Context
- Our world today is in turmoil, facing multiple, mutually reinforcing crises. for the first time since it began over 30 years ago, the United Nations Development Programme’s Human Development Report has warned that global human development measures have declined across most countries in the past two years.
Background
- Ever increasing Existential threat: The greatest existential threat of all, the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.
- Climate change and extreme forms of weather events associated with it: Nine of the warmest years on record have come in the past decade alone. This year’s record-breaking heat waves, floods, droughts, and other extreme forms of weather have forced us to face these increasingly devastating impacts.
- Window for action is closing fast: Climate change is a disruption multiplier in a disrupted world, rolling back progress across the global Sustainable Development Goals. Commitments we have now will not keep warming below the 1.5°C target that gives us the best chance of averting catastrophe.
- LIFE, a fresh perspective: LIFE, or Lifestyle for Environment, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP26 in November 2021, brings a fresh and much-needed perspective.
What is “LIFE” called by PM Narendra Modi?
- LIFE: “LIFE – Lifestyle for the Environment”, PM Modi had proposed the one-word mass movement “LIFE” at the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change at Glasgow last November.
- A theme for COP27: “LIFE”, a global initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will be the theme of the India pavilion at the upcoming COP27 at Sharm-El-Sheikh in Egypt.
- LIFE Movement: Subsequently, PM Modi launched ‘Lifestyle for the Environment – LIFE Movement’ on 5 June on the occasion of world environment day.
- What is the vision of LIFE: The vision of ‘LIFE’ is to live a lifestyle that is in tune with our planet and does not harm it The people who live such a lifestyle can be called “Pro-Planet people.”
What is LiFE-Movement?
- Objective of LiFE: The idea promotes an environmentally conscious lifestyle that focuses on ‘mindful and deliberate utilisation’ instead of ‘mindless and wasteful consumption’.
- Aim of LiFE: The LiFE Movement aims to utilise the power of collective action and nudge individuals across the world to undertake simple climate-friendly actions in their daily lives. The LiFE movement, additionally, also seeks to leverage the strength of social networks to influence social norms surrounding climate.
- Creating Pro-planet people: The Mission plans to create and nurture a global network of individuals, namely ‘Pro-Planet People’ (P3), who will have a shared commitment to adopt and promote environmentally friendly lifestyles.
- Seeks to behavioural change and individual actions: Through the P3 community, the Mission seeks to create an ecosystem that will reinforce and enable environmentally friendly behaviours to be self-sustainable. LIFE recognizes that small individual actions can tip the balance in the planet’s favour.
- Mission liFE for India: Mission LiFE borrows from the past, operates in the present and focuses on the future. Reduce, Reuse and Recycle are the concepts woven into our life. The Circular Economy has been an integral part of our culture and lifestyle.
What can be done to fulfil the vision of LiFE?
- Cultivating the attitude of individual responsibility starting from the home: Mindful choices cultivated by LIFE animate this spirit actions such as saving energy at home; cycling and using public transport instead of driving; eating more plant-based foods and wasting less; and leveraging our position as customers and employees to demand climate-friendly choices.
- Applying the nudging techniques to encourage positive behaviour: Many of the goals of LIFE can be achieved by deploying ‘nudges’, gentle persuasion techniques to encourage positive behaviour. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) employs proven nudging techniques such as discouraging food waste by offering smaller plates in cafeterias; encouraging recycling by making bin lids eye-catching; and encouraging cycling by creating cycle paths.
- Adopting greener consumption habits: According to the UNEP, more than two-thirds of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed to household consumption and lifestyles the urgent cuts to global emissions we need can only be achieved through widespread adoption of greener consumption habits.
- Historical wisdom: “Vasudhaiv kutumbakam” which means the world is one family, India insists on this philosophy. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “the world has enough for everyone’s need, but not enough for everyone’s greed.” Even The Prime Minister recalled that Mahatma Gandhi talked about a zero-carbon lifestyle.
- India’s proven track record of mass movements: India has a proven track record translating the aspirations of national missions into whole-of-society efforts. The success of the Swachh Bharat Mission, which mobilised individuals and communities across socio-economic strata to become drivers of collective good health and sanitation is an example.
- India is strong to uphold Climate Justice: LIFE resonates with the global climate justice India has rightfully called for highlighting enhanced obligations those in developed countries bear, to support climate adaptation and mitigation for those most affected, yet least responsible. The average carbon footprint of a person in high income country is more than 80 times higher than that of a person in a least developed country. It is common sense and only fair to call on the developed world to shoulder a proportionate share of this transition.
- Indi’s leadership on climate action at the international stage: From the Panchamrit targets announced by Mr. Modi at COP26, to support for the International Solar Alliance, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure and South-South cooperation platforms, from the world’s fifth largest economy with vibrant businesses making enormous investments in renewables and electric mobility, to a world class public digital tech stack, India brings scale, expertise and legitimacy; a well-positioned founding UN Member State bridging the G20 and G77.
- India’s COP pavilions setting up an example: India has been setting up its pavilions at COPs since 2015 to showcase its achievements in climate actions. Several think tanks, civil society organizations, industry bodies and private sector organise side events at the India pavilion.
Conclusion
- While governments and industry carry the lion’s share of responsibility for responding to the crisis of climate change, we as consumers play a large role in driving unsustainable production methods. With COP27 next month, we should commit to be an active partner of a global network of ‘Pro-Planet People’ (P3), to adopt and promote environmentally friendly lifestyles.
Mains Question
Q. In the time of the triple planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss, India shows a path for mitigating the climate crisis through LiFE movement. Discuss.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: India-China trade imbalance
The favourable trade balance that China has enjoyed with India, since bilateral trade began to boom in the early 2000s, has now exceeded $1 trillion.
India-China bilateral trade
- In 2021, annual two-way trade crossed $100 billion for the first time, reaching $125.6 billion, with India’s imports accounting for $97.5 billion, pegging the imbalance at close to $70 billion.
- This is certainly a healthy deficit compared to the industrial development in both nations.
A quick backgrounder
- Trade ties began to boom since the early 2000s.
- This was driven largely by India’s imports of Chinese machinery and other equipment.
- It rose up from $3 billion in the year 2000 to $42 billion in 2008, the year China became India’s largest trading partner.
The Hindi-Chini buy buy
- A third of machinery and almost two-fifths of organic chemicals that India purchases from the world come from China.
- Automotive parts and fertilizers are other items where China’s share in India’s import is more than 25 per cent.
- Several of these products are used by Indian manufacturers in the production of finished goods, thus thoroughly integrating China in India’s manufacturing supply chain.
- For instance India sources close to 90 per cent of certain mobile phone parts from China.
India’s export to China
- Even as an export market, China is a major partner for India.
- China is the third-largest destination for Indian shipments.
- At the same time, India only accounts for a little over two percent of China’s total exports, according to the Federation of Indian Export Organisation (FIEO).
Should we worry about this?
- Trade deficits/surpluses are just accounting exercises and having a trade deficit against a country doesn’t make the domestic economy weaker or worse off.
- In this light, India’s trade imbalance with China should not be viewed in isolation.
- For instance, pharmaceuticals that India exports to the world require ingredients that are imported from China.
- Chinese imports of Indian seafood are one area that has recently shown robust growth and carries scope to grow in future.
So, having a trade deficit is good?
- Of course NOT. Running persistent trade deficits across all countries raises two main issues.
- Availability of foreign exchange reserves to “buy” the imports.
- Lack of domestic capacity to produce most efficiently.
Can we ban trade with China?
Ans. Certainly NOT!
- It will hurt the Indian poor the most: This is because the poor are more price-sensitive. For instance, if Chinese TVs were replaced by either costlier Indian TVs or less efficient ones, unlike poor, richer Indians may buy the costlier option.
- It will punish Indian producers and exporters: Several businesses in India import intermediate goods and raw materials, which, in turn, are used to create final goods — both for the domestic Indian market as well as the global market (as Indian exports).
- Pharma sector could be worst hit: For instance, of the nearly $3.6 billion worth of ingredients that Indian drug-makers import to manufacture several essential medicines, China catered to around 68 per cent.
- Ban will barely hurt China: According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) data for 2018, 15.3% of India’s imports are from China, and 5.1% of India’s exports go to China.
- Chinese money funds Indian unicorns: India and China have also become increasingly integrated in recent years. Chinese money, for instance, has penetrated India’s technology sector, with companies like Alibaba and Tencent strategically pumping in billions of dollars into Indian startups such as Zomato, Paytm, Big Basket and Ola.
- India will lose policy credibility: It has also been suggested that India should renege on existing contracts with China. This can be detrimental to India’s effort to attract foreign investment.
China is our Frenemy. Here is why.
- The first thing to understand is that turning a border dispute into a trade war is unlikely to solve the border dispute.
- Worse, given India and China’s position in both global trades as well as relative to each other, this trade war will hurt India far more than China.
- Again, these measures will be most poorly timed since the Indian economy is already at its weakest point ever — facing a sharp GDP contraction.
Way forward
- In the long term, under the banner of self-reliance, India must develop its domestic capabilities and acquire a higher share of global trade by raising its competitiveness.
- But no country is completely self-sufficient and that is why trade is such a fantastic idea.
- For the long run, a more effective strategy needs to be built to provide an ecosystem that addresses the cost disability of Indian manufacturing leading to such imports.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Game of chance
Mains level: Online gaming and related issues
Online gambling and online games of chance have been banned in Tamil Nadu. At the same time, the other online games will be regulated.
What is Online Gaming?
- Online games refer to games that are played over some form of computer network, most often the Internet.
Types of gaming
- The types of online gaming include:
- E-sports (well-organized electronic sports which include professional players) ex. Chess
- Fantasy sports (choosing real-life sports players and winning points based on players’ performance) ex. MPL cricket
- Skill-based (mental skill) ex. Archery
- Gamble (based on random activity) ex. Playing Cards, Rummy
Online gaming sector in India
- In the past few years, India’s nascent online gaming industry witnessed an unprecedented rise, catapulting it to the top five mobile gaming markets in the world.
- Registering a growth rate of 38%, online gaming is the next sunrise industry.
- Currently, there are more than 400 gaming companies in India, and it is home to 420 million online gamers, second only to China, according to an analysis by KPMG.
Why is the gaming industry booming in India?
- Digital India boom in the gaming industry
- Narrowing of the digital divide
- IT boom
Other factors promoting the boom
- Growing younger population
- Higher disposable income
- Inexpensive internet data
- Introduction of new gaming genres, and
- Increasing number of smartphone and tablet users
Prospects of online gaming
- State List Subject: The state legislators are, vide Entry No. 34 of List II (State List) of the Seventh Schedule, given exclusive power to make laws relating to betting and gambling.
- Distinction in laws: Most Indian states regulate gaming on the basis of a distinction in law between ‘games of skill’ and ‘games of chance’.
- Classification on dominant element: As such, a ‘dominant element’ test is utilized to determine whether chance or skill is the dominating element in determining the result of the game.
- Linked economic activity: Staking money or property on the outcome of a ‘game of chance’ is prohibited and subjects the guilty parties to criminal sanctions.
- ‘Game of Skill’ debate: Placing any stakes on the outcome of a ‘game of skill’ is not illegal per se and may be permissible. It is important to note that the Supreme Court recognized that no game is purely a ‘game of skill’ and almost all games have an element of chance.
Need for regulation
- No comprehensive regulation: India currently has no comprehensive legislation with regards to the legality of online gaming or boundaries that specify applicable tax rates within the betting and gambling industry.
- Ambiguity of the sector: The gaming sector is nascent and is still evolving, and many states are bringing about legislation seeking to bring about some order in the online gaming sector.
- State list subject: Online gaming in India is allowed in most parts of the country. However, different states have their own legislation with regards to whether online gaming is permitted.
- Economic advantage: Well-regulated online gaming has its own advantages, such as economic growth and employment benefits.
Issues with online gaming
- Gaming addiction: Numerous people are developing an addiction to online gaming. This is destroying lives and devastating families.
- Compulsive gaming: Gaming by children is affecting their performance in schools and impacting their social lives & relationships with family members. Ex. PUBG
- Impact on psychological health: Online games like PUBG and the Blue Whale Challenge were banned after incidents of violence and suicide.
- Threat to Data privacy: Inadvertent sharing of personal information can lead to cases of cheating, privacy violations, abuse, and bullying.
- Betting and gambling: Online games based on the traditional ludo, arguably the most popular online game in India, have run into controversy, and allegations of betting and gambling.
Why hasn’t a comprehensive law yet materialized?
- Earlier, states like Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka also passed laws banning online games.
- However, they were quashed by state High Courts on grounds that an outright ban was unfair to games of skill:
- Violation of fundamental rights of trade and commerce, liberty and privacy, speech and expression;
- Law being manifestly arbitrary and irrational insofar as it did not distinguish between two different categories of games, i.e. games of skill and chance;
- Lack of legislative Competence of State legislatures to enact laws on online skill-based games.
Way forward
- Censoring: Minors should be allowed to proceed only with the consent of their parents — OTP verification on Aadhaar could resolve this.
- Awareness: Gaming companies should proactively educate users about potential risks and how to identify likely situations of cheating and abuse.
- Regulating mechanism: A Gaming Authority in the central government should be created.
- Accountability of the gaming company: It could be made responsible for the online gaming industry, monitoring its operations, preventing societal issues, suitably classifying games of skill or chance, overseeing consumer protection, and combatting illegality and crime.
- All-encompassing legislation: the Centre should formulate an overarching regulatory framework for online games of skill. India must move beyond skill-versus-chance debates to keep up with the global gaming industry.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Lothal, Indus Valley Civilization
Mains level: Heritage tourism
Prime Minister has reviewed the construction of the National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) site at Gujarat’s Lothal via video conferencing.
Where is Lothal?
- Lothal was one of the southernmost sites of the Indus Valley civilization, located in the Bhal region of what is now the state of Gujarat.
- The port city is believed to have been built in 2,200 BC. Lothal was a thriving trade centre in ancient times, with its trade of beads, gems and ornaments reaching West Asia and Africa.
- The meaning of Lothal (a combination of Loth and (s) thal) in Gujarati is “the mound of the dead”.
- Incidentally, the name of the city of Mohenjo-daro (also part of the Indus Valley Civilisation, now in Pakistan) means the same in Sindhi.
- In the region, it can be compared with other Indus port towns of Balakot (Pakistan), Khirasa (in Gujarat’s Kutch) and Kuntasi (in Rajkot).
When was it discovered?
- Indian archaeologists started the search for cities of the Harappan Civilisation post-1947 in Gujarat’s Saurashtra.
- Archaeologist SR Rao led the team which discovered a number of Harappan sites at the time, including the port city of Lothal.
- Excavation work was carried out in Lothal between February 1955 and May 1960.
- Adjacent to the excavated areas stands the archaeological site museum, where some of the most prominent collections of Indus-era antiquities in India are displayed.
How was it identified as port city?
- The National Institute of Oceanography in Goa discovered marine microfossils and salt, gypsum crystals at the site, indicating that sea water once filled the structure and it was definitely a dockyard.
- It had the world’s earliest known dock, connecting the city to an ancient course of the Sabarmati river.
- A metropolis with an upper and a lower town had in on its northern side a basin with vertical wall, inlet and outlet channels which has been identified as a tidal dockyard.
- Satellite images show that the river channel, now dried, would have brought in considerable volume of water during high tide, which would have filled the basin and facilitated sailing of boats upstream.
What heritage value does it hold?
- Lothal was nominated in April 2014 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its application is pending on the tentative list of UNESCO.
- It is the only port-town of the Indus Valley Civilisation.
- Its heritage value is comparable to following ancient port-towns around the world-
- Xel Ha (Peru)
- Ostia (Port of Rome)
- Carthage (Port of Tunis) in Italy
- Hepu in China,
- Canopus in Egypt
- Gabel (Byblos of the Phoenicians),
- Jaffa in Israel,
- Ur in Mesopotamia
- Hoi An in Vietnam
Building up of Heritage Complex
- The project began in March 2022, and is being developed at a cost of Rs 3,500 crore.
- It will have several innovative features such as Lothal mini-recreation, which will recreate Harappan architecture and lifestyle through immersive technology.
- It has four theme parks – Memorial theme park, Maritime and Navy theme park, Climate theme park, and Adventure and Amusement theme park.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: RNA Origami
Mains level: Not Much
This newscard is an excerpt of the original article published in The Hindu.
Note: It appears to be too much biological. And suddenly out of our ease of understanding.
What is Ribo Nucleic Acid (RNA)?
- RNA is an important biological macromolecule that is present in all biological cells.
- It is principally involved in the synthesis of proteins, carrying the messenger instructions from DNA, which itself contains the genetic instructions required for the development and maintenance of life.
- In some viruses, RNA, rather than DNA, carries genetic information.
- The type of RNA dictates the function that this molecule will have within the cell.
- Aside from the coding region of messenger RNA (mRNA) molecules that will be translated into proteins, other cellular RNA elements are involved in different processes.
What are RNA Origami?
- RNA origami is the nanoscale folding of RNA, enabling the RNA to create particular shapes to organize these molecules.
- It is an attempt to generate complex human-made RNA-based devices.
- They are stable in cells, interact with other biomolecules, including other RNA and proteins, and enable unique applications, particularly in the context of gene regulation.
Why are they used?
So far there have been two approaches in RNA origami and both attempt to regulate the production of protein.
(1) To achieve precise control of protein production
- Self-inhibiting protein expression cassettes were made by installing a strong binding site for the expressed protein in its own gene.
- Afterwards, RNA origami decorated with the same protein-binding sites was expressed in large excess.
- In this way, the RNA origami serves as a protein-sponge that sequesters proteins in the cell and allows expression of the self-inhibited protein.
- This approach helped to regulate several proteins simultaneously and turn on enzymatic pathways for improved product yields.
(2) Using for gene editing
- The RNA origamis were integrated in the small RNAs that guide CRISPR-Cas9 enzyme to target specific sequences in the DNA genome.
- Its scaffolds were decorated with protein-binding sites capable of recruiting transcription factors.
- By targeting the RNA scaffolds to promoter regions, the transcription factors activated gene expression.
- Researchers have shown that the expression strength can be tuned by the orienting the scaffold and level of transcription factors recruited.
- These multi-enzyme pathways could be controlled for high-yield production of the anti-cancer drug violacein.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Graded Response Action Plan- GRAP
Mains level: Delhi Air Pollution issue
The Commission for Air Quality Management directed New Delhi authorities to enforce stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) with immediate effect.
Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)
- In 2014, when a study by the WHO found that Delhi was the most polluted city in the world, panic spread in the Centre and the state government.
- Approved by the Supreme Court in 2016, the plan was formulated after several meetings that the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) held with state government and experts.
- The result was a plan that institutionalized measures to be taken when air quality deteriorates.
- GRAP also works as an emergency measure.
- It includes strict measures such as a ban on the entry of heavy vehicles, the odd-even road rationing restrictions, and a halt of construction work – each of which is likely to be impractical at a time when the pandemic has exacted heavy economic costs and public transport has been seen as an infection risk.
How does it work?
- As such, the plan does not include action by various state governments to be taken throughout the year to tackle industrial, vehicular and combustion emissions.
- When the air quality shifts from poor to very poor, the measures listed under both sections have to be followed since the plan is incremental in nature.
- If air quality reaches the severe+ stage, GRAP talks about shutting down schools and implementing the odd-even road-space rationing scheme.
Measures taken under GRAP
1) Severe+ or Emergency
(PM 2.5 over 300 µg/cubic metre or PM10 over 500 µg/cu. m. for 48+ hours)
- Stop entry of trucks into Delhi (except essential commodities)
- Stop construction work
- Introduce odd/even scheme for private vehicles and minimise exemptions
- Task Force to decide any additional steps including shutting of schools
2) Severe
(PM 2.5 over 250 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 430 µg/cu. m.)
- Close brick kilns, hot mix plants, stone crushers
- Maximise power generation from natural gas to reduce generation from coal
- Encourage public transport, with differential rates
- More frequent mechanized cleaning of road and sprinkling of water
3) Very Poor
(PM2.5 over 121-250 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 351-430 µg/cu. m.)
- Stop use of diesel generator sets
- Enhance parking fee by 3-4 times
- Increase bus and Metro services
- Apartment owners to discourage burning fires in winter by providing electric heaters during winter
- Advisories to people with respiratory and cardiac conditions to restrict outdoor movement
4) Moderate to poor
(PM2.5 over 61-120 µg/cu. m. or PM10 over 101-350 µg/cu. m.)
- Heavy fines for garbage burning
- Close/enforce pollution control regulations in brick kilns and industries
- Mechanized sweeping on roads with heavy traffic and water sprinkling
- Strictly enforce a ban on firecrackers
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: space developments
Mains level: space developments,black hole, merging of Stars, Energy, Gravitation
Context
- For the very first time, scientists noted that this observation of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave (LIGO) observatories coincided with the measurements made by other telescopes that measured visual and electromagnetic signals.
What is Black hole?
- A black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light can not get out. The gravity is so strong because matter has been squeezed into a tiny space. This can happen when a star is dying.
- Because no light can get out, people can’t see black holes. They are invisible. Space telescopes with special tools can help find black holes. The special tools can see how stars that are very close to black holes act differently than other stars.
What is the background?
- LIGO Observations: In 2017, astrophysicists observed an unusual feat among the stars. The Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave(LIGO)observatories recorded a signal which indicated that two massive and dense stellar bodies had merged to form a third body, likely a black hole.
- Generation gravitational waves: In the process they gave off vibrations that quite literally shook the universe and its very fabric of space time.
- Neutron stars: Scientists, piecing together evidence from complementary measurements, surmised that the event they had observed was of two neutron stars merging and forming a black hole and, in the process, giving off light.
What are the observations through telescopes?
- The matter moving faster than light: An unusual jet of matter was observed that gave an illusion of travelling faster than light. These were all exciting phenomena observed for the very first time by telescopes and observatories.
- Confirmation by Hubble Space Telescope: Now, using data that had been recorded by the Global astro metric Interferometer for Astrophysics (GAIA) spacecraft and Hubble Space Telescope instruments, scientists have confirmed that the above picture is correct. They have made it more precise and descriptive.
- Seven times the speed of light: In a paper published in Nature, they describe measuring the “apparent speed” of the jet to be about seven times the speed of light.
- Lorenz factor: They have also measured more accurately a factor called the Lorenz factor which scales with the actual speed of the particles in the jet. Unlike earlier estimates which placed this factor at about 4, the present paper estimates this factor to be over 40. This is because they measure the speed of the relativistic jet to be close to 0.9997c, where “c” is the speed of light.
- Clarity about the source as neutron star in block hole generation: This resolves the earlier fuzziness about what the source was and puts the source clearly as massive neutron stars merging to give a black hole and throwing off relativistic jets of particles in the process.
- Born out of Supernova explosion: Neutron stars are stellar corpses, left behind after a star has undergone a supernova explosion and reached the end of its lifetime. They are extremely dense, containing more mass than the sun in a sphere that is a few tens of kilometre wide.
- Produces fast moving material: This has been seen in many active galactic nuclei galaxy centres that harbour black holes and binary star systems within our galaxy, where one of the stars is a black hole. “Mostly, black holes are responsible for producing such fast moving material
Why present observations about black Hole are significant?
- Estimating changing position of sky: The present measurements and observations made with GAIA data are extremely challenging. They amount to measuring the position of an object in sky coordinates. These authors measured a change in sky position one millionth the span of the full moon. Normally, if one were making these measurements from earth-based telescopes, it would require data from radio telescopes spaced apart by intercontinental distances.
- VLBI technique: This technique is called Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) and was used in the earlier papers. “Here, the authors could beat VLBI in precision because they calibrated Hubble Space Telescope data with GAIA, which is a precision astrometry mission.
- It’s an estimate not a measurement: the researchers used both their Hubble Space Telescope and GAIA optical position measurement along with the earlier VLBI position measurement to get a better estimate of the speed of the source and angle (viewing angle) with which it is travelling with respect to us on earth. This estimate requires plugging in equations of the special theory of relativity. “So, it is an estimate as opposed to a measurement.
- Improvement in estimation: we have learnt that neutron star mergers can result in material moving with speeds as high as 0.9997c.Earlier results using Very Long Baseline Interferometry had pegged this value at about 0.938c. with the new results this lower limit has been improved. Even earlier, with VLBI, it was understood that it was a neutron star merger that produced such ultra-relativistic material. Before the VLBI results, there were several models that could replicate the observations.
- Explanation using ultra realistic material: The observations could be explained both by ultra-relativistic material and non relativistic material, with some differences in assumptions. That study indicated that the observed gamma ray bursts were produced along with the ultra-relativistic material.
Conclusion
- Current discovery strengthens the hypothesis that such neutron star mergers are responsible for a class of gamma ray bursts. Gamma ray bursts are flashes of extreme gamma ray photons that release a huge amount of energy nearly 1047 They come from different galaxies in the universe and are observed here quite frequently.
Mains Question
Q. What is the neutron star and how the merger of two stars produces a black hole? How LIGO and Hubble space telescope are useful in demystifying the black Hole phenomenon?
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: International relations.India-china, India-USA
Context
- America’s national security strategy issued by the Joe Biden Administration last week and the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th Congress this week promise to reshape the geopolitics of Asia and the Indo-Pacific.
Historical background of USA-CHINA
- Context of World War II: Asia has seen multiple phases in the US-China relationship. In the second half of the 19th century, American missionaries began to arrive in China and began to generate empathy for the nation. During World War II, Washington backed Chinese nationalists in their fight against Japanese occupation.
- US efforts to isolation China: The US tried to isolate China from 1949 when the communists prevailed over the nationalists.
- Cooperation to counter Soviet: The 1970’s saw the US and communist China come together to counter the Soviet Union.
- Multiple Economic engagement: The 1980s saw the beginning of an economic engagement that turned into a huge commercial and technological partnership from the 1990s.
What is the USA’s assumption and China’s ambition?
- China as responsible stakeholder: The US establishment dismissed the idea of China as potential threat and bet that Beijing could become a “responsible stakeholder” in the world order.
- Democratization of Chinese society is inevitable: America also believed that China’s growing economic prosperity would inevitably lead to greater democratisation of its society.
- Visible decline of west: China, however, has steadily moved in the other direction, especially under Xi, who has convinced himself that the West is in terminal decline.
- China’s ambition to change the world order: Xi is determined to seize this moment to reshape the Asian as well as the global order to suit Chinese interests. At the same time, China has become increasingly repressive at home.
- Explicit expression of ambition: Xi made no effort to hide China’s new geopolitical ambition nor has he been defensive about his authoritarian rule. This, in turn, bestirred the US into rethinking its China policy in the second decade of the 21st century.
- Asserting own version of Global order: Beijing, argues that recent history points to the superiority of the Chinese system over the Western one. And it offers its own versions of a global order – economic, political and social. Since the end of the Cold War, ideological arguments had receded into the background but are now back in significant play.
- China offering model Economic Globalization: China continues to sing praises of the model of economic globalisation that has facilitated Beijing’s rise over the last four decades. But under Xi, China has emphasised the importance of self-reliance in the name of a “dual circulation strategy”.
- Leveraging world’s dependence for strategic gain: At the same time, Beijing has sought to enhance the world’s dependence on its economy and leverage it for strategic benefit. The profound political backlash against trade and economic cooperation with China in the US led to the questioning of economic globalisation in the Trump years.
- China building the powerful military: As China became a richer country, it also focused on building a powerful army. Using both the instruments of hard power, China under Xi has actively sought to undermine US alliances in Asia and mount pressure on American forward military presence in Asia.
How USA’s policy is changing towards China?
- Structured policy of rivalry: The traditional soft attitude to China yielded to a more confrontational approach during the Donald Trump presidency. Joe Biden has developed that into a more structured policy of competing with China.
- Combine challenge of China and Russia: The National Security Strategy of the Trump administration postulated the return of great power rivalry and the need to respond to the challenges presented by Russia and China. Biden’s NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY builds on that proposition and identifies China as the more demanding challenge than Russia, despite Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine.
- China is more capable than Russia: In his foreword to the National security strategy, Biden says “Russia poses an immediate threat to the free and open international system, recklessly flouting the basic laws of the international order today, as its brutal war of aggression against Ukraine has shown.” He names China, on the other hand, as “the only country with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military and technological power to advance that objective”. While the European challenge is real, the Biden Administration now sees the Indo-Pacific as the principal strategic theatre.
- Projecting China as autocracy against the democracy: The US has sought to locate the conflict with China (and Russia) as a fundamental struggle between “democracies and autocracies”. Recognising the limited enthusiasm for the framing in Asia, the National security strategy now talks of broadening the coalition to include countries that may not be democratic. Beijing, on the other hand, argues that recent history points to the superiority of the Chinese system over the Western one.
- Building the bilateral alliances: The US is now pushing back. The principal instrument in the US response has been rebuilding the traditional bilateral alliances with Japan and Australia as well as constructing new partnerships with countries like India and developing new regional coalitions.
India’s role in shaping the world order
- Convergence of National interest wit USA: Today, Indian and American policies are converging. For both Delhi and Washington, Beijing presents the main national challenges.
- Reducing economic dependence on China: On the economic and technological front, both India and the US are trying to reduce their exposure to China.
- Keeping independent foreign policy: On the geopolitical front, a US plan to look beyond formal alliances suits Delhi, which is wedded to an independent foreign policy.
- Opportunity for cooperation: It is never easy to translate abstract convergence into concrete policies. The current churn in Asia provides Delhi and Washington with a historic opportunity to build on the new convergences in the areas of trade, technology, and geopolitics.
Conclusion
- changing world order will have short term repercussion on economic front for developing country like India. India has a great opportunity to be the rule maker of new global order rather than just a rule follower. World order of 21st century will revolve around the fateful triangle of India, China and USA.
Mains Question
Q.Why the present world order is challenged by China? What role India can play as rule maker of new World order?
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: E-waste applications and impacts
Mains level: E-waste problems, and scientific recycling,advantages and disadvantages
Context
- International E-Waste Day is held on October 14 every year as an opportunity to reflect on the impacts of e-waste. This year’s slogan is ‘Recycle it all, no matter how small!
- Hoarding of small, unused, dead or broken plug-in and battery-operated products is the focus of this year’s 5th annual International E-Waste Day.
What is mean by E-Waste?
- E-waste is a popular, informal name for electronic products nearing the end of their “useful life.”Computers, televisions, VCRs, stereos, copiers, and fax machines are common electronic products. Many of these products can be reused, refurbished, or recycled.
Why E-waste is important?
- Highly valuable metals: E-waste is a rich source of metals such as gold, silver, and copper, which can be recovered and brought back into the production cycle. There is significant economic potential in the efficient recovery of valuable materials in e-waste and can provide income-generating opportunities for both individuals and enterprises.
- No harm if stored safely: It is said that the electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) after their useful life does not cause any harm to health and the environment if it is stored safely in households/stores. If the end of life EEE (e-waste) is opened-up and unscientific methods are used for extraction of precious and semi-precious material from it, then it causes health risks and damage to the environment.
Why E-waste is hazardous to environment and health?
- Highly toxic in nature: E-waste can be toxic, is not biodegradable and accumulates in the environment, in the soil, air, water and living things.
- Adverse effects on health: High levels of contaminants such as lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic, which can lead to irreversible health effects, including cancers, miscarriages, neurological damage and diminished IQs.etc.
- Adverse effects on environment: There are problems with toxic materials leaching into the environment. For example, open-air burning and acid baths being used to recover valuable materials from electronic components release toxic materials leaching into the environment.
- Plastic used in electronics highly Hazardous: Hazardous chemicals such as bromine, antimony and lead are applied to electronics like laptops and music systems as flame retardants. They find their way into food-contact items and other everyday products as the demand for black plastics in consumer products is met partly by sourcing from e-waste.
According to the study conducted by Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Forum
- Non-profit Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Forum is an international association of 46 e-waste producer responsibility organizations which started the day in 2018.
- According WEEE studies: Roughly 5.3 billion mobile/smartphones will drop out of use this year.The electronics would reach a height of around 50,000 km if stacked flat and on top of each other. That’s an eighth of the distance to the moon.
- WEEE Survey:The forum surveys conducted to reveal why so many households and businesses fail to bring in for repair or recycling. The results were consolidated by the United Nations’ Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Sustainable Cycles Programme.
- Results of WEEE surveys: Of 8,775 European households in six countries, the average household contains 74 e-products. Of 74 average total e-products, 13 are being hoarded. This is the story almost everywhere.The top five hoarded small electronic products were (in order): small electronics and accessories (eg, headphones, remotes), small equipment, small IT equipment (eg, hard drives, routers, keyboards, mice), mobile and smartphones, small food preparation appliances .LED lamps ranked the top of the list of products most likely to be trashed.
- Statistics: Approximately 8 lakh tonnes per annum of plastic waste is recycled and 1.67 lakh tonnes per annum is co-processed in Cement Kilns, said the government. There are 468 authorised dismantlers/recyclers in 22 states having a processing capacity of 13.85 lakh tonnes of e-waste in the country.
- The e-waste management rules: The e-Waste (Management) Rules were notified in 2016 which got amended from time to time. So far, the Environment Ministry has notified 21 types of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) as e-waste
- No recent studies on the pollution caused by e-waste: In the recent Parliament session, Minister of State for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Ashwini Kumar Choubey in his reply to Kerala Rajya Sabha member V Sivadasan (CPM) said no study has been carried out by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to assess the damage caused to the environment by e-waste.
Current scenario and issues in E-waste recycling
- Crude and Scrappage: As of today, some 95% of e-waste is managed by the informal sector which operates under inferior working conditions and relies on crude techniques for dismantling and recycling.
- Infrastructure lacunae: Another important issue is the lack of sufficient metal processing infrastructure which is why recyclers have to export materials to global smelters.
- Price competencies: As aggregators are mostly informal, they demand up-front cash payments.
- Bloomed informal network: The informal network is well-established and rests on social capital ties that PROs have yet to establish and are hence insulated from reaching the viable number of aggregators.
- Policy failure: Policy changes have tried repeatedly to formalize the sector, but issues of implementation persist on the ground.
Way forward
- Effective design: Since India is highly deficient in precious mineral resources, there is a need for a well-designed, robust and regulated e-waste recovery regime that would generate jobs and wealth.
- Consumer responsibility: The consumers must responsibly consume the product for its useful life and then weigh between the chances of repair or disposal with utmost consciousness towards the environment.
- Recyclable products: On the supply side, e-waste can be reduced when producers design electronic products that are safer, and more durable, repairable and recyclable.
- Reuse: Manufacturers must reuse the recyclable materials and not mine rare elements unnecessarily to meet new production.
- Commercial recycling: Rather than hoping that informal recyclers become formal it would be more feasible for companies and the state to design programs ensure e-waste easily makes its way to proper recyclers.
Conclusion
- Concerted efforts are important to generate a momentum of sustained efforts towards increasing disposal through formal and scientific channels and catalyzing sustainable consumption patterns is the need of the hour.
Mains Question
Q.The size and complexity of the e-waste problem are growing at a much quicker rate than the efficacy of strategies to contain it. Discuss the impact of unscientific recycling of E-waste on Environment and human health.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: JAM trinity
Mains level: JAM trinity, financial inclusion and Direct Benefit Transfer
Context
- Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) lauded India’s Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) Scheme as a “logistical marvel” that has reached hundreds of millions of people and specifically benefitted women, the elderly and farmers. Paolo Mauro, Deputy Director in the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs Department, praised the role of technological innovation in achieving this feat.
What is Direct Benefit Transfer(DBT)?
- With the aim of reforming Government delivery system by re-engineering the existing process in welfare schemes for simpler and faster flow of information/funds and to ensure accurate targeting of the beneficiaries, de-duplication and reduction of fraud Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) was started on 1st January, 2013.
- DBT Mission was created in the Planning Commission to act as the nodal point for the implementation of the DBT programmes. The Mission was transferred to the Department of Expenditure in July, 2013 and continued to function till 14.9.2015. To give more impetus, DBT Mission and matters related thereto has been placed in Cabinet Secretariat under Secretary (Co-ordination & PG).
Efforts behind the efficient DBT
- Mission-mode approach for financial inclusion: Government endeavoured to open bank accounts for all households, expanded Aadhaar to all, and scaled up the coverage of banking and telecom services.
- Public Finance Management System through Aadhar: It evolved the Public Finance Management System and created the Aadhaar Payment Bridge to enable instant money transfers from the government to people’s bank accounts.
- Participation of various stakeholders for extensive UPI: The Aadhaar-enabled Payment System and Unified Payment Interface further expanded interoperability and private-sector participation.
- Directly receiving of subsidies: This approach not only allowed all rural and urban households to be uniquely linked under varied government schemes for receiving subsidies directly into their bank accounts but also transferred money with ease.
What is the Present status of DBT?
- The status of JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Aadhar Mobile)
- By 2022, more than 135 crore Aadhaar’s have been generated,
- There are 47 crore beneficiaries under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana,
- Mobile subscribers number more than 120 crores.
- Riding on this network, the DBT programme has reached commanding heights towards achieving the government’s vision of “sabka vikas”.
- Last mile banking through Bank Mitras: 5 lakh Bank Mitras delivering branchless banking services.
- DBT applicable to government schemes: Becoming the major plank of the government’s agenda of inclusive growth, it has 318 schemes of 53 central ministries spanning across sectors, welfare goals and the vast geography of the country.
How benefits are delivered through DBT?
- DBT in rural areas: In rural Bharat, DBT has allowed the government to provide financial assistance effectively and transparently to farmers with lower transaction costs be it for fertilisers or any of the other schemes including the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, PM Fasal Bima Yojana, and PM Krishi Sinchayi Yojana thus becoming the backbone for supporting the growth of the agricultural economy.
- DBT in urban area: In urban India, the PM Awas Yojana and LPG Pahal scheme successfully use DBT to transfer funds to eligible beneficiaries.
- Benefits under MGNAREGA: The benefits received under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and Public Distribution System drive the rural demand-supply chain.
- Various assistance programmes: Various scholarship schemes and the National Social Assistance Programme use the DBT architecture to provide social security.
- Scheme for rehabilitation: DBT under rehabilitation programmes such as the Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers opens new frontiers that enable social mobility of all sections of society.
- DBT as last mile support in Pandemic: The efficacy and robustness of the DBT network were witnessed during the pandemic. It aided the government to reach the last mile and support the most deprived in bearing the brunt of the lockdown. From free rations to nearly 80 crore people under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, fund transfers to all women Jan Dhan account holders and support to small vendors under PM-SVANidhi, DBT helped the vulnerable to withstand the shock of the pandemic.
- An enabling policy regime: Proactive government initiatives and supportive regulatory administration allowed the private and public sector entities in the financial sector to overcome longstanding challenges of exclusion of a large part of the population.
- Creation of a dedicated ecosystem: These are essential elements of the pioneering ecosystem created by the government for the aggressive rollout of the ambitious DBT programme, achieving impressive scale in a short span of six years.
Conclusion
- Direct Benefit Transfer has transformed the welfare aspect of the governance. Going forward digital and financial literacy, robust grievance redressal, enhancing awareness and an empowering innovation system are some of the aspects that would require continued focus. This would play a vital role for India in meeting the diverse needs of its population and ensuring balanced, equitable and inclusive growth.
Mains Question
Q.Enlist the schemes that comes under DBT. How DBT has changed the lives of needy people in urban and rural India?
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Office of the Governor
Mains level: Issues with role of Governor
Kerala Governor has opened the next battlefront against the State government by threatening to remove Ministers from their posts if they continued to lower the dignity of his office.
Why in news?
- This is for the very first time that any Governor has expressed his displeasure.
- There has been no occasion so far of a Governor unilaterally removing a minister from the government.
Governor in the parliamentary system
- The position, role, powers, and conditions of office of the Governor are described in Articles 153-161 of the Constitution.
- The position of Governor is similar to that of the President at the Union.
- He is at the head of the state’s executive power, and barring some matters, acts on the advice of the council of ministers, which is responsible, in accordance with the parliamentary system, to the state legislature.
Apolitical nature of his appointment
- The Governor is appointed by the President (on the advice of the central government) and, therefore, acts as the vital link between the Union and the state governments.
- The post was envisaged as being apolitical; however, the role of Governors has been a contentious issue in Centre-state relations for decades.
- The Governor enjoys certain powers such as giving or withholding assent to a Bill passed by the state legislature or determining the time needed for a party to prove its majority.
- The party must be called first to do so, generally after in a hung Assembly — which have been weaponized by successive central governments against the political opposition.
Is the Governor capable to remove a Minister?
- Article 164(1) says state “Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor”.
- This is the provision that the Kerala Governor was seemingly alluding to.
- Article 164(1) deals with the appointment of the Chief Minister and other ministers.
- While the Governor does not have to seek anyone’s advice while appointing the Chief Minister, he can appoint a minister only on the recommendation of the Chief Minister.
- The Governor has no power to pick anyone he chooses to make a minister. He can appoint a minister only on the advice of the CM.
Major judicial observation in this regard
Ans. Shamsher Singh & Anr vs State Of Punjab (1974)
- The Supreme Court ruled that- the President and Governor exercise their formal constitutional powers only upon and in accordance with the advice of their Ministers save in a few well known exceptional situations.
What were the exception situations referred to?
- These situations could arise if:
- The PM or CM cease to command majority in the House
- The government loses majority but refuses to quit office
- For the dissolution of the House where an appeal to the country is necessitous.
- But even in the third scenario, the President or Governor should avoid getting involved in politics and must be advised by his PM/CM who will eventually take the responsibility for the step the court ruled.
What did the founding fathers of the constitution believe?
- B R Ambedkar said- The Governor under the Constitution has no function which he can discharge by himself; no functions at all.
So what does the “pleasure” of the Governor mean?
- The Governor can have his pleasure as long as the government enjoys majority in the House.
- The Governor can withdraw his pleasure only when the government loses majority but refuses to quit.
- Then he withdraws the pleasure and dismisses it.
- Without the advice of the Chief Minister, a Governor can neither appoint nor dismiss a minister.
- That’s the constitutional position.
What maximum can a Governor do?
- If a minister lowers the dignity of the Governor or his office, as Kerala Governor has alleged, Raj Bhavan can ask the Chief Minister to inquire.
- If it is found that the minister has defamed or disrespected the Governor, he/ she can ask the Chief Minister to drop the minister.
- This does not mean the Governor has the right to dismiss the Chief Minister or ministers at will.
Attempts to moralize such situations
(1) National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution
- The NCRWC appointed by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in 2000 recommended significant changes in the selection of Governors.
- The Commission suggested that the Governor should be appointed after consultation with the CM of that State.
- Normally the five year term should be adhered to and removal or transfer of the Governor should be by following a similar procedure as for appointment.
(2) Sarkaria Commission
- The Sarkaria Commission was set up in 1983 to look into Centre-state relations.
- It proposed that the Vice President of India and the Speaker of Lok Sabha should be consulted by the Prime Minister in the selection of Governors. (without any logic behind explaining!)
(3) Punchhi Committee
- The Justice Madan Mohan Punchhi Committee was constituted in 2007 on Centre-state relations.
- It proposed in its report submitted in March 2010 that a committee comprising the PM, Home Minister, Vice President, Speaker, and the concerned Chief Minister should choose the Governor.
- The Punchhi Committee recommended deleting the “Doctrine of Pleasure” from the Constitution.
- However, it backed the right of the Governor to sanction the prosecution of ministers against the advice of the state government.
- It also argued for a provision for the impeachment of the Governor by the state legislature.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ISA
Mains level: Solar energy
To bolster investments in solar power projects, the International Solar Alliance (ISA), in its General Assembly approved the ‘Solar Facility’, a payment guarantee mechanism.
What is Solar Facility?
- It is expected to stimulate investments into solar projects through two financial components:
- Solar Payment Guarantee Fund and
- Solar Insurance Fund
- The thrust of the facility is to attract private capital to flow into “underserved markets” in Africa.
- The ISA would aim to crowdsource investments from various donors across the globe and proposed projects in Africa would be able to purchase payment guarantees or partial insurance premium from these funds.
Why such move?
- ISA’s mission is to unlock US $1 trillion (₹80 lakh crore) of investments in solar power by 2030 while reducing cost of the technology and its financing.
What is International Solar Alliance (ISA)?
- The ISA is an alliance of more than 121 countries, most of them being sunshine countries, which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.
- It is headquartered in Gurugram, India.
- The primary objective of the alliance is to work for efficient exploitation of solar energy to reduce dependence on fossil fuels.
- The alliance is a treaty-based inter-governmental organization.
- The initiative was launched by PM Modi at the India Africa Summit and a meeting of member countries ahead of the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris in November 2015.
Objectives of the ISA
- To mobilize investments of more than USD 1000 billion by 2030
- To take coordinated action for better harmonization, aggregation of demand, risk and resources, for promoting solar finance, solar technologies, innovation, R&D, capacity building etc.
- Reduce the cost of finance to increase investments in solar energy in member countries
- Scale up applications of solar technologies in member countries
- Facilitate collaborative research and development (R&D) activities in solar energy technologies among member countries
- Promote a common cyber platform for networking, cooperation and exchange of ideas among member countries
What does ISA formation signify?
- Climate action commitment: It symbolizes about the sincerity of the developing nations towards their concern about climate change and to switch to a low-carbon growth path.
- Clean energy: India’s pledge to the Paris summit offered to bring 40% of its electricity generation capacity from non-fossil sources (renewable, large hydro, and nuclear) by 2030.
- Global electrification: India has pledged to let solar energy reach to the most unconnected villages and communities and also towards creating a clean planet.
- Global cooperation: It is based on world cooperation irrespective of global boundaries.
- India’s Soft power: For India, possible additional benefits from the alliance can be a strengthening of ties with the major African countries and increasing goodwill for India among them.
Key initiatives
[A] Global Solar Atlas
- ISA alliance has partnered with World Bank to launch Global Solar Atlas at an ISA event at the World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi.
- Global Solar Atlas is a free online tool that displays annual average solar power potential at any location in the world and thus identify potential sites for solar power generation.
[B] OSOWOG Initiative
- Under the ISA project, India envisaged having an interconnected power transmission grid across nations for the supply of clean energy.
- The vision behind the OSOWOG mantra is ‘The Sun Never Sets’ and is a constant at some geographical location, globally, at any given point of time.
- With India at the fulcrum, the solar spectrum can easily be divided into two broad zones viz. far East which would include countries like Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, Lao, Cambodia etc. and far West which would cover the Middle East and the Africa Region.
Implementation
- The OSOWOG would have three phases.
- Phase I: Middle East, South Asia and South-East Asia would be interconnected
- Phase II: Solar and other renewable energy resources rich regions would be interconnected
- Phase III: Global interconnection of the power transmission grid to achieve the One Sun One World One Grid vision
Benefits of the project
- Attracting investment: An interconnected grid would help all the participating entities in attracting investments in renewable energy sources as well as utilizing skills, technology and finances.
- Poverty alleviation: Resulting economic benefits would positively impact poverty alleviation and support in mitigating water, sanitation, food and other socio-economic challenges.
- Reduced project cost: The proposed integration would lead to reduced project costs, higher efficiencies and increased asset utilization for all the participating entities.
Various challenges
- Lack of Funding: Providing the money for promoting solar electricity among the members is a challenge. The Alliance has very little money of its own.
- Expensive implementation: The cost of power has two components. The variable cost is the payment made for the numbers of units of electricity purchased. In addition, the buyer is required to pay a certain amount towards the fixed cost of solar supply.
- Battery-based Storage: Solar electricity is available only during the day when the sun shines. Thus, the storage of electricity is a difficult task.
- Cross-border transmission: Solar electricity has to overcome the roadblocks of transmission. Cross-border transmission of electricity requires the establishment of transmission lines from the producer to the consumer country.
- Peak hour load: The demand for electricity, however, is more during the morning and evening which are called “peak hours”. But it can be produced when the sun is shining.
- Climate change: Sudden overcast and rainfall in many parts of the tropics has been a major issues these days. Such weather hampers solar energy production
- Desired global consensus: It is hindered with the issues of intricate geopolitics, unfavourable economics, unwarranted globalisation and undue centralization that act against the concept.
- Highly ambitious: In a nation like India, it took us this long to connect all the regions of the country through a national grid and we are talking about ‘one world, one grid’.
Way forward
- ISA should focus on its core goals such as- aggregating demand, tariff, technical collaborations, and financial assistance for achieving its target.
- It further needs to ensure that solar benefits are clear and tangible to users beyond its cost ambitions.
- ISA should demonstrate business models that are viable for users, suppliers and financiers.
- Further, the alliance should support member countries in implementing policies to expedite these business models.
- Geo-politically, this is being touted as a clever strategy however financially and technology-wise, this has to make sense.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: FCNR Deposits
Mains level: India's forex reserves and its implications
The RBI’s 2013 FCNR scheme to buffer the rupee against steep declines and rebuild foreign exchange reserves is unlikely to prove fruitful in the current crisis as economic fundamentals are different.
What are FCNR deposits?
- Back in 2013, the RBI had offered to swap the U.S. dollars banks had raised via foreign currency non-resident (FCNR) deposits or foreign currency funding for rupees at concessional rates.
- A FCNR is a bank account for NRIs to maintain a Fixed Deposit account in India.
- This account allows one as an NRI to save money earned in the currency form of the country you’ve originally earned the money from.
- FCNR deposits can hold currencies like US Dollars, Pounds Sterling, Euro, Japanese Yen, Australian Dollars and Canadian Dollars.
- Interest on such deposits is exempt for income tax.
How do they operate?
- These deposit accounts are a term deposit account, not savings.
- Once can withdraw your money before the date of maturity, and there will be no charges, but the interest will not be paid until after a year is complete.
Benefits offered
- FCNRs are just like what FDs are for resident Indians, except in foreign currency.
- They work as great investment options for NRIs to invest in the country for a start, before looking for other avenues in investments on the stock market.
- Because the money is being held in those currencies, the risk of exchange rate fluctuations is eliminated.
Why in news?
- Forex reserves have tumbled about $110 billion from a peak of $642 billion in September last year.
- A significant reason behind this is RBI’s currency market intervention.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Speed of light, Neutron stars, various terms mentioned
Mains level: Not Much
Scientists have spotted something that appeared to be moving 7 times faster than the Speed of Light in a supernova like event.
What is the news?
- In 2017, astrophysicists observed an unusual feat among the stars.
- The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave (LIGO) observatories recorded a signal which indicated that two massive and dense stellar bodies had merged to form a third body, likely a black hole.
- An unusual jet of matter was observed that gave an illusion of travelling faster than light.
Can matter move faster than Light?
- From the data, it appeared the jets of matter were moving seven times faster than light.
- The researchers explain the reason behind the discrepancy is due to something called superluminal motion.
- Since the jet of matter reaches Earth at the speed of light, the light it emits at later points has a relatively shorter distance, making it appear faster than it actually is.
- After more calculations, astronomers found the real speed to be at least 99.7 percent of the speed of light (3 × 10^8 m / s).
Crossing the speed of light: An illusion
- The data of same incident has been recorded by the Global Astrometric Interferometer for Astrophysics (GAIA) spacecraft and Hubble (James Web) Space Telescope
- Using it, scientists confirmed that the above picture is correct.
How to assess it?
- Scientists have also measured more accurately a factor called the Lorenz factor which scales with the actual speed of the particles in the jet.
- Unlike earlier estimates which placed this factor at about 4, the present paper estimates this factor to be over 40.
- This is because they measure the speed of the relativistic jet to be close to 9997c, where “c” is the speed of light.
How are they observed?
- Source is clearly as massive neutron stars merging to give a black hole and throwing off relativistic jets of particles in the process.
Merging neutron stars: Faking to cross speed of light
- Neutron stars are stellar corpses, left behind after a star has undergone a supernova explosion and reached the end of its lifetime.
- They are extremely dense, containing more mass than the sun in a sphere that is a few tens of kilometre wide.
- The observation of particles moving at seven times the speed of light is an illusion.
- This happens in cases where a source moves (towards us) with a velocity that is very close to light’s velocity.
- This has been seen in many active galactic nuclei — galaxy centres that harbour black holes — and binary star systems within our galaxy, where one of the stars is a black hole.
- Mostly, black holes are responsible for producing such fast-moving material.
How is this illusion created?
- Normally, if one were making these measurements from earth-based telescopes, it would require data from radio telescopes spaced apart by intercontinental distances.
- This technique is called Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) and was used in the earlier papers.
Significance of this study
- The significance of the paper is that now, we have learnt that neutron star mergers can result in material moving with speeds as high as 0.9997c.
- Earlier results using Very Long Baseline Interferometry had pegged this value at about 0.938c.
- And with the new results this lower limit has been improved.
- Even earlier, with VLBI, it was understood that it was a neutron-star merger that produced such ultra-relativistic material.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: GI Tags in news
Mains level: Not Much
The Embassy of Japan, New Delhi, has filed an application seeking Geographical Indication (GI) tag for nihonshu/Japanese sake, an alcoholic beverage.
Why in news?
- It is learnt that this is the first time a product from Japan has filed for a tag at the Geographical Indication Registry in Chennai.
What is Nihonshu?
- Nihonshu is regarded as a special and valuable beverage made from fermenting rice.
- People traditionally drink nihonshu on special occasions, such as festivals, weddings or funerals, but it is also consumed on a daily basis.
- Thus, it is an integral part of the lifestyle and culture in Japan.
- The sake market (almost all are nihonshu) is the second largest brewed liquor (such as beer) market in Japan.
How is it made?
- For making nihonshu three main raw materials – rice, koji-kin (a type of fungal spore) and water – are required.
- Its production follows an alcoholic fermentation method called parallel multiple fermentation and involves raw material treatment, koji making, starter culture making, mash making, pressing, heat sterilisation and bottling.
- The rice and koji used should originate in Japan.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which of the following has/have been accorded ‘Geographical Indication’ status?
- Banaras Brocades and Sarees
- Rajasthani Daal-Bati-Churma
- Tirupathi Laddu
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Post your answers here.
Back2Basics: Geographical Indication
- A GI is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin.
- Nodal Agency: Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry
- India, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 w.e.f. September 2003.
- GIs have been defined under Article 22 (1) of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
- GI is granted for a term of 10 years in India. As of today, more than 300 GI tags has been allocated so far in India (*Wikipedia).
- The tag stands valid for 10 years.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: INS Arihant ,SLBM
Mains level: Security Challenges,Indias naval capability.
Context
- On October 14, India joined a select group of nations when it announced the successful launch of an SLBM (submarine-launched ballistic missile). The other six nations that have demonstrated similar underwater capability include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council Russia, the UK, France and China. In August 2016, North Korea claimed a successful launch of an SLBM.
Features of K-15 SLBM
- The code names K-15 or B-05, is an Indian submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) with a range of 750 kilometres (466 mi) that was designed for retaliatory nuclear strikes. It belongs to the K Missile family and forms a part of India’s nuclear triad.
- The K-15 is a two-stage submarine-launched ballistic missile which uses a gas booster to eject out of its launch platform and rise up to the surface of water. A solid rocket motor is fired after the missile reaches a fixed altitude. The missile has a range of around 750 kilometres (466 mi).
About INS Arihant
- Launched in 2009 and Commissioned in 2016, INS Arihant is India’s first indigenous nuclear powered ballistic missile.
- It is capable submarine built under the secretive Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project, which was initiated in the 1990s.
- INS Arihant and its class of submarines are classified as ‘SSBN’, which is the hull classification symbol for nuclear powered ballistic missile carrying submarines.
- While the Navy operates the vessel, the operations of the SLBMs from the SSBN are under the purview of India’s Strategic Forces Command, which is part of India’s Nuclear Command Authority.
What is the Significance of SLBM for India?
- Making India’s strategic profile strong: This achievement is significant in the context of India’s strategic profile. The navy, DRDO and other agencies who have enabled this success should be commended.
- Enhancing Underwater deterrence: A credible underwater deterrent is perceived as being invulnerable to detection and hence nations with the capacity can deliver a retaliatory second strike this enhances their deterrence capabilities.
- Showcasing the precision and high accuracy: While the press release is sparse in providing technical details or confirming the range of the SLBM, its assertion that the missile impacted the target area “with very high accuracy” is, nevertheless, instructive.
- Familiarity and capability with SLMB : The crew of the INS Arihant and the entire HR (human resource) comprising the pyramid from the SFC (strategic forces command) going right up to the national command authority with the Prime Minister at the apex have acquired the necessary proficiency to launch an SLBM should the exigency arise.
- Demonstration of competence: India can be justifiably proud of having acquired and demonstrated this level of competence, but this achievement needs to be located objectively. An SSBN (a nuclear-propelled submarine armed with a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile) is deemed to be the ultimate deterrent and this profile of macro-lethality and zero error credibility is predicated on the robustness of the “boat” and the efficacy of the missile.
- Validates SSBN programme: The successful user training launch of the SLBM by INS Arihant is significant to prove crew competency and validate the SSBN programme, a key element of India’s nuclear deterrence capability. A robust, survivable and assured retaliatory capability is in keeping with India’s policy to have ‘Credible Minimum Deterrence that underpins its ‘No First Use’ commitment.
What is the deterrence?
- Deterrence, military strategy under which one power uses the threat of reprisal effectively to preclude an attack from an adversary power. With the advent of nuclear weapons, the term deterrence largely has been applied to the basic strategy of the nuclear powers and of the major alliance systems.
How the SLBM will secure deterrence against the enemy?
- Tackling to rising Chinese capability: It merits recall that China became nuclear weapon capable in 1964 and carried out its first SLBM test (the J-1 with a range of 1700 km) in 1982. Over the years, the PLA Navy had its own techno-strategic challenges with nuclear-propelled submarines and was able to test a 9,000 km missile only in 2018. It is understood that a fully armed Chinese SSBN that would be deemed to be operational to undertake a credible deterrence patrol is scheduled for mid-2025.
- Nuclear deterrence is necessary: Acquiring the optimum degree of nuclear deterrence is imperative for India, given its distinctive spectrum of security and strategic challenges. India has made slow but steady progress in its missile programme, nuclear weapon capability, the nuclear submarine and more recently the building of an aircraft carrier
Conclusion
- India’s restraint in relation to announcements and claims about strategic capability burnishes deterrence in a quiet but effective manner. Walking softly, while wielding a big stick is desirable as a national trait.
Mains Question
Q. How the launch of K-15 SLBM will enhance the security dynamics of India? Discuss the India’s underwater capability to maintain deterrence and security at the same time?
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index
Mains level: Persistence of acute poverty in India
About 41.5 crore people exited poverty in India during the 15-year period between 2005-06 and 2019-21, out of which two-thirds exited in the first 10 years, and one-third in the next five years, according to the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI).
What is global MPI?
- The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) is an international measure of acute poverty covering over 100 developing countries.
- It complements traditional income-based poverty measures by capturing the severe deprivations that each person faces at the same time with respect to education, health and living standards.
- The global MPI was developed by OPHI with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) for inclusion in UNDP’s flagship Human Development Report in 2010.
- It has been published in the HDR ever since.
Multidimensional poverty in India: Major improvements
- The report shows that the incidence of poverty fell from 55.1% in 2005-06 to 16.4% in 2019-21 in India.
- Deprivations in all 10 MPI indicators saw significant reductions as a result of which the MPI value and incidence of poverty more than halved.
- Improvement in MPI for India has significantly contributed to the decline in poverty in South Asia.
- It is for the first time that it is not the region with the highest number of poor people, at 38.5 crore, compared with 57.9 crore in Sub-Saharan Africa.
- Bihar, the poorest State in 2015-2016, saw the fastest reduction in MPI value in absolute terms.
Long way towards alleviation
- Despite the strides made, the report notes that the ongoing task of ending poverty remains daunting.
- India has by far the largest number of poor people worldwide at 22.8 crore, followed by Nigeria at 9.6 crore.
- Two-third of these people live in a household in which at least one person is deprived in nutrition.
- There were also 9.7 crore poor children in India in 2019-2021 — more than the total number of poor people, children and adults combined, in any other country covered by the global MPI.
Why multi-dimensional poverty does persist in India?
Poverty is not just the absence of income, money and/or money-like resources required to meet needs.
- Multiple disadvantages: A person who is poor can suffer multiple disadvantages at the same time – for example they may simultaneously have:
- Poor health or malnutrition
- Lack of clean water or electricity
- Poor quality of livelihood options
- Little/No schooling
- Disempowerment
- Threats of violence
- Climate change vulnerability etc.
Other factors include:
- Limited financial resources
- Material deprivation
- Social isolation
- Exclusion and powerlessness
- Physical and psychological ill-being
- Multiple dimensions: Focusing on one factor alone, such as income, is not enough to capture the true reality of poverty. National MPI ensures a holistic approach towards defining poverty at the national level.
- More comprehensive: MP measures can be used to create a more comprehensive picture. They reveal who is poor and how they are poor – the range of different disadvantages they experience.
- Better targeting: As well as providing a headline measure of poverty, multidimensional measures can be broken down to reveal the poverty level in different areas of a country and among different sub-groups of people.
- Priority definition for target groups: It offers statistics that determine the national priorities by using a set of dimensions, indicators with respect to the urban and rural areas of India along with an indicator-wise deconstruction and breakdown.
Various govt. interventions to for poverty alleviation
(I) Food Security
- National Food Security Act 2013 (also ‘Right to Food Act’): It aims to provide subsidized food grains to approximately two thirds of the country’s 1.2 billion people.
(II) Employment and Skilling
- National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) – Ministry of Rural Development started NRLM 2011 to evolve out the need to diversify the needs of the rural poor and provide them jobs with regular income on a monthly basis.
- Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) – In 2005 Ministry of Rural Development initiated MGNEREGA to provide 100 days of assured employment every year to every rural household. One-third of the proposed jobs would be reserved for women.
(III) Income Support
- PM Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY): The Ministry of Finance in 2014 initiated PMJDY that aimed at direct benefit transfer of subsidy, pension, insurance, etc., and attained the target of opening 1.5 crore bank accounts. The scheme particularly targets the unbanked poor.
- PM Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM KISAN): PM KISAN is an initiative by the government of India in which all farmers will get up to ₹6,000 per year as minimum income support.
Various challenges
- Pauperization: Every year a huge number is added to the population pool of the country. To exemplify, this pandemic has led to severe pauperization of migrant workers.
- Regional divide: Incidence of extreme poverty continues to be much higher in rural areas than in urban areas.
- Jobless growth: Despite rapid growth and development, an unacceptably high proportion of our population continues to suffer from severe and multidimensional deprivation.
- Inadequate resources: The resources allocated to anti-poverty programmes are inadequate and there is a tacit understanding that targets will be curtailed according to fund availability.
- Implementation bottlenecks: Lack of proper implementation and right targeting has been legacy issues in India. There has been a lot of overlapping of schemes.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Electoral Bond
Mains level: Transparency in election funding
The Supreme Court has asked the government whether the electoral bonds system reveals the source of money pumped in to fund political parties even as the Centre maintained that the scheme is “absolutely transparent”.
What are Electoral Bonds?
- Electoral bonds are banking instruments that can be purchased by any citizen or company to make donations to political parties, without the donor’s identity being disclosed.
- It is like a promissory note that can be bought by any Indian citizen or company incorporated in India from select branches of State Bank of India.
- The citizen or corporate can then donate the same to any eligible political party of his/her choice.
- An individual or party will be allowed to purchase these bonds digitally or through cheque.
About the scheme
- A citizen of India or a body incorporated in India will be eligible to purchase the bond
- Such bonds can be purchased for any value in multiples of ₹1,000, ₹10,000, ₹10 lakh, and ₹1 crore from any of the specified branches of the State Bank of India
- The purchaser will be allowed to buy electoral bonds only on due fulfillment of all the extant KYC norms and by making payment from a bank account
- The bonds will have a life of 15 days (15 days time has been prescribed for the bonds to ensure that they do not become a parallel currency).
- Donors who contribute less than ₹20,000 to political parties through purchase of electoral bonds need not provide their identity details, such as Permanent Account Number (PAN).
Objective of the scheme
- Transparency in political funding: To ensure that the funds being collected by the political parties is accounted money or clean money.
Who can redeem such bonds?
- The Electoral Bonds shall be encashed by an eligible Political Party only through a Bank account with the Authorized Bank.
- Only the Political Parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and which secured not less than one per cent of the votes polled in the last General Election to the Lok Sabha or the State Legislative Assembly, shall be eligible to receive the Electoral Bonds.
Restrictions that are done away
- Earlier, no foreign company could donate to any political party under the Companies Act
- A firm could donate a maximum of 7.5 per cent of its average three year net profit as political donations according to Section 182 of the Companies Act.
- As per the same section of the Act, companies had to disclose details of their political donations in their annual statement of accounts.
- The government moved an amendment in the Finance Bill to ensure that this proviso would not be applicable to companies in case of electoral bonds.
- Thus, Indian, foreign and even shell companies can now donate to political parties without having to inform anyone of the contribution.
Issues with the Scheme
- Opaque funding: While the identity of the donor is captured, it is not revealed to the party or public. So transparency is not enhanced for the voter.
- No IT break: Also income tax breaks may not be available for donations through electoral bonds. This pushes the donor to choose between remaining anonymous and saving on taxes.
- No anonymity for donors: The privacy of the donor is compromised as the bank will know their identity.
- Differential benefits: These bonds will help any party that is in power because the government can know who donated what money and to whom.
- Unlimited donations: The electoral bonds scheme and amendments in the Finance Act of 2017 allows for “unlimited donations from individuals and foreign companies to political parties without any record of the sources of funding”.
Way ahead
- The worries over the electoral bond scheme, however, go beyond its patent unconstitutionality.
- The concern about the possibility of misuse of funds is very pertinent.
- The EC has been demanding that a law be passed to make political parties liable to get their accounts audited by an auditor from a panel suggested by the CAG or EC. This should get prominence.
- Another feasible option is to establish a National Election Fund to which all donations could be directed.
- This would take care of the imaginary fear of political reprisal of the donors.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: One Nation One Fertiliser (ONOF)
Mains level: India's fertilizer subsidy
Prime Minister has inaugurated 600 Kisan Samridhi Kendras and ‘One Nation, One Fertilizer’ scheme and said that these steps were being taken to modernise agriculture.
One Nation One Fertilizer (ONOF)
- The single brand name for UREA, DAP, MOP and NPK etc. would be BHARAT UREA, BHARAT DAP, BHARAT MOP and BHARAT NPK etc. respectively for all Fertilizer Companies, State Trading Entities (STEs) and Fertilizer Marketing Entities (FMEs).
- Also a logo indicating Fertilizer subsidy scheme namely Pradhanmantri Bhartiya Janurvarak Pariyojna will be used on said Fertilizer bags.
- Under the scheme, companies are allowed to display their name, brand, logo and other relevant product information only on one-third space of their bags.
- On the remaining two-thirds space, the “Bharat” brand and Pradhanmantri Bharatiya Jan Urvarak Pariyojana logo will have to be shown.
What is the government’s argument for introducing this scheme?
The government’s logic for introducing a single ‘Bharat’ brand for all subsidised Fertilizers being marketed by companies is as follows:
(1) Subsidies normalization
- The maximum retail price of urea is currently fixed by the government, which compensates companies for the higher cost of manufacturing or imports incurred by them.
- The MRPs of non-urea Fertilizers are, on paper, decontrolled.
- But companies cannot avail of subsidy if they sell at MRPs higher than that informally indicated by the government.
- Simply put, there are some 26 Fertilizers (inclusive of urea), on which government bears subsidy and also effectively decides the MRPs;
(2) Harmonizing markets
- Apart from subsidising and deciding at what price companies can sell, the government also decides where they can sell.
- This is done through the Fertilizer (Movement) Control Order, 1973.
- Under this, the department of Fertilizers draws an agreed monthly supply plan on all subsidised Fertilizers in consultation with manufacturers and importers.
- This supply plan is issued before the 25th of each month for the following month, with the department also regularly monitoring movement to ensure Fertilizer availability as per requirement, including remote areas.
(3) Farmers welfare
- The government is spending vast sums of money on Fertilizer subsidy (the bill is likely to cross Rs 200,000 crore in 2022-23).
- By deciding where and at what price companies can sell, it would obviously want to take credit and send that message to farmers.
What can be the drawbacks of the scheme?
- It may disincentivize Fertilizer companies from undertaking marketing and brand promotion activities.
- They will now be reduced to contract manufacturers and importers for the government. Any company’s strength ultimately is its brands and farmer trust built over decades.
- Currently, in case of any bag or batch of Fertilizers not meeting the required standards, the blame is put on the company. But now, that may be passed on fully to the government.
- Politically, the scheme might well boomerang rather than benefit the ruling party.
Challenges in the fertilizer sector
- Distortion in use due to price difference: In 2019-20, fertilizer use per hectare of cultivated area varied from 70 kg of NPK in Rajasthan to 250 kg in Telangana
- Shift in the composition of fertilizer used:The high price differences among fertilizers (Nitrogen is much cheaper than Potassium and Phosphorus) have disturbed the relative prices of various fertilizers and resulted in a big shift in the composition of fertilizers used in the country in favor of urea and thus Nitrogen.
- Increasing fertilizer subsidy: Fertilizer subsidy has doubled in a short period of three years. For 2021-22, the Union Budget has estimated fertilizer subsidy at ₹79,530 crores (from ₹66,468 crores in 2017-18).
- Burden on exchequer: Taxpayers bear 78% of the cost of urea and farmers pay only 22%. This is expected to increase and is not sustainable.
- Sensitive to Global impacts: The subsidy is likely to reach a much higher level due to the recent upsurge in the prices of energy,the international prices of urea and other fertilizers, and India’s dependence on imports.
- Import dependence: The total demand for urea in the country is about 34-35 million tonnes whereas the domestic production is about 25 million tonnes.
Other issues
- Lesser expansion of Irrigation facilities and consequent low fertilizer consumption leads to low demand and therefore, restricts the growth of the industry.
- Use of Obsolete Technology: Most of the fertilizer industry operates under PSUs that are using decade-old technology and thus making huge losses and also the competitive edge.
Way forward
- India should pay attention to improving fertilizer efficiency through need-based use rather than broadcasting fertilizer in the field.
- The use of bio-fertilizers is necessary to maintain soil health as more and more use of chemical fertilizers kills all the microorganisms available in the soil, which are so essential for maintaining soil health.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Green crackers
Mains level: Not Much
Many states have outlawed firecrackers and mandated the production, sale, and usage of only green firecrackers in light of Diwali’s impending arrival and the air pollution crisis.
What are green crackers?
- Green Crackers are fireworks that are healthy to the environment and can lessen the air pollution that conventional firecrackers produce.
- The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) created these.
- These green crackers, designed by the National Environmental and Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), a CSIR lab, contain flower pots, pencils, fireworks, maroons, bombs, and chakkar.
How are they made?
- Green crackers, also known as eco-friendly crackers, are made from alternative raw materials to have a smaller negative impact on the environment and to pose fewer health hazards.
- It has been stated that green crackers are environmentally friendly because they don’t contain aluminum, barium, potassium nitrate, or carbon.
Are they totally pollution free?
- Green crackers are 30% less polluting than regular ones.
- Green crackers have less or no barium, and that the chemical barium nitrate is what causes the smoke and emissions.
- In addition to lowering air pollution, green crackers are said to have a lower sound level than the ordinary crackers—between 110 and 125 decibels as opposed to roughly 160 decibels for conventional crackers.
- Despite all of their benefits, these environmentally friendly firecrackers are more expensive than standard ones.
Types of green crackers
(1) SWAS – Safe Water Releaser
- They will discharge water vapour into the atmosphere, which will dampen the discharged dust.
- It won’t contain sulphur or potassium nitrate.
- There will be a release of a diluent for gaseous emissions.
- There will be a 30% reduction in the amount of particle dust emitted.
(2) STAR – Safe Thermite Cracker
- Does not contain sulphur and potassium nitrate
- Discharge of less particulate matter
- Lowered noise level
(3) SAFAL – Safe Minimal Aluminum
- Does not contain sulphur and potassium nitrate
- Discharge of less particulate matter
- Lowered noise level as compared to traditional ones
Judicial observation over fire-crackers
- It is made clear that there is no total ban on the use of firecrackers.
- Only those firecrackers are banned (joined, chemical) which are found to be injurious to health and affect the health of the citizens particularly the senior citizens and the children.
What are the traders’ concerns?
- Traders have expressed concerns about the crackers’ shelf life due to the new green cracker composition.
- Manufacturers also need to overcome the rigorous certification process run by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO).
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What is the present status of