Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Essential Commodities Act
Mains level: Paper 3- Ensuring growth while protecting the farmers
The article suggests the two steps to ensure growth while protecting the poor. The first is the creation of social safety net and next is factor market reforms.
Issue of farmers’ income
- An Indian engaged in industry or any aspect of the services sector (this includes a waiter in a restaurant) earns more than an average farmer.
- This is an anomaly.
- So, despite all the pro-farmer laws and protection, why do farmers in India earn less?
- A recent study by RBI showed that across all crops, the farmgate price is 40-60 per cent less than the consumer price.
- The real challenge is how to encourage growth while protecting the poor.
Encouraging growth while protecting the poor: 2 steps
- 1) A social safety net needs to be created to provide direct income transfers to the vulnerable.
- 2) Factor markets involving labour and agricultural land need to be reformed to ensure productivity-enhancing growth.
- Only way to ensure growth which benefits the poor is through employment creating in the manufacturing and services sector.
1) Social safety nets in India
- Despite a narrow tax base, India has created a comprehensive social safety net, which can cushion growth-enabling market reforms.
- Accurate targeting under India’s Food Security Act to the bottom 67 per cent through Aadhaar identification and digital ration cards paired with E-POS machines has considerably reduced the leakage of subsidised grains.
- The National Social Assistance programme intends to provide direct income support to over 40 million elderly landless agricultural workers, poor women-headed households and families with physically-challenged children.
- India also provides income support annually to 145 million farmers, paying out Rs 75,000 crore.
- This benefits all farmers while MSP benefits only 6 per cent of farm produce.
2) Factor market reforms
- If state support for social safety net has to become sustainable, wide-ranging growth, which will broaden the tax base, is essential.
- India’s growth itself can be designed to reduce the number of people who need state support.
- The agriculture and labour reforms recently passed create the conditions for productivity-enhancing growth, benefiting millions of small farmers and unorganised workers.
Let us take a look at what the farm laws achieve and how they will change the status quo
1) Amendment to Essential Commodities Act
- The stock limits under the Essential Commodities Act do not enable large tur or moong and rice processors to procure in bulk for their entire season’s processing requirements.
- This restricts large-scale processing units which can run throughout the non-harvest season.
- This draconian anti-farmer rule has now been done away with.
- This will enable the expansion of agro-processing and supply chains.
- A larger share of the produce procured for agro-processing increases its shelf life, enabling the farmer to retain a greater value.
- 30-40 per cent of the post-harvest value, particularly in vegetables and fruits, is lost due to inadequate storage, processing and transportation facilities.
- Removal of stock limits and the accompanying contract farming act will bring in investments to tap the wasted resource.
2) APMC regulation
- The second law, removes another distortion: Only traders registered in APMCs can buy farmers produce.
- Even though conditions for perfect markets exist, the APMC regulation creates this bottleneck.
- Intermediaries extract a greater share of value as they are price makers while farmers are price takers.
- This situation is further aggravated as farmers are restricted to selling within the taluka boundaries or limits of the APMC, and if they have to sell in other APMC, they have to pay the APMC tax.
- The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020 confines the authority of the APMC to levy fees and give trader licences within the boundary of the market yard.
- Farmers will continue to have the option to sell in APMCs but any private market/non-APMCs registered trader can also set up an agricultural market and compete with APMCs to buy the same produce.
- Karnataka implemented the Uniform Market portal in 2014, enabling trade across taluka APMC limits without APMC fees.
- An analysis by researchers at the MIT Sloan School of Management has shown that prices of many agricultural goods increased by 3.5 to 5.1 per cent.
- Significantly, profit margins of small farmers increased by more than 36 per cent.
Labour reforms
- Apart from agriculture, the abundance of labour is the second greatest comparative advantage of India.
- However, multiple labour laws instead of encouraging employment, have created disincentives for job creation due to high costs of compliance.
- While India’s employment elasticity with respect to GDP growth is only 0.2, China’s is at 0.44. Even for Bangladesh, the elasticity is 0.38.
- India’s path-breaking labour reforms leverage the true comparative advantage of the country’s factor endowments to promote growth with higher employment elasticity.
- The old labour laws protected existing jobs at the cost of preventing new job creation through creative destruction.
- Bangladesh has shown the way to increase formal jobs by legalising fixed-term employment and banning union activity in FDI industries.
- Raising the threshold for seeking prior permission for laying off workers will enable capital and land locked in sunset industries to move freely to new sunrise industries.
Consider the question “An Indian engaged in industry or any aspect of the services sector earns more than an average farmer. What are the factors responsible for this anomaly? Suggest ways to achieve growth that could ensure sustainable safety net?”
Conclusion
The need of the hour is to continuously communicate with those unhappy with the reforms to explain how the current status quo is hurting farmers and informal workers.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Toolkit
Mains level: Social media as a lobbying tool
The Delhi Police filed an FIR on charges of sedition, criminal conspiracy and promoting hatred against the creators of a ‘toolkit’ on farmer protests, which was shared by climate activist Greta Thunberg.
Q.What do you mean by a social media toolkit? Discuss its potential mis-uses.
What is a Toolkit?
- A toolkit is essentially a set of adaptable guidelines or suggestions to get something done. The contents differ depending on what the aim of the toolkit is.
- For example, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has a toolkit for the implementation of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).
- This includes basics such as the guidelines to follow when investigating IPR violations, applicable laws, and definitions of terms such as counterfeit and piracy.
- In the context of protests, a toolkit usually includes reading material on the context of the protest, news article links and methods of protest (including on social media).
Why have they gained prominence?
- While toolkits have been around for decades, the accessibility of social media has brought them into the spotlight over the past few years.
- References to toolkits for protesters can be found in the Occupy Wall Street protests of 2011, in the Hong Kong protests of 2019, several climate protests across the world, anti-CAA protests across India.
- During the Hong Kong protests, toolkits advised participants to wear masks and helmets to avoid being recognised and ways to put out tear gas shells.
- During the anti-CAA protests, a toolkit suggesting twitter hashtags to use, places to hold protests, and a guide on what to do and carry with you if you are detained by the police were shared on social media.
Toolkit tweeted by Greta Thunberg
- The 18-year-old shared a toolkit on Twitter on the anti-farm law protests in India.
- This came on the heels of singer-businesswoman tweeting a news article on internet curbs near protest sites in and around Delhi.
- The toolkit tweeted by Thunberg was later deleted, with the activist saying it was being updated by people on the ground in India.
- The toolkit asked those interested to start a ‘Twitter storm’ to share solidarity photo/video message by social media users.
It is being speculated that the document was proof that an international conspiracy is being hatched to defame India and the central government over the ongoing farmers’ protest.
What is the recent apprehension?
- The police have said that during the inquiry it appears that the toolkit was created by Poetic Justice Foundation.
- It says the prior action section delineated the action plan for January 26, when violence was seen at several areas as a group of farmers diverted from the set route and started marching towards the Red Fort.
- The unfolding of events over the past few days, including the violence of 26th January, has revealed copycat execution of the ‘action plan’ detailed in the tool kit.
- The intention of the creators of the tool kits appeared to be to create disharmony among various social, religious and cultural groups and encourage disaffection and ill-will against the state and the nation at large.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Political Parties and their types
Mains level: Political Parties in India
The contribution reports of only 78 (3.39%) of the total 2,301 registered unrecognized political parties are available in the public domain for 2018-19 reports the Association For Democratic Reforms (ADR).
Classification of Political Parties in India
(A) National parties
A registered party is recognised as a national party only if it fulfils any one of the three conditions listed below:
- A party should win 2% of seats in the Lok Sabha from at least three different states.
- At a general election to Lok Sabha or Legislative Assembly, the party polls 6% of votes in any four or more states and in addition, it wins four Lok Sabha seats.
- A party gets recognition as a state party in four states.
- A party recognised as a National party can be derecognized if it fails to maintain the criteria.
(B) State parties
A party has to fulfil any of the following conditions for recognition as a state party:
- A party should secure at least 6% of valid votes polled in an election to the state legislative assembly and win at least 2 seats in that state assembly.
- A party should secure at least 6% of valid votes polled in an election to Lok Sabha and win at least 1 seat in Lok Sabha.
- A party should win a minimum of three per cent of the total number of seats or a minimum of three seats in the Legislative Assembly, whichever is higher.
- A party should win at least one seat in the Lok Sabha for every 25 seats or any fraction thereof allotted to that State.
- Under the liberalized criteria, one more clause that it will be eligible for recognition as state party if it secures 8% or more of the total valid votes polled in the state.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Parivar Pehchan Patra
Mains level: UID and privacy issues
Amid concerns over the Parivar Pehchan Patra scheme, the Haryana govt. says enrolment is voluntary. But residents have little choice as the delivery of even birth and death certificates is linked to it.
Practice question for mains:
Q.What is Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP) recently rolled out by Haryana Govt.? How it is beneficial compared to the Aadhaar?
What is Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP)?
- It is an 8-digit Unique Identity Card number meant for each family to enable smooth and automatic delivery of several citizen-centric services.
- The government will establish the scheme-wise eligibility of a particular family using this 8-digit code according to the information available in the PPP of the family.
- The benefits, according to the schemes, shall automatically be transferred to the family using the same code.
- PPP will ensure that not a single beneficiary is left out from the government benefits that they are entitled to.
How is PPP different from the Aadhaar card?
- The PPP, mathematically, is an integral number of Aadhaar.
- While Aadhaar represents an individual as a unit, a PPP represents a family as a unit. Most of our government schemes are structured around the family.
- It is not structured around an individual.
- For example, ration eligibility is there for the family but the family can split it into various members as long as they are above 18 years and say they are separating entitlements for all individuals.
Will it be mandatory for every family of Haryana to get PPP?
- No, it will not be mandatory for every family of the state to obtain a PPP.
- But, PPP is mandatory for families availing benefits under government schemes.
- Also, whenever a family wants to avail any government scheme, it will have to first get a PPP to be eligible.
The logic behind
- Haryana officials said although there is a union government’s Aadhaar card, it contains individual’s details and does not cater to the entire family as a unit.
- In certain circumstances, it may not be possible for a state government to keep track of all the families residing in the state.
- Although the ration card system is there, it is not updated and does not contain adequate family records.
- With the PPP, it will be easier for the state government to maintain a complete database of all the state dwellers.
How would it work?
- To begin with, the government has already linked PPP with three social security schemes – old age Samman allowance, divyang pension, and the widow and destitute women pension scheme.
- For instance, when a family member turns 60, they will automatically get a message through the software and will automatically start getting benefits of the old-age pension if they meet the required criteria.
- Similarly, the teenagers will get messages on turning 18 years old and shall become eligible for various government schemes that will be notified to them through the software.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Energy Island
Mains level: Energy Island Concept
The Danish government has approved a plan to build an artificial island in the North Sea as part of its effort to switch to green energy.
The Energy Island concept provides an innovative solution for countries like India grappled with the scarcity of land required for RE projects!
What is Energy Island?
- An energy island is based on a platform that serves as a hub for electricity generation from surrounding offshore wind farms.
- The idea is to connect and distribute power between Denmark and neighbouring countries.
What is the Danish project?
- Denmark has already entered into agreements with the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium to begin the joint analysis of connections in the energy island.
- The project is being called the largest construction project to be undertaken in Denmark’s history with an estimated cost of DKK 210 billion.
- In June 2020, the Danish Parliament decided to initiate the construction of two energy islands, which will export power to mainland Denmark and neighbouring countries.
- One of these islands will be located in the North Sea and the second island, called the island of Bornholm, will be located in the Baltic Sea.
- The artificial island will be located about 80 km into the North Sea and the majority of it will be owned by the Danish government.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Government Securities (G-Secs), T-Bills etc
Mains level: Government Securities (G-Secs)
The RBI has said that it would allow retail investors and other small investors direct access to its government securities trading platform.
What are G-Secs?
- These are debt instruments issued by the government to borrow money.
- The two key categories are:
- Treasury bills (T-Bills) – short-term instruments which mature in 91 days, 182 days, or 364 days, and
- Dated securities – long-term instruments, which mature anywhere between 5 years and 40 years
Note: T-Bills are issued only by the central government, and the interest on them is determined by market forces.
Why G-Secs?
- Like bank fixed deposits, g-secs are not tax-free.
- They are generally considered the safest form of investment because they are backed by the government. So, the risk of default is almost nil.
- However, they are not completely risk-free, since they are subject to fluctuations in interest rates.
- Bank fixed deposits, on the other hand, are guaranteed only to the extent of Rs 5 lakh by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).
Who can invest in Corporate Bonds and Government Securities?
- Pension Funds: Pension funds can also invest in both corporate bonds and government securities to ensure long-term stability and growth in their investment portfolio. .
- Retail Investors: Retail investors, including individual investors, can invest in both corporate bonds and government securities.
- Insurance Companies: Insurance companies can invest in both corporate bonds and government securities as part of their investment portfolio. The search results indicate that insurance companies often invest in a mix of low-risk and high-yield assets, with government securities providing lower risk and corporate bonds offering higher returns.
Retail investors and G-Secs
- Small investors can invest indirectly in g-secs by buying mutual funds or through certain policies issued by life insurance firms.
- To encourage direct investment, the government and RBI have taken several steps in recent years.
- Retail investors are allowed to place non-competitive bids in auctions of government bonds through their Demat accounts.
- Stock exchanges act as aggregators and facilitators of retail bids.
Try this PYQ:
Consider the following statements:
- The Reserve Bank of India manages and services the Government of India Securities but not any State Government Securities.
- Treasury bills are issued by the Government of India and there are no treasury bills issued by the State Governments.
- Treasury bills offer are issued at a discount from the par value.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3 Only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Why the current proposal?
- The g-sec market is dominated by institutional investors such as banks, mutual funds, and insurance companies. These entities trade in lot sizes of Rs 5 crore or more.
- So, there is no liquidity in the secondary market for small investors who would want to trade in smaller lot sizes.
- In other words, there is no easy way for them to exit their investments.
- Thus, currently, direct g-secs trading is not popular among retail investors.
What will the current proposal do?
- The details are not out yet. However, the RBI’s intention is to make the whole process of g-sec trading smoother for small investors.
- By allowing people to open accounts in RBI’s e-kuber system, it is hoping to create a market of small investors who will invest in these instruments.
Why such a move?
- The RBI is the debt manager for the government.
- In the forthcoming financial year, the government plans to borrow Rs 12 lakh crore from the market.
- When the government demands so much money, the price of money (i.e., the interest rate) will move up.
- It is in the government’s and RBI’s interest to bring this down.
- That can only happen by broadening the base of investors and making it easier for them to buy g-secs.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: HSS scheme
Mains level: Textile sector of India
The Ministry of Textiles introduced the technology up-gradation scheme called Hathkargha Samvardhan Sahayata (HSS) Yojana.
Much recently, in the budget, the Mega Investment Textiles Parks (MITRA) Scheme was launched.
HSS Yojana
- This scheme is introduced as an up-gradation scheme under National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handloom Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) in 2015-16.
- It aims to provide upgraded looms/accessories to handloom weavers to improve the quality of the fabric and enhance productivity.
- Under the scheme, the Union Govt bears 90% of the cost of looms/accessories.
- It is designed for all the weavers, including SC/ST/OBC and women.
- The performance of this scheme will be evaluated by independent third-party agencies.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: MCA
Mains level: Digital India
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) will launch data analytics-driven MCA21 Version 3.0.
What is MCA 21?
- MCA21 is an e-Governance initiative of Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) that enables easy and secure access of the MCA services to the corporate entities, professionals and citizens of India.
- It is the first Mission Mode e-Governance project of GoI.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which one of the following is not a feature of Limited Liability Partnership firm?
(a) Partners should be less than 20
(b) Partnership and management need not be separate
(c) Internal governance may be decided by mutual agreement among partners
(d) It is a corporate body with perpetual succession
MCA21 3.0
- MCA21 V3 is a technology-driven forward-looking project, envisioned to strengthen enforcement, promote Ease of Doing Business, enhance the user experience, and facilitate seamless integration and data exchange among Regulators.
- The project will have Micro-services architecture with high scalability and capabilities for advanced analytics.
- It will have additional modules for e-Adjudication, e-Consultation and Compliance Management.
- Aligned with global best practices and aided by emerging technologies such as AI and ML, MCA21 V3 is envisioned to transform the corporate regulatory environment in India.
Components of MCA21 V3
- E-Scrutiny: MCA is in process of setting up a Central Scrutiny Cell which will scrutinise certain Straight Through Process (STP) Forms filed by the corporates on the MCA21 registry and flag the companies for more in-depth scrutiny.
- E-adjudication: E-adjudication module will provide a platform for conducting online hearings with stakeholders and end to end adjudication electronically.
- E-Consultation: To automate and enhance the current process of public consultation on proposed amendments and draft rules etc., e-consultation module of MCA21 v3 will provide an online platform.
- Compliance Management System (CMS): CMS will assist MCA in identifying non-compliant companies/LLPs, issuing e-notices to the said defaulting companies/LLPs etc.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Seed Funding
Mains level: Startup promotions in India
Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) has been approved for the period of next four years starting from 2021-22.
Seed Fund Scheme
- The scheme aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialization.
- 945 Crore corpus will be divided over the next 4 years for providing seed funding to eligible startups through eligible incubators across India.
- The scheme is expected to support about 3600 startups.
Q.Discuss various inherent non-policy challenges to Start-ups in India.(150W)
What is Seed Funding?
- Seed funding or seed-stage funding is a very early investment which aims at helping a business grow and generating its own capital.
- Also referred to as seed money or seed capital, investors often get an equity stake in exchange for the capital invested.
- The investors can themselves be the founders and use their savings as seed money for their new company — also known as bootstrapping.
Why Seed Funding matters?
- It is a fact that starting a new business and lifting it up off the ground is a huge ask for most entrepreneurs and it only gets tougher with capital constraints.
- Seed funding helps get things started before the business earns any revenue.
- It is an effective solution for startups and growing businesses as it provides the much-needed early monetary support.
- It can cover everything from infrastructure costs, marketing and development costs as well as the cost of initial hiring. Investment is the fuel of any business and seed funding is the first drop of this fuel.
- As seed money becomes much-needed cash reserve or working capital, not having it is one of the main reasons for failure.
Various options for Seed Funding
- Crowdfunding
- Corporate seed funds
- Incubators Accelerators
- Angel investors
- Personal Savings
- VC Funding
- Angel Funds or Angel Networks
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Fiscal deficit
Mains level: Paper 2- Challenges posed by high debt levels
The article discusses the challenges associated with the Budget with a high fiscal deficit.
Change in government’s stance
- India’s economy has suffered more than most from the covid pandemic and so have its people.
- Its economic contraction has put pressure on its government, like so many others, to respond.
- Until this week, government’s response had been relatively restrained.
- The government implied that any welfare-promoting and growth-enhancing measures had to stand on a solid macro-economic foundation.
- The federal budget for the next financial year, 2021-22, with the fiscal deficit for the current fiscal at 9.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) has changed that optimistic narrative.
- The government has effectively abandoned its long-term commitment to bring the deficit down to close to 3% of GDP, pitching instead for a gentle descent to 4.5%—six years from now.
Implications of high fiscal deficit
- Once the covid pandemic retreats, India might end up with a debt-to-GDP ratio of about 90%, compared to the low 70s at present.
- It would be saddled with a permanently elevated fiscal deficit and a financial system bogged down by high levels of bad debt.
- Consumer price inflation has topped the Reserve Bank of India’s target zone of 2%-6% since the covid lockdown began last year.
- Unlike the US or China, countries in India’s position—which have neither a reserve currency nor strong growth momentum—cannot grow rapidly while exploding their debt.
- They can’t afford to ignore rating agencies because of their supposed bias, or cock a snook at bond markets and just run the currency presses instead.
- They need to grow in order to reduce their debt. That’s a very different dynamic.
- India isn’t so attractive that it can expect vast sums of investment to arrive even if its macro-economic numbers look bad and its sovereign rating is junk.
- We don’t have a history of deflation, we aren’t hitting the zero lower bound.
- It’s quite the opposite; we have an economy prone to sustained high inflation.
- India is not in a position in which it could build really productive assets using sustained deficit.
- This is still a developing economy, which especially in bad times should tread carefully rather than throw caution to the winds.
Rationale behind high spending
- The government is hoping that increased spending will help India grow out of this predicament.
- The only way India can pull itself out of this jam is if private investment pours into the country, financing projects that push up the country’s potential growth rate.
- Yet the government, already monopolizing domestic financial savings, seems to want to go to war with global markets as well.
Consider the question “Fiscal deficit figures for FY21 marks the end of India’s departure from the path of fiscal consolidation. Discuss the challenges posed by such high fiscal deficit to the Indian economy.
Conclusion
India’s greatest strength had been his commitment to fiscal responsibility. The path of fiscal adventurism could end up leaving India’s macroeconomy vulnerable.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: PMANSY
Mains level: Paper 2- Allocation in Budget for health
The article analyses the allocation for the health sector in the Budget and highlights the need for more allocations.
Need to increase spending on health
- The Economic Survey argues for the need to increase public spending on healthcare to 2.5-3 per cent of the GDP — it’s about 1.5 per cent currently.
- The Survey points out that there is not much difference in terms of outcomes and quality between healthcare services in the private sector and such services in public centres.
- The Economic Survey, therefore, calls for strengthening the National Health Mission (NHM) along with Ayushman Bharat.
- NHM was initiated in 2005-06 to strengthen public health services.
- The Ayushman Bharat provide social insurance, thereby financing private sector services with public funds.
- The Economic Survey makes a strong pitch for greater regulation of health services in the private sector.
Break-up of allocation in Budget on health (and well being)
- The finance minister described “health and well-being” as one of the pillars of the budget in her budget speech and announcing a 137 per cent increase in allocations for it.
- She placed healthcare, water and sanitation and nutrition as the key components of this pillar.
- However, the figures in the budget documents reveal a different story.
- There is an absolute increase of 9.6 per cent in allocations for the Department of Health and Family Welfare that includes NHM and Ayushman Bharat.
- A 26.8 per cent increase for the Department of Health Research and 40 per cent increase for the AYUSH Ministry do not add up to much since each of them are only 3-4 per cent of the total health budget.
- A Finance Commission grant of Rs 13,000-crore and Rs 35,000-crore for COVID-19 vaccination are one-time allocations and, therefore, do not strengthen the overall system.
- The core health service and research ministries (H&FW and AYUSH) have together received only an 11 per cent increase.
- Even in COVID times, the health services get only 2.21 per cent of the total central budget — down from 2.27 per cent in the 2020-21 budget.
- Computing for inflation, the increase in allocation for health services alone disappears and actually becomes negative.
- Water and sanitation received a 179 per cent increase from Rs 21,518 crore to Rs 60,030 crore already earmarked for the flagship schemes, Swachh Bharat and Jal Jeevan Mission.
- But allocation for nutrition decreased by 27 per cent, with the “new” Poshan 2.0 merely combining the poorly performing Supplementary Nutrition Programme and Poshan project.
- Added together, health, water and sanitation and nutrition make up the claimed 137 per cent increase in allocation to “health” services — with a real decline in healthcare and nutrition.
Pradhan Mantri Atma Nirbhar Swasthya Yojana (PMANSY)
- Finance Minister also announced a new scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Atma Nirbhar Swasthya Yojana, to support the almost 29,000 health and wellness centres in the country.
- The scheme also envisages the creation of public health laboratories and critical care hospital blocks and virology institutes.
Concerns with PMANSY
- PMANSY has an announced allocation of Rs 64,180 crore over six years, but it does not find a place in the present budget documents.
- But these additional activities could have been slotted in the NHM.
- Since 2014, the allocation for NHM has been on the wane.
- Therefore, even the marginal 1.33 per cent increase (from Rs 27,039 crore to Rs 30,100 crore) is a demonstration of the government’s realisation that public services do matter.
- The allocations of about Rs 10,000-Rs 11,000 crore each year for the PMANSY is not enough for making the public services capable of “universal health coverage”.
- The High-Level Expert Group on Universal Health Coverage had estimated that by 2020, we need a 114 per cent increase in sub-centres and primary health centres, 179 per cent increase in community health centres and a 230 per cent increase in sub-district and district hospitals.
- Getting anywhere close to this requires doubling of real allocations every year over a five-year period to reach something like 10 per cent of the budget.
- In the present budget, it declines to a mere 2.21 per cent.
Way forward
- If such public provisioning for universal health coverage can’t be done, then effective low-cost rationalised service system options have to be designed.
- Insurance schemes only create the mirage of affordability of health services while adding to peoples’ expenses.
- Community and public services are indisputably the most cost-effective for any society.
Consider the question “Examine the benefits of the idea of health and well being under which health, water and sanitation and nutrition are clubbed together.”
Conclusion
Water and sanitation are meaningful for health, but not if it only inflates the allocation to “Health and Wellbeing”. What we need is the real increase in spending on health.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Sub-categorization of OBCs
The Centre has extended the tenure of the Commission to Examine Sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) headed by Justice G Rohini, till 31st July this year.
Rs 1.92 crore have been spent on the Commission including salary, consultant fee and other expenses and the report is yet to be publicized. It is can be very well understood that the report will have huge political consequences.
What is the sub-categorisation of OBCs?
- OBCs are granted 27% reservation in jobs and education under the central government.
- In September 20202, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court reopened the legal debate on sub-categorisation of SCs and STs for reservations.
- The debate arises out of the perception that only a few affluent communities among over 2,600 included in the Central List of OBCs have secured a major part of this 27% reservation.
Need for sub-categorization
- The argument for sub-categorisation — or creating categories within OBCs for reservation — is that it would ensure “equitable distribution” of representation among all OBC communities.
- To examine this, the Rohini Commission was constituted on October 2, 2017.
- At that time, it was given 12 weeks to submit its report but has been given several extensions since, the latest one being the 10th.
- Before the Rohini Commission was set up, the Centre had granted constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC).
What are the Commissions’ terms of reference?
It was originally set up with three terms of reference:
- To examine the extent of inequitable distribution of benefits of reservation among the castes or communities included in the broad category of OBCs with reference to such classes included in the Central List;
- To work out the mechanism, criteria, norms and parameters in a scientific approach for sub-categorisation within such OBCs;
- To take up the exercise of identifying the respective castes or communities or sub-castes or synonyms in the Central List of OBCs and classifying them into their respective sub-categories.
The fourth term of reference was added on January 22, 2020, when the Cabinet granted it an extension:
- To study the various entries in the Central List of OBCs and recommend correction of any repetitions, ambiguities, inconsistencies and errors of spelling or transcription.
Why so many extensions are being given?
- This was added following a letter to the government from the Commission on July 30, 2019.
- In process of preparing the sub-categorised central list of OBCs, the Commission has noted several ambiguities in the list as it stands now.
- The Commission is of the opinion that these have to be clarified/rectified before the sub-categorised central list is prepared.
What progress has it made so far?
- In its letter to the government on July 30, 2019, the Commission wrote that it is ready with the draft report (on sub-categorisation).
- Following the latest term of reference given (on January 22, 2020) to the Commission, it is studying the list of communities in the central list.
How smooth has its work been?
- A hurdle for the Commission has been the absence of data for the population of various communities to compare with their representation in jobs and admissions.
- On August 31, 2018, then Home Minister had announced that in Census 2021, data of OBCs will also be collected, but since then the government has been silent on this.
- Many groups of OBCs have been demanding enumeration of OBCs in the Census.
What have its findings been so far?
- In 2018, the Commission analysed the data of 1.3 lakh central jobs given under OBC quota over the preceding five years and OBC admissions to central higher education institutions.
- The findings were: 97% of all jobs and educational seats have gone to just 25% of all sub-castes classified as OBCs; 24.95% of these jobs and seats have gone to just 10 OBC communities.
- 983 OBC communities — 37% of the total — have zero representation in jobs and educational institutions; 994 OBC sub-castes have a total representation of only 2.68% in recruitment and admissions.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Art. 239AA
Mains level: Delhi govt. - LG power tussle
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is all set to introduce legislation to amend a 1991 Act pertaining to the powers and functions of the Delhi government and the Lieutenant Governor (LG).
What is the new bill?
- The Bill is likely to clearly define the powers of the LG and the Delhi government on the lines of the Supreme Court judgment of February 2019.
- It is likely to give more teeth to the LG’s office.
Why need such a law?
- The Delhi UT government is often at loggerheads with the Centre on administrative matters in the Capital.
What made it to the news?
- A Supreme Court Bench of Justices A.K. Sikri and Ashok Bhushan had, other than the question of services, given a unanimous verdict on the role of the two authorities.
- In the February 14, 2019 verdict, the court upheld as “legal” the MHA’s 2015 notifications authorising the LG to exercise powers in relation to services.
- It had directed the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) police not to take cognizance of offences against Central government officials.
SC confirms HC findings
- The apex court confirmed the Delhi High Court’s finding that the ACB’s jurisdiction is confined to Delhi officials and statutory bodies and does not extend to Central government officials.
- Last year, the MHA notified the rules for the newly created UT of J&K, where it provided a solution in case of difference of opinion between the LG and a Minister.
- It ruled that if no agreement could be reached even after a month, the decision of the Lieutenant Governor shall be deemed to have been accepted by the Council of Ministers.
What are the key propositions?
- According to changes proposed in the new Act, the LG could act in his discretion in any matter that is beyond the purview of the powers of the Assembly of Delhi.
- This would be in matters related to the All India (Civil) Services and the ACB.
Back2Basics: Special Status for New Delhi
- Article 239AA of the Constitution of India granted Special Status to Delhi among Union Territories (UTs) in the year 1991 through 69th constitutional amendment.
- It provided a Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers responsible to such Assembly with appropriate powers.
- That’s when Delhi was named as National Capital Region (NCT) of Delhi.
- As per this article – Public Order, Police & Land in NCT of Delhi fall within the domain and control of Central Government which shall have the power to make laws on these matters.
- For remaining matters of State List or Concurrent List, in so far as any such matter is applicable to UTs, the Legislative Assembly shall have the power to make laws for NCT of Delhi.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Rohingya crisis
Mains level: Paper 2- Factors to consider while dealing with the situation in Myanmar
The article discusses the five lessons from past experiences as the international community frames its response to the military coup in Myanmar.
Coup in Myanmar
- After Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) swept the polls by winning almost 80% of the vote, Myanmar’s military staged a coup and declared a state of Emergency for a year.
- Myanmar, which started a fragile transition to democracy 10 years ago after decades of brutal military dictatorship, is back in the hands of the Generals.
Lessons for the international community
1) Benefits of sanctions
- The developments in Myanmar will invariably bring back the old debate around the prudence of sanctions.
- Notwithstanding the western sanctions before 2010 [during military rule], China, Thailand and Singapore were the key trading partners of Myanmar.
- The present reality is no different.
- Singapore was reportedly the largest foreign investor in Myanmar in 2020, accounting for 34% of the overall approved investment.
- Given that the military has been able to economically withstand sanctions by striking deals with Asian countries in the past, sanctions are unlikely to bring any major political change.
2) Accountability for crime against humanity
- As political changes got underway in 2010, many generals were on the radar of the international community for perpetuating a regime of human rights abuses, quietly vanished from the scene.
- This bred a culture of impunity.
- During the 2017 Rohingya crisis, senior military officials brazenly exploited social media to mobilise public support for brutality against Rohingyas.
3) China’s influence
- Three, a critical international player in Myanmar is China.
- The international community, particularly the West, has to factor in China’s multi-layered influence on Myanmar.
4) Revival of past international mechanisms
- Many international mechanisms comprising Western and Asian countries that were formed to coordinate strategies on Myanmar were disbanded after the 2015 election.
- That the changes in Myanmar were irreversible was the standard thinking.
- Relevant actors should be brought on a common platform by reviving past mechanisms.
5) Increasing the engagement with domestic stakeholders
- The expectation that Myanmar will see a nationwide protest against the military after the coup should be examined with the geographical extent of Bamar, Myanmar’s largest ethnic group, who support the National League for Democracy.
- The minorities in the country form around 35% of the population.
- In the current scenario, the military will continue to exploit ethnic and religious fault lines.
- Engagement with domestic stakeholders, including ethnic minorities, especially from the north, should be pursued by the international community.
Consider the question “As military hinders Myanmar’s transition to democracy, what are the factors that should be considered by the international community as it form the response to the situation in the country.”
Conclusion
There is one consistent lesson, that no change is irreversible, particularly in a context where military leadership scripted the meaning of democracy, and domestic forces and geopolitics continuously fail to deter its actions and impulses to rule.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: PMMVY
Mains level: Maternity healthcare
The government’s maternity benefit scheme, or Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, has crossed 1.75 crores, eligible women, till the financial year 2020, the Centre informed Parliament.
PMMVY
- The PMMVY is a maternity benefit program introduced in 2017 and is implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
- It is a conditional cash transfer scheme for pregnant and lactating women of 19 years of age or above for the first live birth.
- It provides partial wage compensation to women for wage-loss during childbirth and childcare and to provide conditions for safe delivery and good nutrition and feeding practices.
- Under the scheme, pregnant women and lactating mothers receive ₹5,000 on the birth of their first child in three instalments, after fulfilling certain conditionalities.
- In 2013, the scheme was brought under the National Food Security Act, 2013 to implement the provision of cash maternity benefit stated in the Act.
- The direct benefit cash transfer is to help expectant mothers meet enhanced nutritional requirements as well as to partially compensate them for wage loss during their pregnancy.
Eligibility Conditions and Conditionalities
The first transfer (at pregnancy trimester) of ₹1,000 requires the mother to:
- Register pregnancy at the Anganwadi Centre (AWC) whenever she comes to know about her conception
- Attend at least one prenatal care session and taking Iron-folic acid tablets and TT1 (tetanus toxoid injection), and
- Attend at least one counselling session at the AWC or healthcare centre.
The second transfer (six months of conception) of ₹2,000 requires the mother to:
- Attend at least one prenatal care session and TT2
The third transfer (three and a half months after delivery) of ₹2,000 requires the mother to:
- Register the birth
- Immunize the child with OPV and BCG at birth, at six weeks and at 10 weeks
- Attend at least two growth monitoring sessions within three months of delivery
Additionally, the scheme requires the mother to:
- Exclusively breastfeed for six months and introduce complementary feeding as certified by the mother
- Immunize the child with OPV and DPT
- Attend at least two counselling sessions on growth monitoring and infant and child nutrition and feeding between the third and sixth months after delivery
Before judging this factual information, take this PYQ form 2019:
Q.Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017?
- Pregnant women are entitled to three months pre-delivery and three months post-delivery paid leave.
- Enterprises with creches must allow the mother a minimum of six crèche visits daily.
- Women with two children get reduced entitlements.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Square Kilometre Array Observatory, Radio Telescopes
Mains level: Not Much
The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) Council held its maiden meeting and approved the establishment of the world’s largest radio telescope.
Note all important telescopes in news and their features. Some of them are – Thirty Meter Telescope, Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope, Spitzer, Chandra etc.
SKAO
- It is a new intergovernmental organisation dedicated to radio astronomy and is headquartered in the UK.
- At the moment, organisations from ten countries are a part of the SKAO.
- These include Australia, Canada, China, India, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, the Netherlands and the UK.
What are radio telescopes?
- Unlike optical telescopes, radio telescopes can detect invisible gas and, therefore, they can reveal areas of space that may be obscured by cosmic dust.
- Significantly, since the first radio signals were detected by physicist Karl Jansky in the 1930s, astronomers have used radio telescopes to detect radio waves emitted by different objects in the universe and explore it.
- According to NASA, the field of radio astronomy evolved after World War II and became one of the most important tools for making astronomical observations since.
The Arecibo telescope in Puerto Rico, which was the second-largest single-dish radio telescope in the world, collapsed in December 2020.
Significance of SKA telescope
- The telescope, proposed to be the largest radio telescope in the world, will be located in Africa and Australia whose operation, maintenance and construction will be overseen by SKAO.
- Some of the questions that scientists hope to address using this telescope include the beginning of the universe, how and when the first stars were born and the life-cycle of a galaxy.
- It would explore the possibility of detecting technologically-active civilizations elsewhere in our galaxy and understanding where gravitational waves come from.
- As per NASA, the telescope will accomplish its scientific goals by measuring neutral hydrogen over cosmic time, accurately timing the signals from pulsars in the Milky Way.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Alternate Mobility Solutions (AMS)
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways will, from now on, also look after the development of Ropeways and Alternate Mobility Solutions (AMS).
Q.With growing mobility and diverse terrain across the country, it is imperative that all solutions be enabled and implemented. In this light, discuss various changes adopted by the Transport Ministry in this regard.
Ropeways
- A ropeway is a form of naval lifting device used to transport light stores and equipment across rivers or ravines.
- It comprises a jackstay, slung between two sheers one at either end, from which is suspended a block and tackle, that is free to travel along the rope and hauled back and forth by inhauls.
- An amendment to the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 has been notified, to enable this step.
Impacts of the move
- The move is expected to give a boost to the sector, by setting up a regulatory regime and facilitating research and new technology to come into this sector.
- This means that the Ministry will have responsibility for the development of ropeway and alternative mobility solutions technology, as well as construction, research, and policy in this area.
- Formulation of the institutional, financial, and regulatory framework for the technology will also fall under the ambit of this move.
Expected benefits
- Last-mile connectivity for remote locations
- Reducing congestion on mainstream roads
- Chance to develop world-class ropeway infrastructure
- Setting up of an organised and dedicated rope-way and alternative mobility solutions industry
- New technology, like CPT – Cable Propelled Transit coming to the sector
- Setting safety norms for unregulated ropeways
- Allowing freight and goods at remote stations
- Regulating tariffs structure for the technology
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Monpa Handmade Paper
Mains level: Not Much
PC: East Mojo
The sale of the 1000-years old heritage Monpa handmade paper or “Mon Shugu” is quickly catching pace after a special mention by PM in his Mann ki Baat.
Monpa Handmade Paper
- Monpa paper is made from the bark of tree Shugu Sheng grown locally in Tawang and is identified by its distinctive translucent fibrous texture.
- The paper is weightless but its natural fibres add great tensile strength to this paper making it apt for various artworks.
- It has been used for writing Buddhist scriptures, manuscripts and for making prayer flags.
- Writing on this paper is also known to be tamper-proof.
Note: This paper is yet to be awarded the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
Revitalized by KVIC
- Khadi and Village Industries Commission, which revived this ancient art at Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh on 25th December 2020.
- It has made Monpa Handmade paper available online through its e-portal.
- The revival of this art assumes significance as Monpa Handmade paper was once produced in every household in Tawang and the paper was exported to many countries like Tibet, Bhutan, Myanmar and Japan among others.
- However, with the new technologies coming in, the handmade paper industry almost disappeared in the last 100 years.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: KAPILA program
Mains level: Patenting solutions in India
The Government has launched a campaign namely KAPILA for Intellectual Property Literacy and creating patent awareness, informed Union Ministry for Education to the Parliament.
Remember one thing, ‘KAPILA’ Program is related to IP awareness. It sounds much like an animal husbandry related initiative.
KAPILA Initiative
- KAPILA is an acronym for Kalam Program for IP (Intellectual Property) Literacy and Awareness.
- Under this campaign, students pursuing education in higher educational institutions will get information about the correct system of the application process for patenting their invention and they will be aware of their rights.
- The program will facilitate the colleges and institutions to encourage more and more students to file patents.
Why in news?
- As many as 46,556 users have registered for the Union Government’s Intellectual Property Literary project.
- This marks the success of the campaign.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: COVAX project
Mains level: Paper 2- Vaccine nationalism
India has been supplying vaccines to other countries even as its first phase of vaccination covers the health care workers. At the same time, the selfishness of the advanced countries has been on full display by amassing the approved vaccines. The article deals with the issue of vaccine nationalism.
What is vaccine nationalism
- When a country manages to secure doses of vaccines for its own citizens or residents and prioritises its own domestic markets before they are made available in other countries it is known as ‘vaccine nationalism’.
- This is done through pre-purchase agreements between a government and a vaccine manufacturer.
- The advance purchase contracts made by some advanced countries for potential vaccines would vaccinate their population many times: the European Union, two times, the United States and the United Kingdom, four times, and Canada, six times.
Impact on the SDGs
- The reversal of progress on many Sustainable Development Goals, or SDGs, such as SDG 3 (“Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages) could affect the health of the world population, and global growth itself.
- Even before COVID-19, projections have shown that 6% of the global population would be in extreme poverty, which has gone up by 71 million, thereby causing enormous challenges to SDG 1 (“End poverty in all its forms everywhere”).
- According to estimates by the International Monetary Fund, over 50% of emerging markets and developing economies that were converging toward advanced economies per capita income over the last decade are expected to diverge over the 2020-22 period.
India’s important role
- While advanced countries have turned their back on the need of poor countries, India has taken a position that a significant percentage of the approved doses will be permitted for exports.
- While its exports to neighbouring counties will be under grant mode, initial shipment of vaccines to least developed countries will be free of cost.
- Brazil has received 2 million doses of vaccine from India (as of January 23).
- While India is in its first phase of vaccination to cover health-care workers, exports from India are helping other countries also in initiating phase one of their vaccination programme — a gesture well-appreciated globally.
- The ability to produce large volumes of vaccine at an affordable cost underlines India’s importance to developing countries when it comes to drug access.
Need for coordinated global efforts
- Due to the vaccine nationalism, the arguments of public good and global cooperation have been widely neglected.
- Nevertheless, India’s approach only reinforces the need of having coordinated global efforts in bringing COVID-19 under control.
- This response manifests India’s unstinted commitment to global development and has consolidated its name as the world’s pharmacy.
COVAX Project: Unique case of global cooperation
- The COVAX project is a global risk-sharing mechanism for pooled procurement and fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
- It is based on funding from high and middle-income countries.
- Since high and middle-income countries are buying up large amounts of the vaccine directly from suppliers, the promise by COVAX to deliver 2 billion doses by the end of 2021 seems to face new challenges.
- Since most of the vaccines are purchased from the global south [specifically, India and China] for developing nations, the COVAX project can draw new pathways for global development.
- Most of these vaccines are cost-effective and affordable to the global south.
Consider the question “What is vaccine nationalism? Examine the role played by India against the backdrop of vaccine nationalism.”
Conclusion
The development of vaccines is a classic story of global cooperation between the North and the South. Unfortunately, the increasing nationalist tendencies of the democratic World during the pandemic have challenged the positive narrative on global cooperation.
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