Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: International Cyber Engagement Strategy
Mains level: Paper 2- India-Australia relations
Context
Western and media attention may be focused on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, but countries have not taken their eye off the Indo-Pacific where there is clear evidence of the changing world order.
India and Australia faces a common threat to cyber security
- The India-Australia ECTA is a concrete example of the bilateral faith in common values, and understanding of threats and goals.
- A reflection of this is cooperation in cyber security.
- China is accused of having amassed a large number of cyber weapons and has allegedly carried out sophisticated operations aimed at espionage, theft of intellectual property, and destructive attacks on internet resources of some countries.
- Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups: Australia and India have been at the receiving end of several such campaigns by the so-called Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups, supported by or assumed to be located in China.
Steps toward cooperation in cyber security
- At the June 2020 virtual bilateral summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison elevated the bilateral relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
- New cyber security framework: The new cyber framework includes a five-year plan to work together on the digital economy, cybersecurity and critical and emerging technologies.
- Bilateral research: This will be supported by a $9.7 million fund for bilateral research to improve regional cyber resilience.
- An annual Cyber Policy Dialogue, a new Joint Working Group on Cyber Security Cooperation and a joint working group on ICTs have been established.
- An annual India-Australia Foreign Ministers Cyber Framework Dialogue will be held.
- India to be part of International Cyber Engagement Strategy: India will now be included in a core Australian initiative called the International Cyber Engagement Strategy — it began in 2017 to actively conduct capacity-building arrangements in Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand, and support similar activities in Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia.
- A joint Centre of Excellence for Critical and Emerging Technology Policy, to be located in Bengaluru, will be set up.
Steps taken by India to improve cyber security
- India has set up the office of the National Cybersecurity Coordinator, a national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-IN), a national Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Agency (NCIIPC), and made appropriate amendments to the Information Technology Act and Rules to enhance its cyber security posture.
- This has upped India’s rank to 10th in the Global Cyber Security Index (GCI) 2020, from 47th just two years earlier.
- India has capable cybersecurity professionals.
Conclusion
Deepening cooperation can develop avenues for mutual learning and create complementary markets in cyber tools and technologies, boosting bilateral business and strategic commitments on both continents.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Importance of Mission Antyodaya
Context
This article argues that given the right momentum, the ‘Mission Antyodaya’ project bears great promise to eradicate poverty in its multiple dimensions among rural households.
Background of Mission Antyodaya
- The ‘Mission Antyodaya’ project was launched by the Government of India in 2017-18.
- The Ministry of Panchayati Raj and the Ministry of Rural Development act as the nodal agents to take the mission forward.
- Key goals: The main objective of ‘Mission Antyodaya’ is to ensure optimum use of resources through the convergence of various schemes that address multiple deprivations of poverty, making gram panchayat the hub of a development plan.
- Annual survey: This planning process is supported by an annual survey that helps to assess the various development gaps at the gram panchayat level, by collecting data regarding the 29 subjects assigned to panchayats by the Eleventh Schedule of the Constitution.
- Also, data regarding health and nutrition, social security, good governance, water management and so on are also collected.
- The idea of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj to identify the gaps in basic needs at the local level, and integrating resources of various schemes, self-help groups, voluntary organisations and so on to finance them needs coordination and capacity-building of a high order.
- If pursued in a genuine manner, this can foster economic development and inter-jurisdictional equity.
Infrastructural gaps as pointed out by the Mission Antyodaya Survey
- The ‘Mission Antyodaya’ survey in 2019-20 for the first time collected data that shed light on the infrastructural gaps from 2.67 lakh gram panchayats, comprising 6.48 lakh villages with 1.03 billion population.
- The maximum score values assigned will add up to 100 and are presented in class intervals of 10.
- While no State in India falls in the top score bracket of 90 to 100, 1,484 gram panchayats fall in the bottom bracket.
- Even in the score range of 80 to 90, 10 States and all Union Territories do not appear.
- The total number of gram panchayats for all the 18 States that have reported adds up only to 260, constituting only 0.10% of the total 2,67,466 gram panchayats in the country.
- If we consider a score range of 70-80 as a respectable attainment level, Kerala tops but accounts for only 34.69% of gram panchayats of the State, the corresponding all-India average is as low as 1.09%.
- The composite index data, a sort of surrogate for human development, are also not encouraging.
- Although only 15 gram panchayats in the country fall in the bottom range below 10 scores, more than a fifth of gram panchayats in India are below the 40 range.
- The gap report and the composite index show in unmistakable terms that building ‘economic development and social justice’ remains a distant goal even after 30 years of the decentralisation reforms and nearly 75 years into Independence.
Way forward
- Converge resources: Given the ‘saturation approach’ (100% targets on select items) of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, the possibilities of realising universal primary health care, literacy, drinking water supply and the like are also immense.
- But there is no serious effort to converge resources (the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the National Rural Livelihood Mission, National Social Assistance Programme, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, etc.) and save administrative expenses.
- Deploy the data to India’s fiscal federalism: Another lapse is the failure to deploy the data to India’s fiscal federalism, particularly to improve the transfer system and horizontal equity in the delivery of public goods in India at the sub-State level.
- The constitutional goal of planning and implementing economic development and social justice can be achieved only through strong policy interventions.
Conclusion
The policy history of India has been witness to the phenomenon of announcing big projects and failing to take them to their logical consequence. ‘Mission Antyodaya’ is a striking case in recent times.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: 91st Amendment
Mains level: Read the attached story
Recently a politician in Goa was accorded the lifetime status of the rank of Cabinet Minister who was, a six-time Chief Minister of Goa and a legislator for a full 50 years. Hence a PIL has been filed in the High Court of Bombay at Goa.
What is the “Lifetime Status of the rank of Cabinet minister”?
- The former Chief Minister and former Speaker (of the Goa Legislative Assembly) had completed 50 years as a legislator.
- The Cabinet decided that in future also, those who complete 50 years and hold posts like CM and Speaker will be given the Cabinet status even after their retirement.
What is the PIL against this designation?
- The PIL has urged the High Court to quash the notification of the government under which the person was conferred with the “lifetime status”.
- It has contended that Goa has a 12-member Cabinet, and the conferment of Cabinet status results in the number of Cabinet ranks rising to 13, which exceeds the ceiling mandated by the Constitution.
- This ceiling was mandated by the 91st Amendment which aimed to prevent jumbo Cabinets and the resultant drain on the public exchequer.
How the 91st Amendment Act does relates here?
- The Constitution (91st Amendment) Act, 2003 inserted clause 1A in Article 164.
- It says the total number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in the Council of Ministers in a State shall not exceed 15% of the total number of members of the Legislative Assembly of that State.
- It provided a condition that the number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister in a State shall not be less than twelve.
- There are 40 seats in the unicameral Goa Assembly.
Why is the designation problematic?
- A cabinet minister for life would be entitled to 12 staff members – OSDs, support staff, peons, driver – which would cost the exchequer Rs 90 lakh a year.
- The ‘Cabinet’ rank would also entitle him to government accommodation, vehicle and unlimited free travel for him and his spouse.
- This is just none other case but political self-appeasement.
Back2Basics: 91st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003
- It made the provisions to limit the size of Council of Ministers, to debar defectors from holding public offices, and to strengthen the anti-defection law.
- The total number of ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Central Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha.
- A member of either house of Parliament belonging to any political party who is disqualified on the ground of defection shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a minister.
- The total number of ministers, including the Chief Minister, in the Council of Ministers in a state shall not exceed 15% of the total strength of the legislative Assembly of that state.
- But, the number of ministers, including the Chief Minister, in a state shall not be less than 12.
- A member of either House of a state legislature belonging to any political party who is disqualified on the ground of defection shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a minister.
- The provision of the Tenth Schedule (anti-defection law) pertaining to exemption from disqualification in case of split by one-third members of legislature party has been deleted.
- It means that the defectors have no more protection on grounds of splits.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: US's Anti-India lobby
In its 2022 Annual report, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended that India be designated a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ (CPC).
What is the USCIRF and how is it constituted?
- The USCIRF is an independent, bipartisan body created by the International Religious Freedom Act, 1998 (IRFA) of the US.
- It has a mandate to monitor religious freedom violations globally and make policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and the Congress.
- It is a congressionally created entity and not an NGO or advocacy organisation.
- It is led by nine part-time commissioners appointed by the President and the leadership of both political parties in the House and the Senate.
Why in news now?
- USCIRF wants India to be designated under the CPC category of governments performing most poorly on religious freedom criteria.
- It has called for “targeted sanctions” on individuals and entities responsible for severe violations of religious freedom by freezing those individuals’ or entities’ assets and/or barring their entry” into the US.
What does a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ (CPC) designation mean?
- IRFA requires the USCIRF to annually identify countries that merit a CPC designation.
- As per IRFA, CPCs are countries whose governments either engage in or tolerate “particularly severe violations” of religious freedom.
- Such freedoms are defined as systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of the internationally recognized right to freedom of religion.
- The other designation, for less serious violations, is Special Watch List (SWL)
Which other countries have been designated as CPCs?
- For 2022, based on religious freedom conditions in 2021, a total of 15 countries have been recommended for the CPC designation.
- They include India, Pakistan, Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Syria and Vietnam.
- Countries recommended for a SWL designation include Algeria, Cuba, Nicaragua, Azerbaijan, Central African Republic, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.
Why does USCIRF want India to be designated as a CPC?
- The USCIRF, in its annual report, states that in 2021, religious freedom conditions in India significantly worsened.
- It has noted that the Indian government escalated its promotion and enforcement of policies —including those promoting a Hindu-nationalist agenda.
- This negatively affects Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, and other religious minorities.
- It highlighted the use of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against those documenting religious persecution and violence.
- It also criticised the spate of fresh anti-conversion legislations, noting that “national, State and local governments demonised and attacked the conversion of Hindus to Christianity or Islam.”
Are USCIRF recommendations binding on the US government?
- No, they are not. The USCIRF typically recommends more countries for a CPC label than the State Department will designate.
- This happens because the USCIRF is concerned solely with the state of religious freedom when it makes a recommendation.
- However, the US State Department also takes into account other diplomatic, bilateral and strategic concerns before making a decision on a CPC designation.
Is this the first time India is being designated as a CPC by the USCIRF? What has been India’s reaction?
- This is the third year in a row that India has received a CPC recommendation.
- India has in the past pushed back against the grading, questioning the locus standi of USCIRF.
- In 2020, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar called the Commission an “Organisation of Particular Concern.”
- US needs to introspect itself on the HR violations by the state authorities on the basis of racism, ethnocentrism and religion (particularly Sikhs).
What is the likely impact of the USCIRF’s recommendation?
- The US State Department hasn’t acted on such recommendations so far.
- But India may come under greater pressure this time, given its divergence from the American position on the Ukraine war and refusal to endorse US-backed resolutions against Russia at the UN.
- Hence the USCIRF is another force of Anti-India lobby in the US to bully other nations by countering an accusation with another.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UNSC, Veto
Mains level: Veto Power
The 193 members of the United Nations General Assembly adopted by consensus a resolution requiring the five permanent members of the Security Council to justify their use of the veto.
Why such move?
- The push for reform was driven by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
- The measure is intended to make veto-holders United States, China, Russia, France and Britain “pay a higher political price” when they use the veto to strike down a Security Council resolution.
- For years Russia (and the US) has used its veto power to block UNSC resolutions — which, unlike General Assembly resolutions, are enforceable under international law.
What is the Veto Power at the UN?
- The UN Security Council veto power is the power of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council to veto any “substantive” resolution.
- They also happen to be the nuclear-weapon states (NWS) under the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
- However, a permanent member’s abstention or absence does not prevent a draft resolution from being adopted.
- This veto power does not apply to “procedural” votes, as determined by the permanent members themselves.
- A permanent member can also block the selection of a Secretary-General, although a formal veto is unnecessary since the vote is taken behind closed doors.
Issues with Veto Power
- The veto power is controversial. Supporters regard it as a promoter of international stability, a check against military interventions, and a critical safeguard against US domination.
- Critics say that the veto is the most undemocratic element of the UN, as well as the main cause of inaction on war crimes and crimes against humanity.
- It effectively prevents UN action against the permanent members and their allies.
Back2Basics: United Nations Security Council
- The UNSC is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security.
- Its powers include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of international sanctions, and the authorization of military action through Security Council resolutions.
- It is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions to member states.
- The Security Council consists of fifteen members. Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, and the United States—serve as the body’s five permanent members.
- These permanent members can veto any substantive Security Council resolution, including those on the admission of new member states or candidates for Secretary-General.
- The Security Council also has 10 non-permanent members, elected on a regional basis to serve two-year terms. The body’s presidency rotates monthly among its members.
Also read
Explained: India at United Nations Security Council
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Indirect Taxes
Mains level: Recovery of the economy after the Pandemic
India’s net direct tax collections amounted to ₹14,09,640.83 crore for FY22, which is the highest collection ever.
What are Direct Taxes?
- A type of tax where the impact and the incidence fall under the same category can be defined as a Direct Tax.
- The tax is paid directly by the organization or an individual to the entity that has imposed the payment.
- The tax must be paid directly to the government and cannot be paid to anyone else.
Why in news?
- The surge in direct tax collection signals that the Indian economy has bounced back after two years of the pandemic.
Rise in direct tax collection
- As against ₹14.09 lakh crore this year, our collection in 2020-21 was only ₹9.45 lakh crore.
- In a single year, the economy has moved upward by nearly ₹4.5 lakh crore, registering a growth of 49%.
- The collection is the best-ever as far as income tax and corporation tax are concerned.
What about direct tax-to-GDP ratio?
- The direct tax-to-GDP ratio is around 12%.
- The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) was working to raise the ratio to 15-20% in 5-10 years.
Why is it significant?
- A tax-to-GDP ratio is a gauge of a nation’s tax revenue relative to the size of its economy as measured by gross domestic product (GDP).
- The ratio provides a useful look at a country’s tax revenue because it reveals potential taxation relative to the economy.
- It also enables a view of the overall direction of a nation’s tax policy, as well as international comparisons between the tax revenues of different countries.
Back2Basics: Types of Direct Taxes
The various types of direct tax that are imposed in India are mentioned below:
(1) Income Tax
- Depending on an individual’s age and earnings, income tax must be paid.
- Various tax slabs are determined by the Government of India which determines the amount of Income Tax that must be paid.
- The taxpayer must file Income Tax Returns (ITR) on a yearly basis.
- Individuals may receive a refund or might have to pay a tax depending on their ITR. Penalties are levied in case individuals do not file ITR.
(2) Wealth Tax
- The tax must be paid on a yearly basis and depends on the ownership of properties and the market value of the property.
- In case an individual owns a property, wealth tax must be paid and does not depend on whether the property generates an income or not.
- Corporate taxpayers, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), and individuals must pay wealth tax depending on their residential status.
- Payment of wealth tax is exempt for assets like gold deposit bonds, stock holdings, house property, commercial property that have been rented for more than 300 days, and if the house property is owned for business and professional use.
(3) Estate Tax
- It is also called Inheritance Tax and is paid based on the value of the estate or the money that an individual has left after his/her death.
(4) Corporate Tax
- Domestic companies, apart from shareholders, will have to pay corporate tax.
- Foreign corporations who make an income in India will also have to pay corporate tax.
- Income earned via selling assets, technical service fees, dividends, royalties, or interest that is based in India is taxable.
- The below-mentioned taxes are also included under Corporate Tax:
- Securities Transaction Tax (STT): The tax must be paid for any income that is earned via security transactions that are taxable.
- Dividend Distribution Tax (DDT): In case any domestic companies declare, distribute, or are paid any amounts as dividends by shareholders, DDT is levied on them. However, DDT is not levied on foreign companies.
- Fringe Benefits Tax: For companies that provide fringe benefits for maids, drivers, etc., Fringe Benefits Tax is levied on them.
- Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT): For zero tax companies that have accounts prepared according to the Companies Act, MAT is levied on them.
(5) Capital Gains Tax:
- It is a form of direct tax that is paid due to the income that is earned from the sale of assets or investments. Investments in farms, bonds, shares, businesses, art, and home come under capital assets.
- Based on its holding period, tax can be classified into long-term and short-term.
- Any assets, apart from securities, that are sold within 36 months from the time they were acquired come under short-term gains.
- Long-term assets are levied if any income is generated from the sale of properties that have been held for a duration of more than 36 months.
Advantages of Direct Taxes
The main advantages of Direct Taxes in India are mentioned below:
- Economic and Social balance: The Government of India has launched well-balanced tax slabs depending on an individual’s earnings and age. The tax slabs are also determined based on the economic situation of the country. Exemptions are also put in place so that all income inequalities are balanced out.
- Productivity: As there is a growth in the number of people who work and community, the returns from direct taxes also increases. Therefore, direct taxes are considered to be very productive.
- Inflation is curbed: Tax is increased by the government during inflation. The increase in taxes reduces the necessity for goods and services, which leads to inflation to compress.
- Certainty: Due to the presence of direct taxes, there is a sense of certainty from the government and the taxpayer. The amount that must be paid and the amount that must be collected is known by the taxpayer and the government, respectively.
- Distribution of wealth is equal: Higher taxes are charged by the government to the individuals or organizations that can afford them. This extra money is used to help the poor and lower societies in India.
What are the disadvantages of direct taxes?
- Easily evadable: Not all are willing to pay their taxes to the government. Some are willing to submit a false return of income to evade tax. These individuals can easily conceal their incomes, with no accountability to the law of the land.
- Arbitrary: Taxes, if progressive, are fixed arbitrarily by the Finance Minister. If proportional, it creates a heavy burden on the poor.
- Disincentive: If there are high taxes, it does not allow an individual to save or invest, leading to the economic suffering of the country. It does not allow businesses/industry to grow, inflicting damage to them.
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