Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Employment challenge
Context
The government has assured the creation of one million jobs over the next one-and-a-half years. This may be optimistic, but if it does materialise, the employment landscape will change dramatically.
Background
- What is the unemployment rate? Expressed in percentage, the unemployment rate is defined as the share of people who are without any job.
- Joblessness in the country essentially relates to educated young adults seeking jobs in the formal economy.
- The government recently announced it would recruit 10 lakh people in “mission mode” over the next one-and-a-half years.
- The announcement came at a time when the unemployment rate for youth (aged 15-29 years) in urban areas has been hovering at over 20 per cent for the last several quarters.
What is the employment situation in India today?
- If jobs are being created on a progressive basis, there will be an increase in income generation, which in turn, should spur consumption.
- Therefore, if consumption picks up – this can be indicated by the growth in the consumer goods segments — then one can be confident of jobs being created.
- What is the situation in India? Consumer durable goods have been registering negative or slightly positive growth for the last five years or so — this is a reflection of the purchasing power of the people that ultimately can be linked to job creation.
- There have been talks of start-up economy in the country and their achievements.
- Interestingly, it is a well-known fact that, globally, 80-85 per cent of start-ups fold up in the first couple of years mainly due to non-viable models that fail the scaling-up challenge.
- Therefore, while start-ups sound exciting, job creation at scale cannot be part of these experiments, unless there is an assured flow of funds.
Challenge in recruiting 10 lakh people
- It will be a really big task given that presently the central government offices house around 3.45 million personnel as per the budget for 2022-23.
- Short time frame: The first challenge is in recruiting such a large number in this short period of time considering that there are fairly lengthy processes involved in hiring people to government departments.
- Finding meaningful role: Hiring such a number is good for the country, but finding meaningful roles for them in various departments needs to be seriously examined.
- Quite clearly, plans need to be in place to provide work to this set of new employees.
- Increase in cost for the government: The third issue that would have to be kept in mind is the increase in cost for the government.
- As per the budget for 2022-23, the average outgo per employee was around Rs 12.20 lakh.
- Assuming the new set earns half of the existing average, the additional cost would be at least Rs 60,000 crore.
- The salary outlay for the year was Rs 4.22 lakh crore.
- These provisions would have to be made in subsequent budgets.
Conclusion
The overall unemployment picture looks complex today. While the government’s intent to add over a million jobs in the next 18 months is laudable, the task is audacious and challenging from both an administrative and financial point of view.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Job creation by the government
Context
The government recently announced that 10 lakh government jobs will be provided over the next 18 months on a “mission mode”.
Background
- The government recently announced it would recruit 10 lakh people in “mission mode” over the next one-and-a-half years.
- The announcement came at a time when the unemployment rate for youth (aged 15-29 years) in urban areas has been hovering at over 20 per cent for the last several quarters.
- According to the Quarterly Bulletin of Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), the youth unemployment rate, according to current weekly status, stood at 20.8 per cent in urban areas during October-December 2021.
- The annual PLFS report too shows that the overall youth unemployment rate, according to usual status (ps+ss), was at 12.9 per cent — 18.5 per cent in urban areas and 10.7 per cent in rural areas — during July-June 2020-21.
Three takeaways from the announcement
- One, the creation of employment is indeed a problem and can no longer be hidden from the public discourse.
- Two, the private sector, especially modern sectors such as the service and manufacturing sectors, which are dominated by multinational companies, have not created many jobs.
- Even if the Information Technology sector or the modern gig economy have created jobs, these are either very high-skilled jobs or low-skilled ones.
- Three, the government in the Nehruvian scheme of development occupied an important place in the labour market.
- The government is now forced to step in as persistently rising inflation, unemployment and underemployment threaten to politically affect it.
Employment data and issues with it
- Government is at present relying on the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation/National Pension System/Employees’ State Insurance Scheme registrations and exits as indicators of the formal labour market.
- This could be misleading as companies may be increasing registrations to cross the threshold to become eligible to fall under any of these.
- Formalisation: Hence, this might be more a case of formalisation rather than employment generation.
- Second, media reports show that more than 85% of those aspiring for those 10 lakh jobs could be consumed by existing vacancies in Central government departments (8,72,243).
- The decline in PSU jobs: Third, 241 central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) have been shedding jobs in recent years.
- The decline in quality of jobs: Even though the labour force and workforce participation rates have increased marginally, there is a decline in the quality of jobs, viz. there is a rise in the unpaid segment of the self-employed and a rise in the share of the agricultural sector in total employment over the last three Periodic Labour Force Surveys (43% to 47%).
Role of the private sector
- The private sector creates jobs in response to market forces and while taking into consideration radically altering technological developments.
- We cannot avoid placing the government at the centre of employment creation beyond a certain point.
- Projects in the modern private sector consume a lot of capital to generate very few jobs.
- For instance, recently, there was a report that the Adani Group has invested ₹70,000 crore (or ₹700 million) in Uttar Pradesh to create merely 30,000 jobs.
- Foreign Direct Investment, which at any rate is highly capital-intensive, goes mostly into the non-manufacturing sectors.
Way forward
- The government’s role in employment generation has entered into popular discourse and discussions on policy formation.
- The government should play a significant role soon.
- Government as principal employment generator: The government should re-establish its role as the principal employment generator through jobs in its ministries and CPSEs and through assured employment generation programmes like MGNREGA.
Conclusion
Employment is not merely about numbers and growth figures. We need to concentrate on enabling the creation of decent work and a sustainable labour market to which India is committed as a member of the United Nations and the International Labour Organization.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Registration and de-registration of Political Parties, RP Act
Mains level: Read the attached story
The Election Commission has ordered the deletion of 111 registered unrecognized political parties that it found to be “non-existent” and referred three of the parties to the Department of Revenue for legal action for “serious financial impropriety”.
What is the news?
- The Representation of the People Act, 1951 provides ECI to register and de-register the political parties.
- This was the second such action in the recent past against registered parties that have been found violating the RP Act, 1951.
Registering a Political Party
- The registration of all political parties is governed by the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
- According to the Election Commission (EC), any party seeking registration has to submit an application to the Commission within a period of 30 days.
- This is done as per guidelines prescribed by the EC in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 324 of the Constitution and Section 29A of the RP Act, 1951.
Note: There is no procedure available for de-registration of dormant political parties.
Process of registration
- The applicant is asked to publish a proposed party name in two national daily newspapers and two local daily newspapers, and provide two days for submitting objections, if any.
- The notice for publication is also displayed on the website of the Election Commission.
Why registering with the EC is important?
- It is not mandatory to register with the Election Commission.
- However, registering as a political party with the EC has its advantage in terms of intending to avail itself of the provisions of the RP Act, 1951.
- The candidates set up by a political party registered with the EC will get preference in the matter of allotment of free symbols vis-à-vis purely independent candidates.
- More importantly, these registered political parties, over course of time, can get recognition as a ‘state party’ or a ‘national party’.
How EC recognizes a political party as a state or national party?
For recognition as a NATIONAL PARTY, the conditions specified are:
- a 6% vote share in the last Assembly polls in each of any four states, as well as four seats in the last Lok Sabha polls; or
- 2% of all Lok Sabha seats in the last such election, with MPs elected from at least three states; or
- recognition as a state party in at least four states.
For recognition as a STATE PARTY, any one of five conditions needs to be satisfied:
- two seats plus a 6% vote share in the last Assembly election in that state; or
- one seat plus a 6% vote share in the last Lok Sabha election from that state; or
- 3% of the total Assembly seats or 3 seats, whichever is more; or
- one of every 25 Lok Sabha seats (or an equivalent fraction) from a state; or
- an 8% state-wide vote share in either the last Lok Sabha or the last Assembly polls.
Benefits for recognized parties
- This is subject to the fulfilment of the conditions prescribed by the Commission in the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968.
(a) Reserved Symbol
- If a party is recognised as a ‘state party’, it is entitled for exclusive allotment of its reserved symbol to the candidates set up by it in the state in which it is so recognised. If a party is recognised as a ‘national party’ it is entitled for exclusive allotment of its reserved symbol to the candidates set up by it throughout India.
(b) Proposer for nomination
- Recognised ‘state’ and ‘national’ parties need only one proposer for filing the nomination.
(c) Campaigning benefits
- They are also entitled for two sets of electoral rolls free of cost and broadcast/telecast facilities over state-owned Akashvani/Doordarshan during the general elections.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ‘Black Swan’ Event
Mains level: Read the attached story
A study by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has spoken about the possibility of capital outflows to the tune of $100 billion (around Rs 7,80,000 crore) from India in case of a major global risk scenario or a “black swan” event.
What is a ‘black swan’ event?
- A black swan is a rare, unpredictable event that comes as a surprise and has a significant impact on society or the world.
- These events are said to have three distinguishing characteristics –
- they are extremely rare and outside the realm of regular expectations
- they have a severe impact after they hit and
- they seem probable in hindsight when plausible explanations appear
When did the term originate?
- The black swan theory was put forward by author and investor Nassim Nicholas Taleb in 2001, and later popularised in his 2007 book – The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable.
- It is described as one of the 12 most influential books since World War II.
- In his book, Taleb does not try to lay out a method to predict such events, but instead stresses on building “robustness” in systems and strategies to deal with black swan occurrences and withstand their impact.
Behind the metaphorical name
- The term itself is linked to the discovery of black swans.
- Europeans believed all swans to be white until 1697, when a Dutch explorer spotted the first black swan in Australia.
- The metaphor ‘black swan event’ is derived from this unprecedented spotting from the 17th century, and how it upended the West’s understanding of swans.
When have such events occurred in the past?
- Interestingly, Taleb’s book predated the 2008 global financial crisis – a black swan event triggered by a sudden crash in the booming housing market in the US.
- The fall of the Soviet Union, the terrorist attack in the US on September 11, 2001, also fall in the same category.
Is the Covid-19 pandemic a black swan event?
- Taleb does not agree with those who believe it to be one.
- Rather, he called it a “white swan”, arguing that it was predictable, and there was no excuse for companies and governments not to be prepared for something like this.
- While the outbreak of any pandemic is difficult to individually predict, the possibility of one occurring and having a major impact on systems around the world was known and documented.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Single use plastics
Mains level: Need for plastic waste management
The Centre has banned the use of ‘single-use plastic’ from July 1.
What is the news?
- The Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change had issued a gazette notification last year announcing the ban, and has now defined a list of items that will be banned from next month.
- The manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale and use of suc plastic, including polystyrene and expanded polystyrene, commodities shall be prohibited with effect from the 1st July, 2022.
What is Single-Use Plastic?
- As the name suggests, it refers to plastic items that are used once and discarded.
- Single-use plastic (SUP) has among the highest shares of plastic manufactured and used — from packaging of items, to bottles (shampoo, detergents, cosmetics), polythene bags, face masks, coffee cups, cling film, trash bags, food packaging etc.
- It accounts for a third of all plastic produced globally, with 98% manufactured from fossil fuels.
- SUP also accounts for the majority of plastic discarded – 130 million metric tonnes globally in 2019 all of which is burned, buried in landfills or discarded directly into the environment.
- On the current trajectory of production, it has been projected that single-use plastic could account for 5-10% of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
SUPs in India
- India features in the top 100 countries of single-use plastic waste generation – at rank 94 (the top three being Singapore, Australia and Oman).
- With domestic production of 11.8 million metric tonnes annually, and import of 2.9 MMT, India’s net generation of single-use plastic waste is 5.6 MMT, and per capita generation is 4 kg.
What are the items being banned?
- According to the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, there is also a complete ban on sachets using plastic material for storing, packing or selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala.
- The items on which the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) have announced a ban are earbuds; balloon sticks; candy and ice-cream sticks; cutlery items including plates, cups, glasses, forks, spoons, knives, PVC banners measuring under 100 microns among others.
- The Ministry had already banned polythene bags under 75 microns in September 2021, expanding the limit from the earlier 50 microns.
- From December, the ban will be extended to polythene bags under 120 microns.
- The ban is being introduced in phases to give manufacturers time to shift to thicker polythene bags that are easier to recycle.
- While manufacturers can use the same machine for 50- and 75-micron bags, the machinery will need to be upgraded for 120 microns.
Why these items?
- The choice for the first set of SUPs items for the ban was based on difficulty of collection, and therefore recycling.
- The enemy is not that plastic exists per se, but that plastic exists forever in the environment.
- When plastic remains in the environment for long periods of time and does not decay, it turns into microplastics – first entering our food sources and then the human body, and this is extremely harmful.
- These items are difficult to collect, especially since most are either small, or discarded directly into the environment – like ice-cream sticks.
- It then becomes difficult to collect for recycling, unlike the much larger items.
- The largest share of SUP is that of packaging – with as much as 95% of single use belong to this category – from toothpaste to shaving cream to frozen foods.
- The items chosen are of low value and of low turnover and are unlikely to have a big economic impact, which could be a contributing reason.
How will the ban be enforced?
- The ban will be monitored by the CPCB from the Centre, and by the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) that will report to the Centre regularly.
- Directions have been issued at national, state and local levels — for example, to all petrochemical industries — to not supply raw materials to industries engaged in the banned items.
- Directions have also been issued to SPCBs and Pollution Control Committees to modify or revoke consent to operate issued under the Air/Water Act to industries engaged in SUP items.
- Last week, the CPCB issued one-time certificates to 200 manufacturers of compostable plastic and the BIS passed standards for biodegradable plastic.
What if violation occurs?
- Those found violating the ban can be penalised under the Environment Protection Act 1986 – which allows for imprisonment up to 5 years, or a penalty up to Rs 1 lakh, or both.
- Violators can also be asked to pay Environmental Damage Compensation by the SPCB.
- In addition, there are municipal laws on plastic waste, with their own penal codes.
How are other countries dealing with single-use plastic?
- Bangladesh became the first country to ban thin plastic bags in 2002.
- New Zealand became the latest country to ban plastic bags in July 2019.
- China issued a ban on plastic bags in 2020 with phased implementation.
- As of July 2019, 68 countries have plastic bag bans with varying degrees of enforcement.
- Vanuatu and Seychelles have banned plastic straws outright.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Banks Board Bureau (BBB)
Mains level: Not Much
The Union Finance Ministry is working to expand and relaunch the Banks Board Bureau (BBB) by bringing in more representatives from the insurance sector.
What is Banks Board Bureau (BBB)?
- Banks Board Bureau (BBB) is an autonomous body to Promote excellence in Corporate Governance in Public Sector Financial Institutions.
- The BBB works as step towards governance reforms in Public Sector Banks (PSBs) as recommended by J. Nayak Committee.
- It was formed in 2016 to select executive directors, and managing directors and chief executives of state-run banks.
- It is tasked to search and select personages for Board of Public Sector Banks, Public Sector Financial Institutions and Public Sector Insurance Companies and recommend measures to improve Corporate Governance in these Institutions.
- It has been selecting directors and chairmen and managing directors of PSU general insurance companies since 2018.
Its establishment
- The Central Government notified the amendment to the Nationalised Banks (Management and Miscellaneous Provisions) Scheme, 1980.
- It provided the legal framework for composition and functions of the Banks Board Bureau on March 23, 2016.
- The Bureau accordingly started functioning from April 01, 2016 as an autonomous recommendatory body.
Functions of BBB
The mandate of the Bureau is to advise the Central Government on –
- Selection and appointment of Board of Directors in Nationalised Banks, Financial Institutions and Public Sector Insurance Companies (Whole Time Directors and Chairman)
- Matters relating to appointments, confirmation or extension of tenure and termination of services of the Directors of mandated institutions
- Desired management structure of mandated institutions, at the level of Board of Directors and senior management
- Suitable performance appraisal system for mandated institutions
- Formulation and enforcement of a code of conduct and ethics for managerial personnel in mandated institutions
- To build a data bank containing data relating to the performance of mandated institutions and its officers
- Evolving suitable training and development programs for managerial personnel in mandated institutions
- To help the banks in terms of developing business strategies and capital raising plan and the like;
- Any other work assigned by the Government in consultation with RBI
Why such move?
- The revamp is, in part, pushed by a Delhi High Court order last year.
- It observed that the bureau was not a competent body to recommend appointments at PSU general insurers.
- It held that circulars enabling BBB to select general managers and directors of PSU insurers were not legally valid.
Reasons behind the revamp
- FM aims to legally empower the body to recommend candidates for public sector insurers, and accelerate top-level hiring at all state-run financial institutions.
- The ministry plans to identify new members, restructure the bureau, and refer the new names to the appointments committee of the cabinet (ACC) in a couple of months.
- The revamped BBB may also get a new name to indicate its remit over a wider set of financial institutions.
Significance
- A revamp of the BBB will enable it to recommend full-time appointments at financial institutions where the current executives are given additional charge through interim arrangements.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Lightening and Thunderstorms
Mains level: Disaster management
At least 70 people died in lightning strikes across Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
What is lightning?
- Scientifically, lightning is a rapid and massive discharge of electricity in the atmosphere some of which is directed towards earth.
- The discharges are generated in giant moisture-bearing clouds that are 10-12 km tall.
- The base of these clouds typically lie within 1-2 km of the Earth’s surface, while the top is 12-13 km away.
- Temperatures in the top of these clouds are in the range of –35° to –45°C.
Its formation
- As water vapour moves upward in the cloud, the falling temperature causes it to condense.
- As they move to temperatures below 0°C, the water droplets change into small ice crystals.
- They continue to move up, gathering mass until they are so heavy that they start to fall to Earth.
- This leads to a system in which, simultaneously, smaller ice crystals are moving up and bigger crystals are coming down.
- Collisions follow and trigger the release of electrons, a process that is very similar to the generation of sparks of electricity.
- As the moving free electrons cause more collisions and more electrons, a chain reaction ensues.
- This process results in a situation in which the top layer of the cloud gets positively charged, while the middle layer is negatively charged.
- The electrical potential difference between the two layers is huge, of the order of a billion to 10 billion volts.
- In very little time, a massive current, of the order of 100,000 to a million amperes, starts to flow between the layers.
Types of lightning
- Broadly, there are three forms of lightning:
- Inter-cloud
- Intra-cloud
- Cloud-to-ground
- It is the cloud-to-ground form of lightning that kills humans, as well as animals and livestock, and can substantially damage property.
- While the Earth is a good conductor of electricity, it is electrically neutral.
- However, in comparison to the middle layer of the cloud, it becomes positively charged.
- As a result, about 15%-20% of the current gets directed towards the Earth as well.
- It is this flow of current that results in damage to life and property on Earth.
How intensely does it strike?
- A typical lightning flash is about 300 million volts and 30,000 amps.
- To put it in perspective, household current is 120 volts and 15 amps.
- A flash of lightning is enough to light a 100-watt incandescent bulb for about three months.
Why does lightning kill so many people in India?
- The reason for the high number of deaths is due to people being caught unawares and more than 70% of fatalities happened due to people standing under isolated tall trees.
- About 25 per cent of the people were struck in the open.
- Also, lightning is the direct promulgation of climate change extremities.
Mitigating lightning incidents
- Lightning is not classified as a natural disaster in India.
- But recent efforts have resulted in the setting up of an early warning system that is already saving many lives.
- More than 96% of lightning deaths happen in rural areas.
- As such, most of the mitigation and public awareness programmes need to focus on these communities.
- Lightning protection devices are fairly unsophisticated and low-cost. Yet, their deployment in the rural areas, as of now, is extremely low.
- States are being encouraged to prepare and implement lightning action plans, on the lines of heat action plans.
- An international centre for excellence on lightning research to boost detection and early warning systems is also in the process of being set up.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Central vista project
Mains level: New parliament building
The Central Vista Avenue is set to open in the next few days after remaining closed to the public since February 2021 for redevelopment.
Central Vista Project
- The project aims to renovate and redevelop 86 acres of land in Lutyens’s Delhi.
- In this, the landmark structures of the government, including Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, India Gate, North Block and South Block, etc. stand.
- This dream project of redeveloping the nation’s administrative heart was announced by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs back in September 13, 2019.
This project has three main parts:
- New parliament building
- New secretariat complex to bring all the central govt ministries in one place
- Development of the Rajghat and the area around it
- This project will involve demolition of some non-heritage buildings in the area, and construction of new buildings in place of them.
Why need this Project?
The most significant aspect of the project is the construction of a new parliament building. There are several reasons for needing a new building.
- Pre Independence building: The current one was built in 1927to house the legislative council and was not intended to house a bicameral legislature that the country has today.
- Lack of Space: The current building will be under more stress when the number of seats to Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha are raised. Both Houses are already packed and members have to sit on plastic chairs when joint sessions are held, diminishing the dignity of the House.
- Safety Concerns: The existing building does not conform to fire safety norms. Water and sewer lines are also haphazard and this is damaging its heritage nature. Security concerns in the wake of the 2001 Parliament attack shows its vulnerable nature. It is also not quake-proof.
- Cost Advantage: Many central ministries are housed in different buildings with the result that the government ends up paying rent for many of them. The new building, a new central secretariat will help avoid this.
- Environmental Benefits: The fact that people and officials have to run around the city to go to different ministries also increases traffic and pollution. The project also proposes interlinking of metro stations which will minimise use of vehicles.
Due to these reasons, a pressing need was felt to construct a new parliament building.
Significance of the project
- Modernising parliament’s facilities: The new Parliament building will be India’s first purpose-designed parliament, equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure to meet all needs of an expanded parliament.
- Improving productivity and efficiency: All ministries of the government will be consolidated in one place and will be served by highly energy-efficient and sustainable infrastructure.
- Strengthening cultural and recreational facilities: The National Museum will be relocated and conceptualized to present the rich heritage and achievements of the nation.
- Providing modern and secure infrastructure: A modern, secure, and appropriately equipped executive enclave is proposed to house executive offices and facilities.
- Providing residential facilities for the PM: Modern and secure residential facilities for the vice president and the PM are proposed to the north of North Block and south of South Block respectively.
- Cultural significance: The overall objective of works planned on the Central Vista is to ensure environmental sustainability, restore the vista’s architectural character, protect its heritage buildings, expand and improve public space, and to extend its axis.
Criticism
- The Opposition, environmentalists, architects and citizens have raised many concerns even before the pandemic brought in extra issues.
- They have questioned the lack of studies to ascertain the need for the project and its impact on the environment, traffic and pollution.
- Several key approvals for the proposed Parliament building have been pushed during the lockdown. This led to allegations of a lack of transparency.
- They argue that in the situation created by the pandemic, the project must be deferred as the country can’t afford it at this time.
Back2Basics: Making of New Delhi
- The Central Vista was designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker, to house the capital of British India.
- The top of the Raisina Hill and adjacent hills in the area was flattened to create space for the buildings.
- At his coronation as Emperor of India on December 12, 1911, Britain’s King George V announced the transfer of the seat of the Government from Calcutta to the ancient Capital of Delhi.
- Thereafter, a 20-year-long project to build modern New Delhi was spearheaded by architects Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker.
- They built Parliament House, Rashtrapati Bhavan, North and South Blocks, Rajpath, India Gate, National Archives and the princes’ houses around India Gate.
- Thus, New Delhi was unveiled in 1931.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Agnipath scheme
Mains level: Paper 3-Agnipath Scheme
Context
All major powers undertake a periodic (every 4-5 years) review of their evolving national security objectives. The government of India, on the other hand, has neglected to undertake any such exercise, in the past 75 years.
India’s defence budget for FY 2022-23
- In 2022-23, the Ministry of Defence has been allocated Rs 5,25,166 crore.
- This includes expenditure on salaries of armed forces and
civilians, pensions, modernisation of armed forces, production establishments, maintenance, and research and development organisations.
- According to the Stockholm International Peace
Research Institute (SIPRI), India was the third largest defence spender in absolute terms in 2020
after USA and China.
- In the last decade (2012-13 to 2022-23), the budget of the Ministry of Defence has grown at an annual average rate of 8.6%, while total government expenditure has grown at 10.8%.
- Defence expenditure as a percentage of GDP declined from 2.3% in 2012-13 to 2% in 2022-23.
Neglect of defence expenditure in India
- Defence expenditure as non-plan expenditure: Independent India saw defence expenditure being relegated to the “non-plan” category, within the ambit of a Soviet-inspired, central economy.
- Pension bill linked to defence budget: In another anomaly, the pension bill of veteran soldiers — a separate charge on the exchequer — was linked to the defence budget.
- Neglect of modernisation needs: And the growing pension bill was given as an excuse for the dwindling funds available for force-enhancement and hardware replacement/modernisation.
- As a result, the finance ministry, instead of finding ways and means of raising essential, additional funds for national defence demanded that they evolve measures for reducing the pension bill.
Two issues with our national security approach
1] Lack of periodic review
- Every nation faces the eternal “guns vs butter” dilemma.
- Periodic review: All major powers undertake a periodic (every 4-5 years) review of their evolving national security objectives, the options available, and the economic/military means available for achieving them.
- Apart from providing fiscal guidance, this process also facilitates the evolution of a national security strategy.
- China, has, since 2002, been issuing, with unfailing regularity, a biennial “Defence White Paper”, which encapsulates all of the foregoing, and is available on the Internet; for the information of foes and friends, alike.
- The government of India, on the other hand, has neglected to undertake any such exercise, in the past 75 years.
- India is amongst the few major powers which has failed to issue a National Security Strategy or Doctrine.
2] Lack of organisation reforms
- A second fact that we need to face is that our armed forces have remained in a Second World War time-warp, as far as their organisation and doctrines are concerned.
- Lack of political will and internal resistance: Attempts at organisational reform have come to naught due to lack of political will as well as internal resistance from the services; with the constitution of a Chief of Defence Staff and creation of a Department of Military Affairs providing the latest examples.
Way forward
- Given the transformed nature of warfare, down-sizing of the Indian army, by substituting manpower with smart technology and innovative tactics, has become an imperative need.
Agnipath Scheme
- Recently announced Agnipath scheme provides for the recruitment of youths in the age bracket of 17-and-half to 21 years for only four years with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years.
- Later, the government extended the upper age limit to 23 years for recruitment in 2022.
- The personnel to be recruited under the new scheme will be known as Agniveers.
Suggestions for Agneepath Scheme
- 1] Not the best time to introduce reform: Given the parlous security situation, on the country’s northern and western borders as well as the ongoing domestic turbulence, this is not the best time to cast the armed forces — already short of manpower — into turmoil, with a radical and untried new recruitment system.
- 2] The scheme is suitable for the army only: Such a scheme, in its present form, is suitable only for the army, whose large infantry component is not excessively burdened with technology.
- In case of the navy and air force, at least 5-6 years are required before a new entrant can acquire enough hands-on experience to be entrusted with the operation or maintenance of lethal weapon systems and complex machinery and electronics.
- 3] Trial before implementation: A radical change of this nature should have been subjected to a trial before service-wide implementation.
- Ideally, a few units of the regular or Territorial Army could have been earmarked as a testing ground, and feed-back obtained.
- 4] Legal backing to post-demobilisation employment: Experience of the past has shown that the home ministry has resisted induction of ex-servicemen into the armed-police and para-military forces, on the grounds that it would spoil the career path of their own cadres.
- Neglect by the state government: Similarly, state governments and other agencies have blatantly ignored the reservations mandated for ESM.
- Therefore, if the Agnipath scheme has to offer a meaningful promise of post-demobilisation employment or education, this must be mandated by an Act of Parliament, on the lines of the “GI Bill” enacted by the US Congress.
Conclusion
A scheme on the lines of Agnipath, appropriately constituted, and focused on enhancing “combat effectiveness” rather than “effecting savings” or “generating employment,” could have triggered a reformative process. But the above given caveats need to be borne in mind in this context.
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