06 Dec 2020 CNA:- Download PDF Here
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. GS 1 Related B. GS 2 Related HEALTH 1. Challenges in achieving herd immunity C. GS 3 Related ENVIRONMENT 1. Lessons in tiger conservation from Malenad AGRICULTURE 1. States with stressed groundwater top in cereal trade: Study D. GS 4 Related E. Editorials ECONOMY 1. Inflation's import in monetary matters. SOCIAL ISSUES 1. Caste in the census F. Tidbits G. Prelims Facts H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
A. GS 1 Related
Nothing here for today!!!
B. GS 2 Related
1. Challenges in achieving herd immunity
Context:
The debate over if Herd Immunity through vaccination will act as a vanguard against virus transmission
Details:
- What is Herd Immunity?
- Herd immunity happens when so many people in a community become immune to an infectious disease that it stops the disease from spreading
- This can happen in two ways:
- Many people contract the disease and in time build up an immune response to it (natural immunity).
- Many people are vaccinated against the disease to achieve immunity
- A Possible Government plan towards achieving herd immunity.
- The Government has not put it on record saying that it will undertake universal immunization against COVID-19.
- The Director-General of the Indian Council of Medical Research has gone on to say that if a critical mass of people is being vaccinated, then they may be able to break the virus transmission.
- The critical mass of people refers to that segment of the population that have high vulnerability such as children, the elderly and also people with other co-morbidities.
Challenges
- Health equity
- A disease such as COVID has likely chances of affecting every stratum of the population, therefore immunization availability should not be made conditional based on their vulnerability to the disease.
- Complex nature of SARS-CoV-2
- Herd immunity to be achieved requires around 70% of the population to be covered, however, the complex nature of the virus and the mystery associated with it hitherto doesn’t give the policymakers or the health experts to identify the groups which have a high risk of transmission.
- Uneven transmission
- The contagion effect of the virus determines the levels of immunization needed for herd immunity based on the assumption of homogenous spread.
- But the SARS-CoV-2 virus exhibits a high level of uneven transmission, this explains numerous pieces of evidence of “super=spreading”.
- Effectiveness of vaccine
- A lot of questions hover over the efficacy of the vaccine, such as it’s the degree of protection, the duration of protection, and also the frequency of vaccine administration. Thus extrapolating on the effectiveness of herd immunity is not a sound policy especially when there are so many unknown variables involved with the vaccination.
- Ethical angle
- Identifying the “priority groups” and earmarking them to be the first beneficiaries of the vaccination programme is a huge challenge to the Government.
- The inclusion-exclusion involved in this process is surely be questioned, thus it is imperative for the Government to come out with a detailed vaccination strategy, listing out the phases in which it will be set into motion.
- An objective and transparent process in identification and a clear articulation of the steps that are going to be taken will reduce the trust deficit, if any.
- Miscellaneous
- Complete protection may need two doses of vaccine and this may be a challenge owing to India’s population and also would require very high standards of monitoring of the people who have been vaccinated.
- Vaccine hesitancy is something that will have to be overcome as well, this problem is a perception problem as people perceive that the vaccine development, testing and clinical trials were hastened to meet the emergency, thus achieving herd immunity with vaccination of 70% of the population is a challenge.
- Absence of consensus over the need to vaccinate people who have recovered from the SARS-CoV19. So far it is believed that the immunity developed via natural infection is durable. However, there is a lack of clear-cut evidence over the need to vaccinate the already infected and recovered.
Conclusion
- While the COVID-19 has thrown a challenge to not only the medical community but also to the Governing authorities, achieving herd immunity to act as a vanguard against virus transmission may appear to be a good strategy on paper, but it requires more work to be done at the ground level.
C. GS 3 Related
1. Lessons in tiger conservation from Malenad
Context:
The tiger population in the region of Malenad in Karnataka has increased from 70 to 391 individuals in about four and a half decades as per the study conducted by the Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS) in Bangalore.
Details:
- The study has highlighted the impediments that have to be removed to see the tiger population triple. The lessons mentioned here can come in handy in the management of the wild tiger population.
Means and methods employed in research-
- The research team of Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS) in Bangalore has conducted a wide range of surveys encompassing tiger ecology, predator-prey ecology, anthropogenic impacts, existing and emerging conflicts.
- The team spent sufficient time in designing innovative methodologies for the identification of individual tigers and leopards by their coat patterns, this individual identification was made possible by obtaining photos through automated camera traps.
- Line transect surveys were used to arrive at an estimate with respect to prey animal densities and occupancy modelling of track survey data to estimate animal species distribution, this was a pioneering initiative in Asia. It has encouraged wildlife researchers across Asia, Africa and South America to make use of this approach in wildlife researches.
Tiger tourism-
- Wildlife experts believe that ‘Tiger tourism” can be enlarged beyond the current Government managed wildlife reserves. This extension includes taking into account the adjacent agricultural areas surrounding wildlife reserves.
- Kenya and Brazil have showcased the viability of this approach. Shreds of evidence from these countries have shown that local populations can bear the rewards of tourism growth. Wildlife tourism is on the rise and it provides an opportunity to tap into the rising demand and at the same time get the local population to benefit from it.
Resettlement of people-
- This is a hotly contested topic, with increased man-animal conflict with shrinking wildlife habitats, there have been calls to exterminate “rogue” animals. The local population and their cattle have borne the brunt of tiger, leopard incursion into villages and rural settlements.
- People living around the wildlife reserves would have established deep-seated connections to the land and their relocation will not be just on those communities.
Other challenges
- Fragmentation of habitat, poaching and wildlife trade, roadkills, infrastructure projects, land-use change, zoonotic diseases, declining prey densities etc are other problems apart from human-wildlife conflict and management problems within the wildlife reserves.
- India is a biodiversity-rich region, however, the degree of threat to this biodiversity is increasing exponentially.
Click here to get UPSC Notes for Tiger Conservation in India.
Tiger corridors-
- It is important to take beyond the conservation of tigers in protected reserves, a recent report revealed that a substantial population of tiger live outside of the protected areas.
- The National Tiger Conservation Authority in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India has published a document titled “Connecting Tiger Populations for Long-term Conservation”, which has mapped out 32 major corridors across the country. • A tiger corridor is a stretch of land linking tiger habitats, allowing movement of tigers, prey and other wildlife.
- For demarcating these corridors, the country has been divided into 4 landscapes: o Shivalik Hills & Gangetic Plains- 3 corridors o Central India & Eastern Ghats- 11 corridors o Western Ghats- 8 corridors o North East- 10 corridors.
1. States with stressed groundwater top in cereal trade: Study
Context:
A link between cereal production and depleting water tables has been noticed by a recent study.
Details:
Dietary importance of cereals in the diet.
- Cereals are a staple food and are important sources of nutrients in both developed and developing countries. Cereals and cereal products are an important source of energy, carbohydrate, protein and fiber, as well as containing a range of micronutrients such as vitamin E, some of the B vitamins, magnesium and zinc.
- Cereals are the primary source of energy for an Indian from his/her diet. Rice and wheat constitute a major portion of cereal production in India.
- Not only are cereals beneficial for health, but they’re also affordable. It is best to choose cereals on the basis of your body’s requirements.
Cereal production in India.
- The study has revealed that there is an inextricable link between states which are at the helm in cereal trade and their stressed groundwater levels.
- Approximately 39% of the groundwater is deployed in producing and trading cereals among states.
- 41% of cereal trade within India comes from states which are categorized as critically low groundwater reserves.
- The six states with ‘semicritical’ to ‘critical’ groundwater status export around one-fifth of the domestic cereal production.
Water-guzzler crops
- Highly water-intensive crops, their intake of groundwater have left the water tables depleting to new lows.
- This unregulated water withdrawal has been further aided by subsidized electricity to farmers, particularly large farmers who deploy a vast number of motor pumps that extract the groundwater.
- The economic and ecological cost of groundwater extraction is largely ignored.
The role of the Public Distribution System.
- Trade patterns have revealed a skewed distribution between PDS cereals and non-PDS cereals.
- The majority of inter-state cereal trade happened through PDS. Punjab and Haryana contribute close to one-third of rice procurement and almost 62 % of wheat procurement for the National Food Security Act,2013.
Conclusion
- Awareness has to be raised in these states about the depleting water tables, sufficient time and energy have to spent on rationalizing electric subsidies.
- Farmers have to be enlightened about planting crops that are compatible with the local agro-conditions and public procurement should not be the only incentive to grow a crop that is not compatible with the local conditions.
D. GS 4 Related
Nothing here for today!!!
E. Editorials
1. Inflation’s import in monetary matters.
Context:
The Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided not to alter the benchmark repo rate at 4%. The RBI has put its weight behind the ‘accommodative’ policy, which intends to expand the money supply.
Details:
Monetary Policy Committee views
- As per the MPC, the inflation is going to remain aloft in general, which is going to limit the monetary policy in utilizing the space available to act in support of growth.
- MPC observed that the recovery is limited to certain sectors and it is nowhere near a comprehensive, broad-based recovery.
- The recovery to be broad-based would require monetary support in aiding credit creation and credit disbursal, that could possibly aid the spur in demand in the economy.
Retail inflation measurement in India.
- Inflation refers to the rise in the prices of most goods and services of daily or common use, such as food, clothing, housing etc.
- The headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) was made the nominal anchor for monetary policy, replacing the Wholesale Price Index(WPI) as per the recommendations of the Urjith Patel committee in 2014.
- The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a measure that examines the weighted average of prices of a basket of consumer goods and services, such as transportation, food and medical care. It is calculated by taking price changes for each item in the predetermined basket of goods and averaging them.
- Changes in the CPI are used to assess price changes associated with the cost of living; the CPI is one of the most frequently used statistics for identifying periods of inflation or deflation. The weighted average depends on the importance of the item in a household.
- CPI data is released on monthly basis by the Ministry of Statistics and Policy Implementation.
Also read about Producer Price Index (PPI) – Indian Economy Notes.
Faster inflation
- The pace at which inflation is rising indicates the rate at which the price of the items included under CPI is rising.
- Inflation has an effect on everyone, but it disproportionately affects the economically weaker sections of the society, that is why it is dubbed as ‘tax on poor’.
- Persistent inflation reduces the disposable income of the people and it pushes items beyond the purchasing capacity of the lower-income households.
- The problem is further compounded when the items that are essential to day to day living are on a price surge, for example, tomato, onions, potatoes which are an intrinsic part of an average Indian households diet would be exposed to financial difficulties when there is an inflation of these above-mentioned commodities.
- It brings them into a position wherein they either have to spend beyond their abilities, which would make it difficult to make their ends meet or would have to reduce or abandon it’s consumption.
- The fixed income population segment whose regular income is not indexed to inflation will bear a heavy brunt of inflation as the value of money declines.
RBI’s role in tackling inflation
- Maintaining price stability and balancing it with growth objectives is the core agenda of the monetary policy.
- Price stability is a prerequisite for sustained growth.
- India has adopted an inflation-targeting framework, taking a cue from several other countries like New Zealand and Finland, who found a certain degree of success with this method in containing inflation
- Statutory backing for inflation targeting was provided in the year 2016 by amending the Reserve Bank of India 1935 Act.
- The RBI and the Central Government would arrive at a certain inflation rate that they deem fit and RBI through it’s Monetary Policy Committee shall strive to keep the inflation rate within the pre-decided range.
- According to the inflation-targeting framework, the CPI inflation target was fixed at 4% with a +/- 2% band. The RBI must take into account the current levels of inflation, prices of goods and services and also the inflation expectation of consumers and financial markets. The above-mentioned data will provide the necessary insight into the state of inflation.
- Taking into consideration all this, MPC is expected to devise a monetary policy that will contain inflation without sabotaging growth prospects.
Core Inflation
- An inflation measure that excludes transitory or temporary price volatility as in the case of some commodities such as food items, energy products etc. It reflects the inflation trend in an economy.
- The concept of core inflation ensures that seasonal upsurge in prices of food commodities or supply disruption in crude oil don’t influence the outlook of the entire economy.
- Core inflation gives a more stable picture of inflation, excluding volatility helps policy-makers make a better assessment of the economy and take steps that will be far more effective.
Context:
A commission has been appointed to assimilate data on caste-wise particulars of its population by the Tamil Nadu state government.
Details:
Caste and census
- The 1941 census was the first census since the inception of the census in India in the year 1881 to have excluded the caste criteria. The first census in 1881 to 1931 had caste as one of the metrics.
- The rationale behind the exclusion of caste is that it causes a deep entrenchment of the caste system in Indian society.
- A caste is an identity that offers advantage and disadvantage depending on which end of the spectrum on belongs to and labelling a person by his caste can lead to certain disadvantages to a person owing to his/her caste, disadvantages which he/she would not have had to encounter if not for the labelling.
- This argument has been rejected stating that merely overlooking a fact, a social reality will not help solve the issue.
Post-independence
- It was said that the 1st census in free India in 1951 did not want to burden itself with questions related to caste, tribes etc, but still, it collected important material concerning ‘special groups’ such as Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, Anglo-Indians, and certain castes treated as ‘backward’ for the purpose of the census.
- The Backward classes data were collected but not compiled or published.
- The SC/ST data are compiled as it is necessary to plan for affirmative state action and to also undertake welfare schemes for their upliftment.
- State governments have undertaken an exercise to compile data on backward classes but there appears to be no homogeneity in such exercises. The data is collected by circulating questionnaires, meeting with caste associations, touring certain areas and also at times extrapolating the data from a sample survey.
- A. Ambasankar Commission of Tamil Nadu and the Venkataswamy Commission in Karnataka collected information by taking a door-to-door survey.
Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011
- An exercise to acquire data on the socio-economic status of various communities. The SECC 2011 is not available on the public domain, it differed on certain aspects when compared to the general census conducted decennially.
- SECC 2011 had primarily two components, those are, a survey of rural households and urban households, ranking those households on pre-set parameters and a caste census.
- The caste data has not been made available on the public domain, whereas details on rural and urban households were released.
- The official word on non-disclosure of caste data has not bee stated, but it is assumed that the non-disclosure is largely due to the sensitive nature of the data and also to avoid stoking up any caste clashes.
Supreme Court
- The honourable Supreme Court has expressed its displeasure on several occasions about caste being the sole criteria for reservation. It has asked the State to look at identifying new forms of disadvantages that can be bridged by affirmative action.
- The SC has also noted that there should be quantifiable data for a caste to find it’s name in the backward classes list, along with under-representation in services.
- Also, there is a need to undertake periodic review of community-wise lists so that no particular community corners the benefits of reservation and the rest are left in a lurch.
- Periodic revision as stated by the Supreme Court will ensure that affirmative actions bring about social justice and will pave way for an egalitarian society.
F. Tidbits
Nothing here for today!!!
G. Prelims Facts
Nothing here for today!!!
H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions
Q1. Consider the following statements.
- Great Indian Bustards are classified as near threatened under IUCN classification.
- Their habitats include swampy areas, mangroves, lakes.
Which of the following statements are correct?
- 1 only.
- 2 only.
- Both 1 and 2.
- None
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: d
Explanation:
Habitat- Dry scrublands and grasslands
Q2. Anshi Tiger reserve is located in.
- Chhattisgarh.
- Bihar.
- Karnataka.
- Kerala
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: c
Explanation:
The Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve belongs to the Western Ghats in the Uttara Kannada district. The undulating streams, bamboo, diverse wildlife and innumerable trekking trails make it a dream destination. The Kali river and its tributaries, Kaneri and Nagajhari, flow through this forest. The Tiger Reserve comprises of two Protected Areas viz., Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary (475.018 sq. km.) and Anshi National Park (339.866 sq. km.) that are contiguous to each other.
Q3. Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)?
- It decides the RBI’s benchmark interest rates.
- It is a 10-member body including the Governor of RBI and is reconstituted every year.
- It functions under the chairmanship of the Union Finance Minister.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
- 1 only
- 1 and 2 only
- 3 only
- 2 and 3 only.
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: a
 Explanation:
It is a 6 member body functioning under the chairmanship of RBI Governor.
Q4. Kra canal project was associated which of the following pair of countries.
- India and Maldives
- China and Sri Lanka
- Indonesia and Malaysia.
- China and Thailand
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: d
Explanation:
I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
- What is herd immunity? Explain it’s role in public health and critically discuss it’s role in tackling COVID-19. (15 marks,250 words).
- Explain inflation targeting? Explain briefly about the interplay between inflation and growth. (10 marks,150 words).
Read the previous CNAÂ here.
06 Dec 2020 CNA:- Download PDF Here
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