From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: HDI and India's rank
Mains level: HDI and India's performance analysis
Central Idea
India is now one of the fastest-growing economies globally. However, this growth has not resulted in a corresponding increase in its Human Development Index (HDI). According to the Human Development Report of 2021-22, India ranks 132 out of 191 countries, behind Bangladesh (129) and Sri Lanka (73).
Composite statistical measure by UNDP: The HDI is a composite statistical measure created by the United Nations Development Programme to evaluate and compare the level of human development in different regions around the world.
As an alternative with broader aspects: It was introduced in 1990 as an alternative to conventional economic measures such as Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which do not consider the broader aspects of human development.
Aspects: The HDI assesses a country’s average accomplishment in three aspects 1. A long and healthy life, 2, knowledge, and 3. A decent standard of living.
India ranks 132 out of 191 countries in the HDI 2021.
The subnational HDI: A new index
Given India’s large size and population, it’s critical to address subnational or state-wise disparities in human development.
A new index has developed by using the methodology suggested by the UNDP and the National Statistical Office (NSO), which measures human development on a subnational level for 2019-20.
HDI Calculation
The HDI is calculated using four indicators: life expectancy at birth, mean years of schooling, expected years of schooling, and Gross National Income (GNI) per capita.
The subnational HDI uses GSDP per capita as a proxy indicator for GNI since GNI per capita estimates are unavailable at the subnational level.
The methodology involves calculating the geometric mean of the normalised indices for the three dimensions of human development while applying the maximum and minimum values recommended by the UNDP and NSO.
Subnational HDI Findings
The subnational HDI shows that while some states have made considerable progress, others continue to struggle. Delhi occupies the top spot and Bihar occupies the bottom spot.
The five states with the highest HDI scores are Delhi, Goa, Kerala, Sikkim, and Chandigarh. Nineteen states, including Kerala, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Punjab, Telangana, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh, have scores ranging between 0.7 and 0.799 and are classified as high human development states.
The bottom five states are Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Assam, with medium levels of human development.
Reasons for Discrepancies
The economic growth has been unevenly distributed, with the top 10% of the Indian population holding over 77% of the wealth. This has resulted in significant disparities in access to basic amenities, healthcare, and education.
While India has made significant progress in reducing poverty and increasing access to healthcare and education, the quality of such services remains a concern.
Conclusion
The government needs to prioritize human development alongside economic growth to ensure that the benefits of growth are more evenly distributed, and it requires a multi-faceted approach to address various issues such as income inequality, gender inequality, access to quality social services, environmental challenges, and social infrastructure investment. India must prioritize investments in human development and job creation, particularly for its youth, to realize its demographic dividend.
Mains Question
Q. Analyze the performance of different states in terms of their Human Development Index (HDI) and suggest measures that could be taken to address the disparities in human development in the country
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UNSC, UNITE Aware technology platform
Mains level: UNSC, India's tenure and contribution
Central idea
India’s two-year stint in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) was unprecedented, with a focus on maritime security, terrorism, UN peacekeeping, reformed multilateralism, and the Global South. India served as the Chair of three important UNSC Committees, made efforts to bring conflicting parties on the same page, and raised important issues like religiophobia.
Clear priorities upon entering the Council in January 2021
Priorities include maritime security, terrorism, UN peacekeeping, reformed multilateralism, and the Global South
India elected Chair of three important UNSC Committees
India’s Role in Maritime Security:
Prime Minister of India chaired a UNSC meeting on maritime security
Presidential Statement issued was the first comprehensive document on maritime security
Document referenced UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as international law setting out the legal framework
Statement called for freedom of navigation, anti-piracy measures, and combating terror and transnational crime at sea
Conflicts on the Agenda:
Old conflicts festered and new conflicts arose, including Myanmar, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Mali, Syria, Palestine, Yemen, Haiti, Libya, and the Sahel, as well as Ukraine
The Council stood polarised and unable to act decisively
India attempted to bring the Council together on these issues
India’s Involvement in Myanmar:
Military takeover in Myanmar occurred in February 2021
Permanent-5 were pulling in opposing directions while ASEAN counselled caution
India shares a nearly 1,700 kilometre-long border with Myanmar and it was crucial to stop violence, bring in stability and ensure democratic processes went forward
India ensured balanced and comprehensive Council pronouncements, which culminated in a resolution on Myanmar (adopted under India’s presidency) in December 2022.
India’s Impact on the UNSC: Steadfast Diplomacy in the Face of Global Challenges
India’s role in Afghanistan Crisis:
India steered negotiations resulting in UNSC Resolution 2593 for benchmarks in Afghanistan, including stopping cross-border terrorism, protecting rights of women and minorities, ensuring an inclusive government, and providing humanitarian assistance.
India maintains a firm position on the Taliban upholding these benchmarks.
India’s stance on Ukraine Conflict:
India’s independent stand calling for dialogue and peace during the Ukraine conflict resonated with many developing countries.
India spoke out against unilateral sanctions on oil, food, and fertilizers.
As the conflict spilled over into India’s G-20 Presidency, India is now launching an initiative to convert its proactive position into action.
India’s focus on counter-terrorism:
As Chair of the UNSC Counter-terrorism Committee (CTC), India brought the CTC meeting to India in October 2022.
India attempted to list terrorists under UNSC Resolution 1267 sanctions but was thwarted, however, the proposal to list Abdul Rehman Makki, Deputy Amir/Chief of the Lashkar-e-Taiba was approved by the UNSC, with India as a proposer.
India on peacekeeping
Largest contributor including women: India has been the largest contributor of UN peacekeepers, including as a pioneer in women peacekeeping.
UNITE Aware technology platform: Its launching of the UNITE Aware technology platform to strengthen real-time protection of peacekeepers is to be noted.
Calling for accountability for crimes against peacekeepers: In August 2021, India piloted the first UNSC resolution by India in more than five decades, calling for accountability for crimes against peacekeepers. India also gifted two lakh vaccines to all UN peacekeepers.
Facts for Prelims: The UNITE Aware technology platform
Developed by India: The UNITE Aware technology platform is a system developed by India in collaboration with the United Nations to enhance the safety and security of peacekeepers deployed in conflict zones.
Real time ground situation: It is a real-time situational awareness system that uses advanced technologies such as satellites, drones, and geospatial tools to provide up-to-date information on the ground situation to peacekeeping forces.
Mobile app: The system also includes a mobile app that allows peacekeepers to report incidents and receive alerts in real-time.
Help to make informed decisions: The platform is designed to help peacekeepers make informed decisions and respond effectively to emerging threats, thereby reducing the risks to their safety and security.
On other important issue
Climate change:
India’s focus on the developing world, especially Africa and West Asia, was enhanced, given their close historical relations.
In December 2021, India thwarted a move by the West to wrest climate change from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change-led process and bring it under the ambit of the UNSC, where the P-5 are also major historical polluters.
The draft resolution was defeated in the Council when India and Russia voted against.
A change in the climate change architecture would have shut out the voice of the Global South, especially Small Island Developing States.
Contemporary issues:
India also raised the issue of a contemporary form of religiophobia in the Council when, while condemning phobia against Abrahamic religions, it forcefully put forth the need to combat rising hate crimes and phobias against non-Abrahamic religions as well.
With hate crimes being fuelled abroad by vested interests, India’s stand needs to be robustly taken forward.
Conclusion
India’s Presidency led to a discussion on urgent Council reform, highlighting India’s strong performance and the need for its permanent presence at the horseshoe table.
Mains Question
Q. India’s tenure in the United Nations Security Council from 2020 to 2022 was marked by its focus on several important priorities and its involvement in various global issues. Evaluate India’s performance.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Enemy Properties
Mains level: Not Much
MA Jinnah’s house in Mumbai
The home ministry has begun the process to sell enemy properties, immovable assets left behind by people who have taken citizenship in Pakistan and China after wars with these countries.
What one means by Enemy Property?
Enemy property refers to the assets and properties of individuals or entities that have been declared as “enemies” by the Indian government.
This can include individuals or entities who are citizens of a country that is at war with India, or who have engaged in hostilities or acted against the interests of India.
Why was such a concept initiated?
In the wake of the India-Pakistan wars of 1965 and 1971, there was the migration of people from India to Pakistan.
Under the Defence of India Rules framed under The Defence of India Act, 1962, the Government of India took over the properties and companies of those who took Pakistani nationality.
These “enemy properties” were vested by the central government in the Custodian of Enemy Property for India.
The same was done for property left behind by those who went to China after the 1962 Sino-Indian war.
The Tashkent Declaration of January 10, 1966 included a clause that said India and Pakistan would discuss the return of the property and assets taken over by either side in connection with the conflict.
However, the Government of Pakistan disposed of all such properties in their country in the year 1971 itself.
Dealing with enemy property
The Enemy Property Act, enacted in 1968, provided for the continuous vesting of enemy property in the Custodian of Enemy Property for India (CEPI)under the Home Ministry.
The central government, through the Custodian, is in possession of enemy properties spread across many states in the country.
Some movable properties too, are categorised as enemy properties.
In 2017, Parliament passed The Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill, 2016, which amended The Enemy Property Act, 1968, and The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971.
Total such properties in India
There are 12,611 enemy properties in India estimated to be worth over ₹1 lakh crore.
The government has earned over ₹3,400 crore from disposal of enemy properties, mostly movable assets like shares and gold.
None of the immovable enemy properties has been sold so far.
Out of the 12,611 properties vested with the CEPI, 12,485 were related to Pakistani nationals and 126 to Chinese citizens.
Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of enemy properties (6,255), followed by West Bengal, Delhi, Goa, Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, Tripura, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Haryana.
Kerala, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Assam, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Daman and Diu, and Andhra Pradesh have enemy properties as well.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sand Battery
Mains level: Not Much
Finland has successfully installed the world’s first sand battery that can store heat from various energy sources for months.
What is the Sand Battery System?
The battery is a massive steel silo, 7 m tall and 4 m wide with 100 tonnes of sand, and was installed in Finland’s Kankaanpaa town in June 2022.
It is connected to the town’s centralised heating network that keeps buildings and public water systems warm.
The storage system has three main components:
Sand silo,
Electrical air heater, and
Air-to-water heat exchanger
Working principle
For charging the sand silo, air is heated to 600°C in the electrical air heater.
The hot air is then circulated inside the silo using a heat-exchange pipe and blowers to raise the temperature of the sand at the silo’s core to 600°C.
When the storage enters the discharging stage, the blowers are used to pump air into the pipe inside the sand silo.
Once the air reaches 200°C, it is transferred to the air-to-water heat exchanger, where it is used to boil water.
It is then sent to the heating network.
Electricity Requirements and Capacity of the Battery
The storage system requires electricity at all times to charge the battery, monitor the temperature during standby, and run the blowers when the battery is used.
The installed battery can store 8 megawatt-hours (MWh) of energy and release heat at 0.1 MW, which is enough to provide heating and hot water for about 100 homes and a public swimming pool.
Advantages of Sand as a Heat Storage Material
The Finnish researchers replaced water with sand in the battery system because of its advantages.
Sand can be heated up to 600 degrees Celsius (°C), whereas water starts to boil at 100°C.
It also has low heat conductivity, which reduces energy loss.
Importance of Heat Energy
Heat accounts for half of the world’s energy use, followed by transport (30 per cent) and electricity (20 per cent), as per the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Currently, 80 per cent of the world’s energy comes from dirty fossil fuels.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Generative AI
Mains level: AI, Machine Learning
Central idea: Google and Microsoft have added generative AI to their search engines and browsers, as well as to consumer products such as Gmail, Docs, Copilot 365, Teams, Outlook, Word, Excel, and more.
What is Generative AI?
Like other forms of artificial intelligence, generative AI learns how to take actions from past data.
It creates brand new content – a text, an image, even computer code – based on that training, instead of simply categorizing or identifying data like other AI.
The most famous generative AI application is ChatGPT, a chatbot that Microsoft-backed OpenAI released late last year.
The AI powering it is known as a large language model because it takes in a text prompt and from that writes a human-like response.
Generative AI products offered by Google and Microsoft
Google and Microsoft have added generative AI to their search engines and browsers, as well as to consumer products such as Gmail, Docs, Copilot 365, Teams, Outlook, Word, Excel, and more.
In Google’s Gmail and Docs, generative AI can help users write documents automatically, such as a welcome email for employees.
Copilot 365, a feature of Microsoft 365 apps, can generate spreadsheets on command or even write an entire article on Word, depending on the topic.
Both companies are making generative AI platforms and models a part of their cloud offerings, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.
What are Google and Microsoft offering?
In Google’s Gmail and Docs, generative AI will help users write documents automatically.
For instance, an HR executive can simply ask the AI app to write a welcome email for employees, instead of typing out the document.
Similarly, Microsoft has ‘Copilot 365’ for its Microsoft 365 apps, which includes Teams, Outlook, Word and Excel.
Here, AI could generate a spreadsheet on command, or even write down an entire article on Word (depending on the topic).
Copilot can also match entries on Calendar with emails, and generate quick, helpful pointers that a person should focus on in their meetings.
How can these developments impact human workforce?
The technology is currently not very accurate and often provides incorrect responses, despite being popular.
During the initial demonstrations of these products, Google and Microsoft were found to give inaccurate responses.
While these products may have utility, they are not yet capable of replacing humans in the workplace.
Humans are better suited to check information generated by AI.
Various challenges posed
Bias: The data that is used to train generative AI systems can be biased, leading to biased outputs.
Misinformation: Since generative AI systems learn from the internet or training data which itself may have been inaccurate, they could increase the spread of misinformation online.
Security: Generative AI systems could be used to create deepfakes or other forms of digital manipulation that could be used to spread disinformation or commit fraud.
Ethics: There are ethical concerns around the use of generative AI, particularly when it comes to issues like privacy, accountability, and transparency.
Regulation: There is a need for regulatory frameworks to ensure that generative AI is used responsibly and ethically, and that it does not have any negative impacts on society.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Letter of Comfort
Mains level: NPA crisis
Central idea: The Finance Ministry has allowed central public sector firms (CPSUs) to issue letters of comfort with a condition that they should clearly state that the Government of India will not be liable for any consequences arising from such letters.
What is aLetter of Comfort?
A letter of comfort is a support document issued to a borrower that adds some strength to the transaction when giving loans.
Letter of comforts are usually issued by a third party or a stakeholder in the transaction.
For instance, a holding company can give a letter of comfort on behalf of its subsidiary or a government can issue a letter of comfort for public sector enterprises.
The letter of comfort can also be issued by banks, NBFCs and auditors.
Obligation status of LoCs
The letter of comfort is not legally binding or an obligation by the holding company to repay the loans.
It is just an assurance to the lender that the holding company is aware of the transaction, the policies of the subsidiary and its intentions in seeking a loan.
This provides some comfort to the financial institution to lend money for short term or long term.
One can say that the letter of comfort could become a moral obligation and not a legal one.
How is it different from letter of guarantee?
A letter of comfort is different from a letter of guarantee.
As spelled out in the name, the letter of guarantee acts as a commitment to the lender that the issuing company is taking responsibility for the repayment.
It is also legally binding and the transaction becomes an obligation for the guarantor.
Holding companies usually give letters of comfort when they are unable or unwilling to give letters of guarantees.
Try this MCQ-
Q. Which of the following statements is true about a Letter of Comfort?
A) It is a legally binding document that obligates the holding company to repay the loan.
B) It is issued only by banks and NBFCs.
C) It is an assurance provided by a third party to the lender that adds strength to the transaction when giving loans.
D) It is the same as a Letter of Guarantee in terms of its legal obligations.
Post your answers here.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Various vienna conventions
Mains level: Not Much
Central idea: The Indian government lodged a strong protest against the UK government and reminded obligations of the host nation under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations amid the vandalism incident that occurred at the Indian High Commission in London.
What is the Vienna Convention?
The treaty being referred to by the MEA in this instance is the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961).
It provides a complete framework for the establishment, maintenance and termination of diplomatic relations on a basis of consent between independent sovereign States.
FYI: Vienna Convention
Vienna, the capital city of Austria, has a long history of hosting international conventions and conferences.
There are several conventions that are named as “Vienna Convention”. Here is a list of some of the most well-known Vienna Conventions:
Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961)
Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (1963)
Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969)
Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (1977)
Vienna Convention on Succession of States in respect of Treaties (1978)
Vienna Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (1987)
Vienna Convention on the Protection of the Ozone Layer (1985)
Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Stratospheric Ozone Layer (1985)
Note that there may be other treaties or agreements that have been signed in Vienna that may also be referred to as Vienna Conventions, but the above are some of the most commonly recognized ones.
Obligations of a “receiving State” under the Vienna Convention
As per the Vienna Convention, a “receiving State” refers to the host nation where a diplomatic mission is located.
Article 22 of the Convention deals with obligations with regards to the premises of the Mission.
Part 2 of this article states that “The receiving State is under a special duty to take all appropriate steps to protect the premises of the mission against any intrusion or damage and to prevent any disturbance of the peace of the mission or impairment of its dignity”.
Did the UK not fulfil its obligations in this instance?
The fact that protestors were able to climb the walls of the High Commission premises indicates a breach.
India finds the UK government’s indifference to the security of Indian diplomatic premises and personnel in the UK unacceptable.
UK has condemned the event and promised to take the security of the Indian High Commission in London seriously.
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