The surveillance architecture In India
- Main components: The surveillance architecture in India comprises mainly of Section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885; Section 69 of the Information Technology Act, 2000; and the procedural rules promulgated under them.
- No clearly defined ground: No But this architecture does not meaningfully define the grounds under which, or the manner in which, surveillance may be conducted.
- No safeguards: It also does not contain safeguards such as ex-ante or ex-post facto independent review of interception directions.
- Lack of accountability: The concentration of power with the executive thus creates a lack of accountability and enables abuse. Evidence for this emerges not only from instances of political surveillance, but also from the slivers of transparency that accidentally emerge from telecom companies.
- Excessive surveillance: For instance, submissions by Airtel to the Telecommunications Department, as part of the public consultation process for the Indian Telecommunication Bill, reveal that excessive data collection requests are already a reality. Airtel has asked the government to share the costs it incurs to comply with the increasing demands from law enforcement agencies to carry out surveillance.
- Concerns over citizen data processing: Apart from outright surveillance, unfettered collection and processing of citizen data for other purposes, such as digital governance, raise concerns.
What are the concerns over the revoked version of the bill?
- No proposals for surveillance reform: All iterations of the data protection legislation since the draft Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, the draft Data Protection Bill, 2021 and the 2022 Bill have no proposals for surveillance reform.
- Data processing without consent: Personal data can be processed even without the person’s consent. Blanket exemptions Like previous iterations, Clause 18(2) of the 2022 Bill allows the Union government to provide blanket exemptions for selected government agencies.
- Permits exemption to private entities: However, this Bill is more egregious than previous iterations as it permits exemption to private sector entities that may include individual companies or a class of them, by assessing the volume and nature of personal data under Clause 18(3).
- Exemptions without the purview of data protection: Under the new Bill in India, exempted state agencies and private entities will not be within the purview of the Data Protection Board, the body responsible for imposing penalties in case fiduciaries infringe privacy.
Data processing in other countries
- Exemptions on case by case and the rationale behind it: While the existing or proposed legislations in the European Union and in the U.S. permit security agencies to claim exemptions on a case-by-case basis, depending on why they are collecting personal data, they do not contain blanket exemption powers to an entire government entity.
- Meaningful state surveillance: Other jurisdictions exercise meaningful oversight over state surveillance. For instance, the Investigatory Powers Tribunal in the U.K. is authorized to hear complaints against misuse of surveillance powers and can impose monetary penalties in case of a breach.
Conclusion
- The preamble to the 2022 Bill states that the purpose is to protect the personal data of individuals and to ensure that personal data is processed only for lawful purposes. However, blanket exemptions for state agencies alongside private entities raise untold concerns, which need to be addressed on a war footing.
Mains question
Q. What do you understand by data surveillance? It is said the Data surveillance architecture in India lacks accountability and transparency. Analyze.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI)
Mains level: Necessity of developing Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) and issues associated with it.
Context
- The Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) are in the news as the union government proposing a slew of infrastructure projects to boost business and tourism on the islands, conservation groups are on the warpath.
The significance of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI)
- Oceanic outpost: The ANI is an oceanic outpost for continental India.
- Facilitates unique surveillance: With a critical vantage location overlooking the ten-degree and six-degree channels (through which a vast majority of cargo and container traffic in the eastern Indian Ocean transits), the islands give India a unique surveillance and maritime interdiction capability.
- Strategically important: The ANI is a vital ‘staging post’ for maritime operations, and a hub for logistics, providing operational turnaround for Indian warships and aircraft deployed in the Andaman Sea.
- Location: Located between 6° and 14° North Latitude and 92° and 94° East Longitude lie the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory in India.
- Two groups of Island: It consists of two groups of islands. The islands located north of 10° north latitude are known as Andaman while islands located south of 10° north latitude are called Nicobar.
- The Andamans: More than 300 islands make up the Andamans. North, Middle, and South Andaman, known collectively as Great Andaman, are the main islands;
- The 10- degree channel: The 10-degree channel which is about 145 km long separates Little Andaman in the south from the Nicobar Islands.
- The Nicobars: The Nicobars consists of 19 islands. Among the most prominent is Car Nicobar in the north; and Great Nicobar in the south. About 90 miles to the southwest of Great Nicobar lies the northwestern tip of Sumatra, Indonesia.
- Formation: Both the Andaman and Nicobar groups are formed by the above-sea extensions of submarine ridges of mountains and are a part of a great island arc. The highest peak is 2,418 feet at Saddle Peak on North Andaman, followed by Mount Thullier at 2,106 feet on Great Nicobar and Mount Harriet at 1,197 feet on South Andaman. Barren island, the only known active Volcano in south Asia lies in the Andaman Sea. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, there were volcanic eruptions on Barren Island.
- Andaman Terrain: Formed of sandstone, limestone, and shale of Cenozoic age, the terrain of the Andamans is rough, with hills and narrow longitudinal valleys. Flat land is scarce and is confined to a few valleys.
- Nicobar Terrain: The terrain of the Nicobar is more diverse than that of the Andamans. Some of the Nicobar Islands, such as Car Nicobar, have flat coral-covered surfaces with offshore coral formations that prevent most ships from anchoring. Other islands, such as Great Nicobar, are hilly and contain numerous fast-flowing streams.
- Great Nicobar is the only island in the territory with a significant amount of fresh surface water.
Climate: The climate of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is tropical but is moderated by sea.
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Past objections on India developing Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI)
- Perspective of India’s diplomatic community:
- When India first began developing the ANI in the 1980s, the defence and foreign policy establishments were not entirely in agreement.
- India’s diplomatic community opposed the militarization plan, arguing that turning the islands into a strategic-military garrison would weaponize the littorals, an outcome unlikely to sit well with India’s maritime neighbors.
- Neighbor’s apprehensions: Indonesia and Malaysia were apprehensive that India would use its military facilities on the Andamans to dominate its region, and project power east of Malacca.
Today’s perspective India developing Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI)
- More empathy towards India: Today arguably, there is more empathy for Indian compulsions to develop the ANI. It is clear that developing the islands is a necessity for India that could not be overlooked.
- India’s compulsion: With China expanding its footprint in India’s backyard, regional states realise New Delhi has little option but to consolidate strategically on the islands.
- Securing maritime borders: In the aftermath of the June 2020 standoff with China in Ladakh, the Indian military has been under growing pressure to forestall Chinese adventurism in the Indian Ocean.
- Higher stakes for India in eastern Indian Ocean: With China moving to expand its presence in India’s neighbourhood, including at Maldives (Feydhoo Finolhu), Pakistan (Gwadar), Sri Lanka (Hambantota), and Bangladesh (at Cox Bazaar where China is said to be constructing a submarine base), the stakes for India in the eastern Indian Ocean have never been higher.
- Intentions are good: Asia’s leaders knew that India’s intentions are good because it is willing to keep its security presence on the strategic islands to a minimum.
Rational behind developing Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI)
- To counter China’s belt and road Initiative: New Delhi also needs to counter China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The manner of China’s development of infrastructure projects in the Bay of Bengal suggests that it seeks both economic leverage and strategic prowess in South Asia.
- Countering China Dual use facilities: By some accounts, China is looking for military access to Chinese-built facilities in the Bay of Bengal. Beijing, reportedly, is on a drive to create ‘dual-use’ facilities that have both commercial and military applications.
What could be the way to counter China in the region
- By expanding military Presence in BOB: One way for India to counter China’s forays in the Bay of Bengal would be to expand Indian military presence in the littorals. The process is already underway
- By turning islands into logistic support facilities for navies: The other way for India to counter China is to develop its island territories in the eastern Indian Ocean and offer military facilities therein for logistics support to navies from friendly Quad countries.
Delicate ecology of the island cannot be ignored
- Environmentalists contend that construction activity on ecologically sensitive islands could lead to a large-scale loss of biodiversity, which could hurt local communities and the islands’ indigenous people.
- New Delhi cannot afford to ignore the ecological implications of infrastructure development on the islands, in particular, the proposal for a container terminal at Campbell Bay on the Great Nicobar Island.
- The project entails the mass culling of forests and could take a toll on the region’s delicate ecological balance.
- New hotels, resorts, and a trans-shipment port could upend decades of conservation efforts.
Conclusion
- The need of the hour is to balance competing requirements: enable development on the islands, while avoiding large-scale environmental damage. As ‘high-wire’ acts go, this is going to be a hard walk for Indian decision-makers.
Mains question
Q. China is moving towards increasing its presence in India’s neighborhood and is challenging India in many ways. Analyze India’s compulsion to develop the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI).
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Private space programs
Mains level: Indian private sector participation in space programmes.
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Context
- The launch of the Vikram S (Mission Prarambh) rocket last week has been rightly hailed as an important milestone in India’s outer space journey. It is the first privately built Indian rocket to make it to space.
- Lack of Enabling policy: The country’s private sector has the talent and experience to shorten that distance if Delhi creates the enabling policy environment.
- Monopoly of Government: When space emerged as an important endeavour in the second half of the 20th century, governments were in the lead. The cost, complexity and research-intensity of the space effort meant the space programmes everywhere became a government monopoly.
- Government can no longer ignore private players: But in the 21st century, the role of the private sector has dramatically expanded. Satellites were once owned only by governments but today private companies lead the satellite business.
Major private players and their space endeavor
- Starlink satellite system: Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite system is now a major player with more than 2,300 satellites in low earth orbit they deliver a variety of space services including useful military information to the armed forces of Ukraine in their fight against Russian forces.
- Amazon’s Project Kuiper: Plans to launch more than 3,000 satellites in the coming years to offer a range of services, including broadband internet. This will involve making at least three satellites a day.
- One-web cooperation: Airtel in India is a partner in the One-Web corporation that offers connectivity through its system of nearly 500 satellites.
- Breaking the monopoly of Government: The business of launch vehicles the most demanding of space activities remained a state monopoly until recently. Elon Musk’s SpaceX has broken through that launch monopoly and Amazon’s Blue Origin rocket will soon be in the market too.
History of India’s space programme
- Space for national development only: Delhi’s main objective was to leverage outer space to accelerate national development. Eventually, military and commercial dimensions began to envelop the Indian space programme.
- Cooperation with Soviet Union: India’s space programme began with intensive cooperation with the Western countries and later with the Soviet Union. Delhi also offered space cooperation to other developing countries within the rubric of engagement with friendly governments.
- Sanctions halted India’s progress: The non-proliferation sanctions on India after its first nuclear test in 1974 severely constricted the space for the country in international space cooperation. It was only after the historic civil nuclear initiative that the sanctions regime began to ease.
What should be India’s future approach in space domain?
- Commercially leveraging the space using MTCR: India is now part of the Missile Technology Control Regime that regulates commerce in space related commodities and technologies.
- Dual use technology under Wassenaar Arrangement: India is also part of the Wassenaar Arrangement that controls trade in dual use technologies that can be used for both civilian and military purposes.
- The growing range of new space possibilities: From using satellites for delivering broadband internet to the mining of the Moon and from space manufacturing to deep space exploration. Put simply, the scale of the global economy is rapidly growing its value is expected to more than double from about $450 billion in 2022 to nearly one trillion dollars within a decade.
- It must be about business and economy: For India, outer space can no longer be about narrowly framed ideas of “development” and “national prestige”. It must be about business and economy. The current Indian share of the global space economy is barely 2 per cent. PM Modi has been demanding that India rapidly increase its share to 8 per cent in the coming years.
- The private sector companies for larger role: Raising the Indian share of the global space economy can only be done by drawing in the private sector companies to play a larger role. Consider, for example, The Artemis 1 rocket was launched last week and the programme involves a number of leading aerospace companies like Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop Grumman, Airbus and Space X.
- International cooperation in national space programmes: If Apollo was a purely national project of the United States, the Artemis programme is a multinational endeavor between the US and its partners, including France, Canada, and Japan. Meanwhile Russia and China are coming together to collaborate not only on their space programmes, but also on building a joint base on the Moon that will establish long term human presence there.
- Capital support for space programme: India has just about embarked on a programme to enhance the contribution of its private sector in outer space. India is also drawing on foreign capital to support its start-ups. Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, for example, is a major investor in Skyroot Aerospace that launched the Vikram S rocket.
Conclusion
- Many Western aerospace companies will be eager to invest in India’s space programme as it begins to open up. India is also coming to terms with the fact that international cooperation is not just an “add-on” to the national space programme, but must be an integral part of India’s space strategy.
Mains Question
Q. 20th century was dominated by monopoly of government in space domain. Elaborate. How India can commercialize the space sector with help of private players?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project (SSCP)
Mains level: Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project (SSCP) and its impact on the marine ecosystem
Context
- On November 10, the Supreme Court gave the Centre four weeks’ time to file a response clarifying its stand on a plea seeking national heritage status for the ‘Ram Setu’.
Ram Setu
- Also known as Adam’s bridge, Ram Setu is a 48-km long bridge-like structure between India and Sri Lanka.
- It finds mention in the Ramayana but little about its formation is known or proven, scientifically.
Interesting Research on “Ram Setu”
- Conclusion by the researchers that Ram Setu is not man-made:
- In 2003, space-based investigations, using satellite remote sensing imagery, by researchers at the Space Applications Centre in Ahmedabad concluded that Ram Setu is not man-made, but comprises 103 small patch reefs lying in a linear pattern with reef crest, sand cays and intermittent deep channels.
- Cays, also known as keys, refer to low-elevation islands situated on surfaces made of coral reef.
- Reasoning behind the conclusion:
- It is reasonable to assume that Ram Setu is a linear ridge made of coral reefs and forms a shallow part of the ocean that is being constantly impacted by sedimentation processes.
- Like the Great Barrier Reef, the Ram Setu is also a continuous stretch of limestone shoals that runs from Pamban Island near Rameswaram to the Mannar Island on the northern coast of Sri Lanka.
- During glaciation period: During a global glaciation period that began around 2.6 million years ago and ended 11,700 years ago, the Indian coast, including parts of the Sethusamudram, may have been raised above water.
- Post glaciation: The post-glaciation period witnessed a steady rise in sea levels around the world and coral polyps could once again have grown higher on the newly submerged platforms. And in time, the platforms may have been used by migrants to cross oceans.
- Ramayana belief: The Ramayana refers to a putative land bridge in this region; believers hold it as the structure that Lord Rama and his army built to reach Lanka. This ridge may have been used in the distant past as a migratory route.
Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project (SSCP)
- Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project (SSCP) can be traced back to the British, who Proposed as channel to link the Palk Strait with the Gulf of Mannar.
- It was only in 2005 that the project was inaugurated.
- Separating the shallow sea consisting of the Gulf of Mannar in the south and Palk Bay in the north is a somewhat linear coral ridge called Adam’s Bridge or Ram Setu.
- This runs between Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Thalaimannar in Sri Lanka.
- The SSCP, if completed, is expected to considerably reduce the navigation time between the east and west coasts of India.
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Memory shot
- “The Sethusamudram project envisages dredging of a channel across the Palk Strait between India and Sri Lanka to allow ships to sail between the east and west coasts of India, instead of circumventing the island nation.”
What are the Concerns raised about the project?
- High energy waves may bring sediments: Computer models suggest that the central, eastern and north-eastern parts of the Palk Bay may be impacted by waves of higher energy. This means that these areas also receive more sediment, rendering them more turbid.
- Alignment is not easy: The models also indicate that waves enter the Bay from its north and south, corresponding to how the channel is aligned.
- High frequency of cyclonic storms: The area is also vulnerable to cyclonic storms. A cyclone in 1964 was so powerful that it wiped out the town of Dhanushkodi. Such storms can cause the local sedimentary dynamics to go haywire.
- Dumping of dredged material may harm marine ecosystem: Finding safe places for dumping dredged material without harming terrestrial or marine ecosystems is therefore a big challenge.
- Air and water pollution by the ships: Emissions from ships traversing the narrow channel will pollute the air and water. And if a rogue ship carrying oil or coal is grounded or strays from its course within the canal, it could cause an ecological disaster.
- Religious belief of Significant Ram Setu: While environmental groups have been protesting against the project for the huge environmental cost it would entail, religious groups have been opposing it as they believe that the structure, which is mentioned in the Ramayana, is of religious significance.
What is the need of protection?
- Marine biosphere reserves: The coral reef platforms between Thoothukudi and Rameswaram in the Gulf of Mannar were notified as a marine biosphere reserve in 1989.
- Biodiversity rich area:
- More than 36,000 species of flora and fauna reportedly live there, flanked by mangroves and sandy shores which are considered conducive for turtles to nest.
- This is also a breeding ground for fish, lobsters, shrimps and crabs.
- Of the 600 recorded varieties of fish in the region, 70 are said to be commercially important.
- Area is already under stress:
- This area is already threatened by discharge from thermal plants, brine run-off from salt pans, and illegal mining of corals.
- The SSCP, if it becomes a reality, will be the final blow to this sensitive environment and to the livelihoods of the people there.
Perspective: Area is not only a religious belief but also a “Geo heritage site”.
- While considering this issue from a believer’s point of view, it is also important to consider this feature from a ‘geoheritage’ perspective.
- The geoheritage paradigm is used in nature conservation to preserve the natural diversity of significant geological features.
- The value of abiotic factors like geology, soils and landforms is also recognised for their roles in supporting habitats for biodiversity.
- Geodiversity here consists of varied landforms and features representative of dynamical natural processes, is under threat from human activities and needs protection.
Do you Know Underwater archaeological project at Ram Setu?
- The National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) will undertake a three-year scientific project.
- The idea is to see whether Ram Setu is a man-made structure or not.
- The most important aspect of the project is to establish its age, scientifically.
- The explorers will apply a number of scientific techniques while attempting to date the Ram Setu, study its material composition, outline the sub-surface structure along with attempting to excavate remnants or artefacts, if any, from the site.
- Once it is known, the information can be verified and co-related with its mention in the Ramayana and similar scriptures.
Conclusion
- The Ram Setu carries the unique geological imprints of an eventful past. Therefore, it needs to be preserved not just as a national heritage monument, but also as a Geoheritage structure as defined from a scientific perspective.
Mains Question
Q. What is Sethusamudram Ship channel project? Discuss the Concerns raised over the stability of the project.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Financial inclusion and Digital divide
Context
- The use of technology in financial inclusion stands to be pertinent in today’s context as it paves the way towards inclusive growth through the upliftment of disadvantaged sections of society.
Importance of Financial Inclusion
- Meaning of Financial inclusion: It refers to the availability to both individuals and companies of useful and cost-effective financial goods and services, including payments, transactions, savings, credit, and insurance, that are sustainably and ethically provided.
- Provides social mobility: The importance of financial inclusion lies in the fact that it allows social mobility. These resources help empower individuals and foster communities, which can aid in promoting economic growth.
- More financial services: Moreover, account holders are more likely to utilize additional financial services such as credit and insurance to launch and grow enterprises, make investments in their children’s or own health or education, manage risk, and recover from financial setbacks, all of which can enhance their overall quality of life.
Challenges to the financial inclusion
- Inoperative bank accounts: Nearly 80 percent of the Indian population has a bank account, and nearly 18 percent (81.38 million) of bank accounts are inoperative, having “zero balance”. Moreover, up to 38 percent of accounts are inactive, which means that there have been no deposits or withdrawals in the past year, demonstrating that many Indians are still not fully integrated into the formal banking system.
- Poor telecommunication infrastructure: India still needs a robust telecommunication infrastructure with a stable broadband internet connection. Despite progress in increasing technological features with increasing speeds, the inability of the entire country to adapt to these innovations has widened the gap.
- All citizens are not cell phone users: India additionally faces the hurdle of getting its citizens online, with more than 310 million individuals needing a basic cell phone. This prevents account holders from receiving crucial information, such as details relating to account transactions.
- Increasing dependency on local agents: In addition, financial institutions also need to be more willing to deliver messages for transactions of small quantities. These factors have led to an increasing dependency on local agents.
The correlation between Technology, digital divide and financial inclusion
- Rural- Urban digital Divide: There is an evident divide between the urban-rural regions that dominate India. Only 4.4 rural families have computers, compared to 14.4 percent of urban households and 14.9 percent of rural homes have internet connectivity, compared to 42 percent of families in metropolitan regions. Meanwhile, only 13 percent of adults in rural regions have access to the internet, compared to 37 percent in metropolitan areas.
- High lending rates in rural area: Specifically, such gaps are associated with various factors in finance, starting with small-time lenders charging high-interest rates common in rural regions. Access to credit still needs to be solved. Government programmes are yet to reach more remote areas to improve loan availability efficiently.
- Unawareness about Online loans: Individuals find that online loans need more options from reliable financial institutions or digital lending. Additionally, rural clients need help accessing prospective financial services due to complicated banking procedures such as requiring identity credentials and maintaining a specific balance in an account.
- Limited access to technology: The digital divide is also a result of limited access to computer and communication technologies. In India, fewer people can afford the device needed to access digital information.
- Single nationwide approach is problematic: India additionally faces the burden of providing diversified content across different regions, as individuals across India have different mother tongues. Moreover, the number of individuals who have access to computers or are knowledgeable enough to utilise the internet varies too widely between states. Thus, a blanket approach cannot be implemented nationwide.
- Lack of Financial literacy: Indian citizens lack the potential to maximise technological interventions. About 266 million adults are illiterate. The lack of financial literacy has also greatly impeded the growth of financial inclusion, with many financial cyber-crimes peaking in proportion to the growing distrust among rural residents, leading to lower adoption rates and a 6-percent jump in cybercrimes in the same year.
- Concerns of data privacy: As Personal Identifiable Information (PII) guidelines are not strictly enforced and adhered to, large quantities of data are readily accessible to numerous parties, raising serious concerns about data privacy.
What can be done to bridge digital divide for financial inclusion?
- Digital inclusion strategies: It lies in the hands of the government to implement a financial inclusion policy and look at the reasons behind financial exclusion and effectively address them. Information and Communication Technology policies are primarily top-down and supply-focused. Thus, it is necessary to develop financial goods and services focused on the needs of citizens and the disadvantaged. These policies should focus on digital inclusion strategies to ensure that rural areas can access proper internet connectivity.
- Information in regional language: to ensure digital financial inclusion, the government should encourage the middle-aged bracket to educate themselves in reading and writing to use the various facilities they provide. Government websites have information primarily in Hindi and English, excluding large sections of the population. A systemic strategy focused on digital skills, and financial literacy should be implemented in each region, keeping in mind the language barrier and access to technology.
- Focus on vulnerable sections: To combat financial fraud, implementing a one-to-one Management of Financial Services (MFS) agent mentorship programme that focuses on vulnerable populations and teaches them the fundamentals of mobile and online interaction is possible. Additionally, removing the barriers to financial service access for low-income persons by reducing transaction costs could facilitate increased participation, as observed in Nepal, where free and easily accessible accounts were more prevalent among women
Conclusion
- The digital divide affects every area of life, including literacy, wellness, mobility, security, access to financial services, etc. Therefore, for a fast-growing nation such as India, the focus needs to shift from simple economic growth to equitable and inclusive growth.
Mains Question
Q. What are the challenges to Digital financial inclusion in India? Explain in detail the strategies needed to tackle the financial inclusion?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Anti-microbial resistance (AMR)
Mains level: Anti-biotic Pollution, Anti-microbial resistance (AMR) and its impact
Context
- Almost half, or 43 per cent, of the world’s rivers are contaminated with active pharmaceutical ingredients in concentrations that can have disastrous ramifications on health. The industry must prioritize wastewater management and process controls to limit antibiotic pollution and Anti-microbial resistance (AMR). 18-22 November is observed as World Antimicrobial awareness week.
What is Anti-microbial resistance (AMR)?
- Antimicrobial resistance (AMR or AR) is the ability of a microbe to resist the effects of medication that once could successfully treat the microbe
- Antibiotic resistance occurs naturally, but misuse of antibiotics in humans and animals is accelerating the process.
- A growing number of infections – such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, gonorrhoea, and salmonellosis – are becoming harder to treat as the antibiotics used to treat them become less effective.
- It leads to higher medical costs, prolonged hospital stays, and increased mortality.
Importance of Pharma Industry
- Important sector of economy: The recently adopted Glasgow Climate Pact has called upon countries to facilitate the adoption of greener technologies to phase out the use of fossil fuels. The development and deployment of such technologies is also critical for the pharmaceutical sector that has formed the backbone of the growth of many economies including India.
- Improving the health outcomes: The Pharma sector plays a fundamental role in improving health outcomes through the invention of life-saving products.
- 20% of global supply of medication: Pivoting to sustainable waste management and process-control practices assumes acute significance in the Indian context. India already accounts for 20 per cent of the global supply of medication, making it the largest supplier of generic medicines worldwide.
- Pharmaceutical pollution in the country: Recently, widescale pharmaceutical pollution has been reported across the country, particularly in pharmaceutical hubs like Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana.
- Untreated waste release into rivers: The release of untreated effluents into the soil and water bodies add to the pollution of the environment during the manufacturing of various pharmaceuticals, including antibiotics. Further, untreated antibiotic residues also accelerate the build-up of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
- High emission intensity: Pharma sectors emission intensity is 55 per cent more than the automotive sector.
- AMR is public health threat: AMR is often dubbed as one of the top 10 public health threats facing humanity. It occurs when disease-causing pathogens develop a resistance against the pharmaceuticals that could have neutralized them. In 2019, AMR accounted for more than half a million deaths in the European region and about five million globally.
- Accumulation of AMR in ecosystem: The build-up of AMR can happen due to several factors across the human, animal, and environmental ecosystems.
Government policies to prevent Anti-biotic pollution in India
- National Action Plan on AMR (NAP-AMR): India’s production capacity is all set to expand further with the government’s recent impetus on the domestic production of pharmaceuticals. Against this background, the country’s National Action Plan on AMR (NAP-AMR) called for limiting pharmaceutical pollution.
- Surveillance of residues discharged: Strategic Pillars 2 and 3 under the NAP-AMR focused on developing frameworks for the surveillance of residues discharged in the environment and developing a plan to reduce the environmental impact on AMR, respectively. However, this policy impetus is yet to translate into on-ground implementation.
- Benefits to manufacturers with greener practices: The government can take a cue from countries like the United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden and Germany, among others, which have policies in place that provide benefits to manufacturers with greener practices.
How pharmaceutical industry can improve its waste management?
- Use of innovative technologies: Adopting innovative technology and self-regulation can help the industry reduce its carbon footprint and minimize its environmental impact.
- State-of-art API technology: Centrient Pharmaceuticals Netherlands BV’s plant at Toansa, Punjab, where the adoption of state-of-art API technology led to a 60-62 per cent reduction in the plant’s carbon footprint.
- Regulating the discharge: The AMR Industry Alliance (AMRIA) has developed the Predicted No-Effect Concentrations (PNEC) criteria further to facilitate the industry in regulating its discharge of effluents.
- Strict compliance of guidelines: The compliance to PNEC value for Centrist’s oral API product line and supply chain has helped the company reduce the environmental impact of manufacturing.
Conclusion
- The containment of AMR in India is crucial for realizing several policy goals, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. While collective action is needed from various stakeholders, the domestic pharmaceutical industry should also take the lead, especially in limiting antibiotic pollution.
Mains Question
Q. Explain the linkages between Anti-biotic pollution and anti-microbial resistance (AMR). How government and pharma industry join the hands to reduce the anti-biotic pollution?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Finance commission, NITI Aayog
Mains level: Issues with cooperative Federalism
Context
- NITI Aayog has not taken any major steps since its constitution to promote cooperative federalism. Contrary to its public statements on promoting cooperative federalism, the Government of India has been accused of doing exactly the opposite. The following instances clearly demonstrate as to how the central government’s policies have undermined the spirit of federalism and eroded the autonomy of the States.
Why the states are angry over hypocrisy of the Centre?
- Centre raises off budget borrowings states are restricted: The borrowings by corporations against State guarantees are mostly used for capital investment. The Centre has also been raising off Budget borrowings but mainly for meeting revenue expenditure.
- CAG report on extra budgetary resources: The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG) Report on the Compliance of FRBM Act for 2017-18 and 2018-19 pointed out as many as eight instances of meeting revenue expenditure through Extra Budgetary Resources (EBR).
- Unjustified limitations on states: Revenue expenditure met through EBR by the Centre amounted to ₹81,282 crore in 2017-18 and ₹1,58,107 crore in 2018-19. Such borrowings were not reflected in the Budget of the central government. In view of this, treating off Budget borrowings of State corporations as States’ borrowings retrospectively is totally unjustified.
- Special grants are not given to states: The Fifteenth Finance Commission, in its first report, had recommended a special grant to three States amounting to ₹6,764 crore to ensure that the tax devolution in 2020-21 in absolute terms should not be less than the amount of devolution received by these States in 2019-20. This recommendation was not accepted by the Union Government.
- Nutritional grants are accepted: the recommendation relating to grants for nutrition amounting to ₹7,735 crore was not accepted.
- Grants to states are refused by the Centre: A similar approach has been followed by the Union Government with regard to grants to States recommended by the Finance Commission for the period 2021-26.
- Sector and state specific grants: The sector specific grants and State specific grants recommended by the Commission amounting to ₹1,29,987 crore and ₹49,599 crore, respectively, have not been accepted. This clearly demonstrates that the Union Government has undermined the stature of the institution of the Finance Commission and cooperative federalism.
How borrowing of the states is controlled by the Centre?
- Changes in off budget borrowing norms: decision to treat off Budget borrowings from 2021-22 onwards serviced from the State budgets as States’ borrowings and adjusting them against borrowing limits under Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) in 2022-23 and following years is against all norms.
- No recommendations by finance commission: This is the first time that the Government of India is proposing to treat off Budget borrowings as government borrowings retrospectively from 2021-22. The Government of India has indicated that such a decision is in accordance with the recommendation of the Finance Commission. In fact, there is no recommendation to this effect by the Fifteenth Finance Commission. The Finance Commission recommended that governments at all tiers may observe strict discipline by resisting any further additions to the stock of off Budget transactions.
- No amendment to FRBM act: It observed that in view of the uncertainty that prevails now, the timetable for defining and achieving debt sustainability may be examined by a high-powered intergovernmental group and that the FRBM Act may be amended as per the recommendations of this group to ensure that the legislations of the Union and the States are consistent. No such group has been appointed so far by the Centre.
Cess and Surcharge- A tool to raise revenue for Centre not available to the states
- Rising share of cess and surcharges: The government has been resorting to the levy of cesses and surcharges, as these are not shareable with the States under the Constitution. The share of cesses and surcharges in the gross tax revenue of the Centre increased from 13.5% in 2014-15 to 20% in the Budget estimates for 2022-23.
- States don’t get all share in divisible pool: Though the States’ share in the Central taxes is 41%, as recommended by the Fifteenth Finance Commission, they only get a 29.6% share because of higher cesses and surcharges.
- Undermining the purpose of cess: The C&AG in its Audit Report on Union Government Accounts for 2018-19 observed that of the ₹2,74,592 crore collected from 35 cesses in 2018-19, only ₹1,64,322 crore had been credited to the dedicated funds and the rest was retained in the Consolidated Fund of India. This is another instance of denying States of their due share as per the constitutional provisions.
- Increasing centrally sponsor scheme and burden on state: Committee after committee appointed by the Government of India has emphasised the need to curtail the number of Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) and restrict them to a few areas of national importance. But, what the Government of India has done is to group them under certain broad umbrella heads (currently 28). In addition, in 2015, the Centre increased the States’ share in a number of CSS, thereby burdening States. Most of the CSS are operated in the subjects included in the State list. Thus, States have lost their autonomy.
- NITI Aayoge recommendations are not accepted: The Sub-Committee of Chief Ministers appointed by NITI Aayog has recommended a reduction in the number of schemes and the introduction of optional schemes. These recommendations have not been acted upon.
Conclusion
- Finance commission is balancing wheel of fiscal federalism. Share of states in central taxes may have increased but cess and surcharges have also increased. Off budget borrowing on states can lifted provided should reduce the unnecessary freebies in the state budget.
Mains Question
Q. Fiscal federalism is tilted in favour of Centre. Elaborate. How Cess and surcharges are discriminatory against the state governments?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Quasi-Judicial Bodies
Mains level: Quasi-Judicial Bodies and its Challenges
Context
- There is a class of quasi-judicial agencies that are not discussed in conversations on the pendency of cases. Their failure to administer speedy justice leads to harassment of citizens, besides abetting criminal activity by unscrupulous elements.
- Role of adjudicating the law: A quasi-judicial body is “an organ of Government other than a Court or Legislature, which affects the rights of private parties either through adjudication or rulemaking”.
- Not a court of law: It is not mandatory that a Quasi-Judicial Body has to necessarily be an organization resembling a Court of Law. For example, the Election Commission of India is also a Quasi-Judicial Body but does not have its core functions as a Court of Law.
- Some examples of Quasi-Judicial Bodies: Election Commission of India, National Green Tribunal, Central Information Commission (CIC), Lok Adalat etc.
Functioning of quasi-judicial bodies
- Supervise the administrative disputes: They primarily oversee the administrative zones. The courts have the power to supervise over all types of disputes but the quasi-judicial bodies are the ones with the powers of imposing laws on administrative agencies.
- Lessen the burden on courts: These bodies support to lessen the burden of the courts. Quasi-judicial activity is restricted to the issues that concern the particular administrative agency. Quasi-judicial action may be appealed to a court of law.
- Limited role of adjudication: Their powers are usually limited to a particular area of expertise, such as financial markets, employment laws, public standards, immigration, or regulation.
- Rules of justice are pre-determined: Awards and judgements of quasi-judicial bodies often depend on a pre-determined set of rules or punishment depending on the nature and gravity of the offence committed.
- Its award can be challenged in court: Such punishment may be legally enforceable under the law of a country it can be challenged in a court of law which is the final vital authority.
Problems faced by quasi-judicial authorities
- Understaffing of bodies: The maladies that these agencies suffer from are far graver than judicial set-ups, as they are staffed by revenue authorities who have several other functions. Usually, many of these offices are understaffed.
- More administrative and less judicial work: Their engagement with duties such as law and order, protocol, coordination and other administrative functions leaves them with much less time for court work.
- Limited access to records: Their access to court clerks and record keepers is limited. Computers and video recorders are not available in many of these courts. Only a few states such as Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have electronic platforms for supporting activities such as the filing of cases, publication of cause lists and sending summons.
- Lack of knowledge about procedures: Several of the presiding officers lack proper knowledge of law and procedures which has landed many a civil servant in deep trouble in sensitive matters such as those related to arms licences.
- Data is unavailable: Data on the level of pendency or the speed of disposal is not compiled in many states. This is why there is scarcely any attempt to increase staff strength. There is hardly any public scrutiny say by the press or legislature.
How to improve the functioning of Quasi-judicial bodies?
- Priority of the government: The government should make the efficient functioning of these agencies a priority and clearly articulate its position on the issue.
- Collection of data is must: Detailed data on the functioning of these agencies must be collected and published from time to time at least annually.
- Digitization of judicial data: An electronic platform should be established to handle all ancillary work related to the administration of justice, such as filing of complaints, issue of summons, movement of case records between courts, issuing copies of the judgments and so on.
- Mandatory annual inspection: annual inspections of the subordinate courts should be made mandatory. This should be an important indicator for assessment by the superior authority.
- Study on functioning of this bodies: Interdisciplinary research on the functioning of these courts should be encouraged. This would identify the areas of improvement such as legal reforms or issue of clear guidelines.
- Time to time training of authorities: Regular training and orientation of the adjudicating authorities should be taken up from time to time.
- State performance index should be published: The state index of performance of these quasi-judicial courts be made and published.
- Online publication of awards by authorities: Important decisions, guidelines and directions could be compiled and published on the portal of the apex adjudicating forum such as the Board of Revenue.
- Rigorous induction training: More rigorous induction training of officials handling judicial work would help. The importance of judicial work should be instilled among the trainees and the skill and confidence in handling them should be developed.
- Procedural reforms: Procedural reforms such as minimizing adjournments, mandatory filing of written arguments and other such reforms proposed by bodies like the Law Commission for reform of the Civil Procedure Code should be adopted by these adjudicating bodies.
Conclusion
- Quasi-judicial bodies form the substantial institutions of judicial system. It is regularly side-lined when we talk about the judicial reforms. If we could make our quasi-judicial bodies function properly and efficiently, it will reduce the burden on High courts and Supreme court.
Mains Question
Q. Why the quasi-judicial bodies are underperforming in India? Which steps are needed to improve the functioning of quasi-judicial bodies?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Financial Consumer Protection
Context
- Earlier this year, the G20/OECD released a draft of the proposed revisions to their 2011 High-level Principles on Financial Consumer Protection. As India takes over G20 presidency in December, it must lead others by example and adopt the revised principles, especially since the global financial markets are headed for a stormy future.
What is Financial Consumer Protection (FCP)?
- Financial consumer protection encompasses the laws, regulations, and institutional arrangements that safeguard consumers in the financial marketplace. It includes technical guidance, country reports, and tools for policymakers, regulators, development partners and other experts.
Background of Financial Consumer Protection
- 10 thematic areas: The 2011 principles covered 10 thematic areas reflecting the market and consumer issues, including equitable and fair consumer treatment, disclosures and transparency, and financial education.
- Two additional principles included: In October, the fourth finance ministers and central bank governors meeting endorsed these principles. In 2022, two additional principles were included access and inclusion and quality financial products.
- Recommendation for intervention: The updated principles also recommend intervention by regulators in certain high-risk products, cultivating appropriate firm culture and using behavioral insights to better consumer outcomes.
- These principles deal with three cross-cutting themes
- Financial well-being,
- Digitalization and
- Sustainable finance.
- Individual financial well-being: OECD’s working definition of “individual financial well-being” refers to being in control, feeling secure and having freedom about one’s own current and future finances.
- Easy disclosure to consumers: An effective FCP regime must ensure adequate and easy to understand disclosures to consumers. However, an information dump for mere compliance defeats this purpose, especially in India where financial literacy is not pervasive.
- Risk profiling by service provider: Regulators such as SEBI prescribe certain financial service providers to assess customer suitability and undertake risk profiling before providing services.
- India does not recognize this theme: At present, India does not recognise this concept. Going forward, faced with challenges like financial illiteracy and economic hardship, it may be worth considering.
Digitization under FCP
- Increasing digital channels in financial domain: FCP must factor in the increasing number of digital channels consumers use to interact with financial products and services and the impact of greater use of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
- Guideline on digital lending by RBI: In September, the RBI released guidelines on digital lending, mandating entities providing digital lending services to have a grievance redress officer, assess a borrower’s creditworthiness before extending credit, and allow a borrower to exit without penalty.
- Poor grievance redressal: Additionally, there are concerns regarding redress of grievances against payment service providers in the UPI ecosystem. With the rising number of UPI transactions and the largely unregulated status of cryptocurrencies, FCP will continue to be relevant.
Sustainable finance under FCP
- Multi-dimensional approach: There is growing consumer demand for sustainable financial investments. Financial services providers are incorporating environmental, social and governance factors into their operations, products and services.
- Transparency is must: FCP recommends improved transparency to help consumers make informed choices.
- BRSR by SEBI: SEBI has transitioned from “business responsibility reporting” to “business responsibility and sustainability reporting” (BRSR) to promote responsible corporate governance vis-à-vis climate change.
- Mandatory disclosure by BRSR: Eligible companies under BRSR must provide certain disclosures, including a sustainability performance report. This allows investors to make an informed decision. Similar disclosures must be introduced in other market segments.
Conclusion
- The RBI’s financial inclusion index shows that an increasing number of people are entering financial markets. FCP is central to ensuring that they continue to stay. The current regulatory landscape is sectoral and fragmented, resulting in regulatory arbitrage, as witnessed in the case of digital gold. Regulators must take a coordinated approach to protect consumers.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Constitutional provisions
Mains level: Issues with the office of the Governor
Context
- In recent years, there has been an erosion of constitutional provisions, constitutional morality, and constitutional ethos being witnessed among various constitutional bodies. The conduct of the Governors of some States has made a mockery of the Constitution and its limitations.
- Exercise of Power according to constitution: In 1949, Prof. K.T. Shah debating Article 130 (now Article 154) said: “the Constitution should make it imperative upon the Governor to use its power in accordance with the Constitution and the Law, that is to say, on the advice of his Ministers as provided for in the subsequent clauses and in other parts of the Constitution.”
- Appointment of governor by president: It was hotly debated whether the Governor should be appointed by the President of India or should be elected. Fearing that this would create a parallel State leadership, the Assembly instead adopted appointment by the President.
- Good governor and Bad Governor: G. Kher said: “a Governor can do a great deal of good if he is a good Governor and he can do a great deal of mischief, if he is a bad Governor, in spite of the very little power given to him under the Constitution”
- Friendly intervention of the Governor: K. Sen said, “The question is whether by interfering, the Governor would be upholding the democratic idea or subverting it. It would really be a surrender of democracy. We have decided that the Governor should be a constitutional head. He would be the person really to lubricate the machinery and to see to it that all the wheels are going well by reason not of his interference, but his friendly intervention.”
- Aid and advice of cabinet: R. Ambedkar said, according to the principles of the New Constitution, Governor is required to follow the advice of his ministry in all matters. Therefore, the real issue before the House is not nomination or election, but what powers you propose to give to your Governor.
- Nomination of governor and not election: If the Governor is a purely constitutional Governor with no more powers than what we contemplate expressly to give him in the Act. I personally do not see any very fundamental objection to the principle of nomination.”
Constitutional Provision Regarding Governor
- Article 153: Provides a Governor for each State, and by virtue of Article 154, the executive power of the State shall be vested in the Governor “Shall be exercised by him directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution”.
- Article 154(2)(a): Prohibits the Governor from exercising any function “conferred by existing law on any other Authority”.
- Article 163: Categorically provides that “there shall be a council of ministers with the Chief Minister at the head to aid and advise the Governor… except in so far as he is by or under this Constitution required to exercise his function or any of them in his discretion”.
How governor ideally supposed to conduct his duty?
- Shamsher Singh vs State of Punjab: The Supreme Court, in Shamsher Singh vs State of Punjab, decided on this issue in 1974: The Governor exercises “all his powers and functions” by making rules for the convenient transactions of the business of the government of the State in accordance with Article 166 of the Constitution. These are called Rules of Business.
- Satisfaction of governor is satisfaction of cabinet: The Court however amplified that “wherever the constitution requires satisfaction of the President or the Governor for the exercise of any power or function by the President or the Governor, as the case may be, as for example in Articles 123, 213, 311(2) proviso (c), 317, 352(1), 356 and 360. The satisfaction required by the Constitution …. is the satisfaction of the President or of the Governor in the Constitutional sense under the Cabinet system of the Government”.
- Use of discretion in harmony with council of ministers: The Court went on to hold that “the discretion conferred on the Governor means that as the Constitutional or the formal head of the State, the power is vested in him” and that it is only in the exercise of the power under Article 356 that the Governor will be justified in exercising his discretion even against the aid and advice of his council of ministers as per his discretionary power but, in all other matters where the Governor acts in his discretion, he will act in harmony with his Council of Ministers.
- No parallel administration by governor: The Constitution does not aim at providing a parallel administration. The basic philosophy is that in a democracy, the elected Ministers must accept responsibility for every executive act and that the Council of Ministers alone represents a responsible form of government in the States.
Conclusion
- Governor’s role is to assist the Chief minister of state and not creating the trouble for Chief Minister. Governor should not act in a manner that undermines the dignity of constitutional post of Governor. Governor must follow the constitutional morality while discharging his duty.
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