10 Nov 2020 CNA:- Download PDF Here
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. GS 1 Related B. GS 2 Related POLITY AND GOVERNANCE 1. Finance panel submits report with separate section on States’ finances 2. Punjab revokes general consent given to CBI INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 1. India, Maldives sign four MoUs to boost ties C. GS 3 Related ECONOMY 1. Academic credit banks, degree with entry and exit option soon D. GS 4 Related E. Editorials INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 1. India, Maldives sign four MoUs to boost ties 2. The war within ECONOMY 1. Lessons from Vietnam and Bangladesh ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY 1. The cost of clearing the air F. Prelims Facts 1. CCI to probe Google’s ‘abuse’ of position G. Tidbits 1. Govt. to lay stress on non-motorised transport 2. NGT links cracker sales to air quality H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
A. GS 1 Related
Nothing here for today!!!
B. GS 2 Related
Category: POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
1. Finance panel submits report with separate section on States’ finances
Context:
The 15th Finance Commission has submitted its report.
Details:
- The Fifteenth Finance Commission has finalised its report for fund devolution from the Centre to States for the five years from 2021-22 to 2025-26.
- The Commission was asked to give its recommendations on many unique and wide-ranging issues in its terms of reference.
This topic has been covered in 31st October 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.
- Besides its main recommendation on devolution of funds between the Centre and the States for the period 2021-22 to 2025-26, the Commission addressed all its unique terms of reference, such as:
- Considering a new non-lapsable fund for financing national security and defence spending.
- Offering performance incentives to the States that deliver on reforms.
- Apart from the main report, uniquely titled Finance Commission in Covid Times, the 15th Finance Commission presented two volumes as part of its submissions.
- One focuses on the state of the Centre’s finances, with in-depth scrutiny of the key departments, medium-term challenges facing the Centre and a road map for future.
- The other volume is dedicated to the States, with the finances of each analysed in great depth. It has come up with State-specific considerations to address the key challenges that individual States face.
2. Punjab revokes general consent given to CBI
Context:
The Punjab government has withdrawn general consent given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for investigating cases in the State.
Details:
- The CBI derives its legal powers from the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946.
- With the withdrawal of general consent for investigating cases by “members of the Delhi Special Police Establishment”, the CBI would have to seek prior permission from the State government for conducting any investigation.
This topic has been comprehensively covered in 5th November 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.
Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
1. India, Maldives sign four MoUs to boost ties
Context:
New Delhi and Male have signed four agreements during India’s Foreign Secretary’s visit to the Maldives.
Details:
- It includes a $100 million Indian grant for an ambitious connectivity project.
- This is a part of India’s “$500 million package” for the Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP).
- The two governments had earlier inked a deal for a $400 million line of credit from the Exim Bank of India.
Read more on this topic covered in 13th October 2020 CNA.
- Two MoUs have been signed for high impact community development projects.
- A fourth MoU was signed on cooperation in sports and youth affairs.
Note:
Amid India’s concern over China’s growing influence in the region, the ties with the Maldives have remained under sharp focus.
C. GS 3 Related
1. Academic credit banks, degree with entry and exit option soon
Context:
Changes to be brought about under the first National Agricultural Education Policy.
Details:
- The policy is set to bring:
- Academic credit banks.
- Degree programmes with multiple entry and exit options to the 74 universities focussed on crop sciences, fisheries, veterinary and dairy training and research.
- The new policy is drafted to usher in some changes to the academic life of students of agricultural universities in line with the National Education Policy.
Note:
- The Student READY (Rural Entrepreneurship Awareness Development Yojana) programme requires all students to undertake a six-month internship, usually in their fourth year, to gain hands-on training, rural awareness, industry experience, research expertise and entrepreneurship skills.
Challenges:
- A major challenge for agricultural universities could be the push for multi-disciplinarity.
- Another major challenge is to ensure that experiential learning is made available to all students if the multiple entry-exit system is implemented.
D. GS 4 Related
Nothing here for today!!!
E. Editorials
Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
1. The real significance of the Biden win
This topic has been covered in the 9th November 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.
Context:
- Recently, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed declared war on the country’s Tigray region, which is ruled by the powerful Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).
- It was in response to its attack on a federal military base in Tigray.
Tigray People’s Liberation Front
- The militia-turned-party – TPLF had played a dominant role in the country’s ruling coalition – the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front.
- It was part of the coalition that brought an end to the military dictatorship in 1991.
- After Mr. Abiy came to power, he concentrated more power in the hands of the government and alienated the TPLF.
- Rising tensions led to the recent outburst, with the attack on the base.
Details:
- The Tigrayans, who make up roughly 6% of Ethiopia’s 110 million people, have traditionally enjoyed outsized influence in the government whereas the Oromos, the largest ethnic group, have complained of marginalisation.
- Abiy (an Oromo) has said his mandate is to place Ethiopia’s interests over the regions and correct the uneven distribution of power.
- The conflict between Tigray authorities and the federal government can be traced to when Abiy Ahmed came to power in 2018.
Concerns:
- Abiy’s actions often produced unintended consequences.
- In the Oromo region, his critics complain that he is trying to grab more powers for the federal government, while the Tigrayans accuse him of taking away their rights.
- Now, with his decision to bomb Tigray, he has declared war on his people at a time when ethnic tensions are running high.
What impact will this have on the Horn of Africa?
- If the conflict between the Ethiopian federal government and Tigray authorities exacerbates, it will spill over to neighbouring countries in the Horn of Africa.
- Eritrea may be hardest hit, due to its proximity to Tigray.
- If the violence and conflict spill outside Ethiopia’s borders, it may potentially destabilize the Horn of Africa region where the US and China have several strategic military bases – the closest being Djibouti.
- If these military bases were to be impacted by the disturbances in any way, it may cause foreign powers to get militarily involved in the region and the conflict.
Way forward:
- The stability of Ethiopia is important for the entire Horn of Africa region.
- Measures must be taken for immediate de-escalation of tensions and a peaceful resolution to the dispute.
- Instead of bombing his own country, Mr. Abiy should reach out to regional political leadership, especially the TPLF, find common ground, and run the country peacefully by restoring the balance between ethnicities and regions and decentralising the federal government.
1. Lessons from Vietnam and Bangladesh
Context:
While Bangladesh has become the second-largest apparel exporter after China, Vietnam’s exports have grown by about 240% in the past eight years. The article throws light upon the best practices followed in both the countries for and what India can learn from them.
Vietnam’s Success:
- Vietnam’s exports rose from $83.5 billion in 2010 to $279 billion in 2019.
- Vietnam pursues an open trade policy mainly through Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) which ensure that its important trading partners like the U.S., the EU, China, Japan, South Korea and India do not charge import duties on products made in Vietnam.
- Vietnam’s domestic market is open to the partners’ products.
- 99% of EU products will soon enter Vietnam duty-free.
- The country has agreed to change its domestic laws to make the country attractive to investors.
- Foreign firms can compete for local businesses.
- EU firms can open shops, enter the retail trade, and bid for both government and private sector tenders.
- They can take part in electricity, real estate, hospital, defence, and railways projects.
- An open trade policy, a less inexpensive workforce, and generous incentives to foreign firms contributed to Vietnam’s success.
Learning for India:
- While Vietnam being a single-party state can ignore domestic voices, this model may not be good for India as it offers no protection to farmers or local producers from imports.
Bangladesh’s Strategy:
- In Bangladesh, most of the country’s export constitutes large export of apparels to the EU and the U.S.
- The EU allows the import of apparel and other products from least developed countries (LDCs) like Bangladesh duty-free.
- However, Bangladesh may not have this advantage in a few years.
- The country is working to diversify its export basket.
- In India, as a good neighbour, all of Bangladesh’s products are accepted duty-free (except alcohol and tobacco).
Way Forward:
Here are a few suggestions of elements followed in Vietnam and Bangladesh models that India can look to emulate:
Support Large Firms:
- The key learning from Bangladesh is the need to support large firms for a quick turnover.
- Large firms are better positioned to invest in brand building, meeting quality requirements, and marketing.
- Small firms begin as suppliers to large firms and eventually grow.
Export Diversification:
- Vietnam has changed domestic rules to meet the needs of investors. Yet, most of Vietnam’s exports happen in five sectors.
- In contrast, India’s exports are more diversified.
- The Economic Complexity Index (ECI), which ranks a country based on how diversified and complex its manufacturing export basket is, illustrates this point.
- The ECI rank for China is 32, India 43, Vietnam 79, and Bangladesh 127.
Setting up pre-approved factory spaces:
- India, unlike Vietnam, has a developed domestic and capital market. To further promote manufacturing and investment, India could set up sectoral industrial zones with pre-approved factory spaces.
Final Assembly of goods produced:
- The quick build-up of exports in Vietnam resulted from large MNC investments. But most of its electronics exports are just the final assembly of goods produced elsewhere. In such cases, national exports look large, but the net dollar gain is small. China also faces this issue.
GDP to Export Ratio:
- Vietnam’s export to GDP ratio (EGR) is 107%.
- Such high dependence on exports brings dollars but also makes a country vulnerable to global economic uncertainty.
- The EGR of large economies/exporting countries is a much smaller number.
- Most such countries (including India) follow an open trade policy, sign balanced FTAs, restrict unfair imports, and have a healthy mix of domestic champions and MNCs.
- While export remains a priority, it is not pursued at the expense of other sectors of the economy.
Conclusion:
- For India, the focus is on organic economic growth through innovation and competitiveness.
- With reforms promoting innovation and lowering the cost of doing business, India is poised to attract the best investments and integrate further with the global economy.
Category: ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY
1. The cost of clearing the air
Context:
- In February 2020, the Finance Minister had announced a ₹4,400 crore package for 2020-21 to tackle air pollution in 102 of India’s most polluted cities.
- The funds would be used to reduce particulate matter by 20%-30% from 2017 levels by 2024 under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).
Concerns:
- There is no clarity on what the budgetary outlays for subsequent years are likely to be.
- Though it was the largest-ever yearly allocation by a government to specifically tackle air pollution, only half the money was finally allotted to 15 States (and 42 cities in them) in November 2020.
- The rest will be given in January 2021 based on how cities achieve certain ‘performance parameters’ that are still being worked out by the Centre.
- It is unclear if this amount is adequate to handle the task of improving air quality as the scale of the problem itself is unknown.
- Historically, cites have used manual machines to measure specified pollutants and their use has been inadequate.
- Several States with the most polluted cities that have been allotted NCAP funds are expected to spend a substantial fraction of the amount in the act of measurement than on tackling pollution.
- The funds don’t account for the trained manpower and the support system necessary to effectively maintain the systems. These costs are likely to be significant.
- Budgetary allocations alone don’t reflect the true cost of reducing air pollution.
- Pollution clean-up activities have been assigned 50% of this budget and another ₹11 crore are allotted for mechanical street sweepers.
- Depending on the specific conditions in every city, these proportions are likely to change.
This topic has been covered in the 7th November 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.
Way forward:
- Tackling pollution requires various other measures besides the allocation of sufficient funds.
- In the case of the National Capital Region, at least ₹600 crore was spent by the Ministry of Agriculture over two years to provide subsidised equipment to farmers in Punjab and Haryana and dissuade them from burning paddy straw. Yet in 2020, there have been more farm fires than in the previous year.
- While funds are critical, proper enforcement, adequate staff and stemming the sources of pollution on the ground are vital to the NCAP meeting its target.
F. Prelims Facts
1. CCI to probe Google’s ‘abuse’ of position
What’s in News?
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has ordered a detailed probe against Google for ‘abuse’ of its dominant position, primarily with regard to its digital payments application GPay.
Competition Commission of India (CCI):
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) was established under the Competition Act, 2002 for the administration, implementation and enforcement of the Act.
- It was duly constituted in March 2009.
- It is a statutory body responsible for enforcing the Competition Act, 2002 throughout India.
- The following are the objectives of the Commission.
- To prevent practices having an adverse effect on competition.
- To promote and sustain competition in markets.
- To protect the interests of consumers.
- To ensure freedom of trade.
Read more about the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
G. Tidbits
1. Govt. to lay stress on non-motorised transport
What’s in News?
The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister has said that after the COVID-19 pandemic led to a reassessment of public transport systems, the focus of government interventions going forward would be on non-motorised transport.
This topic has been covered in the 9th November 2020 PIB Summary and Analysis.
2. NGT links cracker sales to air quality
What’s in News?
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed that the cracker sales would be linked to the air quality in cities and towns across the country, between November 10th and 30th, 2020.
- The Tribunal, in its order, noted that several States have already prohibited the sale and use of firecrackers to protect vulnerable groups including the elderly, children, and persons with co-morbidities, among others.
- There would be a total ban on the sale or use of all kinds of firecrackers in all cities and towns across the country, where the average ambient air quality during the period is under the ‘poor’ and above category.
- In places where the ambient air quality is under the ‘moderate’ or below category, only green crackers would be permitted and timings for bursting them would be restricted to two hours.
H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions
Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to OPEC+:
- OPEC+ refers to the alliance of crude producers, who have been undertaking corrections in supply in the oil markets since 2017.
- OPEC+ countries include Oman, Russia and Malaysia.
Which of the given statement/s is/are INCORRECT?
- 1 only
- 2 only
- Both 1 and 2
- Neither 1 nor 2
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: d
Explanation:
- OPEC+ is the alliance of crude producers who have been undertaking corrections in supply in the oil markets since the year 2017.
- OPEC+ countries include Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, South Sudan and Sudan.
Q2. Consider the following statements:
- Competition Commission of India (CCI) is a statutory body established under the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969.
- The Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) hears and disposes of appeals against any direction issued or decision made or order passed by the CCI.
Which of the given statement/s is/are INCORRECT?
- 1 only
- 2 only
- Both 1 and 2
- Neither 1 nor 2
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: c
Explanation:
- The Competition Commission of India (CCI) was established under the Competition Act, 2002 for the administration, implementation and enforcement of the Act, and was duly constituted in March 2009.
- The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) was repealed and replaced by the Competition Act, 2002.
- The Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) has ceased to exist effective 26 May 2017.
- The appellate function under the Competition Act, 2002 would now confer to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).
Q3. Consider the following statements with respect to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI):
- It is governed by the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act.
- The state governments have the power to withdraw the general consent for investigation accorded to the CBI.
- Cases registered anywhere else in the country, but involving people stationed in states which have withdrawn general consent, would allow CBI’s jurisdiction to extend to these states.
Which of the given statement/s is/are correct?
- 1 and 2 only
- 2 and 3 only
- 1, 2 and 3
- None of the above
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: c
Explanation:
- The CBI is governed by the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act that makes consent of a state government mandatory for conducting an investigation in that state.
- The state governments have the power to withdraw the general consent for investigation accorded to CBI.
- Cases registered anywhere else in the country, but involving people stationed in states which have withdrawn general consent, would still allow CBI’s jurisdiction to extend to these states.
- Also, the CBI would still have the power to investigate old cases registered when general consent existed.
Q4. Consider the following statements with respect to Mission Shakti:
- It is a joint programme of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
- Under the mission, an anti-satellite (A-SAT) weapon was launched and it targeted an Indian satellite that had been decommissioned.
- India is the first country to acquire the capability to defend its assets in outer space.
Which of the given statement/s is/are INCORRECT?
- 1 only
- 1 and 2 only
- 3 only
- None of the above
CHECK ANSWERS:-
Answer: c
Explanation:
- Mission Shakti is a joint programme of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
- ‘Mission Shakti’ was India’s first-ever Anti-Satellite (ASAT) Missile Test successfully conducted in March 2019 from Dr AP J Abdul Kalam Island in Odisha, where a fast-moving Indian orbiting target satellite in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) was neutralised with pinpoint accuracy.
- This made India the fourth nation in the world with the capability to defend its assets in outer space. Till now, only the US, Russia and China had the capability to hit a live target in space.
I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
- Discuss measures to improve the outcomes of the National Clean Air Programme. What are the challenges involved in the implementation? (GS 3 Environment and Ecology) (15 Marks, 250 Words).
- The armed clashes in Ethiopia’s Tigray could spiral and impact the Horn of Africa region at large. Comment. (10 Marks, 150 Words) (GS 2 International Relations).
Read the previous CNA here.
10 Nov 2020 CNA:- Download PDF Here
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