op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 1: Role Of Women & Women Organization

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: NA

Mains level: Women empowerment

Context

Despite notable progress in closing the gender pay gap over time in India, the gap remains high by international standards. Asymmetries still abound in the country’s labor market stopping women empowerment .
Time to reassess the progress made in to close the Gender pay gap.

Background

The third International Equal Pay Day is observed globally on September 18, 2022.
It is a United Nations-recognized event to highlight the issue of gender pay gap.
International Labor Organization’s “Global Wage Report 2020–21” which suggests the crisis inflicted massive downward pressure on wages and disproportionately affected women’s total wages compared to
This greater wage reduction for women means that the pre-existing gender pay gap has widened.

Covid-19 Impact

While it is difficult to tell exactly what the economic damage from the global covid-19 pandemic has been, it is clear that its impact has been uneven, with women being among the worst affected in terms of their income security.
Many women reverted to full-time care of children and the elderly during the pandemic, foregoing their livelihoods to do so.

What is gender pay gap?

The gender pay gap or gender wage gap measures the difference between the average earnings of women and men in the workforce.
In simple term it is a measure of what women are paid relative to men.
Women are generally found to be paid less than men.

Why is the gender pay gap?

Education: low investment o girl education, Girl children are kept out of schools, or made drop out of school at early age, girl is considered as burden on family in many societies.
workforce : even if they are educated they are not allowed to work by their families, very limited or no decision making power, lack of women friendly work environment, discriminatory practices at workplaces.
Household: early marriage , responsibilities of the household at early age , spending more times on domestic chores,
Healthcare: malnutrition, anemia, Maternity, child care, looking after health of the elderly family members etc.

These are some of the reasons which affect education, skills, experience and the career prospectus of women as compared to men and contribute to widen the gender wage gap.

Discrimination as factor

A part of gender pay gap attributed to education, skills or experience, a large part of the gender pay gap can still purely because of discrimination based on one’s gender or sex.
Gender-based discriminatory practices include: lower wages paid to women for work of equal value; undervaluation of women’s work in highly feminized occupations and enterprises, and motherhood pay gap lower wages for mothers compared to non-mother.

Status in India

The gender pay gap in India is among the widest in the world.
Indian women earned, on an average, 48% less compared to their male counterparts in 1993-94
According to labor force survey data of the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) gap declined to 28% in 2018-19.
Periodic Labor Force Survey (PLFS) 2020-21 show an increase in the gap by 7% between 2018-19 and 2020-21.
Recently, the World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked India at 135 out of 146 countries in its Global Gender Gap (GGG) Index for 2022.
According to the estimates of the World Inequality Report 2022, in India, men earn 82 per cent of the labor income whereas women earn 18 per cent of it.

Steps taken by India

Minimum Wages Act in 1948: It is an act of parliament, aimed at statutory fixation of minimum wages that must be paid to skilled and unskilled labours. Payment of wages below the minimum wage rate amounts to forced labour.
Equal Remuneration Act in 1976: This act of parliament provides for the payment of equal remuneration to men and women workers for the prevention of discrimination. It helps in bridging the gap between unequal remuneration faced by the women of our country.
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) 2005: MGNREGA contributed to the rapid rise in overall rural and agricultural wages in the country. It benefited rural women workers and helped reduce the gender pay gap, both directly and indirectly. Directly, by raising the pay levels of women workers and indirectly to women involved in agricultural occupations through higher earnings.
The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017: has increased the duration of paid maternity leave available for women employees to 26 weeks from 12 weeks for all women working in establishments employing 10 or more workers. This is expected to reduce the motherhood pay gap among mothers in the median and high end wage earners working in the formal economy also it will help in women empowerment.
Skill India Mission: To equip women with market-relevant skills to bridge the learning to-livelihood gap and the gender pay gap.
In 2019, India carried out comprehensive reforms in both the legislation and enacted the Code on Wages.

Way ahead

While the gender pay gap is slowly narrowing, acceleration and bold actions to prevent the widening of gender pay gap is the need of the hour.
Equal pay for work of equal value is necessary to close the gender pay gap.
Closing the gender pay gap is key to achieving social justice for working women, as well as economic growth for the nation as a whole
Without social justice women empowerment is a futile exercise.

Mains Question

Q. Define gender equality .Equal pay for equal work is necessary to bridge the gender pay gap India .Comment.

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Foreign Policy Watch: India-ASEAN

Geopolitics follows the geoeconomics and not vice-versa

op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: India & Its Neighborhood - Relations,International Institutions

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: NA

Mains level: international relations

Context

Over the recent years India’s manoeuvres in indo-pacific have highlighted the India’s geopolitical and ambitions. Pandemic and Chinese incursion in Ladakh forced India to move fast to achieve its geopolitical ends. However missing link in India’s endeavour is geoeconomics.

What is mean by geopolitics and geo-economics?

Geopolitics: is defined as the struggle over the control of geographical entities with an international and global dimension, and the use of such geographical entities for political advantage.
Geo-economics: is defined as the combination of economic and geographic factors relating to international trade and a governmental policy guided by geoeconomics.
Geopolitics and geoeconomics are sometimes used interchangeably.

What is the strategy to pursue geopolitical goals in indo-pacific?

India has managed to emerge as a major pivot of the global Indo-Paciﬁc grand strategic imagination.
Avoided the temptations to militarise/securitise the Quad (Australia, Japan, India and the United States).
Which has ensured that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) states do not feel uneasy by the ever-increasing balance of power articulations in the Indo-Pacific

What is the missing link in India’s geopolitical strategy?

The missing link in geoeconomics is India’s decision to take to the Indo-Paciﬁc and Quad in a big way.
While unwilling to join two of the region’s key multilateral trading agreements goes to show that geoeconomics and geopolitics are imagined and pursued parallelly in New Delhi, not as complimenting each other.
The most recent example is India’s refusal to join the trade pillar of the Indo-Paciﬁc Economic Framework (IPEF) while deciding to join the three other pillars of the IPEF supply chains, tax and anti-corruption, and clean energy.

India also withdrew from ASEAN led RCEP.

Is the lack of geoeconomic bad for foreign policy?

The absence of the world’s fifth largest economy from various regional trading platforms will invariably boost China’s geo-economic hegemony in Asia.
Staying out of IPEF is a bad idea is because for India, it would be hard to integrate itself into the regional and global supply chains without being a part of important regional multilateral trading agreements.
We have no option but to address some of the deeper challenges plaguing the investment and business environment in India.
If India is indeed serious about its maritime grand strategy, which cannot be solely military in nature, it needs to get the states in the region to create economic stakes in India (something China has done cleverly and consistently) and vice-versa.
Another impact of India’s hesitation about joining regional multilateral trading arrangements is its potential regional economic isolation. The less India engages with the region economically, and the more China does so, and given the Sino-Indian rivalry, India might risk getting economically isolated in the broader region.

What can be done?

New Delhi should: rethink its geoeconomic choices if it is serious about enhancing its geopolitical inﬂuence in the region. Given that India has not closed the door on the trade pillar of the IPEF, we have an opportunity to rethink our position.
India should: also rethink its decision not to join the RECP and seek to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Paciﬁc Partnership (CPTPP) from which the U.S. walked out and China is seeking to join.
India should: also proactively lobby to become a part of the Minerals Security Partnership, the U.S.-led 11-member grouping to secure supply chains of critical minerals.

Conclusion

In the words of external affairs minister Dr. Jaishankar,” geopolitics follows the geoeconomics and not vice-versa”. Geoeconomics is inclusive of geoeconomics. India should integrate itself in multilateral trading platforms and leverage its big market to bargain the best deal for itself.

Mains question

Q. Indias pursuit of geopolitics is futile without inclusion of geoeconomics. Comment.

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Policy Wise: India’s Power Sector

Electricity Amendment Bill 2022 – Addressing the transition and equity

op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: particulars of the bill

Mains level: electricity reforms

Context

Concerns of states on some provisions of the new Electricity Bill are justified. But the legislation proposes welcome correctives to longstanding problems of the power sector.

Important provisions of the bill

Payment security: The Bill provides that electricity will not be scheduled or despatched if adequate payment security is not provided by the discom. The central government may prescribe rules regarding payment security.
Contract enforcement: The Bill empowers the CERC and SERCs to adjudicate disputes related to the performance of contracts. These refer to contracts related to the sale, purchase, or transmission of electricity. Further, the Commissions will have powers of a Civil Court.
Renewable purchase obligation: The Act empowers SERCs to specify renewable purchase obligations (RPO) for discoms. RPO refers to the mandate to procure a certain percentage of electricity from renewable sources. The Bill adds that RPO should not be below a minimum percentage prescribed by the central government. Failure to meet RPO will be punishable with a penalty between 25 paise and 50 paise per kilowatt of the shortfall.
Selection committee for SERCs: Under the Act, the Chairperson of the Central Electricity Authority or the Chairperson of the CERC is one of the members of the selection committee to recommend appointments to the SERCs. Under the Bill, instead of this person, the central government will nominate a member to the selection committee. The nominee should not be below the rank of Additional Secretary to the central government.
Composition of Commissions and APTEL: The Bill increases the number of members (including the chairperson) in SERCs from three to four. Further, at least one member in both the CERC and SERCs must be from law background. Under the Act, Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) consists of a chairperson and three other members. The Bill instead provides that the APTEL will have three or more members, as may be prescribed by the central government.

State apprehensions of the bill

Multi state license: The clause pertaining to applicants seeking a distribution licence in more than one state. It states that the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), and not the SERC, will grant the licence. This is problematic because a SERC is likely to be more aware of the field-level conditions in a state than its central counterpart.
Centre can bypass state: The Bill has a provision empowering the Centre to give directions directly to the SERCs. Till now, the CERC received instructions from the Centre and the SERCs were under the state. The new Bill enables the Centre to bypass state governments. It’s not surprising that this is a matter of concern for the states.
Direct appointment by centre: The Bill states that the SERC chairperson will now be a nominee of the central government and will be an additional secretary-level official. This gives the impression that the Centre is trying to control the appointments to the SERCs.

electricity

Why the bill is important?

Compensation clause: The Bill states that if power purchase agreement PPAs are renegotiated, the affected party has to be compensated within 90 days from the date of submission of the petition.
Uniformity in tariffs revision: New tariffs have to be made applicable from the beginning of the financial year. New tariffs often come into force in the middle of the financial year (due to delays in the issuing of orders by SERCs). This means that discoms do not earn their full revenues leading to cash flow problems.
Easy tariff petition processing now: The Bill has proposed a reduction in the time for processing tariff petitions from 120 days to 90 days.
Suo moto jurisdiction: Regulatory commissions have been given suo motu jurisdiction if tariff petitions are not filed within 30 days of the stipulated time. This too is a step in the right direction.
More teeth to load dispatcher: the Bill proposes to give more teeth to the national load dispatcher. We need to strengthen the load dispatcher for the smooth functioning of the grid, especially with a huge renewable capacity where intermittency of generation is a major issue in the offing.

Conclusion

The rollout of the proposed amendments through a consensus-based approach would go a long way in overhauling the weakest link in the nation’s power supply chain.

Mains question

Q. Electricity Bill 2022 is a remedy worse than the disease afflicting India’s power sector. Critically analyse.

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Climate Change Negotiations – UNFCCC, COP, Other Conventions and Protocols

Backsliding on climate action

op-ed snap | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: Paris agreement

Mains level: Paper 3- Climate change

Context

Europe is staring at a recession and its appetite for climate action is waning.

Developed countries moving away from commitment

Countries in Europe led by Germany, Austria and the Netherlands are cranking up their coal plants again.
Fossil fuels are making a comeback and countries are rejecting the European Union (EU)’s plan to reduce natural gas consumption by 15%. Dutch, Polish and other European farmers are protesting against emission cuts from agriculture.
In the U.S. too, the Senate and the Supreme Court have struck blows to climate action.
And in the U.S. too, prices of fuel started increasing last year, not just this year.
Fossil fuels are making a quiet comeback, since the strength of the U.S. is its oil and gas industry.
That is why we have just witnessed a ‘re-calibration’ of U.S. policy towards the Gulf.
Coal, oil and gas are not going anywhere in the developed world; they are, in fact, making a comeback.
The West had rushed to draw down on fossil fuels even before technology for renewables were in place.

Global peaking issue

Article 4 of the Paris Agreement defines ‘Global Peaking’ thus: “In order to achieve the long-term temperature goal set out in Article 2, Parties aim to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible, recognizing that peaking will take longer for developing country Parties.”
The developed countries, given their historical emissions, will have to peak first.
That’s why the reference is to ‘global peaking’ and not ‘individual peaking’.
From this, it logically follows that when developing country parties peak later than developed countries, they will also achieve net zero later than developed countries.
Consequently, it is the logical conclusion of the Article 4 of the Paris Agreement that when we consider net zero, we should only consider ‘global net zero’ and not ‘individual net zero’ for 2050.
The statement calls on developed countries to do a net negative on mitigation by 2050 rather than just “net zero”, if they are serious about fighting climate change.
In effect, the West needs to do a net minus and not just net zero.
Thanks to the efforts of India, the phrase used in the 2021 summit-level declarations at both G-20 and Quad is ‘global net zero’. We need to build on this understanding.
India stands as beacon of hope in renewables.
It is time for all developing countries, especially the small island developing states, to make sure that the developed world doesn’t backslide on its commitments on mitigation yet again.

Way forward for developing countries

With countries of the developed world almost sure to renege on their 2030 Paris Agreement commitments, countries of the developing world must do everything to hold the countries of the developed world to their commitments.
The Western nations have already started reinterpreting the Paris Agreement and look to downgrade their commitments.
The concept of net zero is being cleverly misinterpreted.
To bring this to the attention of the Global South, India, China and eight other countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America made a cross-regional statement on ‘global net zero’ on June 7 at the UN on World Environment Day.

Conclusion

COP 27 in Egypt gives us that opportunity to hold their feet to the fire. It is time for the developed world to make net minus pledges. If we don’t collectively push for it, we will be collectively pushed back.

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RBI Notifications

RBI’s attempt to manage currency could prove to be a costly mistake

op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: Impossible trinity

Mains level: RBI functions

Context

A currency defence will also impose costs on the economy.

Why in news?

Legally, the Reserve Bank of India is mandated to target an inflation rate. But with the global economic environment taking a turn for the worse, the central bank has also been targeting the exchange rate. This could prove to be a costly mistake.

What is a simple definition for inflation?

Inflation is the rate of increase in prices over a given period of time. Inflation is typically a broad measure, such as the overall increase in prices or the increase in the cost of living in a country.

What is exchange rate?

An exchange rate is a rate at which one currency will be exchanged for another currency. Most exchange rates are defined as floating and will rise or fall based on the supply and demand in the market. Some exchange rates are pegged or fixed to the value of a specific country’s currency.

What is monetary policy?

Monetary policy is the control of the quantity of money available in an economy and the channels by which new money is supplied. Economic statistics such as gross domestic product (GDP), the rate of inflation, and industry and sector-specific growth rates influence monetary policy strategy.

What is fixed exchange rate in simple words?

A fixed exchange rate is a regime applied by a government or central bank that ties the country’s official currency exchange rate to another country’s currency or the price of gold. The purpose of a fixed exchange rate system is to keep a currency’s value within a narrow band.

What is a simple definition of capital?

Capital is a broad term that can describe anything that confers value or benefit to its owners, such as a factory and its machinery, intellectual property like patents, or the financial assets of a business or an individual.

What is meant by the impossible trinity?

Many economists think of possible policy responses to capital flows in terms of the so-called “impossible trinity,” or “policy trilemma”, according to which, with an open capital account, a central bank cannot simultaneously exercise monetary control and target the exchange rate.

A currency defence will impose costs on the economy?

Little economic gain: Some may believe that a stronger currency gives the impression of economic stability and generates confidence in the economy. But there is an inherent contradiction between artificially propping up the rupee and the country’s growth prospects. Very little economic gain will accrue from turning the currency’s value into a political issue.
Inflation should be tackled through monetary policy: Understandably, a depreciating currency leads to concerns over higher imported inflation. But inflation should be tackled through monetary policy, while exchange rate management should be linked to growth. Not the other way around.

Significance of currency defence for foreign exchange reserves

Decline by 10 per cent: A large part of the current relative strength of the rupee vis-à-vis other currencies is due to the sale of dollars by the RBI it has lost more than 10 per cent of its foreign reserves in the space of about nine months.
Why country needs foreign exchange: A developing economy needs foreign exchange to finance its international transactions for both the current account (goods and services) and capital account (assets) transactions.
Cost involved: The benefits of this stock are obvious, but there are also costs associated with the holding of these.

We should follow Tenfold Path to manage Exchange Rate Volatility rather monetary policy path

(1) Selling dollars

The first course of action has been selling dollars in the spot forex market.
This is fairly straightforward, but has limits as all crises are associated with declining reserves.
While this money is meant for a rainy day, they may just be less than adequate.
The idea of RBI selling dollars works well in the currency market, which is kept guessing how much the central bank is willing to sell at any point of time.

(2) NRI deposits

The second tool used is aimed at garnering non-resident Indian (NRI) deposits.
It was done in 1998 and 2000 through Resurgent India bonds and India Millennium Deposits, when banks reached out asking NRIs to put in money with attractive interest rates.
The forex risk was borne by Indian banks.
This is always a useful way for the country to mobilize a good sum of forex, though the challenge is when the debt has to be redeemed.
At the time of deposits, the rates tend to be attractive, but once the crisis ends, the same rate cannot be offered on deposit renewals.
Therefore, the idea has limitations.

(3) Let oil importers buy dollars themselves

The third option exercised often involves getting oil importing companies to buy dollars directly through a facility extended by a public sector bank.
Its advantage is that these deals are not in the open and so the market does not witness a large demand for dollars on this account.
It is more of a sentiment cooling exercise.

(4) Let exporters trade in dollars

Another tool involves a directive issued for all exporters to mandatorily bring in their dollars on receipt that are needed for future imports.
This acts against an artificial dollar supply reduction due to exporter hold-backs for profit.

(5) Liberalized Exchange Rate

The other weapon, once used earlier, is to curb the amount of dollars one can take under the Liberalized Exchange Rate Management System.
This can be for current account purposes like travel, education, healthcare, etc.
The amounts are not large, but it sends out a strong signal.

(6) Forward-trade marketing

Another route used by RBI is to deal in the forward-trade market.
Its advantage is that a strong signal is sent while controlling volatility, as RBI conducts transactions where only the net amount gets transacted finally.
It has the same power as spot transactions, but without any significant withdrawal of forex from the system.

(7) Currency swaps

The other tool in India’s armoury is the concept of swaps.
This became popular post 2013, when banks collected foreign currency non-resident deposits with a simultaneous swap with RBI, which in effect took on the foreign exchange risk.
Hence, it was different from earlier bond and deposit schemes.
Most preferred options by the RBI
Above discussed instruments have been largely direct in nature, with the underlying factors behind demand-supply being managed by the central bank.
Of late, RBI has gone in for more policy-oriented approaches and the last three measures announced are in this realm.

(8) Allowing banks to work in the NDF market

First was allowing banks to work in the non-deliverable forwards (NDF) market.
This is a largely overseas speculative market that has a high potential to influence domestic sentiment on our currency.
Here, forward transactions take place without real inflows or outflows, with only price differences settled in dollars.
This was a major pain point in the past, as banks did not have access to this segment.
By permitting Indian banks to operate here, the rates in this market and in domestic markets have gotten equalized.

(9) Capital account for NRI deposits

More recently, RBI opened up the capital account on NRI deposits (interest rates than can be offered), external commercial borrowings (amounts that can be raised) and foreign portfolio investments (allowed in lower tenure securities), which has the potential to draw in forex over time.
Interest in these expanded contours may be limited, but the idea is compelling.

(10) Settlement in Rupees

RBI’s permission for foreign trade deals to be settled in rupees is quite novel; as India is a net importer, gains can be made if we pay in rupees for imports.
The conditions placed on the use of surpluses could be a dampener for potential transactions.
But the idea is innovative and could also be a step towards taking the rupee international in such a delicate situation.
Clearly, RBI has constantly been exploring ways to address our forex troubles and even newer measures shouldn’t surprise us.

Way ahead

The RBI (which is in charge of monetary policy) should focus on containing inflation, as it is legally mandated to do.
The government (which is in charge of the fiscal policy) should contain its borrowings.
Higher borrowings (fiscal deficit) by the government eat up domestic savings and force the rest of the economic agents to borrow from abroad.
Policymakers (both in the government and the RBI) have to choose what their priority is containing inflation or being hung up on exchange rate and forex levels.
If they choose to contain inflation (that is, by raising interest rates) then it will require sacrificing economic growth. So be prepared for that.

Mains question

Q.What do you understand by the term impossible trinity? How should RBI respond to manage currency exchange rate? Discuss.

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Democracy Report 2022

op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Comparison Of The Indian Constitutional Scheme With That Of Other Countries

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: NA

Mains level: Democratic credentials

Context

G7 nations and partner countries including India recently signed “2022 Resilient democracies statement”-We, the Leaders of Germany, Argentina, Canada, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Senegal, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, and the European Union, affirm our commitment to strengthening the resilience of our democracies and to working towards equitable, inclusive and sustainable solutions to global challenges, including climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic, and reaffirm our commitment to the rules-based international order.

How we define Democracy?

“Government of the people, by the people and for the people” the words used by Abraham Lincoln in the year 1863 while talking about democracy.

Purpose of democracy

Cornerstones of democracy include freedom of assembly, association, property rights, freedom of religion and speech, inclusiveness and equality, citizenship, consent of the governed, voting rights, freedom from unwarranted governmental deprivation of the right to life and liberty, and minority rights.

Democracy Report 2022

The study, titled ‘Democracy Report 2022: Autocratisation Changing Nature?’ states that more than twice as many countries are undergoing Autocratisation as are witnessing democratization.
The conceptual scheme takes into account not only the electoral dimension (free and fair elections) but also the liberal principle that democracy must protect “individual and minority rights”
The V-Dem report classifies countries into four regime types based on their score in the Liberal Democratic Index (LDI): a)Liberal Democracy b)Electoral Democracy c)Electoral Autocracy and d)Closed Autocracy

Where do the Reports and Indices put India?

Sweden based Sweden-based V-Dem Institute was harsher in its latest report on democracy. It said India had become an “electoral autocracy”
US-based non-profit Freedom House downgraded India from a free democracy to a “partially free democracy”.
India, described as a “flawed democracy”, slipped two places to 53rd position in the latest Democracy Index published by The Economist Intelligence Unit.

Status of Supporters of Democracy

Decolonised African Countries:
The number of African countries that have adopted democratic systems of government has grown since decolonisation, the collapse of communism and the ending of a number of civil wars.
Some countries, such as Ghana, are seen as resilient democracies, while for others the democratic transition is more fragile, after months of pro-democracy protests in 2019 in Sudan, a civilian-led transitional government is now paving the way for democracy after decades of military rule.
India as example:
India is the world’s largest democracy. India is staying as one unit despite having vast no of cultures, languages and religions. This is possible because of the democracy in India.
Minorities and disadvantaged sections are represented in parliament which enabled inclusive growth.
When India got independence, its economy was in shambles. Extreme poverty, unemployment, food insecurity were the major problems before Indian government. But India’s democratic constitution successfully balanced development and welfare of the country.
Now, India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world.

What critics arguing?

Democracy in crisis: Democracy is more in crisis than ever before, with the onset of centralisation of power, with a foreign policy defying public opinion, with the media centralised, and with corporate control of the economy tighter than ever.
Increasing polarity: Threatening world order is emerging, which seeks to abrogate all individual rights and divide us along the extremist polarities that we thought had been neutralised.
Global Crisis: We move into this new stage of conﬂict carrying the risk of a nuclear tragedy, further exacerbated by the collective buttressing of a global crisis of the novel coronavirus pandemic, uncontrollable ecological disasters, and food and water deﬁciency.
Populism: Blatant fascist leanings of the so-called “democracies”, and escalating hunger and disease in Africa and other parts of the under-developed world give enough evidence that democracy faces serious issues of populism.
Other global problems: Growing economic discrimination, overpopulation and environmental degradation, Misgivings about moral progress, about mutual understanding, exacerbate the dismal situation that faces humanity.

What can be done to strengthen the democracies further?

Strengthening public support: To protect freedom domestically and build support for a foreign policy that protects democratic rights and values abroad, it is essential to foster a stronger public understanding of democratic principles, especially among young people. civic education is necessary.
Rule of law: In order to maintain trust in public institutions, the principles of legality, legal certainty and prohibition of arbitrariness of the executive powers, judicial independence, impartiality, and equality before the law need to be respected.
Individual rights: Democracy entails the right of individuals to participate in and influence the development of society, with free and fair elections at its core. Without an active turnout in elections and proper mechanisms for participation, the essence of democracy can be lost.
Free speech: Free speech guard the freedom of expression and opinion, and affirmation of commitment to the very idea of democracy and a move towards opposing oppression and violence

Conclusion

Democracy is always a work in progress. The key ingredients of democracy are effective and accountable institutions, and leadership. Institutions build resilience by embedding norms and standards and bridging periods of weak leadership.

Mains Question

Q.Do you think Democracy is the best solution to tackle the growing fault lines between the communities? What makes India as the best example of Democracy to the world? Discuss.

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Human Development Report by UNDP

Here is how HDI has performed in last 3 decades

op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: particulars of report

Mains level: human development

Context

India, belonging to the medium HDI category, shows dimensional inequalities similar to or slightly below the average figures in the category, except in the case of education where it is high and closer to the low HDI countries. The inequalities in health and education are more than twice that of the very high and high HDI categories.

Why in news?

The bad news for India is that its global HDI rank has slipped from 129 in 2019 to 131 in 2020 and to 132 in 2021-22.

What is the meaning of human development?

Human development is defined as the process of enlarging people’s freedoms and opportunities and improving their well-being. Human development is about the real freedom ordinary people have to decide who to be, what to do, and how to live.

What is meant by Human Development Index?

The HDI is a summary measure of human development. The HDI is a summary composite measure of a country’s average achievements in three basic aspects of human development: health, knowledge and standard of living.

Who publishes HDI?

The Human Development Report (HDR) is an annual Human Development Index report published by the Human Development Report Office of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Dimensions of the Human Development Index

Long and healthy life: The long and healthy life dimension is measured by life expectancy at birth. The life expectancy at birth is a statistical measure that an average individual is expected to live based on certain demographic factors such as the year of birth and current age.
Education: This is a second dimension in the HDI. The indicators of education are the expected years of schooling and the mean years of schooling. According to the UN, the average maximum years of schooling is 18 years, while the mean maximum years of schooling is 15 years.
Standard of living: The standard of living is usually measured by the gross national income (GNI) per capita. The GNI indicates the total domestic and foreign output created by the residents of a certain country.

What are the 4 indicators of HDI?

Mean years of schooling
Expected years of schooling
Life expectancy at birth
Gross national income (GNI) per capita

Which Countries Have the Highest HDI?

In the latest HDI ranking, from 2022, Switzerland finished first with an HDI value of 0.962.

Issues in HDI

(1) An incomplete indicator

Human development is incomplete without human freedom and that while the need for qualities judgement is clear; there is no simple quantitative measure available yet to capture the many aspects of human freedom.
HDI also does not specifically reflect quality of life factors, such as empowerment movements or overall feelings of security or happiness.

(2) Limited idea of development

The HDI is not reflecting the human development idea accurately.
It is an index restricted to the socio-economic sphere of life; the political and civil spheres are in the most part kept separate.
Hence there is a sub-estimation of inequality among countries, which means that this dimension is not being taken into consideration appropriately.

(3) A vague concept

Concerning data quality and the exact construction of the index HDI is conceptually weak and empirically unsound.
This strong critic comes from the idea that both components of HDI are problematic. The GNP in developing countries suffers from incomplete coverage, measurement errors and biases.
The definition and measurement of literacy are different among countries and also, this data has not been available since 1970 in a significant number of countries.

(4) Data quality issues

The HDI, as a combination of only four relatively simple indicators, doesn’t only raise a questions what other indicators should be included, but also how to ensure quality and comparable input data.
It is logical that the UNDP try to collect their data from international organizations concentrating in collecting data in specific fields.
Quality and trustworthiness of those data is disputable, especially when we get the information from UN non-democratic members, as for example Cuba or China.

(5) A tool for mere comparison

The concept of HDI was set up mainly for relative comparison of countries in one particular time.
HDI is much better when distinguishing between countries with low and middle human development, instead of countries at the top of the ranking.
Therefore, the original notion was not to set up an absolute ranking, but let’s quite free hands in comparison of the results.

(6) Development has to be greener

The human development approach has not adequately incorporated environmental conditions which may threaten long-term achievements on human development. The most pervasive failure was on environmental sustainability.
However, for the first time in 2020, the UNDP introduced a new metric to reflect the impact caused by each country’s per-capita carbon emissions and its material footprint.
This is Planetary Pressures-adjusted HDI or PHDI. It measured the amount of fossil fuels, metals and other resources used to make the goods and services it consumes.

(7) Wealth can never equate welfare

Higher national wealth does not indicate welfare. GNI may not necessarily increase economic welfare; it depends on how it is spent.
For example, if a country spends more on military spending – this is reflected in higher GNI, but welfare could actually be lower.

Importance of HDI

Multidimensionality: It is one of the few multidimensional indices as it includes indicators such as literacy rate, enrolment ratio, life expectancy rate, infant mortality rate, etc.
True yardstick: It acts as a true yardstick to measure development in real sense.
Helps in measuring a nation’s well-being: Unlike per capital income, which only indicates that a rise in per capital income implies economic development; HDI considers many other vital social indicators and helps in measuring a nation’s well-being.

Value addition line

People are the real wealth of a nation. The basic objective of development should be to create an enabling environment for people to live long, healthy and creative lives. This may appear to be a simple truth.

Conclusion

To sum up, the introduction of the HDI three decades ago was an early attempt to address the shortcomings in conventional measures of wellbeing.
The HDI has continued to attract widespread attention and motivates the work of activists, scholars and political leaders around the world.
The HDI compels us to ask what matters more, the quantitative expansion of an economy, or the qualitative improvement in the capabilities of society.
Indeed the revival of interest in this subject at the highest levels of government is the need of the hour.

Mains question

Q. What do you understand by human development? Critically analyse the human development index given by UNDP.

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Water Management – Institutional Reforms, Conservation Efforts, etc.

The great Indian thirst: The story of India’s water stress

op-ed snap | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: various water reports

Mains level: water conservation

Context

United Nations World Water Development Report of 2022 has expressed global concern over the sharp rise in freshwater withdrawal from streams, lakes, aquifers and human made reservoirs, significant water stress and also water scarcity being experienced in diﬀerent parts of the world.

Who publishes the UNs world water development report?

The United Nations World Water Development Report (WWDR) is published by UNESCO, on behalf of UN-Water and its production is coordinated by the UNESCO World Water Assessment Program (WWAP).

What is the level of water stress in India?

The Global Drought Risk and Water Stress map (2019): It shows that major parts of India, particularly west, central and parts of peninsular India are highly water stressed and experience water scarcity.
Composite Water Management Index (2018): Released by Niti Aayog indicates that more than 600 million people are facing acute water stress.
India is the world’s largest extractor of groundwater: Accounting for 25 per cent of the total. 70 percent of our water sources are contaminated and our major rivers are dying because of pollution.

Why is Rural to Urban transfer of water becoming an issue in India?

Rising urban population: According to Census 2011, the urban population in India accounted for 34% of total population. It is estimated that the urban population component in India will cross the 40% mark by 2030 and the 50% mark by 2050 according to World Urbanization Prospects, 2018.
Water use in the urban areas: Water use in the urban sector has increased as more and more people shift to urban areas. Per capita use of water in these centers rises, which will continue to grow with improved standards of living.
Shifting of water source in Urban areas: As the city grows and water management infrastructures develop, dependence shifts to surface water from groundwater. For example: In Ahmedabad, more than 80% of water supply used to be met from groundwater sources till the mid-1980s. Due to such overexploitation of groundwater the depth to groundwater level reached 67 meters in confined aquifers. The city now depends on the Narmada canal for the bulk of its water supply.
Dependence of urban areas on rural areas for water source and rural-urban disputes over water: Cities largely depend on rural areas for raw water supply, which has the potential to ignite the rural-urban dispute. For example: Nagpur and Chennai face the problem of rural-urban water disputes.

Reasons for disputes

Diversion of resource: Water is transported to urban areas at the expense of rural areas. Due to the high population in urban areas the water requirement for daily use is very high.
High demand of water for industrial purposes: In urban areas the water is heavily used in industries creating water stress.
High Agriculture dependence: In the rural areas water is used mainly for irrigation purposes and due to heavy dependence on agriculture the water is very essential in rural areas.
Water pollution: In cities, most of this water is in the form of grey water with little recovery or reuse, eventually contributing to water pollution.
Bad governance: Politicization of water for vote bank and skewed distribution of water particular regions For example: Andhra and Telangana.

Climate change exacerbate the rural-urban disputes

Affecting rainfall pattern: Climate change affects the amount of rainfall in the region which is the prime source of both surface water and groundwater.
Increase rate of evaporation over surface water: because of high temperature the surface waters of lakes, rivers, canals etc. face high evaporation water loss.
Melting of glaciers: glaciers are the sources for perennial rivers of India. Due to global warming, glaciers are melting and hence affecting the perennial nature of rivers.
Frequent droughts: It affects the groundwater recharge process and drying of surface waters which creates shortage of water. It exacerbate the rural-urban conflict.

.

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Foreign Policy Watch- India-Central Asia

What is India’s current policy of multi alignment? Advantages and challenges

op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: non alignment movement

Mains level: foreign policy

Context

Forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan is leading India to multi alignment.

Background

India’s journey of foreign policy from being the founder of non-alignment to the multi-alignment. In his book The India Way, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar offers a critique of India’s traditional policy of “non-alignment”, where he distinguishes between the “optimistic non- alignment ” of the past, which he feels has failed, that must give way to more realistic “multiple engagements of the future”.

Shanghai Co-operation Organization (SCO)

SCO is a Eurasian political, economic and security organization.
It is the world’s largest regional organization,
40% of the world population
More than 30% of global GDP.
Members: 8-China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan.

SCO SUMIIT, 2022

Host- Uzbekistan,
Uzbekistan will host a full house: 15 leaders including eight member states from four Central Asian States, China, India, Pakistan and Russia,
The observer states: Belarus, Mongolia and Iran (which will become member this year) —
Afghanistan is not invited
Leaders of guest countries -Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and Turkmenistan

What is non- alignment?

It’s a policy, a brainchild of Nehru. Non-alignment movement emerged after second world war.
Non-alignment means not having an alliance with any of superpower, either USSR or USA. Decolonized nations of Asia and Africa was largely a part of this group.

India’s policy of non-alignment

At bandung conference in 1955 non-alignment movement started with India as one of the founding member.
With policy of non-alignment India refused to gravitate towards USA or USSR.
India was the leader of non-alignment.

What is India’s current policy of multi- alignment? Advantages and challenges.

Since the start of his tenure from 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi have not attended any conference of non-alignment.
External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar in his book, The Indian way have criticized the non-alignment.
In the words of Former Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale India is no longer the non-align nation.

How it is a Multi alignment policy?

India to truly multi aligned or all aligned by being a part of every major grouping.
India is a part of BRICS and Prime Minister Modi is attending the SCO SUMMIT in Samarkand.
On parallel to rival groups India is also the part of Quad and Indo pacific economic framework.
India is buying the discounted Russian oil and reusing to buckle under pressure from west and USA.
S-400 purchase is happening and India have dodged the bullet of sanctions from USA.
India is choosing the bilateral Free trade agreement like with Australia and UAE and withdrew from groupings like RCEP and Most recently IPEF. This policy are is said to be in the economic interest of India.

Advantages of Multi alignment

India no longer wants to repeat the mistake of missing out of P5 Security council (“Permanent membership in the Security Council was granted to five states based on their importance in the aftermath of World War II).
If any group work against your interest it is better to be part of group rather than remain outside and do nothing
With retreating USA and its collapsing hegemony world is moving towards multiple polar world order.

Disadvantages

Major disadvantage of non-alignment is you no longer have influence over adverse policy of friendly country.
For example. Russia sells S-400 to India but it also sold the same weapon to china.
USA and India are strategically getting closer day by day but USA recently approved the sale of $450 million F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan.

Conclusion

Multi alignment will serve India its best national interest.
So far India has managed the rival parties at world stage to secure its foreign policy objectives but with Russian aggression and Chinese assertion and divided world will pose a significant challenge to India’s multi alignment policy.

Mains question

Q. What do you understand by non-alignment and multi-alignment? Analyze the shift In India’s foreign policy from non-alignment to multi-alignment.

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Primary and Secondary Education – RTE, Education Policy, SEQI, RMSA, Committee Reports, etc.

Teachers with a passion for the profession are foundational to the positive educational change

op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: TET

Mains level: quality education

Context

Success of new education policy depends on how we recruit and assesss teachers.

What is the issue?

Recruitment of well-qualified teachers into the schooling system is the first prerequisite to ensure that students receive quality education.
However, teacher recruitment processes in the country are not adequately streamlined. There are diverse recruitment processes across regions, school stages, and school types central, state, and private schools.
This, in turn, leads to multiple criteria and processes for hiring teachers, thereby bringing a wide disparity in teacher quality across institutions and regions.
Many of the processes are also sub-optimal in measuring the competency of a candidate.

Teacher hiring mechanism in place

One of the most common and widely-taken tests to ensure eligibility for recruitment is the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), conducted at both the state (STET) and central levels (CTET).
TET is the equivalent of the licensure tests that are undertaken by teacher candidates in various countries.
However, in India, the test is required only for government school teacher recruitment at the elementary stage (Class 1-8).

Issues in hiring mechanism

TET has been critiqued time and again for various reasons. These include low pass percentages, poor test quality, lengthy test papers and a serious lack of alignment with teacher preparation programmes.
The test was in the news recently because of the teachers’ recruitment scam in West Bengal.

What we need?

A coherent strategy: to tie together the various tests and processes such as TET, teacher recruitment tests, classroom demonstrations and teacher interviews. This will enable a holistic assessment of teacher competence.
Understanding what is competence: Framing a common understanding of what qualifies as teacher competence. Simply speaking, teacher competence can be understood as the core knowledge, skills, and dispositions expected of a teacher to effectively contribute to the teaching-learning process.
Multiple methods of assessment: To evaluate several other skills and dispositions, one requires multiple methods of assessment including classroom demonstrations and teacher interviews. These assessments could help gauge skills like effective dissemination of a concept and selection of appropriate resources and learning materials.
Teacher’s aptitude: Most importantly, such processes should help evaluate a teacher’s empathy towards students. Respecting learner diversity and skills in building a participative/democratic classroom culture are crucial requisites of a teacher. The recruitment process should assess the teacher’s aptitude in this respect.
A comprehensive competency framework: That details the skills a teacher should have. This could be derived from a teacher education curriculum rooted in policy perspectives of the day. For instance, in the case of the NEP, the curriculum could be geared towards imparting training in classroom practices that make learning joyful.

Long-term benefits to adopting such a holistic model of teacher recruitment

Better parity: It will ensure better parity in the quality of teachers recruited across the country.
Equitable education: Will contribute to equitable education for students from diverse sections of society.
Credibility is ensured: The recruitment process will also become credible if it is rooted in a framework that outlines the core competencies of becoming a teacher.
Reduction in coaching centres: At the systemic level, this may also lead to a reduction in coaching centres as the assessment processes will be non-standardised and cannot be easily gleaned from coaching materials and guidebooks.

Conclusion

Teachers with a passion for the profession are foundational to the positive educational change envisaged by the NEP. Setting up clear benchmarks of quality and well-designed recruitment processes hold the key to ensuring better teaching-learning outcomes.

Mains question

Q. What do you think on teacher’s quality today? Explain how dynamic teacher recruitment process will enhance teacher’s quality.

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Earth Overshoot

Supreme Court’s basic structure doctrine in a new context

op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Executive & Judiciary,Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: Various judgements on basic structure

Mains level: Features of constitution

Context

The basic structure doctrine constitutes a high watermark in the assertion of the Supreme Court’s judicial power in the teeth of a determined majoritarian regime.

What is basic structure of Constitution?

The basic structure doctrine is one of the fundamental judicial principles connected with the Indian Constitution. The doctrine of the basic structure holds that there is a basic structure to the Indian Constitution, and the Parliament of India cannot amend the basic features.

What is the significance of the basic structure in the Constitution of India?

The doctrine of basic structure is nothing but a judicial innovation to ensure that the power of amendment is not misused by Parliament. The idea is that the basic features of the Constitution of India should not be altered to an extent that the identity of the Constitution is lost in the process.08-Dec-2021

Background

Courts are empowered under our Constitution to invalidate not only executive orders, but also legislative enactments that violate any part of the Fundamental Rights guaranteed in Part III of the Constitution (Bill of Rights).
But as to whether they are also empowered to adjudicate on the validity of constitutional amendments passed with the requisite special majority and following the procedure prescribed in Article 368 the Constitution is silent.

Historical developments on evolution of basic structure doctrine

Constitution provided a mechanism for parliament to amend the constitution in the form of article 368 but the nature and scope of this amending power was questioned in Supreme Court on multiple occasions. Supreme Court gave a series of judgement which ultimately culminated in probably the most landmark judgement Basic structure doctrine judgement.

Shankari Prasad Case
Sajjan Singh Case
Golakh Nath Case
Kesvananda Bharati Case
Minerva Mills case
I.R. Koelhi

Constitutional Provisions

1st amendment and 9th schedule
24th amendment
42nd amendment

His holiness, Kesavananda bharati, challenged before the supreme court, the validity of 29th CAA which inserted some laws in 9th schedule and affected property of his Hindu Mutt.

What else was at stake?

Supreme Court (R. C. Cooper case) had struck down bank nationalization act of 1969 which had nationalized 14 major banks for illusory compensation though it conceded parliament’s right to nationalise banks in national interest.
Supreme Court had struck down abolition of privy purses which was a betrayal of solemn promise to erstwhile kings by Sardar Patel.

Supreme Court could do all this as it had held in 1967 in Golaknath case that fundamental rights could not be abridged.

Before returning back to Kesavananda, Let’s take a look at the relevant provisions of the constitution and Supreme Court interpretation of the same.

Art 13(2) – Any LAW abridging fundamental rights mentioned in part 3 shall be null and void to the extent of contravention
Art 368 -Procedure to amend the constitution.
Art 19(f) – freedom to acquire hold on and dispose off property.
Art 31 – right to property

Both the rights were subject to reasonable restriction in public interest and restriction were subject to judicial review.

Soon after the coming into force of the constitution, states enacted land reform acts #Zamindars challenged them. #Patna high court declared Bihar act as unconstitutional for violating right to property #interim parliament passed 1st CAA.

ART 31B created 9th schedule. Laws inserted under it by constitutional amendment were immune to judicial review.

Other provisions not imp for this article but imp for exams –

Reasonable restrictions against freedom of expression under art 19.
To nullify judgment in State of Madras v. Champakam Dorairajan and giving effect to art 46 (promoting educational and economic interests of weaker sections) amplified article 15 (3)

Zamindars didn’t like it, not one bit. And here comes the 1st salvo

Shankari Prasad v Union of India

Challenged 1st CAA. What was the court’s judgment?

Difference b/w constituent power and ordinary legislative power i.e. amendment not law for the purpose of article 13
art 13 and 368 in conflict # apply DOCTRINE OF HARMONIOUS CONSTRUCTION # ART 13 not applicable to art 368

Govt 1-0 Zamindars

Govt passed 17th amendment and inserted more laws under 9th schedule ‘

Zamindars fired another salvo-

Sajjan Singh vs state of rajasthan

Supreme Court sang Shankari prasad song again

Govt 2-0 jamindars

But Justice Mudholkar was of the view that the every Constitution has certain features which are basic in nature and those features cannot be changed.

2 minority judgements…. utter confusion. And you can see seeds of basic structure were sown here.

Zamindars fired 3rd salvo

Golaknath v. State of Punjab

11 judge bench overturned earlier 2 verdicts by a slender majority of 6-5

Really? What was the logic given here?

Nothing to suggest constituent power to be separate from legislative power and even if distinct, amending power not same as constituent power which is given only to constituent assembly i.e. amendment is law and subject to article 13
Fundamental rights so sacrosanct and transcendental that they cannot be abridged even if whole parliament unanimously decided to abridge them.

But it validated all previous land reform acts as nullifying them would create utter confusion

Govt angry – Zamindars angry

New landlords happy.

Loss – loss to defendants as well as petitioner.

Madam Indira was in power and she did not like this. Not one bit.

Along came 24th amendment to neutralize GOLAKNATH JUDGEMENT

Art 13 inapplicable to art 368
Art 368 provided powers as well as procedure to amend the constitution
Parliament by way of addition, variation or repeal can amend any provision of constitution
President shall give assent to CA bills ( VERY VERY IMP FOR PRELIMS )

But madam Indira wouldn’t just stop here as Cooper judgment (Bank nationalization ) also had to be neutralized.

Smarting from this setback, Madam Indira (the parliament, herself) passed 24th CAA to neutralise GOLAKNATH judgement. But there was also a small matter of reversing Copper judgment in bank nationalisation case so parliament passed 25th CAA.

Art 19f delinked from 31, in effect parliament deciding compensation amount payable instead of courts.
Art 31c -inserted under which – art 39b and c, most socialist of DPSPs (equitable distribution and prevention of concentration of wealth respectively) precede over 7 freedoms (art 19 ), equality (14), property (31)
Parliament’s power to determine if policy is to give effect to 39b and c not subject to judicial review.

29th CAA had put Kerala land reform act under 9th schedule and his holiness challenged the provisions and all hell broke loose.

Now the 4th salvo

Kesvanada Bharati Case

A 13 judge bench is constituted and what does it do!

Overturned Golaknath i.e. amendment not law, fundamental rights amendable, no implied limit under art 368 i.e. CAA 24 constitutional
Art 25 invalid to the extent it takes away judicial review i.e. 39 b and c above 14, 19 and 31 but subject to judicial review

Most imp decision of all by slimmest of all 7-6 majority stated Parliament can amend any provision of the Constitution but the basic structure should not be destroyed, damaged or abrogated.

What’s the logic?

Expression amendment did not encompass defacing the constitution such that it lost its identity.
In the garb of amendment parliament can not rewrite the constitution.

Court gave relief to govt but reserved for itself power to review all amendment not just those that violate fundamental rights.

Aftermath

Indira Gandhi didn’t like the judgement one bit. She (via the president) superseded 3 judges to appoint justice A.N. Ray as CJI.

Knives had been drawn and the battle was gonna be very bloody –

Navnirman movement of JP (Jayprakash) had gathered steam, Indira was on the back foot and along came the judgement of Allahabad High Court convicting Indira of corrupt electoral practices. Election was declared null and void and 6 years ban to contest election was imposed on her.
Supreme Court stayed it and allowed her to remain PM but not to draw salary or speak or vote in parliament.
Darkest chapter in democracy’ 21 month emergency was declared on 25th June 1975 without even consulting cabinet (44th amendment made it mandatory for the president to have written advice of cabinet to declare emergency)

Indira Gandhi wasn’t to sit quiet.

CAA 39th – election of president, VP, PM and speaker beyond judicial review

Clownish Rajnarayan challenged the CAA 39.

Indira Gandhi v/s Raj Narain Case

For the 1st time Supreme Court applied basic structure doctrine and considered free and fair election and rule of law to be part of basic structure. #amending act invalidated.

Note here that 4 of the 5 judges on the bench had given dissenting judgment in Bharati case but still applied the same doctrine for Supreme Court judgment becomes law until overruled by bigger bench (art 141).

Then how did Indira continue to be prime minister and contest election again and not get banned for 6 years?

Supreme court accepted retrospective amendment to electoral law i.e. electoral malpractice of Indira was no longer a corrupt practice.

Find out for fun the charges against Mrs. Gandhi for which she was convicted and what a popular British magazine had to say about the judgement.

Along came the mini constitution i.e 42nd amendment act TO ELIMINATE IMPEDIMENTS TO THE GROWTH OF THE CONSTITUTION –

PART 4a fundamental duties
Socialist,secular and integrity word to preamble
New DPSPs were added

And for the purpose of this article amendment to article 368 nullifying basic structure doctrine by adding amendments can’t be challenged in courts and parliament possessing unlimited power of amendment

All DPSPs to take precedence over all fundamental rights not just 39b and 39c.

And Minerva Textile mills of Karnataka fired the 5th and the last salvo

Minerva Mills v Union of India

SC unanimously struck down amendment to article 368 holding limited amending power and judicial review to be part of basic structure.

Court held that constitution is founded on the bedrock of balance b/w FRs and DPSPs. Goals set out by DPSPs have to be achieved without abrogation of means provided by FRs.

What’s the logic?

If a donee was vested with limited power, it could not be exercised to control that very power power and convert into unlimited one.

If a genie grants u 3 wishes, it is understood u can not, as one of the wish, ask for unlimited number of wishes!

Janta govt comes to power and 44th CAA deletes art 31 (b) right to property and 19 (f) freedom to acquire, hold and dispose of property as they were not considered part of basic structure

Right to property now a constitutional right under art 300A.

9th schedule and judicial review

I.R.Coelho vs state of TN

Supreme Court held that acts placed under 9th schedule after basic structure subject would be subject to judicial review to the extent of those acts violating basic structure of constitution.

Impact of basic structure doctrine.

It certainly saved Indian democracy from degenerating into authoritarian regime during those testing times but it has also given immense untold unbridled power to Supreme Court and made it the most powerful court in the world.

As we would later see in the NJAC Verdict (let’s call it 4th judges case), Supreme Court applied this doctrine, many would say for wrong reasons to strike down the act and kept for itself the power to appoint brother judges. In the original constitution only fetters on the power of parliament was art 13.

Relevance – It was delivered at the time of single party rule both at the centre and most of the states. In the era of coalition politics no govt is going to wield so much power to destroy the constitution and then there is ever present danger of tyranny of unelected.

But only legitimate way to overturn the verdict would be a 15 judge bench so don’t hold your breath for that.

Now is the time for some thought questions

#1. Consider these 2 statements –

Any LAW that is ordinary law violating provisions of constitution would be declared null and void to the extent of contravention.
Any LAW violating art 13 would be declared null and void

Both statements are true…..If amendments were not law, what was the purpose of art 13 (2) other laws would anyway be declared unconstitutional!

#2. Is basic structure doctrine relevant in the present political scenario where no single party is unlikely to enjoy majority in both the houses?

#3. What should be the limits to amending power of parliament? Do u think for very substantial amendments instead of courts, people by way of referendum should determine whether amendment should go through or not?

#4. Whatever happens to original intent theory that constitutional courts have to interpret constitution in accordance with the implied intentions of founding fathers and there is enough evidence to suggest founding fathers thoughtfully kept FRs sacrosanct to prevent their abrogation or as we would see in a later article how supreme court by creative interpretation virtually changed procedure established by law in art 21 to due process of law while founding fathers deliberately kept expression as procedure established by law.

Conclusion

By restraining the amending powers of legislative organ of State, it provided basic Rights to Citizens which no organ of State can overrule. Being dynamic in nature, it is more progressive and open to changes in time unlike the rigid nature of earlier judgements.

Mains question

Q. What do you understand by basic structure of constitution? Trace evolution of basic structure in India.

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Digital India Initiatives

5G revolution and challenges

op-ed snap | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: particulars of 5G

Mains level: scientific achievements and issues with it

Context

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently announced that 5G revolution deployment in India will commence sooner than expected.

What is 5G technology?

5G or fifth generation revolution is the latest upgrade in the long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband networks.
5G enables a new kind of network that is designed to connect virtually everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices.
It’s a unified platform which is much more capable than previous mobile services with more capacity, lower latency, faster data delivery rate and better utilisation of spectrum.

How it evolved from 1G to 5G?

1G: Launched in the 1980s. Analog radio signals and supported only voice calls.
2G: Launched in the 1990s. Uses digital radio signals and supported both voice and data transmission with a Bandwidth (BW) of 64 Kbps.
3G: Launched in the 2000s. With a speed of 1 Mbps to 2 Mbps it has the ability to transmit telephone signal including digitized voice, video calls and conferencing.
4G: With a peak speed of 100 Mbps-1 Gbps it also enables 3D virtual reality.
5G: with a speed of more than 1Gbps, it is capable of connecting entire world without limits.

Salient features

Capability: 5G will provide much faster mobile broadband service as compared to the previous versions and will provide support to previous services like mission critical communication and the massive Internet Of Things (IoT).
Upgraded LTE: 5G is the latest upgrade in the long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband networks.
Speed: With peak delivering rate of up to 20 Gbps and an average of 100Mbps, it will be much faster as compared to its predecessors. The speed increment is partly achieved partly by using higher-frequency radio waves than previous networks.
Capacity: There will be up to 100 x increase in traffic capacity and network efficiency.
Spectrum usage: Will provide better usage for every bit of spectrum, from low bands below 1 GHz to high bands.
Latency: It’s expected to have lower latency with better instantaneous, real-time access of the data. The 5G, like 4G LTE, also uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) but the new 5G NR (New Radio) air interface will enhance OFDM and provide better flexibility in data delivery.

Applications of 5G technology

High-Speed mobile network: 5G will revolutionize the mobile experience with supercharged wireless network. Compared to conventional mobile transmission technologies, voice and high-speed data can be simultaneously transferred efficiently in 5G.
Entertainment and multimedia: 5G can provide 120 frames per second, high resolution and higher dynamic range video streaming without interruption. Audiovisual experience will be rewritten after the implementation of the latest technologies powered by 5G wireless. Augmented Reality and virtual Reality services will be better experienced over 5G.
Internet of Things: IoT applications collects huge amount of data from millions of devices and sensors and thus requires an efficient network for data collection, processing, transmission, control and real-time analytics which 5G network is a better candidate.

Interesting facts about 5G

According to researchers, about 1.5 billion people will have access to 5G by 2024.

It may not seem like it at present, however, 5G will cover about 40% of the world.

The security risks introduced BY 5G

Increased attack surface: With millions and even billions more connected devices, 5G makes it possible for larger and more dangerous attacks. Current and future vulnerabilities of the existing internet infrastructure are only exacerbated. The risk of more sophisticated botnets, privacy violations, and faster data extraction can escalate with 5G.
More IoT, more problems: IoT devices are inherently insecure; security is often not built-in by design. Each insecure IoT device on an organization’s networks represents another potential hole that an attacker can expose.
Decreased network visibility: With 5G, our networks will only expand and become more usable by mobile users and devices. This means much more network traffic to manage. But without a robust wide area network (WAN) security solution like Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) in place, companies may not be able to gain the network traffic visibility required to identify abnormalities or attacks.
Increased supply chain and software vulnerabilities: Currently and for the foreseeable future, 5G supply chains are limited. Vulnerabilities exist — particularly as devices are rushed to market — increasing the potential for faulty and insecure components. Compared to traditional mobile networks, 5G is also more reliant on software, which elevates the risk of exploitation of the network infrastructure.

Challenges in rolling out 5G

Enabling critical infrastructures: 5G will require a fundamental change to the core architecture of the communication system. The major flaw of data transfer using 5G is that it can’t carry data over longer distances. Hence, even 5G technology needs to be augmented to enable infrastructure.
Financial liability on consumers: For transition from 4G to 5G technology, one has to upgrade to the latest cellular technology, thereby creating financial liability on consumers.
Capital Inadequacy: Lack of flow of cash and adequate capital with the suitable telecom companies (like Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea) is delaying the 5G spectrum allocation.

Way forward

India should not miss the opportunity and should proactively work to deploy 5G technology. We should focus on strengthening our cyber infrastructure.
5G start-ups that enable this design and manufacturing capabilities should be promoted. This will spur leaps in the coverage, capacity and density of wireless networks.

Conclusion

The recent recommendation of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to the government to develop a national road map for India to implement 5G in the best possible manner should include cyber security concerns.

Mains question

Q. 5G is already transforming and enhancing connectivity. In this context Discuss India’s preparedness and cybersecurity challenges that needs to be taken care of for earlier roll out of 5G.

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International Space Agencies – Missions and Discoveries

James Webb telescope : The most powerful space telescope

op-ed snap | Science Tech | Mains Paper 3: Awareness in various sc and tech fields

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: JSWT

Mains level: JSWT, Big bang

Context

Much of the universe remains unknown. The James Webb telescope will hopefully provide a powerful window to help resolve some of the cosmos’s many mysteries.

What is James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)?

It is a space telescope being jointly developed by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
It has taken 30 years and $10bn to develop, and is being described as one of the grand scientific endeavors of the 21st Century.

Where it is placed?

The James Webb Space Telescope will not be in orbit around the Earth, like the Hubble Space Telescope is – it will actually orbit the Sun, 1.5 million kilometres (1 million miles) away from the Earth at what is called the second Lagrange point or L2.

Mission

It will be “a giant leap forward in quest to understand the Universe and our origins”, as it will examine every phase of cosmic history: from the Big Bang to the formation of galaxies, stars, and planets to the evolution of our own Solar System.

Special features of JWST

Time machine in space: Powerful space telescopes, like JWST or the Hubble Telescope, are often called time machines because of their ability to view very faraway objects. The light coming from those objects, stars or galaxies, which is captured by these telescopes, began its journey millions of years earlier. Essentially, what these telescopes see are images of these stars or galaxies as they were millions of years ago. The more distant the planet or star, the farther back in time are the telescopes able to see.
Farthest from Earth: James Webb telescope will also be positioned much deeper into space, about a million miles from Earth, at a spot known as L2. It is one of the five points, known as Lagrange’s points, in any revolving two-body system like Earth and Sun, where the gravitational forces of the two large bodies cancel each other out.
Engineering marvel: JWST has one large mirror, with a diameter of 21 feet (the height of a typical two-storey building), that will capture the infra-red light coming in from the deep universe while facing away from the Sun.

What is the goal of this telescope?

The telescope will be able to see just about anything in the sky.
However, it has one overriding objective – to see the light coming from the very first stars to shine in the Universe.
These pioneer stars are thought to have switched on about 100-200 million years after the Big Bang, or a little over 13.5 billion years ago.
James Webb telescope will be picking out groupings of these stars.

Its significance

It is widely expected to unveil many secrets of the universe, particularly those related to the Formation of stars and galaxies in the early period the first few hundred million years after the Big Bang.
Some have called James Webb telescope the “telescope that ate astronomy”.
It is said to look back in time to the Dark Ages of the universe.

Conclusion

The universe is vast and most of it is unknown. We hope that the James Webb telescope, over its lifetime would provide us with a powerful window to help resolve some of the many mysteries of the cosmos and make it a little bit more comprehensible.

Mains question

Q. What is James Webb telescope experiment? Do you think it shades light on dark matter? Explain.

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Nuclear Diplomacy and Disarmament

Strong nuclear diplomacy brings opportunities for India

op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Important International Institutions,International Institutions

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: credible minimum deterrence’

Mains level: Nuclear diplomacy and foreign policy

Context

The return of nuclear weapons on the global platform. After 1998, India premised its strategy on building ‘credible minimum deterrence’. The time has come to reflect on what is ‘credible’ and redefine what ‘minimum’ might be to strengthen nuclear diplomacy.

Definition of nuclear diplomacy

Nuclear diplomacy deals with prevention of nuclear war and peacetime proliferation. It also deals with the use of threat of nuclear warfare to achieve diplomatic goals.

Theme of article

India, one of the world’s nuclear weapon powers, ought to be paying a lot more attention to the international nuclear discourse that is acquiring new dimensions and taking a fresh look at its own civilian and military nuclear programmes.
Nuclear cooperation has brought a new dimension to India’s nuclear diplomacy in the 21^st India’s status as a responsible nuclear power is predicated upon the civil relationships in the nuclear domain that it has established with major powers.

What is credible minimum deterrence?

Credible minimum deterrence is the principle on which India’s nuclear diplomacy is based. It underlines no first use (NFU) with an assured second strike capability and falls under minimal deterrence, as opposed to mutually assured destruction.

Why do countries proliferate nuclear weapons?

Proliferation models centred on security concerns or dilemmas dominate nuclear literature.
Nuclear weapons provide an overwhelmingly destructive force that increases a state’s relative power in comparison to its neighbours.
It provides a powerful tool in an anarchic system where superpowers dominate other nation-states sovereignty.
Hence weaponizing helps establish a deterrence to prevent war.

Why relook is needed?

Possessing nuclear weapons can confer India increased leverage to conduct foreign policy in both regional and international contexts.
There are two ways in which the possession of nuclear weapons can affect a state’s conduct of foreign policy and diplomacy.
The first involves military and strategic signalling. This includes military-oriented functions of deterrence, coercion, and brinkmanship.
The second, deals with non-military affairs.

Way forward

It should be noted that India’s quest to be a “responsible nuclear state” has given it considerable diplomatic capital in the West.
It would be unfortunate for India to squander such gain owing to the lack of carefully considered foreign policy that leverages its nuclear status for its national interest.

Conclusion

India’s civil nuclear engagements with the global community have strengthened its position in the global civil nuclear order, there is a need for the country to push for greater engagements with more key suppliers and stakeholders to fulfill its military nuclear potential and assert its status as a responsible nuclear state.

Mains question

Q. India has been a nuclear weapons state for 22 years. Has this affected India’s foreign policy in a direct manner? Express your views in context of the return of nuclear weapons on the global platform.

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Health Sector – UHC, National Health Policy, Family Planning, Health Insurance, etc.

Rising number of Rabies case

op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: particulars of virus

Mains level: Human health

Context

The death of a 12-year-old girl in Pathanamthitta has sharpened the focus on the rising number of rabies cases and the growing population of stray dogs in Kerala

What is rabies?

The rabies virus attacks the central nervous system of the host, and in humans, it can cause a range of debilitating symptoms including states of anxiety and confusion, partial paralysis, agitation, hallucinations, and, in its final phases, a symptom called “hydrophobia,” or a fear of water.

What are rabies caused by?

Rabies is a preventable viral disease most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal. The rabies virus infects the central nervous system of mammals, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death.

Can rabies person survive?

Once clinical signs of rabies appear, the disease is nearly always fatal, and treatment is typically supportive. Less than 20 cases of human survival from clinical rabies have been documented.

How long can a human live with rabies?

Death usually occurs 2 to 10 days after first symptoms. Survival is almost unknown once symptoms have presented, even with intensive care.

Facts on rabies

What animal has the most rabies?
Bats
Wild animals accounted for 92.7% of reported cases of rabies in 2018. Bats were the most frequently reported rabid wildlife species (33% of all animal cases during 2018), followed by raccoons (30.3%), skunks (20.3%), and foxes (7.2%).

What is the issue?

There is a blame game over the rising rabies cases: With the rabies deaths causing panic and reports of residents killing stray dogs through poisoning and strangulation, there is a blame game over the rising canine population and rabies cases. Some legal experts blame it on conflicts in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 and the Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001; others point to the flawed implementation of birth control measures.
Legal battle over the issue in the Supreme Court: Canine culling campaigners and advocates of animal rights are also engaged in a protracted legal battle over the issue in the Supreme Court. V.K. Biju, a lawyer of the Supreme Court, who brought the issue of the “stray dog menace” before the apex court, contends that the root cause is the enactment of the Rules, which according to him, were passed in contravention of the parent Act, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
Existence of stray dogs has adversely affected the fundamental rights of citizens: Biju says that while the Act stands for the “destruction” of stray dogs, the rules are against the “destruction” of stray dogs, including the rabies affected ones, besides providing specific protection of stray dogs. In his submission before the Supreme Court, he argues that the existence of stray dogs has adversely affected the fundamental rights of citizens, i.e. the right to life and free movement.
The quashing of the Rules to make India free of stray dogs: In his writ petition filed before the apex court, Biju has sought orders for the strict implementation of the Act and the quashing of the Rules to make India free of stray dogs.
Animal rights campaigners are apprehensive: In the light of this, animal rights campaigners are apprehensive over the campaign to cull dogs to check rabies.

How can we prevent rabies in animals?

First, visit your veterinarian with your pet on a regular basis and keep rabies vaccinations up-to-date for all cats, ferrets, and dogs.
Second, maintain control of your pets by keeping cats and ferrets indoors and keeping dogs under direct supervision.
Third, spay or neuter your pets to help reduce the number of unwanted pets that may not be properly cared for or vaccinated regularly.
Finally, call animal control to remove all stray animals from your neighbourhood since these animals may be unvaccinated or ill.

How can we prevent rabies in humans?

Leave all wildlife alone.
Know the risk: contact with infected bats is the leading cause of rabies deaths in people followed by exposure to rabid dogs while traveling internationally.
Wash animal bites or scratches immediately with soap and water.
If you are bitten, scratched, or unsure, talk to a healthcare provider about whether you need postexposure prophylaxis. Rabies in people is 100% preventable through prompt appropriate medical care.
Vaccinate your pets to protect them and your family.

Initiatives by Government to curb Neglected Tropical Diseases

National Rabies Control Programme: This programme is being restructured as Integrated National Rabies Control Programme under ‘One Health Approach’, with a aim to provide vaccination to stray dogs and free vaccines through Government hospitals.

Way forward

Think globally, act locally. Study and adopt global ‘best-practices’ after customising them to local needs.
Apply integrated approach. Follow a holistic strategy.
Ensure efficient and effective collaboration across various government departments.
Partner with Civil Society Organisations (especially with WASH – Water, Sanitation and Hygiene – sector) for ground-level implementation and monitoring.

Mains question

Q. What is rabies? What ethical challenges are involved in culling of stray dogs? Explain the control measures for the same.

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Industrial Sector Updates – Industrial Policy, Ease of Doing Business, etc.

Adani’s global footprint and India’s infrastructure diplomacy

op-ed snap | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: NA

Mains level: Infrastructure diplomacy

Context

From mines to ports and logistics, the Adani conglomerate has been expanding across sectors, regions. This has gone hand in hand with India’s diplomatic and strategic outreach towards infrastructure diplomacy.

What is infrastructure?

Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function.

What are the features of infrastructure?

Power and the source of its production such as coal and oil;
Roads and road transport;
Railways;
Communication, especially telecommunication;
Ports and airports; and.
For agriculture, irrigation constitutes the important infrastructure.

What is infrastructure diplomacy?

Infrastructure diplomacy is to promote infrastructure cooperation and economic ties overseas through political means and to enhance political trust between countries via collaboration in infrastructure development.

Why in news?

“Several foreign governments are now approaching us to work in their geographies and help build their infrastructure. Therefore, in 2022, we also laid the foundation to seek a broader expansion beyond India’s boundaries,” chairman and founder of the Adani group Gautam Adani,now the world’s third-richest person.

Background

Foreign presence much earlier: In fact, the Adani group had been scouting abroad much earlier. Since 2010, the Adani group has been in Australia, developing the Carmichael coal mine in Queensland.
A greenfield multi-purpose port: In 2017, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones (Ltd) signed an MoU for a greenfield multi-purpose port for handling containers at Carey Island in Selangor state, about 50 km southwest of Kuala Lumpur.

What is situation now?

Company pursue international infrastructure projects aggressively: The last two years, however, have seen the company pursue international infrastructure projects aggressively. In May 2022, APSEZ made a winning bid of $1.18 billion for Israeli state-owned Haifa Port, jointly with Israeli chemicals and logistics firm Gadot.
Strategic joint investments: In August this year, APSEZ and Abu Dhabi’s AD Ports Group signed MoU for “strategic joint investments” in Tanzania. The new ASEZ-AD MoU will look at a bouquet of infrastructure projects besides Bagamoyo in the East African Indian Ocean nation — rail, maritime services, digital services and industrial zones.
India’s strategic objectives than has been possible so far: Is it just a coincidence that Adani’s global expansion closely shadows the Chinese footprint along its Belt and Road Initiative? Or is it that as Delhicompetes with China for influence in the neighbourhood and beyond, the Adani group’s size, resources and capacity are seen as a key element in achieving India’s strategic objectives than has been possible so far.
India’s infrastructure diplomacy: Is now becoming identified the world over with one company.
Public and private investment to bridge gaps: For the Adani group, described as India’s biggest ports and logistics company, there couldn’t be a better time. As the Quad grouping of Australia, India, Japan, and the US, competes with China in the Indo-Pacific, it has committed “to catalyse infrastructure delivery” by putting more than $50 billion on the table for “assistance and investment” in the Indo-Pacific over the next five years and “drive public and private investment to bridge gaps”.

Implications of infrastructure diplomacy

Win-Win deal: Adani’s new “no-hands” model of doing business with neighbours a power plant in Jharkhand, exporting all its output to Bangladesh has been seen as a “win-win” deal.
Economic interests lie at the heart of geopolitics: The link between diplomacy and commercial interests has generated its share of debate, especially in the US, where its diplomats, intelligence agencies and military interventions abroad have actively pushed the interests of big business first the hunt for cheaper raw materials, then for markets abroad, then to shift industry where manpower was cheaper. As seen in the new age trading blocs the US-led IPEF, and the Chinese dominated RCEP economic interests lie at the heart of geopolitics.

Conclusion

At a time when global rivalries are growing sharper in the shadow of the war in Europe, and as India looks out for its own interests, pushing powerful corporates to the centre-stage of its diplomacy, whether it is to build ports, buy or sell weapons or make chips, is inevitable.

Mains question

Q. Economic interests lie at the heart of geopolitics. Analyse this statement in context of India’s active push for infrastructure diplomacy by including private conglomerates like Adani in it.

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Electoral Reforms In India

Intra party elections

op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters,Statutory, Regulatory & Various Quasi-Judicial Bodies

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: election commission of india

Mains level: electoral reforms

Context

Congress party has issued a notification for the party’s presidential election hinting towards intra party election.
As per the official notification, party leaders can file nominations from 24 September to 30 September. The voting will be held on 17 October and the results will be declared on 19 October.

What are the elections?

An election is a way people can choose their representatives of their preferences in a representative democracy. Elections enable people to judge the performance of the government.

Why they are important?

Elections give people a chance to evaluate their leaders, chance to change the government.
Elections help the people in the selection of their representatives and it provides law making power directly to the people.
Elections make a fundamental contribution to democratic governance.

What is mean by Intra party elections?

It is a mechanism to choose the candidates for various posts of the political through a democratic process, it’s a mandate given by the members of the party itself.
The intra-party election is a fundamental indicator to explore the authenticity of democratization and decentralization of political parties.

Why elections are necessary within the political parties?

Internal debates: During intra party elections there would be contests between leaders. There will be debate, discussions some criticism, and differences of opinion. There should be a dialogue between the leaders, members and volunteers
Democratic culture: Political parties don’t have to be homogeneous in terms of both ideas and leadership. Political parties are aggregations of interests yet Party workers should not feel they are being ignored, that their efforts are not appreciated or not going in vain under the shadow of a leader came from the family lines.
Political career: Having these internal elections, meetings and contests of ideas is important. Internal election is a key for upward mobility. It gives better understanding of the party’s idea, culture and the work process.
High command culture: High command culture is what we are witnessing today in India and South Asia is problematic for democracy, where all political parties are centralized. The few members at the helm are controlling even the smallest decisions about what party should do. Members are not able to express freely their personal views.
Feudalism: They are family-controlled parties, and dynastic politics has become a norm. Won’t be able to name more than three or four political parties which have survived 30 years in Indian politics and are today not controlled by apolitical family.
Favoritism: where you can only rise up the ranks in the system depending on the relationship you share with the first family of that party. Irrespective of difference of opinions with the top leaders of the party, the upward mobility majorly depends on the relationship.

What is a Legal framework for election?

There is no law for intra-party elections as of now.

Seshan effect: When T.N. Seshan was at the helm of the Election Commission of India (ECI); by an executive order political parties were ordered to conduct intra party elections. And because Seshan was a much respected and feared person, political parties complied with it. Since then, elections are held periodically in every recognized party.
What Constitution says: Article 324 says free and fair elections to parliament, state assemblies, president and vice-president. It doesn’t say anything about political party or election within.
What Courts argue: The courts have made an observation that nothing in Article 324 of the Constitution, or Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 tells us that the ECI can actually regulate internal structures, organizations or elections of the party. Which is why parties, on the left or right, have not been conducting internal elections as we want them to conduct them

Worldwide practice

USA: In the U.S. election, the selection of the candidate to be the presidential nominee is done via debate, in which the contenders condemn and criticize each other.
UK: In the U.K. Democracy should be at every level, and political parties are an essential pillar of democracy. Intra party election happens to choose the leader of party.

What is state funding of election?

It is an idea where state or Government of India provides funding to political parties according to their electoral performance.
As of today, state does provide land at concessional rate, free air time on national television but today political parties do not come under RTI. Hence some suggest state funding of elections to regulate the behavior of political parties.

What is the Role of Election Commission in organizational election of political parties?

The ECI does insist on organizational elections, but only gently. They do go through the process.
Election can happen only if there are two or more candidates in the fray. Getting elected unopposed is also a valid election. It is not just within the political parties, we have

Seen it in panchayat elections and sometimes even in Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections that candidates have got elected unopposed.

How to fix the accountability of the political parties?

ECI re-interpreting the existing laws, as happened in the 1990s. ECI has to imagine its role as a regulator of these political parties and in some ways. They have to try out milder options.
Political parties are required to hold organizational elections regularly. The parties are required to inform the ECI about changes in their office-bearers.
They are required to submit a document of expenditure incurred during elections and in the non-election periods. But there is no cost attached to non-compliance.
Expert suggests state funding of election would ensure the accountability of parties as it will bring parties under ambit of RTI and voters can seek the expenditure report from parties. Election commission can also penalize party for non-compliance.

Conclusion

Election for a gram panchayat or presidential it is always a booster for democracy. Intraparty elections are beneficial for party, contesting individual and country at large, it culminates into emergence of quality leadership which in turn a boon for good governance.

Mains Question

Q. Intra party elections are essential feature of healthy democracy. Discuss the role of election commission, the courts and the political parties for the healthy functioning of intra party democracy.

Do follow

Internal democracy in political parties

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Issues related to CBI

op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Civil Service,Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: CBI and ED

Mains level: governance and transparency

Context

Despite several observations made by the Supreme Court of India (SC) against the inefficient functioning of the CBI nothing has happened to improve the situation.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is in the news now and often.

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)

The Bureau of Investigation traces its origins to the Delhi Special Police Establishment, a Central Government Police force, which was set up in 1941 by the Government of India.
It then aimed to investigate bribery and corruption in transactions with the War and Supply Department of India.
It then had its headquarters in Lahore.
After the end of the war, there was a continued need for a central governmental agency to investigate bribery and corruption by central-government employees.
The DSPE acquired its popular current name, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through a Home Ministry resolution dated in 1963.

Mandate of the CBI

The CBI is the main investigating agency of the GoI.
It is not a statutory body; it derives its powers from the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946.
Its important role is to prevent corruption and maintain integrity in administration.
It works under the supervision of the CVC (Central Vigilance Commission) in matters pertaining to the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
The CBI is also India’s official representative with the INTERPOL.

Cases to investigate

Cases connected to infringement of economic and fiscal laws
Crimes of a serious nature that have national and international ramifications
Coordination with the activities of the various state police forces and anti-corruption agencies.
It can also take up any case of public importance and investigate it
Maintaining crime statistics and disseminating criminal information.

Notable cases cracked by CBI

Bhanwri Devi missing case: Jat leader and former Rajasthan minister Mahipal Maderna, Congress MLA Malkhan Singh and Bhanwari’s husband Amarchand were all part of the conspiracy to abduct and eliminate Bhanwari. Bhanwari had threatened to expose Malkhan’s relationship with her at the Bishnoi mahapanchayat. Maderna, Malkhan, the three kidnappers and Sahiram along with Amarchand were arrested by the CBI.
Noida double murder case: In May 2008, the nation was shocked with the sensational double murders in Noida. The victims were Arushi Talwar and Hemraj Banjade. Initially, there was no clarity about the motive or the perpetrator of this ghastly crime. After a lengthy investigation which spanned close to 6 years, the CBI based on circumstantial evidence established that the parents of Aarushi Talwar, Rajesh Talwar and Nupur Talwar were the perpetrators of this crime.
The Satyam Case: B Ramalinga Raju, the disgraced chairman of Satyam Computers Services Ltd, along with 13 individuals and entities including Chintalapati Srinivasa Raju of iLabs, made Rs 2,000 crore in illegal wealth in the Satyam scam. The CBI constituted a Multi-Disciplinary Investigation Team (MDIT) to investigate the case. The team worked hard, burnt midnight oil and achieved success in a record time of 45 days when it filed its first chargesheet against the accused for offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, forgery and falsification of accounts.

Issues with CBI

Caged parrot: The Supreme Court has criticized the CBI by calling it a “caged parrot speaking in its master’s voice”.
Political interference: It has often been used by the government of the day to cover up wrongdoing, keep coalition allies in line and political opponents at bay.
Investigation delay: It has been accused of enormous delays in concluding investigations due to political inertia.
Loss of Credibility: CBI has been criticised for its mismanagement of several cases involving prominent politicians and mishandling of several sensitive cases like Bofors scandal, Bhopal gas tragedy.
Lack of Accountability: CBI is exempted from the provisions of the Right to Information Act, thus, lacking public accountability.
Acute shortage of personnel: A major cause of the shortfall is the government’s sheer mismanagement of CBI’s workforce.
Limited Powers: The powers and jurisdiction of members of the CBI for investigation are subject to the consent of the State Govt., thus limiting the extent of investigation by CBI.
Restricted Access: Prior approval of Central Government to conduct inquiry or investigation on the employees of the Central Government is a big obstacle in combating corruption at higher levels of bureaucracy.

Why was it called caged carrot by the Supreme Court?

Politicisation of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has been a work in progress for years.
Corruption and Politically biased nature, This was highlighted in Supreme Court criticism for being a caged parrot speaking in its master’s voice.
CBI has been accused of becoming ‘handmaiden’ to the party in power; as a result high profile cases are not treated seriously.
Since CBI is run by central police officials on deputation hence chances of getting influenced by government was visible in the hope of better future postings.

Suggestions for the improvement of the functioning of the CBI under the supervision of the CVC

One, the CVC Act should be amended, providing for a five/seven member Central Vigilance Commission, which could broadly assume the role visualised for the Lokpal. The selection process of the CVC members should be more broad based to prevent favouritism or from controversial persons being appointed.
Two, the CVC should constitute an advisory committee of at least 11 members drawn from criminologists and forensic science experts. This will augment the professional input in its functioning. Further, to reduce the burden on the CVC, it should be given the power to go to any expert or professional to assist it in screening complaints.
Three, the jurisdiction of CVC, which presently covers all employees of the central government and the CPSUs, should remain unchanged. There is already an administrative arrangement to delegate the vigilance administration over class II and lower formations to the ministries/departments concerned. However, if the lower formations are involved with the class I officers in a composite case, the CVC exercises a natural jurisdiction over all of them. To make this arrangement more effective, it would be important that the CVC exercises complete control over the selection, appointment and functioning of the CVOs.
Four, the CVC should have an adequately experienced team to technically examine and assess the gravity of a complaint, which can then be assigned to the CBI for investigation or can be investigated by this team. After assessing a complaint by this broad-based CVC, there should be no need to seek prior permission from the government.
Five, in the cases assigned to it by the CVC, the CBI should be made functionally and financially independent of the controls of any government ministry/department. The professional supervision over the investigations of the CBI should rest only with the CVC.
Six, the manner of the appointment of the CBI Director should be broad based as in the case of the CVC members, whereas the other inductions/appointments in the CBI should be brought under the overarching supervision of the CVC.
Seven, to achieve better synergy between anti-corruption laws and grievance handling, the laws relating to the whistle blowers and grievance redressal should be placed within the jurisdiction of the CVC.
Eight, effective administration of anti-corruption laws at the grass roots is the key to responsible governance. The state and their anti-corruption agencies would, therefore, need to be equally insulated from the state government’s interference on similar lines.

Reforming CBI

Need for autonomy: As long as the government of the day has the power to transfer and post officials of its choice in the CBI, the investigating agency will not enjoy autonomy and will be unable to investigate cases freely.
Selection of director/ Officers: To ensure that the CBI is a robust, independent and credible investigation agency, there is an urgent need to work out a much more transparent mechanism for selection and induction of officers on deputation.
Lokpal scrutiny: The Lokpal Act already calls for a three-member committee made up of the PM, the leader of the opposition and the CJI to select the director.
Bifurcation of Cadre: CBI should be bifurcated into an Anti-Corruption Body and a National Crime Bureau.
Develop own cadre: One of the demands that have been before Supreme Court, and in line with international best practices, is for the CBI to develop its own dedicated cadre of officers.
Annual social audit should be carried out by ten reputed, knowledgeable persons with background of law, justice, public affairs and administration and the audit report should be placed before the parliament.

About Enforcement Directorate (ED)

It goes back to May 1, 1956, when an ‘Enforcement Unit’ was formed in the Department of Economic Affairs.
It then aimed for handling Exchange Control Laws violations under the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA).
The ED today is a multi-dimensional organisation investigating economic offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, Foreign Exchange Management Act and FERA.

From where does the ED get its powers?

When proceeds of crime (property/money) are generated, the best way to save that money is by parking it somewhere, so one is not answerable to anyone in the country.
Therefore, there was a need to control and prevent the laundering of money.
The PMLA was brought in for this exact reason in 2002, but was enacted only in 2005.
The objective was to prevent parking of the money outside India and to trace out the layering and the trail of money.
So as per the Act, the ED got its power to investigate under Sections 48 (authorities under act) and 49 (appointment and powers of authorities and other officers).

At what stage does the ED step in when a crime is committed?

Whenever any offence is registered by a local police station, which has generated proceeds of crime over and above ₹1 crore, the investigating police officer forwards the details to the ED.
Alternately, if the offence comes under the knowledge of the Central agency, they can then call for the First Information Report (FIR) or the chargesheet if it has been filed directly by police officials.
This will be done to find out if any laundering has taken place.

What differentiates the probe between the local police and officers of the ED?

Case study:

If a theft has been committed in a nationalised bank, the local police station will first investigate the crime.
If it is learnt that the founder of the bank took all the money and kept it in his house, without being spent or used, then the crime is only theft and the ED won’t interfere because the amount has already been seized.
But if the amount which has been stolen is used after four years to purchase some properties, then the ill-gotten money is brought back in the market.
Or if the money is given to someone else to buy properties in different parts of the country, then there is ‘laundering’ of money.
Hence the ED will need to step in and look into the layering and attachment of properties to recover the money.
If jewellery costing ₹1 crore is stolen, police officers will investigate the theft. The ED, however, will attach assets of the accused to recover the amount of ₹1 crore.

What are the other roles and functions of the ED?

The ED carries out search (property) and seizure (money/documents) after it has decided that the money has been laundered, under Section 16 (power of survey) and Section 17 (search and seizure) of the PMLA.
On the basis of that, the authorities will decide if arrest is needed as per Section 19 (power of arrest).
Under Section 50, the ED can also directly carry out search and seizure without calling the person for questioning.
It is not necessary to summon the person first and then start with the search and seizure.
If the person is arrested, the ED gets 60 days to file the prosecution complaint (chargesheet) as the punishment under PMLA doesn’t go beyond seven years.
If no one is arrested and only the property is attached, then the prosecution complaint along with attachment order is to be submitted before the adjudicating authority within 60 days.

Can the ED investigate cases of money laundering retrospectively?

If an ill-gotten property is acquired before the year 2005 (when the law was brought in) and disposed off, then there is no case under PMLA.
But if proceeds of the crime were possessed before 2005, kept in storage, and used after 2005 by buying properties, the colour of the money is still black and the person is liable to be prosecuted under PMLA.
Under Section 3 of PMLA, a person shall be guilty of money-laundering, if such person is found to have directly or indirectly attempted to indulge or knowingly assist a party involved in one or more of the following activities:
Concealment; possession; acquisition; use; or projecting as untainted property; or claiming as untainted property in any manner etc.

Allegations against ED

Huge discretions: The ED is the only Central agency in the country that does not require permission from the government to summon or prosecute politicians or government functionaries for committing economic offences like money laundering.
Used for petty crimes: PMLA is pulled into the investigation of even “ordinary” crimes and assets of genuine victims have been attached.
Actual purpose denigrated: PMLA was a comprehensive penal statute to counter the threat of money laundering, specifically stemming from the trade in narcotics.
Violations of Rights: PMLA was enacted in response to India’s global commitment to combat the menace of money laundering. Instead, rights have been “cribbed, cabined and confined”.
Functional opacity: There is also a lack of clarity about ED’s selection of cases to investigate. We often see ED raiding houses of opposition parties suddenly.
Poor rate of conviction: We have hardly read the conclusion of cases by ED. Meantime media-trial tears off the accused person’s credibility which is the most desired intent.
Under-trials and slower prosecution: ED has been focusing on keeping the accused in custody rather than actually proving the charges against them.

Challenges to ED

ED being dragged to court: The petitions against the ED had the effect of slowing down the investigations, as officers have to defend themselves in court.
Foul crying politicians: There are attempts to cover up unexplained, high-value transactions that fall within the PMLA’s ambit
Investigation of foreign transactions: Getting information on accounts and money stashed abroad to establish a trail is the biggest challenge they face.

Way forward

The fight against corruption is intimately linked with the reform of the investigations.
Therefore the adjudicating authorities must work in cooperation and ensure the highest standards of transparency and fairness.
ED has been walking a tightrope to safeguard its integrity by speeding up investigations and court procedures.
The need of the hour could be systemic fixes—and not shrill calls to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
It is unlikely that corruption can be substantially reduced without modifying the way government agencies operate.

Conclusion

It is for the nation to demand that the country’s premier investigating agencies like the CBI, income tax authorities and the ED are not used as instruments of blackmail and intimidation by the government of the day. Rather they should work with complete objectivity and in the interest of the nation.

Mains question

Q. CBI and ED was called caged carrot by the Supreme Court. Do you agree with this? What issues are being faced by these premier agencies? Suggest some dynamic solutions to overcome these issues.

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[Burning Issue] Enforcement Directorate (ED): Dreaded nightmare of Indian Politicians & Businessmen

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Minority Issues – SC, ST, Dalits, OBC, Reservations, etc.

Census in India

op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 1: Population & Associated Issues

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: particulars of census data

Mains level: Population issues

Context

As there is no official reassurance that India will not skip its decadal Census, we can declare that we have a case of the missing census.
The census is a very important source of statistics on various indicators.
The ability to hold a census peacefully, and not coercively, has been the hallmark of a civilized state and state of affairs.

What is a census?

Census is nothing but a process of collecting, compiling, analyzing, evaluating, publishing and disseminating statistical data regarding the population.
It covers demographic, social and economic data and is provided as of a particular date.

What is the purpose of the census?

To collect the information for planning and formulation policies for Central and the State Governments.
The census tells us who we are and where we are going as a nation.
It helps the government decide how to distribute funds and assistance to states and localities.
The census data is widely used by National and International Agencies, scholars, business people, industrialists, and many more.

Why is the census important?

Provides most credible source of information: information on Demography (Population characteristics), Economic Activity, Literacy and Education, Housing & Household Amenities, Urbanisation, Fertility and Mortality, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Language, Religion, Migration, Disability and many other socio-cultural and demographic data.
The delimitation/reservation of Constituencies: Parliamentary/Assembly/Panchayats and other Local Bodies are also done on the basis of the demographic data thrown up by the Census.
Administration: Census is the basis for reviewing the country’s progress in the past decade, monitoring the ongoing Schemes of the Government.
Planning the future: It provides pathways for planning and resolving problems, and fixing deficiencies. Government goes through analysis over the census data and formulates policies for the future accordingly.
Detailed accounts: The best of sample surveys find it impossible to beat a census as It carries the promise of counting each and every Indian. A census is when the state connects to every individual and it will find it hard to hide or duck from the data.
Welfare schemes: Identifying the actual beneficiaries, Census is the key to creating identity and affirming it over time .Census data enable neat, inter-temporal comparability.

Censuses in India so far

Census operations started in India long back during the period of the Maurya dynasty.
It was systematized during the years 1865 to 1872, though it has been conducted uninterruptedly from the year 1881 being a trustworthy resource of information.
India has held its decadal censuses regularly from 1881 to 2011, despite diseases, world wars, Partition and other instances of turmoil only COVID-19 as an exception.
Census 2011 is the 15th National Census of the Country.
The Census established that the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is coming down at a very rapid pace and is well on its way to stabilization.
The 2011 Census also dispelled the notion of divorce rate differentials between city and rural India. The urban divorce rate (0.89%) is almost equal to the rural rate (0.82%).

Why census 2021 has been postponed indefinitely?

The Ministry of Home Affairs told the Lok Sabha in August, 2021 that the massive, decennial exercise came to a grinding halt due to the advent of Coid-19 pandemic.

What was the original timeline of the Census and how is it being delayed?

Gazette notification: The Centre’s intent to conduct Census 2021 was notified in the Gazette of India on March 28, 2019. The exercise was to have been conducted in two phases, with the housing Census from April to September 2020 and population enumeration from February 9, 2021.but it did not take place due to the spread of COVID-19.
Alternative timeline post-covid-19: In March 2021, the Home Ministry gave a Parliamentary panel a tentative alternative timeline. The fieldwork for the first phase, which would provide data on housing conditions, household amenities and assets possessed by households, is expected during 2021-22, while the fieldwork to count the population and provide data on demography, religion, Scheduled Castes and Tribes (SC/ST), language, literacy and education, economic activity, migration and fertility would be done in 2023-24, it said.
Said Provisional data: The Ministry added that provisional data would be released in 2023-24 before the next general elections. Usually, more detailed tables providing village-level data on specific indicators will continue to be released for several years after the key information.

Impact of delay in census 2021

Public distribution system:
The National Food Security Act, 2013, says that 75% of the rural population and 50% of the rural population are entitled to receive subsidised food grains from the government under the targeted public distribution system (PDS).
Under the 2011 Census, India’s population was about 121 crore, hence PDS covered approximately 80 crore people.
If we apply projected population of 137crore ,current delay in Census data would continue to deprive more than 10 crore people of subsidised food entitlements, with the biggest gaps in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, with 2.8 crore and 1.8 crore projected exclusions respectively.
welfare schemes:
Although the Government’s intent to use SECC data but failed at budgetary allocation for the projected expansion.
Census data may not be used to calculate the beneficiaries of most schemes, but it is critical to policy planning, budgeting and administration.
A number of schemes need to use the disaggregated age and fertility indicators to assess effectiveness as demographics change over time.
Huge lag in Migration data:
From the COVID19 lockdowns it is realized that the Numbers, causes and patterns of migration, which could not be answered using outdated 2011 Census data.
The D-tables on migration from the 2011 Census were only released in 2019, so it’s outdated by the time it came out.
Apart from the One Nation, One Ration card scheme which now allows for portability of food subsidy entitlements, the migration data is actually not used too much in broader economic policy and planning.

Why there is a demand for caste census in India?

India’s population has since increased three-fold to 1.21 billion in 2011.
Experts believe the economic status of the dominant OBC castes have improved in the past 80 years and certain castes have not benefited as much.
So, the new caste census is required to measure the economic and social well-being of all castes.

Other related information Key findings of 2011 census

Population:
India’s population grew by 17.7 per cent during 2001-11, against 21.5 per cent in the previous decade.
India’s total population stands at 1.21 billion, which is 17.7 per cent more than the last decade, and growth of females was higher than that of males.
The growth rate of females was 18.3 per cent which is higher than males — 17.1 per cent.
Among the major states, highest decadal growth in population has been recorded in Bihar (25.4 per cent) while 14 states and Union Territories have recorded population growth above 20 per cent.
Rural and urban population:
Urban proportion has gone up from 17.3 per cent in 1951 to 31.2 per cent in 2011.
Highest proportion of urban population is in NCT Delhi (97.5 per cent).
Top five states in share of urban population are Goa (62.2 per cent), Mizoram (52.1 per cent), Tamil Nadu (48.4 per cent), Kerala (47.7 per cent) and Maharashtra (45.2 per cent).
Literacy:
Literacy rate in India in 2011 has increased by 8 per cent to 73 per cent in comparison to 64.8 per cent in 2001.
Male literacy rate stands at 80.9 per cent, which is 5.6 per cent more than the previous census whereas the female literacy rate stands at 64.6 per cent, increase of 10.9 per cent than 2001.
The highest increase took place in Dadra and Nagar Haveli by 18.6 points (from 57.6 per cent to 76.2 per cent), while in Bihar by 14.8 points (from 47.0 per cent to 61.8 per cent), Tripura by 14.0 points (from 73.2 per cent to 87.2 per cent)
Density:
The density of population in the country has also increased from 325 in 2001 to 382 in 2011 in per sq km.
Among the major states, Bihar occupies the first position with a density of 1106, surpassing West Bengal which occupied the first position during 2001.
Delhi (11,320) turns out to be the most densely inhabited followed by Chandigarh (9,258), among all states and UT’s, both in 2001 and 2011 Census.
The minimum population density works out in Arunachal Pradesh (17) for both 2001 and 2011 Census.
Sex ratio:
The sex ratio of population in the country in 2011 stands at 940 female against 1000 males, which is 10 per cent more than the last census when the number female per thousand male stood at 933.
The number of females per 1000 males in Haryana in 2011 stands at 879 followed by Jammu and Kashmir (889 female) and Punjab (895 females).
The other two worst-performing states in terms of skewed sex ration are Uttar Pradesh (912 females) and Bihar (918 females).
Five top performing states in terms of sex ratio were Kerala (1,084 females), Tamil Nadu (996), Andhra Pradesh (993), Chhattisgarh (991),Odisha (979).
Child population:
Child population in the age of 0 to 6 years has seen an increase of 0.4 per cent.
There has been a decline of 8 per cent in the sex ratio of 0-6 age group. In 2011, the child sex ratio (0-6) stands at 919 female against 1000 male in comparison to 927 females in 2001.
Male child (0-6) population has increased whereas female child population has decreased during 2001-11.
The worst performing states in regard to sex ration in the age group of 0 to 6 years are Haryana (834 females), Punjab (846), Jammu and Kashmir (862), Rajasthan (888) and Gujarat (890).
The best performing states are Chhattisgarh (969), Kerala (964), Assam (962), West Bengal (956) Jharkhand (948) and Karnataka (948).
SC/ST data:
According to the Census, Scheduled Castes are notified in 31 states and UTs and Scheduled Tribes in 30 states. There are altogether 1,241 individual ethnic groups notified as SC’s .The number of individual ethnic groups, notified as ST’s is 705.
There have been some changes in the list of SC’s/ST’s in states and UT’s during the last decade.
The SC population in India now stands at 201.4 million, which is 20 per cent more than the last census. The ST population stands at 104.3 million in 2011 – 23.7 per cent more than 2001.
Religious demographics:
The religious data on India Census 2011 was released by the Government of India on 25 August 2015.
Hindus are 79.8% (966.3 million), while Muslims are 14.23% (172.2 million) in India.
For the first time, a “No religion” category was added in the 2011 census. 2.87 million Were classified as people belonging to “No Religion” in India in the 2011 census. – 0.24% of India’s population of 1.21 billion.
Median marriage age:
The median age increased for men – from 22.6 (2001) to 23.5 (2011) and for women – from 18.2 (2001) to 19.2 (2011).

Conclusion

The census is vital and precious as it is a repository of complete data about the country which is gathered openly, voluntarily, and with the use of public money, making it a social good.
The new Census is likely to capture the extent of the observed movement in migration trends towards smaller two-tier towns apart from the large metropolitan centre.
It could help answer questions of what kind of healthcare and social services are most needed and where.
The Census is about many things. But, fundamentally, it is a way in which the state, by knocking at all doors, displays its desire to connect with the people who ultimately comprise the nation.

Mains Question

Q. Apart from being used to demarcate constituencies, updated decadal census data is vital to administration. How will the indefinite postponement of census impact the policy formation for the future? Critically Analyse.

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Census 2011 | The basics and summary of important findings

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Coal and Mining Sector

Fly ash generation and Disposal

op-ed snap | Enviro & Biodiversity | Mains Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Eia

Note4Students

From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :

Prelims level: composition of fly ash

Mains level: environmental pollution

Context

India depends heavily on coal for power generation. This creates the problem of fly-ash generation and its proper disposal, usage.
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) noted September 19, 2022 that there was an urgent need to augment the utilisation and disposal of fly ash in Chhattisgarh.

What is fly ash?

Fly ash is a by-product of coal combustion. It contains Aluminium Silicate, SiO2, CaO, oxides of iron, magnesium and toxic metals like lead, arsenic, cobalt, and copper.
It can travel to far places. India is growing to double its power generation in the next decade and with coal being the biggest source of fuel for power generation, the problem of fly ash is going to increase too.

Environmental Problems with fly ash

A large quantity of fly ash dumped into poorly designed and maintained ash ponds. About a billion tonnes of this toxic ash lie dumped in these ponds, polluting land, air, and water.
All the heavy metals found in fly ash—nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium, lead, etc—are toxic in nature. They leech into the surrounding soil and can enter food-chains.
Fly ash gets easily ingested through respiration, which causes many diseases such as asthma, neurological disorders.
Suspended fly ash in the air acts as a global warming agent and heats the earth’s surface.
Fly ash settles on leaves and crops and reduces crop productivity.
It pollutes the groundwater.
There is a reduction in recharging of groundwater due to fly ash filled mine voids.
Reduces visibility by creating dense fog in the winter season.

Issues with fly ash management

The government mandates that all coal power plants (CPPs) reach 100% utilization of fly ash.
Along with it, CPPs should give a certain amount of fly ash free of cost for MSMEs to manufacture bricks, tiles and rest of the fly ash should be sold to other industries.
CPPs will have to maintain fly ash ponds to reduce its suspension in air.
But all these steps for utilization areas are problematic as they do little to mitigate these risks.
The pricing of fly ash is increasingly becoming a contentious issue that is hampering its gainful utilization.
The current approaches to evaluating risks with fly ash disposal are very limited, and they may underestimate the true risks
In spite of initiatives taken by the government, several nongovernmental and research and development organizations for fly ash utilization, the level of fly ash utilization in the country is quite low at only 38% which is less than the global standards.
Hence, rather than being utilized, fly ash is being stored despite warnings from regulators.
Deposition in storage places has negative influences on water and soil because of their mineral composition as well as morphology and filtration properties.
Ash-handling units are the biggest consumers of water in CPPs. The government advocates the designed ash-to-water ratios as approximately 1:5 for fly ash, but the observed ratios have been around 1:20.
Certain states have discouraged the use of blended cement and fly ash bricks in public works.

The above issues can be addressed by

Greater regulatory oversight and price control,
Revision of cement blending standards,
Research in improving fly ash quality,
Reducing the cost of transportation,
Provisions for overcoming information asymmetries,
Incentivising use in brick kilns for producing fly ash bricks,
Overall sensitization of key decision-makers on the matter.
Instead of dumping it on ash ponds, can be used for construction due to its reuse as pozzolan, and replacement of portland cement by hydraulic cement
Due to its grain size distribution, enhanced strength permeability, it can be used to construct embankments at road construction, concrete dams like GHATGHAR DAM
Strong penalties for those production units who do not use proper filtration devices
Moving to renewable energy production away from coal-based thermal production.

Conclusion

Utilization of Fly Ash is not only possible but also essential. In this context “Fly Ash Mission of Government of India” is a slow but steady start, the pace of which needs to be ramped up. An honest effort is required by the concerned stakeholders to improve the perceptions of fly ash-based cement or concrete; increase its use, particularly for government works; and impart scientific knowledge about fly ash, its uses, and possible impacts.

Mains question

Q. What is fly ash? Discuss the environmental challenges it poses. Suggest how to address the situation.

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