From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Role of SPCB
Mains level: Issues faced by SPCB and Suggested Solutions to making it effective
Context
In the fight against air pollution in the Indo Gangetic Plain, there are several important protagonists, none more so than India’s frontline environmental regulators, the State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs), and the Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) in the Union Territories. There is no future with clean air in which the SPCB’s do not perform at the highest level possible.
know about State Pollution Control Boards (SPCB)
Constituted under Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974: The SPCBs were initially constituted under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. Under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the SPCB mandate was expanded to include air quality management.
New responsibility without capacity: Subsequently, several new environmental regulations added to their roles and functions. Unfortunately, this enhanced mandate has not been matched with increased capacity and capability in the Boards. As environmental indicators such as air quality and water quality worsen in many parts of the country, the Boards are evidently failing to effectively discharge their statutory mandate.
Poor performance of SPCBs: Over the years, several reports that have been published, including those by the parliamentary standing committee and government committees, have identified reasons for the poor performance of the SPCBs.
Experts are excluded from composition: The composition of SPCBs is a matter of serious concern as important stakeholders and those with crucial expertise are missing in most States. Boards are multimember bodies headed by a chairperson and a member secretary. Their decisions and policies guide the day-to-day functioning of the organisation.
Conflict of interest: Over 50% of the Board members across the 10 SPCBs and PCC studied represent potential polluters: local authorities, industries, and public sector corporations. They are subject to the SPCB’s regulatory measures, and their overwhelming presence raises fundamental questions around conflicts of interest.
SPCBs Does not meet the statutory requirement: At the same time, scientists, medical practitioners, and academics constitute only 7% of the Board members. What is even more worrying is that most Boards do not meet the statutory requirement of having at least two Board members who have knowledge of, and experience in, air quality management.
SPCB’s leadership and uncertain tenure: The chairperson and the member secretary do not enjoy a long, stable, and fulltime tenure. In many States, persons in these two posts hold an additional charge in other government departments. Data also show that several chairpersons and member secretaries have held their posts for less than a year. For example, the shortest tenure for a chairperson has been 18 days (Chhattisgarh) and 15 days for a member secretary (Haryana and Uttar Pradesh).
Short tenure with multiple roles: With the focus of the leadership of SPCB spread thin across multiple roles and their tenures being short, often they do not even have the time to understand their mandate fully before they are moved out. In such a scenario, long term policy planning, strategic interventions and effective execution aimed at reducing air pollution substantially are extremely difficult.
Problem of Understaffing: The SPCBs are critically understaffed. At least 40% of all sanctioned posts are vacant across nine SPCBs/PCCs for which there is data. Vacancy levels in technical positions are as high as 84% in Jharkhand, and over 75% in Bihar and Haryana. An inadequate staff strength forces the Boards to recast their priorities among their various functions.
Less regulatory scrutiny: Less staff strength also means weaker regulatory scrutiny and poor impact assessment. For example, given their workload, engineers in Bihar, Jharkhand, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh have less than a day to inspect, evaluate and decide on each consent application. With Board staff running on empty, this is clearly an unsustainable situation.
What are the recommendations for effective SPCBs?
Addressing Leadership and human resource needs: Strengthening manpower at the SPCBs will not only require hiring new resources, but also training existing staff by leveraging institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology, NEERI, and others. These in-service training programs would also serve as an incentive for staff both new and existing.
Better Pay structures: The Pay structure need to be revised to align with sectoral norms to ensure that SPCBs are not regularly losing trained manpower to industry and other sectors.
Modern infrastructure: The infrastructure of PCBs also needs to be improved along with manpower i.e., facilities such as adequate computers, improved lab facility etc. The instruments used for monitoring are not maintained properly or outdated. Sometimes labs are also not equipped enough to do the necessary analysis.
Expert should lead the SPCBs: It is imperative for their effective functioning that States should nominate to leadership positions, individuals of technical expertise and distinguished service such that effective decision making can be carried out.
Providing the fixed tenure: They should be appointed for a fixed tenure and in full-time roles, with the sword of removal or termination not hanging over their heads.
Reduction is composition for effective functioning: The size of the boards themselves may also be reduced to aid in effective functioning, with preference in membership given to technical experts, as is the international best practice. These moves would ensure that the Boards function effectively as independent agencies, as envisioned in their foundational legislation.
Read the basics-Air pollution
Air pollution is contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment by any chemical, physical or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of the atmosphere.
Household combustion devices, motor vehicles, industrial facilities and forest fires are common sources of air pollution. Pollutants of major public health concern include particulate matter, carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide. Outdoor and indoor air pollution cause respiratory and other diseases and are important sources of morbidity and mortality.
Conclusion
Given the scale and causes of air pollution in India, multidisciplinary expertise is needed to tackle it; there must also be an explicit focus on health while designing air pollution policy. The lack of expertise and skewed representation of stakeholders on the Boards can only be a hindrance to effective policy making.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Basics of ASHA workers
Mains level: Strengthening ASHA and basic medical facilities
Context
One of the biggest issues facing rural health services is lack of information. ASHA workers are the first respondents even when there is lack of access to medical aid are threatened with violence and abused on the number of occasions while handlining the prospected patients in COVID19 pandemic.
Evolution of “ASHA” you may want to know
The ASHA programme was based on Chhattisgarh’s successful Mitanin programme, in which a Community Worker looks after 50 households.
The ASHA was to be a local resident, looking after 200 households.
The programme had a very robust thrust on the stage-wise development of capacity in selected areas of public health.
Many states tried to incrementally develop the ASHA from a Community Worker to a Community Health Worker, and even to an Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM)/ General Nurse and Midwife (GNM), or a Public Health Nurse.
Who are ASHA workers?
ASHA workers are volunteers from within the community who are trained to provide information and aid people in accessing benefits of various healthcare schemes of the government.
The role of these community health volunteers under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) was first established in 2005.
They act as a bridge connecting marginalized communities with facilities such as primary health centers, sub-centers and district hospitals.
Qualifications for ASHA Workers
ASHAs are primarily married, widowed, or divorced women between the ages of 25 and 45 years from within the community.
They must have good communication and leadership skills; should be literate with formal education up to Class 8, as per the programme guidelines.
Involved in Awareness programs: They go door-to-door in their designated areas creating awareness about basic nutrition, hygiene practices, and the health services available. They also counsel women about contraceptives and sexually transmitted infections.
Ensures Mother and child health: They focus primarily on ensuring that pregnant women undergo ante-natal check-up, maintain nutrition during pregnancy, deliver at a healthcare facility, and provide post-birth training on breast-feeding and complementary nutrition of children.
Actively involved in Immunization programs: ASHA workers are also tasked with ensuring and motivating children to get immunized.
Providing medicines and therapies: Other than mother and childcare, ASHA workers also provide medicines daily to TB patients under directly observed treatment of the national programme. They also provide basic medicines and therapies to people under their jurisdiction such as oral rehydration solution, chloroquine for malaria, iron folic acid tablets to prevent anemia etc.
Tasked with Screening tests: They are also tasked with screening for infections like malaria during the season. They also get people tested and get their reports for non-communicable diseases. They were tasked to quarantine the covid 19 infected patients in the pandemic.
Informing the birth and death in respective areas: The health volunteers are also tasked with informing their respective primary health center about any births or deaths in their designated areas.
What are the challenges that ASHA workers face?
Lack of communication threating the job of ASHA Workers: One of the biggest issues facing rural health services is lack of information.
Lack of resources burdening the ASHA works job: Another area of concern is the lack of resources. Over the years, with the closest hospital being 9 km away and ambulances taking hours to respond, ASHA workers had to take multiple women in labour to the hospital in auto rickshaws.
Poor medical health facilities: Medical facilities are understaffed and lack adequate equipment for various basic procedures like deliveries. Simple tests, like for sickle cell anemia and HIV, cannot be conducted in no of respective areas of ASHA workers.
Low wages according to the job they do: The initial payment used to be paid was Rs 250 a month in 2009. Since ASHA’s unionized and agitated for a living wage. Thirteen years on, they earn around Rs 4,000 a month. It is simply not enough to sustain a family of four.
Covid 19 disruptions added to the existing problems: Low wages forcing ASHA’s to work two or more jobs. In the pandemic, no of women lost their husband or the means of earnings and had to revert to farming. Weather fluctuations disrupting the farm produce leaving no of ASHA’s the sole earner for the family. Those who don’t have land are living in miserable conditions.
Delayed payments reduce the morale: Payments are also delayed by months, Desperation for work leaves us unable to focus on the groundwork we do.
What can be done to improve the work conditions of ASHA workers?
Improving the communication channels: Channels of communication between the government and the rural population need to be robust. A deadly pandemic makes the value of these channels obvious but in order to get people on board, information needs to be sent out much more effectively and in a hands-on manner. ASHA workers play a crucial role in aiding this effort. ASHA’s can’t do this alone. They need new systems to ensure the dissemination of life-saving information in remote areas.
ASHA’s should have fixed income: ASHA’s should have a fixed income, giving them the stability in a job where they spend between eight to twelve hours daily.
Role needs to be formalized ensuring the dignity: ASHA’s are recognized as “volunteers” currently. Their role needs to be formalized. Recognizing them as workers provides dignity and protection, and helps them to be taken seriously, by the state, the gram panchayat responsible for the disbursal of funds, and patients.
Recognizing and awarding their role will empower and motivate ASHA’s further: For people in villages, ASHA’s have become lifelines. They have led innumerable immunization drives and are everybody’s first call in a medical emergency. They have labored to build trust and serve as a bridge with the state. Examples shows recognition gives some leverage to circumvent the system and seek funds for people in my community.
Conclusion
ASHA’s are lifelines of rural primary healthcare, they are playing critical role on no of fronts ensuring the basic health of India. A better, stronger India is possible if ASHA’s are enabled to serve people. Giving them due recognition would serve this end, along with making rural India’s needs medical or otherwise a priority.
Mains Question
Q. For the villagers, ASHA has been a lifeline in the last few years. Acknowledge the problems they face on a daily basis and suggest solutions to raise their morale for the primary health of the village community and the nation as a whole.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Economic indicators and related facts
Mains level: Indias Growth story, Status of Growth drivers amidst the challenge of slowing economies
Context
As the COVID-19 pandemic fades and hopes to rise for nations and societies to return to some kind of normalcy, there is effort all around to take stock of where we stand and what our prospects look like. A look back over the last few years at how India performed in terms of its economy.
Present situation of India’s economic growth
Mixed growth story: One group of experts argues, India’s growth story is more mixed. In 2021-22, its GDP growth was 8.7%, which was among the highest in the world. This is good but, against this, we must offset the fact that much of this is the growth of climbing out of the pit into which we had fallen the previous year.
IMF reduced the growth forecast: In 2020-21, India’s growth was minus 6.6%, which placed the country in the bottom half of the global growth chart. For 2022-23, the International Monetary Fund has cut India’s growth forecast to 6.1%.
Structural assessment of India’s growth
Rising inequality and high unemployment: Most of India’s growth is occurring at the top end, with a few corporations raking in a disproportionate share of profits, and unemployment is so high, it is likely that large segments of the population are actually witnessing negative growth.
Slowdown in previous years: What makes India’s growth story worrying is that the slowdown began much before the COVID19 pandemic. It began in 2016, after which, for four consecutive years, the growth rate each year was lower than in the previous year. Growth in 2016-17 was 8.3%. After that it was, respectively, 6.9%, 6.6%, 4.8%, and minus 6.6%.
Status of unemployment: India’s unemployment rate is high. In October, it stood at 7.8%. However, what is really worrying is youth unemployment. According to International Labour Organization (ILO) data, collated and presented by the World Bank, India’s youth unemployment, that is, from among people aged 15 to 24 years who are looking for work, the percent that does not find any, stands at 28.3%.
Know the basics-What is Unemployment?
Definition: Unemployment is a phenomenon that occurs when a person who is capable of working and is actively searching for the work is unable to find work.
Those who are excluded: People who are either unfit for work due to physical reason or do not want to work are excluded from the category of unemployed.
Unemployment rate: The most frequent measure of unemployment is unemployment rate. The unemployment rate is defined as a number of unemployed people divided by the number of people in the labour force.
Labour Force: Persons who are either working (or employed) or seeking or available for work (or unemployed) during the reference period together constitute the labour force.
Other perspectives on Indian economy
The latest GDP numbers suggest: For Q1 FY2022–23 suggest that economic growth is on a healthy track. Consumers, after a long lull, have started to step out confidently and spend private consumption spending went up 25.9% in Q1.
On the production side: the contact-intensive services sector also witnessed a strong rebound of 17.7%, thanks to improving consumer confidence.
Healthy agriculture sector: The only sector that consistently performed well throughout the pandemic, remained buoyant.
Industrial growth: Industrial growth boosted from accelerating growth in construction and electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services sectors.
Manufacturing is not doing well: A sector that has not yet taken off sustainably is manufacturing, which witnessed modest growth of 4.5% in Q1. Higher input costs, supply disruptions, and labor shortages due to reverse migration have weighed on the sector’s growth. According to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) data on nonfinancial firms, surging raw material costs have stressed the profitability and margins of companies.
High inflation: The biggest worry is that of high inflation (which has persisted for way too long) and all the challenges that come along with it. Inflationary environments increase the costs of doing business, impact profitability and margins, and reduce purchasing power. In short, inflation thwarts both supply and demand. Central banks’ monetary policy actions, in response to rising inflation, can impede credit growth and economic activity, thereby intensifying the probability of a recession in a few advanced nations.
Rising current account deficit: The other challenge is the rising current-account deficit and currency depreciation against the dollar. While a rebounding domestic economy is resulting in higher imports, moderating global demand is causing exports to slow. The US dollar’s unrelenting rise and global inflation are further causing India’s import bills to rise.
Declining forex: The RBI had to intervene to contain volatility and ensure an orderly movement of the rupee. The RBI’s intervention is leading to a drawdown in foreign exchange reserves. Consequently, the import cover from reserves has reduced to nine months from a high of 19 months at the start of 2021 (although, it remains above the benchmark of three months).
The economy’s growth drivers are improving
Exports: Exports, the first growth driver are slowing down and are likely to moderate along with the probable global economic slowdown.
Government spending: Government spending, the second driver, is already at an elevated level, thanks to the pandemic, and the government will likely focus on its prudence in utilizing limited resources. The good news is the share of capital expenses is going up even as the government is reducing revenue expenses. Multiplier effects of this spending will aid in growth in income, assets, and employment for years to come. Strong tax revenues may support further capital spending in the future.
Capital expenditure: According to experts, prospects for capex investments the third growth driver by companies are brighter. Sustained demand growth may be the most-awaited cue for a sustained push for investment.
Consumer demand: Consumer Demand, the fourth, and perhaps the most important, growth driver has improved significantly in recent quarters. However, spending has not grown sustainable despite improving consumer confidence. For instance, retail sales are growing but the pace is patchy, and auto registrations have remained muted. We expect that receding pandemic fears and the upcoming festive season could give a much-needed boost to the consumer sector.
Conclusion
Indian economy should not be looked from isolation. It is very much integrated in global economy. Pandemic, Ukraine war, US- China trade war have given a successive shock to global and Indian economy. Despite that Indian has done well than rest of the world. Our focus should be on curbing inequality, not to allow people to descend into extreme poverty and employment generation.
Mains Question
Q. Analyse the present economic macro-indicators of Indian economy. What are the challenges for growth story of India in the context of global uncertainty?
| Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure
Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: CAA
Bangladesh Information Minister has said that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) framed to grant Indian citizenship to minorities of Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan was an “internal matter” of India.
What is Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019?
The Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA) is an act that was passed in the Parliament on December 11, 2019.
The 2019 CAA amended the Citizenship Act of 1955 allowing Indian citizenship for religious minorities who fled from the neighboring Muslim majority countries before December 2014 due to “religious persecution or fear of religious persecution”.
However, the Act excludes Muslims.
Under CAA, migrants who entered India by December 31, 2014, and had suffered “religious persecution or fear of religious persecution” in their country of origin, were made eligible for citizenship by the new law.
These type of migrants will be granted fast track Indian citizenship in six years.
The amendment also relaxed the residence requirement for naturalization of these migrants from eleven years to five.
Key feature: Defining illegal migrants
Illegal migrants cannot become Indian citizens in accordance with the present laws.
Under the CAA, an illegal migrant is a foreigner who: (i) enters the country without valid travel documents like a passport and visa, or (ii) enters with valid documents, but stays beyond the permitted time period.
Illegal migrants may be put in jail or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and The Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920.
Exceptions
The Bill provides that illegal migrants who fulfil four conditions will not be treated as illegal migrants under the Act. The conditions are:
They are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians;
They are from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan;
They entered India on or before December 31, 2014;
They are not in certain tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, or Tripura included in the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, or areas under the “Inner Line” permit, i.e., Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland.
Controversy with the Act
Country of Origin: The Act classifies migrants based on their country of origin to include only Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Other religious minorities ignored: It is unclear why illegal migrants from only six specified religious minorities have been included in the Act.
Defiance of purpose: India shares a border with Myanmar, which has had a history of persecution of a religious minority, the Rohingya Muslims.
Date of Entry: It is also unclear why there is a differential treatment of migrants based on their date of entry into India, i.e., whether they entered India before or after December 31, 2014.
Why discuss this?
The CAA became a huge cause of concern between India and Bangladesh when it was passed by the Parliament in December 2019, with Dhaka seeking a written assurance from India.
Dhaka, then was irked by the remarks about religious persecution of minority Hindus in Bangladesh.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NRI, OCI, PIO
Mains level: Voting rights issue
The Union government has said that it was considering ways to facilitate non-resident Indians (NRI) to cast their votes remotely while ensuring the integrity of the electoral process.
Who are the NRIs?
Overseas Indians, officially collectively known as Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI).
NRIs are Indian citizens who are not residents of India and OCI are people of Indian birth or ancestry who live outside and also are not the citizens of Republic of India.
Classification of Overseas Indians
(A) Non-Resident Indian (NRI)
Strictly asserting non-resident refers only to the tax status of a person who, as per section 6 of the Income-tax Act of 1961, has not resided in India for a specified period for the purposes of the Act.
The rates of income tax are different for persons who are “resident in India” and for NRIs.
(B) Person of Indian Origin (PIO)
Person of Indian Origin (PIO) means a foreign citizen (except a national of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Iran, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and/or Nepal), who:
at any time held an Indian passport OR
either of their parents/grandparents/great-grandparents were born and permanently resident in India as defined in GoI Act, 1935 and other territories that became part of India thereafter provided neither was at any time a citizen of any of the aforesaid countries OR
is a spouse of a citizen of India or a PIO.
(C) Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI)
After multiple efforts by leaders across the Indian political spectrum, a pseudo-citizenship scheme was established, the “Overseas Citizenship of India”, commonly referred to as the OCI card.
The Constitution of India does not permit full dual citizenship.
The OCI card is effectively a long-term visa, with restrictions on voting rights and government jobs.
Why need remote Voting facility?
There had been several petitions to allow NRIs to vote through postal ballots.
Many migrant labourers often find it beyond their limited means to fly in just to cast their vote.
Allowing NRIs to vote from abroad might emerge as a decisive force in the country’s electoral politics.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: C-295
Mains level: Aerospace industry in India
Recently, PM laid the foundation stone for the C-295 transport aircraft manufacturing facility in Vadodara to be set up by Airbus Defence and Space and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL).
Why is it making headlines?
This is the first time a private sector company would be manufacturing a full aircraft in the country.
This is a huge step forward for India in the global aircraft manufacturing domain.
What is the C-295MW transporter?
The C-295MW is a transport aircraft of 5-10 tonne capacity which will replace the legacy Avro aircraft in the Indian Air Force (IAF) procured in the 1960s.
It was originally produced by a Spanish aircraft manufacturer.
This company is now part of Airbus and the aircraft’s manufacturing takes place at Airbus’s plant in Spain.
Why c-295MW?
The C-295 has very good fuel efficiency and can take off and land from short as well as unprepared runways.
As a tactical transport aircraft, the C295 can carry troops and logistical supplies from main airfields to forward operating airfields of the country.
It can operate from short airstrips just 2,200 feet long and can fly low-level operations for tactical missions flying at a low speed of 110 knots.
The aircraft can additionally be used for casualty or medical evacuation, performing special missions, disaster response and maritime patrol duties.
A boost to domestic aircraft manufacturing
Over the last two decades, Indian companies, both public and private, have steadily expanded their footprint in the global supply chains of major defence and aerospace manufacturers.
They do supply a range of components, systems and sub-systems.
India’s collaboration with top firm
Boeing’s sourcing from India stands at $1 billion annually, of which over 60% is in manufacturing, through a growing network of 300+ supplier partners of which over 25% are MSME.
Tata in a joint venture (JV) with Boeing, manufactures aero-structures for its AH-64 Apache helicopter, including fuselages, etc.
It also makes Crown and Tail-cones for Boeing’s CH-47 Chinook helicopters.
Similarly, Lockheed Martin has joint ventures with TASL in Hyderabad which has manufactured crucial components for the C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft.
How this has become possible?
The US is simplifying its export regulations for India, through a series of measures.
As US and India together pursue the Indo-Pacific strategy and are enhancing technology prowess.
Boost to India’s civil aviation sector
India has a much bigger footprint in civil aviation manufacturing than defence, in addition to being a major market itself.
Both Airbus and Boeing do significant sourcing from India for their civil programmes.
According to Airbus every commercial aircraft manufactured by them today is partly designed and made in India.
India now has world’s fastest-growing aviation sector and it is about to reach the top three countries in the world in terms of air traffic.
Another major growing area is Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) for which India can emerge as the regional hub.
Conclusion
The private defence sector is still nascent and a conducive and stable regulatory and policy environment will be an important enabler.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Glyphosate
Mains level: Not Much
The Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has restricted the use of glyphosate, a widely used herbicide, citing health hazards for humans and animals.
What is Glyphosate?
Glyphosate is an herbicide. It is applied to the leaves of plants to kill both broadleaf plants and grasses.
The sodium salt form of glyphosate is used to regulate plant growth and ripen specific crops.
Glyphosate is one of the most widely used herbicide.
In India, glyphosate has been approved for use only in tea plantations and non-plantation areas accompanying the tea crop.
Use of the substance anywhere else is illegal.
How does glyphosate work?
Glyphosate is a non-selective herbicide, meaning it will kill most plants.
It prevents the plants from making certain proteins that are needed for plant growth.
Glyphosate stops a specific enzyme pathway, the shikimic acid
The shikimic acid pathway is necessary for plants and some microorganisms.
What is the recent ban?
Only authorized Pest Control Operators are allowed to use it.
Earlier, state governments of Maharashtra, Telangana, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh have tried similar steps but failed.
The ban notification was based on a 2019 report by the Government of Kerala on prohibiting the distribution, sale and use of glyphosate and its derivatives.
Is it banned elsewhere?
Some 35 countries have banned or restricted the use of glyphosate.
These include Sri Lanka, Netherlands, France, Colombia, Canada, Israel and Argentina.
Hazards of Glyphosate
Health impacts of glyphosate range from cancer, and reproductive and developmental toxicity to neurotoxicity and immune toxicity.
Symptoms include irritation, swelling, burning of the skin, oral and nasal discomfort, unpleasant taste and blurred vision.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Kashmir Saffron
Mains level: Not Much
The Directorate of Tourism, Kashmir has organised a saffron festival in the Karewa of Pampore.
Saffron
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the “saffron crocus”.
The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food.
Kashmir Saffron
It is cultivated and harvested in the Karewa (highlands) in some regions of Kashmir, including Pulwama, Budgam, Kishtwar and Srinagar.
It has been associated with traditional Kashmiri cuisine and represents the rich cultural heritage of the region.
Its cultivation is believed to have been introduced in Kashmir by Central Asian immigrants around 1st Century BCE. In ancient Sanskrit literature, saffron is referred to as ‘bahukam’.
In 2020, the Centre issued a certificate of Geographical Indication (GI) registration for Saffron grown in the Kashmir Valley.
Major types
The saffron available in Kashmir is of three types —
‘Lachha Saffron’, with stigmas just separated from the flowers and dried without further processing;
‘Mongra Saffron’, in which stigmas are detached from the flower, dried in the sun and processed traditionally; and
‘Guchhi Saffron’, which is the same as Lachha, except that the latter’s dried stigmas are packed loosely in air-tight containers while the former has stigmas joined together in a bundle tied with a cloth thread
Whats’ so special about Kashmir Saffron?
The unique characteristics of Kashmir saffron are its longer and thicker stigmas, natural deep-red colour, high aroma, bitter flavour, chemical-free processing, and high quantity of crocin (colouring strength), safranal (flavour) and picrocrocin (bitterness).
It is the only saffron in the world grown at an altitude of 1,600 m to 1,800 m AMSL (above mean sea level), which adds to its uniqueness and differentiates it from other saffron varieties available the world over.
Policy moves
The National Saffron Mission (launched as a part of Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana) was sanctioned by the central government in the year 2010 in order to extend support for creation of irrigation facilities.
It seeks to facilitate farmers with tube wells and sprinkler sets which would help in production of better crops in the area of saffron production.
North East Centre for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR) under Saffron Bowl Project has identified few locations in Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya for saffron cultivation.
