Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Recent trends in India-Bangladesh ties
India must strengthen ties with Bangladesh and appreciate Sheikh Hasina’s challenges
Virtual summit between India and Bangladesh
- The virtual summit was conducted recently between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina.
- There was a discussion on issues ranging from the violent border incidents to the COVID-19 fight, demonstrates their desire to reboot India-Bangladesh ties that have faced challenges in recent months.
- PM Modi called Bangladesh a “major pillar” in India’s neighbourhood first policy, while Ms. Hasina invited him to visit Bangladesh in March for the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of its independence.
- It is a key opportunity for India, which had played a major role in Bangladesh’s liberation in 1971, to revive the relations and address the issues adversely affecting the partnership.
Importance of India-Bangladesh relationship
- Bangladesh and India are at a historic juncture of diplomacy embedded in a rich matrix of history, religion, culture, language and kinship.
(1) ‘Blue Economy’ programme’ –
- Both countries are looking at strengthening economic cooperation through joint investments and cooperation under the ‘Blue Economy’ programme.
- The programme entails synergized efforts of littoral states in the exploration of hydrocarbons, marine resources, deep-sea fishing, preservation of marine ecology and disaster management.
- The industry in India needs to look for opportunities for collaboration in defence, such as in military hardware, space technology, technical assistance, exchange of experience, and development of sea infrastructure.
(2) India’s Act East Policy –
- Connectivity offers a game-changing opportunity for India and Bangladesh. This is pivotal to India’s connectivity with its north-eastern region and with countries of ASEAN.
- This is particularly important in the context of both the Make in India initiative as well as India’s Act East Policy.
- The two countries also see themselves converging around a lot of commonalities, not just as neighbours battling the scourge of terrorism, but as leading economic partners.
- In terms of diplomacy in the South Asian region, both countries have had identical views.
- From how organizations such as the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) should be going forward in promoting cooperation among its member nations to economic growth.
Challenges in India-Bangladesh relations
(1) Violent border incidents –
- Despite the friendship remaining solid, the border has been sensitive.
- At least 25 Bangladeshis were killed in the first six months of this year along the border by Indian forces, according to a rights watchdog.
(2) Sharing of River Waters –
- The Teesta water dispute between West Bengal and Bangladesh remains unresolved.
(3) The Citizenship (Amendment) Act and the proposed National Register of Citizens, which Ms Hasina called “unnecessary”, have created a negative impression about India.
(4) China’s economic footprint is growing –
- China is making deep inroads into Bangladesh by ramping up infrastructure investments and expanding economic cooperation.
- Bangladesh is overwhelmingly dependent on China for military hardware.
- Since 2010, India approved three Lines of Credit to Bangladesh of $7.362 billion to finance development projects. But, just $442 million have been disbursed until December 2018.
Way Forward
- It is imperative for India to bolster ties with this all-weather friend, and there may not be a better time to do so than when Bangladesh is to celebrate the golden jubilee of its independence.
- India should support Bangladesh’s fight against radical elements. India should also not allow the ideological inclinations of the ruling party to spoil the historic relationship between the two countries.
- New Delhi should take a broader view of the changing scenario and growing competition in South Asia, and reach out to Dhaka with an open mind.
- There is much room for course correction in Delhi and to shift the focus from legacy issues to future possibilities.
Practice Question: Discuss the importance of India-Bangladesh relations and various challenges affecting the relations between the two countries. How they can be addressed?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Read the attached story
Farmers’ genuine concerns must be addressed as soon as possible so that they can continue producing food and fibre needed for the ever-increasing population.
Green revolution and farmer’s contribution to the food sufficiency in India
- In the early 1960s, near-famine conditions prevailed in India and some 10 million tonnes of wheat had to be imported from the US under the PL480 programme. The country’s situation was like“ship-to-mouth” existence.
- High-yielding dwarf wheat varieties brought from Mexico were provided to Indian agricultural institutes.
- The consequent miraculous gains in wheat yield and production ushered in the “Green Revolution.”
- The Green Revolution occurred due to a confluence of favourable government policies, efforts of agricultural scientists and the adoption of new wheat varieties/selections by farmers.
- Also, the contributions of farmers of Punjab (Haryana included) was also very important and they became the backbone of the revolution.
- By 1974, the industrious farmers of the “food-bowl” states of Punjab, Haryana, and western UP had brought about self-sufficiency in foodgrain production, ridding the country of the “begging bowl”.
Practice Question: What are the concerns of the farmers after new agriculture reforms and how they can be addressed?
Farmer’s concerns
- Consultation with farmers is important before drafting policies –
- There will be resistance no matter which organization enact the policies/rules without taking the affected people on board. A proactive approach is always better than a reactive one.
- From the farmers’ standpoint, the ordinances were unfairly promulgated in June 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdown, without consulting them.
- Loss of Income in the lockdown – Farmers could not sell their vegetables and fruits because of the lockdown causing the loss of income and then the imposition of the new laws aggravated them.
- Uncertainty in the minds of farmers about the continuation of MSP –
- Farmers have been selling food grains (mainly wheat and rice) at Minimum Support Price (MSP) since the mid-1960s.
- This has helped to create a central pool of food grains and the Public Distribution System to help poor people.
- But MSP has not been guaranteed in the newly enacted farm laws, which is the major bone of contention.
- The APMCs are under threat from the new farm laws as MSP and APMC go hand-in-hand.
New Middleman –
- The central government has indicated that the new farm laws are meant to eliminate the “middlemen”.
- But the farmers feel that a new class of middlemen, that is, lawyers belonging to big companies would emerge.
- Thus, small farmers would be at a distinct disadvantage — more than 80 per cent of farmers own less than five acres of land.
Contract farming –
- According to the central government, the new laws will ensure contract farming.
- The farmers fear that big companies might usurp their land and might not pay them an agreed price on the pretext of “poor quality” of produce.
- They feel that big companies might become monopolies, and exploit both farmers and consumers. Farmers fear being made into labourers.
Way forward
MSP is a must –
- A clause should be added in the law to the effect that no matter who buys the produce (government or a private entity), the farmer must be given an MSP.
- The National Farmers’ Commission’s recommendation of providing an MSP of 50 per cent over and above a farmer’s input expenses must be implemented.
- APMCs should be continued – The fees that “Mandi Boards” collect (for example the Rural Development Fund) have helped build link roads. No private organization will do this.
- MSP should be determined on the basis of grain quality.
Crop diversification is needed –
- The government must promote crop diversification by purchasing crops produced other than wheat and rice at MSP. This could help conserve the dwindling supply of underground water.
- To encourage farmers to grow high-value crops, such as vegetables and fruits, the government should set up the adequate cold-chain infrastructure.
- The farmers’ staying power must be improved so that they don’t have to sell all of their produce immediately after the harvest.
- India has produced a number of World Food Laureates, including M S Swaminathan, Gurdev S Khush, Surinder K Vasal, and Rattan Lal. Such intellectuals should be in the “Agricultural Think Tank.”
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Read the attached story
Police personnel should not be made instruments of a political battle
Tug of war between political parties in West Bengal
- The appointment of three IPS officers of the West Bengal cadre to various posts by the Union Home Ministry on Thursday has escalated the confrontation between the State and the Centre.
- Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has termed the deputation order despite the State’s objection “a colourable exercise of power and blatant misuse of emergency provision of IPS Cadre Rule 1954”.
- The constant hostility between the State and Central governments is now taking a turn for the worse ahead of the 2021 Assembly election.
- The tug of war began after a convoy of BJP President J.P. Nadda came under stone pelting in the State on December 10. The BJP apparently holds the IPS officers accountable for the incident.
- After an initial move to recall these officials was resisted by the State, the Centre has invoked Section 6(1) of the Indian Police Service (Cadre) Rules, which says that “in case of any disagreement, the matter shall be decided by the Central Government….”
Administrative instruments Vs. Political battles
- The CM’s style of managing the police force has gained attention for the wrong reasons in the past.
- Senior officials are seen as allied with the ruling govt and the oppositions determined drive to capture power in the State is multi-pronged.
- The Supreme Court restrained West Bengal from taking any “coercive action” against several opposition leaders in criminal cases registered against them by the State Police.
- The opposition continues to knock on the doors of the Court and the Election Commission of India to bring pressure on the State government.
- By enforcing its writ on IPS officers, the Centre is sending a signal to all officers that their conduct will now be under scrutiny.
Never-ending issues between the state and the centre
- The central schemes, Ayushman Bharat and PM Kisan Samman Nidhi are also a bone of contention.
- The Bengal government has refused to implement them, demanding that the funds be routed through the State.
- The CM has also complained of insufficient central assistance to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and cyclone Amphan.
- The Centre’s earlier demand that the Chief Secretary and DGP attend a meeting in New Delhi on the State’s law-and-order situation increased tensions.
- The partisan use of the personnel and instruments of the state by parties in power as is happening in this tussle is a disturbing signal for democracy and federalism.
Practice Question: The partisan use of the personnel and instruments of the state by parties in power is a disturbing signal for democracy and federalism. Elaborate.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Art. 356
Mains level: Presidents' Rule
The Supreme Court has stayed an Andhra Pradesh High Court order intending to embark on a judicial enquiry into whether there is a constitutional breakdown in the State machinery, requiring a declaration of President’s rule.
A backfire from the AP High Court
- Andhra Pradesh CM had earlier sparked controversy by writing to the CJI complaining about a Supreme Court judge for allegedly influencing posting of cases in the State High Court.
- The alleged Judge is slated to be the next Chief Justice of India, and some judges of the AP High Court have opened sharp criticism over AP CM’s move.
What did the Supreme Court say?
- The apex court found the enquiry highly disturbing. Hence it decided to stay the order.
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta asked why the High Court “should go into whether there is a constitutional breakdown in the State”.
- The Solicitor General of the state government argued that it was not up to the High Court to enquire and recommend President’s rule in a State.
Citations for the President’s Rule in a State
- President’s rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct central government rule in a state.
- It is Article 356 that deals with the failure of constitutional machinery in a State.
- This power to impose President’s rule exclusively vests in the Central Executive.
- Under Article 356, this move can be taken- if the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen…..
- The power in this regard, like sending a report either to the President of India or to the Governor of the concerned State or to record a finding in that regard, cannot be exercised by the judiciary.
How did the AP govt respond?
- The AP govt said that the High Court’s observation violated the Basic Structure doctrine of the Constitution.
- Under the constitutional framework, it is not for the courts to decide as to whether there is a constitutional breakdown in a State.
- The said power has been specifically conferred upon a different constitutional authority – and rightly so.
- It is needless to mention that the constitutional courts do not have any judicially discoverable and manageable standards to determine if there has been a constitutional breakdown,” the petition contended.
Back2Basics:
President’s Rule
- President’s rule is the suspension of state government and imposition of direct central government rule in a state.
How it is imposed?
- President’s Rule implies the suspension of a state government and the imposition of direct rule of the Centre.
- This is achieved through the invocation of Article 356 of the Constitution by the President on the advice of the Union Council of Ministers.
- Under Article 356, this move can be taken “(1) If the President, on receipt of the report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution…”
How long President’s Rule can last
- A proclamation of President’s Rule can be revoked through a subsequent proclamation in case the leader of a party produces letters of support from a majority of members of the Assembly, and stakes his claim to form a government.
- The revocation does not need the approval of Parliament.
- Any proclamation under Article 356 —which stands for six months — has to be approved by both Houses in the Parliament session following it.
- This six-month time-frame can be extended in phases, up to three years.
The S.R. Bommai Case
- R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) was a landmark judgment of the Supreme Court of India, where the Court discussed at length provisions of Article 356 of the Constitution of India and related issues.
- The judgement attempted to curb blatant misuse of Article 356 of the Constitution of India, which allowed President’s rule to be imposed over state governments.
- Article 356 (1) has been deliberately drafted in a narrow language by the Founding Fathers so that political parties in the Centre does not misuse it to subvert federalism, it had noted.
- The expression used in the Article is ‘if the President is satisfied”, the court had observed.
- In other words, the President has to be convinced of or should have sufficient proof of information with regard to or has to be free from doubt or uncertainty about the state of things indicating that the situation in question has arisen.
- The court had stated that although the sufficiency or otherwise of the material cannot be questioned, the legitimacy of inference drawn from such material is “certainly open to judicial review”.
What it directed?
- The judgment had explained that in a multi-party political system, chances are high that the political parties in the Centre and the State concerned may not be the same.
- Article 356 cannot be used for the purpose of political one-upmanship by the Centre.
- Hence there is a need to confine the exercise of power under Article 356[1] strictly to the situation mentioned therein which is a condition precedent to the said exercise,” the court had said.
Conditions for Prez Rule
- Where after general elections to the assembly, no party secures a majority, that is, Hung Assembly.
- Where the party having a majority in the assembly declines to form a ministry and the governor cannot find a coalition ministry commanding a majority in the assembly.
- Where a ministry resigns after its defeat in the assembly and no other party is willing or able to form a ministry commanding a majority in the assembly.
- Where a constitutional direction of the Central government is disregarded by the state government.
- Internal subversion where, for example, a government is deliberately acting against the Constitution and the law or is fomenting a violent revolt.
- Physical breakdown where the government willfully refuses to discharge its constitutional obligations endangering the security of the state.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: SolarWinds Hack
Mains level: Cyber attacks and the treats posed to national security
The ‘SolarWinds hack’, a cyberattack recently discovered in the US, has emerged as one of the biggest ever targeted against the US government, its agencies and several other private companies.
Do you know about the ‘Five Eyes’ group of nations?
Solar-Winds Hack
- It was first discovered by US cybersecurity company FireEye, and since then more developments continue to come to light each day.
- The US termed it as a highly sophisticated threat actor calling it a state-sponsored attack, although it did not name Russia.
- It said the attack was carried out by a nation with top-tier offensive capabilities and the attacker primarily sought information related to certain government customers.
How dangerous is the attack?
- This is being called a ‘Supply Chain’ attack.
- Instead of directly attacking the federal government or a private organization’s network, the hackers target a third-party vendor, which supplies software to them.
- Once installed, the malware gave a backdoor entry to the hackers to the systems and networks of SolarWinds’ customers.
- More importantly, the malware was also able to thwart tools such as anti-virus that could detect it.
The deadliest cyber-attack ever in the US
- The US Energy department which is responsible for managing America’s nuclear weapons is the latest agency to confirm that it has been breached in the SolarWinds cyber attack.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Conjunction in space-phenomena
Mains level: Not Much
After nearly 400 years, Saturn and Jupiter – the two largest planets in our solar system – will be brought closest in the night sky by an astronomical event called the “great conjunction” and popularly referred to as the “Christmas Star”.
Try this PYQ:
What is a coma, in the context of Astronomy?
(a) Bright half of material on the comet
(b) Long tail of dust
(c) Two asteroids orbiting each other
(d) Two planets orbiting each other
What are the Conjunctions?
- A conjunction is not unique to Saturn and Jupiter however, it is the name given to any event where planets or asteroids appear to be very close together in the sky when viewed from the Earth.
- In June 2005 for instance, as a result of the “spectacular” conjunction, Mercury, Venus and Saturn appeared so close together in the sky that the patch of sky where the three planets were could be covered by a thumb.
- Astronomers use the word “great” for the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn because of the planets’ sizes.
The “Great Conjunction”
- It happens once in about 20 years because of the time each of the planets takes to orbit around the Sun.
- Jupiter takes roughly 12 years to complete one lap around the Sun and Saturn takes 30 years.
- This is because Saturn has a larger orbit and moves more slowly because it is not as strongly influenced by the Sun’s gravitational force as planets that are closer to the Sun.
- As the two planets move along their orbits, every two decades, Jupiter catches up with Saturn resulting in what astronomers call the great conjunction.
A ‘rare alignment’
- Jupiter and Saturn are bright planets and can be typically seen with the naked eye even from cities.
- But during conjunction, they appear to be close to each other, which is what makes the event noteworthy.
- The event will coincide with the winter solstice (shortest day of the year in terms of hours of sunlight received) in the Northern Hemisphere and summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere.
- This year, however, the event is rare because the planets will come the closest to each other in nearly four centuries; in what astronomer Henry Throop described is a result of a “rare alignment” of the planets.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: KG basin, Natural Gas
Mains level: Oil and gas reserves in KG basin
Reliance Industries Ltd and BP (British Petroleum) have announced the start of gas production from the R cluster of the KG Basin, the deepest off-shore gas field in Asia.
Must read
https://www.civilsdaily.com/burning-issue-natural-gas-marketing-reforms/
Krishna-Godavari Basin
- The Krishna Godavari Basin is a proven petroliferous basin of continental margin located on the east coast of India.
- Its onland part covers an area of 15000 sq. km and the offshore part covers an area of 25,000 sq. km up to 1000 m isobath.
- The basin contains about 5 km thick sediments with several cycles of deposition, ranging in age from Late Carboniferous to Pleistocene.
- The major geomorphologic units of the Krishna Godavari basin are Upland plains, Coastal plains, Recent Flood and Delta Plains.
Minerals found
- KG inland and offshore basins have good prospects of tight oil and tight gas reserves from the conducted field studies.
- The first gas discovery in the basin was in 1983.
- Most of the conventional wells drilled and operated have a shorter lifespan than envisaged life and with erratic production.
- This may be due to drilling of conventional wells in tight oil and gas fields without horizontal drilling in the shale rock formations and hydraulic fracturing.
Note: Tight gas and tight oil are produced from reservoir rocks with such low permeability that considerable hydraulic fracturing is required to harvest the well at economic rates.
The KGD6 block
- Krishna Godavari Dhirubhai 6 (KG-D6) was Reliance’s first offshore gas field development and its first underwater discovery.
- It was also India’s largest deposit of natural gas and the largest such discovery in the world in 2002.
- The project takes its name from India’s Krishna-Godavari Basin, which covers more than 19,000 square miles (50,000 square kilometres) in Andhra Pradesh and production block D6 in the Bay of Bengal.
Why is this important?
- The R cluster, along with the Satellite Cluster and MJ gas fields in the KG Basin is expected to produce around 30 MMSCMD (million standard cubic metres per day) of natural gas.
- This is about 15% of India’s projected demand for natural gas by 2023.
Do they impact India’s energy security efforts?
- The three projects are a key part of the plan to boost domestic production of natural gas to increase the share of natural gas in India’s energy basket from 6.2% now to 15% by 2030.
- Increased domestic production of natural gas is an important aspect of reducing India’s dependence on imports and improves energy security.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Guru Tegh Bahadur
Mains level: Not Much
The Prime Minister has paid tributes to Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji on his Martyrdom Day.
Try this PYQ:
Q. Consider the following Bhakti Saints:
- Dadu Dayal
- Guru Nanak
- Tyagaraja
Who among the above was/were preaching when the Lodi dynasty fell and Babur took over?
(a) 1 and 3
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3
(d) 1 and 2
Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621–1675)
- Guru Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He was born at Amritsar in 1621 and was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind.
- His term as Guru ran from 1665 to 1675. One hundred and fifteen of his hymns are in Guru Granth Sahib.
- There are several accounts explaining the motive behind the assassination of Guru Tegh Bahadur on Aurangzeb’s orders.
- He stood up for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits who approached him against religious persecution by Aurangzeb.
- He was publicly killed in 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Delhi for himself refusing Mughal rulers and defying them.
- Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi mark the places of execution and cremation of his body.
Impact of his martyrdom
- The execution hardened the resolve of Sikhs against religious oppression and persecution.
- His martyrdom helped all Sikh Panths consolidate to make the protection of human rights central to its Sikh identity.
- Inspired by him, his nine-year-old son, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, eventually organized the Sikh group into a distinct, formal, symbol-patterned community came to be known as Khalsa (Martial) identity.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Koothambalam
Mains level: Keralan Architecture
The renovated Koothambalam of the Sreekrishna temple, Guruvayur, has been selected for the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for cultural heritage conservation.
Try this PYQ:
Q. Building ‘Kalyana Mandapas’ was a notable feature in the temple construction in the kingdom of-
(a) Chalukya
(b) Chandela
(c) Rashtrakuta
(d) Vijayanagara
What is Koothambalam?
- Koothambalam meaning temple theatre is a closed hall for staging Koothu, Nangiar koothu and Koodiyattam, the ancient ritualistic art forms of Kerala.
- Koothambalams are said to be constructed according to the guidelines given in chapter 2 of Nātyasāstra of Bharata Muni.
- The stage within the hall is considered to be as sacred as the temple sanctum.
Its’ construction
- It is constructed within the cloister of the Temple; more precisely within the pancaprakaras of the temple. The prescribe location is between the prakaras of bahyahara and maryada.
- In Kerala tradition, it is considered as one among the panchaprasadas of a temple complex.
- Its dimension varies from temple to temple.
- A square platform with a separate pyramidal roof supported by pillars in the centre called natyamandapam is constructed as s separate structure within the large hall of Koothampalam.
- The floor of the hall is divided into two equal halves and one part is for performance (including stage, instruments, green room etc.) and another half for seating audience.
About Guruvayur Temple
- It is a Hindu temple dedicated to the Hindu lord, Guruvayurappan (a four-armed form of the Lord Vishnu), located in the town of Guruvayur in Kerala.
- It is one of the most important places of worship for Hindus in Kerala and is often referred to as Bhuloka Vaikunta (Holy Abode of Vishnu on Earth).
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