Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: AFSPA
Mains level: North east insurgency, security challenges and AFSPA
Central Idea
- The Centre’s decision to lift the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 from more police station limits in Assam, Manipur, and Nagaland is a positive development that sends a message of hope to the region. While insurgency has necessitated the imposition of AFSPA in the past, the prevalence of violence in the region has been on the decline, and the government’s peace negotiations with rebel groups have borne fruit.
What is Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, (AFSPA )1958?
- Armed Forces Special Powers Act, to put it simply, gives armed forces the power to maintain public order in disturbed areas.
- AFSPA gives armed forces the authority use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law.
- The Act further provides that if reasonable suspicion exists, the armed forces can also arrest a person without a warrant; enter or search premises without a warrant; and ban the possession of firearms.
What are the Special Powers?
- Power to use force: including opening fire, even to the extent of causing death if prohibitory orders banning assembly of five or more persons or carrying arms and weapons, etc are in force in the disturbed area;
- Power to destroy structures: used as hide-outs, training camps, or as a place from which attacks are or likely to be launched, etc;
- Power to arrest: Without warrant and to use force for the purpose;
- Power to enter and search premises: without a warrant to make arrest or recovery of hostages, arms and ammunition and stolen property etc.
Reason for the decision
- Improved security: The decision was taken due to a significant improvement in the security situation in Northeast India.
- Decrease in Violence: The prevalence of insurgencies in almost all states in the Northeast may arguably have necessitated the imposition of AFSPA in the past. Statistics suggest that violence in the region has been on the decline. The MHA cited a reduction of 76% in extremist incidents, 90% decrease in deaths of security personnel and a 97% decrease in civilian deaths since 2014.
- Negotiations with Rebel Groups: The government has negotiated peace with rebel groups in the region, including NSCN-IM, Ulfa, Bodo, and Dimasa groups, with some success.
- Peace accords: The Mizo rebels, who signed a peace accord in 1986, joined electoral politics and won office. The Tripura government successfully negotiated with the insurgency and got AFSPA removed in 2015. The government must continue to engage with rebel groups to maintain peace in the region.
Conclusion
- The Centre’s decision to withdraw AFSPA in an incremental manner is a positive development for the region, and the government must continue to reduce its dependence on AFSPA to impose its writ. The Northeast’s stability is critical, especially with unrest in Myanmar, and the government must make judicious choices to balance regional and ethnic identity assertion with nationalism.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Facts related to mutual funds
Mains level: Mutual funds, debt mutual funds, tax benefits, etc
Central Idea
- The Finance Bill 2023, passed by the Lok Sabha with 64 amendments, includes the controversial decision to remove the tax benefit for debt mutual funds. While the aim is to remove the advantage of debt funds over bank deposits, this decision will have far-reaching consequences that need to be examined.
Mutual Funds
- Investment decisions on behalf of the investors: Mutual funds are investment vehicles that pool money from multiple investors to purchase a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, or other securities. Mutual funds are managed by professional fund managers who make investment decisions on behalf of the investors in the fund.
- Diversified portfolio of securities: Investors in a mutual fund own a proportional share of the fund’s underlying assets, and the value of their investment rises or falls in response to changes in the value of the securities held by the fund. Mutual funds can provide investors with access to a diversified portfolio of securities, which can help to mitigate the risk of investing in individual securities.
Key differences between Mutual funds and debt mutual funds
- Mutual funds and debt mutual funds are both types of investment funds, but there are some key differences between them
| Comparison |
Mutual Funds |
Debt Mutual Funds |
| Types of Investments |
Stocks, bonds, commodities, and other asset classes |
Fixed-income securities such as bonds, debentures, treasury bills, and commercial papers |
| Risk |
Generally higher risk due to the inclusion of stocks and other volatile assets |
Generally lower risk due to the focus on fixed-income securities |
| Returns |
Potentially higher returns over the long term, but subject to more volatility |
Lower returns compared to equity mutual funds, but also come with lower risk |
| Investment Objective |
Can vary widely depending on the type of fund |
Provide regular income to investors while preserving capital |
| Liquidity |
Can be less liquid than debt mutual funds due to volatility in underlying securities |
Generally considered more liquid due to less volatility in underlying securities |
The Debate Over Scrapping Tax Benefit for Debt Mutual Funds
- Removal of the tax benefit for debt mutual funds: The Finance Bill 2023 passed by voice vote in the Lok Sabha last week with 64 amendments, including the removal of the tax benefit for debt mutual funds.
- What it means: This change means that investors in debt mutual funds cannot avail the benefit of indexation for the calculation of long-term capital gains. From April 1, such investments will now be taxed at income tax rates applicable to an individual’s tax slab.
- Motive: This move aims to remove the advantage that such debt funds have over bank deposits. However, the consequences of this decision need to be carefully examined.
The Impact of Removing Tax Benefit
- Impact on flow of funds: The removal of the tax benefit will lead to investors reassessing their allocations to debt mutual funds, which may impact flows into these funds.
- Impact on bond market: This, in turn, may impact the growth and development of the bond market in India since debt mutual funds channel funds into the bond market.
- For instance: According to a report by Crisil, 70% of the investment in debt funds flows from institutional investors, while individual investors, including high net worth individuals, accounted for 27% as of December 2022.
- Impact on corporate debt: This change in rule may trigger a shift in investments away from debt mutual funds to other instruments, which will possibly affect flows to the corporate bond market, and demand for corporate debt is likely to be impacted.
The Need for Rationalization
- There is a need to acknowledge the finer points of differentiation between bank deposits and debt funds since bank deposits are insured up to Rs 5 lakh while debt mutual funds carry risk depending on the risk profile of the bonds they hold.
- It has been argued that the capital gains architecture in India needs to be reexamined and reconfigured.
- Not only are there different rates of taxation for different asset classes, but even the holding period for differentiating between short- and long-term capital gains varies across assets. Thus, rationalisation with regard to the tax rate and/or the holding period is desirable.
Conclusion
- While the removal of the tax benefit for debt mutual funds may remove the advantage of such funds over bank deposits, its far-reaching consequences need to be carefully examined. There is a need to acknowledge the finer points of differentiation between bank deposits and debt funds, as well as rationalisation of the tax architecture in India. Therefore, there is a need for broader discussions and debates on these issues.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Blue economy initiatives
Mains level: Blue economy, significance for sustainable development and challenges
Central Idea
- The potential of the oceans for the sustainable development of the blue economy is immense and the initiatives taken by the Government of India towards achieving it demonstrate India’s commitment to building a sustainable future for its marine resources and the global community. India’s G20 presidency provides an opportunity to promote collective action for the transition.
What is Blue Economy?
- Blue Economy is defined by the World Bank as the Sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of the ecosystem.
- Gunter Pauli’s book, “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs” (2010) brought the Blue Economy concept into prominence.
- The UN first introduced “blue economy” at a conference in 2012 and underlined sustainable management, based on the argument that marine ecosystems are more productive when they are healthy. In fact, the UN notes that the Blue Economy is exactly what is needed to implement SDG 14, Life Below Water.
- The term ‘blue economy’ includes not only ocean-dependent economic development but also inclusive social development and environmental and ecological security.
The Potential of the Oceans
- The oceans offer vast opportunities for the prosperity of our planet, with 45% of the world’s coastlines and over 21% of the exclusive economic zones located in G20 countries.
- They are reservoirs of global biodiversity, critical regulators of the global weather and climate, and support the economic well-being of billions of people in coastal areas.
Facts for prelims: Government Initiatives
- The Government of India has launched several initiatives to promote the development of a blue economy, such as
| Initiative |
Description |
| Sagarmala initiative |
A program launched in 2015 to promote port-led development and boost the country’s maritime sector. It aims to modernize ports, improve connectivity and logistics, and promote coastal community development. |
| Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy |
A policy introduced in 2016 to provide financial assistance to Indian shipyards for the construction of ships. It aims to boost domestic shipbuilding and make Indian shipyards globally competitive. |
| Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana |
A scheme launched in 2020 to boost the fisheries sector in India. It aims to increase fish production, modernize fishing infrastructure, and create employment opportunities in the sector. |
| Sagar Manthan dashboard |
An online dashboard launched in 2018 to track the progress of the Sagarmala initiative. It provides real-time information on project implementation, fund utilization, and other related metrics. |
| Deep Ocean Mission |
A program launched in 2021 to explore the deep sea and harness its resources for national benefit. It aims to explore the deep sea, map its resources, develop technologies for deep-sea mining, and promote ocean conservation. |
| Coastal Regulation Zone notification |
A regulation introduced in 2019 to manage development activities along India’s coastline. It aims to balance the economic development of coastal areas with the conservation of coastal ecosystems and livelihoods of coastal communities. |
- The government has also taken steps to eliminate single-use plastic and combat plastic pollution, including in the marine environment.
- Key priority: India’s G20 presidency has prioritized the blue economy as a key area under the Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group.
- Promote sustainable and equitable development: The aim is to promote the adoption of high-level principles for sustainable and equitable economic development through the ocean and its resources while addressing climate change and other environmental challenges.
- A guide for future G20 presidencies: India’s commitment to prioritizing oceans and the blue economy under its presidency would ensure continued discussions on this crucial subject and pave the way for future G20 presidencies.
- Communication and collaboration: Effective and efficient ocean and blue economy governance presents a significant challenge, and India’s G20 presidency can build an effective communication with all stakeholders to share best practices, foster collaborations for advancements in science and technology, promote public-private partnerships, and create novel blue finance mechanisms.
Challenges and Responsibility
- Ambitious efforts by countries to expand their blue economies are threatened by intensifying extreme weather events, ocean acidification, and sea-level rise.
- Marine pollution, over-extraction of resources, and unplanned urbanization also pose significant threats to the ocean, coastal and marine ecosystems, and biodiversity.
- The inherent inter-connectedness of oceans implies that activities occurring in one part of the world could have ripple effects across the globe.
- Therefore, the responsibility of their protection, conservation, and sustainable utilization lies with all nations.
Conclusion
- India’s G20 presidency offers an opportunity to promote individual and collective actions towards a sustainable blue economy. The stewardship of oceans is an investment that will sustain future generations, and the global community must unite for the well-being of our ocean commons.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Pardoning Powers of president / governor
Mains level: Violence against women
The Supreme Court has indicated it will primarily focus on the question of Gujarat’s jurisdiction to prematurely release 11 men sentenced to life for the gang rape of Bilkis Bano and the murder of her family during the 2002 riots.
Central idea
- The Bilkis Bano case is a landmark case of gangrape and mass murder that occurred during the 2002 Gujarat riots in India.
- Bilkis Bano, then a 21-year-old pregnant woman, was raped and her family members were murdered during the riots that followed the Godhra train burning incident.
- The case was initially left unnoticed, but after persistent efforts by Bano and her supporters, the case was reopened and the perpetrators were brought to justice.
Initial investigation and cover-up
- No proper investigation: Despite the gravity of the crime, the initial investigation was not conducted properly.
- Evidence tampered: The medical examination of Bano was conducted after several days, by which time crucial evidence had been lost.
- No FIR registered: The police refused to file a First Information Report (FIR) initially, and when they did, they left out crucial details of the incident.
Reopening of the case
- Bano and her supporters continued to fight for justice, and in 2004, the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the order of the Supreme Court.
- The CBI conducted a thorough investigation and filed a charge sheet against 19 accused persons, including police officers and doctors who had tried to cover up the crime.
- In 2008, the trial began in a Mumbai court.
Conviction and sentencing
- In 2017, after a long legal battle, a Mumbai court convicted 11 accused persons, including one police officer, for gang rape and murders.
- The police officer, who was the main accused, was sentenced to life imprisonment, while the others were given seven years’ imprisonment.
- The court also acquitted seven other accused persons due to lack of evidence.
Key issue: Release of convicts
- In February 2021, the Bombay High Court acquitted five of the convicted persons, citing lack of evidence.
- The court also upheld the life imprisonment of the police officer and reduced the sentence of the other convicts to three years.
- The convicts were released from prison after serving their sentence.
What are the laws on remissions?
- Prisoners are often granted remission of sentences and released on important occasions such as birth and death anniversaries of prominent leaders.
- The President and the Governors have the power to pardon, suspend, remit, or commute a sentence passed by the courts under Articles 72 and 161 of the Constitution.
- Under Section 432 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), the state governments also have the power to remit sentences as prisons are a state subject.
- However, the powers of remission of the state government are restricted by Section 433A of the CrPC.
- It mandates a person serving a life imprisonment sentence for an offence where death is a punishment or where a death sentence has been commuted, cannot be released until they have served at least 14 years in prison.
Critical reception of the judgement
- Justice vindicated: Bano and her family members expressed disappointment with the decision of the court to acquit some of the convicts, and they plan to challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court.
- Communal angle to the release: Bano has been a symbol of courage and determination for survivors of sexual violence in India, and her case has highlighted the need for justice and accountability for crimes committed during communal riots.
Significance of the case
- The Bilkis Bano case is significant as it highlights the issue of communal violence in India and the failure of the authorities to provide justice to the victims.
- The case also underscores the need for the protection of the rights of women and minorities in India.
- The long legal battle fought by Bano and her supporters shows that justice is possible, but it requires persistence, courage and the support of civil society.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: MPA, Southern Ocean, Ross Islands
Mains level: Marine Protection Areas
Central idea: India has pledged its continued support for the establishment of two Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in Antarctica, with the aim of protecting marine life and the ecosystem services that it provides.
What are Marine Protected Areas?
- An MPA is a defined region that is managed for the long-term conservation of marine resources, ecosystem services, or cultural heritage.
- They can be established in national and international waters to preserve the biodiversity of the marine environment.
Criteria used for MPAs declaration
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has developed a set of criteria for the identification and management of marine protected areas (MPAs). These criteria include:
- Representativeness: MPAs should include a range of habitats, ecosystems, and species that are representative of the region.
- Biological diversity: MPAs should conserve a wide range of biodiversity, including species, habitats, and genetic diversity.
- Rarity: MPAs should protect rare, unique, or endemic species or habitats.
- Productivity: MPAs should conserve areas of high productivity, such as spawning and nursery grounds.
- Resilience: MPAs should protect ecosystems that are able to withstand disturbances and recover from damage.
- Ecological processes: MPAs should conserve important ecological processes, such as nutrient cycling and migration patterns.
- Connectivity: MPAs should be connected to other protected areas to allow for the movement of species and genetic material.
- Cultural and social importance: MPAs should consider the cultural and social importance of the area to local communities.
MPA in focus: Southern Ocean
- The Southern Ocean, which encircles Antarctica, covers around 10 per cent of the global ocean and is home to nearly 10,000 unique polar species.
- The ecosystem is an important source of marine resources, including fish and krill, which support commercial fisheries and provide a food source for larger animals.
Threats to the Southern Ocean and its marine life
- Climate change is affecting the Southern Ocean, altering habitats such as sea ice and the sheltered seafloor under ice shelves that are home to a variety of species.
- Commercial fishing, particularly for krill (shrimp-like crustacean), is also threatening the ecosystem.
Need for an MPA in Antarctica
- The Southern Ocean needs protection to prevent the further impact of climate change and commercial exploitation.
- A new MPA would help limit human activities, including fishing, mining, and drilling, and help conserve the region’s marine resources and unique biodiversity.
Existing MPAs in the Southern Ocean
- The Southern Ocean currently has two MPAs:
- In the southern shelf of the South Orkney Islands and
- In the Ross Sea
- These MPAs protect only 5 percent of the ocean, with all types of fishing, other than scientific research, prohibited within the southern shelf of the South Orkney Islands MPA.
Resistance to proposed MPAs
- Proposals to establish MPAs in East Antarctica, the Weddell Sea, and the waters surrounding the Antarctic Peninsula have been met with resistance by China and Russia.
- The two countries have a different view than the rest of the members of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which is an intergovernmental body set up in 1982 to conserve Antarctic marine life.
India’s interest in the commercial exploitation of krill
- India has expressed interest in commercial exploitation of krill in the region.
- However, increased harvesting of krill threatens animals that feed on them, including fish, whales, seals, penguins, and other seabirds.
Contribution of proposed MPAs to the United Nations 30×30 Framework
- If the proposed MPAs take form in Antarctica, they will contribute to the United Nations 30×30 Framework, which aims to protect 30 percent of the world’s land and sea.
- This agreement was reached at the 15th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2022.
Conclusion
- Most countries have agreed in principle to establish MPAs in Antarctica, and it is expected to be discussed further at the next Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting.
- The establishment of MPAs in Antarctica is crucial to preserving the region’s marine resources and unique biodiversity, and for contributing to the global
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Mahila Samman Saving Certificate
Mains level: Not Much
Finance Minister while presenting the Budget 2023 announced a new scheme for women, Mahila Samman Saving Certificate. This scheme has now been operationalized.
Mahila Samman Saving Certificate
- It is a one-time new small savings scheme of the government of India announced in the Budget 2023.
- It will be made available for a two-year period up to March 2025.
- This will offer deposit facility upto Rs 2 lakh in the name of women or girls for a tenure of 2 years.
- The deposit facility will offer fixed interest rate of 7.5 per cent with a partial withdrawal option.
Benefits offered
- It is a suitable alternative to fixed deposits (FDs) invested in the name of a woman for the short term.
- The returns are higher than bank FDs and partial withdrawal makes liquidity less of a concern.
Other details
- The Scheme will be rolled out through banks and post offices across the country.
- The taxation structure is yet to be known and the scheme is expected to be available from April 1, 2023.
How is it different from Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana?
- SSY is a small deposit scheme of the government of India meant exclusively for a girl child. The scheme is meant to meet the education and marriage expenses of a girl child.
- The current rate of interest offered by Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana is 7.6%, which is compounded annually.
- Account can be opened in the name of a girl child till she attains the age of 10 years.
- The total amount deposited in an account shall not exceed Rs 1,50,000 in a financial year.
- Sukanya Samriddhi scheme has tax benefits under Section 80C.
- The account matures after 21 years from the date of opening or on marriage of the girl child under whose name the account is opened, whichever is earlier.
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