Archives
(PRELIMS & MAINS Focus)
Ordinance
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Syllabus
Prelims – Polity
Mains – GS 2 (Polity & Governance)
In News: Kerala Governor objects to repromulgation of ordinances.
Governor took exception to the State government’s move to reissue ordinances instead of getting the executive orders ratified by the Assembly.
The government had sent 11 ordinances for repromulgation.
Governor says SC had deemed it a subversion of legislative process.
The Supreme Court had ruled (in 2017) that re-promulgation of ordinances tantamount to subversion of the democratic legislative process.
Ordinance
An ordinance is any law promulgated by the President when the Indian parliament is not in session.
These ordinances have the same legal force and effect as an Act of Parliament, but they are only temporary in nature.
Ordinance Making Power of President
Article 123 grants the President certain law-making powers, including the authority to issue ordinances during Parliament’s recess and hence it is not possible to enact laws in the Parliament.
Following limitations exist with regards to the president’s ordinance making powers:
When one or either of the two Houses of Parliament is not in session, the President may promulgate an Ordinance.
The President cannot issue an Ordinance unless he is satisfied that the situation necessitates ‘immediate action.’
The President’s authority to issue ordinances is justiciable if intentions are proved mala fide.
Ordinance Making Power of Governor
Article 213 states that the Governor of the state may issue ordinances when the state legislative assembly (or either of the two Houses in states with bicameral legislatures) is not in session.
Properties of the Ordinance
An ordinance can be retrospective, which means that it can be enacted prior to its approval.
An ordinance passed while Parliament is in session is deemed null and void.
To stay a law, the Ordinance must be approved by Parliament within six weeks of its reassembly. Its existence is terminated if the parliament does not act within six weeks of its reassembly.
Acts, laws, and events that occurred as a result of the ordinance remain in effect until it expires.
Ordinance promulgation cannot be regarded as a substitute for the President’s legislative authority.
Ordinances can only be passed on subjects where the Indian Parliament has the authority to pass laws.
Ordinances cannot be used to revoke the fundamental rights of the citizens guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
The ordinance would also be declared null and void if both houses passed a resolution opposing it.
Misuse of the Ordinance making power
Deliberate bypassing of the legislature:
At times there are instances that legislature is being deliberately bypassed to avoid debate and deliberations on contentious legislative proposals.
This is against the ethos and spirit of democracy.
Repromulgation of ordinances:
As observed by the Supreme Court, re-promulgation of ordinances is a “fraud” on the Constitution and a subversion of democratic legislative processes, especially when the government persistently avoids placing the ordinances before the legislature.
Undermining the Doctrine of Separation of Powers:
In the Kesavananda Bharati vs. State of Kerala case 1973, the Supreme Court listed the separation of powers as a “basic feature” of the Constitution.
The repromulgation undermines the separation of powers, as it effectively allows the executive to make permanent legislation without legislative input or approval.
The satisfaction of President:
Ordinance can be promulgated only when the President is satisfied that circumstances exist for the same thus providing the scope of misuse of the power.
Ignoring Supreme Court’s Judgements:
SC judgments
It was argued in DC Wadhwa vs. the State of Bihar (1987) that the legislative power of the executive to promulgate ordinances is to be used in exceptional circumstances and not as a substitute for the law-making power of the legislature.
Supreme Court in Krishna Kumar Singh v. the State of Bihar held that the authority to issue ordinances is not an absolute entrustment, but is “conditional upon satisfaction that circumstances exist rendering it necessary to take immediate action”.
Even after tough judgments on the use of ordinances, both the Centre and state governments have ignored the Supreme Court’s observations.
For example, in 2013 and 2014, the Securities Laws (Amendment) Ordinance was promulgated three times.
Our Constitution has provided for the separation of powers among the legislature, executive and judiciary where enacting laws is the function of the legislature. The executive must show self-restraint and should use ordinance making power only in unforeseen or urgent matters and not to evade legislative scrutiny and debates.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
Q.1) Consider the following statements: (2020)
The President of India can summon a session of the Parliament at such place as he/she thinks fit.
The Constitution of India provides for three sessions of the Parliament in a year, but it is not mandatory to conduct all three sessions.
There is no minimum number of days that the Parliament is required to meet in a year.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
1 only
2 only
1 and 3 only
2 and 3 only
Minorities at district level
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Syllabus
Prelims – Polity
Mains – GS 2 (Polity & Governance)
In News: The Supreme Court ruled that to recognise minorities at district level is contrary to law.
The Court was hearing a petition, claiming that Hindus do not get minority status in States where they are “socially-, economically-, politically non-dominant and numerically inferior”.
The petition had also sought a declaration from the Court to identify minorities district wise.
The Supreme Court referred to 11-judge Bench judgment which holds that recognization of minorities should be done at the State level.
The judge was referring to the majority verdict given by the 11-judge Bench in the T. M. A Pai versus State of Karnataka case in 2002.
Judgements related to determination on minority status
TMA Pai Case:
The SC had said that for the purposes of Article 30 that deals with the rights of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions, religious and linguistic minorities have to be considered state-wise.
Bal Patil Case:
In 2005, the SC in its judgement in ‘Bal Patil’ referred to the TMA Pai ruling.
The legal position clarifies that henceforth the unit for determining status of both linguistic and religious minorities would be ‘state’.
Constitutional Provisions for Minorities
Article 29
It provides that any section of the citizens residing in any part of India having a distinct language, script or culture of its own, shall have the right to conserve the same.
It grants protection to both religious minorities as well as linguistic minorities
Article 30:
All minorities shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
The protection under Article 30 is confined only to minorities (religious or linguistic) and does not extend to any section of citizens (as under Article 29).
Article 350-B:
The 7th Constitutional (Amendment) Act 1956 inserted this article which provides for a Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities appointed by the President of India.
It would be the duty of the Special Officer to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for linguistic minorities under the Constitution.
Must Read: Minority Status in India
Source: The Hindu
Quit India Movement
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Syllabus
Prelims – History
Mains – GS 1 (History)
In News: On this day 80 years ago — on August 9, 1942 — the people of India launched the decisive final phase of the struggle for independence.
It was a mass upsurge against colonial rule on a scale not seen earlier, and it sent out the unmistakable message that the sun was about to set on the British Empire in India.
Mahatma Gandhi, who had told the Raj to “Quit India” on the previous day (August 8) was already in jail along with the entire Congress leadership, so when August 9 dawned, the people were on their own — out on the street, driven by the Mahatma’s call of “Do or Die”.
This truly people-led movement was eventually crushed violently by the British, but by then it was clear that nothing short of their final departure was acceptable to India’s masses.
Build-up to August 1942
While factors leading to such a movement had been building up, matters came to a head with the failure of the Cripps Mission.
With World War II raging, the beleaguered British government needed the cooperation of its colonial subjects.
With this in mind, in March 1942, a mission led by Sir Stafford Cripps arrived in India to meet leaders of the Congress and the Muslim League.
The idea was to secure India’s whole-hearted support in the war, and the return offer to Indians was the promise of self-governance.
Despite the promise of “the earliest possible realisation of self-government in India”, Cripps only offered dominion status, not freedom.
Also, there was a provision for the partition of India, which was not acceptable to the Congress.
The failure of the Cripps Mission made Gandhi realise that freedom would come only if Indians fought tooth and nail for it.
The Congress was initially reluctant to launch a movement that could hamper Britain’s efforts to defeat the fascist forces.
But it eventually decided on mass civil disobedience.
At the Working Committee meeting in Wardha in July 1942, it was decided the time had come for the movement to move into an active phase.
Gandhi’s address: Do or Die
On August 8, 1942, Gandhi addressed the people in the Gowalia Tank maidan in Bombay (Mumbai).
“Here is a mantra, a short one that I give you. Imprint it on your hearts, so that in every breath you give expression to it,” he said.
“The mantra is: ‘Do or Die’. We shall either free India or die trying; we shall not live to see the perpetuation of our slavery,” Gandhi said.
Aruna Asaf Ali hoisted the Tricolour on the ground. The Quit India movement had been officially announced.
The government cracked down immediately, and by August 9, Gandhi and all other senior Congress leaders had been jailed.
The people vs. the Raj
The arrest of their leaders failed to deter the masses. With no one to give directions, people took the movement into their own hands.
In Bombay, Poona, and Ahmedabad, hundreds of thousands of ordinary Indians clashed with the police.
There were strikes, demonstrations and people’s marches in defiance of prohibitory orders in Kanpur, Patna, Varanasi, and Allahabad.
The protests spread rapidly into smaller towns and villages.
Till mid-September, police stations, courts, post offices, and other symbols of government authority came under repeated attack.
Railway tracks were blocked, students went on strike in schools and colleges across India, and distributed illegal nationalist literature.
In some places, the protests were violent.
Bridges were blown up, telegraph wires were cut, and railway lines were taken apart.
The slogan ‘Quit India’
While Gandhi gave the clarion call of Quit India, the slogan was coined by Yusuf Meherally, a socialist and trade unionist who also served as Mayor of Bombay.
A few years ago, in 1928, it was Meherally who had coined the slogan “Simon Go Back”.
Future Leaders
Underground activities were taken by leaders that included Ram Manohar Lohia, J.P. Narayan, Aruna Asaf Ali, Biju Patnaik, Sucheta Kriplani, etc which later emerged as prominent leaders.
Women Participation
Women took active participation in the movement. Female leaders like Usha Mehta helped set up an underground radio station which led to the awakening about the movement.
Support
Muslim League, the Communist Party of India and the Hindu Mahasabha did not support the movement. The Indian bureaucracy also did not support the movement.
The League was not in favour of the British leaving India without partitioning the country first.
The Communist party supported the British since they were allied with the Soviet Union.
The Hindu Mahasabha openly opposed the call for the Quit India Movement and boycotted it officially under the apprehension that the movement would create internal disorder and will endanger internal security during the war.
Brutal suppression of protests
The Quit India movement was violently suppressed by the British — people were shot and lathicharged, villages were burnt, and backbreaking fines were imposed.
In the five months up to December 1942, an estimated 60,000 people had been thrown into jail.
However, though the movement was quelled, it changed the character of the Indian freedom struggle, with the masses rising up to demand with a passion and intensity like never before: that the British masters would have to Quit India.
Source: Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Q.1) With reference to 8th August 1942 in Indian history, which one of the following statements is correct? (2021)
The Quit India Resolution was adopted by the AICC.
The Viceroy’s Executive council was expanded to include more Indians.
The Congress ministries resigned in seven provinces.
Cripps proposed an Indian Union with full Dominion Status once the Second World War was over.
The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA Act)
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Syllabus
Prelims – Current Affairs
Mains – GS 2 (Governance)
In News: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) declared a six-point “guarantee” for tribals in Gujarat’s Chhota Udepur district, including the “strict implementation” of The Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA Act).
The PESA Act was enacted in 1996 “to provide for the extension of the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution relating to the Panchayats to the Scheduled Areas”.
Under the PESA Act, Scheduled Areas are those referred to in Article 244(1), which says that the provisions of the Fifth Schedule shall apply to the Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in states other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram
How is the PESA Act, 1996 supposed to work?
The PESA Act was enacted to ensure self-governance through Gram Sabhas (village assemblies) for people living in the Scheduled Areas.
It recognises the right of tribal communities, who are residents of the Scheduled Areas, to govern themselves through their own systems of self-government, and also acknowledges their traditional rights over natural resources.
In pursuance of this objective, the Act empowers Gram Sabhas to play a key role in approving development plans and controlling all social sectors.
This includes the processes and personnel who implement policies, exercising control over minor (non-timber) forest resources, minor water bodies and minor minerals, managing local markets, preventing land alienation and regulating intoxicants among other things.
State governments are expected to amend their respective Panchayati Raj Acts without making any law that would be inconsistent with the mandate of PESA.
After the PESA Act was enacted, the central Ministry of Panchayati Raj circulated model PESA Rules. So far, six states have notified these Rules, including Gujarat.
What is the issue in Gujarat?
Gujarat notified the State PESA Rules in January 2017, and made them applicable in 4,503 gram sabhas under 2,584 village panchayats in 50 tribal talukas in eight districts of the state.
However, while the provisions of the law deem the Gram Sabhas as “most competent” to deal with matters related to their territories for safeguarding their customs, traditions as well as the natural resources in the tribal areas, the Act has not been enforced in letter and spirit,.
PESA Act 1996:
To promote local self-governance in rural India, the 73rd constitutional amendment was made in 1992.
Through this amendment, a three-tier Panchayati Raj Institution was made into a law.
However, its application to the scheduled and tribal areas under Article 243(M) was restricted.
After the Bhuria Committee recommendations in 1995, PESA Act 1996 came into existence for ensuring tribal self-rule for people living in scheduled areas of India.
Role of State Government:
PESA, was enacted by the Centre to ensure self-governance through gram sabhas (village assemblies) for people living in scheduled areas.
State governments were required to amend their respective Panchayat Raj Acts without making any law that would be inconsistent with the mandate of PESA.
Objective: It legally recognises the right of tribal communities, residents of the scheduled areas, to govern themselves through their own systems of self-government.
It acknowledges their traditional rights over natural resources.
Importance of Gram Sabha in PESA Act:
Democratic Decentralisation
PESA empowers gram sabhas to play a key role in approving development plans and controlling all social sectors.
This includes management of
Resources over jal, jangal, zameen (water, forest and land)
Minor forest produce
Human resources: Processes and personnel who implement policies
Managing local markets
Preventing land alienation
Regulating intoxicants among other things
Preserving Identity
The powers of gram sabhas include maintenance of cultural identity and tradition, control over schemes affecting the tribals, and control over natural resources within the area of a village.
Conflict Resolution
The PESA Act thus enables gram sabhas to maintain a safety net over their rights and surroundings against external or internal conflicts.
Public Watchdog
The gram sabha would have the powers to monitor and prohibit the manufacturing, transport, sale and consumption of intoxicants within their village limits.
Source: Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Q.1) The Government enacted the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act in 1996.Which one of the following is not identified as its objective? (2013)
To provide self-governance
To recognize traditional rights
To create autonomous regions in tribal areas
To free tribal people from exploitation
Porcupine strategy
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Syllabus
Prelims – Current Affairs
In News: As the long-range, live-fire drills began with China’s Eastern Theatre Command firing several ballistic missiles, Taiwan said that it was “preparing for war without seeking war”.
The “porcupine doctrine”
The “porcupine doctrine”, which was proposed in 2008 by US Naval War College research professor William S Murray, is a strategy of asymmetric warfare focused on fortifying a weak state’s defences to exploit the enemy’s weaknesses rather than taking on its strengths.
It is about building defences that would ensure that Taiwan “could be attacked and damaged but not defeated, at least without unacceptably high costs and risks.
Dr Zeno Leoni, identifies three defensive layers in the porcupine approach
The outer layer is about intelligence and reconnaissance to ensure defence forces are fully prepared.
Behind this come plans for guerrilla warfare at sea with aerial support from sophisticated aircraft provided by the US.
The innermost layer relies on the geography and demography of the island.
The ultimate objective of this doctrine is that of surviving and assimilating an aerial offensive well enough to organise a wall of fire that will prevent the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) from successfully invading.
Asymmetric systems of defence
In its 2021 Quadrennial Defence Review, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence defined asymmetric systems as ones that are “small, numerous, smart, stealthy, mobile and hard to be detected and countered”, and “associated with innovative tactics and employments”.
According to Taiwan’s former Chief of the General Staff Admiral Lee Hsi-ming, these systems are “a large number of small things”.
These asymmetric capabilities will be aimed at striking the “operational centre of gravity and key nodes of the enemy”, it said.
The geographic advantages of the Taiwan Strait shall be tapped to shape favourable conditions for us to disrupt the operational tempo of the enemy, frustrate its attempts and moves of invasion at decisive points to strike a dispersed enemy with a united blow.
While it remains committed to the asymmetric warfare policy on paper, Taiwan’s defence spending has not evolved swiftly enough to arm itself as per the porcupine strategy.
Must Read: Taiwan Strait, Yellow Sea and Bohai sea
Source: Indian Express
Previous Year Question
Q.1) The term “two-state solution “is sometimes mentioned in the context of the affairs of (2018)
China
Israel
Iraq
Yemen
Tetrapods
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Syllabus
Prelims – Current Affairs
Mains – GS 3 (Disaster Management)
In News: A new gigantic seawall protecting the long-suffering Chellanam village in Kerala.
Over the past few years, Chellanam, an idyllic coastal village in Kerala’s Ernakulam district, would unfailingly hit the headlines during the monsoons for massive sea incursion and widespread destruction of homes.
However, this monsoon, despite heavy spells of rain lashing Ernakulam district from May, Chellanam has remained largely unaffected thanks to the construction of a new tetrapod-based seawall.
What are tetrapods?
Tetra pod in Greek means four-legged.
These are four-legged concrete structures that are placed along coastlines to prevent erosion and water damage.
Tetrapods were first used in France in the late 1940s to protect the shore from the sea.
They are typically placed together to form an interlocking but porous barrier that dissipates the power of waves and currents.
These are large structures, sometimes weighing up to 10 tonnes, and interlocked tetra pods act as a barrier that remains stable against the rocks when buffeted by waves.
Also Read: Tetrapods
Source: The Hindu
Manipur’s NRC exercise
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Syllabus
Mains – GS 2 (Governance)
In News: On July 5, the 60-member Manipur Assembly resolved to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and establish a State Population Commission (SPC).
The approval to a couple of private member resolutions came after more than two dozen organisations, most of them tribal, demanded an Assam-like NRC to protect the indigenous people from a perceived demographic invasion by “non-local residents”.
Why is Manipur pushing for NRC?
The northeastern States have been paranoid about “outsiders”, “foreigners” or “alien cultures” swamping out their numerically weaker indigenous communities.
Manipur, home to three major ethnic groups, is no different.
These ethnic groups are the non-tribal Meitei people, and the tribal Naga and Kuki-Zomi groups
They claim that an NRC is necessary because the political crisis in neighbouring Myanmar, triggered by the military coup, has forced hundreds of people into the State from across its 398-km international border.
A majority of those who fled or are fleeing belong to the Kuki-Chin communities, ethnically related to the Kuki-Zomi people in Manipur as well as the Mizos of Mizoram.
In July, seven Manipur students’ organisations and 19 tribal and mixed groups submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister demanding the implementation of NRC and the establishment of an SPC to “check and balance the population growth”.
The State Assembly bowed to these demands and decided to go for NRC and SPC.
Has Manipur had protective mechanisms?
In December 2019, Manipur became the fourth northeastern State to be brought under the inner-line permit (ILP) system after Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland.
But less than two years later, an umbrella organisation that spearheaded the ILP movement said the system was flawed and that Manipur needed a stronger and more effective mechanism for protecting indigenous populations.
What is the status of the NRC elsewhere in the northeast?
Assam is the only State in the region that undertook an exercise to update the NRC of 1951 with March 24, 1971, as the cut-off date for citizenship of a person.
The complete draft of the Assam NRC was published in August 2019, excluding 19.06 lakh out of 3.3 crore applicants, which the government in the State and some indigenous groups have refused to accept.
Their petitions for re-verification of the NRC to weed out “Bangladeshis”, allegedly included erroneously or fraudulently, are pending before the Supreme Court, which had monitored the exercise.
Nagaland attempted a similar exercise called RIIN (Register of Indigenous Inhabitants of Nagaland) in June 2019 to primarily sift the indigenous Nagas from the non-indigenous Nagas.
The move, seen as directed particularly against the Nagas of adjoining Manipur, was shelved following opposition from several groups, including the extremist National Socialist Council of Nagalim or NSCN (I-M), the bulk of whose members are ironically from Manipur.
Must Read: National Register of Citizens (NRC)
Source: The Hindu
India’s solar power dream
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Syllabus
Mains – GS 3 (Infrastructure – Energy)
In News: By 2030, India is targeting about 500 GW of renewable energy deployment, out of which ~280 GW is expected from solar PV. This necessitates the deployment of nearly 30 GW of solar capacity every year until 2030.
So, let us examine, What it will take to fulfill India’s solar power dream?
Solar photovoltaics (PV) has driven India’s push towards the adoption of cleaner energy generation technologies.
From less than 10 MW in 2010, India has added significant PV capacity over the past decade, achieving over 50 GW by 2022.
~280 GW target by 2030 necessitates the deployment of nearly 30 GW of solar capacity every year until 2030.
However, there are challenges that need to be overcome for the sustainability of the PV economy.
Indian solar deployment or installation companies depend heavily on imports, as India currently does not have enough module and cell manufacturing capacity.
Import Dependent
India’s current solar module manufacturing capacity is limited to ~15 GW per year.
The demand-supply gap widens as we move up the value chain — for example, India only produces ~5 GW of cells currently.
India has no manufacturing capacity for solar wafers and polysilicon ingots, and currently imports 100% of silicon wafers and around 80% of cells even at the current deployment levels.
Also, out of the 15 GW of module manufacturing capacity, only 3-4 GW of modules are technologically competitive and worthy of deployment in grid-based projects.
India remains dependent on import of solar modules for field deployment.
Current govt policy
The government has identified this gap, and is rolling out various policy initiatives to push and motivate the industry to work towards self-reliance in solar manufacturing, both for cells and modules.
Key initiatives include a 40% duty on the import of modules and 25% duty on the import of cells, and a PLI scheme to support manufacturing capex.
Also, it is mandatory to procure modules only from an approved list of manufacturers (ALMM) for projects that are connected to state/ central government grids; so far, only India-based manufacturers have been approved.
While this will certainly help to motivate industry, the major challenges are related to size and technology.
Size and technology
Most of the Indian industry is currently tuned to handling M2 wafer size while the global industry is already moving towards M10 and M12 sizes
The bigger size has an advantage in terms of silicon cost per wafer, as this effectively means lower loss of silicon during ingot to wafer processing.
In terms of cell technology, most of the manufacturing still uses Al-BSF technology, which can typically give efficiencies of ~18-19% at the cell level and ~16-17% at the module level. By contrast, cell manufacturing worldwide has moved to 21% efficiency and module efficiency of >21%.
Producing more solar power for the same module size means more solar power from the same land area.
Raw materials supply
There is a huge gap on the raw material supply chain side as well.
Silicon wafer, the most expensive raw material, is not manufactured in India.
India will have to work on technology tie-ups to make the right grade of silicon for solar cell manufacturing — and since >90% of the world’s solar wafer manufacturing currently happens in China, it is not clear how and where India will get the technology.
Other key raw materials such as metallic pastes of silver and aluminium to form the electrical contacts too, are almost 100% imported.
India is more of an assembly hub than a manufacturing one, and in the long term, it would be beneficial to move up the value chain by making components that could drive the price and quality of both cells and modules.
What needs to be done
Academics plus industry
Establishing state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities for cells, modules, and raw material needs access to technology.
India needs to create such industry-like centres to work on specific technology domains with clear roadmaps and deliverables for the short and long term, monitored by a right mix of specialists from industry and academia.
Although India is making great progress in the deployment of solar PV modules for power generation, its path to become a manufacturing hub for the same requires more than just putting some tax barriers and commercial incentives in the form of PLI schemes, etc.
The need of the hour root-cause analysis through right testing and, in the long term, develop India’s own technologies. High-end technology development requires substantial investment in several clusters which operate in industry-like working and management conditions, appropriate emoluments, and clear deliverables.
Must Read: India’s higher Climatic Targets
Source: Indian Express
National tribal health mission
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Syllabus
Mains – GS 1 (Society); GS 2 (Governance)
Context: For the first time since independence, a tribal President has become a reality in India. On this International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, let us explore how this symbolic gesture can be turned into a health revolution for the tribal people of India.
Nearly 11 crore tribal people (enumerated as Scheduled Tribes (ST) in the Census of India (2011) live in India.
They constitute 6% of India’s population, the second largest number of tribal people in any country in the world.
A study published in The Lancet, titled ‘Indigenous and Tribal Peoples’ Health’ (2016), found that India held the inglorious distinction of having the second highest infant mortality rate for the tribal people, next only to Pakistan.
In 2018, the first national report on the state of India’s tribal people’s health was submitted to the Government of India by the Expert Committee on Tribal Health.
The 13-member committee was jointly appointed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India.
Findings
Firstly, tribal people are concentrated in 809 blocks in India.
Such areas are designated as the Scheduled Areas
Half of India’s tribal population, nearly five and a half crore, live outside the Scheduled Areas, as a scattered and marginalised minority.
They are the most powerless.
Second, the health status of tribal people has certainly improved during the last 25 years as seen in the decline in the under-five child mortality rate from 135 in 1988 in the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-1 to 57 in 2014 (NFHS-4). However, the percentage of excess of under-five morality among STs compared to others has widened.
Third, child malnutrition is 50% higher in tribal children: 42% compared to 28% in others.
Fourth, malaria and tuberculosis are three to 11 times more common among the tribal people.
Though the tribal people constitute only 8.6% of the national population, half of the total malaria deaths in India occur among them.
Fifth, while malnutrition, malaria and mortality continue to plague tribal people, gradually, the more difficult to treat non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, and worse, mental health problems such as depression and addiction leading to cancer and suicide, are increasing. These threaten the health and survival of tribal adults.
Sixth, tribal people heavily depend on government-run public health care institutions, there is a 27% to 40% deficit in the number of such facilities, and 33% to 84% deficit in medical doctors in tribal areas.
Seventh, there is hardly any participation of the tribal people – locally or at the State or national level – in designing, planning or delivering health care to them.
The official policy of allocating and spending an additional financial outlay, called Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP), equal to the percentage of the ST population in the State, has been completely flouted by all States.
A road map
Firstly, launch a National Tribal Health Action Plan with a goal to bring the status of health and healthcare at par with the respective State averages in the next 10 years.
Second, the committee suggested nearly 80 measures to address the 10 priority health problems, the health care gap, the human resource gap and the governance problems.
Third, the committee suggested allocation of additional money so that the per capita government health expenditure on tribal people becomes equal to the stated goal of the National Health Policy (2017), i.e. 2.5% of the per capita GDP.
The tribal healthcare system is sick, and tribal people need more substantive solutions. India need to move from symbolic gestures to substantive promises, from promises to a comprehensive action plan, and from an action plan to realising the goal of a healthy tribal people.
If actualised, the Tribal Health Mission can be the path to a peaceful health revolution for the 11 crore tribal people. India needs to demonstrate to them that democracy offers a caring solution to their wounds.
Source: The Hindu
Baba’s Explainer – 5G Auctions
5G Auctions
Syllabus
GS-3: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life
GS-2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
Context: India successfully concluded the 5G auction on 1 August with bids worth around 1,50,173 crore. The auction saw India’s major telecom operators participating- Reliance Industries Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea.
Read Complete Details on 5G Auctions
Daily Practice MCQs
Daily Practice MCQs
Q.1) Consider the following statements
An ordinance can be retrospective.
To stay a law, the Ordinance must be approved by Parliament within six weeks of its reassembly.
Ordinances can be used to revoke the fundamental rights of the citizens guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
Choose the correct statements:
1, 2 and 3
2 only
2 and 3
1 and 2
Q.2) Consider the following statements
Cripps Mission offered dominion status to India.
Failure of Cripps Mission was the immediate cause to the launch of Quit India Movement.
The slogan ‘Quit India’ was given coined by Yusuf Meherally, a socialist and trade unionist.
Choose the correct statements:
1, 2 and 3
2 and 3
1 only
2 only
Q.3) Ordinance making power of the Indian President is under which Article of the Constitution of India?
Article 72
Article 143
Article 123
Article 132
Comment the answers to the above questions in the comment section below!!
ANSWERS FOR ’9th August 2022 – Daily Practice MCQs’ will be updated along with tomorrow’s Daily Current Affairs.
ANSWERS FOR 8th August 2022 – Daily Practice MCQs
Answers- Daily Practice MCQs
Q.1) – d
Q.2) – d
Q.3) – d
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