17 Dec 2023: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

17 December 2023 CNA
Download PDF Here

A. GS 1 Related

Nothing here for today!!!

B. GS 2 Related

Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. Junta down but not out

Syllabus: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests.

Mains: Political instability in Myanmar

Context: The current state of affairs in Myanmar shows the military facing its most formidable challenge in six decades of dominance, as opposition fighters and ethnic rebels consolidate in the country’s hinterlands.

Junta government in Myanmar:

• The Junta government seized absolute power in Myanmar in February 2021 through a coup, ousting the elected civilian National League for Democracy (NLD)-led government.
• According to a UN report in 2023, the Junta government received arms worth $1 billion, with 90% coming from three countries: Russia (41%), China (27%), and Singapore (25%). India supplied arms totalling $51 million to Myanmar.
• The government is accused of committing war crimes, such as using fighter planes and artillery to bomb its own rural population, employing scorched-earth methods against rebels, and implementing genocidal policies, particularly against minorities like the Rohingya. 

Resistance against the Junta government:

• People’s Defense Forces (PDF): The People’s Defense Forces (PDF), a militia group, are leading guerrilla warfare against the junta government and causing damage in areas dominated by the majority, the Bamar ethnicity.
• National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC): Formed by the National League for Democracy (NLD), NUCC serves as a dialogue platform to unite fragmented pro-democratic forces in Myanmar.
• Three Brotherhood Alliance: The Arakan Army (AA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) carried out ‘Operation 1027,’ a coordinated attack against military bases across northern Shan State.
• International sanctions: Many countries have imposed international sanctions, including an arms embargo, against the Junta government.

Nut Graf: Despite a lack of popular support and a rising rebellion against military rule, the Junta government retains its hegemony through the successful use of ethnic divisions and the resourcefulness of the military.

C. GS 3 Related

Category: ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Is the world closer to phasing out fossil fuels?

Syllabus: Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.

Prelims: Global Methane Pledge

Mains: Phasing out of fossil fuels

Context: Recently, the 28th edition of the Conference of Parties (COP) agreed that the world must “transition” away from fossil fuels in a “just, orderly and equitable manner” to achieve net zero by 2050. 

Dubai consensus on fossil fuel:

• Formal acknowledgement: The Dubai Consensus for the first time formally acknowledged that emission from fossil fuels is the major cause of global warming.
• Parity among fossil fuels: The Dubai Consensus included all fossil fuels and recognised that all of them need to be phased out for the world to have a chance at preventing global warming.
• ALTERRA: The President of UAE announced the creation of a $30 billion catalytic climate investment fund named ALTÉRRA.
• Global Renewable and Energy Efficiency Pledge: The pledge was taken to triple worldwide installed renewable energy capacity and double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency by 2030.
• Methane emission: The Dubai Consensus emphasised that methane, a key component of natural gas, is responsible for about a third of global warming. Accelerating and substantially reducing non-carbon-dioxide emissions globally, particularly methane emissions, by 2030 is necessary to prevent average temperatures from rising beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius by the end of the century.

Challenges in replacing fossil fuels

• Intermittency of renewable energy: Unlike fossil fuels, power from natural sources such as solar and wind is not easily available on demand. This is due to the unavailability of sunlight at night and the temperamental nature of ocean and atmospheric conditions affecting wind.
• Fiscal implication: Developing reliable technologies, infrastructure, transmission grids, and pipelines to make renewable energy available for households and vehicles requires a high upfront investment, which may exceed the capacities of most developing countries. In contrast, fossil fuels benefit from existing, well-established infrastructure networks.
• Economic impact: India has resisted cutting methane emissions, as the agriculture sector contributes to the majority of methane emissions in the country.
• Lack of consensus: Developing countries like India and China have protested against the phasing out of coal, citing its necessity to lift their populations out of poverty and provide energy security. The United States, heavily dependent on oil and gas reserves, has never advocated for eliminating them. 

Way Ahead: 

• Transition fuels: The Dubai Consensus agreed that transition fuels like natural gas, with lower emissions than fossil fuels, could play a role in facilitating the energy transition while ensuring energy security.
• Energy infrastructure: Governments need to invest in building infrastructure that can accelerate the deployment of renewable energy.
• Global Methane Pledge: Nearly 150 countries have agreed to cut methane emissions by 30% of 2020 levels by 2030 during the COP-27 summit in Egypt.

Nut Graf: The Dubai Consensus formally acknowledged that emissions from fossil fuels are the major cause of global warming and emphasised the need to prevent emissions from all fossil fuels.

D. GS 4 Related

Nothing here for today!!!

E. Editorials

Nothing here for today!!!

F. Prelims Facts

1. Bodoland Territorial Region

Context: Recently, the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) of Assam launched a school to impart lessons on humanity and societal happiness. The trainees were taught how to remove conscious and unconscious biases and made aware of various laws related to social issues helping to increase self-awareness and understanding of others.

Bodoland Territorial region:

• The Bodoland Territorial Region is an autonomous region in Assam constituted under the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution in 2003 after the signing of the Memorandum of Settlement by the Government of India, the Government of Assam, and the Bodo Liberation Tigers. 
• It consists of areas from four districts – Baksa, Chirang, Kokrajhar, and Udalgiri in western and northern Assam.

Image: Bodoland Territorial Region

Source: bodoland.gov.in

Bodoland Territorial Council

• The Bodoland Territorial Region is administered by an elected body known as the Bodoland Territorial Council. 
• The executive council of the Bodoland Territorial Council consists of not more than 14 members. 
• The Chief and the Deputy Chief of the Council hold a status equivalent to that of Cabinet Ministers. 
• Bodoland Territorial Council Legislative Assembly:
  • The Bodoland Territorial Council Legislative Assembly contains 40 elected members from 40 constituencies and 6 members nominated by the Governor of Assam from underrepresented communities.
  • The Bodoland Territorial Council has executive, legislative, administrative, and financial powers concerning subjects transferred to it.

2. India and Oman sign agreements

Context:​ Recently, Sultan Haitham bin Tarik, the ruler of Oman, made his first state visit to India.

Image: Map of Oman

Source: World Atlas

Agreements during the visit: 

• Both sides discussed the establishment of a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a fresh tranche of investments, and the possibility of establishing bilateral rupee trade. 
• An agreement between the Financial Intelligence Unit of India and the National Centre for Financial Information (NCFI) to prevent money laundering was signed during the meeting. 

India-Oman Relationship:

• Strategic Partnership: India and Oman upgraded their partnership to a Strategic Partnership in 2008.
• India’s West Asia Policy: Oman is a key pillar of India’s West Asia Policy and an important interlocutor at the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Arab League, Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), and Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS).
• Trade Relationship: Bilateral trade between the two countries in 2022-23 stood at around $12.3 billion.
  • Major Imports to India: Oil, LNG, minerals, propylate,  polyethylene, urea, and aluminium.
  • Major Exports from India: Rice, wheat, ignition control of vehicles, motor fuel, natural gasoline, and iron ore.
• Military Relationship:
  • Joint Military Exercises: Al Najah (Army exercise), Eastern Bridge (Air Force exercise), Naseem Al Bahr (Naval Exercise).
  • Duqm Port: In 2018, India secured access to the facilities at Duqm for the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy.
• Diaspora: Presence of a large Indian community of almost 7 lakh people.
• Recent developments:
  • National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and the Central Financial Institution of Oman signed an MoU to launch the RuPay debit card in Oman.
  • India-Middle-East-Europe Connectivity Corridor (IMEEC) and the South Asia Gas Enterprise (SAGE) pipeline project.

3. Pangolin poaching

Context: Researchers based on genomic analyses have revealed illegal pangolin trafficking routes from origins in Africa to markets in Asia.

Pangolin:

• Pangolins are primarily nocturnal mammals. They are the only mammals wholly covered in scales, which they use to protect themselves from predators in the wild.

Image: Pangolin

Source: WWF

• Pangolins will curl into a tight ball, if threatened, and use their sharp-scaled tail to defend themselves from predators.
• They eat ants, termites, and larvae and are often known as “the scaly anteater.”
• They are poached mainly for their meat and their scales are used in traditional medicine and folk remedies.
• There are 8 species of Pangolins:
  • Four species of Pangolins live in Africa: White-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis), Black-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tetradactyla), Temminck’s Ground pangolin (Smutsia temminckii) and Giant Ground pangolin (Smutsia gigantea).
  • Four species of Pangolins live in Asia: Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata), Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica), Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) and Philippine pangolin (Manis culionensis).
• The Indian pangolin is listed on CITES Appendix I and is listed as ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List.

G. Tidbits

Nothing here for today!!!

Q1. ‘ALTÉRRA’ recently seen in the news is:

Q2. Which of the following constitute the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) 
Member States?

Q3. The ‘Three Brotherhood Alliance’ often seen in the news is associated with 
which of these countries?

Q4. What is the conservation status accorded to the Indian Pangolin in the 
IUCN Red List?

Q5. Where is the Duqm Port which is important for India’s maritime strategy 
in the Indian Ocean?

I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions

1. The Dubai Consensus adopted at COP-28 is seen as historic by some and as a failure by others. In this context, critically examine the outcomes of the summit. (250 words, 15 marks) (GS III – E&E)
2. India often faces challenges while negotiating FTAs with developed nations. Illustrate these challenges with examples. (250 words, 15 marks) (GS II – IR)