Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Lessons from Indus Water Treaty
Context
The 118th meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) comprising the Indus Commissioners of India and Pakistan held on May 30-31, 2022 in New Delhi.
Indus Waters Treaty, 1960: A background
- After years of arduous negotiations, the Indus Waters Treaty was signed in Karachi on September 19, 1960, by then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and then Pakistani President Ayub Khan, negotiated by the World Bank.
- According to this agreement, control over the water flowing in three “eastern” rivers of India — the Beas, the Ravi and the Sutlej was given to India
- The control over the water flowing in three “western” rivers of India — the Indus, the Chenab and the Jhelum was given to Pakistan
- The treaty allowed India to use western rivers water for limited irrigation use and unrestricted use for power generation, domestic, industrial and non-consumptive uses such as navigation, floating of property, fish culture, etc. while laying down precise regulations for India to build projects
- India has also been given the right to generate hydroelectricity through the run of the river (RoR) projects on the Western Rivers which, subject to specific criteria for design and operation is unrestricted.
- The Permanent Indus Commission, which has a commissioner from each country, oversees the cooperative mechanism and ensures that the two countries meet annually (alternately in India and Pakistan).
- This year, the commission met twice, in March in Islamabad, Pakistan, and then in New Delhi, in May.
- It is a rare feat that despite the many lows in India-Pakistan relations, talks under the treaty have been held on a regular basis.
Some disagreements
- Throughout its existence, there have been many occasions during which differences between the two countries were discernible.
- Both countries held different positions when Pakistan raised objections regarding the technical design features of the Kishanganga and Ratle hydroelectric power plants.
- Differences were also discernible when Pakistan approached the World Bank to facilitate the setting up of a court of arbitration to address the concerns related to these two projects referred to in Article IX Clause 5 of the treaty, and when India requested the appointment of a Neutral Expert referent to Clause 2.1 of Article IX .
- Eventually, on March 31, 2022, the World Bank, decided to resume two separate processes by appointing a neutral expert and a chairman for the court of arbitration.
- The appointment of a neutral expert will find precedence to address the differences since under Article IX Clause 6 of the treaty provisions, Arbitration ‘shall not apply to any difference while it is being dealt with by a Neutral Expert’.
- Pakistan, invoking Article VII Clause 2 on future cooperation, raised objections on the construction and technical designs of the Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnai hydropower plants.
- Similarly, India has raised concerns on issues such as Pakistan’s blockade of the Fazilka drain.
Lessons from the treaty
- Engagement between conflicting nations: The treaty is an illustration of a long-standing engagement between the conflicting nations that has stood the vagaries of time.
- Water management cooperation: The treaty is considered one of the oldest and the most effective examples of water management cooperation in the region and the world.
- Avoiding conflict: With the exception of differences on a few pending issues, both countries have avoided any actions resulting in the aggravation of the conflict or acted in a manner causing conflict to resurface.
Potential for cooperation
- Joint research: Recognising common interests and mutual benefits, India and Pakistan can undertake joint research on the rivers to study the impact of climate change for ‘future cooperation’ (underlined in Article VII).
- Potential for cooperation and development: The Indus Waters Treaty also offers great potential for cooperation and development in the subcontinent which can go a long way in ensuring peace and stability.
Conclusion
Given that both India and Pakistan have been committed to manage the rivers in a responsible manner, the Treaty can be a reference point to resolve other water-related issues in the region through regular dialogue and interaction.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Marijuana
Mains level: Substance abuse in India
Thailand has officially legalized the growing and consumption of marijuana in food and drinks, becoming the first Asian country to do so.
Films like ‘Udta Punjab’ have graphically portrayed the crisis faced by the society and its youth with regard to the drug menace.
What is Marijuana?
- Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the Cannabis plant used primarily for medical or recreational purposes.
- The main psychoactive component of cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is one of the 483 known compounds in the plant, including at least 65 other cannabinoids, including cannabidiol (CBD).
- It is used by smoking, vaporizing, within the food, or as an extract.
Prospects of legalizing Marijuana
(1) Health benefits
- The cannabinoids found in Cannabis is a great healer and has found mention in the Ayurveda.
- It can be used to treat a number of medical conditions like multiple sclerosis, arthritis, epilepsy, insomnia, HIV/AIDS treatment, cancer.
(2) Ecological benefits
- The cannabis plant and seeds apart from being labeled a ‘super-foods’ as per studies is also a super-industrial carbon negative raw material.
- Each part of the plant can be used for some industry. Hemp currently is also being used to make bio-fuel, bio-plastics and even construction material in certain countries. The cosmetic industry has also embraced Hemp seeds.
(3) Marijuana is addiction-free
- An epidemiological study showed that only 9% of those who use marijuana end up being clinically dependent on it.
- The ‘comparable rates’ for tobacco, alcohol and cocaine stood at 32%, 15% and 16% respectively.
(4) Good source of Revenue
- By legalizing and taxing marijuana, the government will stand to earn huge amounts of revenue that will otherwise go to the Italian and Israeli drug cartels.
- In an open letter to US President George Bush, around 500 economists, led by Nobel Prize winner Milton Friedman, called for marijuana to be “legal but taxed and regulated like other goods”.
(5) A potential cash crop
- The cannabis plant is something natural to India, especially the northern hilly regions. It has the potential of becoming a cash crop for poor marginal farmers.
- If proper research is done and the cultivation of marijuana encouraged at an official level, it can gradually become a source of income for poor people with small landholdings.
(6) Prohibition was ineffective
- In India, the consumption of synthetic drugs like cocaine has increased since marijuana was banned, while it has decreased in the US since it was legalized in certain states.
- Moreover, these days, it is pretty easy to buy marijuana in India and its consumption is widespread among the youth. So it is fair to say that prohibition has failed to curb the ‘problem’.
(7) Marijuana is less harmful
- Marijuana consumption was never regarded as a socially deviant behaviour any more than drinking alcohol was. In fact, keeping it legal was considered as an ‘enlightened view’.
- It is now medically proven that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol.
Risks of Legalizing Cannabis
(1) Health risks continue to persist
- There are many misconceptions about cannabis. First, it is not accurate that cannabis is harmless.
- Its immediate effects include impairments in memory and in mental processes, including ones that are critical for driving.
- Long-term use of cannabis may lead to the development of addiction of the substance, persistent cognitive deficits, and of mental health problems like schizophrenia, depression and anxiety.
- Exposure to cannabis in adolescence can alter brain development.
(2) A new ‘tobacco’ under casualization
- A second myth is that if cannabis is legalized and regulated, its harms can be minimized.
- With legalization comes commercialization. Cannabis is often incorrectly advertised as being “natural” and “healthier than alcohol and tobacco”.
- Tobacco, too, was initially touted as a natural and harmless plant that had been “safely” used in religious ceremonies for centuries.
(3) Unconvincing Advocacy
- Advocates for legalization rarely make a convincing case. To hear some supporters tell it, the drug cures all diseases while promoting creativity, open-mindedness, moral progression.
- Too much trivialization of Cannabis use could lead to its mass cultivation and a silent economy wreaking havoc through a new culture of substance abuse in India.
Way forward
- For Cannabis/ Marijuana, it’s important to make a distinction between legalization, decriminalization and commercialization.
- We must ensure that there are enough protections for children, the young, and those with severe mental illnesses, who are most vulnerable to its effects.
- Hence, laws should be made to suit people so that they do not break the law to maintain their lifestyle.
- Laws should weave around an existing lifestyle, not obstruct it. Or else laws will be broken.
Conclusion
- The debate on the legalization of marijuana in India has been consistent on social media and other noted platforms.
- As with alcohol and tobacco products, the use of cannabis needs to be regulated, taxed and monitored.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: IPRs, Patents
Mains level: Patent regime of India
The US Trade Representative (USTR) said in a report released last month that India was one of the most challenging major economies as far as IP protection and enforcement is concerned.
What is the news?
- US has decided to retain India on its Priority Watch List along with six other countries —Argentina, Chile, China, Indonesia, Russia and Venezuela.
What is a Patent?
- A patent is an exclusive set of rights granted for an invention, which may be a product or process that provides a new way of doing something or offers a new technical solution to a problem.
Indian Patent Regime: A Backgrounder
- Indian patents are governed by the Indian Patent Act of 1970.
- India has gradually aligned itself with international regimes pertaining to intellectual property rights.
- It became a party to the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement following its membership to the World Trade Organisation on January 1, 1995.
- An interesting point is that the original Indian Patents Act did not grant patent protection to pharmaceutical products to ensure that medicines were available at a low price.
- Patent protection of pharmaceuticals were re-introduced after the 2005 amendment to comply with TRIPS.
Various agreements
- India is also a signatory to several IPR related conventions, including the Berne Convention, which governs copyright.
- It is signatory to the Budapest Treaty, the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, and the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), all of which govern various patent-related matters.
Issues raised about India
- Among the issues raised in the report are:
- India’s inconsistencies regarding patent protection
- Concerns about what can be patented
- Waiting time for obtaining patents
- Burdensome reporting requirements and
- Doubts about data safety
- Trademark counterfeiting and secrets
- India had undertaken an intellectual property review exercise last year, where a Parliamentary Standing Committee examined this subject.
Contention of the US: Patents Evergreening
- One of the main points of contention between India and the U.S. has been Article 3(d) of the Indian Patent Act.
- Section 3 deals with what does not qualify as an invention under the Act, and Section 3(d) in particular excludes the mere discovery of a new form of a known substance.
- Section 3(d) prevents the mere discovery of any new property or new use for a known substance from being patented as an invention unless it enhances the efficacy of the substance repetitive.
- This prevents, what is known as “Evergreening” of patents.
- According to the Committee’s report, Section 3(d) allows for “generic competition by patenting only novel and genuine inventions.”
TRIPS and the Doha Declaration
- The Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health was adopted on November 14, 2021, by the WTO member states.
- This declaration recognises the gravity of public health problems affecting developing and least developed nations.
- It recognises that “intellectual property protection is important for the development of new medicines,” and acknowledges concerns about its effects on prices.
- It is interpreted and implemented as a right to protect public health and, in particular, to promote access to medicines for all.
Key provisions of Doha Agreement
- Compulsory licences can be invoked by a state in public interest, allowing companies apart from the patent owner to produce a patented product without consent.
- It concluded that India must not compromise on the patentability criteria under Section 3(d).
- It said that this ensures the growth of generic drug makers and the public’s access to affordable medicines.
- It indicated that India should resolve its differences with the US regarding the disqualification of incremental inventions through bilateral dialogue.
Positive steps taken by India
- The USTR report highlighted some positive steps taken by India in the recent past.
- India has accession to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty and WIPO Copyright Treaty, collectively known as the WIPO Internet Treaties, in 2018 and the Nice Agreement in 2019.
Back2Basics: Intellectual Properties
- IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create.
- By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish.
Types of IP:
(1) Copyright
- Copyright is a legal term used to describe the rights that creators have over their literary and artistic works.
- Works covered by copyright range from books, music, paintings, sculpture and films, to computer programs, databases, advertisements, maps and technical drawings.
(2) Patents
Discussed above
(3) Trademarks
- A trademark is a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of other enterprises.
- Trademarks date back to ancient times when artisans used to put their signature or “mark” on their products.
(4) Geographical Indications
- Geographical indications and appellations of origin are signs used on goods that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities, a reputation or characteristics that are essentially attributable to that place of origin.
- Most commonly, a geographical indication includes the name of the place of origin of the goods.
(5) Trade secrets
- Trade secrets are IP rights on confidential information which may be sold or licensed.
- The unauthorized acquisition, use or disclosure of such secret information in a manner contrary to honest commercial practices by others is regarded as an unfair practice and a violation of the trade secret protection.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Election of the President
Mains level: Read the attached story
The presidential polls are expected to be held in July to decide on the successor of President Ram Nath Kovind, who will complete his term on July 24, 2022.
The President of India
- The President of India is recognised as the first citizen of the country and the head of the state.
- The elected President of India is a part of the Union Executive along with several other members of the parliament including the Prime Minister, Attorney-General of India and the Vice – president.
Electing the President
- The provisions of the election of the President are laid down in Article 54 of the Constitution of India.
- The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Election Act 1952 led to the establishment of this Constitutional provision.
Qualifications to become the President of India
The qualification of be the President of India are given below:
- He/ She must be an Indian citizen
- A person must have completed the age of 35.
- A person must be qualified for election as a member of the House of the People.
- Must not hold a government (central or state) office of profit
- A person is eligible for election as President if he/she is holding the office of President or Vice-President.
Actual course of election
- The President of India is elected indirectly by an Electoral College following the system of proportional representation utilizing a single transferable vote system and secret ballots.
- MPs and MLAs vote based on parity and uniformity values.
Electoral College composition-
(1) Legislative Assemblies of the States:
- According to the provision of Article 333, every state’s Legislative Assembly must consist of not less than 60 members but not more than 500 members.
(2) Council of States:
- 12 members are nominated by the President of India based on skills or knowledge in literature, arts, science, and social service to act as the members of the Council of States.
- In total, 238 represent act as representatives from both the States and Union Territories.
(2) House of the People:
- The composition of the House of People consists of 530 members (no exceeding) from the state territorial constituencies.
- They are elected through direct election.
- The President further elects 20 more members (no exceeding) from the Union Territories.
Uniformity in the scale of representation of states
To maintain the proportionality between the values of the votes, the following formula is used:
Value of vote of an MLA= total no. of the population of the particular state/ number of elected MLAs of that state divided by 1000.
Single vote system-
- During the presidential election, one voter can cast only one vote.
- While the MLAs vote may vary state to state, the MPs vote always remain constant.
MPs and MLAs vote balance-
- The number of the total value of the MPs votes must equal the total value of the MLAs to maintain the State and the Union balance.
Quotas:
- The candidate reaching the winning quota or exceeding it is the winner.
- The formula sued is ‘Winning quota total number of poll/ no.of seats + 1’.
Voters’ preference:
- During the presidential election, the voter casts his vote in favor of his first preferred candidate.
- However, in case the first preference candidate does not touch the winning quota, the vote automatically goes to the second preference.
- The first preferred candidate with the lowest vote is eliminated and the votes in his/her favor are transferred to the remaining candidates.
Why need Proportional representation?
- The President of India is elected through proportional representation using the means of the single transferable vote (Article 55(3)).
- It allows the independent candidates and minority parties to have the chance of representation.
- It allows the practice of coalition with many voters under one government.
- This system ensures that candidates who are elected don’t represent the majority of the electorate’s opinion.
Why is President indirectly elected?
If Presidents were to be elected directly, it would become very complicated.
- It would, in fact, be a disaster because the public doesn’t have the absolute clarity of how the president-ship runs or if the candidate fits the profile of a president.
- Another reason why the direct election system isn’t favorable is that the candidate running for the president’s profile will have to campaign around the country with the aid of a political party.
- And, this will result in a massive political instability.
- Moreover, it would be difficult and impossible for the government to hand out election machinery (given the vast population of India).
- This will cost the government financially, and may end up affecting the economy as well.
- The indirect election system is a respectable system for the First Man of India (rightly deserving).
- The system/method of indirect electing of the president also allows the states to maintain neutrality and minimize hostility.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Fast Radio Burst (FRB)
Mains level: Not Much
In a paper published in Nature, astronomers have reported a fast radio burst (FRB) whose characteristics are different from almost all other FRBs previously detected.
Such news makes us think about alien and extraterrestrial life at the first. Do not get carried away with such thoughts. Its simply a space based phenomena.
Fast Radio Burst (FRB)
- FRBs are super intense, millisecond-long bursts of radio waves produced by unidentified sources in the distant cosmos.
- They were first discovered in 2007 when scientists combed through archival pulsar data.
- Pulsars refer to spherical, compact objects in the universe, which are about the size of a large city but contain more mass than the sun.
- They often look like flickering stars but are not stars.
Why in news?
- The new study in Nature describes FRB 20190520B, first discovered in 2019.
- What makes it different is that unlike many other FRBs, it emits frequent, repeating bursts of radio waves.
- And between bursts, it constantly emits weaker radio waves.
- FRB 190520B is co-located with a compact, persistent radio source and associated with a dwarf host galaxy of high specific star formation.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Aegean Sea
Mains level: NA
Turkey has warned Greece to demilitarise islands in the Aegean Sea.
What is the news?
- Turkey says Greece has been building a military presence in violation of treaties that guarantee the unarmed status of the Aegean islands.
- It argues the islands were ceded to Greece on the condition they remained demilitarized.
Where is the Aegean Sea?
- The Aegean Sea has a surface area of about 215,000 km2 and a depth of 3,544 m at the deepest end.
- It has a maximum length of about 700 km and a width of 400 km.
- The Bosphorus and Dardanelles Straits connect the Aegean Sea to the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea respectively.
- The Aegean is subdivided into the Myrtoan Sea and the Thracian Sea and lies on the African and Eurasian tectonic plates’ collision path.
Control of the region
- The sea is situated between the Anatolia and Balkan peninsulas and lies between Turkey and Greece.
- Nine out of 12 of Greece’s administrative regions border the sea.
- Turkish provinces, such as Balikesir, Canakkale, Edirne, and Izmir, borders the Aegean to the east.
- The Aegean Sea is a source of dispute and controversy between Turkey and Greece, affecting their relationship since the 1970s.
What is the dispute?
- Greece and Turkey are NATO allies.
- However they have a history of disputes over a range of issues, including mineral exploration in the eastern Mediterranean and rival claims in the Aegean Sea.
- Greece maintains Turkey has deliberately misinterpreted the treaties and says it has legal grounds to defend itself following hostile actions by Ankara.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Indian Rhino
Mains level: Not Much
The one-horned rhinos of western Assam’s Manas National Park, bordering Bhutan, are expected to have high life expectancy and significant growth in population, the 14th Assam rhino estimation census has revealed.
Indian Rhino
- The Indian rhinoceros also called the greater one-horned rhinoceros and great Indian rhinoceros is a rhinoceros native to the Indian subcontinent.
- It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and Schedule I animal in the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
- It once ranged across the entire northern part of the Indian Subcontinent, along the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra River basins, from Pakistan to the Indian-Myanmar border.
- Poaching for rhinoceros horn became the single most important reason for the decline of the Indian rhino.
Why in news?
- The 14th Rhino Population Estimation / Census in Kaziranga National Park counted at least 2613 rhinos including calves, a jump of exactly 200 rhinos since the last census conducted in 2018.
- Then at least 2413 Rhinos were counted in the national park.
Threats to Rhinos
- Ground rhino horn is used in traditional Chinese medicine to cure a range of ailments, from cancer to hangovers, and also as an aphrodisiac.
- In Vietnam, possessing a rhino horn is considered a status symbol.
- Due to demand in these countries, poaching pressure on rhinos is ever persistent against which one cannot let the guard down.
Various protection moves
- A rhino reintroduction programme under the Indian Rhino Vision 2020 was started in 2006.
- This entailed the translocation of rhinos from Kaziranga National Park and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary besides orphans hand-reared at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation at Kaziranga.
Try this PYQ:
Q. Consider the following statements:
- Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only.
- Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only.
- One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Post your answers here.
(Note: Comment feature is not available on the app.)
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Jal Jeevan Mission
Mains level: Paper 2- Achievements of JJM and SBM
Context
The performance of the Jal Jeevan and Swachh Bharat Missions highlights the importance of convergence as an operating principle of the government.
Jal Jeevan Mission: Progress made so far
- Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) is a flagship programme of the Government of India, launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 15th August 2019.
- Jal Jeevan Mission, is envisioned to provide safe and adequate drinking water through individual household tap connections by 2024 to all households in rural India.
- Community approach: The Jal Jeevan Mission is based on a community approach to water and will include extensive Information, Education and communication as a key component of the mission.
- Over 9.6 crore rural households get tap water supply; notably, more than 6.36 crore households have been provided tap water connections since the programme was announced in August 2019.
Achievements of Swachh Bharat Mission
- Universal sanitation coverage: To accelerate the efforts to achieve universal sanitation coverage and to put the focus on sanitation, the Prime Minister of India had launched the Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October 2014.
- Under the mission, all villages, Gram Panchayats, Districts, States and Union Territories in India declared themselves “open-defecation free” (ODF) by 2 October 2019, the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
- To ensure that the open defecation free behaviours are sustained, no one is left behind, and that solid and liquid waste management facilities are accessible, the Mission is moving towards the next Phase II of SBMG i.e ODF-Plus.
- Swachh Bharat Mission Phase-2: The government has launched Swachh Bharat Mission Phase 2 with a focus on plastic waste management, biodegradable solid waste management, grey water management and faecal sludge management.
- Under Swachh Bharat Mission Phase-2, arrangements for solid and liquid waste management have been made in 41,450 villages; nearly 4 lakh villages have minimal stagnant water.
- ODF Plus: Nearly 22,000 villages have been named “model village” under the ODF Plus scheme, and another 51,000 villages are on their way to achieving this tag.
- Sludge treatment and plastic waste management: Before the government embarked on Swachh Bharat Mission, nearly 1,20,000 tonnes of faecal sludge was left untreated as two-thirds of all toilets were not connected to the main sewer lines
- The scale of India’s plastic waste pollution is staggering.
- Both these problems find themselves on the agenda of Swachh Bharat Mission’s Phase 2.
- In a short time, 3.5 lakh villages have become plastic dump free and nearly 4.23 lakh villages have minimal litter.
- Nearly 178 faecal sludge treatment plants and nearly 90,000 km of drains have been constructed.
How convergence between SBM and JJM enabled each other
- Principle of convergence: The late Arun Jaitley introduced convergence as one of the primary operating principles of the government in his first budget speech.
- One enabling the other: The best exhibition of this can be found in the ways in which the Jal Jeevan Mission and Swachh Bharat Mission work in tandem, one enabling the other.
- More than 10 crore toilets were built under SBM but this accomplishment could have been difficult had the government not had the foresight to build the toilets on a twin-pit design that has in-situ treatment of faecal sludge.
- Now, providing tap water connections through the Jal Jeevan Mission is among the government’s top priorities.
- Managing grey water discharge: The Jal Jeevan Mission faces a challenge similar to that faced by the Swachh Bharat Mission — managing grey water discharge.
- Holistic sanitation: When household tap connections were provided, the Jal Jeevan Mission converged with the Swachh Bharat Mission to achieve holistic sanitation in which the treatment of grey water became a vital component.
- Focus on women: The Jal Jeevan mission intends to relieve women of the drudgery of travelling long distances to fetch water.
- The Swachh Bharat Mission too is centred around the dignity of women.
- A joint study by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and UNICEF revealed that an overwhelming number (80 per cent) of the respondents stated that safety and security were the main drivers of their decision to construct toilets.
- The Jal Jeevan Mission is catalysing change at the grass roots level by reserving 50 per cent seats for women in village and water sanitation committees.
- In every village, at least five women have been entrusted with water quality surveillance and many of them have been trained as plumbers, mechanics and pump operators.
Impact on growth and economy
- In 2006, a joint study by WSP, Asian Development Bank and UKAID revealed that inadequate sanitation cost India Rs 2.4 trillion — 6 per cent of India’s GDP at that time.
- The Swachh Bharat Mission, apart from preventing GDP loss, provides annual benefits worth Rs 53,000 per household.
Conclusion
The success of Jal Jeevan Mission and Swachh Bharat Mission is a good example of convergence, one of the primary operating principles of the government.
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