Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Election Commission
Mains level: Autonomy of the State Election Commission
The Supreme Court gas held that independent persons and not bureaucrats should be appointed State Election Commissioners.
No bureaucrats in SEC
- The judgment came on an appeal against an order of the Bombay High Court which had set aside the election notification issued by the Goa State Election Commission in some municipalities.
- Justice F. Nariman, in a judgment, said giving government employees the additional charge of State Election Commissioners is a “mockery of the Constitution”.
- It said government employees holding the post of State Election Commissioners as additional charge should give up the post.
- The Supreme Court said its direction should be followed strictly.
Why such a move?
- Under the constitutional mandate, it is the duty of the State to not interfere with the functioning of the State Election Commission.
- The independence of Election Commissions cannot be compromised at any cost, the Bench said.
State Election Commission
- Under the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendment acts, State Election Commissions were created for every state to conduct elections to panchayats and municipalities.
- The SECs came into as envisaged in Articles 243K and 243ZA of the Constitution of India.
- The above Articles provide that the superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the Conduct of all elections to the Panchayats and Municipalities shall vest in the SEC.
- The Constitution itself has facilitated provision for smooth, free and fair, regular elections to the Local bodies and has, therefore, entrusted the SEC with the responsibility for holding such elections.
- In the domain of the elections to the local bodies, the SEC functions independently and has the same powers and duties as that of the Election Commission of India.
Try this PYQ:
Q.The Constitution (Seventy-Third Amendment) Act, 1992, which aims at promoting the Panchayati Raj Institutions in the country, provides for which of the following?
- Constitution of District Planning Committees.
- State Election Commissions to conduct all panchayat elections.
- Establishment of State Finance Commissions.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
(a) Only 1
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
The Election Commissioner
- The State Election Commissioner is appointed by the Governor.
- It has the status, salary and allowance of a Judge of a High Court and cannot be removed from office except in the like manner and on the like grounds as a Judge of a High Court.
- The Election Commissioner is also the Chairman of the Delimitation Commission.
Its duties
- The first and foremost duty of the SEC is to prepare the elector rolls of Panchayats, Municipalities and Municipal Corporation and conduct their elections.
In addition to the above functions, the State Election Commission has also the following functions:
- Conduct of elections to the offices of the Mayor/Chairman/President/Deputy Mayor/Vice Chairman/Vice President and the no-confidence motion against them.
- Conduct of the Elections to various Standing Committees and their Chairpersons
- Determination of disqualification of elected members/Councilors.
- Determination of disqualification of elected members on the ground of defection.
Back2Basics: Election Commission of India (ECI)
- ECI is an autonomous and permanent constitutional authority responsible for administering election processes in India at the national and state level.
- The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies, State Legislative Councils and the offices of the President and Vice President of the country.
- The EC operates under the authority of the Constitution per Article 324 and subsequently enacted the Representation of the People Act.
- The commission has the powers under the Constitution, to act in an appropriate manner when the enacted laws make insufficient provisions to deal with a given situation in the conduct of an election.
- Being a constitutional authority, EC is amongst the few institutions which function with both autonomy and freedom, along with the country’s higher judiciary, the UPSC and the CAG.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Places of Worship Act, 1991
The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to respond to a plea challenging the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991. The court has opened the doors for litigation in various places of worship across the country including Mathura and Varanasi.
Take this ‘wonderful’ question from CS Mains 2019:
Q.What are the challenges to our cultural practices in the name of secularism?
Places of Worship Act, 1991
- It was passed in 1991 by the P V Narasimha Rao-led government.
- The law seeks to maintain the “religious character” of places of worship as it was in 1947 — except in the case of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute, which was already in court.
- The law was brought in at the peak of the Ram Mandir movement, exactly a year before the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
- Introducing the law, then Home Minister S B Chavan said in Parliament that it was adopted to curb communal tension.
What are its provisions?
The objective of the law describes it as an Act to prohibit conversion of any place of worship.
- It aims to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on the 15th day of August 1947, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto”.
- Sections 3 and 4 of the Act declared that the religious character of a place of worship shall continue to be the same as it was on August 15, 1947.
- No person shall convert any place of worship of any religious denomination into one of a different denomination or section.
- Section 4(2) says that all suits, appeals or others regarding converting the character of a place of worship, that was pending on August 15, 1947, will stand abated when the Act commences and no fresh proceedings can be filed.
- However, legal proceedings can be initiated after the commencement of the Act if the change of status took place after the cut-off date of August 15, 1947.
What does it say about Ayodhya, and what else is exempted?
- Act does not to apply to Ram Janma Bhumi Babri Masjid.
Besides the Ayodhya dispute, the Act also exempted:
- any place of worship that is an ancient and historical monument or an archaeological site, or is covered by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958;
- a suit that has been finally settled or disposed of;
- any dispute that has been settled by the parties or conversion of any place that took place by acquiescence before the Act commenced.
What has the Supreme Court said about the Act?
- In the 2019 Ayodhya verdict, the Constitution Bench led by former CJI Ranjan Gogoi referred to the law and said it manifests the secular values of the Constitution and strictly prohibits retrogression.
- In providing a guarantee for the preservation of the religious character of places, Parliament determined that independence from colonial rule furnishes a constitutional basis for healing the injustices of the past.
- The law addresses itself to the State as much as to every citizen of the nation. Its norms bind those who govern the affairs of the nation at every level.
- Those norms implement the Fundamental Duties under Article 51A and are hence positive mandates to every citizen as well.
Why is the law under challenge?
- A politician has challenged the law on the ground that violates secularism.
- He has also argued that the cut-off date of August 15, 1947, is “arbitrary, irrational and retrospective” and prohibits Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs from approaching courts to “reclaim” their places of worship.
- Such places, he argued, were “invaded” and “encroached” upon by “fundamentalist barbaric invaders”.
- The right-wing politicians have opposed the law even when it was introduced, arguing that the Centre has no power to legislate on “pilgrimages” or “burial grounds” which is under the state list.
- Another criticism against the law is that the cut-off is the date of Independence, which means that the status quo determined by a colonial power is considered final.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Benzene pollution
Mains level: Not Much
A joint committee appointed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to study air pollution in Kerala has pointed out that petrol refuelling stations were a major source of benzene emissions and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
Why such a move?
- Benzene is a major constituent of evaporative emission due to its high volatility.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Consider the following:
- Carbon monoxide
- Methane
- Ozone
- Sulphur dioxide
Which of the above are released into atmosphere due to the burning of crop/biomass residue?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2, 3 and 4 only
(c) 1 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
What is Benzene?
- Benzene is a chemical that is a colourless or light yellow liquid at room temperature. It has a sweet odour and is highly flammable.
- It evaporates into the air very quickly. Its vapour is heavier than air and may sink into low-lying areas.
- It dissolves only slightly in water and will float on top of the water.
Its formation and uses
Benzene is formed from both natural processes and human activities.
- Natural sources of benzene include volcanoes and forest fires. Benzene is also a natural part of crude oil, gasoline, and cigarette smoke.
- Some industries use benzene to make other chemicals that are used to make plastics, resins, and nylon and synthetic fibres.
- It is also used to make some types of lubricants, rubbers, dyes, detergents, drugs, and pesticides.
Benzene emission
- The major sources of benzene exposure are tobacco smoke, automobile service stations, exhaust from motor vehicles, and industrial emissions.
- Benzene is present in both exhaust and evaporative emissions. Motor vehicles account for approximately 85% of the total benzene emissions.
- However, ingestion and dermal absorption of benzene can also occur through contact with contaminated water.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: 2001 FO32
Mains level: Study of asteroids and meteors
On March 21, the largest asteroid predicted to pass by Earth in 2021 will be at its closest. It is called 2001 FO32.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which of the following is/are cited by the scientists as evidence/evidence for the continued expansion of the universe?
- Detection of microwaves in space
- Observation of redshirt phenomenon in space
- Movement of asteroids in space
- Occurrence of supernova explosions in space
Codes:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1, 3 and 4
(d) None of the above can be cited as evidence.
2001 FO32
- There is no threat of a collision with our planet now or for centuries to come.
- Scientists know its orbital path around the Sun very accurately since it was discovered 20 years ago and has been tracked ever since.
- It won’t come closer than 2 million km to Earth, but it will present a valuable scientific opportunity for astronomers who can get a good look at a rocky relic that formed at the dawn of our Solar System.
Proximity to Earth
- For comparison, when it is at its closest, the distance of 2 million km is equal to 5¼ times the distance from Earth to the Moon.
- Still, that distance is close in astronomical terms, which is why 2001 FO32 has been designated a “potentially hazardous asteroid”.
- The reason for the asteroid’s unusually speedy close approach is its highly eccentric orbit around the Sun, an orbit that is tilted 39° to Earth’s orbital plane.
- This orbit takes the asteroid closer to the Sun than Mercury, and twice as far from the Sun as Mars.
- Later, the asteroid slows after being flung back out into deep space and swinging back toward the Sun. It completes one orbit every 810 days (about 2¼ years).
Studying the visitor
- This asteroid will provide an opportunity for astronomers to get a more precise understanding of the asteroid’s size and albedo (i.e. how bright, or reflective, its surface is), and a rough idea of its composition.
- When sunlight hits an asteroid’s surface, minerals in the rock absorb some wavelengths while reflecting others.
- By studying the spectrum of light reflecting off the surface, astronomers can measure the chemical “fingerprints” of the minerals on the surface of the asteroid.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Seabuckthorn
Mains level: Not Much
The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to start planting Seabuckthorn in the cold desert areas.
What is Seabuckthorn?
- It’s a shrub that produces an orange-yellow coloured edible berry.
- In India, it is found above the tree line in the Himalayan region, generally in dry areas such as the cold deserts of Ladakh and Spiti.
- In Himachal Pradesh, it is locally called Himalayan chharma and grows in the wild in Lahaul and Spiti and parts of Kinnaur.
- According to the Seabuckthorn Association of India, around 15,000 hectares in Himachal, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh are covered by this plant.
Try this PYQ from CSP 2019:
Q.Recently, there was a growing awareness in our country about the importance of Himalayan nettle (Girardinia diversifolia) because it is found to be a sustainable source of
(a) anti-malarial drug
(b) biodiesel
(c) pulp for paper industry
(d) textile fibre
Benefits of the Seabuckthorn plant
(1) Medicinal benefits
- As a folk medicine, Seabuckthorn has been widely used for treating stomach, heart and skin problems.
- In the last few decades, scientific research worldwide has backed many of its traditional uses.
- Its fruit and leaves are rich in vitamins, carotenoids and omega fatty acids, among other substances, and it can help troops in acclimatizing to high-altitude.
(2) Ecological benefits
- Besides being an important source of fuelwood and fodder, Seabuckthorn is a soil-binding plant that prevents soil-erosion, checks siltation in rivers and helps preserve floral biodiversity.
- In the Lahaul valley, where willow trees are dying in large numbers due to pest attack, this hardy shrub is a good alternative for protecting the local ecology.
(3) Commercial benefits
- Seabuckthorn also has commercial value, as it is used in making juices, jams, nutritional capsules etc.
- But wild Seabuckthorn cannot sustainably supply raw material to the industry, and the plant needs to be cultivated on a large scale as is being done in China.
What is the latest project?
- The Seabuckthorn association wants the forest departments of various Himalayan states/UTs to plant Seabuckthorn on arid and marginal lands using compensatory afforestation or CAMPA funds.
- Recently, the union ministry of environment, forest and climate change asked these states to submit proposals for taking up such plantations.
- This is in the light of reduced water flow from Himalayan glaciers and their impact on ecology.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NEF
Mains level: Paper 3- Climate change negotiations
The new U.S. administration has renewed its commitment to climate actions by reconvening the Major Economies Forum. This has several implications for India and the developing countries. The article deals with this issue.
Reconvening MEF and its implications for developing countries
- The election of Joe Biden as U.S. President has catapulted climate change to the top of the global agenda.
- Interestingly, the U.S. is not just striding back to the Obama signature achievement of the Paris Accord with its voluntary commitments but also to the Bush days [which was not necessarily voluntary].
- This change is best evidenced by the presidential call to reconvene the Major Economies Forum (MEF).
- The MEF, which was first convened in March 2009, originated in the Bush-era U.S. efforts to rope in major emitters.
- It was also to push a way forward on climate change without heed to the principle of differentiated responsibilities and recognition of historical responsibilities.
- These two are hallowed principles of the climate discourse given the decades of staying power of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere.
Changing approach implications for India
- All countries have been told to commit to net zero (GHG emissions) by 2050 with credible plans to ensure meeting this domestic target.
- Taking a cue from the new U.S. Administration, the UN Secretary-General has even called on countries to declare national climate emergencies apart from building a coalition for a carbon-neutral world by 2050.
- As of today, countries representing around 65% of global CO2 emissions have already agreed to this.
- These plans and their implementation will, undoubtedly, be subject to international reviews and verification.
- Historical responsibilities and differentiation have no place in this discourse; but neither does the level of development.
- India can easily be in the crosshairs of such a discourse no matter its extraordinarily small carbon footprint in per-capita terms and huge development imperatives.
Possibility of carbon border levies
- Adding to the challenges is the distinct possibility of the EU imposing carbon border levies on those who do not take on high carbon cut-down targets and do so unilaterally if there is no global agreement.
- While as of now the U.S. Administration appears ambivalent on these border levies, the possibility of their coming around cannot be ruled out.
- In such a scenario, World Trade Organization rules that presently exclude the use of tariffs on environmental grounds will certainly get modified.
A fund pay-in idea
- To deal with the issue of climate finance, Raghuram Rajan has recently put forward a proposal for India to consider.
- The proposal calls on countries to pay into a global fund amounts based on their carbon emissions over and above the global per-capita average of five tons.
- This obviously disincentives coal in a big way while incentivising renewables.
- Those above the global average would pay, while those below would receive the monies.
- While this would suggest a certain equity, it may be unacceptable to the developed countries even though Mr. Rajan has gone along with the drumbeat to forget historical responsibility.
- For India, such a proposal may appear attractive as India today has per capita CO2 emission of only 2 tons and is a global record setter in pushing renewables.
- The long-term implications of such a proposal require examination in detail, quite apart from factoring in the twists and turns that negotiations could give to such an idea.
- And then, of course, there are alternatives such as emission trading.
Implications for developing countries
- The proposal of fund pay-in allows practical considerations to trump fairness by not only giving a short shrift to historical responsibility but also denying priority access to the remaining carbon space for developing countries.
- In that sense, it double penalises them while giving developed countries a certain free pass.
- Here it bears noting that more than 75% of the carbon space available to humankind to keep global temperature rises to 1.5° C has already been taken up by the developed world and China.
Consider the question “As the world seeks to tackle the climate change through climate action, delivering climate justice should also be the priority. In light of this, discuss the challenges faced by the developing countries in this regard.”
Conclusion
Climate justice is an imperative for India, which needs to leverage its green and pro-nature commitment to ensure carbon and policy space for its developmental and global aspirations. India’s diplomatic and negotiating efforts must be quickly geared to that end.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- India's manufacturing capacity
The article highlights how India could offer the solution to the tactical issue faced by the Quad: matching China’s manufacturing capacity.
Strategic case for the Quad
- The strategic case for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, better known as the Quad, has always been sound.
- A rising China, with its authoritarian one-party system, is a challenge to the democratic order.
- The strategic case for the Quad has, however, always faced a tactical hurdle.
- China was the factory of the world.
- It had become an almost indispensable cog in the global supply chain owing to its low-cost manufacturing prowess at a mass scale.
- How could any grouping hope to challenge China’s power-play dynamics while at the same time being dependent on its factories to sustain its economies?
Two recent development that changed the dynamic
- Two recent developments have completely changed the dynamic.
- First, Australia returned to the Malabar Naval exercises in 2020, after 13 years.
- Second, on March 12, the first summit-level meet of the Quad — comprising the US, India, Japan and Australia — is scheduled to take place.
Rise in India’s manufacturing ability
- What has changed between 2007 and 2020 that Quad 2.0 has become viable is the globally visible rise in India’s manufacturing ability.
- Consider the following examples.
1) PPE Kit manufacturing
- First, the success in PPE kits.
- At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, India was manufacturing zero PPE kits.
- India not just created an overnight world-class manufacturing capacity to meet its own needs but also started exporting PPE kits.
2) Vaccine Maitri
- Second, the soft power of Vaccine Maitri.
- The developed countries are scrambling to secure vaccines for their domestic population.
- India is not only vaccinating its own people faster than any other country but is also exporting millions of vaccines to countries in need.
- From Canada to Pakistan and from the Caribbean Islands to Brazil — Made in India vaccines have been a life vest across the globe.
3) India’s private industry
- Third, the enterprise of India’s private industry — a hallmark of the deepening manufacturing base.
- As a recent New York Times report noted, when it came to syringes — without which the vaccines were useless — the global scramble again led to Indian manufactures.
- Hindustan Syringes alone has ramped up its manufacturing capacity to almost 6,000 syringes a minute.
4) Precision high-end manufacturing
- The PLI scheme launched for electronics’ manufacturing evinced unprecedented global interest with 22 top companies, including the top manufactures for Apple and Samsung mobile phones.
- Over the next five years, a manufacturing capacity of over $150 billion and exports of $100 billion have been tied up through this scheme.
5) Figher plane manufacturing
- Fifth, the success of India’s fourth-generation fighter jet programme and the orders placed by the Indian Air Force for 83 Tejas jets.
- India’s success is one more milestone in its journey towards emerging as a global manufacturing destination.
Policy changes to make India manufacturing destination
- Concurrently, India has been reforming its economic policies to make it even more attractive as a manufacturing destination.
- India has the lowest tax rate anywhere in the world — 15 per cent for new manufacturing units.
- FDI norms have been relaxed across the board and automatic approval processes instituted for FDI even up to 100 per cent.
- Privatisation of PSUs is now an established process.
- Labour laws have been finally reformed and compliance burdens significantly eased.
- Taxation is now faceless, thus ending the spectre of rent-seeking.
- A well-functioning, world-class bankruptcy law is in place. Interest rates are low.
- And India’s digital infrastructure rivals the best in the world and in many cases beats it.
Consider the question “India’s growing prowess as the manufacturing hub could provide the Quad tactical basis by replacing China. Comment.“
Conclusion
The only arrow that was missing in the quiver of the Quad has now been attained. The strategic case for the Quad was never in doubt. The dependence on China’s factories is what kept the grouping of democracies from emerging. India has raised its hand to solve that problem.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Improving the colleges
The article highlights the important role students can play in improving the quality of colleges and institution in India.
Improving the colleges
- The global QS ranking is out and India has 12 universities and institutions in the top-100 in particular subjects.
- We have many colleges offering higher education but typically they are not very good.
- Today, with a huge number of students going to college, education is tied strongly to career prospects.
- If studying and thinking harder do not lead to even a decent chance of career improvement, it is natural for most students to lose academic ambition.
Career prospects in various colleges
- For admission in IIT, many work extremely hard to secure admission, but then lose motivation and drift towards near-certain graduation.
- IIT admission is a value signal to future employers who do not see much relevance in the actual syllabus.
- The entry wall is high, the exit wall is low, and the four-year syllabus is an obstacle course between the student and an employer with whom eye contact was made from atop the entry wall itself.
- Students of varied subjects thus remain uninterested in their core syllabi.
- Lower-ranked colleges may attract a slightly different mix of employment prospects, some in core areas.
- In many colleges, both good and bad ones, high grades correlate only loosely with career outcomes.
Improving the college
- Very few jobs actually require the highest quality education — the best academic and research jobs.
- In such a system, it may not be worthwhile or even practical for a mediocre college to unilaterally improve itself.
- Having improved, it remains to convince society that it deserves to displace the pre-eminent colleges at the top.
- For lower-ranking colleges to improve itself, its students must first see useful value in a better education.
- That requires system-wide growth in opportunity.
How to achieve system-wide growth in opportunity
- Such growth cannot be legislated from above. It must occur organically, from below.
- There are several stakeholders involved in such transition.
- 1) At the top are policymakers.
- Policymakers are trying and have achieved many things.
- In recent years, however, our demographics have caught up with us.
- We have more than 650 million people under age 25.
- No other country is close. We need more than policies.
- 2) Next is industry. It faces a learning curve for technology.
- Countries that wish to lead must develop their own technology, even at high cost.
- Indian industry can often choose between importing slightly older technology from outside or developing things in-house.
- A slow growth in the latter has begun and may pull our college system upward over time.
- 3) Our next stakeholders are college teachers.
- For a college to flourish, it needs many students who compete to enroll.
- Our entrance exams for good engineering colleges are hard.
- Our nationally renowned degree colleges which admit based on board marks are frequently forced to set very high cutoffs.
- The need for more engineering colleges, for many students who are clearly good enough, has led to the creation of several private colleges that teach well in large volumes.
- Quality of teachers’ is improving.
- College teachers improve as their employers aim higher, and as their students bring more into the classroom.
- 4) Finally, we have students. If students demand better instruction, colleges will sooner or later supply it.
Way forward for students
- Students must aim to relate their learning to society.
- They must see their learning not as an obstacle course but as an initiation into a process that yields tangible long-term value.
- Indian society does not merely have people looking for work.
- It also has work looking for people: Work in food, health, design, manufacturing, transport, safety, garbage, water, energy, farming, and a hundred other things that we can do better.
- Room for improvement is plentiful, though the market models may not be efficient or mature yet.
- The walls between our classrooms and our lives must be broken, if our colleges are to flourish.
- In recent decades, India has also attracted much work from overseas. Growth in that direction may well be sustained.
Consider the question “India has many colleges and institutions offering higher education but few could get the spot in the list of top global institutes. Examine the factors responsible for this. Suggest the measures to deal with this issue.”
Conclusion
Such change, driven by student aspirations, will be organic, bottom-up, and unstoppable.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Bamiyan Buddhas
Mains level: Spread and decline of Buddhism
Two decades later after its destruction, the Bamiyan Buddhas have been brought back to life in the form of 3D projections in an event called “A Night with Buddha”.
Bamiyan Buddhas
- In their Roman draperies and with two different mudras, the Bamiyan Buddhas were great examples of a confluence of Gupta, Sassanian and Hellenistic artistic styles.
- They are said to date back to the 5th century AD and were once the tallest standing Buddhas in the world.
- Salsal and Shamama, as they were called by the locals, rose to heights of 55 and 38 metres respectively, and were said to be male and female.
- Salsal means “the light shines through the universe”; Shamama is “Queen Mother”.
- The statues were set in niches on either end of a cliffside and hewn directly from the sandstone cliffs.
Try this PYQ from CSP 2014:
Q.Lord Buddha’s image is sometimes shown with a hand gesture called ‘Bhumisparsha Mudra’. It symbolizes-
a) Buddha’s calling of the Earth to watch over Mara and to prevent Mara from disturbing his meditation
b) Buddha’s calling of the Earth to witness his purity and chastity despite the temptations of Mara
c) Buddha’s reminder to his followers that they all arise from the Earth and finally dissolve into the Earth and thus this life is transitory
d) Both the statements ‘a’ and ‘b’ are correct in this context
The significance of Bamiyan
- Bamiyan is situated in the high mountains of the Hindu Kush in the central highlands of Afghanistan.
- The valley, which is set along the line of the Bamiyan River, was once integral to the early days of the Silk Roads, providing passage for not just merchants, but also culture, religion and language.
- When the Buddhist Kushan Empire spread, acting as a crucible of sorts, Bamiyan became a major trade, cultural and religious centre.
- As China, India and Rome sought passage through Bamiyan, the Kushans were able to develop a syncretic (mix) culture.
- In the rapid spread of Buddhism between the 1st to 5th centuries AD, Bamiyan’s landscape reflected the faith, especially its monastic qualities.
Taliban’s destruction of the Buddhas
- The hardline Taliban movement, which emerged in the early 1990s, was in control of almost 90 per cent of Afghanistan by the end of the decade.
- The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas was part of this extremist culture.
- In February 2001, the Taliban declared its intention to destroy the statues, despite condemnation and protest from governments and cultural ambassadors’ world over.
The aftermath of the destruction
- The Taliban’s destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas met with global criticism, many of whom saw it as a cultural crime not just against Afghanistan but also against the idea of global syncretism.
- Following the fall, UNESCO included the remains in its list of world heritage sites in 2003, with subsequent efforts made to restore and reconstruct.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Genome Mapping
Mains level: India's deep ocean mission
A team of scientists and researchers from the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) onboard its research vessel Sindhu Sadhana will work on a research project to reveal the internal working of the body of the ocean at a cellular level.
Genome Mapping of the Indian Ocean
- The first-of-its-kind research project in the country is aimed at understanding the biochemistry and the response of the ocean to climate change, nutrient stress and increasing pollution.
- The researchers will collect samples from various stretches of the ocean at an average depth of about 5 km.
- Just like gene mapping is carried out on blood samples collected from humans, the scientists will map these in the bacteria, microbes found in the ocean.
- The mapping of the Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and Ribonucleic acid (RNA) will show the nutrients present in them, and also those lacking in different parts of the ocean.
Objectives of the mission
- This project will help scientists understand the internal working of the ecosystem of the Indian Ocean.
- The research will enable scientists to identify the factors controlling the changes in RNA, DNA in the oceans, and various stressors impacting them.
- The ocean has several micronutrients like nitrates, sulphates and silicates, minerals like iron ore and zinc, and trace metals like cadmium or copper.
- The genome mapping will show the presence of which these microbes have adapted to, in addition to their reaction to atmospheric carbon dioxide.
- This will help in identifying which part of the ocean has a greater concentration of which mineral or element.
- Scientists will then use these as tracers to tackle the causative factors for excess or lack of a certain mineral or element and suggest possible solutions for their mitigation.
- In addition, the large pool of RNA, DNA library of the oceans will be utilized for using the Indian Ocean for human benefit in the future.
Studying the interactions of trace metals
- Trace metals are the metals subset of trace elements; that is, metals normally present in small but measurable amounts in animal and plant cells.
- Trace metals like cadmium or copper are supplied to oceans via continental run-offs, atmospheric deposition, hydrothermal activities and continental shelf interaction.
- They are essential for ocean productivity for having a holistic understanding of nutrient cycling and productivity of the oceans.
- Isotopic forms of trace metals can be utilized to track the movement of water masses responsible for ocean circulation and as tools to study the biological, geochemical and ecosystem processes and food web analyses.
Also read
https://www.civilsdaily.com/news/explained-indias-deep-ocean-mission/
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: LUPEX Mission
Mains level: Not Much
India and Japan are working together on a joint lunar polar exploration (LUPEX) mission that aims to send a lander and rover to the Moon’s the South Pole around 2024.
Try this PYQ from CSP 2020:
Q.The experiment will employ a trio of spacecraft flying in formation in the shape of an equilateral triangle that has sides one million km long, with lasers shining between the craft.” the experiment in the question refers to?
(a) Voyager-2
(b) New horizons
(c) LISA pathfinder
(d) Evolved LISA
LUPEX Mission
- The LUPEX is a robotic lunar mission concept by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).
- It would send a lunar rover and lander to explore the South Pole region of the Moon in 2024.
- JAXA is likely to provide the under-development H3 launch vehicle and the rover, while ISRO would be responsible for the lander.
- The mission concept has not yet been formally proposed for funding and planning.
- The Lunar Polar Exploration mission would demonstrate new surface exploration technologies related to vehicular transport and lunar night survival for sustainable lunar exploration in Polar Regions.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ONORC
Mains level: Welfare of the migrant workers
Seventeen (17) States have successfully operationalised the “One Nation One Ration Card system” with Uttarakhand being the latest State to complete the reform.
Practice question for mains:
The ‘One nation one ration card ‘scheme would bring perceptible changes to the lives of India’s internal migrant workers. Comment.
One Nation One Ration Card
- This scheme aims to ensure all beneficiaries, especially migrants get ration (wheat, rice and other food grains) across the nation from any Public Distribution System (PDS) shop of their own choice.
- Under the existing system, a ration cardholder can buy food grains only from the fair price shop (FPS) in the locality where he or she lives.
- It was also launched with the purpose that no poor person should be deprived of getting subsidised food grains under the food security scheme when they shift from one place to another.
- It aims to reduce instances of corruption by middlemen and fraudulence in ration cards to avail benefits from different states.
Who is eligible under this scheme?
- Any citizen, who is declared under the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category, will be eligible to get the benefit of this scheme across the country.
- The beneficiaries will be identified on the basis of their Aadhar based identification through the electronic point of sale (PoS) device.
- All the PDS shops will have the facility of electronic PoS devices.
Impact on states
- The reform enables the States to better targeting of beneficiaries, elimination bogus/ duplicate/ineligible cardholders resulting in enhanced welfare and reduced leakage.
- An additional borrowing limit of 0.25 per cent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) is allowed to the States only on completion of both of the following actions:
- Aadhar Seeding of all the ration cards and beneficiaries in the State
- Automation of all the FPSs in the State.
Back2Basics: Public distribution system (PDS)
- The public distribution system (PDS) is an Indian food Security System established under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution.
- PDS evolved as a system of management of scarcity through the distribution of food grains at affordable prices.
- PDS is operated under the joint responsibility of the Central and the State Governments.
- The Central Government, through the Food Corporation of India (FCI), has assumed the responsibility for procurement, storage, transportation and bulk allocation of food grains to the State Governments.
- The operational responsibilities including allocation within the State, identification of eligible families, issue of Ration Cards and supervision of the functioning of FPSs etc., rest with the State Governments.
- Under the PDS, presently the commodities namely wheat, rice, sugar and kerosene are being allocated to the States/UTs for distribution.
- Some states/UTs also distribute additional items of mass consumption through PDS outlets such as pulses, edible oils, iodized salt, spices, etc.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NFSA 2013
Mains level: Paper 3- Reforming the PDS
The article highlights the factors governing the food subsidy bill and suggests ways to reduce it.
Growing food subsidy bill
- The Economic Survey, tabled in Parliament in January, rightly flagged the issue of a growing food subsidy bill.
- During 2016-17 to 2019-20, the subsidy amount, clubbed with loans taken by the Food Corporation of India (FCI) under the National Small Savings Fund (NSSF) towards food subsidy, was in the range of ₹1.65-lakh crore to ₹2.2-lakh crore.
- In future, the annual subsidy bill of the Centre is expected to be about ₹2.5-lakh crore.
- During the three years, the quantity of food grains drawn by States (annually) hovered around 60 million tonnes to 66 million tonnes.
- The National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013, covered two-thirds of the country’s population, this naturally pushed up the States’ drawal.
- Based on an improved version of the targeted Public Distribution System (PDS), the law requires the authorities to provide to each beneficiary 5 kg of rice or wheat per month.
How politics influenced the issue price
- Economic Survey has hinted at an increase in the Central Issue Price (CIP).
- Central Issue Price has remained at ₹2 per kg for wheat and ₹3 per kg for rice for years, though the NFSA, even in 2013, envisaged a price revision after three years.
- What makes the subject more complex is the variation in the retail issue prices of rice and wheat, from nil in States such as Karnataka and West Bengal for Priority Households (PHH) and Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) ration card holders.
- In Tamil Nadu, rice is given free of cost for all categories; this includes non-PHH.
- A mere increase in the CIPs of rice and wheat without a corresponding rise in the issue prices by the State governments would only increase the burden of States.
- Political compulsions are perceived to be coming in the way of the Centre and the States increasing the prices.
Relook at food subsidy system
- An official committee in January 2015 called for decreasing the quantum of coverage under the law, from the present 67% to around 40%.
- For all ration cardholders drawing food grains, a “give-up” option, as done in the case of cooking gas cylinders, can be made available.
- Even though States have been allowed to frame criteria for the identification of PHH cardholders, the Centre can nudge states into pruning the number of such beneficiaries.
- As for the prices, the existing arrangement of flat rates should be replaced with a slab system.
- Barring the needy, other beneficiaries can be made to pay a little more for a higher quantum of food grains.
Consider the question “There is a pressing need for revamping the food subsidy system. In light of this, suggest the measures to improve the system.”
Conclusion
These measures, if properly implemented, can have a salutary effect on retail prices in the open market. A revamped, need-based PDS is required not just for cutting down the subsidy bill but also for reducing the scope for leakages. Political will should not be found wanting.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Section 69A of IT Act
Mains level: Paper 2- Issues with the IT Rules 2021
The article argues that IT Rules 2021 far exceeds the rulemaking power granted under Section 69A of the IT Act.
Censoring online video streaming
- Online video streaming platforms have marked a new dawn for the Indian entertainment industry.
- The spectre of government regulation and criminalisation haunts this fledgling industry.
- There have been various efforts to censor online video streaming platforms by petitioning the courts for a long time.
- At least 23 petitions were being heard by different high courts on the issue of regulation of online video streaming platforms.
- The grievances range from wounded religious sentiments to moral outrage against depictions of sexuality but the common thread that unites them is a desire to control what other citizens may watch in the privacy of their homes.
- In addition to petitions seeking heavy-handed regulation, criminal proceedings have been initiated against employees of companies like Netflix and Amazon Prime.
- While such FIRs may be in the context of specific films or shows, they cause substantial harassment and threaten the personal liberty of content creators and company executives.
IT Rules 2021 exceeds the rulemaking power under Section 69A of IT Act
- The imposition of any kind of criminal liability under the IT Rules 2021 would far exceed the central government’s rule-making power under Section 69A of the IT Act.
- The existing three-tier regulatory mechanism and content classification system prescribed under the rules are also unconstitutional for the same reason.
- The following three issues need to be considered while considering the IT Rules 2021.
- First, the powers under Section 69A can be exercised only in the interest of the sovereignty, defence, security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States or public order or for preventing incitement etc.
- The implication is that the powers under Section 69A cannot be used to regulate online content which may be obscene or sexually explicit.
- Second, Section 69A states that the central government may direct “any agency of the Government or intermediary” to block access to online content but online video streaming platforms do not fall into either of these two categories.
- Companies like Netflix and Amazon Prime commission or license the films and shows available on their platforms, and they are not an “intermediary” under the IT Act.
- Third, Section 69A only grants the central government the power to “block for access by the public or cause to be blocked for access by the public any information generated, transmitted, received, stored or hosted in any computer resource.”
- However, the range of powers granted under the IT Rules 2021 is much broader and includes requiring an apology or disclaimer, re-classification of content and deletion or modification of content.
- As a result, the IT Rules 2021 significantly expand the scope of powers available under Section 69A.
Issues with the three-tier regulatory framework
- The three-tier regulatory framework created under the rules suffers from the substantive problem of lack of independence.
- The third tier, which is the Inter-Departmental Committee, comprises entirely of bureaucrats and there is no guaranteed representation from the judiciary or civil society.
- The Review Committee constituted under Rule 419A of the Indian Telegraph Rules, 1951 also solely consists of officials belonging to the executive branch.
Way forward
- The solution is to start afresh with publication of a white paper which clearly outlines the harms that are sought to be addressed through regulation of online video streaming platforms and meaningful public consultation which is not limited to industry representatives.
- If regulation is still deemed to be necessary, then it must be implemented through legislation that is debated in Parliament instead of relying upon Section 69A of the IT Act.
Consider the question “The IT Rules 2021 have been criticised for exceeding the rulemaking power under Section 69A of the IT Act. Examine the scope of the criticism.”
Conclusion
Many of the changes that the central government seeks to implement through the IT Rules 2021 may be well-intentioned and desirable. However, constitutional due process cannot be sacrificed at the altar of expediency
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: FPOs
Mains level: Paper 3- Improving FPOs
The article analyses the role farmers produce organisations (FPOs) can play in improving the bargaining power of the small farmers and also suggest ways to improve FPOs.
Declining size of farm holdings
- The average farm size in India declined from 2.3 hectares (ha) in 1970-71 to 1.08 ha in 2015-16.
- The share of small and marginal farmers increased from 70 per cent in 1980-81 to 86 per cent in 2015-16.
- At the state level, the average size of farm holdings in 2015-16 ranged from 3.62 ha in Punjab, 2.73 in Rajasthan and 2.22 in Haryana to 0.75 in Tamil Nadu, 0.73 in Uttar Pradesh, 0.39 in Bihar and 0.18 in Kerala.
Encouraging FPOs to help small farmers
- Small farmers face several challenges in getting access to inputs and marketing facilities.
- In the last decade, the Centre has encouraged farmer producer organisations (FPOs) to help farmers.
- Since 2011, it has intensively promoted FPOs under the Small Farmers’ Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC), NABARD, state governments and NGOs.
- The membership of an FPO ranges from 100 to over 1,000 farmers.
- The ongoing support for FPOs is mainly in the following two forms:
- 1) A grant of matching equity (cash infusion of up to Rs 10 lakh) to registered FPOs.
- 2) A credit guarantee cover to lending institutions (maximum guarantee cover 85 per cent of loans not exceeding Rs 100 lakh).
- The budget for 2018-19 announced supporting measures for FPOs including a five-year tax exemption.
- The budget for 2019-20 talked of setting up 10,000 more FPOs in the next five years.
- Some studies show that we need more than one lakh FPOs for a large country like India while we currently have less than 10,000.
Looking at the performance of FPOs in last decade
- Experience shows a mixed performance of FPOs in the last decade.
- Some estimates show that 30 per cent of these are operating viably while 20 per cent are struggling to survive.
- The remaining 50 per cent are still in the initial phase of mobilisation and business planning.
- NABARD has undertaken a field study on the benefits of FPOs in Punjab and Madhya Pradesh.
- The study shows that in nascent FPOs, the proportion of farmer members contributing to FPOs activities is 20-30 per cent while for the emerging and mature FPOs it is higher at about 40-50 per cent.
- A study by International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) has undertaken a comparative study of FPOs in Maharashtra and Bihar.
- In Maharashtra, some of the FPOs have organically evolved (OFPOs) when farmers have taken the lead to adopt market-oriented practices, develop cost-effective solutions in production and marketing.
- In the case of Bihar, almost all FPOs have been promoted (PFPOs).
Challenges
- Studies of NABARD show that there are some important challenges for building sustainable FPOs.
- Some of these are lack of technical skills, inadequate professional management, weak financials, inadequate access to credit, lack of risk mitigation mechanism and inadequate access to market and infrastructure.
Focusing on 3 issues for the improvement of FPOs
1) Getting credit
- Issues such as working capital, marketing, infrastructure have to be addressed while scaling up FPOs.
- Banks must have structured products for lending to FPOs.
- These organisations lack professional management and, therefore, need capacity building.
2) Linking with input companies
- FPOs have to be linked with input companies, technical service providers, marketing/processing companies, retailers etc.
- They need a lot of data on markets and prices and other information and competency in information technology.
3) Augmenting the size of land
- The FPOs can be used to augment the size of the land by focusing on grouping contiguous tracts of land as far as possible — they should not be a mere grouping of individuals.
- Women farmers also can be encouraged to group cultivate for getting better returns.
- FPOs can also encourage consolidation of holdings.
Consider the question “How FPOs can play an important part in helping the small farmers by improving their bargaining power? What are the challenges faced by the FPOs?”
Conclusion
The FPOs have to be encouraged by policy makers and other stakeholders apart from scaling up throughout the country to benefit particularly the small holders.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Afghan peace process
The Joe Biden administration has proposed a new peace plan to the Afghan government and the Taliban, seeking to bring violence to a halt and form an interim government.
What is Biden’s proposal?
- The US has asked the Afghan President to show “urgent leadership in the coming weeks”.
The proposal included many elements.
- It has proposed an UN-led conference of representatives of Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, India and the US to discuss a unified approach to support peace in Afghanistan.
- It urges both sides including the Taliban to reach a consensus on Afghanistan’s future constitutional and governing arrangements.
- It asks to find a road map to a new “inclusive government”; and agree on the terms of a “permanent and comprehensive ceasefire”.
Why the US is making this peace push?
- The US has pointed out that accelerating the peace process is the best way to advance the shared interests of the US and the Afghan government.
- According to the agreement the U.S. signed with the Taliban in February 2020, American troops – currently some 2,500 troops are in Afghanistan – are set to vacate by May 1.
- The Taliban and the Afghan government started peace talks in Doha in September last year but reached no breakthrough.
- The Biden administration is concerned about the slow pace of the talks.
Why is the US delaying troops withdrawal?
- The US assessment is that if American troops are pulled out of Afghanistan, the Taliban would make quick gains.
- So, the Biden administration’s believes that the Taliban are on the ascent.
- It hopes that the best way to prevent a complete Taliban takeover is a regional peace process and an interim unity government.
- The Taliban are yet to respond to America’s proposal.
What is the Afghan government’s stand?
- The Ghani administration has consistently been critical of the US’s direct outreach to the Taliban.
- The Trump administration held direct talks with the Taliban, excluding the government.
- Later, Washington put pressure on Kabul to release Taliban prisoners as part of an agreement it reached with the insurgents.
- Even when the Doha talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government were underway, Mr Ghani made it clear that he, as elected President, is the only legitimate representative of the Afghan people.
- He resisted making concessions to the Taliban.
India’s position in the process
- Since the Afghan peace process began two years ago, India’s role in it has been peripheral at best.
- Our EAM has iterated India’s long-held support for an “Afghan-led, Afghan-owned, and Afghan-controlled” peace process.
What lies ahead
- While the Afghan government’s opposition to sharing power with the Taliban is well known, it is not clear whether Mr Ghani could continue to resist American pressure.
- And if the Biden administration decides to stick to the Taliban deal and withdraw troops by May, Mr Ghani would be in a tougher spot.
- The people of Afghanistan do not have any good options. If Ghani rejects the American offer, the war will continue forever.
- The Taliban have already taken over much of the country’s hinterlands and are breathing down the neck of its cities.
- Either way, the Taliban are set to make gains.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Motion of No-Confidence, FLoor Test
Mains level: Motion of No-Confidence
The no-confidence motion moved against the coalition government in Haryana was defeated.
Motion of No-Confidence
- If the government has to demonstrate its strength on the floor of the House, it can have a motion of confidence.
- However, the opposition parties (or any member) can move a motion expressing want of confidence (no confidence) in the Council of Ministers.
- The procedure is laid down under Rule 198 of the rules of procedure and conduct of the business of the Lok Sabha.
- A no-confidence motion need not set out any grounds on which it is based.
- Even when grounds are mentioned in the notice and read out in the House, they do not form part of the no-confidence motion.
Try this PYQ:
Consider the following statements regarding a No-Confidence Motion in India:
- There is no mention of a No-Confidence Motion in the Constitution of India.
- A Motion of No-Confidence can be introduced in the Lok Sabha only.
Which of the statements given above is / are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Its procedure
- A no-confidence motion can be moved by any member of the House.
- It can be moved only in the Lok Sabha and not Rajya Sabha.
- Rule 198 of the Rules of Procedure and conduct of Lok Sabha specifies the procedure for moving a no-confidence motion.
- The member has to give written notice of the motion before 10 am which will be read out by the Speaker in the House.
- A minimum of 50 members have to accept the motion and accordingly, the Speaker will announce the date for discussion for the motion.
- The allotted date has to be within 10 days from the day the motion is accepted. Otherwise, the motion fails and the member who moved the motion will be informed about it.
- If the government is not able to prove its majority in the House, then the government of the day has to resign.
How is the voting done?
These are the modes by which voting can be conducted:
- Voice vote: In a voice vote, the legislators respond orally.
- Division vote: In case of a division vote, voting is done using electronic gadgets, slips or in a ballot box.
- Ballot vote: The ballot box is usually a secret vote – just like how people vote during state or parliamentary elections.
What happens if there is a tie?
- Following the vote, the person who has the majority will be allowed to form the government.
- In case there is a tie, the speaker can cast his vote.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: New IT Rules
Mains level: Free speech related issues
The Kerala High Court has restrained the Centre from taking coercive action against a legal news portal, for any non-compliance with Part III of the new IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
What was the petition?
Three-tier mechanism
- The petition said Part III of the rules imposed unconstitutional three-tier complaints and adjudication structure on publishers.
- This administrative regulation on digital news media would make it virtually impossible for small or medium-sized publishers, such as the petitioner, to function.
- It would have a chilling effect on such entities, the petition said.
- The creation of a grievance redressal mechanism, through a governmental oversight body (an inter-departmental committee constituted under Rule 14) amounted to excessive regulation, the petitioner contended.
Violation of free speech
- The petitioner pointed out that Rule 4(2), which makes it mandatory for every social media intermediary to enable tracing of originators of information on its platform, violated Article 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech and expression).
- It also deprived the intermediaries of their “safe-harbour protection” under Section 79 of the IT Act.
Violation of Right to Privacy
- The rules obligate messaging intermediaries to alter their infrastructure to “fingerprint” each message on a mass scale for every user to trace the first originator.
- This was violative of the fundamental right of Internet users to privacy.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: INS Karanj, Various classes of Submarines
Mains level: NA
Indian Navy’s third stealth Scorpene-class Submarine INS Karanj has been commissioned into the Indian Navy. It also completed the trials of the Indigenous Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) System jointly developed by Naval Materials Research Laboratory (NMRL) and DRDO.
In a rare case, we would see a question based on various classes of Indian Submarines in the CSP. However, we can expect a question based on the AIP system in the CSP and CAPF exam.
INS Karanj
- INS Karanj is the third submarine of the first batch of six Kalvari-class submarines for the Indian Navy.
- It is a diesel-electric attack submarine based on the Scorpene-class, designed by French naval defence and energy group DCNS and manufactured by Mazagon Dock Limited, an Indian shipyard in Mumbai.
What is AIP?
For this, we have to understand how a submarine works. Traditionally we hear about two types of submarines- Nuclear and Diesel Electric.
Diesel Electric Submarines
- While Nuclear Submarines can stay submerged for a prolonged period and remain undetected, Diesel Electric submarines cannot do so, and they must surface after a stipulated time interval.
- Their Diesel Propulsion would need air to run the engine like any other Vehicle or Aircraft engines and for this, they would need oxygen which is not available underwater.
- Hence they have to move closer to the surface so that their engines can breathe air through their snorkels.
So, these diesel turbines charge the batteries available in the submarine and once the batteries are fully charged, the submarine goes underwater where the propeller shaft, as well as other systems, runs on the power stored in the batteries.
- This makes the Submarine very much vulnerable to threats from Air, Sea or even underwater.
- Not only has this, but the storage of excessive fuel also reduced the overall performance and weapon holding of the submarine too.
Why don’t we can induct only the Nuclear Submarines in the Navy?
- Though nuclear submarines can stay underwater for months, they cannot do so with total stealth.
- While a diesel-electric submarine (while underwater) is making no noise, Nuclear submarines have a lot of vibrations that are generated from the coolant pumping system of their reactors which must run nonstop.
- This makes even nuclear submarines vulnerable to depth sonars.
- Moreover, the manufacturing cost of these submarines is several times higher than those of diesel-electric ones.
- So, the most effective and commercially viable solution is a diesel-electric submarine with AIP.
What is AIP, then?
- Over the years the biggest challenge before the mariners was to ensure that the submarines can sustain underwater for a prolonged time.
- AIP is any marine propulsion technology that allows a non-nuclear submarine to operate without access to atmospheric oxygen (by surfacing or using a snorkel).
- While there are different types of AIP systems being pursued internationally, the DRDO has applied fuel cell-based AIP using hydrogen onboard.
- Fuel cell-based AIP has merits in performance compared to other technologies
- While the first two submarines (INS Kalvari & INS Khanderi) are equipped with French-made AIPs, the rest of the submarines will be equipped with an Indian system.
Note: The Project 75I-class submarine is a follow-on of the Project 75 Kalvari-class submarine for the Indian Navy.
Significance for India
- With this induction, India has joined the club of six other elites who have the capacity to design and install such complex systems.
- These countries are France, China, Spain, Sweden, Germany and Russia.
- Indian AIP system is unique. It is one of the most advanced AIP systems of the world where Fuel Cell technology is used to generate onboard power.
- With indigenous AIP, submarines can stay underwater for more than 3 weeks in low consumption mode, more than 2 weeks in endurance mode and 2-4 days in max power mode.
Back2Basics: Various classes of Submarines in India
In maritime terms, a class of ships is a group of vessels that have the same make, purpose and displacement.
- Chakra Class: Under a 10-year lease from Russia since 2012
- Arihant Class: Nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines
- Shishumar Class: Diesel-electric attack submarines Indian variant of the Type 209 submarines developed by the German Navy
- Kalvari Class: Diesel-electric attack submarines designed by French company DCNS
- Sindhughosh Class: Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines built with the help of Russia
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ramagundam Solar Plant
Mains level: Not Much
The country’s biggest floating solar power plant, by generation capacity at Ramagundam in Peddapalli district of Telangana is set to be commissioned by May-June.
Try this PYQ:
With reference to technologies for solar power production, consider the following statements :
- ‘Photovoltaics’ is a technology that generates electricity by direct conversion of light into electricity, while ‘Solar Thermal’ is a technology that utilizes the Sun’s rays to generate heat which is further used in electricity generation process.
- Photovoltaics generate Alternating Current (AC), while Solar Thermal generates Direct Current (DC).
- India has manufacturing base for Solar Thermal technology, but not for Photovoltaics.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1, 2 and 3
(d) None
Ramagundam Solar Plant
- It would be one of the renewable (solar) energy plants being developed by NTPC with an installed capacity of 447MW in the Southern Region and the entire capacity would be commissioned by March 2023.
- It will be spread over 450 acres of water surface area in the reservoir.
- It will be the single location largest floating solar plant in the country as of now; 92 MW floating unit at Kayamkulam gas plant in Kerala and a 25 MW unit at Simhadri power plant.
- In addition, we are setting up a 230 MW ground-mounted solar power plant in Ettayapuram near Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu
Why floating solar?
- One of the biggest advantages of floating solar panels is that the installations do not require valuable land space.
- Many of these installations can take up unused space on bodies of water, such as hydroelectric dam reservoirs, wastewater treatment ponds, or drinking water reservoirs.
- Additionally, installing solar panels out on open water reduces the need for tree removal and forest clearing, a practice used in the case of some larger solar panel installations.
- The bodies of water that host floating solar arrays help cool down the solar equipment, which means the panels produce electricity at higher efficiencies in hot climates than they might otherwise.
- The floating solar panel structure shades the body of water and reduces evaporation from these ponds, reservoirs, and lakes.
- This is a particularly useful benefit in areas susceptible to drought, as water loss to evaporation can add up over time and contribute to a shortage.
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