25 Sep 2020: UPSC Exam Comprehensive News Analysis

B. GS 2 Related

Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

1. China cautious on G4 push for UNSC reforms

Context:

China has said that there are enormous divisions and a lack of consensus on taking forward the stalled reforms of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

Background:

• India begins a two-year term as one of the 10 non-permanent UNSC members in January 2021 and has said it will continue pushing for reforms.
• Recently, India, Brazil, Japan and Germany (Collectively known as G-4) called for an early push for text-based negotiations for comprehensive reform of the UN Security Council.

This topic has been covered in the 24^th September 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.

China’s take on UNSC Reforms:

• Chinese analysts have long been dismissive of the G4 that has been seeking permanent membership of the UNSC.
• China has in the past indicated that it would not favour the inclusion of at least three of its members for differing reasons
  • India and Japan considering their historically difficult relations with China.
  • Germany because it is not a developing country.

E. Editorials

Category: HEALTH

1. Health worker safety deserves a second look

World Patient Safety Day:

• The World Health Organization observes World Patient Safety Day on September 17^th every year.
• The day is celebrated to highlight the issue of harm in health-care settings.
• The theme for 2020 was ‘Health Worker Safety: A Priority for Patient Safety’ with a call to action to ‘Speak up for health worker safety’

Harm in health-care settings:

• The world over, one in 10 patients experiences or is subject to harm in health-care settings.
• Studies in India have shown that:
  • More than 2/3^rd of injections are given in an unsafe manner.
  • Over 2/3^rd of injections in primary care are unnecessary in the first place.
• Much harm done to patients is because of unsafe health-care practice and unsafe health-care communication.
  • Unsafe health-care practice refers to unsafe or unnecessary procedures, wrong medications, medications given in a wrong dosage, etc.
  • Unsafe health-care communication refers to mistakes made in health-care settings due to miscommunication between health professionals.

Why is health worker safety important for patient safety?

• The quality of both practice and communication is dependent on the safety and well-being of health workers.
• For example, health workers who have been on duty for more than 24 hours at a stretch, have a higher risk of making mistakes.
• During the current pandemic situation, health workers’ physical and mental health are being affected due to long work hours under increasingly difficult circumstances.
• The mental health of health workers is linked to workplace culture.

COVID-19 and reporting cases:

• At instances of patient harm, whether health workers report them or not depend on the organisation’s culture and leadership.
• Reporting helps prevent similar future occurrences.
• Power differences can further prevent reporting and cooperative organisational learning and may increase chances of verbal, physical, emotional and sexual abuse.
  • In India, many health-care organisations observe strict hierarchies between specialties, between designations.

Overcrowding:

• India simply does not have enough health facilities to cater to all its population, even without a pandemic.
• Additionally, there is a lack of adequate social care, such as care homes, community health services and community-based rehabilitative and palliative services.
• Lack of health facilities and overcrowding unduly increase the burden on health-care facilities.

Numerous persons find healing and restoration in health care, but some are harmed as well. In crises such as COVID-19, quality of care can be compromised further.

Way ahead:

• Organisational learning is more important than individual learning because instances of patient harm are often an end result of a chain of organisational failures.
• Moreover, good systems can mitigate the effects of individual mistakes.
• Creating sustainability would involve taking a systems approach to make sure all parts of the system, both of health care and of supportive social care are well functioning.
• There is a need for a systems approach with the involvement of all stakeholders.
  • Patients themselves need to be aware of patient safety and be empowered to demand safe health care, resist unnecessary medications and procedures.
  • Systems of reporting, monitoring and organisational learning need to be created.
• Policymakers must prioritise staffing, co-designing functional and safe workplaces, and ethics in health care.
• There is a need for the promotion of a culture of health worker safety and well-being to ensure patient safety.

Category: POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. The foreign hand

Context:

• The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 has been passed in both the houses of the Parliament.
• The Bill amends the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010.
• FCRA regulates the acceptance and utilisation of foreign contribution by individuals, associations and companies.

Details:

• New regulations put onerous conditions on civil society organisations, and educational and research institutions that have partnerships, including those of financial nature, with foreign entities.

This topic has been covered in the 21^st September 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.

Criticisms:

• Amendments to the FCRA were drafted without consultation with stakeholders.
• The bill passed with limited discussion in Parliament, further clip the wings of India’s battered civil society.
• In Parliament, the BJP alleged that foreign money was being used for religious conversions.
• In 2017, the government barred an American Christian charity, Compassion International, accusing it of supporting conversions.
• Some of the restrictions not only show up India to be overregulated but could also impact NGOs.
• As a growing economy, India has been proactive in seeking global capital and technology. The aversion appears to be towards select categories of global ideas and ideals — environmentalism, human rights and civil liberties.
• The International Commission of Jurists has said the new law was incompatible with international obligations and India’s own constitutional provisions on rights.

Suggestions and way forward:

• The pandemic has underscored the importance of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the whole earth is one family) as a framework for India’s global engagement.
• Thousands of NGOs serve extremely disadvantaged sections, at times filling in for the state, at others, supplementing it.
• The question of foreign funding must be delinked from the debate on religious propagation and conversions as there are adequate laws against conversion by inducement.
• For a global community to function, there is a need for a seamless sharing of ideas and resources across national boundaries.
• It should not be discouraged unless there is reason to believe the funds are being used to aid illegal activities.

Category: ECONOMY

1. Will the farm bills benefit farmers?

This topic has been covered in the 17^th September 2020 PIB Summary and Analysis and 17^th May 2020 Comprehensive News Analysis.

Q1. Consider the following statements with respect to the Innovate in India (I3) 
program:

Q2. Consider the following statements with respect to the Conference on Interaction and 
Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA):

Q3. Consider the following statements with respect to Lok Adalats:

Q4. Consider the following statements with respect to the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen 
Kaushalya Yojana: 

I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions

1. One of the few positive outcomes of COVID-19 is the creation of new alliances and coalitions among social sector organisations. Would the amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) adversely affect India’s NGOs? Critically analyse. (15 Marks, 250 Words) (GS 2 Governance).
2. Discuss the reasons behind health care deficits in India and comment on the importance of health workers’ safety and well-being in ensuring patient safety. (10 Marks, 150 Words) (GS 2 Health).

Read the previous CNA here.