Comprehensive News Analysis - 07 February 2017

D. GS4 Related

Nothing Here for today!!!

E. Important Editorials: A Quick Glance

Category: International Relations
Topic: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.

Background:

• Bilateral relations were particularly hostile during the presidency of George W. Bush, who had threatened military action over Iran’s nuclear programme.
• Barack Obama took a different line based on political realism
• The U.S. and other world powers took years to find a common ground with Iran, which prevented the country from acquiring nuclear weapons in return for removal of international sanctions.
• The deal,opposed by Israel, allowed Iran to mend ties with European countries, boost its oil production and trade with other countries.

Concerns over the new US adminstration:

• A set of new sanctions imposed on Iran by the United States over a missile test
• The U.S. and Iran cooperated on the battleground in Iraq against the Islamic State. This progress stands threatened by President Donald Trump’s hostility towards Iran.
• Trump may not repeal the nuclear deal as it is a multilateral agreement.
• By putting immigration curbs on Iranian citizens, imposing new sanctions on Iran and branding the country as the greatest state sponsor of terrorism, the Trump administration has clearly announced that the deal is dead

Way forward:

• Any meaningful effort to stabilize West Asia calls for Iran’s cooperation, not hostility Mr. Trump appears determined to pursue the agenda of restoring the bipolar balance between Saudi Arabia and Israel, the U.S.’s strongest allies in West Asia
• The world, including the U.S., needs Iran’s cooperation to fight the Islamic State, particularly in Iraq, where Iranian-controlled Shia militias played a key role in liberating cities. If Mr. Trump ignores these realities, he runs the risk of making West Asia even more chaotic than it is.

2. Rewiring the WTO

Category: International Relations
Topic: Important International institutions, agencies and fora, their structure, mandate.

Background:

• The visit of Roberto Azevêdo, Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to India, from February 8, comes at a juncture when the framework of global trade rules is undergoing a shake-up.
• The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been dealt a death blow by the Trump presidency
• United States orchestrated the move to make the WTO virtually irrelevant during the 10th Ministerial Conference of the organisation, in Nairobi in 2015 which ended without a decision on the most important area of work of WTO members — the Doha Round negotiations.

Concerns over the current structure of WTO:

• The developing world has largely been questioning the relevance of the WTO ,when the richer nations gained the upper hand in setting the priorities for the organisation
• Efforts of the developing countries to amend several important agreements and to make them more responsive to their development needs have been seriously undermined.
• The least developed countries, especially their inability to increase their presence in the global markets, have also been put on the backburner.
• The skewed rules in the areas of agriculture and intellectual property rights
• In agriculture, WTO rules have been loaded in favour of the developed countries, while the interests of small farmers have almost been completely ignored and India flagged the important issue of food security and its subsidised Public Distribution System(PDS)
• An understanding was reached where even if India breached agricultural subsidies’ disciplines to meet its food security needs, no penal action would be taken against it through what is commonly called a “peace clause”, but with no permanent solution to the issue.
• Trade facilitation was not exactly an area that excited the developing countries for their shares in global trade are at very low levels.
• the major economies are preparing the ground for another exercise at cherry picking the issues of their interest at Buenos Aires namely, electronic commerce and investment.
• The issue of including investment in the WTO has been a deeply divisive, almost right since the inception of the organisation.

Way Forward:

• The inclusion of e-commerce and investment in the WTO would further drive the wedge between the rich and the poor nations.
• The growing disenchantment with the existing model of globalisation has provided a historic opportunity to frame new rules that give equal opportunities to all countries and their citizens in the global marketplace

1. 1. provide immediate assistance to a beneficiary in case of accident
   2. make payment of pension to the beneficiaries who have completed the age of sixty years
   3. sanction loans and advances to a beneficiary for construction of a house not exceeding such amount and on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed
   4. pay such amount in connection with premia for Group Insurance Scheme of the beneficiaries as it may deem fit
   5. give such financial assistance for the education of children of the beneficiaries as may be prescribed
   6. meet such medical expenses for treatment of major ailments of a beneficiary or, such dependent, as may be prescribed
   7. make payment of maternity benefit to the female beneficiaries
   8. make provisions and improvement of such other welfare measures and facilities as may be prescribed.

G. BILLS/ACTS/SCHEMES/ORGS IN NEWS

Question 1: Which of the following are the tributaries of river Ganga?

Question 2: The World Trade Organisation[WTO] is headqaurtered in?

Question 3:  Which of the following are the objectives of PDS? 

Question 4: Which of the following countries do not border the Mediterranean 
sea?

Question 5: The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, 
Benefits and Services) Act, 2016 allows individual information to revealed in 
which of the following scenarios?

Check Your Answers