16 Jul 2023: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

E. Editorials

Category: GOVERNANCE

1. Why is there a controversy on the forest Bill?

Syllabus: Government policies, transparency and accountability

Mains: Government policies and interventions aimed at development in various sectors

Context

• The Parliament’s monsoon session is where the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, 2023, is most likely to be introduced. 
• The version that the administration submitted was approved by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), which was looking at improvements to the Bill. There were hardly any comments, edits, or suggestions made.

About the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill

• The Forest Conservation Act of 1980 is being modified by the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023. 
• This law was passed to safeguard India’s forests and gives the central government the authority to control resource extraction from forests.

Supreme court Judgment

• In the Godavarman Thirumulpad case, the Supreme Court increased the extent of such protection in 1996. 
• Even locations that were not officially designated as “forests” but met the “dictionary” definition of forests were protected under it. 
• The Thirumalpad judgment instructed States to identify and demarcate forests using their own criteria because there is no universal definition of what constitutes a “forest.” 
• The extent to which the judgment aided forest protection has not been hotly contested in all States. 

Also read Deemed Forests.

India’s Forest policy

• According to India’s 1988 forest policy, a third of the nation’s land must be covered in forests. 
• If one takes into account tree cover outside of regions under registered forest, plantations, and orchards, the percentage drops to roughly 24%. Realistically, only 21% of the land is under such cover. 
• According to the Environment Ministry, the Act needed to be amended in order to solve this latter problem.

About the Amendments 

• The Act has undergone significant revisions, including the addition of a “preamble” that highlights India’s commitment to protecting forests, their biodiversity, and addressing issues related to climate change. 
• According to the revisions, the Act would only be applicable to lands designated as “forest” in any government record on or after 1980. 
• According to the Environment Ministry, these changes were required because private parties were being discouraged from restoring tree areas or creating plantations in degraded forests. 

Objections to the changes

• Significant forests in the Himalayan, trans-Himalayan, and northeastern regions may suffer as a result of the exemptions, according to the main arguments against them. 
• Other criticisms include limiting the legislation’s application to only those areas designated as woods. 
• Experts who were asked to testify before the committee raised certain concerns, claiming that the Act weakens the Godavarman ruling.
• According to a few State governments, forest protection is a matter for both the Centre and States, making it a Concurrent List item. The revisions tipped the scales in the Center’s favor.

Environment Ministry Response

• The Environment Ministry has provided the Committee with thorough justifications in an effort to allay worries. 
• It adds that the Godavarman ruling is not affected by the new modifications and that safeguards have been put in place to prevent “misuse” of the land. 

Nut Graf: The modified Bill’s exemptions could harm the forests in the Himalayan mountain range. While stating that the proposed exemptions along international boundaries would only apply to specific linear projects of strategic importance, the Environment Ministry emphasises that these exemptions are not general ones.

Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. What is NATO’s stand on Ukraine’s entry?

Syllabus: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting  India’s interests.

Mains: Critical analysis of NATO’s stand on Ukraine’s entry

Background

• The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) sought to present a united front during its two-day summit in Lithuania, despite the fact that it is heavily involved in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. 
• Turkey dropped its objections to Sweden joining the alliance just before the session started. 
• Additionally, the summit established new spending targets for participants and made a long-term support promise to Ukraine. 
• The promise of Ukraine’s membership in the alliance, however, on which there was no clarity or time period, was the one subject that cast a shadow over the Vilnius summit.

Outcome of the summit for Ukraine

• The NATO meeting in Bucharest in 2008 included an invitation to Ukraine and Georgia to become members. 
• Prior to the Vilnius meeting, the president of Ukraine asked from NATO a more specific promise about his country’s participation fifteen years later. 
• Therefore, Ukraine hasn’t made much progress towards joining NATO over the past 15 years. 
• There has been a noticeable shift in support for Ukraine joining NATO amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of that country.
• The Ukraine-NATO Council would be used to continue Ukraine’s collaboration with NATO. 

Reasons why is Ukraine still not a part of NATO

• If Ukraine had been included now, NATO would have been at war with Russia. 
• Since NATO’s core value is collective security, if Ukraine gets accepted into NATO now, the war in Ukraine automatically becomes NATO’s war.
  • The rationale behind this is the “collective security” doctrine of NATO is that any armed strike against any one of them in Europe or North America is seen to be an attack against them all.
• NATO, and the US in particular, do not want to run that danger.
• NATO seeks to undermine or defeat Russia in Ukraine without entering the conflict directly. 

Expansion of NATO 

• The Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland, all former Soviet allies, joined NATO in 1999. 
• The alliance gained seven more members in 2004, including the Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, all of which have shared borders with Russia. 
• In 2009, 2017, 2020, and 2023, NATO membership was further expanded to include nations like Finland, Croatia, Montenegro, and Montenegro. The 32nd member is expected to be Sweden.

Russia’s response

• When Ukraine and Georgia were invited to the Bucharest summit in 2008, Russia saw it as a direct threat.
• The Russian government has consistently argued that the security of their country is threatened by NATO expansion. 
• Six years later, after demonstrators backed by the West overthrow an elected pro-Russian government in Ukraine, Russia moved quickly to invade Crimea.
• Additionally, Russia helped the Russian-speaking insurgents in the Donbass region of Ukraine, which led to a full-scale conflict in 2022. 

Nut Graf: NATO wants to include Ukraine in the alliance but is now refusing to do so. On the other hand, if Russia continues to view Ukraine’s NATO membership as a red line, the Russians may continue to wage war to stop Ukraine from joining NATO.

 

H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding the Pradhan Mantri Jan 
Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY):

1. It provides healthcare coverage of Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization to poor and vulnerable families.
2. The scheme covers only public empaneled hospitals in India and does not include private hospitals.
3. PM-JAY covers all pre-existing conditions from day one and there is no waiting period for availing benefits.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: b

Explanation: Statement 2 is incorrect as the scheme covers both public and private empaneled hospitals in India.

Q2. Which one of the following statements about the Group of Twenty (G20)
is not correct?

1. It was founded in 1999
2. The G20 summit is held annually under the leadership of a rotating Presidency
3. G20 comprises twenty countries
4. The G20 members represent around 85 % of the global GDP

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: c

Explanation: The G20 comprises 19 countries and the European Union. Therefore, the statement that the G20 comprises twenty countries is incorrect.

Q3. Consider the following statements regarding the Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV):

1. OPV is a live attenuated vaccine that has contributed to bringing the wild poliovirus close to eradication.
2. It provides better immunity in the gut, the site of poliovirus replication.
3. The vaccine virus can be spread from person to person in communities with low-quality sanitation, providing additional protection to the community.

How many of the statements given above are incorrect?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: d

Explanation: All three statements are correct

Q4. Which of the following countries are part of the "Golden Crescent"?

1. Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand
2. Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Qatar
3. Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran
4. Turkey, Greece, and Bulgaria

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: c

Explanation: The “Golden Crescent” includes the countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran, which are known for their significant cultivation and production of opium poppy, a key raw material for heroin production.

Q5. Consider the following statements regarding CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology:

1. It allows scientists to cut-and-paste DNA, providing hope for genetic fixes in diseases.
2. It is a versatile tool that can target almost any genomic location and make changes to the DNA.

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2 
4. Neither 1 nor 2

CHECK ANSWERS:-

Answer: c

Explanation: Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 are correct