UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis Nov21

A. GS1 Related

Context

• A court here on Tuesday sentenced one person to death and awarded life imprisonment to his co-convict for killing two during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The killings had taken place at Mahipalpur in south Delhi.
• The riots had broken out across the capital following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

Anti Sikh Riots 1984

• Due to the orders of Indira Gandhi, Indian Army launched its offensive against Sikh militants at the Golden Temple in Amritsar under the code name “Operation Blue Star”.
• The army was successful in driving out the militants from the Sikh’s sacred place, but this event angered the Sikh People and their sentiments got hurt.
• To avenge this action, bodyguards of Mrs. Gandhi killed her at her own house.
• Later the angry congress workers and supporters allegedly began their brutal actions of killing innocent Sikh People in the country; Delhi was the most affected area during anti Sikh riots.
• Union Government appointed so many commissions to enquire about the guilty people and to find out their masterminds, but nothing concrete came out of such commissions.
• The kith and kin of the victims of Anti-Sikh riots are still waiting to get the justice after 30 years of the incident.

B. GS2 Related

Context

• The high rate of acquittals seen under the Scheduled Castes Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of 1989 is not because the cases are false or malafide. It is because of the failure of the police and the prosecution to render justice to a section of society which has suffered social stigma, poverty and humiliation for centuries, the Centre told the Supreme Court.
• The government was explaining its decision to enact the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2018.

Background of the issue

• On March 20, 2018 the Supreme Court issued a slew of guidelines to protect people against arbitrary arrests under the Act, directing that public servants could be arrested only with the written permission of their appointing authority, while in the case of private employees, the Senior Superintendent of Police concerned should allow it.
• A preliminary inquiry should be conducted before the FIR was registered to check if the case fell within the ambit of the Act, and whether it was frivolous or motivated, the court ruled.
• The ruling was greeted by a storm of protest from Dalit groups, which said the order diluted the law. However, the court refused to stay its ruling, leading to the demand from Dalit groups that the government introduce an ordinance or an Amendment Bill to restore the provisions.

About SC/ST Act 1989

• The SC/ST Act lists 22 offences relating to various patterns or behaviours inflicting criminal offences and breaking the self-respect and esteem of the scheduled castes and tribes community. This includes denial of economic, democratic and social rights, discrimination, exploitation and abuse of the legal process.
• According to the SC/ST Act, the protection is provided from social disabilities such as denial of access to certain places and to use customary passage, personal atrocities like forceful drinking or eating of inedible food sexual exploitation, injury etc, atrocities affecting properties, malicious prosecution, political disabilities and economic exploitation.
• For speedy trial, Section 14 of the SC/ST Act provides for a Court of Session to be a Special Court to try offences under this Act in each district.
• The prime objective of the SC/ST Act is to deliver justice to marginalised through proactive efforts, giving them a life of dignity, self-esteem and a life without fear, violence or suppression from the dominant castes.

C. GS3 Related

Context

• Millions of farmers in India were unable to buy seeds and fertilisers for their winter crops because of demonetisation, according to a report submitted by the Union Agriculture Ministry to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance.

Background

• On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that all Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, comprising 86% of the total value of the currency in circulation at that time, would no longer be recognised as legal tender.

Outcomes of demonetization

• Over the last two years, at least three of major claims of demonetization have collapsed.
• First, it was supposed to flush out black money and end corruption. The government predicted that Rs 3 lakh crore in currency would not return to the banks. This has proved to be false, as most of the cash has returned.
• Second, demonetisation was to help detect fake currency, which apparently funded terror and distorted the economy. The government claimed that at any point of time, there was Rs 400 crore in fake currency notes floating in the economy. Nine months after demonetisation, it was claimed that Rs 11.23 crore in fake currency had been detected. Now, the Reserve Bank reports a huge jump in fake Rs 2,000 notes, which were introduced after demonetisation.
• Third, demonetisation was to pave the way to a cashless economy and the gleaming new world of digital India. Two years later, the amount of cash with the public has reached a record high, the bank has claimed.

Context

• Ahead of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP) in December, Environment Ministers and top climate change negotiators from Brazil, South Africa, China and India (BASIC) convened in Delhi on Tuesday and said the countries — as a group — would continue to push for developed countries on their earlier commitment to providing $100 billion annually from 2020.
• So far only a fraction of these monies have actually been provided, the BASIC group stated.

Details of the issue

• This year’s edition of the COP — the 24th such meeting — will see representatives from at least 190 countries, think-tanks, and activists converge in Katowice, Poland from December 2 to 14 to try to agree on a Rule Book that will specify how countries will agree to take forward commitments taken at the 21st COP in Paris in 2015
• At that meeting, countries had agreed to take steps to limit global warming to 2C below pre-industrial levels.
• A key aspect to make this possible is climate finance, but countries so far aren’t agreed on what constitutes climate finance: do investments made by private companies in developed countries in new green technology count? Does improving efficiency in a thermal plant count?

What is Paris Agreement?

• Paris Agreement is an international agreement to combat climate change.
• From 30 November to 11 December 2015, the governments of 195 nations gathered in Paris, France, and discussed a possible new global agreement on climate change, aimed at reducing global greenhouse gas emissions and thus reduce the threat of dangerous climate change.
• The 32-page Paris agreement with 29 articles is widely recognized as a historic deal to stop global warming.
• As countries around the world recognized that climate change is a reality, they came together to sign a historic deal to combat climate change – Paris Agreement.

The aims of Paris Agreement

• Keep the global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level.
• Pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
• Strengthen the ability of countries to deal with the impacts of climate change.

Highlights of the WHO report

• The World Health Organisation said global efforts to fight malaria have hit a plateau as it reported there were more cases of the killer disease in 2017 than the previous year.
• The latest WHO report showed that the number of malaria cases climbed to 219 million last year, two million higher than 2016, while international funding has declined.
• Malaria, which is spread to people through the bites of infected female mosquitoes, occurs in 91 countries but about 90% of the cases and deaths are in sub-Saharan Africa.
• Foreign funding to some of the most affected countries has declined, in certain instances by more than 20 percent for every individual at risk of contracting the disease.
• Another constraint in fighting malaria has been mosquitoes building up resistance to some insecticides.
• WHO said it was embarking on new ways to scale up the battle against one of the world’s deadliest diseases.

Malaria

• Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease affecting humans and other animals caused by parasitic single-celled microorganisms belonging to the Plasmodium group.
• Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches.
• In severe cases it can cause yellow skin, seizures, coma, or death.
• Symptoms usually begin ten to fifteen days after being bitten by an infected mosquito. If not properly treated, people may have recurrences of the disease months later.
• The disease is most commonly transmitted by an infected female Anopheles mosquito.
• The mosquito bite introduces the parasites from the mosquito’s saliva into a person’s blood.
• The parasites travel to the liver where they mature and reproduce.
• Five species of Plasmodium can infect and be spread by humans. Most deaths are caused by P. falciparum because P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae generally cause a milder form of malaria.
• Malaria is typically diagnosed by the microscopic examination of blood using blood films, or with antigen-based rapid diagnostic tests.

Related concept – Indian Health Fund (IHF)?

• IHF was launched in 2016 by Tata Trusts in collaboration with The Global Fund, to drive innovations towards key infectious disease challenges in India.
• It supports individuals and organisations with already germinated innovative strategies, services, products, such that they become sustainable and scalable solutions in addressing TB and malaria.
• The initiative is a long-term exercise aligned with country’s goal of eliminating TB by 2025 and malaria by 2030. It will promote innovative solutions such that they are widely accessible and are affordable.

• After a series of delays, Russia has been declared the lowest bidder in the Army’s multi-billion dollar deal for man portable air defence systems. However there are concerns over the selection as well as the threat of US sanctions for arms purchases from Russia.
• “The Igla-S bid from Rosoboronexport of Russia has been declared the L1 in the Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) deal,” a defence official said.

IGLA-S (SA-24)

• It is latest model of Russian MANPADS (Man-portable air-defense system) technology. It offers superior performance over earlier supplied SA-18 missiles to India.
• It is designed for use against visible aerial targets at short range such as tactical aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs), cruise missile, head-on or receding, in presence of natural (background) clutter and countermeasures.
• As per requirements of Indian Army, it will have maximum range of 6km, altitude of 3km along with all-weather capability. Igla-S missile system will replace the existing Igla in service which is in urgent need of replacement.

D. GS4 Related

E. Editorials

Larger Background:

What is Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation?

• The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is a regional economic forum established in 1989 to leverage the growing interdependence of the Asia-Pacific.
• APEC’s 21 members aim to create greater prosperity for the people of the region by promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth and by accelerating regional economic integration.

What Does APEC Do?

• APEC ensures that goods, services, investment and people move easily across borders. Members facilitate this trade through faster customs procedures at borders; more favorable business climates behind the border; and aligning regulations and standards across the region.
• For example, APEC’s initiatives to synchronize regulatory systems is a key step to integrating the Asia-Pacific economy. A product can be more easily exported with just one set of common standards across all economies.

What’s in the news?

• The recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) organisation wrapped up its summit with no joint communiqué issued.

• This marks a departure from tradition, breaking with more than a quarter-century of history.

Editorial Analysis:

Why wasn’t the joint communique issued?

• The APEC’s leaders, principally led by the U.S. and China, clashed over the proposed wording of the document.

• Experts believe that the economic rivalry between Washington and Beijing appeared to fracture the 21-nation summit into two segments.  
• Experts assert that the source of the friction stemmed from the Trump administration’s “America First” policy, under which Washington led the charge on “unfair trade practices”. This was an implicit accusation that China wasn’t levelling the playing field in global trade.

A Closer Look:

• • In recent times, the U.S. has been urging China to increase market access and grant intellectual property protections for American corporations, cut back on industrial subsidies and, at a broader level, bring down the $375-billion trade gap.

• Vice President Mike Pence, who attended the APEC summit on the President’s behalf, also hinted at strategic pushback when he called upon nations to avoid loans that could leave them in a debt trap with Beijing.

• The Chinese message at the plenary was a strategic one too: President Xi Jinping did not mince words in touting Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. The BRI has worried smaller Asian nations and the U.S., particularly given that China views the Asia-Pacific landscape as a means to secure economic predominance worldwide.

Impact of the Clash:

• Before attempting to understand what this clash of the global economic titans means for the world trading system, it is instructive to examine the path of their mutual conflict thus far.
• The troubles began over the summer when both China and the U.S. started taxing $50 billion worth of the other’s imports.
• This was followed by the U.S. slapping $200 billion of Chinese exports with a 10% tariff, to be ratcheted up to 25% by the year-end.
• China, unsurprisingly, retaliated with a promise to impose reciprocal taxes to the tune of $60 billion.
• It is important to note that already, the tariff war has resulted in the IMF downgrading its global growth outlook for this year and the next to 3.7%, down 0.2 percentage points from an earlier forecast.
• If this continues, eventually global supply chains may be hit, and shrinking trade volumes may cause companies to seek out new trading routes and partners.

Concluding Remarks:

• • As a consequence to the tariff war, from an institutional level, multilateral rule-making bodies such as the WTO may lose their authority, and an interlocking system of bilateral trade treaties and punitive sanctions networks may substitute the consensus-based approach that was forged so painstakingly after World War II.
  • Experts point out that Asia will be at the heart of this war of attrition because strategic control of its high-value maritime trading routes is the key to China’s dreams of global trade dominance. After the APEC summit the world is still poised on the edge of the trade war vortex.

• Experts point out that the forthcoming G20 meeting in Argentina offers an opportunity to pull back from the brink.

Category: ECONOMY

1. Give and take (Autonomy of the RBI)

Question 1. Consider the following statement regarding Calamity Relief Funds:

Question 2. With reference to the Law Commission of India, consider the following statements:

Question 3. With reference to Uniform Civil Code, consider the following statements: