Gist of EPW August Week 4, 2022

The Economic and Political Weekly (EPW) is an important source of study material for IAS, especially for the current affairs segment. In this section, we give you the gist of the EPW magazine every week. The important topics covered in the weekly are analyzed and explained in a simple language, all from a UPSC perspective.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Viability of Nuclear Energy for India
2. The Wounds of Remission
3. The Mission Antyodaya Project

1. Viability of Nuclear Energy for India

Context

Against the backdrop of the conflict in Ukraine and the following economic sanctions on Russia, there has been an increased focus on nuclear energy.

Background

• In recent months, even countries such as Germany and Japan which had deviated from the use of nuclear energy after the Fukushima incident are revisiting their policies on nuclear energy.
• The European Union has declared that nuclear energy is a form of clean energy option.
• International organisations like the International Energy Agency have also been promoting the use of nuclear power in order to achieve climate change targets. 
• However, nuclear energy is used to meet only 3% of India’s overall electricity needs.
• According to a recent report, scientists in India have extracted uranium from seawater which is considered to be a significant development for the future. However, experts point out that the report failed to analyse the commercial viability of such development.

Overview of nuclear energy programme in India

• India’s atomic energy programme was first conceptualised in the 1940s by renowned scientist Homi Jehangir Bhabha who is also considered the “chief architect of India’s nuclear programme”.
• In 1956, India’s first Nuclear Research Reactor called APSARA was commissioned by Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) making it the first Nuclear Research Reactor in the whole of Asia.
  • Later, a research reactor named CIRUS (Canada India Reactor Utility Services) was commissioned in Trombay.
• India’s first nuclear power station was set up in Tarapur. 
• Acknowledging that India had a limited supply of uranium, a three-stage nuclear programme was proposed with the installation of natural uranium reactors in the first phase, followed by fast breeder reactors in the second phase which use platinum from the first-generation reactors with either uranium-238 or thorium, followed by reactors based on the self-sustaining thorium uranium-233 cycle. 
  • India has one of the largest reserves of thorium in the world. 
• India largely benefited from the “Atoms for Peace” initiative of U.S. President Dwight D Eisenhower to the United Nations General Assembly.
  • However, India not signing the Non-Proliferation Treaty of Nuclear Weapons in 1968 and the following Pokhran test-I in 1974 diluted the international support and technology transfer to India.

International Scenario

France

• France is said to be one of the major nuclear energy countries in the Western world.
• Nuclear energy powers over 70% of French electricity needs and France is part of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and it imports uranium from Canada and Niger.
• Following the “gilet jaunes” crisis in 2018–19, 28 out of 56 nuclear reactors in France have been shut down for maintenance and corrosion issues. 
• Further, the electricity output is expected to be 25% less than usual during winter and the French company Électricité de France (EDF) with an existing 84% stake by the government, is being nationalised. 
• This reflects the non-viability of nuclear energy without the support of the state in the present state.

United Kingdom

• The UK currently meets 15% of its electricity demand in the form of nuclear energy. This is expected to help in the struggle against climate change.
• However, there are several existing challenges to advancing nuclear power generation in the country which include 
  • Financial challenges as the cost of setting up plants are expected to be around £20 billion at present.
  • Legal challenges associated with the location of power plants.
  • The cost of waste disposal from existing plants is expected to be around £13 billion.

United States

• The US is the largest producer of nuclear energy in the world.
• About 19% of US electricity demand is met through nuclear energy.
• According to studies in the US, a nuclear plant takes about 16 to 20 years to bring in profits as compared to 7 years for a fossil fuel plant.
• Further, even the US is facing the challenges of finding a long-term repository for radioactive waste. 
  • The US had selected Yucca Mountain in Nevada as a repository for radioactive waste in 1987. However, this has caused protests from the community of Nevada.  

India’s Nuclear Energy Prospects

• According to atomic energy experts, India cannot achieve its net-zero goals without nuclear power and in this context, India is said to be working towards increasing the share of contribution of nuclear energy to 25% of the total power capacity.
• The targets of achieving 10,000 MW remained unfulfilled as, until 2019, only about 7,000 MW (22 operating reactors) had been achieved. 
• Also, the nuclear programme of India is heavily dependent on the supply of foreign technology, uranium, heavy water and other important materials.
• Although the proposed nuclear power plants are expected to boost revenues and job creation opportunities, they also come with large environmental risks due to their proximity to populated areas, and the life cycle costs of nuclear energy.
  • Further, nuclear plants also demand a large amount of freshwater which is a problem for a water-deficient country like India. 
  • Also, important issues such as waste disposal and long-term geological disposal and their associated costs, have not been discussed sufficiently in the Indian context. 

Way forward

• All the nuclear power plants in India must be set up only after carrying out a detailed cost-benefit analysis which takes into account six factors.

Image Source: EPW

• India should also look to increase its efforts that help reduce the import dependency on its nuclear facilities. 
• The errors in the cost-benefit analysis must be resolved and should make sure that aspects such as life cycle costs, waste disposal costs, the cost involved in dismantling a nuclear facility, and a geological disposal facility are also taken into account. 
• India should make note of the experiences of France, the UK and the US, before making huge investments in nuclear energy.
• Instead of relying only on the nuclear energy capacity to meet its electricity needs and climate change objectives, India should learn from countries such as Nepal and Bhutan which use other renewable sources such as wind-water-solar (WWS) technologies for generating power.
  • India should promote research and development in the field of WWS techno­logies.

2. The Wounds of Remission

Context

The release of the convicts in the Bilkis Bano rape case by the Gujrat Government has brought the debate on the provision of remission of convicts to the foreground.

Background

• 11 convicts who were sentenced to life imprisonment in 2008 in the Bilkis Bano gang rape case and for the murder of her family members in 2002 have been released from Godhra jail in Gujarat.
• The Gujarat government used its powers to remit the sentences of the convicts.
• The convicts were released as part of a special remission programme on the occasion of “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”. 
• The Gujarat government used its old remission policy of 1992 to grant the remission of the sentence and not the current policy of 2014.

Remission policy

• The key objective of remission policies is the reformative or rehabilitative vision of justice where it is believed that criminals are a result of various socio-economic circumstances and they deserve a second chance for improving their life prospects. 
• Also, the Supreme Court in the past had held that remission is an inherent part of a prisoner’s right to life. 
• The system of remission is also mentioned in the Prisons Act of 1894 and also various procedures and rules have been formulated by the State governments in India to grant remission to prisoners as “prison” is a subject under the State List according to the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
• The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) mentions that convicts who are sentenced to life must have to undergo a minimum of 14 years of actual imprisonment before they are considered for remission. 
• State governments can also provide remissions by using the pardoning powers of the Governor guaranteed under Article 161 of the Constitution.
  • The condition of 14 minimum years of imprisonment mentioned in the CrPC is not applicable if the pardoning powers of the Governor are exercised.

Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines on remission

• The guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on the special remission scheme include socially sensitive and reformist provisions such as: 
  • Providing priority to women and transgender individuals above 50 years of age for early release
  • Terminally ill and physically challenged people
  • Financially poor individuals who have completed their sentence but are still in jail due to the non-payment of fines
  • Young individuals who committed a crime between 18 and 21 years of age and have completed 50% of their awarded sentence.
• The guidelines also mention that special remission cannot be granted to the prisoners: 
  • Sentenced to life imprisonment
  • Convicted for the offence of rape, dowry death, human trafficking, molestation of children 
  • Also, other offences for which the death penalty has been specified as one of the punishments

Concerns about the remission of convicts

• Considering the magnitude and intensity of the crime committed by these prisoners, critics feel that the remission of these individuals was unwarranted.
• Experts feel that the remission of these convicts will increase the scepticism on policies of rehabilitative justice that are important for ensuring a compassionate criminal justice system in the country.
• Further, the eligibility of these prisoners for remission is also questioned widely.
• Also, in a country where the death penalty is still not abolished and the majority of the prison population still comprises undertrial prisoners, the lenient treatment of convicted rapists and murderers has raised severe moral concerns.

For detailed information about the issue refer to the following article:

UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis dated 20 Aug 2022

3. The Mission Antyodaya Project

Context

This article talks about the significance of decentralisation reforms and the potential of the Mission Antyodaya project.

Provisions of decentralisation in India

• The third tier in the federal system of India was accorded constitutional status by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments in 1994.
  • The constitutional status has increased the scope for policymaking and cooperative federalism significantly.
• The Directive Principles of State Policy enshrined in Part IV of the constitution also promote equality in all aspects of polity and society. 
• Further, Article 243 A also says that a Gram Sabha may exercise such powers and perform such functions at the village level as the Legislature of a State may, by law, provide.
• Articles 243G and 243W empower the Panchayats and the Municipalities to function as institutions of self governance.
• As per Article 243ZD, a District Planning Committee is to be set up in every State at the district level to consolidate the plans prepared by the Panchayats and the Municipalities and to prepare a draft development plan.
• Based on the provisions of Article 280, the President of India can set up the Finance Commission to correct the existing vertical and horizontal imbalances in the Indian fiscal federal system. 
  • Later, the union Finance Commission was amend­ed to accommodate the third tier into the fiscal system of the country.

Mission Antyodaya project 

• The Mission Antyodaya was started by the Central Government through the Union Budget 2017-18.
• The Mission seeks to revive the panchayat amendment to address the issue of poverty and build towards delivering social justice in rural households. The Mission works to realize the vision of a Poverty-free India by 2022.
• Mission Antyodaya is a convergence framework that aims to bring optimum use and management of resources allocated by 27 Ministries/Departments of the Government of India under various programmes for the development of rural areas.
• Objectives:
  • Ensuring effective utilization of resources by consolidating various Government Schemes and with Gram Panchayats as the fundamental unit of planning.
  • Working with a focused micro plan for sustainable livelihood for every deprived household.
  • Conducting an annual survey on various outcomes at the Gram Panchayat level and assessing the progress in the development process.
  • Supporting the process of participatory planning for the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP)
  • Encouraging partnerships with a network of professionals, institutions and enterprises to provide impetus to the transformation of rural livelihoods.

Assessment of the Mission

• The launch of the Mission indicates that various poverty related schemes introduced in the country in the past have largely failed to address the issue of poverty and multidimensional deprivation.
• Even the decentralisation reforms have failed to improve the situation, this can be inferred from the Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC), 2011 
  • About 53.70% of the rural households still depended on manual labour
  • More than 90% had no salaried jobs in rural areas
  • Close to 56.25% of rural households had no agricultural land
  • Further, around 42.14 million households had no literate adult above 25 years of age.
• The issue of poverty must be addressed comprehensively and the consolidation of different schemes of different ministries/departments with the same goal is of similar essence.
• Devising a micro plan for each village panchayat to address the problems of the deprived household is a relevant strategy.
• The initial target of lifting one crore households out of poverty and to lift 50,000 gram panchayats out of the poverty level by 2019 was a bold target.
• The Mission Antyodaya survey conducted in 2019-20, collected the data relating to all the assigned 29 functions from over 2.67 lakh gram panchayats consisting of over 6.48 lakh villages and 103 crore people for the first time in the history of the country.

The Gap Report

• Based on the Mission Antyodaya survey, a scorecard for every gram panchayat in the country would be prepared that records the availability of facilities related to the 29 subjects listed under the 11th Schedule of the constitution (responsibilities of Panchayats) 
• The scorecard contains two parts namely
  • Part A: The scores help identify the gaps.
  • Part B: This includes performance in some basic aspects such as health and nutrition, social forestry, agriculture and livelihoods, good governance, and efficiency. 
• The main objective of this Gap report is to identify the development gaps which can be mapped out spatially and sectorally for all the tiers of government. 

The Composite Index

• The composite index takes into account five major parameters that include: health and nutrition, social security, agriculture and livelihood, good governance, water management and efficiency which are mentioned in Part-B of the Mission Antyodaya survey.

The status of Horizontal Equity in India

• Horizontal equity is one of the most desirable goals of most of the democracies across the world and especially for India due to its deep diversity and growing inequalities. 
• The analysis of per capita net state domestic product (NSDP) of 15 major states, which constitute close to 90% of the population in the country, reveals that income inequality among the Indian states has increased sharply over the years.

Recommendations

• There is a need for radical structural reforms and progressive taxation and effective implementation of the Mission Antyodaya to improve social justice.
• Mission Antyodaya, if implemented effectively, can act as a fiscal policy tool and an economic policy instrument. 
• There is a great potential for increasing the scope of the Mission Antyodaya project such as by collecting fiscal data, consolidation of resources, centrally sponsored schemes (CSSs), Union Finance Commision grants, State Finance Commission devolutions, and unspent administration funds.
• Key services such as drinking water, primary healthcare, primary school facilities, sanitation, and waste management must also be considered as parameters while addressing the issue of poverty and deprivation.
• The lack of awareness about the significance of the Mission Antyodaya survey data must be addressed.

Read previous EPW articles in the link.

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