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Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020

IAS UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) Blue Corner notice, issued against Nithyananda Part of: GS Prelims Polity and GS Mains II–International organization In news: The Interpol has issued a blue corner notice to help locate self-styled godman Nithyananda Prelims Point of View Notices are international requests for cooperation or alerts allowing police in member countries to share critical crime-related information. There are seven types of notices — Red Notice, Yellow Notice, Blue Notice, Black Notice, Green Notice, Orange Notice, and Purple Notice.  Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcT41MvioL3SxsdYkIZw3B8p9NwvUrnv8ytb7V5misjIiKLhcZof China Myanmar Economic Corridor Part of: GS Prelims  and GS Mains II– Foreign relations In news: China’s President Xi Jinping will be visiting Myanmar to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Myanmar. President’s visit will focus on the three pillars of the China Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC)— the Kyaukpyu Special Economic Zone, the China-Myanmar Border Economic Cooperation Zone and the New Yangon City. From Prelims Point of View China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) is a number of infrastructure projects supporting connectivity between Myanmar and China. It is an economic corridor of the Belt and Road Initiative building road and rail transportation from Yunnan Province in China through Muse and Mandalay to Kyaukpyu in Rakhine State. Rakhine state is also in news due to Rohingya crisis Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 https://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1579249718_image3.jpg United Nations Military Observer Group for India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) Part of: GS Prelims Polity and GS Mains II–India’s Neighborhood relations In news: Imran Khan asks US and United Nations to help de-escalate tension between India, Pakistan From Prelims Point Of View: India took Jammu Kashmir matter to the UN Security Council which established the United Nations Commission for India and Pakistan (UNCIP) to investigate the issues and mediate between the two countries.  Following the cease-fire of hostilities, it also established the United Nations Military Observer Group for India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to monitor the cease-fire line. India drops 10 ranks in Democracy Index Part of: GS Prelims  and GS Mains II– Democracy In news: India slipped 10 places in the 2019 global ranking to 51st place. The average global score also recorded its worst value ever, down from 5.48 in 2018 to 5.44, driven by a sharp regression in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa, a lesser one in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and by stagnation in the remaining regions that were covered. The report, “A year of democratic setbacks and popular protest”, was done by The Economist Intelligence Unit — the research and analysis division of The Economist Group. Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 Middle East and North Africa (MENA) vvDaily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 Miscellaneous Topics for Prelims  Brahmakalashothsava Brahmakalashothsava festival is celebrated in the ancient Chandkuru Sri Durga Parameshwari Temple annually in Polali, Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka Mein Kampf Mein Kampf (My Struggle or My Fight) is a 1925 autobiographical manifesto by Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler.  The work describes the process by which Hitler became antisemitic and outlines his political ideology and future plans for Germany. On Speakers and disqualification Landmark judgment in Kihoto Hollohan (1992)  Upheld the validity of the Constitution’s Tenth Schedule, or the anti-defection law.  This verdict had also made the Speaker’s order subject to judicial review on limited grounds. Constitution Bench judgment (Rajendra Singh Rana, 2007) The Uttar Pradesh Speaker’s order refusing to disqualify 13 BSP defectors was set aside on the ground that he had failed to exercise his jurisdiction to decide whether they had attracted disqualification, while recognising a ‘split’ in the legislature party. (MAINS FOCUS) Indian Polity Topic: General Studies 2: Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these. 
 Speaker’s role in disqualification Context: The Supreme Court’s latest decision on the Speaker as the adjudicating authority under the anti-defection law. About Anti-Defection Law The anti-defection law is contained in the 10th Schedule of the Constitution and was enacted by Parliament Constitution (52nd Amendment) Act, 1985.  Legislators used to change parties frequently bringing in Political Instability and was also considered as betraying the mandate of voters (who voted for the legislator considering his political party) The purpose of 10th Schedule is to curb political defection by the legislators. There are two grounds on which a member of a legislature can be disqualified. One, if the member voluntarily gives up the membership of the party, he shall be disqualified. Second, if a legislator votes in the House against the direction of his party and his action is not condoned by his party, he can be disqualified. However, there is an exception - The 10th Schedule says that if there is a merger between two political parties and two-thirds of the members of a legislature party agree to the merger, they will not be disqualified. The Presiding officer of the House (Speaker/Chairman) is the adjudicating authority with regard to disqualification of legislators under the Tenth Schedule Criticism of the anti-defection Law Curbs the freedom of speech & expression of law makers Tyranny of Political Parties: Legislators have to abide by the line taken by Political parties even it is against their own stand or against the interest of her constituency Role of the Speaker is biased: Speaker who is a member of a political party is often not neutral and comes under the influence of his political party instead of deciding the cases on merit Delay in decision making: several presiding officers have allowed defectors to bolster the strength of ruling parties and even be sworn in Ministers by merely refraining from adjudicating on complaints against them Supreme Court Judgements in Kihoto Hollohan (1992) case:  Five Judge Bench of SC upheld the validity of the Constitution’s Tenth Schedule, or the anti-defection law.  It was also held in this case that a Speaker or a Chairman, acting Tenth Schedule, is a Tribunal and thus his discretionary powers were protected by Constitution.(dissenting minority view by Justice JS Verma who questioned the fairness of speaker in adjudication) This verdict had also made the Speaker’s order subject to judicial review on limited grounds and that mere procedural infirmities could not prompt judicial intervention. It was also held that judicial review cannot be available at a stage prior to the making of a decision by the Speaker/Chairman.  Recent Supreme Court judgement on the role of Speaker Background: The top court was hearing the appeal of Congress leader against the Manipur High Court order. The High had refused to direct Speaker to decide on disqualification of another Congress legislator who had defected to BJP & made minister. Following are the pronouncements of the SC in this case The Speakers should decide Tenth Schedule disqualifications within a reasonable period. Unless there were “exceptional circumstances”, disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule should be decided by Speakers within three months (This question on time period raised by two judge bench of Supreme Court in S.A. Sampath Kumar vs. Kale Yadaiah, 2016 case) Asked the Parliament to consider having an independent and permanent body to decide disqualification petition. Given the fact that a Speaker belongs to a particular political party, the Court mooted this idea, which requires an amendment to the constitution. Also, Speaker wasn’t adjudicating election disputes or disqualification of members under Articles 103/ 192/ 329 for good reason, because their fairness could be suspected. Way Forward: The Constitution is called a living document because of its ability to grow and change with time and circumstances. Clearly, the Tenth Schedule has fallen short in fulfilling its objective of preventing defections and needs a relook. Parliament must fix this flaw and institute a tribunal recognising the significance of anti-defection provisions in upholding the sanctity of Parliament. Connecting the dots Speakers role in deciding whether the bill is money bill or not Britain’s model of Speaker’s post Agriculture & Environment Topic: General Studies 3: Major crops-cropping patterns in various parts of the country, Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices; Awareness in the fields of Bio-technology Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 23rd January 2020 Source:The Hindu India’s Cotton Story India’s Cotton Productivity is low in comparison to other major cotton producing nations in spite of India expected to be world’s largest cotton producer this year surpassing China Genetically Modified (GM) pest resistant Bt cotton hybrids have captured the Indian market since their introduction in 2002. These now cover over 95% of the area under cotton, with the seeds produced entirely by the private sector. India’s cotton production in 2019 is projected as the highest ever: 354 lakh bales. This threefold increase in cotton production during past two decades is used by proponent of GM crops to extend the technology to other crops as well  India is the only country that grows cotton as hybrids and the first to develop hybrid cotton back in 1970 Difference between hybrids and varieties Varieties (Used in Brazil) Hybrids (Used in India since 1970s) Varieties are those for which seeds are produced by self-fertilization. Hybrids are made by crossing two parent strains having different genetic characters.  These plants have more biomass than both parents, and capacity for greater yields Varieties can be propagated over successive generations by collecting seeds from one planting and using them for the next planting;  Hybrid seeds have to be remade for each planting by crossing the parents. So for hybrids, farmers must purchase seed for each planting. Increased dependence on seed companies High Density Planting (HDP) Methodology: These varieties are planted at high density (5 kg seeds/acre) Hybrids are planted at ten-fold lower density (0.5 kg seeds/acre).  They are compact and short duration. hybrids in India are bushy and long duration Lower boll production by compact varieties (5-10 bolls per plant) – compensated by high density High boll production (20-100 bolls/plant)  Cotton is a dryland crop; therefore, shorter duration variety has a major advantage as it reduces dependence on irrigation 65% of area under cotton in India is rain-fed. Farmers with insufficient access to groundwater in these areas are entirely dependent on rain. Thus risk associated with hybrid cotton cultivation is higher due to unpredictability of rains Low requirement of fertilizer (100 kg/ha for varieties) High fertilizer requirement: 200 kg/ha for hybrids lLess vulnerability to damage from insect pests due to a shorter field duration. High vulnerability to damage from insect pests due to a longer field duration. Low water requirement High water requirement Low cost of seeds High Cost of Hybrid seeds. Increased yield from a hybrid is supposed to justify the high price Hybrid model is inferior to the HDP model being used in other countries on three important counts: much lower productivity; higher input costs; and increased risk particularly for low resource farmers in rain-fed areas. The steep increase in productivity for Brazil, from 400 to 1,000 kg/hectare lint between 1994 and 2000 coincides with the large-scale shift to a non-GM compact variety. Why HDP model not adopted despite having advantages for India? During First Phase (From 1980 to 2002): Hybrids were promoted at the cost of Compact varieties. This was primarily due to weakness of agricultural research establishment who failed to identify the benefits of compact varieties Second phase (2002 onwards): During introduction of GM Bt hybrid seeds. However, the scope of evaluation by the GM regulatory process in India was narrow and did not take into account on the form in which it would be deployed (hybrids versus varieties) Consequently, commercial Bt hybrids have completely taken over the market, accompanied by withdrawal of public sector cotton seed production.  The Indian cotton farmer today is left with little choice but to use Bt hybrid seed produced by private seed companies. The current annual value of cotton seed used for planting is about ₹2,500 crore, and that of lint cotton produced is ₹68,000 crore. It is likely that production levels could have been much higher, with considerably lower risk and input costs, had compact varieties been developed and used in India, especially given the agricultural distress faced in India. Conclusion We must be clear that the outcome of using a technology such as Bt is determined by the context in which it is deployed, and not just by the technology itself. Brazil (until 2012) and Turkey (up to the present) have achieved high productivity without the use of GM cotton by using alternative pest-management approaches.  There is a need for better consultation in policy, be it agriculture as a whole or crop-wise. Socioeconomic and need-based considerations should be a part of GMO regulatory process in India. Connecting the Dots Bt Brinjal Controversy Genetic Engineering in other fields – Medicines, disease prevention and cure. (TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE) Model questions: (You can now post your answers in comment section) Note:  Correct answers of today’s questions will be provided in next day’s DNA section. Kindly refer to it and update your answers.  Comments Up-voted by IASbaba are also the “correct answers”. Q.1) Other than India and China, which one of the following groups of countries border Myanmar?  Bangladesh, Thailand and Vietnam Cambodia, Laos and Malaysia Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia Thailand, Laos and Bangladesh Q.2) Consider the following pairs:  Community sometimes in the affairs of mentioned in the news Kurd Bangladesh Madhesi Nepal Rohingya Myanmar Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched? 1 and 2  2 only 2 and 3  3 only ANSWERS FOR 22 JAN 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 D 2 D 3 A MUST READ About reviving Economy: Indian Express About Myanmar’s growing dependence on China: The Hindu About WHO: The Hindu About Climate Action: The Hindu

RSTV Video

Article 131 - Special Powers of Supreme Court – The Big Picture - RSTV IAS UPSC

Article 131 - Special Powers of Supreme Court Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2 Indian Polity Judiciary Recent suits under Article 131 Kerala: Kerala became the first state to challenge the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) before the Supreme Court. However, the legal route adopted by the state is different from the 60 petitions already pending before the court. The Kerala government has moved the apex court under Article 131 of the Constitution. Chhattisgarh: The Chhattisgarh government filed a suit in the Supreme Court under Article 131, challenging the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act on the ground that it encroaches upon the state’s powers to maintain law and order. Article 131 of the Constitution. Original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the Supreme Court shall, to the exclusion of any other court, have original jurisdiction in any dispute between the Government of India and one or more States; or between the Government of India and any State or States on one side and one or more other States on the other; or between two or more States, if and in so far as the dispute involves any question (whether of law or fact) on which the existence or extent of a legal right depends: Provided that the said jurisdiction shall not extend to a dispute arising out of any treaty, agreement, covenant, engagements, and or other similar instrument which, having been entered into or executed before the commencement of this Constitution, continues in operation after such commencement, or which provides that the said jurisdiction shall not extend to such a dispute In simplest terms, this gives Supreme Court original jurisdiction—meaning the Supreme Court can hear the case first-hand rather than reviewing a lower court's judgment—to mediate disputes between states or between the Centre and states. For a dispute to qualify as a dispute under Article 131, it has to necessarily be between states and the Centre, and must involve a question of law or fact on which the existence of a legal right of the state or the Centre depends. Article 131 cannot be used to settle political differences between state and central governments headed by different parties. In a 1978 judgment, State of Karnataka v Union of India, Justice P N Bhagwati had said that for the Supreme Court to accept a suit under Article 131, the state need not show that its legal right is violated, but only that the dispute involves a legal question. How is a suit under Article 131 different from the other petitions challenging the CAA? The other petitions challenging the CAA have been filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, which gives the court the power to issue writs when fundamental rights are violated. A state government cannot move the court under this provision because only people and citizens can claim fundamental rights. Under Article 131, the challenge is made when the rights and power of a state or the Centre are in question. However, the relief that the state (under Article 131) and petitioners under Article 32 have sought in the challenge to the CAA is the same — declaration of the law as being unconstitutional. But can SC test validity of law under Article 131? In 2011, in State of MP v Union of India, the Supreme Court held that validity of central laws can be challenged under Article 32 of the Constitution and not under Article 131. In the case, Madhya Pradesh had sought to challenge — under Article 131 — the constitutional validity of certain provisions of the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act, asserting that they violated Article 14 of the Constitution. The two-judge bench of Justices P. Sathasivam and B.S. Chauhan, however, felt that a petition under Article 32 would’ve been more appropriate for the challenge.    Three years later, in 2014, another two-judge bench — hearing the case of State of Jharkhand v State of Bihar — disagreed. This bench, comprising Justices J. Chelameswar and S.A. Bobde, held that Article 131 could be used to examine the constitutionality of a statute.  The question was then referred to a three-judge bench, headed by Justice N.V. Ramana. It is currently pending there.  Is it unusual for states to challenge laws made by Parliament? Under the Constitution, laws made by Parliament are presumed to be constitutional until a court holds otherwise. However, in India’s quasi-federal constitutional structure, inter-governmental disputes are not uncommon. The framers of the Constitution expected such differences, and added the exclusive original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court for their resolution. The quasi-federal structure envisaged in 1950 has consolidated into defined powers of the states. Kerala's arguments The Kerala government has sought from the apex court that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 be declared as violative of Articles 14 (Equality before law), 21 (Right to life and personal liberty) and 25 (Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion). CAA is violative of the basic principle of secularism enshrined in the Constitution.  The Passport (Entry to India) Amendment Rules, 2015 and Foreigners (Amendment) Order are ultra vires (beyond Centre's authority) the Constitution and be declared void. The CAA, the amended Passport Rules and Foreign Order are class legislations harping on the religious identity of an individual, thereby contravening the principles of secularism, which has been recognised by the court as a basic structure of the Constitution. These amendments make religion and a person's country of origin a criteria for grant of citizenship and result in classifications based on religion and country, which are discriminatory, arbitrary, unreasonable and have no rational nexus with the object sought to be achieved. The religious classification brought forth violates the twin test of classification under Article 14, the protection of which is not limited or restricted to citizens alone and extends to all persons. The CAA and rules and orders are bereft of any standard principle or norm in discriminating migrants from other countries like Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bhutan, which are sharing international borders with India and to which and from which there has been trans-border migration. If the object of the CAA is to protect the minorities who faced religious persecution in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, then the Ahmaddiyas and Shias from these countries are also entitled to treatment equal to that being now extended to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities. In accordance with the mandate of Article 256 of the Constitution, the plaintiff state (Kerala) will be compelled to ensure compliance of Impugned Amendment Act (CAA) and the Rules and Orders, which are manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, irrational and violative of fundamental rights. "Thus, there exists a dispute, involving questions of law and fact, between the plaintiff state of Kerala and the defendant Union of India, regarding the enforcement of legal rights as a State and as well for the enforcement of the fundamental, statutory constitutional and other legal rights of the inhabitants of the State of Kerala. Hence, this Original Suit under Article 131 of the Constitution is being preferred," the plea said.

Motivational Articles

Motivational Article: "Yes, I too have failed"- Abhijeet Sinha, Rank 19 CSE 2017 (ILP Student)

Hello Friends, As the result of the mains were announced recently, around 2500 students burst with joy. There was a sense of accomplishment and relief. Let me first congratulate them and convey my best wishes for the next round. But, not everyone is equally lucky. Around 10 thousand failed to make the cut. Thankfully, in my 2 attempts in UPSC, I did not stop at this round. But, nonetheless, in my first attempt at UPSC CSE 2016, I failed after giving the interview. And a failure is a failure, regardless of the stage that it comes at. Therefore, yes I too have failed 31st May 2017  That was the night of 31st May 2017. I had been eagerly waiting for the results. I have always been an optimistic person. So, I used to indulge in more daydreams than anxieties. I would imagine the result coming with my name in it, somewhere in the first page itself. I would imagine the celebratory tone in which I would share my result to my parents. I would even visualize giving a toppers speech. Yet, the night was to prove different. I was waiting for it along with my 2 other friends who were giving the interview. Finally, after opening the UPSC website and PIB no of times, the result appeared on the website. The first page appeared first. I saw the first few names and couldn’t see my name in it. A drop of sweat had already fallen. I picked up myself, saying that one does not require to be in the top 20 in the IAS. So, I browsed the next few pages. But, no, no name still. The tension was growing. By now, I had realized, I was not to become an IAS. But, I had a hope still. That somewhere in the list, my name would be there. Any service would have done at that moment. I scrolled and scrolled and scrolled. But, still no. Maybe I had missed my name. That’s when I dared to do the Ctrl + F option to search my name.  The computer returned a Ting sound. I tried again and again and again. Each time, the sound was the same. And that was when the lightning struck. I had been unable to make it. It seemed as if the ground beneath me had collapsed. Whole-body started itching. The weight of my body seemed too high.  On top of it, I heard a cry of ecstasy from my friend in the next door. I searched his name Ravi Prakash Meena, and there he was, with a rank that would make him an IAS. That was when the 3 idiots movie struck me. It pains when your friend does poorly, but it pains more when you do poorly and he does so well. Not that I despised his success, but more because his success seemed like everything I had lost. It was then, that I realized the most difficult part that I still had to do. And that was to call my parents and tell about it. There is probably nothing more sorrowful in this world than breaking the heart of your loved ones. With the heaviest of hands, I dialed. My father picked up. Words failed to come out of my mouth. But, I mustered the courage and told it. He was silent for a moment. For a second, his words were irregular, perhaps waiting for me to say, its all a joke. But unfortunately, it wasn’t. He sounded slow, but then he said in Hindi ki that’s how life is. An ant does not go to the summit in the first attempt. It falls and falls again. But every time, it picks itself up, more determined than ever, until it reaches the top. He was right, but these words meant nothing to me at that moment. And so did the calls of numerous relatives and friends, who tried consoling me. For me, these words seemed hollow. And I felt like a loser, the biggest one I had known. I was completely dejected and questioned myself, whether I can ever make it. There were not even tears, there only flowed the invisible tears of frustration and regret. Everything was lost. I know this would sound familiar to many of you. But, my post is not just meant to empathize with you. I aspire more to do something else and focus on something deeper, which is the psychology of sadness and grief.  And only when you understand that, would you be able to take the next step. No consolatory words can help you as much as you analyzing this state and overcoming it yourself. The psychology of sadness and grief.  I have already described how it feels like. It’s depressing, that we all know. But what we fail to appreciate is that we feel sad because we want to feel sad. We are in grief because we want to to be In grief.  It seems ironic, but it is true, at least to a certain extent. Take it this way. We feel all bad and sad because our brain wants to do something, make some effort to change the situation, but is unable to do so. In this case, we can’t change the UPSC result. But, still, the brain needs to do something, so as to assure itself that it is making an effort. Therefore, we try the easier solutions. So we itch your body, we cry and we may even drink and smoke and we also feel depressed.  And in a way, it feels ironically good to do all these. Because now our brain has a false assurance that we are making an effort to alleviate the pain. But, remember this is nothing but a trap. We are indeed doing something, but we are not doing what we ought to do. Our brains have become victims of a mirage. This is because every one of us is inherently smart yet lazy. We like to do these easier things like crying, but not the more difficult solutions such as work harder and prepare better. In trying these easier solutions, we do not take the more necessary and required steps, such as preparing in a more organized way and working on one's negatives. I know it is easier said than done. But you will have to do it. You will have to work hard according to a plan. You will have to find your own flaws and work on them. You will have to know yourself, accept it and remedy that. Whatever these steps may be, what is more, important is to get the attitude right, to not fall prey to the trap of easier solutions like grief and sadness. Remember, there are only 2 solutions, either to accept the result and leave it or to gear up and work hard and take the desired steps. Any other solutions such as crying or being depressed is only a mirage, a feel-good factor that helps no one. Back to the story  Coming back to my story, in spite of what I have told you, I know it is easier said than done. That night the sadness and grief were unparalleled. My life had never felt so bad before. And I was sad. Any rational words and pieces of advice seemed hollow. That’s one reason why I am writing this after 3-4 days after the result when you gradually become more rational. So, that night, I did one thing good. That was to make an effort from there and then itself. Half an hour after the result, I was back at my study table. I didn’t know what to read. But, I had to do something and do something constructive. I tried the textbooks, but the words seemed hollow. So, I took up a test series. Because that would give me a challenge and would engage me back. I had taken the initial step and this made a difference. Unlike many others, I helped myself avoid the trap. It was not perfect. Over the next few months, till the time of CSE Mains 2017, there were many nights in which I would cry my way to sleep. There were many days in which I would question myself. There were still times when I felt like a looser. But, these were lesser and fewer. Every-time there was such a moment, I would tell myself about the science of grief and get back to my study table to do the more productive thing. 27th April 2018 This way, I studied, cleared prelims, mains and gave the interview. Finally came the date of 27th April 2018. I knew I had done a lot better, both in mains and in the interview since I had accepted my mistakes and worked hard on them. But still, UPSC requires an element of luck. No one can question that. So, on 27th April, when there was enough rumor of the result coming out that day itself, I was more than just nervous. The images of last year were struck in my eyes. The feeling was not yet lost. All-day, I kept clicking at the UPSC website and following the UPSC blogs. Many people were there at the gate of the UPSC Dholpur house and every single movement there was tracked eagerly. My eyes had become tense, being at the computer and mobile screen the entire day. Finally, around 6:30 pm, someone sent a photo from the Dholpur house of the 1st page of the result. My hands were trembling at the thought of opening it. My eyes felt too weak and blur. But, somehow I opened the photo. There were 50 names in it. I glanced it upar upar se. Rank 1 – no, rank 2 – no, rank 3  – no. Top 10 –  no. Top 50 – no.  Shit It was like last year again. Even though this was just 1 page, I had resigned to a feeling of failure again. I called my mother to join me and give me strength in seeing the result. I didn’t say her that 1 have already seen the 1st page. But, she said that “ye to 1st-page raha. Open it”. I opened it again, with the thought that I’ll disappoint her again. But, surprisingly she shouted at the top of her voice and read out my name aloud. And it was then that I saw it. Abhijeet Sinha –  All India Rank 19. It was then I realized that in nervousness I had missed reading my own name. And then came the frenzy. My papa, mummy, uncles, brothers, all almost shouting, dancing, living it. They were all giving TV and press interviews.  That day I realized another truth, there is perhaps no bigger happiness than making your loved ones happy.  But, what a difference a year had made. And probably, all was down to the attitude that I showed during the most difficult time, and in deciphering my own psychology of grief and failure. That evening, while everyone was enjoying, I escaped to the balcony, dialed my nana Nani, and said ki “ Aapka Naati ab IAS ban Gaya hai”. On both sides, Eyes were moist, moistened with happiness. Follow Abhijit Sinha on his BLOG. Click Here

IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs

Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 22nd January 2020

IAS UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 22nd January 2020 Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) High Court of Karnataka : Police need to be trained to follow SC guidelines on registering FIRs Part of: GS Polity and GS-II – Law & order In news: The High Court of Karnataka observed that police officers, including IPS officers, required proper training in the fundamentals of registering First Information Reports in criminal cases as per the guidelines issued in a 2013 Supreme Court verdict in the case of Lalita Kumari vs. Government of Uttar Pradesh. From Prelims Point of view: Supreme Court has given Directions to be followed in regards to Registration of an FIR Registration of FIR is mandatory under section 154 of the Code, if the information discloses commission of a cognizable offence and no preliminary inquiry is permissible in such a situation. If the information received does not disclose a cognizable offence but indicates the necessity for an inquiry, a preliminary inquiry may be conducted only to ascertain whether cognizable offence is disclosed or not. If the inquiry discloses the commission of a cognizable offence, the FIR must be registered. In cases where preliminary inquiry ends in closing the complaint, a copy of the entry of such closure must be supplied to the first informant forthwith and not later than one week. It must disclose reasons in brief for closing the complaint and not proceeding further. The police officer cannot avoid his duty of registering offence if cognizable offence is disclosed. Action must be taken against erring officers who do not register the FIR if information received by him discloses a cognizable offence. The scope of preliminary inquiry is not to verify the veracity or otherwise of the information received but only to ascertain whether the information reveals any cognizable offence. The gig economy Part of: GS Economy and GS-III – Employment In news: A gig economy is a free market system in which temporary positions are common and organizations contract with independent workers for short-term engagements Examples of gig employees in the workforce could include freelancers, independent contractors, project-based workers and temporary or part-time hires. From Prelims and Mains Point of view: Global Gig Economy Index report  has ranked India among the top 10 countries. The report says there has been an increase in freelancers in India from 11% in 2018 to 52% in 2019, thanks to various initiatives including Startup India and Skill India. Hawaii telescope:  Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) Part of: GS Sci & Tech and GS-III – Technology In news: India Wants Thirty-Metre Telescope Shifted Out of Hawaii (Mauna kea) Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 22nd January 2020 https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcSC0buIVmDVIo1VFN3i3R3GEZq-C0_f7wID1bcGBuecpO6BU3W4 Why oppose? The proposed site is considered sacred to indigenous Hawaiians. From Prelims Point of view: The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT): The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is a proposed astronomical observatory with an extremely large telescope (ELT). It is an international project being funded by scientific organisations of Canada, China, India, Japan and USA. Planned location: Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii in the US state of Hawaii. The TMT is designed for near-ultraviolet to mid-infrared observations, featuring adaptive optics to assist in correcting image blur. TMT will enable scientists to study fainter objects far away from us in the Universe, which gives information about early stages of evolution of the Universe It will give us finer details of not-so-far-away objects like undiscovered planets and other objects in the Solar System and planets around other stars. SC : Disqualification power from Speakers Part of: GS Sci & Tech and GS-III – Technology  In news: The Supreme Court asked Parliament to amend the Constitution to strip Legislative Assembly Speakers of their exclusive power to decide whether legislators should be disqualified or not under the anti-defection law. SC Suggestions: Disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule should be adjudicated by a mechanism outside Parliament or the Legislative Assemblies.  The court suggested a permanent tribunal headed by a retired Supreme Court judge or a former High Court Chief Justice. From Prelims Point of view: Tenth Schedule: anti-defection law The Tenth Schedule was inserted in the Constitution in 1985 by the 52nd Amendment Act.   Lays down the process by which legislators may be disqualified on grounds of defection by the Presiding Officer of a legislature  The decision on question as to disqualification on ground of defection is referred to the Chairman or the Speaker of such House, and his decision is final. The law applies to both Parliament and state assemblies. Disqualification: If a member of a house belonging to a political party: Voluntarily gives up the membership of his political party, or Votes, or does not vote in the legislature, contrary to the directions of his political party. However, if the member has taken prior permission, or is condoned by the party within 15 days from such voting or abstention, the member shall not be disqualified. If an independent candidate joins a political party after the election. If a nominated member joins a party six months after he becomes a member of the legislature. Supreme Court in 1992, thereby allowing appeals against the Presiding Officer’s decision in the High Court and Supreme Court. However, it held that there may not be any judicial intervention until the Presiding Officer gives his order. Exceptions : Legislators may change their party without the risk of disqualification in certain circumstances.  The law allows a party to merge with or into another party provided that at least two-thirds of its legislators are in favour of the merger.  In such a scenario, neither the members who decide to merge, nor the ones who stay with the original party will face disqualification. India and Brazil :  Bilateral Investment Treaty Part of: GS International  and GS-II – India’s Foreign relations In news: India and Brazil will upgrade their strategic partnership with an “action plan” and sign a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) Strategic Partnership Action Plan will serve as an “umbrella agreement”, for plans between the two countries to increase defence cooperation, technology sharing and a logistics agreement. From Prelims Point of view: Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) A bilateral investment treaty (BIT) is an agreement establishing the terms and conditions for private investment by nationals and companies of one state in another state. In 2018 Indian investments in Brazil were around U.S.$ 6 billion and Brazilian investments in India are estimated at U.S.$ 1 billion.( Total 8 bn ) Nepal PM positive of resolving all 'pending issues' with India Part of: GS International  and GS-II – India’s Foreign relations In news: Nepal Prime Minister said bilateral disputes with India should be dealt with dialogue, indicating Kathmandu’s political willingness to resolve the row over the Kalapani territorial issue. The Kalapani issue was reignited after India published a new political map in November 2019 that displayed its continued position over the territory as part of Uttarakhand.  From Prelims Point of view: Kalapani territorial issue: Kalapani is a valley that is administered by India as a part of the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. It is situated on the Kailash Mansarovar route. The Kali River in the Kalapani region demarcates the border between India and Nepal. The Treaty of Sugauli signed by the Kingdom of Nepal and British India (after Anglo-Nepalese War) in 1816 located the Kali River as Nepal's western boundary with India.  Kalapani has been controlled by India's Indo-Tibetan Border Police since the Sino-Indian War with China in 1962 The discrepancy in locating the source of the river led to boundary disputes between India and Nepal, with each country producing maps supporting their own claims. Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 22nd January 2020 https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcS7waP7ZNWzuJgWy11L9HDrinF7oa53Vwh6o_Ua4lq-y8HLT6Yb Miscellaneous Topics in News   All Assam Students' Union All Assam Students' Union or AASU is a students' organisation in Assam Known for leading the six-year Assam Movement against illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.  It formed a political party Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), which formed government in Assam twice. Coronaviruses (CoV) Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).  A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. Some transmit easily from person to person, while others do not. spreading through of contact with animals, contaminated food, and/or person-to-person. Trillion Tree Campaign In 2006, the Billion Tree Campaign was launched, by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) as a response to the challenges of global warming, as well as to a wider array of sustainability challenges from water supply to biodiversity loss The Billion Tree Campaign was inspired by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai, founder of the Green Belt Movement. WWF, the Wildlife Conservation Society and BirdLife International today launched the Trillion Trees programme, a new 25-year initiative to help scale global forest commitments and spur greater ambitions towards protecting and restoring one trillion trees by 2050 During the World Economic Forum 2020 in Davos, World Economic Forum announced a platform for governments, businesses, civil society to support UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021-2030, led by UNEP and FAO Buriganga river Bangladesh’s High Court has asked authorities to shut down 231 factories surrounding the highly polluted Buriganga river The Buriganga River is a river in Bangladesh that ranks among the most polluted rivers in the country. Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) FMCG grew at 9.7% in 2019, much lower than the previous year’s growth of 13.5%. Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) are products that are sold quickly and at a relatively low cost.  Examples include non-durable household goods such as packaged foods, beverages, toiletries, over-the-counter drugs, and other consumables (MAINS FOCUS) Governance: Elections Topic:General Studies 2: Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these. 
 Electoral Bonds Context: The Supreme Court declined to stay the electoral bond scheme of the government.  Also, a fresh window for purchase of bonds is set to open, coinciding with the Delhi Assembly election. What is Electoral Bond Scheme? An electoral bond is like a promissory note that can be bought by any Indian citizen or company incorporated in India from select branches of State Bank of India.  An individual or party will be allowed to purchase these bonds digitally or through cheque after disclosing their identity through know your customer (KYC) norms The citizen or corporate can then donate the same to any eligible political party of his/her choice. The bonds are similar to bank notes that are payable to the bearer on demand and are free of interest. It has to be redeemed by Political parties within 15 days only in their specified account. The electoral bonds were introduced with the Finance Bill (2017). On January 29, 2018 the NDA government notified the Electoral Bond Scheme 2018. Electoral bonds: Conditions Any party that is registered and has secured at least one per cent of the votes polled in the most recent General elections or Assembly elections is eligible to receive electoral bonds The electoral bonds will not bear the name of the donor. Thus, the political party might not be aware of the donor's identity. Why were electoral bonds introduced in India? The government said that electoral bonds would keep a tab on the use of black money for funding elections. In the absence of electoral bonds, donors would have no option but to donate by cash after siphoning off money from their businesses Electoral bonds were being introduced to ensure that all the donations made to a party would be accounted for in the balance sheets without exposing the donor details to the public Restrictions that were done away with after the introduction of the electoral bond scheme Earlier, no foreign company could donate to any political party under the Companies Act.  A firm could donate a maximum of 7.5 per cent of its average three year net profit as political donations according to Section 182 of the Companies Act Also, companies had to disclose details of their political donations in their annual statement of accounts. Criticisms of EBS Legalising Political Corruption: Since neither the purchaser of the bond nor the political party receiving the donation is required to disclose the donor’s identity, the shareholders of a corporation will remain unaware of the company’s contribution. Voters, too, will have no idea of how, and through whom, a political party has been funded. Possibility of Money Laundering: Since the identity of the donor has been kept anonymous, it could lead to an influx of black money. With doing away with all the safeguard that were present in Corporate donations to Political parties (through Companies Act), Indian, foreign and even shell companies can now donate to political parties without having to inform anyone of the contribution. Large Corporations and not common man is utilizing this route: Nearly 91.76% (Rs 5,624 crore) of the total number of bonds purchased during the 12 phases were in the denomination Rs 1 crore. Thus, there is possibility of unholy nexus developing between Corporates and Political parties for favourable policies which comes at the cost of public welfare Against Smaller Regional Parties: 80.5% of the total Electoral Bonds redeemed between March 2018 and October 2019 were encashed in New Delhi (while maximum value of bonds was purchased in Mumbai) where national parties’ headquarters are located  New sale windows during State elections: The government’s scheme was meant for Lok Sabha elections, but the sale window for bonds had been opened before State Assembly elections repeatedly, which is beneficial for Central ruling party. Non Transparency: The SBI has refused to divulge the names of those who purchased the electoral bonds under the RTI Act. The scheme infringes the citizens’ fundamental ‘Right to Know’ by withholding crucial information regarding electoral funding Election Commission of India's view on electoral bonds ECI, in its response filed in the court, said the provisions would enable the creation of shell companies for the sole purpose of making political donations. It also stated that the amendments to the law on foreign contributions would mean that there would be unchecked foreign funding of political parties, leading to foreign influence on India’s policy-making.  Reserve Bank of India on electoral bonds scheme The central bank had warned the government that the bonds would "undermine the faith in Indian banknotes and encourage money laundering." Supreme Court’s View on Electoral Bonds In an order in April 2019, SC had asked political parties to disclose to the Election Commission of India (ECI), in sealed covers, details of the donations they had received through the anonymous bond. However, it had refused to stay the scheme on the grounds of “limited time” available then (impending General Elections to Lok Sabha) and “the weighty issues” involved in the matter. Way Forward According to ADR, political parties redeemed 12,173 electoral bonds worth Rs 6,108.47 crore between March 2018 and October 2019 in 12 phases. Clear Judicial pronouncement on such matter is of urgent concern The concept of donor "anonymity" threatens the very spirit of democracy, the anonymity should be removed by amending the legislation Connecting the dots: Cash donations to Political Parties also capped at Rs 2000 through Finance Act of 2017. Why cash donations are still allowed? Do Political Parties come under the ambit of RTI? Environment Topic:General Studies 3: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment 
 Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 22nd January 2020 Source: Livemint What is the state of forests in India? Context:  The India State of the Forest Report 2019 was released recently which shows that India has increased its forest cover About India State of the Forest Report (ISFR) ISFR is a biennial publication of Forest Survey of India (FSI), an organization under the Ministry of Environment Forest & Climate Change. The ISFR assesses the forest and tree cover, bamboo resources, carbon stock and forest fires. The 2019 report for the first time has assessed the qualitative nature of the forest cover, including listing its biodiversity and the type of plants and trees found. It also created a national forest inventory for the first time on produce from forests. Some of the findings of the report India’s forest cover has increased by 3,976 sq. km since 2017—a rise of 0. 56%.  Tree cover—tree patches of size less than one hectares outside the recorded forest areas, also showed a rise, albeit a little higher at 1.29% India’s total forest and tree cover now stands at 80.73 million hectares—roughly 24.5% of its geographical area, and still far from the eventual target of 33%, which India has committed to raise to, by 2030. Concerns expressed by ecologists are: Definition of Forest Cover Forest Survey of India defines forest cover as “all patches of land, with a tree canopy density of more than 10% and more than one hectare in area, irrespective of land-use, ownership and species of trees”—an assessment relying majorly on satellite mapping. Counter Arguments: Therefore, then any fruit garden, coconut or coffee plantation, or even urban parks would come under ‘forest cover’ Such a definition will give incomplete picture of our Natural forests, especially with regard to what is happening in Western Ghats & Himalayan Forests Blame on Forest-dwelling communities  FSI’s new study to assess the dependence of people, living in over 170,000 ‘forest fringe villages’,  states that this dependence could be a “major driver of impairment of forest productivity” Counter Arguments These communities have been living in harmony with nature since centuries and dependent on forests for their livelihood. Coexistence with nature and not competition with the nature is their way of life However, the big impact areas—the diversion of forest land for roads, dam projects— has been completely disregarded while putting blame on these communities Compensatory Plantation Compensatory plantation done to replace the original, natural forests during diversion of forest-lands for projects have so far yielded no impactful results. Some of these new areas were even earmarked for other projects or expansion of existing ones, even though they remain under government’s Recorded Forest Area (extent of forests in terms of legal status). Way Ahead Changing the definition of Forest Cover: Instead of just canopy cover or hectares, the need is to focus on what is a ‘thriving forest’ or an ‘ecosystem Real time spatial data of our forest land. share those maps in real time so we know where we are losing our forests. Any afforestation activity undertaken must include an adaptation programme in the light of Climate Change, else the exercise will be futile To stop the fragmentation of forests—especially a problem in the North-East where forest cover is declining—so that forest areas remain connected to form one big habitat Do You Know? Forests are sink and reservoirs of carbon, thus critical in adaptation to climate change.  As part of its climate action plan, India has committed to create an additional carbon sink of 2.5-3 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent through additional forest cover and tree cover by 2030. Connecting the Dots: Other findings of the State of Forest report 2019 Kasturirangan and Gadgil Committee report on Western Ghats Environmental Impact Assessment (TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE) Model questions: (You can now post your answers in comment section) Note:  Correct answers of today’s questions will be provided in next day’s DNA section. Kindly refer to it and update your answers.  Comments Up-voted by IASbaba are also the “correct answers”. Q.1) In the context of space technology, what is “Hawaii telescope ”, recently in the news?  A mini satellite launched by ISRO for promoting the distance education in India The name given to the next Moon Impact Probe, for Chandrayan-II A geoportal of ISRO with 3 D imaging capabilities of India proposed astronomical observatory with an extremely large telescope Q.2) Which one of the following schedules of the Constitution of India contains provisions regarding anti-defection Act?  Second Schedule  Fifth Schedule Eighth Schedule  Tenth Schedule Q.3) Consider the following statements: The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly shall vacate his/her office if he/she ceases to be a member of the Assembly. Whenever the Legislative Assembly is dissolved, the Speaker shall vacate his/her immediately. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? 1 only 2 only Both 1 and 2  Neither 1 nor 2 ANSWERS FOR 21 JAN 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 B 2 B 3 D 4 C MUST READ About Changing scenario in Pakistan: The Hindu About Kashmiri Pandits : The Hindu About Right to Protest: The Hindu

PIB

Press Information Bureau (PIB) IAS UPSC – 13th January to 19th January – 2020

Press Information Bureau (PIB) IAS UPSC – 13th to 19th January, 2020 ARCHIVES GS-2 Signing of Historic Agreement to end the Bru-Reang Refugee Crisis (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) Signing of an agreement between: Government of India, Governments of Tripura and Mizoram and Bru-Reang representatives Under the new agreement Around 34,000 Bru refugees will be settled in Tripura and would be given aid from the Centre to help with their rehabilitation and all round development, through a package of around Rs 600 crores.  These people would get all the rights that normal residents of the States get and they would now be able to enjoy the benefits of social welfare schemes of Centre and State governments. Each of the displaced families would be given 40x30 sq.ft. residential plots, in addition to the aid under earlier agreement of a fixed deposit of Rs. 4 lakhs, Rs. 5,000 cash aid per month for 2 years, free ration for 2 years and Rs. 1.5 lakhs aid to build their house. The government of Tripura would provide the land under this agreement. What is Bru-Reang refugee crisis? In 1997, following ethnic tension, around 5,000 families comprising around 30,000 Bru-Reang tribals were forced to flee Mizoram and seek shelter in Tripura. These people were housed in temporary camps at Kanchanpur, in North Tripura. Since 2010, Government of India has been making sustained efforts to permanently rehabilitate these refugees. The Union government has been assisting the two State governments for taking the care of the refugees. Till 2014, 1622 Bru-Reang families returned to Mizoram in different batches.  On 3rd July, 2018, an agreement was signed between the Union government, the two State governments and representatives of Bru-Reang refugees, as a result of which the aid given to these families was increased substantially. Subsequently, 328 families comprising of 1369 individuals returned to Mizoram under the agreement. There had been a sustained demand of most Bru-Reang families that they may be allowed to settle down in Tripura, considering their apprehensions about their security. IBBI amends the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Voluntary Liquidation Process) Regulations, 2017 (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has notified the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Voluntary Liquidation Process) (Amendment) Regulations, 2020 on 15th January. 2020. The aforesaid amendment provides that a Liquidator shall deposit the amount of unclaimed dividends, if any, and undistributed proceeds, if any, in a liquidation process along with any income earned thereon into the Corporate Voluntary Liquidation Account before submission of an application for dissolution of the corporate person. It also provides a process for a stakeholder to seek withdrawal from the Corporate Voluntary Liquidation Account. MoU between NITI Aayog and Union Territory of Ladakh for Development of Infrastructure Projects (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) Under this MoU, NITI Aayog will be supporting the UT’s administration through its key initiative ‘Development Support Services to States for Infrastructure Projects (D3S-i)’. The partnership lays thrust on the identification of high-impact priority projects, expedited project implementation, addressing structural-level issues and creating unique models of development for the Union Territory of Ladakh.  NITI Aayog has committed to assist the UT’s administration in creating a strategic plan for identifying prioritized infrastructure projects and by providing end-to-end transaction-management support for the identified projects.  A dedicated team of professionals is expected to be stationed at Ladakh for identification and development of projects in the UT, especially in tourism, solar energy and basic infrastructure. India and Bangladesh ink key agreements in Information & Broadcasting sector (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation with neighbouring countries) A formal co-production agreement was signed on the biopic of “BangaBandhu”, Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, which will be released during the birth centenary year of Bangabandhu. Bangladesh has decided to celebrate the ‘Mujib Year’ from March 17, 2020 to March 17, 2021 to mark the centenary year of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh. Deepening India’s engagement with Bangladesh, an airtime exchange programme between Prasar Bharati and Bangladesh Radio Betar was also launched. With today’s launch content from Maitree service has started airing in Dhaka and reciprocally content from Bangladesh Radio Betar has started airing on All India Radio in Kolkata. India and Finland ink MoU to enhance bilateral defence cooperation (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation with other countries) The MoU on co-operation in the field of Production, Procurement, Research and Development of Defence related Equipment and Industrial cooperation has been inked on the sidelines of Raisina Dialogue 2020.  Under the broad ambit of the MoU, cooperation between Finnish companies and Indian Defence Public Sector Undertakings could be explored. Timelines: A draft MoU between the two countries in the field of defence cooperation amongst others was under discussion since the DefExpo 2018 and has now been formalised in the run up to DefExpo 2020, to be held in Uttar Pradesh capital Lucknow between February 5-9, 2020. In 2019, Mr Juusti had led a delegation to Aero India in Bengaluru and post his visit, the Permanent Secretary had evinced their interest to participate in the ‘Make in India’ vision and formalise an arrangement for Defence Industrial cooperation through an MoU.  On February 13, 2016, Prime Minister of Finland Mr Juha Sipila had bilateral discussions with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi during his visit to India for the inauguration of the ‘Make in India’ week.  In April 17, 2018, Prime Minister Modi held a bilateral meeting with Mr Sipila during the first India-Nordic Summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Also, a delegation from Finland had visited India between November 29 – December 02, 2018 to explore new business opportunities for Finnish companies. World Bank and Government of India Sign $88 million loan agreement for the implementation of Assam Inland Water Transport Project (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation with international organisations) The Government of India, the Government of Assam and the World Bank signed a loan agreement of $88 million to help modernize Assam’s passenger ferry sector that runs on its rivers including the mighty Brahmaputra. A majority of Assam’s more than 361 ferry routes cross the Brahmaputra or serve its islands, providing a crucial means of transport to thousands of commuters in both the urban and rural areas of the Brahmaputra Valley. The Assam Inland Water Transport Project (AIWTP) will  Help Assam improve the passenger ferry infrastructure and its services Strengthen the capacity of the institutions running the inland water transport Technically better designed terminals and energy-efficient vessels (both new and retrofitted) will make the ferry services more sustainable with least disruption to nature. The Assam Inland Water Transport Project will help develop a modern, efficient and safe river transport system for the large volume of passengers and cargo carried by the vessels. Inland Water Transport is also a more sustainable mode of transport. It provides low-carbon and low-cost options when compared to the cost of constructing and maintaining flood-resilient roads and bridges across the long stretches of the Brahmaputra river. The project will also help build modern ferry terminals. In doing so, the project will draw guidance from ‘working with nature’ principles that aim to design new infrastructure or rehabilitate existing infrastructure in a way that works with natural river processes. The terminals will have better access, lighting and signages while the new vessels will allow for individual seats, and separate toilets. Moreover, a strengthened regulatory regime will ensure reduction in overloading, adherence to time schedule and better crew standards. Assam has the largest network of navigable waterways in India. The Government of Assam has taken on the challenge of modernizing the ferries sector which, though vital to the state, remains largely informal. With World Bank support, the government is creating an institutional framework that will mainstream Inland Waterways as a mode of transport that is both attractive and well-suited to a wide cross-section of people living in the Brahmaputra Valley of Assam. GS-3 India’s communication satellite GSAT-30 launched successfully (Topic: Space Technology) GSAT-30  has a unique  configuration of  providing flexible  frequency segments and  flexible coverage.     The  satellite  will provide  communication services  to Indian mainland and islands  through Ku-band and wide coverage  covering Gulf countries, a large number  of Asian countries and Australia through  C-band. GSAT-30  will provide  DTH Television  Services, connectivity  to VSATs for ATM, Stock-exchange,  Television uplinking and Teleport Services,  Digital Satellite News Gathering (DSNG) and  e-governance applications. The satellite will also  be used for bulk data transfer for a host of emerging  telecommunication applications. In  the days  ahead, orbit-raising  manoeuvres will be performed  to place the satellite in Geostationary  Orbit (36,000 km above the equator) by using  its onboard propulsion system. During the final  stages of its orbit raising operations, the two solar  arrays and the antenna reflectors of GSAT-30 will be deployed.    Following this, the satellite will be put in its final orbital configuration.    The satellite will be operational after the successful completion of all in-orbit  tests. Meeting of the Island Development Agency focusing on ‘Green Development in the Islands to reach a new Height' (Topic: Tourism; Environment) The Island Development Agency reviewed the progress made towards the programme “Holistic development of islands”. For the first time in the country, under the guidance of IDA, an initiative of sustainable development in the identified Islands within scientifically-assessed carrying capacity has been taken-up.  Development Plans with focus on creation of jobs for the islanders through tourism promotion as well as export of seafood and coconut-based products made in the Islands have been prepared and are being implemented in four islands of Andaman & Nicobar and five islands of Lakshadweep. In the second phase, suitable sites in 12 more islands of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and 5 islands in Lakshadweep have been covered. Model tourism projects Both Land-based and Water Villas were planned and bids have been invited for private sector participation.  As a unique initiative, to spur investment, it was decided to obtain clearances for implementation of the planned projects up-front.  All necessary clearances would be in place before bids finalization.  Environment and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearances have already been obtained for four exemplary tourism projects of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Strengthening infrastructure support Projects for improving air, sea and digital connectivity are being implemented.  Port Blair and another 7 islands in Andaman & Nicobar would get digitally connected through submarine optical fibre cable by June, 2020.  Better communication services would facilitate setting up of Information Technology based and other Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the islands with incentives through Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar Islands Industrial Development Scheme (LANIDS), 2018 notified on 1st January, 2019.  The proposed airports in Great Nicobar Island of Andaman & Nicobar and Minicoy Island of Lakshadweep would catalyze the development process in the region. Way Forward Formulate separate policy for maintaining a clean, green and healthy environment in the islands.  Implement suitable strategies for sustainable utilization of fisheries resources available in Exclusive Economic Zone around the islands.  Adequate technology-based facilities need to be provided to enhance fish collection, storage, processing and export of value-added products which would provide more jobs and generate additional income for the islands. Year End Review 2019 – Ministry of Power Availability of reliable and affordable energy is key for development of any country.  Electrification of approximately 2.6 Crores households achieved Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (SAUBHAGYA): Launched in Sept., 2017 with the objective to achieve universal household electrification by providing last mile connectivity and electricity connections to all remaining un-electrified households in rural and urban areas by 31st March, 2019 Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram JyotiYojana (DDUGJY): 100% villages across the country stands electrified as on 28thApril, 2018 Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) was launched in the year 2014 for improving and augmenting the distribution and sub-transmission systems in Urban areas with a view to improve reliability. Under the scheme, till today, system strengthening of sub-transmission and distribution network has been in 371 circles. 560 additional urban Towns have been IT-enabled, and about 30,000 kms of HT/LT lines have been installed across 546 circles in the country. 820 new substations have been constructed, while more than 50,000 Distribution transformers have been installed. For better work flow management in the Utilities, IPDS has also funded Enterprise resource planning (ERP) across several Utilities, out of which implementation has been completed in 6 Utilities. Smart Metering: In the current financial year, Ministry of Power has issued guidelines to all States to convert all existing consumer meters into Smart meters in prepaid mode. Operation of Smart meters in prepaid mode would allow consumers to pay as per their own financial convenience and electricity consumption requirements. Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY): A scheme for financial and operation turnaround of Power Distribution Companies (DISCOMs) was launched by the Government for State owned Distribution Utilities at a time when the outstanding debts and losses of the Distribution utilities had increased to levels that were adversely affecting the viability of the Power and Banking Sectors. The purpose of UDAY was to usher reforms across the Power and coal Sectors through competitive and cooperative federalism to pave the way for 24X7 affordable and reliable Power for all. UDAY incorporated a slew of measures, including financial re-engineering measures, as well as operational improvement measures. Atal JyotiYojana (AJAY) and Solar Study Lamp scheme: Over 1.48 lakh Solar LED Street Lights commissioned in rural areas under AJAY and over 59.18 lakh Solar Study Lamps distributed to school going students under Solar Study Lamp scheme. North Eastern states: Over 1 crore LED bulbs, 93,900 LED tube lights and 3.65 lakh energy efficient fans distributed under UJALA scheme. Over 1 lakh LED street lights installed under SLNP. Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA): Over 36.10 crore LED bulbs, 71.61 lakh LED tube lights and 23.10 lakh energy efficient fans distributed across the country. This has resulted in estimated energy savings of 47 billion kWh per year with avoided peak demand of 9,590 MW, estimated GHG emission reduction of 38 million CO2 per year and estimated cost saving of INR 18,935 crore per year in electricity bills of consumers. Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP): Over 1 crore energy efficient LED streetlights have been installed across the country. This has resulted in estimated energy savings of 6.9 billion kWh per year with avoided peak demand of 1,152 MW, estimated GHG emission reduction of 4.76 million t CO2per year and estimated annual cost saving of INR 2,686 crore in electricity bills of Municipalities. National E-Mobility Programme: Procurement process of 10,000 e-cars concluded. The price discovered for e-cars is 25 % less than similar cars in market. Till date, 1510 e-cars deployed/under deployment for Government offices and 470 Captive Chargers (300 AC & 170 DC) commissioned in these offices. Electric Vehicles Charging Infrastructure: EESL is also installing Public Charging Stations to promote Electric vehicles. Till date, 65 nos. of Public Charging Stations (PCS) have been commissioned in New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) area. MoUs signed with multiple stakeholders across the country. Building Energy Efficiency Programme (BEEP): Building energy efficiency project has been completed in 10,310 buildings including Railway stations and Airports. Agricultural Demand Side Management (AgDSM): Over73,600 energy efficient pumps have been installed in Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Decentralized solar power plants: Decentralized solar power plant of60 MW cumulative capacity commissioned in the state of Maharashtra.   Prelims oriented News National Youth Day: 13th Jan Thuglak, a Tamil magazine: Founded by the late Cho Ramaswamy November 26, 2019: 70th anniversary of the adoption of the Indian Constitution by the Constituent Assembly Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu National Award: Prof. M S Swaminathan - Doyen of Agricultural Science National Disaster Response Force (NDRF): The largest singular & specialized disaster response force in the world IRAD project: Will enhance the analytical capabilities based on international best practice, and will also help to perform analysis based on collected data for further improvement/corrective measures to be taken at accident spot/accident prone areas by the concerned Road Authority. There are two main agricultural seasons in India –  ‘Kharif’ from 1st April to 30th September ‘Rabi’ from 1st October to 31st March. FASTag Rules relaxed for 65 NHAI toll plazas having High Cash Transactions The concerned fee plazas have been allowed to convert up to 25 per cent of all fee lanes to hybrid (cash plus FASTag) lanes during this time. The move comes in the wake of NHAI raising concerns regarding high cash transactions on its 65 identified fee plazas. NHAI has pointed out that most of the fee plazas are functioning with one hybrid lane on each side and while efforts are being made to bring more fee plazas within the ambit, the said identified fee plazas were facing heavy traffic rush on the hybrid lanes. With a view to save the citizens from inconvenience, the Ministry has decided that depending on the traffic pile up at these 65 fee plazas, not more than 25 percent FASTag lane of Fee Plaza may be temporarily converted to hybrid lanes. At least 75% lanes of these 65 fee plaza remain declared and operational as ‘FASTag lane of Fee Plaza’ in order to incentivize the vehicles carrying FASTag. Novel coronavirus outbreak in China Coronaviruses are large family of viruses, which cause illnesses to people and also circulate in animals including camels, cats and bats. Rarely, animal coronaviruses can also evolve and infect people. Also known as Wuhan coronavirus, Wuhan seafood market pneumonia virus and Wuhan pneumonia, is a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA coronavirus first reported in 2019 The clinical signs and symptoms are mainly fever with a few patients having difficulty in breathing. The mode of transmission is unclear as of now.  2019-nCoV can transmit between humans (it was earlier believed to transmit only from animals to humans). This is a worrying development because it means the viral infection may spread further and much more rapidly, especially in the backdrop of the ongoing yearly migration in China on account of the Chinese New Year festivities when millions of people travel across China. Although as per World Health Organization’s risk assessment the risk for global spread has been stated as low.

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QUICK UPDATE: DAF Session @ DELHI (as part of IMP Program) by Serving IRS Officer on 23rd January, 6 PM (Thursday)

QUICK UPDATE: DAF Session @ DELHI (as part of IMP Program) by Serving IRS Officer on 23rd January, 6 PM (Thursday)   Dear Students, Based on many Requests in Delhi, we are conducting a DAF session on 23rd January 2020 (Thursday) at 6 PM to guide you on filling the DAF. The session shall be conducted by serving IRS Officer, on pro-bono basis. The most important step right now is filling up your Detailed Application Form(DAF). Your DAF introduces you to the board before you get to introduce yourself. And utmost care is needed to ensure that you do not make blunders in filling it up. The session is FREE and OPEN TO ALL !!  About DAF Session @ Bengaluru -> CLICK HERE P.S. : Get a print out of your DAF (mandatory). IMP Workshop will be held on 1st February in Bengaluru and 2nd February in Delhi. Details will be announced soon. VENUE: IASBABA, 5B, PUSA road, Karol Bagh, New Delhi -110005 (Landmark: Just 50m from Karol Bagh Metro Station, GATE No.8 (Next to CROMA Store). DATE & TIMINGS: 23rd January (Thursday) at 6 PM Email id: support@iasbaba.com Contact No.: DELHI: +91 11-41678500/+91 11-41672600 ( Office Timings: 10 am – 6 pm) Going forward we will be conducting Workshop for Interview as part of Interview Mentorship Program (IMP).  HIGHLIGHTS of INTERVIEW MENTORSHIP PROGRAMME (IMP): Workshop – 3 hour session to set the mood for Interview preparation. Open Mocks – a Unique Approach Pioneered by IASbaba!! Mock Interviews – Conducted by the board of five Eminent resource persons chosen to exactly replicate the UPSC Interview board. This session shall be recorded and the video will be provided to the candidate. One-to-one discussion – to analyse the candidate’s performance in the mock interview. DAF discussion Current Affairs Sessions To REGISTER and to Know more about IMP Program -> CLICK HERE Thank You IASbaba

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ASER - Annual Status of Education Report 2019 – Vishesh - RSTV IAS UPSC

ASER - Annual Status of Education Report 2019 Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education In News: The recently released ASER 2019 report by NGO Pratham is completely focussed on exploring more deeply where young children are and what they can do. It directs attention to children between four and eight years of age, and suggests that India’s learning crisis could be linked to the weakness of the country’s pre-primary system. The report is based on a survey conducted in 26 districts across 24 states in India, covering over 36,000 children in the age group of 4-8 years. More than 20 per cent of students in Standard I are less than six 36 per cent students in Standard 1 are older than the RTE-mandated age of six - close to five crore children currently in elementary school do not have foundational literacy and numeracy skills Gender gap in schooling: Parents choose government schools for girl students in the age group of 4 to 8 years while for boys, they prefer private schools - among 4-5-year-old children, 56.8 per cent girls and 50.4 per cent boys are enrolled in government schools or pre-schools, while 43.2 per cent girls and 49.6 per cent boys are enrolled in private pre-schools or schools Across all age groups enrolled in standard I, girls in private schools are performing better than their male counterparts The emphasis, as ASER 2019 emphasises, should be on “developing problem-solving faculties and building memory of children, and not content knowledge”. ASER - Annual Status of Education Report 2019 – Vishesh - RSTV IAS UPSC Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/aser-flags-poor-learning-outcomes-in-schools/article30569671.ece  The mother’s education often determines the kind of pre-schooling or schooling that the child gets. How? The report says that among children in the early years (ages 0-8), those with mothers who had completed eight or fewer years of schooling are more likely to be attending anganwadis or government pre-primary classes, whereas their peers whose mothers had studied beyond the elementary stage are more likely to be enrolled in private LKG/UKG classes. ASER 2019 also shows how, among 4- and 5-year-olds who were administered a four-piece puzzle and 6- to 8-year-olds who were asked to solve a 6-piece puzzle, those whose mothers had completed Class 11 or more had a higher chance of solving these cognitive tasks. Between 2011 and 2012, researchers at MIT’s Poverty Action Lab worked with Pratham to study whether literacy classes and other interventions for mothers could improve children’s learning outcomes. They found that their interventions have “had small positive impacts on mothers’ math and literacy skills, the home learning environment, some forms of school attendance, and ultimately children’s learning levels”. But then why are children entering school before age six? This is partly due to the lack of affordable and accessible options for pre-schooling. Therefore, too many children go to Std I with limited exposure to early childhood education.  Children from poor families have a double disadvantage — lack of healthcare and nutrition on one side and the absence of a supportive learning environment on the other.  Although the anganwadi network across India is huge, by and large, school readiness or early childhood development and education activities have not had high priority in the ICDS system. Private preschools that are mushrooming in urban and rural communities have increased access to preschool but are often designed to be a downward extension of schooling. Thus, they bring in school-like features into the pre-school classroom, rather than developmentally appropriate activities by age and phase. Trends that have emerged First, there is considerable scope for expanding anganwadi outreach for three and four-year-old children. All-India data from 2018 shows that slightly less than 30 per cent children at age three and 15.6 per cent of children at age four are not enrolled anywhere. But these figures are much higher in states like Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Expanding access to anganwadis is an important incremental step. Strengthening the early childhood components in the ICDS system would help greatly in raising school readiness among young children. Second, it is commonly assumed that children enter Standard I at age six and that they proceed year by year from Std I to Std VIII, reaching the end of elementary school by age 14. The Right to Education Act also refers to free and compulsory education for the age group six to 14. However, the practice on the ground is quite different. ASER 2018 data show that 27.6 per cent of all children in Std I are under age six. Third, there are important age implications for children’s learning. Data from ASER 2019 (26 rural districts) indicate that in Std I, the ability to do cognitive activities among seven-eight-year olds can be 20 percentage points higher than their friends who are five years old but in the same class. In terms of reading levels in Std I, 37.1 per cent children who are under six can recognise letters whereas 76 per cent of those who are seven or eight can do the same. Interestingly, age distribution in Std I varies considerably between government and private schools, with private schools in many states having a relatively older age distribution. A big part of the differences in learning levels between government and private school children may be due to these differences in age composition right from the beginning of formal schooling. The Way Forward Understanding challenges that children face when they are young is critical if we want to solve these problems early in children’s lives rather than waiting till much later to attempt the much harder to do remedial action. On the pedagogy side, a reworking of curriculum and activities is urgently needed for the entire age band from four to eight, cutting across all types of preschools and early grades regardless of whether the provision is by government institutions or by private agencies. A case can also be made for streamlining the curriculum at the pre-school stage so that all pre-schools focus on activities that build cognitive and early literacy and numeracy skills. These will aid further learning. There is a need to leverage the existing network of anganwadi centres to implement school readiness – The core structure of the anganwadis was developed more than 40 years ago as part of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). Pre-school education is part of their mandate. But at the best of times, these centres do no more than implement the government’s child nutrition schemes.  A number of health crises — including last year’s AES outbreak in Bihar — have bared the inadequacies of the system. A growing body of scholarly work has also shown that the anganwadi worker is poorly-paid, demoralised and lacks the autonomy to be an effective nurturer.  There is a need to expand and upgrade anganwadis to ensure that children get adequate and correct educational inputs of the kind that are not modeled after the formal school. Most of the young mothers in the next decade will not be very young as median age of marriage has increased from 18.2 years in 2001 to 19.2 in 2011 to nearly 21.7 in rural India and 23.4 in urban India by 2016. Further, most of these young mothers will have had at least five years of schooling. These changes in the young Indian mother’s profile need to be taken into account when thinking of the education inputs to be designed for the Indian child of the next decade. “The idea behind early childhood education is not more institutionalisation in the form of private pre-schools or play schools but to involve children through cognitive tasks that mainly involve play.” Connecting the Dots: Early childhood education has the potential to be the “greatest and most powerful equaliser”. Discuss.

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Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 21st January 2020

IAS UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 21st January 2020 Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) SC : Welfare schemes for religious minorities Part of: GS Prelims –Polity and GS-II- Vulnerable section In news: The Supreme Court asked the UP government to respond to a petition alleging that the government is discriminating against Hindus by providing religious minorities with welfare schemes worth thousands of crores. From Prelims point of view: National Commission for Minorities Statutory body set up under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. Unlike other bodies like NCSC and NCST, NCM has no constitutional backing or status. Works under the Ministry of Minority Affairs. It looks into complaints from members of five religious communities notified as a minority community in 2014.( Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) Jain community) Who are minorities? Constitution  speaks of minorities ‘based on religion or language’ and rights of minorities have been spelt out in Constitution in detail. Six religious communities, viz. Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Zoroastrians (Parsis) and Jains have been notified in Gazette of India as minority communities by Union Government all over India. Electoral bonds scheme not to be stalled Part of: GS Prelims –Polity and GS-II- Election commission  In news: Chief Justice of India (CJI) said that  the Supreme Court had found it unnecessary to stay the electoral bonds scheme (EBS) Supreme Court recently passed an interim order directing political parties to provide complete information to the ECI in sealed covers on every single donor and contribution received by them till date through electoral bonds From Prelims point of view: Electoral bonds The Electoral bonds are instruments/securities used to donate funds to the political parties.  These bonds will be on the lines of bearer bonds or promissory notes wherein the issuer (bank) will be the custodian and will pay the one who holds the bonds (political party Features: The donor may approach these banks and purchase the bonds. The donor shall be permitted to buy the bonds through cheque/digital payment. Hence the identity of the donors will be protected (if the donors are identified, they may get caught up in political rivalry-especially if the donor is a businessman). The donor will donate these bonds to the political party. The political party has to encash it into the account which is registered with the Election Commission of India. This is also important for Mains examination we will soon take this issue in Mains Focus section Stay tuned!! Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) Non-partisan, non-governmental organization which works in the area of electoral and political reforms. ADR aims at bringing transparency and accountability in Indian politics and reducing the influence of money and muscle power in elections. National Election Watch (NEW) is a conglomeration of over 1200 organizations across the country. ADR has become the single data point for information/analysis of Indian politics Tigersharks : India is placing Sukhoi jets in South India Part of: GS Prelims –Polity and GS-II- Internal Security In news: Air force commissioned the 222 squadron, also known as 'Tigersharks', for their Thanjavur base Tamil Nadu  It will play a key role in keeping China's growing clout in the Indian Ocean region  The squadron has Sukhoi-30 carrying the BrahMos cruise missile. From Prelims point of view: Sukhoi Su-30MKI A twinjet multirole air superiority fighter developed by Russia Integrates Indian systems and avionics as well as French and Israeli sub-systems. BRAHMOS Joint venture between India & Russia. Brahmos is named on the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva. air to surface missile with a flight range of around 300 km. India's entry into the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) has extended the range of the BRAHMOS missile to reach 450 km-600km, a shade above its current MTCR capped range of 300 km. Brahmos is the heaviest weapon to be deployed on Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft, with a weight of 2.5 tonnes. Brahmos is a multiplatform i.e it can be launched from land, air, and sea. It operates on the "Fire and Forgets" principle i.e it does not require further guidance after launch. Government  to seek green clearance for water aerodromes Part of: GS Prelims –Polity and GS-II- Vulnerable section In news: The Union Civil Aviation Ministry has given in-principle clearance to set up aerial airports (AIRDROME) in the country.  Five states - Odisha, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Assam - have been identified for its launch.  In the first phase of the project, Chilka Lake (Odisha), Sabarmati River Front and Sardar Sarovar dam (Gujarat) have been marked for the development of such facilities. From Prelims point of view: UDAN : ‘Ude Desh ka Aam Nagarik’ scheme is a part of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) UDAN is a regional connectivity scheme spearheaded by the Government of India (GoI).  Aims to develop smaller regional airports to allow common citizens easier access to aviation services. Objectives : Operationalization and development of 425 underserved or unserved airports in the country Boost inclusive economic development by providing faster connectivity Development of air transport infrastructure in remote areas aiding job growth Kerala's move to challenge CAA  Part of: GS Prelims –Polity and GS-II- Governor  In news: Recent controversy concerning the Kerala government’s move to challenge the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 Kerala Govt chose to sue the Centre in the Supreme Court under Article 131 without first informing Governor From Prelims point of view: Article 131 Article 131 : Original and exclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court.  Here, 'Original' and 'Exclusive' means that Court has the power and authority to address, hear and rule a decision in the initial instance.  The exclusivity factor of the jurisdiction provides an exceptional and particular power to the Court to hear and decide the matter than any other Courts Article 167 : It is the Chief Minister’s duty to communicate to the Governor all decisions of the Council of Ministers relating to the administration and proposals for legislation. It enjoins the Chief Minister to furnish such information relating to the administration as the Governor may call for. There may be occasions when the Governor may need to ask a top bureaucrat or the head of the police force for a report on a major incident or development, but even that should be for the limited purpose of getting an accurate picture before sending a report to the Centre Sarkaria commission: In June 1983 the Union Government appointed a commission under the chairmanship of Justice R.S. Sarkaria to review the question of centre state relationship Iran to quit NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons) Part of: GS Prelims –IR and GS-II- International Organization In news: Iran threatened to withdraw from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) if European countries bring alleged violations of the historic nuclear deal with world powers to the United Nations Security Council From Prelims point of view: Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons The NPT is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament. The Treaty represents the only binding commitment in a multilateral treaty to the goal of disarmament by the nuclear-weapon States. Treaty establishes a safeguards system under the responsibility of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Iran Nuclear deal Iran agreed to rein in its nuclear programme in a 2015 deal struck with the US, UK, Russia, China, France and Germany. Under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) Tehran agreed to significantly cut its stores of centrifuges, enriched uranium and heavy-water, all key components for nuclear weapons. The JCPOA established the Joint Commission, with the negotiating parties all represented, to monitor implementation of the agreement. (MAINS FOCUS) Governance Topic: General Studies 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health  Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interest 
 Healthcare: The Brazilian Way Daily Current Affairs IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 21st January 2020 Source of Pic: The Hindu Context: The Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro visits to New Delhi this Republic Day and one interesting field of cooperation to explore in the strategic partnership is healthcare. Brazil, the only country where more than 100 million inhabitants have a universal health system- Unified Health System (Sistema Único de Saúde - SUS). Studying the system will have important lessons for Ayushman Bharat Scheme  About Brazils SUS SUS, underpinned by the principles of equity, solidary and social participation, aimed to develop a universal, comprehensive and decentralised health system, free of charge at the point of service provision The Unified Health System (SUS), which guaranteed free health coverage that included pharmaceutical services, was written into the new Constitution in 1988. It defined health as a Universal right and a State responsibility The SUS triggered a fundamental restructuring of how the health system is governed which included A process of decentralization and new arrangements for sharing of responsibilities across federal, state and municipal levels. A gradual increase of public spending on health National Health Identification Card: allows a patient's health record to be accessed via a central database from any public or private hospital within the Unified Health System network. Family Health Programme: Community-based healthcare network who perform monthly visits to every family enrolled in the programme.  They conduct health promotion and prevention activities and effectively manage the relationship between citizens and the healthcare system Achievements of SUS Every year, the SUS covers more than two million births, 10 million hospital admissions, and nearly one billion ambulatory procedures. Life expectancy has increased from 64 years to almost 76 years.  Infant Mortality Rate has declined from 53 to 14 per 1,000 live births. 95% of those that seek care in the SUS are able to receive treatment Fiscally Prudent achieved by better regulatory system. The cost of the universal health system in Brazil averages around $600 per person, while in the U.K., this number reaches $3.428. Brazil spends 3.8% of GDP on SUS, whereas UK which runs a similar program called NHS spends 7.9% of its GDP The Family Health Programme: Expanded from 4% of coverage in 2000 to up to 64% of the overall population in 2015 which has reduced IMR and increased adult labour supply Challenges for SUS Economic and political crises, combined with austerity policies, pose a major risk to UHC. Thus the system has to remain resilient to such external shocks Internal shocks such rapid ageing leading to rise in disease burden. Public health spending in Brazil will thus need to increase by nearly 1.6 percentage points of the GDP by 2060 in order to cover the healthcare needs of a fast-ageing society. Lesson for India from Healthcare system in Brazil Increase in Public health funding -Public health expenditure is still very low in India, at around 1.3% of GDP  Family Health programme which involved regular visit to families ensures regular monitoring of health needs of people and thus strengthens the primary health care system Need for decentralization of the health care responsibilities by empowering municipalities with funds and powers National Health Identification Card scheme can be integrated by making use of Aadhar ecosystem so as to create a better system of coordination between public and private sector healthcare institutions regulated by the Health Agency  Way Ahead In a heterogeneous society like India where there is regional disparities, one-size-fits-all approach is not advisable Tamil Nadu, Sikkim, and Bihar differ in so many ways and this diversity must be met by an intricate combination of standardised programmes and autonomy to adopt policies according to their characteristics. Connecting the dots Ayushman Bharat’s 1.5 Lakh wellness centres and Brazils Family Health Programme UK’s National Health Service Private Health care provision through Insurance Model Vs Public Health Service delivery through government hospitals Economy: Education Topic: General Studies 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment. 
 Government Budgeting GST- Critical analysis of its working Context:  Goods and services tax (GST) that was introduced in India in July 2017 has been widely criticized as having failed to deliver the benefits that were expected of it especially in the backdrop of low GDP growth rate. What were the basic expectations (benefits) from GST regime? Integration of the Indian marketplace Creation of scale efficiencies and  Enhanced gross domestic product (GDP) growth  There is no systematic study yet of the first two, while GDP growth has slowed in the past few years. It is wrong to blame GST regime alone for the present state of economy as multiple players are responsible for the state of affairs. Some of the other factors are: Technology was the biggest let-down during the rollout and this was handled by a private-sector entity. Blaming the government for technological issues is uncalled for. Revenues of local bodies going down after GST introduction was blamed on GST regime as some of the local taxes were subsumed under GST Counter Argument: State Governments have been reluctant to devolve funds to local bodies. They have been quite delinquent in constituting finance commissions and thus formulating rules for the devolution of financial revenues to local bodies Shortfall (relative to expectations) in GST collections is now being blamed, in part, on lax supervision and oversight. Counter Argument: The decision to rely on self-declarations and filings, rather than on oversight and supervision, was deliberate. It was meant to provide time for businesses to adapt to the new regime. Tax rates are high with multiple slabs: The Arvind Subramanian committee pegged the revenue-neutral GST rate at 15% Counter Arguments: When the new tax was launched in July 2017, the rate was 14.4%, and over the next two years, it had come down to around 11.6%. The number of items taxed at the highest GST slab rate of 28% had come down from 226 in July 2017 to a mere 28 Further, several key categories of goods remain outside the GST’s purview.  Thus, far from being a deterrent to economic activity, the GST had acted as a countercyclical fiscal policy too What then is the reason for slowdown? Exemptions granted to various businesses from having to pay the tax, the composition schemes made available to small businesses and weaker economic activity have contributed to slower growth in GST revenues. Rural Sector Slowdown due to bad monsoons in consequent years Banking Sector Crisis So is GST all fine and has it not added to economic difficulties? GST still has certain issues and where GST might have contributed to the country’s overall economic difficulties is in the services sector. The number of forms that service producers have to file has increased considerably. In part, this is because of the separate registrations needed in each state, as opposed to the single registration pre-GST With the services sector being the Indian economy’s biggest, the increased complexity and difficulties faced by service providers might have overshadowed the efficiency gains that accrued to goods and logistics providers Way Forward Rates would be adjusted only once in a year, which is agreed to by GST Council. This ensure tax predictability thus enhancing ease of doing business. Forms and returns needs to be simplified. Exemption limits for the filing of GST could be raised further without any impact on revenue Connecting the Dots Direct tax code GST regime and its impact on Federal fiscal structure (TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE) Model questions: (You can now post your answers in comment section) Note:  Correct answers of today’s questions will be provided in next day’s DNA section. Kindly refer to it and update your answers.  Comments Up-voted by IASbaba are also the “correct answers”. Q.1) The Dinesh Goswami Committee was concerned with: de-nationalisation of banks electoral reforms steps to put down insurgency in the north-east the problem of the Chakmas Q.2) Given below are two statements, one labelled as Assertion (A) and the other labelled as Reason (R) : Assertion (A) : The word minority is not defined in the Constitution of India. Reason (R) : The Minorities Commission is not a constitutional body. In the context of the above two statements, which one of the following is correct?  Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A Both A and R are true but R is not a correct explanation A is true but R is false A is false but R is true Q.3) Consider the following statements about the minorities India:  The Government of India has notified five communities, namely, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Zoroastrians as Minorities The National Commission for Minorities was given statutory status in 1993 The smallest religious minority in India are the Zoroastrians The Constitution of India recognizes and protects religious and linguistic minorities Which of these statements are correct? 2 and 3  1 and 4 2, 3 and 4  1, 2 and 4 Q.4) The power of the Supreme Court of India to decide disputes between the Centre and the State falls under its:  advisory jurisdiction appellate jurisdiction original jurisdiction constitutional jurisdiction MUST READ About India’s data system The Hindu About Citizenship Act The Hindu About Russia’s internal Political changes The Hindu About Adivasi Communities importance IE

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