Comprehensive News Analysis - 05 November 2016

A. GS1 Related

Nothing here today folks!

B. GS2 Related

1. Encephalitis ravages Odisha tribe, claims 60 children

Category: Social Justice

Topic: Health

Key Points:

• The on-going outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (JE and AES) has severely affected the Koya community, Malkangiri’s indigenous tribe
• Deaths have also been reported from the Bhumia, Paraja and Kondh tribes
• Few deaths have also been recorded among Bangladeshi settlers, who live close to the Koyas villages
• Koyas in the remote and inaccessible Kalimela and Korukonda blocks have been the worst hit

2. Ominous curb on media freedom

Category: Governance

Topic: Freedom of speech and expression

Key Points:

• The order of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, directing that Hindi television channel NDTV India be taken off air for 24 hours on November 9, is a serious violation of media freedom
• Ever since media coverage of the terror attacks in Mumbai in November 2008 created a controversy, it has been accepted that there is a need for restrained and responsible coverage of anti-terrorism operations and potential hostage situations
• The News Broadcasting Standards Authority, set up by the News Broadcasters Association, came up with a set of rules
• The Ministry could have either approached the authority, which is headed by a former Supreme Court judge, or formed an independent panel to adjudicate the question
• Instead, it has invoked a rule introduced in June 2015 that imposes a blanket ban on all live coverage of any anti-terrorist operation until it ends
• It has cited statutory provisions that empower the government to regulate or prohibit the transmission of TV programmes
• There is no mention of any provision for appeal. None can reasonably argue that irresponsible live coverage of an ongoing operation should attract no penalty
• A problem arises when the penalty is decided by a government panel
• Taking a channel off air for however brief a period is a serious decision that could be read as a signal to other newsrooms to self-censor

C. GS3 Related

1. Still unwieldy but just in time

Category: Indian Economy

Topic: Taxation

Key Points:

• The cess on top of GST to be levied on luxury and sin goods is neither desirable nor efficient
• Unless its levy is restricted to end-use products at the point of sale, it would further distort the efficiency gains from GST as input credit for cess paid on intermediary goods is unlikely
• The government has argued that the cess will help compensate States for five years and that the Council can take a call on doing away with it thereafter
• Similar visibility should be provided on dovetailing the multiple tax rates into two or three in the coming years, if not the international norm of a single GST rate
• Multiple rates will not just pose an administrative challenge but also spur ugly corporate lobbying of the kind that the Finance Minister wanted to nix by phasing out exemptions in direct taxes

2. Turkey wants India to start free trade pact talks soon

Category: Indian Economy

Topic: External Trade

Key Points:

• Turkey wants India to start talks on a proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) soon and said the ongoing political turmoil will not impact foreign investment flows
• Though there is an India-Turkey Joint Study Group report on “the feasibility and possibility of concluding a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement” (CEPA or, in other words, a FTA), no dates have been fixed for starting FTA negotiations
• In FY’16, India-Turkey trade had shrunk nearly 28 per cent year-on-year to $4.91 billion of which India’s exports to Turkey were $4.14 billion (contraction of 22.7 per cent) while Turkey’s exports to India fell 47 per cent to $776 million

D. GS4 Related

Nothing here today folks!

E. Important Editorials: A Quick Glance

1. Paris Climate Agreement Comes into Force Today Environment Ministry Building to Display ‘Smiley’ With Lights, with Slogan – “We Did It”

Category: Environment

Topic: Climate Change

Key Points:

• The “Paris Climate Agreement”, comes into force on 4th November 2016. India and other countries will display a ‘Smiley’ with lights, with the slogan “We Did It” on important buildings
• India ratified the Paris Agreement on 2nd October 2016, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and the Agreement has the support of majority of the countries
• This is a global effort
• Till date, 94 Parties have ratified it, of the 197 Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
• The image has the globe as the background of smiley
• Along with the image, “Paris agreement – We did it – #SmileforthePlanet” will be displayed on one side of the Ministry’s building in the evening today, to celebrate the Paris Agreement
• Indira Paryavaran Bhawan will be displaying the symbol in India

2. India, UNISDR sign Statement of Cooperation on Sendai Framework Reiterate commitment and cooperation towards Disaster Risk Reduction

Category: Disaster Management

Topic: International Cooperation

Key Points:

• India and United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction signed a Statement of Cooperation during the second day of the Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) 2016
• The Statement underlined the guiding principles, objectives and areas of cooperation between India and UNISDR towards the effective implementation and monitoring of the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR), which was adopted at the Third World Conference on DRR at Sendai in Japan in March, 2015
• India will partner with UNISDR to work towards strengthening the capacity of Asian countries in ensuring risk resilient development
• It will also facilitate the sharing of knowledge and experiences, and collaborative efforts towards addressing critical regional challenges
• The cooperation aims to ensure effective implementation and monitoring of the Sendai Framework through Training and capacity building for Asian countries; promoting international and regional cooperation to reinforce political commitment, facilitate knowledge sharing and strengthen the capacity of UNISDR for monitoring and review of the Sendai Framework

F. Concepts-in-News: Related Concepts to Revise/Learn:

1. Paris Climate Summit
2. Sendai Framework
3. Japanese Encephalitis
4. GST
5. Freedom of Speech and Expression

G. BILLS/ACTS/SCHEMES/ORGS IN NEWS

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction

H. Fun with Practice Questions 🙂

Question 1:Which of the following encircles the Mediterranean sea? 

Question 2:Which of the following is/are enshrined by Article 19 of the constitution?

Question 3:Which of the following is true?

Question 4:Which of the following is true regarding Japanese Encephalitis ? 

Question 5:Which of the following is not true?

I. Archives:

You can check out some more recent News Analysis sections to build even more context

4th November 2016: Daily News & Current Affairs Analysis

3rd November 2016: Daily News & Current Affairs Analysis

2nd November 2016: Daily News & Current Affairs Analysis

1st November 2016: Daily News & Current Affairs Analysis

List of all DNA Articles

Practice More: Enroll for India’s Largest All-India Test Series