october 2019 monthly - chahalacademy.com · october 31. constitution. the outfit, as well as rival...
TRANSCRIPT
CIVIL
SERVICES
MONTHLY
ON
E ST
OP
SOLU
TIO
N F
OR
CIV
IL S
ERV
ICES
EDGE COMPUTING
ORGANOID
INDIA-CHINA SUMMIT
NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT (NAM) SUMMIT DRAFT SEED
BILL, 2019
AAREY FOREST CASE
BAUL MUSIC
DHRUV PROGRAMME
NAGA PEACE DEAL
SECTION 124-A
MSMES
OCTOBER 2019
INDEX
POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
NAGA PEACE DEAL 1
SC AND ST (PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES) ACT, 1989 2
RTI VIOLATIONS GO UNPUNISHED 2
CRIME IN INDIA REPORT 2017 RELEASED 3
SECTION 124-A
5
TWO-CHILD POLICY IN INDIAN STATES 6 COMMUTATION 7
ECONOMY
WORLD BANK’S EASE OF DOING BUSINESS REPORT 8
MSMES 13
IMF CUTS WORLD AND INDIA GROWTH RATES 15
MONETARY TRANSMISSION CONUNDRUM 16
SOCIAL SECURITY SCHEME FOR GIG WORKERS 19
GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS INDEX
GLOBAL VALUE CHAINS
21
23
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
EDGE COMPUTING 26
NOBEL PRIZE FOR PHYSICS 28
NOBEL PRIZE FOR CHEMISTRY 30
THE DNA TECHNOLOGY REGULATION BILL 32
EVALUATION OF NANOPHARMACEUTICALS IN INDIA 34
ORGANOID 37
NASA'S ICON SATELLITE 38
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
INDIA-CHINA SUMMIT 40
NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT (NAM) SUMMIT 42
ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION (OIC): ON KASHMIR 45
DEATH OF ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI 47
BANGLADESH'S PRIME MINISTER SHEIKH HASINA VISITS INDIA 50
THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE, 2019 52
ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY AND BIODIVERSITY
HUMANS POLLUTE MORE THAN VOLCANOES: STUDY 53
DRAFT SEED BILL, 2019 54
INVASIVE WEEDS THREATENING TIGER HABITATS IN ADILABAD, TELANGANA 55
PLOGGING 56
AAREY FOREST CASE 56
CARBON PRICING 57
WASTE TO WEALTH: COOKING OIL-TO-BIODIESEL 57
2019 OZONE HOLE 58
ART AND CULTURE
BAUL MUSIC 59
REMBRANDT 59
PETTATHULLAL 59
SOCIETY 60
NITI AAYOG'S EDUCATION INDEX 60
DHRUV PROGRAMME 61
SURAKSHIT MATRITVA AASHWASAN (SUMAN) 61
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POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
MANIPUR, ARUNACHAL WANTS
TO BE KEPT OUT OF NAGA PEACE
DEAL. Why in News?
Arunachal Pradesh has echoed Manipur in demanding to be kept out of any “territorial changes” that might be incorporated in the settlement of the Naga political problem.
The Central government has been discussing with National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) as well as a rival conglomerate named Naga National Political Groups for the “final solution” on the peace accord by October 31.
The outfit, as well as rival factions, claim these areas, primarily Changlang, Longding and Tirap districts are dominated by Nagas.
About National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM)
NSCN-IM’s vision of Nagalim or Greater Nagaland would entail redrawing of boundaries to bring all Naga-inhabited areas in the Northeast under one administrative umbrella.
The NSCN-IM’s map of Nagalim spreads over 1,03,473 sq km beyond the 16,527 sq km area of Nagaland. It includes much of eastern Arunachal.
Naga Framework Agreement, 2015
On Aug 3, 2015, the latest agreement was signed with NSCN (Isak-Muivah)and other Naga armed groups such as NSCN (Khole-Kitovi) with the Union government. (however, NSCN (Khaplang) was excluded)
Idea of a pan-Naga Hoho (a proposed statutory body as part of the Framework Agreement) that will enjoy independent executive and budgetary powers to look after the welfare of Naga inhabited areas outside Nagaland was mooted to bring long lasting solution to Naga peace process
The biggest breakthrough is that the NSCN (I-M), and other Naga armed groups such as NSCN (Khole-Kitovi) have agreed to give up violence and resolve all issues peacefully.
Current status 2018:
The accord being finalised “does not change the boundary of states; Provides autonomous Naga territorial councils for Arunachal and Manipur; A common cultural body for Nagas across states; Specific institutions for state’s development, integration, rehabilitation of non-state Naga militia The removal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act”.
Other issue
The government and the NSCN(I-M) have failed to agree on issues relating to a separate Naga flag and a constitution.
NSCN(I-M) has said it will not budge from the demand for the flag and the constitution — and that it is looking for a lasting solution.
INTER-STATE PORTABILITY FOR
RATION CARDS LAUNCHED Why in News?
An inter-State portability for ration cards has been launched for Rajasthan and Haryana to facilitate the distribution of foodgrains to beneficiaries of the National Food Security scheme.
Labourers in the unorganised sector, migrating from one State to the other in search of work, will mainly benefit from the scheme.
About
In August 2019, Government of India launched the One Nation-One Ration Card scheme on a pilot basis in four States namely Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
This will provide freedom to the beneficiaries as they will not be tied to any one Public Distribution Scheme (PDS) shop and reduce their dependence on shop owners and curtail instances of corruption.
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SCHEDULED CASTES AND
SCHEDULED TRIBES
(PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES)
ACT, 1989 Why in news?
The Supreme Court partially upheld the amendments which forbade automatic arrest in cases under Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act), 1989.
Background
Three issues came in front of the Supreme Court in March, 2018 related to the instances of exploiting of the SC/ST Act against government servants.
It held that a public servant can only be arrested after approval of the appointing authority. Whereas a non-public servant can be arrested after approval by the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) which may be granted in appropriate cases if considered important for the noted reasons.
A brief inquiry will also have to be conducted before an FIR is filed and it is to be made sure that the charges fall under the Act or is a result of political and/or personal reasons.
The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and the Scheduled Tribes (STs) Prevention of Atrocities (PoA) Act, 1989
It was amended to ensure speedy justice to victims. This Act seeks to stop people from committing such oppression and providing victims with special rights and privileges.
A fast-track court for complaints made by anyone from the SC and ST community is also established with respect to this.
Not only does the Act increase punishment in some instances for crimes under Indian Penal Code (IPC) but also targets specific crimes - generally humiliating in nature - against SC and ST communities.
Examples of atrocities in independent India
Kizhavenmani, Tamil Nadu (1958) in which 44 SCs were burnt to death in a confined building because scheduled castes agricultural labourers sought a little raise in their very low wages.
Karamchedu, Andhra Pradesh, 1984: Five SCs were massacred.
Tsunduru, Andhra Pradesh, 1991: Eight SCs were massacred.
Six cases of Bihar including the Bathani Tola (1996) and Laxmanpur Bathe (1997). In most of these, the trial court convicted the accused. In all of these, the high court acquitted the accused.
Indian Constitution
Article 17 seeks to abolish ‘untouchability’
Article 46 – promote the educational and economic interests of SCs, STs, and other weaker sections of the society and to protect them from social injustice and exploitation
Article 338 – National Commission for Scheduled Castes: Its functions include among others:
1. investigate and monitor all matters relating to the constitutional and other legal safeguards for the SCs and to evaluate their working;
2. inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the SCs.
Article 338-A – National Commission for Scheduled Tribes functions are related to ST than SC
RTI VIOLATIONS GO UNPUNISHED
Why in News? A report card analysing RTIs performance showed that government officials face hardly any punishment for violating the law by denying applicants the legitimate information sought by them. About
As the RTI Act marks its 14th anniversary, the ‘Report Card on the Performance of Information Commissions in India’ was prepared by the Satark Nagrik Sangathan and the Centre for Equity Studies.
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Highlights of the report
It analysed information from 22 commissions, which disposed of almost 1.17 lakh cases between January 2018 and March 2019.
The State and Central Information Commissions, which are the courts of appeal under the Act, failed to impose penalties in about 97% of the cases where violations took place in 2018-19.
The State Commissions of Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, Mizoram and Tripura did not impose penalties in any cases at all.
The report showed that there were 2.18 lakh cases pending with the commissions in March 2019, in comparison with 1.85 lakh pending cases a year earlier.
Any new appeal would have to wait more than one-and-a-half years for resolution. The backlog is exacerbated by the fact that four out of 11 CIC posts are yet to be filled.
This destroys the basic framework of incentives and disincentives built into the RTI law, promotes a culture of impunity and exasperates applicants who seek information at a high cost and often against great odds.
CRIME IN INDIA REPORT 2017
RELEASED Why in news?
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has released the annual “Crime in India Report 2017” which has been released after a delay of 2 years.
Highlights
According to the report, 3.59 lakh cases of crime against women were reported in the country in which Uttar Pradesh topped the list followed by Maharashtra and West Bengal.
Majority of cases under crimes against women were registered under ‘Cruelty by Husband or his Relatives’ followed by ‘Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty’, ‘Kidnapping & Abduction of Women’ and ‘Rape’.
Report also cited incidents of rioting in 2017. Maximum incidents of rioting were reported from Bihar, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
The incidents registered under the Scheduled Caste Prevention of Atrocities Act saw an increase from 5,082 incidents reported in 2016 to 5,775 in 2017.
Incidents of crime related to Scheduled Tribes decreased from 844 in 2016 to 720 in 2017.
A total of 95,893 cases of kidnapping and abduction were registered during 2017.
The NCRB for the first time collected data on circulation of “false/fake news and rumours”. Under the category, maximum incidents were reported from Madhya Pradesh followed by Uttar Pradesh and Kerala.
A total of 28,653 murder cases were registered across the country in 2017 and enmity cited as the maximum triggers for such murders. Among Union Territories, Delhi recorded the most murder cases in 2017.
NCRB
It was set-up in 1986 to function as a repository of information on crime and criminals so as to assist the investigators in linking crime to the perpetrators, based on the recommendations of the National Police Commission (1977-1981) and the MHA’s Task Force (1985).
FAKE NEWS MENACE IN INDIA
Why in news?
According to Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, fake news is more dangerous than paid news and there is a need to combat it jointly government and media.
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Fake news
Fake news is news, stories or hoaxes created to deliberately misinform or deceive readers. Fake news, defined by the New York Times as “a made-up story with an intention to deceive”.
The internet and social media have made it very easy for anyone to publish content on a website, blog or social media profile and potentially reach large audiences.
With so many people now getting news from social media sites, many content creators/publishers have used this to their advantage.
Fake news can be a profitable business, generating large sums of advertising revenue for publishers who create and publish stories that go viral.
Usually, these stories are created to influence people’s views, push a political agenda or cause confusion and can often be a profitable business for online publishers.
Fake news stories can deceive people by looking like trusted websites or using similar names and web addresses to reputable news organizations.
There are three elements to fake news; Mistrust, misinformation and manipulation.
In India, WhatsApp is the platform most vulnerable to fake news. Millions of Indians (mainly uneducated) using mobile internet innocently forwarding ‘good morning’ messages every day are seen as most vulnerable to fake news.
In the recent Karnataka Assembly elections (2018) fake news about rival parties and candidates flooded the media.
It may not be a coincidence that India has the highest number of selfie deaths (person dying while trying to take a selfie) in the world (76 deaths out of 127 reported globally between March 2014 and September 2016). Use and abuse of mobile and internet remain a concern.
Popular Fake Examples from India: 1. Muzzafarnagar riots of 2013:
fake video fuelled communal passions
2. UNESCO has declared ‘Jana Gana Mana’ best national anthem in the world (WhatsApp)
3. GPS tracking nanochip in 2000 Rupee notes (Nov 2016)
4. Child kidnapping rumours lead to lynchings by a mob in Jharkhand
5. Missing JNU student Najeeb Ahmed has joined the ISIS
Laws Governing Fake News
Free publication of news flows from Article 19 of the Constitution guaranteeing freedom of speech.
Press Council of India, a regulatory body, can warn, admonish or censure the newspaper, the news agency, the editor or the journalist or disapprove the conduct of the editor or the journalist if it finds that a newspaper or a news agency has violated journalistic ethics.
News Broadcasters Association (NBA) represents the private television news and current affairs broadcasters. The self-regulatory body probes complaints against electronic media.
Indian Broadcast Foundation (IBF) also looks into the complaints against contents aired by channels.
Broadcasting Content Complaint Council (BCCC) admits complaints against TV broadcasters for objectionable TV content and fake news.
Indian Penal Code (IPC) has certain sections which could curb fake news: Section 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) and section 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) can be invoked to guard against fake news.
Civil or Criminal Case for Defamation is another resort against fake news for individuals and groups hurt by the fake news. IPC Section 499 (defamation) and 500 (whoever defames another shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both) provide for a defamation suit.
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SECTION 124-A (SEDITION LAW)
Why in news?
An FIR has been lodged in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur against a group of eminent personalities, including historian Ramchandra Guha, filmmakers Shyam Benegal and Aparna Sen among others, who had written an open letter to PM Narendra Modi against the incidents of lynching in the country.
The FIR filed under various sections of IPC related to sedition, breach of peace and hurting religious sentiment.
What is sedition?
The Indian Penal Code defines sedition (Section 124A) as an offence committed when "any person by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government established by law in India".
Disaffection includes disloyalty and all feelings of enmity. However, comments without exciting or attempting to excite hatred, contempt or disaffection, will not constitute an offence under this section.
Punishment for the offence of sedition
Sedition is a non-bailable offence. Punishment under the Section 124A ranges from imprisonment up to three years to a life term, to which fine may be added.
A person charged under this law is barred from a government job. They have to live without their passport and must produce themselves in the court at all times as and when required.
Origin of sedition law in modern India
The law was originally drafted in 1837 by Thomas Macaulay, the British historian-politician, but was inexplicably omitted when the IPC was enacted in 1860.
Section 124A was inserted in 1870 by an amendment introduced by Sir James Stephen when it felt the need for a specific section to deal with the
offence. It was one of the many draconian laws enacted to stifle any voices of dissent at that time.
Arguments in support of Section 124A:
Section 124A of the IPC has its utility in combating anti-national, secessionist and terrorist elements
It protects the elected government from attempts to overthrow the government with violence and illegal means. The continued existence of the government established by law is an essential condition of the stability of the State
If contempt of court invites penal action, contempt of government should also attract punishment
Many districts in different states face a Maoist insurgency and rebel groups virtually run a parallel administration. These groups openly advocate the overthrow of the state government by revolution
Against this backdrop, the abolition of Section 124A would be ill-advised merely because it has been wrongly invoked in some highly publicized cases
Arguments against Section 124A:
Section 124A is a relic of colonial legacy and unsuited in a democracy. It is a constraint on the legitimate exercise of constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech and expression.
Dissent and criticism of the government are essential ingredients of robust public debate in a vibrant democracy. They should not be constructed as sedition. Right to question, criticize and change rulers is very fundamental to the idea of democracy.
The British, who introduced sedition to oppress Indians, have themselves abolished the law in their country. There is no reason, why should not India abolish this section.
The terms used under Section 124A like 'disaffection' are vague and subject to different interpretation to the whims and fancies of the investigating officers.
The disutility of the sedition law:
The data released by the National Crime Records Bureau for the year between 2014 and 2016 reflect the
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disutility of the law for the criminal justice system.
Under the title 'offences against the State' the report shows a total of 179 arrests for sedition. However, no charge sheets were filed by the police in over 70% of the cases, and only two convictions during this time period. This data belie the claim for retaining the Section 124A of IPC.
What is the viewpoint of the Law Commission of India?
In August 2018, the Law Commission of India published a consultation paper recommending that it is time to re-think or repeal the Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code that deals with sedition.
In its 39th Report (1968), the Law Commission had rejected the idea of repealing the section.
In its 42nd Report (1971), the panel wanted the scope of the section to be expanded to cover the Constitution, the legislature and the judiciary, in addition to the government to be established by law, as institutions against which 'disaffection' should not be tolerated.
In the recent consultation paper on the sedition, the Law Commission has suggested invoking 124A to only criminalize acts committed with the intention to disrupt public order or to overthrow the Government with violence and illegal means.
Sedition laws in international jurisdiction
The United Kingdom deleted the seditious libel through the Coroners and Justice Act 2009.
In Australia, following the recommendations of the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) the term sedition was removed and replaced with references to 'urging violence offenses'.
Conclusion:
India is the largest democracy of the world and the right to free speech and expression is an essential ingredient of democracy. The expression or thought that is not in consonance with the policy of the government of the day should not be considered as sedition. The Law Commission has rightly said, "an expression of frustration over the state of affairs
cannot be treated as sedition". If the country is not open to positive criticism, there would be no difference between the pre- and post-Independence eras.
Of course, it is essential to protect national integrity. Given the legal opinion and the views of the government in favour of the law, it is unlikely that Section 124A will be scrapped soon. However, the section should not be misused as a tool to curb free speech. The SC caveat, given in Kedar Nath case, on prosecution under the law can check its misuse.
TWO-CHILD POLICY IN INDIAN
STATES
Why in news?
Assam Cabinet has decided that those with more than two children will be ineligible for government jobs from 2021.
India was among the first countries to launch a family planning programme in 1951.
Other states with similar norms
Rajasthan: The Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act 1994 says that if a person has more than two children, he will be disqualified from contesting election as a panch or a member.
Madhya Pradesh: Under Madhya Pradesh Civil Services (General Condition of Services) Rules, if the third child was born on or after January 26, 2001, one becomes ineligible for government service. The rule also applies to higher judicial services. MP followed the two-child norm for candidates of local body elections until 2005, when it was discontinued by the then BJP government after objections were raised on the ground that such a rule was not applicable in assembly and parliamentary elections.
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh: Under Section 19 (3) read with Sections 156 (2) and 184 (2) of Telangana Panchayat Raj Act, 1994, a person with more than two children shall be disqualified from contesting election. However, if a person had
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more than two children before May 30, 1994, he or she will not be disqualified. The same sections in the Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj Act, 1994, apply to Andhra Pradesh, where a person having more than two children shall be disqualified from contesting election.
Gujarat: In 2005, the government amended the Gujarat Local Authorities Act which disqualifies anyone with more than two children from contesting elections for bodies of local self-governance — panchayats, municipalities and municipal corporations.
Maharashtra: The Maharashtra Zilla Parishads and Panchayat Samitis Act disqualifies people who have more than two children from contesting local body elections (gram panchayats to municipal corporations). The Maharashtra Civil Services (Declaration of Small Family) Rules, 2005 states that a person having more than two children is disqualified from holding a post in the state government. Women with more than two children are also not allowed to benefit from the Public Distribution System.
Uttarakhand: The state government had decided to bar people with more than two children from contesting panchayat elections and had passed a Bill in Vidhan Sabha in this regard. But the decision was challenged in the High Court by those preparing for village pradhan and gram panchayat ward member elections, and they got relief from the court. Hence, the condition of two-child norm was applied to only those who contested the elections of zila panchayat and blocks development committee membership.
Karnataka: The Karnataka (Gram Swaraj and Panchayat Raj) Act, 1993 does not bar individuals with more than two children from contesting elections to local bodies like the gram panchayat. The law, however, says that a person is ineligible to contest “if he does not have a sanitary latrine for the use of the members of his family”.
Odisha: The Odisha Zilla Parishad Act bars those individuals with more than two children from contesting.
Aims behind the Two Child Policy
The population continues to increase in the Empowered Action Group (EAG) states like Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. These states, excluding Odisha, will account for nearly two-thirds of the increase in India’s population during 2021-41.
This policy can force prospective parents to limit the children in order to continue to avail the benefits. It would control the population growth as has been done in China through its One Child Policy.
COMMUTATION
Why in news?
The Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to commute the death sentence of Balwant Singh Rajoana, who was convicted for the assassination of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, to life imprisonment. Beant Singh, credited for ending terrorism in Punjab, was assassinated on August 31, 1995, in an explosion in Chandigarh.
Presidential Pardoning Powers According to Article 72, the President shall have the power to grant pardons, reprieves, Respite or remissions of punishment or to suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of any offence.
1. Commutation: ‘Commutation’ means reducing the punishment by changing the nature of punishment. For example, punishment to death may be changed to life imprisonment. It is different from Pardon and Remission.
2. Pardon: The effect of Pardon is to abolish punishment and to absolve the convicted of all charges. If Pardon is granted, it is assured as if the convict has not committed any crime. The convict will not face any disabilities due to the allegations and charges
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made against him.
3. Remission: ‘Remission’ means reducing the punishment without changing the nature of punishment. For example, the imprisonment for 20 years may be reduced to the imprisonment for 10 years.
4. Respite: It denotes awarding a lesser sentence in place of one originally awarded due to some special fact, such as the physical disability of convict or the pregnancy of a woman offender.
5. Reprieve: It implies a stay of the execution of a sentence (especially that of death) for a temporary period. its purpose is to enable the convict to have time to seek pardon or commutation from the President.
ECONOMY
WORLD BANK’S EASE OF DOING
BUSINESS REPORT
Why in news?
The World Bank released its latest Doing
Business Report (DBR, 2020) on24th October
2019.
About the Ease of doing business index
Ease of doing business is an index
published by the World Bank. It is an
aggregate figure that includes different
parameters which define the ease of
doing business in a country.
For each of the indicators that form a
part of the statistic ‘Ease of doing
business,’ a distance to frontier score
is computed and all the scores are
aggregated. The aggregated score
becomes the Ease of doing business
index.
The indicator measures the
performance of countries across 10
different dimensions in the 12-month
period ending May 1, 2019.
The ten areas of study are defined as:
starting a business, dealing with
construction permits, getting
electricity, registering property,
getting credit, protecting minority
investors, paying taxes, trading
across borders, enforcing
contracts, and resolving
insolvency.
An 11th area — employing workers, is
measured but not factored into the
score. A total of 294 reforms had been
enacted by 115 countries, the Bank
said.
The indicator, however, is not
necessarily representative of each
country. For 11 countries, two cities
were selected to construct the
indicator — Delhi and Mumbai in the
Indian case.
The index was created jointly by
Simeon Djankov and Gerhard Pohl,
two leading economists at the Central
and Eastern Europe sector of the
World Bank Group.
The Doing Business assessment
provides objective measures of
business regulations and their
enforcement across 190 economies
on ten parameters affecting a
business through its life cycle. The
DBR ranks countries on the basis of
Distance to Frontier (DTF), a score
that shows the gap of an economy to
the global best practice.
India's Performance:
India placed 63rd out of 190 countries
— an improvement of 14 places from
its 77th position last year.
The country’s score improved from
67.3 last year to 71.0 this year, as per
The Doing Business 2020 study,
released by the World Bank.
India also featured –— for the third
consecutive year - in the list of ten
economies where business climates
had improved the most.
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This list is comprised of Saudi Arabia,
Jordan, Togo, Bahrain, Tajikistan,
Pakistan, Kuwait, China, India, and
Nigeria.
The Report called India’s reform
efforts “particularly commendable” ,
given the country’s size.
From being ranked 142 in 2014 to 63
in 2020, it has been a significant
upward journey for the country in a
rank list that is an important input in
the plans of global investors.
The latest improvement has come on
the back of the implementation of the
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code
(IBC). India’s rank has improved from
108 to 52 in the “resolving insolvency”
category with the overall recovery rate
for lenders moving up from 26.5 cents
to 71.6 cents to the dollar according to
the World Bank.
India has improved its rank in 7 out of
10 indicators and has moved closer to
international best practices (Distance
to Frontier score). Significant
improvements have been registered in
‘Resolving Insolvency’, 'Dealing with
Construction Permits', ‘Registering
Property’, ‘Trading across Boards’ and
‘Paying Taxes’ indicators.
The changes in seven indicators
where India improved its rank are as
follows:
The important features of India's
performance this year are:
The World Bank has recognized India
as one of the top 10 improvers for the
third consecutive year.
Recovery rate under resolving
insolvency has improved significantly
from 26.5% to 71.6%.
The time taken for resolving
insolvency has also come down
significantly from 4.3 years to 1.6
years.
India continues to maintain its first
position among South Asian countries.
It was 6th in 2014.
India's improved ranking was on the back
of four reforms:
Starting a business, dealing with
construction permits, trading across
borders and resolving insolvency.
As a case in point, the report says
there were improvements in the
efficiency of acquiring building permits.
Building a warehouse, for example,
cost 4% of the warehouse value
compared to 5.7% in the preceding
year.
Importing and exporting became
easier with a single electronic platform
for trade stakeholders, improved
electronic submission methods for
documents and upgrades to port
infrastructure.
The ‘resolving insolvency’ indicator,
however, was mixed : the Report
noted that reorganization proceedings
had been promoted in practice, a
positive for the indicator, but resolving
insolvency had also been made harder
because dissenting creditors would
receive would receive less under
reorganisation than under liquidation.
Delhi and Mumbai showed
improvements in the ‘starting a
business’, ‘trading across borders’ and
‘resolving insolvency’ dimensions.
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On the ‘dealing with construction
permits’ front, both cities streamlined
and made less expensive the process
of getting a permit but Delhi also
improved professional certification
requirements for constructing
buildings.
Global Performance:
The ten top ranking countries with
respect to the indicator were: New
Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong SAR
China, Denmark, Republic of Korea,
United States, Georgia, United
Kingdom, Norway, and Sweden. Each
country is scored and also ranked (a
comparison).
The 0-100 score measures any given
country’s performance with respect to
the best practice across the entire set
of countries. A score of zero signifies
worst regulatory performance and 100,
the best.
China (rank 31, score 77.9) made it to
the top ten list for the second such
year. New Zealand and Somalia
retained their 1st and 190th spot
respectively.
The commonalities among economies
that ranked highest included the
“widespread” use of electronic
systems and online platforms for
facilitating regulatory requirements.
On the other hand, resolving
insolvency was the least reformed
area, as per the report. On average, it
takes six times as long to start a
business in countries ranked in the
bottom 50 than it does in the top 20
countries.
South Asia’s poor performance:
As far as India’s neighbourhood is
concerned, Pakistan carried out the
most reforms in the South Asia, a
press release from the Bank said.
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Maldives
and Afghanistan made zero regulatory
changes. South Asian region generally
underperforms with regard to
enforcing contracts and registering
property, as per the Bank.
For instance, it takes 108 days for a
business to register a property transfer
in South Asia , compared to the 24
days it takes in OECD high-income
countries.
Resolving a commercial dispute, the
Bank said, takes three years in South
Asia – twice as long as the OECD
high-income country statistic.
Challenges for India Ahead:
While the improvements are
impressive and the rise in overall
rankings in the last few years is
noteworthy, the fact is that India is still
below its competitors for global capital,
particularly China, which at rank 31 is
one level above France.
The country lags in key metrics such
as “Starting a business’, “Enforcing
contracts” and “Registering property”.
It should also be borne in mind that
the rankings are based on samples
and audits done in Mumbai and Delhi
only (the World Bank has said it would
be covering Bengaluru and Kolkata
too from next year).
Starting, running or shutting down a
business may be easier in Delhi and
Mumbai compared to Coimbatore or
Hyderabad where it is probably more
difficult.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Admittedly, it is not easy to streamline
processes across the country given
India's federal set up where States
have a big say in several parameters
that go into the ranking such as
securing building permits, land
approvals, electricity connections,
registering assets etc.
Yet, this is the ideal that the country
should be striving for. The easier part
is now done and rise in rankings from
hereon will depend on how much the
Centre is able to convince the States
to reform their systems.
THE 2019 NOBEL PRIZE IN
ECONOMICS
Why in news?
Nobel Economics Prize for 2019 has been
awarded to Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and
Michael Kremer "for their experimental
approach to alleviating global poverty".
Why have Banerjee, Duflo, and Kremer won
the Nobel Prize?
Both Banerjee and Duflo, who
incidentally are a couple and have
written a noted book titled “Poor
Economics”, are associated with the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
while Kremer is with the Harvard
University.
The Nobel citation states “The
research conducted by this year’s
Laureates has considerably improved
world's ability to fight global poverty.
In just two decades, their new
experiment-based approach has
transformed development economics,
which is now a flourishing field of
research”.
The Prize committee noted that these
economists "introduced a new
approach to obtaining reliable answers
about the best ways to fight global
poverty." The new Nobel laureates are
considered to be instrumental in using
randomised controlled trials to test
the effectiveness of various policy
interventions to alleviate poverty.
What is a Randomised Controlled Trial?
A randomised controlled trial is an
experiment that is designed to isolate
the influence that a certain intervention
or variable has on an outcome or
event. A social science researcher
who wants to find the effect that
employing more teachers in schools
has on children’s learning outcomes,
for instance, can conduct a
randomised controlled trial to find the
answer.
The use of randomised controlled
trials as a research tool was largely
limited to fields such as biomedical
sciences where the effectiveness of
various drugs was gauged using this
technique.
Mr. Banerjee, Ms. Duflo and Mr.
Kremer, however, applied RCT to the
field of economics beginning in the
1990s. Mr. Kremer first used the
technique to study the impact that free
meals and books had on learning in
Kenyan schools.
Mr. Banerjee and Ms. Duflo later
conducted similar experiments in India
and further popularised RCTs through
their book Poor Economics, published
in 2011.
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CHAHALACADEMY
The Approach of RCTs:
If one wanted to understand whether
providing a mobile vaccination van
and/or a sack of grains would
incentivise villagers to vaccinate their
kids, then under an RCT, village
households would be divided into four
groups.
Group A would be provided with a
mobile vaccination van facility
Group B would be given a sack of
foodgrains
Group C would get both, and Group D
would get neither.
Households would be chosen at
random to ensure there was no bias,
and that any difference in vaccination
levels was essentially because of the
“intervention”.
Group D is called the “control” group
while others are called “treatment”
groups. Such an experiment would not
only show whether a policy initiative
works, but would also provide a
measure of the difference it brings
about.
It would also show what happens
when more than one initiatives are
combined. This would help
policymakers to have the evidence
before they choose a policy.
Significance of Randomised Controlled
Trial:
RCTs allow economists and other
social science researchers to isolate
the individual impact that a certain
factor alone has on the overall event.
For instance, to measure the impact
that hiring more teachers can have on
children’s learning, researchers must
control for the effect that other factors
such as intelligence, nutrition, climate,
economic and social status etc., which
may also influence learning outcomes
to various degrees, have on the final
event.
Randomised controlled trials promise
to overcome this problem through the
use of randomly picked samples.
Supporters of RCTs believe that since
all random samples are subject to the
same array of "confounding" factors,
they are essentially identical to one
another.
Using these random samples, they
believe, researchers can then conduct
experiments by carefully varying
appropriate variables to find out the
impact of these individual variables on
the final event.
A researcher, for instance, may supply
one random set of schools with more
teachers while other schools are left
alone. This will allow him to gauge the
effect of hiring more teachers on
learning.
Many development economists
believe that RCTs can help
governments to find, in a thoroughly
scientific way, the most potent policy
measures that could help end poverty
rapidly.
Criticisms of Randomised Controlled
Trials?
A popular critic of randomised
controlled trials is economist Angus
Deaton, who won the economics
Nobel Prize in 2015. Mr. Deaton has
contended in his works, including a
paper titled "Understanding and
misunderstanding randomised control
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CHAHALACADEMY
trials" that simply choosing samples
for an RCT experiment in a random
manner does not really make these
samples identical in their many
characteristics.
While two randomly chosen samples
might turn out to be similar in some
cases, he argued, there are greater
chances that most samples are not
really similar to each other. Other
economists have also contended that
randomised controlled trials are more
suited for research in the physical
sciences where it may be easier to
carry out controlled experiments.
They argue that social science
research, including research in the
field of development economics, may
be inherently unsuited for such
controlled research since it may be
humanly impossible to control for
multiple factors that may influence
social events.
DEFINING MSMEs
Why in news?
The government will soon make changes to
the definition of a micro, small and medium
enterprise, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said
recently and hoped to generate five crore jobs
in the MSME sector in five years.
What are Micro, Small & Medium
Enterprises ?
Definitions of Micro, Small & Medium
Enterprises: In accordance with the provision
of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises
Development (MSMED) Act, 2006 the Micro,
Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) are
classified in two Classes:
1. Manufacturing Enterprises-The
enterprises engaged in the manufacture or
production of goods pertaining to any industry
specified in the first schedule to the industries
(Development and regulation) Act, 1951) or
employing plant and machinery in the process
of value addition to the final product having a
distinct name or character or use. The
Manufacturing Enterprise are defined in terms
of investment in Plant & Machinery.
2. Service Enterprises:- The enterprises
engaged in providing or rendering of services
and are defined in terms of investment in
equipment.
How are MSMEs defined at present?
There has been no uniformity over the
years about the definition of what
exactly one means by “small scale
industries” in India. Moreover, the
definition also changes from one
country to another.
In India, for instance, under the
Industrial Development and
Regulation (IDR) Act, 1951, small
industries were conceived in terms of
“number of employees”. But it was
found that obtaining reliable data on
the number of employees was difficult.
As such, a proxy was found – and this
was to look at the investments in plant
and machinery; it was relatively easy
to reliably ascertain and verify this
data.
So at present, the classification of
MSMEs is done based on investment
in plant & machinery/equipment (see
table) in accordance with the provision
of Section 7 of the MSMED Act, 2006.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Why the govt wants to change the
definition of MSMEs?
Definitions based on investment limits
in plant and machinery/ equipment
were decided when the Act was
formulated in 2006. But such a
definition “does not reflect the current
increase in price index of plant and
machinery/equipment,” stated the RBI
report. Moreover, MSMEs, thanks to
their small scale of operations and
informal organisation, MSMEs don’t
always maintain proper books of
accounts. This essentially results in
their not being classified as MSMEs.
The change of definition is likely to
improve the ease of doing business for
MSMEs, and in the process, make it
easier for them to pay taxes, attract
investments and create more jobs.
Gadkari said that MSMEs have
created 11 crore jobs till now, but
“now, the mission for five years is that
we need to create more than five crore
jobs in five years, particularly in tribal,
rural and agricultural areas”.
The clear and unambiguous definition
– that is also in consonance with
global norms and learns from the best
practices across countries – is the
starting point to reforming this crucial
sector of the economy.
Global Practices on Defining MSMEs:
According to the World Bank, a
business is classified as an MSME
when it meets two of the three
following criteria: employee strength,
assets size, or annual sales.
According to a 2014 report, as many
as 267 definitions were used by
different institutions in 155 economies.
But the most widely used variable for
defining an MSME was the number of
employees — 92% of the institutions
use this. Other definitions were based
on turnover as well as the value of
assets (49% and 36%, respectively).
Around 11% used other variables like
loan size, formality, years of
experience, type of technology, size of
the manufacturing space, and initial
investment amount etc.
The crucial thing, however, is that
most of the countries used only one
variable to define MSMEs.
Significance of MSMEs:
more than 28% of the GDP and about
45% to manufacturing output. It is also
a true reflection of economics where
people really matter. Providing
employment to about 111 million
people, the sector’s health is crucial to
the economy’s vitality and society’s
well being.
According to a Reserve Bank of India
report, the MSMEs are amongst the
strongest drivers of economic
development, innovation and
employment. Looking back at data
since 2000-01, MSME sector growth
has almost every year outstripped
overall industrial growth in the country.
The micro, small and medium
enterprises (MSME) sector in India a
key engine of growth, contributing
significant way to the growth of the
Indian economy with a vast network of
about 63.38 million enterprises. The
sector contributes about 45% to
manufacturing output, more than 40%
of exports, over 28% of the GDP while
creating employment for about 111
million people, which in terms of
volume stands next to agricultural
sector. The sector’s health is crucial to
the economy’s vitality and society’s
well being.
However, the RBI report also noted
that at present the sector is
“exceedingly heterogeneous in terms
of size of the enterprises and variety of
products and services, and levels of
technology employed” and that it has
the potential to grow at a much faster
rate. One of the key attractions of this
sector is that it huge employment
generation potential at relatively lower
capital investment.
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CHAHALACADEMY
IMF CUTS WORLD AND INDIA
GROWTH RATES
Why in news?
The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
recently slashed its economic growth forecast
for India to 6.1% for the current fiscal from its
July projection of 7%, citing weaker than
expected outlook for domestic demand. IMF
also lowered India's FY21 GDP growth
forecast by 20 bps to 7.2%
More on news:
The World Bank-International
Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meetings
took place recently, with the IMF
downgrading global growth in 2019 to
3%, the slowest since the global
financial crisis.
India’s growth projections have also
been downgraded to 6.1% and 7.0%
in 2019 and 2020 respectively, down
by 1.2 percentage points and 0.5
percentage points relative to April
projections, owing to weaker than
expected domestic demand.
Global Growth Projection:
The IMF downgrading global growth in
2019 to 3%, the slowest since the
global financial crisis.
World output is projected to increase
to a modest 3.4% in 2020 — still lower
by 0.2% than the April projection.
Unlike the slowdown this recovery is
expected to be “precarious” and “not
broad based” as per the IMF.
Emerging economies will show
increased growth — from 3.9% in
2019 to 4.6% in 2020, while advanced
economies will slow to 1.7% in 2019
and 2020. The report called for
defusing trade tensions,
“reinvigorating” multilateral
cooperation and “providing timely
support to economic activity where
needed”.
Reasons Cited for lower Growth:
Globally, rising trade barriers,
heightened uncertainty around trade
and geopolitics, idiosyncratic factors
that have strained several emerging
markets and structural factors such as
advanced economies’ ageing
population and low productivity growth
were the causes behind a
“synchronized slowdown” the IMF said
in its 2019 World Economic Outlook
(WEO) Global Manufacturing
Downturn, Rising Trade Barriers
report, released on Tuesday morning
Indian Slowdown:
India’s growth rate in the April-June
quarter had hit 5% , the lowest in six
years, as per government data.
Consumption, investment and exports
were down. The World Bank too
recently had projected that India’s
growth rate would fall to 6.0% from
6.9% in 2018.
The Index of Industrial Production for
India was 1.1%, month on month, in
September — its lowest since
February 2013.
In the case of India there has been a
negative impact on growth that’s come
from financial vulnerabilities in the
non-bank financial sector and the
impact that’s had on consumer
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CHAHALACADEMY
borrowing and borrowing of small and
medium enterprises
Measures Taken:
The projected growth in India’s case
will be supported by lagged effects of
monetary policy easing, cuts to
corporate tax, measures to address
environmental and corporate
uncertainty, and government programs
to boost rural consumption, as per the
WEO.
Faced with a slowdown in several
sectors of the economy, Finance
Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had
announced a number of policy
measures to support a recovery
including slashing the corporate tax
rate and a rollback of surcharges on
foreign portfolio investors. This is
expected to cost ₹1,45,000 crore a
year — putting at risk the
government’s ability to stick to its fiscal
deficit target of 3.3% of GDP this year.
IMFs Recommendations:
The WEO recommended broad based
structural reforms to strengthen
confidence and address cyclical
weakness. The report called for a
“credible fiscal consolidation path”
over the medium term to bring down
elevated public debt, supported by
measures to enhance the tax base
and rationalize subsidy-spending.
The report also recommended
“reforms to hiring and dismissal
regulations” to help incentivize job
creation and “land reforms …to
encourage and expedite infrastructure
development.” It called for a
strengthening of governance of public
sector banks and greater efficiency of
their credit allocation.
Projection on US-China:
The IMF projected the U.S. would
grow at 2.4% and 2.1% in 2019 and
2020 respectively – marginally revised
upwards by 0.1 and 0.2 percentage
points respectively from April
projections.
The Federal Reserve’s rate cuts and a
two year budget deal ( a bipartisan
budget package agreed in August),
offset the negative impact of trade-
related uncertainties, the WEO report
said.
For China, growth was projected to
grow at 6.1% and 5.8% in 2019 and
2020 (down from 6.3% and 6.1% April
projections) due to escalating tariffs
and weakening external demand.
MONETARY TRANSMISSION
CONUNDRUM
Why in news?
Recently, the Reserve Bank of India reduced
the repo rate by 25 bps to 5.15% to boost
growth while keeping the policy stance
accommodative. In its Monetary policy meet
RBI noted, monetary transmission has been
staggered and incomplete.
Since February, RBI has cut its interest rate by
135 basis points. Yet, bank lending rates for
new loans have not fallen by much while
interest rates on many existing loans have
actually gone up.
Highlights of RBI’s Monetary Policy
Statement:
Repo rate or short-term lending rate
reduced by 25 bps to 5.15%
It is fifth rate cut in 2019
GDP growth forecast lowered for
current fiscal to 6.1% from 6.9%
RBI continues with its accommodative
monetary stance to revive economic
growth
Government stimulus measures to
help strengthen private consumption
and spur investments
Continuing slowdown warrants
intensified efforts to restore growth
momentum
Retains retail inflation projection for
second half of year at 3.5-3.7%
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CHAHALACADEMY
RBI notes monetary transmission has
been staggered and incomplete
Foreign exchange reserves stood at
$434.6 bn on Oct 1, up $21.7 bn over
March-end 2019
All members of Monetary Policy
Committee (MPC) voted for rate cut
Next monetary policy review meet
scheduled during December 3-5, 2019
What is monetary transmission?
To put it simply, monetary
transmission is the process through
which changes in a central bank’s
monetary policy gets reflected in the
real economy.
So, for instance, if a central bank
reduces interest rates it charges from
borrowing banks, it would expect that
reduction to be passed on to eventual
customers as a result of the monetary
transmission process.
Usually, there is a lag between the
actions of the central bank and those
of the commercial banks. The lag is
less when central banks raise interest
rates.
Why is monetary transmission being
mentioned now?
Since February, the RBI has
aggressively cut the repo rate (Repo
Rate is the interest rate that the RBI
charges the banks when it lends them
money).
By cutting the repo rate, the RBI has
been sending a signal to the rest of
the banking system that the lending
rates in the system – the interest rates
that banks charge from you and me
when we take a loan – should come
down.
This process of repo rate cuts leading
to interest rate cuts across the banking
system is called “monetary policy
transmission”.
The trouble is, in India, this process is
rather inefficient.
For example, between February and
August, the RBI cut repo rate by 110
basis points — 100 basis points make
a percentage point — from 6.5% to
5.4%. But, the interest rate charged by
banks on fresh loans that they
extended during this period fell by just
29 basis points – that is just 27% of
the amount by which the repo rate
came down.
Disappointed by the by the sluggish
transmission, the RBI decided to cut
the repo rate by another 25 basis
points in October and urged banks to
link their lending rates to the repo rate.
Yet, for the most part, the banking
system has ignored the signalling and
only some banks have reduced
lending rates on new loans by 10
basis points.
In essence, while the RBI has cut its
lending rate to the banks by 135 basis
points (or 1.35 percentage points) in
the nine months since February, the
interest rates being charged to the
common consumer have come down
by only about 40-odd basis points.
Importance of Lower Interest Rates:
Since February, India’s economic growth
momentum has rapidly decelerated.
Projections of GDP growth rate have come
down from roughly 7.2%-7.5% in February to
5.8%-6.0%. And a lower interest rate regime is
expected to help in resolving both.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Firstly, the argument is that if banks
reduce their lending rates, they would
also have to reduce their deposit rates
(the interest rate banks pay when we
park our money with them in a savings
bank deposits or a fixed deposit). This,
in turn, will incentivise people to save
less and spend more.
Secondly, the major in the economy at
present is that businesses are not
investing in existing or new facilities.
Part of the reason is that the interest
rate charged on loans is quite high. If
banks reduce the interest rates on
loans, more businesses are likely to
be enthused to borrow new loans for
investment. This is particularly so as
the government has recently cut
corporate tax rates in the hope that it
will boost the corporate sector’s
profitability and get it thinking of
investing more.
So, why aren’t interest rates coming down?
Because repo rates have little impact
on a bank’s overall cost of funds, and
reducing lending rates just because
the repo has been cut is not feasible
for banks.
For Example: To attract deposits,
banks pay a high deposit rate. Such
deposits make up almost 80% of all
banks’ funds from which they then
lend to borrowers. Banks borrow a
minuscule fraction under the repo. So
even sharply reducing the repo rate
doesn’t change the overall cost of
funds. Unless banks reduce their
deposit rates, they will not be able to
reduce their lending rates.
For any bank to be viable, there must
be a clear difference between the
interest rate it charges from borrowers
on loans it provides and the interest
rate it gives to consumers on deposits
it accepts. The difference between
these two sets of interest rates has to
be not only positive but also big
enough for the bank to make profits.
Why are banks not reducing their deposit
rates?
That’s because if a bank were to
reduce its deposit rates, depositors
would shift to a rival bank that pays
better interest rates or park more and
more of their savings in small saving
instruments such as public provident
fund, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana etc
that pay much higher interest rates.
There is another aspect. Even if banks
wanted to reduce their deposit rates,
they can’t always reduce them
immediately. Miren Lodha, Director,
CRISIL Research, said 65% of total
deposits are “term” deposits (fixed for
a certain duration) and take, on an
average, up to two years to get
repriced at fresh rates. “Therefore,
banks generally go slow on reducing
the interest rates on advances as
deposits take longer to get repriced.”
Why Monetary Transmission has so far
been ineffective?
Because the banks cannot link their
lending to the repo rate because repo
doesn’t determine their cost of funds.
For a repo-linked regime to work, the
whole banking system would have to
shift to that – in other words, along
with banks’ lending rates, their deposit
rates too must go up and down with
the repo. But if such a regime were in
place, depositors would have earned
1.10 percentage points less interest
rate on their savings account.
Way Forward: Are there any innovative ways
to make both sides of the banks’ balance
sheet flexible so that transmission could be
faster?
Accepting bulk deposit at variable rate
may not be sufficient to impart cost-
flexibility as the size of such deposits
is small compared to total deposits.
An innovative way to make both asset
and liability sides of bank balance
sheet flexible is to link both deposit
and lending rates to average inflation
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CHAHALACADEMY
rate of the previous quarter with
appropriate mark-up — 2 per cent for
a one-year deposit and 4 per cent for
one-year lending, excluding
idiosyncratic risk.
In order to incentivise depositors to opt
for inflation linked deposit rate, 25
basis points extra may be loaded to
the fixed rate deposits, while all fixed
rate loans over one quarter may be
penalised by 25 bps. This proposal,
besides improving monetary policy
transmission, will call upon banks to
strive for efficiency.
SOCIAL SECURITY SCHEME FOR
GIG WORKERS
Why in news?
The Union government is seeking to regulate
India’s booming gig economy by bringing lakhs
of workers hired by food delivery firms, Swiggy
and Zomato, and ride hailing firms, Uber and
Ola, under draft Code on Social Security.
About the Draft Code on Social Security for
Gig Economy Workers:
The move forms a key part of the new
‘Code on Social Security’ drafted by
the government and is aimed at
ensuring the social security needs of
gig workers.
The Central Government may
formulate and notify from time to time
suitable social security schemes for
gig workers and platform workers on
matters relating to life and disability
cover; health and maternity benefits;
old age protection; and any other
benefit as may be determined by the
Central Government,” the government
wrote in the Code on Social Security in
the section dealing with social security
for unorganised workers.
Every such scheme formulated and
notified may provide for the manner of
administration of the scheme; the
agency or agencies for implementing
the scheme; the role of aggregators in
the scheme; the sources of funding of
the scheme and any other matter as
the Central Government may consider
necessary for the efficient
administration of the scheme,
according to the draft Code on Social
Security.
What Is the Gig Economy?
In a gig economy, temporary, flexible
jobs are commonplace and companies
tend toward hiring independent
contractors and freelancers instead of
full-time employees.
A gig economy undermines the
traditional economy of full-time
workers who rarely change positions
and instead focus on a lifetime career.
In a gig economy, large numbers of
people work part-time or temporary
positions. The result of a gig economy
is cheaper, more efficient services,
such as Uber or Airbnb, for those
willing to use them. Cities tend to have
the most highly developed services
and are the most entrenched in the gig
economy.
There is a wide range of positions that
fall into the category of a gig. For
example, adjunct and part-time
professors are contracted employees
as opposed to tenured or tenure-track
professors. Colleges and universities
can cut costs and match professors to
their academic needs by hiring more
adjunct and part-time professors.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Criticisms of the Gig Economy:
Despite its benefits, there are some
downsides to the gig economy. While
not all employers lean toward hiring
contracted employees, the gig
economy trend can make it harder for
full-time employees to develop fully in
their careers since temporary
employees are often cheaper to hire
and more flexible in their availability.
Workers who prefer a traditional
career path and the stability and
security that come with it are being
crowded out in some industries.
For some workers, the flexibility of
working gigs can actually disrupt work-
life balance, sleep patterns, and
activities of daily life.
Need for the Social Security for Gig
Economy Workers:
India’s tech-enabled gig economy is
currently largely unregulated with
drivers and delivery boys working with
little job security and few benefits.
The gig economy companies have
built their businesses on inexpensive
and independent labour that offers no
social security, insurance or other
benefits.
In the gig economy, workers take up
short-term contracts or freelance work
and get paid for the gigs they do.
There is no formal contract signed
between the employer and the
employee.
The gig economy consists of platforms
which connect service providers with
consumers. They raise concerns that
defy classification in the pre-existing
legal frameworks.
Companies which own these
platforms claim that the service
providers are not really workers or
employees, but, in fact, “independent
contractors”, who enjoy flexibility of
work hours and freedom to choose
nature of work.
These “gigs” allow people to step in
and out of paid work at their
convenience, while also doing away
with the requirement of a fixed
workplace.
However, workers are always under
surveillance with ratings systems, and
face threats of deactivation via non-
transparent means.
Their earnings are also volatile, as far
as monthly incomes are concerned.
This is specifically disadvantageous to
women, who cannot avail of benefits,
like maternity leaves available under
traditional laws.
These concerns co-exist with
workplace safety issues. In India, apps
such as Urban Clap pose new
challenges in terms of safe
workplaces.
Gig Economy in India:
An estimated 56 per cent of new
employment in India is generated by
the gig economy companies, across
both the blue-collar and white-collar
workforce, according to TeamLease.
The exact number of gig workers is
unknown, but a 2017 study by
consulting firm EY said nearly one out
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CHAHALACADEMY
of four gig workers in the world are in
India.
The draft proposal comes in the wake
of California recently approving a law
for wage benefit and protection for gig
workers, including those working in
taxi aggregating companies such as
Uber and Lyft, which is a popular tax
aggregator in the US.
Concerns:
While there are calls to introduce
radical changes in India’s labour laws,
some policy experts argue that
regulating emerging start-ups would
cause turmoil.
Regulating the gig economy has
caught the world’s attention after law
makers in California passed a
landmark bill on September 10 that
threatens to reshape how companies
do business. The legislation, known as
Assembly Bill 5, would require gig
economy workers to be reclassified/
treated as employees instead of
contract workers.
Industry experts were cautious about
the move and said that while the
government seems to mean well, it will
bring challenges for policy
implementation and growth of gig
players such as taxi aggregators, food
apps, and workforce supplier
platforms.
India’s labour market is complex with
less than 10% of the workers in formal
jobs. Universal social security will
benefit millions, provided there is a
proper actionable roadmap, which at
this point is not clear though the draft
proposes unorganised sector social
security boards at the Centre and
state levels for putting the plan into
effect.
GLOBAL COMPETITIVENESS
INDEX
Why in news?
The Global Competitiveness Index was
recently released by the World Economic
Forum (WEF). Singapore has become the
world’s most competitive economy in 2019,
pushing the U.S. to the second place. Hong
Kong SAR is ranked 3rd, Netherlands is 4th
and Switzerland is ranked 5th.
About Global Competitiveness Index(GCI):
The Global Competitiveness Report
(GCR) is a yearly report published by
the World Economic Forum.
The Global Competitiveness Index
(GCI), which was launched in 1979,
maps the competitiveness landscape
of 141 economies through 103
indicators organised into 12 pillars.
The report "assesses the ability of
countries to provide high levels of
prosperity to their citizens".
This in turn depends on how
productively a country uses available
resources. Therefore, the Global
Competitiveness Index measures the
set of institutions, policies, and factors
that set the sustainable current and
medium-term levels of economic
prosperity
About the latest edition of the Global
Competitiveness Report:
The latest edition of the Global
Competitiveness Report is the fourth
version of the global competitiveness
index – hence referred to as GCI 4.0 –
and it was introduced in 2018. The
141 countries mapped by this year’s
GCI account for 99 per cent of the
world’s GDP.
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CHAHALACADEMY
The basic notion behind the GCI is to
map the factors that determine the
Total Factor Productivity (TFP) in a
country. The TFP is essentially the
efficiency with which different factors
of production such as land, labour and
capital are put to use to create the
final product. It is believed that it is the
TFP in an economy that determines
the long-term economic growth of a
country.
According to the report, the GCI 4.0 is
“the product of an aggregation of 103
individual indicators, derived from a
combination of data from international
organizations as well as from the
World Economic Forum’s Executive
Opinion Survey”.
The GCI 4.0 tracks data and/or
responses on 12 factors divided into 4
broad categories.
1. The first category is the “Enabling
Environment” and this includes
factors such as the state of
infrastructure, institutions, the
macroeconomic stability of the
country and its ability to adopt new
technology.
2. The second category is “Human
Capital” and includes health and
level of skills in the economy.
3. The third is the state of “Markets”
such as those for labour, product,
financial and the overall market
size.
4. The last category is “Innovation
Ecosystem” which includes
business dynamism and
innovation capability.
Each of these 12 factors will further
include sub-factors. For example,
within “Institutions” under the
“Enabling Environment” category, the
GCI tracks the performance on
detailed factors such as the
performance of the public sector, the
level of transparency and corruption,
the state of corporate governance, the
incidence of terrorism etc.
Overall, there are a total of 103
individual factors that GCI 4.0 maps to
arrive at the final result.
India's Performance:
As many as 141 countries were
surveyed for the index.
India has moved down 10 places to
rank 68th in the index as it fared
poorly in most parameters such as
infrastructure, the adoption of
information, communications and
technology (ICT), financial markets,
skills, and innovation capability,
compared to last year.
India, which was ranked 58th in the
annual Global Competitiveness Index
(2018) compiled by Geneva-based
World Economic Forum (WEF), is
among the worst-performing BRICS
nations along with Brazil (ranked even
lower than India at 71st this year).
On the crucial financial sector
parameter, India's position
deteriorated to 40th from 35th.
However, the WEF said India's
financial sector was relatively deep
and stable despite the high
delinquency rate (10 per cent of the
loan portfolio -- ranked at 106th),
which contributed to the weakening of
its banking system.
Besides, the country could not keep
pace with many small but closely
positioned nations such as Colombia,
Azerbaijan, and Turkey, showed the
Global Competitiveness Report 2019.
In the overall index, India scored 61.4
out of 100, as against 62.1 last year.
Within the BRICS (Brazil, Russia,
India, China and South Africa) nations,
India trailed China by 40 places and
14 points. South Africa was at 60th
position with 62.4 points. Along with
Brazil, India was among the low-
performing countries in the grouping,
said the WEF. Brazil was placed at
71st with 60.9 points. Russia was at
the 43rd rank with 68.7 score.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Positive Developments:
India ranks high in terms of
macroeconomic stability and market
size, while its financial sector is
relatively deep and stable despite the
high delinquency rate, which
contributes to weakening the
soundness of its banking system.
India is ranked also high at 15th place
in terms of corporate governance,
while it is ranked second globally for
shareholder governance, the WEF
study showed.
In terms of the market size, India is
ranked third, while it has got the same
rank for renewable energy regulation.
Besides, India also punches above its
development status when it comes to
innovation, which is well ahead of
most emerging economies and on par
with several advanced economies, the
report said.
But, these positive metrics contrast
with major shortcomings in some of
the basic enablers of competitiveness
in case of India, the WEF said, while
flagging limited ICT (information,
communications and technology)
adoption, poor health conditions and
low healthy life expectancy.
Low healthy life expectancy:
The WEF said the healthy life
expectancy, where India has been
ranked 109th out of total the 141
countries surveyed for the index, is
one of the shortest outside Africa and
significantly below the South Asian
average.
Besides, India needs to grow its skills
base, while its product market
efficiency is undermined by a lack of
trade openness and the labour market
is characterised by a lack of worker
rights’ protections, insufficiently
developed active labour market
policies and critically low participation
of women.
With a ratio of female workers to male
workers of 0.26, India has been
ranked very low at 128th place. India
is also ranked low at 118th in terms of
meritocracy and incentivisation and at
107th place for skills.
GLOBAL VALUE CHAINS
Why in news?
Recently, the World Bank released a report
titled “World Development Report 2020:
Trading for Development in the Age of Global
Value Chains” in which the bank argues that
these reforms can help developing countries
expand from commodity exports to basic
manufacturing, while ensuring that economic
benefits are shared more widely across
society.
What is Value Chain?
The concept of a value chain has been
used to analyse international trade in
global value chains and comprises
“the full range of activities that are
required to bring a product from its
conception, through its design, its
sourced raw materials and
intermediate inputs, its marketing, its
distribution and its support to the final
consumer.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Value Chain is different from a Supply
Chain, a ‘supply chain’ refers to the
system and resources required to
move a product or service from
supplier to customer.
The ‘value chain’ concept builds on
this to also consider the manner in
which value is added along the chain,
both to the product / service and the
actors involved.
From a sustainability perspective,
‘value chain’ has more appeal, since it
explicitly references internal and
external stakeholders in the value-
creation process.
It also encourages a full-lifecycle
perspective and not just a focus on the
(upstream) procurement of inputs.
Value is generally used in a narrow
economic sense, but it can be
interpreted to encompass ‘values’, ie
ethical and moral concerns as well as
other non-monetary utility values such
as closing material loops, the provision
of ecosystem services and added
customer value.
"Value chains are an integral part of
strategic planning for many
businesses today. A value chain refers
to the full lifecycle of a product or
process, including material sourcing,
production, consumption and
disposal/recycling processes.”
About Global Value Chain:
In development studies, the global
value chain (GVC) describes the
people and activities involved in the
production of a good or service and its
supply, distribution, and post-sales
activities (also known as the supply
chain) when activities must be
coordinated across geographies.
GVC is similar to Industry Level Value
Chain but encompasses operations at
the global level.
According to the World Bank, “a global
value chain (GVC) is the series of
stages in the production of a product
or service for sale to consumers. Each
stage adds value, and at least two
stages are in different countries. For
example, a bike assembled in Finland
with parts from Italy, Japan, and
Malaysia and exported to the Arab
Republic of Egypt is a GVC. By this
definition, a country, sector, or firm
participates in a GVC if it engages in
(at least) one stage in a GVC”.
About the Report “World Development
Report 2020: Trading for Development in
the Age of Global Value Chains”: On Global
trade.
According to the Report:
The global value chains today account
for nearly 50 per cent of trade
worldwide, but their growth has
plateaued since the financial crisis of
2008,”.
Creation of the European single
market — together with the integration
of China, India, and the Soviet Union
into the global economy — created a
huge new product and labour markets,
and so firms could sell the same
goods to more people and take
advantage of economies of scale,
leading to the further deepening of
GVCs.
The new supply of cheap labour
encouraged profit-seeking companies
to either reallocate their production
facilities or find local suppliers in low-
wage countries.
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CHAHALACADEMY
A one per cent increase in
participation is estimated to boost per
capita income levels by more than one
per cent — about twice as much as
standard trade.
In Ethiopia, firms participating in global
value chains are more than twice as
productive as similar firms that
participate in standard trade.
In an era of slowing trade and growth,
developing countries can achieve
better outcomes for its people through
reforms to boost their participation in
global value chains.
Global value chains have played an
important part in the growth, by
enabling firms in developing countries
to make significant gains in
productivity, and by helping them
transition from commodity exports to
basic manufacturing
Importance of Global Value Chains:
The GVCs exploit hyper specialisation,
and to do so they break down the
production process across countries.
This has resulted in firms across a
variety of countries benefiting from
trade.
World Bank states, “These gains were
driven by the fragmentation of
production across countries and the
growth of connections between firms.
Parts and components began
crisscrossing the globe as firms looked
for efficiencies wherever they could
find them. Productivity and incomes
rose in countries that became integral
to GVCs—Bangladesh, China, and
Vietnam, among others. The steepest
declines in poverty occurred in
precisely those countries”.
Also: “GVCs allow resources to flow to
their most productive use, not only
across countries and sectors, but also
within sectors across stages of
production. As a result, GVCs magnify
the growth, employment, and
distributional impacts of standard
trade.
In summary, unlike traditional
international trade whose transactions
involve only two countries (an
exporting country multiple times. This
approach to trade not only leads to the
rich set of determinants and
consequences of GVC participation for
measuring GVC activity in the world”.
Impact on poverty:
Since gains in growth from global
value chains are larger than from trade
in final products, their impact on
poverty reduction is also larger.
Regions in Mexico and Vietnam that
participated more intensively in global
value chains experienced greater
reductions in poverty, the report said.
Further, firms in global value chains
draw people into more productive
manufacturing and services activities
and tend to employ more women,
supporting structural transformation in
developing countries, it said.
The report notes that global value
chains can continue to be a force for
sustainable growth — if developing
countries undertake environmental
protection measures, particularly
efforts to reduce production subsidies
and carbon pricing, deeper policy
reforms and advanced economies
pursue open, predictable policies.
The report shows how countries can
take the initiative to achieve better
outcomes — by choosing from a range
options customised for their specific
stage of development.
The report also highlights the steps
countries can take to attract GVC
investments, even if they have been
largely left out of the value chain
revolution.
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CHAHALACADEMY
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
EDGE COMPUTING
Why in news?
According to a recent research, by 2025,
companies will generate and process more
than 75% of their data outside of traditional
centralised data centres — that is, at the
“edge” of the cloud.
More about the news:
Cloud computing — by which remote
servers hosted on the Internet store
and process data, rather than local
servers or personal computers — is
ready to move to the next level.
Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet, the
parent company of Google — the
technology giants that provide cloud
computing infrastructure to major
corporates and governments — want
to leverage 5G wireless technology
and artificial intelligence to enable
faster response times, lower latency
(ability to process very high volumes
of data with minimal delay), and
simplified maintenance in computing.
This is where Edge Computing comes
in — which many see as an extension
to the cloud, but which is, in fact,
different in several basic ways.
By 2025, says the global research and
advisory firm Gartner, companies will
generate and process more than 75%
of their data outside of traditional
centralised data centres — that is, at
the “edge” of the cloud.
What is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is the delivery of
computing services—including
servers, storage, databases,
networking, software, analytics, and
intelligence—over the Internet (“the
cloud”) to offer faster innovation,
flexible resources, and economies of
scale.
Cloud computing, in layman’s
language, refers to remotely running
workloads in a commercial provider’s
data centre over the Internet. It is
becoming increasingly popular today.
We can typically pay only for cloud
services you use, helping lower your
operating costs, run your infrastructure
more efficiently and scale as your
business needs change.
This approach eliminates costs related
to the development, deployment, and
maintenance of IT resources while
simultaneously extending an
organisation the most cutting-edge
features and technologies.
Moreover, this equips businesses with
greater flexibility in upscaling and
downscaling operations or modifying
subscription of a critical service as per
business conditions. But, this flexibility
is unobtainable through other
traditional methods.
Big businesses wanting to curtail their
expenditure, and small-budget
enterprises, looking for more
computing capacity, no longer have to
spend on servers and expensive
hardware. Cloud companies, with their
network of data centres, deliver these
services over the Internet.
Along with global leaders Amazon,
Microsoft and Google, local players,
too, are foraying into to this growing
market.
Cloud computing is currently witnessing
massive global adoption given its cost-
effective model that focuses on operational
expenditure. However, as cloud solutions
continue to proliferate, they are
simultaneously creating three major
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CHAHALACADEMY
challenges for organisations.
The Exponential data:
Cloud-based applications and devices
constantly generate data that needs to
be processed with respect to a certain
predefined function. But IoT devices
and sensors also generate additional
data that is not relevant for the
particular function for the same. This
superfluous data, in any case, utilise
cloud resources and increases related
costs.
Data security:
Data centres lead to centralisation of
the network as well as the data for
organisations. This centralisation
leads to a network arrangement that
creates a single point of failure.
If this point of failure collapses, it
makes the whole network unviable.
Similarly, the data in transit can also
be attacked by a cyber attacker.
Events such as these can compromise
critical information of businesses and
lead to substantial losses.
Data latency:
Today, cloud technology is enabling
the automation of a majority of day-to-
day processes. This is bringing
greater precision, effectiveness, and
efficiency in managing operations.
Some of these cloud-driven solutions
include automated surveillance
devices, healthcare monitors,
industrial robots, drones, droids, and
so forth. They need a constant flow of
information with the data centre.
However, long-distance
communication is known to cause
data latency that results in
transmission delays. Such delays can
be very unfavourable in multiple cloud
applications. For instance, if the
sensor data is not timely processed in
a self-driving car or in an industrial
robot, it can lead to a catastrophic
event.
This is where Edge Computing comes in to
make a difference
What is Edge Computing?
Simply put, edge computing enables data to
be analysed, processed, and transferred at the
edge of a network. The idea is to analyse data
locally, closer to where it is stored, in real-time
without latency, rather than send it far away to
a centralised data centre. So whether you are
streaming a video on Netflix or accessing a
library of video games in the cloud, edge
computing allows for quicker data processing
and content delivery.
How is edge computing different from
cloud computing?
The basic difference between edge
computing and cloud computing lies in
where the data processing takes place
.
At the moment, the existing Internet of
Things (IoT) systems perform all of
their computations in the cloud using
data centres.
Edge computing, on the other hand,
essentially manages the massive
amounts of data generated by IoT
devices by storing and processing
data locally.
That data doesn’t need to be sent over
a network as soon as it processed;
only important data is sent —
therefore, an edge computing network
reduces the amount of data that
travels over the network.
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CHAHALACADEMY
Advantages of Edge Computing:
There are numerous advantages to using edge
computing:
Primarily, it decreases the total
distance that data has to travel in
order to get processed, which
subsequently decreases transmission
costs, reduces latency, and enhances
Quality of Service (QoS).
Secondly, it limits the dependency on
a singular IT resource and leads to
decentralisation of the network. This
eliminates a singular point of failure,
which can cause major service
disruption.
Edge computing also increases the
security and compliance since
sensitive data can be filtered out at
network edges and only the relevant
data-model-building information can
be transmitted to the cloud.
NOBEL PRIZE FOR PHYSICS
Why in news?
The 2019 Physics Nobel awarded to 3
scientists for discoveries in
cosmology.
It was awarded with one half to James
Peebles “for theoretical discoveries in
physical cosmology” and the other half
jointly to Michel Mayor and Didier
Queloz “for the discovery of an
exoplanet orbiting a solar-type star.”
Why did James Peebles get the Prize?
No one knows much about the earliest
states of the universe, but theories
hold that it was a compact, hot and
opaque particle soup. Modern
cosmology assumes that the universe
formed as a result of the Big Bang.
The Theory: About 400,000 years
after the Big Bang, the universe
expanded and cooled to a few
thousand degrees Celsius. This
caused it to become transparent,
allowing light to pass through it. This
ancient afterglow of the Big Bang, the
remnants of which still can be
observed, is known as the cosmic
microwave background (CMB). The
universe continued to expand and cool
and its present temperature is close to
2 kelvin. That is, approximately minus
271 degrees Celsius.
Microwaves have wavelengths in the
range of millimetres which has been
long compared to visible light. The
CMB consists of light in the microwave
range because the expansion of the
universe stretched the light so much.
Microwave radiation is invisible light.
The CMB was detected first in 1964,
winning for its discoverers a Nobel
Prize in 1978.
Peebles realised that measuring the
CMB’s temperature could provide
information about how much matter
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CHAHALACADEMY
had been created in the Big Bang. He
also saw that the release of this light
played a role in how matter could form
clumps creating what we now see as
galaxies. This was a major
breakthrough.
In decades of work since the 1960s,
Peebles used theoretical physics and
calculations to interpret what
happened after Big bang.
His work is focused largely on Cosmic
Microwave Background (CMB)
radiation, which is electromagnetic
radiation left over from the early
universe once it had cooled sufficiently
following the Big Bang.
This discovery by Peebles heralded a
new era of cosmology. Many
questions — how old is the universe?
What is its fate? How much matter and
energy does it contain? These could
be answered by studying the variation
of the CMB. The news release of the
Nobel academy describes these
variations as wavelets on the sea
surface — small from a distance but
significant when close.
Why did Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor
and Didier Queloz get the Prize?
One half of the Nobel Prize was
shared by Michel Mayor and Didier
Queloz of the University of Geneva,
for discovering for the first time a
planet outside our solar system
orbiting a Sun-like star.
The planet discovered by Mayor and
Queloz in 1995 is 50 light years away,
orbiting the star 51 Pegasus that is
similar to our Sun.
Called 51 Pegasus b, the exoplanet is
not habitable either, but it challenged
our understanding of planets and laid
the foundation for future discoveries.
Using a spectrograph, ELODIE, built
by Mayor and collaborators and
installed at the Haute-Provence
Observatory in France, they predicted
the planet by observing the “Doppler
effect” — when the star wobbles as an
effect of a planet’s gravity on its
observed light.
About planet is 51 Pegasi b:
The constellation Pegasus has a star
51 Pegasi which is some 50 light
years away from earth. On October 6,
1995, the prize-winning duo
discovered a planet orbiting it.
It was named 51 Pegasi b, as per
astronomical conventions. It is a gas
giant, about half the size of Jupiter,
which is why it was given the name
Dimidium, meaning one-half. It orbits
its star in just four days. It is unlikely
that we can survive that.
It is a gas giant comparable to Jupiter,
yet it very hot, unlike icy cold Jupiter;
51 Pegagsus b is even closer to its
star than Mercury is to our Sun.
Until then, gas giants were presumed
to be cold, formed a great distance
from their stars.
Today, it is accepted that these hot
gas giants represent what Jupiter
would look like if it were suddenly
transported closer to the Sun. The
discovery of the planet “started a
revolution in astronomy”, as described
in the official Nobel Prize website.
“Strange new worlds are still being
discovered… forcing scientists to
revise their theories of the physical
processes behind the origins of
planets,” it said.
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CHAHALACADEMY
What are Exoplanets?
The word planet is a general term that
describes any celestial body that
moves around a star. Well, there are
also “rogue” planets that do not orbit
stars. An exoplanet is a planet outside
our solar system. It is an extrasolar
planet.
The hunt for extraterrestrial life, if any
exists, depends on finding habitable
planets, mainly outside our Solar
System.
Today, exoplanets are being
discovered very frequently — over
4,000 are known — which is
remarkable progress from three
decades ago, when not even one
exoplanet was known. The first
confirmed discoveries came in 1992,
but these were orbiting not a star but
the remains of one.
Why did it take so long for exoplanets to be
discovered?
51 Pegasi b was the first exoplanet to
be discovered by Mayor and Queloz in
December, 1995. The delay was due
to the lack of good telescopes or a
suitable method. Indirect methods that
used slight wobbling in the orbits of
binary stars or variations in the
brightness of isolated stars – none
yielded correct results and was
rejected by the astronomy community.
According to the NASA exoplanet
archive, as of October 10, 2019, there
are 4,073 confirmed exoplanets.
This webpage hosts one of the
archives that has such lists and data.
Today, there are not just ground-
based telescopes but space missions
that search for exoplanets, such as the
Kepler Space Telescope.
NOBEL PRIZE FOR CHEMISTRY
Why in news?
Scientists John Goodenough, Stanley
Whittingham and Akira Yoshino won the 2019
Nobel Prize for Chemistry on Wednesday for
the development of lithium-ion batteries, an
important technology in enabling the world to
move away from fossil fuels.
More about the news:
The 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
has been awarded to Stanley
Whittingham, John Goodenough and
Akira Yoshino for their development of
the lithium-ion battery..
The three scientists over their
respective careers have shaped up
what is the now the most-preferred
battery across all rechargeable
devices such as smartphones, laptops
and electric vehicles.
These batteries are lightweight,
rechargeable and powerful and,
besides being compact in size, they
can store significant amounts of
energy from solar and wind power.
American Goodenough, at 97,
becomes the oldest winner of a Nobel
prize. He shared the award equally
with Whittingham from Britain and
Yoshino of Japan.
Whittingham developed the first functional
lithium-ion battery in 1976, Goodenough
brought in a major improvement in 1980, while
Yoshino made the first practical-use lithium-ion
battery in 1985. Commercially manufactured
lithium-ion batteries, based on what Yoshino
had developed, made their first appearance in
1991.
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CHAHALACADEMY
How batteries work?
Batteries convert chemical energy into
electricity.
A battery comprises two electrodes, a
positive cathode and a negative
anode, which are separated by a liquid
chemical, called electrolyte, which is
capable of carrying charged particles.
The two electrodes are connected
through an electrical circuit.
When the circuit is on, electrons travel
from the negative anode towards the
positive cathode, thus generating
electric current, while positively
charged ions move through the
electrolyte.
Single-use batteries stop working once
a balance is established between the
electrical charges. In rechargeable
batteries, an external power supply
reverses the flow of electric charges,
so that the battery can be used again.
Lithium-ion batteries:
A lithium-ion battery or Li-ion battery is
a type of rechargeable battery.
Lithium-ion batteries are commonly
used for portable electronics and
electric vehicles and are growing in
popularity for military and aerospace
applications.
In the batteries lithium ions move from
the negative electrode through an
electrolyte to the positive electrode
during discharge, and back when
charging. Li-ion batteries use an
intercalated lithium compound as the
material at the positive electrode and
typically graphite at the negative
electrode.
The batteries have a high energy
density, no memory effect (other than
LFP cells) and low self-discharge.
Lithium-ion batteries have
revolutionised our lives and are used
in everything from mobile phones to
laptops and electric vehicles.
Through their work, this year’s
Chemistry Laureates have laid the
foundation of a wireless, fossil fuel-
free society, the Nobel Committee said
in a statement.
Contributions of Stanley Whittingham ,
John B Goodenough and Akira Yoshino:
Stanley Whittingham:
When Whittingham began working on
batteries in the 1970s, rechargeable
batteries were already available, but
were bulky and inefficient.
Whittingham worked with newer
materials to make his battery lighter
and more efficient.
The older rechargeable batteries used
to have solid materials in the
electrodes which used to react with
the electrolyte and damage the
battery.
Whittingham’s innovation came from
the fact that he used the atom-sized
spaces within the cathode material,
titanium disulphide, to store the
positive lithium ions.
The choice of lithium was dictated by
the fact that it let go of its electron
quite easily and was also very light.
John B Goodenough:
Whittingham’s battery worked at room
temperature, making it practical, but
was prone to short-circuits on
repeated charging.
An addition of aluminium, and a
change of electrolyte, made it safer,
but the big breakthrough was made by
Goodenough who changed the
cathode to a metal oxide instead of
metal sulphide (titanium disulphide)
that Whittingham had been using.
Goodenough’s battery was almost
twice as powerful as Whittingham’s.
Akira Yoshino:
Yoshino started working on
Goodenough’s battery and tried using
various lighter carbon-based materials
as the anode in order to bring down
the weight further.
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CHAHALACADEMY
He got excellent results with petroleum
coke, a byproduct of the oil industry.
This battery was stable, lightweight,
and as powerful as Goodenough’s.
Dr. Yoshino succeeded in eliminating
pure lithium from the battery, instead
basing it wholly on lithium ions, which
are safer than pure lithium. This made
the battery workable in practice.
The result was a lightweight,
hardwearing battery that could be
charged hundreds of times before its
performance deteriorated. The
advantage of lithium-ion batteries is
that they are not based upon chemical
reactions that break down the
electrodes, but upon lithium ions
flowing back and forth between the
anode and cathode.
Researchers have continued to look for other
materials to make more efficient batteries, but
so far none of these has succeeded in
outperforming lithium-ion battery’s high
capacity and voltage. The lithium-ion battery
itself has, however, gone several modifications
and improvements so that it is much more
environment friendly than when it was first
developed.
THE DNA TECHNOLOGY (USE AND
APPLICATION) REGULATION BILL
- 2019
Why in news?
Recently, the DNA Technology Regulation Bill,
which seeks to control the use of DNA
technology for establishing the identity of a
person, has been referred to a parliamentary
standing committee for examination, the Lok
Sabha secretariat has said.
Background:
The Bill that seeks to control the use
and application of the
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
technology for establishing the identity
of certain categories of persons,
including offenders, victims, suspects
and undertrials, was passed by the
Lok Sabha in July.
A similar bill was passed in the Lok
Sabha in January last year but it could
not be cleared in the Rajya Sabha.
The Bill had then lapsed with the
dissolution of the previous Lok Sabha
The Bill has been referred to the
Parliamentary Standing Committee on
Science and Technology, Environment
and Forests by Rajya Sabha
Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu.
About the DNA Technology:
The Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) is a
set of instructions found in a cell.
These instructions are used for the
growth and development of an
organism.
The DNA of a person is unique, and
variation in the sequence of DNA can
be used to match individuals and
identify them.
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DNA technology, therefore allows for
accurate establishment of an
individual’s identity.
DNA Profiling: DNA profiling (also
called DNA fingerprinting) is the
process of determining an individual's
DNA characteristics, which are as
unique as fingerprints.
In other words, it is the process where
a specific DNA pattern, called a
profile, is obtained from a person or
sample of bodily tissue and used to
identify a person's identity.
About the DNA Technology Regulation Bill,
2019:
1. The Bill regulates the use of DNA
technology for establishing the identity
of persons in respect of matters listed
in a Schedule. These include criminal
matters (such as offences under the
Indian Penal Code, 1860), and civil
matters such as parentage disputes,
emigration or immigration, and
transplantation of human organs.
2. The Bill establishes a National DNA
Data Bank and Regional DNA Data
Banks. Every Data Bank will maintain
the following indices: (i) crime scene
index, (ii) suspects’ or undertrials’
index, (iii) offenders’ index, (iv)
missing persons’ index, and (v)
unknown deceased persons’ index.
3. The Bill establishes a DNA Regulatory
Board. Every DNA laboratory that
analyses a DNA sample to establish
the identity of an individual, has to be
accredited by the Board.
4. The Bill provides for the removal of
DNA profiles of suspects on filing of a
police report or court order, and of
undertrials on the basis of a court
order. Profiles in the crime scene and
missing persons’ index will be
removed on a written request.
5. Written consent by individuals is
required to collect DNA samples from
them. Consent is not required for
offences with punishment of more than
seven years of imprisonment or death.
Need for the DNA Technology Regulation
Bill in India:
DNA-based technology can be used to
aid criminal investigations. For
example, the identity of a criminal
offender may be determined by
matching DNA found at the crime
scene with the DNA of a suspect.
In addition, DNA-based technology
helps in identification of victims in the
event of terrorist attacks or natural
disasters such as earthquakes. For
example, DNA technology has been
used to identify victims of terrorist
attacks on the World Trade Centre in
2001, and disasters such as the Asian
tsunami in 2004.
Further, DNA profiling can be used in
civil matters, such as parentage
disputes, issues related to pedigree,
immigration or emigration, assisted
reproductive technologies,
transplantation of human organs, and
for the establishment of individual
identity.
The incidences of crimes involving
offences that are categorized as
affecting the human body (such as
murder, rape, human trafficking, or
grievous hurt), and those against
property (including theft, burglary, and
dacoity) has been raising in the
country, as per the statistics of the
National Crime Records Bureau
(NCRB) for 2016, is in excess of 3
lakhs per year.
Of these, only a very small proportion
is being subjected to DNA testing at
present. It is expected that the
expanded use of this technology in
these categories of cases would result
not only in speedier justice delivery but
also in increased conviction rates,
which at present is only around 30%
(NCRB Statistics for 2016).
In the past, several expert groups
including the Law Commission, have
looked at the use and regulation of
DNA technology. The Commission
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submitted its report as well as a draft
Bill in July 2017.
Currently, the use of DNA technology
for identification of individuals is not
regulated.
In this context, the DNA Technology
(Use and Application) Regulation Bill,
2018 was introduced in Lok Sabha on
August 9, 2018 and was passed in
jaunary 2019.
Key Issues and Concerns:
Right to Privacy: DNA laboratories
are required to share DNA data with
the Data Banks. It is unclear whether
DNA profiles for civil matters will also
be stored in the Data Banks. Storage
of these profiles in the Data Banks
may violate the right to privacy.
No guarantee of Data Security:
Numerous examples have testified
how easily AADHAAR data can be
accessed. DNA Database could be
another AADHAAR like database,
without adequate protection and
safeguards. Moreover, there is no
linkage shown in the bill between the
government’s other cyber security
projects and regulations, and the
present law.
Profiling of an individual: DNA
samples can reveal not just how a
person looks, or what their eye colour
or skin colour is, but also more
intrusive information like their
allergies, or susceptibility to diseases.
As a result, there is a greater risk of
information from DNA profiling getting
misused to create a profile of an
individual and use it for surveillance as
well as for making profits.
Consent Clause: The Bill requires
consent of the individual when DNA
profiling is used in criminal
investigations and identifying missing
persons. However, consent
requirements have not been specified
in case of DNA profiling for civil
matters.
Removal of Profiles: DNA
laboratories prepare DNA profiles and
then share them with DNA Data
Banks. The Bill specifies the process
by which DNA profiles may be
removed from the Data Banks.
However, the Bill does not require
DNA laboratories to remove DNA
profiles. It may be argued that such
provisions be included in the Bill and
not left to regulations.
GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATION OF
NANOPHARMACEUTICALS IN
INDIA
Why in news?
The Minister for Science and Technology,
Earth Sciences and Health and Family
Welfare, recently released guidelines for
evaluation of nano-pharmaceuticals, which are
emerging as more potent tools for treating
various diseases.
More about the news:
The document, which covers all the
aspects of evaluation from the
definition and categorisation of
Nanopharmaceuticals to pharma
covigilance of the new set of
therapeutics, has been prepared as a
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joint project by the Department of
Biotechnology in the Ministry of
Science and Technology, and Indian
Council of Medical Research and
Central Drugs Standard Control
Organisation in the Ministry of Health
and Family Welfare.
The guidelines apply to the
Nanopharmaceuticals in the form of
finished formulation as well as Active
Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) of a
new molecule or an already approved
molecule with altered nanoscale
dimensions, properties or
phenomenon associated with the
application of nanotechnology
intended to be used for treatment, in
vivo diagnosis, mitigation, cure or
prevention of diseases and disorders
in humans
About Nanoscience:
Nanoscience is the study of materials,
which are in nanoscale range.
Conversion of any material in
nanoscale results in alteration of its
physiochemical, biological,
mechanical, optical, electronic and
other properties.
These newly acquired (novel)
properties of the materials due to
conversion into nanoscale can be
utilized for different useful activities.
Thus, it is relevant for diverse sectors,
such as health, energy, chemicals,
consumer products, various other
industries and environmental
remediation
About Nanotechnology:
Nanotechnology is an enabling
technology for various incremental and
disruptive innovations.
Application of this technology has
tremendous potential in
pharmaceutical industry where it can
improve the therapeutic efficacy and
reduce toxicity due to improved
(actively or passively targeted /
sustained / controlled / triggered /
enhanced / prolonged) delivery of the
drugs.
There may be a concurrent reduction
of the dose of the drug with
enhanced/sustained bioavailability and
lowering of toxicity.
About Nanopharmaceuticals:
A nanopharmaceutical is defined as a
pharmaceutical preparation containing
nanomaterials intended for internal
use or external application on human
for the purpose of therapeutics,
diagnostics and health benefits.
They are a relatively new class of
therapeutic-containing nanomaterials
that often have unique”
nanoproperties” (physiochemical
properties) due to their small size
(compared with their bulk-phase
counterparts) a high surface-to-volume
ratio and the possibility of modulating
their properties.
The nanomaterial is generally defined
as material having particle size in the
range of 1 to 100 nm in at least one
dimension. However, if a material
exhibits physical, chemical or
biological phenomenon or activity
which are attributable to its dimension
beyond nanoscale range up to 1000
nm, the material should also be
considered as nanomaterial.
Therefore, any pharmaceutical
containing such material should also
be considered as nanopharmaceutical
Nanopharmaceuticals present novel
reformulation opportunities for active
agents (e.g., single molecule drugs,
proteins, nucleic acids, etc.) that were
previously insoluble or could not be
targeted to a specific site of the body
where they were needed.
Nanopharmaceuticals can also
increase drug half-life by reducing
immunogenicity and diminishing drug
metabolism.
With these advantages,
Nanopharmaceuticals have the ability
to extend the economic life of
proprietary drugs, thereby creating
additional revenue streams.
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Nanopharmaceuticals is an
emerging area that combines
nanotechnology with biomedical and
pharmaceutical science with the goal
of improved/ targeted drug delivery.
The concept of 5 R’s: ‘right target
/efficacy’, ‘right tissue/exposure’, ‘right
patients’, ‘right safety’ and ‘right
commercial potential’ may help in
successful development of
Nanopharmaceuticals.
Need for these guidelines:
Nano-pharmaceuticals, which are
derived by application of
nanotechnology in medical
therapeutics are expected to bring
about a revolution in treatment
strategies as they would enable target
specific delivery of drugs and
therapeutic molecules and thus offer
higher efficacy and lower toxicity in
many disease conditions. They are
expected to be great use particularly in
cancer treatment.
Development of a nano scale drug
delivery system / nano API may
significantly alter the pharmacokinetic,
biodistribution and toxicokinetic
parameters of the
conventional/traditional drugs, raising
various concerns related to quality,
safety and efficacy of the
nanopharmaceutical products.
Every year several new nano-
pharmaceuticals are being developed
and marketed across the world. India
too has a sizable pool of nano-
scientists generating large number of
scientific publications in this domain.
However, regulatory approval is the
most important factor for translating
laboratory research into bedside
medicine.
Efforts have been made for developing
regulatory guidelines for
nanopharmaceuticals in different
countries.
Since, there are no specific guidelines
for development and evaluation of
nanopharmaceuticals in India, there is
a need to formulate comprehensive
guideline focusing on the quality,
safety and efficacy of
nanopharmaceuticals for their
therapeutic use
Significance of the guidelines:
Nanocarrier based targeted drug
delivery is an emerging field with
introduction of nanopharmaceuticals in
the market. These nanoformulations
have higher efficacy, lower toxicity and
are safer than the conventional drugs.
Indian researchers would be facilitated
to undertake research in line with the
regulatory guidelines and is expected
that Industry would be keen to
participate from the beginning of the
research pipeline towards product
development and commercialisation.
Further, private investments would
also be attracted since these
guidelines would strengthen the
regulatory system.
The guidelines would facilitate
translational research in line with the
regulatory requirements.
Guidelines will also facilitate the
decision making by regulator during
clearances to newer products based
on nanotechnology and similarly to
researchers to get clearance for their
products to launch in market.
End users will also be benefited by the
quality assured anticipated products in
the market in accordance to the
guidelines.
This document will give impetus to
initiate activities for developing safety
guidelines for other domains like agri-
inputs and agri-products, cosmetics,
implantable devices, through
interventions of nanotechnology.
The guidelines will pave the way for
significant benefits through such
cutting edge technology and contribute
to the mission on “Affordable Health
Care for All”.
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CHAHALACADEMY
ORGANOIDS
Why in news?
On October 21, at Neuroscience 2019, the
Society for Neuroscience’s 49th annual
meeting, held in Chicago, U.S., two
neuroscientists warned the gathering that
fellow scientists are “perilously close” to
crossing the ethical red line of growing mini-
brains or organoids in the laboratory that can
perceive or feel things.
More about the news:
In some cases, scientists have already
transplanted such lab-grown brain
organoid to adult animals.
The transplanted organoid had
integrated with the animal brain, grown
new neuronal connections and
responded to light.
Similarly, lung organoid transplanted
into mice was able to form branching
airways and early alveolar structures.
These are seen as a step towards
potential “humanisation” of host
animals.
What is an Organoid?
Organoids are a group of cells grown
in laboratories into three-dimensional,
miniature structures that mimic the cell
arrangement of a fully-grown organ.
They are tiny (typically the size of a
pea) organ-like structures that do not
achieve all the functional maturity of
human organs but often resemble the
early stages of a developing tissue.
Most organoids contain only a subset
of all the cells seen in a real organ, but
lack blood vessels to make them fully
functional.
In the case of brain organoids,
scientists have been able to develop
neurons and even make specific brain
regions such as the cerebral cortex
that closely resemble the human brain.
The largest brain organoids that have
been grown in the laboratory are about
4 mm in diameter.
How Organoids are developed?
Organoids are grown in the lab using
stem cells that can become any of the
specialised cells seen in the human
body, or stem cells taken from the
organ or adults cells that have been
induced to behave like stem cells,
scientifically called induced pluripotent
stem cells (iPSC).
Stem cells are provided with nutrients
and other specific molecules to grow
and become cells resembling a
specific organ.
The growing cells are capable of self-
organising into cellular structures of a
specific organ and can partly replicate
complex functions of mature organs —
physiological processes to
regeneration and being in a diseased
state.
Organoids of the brain, small intestine,
kidney, heart, stomach, eyes, liver,
pancreas, prostate, salivary glands,
and inner ear to name a few have
already been developed in the
laboratory.
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Importance and Uses of Organoids:
Organoids can be used to study the
safety and efficacy of new drugs and
also test the response of tissues to
existing medicines.
Organoids will bring precision
medicine closer to reality by
developing patient-specific treatment
strategies by studying which drugs the
patient is most sensitive to.
Since the use of animals during drug
development studies is becoming
increasingly difficult, the focus has
been on refining, reducing and
replacing them.
While scientists have been
increasingly using human cell lines
and other methods, such alternatives
have some inherent limitations — they
cannot mimic the whole organ system.
Organoids are a far superior
alternative to cell lines.
Role of Organoids in Understanding
Diseases:
Organoids offer new opportunities to
studying proteins and genes that are
critical for the development of an
organ. This helps in knowing how a
mutation in a specific gene causes a
disease or disorder.
In a study in Europe using intestinal
organoids from six patients with an
intestine disorder, it became possible
to identify the mutation in a gene that
prevented the formation of a healthy
intestine.
Researchers have used brain
organoids to study how the Zika virus
affects brain development in the
embryo.
Scientists are already using stem cells
taken from tumours to grow organoids
that are poised to develop cancer.
The ability to grow organoids using
cancer stem cells allows researchers
to study the genes, proteins and
signalling pathways that cancer cells
use to develop and grow.
They are also using healthy organoids
to identify and verify the gene
mutations that cause cancer.
Ethical Challenges:
In an opinion piece in Nature,
scientists argued that the largest brain
that has been grown in the laboratory
is only 4 mm in diameter and contains
only 2-3 million cells. In comparison,
an adult human brain measures 1,350
cubic centimetres, and has 86 billion
neurons and another 86 billion non-
neuronal cells and a similar number of
non-neuronal cells.
The authors argue that organoids do
not have sensory inputs and sensory
connections from the brain are limited.
Isolated regions of the brain cannot
communicate with other brain regions
or generate motor signals.
They wrote: “Thus, the possibility of
consciousness or other higher-order
perceptive properties [such as the
ability to feel distress] emerging
seems extremely remote.”
With organoids transplanted into mice
exhibiting neural activity when
activated with light, the future
possibility of sensory input and output
increasing is real as organoids
become increasingly complex. Arguing
that transplanting brain organoids into
animals is allow blood supply so
organoids can grow bigger, they say
that the “size of rodent models
restricts the degree to which human
brain organoids can grow within them”
NASA'S ICON SATELLITE
Why in news?
NASA recently launched a satellite — called
ICON, short for Ionospheric Connection
Explorer — rocketed into orbit following a two-
year delay.
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CHAHALACADEMY
About Ionospheric Connection Explorer
(ICON) Satellite:
Ionospheric Connection Explorer
(ICON) spacecraft is a first-of-its-kind
mission to study Ionosphere, a region
of space where changes can disrupt
communications and satellite orbits,
and even increase radiation risks to
astronauts.
The satellite was packed in Northrop
Grumman Pegasus XL rocket, which
was released in midair from its carrier
plane Stargazer L-1011.
The probe is going right into the thick
of the ionosphere, heading for a
circular orbit 357 miles (575
kilometers) above Earth's surface.
Equipped with various instruments that
are designed to measure winds and
particles, ICON will also measure how
dense the atmosphere is and analyze
its chemical composition.
While in space, ICON will work in
tandem with another NASA mission
called GOLD (Global-scale
Observations of the Limb and Disk),
which launched as a tagalong payload
aboard a commercial communications
satellite in January 2018.
From its orbital perch 22,000 miles
(35,400 km) above the Earth, GOLD
has been monitoring the ionosphere
from above. The two missions will
work together to provide a complete
picture of the inner workings of the
ionosphere.
Earth's Atmospheric Layers:
Troposphere
The troposphere starts at the Earth's
surface and extends 8 to 14.5
kilometers high (5 to 9 miles). This
part of the atmosphere is the most
dense. Almost all weather is in this
region.
Stratosphere
The stratosphere starts just above the
troposphere and extends to 50
kilometers (31 miles) high. The ozone
layer, which absorbs and scatters the
solar ultraviolet radiation, is in this
layer.
Mesosphere
The mesosphere starts just above the
stratosphere and extends to 85
kilometers (53 miles) high. Meteors
burn up in this layer
Thermosphere
The thermosphere starts just above
the mesosphere and extends to 600
kilometers (372 miles) high. Aurora
and satellites occur in this layer.
Ionosphere
The ionosphere is an abundant layer
of electrons and ionized atoms and
molecules that stretches from about
48 kilometers (30 miles) above the
surface to the edge of space at about
965 km (600 mi), overlapping into the
mesosphere and thermosphere.
This dynamic region grows and
shrinks based on solar conditions and
divides further into the sub-regions: D,
E and F; based on what wavelength of
solar radiation is absorbed. The
ionosphere is a critical link in the chain
of Sun-Earth interactions. This region
is what makes radio communications
possible.
Exosphere
This is the upper limit of our
atmosphere. It extends from the top of
the thermosphere up to 10,000 km
(6,200 mi).
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Significance of the Mission:
The ionosphere is the charged part of
the upper atmosphere extending
several hundred miles (kilometers) up.
It’s in constant flux as space weather
bombards it from above and Earth
weather from below, sometimes
disrupting radio communications.
Until about a decade ago, scientists
thought the sun caused most of the
changes in the ionosphere, but more
recent research suggests that is not
the case; daily changes in the region
are observed even when the sun isn't
generating powerful storms. It is
suggested that this is because
terrestrial weather patterns and
extreme events such as hurricanes
also cause changes in the ionosphere.
This dynamic region where Earth
weather meets space weather is home
to the International Space Station and
is a critical pathway for
communications satellites
Radio waves and Global Positioning
System (GPS) signals pass directly
through this turbulent layer, and those
signals can be distorted by patches of
ionized material.
This is an issue because space
weather can not only have an impact
on communications systems but also
electronics and even power grids. To
mitigate these effects, scientists are
hoping to better understand the sun
and its many processes. And ICON
can help with that.
ICON will make its way to Earth orbit
on a mission to study the planet's
ionosphere, a massive layer of our
atmosphere that overlaps with the
boundary of space. The spacecraft's
measurements will help scientists
better understand the link between
space weather and terrestrial weather,
and how the two interact in the
ionosphere.
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
INDIA-CHINA INFORMAL SUMMIT
Why in news?
Recently, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping are met in the ancient coastal town of Mamallapuram or Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu, some 50 kilometres south of Chennai, for a second Informal Summit on October 11-12.
What is an ‘Informal’ Summit?
Informal Summits act as supplementary exchanges to annual Summits and other formal exchanges and allow for “direct, free and candid exchange of views” between countries, something that may not be possible to do through formal bilateral and multilateral meetings that are agenda driven, where specific issues are discussed, and outcomes are more concretely defined.
Informal Summits may not take place on a fixed annual or biennial schedule; they are impromptu in the sense that they take place when a need for them is perceived by the concerned nations.
This means that the protocol trappings – a red carpet or flags on the table – remain, but there won’t be days of
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CHAHALACADEMY
negotiations to announce a slew of agreements or issue a joint statement. Instead, both sides will issue separate joint press releases summarising the content of the discussions as per their national priorities.
Since Informal Summits allow discussion on wide-ranging issues, they are not particularly purpose-specific, and are sometimes considered to play bigger roles in diplomatic dialogue than formal exchanges — the reason is that they tend to be more in-depth, and relatively flexible in intent and the scope of discussion.
India and Informal Summits:
China is not the only country with which India has had an Informal Summit. In May 2018, Modi met Russia’s President Vladimir Putin for their first Informal Summit in Russia’s Sochi to discuss international matters in a “broad and long-term perspective”.
And in November 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the ASEAN-India Informal Breakfast Summit in Singapore.
In June 2019, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit, Russia, India and China convened together for the “Russia-India-China (RIC) Informal Summit” where they discussed issues related to the economic, security and political situation of the world.
India-China Informal Summit:
This is the second informal summit between the two world leaders, with the first one held at Wuhan, China, last year.
In April 2018, the first summit took place in Wuhan in the wake of the Doklam crisis. The recent meeting was held in the midst of China reacting strongly to the Indian government’s decision on Article 370 and bifurcation of Jammu & Kashmir.
In the second Summit PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on an informal summit at Mamallapuram, a coastal town near Chennai, on October 11-12.
The most important takeaway from the informal summit between Prime Minister Modi and President Xi Jinping
at Mamallapuram, formerly Mahabalipuram is that the two biggest nations with a deep civilisational legacy could successfully explore the areas of detente and cooperation independently of the third party influences. The scale of welcome accorded to the Chinese President reflected the cultural content of Indian hospitality that would not would not go unnoticed in terms of the message of willingness to work for mutually beneficial relationship that it put out for the visiting dignitary.
Why was Mamallapuram chosen as the venue?
The name Mamallapuram or Mamalla, derives from Mamallan, or 'great warrior', a title by which the Pallava King Narasimhavarman I was known.
It is a historical venue, which had proven links with China going back to as many as 1,300 years.
There are indications that the Chinese monk Hiuen Tsang, who visited the Pallavan capital of Kanchipuram, may have also visited Mamallapuram.
The last well-known Chinese leader to visit the town was Chinese premier Zhou Enlai in 1956.
China president Xi Jinping was also a governor of Fujian, where newly-discovered Tamil inscriptions and sculptures show the presence of thriving and prosperous Indian trading community from the 10th to 13th centuries.
Tamil Nadu is also a hub of Chinese investment, with several Chinese firms having their factories in the industrialised southern state.
According to Archeological Survey of India (ASI), it was a sea-port during the time of Periplus (AD 1) and Ptolemy (AD 140), and many Indian colonists sailed to South-East Asia through this port town. While there is some evidence of architectural activity going back to the period of Mahendravarman-I (AD 600-30).
It appears that this is a place with which the Chinese were very familiar a long time ago when this was a busting town for trade
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Modi-Xi informal summit: Key Highlights:
One of the main issues between India and China is trade. During this summit, Modi and Xi reinforced their commitment to improve trade relations. This was one of the key agreements of the Wuhan summit. The leaders agreed to a new set up new mechanisms to achieve this goal.
Modi and Xi agreed that there must be a rules-based and inclusive international order, the MEA statement said. They agreed that there must be reforms that reflects the new realities of the 21st century.
They also agreed that rules-based multilateral trading systems must be supported and strengthened. The nations also reinforced their commitment to work together for open and inclusive trade arrangements that will benefit all countries. They also made a commitment to address global developmental challenges, including climate change and meet the Sustainable Development Goals.
To celebrate the 70th year of diplomatic relations between the two nations, the year 2020 will be designated as Year of India-China Cultural and People to People Exchanges, the MEA said. To mark the occasion, many events will be planned, it added.
To celebrate the civilisational ties between the nations, the MEA said that the two leaders have decided to form a 'Sister-state relationship' between Tamil Nadu and Fujian Province. There is also a proposal to set up an academy to study these links.
In his address at the delegation-level talks, Modi said that the summit had set the path for future discussions. He said that they discussed bilateral and global matters. "The Wuhan spirit has given our relations new momentum and trust. Today, our Chennai vision will begin a new age in relations between our two countries," Modi said.
Xi said that he was happy with the welcome he received and said that invited Modi for another round of discussion China next year. The two leaders also made a commitment to manage differences in such a way that they would "not allow differences
on any issue to become disputes", the MEA statement said.
The discussion, or the lack of it, is the reason for Jammu and Kashmir to figure in this list.
In August, India scrapped Article 370, which gave special status to the state. This irked China, which has several interests in the state (they have invested in PoK, and claim a portion of the state). They lent their support to their "all-weather friend" Pakistan, when the latter raised this in multiple international forums, including the UNSC. However, India had responded to them saying that the matter was an internal one and the move was done to improve the lives of the people of the state, and most nations sided with India on this matter.
This issue happened right before the summit, and many believed that India should raise this matter with China. But it was not even a part of the discussion.
NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT (NAM)
SUMMIT
Why in news?
Recently, Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu represented India at the 18th Non-Aligned Movement summit in Baku, Azerbaijan.
About Non-Aligned Movement (NAM):
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a forum of 120 developing world states that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide
The roots of NAM went back to the friendship between three leaders — Yugoslavia’s Josip Broz Tito, India’s Jawaharlal Nehru, and Egypt’s leader Gamal Abdel Nasser — who held a meeting in 1956. Indonesia’s Sukarno and Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah strongly supported them.
These five leaders came to be known as the five founders of NAM.
Drawing on the principles agreed at the Bandung Conference in 1955, the
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NAM was established in 1961 in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. The first non-aligned summit was also held in Belgrade in 1961.
The Concept of Non-Alignment:
The policy of staying away from alliances should not be considered isolationism or neutrality.
Non-alignment is not isolationism since isolationism means remaining aloof from world affairs. Isolationism sums up the foreign policy of the US from the American War of Independence in 1787 up to the beginning of the First World War. In comparison, the non-aligned countries, including India, played an active role in mediating between the two rival alliances in the cause of peace and stability. Their strength was based on their unity and their resolve to remain non-aligned despite the attempt by the two superpowers to bring them into their alliances
Non-alignment is also not neutrality. Neutrality refers principally to a policy of staying out of war. States practising neutrality are not required to help end a war. They do not get involved in wars and do not take any position on the appropriateness or morality of a war. Non-aligned states, including India, were actually involved in wars for various reasons. They also worked to prevent war between others and tried to end wars that had broken out.
Origin of NAM:
After the end of Second World War, the two power bloc was raising in world politics and the revelry between the blocs was on top.
The Cold War politics emerged as a bitter experience of international relations. Both blocs were mollifying the other countries of the world. It had to become stronger because of many newly independent countries.
For the sake their independence many countries choose the third path to avoiding war and keeping their independence, they framed NAM (Non-alignment Movement).
Most of these countries was belong to Asia and Africa and also newly independent. The US (United States) and European countries criticized NAM and revoked it as a group of opportunist countries.
The NAM emerged as an international platform as a third alternative of two power blocs. The NAM was the international phenomenon of developing and third world countries.
Non-alignment grew out of the cold war bitter relationship between US and USSR.
Some developing and third world newly independent countries refused to post Second World War world politics through the eyes of their erstwhile colonial rulers.
Indian Prime Minister Nehru was one of the paramount leaders of NAM since its inception.
NAM during Cold War:
The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) was created and founded during the collapse of the colonial system and the independence struggles of the peoples of Africa, Asia, Latin America and other regions of the world and at the height of the Cold War.
During the early days of the Movement, its actions were a key factor in the decolonization process, which led later to the attainment of freedom and independence by many countries and peoples and to the founding of tens of new sovereign States.
Throughout its history, the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries has played a fundamental role in the preservation of world peace and security.
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The Founders of NAM have preferred to declare it as a movement but not an organization in order to avoid bureaucratic implications of the latter.
Since its inception, the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries has waged a ceaseless battle to ensure that peoples being oppressed by foreign occupation and domination can exercise their inalienable right to self-determination and independence.
During the 1970s and 1980s, the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries played a key role in the struggle for the establishment of a new international economic order that allowed all the peoples of the world to make use of their wealth and natural resources and provided a wide platform for a fundamental change in international economic relations and the economic emancipation of the countries of the South.
Non-alignment as India’s Foreign Policy:
Non-alignment has been regarded as the most important feature of India’s foreign policy. The policy of non-alignment won many supporters in the developing countries as it provided an opportunity to them for protecting their sovereignty as also retaining their freedom of action during the tension ridden cold war period.
India played an important role in forging the non-aligned movement (NAM). The concept of NAM emerged through a gradual process. Nehru took the initiative to convene the Asian Relations Conference in New Delhi in 1947.
Non-aligned India and the World movement is anti-imperialist in approach. India as the prime architect of non-alignment and as one of the leading members of the non-aligned movement has taken an active part in its growth.
India’s policy was neither negative nor passive. As Nehru reminded the world, nonalignment was not a policy of ‘fleeing away’. On the contrary, India was in favour of actively intervening in world affairs to soften Cold War rivalries.
India tried to reduce the differences between the alliances and thereby prevent differences from escalating into a full-scale war.
Indian diplomats and leaders were often used to communicate and mediate between Cold War rivals such as in the Korean War in the early 1950s.
During the Cold War, India repeatedly tried to activate those regional and international organisations, which were not a part of the alliances led by the US and USSR.
Nehru reposed great faith in ‘a genuine commonwealth of free and cooperating nations’ that would play a positive role in softening, if not ending, the Cold War.
Non-alignment was not, as some suggest, a noble international cause which had little to do with India’s real interests. A non-aligned posture also served India’s interests very directly, in at least two ways:
First, non-alignment allowed India to take international decisions and stances that served its interests rather than the interests of the superpowers and their allies.
Second, India was often able to balance one superpower against the other. If India felt ignored or unduly pressurised by one superpower, it could tilt towards the other. Neither alliance system could take India for granted or bully it.
Criticism of India’s Policy of Non-Alignment:
India’s policy of non-alignment was criticised on a number of counts. Here we may refer to only two criticisms:
First, India’s non-alignment was said to be ‘unprincipled’. In the name of pursuing its national interest, India, it was said, often refused to take a firm stand on crucial international issues.
Second, it is suggested that India was inconsistent and took contradictory postures.
Having criticised others for joining alliances, India signed the Treaty of Friendship in August 1971 with the USSR for 20 years. This was regarded, particularly by outside observers, as virtually joining the Soviet alliance system.
The Indian government’s view was that India needed diplomatic and possibly military support during the Bangladesh crisis and that in any case the treaty did not stop India from
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having good relations with other countries including the US.
Relevance of NAM in Contemporary World Politics:
Non-alignment as a strategy evolved in the Cold War context. With the disintegration of the USSR and the end of the Cold War in 1991, non-alignment, both as an international movement and as the core of India’s foreign policy, lost some of its earlier relevance and effectiveness.
Since the end of the Cold War and the formal end of colonialism, the Non-aligned Movement has been forced to redefine itself and reinvent its purpose in the current world order.
A major question has been whether many of its foundational ideologies, principles can be applied to the contemporary issues.
However, nonalignment contained some core values and enduring ideas. It was based on a recognition that decolonised states share a historical affiliation and can become a powerful force if they come together.
It meant that the poor and often very small countries of the world need not become followers of any of the big powers, that they could pursue an independent foreign policy.
It was also based on a resolve to democratise the international system by thinking about an alternative world order to redress existing inequities. These core ideas remain relevant even after the Cold War has ended.
The NAM has emphasized its principles of multilateralism, equality and mutual understanding in attempting to become a stronger voice of developing and third world countries as well as an instrument that can be utilized and promote the needs of member countries.
About 18th NAM Summit:
The conference of Heads of State or Government of the Non-Aligned Countries, often referred to as Non-Aligned Movement Summit is the main meeting within the movement and are held every few years. A variety of ministerial meetings are also held between the summit meetings.
The 18th Non-Aligned Movement summit was recently held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Theme of the 18th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit: ‘Upholding the Bandung Principles to ensure concerted and adequate response to the challenges of contemporary world’.
Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu represented India at the 19th Non Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Baku, Azerbaijan on October 25 and 26, marking the second time in a row that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give the summit a miss.
Mr. Modi’s absence indicates a decisive move away from past practice at the 60-year-old organisation that India was a founding member of, by the NDA government. In 2016 as well, India was represented by then Vice-President Hamid Ansari at the NAM summit in Venezuela.
ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC
COOPERATION (OIC): ON
KASHMIR
Why in news?
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) recently asked India to “rescind” its actions in Kashmir and abide by the relevant UN Security Council resolutions following New Delhi’s decision to revoke Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.
More on news:
The Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group on Kashmir discussed the Indian government’s decision to revoke Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and the state’s bifurcation into two Union Territories during a meeting on the sidelines of the 74th session of UN General Assembly.
In a draft communique that was released later, the group voiced concern over the human rights situation in Kashmir.
They also discussed the communication restrictions put in place in Kashmir.
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The group demanded that India “rescind” its actions in Kashmir and reiterate its commitment to abide by the relevant UN Security Council resolutions.
It also said India should allow access to Jammu and Kashmir to human rights organisations and international media to ascertain and report on the situation there
About Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC):
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is the second largest inter-governmental organization after the United Nations with a membership of 57 states spread over four continents.
The Organization was established upon a decision of the historical summit which took place in Rabat, Kingdom of Morocco on 25 September 1969.
In 1970 the first ever meeting of Islamic Conference of Foreign Minister (ICFM) was held in Jeddah which decided to establish a permanent secretariat in Jeddah.
The Organization claims that it is the collective voice of the Muslim world and endeavours to safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world.
OIC and its views on Kashmir:
Since its inception, OIC has flagged issues, although with a varying degree of success, which it conceives threaten the wellbeing of Ummah or the brotherhood among Muslims.
Several OIC member states, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, have a strong Islamic identity; hence, issues that invoke Muslim solidarity have become part of OIC’s Islamic Summits and its Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers (ICFM).
While there remains a view that the crisis in Kashmir is rooted in the colonial insensitivity and mismanagement to render an amicable arrangement between India and Pakistan, the Kashmir issue captures the popular imagination of Muslim leaders globally — a dynamic
that Pakistan has sought to exploit at the OIC.
Considering Pakistan’s Islamic credentials that give it a prominent status in the OIC, Islamabad has sought to establish consensus among OIC member states in condemning New Delhi’s Kashmir policy that it argues seeks to undermine the rights of the Muslim population in the state.
In OIC, Pakistan has aggressively pursued the Kashmir issue to isolate India in the Islamic world.
Within the OIC, Turkey, alongside Pakistan, has periodically raised concerns regarding the situation in Kashmir. Pakistan’s continued support to Ankara in its dispute with Cyprus, it seems has shaped Turkish opinion on the Kashmir dispute.
Recently, the OIC also appointed Yousef Aldobeay of Saudi Arabia, an assistant secretary general of the organisation, a special envoy for Jammu and Kashmir during the 14th OIC summit held in Makkah.
In a strong reaction, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said the OIC has no locus standi in matters relating to Jammu and Kashmir and asserted that the state is an integral part of India.
He also said the OIC should refrain from making such "unwarranted references".
India and OIC:
At the inaugural session of OIC held in Rabat, Moroccoin 1969,India was denied membership of the OIC despite its insistence that as the country with the third largest Muslim population in the world deserved a seat at the “Islamic” table.
India’s membership in the group has become more important in the recent times as ever since the OIC’s inception, Pakistan has used the platform to spread canards about the so-called mistreatment of Muslims in India and to alienate India from the Islamic world. Moreover, Islamabad has used the forum to internationalize issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
However, the recent remarks of OIC on J&K is being considered as major diplomatic setback for India. India has
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been consistently criticised by the OIC for its alleged human rights violations in Kashmir, often seen at the behest of Pakistan.
Moreover, Pakistan has always avoided India’s observer status to the OIC, on its part Pakistan had objected stating that any country wishing to get observer status should not be involved in any dispute with an OIC member state the reference being to the India-Pakistan dispute over Kashmir.
However India's stand on OIC's statements has always been crystal clear and time and again India has stated that the OIC has no locus standi in matters relating to the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
India has consistently and emphatically underlined that Jammu and Kashmir is an “integral part of India and is a matter strictly internal to India”. The strength with which India has made this assertion has varied slightly at times, but never the core message.
Importance of OIC to India:
OIC Countries are important for Economic and Energy Independence of India, which is emerging as the world’s third-largest economy and one of the biggest hydrocarbon importers and labour exporters.
India has one of the world’s largest Muslim populations and hence it becomes important to engage with OIC and OIC rightly provides a platform and framework for India’s engagement with the Muslim world and the Middle East.
OIC has always been used as a forum by Pakistan to spread Anti-India propaganda which very well reflects in the statements of OIC in reference to the J&K issue. Good ties with OIC may help India to minimise the Pakistan's efforts to demean India in Summits.
Way Forward:
The Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan has attracted attention at various multilateral forums, including the OIC, and has become an intrinsic feature in Pakistan’s diplomacy to muster support against India in the Islamic world. Influenced by Pakistan, OIC — a prominent organisation of
Islamic countries — has consistently commented on the situation in Kashmir much to India’s dismay.
India should engage more with the member states of OIC as Article 4 (1) of the OIC Charter states the need for consensus among the OIC Council of Ministers for deciding on granting observer status to a state. Consensus-building for India’s entry in the grouping without Pakistan’s support is inconceivable. Thus, it remains in India’s interest to engage positively with Pakistan on this issue and collectively work for the ideals to which the OIC is committed.
Recently, India’s External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj addressed the inaugural session of the 46th Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers on March 1, 2019, in Abu Dhabi as a “guest of honor” invited by this year’s OIC host country, the United Arab Emirates (UAE)During the plenary session, India was able to voice its concerns with respect to the menace of terrorism, which affects the entire world. Pakistan should heed to India’s concerns with respect to terrorism, which find similarity with that of its other two neighbors, Afghanistan and Iran. With mushrooming concerns like the rise of Islamophobia, cross-border terrorism, extremism, and instability in the world order, the OIC has become more relevant than ever before. Active engagement in the grouping by India, home to around 10 percent of the Muslims in the world, can add more substance to the existence and working of the OIC.
DEATH OF ABU BAKR AL-
BAGHDADI Why in news?
On Oct. 26, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, arguably the most wanted terrorist in the world, detonated a suicide belt to avoid capture by U.S. forces. His death, an important and symbolic event in the fight against the Islamic State, was soon followed by the announcement of a successor.
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Who was Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi?
Baghdadi, who was believed to have been born in Iraq perhaps in 1971, proclaimed himself Caliph of the Islamic State in 2013.
The leader of the Islamic State was often described as the most wanted individual in the world. The United States designated him a terrorist some eight years ago, and declared a bounty of $10 million (more than Rs 70 crore) on his head.
He made his first known public appearance the following year, delivering a Ramadan sermon at the Great Mosque of al-Nuri in Mosul in northern Iraq, at which the Islamic State declared itself to be a worldwide Caliphate with al-Baghdadi at its head. The best known among the ISIS leader’s few publicly available pictures are from a video of this sermon at the al-Nuri mosque.
Rise of ISIS and Baghdadi:
In early 2014, al-Baghdadi’s fighters had taken control over western Iraq, and over the next year and a half, the Islamic State ran a sweeping campaign of terror and brutality across a vast swathe of Iraq and Syria, terrifying the world with grisly videos of beheadings and shaking up governments everywhere.
By the end of 2015, it had control over an estimated 8-12 million people over which it imposed an unforgiving version of Sharia law, attracting jihadists from across the world, including a few from India.
The terrorist organisation and empire that Baghdadi headed was estimated at the time to have been the size of Great Britain, with an annual budget of over a billion dollars and an army of more than 30,000 jihadists.
ISIS had huge oil and tax revenues from the regions it controlled and once controlled 88,000 sq km (34,000 sq miles) of territory stretching from western Syria to eastern Iraq.
It imposed its brutal rule on almost eight million people, generating billions
of dollars in revenue from oil, extortion, robbery and kidnapping.
In Iraq, IS slaughters thousands of Yazidis in Sinjar and forces more than 7,000 women and girls into sexual slavery. In Syria, it had massacred hundreds of members of the Sheitaat tribe. IS had beheaded Western hostages in grotesquely choreographed films.
Fall of ISIS:
The ISIS started to weaken from 2016 onward as the international coalition, backed by regional allies including, most importantly, Syrian Kurdish peshmerga fighters, gained ground in Syria and Iraq.
In 2017, Islamic State suffers a year of catastrophic defeats. In June, it loses Mosul to Iraqi forces after months of fighting and Baghdad declares the end of the caliphate. In September the Syrian army races eastwards backed by Russia and Iran to relieve Deir al-Zor and re-extend state control at the Euphrates River. In October, the SDF drives IS from Raqqa.
In 2018, the Syrian government retakes IS enclaves in Yarmouk, south of Damascus, and on the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. The SDF advances further down the Euphrates and Iraqi forces take the rest of the border region. The United States vows to withdraw troops.
In 2019, IS fighters are defeated at their last enclave on the Euphrates at
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the village of Baghouz, the SDF says. The SDF declares the “caliphate” eliminated.
As the formal structure of ISIS crumbled, thousands of its fighters went underground, even though local groups continued to carry out isolated terrorist incidents across the world in the name of ISIS and al-Baghdadi. Among the biggest of these attacks were carried out in Paris in November 2015, and in Sri Lanka in 2019.
Does Baghdadi's Death Signifies the End of ISIS?
Isis was battling a heavily outnumbered Kurdish force to take control of Kobane. It was a one-sided battle till the Americans began heavy aerial attacks on Isis forces and started pounding the caliphate.
ISIS couldn’t match the combined might of the US, the Turks, Iranian-sponsored Shia militias, the Syrian state and various other fighting forces like the Kurdish YPG which was the fighting arm of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).
Baghdadi was successful in institutionalizing essential organizational structures Baghdadi’s death will result in substantial weakening and perhaps the demise of ISIS. Advocates of this view argue that Baghdadi is irreplaceable, given his claim of lineage to the prophet Muhammad, religious credentials and education in Koranic studies, and operational success in creating an Islamic State.
Although the group no longer operates as a proto-state governing vast amounts of land, it remains active, with estimates of between 10,000 and 15,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria.
There are, inevitably, lieutenants who might take over the top job now that Baghdadi’s gone. One is a Tunisian named Abu Othman al-Tunsi and the other a Saudi, Abu Saleh al-Juzrawi. But terrorism experts speculate their nationalities may work against them because they aren’t Syrian or Iraqi.
The Islamic State and India:
In 2015, the Home Ministry notified Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as a banned terrorist organisation under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, stating that it is involved in radicalisation and recruitment of vulnerable youths.
The ISIS has attracted foreign fighters from South Asia, mainly Pakistanis, Afghans, Maldivians and Bangladeshis. Though not many were known to have gone from Sri Lanka, the Easter attacks showed potential of violence even by a small group of committed cadres with support of the ISIS network. In
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Bangladesh three years ago, ISIS did create an effective but small network, with active support of western nationals of Bangladeshi origin. The security apparatus has broken up the network, but Bangladesh remains vulnerable.
Though less than 100-200 Indians are believed to have traveled to Syria and Iraq and much less to Afghanistan to join ISIS, this creates potential for more recruitment as well as aiding attacks on Indian soil or interests. The fresh round of radicalisation and recruitment that ISIS will surely embark on under its new leader, will pose further threats to India as well as to South Asia. A few weeks ago, ISIS propaganda has called for jihad pegged on sentiments around Kashmir and has specifically called for attacks on Indian interests in the Arabian Peninsula.
BANGLADESH'S PRIME MINISTER
SHEIKH HASINA VISITS INDIA
Why in news?
At the invitation Prime Minister of India, H.E. Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, paid an official visit to India on 05 October 2019.
Apart from her official engagements in New Delhi, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was also invited as the Chief Guest at the India Economic Summit organized by the World Economic Forum on 03-04 October 2019.
This is her first visit to India since parliamentary elections were held in Bangladesh and India.
Key Highlights of the Visit:
India and Bangladesh inked seven pacts and launched three projects after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina.
Major Pacts:
1. The use of the Chittagong and Mongla ports in Bangladesh for movement of goods to and from India, particularly from Northeastern India.
2. Dhaka also allowed New Delhi to withdraw 1.82 cusecs of water from
Feni River for a drinking water supply scheme for Sabroom town in Tripura.
3. Exchange of data and information to prepare a framework of interim sharing agreements for six rivers — Manu, Muhuri, Khowai and Gomati rivers of Tripura and Dharla river of Bangladesh and Dudhkumar river of West Bengal.
4. Daudkanti (Bangladesh)-Sonamura (Tripura) inland water trade route to be included under Protocol of the Inland Water Transit and Trade.
5. Consensus on lifting restrictions on entry and exit from land ports in India for Bangladeshi citizens travelling on valid documents
6. Implementation of the Lines of Credit (LoCs) committed by India to Bangladesh
Projects Launched:
1. Import of bulk Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) from Bangladesh
2. Inauguration of Vivekananda Bhaban (students hostel) at Ramakrishna Mission, Dhaka.
3. Inauguration of Bangladesh-India Professional Skill Development Institute (BIPSDI) at the Institution of Diploma Engineers Bangladesh (IDEB), Khulna, Bangladesh.
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Other important Highlights:
Both Leaders agreed to early operationalization of the Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicles Agreement
The leaders directed their officials to expedite establishment of twelve Border Haats which have been agreed to by both countries
The Bangladesh Prime Minister raised concerns over roll out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, an exercise carried to identify genuine Indian citizens living in Assam and weed out illegal Bangladeshis.
The Bangladesh Prime Minister requested the Indian counterpart to use his “good relations” with the Myanmar government to facilitate the return of all the refugees (Rohingyas), while appreciating the aid India has given to refugees in Bangladesh as well as 250 homes built for them in Myanmar.
Significance of the Visit:
Border Security and Management:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi appreciated the zero-tolerance policy of the Government of Bangladesh against terrorism and commended Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her resolute efforts to ensure peace, security and stability in the region.
The two Prime Ministers reiterated their strong commitment to eliminate terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and stressed that there can be no justification whatsoever for any act of terror.
Boosting Connectivity – on land, on the waters, in the skies:
Both sides recognized that increasing connectivity through air, water, rail, road offers mutually beneficial opportunity for enhancing economic cooperation between Bangladesh and the North Eastern States of India and beyond.
Both leaders underlined the immense potential of movement of cargo using the inland water and coastal shipping trade. Towards this, they welcomed the decision to operationalize the
Dhulian-Gadagari-Rajshahi-Daulatdia-Aricha Route (to and fro) and include Daudkandi-Sonamura Route (to and fro) under Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade.
As a further step to enhance road connectivity between both the countries, both Leaders welcomed plans for commencement of Dhaka-Siliguri Bus service.
To facilitate better connectivity and simplify movement of passengers and goods between both the countries, both Leaders agreed to early operationalization of the BBIN Motor Vehicles Agreement for movement of goods and passengers between the member countries who are willing and ready; or to work towards a bilateral India-Bangladesh Motor Vehicles Agreement, as appropriate.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina thanked Prime Minister Modi for considering the supply of a number of broad-gauge and meter-gauge locomotives to Bangladesh, on a grant basis. This would help in enhancing trade between both the countries.
Harnessing Defense Cooperation:
The two leaders recognized the need for increased cooperation in defence for a more integrated and secure neighborhood, taking into account the illustrious history of their cooperation from the joint operation of both forces during Bangladesh's Great Liberation War in December 1971.
Both Prime Ministers welcomed the initiatives for development of closer Maritime Security Partnership, and appreciated the finalization of an MoU on Establishment of Coastal Surveillance Radar System in Bangladesh.
Both leaders also agreed to expedite work towards drawing upon a US$ 500 mn Defence Line of Credit extended by India to Bangladesh, for which implementation arrangements have been finalized in April 2019.
Consolidating Development Cooperation:
Prime Minister Hasina thanked the Government of India for undertaking various High Impact Community
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Development Projects (HICDPs) in Bangladesh as grant-in-aid projects, as a contribution to taking socio-economic development to the grassroots of Bangladesh
Both sides expressed satisfaction over the ongoing bilateral cooperation in capacity building of civil servants of Bangladesh. The Government of India, given the common legacy of jurisprudence, would work toward increasing the number of training programs for Bangladesh judicial officers for the future.
Cross-border Energy Cooperation
Both the Prime Ministers inaugurated a project on Sourcing of bulk LPG from Bangladesh to Tripura by using Bangladesh Trucks and hoped that such energy links will boost cross border energy trade.
Both sides welcomed the agreement reached at the 17th JSC meeting on Indo-Bangladesh cooperation in Power Sector held in Dhaka recently, to develop a 765kV Double Circuit cross-border electricity interconnection between Katihar (India), Parbotipur (Bangladesh) and Bornagar (India).
While implementation modalities will be finalized, the Leaders noted that this additional capacity would enable more intra-regional electricity trade, including competitively-priced power generated from Hydro-electric power projects in India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Partners in the Region and the World:
The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to work closely in the UN and other multilateral organisations.
They also reaffirmed their commitment to work together particularly in the international arena, to call upon developed countries to fulfill their commitments on the means of implementation as enshrined in the Agenda 2030.
Both leaders agreed that Regional and sub-regional cooperation is a priority area for the two countries. Towards this goal, they agreed to streamline the activities of BIMSTEC to make it an effective vehicle for sub-regional cooperation to achieve the aim of
collective prosperity of all member countries.
THE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE, 2019.
Why in news?
The Nobel Peace Prize for 2019 has been awarded to Prime Minister of Ethiopia for resolving Ethiopia-Eritrea border conflict.
History of the Ethiopia-Eritrea Conflict:
Conflict between the two countries has a longer history. Eritrea, once an Italian colony, was merged with Ethiopia in 1936 during Benito Mussolini’s regime, then taken over by the British during the Second World War.
After the War, a United Nations declaration in 1950 made Eritrea part of a federation with Ethiopia.
When Eritrean groups launched a struggle for independence in 1961, Ethiopia dissolved the federation and annexed Eritrea in 1962.
From 1961 until 1991, Eritrea had fought a long war of independence against Ethiopia
After a war that lasted 30 years, Eritrea gained international recognition as an independent country in 1993.
Just over five years after Independence, however, war broke out between the two countries over the control of Badme — a border town of no apparent significance, but which both Addis Ababa and Asmara coveted.
Massive displacements of population followed, families were torn asunder, and the local trading economy was utterly destroyed. As the conflict evolved into a major refugee crisis, thousands of Eritreans fled to Europe.
The violence, which went on until an agreement to cease hostilities in 2000, claimed 80,000 lives and separated countless families. Since then, the two countries were in a state the Nobel Committee described as “no peace, no war”.
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End of war and Stalemate:
In June 2000, the two countries signed an Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities. It was followed, in December that year, by a Peace Agreement in Algiers, Algeria. This agreement formally ended the war and established a Boundary Commission to settle the dispute.
The Commission gave its “final and binding” ruling in April 2002. Badme was awarded to Eritrea.
However, Ethiopia refused to accept the decision without additional conditions, and a stalemate ensued. Ethiopia refused to give up control over Badme, and the border kept erupting in clashes.
Efforts of Abiy Ahmed Ali to Resolve Ethiopia’s conflict with Eritrea:
In April 2018, Abiy Ahmed, then a 41-year-old former Army officer who had fought in the war, became Prime Minister. Things picked up pace immediately.
In June, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed broke the nearly two-decade stalemate, announcing that Addis Ababa would abide by the full terms of the 2000 agreement.
On July 8, 2018, a day before he travelled to meet President Afwerki in Asmara, Prime Minister Ahmed made a rousing declaration: “There is no longer a border between Eritrea and Ethiopia because a bridge of love has destroyed it”.
The Nobel Committee noted how Abiy, in cooperation with Afwerki, worked out the principles of a peace agreement, set out in declarations the two leaders signed in Asmara during that July visit and in Jeddah in September. It also listed domestic achievements by Abiy in his first 100 days as Prime Minister — lifting Emergency, granting amnesty to thousands of political prisoners, discontinuing media censorship, legalising outlawed opposition groups, dismissing military and civilian leaders suspected of corruption, and increasing the influence of women in political and community life.
Significance of the Peace Deal:
For Ethiopia:
Ethiopia is landlocked, and through the years of the war with Eritrea, had been dependent heavily on Djibouti, which sits on the Bab al-Mandab strait, for access to the Gulf of Aden and onward to the Arabian Sea.
The peace deal with Eritrea opened up Eritrean ports for Ethiopian use, most prominently the port of Assab, located at the tip of the country’s ‘tail’, to balance its reliance on Djibouti.
For Eritrea:
President Afwerki had used the war with Ethiopia to keep himself in power since the country’s independence in 1993. Over the past two decades, even as Eritrea sank steadily into economic stagnation and social and diplomatic isolation, he had built and maintained a large conscription army, kept the constitution under suspension, and muzzled the press, all in the name of fighting the “continuous occupation of Eritrean territories by Ethiopia”.
The UN Human Rights Commission had repeatedly accused Eritrea of serious violations. The international pressure on its government had increased greatly after Eritreans fleeing the war and compulsory military service flooded European shores at the height of the refugee crisis in 2015-16.
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Challenges Ahead:
While the peace effort is a step forward, ethnic rivalries in Ethiopia have flared in recent years and the country has millions of internally displaced refugees. “No doubt some people will think this year’s prize is being awarded too early. The Norwegian Nobel Committee believes it is now that Abiy Ahmed’s efforts deserve recognition and need encouragement,” the Committee said.
It acknowledged Afwerki too: “Peace does not arise from the actions of one party alone. When Prime Minister Abiy reached out his hand, President Afwerki grasped it…”
ENVIRONMENT, ECOLOGY AND
BIODIVERSITY
HUMANS POLLUTE MORE THAN
VOLCANOES: STUDY Why in news?
According to a recent study, human activity churns out up to 100 times more planet-warming carbon each year as all the volcanoes on Earth.
The findings were published in the journal Elements.
Highlights of the study
The Deep Carbon Observatory (DCO), a 500-strong international team of scientists, released a series of papers outlining how carbon is stored, emitted and reabsorbed by natural and manmade processes.
They found that manmade carbon dioxide emissions drastically outstrip the contribution of volcanoes — which belch out gas and are often fingered as a major climate change contributor — to current warming rates.
Manmade emissions in 2018 alone topped 37 gigatonnes.
By comparison, the CO2 released annually by volcanoes hovers around 0.3 and 0.4 gigatonnes — roughly 100 times less than manmade emissions.
DRAFT SEED BILL, 2019 Why in news?
Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare placed the revised draft Seeds Bill 2019, in the public domain for suggestions and comments.
Features of the bill
It aims to regulate the quality of seeds for sale, import, export, and replace the Seeds Act, 1966.
It aims to replace other legislations governing the seed market like Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act, 2001 (PPVFR Act) and Seeds Control Order, 1983.
All varieties of seeds for sale have to be registered and are required to meet certain prescribed minimum standards. If a registered variety of seed fails to perform up to expected standards, the farmer can claim compensation from the producer or dealer.
Transgenic varieties of seeds can be registered only after the applicant has obtained clearance under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
The Bill exempts farmers from the requirement of compulsory registration. Farmers are allowed to sow, exchange or sell their farm seeds and planting material without having to conform to the prescribed minimum limits of germination, physical purity
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and genetic purity (as required by registered seeds). However, farmers cannot sell any seed under a brand name.
Penalties have been proposed for contravening any provision of the Act for those selling misbranded or substandard seeds.
Key shortfall
The Bill contains provisions for the Centre and states to introduce capping of prices.
It seems that the government is willfully ignoring the lessons of the recent Shetkari Sanghatana (SS) ‘civil disobedience’ protest. In consequence of this, Monsanto withdrew one of its most advanced GM offerings from approval. As the Shetkari Sanghatana protest shows, the fact is that the farmers are aware of the benefits of GM technology.
They are even willing to pay a premium as long as the GM seeds deliver the promised increase in yields, which translates into profits.
Moreover, companies such as Monsanto invest heavily in R&D to develop products. These not only drive up farm profits but also are fast emerging as a key need as climate change effects threaten agriculture. So, any move to discourage seed-tech will be anti-farmer.
Disincentivizing seed-tech companies will have the same effect that the price-caps in pharma and medical devices have had. In these sectors, companies have just kept their latest offerings out of the market. In many ways, losing access to advanced GM tech could seriously undermine Indian agriculture.
INVASIVE WEEDS THREATENING
TIGER HABITATS IN ADILABAD,
TELANGANA Why in News?
Invasive weeds affect population of herbivores which are prey to the big cats As a result, there is an increase in influx of tigers from forests across the border in Maharashtra.
The Rio de Janeiro Convention on Biodiversity (1992) had recognised the
biological invasion of alien species of plants as the second-worst threat to the environment after habitat destruction.
About Invasive Species
Those species whose introduction into an ecosystem successfully out-compete native organisms and harms ecosystems.
Common characteristics are: 1. Rapid reproduction and
growth, 2. High dispersal ability, 3. Phenotypic plasticity (ability to
adapt physiologically to new conditions)
International Instruments and Programmes on Invasive Species
1. Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (2000)
It seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by Living Modified Organisms resulting from modern biotechnology.
2. Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
It was one of the key agreements adopted at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.
Article 8 (h) of the Convention calls on Parties to prevent the introduction of, control or eradicate those alien species which threaten ecosystems, habitats or species.
3. Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) or Bon Convention (1979)
It is an intergovernmental treaty that aims to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species throughout their range.
It also aims to control or to eliminate already present invasive alien species.
4. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
It is an international agreement adopted in 1975 that aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.
It also consider the problems of invasive species when it is involved in trade and threatens the survival of live animals or plants.
5. Ramsar Convention (1971)
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
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of International Importance is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands.
It also addresses the environmental, economic and social impact of invasive species on wetlands within their jurisdictions and to take account of the methods of control and solutions for combating invasive species.
PLOGGING Why in News?
During his morning walk on a beach in Mamallapuram on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was seen picking up plastic litter, bottles and other items. In a tweet shortly after, Modi announced: “Plogging at a beach in Mamallapuram. It lasted for over 30 minutes.”
What does it mean?
'Plogging' means picking up trash such as used plastic bottles while jogging or running.
The Swedish phenomenon of plogging went global recently as both environment and fitness fanatics benefit from the trend.
Background
Started in 2016 by Erik Ahlstrom in the Swedish town of Are, which hosted the recent Alpine skiing world championships, the plogging craze has spread around the world including in India.
"In Swedish 'plocka' is pick, and then jog of course. It's a combination word, it's two words put together - pick and jog," Ahlstrom explained at a plogging event in Stockholm.
In India, the government organised the Fit India Plog Run on October 2, as part of the Fit India Movement launched by the Prime Minister on August 29.
In his Mann Ki Baat address on September 29, PM Modi urged people to start plogging for a litter-free India.
According to Ahlström, plogging for half an hour will burn at least 288 calories on an average as compared to 235 calories from regular jogging
AAREY FOREST CASE
Why in news?
The Supreme Court will hear a plea against the felling of 2,646 trees at the Aarey colony by the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) to make way for a Metro car shed.
The top court decided to pursue it as public interest litigation (PIL) and constituted a “Special Bench” to hear the case.
What has happened?
The MMRCL began axing the trees hours after the Bombay High Court had rejected a bunch of petitions by NGOs and activists against the felling of trees in the prime green area of the city.
MMRC had approached the Authority to seek permission for felling the trees to make way for a car shed which is a part of the Mumbai Metro project.
As soon as the move was announced, it caught the attention of aware citizens and environmentalists who decided to stand together against it.
The Bombay High Court refused to stay the cutting of 2,646 trees at Aarey colony by the MMRCL to make way for a car shed for Metro 3.
Why saving Aarey Forest is important for Mumbai?
Aarey colony, being a riparian forest (interface between land and a river or stream) is home to a variety of different species, which have not yet been documented while at the same time the 16 sq km area is under-researched and can be a source of new species.
Aarey forests are known as the 'lungs' of Mumbai. Hence, cutting down these trees only means depriving Mumbai of a vital organ that has been shielding it from increasing air pollution.
Aarey forest is a vital part of the ecosystem. Falling down these trees will deprive many animals of their shelter and a probable increase man-animal conflict.
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CARBON PRICING
Why in news?
A report has been published by the High Level Commission on Carbon Pricing and Competitiveness which puts a price on carbon, whether in the form of a tax or an emissions trading system (ETS) which may adversely affect the competitiveness of businesses and economies.
What is Carbon Pricing?
Carbon pricing is an instrument that captures the external costs of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—the costs of emissions that the public pays for, such as damage to crops, health care costs from heat waves and droughts, and loss of property from flooding and sea level rise—and ties them to their sources through a price, usually in the form of a price on the carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted.
Benefits of Carbon Pricing
A price on carbon helps shift the burden for the damage from GHG emissions back to those who are responsible for it and who can avoid it.
Instead of dictating who should reduce emissions where and how, a carbon price provides an economic signal to emitters, and allows them to decide to either transform their activities and lower their emissions, or continue emitting and paying for their emissions.
In this way, the overall environmental goal is achieved in the most flexible and least-cost way to society. Placing an adequate price on GHG emissions is of fundamental relevance to internalize the external cost of climate change in the broadest possible range of economic decision making and in setting economic incentives for clean development.
It can help to mobilize the financial investments required to stimulate clean technology and market innovation, fueling new, low-carbon drivers of economic growth.
Two major types of Carbon Pricing
An ETS – sometimes referred to as a cap-and-trade system – caps the total level of greenhouse gas emissions and allows those industries with low emissions to sell their extra allowances to larger emitters. By creating supply and demand for emissions allowances, an ETS establishes a market price for greenhouse gas emissions. The cap helps ensure that the required emission reductions will take place to keep the emitters (in aggregate) within their pre-allocated carbon budget.
A carbon tax directly sets a price on carbon by defining a tax rate on greenhouse gas emissions or – more commonly – on the carbon content of fossil fuels. It is different from an ETS in that the emission reduction outcome of a carbon tax is not predefined but the carbon price is.
WASTE TO WEALTH: COOKING
OIL-TO-BIODIESEL
Why in News?
Restaurant aggregator and food delivery service Zomato and biodiesel manufacturer BioD Energy have inked a partnership to collect used cooking oil from restaurants around the country so that it can be converted into biodiesel, which will then be sold to oil marketing companies that will blend it with regular diesel.
Advantages of this step
Through the partnership, Zomato and BioD are aiming to collect 1,000 tonnes of used cooking oil per month and converting this into biodiesel.
According to FSSAI regulations, the maximum permissible limits for Total Polar Compounds (TPC) have been set at 25%, beyond which the cooking oil is unsafe for consumption.
Reducing the re-use of cooking oil in the food industry will have positive public health
outcomes and also reduces import demand of crude oil
The deal assumes significance in the light of government’s Repurpose Cooking Oil (RUCO) initiative. The government has been pushing hard for used cooking oil in the country to be
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converted into biodiesel as an environmentally friendly measure.
The government recently announced a scheme wherein the State-run oil marketing companies would offtake the entire biodiesel production from companies using used cooking oil as raw materials.
The National Policy on Biofuels 2018, released by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, has set a target of 5% for biodiesel blending in diesel by 2030.
About RUCO
It was launched by The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in Feb 2019 to collect and convert used cooking oil into biofuel.
As many as 64 companies in 101 locations across the country have been identified for the purpose by FSSAI. By 2020, it should be possible to recover about 220 crore litres of used cooking oil for conversion into biofuel.
2019 OZONE HOLE IS THE
SMALLEST ON RECORD
Why in News?
The ozone hole over Antarctica is the smallest observed since 1982, due to abnormally warm temperatures in the upper atmosphere that dramatically limited ozone depletion in September and October this year, according to NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellite measurements.
The annual ozone hole reached its peak extent of 16.4 million square kilometers on September 8, and then shrank to less than 10 million square kilometers for the remainder of September and October 2019.
Role of Ozone
Ozone is a molecule that is composed of three oxygen atoms that occurs naturally in small amounts. It is responsible for filtering out harmful ultraviolet radiation from the Sun.
The gas is constantly being made and destroyed in the stratosphere, about 20-30km above the Earth.
Roughly seven to 25 miles above Earth's surface, in a layer of the
atmosphere called the stratosphere, the ozone layer is a sunscreen, shielding the planet from potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation that can cause skin cancer and cataracts, suppress immune systems and also damage plants.
The Antarctic ozone hole forms during the Southern Hemisphere's late winter as the returning Sun's rays start ozone-depleting reactions.
These reactions involve chemically active forms of chlorine and bromine derived from man-made compounds.
The chemistry that leads to their formation involves chemical reactions that occur on the surfaces of cloud particles that form in cold stratospheric layers, leading ultimately to runaway reactions that destroy ozone molecules.
In warmer temperatures fewer polar stratospheric clouds form and they don't persist as long, limiting the ozone-depletion process.
Ozone Hole
This is the third time in the last 40 years that weather systems have caused warm temperatures that limit ozone depletion.
Similar weather patterns in the Antarctic stratosphere in September 1988 and 2002 also produced atypically small ozone holes.
In an unpolluted atmosphere, this cycle of production and decomposition is in equilibrium. But chlorine and bromine-containing chemicals released by human activity have unbalanced the process, resulting in a loss of ozone that is at its greatest in the Antarctic spring in September/October.
Nearly 200 countries agreed to ban the chemicals most damaging to the ozone under the Montreal Protocol of 1987.
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ART AND CULTURE
BAUL MUSIC
Why in News?
A three day long festival of Baul songs named Indo-Bangla Baul Music Festival concluded in Dhaka which was organised to observe the 129th death anniversary of Baul saint Fakir Lalon Shah.
About
Baul music represents a particular type of folk song, carrying influences of Hindu bhakti movements as well as the shuphi, a form of Sufi song. Songs are also used by the spiritual leader to instruct disciples in Baul philosophy, and are transmitted orally.
The word Baul means “afflicted with the wind disease” and the Baul singers are traditionally wandering minstrels singing their particular form of folk music.
The language of the songs is continuously modernized thus endowing it with contemporary relevance.
It is unique to Bangladesh and West Bengal of India. In 2005, the Baul tradition of Bangladesh was included in the list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.
REMBRANDT
Why in News?
In 2019, India and the Netherlands will commemorate Rembrandt’s 350th death anniversary with a showcase that will celebrate the two countries’ culture and heritage. The art on display will feature some of Rembrandt’s original works.
About
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606 – 1669) was a Dutch draughtsman, painter and printmaker. he is generally considered one of the greatest visual artists in the history of
art and the most important in Dutch art history.
The Night Watch is a 1642 painting by Rembrandt van Rijn. It is one of the most famous Dutch Golden Age paintings.
Rembrandt’s foremost contribution in the history of printmaking was his transformation of the etching process from a relatively new reproductive technique into a true art form. He is regarded as the greatest etcher in the history of the medium.
Indian Miniatures
Rembrandt was interested in Mughal miniatures, especially around the 1650s.
He made 25 drawings based on Mughal miniatures from India during 1656 to 1661, at the height of his career. This is in spite of the fact that the Dutch artist never set foot on Indian soil.
These miniatures include paintings of Shah Jahan, Akbar, Jahangir and Dara Shikoh.
They may also have influenced the costumes and other aspects of his works.
PETTATHULLAL
Why in News?
Blanket ban has been mooted on chemical powder, the bespattering of which constitutes an indispensable part of the PettaThullal ritual.
A study by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board (PCB) has pointed to the presence of hazardous metals, including lead, arsenic, and cadmium, in this powder.
PettaThullal
PettaThullal, ritualistic sacred dance to celebrate the victory of good over evil in the legend of Lord Ayyappa who killed the demon princess Mahishi, which denotes the beginning of the last leg of the annual Sabarimala pilgrimage season.
Petta Thullal will be started first by the Ambalappuzha team
About an issue
Besides causing skin troubles, chemical powder pollutes the soil and
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often gets washed into the water bodies where the chances of these potent chemicals entering the human body are very high
Plans are afoot to promote organic varieties of the brightly coloured powder as an alternative to chemical powder.
SOCIETY
VAYOSHRESHTHA SAMMAN Why in News?
“Vayoshreshtha Samman-2019” was conferred on the eminent senior citizens and institutions in recognition of their services towards the cause of the elderly persons to mark ‘International Day of older Persons’ at a function organized by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on 3rd October, 2019.
About
This year Tamil Nadu is given the award for the best State in implementing the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007
Tamil Nadu State has set up maintenance tribunals under the Act in each sub-division, but half of the cases are resolved through conciliation.
The municipal council of Unhel, in Ujjain district of Madhya Pradesh, will receive the award for the best urban local body for its provision of medical services, income generation schemes and pension to seniors.
Vayoshreshtha Samman
It is a Scheme of awards instituted by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment and gradually upgraded to the status of National Awards, for institutions involved in rendering distinguished service for the cause of elderly persons especially indigent senior citizens and to eminent citizens in recognition of their service/achievements.
These awards are presented as part of the celebration of the International Day of Older Persons (IDOP) on 1st
October.
The National Awards are intended to showcase the Government's concern for senior citizens and its commitment towards them with the aim of strengthening their legitimate place in society.
It is also intended to provide an opportunity for the younger generation to understand the contribution of the elderly in the building of the society and the nation.
The awards are intended to be conferred on eminent senior citizens and institutions involved in rendering distinguished services for the cause of elderly persons especially indigent senior citizens. The recipients are drawn from diverse fields.
The Awards are given to institutions/organisations/individuals from any part of the country. Nominations are invited from Governmental and Non-Governmental Agencies.
NITI AAYOG'S EDUCATION
INDEX
Why in news?
School Education Quality Index (SEQI) was developed by NITI Aayog to evaluate the performance of States and Union Territories (UTs) in the school education sector.
Kerala, Manipur and Chandigarh top in overall performance Haryana, Meghalaya, Daman & Diu show most improvement in the first edition of index.
Background
The index aims to bring an ‘outcomes’ focus to education policy by providing States and UTs with a platform to identify their strengths and weaknesses and undertake requisite course corrections or policy interventions.
In line with NITI Aayog’s mandate to foster the spirit of competitive and cooperative federalism, SEQI strives to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and best practices across States and UTs.
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Developed through a collaborative process, including key stakeholders such as the Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD), the World Bank and sector experts, the index consists of 30 critical indicators that assess the delivery of quality education.
Indicators
The indicators are categorized into Outcomes and Governance Processes Aiding Outcomes (GPAO).
Outcomes include learning outcomes, access outcomes, infrastructure and facilities for outcomes and equity outcomes,
GPAO includes the support system necessary for learning to take place like training and availability of teachers, attendance of students and teachers, administrative adequacy etc.
Highlights of the index
To facilitate a like-for-like comparison, States and UTs have been grouped as Large States, Small States and UTs. Within each of these groups, the indicator values have been appropriately scaled, normalized and weighted to generate an overall performance score and ranking for each State and UT.
Of the 20 Large States, 10 perform better on the Outcomes category, with the most noticeable performance differences observed in the cases of Karnataka, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh.
The other Large States perform better on the Governance Processes Aiding Outcomes category, with the most noticeable performance differences observed in the cases of Odisha, Punjab and Haryana.
Of the eight Small States, seven perform better on the Outcomes category, with the most noticeable performance differences observed in the cases of Manipur, Tripura and Goa.
Sikkim is the only Small State that performs better on the Governance Processes Aiding Outcomes category.
Of the seven UTs, four perform better on the Outcomes category, with the most noticeable performance differences observed in Dadra & Nagar Haveli.
Delhi, Daman & Diu and Lakshadweep perform better on the Governance Processes Aiding Outcomes category
DHRUV PROGRAMME
Why in News?
The Ministry of Human Resource and Development launches a unique initiative for talented students ‘Pradhan Mantri Innovative Learning Programme- DHRUV’.
DHRUV Programme
It is a 14-day learning programme launched by Ministry of HRD in ISRO HQ in Bengaluru.
It aims to further sharpen innovative imagination, skills and knowledge of the students to bring solutions to socio-economic, political and environmental issues in the country.
has been started to identify and encourage talented children to enrich their skills and knowledge. In centres of excellence across the country, gifted children will be mentored and nurtured by renowned experts in different areas, so that they can reach their full potential. It is expected that many of the students selected will reach the highest levels in their chosen fields and bring laurels to their community, State and Nation.
60 brightest and most talented students from Science, Mathematics and Performing Arts have been chosen for the programme through rigorous selection process.
Every student to be called 'DHRUV TARA’ will be mentored by renowned experts.
SURAKSHIT MATRITVA
AASHWASAN (SUMAN)
Why in News?
Government launches Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan, SUMAN, an initiative for quality health care at no cost.
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About
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare along with several State Health Ministers launched Surakshit Matritva Aashwasan, SUMAN, initiative. The initiative was launched during the 13th Conference of Central Council of Health and Family Welfare.
The initiative aims at assuring dignified, respectful and quality health care at no cost and zero tolerance for denial of services for every woman and newborn visiting the public health facility in order to end all preventable maternal and newborn deaths.
It also provides a positive birth experience for both mother and infant.
As per survey conducted in the recent past, the number of cases of blindness in the country has decreased from 0.68 per cent to 0.38 per cent.
Eligibility
All pregnant women, newborns and mothers up to 6 months of delivery will be able to avail several free health care services
Features and Benefits
The scheme will enable zero expense access to the identification and management of complications during and after the pregnancy.
The government will also provide free transport to pregnant women from home to the health facility and drop back after discharge (minimum 48 hrs).
The pregnant women will be able to avail a zero expense delivery and C-section facility in case of complications at public health facilities.
The scheme will ensure that there is zero-tolerance for denial of services to such patients.
Published onNOV / 2019