08 June 2021: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

CNA 8th June 2021:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A. GS 1 Related
B. GS 2 Related
POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
1. Draft Rules for live-streaming court proceedings out
2. SC urged to stop illegal adoption
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
1. China hosts ASEAN Foreign Ministers
2. Maldives wins UNGA election, India seeks close cooperation
C. GS 3 Related
D. GS 4 Related
E. Editorials
HEALTH
1. Towards a stronger mental health strategy
2. Connecting the dots to mitigate a third wave
EDUCATION
1. School ranks
F. Prelims Facts
G. Tidbits
1. Govt. will revert to centralised procurement of vaccines: Modi
2. Farmer protests increased fivefold since 2017: CSE report
H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions
I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions

2. SC urged to stop illegal adoption

Context:

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) had urged the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter of illegal adoption taking place in the backdrop of the pandemic.

Issue:

• Private individuals and organisations have been actively collecting data on children orphaned during the pandemic while claiming that they want to assist families and children in adoption.
• Social media posts are circulating that the children are up for adoption – which violates the Juvenile Justice Act.

Details:

• NCPCR urged the court to direct the States and Union Territories to not place any confidential information about children in the public domain which would make them susceptible to trafficking.
• Section 74 of the Juvenile Justice Act prohibits the disclosure of the identity of children with regard to the name, school, age, address or any information which would reveal the essential details of the child.
• The adoption of orphaned/abandoned/ surrendered children is lawful only after the adoption procedure as given under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 is followed and the final adoption order is passed by the prescribed authority.
• The Commission asked the court to direct the States and UTs to create State Juvenile Justice Funds to enable the credit of donations/ contributions/ subscriptions directly in the notified account.

Read more on this issue covered in UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis. May 15th, 2021 CNA.
Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. China hosts ASEAN Foreign Ministers

Context:

China is hosting Foreign Ministers from the 10 ASEAN countries.

Details:

• China’s Foreign Minister will hold bilateral meetings with all the visiting Ministers.
• He would also chair a meeting of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) with Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
  • LMC was established in 2016 to promote multifaceted cooperation at the sub-regional level among the countries of Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Significance:

• The country is pushing for closer economic cooperation and aligning COVID-19 recovery efforts.
• It also looks to push back against the recent regional outreach of the Quad grouping.
  • China has for long criticised the Quad — the informal India, Australia, Japan and the United States grouping.  
• This marks a deepening of a period of increasing Chinese engagement with Southeast Asia, amid intensifying U.S. efforts to build a regional coalition to counter China’s rising power.
• It highlights the importance that Southeast Asia plays in key Chinese economic and strategic interests.

Note:

• Terming of QUAD as “an Asian NATO” by Beijing has been criticised by the QUAD members.
• Chinese analysts have framed ASEAN as a key space where Chinese and Quad initiatives may come in conflict with each other.
• Chinese analysts believe that Quad members will further rope in ASEAN members to counter China as Southeast Asia is of great significance to the U.S.’ Indo-Pacific Strategy.

2. Maldives wins UNGA election, India seeks close cooperation

Context:

In a first for the Maldives, Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid has been elected the President of the UN General Assembly for 2021-22.

Details:

• It was the Asia Pacific group’s turn to take up the 76^th Presidency of the General Assembly for 2021-22.
• Maldives Foreign Minister won against Afghanistan’s Zalmai Rassoul.

India’s Role:

• India had made it clear to Afghanistan’s government that it would be unable to support Mr. Rassoul as it had earlier declared its support for the Maldives publicly.
  • India shares close ties with both countries.
• The win was welcomed by the Indian diplomats who had been helping the Maldives canvass for him.

2. Connecting the dots to mitigate a third wave

Context:

• The abating second wave of the novel coronavirus and concerns associated with a possible third wave.

Reproduction Number (R₀):

• R₀ also referred to as the reproduction number is a mathematical term that indicates how contagious an infectious disease is.
• It indicates the average number of new infections arising from one infected individual.
• R₀ fluctuates over time during an epidemic. When R₀ is greater than 1, infected individuals infect more than one person on average and we observe increasing cases. When it is less than 1, cases are declining.

Determinants of R₀:

• R₀ depends on four factors:
  • The duration of infectiousness of an infected person
    • This depends on the virus variant as well as the medical interventions available to control the infectiousness.
  • Opportunities infected individuals have to spread the infection to others
    • Super spreader events where many individuals are infected by a small number of individuals has been a characteristic feature of COVID-19.
    • Increased social mixing and large gatherings are good opportunities for the spread of infection.
  • The probability of transmission occurs given an opportunity
    • Not taking proper preventive measures like social distancing and the use of masks in public spaces can lead to increased transmission.
    • The transmission of a virus is also dependant on the mutant variant. The B.1.617.2, recently known as the delta variant, is known to be much more transmissible.
  • The average susceptibility of a population to infection
    • Susceptible individuals lack immunity derived through prior infection or immunisation.

Measures needed to avoid a third wave:

• The understanding of the determinants of the reproduction number can help understand the dynamics of a pandemic and will therefore help mitigate and prepare for future waves.
• Following measures could be taken to decrease the determinants so as to keep R₀ as low as possible.

Approach in line with the dynamic nature of the pandemic:

• Genome sequencing should be undertaken to ensure early recognition of new variants of concern.
• The isolation and quarantining guidelines, treatment protocol should be revisited with the mutating virus and scientific evidence related to it.

Reducing opportunities for infection:

• Mass gatherings should be restricted.
• Localized lockdowns can be implemented to substantially reduce opportunities for transmission.

Reducing the probability of transmission:

• Transmission can be reduced through increased use of face masks and improved ventilation.
  • Research from neighbouring Bangladesh indicates that providing free masks together with community monitors can help improve the adoption of such measures.

Understanding and protecting the susceptible population:

• The susceptible population can be increased by increasing immunisation coverage.
• The administration should undertake well-designed seroprevalence surveys to understand how much of the population remains susceptible and where they reside.
• Further studies into questions about waning immunity and the potential for reinfections should be prioritized for a better understanding of the infection.

Category: EDUCATION

1. School ranks

Context:

• Education Ministry has released the Performance Grading Index (PGI) for 2019-20.

For information on this refer to:

UPSC Comprehensive News Analysis of June 7th 2021

Performance Grading Index:

• The Performance Grading Index is a tool to provide insights on the status of school education in States and UTs including key levers that drive their performance and critical areas for improvement.
• The score is derived using databases on 70 parameters such as access, equity, governance processes, infrastructure and facilities, and learning outcomes that are mostly self-reported by the States but also vetted by the Centre, with National Achievement Survey data also being incorporated.

Significance of the PGI index:

• The PGI will help the States and UTs pinpoint the gaps and accordingly prioritize areas for intervention.
• The PGI will help create a resource-sharing system that low-performing States can tap into. The PGI can act as a good source of information for best practices followed by States and UTs which can be emulated in other states.
• Through this initiative, the Union Education Ministry aims to get States into a competitive mode in upgrading their school education system.
• The Index will propel the States and Union Territories (UTs) towards undertaking multi-pronged interventions that will focus on improving the quality of education. The PGI by shifting the focus from the issue of access to the issue of quality of education will help in realizing optimal education outcomes.

Way forward:

• Need to address the infrastructure gap by ensuring sufficient funds for the school education sector.
• COVID-19 has had a detrimental impact on access to education for the poor and vulnerable class children. These equity issues will need to be dealt with by bridging the gaps, particularly on digital tools, infrastructure and subsidies for access.
• The available evidence points to governance processes being the weak link in some States. Thus measures to help improve the governance process need to be incorporated in future policies and approaches.
• The PGI scores show that the southern and western States are on firm ground to achieve this, while those in central India and parts of the east and northeast are less resourced. Thus, there is a need for relevant policies and resource supply to these areas to help correct the inequity.

2. Farmer protests increased fivefold since 2017: CSE report

What’s in News?

According to data collated by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), farmer protests increased fivefold since 2017.

Findings:

• Apart from the three contentious Central farm laws, procurement and agricultural market price-related failures have contributed to a fivefold increase in major farmers’ protests since 2017.
• In 2017, there were 34 major protests across 15 States. The number has now shot up to 165 protests across 22 States and Union Territories.
• Reasons for protests:
  • Large numbers of farmers are fighting against market failures and demanding fair prices.
  • There are battles against acquisition of farm land for development projects, including highway and airport construction.
  • Few agitations have demanded loan waivers or have been organised to protest poor insurance coverage and delayed compensation.
  • The arrests of protesting farm leaders have also led to further stirs.
• The report notes that India now has more farm labourers than landowning farmers and cultivators.
• The CSE has called for better maintenance of agricultural data, noting that 14 States had actually witnessed a deterioration in the quality of their land records.

Q1. With reference to Aravalli Range, which of the following statements is/are correct?

Q2. Consider the following statements:

Q3. In the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC), an initiative of six countries, which of the 
following is/are not a participant/participants?

Q4. Which of the following countries border Peru?

Q5. Regarding 'carbon credits', which one of the following statements is not correct? 
(UPSC 2011)

Read the previous CNA here.

CNA 8th June 2021:- Download PDF Here