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Daily Prelims CA Quiz

UPSC Quiz- 2017 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 36]

UPSC Quiz- 2017 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 36] Archives Q.1) Consider the following statements about International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea International Seabed Authority was established by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ITLOS is based in Montego Bay, Jamaica Select the correct statements 1 and 2 2 and 3 1 and 3 All of the above Q.2) Consider the following statements about Responsibility to Protect (R2P) It is a global political commitment which was endorsed by all member states of the United Nations at the 2000 Millennium Summit R2P principle reinforces sovereignty by helping states to meet their existing responsibilities Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.3) Which of the following countries are members of Uniting for Consensus (UfC) Italy Pakistan Argentina Colombia Select the correct code 1, 3 and 4 1, 2 and 4 1 and 2 All of the above Q.4) Which of the following banks are included in D-SIB or domestic systemically important bank by RBI? State Bank of India HDFC Yes Bank ICICI Select the correct code 1, 2 and 3 1, 2 and 4 1 and 4 Only 2, 3 and 4 Q.5) Which of the following is/are correctly matched? Saurashtra – Maharashtra Bundelkhand – Madhya Pradesh Vidarbha – Gujarat Select the correct code: 2 Only 1 and 2 2 and 3 1 and 3 To Download the Solution - Click here All The Best  IASbaba

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs 5th Sep, 2017

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs – 5th Sep 2017 Archives INTERNATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 2 Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests. PM Modi's visit to Myanmar- Part I Background: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on an official bilateral visit to Myanmar from September 5. This follows upon his earlier ASEAN-related visit in November 2014 and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit in May 2012. The visit marks seven decades of diplomatic relations between India and Myanmar. Political context: Though overdue, taking into account Mr. Modi’s ‘Neighborhood First”, ‘Act East’ and diaspora policies, international and domestic developments since then have clarified the political context of the visit. These include The impact of elections in Myanmar in November 2015 and in the U.S. in late 2016 that brought Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) to power in Myanmar and Donald Trump in the U.S. The finalisation of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and its assertiveness in the South China Sea. The India-China border stand-off. Myanmar’s travails over the peace process, the Rohingya issue and the economy. Key elements of the visit could be: Greater attention to emerging political forces, ethnic states and the peace process as part of our democratic political outreach. Converting our investments in the Trilateral Highway and the Kaladan to fuller trade and investment corridors. Use of Indian investment in the Greater Mekong Sub-region as an arm of our foreign policy with a focus on agriculture, agro-industries and light industry. A broader development partnership reaching to the grassroots with the help of civil society. Specific prongs in our ‘Act East’ policy through the Northeast and Bodh Gaya as a pilgrimage centre. A new political approach to the IIG issue (Indian Insurgent Groups) beyond an intelligence-based approaches. The objective should be to restore the balance in Myanmar’s relations between East and South Asia that has been lost with the eastward tilt in Myanmar’s external relations over 50 years of insular military rule during which the two countries have forgotten the habit of thinking of themselves psychologically as immediate neighbours Key issues: The Rohingya crisis The visit is taking place amidst some of the worst violence involving Rohingya militants and the Myanmar security forces ever resulting in a full-fledged international crisis triggered by large-scale, coordinated attacks by Rohingya militants under a recently formed Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA, now designated as ‘terrorists’) against government and security outposts in northern Rakhine state on August 25-26. The attacks and clearance operations against it have resulted in some 400 (and mounting) deaths, mostly Rohingya; widespread arson and burning of villages allegedly by both sides; displacement of thousands within Rakhine state and across the Naf river to Bangladesh; and severe disruption in food and humanitarian supplies. The Modi government has unequivocally condemned the “terrorist” attacks at a time when the security forces and Ms. Suu Kyi herself face heightened international criticism on the handling of the issue. This is likely to resonate in Mr. Modi’s favour in Myanmar. If called upon, India can certainly help in improving the socio-economic conditions in the area and also create employment opportunities. China factor: The visit is also taking place against the backdrop of uncertainties in the future India-China relationship caused by the now defused Doklam stand-off and the BRICS summit. Sensitive to its location between the two Asians giants, Myanmar is keen to leverage the growth potential of good relations with Asia’s two fastest growing economies. It is also wary of its economic dependence on China, characterised by a largely extractive relationship focussed on natural resources and access to the Bay of Bengal where it already has an oil and gas terminal, concession to build a Special Economic Zone and seeks a possibly controlling stake in a natural deep sea harbour at Kyaukpyu that could form part of its ambitious BRI. The shadow of China is thus looming large. However, Myanmar would welcome closer economic ties with India to balance and offset its domineering ties with China. Bilateral issues that have the potential to transform the relationship between India and Myanmar: Strengthening the development cooperation framework: No other country has committed as much in grant-in-aid to Myanmar as India. These include four major connectivity projects running into hundreds of millions of dollars — the Kaladan multi-modal corridor, repair of 69 bridges on the Tamu-Kalewa road and the construction of the 120-km Kalewa-Yargyi corridor, both of which are part of the India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway, and the Rhi-Tiddim road in the Chin state bordering Mizoram. Unfortunately, the projects have not been completed in time. Way ahead: It is essential that the two countries immediately start negotiating transit and other agreements for the smooth movement of goods and vehicles for optimal use of the infrastructure — even though such traffic may not flow before 2020. Capacity building in Myanmar: Six centres imparting training in diverse subjects, from English language to industrial skills, are running successfully in Myanmar. The Myanmar Institute of Information Technology set up in Mandalay with the collaboration of IIIT Bangalore has been a success with all its graduates finding ready employment. The Advanced Centre for Agriculture Research and Education set up in collaboration with India’s ICAR is a fine example of pooling research efforts on pulses and oilseeds. Way ahead: With Myanmar’s government emphasising higher education and vocational training, more Indian-assisted institutions can come up in the country. Scholarships for undergraduates can work if a way is found to bridge the difference between the matriculation system of schooling in Myanmar and India’s 10+2 system. Geater cooperation between Northeast India and Western Myanmar: Four states in the Northeast share common borders with Myanmar’s Sagaing and Chin provinces. The Kaladan corridor also passes through the Rakhine state till it arrives at the Sittwe port developed by India. Way ahead: Businesses on both sides, especially SMEs in contiguous provinces, and the governments need to come up with action plans for transforming the evolving corridors into development corridors. Border trade through Tamu/Moreh and Rhi/Zhokhowthar needs to become more formalised with truly single-window clearances and easier currency arrangements. The border haats can energise exchange of local produce. Cross- border bus services can promote people-to-people connectivity. Cross-border trade in services can be boosted in sectors like medicine, diagnostics, or even education and training for which there is a large market. There is also potential for cooperation on larger initiatives, such as the sale of refined petroleum products from the Numaligarh refinery in upper Myanmar. All this will mean that the Northeast will gain from the Act East policy. Strengthening the border region cooperation project, implemented by India in Myanmar’s Chin and Naga areas, can help India in securing political — and other — support at the local-level in Myanmar. Such development initiatives could also prompt Myanmar to collaborate more in tackling the insurgency issue in Nagaland — particularly in a post-Khaplang scenario. Expanding bilateral trade and investment: Bilateral trade between the two countries has, for long, remained at around $2 billion. India ranks fifth among Myanmar’s import sources and 10th among foreign investors. Barring a few outfits, large Indian business groups are conspicuous by their absence. Chinese, Singaporean, Korean, Japanese, Thai and Vietnamese businesses have actively seized business opportunities in Myanmar. Commercial trade and investments: Both stand on narrow bases, primary agricultural and forest products from Myanmar in the case of trade, and oil and gas in case of investments, underlining a strong need to expand, diversify and upgrade commercial ties in ways that also contribute to Myanmar’s development needs and meet India’s $3 billion trade target set in 2012. Way ahead: Indian businesses could invest in the power, steel, automobiles and even textile sectors in Myanmar. Some leveraging by the Indian delegation during PM Modi’s visit will be necessary here. The issue of restrictions imposed by India limiting the import of pulses — following a steep fall in domestic prices in India needs to be resolved as pulses form the single largest item in Myanmar’s limited export basket. A bilateral agreement can be achieved on this. The two sides could also discuss basing this trade on letters of credit and direct shipment than having to go through Singapore. Conclusion: Modi’s visit to Myanmar can truly invigorate the ‘Act East’ agenda. It's high time Indian and Myanmar realise the potential of their relationship and act accordingly. Connecting the dots: India and Myanmar are yet to realise full potential of their relationship. Discuss the key bilateral issues among the two nations and the way forward. NATIONAL/ECONOMY TOPIC: General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. General Studies 3 Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. Inclusive growth and issues arising from it. The problem of not-growing manufacturing enterprises Background: The recently released Ease Of Doing Business report by NITI Aayog and the IDFC Institute, based on an enterprise survey carried out in 2016, delineates the problem of not-growing enterprises sharply. According to the sixth economic census conducted during 2013 and the first quarter of 2014, 131.29 million people are employed in 58.5 million establishments in industry and services. Only 21% of the enterprises employ 10 or more workers. Own account enterprises, meanwhile, which were managed entirely by their owners and didn’t employ any other workers, constituted almost 45% of the enterprises. Growth problem: Indian manufacturing enterprises have a growth problem, often turning out to be “dwarfs”. These dwarfs dominate the sector numbers-wise. They suffer from low productivity given that their small size prevents them from achieving economies of scale, among other disadvantages. However, they employ a huge chunk of the labour force. Small firms dominate. The jobs they create are low-paying ones. The wage spread between small and large enterprises is a disquieting 80%. Reasons behind: The report shows that there are two reasons for this: Large firms with larger workforces face a greater regulatory burden in this area. This diminishes their efficiency and provides an incentive for smaller firms to cap their workforce below the point where onerous regulations kick in, feeding into the size problem, or employ workers in an informal capacity. The lower wage spread in China goes along with the domination of medium and large enterprises, which together account for over 75% of the workers. The report speculates that this domination of larger enterprises creates an ecosystem where small firms must perforce improve productivity—whether to compete or take advantage of the downstream opportunities created by larger firms. High productivity goes with higher wages. The solutions: Improving physical infrastructure is essential. This ranges from transport systems to the power sector. The report also mentions the need to improve access to finance for smaller enterprises and making firm entry and exit easier, among other measures. Enhancing the flexibility of labour regulations. Out of the box measures might be of some use as well. Case study: The report throws up some interesting facts. Most of the young enterprises are located in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Concurrently, unlike in other states, older manufacturing firms in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra and Gujarat face a lower regulatory burden than younger firms. The latter are thus disadvantaged in the states where they are highly concentrated, creating a barrier to growth and productivity—perhaps a legacy of crony capitalism in states that have traditionally been more enterprise-oriented, with larger firms more effectively able to utilize these networks. It’s time the government legitmize lobbying, a widely accepted practice in developed economies—by bringing in a law to legitimize it and regulate it in a transparent fashion. This could reduce corruption and give smaller enterprises that band together for advocacy and lobbying a means to have policy inputs. Thus, the government of the day needs to bite the bullet if the problem of manufacturing enterprises not growing as expected needs to be solved. Connecting the dots: The recently released Ease Of Doing Business report by NITI Aayog and the IDFC Institute, based on an enterprise survey carried out in 2016, delineates the problem of not-growing enterprises sharply. Discuss the issue, the reasons behind and the way forward. MUST READ Who were the first settlers of India The Hindu Sabre rattling The Hindu Rearranging the BRICS summit Indian Express Carrot to stick Indian Express North Korea's bomb Indian Express Delhi's air pollution puzzle Livemint Demonetisation will cost more than slow growth Livemint Don’t TRAI this Business Line Forex reserves can be managed better Business Line

Daily Prelims CA Quiz

UPSC Quiz- 2017 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 35]

UPSC Quiz- 2017 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 35] Archives Q.1) Consider the following statements about ‘Council of Ministers’ The total number of ministers in the Council of Ministers must not exceed 15% of the total number of members of the House of the People Ministers must be members of parliament Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2  Q.2) H5N1 was in news recently. It is concerned with which of the following diseases? Avian Influenza Swine Flu Tuberculosis Pneumonia  Q.3) Consider the following statements about ‘Institute De Droit International’ It was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1904 for its efforts to promote settlement of disputes among States through peaceful means. India hosted the Session of Institute of International Law for the first time in 2017 Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.4) Consider the following statements about ‘India’s tiger population’ The northwest cluster consist tigers only from Ranthambore The tigers from the central cluster have the least genetic diversity Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.5) Which part of the sun is visible during a total solar eclipse? Photosphere Corona Heliosphere Chromosphere To Download the Solution - Click here All The Best  IASbaba

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs 4th Sep, 2017

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs – 4th Sep 2017 Archives NATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability and institutional and other measures Amending Rule 12 of RTI: Challenges and way ahead Background: In April, the government of India proposed amendments to the RTI Act. The most controversial amendment pertained to Rule 12. It would allow the withdrawal of an application in case of the applicant’s death, making the job of those who file RTIs even more risky. Problems pertains to: Problems pertaining to land, illegal construction and property disputes are the root cause of most of the cases. Seventeen murders of RTI activists, 32 assaults and 31 cases of harrassment are related to such issues. Then come conflicts due to government schemes (including MGNREGA), either because those who should have benefitted from them have not, or because of embezzlement at the local level. The third category that is also well represented is made of illegal mining, including the sand mafia’s activities. The nature of the RTI activist’s work: The RTI activists are already exposed to violence, all the more so as the Whistle Blowers Protection Act (2011) is not implemented. Sixty-nine activists have been killed, according to the National Campaign for People’s Right to Information. Besides, the NCPRI presents on its website the case of 130 RTI activists who have been victims of assault and 170 others who are victims of harrassment. Of the 268 cases whose location is known, 100 belong to rural India, a clear sign that the RTI has also been owned in the village. The states where one finds the largest number of casualties are not those of the BIMARU belt known for law and order problems, but rich states. On the podium stand Maharashtra, Gujarat and Karnataka with, respectively, 13, 13 and 7 murders, 31, 14 and 11 cases of assault and 36, 14 and 12 cases of harrassment. The fact that the rich states are the most dangerous ones for RTI activists is not surprising since they mostly fight against the appropriation of public goods by predatory and vested interests, which are comparatively stronger in affluent provinces. The nature of the RTI activist’s work is revealing of the character of corruption in India today. Issue: The RTI activists fight for their rights and/or those of others, but they are hardly protected by the police and judiciary. Cases have been filed for only 137 murders, assaults and harrassment (out of 369). No action has taken place in 141 cases. (No information is available on the status of 91 cases). And where action has taken place, it has resulted in conviction and sending to jail of only six people so far (justice is delayed in many pending cases). This impunity creates the conditions of more violence against the RTI activists and has made the revision of Rule 12 even more problematic. Effectiveness of RTI activists: The vested interests and the state are so afraid of the RTI activists, it is because of their relative effectiveness. The number of RTI applications continues to grow. While it had already reached 7.55 lakh in 2014-2015, it rose by 22.67 per cent or 2.21 lakh in 2015-2016. A study conducted by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) reveals that 27.2 per cent (47.66 lakh) of the total RTIs filed between 2005 and 2015 was submitted to the different ministries and departments under the Centre. These applications cover a wide range of issues and even if no action is taken, the media often publicise the cases and give bad publicity to the offending bureaucrats, industrialists or politicians. In fact, some of the most dedicated RTI activists are journalists and the reasons why small-town journalists are murdered, assaulted and harrassed are similar to those affecting the RTI activists. The RTI activists not only expose corrupt practices and crimes, but also provide alternative leadership at the local level. Some of them have become community mobilisers and have been elected sarpanch. The RTI Act has offered space to young Dalits, Adivasis and members of the minorities who would have been (more) helpless otherwise. In this process, they’ve been helped by NGOs whose leaders — not only from the intelligentsia, but also from the SMEs world — have toured villages to initiate them into the art of filling an RTI form. The role of “RTI clinics”, often in the form of itinerant vans and helplines, has been key. Challenges faced by RTI activists and way out: Now, besides violent reactions and the amendment of Rule 12, the RTI community is facing new challenges. In some states, Information Commissions are burdened with huge pendencies. In UP, they have crossed the 48,000 mark. Way out: The number of applications filed could easily decrease: If the frequently asked questions were identified, it would not be difficult to proactively disclose information for those questions (which is in tune with Section 4(1)(b) of the RTI Act, 2005). Delays and backlogs are also due to the fact that the job of Information Commissioner has become a post-retirement sinecure for former bureaucrats who do not necessarily feel the urge of idealism. The attitude of the government of India is another big challenge. Some of its agencies refuse to disclose the required information. The PMO, where the rejection rate is very high, is a case in point. The Commission does not have enough power for getting responses to its questions and does not have the mechanisms for following up on whether its orders have been complied with. Thirdly, the Information Officers do not necessarily get the right training, at least the updated information which would make their action more appropriate. Way out: Universities could include the RTI Act in their curriculum and offer not only degrees or modules for credit, but also continuing training for helping this major achievement to remain relevant. Conclusion: The urgent issue concerns the risk of the amendments formulated in April (including those related to Rule 12) to be transformed into law. If they go through, it would send disturbing signals to the defenders of human rights. Connecting the dots: The government of India proposed amendments to the RTI Act. The most controversial one pertained to Rule 12. It would allow the withdrawal of an application in case of the applicant’s death, making the job of those who file RTIs even more risky. Discuss. The RTI community faces varied challenges. Analyze. ECONOMICS TOPIC: General Studies 3 Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. Inclusive growth and issues arising from it. A new industrial policy is in process Background: The government is preparing a new industrial policy, according to the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP), “to enable industry to play its role as the engine of growth and to shoulder the responsibility of adding more value and jobs”. This policy will replace the United Progressive Alliance’s national manufacturing policy which was expected to generate 100 million additional jobs by 2022. What went wrong with the previous plan? DIPP will be adopting a consultative approach. The previous plan was also developed consultatively. There were 26 working groups representing all stakeholders, who gathered data, debated issues, and developed strategies to achieve the goals. It would be very worthwhile to understand why the goals could not be reached and incorporate those insights into the new policy. “A whole of government” approach is required: A major problem was with the implementation of the previous plan. Job creation along with industrial growth requires aligned action on many fronts: infrastructure, skills, finance for small enterprises, a supportive trade policy, etc. It requires “a whole of government” approach. Partial solutions will not work. No matter how good the plan may have been, the absence of coordination among ministries and cooperation among stakeholders stalled implementation. Changing the old mindset: A greater challenge will be to change old theories in the minds of policymakers, and industry leaders too, about jobs/livelihoods, enterprises, and productivity. The traditional concept of a good job/livelihood is full-time employment, preferably with a large organization, with assurance of continuity of employment and social security benefits. A dominant view of an enterprise that creates jobs is a large factory with hundreds of workers in assembly lines. Or, a large BPO (business process outsourcing) centre with hundreds of workers behind computer screens. So, if we want more jobs in the economy, we imagine we must have more such, large-scale, “organized” enterprises whereas the greater creators of jobs and livelihoods are enterprises that are much smaller, and seemingly unorganized (from the point-of-view of those with a fixed view of what an organization should be). However, there are many other ways of earning livelihoods. For example: by owning a small enterprise—a small workshop, or street stall; as a member of a cooperative enterprise co-owned by many producers; driving one’s own car as a taxi with Ola or Uber, etc. Small (and informal) enterprises can create more jobs and livelihoods than large ones: The vice-chairman of NITI Aayog once said, “India does not have an unemployment problem; it has an underemployment problem”. The problem is low productivity. In India, two workers do what one worker could do, which also means lower wages for both. Thus, enterprises should take measures to remove their extra workers. This will increase productivity—measured as output per worker, and it will increase the wages of the workers who remain with the enterprise. But what about the workers who are no longer employed by the enterprise? Here in comes the role of samll enterprises. The small enterprises will continue to provide “underemployment” to the masses seeking jobs, who are not being employed by large enterprises that invest in automation, reduce employees, and thus substantially improve productivity per employee. For small enterprises, the solution for improving their competitiveness is to improve the skills of their owners for managing their workers and improving utilization of their materials and machines. Productivity is a measure of how much output is produced per unit of input. The most common measurement of productivity is output per worker. But there can be other measures of the productivity of an economy. Way ahead: If the purpose of economic growth, from the point of view of citizens, is the production of more jobs and livelihoods, and if the scarce resource is capital, the more productive economy will be the one that produces more jobs per unit of capital invested. Contrary to the drive for more “scale”, the economy should be one with a greater proportion of small enterprises that use more labour and less capital and have a higher “total factor productivity”. Formation of strong clusters and networks of small enterprises, using technology, can enable them to acquire greater scale to obtain access to markets and resources. The policy should be to make clusters and networks more organized and formal rather than the individual enterprises. Faster implementation is key. Old theories need to be set aside and fresh solutions applied. Small enterprises have great difficulty in obtaining resources—finance, space to operate, skilled workers, etc.—and in dealing with the regulatory framework too. According to some economists, India has too many “informal” enterprises. They must be brought into the formal system, which means they must comply with the requirements of formality (which include compliance with regulations) so that they can obtain the benefits of incorporation into the formal system. At the same time, some economists are advocating that small enterprises should be relieved of compliance with all regulations (which implies greater informality) so that they have flexibility to grow. As Einstein said, you cannot solve an intractable problem with the same theories that created the problem. Connecting the dots: The government is preparing a new industrial policy, “to enable industry to play its role as the engine of growth and to shoulder the responsibility of adding more value and jobs”. This policy will replace the National manufacturing policy. Before moving forward we need to introspect what went wrong with the NMP. Discuss. A general mindset when it comes to job creation is to establish large enterprises. As the large enterprises are suffering from problem of underemployment and also moving towards automation, it’s the small enterprises which can help achieve the job targets for India. Anlayze. MUST READ Celebrate but introspect The Hindu And then there were nine The Hindu Investing in the ecosystem The Hindu Feminism in the classroom Indian Express Taking Donald Trump seriously Indian Express Over the barrel: Energy needs inspiration Indian Express Doklam standoff- The key takeaways Livemint Voting for manmade disasters Livemint Beware of the wrong lessons from Doklam Livemint India at 70: Avoiding traps Business Line  

PIB

IASbaba PIB Weekly : Press Information Bureau - 27th Aug to 2nd Sep, 2017

IASbaba PIB Weekly: Press Information Bureau - 27th Aug to 2nd Sep, 2017 ARCHIVES GS-1 Festival of Samvatsari (Forgiveness Day) (Topic: Indian culture (festivals)) Also known as - Kshamavani Parva; on this day, people traditionally greet each other with, ‘michhamidukkadam.’ The last day of Paryushana festival observed by the followers of Jain religion; Jains ask for the forgiveness for their mistakes committed knowingly or unknowingly from the fellow beings. GS-2 Ensuring greater social justice and inclusion for members of the Other Backward Classes (Topic: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections) Children of those serving in lower categories in PSUs and other institutions can get the benefit of OBC reservations, on par with children of people serving in lower categories in Government – Will prevent children of those in senior positions in such institutions, who, owing to absence of equivalence of posts, may have been treated as non-Creamy Layer by virtue of wrong interpretation of income standards from cornering government posts reserved for OBCs and denying the genuine non creamy layer candidates a level playing field Approved the increase in the present income criterion of Rs. 6 lakh per annum for applying the Creamy Layer restriction throughout the country, for excluding Socially Advanced Persons/Sections (Creamy Layer) from the purview of reservation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) – The new income criterion will be 8 lakh per annum; increase in the income limit to exclude the Creamy Layer is in keeping with the increase in the Consumer Price Index and will enable more persons to take advantage of reservation benefits extended to OBCs in government services and admission to central educational institutions Government has introduced a bill to provide Constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes has also decided to set up a Commission, under section 340 of the Constitution, to sub categorize the OBCs, so that the more backward among the OBC communities can also access the benefits of reservation for educational institutions and government jobs. Background: IndraSawhney case, 1992 -  Supreme Court had directed the Government to specify the basis, for exclusion of socially and economically advanced persons from Other Backward Classes by applying the relevant and requisite socio-economic criteria Must Read: Link Solve:  Question   National Nutrition Week, 2017 (Topic: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources) From: 1st to 7th September Theme: "Optimal Infant & Young Child Feeding Practices: Better Child Health" Objective: To intensify awareness generation on the importance of nutrition for health which has an impact on development, productivity, economic growth and ultimately National Development Under-nutrition in young children continues to be a major public health problem in India – The NFHS4 has not shown an encouraging improvement in the nutritional status, especially among women and children As per NFHS-4 the level of underweight has decreased by 6.8% and is stunting by 9.6% Level of anaemia has decreased by 11% as compared to NNHS-3 figures. Must Read: Link 1 + Link 2 + Link 3 + Link 4 + Link 5 + Link 6 Solve: Question 1 Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (Topic: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources) PMMVY: Maternity Benefit Programme that is implemented in all the districts of the country in accordance with the provision of the National Food Security Act, 2013 Implemented by: Ministry of Women & Child Development in collaboration with State Governments Objectives: First, women will receive support by covering any lost amounts of money that they could have gotten at their jobs. This ensures that women can get the rest they need after giving birth or nursing. Proper wages are to be provided based on the work status that a woman had before giving birth. The health of pregnant women will be improved upon through cash incentives. These are to help women with getting the physical support they need for managing their bodies and getting the help they demand. Key Benefits The first payment of Rs. 1,000 is made at the registration process. This can typically be done as the woman is pregnant and will help to prepare her for support with managing a healthy birthing process. The second payment is for Rs. 2,000 if at least one antenatal checkup is utilized after six months of pregnancy. This is to ensure that a woman is able to get the help that she demands in any way. A third payment of Rs. 3,000 will also be provided when the birth is registered and if the child in question receives his or her first cycle of vaccines. This should include vaccinations for hepatitis B, DPT, OPV and BCG among other points. Must Read: Link 1 + Link 2 + Link 3 + Link 4   Memorandum of Understanding of Election Commission of India with the Election Management Bodies of other countries/International Agencies (Topic: Responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies) MoU: On cooperation in the field of electoral management and administration Promotion of cooperation in exchange of knowledge and experience in the field of organizational and technical development of electoral process Support in exchanging information, institutional strengthening and capacity building Training of personnel, holding regular consultations etc. Remember: Election Commission of India is a constitutional body. Agencies are as follows – The National Electoral Council of Ecuador; The Central Election Commission of Albania; The Election Commission of Bhutan; The Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan; The National Independent Electoral Commission of Guinea; The Union Election Commission of Myanmar; and The India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) and the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA)   Ease of Doing Business report (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) Report by: Niti Aayog – to assess the business regulations and enabling environment across India from firms’ perspective The Ease of Doing Business report based on an Enterprise Survey of 3,500 manufacturing firms Survey comes in the backdrop of the fact that India needs to create an environment that fosters globally competitive firms, capable of driving and sustaining economic growth. Major findings Economic Performance and Reforms – A higher level of economic activity and better performance on a range of doing business indicators are strongly correlated. Enterprises in high-growth states are significantly less likely to report major or very severe obstacles in Land/ construction re­lated approvals Environmental approvals Water and sanitation availability relative to enterprises in low-growth states. Quite remarkably, firms located in high-growth states also report 25% less power shortages in a typical month, compared to firms in low-growth states. Improvements over time – Newer and younger firms report a more favorable business environment in that they take less time in obtaining approvals than older firms, suggesting an improvement in the business environment. In addition, young firms report that most regulatory processes do not constitute a major obstacle to their doing business. Informational gaps – States need to enhance awareness of the steps being undertaken by them to the improve ease of doing business. The survey data show low awareness among enterprises about single window systems, instituted by states. On average, only about 20% of start-ups, which are of recent origin, report using single window facilities introduced by state governments for setting up a business. Even among experts, only 41% have any knowledge of the existence of these facilities. Labor regulations are a bigger constraint for labor intensive firms. We find that labor intensive sectors, that create proportionately more jobs per unit of capital investment, feel more constrained by labor related regulations. For example, compared to other enterprises, the enterprises in labor intensive sectors: 19% more likely to report that finding skilled workers is a major or very severe obstacle. 33% more likely to report that hiring contract labor is a major or very severe obstacle. Lose a greater number of days due to strikes and lockouts. Report higher average time for environmental approvals and longer power shortages. Barriers to firm growth – The experience of firms with fewer employees is different from that of larger firms. In some cases, large firms face more regulatory barriers than smaller firms. Firms with more than 100 employees took significantly longer to get necessary approvals than smaller firms with less than 10 employees. Large firms were also more likely to report that regulatory obstacles were a major impediment to doing business and that they incurred higher costs for getting approvals.   YUVA – a skill development programme (Topic: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources) About: An initiative by Delhi Police under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana Aim – To connect with youth by upgrading their skill as per their competencies; will help them to get a gainful employment under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna under the Ministry of Skill Development. Beneficiaries: Youth in the age of 17-25 years belonging to categories such as School dropouts, Juvenile offenders, Victims of crimes and families in dire state due to incarceration of the bread earner of the family, mostly from the underprivileged colonies. Delhi Police has tied up with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for providing mass job linked skill training for the selected youth. National Skill Development Corporation shall be providing skill training to the youth under ‘Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna’ (PMKVY) and CII will provide job linked training through its Sector Skill Councils who are connected to industry and thereby provide job guarantee. Atal Pension Yojana (APY) (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.) Update: The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) through its ‘One Nation One Pension’ Mobilization Campaign has sourced approximately 3.07 lakh APY accounts which led to a total of 62 lakh enrolments under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) as on date. Atal Pension Yojana (APY) has now been included under the Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act. As per it, any individual who is eligible to receive benefits under the APY will have to furnish proof of possession of Aadhaar number or undergo enrollment under Aadhaar authentication – To bring in transparency, efficiency and to enable beneficiaries to get their entitlement directly in a convenient and seamless manner. When: APY was introduced in 2015 For: The unorganised sector workers who do not have sufficient and reliable old age security Earlier called: Swavalamban Yojana NPS (National Pension Scheme) Lite Objective: To encourage unorganised workers to make regular small savings during their working years towards pension benefits later Details: Under the APY, the subscribers would receive a minimum guaranteed pension of Rs. 1000 to Rs. 5000 per month from the age of 60 years, depending on their contributions, which depends on the age of the subscriber at the time of joining the APY. Must Read: Link Ensuring women participation in the mainstream agriculture (Topic: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources) Key Stats: 80% financially independent women are engaged in farm-related activities in India. Out of them, 33% are working as agricultural labourers and 48% are self-employed farmers. According to as per NSSO report, women lead almost 18% agricultural households and there is not a single area of agriculture in which they are not involved. Women play multi-dimensional roles in agriculture - from sowing, harvesting, applying fertilisers, irrigation, plant protection to weeding, storing etc – they do it all while shouldering household chores like cooking, storing water, collecting fuel wood, maintaining the house, etc. Women are active in other agriculture related activities like cattle management, fodder collection and allied activities related to dairy and agriculture such as beekeeping, mushroom farming, pig farming, goat rearing, poultry etc. Female labourers are facing several inequalities – Work much longer hours than men and are paid lesser than their counterpart Ignorant about their rights, opportunities and facilities make their participation in agricultural all the more tougher Measures that have been taken to bring women in the mainstream agricultural sector: Earmarking at least 30% of the budget allocation for women beneficiaries in all ongoing schemes/programmes and development activities. Initiating women centric activities to ensure benefits of various beneficiary-oriented programs/schemes reach them. Focusing on women self-help group (SHG) to connect them to micro-credit through capacity building activities and to provide information and ensuring their representation in different decision-making bodies Celebrate 15th October of every year as Women Farmer's Day STPs to be constructed under Hybrid Annuity Model at Varanasi and Haridwar (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) In the first-of-its-kind success, the creation and maintenance of sewage treatment infrastructure under Hybrid Annuity based PPP model has taken off, with NMCG awarding work to private sector for construction and maintenance of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) in two major cities in Ganga river basin - Varanasi and Haridwar. Hybrid Annuity-PPP model Cabinet accorded approval to Hybrid Annuity-PPP model in January 2016 with 100% central sector funding Under this model, the development, operation and maintenance of the sewage treatment STPs will be undertaken by a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to be created by the winning bidder at the local level. As per this model, 40% of the Capital cost quoted would be paid on completion of construction while the remaining 60% of the cost will be paid over the life of the project as annuities along with operation and maintenance cost (O&M) expenses. Both the Annuity and O&M payments are linked to the performance of the STP – will ensure continued performance of the assets created due to better accountability, ownership and optimal performance. Hybrid Annuity based PPP model has been adopted for the first time in the country in sewage management sector. Such a model has earlier been adopted successfully in highway sector only. MoU between India and Brazil for cooperation in the fields of Zebu Cattle Genomics and Assisted Reproductive Technologies (Topic: India and its neighborhood- relations) Will strengthen the existing friendly relations between India and Brazil and promote development of Genomics and Assistant Reproductive Technologies (ARTs) in Cattle through joint activities to be implemented through mutually agreed procedures MoU would promote and facilitate scientific cooperation and setting up of genomic selection programme in Zebu Cattle through Application of genomic in Zebu Cattle and their crosses and buffaloes Application of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) in cattle and buffaloes Capacity building in genomic and assisted reproductive technology Related research and development in Genomics and ART in accordance with the respective laws and regulations of the two countries and is covered under Rule 7 (d) (i) of the Second Schedule of the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961   Ministry of Railways Signs 2 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with Swiss Confederation (Switzerland) (Topic: India and its neighborhood- relations) 1st: Between Ministry of Railways and Federal Department of the Environment, Transport and Communications of the Swiss Confederation for technical cooperation in Rail Sector, aiming at the cooperation in the areas of: Traction Rolling stock EMU and Train sets Traction Propulsion Equipments Freight and Passenger Cars Tilting Trains Railway Electrification Equipments Train scheduling and operation improvement Railway Station modernization Multimodal transport Tunneling technology 2nd: Between Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL) and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich – Will help Konkan Railway in establishing the George Fernandes Institute of Tunnel Technology (GFITT) at Goa especially for assimilation and dissemination of knowledge in the field of tunneling Train KRCL’s own manpower for its Tunneling Projects Generate qualified and trained personnel for the benefit of other Government organisations, private sector and even foreign organisations to bridge the huge gap in levels of knowledge and qualified manpower required to meet the key segment of infrastructure development in India   Fourth Session of the India-Tanzania Joint Trade Committee (JTC) (Topic: India and its neighborhood- relations) India and Tanzania enjoy close and cordial relations and underscored the unwavering bonds of friendship and solidarity, underpinned by a shared history of struggle against colonialism and the growing strategic partnership, multifaceted co-operation and vibrant people to people contact existing between the two countries. With an investment of US $ 2.2 billion, Tanzania is among the top 5 investment destinations for India. The potential areas for Tanzania in India – Light oils and petroleum or bituminous minerals, motor cars and vehicles, medicaments etc. Requirement for India – Metals and Minerals, dried cashew nuts in shell Tanzanian side encouraged co-operation in the field of Fisheries, Industrial Development including Industrial Research and Development and SMEs Development, Information, Communication and Technology, Labour and Employment, Information, Culture, Arts and Sports. The Indian Duty Free Tariff Preference Scheme of which Tanzania is a beneficiary has boosted considerably Tanzanian export to India in recent years. Long-term (at least one year visas) for reputed business companies with multi-entry facility will be helpful to promote investments and business collaboration between the two countries. Joint Proposal by India & China in WTO on Aggregate Measurement of Support (AMS) (Topic: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests) India and China jointly submitted a proposal to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) calling for the elimination - by developed countries - of the most trade-distorting form of farm subsidies, known in WTO parlance as Aggregate Measurement of Support (AMS) or ‘Amber Box’ support as a prerequisite for consideration of other reforms in domestic support negotiations. Elimination of AMS, India and China believe, should be the starting point of reforms rather than seeking reduction of subsidies by developing countries, some of which like India provide a subsistence amount of about US $ 260 per farmer per annum compared to over 100 times more in some developed countries. This is important in view of the ongoing negotiations for the upcoming 11th Ministerial Conference of the WTO to be held in Buenos Aires in December 2017 – counters the efforts by some countries to target the subsidies of the developing countries while letting the developed countries retain their huge farm subsidies. The joint paper reveals that developed countries, including the US, the EU and Canada, have been consistently providing trade-distorting subsidies to their farmers at levels much higher than the ceiling applicable to developing countries. Developed countries have more than 90% of global AMS entitlements amounting to nearly US$ 160 bn. Most of the developing countries, including India and China, do not have AMS entitlements.   GS-3 ‘FarmerZone’ in India (Topic: e-technology in the aid of farmers) What: A multi-purpose window for solutions, available for farmers anywhere in the world, from dealing with climate change, weather predictions and soil, water, and seed requirements to providing market intelligence A collective open-source data platform for smart agriculture which will use biological research and data to improve the lives of small and marginal farmers Will work on getting relevant quality data related to agriculture into the cloud, develop sentinel sites to help link with farmers and evolve PPP based enterprises for data delivery Features: Solutions will provided at the farm (similar to that done by e-commerce companies at the doorstep) Farmers can access the service directly or through an intermediate structure such as local co-operatives Will include a MarketZone where farmers can directly sell their produce which can be picked up by directly from the farm APEDA's new progressive step: Hortinet (Topic: e-technology in the aid of farmers) What: An integrated traceability system developed by APEDA for providing Internet based electronic services to the stakeholders for facilitating farm registration, testing and certification of Grape, Pomegranate and Vegetables for export from India to the European Union in compliance with standards Key features of the app are: Online Farm registration application and status tracking Processing and approval on on-line farmer applications by State Horticulture /Agriculture department Registration of farmers, farms and products by State Horticulture/Agriculture department Capture geo location of the farms registered through the app Sample collection by APEDA authorized Laboratories along with geo location of the sample. MNRE & GIZ Signs Agreement to Improve Framework Conditions for Grid Integration of Renewable Energies (Topic: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways, etc.) The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH India on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany signed an agreement on technical cooperation under the “Indo-German Energy Programme – Green Energy Corridors (IGEN-GEC)” Supports the implementation of the Renewable Energy Management Centre (REMCs), Green Energy Corridors scheme of the Government of India which is a prerequisite for large scale grid integration of renewable energy thus contributing to achieve the 175 GW target of the Government of India for renewable energy generation capacity by 2022. Germany will provide concessional loans of up to 1 billion Euros through KfW (German Development Bank) and up to 10 million Euros under technical assistance in forecasting, balancing, market design, network management and demand side energy efficiency, implemented by GIZ. These contributions have been further increased in 2015 and 2016 by concessional loans up to 400 million Euros for transmission infrastructure and up to 7 million Euros for training activities in the photovoltaic solar rooftop sector and energy efficiency in residential buildings under technical assistance through GIZ. Will work on – Improving market mechanisms and regulations for integration of Renewable Energies Advancing technical and institutional conditions in specified target states, regions and on a national level Adding human capacities to handle systemic (strategic, managerial, financial, technical) Renewable Energies integration in an efficient and effective manner Benefits of the Agreement: Improve market mechanisms and regulations Help us train manpower Ensure grid stability & integration of renewables into grid Ensure safer & secure grid and a grid which can take cyber challenges Renewable Energy Management Centre (REMCs) Aim: To tap the full potential of solar and wind energy Monitor renewable generation on a real-time basis and also make forecasts for hassle-free integration of solar and wind energies with the grid Facilitate proper scheduling and dispatch of the renewable forms of energy Green Energy Corridors scheme: Aimed at synchronising electricity produced from renewable sources, such as solar and wind, with conventional power stations in the grid Left Wing Extremism (LWE) scenario in India (Topic: Linkages between development and spread of extremism) Exhibits significant improvement over the years and the declining trend continued in the last three years – As compared to data of 2010, 2016 reflected a decline of 53% in number of violent incidents and 72% in resultant deaths and the trend continued in 2017 SAMADHAN has been introduced to control the situation in the LWE affected states S- Smart Policing and Leadership A – Aggressive Strategy M- Motivation and Training A- Actionable Intelligence D- Dashboard for Development and Key Performance Indicators H- Harnessing Technology for Development and Security A- Action Plan for each Theatre N- No access to Financing LWE problem is not a ‘law and order’ problem alone but is also a socio-economic problem – Need to adopt a sustained policy and intelligence sharing in the LWE affected States Police should be further strengthened with the use of better communication and connectivity facilities Measures taken by the government – Deployment of CAPF battalions in the LWE affected States Use of 56 Specialized India Reserve Battalions / India Reserve Battalions mainly to strengthen the security apparatus Construction of about 400 Fortified Police Stations and various training related initiatives 743 Scheduled Tribes candidates from 4 most affected LWE districts of Chhattisgarh-Bijapur, Dantewada, Narayanpur and Sukma have been recruited in Bastariya Battallion in order to enhance local representation in Security Forces Opening of Kendriya Vidyalayas and Skill Development Centres in LWE affected districts 1,789 new branch post offices, 405 bank branches and 818 ATMs have  also been opened in 35 most LWE affected districts during the last two years Road Connectivity Project for LWE affected areas (RRP-II), has been approved which envisages construction of 5,412 km roads and 126 bridges in 44 districts of LWE affected States Installation of 2,199 mobile towers and additional 2726 mobile towers n Phase –II of the scheme in LWE affected states Mindmap Must Read: Link 1 Solve: Question 1   Ministry of Defence approves first phase of reforms in The Armed Forces (Topic: Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate) In a first ever exercise after Independence, the Ministry of Defence in consultation with the Indian Army has decided to reform the Indian Army in a planned manner Optimization of Signals Establishments to include Radio Monitoring Companies, Corps Air Support Signal Regiments, Air Formation Signal Regiments, Composite Signal Regiments and merger of Corps Operating and Engineering Signal Regiments Restructuring of repair echelons in the Army to include Base Workshops, Advance Base Workshops and Static/Station Workshops in the field Army Redeployment of Ordnance echelons to include Vehicle Depots, Ordnance Depots and Central Ordnance Depots apart from streamlining inventory control mechanisms. Better utilization of Supply and Transport echelons and Animal Transport units. Closure of Military Farms and Army postal establishments in peace locations Enhancement in standards for recruitment of clerical staff and drivers in the Army Improving the efficiency of the National Cadet Corps Please Note: Kalam outlined an integrated action plan in five core competence areas: Agriculture and food processing Education and Healthcare Information and Communication Technology Infrastructure development, including reliable quality power, surface transport and infrastructure for rural and urban areas under PURA-PROVIDING URBAN AMENITIES IN RURAL AREAS Self-reliance in critical technologies Central Public Works Department (CPWD) has become the first organization of a civil ministry to become digital at the field level – by networking all the 400 field offices of CPWD across the country through a special integrated portal ensuring digital payments Public Financial Management (PFMS) Portal for CPWD – An end-to-end solution for electronic processing payments, tracking fund flow, monitoring, accounting, reconciliation and reporting, etc. – adopted by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs electronic Measurement Book (e-MB) has also been developed for CPWD that enables reporting of progress of works online as per the schedule of agreement with contractors based on which payments will be made India's first zinc fortified variety WB2 was developed in the year 2016 1 billion-1 billion-1 billion vision – that is 1 billion unique Aadhaar numbers linked to 1 billion bank accounts and 1 billion mobile phones. Chief Justice of India – Justice Dipak Misra First Synergy Conference on Defence Pension organised by Defence Accounts Department – To obtain feedback from the pensioners that would help the department to serve them better with constantly improving systems and procedures + Digitization of pension data + Implementation of a pensionsapp Hastkala Sahyog Shivir – An initiative by government to organize Pan India camps in handlooms and handicrafts clusters; dedicated to Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Garib Kalyan Varsh, the birth centenary year of Pandit Deendayal Upadhayay. National Sports Talent Search Portal – Help spot the best talent from among the young population of the country, provide a level playing field to all the applicants and create a competitive environment (fast, transparent and provide a mechanism for fair selection) Hybrid clone variety 205 (Saccharum officinarum and Saccharum spontaneum) was developed for sub-tropical climate, which was launched in 1918 for commercial farming. The hybrid clone led to 50% increase in sugarcane production in North India. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry has initiated the process of formulation of a new Industrial Policy which will subsume the National Manufacturing Policy A 101-member Indian Police contingent has returned with a record breaking haul of 321 medals from the World Police & Fire Games held in USA – 151 Gold, 99 Silver and 71 Bronze medals in the seven events PRAGATI – the ICT-based, multi-modal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation Bagan, Myanmar – MoU between India and Myanmar for the conservation of earthquake-damaged pagodas C-DOT, Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) – Telecom R&D center of the Government of India has designed ‘WiDHWAN’ – To cater to the recurring call drop issues in no-signal and low-signal network scenarios in places such as offices and homes Paris Agreement – Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change; came into force in November 2016 and till date, 160 Parties have ratified the agreement – India is a party to the Paris Agreement Must Read: Link 1 + Link 2 + Link 3 + Link 4 Solve: Question Pre-2020 actions – By developed countries under Kyoto Protocol  

RSTV Video

RSTV- The Big Picture : Modi, Trump talks: What does this mean to Bilateral Ties and Asia Pacific Security

Modi, Trump talks: What does this mean to Bilateral Ties and Asia Pacific Security Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2 Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests, Indian diaspora. India and USA will start two by two ministerial dialogue to enhance peace and stability across the Indo-Pacific region. This was decided after US president talked with Indian PM on 71st independence day of India. The new two by two dialogue will be conducted between India’s external affairs minister and defence minister and their US counterparts. Aim behind it This decision is expected to enhance strategic coordination between the two nations. There is already a good standing cabinet-level dialogues on defence and foreign policy but the 2+2 links military and political priorities in the same conversation. This will help  to coordinate more closely on Afghanistan, the Indian Ocean, developments in the Asia Pacific, and hopefully also on the Middle East (West Asia for India). How it will help? The Indian bureaucratic functioning is such that no military to military links are allowed on their own. MEA interjects or tries to preside over the relations. MEA currently decide the scope of relations. This defeats the purpose of building up relationships for long term. This has spawned frustration at Indian and US military end. There is no larger vision driving the interaction from the Indian end, which has stalled the strategic relation. The success of two by two ministerial dialogue will depend upon greater coordination by defence ministry and MEA.  Time and again it is said that there is insufficient coordination between these two ministries. The bureaucracies of these ministries have to come together and make decisions and take initiatives. It is not possible on political levels as they cannot independently think of initiatives and policies unless it is addressed by proper bureaucratic work. The timing of announcement The timing of the dialogue is important with the US taking the initiative to announce it. India has such dialogue with Japan and Australia but now with USA means that the intention is to coordinate the security policies. However, the dialogue must focus on Asia pacific region as well as western India. Unless there is real meeting of minds on Pakistan and its role and the China-Pakistan nexus, this direction would seemingly push India in supporting US policies and interest in Asia Pacific region or in western pacific region which would be useful to Americans than to Indians. It is not yet clear if India will be able to manage American thinking and policy towards Pakistan and China. The Afghanistan policy of US will determine its relationship with Pakistan. What it means for US and India? USA wanted to build this kind of relationship for a long time when the strategic dialogue was started. For Americans, the defence relationships are fundamentally transactional. Their economy gets a boost with militarily enhanced relationships. Also, India’s fixation with Pakistan defeats the larger strategic gain which is China. US will try to take India into its Indo-pacific region for its benefits but not concern much about Pakistan harassing India through cross-border terrorism. US cannot have a free hand in the western part of India as there is not convergence of interests over there. But US wants India to demonstrate that it believes in strategic relationship by being closer to them in general policies like indo pacifics. Thus there has to be a balance between these two things. Hence, it is not that they are interested in getting into convergence with India’s security priorities. They are mixing up with things important to India along with their economic and strategic interests. India has to be very cautious while dealing with USA. Like during nuclear deal negotiations, when India made its interests paramount, it has to maintain the same attitude while dealing further with USA, specially in dealing with strategic alliances. The US strategic goals and policies on seas is clear. India has been having naval exercises with USA for a long time. Thus it is known what role America is willing to play but they haven’t laid out their strategies with regard to the land frontier challenges that India has. For USA, such strategic partnerships are not new. It has a similar agreement with Japan as it is their ally. Japan-China relationship is in fraught and USA can be pulled into a conflict. There is a North Korean issue which impinges on China, USA and Japan relationship. China-Japan relationship impinges upon US responsibilities in the region so they have to make sure that they remain on the same wavelength all the time. However, same is not the case with India. Challenges in Indo-USA relation The structural issue in Indo-US relations have not been yet solved. The deliveries in the relationship are not as per the standards and commitments. Hence a new model has been initiated for the dialogue to be carried out in more structural way. Fundamentally the relationship is doing well. On ground level it has to make the impact now, just in the manner in which India-Japan’s 2+2 treaty is working. India should not look at external help to protect its sovereignity and security. The fact is that the nation receives more respect when there is a clear vision, strategy and game plan to deal with the threats perceived by nation. The problem is that India has not been exactly clear in terms of what and how it wants to deal with its threats and utilise the capabilities and resources.  The ministry of defence is currently structured to fight the war of 19th century in the 21st century. There is still no integrated command despite its recommendation and need. Way forward India’s strategic restraint is commendable in the doklam standoff. The Chinese have been using their media for domestic and international consumption to which India has not been responding seriously. This shows India’s confidence on its borders. On the other side, India improved its critical relationship with Vietnam and Japan. With Vietnam, India has decided to move its brahmos missile and prithvi missiles there. Also, there is uncertainty where America and Trump are headed. So it is not right to be 100% confident about the initiatives taken now will be sustained. The joint statement by Indian PM and US President talked of convergence of interests in Asia pacific region but no reference to joint strategic vision document on Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean that was signed with previous US president Obama. American current foreign policy is dominated by military. The state department has lost lot of its importance. Internally also, the pentagon is divided into central command (favoring Pakistan) and Asia Pacific command (leaning towards Indian interests because it is far more sea based.) One caveat is that there shouldn’t be an impression that indo and US are building a kind of alliance against China-Russia alliance. India has to keep in mind the importance of relationship with Russia. Now India has to see how it can develop ties with US and maintain good relation with Russia and not allow any mixed signals to go Russians that India is going into Amercian camp. This will have problems with BRICS and other alike initiatives undertaken. Connecting the dots: “India and USA share a sweet-sour relationship when it comes to strategic and economic relationship.” Discuss.

Motivational Articles

Creative Guidance – Living on the Edge – Inspirational & Educative Articles

Living on the Edge: Life is a constant flow of thoughts, emotions, desires, disappointments and accomplishments. Everything here is changing all the time. Nothing lasts for more than a few moments. This is where all our comfort and joy is; nothing lasts forever. Finding comfort in constant change eases the pressure on the mind to try and control everything. The mind is obsessed with the idea of controlling things; even at the cost of losing its happiness and peace of mind. Learning to live on the edge of this constant change is the whole art of living. There are only two kinds of people in the world; those who hate change and those who love it. Those who hate change are in a constant battle with themselves and the world. Every moment of their lives is a fight; it’s a fight to understand and blend in with the constant changing environment around them. Those who love change are always in tune with the constant changing landscape of life. They are always ready to take on a new challenge. They are never settled into their past accomplishments. People who love change realize that what they have achieved in the past will never be enough to deal with the challenges of today. Living on the edge is what they embrace and love. Here is the beautiful story of the Eagle and its transformation we are all familiar with: ‘EAGLE can live up to 70 years, but to reach this age, the eagle must make a hard decision in its 40's. Its long & flexible talons can no longer grab prey which serves as food, Its' long & sharp beak becomes bent. Its old-aged & heavy wings, due to their thick feathers, become stuck to its' chest & make it difficult to fly. Then eagle is left with only 2 options: die or go through a painful process of change which lasts 150 days. The process requires that eagle fly to a mountain & the eagle knocks its' beak against a rock until it plucks it out. After this, eagle will wait for a new beak to grow back. When its' new talons grow back, the eagle starts plucking its' old-aged feathers & after 5 months, eagle can take its' flight of rebirth & lives for 30 more years.’ Every moment of our lives we are faced with this challenge; how to unlearn what we don’t need and how to relearn what we need. Living on the edge is all about embracing change and be willing to make the necessary adjustments. Living on the edge is to be in love with change. It is a painful process to let go of our accumulated knowledge we hold so dearly, but living is all about being in the moment and responding to the challenges of life as they come along. Embracing change is probably the best lessons of life. To be prepared to live on the edge is the only way to live and love life. “The articles are a copyright of The Ahamo Movement and IASBABA.”  

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs 2nd Sep, 2017

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs – 2nd Sep 2017 Archives ENVIRONMENT TOPIC: General Studies 3 Conservation, Environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment Government Budgeting – issues Subsuming of environment related cesses under GST Background: The Goods and Services Tax subsumed a variety of existing Central and State levies. Among them were three environment-related cesses: the high-profile Swachh Bharat Cess and Clean Energy Cess levied on all taxable services since 2015 and on coal since 2010, and the historical Water Cess chargeable since 1977 on water consumption by industry and local authorities. What are the subsumed cesses? GST subsumed several central & state cesses levies under it. Environment cesses subsumed- Water Cess, Clean Energy Cess and Swachh Bharat Cess. Water Cess was levied on water consumption by industry and local authorities. It was used to augment the resources of the Central and State pollution control boards to address water pollution. Clean Energy Cess, a kind of carbon tax was levied on coal produced in India or imported coal at the rate of Rs. 400/tonne in 2016, to finance clean environment initiatives. Swachh Bharat Cess was levied on all taxable services, to be used for financing Swachh Bharat initiative. Difference between tax and cess: Unlike a tax, a cess is levied to raise funds for a specific purpose. The proceeds are first credited to the Consolidated Fund of India, and the Centre may, after due appropriation by Parliament, utilise such sums of money for purposes designated under the cess. While in principle a cess is to be levied till the time the Government gets enough money for the specified purpose, several cesses, by virtue of their broad-based objectives, have continued for years and have become an important source of revenue. Issue: Loss to state pollution control boards: The water cess was introduced under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act 1977 to augment resources of the Central and State pollution control boards for the prevention and control of water pollution. The water cess is the second most important source of revenue for State pollution control boards after consent fees. The loss of this revenue will be a huge setback for boards which already suffer from poor technical capacity and autonomy. Even if the loss is made good through budgetary allocation, its routing will play a critical role. The channelling of money through State budgets will make the boards even more vulnerable to the discretion of State governments, which have a dismal track record of empowering the pollution watchdogs. Abolition of Swachh Bharat Cess: The Centre collected Rs. 12,500 crore in 2016-17 through the Swachh Bharat Cess for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (SBA) which aims to make India open-defecation free by 2019 and improve the appalling state of waste management in the country. Though the SBA was included as a CSR activity in 2014 under Schedule VII of the Companies Act 2013, it is clear the programme will require significant public expenditure to meet its 2019 target. It will be interesting to see whether its budgetary allocations are maintained after the abolition of the cess. Abolition of cess levied on coal: The clean energy cess levied on coal at the rate of Rs. 400/tonne in 2016 (progressively increased from Rs. 50/tonnes in 2010) amounted to a staggering Rs. 28,500 crore in 2016-17. Touted as a tax on carbon, it met almost 50 per cent of the budget of the ministry of new and renewable energy for 2016-17. This, despite the fact that less than half of the cess collected since 2010-11 was credited to the National Clean Energy and Environment Fund, created to disburse the cess revenue. And, despite the fact that MNRE is only one of the beneficiaries (along with the ministries of water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation; environment, forests and climate change; and drinking water and sanitation) of the fund. The abolition of the cess when the Government is projecting itself as a global leader in clean energy seems both symbolically and financially ill-timed. The coal cess will continue at the same rate under the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act 2017, but will now contribute to the GST compensation fund, a corpus meant for compensating States for revenue losses arising from the shift to the new indirect tax regime. Way ahead: The Budget 2018-19 should adequately compensate ministries for the loss of revenue. But the the fact that these cesses were summarily and unceremoniously abolished in the wake of a new tax regime shows that environmental issues are still not part of the mainstream policy discourse. The Government should have used this opportunity to reflect on the changes required to encourage efficiency in resource use, prevention of pollution and management of waste. After all, the Water Cess, while an important source of revenue for the pollution control boards, was effective neither as resource-tax that incentivised judicious use of the scarce resource, nor as a pollution tax despite higher rates for more polluting uses and rebates for installation of pollution control equipment. It is time for a Green Tax Council, at par with the GST Council, to design and implement environmental fiscal reform in India. Connecting the dots: The Goods and Services Tax subsumed a variety of existing Central and State levies. Among them were three environment-related cesses. What would be the implication of such step on environmental rgeultion. Discuss. NATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States General Studies 1 Social empowerment Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India. Muslim personal law: The beginning Background: The August 22 Constitution Bench judgment on instant talaq ( talaq-e-bid’a ) was a historic one. For the first time in Indian history talaq-e-bid’a was specifically debated and set aside by the Supreme Court. Shamim Ara case, 2002: In the 2002 Shamim Ara case a two-judge bench of the Apex Court had delegitimised this medieval practice only when it was not properly pronounced and preceded by attempts at reconciliation. But the latest ruling completely and unconditionally invalidates talaq-e-bid’a and renders it bad in law . The Koranic procedure of talaq is the only way by which a Muslim husband will be able to divorce his wife from now on. The majority judgment: Justices R.F. Nariman and U.U. Lalit concluded that talaq-e-bid’a cannot be excluded from the definition of “talaq” mentioned in Section 2 of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937. They declared that as the Shariat Act was a law made by the legislature before the Constitution came in force, it would fall within the expression “laws in force” in Article 13(3)(b), and would be hit by Article 13(1) if found to be inconsistent with Part III of the Constitution, to the extent of the inconsistency. Article 13(2) clearly states that the “State shall not make any law which takes away or abridges the rights conferred by this Part and any law made in contravention of this clause shall, to the extent of the contravention, be void.” They also declared talaq-e-bid’a to be “manifestly arbitrary” and violative of Article 14 because it allows a Muslim man to break the marriage “capriciously and whimsically” without attempting to save it through reconciliation. On these grounds, Section 2 of the 1937 Act was struck down as being void to the extent that it recognises and enforces instant talaq. Interestingly, Justice Kurian Joseph, even while fully agreeing with the doctrine of manifest arbitrariness on the pure question of law, disagreed with Justices Nariman and Lalit that the 1937 Act regulates instant talaq and hence can be brought under Article 14. In his view, talaq-e-bid’a can be set aside without testing any part of the 1937 Act against Part III of the Constitution. As the whole purpose of the Shariat Act was to declare Shariah as the “rule of decision”, any practice that goes against the Shariah cannot be legally protected. Talaq-e-bid’afalls outside the Shariah because it goes against its primary source, the Koran. Therefore, what is bad in theology is bad in law as well. Those who criticised the authors of the majority judgment for grounding the crux of their ruling in the Koran ignore the fact that personal laws of all communities in India enjoy constitutional protection. And as these laws are sourced from religious scriptures in most cases the Apex Court cannot but uphold the right of individuals and groups to profess, practise and propagate everything that forms an essential part of their religious scripture, subject to the provisions of Article 25(1). It may be pointed out here that the Koranic procedure of talaq that was implicitly upheld in this judgment does not in any way violate our constitutional values. The minority opinion: In their 272-page ruling former Chief Justice J.S. Khehar and Justice S. Abdul Nazeer, in contradiction to the majority judgment, declared talaq-e-bid’a to be an essential part of the Hanafi faith and gave it protection under Article 25(1). However, this view does not stand up to scrutiny as it is based on the flawed theological premise that a religious custom which has been in vogue for several centuries automatically becomes integral to the denomination that practises it. Such a stance is not consistent with the teachings of the Koran. The minority view also failed to appreciate the fact that hadeeses quoted by the AIMPLB were comparatively less authentic than those cited in High Court judgments relied upon by the petitioners which were from the six most authentic Sunni hadees books ( Sihah Sitta ). The AIMPLB cited just one report from Sihah Sitta (Hadees No. 5259 from Sahih Bukhari) in which instant talaq is mentioned. But this hadees does not show any Prophetic support for talaq-e-bid'a . It clearly states that the man who pronounced “triple talaq” did so “without the Prophet’s command.” Implications of verdict: The biggest goal attainment for Muslim women is the realisation that talaq-e-bid’a in any of his manifestations will not dissolve the marriage. This renders redundant not just halala but the incorporation of a platitudinous advisory against instant talaq in the nikahnama . There is also scope now to amend the 1937 Act, even without designating it as statutory law, to exclude talaq-e-bid’a from the definition of the word “talaq” mentioned in Section 2, and make the Koranic procedure of talaq gender-neutral. Indeed all provisions of the Shariah mentioned in the 1937 Act can be similarly redefined to bring them in conformity with the humanitarian teachings of the Koran and the Prophet. This judgment will also encourage legally and theologically informed Muslim intellectuals to establish mediation centres across India under the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism to help Muslim couples amicably resolve their marital disputes. Conclusion: This is not the end but the beginning of the process of reforms in the Muslim personal law. The biggest challenge, however, would be to inform the Muslim masses that the abolition of talaq-e-bid’a is not against the Shariah but has, on the contrary, brought it closer to the original principles of Islam. Connecting the dots: The abolition of triple talaq by a SC bench is just a beginning of the process of reforms in the Muslim personal law. Discuss. Also read: Triple talaq declared unconstitutional MUST READ A blind eye The Hindu What drowned Mumbai Indian Express Through new eyes Indian Express What not to learn from Doklam Indian Express Counting every household in Indian Express A bogey called immigration Business Line

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs 1st Sep, 2017

IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs – 1st Sep 2017 Archives NATIONAL/ECONOMY TOPIC: General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. General Studies 3 Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. Demonetisation: Success, Failures and Lessons learnt In news: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released numbers that show how most of the currency notes that were cancelled were deposited in banks. Now that we know that 99% of demonetised money has come back, the government’s estimates of how much black money would be extinguished have been proven wrong.  As the RBI’s latest annual report has confirmed, Rs 15.28 lakh crore or 99 per cent of the Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of the notes withdrawn overnight on November 8 was turned in. Thus, almost all demonetised notes have been returned to the central bank, including the stock of black money held as cash. How money laundering took place? The total reduction in black money was much smaller than what might have been envisaged. To the extent that it was possible to exchange money legally, individuals did so. After that it was done illegally. Those who could not exchange money legally found money changers. When the government announced that old notes could no longer be exchanged, but only deposited, new ways of changing the stock of unaccounted cash emerged. Individuals with bank accounts, including Jan Dhan accounts, and companies showing cash accrual from sales came into business. Large amounts could be laundered through this route as it did not involve immediate cash payouts by banks, since cash shortages still persisted with the RBI and banks scrambling to remonetise the economy. Even when people have to pay tax on their hoarded cash, and a change fee they preferred to do that rather than lose the whole amount. Data from Prowess, a database of companies in India, shows that in the quarter of demonetisation, when purchasing power had fallen sharply, net sales by companies rose significantly. At the same time, the number of tax payers and tax collections rose. The tax department is said to have found thousands of shell companies which were possibly engaging in the activity of depositing money in their accounts during the demonetisation period, claiming that it was cash from sales. This provided a means for laundering money. There is no doubt that those with holdings of unaccounted cash lost some of their wealth in the process of laundering it. To some extent, taxes were paid on it in the process of legitimising it. But in addition to that, illicit wealth was redistributed from black money holders to money launderers. Whether the money launderer was a company owner, a bank employee or a Jan Dhan account holder, there was now a need breed of criminals with wealth obtained from illegal means. Objective seems unachieved: The objective of reducing counterfeit currency seems unachieved. In 2015, the National Investigation Agency established that at any point only Rs. 400 crore of counterfeit currency is in circulation. That’s 0.028% of total currency. Now, CNBC has calculated only 0.0007% of the returned Rs. 1,000 notes as being fake and only 0.002% of the Rs. 500 notes. In value terms the total is just Rs. 41 crore. So either a lot of fake currency hasn’t been detected or didn’t exist. In terms of tackling terror funding, the Finance Ministry has said: “As a result of demonetisation of specified bank notes, terrorist and Naxalite financing stopped almost entirely.” But no proof has been provided. Reduced dependence on cash: Both in number and value, digital transactions increased sharply after November but also dipped sizeably thereafter. There were 671.49 million transactions in November, rising to 957.50 million in December before shrinking to 862.38 million in July. So, the use of cash initially diminished but has been steadily increasing thereafter. Negative economic consequence of demonetisation: The disruption of unorganized supply chains that are dependent on cash transactions; it is still not clear how smoothly they were being rebuilt as the economy was remonetized. No less has been the damage to institutional credibility. The RBI is yet to convincingly demonstrate that the demonetisation decision was not forced on it. At any rate, it was ill-prepared to deal with the aftermath, in terms of making available adequate quantity of replacement notes in the right denominations. That remonetised notes are mostly of the illiquid Rs 2,000 denomination — constituting over 50 per cent of the total value of currency in circulation even as late as March 31 — didn’t help matters. The economic costs— whether manifested in a crash in farm produce prices or a wide swathe of cash-dependent informal enterprises going bust, not to mention the sheer time wasted waiting in lines — are incalculable. In the period immediately after demonetisation, there was expectation that it would bring a windfall for the Centre. To the extent that the scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination notes were not deposited or exchanged at banks — especially by those who had hoarded their ill-gotten wealth significantly in cash — the resultant reduction in the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) currency liabilities would generate a “profit”, which it could then distribute as dividend to the government. But this did not happen. Potential advantages of demonetisation: Attack on the scourge of black money, tackling corruption, counterfeit currency, terror funding and reducing dependence on cash Salient lessons learnt: The government did not seek the advice of experts before going ahead. The strategic decision to surprise holders of illegal wealth would anyway have restricted the circle of those who could be informed, but it seems that the idea didn’t come from experienced policy advisers. Good policy design should take into account how people will respond to any change in the rules of the game. In other words, incentives matter. Most rational human beings will adjust their behaviour to further their self-interest. Those who had illegal wealth held in cash obviously gamed the cash exchange process. Good incentive-compatible policy design is thus as important as good policy intent. Political dynamics can be quite different from economic dynamics. That voters have continued to back the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) despite the pain imposed by demonetisation shows that the ruling party has gradually redefined its typical voter from the traditional trading base that supported the Bharatiya Jana Sangh to the aspirational middle class that has a lower tolerance for corruption. International evidence suggests that few countries address the problem of black money by demonetising their currencies. If the problem is large-scale crime, corruption, bribery, bureaucrat-politician nexus, rent seeking, tax evasion etc. the answer lies in reforming the criminal justice system, law and order, administrative reforms, bringing transparency in the functioning of the state and rationalisation and simplification of the tax system. In this context, the GST will be a far more effective mechanism to bring down tax evasion in indirect taxes considering the greater incentive for compliance that its design holds. This episode in India’s policy-making highlights an essential tenet of policy-making — the need for a cost benefit analysis. For any objective that is to be achieved, we need to examine various policy options and analyse their costs and efficacy. For an economy on the path of reform, with many more reforms still to come, long-term sustainable impact can be achieved only when we strengthen the policy-making process as well. Conclusion: It is still quite possible that demonetisation will have positive consequences over a longer period— the growth in the direct tax base, the switch in the financial holdings of households from cash to bank deposits, and the increased use of digital payments. The question to be asked is whether the potential long-term benefits will be greater than the short-term costs that the Indian economy had to bear. Connecting the dots: What were the objectives of demonetisation? How far was it successful? Critically analyze. The demonetisation drive in many ways proved to be a fialed one. Discuss. What are the lessons learnt when it comes to policy-making in future. SECURITY TOPIC: General Studies 3 Government Budgeting. Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. First phase of reforms in armed forces In news: The Centre has approved major reforms for the Indian Army aimed at enhancing combat capabilities and rebalancing defence expenditure. This will be the first such exercise since Independence and will involve restructuring British era systems. Posts of 57,000 officers, soldiers and civilians will be restructured and the Army would have state of art regimen and better logistic support units after the overhaul. This phase of reforms, which concern only the army, will be completed by end-2019. There will be major changes to optimise signal establishments that handle the Army’s communication networks, restructuring repair echelons, redeploying ordnance echelons, better utilisation of transport echelons and closure of military farms and Army postal establishments in peace locations. Benefits: It will help improve operational efficiency. The idea is to improve the army’s “teeth to tail” ratio, that is, increase the number of soldiers actually doing the fighting against those needed to support them to fight. For example, additional vacancies for commissioning officers in combat units like infantry, artillery, armour and mechanised infantry will be allotted to overcome these deficiencies. This way the ‘teeth to tail’ ratio (combat units to administrative +logistics ratio) would improve. Restructuring by the Indian Army is aimed at enhancing combat capability in a manner that the officers/JCOs/ORs will be used for improving operational preparedness and civilians will be redeployed in different wings of the Armed Forces for improving efficiency,” a defence ministry statement said. The savings can be utilised for overcoming deficiencies in combat arms, especially for officer cadre. Pic credit: https://img.etimg.com/photo/60299381/gurung-fff.jpg Background: These reforms emanate from the recommendations of an expert committee headed by Lt General D.B. Shekatkar (retd), which was tasked to recommend measures for enhancing combat capability and rebalancing defence expenditure. The committee submitted its report in December last year, and its 188 recommendations have been studied and debated by the ministry and the defence services. The defence ministry has chosen 99 recommendations which pertain to the army, navy and air force — 65 of them, which are internal to the army, have been approved for implementation in this phase. It is believed that the other 34, which are internal to the air force and the navy, will also be implemented soon. Way ahead: The rest of the recommendations of the Shekatkar committee, which deal with higher defence management, defence ministry and other organisations, such as the DRDO, ordnance factories and DGQA must also be implemented. The ministry has been silent about these steps which would have far-reaching effects towards reforming and modernising the decision-making structure for national security. Also, following proposals from various committees needs to be implemented- Chief of Defence Staff should be created. Ensuring 2.5-3 per cent of GDP as defence expenditure, Political and bureaucratic consensus beyond the scope of the defence ministry but have not been debated so far. The recommendations of both the Arun Singh Committee, following the Kargil Review Commission, and of the Naresh Chandra Committee needs to see the light of the day. Conclusion: The approval of the Union cabinet for the first phase of reforms in the armed forces is a welcome step. With a live threat from both China and Pakistan, defence reforms are an urgent need of the hour. The first steps with restructuring the army are important but they must be quickly followed by implementation of other recommendations, particularly those of higher defence management. Anything less will be another opportunity lost. Connecting the dots: The central government has already initiated army reforms based on recommendations of Shetkar committee. What are these reforms? Also explain how it must be quickly followed by implementation of other recommendations, particularly those of higher defence management. MUST READ Understanding the Chinese mind The Hindu Is it time to review Section 377? The Hindu The brave new world of lunch mobs The Hindu A water umpire The Hindu How Gorakhpur was choked? Indian Express What the tragedies in the 70th year of independence tells us Livemint It's not end of days Business Line  

AIR

All India Radio (AIR): Indo German Relationship

Indo German Relationship ARCHIVES Search 30th May 2015 http://www.newsonair.com/Main_Audio_Bulletins_Search.aspx TOPIC: General Studies 2 Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests, Indian diaspora. In a recent meeting between Indian PM and German Chancellor, the two sides signed a joint declaration of intent on cyber politics, development initiatives, sustainable urban development, continued development of cluster managers and skill development, cooperation in the field of digitalisation, cooperation in the field of railway security, promoting vocational training and continued cooperation on an Indo-German centre for sustainability India and Germany India is one of the first countries to end the state of war with post-war Germany in 1951 and amongst the first countries to recognize the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG). India and Germany have a ‘strategic partnership’ since 2001, which has been further strengthened with two rounds of Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC). There have been regular interactions between Parliamentarians of the two countries. The Indo-German Parliamentary Group in the German Bundestag, established in 1971, has contributed to strengthening links between the two Parliaments. The closeness in relation with Germany started in 2000 when special green cards were introduced for Indians to encourage Indian students to go to Germany and also encouraged business visas so that Indian business can go to Germany and there is better flow of trade between India and Germany. Impact of closeness between India and Germany Germany seems to be in driver’s seat when it comes to EU. India’s relation, as it gets better with Germany will help consolidate its position as one of the major players in Asia. The time is right for India to partner with Europe as it is said that this century belongs to Asia. This move of Germany to partner with India is expected to be followed by other EU countries who in the past used to favour china over India. After Pokhran, Germany and France stood solidly with India after basic criticism. This made the EU change its policy towards India. India will have to engage much more with Germany and France after Brexit as far as bilateral relationship is concerned. This is good for India as Germany comes with good source of investment and are not protectionist. German partnership is very important for making Skill India Mission successful. If 800 million Indian youth get skill as per the global standards, then the youth power can contribute to India’s development. Germany has set global parameters in skill development which are very apt for India. Germany and India were part of G-4 to fight for permanent membership of UN Security Council. This was huge step forward in India German relationship. Also, in NSG, Germany and France have supported India. The question is if they will be able to pressure china to de-link India’s candidature from Pakistan’s candidature. There is no way that can be compared but the Chinese are trying to do that. Terrorism India and Germany have established a joint working group on counter terrorism which has led to critical sharing of intelligence. On the perception of need to fight international terrorism, Germany is supportive of India’s position, including in the UN that India has a threat from neighbourhood which threatens the unity of India. Now that terror has started emanating from Europe’s soil, German Chancellor is one of those who said from the beginning that it was important for Europe to combat with this issue in a unified way. Migration Germany is one of the few countries in western liberal world that still stands for immigration. The German Chancellor was courageous to open German borders for refugees when public opinion in Germany did not support it at that time. As a result of this, Germany has taken a very large number of upper elite of Syrian society who are highly qualified at the time when Germany was facing a shrinking population. This was a smart thing by Germany because today it has large reservoir of respected and qualified Syrians who will work for Germany’s prosperity. India EU FTA While India is growing in significance as a trading partner for Germany there is clearly a great deal of potential to be realized. Apart from traditional sectors, knowledge driven sectors hold good potential for collaboration in the fields of IT, ITES, biotechnology, auto components, renewable energy, green technology etc. The negotiations for FTA is going on for many years. the FTA, the problem lies with ‘investment’ and many issues which have to be sorted out. The sovereign debt crisis and economic crisis in Europe and increased protectionism hasn’t helped negotiations. There is a model BITA which India shares with Germany. It is to be renewed to further engage in increased trade between both countries. Germany and China The Germany-China economic relationship is pretty deep, though both sides have been in long negotiations on an investment and trade pact, like India. Germany was much more China-positive, but this tide appears to have turned in recent years as it has expressed reservations about China's predatory trading practices. Although Germany sent an official-level delegation to the OBOR summit, it has asked for the OBOR process to be made more transparent, in accordance with WTO. It is not about free trade but driving the world towards sino-centric trade. Also, Germany wondered how could OBOR succeed without India on board as far as trade and connectivity is concerned. According to it, this initiative could be a debt trap for the countries who are joining OBOR. Germany’s present reactions The German Chancellor doesn’t seem to be happy with the US as NATO is not being supported strongly by USA and also that President Trump is reluctant in supporting the Paris climate change. Today the perception is, the US President is turning back on Europe and India is reaching out to Europe. Moreover, German chancellor also said that it was high time Europe started dealing with its problem on its own. Climate change Europe appreciates India’s position to move to non-conventional sources of energy.  India and Germany’s collaboration in areas like renewable energy is gaining momentum. Although US is out of Paris accord, India is expected to keep its momentum to tackle climate change challenges. Connecting the dots: India is increasing its bilateral relations with Germany. Critically examine how this relationship is expected to boost India’s strategic and economic interests.